An Eternity of Eclipse (24 page)

“What am I supposed to do with this oversized rat?”

I was tempted to bend down and punch the annoyingly cute puppy to show Eclipse how much all furry animals pissed me off. However, against my better judgment, when I stared down at the fluffy creature again and saw it staring up at me, I felt guilt for hating something so cute. Its small paws were still nudging on my heels, begging for my attention and acceptance.

I wanted to hate it, but I just couldn’t.

“I think he adores you already,” Eclipse mused, staring affectionately at the little puppy, already knowing that I was growing soft for the little fur ball.

No matter how irritating it appeared to me, this particular puppy somehow melted my icy heart. I doubted it was an everyday occurrence that human girls received gifts from Demons. Even I had to admit that I felt incredibly special to be gifted with a puppy from the Demon of Lust himself.

As I quietly assessed the puppy, a light bulb suddenly went off in my head. I had the perfect use for this puppy. Of course, why didn’t I see it before? Considering where I was headed today, this puppy came at the perfect time.

My aversion for this puppy dispelled as soon as I saw its use.

Feeling bad that the little pup was still trying to get my attention, I yielded with my snobbery and scooped the ball of white fluff up in my arms. This concession immediately earned a bark of approval from the furry one. It poked its little pink tongue out, its small body wiggling in exhilaration while it licked and kissed my cheek.

“I hate cute and furry animals,” I told Eclipse, bringing the puppy down from my cheek and holding it against my chest. I instinctively pet its silky fur, earning whimpers of satisfaction from the puppy. It was probably too forward of me to say, but I think it loved me already.

“A pet snake or tarantula to travel around the city with you would bring too much attention. I’m sure you’d rather not bring attention to yourself, right?” Eclipse grinned, reaching his hand out to scratch the puppy between its ears. “There’s an exception for everything. I know you and this one will get along well.”

I said nothing as I continued to pet the puppy.

“What do you want to name him, Teacup?” Eclipse asked once he was positive that I wouldn’t sadistically throw the lovable puppy into oncoming traffic.

I deliberated for a few seconds. “OinkOink.”

Eclipse gawked at me like I was high on crack. He gazed uncertainly at the puppy, who had just whined in confusion upon hearing the name I wanted to give it. Eclipse laughed uncomfortably, clearly afraid to piss me off now that he had just gotten back in my good graces.

He smiled tentatively, trying to have the puppy’s back while walking on eggshells around me. “You know that this oversized rat is a puppy and not a pig, right, Teacup?”

I bequeathed him with a fierce and inflexible stare. Who was he to tell me what I could or couldn’t name this little fur ball?

“It’s
my
puppy, isn’t it?” I snapped harshly, earning surrendering hands from Eclipse.

Without giving him a chance to change my mind, I readjusted my handbag, left the flap open, and carefully placed OinkOink in it. OinkOink stood atop the notebooks in my bag and peeked his head out. He was so light that he barely made a dent on the weight of my handbag.

Travel-size puppy
, I mused favorably.
I like that.

I could see Eclipse gaze sympathetically at OinkOink from my peripheral vision. The puppy’s head and upper legs were peeking out from the side of my bag.

“Sorry, champ,” Eclipse apologized, tousling the top of OinkOink’s furry head after I hiked the bag up to my shoulder. “I tried.”

“Where did you find this puppy anyway?” I asked, liking how quiet and obedient OinkOink was. I normally hated puppies because I thought they were rowdy and barked too much. It pleased me that OinkOink was so well-behaved. Instead of being an annoyance, he was simply sitting in that bag like he was my accessory and cutely pawing at Eclipse’s hand for fun.

“Pet shop after you left me last night,” Eclipse said with a gusty sigh. “I felt uncomfortable and wanted to get you something.” A grin framed his lips once he observed that the anger I harbored for him had since eroded. He relinquished his attention from OinkOink and set it all on me. “You’re not mad at me anymore, right?”

Not too keen on appearing like a pushover, I shrugged carelessly. I spared a glimpse at OinkOink. “I’ll take it out on this puppy if I am.”

