Archive of Our Own

Yuu doesn’t have a habit of going to the basketball court, even if Jamil and Floyd would disagree. They just come whenever Ace texts them to meet there, often to help him practice. It would usually be accompanied with Deuce and Grim for a very rigged 2 v 2 game. Which is the first thing that tells Yuu that something is wrong.

Deuce isn’t here.

Yuu’s initial thought was that Ace invited the group for another spontaneous basketball match, but looking at the messages, it seems that he only invited Yuu and, of course by proxy, Grim. After all, why wouldn’t he just send a message to the group chat instead of individually messaging Yuu like he did today?

Yuu looks back at the messages just to see if they missed something. Deuce would meet them right here at the doors, but he’s nowhere in sight, and he’s not one for lateness…or well he tries not to be.

Cis and fruity 🍒 : Meet me at the basketball court

You: Sure but I thought you didn’t have basketball practice today

Cis and fruity 🍒 : Just meet me here
I have to tell you smth

You: Is Deuce coming?

“Yuu, I can feel your worry from here.” Grim remarks. Yuu looks down to see Grim standing upright with his face full of impatience. It’s clear as day that he does not want to be here.

“Heh, sorry Grim. It’s just that something doesn’t feel right.” Yuu can’t help but be grateful that Grim snapped them out of their thoughts. They have a tendency to overthink, and Grim, who is all action and no thinking, helps to balance them out.

“Obviously, which is why Ace asked us to meet us here.” Grim isn’t observant but it seems he put two on two together while Yuu was in their head.

“Ah, you’re saying Ace needs our help.” Makes sense to Yuu. Ace likes to go to them for help on his troubles. It’s not really inconvenient for Yuu, even if they poke fun at Ace sometimes for the messes he gets into. In fact it feels nice to be relied on, to be trusted by someone. It’s a foreign but warm feeling for Yuu.

“No, he needs your help, I’m just here so I can roast Ace. He's taking time out of our dinner, so he’s gotta pay somehow.” Not surprising coming from Grim. He has been looking forward to the chicken Yuu said they were gonna make since the oven finally works, no thanks to Crowley. Seriously, the ghosts do more than he does.

“So c’mon, let’s just talk to him and get this over with.” He opens the door with his front paws, and the two are greeted by the sound of a basketball hitting the floor over and over again. Ace is standing not too far away from the basket, making shot after shot. Opening the door leads to Yuu realizing two things.

Something is wrong clue #2: Ace is missing all his shots.

Now it may be hard to believe, but Ace is actually a pretty good basketball player. Jamil plays defense amazingly, and Floyd is a monster on offense when he’s in the mood. Ace isn’t as good as them in terms of technical prowess, but he is reliable in any situation, unlike Floyd. Ace prefers offense for the glory that comes with making a basket but he’s a good defender when it comes down to it. No wonder Jamil keeps him around. The team desperately needs more all-rounders to balance Floyd’s mood swings.

Even on his off days, Ace can at least make 70% of his shots, but right now… he’s not making a single one. The ball bounces pitifully off the blackboard and hits the floor with a loud thud that makes Yuu shake uncomfortably. After a couple of dribbles, Ace tries again. This time, the ball bounces off the rim, and it once more hits the rubber floor, whimpering pathetically until Ace catches it.

Ace not once turns to face the door; it’s as if he forgot he texted Yuu earlier. His only concentration is on the ball and the basket.

Something is wrong clue #3: Ace’s body language.

If the horrible playing wasn’t enough to tell, then the way Ace is acting does. His shoulders are tense, and he occasionally rubs the back of his neck whenever he misses. What little glimpses of his face that Yuu could see would be accompanied with a furrowed brow and a bitten lip.

Whatever was bothering Ace was severe enough to impact his playing. Suddenly, Yuu is thankful that Ace texted them, they didn’t like seeing their friend in this state.

“Jeez, Ace sucks today.” Grim unhelpfully states. It seems he didn’t notice what Yuu did.

“He’s got a lot on his mind, Grim.”

“Ace thinking? Is the world gonna end?! No, actually, that might explain why we’re getting bad vibes. It’s cause Ace is thinking!” Grims puffs out his chest as if he just solved the case. Well, to give Grim some credit Ace’s problem could definitely just be him overthinking something. It would certainly make solving the problem easier if that is the case.

