âMammon! Mammon! Do you have anything to say about the upcoming school event next week for the RAD newspaper?!â
Two demons rush up to him, nearly tripping over themselves in their haste, their D.D.D.s held up with determined expressions as they corner him at the foot of the stairs.
Mammon turns, a smug grin already curling across his lips as he faces them. âWoah there! Iâll answer your questionsâya should be glad the Great Mammonâs here!â he declares, dragging a hand through his hair just as one of their cameras pans toward him.
A smallâno, hugeâpart of him is relieved for the interruption. Anything to stall the meeting waiting for him upstairs.
Minutes later, theyâre already a few questions deep into the interview.
âAlright, for our last question,â one of them says, leaning their phone closer, âare there any surprises the student council has prepared?â
Mammon crosses his arms, tapping a finger idly against his cheek as he pretends to think. He teeters on the edge of saying too much, the words already forming on his tongue.
âWell, weâve actually plannedââ
The sound cuts through him like a spark.
Mammon stiffens mid-sentence, golden eyes snapping toward the staircase.
Whoâs makinâ you laugh like that, huh?!
â?!â He startles, whipping his head toward the top of the stairs, where the council room waits just out of sight.
The two students blink at him. âIs there somethingââ
âNope! But I gotta get goinâ. Bye!â Mammon cuts them off, already moving. He slips past them before they can protest, taking the steps two at a time as he bolts upward.
By the time he reaches the top, heâs slightly hunched, breath uneven, chest heaving from the sprint. He probably almost wiped out on the stairsâbut hearing you laugh like that? Yeah, no way he was slowing down.
There you areâstanding by the door, Levi beside you.
Mammon straightens instantly, forcing composure back into place as he strides over, chin lifted like he hadnât just raced up an entire flight of stairs.
âHey, human! The hell are ya doinâ laughing, huh? I heard ya all the way from the bottom!â he says, slinging an arm over your shoulders like itâs the most natural thing in the world.
Levi rolls his eyes, already turning away. âNormie behaviorâŠâ he mutters under his breath before slipping into the council room alone without another glance.
You blink up at Mammon, still smiling. âOh! Levi just showed me a meme about that anime we watched. Why?â you say, light and cheerful, like itâs nothing.
Like itâs not making something twist unpleasantly in his chest!
Mammon clicks his tongue, looking away for a split second before his gaze flicks back to you.
âOnly I should be makinâ ya laugh like that, alright?!â
