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Taking things slow wasn’t exactly something Angel Dust was accustomed to. The majority of his afterlife had been filled to the brim with things like paid sex, pornos and strip shows. And before the hotel, each day went by in a blur of neon lights and white powder, unsure of what happened the night prior.
To be fair, the copious amount of drugs he would take in a day didn’t help that memory fuzz, but in a way he was almost thankful to have the capability to forget. Angel was positive most of his coworkers would kill to have that same privilege.
On the day he met Charlie, when she pulled him off the sidewalk like a lost puppy and somehow managed to sweet talk her way into his head, everything finally started to slow down. Having a place to stay that wasn’t Valentino’s was nice, and since he wasn’t allowed to actually do drugs while on the premises, that permanent memory block he had started to fade away. A month came and went, and without much warning, Angel starting experiencing the most clarity he’s ever had since his initial arrival in hell. And yeah, it scared him at first, but he was able to reflect on a lot of things he couldn’t even bring himself to think about weeks ago.
One of those things happened to be his life. At least, his afterlife.
Unless he got shot down at an extermination -which was less likely now that he had (mostly) guaranteed safety- it would seem as though Angel was stuck down here for the long run. One would think this would be on his mind, but once again, he’s been on the job for about thirty years now, and was practically paid not to think. He had never even considered the possibility of a future where he could make his own decisions, not to mention the concept of choosing a partner. It was true that Valentino wasn’t contractually allowed to control his personal life. But Angel was smart enough to know that if anyone found out he permanently settled down, the cash flow would come to a screeching halt. No one wanted to shag up with a taken man. Well, unless that was their kink. But the point was, Angel Dust was available for all. And he couldn’t be that if he had a relationship.
Even if he was able to hide one, any future partner would have to be okay with the idea that he’s a hell-famous porn star. It was easy to say that it was no big deal, but harder to actually be faced with that fact. Angel had seen plenty of relationships bite the dust that way, even if there were many other reasons why they should have ended in the first place.
Overall, a relationship just simply wasn’t in the cards. But now, with his guaranteed safety in the hotel, anything could happen.
It had been two months since the extermination, and a week since Husk started frequenting Angel Dust’s new room.
They weren’t doing anything scandalous. With Husk’s past of finicky relationships, he wasn’t ready to get back out there and risk hurting someone he might really care about. So him and Angel had a sort of silent agreement to keep things slow. And while Angel wasn’t used to slow, he was willing to do it. Only for Husk.
It was late, just about midnight according to the analog clock sitting just atop Angel’s bedside table. The room was illuminated with fairy lights strewn across the walls, a touch Charlie recommended. And to be quite fair, it looked great. Currently Husk was on his stomach, laying on Angel’s bed with his arms folded and head resting just at the foot. Angel Dust was sat on the back of Husker’s fuzzy thighs, and to the unsuspecting viewer it would seem like quite the intimidate pose. But, nothing sensual was going on. At least, not technically.
Since their visit to the BDSM club, Husk had been absolutely dying for another massage. Despite being born-again, they were still in hell. Which meant every ache and sore spot in his old withered body just came down with him. His entire being was in a constant state of old and decrepit, and Husk absolutely hated it. Angel was vaguely aware of this; he remembered having a short conversation with the cat about life in hell where it had been briefly touched upon. So when Husk was having a particularly bad flare, Angel mindlessly offered to give him a massage.
Of course a moment later he realized how that sounded, and went to apologize. He knew Husk’s boundaries, and he wouldn’t test them -unless in a joking manor of course-. But to Angel’s complete shock and pleasure, he said yes. And now, here they were, with a pair of Angel’s hands deeply dug in the area just below Husk’s wings, and the other working their magic on his lower back.
After a long swath of comfortable silence, Angel Dust finally spoke up. “You enjoyin’ yourself, pussycat?” A nickname that would usually irk Husk instead brought a lazy smile to his face, eyes finally peeling open after about a half an hour of teetering on the edge of sleep.
“Mmmm..” The cat could barely muster up a response and instead lets out a soft hum, tail flicking and nearly hitting Angel in the face. But the spider couldn’t care less, simply tilting his head to the side with a small toothy grin.
“Good. Glad I could put these arms to good use.. I mean, what’s the point of havin’ multiples if I can’t use ‘em for pleasure?” His joke was pushing the limits and Angel knew that, but Husk was so caught up in the moment that all he did was hum. And the spider could not stop grinning.
A couple more minutes passed in silence, and Angel was almost positive Husk was about to fall asleep. Part of him wanted to stop, wake him up. He knew how the cat felt about sharing a room, at least with his night terrors. Ever since he managed to stumble upon Husk that one coincidental night, Angel couldn’t help but feel concerned. He now knew how little Husk slept, and it worried him. So there was also a part of him that didn’t want to stop. That wanted to keep going and lull him to sleep. Angel Dust would be willing to sit here all night and work the stress out of Husk if it meant that he could help the cat get one night of peaceful sleep.
The spider demon stuttered in his work. Holy shit, he sounded like a teenager in love. Even as his hands continued moving, Angel’s mind completely drifted elsewhere. When did these intense feelings start? When did it get to a point where his heart would skip a beat every time him and Husk touched or even simply brushed hands? It had been a very, very long time since he ever felt this way. In fact, the last time he felt this way was, well… When he first met Val.
