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Rouge hugged him tight almost the moment he walked in the door, and he let himself sink into his mother's arms rather than worry about kicking off his boots or freeing himself from his coat or luggage. Just for a moment. She was warm and smelled like bread and flowers, and her hands landed on his cheeks when she finally pulled away, examining his face like she expected something to have changed since the last time they'd seen each other. "I could have picked you up, you know."
Ace huffed, waving the notion away. The drive in the rental had done him some good after a long flight, and he'd need the car in the next few days anyway. "You had to take the Old Man to the hospital for his appointment earlier. No point in making you come out to the city again."
She hummed, tapping his cheeks lightly and seeming to approve of whatever she saw in his features, and then pulled away, moving to open herself up again before faltering when he nudged the door closed behind him.
"No Deuce with you?" she asked, and she was pouting a little, and Ace couldn't help but grin at her blatant dismay at not seeing his boyfriend behind him. She really had warmed to Deuce quickly the first time they'd met, had been so excited that Deuce would join them for this next break holiday.
"He had to make his obligatory appearance at his jackass brother's house," Ace grumbled, protesting when Rouge swiped his duffle bag from his shoulder but relented when she pinned him with an unimpressed glower. He got his coat and boots off and followed her toward the kitchen when she turned on her heel and headed that way before he could steal his own bag back. "He'll catch a flight from East Blue sometime late tomorrow night, I'll pick him up the next morning. Anyone else make it in yet?"
"Rayleigh, Shanks and Buggy arrived just a few hours ago, I'm sure the old men are already driving your brothers up the wall," Rouge said, amusement clear in her voice as she set Ace's bag by the kitchen island and slid a plate of cookies his way with a knowing smirk. "Garp, Sabo and Luffy are expected sometime in the morning. As for Deuce...well, I hope his visit home is pleasant, but I'll be glad to have him here with us when his flight comes in. It's a shame he'll miss tomorrow, though."
Rouge was more than smart enough to have picked up on the undertones of Ace and Deuce's comments when they talked about Deuce's father and brother, and it hadn't taken her long to decide she was unimpressed and that Deuce was better off spending holidays and breaks with them.
'The sooner that boy joins the family the better,' Rouge had said the last time he'd visited, an off-hand comment accompanying a pat to Ace's shoulder when she rose to follow Deuce into the kitchen when he insisted on helping with the dishes. That little comment had struck close and lingered in his mind since, even though he was fairly sure his mother had forgotten it entirely.
"It'll be okay," Ace murmured, shoving a cookie into his mouth to try and hide what had to still be a disappointed expression on his face. He couldn't really speak for East Blue, he'd spent summers on Dawn with Sabo and Luffy rather than winters, but South Blue had fantastic firework shows over the winter holidays, and he'd always thought Baterilla's were the nicest. Deuce would have loved them, if they way he'd gone starry-eyed at the few fireworks shows they'd seen in the last couple years at school were any indication. "Maybe next year."
Rouge smiled sadly, like she could see right through him, and she probably could. She reached across the island to pat his hand gently, and opened her mouth to say something, but the door leading out to the large garden and sheds out back opened, blasting the kitchen with a brisk breeze, though it never got too terribly cold in South Blue, and Shanks, Buggy, Roger and Rayleigh all loudly ambled in, his two older brothers howling at each other as Roger laughed and Rayleigh scolded and sighed, looking entirely put-upon and thus not all that different from the last time Ace had seen him.
"Hey, Squirt!" Shanks cheered the moment he laid eyes on Ace, and he rolled his eyes and hurried to swallow his latest bite. "Long time no see!"
"I saw you barely a month ago at the Newgates'," Ace replied drily, dodging but ultimately failing to escape a sudden headlock. "And quit calling me Squirt! I'm not a kid, and I'm definitely not that much shorter than you."
"I am older and wiser and have maturity on my side," Shanks said, prim and proper, and Buggy snorted almost violently behind him.
"Try telling that to the Dressrosa public safety department..."
The headlock around Ace's neck and shoulders was released suddenly, and he nearly fell off his chair from the rush of it as Shanks swiped for Buggy before he could say anything more, though the redhead seemed more amused than annoyed. Buggy was far more successful than Ace at evading capture, and Rouge hollered after them about rough-housing in her home as Roger continued to laugh and Rayleigh finally gave up, patting Ace's shoulder in passing as he retreated toward the guest rooms.
“Apologies, Rouge, they take more after Roger than me,” he called back to her, and she huffed in exasperated amusement.
