A/N:

Hi everyone! Yay, it's time for the second half of the pole dance date : ) Lots of flirting and fun and some drama too. Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy!

Partners

Chapter 59:

Pole Dance Denouement - Part 2

Standing by his chair now, Alastor tried not to glow as he removed his bowtie and set it aside. When he found Angel eyeing him with a curious smile from the stage, he cleared his throat. "Your dancing seems to require a lot of freedom of movement. I figured I would start small in terms of un-confining myself." He shrugged sheepishly.

Angel nodded. "I get it. Speakin' of which, do ya mind if I lose this vest? If I keep this leather on me too long, I'm gonna start sweating, heh…"

Alastor swallowed, his smile very big. "Of course not. Feel free…" He felt like static electricity was gathering at the back of his neck as Angel removed the vest and then stretched up with his arms. Alastor had never seen his entire upper body, pink heart and all, on display like this. Angel's masculine and feminine charms were truly beautiful to admire. And when Angel turned around and Alastor saw twin pink parallel lines running down the center of his back, the Radio Demon's tail wagged as he imagined the perfect stack of vertebrae below the skin, probably like long pearls in the exquisite necklace of his spine.

Angel held onto the pole and turned back to his date. "Ready, Al?"

Alastor quickly nodded and scrambled up onto the stage. He came to stand close to the pole, opposite Angel. "At your service, Anthony."

Angel chuckled — always a very pretty sound, to Alastor. "Okay, first let's get a feel for the pole. Wrap both hands around it, one of top of the other, just above your head."

Alastor did so.

"Good! See how it's stable but also smooth so you can move around it? Your gloves should help a lot with grip actually. Now, hold on tight and stand on your toes, like you're seeing if you can pull yourself up, just to get a feel for it."

Alastor nodded and tried. Already he found his arms straining a bit at the exertion required to pull himself against gravity at this angle. He suspected he would only last a brief moment if he tried to lift his feet entirely from the floor. He set his heels down and caught his breath. "My, that certainly does take some skills. I have to confess Angel, I may rely a little too much on other demons and my tentacles for manual labor, ha…" He shrugged sheepishly.

Angel just smiled gently. "Al, even if you were running laps around the hotel each morning and doing lift sets using Niffty, doing this might still be hard for ya. Pole dancing uses muscles most people don't normally use. Also I got the advantage of having triple the arm power. My point is, we all gotta start somewhere. The first time I tried, the fur on my hands was so soft that I slid down the pole and I ended up on the floor." He shrugged sheepishly.

Alastor held back a small chuckle. "Thank you for the encouragement. I'm glad to know my experience is normal."

"Of course." Angel took hold of the pole above his own head and stepped in close. "Now I'm gonna show you a good beginner move. Step back for a sec and you can watch first."

Alastor released his hands from the pole and did so, watching with interest.

"It's called a simple spin. You just plant one foot down under you, lift up your other leg and wrap it around the pole, let your hips fall back, hold on tight with your hands, and follow your top leg around to let yourself spin. Like this!" Angel positioned himself, and shifted his body around; his leg, followed by the rest of him, twirled once around the pole perfectly. Angel stood tall and stepped back. "Okay, now you give it a shot."

Glowing, Alastor stepped forward, positioned his hands and legs, and leaned back his hips. Angel gave his form a thumbs up. Alastor took a deep breath and tried to bring his leg around and let his body follow. It was choppy at first, but eventually he twirled around the pole more or less.

"Nice!" Angel clapped. "Just let yourself get a feel for it, and it'll smooth out. You got all the time you want, and I'm here to spot you."

Alastor nodded, determined, and attempted the move again. He almost dropped too low coming around and ended up on the floor. He pulled himself up. He tried again — another choppy one. He tried again — he made it around in a smooth if very slow turn. His eyes brightened at the progress.

"There ya go!" Angel beamed, clapping his hands together.

Alastor laughed…chuckled…it actually sounded more like a giggle, but he didn't care. He was having fun, and he hadn't let himself do that for so long in his life and afterlife. He hooked his leg and spun around again — smooth and fast this time! He tried a couple more times to make sure he had the hang of it — all successful! Now he attempted a turn where he pulled his hips as far back as he could to see how wide and free of a twirl he could manage, but when he came around he stumbled over his feet and pitched backward, barely holding onto the pole in his surprise.

