Chapter Text
They arrived at the agreement that, for Aziraphale’s remaining days at the company, it was best to keep things quiet while they were at work. This mainly involved a considerable amount of effort to keep their relationship to themselves. And while this was undeniably the most sensible course of action, it unfortunately meant no more sex in the office.
They did make up for it in other ways. A couple days later, Crowley successfully tempted him to dinner. A “working dinner” Crowley had called it, as if they needed a reason to justify their increasingly growing need to see each other all the time. There had been no time for them to scout for a new place and Aziraphale had had to make the reservation himself at one of their usuals, but this did nothing to overshadow his glowing state. It almost bordered on being unhealthy, considering they were rarely ever apart even before they started dating. Despite that, Aziraphale couldn’t bring himself to be concerned. Cloud nine was where he was. He even hummed sporadically in the office as he went about his work, and if he raised a few brows from his coworkers, well, he wasn’t about to let them in on the secret.
Fancy that. He was dating Anthony Crowley.
The so-called working dinner went in the same strange yet vaguely familiar way that Aziraphale was now growing accustomed to—seated across from each other with a spread of intricate meals and expensive wine between them, but this time rather than work, they talked of more personal things. There was a lot more smiling and laughing, and an attempt to end the night solidly via a chaste kiss on Aziraphale’s doorstep which, after a sly look from Aziraphale and a slow, suggestive tug at Crowley’s tie, easily turned into an urgent snogging session right there in the corridor.
The next morning, Crowley appeared on his doorstep so they could go to work together. It was one of those small things that Aziraphale wouldn’t have thought could fill his heart with so much joy. He panicked as soon as he received the text from Crowley that he was on his way, and when he spotted the Bentley from his window he dashed down the stairs and flung open the door to his seat.
Crowley wore a dark grey shirt. It stretched out over the lean muscles of his chest, and was complemented by a slim black tie. There was not much for him to do but to stare appreciatively, a dreamy expression crossing his face. Amused, Crowley raised an eyebrow.
“See something you like?”
In response, Aziraphale reached for his tie, pulling him in to connect their mouths. Crowley’s eyes drifted shut, slowly blinking as Aziraphale broke the kiss with one palm pressed to Crowley’s chest. “You look very nice.” He brushed their lips again. “And I needed to reassure myself that I can do this now.”
“Mm. I didn’t think you’d be this needy.” said Crowley, nuzzling his cheek and inhaling deeply.
“Not to worry, I’ll get tired of you soon enough.”
Crowley pulled back with a slight frown. The sudden shift of mood was too much for Aziraphale, and he burst into a giggle fit. Then he felt bad for laughing and tried to soothe his lover with a few more kisses to his chiselled jaw.
They had dinner again that evening, only this time there was no pretence of dropping Aziraphale off at his home right after. For the life of him he couldn’t recall which one of them (if even either of them) made the suggestion, but when they were turning down the road leading up to Crowley’s flat block Aziraphale was quite content with not protesting.
The more time he spent with Crowley like this, the more Aziraphale discovered little things that made him fall more deeply in love with him. Small things that he’d always been aware of, but have now been brought to a new light. He discovered that it was surprisingly easy to dive into this new relationship given that they already knew each other so well. He discovered that Crowley could be an attentive partner, thoughtful and charming and adorable when he attempted to express any level of affection that he felt was beyond him. Aziraphale felt all the luckier for being the object of that affection. He discovered how naturally they still worked together like this, just as they had for years prior.
And on that same night, they made plenty more discoveries together, when Crowley slung his black tie over a bedpost and secured the ends around Aziraphale’s wrists.
It wasn’t exactly all smooth sailing. In the days leading up to the board meeting, where Crowley’s mother was expected to make the big announcement, Crowley grew more tense. There wasn’t much that Aziraphale could do to alleviate his nerves except to maintain his own composure, and aid him in his work as best as he could.
