Chapter Text
A knock was heard from the door of Lucifer’s bedroom. There was a moment of silence. Only filled by the quiet of the room, the sounds of the birds twittering outside the window, the wind rustles through the leaves of the pines on the campus of the Callaway High School in east California. Another pair of three knocks in a row sounds in the room. A sleepy stir follows. Then a voice. “Lucifer, dear, you need to get ready. School starts in half an hour and you are still in your bed.“
“Yeah, yeah. I’m awake.“ Lucifer answers his roommate, still half asleep. His voice gets muffled into his soft and warm pillow.
The door opens and a tall and slender man with tan skin, curly, brown hair and bronze colored eyes Lucifer loved to look at and get lost in, visible through the black framed glasses steps in. A beat of silence stretches long enough for Lucifer to think his roommate left. Then the space around him suddenly got cold. The fresh air hugs his bare back, running along his spine and short, pale legs. The breeze on his body wakes him up enough to turn around, lean on his elbows, grab a pillow and throw it into the face of the intruder of his sleep. At least he tries it. The pillow instead hits the wall behind his roommate, almost crashing a picture frame. “Asshole.“ Lucifer complained. “Did you actually just take away my blanket? What if I would’ve slept naked? Huh?“
“I could have lived with that.“ The answer got a wide eyed look accompanied by heat rising up Lucifer’s cheeks. “Also,“ He continues trying to play off his reply. “You wouldn’t wake up if I hadn’t done it and then you’d be late for the first class after spring break. So you should thank me. And now, get finally ready. I already got breakfast.“ He left the room, closing the door behind him with a gentle click to give Lucifer some privacy.
The blonde sits up on the bed, letting his legs hang off the edge and taking a few seconds to leave the rest of his sleep behind. He counts till ten in his head, as he does every morning to get up, and then jumps off the mattress by pushing himself up on his hands. Lucifer slides into his duck slippers and stretches, making a few popping sounds come from his spine, shoulder blades and legs. He walks to his dresser and picks out an outfit for the day. He decides on something casual but not too casual – you know. Perfect for him to feel comfy but don’t get judged by his teachers too much. Next, he walks into his bathroom, brushing his teeth, washing his face with cold water, adding purple eyeshadow to his eyelids and brushing his hair.
When he reaches the kitchen he is greeted by the smell of fresh croissants mixed with something sweet, probably a chocolate filling, and the soft scent of blend cinnamon and baked apple his favorite tea. And a perfect view at the behind of his roommate – No, stop Lucifer, don’t think like that – said person turns around, an ever lasting smile smoothly displayed on his lips. “At last the princess woke up from her beauty sleep.“ He teased in a light headed tone. “Now, hurry up. You’ve got ten minutes left. And I’ll go without you if you aren’t done eating in time.“
Lucifer swiftly steps closer to the kitchen from where he stood still at place in the doorway, moves over to the kitchen counter and sinks down at the stool standing in front of the plate prepared for him. His tongue slides over his lips, smoothing them out before eagerly biting into the chocolate filled croissant. He lets out a happy tone that sounds like something in between a moan and a sigh. “Don’t worry, Al“ He takes another bite and starts speaking while he chews. “I’m a fast eater. Especially when the food tastes as delicious as this.“ Lucifer takes his white cup with a yellow duck pictured on it and the quote ‘duck you’ and sips from his tea. A content sigh leaves his lips. “Mm, that’s a fucking awesome way to start the day.“ He slumps into the chair, relaxing his body.
He finishes eating the rest of the croissant and his drink in relaxing and by his roommate hurried (mostly) silence. When Lucifer gets up and walks toward the exit door of their dorm room, Al already waits for him and trows Lucifer’s white jacket into his face, only for Lucifer to, totally smoothly and not a bit startled, catch it with one hand. He puts it on, as well as his boots, because he sadly can’t walk in his cute duck slippers all day.