Yuu doesn’t reply to Grim’s comment and instead makes their way to Ace with Grim following suit. The tapping on the rubber floor alerts Ace of their presence so he straightens his back and proceeds to make a shot, perfectly landing it this time around.

He turns around, arms raised. “Did ya see that? I looked really cool, didn’t I?'' He sports a large grin, but through the creases on his face, it was obvious to Yuu that he was faking it.

“You’re not fooling anybody we saw ya miss like 5 times before this, Ace.” Grim smirks.

Ace’s smile falls and his face changes to one of annoyance. “Come here you furball.” He starts chasing Grim across the court, not happy that his bad plays were seen while Grim cackles.

Yuu sees the chase take place and from the corner of their eye, Yuu spots a familiar black and blue jacket on the bleachers. They elect to ignore it and focus on Ace. Yet maybe that has something to do with this…

“So what’s up, Ace?” Yuu asks after Grim climbs up the bleachers, blowing a raspberry at Ace down below. Probably better to intervene now before magic gets involved.

Ace stops himself from climbing up the bleachers. “Huh? Nothing. What do you mean?”

Ace answered too quickly for Yuu’s liking. “You literally asked me to come.”

“Oh right, um I did do that.”

“You did do that, yes,” Yuu repeats.

“I’m hungry Ace, hurry it up!” Grim calls down from the highest stand.

“Ugh, it's complicated. Honestly, when I sent you that message it was more of a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing.”

“Well I’m here now so might as well tell me the full story.” Ace nods at this, but he doesn't proceed to say anything, instead a tiny blush starts filling his cheeks with a rosy hue.

Yuu raises an eyebrow. “Ace?”

Ace groans. “Give me a minute, I'm trying to put it into words.” Yuu’s eyes widen. See the thing about Ace is that he says what he thinks, he’s upfront with his feelings unless it was something embarrassing like expressing words of affection or emotions of love…

“Is this about Deuce?”

“What the fuck. How did you know?” Ace stares at Yuu, who’s struggling not to laugh at Ace’s slack jaw expression. For a second, Yuu thought Ace’s eyes might pop out of his skull out of surprise.

“Process of elimination, and I like to think I know you,” Yuu says, putting their hand over their mouth to cover their grin.

“Yeah, a bit too well.” Ace murmurs. He’s not sure how to feel about someone reading him so accurately, but he supposes that as long as it’s Yuu he doesn’t really mind.

“So what did Deuce do? Does it perhaps have anything to do with his jacket over there?” Yuu gestures to the jacket they initially saw when Ace and Grim were playing around with each other.

“So that's what you meant by process of elimination!”

It wasn’t that hard to figure out, in Yuu’s opinion. “That and you only get like that when it comes to Deuce.”

“Huh! What’s that supposed to mean!”

“Enough about that! Just get to the problem already!” Grim calls from above. Yuu rolls their eyes at Grim, guess that leaves grilling Ace for another time. “You heard Grim. What’s the root of the issue?”

Ace grumbles and sighs as he finally points to the jacket lying on the bleachers.

“What?”

He motions again.

“Use your words, Ace.”

“Ace, I can't see what you're doing from up here!”

“Both of you guys are so dumb! It’s the fact that it’s Deuce’s jacket that’s the problem! And Grim, shut up and get down from there!” Ace looks like he’s inches away from stomping his foot.

“He gave you his jacket…” Yuu deadpans.

“He gave me his jacket,” Ace repeats.

“Ok and?”

“What do you mean ‘and?' That’s weird.” Somehow, Ace’s tone only served to irritate Yuu a little bit.

“Yet here you are, 4 pm in the afternoon, having dragged it out around school. If you had an actual complaint, you would take it up to Deuce. You never hold back.” Sometimes to an unfortunate degree and end up hurting people’s feelings.

