Work Text
“Carola…” Esteban sighed shakily, drawing the sobbing woman into his arm.“I-It’s unfair…” Carola managed to sob out, clutching on to Esteban with all her might. Esteban tried not to cry himself as he caught sight of Checo in the hospital bed, the wires and tubes attached to him making him nauseous.Esteban sat down, drawing Carola into his side to comfort her. He winched at the mechanical sounds filling the room, the beeps of Checo’s heart bed, and the mechanical ventilator helping Checo breathe. The images of the crash still flashed through his mind, and Esteban shuddered. He reached out to touch Checo’s hand, glad to feel it wasn’t cold.“It will be okay.” he whispered, and he really hoped he was right. Checo was the only family he had left in his life, and he couldn’t lose him too.~~It was already late when it happened. Esteban was the only one still with Checo, Carola having gone home for just a few hours, the heavily pregnant woman needing the rest. A strange man walked into the room, but he didn’t look like one of the nurses or doctor, his clothing not even resembling the white or blues of the hospital. The man was dressed in all black, with tight slacks and a button up shirt that stretched over a muscled chest.“W-who are you.” Esteban said, bolting up and standing in between the stranger and Checo. The man raised an arched brow, blue eyes practically staring into Guti’s soul.“You can see me?” the man asked curiously, dragging a hand through his spiky blonde hair. Esteban squared his shoulders a little more.“Yes. Now who are you?” he said, trying to keep his voice steady. The man stepped closer, an amused glint in his eyes.“I’m the Devil, you can call me Nico though.” he purred. Esteban gasped.“Then why are you here? Checo is a good man, and he’s not dying.” he said firmly. Nico’s eyes narrowed. “You really believe I’m the Devil?” he asked. “I don’t need to convince you?” Guti blinked.“You said you were, so I believe you. And the dramatic clothes add to it.” he muttered shyly. Nico chuckled, showing of 2 rows of perfectly white teeth.“I like you.” he mused. “Still, I can not make an exception, I’m here to get his Soul.” he added with a shrug. He took a step forward,but was still blocked by Guti, the smaller man placing a hand on his chest to stop him from moving further.Nico suddenly gasped, before stumbling back until Esteban’s hand fell off his chest again. Esteban blinked.“W-what?” he muttered. Nico shuffled closer.“Your Soul… it’s amazing, the purest I’ve ever seen.” he said, curiously glancing at Esteban. Guti swallowed thickly, tilting his chin up in a defiant gesture.“Then take me. If you like my Soul so much, take me to Hell. Leave Checo here, with his wife, let him raise his child… He is a good man and he will make an amazing father. Let him live” he whispered, a sob breaking through his throat. Nico tilted his head to the side.“You want to trade your Soul? It’s been a few centuries since someone proposed that.” he said. Esteban let out another sob, looking over to his friend, his brother, laying in the hospital bed.“If you promise me he can live a long and happy live with his family, then yes. I’ll give my Soul to you” he whispered. Nico smiled for the first time.“You are a brave man, Esteban. Foolish maybe, but also brave. If I simply take your Soul, you’ll be stuck in the deepest pits of Hell for all eternity.” he said, walking over and brushing his fingers over Esteban’s cheek. “But I can cut you a deal. Serve me for a century, and your Soul will go to your Heaven.” “A-a century?” Esteban choked out. Nico nodded.“You will not see your friends again, if that’s what holding you back, maybe just the few who come to Hell eventually.” he sighed. Esteban walked over to Checo, taking the unconscious man’s hand.“Why would he have to go to Hell?” he whispered. Nico shrugged.“He crashed into another car, on purpose” “That was a racing incident!”“Doesn’t change my rating unfortunately.” Nico huffed, before holding his hands up.“You need to make a decision, Esteban Gutiérrez.” the Devil purred. “You or him.”