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Deuce Spade knows he's not the smartest. He knows he's stubborn, thick in the head, at times slow when it comes to learning and paying attention in class, so slow that he manages to tick off Riddle's patience more times than not when he requires aid in his studies. His friends tell him he's fine the way he is, his mother says she's got the most special and kindest boy, that it's not his fault he struggles at understanding and processing his school books after skipping 3 years of school, but it still weighs heavily on him.
Sometimes he feels so powerless he doesn't even have any words to spew back when others tease him. Because Ace is right, because he doesn't have any social cues and he doesn't know how to act when he's with others.
He's eager to change, but he has no major qualities to his name: he's not as talented as the other first years, he's not smart, studious or dedicated as housewarden Riddle, he doesn’t have Cater’s crafty demeanor and resourcefulness, he wishes he had Trey’s manual skills and attentive nature, and having someone as amazing and intuitive as Ace around him all the time makes him all the more aware of what he lacks and will never have.
But maybe that stubbornness of his is truly his best quality after all. Maybe his mother is right sometimes to tell him that all it takes is to be fair and true to yourself in life to be happiest. He just can't give up on Ace, not a chance, because he knows his feelings are right. Even if Ace acts like such an asshole at any given chance and Deuce really struggles to control the need to punch his gloating snout more times than not. He really likes the time he spends with Ace, and being reminded of Ace’s voice and smile is enough to make him red in the face.
“Cater!”
“Little Deuce?” Hearing the loud shout coming from behind him, Cater can't help but turn his head and notice with surprise that Deuce is running towards him, right into the depths of the forest. “What's wrong? Oh! I know what it is! You followed your senior to tell him ‘good luck’, right?” Cater flashes a perfectly stamped smile and slightly tilts his head. He winks and it looks robotic as always, but Deuce decides to not comment on it, as he never does. His gut feeling tells him it's better not to bring up the topic.
Deuce might be in the trackfield club, but it still sure as hell hurts to run for what feels like 2000 miles in one go. When the aching burn in his lungs settles slightly, Deuce clears his hoarse throat and finally speaks up. “Cater, please let me speak to Ace one more time. I'm sure I can convince him.” He pants, hands on his knees as he takes in some much needed air, but no matter how much he breathes in it still never feels like it's enough to quell him.
“Mhhhhh…” Cater taps a finger onto his cheek once, twice, as his eyes look up in contemplation. The usual hollow and practiced smile dons his face. “I’m sorry Deucey, but I can’t really do that. But don’t worry, I’m not gonna put little Ace to sleep like I told the others, #promise!” He slips his tongue out and winks again, the glitter resting on his eyebrows shining more than his own eyes. It's eerie, Deuce thinks, but he says nothing.
“Besides…” Cater twirls and plays with one of his locks. “I was going to wake him up anyways~! But keep this a secret between us, ok?” Deuce finds himself with a finger resting gently on his lips and Cater's expression morphs into what appears for one to be somewhat genuine care.
Deuce should be happy. Cater alone is more than capable to get Ace to join them. He's smart and cunning, although Cater would loathe that term when used to describe him, and would be more than capable to manipulate Ace into awakening and joining them.
But Deuce's heart knows that's not how he wants things to go down. He knows this could be the last time he manages to get what he wants and confront Ace alone before tragedy strikes. He’s become aware that all their efforts could pop in seconds if Malleus ever finds out what they're up to, and then he would never see Ace again for another 1000 years. He doesn't have that much time to wait out, and he thinks maybe sometimes it's better to have loved and lost. Even if his love turns out to be unrequited, even if in the end he will only manage to share a few words with Ace that don't lead anywhere, he will be happy as long as he speaks his mind properly and shares his feelings. He trembles at the thought, but there's no turning back now.
Before he can think of any better solution, he's on his knees and his head is facing the ground, kneeling and praying. “I beg you, Cater!” Head lowered, he feels blood rush to his head along with embarrassment and guilt because of how selfish he is. “I need to speak to Ace one last time. It's very important to me!” He doesn't register how desperate he sounds, but he does feel his face growing warmer and his hands turning bruised and ragged as the sandy soil beneath him scratches his palms.
