Chapter Text
How the hell did this happen?
He's the top of his class. He's always managed to answer his assignments quickly and correctly. So, why, in the King of Beasts' name, was he having trouble answering this particular problem?? Normally, he wouldn't have had too much trouble with Enigmics; sure, it was slightly more confusing than mathematics or alchemy, but he'd still manage to understand the lessons. Now though… it seemed that this activity didn't get the memo or maybe it was himself that didn't. Either way, he needed to get this over with. He can't afford to fall—
A creak of a door broke the silence in his room. Once again, thankfully, Jack's roommates were out again, so it was just him. And Ace, as he trudged inside, closing the door on the way in, hauling his books towards Jack's bed, before he slumped down on it beside his learning materials. He could hear Ace's muffled groan as he buried himself deeper in his bed. Jack turned around in his seat to face Ace, resting an arm at the back of his seat as he did so.
"That's not your bed, y'know. Also, you're late."
"To hell with it, I'm knackered, you have no idea what it was like dealing with Floyd when he's in the mood to be a major arsehole. And there's your answer, we had basketball practice." Came Ace's answer, barely heard through the sheets, not even bothering to turn his head around to properly answer Jack; brows furrowed, Jack tilted his head in confusion, his tail swishing once, then twice, before stilling itself.
"You don't have practice until tomorrow, though?" Jack asked, an eyebrow raised as he crossed his arms, waiting for an answer. A beat passed, then two, before it was clear that Ace wasn't going to answer. Jack sighed, before shaking Ace's shoulder. Ace let out a grunt at that before finally turning his head towards Jack, eyes narrowed but tired.
"Yes, well, you have Coach Vargas to thank for that," Ace replied crossly, closing one eye. "The bloody bastard sprung this on us just as soon as our classes ended. Wouldn't let us off until we caved in."
He made a fair point. Coach Vargas was known to be stubborn, borderline bullheaded, and there was no doubt they couldn't have made him change his mind. Jack understood, despite being a diligent athlete, he wasn't particularly fond of how spontaneous Coach Vargas could be sometimes. So he decided after a moment of thinking, to let Ace rest. A spontaneous practice overlooked by Coach Vargas and a Floyd that was in one of his moods was a terrible combination and it could be seen in just how Ace seemed to melt into his bed. So, for just a moment, he'll let Ace rest. Just for a bit. After all, they were here to study. Speaking of which…
Jack turned himself back to facing his desk, a sigh escaping his lips. Today was not the day for either of them then, as Jack looked over his paper, as seen by the smudged erasures and scribbles that were littered all over it, which was unlike him.. most of the time. Running a hand through his hair, he set out to get back to work; he had to finish this, no matter what.
Minutes had passed, and still yet, he was… getting nowhere closer to finishing this particularly nasty piece of homework. Dropping his pencil to the floor, Jack sighed harshly, his hair a mess through all the times he had run his head through it; leaning down to pick it up, only to his head under the desk, a noise of pain escaped his lips. The noise seemed to alert Ace though; from the corner of Jack's eye as he hissed sharply and rubbed his hand over the sore spot, he could see Ace open an eye and look in his direction. Turning back to the paper, he could tutor Ace as soon as he was finished. But judging from how the sun was starting to set, and the lights above to glow, it seemed he needed to really finish this assignment or he was going to keep Ace in his room with nothing to be done. But just as he was brainstorming, he could hear the rustle of sheets beside him, his ears twitching as they slightly swiveled in Ace's direction; crawling on his knees towards Jack, a hand rubbing over a tired eye, his hair an unkempt mess, flat on one side. Then Ace had reached Jack, leaning against the left side of his desk, an arm steadied his head from lolling to the side.
"What's got you all frazzled up?" He asked, barely holding back a yawn, once again rubbing his eyes in attempt to be more awake. His eyes drooped, and his usual energy, though not as energetic as some of their friends were, was dim; in other words, he looked and felt exhausted. Jack huffed, slight guilt coloring his features, before he turned his head slightly away.
