"What? He's sick?"
Lea stared at the empty seat at the breakfast table. According to Barbatos, Diavolo was ill, and was going to spend the day in bed. She couldn't almost believe it— Diavolo was usually so healthy, and it was hard to imagine him falling ill.
"Is it because he gave me his coat the other day? He must've been cold, but he didn't say anything..! Or is it all the stress? The curse, the ritual, the media shit-storm, the rumors, all the work, and- and-" Her mind was racing with possible scenarios.
"It's unfortunate the young master has fallen ill, of course, but please do not worry yourself, miss." Barbatos gave Lea a smile as he prepared the table. "His schedule has been rather busy lately, and he's also had trouble sleeping, so the exhaustion combined with the weather change resulted in a slight fever. He'll be fine, I can assure you."
"I... I see." Lea let out a sigh of relief. "That's good to hear." She turned her attention onto the papers in front of her. "He asked me to check out the student council's notes about the human exchange students' performance, and give my input... I wish we could've gone over them together, but..."
"You can always drop your report in his room. There wasn't much paper work scheduled for today, so-"
"Wait. Don't tell me he's..?!"
His head was pounding. With a deep sigh, Diavolo rubbed his temples, trying to focus on the paper in his hand. Once he'd finished writing this letter, he'd take a small break. And then, the next pile of papers was waiting. He was just about to reach for the tea cup on his bedside table when the door swung open with such force that he almost jumped out of his skin.
"Lea!" Diavolo gasped surprised. "What are you doing here..?!" Since he didn't normally have guests when he was unwell, he hadn't expected to see anyone today either— But, Lea was no ordinary guest, afterall.
"What's this all about?!" Lea gasped, horrified. She couldn't believe her eyes— As Barbatos had said, Diavolo would spend the whole day in bed recovering… But as Lea had feared, there was something that didn't fit into the equation; He was in bed, under the covers… but leaning against the headboard, a bunch of paperwork spread across his lap. "Are you working?!"
"I… uhm…" Taken aback by her furious reaction, Diavolo didn't know what to say. Only seeing Lea strut into the room without a warning had been surprising enough, and now it looked like she was about to…
"You're supposed to be recovering!" Lea almost yelped in frustration, crawling onto the bed to grab the papers from him. "Barbatos said you're having a fever, yet here you are, burying yourself into work as usual!"
"No, I just… I just thought I'd check the notes Lucifer-" He tried to explain himself, but Lea wasn't about to listen to his excuses.
"Lucifer can wait!" She declared firmly, reaching to gather the documents from the bedside table as well.
"I-it's okay. It's just a minor headache, and a small fever." Diavolo tried to reassure her.
"Minor?! Your face is all flushed!" Little she knew, Diavolo's face wasn't flushed out of fever, though— Out of nowhere, Lea had jumped into his bed, now basically crawling on top of him while collecting the paperwork from him. "Look at you, you can't do paperwork in a state like this!"
Diavolo gulped. It didn't help that Lea was wearing a short, silky dress. It was a bit too large on her, and the fabric had a tendency to slide down her shoulders, exposing a dangerous amount of cleavage. The hem of the garment reached mid-thigh, exposing the milky, soft skin of her thighs. He was about to lose it.
"B-but I... I just thought I could... Well, it's just a few papers, and..." Diavolo stammered, struggling to find an excuse. He knew it was futile; Lea had already taken charge.
"No excuses!" Lea interrupted firmly, her tone leaving no room for argument. Crawling out of the bed, she set the collected paperwork onto the side table then turned to face him again. "You need to rest and recover properly."
"I..." Diavolo was lost for words. It had been a while since anyone had talked back to him, especially in such a bold way. The last time someone had done so was-
"Don't you want to get better, sooner rather than later?" She shot an unimpressed look at him, reaching to grab the pen from his strengthless grasp. As she did that, her dress slipped a little, revealing a dangerously deep cleavage, and Diavolo couldn't help but stare.
"W-well, yeah..."
Lea's close proximity and her stern yet caring scolding left Diavolo somewhat flustered; Her unwavering determination to look after him was both endearing and slightly embarrassing.