They walk out the door, the brunette opening it for Lucifer to step out first before following suit after. The men walk through the long halls filled with other Junior students. Some bump into them earning a death glare from Alastor through his glasses which sends most of them scrambling away instantly. They reach the end of the halls and walk through the double doors, getting outside to the campus. The masses of students don’t reduce completely, tho it’s enough to walk next to each other without having to walk shoulder to shoulder, or more like shoulder to forearm in their case, which Lucifer doesn’t really mind. The contact of their body warmth makes it harder for him to think, tho.
As they reach the giant building with the big sign saying ’St. Seraphim High School’ above the door, they meet Rosie who is already waiting for them. “There you are guys. I almost thought you’d let a woman wait.“
“Oh, I would never dare doing that to you, dear.“ Alastor goes in to hug Rosie. “But you know how our dear Luci is. Always sleeping in.“ He takes a step back to better talk to Rosie and not stand in front of Lucifer. The blonde lazily waves at Rosie and greets her. At start, before he got to know Rosie better, he didn’t like her at all. First, he didn’t know why. Then he realized he was extremely jealous of her.
“Oh, I know, don’t you worry.“ She chuckles, hiding it behind her hand. “Lilith already walked to her class. We don’t have our first period together and she has class by Mrs Callaway herself, she wouldn’t want to make a bad impression to our dear principal.“ The woman explains. “But now that you two arrived, we should probably make our way to class too.“ She turns around and starts walking, the men following quickly after her.
The friends walk through the hallways, make a quick stop by each of their lockers and get stopped by Charlie and her friends, who are Freshmen and greet them. They continue wandering around until they reach their class. Rosie takes her seat at the table two seats away from the door and is followed by Alastor, who sits down to her left and Lucifer sink onto the chair at the table next to him. The room rapidly gets filled by more and more students till every seat is taken by a student.
“So,“ Lucifer speeds up. “Which class do we have?“
“Seriously?“ Alastor looks at him with the look that says ’I think you’re really damn stupid’ at every single spot of his face, the slight tilt of his head, the narrowing of his eyes, the scrunching down of his eyebrows and the crinkling of the corners of his mouth. “You go into a class and don’t know which one you even have?“
Lucifer just gives him a sheepish look.
“We have math by Mr Whittman, Vincent’s father. “ Alastor answered with a deadpan tone in his voice.
The blonde groans, not one bit happy with the reply. “Ugh, not him. He is almost worse than his son.“
Rosie giggles at his distaste. Alastor and Lucifer ignore it only reacting with a annoyed glance at her and a role of their eyes. The taller man continues talking. “Precisely, but stay positive. It means that Vincent can’t be in this class.“
At this moment, the room turns silent because of their teacher stepping into the room. He walks along the front of the class and sets down his bag as he reaches his desk. Mr Whittman steps back into the middle of the board at the front and starts the class. He starts the lesson with a dry and almost as bitter as coffee ’Good Morning’ and carries on by checking the attendance. Then he writes some formulas and math problems at the board and the rest goes by in a blurry mess of numbers and signs with the deep voice of the teacher blending into the background like the music in a supermarket or the colors in a picture.
Oh what Lucifer would give right now to be able to draw in peace without having to fear getting yelled at by the teacher again for ’not paying attention’ and ’doing useless stuff that won’t get him far in life’ while Mr Whittman was teaching. The sixty minutes of math always feel like sixty years of waiting in traffic or pushing through a mass of people in a shopping centrum, because your girlfriend thinks it is a good date idea and getting overlooked by everyone, because you are so ’short’ and ’tiny’. Every time Lucifer walks with Al he can walk normally, because Alastor takes care of the pushing of the people for him. Al is great. He is so caring. And hot with his sharp jaw. And deep caramel colored lovely eyes. And his strong arms. And his muscular chest Lucifer got to see one time when he got back to their dorm room early and Alastor just got out of the shower judging by his still wet, curly hair, thinking he’d be alone for another hour. And damn, did Al’s chest look stunning in those two seconds he could see it before the brunette turned away and covered himself up. He is so fucking hot. Oh boy does Lucifer wish to touch that perfect skin and make Alastor feel so impossible safe and cosy and good and- Oh FUCK. Was Lucifer drooling? He wipes his palm over his mouth. Yep, definitely drool. Hopefully nobody saw that.