A puzzled bark erupted from OinkOink. He was staring up at me in horror.

I smiled inwardly. I had a sick sense of humor. Though I showed no bluff, I could tell from the amused smile on Eclipse’s face that he knew that I was joking—slightly.

“I’m glad we’ve gotten past this,” he approved. “In any case, we should get going.” Without preamble, he enclosed his warm hand around mine, sending slivers of pleasurable electricity to shoot up my body. He pulled me with him and steered me across the street towards what suspiciously looked like a bus stop. “Don’t want you to be late to the shelter now.”

“But we have to take three connecting buses to make it there,” I uttered, staggered with the pleasure overtaking me with just a simple touch from him. I was also bewildered with the sudden change in topic from the puppy to Sanctuary. I whipped my head around and searched for another cab. I seldom took buses. I didn’t want to deal with the waits, the connecting buses, and sharing transportation with others when I simply wanted to be by myself on a Sunday. “I want to take a cab.”

Eclipse shot me a disapproving look.

“Are you planning on spending the whole day waiting for a cab?” He angled his head towards the busy flow of traffic surrounding us. “The one you called left, and there doesn’t seem to be any cabs right now. Our best bet is to take the bus. Plus, you’re trying to save money, aren’t you? Come on, the buses will be nicer on that thinning wallet of yours.”

“Wait,” I cried. I halted in my tracks and pulled my hand from his grasp. “Time out for a second. Who says you’re going?”

His brows came together in a frown. “Why can’t I come?”

“Because.” I looked around with shifty eyes, making sure that no one could eavesdrop on us. We were standing in the middle of the sidewalk, right in the center of all the chaos as people skirted around us in a blurred frenzy. Some were filing in and out of the bus that had just made its stop while others simply passed from one flow of pedestrian traffic to another. Even though people surrounded us, I concluded that there was too much going on for someone to be able to eavesdrop on us. Assured that it was safe, I continued with my thoughts. “Because there are innocent kids there.”  

“So?”

“So, you’re the Demon of Lust!” I shrieked, my voice a bit more high-pitched than it should’ve been. Even OinkOink shuddered at the unnatural pitch. I knew my high-pitched voice was annoying, but I couldn’t help it as I gaped at Eclipse in outrage. He was normally so smart. Why couldn’t he understand that his very existence around small children was inappropriate? What kind of babysitter would I be if I brought a Sex Demon around innocent kids? “Your title alone means you’re a bad influence.”

“Gracie,” Eclipse incited dryly, evidently offended by what I said. “What do you think I’m going to do? Pass out condoms to the little baby midgets and tell them to have a go at it?”

“I wouldn’t put it past you,” I countered, though I really didn’t believe that. I sighed, feeling OinkOink pout beside me. It was as if he was sad that I was keeping Eclipse from joining us at Sanctuary. “The fact that you’re calling the kids ‘baby midgets’ already means that you shouldn’t go. Your intentions aren’t pure!”

“And yours are?” he rebuked with the same intensity. His dark eyes bore into mine. “The only reason why you volunteer so consistently is because you enjoy feeding off their misery!”

I scowled at him, allowing a moment of cold wind to scour around us before I gritted my teeth and said, “I might be feeding off their misery, but at least I’m still trying to help. They are miserable whether I visit them or not. At least with me there, they are a bit happier. No matter what you accuse me of, you can’t deny the fact that they are happy when they see me. I may not be the saint they think I am, I may only go because I want to feed into my sadism, but at least at the end of the day, I’m still a bad person who is trying to do good things. The end justifies the means in this case.”

“I can do that too,” he argued swiftly. It was as though he was waiting for me to say all of that so that he could use it to corroborate his own arguments. “Come on, Teacup. You can”—he paused to think up an appropriate and logical persuasion—“can use me to help too. Plus, you’re stuck with me anyway. You might as well take advantage of me and have me volunteer with you by default. We can be two bad people trying to do good things together. Like you said, they are miserable with or without us there. What difference does it make if our intentions aren’t pure? The end justifies the means, right?” When he saw that I still had a doubtful look on my face, he immediately added, “I’ll be good today. I promise.”

