Chapter Text
The key twisted in the lock and Chloe pushed open her front door. The routine was so automatic at this point she could do it in the dark: files on the counter, jacket over a chair, and gun tucked away into the safe.
What a complete mess of a day. She rounded the counter and stepped into the kitchen, switching on the light and opening cabinet doors at random. Did she have any wine lying around? Surely there was something, somewhere. Maybe a nice bottle of red, and then she could climb into the bath and soak the day away. Her whole body felt tense and coiled, a spring just ready to be released. She sighed, rubbing mindlessly at her neck. Of course there would be nothing here when she really needed it.
There was a creak and the sound of shifting cloth from the living room behind her. Chloe froze, her arm moving slowly to her side. Her gun was already in the safe; her hand groped at nothing. Was that the sound of the curtains? No, it couldn’t be. The windows were shut and she never left the AC running while she was at work.
There it was again: the soft rustle of fabric. She didn’t have a gun, but there were knives in the block by the sink. She pulled out the nearest as slowly and quietly as she could and turned.
A figure stood by the window, a shadow against the illumination from the street lamp outside. “Who’s there?” Chloe demanded, taking a step forward. It looked as though the figure’s back was to her, but that didn’t mean anything. It didn’t mean it wasn’t dangerous. She knew so much more about things that lived in the shadows now.
The figure turned and an unmistakable profile caught in the light. “Hello, Detective,” he said softly.
Seeing him again after so long was like a punch to the gut. For a moment she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. “Lucifer?” She lowered the knife, setting it aside on the counter and fumbling her way towards him. “How are you — I thought you were —”
In Hell, she couldn’t say. But no, he was here, dressed in that same sharp suit she’d last seen him in. Was this a trick? Were there shapeshifters? Was she going to be drawn into a demon’s thrall only to be tricked and used as leverage against the real Lucifer?
But no one could possibly replicate the way he looked at her, his eyes so soft, pulling her in. She threw herself into his arms and he caught her, so warm and holding her so tightly.
“You can’t get rid of me so easily,” he murmured in her ear.
She just — she needed him. Surely there would be time for talking later, and she could find out why he was here and how long he would be able to stay, but for now, she could make this moment theirs. She surged up to kiss him and he met her full force. They stumbled backwards, up the stairs to her bedroom. She tore at his clothes, popping buttons and tearing zippers. It didn’t matter, they were just clothes, who cared when he was here and she needed to feel him and see him and be with him —
It was so fast, probably too fast. They’d been building up to this for so long, and who cared when he’d been away from her and now was back? She loved him and he loved her. Right now was for pressing against him, feeling the heat of his skin and the hardness of his body and moulding herself against every inch of him she could feel.
He was inside of her and it was electric, her body lit up with sensation with every thrust. She gasped against his mouth. Was this what she’d been missing, all this time? They would have to make up for lost time. Was it the weekend? Did she have any holiday time? Could she just stay here in this moment forever?
“I’m so close, Lucifer,” she told him, gasping against his mouth. “I’m so close —”
He kissed her deeply, one hand tangled into her hair as he moved under her. “Yes, darling,” he panted. He pressed a kiss behind her ear. “Will you wake up for me?”
She woke up with a start.
There was an ache between her legs, the covers twisted around her and locking in the heat. Chloe kicked them away from her and lay in the middle of the bed, staring up at the ceiling as all those sensations slowly ebbed away.
She listened to the sounds of her apartment: the faint hum of electricity, the whirring of the air conditioner In the other room, and the occasional car going along the road. The world was quiet, dreamlike — hardly dead but not quite living either. There was no one in her bed, no shadowy figure standing against the window.
Lucifer wasn’t here. Lucifer hadn’t shown up at her house in the dead of night and swept her off her feet. They didn’t have a night of passion, or stolen kisses, or heated glances. Lucifer wasn’t here, he’d never be here, and she’d live the rest of her life without seeing him again. And when she died — well, who could say? Maybe she’d loop herself through unimaginable torment, another subject in his vast kingdom. Maybe she’d stand forever on one side of a set of gates in paradise, longing for something just out of reach.
The yawning pit inside Chloe opened a little wider and she curled onto her side, wrapping her arms around herself and pretending, just for a moment, that they belonged to someone else. Tomorrow she would face the world and be strong again. Tomorrow she would go to work, see another crime scene, question another round of witnesses. Tonight, just for tonight, she would let herself mourn the loss of the man she loved.
Chloe sat at her desk and stared at the pile of paperwork in front of her. What would happen if she just… knocked it over? She could stand up suddenly and shove at the desk. She could swing her bag a little too carelessly. And then the mountain of folders and paper and little multicoloured sticky notes would crash to the ground and cover the floor. Would her colleagues rush to help her clean up? Would she be left alone to sort all the papers back into their folders and neat little piles?
She was contemplating the likelihood of Davis noticing a few extra folders on his desk when Ella emerged from her lab.
“Hey, Chloe!” Ella said, popping up beside her with a little too much cheer for her taste. “It’s Friday! What do you say we hit the town tonight? Tribe night? Do some karaoke? Add in some tequila?” She bounced a little, already excited for the upcoming night she was imagining.
The only thing Chloe could imagine when it came to hitting the town was Lux. Lux and partying and being carefree — that was Lucifer’s domain. Had been Lucifer’s domain. It felt wrong to even think about it, not when Lucifer wasn’t able to host any parties of his own.
Besides, a girl’s night out meant inviting Maze, and, well, Hell hath no fury like a demon who got left behind by the Devil and her maybe potential girlfriend. Maze was hurting right now, but Chloe was hurting too. They were both upset about Lucifer’s departure, albeit for very different reasons. She didn’t think their pain was all that compatible at the moment.
