The Conversation

Luke's face was a familiar face that she did manage to find. He had wandered over to the beer pong table, where him and his buddies were making a huge commotion. Her stomach was churning at the thought of asking to come over. She barely knew him.

"Luke!" she had intended to whisper it, but it came out as a shout due to all of the noise. He turned around and smiled, seemingly very drunk as well. He looked drunker than Wiley sounded.

"Sage!" he shouted back, and he seemed to think this was hilarious. Sage couldn't help but to laugh with him.

"I need a huge favor,"

Luke crossed his arms and listened expectantly, a small smile on his face.

"Wiley's decided to hook up in our dorm room all night and I don't know anyone else at the party."

Luke didn't seem to exactly be connecting the dots, but she hated the direction his thoughts seemed to be going in.

"I need someone's place to crash at." She finished.

"Oh, you can come over to mine after the party's over."

"Thankyou, where should I meet you?"

"Let me see your phone," he said, and Sage handed it to him. When he gave it back she saw that he had put his number in.

"Just text me." he turned around and continued his game, and Sage wandered off to find something to do for the next few hours, floating at the realization that she now had his number. She checked the time and saw that it was already 1, so way later than she had planned to stay out. She wished that she could just get an Uber to Luke's place, but that would be odd and she didn't even know what dorm he stayed in. She barely knew him at all.

Sage decided to sit at the kitchen table and people watch. A few guys tried to hit on her, and some girls came up and drunkenly chatted with her, but at the end of the day she wasn't as bold as Wiley, and so nothing came of it. She pulled out her phone to mess around on it, but when she saw that it only had 10% battery left on it she decided that that would be a bad idea. She should've charged it more before she left, but she really thought that she'd be back by midnight.

"Everyone out!" A random girl shouted. She went up to a guy leaning against the fridge and yanked his beer from him. "This party is over."

Sage stood up to leave, but no one really seemed to be heading out. The girl went to the stereo and cut the music, but still, no one left. She stormed to the living room, and her shouting could still be heard from the kitchen. Sage, wanting to leave whether or not the party was actually over, texted Luke. It was 3 now, and she figured that he had to have been getting bored.

S: Is the party over?

L: no byt im leaving

S:I'll be on the porch

Sage made her way outside, and by the time she got there Luke was already sitting on the steps.

"I ordered an Uber," he said once Sage had come up to him. He was wobbling as if he was going to fall flat on his face and his words were drawn out and slurred.

"Thanks." She smiled, resisting the urge to laugh.

"Did you see the fight?"

Sage shook her head and shrugged. She hadn't even known there was a fight.

"It was awesome." Luke assured her.

The Uber pulled up a few minutes later and they piled into the back. The driver gave them a disapproving look once he saw how drunk Luke was, but still drove them to their destination without a complaint.

Sage was surprised to find that Luke didn't live on campus, but instead in an apartment. It was about 3 stories high and made of bricks. Luke held the door open for her, and then led her to the stairs that took them up to his room. He lived on the third floor, and by the time they got there Sage was panting.

"This is my apartment." Luke said once they got in. He didn't make much effort to show her, though, and instead led Sage to his room.

"Are you hungry?" he asked her. Sage hadn't eaten any dinner yet, and so she nodded.

"Bad question." Luke laughed. "I only have chips and popcorn."

Sage laughed too. "Can I have some popcorn?"

"Coming right up." Luke went into the kitchen and Sage sat down on the bed. It was kind of uncomfortable, but still softer than the dorm ones. She surveyed his room, which was surprisingly tidy for a teenage boy. His bed was made, and the carpet clean. No clothes poked out of his drawer or sat on the floor. Luke entered the room and handed her the bag.

"Thanks."

Luke walked around to the other side of the bed and plopped down. "How was your first party?"

"Overwhelming." Sage popped a piece of popcorn into her mouth and found herself unimpressed with the taste. She forgot how bland it was plain. "Do you have any peanut butter?"

"You're the type to eat spoonfuls of peanut butter?" Luke raised an eyebrow, causing Sage to blush.