Silence stretches for a long second. “Ahh- I see! This is because of your dream!” Cater says slowly, the jigsaw pieces slowly solving themselves into a clearer picture in his mind. “No wonder Ace treated you so kindly in your dream. Ah! To be young and in love! I'm feeling #emotional right now, who's cutting onions?” Cater fakes a sniffle, then pulls out his phone, crouches and snaps a pic with Deuce's begging, solemn figure. The latter barely manages to raise his head before a camera flash pierces him straight through the eyes. He probably looks like prey caught in headlights, so he doesn’t even dare look at Cater’s phone.
Cater soon starts typing, tongue sticking out as he posts the picture. “Helping my adorable junior take a weight off his chest! #firstlove #goforitDeuceSpade #loveconfessions #rivalstolovers #Adeuce #dontmakeoutinfrontofRiddle … and send!”
Deuce staggers to his feet, mind reeling from Cater's pointy words and the sudden movement. “I'm not making out with Ace!”
“You better not, we're on a tight schedule! Just a #fairytalekiss will be fine.” Cater admonishes him, tapping his shoulder and giving him a thumbs up. “I will leave you love birds the comfort of privacy, but if things don't go as planned, just give me a signal and I'll be there in a jiffy~ !”
Deuce is so happy he could lift off the ground and flutter. Maybe that's how princesses in the old myths felt when they said their heart could sing and soar from joy. “Thank you, big bro- I mean- Cater!”
“Yes, yes, now go! We have a world to save!”
Deuce wouldn't have waited a second more either way. Gaining his elder's approval is all he needs to hear before delving deeper into the forest, Cater's ‘good luck’ only a distant voice that quickly melts into the many, incoherent noises of the all-surrounding tropical forest.
This feeling thumping so loudly in his chest, it's red like the roses he paints on unbirthday parties. Love makes him queasy, but he doesn't fear it. What he fears is Ace's reaction. What could Ace’s possible reply to his feelings be? Deuce's step falters for a moment, his pacing slowing right before a clearing that soon opens in front of him. His head feels light, the words swirling in his brain fade in and out, rearranging themselves to create a scenario where Ace doesn't downplay Deuce's feelings, where Ace doesn't dismiss him as a joke.
His throat grows so dry he fatigues to swallow, but he keeps on walking until the thick vegetation around him thins out and all he sees is a beautiful, calm lake. The body of water doesn't seem deep, its surface reflecting the sunny clear sky of Ace's imagination. Sebek called this dream ‘frivolous’, and although part of Deuce knows it's true, he can't help but stall on the thought of its inherent sweetness. A world where all of them can finally rest after such an eventful freshman year. Only Ace could come up with such a simple and trite yet satisfying happy ending. And then Deuce went and ruined it for him by telling him none of it is real, that they're trapped in a nightmare and they're still struggling to get out of it.
He spots Ace's hunched figure sitting on a huge polished rock by the edge of the lake, one knee to his chest while the other leg is dangling freely in the water, and Deuce immediately stiffens. His palms are suddenly a hundred percent sweatier, his heartbeat is so loud in his ears he can't even think of what his next step should be as he also tries avoiding the growing possibility of cardiac arrest. Scratch all the bold stuff he thought about his feelings just a second ago: he's scared shitless of confronting Ace, he's scared of his troublesome feelings of love, and especially scared of what Ace could say to him since he will probably be rejected.
Even then, even if he's afraid, he can't back down now. This is very possibly the last chance he ever gets of confessing his feelings to Ace. That asshole who’s always by his side, and they enjoy dragging each other down, laughing over the most random shit, the best partner in crime Deuce could have wished for at school alongside Yuu and Grim. Ace has always been there for Deuce, just how Ace has always taken the chance to tease him over and over.
That quick tongue of his, it could soon be too impossibly sharp for Deuce to withstand if Ace rejects his feelings. For his own wellbeing, Deuce can’t even fathom the sound of Ace’s voice pronouncing such cruel words. His heart would probably shatter.
He finally moves onward.
His footsteps resound so clearly in the open area as he approaches Ace's figure. If Ace notices another's presence, he doesn't seem to address it immediately.
