This feeling was nothing new, but like always, Mammon’s chest felt weighted down. He sat at the edge of his mattress, slumped over, with his arms loosely crossed and resting on his knees. Mammon’s eyes were closed, and his head hung low, his chin almost touching his chest.

The Avatar of Greed wanted you to figure out what was going on with him – figure out all the hidden feelings he suppressed deep inside. If only you could hear how his heart screamed in pain and know how tormented he felt, but alas, Mammon couldn’t express his emotions honestly. It was not like he didn’t trust you – if he didn’t, he would not be dating you – but for reasons, Mammon felt like sharing his feelings with you would be bothersome. How he wished you could read his mind, but then again, if you did, you would be sad all the time, and Mammon didn’t want to put you through that.

The demon removed his sunglasses and tilted his head up to force the tears back into his eyes. Pressing his right index finger and thumb on his closed eyes, he let out a self-deprecating laugh, “Why am I thinkin’ about this? It ain’t like anyone is goin’ to listen to me. Maybe (y/n)’ll listen, but what if they think I’m bein’ needy or am weak-minded? Man, I could use a hug right now, but Mammon the Great can’t walk up to (y/n) and say that to their face. Stupid mind. Stupid thoughts. Stupid Mammon…”

—-

As you made your way up the RAD staircase, you heard familiar voices coming from the top of the stairwell. “Hey, Asmo, Levi, and Beel. What are you guys laughing about? Did I miss something?”

The Avatar of Lust nodded and chuckled, partially covering his mouth with the fingertips of his right hand, “Mammon made a complete fool of himself today. He stole a rare statue from the RAD common room but got caught.”

“He is stupid for thinking he could get away with it,” Levi happily chimed in.

Their words made your lips fall flat, and though you knew it was wrong for Mammon to steal, you didn’t like the way his brothers were making fun of him. How could Asmo and Levi not understand that greed was his sin, just like lust and envy were their sins? Out of the corner of your eyes, you saw Beel shifting his weight from one leg to another as his eyes wandered around the area as if he was trying to find a way to escape this conversation.

“Oh, it’s almost time for our next class,” Asmo said while motioning Levi to follow him. “We should get going. Talk to you later, (y/n).”

Even as they walked away, you could hear the third and fifth brothers talking poorly about your boyfriend. Once their voices disappeared in the distance, Beel shifted his gaze to you with a bit of fire in his eyes, “Mammon was not the one who stole the statue. Someone else took it, and the blame ended up on Mammon because…it’s Mammon.”

Your frown only grew deeper, and you curled your fists tightly – how dare they use him as a soft target. “Thanks for telling me the truth. Oh, and Beel, thanks for not joining your brothers to make fun of Mammon. You care about him and respect him more than the others, so thank you.”

“You should go find Mammon,” the Avatar of Gluttony smiled. “He might need a hug from you.”

Knowing Beel’s words were true, you set out to find your boyfriend, and after an hour of looking for him, you found Mammon sitting on the sofa in his bedroom. He sat with his lower back pressed against the backrest of the couch, his upper body hunched over. Mammon’s elbows were resting on his knees, and his face was buried in the palms of his hands. Your heart twisted inside your chest after seeing the state he was in.

Slowly making your way down the staircase, you tiptoed behind the sofa and slid your arms around his shoulders, catching him by surprise, but your warmth was what he needed the most right now. Mammon sat up straight, a small smile appearing on his lips, “Whatcha doin’ here? You’re supposed to be in class.”
You tightened your arms around his shoulders and pulled him back until the back of his head was resting against your chest. Right now, all you wanted to do was to envelop him in your warmth and hide him from the world, but you needed to ask him about the false accusation. “Why didn’t you tell me about the rare statue incident?”

“So you think I stole it just like everyone else?” His tone was sharp, but Mammon quickly regretted using that tone with you and bit his lower lip.

“No, I don’t think you stole it. Also, you are wrong about the everyone part,” you chuckled, maintaining your calm. “Beel believes you didn’t steal the statue, and I have a feeling that Lucifer also thinks you are innocent. But all that aside, Mammon, why didn’t you tell me?”

