Chloe sat at the kitchen counter in her apartment, preparing herself a sandwich. She wasn't really hungry, she did it more to have something to occupy her mind. Trixie was staying at Dan's for the night, which had been a frequent occurrence over the last few weeks that had somehow turned into months.

Everybody around her kept giving her well-meaning advice, asking her to go out with them in the hopes that she would meet somebody, would finally pull herself out of this hole she'd buried herself in.

She tried to keep up appearances, mostly for Trixie's sake, but she found herself time and again just going through the motions, a certain numbness seeping into every aspect of her life. The first few weeks had been terrible, every little thing had reminded her of his absence. She would sit in the interrogation room, having to force herself to focus because she kept noticing the gaping hole left by Lucifer's absence.

Why was this so hard? She'd worked as a police officer a long time before he came into her life. Why was every single aspect of her work suddenly reminding her of him? The same when she ran into Maze or Amenadiel. The connection to Lucifer was so strong in her mind, she couldn't bare to be around them for too long. She knew it wasn't fair to them, but she couldn't change the way she felt.

She hadn't been to Lux a single time since he left. Or any other night club for that matter. She stopped listening to the radio because a certain song would come on, and she would have the most vivid memory of Lucifer performing it, sitting behind the piano, smirking at her, breathing life into the words.

But what haunted her most of all, was thinking of him as he was right now, alone, trapped in hell for eternity, nobody there to keep him company. It was utterly heartbreaking to imagine.

And then one day, the constant anxiety just faded, leaving her numb. She knew it wasn't healthy. Knew she probably should talk to somebody about the way she was feeling, or rather the fact that she wasn't feeling much of anything, but she never managed to muster up enough conviction to go through with it. It seemed easier to just go on, until maybe one day things would turn back to normal on their own.

When she felt something, it was mostly anger at herself. She'd never seen herself as somebody who defined themselves by their relationships. She didn't see herself as somebody who sat at home, feeling sorry for themselves over things that they couldn't change. And yet here she was.

Chloe sighed, putting the finished sandwich on a plate, staring at it. Then she looked up, only to see Lucifer standing around awkwardly in her living room. He lifted one hand, making a small wave, giving her a strange half-smile. Chloe made an undignified yelp, falling backwards of the stool she'd been sitting on.

He must have moved faster than humanly possible, because instead of crashing backwards to the floor, she found herself in his arms, hovering only inches above the ground. He lifted her up effortlessly, putting her back on the stool, staying close.

"I apologise, detective. I should have knocked."

She stared at him, frozen in place, while thoughts tumbled over each other in her mind. She felt unreasonably angry at him. She wanted to hit him, and wipe that stupid goofy smile off his face for leaving her like that. She knew it wasn't his fault, knew he had to do it, and yet her hand was itching to slap him.

Another part of her wanted to wrap her arms around him and never let go. Everybody else be damned. She'd just hold on to him, and he'd have no other choice but to stay forever.

She did neither of those things. Instead, she surprised herself by leaning forward and kissing him. It was just a chaste peck on the lips, then she leaned back again, shocked at her own actions.

He looked at her with surprise and delight, like he couldn't believe this was really happening. It was the same expression he wore every time she kissed him, or admitted her feelings for him in some form. It was an utterly adorable look that seemed to be reserved solely for her.

Apparently her self-control had gone completely out the window, because she leaned forward again, kissing him properly this time. In all her fantasies of them making out, it had always been him calling the shots, him taking charge, him kissing her breathless. She had always assumed that's how it would be, given his character and his experience.

Yet every time they actually kissed, he was uncharacteristically subdued, almost timid. He always took a moment to respond at all, as if he were in shock, and when he did it was with a certain shy reverence that she never would have expected from him.

Chloe pulled back, shocked at her own impulsiveness. What the hell was she doing? Maybe he was just paying her a visit, and he would be gone from her life again in no time. She really had no business kissing him, possibly making things even worse than they already were.