It did distract him, though. He had always had confidence in Crowley, but now that they were an item, he felt a greater sense of responsibility to take care of him. It was different from the way Crowley overtook his thoughts before, because back then worrying about Crowley was just his job. Now, he worried about Crowley with an ache in his chest and a pure need to make things better in whatever way he could. And contrary to what he initially feared, it didn’t frustrate him or make him feel as if he’d lost his autonomy. He was worried about Crowley because Aziraphale cared about his well being. Whether he was eating enough meals and still getting enough sleep—mundane things that he’d never really thought about before.
Out of the blue, he received a text from Crowley some hours into the afternoon.
Tell the folks at marketing to get their shit together by tomorrow
If you meant their report, then yes I’m on it.
Same difference
Thanks
It wouldn’t kill you to be more gentle.
Said thanks didn’t I?
I meant to marketing, not to me.
However I do appreciate it.
I will if they get their shit together
How exceedingly gracious.
In any case, I’ll be sure to let them know.
Sir.
Alright
And this is probably the worst time to tell you this but…
I love you.
Good luck with everything. I genuinely think it will be a breeze for you.
shit
I shouldn’t be smiling so hard at that
It’s humiliating
The working dinners became more frequent, and eventually they transitioned into actual dinners that, to neither of their surprise, ended in Crowley’s flat. Aziraphale was almost always there now, only going back to his own place when he needed a change of clothes. And it wasn’t as strange as he thought it would be. Even before they got together, Aziraphale already knew Crowley’s flat like the back of his hand and could navigate it expertly. He knew where each item was kept and where to return them after use. He even watered the plants. The domesticity of it all didn’t escape him.
It was for work, of course. Well, partly for work. Their being in a relationship simply made things a tad more convenient.
On one of those late nights, while they lay in Crowley’s bed after a drawn-out session of languorous lovemaking, Crowley pulled him close to his chest, kissed his temple and asked, “Have you ever thought of moving in, angel?”
Aziraphale stiffened. He propped himself up on an elbow to stare down at him.
Crowley looked so vulnerable this way, devoid of clothing, his hair mussed and his skin still glowing from the sex. He was delectable, though it also made the gleam of uncertainty in his eyes more pronounced. “It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
“Oh.” Aziraphale returned to lie on his back. “Frankly, I’m disappointed you gave up so easily.”
The bed shifted from Crowley’s side as he leaned over, filling his field of vision. “This is what I get for trying to be considerate for once.”
Giggling, Aziraphale gave a push on one bare shoulder to shove him back down. The spell of post-orgasmic bliss had yet to fully fizzle out, and they basked in it for a few more seconds. Let it warm them.
Then, some time after when the night got still Aziraphale whispered, “I worry you’ll get tired of it all. Get tired of me. Eventually.”
“We’ve been together for over ten years.” He didn’t bother to correct the context of Crowley’s statement. “If I was gonna find you tiring it would’ve happened by now. Heck, it would’ve happened ages ago, with how impatient I am with everything else.”
“That doesn’t mean you still can’t change your mind.”
More shuffling from Crowley’s side, and then he found himself wrapped in a pair of lean muscled arms.
“Listen carefully. I’m only gonna say this once.”
Aziraphale gave him a wide-eyed stare.
“You drive me mad. I’m so fucking in love with you.” Crowley took one of Aziraphale’s hands in his own, placed a kiss on each fingertip. “Sometimes I think of how you can make me do anything. Literally anything. And it scares me. And sometimes I also think I don’t know why you put up with me, and for how long you can keep doing it, but I’ll take what I can get. And in the meantime, I’m gonna make you so insanely happy you won’t even think of being with anyone else.”
Not wanting to look pathetic, he wrapped his arms and legs around Crowley, pulling him on top of himself and half-burying his face on the crook of Crowley’s shoulder. The heat and brush of their naked bodies was quick to take over, and he could feel his lower half stirring. His tilted his hips up to Crowley’s, letting him feel it. The act earned him a raised brow and an arrogant-looking handsome smirk.
