"And that person's gonna be you?" I asked, some of the humor draining out of the moment. Still, I said it without any judgement. I didn't know all the details of their relationship, and apparently Daniel didn't either, but I could understand the appeal.

I knew what it could feel like to give yourself over to a monster, and the inherent power you felt when that monster let its guard down around you and only you. And how two people, fucked up in very specific ways, could fit all their broken pieces together in a way that made them both better and worse.