Joel could literally feel his muscles relaxed when he spotted bits of color on the horizon. After countless hours of walking and cycling through his depressing thoughts, they were finally getting close to the edge of the forest. It would likely be another hour until they reached normal land, but Joel still felt like he could cry in relief. He’d turned off his music a while back, not wanting to drain his mp3’s battery in one go. 

He trailed behind Levi the entire time, unwilling to walk side by side. It was dark by the time they finally left behind the charred Earth.

Good riddance, he thought as left, not bothering to look back. He wanted to put the experience behind him as quickly as possible, like a bad dream that would melt away with time. 

The way before them was flat and meadowy, and Joel could see what looked like an old motel in the distance. It was two stories tall and covered in peeling pink paint. 

Levi pointed at the building, breaking the long silence that had befallen them. “That’s where we’ll stay tonight.”

“Okay,” Joel said back coolly. He still hadn’t gotten over their argument from earlier and he wanted Levi to know it. The conversation clung to him like caramel stuck to his teeth. 

Levi had killed people and didn’t care that he’d killed people. 

The stairs to the second floor of the motel had rusted away with time, and Joel doubted they could support his weight. Most of the wooden doors had been busted open, but Joel didn’t care. If anything, he was grateful for it. His body was drained from stress and physical exertion, and he didn’t think he had the power to kick open a locked door. He certainly wasn’t going to ask Levi to do it for him.

He walked up to the door closest to him and looked at Levi’s face for the first time since their argument. 

“I’ll stay in here. Wake me when you’re ready to leave tomorrow.” He did his best to keep his tone icy. 

Levi’s dark eyes blinked rapidly and his hands were fidgeting against his sides. He cleared his throat before speaking. “Uh, alright. I’ll just be here,” he said, pointing at the room next to his. 

Right next door? Can’t a guy get any privacy! 

Joel dithered a moment in the doorway. “Okay. Goodnight,” he said eventually. He’d considered slamming the door in Levi’s face, but couldn’t bring himself to do it. 

The first thing Joel did after closing the door was scan the dirty, old room. He wanted to make sure he was alone, and that no old bodies had been decaying here. He saw some animal droppings on the floor, probably from rodents, but they’d likely left long ago. The room’s peeling, wood paneled walls were covered in cobwebs, but that didn’t bother him. In his experience, if you left a spider alone, it would leave you alone too. 

After making sure the room was safe, he grabbed one of the cheap, discolored chairs and propped it against the front door. The lock on it was broken and he didn’t want any surprise visitors while he was sleeping. The chair wouldn’t keep anyone out, but it would at least alert him if someone was trying to break in. 

Joel had filled his water bottle with glacial runoff from a stream just outside the motel and he now took a long swig of the cool water. An unbroken dining glass sat upon a bedside table. Joel picked it up, carefully pouring some of the water from his flask into it. The day still felt like grime on his skin. He wanted to wash it off with the hope of a fresh start the next morning. 

The bathroom was covered in dust, just like everything else. He found a stiff, ancient looking towel hanging from a hook and dipped it in the cup, lathering it with the bar of soap he’d brought from home. He hissed as the cold water touched his skin, but scrubbed himself regardless, taking his frustrations from the day out on his dead skin cells.

He’d been leaning on the edge of the bathtub, and his joints sighed in relief when he finally sat down on it. He could admit that he was angry. Angry that the twins had gone missing. Angry that he’d waited two weeks before trying to find them. Angry that Nan was making him travel with a demon. Angry that he’d be indebted to this demon once the trip was over. 

His emotions settled as he exfoliated, getting lost in his nightly routine. As he calmed down, he reflected on how he’d acted in the forest earlier. He considered himself level headed, but knew  he’d let his emotions get the best of him earlier. He didn’t know if it was from the stress of being in the wake of old hellfire, or the anxiety of knowing how the world would end, but he knew his temper had been running hot. He rarely raised his voice to others, but he’d had no problem screaming at Levi in the midst of their trek. 

He took some deep breaths and tried to view things objectively. Had he overreacted before? He hadn’t thought so at the time, but now he wasn’t sure. Joel supposed that he could have been more civil. He could have at least explained how he felt without yelling. 

He tried to put himself in Levi’s shoes. Sometimes, it was easy to forget that he wasn’t human. He’d existed before the creation of the Earth. He’d watched civilizations rise and fall, and had been fighting in this war for the last ten years. It made sense that he was going to have a different way of seeing things than Joel did. 

Joel tried to imagine the emotional toll that type of life would have on a person. How hardened you’d need to be to survive an infinite existence. Joel was mad that Levi had been glib when talking about the burned forest and about death, but death wasn’t the same for him. For thousands of years, he’d seen humans die. The idea of weeping over each loss was nonsensical. 

Levi hadn’t seemed proud of the fact that he’d killed people. He had just stated a fact, what’s done is done. Levi couldn’t help who he’d been, he could only focus on who he was now, and how he would act in the future. 

The demon didn’t have to be here with him. He only came along because Nan had asked him to. Joel’s teeth worried his lower lip while a pit formed in his stomach. He felt like his bottle of cold water had been dumped on his head as he came to a terrible realization: he needed to apologize to Levi. 

After finishing with his quasi-bath, he toweled himself completely dry. He put on a fresh pair of socks and underwear, and some of the comfortable pants he slept in. He decided that after dressing he was going to walk next door to clear the air. Joel was in the process of finding a shirt when he heard a knock at the door, and he jolted at the noise. 