“So needy,” Crowley said as he ground his hips back.
“You can’t just say something like that and not expect me to… to be like this.”
Despite the growing mirth in Crowley’s features, he seemed not to need any more convincing as he was already lining himself up to Aziraphale’s entrance. “M’not complaining. Can’t get enough of it, in fact.”
Aziraphale whined. “Dearest, shut up.”
Moments before he was buried to the hilt, Crowley leaned down and brushed his lips on the space between Aziraphale’s brows.
Aziraphale returned the gesture with the softest of looks. “I love you so, so much.”
Crowley increased his pace then, thrusting in and out and moaning deeply. He was already beginning to lose himself into it when Aziraphale gently brought him back with a palm to his cheek and an imploring gaze. “I mean it. You must never leave me.”
“That will never happen,” was Crowley’s instant reply, and Aziraphale believed every word. “Look back as long as you want. It’s only ever been you for me.”
Such were the way of things until the day of the much-awaited board meeting, upon which Tonia Crowley descended straight from her semi-retirement ‘cottage’ in Tadfield (a six-bedroom country house built in 1789) to the company headquarters in London.
It also happened to be Aziraphale’s last day, and he was far less nervous about it than he thought he would be. He was more nervous for Crowley’s sake, as it was he who’d been an absolute mess of nerves over the past few days.
“I really don’t see why she wouldn’t pick you,” Aziraphale had reassured him. “Who else could it even be?”
“I know a handful of pricks who’d been sucking up to her for years just for that possibility.”
“None of whom are even half as capable as you are. Crowley, will you please calm down?”
“I am calm!” Crowley had all but yelled, flinging a potted plant in the air only to hastily catch it in his flailing arms. Aziraphale had let out a snort. “See? Calm.”
An hour before the meeting was set to start, she chose to stop by Crowley’s office. Aziraphale stood on his feet and greeted her from his desk.
She tipped her head at the closed double doors to Crowley’s office. “My son, is he in?”
“Not yet, but he will be shortly.”
“I’ll wait for him inside.”
Aziraphale gave a firm nod and a smile, making his way towards the doors and opening them. He led the way inside and thought briefly how strange it was that this was likely to be the last time he would be doing this. Behind him, Tonia’s heels clicked against the grey cavernous walls of Crowley’s grand office. She took one of the empty seats facing Aziraphale.
“When are you leaving?”
Despite the fact that it was only the two of them in the room, Aziraphale was shocked at being addressed directly.
“Today is my final day, ma’am.”
She nodded in understanding. “You and Anthony should come over to the cottage for lunch sometime.”
Aziraphale smiled gratefully. “I think I would like that.” The warmth in his chest flared for just a moment, being replaced by a flash of guilt. Sure she was nice to him, but that was because she thought of him as Crowley’s loyal and flawless PA. How would it be if she knew that he was dating her precious son?
“And the replacement? I talked with him earlier. I don’t quite know what to make of him.”
“Newton will need some more time, but he is very reliable and he learns quickly. I told both him and Crowley— Mr. Crowley—that they may contact me any time if they have questions.”
“Hm.” Her expression was unnervingly blank as she seemed to assess his entire being. Aziraphale wondered whether she’d noticed his slip-up, then desperately hoped she wouldn’t bring it up. Because if the slight uptick of her lip were anything to go by, she definitely noticed. “That’s all. You are excused.”
Aziraphale smiled his thanks and turned to leave the room.
“And even though you’re leaving the company, I do hope we’ll get to see you around more often.”
He froze in his tracks, ice frosting his shoulders as he gave her a doe-eyed stare of light mortification. The smug grin she wore was far too familiar, and heat blossomed on his cheeks as he mumbled in reply, “I daresay you might, ma’am.”
She grinned mischievously. “Least I know he’s done one thing right.”
