Page 30 of Boyfriend From Hell

Boutiques lined the center of the market square, no different from a typical outdoor mall.

I was stunned. I hadn’t known what to expect when he said we’d go shopping—call me whatever you’d like, but I fully expected something out of a horror movie.

Yet everything here, so far, had been almost normal.

It all resembled home, with the exception of the occasional demon strolling past us and giving a nod to Raios.

The demons here looked like regular people, save for the occasional tail or tattered wing, and oddly enough they seemed pretty kind.

From what I gathered, Hell seemed to be split into seven sectors—following the seven deadly sins or something like that, I wasn’t sure. I never paid much mind to anything in the realm of religion before, so I had taken to absorbing each bit of information, one morsel at a time.

All of the sectors seemed to surround a single hub, which also coincidentally was where Raios’ home was.

I had expected, upon exiting his place, I’d discover we’d been in a castle of sorts—or a really nice cave.

I definitely didn’t expect to find that it was a really nice, well-kept estate.

Pride was his family’s sector, yet we were currently in the Greed district.

My mind kept slipping back to the things he had said before in his room about the deal and the bond—owning each other—as we strolled down the peculiar commercial strip of shops.

I didn’t dislike the thought at all, not when I really sat with my emotions.

Even back at my apartment, something about him just felt right.

I liked the way he talked to me and how, when he looked at me, he did so as if I were the most prized possession in his life.

Sure, I still felt like something was missing inside me—maybe it was the bond burned into my chest talking—but I felt more myself here than I think that I ever had back home.

“Don’t worry about paying for anything, everyone knows we’re together.” Raios slung his arm across my shoulder as we walked into one of the shops. “Being the Prince of Hell has its perks.”

“Ah, Prince! Excellent to see you,” an elderly man with weathered gray skin said, smiling warmly at Raios. “What can I do for you today?”

Raios gestured to me. “Whatever she wants, put it under my name.”

I glanced at the man and gave him an awkward smile and he smiled warmly in return.

“Of course, Prince. Whatever you wish.”

Raios turned to me. “So, what would you like to look for first? Lingerie perhaps?” His smile was so captivating it made my breath stutter.

I rolled my eyes. “Sure, Prince. Maybe the old man can help me dress and all.”

He huffed a laugh and pulled me in close to his side. It felt intimate and roused the lazy butterflies that had laid dormant in my stomach.

“Over my dead body,” he chuckled, kissing the top of my head.

With Raios’ arms stacked high with various items, I felt satisfied with my haul.

I couldn’t believe I was really here to stay.

Deal or not, I mean, Hell sounded awful and the thought of choosing to live in Hell sounded insane.

But all things considered it really wasn’t bad at all––nothing like I had always imagined.

Things could only go up from here (literally).

We ended our adventure in Gluttony district, where we were seated on the rooftop of some lavish restaurant where, to no one's surprise, Raios had his own table with the best view.

The server placed our food in front of us, two normal—not Hell-ish looking—burgers. Mine, without ketchup, of course, and Raios’ surprisingly with no condiments at all. Who would have thought the next ruler of Hell hated pickles?

I grinned at him over my burger.

“What?” He eyed me suspiciously.

“Nothing,” I smiled and bit into my food, which just so happened to be the best thing I had ever eaten.

Raios picked off a corner of his bun and popped it into his mouth.

“You know I can just read your mind to find the answer—”

I rolled my eyes. “Lest I forget the all-powerful spawn of the big Underworlder himself can read minds.”

He bit into his burger, eyes still sizing me up.

“This is our first date,” I said, as I wiped the corner of my mouth.

His eyes glittered. “Oh, so you didn’t count me abducting you and dragging you to Hell as our first date? Not even the nightmare of a dinner with my parents? Shocking.”

I kicked him lightly under the table, grateful the new shoes I’d gotten were extremely comfortable. I glanced down, making sure I hadn’t scuffed them from the kick. “No, Raios. Taking me from my home and licking my tears did not count as a first date, nor did your mother verbally attacking me.”

“What was I supposed to do? Invite you to Hell? Much more memorable to be dragged here instead.”

“Yea, much more dramatic.”

“Are you implying you would have come with me freely if I had just invited you?”

“No,” I barked out. “I would have called you crazy and told you to fuck off.”

“Exactly, so—” He grabbed the ornate glass of water in front of him and raised it for a toast. “To first dates, sans abduction, and shitty mothers!”

I grinned and huffed a laugh, raising my burger in the air. “To first dates, sans licking each other’s tears!”

With a stomach full of the best burger I’d ever eaten and a new wardrobe, it was safe to say that had been the best date of my life—which, come to think of it, was kind of pitiful.

We entered Pride district and the lack of Underworlders was peculiar, but to be expected. Raios explained to me that his family and him were essentially royalty, hence why Cam and Mal and so many others referred to him as Prince. Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen them since I’d arrived.

“Cam and Mal don’t live here with you?” I asked, as he linked his arm with mine while we walked to his estate. “Do they live nearby?”

He tilted his head at me, scanning my face.

“Cam and Mal? Why are you curious about them? They’re essentially, nothing.”

Well, that was rude. He grinned and shook his head, raising his free hand.

I watched as smoke formed in the center of his palm.

“I can control shadow, it’s weaker right now, believe it or not. It will be stronger when I take over as leader—King.” He winked at the word. “Look.”

I eyed his palm skeptically as the ball of shadow writhed against his hand and split, reshaping into two small figures that materialized as miniature versions of Cam and Mal, and gasped.

Ah, I’d seen him do this before. I felt a flush of embarrassment for asking—if I’d just given the thought an ounce of effort, I would have remembered that he’d made them appear out of thin air before. Raios abruptly stopped walking, causing me to stumble over my own feet.

“Don’t think like that. Your curiosity is valid. You’ll have many questions about things here as our time together continues, don’t ever feel like you can’t or shouldn’t ask me things.”

He brought his hand down to my eye level. “I created them when I was a kid—I was lonely. Not many demons or others here want to be friends with the son of… well,” he gestured around us. “It has a certain stigma to it.”

“But everyone we saw today was so friendly toward you, I can’t imagine they would have treated you any differently as a kid?”

“Deer, they’re respectful toward me. They fear me.”

I was quiet for a moment, watching Cam and Mal walk along their creator’s palm. My mind spun with hundreds of questions about the tiny figures.

“They’re sentient in the sense that they’re tiny pieces of me, but don’t worry. They feel no pain unless I feel it, so there's no way to harm them. They’ve kept me company for years, I honestly don’t know how I would have survived by myself if I hadn’t created them.”

I looked up at the devil who was wrapped around my arm, spilling bits of his insecurities to me. Pain colored his eyes as he stared down at his not so imaginary-imaginary friends.

“Honestly, they were the only thing I had until now.”

Then it struck me, he had been inconceivably lonely.