I was sitting at a grungy bar, drowning my sorrows in alcohol after losing out on a job opportunity at a prestigious financial firm. I was so sure that I was going to get the job but they went with someone else…someone who wasn't even half as qualified as me. It felt like a slap in the face.
I downed my first drink in one gulp, feeling the burn as the liquor raced down my throat. I needed something to take the edge off, to help me forget that I had just lost the chance at my dream. I sighed and slumped over the bar. As I sat there, wallowing in self-pity, I struck up a conversation with the stranger next to me. He could tell that I was upset about something, and he asked me what was wrong.
"I just lost out on my dream job," I explained. "I don't know what I'm going to do now."
The stranger next to me nodded sympathetically. "It's tough when you put your heart into something and it doesn't work out," he said. "But don't worry, it’s not the only job out there."
I shook my head. "It might as well be. The competition for these jobs is so fierce, it's practically impossible to get ahead."
The stranger looked at me intently for a moment before speaking again. "What if I told you that there was another way?" he asked slyly.
Curiosity piqued, I leaned closer to hear what he had to say. "I'll give you a job with more money and power than you could ever imagine," he said, "in exchange for your soul."
I laughed out loud. "Thanks, I needed that," I said, still chuckling. But soon I found out he wasn't just another poor sap drinking away his sorrows. He was serious. He raised his arm and pointed a single finger toward the ceiling. As he lowered his arm it was like he was unzipping the universe.
My head was spinning, not just from the alcohol. Even with space and time seeming to bend and dance all around me, I wasn't willing to surrender my eternal soul. I asked if there was anything else he would settle for. “One thing” he said, “I want you to take an Angel’s beauty” That didn’t sound so bad... I agreed.
He snapped his fingers and in an instant the universe solidified back into the dirty bar we had just left. Before me stood an actual angel. She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Her skin was like porcelain, her hair like floating as if she were underwater. She smiled at me, and my heart skipped a beat.
The demon grinned wickedly.
"Now, kiss her."
I couldn't resist. I leaned in and kissed her. Her lips tasted like a mixture of honey and wine. My head was floating again.
"Now, bite her."
Without even thinking I felt my teeth sink into her lower lip.
“Now, sctatch her.”
My nails raked down her face.
“Slap her”
Her head twisted to the side so quickly her coppery hair whipped my face.
The commands came more rapidly. More violent. I felt like an animal, ripping and tearing. I could taste her blood in my mouth like vinegar. It was as if her entire body was going rancid. I was crying. But I never felt so powerful.
Today I sit in a penthouse so far above the city that I’m not sure an angel could even reach me. The view is breathtaking, I can see for miles in every direction. The city below stretches out like a carpet of lights, each one begging for attention. Yet, I sit here alone, my back to the windows, staring at a single painting day after day.
I downed my first drink in one gulp, feeling the burn as the liquor raced down my throat. I needed something to take the edge off, to help me forget that I had just lost the chance at my dream. I sighed and slumped over the bar. As I sat there, wallowing in self-pity, I struck up a conversation with the stranger next to me. He could tell that I was upset about something, and he asked me what was wrong.
"I just lost out on my dream job," I explained. "I don't know what I'm going to do now."
The stranger next to me nodded sympathetically. "It's tough when you put your heart into something and it doesn't work out," he said. "But don't worry, it’s not the only job out there."
I shook my head. "It might as well be. The competition for these jobs is so fierce, it's practically impossible to get ahead."
The stranger looked at me intently for a moment before speaking again. "What if I told you that there was another way?" he asked slyly.
Curiosity piqued, I leaned closer to hear what he had to say. "I'll give you a job with more money and power than you could ever imagine," he said, "in exchange for your soul."
I laughed out loud. "Thanks, I needed that," I said, still chuckling. But soon I found out he wasn't just another poor sap drinking away his sorrows. He was serious. He raised his arm and pointed a single finger toward the ceiling. As he lowered his arm it was like he was unzipping the universe.
My head was spinning, not just from the alcohol. Even with space and time seeming to bend and dance all around me, I wasn't willing to surrender my eternal soul. I asked if there was anything else he would settle for. “One thing” he said, “I want you to take an Angel’s beauty” That didn’t sound so bad... I agreed.
He snapped his fingers and in an instant the universe solidified back into the dirty bar we had just left. Before me stood an actual angel. She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Her skin was like porcelain, her hair like floating as if she were underwater. She smiled at me, and my heart skipped a beat.
The demon grinned wickedly.
"Now, kiss her."
I couldn't resist. I leaned in and kissed her. Her lips tasted like a mixture of honey and wine. My head was floating again.
"Now, bite her."
Without even thinking I felt my teeth sink into her lower lip.
“Now, sctatch her.”
My nails raked down her face.
“Slap her”
Her head twisted to the side so quickly her coppery hair whipped my face.
The commands came more rapidly. More violent. I felt like an animal, ripping and tearing. I could taste her blood in my mouth like vinegar. It was as if her entire body was going rancid. I was crying. But I never felt so powerful.
Today I sit in a penthouse so far above the city that I’m not sure an angel could even reach me. The view is breathtaking, I can see for miles in every direction. The city below stretches out like a carpet of lights, each one begging for attention. Yet, I sit here alone, my back to the windows, staring at a single painting day after day.