Worship

"You're just having water? You could order the most expensive wine on the menu, Mary. There's nothing stopping you," reminded Eli, hiding his disappointment, until realising that he hardly knew what his sister was like, at least now she was an adult. For all he knew, she didn't drink alcohol; she might not like the taste or she might simply have bad experiences with it, and he didn't know that. He barely knew anything about her anymore, and that sudden realisation made him fall silent and peer at the menu quietly.

"I'll just have the merlot," he mumbled with a faint smile, absently fiddling with his ring. "I, uh... this is nice though, right? I... I mean, if it's too much, we don't have to do this again. We could do something more... normal."
 
"I would love to do something more 'normal'," Mary agreed quickly as she fiddled anxiously with her napkin. "Just something nice, you know? Perhaps get some coffee and I could show you my place, yeah?" She suggested, anxious for the response.

"So simple, so innocent," Apollo noted as he took a sip of his water, chuckling. "You're so different from your brother, it's like whiplash. Your brother here is far from innocent, hm? He's a bad boy, certainly," he purred, a devious hand resting on the other's upper knee.
 
"That'd be neat. I could fetch some records over, we could listen to some new stuff I've been into, like we used to do when we were kids - share music and stuff. It'll be nostalgic as fuck, but I think we could both do with something more normal. Yeah, let's do that. I'd be down for that," he agreed easily. As comfortable as he had gotten with his new lifestyle, especially the perks he received by dating Apollo, he could quite easily slip back into normality, especially if that was what his sister desired. In fact, a few hours at her place listening to some punk music sounded just as fun as dining out in a fancy restaurant did.

The only downside was that the invitation had clearly only been for him, and sidelining Apollo again might lead to another fierce argument, so he was glad that the demon seemed preoccupied with flirtation and references to how 'bad' he was. On the surface, he knew it came over as highly flirtatious. If the others chose to interpret it differently, he knew they would only assume his violence and anger issues were being referenced to.

Nobody was going to ever imagine that the depths of his depravity had sunk to ritualistic sacrifices, which he not only observed but actively took part in. He wasn't obsessed and brainwashed like the other humans were; he was doing it because he loved Apollo and genuinely found enjoyment in the power rush he got from it all. He had no real excuses, and the fact he was sat smirking subtly to his boyfriend about the hidden references spoke volumes to how little guilt he felt about it all.

"I'm not bad, don't say that. I'm just protective," he countered, eyeing the girls across the table to ensure that the touches beneath the table weren't being picked up on. It was one thing flirting and kissing, but like hell did he want his sister or her friend to realise how far things were getting. He wanted the night to go smoothly and to be enjoyable - he hardly imagined that getting turned on in the middle of a fancy restaurant would help anyone. "Probably should have therapy for my issues or whatever, but it's a bunch of crap-- I went for a while, when I was doing that conversion bullshit. They had therapy there, obviously didn't work."
 
"To be honest, I was thinking about going to therapy myself," Mary admitted as she sipped her water, a smile on her lips as she obliviously watched the two. She could feel the sexual tension, she wasn't that oblivious but she couldn't imagine Apollo's subtle touching under the table. "I think it would be healthy for me, you know? Get all of that shit out. It's helping with my music but sometimes trauma can lead to things that aren't good, naturally."

"I think therapy is great," Apollo commented as he casually took a sip of his wine. "While I don't personally need it, nor do I think your brother does, it's important to feel better, hm? Wouldn't want to lose my boyfriend's sister, that would be tragic."

"That's kind of dark," murmured Agnes under her breath as she sipped her own drink,
 
"Nothing wrong with therapy, I advise it. I have a new therapist, she's real nice. I mean, I'm hard work for her, but she's helping me out. It's helpful to talk about this shit, Mary. Find someone you can talk to about it all. Apollo helps me a lot, actually. As dark as his comments might seem, he's actually the sweetest person. I'd be a mess without him. I get that I'm not... perfect, but I'm better than I was when we were younger," he pointed out, well aware that it was a lie. If anything, he was far worse than he was when he was younger. Having a boyfriend who openly invited him to dark activities and encouraged his violence was hardly a help to his many issues, was it?

