Page 50 of Demon's Desire
Kelly leaned against the back of the couch and gave me a look. “Mia, you need to find something. I don’t want you to wait until the last minute, and then suddenly, all your savings are gone. The plan was to get a job right away.”
“Yeah.” I nodded quickly. I was a bit mortified that Kelly felt like she had to bring this up or that she thought I had been slacking off. “I know. And it’s not like I’ve given up. I was just trying to be there for Torie and Mica last week, and now this. I’m looking. I am. But I’m a bit concerned about how getting a job is going to work with Suldeargan.”
“Oh, by the way,” she leaned forward so she could see him as well, “your name is a fucking mouthful. What do you think about Soul?”
“Soul?” He raised an eyebrow. “You want to call me Soul?”
“Yeah,” she confirmed. “Like the first syllable of your name.”
“I prefer the name that I was given,” he responded with a dry tone.
“Okay, well I’m gonna call you Soul,” she said curtly. “Anyway, I know it’ll be hard, but if there really isn’t a solution, then we need options. I’m not gonna be able to afford rent by myself if you ever come up short. You have more money in savings than I do. I’m just trying to look out for you.”
“Thank you.” I sighed. I was starting to get overwhelmed. “But I’m working on it. I’m okay.”
“All right.” She nodded. “How are we doing on groceries?”
“We’re a little low,” I warned her. “We could just do delivery tonight if you want.”
Kelly shook her head. “No, I’d rather do groceries until I get paid again.”
“All right. That’s fine,” I agreed. “Do you mind going?”
She immediately looked disappointed when I asked, but she stood up. “Yeah. I’ll go. But you’ve got to figure out a way to work with him because I can’t be the only one getting groceries and working.”
“Okay,” I said simply, not wanting to argue anymore. “The list is on the fridge.”
“Okay. I’ll go out the back then.” She started in that direction. “I’ll be back soon.”
“Love you,” I called as she walked off.
“Love you.” Her reply was about as tired and unenthusiastic as mine. After a minute, I heard the back door shut behind her, and I dropped my head into my hands.
“That’s not how most friends speak to each other,” Suldeargan pointed out.
“No,” I mumbled. “It’s not how we speak to each other either. She’s just… frustrated.”
“She's your friend, though,” he challenged. “She shouldn’t speak to you like that.”
“It’s fine.” I shook my head and took a deep breath. “I’ll be right back.”
I got up and went to the bathroom. I didn’t close the door, I just leaned over the sink and turned the water on, putting some on my face.
His footsteps followed me down the hall, and after a moment, he stood in the doorway. “You could tell her that she’s wrong. That you don’t need to be spoken to like a child.”
“I’m not gonna do that,” I assured him, rubbing my face with water again.
“You deserve better,” Suldeargan insisted.
“It’s not like she’s a bitch. Not to me, anyway. She’s not normally like that. I’m her best friend. She must have just had a bad day.” I grabbed a washcloth and dried off my face before walking to the door. He moved out of the way and let me walk past. I turned and went into my bedroom, sitting on the edge of the bed. I needed a minute to just be quiet and not think about everyone who was annoyed with me.
Instead, his footsteps appeared at the door again. “No one should speak to you that way, whether she’s frustrated at you or at work. Not to mention that she has no right to be. It is not her concern whether you can find a job.”
“It is, actually,” I disagreed, “because it factors into whether I can help with the rent.”
“But it’s not urgent right now,” he countered. “You don’t need someone putting that much pressure on you.”
“What do you know about our friendship?” I snapped, looking up at him. “You’ve known me for less than a day! Can you leave me alone for just a minute?”