“Funny, my husband says the same thing about you,” she retorted, and Rayleigh laughed as he disappeared down the hall, while Shanks and Buggy’s crashing ceased as they raced out the front door to continue their chase.
“...you’re sure you want to add Luffy and Sabo and Gramps to this?” Ace asked, pouting at the lack of cookies remaining on his plate and wondering which of the assholes who’d come near him already had swiped some.
“I plan to leave you to their mercies and give Deuce my full attention when he arrives,” she sniffed back, smirking at him from the corner of her eye. “It’s been far too long since the last time we’ve seen him.”
“And what am I supposed to do with you off mothering Ace’s little boyfriend?” Roger pouted, and Rouge met his eye firmly, unwavering.
“That’s why I invited Garp, honey. Take him back to the woods and beat each other up like you usually do.”
Roger looked far too excited by that suggestion, and Ace decided to take his bag back and hightail to his room before he had to suffer through more stories about the 'good ol' days' and Roger's semi-legendary rivalry with Garp.
Deuce (7:45 PM): Decided to kill your Dad yet?
Ace snorted, catching the incoming message crossing his phone screen in a thin banner, grabbing up his phone before anyone could catch sight of the message.
Ace (7:45 PM): Shouldn't I be asking you that? Holding up?
There was silence for a few minutes, long enough for Ace to get distracted by Shanks and Buggy trying to kill each other in a video game after they'd nearly broken a door and Rouge had threatened to banish them to the woods for the rest of the night. It wasn't an uncommon threat for any of them, and Ace himself had spent nearly a month living in the woods with Sabo and Luffy more than one summer as kids, never mind what Shanks and Buggy might have gotten up to with Roger and Rayleigh before they'd met Rouge.
His phone buzzed violently in his hand, and he jumped and knocked into Shanks's side, making his character in the game spasm, and Buggy whooped triumphantly at the clear opportunity to destroy Shanks. Deuce's face filled his screen, a sneaky candid Ace had taken over a year before, glasses slipping down his nose and pale hair catching the light coming through the window beside him as he read, curled up in one of the comfy chairs at home, a tiny smile curling his lips as he braced his elbow on the arm of the chair and rested his chin in his hand. It was one of Ace's favorites, even among dozens of others taken before and since with Deuce being fully aware, smiling into the camera at Ace, and beside him in selfies.
"Answer the phone and get out of here!" Shanks complained, whacking him with a pillow while trying to use his controller one-handed in an attempt to defend himself from Buggy's next onslaught now that he was down a life. He was still audibly complaining as Ace ducked out of the room and answered the call, still sniggering at the exaggerated offense in his older brother's tone.
"You sound oddly breathless," was Deuce's first comment upon his greeting, and Ace could hear the smile in his voice, as well as an oddly shaky sort of quality.
"You okay?" he asked, already worried despite the warm tone, and Deuce huffed a laugh.
"Stepped outside to call you. Some people were starting to give me dirty looks for looking at my phone so much. It's cold out here."
"You sent one message," Ace complained, rolling his eyes. What kind of uptight jerks was Deuce currently surrounded by? "You'll like it out here when you arrive. Not nearly as cold as East Blue can get."
"Thank god," Deuce sighed happily. "Between that and snuggling you, I'll finally start feeling warm again."
He smiled, leaning back against the wall in the middle of the hallway, separated from the others in the house enough for a moment of quiet while still able to pick up the sounds of Shanks and Buggy jeering at each other, Rouge humming in the kitchen, Roger's loud rumbling coming from somewhere upstairs with Rayleigh.
"Sounds like a date, as soon as you get here. Though Mum might accost you with cookies first."
"Such a hardship, I don't know if I'll be able to withstand it," Deuce teased. He huffed a breath, loud over the phone, and Ace wondered if he was trying to breathe some warmth onto his fingers. "Did she make those cinnamon ones again?"
"If she hasn't I can ask if she can before you get here," Ace promised. "Did you at least grab a coat before you left the house?"
"That would get more disapproving looks, I took the first chance I got to slip out," Deuce replied, probably aiming for a blithe tone, but Ace knew the nuances of Deuce's voice as well as his tells and the minute shifts in his face, and he knew his boyfriend was more tense and anxious than he was letting on. His family always brought out this side of him, more than work or school or anything else in their normal day-to-day lives did.
"You could always come a little earlier than planned," Ace offered with exaggerated cheer, masking his own worry for the time being. "Mum's been asking about you. I'll pitch in for however much a flight change would be."