"It's nothing."
"It's not nothing Jack. I could hear you huffing and puffing over there, what're you having trouble with right now?"
"It's fine Ace, I don't–"
"Jack."
Ace stared at Jack, his eyes narrowed and brows furrowed, a slight pout forming on his lips. His eyes, though tired, carried the same stubbornness that he usually had. It was clear he wasn't going to let this go, the guy had a knack for being incredibly stubborn; it had the tendency of getting him into arguments. But before Jack could answer, Ace had suddenly snatched the paper from his desk and had taken a look at it. And before Jack could even do anything, Ace had made a noise of acknowledgement and slid it back to him, before he grabbed a chair and sat right next to him. To which Jack had stared at him, eyes wide in confusion; Ace noticed and rolled his eyes at the sight.
"I can help with that, if you'd like," Ace muttered, his eyes averted to the side, feigning coolness but failing, as his cheeks began to turn into a rather nice shade of rosy pink. He cleared his throat as Jack continued to be silent. "I'm rather good at Enigmics, and well, I've already finished that one."
"You serious?"
"Yes??"
"This. This one?? Even Crewel said it'd be difficult for me."
"But I'm not you, am I?" Ace retorted. He crossed his arms, as he turned towards Jack, a deadpan expression on his face. "Go ahead and ask Crewel if you'd like, but I managed to finish in record time myself. Told me he was proud of me too." He added the last sentence with a smug smile.
Huh. He did have a good point. For all Ace's impulsiveness and attitude, Jack could never deny that Ace was good at what he would be doing if he wanted to. Not that Jack could ever forget that. He'd seen it himself, in the quiet space between them, in his room, as he looked over Ace's work; during the time spent with him in their sessions, stolen moments where it would just be the two of them, as their words and ideas bounced off the other, shoulders pressed together, words that were uttered eventually in hushed conversations, the distance between them too narrow for their volume to be too loud. Sometimes, although he would never admit, Jack had found himself entranced on occasion, as the sun would set, and golden rays would pass through the window and then… Ace's silhouette would have a glow, reminiscent of the fairy dust's golden glow that showered upon them, upon him, during that fairy gala… and then he'd find himself too close for comfort, their faces inches away from each other, and then he'd cough and lean away, rattling off apologies and excuses as he did so. But his hesitation was more so from Crewel's warnings, rather than his nonexistent lack of faith in Ace's intelligence. He shook his head to clear it, which only confused Ace at the action.
"I'm not saying you ain't good at it, but Crewel said it'd be difficult, that's all," Jack defended himself, mumbling the words, a slight blush coating his cheeks. Clearing his throat, he turned to look at the time on his phone, only to realize it was getting late. Shit. Had he really taken too long? Damn it. He heard Ace huff out a small laugh.
"Well, it's not. Not for me," He claimed, as he leaned back against the back of the chair, he turned to look at Jack, who in turn, looked back at him. And he repeated his offer. "Like I've told you, if you'd like, I could help."
Jack blinked. His pride wanted to refuse, but it was weak, and he was already tired of this assignment. Why not? He could gain more just by saying yes, than waste time losing his mind while Ace laughed to his side. Besides, he had Ace. To help, since he was already done, of course.
"Sure, why not?"
However…
"But are you sure with this? It's already getting late y'know. Don't think Riddle would be too happy 'bout this," Jack looked to his window, already dusk had transitioned into evening. Surely they were already breaking one of Heartslaybul's many rules. Also where were his roommates?
"Eh, I wouldn't be too worried about it," Ace shrugged it off, once again leaning against Jack's desk, arms still crossed. "I'd just text Riddle and tell him I'm spending the night over in your room. He likes you more than me, I'd think he'd say yes."
"Hm. Really?" Jack doubted.
"Really," Ace grinned. He held a hand out towards Jack. "Now come on, the sooner we finish this problem, the less you look wound up. And to sweeten the deal," his smile widened, "I'll even tutor you in exchange, to help you understand the concepts better, as a favour for what you've been doing for me. What do you say?"
