8. Asmodeus

They were in Gabe's bed, and Az was wearing boxers and no shirt. Gabe had set out both, but he hadn't seemed to notice when Az hadn't put the shirt on. Gabe was wearing boxers and a t-shirt and looking quite sexy. They were on opposite sides of the bed, but if Az had his way, they'd be cuddling before long.

Az was starting to figure Gabe out, and he liked what he was finding. He had some guesses about Gabe's sexuality, but he figured it would be far more fun to experiment as opposed to explaining. Az was a hands-on demon, in every sense of the word. The first step would be to get friendly with Gabe, since Gabe was obviously somewhat demisexual and required a relationship with someone before he could be interested in sex. Az knew that wasn't all there was to it, but it was a starting point.

And, Az admitted to himself, getting friendly with Gabe would certainly be no hardship. He liked people in general—he always had—but he particularly liked Gabe. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he actually cared if someone liked him, and he didn't mean liked the fact that he was a sex demon or liked his body or liked his ability to give them multiple orgasms. He actually wanted Gabe to like him. It was an… awkward feeling. But he was an Infernal King of the Underworld, and he wouldn't change who he was to be liked; either Gabe would like him or he wouldn't. But he'd try to put his best foot forward, at the very least.

Gabe interrupted his musings when he asked, "What's hell like? Is it all tortured souls and screaming and pain and horror? Is that why you don't want to go back?"

"No, the underworld has areas like that, but where the demons live is actually quite lovely. Better than upstairs, as far as I've heard. They're dreadfully boring up there," Az chuckled.

Gabe sounded sad when he said, "So it's either torture for eternity or boredom for eternity?"

"Not at all, Gabe. People who are in what they call heaven are usually very happy there. Souls have to be truly awful to end up in the underworld for torture. Many souls decide to be reincarnated, and there are quite a few who stay in Limbo."

"Limbo? I've heard of it, but what's that like?" Gabe asked.

"Ah, yes, Limbo," Az chuckled. "One of my personal favorites. It ends up being where I spend most of my time. It is the ultimate party place, and I am a lust demon, after all. It's for souls who are still deciding, or souls who need to figure things out a bit before they move upstairs."

"Ah. Ok," Gabe said, but Az could tell there was something on his mind.

"You seem like you've met demons before. I'm sure they've told you things. Are you that concerned about dying? I can assure you that your soul will not end up being tortured in hell. You'll have options."

"My parents are dead," Gabe whispered. Az almost couldn't hear him in the darkness, but Gabe scooted a bit closer to him on the bed, although he turned to face away from Az. Az didn't mind; he decided he would like to be the "big spoon," as the humans called it.

"You wonder where they are?" Az asked.

"Yeah, I guess I do. Grams always assured us they weren't in hell, but I don't know. Of course she wouldn't tell us if they were. But if what you say is true, then I'm sure they're not. They weren't horrible people. They died when I was really little, so I barely remember them, but it's still nice to think that they're either partying in Limbo or were reincarnated or are happy in heaven."

Az took the opportunity to cuddle up next to Gabe, and he put an arm on top of Gabe's shoulder, sort of giving him a half hug. Gabe tensed up at first, but when Az didn't make any sexual advances and just laid there holding Gabe, he eventually loosened up and relaxed. Gabe even scooched back a bit more so Az was really cuddling him.

"This is nice," Gabe murmured, and Az could tell he was drifting off. "Nice to be cuddled and not feel like the person expects me to start something. Always so much pressure when it comes to sex. I never know what to do."

Az thought Gabe probably didn't even realize what he was mumbling, but he replied anyway. "Don't worry, Gabe. No pressure with me, ever. And you never have to worry about what to do when I'm with you. I promise."

Az heard a deep exhalation in response, and before long Gabe's breathing evened out. When Az was sure he was asleep, he whispered into the darkness. "Beel?"

He heard a ribbit in response. Excellent.

"Beel, I need you to do me a favor. I'm sure you know the names of Gabe's parents and have probably seen pictures after twenty years. I need you to find out where they are," he commanded.

Beel gave a lot of ribbits and there was quite a bit of croaking in there as well. Az didn't blame him.

"I know, I know. But I will call you forth again in the morning. Surely if you have all night you can figure something out." There was a ribbit in reply, and Az promised, "I will not leave you down there. Now go, and find out what you can, and I'll summon you back first thing tomorrow."

There was a little crackle, like the sound of static discharging, and Az knew Beel was gone. He was a lesser demon, and Az trusted that most of the underworld hadn't missed him and wouldn't notice his return or his poking around. The leadership team didn't usually trouble themselves with demons like Beel, and he was counting on that still being the case.

He wanted to be able to give Gabe answers, but he most certainly didn't want to call any attention to Gabe. Figuring out what turned Gabe on was only half the issue, after all. Gabe was immune to his powers. Az had also realized that Gabe's sister was immune, and he guessed Grams had immunity as well and that her reaction was due to her outrageous nature and not his powers. He expected Michael would also be unaffected.

If an Infernal King of the Underworld, a Prince of Lust, had no effect on them, he guessed no demon would have an effect on them. That begged the question, though, didn't it. If they were immune to demonic powers, were they also immune to angelic powers?

Because the leadership team would not like that. No, they most certainly would not. And Az was growing rather fond of Gabe, so staying off their radar was probably a wise course of action. Leaving might be for the best in order to keep this secret, and yet Az just couldn't bring himself to do that.

So Gabe was stuck with him, and Az would do whatever he could to keep his human safe and unknown to the afterlife. With that, Az enjoyed how pleasant it was to cuddle, and he allowed himself the comfort of dozing into sleep with Gabe snuggled up next to him.