Work Text:
If there was anything Ace knew about Riddle, it’s that the redhead takes his schoolwork very, very seriously, and if the first-year tries to text him, it’ll likely be a few hours before he gets a reply– which is why he’s surprised when his phone buzzes while he’s at his desk.
Messages: cafe au riddle
7:09 PM
cafe au riddle: Do you have any plans over winter break?
ace trappolatte <3: oh boy ur texting me during hw time that’s new
cafe au riddle: I’m finished, thank you very much. And now that winter break is next week, I just got curious is all.
cafe au riddle: Not that your plans can be any worse than mine.
ace trappolatte <3: that’s mildly concerning
ace trappolatte <3: u ok, rosebud?
cafe au riddle: I’ll be fine. I’m sure I’ll be fine.
ace trappolatte <3: if u say so… just know i’m here for u ok?
cafe au riddle: I know. Thank you, Ace.
ace trappolatte <3: ofc <33
ace trappolatte <3: now to answer ur question im goin back to the queendom
ace trappolatte <3: my parents said they wanted to visit family but that’s abt it
cafe au riddle: Hm, I see. Alright, thank you, Ace :)
ace trappolatte <3: ofc ofc! yw rosebud
ace trappolatte <3: hbu?
cafe au riddle: Me? Ah…
cafe au riddle: Nowhere.
ace trappolatte <3: ehhh really?
cafe au riddle: Yes. I think I’ll just spend break here, where it’s nice and quiet. Well… as quiet as it can be with Azul, Jamil, and Kalim around.
ace trappolatte <3: mm alright
ace trappolatte <3: still concerning but! i’m here for u whenever
cafe au riddle: I know. Thank you, Ace :)
ace trappolatte <3: as long as you do rosebud (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)
ace trappolatte <3: anyway i got an essay to grind so i’ll ttyl?
cafe au riddle: Do your assignments, Ace.
cafe au riddle: But yes, we’ll talk later.
ace trappolatte <3: okay :D
Ace frowns as he places his phone back on his desk. There’s something up with Riddle, and by the name of the Seven, he’ll find out what it is.
…after he’s done with his essay due in an hour. He’ll find out what it is after that.
Much to Ace’s disappointment, Riddle hadn’t let anything else slip, somehow expertly changing the topic each time it was brought up (probably his roommates’ influence, if Ace thought about it).
He slumps down in the hard terminal seat, forlornly scrolling through Riddle’s messages one last time to see if there was any kind of hint as to what was going on, but eventually gives up and shoves his phone into his backpack.
…and then immediately fishes it back out when he hears the ping, and Ace unconsciously smiles when he sees the notification.
Messages: cafe au riddle
10:11 AM
cafe au riddle: Your flight leaves soon, yes?
cafe au riddle: Be careful and safe travels :)
The first-year sticks his tongue out as he quickly types a response.
ace trappolatte <3: yea i’m waiting and it’s boring af
ace trappolatte <3: and i will dw (´▽`ʃ♡ƪ)
cafe au riddle: Alright. Tell me when you land, yes?
ace trappolatte <3: won’t it be like the middle of the night for u tho
ace trappolatte <3: is the riddle rosehearts gna stay up past midnight for once?
cafe au riddle: Well, I’d at least like to know that you’re alright. I’ll be fine.
ace trappolatte <3: ooh devious~
cafe au riddle: Ace.
ace trappolatte <3: i’ll text, i’ll text! don’t worry ur pretty little head off
cafe au riddle: Okay :) Off you go, then.
ace trappolatte <3: byeee love u
cafe au riddle: Love you too.
Ace sighs contentedly (oh, Deuce and the others would have a field day if they saw him like this) and is just about to start up a game on his phone when the overhead speaker blares an announcement.
“Flight 2408 for the Queendom of Roses, now boarding at terminal nine.” Ace grabs his suitcase handle and rolls it off to the gate, handing the flight attendant his ticket and strolling right on in. As he loads his bag into the overhead, Ace thinks he sees Riddle’s familiar shade of red on the other side of the plane…
But there’s no chance of that happening, of course; Riddle is still in his apartment, and everything is just fine, so Ace plugs his headphones in, puts his favorite playlist on full blast, and lies back in his seat.