"It's for the popcorn," she mumbled, and Luke laughed and wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Peanut butter is disgusting." He slurred, laughing again. Sage wanted to hear it one more time.

"Good to know you have no joys in life."

Luke was snorting now, which pleased Sage. He laid down and closed his eyes, his long eyelashes gently hovering above his skin. The boy's peaceful face was covered with a light layer of sweat, and his lips were slightly chapped. He looked so innocent and calm that Sage began to wonder how many times her roommate had gotten to see him fall into a drunken sleep.

"So," she set the popcorn down on the nightstand, not really interested in eating the snack without anything to dip it in. "how long have you known Wiley for?"

"We go waaayy back." His words were more jumbled now, but Sage hadn't even been expecting him to be so conscious after the minute break from speaking. The fact that he was fighting sleep to stay up and talk to her seemed like a win to her, but his response almost canceled it out. She had wanted to hear that they had met briefly their freshman year of highschool, Wiley with braces and Luke more acne. She had wanted to hear that he thought she was totally lame and didn't give her much thought, despite how much she pawned for his attention. She had wanted him to admit that, although harsh, he had finally resorted to telling her the following words: "I don't want you."

Sage's stomach twisted at the thought of trying to rival Wiley as she laid down next to him. Luke hadn't changed out of his clothes and the lights were still on, but within a few minutes he began to snore. Sage followed suit an hour later, both of them on top of the blankets.

Sage had nightmares all night, but they somehow refused to wake her. Most of them faded in the morning, but there was one that haunted her. She had dreamt that she sat on a throne, surrounded by people bowing to her. Wind streamed violently through the room, but Sage held her hand up high with Luke's head in it.

Sage awoke to Luke digging around in his bedside drawer. His brows were furrowed, and his hands moved in a frenzy. When he glanced over at Sage she closed her eyes, hoping that he didn't notice. She had yet to see him so tense, and she didn't want her conversation to force him to act like he was not.

A few moments later she felt the bed dip as he sat down, and the sound that started reminded Sage of how her mom's car always sounded like on a Friday afternoon in elementary. Often, teachers would award them with scratch and sniff stickers for doing their homework throughout the week, and Kale always insisted on smelling them as soon as he buckled his seatbelt. Sage brought her hand to her pillow as she remembered this, hoping to fall back asleep for an extra hour. She didn't know what time it was, but she did know that she had stayed up way too late and her body needed to catch up on rest. Luke never stopped being noisy, though, and so Sage opened her eyes again. His jaw was clenched tightly, and his eyes were white. Sage looked closer, and her heart raced. They appeared to be rolled into the back of his head. He held a sketchbook in his hand, and on it were two women. One had horns sprouting from her hair. The drawing was only of her side profile, but she could tell that she was young and beautiful. Her gaze was cast seductively towards the other woman, who had a dark and yet attractive face. When she blinked once she saw that his eyes were normal, making the sleepy girl feel stupid about the startlement it had caused her. A second time and his jaw began to unclench as he glanced at her, and by the fourth he was closing his sketchbook.

"You're such a good drawer." she murmured, her throat clogged with the rasp of having just woken up. Luke shrugged in response and began to shove his stuff back into the drawer.

"It's okay if you're into horror." she assured him. She wasn't into it too much herself, as it seemed to desensitize you.

"I don't usually show that side of myself." he replied shortly. Sage sat up, a little more intrigued now. Luke said nothing, though, and so she reached for her phone, which she had placed on the floor, only to find out that it was dead. She leaned her head against the wall.

"I should be more like you." he mumbled.

"How?" Sage said. Her attention was caught again.

"I shouldn't drink so fucking much." he laughed, and this made her smile. "God, my head hurts right now." He took a sip of water.

"Can I use your phone charger?" She asked, already picking up her phone again.

"Sure." He unplugged his and then held out his hand for her phone.

"I should probably get an uber as soon as my phone turns on." she stated, nervous about overstaying her welcome.