“I’ll go with you.” Esteban whispered immediately. Checo had so much more to live for than he had anyways, and the older man had done so much for him… “Just, can I say goodbye?” Guti asked. Nico hesitated but then nodded, snapping his fingers.Checo suddenly groaned, fighting against the tubes in his nose and mouth. With another flick of Nico’s fingers, they disappeared, and Checo took in a raspy breath. “G...Guti?” he said hoarsely, reaching for the crying man. Esteban rushed over, hugging Checo as tightly as he could.“You’ll be okay. You’ll live.” he whispered. Checo coughed, turning his head to look at Nico.“W-what’s going on?” he rasped. Esteban started to cry.“You’ll live, I’m taking your place.” he sobbed out. Checo tensed.“N-no, Guti, you can’t…” he whispered. Esteban pulled back a little.“I have to. You have to stay with Carola and the baby, they need you.” he muttered. Checo shook his head.“You aren’t thinking this through! I won’t let you die because of me!” he exclaimed. Esteban just held him closer, looking at Nico over Checo’s head. The Devil was watching them, a glint of something indecipherable in his eyes.“It’s time to choose.” he said. Esteban took in a shaky breath.“You’ve done so much to me Checo, saved my life in so many ways… let me do this. Please.” he whispered. Checo shook his head.“No!” he said, but Esteban was already getting up.“I love you Checo, you are the only real family I ever had.” he whispered, before walking over to where Nico was waiting, hand outstretched for him to take.“Guti! No! Don’t, please..!” Checo sobbed out. Esteban looked up into Nico’s blue eyes and swallowed thickly.He placed his hand in the Devil’s, and all went black.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Esteban felt panic clutch at his chest the moment he woke up. The air felt thick and cold around him, making it difficult to breathe. He frantically looked around, seeing he was in a large bedrooms. The walls were covered in dark granite, the same colour as the dark blankets thrown over Guti and the bed.Esteban got up, the floor cold against his bare feet. He ran to the door, pulling it open and rushing into the dark hallway it lead to. He didn’t slow his pace, anxiously looking for a way out, for signs to understand where he was. He came into a large courtyard. The air felt different here, but still not quite like he was outside, even though whatever ceiling there was, was too high up for him to see.“H-hello?” Esteban called out. To his surprise, he could hear some shuffling not too far away from them. He bit his lip, turning his head towards the sound before screaming.A large, three-headed dog was looking down on him, all three heads sniffing him curiously. Esteban’s scream seemed to startle the animal, who let out a growl. Guti tried to step back but his foot got caught on a rock. His ankle twisted painfully and he fell to the ground, arms covering his head as he made himself small. He tensed as he feared for the worst, to be torn apart by sharp teeth and even sharper claws, but instead, a very wet, and very large, tongue swiped over his head.Esteban opened his eyes, a little confused as the three headed dog, the size of a house, sat down next to him, lowering one head to sniff at him.“H-hello.” Esteban whispered, tentatively reaching out and placing his hand on the muzzle of one of the heads. The large animal let out a soft whine, his massive tail wagging slightly.“Cerberus! Down!” A voice snapped suddenly. All three heads whined, but the right head still moved down to nuzzle Esteban’s stomach.“Us, stop it!” the voice snapped again, and Esteban realised it belonged to Nico. The Devil sighed at the large animal, two of the heads focused on him now, but the third, ‘Us’, apparently, was still enthustiastically nuzzling and liking Esteban, who smiled softly and wrapped his arms around the head as best he could.“Hello puppy…” he cooed gently. Nico scoffed indreduclously.“You’re calling my guard dog a puppy now?” he asked. Esteban blushed.“All dogs are puppies, even house-sized ones with 3 heads.” he mumbled awkwardly. Cerberus seemed to agree with him, tail wagging increasing as now all heads attempted to nuzzle him at the same time.