~-~-~-~-~
Sometimes Ace really wishes he had magic; maybe then he’d actually be able to get his bag out of the overhead compartment faster, instead of having to wait thirty whole minutes for someone else to struggle with getting theirs out first.
But finally, after what seemed like hours going through customs and finding his suitcase, he’s finally outside, and Ace grins as he gazes out at the Queendom hills. His brother should be here already and waiting to pick him up, but when Ace glances around, he doesn’t see Lance anywhere.
Well, at least he expected this part.
Ace takes his phone out and shoots an angry text to Lance, complete with language Riddle definitely would’ve scolded him for and little angry faces. Then he switches the chat over to Riddle, and all his annoyance dissipates in an instant as he types out a message.
Messages: cafe au riddle
8:59 AM
ace trappolatte <3: gooood morning rosebud!
cafe au riddle: Good morshrjsdjfks
ace trappolatte <3: lmao riddle??
cafe au riddle: Sorry, I just woke up… I dropped my phone.
ace trappolatte <3: oh right i forgot abt time differences
ace trappolatte <3: what time is it over there?
cafe au riddle: Mm… almost nine in the morning.
ace trappolatte <3: no rosebud at sage’s island lol
ace trappolatte <3: ik it’s 9 am in the queendom
cafe au riddle: Oh.
cafe au riddle: …
ace trappolatte <3: riddle u ok? it’s fine, it was just a silly mistake
cafe au riddle: Alright. I’m okay, thank you.
cafe au riddle: It’s just around 1 AM, to answer your question.
ace trappolatte <3: aww are u sleepy
cafe au riddle: A bit. I was just startled by the noise.
ace trappolatte <3: u had it on full blast??
cafe au riddle: Yes.
ace trappolatte <3: riddle 😭
ace trappolatte <3: ok ok u can go back to bed now sleepyhead <3
ace trappolatte <3: i landed and i’m ok :D
cafe au riddle: Alright, thank you Ace.
cafe au riddle: Enjoy your vacation.
ace trappolatte <3: tyty~ i’ll be sure to get u smth nice!
cafe au riddle: You don’t have to. But if you do, thank you.
Ace sends a little heart back, ignoring the new text from his brother, and tosses his phone into his backpack. He spends a few more minutes waiting, then watches as Lance’s car finally pulls into the pickup bay and not-so-subtly flipping his brother off when he jumps into the car.
His phone doesn’t go off the entire ride, which Ace takes as a “Riddle went back to bed”, and that’s a great thing!
He just hopes the redhead is ready to wake up to all the texts about his travels.
Messages: cafe au riddle
2:04 PM
ace trappolatte <3: rosebud~ u up yet?
ace trappolatte <3: i bet guys like u wake up at 6 am
ace trappolatte <3: BUT THAT’S NOT MY POINT
ace trappolatte <3: MY POINT IS u gotta take my side here because my dumbass brother just said barstucks is better than whatever i make.
ace trappolatte <3: BARSTUCKS RIDDLE. BARSTUCKS
ace trappolatte <3: whenever u wake up u better help me tell him he’s wrong
ace trappolatte <3: his dumb ass doesn’t believe me
ace trappolatte <3: i’ll be waiting for ur. what’s it called
ace trappolatte <3: hmsdfgh TESTIMONY
ace trappolatte <3: there we go i’ll be waiting for ur testimony saying that my coffee is twenty times better than barstucks, tyvm
9:29 PM
ace trappolatte <3: riddle there is like no way ur not up yet
ace trappolatte <3: u good over there?
ace trappolatte <3: tho honestly i bet ur just finishing up ur assignments or whatever
ace trappolatte <3: u always were responsible like that, it’s what i love abt u
ace trappolatte <3: just text back whenever, k? i’ll be waiting for u
~-~-~-~-~
Ace wakes up the next morning, and though Deuce and some of the others have replied to his texts, Riddle still hasn’t. The first-year pouts and goes through his messages again, not even bothering to answer Deuce as he scrolls through his chat with Riddle.
“They still haven’t been read… huh, that’s weird,” Ace mutters to himself. Then he shrugs, tossing his phone back onto the drawer and lying back down on his bed. “Welp, his phone’s probably just dead or something. I’m sure it can’t be that bad.”