"Then it's decided." Lea let out a satisfied sigh, a look of triumph flashing in her eyes. "You're going to stay in bed, and rest. I'll go grab a blanket from my room and ask Barbatos to bring more tea." She said, already halfway out the door.
Diavolo couldn't help but chuckle a bit.
"And don't even think about sneaking some more work, I'll be right back." She added before disappearing out of the room.
"You're really something else, you know that, Lea?" Diavolo mumbled to himself, his eyes still glued onto the door where she had vanished. Finally snapping out of it, he placed his hand onto his cheek— Was it because of the fever, or was his face hot for another reason?
A couple minutes later, Lea returned to his room, carrying a blanket and pillow. Barbatos followed her with a tray in his hands, and Diavolo could only wonder what the two had been talking about in the meanwhile.
"Here." Lea placed the blanket and pillow onto the bed. "If you're still cold, I can get you another one, just say so."
"Oh, this is... quite alright." Diavolo smiled sheepishly.
"And Barbatos will take care of the tea." She glanced at the butler. "Thank you."
"Of course." Barbatos replied.
"And you." Lea turned her attention back to Diavolo. "Stay in bed. Understood?"
"Uhm, yeah... Lea?" Diavolo called after her a bit hesitantly just when she was about to exit the room.
"What is it?"
"Um... What am I supposed to do, exactly?"
"Sleep." She stated bluntly, leaving the room.
"...right."
Diavolo couldn't believe this had happened. He couldn't recall the last time he had spent a day in bed just like that.
"I... I guess I can try, maybe."
It was almost noon, and Diavolo had already fallen asleep a few times, but he wasn't sure if he had actually slept. Whenever he felt the fatigue overtake him, a million thoughts filled his mind, preventing him from dozing off.
He kept thinking about how Lea had suddenly appeared, storming into the room with such a fierce look in her eyes. She had even crawled into the bed with him, nearly straddling his lap while doing so. He couldn't get the image out of his mind, her long, blond hair cascading over her shoulders, her dress revealing more than he was supposed to see. He was a bit ashamed that he had been staring, but her beauty was truly a sight to behold.
"Ah, Lea..." He sighed dreamily, sinking deeper into the covers. He closed his eyes, thinking about how the fabric had slid down her shoulder, exposing the soft curve of her neck. He knew she was only there because of the curse, but the idea of completing the ritual with her had haunted his mind more and more— During moments like this, he couldn't help but to fantasize about it. How it would feel like to kiss her, to run his fingers through her soft hair… To hold her tight in his arms, and feel the warmth of her body. He could almost imagine it, her body pressed against his, her lips parted, her sweet moans filling the air.
Diavolo gasped softly, his hand sliding under the covers and down his body, reaching to tug the front of his pants down. He wanted her so bad— His cock was already hard, throbbing, aching for a touch. He wrapped his hand around the shaft, slowly stroking his erection, his mind lost in fantasy.
As he closed his eyes, he could picture Lea on top of him, his cock sliding in and out of her. Her breath was coming out in quick gasps, her body moving up and down. His cock was so big, it almost seemed too much for her, but she took him anyway. Her moans were getting louder, the walls of her tight cunt squeezing around his cock.
"A-ah, f-fuck..!" Diavolo threw his head back, his back arching in pleasure as he tightened his grip, his breathing becoming more ragged. It was so easy to imagine her riding him, her hips moving in sync with his, her nails digging into his chest.
"Lea..." His strokes became faster, his cock twitching. He was so close. He could almost see her, her hair messy and her skin glistening with sweat. She was panting, her face flushed, her eyes half-lidded. She was moaning his name.
"Fuck, L-lea..." Diavolo was panting heavily, his body tensing as the heat gathered in the pit of his stomach. His hand kept moving up and down his cock, and just the thought of her moaning his name like that was enough to send him over the edge.
"L-lea, aah- fuck-!" His cock twitched, the white, thick cum spurting out of him. He moaned loudly, his body trembling with pleasure as his orgasm took over him.
It took a long while for him to calm down. As he laid there, trying to catch his breath, his hand still wrapped around his softening cock, he was overcome with guilt— This wasn't what he had intended to do. He was supposed to recover and rest, but instead, his mind had been filled with such sinful fantasies, and he had touched himself to the thought of her. Was it the fever that had gotten the best of him, or was he simply a hopeless pervert?
