Waking up to a velvety touch is strange. With eyes closed, I stroke the velvety material with my fingers curiously. It almost feels like a dog's ears? But not quite as soft.

Click.

That's the sound of a key unlocking a door. The front door to the house. Not just the house. My mother's house. I open my eyes in alarm. Demon wings obscure my vision. Oh shit! The material I was stroking was his wings. Did I also mention he was naked from the waist up? Panic sets in, along with wonder and a mix of anger and confusion. Whoever is entering the house, I mean if it is my mom, she could walk in on me lying on a bed with a shirtless, and not to mention winged guy. Oh no, there are so many ways this could go wrong. The person opening the door could possibly be my mother or an intruder. I'm not sure which is worse.

My heart thumps louder and harder with each approaching second. The sound of keys hitting the coffee table reaches my ears, also signaling it's most likely my mother. My hands begin shaking. Thump, thump, thump. I push Andy hard and as his long black lashes flutter, I am quick to cover his mouth so any exclaim is unheard. At first he's shocked and I can see the muscles in his arms tighten defensively until he sees me. His hard gaze softens and his muscles loosen. Thump, thump, thump.

In a hushed whisper, I mutter, "You're going to do what I say, you understand?" My voice is hoarse from sleep and I hope he doesn't notice as much as I do. He silently nods, his expression confused yet trusting. In a panic, I push him off the bed hurriedly and order him to hide himself under it. Thump. Why is my mother even here? Thump. She texted me that she would be in California for at least a month. Thump. And how the hell am I going to explain why I'm in her house, instead of in class?

I slip out of my old room and down the stairs while trying to think of a way to approach her without scaring the living daylights out of her. There's really no way not to. I peek behind the corner of the wall to see her sitting on the couch while scrolling on her expensive phone. She's sitting perfectly straight just like how she made me sit all through my childhood. Oh crap, I just realized something. She hasn't seen me with my blue hair yet. The last time she saw me was when I had my hair dyed brown. She's okay with natural colors, but not so much with unnatural ones. Great, I was hoping I could hold off this argument until Christmas at least. "Mom?" I say hesitantly. She jumps, startled. "Who's in my house? Show yourself!" she commands. I step out of the hallway so she can see me fully. "God, Quinn! What'd you do to your hair?" It's almost funny how she's more concerned over my hair color than why I'm suddenly showing up at her house. I subconsciously tug at my hair."It's nothing, Mom." She gawks at me. "I wouldn't call that," she says, pointing at my head disdainfully."Nothing. And why are you in my house? You should be getting your studies in, not slacking off. I thought I raised you better."

"Don't worry, I have been studying. But I was just... missing home, I guess." I shrug. "And aren't you supposed to be in California?"

"Just missing home I guess," she imitates me. We stare at each other, challenging the other to tell the truth. Suddenly, a loud thump is heard by the both of us, breaking the silence. And it came from my room. Shitshitshitshitshitshit. How hard is it to stay still underneath a bed?

My mother crosses her arms over her chest. "Quinn," she warns. "What's going on that I should know about?" "Nothing!" I lie hastily. "Probably just the cat!"

I run my fingers through my hair guiltily. "Oh... right." She tries to charge past me, but I'm quick to block her. "You can't!" I blurt. She gives me a suspicious look. "There's obviously something you're hiding from me and we all know you can't lie. Now move out of my way if you know what's best for you." I struggle to fight her off, to do anything to keep her away from Andy, but I've never been the athlete type. Mom breaks free and stomps down the hallway and up the stairs. Holy crap, this is not going to end well. There's nothing I can do to stop her and I can only trust that Andy's smart enough to get himself out of the house. Or at least my room.

I chase after her and find her stopped at my bedroom as she makes a startled noise. I catch up with her and look into the room too.

But what we find isn't Andy.

It's Alara.

And she's... smiling?

She raises her hand and waves at my mother. "Hey there, Ms. Thompson! Quinn and I were just working on a project for Science class. Tons of research to be done! How are ya?" She's wearing a pink tank top, shorts, and sunglasses, which I'm guessing is it hide her nonhuman eyes. The combination of her outfit and cheerful tone are so un-Alara it almost made me laugh, that is if I weren't so panicked. Mom looks stunned, like she was probably expecting something much worse.

"But, but I heard a noise?" my mother says skeptically. Alara lets out a girly giggle, which is one of the most unusual and unsettling things I've ever heard. "Don't worry about it! I was just clumsy and dropped some textbooks," she says, holding up books that I haven't seen since junior year. Let's just hope my mother doesn't notice that. My mother smiles, seemingly satisfied that she's done a good job interrogating us. "Next time, send a text or something Elizabeth, you know I don't like surprises,but I am glad that you're doing schoolwork. Best of luck to you girls on your project."

"Thanks, Mrs. Thompson! Will do!"

The moment she shuts the door behind her, Alara snorts, dropping her fake attitude immediately. I'd never guess she'd be such a good actor. "Elizabeth?" she teases.

"Don't even try when you're dressed like that," I counter. "Thanks, Mrs. Thompson!" I put on an exaggerated smile and overly cheerful voice. She scowls and takes off the sunglasses, throwing them onto my bed. She then crosses her arms. "Don't mess with me--"

I interrupt her with a hug. "Thank you," I say, my head resting on her shoulder. "I'd be dead if it weren't for you." I can feel her getting flustered. "Alright, alright, that's enough," she warns, pushing me off her.

"What are you wearing?" I laugh.

Alara looks down at the clothes in disgust. "Just a few things I found in your closet."

"You went in my closet?" I hiss. She smirks at me. "Yep. Apparently you're quite a Brendon Urie fanatic." I feel myself turning pink.

"How'd you get here and change so fast?" I ask.

"Well, my powers allow me to tell where Andy is at all times and when I found out he spent the night here I came to drag him away. That was my original plan but when your boyfriend so carelessly bumped his head underneath your bed and I heard your mom was here and angry, I shoved him into the closet with all your Brendon Urie posters and got dressed into your clothes so I didn't look 'weird'," Alara explains.

"Wait. Did you shove him into the closet or get dressed first?"

"Does it matter?"

The thought of Alara in her underwear in front of Andy fills me with a weird feeling. It's not a pleasant feeling. I don't think I should be possesive at all of him, but he did stay with me in bed until I fell asleep. And woke up beside me too. Maybe we are more than just friends.

Andy steps out of the closet, wings ruffled. I hope they weren't damaged from being shoved into a small space. His wings stretched out and he stood up a little taller. It's really amazing seeing a demon stretch out their wings. I'm momentarily speechless. Alara looks annoyed which isn't anything out of the ordinary. "Put your tongue back in your mouth, Thompson. You're drooling all over the carpet." Andy laughs quietly. He nods his head back at the closet. "Looks like I've got competition."

"Oh shut up, Andy," she snaps. "We all know you two have 'feelings' for each other or whatever, just get together already and save me the barf. I don't know what's worse, watching you blush and flirt or just seeing you both making out and shit. It's annoying as hell so just admit that you guys are a thing." She raises an eyebrow, daring us. Andy looks at me and I look back. And we both smile like idiots. Alara mocks gagging. "Spare me."

A/N GUESS WHAT. A week ago ya boi met Andy!!! I look so bad omgg. So yeah that concludes another crappy update! (why are u still reading this lmao)

Song: Intertwined - dodie
Chapter published: July 19th, 2017