The air was warm against his skin, even through the breeze. The smell of Hell clung to him, sticking to his tongue as he breathed.

Lucifer grimaced.

It had been a long time since he’d felt cool wind on his skin, only able to get to earth when he was summoned by fanatics, and that hadn’t happened in several hundred years. Not many instructions on how to summon the actual devil remained by now. He could visit the other rings for a change in climate, but he hesitated to do so, considering how absent from his friends’ lives he had been the last few years.

So, he would deal with the heat just like everybody else, out of pure stubbornness.

 

He caught movement out of the corner of his eye, and he turned his head where he sat on the balcony railing.

“Uh, hey, uuuuh, A-Angel!” He only had to think to remember his name for a couple of seconds. He’d tried so hard to memorise their names, and at last, he was getting close to remembering them all without needing nametags.

“Hiya, lil’ king. Whatcha doin’ out here?”

 

Lucifer glanced back toward the doors, the sound of the party reaching all the way outside.

“Ah, just… a breath of fresh air.”

“Uhuh.” Angel raised an eyebrow, leaning back against the railing next to Lucifer. One could hardly call the air in Pride ‘fresh’.

“Hey, you’re up here too! I thought you were dancing with… that friend of yours.”

“Cherri,” Angel reminded. “I was. I just saw ya from inside and thought I’d keep ya company for a minute.”

Lucifer smiled. “That’s kind of you.”

He watched as Angel’s cheeks flushed pink. “Pssht, not really.”

Funny, that. He’d seen Angel take compliments about his appearance in stride, not even blinking when catcalled, but calling him kind made him flustered? That was kind of cute, actually.

 

He laughed, leaning closer to Angel, staring up into his eyes. “I think… that’s something I get to decide, isn’t it?”

Angel chewed on the inside of his cheek, looking down at him, eyes not turning away despite how flustered he seemed to be.

“Maybe,” he said, tipping his head to the side, a smile slowly growing on his face. “I can still think you’re wrong, though.”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” Lucifer said, turning where he sat, now with one leg on either side of the railing, fully facing Angel. “If there’s one thing this hotel has taught me, it’s that there are sinners that aren’t rotten all the way through, the way I thought they were. And that includes you.”

“You’re supposed to throw away food that’s gone bad, ya know, even if there’s parts that look edible.”

“Good thing you’re not actually food, then. Unless you ask the bellhop, I suppose.”

That managed to get a chuckle out of Angel, who leaned closer to him, close enough that his hand brushed his, his pinky just barely on top of his.

“Would ya still think I’m kind if I was thinkin’ about kissin’ ya right now?”

 

Lucifer’s eyes widened in surprise. “Excuse me, what?”

Angel’s hand withdrew.

“See, told ya. Maybe I’m not so nice after all.”

 

Lucifer’s hand captured Angel’s before it could retreat any further, Angel’s eyes snapping back to meet his.

“I’d let you.”

“You’d… really?”

“Really.”

Lucifer wrapped both his hands around Angel’s, pulling it closer, making Angel lean in close enough that his hair brushed Lucifer’s hat.

Angel’s eyes darted outward, toward the streets of Pentagram City, all the buildings, the fires they could smell all the way here, the bright neon lights competing with the red light cast from the sky.

“What about the cameras?”

 

Lucifer let his wings release from his back, enveloping them both. They cast their faces in shadow, hiding them from view entirely.

Lucifer’s grin was cheeky, mischief sparkling in his eyes. “What about them?”

 

Angel laughed, his hand in Lucifer’s shifting, taking them in his. The size of his one hand was enough to engulf both of his.

“I guess that’s one way to take care of that,” he said, laughter colouring his voice.

As he leaned in close, his grin was face-splitting. As he met Lucifer’s eye, there was no hesitation left, no doubt.

 

When their lips touched, Lucifer felt Angel’s hands on his cheeks. He parted his lips, Angel’s tongue finding its way into his mouth. The taste of whatever he’d been drinking on his tongue was much more pleasant than that of the air they breathed, making him crave more. It made his face grow even hotter, his hands slipping out of Angel’s so he could hold on to his shoulders, worried that his head would fill with so much blood it would make him lose his balance.

He felt Angel grin into the kiss, another one of his hands brushing up his chest, moving just beyond the edge of his vest, resting above his beating heart.

His wings shivered, barely noticeable to anyone but himself, as he felt Angel’s teeth nip at his lip, tugging. His chest pressed against Angel’s as he wrapped his arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. He gasped into it at the feeling of fingers burying into the base of his wings.

 

Pulling back just enough to meet Angel’s eye, he could see the growing smirk on his lips.

“Careful, no matter how much my wings cover us, if you make them shiver too much it’ll be pretty obvious what we’re doing anyway.”

Angel chuckled. “Oh, sorry, didn’t realise wings were an erogenous zone for ya.”

Judging by the look on his face, he most definitely knew what he’d been doing.

He smacked Angel gently in the chest with a laugh, who pulled back, out of the embrace of Lucifer’s wings. Lucifer let them fold neatly against his back.

He raised his fingers to his lips. They were tingling.

“You’re a good kisser,” he said.

“Oh, I know I am.”

 

Lucifer moved his other leg over the railing, hopping down onto the floor. He stood in front of Angel, a smile playing on his face.

“I… wouldn’t mind doing that again, sometime. If you’d like.”

“Damn, take a guy out on a date first.”

He felt his face flush a brighter golden. “Oh, of course! If- if you want me to-”

“Chill, sweetcheeks, I’m messin’ with ya. Though if ya did wanna take me on a date some time I wouldn’t mind that either. How’re ya gettin’ more flustered over a date than a kiss?”

“Uh, well…” Lucifer’s wide eyes darted to the side. It had been an embarrassingly long time since he’d last been on a date. Kissing? It had been a while since he last did that too, but not nearly as long as it had been since he’d gone on a date. “...Things happen.”

 

He picked up his cane from where it had stood propped up against the railing next to them, fiddling with the apple top. “Should we… get back down to the party?”

“We probably should.”

Angel reached out, tapping his claw against Lucifer’s lips. “Might wanna clean up before ya go down there, though.”

It took him far too long to realise what Angel meant. Not until Angel licked his now lipstick-less lips did he put two and two together. He hastily pulled out his phone, opening up the front camera. His lips, as well as the skin around them, were covered in pale pink lipstick stains.

As he pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket, he heard Angel laugh.

“I’ll see ya later, sweetcheeks.”

“Ah, yes, you will. See you, see you later.”

With the handkerchief still pressed to his lips, he watched Angel cross the threshold, waving his goodbyes.

 

He could only hope that they would get another encounter just like this, sooner rather than later.

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