The truth was, his attraction towards Lea wasn't just physical. He liked her, and he knew it. Even if the curse hadn't existed, he would've still wanted to spend more time with her, and get to know her. That media storm and the rumors about their relationship, false as they were, even them had made him feel something he hadn't expected. Lea had become important to him, and his feelings for her were growing stronger.
But it was hopeless. He had never intended for his heart to be involved, and now, he was falling for a woman he couldn't have. With a sigh, he wiped away the mess he had made, his mood turning into a sour one. He pulled the covers over himself, about to turn to lie on his side when his bedroom door was opened again.
Lea returned with her laptop and a few snacks. "You can't sleep?" She asked, surprised, setting her stuff onto the bed. "Did you try the tea? Barbatos makes a very good chamomile."
"Yeah, uhm, I did. Thank you." Diavolo cleared his throat, not quite sure what to say. Had he just been masturbating, fantasizing about her, and she was talking about tea?
"Well, if you can't sleep, I can't just leave you here all alone and bored. Who knows what you'd do." Lea chuckled softly.
"Who knows." Diavolo mumbled. She was talking about the paperwork, obviously, but in the meanwhile, his mind was running wild. His heart skipped a beat when he felt her climb onto the bed again.
"I'll sit with you, and we can watch a movie." She suggested, already setting up her laptop. "I brought my laptop from the human world, and I have lots of movies to choose from. What do you say?"
Diavolo was a bit speechless. This wasn't something he had expected, at all. He'd thought Lea would come by to quickly check on him and then return to her own duties, but it looked like she was staying with him.
"Are you okay? Is your fever getting worse?" Lea asked, concerned.
"No, it's not that." He replied quickly.
"Then why are you staring?"
"I... Well, I didn't expect you to stay."
"Um... You don't mind, do you?" Lea looked at him hesitantly, almost a bit worried.
"Of course not. I'd love it." Diavolo assured her.
"Well, good." She gave him a relieved smile, snuggling against the pillow. "Because I'm not leaving until you're asleep. It's the doctor's orders."
"Doctor's orders, huh?" Diavolo couldn't help but smile. Her attentiveness was both unexpected and comforting, and Diavolo couldn't help but be grateful for her presence.
"Mm-hm. Now, let's see what we got." Lea tapped her fingers onto the keyboard.
The rest of the evening went by as they watched not one, but two movies, chatting and laughing together. It was getting late when Diavolo finally began feeling fatigued again.
"I think I'll finally try to sleep." He sighed, his eyes drooping. "I'm not feeling very well, so is it alright if I-" He was just about to ask if it was time for them to call it a day, but fell quiet when he turned to look at Lea.
She was snuggled up comfortably between the blankets and pillows, sound asleep. Diavolo couldn't stop himself from admiring the sight of her sleeping face. He had never seen her this peaceful, or this serene.
"Aren't you quite something…" He muttered, smiling to himself as he watched the sleeping figure. First time they met, Lea was terrified of him… Not in a million years he would've imagined one day she'd end up falling asleep in his bed like this— Seeing her like this made his heart flutter, so adorable she looked asleep.
Diavolo reached to gently caress her cheek. His chest was swelling with so many emotions, his affection for her growing stronger by the minute. It had been a long time since he had shared his bed with anyone.
"Lea." He whispered quietly, his thumb brushing over her bottom lip. "You're making this harder than it has to be." Lea didn't wake up. Instead, she shifted slightly, pressing her cheek against his hand. "Why are you so cute?" Diavolo asked. "So perfect."
Maybe it would be better if she'd go back to her own room for the night… But it would be a shame to wake her up, so peacefully she was sleeping. Instead, he quietly put away the laptop and then, with the utmost care, gently pulled a blanket over her to keep her warm. He reached for the light switch and turned off the light, leaving only the soft glow of the moonlight to illuminate the room.
With one last fond look at the sleeping Lea, Diavolo settled under the covers as well, grateful for her unexpected company. Despite his fever and exhaustion, he couldn't help but feel a sense of contentment as he drifted off to sleep, knowing she was there beside him.