No.
I didn’t want anyone to play Arsenio’s games.
***
That night in the office, Desi’s mood had returned to what it had been the first few nights here. Standoffish, and the door closed.
The talk I had with Arsenio before we went to sleep plagued me all day. I couldn’t believe he’d want to brag about what he did for money. What heenjoyeddoing.
He knew how much it bothered me, so instead of staying all day to sleep like he usually would when he visited, he left after a quick nap while the moon was still out.
Arsenio and I always had a complicated relationship. When we were together, we had a lot of fun. But when we fought, it was always about what he did to live the life he had. Luxury came at a price. One I hated with a passion.
I sulked all night at work. Desi had only been here a couple of weeks. I had only really considered him a fun coworker for a day or two, but I already felt his absence. Talking to Thing One and Thing Two about who would win in a fight between all the Spidermen wasn’t cutting it. We didn’t talk all shift, and I was surprised to see him hanging out at the time clock in the morning. He didn’t have to clock out on time. I was almost sure Arsenio didn’t care even slightly about what Desi did here.
He didn’t look at me at first. I stood on one side of the clock while he was on the other. He actually tilted his head to the ceiling in a deliberate snub. Finally, he spoke. “I’m not coming in Saturday. Plan accordingly.”
I swallowed. This was my chance to speak to him about it. “What are you doing?” I asked, knowing the answer.
“Your boyfriend invited me to a thing.”
“A thing?”
“He told me not to tell you.”
“Oh.Thatthing.”
Silence.
“Do you know what it is?” I pushed. He then looked at me for the first time since yesterday. His eyes, one blue one green, glared at me.
“What-what is?”
“The thing. He told you, right?” The time changed, and we both swiped our cards quickly. He then turned and practically fled. He was taking obnoxiously large steps.
“I told you about my day off to be nice. A courtesy. I don’t owe you anything else.” He snarled.
I rushed to match his steps. “Look, it’s—” I paused, trying to come up with a good explanation. “It’s not a good place. It’s hard to watch.”
He shoved his way through the front doors, not responding to me.
“You don’t know Arsenio like I do. He’s dangerous,” I warned. I saw one side of his mouth lift in a smirk. He slowed some to let me catch up but didn’t stop.
“You don’t know Arsenio at all, I think.”
I stopped in the middle of the parking lot and threw up my hands.
“He’s one of the Seven Sins!” I shouted. I didn’t know how to warn him other than to give up Arsenio’s true identity. Friend or not, that secret was something my boyfriend kept close. That seemed to get Desi’s attention. He stopped finally and looked at me. His eyes weren’t cold. I couldn’t tell what he was feeling. “Please don’t play. Saturday. Don’t get involved with what he does.” I begged.
I couldn’t read his expression. It was blank yet thoughtful. His eyes were hard but not cruel.
“You can’t tell anyone.” I swallowed, realizing now what I had done. I had outed Arsenio to an outsider. “About Arsenio.”
He nodded then and turned to finish his walk to his car. He didn’t run. It was more of a casual step. He didn’t turn to look or wave at me once inside. I watched as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. As he disappeared, I closed my eyes and said a silent prayer to the powers that be. Demon, angel, whoever would listen.
Please don’t play.
8