"Anxious to get out of here?" he teased.

"Anxious to go home and take my quiz before it's due," Sage lied. She had taken it the day before.

Luke's eyebrows shot up."You've got a quiz already?"

"On the freaking syllabus." She exclaimed, and when Luke laughed she continued. "Who does that?"

"Poor you," he smirked. Sage looked away.

"Your phone's on." He unplugged it and gave it to her, and she used the little battery it had left to get a ride back to the dorm.

"Uber will be here in ten minutes." She noted to herself that she shouldn't go anywhere she couldn't walk. Ordering a ride everywhere was really starting to eat at her pockets.

"I'm gonna go take an Advil." Luke got up and Sage followed. When she had followed his stumbling steps past the entrance the night before, she hadn't gotten a chance to see the kitchen since all the lights were off. Now she saw that it was tiny. It was about the size of her dorm room, with the fridge, cupboards, and counters huddled on one side. Across from it was a stove and a drawer.

Sage watched the way Luke's hair fell back as he popped the two pills into his mouth. His tan throat bobbed as he swallowed, no water necessary.

"You're a psychopath." She fake shuddered as she said this, warranting her a confused look from Luke. "Who takes pills without water?" She continued.

Luke smiled, his white teeth gleaming.

She turned her gaze away from his eyes and to the uber app, which said that her driver would be there soon.

"I should probably head out in a second. The uber will be here in a minutes."

"You know it takes a few minutes to get down the stairs, right? Do you know where they'll park?"

"No." Sage sighed. "They're probably gonna charge me like $5 for missing that ride."

"Not if we can beat it here,"

Sage shrugged, not really in the mood to chase it down.

"We'll catch that uber," he insisted, and before Sage could reply he was off. She let out a wild laugh and followed him, almost crashing into his back when he slowed from a fast walk to a stroll at the sight of a neighbor in the hall.

"Left." he said in reference to where they should turn. After a quick accidental step to the right Sage spotted the door with the stair symbol on it and opened it. Adrenaline coursed through her veins as he scurried down the steps beside her and then in front of her. "You're so slow!" he teased. Sage picked up the pace in response, despite her chest beginning to burn from the activity, and soon surpassed him. She let out a whoop at this decided victory, the moment seemingly lasting for minutes. Her knees were beginning to ache, but she powered on, determined to be able to shove her swiftness in his face later on. Luke quickly took the lead again as he sped walked past the lobby and out to the street, turning around to give her a smug look as he shut the door on her. Sage approached it and tried to push it open, but the force of him holding it closed was too strong. She spotted an elderly woman approaching them from behind and decided to give up, assuming that he would notice and step aside. Luke didn't though, and he was still gloating in her defeat as she tapped him on the shoulder so that she could pass through, which allowed Sage to slip out.

"Serves you right," she said as she scanned the sidewalk for a black 2002 Nissan. She looked at her phone again and saw that she had indeed missed her ride.

"We're too late, anyways." she groaned and started to order another Uber. She also noted to herself to apply for more jobs later.

"Bummer."

"So, what are you gonna do for the rest of the day?" Sage asked once she had finished.

"Satanic rituals." He said it with a straight face, and so for a second Sage thought that he was serious. His lips quickly turned up into a smile, though, and so Sage laughed.

"You're funny." she noted. The sense of humor was kind of fresh. She didn't see much of it back home.

"Devil thinks so too."

A few minutes later Sage's Uber turned up, and so she said goodbye and stepped in.

Wiley was still sleeping when she got back, so Sage tiptoed to her bed and started on her job hunt. She thought it would be cool to work at Michaels, so she applied there, but she also applied at Panera, Jamba Juice, and Starbucks. By the end of the Starbucks one it had been an hour and Wiley started to wake up, so she figured that she had done enough for the day and went to brush her teeth and then took a shower. When she got back she sat on Wiley's bed, brushing her hair as Wiley laid down and went on her phone.

"How was your hookup?" Sage teased.

"How was yours?"

Sage flushed. "Don't change the subject."

