I should've stopped her, or been more concerned when I felt the Decay pulsing up. It took all my willpower to be decent. To be 'good'.

I'm one of the good monsters. I don't do that kind've thing. I don't do that to Tiana, especially.

But I felt when she swallowed it.

I feel it in her, even now.

It's faint. So faint that I can pretend I haven't just broken a dozen laws by doing it.

I know it's going to fade. Magisorcerers are warded from Decay's corruptive effects. Even if Tiana had taken everything last night, she'd be fine.

I shouldn't be thinking about how hot that visual is.

I lift another shipping container, this one with a little too much gusto. "Whoa, hey!" Rax calls out, managing to compensate. "Easy there, slugger." 

"Sorry!" I give Rax a sheepish grin. 

"Ah, don't worry about it." He taps the side of the shipping container. "I'm just glad you got your mojo back."

So am I. I woke up feeling better than I had in a month.

We're doing this. Tiana and I are doing this. It's not something that I'm inflicting on her, even if knowing that there's a small piece of my monstrous essence inside her doesn't give me a thrill.  
  
Maybe I inflicted that on her, but still.

It's not just the way I can feel the Decay inside Tiana.

We've started texting again. It started this morning, after she got home.

T: Do you have Signal?
K: No?  
T: Here's mine.  
K: ...?
T: Message me on there.  
K: ...  

It took all of an hour of silence for me to download it and sign up.

She knew just how to reward me for it: a View-Once image of her in today's outfit. It's perfectly innocent: just a grey turtleneck tucked into tailored beige slacks.  

But she's shot it from a high angle, so I can see her body and the lower half of her face.

Less innocent is her mouth, lolling open.

"Can't wait for you to fuck this again," reads the caption.

I'd felt the Decay pulse in her a few minutes before she sent it.

K: You're twisted lmao
T: For you? Yes.
K: Are you sure you're okay? With everything that happened? With last night? I'm sorry if that was too much.
T: All good <3

I feel my Decay inside her squirm. It resonates with feelings of arousal and "dark desires". I guess cheating on your husband with a woman counts for that.

I want to feel worse about it all than I do. I should make sure the Decay isn't going to linger. I should be responsible.

K: Come over tonight

I don't get a chance to check my phone until a few hours later, once I'm on break. She hasn't messaged back. My stomach sinks, icy dread in my core. I try to feel for the connection to the Decay. I can't.  

My breathing picks up. She's realized that it was the Decay. She's ghosting me again.

Then my phone pings and pings and pings.  
  
T: Sorry, back-to-back meetings
T: Can't tonight... it's date night
T: I know I shouldn't mention him  
T: I just want to be honest  
T: And speaking of being honest... I swallowed some of your Decay
T: I didn't mean to and I'm fine, but I did

She's so perfect.

I take in a deep breath. Then another. And another. I keep going until I feel something like calm start pushing away the anxiety and nerves.

Now that my body doesn't feel like a live wire, I feel the Decay. Still there. This isn't an honest relationship, but I can tell the truth, too.

K: I know.
T: You do?!
K: Yeah. It's part of me. If I concentrate, I can feel it squirming around inside you.
T: Fuck
T: You can't say things like that
T: I'm at work
T: I have to concentrate and that's so hot

A twisted notion comes to mind, and I can't help myself.

K: Oh? 😈 Do you trust me?
T: Yes.

I focus on the Decay inside her. Normally I wouldn't be able to do anything with it, except... except for some reason nothing about this is normal. I will it to move, and it slithers down before settling between her legs.  
  
It curls around the nerves of her clit, and pulses.

T: OH MY GOD
K: Too much?
T: I didn't say that
T: WOw

An even worse idea occurs to me, and I can't help but text it before I think better of what I'm implying.

K: Enjoy date night. I know I will.

Fifteen minutes go by, and I'm terrified I overstepped. Then another ding.

T: I can't wait 😘🥵