#danella

Dan stood in front of the door to Ella's lab, taking in a quiet breath to steady himself. He tapped his fingers against his thigh, keeping a tight hold of the bracelet in his hand.

He hadn't been this nervous since his wedding day—well, his second wedding day, the day he and Chloe officially married Lucifer. He wouldn't trade them for the world, but he could admit it'd taken a long time to get here. Between him and Chloe almost getting divorced (which was his fault, and he'd long since understood that), learning Lucifer was actually the devil (which was only slightly more difficult than accepting his feelings for the man), and finding something that worked for them, Dan had learned a lot about love. The idea of love he'd held when he first got with Chloe was nothing like how he understood it now. Love was the early mornings curled up between them, Lucifer's stubble on his neck and Chloe's head on his chest. Love was bickering at work with his husband while their wife rolled her eyes at them. Love was the bracelet on his wrist, the silver wedding band on his finger, the other gold ring with a ruby stone on a chain around his neck.

Love was the ache in his chest when Ella made a Star Trek reference while on a case, and the knowing smile Chloe gave him when he met her eyes. Dan had felt so guilty at first; he had worked things out with Chloe, and had added Lucifer, but he still wanted more? Chloe had understood his bond with Charlotte, and they'd worked out a solution, but now they had Lucifer. Neither of his spouses had judged him though. As Lucifer had put it, "the heart wants what it wants", and he couldn't control that.

He also couldn't control the fact that Ella was utterly oblivious to his hints. Dan had been nervous to outright say anything—everyone knew of their triad, but it wasn't like they'd added any others to their already untraditional relationship, and they were married. Would Ella even want him? Would she even feel comfortable dating him while he stayed loyal? He wouldn't blame her if she didn't.

He had settled on letting her make the first move, if she was interested, and resigned himself to silently pining in the mean time. But it'd been months of this, and maybe it was time for him to make a move.

Dan lifted his arm and hit his knuckles against the door. There was no new cases today, and he wondered what Ella would be doing in her lab right now.

Ella answered the door and grinned. "Hey, Dan." she stepped back and let him in. He held the bracelet down at his side and stepped inside. He'd been in this room a thousand times, but Ella's touch on it still made him smile. It was dark and relaxed, a sanctuary from the harsh reality of what they experienced daily in this line of work.

"So, what'dya need?" Ella quipped, gesturing around to the many machines in the room.

He shook his head. "Just you, Ella." he whispered, the words not coming out as casual as he'd hoped.

She paused. "Right! Right, yeah. Cause it's been, you know, kinda peaceful today. Knock on wood!" She laughed, but it sounded a bit forced.

It took a lot of effort not to smile at her rambling. He steeled himself to continue with his purpose here. "I wanted to give you something."

Her eyes lit up. She nodded, looking at him curiously. Dan took a deep breath to soothe his anxiety and held out the amethyst bracelet. The bracelet had been Lucifer's idea. He still wore the bracelet Dan had made for him, along with his own ring. The one he'd made for Ella was similar—on purpose, it was, as Lucifer called it when proposing the idea, a 'courting gift'. If she could recognize the resemblance, Dan hoped she'd understand his intentions. If not, well, they're friends and Dan doesn't want to lose that. Or make it awkward, especially with them being coworkers.

Ella gasped, gently grabbing it and inspecting it. "Oh, Dan." she mumbled breathlessly. He felt his heart leap at the way she said his name. "Esta magnífico.." she whispered. Ella looked up at him, and he smiled.

"Do you want me to put it on for you?"

She nodded and held out her wrist. Dan took the bracelet from her and wrapped it over her wrist, clasping it closed. It fit nicely, which he was glad for. He would've had to take it back to adjust it if it was too big or small. When he was done, he cradled Ella's hand in his, admiring it on her.

"It's just, wow, I've seen Lucifer's—" Ella stopped mid sentence, her eyes flickering to where Dan wore his matching one. Then, she stared at the necklace that adorned Lucifer's ring, and then finally to the ring on his finger. "I, uh," Ella hesitated, looking him in the eyes again, "I'm honored. This is really lovely." she looked down at his hand still holding hers, then back up at him. "You're a great friend." she mumbled, but she didn't pull away. "And I really appreciate your friendship. Over the years in which we've been friends. Cause like, we're amigos, man! And I'm super glad to know you. Did I say that already? I'm ranting, aren't I? I think I'm gonna shut up now."

He chuckled. "Don't shut up. I like hearing you talk." he shrugged. He felt way bolder than he did before. Ella was clearly flustered and nervous. That was a good sign, right?

"Not that I don't super appreciate the bracelet," Ella chewed on her lip a bit, a nervous habit of hers, "but.. why?"

Dan squeezed her hand. "You're an important person in my life. I wanted you to know that."

Ella gulped. "This feels.. really important, though."

There was nothing to say. Dan was pretty sure she understood now. She took his silence as a sign and leaned in slightly, and he immediately meet her the rest of the way. Ella gasped into his lips and kissed him back immediately, putting a hand on his cheek and squeezing his hand.

"Oh my God!" she pulled back suddenly. "You—I'm sorry, I should've.. we shouldn't—" she stepped back, looking at him with wide, guilty eyes.

Dan put his hand on her shoulder. "Ella, relax. They know. I wouldn't do that to them."

She paused. "They're okay with you.. us.. whatever this is?"

He took a breath. "It's whatever you want it to be."

"I want you to kiss me again," she whispered slowly.

"As you wish." he grinned, leaning back down.