The Devil's Lover

Chapter 13: Exception

Jayce pulled them to a rollercoaster with the fastest waiting time. This one was not as large as the main attraction of the amusement park, but he's so excited to get on a ride that he's even humming under his breath as they moved up the line.

Seuljin had been pliant when Jayce guided him along, the whale plushy Jayce won for him tucked underneath one arm. 

They were close enough to the actual ride that they could hear the mixed screams from the passengers, as well as the mechanisms for the ride.

Seuljin hadn't said a word.

Jayce regarded the focused way Seuljin watched the ride, his eyes staring up cautiously at the sharp turns and sudden drops of the rollercoaster. 

"Mr. Choi, don't tell me you are scared of rollercoasters?" Jayce added an exaggerated gasp at the end.

Choi Seuljin's eyes met his and the investor cleared his throat, tugging at the collar of his turtleneck top. "No, of course not."

"Mhm. Very convincing," Jayce hummed. But to help ease Seuljin's fretting, Jayce reached over and intertwined their fingers. It felt good to do, felt natural even. 

Seuljin easily accommodated Jayce's hand in his, and Jayce tried not to think about how this may actually be something he'll look forward to if they ever go out again.

"If you get scared on the ride, you can always reach for my hand." Jayce tilted his head, fluttering his eyelashes slowly, as if Seuljin was a client he was trying to flirt with at Glorious G. 

Of course Choi Seuljin recognized the expression. It made the investor snort. "You're not going to distract me from the fact that we're about to get on that metal contraption that's way too fast to be safe."

It was hard to imagine the Choi Seuljin Jayce first met at Glorious G was the same Choi Seuljin he's on a date with right now. But Jayce liked both versions, and he doubted that anyone else got to see this side of Seuljin often. 

"It is completely safe. That's why it's in an amusement park."  

Seuljin still seemed skeptical.

Jayce squeezed his hand. "We can go on a different ride then?" He might've been teasing earlier, but the suggestion now was sincere. "I wouldn't want you to throw up. Or hate me afterwards."

Choi Seuljin winced as another round of screams came from the passengers on the rollercoaster they were in line for. But the investor shook his head, squaring his shoulders determinedly. "No, no. It's fine. We're doing this."

Unsurprisingly, Seuljin was tense the whole ride.

While Jayce had hollered in joy during the faster parts and drops, Jayce's date gritted his teeth and held tightly onto the railing in front of them like it was a lifeline. Jayce was thankful he suggested they leave the whale plushy with the man in charge of the rollercoaster's controls, otherwise Seuljin might've just dropped it in favor of making sure both hands held onto the ride. 

After the ride, Seuljin had exited as if in a daze, moving like a deer first learning how to walk. 

Jayce was the one clutching the plushy now, one of Seuljin's arm over his shoulder as he supported some of the investor's weight. Jayce pulled his date to the side, letting Seuljin catch his breath. Seuljin looked a little paler. "I can't believe people pay to get on those things," The investor mumbled, wide eyes staring at the concrete.

Jayce snickered. He had the urge to pinch Seuljin's cheek, as if he were praising a kid. "Well, you championed through!"

"I've never experienced feeling my stomach shoot all the way to my throat like that." 

"Yeah. It was fun, wasn't it?"

Seuljin gave Jayce a horrified look. "I worry about you. And everyone who enjoys rides like that."

Feeling just the teeniest bit guilty, Jayce stepped closer and pecked at Seuljin's cheek. "Thanks for going on it with me," He kept his tone playful, pretending that that small action hadn't been incredibly flustering on his part.

He hadn't anticipated that that would bring some color back to Seuljin's face.

Jayce couldn't hold back his surprise this time, both eyebrows raising. "Huh. And the surprises keep coming." He was smirking before he knew it. Jayce couldn't help it—every time he made Seuljin blush, it was like a win. "What, you're going to tell me nobody's kissed you on the cheek before either?"

"Clever," Seuljin huffed, trying to downplay his reaction. "Is it my turn to pick the ride then?" 

"Sure." Jayce shrugged. 

-----

Seuljin brought them to the line going to the ferris wheel. 

It's hard to concentrate on anything other than the warm hand on his lower back, but Jayce managed to turn towards his date and teased, "Why do I suspect that you're going to be incredibly cheesy and try to kiss me at the top of the ferris wheel?"

To his credit, Seuljin looked much more at ease now. He shrugged at Jayce's words. "Maybe. Though I'm starting to suspect that you don't mind cheesy, romantic moves."