“What do you want, Deuce?”
Deuce stops in his tracks, surprised. “How- How did you know it was me?”
Ace snickers, not quite turning yet. He just tilts his head and sighs. “I didn't. I just took a wild guess. Also your footsteps have a weird quality to them sometimes, as if you're stomping down rather than walking.”
Ace's attentiveness to details is something that always surprises Deuce, especially when it comes to Deuce himself. But Deuce knows some things about Ace too: a natural jack of all trades, the guy who can easily read anyone and even fool the housewarden on his lucky days. But no matter how hard he tries to conceal some of his emotions, Deuce finds it so easy to tell when he's lying or upset. For example, it’s obvious something’s wrong from the lack of depth to Ace’s laugh just now, or the way his voice is slightly sluggish and lacks its usual spark.
Maybe Deuce should have expected it though, given what happened between them earlier. Anyone would be upset after that.
Deuce sighs. “Can you take another wild guess and tell me why I came here?”
“I'd rather not to.” Ace mumbles. There’s a small litter of rocks beside him, and he
he fumbles for one that looks flat enough before throwing it on the lake.
As he approaches Ace and stands by his side, Deuce notices all the rocks are relatively thin, perfect for throwing on the water surface. Maybe it’s another one of those weird effects of the dream, where everything caters to its host’s needs. His thoughts are cut through by the swift movement of Ace’s arm and the sound of the stone bouncing on the water one, two, three and so forth until it reaches seven times and sinks into the lake. Deuce can't deny he is slightly jealous. He wishes he could do this in real life too, but all the rocks he finds are never smooth enough to bounce more than three times.
“Join me.” Ace says quietly.
“Huh?” Deuce asks, taken aback by the suddenness. His heart is slightly louder again. “You ok with me sitting here?”
“Just shut up and sit.” Ace grumbles, his sunglasses gently sliding down his nose as he hides his face.
“...Ok.”
As Deuce sits and takes off his shoes, he steals glances at his side. Ace may try as hard as he wants to hide his eyes, but he can’t hide the hint of pink spreading up his neck to his cheeks.
“Are you ok?” Deuce settles to ask.
“How do you think I feel? My whole existence is being questioned and some Diasomnia self-righteous shitfaced prick calls me frivolous too.”
Deuce laughs awkwardly. “Sebek is not a bad guy. He means well.”
“Wow, even my best friend betrays me. Now I know you're not from my dream for sure ‘cause you're a lying backstabber.” Ace pouts.
“Oh come on, grow up a bit.”
Ace throws another rock and he's particularly hard with it this time. It bounces six times before sinking through the water.
“You're already losing your edge.” Deuce teases as he rolls up the sleeves of his pants and takes off his socks. The water is nicely fresh as he lets his feet swing around in it, and small fishes gather curiously around them before quickly dissipating.
“Shush, I know what I'm doing.” Ace says tightly before launching another stone, swift and precise, with a level of skill he definitely doesn't possess in the real world. It bounces nine times and Deuce can't help but whistle.
“That was cool. Let me try.” Deuce gingerly picks one of the stones, carefully tasting the quality of its surface with his fingers before steadying his posture, aiming and throwing it far away in a single swift motion.
The pebble bounces eight times before halting and sinking into the water, and Ace goggles in surprise. “Not bad for your first try.”
“Oh please- I have been doing this since I was small.” Deuce says with pride.
“And I still beat you.” Ace grins.
On any other occasion, Deuce would hate to see Ace's usual taunting smirk on his face. That shit-eating grin that Ace flashes when Deuce has said something dumb makes him so mad, but now it just makes him feel like he's finally woken after a long and restless nightmare filled with wandering and struggling.
But he's still trapped inside that dream, maybe forever. At least he’s glad to have seen Ace's stupid smile for what could be the last time for the next thousand years.
He should dwell on that feeling, but Deuce has never been one to mull over emotions. His way of processing them is fighting them. That's why, on the spur of the moment, he can't help but be dragged into the heat of competition. “Oh yeah? You think I can't beat you? You think you're hot shit?” Deuce inches closer, his eyes glowing at the prospect of a good challenge.
