Deck the Halls [open to multiple]

[has_a_horn]

On the morning of Sunday, the city is free of the heavy snow that had hit it the week before, and a gentle dusting of snow itsfalling. And, if you happen to live in one of the angel-run buildings, you'll find that the entire front of each building has been lit up in festive colors.



On the other side of town, Gabriel is taking a more hands-on approach to decoration. He has a ladder propped up against the side of the building and a big coil of multi-colored lights slung over his shoulder. If things to hang the lights on appear suddenly out of the brick front of the building as he goes, that's just a matter of convenience. Gabriel is in a good mood today. It seems a little strange to be decorating for a holiday that he's not even sure exists in the same way here that it did back in his own universe, but it's nice to be celebrating something after a month of grief and worry and bad decisions.

[ooc: come throw a snowball at gabe's head or help him decorate :3]

Comments

[johnny_truant]

"It's okay," Johnny says quickly, relieved to have that well-worn conversational path come up after so much weighty confession. Reassurance is an easy thing to jump to. He has no idea how to respond to any of the rest of it - being a kind of home for Gabe, for anyone, is not something he could possibly have predicted for himself, it's a future he didn't think he had. It makes him happy, which is a weird feeling, and he has no idea how to express it other than to hold on a little tighter, to smile quietly to himself, to tell him it's okay. "It's okay," he says again, for good measure, stroking his hand along Gabe's arm. He lies there for a long moment, letting their breathing synchronize, trying to get used to feeling this good.

"Now I really don't know what to say," he admits on a nervous giggle. "Being that for somebody... like... being 'home', it's kind of, uh, antithetical to me as a concept. But I'm... I'm glad that I can be that. Cause I like having you around."

He pushes himself up on his elbows, folding his arms across Gabe's chest and smiling at him. "I'm sorry about the mess."

[has_a_horn]

Gabriel shifts up a little bit and smiles softly, grateful that Johnny is here and making an effort to understand him. He likes being here to see Johnny slowly discover just how much love he deserves. It's a slow process, but one Gabriel is determined to continue for as long as possible. Every moment like this one is a reason for Gabriel to hold tighter to this place and this life.

After a moment, he lifts a hand to trace a loose cross on Johnny's forehead.

"Bless this mess." He giggles, and his smile shifts wider.

[johnny_truant]

Johnny lets his eyes fall shut when Gabriel touches him, feeling unusually serene even as the corners of his mouth tic up at the little joke. When his eyes open again they fall upon Gabe and he has the odd and briefly dizzying sensation of seeing him for the first time. Gabriel, Archangel of the Lord, the third who is set over all the powers, patron of messengers, clerics, stamp collections - this goofy fucking nerd smiling up at him, this overwhelming divine being finding solace in him, Johnny of the fake last name - what would his mother say? Would Pelafina be proud to know he's dating a real honest-to-God angel?

Why should he care what she thinks? Why is he even thinking about her?

He blinks, refocuses - he figures his mind has only wandered for a moment but he still feels like he's waking up and it's obvious he's been somewhere else. He smiles, sort of embarrassed at himself, then he leans in toward Gabe and kisses him. This is it, this is the whole point: that old world isn't home anymore, can't shackle him anymore, and yes Gabe is overwhelmingly complex but he's also beautifully simple, just this guy who loves Johnny more than Johnny ever thought anyone would, could. Gabe is home.

He shifts up slightly, letting his hands come to rest on either side of Gabe's head, thumbs brushing the soft edges of his ears, fingers sliding into his hair. He pulls back and regards Gabe with a smile that's both playful and amazed.

"Uhh," he says, a little breathless. "Hi."

[has_a_horn]

Gabriel sees Johnny drift off and then refocus, but Johnny's smile is enough to convince him that it's nothing to worry about at the moment. Instead, he smiles against Johnny's kiss. He returns the kiss gently, then pulls back with a pleased sigh when Johnny shifts away. The hands in his hair are a welcome addition. Johnny looks happy right now, and that's the best possible thing that could have come out of this conversation.

