"What in Merlin's name is he doing ?" I hear Bunce rant. "He should have been back at least an hour ago !"

"Come on, it's fine, what could have happened to him ?" I answer, but I'm not convinced.

I worry more than I let her know, but panicking won't solve anything. I'm surprised she gets so worked up about this, but she is certainly more concerned about Simon since he lost his magic. "We could always Compass compass where's the fairest of them all him."

That makes her laugh and she shakes her head "That spell would only work for you, I guess. And in that case, it might just indicate where you are."

"Seriously, stop overthinking, he's probably fine."

"I know you're right, but he's still not used to the world without his magic." She slumps on the couch on the other side of the room. "You're here almost as much as I am but he tries not to show it when you're around. Stupid pride thing, he just wants to impress you I guess. He struggles with some things that would be easy if he was born a Normal. I know he didn't use magic so often, and it's been a while but it's still a big change to him."

I'm not as startled as she thinks, but it pains me that Simon doesn't let me witness it. I suppose I would make fun of him for a while, I know it gets under his skin and I love him when he gets pissed. (Not only when he's pissed.) Always so full of himself and not accepting a weakness.

I sigh as a loud noise on the door makes us both jump.

I immediately pull my wand out of my pocket, out of habit. There is a knocking and a voice shouts "Come on guys, I know you're in there. I can't find my keys."

Bloody Snow. I grunt as I put my wand back in my jeans.

Bunce goes to open the door and he's just standing there, leaning against the wall, eyes half closed. "Finally, it took me for ever to come back."

"We noticed ! Where were you ? You should have been back for hours" Penelope shouts (I didn't point out that, a few minutes ago, it was barely one hour.) "You could've called, or at least sent a text !"

He simply shrugs as he walks past her, towards me. I immediately see something's not right, and I know Bunce is aware too. He stops in front of me and I raise an eyebrow.

"Hey you" he whispers before grabbing the front of my shirt and pulling me into a kiss. At first, I simply let myself enjoy the moment, his lips against mine but I pull back quickly. "Simon, are you drunk ?"

"What ? No no no, totally not."

"Did you drink ?" Bunce adds, as convinced as I am.

"Maybe a couple of beers but I'm not drunk I swear !" The surprise in his eyes isn't faked, like he just discovered the effect of alcohol tonight.

I sigh and roll my eyes, yet I feel a smile tugging at the corners of my lips, because he's so pathetically cute that it makes me want to kiss him all over.

He lets his head fall on my shoulder and rests his weight on me like he would on a wall. Thank Crowley I'm stronger than he is.

"Come on, just go over to the couch."

I walk him over to the living room when I hear him whisper in my hear "Only if you lie down with me."

"You're drunk, Snow, you'd fall asleep right away."

I put him down and try to stand upright when he catches the front of my shirt again and brings me down with him. At the last second, I put my hands on each side of his head to avoid collapsing onto him but his face is only a few inches from mine. I can feel his breath but I don't care, all I want is there in those blue eyes. All that energy, all that will. All that life.

"You're so alive" I say quietly before leaning in to kiss his forehead, then run my mouth towards the moles on his cheeks.

"So are you, how else could you make me feel this way." He wraps his arms around me to bring my body closer to his and I groan against his skin. "I still don't know if I'm gay, but I'm so crazy about you."

I let out a small laugh and feel something bump in my shoulder.

"Guys, you have a perfectly fine bedroom across the hall. I don't need to see all this display of affection."

I laugh and stand up while Simon still clings on to my arm. "Well, I can't help it apparently alcohol turns him in a koala bear."

"Come on, Baz, just sit down next to me !"

I look at him and raise an eyebrow "There is literally nowhere for me to sit, Snow, you're taking too much space." He sits up and I make myself comfortable at his side.

"Crowley, Simon, you're a mess. Have you eaten since this morning ?" He simply shrugs. "All right, I'll make you dinner and then you're off to bed." As she goes to the kitchen, I hear her mumbling something about alcohol being stupid. (Or maybe she was talking about Simon, no way to be sure.)

Simon was a total wreck, we never found out how much he actually drunk but it was definitely more than a couple of beers. He ate even more than usual, no matter what was on his plate and we simply watched him. After dinner, I leaned in for a goodbye kiss (I was supposed to go back to my own apartment) but he refused to let me go.

He kept repeating "Jesus, Baz, just stay please."

After a while, Bunce got tired of it and simply left to work in her room. I can't say I was unpleased, I don't particularly enjoy an audience when I'm with Simon. I have a reputation to maintain, and being cheesy is definitely not part of it. Not that it's not already ruined.

I agreed to lead Simon to his room, but he would just not let me leave. "Come on, Baz, I need you tonight. I... I can't sleep well when you're not here. I miss you too much, I want to hear you breathing when I fall asleep."

"You're drunk, Simon, you'll fall asleep in no time." He doesn't let go of my sleeve and I look up to see panic in his eyes. The distress on his face finally makes me give in. What I didn't say was how terrified I was to stay over. Because I've never slept next to him since that first night. Because I don't know how well I can control myself if I sleep next to him. Would I really help him doze off or just try my best to prevent him from sleeping ?I haven't fed since yesterday, would I bite him ? No. That would not happen. I do my best to keep these thoughts out of my head.

"All right, I'll stay." His eyes widen in surprise, like he didn't expect me to give in, and a smile lights up his face. It is one of those genuine, spontaneous smile that I can't resist and I kiss him hard, passionately. We both fall on the bed, my body pressed to his and I still can't believe I am allowed to touch him as much as I want. (Well, almost as much as I want.)

Simon falls asleep quickly, and I just stay there in the dark, watching him until I can't keep my eyes open anymore. Aleister Crowley, it really is a charmed life.