“Bring it, Loosey Deucey.” He mocks, then mimics Deuce's movement and also leans in to stare. Deuce can feel the warmth of skin radiate off him, and it's weirdly comforting, homey even. That hot-headed idiot always seems to warm up any place he enters just by existing. No wonder Deuce has to ventilate their dorm room every hour, or he'll die from suffocation.
Weirdly, Deuce doesn't mind the warmth now, rather craving more of it. He wishes he could hold Ace's hands without making it weird. He wishes he had Ace's cunningness so he could find an inconspicuous way to force him to hold hands without making it seem weird. It's all just so complicated. He should just headbutt Ace into oblivion and make him faint so he doesn't have to stress about this ludicrous situation anymore.
But they do compete, because Deuce never backs down from a fight and because he can't wait to see the shock and embarrassment on Ace's face after losing. Just imagining it makes him smile in anticipation as, stone after stone, their points keep on accumulating.
“You can't throw one at the same time as mine, you're gonna fuck up my streak!” Ace whines as he watches his stone sink after just four bounces. The ripples in the water are so violent that the blurriness makes it hard to distinguish stone from water at times.
“Cry me a river.” Deuce mocks after just scoring a whopping ten bounces. “You're just angry I'm better than you at this.”
“Augh- come on! How come this is a dream if nothing in it goes right?” Ace moans as he lies down on the hard rock, arms crossed behind his head and hat tilted over his eyes. “First you just show up and spoil my whole vacation mood; now I try to beat your ass within my own realm and I still lose? This shit's so lame, dude.”
Deuce stops in his tracks and stares at his friend at his side. Leaves rustle gently all around them, and Deuce can hear the sea breeze coming from afar more clearly now that he's not throwing rocks around and making a mess. Ace is steadily breathing, refusing to turn his face towards Deuce, probably mulling over something he's afraid to express or even graze the surface of.
It’s a delicate situation, but Deuce has never been good at handling fragile stuff. “So you believe this is a dream. Woken up yet?” Deuce says blunt.
“If anything this is a nightmare given how I keep getting harassed and now I'm even losing to you at this stupid game.” Ace huffs. “Aren't dreams supposed to be amazing? The fuck does Malleus think a dream is? This is some kind of torture, man.”
Deuce chortles and it's a hearty thing. He doesn't think he has laughed this hard in a while. He has missed Ace so much, Deuce doesn't know how he could go on without him if he has to leave alone from this place. His heart grows tight and fragile in his chest.
“So is it true? Is this really a dream? Are we stuck?” Ace says slowly and vulnerable, testing the waters for a punchline that should prove him wrong but never comes.
“I wouldn't lie to you.” Deuce answers quick and true, heart on his sleeve like always.
“So all the amazing things we accomplished are just a fruit of my imagination? Us finding a way for Yuu to go back home, us graduating and becoming stronger. All that was a lie? Figures this fucking year couldn't end nicely. Mister number-one-mage in the world had to trap us in some fucked up prison.”
“It's a beautiful dream with a happy ending, it fits you.” Deuce says sadly.
“You're so weird- no that’s not the word… mellow today compared to usual.” Ace notes. “I don't know how to feel about that.”
“I’m just exhausted after running after you. You scared me there.” Deuce sighs.
“Dude! You are the one who scared me with all that talk! Geez- I just wanted some rest and now the weight of the world might be resting on my shoulders.” Ace scratches his head and combs his hair with wet fingers. Deuce can’t help but stare.
“Don’t flatter yourself. Just your shoulders? Pipe down, dude.” Deuce jabs a finger at Ace’s side, trying to ignore the warm feeling growing in his chest as they joke together. He waits for one of Ace’s witty remarks, but it doesn’t come.
“I know I’m just some nobody. I’ve got nothing against someone like Malleus, no need to remind me.” Ace says flat, voice weaker as he looks away, and Deuce is left wordless and dumb in his silence as numbness rattles in his chest. He’s not used to seeing Ace like this, so pliant with the cards he’s been dealt, not trying to cheat his way to victory. Deuce doesn’t like it at all.
