22. Exploding Lightbulbs

Chapter twenty-two

Exploding Lightbulbs

After a pitstop in the kitchen to quench their thirst, Liel dragged Oliver through his apartment until they burst into his bedroom. It was just as cluttered as what little Oliver had seen of the other rooms, and that tiny, intimate quirk made him smile.

Of course, Liel didn't let him dwell on that for long. The second they were close enough to the bed—sheets wrinkled from use but smelling clean—he pushed Oliver onto the mattress and prowled up after him. Perched on Oliver's stomach, Liel beamed down at him, running his hands through Oliver's chest hair.

"I, uh, did some research," Liel said, ducking his head bashfully. "There are very few interspecies infections or diseases that we could pass to each other, but I got tested before I left for Boston. Everything was negative."

"Oh, right. Um, I last got tested after my ex left. And I haven't been with anyone since, so… I was negative too, but only for, you know, human stuff."

"I have condoms—human ones—if you want to use them. Safety first and all that."

Oliver felt like a selfish douchebag for not thinking of it himself. He'd been so desperate he'd given zero thought to safety. He took PrEP daily, but he didn't know if that worked for interspecies relationships.

"I feel like a total idiot for not looking anything up before now." Oliver scrubbed a hand down his face. "Sorry."

Shaking his head, Liel leaned down and kissed him. "Like I said, there are very few things we could pass to each other, but I wanted to be safe."

"Let's use the condoms, and I'll get tested here in Hell to make sure. You know, if ever you want to go condom-free."

Liel smiled and nodded. "Okay. Sorry, I should have brought this up before we… you know." He gestured toward the door, toward the dining room table they'd sullied.

"I mean, same. I also wasn't using my brain."

With a hum, Liel leaned in and kissed him. "We'll be responsible from now on."

"Sounds good."

As Liel dismounted and knee-walked to the edge of the mattress, Oliver scooted up until his back met the headboard. His cock was so hard it was almost painful, and he gave it a loose stroke as Liel rooted around inside his still-full suitcase.

He returned with a box of generic brand condoms. "I hope these are right. I've never had to buy human ones before."

"As long as they aren't, like, double XL, or something. I'm not that big, sorry to say."

They shared intimate laughter as Liel straddled Oliver's lap again. "I think your cock is perfect," he said, and Oliver flushed.

"I bet you say that to all the guys."

Liel flicked his nose with a tsk. "No, just the ones I like."

"Oh, you like me?" he teased, and Liel nodded, wetting his lips.

"I like you very much."

Emotion swelled in Oliver's chest, and he dragged his thumb over Liel's bottom lip. "I like you too, Liel."

The kisses they shared next were slower, deeper. The frenzy had passed, and they took their time becoming intimately familiar with each other's bodies. It was soft and sweet, Oliver bringing Liel to orgasm with his fingers again with easy strokes along his ridge.

Liel fumbled with the condom, cursing in his demonic language when his fingers slipped. Then he was rolling it down Oliver's cock and rising onto his knees, hands on Oliver's shoulders for balance. He lowered himself in one easy glide, both of them groaning as he settled flush against Oliver's lap.

"Oh, that's…" Liel bit his bottom lip until silvery blood welled.

He was wet and hot and so fucking tight Oliver's eyes threaten to roll back into his head. But Liel's pinched expression made Oliver pause.

"Liel, baby? You okay?"

Air whistled through his narrow nostrils. "Mhm. Just… been a while since I've been with someone who isn't another Gymnot."

Since Oliver's cock was significantly different in a lot of ways than Liel's, it had to be an adjustment. He rubbed Liel's sides comfortingly as he resisted the urge to move. "What do you need?"

Liel's answer was a kiss, a vibrating moan rumbling in his chest and up his throat. Oliver swallowed it down, wrapping the demon's slender body in his arms. Heat and sweat built between them as Liel gradually started to move, hips rolling in easy waves.

The sensation was overwhelming, and Oliver dug his fingers into Liel's back, encouraging his tempo without speeding him up. After the flurry and rush in the entry and dining room, Oliver wanted it slow and unhurried. He wanted to indulge, to savor, to surrender.

He hadn't realized how much he'd missed this. Not just sex, but the bonding, the communion, the unadulterated human connection that came with shared intimacy. And knowing it was Liel here with him made it all the better.

"Oliver," Liel whispered, each breath shared in the minuscule space between them.

"I've got you," Oliver said, cupping the back of his neck to ground him.

