Amber awoke abruptly in her bed, sitting up in a cold sweat. Her bedroom was dark, it must've been late in the night, and she must've had a nightmare, either that or something startled her.
She paused and blinked a few times, allowing her eyes to adjust to the placid pitch of her bedroom. She exhaled, sliding her legs over the side of her bed, and then jumping down onto the floor. Kicking at a few articles of clothing that stood in her path to the door, she made her way out into the hallway and pondered for a moment before heading to the bathroom.
Living alone wasn't always a necessarily good thing in her life. Sometimes she felt as though she were being watched, even though she probably was. Whenever the thought of her boss came to mind, she would shudder and sigh impatiently; knowing that she would never really have a private life to herself again, as if she were still living with her parents.
Amber flipped the switch that turned bathroom light on and shut the door behind her. She stood in front of the sink and gazed at her reflection. She had big circles beneath her eyes, proof that she hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time. Ever since she found out that she worked for the Devil, her bedtimes weren't as pleasant. In fact, she found herself waking up at almost every hour of the night, going into the bathroom and staring at her reflection as if the glass that mimicked her image was a pool of matter that hypnotized her every time it caught her eye.
Suddenly Amber was pulled out of her trance by the distinct sound of clothes ruffling. She turned around and peered out the bathroom door. "Hello?" She called out, studying the dark halls of the upstairs corridors.
There it is again!
Amber furrowed her brow in thought, trying to guess where the sound was coming from. If she was correct, it seemed as though it were coming from downstairs.
She hesitated to go downstairs, but her bravery got the better of her and soon she found herself tiptoeing down each step.
Again.
Amber gripped the banister tightly, turning down the hall to the living room and into the kitchen.
The lights were on, and set to the brightest setting; quite opposite from what Amber had left them before going to bed.
She stalked against the wall, fixing her eyes on the suit-clad figure that stood at the stove in the kitchen. Refraining herself from even making the discrete sound of air inhaling and exhaling from her nose.
"Oh, did I wake you up?" The figure turned around to reveal himself, of course; the Devil.
Amber sighed, actually relieved to find that it wasn't some creep that had broken into her house, it was only the Devil. Only.
Who am I kidding? He is a creep! Honestly.
She slouched forward, padding over to the dining room table and sitting at her usual chair. "What are you doing here at -" She stopped herself, regarding her eyes over the bar and into the living room where they met the clock that hung on an unnoticeable angle over the TV. "5:00 in the morning?!" Amber whipped her head to her left where she faced her boss, cooking something at the stove.
"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd come over to my favorite reaper's house and make you breakfast." The Devil looked at her from over his shoulder, smiling guiltlessly.
"At 5:00 in the morning." Amber nodded and placed her head in her palms, sighing tiredly.
"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." The Devil said in a singsong tone, shaking his hips at the stove playfully. "Oh give me a break." She muttered, her words muffled by her hands.
Amber jolted, startled as the Devil placed a plate in front of her, the sound of the glass china clacking on the wooden table piercing through the silence.
"Bon appetite." He sat down across from her.
"You're not eating?" Amber inquired, looking down at her plate, discovering four perfectly cooked strips of bacon, a small pile of scrambled eggs and two pancakes stacked on top of each other, not to mention the small square of butter in the center of the top pancake, melting in a pool of syrup.
"No, no. I made it just for you." The Devil smiled, gesturing for her to "dig in".
Amber arched an eyebrow, taking her fork in hand and aiming it at a piece of bacon. "You're being awfully nice to me..." She squinted, locking her eyes with her boss's.
"Alright, what do you want?" Amber sighed and placed the fork down loudly on the side of her dish.
"I'm hurt. That was just cruel. I can be nice, Amber. Maybe you're different than I thought you were... maybe you're just like everybody else and go by ignorant stereotypes brought on by rumors." The Devil shook his head and looked down.
Amber rolled her eyes and exhaled. "No... I guess you can be nice... sorry." She picked up her fork again and this time jabbing that one piece of bacon. The Devil waited for her to take a bite, and then his smile once again returned.
It doesn't taste like poison.
Amber thought sarcastically to herself, almost spewing her mouthful of bacon with a laugh.
"Now, I have a job for you." The Devil's lips curled into a savage grin.
Amber dropped her fork and swallowed the remaining meat before sighing once again. "Yep, see I knew it." She said to herself, shaking her head in disappointment.
"There is always a catch with you, isn't there? Jes--" He cut her off, shaking his finger. "Be careful what you say." His smile never leaving.
Amber scratched her head and looked up at her boss from under her brow. "What? What do I have to do?"
"See? That's the spirit, Amber." The Devil reached across the table and patted her on the shoulder. "I need you to spy on Gladys for me. I suspect that she's been meeting with a group of my... former followers. I believe she's planning to overthrow me; her and her little rebellion." Satan explained. His facial expression sharp and serious.
Amber let out an exaggerated gasp, cupping her mouth with her hand. "Oh my! Who on Earth would ever try to overthrow you, Lucifer?" She snickered sarcastically.
"Karma's a bitch, let me tell you." She added, shaking her head as she picked at a piece of bacon with her fingers.
The Devil wrinkled his brow, aggravated by Amber's attitude.
"And don't give me that 'sarcasm is the lowest form of social discourse' deal. I know. I don't care. I'll spy on Gladys for you." Amber said with a mouth full of breakfast food. She obviously started to get hungry by sitting in front of a plate adorned with a fit-for-breakfast meal.
"Good. Also, I do expect you to treat me with more respect, or you won't be getting anymore early breakfasts out of me." The Devil let out a low chuckle.
"What do I get out of this, anyway?" Amber asked with her mouth full of pancake.
"Oh, that's easy; a full stomach and a job well done." The Devil winked and with that disappeared.
"You better hope this fills me." Amber said quietly to herself whilst stuffing another forkful of pancake into her already-full mouth. By the time Amber had finished her breakfast, the sun was already burning high in the sea-blue horizon, glistening against the morning dew, and awaking the birds to break in song.
Figuring that since she was already awake, and had already eaten - she'd just go get dressed and get an early start on her new assignment.
The hell with it.
Amber tossed the empty plate into the sink and marched upstairs.