Their kisses were deep, and affectionate. They moved like they were meant to understand one another. Their kisses were exactly how Tom hoped they would feel- safe and devoted. With each one, his heart fell deeper in love.

Ezra was gentle yet kissed with a desperation that Tom craved. They wanted to be with each other, that much was obvious. And when their lips parted, and they pulled themselves out of their lust, reality hit hard.

Ezra let go of Tom and stepped away. He wiped his mouth, muttering an apology.

"Why are you sorry? This is what we both want," Tom said as Ezra wiped their kisses on his jacket.

"I'm being selfish. This is what we both want, but it's not what you deserve."

Tom sighed loudly and shook his head. "I've made my decision. I want you, Ezrakhell. There's nothing you can do to change my mind. I will never stop wanting you." He stood in front of him taking his hands and bringing them up to his chest. "I deserve someone who I can trust to love me unconditionally. Can I trust you to do that?"

Ezra nodded. "But-"

"No," Tom interrupted. "I don't want to hear it. One day you'll see yourself how I see you."

Ezra opened his mouth to argue. Instead, he pulled one of his hands away to softly touch the side of Tom's face. "I want to disagree with you. I want to yell at you for falling for me. I want to yell at myself for falling for you." Ezra's large brown eyes settled on his mouth. "And I want to kiss you again."

Tom pulled Ezra's head closer and stopped when their lips were a centimetre apart. "You can kiss me again, but only if you're done resisting me. I don't want to give myself to you if you won't stay."

The silence stretched out between them, until Ezra whispered, "I'm done. But I can't promise that I won't be insecure sometimes. I don't love myself the way you love yourself. Can you help me with that?"

"I'll help you with anything." They kissed again, this time slowly as if to cherish the taste and feel of each individual kiss. And then they hugged for a long time, not needing to speak to know what the other was thinking.

Tom focused on Ezra's hand on the back of his neck, ruffling where his hair began. He focused on the warmth of his shoulder through the fabric of his t-shirt. He focused on how tightly Ezra held him around the waist.

When Ezra moved, Tom wanted to grip on tighter. But Ezra just wanted to look at him, the way he had looked at him for weeks with growing adoration. "Thank you," he said earnestly. "For fighting for me."

"You're worth it. You'll see that one day," Tom said, beaming with pride that they were finally getting somewhere. "Shall we go?"

Ezra nodded, following him down the corridor of bookshelves. He paused before Tom opened the door. "I'll meet you by the country road."

"You don't have to. We can leave together."

"But it's not fully dark yet, people will see. And I'm not allowed in the library."

"Ezra, we've just spent the last fifteen minutes making out. I don't care who sees." Tom chuckled and took his hand, intertwining their fingers. "Come on."

They stepped into the street together. Ezra anxiously glanced around while Tom locked the door. Only a few souls littered the streets. Mostly dog walkers or hikers coming down from the hills.

"We'll drop the keys off at Haisley's house and go back to the pub. I need to ask my parents about the meeting last night." Tom tugged on Ezra's hand when he didn't move.

"Are you sure about this?" the demon asked, visibly uncomfortable.

"We don't have to hold hands if-"

"I want to. But people will treat you differently now."

"All the people I care about in my life are okay with this. That's all that matters to me." Tom didn't even bother looking around at who might be staring. He swung their arms and tugged the demon down the street.

Ezra insisted on waiting in the beer garden when they were outside the pub. Tom didn't want to make him more anxious by forcing him to be the centre of attention, so he left him by a table and promised to come back with beer.

The pub was busy, much busier than usual. "What's going on?" he asked his father who was working behind the bar.

"The meeting last night said that we had to shut down if we didn't ban demons. The locals know we would never do that, so they're here to show their support."

Tom looked around at all the faces he had grown up with, beaming with pride for his parents and their little country pub. "But what if their support's not enough?"

His father shrugged. "We haven't thought that far ahead. Don't worry Tom, we'll handle this."

But Tom did worry, and not for his job, but for his parents livelihood. Where would they move to? What else would they do to earn money? Jobs were scarce in such a small village. Ezra noticed something was wrong when Tom returned with a pint of Strongbow and a pint of Birra Moretti for himself.

"Did you ask about the meeting?"

"I did," Tom said after a long gulp of his drink. "It's not looking good."

"Will your family lose the pub?"

"It's likely." Tom moved around the table to share the same bench. Ezra sadly looked down at him. His eyes were so expressive that Tom felt the need to comfort him. "It's okay. We'll figure it out."

They sipped their drinks in silence, watching the locals exit to smoke cigarettes. Some double glanced at them, most didn't care, and a few said hello across the grass.

Tom was deep in a memory of him doing homework at the bar when Ezra nudged him and said," I have an idea."

"What is it?"

"I'll be your bouncer. You don't have an issue with fake IDs, you have an issue with violence. You said before that people would riot of there was a demon bouncer. Now I think they would be okay with anything if it saved their local pub."

Tom stared at him, weighing up the options. "And you think you could handle it? Drunk people can be twats and they will really try to make you angry."

"I have you in my life now. That's enough to remind me not to lose my temper."

Tom's heart swelled. "Come on, lets talk to my parents."

They met his mum by the back door, so Ezra didn't have to push through the sea of people inside. Tom proposed the idea, and for the first time in days, his mother's eyes twinkled with hope. "I forgot I put that ad in the shop window." She looked up at Ezra. "You would be happy working for us?" He nodded. "I'm not sure if it's enough to change the council's mind. But I won't tell them we'll hire a demon. I'll word it in a way where it won't matter who we hire, just as long as the violence is dealt with. And for the record, it shouldn't matter who we hire."

She grabbed her coat and left in the same minute. Tom told his dad that she was going to talk to the council. Declan was so buzzed at the idea that he announced to everyone that Ez, the demon, wants to help save their pub.

Ezra awkwardly stood where people couldn't see him, though he relaxed when the majority of the pub cheered and agreed that a bouncer would be for the best.

"See," Tom whispered, touching his arm. "They're warming to you."

Ezra fidgeted, so they returned to their seats outside. "You should get two bouncers because I don't know when I'll be called on to do my other job. And preferably one who's actually qualified."

Tom nodded. "Well, we'll see if the council agrees to give it a chance."

His mother returned an hour later with no news. But The council would discuss the idea and let them know in a day or two. Still, Tom tried to be hopeful, and the pub closed with merry customers.

He and Ezra had sat outside until closing time, talking about nothing and everything. Being close without having to be subtle was something Tom was getting used to. The more people saw them together, the more Ezra stopped glancing around and fretting with his clothes.

"Boys," Moira yelled from the door. "Are you coming in? We're having a few drinks now that it's empty."

Tom hurried in out of the cold with Ezra close behind. "Ez is staying over tonight," he announced casually, sitting down opposite his parents. Being twenty-two, he didn't need permission. He did however want his parents to know that they were getting closer without directly saying it.

"Okay," his dad said, nodding and glancing between them with a smile. "Just avoid Gerry in the morning."

Ezra soon left to go to the toilet, and Tom's parents leaned over the table for the gossip. Tom grinned which told them everything.

"Are you dating, then?" Moira asked.

"I don't want to freak Ez out by putting a label on it yet. But he's not gonna push me away anymore."

His parents burst with excitement, more than they did when he announced he was with Kimberley. "We're so happy for you Tom." His dad patted the back of his hand, but their smiles soon faded, and they sadly looked around their pub. "I really hope the council give us a chance to have bouncers."

"We need to find someone who will work with Ez."

His parents agreed. "Are you sure he'll be able to cope with rowdy drunks?"

"He said he can, so I trust him."