Lucifer’s gaze roams around the classroom looking for any eyes directed in his direction. Thankfully, everyone is either in their own head or actually paying attention to whatever Mr Whitman is saying right now. He doesn’t need to pay attention. If he doesn’t understand it he can just ask Alastor to help him learn. Does he have a big sister who is a astrophysicist because she is so fucking smart and a grandma as the principal? Yes. Will he still ask Alastor so he gets to spend more time with him? Absolutely. Al is so smart. And gorgeous. And-
His thoughts got cut short by the ringing of the bell signaling the end of class. Fucking Finally. Took long enough. Lucifer puts his book and pencils he didn’t even realize he took back into his bag, closes it and stands up. He turns to Alastor to see if he and Rosie are ready to go, only to stand with is face barely a few inches away from that muscular chest of his roommate. Lucifer could almost feel the warmth vibrant from the body, sense the beat of the pumping heart, see the rise and fall of the chest. The moment broke when Alastor takes a step back, bringing distance between the two men, making it possible for Lucifer to breath in the air without inhaling Alastor’s woody and walnut like sent. Not that he minds doing just that.
They look at each other’s eyes, loose themselves in it and find themselves again when Rosie speaks up. “Are we gonna leave now or would you rather keep staring at the other’s eyes and have me leaving ya both alone for some privacy.“
The men’s eyes tear away from the others and instead settle to stare at Rosie. “No!“ They both hurry to reply, Heat rises up Lucifer’s face and like it seem also Alastor’s face.
“Then, lets waste no more time, shall we?“ The woman takes her bag over one shoulder and walks out the door, followed by the two men.
In the filling hallways, they meet Lilith at their lookers, waiting patiently for them to arrive. Her right hand is placed on the looker door, still resting there after the long haired, tall, blond woman closed it a few seconds ago. The other hand positions on her to the left leaned hip, visualizing her played annoyance of standing there alone for a while. A big smile is plastered on her face and betrays her stance. “It’s so nice to see you guys again. How was your spring break? Mine was incredible.“ She continues talking without giving them time to reply. “I was in Rome the whole time, I just got back yesterday. It was so relaxing to just lay at the beach and tan or drink some of the cocktails they have there. Did you guys know that in troupe they are allowed to drink alcohol since the age of 14? Well… not really, like, they are allowed to take some sips but not drink enough to get drunk or hungover. But!“ Lilith raised one finger and held it in the air. “You are allowed to do whatever we are allowed to do with alcohol at the age of 18 so it is still two years earlier than here. Anyways, enough about me. What’s up with you?“ The blond women stops her rambling.
