Page 13 of Demon Dating Service

But Luke was in no shape to go to a party. He was a sweaty, greasy mess. He would need to jump in the shower and find some clean clothes prior to running over to campus. None of that sounded appealing.

His nice, comfy bed sounded very appealing.

Luke resumed his walk to the house while typing a response to Harper.

Luke

I can’t tonight. I’m exhausted.

Harper

Your life needs to be more than work and school.

Luke

Tell that to all my bills.

Harper

I thought you were going to ask your landlord if he needed help with odd jobs for a discount on rent.

Luke

It’s only been a week. I thought it was a good idea for us to get used to each other first before I begged for a discount on an already stupidly cheap rent.

Luke was sure this was one of the sucky parts about being poor. It wasn’t just about always scraping by and wondering how he was going to pay the next round of bills, especially if an emergency popped up. He always had this feeling of lagginghis friends or holding them back because he couldn’t afford to do the same things they wanted to do or he was always tired because he had to work more jobs than they did to make ends meet.

FOMO was constant.

It wasn’t Harper’s fault, though. She wanted him to feel included and to enjoy his time at Ravenwood. She also helped as much as his pride would allow her to.

Harper

I get it. Would you like me to snap a few more secret pics of Matteo for you?

A slow smile spread across Luke’s lips, and the tension that had crept into his shoulders dissipated in an instant.

Luke

You know that’s wrong and creepy.

Harper

Got it. Just two or three. No more.

Luke

Love you. Be safe.

Harper

Get some sleep! See you on Monday.

Their texting carried him right up to the sidewalk leading to the house. He sighed as he tucked his phone into his pocket. The dim front porch light was on, along with a couple of other lights on the second floor. The house was enormous and creepy in the pale moonlight, but it felt more like home with every night that he spent there.

Sleepy Hollow Road had become a haven from the chaos of the world. No one was making demands of him, and hisroommates gave him plenty of space to exist in the silence. The rooms were beautiful, the food was good, and he always had easy access to the washer and dryer for clean clothes. What more could he ask for?

If he could live in this peace and quiet for a few more weeks, recharging his depleted mental batteries and socking away his paychecks, he might feel up for a frat party or some other outing with Harper.