“Now that you’re finally awake, I think it’s best you get a tour around where you’ll be living for the next century.” Nico said, bumping his shoulder in Cerberus’s flank so the dog would finally move.“I had hoped it was all a bad dream.” Esteban whispered. Nico held out a hand to him to help him up, but Esteban seemed weary to touch him.“I won’t hurt you.” Nico said surprisingly softly. Esteban let out a shaky breath but took his hands, Nico’s fingers warm around his. Nico tugged him back on his feet, but the moment Esteban put weight on his right ankle, he gasped in pain, stumbling a little. Nico wrapped his arms around Guti’s waist to keep him up. “What’s wrong?” he asked as Esteban attempted to stand up again.“Twisted my ankle.” he said, nibbling his bottom lip nervously. Cerberus let out a worried whine behind them, nudging Nico. The Devil sighed.“Cerberus will carry us.” he said, helping Esteban towards the large dog, who laid down on his tummy to make us easier for them to get on his back. Nico climbed up first, before leaning down and holding his arms out to Esteban. He unceremoniously dragged Esteban onto the large animal as well, letting Esteban sit down behind him.“I’ll check your ankle soon, okay? I can heal it for you.” Nico called over his shoulder.“Thank you.” Esteban whispered. Cerberus got up, the movement a little clumsy, and Esteban quickly wrapped his arms around Nico’s waist when he started to feel like he was sliding off. “I want to show you a special place. I think it might be good if that were to become your responsibility for now.” Nico said suddenly.“Responsibility?” Esteban asked. Nico sighed.“I wouldn’t have allowed you to take your friend’s place, had I not genuinely needed help around here.” he explained. Cerberus suddenly barked, his tail wagging a little more before he laid down. Nico slid off the animal, before gently helping Esteban down too. The Mexican grimaced as his feet touched the floor, ankle still throbbing. Nico’s brows raised a little.“Oh, right. “ he muttered, kneeling down in front of Esteban. He placed a hand on Este’s ankle, the Mexican letting out a surprised hum when the pain and swelling suddenly disappeared. “The Devil doesn’t only inflict pain, he can also take it away.” Nico whispered. He stood up again. “Although it might be rare.” he added. He turned and headed to a large white building Esteban hadn’t noticed yet. Guti was surprised to see a slight limp in Nico’s steps, that certainly hadn’t been there before.“Are you coming?” Nico called over his shoulder. Esteban nodded, turning to pat Cerberus a little, before jogging over to catch up with Nico.“You need to understand that people go to Hell for different reasons. In all, you could say only very few people make it to Heaven. Different religions and beliefs have different rules, but even then, Heaven is only reserved for a tiny group of pure Souls.” he explained. “Not everyone in hell is bad, but the inhabitants here… Well in my opinion they deserve Heaven after all.” he sighed, before opening the door.“Nico’s back!” a tiny voice called out, followed by a lot of excited giggles. a group of small children piled out of the building, hugging Nico’s legs or running over to Cerberus, who had rolled onto his back and allowed the children to climb onto his belly.“What is this place?” Esteban asked, gently patting the head of a tiny boy curiously peeking up at him.“Unwanted children, children who committed crimes because they were forced by adults… you name it.” Nico said. “What all children in Hell have in common is that it wasn’t them but someone else who got them their place here.” he added, lifting a little blonde girl onto his hip and kissing her cheek.The girl giggled and cuddled into him, contently playing with a bunny cuddly. “They are adorable.” Esteban whispered, smiling as more children also clutched on to him. Nico nodded in agreement.“I try to make sure Hell isn’t a bad place for the ones who are not… bad.” he said. “Of course there are people who deserve to suffer for all eternity, but a lot of people, and especially these little ones, really don’t”“You want me to spend time here?” Guti asked Nico softly. Nico nodded.“That’d be great. I can’t be here as often as needed unfortunately.” Nico said. Guti smiled.