“I…well…um…”

While he struggled to form a response, you noticed him repeatedly tapping his foot, almost like he was having a muscle spasm. Tilting your head to get a better view of his face, you saw his eyes shifting restlessly through the items on the glass center table. At that moment, a realization hit you, Mammon was never good with words and never honest about his feelings.

‘Why didn’t I notice this before? Why did it take me so long?’ You silently sighed, not taking your eyes off his face. ‘Even when he’s in pain, he keeps saying he’s okay or makes a joke or says something stupid. Is that his way of diverting everyone’s attention away from his true feelings? How long has he been like this? What…can I do to help him?’

You never got an answer from Mammon, but you didn’t mind as you were too busy trying to figure out a way to help him – a way in which he could share his pain with you or seek comfort from you without actually having to use words.

—-

“Yo, did somethin’ happen?” Mammon asked as he lazily walked into your bedroom, looking like you woke him up from a nap. “Why didja want to see me so urgently?”

“Don’t ask any questions, and close your eyes. No peeking!” After Mammon closed his eyes, you skipped to your bed and pulled out a gift from under the covers.

“Hey, hurry up, will ya? Don’t keep me waitin’.” Usually, at times like these, his mind would be racing a thousand miles per hour trying to figure out what you were going to show him, but today, his mind was too tired.

“Open your eyes!” At your command, Mammon revealed his sapphire eyes to find you holding a custom-made gold-colored plush bat with horns and wings similar to his demon form. “You are givin’ me a toy?”

“You don’t like it?” You teasingly pouted.

“Huh? No…it’s cute an’ all, but…why are you givin’ me a stuffed toy?” He averted his eyes while scratching the back of his head, trying to make sense of your gift.

“Mammon, I am sorry,” you dropped your playful front and stared down at your hands. “I’m not really sharp when it comes to picking up non-verbal hints. Whatever people feel, I prefer they say it using words, and I know not all people like sharing their feelings. I want to give you this toy as a sorry gift.”

Even after your explanation, your boyfriend still looked lost. Smiling widely, you stretched out your arms to him, “That’s not the only reason I’m giving you this bat. Whenever you show me this plush, I will take it as Mammon the Great wants a hug from his human.”

His cheeks turned red at hearing your adorable statement, and a genuine smile danced on his lips as he gently took the plushie from you. Realizing he was openly blushing, Mammon cleared his throat and mumbled, “It’s not like Mammon the Great needs a hug, but if I see my human lookin’ like they need a hug, I’ll show ’em this toy.”

—-

After a long day at RAD, you kicked off your shoes and jumped on your bed, letting your body sink into the cloud-like mattress. You couldn’t stop yourself from smiling like a goof at how well your plan worked out. Mammon brought the bat plush with him everywhere he went, and you could not have been happier. What made it a lot cuter was that he tried to keep the toy hidden in his backpack, but it was difficult to miss seeing the bright gold bat sparkling in the depths of his bag. Of course, you didn’t say anything since you didn’t want to embarrass him, but his actions made you giggle every time.

The best part was Mammon used the toy whenever he needed a hug, especially after a long day, losing bets, getting insulted by his brothers, or having to put up with punishments he didn’t deserve. You opened your eyes and stared at the tree above your bed as you felt your gears riling at the unfair punishments. “Seriously, what did Mammon do to deserve it? He always looks out for others, but why does he have to put up with things he didn’t do? I wish I could hold him in my arms and hide him from the world and the unjust things they do to him.”

Rolling over on your stomach, you folded your arms and rested your chin on them. “Mammon has changed in the past few days, though. Before, he would use the toy to ask for hugs when he was sad, but now…he’s using them to get normal hugs. Like the type of hugs couples give each other.”

You weren’t complaining, no, far from it, but you wondered what brought about this change in him. Was he getting more comfortable around you? A giggle escaped your lips, “It would be nice if he was more comfortable around me, but I have to say, he has also gotten bolder. He even uses the bat when he’s jealous.”

