Page 14 of My Roommate from Hell
“Do you want a coffee?” asks Zarmenus. “I’m sure you’ve got questions—you can ask me anything you’d like.”
“I’m never going to turn down coffee.”
In front of Brewed Awakening is a sign that says they have matcha lattes on sale. I’ve never tried one. Maybe I should. Isn’t trying new things the point of college?
We go inside and find a table near the back. This coffee shop is amazing: it’s split over two levels, and one of the feature walls is covered in plants. Big glass windows give an incredible view of the quad and the obelisk. Behind the cash register and coffee machine is a huge chalkboard with the menu and a mural of a sleeping white dragon with lilac smoke coming out of its nostrils. It’s official, I like this place. I feel a weird pang of guilt. My parents would kill to own a coffee shop like this, one that is both full of character and customers.
“You’re paying, right?” he says.
I frown. Isn’t he royalty? I don’t mind getting him a coffee, but it’s kind of rude to assume. I keep expecting him to tell me he’s joking, but from the looks of things he’s dead serious.
“I’m about to tell you things very few men have ever heard,” he offers.
“Fine. What do you want?”
“A coffee black as my soul. Humans get a lot wrong, but coffee is perfection.”
I order the coffees, including a matcha latte for myself. If I can talk with a demon, I can try an unfamiliar drink. When they’re ready, we take them to a table by the window.
“Let’s get this over with,” he says. “Ask your questions.”
“What you did back at the protest, how did you do that?”
“The shadow magic?”
I nod.
“It’s easy, really. All demons can do it.”
“So it’s magic?”
“You can call it that,” he says. “It’s like second nature to us. You don’t think too much about the fact that your heart beats or you can digest food, do you? It’s just something we can do. I can control shadows and flames, change my appearance, and a few other fun things.”
A shadowy, demonic hand creeps across the coffee table toward my drink. I move it away before it can reach.
“But your necklace,” I say. “I saw it glow.”
“You’re very perceptive.” He picks up the pendant and holds it in his fingers. “It’s a power source. I draw on its energy instead of my own. If I didn’t use it I’d be really tired now.”
“That’s actually so awesome! You can do magic. Sorry to nerd out but like, oh my God.”
“Let’s keep this rolling. Next question.”
“How do you feel about people thinking you’re evil?” I ask.
He takes another sip. “I don’t love it. Demons are good people, mostly.”
“Mostly?”
“You’re saying there aren’t bad humans?”
“No, I’m just curious.”
Zarmenus’s phone starts to ring.
He swipes and answers the call. He’s quiet for a moment, just listening. “Okay, we’ll be right there.”
He hangs up.
