Toxic love

Speed dating events usually were not something that Nathaniel would look into but there was one thing that made this different than the usual. There was free catering, so he jumped at it the moment he could. As much as he enjoyed soup kitchen fair, the idea of having true catering was something that made his stomach rumble from the thought of it. Sure, he didn’t exactly look well kept, but getting a shower was something that helped, despite the fact it was shared with a few other people in a communal fashion. He even managed to convince someone into letting him use their deodorant, despite it smelling exceptionally fruity as far as deo went. He ended up wearing a black leather jacket over a white shirt, the fringes frayed and black skinny jeans with the left knee messily ripped, seemingly from something clawed with the legs tucked into heavily scuffed boots.

His right hand was heavily bandaged, healing but he knew it would take a little while to get back up to full power. The nerves had healed well enough, leaving him with control over the fingers but Nate knew he would have to pay Samael back for the damage one day. He gave himself a quick look over himself in the reflective surface of water, smiling and finding that his smile itself was nice enough that he wouldn’t get a poor approval rating. If there was one thing that his mother taught him about meeting other people, it was that he should always try his best, even if he didn’t have much to do so with. His wings continued to twitch within their confined state, desiring freedom, but that was not something that he could do at this event, dealing with the continual agitation as best he could.

The building was easy enough to find with the  large banner hanging over the front entrance to what looked like a community center, the  Valentine’s Day even name plastered onto it with bright letters. Everything about it just looked cute in a fashion, Nathaniel looking up at it with a sort of toothy grin. Despite how his parents would have not exactly agreed with such a service, he was more concerned with what kind of sweet food they would have and his stomach agreed with the notion. As he walked through the front door, a smiling girl maybe a few years older than him handed a small piece of paper and offered a pen. On it, it mostly covered what his interests were, though Nate quickly gave it a glance. Of course he could lie, but then again there was no harm in being a little truthful, so he ended up checking off the box beside men.

As he entered the little gathering area with all the people, he was given a small number which read out 165, suggesting he was not the only person, but that did make him wonder how much had actually gone into the event. He looked around to see so many people, all of various age groups and on one end of the massive room was a few tables filled with various foods, and that was where he ended up gravitating towards. The selection was impressive really, though he couldn’t help feeling this odd haze settling over him as he worked on eating  a bit of the food and absently looking over the people that had come here as well.

He might as well appreciate the limited eye candy, even if dating wasn’t the real reason.

"I'm just saying that you need to loosen up man." Scott's voice broke though the thin veil that Jake had constructed when he rose the book he was reading to hide his face from his friend, who had insisted on this certain subject since he had discovered it online during there previous lesson.

"Scott. As much as I would love to. I really wouldn't." Jake plainly stated before going back to his book, his grip on it loose so that when Scott grabbed it and pried it away he did not feel the iron grip that Jake could have easily done. "Give it back."

Scott looked at him and closed it, receiving a small groan from Jake at the loss of his page. "One sprained leg, arm. All you do is physical work and reading, Jake your a bright mind. I'm sure you can miss out on some school to get there now. And don't say anything about your age. We both know that your built like your aiming for a Mr Atlas reward. Along with your height." Scott teased his friend as he handed him back his book, to which Jake snatched it away from and and sighed, before standing to follow his friend.

"I'm not that muscled." Jake said, resigning to the fact that this was going to happen. Not much could be done when arguing with Scott, guy was a persistent bugger and Jake didn't want to awaken his friends satisfaction of winning the argument if they had continued. "Anything I should worry about?" Jake asked as they headed to the school exit, knowing he was going to get some flak for exiting those doors, but Scott was right, he could get back whatever he missed.

"Besides missing me too much. Don't go home with anyone who looks older then you. And maybe don't give them your real name. Go with that middle name of yours. Add some flair." Scott said as he opened the door and motioned to Jake to leave, a sharp smile on his face told Jake he was enjoying this, and that he wanted details.

