Page 28 of A Beginner's Guide to Demonic Possessions
Trent grunted in response. So, ok, maybe it had been a little amazing.
Paz unhooked his harness from the wire, hooking it onto a ring around the tree platform, and then he unhooked another carabiner to also hook it onto the tree. Apparently an attendant usually went with you, but Paz had worked some kinda deal with the place so that it was just the two of them and Paz could talk to him. (Trent wasn’t sure if it was demonic magic or good old flirting that had enabled the deal, although he liked to think his body and face were cute enough for it to be good old flirting.)
“See—it’s all about safety. You’re never totally unhooked. No chance of accidentally losing your footing and falling,” Paz said as he made his way around the platform to the second zipline.
How many of these are we doing?Trent grumbled.
“Eight, Eeyore. But don’t worry, that was the highest one. Some of the others are supposed to be longer, but I don’t think any others have as steep of a drop,” Paz answered.
You know, plunging to my death wasn’t what I had in mind for Valentine’s Day, Trent complained.
Paz just laughed at him. “You wanted to go on vacation and go ziplining this summer. No reason to wait for ziplining when there was a place within an hour’s drive,” Paz reasoned.
Trent grumbled some more, and Paz laughed some more, and then they were soaring through the air again, and Trent had to admit (at least to himself) that it was kind of amazing.
By the time they were on the last zipline, Trent had stopped complaining about dying (the first zipline really had been the most intense). Paz kept reassuring him anyway, and he keptsharing the sensation of flying through the air, which was actually pretty cool once you got over the fear of free falling to your death.
When they finally landed on the ground, Trent felt exhausted and exhilarated at the same time. They headed back to the area where they’d gotten the equipment in an easy silence.
Paz waited until they handed in their gear and got back to the car before he peeled off the gloves, hat, and coat he’d donned for the experience. Trent had forgotten he even had that stuff in the trunk from when they went shopping, but Paz had obviously had a plan all along.
So you were planning on killing me on V-Day all along?Trent joked.Because you were definitely prepared for this.
“Ah, Eeyore, my beautiful grump. You did want to go ziplining. I aim to please,” Paz stated, getting into the car and starting it up.
You succeed, Trent quietly replied, and he could feel Paz’s happiness at the comment.
Paz switched on the radio, and they started talking about music. Trent complained about the contemporary hits Paz played, which led to a passionate discussion about the best genres and eras for music.
By the time they settled on a 90s station, Trent realized he had no idea where they were headed next, and he didn’t even want to ask. He just soaked in Paz’s company as they sang along to the radio.
It was kind of fun not knowing what was next in their day. Sure, ziplining had been slightly terrifying, but Trent also knew that if he had firmly said no, Paz wouldn’t have done it. Having Paz with him was probably all that gave him the courage to actually do it, even if it was something he had dreamed about.
Paz stretched him out of his comfort zone. He made Trent better. The best part was that even if Trent complained theentire time about it, Paz just laughed it off and didn’t get annoyed with him. He loved that about his demon. Paz put up with his moods—Trent’s grumpiness even seemed to amuse him.
By the time they got back into town, it was way past lunch since they had gotten a late start. Paz grabbed them two slices of pizza from the best place in town, saying something about a romantic dinner waiting until later. Trent wasn’t sure if he was joking or not, but he kind of hoped his demon wasn’t.
When they bit into the pizza, the crunch of the crust, the gooeyness of the cheese, and the tang of the tomato sauce made Trent moan in bliss.
“Beautiful, you are almost pornographic in your enjoyment of food,” Paz murmured.
Mmmm. It’s really fucking good pizza. Try it, Paz,Trent insisted. Then he added,And I suppose not having full control of my body makes me focus more when I am tasting something. It makes me appreciate it more.
Paz took a bite and gave his own moan of appreciation.
Who’s pornographic now?Trent laughed.
“You’re right—it is really good pizza,” Paz admitted.
They polished off the two slices, sharing bites, and Trent had the thought that it was kind of romantic, like two lovers sharing food with each other. He supposed they sort of were lovers, even if it wasn’t in the conventional sense.
When they finished their pizza and got rid of their trash, Paz walked them towards a shop in town, and when they stepped in and were greeted with tons of brochures for exotic locales, Trent realized they were at a travel agent.
Paz was gonna book his vacation for him. Trent just about melted at how sweet he found that. Shit, he was so far gone on Paz it wasn’t even funny. Sure, Paz was a demon who had possessed his body, but he was also the cheeriest, nicest, sexiest guy Trent had ever been with.
They browsed the brochures and pamphlets, and Paz kept up a running commentary (earbud in and phone out, of course) about each location, because he’d been to all of them. Paz joked about ziplining in Alaska, and Trent was laughing along with him when he had the thought that he wanted, more than anything, to take this vacation with Paz.
Following on the heels of that thought was the sudden and heart-stopping realization that he was in love with Paz.