The first-year closes his eyes again, just about ready to get a few more hours of sleep, and that’s when his brother decides is the best time to throw the door open with a bang and tell him breakfast is ready.
And by the time Ace has chased Lance downstairs and into the snowy backyard, he’s hardly worried about Riddle at all.
~-~-~-~-~
Messages: cafe au riddle
1:27 PM
ace trappolatte <3: have u not been charging ur phone or smth?? is it just permanently dead??
ace trappolatte <3: did u break it. u probably broke it didn’t u
ace trappolatte <3: mm nah ur not that irresponsible
ace trappolatte <3: wait it’s like 5 am over there. are u awake at 5 am
ace trappolatte <3: oh well
ace trappolatte <3: anyway i went to some rose gardens w my fam td!
ace trappolatte <3: look at how nice these flowers are
ace trappolatte <3 sent ten images. (Most of them are different varieties and colors of roses. Some of them have Ace posing in it.)
ace trappolatte <3: if u ever feel up to visiting the queendom hmu and let’s go tgt :D
ace trappolatte <3: and respond soon pls i miss u :((
12:42 AM
ace trappolatte <3: riddle?
ace trappolatte <3: rosebud :((
ace trappolatte <3: rosie are u thereee
ace trappolatte <3: it’s almost like. 5 pm at sage’s island right
ace trappolatte <3: where r u.. come talk to me i miss u 🥺
2:12 AM
ace trappolatte <3: amf goin to bed
ace trappolatte <3: ikkkk ur gna say i shldn’t b e up this late
ace trappolatte <3: but i wanna hear from uuuu
ace trappolatte <3: txt me back okayy
ace trappolatte <3: good night ridlde
~-~-~-~-~
Nothing, nothing, nothing. It’s been five straight days of absolute silence from Riddle, and Ace would be lying if he said he wasn’t worried at this point. Texting Jamil had only gotten him a cryptic response, and texting Floyd to ask Azul hadn’t given him anything either.
Ace glares at his phone, hoping it would ping or just give him something, anything that would let him know Riddle was alright. And as much as he’d like to say something happened…
Nothing did, and he simply stares at his phone for five minutes before deciding to pick it up and actually ask.
Messages: cafe au riddle
10:30 AM
ace trappolatte <3: riddle are u ok?
ace trappolatte <3: u were acting rly weird when u asked and now ur not answering
ace trappolatte <3: so i’m. well ig concerned is an understatement
ace trappolatte <3: i’m just scared smth happened to u
ace trappolatte <3: or that i did smth which if i did i’m sorry
ace trappolatte <3: tell me ur ok riddle please
ace trappolatte <3: ok? i’m. rly rly fucking worried
ace trappolatte <3: sorry abt the cuss but it’s necessary so
ace trappolatte <3: come back soon riddle :(
Ace stares at the messages until his screen turns black, and even so, he keeps on gazing at his own reflection. Then he groans in frustration and tosses his phone on his bed before storming out of the room.
He just wishes Riddle would talk to him.
Two days later, Ace’s phone finally, finally dings with Riddle’s signature notification sound. He blinks, wondering if he was simply hearing things, and when it finally hits him, Ace practically scrambles off his bed- and promptly trips on the mess of clothes all over his floor. He pulls himself up and grabs his phone off the drawer, hurriedly opening his messages.
Messages: cafe au riddle
4:54 PM
cafe au riddle: Ace, where are you right now?
ace trappolatte <3: no hello?? no how are u??
ace trappolatte <3: actually no not important
ace trappolatte <3: riddle where the hell have u been?? i’ve been so worried for u
cafe au riddle: I can imagine. I’m sorry I didn’t respond to any of your texts.
cafe au riddle: I’ve been… preoccupied.
ace trappolatte <3: for a WEEK???
cafe au riddle: I can explain, just please tell me where you are.
ace trappolatte <3: riddle what’s going on?
cafe au riddle: Ace. Answer, please.
ace trappolatte <3: ok ok i’m at my house
ace trappolatte <3: fam’s out holiday shopping but i didn’t wna go with so
cafe au riddle: Alright, and where is your house?