"I hate you sometimes." Was all Jake said as he left, breaking off into a run as he slung his bag off his back and into his hands, running a small distance so that his friend would be most certain to lose sight of him before jumping into the sky and landing safely on a roof. He knew where to go, Scott had made sure. And so he took off into a jumping spree, building to building to speed up travel time, practicing on deepening his voice a little.

Soon enough, Jake would land on a roof top close to the building, it was pretty hard to miss with the whole Valentines day message written on the front of it. Dropping his bag on the roof for safe keeping, Jake looked himself over, thankful that he had worn at least something suitable for the surprise occasion, his shirt a plain t-shirt black with the words Hall hath no fury. Written on it like a blazing fire in the darkness of his shirt, a sullen reminder of his adventure in hell with the Half demon Samael. He also worn plain jeans, a tiny bit loose so that he had freedom of movement like he preferred in case of situations where he was asked to perform gymnastics.  

Climbing down the side of the building out of sight of any prying eyes, Jake began to casually walk towards the convention, smoothing out his clothes one last time, really he shouldn't have been doing this but he found himself secretly enjoying the idea, it was just a game really, a relaxing game, no fighting, no breaking bones, no need for anything. Entering though the front door, Jake was met with a woman who Jake waved a simple hello too as she handed him a piece of paper with a pen, to which Jake found himself scanning the paper and feeling his gut drop, his previous guilty enjoyment laughing at him as he realized what exactly he was doing. Ticking off a limited number of things, Jake didn't pay too much attention to it, he just ticked away and continued on, entering the gathering, he gulped at the sight of people, and suddenly wished he wasn't here, only to shake his head. He had been in hell days ago, this was nothing like that, none of these people wanted him dead or looked like large birds and deranged dogs.

Relaxing, Jake made his way pass the people, taking his number, reading it as somewhere in the hundreds but not paying too much attention to it as his stomach was suddenly hungry and he had spotted the tables which contained a variety of various foods, which served to only deepen his hunger as he passed by the flood of body's towards the table, hoping he could avoid talking for as long as possible.

The food itself didn’t have to be amazing to please Nate really, just good enough that it would quiet the grumbling within his gut. It didn’t even have to be the most nutritional, though he had a feeling that his body would likely suffer from malnutrition at some point. His muscles steadily degrading into more of a wiry build likely proved that point, though he wasn’t one to worry too much about physical appearance in the end. A few eyes turned towards him, though his mind was more on stuffing himself than anything else, keeping to himself in a corner to keep conversation to a minimum. Despite the offer of free catering, not many of them aside from him and a new person were enjoying the food.  The thing would start…in around ten minutes, so that was plenty of time for him to fill up before having to talk with a few people.

Not talking to people wasn’t exactly a thing that he could do, but instead decided he might as well make some friendly conversation, despite how everyone else within their own way were not. Maybe they were just into the concept of waiting till they went through the speed dating aspect of things. ”Food’s pretty good, huh?” Nate spoke up, trying to be a little conversational with Jake, but not sure if he was doing the whole conversation thing right. Looking to the male, they did look aesthetically pleasing of nothing else. Around his height with what looked to be decent muscle definition, better than his even when he was actually working out.

However this was less about any manner of flirtation and more spending time until the event actually began, and meeting new people before meeting new people was always fun.

As Jake reached the food, he spent a little time deciding what it was that he wanted, finally picking something out and taking a couple of bites to settle the hunger that this event had caused in him. However it was then that he was startled by a voice, a man's voice. Turning to face the man Jake had not realized existed till this moment, he simply nodded and looked back to the food, unsure on what to do. This was till he realized he was being a idiot again and turned to him, waving his hand in hello. "Yea. Easy to settle ones stomach with." Jake said in the deep voice he had been practicing, trying to make it sound not so easily noticed as fake but enough to match his hopefully apparent age.

"Names Lucifer. Yours?" Jake asked, hoping to keep the conversation to seem less.. awkward and to help pass the time. Knowing that if he could get though this conversation that any other conversation after that should be easy. Still, Jake had conflicting thoughts on how he felt about this, one way was that it was peaceful and in the end, he could have a good laugh with Scott. The other hand was that he had to go though with this and suddenly fighting demons felt easier then this, they didn't talk, they just required he punch them several times till they stopped moving.