The friends chuckle at her enthusiasm. “Mine was fine.“ Lucifer speaks up. “I was at my family’s house in Bali with Charlie, Gabe, Mikey, Azzy, Ari and Uri, Jere, Rag and mom. Dad couldn’t make it. He said ’something important’ “ Lucifer made a gesture with his fingers, symbolizing quotes. “came up at work so he couldn’t join us. Well, at least that means we had a bit less fights, so I guess It was fine. We played a lot board games and stuff. Gabe was a sore looser at parcheesi and threw the board off the table as Mikey sent his figure back for the sixth time.“ The group chuckles. “Seriously, he’s sometimes such a baby. Nonetheless, we still had some fun and bonded a bit. I had a few really nice moments with Uri and Ari, tho. We had some really interesting late night talks and they helped me with… uhm… a thought that was on my mind.“ He coughs, trying to divert from what he lastly said. “And then went back home and I had to come back here.“
The friends give Lucifer a narrowed look before Alastor starts talking, the others listen attentively. “I was at my mothers house in New Orleans, Louisiana, and we made us a wonderful time. We mostly cooked together and went into the town. I also met up with dear Mimzy a few times. A childhood friend of mine.“ Mimzy, another girl Lucifer was jealous of. “We visited a few clubs and a bunch of different festivals, partly in New Orleans. The free French Quarter Festival at the start of April, it is so fun to walk around and try things from the different cuisine, really vibrant traditions and the lovely jazz music. Only annoying thing about that festival is that it is always so full of people but I guess you have to live with that. We also went to the Jazz and Heritage Festival.“
“No wonder you love jazz music so much when there is so much of it where you grew up.“ Lucifer throws in.
“Indeed, I do love it. But back to the topic; We also danced a lot to the live performances. Which, yes, are mostly jazz performances. Mimsie is a talented dance partner. Oh, there also were some St. Patrick parades we went to, then Bayou Boogaloo, the Bayou is so fascinating. I loved to play in it as a kid. Gave my dear maman lots of shocks by doing so. Lastly, we went to the Tennessee Williams Literary Festival. Mimzy quickly git bored of it so I didn’t got to see the whole thing, but it still was really informative.“
“You’re the only one in the world who would enjoy a literary festival while spring break, nerd.“ Lucifer teases, grin spreading across his face.
Alastor rolls his eyes. “If you’d visit me there, I could show you that it isn’t boring at all.“
’Yes. I would totally enjoy it with you. Okay, now act normal about it, Lucifer. Stupid Lucifer. Stupid! Get your head normal. What’s wrong with you today? Why are you so especially desperate?’ “Uhm, sure.“ He answers smoothly, a grin spreading over his face that is most definitely to big to be normal.
“Okayyy. Anyways. Let’s get outside for some fresh air, shall we?“ Rosie asks.
“Sounds good.“ They agreed.
“Hello, Alastor.“ A voice, which makes Alastor sigh immediately, calls out from behind them. A tiresome voice Alastor knows far too good. One he always gets into a bad mood from if he hears it.
“Salutations Vincent. To what do I own the displeasure of my ears having to bear your voice?“ Alastor retorts with a false cheer added to his voice, facing him and seeing his two ’friends’ next to him. A short, tan skinned woman with pink strands in her long hair, which is pulled back in a pony tail with a few braided strands, a pink suit, a silver necklace and bracelet and a bored expression plastered on her face and a tall man with a buzzcut, heart-shaped glasses, skin-tight purple slags, a black shirt, a pink coat with black and purple details and a shimmer over his Peru colored skin that makes it shine purple stand there with Vincent Whitman in the middle. He wears a blue tuxedo and a black shirt whose ends are stuffed into his pants. The woman greets him with a lazy, but elegant wave and the taller man only looks him up and down.
Vincent ignores Alastor’s remark and continues talking. “Do you still spent your time with these idiots around you. I told you that you could hang around with better people, but I see your standards are as low as ever. I could have helped you with your dear-“
Alastor cuts him off before he got to finish the sentence. “And here you still talk and pester my mind by forcing me to hear your obnoxious voice, trying to get under my skin as always, thinking your useless opinion would matter to me. Sadly, I have to remind this stupid brain of yours again that it doesn’t matter to me what a ridiculous creep like you thinks, so leave me alone. My companions and I have more important thinks to do.“
Vincent opens his mouth again, searching for a response. But as he finds it, his words get received by Alastor’s back turned in his direction, as well as the backs of Al’s friends quickly after.
“Farewells.“ Alastor says, raising his hand and waves by moving his fingers back and forth.
