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Tik. Tik. Tik.
A clock quietly marking the passing seconds. Or perhaps your brain simply trying to fill the sound void in the room? You couldn’t be sure at this point.
Really, the common area was eerily quiet. Given the early hour, one would expect at least a couple of the brothers to be milling about or even just passing by occasionally. However, the news that one particular human would be visiting and hanging out with his two partners in crime at the House of Lamentation for an evening was enough to keep everybody else out of the general vicinity.
In place of the sound of arguments or general chaos you had grown used to, there was the steady crackle of the fireplace and the occasional small crinkling sound of a page turn. To be fair, the new atmosphere was pleasantly calm and you would have loved to just sink into a blissful nap, but you were feeling kind of miffed. And it as all thanks to the same human who drove the other demon brothers to make themselves scarce.
At that moment, you and Asmo were comfortably tucked onto what should have been a one person armchair after being removed from the couch. Obviously, there were other seats available. But you had honestly expected cuddles all evening, and by gosh you were getting them one way or another!
Let’s roll back a bit to explain how you came to be so deprived.
----
One Mr. Solomon, the witty sorcerer himself, had arrived at the House of Lamentation some hours after dinner post shooting a text to you saying he was on his way for a study date with you and Asmo.
Knowing Solomon and how little help the two of you could provide to any studying he wanted to do, you and Asmo had suspected that the “study date” was simply a ploy to come hang out. It had been a while, after all, with the approaching round of tests taking up most of the sorcerer’s time. This also meant the two of you were rather eager to get your hands back on him and spend most of the evening cuddling and maybe seeing where the night went from there.
That was why there was only a little internal eyebrow raising at the bag of books Solomon brought with him--of course, you figured he wouldn’t want to make the real reason for his visit too obvious. And him deciding he’d like to hole up in the common area rather than one of the bedrooms was also part of his conceit, right? Whatever the reasoning you and Asmo invented in your minds for why this was looking very much like an actual study session, it seemed expectation reigned supreme over any other logics.
Then Solomon actually pulled out one of the books.
And it wasn’t a small, for-fun-while-I-cuddle-my-partners kind of book. It was an I-should-only-be-looking-at-this-while-I-last-minute-cram kind of book. This move finally made you begin to wonder if you and Asmo had misread the situation.
Still, at least Asmo was not to be deterred by this. The second Solomon situated himself on the couch, Asmo slid up against him. Once seated, Asmo also folded his arms over Solomon’s shoulder and leaned into the sorcerer, leaving so little space between them that you speculated one would be hard pressed to guide even a sheet of paper through the gap. For Solomon’s part, he paid the demon little to no mind even when Asmo began chattering about updates he was thinking about making to his beauty routine (really, sometimes it seemed these update talks were him just liking the sound of his own voice considering he rarely applied most of the changes he talked about).
Emboldened by the scene before you, you proceeded to plop down on Solomon’s other side and, feeling a little less pushy than Asmo, waited to see if he would lift an arm to pull you in or otherwise indicate you should come closer. Unfortunately, his arm only lifted to turn the next page with a quick, calculated flip.
You frowned. Sure, you knew Solomon could get very focused when he was studying, but he had just started reading. Surely he could pay you a little more mind and tuck you into his side before really getting into it.
Meanwhile, Asmo was beginning to play with Solomon’s hair, fingers of one hand twirling together the ends absentmindedly while he cooed about how soft and silky it was. Not wanting to be left out any longer, you slid one arm under his to wrap it over the front of his chest. Your other hand came up to rest on his shoulder where you then placed your chin. From here, you stared at the side of his face, silvery eyes peeking out through a strand of white hair. He still wouldn’t look at you though, so you turned your head until it rested horizontally on the back of the couch instead.
Impatient, you blew a puff of air which moved the hair on the back of his head slightly.
That finally got a reaction out of him.
You felt the sigh reverberate in his chest as your arm rose and fell with his breathing. “Alright.” Your head lifted off the back of the couch at the sound of his voice. Was Solomon going to acknowledge the two of you? His hand lifted to cradle your head and you automatically leaned into it, eyes closing when his fingers combed against your scalp. Finally, what took him so lo--
“Off the couch for now, please. I need to focus.”