"Whoa! I got ya, Smiles!" Angel instantly caught him as best he could to keep the deer demon upright. "There…whew!"

And now there Alastor stood, dipped back in Angel's apparently quite strong arms. One of the spider's limbs was around his back and one rested on the hip above Alastor's now bent knee, his foot popped up in the air.

The Radio Demon's long hair fanned out behind him as he looked up into Angel's perfect mismatched eyes while Angel looked down at him with such care and love.

Alastor made the discovery that he found this position quite lovely.

"Wow," Angel remarked, blinking a couple times and tilting his head. "You know, when your hair goes back like that, it almost looks like it curls at the ends. I never noticed that before…"

"I…It curled in life. Not as much down here though…because of how I clean and style it…with oils. I think I told you once…"

"It's real pretty…"

"Indeed?" Alastor's voice cracked, and for a moment wanted nothing more in the world than to be pretty. At this point he suddenly processed the placement of Angel's hands. His eyes went very wide and his smile quirked up at the side. "Er, thank you for your assistance, Angel! I suppose I got a little carried away with my spinning. It really was quite fun."

"Heh, I'm glad you had a good time." Angel removed his hands with a swallow, letting Alastor lower his leg and right himself. They stood close to each other with only the pole between them. Angel was blushing a bit. "You got the hang of it real fast. You're a natural." He swallowed with a shy smile. "Thanks for letting me teach you. I just really wanted to share this part of what I do."

"I enjoyed being part of it — truly," Alastor assured gently. "I don't often try unfamiliar things. But with you…there's nothing to fear." He chuckled. "I haven't been bored for a moment since we met, you know."

Angel's smile grew. "You're nice to be around too, Smiles — ever since we met… and especially ever since we got together. Nothing to fear…" Then his eyes drifted down, and Alastor tilted his head as he realized they had fallen to his chest, just below his open collar button.

Angel spoke. "Speaking of getting together, it's been a while since I thought about, uh…your angel burn. From the Radio Tower. It's still all better, right?"

Alastor nodded. "Oh, yes. Just a pale scar. Otherwise nothing ever since you and I…ever since I let you care for me and let myself care for you." He glowed more.

Angel nodded. "Good. That's real good."

Alastor swallowed and felt a desire to be daring. "Would you like to see it? The scar? If it would comfort you, I mean." One of his ears went down. "Or perhaps it would be discomforting to you? I'm not certain."

Angel's eyes widened. "No! I mean, it would be nice to see it healed. If…that's really okay?"

Alastor nodded and carefully undid his next two upper buttons. He tugged open his shirt slightly. The tail ends of some other scars were visible at the edges, those in deep brown colors. But the white scar front and center over his heart was clear and unmistakable.

Angel's eyes hazed. "It's a relief, seeing it better. I was worried for a while after the radio tower fight that…you know, you…uh…wouldn't be okay." He blinked and quickly brushed away a tear as his eyes went back up to Alastor's. "I was scared, heh…"

Alastor's eyes hazed. "The one thing I never ever wish to do is scare you, Anthony."

Angel blushed a little and nodded, his smile returning.

Alastor took a breath. "You…may touch it if you like. After all, you already did while tending the wound when it was fresh. I would not mind getting to be awake this time, ha…"

"I…I'd really like that if you'd really like that, Al." Angel's voice was soft.

Alastor swallowed nodded.

Angel reached out, hesitated, then lightly pressed his fingertips to the white scar over Alastor's heart. He blushed, his gaze meeting Alastor's again. The Radio Demon's eyes were wide at the moment, his smile suddenly small. Angel noticed. "Al…is this okay or is it kind of…caprese sandwich, heh?"

A small snort of a laugh escaped Alastor. "No, nothing like that. I just… never thought I'd find someone whose touch I could enjoy." He glowed.

Angel smiled. "I'm real happy this feels good for you." He let his whole palm rest gently over the scar for a moment. Then slowly he moved his hand away.

"Anthony!" Alastor heard his voice crack a little with feedback but didn't care. His wide eyes looked up into the spider's.