"Fine," Jack huffed, rolling his eyes at the comment, but he handed the paper to Ace nonetheless. Ace pushed himself away from the desk, and leaned against Jack instead, as he took the paper and began to reread it; mouth moving in a silent manner while he read each line, as he tried to recall his answers.
The warmth was a nice comfort, in Jack's opinion. He hoped Riddle would understand; he hadn't meant to let it get too far. But as he listened to Ace rattle off and started to explain the concepts of the assignment to him, his weight against Jack's a comforting one, Jack found himself not minding this temporary arrangement. Perhaps.. even wishing (in secret!) that they'd have more sessions like this.
He hoped his roommates weren't around tonight.
"Did you get what I wanted?"
His side of the room had changed. Only for a bit. Not too much. Just enough. Sure, his training equipment had been arranged in a way that someone wouldn't trip over them again; his desk had an extra chair beside his own; a few knickknacks that suspiciously didn't look like his own had littered the desk; its drawers had a few new additions, pens and notes and papers and cards had made its way amongst his own things; and the bed beside it had a few extra pillows and… his closet had a few extra cardigans, just in case someone was cold. But it didn't mean anything of course. It was just… enough.
Enough for Ace to make himself at home, really. And make himself at home, Ace did. He had barged into Jack's room, walking with the confidence as if he was a resident of that room, and not, let's say, the friend of one. With said friend leaning against the wall. And amongst the pile of school materials in his arms, he had also brought snacks. Because as they've learned, it wasn't a good idea to not bring any snacks during the sessions, get hungry during them, and get sidetracked on the way back to the room. They found themselves distracted that way.
Ace dropped the things he carried in his arms onto the bed before sitting right beside the pile, the bed bouncing slightly as he did. He rummaged through them, before he finally found what Jack was asking for. Turning around, he held his hand out, holding a paper bag of pastries. Pushing himself off the wall, Jack walked towards Ace and took the paper bag from him, before he set it down on his desk, and almost immediately after, sat down right beside Ace.
"Sevens, didn't I tell you not to dump your stuff on my bed?" He rummaged through the pile alongside Ace, who soon stopped doing so after Jack joined him, which earned him a shove from Jack. Ace fell on his back with a loud "oof!" before righting himself back up with his elbows, a lazy grin on his face despite what Jack did.
"Yeah, well," He lazily lolled his head from side to side, his grin still staying on his lips, "I would've had them dumped on your desk if you hadn't pushed me y'know. Wha– Hey!"
Jack flicked Ace's forehead, before clicking his tongue and turning his attention back to Ace's things. His hands continued to move, separating Ace's things before organizing them in a particular arrangement, whilst he continued speaking.
"I didn't say to dump on my desk either y'know. Get that through your head before I throw your ass out."
"Wow, what's got your knickers in a twist? And anyway, as if you'd throw me out, I know you."
"It's none of your business, and besides, you sure are confident in your answer aren't ya? You sure I won't do it right now?"
"Oh, positive, Jackie."
"What makes you so sure? And don't call me that."
"It's because you love me!" Ace says so in a sing-song voice, a false look of innocence plastered on his face that could rival Epel's whenever Vil was in the vicinity. Jack scoffed, his tail lightly wagging, sending an unimpressed look towards Ace, whose grin just grew even bigger at it. Jack had set the rest of Ace's things on the desk during the conversation, which only left him now with Ace's own bag of pastries. Peering at it and then towards his own bag of pastries, he turned to Ace.
"Where'd you get these from? Sam's? The cafeteria ain't selling these at this time of the day."
"Nope. Not Sam's."
"Mostro Lounge then?"
"Sevens no, I got Trey to bake them for me."
"Really? He said yes? Didn't have no problem with just baking these?"
"Wow. Don't you have any faith in him? 'Course he was alright with baking these pastries for his underclassmen," Ace claimed, sitting up straight now, before mumbling something so low Jack had to strain his already impeccable hearing to be able to hear it, "For a few favors and extra material for teasing me, of course."