Before Angel Dust’s mind could spiral any further, a strange noise manages to pull him back into reality. For a moment, he was just frazzled, too taken aback by his previous train of thought to actually decipher what had taken him out of it. Though as the shock subsided, something clicked; the noise was Husk.
He was purring.
Angel has to will his hands steady in order to not arouse suspicion from the sleeping cat, eyes as wide as dinner plates. All previous thoughts jumbling his mind were now replaced with a surprisingly heavenly chorus of ‘holy shit’s, and he couldn’t stop his mouth from twisting up into the biggest, toothiest grin he’s ever given. Even if he couldn’t tell whether or not Husk was awake, it didn’t matter. He was content. He was happy.
Though as reality settled in just a bit more, Angel’s smile faltered. If Husk knew he was purring, would he be upset? It was common knowledge to most everyone, especially Alastor, that Husk hated his hell form. While he never got into the specifics, there was always the occasional complaint about his fur, or his ears, or those natural animalistic urges he occasionally got. Despite growing up human, and still feeling human where it counts, it didn’t matter. No one was human anymore. At least, not down here. In hell, you were whatever you were given.
Angel may not know much about Husk’s opinions on his form aside from basics, but what he did know was how to read a person. And sometimes, in Husk’s most sober moments, Angel would catch him glancing in a reflection only to grimace, or tugging at a patch of fur a bit too harshly. The spider understood what it was like to hate your own body. Maybe it wasn’t in the exact same ways, but he understood enough.
Slowly but surely, Angel stopped all four of his hands. No matter how much he wanted to keep hearing the sweet sounds of purring, he should stop. He had no clue if Husk was even aware he was purring, and if not, it felt bad to let it continue.
The cat’s ears began to twitch, and the purring came to a halt. “Hmm..?” He hummed, seeming to have quickly noticed the lack of movement, and blearily turned his head to the side. He couldn’t exactly see Angel from this angle, but it was good enough. “What’s goin’ on? Why’d you stop?”
Angel tried to hold back the endearment in his tone. “You were purrin’..” He lifts his upper pair of hands and rests them against Husk’s shoulders. He makes sure to keep his touch light. “I know how you feel about that kinda stuff.. I didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable.”
Husk’s nose crinkled. “What?”
“The purrin’. I know you don’t really like-.. uhg..” Angel Dust felt a weird weight sitting in his chest, and he took a deep breath in to try and fend it off. “I know you don’t really like bein’ a cat, and I didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable cause, y’know, you can’t control it..”
He removed all of his hands from Husk and brought them closer to his chest. He wasn’t used to having conversations like these, and it immediately made him feel as awkward and uncomfortable as his delivery was. He knew boundaries were important. He just, didn’t know how they worked. But he wanted to use them, because Husk was always respectful of Angel’s boundaries, and he felt that if he wasn’t respectful of Husk’s, then he was no better than Valentino. Which was wildly untrue, but to Angel’s broken mind, it made sense.
Husk seemed to take notice of the situation. “Oh.” Was all he had to say before beginning to shift from underneath Angel, who softly moved off of Husk so he could sit up and face the nervous spider. His shoulders hung low along with his wings, and it at least seemed that the massage did its work. “Listen. I appreciate you letting me know. It was-..” He pauses, considering his next words carefully. “It was nice of you. But I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t comfortable with you hearin’ that stuff.”
“I guess, I just-.. Well, I thought you were asleep..” The endeared smile from before makes its way to Angel Dust’s face again, hands lowering softly into his own lap. “I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable. I know you haven’t been gettin’ good sleep, Husky..” It was now Husk’s turn to give Angel a confused, bleary look. Like he couldn’t quite understand what he was saying. “But I also know you ain’t comfortable stayin’ the night here yet. And that’s okay with me, so I’ll wake you up if I need to..”
Husk found his gaze drifting down to the bed, expression scrunching in thought. It made Angel nervous; even if he knew he did nothing wrong, it still felt like he ruined something. “Well..” The cat began to speak and quickly drew Angel from his mind again. “Maybe next time you don’t have to..”
Angel Dust blinked. Then he blinked again.
Was… Was Husk saying what the spider demon thought he was saying?
“Husker-“
“I mean it. This ain’t no guilt thing either. Just-… If I fall asleep again, you, uhh..” Husk found himself struggling with the right words, a light fluttery feeling in his chest becoming nearly suffocating. But, somehow, in a good way. “-you don’t gotta bother walkin’ me up..”
Angel can feel his heart beating at a million miles per hour. Every inch of his face starts to flush, and he unfortunately can’t help himself from practically launching his entire body across the bed. His arms naturally finding themselves around Husk, with one pair slung around his neck, and the other wrapped tightly around his waist. Husk is very quickly taken aback, however, he isn’t opposed. In fact, he quite easily and naturally leans into the touch, with his own arms wrapping around Angel in turn.
The two leans their heads against each other, and for a few blissful moments, the world around them disappears.
“I can’t believe I got lucky with someone like you..” Angel barely breathes this out into the crook of his arm, and if it weren’t for the already close proximity, it probably would have gone unheard.
Husk’s grip around Angel tightens in response, and his head almost naturally nuzzles into Angel Dust’s fur. “Yeah, well… Ditto…”