Ace pouts, and Yuu couldn't help but compare his and Tsunotarou’s pouts. Not that Tsunotarou pouted in their presence often but it came up when Tsunotarou was hanging out with his family. Lilia would tease him with playful eyes causing Malleus' brows to furrow just slightly, his cheeks puff out a bit, and his lips quickly turned downwards after hearing the jest. It was a subtle action, unlike Ace’s, which was quick and obvious. His brows would tilt downward, looking as if he were mad, and Ace’s rounder face helped to highlight his cheeks more than Malleus’s.

But the thought was getting them off-topic; they needed to pay attention. “What brought this on anyway?”

“What do you mean?” Ace asked.

“I mean, you and Deuce give me your jacket all the time, and you don’t see me freaking out?”

“I’m not freaking out!” Ace’s voice crack says the opposite.

“You literally texted me to come to the gym because Deuce gave you his jacket, which is the least intimate thing he’s done with you by the way. He’s hugged you before. Which I must admit is pretty amazing considering he doesn’t like it when people touch him too much.” Yuu deadpanned.

“Yeah, and your face was as red as Riddle’s when he hugged ya!” Grim unhelpfully inserts his observation.

Ace shakes his head, adamantly denying the accusation. “Grim, shut the fuck up. Stop telling lies. He only hugged me because he was excited about winning his track race, and plus he does the same to you.” Ace grumbles.

“Fair, but that still doesn’t explain why the hoodie is such a terrible thing or why you’re so flustered over a hug and an article of clothing.”

Ace elicits to ignore the word flustered and proceeds to gesture to Deuce’s hoodie once again. “First of all, he’s not supposed to do that. Give me his jacket, that is. Secondly, whenever he hugs me, it just feels weird, okay? Now, can you stop mentioning that he hugs me.” He’s starting to regret asking Yuu to come here. It’s feeling more and more like an interrogation by the second.

“Why does it feel weird?” Forget the jacket. Getting Ace to admit that he has some different semblance of feelings towards Deuce specifically is much more important.

“That's just something guys aren’t usually supposed to do, but it’s odd, right? I hug you just fine. I mean, I know Deuce isn’t exactly the brightest of the bunch, but he should at least know social norms.”

“Ace, I'm literally non-binary.”

His pacing stops. “Oh.. right, yeah.”

No shot did Ace just…“Ace, did you forget I’m non-binary?”

“No! I just don’t think about your gender at all. You’re Yuu, and that’s all that matters.”

“So why does Deuce’s gender matter?” And there goes Yuu hitting the nail on what’s been bothering Ace. He can hug Yuu all the time, but with Deuce, it feels weird. But the weirdness isn’t bad. But that shouldn’t be right.

Ace can sense Yuu’s expectant gaze on him, waiting for his answer. Ace feels like he’s in class right now, and the teacher just called on him, knowing damn well that he does not know the answer. Honestly, what does Yuu expect him to say? But it’s Yuu, so he feels like he should at least try to give them something. He clicks his tongue, opens his mouth then stops. He closes his mouth, feeling that what he’s about to say ain't right, and huffs as he starts to try again.

Yuu sighs. Okay, obviously Ace isn’t understanding so they’ll have to start from square one with a simple question.

“Ace, I’m gonna ask you something, and you’re gonna have to answer as honestly as possible so I can help you.” Ace nods in response.

“Would hugging Epel feel the same as you hugging Deuce?”

Ace immediately made a face. “Ew, no, Epel would kick my ass if I even tried hugging him.”

“Ok, that was on me for using Epel as an example.”

Yuu taps their chin. “Hmm, how about hugging Jack or Cater?”

“I mean, I don’t hug Jack, but with Cater, it’s pretty chill, or with any other members in the basketball club.”

“Exactly. So why is it so different with Deuce?”

Whether Ace liked it or not (and he definitely didn’t), it was only Deuce that could make him feel that weird sensation that curled in his stomach. Inside, he already identified that it was the way Deuce hugged him that partially bothered him. The way Deuce hugs was different than what he was used to as he hugged him with his whole body, throwing his arms around him without a care in the world. As if it was just the two of them and no one else could see them. Both of Deuce’s arms would reach his back and hold Ace tightly while Deuce’s head rested lightly on Ace’s shoulder. Meanwhile, Deuce would laugh with a melodious ring to it, which reverberated across Ace’s chest. Ace could only reciprocate the action, ignoring how his heart beat faster than normal.