"What was that?"
"Nothing. Let's get on with it, shall we?"
Thirty minutes later, they had already gotten into a flow. Ace had laid himself on Jack's bed reading the lesson material, as he was wont to do now during their sessions in Jack's room, while Jack sat at his desk reviewing their notes. It was only a couple of moments later that he had remembered the bag of pastries sitting on the shelf beside his desk. He felt himself get hungry as he remembered and so he decided to have one snack for the time being. As he opened the paper bag, the smell of pears wafted to his nose. Opening the bag even further, he peered inside to have a better look at the pastries. He found a tarte bourdaloue, a pear galette, a pear turnover, a pear strudel, puff pastry shells, and.. a container? A container that seemed to contain.. pear compote? As soon as he took it out and held it in his hand.
…Why?
The noise of the paper bag crinkling had seemed to have alerted Ace, who while Jack was rummaging through it, had sat upright against the pillows and watched him. The noise of the sheets rustling had Jack's ears twitching and he turned to look at Ace, who.. seemed to be watching for his reaction? Upon seeing Jack turn to him, Ace immediately turned to look the other way, grabbing his own paper bag full of pastries as if to pretend he wasn't watching Jack. Too late, he had already noticed. Confused, Jack could only stare at Ace, who continued to pretend as if nothing had happened. Why was he acting that way? Perhaps Trey wanted Ace to get Jack's feedback? But how did Trey even know his preferences? Trey couldn't have known about what he liked, but Ace did. Did Ace..?
"Did you–"
"Well, I couldn't just–"
They cut the other off. Both of them stared at the other, caught in an awkward silence. Neither knew what they should say next, it seemed. Ace had averted his gaze towards his pastries while fiddling with shirt, while Jack started to rub at the back of his neck, his gaze averted as well, tail swishing slowly, an ear twitching, waiting for any sound to come out from Ace.
A beat had passed. Then another.
Jack let out a sigh. He wasn't going to stay silent just like this forever. He had to say something, awkward silences between the two of them were uncomfortable for him; they never had a problem bouncing words off each other, whether it was just casual banter or barbs. His ear twitched as he heard Ace let out a sigh as well, probably thinking the same thing as him. But just as Jack was about to say something—
The door opened.
"Jack! Leona wants you to–"
Ruggie barged into the room, his arms crossed behind his head, his trademark mischievous grin on his lips as he walked towards where Jack's side of the room was, only to stop as he spotted the two in their… awkward situation. Both freshmen stared at him with wide eyes, frozen. His smile slowly slipped something a little bit more hesitant. Looks like hadn't expected this.
Neither did Jack. He could feel his irritation rising, his tail mirroring his emotions, as it began to wag at an eventual speed. He was sure he was also maybe kind of glaring at Ruggie, if the way the hyena beastman's eyes went shifty after meeting his meant anything. The hyena cleared his throat as he slowly backed into the doorway, his hands held up in a placating manner.
"Anyway, Jack, Leona wants you to help him out with something, says he wants you with me in his room ASAP, so if you and ginger here are… done with… whatever is happening between you two, it's best you go now. Bye!"
And with that, Ruggie left, presumably to Leona's room. Jack let out a long sigh, as he dragged a hand down his face. He could hear Ace let out a snicker beside him. Turning his head towards Ace, he could only narrow his eyes at the other boy, slightly bothered by his upperclassman's interruption. Speaking of, Ruggie was right in the fact that it was best he'd get to Leona now; though he may be no Riddle Rosehearts, it was still unwise to be insubordinate, most of the time. So he stood up, preparing to meet his housewarden. However, he still had his session with Ace…
"Wait here for a bit, I won't be long. Probably."
"And if you are?"
"Then you can just leave, I won't ask you to stay the night."
