Lover Behavior (Floyd Leech/Yuu)

16 ~ Knives And Pillows

Floyd had knocked Yuu out and carried her inside of Ramshackle, changing her out of her dirty clothes and tucking her into her bed. He wished he could stay with her longer but knew that he'd only risk being caught if he lingered anymore.

He pressed a kiss to her lips and admired her sleeping form before drinking the rest of his invisibility potion and heading back to Heartslabyul. "No complications on my end," Ace greeted as he returned. "How... did it go?"

"Without a hitch~!" Floyd sang, before realizing he'd never fixed up his hand. "Actually, one hitch~ Couldja get me some gauze?"

Ace ran to the nearest first aid kit and grabbed the gauze along with a few other materials, bounding back to his room before being stopped by a familiar voice. He turned around to see Riddle, who'd just returned from the Equestrian club. "What could you possibly be running in the hallways for?"

"Floyd cut his hand and I don't wanna have to clean his blood off of any of my stuff," Ace replied hurriedly. "Can I be excused?"

Riddle's expression crinkled. "You're still with him?" Ace nodded and Riddle let out a sigh. "Very well. Try and get him to leave as soon as possible, if you can."

"Got it!" Ace gave him a thumbs-up and a smile before running back to his room. He disinfected and cleaned up Floyd's wound before wrapping it up. "Aw, look at you, bandaging me up all prettily~! I feel so taken care of~"

Ace rolled his eyes. "I just didn't want you to beat me up later if you were to get an infection."

"Yeah, I probably would've. You know me so well, Crabby~!"

"Can it."

"Crabby, that's no way to talk to an upperclassman~ Did your parents forget to teach you manners?"

Ace ignored the jab and moved to sit on his bed. "...How's Yuu?"

"Normally I'd say that's none of your business, but I'm feeling super generous today~! Must be because of how well everything went! Anyway, she's not doing good. She's knocked out right now~"

"...Did Grim go quickly?" Ace wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer; Floyd had spent longer than he'd expected at Ramshackle.

Floyd's eyes looked to the ceiling and he leaned back, letting out a thoughtful hum. "Hm, I'm not sure~ I squeezed him and broke some of his ribs, but then Shrimpy stabbed me! That's what this is," he explained, holding up his hand. "Anyways, I brought him back and slammed him into the ground a few times-I think he died after the third~? But I kept going cause it was so fun, and I tore off his limbs one by one, and then I-"

"Stop it," Ace cut him off. He didn't want to hear any more. His stomach churned as he imagined poor Grim being subject to Floyd's torture, and Yuu being forced to watch it all unfold.

"You asked~" Floyd chuckled before standing up from his seat, stretching his arms above his head. "I'm gonna head back to my dorm, now~ Thanks for helpin' me play, Crabby," he yawned, waving at Ace before closing the door behind him.

'Helping him play.'

Ace had to bite back a sob that was threatening to escape him.

'That's right, I'm an accomplice. I helped kill one of my best friends.'

He pulled his blanket over him and willed himself to fall asleep so he wouldn't have to deal with the torturous thoughts that were bouncing around in his head. His phone buzzed and he looked to see a text from Jamil, but he didn't have the energy to answer.

'You're the reason Grim's dead.'

'How long do you think you can live with the weight of his life on your shoulders?'

'Grim had a brighter future than you ever will.'

'If it was Deuce, he would've rather died than help kill his best friend.'

'You don't deserve to live.'

'Should've snagged one of those knives from the kitchen after all.'

Ace pulled his pillow over his head, pressing them tightly over his ears. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he turned to see Deuce with a towel around his shoulder, probably just back from taking a shower after his club.

"I saw Floyd coming from here. Are you okay?"

"Peachy," Ace grumbled, moving the pillow so he could smother his face into it.

"Ace, what happened?"

Ace only buried his face deeper into the pillow; he didn't want to have to break the news to Deuce.

'I wish I could suffocate myself with this pillow.'

"Ace! What the heck happened while I was gone!?" He gripped Ace's shoulder, grabbing the pillow.

"Grim's dead!"

Deuce's expression faltered and he released the pillow. "What?"

"Grim's dead," he repeated quietly.

'And I helped kill him.'

"Is-But that-What was Floyd doing here?"

"I was teaching him how to play cards," Ace said drily, sticking to the lie. "And then he told me that he killed Grim."

"N-No way! He wouldn't just-just tell you!"

"Well, he did," Ace growled, flipping onto his side. "Now go away and shut up."

"I'm gonna go see Yuu."

"She told me she was going to bed. I don't think she wants to be bothered right now." Another lie.

"This early?"

Ace gritted his teeth together. "Dude, her best friend literally just died! You think she's gonna be okay!?"

"...Sorry. That was stupid." Deuce sat on the edge of his bed. "Wanna go visit her tomorrow?"

"I don't know," Ace responded, pulling his covers above his head and curling into a ball. Deuce stopped questioning him, and he was glad-he wasn't sure how many more questions he could take before he would crack.