On the way out, Rosie, Lilith and Lucifer complain about Vincent and Alastor tells them to leave it be. As they step outside the building, the fresh air blows across their faces, the chirps of the birds reach their ears and the laughter and talking of students can be heard. Lucifer’s eyes fall onto one certain person as he follows the sound of a familiar laughter. It belongs to one of his favorite people. “Charlie!“
The young woman turns around and her face lights up like fireworks at New Years Eve. She hurries over to her big brother and squishes him into a hug he returns with the same amount of enthusiasm. The siblings release each other after a few seconds and smile at the other one. “Hi, it’s nice to see you again. How has your first day been so far?“
“It’s been fine, y’know. I had math class by Mr Whittman so it was cinda boring. But everything else was nice. Al made the most delicious breakfast. He’s awesome.“
“Thanks.“ Lucifer hears Alastor say from, now, next to him, a hand laying on his shoulder. Lucifer’s face has never before felt so hot in so little time and then even this much. He feels like he is on fire. His shoulder tenses and Alastor’s touch sends sparks through his whole body. Charlie, still standing in front of him giggles and he can hear the same sound coming from Lilith and Rosie behind him added by whispers he can’t make out as words.
“Hello Alastor.“ Charlie greets him with her beaming smile stuck in place..
He raises his hand to wave at her, returning the warm smile. “Hello Charlie, dear. How are you feeling today?“
“I’m feeling awesome. Oh, hello Lilith. Hello Rosie.“ She waves at the women behind the men.
While the rest exchanged their ’Hellos’, a short woman with long brown hair steps next to Charlie. She wears a short dark blue skirt, long gloves that go up to her elbows, a pink top with buttons in the same blue as the skirt and a red bow in her hair. It’s Vaggi, Charlie’s protective and lovely girlfriend. “Hi Lucifer.“
He smiles at her. “Hi Vaggi. Are you treating my lil’ sister well.“ Lucifer teases them, getting a soft blush on their cheeks from both of the woman.
“Always.“
Soon the bell rings and signals them to go back into the school building to their next period.
________________________
Lucifer turns the key around in the lock of their dorm room entrance and pushes the door open. He walks in and closes it behind him. Lucifer flicks the lights on and takes his jacket off, putting it neatly back into the closet, because otherwise Alastor gets pissy and he doesn’t wants that. When he is finished the blonde wanders into the kitchen. He opens the cupboard, takes out his favorite cup and places it onto the kitchen counter. The only ingredients he needs are some cocoa powder, maybe a few of these super fluffy marshmallows, because he is feeling especially sweet today (and deserves something nice, ‘cause he completely embarrassed himself today in front of Alastor. Twice. One time by saying he’s awesome out loud in front of Charlie with Al behind him and the second time while they had basketball as Alastor threw the basket ball at him and it got straight into his face). Only thinking about it again makes him want to sink into the ground or move to another continent.
He finishes making his cocoa and sits down on the couch. The cushion sinks from his weigh. Lucifer leans back and rests his head at the couch back and takes a minute to relax after the long school day. He slowly takes a breath in and holds it, counts to eight and releases it in the same slow pace. The man repeats this process another five times till he relaxes and his tense shoulders slump down.
Lucifer takes out his phone from the pocket in his pants and unlocks it. He opens TikTok and the first video loads. It’s one of a cute little duck named Adam — Lucifer has to let out a short laugh because of the name — going for his first swim and then speeding away on the water. He chuckles and opens the comment section. He laughs even more from reading them. One person said ’Adam had places to go’ and another one wrote ’Adam was planning this for years’. Lucifer swipes down for the next video. It’s a pancake recipe with chocolate chips. He swipes down before he gets hungry, because the only thing he can cook without anything burning are pancakes and Alastor forbid him from eating them at another time than morning, so he has to wait for his roommate to come back.
He watches a few other TikTok’s, mainly about ducks and some about Louisiana and New Orleans, because he wants to know more about Alastor’s culture and surprise him with it. One night he got into a deep rabbit hole about it, watched videos till 3 AM and now half of his TikTok feed is full with it.