"A shame. I kind of wanted you to," Ace seemed to blurt out uncontrollably, judging from how shocked he looked after he said that. Jack froze, the look of shock on his face a mirror to Ace's, wide eyes and blushing faces and all. And for a moment, Jack didn't want to leave. He wanted to ask what Ace meant. But then he could hear Ruggie calling for him faintly in the distance and knew he had to ask his questions later. He cleared his throat and turned to leave. But before that…
"Thanks. For the pastries, that was.. nice of you to ask Trey to bake them. Thanks Ace."
"…You're welcome. Wouldn't mind asking for them again, if you want."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"I told you it'd rain."
"Shut up Ace."
Jack grumbled, as he shrugged his track jacket off and threw it in his laundry basket, soaked to the bone, as water dripped from him and formed puddles at his feet. He was about to shake himself dry before he managed to remember he had someone else in the room with him; his roommates were somewhere else in the school, meeting up with their friends or in the library (shocker). And Ace seemed to sense what he was about to do too. He had an eyebrow raised and his eyes were narrowed, as if to say "try it," before he sighed and got off the bed and began to rummage through Jack's closet.
"Hey, what're you—"
"I'm getting you a towel, relax." Ace said absentmindedly, as he opened a drawer and began to rifle through it. "You are not going to get me and this room drenched. Now stand still."
"Do you even know where–"
"Here they are," Ace held one of his towels out proudly, before tossing it towards Jack, who caught it with one hand. Then he took out Jack's bathroom necessities from his closet and shoved it in Jack's arms, before pushing him out of the room. "Now go on, take a bath yourself and don't come back until you're dry. Oh gross, my hands are wet."
"Bossy," Jack retorted, still carrying his towel and bathroom necessities; letting Ace push him towards the door, " This is my room, in case you've forgotten."
"I didn't, and I'm doing the both of us a favour. Now go on."
And then he closed the door on Jack's face. Jack let out a huff of amusement, a small smile on his lips, before he did what Ace asked, immediately turning towards the direction of the dorm bathrooms. Fair enough, he did need that bath anyway.
The light from his desk lamp cast a faint light on the both of them, as they lay on Jack's bed; Jack was reading and Ace was scrolling through his phone. It had been hours since Jack had returned from the showers, and they had resumed their tutoring session. Time had passed until it was late, late enough for Ace to be in trouble should he return to Heartslaybul at that hour; Ace had called Cater up and asked him to ask Riddle for permission to stay the night at Savanaclaw on his behalf. Surprisingly, Riddle seemed to have little qualms about Ace's request. Jack tried not to eavesdrop, but he could've sworn there was an undertone of teasing in Riddle and Cater's words as they spoke with Ace, which became more evident with the way Ace got so flustered during their conversation. And now… they were here, in this situation once again. His roommates had decided to stay the night this time around, and so both him and Ace had to be more low-key than they were used to, though that didn't really stop the stares and the looks they've gotten from Jack's roommates; just thinking of the teasing looks they'd gotten had Jack flustered, his ears flattened against his head, and his tail restlessly swishing. The movement caught Ace's attention, and he turned it towards Jack, raising an eyebrow in question. He put his phone down, and shifted himself closer to Jack. That got Jack's attention. Not quite putting his book down, he tilted his head, ears flopping to the side, as he faced Ace.
"What's got you in a tizzy?"
"What do you mean?"
"Your tail?" Ace asked, pointing to it. Jack's tail swished even faster at that, before Jack forcefully stopped it with his hand. "Either you're happy, or pissed, or you're feeling some kind of emotion really strongly, and judging by how it's not the first two, it's something else."
"It's nothing, just annoyed by how my roommates were looking at us," Jack muttered, his eyes averted. "But them pissing me off ain't nothing new anyway."
Ace let out a huff of amusement at that, as he shook his head and tried to make himself more comfortable in Jack's bed. Jack's eyes followed every movement, as he finally put his book down in the space between them.
"You comfy?"
"What do you think?"
"Sorry," Jack mumbled. His ears flattened even further, and he moved to shift away, but before he could do so, he felt Ace's hand on his bicep.
"I was joking, I'm fine," Ace reassured him, as he lightly squeezed Jack's bicep. "Besides, your bed is built big for you athletes anyway, so I can still fit in some space. Are you?"
