[a/n: i'm so sorry. i'm so so so sorry, except also not, because i am trash and i love this ship so much. so much. this takes place 6-7 years in the future from the anime timeline, so Rin's 21-22 ish. i don't know what else to say. don't hate me]

1. Make the first move.

Arthur Auguste Angel's hand is frozen and outstretched in midair, halfway to grabbing the papers out of Rin's hands. He doesn't really care too much about taking them now (even if they are weeks late at this point), nor does he really want to (even though he knows he needs to). However, what he does want to do is stand up from his chair, walk out of his office, and never return to this side of the planet, ever.

"What…did you say?" Rin is shell-shocked and completely incredulous; it's almost like he's on the brink of laughter and waiting for a punchline to a joke that's not even there.

"I asked if you wanted to go and get some dinner. With me. At some point." Angel's repetition of what he'd said before is awkward, his words clipped. For a moment he debates saying something else, but he blurts out the honest answer before he even has a second to come up with something. He's fairly certain he's never been this mortified his entire life; the pranks Shura played on him when they were in high school is nothing compared to this. Rin's hand is still holding out the papers for the Paladin to take, but there's no movement or noise in the room – you could hear a pin drop.

Arthur's not sure why he decided to blurt this out now, of all times. He wasn't planning on ever acting on the thought at all, honestly. As unhealthy as the habit is, he was intending on trying to push every thought of attraction towards Rin Okumura that he'd ever had out of his head and pretend it never happened. It seemed like the better plan.

They've been frozen in their poses for a good minute or so, Arthur reaching for the papers that Rin's still holding out, both of them maintaining eye contact. Angel's been trying to read Rin's expression – mostly what he's gathered is that the younger knight is still trying to gauge whether his superior is joking. (He's still not.)

After a moment of consideration, Okumura leans forward slowly, and carefully lays the papers on Angel's desk.

"Okay, uh…Bye."

Arthur smacks his head on the desk as soon as the door is shut.

2. Move things along at a pace both of you are comfortable with.

Things don't stop feeling like a bad joke until halfway through the 3rd date (though neither of them calls it that, it's just "getting dinner"). Not to say it isn't awkward, it's still painfully so, but it finally shifts from them only getting together outside of working because it feels a bit too surreal to back out of to an understanding that yes, this is weird as hell, but it is happening, so they might as well see where it takes them.

"I still don't get it – why the hell did you ask me out in the first place?" Rin questions in between bites of his meal. He's actually been making an effort to ease the tension, and Arthur isn't quite sure why he's putting in the effort. It wasn't even his idea to go out in the first place, and he's close to asking Okumura why he even agreed to it the first time.

The Paladin raises an arm to rub his neck instinctively. "Quite honestly, I don't think I could answer that properly…" He sees Rin's expression change almost instantly at that response, and it's not too hard to guess why – mostly because he's consistently amazed by his inability to answer that question as well. There's still no solid feeling of comfort about the whole thing (this is Satan's son, after all), but there's also an annoying desire to keep spending time with the other exorcist, and to understand him more, as much as it goes against basically everything he had ever previously thought about Rin Okumura.

"You really aren't good at this 'emotions' thing, are you." Arthur shoots him a dirty look across the table, but sighs and relaxes back into his seat a moment later. It's true, no use arguing. Rin smiles a bit when he sees that Arthur's resigned on this topic. Even someone as self-absorbed as Angel would be able to tell that about themselves. The difference is, the Paladin's never really seen that as a bad thing – in his opinion, dealing with emotions isn't super high up on the list of things that would qualify someone to lead the Order.

But looking across the table at the dark haired man giving him a bemused smile, an idea stirs in the back of his mind that maybe it wouldn't hurt to try and get a little better at this whole "emotions" thing.

3. If co-workers find out, try and make the situation as clear as possible.

"Are you fuckin' with me?!" Arthur doesn't even jump as his office door slams shut, and he merely looks up calmly when Kirigakure Shura slams her fist down on his desk. Of course, he's less relaxed than he lets her see, but if there's one thing Arthur Auguste Angel is good at, it's putting on a show. "I said, are you fucking with me?!"

He offers her a wide smile, but his gaze is patronizing as can be; Shura's known him long enough to pick up right away on that. "If you're talking about Mr. Okumura, then I am not 'fucking' with you," he says before she has a chance to cut in, and that answer clearly knocks about of her anger to the side – she probably wasn't expecting such a straightforward answer. "And who told you?"