He closes the app and turns his head around, looking for if someone is there. Lucifer opens his gallery and opens a private album of pictures. He taps at one picture and his smile widens. On the picture you can see a brunette man with tan skin, bronze, wonderful, lovely eyes and a big charming smile he always had. It’s Alastor. He wore a handsome auburn red suit with a black shirt neatly tucked into the pants and a black and red bow tie. His gorgeous curly hair styled nicely. The blonde looks at the picture, taking it in for the hundredth time. He remembers that Lucifer took the picture as they were at their latest homecoming. In his dreamy state, he doesn’t notice the door opening and just realizes that his roommate arrived, when he hears steps behind him. In shock, he accidentally throws his phone in the air, catching it luckily and swiping out of his gallery last second before
Alastor speaks up behind him. “Hello Lu, I’m back. Are you hungry?“
“Yes.“
“Alright, then I’m gonna cook something tasty for us.“
“Oh! Can you make that spicy, creole dish you made two weeks before spring break, at the weekend. Y’know, the one with sausage, rice and bell peppers.“ Droll started flooding Lucifer’s mouth as he begins thinking about it and a sigh slips past his lips. They invited Rosie and Lilith to celebrate the single awareness day after valentines day since they all are single now after Lilith and Lucifer broke up. “It tasted better than anything I ever ate before.“
Alastor’s smile grows at the dreamy display of his roommate in front of him. “You mean Jambalaya?“ He chuckles. “You know that it took me, like, over an hour. And I had all the ingredients bought and prepared. Are you sure you could wait until I come back after buying everything I need and until I finish cooking?“ Al steps closer and leans with his hands propping himself up against the couch.
“Ugh, noooo.“ Lucifer whines. He throws his hands around in the air and lets himself fall with his back first onto the soft cushions of the couch.
“I could try to make it out of the ingredients we have,“ Alastor proposes. “but it won’t taste as good.“
Lucifer straightens and sits up. “Yes, please.“
“Alright.“ Alastor pushes away from the back rest and walks into the kitchen area.
Lucifer sits on his knees and places his elbows at the couch back. He rests his chin on his palm and watches Alastor move with practiced ease through the kitchen. He turns on the radio that’s placed on the counter and smooth jazz music reaches Lucifer’s ears soon after. The brunette rolls up his sleeves and washes his hands at the sink. He gets the green products out of the fridge. As next, Alastor bends down to reach the rice and utensils like a big pan, two metallic spoons and a wooden trencher from the drawers. A slight swing of his hips accompanies his movements. At last he pulls a sharp knife out of the knife block on the counter. He places everything in an order and starts cooking by melting butter in a pan and cutting the vegetables with skilled moves in dices and the sausages in slices. He puts some of the cut products into the hot pan and stir’s occasionally until he is satisfied with the outcome. Then he adds the tomatoes, hot pepper sauce and seasons it with salt. Once again he stirs it. While it boils for a few minutes he prepares the rice. When ready, he adds it to the boiling mix and lets it heat through.
A ringing of their doorbell rips Lucifer out of his thoughts. His gaze whips over from Alastor to the door and back. Did I invite someone? I don’t think so. “Did you invite someone, Al?“
Alastor shakes his head. “No, nothing I remember.“
“Hm.“
The bell rings again.
“Will you open it?“ Alastor asks him.
“Okay.“ Lucifer gets up from his seat and walks over to the entrance, opening the door to see two grown up women in their mid-twenties, one of them wears a red blouse and white jeans. The outfit is completed with a golden necklace with a red diamond as a pendant and two golden bracelets. Her her is short and brown. The woman to her left wears slacks and skin-tight top in a soft pink and a golden rose symbol sewn on. She wears an also golden necklace but with a rose pendant with a light pink stone— probably rose quartz— and a golden bracelet formed like leaves. She has the same hair and same face. In her hand is a bouquet of flowers. It’s his two sisters. “Uri? Ari?“
“Luci!“ They embrace him in a tight group hug.
