Just a small one.

By the time Mason made it downstairs, Viv was long gone. Whether she was off to class, to work, or her morning jog he didn’t know. And to be frank he didn’t really care. But he also wasn’t sure whether or not that was a good thing. After all, there was only so much Viv he could really handle in the morning. But on the other hand, that last update on Luxuria he felt like another shoe was about to come crashing down. And he wouldn’t mind just getting whatever it was over with.

At least he wasn’t alone. That gave him some level of protection.

“Morning mijo,” Rayen said without looking up at him. She stared at her tablet, swiping occasionally, as she scrolled through the news. Her other hand occasionally brought her mug to her lips. Most people would probably assume the hard-nosed lawyer would be one of those people who outright refused to drink their coffee anyway beyond black. While in actuality the cup was probably more actually described as a cup of cream and sugar with coffee in it. Well, it would be if Tegan hadn’t **** her to switch to a more healthy non-sugar sweetener.

“Hey Mama,” Mason said as he walked towards the pantry. “I’m surprised you're still here.”

“Well, we need to pick up your mom’s new car. So I’m going to just do some work from home this morning.” He was confused for a second before it came back to him. That had just been last night. It seemed like a lot longer.

“Oh, right.” A genuine smile formed on his face, the siren call of the open road was already calling to him. Or rather the opportunities that freedom would provide that were sparking his imagination. “Thank you so much again for that.”

“You earned it,” Rayen said flatly, looking up at her son with a small, proud smile. “Just remember to be safe.”

“I will,” He promised, pulling a box of cereal off the top shelf. “Where’s Mom by the way?”

“She woke up with inspiration!” Rayen said the last word as overdramatically as she could. Her brown eyes closed half-closed as she raised her hand and gaze to stare at the imaginary skull in her hand. But almost as soon as the short woman struck the pose she broke. An affectionate chuckle slipped free as she shook her head.

This had been part of their lives for the last few months. Tegan had decided that her new year’s resolution was to act on moments of inspiration. So no doubt she was furiously sketching either in their bedroom or Rayen’s home office. Mason couldn’t help but laugh along with his present parent, but no doubt the two were both thinking the same thing. That it actually was a good idea and it was impressive she was still keeping it up.

After that, the two sat in relative silence. Rayen sipped her coffee as she alternated between casually scrolling through news articles and furiously typing up emails. For his part Mason just enjoyed the comfortable silence, munching on his cereal, and idly checked his phone. But what felt like the first time in forever he wasn’t looking at Luxuria. It didn’t have anything new for him at the moment. Well, besides the five silver he got for eating breakfast with his Mamita.

Mason was definitely an outlier in terms of social media among his peers. He had an Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and even a Facebook account. But in practice, they were very similar to his YouTube account. That is to say, he used them to watch rather than to post. Sure he would comment and occasionally post whatever bit of something he thought was important enough to share with the void. But unless you were talking about the Paleontology subreddit, he was very much a lurker. But that worked for him.

Especially at that moment.

“Mama?” Mason asked quietly. Rayen was clearly deep into whatever she was writing. So he was **** to wait through a plethora of hurried taps before she looked up. But when she finally did, her face showing a polite curiosity, Mason continued. “A bunch of other seniors are going to a restaurant tonight for dinner. Do you mind if I go?”

“Who else is going?” True to her legal roots his mother’s face was totally neutral. But he knew this was a more pointed question than she was letting on. Of the two, Rayen was the mom who was far more concerned with her kids falling in with the wrong kind of crowd. She had mellowed out a little as he and Viv grew older and showed good(ish) judgment in who they made friends with. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t on her mind.

“A bunch of people,” He answered honestly. Lorri Kipling (because who else was going to organize something like this) had been pushing the outing for most of the last week. And so far it looked like she had around thirty or so confirmations. “I was going to see if Yumi wanted to go too. And I’ll ask Vina, but her dad probably won’t let her go out on a school night.”

Mason did his best to sound casual. It was very difficult to lie to a woman who had known him his entire life and made a living spotting liars. Because he had no intention of setting foot in that restaurant tonight. Not because he hated his classmates. Because he didn’t, not most of them anyway. But he was desperately hoping that he would be spending time with Ms. Bailey instead. This just happened to make a good cover story.

Rayen passively stared him down for what must have been a full minute. All the while he did his best to not fidget. It wasn’t fair. Mason was almost a foot-and-a-half taller than his Latina mother. She shouldn’t have been able to intimidate him without even making an angry face.

“Dr. Wibowo is right. It’s a school night,” Rayen said coldly. His stomach morphed into a pit. Ms. Bailey already seemed hesitant about all of this. He could only imagine that backing out at the last minute, and over something as juvenile as not having his parent’s permission, would give her more than enough of a reason to change her mind. He knew he should have asked Tegan first. “So don’t stay out too late.”

It took Mason’s brain a second to process what he had just heard. It struck him around the same time he noticed the playful smirk on Rayen’s face. The same one he had seen on Viv’s face a thousand times before. But he couldn’t be bothered.

“Gracias Mama.” Mason beamed at her.

“Well, having a car also means having a little more freedom. And like I said earlier you’ve earned it.”