Wiley sat up excitedly, her hair falling out of her already extremely loose ponytail as she did so. "So you did hookup with him."

Sage laughed and shoved her. "I didn't."

"You better tell me all about it."

Sage rolled her eyes. "I have to be somewhere in a few minutes."

The rest of Sage's weekend was uneventful. She visited the local library and even submitted a job application there. To her surprise, she saw her classmate from English 101. She had to rack her brain for the girl's name for a second, but when she remembered it she went up to her.

"Hey!" Sage greeted. "Samantha, right?"

"Right." Samantha nodded. She was wearing glasses, which Sage hadn't seen her do so far. Her hair was in a high pony, and she was decked in a sweatshirt and sweat shorts. Her pale skin was slightly pink.

"I'm not surprised to see that you like to read." Sage commented. Samantha gave her the same kind of vibes that she felt she gave off. Pleasant, but also kind of nerdy.

"Trust me, I don't." Samantha laughed. "I'm here to find a book for one of my projects coming up." She started to turn away, but Sage decided to channel her inner Wiley and be spontaneous.

"Wanna go out for lunch after you're done? I'll pay for the Uber."

Samantha smiled. "I'll pay for the lunch."

"So, what do you wanna do for a living?" Sage asked. She had just sat down from a trip to the restroom. They were at Chipotle, and they were both eating burritos.

"I think I want to be a vet."

Sage smiled. "Animals are so cute." She missed her cat from back home, but she was just going to have to accept that she couldn't see him anymore. He was 11 years old, though, and so sometimes she worried about him. He was mostly Kale's cat, but she would've moved him into her dorm if she could.

"Right?" Samantha agreed. Silence fell between them and Sage shifted uncomfortably.

"Did you go to that party this weekend?"

"Which one?"

Sage laughed. There probably were several parties in the area going on that night. She wasn't sure of the name of the host though, or what street it was even on. "I don't know." Sage replied, a little embarrassed.

Samantha laughed. "Well, I don't party anyways."

Samantha and Sage met up several times throughout the next school week, and Wiley even joined in during a few of those instances.

Sage was cleaning the counter at her new Starbucks job on a weekend when Luke came in. The combined heat from the coffee and outside was killing her, so she was thankful for the cute distraction.

"I didn't know that you liked coffee." Luke said. He was wearing a long sleeve and yet his face wasn't flushed or sweaty. Meanwhile Sage was wearing her uniform tank top and managed to feel drenched in sweat. Maybe his shorts were cooling her off or something. Maybe she was just gross.

Sage didn't like coffee, and if she knew her work space was going to be so warm she wouldn't have taken the job. It was just the first place to offer her one.

"I didn't know that you liked Starbucks."

"I don't. I saw you in the window and thought I'd come in."

Sage fought back a huge cheesy grin. Luke had come in just to talk to her. Her heart swelled in her chest.

"Stalking me? How embarrassing."

Luke laughed and shook his head. "Did Wiley tell you about my kickback?"

"No." But Sage wasn't surprised. Of course Wiley wouldn't tell Sage about the kickback, she probably wanted Luke all to herself.

"Well, it's tonight at 8. You should come so I don't have to stalk you anymore."

"I'm starting to get scared, so I guess I have to."

Luke smiled. "Guess you do. I'll see you there." And with that he left without a drink in hand.

Sage was anxious to get off of work that day and get ready for the party. It was 5 o'clock when she left, and so she figured that she had an hour and a half to get ready. She remembered that the party started at 7, and so that's when she wanted to be there. She was going to ask to tag along with Wiley, but when Sage got back to her dorm room she found that Wiley was out. She called Samantha to see if she wanted to come along, but she refused. She had met some other people, but she didn't know them well enough to invite them to go with her anywhere. Finally, Sage came to the conclusion that she would just have to attend the party by herself, no matter how awkward it would feel. Anything to score a few extra points with Luke. Besides, a few hours couldn't hurt.

