Wake up. 

 

In the midst of dark, all-consuming nothingness, there was a faint voice. 

 

"Wake up," it said, a little louder this time. Yet again, there was no response. 

 

"WAKE UPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!" 

 

A male voice shattered Oliver's sleep as he shot up in bed. The scream was still ringing in his ears as he panted in the dark. 

 

He looked around in the dark, disoriented. 

 

Then everything that had happened came rushing back to him.

 

"Wh-where am I?!" 

 

"Oh—good morning, Oliver!" Marilyn said from somewhere I'm the darkness. "Oh wait, it's night time, so… good night, I guess?" She trailed off, lost in thought over it.

 

"Wait—it's night?!?!" 

 

She stirred. "Huh? Oh, yeah. You've been asleep all day." 

 

All day?! 

 

Oliver started getting panicky. He checked under his shirt, squinting in the dark. 

 

"You didn't happen to take my kidney by any chance, did you? Or… any other important organ…?" 

 

"Huh? Why would I do that to my sidekick?" 

 

Sidekick… oh yeah… whatever that means… 

 

He sat up, still tasting that sulfur taste on the roof of his mouth. "What time is it?" He asked groggily. 

 

"It… just turned 8:00 p.m." she said, looking at the clock. 

 

Oliver groaned. "So, I missed the first day of school?"

 

"Pretty much."

 

He flopped back onto what he assumed was Marilyn’s bed, covering his face. Well, shit. 

 

"It's okay," Marilyn said in the darkness, "I missed school too, so I could take care of you. So at least you didn't miss it alone."

 

"That doesn't make me any happier," he said. "Why don't you turn on the light? It's too damn dark in here."

 

"Okay."

 

Oliver could hear her footsteps in the dark, and was blinded by the sharp yellow overhead light. He squinted and waited for his eyes to adjust.

 

When they did, he scanned to find Marilyn, searching for her green sweater. He eventually spotted her blue hair.

 

He ended up staring in dazed, awkward shock for a good minute before screaming.

 

"M–MARILYN?!" He shielded her from his view, trying not to look. 

 

"Huh? W–what?" She asked, confused.

 

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WHAT?! You have a GUY in here, and you're just STANDING IN FRONT OF ME, IN YOUR UNDERWEAR!!!" 

 

"Oh," she shrugged casually. "I just feel comfortable this way. My clothes are really heavy." 

 

"What do you mean, heavy?! All you wear is a sweater and a skirt! How is that heavy?!" He looked away, still avoiding her. 

 

"It's to make me stronger."

 

"...What?! What does that even mea—"

 

"So what if I'm in my underwear?" she interrupted with a pout. "This is my house, so it's my rules. Besides, you're my sidekick, so you go by my rules anyway!" 

 

The awkward silence that followed was palpable. 

 

Oliver got up, without looking in Marilyn's direction, and started heading for the door.

 

"Wait, where are you going, Oliver?"

 

"Home," he said looking down. "It's too awkward here."

 

"Wait! Oliver! You don't even know what's going on!" She cried, looking for her sweater. 

 

"I don't care anymore! You already made me miss my first day of school—I'm not gonna let you take any more of my time!" He reached for the knob. 

 

Knowing she couldn't stop him from leaving, she cried out, "Wait, Oliver! Hang on!"

 

"What?" He snapped. 

 

"Can you promise me one thing?" 

 

He closed his eyes. "Promise you what?" He asked through gritted teeth. 

 

"Promise me you'll sit with me at lunch tomorrow? And hang out with me?"

 

His eyes widened at the pure audacity of the question, then narrowed. What?! After everything she's done to me, there's no way I—

 

Wait…

 

Why don't I just say yes? I'll tell her that I wanna hang out tomorrow, and get her hopes up. Then, when tomorrow comes, I'll avoid her all day. Then, she can have some karma for everything she put me through… 

 

He thought it was the perfect revenge. 

"Yeah, sure. Why not?" 

 

"YAYYYYY!!!" She danced around happily. Marilyn turned to Oliver with a pure, warm smile, laced with ecstacy. "Watch, Oliver—you'll be the best sidekick, and me and you are gonna be good friends, Oliver. I can't wait, Oliver!"

 

She was smiling so wide, he could see her sharp canines—the ones that she had pricked herself with that morning. Did she… file them? 

 

Oliver briskly thought of her constant sidekick comments… but didn't have enough mental capacity to care right now.

 

"Byeeeee Oliver!! Take care!!!!" She waved him off with a smile.

