Levi’s POV:

I feel like I can’t move, but I have to pee so bad. When my eyes open, it’s mostly dark in the room but there is light flowing in from around the window so I know it’s still daytime in some sense. Maybe evening, as it is May… I’m not entirely sure what time it is. 

Elijah is sleeping on my left side, Greyson on my right, and their hands are clasped together over my stomach. Elijah’s face is buried into my neck, and his hair is a little damp and smells like pine and men’s cologne, so I’m pretty sure he might have showered when I was asleep. 

They both look really comfortable, but I think they’ll remain more comfortable if I don’t pee on them. I don’t know what kind of kinks demons have, but getting pissed on is not one of mine so I do not want any part of that. I try to slide out of their grip, but Elijah lets out a cross between and a whine and a groan and grips onto me tighter. 

I move again, more forcefully this time, and Greyson decides in his sleeping state that he needs to hold onto me as well. Shit, this is not good for me right now. I squirm a bit more, trying to keep myself composed, but I have to pee so bad and I don’t want to make either of them mad. 

“Greyson,” I whisper because he has a slightly weaker grip on me and I know him a little bit more than I know Elijah. I gently push his shoulder. “Greyson!”

His eyes flutter open and he blinks a couple of times before looking at me. “Are you okay?”

“I have to pee so bad and I can’t move,” I say, nodding toward Elijah. “I don’t want to make him mad.”

Greyson reaches over and shakes Elijah. “Babe, let go of Levi or he’s going to piss on you,” he says, and Elijah’s eyes fly open and he lets go of me instantly. 

I rush to the bathroom and immediately relieve myself. The bathroom mirror is covered in a sheet of steam so it’s clear that Elijah and Greyson both showered. It smells good here, and it makes me feel safe. It’s stupid to me that a smell can make me feel safe, but it’s better than feeling nauseous with anxiety. 

When I get back to the bedroom, Greyson has a computer out and he’s wearing glasses. Holy shit, he looks hot with them on. Elijah is curled into his side, his eyes closed even though he’s fully sat up and his head is on Greyson’s shoulder. His eyes flutter open when he hears my footsteps. 

Elijah opens his arms, waving me toward him. 

I follow his lead and he pulls me in between his legs so my back is comfortably laid against his chest. “Shouldn’t your eyes be perfect if you’re a demon?” I ask stupidly, my eyes focused on Greyson’s computer. 

“Theoretically,” Greyson responds. “My human form has issues in the eyes, and if I wanted it fixed, I could speak with Master Alastor.”

Elijah cuts in. “But Greyson looks hot with them on!” he chirps. He seems to be the optimist of the duo, and he almost always seems to be so happy and chirpy. Kind of like a parakeet. 

“What are you thinking about?” Greyson asks me, smirking a bit. “You look really focused.”

“Birds,” I blurt out before I can think of a good lie. 

“Birds?”

“Well, parakeets, if you want me to be more specific.” 

Elijah laughs from behind me, but he sounds just amused as opposed to judgemental or confused. “Is there a reason, or do you just like birds?”

“Uh… I guess I just like birds.” I shrug. “I have to work tomorrow morning… Could one of you drive me if you have time?”

“We can both drive you!” Elijah exclaims, and I feel him rest his chin on my shoulder. His touching and how close he is to me should freak me out, but it doesn’t. 

I’m not sure if this weird soulmate connection is drawing me to them, but I feel way too at ease. 

Greyson hums. “What time do you need to be there?”

“Six.”

Elijah narrows his eyes. “Where do you work?”

“Sunrise Coffee and Pastries.”

Greyson also seems uneasy right now, his energy matching Elijah’s. “That’s pretty far from your apartment, Levi.”

“How did you get there?” Elijah asks, crossing his arms. “Do you have a car that we don’t know about?”

I’m taken aback by the sudden unease and questioning. “No, I don’t. I took the bus or the streetcar.”

Greyson sighs in what I can only assume is annoyance and Elijah’s arms are still crossed over his chest. They keep looking at each other, as if they’re having some kind of silent conversation. It’s awkward because I feel left out and I can’t read their minds. 

“We can drive you,” Greyson says, shaking his head at Elijah briefly. “It’s not a problem at all.”

I don’t want to irritate them or make them mad, so I don’t pry. I stay silent, noticing that Elijah seems to relax as we get further from that conversation. Are they mad that I don’t have a car? Or are they just upset that I’ve had to use public transport?

Cincinnati isn’t really safe in certain areas, including where my apartment is, but I’ve learned that if you’re silent and mind your own business then people tend to leave you alone. I’m not a big guy, and I’ve often been approached by other men, but thankfully they usually back off when I ignore them.

“Master Alastor will be here soon,” Greyson says, looking at his phone. “Paxton just texted me.”

