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The door to the college swimming pool opened, and Azul, Jade and Floyd all veered towards the surface, three pairs of eyes swiftly assessing the change in surrounds.
“You invited Riddle?” Azul murmured, quick to doubt Riddle’s arrival could possibly be a coincidence. But the surprise in the twin’s features just as quickly told him this wasn’t the case, and Azul sank a little lower in the water, the unnecessary pang of betrayal fading as he felt slightly guilty.
“Of course not. We would’ve told you,” Jade said, surprisingly gently, though his face was amused. Azul felt Jade’s nails lightly scuff against his upper arm, the small touch shaking Azul from wanting to curl his tentacles further around each other. He felt grateful that the deep end of the pool was cast mostly in shadow. Azul at least wanted time to give Riddle some kind of… warning?
“Oh. Excuse me, I didn’t realise the pool had been booked,” Riddle said stiffly, his apology genuine as regret crossed his features. Azul felt a spike of horror- was it that humiliating to realise Azul was in his true form? - before his rational senses caught up. No. Knowing Riddle, he was likely annoyed at himself for not having checked the facility register prior to showing up.
“Ne, no need for sorrys, Goldfishie, we’re happy to see you!” Floyd hummed, flitting toward the shallow end of the pool and surfacing abruptly at the edge. “We didn’t book the pool anyways. That would stop little fishies coming to visit~”
Floyd beamed at Riddle encouragingly, which only made Riddle frown, on the verge of taking the welcome as an insult.
“Aha. And by that Floyd means, we didn’t book the pool because we had no plans to swim today,” said Jade, swimming over to flank his brother and giving Riddle a conciliatory smile. “Floyd made quite the spontaneous decision to return to his true form during his physical education class. Azul and I afterwards came to keep him company.”
“Neither of them took much convincing~” Floyd grinned slowly, swimming around in a lazy circle. His tail carved smooth, even ripples across the water's surface.
That much was true, Azul thought, although he miserably regretted his decision now. As much as he had tried to hide it, Azul hadn’t been feeling all that well since his… unanticipated incident. In his own way, this had probably been an attempt of Floyd’s to cheer him up. The cool, heavy water held a familiar calm, and some of the nausea in the pit of Azul’s stomach had faded when he’d transformed back, only to see Jade and Floyd smiling gently, not dreading to see him like this again.
“C’mon, Goldfishie! You were gonna practice swimming, right?” Floyd stretched out his fingers to coax Riddle in, while Riddle tentatively folded his towel on one of the benches beside the pool, looking shivery and a little uncomfortable in only his long, black swimming pants. His minimal movements and the way Riddle hunched into himself didn’t go unnoticed by Azul. Perhaps bare feet didn’t add much to his height, or his pale chest didn’t exactly strike the imposing presence Riddle often projected for himself. That felt like a detail that should matter, and yet Azul found himself forcefully letting go of it, allowing Riddle to keep his vulnerabilities his own. For a moment he simply wanted to tell Riddle that he was safe, and he was perfectly alright.
“Yaaay, Goldfishie’s swimming with us! And now you can see Azul in his cute little octo-mer form too!”
“H-hey!” Azul snapped, not expecting to have either Riddle’s sudden attention or Floyd’s unnecessary comment. Not to mention inaccurate. With Riddle in the same pool as them, Azul was painfully aware that his tentacles stretched far deeper beneath the surface than a human’s legs, dark and coiling and unnerving. Might something like that even be frightening to Riddle? Azul suckered himself against the side of the deep end without even realising it, wanting to tuck himself up against the corner and make himself as small as possible.
“Hello, Azul,” said Riddle. As much as Azul attempted to analyse every note in his voice for a sign that Riddle was upset by him, he couldn’t detect a thing.
“It’s nice to see you, Riddle,” Azul said politely, as if he wasn’t desperately swallowing, trying to calm himself before he coughed-up a mouthful of ink and ensured Riddle would never wish to come anywhere near him again.
“G-guh! Why is this water so freezing??” Riddle suddenly blurted, his face crumpling in disbelief as Jade and Floyd circled contentedly between the shallows and the deep. Jade offered Azul an infuriatingly reassuring look. It distracted Azul from feeling sorry for himself for a moment, enough to disconnect himself from the wall at least. Riddle really wasn’t even looking at him. Azul had no idea why that made his heart sink a little.