Jayce opened his mouth to negate this, but couldn't make any words come out. 

Seuljin smiled that unfairly attractive smile of his, satisfied that he'd gotten that bit about Jayce right. "That's what I thought." 

The ride to the ferris wheel was longer than their previous ride, and Jayce had expected some awkwardness between the two of them; moments where neither of them knew what to say to the other person. 

Jayce would have been fine with it, really. It'd be understandable for a second date. 

But again, the metaphorical rug underneath him was pulled, catching him off-guard. 

Because when they got to talking about Jayce's childhood (more quietly now as not to disturb the other people in line), Jayce mentioned that he used to play a lot with a girl he forgot the name of and they'd always meet in the park with their parents after kindergarten. "We played every kid game known to mankind, even inventing some of our own."

"What games?" Seuljin asked.

"Oh, they're probably the same as the ones Korean kids grew up with. Except in English." 

Seuljin didn't reply. 

Jayce frowned. "You did play with other children when you were younger, right?" 

The investor scratched at the back of his head. Slowly, he confessed, "I... don't remember much... about my childhood. I can't tell you much about me being young either." 

Jayce's first thought was that the people who didn't remember a lot about their childhood usually wanted to forget it, probably because of a traumatic experience or a not-so-good family raising them. That was not always the case of course, but while living in Chicago, Jayce had met a couple people who've repressed all memories of their childhood because they despised the idea of recalling any detail from that time.

Maybe Seuljin was a private person because he had a tough past too. 

Jayce didn't ask for more details, even though he was itching to know. It was Seuljin's right to withhold personal information.

So, Jayce offered to try and divert their conversation away in case the investor felt uncomfortable about the topic, "I could teach you one of the games I remembered playing a lot when I was really young?"

Seuljin didn't understand the offer at first, but as soon as he did, he gazed around at the people surrounding them before giving Jayce a pointed look. "Right now?" 

Jayce nodded, grinning. "It's a simple clapping game. It's called Patty Cake."

"Patty Cake," Seuljin echoed gravely. "That does sound like a child's game."

Jayce proceeded to teach Seuljin the tempo of the claps, the gestures, plus the words. Seuljin had been uncertain about it at first, even though Jayce was keeping his voice and his actions as discreet as possible. But soon enough, Seuljin looked entirely concentrated on getting it right. 

He treated learning the game like a business contract he had to carefully run over again and again, and Jayce found it both hilarious and endearing. 

Seuljin would forget a few words and jut his bottom lip out at his mistake. Jayce would laugh at him and have them start over. 

"You know, parents play this with their toddlers too," Jayce poked at Seuljin.

The investor kept his serious expression. "Last one. I've got it down." 

By the time it was their turn to ride the ferris wheel, Seuljin had mastered it, and was very proud of himself. 

"I don't know how I'm going to take you seriously in the club after this," Jayce said as he stamped down a few bubbles of laughter. He was smiling so much it hurt his cheeks. 

They were ushered into one of the passenger cars, the door locked behind them. The inside was air-conditioned, with one side almost completely covered in panel glass so they could look out of it. 

The ferris wheel moved, more people being let in on the next passenger car. 

The quiet that befell them the first few minutes of the ride was surprisingly not stifling, either. Jayce wondered briefly, why he hadn't felt the need to keep their conversations going. But with how easy this whole date has been so far, the pressure had been lifted off his shoulders.

They were about a quarter way up the highest point of the ride when Jayce realized, "You're scared of rollercoasters, but not ferris wheels?" 

"I'm not a stranger to heights," Seuljin answered, gazing out from the panel glass. "The problem with roller coasters is how fast they go, with too many people on tiny railings." 

Seuljin had smoothly placed his arm behind Jayce earlier, and Jayce barely noticed his date did it until he leaned back and was instantaneously pulled closer to Seuljin's broad chest. "Oh please," Jayce sighed, keeping his eyes on Seuljin's profile. "You act like being in that rollercoaster was absolute Hell."

Jayce saw the way Seuljin's eyebrows drew closer to his hairline before the investor schooled his expression back to neutral. "I guess if you put it that way," Seuljin mumbled, then he stared down at the plushy in his lap. "Jayce. You were raised in a religious family, yes?"

Jayce found the abrupt change of topic weird, but he nodded all the same. "Yes."

"Do you truly believe in Heaven and Hell?" 