As a demonstration of his vow, Eclipse proudly threw the cigarette he was smoking on the ground and stepped on it. It was his wordless promise to me that he was going to be a good influence by not smoking in front of the kids.

I chewed my bottom lip, looking at Eclipse with a contemplative face. I considered my dilemma. I was aware that Eclipse was “asking” for my permission as a courtesy. Regardless of my answer, he was going to go with me. Who was I kidding? If Eclipse wanted to go somewhere, then he was going, and there was no one who could tell the great Demon of Lust otherwise. At least with this concession, I could pretend to go about the day thinking that it was
I
who gave him permission (instead of him just tagging along uninvited). My pride had been wounded one too many times. Even the false sense of control over Eclipse was something I’d be willing to accept as my compromise.

Unable to say no, I simply sighed as my consent.

Eclipse beamed brightly. Beside me, OinkOink barked in approval. When I saw them grin at each other, I started to regret accepting the cute, oversized rat as a gift. I could already tell that no matter how much OinkOink appeared to love me, the puppy’s loyalty was directed towards Eclipse. I had the cryptic feeling that come future fights between Eclipse and I, OinkOink was going to side with Eclipse more so than with me. With this hypothetical, but highly likely, future transgression from OinkOink in mind, I glared at the puppy while it panted at me with absolute glee.
That future traitor.

“You won’t regret it, Teacup,” Eclipse assured, taking it upon himself to speedily herd me towards the bus that was about to take off.

We ascended the steps just as the glass doors closed behind us. Eclipse was ahead of me, but once we stopped at the landing where there was a billing machine, Eclipse inclined his hand towards the chubby middle-aged bus driver. I thought he was wordlessly telling me that this man looked exactly like the cab driver who bolted on us. However, when I saw him shift his eyes towards the billing machine, I felt a glare take over my eyes.

“
I’m
paying?”

Eclipse bequeathed me with a bashful expression. “I don’t have change on me, Teacup.”

“Why can’t you make yourself invisible then?” I mumbled grumpily to myself, pushing OinkOink to the far side of the bag while I dug for my wallet. “Making me pay for you when I didn’t even want you to come.”

I crankily paid for the both of us and followed Eclipse as we moved through the crowded bus and slid into an empty seat near the back. I sat by the window while Eclipse sat beside me. As I felt the wheels of the crowded bus turn, I got comfortable for the long ride. I withdrew OinkOink out of my bag and placed the little fur ball on my lap. The puppy rested quietly on my thighs, staring up at me with adoration. I could feel my aversion for the puppy thaw every time I stared into its expressive and loving black eyes. It was strange how much it had already stolen my heart.

Eclipse’s amused eyes softened at the sight of OinkOink on my lap.

“You’re only accepting OinkOink and bringing him along because you know the kids will like him.” There was no judgment in Eclipse’s voice when he carelessly stated this. With anyone else, I was certain they’d be disturbed at how much I could dislike a cute puppy like OinkOink. With Eclipse, he simply accepted the anomaly in my behavior and did not try to make me feel guilty about feeling things that were natural to me. It was one of the few traits I liked about him—he didn’t find it necessary to judge me.

I nodded, petting OinkOink while the little fur ball closed his eyes and enjoyed the sensation of my fingers running through his fur.

“The kids always talk about wanting a puppy. You obviously can’t have one at the shelter because they don’t need a dog barking day in and day out and making a mess out of everything. I figured since I got a puppy as a gift, I might as well make use of it. I think the kids will be thrilled to play with OinkOink today. This puppy may not be the pet of my dreams, but if it’s useful, I don’t see the problem in accepting it and taking care of it.”

I turned to Eclipse once I was reminded of the kids. With all the commotion from this morning, I nearly forgot about the snacks and desserts I wanted to buy for Sanctuary.