Gabriel pushes one hand under the hem of Johnny's shirt and idly brushes along the small of his back as he looks back up at him.

"Hey, handsome," he replies, smirking as he lifts his other hand to brush back through Johnny's hair and bring him back down for another kiss. This really is the best possible place for him and he can let himself be happy here, at least while Johnny is around for moments like this one. There will always be things he's going to worry about, but right now Johnny is safe and happy and Gabriel feels amazed that they've both come so far.

He's considering whether he wants to suggest more cocoa and cuddles or a move to the bedroom when his phone dings out a text tone. Gabriel huffs out a breath and lifts his head to kiss the corner of Johnny's mouth, then reaches out to grab his phone off of the coffee table.

"Just lemme make sure no ones been turned into a duck." Or any number of other horrible options, but he'd rather not darken the mood. He smiles when he sees that it's a text from Cole. He reads it, then turns his phone around for Johnny to read. "He's so sweet. I should let him know we ended up gazing into each other's eyes instead of fighting."

[johnny_truant]

Johnny snorts out a laugh at that - being turned into a duck will never not be a ridiculous possibility, regardless of how often that kind of thing seems to happen around here - and then softens again into a smile when he sees the avalanche of words from the kid who started all this. He takes the phone to skim through it a few times. It's a little embarrassing, seeing their feelings laid out like that, like Cole can just see into their hearts even better than they can.

"Man, what's his deal?" he asks, handing the phone back. "Is he like... psychic?"

Ordinarily that would scare him, but he can't find it in himself to harbor any resentment toward Cole, since without him he doesn't know when he'd have found out about what Gabe tried to do. That doesn't need to be mentioned. Johnny shifts back off Gabe to allow him to sit up, but keeps his hands close, on his shoulder, on his thigh, the back of his neck, wherever it feels natural to drift. He wants to stay close, in contact.

[has_a_horn]

"Mn." Gabriel nods, and takes the phone back to text to Cole that he didn't mess anything up for him and Johnny. "Something like that. I don't really understand what he is yet. I think it has a lot to do with empathy."

He looks down at his phone and laughs when a new message comes through. "Definitely new to humanity. He doesn't know emojis." He tips the phone so that Johnny can see the small conversation. He tips it back, and a couple minutes later he sets the phone back on the coffee table and leans into Johnny, his forehead rests against Johnny's temple. He nuzzles there, smelling Johnny's skin and his hair and memorizing the feeling of comfort that this moment gives him.

"He was the first one there. In the clearing, after the TARDIS." He pulls away a little and threads his fingers up through Johnny's hair. This probably isn't a good topic to bring up, but it does explain neatly what Cole is to him. He huffs out a laugh that isn't particularly mirthful, but not lacking amusement entirely either. It's strange to him that such intense pain would bring someone like Cole into his life. It's an odd consolation, but not an unwelcome one. "He felt how I was feeling and came to see what was wrong."

[johnny_truant]

Well, Cole isn't the only one who has reserves about the so-called 'emojis'. Johnny smirks at the line full of cartoon faces and is about to say something to that effect when Gabe's weight is eased back against him, and all that becomes suddenly very unimportant. Johnny closes his eyes and smiles, just enjoying the moment for what it is, or trying to, trying to accept it with an open hand and not cling so tightly as to break it. It's nice. It's his. He lets his fingers curl and uncurl gently around Gabe's arm, not gripping, just a light, easy touch.

When Gabe pulls back and speaks again it's a little jarring, not just the loss of contact but what he's saying.

"Oh," says Johnny softly, and he can't keep his expression from slipping into something sad, or maybe uneasy. He's not sure what to say. He reaches up and takes Gabe's hand, pulling it gently from his hair and down to his mouth, kissing his knuckles. Stupidly romantic. Just feels like the thing to do.

"That must have been..." He's not sure what. Feels like a sentence he shouldn't even have started. His eyes dart down; he keeps a grip on Gabe's hand, waiting for him to fill in the blanks.