"Yeah?" Angel blinked, head tilted; such a charming and excellent listener.

Alastor gripped the pole tightly and said what was on his mind. "You recall…from our previous date…your offer to…" his whole head felt overheated, "to kiss all of my scars, to make them feel loved? Would you like to start with this one? Now?"

"I…" Angel's voice cracked. "That's…wh…huh?"

"Unless you're feeling a bit…jambalaya?" Alastor barely managed to joke.

"No! I…" Angel held the pole tightly too. "I just…heh…I think I'm just scared of trying and going a little too far before we pull back. Messing things up. I want all your first times with things to be good, remember?" He blushed more, the pink coming down toward his chest.

The heat and glow in Alastor's features increased. "Rest assured I am quite aware that in order to understand my limits, some accidental overstepping may occur. But I think if we go slowly we will certainly minimize the risk. One kiss…on one new part of my body…is quite reasonable. And I am curious…" He admitted the last part in a whisper.

Angel whispered too, his head tilted down toward Alastor's. "Tonight is about taking care of you…curiosity included." He nodded. "I'll do it. Real gentle and slow then, Smiles…" Angel leaned in close and pressed his lips to the space over Alastor's heart.

Alastor clung to the pole and felt like someone had just set a live wire to his body. It wasn't necessarily a bad feeling or a good feeling, just a big feeling. But as it went on his eyes started to drift closed. Because at the end of everything he was near Angel and that's what he liked about right now. He felt the spider's lips pull away, and instantly he couldn't stand the chill on his skin after such a sudden blissful burst of warmth and comfort and love.

So it was true then — Angel's kisses to his scars really could make them and him feel loved.

He wanted to hold that feeling again… And the scar over his heart certainly wasn't the only one on his chest that could be used to try recapturing it.

"Alastor?" Angel said softly. "You okay? I mean, was THAT okay?"

Alastor's gaze finally drifted up to Angel's. He felt tears pricking the corners of his eyes and was thankful as they burned off before falling. He nodded. "I want…to try some more. It was very… Ha, another thing I never thought I'd find in life or death is someone who enjoys touching me." The tears were too big now, and a few managed to roll down his bright face. "I assumed I was too different and no one would ever tolerate how I am about…everything." He wiped at his face quickly. "My apologies! Intimacy dredges up many emotions, ha!"

"Hey, shh…." Angel brushed his fingers through Alastor's hair and put a hand lightly on his shoulder. "Yeah, it does. It doesn't have to be bad though as long as you got someone who cares about you to help you work through the emotions. Like, for example, I never thought I'd find someone who I wanted to be with…for the long haul. Someone who looked at me and saw a person worth knowing, not just worth fucking. But here we are. And it's a lot but it's so great." He sighed and wiped at a tear of his own then pulled back to see Alastor's now dry but still wide-eyed face. "Listen, why don't we stop here for now? We can always do more later."

Alastor considered, and his cheeks glowed cherry red. "I know. But, er…this is my first time letting myself be touched like this. I don't want it to end just yet." His eyes hazed…and his hand popped open one more button. His voice was low. "Will you kiss just a few more scars, Angel? S'il vous plaît…?"

Angel smiled and blushed and nearly giggled. "Not fair — I fucking love when you speak French."

"I'll really have to give you the full experience of that skill of mine one of these days, mon ange," Alastor replied playfully.

Angel tilted his head with a curious smile but then just laughed and moved closer. "Gonna still go real slow and gentle; I wanna savor this too. I got ya, Smiles — now let me take you somewhere good." And then he leaned down, and Alastor felt gentle kiss after gentle kiss planted upon the scars at the top of his chest. He didn't even mind being exposed with Angel's fluff and hair covering most of him. Alastor relaxed and let his strong, tall, masterful spider take the lead, each of Angel's kisses undoing a small knot of shyness inside of him and making him warm. He felt empowered and adored and beautiful, like he was a delicacy being sampled. And all of those feelings made his jaw relax and his smile soften and his blood race.