“It’s okay, I’d love to spend time here.” he said. “I mean, I got a whole century after all…” his shoulders sagged a little. Nico lowered his eyes, seeming ashamed“If there had been any other way I would have… But deals are compulsory to save Souls.” Nico said, setting the little girl in his arms down on the floor again. Esteban sighed, smiling hesitantly.“I always thought the Devil was evil.” he whispered. Nico tensed, a frown on his face when he looked at Esteban. Guti let out a shaky breath, placing his hand on Nico’s wrist and swallowing thickly.“I was wrong.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Esteban worried his lip between his teeth as he stood in front of the children’s home. Normally, Cerberus would come to pick him up and bring him back to the castle, but the three headed dog was nowhere to be seen. Esteban nervously bit the nail of his thumb, taking a step away from the door. He knew what direction to go in to get back to Nico, but he wasn’t sure how far it would be for him to walk. He was no running three-headed dog, so it was bound to take him longer than when riding Cerberus.Swallowing thickly, Esteban straightened his shoulders, and headed in what hoped was the right direction. It didn’t take long before he started to regret his decision. The path, if you could even call it that, ran over dark hills, surrounded by dark leaved trees. It was intensely quiet around, but Esteban still felt like he was being watched. He yelped when he suddenly heard a soft voice whispering to him. The most startling part was that he knew who the voice belonged to“Checo!” Esteban gasped, running in direction of the voice. He came to stand in front of a little cave, iron bars in front of it. Checo stood behind it, dressed in black clothing.“Esteban, you need to open the gate! I am trapped here!” Checo said, hands clutching on to the bars. Esteban let out a sob.“Checo? W-why are you here? Nico was going to let you live…” Esteban whispered, placing his hand over Checo’s. Checo sniffled.“He lied, tricked you. You need to get me out!” Checo told him. Esteban blinked heavily to clear his vision of his tears, moving to the middle of the gate to look at the lock. There was no key hole in the padlock. “I… I don’t know how to open it…” Esteban said, desperately pulling at it. Checo shuffled closer, hand closing around Esteban’s wrist.“It will take a blood offer.” Checo told him, eyes wide. Esteban swallowed thickly.“I-I…” he stuttered. Checo’s nails dug into his wrist.“Open it!” he hissed. Esteban nodded and searched the ground, finding a small dagger. He swallowed thickly and placed the blade against his palm, slicing the tender skin. He hissed as blood bubbled up from the cut, but quickly pressed it against the padlock, which fell away easily. The bars of the gate slammed into Esteban as Checo roughly pushed it open. “You fool.” Checo chuckled as Esteban fell back on the ground, the dagger next to him. Checo’s features began to change, melting away and leaving only a smoky, menacing looking figure, eyes blazing red as he leaned over Guti. Long, blackened nails brushed over Esteban’s cheek as the creature laughed.“Gorgeous, so pure… I get why he keeps you around. Although, afterall, you’re still a mere human.” The demon purred, nails moving down and coming to rest on Esteban’s throat.“Too bad you will have to… die!” The nails dug into his neck and Esteban screamed, trying to get away. He closed his eyes, letting out a sob as he prepared for the worst.“Golgoth, I command you! Stay away from him!” A voice roared behind them. Esteban weakly turned his head, quickly pressing his hands over his throat to stop the bleeding as the creature, Golgoth, pulled his nails away. “Nico…” Esteban whimpered. The Devil was stood behind him, dark horns curling from the top of his head and a long, pointed tail swishing behind him. Yet all Esteban could look at were the midnight black wings sprouting from Nico’s back, the feathers soft yet dangerous-looking. Golgoth snarled.“He freed me, he shall be my first meal as a free man.” The demon hissed, inching closer again. Nico roared, wings slamming down in a quick motion to propel him forward. His hand easily closed around Golgoth’s throat, eyes flashing red.