"I know you would," Deuce said softly, and that smile was back in his voice even if Ace could still hear that quiet sadness again, the same as when he'd realized he'd have to miss the New Year and be late to Ace's birthday. "I'm still sorry."
"Don't be," Ace murmured back, tilting his head back against the wall. "I'll still get to see you on my birthday, even if we miss the new year, that's more than enough."
"I'll be there as soon as I can," Deuce promised, and Ace smiled, nodding. Deuce would be there the day after next, he could spend New Years Eve with Sabo and Luffy and annoying the rest of his family, and sailing the boat they'd take out to watch the fireworks show, the same way his family had done his entire life, supervising Luffy and Sabo's helping, since they loved sailing just as much but hadn't grown up doing it as much as Ace had.
And next year Deuce would be with them, and Ace would be able to show him how to sail as well, something else for them to share, something else he was sure Deuce would love that he'd never tried before.
There were noises on Deuce's side of the call, the cool snap of another man's voice and what Ace was fairly sure was Deuce's birth name, the one he never used at home or school, and then Deuce's muffled reply, tense and dry even with his hand likely covering the lower half of his phone to keep Ace from hearing specifics.
"Gotta go?" he asked, when he could hear Deuce's breathing again a little more clearly, the slam of a door a clear sign that the conversation had ended.
"Yeah," Deuce said, sounding far more exhausted than anyone should while at home on a break week, and yet Deuce's family home wasn't really his home, not anymore. "I'll try and call you later, okay? Before bed? It might be pretty late by then, I'll text you before I call to make sure you're still awake..."
"Just call, Deu," Ace said, huffing a soft laugh. "I'll turn the ringtone up, I don't mind being woken up. But don't worry about it either, okay? If you need to pass out after dealing with those posh jerks I definitely understand."
Deuce snorted inelegantly, something that seemed like it would horrify his family's sensibilities but was utterly charming to Ace. "I love you. So much."
"I love you," Ace replied, easy as breathing, warmth flooding his chest, and he imagined Deuce maybe felt a little less cold himself at the returned words and how much Ace meant them, with every fiber of his being. "And I miss you, and I can't wait to see you. So you better survive dealing with those jerks and come South so I can warm you up soon, got it?"
"Got it," Deuce laughed, clearly feeling at least a tiny bit better for the moment. He sighed quietly, and Ace hummed back at him, the closest he could get to a hug or other comforting, commiserating gesture for the moment. "I'll talk to you soon. Talk to your mum about those cookies."
"Will do. Spike the punchbowl at your thing if you can." That won another snort, and Ace grinned victoriously.
"Now there's an idea. Bye, Ace."
"Night, Deu."
The line went dead, and Ace sighed, tapping a few cutesy emojis to Deuce because he knew they'd make him smile and resolving to do so again in a few hours to play it safe, and then he turned on the ringtone rather than the vibration notification his phone was usually set to.
"Gonna go save lover boy? Prince Charming time?" Shanks's voice called, poking his head and shoulders out of the living room. Buggy appeared above him, just his head and part of his neck, like he'd been disembodied, though Ace was fairly certain he'd climbed up onto Shanks's back to have that effect.
"You didn't see that kid deck a guy at Newgate's last big party," Buggy huffed, a hand appearing alongside his head to knock against Shanks's head.
Ah, that had been a fun time, and Ace found himself smiling a little without conscious thought. Deuce was hot when he got a little possessive like that.
"Oh, yeah, Marco did mention something about that, didn't he," Shanks muttered to himself before refocusing and cooing at Ace in good-natured teasing. "Look at him, so in love. Can you even believe Baby Boy Firefly ever turned into such a sap?"
"I'll tell Marco that shampoo prank was actually you the last time you stayed over at his place and not Thatch and Haruta," Ace threatened easily back, watching Shanks's eyes narrow.
"You wouldn't," he countered, trying to call Ace's bluff. His fingers moved slowly over his phone screen, tapping out of the text thread with Deuce to instead open the one shared with several of the Newgate brothers, keeping eye contact with Shanks all the while.
"Wanna bet?" he asked, and there was a moment of still, stretched silence, Shanks and Ace sizing each other up, Buggy glancing between the top of Shanks's hair and Ace's slowly uncurling smirk.
The moment broke, Ace jabbing sharply on the group chat, legs tensed and moving a split second before Shanks bodily threw Buggy off his back. His other brother screeched in outrage as he crashed to the floor, likely alerting everyone else in the house, and Rouge hollered something at them as they raced past. He hurled himself toward the door, the same way Buggy and Shanks had earlier, and launched himself toward the slope down away from the house, knowing he'd always been able to handle it better than either of his brothers and counting on using it to his advantage once again.
