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Valentino's cigarettes are expensive.
Vox’s never cared about that.
He takes the one that's offered, and they're on the balcony of Vee Tower, and the city does its thing below, and Valentino is saying something about a production he's working on, and Vox’s listening.
Mostly.
They share the cig.
It’s fine.
It's fine, because tonight Vox is going to do something he's been putting off.
He’s been putting it off since he made that offer with Alastor.
He's been thinking about Alastor since approximately always, which is the problem, and it’s always been the problem, which he'd thought Val had addressed, and Val had(sort of) and it's fine, it's been fine-
He looks at his watch.
It’s 9:50.
"Oh- babe, I gotta go somewhere."
Val looks at him.
"Business.”
Val takes the cigarette back.
"Don't be late.”
- - - -
Meet me outside the bar we used to go to.
8 P.M.
- Vox
- - - -
Alastor reads the letter with his blood boiling.
He reads it twice.
He looks at the name.
"Lucifer," he says. "I'll be back in an hour."
- - - -
Before Alastor goes, he tucks a knife up his sleeve.
Just in case.
- - - -
"Vox."
"Alastor."
The silence between them is the silence of two people who know each other too well and have been on the wrong side of that knowledge for a long time.
It could be cut with a knife.
Which is, Alastor thinks, somewhat ironic.
"Why did you call me.”
"I wanted to talk."
"About what."
Vox looks at him.
"About what?!" Vox repeats.
His voice has the quality of something that has been contained for a long time and is not going to be contained for much longer.
"About the fact that you knew I was in love with you, and you let me-
you knew, and you-"
"Lead you on?" Alastor finishes.
He scoffs.
"After you nearly destroyed the pentagram trying to take over heaven and tried to kill Lucifer, you still think I led you on?"
"You ruined my life!"
"Oh, here we go."
"I made a reasonable offer and you laughed in my face!"
"A reasonable offer," Alastor repeats.
He thinks about the tower.
He thinks about what Vox had said,
together, as partners.
"You," Alastor says, "have fallen so far it is pathetic."
"I'm the pathetic one?!" Vox's screen flares. "Have you taken one look at that boyfriend of yours?"
"He is ten times the person you will ever be."
"You cared about me!"
The street is quiet.
Not the good kind.
Alastor looks at Vox.
The pending folder, once, had a section for Vox and he closed it a long time ago and did not reopen it.
He thinks about why he closed it.
He thinks about why he burned the photograph.
"I did," Alastor admits. "I did care about you."
Vox is quiet.
"But not enough to forgive you."
He takes the knife from his sleeve.
- - - -
When Vox's body hits the ground, Alastor hears the sound of metal on stone.
He looks down.
He looks at the ground next to Vox's hand…
…to see that Vox had brought a knife for him too.
- - - -
Alastor does not cry.
He has not cried since his mother.
He won't cry now.
- - - -
I will be back at the hotel soon. Do not look for me.
- Alastor