“Levi?” he called out warily. He felt silly for asking. Who else would it be? A bandit wouldn’t just knock on the door to see if he was okay with getting robbed and murdered. 

“Yeah, it’s me,” the demon’s husky voice replied. “I want to talk.”

Crap. 

Joel’s thoughts began spiraling as he walked to the door and moved the chair out of the way. Levi was going to tell him he was leaving. That he didn’t want to put up with Joel’s sas, even if it was a favor for Nan. Or he was going to yell at him, tell him off for being so rude earlier that day. He was going to be abandoned here just like he had been three years ago at Skyline. 

Joel’s stomach was a jumble of nerves as opened the door. “Yeah?” he asked. He cringed at how breathless he sounded. He cleared his throat. He needed to apologize before Levi had a chance to leave him. “Levi, I’m–,”

“I’m sorry,” Levi said loudly, cutting him off.

Joel was stunned into silence. “You’re sorry?” he eventually choked out.  

Levi’s large body was tense and slightly hunched over, making him appear marginally smaller. “I should have been more sensitive about a lot of stuff today. I overwhelmed you and I’m sorry. I should have known better.”

Joel’s mouth was hanging open. He could feel his eyebrows drawing up in surprise. He had no idea what to say, so he kept quiet as Levi continued his rambling. 

“I just forget what it must be like for you, as a human. I forget that you don’t know a lot of this stuff already and that you don’t know me. I understand why you’re stressed and–,” he released a deep sigh, running his fingers through his dark hair. “--and I’m sorry.” 

Joel felt his shoulders sag in relief. Levi wasn’t upset with him. He wasn’t leaving.

 “Please don’t apologize. I’m the one that should be sorry. I never should have gotten mad at you. You’re helping me and I’ve been nothing but rude to you.” 

“You haven’t been rude. You’ve been normal. I’ve been rude. This is…” Levi trailed off, his black and gold eyes looking weary. “This is hard for me. I don’t know how to act.”

Bibs were known to be proud and fearless creatures. It made sense, they were superior to humans in almost every way. Joel couldn’t believe that one was being so vulnerable with him,  especially considering the circumstances. 

They were still standing in the doorway, and Joel debated inviting him inside. He bit his thumbnail nervously as he stared at the demon before him. He noticed that Levi’s gaze shifted, running down Joel’s body, as if just noticing he wasn’t wearing a shirt. It took nearly all of his self control not to cross his arms and cover the scars that peppered his abdomen. Few people had ever seen him shirtless. He almost always waited until the locker room at Skyline was empty before undressing. The scar on his face was distracting enough, people didn’t need to see his other imperfections.

Thankfully, Levi didn’t seem disgusted by Joel’s old wounds. Instead, his gray cheeks seemed to be flushed.

Was he embarrassed? Was Joel making him uncomfortable? 

Joel shifted awkwardly. The air had cooled considerably since the sun had set. He felt himself shiver from a mix of the chill and the demon’s intense stare. 

“Uhhh,” Joel said awkwardly. That makes sense. I’m guessing you don’t make a habit of traveling with humans?”

Levi laughed, his eyes snapping back to Joel’s face. “No. Never.”

Joel gave a self-deprecating laugh and fiddled with the door knob. “Gosh. I’ve probably been a terrible first experience. I doubt you’ll ever travel with one of us again.”

Levi waved his hand lazily. “You’ve been fine. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

“Thanks, but I promise I’ll try to be better. It’s just…” he swallowed. He wanted to seem brave, he wanted Levi to respect him, but the demon deserved to know the truth. “I’m scared,” he admitted. “I get anxious easily and it’s stressful out here. I want to trust you, but I really don’t know you that well. It makes me nervous. I’m sure you feel similar when traveling with a stranger.” 

Or maybe not. Was it even possible for demons to feel fear? 

Levi made another inscrutable face before leaning against the doorframe. “I understand. Trust comes with time. We’ve only been out here for a couple days.”

Joel relaxed further. Levi was being more gracious than he needed to be. He wanted to ask why he was being so patient with him, but decided not to question his good luck. Compared to the stories Joel had heard about other bibs, Levi had to be the nicest demon in existence. 

“You should sleep. You look exhausted.”

Joel gave a genuine laugh while he scrubbed a hand over his face. “You sure know how to compliment a guy,” he chuckled. “But you’re right. That mattress has been calling my name since I set foot in here.” 

“Don’t forget to strip the comforter. Those things never got washed, even when people did work here.”

“Good to know.” Joel gave him a smile, grateful to end the day on a positive note. “Thanks again for helping me out here. I appreciate it.”

“You don’t need to keep thanking me,” he huffed, the skin around his unique eyes crinkling in amusement.

Joel couldn’t help the question he asked next. He’d been wondering about it since they left Skyline together. “Why did you agree to do this?”

Levi’s features tensed before he let out a strangled laugh. “Nan didn’t really give me a choice, did she?”

Joel was surprised by the disappointment he felt. 

Did really I think Levi was here because he wanted to be?

“I guess not,” he agreed. “She usually does get her way.” 

 “She always gets her way. Now go to bed.”

Joel didn’t need to be told twice. After bidding Levi a second goodnight, he pulled off the dusty bedspread and tossed it on the floor. He crawled beneath the stiff blankets and slept soundly through the entire night.