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"Are you sure you want to make this contract?" Angel asked, his voice quiet and void of much emotion. He didn't want this; didn't want their relationship to feel conditional, but Aki wanted this, and he wanted to give Aki everything he ever wanted. A man that once despised Devils sacrificed a hefty chunk of his already shortened lifespan just to save one's cruel existence. Angel owed him everything.
The room was dark and shadows loomed ominously over every surface. The atmosphere was fitting; after all, a man was making a contract with a Devil. There was absolutely nothing lighthearted or peaceful about such a haunting act. Yet, the two beings sat, unafraid of one another, both willing to be there. And if they could, they would sit in that darkness until sunrise, when they could feel the warmth of that distant fire on their skin.
"Yes," Aki answered, his hands feeling clammy under the black gloves that hugged his hands and fingers. The desire to feel and memorise the perfections and imperfections of that soft, pale skin ached in his fingertips. Entrapped, by leather.
Gloves. They would be a thing of the past once this contract could be made, when he could finally touch Angel, and make him feel what true love is like.
Angel's head dropped somewhat, long, red strands of hair falling in front of those gentle yet nervous eyes. He swallowed audibly, the white noise of the silence they sat in began to feel almost suffocating. "Aki," He whispered, his body feeling weak as he just barely leaned in closer to the other's body. "The contract has been made."
Aki stared at him, unmoving for a few brief moments. "Does this mean I can touch you, and your powers won't affect my lifespan?" Aki's voice, which was so comforting, so different from the tone he used when talking to others, warmed Angel's aching heart.
Still. Angel wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was scared. He didn't know why. The fear of something going wrong haunted him.
He was fed up of this. Fed up of being a Devil, yet alone one with such a horrible curse. He wanted to be with Aki, live alongside him, to fall in love and hold his hand, to brush the hair out of his face as he slept, to tangle their legs together as they cuddled. Everything they had done so far was always done with risks attached.
That risk, being death.
They could hug, with the risk of death. They could hold hands, with the risk of death. What kind of couples had to worry about that?
Angel hated death. He hated it more than anyone else, yet he longed so badly for it to be upon himself. Even in moments like these, where he was with the person he loved the most, he somehow found himself wanting to die.
Lost in a blizzard of racing thoughts, he hadn't even noticed when Aki's ungloved hand hesitantly rose up to his face, beckoning the smaller of the two's head up with a gentle push to his chin.
That red hair fell away from Angel's dark eyes, and made way for his new-found expression. Wet, glossy tears bubbled up on his thick lashes, and his lower lip quivered as he desperately fought to hold back his emotions.
Aki simply kept his hand there, gazing down into Angel's eyes with a sad fondness.
It felt like a hundred minutes had passed, and Aki slowly moved his hand from the other's face. "How many years would that have taken off?" He asked quietly.
"Fifteen years... You would have lost fifteen years." Angel answered, and his voice cracked, and all the tears came tumbling out of his eyes.
He bawled and sobbed on the spot, and Aki felt his body move on instinct, arms reaching to wrap around the Devil's small form to pull him in close. "Shh." He hushed, raising his hand once more to place it on the redhead's mass of unruly hair. "You're doing okay... You're doing great."
Aki's words trailed off into a slur of mumbles and soft shushing. Angel could feel the rumble of his voice inside his throat, and the gentle rise and fall of his chest. Deep, deep inside, he could hear the steady thumping of his heart. He was alive. He was touching him, and he was alive.
The emotions, though strong, began to die down somewhat after almost an hour of comfort, and Angel finally felt himself begin to relax. He was never this emotional; he didn't know what snapped inside of him — but the feeling of Aki against his skin merely evoked feelings he didn't even know could exist. For once, he could genuinely understand what love felt like. The warmth and gentle caressing, the tight embrace. He didn't want it to end.
And yet, it all came at a cost.
"I can't feel anything." Aki confirmed, as he pulled back from holding Angel. He took his hand in his. "I can't feel you at all. I'm numb all over."
Angel felt a tightness in his throat once more. How selfish of him. If only they could have made the contract work with a lighter trade, but it just would not work.
"I took your sense of touch." Angel murmured in agreement, swiping his eyes with a sleeve. "...But Aki," He began, "I can feel you, even if you can't. And I can tell you that this feeling— it's something you could only imagine."
Angel shifted his weight and leaned up to close in on Aki's face. "So, whatever you feel in your head when you touch me, is probably exactly what I am feeling physically, too." He whispered, and for the first time ever, their lips touched.
"I love you, Aki."
"I love you too, my Angel."