None of this had anything to do with Ella, of course. It wasn’t her fault she had to share her friend with a ghost.
“Oh, thanks, Ella,” said Chloe. “That sounds great, but I’ve got Trixie this weekend. Dan’s dropping her off tonight.”
“That’s totally cool! We can still go out and have a great time all together! We could go see a movie, or go out for burgers at that really great diner. Some nice, clean, family-friendly Friday night fun!”
“I don’t know. It’s been a really long week, you know? And Trixie probably doesn’t want to hang out with her mom so much anymore. She’s growing up.”
“You’re totally still cool!” Ella insisted, shoving lightly at her shoulder. “I’m sure she’d love it! Come on, it’ll be so much fun. Three ladies, hitting the town together!”
“No, I’m sorry, I think I have to stay in. I’ve got this huge mountain of paperwork and I have to do laundry and a whole bunch of other little things.”
“Come on, Chloe…”
Chloe’s eyes were itchy and her throat was burning. There was a horrible pressure building behind her eyes. Was it the paper? Was she allergic to paper now? She put her head in her hands.
“Aw, babe, don’t cry,” said Ella. “Come here.” She pulled Chloe into a hug.
To her mortification, Chloe felt her eyes well up and spill over. Was this seriously what she had been reduced to? Crying on Ella’s shoulder just because she missed a man? Planning her life around the best ways to mope for him?
“I’m so going to kick Lucifer’s ass the next time I see him,” Ella was saying, stroking her hair. “He had to go home, but like, what, he can’t pick up a phone once in a while? Hasn’t figured out how to video call someone? Nobody makes my girl cry like this and gets away with it. What a jerk. We should steal his car.”
“N-no,” Chloe sniffled, drawing back and wiping at her eyes. “It’s not his fault.” Ella muttered something combative under her breath. “It’s complicated. He’d be here if he could. I’m just having a bad day.”
“Which is exactly why we need to have fun tonight,” said Ella, squeezing her hands. “You don’t let your girl wallow in misery when she needs your help. I’m talking dance party, virgin margaritas, and painting each other’s nails.”
She had to admit, that did sound like fun. While it would be a whole lot easier to sit on the couch and mope into a glass of wine, it would be much less productive or healthy in the long run. Chloe gripped Ella tightly. “Thanks, Ella.”
“Literally any time, girlfriend,” said Ella. “You say the word and I’m there.”
Chloe gave a watery smile. “Thank you.”
She took a moment to close her eyes and take a deep breath. She had friends, she had family, she had people she loved and who loved her. She was going to be fine.
And if that little ball of loneliness in her gut wouldn’t go away in time, well — she’d survived worse.
Chloe couldn’t help herself — she swung through Lux on her way home from work.
It was a bad habit she hadn’t figured out how to break, or even if she wanted to break it. Sometimes she sat at the bar and had a drink; sometimes she went up to the penthouse to exist in Lucifer’s space for a while. On the occasions that she was alone for the weekend, she found herself sleeping in Lucifer’s bed. She couldn’t bear to cover the furniture in white sheets again, but there was a cleaning crew that came through once a week to make sure everything stayed in top shape.
It wasn’t the healthiest coping mechanism, but it was just a crutch. Just for the moment. She’d wean herself off of it.
Eventually.
As she stepped into the club and made her way across the floor, she discovered that she wasn’t the only one who had decided to take refuge in Lux that evening.
“Hey, Amenadiel,” Chloe said. “How are you doing?” She slid into the seat beside him. The bartender put a glass of whiskey in front of her — two fingers, neat, just the way Lucifer took it.
She swirled the liquid in her glass and took a sip. There was good whiskey, and then there was whatever liquid gold Lux managed to get its hands on. She tried not to think about how much a bottle of this stuff actually cost.
Amenadiel sighed gustily, hunched over his drink. “I’m fine,” he said in a way that clearly meant he was not.
“Charlie keeping you up? I remember when Trixie was that young. I don’t think I slept properly for a year.”
He straightened up and puffed out his chest. “On the contrary, I find the responsibility quite invigorating.” She raised an eyebrow. He deflated a bit. “I suppose I’m a little morose.”
“Oh?”
“None of my family has come to visit,” he confessed glumly. “I thought for sure my siblings would want to meet Charlie — it’s the first time anyone’s had a nephew, after all. But no one has come by. I’d take him up to the Silver City, but Linda is — reluctant.”
“She hasn’t let that baby out of her sight, has she?” Not that Chloe could blame her. If Trixie had been kidnapped at just a few days old by some demons who wanted to perform a ritual to send her to Hell and make her the king, well — she might not have put her daughter down ever again. No one could blame Linda for being a bit clingy.
“I’ve seen fortresses with less security than Maze has put in place.” He sighed again. “I understand her concerns, but I want Charlie to grow up knowing his family. His life is going to be completely different from anyone who has come before. He should have a balance of influences.”
She considered this. “Have you invited them here? Maybe they’re being respectful and waiting for an invitation.”
He snorted. “Respectful is not a word I would use to describe my siblings.” He tossed back the rest of the contents of his glass. “They’re probably afraid of me. I did get into a fight with Remi.”
“Remi?”
“My sister, Remiel. She felt very strongly that Charlie should be raised in the Silver City. We duelled on the matter. I was victorious, obviously.”
“Uh-huh,” Chloe said. Sometimes it was easier just to nod and smile.
“But I’m concerned that my order for her not to lay a hand on my son was interpreted a bit too widely.”
“Well,” she said, lifting her glass to him. “I don’t have any siblings, but if I did, I’d want to be involved in their lives. I’d want to celebrate the birth of their children. I think you should reach out. You never know.”
“To family,” he said in response. They clinked their glasses together.