There was no tone of criticism, nor did Seuljin look at Jayce funny when he asked this. Jayce's most recent ex-boyfriend had laughed when he first found out that Jayce prayed, and he knew a lot of people got sensitive about their own religious beliefs. 

But he doubted Choi Seuljin would judge him about this. 

"I do," Jayce said without really thinking. When Seuljin glanced up at him again, Jayce added, "It's nice to think that my mother's soul is in Heaven, where she's no longer suffering like she was the months before her death."

Visibly, the corners around Seuljin's eyes softened. "That is nice to think about. Your mother sounds like a lovely woman."

Jayce nodded, getting the urge to touch the necklace he had underneath his shirt. "She was. Even when she became sick, or when our family was struggling financially, she still insisted on helping other people." He huffed, tugging at his own fingers. The warmth of Seuljin's body was lulling. "I don't know if she would have really approved of my job, but my Aunt Fran says all mom would have wanted was my happiness."

"I think so too. Parents pressure their children, but ultimately the child's happiness should be their top concern." Seuljin gently stopped Jayce from cracking his knuckles. With the hand not behind Jayce, the investor tugged one of Jayce's hand over to his lap, running his thumb through Jayce's knuckles. 

Jayce felt enveloped in the best way. He had been ushered to lean more of his body against Seuljin, all the while Seuljin kept their hands touching, rubbing at Jayce's palm and over his knuckles, like he was soothing Jayce, before intertwining their fingers. 

For a second date, this level of physical contact wasn't unusual for Jayce, but the feelings it brought about was startlingly dissimilar from the other experiences Jayce has had on previous second dates. 

Jayce didn't feel like he was doing this solely to experiment on the chemistry between their touches, or that he was merely trying to appease his date's silent request of intimacy.

With Seuljin, Jayce felt like he could let down some of his guard and not have it backfire in his face immediately. 

He wasn't so stupid as to fully trust Choi Seuljin after this, but Jayce has been on dates with too many assholes that he'd promised himself to not let anything get in the way of him appreciating a decent man when he's facing one. 

The view outside the glass panel was stunning. A lot of lights, a lot of movement, and now that the sky was fully blanketed in nightfall, the higher their passenger car got, the more visible the stars also became. 

And when they neared the peak of the ferris wheel, Seuljin chose to break the silence. "I almost didn't choose to settle here, in Seattle. Other big-time investors pointed me to different places in the U.S., but I wanted to be in a place surrounded by water." 

"Why's that?"

"I always knew that if I were to move, I'd go to a place surrounded by water." Seuljin shrugged, and Jayce felt the shoulder where his head laid move. "Although ever since I got here I've been incredibly busy, so I haven't even gone to a beach, or taken a ferry ride." 

Jayce found himself tucking this bit of information in his mind. 

He tilted his head upward, and Seuljin looked down. Their faces were extremely close.  

"If I had known that, I would have booked us a ferry ride instead." 

Seuljin lightly shook his head. "No, this was perfect."

And Jayce had no idea if they timed it right, but he and Seuljin did actually kiss at the top of the ferris wheel. 

Contrary to their little fumbling in the employee's restroom, making-out with Seuljin this time felt different; just as passionate, but not nearly as rushed. Seuljin's hand snaked its way to Jayce's hair, directing Jayce's head this way so that Seuljin could kiss him deeper, their tongues brushing against one another making Jayce feel the urge to climb onto Seuljin's lap. 

But Jayce held himself back, barely. And when the arm around his shoulder moved to wrap around his waist, Jayce had to grip the lapel of Seuljin's jacket to keep himself grounded. 

They kissed and kissed until they had to break away for air.

Jayce had barely caught his breath before Seuljin was leaning in again.

-----

There was a security camera installed in every passenger car on the ferris wheels, so they kept their make-out session pretty PG (Jayce might not have behaved as much if it weren't for that).

It was getting nearer to closing time, and Seuljin probably had somewhere to be tomorrow. After they got down from the ferris wheel, Jayce suggested they called it a night.

He's delighted to find out that his own jacket smelled like Choi Seuljin's cologne.  

Seuljin held Jayce's hand as he accompanied Jayce to where Pumpkin was parked. "I'm parked far from where you are," Jayce warned him.

Seuljin didn't see the problem. "And?"

"Ah. A gentleman, I see."

"It's just common decency," Seuljin countered.

"Come to think of it, I could have accompanied you to your car instead?"

