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“Oh, do pick up, please. ” Aziraphale anxiously bounced on his toes. He finally had some time alone in his office, so he knew what he had to do. His unnecessary heart pounded in his chest.
Of course, the Supreme Archangel couldn’t just use the phone in his office to call Crowley directly. That would be far too risky. Instead, he found the demon’s location on the globe and called the nearest payphone. He so desperately hoped that Crowley would see it, and answer it. He hoped that Crowley knew who was calling, and, more importantly, wanted to talk to him.
Crowley walked briskly down the cold, wet London streets, going completely unnoticed by passersby. The rain drenched his clothes as he made a beeline for shelter in a small, red phone box. He wrung out his hair, grown out and messy from months of neglect. He grumbled at the feeling of the strands sticking to his skin.
The phone rang. Crowley jumped back, startled, and nearly flew out of the phone box. Cautiously optimistic, he picked it up.
“Crowley?” came a soft voice from the other end, “I’m so glad you picked up. I was getting worried. You see I–”
“Save the story for later, angel,” Crowley interrupted. “What is it? Why are you calling me now? After fourteen months of silence.”
“There’s something I want to say. That I didn’t get to back then.” On the other end of the line, Aziraphale was fidgeting with his new angelic uniform. Crowley could practically hear it in his voice.
The demon was growing impatient. “Well? Spit it out then.”
“I don’t know if you still want to hear it. Or even if you ever did.” Crowley didn’t stop to interrupt this time, even if Aziraphale was taking forever to get to his point. He knew something big was coming. Something Aziraphale needed to work up to. “I love you, Crowley. I just thought I should call and tell you. I think I owe you that.”
“Stop. You don’t ‘owe’ me anything,” Crowley growled into the receiver. “And for the record, I love you too.” He was glad the angel couldn’t see his blush.
“Oh, that’s wonderful news!” Crowley heard Aziraphale clap over the phone. The demon chuckled fondly.
Then there was a long, comfortable silence, both beings just enjoying each others’ presence. The only sounds were breathing, which had become quite a habit for the two of them despite being unrequired, and the rain pouring down in London.
At some point, after Someone knows how long, Crowley just broke. Tears flooded his eyes, and he sobbed.
“Darling? What’s wrong?” Panic rose in Aziraphale’s voice. “I thought you were happy!”
“I am, I am,” Crowley choked out through his tears. This seemed to calm the angel, but not alleviate his confusion. “Just– I mean– can you just come home , angel?”
Aziraphale took a moment to respond. “I so deeply wish I could. I meant it when I said I needed you. I always have. When I– when we, if you’ll help me– stop this Second Coming business, I promise I’ll come back to you. My love .”
“And then what?” Crowley tried not to let the hope show in his voice.
“I’ll kiss you again,” Aziraphale answered succinctly. “Properly this time. None of that lapel-grabbing business.”
Crowley smiled sheepishly. “Sorry about that.”
“And after that, I won’t ever let them touch us again. I’ll keep you safe. We can have a life free of hiding, like we’ve always wanted. We can be…”
“Us,” Crowley finished.
“Yes,” Aziraphale whispered. “We can be Us.”
“Supreme Archangel Aziraphale sir! You’re needed!”
Aziraphale sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fuck,” he said. Crowley was immensely proud of him. “I have to go, dearest. But I promise we’ll come up with something.” He put the phone down, and braced himself before he walked out into the shared space. He straightened his back, took a deep breath, and folded his hands in front of him, the smile across his features more genuine than any he’d put on for the last fourteen months. Now that he knew he was wanted back home, Heaven was so much more bearable. He only had to keep this up until 2026. He could do that, right? Especially with Crowley on Earth waiting for him, helping him, loving him .
Aziraphale played that conversation over and over throughout the meeting. It wasn’t a very important one, only being about a slight change in the uniform for scriveners, so he felt that it was okay to zone out a little bit. Seeing as how he had more important things to think about now.