He’s driven off his thoughts when Ace laughs dryly and looks at him directly. “What’s gotten you so worked up? Thought I’d say something like ‘let’s go kick Malleus’ ass’ or something? I actually care about my safety, no thanks.”
“So you’re just gonna give up?” Deuce asks bewildered.
“And what’s our other choice?! You thought I’d just join your little merry band of misfits to take down the strongest fae to have ever existed? Are you listening to yourself? You must be out of your fucking mind, dude.” Ace sighs. “I’d rather wallow in my delusions.” Ace sits up then, taking off his sunglasses. His face is pensive, mouth and brow furrowed in a frown as he stares at the rippling lake in front of them. It feels as if his eyes are staring at somewhere Deuce can’t reach, and knowing it makes Deuce rot slowly from the inside. He knows what Ace is going through, he knows what it feels like to be powerless, but he’s never been good with words or at comforting others, so helpful words he wishes he could say just gargle out his brain in no clear form and he stays silent, lost.
He darts his eyes back to Ace’s face when the latter speaks again. “I’m totally sure this isn’t a dream now because you still haven’t told me anything. It would be too good to be true” His voice is low, sort of shy even, which is weird to hear coming from Ace. “I should have realized it sooner. You're lying to me, so get out of here.”
“What are you even talking about? This is a dream!” Deuce replies promptly, sitting straight as Ace fumbles over his attempts at speaking back, and Deuce can’t help but grow curious as the guy in front of him keeps turning pinker on those cheeks he tries to hide away.
Ace scrapes the back of his neck, struggling to speak. “Then why–” Ace struggles to speak, his words all jumbled up in his head just as much as Deuce’s own. “I wanna tell you something, but shit this is so stupid.”
“It probably is, but go on.” Deuce chuckles.
“Wow.”
Ace takes a moment to breathe deeply and relax himself. He plays with his pair of sunglasses in his hands, their shape bending under his fidgeting fingers. Deuce knows Ace is nervous, and he just starts wishing Ace could be done with it and speak up because the anticipation is slowly simmering Deuce from the inside out and it’s growingly painful for his already proven heart.
“I’m just saying that-” Ace stutters, palms sweaty, voice unreadable. “That if this was really a dream, then you would have already said something that I've been waiting to hear for some time now. That's all.” He ends his sentence quickly and sits back down, restless.
So vague, so incredibly unlike Ace to beat around the bush and act vulnerable. Maybe this is what Ace looks like when he doesn't have time to steel up and prepare his poker face? Deuce is just happy to see his friend being honest about his feelings for once without any layers, reveling at the sight even. It's so amusing.
Deuce realizes he has to answer when Ace rustles and shrinks further in his ball of embarrassment. “Uh- I'm sorry but what do you mean by that?”
“Oh my god you're so slow sometimes.” Ace sighs heavily. “Why am I even saying all this? You probably don't even know what I'm talking about. Maybe it's just all in my head.”
“Hey- don't call me slow when you won't even say what you want.” Deuce frowns, but then his features soften again when Ace keeps looking as miserable as a beaten puppy. “What do you want to hear from me? Please tell me, I want to help you.” Deuce says eagerly, inching closer to Ace, who stiffens before relaxing again.
“Why would you even want to help me anyways? I'm such an asshole to you at times, like now. What am I even expecting-” Ace's words die in his mouth as he feels his shoulders being grabbed tight by firm hands. Deuce is looking straight at Ace's face with honest concern, and to say he would love to melt in those wide, curious eyes and never come back to awareness is an understatement.
“I can't get inside your head, so I don't know what's wrong. Tell me what's going on.” Deuce says as if it's an order. “You're worrying me.” He then adds with a softer voice.
Ace is stunned, wide eyed and transfixed by Deuce's touch on his body. He snaps back to reality and looks down with a smile. He sounds a little desperate now. “I must look like a fool right now.” He sighs.
“You always are.” Deuce jokes.
“Ok- let's put it this way. Is there something you've got to tell me? Like something you really want to tell me more than anything?” Ace says quietly, a little tired, but Deuce can hear his quick heartbeat loud and clear beneath the skin.
“Anything?”
“Anything.”