“I’m in the group chat,” Elijah points out, his hands still on my sides. 

“Your phone is on the nightstand and your ringer is off.”

Elijah huffs. “Does that mean we have to put on real clothes?” he whines, nudging Greyson’s calf with his toes. His whine goes ignored, so he pinches Greyson with his toes. 

“Ew,” Greyson deadpans, closing his laptop and putting it in one of the compartments in his nightstand. “Get your toes away from me.”

“I thought you loved every piece of me,” Elijah sighs dramatically. 

Greyson rolls his eyes fondly, getting out of bed and opening the huge closet that they have. He selects clothes for Elijah and throws them to him, and then he does the same for me. Before I can protest, Greyson gives me a look that very blatantly states “don’t question me.”

Elijah starts to change in the middle of the room, but I escape to the bathroom once again because I don’t want to strip in front of them. The clothes are most likely Elijah’s as they are closer to my size and Greyson is taller and bulkier than both Elijah and I.

The shirt is a soft, faded orange color and I can tell it must be an older shirt that Elijah would likely never wear in public. It has a faded Sunkist soda logo on the front, and I smile thinking that Greyson likely bought the shirt for Elijah and Elijah probably pretended he didn’t like it or something like that, but he still wore it all the time. 

They seem like that kind of couple. 

A couple that they want me to be part of. 

I suppose it wouldn’t be a couple then, but I don’t want to think too hard about it right now. I admire the shirt for a few more seconds before I put it on and leave the bathroom. Both Elijah and Greyson are waiting for me, but they don’t look impatient; both smile sweetly at me before they lead me from the room. 

I follow them to the dining room, and I pause in my tracks as I catch sight of the man at the end of the table. There is no mistaking those golden eyes and large frame. Even if it was only a short, five minute conversation when my mind was fuzzy, I know exactly who this man is. 

“I know you,” I say dumbly.

He smiles at me and nods. “I must say, I knew you were the soulmate to at least one of my sins, but I was unsure who you belonged with. It is nice to see you alive.”

Elijah and Greyson are behind me, and when I glance back, I can tell they have no clue what’s going on. They both look between myself and who I assume is the man they called Alastor. Well, not man. The Lord of Hell. 

“Are we allowed to ask why you two know each other?” Elijah asks, and I can tell he is trying to show nothing but respect to this man before us. “Master Alastor, you know Levi?”

Master Alastor… hm, it feels weird to refer to him like that. Anyway, Master Alastor nods as a response to Elijah’s question. He invites us all to sit down, which is kind of weird because he doesn’t live here, but we all follow his lead anyway. 

“I met Levi about a week or two ago? Time gets quite muddled when you are in Hell.” He sighs and leans back in his seat as Paxton approaches from the kitchen as sets a coffee mug before Master Alastor. “Thank you, Paxton.”

Paxton sits down to the right of Master Alastor. 

Master Alastor takes a drink from his cup. “I met Levi when he was in a fragile mental state and sitting on the edge of a bridge. I can now admit that I used my abilities to manipulate humans and telekinesis to force you off of the edge and to get you to go home. When I saw you, as I often take walks on Earth to make sure humans are behaving as they should, I felt a connection and knew you were a soulmate to one or more of my sins. So, I took it upon myself to save you, because I knew you deserved more than whatever you had gone through and I knew your soulmates would assist in saving you from yourself.”

“That’s why I didn’t fall forward,” I murmur. 

“Can we go back to where you tried to jump off a bridge?” Elijah asks, and I can hear the hurt and anger in his voice. It makes me wince and Elijah’s voice softens. “I’m not mad, I just want to understand.”

Greyson cuts in. “Levi, you can tell us when you’re more comfortable. There is no rush, I promise,” he says, but he has the same hurt in his voice that Elijah did. 

Master Alastor smiles at me, and for being the Lord of Hell, he is emanating nothing but kindness. “How about we come back to this once Levi has settled in? He is safe, he is taking this demon scenario quite well, and we are all here to eat together.”

Gale is in the kitchen and I can Kayden with her, talking while he assists her with whatever she’s making. A quick glance around the room shows me that Simon and Winston are in the living room, both holding cups of what looks like whiskey, and Lexi is on the porch. 

Once the food is ready, everyone gets up and plates their own dishes at the island in the kitchen. It’s easy to follow along, and I have never been in the presence of such a relaxed group, and all of them are demons! The Lord of Hell himself is helping his demons to dish up, as if they’re equals. 

Everyone calls him “Master Alastor” except for Kayden, so it’s clear they respect him, but I don’t think he puts himself on a pedestal the same way other leaders do. He seems relaxed and everyone else does as well, except for Paxton because Paxton always seems tense. 

This is a real family, and as much as it scares me, I want to belong.

I want to be a part of this.