"How long?" she asks, ignoring his question; Arthur wonders if it's his imagination, because below the incredulousness there seems to be a layer of genuine caring. Even if that's not just a trick of his mind, it's probably directed towards Rin – the last time Shura took an active interest in his romantic life was when they dated, which was probably about 20 years ago. And she is his mentor, after all.

"A month." He resumes filling out the paperwork that he'd been working on when she walked in, ignoring the stare drilling holes into the stop of his head.

"And you asked him out?"

"Yes."

Shura pauses her interrogation for a second, and scoffs. The knight looks away from him, clearly still thinking he's still pulling her leg. Arthur looks up, and there's an odd expression on her face – mild confusion, at least partially, and the irate confidence she'd had when she burst into the room is gone.

"I thought you were straight," she says after a moment.

"As did I." Their eyes meet, and he shrugs a little, but a small smirk makes its way onto his face as well. "Don't worry. I don't think you were the reason I'm not now."

She narrows her eyes at him. "Ha, you're fucking hilarious." He smiles for real at that. Shura pulls the door open, but pauses before she walks out. "Y'know, even though I'm still not sure you're not jokin', you seem…" she raises an eyebrow while looking for the right word. "…I dunno how to put it. Maybe just a lil' more genuine." The red-head gives him a mildly infuriating smile as she walks out – infuriating because Angel can't figure out what she means by it.

(He gets a slight feeling that she recognizes something he doesn't.)

4. Communication is key, both in work and personal matters.

"I think we need to just move along and admit that it's official," Arthur says late one night, shifting the conversation from their talk of the day's mission. It's a quiet evening after a long day, the two of them slumped on Angel's couch, with Rin resting his head on the other knight's shoulder the moment they were both seated.

"What's official?" It feels like Rin tenses up for a second, as if to sit up straight to focus on the conversation more, but he lets his exhaustion overtake him instead and slumps back against Angel's shoulder.

"Don't be so dense on purpose." He glances over at the half-demon and resists the urge to scowl. "We've been going out for almost five months. I think that just about qualifies as – what's the term…going steady? I'm certain we're past the point where you can continue to write it off as 'nothing serious'."

"You talk like such an old person sometimes." It's a flippant response, and Angel just wants a straightforward one; he doesn't want this to turn into a big debate. And then Rin continues, under his breath, "…and you of all people shouldn't be tellin' me not to act dense…"

The blond raises his voice a bit, despite his attempts to stay calm. "Why are you so reluctant to just admit that we are, and have been in a fairly serious relationship?"

"Why are you so comfortable with admitting it?!" Arthur starts a bit at that, but jumps more at Rin suddenly standing up to look at him face-to-face than the tone of his voice. He hadn't started the conversation with the intention of it becoming an argument, nor was he expecting that reaction from the other exorcist. "A year ago you flat-out hated me, and now…!"

"I do not think I'm nearly as comfortable with it as you think I am," Arthur says, a bitter edge to the words. He doesn't stand up from the couch, but looks upwards to meet Rin's stare. He knows he shouldn't be complaining about a lack of emotional understanding, since that's certainly one of his weak points, but he doesn't know how to make Okumura comprehend this – he needs there to be a mutual acknowledgement. He's spent too long trying to allow himself into believing it's a possibility, that it's not a joke, or that the words "I love you" aren't a lie despite everything, that this isn't something he wants to let blow past and forget about.

"Then why the hell are you trying to rush things?"

"Almost five months is not rushing things!" Angel narrows his eyes, refusing to look away. "I thought you'd be the one saying we need to get on with it! I would be lying if I said I still didn't have reservations about this. I know how absurd this seems sometimes, and you know how I still have concerns about your –"

"Parentage?" Rin practically spits the word out at Arthur, but he doesn't stop talking.

"…Yes. Obviously I remember how I used to feel, and how I treated you; and how that made me so unwilling to admit I was interested in you. But," he takes a deep breath; he can't disguise the shakiness of it. "I care about you deeply, and I am willing to put my discomfort to the side if it means I can keep doing so, and I just ask that you do the same!" There's a vulnerable expression on the Paladin's face, one that the public – or really, anyone except Rin – would never be allowed to see on him. But it's a genuine one as well as vulnerable, just as his words are honest. Angel doesn't make a habit of lying – it's a sin, after all – but there's a difference between telling the truth in general and being as emotionally open as he is right now, and it takes Rin by surprise. A moment of silence passes between them, Rin looking away.

"…Sorry,"

"Sorry."

"What the hell are you apologizing for?" Rin looks at Arthur in surprise.