Roger had always had heavy footsteps, all throughout Ace's life. It'd made childhood games hilariously simple, and it served as early warning when he and his brothers, any and all of them, were up to some sort of trouble. The same heavy footsteps announced his passing outside Ace's room, the door cracked open ever so slightly, but when they fell quiet Ace paused in playing with the little box in his hands, tucking it under the folds of his blanket as he pushed himself to sit up a little more.
"Have you managed to concoct a plot to get your boyfriend here in time?" Roger asked, prodding the door open just enough to poke his head inside and make a dumb face at Ace.
"Why does everyone keep asking me that," Ace grumbled, rolling his eyes. "If he wants me to go get him or get him a new flight or anything else I will, but I'm not gonna charge into his brother's house and carry him out over my shoulder or something. He said he needed to go to keep the peace, I'm not gonna make things worse."
"I was thinking more of a bridal carry," Roger boomed a laugh, mustache quivering with the force of it, folding burly arms over his chest as he leaned against Ace's door frame. "Ah, you're a better man than me, then, son. I would've gone charging in to get Rouge if we were in your shoes."
"That's why it took her so long to agree to marry you, you shitty old menace," Ace fired back, grinning at the reminder of Rouge rolling her eyes heavily when Roger's many attempted proposals had come up during story times or laughing memories with their friends.
"Yep," Roger agreed cheerfully, clearly unbothered now. "Well, don't take too much after your mother. She's starting to get impatient about you making an honest man of that boy. You know she just wants an excuse to dote on him even more, as if she doesn't have enough of you boys already."
Ace could have choked on his own breath at that, not expecting such a comment from Roger in the least, though he wasn't surprised at the new round of laughter that rose at his reaction.
"So, if you need some expert advice..."
"I'll be sure to ask Mum," Ace immediately countered, reveling in the brief pout that crossed Roger's face as he opened his mouth to protest. "No, I'm not going anywhere near all the ridiculous things Mum and Rayleigh and Shanks and Bug say you did. I've already got a ring, I don't need any of your weird 'advice'."
Roger's grin broadened, stretching nearly as wide as Luffy and Sabo's best grins, and Ace realized what he let slip, groaning. "Shut up. And don't tell Mum and get her hopes up, the last thing I'm doing is proposing surrounded by all you assholes."
"Fine, fine," Roger said, booming another laugh and waving his hand dismissively. "Like I said, don't keep her waiting too long is all. But , if you wanted to aim for a nice romantic holiday proposal..."
"You're all making bets aren't you?" Ace asked, despairing. Of course they were. The question was if they'd gotten Pops and Garp and Shakky in on it too. "And fuck no, I'm not proposing on a holiday either, stay out of it!"
"All in it's time," Roger said, like he was quoting someone, probably Rouge or Rayleigh, and the grin softened a little, something like pride in his eyes and halting Ace's indignant, defensive huffing. "Just ask when it feels right. Grand gestures and planning only go so far, y'know."
He waved and stepped back out of Ace's room at that, stomping down the hall to stop at Buggy's door, another loud conversation starting, enough to make Ace realize that beside the laughter, Roger had actually been quite a bit quieter than normal through their conversation.
"That damn old geezer," Ace grumbled, smiling as he grabbed the little box out from within his blanket, flipping the lid open to look at shiny, pristine silver set in black backing again, considering his options before snorting and shaking his head, leaning down to tuck the box and the ring within safely back into his duffle bag. All in it's time, and all that shit.
Deuce would hopefully call soon, his ringtone turned up and phone plugged in to charge, and he settled in to scroll, flicking the bedside light off and making himself comfortable.
There was a streak of sunlight hitting him directly in the face, and a strange sort of warm weight against the edge of the bed, tightening his blankets over his hips, shifting just a bit and making him roll ever so slightly from his current sprawl of limbs. He groaned, vaguely registering another weight pressing into the mattress near his shoulder, dipping the corner of his pillow, and then something brushed against his cheek, soft and light and gentle.
That wasn't so bad, and he hummed, tilting his head just a little and feeling the same brush slide down toward his chin before following the line of his jaw up toward his temple. A brief moment near the corner of his eye and then the brushing sensation disappeared entirely before pressing lightly against his lips, and he hummed for a moment before it drew away again with a soft, breathy sort of laugh.
