The devil

His lips quirk. “Don’t worry, he was fed recently.” When I make a face, he laughs and says, “Fish. Not humans.”

“What made you choose a piranha in the first place?”

His expression goes slack and I swear the room drops a few degrees. “My mom. I lived with her before she kicked the bucket and I moved in with my dad.” His jaw sets. “Long story short, she was a dope head. Wasn’t much of a mother. Most of the time she forgot I existed.”

He reaches for a bottle of Jack Daniels on the nightstand and takes a swig. “I went hungry more often than not. But my mom…” He laughs, but there’s not a drop of humor. “She was obsessed with these fucking fish. The only time she’d pay me any attention was to remind me to feed them before she shot up.”

He drags a hand over his scalp. “It was always, ‘feed my fish for me, Damien,’ and ‘Damien, don’t forget to feed my fish.’ The bitch was obsessed.” He shrugs. “But I did it. No matter how many days she was gone. No matter how hungry or lonely I became…I always made sure to feed her goddamn fish. Because it was her thing…the only thing she ever gave a shit about other than dope.” His expression turns solemn. “On my thirteenth birthday, my father sent me fifty bucks like he did every year. And as usual, she got to it before I could. She spent forty-five dollars on dope and five on fish food. Left none for her son.”

His eyes become glassy and he clears his throat. “The dope she bought with it must have been powerful because when I came home from school, I found her dead on the kitchen floor.” He draws in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “After I called an ambulance, I walked down to the local aquarium store for some more fish food, but something else caught my eye. The owner of the store was pretty cool, usually gave me a lot of stuff for free, and when I told him I wanted it, he said it was mine.”

The hairs on my neck lift as he continues. “I ran back home before the ambulance got there and kissed my mother goodbye. Then, I walked over to the pretty fish and gave them some food.” His eyes crinkle at the corners. “While they were eating, I dumped my new red-bellied piranha in the tank.” His teeth flash white. “And fed my fish.”