As Cold As Ice

Smooth

Ace escorted me to his house. His home was huge, bigger than most mansions; I couldn't imagine what it'd be like to live somewhere like that. To not have to clean dishes for a living because you didn't finish school.

"Do you work?" I asked, staring at the massive chandeliers and gold infused wallpaper.
"Yes" He scoffed, rolling his eyes.
"You need some attitude management or something" I stated with a cheeky smile as he glared at me.
"I don't need anything, you do though" He reminded me of the blood coming from my head. We would both have black eyes in the morning.

He brought me to the upstairs bathroom, where he struggled to find his first aid kit.
"What age are you Ace?" I asked, curious to see if I was older or younger than him. He looked a lot older than a teenager. He looked about nineteen.
"I'm seventeen" He stated casually, rooting through his drawers.

He left the bathroom and I followed him quickly. He entered a room with a couple of clothes on the floor and a bed with black sheets.
"Is this your room" I questioned, glancing around.
"Yeah" he responded, finally pulling out a green first aid kit.
"Found it" he cheered, placing it on his bed, and opening it.

He grabbed a roll of bandages, a bottle of disinfectant and some cotton buds.
"Go fix yourself" he mumbled, using the disinfectant on his arm, not even flinching.

"Any chance you know a Leonardo" I asked curiously, I just wanted to see if he knew him.
"Leonardo?" Ace mumbled as if he was thinking to himself.
"I know about a hundred Leonardo's, doesn't mean anything if you don't have a second name" He responded, wrapping up his wounds.
"Leonardo Accardi, sells drugs on the streets" I informed, waiting for a response. Ace's facial expression immediately dropped.
"If you're friends with him, you can get out. He's a dirty dealer. Sells to anyone and anything with a heartbeat" Ace snapped, pointing to the door.
"Nah, I was just wondering because my little brothers addicted to drugs. He sells them to him specifically" I rambled, pouring the disinfectant on my wound and immediately wincing.

"Fuck sake, you made that look like it wasn't painful" I yelled, glaring at Ace who was laughing.
"Pain doesn't phase me" He grinned, shaking his head at me.

"What drugs is he addicted to?" Ace questioned with a raised brow.
"Cocaine" I sighed, sitting next to Ace with a defeated look on my face.
"Rough" Ace stated, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Trust me, I'm not friends with him" I reassured Ace, finishing wrapping up my wounds.

Ace left for a moment, before coming back into the room with two ice packs.
"Put this on your eye" Ace uttered, handing me an ice pack. He groaned in pain as he held it against his own eye.
"Is your hair naturally that colour" He asked, staring at the roots of my hair.
"Yeah, unfortunately" I responded seeming uninterested in the conversation.
"Ice blond" He muttered to himself, before pulling a gun out of his waistband to check that it was loaded. I just watched him cautiously.
"Jesus, relax. I'm not going to shoot you, not yet anyway" He smirked cheekily, rolling his eyes and sliding the gun back into his waistband.

"Are you not afraid that it'll shoot your balls off" I asked bluntly, staring at the black gun.
"Definitely not" Ace shook his head with a mischievous grin, before opening his the drawer from his beside locker and loading two more bullets into the gun magazine. He slipped it back into his waist band. Where did the other two bullets go?.

I didn't want to know the answer.

"One thing you'll learn about me very quickly. I'm not a good person but I can be a very good friend if you're loyal in return" He stated openly, leaning against his desk with his arms crossed as his eyes met mine.
"I'll be the most loyal person you've ever met" I nodded with reassurance as I stared at him.

*****

I came home a few days later. I had texted Liz and told her I was staying in a friends house. Technically I wasn't lying.

"Where were you Alex?" Avery asked, as we both sat in my room. Alex barely made a dent where he sat on my bed, it showed that he was still a kid even if he didn't act like one.
"I told you not to talk to me when you're high" I growled yet made sure to whisper so that Liz wouldn't hear.
"I'm not fucking high Alex, I'm worried" He snapped quietly, a worried expression plastered all over his face. It was mainly the crinkled eyebrows that gave it away, or the way he blinks extra fast when he's worried.

"I told you, I was at a friends house" I shrugged while I played my gaming console. I groaned as I died, throwing the controller next to me.
"That's not possible, you don't have any friends" Avery glared, his tone harsh and cruel.
"Wow, thanks. I'm just so unlikable" I uttered while rolling my eyes.
"I'm not being mean, it's the honest truth! You've never had friends. It's only ever been Deja and me. That's it" He argued loudly, blinking even faster. I couldn't help but chuckle at him.
"You're doing the blinking thing again" I laughed, lying back and closing my eyes.

"Alex I'm being serious, you're the only person I've got" He stated, his eyes welling up with tears. I didn't realise just how worried he was. His brown eyes were bloodshot, probably from getting no sleep because I wasn't home. He had small, grey bags under his eyes and his brown hair which is usually styled, was all messy.

I sat up, before rubbing his head and messing up his hair. I know he's sixteen now, and he probably despises when I do that but there's only so many years I can do it for.

"Now you know I feel" I threw him a small innocent smile, before he rested his head on my shoulder out of exhaustion.
"Can I sleep in your bed tonight?" Avery questioned, knowing that I didn't let him anymore. I threw him a glance and he shook his head. "Nevermind".

"Fine, go get your pillow before I change my mind" I muttered, rolling my eyes and grabbing my second controller. A smirk appeared on Avery's tired expression. He placed his pillow at the end of my bed, grabbing the controller as he made himself comfortable. I just chuckled at him as we played. It's the first time in awhile I had saw him happy.

A few hours later, the room was pitch black and the only thing I could hear was Avery's slow breathing.

"What do you think happened to mom?" Avery spoke but I'm not sure if he wanted an answer. I'm not even sure if he knew I was awake.
"I'm not sure I'd want to give you my answer. It's selfish" I responded unsurely, resting my head on my arm as I stared at the wall.
"I hope she died" Avery said and it's exactly the thing I knew he'd say. "Me too".
"Atleast then we wouldn't have been abandoned by both our parents for a stupid reason. We could've been wanted by someone" He thought out loud, spilling his thoughts. We never really mentioned mom at all. She wasn't apart of our daily lives anymore and we didn't want to 'speak her into existence'. She could still be out there.

"I saw my dad" I finally blurted out, unable to keep the secret any longer.
"No way" Avery gasped, and I knew he'd be the only person who would ever understand how shocking that was.
"Yeah, and he saw me" I stated, waiting for his reaction. Avery sat up, and even though it was pitch black, I swear I could see the face he was making.
"What did you do?" He gasped yet again, waiting anxiously for a reply.
"I choked on water and ran out" I chuckled as he burst into laughter with me.
"You're so smooth" He replied, lying back down.
"I know." I grinned.