"We're not going to lose Mary, that's silly. I wouldn't let any harm come to her," he declared easily, though he doubted that Apollo would go as far as to ever harm her, especially after the long nights he had spent talking about his childhood and how much his sister meant to him.

"Ah, this looks great, huh?" He beamed at the arrival of the food, eyeing Apollo. "I can pay for tonight, I don't want you to do that, alright?"
 
"You sure? I don't mind paying, Elijah, especially when your sister is here. I want to treat, celebrate your reunion," he urged with a genuine smile, raising his glass for emphasis. He found Mary and her friend incredibly annoying but just as the human thought, he had no intentions of hurting either of the girls. He was a demon and the son of Satan but that didn't mean he was completely heartless, especially when it came to his boyfriend. With a literally infinite amount of money, spending a few hundred on people so important didn't bother him.

"Please? I want to. Money is burning a hole in my pocket, you know that. If you want, you can pay me back later tonight when we're alone," he suggested, his brows raising only to cause Mary and her friend snort.
 
At the unsubtle derisive snort from across the table, Elijah glanced sharply at the two girls, frowning to himself. He could grow embarrassed by their apparent derision, if it was that, but getting embarrassed was hardly his style. Instead, with a grin of his own, he winked at his boyfriend, knowing exactly what insinuation had been made and was eager to show his enthusiasm for it.

"I'll pay you back, don't worry about that," he purred into his ear, absently catching sight of a recent love-bite on his neck and smiling proudly to himself in the knowledge that he had put it there - though his own neck was probably lined with them. The only reason they weren't as visible was because of the tattoos that lined almost all of his neck at this point.

"Oh! Oh, I shoulda told you this, I forgot - I got a tattoo of you. Not of your face or anything; just your name and a rose," he murmured over to his sister, hitching his sleeve up to show off said tattoo on his upper arm. "Had it done years ago; when I just got out of conversion therapy. Needed something to remind me of you, or whatever. It's corny but... I dunno, it's great, yeah? I want to get something done for Apollo, too - just can't decide what to get. Plus I'm kinda running out of space, so that's a bummer."
 
"Wait, really?" Mary replied in genuine shock. They had been strictly told to "never desecrate their bodies" and tattoos were certainly on the list of ways to "desecrate" it. She hadn't even really brought any attention to her brother's tattoos but once she really took them in, she was immediately fascinated. "Oh my god, you didn't have to do that, Elijah! It's really nice, I bet it cost a lot," she noted, her cheeks red in surprise.

"I think it's a lovely homage to you, hm?" Commented Apollo as he took a bite of his steak, subtly urging Mary and Agnes to do the same. "Perhaps you should get a tattoo of Elijah, hm? I think it would be sweet - and I'd be willing to pay," he suggested in attempts to get even more on Mary's good side.
 
"Oh god, you don't need to do that, Mary. You ain't got a single tattoo, I don't want your first one to be about me. I'd feel guilty or whatever," he shrugged, absently sipping his wine to distract from how flustered he was becoming. The tattoo dedicated to his sister was one of the first he had gotten, when he first arrived in London and wanted to keep a physical reminder of her. It was way before he met Apollo, but he did often think the demon might be mad that he had the name of his sister on him and nothing about him as of yet. He knew that his love wasn't going to be determined by a tattoo and that it really meant very little, but he still felt guilty nonetheless.

"...This food's fucking great, yeah? Not exactly the cheap shit I used to steal for us," he grinned over to his sister, changing the subject as quick as he could. "We were skint most the time, y'know Apollo? Our folks spent most their money on themselves."
 
"On cheap alcohol, too," she replied with a snort, her head shaking in disbelief. Things were over now so she could easily look back at it all casually. For her, the trauma was relatively fresh on account that it hadn't even been a year since she left, but she was determined to get over it as quickly as possible and instead laugh at it.

"Like, not even the good stuff. If you're going to waste money on some cheap beer instead of feeding us, that's just insulting," she continued casually with a roll of her eyes before sipping water. It was one of the main reasons she avoided alcohol in addition to her poor ability to handle it, the idea making her skin crawl. "Lottery tickets, too. It was fuckin' dumb, you know?"
 