A desire to share more of Angel's warmth and safe presence made Alastor move closer until they were flush together around the pole, his legs straddling the structure slightly. As the kisses continued, he realized with interest that all of Angel's attention and ministrations coupled with the light friction of his leg around the pole might have the capacity to make him feel… 'turned on', as the spider might say. That experience was one that usually only claimed him in the frenzy of a fine kill, his heart pumping and the scent of fresh meat in the air and the knowledge that he was an unstoppable force of unholy nature. With Angel in his life, part of him had been hoping that other lovely experiences might replace the more deranged ones as an impetus for arousal, and now maybe that hope was coming to pass while he was tucked in the embrace of his beau — the only person in eternity whose embrace he had ever welcomed in such a passionate way.

Of course, Alastor also recognized that his physical response might easily go no farther this evening than the current flush of heat in his stomach and an amusing compulsion to press his hips agains the pole more (grateful for the cover it offered in the event of anything getting out of hand). In which case, he and Angel would finish their ministrations and separate, and Alastor would have a cold glass of sarsaparilla to put his body fully back at ease. But then later perhaps…he would consider letting Angel know what had nearly happened. The notion didn't embarrass Alastor at all. In fact, sharing about the surprising development felt like a good way for them both to understand better what he liked. Angel wouldn't make anything awkward…he would just listen and smile as Alastor glowed and fell more under his beau's spell.

One of Alastor's hands drifted through Angel's lovely hair as the spider's slow kisses finished with the scars that were visible. "Anthony…" He sighed. "Perhaps your mouth will find its way to mine for a kiss soon, hmm?"

Angel hummed happily and pulled back from his chest. "You got it, mio cervo." A path of chaste kisses made their way up Alastor's neck, over his jaw, up to his cheek. He was in a heaven of their own making as Angel's lips pulled back one final time and the spider let their foreheads touch. "Tongue or just lips, handsome?"

A spark passed between Alastor's ears, and he felt like he had nearly short circuited. "I…just…our usual…please. I believe we're nearing my limit…"

"The audience is never wrong," Angel purred.

Alastor swallowed and made himself ask quickly, "When we're done though…I know it's only a few steps away, but…would you carry me to bed?" Every circuit in his head felt utterly molten. "For resting! A-And dinner." His voice cracked. "If you're not too tired from lifting yourself so much this evening to do the same to me of course, ha…"

Angel's eyes hazed tenderly, his voice so warm and sure. "Oh Smiles, I'd carry ya to bed every night if ya wanted and all over hell too. If that's what you'd like, that's what you get." He whispered now, "Want me to scoop you up like I did the other night, or, uh…you wanna wrap your arms and legs around me from the front and I'll hold you close around your hips?"

Alastor could not think of the mechanics of that second option without his head filling with static. "The first one please! Scooped in your arms. I would enjoy such care. Thank you." Face glowing so much his cheeks were rosy, Alastor suddenly couldn't resist a laugh that came out blatantly as a giggle. Maybe Angel would even carry him in all six of his strong arms if he dared ask, and the whole whimsical notion seemed like entertainment brought to new heights.

Angel's eyes brightened at his response. And then the spider connected their mouths beautifully as their bodies wrapped around each other and the thin pole that divided them, like they had never been meant to be apart and were always destined to come together.

When they finally separated, breathless, Angel rested his head on Alastor's shoulder. "That was all good…real good…Oh Alastor." He sighed. "You good too, big guy?"

Alastor just nodded, shy and giddy in a way he'd never let himself be.

Angel smiled more. "Bed in a minute but…can we just hug first?" Angel moved a hand lightly around his back to continue their embrace in a gentler way.

Alastor savored their intimate closeness and his hand around Angel's bare back. He tried not to shiver as he felt the muscles there flex with each breath. His eyes hazed as he rested his head on Angel's shoulder as well to make their contact complete.

How he felt about Angel was something truly special. He wish he had a simple word for it, like how Angel used the word 'love' for his own feelings. But for now, no overthinking or puzzling things out; he just wanted to savor being here and being together.

And then everything inside of him lurched to a sickening stop as he looked to the window across the room and saw some movement in the thin space between the drapes. A figure…or two…looking in.

Molly had peeked through the window first…and her eyes had widened.

"Molly?" Niss raised an eyebrow.

She turned to him, panicked. "Nothing! There's nothing in there! We should go do something else, anything — uh, what's that?" She pointed behind him.

Niss just raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? What's going on?" He sighed and tried to look past her.