Whenever you had conversations with his brothers, the angels, or Solomon for more than needed, Mammon would show up out of nowhere and secretly hold up the toy. He made it obvious that he didn’t like you showering other men with attention, and the most impressive part was that Mammon even did this when you were talking to Lucifer. “Talk about being brave. He looks so cute when he’s jealous, though.”

You couldn’t get over everything he had been doing for the past few weeks, but the one action of his you couldn’t resist was Mammon showing you the plushie and saying in the sweetest voice with a blush, “I thought my human could use a hug.” He liked getting attention from you, but Mammon also enjoyed showering you with affection. He really was too pure.

While you were reminiscing over the events that transpired, you failed to realize that the toy had helped you learn a lot about Mammon, including the meaning behind his expressions, his body language, and, to a certain extent, reading his thoughts.

—-

A couple of days later, you walked into Mammon’s room to hear him frantically saying, “Where’s it? Where’s it? Where’s it?”

Stepping closer to the stairwell railing, you looked around his room to find countless items littering his floor while Mammon was carelessly tossing the pillow from the sofa and pulling the seat cushions out, not caring if they ripped in the process. What was he looking for that he needed to tear his entire room apart? A thought crossed your mind, but you shook your head and dismissed it.

“Mammon, what’s wrong?” You questioned as you slowly made your way to the halfway point of the staircase. When he turned to you, the demon looked like he was about to break into tears at any moment.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I’m going to find it! Dontcha worry.”

“Mammon, hold on a minute.” You held your right hand up in front of your chest with the flat of your palm facing him. “First, take a deep breath and tell me what’s wrong. Why are you tearing your room apart?”

“I…lost the toy. I don’t know how I dropped it, but I’m gonna find it.”

Your mind froze at hearing his reply, but you were not shocked about Mammon losing the toy; rather, you were surprised by your thought, the same thought you silenced earlier. When you walked into his room and heard him panicking, your immediate thought was, ‘Is Mammon looking for the toy? Why else would he be messing up his room?’

Did this mean you no longer needed the toy to know what Mammon was feeling and thinking? You hid your smile under your hand as you watched Mammon getting down on his knees and looking under the couch. Uncovering your lips, you called out to him, “Hey, Mammon. It’s okay. You don’t need to look for the toy.”

Your boyfriend turned his head to you, still on his knees, giving you a puzzled look. Revealing your smile to him, you leaned against the railing, “Mammon, I don’t need the toy anymore to know when you need a hug. I don’t know how or why, but I think I can understand your feelings…”

A variety of expressions appeared on his face one after another; first, his eyebrows furrowed, then they arched upwards on his forehead, and his lips parted slightly; after that, his eyes grew large, and his jaw dropped; finally, a wide smile tugged on his lips. “You…can…read my heart? I don’t need to use words?”

“No, you don’t.”

Mammon’s tense shoulders relaxed as he felt the knot in his chest gradually loosen. “I’m still sorry for bein’ careless.”

“My dear demon,” you called to him in a sweet voice, and when he shifted his gaze to you, you brought your left hand from behind your back and revealed a bat plushie. It was similar to the gift you gave to your boyfriend, but the color was different.

“Didja get a backup toy in case I lost mine?” He asked, tilting his head slightly to one side.

“No, this is my toy. Now, whenever Mammon’s human needs a hug from him, they will show this toy to him. AND Mammon will have to drop everything and come straight into his human’s arms – no exceptions,” you exclaimed and stuck the tip of your tongue out at him.

The Avatar of Greed hopped to his feet, chaotically jumped over all the objects in his path, and ran up the staircase. He tightly coiled his arms around your waist and buried his face in your chest as you wrapped one around his shoulder and rested the other on the back of his head. For a while, the two of you softly laughed until he lifted his head and met your gaze.

“No matter where I’m and what I’m doin’, whenever my human needs me, I’ll be there for ’em. Now and forever.”