But there was no shot he was saying that out loud, even to his arguably best friend.

Unfortunately for Ace, Yuu could smell Ace’s denial from a mile away. If they didn’t take action soon, then Ace is just going to switch the topic. Yuu has a high tolerance after all the bullshit this school pulls them through, but christ is Ace on thin fucking ice right now with his inability to recognize his feelings AND say them out loud. How can they be his professional therapist if Ace isn’t even talking? In short, they knew Ace wasn’t conveying his thoughts because he probably thought they were too embarrassing or whatever. Obviously, Yuu’s gonna have to take even more of a step back. They’ll deal with Ace’s internalized toxic masculinity later.

“I don’t doubt that some of the problems are due to Deuce’s gender, but I think most of this relies on how you feel towards Deuce. Like I said, I don’t freak out when Deuce gives me his jacket.”

Ace rolls his eyes. “Ugh, feelings.”

“That’s been me this entire conversation,” Grim says, licking his fur. While Yuu has been struggling to deal with an emotionally constipated Ace, he has decided this would be the perfect time to clean himself. He accurately predicted this would take a while.

“How do I feel towards Deuce?” Ace mumbles out loud, and it takes all of Yuu’s willpower not to giggle. Deuce often repeats phrases or says his thoughts out loud when memorizing notes, so to see this little habit be picked up by Ace says a lot about their closeness.

“Yeah, what kind of emotions do you feel around him? Or what kind of thoughts spring up when you’re around him?”

“That he’s dumb and annoying, and how the fuck is he failing basic math…” Yuu’s glare successfully gets Ace to shut up before he can say more bullshit. Yuu’s disappointment was palpable. Geez, they really were taking this seriously. Had his abrupt text message really worried them that much? Still, one of Ace’s weaknesses is his friends and he hates the feeling of disappointing Yuu in particular. They were always too kind for their own good, so hurting them in any way was like kicking a puppy left out on the street. It’s why, after every overblot did the overblotee always felt incredibly guilty for dragging Yuu into the situation. This is so fucking embarrassing but the things he does for the sake of indulging Yuu.

“Okay fine. Um well, he’s good at sports, particularly running. Guess that’s cool. Oh and his ability to fix anything sure is useful. I think everyone in the dorm has asked Deuce to fix something.”

“And yeah I admit it, it’s admirable how he’s trying to change himself for the better after being a delinquent. I mean I don’t like how he’s trying to hide his delinquent self, it’s a part of him too ya know.”

The irony, Yuu thinks. Maybe you should take your own advice Ace and not keep your gayness locked in the goddamn closet.

Ace chuckles. “Nothing is ever boring with him around. It’s always fun to rile him up, he gives the best reactions.” Without even noticing Ace starts to ramble and Yuu lets him.

“Somehow he can be cool when he gets overly excited, like when he talks about magical wheels or egg recipes. It’s nice to see him happy.” Yuu resists the urge to roll their eyes. You can just say he’s cute, Ace.

“I don’t know. I’m glad that out of all the people, it was him I got stuck with, in terms of roommates and being trauma buddies with us as we face a new goddamn overblot because life hates us. BUT like with this entire conversation, never tell him I said that. I’ll never live it down.” Yuu nods, urging him to continue on.

“And his stupid laugh that’s higher than expected compared to his voice.” His entire tone conveyed fondness. “It’s nice that he doesn’t judge people at first glance. It’s praiseworthy as it is stupid. I don’t know, I feel like he always has my back for better or worse.” And I got his was left unsaid.

All this talking was making Ace feel the same way he would if Deuce was with him. His heartbeat pounding, hands suddenly clammy, feeling like butterflies are fluttering in his stomach.

“He’s such a great partner…”

No, the word partner didn’t seem to encapsulate what he felt. The word friend didn’t feel right either.

How about someone you can laugh and cry with? Someone who’ll stick with you through all the hard times?

Oh

Oh no

OH FUCK!

There was no fucking shot that what he was feeling around Deuce is because he lik-

No, he couldn’t even admit it.

But all signs were pointing towards it.

He actually likes Deuce.

“No, no, no! This can’t be happening. I'm dreaming someone pinch me!”

