#mc:ace

Danny was finding it hard to get Ace out of his mind. They had spent most of the day campaigning, then had practiced his debating long into the afternoon, but it wasn’t the politics that he had stuck in his head. It was the lines, the looks, the charm… He sighed, looking around the quad, which was mostly deserted, except for a few of his friends. He spotted Ace pacing back and forth in front of a bench, talking quickly into his phone, took a deep breath, and walked towards him. Seeing him approach, Ace held up a hand as he wrapped up the phone call.

“…Yes, and tell him that he’s got until Sunday. … No, this Sunday. … Work with me, Montillique. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.” He ended the call, sighing, then looked up. “Danny.”

“Uh… problem?” Danny asked, and Ace waved the question off.

“Not at all,” he smiled. “What’s up?”

“Well…” Danny began. “I actually wanted to ask you something…” He trailed off, hesitating.

Ace studied his face curiously, and Danny felt his cheeks warm.

“I, uh… I mean… Well, I thought maybe, um…” he stammered. Ace waited patiently as he took a few more breaths, trying to get his thoughts in order. “I was wondering if you wanted to go to, uh… a cafe, or something,” he said quickly. “N-not to work on my campaign, or anything. Just us. I mean, that could be just with us… But not for that. Um… Just, uh, for… for fun…? No, not forfun… Well, it would be fun, but…” His blush deepened. “Sorry,” he mumbled, and Ace’s smile softened.

“Are you asking me out, Danny?” he asked, earning a quick nod in reply. “I’m touched,” he said, genuinely. “Um…” It was the first time Danny had seen him falter, and he thought the way that Ace tilted his head slightly and fiddled with the phone in his hands was unbelievably cute. “I… I can’t,” he responded. “I’m sorry…”

Danny nodded, hoping his cheeks hadn’t gone too red. “That’s okay,” he assured him. “It was a bit of a long shot, anyway.”

“It’s not you, Danny,” Ace quickly added. “I just… I don’t…”

“Oh! Oh, I didn’t assume…! Not that there would be anything wrong with that, um…”

“Breathe,” Ace chuckled. “You’re fine, Danny. And I’m not straight, either.”

Danny gave a slow nod. “Right…”

“I’m asexual,” he clarified. “Not that that affects who I date. That’s just not on the agenda at the moment.”

“You’re asexual…” Danny repeated, thoughtfully. “That’s… convenient. Given your name, I mean.”

Ace laughed. “That’s what I was going for when I chose it.”

“You chose your name?”

Ace shrugged. “Yeah, why not? I like it.”

“So do I,” Danny blurted. “Uh…” He shuffled his feet awkwardly. “Sorry, maybe I should go… Just forget this happened, okay?”

Ace placed a hand on his arm, looking softly into his eyes. “It’s cool, Danny. I think it’s a little farfetched to say I’ll forget - I meant it when I said I was touched - but this doesn’t have to affect anything. I’ll keep working with you through your campaign, and I’ll stay in touch after you win. You’re… you’re pretty special, Danny.”

Danny gave him a shy smile. “You’re not too bad yourself.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow for the debate, okay?” He slowly withdrew his hand, his eyes sparkling. “You’re going to do great.”

“Thanks, Ace.”