"No! And shhh! Niss!" They struggled and bumped into the window and then both of them turned to peek inside…and caught sight of a pair of black and red glowing eyes just behind their brother. Instantly, a tentacle shot right through the glass, wrapping tightly around the siblings.

A wave of humiliation and shock and then rage had come over Alastor, and with a defensive snarl and his eyes flickering to radio dials, he had gripped his hand until blood fell and a tentacle rose up and shot right for the window. It blew past the drapes, shot through a pane, and wrapped around two solid figures.

Angel blinked and turned around, clinging to Alastor. "Smiles! What's going on?"

"SPIES!" Alastor hissed, static lacing his voice at the notion that someone had dared to witness his intimacy with Angel. He snapped away the remains of the window and pulled the spies inside.

They were two spiders, a lady and a young man, in dark coats and hats.

Mob spiders — Alastor was ready to give them quite the tussle.

Then Angel spoke. "Holy fuck! It's Niss and Molly!"

Alastor's entire nervous system shut down for a moment as his tentacle failed and Niss and Molly felt to the floor.

Molly looked at the scene uncertainty but then couldn't help herself and ran to Angel. "Marrona Mia, at least you're not hurt, I was so worried! Why don't you answer your phone?! Or Husk? And did you know the landline was cut?"

"I was on a date?!" A bewildered Angel replied. "And Husk had dinner in his room and went to bed early. And the mob probably cut the line to be old school!

Niss stood up and dusted himself off. "And what grabbed us?! Or who…" His eyes found Alastor as Molly bit her lip nervously.

Alastor was stuck unblinking and unmoving…from surprise, from confusion…and also now from embarrassment. Because the moment his anger had receded at this revelation of the identity of the voyeurs he realized that executing such a sudden attack against two enemies must have been the last satisfying adrenaline push his body had needed for his lower half to finally succumb to arousal. So just stood there now, beyond frozen, unblinking and inbreathing and holding onto a pole for his dignity.

All three spiders were looking at him now. Everything became too much, and he was not okay, and he couldn't be stared at any longer especially not with the risk of his humiliation being revealed. With a snap of his fingers he disappeared, the window was repaired, and the shattered glass was gone.

"Where'd the Radio Demon go?" Molly asked, concerned.

"Who…?" Niss raised an eyebrow. "Wait…wait…" He looked around the room at the pole and chair and drink glasses then back to his brother who was flushed and wearing only leather pants. "Fongul, are you DATING the ALASTOR the RADIO DEMON? Rosie and Mimzy's Alastor?" He glanced at Molly who wouldn't confirm but couldn't deny, then he looked back at his brother.

Angel sighed very deeply and sat on the stage platform. "Yeah, and this was really bad timing, you two! Why would you…how…ugh, and was something wrong with the front door?" He scowled.

"Yeah, it's swarming with Pops/ men — looks like he tripled patrols on this place!" Niss gestured to the window. "There's even goons on the fire escapes now. We saw it from Pen's airship and got worried that they'd invaded or something when we couldn't get in touch with you." He sighed and looked away awkwardly. "I'm sorry we interrupted…whatever you were doing."

Molly was frowning, wringing her hands. "Maybe I should go talk to him…"

"No!" Angel's eyes widened. "That is the LAST thing he needs right now. You don't understand, he's…private." He blushed a little. "Look, just…I'll try to talk to him. You two get comfortable. Borrow some pajamas — you're staying the night cuz I'm not working out how to get you two back on the airship right now without starting a crime family war. We'll all sleep in here. I gotta go find Al. Do NOT wander off." And then Angel went out into the hall.

Molly and Niss shared a concerned look then slowly got rid of their coats and went to the dresser to find something to wear.

Angel searched Alastor's office, the kitchen, the garden… He couldn't find the Radio Demon anywhere. He even turned on a radio and tuned in just to check if perhaps he'd decided to do a show…but nothing.

Angel sighed, Fat Nuggets in hand now as he walked down the hall upstairs (he had picked up the little pig from the shadow's care in Alastor's office and had…given the shadow a quick explanation of what had occurred). Maybe Alastor needed to work off some steam and had gone hunting or something. He would come back soon, and then Angel could talk to him and hopefully everything would be okay. Everything NEEDED to be okay… He still wanted all of Alastor's first times (and all of his times in general) to be good ones. Alastor had to give him a chance to make this one better.