That realization was Yuu’s final nail in the coffin. After all the rollercoaster of emotions involving frustration and all their patience being used for this closeted homosexual, their emotions finally burst, resulting in hysterical laughter. Sorry, Ace, but they couldn’t hold in their laughter anymore.

“YUU SHUT THE FUCK UP!” To Ace’s horror, Grim and Yuu were absolutely wheezing with laughter. “THE BOTH OF YOU! STOP LAUGHING!

“You’re kind of pathetic, Ace.” Grim snickered with a shit-eating grin present on his face.

“Wha- no one asked you to be here, Grim! I asked for Yuu to come, not you.” His retort does not succeed in wiping Grim’s smirk off his face, as Ace’s face was too red to be taken seriously.

After finally getting their bearings back in order, Yuu bluntly states, “But we’re a set just like how you and Deuce are one.”

A set…

“But I shouldn’t be feeling this way around Deuce!” Ace shouts, confirming to Yuu and Grim that he finally admitted to himself that he has romantic feelings for Deuce.

“Why not?”

Deep inside, Ace knew why that stupid jacket bothered him so much.

“Because he’s a guy!” Why were his hands shaking so badly? “He shouldn’t be doing that, and I’m not supposed to feel these emotions. It..it’s wrong!” Ace screams, his voice cracking at the end, causing Yuu and Grim to stay still with worry.

“Deuce and I are supposed to be with other girls, not each other. He should be giving his jacket to girls and have their hearts beat like crazy, not mine. They should be going on cute coffee shop dates and be the ones pouring their hearts out to each other.” His passion fizzled out. “Not with me… cause then that means…”

Because suddenly, his life made sense. Why he didn't see the deal with dating girls in middle school even when all his other friends got girlfriends. The feeling of needing to fit in suddenly when before he couldn’t care less, for fear of something. Back then, he didn’t know what he was scared of, but now… it seems he really wanted to avoid being called that word.

He was scared of being gay.

Because that meant he wasn’t “normal.” That he couldn’t just live a normal life like he planned. He couldn’t just drift on by in life as he pleased. Suddenly, a boy came along, and his entire world and sense of identity flipped. Would people look at him differently? Would his family accept him? Will his friends leave him? His sense of security gone just because of that.

And it frustrates him that he can’t just change this. That this is something that is a part of him and he just has to accept it. That he can’t fix himself to be normal.

When he got a girlfriend, everything felt off. Her tastes were vastly different from his, and she was just plain boring, in his humble opinion. I mean, who doesn’t like action movies and rollercoasters. She wanted to be with him 24/7 and go on cute dates, which was so annoying. I mean, jeez, there is a thing called personal space. He remembered thinking during one date that being with a boy would be 10 times more fun than what he was currently feeling. A boy would know when to give him space, and they can do actual fun shit, not this lame-ass stuff. And if they brushed their hands, everything would feel fine, and not feel the urge to rip his hand away. The thought was shooed away as quickly as it came, and the only thing left afterwards was an uncomfortable feeling in his stomach and fear.

And when they kissed, it felt so wrong; his heart sank, and for the first time in his life, he ran. He pretended everything was fine during the rest of the date. Pretended that he felt fine when the girl went in for another kiss, but inside he wanted to run. After he arrived home, he blocked her socials and number and ghosted her. He couldn’t even feel bad about it, not even when her friends demeaned him for it. He felt free again.

And now here was Deuce, someone who was socially unaware, who didn’t give a fuck about how people perceived him as long as they thought of him as someone dependable and academically adept. And isn't that adorable?

Why did he have to develop feelings? Why couldn’t he just be his fucking friend? He didn’t wear his heart on his sleeve, despite what his older brother says, and yet here comes Deuce to ruin it all, with that handsome grin on his face and hopeful eyes.

Yes that’s right this was Deuce’s fault! Why did he have to exist? Why did he have to meet him and screw up his perfectly good normal life? He was doing fine without him. If Deuce didn’t exist then, he wouldn't be dealing with heart palpitations on the daily, sweaty palms, eyes drifting to Deuce’s presence constantly and his face wouldn’t hurt from smiling so much. If Deuce didn’t exist…then he wouldn’t have ever felt so much happiness in his life and so free.