ace trappolatte <3: riddle i am getting very worried rn what’s wrong
cafe au riddle: Not now, Ace.
cafe au riddle: I really will explain, I swear, I just need to know first.
ace trappolatte <3: …923 cherrose avenue
ace trappolatte <3: just know ur scaring me to death rosebud
cafe au riddle: Thank you. Thank you so much, Ac
ace trappolatte <3: ??
ace trappolatte <3: riddle?
ace trappolatte <3: rosebud?? hey what happened
ace trappolatte <3: hey riddle answer me
ace trappolatte <3: please
ace trappolatte <3: rosie???
Ace watches confusedly as the blue tick appeared on each message one by one, but there was no text bubble that showed Riddle was responding.
Great. His boyfriend was probably in danger, and he’d just been left on read.
“Just great,” Ace mutters to himself. ”Seven, Riddle, what the hell…” He puts his phone back on the drawer and opens the door, too antsy to stay in his room for much longer. He skips down the steps two at a time, rounds the corner to get to the kitchen, and gets halfway through filling a glass of water when he hears three rapid knocks on the door.
Ace sighs, taking a swig before going over. “Coming, coming,” he calls, his fingers deftly undoing the latch and locks before swinging it open. “Heya, what's-”
Maybe he should've checked who was at the door first, because whoever Ace had expected, it certainly wasn't Riddle himself.
“Wh- Riddle?! What the- how the hell are you here? I thought you said you'd be at your apartment for break!” Something in Ace’s head sparks, and suddenly he understands everything. “This is why you wanted my address.”
“I’m glad you figured it out.” Riddle smiles, but it's wrong, all wrong ; it doesn't reach his eyes, and it's so painfully obvious to Ace that he's forcing it. “And as for winter break, well… change of plans.”
Ace is stunned silent as he stares at Riddle. His smile isn't the only thing off about him either, and the first-year’s eyes dart around Riddle’s form like he doesn't know where to start.
There’s a bruise forming on his face. His eyes are red and swollen, like he’s already been crying for hours on end. His hair’s a mess, with ice and snow tangled in it, and he’s clearly trying his best not to shiver, even though all he has on is a thin sweater.
And is that a suitcase he’s wheeling behind him? Ace peeks around the other, and Seven, it really is . But he supposes there’s something even worse than the fact that his boyfriend just showed up on his doorstep like he had nowhere else to go.
The light in Riddle’s eyes had completely disappeared. No matter which angle Ace looks at the redhead from, there’s no fire, no stormy spark, no anything. Instead, it’s simply dull gray.
A hand waves in front of his face, and Ace blinks at Riddle’s look of concern. “Ace? Are you alright? You’ve been staring.”
The first-year doesn’t know what to say, because Riddle’s the last person who should be asking that question, but he eventually musters up a response. “Yeah.”
“Alright, good.” The redhead smiles weakly, his grip shifting on the suitcase handle. “Can I come in now? It’s cold out here.”
“Oh shit- uh, yeah! Go ahead.” Ace holds the door, stepping back to let Riddle inside, and closes the door behind them. “My room’s upstairs. Last one on the right.”
“Thank you. I’ll just go ahead and put this inside then, if you don’t mind-”
“Actually, could you wait a bit, Riddle?”
The redhead flinches, but turns back to face him anyway. “Yes? What is it?”
The first-year strides towards Riddle, and Ace doesn't miss how the other trembles as his hand gently brushes rose-red hair away. “Damn… this bruise is worse than I thought. You want some ice for that?”
Riddle’s eyes flick between Ace’s hand and Ace himself. “Th-that would be nice.”
“Okay then.” Ace draws back and takes a step towards the kitchen before looking back with a grin. “Anything else for the pretty boy in red?”
A bit of light returns to his expression, but it's gone just as quick as it came. “You don’t need to, but… i-if it’s alright, could I have some tea?”
“Of course.” The first-year goes over and kisses Riddle’s forehead, carefully pushing him towards the staircase. “You go and get comfortable, okay? I’ll be there soon. And you can help yourself to the blankets, you look like you need it.”