She showered, blow dried her hair, and then threw on a sundress and a jacket. After she was done with that, she facetimed Kale as she did her makeup.

"Where are you getting all dressed up to go to?" he asked upon answering. He seemed to be outside, and the sky was setting in the background.

"To hangout with this guy I'm crushing on and his girlfriend."

Kale raised an eyebrow out of the corner of Sage's eye. "You like a guy with a girlfriend?"

Sage was surprised that he hadn't told her off for calling to rant about boy problems. Surprised by his tolerance, she continued. "She's not actually his girlfriend, it just feels like it."

All he did was shrug. Sage could hear someone laughing wildly in the background, and for a second she wondered if he was up to anything weird. She quickly shook the thought away, though. He was probably hanging with some church kids. Those were the only people he really had hung out with in highschool at least.

He was still paying her his full attention. "I just feel-"

"Gotta go." he cut her off. Good luck with your throuple date." Before Sage could even react he hung up

"Not a date." she muttered.

By the time she finished with her makeup it was 6, but there was no way that she was gonna go that early. She heard that going on time was already a crime in itself.

So, Sage took this opportunity to pray. It was bad enough that she hadn't found a church yet, so her realization that she had forgotten to talk to God for the last few days was even more jarring. Maybe this was why no one liked her, she thought. Maybe it was punishment.

She begged God for forgiveness of her forgetfulness, and then moved on to thank him for introducing her to Luke. She prayed that Kale would keep on the right path, and that her parents stayed in good health. Finally, she prayed that she could finally find out the truth regarding Luke that night. Did he like Wiley? Was she about to enter a love triangle? Only god knew, and she hoped that he'd share some of that wisdom.

When she finished it was finally 6:30, meaning it was okay to leave. It was a 40 minute walk to the field he had mentioned, and so she started to set out. On the way back when it would be dark out she'd probably get an Uber, but for now she could use to save some cash.

The walk wasn't that bad, honestly. She was used to walking everywhere her parents wouldn't drive her, and so it was easy for her to not get bored. She just put her earbuds in and listened to her Christian music, feeling closer to God than ever. Hearing his words repeated in her ear always comforted her.

She made it to the field safely, but she saw that only Luke and Wiley were there. They were standing in the center, and Sage could see that the back of their heads were tilted down. They were standing very rigidly, and they didn't appear to be talking, either. She thought that maybe they were listening for something or even praying. It was probably a quarter of a mile to get to where they were, but she didn't think they'd hear her if she shouted for them. So, she began her journey.

The grass was only to her ankle, but it was thick and wet, making it a nuisance to walk through. She had already been sweating from the Arizona heat, but now she was thinking that she should've stuffed deodorant in her bra. She also thought that Wiley probably wasn't sweating. She probably rarely did. Her dark skin surely wouldn't be flushed either.

As Sage got closer she realized that they were speaking in low voices, despite them being the only ones there.She couldn't make out what they were saying, but she was starting to become afraid of finding out. In the ground in front of them seemed to be a dark hole. Fire licked the sides, and Sage had to cover her nose to protect it from the stench that wafted out. When she was only a few feet away from them she could hear that someone was speaking from inside it. Their voice was low, and they growled with every syllable. Sage took another step, and Luke whipped around to see who was there. His eyes went wide when he saw who it was.

"Sage!" he exclaimed. Sage walked right past him and up to the hole. Despite the dim lighting, she could see every detail pretty well. In it was the most handsome man she had ever seen. He had curly dark brown hair, and his biceps flexed and protruded as he talked with his arms. He was wearing a black shirt that clung loosely to his body, but his jeans showed off his strong thighs. He seemed tall, and his hair was only a few feet down from the entrance. Despite the way her ears seemed to welcome and strain for every syllable that came from his throat, later Sage found that she couldn't remember a thing that he had said. Sage had to force herself to look away and to the person he was talking to, and that seemed to be the source of the bad smell. It was coming from his mouth, she realized. He had bushy eyebrows and thick lips. He was handsome, but Sage's heart raced at the realization that he had three heads. One was of a black horse, another of a white sheep, and the middle of a middle aged man. She screamed, but the people continued to speak in their rush tones. This was when Luke turned her around, his hands so hot that she could feel them through her thick jacket.