But he also wouldn’t have to feel this all-encompassing fear. He wouldn’t have to acknowledge this side of him. This emotional monster inside of him. The one that wanted to love. To love that boy that stole his heart, regardless of how it made him look (weak).

“Ace…”

Yuu could only look at Ace in shock. They knew this had been affecting him, but they never expected him to be so hard on himself. For how long has he been putting this part of himself down? And those were only the small amount of thoughts he voiced out. Was it even worse? How deep did the rabbit hole go? How badly had he internalized this? Grim who had been playing with his tail out of boredness stopped making the gym eerily quiet. Even he understood the weight of Ace’s words.

In a sense, Yuu understood what Ace was going through. They grappled with their gender for years now until they finally felt in a comfortable place. Even if Ace can be a little shit, he shouldn’t have to deal with stupid societal norms. They don’t want his internalized homophobia to stop him from being happy, especially knowing that Deuce definitely has feelings for Ace. You had to be blind not to notice the way they act around each other. Or just have horrible internalized homophobia apparently.

So Yuu steps up and does what they do best, giving advice and reassurance. “What you’re feeling around Deuce, Ace I promise it’s okay. I know it’s scary, but you’re not alone.”

“It’s okay to be gay, Ace.”

Ace openly flinches at the mention of the word. It was out in the open now. Why was his vision getting blurrier? It wasn’t like he was about to cry, right? That be stupid. Yet, he couldn’t speak, it felt like his entire body was constricting in on itself.

He couldn't breathe.

He couldn’t

Breathe

.
.
.

Touch

Someone was holding both of his hands. Their hands were soft. Wait a second; he recognized these hands.

“Ace, focus on me.”

He knew that voice.

“Yuu?”

“Yes, it’s me. Can you hear me? I need to tell you something.”

Grim was by Yuu’s side. Wasn’t he supposed to be up in the bleachers, and why did he look so concerned? There wasn’t anything to be concerned about. He was fine. He definitely didn’t feel the urge to cry.

“Of course I can.” Ace’s voice cracks.

Yuu grasps Ace’s hands tightly. “Ace, no matter what happens, no matter what new things you find out about yourself, you’re my friend, and I love you, okay.”

There were a million things he predicted Yuu to say, but none of them came close to what they actually said. “Wha-” But Yuu quickly shushed him.

“I’m not finished. I know it’s scary realizing this about yourself. But I want you to know that you’re not alone in what you’re feeling. What you feel is not wrong, despite what people or your brain tell you. Just know I’m there in your corner supporting you, okay?” Yuu could feel tears welling up in their eyes, “There are so many people like you, who like people of the same gender, who struggle with their sexuality or with their gender or both.”

Ace cuts in, “And I support them, but it’s differ-..”

“No buts… you're not the exception.” Yuu tuts. “And you know what I think of those people? I think they’re amazing. You’re amazing, Ace.” Ace stands still, shocked beyond belief. How did they do that? How are they so good at comforting someone and assuring people that their feelings are valid?

“And remember,” Yuu grins, “I’m literally non-binary.”, causing a small smile to appear on Ace’s face.

“I didn’t forget the first time, dumbass.” His tone was still wobbly, but now there was more cheer to his voice.

“No one will judge you, not with this friend group. We are the most unique motherfuckers out there. I’m non-binary, Epel is trans, Sebek is half-fae, Jack is a wolf-beastman, and Ortho is literally a robot.”

“Ah yes, my favorite genders: Fae, Robot and Furry.”

“Don’t..” Yuu struggles not to laugh, “Don’t say that about Jack. If he hears you say that, he’s gonna kill you.” Yuu lightly scolds while Ace cackles. But this is good; he’s joking again.

Noticing Ace’s change of mood, Grim approaches and lightly rubs his head against Ace’s leg, to Ace’s surprise. With Yuu’s encouraging nod at the sight, he picks up Grim and starts to pet him. His fur was smooth from all the grooming Yuu does. That and all the times he has seen Yuu pet Grim. Grim doesn’t say a word; he just purrs at the repetitive action. Ace understands, if Grim were to say something now, that’ll be a hit to his pride. This was just Grim’s unique way of comforting someone.