The redhead nods and disappears up the stairs, and Ace's mind kicks into overdrive as he starts preparing the supplies.
Riddle is in the Queendom, meaning he'd lied about staying in Sage’s Island for winter break.
Ace knows his boyfriend, and he knows that Riddle values the truth too much to even try. Riddle never lies– so there had to have been something to make him renounce that. Judging from the state the redhead is in, Ace has a feeling he’s not going to like the answer, but he’ll be damned if he doesn’t at least try.
~-~-~-~-~
When Ace enters his room with an ice pack and two cups of tea, he finds Riddle sitting on his bed with all the blankets drawn around his shoulders. The redhead flinches at the creak of the door, but quickly relaxes once he sees Ace. The first-year places both teacups on the drawer and sits beside Riddle to hold the ice pack to his face.
“How’s that? Feel good?” Ace asks quietly, leaning down to look into Riddle’s (empty, empty, why are they empty) eyes.
Riddle nods, but he shies away from the ice and pushes the first-year’s arm down. “It does, but…”
“Too cold?”
“Too cold.”
“Mm, yeah, I figured. Eh, it’s fine, it can wait.” Ace holds a teacup out towards the redhead with a lopsided smile. “Tea then?”
“Please.” Riddle takes the cup and curls his fingers around it with a sigh. “Just the way I like it. Thank you, Ace.”
“You’re welcome!” Ace settles in with his own cup and sits down opposite the redhead. “So, you said you were gonna explain once you got here, right?"
Riddle’s shoulders slump. “Right, I- I do owe you an explanation, don’t I?”
“Yeah. I guess my first question is, why are you in the Queendom anyway?
“I came back last week, actually. And the reason I hadn’t responded to anything you sent me was because my mother was monitoring me so heavily.”
“Whoa, hold up, your mom?! So you actually came back here for break to visit your parents?” Riddle hesitantly nods, and Ace tilts his head in confusion. “Why’d you do that? I thought you wanted to stay away from ‘em.”
“My mother requested it, and I didn’t really have a choice. After all, she didn’t know I’ve been lying to her since…”
“Since you left home for Night Raven basically.” A sudden realization hits him, and Ace slowly narrows his eyes. “Wait, what do you mean, ‘didn’t’? I thought you…”
Riddle’s face falls and his expression goes blank as his grip tightens around his teacup. “She was asking about internships. I told her I’d applied to some of the more popular medical firms. And she…”
The redhead takes a deep breath, his body shaking as he tries to hold his tears in. “My mother caught me lying. She told me she’d asked around, and nobody had received an application with my name on it. She called me out and told me to tell the truth. One thing led to another, and…”
“And she figured everything out.”
“She did. She was… well, furious is still an understatement. And I– I think I deserved it a little bit, because not only did I change my future career without telling her, but I lied for–”
Ace grabs Riddle’s shoulders with one hand and tilts his head up with the other. “Don’t you dare say that about yourself, Riddle! You love studying law, and it makes you happy. Shouldn’t that be enough?”
“Not for my mother, it’s not. She was yelling for hours. Somehow she managed to rope my father into it too.” Riddle laughs humorlessly, and his expression settles into a broken smile. “And yet that’s not even the worst part. She told me to get out, and right before I reached the door…
“She said I wasn’t welcome there anymore. And then she disowned me.”
Ace gasps, his eyes going wide and jaw hanging open. “What– Riddle, that’s terrible! I knew she was bad, but I didn’t think–”
“Ace.” The first-year stops his rant when Riddle puts one hand on his leg. “There’s nothing more to be said about it. It’s fine.”
“Is it really though? You expect me to believe you’re okay with this happening to you?” Now it’s Riddle that goes silent, and Ace lowers his voice with a sigh. “Alright, look. Just to be clear, I'm not mad at you or anything, but why lie to me about this? You hate your parents, I could’ve-”
“Because I didn't want my mother to hurt you!” Riddle blurts out, tea nearly sloshing out his cup. He takes a deep breath to try and calm himself, then keeps going. “Because I knew if I told you, you would've tried to stop me or do something about it and I didn't want her to hurt you.”
“...but you said you knew you could come to me anytime. Was that a lie too?”