Deuce thinks, and he knows what he wants to tell Ace more than anything. It's the only thing that he wants to tell him now more than ever, now that the entire world is at stake and he could probably never wake up again to say. It's the reason he went so far as to corner Ace like this and beg Cater to give them some privacy as well.
But he doesn't know if that's what Ace wants to hear, and his ego and courage waver at the thought of being wrong. “Promise you won't get mad.” Deuce begs.
“Why would I even get mad? This situation is absurd as it is, I can't even get more overwhelmed than this.” Ace says as he purses his lips, his tone flat but the anticipation radiating off of him is evident.
“I love you.” Deuce says, and it feels like seven years of his lifespan have just got taken clear off his heartbeat count.
Ace says nothing, and the wait is excruciating even if it's just mere seconds before he laughs and melts into Deuce's arms, hugging him and squeezing tight.
As his head is perched on Deuce's shoulder, his lips inch close to the side of Deuce's neck, resting there. “Say it again.”
“Dude, no way. Shit- this is so embarrassing.” It's Deuce's turn to turn pink like housewarden Riddle now. “You say it now.”
“I love you.” Ace says, and it's low and soft as it echoes in Deuce's ears, in his ribcage, where his heart mellows and melts at those simple words.
Deuce feels Ace jolt slightly, as if a shiver just ran through his entire body. “Ehhh- this is so cheesy, I hate this. I'm cringing so hard right now.”
Deuce freezes. “You don't want this?”
Ace jumps in his place, immediately facing Deuce. “No- no, I didn't mean it like that! It's just very embarrassing.” Their faces are mere inches away from each other now, and Deuce can feel the faint ghost of Ace's warm breath and smell the stupid extra fresh mints Ace sucks on all the time.
“Don't you like romantic stuff?” Deuce raises a brow.
“Not at all. Too cheesy.”
“So you don't want to kiss?” Deuce presses on.
To say Ace goes red all over is an understatement as he fumbles over his words. “Kissing? Already!? Aren't we going too fast?” Ace is flushing so deeply that Deuce almost struggles to discern between the red of Ace's cheeks and the painted heart-makeup around his eye. It's cute.
“Only if you want to! We can wait! I don't want to rush you.” Deuce's hands reach for Ace's shoulders again, grasping him firmly, reassuringly he hopes. His head is a mess he can’t seem to make sense of, but he’s sure he’s so overjoyed he could cry and laugh and dissolve away in Ace’s arms at any moment, until he completely slips away. Ace likes him back, and that's the hammering thought his head keeps repeating over and over.
Ace smiles kindly, a rare genuine sight. “It's fine. I'm just crazy tired.” A soft chuckle leaves his lips. “I don't think I have much energy left to even think.”
“We don't have to do much.”
“I want to though.”
Deuce laughs quietly. “Then choose.”
The wind has been tousling Ace's hair alongside Deuce's fingers for a while now, a gentle movement that Deuce can't seemingly stop willingly. He's too entranced by the feeling of soft hair as he traces the shape of Ace's head down to the nape of his neck. The warmth he feels spreading beneath his fingertips as he caresses his skin is a feeling that overwhelms his senses, and he finds himself playing with small tufts of small hair growing sparsely.
“Quit it, it tickles.” Ace laments, pouting even.
“Sorry. It feels nice.”
“I hate this so fucking much.” Ace whines, but then corrects himself when worry spreads over Deuce's face again. “Oh my god- not like that- y'know what? I'll stay quiet from now on.”
Deuce smiles. “I like hearing you speak though.”
“Oh Sevens.” Ace breathes in deeply.
Deuce stares at Ace's face, at his bright cherry eyes that dip low as they stare back uneasy. They look at Deuce's lips, at the cut of Deuce’s jaw as Ace caresses it with a shy hand that tries its best to be unafraid to touch and feel.
“I used to have a girlfriend back in middle school, did you know that?” Ace says as he studies Deuce's skin. His own face is so close to Deuce's own that he can feel heat radiate off of it.
“I don't remember, no.” Deuce says paying only half a mind, too occupied with the way Ace is stroking his cheek with one hand and reaching for his shoulder with the other. He could honestly care less about Ace’s ex-girlfriend right now, but maybe the guy has an angle about it and needs to speak up.