Angel went back to his room eventually.

Molly and Niss were sitting on the bed, Molly in a set of his pink sweatpants and a sweatshirt and Niss wearing one of Angel's white undershirts and a pair of black shorts. They were both frowning.

"Where is he?" Molly instantly asked.

Angel set down Nuggets and swallowed to hold back some tears. "I don't know."

"I am so fucking sorry, Tony!" Niss was up, arms out, tears in his eyes. "I can't…I've gotta apologize to him too. Fuck! He puts me up in his territory, keeps me safe, and I go and…" He wiped at the tears as Molly stood and held his shoulders.

She wiped a tear from her eye as she turned to Angel. "We didn't mean ta ruin the night. What can we do?"

Angel watched them. Molly, his sister, finally back in his life, her lower lip wobbling like she was convinced she'd destroyed the world. And Niss, who he barely remembered showing any emotion in life, actually crying. They had both come here just to keep him safe. He couldn't be mad; though he wasn't okay with what had happened either. He took a breath. "Just go to bed. He'll come back eventually…he always does after he gets startled. I'm gonna go sleep in his room in case he shows up there. I'll get you both in the morning. Stay out of sight til then so the mob doesn't figure out you're here before we have a chance to talk. I'll…ask Cherri to pick up your clothes from the airship, Molly, and yours from the colony, Archie." He rubbed his head. "I just…I need to be alone for a bit, while I wait for him. I don't like when he's hurt…and I miss him when he goes." He sniffed. Nuggets came over and nuzzled his leg. Before he could start in with the waterworks now too, Angel patted his head then grabbed some pajamas out of his dresser and headed out of his own door as Nuggets hopped onto the bed to join the spider siblings.

Molly looked down at the little pig, her lip trembling, eyes wide and shining with tears. She took him in her arms and laid down on her side, knees pulled in.

Niss took out his phone and sent Sir Pentious a quick message that the hotel was safe for now but that some stuff had come up and they were going to spend the night. And he added that he was missing the snake already. When Pen sent back a heart, Niss tried not to get too flustered. He focused back on Molly, still looking so defeated.

Niss sat on the other side of the bed, frowning. "Molly…I texted Pen that everything's okay. In the morning we can figure out how to make things up to Tony and his, uh…Alastor." He blushed. "But for now I think you need to get a good night's rest. We still don't know what Pops will do next."

Molly's eyes were hazed in sadness. "He seemed hurt…the Radio Demon. I know he's a big, scary overlord who's done a lot of stuff. I wanted ta make sure he was good enough for Tony, and I wanted ta make sure he knew how special our brother is, and I wanted ta make it clear I was gonna be here now to stand up for Husky. But I didn't want to hurt Alastor. Or Angel. And now both of them are hurting…"

Niss laid down, facing her. "I've been staying with Alastor's friends Rosie and Mimzy in Cannibal Colony. They got a lot of respect for him and always talk about how he's a good boss. I didn't want to hurt him either, Molly." He sniffed then reached out and put his hand on top of Molly's hand that was resting on Nuggets. "We'll make it right. For Alastor and for Angel. Cuz that's what families do." He smiled a little. "And if worse comes to worse and we need a big dramatic distraction to make everyone forget about tonight, I'll try comin' out like you said — standing up with jazz hands and shouting 'I'm gay' with a big smile on my face."

A small smile finally broke on Molly's features and she wiped away a tear. "Maybe when this is all better and everyone's had a chance to talk…all of us could try a triple date? Even if it's just dinner here or something. Angel can cook dinner and you could make dessert, and I'll go with Husky to find us a good wine. We could all get to know each other real good."

Niss blushed and smiled shyly. "We could probably work something like that out eventually. It'd sure be interesting." He removed his hand and shut off the light. "Night, Molly. Night, uh…Nuggets." He blinked and smiled sheepishly at the pig. "Heh, sorry, we never got properly introduced before. Makes sense that you're more comfortable with Molly right now. But anyway, I'm Angel's brother Archie — good to meet you and sweet dreams."