Responding to the ring of authority in his voice, you stood up in a confused haze. Solomon immediately returned to his book and you looked on in shock. Asmo looked like he was about to gloat at you for not being kicked off the couch, but watching you sulk over to the armchair, he ended up unpeeling himself from the sorcerer’s side as well. Again, this received no comment from the white-haired jerk.
So here the two of you ended up--huddled together on the armchair with you sat almost all the way onto Asmo’s lap. Admittedly, the comfiness of the position did soothe the rage in your heart the slightest bit. Still, you shivered, remembering how awfully cold that interaction felt. Asmo pulled out his DDD and began tapping away at it, catching up on social media you reckoned.
You remained quiet for some time as you gathered your thoughts. You supposed it would be pretty annoying to have two people just insert themselves into your space while you were trying to study. But you just couldn’t wrap your head around the part of this scenario where Solomon would come over to quietly read, something he could have done much more easily in purgatory hall with two angels who seemed more than willing to give him his space. Did he come just to spurn the advances of you and Asmo? Or maybe to bother one of the other brothers about a pact later that evening?
Longingly, you glanced back in the direction of the couch. Solomon hadn’t even moved to take up more space after your and Asmo’s departure. Rather, he was sat neatly on the far side of it, sloooowly making his way through the absurdly thick tome. What a waste of cuddle time and space this was.
You sighed and pressed your head more tightly to Asmo’s chest and Asmo’s non phone-occupied hand, which had been stroking your head, moved to squeeze your shoulder reassuringly.
“Solomon’s been reading for foreeeeeever.” You didn’t bother to lower your voice as you pouted out loud to the avatar of lust. The sound was muffled in his chest anyway. Plus, some childish part of you wanted Solomon to hear you whining and take pity on you. Though you did know that it would also incur endless teasing from him later, you couldn’t help feeling agitated and dissatisfied.
The steady beat of Asmo’s heart served to ground you while you waited for a response. A small change in his breathing told you that he was trying quite hard not to laugh at the way you were acting. You were tempted to pinch him in reproach, but he had successfully avoided the faux pas, so you stowed away the thought of reprimand. He tactfully avoided making a comment when he eventually spoke and simply responded, “hmmm, I also thought he meant he was coming over to play.” You lifted your head and raised an eyebrow at him for the way he said play. He shrugged innocently. “Maybe Purgatory hall is undergoing some kind of construction?”
That was an unsatisfying possibility and clearly not a very well thought out excuse. It was curious how little Asmo seemed to be dwelling on Solomon’s reasoning. At least in comparison to you. You groaned and buried your head back against his chest. Maybe you were just being dramatic. You knew you could be oddly sensitive some days and Asmo had known this man for far longer than you...
You felt one of Asmo’s arms move to the side followed by the soft tok of his phone being placed on the side table.
Asmo tapped your back with one hand and gently pushed you off him. You involuntarily whined at him in confusion and he actually did laugh this time. Then he pressed a single slender finger softly to your lips. It lingered for a second before he said, “just follow my lead.” Your eyes followed his hand as it drifted back away and, a little entranced by the smooth motion, you joined him in standing up.
Curiously, you then trailed after him while he sauntered back toward the origin of exile. And you watched in shock as Asmo nonchalantly shoved the book on Solomon’s lap off to the side.
Had you not become intimately familiar with Solomon’s mannerisms through many hours of observation, you would certainly have missed the subtle raise of eyebrows that indicated his surprise--his face remained otherwise serene as usual.
The book removal was not the end of Asmo’s plan though. Of course not. Before Solomon could do anything about his now empty lap, Asmo helped him fill it by laying down across it.
Solomon recovered relatively quickly from the intrusion. “Wha-”
“Shhhhhhhhh.” Asmo slid his arm up to press a shushing finger to Solomon’s lips, too. It seemed he was quite fond of that motion for the night. A small smile, Asmo’s equivalent of a smirk but prettier somehow, spread across his lips. “No more books. Only us.”
It was an absurd line by all means. Out of anybody else’s mouth, it would only have earned the speaker an odd look and derisive laughter. However, you could not deny there was something enthralling about the serenity and certainty with which he spoke the words into existence. Like it was some incredible truth of the universe. For a moment, you felt like you were intruding on some wonderfully intimate moment between him and Solomon and your feet turned you to leave.
Then Asmo’s gaze landed on you again for a moment and his smile warmed and invited you.
