Convoke - Chapter 21: Chapter 21

The pub remained stained in tension, despite the demons being respectful. They paid Ezra no attention, didn't rise to the locals who muttered at them on their way to the bar or to the toilet, and they were polite to Tom who served them with ease the longer they stayed.
But still, in the pit of his stomach, he knew that being wary was the safest option. Rumours were flying through the demon community that he and a soul stripper were working together to banish demons. The pub was a perfect excuse for all the attacks. A demon's composure was frail at best, but a drunk demon's composure vanished completely when provoked. And drunk humans were provocative.
The longer they sat together drinking, the drunker the locals became. One person loudly threatened to smash a glass over one of their heads. A few demons turned with scowls, but Tom demanded he give his pint back, or be kicked out.
Shamefully, the man gave back his pint and Tom poured it into a plastic cup.
"If you want to act like a child, you will be treated like a child," Declan declared, taking the time to look each local in the face. He was anxious too. If five demons lost their temper, people would get seriously injured.
The group remained peaceful and stayed for another hour. When they left, they returned their glasses and each nodded at Tom or mumbled their departures. Tom felt more perplexed than fearful, though his relief didn't go unnoticed.
The moment the door shut behind them, Ezra stood by the bar so quickly, Tom couldn't recall whether he walked or appeared. "I'll follow them," he whispered, taking another pint back to his table, sitting for a few minutes, and vanishing when the pub's atmosphere returned to normal.
"They're getting used to the soul stripper," Declan observed. "It's like he's not even there when he's buried in the corner of- oh, he's gone."
Tom chuckled and left for a toilet break. But he didn't go to the toilet. He stood in the stall and breathed deeply until he was in control of his own body. He had been scared, and he knew Ezra could somehow tell. Something in his stare was left unspoken. He didn't hunch over his book, he sat up, flicking from page to page, eyeing Tom's whereabouts before reading a sentence, then repeating his movements.
There's something very attractive about that, Tom thought, smiling. Ezra was ready to throw himself over a table to protect him, and that meant he cared.
Ezra didn't approach Tom for the rest of his shift, nor did he return to the bar for another drink. He sat reading his book and left when the pub rang the bell and called for last orders. Tom helped close up and dragged his tired body to his bedroom. The room was dark, then pitch black when he shut the door. He reached for the light and slammed a hand to his heart when a large figure stood by the window.
"Ezra!" Tom gasped.
"Oh, sorry. Should I have waited to be summoned?" he asked, staring through his lashes like a guilty child.
"No, no, don't worry. I'm just a little on edge. It's fine. You're always welcome here." He sat on his bed, rubbing his eyes. Instead of sitting opposite him on the desk chair, Ezra sat next to him on the bed. Their knees brushed lightly before Ezra shuffled away.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I think I was just overreacting."
"You weren't. I followed the group, and they were there because of the rumours." Ezra saw the panic and lifted a hand to his shoulder but clenched it to a fist and put it down again. "The demons said they were surprised by how nice you were to them, and how quick you were to defend them against humans. They had visited to see if the rumours were true. Now they're very unsure, which is a good sign. But we don't want demons arriving looking for trouble on purpose."
"I don't quite know what to make of that."
"You're tired. Sleep." Ezra returned to his usual post, on the floor by the bookcase.
Tom got him a blanket and a pillow, and the voice in the back of his head said, flirt with him. Tom was out of practice, and too tired to think of something clever. "Hey um, if you can't sleep on the floor-" he paused to cover a yawn. "Like through the night if you get uncomfortable, I always sleep on this side of the bed. I won't mind of you want to sleep on the other side."
The demon blinked wildly around the room and tucked the cushion behind his back as a distraction. "No."
"Ezra, it's okay. It's an innocent offer, I just want you to have a better night's sleep."
"I'm fine on the floor," he mumbled, sheepishly glancing in his direction, but not directly at him. "Thanks for offering."
Tom smiled and said goodnight. With the light off and his head facing the wall, he felt a little disappointed. They shared the same space but might as well have been galaxies apart.
The next evening, at the small village library, Tom stood between bookshelves with a big hardback book, flicking through pictures of castles. He was fascinated by the complexity of some of them, and the grand scale, and the difficult terrain they were built upon.