Lucifer looked at her with a dazed expression, like he needed time to recover from kissing her, and Chloe marvelled how in the world she could have this effect on him when he'd kissed countless other people over the long span of his life, probably knowing every single thing there was to know on the topic.

"Umm," Chloe said, staring at him. She moved off the stool quickly, hurrying to the other side of the counter, putting some distance in between them, before she did anything stupid like kiss him again. Or slap him. Or yell at him. She shook her head slightly, annoyed at herself. She usually wasn't this impulsive. Or overdramatic, for that matter. She briefly closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. You can this., she told herself. You can do this, whatever this is.

Lucifer followed her sudden retreat with his eyes, making no move to follow her. The dazed, happy expression on his face vanished, replaced by something much colder. Chloe mentally slapped herself. Of course. He probably, on some level, still thought she was afraid of him, and now she had all but run away from him.

"Hey," Lucifer said, sounding strangely shy, apparently just as much at a loss for words as she was.

Chloe cleared her throat. "Hey," she replied, fidgeting in place, not sure what to do with herself. "How have you been?" she asked, cringing immediately at her own question. He had been in hell. She doubted very much that there was a possible positive answer.

He gave her a bright smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Fine," he said. Then he shook his head, frowning. "Miserable, actually," he said honestly.

Chloe gave him a sad smile, surprised at his frankness. "Me, too."

His smile brightened a bit, then he got serious again immediately. "Sorry. I didn't mean to imply that I was happy that you're miserable, I was just- I mean-" He rubbed his hand over his eyes, and Chloe noticed for the first time the dark circles under his eyes, and the tiredness in his features.

She decided to give him a break. "I know what you mean," she said.

Lucifer nodded gratefully, looking around. "You're not seeing anybody, are you?" he inquired casually.

Chloe had to chuckle. Hadn't she just kissed him? Twice? Besides, she hadn't even seen much outside of her apartment, when she wasn't working or making an effort to go somewhere with Trixie.

Lucifer was looking at her, leaning forward in anticipation. For a moment, she considered making a joke about seeing someone, just to get back at him for what he'd put her through during the last months.

"No," she said simply.

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. That's good. I mean, of course it would have been fine if you had been seeing somebody, it's none of my business, really, it's been quite some time, and even if not, it's fine, I-" He shut his mouth with a snap, stopping the flow of words.

He drew his hand through his hair, leaving it a ruffled mess. "How long has it been up here?"

"Four months, sixteen days," Chloe replied without needing to think about it. Lucifer nodded.

"I see," he said, then was quiet again.

Chloe fidgeted in place, finally working up the courage to ask him what she'd wanted to ask him from the first moment she'd seen him. "Are you back on earth for good or are you just-," she waved her hand around nervously, "-visiting?"

"It's complicated," he said evasively, and Chloe took in a sharp breath, preparing herself to hear I can't stay for long.

"I'll have to go back eventually. But I get to come back here again. We've made- an arrangement."

"An arrangement?"

He nodded. "Amenadiel, Azrael and I are going to share the burden of ruling hell."

Chloe just stared at him, not sure she had heard that right. "Share?" she asked dumbly.

"Take shifts."

"Seriously?" she asked, frowning.

"Seriously," he said, shaking his head like he couldn't believe his own words.

"How did that happen?"

"They suggested it. They thought it wouldn't be fair to ask me to do it alone."

"They didn't seem to mind before, did they?" she said, somewhat angrier than intended. The thought of Lucifer alone in hell for millennia while none of his siblings stood by him was making her feel a little resentful.

He regarded her, a fond smile on his face at seeing her angry on his behalf. "They did not, no. But they are trying to make up for it."

"So that means you get to spend two thirds of your time on earth?" She almost added with me but it sounded very presumptuous in her head.

He nodded.