You strided over with newfound confidence fueled by that look. “Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cleaner take over of someone’s space.” You laughed good-naturedly and the levity of it pervaded the room. You thought there was a glimpse of reverence in Solomon’s eyes in reaction, but that couldn’t be. What could he have admired from you simply laughing? You casually plopped down in the little bit of space between Solomon and the armrest of the couch on the side Asmo did not occupy.
Asmo shrugged and Solomon’s cape subtly moved with him. “What can I say? I’m very good at getting into people’s personal space.”
You threw your head back and groaned. You thought you caught Solomon playfully rolling his eyes at the statement as well, but he was simply smiling his usual sneaky little smile when you looked directly at him. “Solomon, please float the book back up or something and smack him with it.”
From Solomon’s lap, Asmo’s head tilted back some to get a more direct look at you as he whined, feigning being hurt. “I thought we were on the same side!”
“Hmmm,” Solomon audibly reacting for the first time in the last couple hours startled you more than you would have liked to admit. “If that’s true, wouldn’t you deserve to be smacked, too?”
“I’m not with him!” Asmo gasped loudly at the betrayal and you automatically placed a hand on his shoulder to assure him you didn’t mean it. He giggled. Of course he wasn’t actually hurt by the statement. You knew that in your head already. Stupid hand.
Solomon raised a single eyebrow at your flimsy defense. “You two definitely came over together.” Ugh, and he was teasing you by continuing the conversation from your stupid outburst.
“Ye, well, you’re the one who came to us in the first place.” You crossed your arms and it did kind of make you feel like a pouting child, but, too late, you had committed to the pose now. You felt Solomon’s hand cup the back of your neck and, again, gently scratch at the base of your scalp. You leaned into it and sighed. Damn him for knowing your weaknesses like that. “We just want to know why you would come here to study if not to at least cuddle while you did it….”
A warm chuckle resonated through the air. You gave him a minute to respond before getting upset about being laughed off.
The hand at your neck softly pressed against the side of your face, encouraging you to turn and meet Solomon’s eye. Gold from the fireplace sparkled across the silver canvas and, for what it was worth, he looked genuinely apologetic. “Sorry, it honestly didn’t cross my mind that was the impression you two had. I just wanted to be around you two. I did miss you both after all.”
“We missed you, too.” Asmo chirped helpfully from below and you both smiled down at him. He looked awfully pleased with himself for the small contribution to the conversation.
“Sometimes I forget you two need to hear these things out loud.” Solomon shook his head and you feared he meant to pick up and leave after this little show.
“Please put down the book for a minute.” With an imploring look, you cupped your hand over the hand Solomon had rested on Asmo’s chest. “Please.”
“I suppoooooose I can be done studying for tonight.” You could tell now he was kidding about being reluctant and you smacked his arm for it. He laughed out loud and grabbed your wrist before playfully pressing a kiss to your palm.
“You’re already so smart. You can definitely be done!” You stuck your tongue out at Solomon to dampen the compliment; there was no sense giving him a more inflated ego than he already had.
“What a silver tongue you have!” He reposted, turning the joke back on you. “Come here, you charmer.” He pulled you to him for another kiss on the cheek and all the weariness toward him you were feeling earlier melted out of you.
Solomon gave Asmo a small push. When the demon lifted his head up, Solomon deftly lifted you up to lay you down between the two men. From there, he slipped down to a supine position, too. It was a tight fit, but you all managed to stay on the couch, especially when you were moved to lie practically on top of Asmo and Solomon.
Asmo, vocal as always, immediately began to complain. “We should all move to my bed instead it’s much more comf-”
Both you and Solomon’s fingers lifted to shush Asmo. Of course, in the process of shushing Asmo, Solomon’s arm wrapped around you (you internally celebrated at this). Amazingly, when the fingers left, Asmo only grumbled one small thing about limbs falling asleep before he settled down.
Solomon’s arm unwrapped from you momentarily to tug his cloak up around the three of you. You didn’t think that you all were actually going to sleep considering Asmo was definitely correct about waking up with aches if you did, but the two of them were so nice and warm…
----
Morning came and with it Lucifer spying a vague mass of limbs on the common room couch. He already knew Asmo was definitely going to be complaining about the mussed up state of his hair all morning and that the sorcerer’s cloak was going to need ironing. However, it was still too early in the morning for Lucifer to have to deal with that, so he left the trio to doze peacefully--the troubles of the waking could wait just a little longer before touching them.