The static charge buzzed to life as Liel rode him harder, dropping down into his lap with growing power. He didn't quicken his pace, but the energy was building all the same.

"You feel so good. Oh gods, it's perfect. So deep and perfect." Liel moaned as he twisted his fingers in the back of Oliver's hair. "I think I'm gonna come again."

"Good. I want you to."

Oliver reached down to tease his cock. The tentacle burrowed between Oliver's fingers and when he closed his fist around it and squeezed gently, Liel mewled. The tapered tip wrapped around Oliver's thumb, suction cup attaching and sucking on his knuckle.

He didn't stroke it, instead flexing and contracting his fist in time with the roll of Liel's hips. Sweat trickled down Liel's temple, and their foreheads ground together as he started babbling in a language Oliver didn't understand.

The electricity popping along Liel's skin had intensified, but while it tingled against Oliver's body, it hovered around him, not quite making contact. Instead it sparked outward, toward the lamps on the side tables.

When Liel's eyes flew open, a lightning storm raged within them, and he bared his teeth as his body seized up, his channel tightening around Oliver's cock to the point of pleasure-pain. Which helped Oliver hold back his own orgasm as Liel rode the wave of his.

The pleasure had barely passed before Liel was moving again, chasing the high like he was desperate for it, like he'd die without it. He came twice more, each more powerful than the last until he was howling at the ceiling, body shaking so hard his teeth chattered.

"Oliver, gods, I need—you need to come. I need you to come."

Honestly, Oliver had reached his limit. He wanted to hold out as long as he could because Liel coming was the best thing he'd ever experienced, and he wanted to give the demon as much pleasure as he could. But he wouldn't survive another round without exploding out of his skin.

"Let me fuck you," he practically begged, and Liel nodded, body boneless.

With a firm grip on Liel's waist, Oliver turned them until Liel's back met the mattress. The copious slick between their bodies made obscene noises as Oliver hooked one of Liel's legs over his elbow and planted his fists in the bed for purchase. Then he fucked into Liel's pliant, burning body as the demon braced his hands on the headboard so he could meet every hard thrust.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," Liel chanted hoarsely, voice nearly gone entirely as he squeezed his eyes shut.

"One more time," Oliver huffed as he buried his face in Liel's neck and chased his own pleasure. "Come one more time, baby."

Liel shook his head even as he moaned helplessly.

"Come on, Liel. Give me one more. Come on, sweetheart."

He felt it cresting in the coil of Liel's muscles, in the way the voltage under his skin exploded outward one last time, the arcs spanning almost the entire width of the bedroom. Liel's fingers dug into Oliver's shoulders so deep they would leave marks, and Oliver wanted it, every single crescent shape carved into his skin.

Yellow eyes stared vacantly up at the ceiling as a broken cry scraped Liel's throat. Oliver kissed him, plunging his tongue into his mouth, nicking it on his teeth until they both tasted blood.

Liel snarled, a vicious, chilling sound, and Oliver said, "Come on my fucking cock."

With a pop of glass and explosion of sparks from the lamps, Liel did, channel clamping down like a vise on Oliver's dick and pushing him over the edge too. He cried out into Liel's neck, his vision going white, then black, then white again.

He came so hard he swore he blacked out for several seconds, stars dancing across his mind as he drifted back into his body from somewhere else. He'd traveled dimensions before, but this was on a whole other plane.

When his wits returned, Oliver was dead weight on top of Liel, but the demon was humming in sated pleasure, legs secured around his hips, hands rubbing up and down his sweat-slick back. Liel kissed along his drenched hairline, cooing wordlessly as Oliver gulped down air.

"Holy fucking shit," Oliver wheezed.

"Yes," Liel said weakly. "I concur."

"I can't move."

"That's okay. I like you like this." He squeezed Oliver with all his limbs. "Just stay here for a while."

And because he was sex drunk and stupid, Oliver said, "I think I died. You killed me. Like straight-up murder by mind-blowing orgasm."

Liel chuckled deeply. "What a way to go."

"Let's fucking go."

After an indiscernible amount of time, Oliver finally managed to roll off Liel, disconnecting them with a wet, messy sound. Oliver removed and tied off the condom, discarding it over the side of the bed without even an ounce of remorse for the carpet.

"That was the best sex of my life. Hands down."

Grinning at the ceiling, Liel peeked at him from the corner of his eye. "I bet you say that to all the guys."

Oliver shook his head. "No. I'm serious. That was… like, holy shit."