“No! No, Seven, no. I really did want to tell you, but I…” Riddle raises his tea cup to hide his face. “I think… I was just so scared of losing you like I almost did Trey and Che’nya that I didn’t dare. And I figured I’d dealt with my mother for upwards of fifteen years, I could handle two more weeks if it meant she didn’t find out about you.”
“So you thought it'd be a good idea to do this for my sake?” Riddle nods again, and Ace puts his teacup on the drawer with a clink. “Okay, put your tea down.”
Riddle tilts his head questioningly, but does it anyway. “Why? What are you going to–” Ace rushes forward, wrapping the redhead in a tight hug, and Riddle freezes. “Ace? A-Ace, what are you..?”
The first-year stays quiet, tucking Riddle's head into the crook of his neck and gently rocking back and forth. The redhead tries to push Ace away from him, tears building in the corner of his eyes.
“Ace, stop this. Let me go.” Riddle tries to shove the first-year away from him, but Ace doesn't budge, his arms holding on as tight as he can. “Ace, please , I–”
“Is that what you really want?” Ace's voice is low, but Riddle tenses anyway. “If that's what you really want, I'll let go.”
Silence falls in the room. Ace is fully prepared to let his boyfriend go, but then there's a sniff, followed by a hiccup, and suddenly Riddle's clinging onto him like a lifeline as he breaks down sobbing.
“Oh, Riddle… there we go. I’m so sorry.” Ace’s heart clenches, but he holds on as tight as he can and softly rubs circles on Riddle’s back. “Just let it all out, rosebud, I'm here for you.”
“A-all I wanted was to make her proud of me… I just wanted her to understand, but I knew she wouldn’t, and when she started asking about internships, I did so much research, you saw me do research about this! I- I thought she wouldn’t catch on, I didn’t expect her to actually ask everyone!”
“No one would’ve expected that, Riddle. That’s not your fault.”
“But still! I should’ve seen it coming, and then she found out, and I felt like I was going to collapse right there, and it just got worse and worse–” He squeezes Ace tighter with a muffled whimper. “She was shouting and shouting, and everything was s-so loud, and I begged and pleaded with her, I tried to make her understand I was doing what I loved, and she tore me apart in seconds, Ace, th-there was no coming back from that!
“And then she picked something up and threw it– I didn't even see what it was, it just hit me and everything hurt, and I ran out the door, and- and do you have any idea what she said right before I left?
“She told me I’d disgraced the family name, that I was a disappointment of a child, and that she knew I wouldn’t amount to anything, and th-that’s when she said she didn’t want a son like–” Riddle's breath hitches, and he starts coughing violently, his body trembling as he gasps for air.
“Hey, careful.” Ace kisses the crown of Riddle's head and pats his back. “Breathe with me, okay, rosebud?”
“I- I can’t, Ace, it hurts, everything hurts–”
“No, you can. I believe in you.” There’s something wet running down his face now. Ace has an inkling of what it is, but it can wait until later; it has to. “With me, alright? You can do it. C’mon, one, two, one, two…” Riddle hesitantly follows his lead, and though all the air comes right back out with another panicked sob, Ace murmurs comforting words all the same.
Time blurs as Ace quietly counts off, making sure to inhale and exhale as slowly as he can. The redhead shifts a few times, but does his best to follow along; his sobbing eventually gives way to just sniffling, and then it goes silent, their quiet breaths and heartbeats in sync.
“...’m sorry about your shirt,” Riddle quietly mumbles as he lifts his head.
Ace blinks at the sudden sound of the redhead’s voice (since when was it dark outside?) but smiles anyway. “No big deal. Besides, this isn’t my shirt.” The first-year leans in close, and his voice drops to a whisper. “I stole it from Lance.”
Riddle huffs amusedly despite his clear exhaustion and the tear tracks on his face. “Stealing is bad, Ace. I should prosecute you for this.”
“Hey, you got better things to use that law degree for.” Ace stares right into the redhead's eyes, and he can barely contain his relief when he sees a hint of the usual glimmer in them. “But I guess I can take your cracking a joke as feeling better then?”
“I… yes, I suppose you can. Even if the shock of it still hasn’t left.” Riddle tilts his head towards Ace and lets the first-year pepper him with kisses. “And before I forget, thank you for… all this. For everything, really.”
