LIGHT ME UP ↝ Lucifer Morningstar

TEN.

        WHAT WAS HAPPENING? That was the question booming inside Benjamin's head, the three words flickering like on a movie screen as he wiped his sweaty palms against his skinny jeans and tried to keep his heartbeat at a reasonable level. Was he nervous? But why? This wasn't such a big deal — going over to Lucifer's apartment to talk about feelings with him, yeah, sounded totally reasonable. That was why Benjamin was telling himself that his erratic heart and wild thoughts were the outcome of standing in a slowly moving elevator, his fear of lifts being the sole reason why he was freaking out.

          But even if he refused to admit it to himself, it wasn't just the elevator. It was what awaited behind those doors, which began to slide open once the ride had come to an end with an annoying little ping, causing Benjamin to exhale heavily. Adjusting his leather jacket, he eventually stepped out and drew in a deep breath before walking further into the room — he had never visited Lucifer's apartment before, but he had to admit that it was fine as hell, with luxurious furniture, a glowing liquor shelf, tall bookshelves, grand windows and a lovely piano in the middle of the room. It was very refined, and earned an approving nod from Benji as he eyed the surroundings.

          And for a while, he forgot about the nervous butterflies in the pit of his stomach, but once he noticed Lucifer tiredly poking at the keys of the piano while a faint cloud of smoke emerged from a nearly empty glass of alcohol, Benjamin remembered Linda's words and the rush of adrenaline that had encouraged him to take action. He wasn't good at this kind of stuff, but as he stared at Lucifer's back, still hidden by the fancy jacket of his suit, he couldn't help but acknowledge the desire to do that — to bond, do something other than make out and have sass fights.

          "Um, hi", Benjamin broke the silence quietly, and whilst he proceeded to shake his head in embarrassment and glance down at his nervously shuffling feet, Lucifer lifted his head to shoot a glance at his visitor. Gulping, he quickly looked away without a word, and unsure how to proceed, Benjamin started to twist his fingers whilst stepping towards the piano, and in the process, Lucifer. "Is everything okay?", he questioned carefully, but when he eventually reached the man by the instrument, Benjamin got his answer.

          Nothing was okay.

          Lucifer's jacket was torn, his short bloodied, his hair disheveled. Dark circles surrounded his eyes, and concluding from the sad glisten on his features, he had shed a fair amount of tears, along with blood. He looked like he had come out of a war, and accordingly, it had taken a toll on him in every way — Lucifer was shaking, his breaths uneven and quiet whimpers rising from his throat as he directed a profoundly heartbroken look over to Benjamin.

          "Oh my— You're definitely not okay. What happened? Why are you— why are you alone? You should have called someone, you could have called me. What's going? Do you— do you want to talk about it?", the Espinoza stammered in panic, drowned in worry as his hand landed onto Lucifer's shoulder sympathetically and with support.