he clears his throat, then firmly lets it be known that despite his appreciation of their presence, he needs his rest if he's to deal with a hysterical akari soon.

they're alone again soon enough after awkward goodbyes— julian's fingers carding gently through eddie's hair before he pulls the sheets up and over them both. he kisses one of the guitarist's eyelids right over the tiny red x tattooed there, then the other.

❝ i didn't know you needed me, ❞ julian admits in a whisper, bottom lip quivering, ❝ didn't think anyone needed me. ❞

he  keeps  his  eyes  closed  the  entire  time,  feeling  jules  surround  him,  kiss  him;  eddie's  lips  start  to  tremble  again.  "of  course  i  need  you,"  eddie  whispers  back,  thick  with  emotion  as  he  holds  the  other  man  just  as  tightly.  tonight  had  scared  him  more  than  anything  else  in  life,  to  loose  jules  would  be  like  loosing  every  good  part  of  himself.  i  need  you,  i  love  you,  please  don't  ever  leave  me.

they're a mess of feverish kisses and gasps as they move into the next room blindly, knocking things off the wall and furniture as they go. somewhere along the way every scrap of clothing they had on minutes prior is scattered across the apartment, julian guiding eddie over to the couch with another bruising kiss before turning him around and bending him over one of the arms of it.

there's a palpable sense of urgency in preparation this time; in how julian roots around the couch cushions for the small bottle of lube they've stored there for months, how he doesn't sweet-talk eddie even when he manages to get three fingers inside of him.

it  all  feels  so  good,  so  all  consuming.  eddie  tries  his  best  to  move  against  the  other  man,  hands  bracing  himself  against  the  arm  of  the  couch  to  push  back  better,  moan  loud  as  julian  pushes  in  again  and  again  and  again.

julian shakes his head at security as his drummer begins a slow, rolling introduction into the next song. he takes a sip of water and gives the stranger a playful wink.

the frontman would be lying if he said he wasn't showing off for the remainder of his band's set. he can't help it, every glance he gets side-stage fueling the need to push himself to give his best performance. to give the stranger more reason to watch. it's over far too soon.

picking up his water bottle again before he makes for the backstage area, julian's gaze meets warm sable as he looks up into the same doe eyes that had commanded his attention earlier.

he  had  come  to  the  show  expecting  good  live  music,  maybe  smoke  a  joint  out  back  and  relax  for  one  night.  the  show  had  been  really  good,  eddie  not  wanting  the  night  to  end  just  yet.  it's  the  same  kind  of  feeling  he  gets  chasing  tornado's,  heart  beating  faster.

❝ you can't protect me, eddie. no one can. ❞

before they'd met, julian had already resigned himself to a life of captivity and isolation. now that he's had a taste of tenderness, he feels like a man starved. mesmerized by their immediate proximity, julian wonders what it would be like to have warm hands caress the skin just underneath his wool sweater instead of cold, hard marble that leaves bruises in its wake.

there's a hunger that gnaws at julian's insides at this thought and his lips part to say something, heart racing as he pushes up onto his toes to initiate a slow, searing kiss instead.

it's  everything  he's  wanted  and  more,  julian's  soft  lips  pressed  against  his,  hands  grasping  clothes,  slipping  under  to  palm  at  warm  skin.  eddie  pulls  back  just  enough  to  look  at  him  again,  dragging  his  lips  across  the  other  man's  jaw  just as  he  dips  back  in.

CONSPIRE: for our muses to hide with each other at a houseparty, sitting on the floor in a coat closet or bathroom.

HIGH: for our muses sit on top of a roof together, sharing a bottle of booze or a joint.

TRAP: for our muses to be stuck in an elevator alone together for several hours.

TRIP: our muses are on a roadtrip together and the car breaks down somewhere remote.

DARK: our muses spend the night in a haunted location trying to hunt ghosts.

TASTE: our muses share a cigarette on a swing set in an empty park.

EARLY: our muses spend all night at the beach until sunrise.

LATE: our muses are camping in the mountains together but hear noises outside their tent at midnight.

BALL: our muses dance together at a masquerade, not knowing the other's identity until the party is over.

SETUP: our muses have mutual friends who set them up on a blind date at an ice cream parlor.

FREE: our muses sneak into a skating rink together while its closed.

REALIZE: our muses are in an abandoned amusement park but discover a crime scene.

ACCIDENT: our muses hook up in a library but accidentally stay after its been closed and are locked in for the night.

PAINT: one muse goes to an art class and is surprised to find the other is the model for the day.

DISCOVERY: our muses are in a graveyard and find an emptied grave.

STUCK: our muses haven't seen each other in years and are assigned to the same room in a hostel.

❛ ... do you love him? ❜ the question leaves shane's lips so quietly that @graverisen likely wouldn't have been able to hear it if they weren't sat alongside each other. settled onto the couch that lies on the front porch of eddie's trailer, the only other living being within earshot is one of the neighbor's dogs, currently asleep in the sunshine.

"i  got  really  lucky  with  him, shit i still don't believe this is reality sometimes,"  eddie  laughs  suddenly,  flicking  the  ash  off  the  end  of  his  cigarette  before  he  takes  another  drag and  gives  shane  a  moment  with  his  thoughts. 

he doesn't mean to flinch. the scar hasn't ailed him for years; it is thin, ghostly pale, just a few millimeters below his left eye. a permanent reminder of the sacrifice he'd made for the man currently sitting on his lap, amaia's celestial sword having gotten far too close to eradicating the angel.

julian's hand comes up to rest over his husband's, leaning into the gentle touch and closing his eyes. wings slowly opening and extending, he envelops them within a cocoon of black feathers right as he brings @graverisen's hand to his lips, kissing every single tattooed knuckle.

the angel would do it a million times over—risk his entire existence—if it meant he were still able to experience this moment, along with every single one since his fall back to earth.

"i'm  not  sad,"  eddie  whispers,  leaning  in  to  press  a  kiss  to  the  scar,  julian's  eye,  he  follows  the  trail  down  his  nose  to  his  lips,  pressing  their  lips  together.  he  pulls  back  only  to  do  it  again,  longer  this  time.

the hotel room door has barely clicked shut behind them when these words are eaten right up by julian's eager mouth. cold palms press @graverisen firmly against the inside of said door, and julian wore his tallest platform boots tonight for a reason. he nudges eddie's thighs apart with a knee, leaving it in place to give the guitarist something to grind against.

they can't fuck tonight. not when everett is in the next room. julian can hear the muffled sounds of the bassist's television, but it's not quite loud enough. he knows better. knows eddie. which is exactly why julian covers his lover's mouth right before leaning in and licking the sweat from his neck, hair still somewhat damp from the concert.

his teeth sink into tender flesh with a soft groan, eyes closing as he replays the highlights from tonight's show in his head. fleeting glances, sharing a microphone, complex dual guitar solos. as much as eddie likes to compare julian to an angel, julian has only ever observed him in his element and seen something more akin to a god.

the  knee  between  his  thighs  feels  good,  eddie  knocking  his  head  into  the  door  as  he  groans  loudly,  muffled  by  a  smartly  placed  hand.  he  wants  to  be  fucked,  goddamn  it.  "jules,"  he  moans,  muffled  under  the  hand  as  teeth  sink  into  his  skin.

no  one  has  never  come  close  to  making  eddie  feel  the  way  julian  has  made  him  feel.  no  one  else  could  have  eddie  whimpering  and  desperately  grinding  against  his  thigh  after  being  called  a  god.  it's  messy  when  eddie  pulls  the  hand  away  to  press  their  lips  together,  teeth  clinking  together.