Expression smug, Liel crawled over with an almost pained groan and kissed him, long and deep. "I told you that I like to win." He flopped down, half on top of Oliver and sighed. "That was definitely one for the history books."

"Sorry that it was no knocking-out-the-power-in-your-building, but…"

Liel patted his chest with a snicker. "We'll work up to that."

Oliver must have drifted off, because he jerked awake with a start as Liel settled against his side.

"Oh, sorry," Liel whispered, rubbing his cheek on Oliver's shoulder. "Didn't mean to startle you."

"No, I'm good. I didn't realize I'd fallen asleep."

"You weren't out for long." Liel played with the hair on Oliver's chest, one of his legs hiking over Oliver's hip to settle between his thighs.

He scrubbed at his face as his other arm held Liel close. The sheets nearby were damp from the copious amounts of slick and cum Liel produced, and it made Oliver smile smugly, knowing he'd been the one to turn Liel on that much. Bits of cum were drying tacky in his pubic hair, but the remaining mess of their activities had been wiped away, presumably by Liel, as Oliver dozed.

"I need to shower," Oliver said, and Liel snickered.

"I think we both need a shower." Oliver's stomach rumbled, and Liel rubbed it lovingly. "And food."

"And Powerade or something. I need electrolytes after that. I feel like a wrung-out sponge."

Liel kissed Oliver's shoulder. "Like your SpongeBob?"

Throwing his free arm over his eyes, Oliver laughed. "If SpongeBob ever did what we just did, so many parents would sue."

"Good thing I'm a lawyer," Liel teased, teeth grazing Oliver's collarbone. "Though I have bad news."

"Oh?"

"I was gone for a week, and I didn't have time yesterday to do any shopping."

"Uh-oh."

"My apartment is rather sparse at the moment."

Turning his head, he kissed Liel's forehead, lips whispering over his cartilage brow as he said, "We need to get dressed and go get groceries, don't we?"

"If we don't want to die of sex-induced starvation, then yes."

With a groan, Oliver rolled onto his side and bundled Liel in his arms. "But I wanna lie naked in bed with you all weekend."

"Then we'll wither away for sure," Liel said.

"Meh, I've got insulation," Oliver said with a pat to his soft stomach.

"We said we'd be responsible, remember?" Liel chided. "So we're going to get up and shower."

Oliver grunted unhappily.

"Then we're going to get dressed and head to the shop."

Oliver grunted louder, adding a pout to his lip for good measure.

"We're going to restock my fridge, and maybe do a load of laundry."

Oliver kicked his feet like a kid, whining obnoxiously.

Laughing, Liel kissed the corner of Oliver's mouth, blazing a trail all the way to his ear as he said, "And when we get back, we can strip down and lounge about naked for the rest of the weekend."

"That is the only part of this plan I approve of," Oliver said, guiding Liel's knee to curve around his hip. He wasn't hard; he probably couldn't get hard again until he'd eaten something and chugged a Gatorade—or the demon equivalent. But he relished the press of hot, slick flesh against his soft cock all the same.

"Don't distract me." Liel nipped at Oliver's earlobe, rolling his hips and humming in approval when Oliver's dick gave a gallant twitch.

"I bet I could make you come again."

"Oliver," Liel reprimanded.

"Seriously, come sit on my face. I'll make you blow all the lights in the apartment."

"Sounds expensive."

"I'll Venmo you."

Easing their bodies apart, Liel leveled him with a stern stare. "If you really want me to come again, at least do it in the shower. We can—how do you say?—crush two birds with one rock?"

"Close enough," Oliver said.

With some more cajoling, and yes, more kisses, Liel tempted Oliver out of bed and into the ensuite bathroom. Oliver made Liel come twice in the shower. Once on his knees, a yellow leg draped over his back as he ate the demon out, two fingers pumping deep. Once from behind, Liel's chest pressed against the cool tile, Oliver massaging his ridge as his thumb rubbed circles over his small asshole.

As Liel ran a bar of soap over Oliver's chest, Oliver squeezed Liel's ass and said, "Can I ask you something?"

Liel grinned and nodded.

"So if you need internal stimulation to come, does that mean ass-play isn't really a thing in your culture?"

Soap trickled down Oliver's belly, catching in his happy trail, and Liel worked his jaw as he pondered a moment. "It is. Perhaps a touch less common than in other cultures, but for us, it is purely an act of foreplay. Not the main event."