 

"Um, yeah… bye."

 

He opened the door and made his way outside the house. 

 

She was really happy to hear me say I'd hang out with her… shit… He started making his way back home. 

 

As he walked down the empty sidewalks, the cold air biting at his hands and face, he thought about everything that had happened to him. The chase, the flagpole, the blood, her strength, her heavy clothes, her kid-like smile… 

 

He couldn't help but chuckle to himself, his laughter slightly echoing on the barren streets. She was pretty cute, he thought, smiling up at the moon. 

 

Wait, what?! What am I saying? She's not cute—she drugged me and made me miss the first day of school. She's nuts! 

 

And with that, Oliver continued to walk home, feeling justified about his plans for the next day. 

 

THE NEXT DAY 

 

Oliver was already up for the day—at a more manageable time this time. He was in the middle of brushing his teeth, when he saw it. 

 

There, sticking right up from the back of his head, was three tufts of hair, jutting out from the rest. What the hell…?

 

He tried combing it back down with the rest, but it sprang right back up again. 

 

"Errrrr…" He furiously combed it down, assuming he must've slept on his hair wrong or something. Every time he swiped his comb, it popped back up. 

 

He went to grab a pair of scissors, and cut off the tufts. The black hair fell to the ground softly. There… finally… 

 

He looked back up at the mirror, and to his dumbfoundment saw the three tufts, back again. "What the hell?! How's that even possible?!?" 

 

He tried everything—gel, hairspray, even glue. In the end, though, nothing worked. He ended up just putting a hoodie on over his head. 

 

How much time did I waste on this? Oliver checked his phone.

 

7:48 a.m.

 

"Shit! I'm running late again!!!"

 

Oliver bolted down the stairs, grabbing his backpack and slamming the door behind him. He rushed to the front of his apartment building and started half–running to school.

 

"Good Morning, Oliver!"

 

He spun around, face to face with Marilyn. 

 

"What the—?! How did you find out where I live?!"

 

"Ummm… I didn't—I just… happened to run into you on my way to school." 

 

"Oh," Oliver said. 

 

"Let's walk to school together, Oliver!" 

 

Oh, crap… I don't wanna walk with her… 

 

He looked around. There was no way to escape—he knew he wouldn't be able to escape her. She was too fast and strong. 

 

He sighed. "Well, shit. I guess I have no choice." 

 

She clasped her hands. "Yay!" 

 

They walked together in silence, Oliver staring at the sidewalk from inside his hood. It was pretty silent for a good few minutes. 

 

"So, Oliver… have you noticed any… changes?" Marilyn asked.

 

"Changes? What do you mean?"

 

"Like…" she started walking backwards so she could face him. "Like any changes to your body."

 

Changes to my body? "No, I don't think so… oh, wait—unless you count my hair, I guess. It keeps sticking up."

 

"What hair? Can I see?" She asked excitedly. 

 

"I… guess."

 

Oliver pulled off the hood, allowing the three hairs to jut outward. Marilyn gasped and pointed.

 

"There it is!!"

 

"There what is?"

 

"You're new look!" She exclaimed, standing on her tiptoes to get an up–close look. "It's like my fang!"

 

"Fang?"

 

She pointed to her sharp canine—the one that always poked out from her lips. Oliver realized there was only one. 

 

"Wait… that's a fang?"

 

"Um, yeah," she smiled, showing the full effect. 

 

"Oh. I thought you were just biting your lip 24/7." 

 

"Well… now you know." 

 

She went on staring at his tufts of hair, poking them and smiling until he shooed her off his head. 

 

He tried to press down the tufts again. "Why's this happening anyway? Is it some sort of side effect from when you drugged me?"

 

"Huh?" She asked, her brows knitting. "Oh! You mean yesterday. I didn't drug you, silly—I turned you into a demon."

 

Oliver's eyes widened. "You WHAT?!?!" 

 

"Well, a half demon. I'm a full demon. But you shouldn't be jealous, since you're just a sidekick anywa—"

 

"What do you mean you're a demon?!?!" He interrupted. 

 

This… this girl is crazy… there was no way she could… 

 

He thought of everything. The flagpole, the strength, the blood, the fang… 

 

"I'm a demon. You're a half demon. I gave you some of my blood, and—"

 

"Wait… you can't be a demon. Aren't demons… evil?" 

 

She remained completely collected as Oliver's brain leaked out his ears. 

 

"Oh yeah, we used to be—until we got a new ruler."

 

"...What?!?!"

End of chapter 2