"Disgusting really. Like the dinner ladies at school would have to give us extra food because they thought we looked too thin-- which we were, course we were too fucking thin. We were barely fed," he muttered, a small smile creeping onto his face as he took in the size of the meal in front of him and the surroundings he was eating in. A part of him wanted to head home just so he could show his parents how different his life was, though he knew he wouldn't be able to hold back and he wasn't going to get arrested for beating them up, however much he wanted to.

"Apollo's dad is a pretty big name, it's sort of... intimidating dating him, actually. Our parents are assholes, but his Dad is... I dunno, it scares me. You know it does, Apollo. You know full well the man could rip me to shreds without hesitation," he murmured quietly, the fear being the one reason he didn't really want to go with him. Of course he was going to when the time came but it didn't stop the fear sinking in. He did worry him that Apollo would easily move on too. He loved him, and he knew the love was there in return, but he always feared that Apollo didn't love him as much. He was paranoid, he knew that, but it didn't mean those feelings were invalid.
 
"Well, I won't let either of you get so skinny anymore," reassured Apollo, sipping his wine as he listened to the admittedly depressing conversation. His smile faltered at the mention of his father, causing the demon to sigh. It had been a problematic conversation throughout their relationship and he understood Elijah's paranoia but that didn't mean it wasn't frustrating. "As for my father, you have no reason to be so anxious. Sure, he's a powerful man but I would never let that lead to anyone getting hurt. Anyone that is innocent, at least."

"You don't have to worry about me being skinny anymore or whatever, Agnes and my friends make sure I'm fine," Mary reassured, her eyes darting to her friend who had grown quiet. It was all pretty dark shit that she wanted to keep far away from - it wasn't her place to talk. "Seriously, I'm fine. I'm doing pretty well, way better than I was when I was at home."
 
"You know I'm not fucking innocent, so does that mean I'm going to get torn to shreds when I meet him or what? You know I've done some dark shit, Apollo," he grimaced back in return, lowering his voice to a whisper to avoid any questions from Mary, the last thing he wanted being her enquiring about what he had done that was so bad. Murder wasn't something he was fond of blurting out to the one person he wanted to be seen as a normal guy too.

"...Look, this is depressing, ain't it? Tell me more about yourself, Agnes-- you seem cool," he declared with a playful wink, resting his head on his hand. "My sister said you went to conversion therapy or whatever? Which I did too so we got that in common, yeah? And your style is pretty great so that's another similarity~"
 
"Yeah, my parents weren't a huge fan when they learned I was eating girls out in the bathroom of my school," Agnes replied crudely despite the smug smile on her lips. "Whisked me away pretty soon after, in fact. To be honest, being told that I wasn't valid only made the gay grow more intense in me... not to mention, nothing is going to keep me away from what I want and sometimes I just want a cute girl on my lap. So when I got out, pretended that I was 'suddenly cured' and the minute I got out of school, my parents gave me money to start a life and go to college. Used it to get a flat with my mates, Mary included, and here we are. My parents don't understand how the internet works so they're completely oblivious to the fact that my favorite pastime is enjoying some nice titties on m'face," she teased, causing Mary to giggle at just how crude it all was.

"Agnes, please! We're at a fancy restaurant, at least keep down," urged Mary despite her wide smile as she cut into her food and took a bite of her steak. "It's true, though. The amount of girls she brings back to our flat is ridiculous, I've met plenty of them and they're all lovely. I would love for her to settle down but it doesn't seem to be in her agenda," she continued, earning a casual shrug from Agnes a she took a bite of her lobster.
 
Discussions as crude as Agnes' were hardly welcome at a place like the restaurant, but Elijah hardly cared - and it was possibly hypocritical of him to chastise someone when he had said equally explicit things at fancy places. Hell, he had physically done things too, whether it was something small like a few touches under the table or full-blown sex in a toilet stall. He wasn't about to get all uppity when he was just the same. If anything, it made his earlier irritation with the woman disappear, deciding there and then that he not only approved of the friend his sister had made but that he really liked her himself. He didn't have many friends; in fact, he just had Apollo. While he wasn't eager to befriend people, Agnes was possibly an exception.

