17. Gabriel

This was going to be such a disaster.

Gabe thought again about grabbing Az, pressing their bodies together, and kissing him. He thought about leading him back up the stairs and going straight into the bedroom.

Unfortunately, that's about as far as he got in his imaginings before he started feeling awkward. He wasn't sure what to do after that. Ok, so he knew what to do. He'd had sex. Of course he knew what to do.

But he didn't know what Az wanted to do, and for some strange reason, the lust demon wasn't getting all… lusty, or whatever.

Gabe wasn't used to taking the lead; he admitted that to himself. He wasn't sure why that was the case. Maybe years of not feeling sexual had taken away his sexual imagination. Maybe he really was "not normal," like Greg had suggested so long ago. Really, what guy couldn't initiate sexual contact with someone who was clearly interested in him?

They reached the sidewalk at the street and Az stopped him, pulling his face up so they were eye-to-eye.

"Whatever you're thinking—stop. You look amazing and sexy as hell, but no one will bother you or look at you, unless you want them to," he added with a wink. "There is no pressure. You do not need to do anything. You shouldn't feel like you need to do anything."

Gabe went to lower his eyes, but Az pulled his head up again, looked into his eyes, and then continued, "However, if you want to do anything, you should do it. Anything you do, I will like. I like you. I care about you. I like your touch. I like your body. I am a lust demon; you will not shock me or surprise me, and any touch of any type from you is not just welcome—it would be the highlight of my existence."

Gabe searched Az's eyes, and he saw nothing but warmth and gentle affection. It made him feel all warm and bubbly inside, and he put his hand on Az's, softly smiling.

"Ok," he simply said.

Az searched his eyes for another moment, and Gabe let out a breath, consciously relaxing. Az seemed satisfied, because he nodded, turned, and walked toward a sleek black car at the curb, pulling Gabe with him.

"What's this?" Gabe asked.

"I thought we'd ride to the city in style," Az smirked, opening the door and gesturing Gabe in. "A limo might have been a bit conspicuous, but I could at least have a car drive us in to avoid the hassle. There is privacy glass as well," Az winked.

Gabe laughed and blushed as he got in, and indeed there was a dark piece of glass separating them from the driver. Az climbed in behind him, shut the door, and the car pulled away from the curb. There were water bottles and some snacks, and the leather interior was plush and comfortable. Gabe was flattered that Az had thought of something so fancy.

He was just about to joke with Az about the privacy glass when it rolled down, and he heard a deep voice ask, "Sinners, or saints?"

"I think the club is called Sinners and Saints," Gabe laughed, but he noticed Az had stiffened beside him and was staring at the driver with a strange look on his face.

The driver could have been a model; he had some of the darkest skin Gabe had ever seen, a head full of luscious, black hair straight out of a commercial, and a full-on beard, just scruffy enough for most people to consider it sexy. He wondered what this guy was doing driving a car as opposed to appearing on the big screen or in underwear ads. Then the guy spoke.

"Bruh, I got you. Sinners and Saints it is," he chuckled. "So which are you?" he asked.

"Ugh," Gabe groaned, "you are too old, no offense, to use the term ‘bruh,' I hear it all day from students, and you are definitely older than them."

Az seemed to choke a little beside him, but the guy in the front just laughed loudly.

"Bruh, you have no idea," he chortled. "So you didn't answer—sinner or saint?"

"Well this one is definitely a sinner," he smirked, pointing at Az as the guy looked in the rearview mirror. "I'm the saint in the pair, I guess. I'm Gabe," he said, introducing himself.

"Ari," the guy replied. Then his voice got a little dreamy, and he whispered, "Destruction and rebirth; the former shall pass away. Not there yet, Azzy, but soon. There shall be no more separation; it is the beginning and the end. The cracks are forming; the time is near."

Gabe looked at Az, confused, but Az was staring at the man. His hand reached over to grab Gabe's in a crushing hold.

"Arioch, Infernal King of the Underworld, Demon of Vengeance and Chaos," Az greeted the man. "Since when do you hire yourself out as a chauffeur?"

The dreamy voice was gone as Arioch mumbled, "Well, it certainly beats being an uber driver. Man, you wouldn't believe how many assholes vomit in your car! That shit is ridiculous!"