He cracked an eye open at the familiar sound, a shadow he recognized looming over him, and he hummed when the weighted points on his bed shifted slightly before cool fingertips brushed against his cheek and into his hair, trying to blink sleep out of his eyes as Deuce moved into his space once more to brush their noses together briefly, tenderly.
"This is a nice dream," he breathed against Deuce's lips, and his boyfriend pulled back enough for Ace to clearly see him roll his eyes in fond exasperation before pressing another, firmer kiss to his lips, tongue sliding against the seam of Ace's lips until he parted them and allowed a deeper kiss. He sighed, feeling Deuce’s breath against his cheek, and when they parted again for breath Deuce dropped his weight onto the bed at Ace’s side, drawing the blankets tight over him again as an arm curled over his waist.
“Not a dream, Ace,” he said quietly, snuggling into Ace’s side, and he blinked at that, trying to banish the hazy lingering grogginess and looking at his partner again. Deuce’s hair was a little disheveled, glasses firmly pushed up on his nose, dressed in a thick green hoodie and jeans, nothing Ace would have dreamed of Deuce dressed in.
“It’s still the 31st?” he asked, because he was meant to pick up Deuce himself on the morning of the 1st, and yet Deuce was in his room and telling him he wasn’t still asleep.
“Yep. Happy New Year’s Eve,” Deuce replied, tightening his hold over Ace’s waist before snorting in amusement. “Your dad made plenty of comments despairing that I was his birthday gift.”
“That fucker,” Ace groaned, before squirming and rolling over enough to land mostly on top of Deuce, grinning down at him and peppering his face with quick kisses. "You're seriously actually here?"
"I'm here," Deuce replied, beaming up at him, and Ace took a second to straighten his glasses for him before kissing him all over again. "Happy early birthday, I'm your surprise."
"But what about..." Ace began, trailing off, because Deuce had firmly meant to see the visit with his brother and father through, had been determined to be the bigger person.
"I couldn't take it anymore," Deuce admitted, quietly embarrassed, and Ace let his weight drop onto his boyfriend's chest carefully, resting his chin on crossed hands over Deuce's sternum, anchoring his partner, silently supporting him as best he could. "It just kept going on and on, more and more people I didn't even know looking at me, with all this fancy food and drinks and my brother ignoring me and my father frowning at me, and all I could think about was how wrong it was that I was there instead of starting snowball fights with you against your brothers, or having your mum's cookies or laughing at your dad grumbling. Especially since being there meant I was going to miss out on the start of your birthday."
"So you snuck out?" Ace asked, just to clarify, and Deuce snorted.
"I grabbed my coat and the bag I hadn't even bothered unpacking, loudly thanked my father and brother for inviting me, and walked out the front door," he admitted, and Ace could feel himself grinning in delight at the revelation. Deuce's fingers moved to card through his hair, and he leaned into the touch happily.
"Hey Deu?" he asked after a long moment of quiet, and Deuce hummed in reply, eyes lidded like he was finally starting to relax again just from playing with Ace's hair. "I'm glad you're home."
His replying smile was beautiful, slowly unfurling to light up his face. "I'm glad I'm home, too."
Ace shifted then, allowed Deuce to sit up enough to place his glasses on the bedside table next to Ace's phone, to shuck off his jeans and sweatshirt and get under the covers with him, and they curled up facing each other, legs tangled together, Ace pulling Deuce's left hand toward his chest and holding it there. They had a few hours left before Garp and Luffy and Sabo would arrive, Deuce had apparently caught a truly horrendously early flight from East Blue, and Ace was more than happy to quietly tell Deuce about the plan to sail out onto the sea surrounding Baterilla that night, about the fireworks shows that had gone off in previous years, until Deuce's breathing evened out into slumbering softness as he caught up on the sleep a whole night awake and flying had made him miss.
He could hear Roger's loud stomping footsteps downstairs, and then the soft murmur of his mother's voice once she finally got up and moving for the day, having slept in longer than normal to make up for the late night they were all going to have. He definitely heard the moment Roger mentioned Deuce's early arrival, because Rouge squealed softly before muffling herself, and he heard Roger's less than quiet laughter at the reaction.
He pulled Deuce's hand up just enough to press a soft kiss to his fingers, smiled when Deuce huffed and murmured something unintelligible as he scooted closer to press his forehead against Ace's shoulder. He wound an arm around Deuce's side and closed his eyes, pressing his head a little more firmly into his pillow.
There was a ring in a box in his bag, and he was going to propose to Deuce soon. Not tonight, not with his overeager family all around them, but soon. The moment it felt right.
He didn't want to keep either of them waiting too long.