Regardless of how soothing it was to pet Grim, his mind was a whirlwind. “Can I stay at your guys’ place for the night?” Oh no, Yuu knows precisely what he’s doing. “Knowing these…feelings, can I still go into our room without making things awkward?”

It was an expected fear. At least now, Ace seems kind of accepting of his affection towards Deuce. “Ace, lucky for you. Deuce is oblivious as hell, and you’re a good actor, so I’m sure Deuce won’t notice anything unless you’re really obvious. I think, if anything, coming to my place for the night might make things worse. He’ll definitely notice that you're avoiding him.” Ace grimaces. He was hoping Yuu wouldn’t notice that he was trying to evade Deuce.

“How the hell am I supposed to look him in the eye after all this!”

“I know you want to run away from these feelings, Ace, but trust me, that isn't gonna fix anything. You would know, right? We’re the type of people to tackle the problem and look for a solution immediately, not let it simmer and get worse.” Unfortunately, there isn't a ready solution for this type of problem but to confess and time.

As much as Yuu would like to say to just confess to Deuce already, they know that Ace isn’t ready for that kind of leap. He literally had a panic attack over realizing he was gay. He definitely wasn’t ready to come out of the closet to his crush.

“It makes sense that you treat this with a little hesitance, though. You don’t need to act on it right now. You just have to accept that they exist.”

Ace replies with a bit of hesitance. “I think I get it. You better not be lying...”

“I wouldn’t. Not when it’s something you’re really worried about.”

“I…thanks for all this..” A small smile emerges on his face, full of genuineness. He’s still worried, but he trusts Yuu.

“YUU THE CHICKEN!”

“Oh for fuck’s sake Grim you ruined the moment!” Ace angrily yells at the furball who screeched in his face. It seems that Grim’s patience finally reached his limit. In retaliation, Grim attempts to paw at Ace’s colita.¹

“My stomach is eating itself from the inside!”

Yuu rolls their eyes, “Stop being so dramatic, Grim.” They motion for Grim to come towards them and Grim jumps out of Ace’s arms in turn. “Sorry gotta go feed this little rascal now.”

“Nah, you’re good…I think I’m gonna take your advice and just head back to the dorm.” Hopefully, the walk back will give him time to mentally prepare for the inevitable sight of Deuce. He’s cool. He can play it cool. Oh, who’s he kidding? He’s gonna fuck this up big time.

“Thanks again… for the help.”

“Yeah, thank us!”

“You didn’t do shit, Grim!”

Yuu giggles. They can tell how nervous Ace is, but they believe it’ll be fine. With how lovestruck Deuce is for Ace, he’ll probably think it’s cute or romantic to see Ace stumbling over his words. They will have each other, regardless of what happens. And then they can fully depend on one another. After all, Yuu wouldn't be here forever.

After a couple more assurances, they said their goodbyes. Yet Yuu was only so strong, they had to tell someone that wasn’t Grim about this whole situation. As soon as they stepped out of the gym, they knew who to call.

“Epel, you would not guess the shit I just had to deal with.”

—-----------------------------------------

That brief phone call ended up with inviting Epel to the Ramshackle dorm to eat the chicken that had been waiting to be prepared all day. Grim wasn’t very happy about the invitation, though.

“I THOUGHT THAT CHICKEN WAS JUST FOR US!” Grim whines. “NOW THERE’S GONNA BE LESS FOR US~~~~!”

Yuu rolls their eyes. “There’s plenty of chicken for everyone, Grim. Plus, you got to learn how to share.” They say in a tone similar to how a parent would sound disciplining their child.

“Let me translate what Yuu is saying since they’re too nice, Grim.” Epel grins. “You have to cut your diet, or else you’re gonna get too fat and explode.”

“GRRR, EPEL, I’LL TURN YOU INTO A ROASTED CHICKEN!”

“Now, now, Grim, the food’s ready.” Yuu places Grim’s plate at the table’s far end, knowing Grim didn’t like to be disturbed eating his food. Grim scurries to the corner, successfully distracted with the newly roasted chicken.

“He looks like a gremlin, seeing him hunched all over his food.” Epel snarks, to which Grim sticks out his tongue.