Of course, he wasn't in hell right now, not that he wanted to be again, at the very least this event could prove to be relaxing, which was something he did need after the many days and nights he had been though. Relaxing indeed.

Settling ones stomach was a reason to eat, though his was more to satisfy it really. He didn’t really have a response for that one, aside from a small smile before shoveling more food into his mouth. The concept of someone being named Lucifer did cause him to look at Jake for a moment, legitimately curious as to where one would name their child that. ”The names Nathaniel.” Was his response, wondering whether it would be rude or not to ask about the name. having name tags would have made things easier, but he didn’t think too much into it. Being rude was something that he didn’t want to do, but then again not like he could lie.

”So, nice name ya got there.’ He said with a sort of grin, finding sarcasm a good way to get around accidentally insulting someone. ”How’d you get it?’ He asked, feeling a slightly odd sensation from this individual. It was a strange but gave him the same feeling of when he met the angel that had granted him his powers, something that made his stomach twist slightly. It was something that he pushed out of his mind, as another, even fainter sensation snaked through the back of his mind that made the whole thing feel even more off.

”I’m a little nervous personally. This is my first time coming to one of these kinds of things.”

Jake listened to Nathanial but looked away when he asked about how he got the name, Lucifer. And Jake had to silently curse Scott for giving him the advice of using his middle name. Jake looked to Nathaniel as he finished speaking, thinking about his answer for a few quiet second before talking. "Ehhh.. Reality is that Lucifer is my middle name. Mom gave it to me, said it represented something of her past." Jake answered before picking out some more food before continuing.

"Also. This too. Is my first time doing something like this. More a suggestion by a... friend. Said my middle name would be cooler then my first so I went with it." Jake finished, feeling better already that he could incorporate truth without telling everything and not revealing anything about himself. Also it was good to have a chat with a guy who had no experience in this, then again, a lot of people here Jake suspected didn't have any real experience, wasn't a average thing one did, speed dating.

"Wondering when this thing will start ey?" Jake asked, hoping to continue the conversation while also picking at some more food, eyes glancing around to see other people that were around and about.

A middle name, well that made some manner of sense really. ”A middle name? Huh, still sounds pretty interesting.” He said, trying not to sound really awkward with their conversation and something told Nate that he was not doing very well in that department. Luckily, he wasn’t the only one who was coming here for the first time, meaning that he wasn’t alone in that department. Despite the fact that he hadn’t been pointed in the direction of this place by any friend, but rather by just finding it through sheer dumb luck. Not that he minded being so lucky, considering that finding food was something that he could appreciate.

” Sounds kind of edgy if you ask me. I’m sure your first name is pretty nice on its own.” Well, he was sure anything sounded better than someone calling themselves Lucifer anyway, and the implications were also not exactly nice. Most equated the name with the devil itself, and the guy didn’t seem like a devil by any means of the word. He picked out a little more food as the male asked about when this thing would start, though that foreboding feeling continued to flow through him. Something was off, and he wanted to look into it.

”Five minutes, maybe a little less.”Nate answered, finishing off the food he had settled on a little paper plate. It was nice to just have a full stomach for once, though that likely would not last too long. A few people turned their looks towards Nate and Jake, though all he did was give them a smile. ”I’m only here for the food actually, the whole speed dating thing is just…an extra I guess.”

Jake enjoyed himself, found talking to Nathaniel was actually rather nice, almost like this was the only nice thing that was going to happen in the next couple of minutes. Jake found that the food was just starting to grow unneeded and turned his full attention to Nathaniel, listening to his words. "First name is boring honestly." Jake responded to Nathanial speaking about his first name, to which Jake believed it was true, the name Jake didn't belong with Lucifer or Zaapiel, but it was a name, a good name. If a little boring.