“You’ll never be free.” he said, before tightening his grip on the demon’s throat. Golgoth whined, before suddenly, his whole body started to crumple apart, falling to the ground in mere dust particles. Nico was breathing heavily, his back still turned to Esteban. Este whimpered, trying to reach for the Devil. Blood was still steadily dripping from the cut on his neck and it hurt.“N-nico…” Esteban wheezed out. Nico turned, horns and tail gone but wings still out wide.“You fool!” Nico hissed, kneeling down next to Esteban and roughly pressing his hand over the cut. Esteban cried out, trying to pull away. Nico’s face softened a little and he sighed. He carefully helped Esteban sit up, letting the Mexican’s unhurt side rest against his chest. Nico removed his hand from Este’s throat, fingers seeming to tremble a little. Esteban let out a choked sound when he saw his blood on Nico’s fingers, his vision blurring.“Am I going to die?” Esteban whispered. Nico shook his head.“You’re gonna be fine.” The Devil answered as Este closed his eyes. A pair of soft lip momentarily pressed against Esteban’s forehead, before he was carefully lifted up.“I’m sorry.” Esteban whispered, looking up at Nico with wide eyes. “I should have waited for Cerberus” he added. Nico nodded.“You should have. Golgoth was an evil being, but not the worst around here.” He said. Esteban groaned, hand curling around Nico’s sleeve.“H-he looked like Checo… told me you killed him even though you promised not to… I-I should have realised it was a trap.” He mumbled, gasping a little as Nico started to walk. Nico shushed him, lips pressing against Esteban’s forehead again.“It’s okay.” ~~Esteban had not realised he had dozed off, or more likely simply lost consciousness, but he woke up still cradled in Nico’s arms. The tall blonde was cursing trying to push past a big figure.“Cerberus, not now!” Nico huffed. The three headed dog whined, all three heads trying to get close to the man in Nico’s arms. Esteban smiled weakly and presseda hand against Cerberus’s middle muzzle, Ber huffing and carefully licking his hand, Cer following suit. Us clumsily nudged his head against the two humans, making Nico almost topple over.“Little dumdum.” Esteban whispered affectionately, patting the third head as well before hissing as he turned his head, the cut in his neck giving out a burning pain.“Sshh, it’s okay.” Nico tried to soothe as Esteban wiggled around uncomfortably. Esteban shuddered.“N-nico, hurts, not good…” he tried to explain. Nico frowned, grabbing Esteban’s chin to hold his head still to take a closer look at the wound. Nico’s face, if possible, paled even more. He swallowed thickly, brushing his fingers over Esteban’s cheek.“Do you trust me?” He asked. Esteban nodded without hesitation.“W-why..?” He whimpered, trying to get closer to Nico’s warm chest as his whole body became cold. Nico bit his lip, seeming worried as he cradled Esteban as close as he could, keeping him warm with the surprisingly soft feathers of his wings.“The wound, Golgoth poisoned it.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Esteban moaned and thrashed around in Nico’s arms, shuddering at the burning pain that seemed to envelop his whole body. Nico held him close, muttering something under his breath that sounded like an incantation. “H-hurts…” Esteban choked out, clawing at his neck. Nico took his hand, and when Esteban blinked the blurriness out of his vision just long enough to see Nico’s expression, he was surprised to see the intense worry on the man’s face. Nico quickly schooled his face in a more neutral expression.“Try to sleep a little, you need the strength.” Nico told him. Guti saw right through the curtain of reassurance in Nico’s eyes.“I’m not going to survive this, am I?” Guti asked softly. Nico’s bottom lip wobbled, and the Devil silently reached out to brush his fingers through Esteban’s hair.“i don’t know if I can fix this…” Nico whispered brokenly, curling his hand over Esteban’s cheek. Guti let out a hoarse chuckle.“Well, even if I were to die, I would still end up back here, right?” he tried to soothe. He was scared, but as long as Nico was with him, he was certain it would be okay. He was surprised when Nico let out a sob, the Devil’s fingers brushing over his cheek.