Just as he was about to die from embarrassment, Aziraphale was saved from responding by the sound of the door opening. A scuffle of long strides across the marble floor instantly told them of Crowley’s arrival in the room. They locked eyes briefly in the entryway, during which Aziraphale endeavoured to give him his most encouraging smile. He only had time to see Crowley nod in return before he went on and exited the room, shutting the door behind him and leaving the two to sort one out of the handful of issues they had.
Some time later, Aziraphale was explaining some spreadsheets to Newt when the latter suddenly straightened up as Tonia left the office, with Crowley following shortly after.
Newt was quick to greet him. “Good day, Mr. Crowley!”
Aziraphale looked at him as well, smiling softly. It took all his strength not to jump into his boyfriend’s arms straight away. “Hello.”
There was a peculiar hunch to Crowley’s stature, making him appear withdrawn. His face was a calm facade, but hiding a turmoil underneath (Aziraphale could tell. He always could.) He gave a nod of his head in return and then vanished into his office.
“Doesn’t he seem off?” Newt asked when the office doors closed again. “I wonder what happened there.”
The comment on Crowley’s appearance made Aziraphale fear the worst. He was up from his seat before he even realised it.
“I’ll be right back.”
His heart was pounding as he pushed past the double doors with trembling fingers. All it took was the sight of Crowley, leaning on the edge of the desk and masking a troubled expression with a hand over his face. That was all it took for Aziraphale to start aching, and for his feet to take him across the floor before he was even aware of it. Because it was madness, as it turns out, to love someone this much.
At first he was hesitant to approach, stopping about a foot away. Crowley gave him a long look along with a tainted smile. “Well. Stuff went down.”
“Oh, Crowley…”
“She’s decided she wants me to take over.”
A huge wave of relief flooded Aziraphale, but a shred of doubt remained. “Then what’s wrong? You don’t look so glad about it.”
“Don’t I?” Crowley gave a mirthless laugh, and now that he was opening up, Aziraphale closed the remaining distance between them, leaning on Crowley’s side with a palm pressed to his shoulder. Crowley closed a hand over his. “She told me that she thinks I’m ready. I’ve spent almost half my life trying to prove it to her, but now that I’m here I’m starting to think, what if I’m not after all?”
“We’ve been over this multiple times.” He went up on his toes to brush his lips to Crowley’s cheek. “And you won’t be facing it alone.”
A twitch to the corner of Crowley’s mouth eventually gave way to a more genuine smile. Using his hold on Aziraphale’s hand, Crowley pulled him close until they were facing each other, with Aziraphale’s hair brushing the side of his jaw.
He hooked a finger under Aziraphale’s chin to bring their mouths together. Aziraphale closed his eyes into it, letting all the warmth seep into his bones. He was smiling by the time they broke apart. Crowley was staring at him wide-eyed, a thumb sweeping over his cheek. “As long as you’re on my side…”
Aziraphale chuckled breathily. “I’m always on your side. I have been for a very long time.” He leaned up to kiss him again, this one being longer and deeper than the first. He wrapped his arms around Crowley’s neck and hugged him tight. “I do love you.”
Crowley went still, and he worried whether or not that had been the right thing to say. They didn’t say it a lot in person, and Crowley said it a lot less than he did, but he couldn’t help it. He felt it so strongly that it was only a matter of time before it had to spill over.
Crowley’s arms went around his waist, soft lips brushing the shell of Aziraphale’s ear as he whispered, “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You won’t ever be without me.” The statement was sincere, but in a stroke of cheekiness, he added, “Unless you get tired of me, that is. I may be madly in love with you, but I’m too terribly good to suffer a one-sided partnership.”
Crowley huffed out a laugh. “Really?”
“Why, of course. Do you really think—“
It was at this moment that the door scraped across the floor and a dumbstruck Newt entered the room, his hand holding a document and his jaw hanging wide open. Aziraphale’s instinct was to jump back, to end up as far away from Crowley as possible. So basically, to fly. But unfortunately Aziraphale didn’t have wings, and neither did Crowley’s firm hold on him relent to even an inch of space between them, so he squeaked and buried his face in Crowley’s shoulder instead.