"Do you like it?" Oliver asked as he trailed a finger down his crack.

"It can be pleasurable, I suppose. Do you enjoy it?" Liel dropped soapy hands to Oliver's cock, bringing an embarrassing yelp from the human as he cleaned him thoroughly.

"Uh, sure. But only if you're into it. Making my partner feel good is the biggest turn on for me. So if it's not your thing…"

Inspecting Oliver's half-hard dick, Liel frowned. "I don't know if I'd want this inside my ass. I fear it would be uncomfortable."

"Okay," Oliver said easily. "You could fuck my ass if you want."

Liel's head jerked up, and he spluttered as the shower water flooded down his face and into his slack mouth. Oliver swapped their places, letting the water wash away the soap as Liel coughed.

"You totally don't have to if you don't want to," Oliver said hurriedly. "I just wanted to say that it's an option. Unless I just suggested something culturally offensive. If so, I'm so sorry."

"No, no, it's not that I'm offended or not intrigued," Liel said as he cleared his throat. "I just wasn't expecting the offer. In my species, my gender is typically the receptive partner, unless the purpose of sex is reproduction. That is the only biological imperative for a male Gymnot to penetrate a female Gymnot."

And that made Oliver's brain glitch. "Oh? Wait, does that mean your women have dicks?"

"For lack of a better term, yes. Gymnot women have appendages used for penetrating the males. They are more similar to your anatomy than I am, I suppose, though they aren't as thick as you are."

"Then who gets pregnant?" Oliver blurted, suddenly very thankful they'd used a condom.

Like Liel could read his mind, the demon snorted a laugh. "The females carry the young."

"Okay, so… I am confused."

Since the water was cooling, Liel turned it off and retrieved two towels so they could dry off, all the while explaining, "Gymnots have sex two different ways. One way for pleasure, another for reproduction. For pleasure, the male is—generally speaking, of course—the only receptive partner.

"When a couple is trying to conceive, the male will penetrate the female's insemination, uh, tube? Hmm, not sure of the right word in your language. It is a very small opening at the base of her appendage that leads to a narrow passage where the male must deposit his sperm. This is why my dick is more flexible; it is necessary to reach her opening and navigate the channel.

"The female derives pleasure from penetrating, and when she comes, she releases a sticky fluid that makes the male more sensitive, thus encouraging more of his orgasms, which results in a higher chance of conception." Liel blotted his hair dry. "And there you have it."

Oliver shook his head, trying to wrap his brain around it. "That is wild. So when is sex over? If you both just keep coming, I mean."

"For Gymnots, it's a marathon, not a sprint, darling," Liel said with a wink.

"I'll do my best to keep up," Oliver said, almost apologetically.

"You're doing well so far." Liel dropped his towel onto the floor and left it there as he walked back into his bedroom.

Oliver enjoyed the view of his muted yellow ass as he picked up Liel's towel and hung it on the towel rack alongside his own. Liel dug around in his suitcase, retrieved a pair of underwear, then tugged them up his legs. Searching for his own clothes, Oliver frowned.

"Crap, where did my clothes end up?"

"I believe they're all over the apartment."

After hunting down his clothes, Oliver dressed as Liel cleaned up the exploded lightbulbs in his bedroom lamps. He inspected the shades, wincing at the black marks left behind from the sparks, and Oliver's chest swelled with pride. At his smug strutting, Liel rolled his yellow eyes.

"Come on, lover boy," he said playfully, dragging Oliver and a wheeled grocery trolley out of his apartment.

The sun was high in the sky as they walked to the neighborhood bodega hand-in-hand. Oliver expected to garner more attention than they actually did. Maybe because he was in Gluttony? The stuck-up, speciesists of Hell seemed to live in Pride and Greed, whereas the other districts were more welcoming.

Sure, some demons still stared but with more curiosity than hostility. Inside the shop, as Oliver inspected the foreign items in the freezer section, a small feathered demon came to a stop beside him, head cocked as she gawked at him. She looked a bit like the demon who'd drugged Gem, though the colored pattern of her feathers was different, so Oliver assumed she was an Avia.

She wore a dirt-streaked dress, and given her tiny frame and innocent eyes, he figured she was a child. He smiled down at her and waved. She chirped, then spoke a rush of words he didn't understand.

"Um, hi," he said, glancing around for Liel, who was several yards away inspecting a spikey fruit of some kind. "Sorry, I only speak English."

The little girl giggled, a high whistling sound, and spoke again, pointing at something high in the freezer.