“Ahhhh, I turned down the temperature regulator,” Floyd hummed, nodding toward the panel at the side of the pool, then twisting over in a slow backflip, stretching his fins. “Sorry, Goldfishie, I forgot. Want me to change it back for you~?”
Riddle rubbed his cold-prickled arms, his teeth gritted as he fought to acclimatise. Jade poked his head up from the water, smiling understandingly at Riddle too. Azul felt a little displeased at himself for having not anticipated this might be a problem. While the icy temperature was soothingly reminiscent of deep water, jumping in unawares would hardly be a pleasant experience for most humans.
“Apologies. Let's adjust it,” said Jade, raising a webbed hand to summon his magic pen from their belongings.
“No need, it’s fine,” Riddle decided, shaking himself and wading further in. Did Azul imagine the hesitant glance Riddle shot toward him? “I’ll warm up while I’m swimming, regardless.”
“I’m alright, if you want to change it,” Azul said softly.
“No. This is… refreshing,” Riddle tried, and Azul couldn’t decide if Riddle was simply expressing his usual dedication, or if he really was keeping in mind Azul. Either way, the steadfast, made-up-his-mind grimace on Riddle’s face made Azul smile a little, before he half-dipped under the water again, hiding the warmth at his face.
“Okay! Let’s have a race to warm up then! Me n’ Goldfishie against Jade and Azul!” Floyd bubbled enthusiastically, and before Riddle could so much as voice an opinion, Floyd had grabbed him beneath both arms, pulling Riddle’s back flush against his chest. Riddle had the foresight to forgo a yelp of disbelief in favour of taking a startled breath, clamping his mouth shut just before Floyd leapt forward, diving them both under the water and willowing his tail at full speed.
Jade flashed Azul a cheerful grin as he lurched forward with just as much energy, and before Azul knew it, the two eels were streaming right toward him, night forbid they actually expected him to take part in this! Floyd surfaced in a splash right in front of Azul’s face, which meant Riddle was also in his face, looking half-drowned and gasping for air as Azul gaped at them both.
“Goldfishie~! It’s your lap next!” Floyd yelled, encouraging Riddle to get into position and kick-off from the side. Riddle's chest was heaving as he sucked a few recovery breaths.
“Want me to chase you so you swim faster?” Floyd asked helpfully, to which Riddle yelled an unambiguous “no!” and readied himself at the wall, tucking his legs beneath him as he regained his bearings. Riddle narrowed his eyes at Azul, offered a small smile that was a challenge if Azul ever saw one, then launched himself forward, his swimming surprisingly quick and streamlined.
“I believe it’s your lap, Azul,” Jade said smugly, making a point to surface slowly, as if he’d wanted to give Riddle this head-start.
“If you think I’m going to propel myself all the way to the other side of the pool, you’ve got another thing coming!” Azul said hotly, his cheeks flushing at the thought of Riddle witnessing the incredibly less-streamlined manner in which he’d have to bunch himself up to do such a thing. The twins were certainly in a troublesome mood this afternoon, and Azul had no intention of forgetting it when they found themselves working double-shifts at Mostro Lounge this evening.
“But Riddle’s tryin’ so hard…” Floyd sighed, looking wistfully from Azul to his impromptu teammate, who was already a third of the way down the pool.
“I imagine he’ll be rather disappointed when he looks back and sees us all here,” Jade mourned. “A race by yourself really isn't any fun.”
And worse, if Riddle reached the end of the pool and Azul hadn’t even made an effort, it might even seem like some childish prank at his expense, Azul thought in growing panic.
“We’ll go, if you’re not feeling up to it,” Jade said suddenly, as if worriedly realising the same thing. While their attempts at affection were often overbearing to say the least, Azul could see well enough from the way the twins' faces dropped that they never intended any such hurt.
“I was gonna go anyway!” Floyd announced, splashing down beneath the water and setting off after Riddle.
“It’s your choice, then,” Jade said earnestly, softly bumping his tail against Azul before zipping menacingly after his brother. Jade turned on his back in the water for a moment, in time to see Azul’s mouth press together, squashing a pout as he glared at them both.
“W-well… I do want to!” Azul said crossly, thanking every sea-chariot of Poseidon that Riddle was still splashing around too much to be able to hear the ridiculous tremble in his voice. Obviously he wanted to! He just didn’t want Riddle to think less of him.
