[ACE] Devil's duty

[derek chandler ralston]

"Alright, let me know if you do.." He wandered over to pick out a few plain, dark shirts for himself, debating on going to look for an apartment for the two of them, or staying with Parish and Chantel. He didn't want to be a bother, fill up her living space. He would have to run it by Ace and Parish, both. If he wasn't comfortable being alone in an apartment with him, and Parish was alright with them staying, then he would do so for now.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

Ace nodded, watching him go before he walked over to the glass seperating the store and the rest of the mall. He looked up, crouching down as a little kid came up and tapped on the glass. He smiled, touching his hand to the other side of the glass. It smiled, pressing it's hand to his, and he knelt down, putting his other hand up. It giggled, trying to poke his hand with it's finger.

[derek chandler ralston]

Derek wandered back, smiling as he watched quietly from a distance. He had never really been partial to children, probably because he had grown up so alone. But he wouldn't deny that the scene was adorable, couldn't help the picture he took with his phone before wandering over to the register to pay for their things. Ace was handsome, he wouldn't deny. But he was only sixteen.. And Derek was supposed to be his gaurdian. He didn't dare fuck everything up, scare him away. He just wanted to keep him safe.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

Ace couldn't help but laugh at it's little giggle, watching it flop down on the other side of the glass to poke it's note to the glass. He reached down, poking the glass gently before it collapsed into giggles again. He chuckled, looking up when Derek came back. "Isn't that cute?" He asked, but when he looked back, the mother was picking up the child. He waved at it, watching it go quietly.

[derek chandler ralston]

"Adorable," Derek murmured with a smile, chuckling softly. He watched quietly as the mother and child went, wondered how he'd been as a child himself.. He'd lost his parents before being told a whole lot about the parts of childhood he was too young to remember, and the rest was enveloped in voices and nightmares and confusion. She drew in a breath and yawned, covering his mouth so as not to scare anybody away.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

Ace knew he had brothers and sisters out there. Maybe not from his mother, but from his father for sure. He wondered if any of them were little, if they were cute like that baby had been. He stood up, a bunch of images flashing through his head at once. He braced himself against the glass, his hands shaking as he wrapped an arm around himself, trying his hardest not to gag. He told himself he was just dizzy, and closed his eyes, the images suddenly stopping.

[derek chandler ralston]

"Woah, hey," Derek huffed as he watched him suddenly seem to grow unsteady. He reached out gently and rapped an arm around his waist loosely, offering himself as something to lean on. "Slow breaths.. You okay Ace?" He murmured softly, gently rubbing his back.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

He nodded, gently pressing his hand to Derek's chest as he opened his eyes. He always seemed to remember everything horrible that had ever happened to him when he thought about his siblings and his father. He didn't get it, wasn't sure if all his kids were tortured like this, or Zeus was just being cruel to him. "I'm fine.." He said quietly.

[derek chandler ralston]

Derek's eyebrows furrowed in worry. "Alright," He murmured, patting his back gently before he carefully took his hand. "Why don't we get out of this crowd of people and go to the park or something?" He himself was getting somewhat overwhelmed.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

Ace nodded. The park honestly sounded a lot better than being in the mall. He held loosely to Derek's hand, reaching up with his free hand to bring his shirt to his face as he sneezed. He sniffled, guessing he was getting his summer cold a little late this year.

[derek chandler ralston]

"Bless you," Derek murmured softly, leading him gently out to the truck and helping him in with a smile. He climbed in on the other side, buckling in and backing slowly out of the lot after setting heir bag of clothes on the bench in the back.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

"Thank you.." He said quietly, following him to the car. He curled up in his seat, looking out the window quietly. But this time, his mind didn't wander like it had been. He refused to think about Derek as anything but a parental figure. He closed his eyes, propping his head against his hand.

[derek chandler ralston]

"Mm," Derek mumbled, pulling onto the road. He flipped on the radio with a yawn, driving quietly until they reached the park and he shut the truck off and got out, returning the routine of again rounding the truck and letting Ace out.

[aerin 'ace' colt endsley]

"I'm gonna forget how to open doors.." He said quietly, smiling faintly to tell Derek he was only kidding. He climbed out, looking around the park. "Can we go on the swings?" He asked quietly, having never been to a real park before besides the time he ran away.

[derek chandler ralston]

Derek chuckled softly. "So?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow and smiling crookedly. "We sure can." He locked up the truck, and gently nudged him around towards the swings before shoving his hands in his pockets as he walked, looking around. The park was surprisingly empty, but it was also a week day, parents at work.