"Hey, if she wants to enjoy herself with some cute girls, let her. I probably would have enjoyed some men to make up for lost time if I hadn't met Apollo and fallen hard for him. But he's perfect so I ain't complaining. Don't think any guy I would have met could match up to him," he murmured, the urge to spill the details about just how perfect Apollo was being tempting, but he also had to remind himself that this was his sister. As close as he was to her, details about his experimental sex life was probably going too far.

"...Nah, you've got yourself a good friend, Mary, I'm glad. Didn't want you falling into the wrong crowd, you know? I'm happy you have a mate like her, it's a relief, I guess."
 
"Maybe I'll find the perfect guy here. The pickings were pretty slim in Manchester," Mary noted as she watched Apollo's eyes sparkle at the praise. To be told he was the perfect boyfriend was a pleasant stroke to his ego. "I mean, if you can find such amazing people like Apollo, I could find someone myself, right? That would be nice, now that our parents aren't breathing down my neck."

"Perhaps, I would love for you to meet someone a lovely as your brother," Apollo praised in return, his eyes locked on his boyfriend with a wide smile. "I know a few very nice men in our social circle that might be nice for you, I can only hope you could find someone as lovely as I have," he purred, ignoring Agnes' rolling her eyes at the soppy scene.
 
"Nobody in our social circle is good enough for her, Apollo. They're all obsessed weirdos; she deserves a decent guy, not a lunatic," he declared unashamedly, his eyes rolling at the remark. He was furious with Cameron for being near his sister and he was probably the nicest out of the whole little group. It went without saying that any of the others were far beneath the standards he thought Mary ought to have.

"You'll find someone Mary. Easily. Obviously I need to approve 'em, not just anyone can date my little sister. But you'll find someone, I'm sure. I'm a total asshole and I found someone, didn't I? I know it's corny, but he's perfect," he beamed over at the demon, connecting their fingers lovingly. He had considered a proposal; he thought about it within the first month of meeting him. As sure as he was that the answer would be yes, he always stopped himself from asking, too fearful of rejection which would, without a doubt, break his heart. "...God, I'm not good at this soppy bullshit."
 
"Really? 'Cuz you two seem to be pretty consistently soppy," countered Agnes with a smirk, her eyes mostly locked on Mary. To say she had no feelings for the girl was a blatant lie but she understood boundaries, she knew better than anyone that she couldn't just stop her best friend from being straight so the least she could do is support her in finding the perfect man.

"Oh, yes, Cameron! He seems so sweet, I'm a little disappointed you don't like him," Mary noted, deciding to take a picture of Agnes' glass of wine. "He was very helpful and nice, I don't see why you don't like him. It's a bit of a bummer," she teasingly huffed, rolling her eyes at the overly affectionate scene between the couple.
 
"Cameron? You like that guy? I... god Mary, he's a loser. He's so weak and polite, it makes me sick," he grunted dismissively, shooting Apollo a quiet glare. He had to spend time with Cameron simply because he was part of his boyfriend's little group. Sure, he wasn't involved as much as the others were yet, but that was the plan eventually, and that only pissed Eli off. He disliked them all and, if he had his way, Apollo would stop spending time with them. Unfortunately he had no choice, so similarly, neither did Elijah.

"I don't wanna talk about him, he pisses me off," he huffed with a dramatic smile, taking his mind off the conversation as he smiled at Apollo. "I could find someone for her, we don't need to rely on your weirdo friends, Apollo-- I know loads of guys from the gym I go to, Mary. Or maybe from the cute tattoo place I go to, the guy there says he wants a girlfriend."
 
"Just because he wants a girlfriend doesn't mean we'd connect," she countered with a small frown. "I don't know why you hate Cameron so much, he's only done good things for me! Hmph... listen, I'll figure it out on my own," Mary reassured, waving her brother off dismissively. She was an adult technically, she could make her own decisions, right?

"Listen, I'm at least going to find that boy and say thank you," she decided as she took a bite of the potatoes on the side, humming. It was the best things he had in... well, her whole life at this point, so she was going to savor it. "You can't stop me from doing that, I'm my own person."
 
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