Jake looked around to the faces that would glance at the two men and again started to feel a little uncomfortable. Only to then hear Nathaniel speak about just being here for the food, causing a laugh to erupt from the young boy, turning a few heads. "Tell you what. I won't tell if you don't. But I'm actually in high school. Friend said to come here because I've been really busy and that I needed to relax. That and he wanted to see how far I can get in this because of my size." Jake quietly admitted to Nathaniel for his reason for being here, feeling that he could trust him with this, the guy seemed pretty cool and so Jake felt like he could trust him, it was that or be thrown out before the event started which wouldn't be the worse thing, he wasn't exactly sure the age limit for this event, just that he felt someone his age shouldn't really be here.

”Can’t be more boring than Nathaniel.” He shot back with a roll of his silver eyes, wondering what would be more boring than anything else. There was a laugh about him only being here for the food, though the male then added something about being in High School. That answered things, and yet at the same time managed to make him even more curious about the male. This did make the time go by rather quickly, so Nate just enjoyed the conversation. He couldn’t resist chuckling about the mention of size, though his height was an assumption on his end.

”Huh, well I guess you won’t have to worry about me tattling on you. Not like I’m really old myself.” he had only turned eighteen recently, meaning that he was pretty young in comparison to most people. ” Something about this place just really…. feels off to me. Guess it’s the whole speed dating thing.” He had to admit that much, and a kindred spirit was someone that he could enjoy admitting it to. That was when he took note of the same person walking around,  holding a rather large looking basket, one that she walked up to people and handed tags to.

It was obvious she was a metahuman, though what that power he was not sure. Maybe something that made picking out certain people easy, or that was the assumption anyway. She ended up approaching the two, offering a name tag to Nate that had a few details, numbers and a small section where he had checked out his interests. “Here you go Mister Christensen, and for you Mister Zaapiel.” She handed them both one, Nate removing his jacket, and pinning the thing to his white shirt, tying the leather jacket around his waist by the sleeves.

”I…ummm…thank you.” He looked to Jake with a single raised brow, as the people given their name tags would walk further into the building to the massive meeting area where people would sit down at a numbered table and the event began.

"Jake is far more boring then Nathanial." Jake responded quickly, listening to Nathanial talk more, Jake relaxed, along with learning that he wasn't... that old, Jake suspected that could mean as young as twenty, possibly younger to which Jake felt a little surprised. Jake looked at him in a new light, trying to see the young part of him, something to help pass time in the end but still something to do.

"I don't really feel what your feeling about the place, then again. Been to worse places." Jake said, tugging at his shirt of the thought of hell, the underwater Base and even the warehouse, three places where he had been too and fought in, all he realized were worse then this place could ever be or the feeling of shame could ever bring.

Eventually, Jake and Nathanial were met with the woman who had been handing out tags to which Jake took his on name, but there was something else, Christensen. Jake looked at Nathanial in an even newer light, he had the same last name as Samael. But before Jake got to ask he was already moving, looking for the table that had his number. Finding it, Jake sat down and read the number on his card, 165 and so he waited for whoever his 'date' was.

Jake was rather mundane as far as names went, but then again not as if it was a bad name in any respect. ”I like the name.” Nate said with a smirk, being a genuine as possible really. Not sharing his weird feeling was a sad thing really, but Nate didn’t think too much on it. ”Same here actually.” He admitted without even really saying anything else, thinking back onto the time he had entered a demonic realm when his powers were new to him, and Nathaniel promised never again to himself. That sensation of crushing darkness was not something he wanted to deal with again.

With his tag, Nate walked into the massive room looking for the table that had his number. This meant just walking down rows, seeing a few people already sitting at their tables, and eventually he did find his table with the person he had been talking to. There was a moment of surprise, but that quickly passed as he settled into the chair, resting his arms on the table and looking bemused at Jake. ”Fancy meeting you again.” He said with a grin, flashing his pearly whites as the time they had together began ticking down.

”Didn’t think we would actually get the same table honestly.” Or that the sensation he was feeling would intensify as he got further into the building.