“You are too pure for Hell.” Nico whispered. “I-if you die, you will end up in Heaven, it’s the least you deserve.” he whispered. Guti frowned.“But… But I want…” Esteban shook his head in disbelief, letting out a shuddering breath. “I want to stay with you.” he admitted. Nico let out a sob.“You don’t mean that. You will be much happier in Heaven than you’ll ever be here.” he answered. “It’s perfect there.” Esteban smiled sadly.“But heaven doesn’t have you… or Cerberus, or the lost kids.” Esteban said, speaking slowly, his words slurring a little. “I don’t want to go there.” tears rolled down his cheeks and he curled a hand into Nico’s sweater, holding him close “I don’t make the rules… But I wish I could.” Nico answered. Guti sobbed, trying to clutch at Nico’s arms. He was truly afraid now. Nico hugged him tightly, rocking his slightly from side to side. “I’ll be right here with you until the end. And I promise you the moment you get to Heaven, you’ll forget all about me.” Nico whispered, unleashing his dark wings and pillowing Guti in them. Esteban sighed at the comfortable and familiar warmth. The pain in his neck had dulled, but he knew it wasn’t right. “Can you bring me outside, to Cerberus?” Esteban asked softly. “I want to see them one last time.” he muttered, groggily resting his head on Nico’s shoulder. Nico nodded, kissing his forehead. “Anything for you.” he answered, carefully standing up with Esteban in his arms. It was easy for Esteban to forget how he arrived here, the fear he had felt when he first gave himself up to save Checo. He had no regrets. He had learned to love here, and it felt like home.Esteban looked up at Nico as the Devil carried him outside. The man’s jaw was tense, his brows furrowed. Esteban reached out to smoothe some of the worry wrinkles between his eyes away, fingers lingering on the Devil’s warm skin. Cerberus’s whining could be heard long before they reached the courtyard. The three headed dog barked in threefold as Nico walked out, and leaned in with the middle head - Ber - to inspect Esteban a little. Esteban was starting to look worse rapidly, his skin drained of all colours and his eyes fogging over. Even blinking seemed to tire him out. “Hello big puppy.” Esteban cooed, gently patting Cerberus’s noses one by one. Cerberus let out a low rumble, laying down in front of them and wagging his tail slowly. Nico patted his head absentmindedly too, before focusing on Esteban again. Esteban was looking up at him, a soft smile on his lips.“You are my heaven.” Esteban whispered, his breathing raspy. Nico cried openly now.“i don’t want to lose you. You are the best thing that ever happened to me.” Nico whispered, resting his forehead against Esteban’s. “I’m so sorry for abducting you and taking you away from your normal life. I just hope you can forgive me. I want you to be happy, and you will be in Heaven, I promise.” he muttered. Esteban let out a groan.“Of course I forgive you.” he whispered softly. “I just… I want you to know I care for you.” he added, voice barely a whisper now. His brown eyes were calm, gentle, and Nico would miss that look so much. The Devil silently held Esteban closer, his wings gently caressing Esteban as the Mexican’s breathing started to get more stunted. Esteban kept eye contact with him, before his eyes started to flutter closed, his hand going limp from where it had been resting against Nico’s chest. Esteban let out a last breath, and then stilled completely.“P-please, please no…” Nico cried. “I love you, please Esteban…” He screamed until his throat was hoarse as Esteban’s body started to disappear, disintegrating into dust and blowing away in a wind that had not been there before.Nico still didn’t move, staying knelt on the ground as he cried, his heart surely broken now. Cerberus whined and cried too, shuffling closer until he could curl around his master’s body, giving him all the comfort he could.Nico screamed again, before going silent.And the whole of Hell seemed to mourn with him.