Well, That Was A Thing (Good Omens One-Shots)

56; Candid: A "Teach Me" AU Contest Submission

Context: Like the title states, this was a submission for a little contest by GaHell on his discord server at the end of last year, for his "Teach Me" AU. The prompt was imagining what a specific picture on Crowley's phone was.

I finally decided to post the one-shot here.

For those unfamiliar with the AU, it's a human one, Crowley's a college student in Professor Fell's astronomy class. They start a physical relationship and eventually start catching feelings. The main story isn't done yet, so I definitely recommend y'all go checkout the comic so far and the fics related to them!

Also: Fell's first name in this AU is actually Anthony, which is why this one-shot refers to them as Anthony and Crowley, because I wasn't about to refer to him as 'Professor Fell' in such a casual setting.

And in this particular imagining, the pair are already married and living in Fell's house.

Word Count: 1,300

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It had been a warm and cozy morning. Neither man planned on leaving the house that day. Crowley didn't have any classes and Anthony had finished grading paperwork the previous night. After breakfast, they had moved to the living room and been going through an old photo album. Well, more accurately, Crowley had been flipping through Anthony's old photo album. He was using Anthony's lap as a pillow while he gushed about how cute the now professor had looked as a child.

There had been plenty of those. Most of the pictures in that album, in fact, were of Anthony's childhood. There were a few of him in his teenage years. Barely any of him in his twenties. And then none of him in his thirties. Crowley's hand traced the empty pages of the album.

"You must have been really lonely... Not even someone to take a picture of you..."

Crowley's tone was genuinely sad. Anthony could tell that Crowley didn't just feel sorry for his husband when saying this, but for himself too. Without saying a word, Anthony could see how lost in thought Crowley was. He knew he must have been thinking about those years away from his brother. How the distance hurt. How alone and frightened he must have felt.

Anthony knew the feeling well. Though, the circumstances were very different. He had chosen to keep himself distant from the world. Crowley hadn't. His loneliness stemmed from a specific set of circumstances, out of his control. But thankfully, said circumstances had not only gotten better for him as the years went by, but also lead him to this exact moment.

Curled up in Anthony's lap, safe and free to be himself. But, thanks to the emptiness of the latter pages from the photo album, he didn't look very happy. Anthony hated seeing him upset. He just couldn't have that.

"Would you unlock your phone for me?" He asked softly.

Crowley raised a brow and looked up at him. "Huh?"

"Just humor me."

The redhead squinted, wondering what he was up to, but obliged nonetheless. "Ok, sure. Here..."

Anthony quickly found the photos and started skimming through them, making sure Crowley could see the screen clearly.

"You see? I'm no longer alone." Said Anthony, a gentle smile on his face.

The realization quickly brought a smile to Crowley's face. It was true. That wasn't the case anymore. And if he could help it, Anthony would never be lonely again. Crowley took back his phone and kept scrolling. He felt more at peace with every photo he scrolled by.

Many were candid shots of Anthony just doing things around the house. Cooking. Cleaning. Grading papers. Reading. Interacting with Bentley. Others were selfies Crowley had taken, seemingly to annoy the older man. Though, the longer they had been together, it was evident to see that the constant photo snapping was bothering him less and less as time went on. A true testament of how Crowley had nudged his way into his life and Anthony wouldn't have it any other way.

"Wait... When did you take this one?" Asked Anthony, perplexed as all hell when a strange one caught the corner of his eye. Crowley pressed his lips together and scrolled faster.

Anthony scrolled back and clicked on it. Crowley giggled like a gremlin upon seeing it again. He had forgotten it up until now. He quickly added it to his favorites.

"You fiend! Delete that!" Said the professor, scrambling to tap the trash can icon at the bottom of the screen.

Crowley quickly locked the phone and shoved it into his pocket. "Never. You're lucky I don't make that your contact photo."

Anthony was blushing. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Try me!" Grinned Crowley.

And then, the mood shifted. Anthony looked upset. Not just arguing for the sake of it, like they'd do sometimes. He was genuinely upset. At the sight of his former professor pouting, Crowley quickly pulled himself up. He sat next to him and placed.

"You know I'd never show that to anyone, right? It's just nice to have this side of you. As a reminder."

"A reminder of what? Besides all the times we've slept together, I mean."

The photo in question had been taken in the bedroom, at night. The moonlight was the only true source of illumination in the picture. Judging from the angle, it was taken from a far corner of the bedroom. More accurately, from the chair the professor usually sat at, to put on his shoes in the mornings. Vantage point aside, it was clear Crowley zoomed in before snapping it.

Anthony was fast asleep on their bed. He was flat on his back, naked, with only a blanket over part of his abdomen and crotch, leaving very little to the imagination. One arm was outstretched over his head, while his other hand was clutching the pillow tightly. Thanks to the moonlight coming in from the far window, it was clear to see the gentle smile on Anthony's face while he slept. Crowley could have sworn the sight of him like this had made him fall in love all over again. So, he just had to take the picture. It was too beautiful not to.

Crowley grabbed his hands. "No one else sees you like this. When you're this... vulnerable. This... at peace."

Anthony looked at him. Unsure of what to say. Of what to feel. Crowley seemed to recognize the feeling. So he continued, to leave no doubt in his husband's mind.

"You show me this every night. And I will never take that for granted. Or you... Do you believe me when I say that?" He asked, squeezing his hands.

Anthony was speechless once more. But this time, it was because he felt overwhelmed. In a good way. Anything he said right now would probably come out as a choked out sob. So instead, he simply nodded, moving closer. He freed his hands from Crowley's grip. Then, he held Crowley's face in his hands and placed gentle kisses on his cheekbones, then his forehead, then his lips.

Both men smiled as Anthony pressed their foreheads together. Issue now silently resolved, the redhead snuggled back into the older man's lap. They kept scrolling through his phone together for the next hour or so. It was nice. Crowley made a mental note to print out the photos and add them to Anthony's album.

There may have been a gap in the book from when the man was in his thirties, but Crowley was determined to help fill up the rest. No more blank pages. No more loneliness. Of course, the book would not include this particular photo. That one, both literally and what it meant to them, was strictly for their eyes only. Crowley would find a better place for it later on.