Jade threw him a sharp grin from beneath the ripping surface, before willowing ahead, leaving Azul to puff out his chest and gather his poorly-strung courage. With a last glance at Riddle, Azul shot himself forward in a single burst of speed, managing to catch up to Jade in spite of the eel’s significant lead. Gathering water back into his body would delay him a couple of seconds, and now Jade was making a much more dedicated effort, while Floyd and Riddle had nearly reached the end of the pool. Azul propelled forward again, using his senses rather than his eyes to feel where everyone was in the water, which was now clouded with whirling bubbles. Again, he forced his body to propel with as little delay as he could, stretching his arms out and touching the shallow edge of the pool, then bursting up through the surface, barely a second after Jade.
He was gasping terribly- almost as badly as Riddle- while the twins looked cheery as clams, as if this didn’t even classify as a warmup.
“Gods. You were fast-” Riddle managed to Azul, his voice broken and panting as he tried to suck down extra air. Alarmed, Azul pushed himself closer and caught Riddle’s arms, his first instinct to keep Riddle above water, even though Riddle would clearly be able to stand in the shallow end. Realising his error a moment too late, Azul let go of Riddle’s arms in embarrassment, but Riddle kept holding onto him, grateful for the support.
“I can’t keep that up very long,” Azul admitted with a cough. “Your swimming was impressive, though. Honestly.”
“Haa. But now I can’t breathe,” Riddle laughed, exhausted. “My legs feel like jelly. Thank you...”
Riddle took a few more deep breaths as Azul realised he had spiralled half of his tentacles protectively around Riddle, worried that in his current state, Riddle wouldn’t be alert and wary of his surrounds.
What the blazes am I doing? Azul cursed himself a moment later. Riddle wasn’t some helpless minnow, and he certainly wasn’t at risk of an ambush in the middle of the school swimming pool. Azul gave a nervous hiccup, his emotions all over the place. He flinched as Floyd sprang enthusiastically into Riddle’s side, pinning Riddle with an enormous hug and squeezing tight.
“Ehe~! Well done, Goldfishie! We won the race, y’know!” Floyd sang, taking no notice of Riddle’s helpless cough at the tightness of Floyd’s grip.
“You’ve improved your stroke a lot,” Jade said sincerely, placing a hand at Riddle’s shoulder. Azul sank back a little. No matter which way he turned it, Jade and Riddle were in almost all the same classes, and Riddle and Floyd had always shared an odd, push-and-pull brand of affection. Whether Riddle realised it or not, the twins’ fondness for his company was genuine. Azul didn’t think he had much to offer, besides class notes Riddle wouldn’t need, illicit potions Riddle wouldn’t want, and a clinginess that Riddle would likely find suffocating, as Azul had been told enough times that his eagerness to do anything to make a friend made him seem pathetic.
“I’m still freezing, by the way,” Riddle joked, shivering, and Azul realised with surprise that the words were being directed toward him. “Shall we go one more round? Azul and I against Jade and Floyd.”
Azul made a tiny, strange sound, which he covered with a cough into his fist, then a series of further cough as he accidentally made himself choke. Since when did anyone pick him first for a relay race?
The twins’ mismatched eyes narrowed in nefarious glee.
“We won’t go easy on you,” Jade warned, looking more than pleased at the offer.
There was a silence, while the small, stupid child in Azul wanted to throw his arms around Riddle in a joyful embrace, squishing his cheek against Riddle’s and saying Riddle could definitely rely on him, he might be slow but he was Azul Ashengrotto, and he wouldn’t let anyone down!
The Azul who attended Night Raven College, however, had a little more restraint. Just a little.
“Have you forgotten who you’re speaking to?” Azul answered coolly, fixing Jade and Floyd with a calm gaze. Then, he shared a slow, dark smile with Riddle, as Riddle brimmed to a smile right back at him. “Do you think two dorm leaders would need you to?”
By the seven spears of Neptune, we’re going to lose spectacularly, Azul thought. But he kept his expression unreadable as he slipped his arms beneath Riddle’s, holding Riddle against his chest as Floyd had done.
“Are you ready?” Azul asked Riddle gently. Riddle would need to be underwater most of the time in order for Azul to give it his best shot. Riddle gritted his teeth, giving a sharp nod. Now that Riddle’s back was pressed against him, Azul could feel him cold and shaking like a leaf, though his fellow dorm leader really did give nothing away.
I’m definitely pulling him out after this, Azul thought.
“You know how I swim, yes?” Azul mumbled, his insecurities seeming to surface like a many-headed hydra as he dipped his chin to Riddle’s shoulder, holding on.
