Remembering Melissa

 Sterling didn't know how to respond after moving in with Melissa. It was a last-minute thing anyway for the summer. He'd stayed back at the Uni and got on at the mailroom. His friend was supposed to live with her, but he won the lottery and was off to Hawaii.

So Sterling had no place to go. Despite looking seventeen yet twenty-seven, he never made the most of it. After all, he wasn't even Goth though most people thought he was. He was quiet and usually wrote his Xiana novel in his spare time on his computer. 

It wasn't until that third day when he came out of his room that he realized Melissa had stripped off to her undies. Sure, he knew of this kind of life. His grandmother was this way when she gardened. And even that had taken a lifetime to get used to, but until now he thought he'd never have to witness it again.

Of course, he didn't make a fuss. After all, the rent was perfect and he had his own space for the most part. As long as he had his laptop with him, he could escape.

Unfortunately, seeing her so relaxed and not having a qualm in the world about her body, she invaded his stories. Demon girls started wearing revealing outfits, even in gold masks.

He was dreaming it without thought. It was a bit horrifying at first. This was not a part of his world. Everyone was in flowing Asian outfits. Now they'd gone savage. 

Sure, he did his best to have downcast eyes while they ate dinner together. Snatching a muffin in the morning was hard when he saw her in her intimate apparel. Would she be like this in winter?

Of course, his fan base for his novel was loving it. More than once messages popped up, "Can you write more?" "Is she really a snake demon?"

Sterling thought it was all impossible. He was certain he might lose it.

And then  Melissa got out the cheese. She said everything was better with cheese, or maybe she was cheesy. Oh, how she left his head in pain.

"I don't think you like your body very much," she told him one evening. After all, it was getting hot in the apartment. She finally admitted this was her way of keeping the electric bill in check.

"Oh, is that it?" Really, he'd wondered why she was in those skimpy attires. Of course, he thought maybe a couple of those intimates might be swimsuits, but she clarified she didn't know how to swim.

"You need to undress more," she smiled as if she would help. It only made Sterling's heart a thunder. It beat so loud he couldn't even think. She pulled that bulky black sweater over his head.

"Better?" Her piercing eyes practically seized him.

"No, not really."

Sterling thought he might have the shivers. She only laughed. Yes, this was possibly the start of the Demon Snake Girl Novel. He'd never written in his underwear before.