“As long as you’re alright! And you’re welcome, of course.”
The redhead hums and lays his head back down, then scrunches his nose and lifts it back up. “You should change. I don’t think it’s very comfortable for you to have wet clothes on.”
“What you mean is it’s not comfortable for you to lie down if it’s wet.” Riddle huffs and rolls his eyes, but Ace grins and slides off anyway. “Gimme a sec, okay?” It doesn’t take that long for him to find another shirt and change what he’s wearing, and he’s back in bed with Riddle soon enough. “There. That better for you, your majesty~?”
“I‘m not the Queen, Ace.”
“You are to me.” Riddle sputters as he glances up, and Ace chuckles as he gazes at the redhead with all the adoration in the world. “You’re my queen. Forever and always.”
“...you’re just saying that.”
“Am not! Hell, I’ll prove it a thousand times over if you asked.” Ace gently pushes Riddle back down, and he lays his head on top of the other’s. “You’re mine, I love you, and I’ll tell you as many times as you need to hear it. Okay?”
Riddle’s lips curve up into a smile. “Okay. Thank you, Ace, I appreciate it.”
“You don't have to thank me for everything, rosebud, seriously.” Ace sits up and grabs the redhead’s shoulders with a grin. “And now that I’ve said that, why don’t you–”
The front door bangs open, and there’s the telltale rustle of plastic bags. “Aaaaace, we’re home,” Lance shouts from downstairs. “Stop being a lazy ass and help me carry all this inside!”
Riddle’s eyes go wide, and he scrambles away from Ace in a panic. “N-never mind, I should go, I’ve already overstayed my welcome–”
The redhead doesn’t even make it halfway to the door before Ace catches his wrist. “Rosebud, no. You should at least stay the night.”
Riddle hesitantly turns back, and he chews his lip as his eyes settle on Ace’s hand. “But won’t your parents be upset?”
“Respectfully and no offense, but my parents aren’t anywhere near as bad as yours. They’ll understand, I promise. Besides, you have no idea how much they’ve been wanting to meet you.”
“Me..?” Ace nods, and Riddle tilts his head in confusion. “Why?”
“Cause… well, that was cause Lance took my phone and saw my lockscreen and it was a picture of us on that carnival date–” Ace takes a deep breath, then continues– “and then his dumbass blabbed to everyone and now my entire family knows I’m dating you.” He lets out the rest of the air with a deep sigh and covers his face with his hands. “They’re way too nosy for their own good, honestly…”
Unbeknownst to him, Riddle smiles, all his doubt disappearing as he approaches the flustered first-year and puts a hand on his shoulder. “Well then, in that case, I suppose I have no choice but to stay.”
Ace whips up to face him, eyes wide. “Wait– seriously? You’re sure?”
“If your family is that eager to meet me, then I would hate to disappoint them. And besides, I don’t exactly have anywhere else to go. Cater is away, and going to Trey and Che’nya may cause more trouble than it’s worth.”
The first-year blinks, then breaks out into a wide grin. “Well, if you say so! I’ll go talk to them right now, okay?” Riddle nods, and Ace cups the other’s face before kissing him right on the lips. “In the meantime, I think you should go wash that pretty face of yours.”
“And I think I will. The bathroom is..?”
“Right across from my room. You’ll be alright by yourself?”
“I will. Thank you. I’ll come downstairs when I’m done, then.” Ace flashes him a thumbs up, then opens the door and jumps down the stairs two at a time. Lance is still waiting by the door, arms crossed with bags all around him.
“Dude, where have you been? I thought you didn’t hear me,” he asks irritably. “I’ve been waiting for like, ten minutes already.”
“You’re not the only guy in the world, bro,” Ace simply replies, scooping up bags on his arms and carrying them over to the kitchen.
“Huh? What the hell does that–”
“Not important!” He sets the bags on the ground; the staircase creaks faintly, and Ace can’t help the grin on his face. “But I do got someone I want you to meet!”
Riddle rounds the corner and waves shyly, and Ace pulls him closer with a proud look.
“Lance, mom, meet my boyfriend– Riddle Rosehearts!”