After a quick hug, Mason realized it was almost time for him to head out. So he offered his mama one last thank you and a goodbye. It seemed that his elated mood was at least somewhat infectious too. He stepped out into a bright sunny day, and while there was still a little chill in the air it was way warmer than yesterday. Though not warm enough for Yumi to not already be in the car with her hands warming on the vents.

She did see him coming though. Her hazel eyes were the size of dinner plates and intensely fixed on him. Her cheeks were pink and her mouth hung open slightly, at least until she swallowed heavily. Mason worried for a moment that something was wrong. Until he realized there was another, more likely cause for her current expression.

“Did you sleep alright?” Mason asked coyly. He didn’t want to tease her too much, but the way her little butt squirmed made him think he hadn’t hit that point yet.

“Very,” Yumi admitted, staring pointedly at her lap.

“Want to tell me about it?” He asked in a bit of a leading, almost sing-song voice.

“It was…” The tiny girl paused for a long time. Her face flushed a deep scarlet as she considered exactly what to say next. “Medieval.”

“Really?” He said, trying to play up his genuine curiosity into something more playful. “So was I a handsome prince or an evil sorcerer.”

“P-Prince,” Yumi stuttered out. She was definitely digging in her tiny heels. There was clearly something she didn’t want to say. Though “admit” might be the more appropriate word given the way she looked out the window instead of at him. That only made Mason more curious, but he had trusted her with Lilith so he decided he could trust Yumi to come clean when she was ready.

“Alright then keep your secrets,” He said in his best (though not necessarily good) Frodo voice. That caught his girlfriend off guard for sure. One tiny hand clamped over her mouth to try and stifle the inelegant giggle storm that overcame her. Eventually, though she got enough control to lean over and give him a quick hug.

Yumi pulled the car out of the driveway. But Mason wouldn’t let them lapse into silence yet.

“So how are you feeling? After last night?” He did his best to try and put things delicately. Though it came out more awkward than anything else.

“Honestly? Still like last night. It’s just… I don’t think it’s all sunk in yet. The bigger implications of it all.” Yumi sounded unsure as she spoke. “Mostly I’m just worried about t-tonight. Is that silly? I learned that demons and stuff are real and that’s what I’m worried about.”

“Trust me when I say I get it,” Mason assured her, putting one hand on her shoulder. If any human on Earth could understand it was him. There was something about the knowledge of beings like Lilith that was just too big to grapple with. But being anxious about a date, even a date with his teacher, was a lot more manageable. “Speaking of which, I’ve got a cover story we can use. Apparently, Lorri set up a senior dinner or something. And I already got my moms’ permission to go.”

“Oh right, that’s tonight,” Yumi said. When Mason gave her a surprised look she quickly added. “Vina wanted to go, but her dad won’t let her. But that’s a good idea. I’ll text my parents when we get to school.”

It wasn’t long after that they hit their first red light. Mason honestly suspected they had yet to actually go through that intersection without stopping. But now there was an upside. Without saying anything Mason turned to face Yumi, only to find her adorable, round face already looking up at him with an eager smile. He swooped down and kissed her. As their lips met, he couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like when, not if, they were able to live together. It truly wouldn’t surprise him if they spent the entire first day kissing every few seconds.

But this one could only last so long. The light turned green and the car behind them gave a quick honk to break them apart. Yumi practically jumped out of her skin. No doubt the Japanese girl would have curled into a small, mortified ball if she hadn’t needed her hands and feet to drive. Still, her petite shoulders scrunched up, trying desperately to somehow make herself even smaller.

Which made Mason more than a little guilty for what he needed to say next.

“So I do have two more things,” Mason said, trying to keep his voice appropriately calm. “First, Lilith talked to me in my dream again last night.”

“W-Was she mad about…” Yumi couldn’t quite get out the words. But the white-knuckled grip in the steering wheel spoke volumes.

“No. She doesn’t mind that I told you about her and the app. She actually said that you were a good choice.” As Mason quickly tried to reassure, Yumi’s eyes widened as she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. “All she asked was for us not to tell anyone else. Apparently it makes things easier for her.”

“And that’s really all?” Yumi asked with nervous hope. And when Mason nodded her muscles half relaxed and she let out a shaky breath. “I guess that’s fair.”

“Yeah, it seemed like a fair trade to me,” He said with a little sarcasm.

“All things considered,” She agreed with a relieved grin. “What about the second thing?”

“Well it turns out your tenure as my chauffeuse might be coming to an end,” Mason explained with a wide, knowing smile. But his girlfriend only cocked an eyebrow before she pushed up her glasses.

“What?”

“Oh, uh, Mom’s getting a new car and I’m getting the van,” Mason explained, slumping as he deflated a little.

“Really!? That’s awesome,” Yumi said with a smile. At least before she swallowed heavily and hastily added, “N-Not that I mind driving. I-If you want me to. I mean, I don’t want t-to **** you…”

“It’s okay Yumi. I’ll take over driving duty for a while. You’ve done your share for sure.” He punctuated his reassurances by leaning down and kissing Yumi’s cheek. Ensuring that said cheek was split by a growing smile before it turned red.

“M-Mason! I’m driving!”

Though that wouldn’t be the case for long. Both in the macro sense that he’d start driving, probably as soon as tonight. But also in the micro sense that they were only a few turns away from school.