“Hey, we thought we’d visit our little brother after his first school day after spring break.“ Ariel says cheery. She presses the flowers into his hands.
Uriel moves her mouth closer to his ear. “And we want to meet this handsome roommate you talked about.“ She whispers and grins at him.
Lucifer’s faces flushes with heat in mere seconds. His eyes widen and pupils dial in horror. He tries pushing them back out of the door. “Oh no. No! No-no-no. You are not-“
“Who’s there, Lu?“ Alastor’s questioning voice sounds from the kitchen.
Before Lucifer gets to answer his sisters step beside him and walk inside. “Hi. I am Ariel.“
“And I am Uriel. We’re Lucifer’s big sisters. We came to visit him. I hope that’s not a problem.“
“Absolutely not. Welcome. I just finished making lunch. You’re welcome to join us. Luckily it’s enough for all of us.“ Alastor greets them happily.
The twins walk over to Alastor who is already getting the plates from the cupboards. “Wow, you cook?“ Ari asks excitedly.
Alastor nods. “I do, yes. My mama taught me how to do it at a young age already.“
Uri grins. “Oh, that’s awesome. Don’t you think Luci?“ She looks over at him.
The blonde joins them in the kitchen area after he placed the bouquet in a vase, taking a seat on a stool. “Yeah. Amazing. He’s a fantastic cook.“ He tries to hide his embarrassment by leaning his cheek on the palm of his hand.
Ariel takes a seat at Lucifer’s right side and Uriel joins them by sitting down next to Ariel around the corner. “What did you cook today?“ Uri asks Alastor.
Alastor finished giving cups to all of them and starts serving them each a plate. “Lucifer asked me to make Jambalaya. It’s a typical creole dish. Normally it takes a bit longer and needs some more ingredients than what we had but I had to improvise so it won’t taste as good.“
“I’m sure it is still delicious.“ Ari says.
Alastor chuckles. “Well, you’re only going to find out if you try it so bon appetite.“ He sits down next to Lucifer at the corner.
“Thanks.“ The twins reply in unison.
“Are you okay, Lu? You’re really quiet.“ Alastor asks quietly.
“Oh, yes. I am feeling great. Fantastic even.“ Answers the other man. “I’m just a bit tired. School’s exhausting.“
Alastor hums. “Mhm. Well, how does it taste?“ He changes the subject.
“Delicious.“ Everyone replies.
The brunette man lets out a content hum.
They break into silence, the only sound being the chewing and the clinking of the cups getting placed back down onto the counter. Then Uriel speaks up again. “So, Alastor. You mentioned earlier that your mother taught you how to cook. Are you close with her?“
“Yes, very close.“ Alastor replies. “She is the most important person in my life. She was the only real parent I had while growing up. My father left when I was young so I never really knew him, but it’s fine by me. I rather have him leaving completely than having him here but he’s a bad father.“
“That’s a really good way to see it.“ Says Uri.
“Thanks.“ Alastor smiles at her. “But let’s not talk about that stuff. It just ruins the mood. What do you both work as?“
“I’m a ecologist.“answers Ariel.“ I survey, monitor and protect wildlife and ecosystems. I just always loved the nature. As I was still in college like you two, I would work at a flower shop of an elder lady and help her with the orders.“ She beams at them.
“Yeah, the nature is great. I always loved to be inside the bayou back at home. Truly fascinating places.“ Alastor adds.
Uriel’s attention piques up at that. “Where are you from?“
“I’m from the charming city, New Orleans.“
The woman’s interest intensified. “Oh I love that city. It’s so lively and colorful. I was there a few times for a week at some festivals. One time at Mardi Gras and one time at the French Quarter festival. A really interesting city. Every time I was there and walked down the streets, something interesting happens at every corner. And the people there are so nice and lovely.“ Uri rambles and takes another spoon of the meal.
