Chapter 3 : The Unwelcome Guest Simon

The knocking started at precisely 7:00 AM on Saturday morning.

Julian, who had been enjoying a rare day off and the luxury of sleeping in, groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. The knocking continued—persistent, rhythmic, and utterly annoying.

After five minutes of futile resistance, Julian stumbled out of bed, pulled on a robe, and went to the door. He didn''t bother checking the peephole. At this hour, it could only be one of two things: a delivery he hadn''t ordered, or trouble.

It was trouble.

Standing in the hallway was a man who looked to be in his early thirties, with messy brown hair that seemed to defy gravity and eyes the color of moss after rain. He wore an ill-fitting suit that might have been fashionable in the 1970s, and he carried a battered leather suitcase that looked like it had seen better decades.

"Julian Black?" the man asked, his voice cheerful and slightly too loud for the early hour.

"Yes," Julian said warily. "Can I help you?"

"Simon Green." The man extended a hand. When Julian didn''t take it, he let it drop, unperturbed. "I''m your new roommate."

Julian blinked. "I''m sorry, there must be some mistake. I don''t have a roommate."

"Ah, but you do now!" Simon''s smile widened. "I''ve taken the liberty of moving in. My things are downstairs. Well, some of them. The rest are... elsewhere."

Julian felt the first stirrings of alarm. This wasn''t just a misunderstanding. There was power here—not celestial like Christopher''s, but something else. Something slippery and amorphous. "Who are you really?"

Simon''s smile didn''t waver, but his eyes changed. The cheerful facade dropped for just a moment, revealing something ancient and calculating. "Simon Green, King of the Slimes. And you, Julian Black, are the Duke of the Seventh Circle of Hell, currently masquerading as a bus conductor. Quite the career change."

Julian''s blood ran cold. He stepped back, his demonic instincts screaming at him to attack, to eliminate the threat. But he forced himself to stay calm. "What do you want?"

"Room and board, mostly." Simon pushed past him into the apartment, looking around with apparent approval. "Nice place. Cozy. I like what you''ve done with it. Very... human."

"How did you find me?" Julian asked, closing the door. He needed to contain this situation, and quickly.

"Oh, word gets around." Simon set his suitcase down and began exploring the living room. "The demon community talks. They say you''ve gone native. Living among the humans, working a mortal job. I had to see it for myself."

Julian watched as Simon picked up a framed photograph—a picture of Julian with his bus driving class, all of them smiling in their new uniforms. "Put that down."

Simon did, but his expression was thoughtful. "You really like it here, don''t you? This simple life."

"That''s none of your business." Julian crossed his arms. "You can''t stay here."

"Actually, I can." Simon turned to face him, and for the first time, Julian saw the true power behind the cheerful exterior. This was no minor supernatural being. Simon Green was ancient, powerful, and dangerous. "I''ve already paid six months'' rent to your landlord. He was quite happy to have a new tenant, especially one willing to pay in advance."

Julian''s mind raced. This was a disaster. His carefully constructed life, his privacy, his peace—all threatened by this... this slime king. "Why?"

"Why what? Why move in? Why pay your rent?" Simon shrugged. "I''m curious. I want to understand why a Duke of Hell would choose this." He gestured around the apartment. "Why hide your power? Why serve mortals?"

"It''s not your concern."

"But it is!" Simon''s eyes lit up with genuine curiosity. "Don''t you see? You''re breaking all the rules. Demons are supposed to corrupt, to tempt, to cause chaos. You''re... helping people get to work on time. It''s fascinating."

Julian took a deep breath, trying to control his anger. "You can''t stay."

"I already am." Simon opened his suitcase. Instead of clothes, it was filled with what looked like jars of various colored gels and slimes. "Don''t worry, I''m a considerate roommate. I don''t snore, I''m tidy, and I pay my share of the bills."

"This isn''t happening," Julian muttered to himself.

"Oh, it is." Simon selected a jar of emerald green slime and unscrewed the lid. The substance inside quivered, then flowed out onto the floor, forming itself into a perfect replica of an armchair. "See? I even bring my own furniture."

Julian stared at the slime chair. It looked comfortable, if slightly unsettling. "That''s... not normal."

"Neither is a demon bus conductor," Simon pointed out cheerfully. "Now, which room is mine? I assume you have a spare bedroom?"

Julian considered his options. He could fight Simon, but that would risk exposing them both and destroying his apartment in the process. He could try to reason with him, but Simon didn''t seem the reasonable type. Or he could accept the situation temporarily while he figured out how to get rid of him.

"Fine," Julian said through gritted teeth. "The spare room is down the hall. But this is temporary. And there are rules."

"Rules! I love rules!" Simon clapped his hands together. "What are they?"

"No using slime furniture in common areas. No revealing your true nature to anyone. And no interfering with my life."

Simon pouted. "But interfering is the best part."

"Those are my terms. Take them or leave."

"Fine, fine." Simon waved a dismissive hand. "I accept. For now." He picked up his suitcase and headed down the hall. "Oh, by the way," he called over his shoulder, "you have a date tonight."

Julian froze. "What?"

"With the angel. Christopher White." Simon popped his head back out of the hallway. "I saw him waiting at your bus stop yesterday. The tension between you two is palpable. Really, it''s quite romantic. Demon and angel, finding love in the rainy city."

"How do you know about him?" Julian demanded.

Simon tapped the side of his nose. "I have my ways. Don''t worry, I won''t interfere. Much." He disappeared into the spare room, humming a tune that sounded suspiciously like "Love is in the Air."