"I shouldn't have brought it up tonight. We're both exhausted," Arthur says, though they both know that's a bit of a farce. It needed to be talked about, and it would have eventually led to something like this no matter when it was inevitably brought up; it's just the way their personalities clash. Tonight wasn't the first time they argued, and there's no chance it will be the last.

"It's just kinda scary, y'know? Where we started from, and how much we hated each other." Rin says with a shrug, a bit of vulnerability creeping into his own voice. "I care a lot too. I don't wanna risk goin' too fast and messing things up." He pauses for a second, then laughs quietly. "Pretty funny that I'm the one saying that, I guess."

The blond doesn't respond verbally, but reaches upwards and laces his fingers together behind the other exorcist's neck. Rin doesn't resist – now that he's calmed back down, Arthur can see the fatigue creeping back. He tilts his head upward as he gently pulls Rin down until their heads are touching, eyes are inches away from each other. They stay like that for a moment, and it's enough – Arthur knows that he couldn't properly respond with words, that's not how he works. It is ironic that Okumura Rin, of all people, is worried about rushing into things and messing them up, but he doesn't need to acknowledge it out loud. And he guesses that Rin knows that he's smart enough to recognize that, at least, because he doesn't ask for clarification. Words aren't always the easiest way to get the message across.

Rin leans down a little further, and tilting his head, presses his lips against Arthur's.

5. Understand that compromises are going to be necessary if this is something you desire to pursue long-term – work and living together are two examples.

"I'm pretty sure I've asked this before, but holy shit, why do you have so many clothes?"

Arthur leans up against the doorway, holding a cardboard box full of Rin's things and smiling. "I don't see what the problem is, since your total number of different outfits is likely near the half-dozen range at most," he says with a laugh, putting the box down by his feet. "Where do you want these?"

"What's in there?" Rin asks as he pushes as many of the hangers in the closet as he can to the side, shifting a mass of starched shirts to make room for his coat. "And you wear almost the same thing to work every day too, you can't use that against me."

"A couple odds and ends – some old notebooks, a lamp that looks broken, a flashlight."

"Just leave it there, I guess. I'll look through it later." Arthur rolls his eyes, knowing very well that he'll probably end up being the one to sort it out, but complies anyways.

"I also brought the box that has all of your recipe books in it in, it's on the kitchen counter."

"Thanks – and done," Rin proclaims, shutting the closet door with a satisfied expression. Arthur's mildly impressed – he wasn't certain all of their clothes would fit in there, but it certainly makes things less complicated.

Thankfully, the overall process of Rin moving in has gone fairly smoothly, Angel reflects as he steps out of the bedroom doorway to let him through. Of course, there's still paperwork to fill out with the Order, but he can pull some strings and get that done easily.

"I'll make us some lunch, and then we can unpack the last few boxes. Are sandwiches okay?"

"That sounds fine." Arthur follows him into the kitchen, and leans against the counter as Rin goes about making the food. He's learned to enjoy watching him cook – though he does occasionally wish he was competent enough to cook for them. "We're not in any huge rush anyways. I don't have any urgently due work, and I probably won't be called in. Although," he adds slyly. "I seem to recall that I'm missing two reports that were due Tuesday and yesterday, respectively."

Rin laughs as he gathers the ingredients together and gets out the bread. "Now that we're living together, can't I just give the reports orally or somethin' like that?"

"Absolutely not. That would be showing favoritism."

"But I am your favorite, right?" Angel sighs, and Rin just laughs again as he begins putting the sandwiches together.

Arthur stares in Rin's general direction (though his back is turned to the Paladin), thinking. It's comfortable, watching him cook. The knives he's using are his own, brought from his old apartment to replace the old ones that had been rusting in Arthur's kitchen. The sweatshirt laying on the living room floor is Rin's, and although he knows he's going to complain about him being a slob later, Angel doesn't mind it too much for the moment – it's a small signifier that this isn't just his home anymore. It's both of theirs.

"Are you staring at my tail or at my ass?" Rin asks suddenly, interrupting the blond's train of thought.

"Huh?" Had he been? He hadn't even been paying attention to where he was looking, having zoned out while thinking. "I wasn't looking at eith – "

"I'm messing with you," Rin says with a grin as he grabs the two plates and walks towards the table – but not before stopping in front of a startled Arthur and tilting his head up to give him a quick peck on the lips. He's torn between being ticked off or just bemused – and then Rin looks across the room at him, still smiling, but no longer teasing. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Blurting that invitation out in his office all that time ago hadn't been such a bad idea, in the end.