Random

I sat in my designated chair in the crowded room and held my notepad against me. The environment in this room was a great difference from all the other conference rooms I've been in. Most were televised and everyone was socializing before the guest came, but everyone here...including me, was scared shitless.

It wasn't a secret to any of us in here that he was a horrible man. We shouldn't have even doubted it considering who his father was. I was certain that any one in here wouldn't truly be here if our bosses didn't force us to be.

The tiny amounts of hushed whispers came to a quiet as the door to the left of the stage opened. The large and menacing bodyguards held the doors open and we waited in anticipation for the King to walk in. I didn't know about anyone else, but I for one had never met him in person. The rumors and stories were enough to keep me miles away from the Underworld. 

I had questions written down for him, but I knew that I wouldn't even raise my hand to ask.

After a few minutes of waiting, the stage remained empty and nobody entered through the open doors. We should've assumed that from his behavior with everything else, being on time wasn't a priority of his.

Footsteps coming from down the hall from outside made us all turn to the door, but instead of Syn walking in, it was a man we'd learned was his second in command. Hades Laurent. He walked onto the stage and tapped the mic a couple of times before speaking into it.

Dispute Mr. SinClaire and his seeming callous nature, Hades was a ball of light. He was the leader of the demons and although I was a witch, I still appreciated his approach to handling business. "Good evening everyone. Instead of doing a press conference in front of you all, your royal highness has demanded one on one meetings. Each of you has one minute with him and you may record it."

Gasps and fearful outbursts floated throughout the room and I noticed Hades trying to hold back a laugh. "I'm sure you're all aware of the things you're not allowed to ask about. I advise you to adhere to those boundaries and be careful with your questions...for your own safety. Thank you." As if he were only there to cause us all to freak out, he left the stage and strode of out the room.

"Fuck no, I'm out," a man a couple of seats away from me spoke up. "If you all were smart, you'd get the hell out of here. He's a murderer and a psychopath! Why do you think this isn't televised?! Ask the wrong questions and you'll die. Ask the right question in the wrong tone and you'll die—"

"Sir," a guard interrupted. "The King would like to speak to you first. Now." A couple of guards began approaching him and he shook his head quickly.

"No, no, please! I didn't mean it!" He yelled. They grabbed both of his arms and practically dragged him out of the room, leaving us all frozen in our seats.

The girl beside me started crying and that did nothing to calm my nerves. "I'm going to die," she sobbed lowly.

"Just don't do anything stupid," I said. "Calm down." She nodded and wiped away her tears and I reached to get my phone. I wanted the police on speed dial just in case anything were to happen. I felt the pockets on my skirt in confusion until I remembered we weren't allowed to have our phones in here. "Shit!"

The doors opened once again and the room went eerily silent as Syn SinClaire walked in. Hades passed him a napkin from the inside of his jacket and that's when we noticed the blood on his mouth. It stained his lips and neck down to his shirt, but he didn't bother to clean it off.

Instead, he walked onto the stage and wiped his bloody hands. He tapped the mic and his bloody lips crooked upwards into a chilly smile as he looked down at all of us.

"Since everyone in here is so afraid to speak to me alone," he started slowly in a challenging voice. "I suppose we can all just have a little chat."

His playful smile in contrast with every frightening thing about him only added to his allure. His strong hands drifted to push away his wavy black hair falling into his face. Everything in the room seemed to fall away as my eyes were set on his every move. He licked the blood off of his full lips and I watched as his fingers slowly danced along the edge of the wooden podium. The delicate manner in which he did the movements made me wonder if there was another side to the tyrant King.

The world seemed to snap back into focus for me when the girl beside me nudged my arm. I looked up at her in confusion as her eyes moved wildly back in his direction. I turned to him as she had and my eyes widened as I found him looking at me in irritation. "Y-yes?"

"What's your question?"

"W-...what?"

"As this is a press conference," he started in a rich and velvety voice. "I'm sure you have something to ask...or would you prefer to continue ogling me?"