“Yeah- I was kinda an asshole to her and actually ghosted her after just two weeks of dating.” Ace says, biting his lip. “I just didn't feel anything. I thought there was something wrong with me when I kissed her.”
“What about me?” Deuce asks expectantly, blue eyes boring deep in Ace's own with unsaid yearning. “Am I different?”
“Do you want to know?” Ace replies with his stupid impish tone, and the warmth of his breath teases Deuce’s neck as he leaves a small kiss just below his jaw. “I do.” He adds in a soft whisper, looking back up at Deuce before the latter promptly guides him to chapped, quivering lips.
It’s just a small peck, their noses lightly brushing as they linger in the heat of this feeble connection. Deuce swears his heart could burst, his mind completely numb and dizzy as he tries to make sense of the warmth coming from Ace’s body, which is so close to his own; of Ace’s hand tightly grasping around Deuce's shoulder and back before Ace’s body slowly melts into his.
“It’s different.” Ace murmurs on Deuce’s lips, his voice growing dry as he forgets to swallow and breathe. “You’re different.”
“Can you kiss me again?” Deuce begs, his hands still lingering at the edges of Ace’s face.
“You’re weird.” Ace chuckles.
“I like it when you laugh.”
At this point, Ace’s face wouldn’t be able to grow any redder than he already is, otherwise he’d already have already become a ripe tomato. “You look like Housewarden Riddle when he’s mad.” Deuce giggles as Ace looks the opposite of amused.
“Take that back this instant.” Ace says as he frowns.
“You think you got what it takes?”
Ace then leans in again and this time it’s a bit rougher. He climbs up Deuce’s lap, presses his face into Deuce’s own and kisses him eagerly. Deuce doesn’t have experience with love, much less when it comes to kissing, but he knows the way Ace’s lips come together with his is all he wants right now. Ace doesn’t seem like a good kisser, nor does he act like one actually as their noses and chins awkwardly bump at times, but that’s ok since Ace has probably kissed only once before in his life and there was no sentiment in it either.
Deuce can surely feel sentiment now though.
He is sure Ace wants this just as much as he does, and it’s in the way Ace gently cradles Deuce’s head and tilts it to the side to kiss him better; it’s the way Ace barely manages to suck in breaths as he pulls at Deuce’s lips like he needs to breathe the same air as Deuce to live; it’s the way his body rocks and pulls closer and craves for more contact as they kiss and get lost in the feeling.
When their skins come together the friction is warm and exciting, it’s new and fascinating in every possible way. Deuce finds his mind blanking as he savors the taste of Ace’s cherry mints, breathes in the fresh smell of sweat mixed with the stupidly strong cologne Ace confessed to stealing from his brother before leaving for college.
In a brief moment, they part their lips and simply stare. Amidst their panting, the want for more grows, and fueling this curiosity becomes addicting. Deuce finds himself lost in Ace’s eyes: they waver and gravitate around Deuce’s mouth, pierce straight through his eyes and convey 'I love you’ over and over with abandon. Deuce observes the way the paint at the edge of Ace’s eye has turned smudged as it was dragged by Deuce’s thumb, watches small beads of sweat trickle down his forehead.
This is the best day of Deuce’s college career.
“You’re awful at this.” Ace grins.
Deuce thinks he just popped a vein. “You think you’re so good at this, huh?”
“Yeah.” Ace sighs before dropping on Deuce’s body, chin resting on his shoulder. “I did have a girlfriend after all.”
“I guess I know now why she left you. You choked her to death.” Deuce remarks with sarcasm and Ace just grumbles. “Acting as if you didn’t like it.” He spits back.
A few seconds tick by, and both are entranced by their own breathing, by their steadying heartbeats in their chests.
“So are you sure this is a dream now?” Deuce asks, soiling their little paradise.
“You might have to wake me up with a kiss if I really want to find out, I guess.” Ace mocks. “My prince~”
“Oh my god you were right this is too cheesy.” Deuce stiffens, suddenly embarrassed.
“Told ya. Petition to never be romantic again.”
“No objections. Housewarden Riddle probably has a rule for it already anyways.”