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It was a month and four days after the world had very nearly ended. Aziraphale and Crowley no longer belonged to heaven or hell but only to one another and the Earth. It should have bothered the angel more than it did. Currently, his demon friend’s head was on his lap and his recent non-heavenly-connections were really the furthest thing from his mind. He was running a hand absently along the red hair easily put within his grasp as he read a book on fly fishing. He’d just gotten to the segment on how to tie the flies themselves, which seemed tedious, but in a detailed way that appealed to him, when Crowley spoke up.
“We should do more things that couples do.”
“Hmm?” the angel looked down at the face under his book with mild interest. “Couples?”
“You know...partners...of a...romantic...genre. Paramours. Us. Oh, stop making that face.”
Aziraphale’s mouth was turning up at the corners without him even asking it to, quite on its own and he hid his mouth behind a hand at the protest. “We’ve been together since the beginning.”
“I mean, not together-together.”
The angel set down his book beside him and gave the demon in his lap a withering sort of look. “You are joking, I hope. I believe I loved you from the day I met you in the Garden. Just because I was too silly to see it right away…” He rested a hand on Crowley’s thin, black clad chest. They had discussed that Crowley had been smitten with him for thousands of years, which, in retrospect, Aziraphale had known, but had never quite known how to respond to. Officially acknowledging it had not cause the sky to rain fire (yet), nor had it changed much except for that they now held hands, and Crowley was fond of giving him chaste little kisses when he was very pleased. Both of these things were improvements.
Crowley huffed, his cheeks that pretty shade of pink they turned when he was talking about feelings. “I want to go out with you, on the town. You know what I mean, stop being nit-picky.”
“Do I?”
“Take a guess.”
Aziraphale thought about ‘going out’ with Crowley. “You would like...to show the world that we are together because...you’re...proud of me?”
Crowley sat up, his body angled toward the angel, his slit eyes downcast. “Yeah. That alright?”
“Alright? Of course it is!” He took both of Crowley’s hands in his. “I feel the same.”
“You’re proud of me?”
“Well of course I am. You’re my very best friend, you’re astounding and really very nice, despite yourself. I love you, I’ll go anywhere you like. Did I get it right though? Is that why?”
Crowley’s growing smile turned into a short laugh. “Yeah, Angel. You got it right.”
“Well, where shall we go on our first outing? Date? Shall we call it a date?”
“Sure, date,” Crowley was still smiling. “I thought...maybe the beach.”
“Oh!” Aziraphale put a hand to his chest. “Oh I’d love that. I’ve read about beach days, of course, but I don’t know that I’ve ever had one. Certainly not as a date.”
Crowley snorted. “You’ve never dated anyone. I’m the first.”
“Well, still,” Aziraphale was smiling now too. “What does one wear on a beach date? Do we go in the water or do we simply have lunch and watch the ocean? Oh I have so many questions!”
“Maybe it’s best to just go and see what it means to us. We’re not really like other people,” Crowley took the hand that still held his and kissed the back of it. Aziraphale felt his own cheeks heat with pleasure at the gesture. His friend could really be so gentile when he put his mind to it. It quite took the angel’s breath away sometimes.
“Yes, whatever you like! Can we please not go on the motorbike? I hate it.”
Crowley had gotten a motorcycle to replace his beloved Bently. It was a wicked looking thing and the last time he’d ridden on it, Aziraphale nearly died of fright.
“Whatever you like, Angel. We can walk, or poof there, or take a bus. I don’t care.” He looked like he couldn’t believe Aziraphale had agreed to this at all. Like he’d been given a treat.
On a mad impulse the angel leaned in and kissed Crowley’s cheek. “It’ll be fun,” he promised happily, to the stunned look on the demon’s face. He tried very hard to ignore it. Expressions of physical affection were not his forte, it always felt like he was doing it wrong and it made his chest feel expansive and strange. Still, sometimes the discomfort was worth it.
Crowley put his hand over his cheek, and his smile turned a bit dopey and that felt like a small miracle. “Yeah, it’ll be fun,” he replied.
“Tomorrow, then?”
“Yeah, sounds good. Tomorrow.”
“Would you like to lay back down so I can return to my book?” Aziraphale asked, a little desperate edge to his voice.
“Yeah. I would.” He lay back down where he’d been and the angel stroked the demon’s red hair.
Wonderful days, these.