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" Goodbye Barbatos, thank you so much for coming over," Simeon says, his ever-beaming smile painting his face, giving him a touch of gentle beauty.
The addressed man in turn gives a slight bow to the angel, reciprocating his smile with a subtle, equally gentle smile, that unfortunately makes Simeon's heart beat faster, much to his chagrin.
Annoyed, he mentally scolds his heart for being so giddy at something so simple. Well, perhaps it's not so simple when it comes to the demon named Barbatos.
" Should you need any more help, please feel free to contact me. I would be more than happy to help you," With a resonant voice, the butler continues.
Simeon definitely has to start looking for academic-related excuses to make him come over in the future, now that he has Barbatos' permission.
The angel nods, and wishes him a safe journey home, and continues to stand by the pew, watching the receding silhouette until the demon's figure is out of his view.
Once he's sure Barbatos is out of his earshot, Simeon let's out a heavy sigh.
The angel has many secrets, but he feels like none of his secrets have ever weighed him down this much. That being; his small crush towards Barbatos.
Well, to say that it's a small crush feels like he's lying to himself. With the way he always tries to look for the silhouette of green in a crowd, and how he feels like leaping in joy whenever he sees a message notification from the demon, but Simeon has never liked being honest with himself anyway.
His thoughts keep on running and running in his mind, until his sight lands onto something.
Specifically, a gray-green cloth that drapes over the living room couch.
Barbatos' uniform coat.
Simeon tries really hard not to let his heart beat out of his chest again, so he takes a deep breath in. He looks around for anyone that might caught him, and sighs in relief when he finds the whole bottom floor empty.
Instantly, his hand goes on autopilot mode and reaches out for the coat.
The angel's heart skips a beat when his fingers perceive the lingering warmth. Slowly, he takes it closer to himself, hesitating only for a beat before he buries his face into the demon's coat.
The musky, woody and fresh scent of tea of Barbatos' cologne washes over his senses like a warm, comforting bath.
He pulls the coat closer, clinging onto the residual warmth of the demon. He snuggles into it, really taking his time and the demon's scent in, before finally deciding it's most rational to reach for his D.D.D.
The angel's fingers are swift to find Barbatos' contact, a stark improvement from his previous attempts.
He starts by typing a message.
Simeon : Barbatos, you left your RAD coat on the living room couch.
He doesn't miss the moment when the one tick on his message turn into two in the span of a millisecond, and waits for the other's response with a bated breath.
Barbatos : I see. I apologise for my carelessness. If it is no trouble for you, could you please bring it with you tomorrow? I will retrieve it from you during lunchtime.
Blue eyes remain fixed on the screen, reading Barbatos' response over and over again. He feels his cheeks starting to strain from trying to hold back a huge smile. This means the angel will see him again tomorrow!
Don't apologise,
His heart pleads.
In fact, I wouldn't have minded if you want to leave it here longer.
But instead of voicing these thoughts, his fingers betrayed him.
Simeon : Of course not, I'll see you tomorrow then.
When Barbatos responds with a smiling Nancy sticker, he beats himself internally for smiling so wide at such a little thing. Yet again. And makes a stupid, failing attempt to strain his smile, yet again.
He turns off his phone, collects his items and the coat, then head straight to his bedroom upstairs.
When he reaches it, he makes sure to lock the door. After all, Solomon is a tad mannerless when it comes to personal space.
The angel sets everything at their designated places, switches into his nightwear, and quickly settle into his soft bed. He's looking forward to something.
His heart begins to race uncontrollably when his eyes settle onto the grey-green coat once more, his hands subtly trembling while reaching out for it.
Once the velvet material is in his hands, he wastes no time in cuddling it close to his body, relishing the residuals of Barbatos' warmth and cologne, with a smile he isn't conscious of.
On cloud nine Simeon is, giggling and kicking his feet happily whilst still holding the coat tight.
The angel takes yet another greedy whiff of the demon's cologne, sighing with a smile on his face. Blue eyes open and the sight of his bedroom ceiling greets his vision.
He takes a deep breath in, exhaling with a heaviness he wishes to rid off of his heart.
Some thoughts has been plaguing is mind, lately. About his feelings for the demon, and about the ambiguity of his and Barbatos' relationship.
He's lost count on the times their hands lingered together on accident, the number of times he's caught Barbatos staring at him ( when he tries to steal a glance towards the demon. Which, really makes him go crazy trying to figure out whether the feelings are being reciprocated. ), the number of silly excuses the butler comes up with to spend an outing with Simeon.
