What happened to Isaac?

After arriving home, Xavier took a shower and came out of the bathroom in his nightgown. He saw Isaac lying on the sofa, and the cat flapped his wagging tail on the ground.He came over with the medicine box, sat on the edge of the sofa, put on his glasses, held Isaac's ankles, and lifted his feet to have a look.The soles of the devil's feet have pads, but as the shoes have been made more and more comfortable, they have deteriorated particularly badly in recent centuries, especially when Isaac walked barefoot across nearly half of London.

Xavier pressed the soft pad with his fingertips, and felt that the touch was very interesting, so he squeezed it again with a serious face.Isaac protested loudly at the other end: "It itch!"

"I'm going to put some medicine on you," Xavier said, "or you may have a swelling tomorrow."

Isaac didn't say anything, Xavier thought he was willing to cooperate, but unexpectedly wiped the soles of his feet, and the succubus fled into the room.Xavier chased after him, almost being slapped by the slamming door in front of him.

Whatever you want, Xavier thought.He put away the medicine box, carried the cat into the study, sat down and sorted out the priorities of the things to be dealt with in the near future.For a low-level power angel like him, the work content can be mainly divided into two categories, one is to deal with the aftermath of demons, and the other is to deal with the aftermath of alien tourists; By the way, be responsible for the security work, but because humans are usually not very important, this is considered a rare extreme situation.

Simply laying out a schedule, Xavier refilled the pen, then took out two pieces of letter paper from the drawer, and prepared a letter asking about shift scheduling during the Christmas holiday, and planned to send it to his boss Gordon when he went out tomorrow .Let's hope it's not my turn to be on duty on Christmas day... Ugh.He prayed silently in his heart.

After finishing these things, Xavier looked up at the wall clock. It was only a quarter past eleven, and it was still very early. He planned to read a book before going to bed.So he paced back and forth in front of the bookshelves on two full walls, his mood became more and more peaceful, and he even felt as happy as choosing a concubine.

Xavier likes to collect books and newspapers, ranging from natural sciences to the history of humanities and philosophy to underground pornographic books that shocked even succubi in the Victorian era, but he has never read two-thirds of these books, or read half of them. I thought: "What is this?" I never opened it again.

After a long time of selection, he closed his eyes and took down a novel published last year. He didn't pay attention to the title of the book, and only realized that he had read it earlier when he read it halfway through. The content was so familiar that he couldn't stop talking. .In Xavier's opinion, the hero who abandoned his wife and son to paint is still too deviant, and he can't help but think in his heart: Oh, how can this work?Alas, how will this wife live in the future?What's more, there are children... An ordinary semi-fictional novel, which made him worried and very unhappy.

He thought, probably only people who have never fought a war have such unrealistic whimsy. Happiness is similar. No matter how bad a vulgar but peaceful and wealthy life is, there is nothing wrong with it. It's better to keep going.

After twelve o'clock, Xavier closed the cabinet on time, hugged the cat and planned to go back to the room to sleep.

There is a small door in the study that leads directly to the master bedroom, but after thinking about it for a while, Xavier decided to go around to the guest room to see Isaac.He saw the darkness of the room through the crack of the door, and the hand he raised to knock hesitated for a moment, not knowing whether to knock or not.

"I didn't lock the door."

Xavier froze for a moment, pushed the door open, and saw Isaac sitting on the window sill with his back to him, looking somewhere.The cat jumped out of Xavier's arms, scratching at the wallpaper under the window, and Isaac reached out to fish it up to his lap.It seems that the little animals like him very much, which is very rare for a demon.

Xavier walked over, and Isaac moved aside to make room for him, so Xavier sat next to him.The cat climbed from Isaac's lap to his lap, and Xavier subconsciously stretched out his hand to protect it, lest it stumble and fall downstairs.

"What's the cat's name?" Isaac asked.

Xavier shook his head.

Isaac fell silent.No one will name each fallen leaf. This is a very simple truth, even an illiterate succubus can understand it.

"I get the feeling you're a little restless at times today," Xavier said.

"Why do you know?"

Xavier lifted his hair to reveal the branding under the ear, the very thing that bound them together.His skin is so white, he looks like a Nordic man, or more distant, he is like the moon that is missing tonight.

Isaac turned his face away, not daring to keep his eyes on him.

"Daisy says I can just sit and lie down and do nothing."

"Yes, they can do everything well as a couple."