Az chuckled, but Gabe knew him well enough to sense the stress in that chuckle. He didn't think this Arioch being here was a good thing.

Well, demons loose in the world was never really a great thing, but he worried this wasn't a good thing specifically for him and Az. He gripped Az's hand just as tightly.

"I summoned him," Gabe blurted out, "and he didn't fulfill his summoning, so you can't take him back."

The man, or demon, looked in the rearview mirror, seeming to gaze into Gabe's eyes. He would have been worried about the prolonged eye contact from a driver, except Arioch seemed to be able to see to drive even as he stared into Gabe's eyes, because he stopped at a red light without even looking out the front window.

"Yes, I can see that things aren't settled just yet." Arioch turned fully around then, looking at Az.

It was as if time slowed to a crawl and the outside world fell away, not even there for Gabe to see anymore. He leaned in toward Az, pressing their sides together.

"Brother, why have you come?" Az asked, and Gabe thought he stressed the word brother a bit. Perhaps these two were demonically related or friends or something, and it would be ok? Gabe gnawed at his lip, worry bubbling up in his chest.

This demon couldn't take Az away. He couldn't make him go back. Gabe wasn't ready. Az let his hand go and wrapped an arm around him, squeezing his shoulder. It eased Gabe's panic just a bit.

Arioch chuckled, still looking at Az. "Chill, asshole. I'm not here to kill your vibe. I come in the spirit of chaos—you know that's my jam."

"Chaos for me or chaos for others?" Az asked warily.

"Brother," Arioch said, stressing the word himself this time, "when have I caused chaos for you?"

Arioch stopped then, seeming to think, and said, "Ok, well there was that time I gave you the glitter. And that time I convinced the chastity angels to come to Limbo and then called you over. And then there was the incident with the olive oil and the marshmallows—"

"Ari," Az growled. "Can we not reminisce over eons of your troublemaking and practical jokes?"

"Ah," sighed Arioch, "such a killjoy. My point is that I don't cause real chaos for you, just the fun kind. The leadership team, though, well, those motherfuckers deserve some real chaos now and again. Gotta keep them on their toes." He turned and winked at Gabe when he said the last part, taking some of the sting out of his description of this "leadership team."

Az groaned beside him. "What now?" he grumped.

"They're looking for you, Azzy. I'm not sure why. Someone tipped them off to your absence, and now they're all aflutter about it. Something about the number of sexual encounters in the afterlife dropping below acceptable percentages."

"Wait," Gabe interrupted. "Are you telling me that sexual encounters in the afterlife have an ‘acceptable percentage'?" he asked, mouth gaping a bit.

"Bruh, you have no idea. It's all numbers and tickets and quota with those fuckers. Adam is working on changing things, but you can't rewrite eons of management assholery in a few weeks. Those attitudes take time to fix. Time and a few creative punishments," he chuckled.

"What can I expect?" Az asked, getting straight to the point.

Arioch shrugged. "Leadership team fuckery, of course. But bruh, you're up to the task." His voice got a little dreamy again then, and he said, "Soon, Azzy, It has to be soon. You cannot second guess what you want."

Arioch turned back to face the front then, and Gabe looked out and saw that somehow they were sitting outside a nondescript building with a simple sign that read Sinners and Saints.

"Your stop, dudes. Enjoy!" Arioch boomed out, and Az opened the door, grabbed his hand, and hauled him out of the car before Gabe could even get a goodbye out.

"That was… weird," Gabe said a little shakily.

Az pulled him close, hugging him. "Yes, Ari is a weird demon. He usually means well, though. Are you alright? Do you want to head back home?"

Gabe thought about it for a moment, but then he thought about Arioch's words. They had been for Az, but he thought not second guessing what you wanted was probably good advice for everyone. He was tired of second guessing himself, and his sexuality, and his feelings for Az. He liked Az. He had liked everything Az had done with him so far.

He realized suddenly that he trusted Az. He didn't know why it was such a surprise to him, but he trusted Az more than anyone else he had ever been with. He knew that Az would never do anything to hurt him or make him uncomfortable. He didn't think he had that much faith in anyone else except for his siblings and Grams.

He took a deep breath, looked up at Az, and said, "I want to do this with you."

He took Az's hand and led the way to the doors of the club.