an old friend

He doesn't say much; not like he has anything to say to me. 

He just watches me, his fingers steepled together, his chin resting on the tips. The side of his mouth quirks up in a smirk, the amusement is familiar to me, and he greets me just like that. 

"Hey there, old friend."

I don't answer immediately. 

"Hey."

"You're awfully quiet," he spreads his hands out, "nothing to ask me? About why you ended up here?"

"There's not much to ask," I answer, my voice coming out in soft curls of smoke in the heat, but my heart is strangely calm, my palms smooth and sweat-free. I take a seat, inspect the pearls draped around the table, reaching out a curious finger to touch them. 

"Not much, indeed," he watches me still, a glint in his eyes now as they follow the white pearls slipping in and out of my fingers. They are smooth under my touch, the finest I have touched. 

Not like I have touched other pearls. 

"Don't you want to know why some people suffer more than others?" he asks again, and this time, he's in front of me. His presence is big, obvious, domineering, but I keep my eyes on the pearls. They are prettier than him, more delicate, less jarring. 

"Not really," I look up at him, and the pitch-black gaze draws me in, alluring and mysterious. I blink once, then drop my gaze down. I really don't know what he wants from me. 

"Like I said, I'm not curious," I lick my lips which are charred from the heat, "there's good, there's evil. People enjoy, people suffer. Some go to heaven, some go to hell."

"Mhmm," he's sitting on the floor in front of me now, his chin resting in the palm of his hand. "And? Do you think you deserve to end up here, not even with other souls to accompany you? You're my sole companion here, only me for company."

"Whatever it is, I'm here," I shrug, finally leaving the pearls alone and looking him properly in the eye. He's dark, handsome, and yet there's nothing remotely pure about him. He's who he is, and I am after all, damned to hold conversations with him for an eternity. 

"I can ask you questions as and when I want. Right?" 

He doesn't answer, just watches me before he finally smiles fully. 

"That's right, old friend."