“Yes, they really are.“ Alastor agrees. “What about you Uriel. What do you work as?“
“I work as a astrophysicist. I love the stars. Fits our family name.“ She jokes. “I study the physical properties, processes, and behavior of celestial objects—such as stars, black holes, and galaxies—by applying the laws of physics and mathematics. We work primarily as researchers, analyzing data from telescopes and satellites, developing computer simulations, and creating theoretical models to understand the universe's origin and evolution. It’s really interesting once you understand it.“
Alastor chuckles.“I can imagine that. And Lu called me a nerd for liking literature.“
The twins gasp in played shock. “You didn’t.“
Lucifer snaps to attention. “Yes, I did, because it’s true. And you are one too.“ He points at Uri.
“But there is nothing bad about it.“ Uri huffed but could’t help a smile which turned into a mischievous one after a moment. Lucifer didn’t like that look. Not at all. “Might I remind you that you are so obsessed with ducks that you learned about their whole biology to their behavior-.“
Lucifer panics and presses his hand over Uriel’s mouth, making her shut up. “Okayyy, I think that’s enough about my habits. How about we talk about something else.“ He lets out an awkward chuckle and removes his hand from the mouth of his sister..
“Sure.“ Ariel agrees and turns back to Alastor who just took another mouth full of the dish. “Alastor, are you attracted to men?“
The brunette man chokes on his food and coughs, trying to coach his breath. He hits with his palm against his chest. Lucifer hurries to help him by carefully slapping onto Alastor’s back and sending a stare at his sister who looked like the embodiment of pure innocents.
Once Alastor catches his breath, he clears his throat “Pardon me. You caught me off guard with that question.“
“It’s alright. Soooo… do you?“ Asked Ariel once more.
“I-… I don’t know. I guess. I don’t really fell attraction to any person, any gender. At least I haven’t felt attracted to anyone before.“ He explains.
“Really? Nobody?“ She keeps digging.
“Ariel!“ Lucifer warns but gets ignored.
“Yes, nobody. My mother once even asked me if I'm attracted to men too, because I never brought a girl home. At least not as a partner. I hang out with a lot of female people in may free time. My best friend back in New Orleans was a girl called Mimzy and here it is Rosie, though I do enjoy the time I spent with Lilith and Velvette too.“ Alastor says.
“What about Luci. Where does he stand on your friendship scale?“
Lucifer lets his head fall onto the counter with a loud thud. This questioning starts to feel like an interview and it stresses him, even if the questions aren’t even directed at him.
Alastor replies with an unsure voice. “He is- far at the top… I think.“
The women grin at them. A grin that looks far too toothy to be normal. “Aww, that’s great.“ They look at each other and it looks like they communicate through their gaze.
“Why do you ask?“ Alastor questions.
As Lucifer looks up from his position on the counter, he sees a soft rosy shade forming on Alastor’s cheeks.
Ariel shrugs her shoulders. “Was just wondering.“
They finish their meal in comfortable silence only occasionally filled with a few more questions from Lucifer’s sisters which the blonde interrupted as often as he could when they were directed at Alastor and his love life or friendship with Lucifer. As everyone finished their meal, Alastor put the tables into the dish washer and cleaned the table, which got Lucifer teasing glances from his sisters and he swears he heard one of them whisper ‘what a gentlemen' under their breath. Uriel and Ariel stayed for another hour before they decided it was time to leave.
Lucifer lets out a sigh as he closes the door behind them. His shoulders slump down and he takes in a breath to calm himself. He turns back to their room and walks straight past the couch, directly to his room. The short man stops and turns his head to Alastor’s direction. “I’m gonna go to bed. The day’s really been exhausting.“
“Okay. Have a Good Night.“ Wished Alastor.
“Good Night.“