“Of course,” Riddle said quietly. “We’ve got this.”
Riddle turned his head, and Azul did his best to peek at his eyes, fretting that he might feel a little slippery compared to Riddle’s human form. But then Riddle gave him the smallest, barely withheld smile, a flicker of excitement and silliness, as if this race were something he might’ve wanted in his childhood too.
“Indeed,” Azul agreed, then steeled himself against the edge of the pool. No, there was no way he was going to let them lose. Not now.
Riddle took a deep breath as they surged forward, his arms and hands tucked tight to his chest, clutching over Azul’s.
-
“..dear me… to think you would both go that far…” Jade sighed rather woefully later, holding a towel below Azul’s mouth in case he was going to cough-up any more ink, and making sure the blankets were snug around Riddle, whose lips were still a concerning shade of blue.
They were all back inside Riddle’s Heartslabyul dormitory bedroom, Floyd happily curled on the other side of Riddle’s quilt, while Azul and Riddle were tucked in the middle between the twins. Azul’s tucking-in was mainly to do with warming the shivering Riddle beside him, although he found with laying down, some of his own dizziness was slowly subsiding too.
“Azul, you know you weren’t supposed to push yourself so soon after-”
“-I know,” Azul said huskily, before Jade could voice it out loud. His body wasn’t exactly thanking him for exceeding his physical limits so close to his overblot either. But in spite of the pull of nausea, Azul’s heart felt less squashed than it had in days.
“And Riddle… using magic in what was supposed to be a race between gentlemen. Goodness me…”
Azul tried to glance at Riddle without making his head spin all over again. Riddle likely knew Jade was only teasing- if anything, Jade had been subtly impressed when Riddle had caught him off-guard, making the water swell around himself and pushing them to victory in the final lap.
“I… I may have got slightly carried away,” Riddle muttered, his face bright red with genuine mortification as the twins laughed, trying to ease his distress. “I sincerely apologise. I.. I don’t know what came over me!”
“Yup. Goldfishie and Azul were totally badass,” Floyd hummed, helping Riddle sit up a little and sip some of the warm tea by his bedside. Azul held his breath, forcefully warding-off his coughing fit until Riddle had finished drinking, so that he wouldn’t bounce him around at the wrong moment.
“There we go… easy…” Jade reassured Azul when he did finally cough. He didn’t sound nearly so dreadful as before, but stars still burst behind Azul’s eyes as he winced. Azul pointedly took the towel from Jade, quite capable of taking care of that himself. Really, now.
“Well. Shall Floyd and I leave you both to get some rest?” Jade’s tone was amicable as he voiced the suggestion. “I can only imagine what our own residents might get up to in our absence.”
“Is Goldfishie gonna make us go through the bedroom window again?” Floyd whined, like someone who hadn’t been practically bouncing off the walls with excitement when Riddle announced that they’d have to sneak into Heartslabyul like some covert prince-charming operation, rather than simply opening the front door.
“Yes. Because if Trey sees me in this sorry state, I’ll be in as much trouble as you,” Riddle said worriedly, pulling a thermometer from his mouth as he wiped his nose. Azul gave a nod to back him up, and Jade smiled accommodatingly, putting a decent effort toward not looking amused.
“Take care, Riddle. Azul,” Jade nodded, slipping out the window and down the rose vines outside like he’d been doing it all his life.
“See ya, Goldfishie. Take care of Azul for us!” Floyd grinned, backing himself out the window. “Drink the tea I made, it’s good for you. And come swimming with us again~!”
Azul could hear the rustle of bushes and the light thump outside as Floyd jumped down, then a faded murmur as the twins disappeared into the night. As drained and shaky as he currently felt, Azul was now all too aware that he might be imposing on Riddle by remaining in his bed.
Azul turned on his side to face him, suddenly desperately hoping he didn’t have ink smudged on his face from his coughing. He saw Riddle was already curled toward him, looking weak and still slightly chilled too, but not unhappy.
“It gets better, I promise,” Riddle said softly, reaching to his bedside for a warm towel, then carefully wiping it near Azul’s mouth. So he did have ink on his face?? Azul wanted to die.
“That… that won’t come off with just water,” Azul managed, his expression wrought with apology. “Believe me, I’ve tried.”