Meanwhile, Yuu serves chicken to the ghosts as well. The three ghosts take their respective plates (how could they even hold the plate?) and fly to the same corner as Grim. The pranksters seem determined to annoy him if their smirks had anything to say about it. Epel would feel pity, but he’s sure Grim is used to it, and he deserves it for throwing a tantrum earlier. “I thought ghosts couldn’t eat?” Epel questions.

“They can’t. But I figured they like to pretend that they can, so we can eat together at the dinner table.” Great Seven Yuu is too nice. No one in this school would do such a nice gesture. …Well, okay, unless your name is Silver or Kalim.

“Don’t worry, the food never goes to waste, Grim finishes it for them. Or it’s leftovers for tomorrow. Or I give it to Ruggie; he will never say no to more food. Or I give some to Malleus when he visits. Or you guys finish it whenever the first years come to visit.” Yuu rambles on.

With every word that comes out of their mouth, Epel is starting to realize how popular Yuu is. Epel already knew, but I mean, who the fuck can just casually say, ‘oh yeah, THE Malleus Draconia just comes to casually visit me.’ Well, at least that means they aren’t alone in this foreign world. He knows that if he were Yuu he would be dying of homesickness by now.

And to top it all off, they have to live in a shitty abandoned building with a clingy cat monster and three ghosts. Although, to be fair, The Ramshackle dorm admittedly never looked better. There were no more webs and dust clinging to the windowsills and dark corners. All areas of the roof have been patched, so no more cold wind blew in through the rafters. The appliances all worked. There was hot water now. In other words, it actually looked like it met the safety concerns. According to Ace and Deuce, the dorm used to look like an absolute total wreck before Yuu and Grim came along. That’s scary, considering the state it was back during the NRC Tribe training camp.

Epel had to give props to Yuu, taking a bite; the chicken was the right amount of juicy and tender. Seeing how Crowley rarely helped out Yuu in any of their dorm matters, Yuu was forced to learn how to cook and take care of themselves and Grim very quickly. At the rate this was going, they wouldn't even need to be required to take a Masterchef course. Although, knowing that absolute pain in the ass Crowley is, that seems highly unlikely (motherfucker).

“This chicken is so good it makes me wanna slap my mama!”

“I’m glad you like it, although I’m not gonna lie that southernism caught me off guard.”

“Hey, I bet it’s better than Ace saying something like,” Epel lowers his voice to make a try at an impersonation of an average high school cis boy, “Damn, this chicken is fucking baller!”

Yuu lets out a laugh, “Yeah, no, you’re completely right, but anyway,” Yuu stops mid-sentence to serve themselves a plate of chicken now that everyone has gotten their portion and sits down. “As Cater would say, ‘It’s time to spill the tea, sis!’”

“Never say that again.”

“Ace finally realized he has feelings for Deuce, although he probably isn't gonna act on it anytime soon.” Ace needed time, but Yuu knew that if they kept being so goddamn gay in front of people, Epel is gonna shove them in a broom closet in sheer desperation, not caring one bit for Ace’s internal crisis.

Indeed, as soon as Yuu looks up from taking a bite, Yuu is greeted with the most done face they have ever seen from Epel. “Sorry, Ace is gonna stay in the closet for the time being.”

Epel just sighs. “I can’t even complain. The same can be said for Deuce, unfortunately.”

A long, comfortable silence emerges between them as they eat their dinner. After a while, however, Epel suddenly bangs his plate against the table and brings both hands to his face, making him look like an awkward imitation of the Shinji chair meme.

“Yuu.”

“Yeah?” Yuu watches on nonchalantly.

"Our friends are fucking idiots.”

“We knew this already.”

Epel let out the loudest groan of frustration Yuu has ever heard. “Our work isn't done, but at least we got each other; otherwise I would’ve gone insane.” Yuu consoles.

“Damn straight.”

“Heh, this situation is anything but straight” And even if that joke wasn't funny Epel still cracked a smile.

“Yuu are ya kidding me.” Epel huffs out a laugh.

There is no denying their friends are stupid, but if Yuu and Epel have any say in the matter, they will get together. After all, stupid people deserve each other.