As Jake looked up to his 'date' his mouth slightly parted in surprise, his eyes going just a little wide. "Arrr.." Was all Jake could manage as he grabbed his tag and looked at it, seeing that both the male and female box were ticked, a memory of his rushing though the ticking process came to mind and Jake let his head fall to the table, a groan coming out in hand.

Looking back to Nathaniel, Jake stood up straight and tried his best to smile, the slow realization that Nathaniel was here on purpose crept into his mind but he kept it closed. "I arr. Honestly.. Didn't mean to tick that one... Hmm.. Well. While we are here. Might as well talk." Jake said and got comfortable in his seat, a air of unease spread about but he tried to ignore it, focusing on Nathanial.

"The lady said your last name was. Christensen right? Would you by any chance. Have a brother by the name of Samael?" Jake took a shot in the dark at this, for if it was true, then Nathaniel would be a half demon also, which in all hands was pretty neat but still. It was a surprise if anything.

The male across from him was obviously surprised by the sudden change within circumstance, mostly by him being unable to actually speak for a few moments. Nathaniel let him take a few seconds, before he finally spoke about something that involved him not meaning to tick a box. ”Well, that’s a pretty weird mistake to make.” He admitted, though with a teasing edge to his tone. It was amusing if nothing else that the male had someone written that he was interested in men, if that was the case anyway. His was more purposeful, but not as if he was in the position to be modest about such things.

The male questioned about his name, and managed to say a name that caused his jaw to instantly go rigid. While trying to control the anger that came from the mention of the name, his fingers did end up forcing the edge of the table to bend inwards from the force exerted from his fingers. ”He’s…my half-brother.” Looking closely, Jake could have taken note of his eyes glowing molten silver before dimming back to a gold silver color. ”How do you know that name anyway?” he would then ask, trying to push the anger away.

As much as he was trying to be friendly, something about just thinking of the cambion managed to ignite those flames.

Jake was taken aback by the sudden change in the atmosphere, the mood taking a turn for the worst as Nathanial seemed to grow distant, angry. Upon learning that Nathanael was indeed his brother, his Half brother, Jake also took note of the man's eyes, his normal silver eyes moving to a stranger Silver, like melted silver. Jake realized one thing, this man before him was not a half demon, at least, if his eyes said anything.

"I met... Samael." Jake said before pausing, realizing that if he continued he would be telling the man he was meta, not just a meta but also a half angel if he went far enough. With a sigh, Jake realized that he might as well spill some of it, if not to awaken the wrath behind those eyes once more. "He was.. being attacked by a hell hound... Cultist that... followed his dad.. Sent me and him to.. well.. Hell. The Raven king's hell." Jake said, gripping his own side of the table for support.

"We.. well.. we fought beside each other.. I helped him, he helped me.. And we escaped." Jake didn't want to get too far into it, the memory of the event still clear in his mind, the monster they encountered that was beyond anything he had previously encountered. Looking to Nathanial, Jake kept a solid face, a calm face. Hoping that whatever was between the two brothers, didn't create a foe before him now.

So he had met Samael at some point within his life, recently was also a possibility. It didn’t really make him hostile towards Jake in particular, because he was cute but the mention of his brother did make him suspicious.  There were mentions of hellhounds and various demons, something that tended to happen around his brother no matter where he went. There was mention of the demon lord Malphas, someone that he also wanted to get rid of, but that would have to come later really. Just thinking of demons was something that made him angry, but he had to control himself lest this place be set up in flames.

”Be careful about associating with him. He might seem agreeable, but demons are all evil. Even those half human end up being corrupted.” He stated, sounding as if he had seen the fact firsthand before, with a sort of sadness within his voice. It was a sad existence, but one that he knew did happen. ”Sorry, probably made things too serious now.” He said with a chuckle, feeling his hand throb, fingers digging into the palm but not opening the wound.

His silver eyes fell to the able, before snapping back to Jake. Other people were having better conversations but that came with normal people in general. ”You must be pretty tough to have not been killed in The Pit of Ravens.”