Endlessly

Monday.

The boys are barely allowed to leave their beds for the next two days, according to Joyce, so Alex is greatly relieved when he wakes up Monday afternoon to an apology from Jack. Jack brings him vegan pancakes and a plate of berries as his brunch in bed. Once Alex is situated, Jack starts rambling. "Look, I've never done this before, and this is all new to me, so bear with me here." Alex nods slowly as he chews a blueberry. "So, last night. I'm really sorry about my outburst. No, wait, I'm sorry for all of yesterday. I know you're scared and hell, and you're not alone in that. There's no precedent for this and no one knows how to handle it. That doesn't excuse my behavior, but I hope it can make sense to you, at least a little. I'm trying to remember you're literally the exact opposite of me, and you're meant to hate everything I do, and vice versa. This is going to take a lot of effort, I know, and we have to be on the same page with all of this or it will never work. It will be even harder because we barely know anything about each other. We have so much to learn in ninety days, but if you're willing to work with me, I'm willing to with you." Jack's out of breath by the time he's done with his speech, worried that if he paused even just long enough to take a breath, he would lose his nerve.

Alex's heart shudders. He can see something in Jack that he's never seen in a demon before: sincerity. How can he respond to something like this? Something so heartfelt and honest...from a demon? "I'm just...worried." He whispers nervously.

"I am too." Jack soothes. He can see Alex's fear that he'll flip out, which although entirely justified, kind of pisses Jack off a bit. He's not sure if he's more angry with Alex or himself. "I know the most difficult part is going to be you forgiving me over and over." When Alex gives him a confused look, Jack continues. "I don't know that I'll ever be able to just stop sinning. In fact, I don't even really want to. It's who I am and I don't think Satan would let me if it really came down to it."

Alex crosses his arms over his chest and sighs. "I know. And for the record, I'm not forgiving you. Accepting it and forgiving it are miles apart, but I do suppose I will have to accept it. It's what God would want, considering he obviously wants us together."

Jack's elated that this morning is going exactly as planned. He wonders if he should push his luck, then remembers that's what demons do. "Can I hug you?"

Alex's face turns to his meal and Jack is sure he's blushing. "Once I'm finished eating."

Jack swears that's the longest fifteen minutes of his life, but it's definitely worth it.

***

Tuesday.

Tuesday is the first day they make it without worrying about any kind of conflict. Contrary to the crazy disorder Jack's life usually is, it's nice for him to relax as rays of sun light up the bedroom and warm his bed. However, now that their wings are mostly healed (largely in thanks to all of the time they spent together - usually it takes a week or two for wings to fully heal, but being around one another has sped up the process drastically) they're both becoming a little stir crazy, Jack more so than Alex. He had been planning on getting out of town for a while anyways before this whole thing, and now that need is only intensified. So, while Alex showers, Jack gets to work.

He asks - no, tells Joyce and Bassam that him and Alex are healed and they're taking a day trip. They don't object at all, surprisingly, considering how overprotective Joyce has been over the past day or two. Maybe they're just as ready to get the two out of the house as Jack and Alex are to get out.

The next part of his plan requires his laptop. He finds his favorite hotel in the world, conveniently in exactly the place he wants to take Alex, and reserves the penthouse suite, which somehow isn't booked for the next week. He's tempted to book all 7 days, but decides he should stick with one and see how this trip goes. They've got an eternity of time in the future to come back.

Just as his confirmation email arrives, Alex comes out of the bathroom. He's wearing fresh dark green boxers and a black t-shirt, both courtesy of Jack's closet. Even though Alex looks so good in his clothes, he makes a mental note to stop at the angel's house on their way back home. "I hope you saved me hot water." Jack teases.

Alex freezes, towel on his head as he pauses in drying his hair. "I didn't know you were getting one after me. I-I-"

Jack laughs and saves the boy a freak out. "I'm not. I was just joking. Use all the hot water you need."

Alex rolls his eyes but laughs. He's getting used to Jack's laid-back attitude, how nearly everything is a joke to him. "What are you looking at?" Alex hasn't seen Jack touch his computer since he's been staying here until now.

"I'm glad you asked!" Jack closes the open window and focuses his attention on Alex. "So, you know how you said you've always wanted to go to New York, but your parents never wanted to spend the money?" It was a conversation they had had Monday. Jack had talked about all of the places he'd been, London and Tokyo being his favorites.

"And you?" He asks, fingers gracing the lower half of Alex's spine, just barely brushing against the base of his wings.

"What about me?" A lazy smile shows his contentment as his eyes droop shut, one hand at the hem of Jack's t-shirt, holding it gently. He looks so cute that Jack just wants to lean over and kiss him right there, but he can't ruin this moment. It's too wonderful, too perfect.

"Where's the best place you've been?"

"Hmm." His eyebrows crease as he thinks. "My parents and I went to Ocean City, Maryland once. That was cool. The water was pretty cold, though. And a seagull ate my fries when I wasn't looking."

Jack can't help but laugh at Alex's pout. "There was no better vacation than that?"

He shrugs. "My parents don't really believe in taking vacations. All of their spare money goes toward helping others."

"Yeah..." Alex replies uncertainly. Jack's devious smirk gives him no comfort until his plan is revealed.

"How would you feel about spending a day there?"

***

Wednesday.