He still hasn't counted the times when their faces lingered a tad too close to eachother to warrant and actual kiss, and the way the demon's hands always seek to linger on the low of his back.
Simeon is sure that the flash of light he often finds in his eyes and the soft curl of his lips whenever they're together carries a weight of affection, yet he couldn't afford to be overconfident, lest his heart will break into a million pieces.
But it's okay, he thinks. Because as long as Barbatos is still willing to spend his limited time with him, the angel wouldn't mind. Even if it hurts. A bit.
A heavy sigh sounds the room, and Simeon's eyelids flutter close. Just when he feels like he's sinking into the cold pool of hopelessness, the comforting scent of Barbatos' coat came upon him, offering him solace.
He hates it, sometimes. The way Barbatos' entire being is comfort and safety to him. He's not supposed to feel this way. How is he, an angel, the sworn enemy of demons find one of the their presence comforting? Simeon assumes that might be blasphemy.
But he doesn't care. Rather, he couldn't afford to care. He hasn't felt this comforting sense of security in millennia, and he believes himself to be deserving of a break after all the constant terror and anxiety in the presence of others.
Feeling his mind starting to buzz with the familiar stir of overthinking, he shakes his head, attempting to rid of it. But in the end, he finds that only the warmth of Barbatos' coat, the musk of his cologne and the image of his soft smile to be the few things affective of lulling him to sleep.
_____
" Here you go," Simeon says, trying hard not to let his voice slips out so softly lest the demon knows his deepest secret.
The angel watches the butler receive the paper bag, in which placed the coat, with a soft smile.
To which the angel feels irritated that it makes his heart race. Again. Why does he smile so softly towards him and not to others?
" Thank you very much, I apologize for troubling you so much."
No need, please, I would beg you to let me hold it even a second longer.
The angel really wishes Barbatos can't read minds
Only a courteous smile is returned by the angel.
" It was no trouble at all, please don't worry about it."
The two being stand in a brief moment of silence, much to the angel's discomfort. So he quickly makes a move to excuse himself.
" I need to go now. I assume Luke is already waiting for me at the cafeteria,"
" Ah, I see.. I was planning to whisk you away to an impromptu lunch date, but I guess I will have to save the idea for another time." With the way the sentence was uttered in such smoothness, so casually, with a smile too charming, clueless to the rapid beating of the poor angel's heart.
Not trusting his mouth to say something that isn't embarrassing, Simeon just nods with a smile, as casually and gracefully as he can afford to, before turning on his heels.
That wicked demon and his eccentric choice of words!
The angel huffs, a frown on his face and feeling a tad irritated.
If his goal is to have my heart wrapped around his fingers then fine. He wins.
A heavy, annoyed sigh escapes the angel's pouty lips, and be desperately wishes that Barbatos didn't notice the sweet cherry-red tint that he's sure to have painted his face, with how loud his heart is pounding in his ears.
____
The office door clicks behind him as he shuts and locks it with magic.
The first thing he does after sitting down is to reach into the paper bag from the angel, and fish the item from the inside, out.
The demon smiles when he finds his coat still lingering with warmth, which means Simeon was still holding close to it before returning it to his owner.
He takes a whiff off the coat, and his smile evolves into a chuckle when he finds the bold, refreshing woody scent of his own cologne to blend with the cloying spicy, gentle rose scent of the angel's perfume.
There's no doubt he slept with my coat close to his chest the entire night...
A stream of chuckle accompanies his thoughts, and his smile evolves from a teasing one into a fiendish one with a tint of satisfactory victory.
The demon had intentionally left his coat behind at Simeon's place in hopes that it will carry the intoxicating scent of the angel back to him. But mainly, he admits quietly, he just wanted to tease the angel.
Both parties' secret affection are obvious to him, and everytime he catches a glimpse of how the angel's cheeks warm up into a lovely shade of red, his fingers itches to curl around the softness, and his lips beg to smother kisses on them.
He's really curious of this game, and how long it would take for the precious, sweetheart angel to cave in. For now, he could only watch and wait with patience. And patience is his best game yet, fortunately.
Barbatos smirks. He's looking forward to where the future might bring them.
He wonders, will they be brought further apart, or closer?
This time, he really hopes his powers won't spoil the game to him.