~~~~Guti opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by all whites. He found himself hating the Heaven cliches. An Angel with beautiful white wings stood in front of him, giving him a nod and a smile.“Welcome. My name is Kevin, I’m here to make sure you get settled.” the Angel’s voice was soft, soothing, but Esteban found himself panicking. “Nico… N-Nico? No!” he desperately looked around, trying to find the Devil. The Angel frowned and walked over to place a hand on his shoulder.“Calm now, you don’t have to deal with Nico anymore.” he said with a soft smile. Esteban groaned and shook his head.“I don’t want to be here, I want to be with him.” Esteban stuttered. The Angel gave him a curious look.“You are safe here and-”“I love him!” Esteban sobbed out, interrupting the Angel’s soothing words. The Angel’s eyes widened.“You love Nico? You love the Devil?” he didn’t seem to believe Esteban. Esteban moved over to grasp the Angel’s hand.“Please, my heaven is with him, not here.” he cried, begging the Angel to help him. He was surprised to see the Angel hesitate before swallowing thickly. Kevin squeezed his hand gently.“There… There is one thing we could try.” he muttered quietly. “Something to bend the rules.” Esteban took in a shuddering breath.“I’d do anything to get back to him. I love him, and he needs me.” he whispered. Kevin nodded and smiled in understanding.“I know he does. You made him whole again.” he said. Esteban sobbed.“Please…” he whispered. Kevin squared his shoulders.“Punch me.” he said. Esteban blinked.“I-” he started.“Punch me, it will give me a reason to send you back to Hell.” Kevin interrupted. Esteban raised a shaking hand. He didn’t want to use violence, didn’t want to hit the one person who seemed ready to help him.“Fake it, then.” Kevin added when Esteban stayed frozen. Este lashed out now, and at the last moment, Kevin moved his head back, missing the punch but still letting out a cry. A second Angel appeared, older than Kevin and with icy blue eyes.“What’s going on?” he asked. Kevin clutched his cheek with one hand, faking pain. “He hit me! He shouldn’t be here.” he hissed. The older Angel glanced back and forth between them, and then surpressed a chuckle.“Not very subtle, but it will do.” he mused with a roll of his eyes, before turning to Esteban. “I guess that means you’ll have to go back to Hell. You must be heartbroken about that.” he deadpanned. Esteban could only cry, giving them shaky smiles.“Thank you…” he whispered. Kevin reached out to touch his cheek.“Take care of him.” he whispered, an almost ancient kind of pain in his eyes. “I will.” Esteban promised. And he knew it was a promise he would never break.~~~~“Cerberus, calm down.” Nico snapped, not understand why his guard dog wa going absolutely mental. The Devil was sitting at the steps of the castle, looking out over the courtyard. His heart was broken, and he was certain it would never heal again.“Cerberus!” he snapped as the dog howled and whined. A soft voice suddenly spoke up. Cerberus quieted immediately. Nico frowned, unleashing the wings in case there was someone to fight. He rounded the corner to where he had told Cerberus to stay, and was surprised to see the dog rolled onto his back, someone scratching the chin of the ‘Us’ head.“E-este?” Nico whispered, voice breaking. Esteban looked up.“Hola.” he whispered with a shaky smile. Nico stepped closer, his pace quickening until he was practically running. Esteban smiled in disbelief and jumped into Nico’s arms, eyes closing tightly as the Devil twirled him around.“Te amo, te amo…” Esteban whispered over and over again. Nico cried, pulling away to clutch Esteban’s face between his hands.“You’re really here.” he choked out. Esteban smiled and kissed his palm.“I punched an Angel to be here.” he wheezed. Nico snorted.“I love you even more now.” he teased, pressing a kiss to Esteban’s forehead. The Mexican chuckled, wrapping his arms around Nico’s chest. He stood up on the tips of his toes, and brushed his lips over Nico’s in a chaste kiss. Nico sighed into his mouth, wings fluttering“I was so scared I had lost you.” he whispered, as they pulled away just enough to speak. Esteban sighed.“Me too. But I’m right here now. And I’m not going anywhere.”