Choi Seuljin didn't try to insist that he was the one who should always be sending Jayce off. The investor didn't imply that just because he was taller, or more built—or the fact that Jayce was a feminine stripper—he thought Jayce was the one who needed more care than; like Jayce was any less of a gentleman than Seuljin.

All Seuljin did was squeeze Jayce's hand and reply, "You can do it next time then." 

It meant that the investor wanted a next time with Jayce. 

Once they found Pumpkin, Jayce unlocked his top box where his helmet was. He placed the helmet on Pumpkin's wide seat before turning back around to see Choi Seuljin, hovering like the man was on stand-by.

"I hoped you enjoyed yourself tonight?" Jayce chuckled nervously, tugging his black riding gloves on so he wouldn't have to stare directly at Seuljin when he said these things. "I know I kind of pushed you to get on the rollercoaster, but–"

Jayce had just finished wearing his left riding glove when his chin was redirected so his face looked up, straight into Seuljin's eyes. 

Their lips met again in a much more mellow manner, Choi Seuljin aware that they were in a public place and not wanting to make Jayce uncomfortable, but also unwilling to leave without one last kiss. 

It was romantic.

And Jayce thought, once again, that he was f****d. 

Jayce hadn't expected their entire date to be so... lovely. 

Seuljin pulled away, stepping backwards again to allow Jayce a bit of space. "I don't beg," The investo said, completely out of the blue. "I just want to make that clear before I ask you my question."

Jayce couldn't help but brace himself. 

He knew for certain he was going to be asked to go home with Seuljin. 

Maybe that was why Seuljin even offered to go with him all the way to the other parking lot? The thought of it made the fuzzy feeling in Jayce's chest deflate a little. 

I only wanted Seuljin at the beginning because of his body, why am I so against sleeping with him now? 

Before Jayce could even say a word, Seuljin continued, "I don't beg. It is one of the rules I have set for myself." He inhaled. "But I will make an exception this one time."

Jayce was stumped. He felt a little out of balance, unsure of what was happening. "I don't understand?"

"Jayce Terrell, please let me take you out again?"

-----

The ride home felt as if Jayce was floating the whole time. He might've been smiling spontaneously underneath his helmet, but nobody had to know that.

Jayce was excited.

Not just about Choi Seuljin, but also about telling his aunt that, for the first time in a long time, Jayce actually enjoyed two dates in a row with the same man—and that's considering that none of them even ended with Jayce having s*x with said man. 

Jayce drove and parked Pumpkin in the garage, the giddiness unfading even as he put away his helmet and gloves. He skipped steps up towards the front door of his apartment. 

Inside, the lights were all on, so was the television thought its sound was on mute. It was always nice knowing his Aunt Fran was already somewhere within the apartment, compared to when Jayce would come home to an empty place. The smell of herbs wafted from the kitchen before Jayce rounded the corner and saw his aunt.

"Aunt Fran," Jayce called out, chuckling as he's unable to contain his happiness. "You won't believe it. I just came back from an amazing–"

He stopped upon noticing his aunt's distraught expression. 

Franchesca Pravo had her phone held up with both hands, the brightness of the screen illuminating her face. She glanced up at Jayce, but the emotion she wore didn't change.

Jayce felt his brows furrow. "Zia, cosa c'è che non va?" What's wrong?

Franchesca Pravo swallowed visibly. "Tuo padre..." 

Jayce felt his stomach drop to his feet.

The floating cloud Jayce felt like he'd been on ever since the beginning of his date with Seuljin dissipated into nothing, leaving him crashing to the ground at the mention of his father. 

-----

Lucifer had a great time.

He wished he was lying, sort of wished he didn't enjoy himself as much as he did. 

But Lucifer had pleaded with Jayce for a third date because, as it turned out, Jayce Terrell was even more charming outside his work. 

The only downside was Lucifer having to lie about his past. Obviously, he had not grown up in Seoul or even anywhere in South Korea—because Lucifer was not a human born to this world. He also did not remember his childhood because angels (even Fallen ones) did not have youths.

These were necessary lies, of course. 

Lucifer just hadn't felt something akin to guilt for having to hide his true identity in centuries. 

Jayce had told Lucifer—Seuljin—that he believed in Heaven and Hell. This had nearly tempted Lucifer to ask if the dancer believed in him (Lucifer) too, or even just the existence of angels and demons in general. 

But Lucifer felt it was too soon to poke the bear. In the off-chance that it was unpleasant, Lucifer hadn't wanted Jayce's answer to be the reason their date was ruined for Lucifer, leaving Jayce confused the remainder of their time inside the ferris wheel.