Nuggets wagged his tail at him in the dark, and the sight made Niss feel better.

Molly chuckled softly then yawned and slowly closed her eyes. "Night, Archie." She was passed out almost right away, snoring lightly.

Niss eventually drifted off too, hoping for the best with his brother come the morning.

Out in the hall, Angel had no idea if the front door of Alastor's room would open for him, but since the deer demon's office door opened for him these days he figured there was a good chance (he hadn't wanted to use their secret door in his room and expose it to Molly and Niss — Alastor had gotten enough private stuff exposed tonight already). Angel felt relieved when the door did indeed give way. He hoped for a moment to see the deer demon…but the room was empty, lights low.

Angel pulled on his nightclothes, climbed into the bed, and held a pillow close, inhaling deeply. "Why don't ya have a cell phone, Smiles? Then I could at least text ya and let you know it's not all bad and that I'm waiting for you… And maybe you could let me know how you are too." He closed his eyes; the tears started to fall, quiet and hot. He'd felt the humiliation pulse off of Alastor in waves as he'd clung to the pole in fright. He knew how much Alastor had wanted to make a good impression on his siblings, and now the deer demon had lost the chance to go through with all the little plans he'd probably made to make it perfect. Worst of all…Alastor had let himself explore and be vulnerable and had met Angel's seductive side head on for the first time…only to have the privacy he needed shattered. He must have felt so upset. And Angel couldn't do a thing to help him until he returned.

He looked at the radio on the nightstand in the dark. "Please come back soon, Alastor. I love you. It'll all be okay — I'll make sure of it." He closed his eyes, crying quietly for a little longer until he fell asleep.

Alone in his penthouse apartment in Cannibal Colony — the only isolated safe place he had been able to think of — Alastor finished taking care of his physical situation courtesy of a cold shower followed a few minutes lost in radio waves and blood magic. Then he laid on his bed in the dark, curled up and feeling sick. He'd been seen enjoying himself with Angel in a special way, and by Angel's siblings no less; these two weren't demons he could avoid or kill…he would have to see them and talk to them for the rest of his afterlife. And now they might assume that on top of being a murderer and a snob he was also a cad who just used their brother for gratification like one of his customers. Even if the pole had hidden the worst of the situation, he still couldn't bear the thought of even looking them in the eye. And he couldn't bear how he'd left Angel behind with no explanation, but he just couldn't tell him the truth...

Angel's kisses had left him pleasantly excited, but nearly striking a deathblow to an enemy had been the thing to somehow push his body over the edge. Even after all their time together, Alastor's lust for violence had overshadowed his fondness for his beau. It made little sense and seemed insulting to Angel. Alastor's confidence from earlier this evening was gone, and he felt so permanently uncomfortable in his own body.

He sensed his shadow as it appeared. He didn't look up from where his face was buried in his pillow. "Tonight was paradise followed by a very sudden disaster. I don't want to talk about it. I feel undone in the most humiliating way possible. I don't care if the sensation might pass eventually — I'm drowning in it now. Something about being exposed…eats me alive inside." He sighed deeply. "Angel's siblings have arrived early. Perhaps something is amiss. Keep an eye on things but DON'T seek him or them out. Just leave me be…" He let one eye open slightly. He could just see the shadow frowning. But it did nod and then disappeared.

Alastor sighed and went back to being lost in the dark.

He stopped smiling, and the loss of the glow from his face was snuffed out; the final light in the room.

He just wanted to stay here, safe and alone, and maybe sleep so he could forget for at least a little while how humiliated he was…how he could never redo his first meeting with Angel's family…how he wasn't sure if he could ever quite recapture the new experience he'd been indulging just before everything had gone to hell in a hand basket and undone him from the inside out.

He passed out eventually, gripping his blankets, tears caught in the corners of his eyes.

A/N:

And so the pole dance date comes to a bit of a screeching halt ^^ It'll be okay though, the boys know now to talk to each other asap instead of avoiding each other. Plus there's a lot they have to say to move forward so they can help against the mob and Val. And then of course all the spiders and their boyfriends really do need to meet and get to know each other ^w^

Thank you all for reading and for your support! I'm going to be taking a small break from updates but I'll be back again soon!

Take care!

-Azure129