"what about me?"

"You? Don't go to the police station and ask me to pick you up. Don't bring people home. That's fine."

Isaac murmured, for some reason, he seemed even more disturbed, Xavier had never seen anyone over the age of 12 so obviously need someone to coax him now.

Xavier wanted to keep a decent distance from the succubus, but also wanted to appease him, so he quietly raised his hand many times, not knowing where to put it, feeling suddenly clumsy.The night wind blew by, accompanied by the smell of wet soil after the rain, and the surrounding was dull and quiet.

"I think you're falling asleep, go to bed," Xavier said.With a groan, Isaac got off the window sill, climbed onto the bed, and lay down.Xavier took away the cat who jumped onto the bed.

"I just want..." When Xavier pushed the door to leave, Isaac stopped him, "Maybe I can go to the storage room or leave here in the evening like Daisy did."

Xavier had never heard such a strange request: "You're just not used to it, Isaac."

"I don't think I'm going to fit in."

"You are here again, as if I bullied you."

"Okay," Isaac's muffled voice leaked from under the covers, "good night, Xavier."

"Yeah," Xavier said.He originally wanted to add that he could call me Langdon in the future, but after hesitating for a moment, he felt that there was no need to be so courteous, and silently closed the door.

That night, Xavier slept soundly and hardly dreamed.After a few good nights of sleep, he realized that this might not be an accident, so he used an excuse to go to Isaac's place for a while every night.Once, he accidentally fell asleep in Isaac's room, and woke up the next day lying on his own bed.

"I brought you here," said Isaac.

Why do you have to emphasize posture?Xavier covered his face, thinking blushingly, no wonder he dreamed that he was pillowed on soft bread last night, it must be Isaac's chest.

After something similar happened a second and a third time, Xavier would never blush again.

Is it my fault?He thought confidently, that was a succubus.

In this way, the calendar was turned page by page, seeing that Christmas was getting closer, the faces of passers-by on the street were filled with joy.Hell is on holiday earlier than heaven, and Isaac got in the way at home for several days, and was finally sent by the unbearable Daisy to wrap Christmas presents—wrap the gift box with colored paper, and write the recipient’s name on the greeting card in primary schoolchildren’s handwriting — Later Xavier explained to people that it was written by his little nephew.

Most of the gifts piled up in the corner had been mailed out by Christmas Eve, but by December 12, a few remained at home.And Daisy started to take out the extra plates, knives and forks from the cupboard to clean, which made Isaac very confused.

"Didn't I tell you?" Xavier said while crossing his legs and reading the newspaper on the sofa, "A few friends who are very lonely at home will come here to celebrate Christmas Eve."

"What?" Isaac was so nervous that his tail straightened, "What about me?"

"Of course we lived together, cousin," Xavier said with a smile, "you'd better shave tomorrow morning, or you'll look like an artist again."

Because of hearing the news, Isaac couldn't sleep all night.The next day, Daisy put him on a chair for another trim, and then put on Xavier's choice of formal suits and tried on new leather shoes.When Isaac straightened his habitual hunchback in front of the full-length mirror, the succubus' appearance advantage was truly revealed.

"Look at this." Daisy squeezed Isaac's strong arm under the suit enviously, "If I have two daughters, I can marry you both."

Xavier, who was leaning against the door frame, couldn't help laughing.

Although the whole family, including the cat, thinks that Isaac is handsome today, but he himself is not happy.As soon as he left the sight of others, Isaac couldn't help showing a very depressed expression. After a long time, he lost more than a dozen hairs.

The snow stopped in the evening, the setting sun outside the window melted into gold, and the clouds and mists were thin. It seemed that it would be a rare clear night.Isaac first heard the sound of the car from the window, and then, one after another, the lights of the cars came on in front of Xavier's house.The man opened the car door and helped the woman out of the car. Gradually, the joyous noise in the hall could not be contained. He was so frightened by the guests that he shrank in the room and refused to come out. It was useless to persuade him.

Isaac watched the gathering downstairs quietly through the crack of the door.

These gentlemen and ladies sat or stood around the sofa, and they didn't have too close contact with each other, looking very polite.But Isaac noticed a middle-aged widow in a black dress, who always sat in a corner, didn't speak much, and occasionally looked at Xavier with reserved and earnest eyes, which couldn't be more ambiguous.

