Colin's posts

Gabe paused as he realised what he had said, but before he had a chance to stumble over his words, potentially, she complimented him on the pasta he had served her, causing him to sigh quietly.

'Thank heavens...' he thought.

"And thank you." he told her. "Also, you're welcome." he added, as Erica's cat started sniffing at the bowl and food within.

He then popped the top off of the bottle he brought, and poured a pale, translucent liquid from it, into the glass... similar to someone pouring wine for another. She also noted that it was carbonated, or seemed to be. Like champagne.

"Here." he said, offering it to her, as the bubbles rose out and popped around her face gently... and as they did so, she felt a small sense of clarity and refreshment on her skin.

"It's... well, it'll help 'detoxify' you, a little." he explained. "And it goes with the pasta." he continued.

"Non-alcoholic, too." he added.

Gabe just sighed.

"I wish I could tell you." he said.

"But... anything I say might end up being a lie." he told her.

"Which is to say... I'm still figuring that out, myself." he clarified. "I mean... I feel drawn to you, for some reason." he continued.

He knew why, in a way. Her curse. He was always tied to the curse. But he couldn't help but feel something else being reignited within him... and he didn't want to lay anything too heavy on her, especially when he was still coming to terms with it, himself.

"If you want, think of this as receiving God's Love." he then added with a small smile.

"Got it!" he called back.

About 15 minutes later of the delectable aroma, she suddenly felt his mana spike a bit... and then she couldn't feel him there at all. And it was like that for about 10 seconds, before she felt it spike again, and she could feel his presence once more.

But before she could say anything, she saw him approaching, a bowl of spiral pasta with sautéed veggies in it, alongside some chorizo sausage and a creamy sauce, with garnishes sprinkled upon it in one hand. She also noticed he had a bottle of what looked to be wine in his other hand, alongside one of her wine glasses. But the wine was not one she'd ever seen before.

He approached her and handed her the bowl, the scent of the foot nearly causing her to salivate on the spot.

"I went and got a complementary drink to go with it." he told her, explaining his sudden disappearance.

As she sat there, and the cat nuzzled her again, she heard him messing around and such in the kitchen... and then she heard chopping and clinking and such, before things went a bit silent, and she heard sizzling.

This was followed by and aroma of deliciousness wafting towards her. It was hard for her to describe it, but it smelled better than anything she'd ever smelled before.

"Bowl or plate?" Gabe called to her.

"It's pasta, if that helps!" he added.

Gabriel followed her to the couch, and helped her sit down on it, with her cat jumping up onto it afterwards.

"Eh-heh." he chuckled.

"Yeah. I can." he said.

"It's a skill I picked up on... a while ago." he admitted.

"Haven't used it in a good while, admittedly, but... I can make something up for you." he offered.

"If you're all right with that, that is." he then said.

Gabe was silent as he looked at her still, before nodding slowly.

"Want me to hang around?" he asked.

"I.. don't have anything else to do..." he admitted.

"And... where would you like to go?" he asked her.

"Couch or bed?" he asked further. "Because you DO need to rest." he told her.

"Also..." he then mumbled.

"Do... you want me to... make something to eat for you...?" he asked, sounding a little flustered now. Almost like he was embarrassed.

He narrowed his eyes when he saw her expression, but didn't say anything yet.

"I..." he stammered.

"I wanted to." he said.

"Just... I mean..." he started to say further, before sighing heavily.

"I admit, I was worried and wanted to see if you were all right." he then said. "Since the last time I was here, I've been finding myself thinking about you... and your well-being." he admitted further.

"So I wanted to see if you were okay... and... to... just... you know... check up..."

Gabe paused when he heard that... before sighing.

"That's... concerning." he said.

"Very much so." he said further.

He then looked around, before he seemed to notice something. Before she could ask, however, he gave a small nod, and she heard light padding, as he cat approached and nuzzled against her.

"That little one seemed very worried. Heard him mewling when I showed up."

He just sighed.

"Wish I knew." he said.

"Decided to stop by and check up on you, and found you like this." he told her. "Your arm was going out of control, so I did what needed to be done, and drove it back down." he continued.

"I could ask YOU the same thing." he then said.

"The heck happened to cause it to flare up THAT badly?" he asked her.

"Do you recall?"

She sank to the floor, and remained there for close to 12 hours. It wasn't until someone came by to check up on her that she regained ANY sense of self, or semblance of awareness again.

Thankfully, when she came to, it had been because of Zeke's 'uncle', and he had driven the curse back once more.

"Good heavens." she heard him say.

"That was certainly alarming." he commented.

"Are you all right?" he asked her as he let go of her arm.

He smirked at her.

"Soon you will be my puppet." he told her.

"I just need your hair so a new acquaintance of mine can do that voodoo that they do so well." he said further.

Then, before she could react, he lunged for her with his arm, and grabbed the wrist on her cursed arm.

"And now, to make sure you block this little conversation out once more..." he continued, before she felt the curse come back into power, stronger than ever before.

"...oh, and yes, you couldn't remember why it acted up the last time... because of me." he finished, laughing maniacally and triumphantly.

She watched him place the hair he'd cut in a small plastic bag, and stuff it in his pocket, before he looked at her.

"Are you deaf?" he asked.

"I got what I came for." he told her.

"I said I needed your hair, and I got it." he went on. "That's it. I'm leaving now." he continued, before pausing, thinking a moment, and then snapping his fingers.

"Ah!" he exclaimed.

"You're probably VERY confused right now." he guessed, stopping at the door.

"Do you wish for me to alleviate you of that confusion?" he asked.

He just chuckled deeply.

"Make it that you're a dumbass?" he asked. "How vulgar. How crude." he said.

"No, no. I need more subtlety than that." he continued.

"Regardless, the specifics of my plans are none of your concern." he told her. "...well, actually, they are highly of your concern, if we're being honest, but I wouldn't tell you." he said. "And even if I did, you won't remember them anyway." he added ominously.

"But I like to err in the side of caution." he added.

"Right now... all I need is some of your hair."

He looked at the phone, before gently chucking it off to the side, not caring what happened to it.

"Oh, not much." he told her, following her to the kitchen.

"See, you rejected my proposition to join my army." he said. "And, sadly, I can't use my powers and mana to force you. Red tape is so inconvenient like that." he lamented.

"And I know that if I continue to make your little curse flare up worse than before, whatever archangel was here will probably bring it back down." he went on. "Detestable beings, the lot of them." he growled.

"So... it seems I am to pursue another avenue." he went on... before the next thing she knew, he'd grabbed her by the top of her head, his fingers painfully locked into her hair.

"One that DOESN'T breach my demonic bindings, AND won't tip off your celestial allies." he snarled in her ear.