"Who is Azrael anyway?" Chloe asked, then she waved her hand. "Never mind, you can tell me all about your family another day."

"That's going to be a very, very long day."

She chuckled, looking forward to Lucifer opening up a little about his past. It was all still such a mystery to her.

"I believe I owe you a date," he said, apropos of nothing. He sounded nervous, as if he was afraid she might turn him down.

She smiled at him. She seemed to be doing that a lot recently. "That's how you want to do it?"

He locked eyes with her, suddenly very serious. "Only if you want to. Always, only if you wanted to."

It sounded like there was a lot more to his words than just him asking her out, like they had a much deeper meaning for him.

He continued, still holding her gaze, emotions flickering in quick succession over his face. "I know I am asking a lot of you. I know it can't be easy to look at me and not see- my other side. I would understand if you don't want to pursue things any further. I would hope that we could still work together."

Chloe moved back around the counter, stepping close to him. She lifted her right hand and gently placed it on his face. "I am not afraid of you. I told you, I'm sorry for how I reacted after I found out, I wish I could take it all back, but I can't. I know with absolute certainty that you would never harm me, or Trixie, or anybody I care about." She looked him straight in the eye, willing him to understand. "I am not afraid of you," she repeated, and kissed him.

The kiss lasted longer than any other they had shared so far, turning from a shy affirmation into something much more passionate. Chloe came up for air at some point, wondering when exactly he had lifted her up to sit on top of the kitchen counter, his body pressed flush against hers. She had moved her hand from his face to his hair at some point during the proceedings, and it showed, his hair was an unruly mess. His pupils were blown, his eyes almost all black, a faint red flicker visible around the iris. He looked utterly wrecked, and all they'd done had been to kiss for a couple of minutes.

He stepped back abruptly, bringing some space between them. "How about tonight?" he said, sounding breathless, voice even deeper than usual.

Chloe was inclined to jump of the counter and continue where they had left off. Hadn't they waited long enough? What if another supernatural drama came up before tonight? Lucifer seemed like he wouldn't put up much resistance if she tried to move him in the direction of the bedroom right then and there.

Lucifer gave her a panicky look and she realised she'd left him hanging for quite a while. Maybe it was better if they waited, and talked first. It was already afternoon. Tonight wasn't that far away. It would give her a chance to collect her thoughts first.

"It's a date," she said, making a small hop off the counter, delighted at the big smile spreading over his face at her words. She almost stepped forward to kiss him again, but she knew exactly how that would end.

"Right," he said, beaming at her, "I guess I better be off then. Got a big date to prepare for. Shall we meet at seven at Lux?"

"Oh? You're not picking me up?" she said, all fake indignation.

He was immediately flustered. "No, of course I can come to-" She put a hand on his chest, smiling brightly at him. "Relax, I'm just kidding. I prefer to drive myself."

She looked at her hand on his chest, marvelling at the fact that she was allowed to do that, that she didn't have to keep her impulses to touch him in check any longer. She looked up, meeting his eyes again. He seemed so impossible young, so vulnerable that she felt the irrational need to protect him. He was the devil, for God's sake. She'd seen time and again that he was more than capable of taking care of himself.

Yet, looking at him, she felt the urge to wrap her arms around him, to keep him safe from the world. Well, hadn't she just decided not to suppress these impulses around him any longer? She took a deep breath, stepping closer while moving her hand on his chest around to embrace him, leaning her head against his chest. He froze for a split-second, clearly surprised, then his arms came around her in turn, and he lowered his head slightly to rest his chin on the crown of her head.

She let out a deep breath that felt like she had been holding it forever, and decided to just enjoy this while it lasted. She was sure there was going to be more drama later on, she didn't imagine being in a relationship with the devil was going to be a walk in the park. But right now, wrapped in his arms, knowing that she would get to see him, that they were going to have this, those problems seemed far away, and insignificant. They were exactly where they were supposed to be. The rest they would figure out together.