During daily chats, Isaac heard Xavier mention this woman. Her husband had had business dealings with Xavier, and after he died of illness, the wife who inherited his inheritance continued to be in Xavier's name. industry investment.She is not a person who is good at managing money, and she will go bankrupt at some point. According to Xavier's nosy personality, will he marry her by then?She is beautiful, but she is too old for Xavier's appearance, but some men like older than themselves, maybe Xavier is this kind of person?

Knock, knock, someone knocked on the door.Startled, Isaac frantically opened the latch—Xavier was standing in front of the door.

"Are you really not showing your face?" Xavier asked in a low voice. "It embarrasses me a bit. They already know you."

Isaac didn't speak.

"Ok."

Isaac nodded wildly, and was about to close the door, but was stopped by Xavier's foot: "I'll ask Daisy to bring you something later."

"No, I-"

Xavier obviously heard him, but just tilted his head and ignored him.When he turned to leave, Isaac saw the skirt of the woman behind him flash by, and the voice of the conversation faded away: "My cousin really has a terrible headache..."

He seemed a little annoyed.Isaac thought, well, I don't know how to please him.If there is Mrs. Xavier, can my fake cousin continue to stay?

Occasionally, conversations from downstairs would come up, and Xavier was undoubtedly at the center of the conversation.

"Are you still having trouble sleeping, Mr. Xavier?"

"Oh, yes. Although the medicine mentioned last time is effective, it is easy to make mistakes..."

"That's right. Let me tell you, how can insomnia be solved by taking medicine alone?"

"Perhaps a gentle Mrs. Xavier can heal."

"It's okay, it's okay, don't worry too much. When you reach our age, you will find that you can't sleep well whether you are fighting or not. This is the most—the most trivial problem."

There was a burst of laughter.

Boom.After a while, there was another knock on the door.

Isaac thought it was Daisy and said, "Come in!" Unexpectedly, it was Xavier who pushed the door open.He put the dinner plate containing white wine, grilled fish and bread on the coffee table, did not leave immediately, but stood at the door hesitating to speak.

"What's wrong?" Isaac asked nervously.

"Oh, I just thought," Xavier came over, loosening Isaac's tie and unbuttoning a shirt, "it might be more comfortable."

Isaac froze in place.Xavier hesitated again, shifting his weight from his left foot to his right foot, and then from his right foot to his left foot, and said, "You know, I'm a surgery student."

"……Um?"

"So I may not always be able to understand what you think, and you have to tell me some things yourself."

Isaac was silent for two seconds, wrapping his tail around his wrist before Xavier turned to leave.

Xavier paused and said, "Actually, you can consider calling me Langdon in the future." Then he closed the door gently and left.

**

That night, Isaac had an unpleasant dream.

He dreamed of a shivering tramp on the street, a sick prostitute in an alley; he dreamed of a group of people who were forever beaten by life, a group of people who were neither better because of the Industrial Revolution nor worse because of the First World War .

He dreamed that there was a dead cat by the trash can.It is not healthy and beautiful like Xavier's cat, but a dirty and thin three-colored cat with sparse hair, narrowed eyes, and gray and cloudy irises.It was washed by rain and snow like a dirty footcloth, and it was hard to think that this ugly thing was once a living thing.

Tick, the raindrops fell on the tip of Isaac's nose, and then the rain curtain covered his head and face.

A carriage roared past, and not far ahead, a blond boy was crossing the street with a stack of newspapers at his forehead, the manic hooves of the horse had no intention of slowing down at all—

Isaac trembled all over, and opened his eyes suddenly, the carriage and the boy became a fleeting phantom, what he saw was the ceiling with Victorian style wallpaper, he quickly got up, after being startled by the nightmare , was taken aback by the surrounding environment again.

It took him a while to remember that he had moved into Xavier's house, subconsciously still thinking it was unreal.At this time, he should be lying on the old newspaper, talking about bad wine, theft, whoring, celebrating endless murders, and the coming of the end of the world with the people who are called the bottom trash.

But now, he was lying on a cotton bed with pillowcases changed every two weeks. He could sleep until the afternoon without doing anything. It was like a dream... Alas, a dream.I hate dreaming.

He slipped out quietly, stood in front of Xavier's door, and put his ear to the door panel to listen to the movement inside.Xavier didn't know what happened today, and he didn't even fall asleep. He was pacing slowly in the room, his wings dragging on the ground, rustling, rustling.