Page 21 of Finding Answers For Confused Succubi

He smiles and returns it."Hey."

"Hi."

"So, I was thinking, it's a nice day, do you want to grab coffee and a walk?Or do you want to sit in?"Darius asks.

"A walk sounds good."And it'll mean that I'll probably be able to speak more freely if we're not surrounded by static people inside.

"Great.Mint tea?Or do you want something else after practice?"

"Mint tea is still good.I need to get my hydration levels up.It was intense"

"But good?"He holds open the door for me and I slip through.

"Yeah, pretty good.We'll be starting on our routine for the final round of our competition soon, so it's good to make sure everyone is working together the way they're supposed to."

"I won't pretend to understand any of that," he responds."But it sounds positive?"

"It is."

"Welcome to Pixie Cups, the woman behind the counter says."What can I get for you?"

"A mint tea and a mocha, please," Darius responds, holding out his phone with his payment app.

"I can get these," I say.

"You can get the next ones," he responds with a genuine smile.

"Sure, sounds good."I don't say it out loud, but I like the idea that there'll be a next one.

He pays and the cups appear in front of us.I pick up the tea and head towards the door, kind of enjoying the idea of having a walk.It feels so mundane, but perfect at the same time.

"It is a nice day," I say when we're a bit further from the coffee shop.

"It is," he agrees."So, do you want to talk about what brought you to my borrowed cubicle yesterday?"

I sigh."Yes and no."

"I can go back to guessing what it's about," he says.

I laugh despite my nerves."Trust me, I don't think you'll get it."

"Okay so, just start wherever it is you want to start," he says."Or choose a different subject.I know a strangely large amount about manatees."

"Manatees?"I echo.

"Oh yeah, they were my favourite animal as a kid.I had a bookshelf dedicated to that."

"I'm sure that's something future therapist-you can dive into when you're doing sessions with yourself."

"Mmm, true.I just think they're cool," he admits."Nothing more than that."

We lapse into silence and I take a sip of my coffee while I think about exactly what to say."How much do you know about succubi?"

"Probably about as much as you know about cupids," he responds."You're a supernatural, you have wings, and you feed off sex."

"Yeah, I guess that part is the problem," I murmur."I mean, it's not really feeding.It's more that the energy that comes from sex feeds my magic.And when I don't get enough, it's a problem."The gnawing sensation responds to my admission, growing stronger inside me and almost distracting me from how easy it feels to be around him.

"And you've now got a problem?"