"I wasn't ogling," I mumbled as I shuffled through the pages in my notes. My anxiety grew as the room watched me rummage through my papers and my eyes began to water. I didn't mind being in front of large crowds, but this was embarrassing. Not only did he catch me staring at him, but I was too nervous to ask anything.

"Are you always this unprepared, Miss..." he waited.

"Beverly," I answered lowly as my cheeks heated.

"Ahh, Beverly..." he repeated in thought as he stared at something in the distance. As if he remembered where he was, he shook his head and looked back at me. "I'll come back to you in a moment. Be ready then."

The conference went on as normal and everyone was allowed one question. Everyone walked on eggshells with what they asked him, and after about fifteen minutes, everyone had asked something. "Miss Beverly," he called me out once again. "Your question."

"I don't have one," I admitted nervously.

"Seriously?" I noticed his jaw clench and I dug my nails in my palm to keep myself from passing out. I was beyond prepared yet I could t bring myself to vocalize anything. I was definitely going to be fired when I got back to work. "I gave you an extra twenty minutes for you to come up with nothing?"

"I'm s-sorry."

"Give me your notebook."

"What?"

"Note-book...the one in your hand. The one you've been writing in for the last twenty minutes to have nothing to ask. Give it to me," he ordered sternly. A guard walked over to my side and held his hand out for the notepad I had against my chest, and I passed it to him with trembling hands. I just hoped he wouldn't flip through the notebook and would stay on the page I was writing on. Before I came here my friends wrote down mock questions to ask him to get me to calm down, but they were far from appropriate.

I sunk in my seat and rubbed my temples as I closed my eyes. I looked at him through a small space between my fingers to see him reading the questions. He seemed bored with what I had written and began flipping through pages and my heart sunk. He landed on a random page in the notebook and I froze and I anticipated what was to come.

He scratched his head as he stared down at the paper and a few moments later he shook his head slowly. "Okay then," he started. "How tall am I?...I don't know, maybe three feet. How big is it?...Maybe a centimeter so don't bother thinking about it. Boobs or ass?...umm depends. Relationship status?...single, but not available. Ever made a sex tape?...totally, I'm sure your mother has a copy," he muttered sarcastically as my mouth dropped. Everyone in the room began laughing at his answers, but I wanted to completely disappear.

"Am I gay?...hmm not really. Would I be gay?...if I were attracted to men then sure. Do I want to be ga—what's up with all the gay questions, Beverly? Are there rumors that I'm not aware of?" He teased.

"No sir," someone answered.

He sighed and looked back down at the paper. "I'm not gay, but if I was, who gives a shit?" He asked. "Anyways...moving on. What are my thoughts on love?...it's great when it's good, but don't expect it to last. If I have another child, do I want it to be a girl or boy?...I don't care. Would I shoot a porno...with Stella DeMarco?...depends on how depressed I am on a given day."

"Oh wow," someone said with a snicker.

"Damn, that's fucked up," another person laughed lowly.

"Celebrity crush?...I don't have a crush on anyone. Would I fuck you on an ice skating ring...wow Beverly..." he said as he glanced at me.

I gasped loudly and everyone burst out into laughter. "I-I didn't know that was there. No-"

He held up my notebook and waved it. "It's in your notebook." He set it back down when I ran my hands down my face and cleared his throat. "No, I would not fuck you on an ice skating rink. I don't know how to skate, and even if I did, why would you want to be fucked on ice, hmm? That's a question for you."

"I don't want to be," I said lowly.

"Then where would you want it?" It became clear as I looked at him that he was doing this all to embarrass me. Perhaps it was a way to pay me back for not being more prepared.

"I-I guess in a bed." He smirked at my answer and I slowly took my notebook back from the guard. "Thanks," I muttered.

"That will be all for tonight, folks. Just a reminder that there will be a charity ball in the Underworld on Halloween at the palace," he announced.

"It's also his birthday!" Hades yelled from the corner.

"No, it's not about my birthday. My birthday is not a celebratory occasion."

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Author's Note
*If I was front row in that room*🌚

The book will sometimes have random POVs of someone with or around one of the characters. I wanted y'all to get another perspective 💕
Lmk your thoughts ✨