Julian sank onto his couch, his head in his hands. This was a nightmare. Not only did he have an ancient slime king as an unwanted roommate, but Simon knew about Christopher. And apparently, he thought they had a date.

Which reminded Julian—he was supposed to meet Christopher for coffee that evening. They''d arranged it after Christopher''s third time on Julian''s bus, when the attraction had become too obvious to ignore. A simple meeting, Julian had told himself. Just coffee. Just two men getting to know each other.

Now it was complicated by Simon''s presence.

The day passed in a blur of awkwardness. Simon proved to be an... interesting roommate. He didn''t eat normal food, preferring to absorb nutrients from a special slime he kept in the refrigerator. He didn''t sleep, instead spending the night hours rearranging his slime collection. And he asked endless questions about Julian''s life.

"Why a bus conductor?" Simon asked at one point, watching Julian make lunch.

"I like it," Julian said shortly.

"But why not something more... demonic? A lawyer, perhaps. Or a politician."

"I''m retired from demonic activities."

Simon laughed. "Retired! That''s adorable. You can''t retire from being a Duke of Hell, Julian. It''s not a job, it''s who you are."

Julian didn''t answer. He didn''t need to explain himself to Simon.

As evening approached, Julian dressed carefully for his meeting with Christopher. He chose dark jeans and a charcoal gray sweater, simple but elegant. When he emerged from his bedroom, Simon was waiting in the living room, now wearing a surprisingly fashionable outfit.

"Where are you going?" Simon asked innocently.

"Out."

"With the angel?"

Julian sighed. "Yes, with Christopher. And you''re not coming."

"Of course not!" Simon looked offended. "I wouldn''t dream of intruding on your date. But I will be watching from a distance. For research purposes."

"Simon..."

"Kidding! Mostly." Simon grinned. "Have fun. Try not to start a celestial war."

Julian left the apartment, trying to shake off the feeling of being watched. He walked to the coffee shop near Pike Place Market, the same one where he and Christopher had agreed to meet. The evening was cool but clear, the sky streaked with the last colors of sunset.

Christopher was already there, sitting at a table by the window. He looked up as Julian entered, and for a moment, Julian forgot about Simon, forgot about the complications, forgot about everything except the way Christopher''s face lit up when he saw him.

"Julian," Christopher said, standing. "You made it."

"I did." Julian took the seat opposite him. "Sorry if I''m late."

"You''re not." Christopher''s smile was warm, genuine. "I was early. I wanted to make sure I got us a good table."

They ordered coffee—black for Julian, a latte for Christopher—and for a while, they talked about nothing important. The weather. Seattle''s traffic. Favorite books. It was easy, comfortable. Julian found himself relaxing, enjoying the simple pleasure of conversation with someone who seemed to genuinely like him.

But then Christopher''s expression grew serious. "Julian, there''s something I need to tell you."

Julian''s heart sank. Here it was. The revelation. The moment when Christopher would reveal that he knew what Julian was, that this had all been a setup.

But Christopher said, "I''m not... from around here. I mean, I''m new to Seattle. I came here for a job, but it''s not what I expected."

Julian waited, his coffee forgotten.

"I work for... a religious organization," Christopher continued carefully. "We investigate... anomalies. Supernatural occurrences."

Julian kept his expression neutral. "That sounds interesting."

"It is. But it''s also complicated." Christopher looked down at his hands. "The thing is, I think I''ve found an anomaly. And I''m not sure what to do about it."

Julian''s pulse quickened. "What kind of anomaly?"

Christopher met his eyes. "You."

For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The sounds of the coffee shop faded into the background. Julian''s mind raced, trying to find the right words, the right explanation.

But before he could speak, a familiar voice said, "Well, isn''t this cozy?"

Julian looked up to see Simon standing by their table, holding a cup of what looked like green tea but was probably something much weirder.

"Simon," Julian said through gritted teeth. "What are you doing here?"

"Getting coffee, same as you." Simon smiled at Christopher. "You must be the angel. I''m Simon, Julian''s roommate. He didn''t tell you about me, did he?"

Christopher looked from Simon to Julian, his expression unreadable. "Roommate?"

"It''s a recent development," Julian said quickly. "Simon, this is a private conversation."

"Of course, of course." Simon didn''t move. "Don''t mind me. I''ll just sit over there." He pointed to a table nearby. "Close enough to hear, but far enough to give you the illusion of privacy."

He walked away, leaving Julian and Christopher in stunned silence.

Christopher was the first to speak. "Your roommate is... interesting."

"That''s one word for it." Julian rubbed his temples. "Christopher, about what you were saying..."

But the moment was broken. The easy connection they''d had was gone, replaced by awkwardness and unspoken questions.

They finished their coffee in strained silence, making small talk that felt hollow. When they parted outside the coffee shop, Christopher said, "We should do this again. When we can talk... privately."

"I''d like that," Julian said, and meant it.

He watched Christopher walk away, then turned to find Simon standing beside him.

"Well, that was awkward," Simon said cheerfully. "But informative! The angel knows you''re not human. And you know he''s not human. And neither of you is doing anything about it. Fascinating."

Julian didn''t answer. He just started walking home, Simon trailing behind him, humming that damn love song again.

As they walked through the rainy Seattle streets, Julian realized that his simple life was over. He had an angel who knew his secret, a slime king for a roommate, and a growing attraction to someone he was supposed to be enemies with.

Nothing would ever be simple again.

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