“What?” Crowley growled.
“I’m s-sorry! The door was open. I-I can come back later!”
“What do you have there?”
“I-I-I was just gonna ask you to sign this, Mr. Crowley.”
“Leave it on the table and scram.”
Aziraphale couldn’t see him from his position, still busy trying to dissolve his burning face in Crowley’s smooth shirt, but he heard Newt’s footsteps as he placed the document on the coffee table, then hurriedly backed away and shut the door behind him.
Aziraphale released a huge breath. “Oh my god.”
Crowley’s hand travelled up his back, stopping below his shoulderblades to give soothing circles there. “So much for keeping it a secret.”
“Oh, this is awful!”
“Why is it awful?”
“I caught him in the supplies room with Anathema just last week and-and I gave a whole speech and all!”
“Anathema Device? Wow.”
“Why aren’t you panicking?”
Crowley pulled back a little to shrug. “S’not a big deal.”
“Not a big deal!”
Crowley looked him in the eye and gently tapped the tip of Aziraphale’s nose. “Doesn’t matter to me when they find out. Think about it. This time next year we’ll be married anyway.”
Aziraphale stammered and gaped wildly. “I don’t remember ever agreeing to that timeline!”
“Oh, you will.”
If his eyebrows could arch all the way up to the ceiling, they would now, with the look of pure smugness that Crowley was wearing. He gave a long-suffering sigh. “Truly you continue to live to be a nuisance to me.”
Crowley placed a wet kiss on his cheek. “And you like it.”
That he did. Lord help him.
They retreated to Crowley’s flat later that evening and wasted no time in getting to it. The moment they got past the door, Crowley pushed him against the wall, trapping him with hands around his wrists. Aziraphale gasped as he felt Crowley’s lithe body press against his back, a familiar erection sliding between his arsecheeks while a warm pair of lips trailed up the side of his neck, leaving a wet trail in its tracks.
“That’s enough decency for today,” Crowley murmured, reaching over to palm Aziraphale’s cock through his trousers. “I missed you.”
“We were together the entire day.”
“I wasn’t talking to you.” He cupped Aziraphale more firmly. “I missed you.”
With a slight roll of his eyes, Aziraphale laughed and turned around in his arms to face him. “Did you really mean what you said earlier? About being married by next year?”
Crowley huffed out an amused laugh. “Do you really want to have this conversation now?”
“I’m not angry,” he said softly, a subtle weight squeezing his chest as he stroked Crowley’s cheek. “Only sometimes I would like to know which of the things you say are fully meant and which ones are just you wishing to get a reaction out of me.”
Crowley shifted uncomfortably. “Y-yeah. Maybe I did. But it’s, y’know, whatever.”
“Why won’t you look at me, dearest?”
“If I said it, there’s probably something in me that badly wants it.” Crowley sighed, his hands stilling on Aziraphale’s waist. “Is it too fast?”
Just like that, he was at a loss for what to reply. The best that he could do was to cradle Crowley’s face in his palms and pull him in for a deep kiss. A burst of cheekiness had him inch his hips forward just to subtly remind Crowley of his interest in the night’s proceedings.
“No,” he said as he grinned into the kiss, rubbing his palm sensuously over Crowley’s chest. “I want that too.”
Crowley’s stunning brown eyes went wide. “You do?”
“That’s not to say we should get married tomorrow or anything, but I want you to be aware that when you want to do it…” He trailed off for a moment as a blush took over his expression. “I won’t need much convincing.”
The relief that spread over Crowley’s face was immense, appearing just before he brought back his smooth grin.
Crowley backed him against the wall, his hands wandering all over Aziraphale’s body. “Now, let me remind you of one reason why you’d be wise to marry me.”
Crowley opened up the front of his own trousers and took out his cock. The sight of it alone pulled out a raspy moan from Aziraphale, and without thinking much further, he dropped to his knees and took him in his mouth.