"I'm what?"
"Comfy. You got soaked a few hours ago, you haven't got a fever?"
"'M fine, drank some water and medicine, so I should be fine."
"…You don't got a problem with them here?" Jack asked, as he now fully laid on the bad facing Ace; Ace's hand was still on his bicep, not that he wanted him to take it off, to his surprise. He briefly remembered the book between them, but he found his focus more on Ace than it at the moment really. They were… close, closer than they were last time. He hoped he wouldn't do the unfortunate habit of getting his face too close to Ace's again.
"Your roommates? Why would I? I'm more interested in you anyway," Ace softly laughed, a smile on his lips. his hand pushing his bangs away from his eyes, as he looked at Jack with those same eyes that shone like rubies, soft in a way reminiscent of a poppies' flowers. Jack, who was currently having a sort of a mini heart attack from his words, and unfortunately not exactly as secretly as he hoped, given the way his tail was thumping on his side of the bed. Jack could hear faint snickers from his roommates, which only made his face burn even more. Ace, who seemed to be getting sleepy, only seemed to be confused at Jack's state. He moved closer, for whatever reason unknown to Jack, only to bump into the book he had placed between them. Ace looked down at it before he picked it up.
"You shouldn't leave your book here," Ace yawned, turning it back and forth in his hands. "We'd get uncomfy with it in the way, y'know."
"…Yeah, my bad."
"What's it about?"
"What's what about?" Jack asked, confused.
"The book you're reading Howl," Ace answered, rolling his eyes and yet that soft smile was still on his lips. "I've seen you read that last time we were at Ramshackle, you were so into it, you barely heard us. Wanted to know what got you hooked."
"You sure you can stay awake for it? You look like you're about to fall asleep Trappola."
"I might… be feeling it. But maybe I just wanted to still keep talking to you, nothing wrong with that."
"…"
"Jack?" Ace questioned, now confused at the silence.
"Maybe you should get some sleep then," Jack muttered, his line of gaze somewhere that wasn't Ace's eyes. He started to sit up, his head turned away that Ace couldn't clearly the look on his face.
"Aw, c'mon Jack, gatekeeping really?" Ace complained, a pout forming on his lips, which deepened even further when Jack took the book from his hands as he placed it on his desk. "Seriously?? I'm not that dumb, y'know, I can enjoy a bit of literature."
A beat of silence. Jack hadn't turned to Ace's way after he placed the book on his desk. He didn't want to. Which was a lie. He did, but he really didn't want to know what he was going to end up saying or doing when he did. He could hear Ace scoff before he heard the sound of sheets rustling.
"Fine. Be that way," He heard Ace mutter bitterly, as he tugged one of Jack's cardigans that he had borrowed tighter around him. He sighed as he laid down, preparing to just go to sleep facing the other way, even if his stomach churned at the thought of him and Ace having an argument before going to sleep, but before he could do just that, he could hear Ace mumble, "I just wanted to get to know you more, is it so wrong to want to do that?"
Yeah. He couldn't take it. To hell with what was ever going to happen, he didn't want to go to bed after an argument with Ace.
He turned to face Ace at a speed so fast, it had Ace look gobsmacked. He shifted closer to Ace, before blurting out:
"Do you want to come with me to town tomorrow?"
"…What??"
"You wanted to know about me more, didn't you? Then come with me then, tomorrow, for lunch, at Foothill Town, just the two of us." He offered, in all seriousness. Because it was serious, for him. It's not often that the two of them had hung out with the other person without the others, barring their sessions, and really get to know each other; truth be told, a part of Jack felt the same way towards Ace as well. And Jack had felt guilty for what had happened; they were having fun, it wasn't Ace's fault for suddenly dampening the mood, that was all Jack's fault, all for feeling so weird around Ace nowadays.
"…"
"…If you still want to… y'know, know more about the book… or me…"
"…"
"…Ace?"
"What?!?"
"Oi!! Will you two loverboys keep it down over there!!!"