"Am I dreaming?" Sage asked. Her arms were glued to her sides and her body was shaking. She wasn't sure what she had just seen, but it wasn't good. She could feel the evil radiating from them. The stench still surrounded the group.

Luke paused, seemingly just as shocked as Sage. "Yes."

Wiley laughed. "Cut it out, Luke."

He turned to her to roll her eyes but didn't say anything about it. "Listen, I'll explain everything to you after the party."

Sage's face went red. Wiley got to know what was happening but she didn't? Luke expected her to stay in a field with him after witnessing whatever just happened? "Do it now."

"You need time to sit with what you saw."

"Or you just think she'll leave after you tell her," Wiley laughed. Sage's face went darker.

"That too."

Realizing that Luke wasn't going to budge she turned to her roommate. "Tell me what's going on, Wiley."

Luke turned to her to give her a look, and Wiley shrugged. "It's not my place to say."

There was silence, and then Luke spoke again. "Here, help me set up."

Sage shook her head. There was no way in hell was she going anywhere with him until he explained what was going on. If this was some kind of prank she was going to be pissed.

"Fine. At least come to the car so I can explain."

Sage looked at Wiley and she shrugged. Needing desperately to know what was happening, Sage decided to follow him. The car was parked a few yards away, so she could count on being in view of Wiley the whole time.

It ended up not being a car, but instead a grey truck. In the bed was a keg, and when Sage got in she glimpsed that there was booze in the back.

"Who's car is this?" she asked, skeptical. Prank or not, who really knew what he was capable of. She barely knew anything about him

"My friend's." Luke responded dismissively.

"Promise you'll keep an open mind about this."

"About what?"

Luke looked her sternly in the eyes, and for a second she thought about backing down. "Just promise."

"Whatever." she crossed her arms to let him know that she was not to be messed with. Luke paused, and Sage could feel his eyes searching her face. Finally he sighed and turned forward.

"In short, I'm king of hell." Sage's face went bright red once again. She was pissed. She was supposed to believe he was some kind of demon? She would've laughed if she wasn't so angry. She opened the door and went to go out, but Luke gripped her arm tightly, his hands searing her skin. When she turned to look at him, he had a sincere look on his face.

"I'm serious, Sage."

Sage was getting scared again, but she needed him to know that she wasn't going to fall for his bull. "Prove it."

"I will, come to my coronation."

"Coronation?"

Luke saw that he had her attention and let go of her. "I'm being crowned in a few months. You want to come."

Sage's eyebrows furrowed. This sounded like it required a trip to hell. If God wasn't already disappointed in her now, he definitely would be after, assuming that Luke wasn't just pulling her leg. She couldn't afford to anger him any further, but her head was so foggy. She broke eye contact with him, but she could still feel his gaze. For some reason she found herself suppressing a giggle. "I don't know, Luke."

Luke looked at her lips, and her heart skipped a beat. Suddenly he was leaning in, and she could smell his shampoo. It smelled like coconuts. His lips touched Sage's, and her stomach erupted with butterflies as he pulled away.

"I'd never hurt you. You'll be safe."

The fog in her head condensed, and she found herself speaking without meaning to. "I trust you." she said. Luke smiled, and this caused her to, too.

"Will you help me set up now?"

"Only if you teach me how to do whatever you did back there."

Luke laughed and got out of the car to open the door to the back seat. Sage went around and stood by him, and Luke handed her three bottles of vodka and grabbed two cases of beer.

"When I heard that people go to parties late I didn't know they meant this late." Sage laughed, trying to make conversation.

Luke gave her a confused look. "What do you mean? It's not even 7:30."

Sage rolled her eyes."The party was supposed to start at 7!"

"It starts at 8, Sage." Luke laughed

Sage felt her face burning, so she turned her head away from him. "Totally knew that."