Turning a page, he sensed eyes on him.
Ezra was leaning against the end of the bookcase with arms crossed firmly over his large chest. His head was tilted, and his expression gentle. "You spend a lot of time in the history section."
"I like history." Tom suddenly felt shy and hoped he didn't wear it on his cheeks.
"You should study it."
"The good thing about history is that there's so much of it. I'd never run out of things to learn." Tom smiled as Ezra stood next to him, looking at the picture of a small castle on a large hill. "Did you find anything interesting?"
"I found a book on human crimes. Within the last ten years, more and more of them revolve around demons."
"Was it from this area?"
"Yes."
"So, something has changed. But what?"
"It's annoying me that I don't know. It's not obvious, but a gradual change."
Tom followed Ezra to the table and sat next to him. He said, "Locals are always talking about nightmares that they have of demons. I have them a few times a month, but I think that's because I have to listen to their stories."
"What do you dream about?"
"That demons are burning down the village . . . that's quite a frequent dream." Tom frowned. "But that's the only thing I can think of that has any sort of connection."
"It's odd, and impossible to control dreams. Though it's not impossible to manipulate what the subconscious sees."
"Do you think there's some sort of subtle propaganda going on?"
Ezra shrugged. "It's one idea."
Tom sat back in his chair, sighing. "It seems farfetched."
"Keep your mind open."
They looked at each other. A little lost. "Are you sure that there's something going on? Could it not just be a hate trend or something?"
Ezra shook his head to say no. "The hate has to come from somewhere."
"So, we look for the source of the hate. I think we should start using the computers."
Ezra glanced at the row of three ancient-looking computers by the window, collecting dust. "I don't know how to use them."
"I can show you." Tom got up, but Ezra grabbed his wrist and pulled him back down onto his seat. Heat engulfed his entire arm from his touch.
"Not tonight. It's getting late," Ezra said softly. "Are you working tomorrow?"
"I am." Tom sighed, not wanting the evening to end, but at least Ezra would come back with him. "I wish I wasn't."
Ezra's soft gaze circled his face, and he leaned a little closer as if he wanted to say something. Instead, he stood up and motioned towards the door. "I'll meet you on the country lane, so nobody sees us leaving together."
While Tom's nod was in motion, Ezra disappeared, and Tom dropped his enthusiasm. He could like him more than any other person in the entire world but liking him could lead to the familiar pain of a heart ripped in two. "Fucking feelings," he grumbled, inhaled deeply, and left the library. He locked up and posted the keys back through Haisley's letterbox.
Glancing left and right on the dark lonely, cobbled street, he knew Ezra lurked in one of the many shadows. He soon stepped under an orange streetlight by the side of the field and fell into his strides. "Any demons around?"
Ezra tilted his head towards him as they walked. "You seem to forget that I'm a demon too."
Tom smiled. "Any other demons around?"
"No."
For a moment, their shoulders brushed, and Tom had an overwhelming feeling to grab his hand. Ezra wasn't just a human who could awkwardly tell him no, or hold his hand too, smiling with hope for the future. Ezra was a demon who could get angry quickly, and someone with so much time ahead of him, Tom would fill only a fraction of his life, and maybe to Ezra, he wasn't worth it.
But they had hugged before, and Ezra hadn't reacted badly. Tom clung to the hope in his heart, rather than the hand so close to his own.
When the small pub loomed into view, the lights were off, and the doors locked. "You can sneak in with me. Everyone will be asleep."
"But what if they're not?"
"Then you can disappear." Tom looked up. Ezra stood behind him, peering over his shoulder to stare at the keys in his hand. He didn't move, so Tom continued his way inside, and towards the stairs. Ezra was close enough for him to feel his chest against his back before tiptoeing up and around each well memorised creak. Though Ezra didn't know the house like he did, and stepped on almost all of them, cringing and pausing after each loud cry of the wood.
Once upstairs, they hurried down the corridor and into Tom's room, sneaking in like two teenagers late for a curfew. As he turned on the bright bedroom light and tried to shut the door, Gerry thundered down the corridor, rubbing his squinting eyes with a stern scowl.