The drive to New York was longer than Alex expected it to be, even with Jack going over the speed limit 90% of the time(much to Alex's displeasure). He couldn't wait to step onto the busy streets and see all of the sights he's heard so much about. Sure, maybe Baltimore has some cool sights and their streets can be just as busy, but this is New York City. This is a world capital where everyone has dreamed of going, and he'll be one of the lucky ones that got there in their lifetime. "Okay, so we can go to the Empire State Building and Times Square when we get in the city, and after a small lunch we'll go to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. After that, we'll go wherever we decide, okay?" Jack's got the day all planned out, despite telling Alex they had a free afternoon. He's confident in his ability to sway Alex into agreeing with whatever he wants to do. As they approach the city, Jack can even feel himself getting excited - Alex's energy is contagious.

"Sounds great!" The angel is practically bouncing in his seat. A professional-grade camera is hanging around his neck. Jack bought it online the day before - thank God for overnight shipping. Alex refused to take it at first, but Jack insisted. He told Alex he should document all of their travels, and he's pretty sure Alex has already taken 100 pictures just in the car. If stuff like this makes him this happy, Jack won't ever stop doing them.

It takes Jack almost half an hour to find somewhere to park, and although that pisses him off more than a little, it doesn't deter Alex's enthusiasm. He tries to keep the swearing under his breath to a minimum and soon enough they're walking out onto the busy streets of the city.

If it were anyone else, Jack would be angry that it took them ten minutes to walk a block that should only take two. Alex stops at every building to take a picture, even the shabby run-down ones you could easily find in Baltimore. "But this is New York!" Alex says like it's obvious when Jack voices his thought.

The entire day continues in a similar manner, and both boys enjoy every second. Once they get off the ferry from the Statue of Liberty, Jack rushes Alex onto another boat, refusing to tell Alex where they're going. He’s grateful Alex doesn't get seasick. "Let's go sit down. This will be a long ride." Jack murmurs, pulling Alex's hand toward a door leading to the rest of the ship.

They find themselves in an empty room, the only decorations being a small table and two chairs in the center. One of the walls was glass, allowing a view of the New York skyline as waves rolled against the bottom of the window. "Should we be here?" Alex asks, not looking away from the view. "This is probably for something special."

Jack takes his hand and pulls him into a sideways hug. "You're right. It is for something special, or I guess someone." The look Alex gives him is a mixture of confusion and disbelief. "The reason I told you we'd have a small lunch was because I knew we'd be having a nice dinner here a few hours later."

The hand not attached to Jack's waist covers his mouth and his eyes grow shiny. "Are you serious?" Alex asks, voice muffled by his hand.

Jack laughs and makes the half hug a full one. "Yes, I'm totally serious. I know you don't like expensive or elaborate things but I wanted to make this trip really great for you. If you don't like it, we can always eat something when we get off the boat, but I made sure everything here is vegan and fresh-made and-"

"Shh." Alex breathes into his neck. "It's perfect. I love it."

Jack's shocked speechless when the angel presses a kiss into his cheek.

Dinner goes superbly well. Alex babbles about the day and thanks Jack more times than Jack can count, which would be annoying if it didn't inflate his ego. Once the topic goes flat, he starts talking about his volunteer work. Jack knows at that point he's got to be under some spell because words he would definitely not find interesting any other time have him absolutely intrigued as the tumble out of Alex's mouth.

Once their dessert plates are cleared and they're both satisfied, Jack takes the boy to the deck so they can watch the last bit of daylight disappear. He tries not to be visibly affected by the way Alex holds his hand tightly as the boat sways in the water. And once they stop and Alex's hand releases his, only for his arm to wrap around Jack's waist, his grin is uncontrollable. "Good day?" He asks, taking in Alex's content smile as he watches night fall over them, for once not even looking for his camera.

"More than good." Alex looks him in the eyes. "It was perfect. Thank you so much for bringing me. I can't imagine how much this whole trip cost and you took time out of your day to bring me up here. You didn't have to do all of this." He rambles. It seems as though Jack isn't the only one with that problem when they're around each other.

Jack really, really wants to kiss Alex to shut him up, but he figures that would probably cross the line, despite how well the past two days have been. "Oh, shut up. I wanted to. Please don't worry about the money; we have more than enough of that."

"We?" Alex raises an eyebrow.

Jack shrugs. "Well, if we really are getting binded, what's mine is yours."

"Do I want to know how you came across your fortune?"

The demon thinks for a second. Does he really want to hear about all of the scams and fraud his parents have put people through? Not to mention the occasional hitman job? "Probably not."

In only a few minutes, Alex is shivering. With the cool night breeze and the cold sea spray misting their bodies, Jack isn't surprised. Angels get cold easily. "Do you want to go back in."

He shakes his head. "Where's my camera? Can I take a picture? If there’s one thing I want to remember, it’s this."

Jack laughs. "It's inside. I put in it our bag." Jack insisted only one bag was necessary for the trip; they were only staying one night and lugging two backpacks around the city was redundant and being careful not to get mugged made him wary. Not that he couldn't fight someone off, but he didn't want Alex to watch that. He didn't need back on his bad side. "I'll go get it." He doesn't take notice to Alex following him inside.

The camera is sitting right at the top of the bag, like expected. When he goes to pull it out, however, the strap gets stuck. He pulls a little harder, and the shirt wrapped around the strap comes out, as well as a small object that flies across the room.

Now, Jack Barakat isn't one for cleaning...ever. That's why he has maids. So when he picked this backpack off the floor in his closet, he didn't bother dumping it out before haphazardly throwing in clothes for him and Alex. It felt empty, and that was what mattered to him at the time.

But now, he's seriously regretting that decision as Alex holds up a square foil packet between his fingers, expression confused. "What's this?"