“Hm… yes, it’s being a bit stubborn. Oh dear, it was worth a shot,” Riddle agreed. He gave Azul a small, rueful smile while Azul continued staring. “It, um… the dizziness. And feeling like you’re about to be sick all the time. And coughing up blot when you exercise.”
“...I think that may be more to do with my… well, you’ve seen… ahum. Ah, I’ll spare you...” Azul said quietly, Riddle’s honesty somehow tugging half a confession from him before he intended it.
“I just wanted to say... I know it feels like a lot,” Riddle murmured. His eyes looked wary as he met Azul’s. The admission wasn’t easy for him either.
“Riddle...” Azul whispered. He had never asked after Riddle’s health following Riddle’s own infamous meltdown, never visited the infirmary, never sent food from Mostro Lounge’s kitchens to Heartslabyul. And all because he hadn’t wanted to embarrass Riddle, as if calling attention to his weakness was too low of a blow, a way of saying that Riddle couldn’t cope. Now that Riddle was calling attention to this exact same thing, Azul was struck to realise just how mistaken he’d been, and just how much he regretted it. He could have visited Riddle’s dorm on a pretence, there were certainly enough Heartslabyul students with debts to collect. He could have siphoned off some of Riddle’s dorm leader paperwork into his own. He could possibly just have approached him honestly, and handed him one of those nice drinks from Sam’s shop, and asked if he wanted Azul to keep him company, even if it was just once.
“Have I said the wrong thing?” Riddle asked gently, and Azul shook his head fiercely into the pillow, his mouth pressed tight.
“Excuse me…” said Azul, and Riddle looked surprised. Then, Riddle tentatively drew his arm over Azul’s hair, tugging Azul’s head against his chest rather than the pillow. Azul kept his eyes squeezed closed, pressing his face into the spot below Riddle’s shoulder as Riddle’s arm curved around his ear, his palm splayed against the back of Azul’s head as he held him.
“My glasses are getting squished,” Azul sobbed, not letting go. Riddle’s chest gave a soft flinch as he started laughing, then Riddle reached around and tugged them free from the bridge of Azul’s nose when Azul sniffled through a laugh too.
“... Jade and Floyd’s shocked faces when we won, though…” Riddle shook his head, still quiet and half-giggling, looking shyly down at Azul.
“Hah. I think my face was much the same,” Azul hiccupped, sounding blurry and awful even while he could feel himself smiling. Well. They had never agreed that using magic was against the rules, after all.
Quickly turning away, Azul muffled a cough in his sleeve, then tried his best to wipe his eyes and nose on his sleeve too, wondering how he'd made such a mess of himself in all of two minutes. Riddle was shivering again when Azul turned back, his eyes momentarily drooping closed.
“Night take me, you’re still so cold-” Azul blurted worriedly, fussing with his runny nose forgotten as he tried to tuck the heavy quilt more snugly around Riddle’s shoulders. Azul’s expression crumpled to a woeful grimace a second later. Perhaps that sounded patronising. Azul wasn’t feeling well at all.
“...mhn.. a little,” Riddle murmured, his voice sounding croaky and a little needy.
Azul shuffled closer, then wondered if he could ease Riddle against him. Hadn’t Riddle just embraced him? Azul felt his own attempt would be awkward and offputting somehow. But if Riddle had been scared by the idea that Azul would push him away, he was willing to risk that much, at least. Feeling stiff and uncertain, Azul lay his arm toward Riddle, then curved his elbow as best he could beneath Riddle’s pillow.
“Are you alright?” Azul whispered.
Riddle nodded, opening his eyes a fraction as he tried for a small smile. He was trembling.
“Can I cuddle?” Azul asked again, his voice barely audible and still more teary than he’d like.
When Riddle nodded without hesitation, wanting him closer, Azul didn’t know why his chest felt as sore and battered as it did full. Azul gently tugged Riddle against his chest, his hands feeling clumsy at the back of Riddle’s shirt and his face nudged against Riddle’s damp hair as Riddle gave an unexpected shiver. Azul felt it tremble through Riddle’s body, and he tentatively nestled the smaller dorm head in his arms, feeling Riddle ease against his warmth.
“I’m sorry. I should have done this before,” Azul said into Riddle’s hair, but Riddle shook his head, then wrapped his arms around Azul too, squeezing surprisingly tight. Bit by bit, Azul stopped fighting the prickling in his eyes and the aching of his limbs. The rise and fall of Riddle’s breathing was soothing. He felt safe with Riddle holding him, and Azul let himself be comforted. That too, was a lot.
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