Sid greeted Lucifer at the door, his tail waggling. Lucifer scratched behind the dog's ear and headed straight to his living room, not bothering to take off his coat. 

For a minute, he stared at the ridiculously cartoonish whale plushy.

Lucifer didn't get many presents from dates. Even when he had inhabited previous vessels, he'd been rich and considered good-looking. Though his dates and flings and one-night stands had been plenty, not even three of them believed they could buy him something he couldn't already afford on his own. Plus, Lucifer did have the tendency to come on strong, so all of them probably assumed he was picky about items he was gifted.

Buy Jayce hadn't even thought about any of that. He just handed the plushy to Lucifer because he wanted to.

Lucifer was brought out from his thoughts when he felt Atlas' presence nearing, even before he heard their vessel's footsteps coming down the stairs.

Atlas rubbed at their eyes, dressed in a wrinkled, oversized souvenir shirt and boxers. Lucifer had turned on the lights beforehand, so even as Atlas was trying to rid of the sleepiness left in their eyes, the demon spotted the plushy in Lucifer's hand instantly.

Atlas blinked. "What the f**k is that?"

"My date gave it to me," Lucifer said. "He won it playing a game."

Predictably, that whole sentence weirded the demon out. "So... You two really went to an amusement park for your date?"

Lucifer placed the plushy down on the couch. Immediately, Sid jumped up from the floor and drew close to the foreign object, sticking his nose against the soft fabric. Lucifer was confident that Sid knew better than to try and chew on the plushy though. He had spent a very long time of his exitence training Sid personally. 

"It was not as bad as you pictured it to be," Lucifer defended against Atlas' skeptical look. He ran his fingers through the short hair of Sid's body, and added in a lower volume, "I had a surprisingly great time."

Jayce taught him a children's game—Patty Cake—because Lucifer mentioned he couldn't remember his childhood. 

And Lucifer hadn't known he was smiling until he heard Atlas groan behind him. "Lucifer, don't tell me that you were seduced by this kid in an amusement park." 

"Don't call him kid. He's twenty-three."

"He's an infant compared to how old I am," Atlas snorted. "And his ancestors have not even been born yet if we compare his age to how old you really are!"

Lucifer straightened, ignoring Atlas' words and heading to the fridge where he kept a few cans of beer. He took out two, because if he hadn't, Atlas would just complain and force him to go back and get another one. "I take it you didn't leave the house the entire day?"

Atlas sat on the breakfast counter. Lucifer passed him his beer, and the demon took it without saying thank you. (Lucifer wanted to roll his eyes). 

"I tried to do something nice for you and went to the supermarket." Atlas's thick eyebrows knotted together. "That's the last f*****g time I'm ever doing that."

"Last time you do something nice for me, or the last time you go to a supermarket?"

Atlas cracked open his beer can. "Both."

"I di notice that the fridge is newly-stocked," Lucifer hummed, bringing up his beverage to his mouth. "With food items I don't use for cooking."

"I didn't know what brands were good, okay?!" Atlas grumpily sipped on his own beer. 

They shared a silence. 

Lucifer debated whether or not it would appear needy or pressuring if he messaged Jayce right now.

He had not ever used to think about these stuff. If he wanted to, he'd send a damn message. 

Dating was just dating.

But with Jayce Terrell, Lucifer found himself second-guessing his next moves. He was putting himself in positions he'd never been in before—and not in the sexy way.

The inner turmoil might've been too obvious on Lucifer's face. "What is it?" Atlas asked. 

Lucifer stared at the can of beer in his hand, his lower back leaned on the breakfast counter next to where Atlas sat. "Nothing," Lucifer sighed. "I'm just not looking forward to more meetings tomorrow."

He hadn't wanted to get into the whole thing with Atlas now, because Lucifer knew how the demon would react: Atlas would tell Lucifer that he shouldn't even be staying in the human world for this long. Lucifer had no business being in the human world, and the longer he remained away from Hell, the more the angels would get wary. 

In a few more months, one of them would undoubtedly be sent to track down Lucifer and demand he return to his domain.

Lucifer hadn't wished to think about any of that tonight, not even with the demon he considered his most trusted confidant. 

His eyes strayed back to the plushy on the couch, Sid's head resting on the cartoon whale's body and peering up widely at Lucifer.

Lucifer had felt like any other human on a date with Jayce Terrell.

And he wanted to make that feeling last, even if only for tonight.