"Oh, you want this?" He opened the freezer door and pointed at a box of what looked like popsicles. She shook her head and pointed again. After a few tries, he found what she wanted and handed it to her. "There you go."

Chirping again, she grabbed his hand between her talons and yanked it close to her face to inspect it. He crouched down so she could more easily study his human fingers, speaking under her breath the whole time.

"Yeah, I don't have talons like you," Oliver said. "Or feathers. I'm human."

Her large eyes hung on every word he spoke, though he was sure she had no idea what he was saying. It made her laugh, though, and he grinned as she continued to babble at him.

"Making friends?" Liel asked as he came to a stop beside them, fingers running through Oliver's hair.

"Apparently." Oliver let the girl turn his hand over, sharp talons scratching over his knuckles.

Liel spoke to her in their common tongue, and she talked excitedly, pointing at Oliver, then the box of maybe-popsicles, then Oliver's face and hands. Then she tried to lift up his shirt, and Oliver stood hurriedly, tugging the hem down.

"Uh, no, let's not do that."

"She says you look funny, that you're wearing clothes, but you still look naked." Liel smiled fondly as he twined their hands. "I told her humans don't have feathers or fur, and she said that you must get very cold."

Oliver made a show of shivering theatrically, and the little girl shrieked with laughter as an adult Avia trilled from the other end of the aisle, motioning the girl back. Oliver waved goodbye, and she waved back, turning back to her parent, pointing at Oliver and Liel, and shouting something.

Liel's fingers twitched against Oliver's, and though his cheeks darkened a shade, his smile didn't drop. Instead he gave the little girl a shy nod, and she clapped again, then ran back to her parent.

"What did she say?"

"Uh, that was in her Avian dialect, so I'm not sure," he said, avoiding Oliver's eyes. "Come, let's check the human section. You can choose anything you like."

Oliver wasn't sure if he believed him, but he let it go for now.

Once their grocery trolley was full, they checked out, Liel shooing Oliver's wallet away with a droll stare as he swiped his card.

Back at Liel's apartment, Oliver emptied the trolley as Liel stocked the fridge and cupboards. Then they gathered Liel's dirty laundry—including the soiled sheets—and took them to the basement laundry room. They sat in the basement as the wash cycle ran, snacking on a demon bag of trail mix that tasted nutty and salty.

Liel showed him pictures of his family from his camera roll. Liel had three sisters, two younger, one older. He looked a lot like his mother, and when Oliver said it aloud, Liel beamed at him.

"She'll love that."

"Are you a mama's boy?"

Liel blinked drolly before admitting, "I'm her only son. So, yes."

Oliver laughed and kissed his temple.

"These are my nephews, Hulo and Kree. My older sister Lyra's young. They're twins, which is very rare in my species. Lyra is very proud.

"And my niece, Atla," he said as he swiped to a picture of a tiny, baby-like Gymnot, with a full set of sharp teeth, cheesing at the camera. "Lorel, my youngest sister, lost two young before Atla. It was difficult for my family. So Atla's arrival was very healing."

Taking Liel's hand, Oliver kissed the back of it. "And you're the fun guncle?"

Liel's bewildered expression made Oliver laugh. "What?"

"Sorry, human slang. You're the fun gay uncle?"

"I suppose that's fitting. If I were human, gay would be an apt descriptor as I am only attracted to masculine genders."

"Is being queer normal here in Hell? From an outside perspective, it feels like it's widely accepted compared to my dimension."

The washer beeped, and Liel rose to transfer the wash to a drying machine. "There are some species where queerness, as you call it, would be less acceptable. As a whole, I would say most demons mind their own business, and if they have a personal problem with it, they keep it to themselves. But there will always be those who don't approve and feel the need to make it everyone else's problem."

"Bigotry in every dimension," Oliver said, and Liel nodded sadly.

"A flaw in demonkind."

"Humankind too."

The lights on the dryer flashed as Liel scanned a piece of plastic on his keyring over the sensor. "This cycle lasts longer. We can go back upstairs, if you like. My laundry token will beep when the clothes are done."

"That's handy. And no one will steal your clothes?"

"The machine door won't open to any token but mine." Liel tucked his keys into his pocket and offered Oliver his hand.

Oliver took it and tangled their fingers together. "So what would you like to do as we wait for your clothes to dry?"

Static charged in the space between their palms, and Liel smiled conspiratorially as he backed out of the laundry room. "I'm sure we'll think of something."