Chapter includes a brief medical mumbo-jumbo that probably made no sense and is only researched like, 5 seconds from . Beware.
I hope you liked it!
"Forgive my curiousity, but may i ask how it happened?"
Lunch that day was rabbit stew with slices of toasted bread that has accompanied every meal Marco gave him. During the storm's calmest moments, Marco would step out and come back a while later with a pail of snow to boil for water, and most of the time, he would also bring back something to eat along with him. He had an odd knack for finding just about any forest critters and any edible vegetation, stating that they're fairly easy to find if he just know where to look. Ace was sure that in the years he and his brothers had lived here that animals aren't really that easy to find without going miles away, but evidently, Marco was a better hunter than the three of them.
Ace swallowed his spoonful of broth and looked up to Marco, who stared back at him patiently. The blond's eyes flickered down to his chest briefly, but even without that visual cue, Ace knew what he was talking about. He raised one hand, curling it in front of his wound, muttering, "It happened years ago. To this day, i still don't know how i could've survived,"
Marco pushed the plate of bread closer to Ace, placing his half-eaten bowl of soup between his crossed legs and straightening his back, as if preparing himself to listen to Ace's story.
So Ace told him, "Do you remember the Paramount War years ago? During the height of the war, some of the enemy's infantry managed to overtake the border, and on their way to the capital city, they passed by the town just up ahead," as the memory of that bloodied tragedy run in his mind, Ace found it hard to simply swallow, "My brothers, Sabo, Luffy and i were there when it all happened, trying to sell the meat and products we gathered from the forest like we did every day. We were separated and when i found them, there was this high ranking soldier standing over them,"
Ace's breath stuttered, and for a moment, he remembered it all down to the smallest detail, including the excruciating pain that pierced through him, "He was going to kill my brothers, so i took the blow that was meant for them,"
The crowded yet peaceful commotion around the market place turned wild and chaotic after someone had sounded the alarm that they're being attacked. In matters of minutes, it was every man for himself, and it was in the middle of that mayhem that Ace was separated from both Sabo and Luffy. Ace had fought against the current of panicking townsfolk trying to flee from the approaching army, shouting his brothers' names to high heaven. When he finally found them, his entire body felt like he's being doused by cold water.
There Sabo and Luffy was, Luffy with an open gash on his face and Sabo bloodied and bruised just about everywhere, and towering over them had been a much larger man in white cape and red armour, an enormous spear in one hand and nothing but bloodlust in his eyes.
Sabo had been shielding Luffy's smaller body, eyes defiant with only the slightest of wavering to them, while Luffy, small, barely 14 years old and much too young Luffy, tears running down his face and screaming as he tried to push Sabo away.
It was like Ace's body had moved on its own, and before he knew it, he was looking down at both of his brothers, watching their shocked and terrified faces screaming for him, and closer than the two of them, the blade of a sharp spear jutting out of him.
Everything that happened afterward was just a blur of agony. The moment it all ended, Ace was so sure that so does his life.
"Apparently the capital city had anticipated that attack, and so help came just right on time. Their doctors managed to revive me somehow, but the damage was already done and couldn't be reversed," The hand over the ugly scar curled into a fist, as Ace pursed his lips, trying to recall the exact words he heard from the barest of whispers outside of his cot, "My ribs were shattered, unable to be reattached, and my lungs were in tatters. I couldn't even breathe normally without hurting myself, and operating on them had been extremely expensive. A lot of the tissues and nerves around my chest were destroyed, there's bruising on my heart muscle, and if i was to miraculously survive, i was just going to be weak, frail, just… living on borrowed time,"
Ace's lips curled into a sardonic smile, frustrated, angry, and in the core of it all, grateful, "After my brothers were told all of that, they couldn't just let me be. No, they had to insist that they can save me, that they'll be able to raise enough money so the doctors could operate on me, to keep me alive even though i would never be the same. The three of us used to have this dream of exploring the entire world together, so we saved up every single belli we got to make our dreams come true," he let out a shaky laugh, "They used all of it for my medication and treatment, and they never get to save up anything anymore because everything they earned since would go to my medicines,"
He hated them a little for that, but he supposed that above all, he hated himself surviving.
"Where are they now?"
"Luffy's father is one of the country's top archeologist, and when his grandfather, a general, sent him to live here, Dragon would kept track of his son via letters. It was from there that he started corresponding with Sabo. Sabo's always had this particular interest in the history of the world, uncovering the unknown, as he always say, just like how Luffy always wanted to go on a never ending adventure. After the war ended, it was safe to start another expedition and Dragon wanted Luffy to come with him. And because he had been impressed with Sabo's knowledge, he wanted him to come along as well as his assistant,"
There's a couple second of eerie silence when Ace was finished. When Marco spoke, there was a trace of hesitancy in his tone, as if he wasn't sure if he's supposed to ask, "And you? Why didn't they bring you with them?"
He still remembered Dragon's letter, even though Sabo had burnt it after he was finished reading and Luffy refused to talk about it. They both tried to hide it from him, but Ace had known since the beginning, he had expected it, and he had predicted his brothers' reaction, "Expeditions requires a lot of financial backing, and there is no way they could bring someone who would be no help at all, and even worse, might be a liability,"
Ace laughed, a sound devoid of any humour. When he looked up, half of his vision was swimming in unshed tear, and beyond them, he could see Marco's face, so full of pity, "They were going to refuse that golden opportunity because of that, can you believe them? Dragon offered them the chance they lost because of me, and they were going to refuse it… because of me," he let out another breathless laugh, and this time, when his chest began to hurt, Ace knew it wasn't from his wound. It was from something much deeper, unseen to the eyes and yet he could feel every single day when he saw the way Sabo and Luffy lived, all because of him, "I told them to leave, i have to. It wasn't right for them to be stuck here, against their will, for someone who wasn't supposed to be alive in the first place,"
Why did they have to save him? Had he died, there would be no need for them to waste so much money and precious time where they could've worked on realizing their goals. Had he died, Sabo and Luffy would have nothing holding them back. Had he died…
If only he had died then, he wouldn't have to live day after day in crippling loneliness, torn with trying to convince himself he had done the right thing, while pushing away the jealousy growing inside of his broken heart like an unwanted mould. If he had died, his last memory of his brothers would be of them screaming for him, tearful and horrified but very much alive, instead of the sight of their backs turned to him, leaving just as he commanded them to but secretly wishing that they would turn back.
Every single day, he was just a walking contradiction, wanting his brothers to live their own lives while also resenting the fact that they're able to, within a body that's always on the verge of expiring but hasn't.
And he's tired. He's tired of living like this.
Torrent of tears started dripping out from the corner of his eyes, years of suppressed thoughts bubbling to the surface at once. A hand pulled him, gently, patiently, and when he found himself embraced against a warm body, the first time in what felt like an eternity, it was all Ace needed to let it all go, "I'm not wrong, am i? They'll be much happier out there instead of being confined here, so why… why do i feel so lonely?"
He cried and cried, breath hitching with every word he wasn't even sure he was talking legibly anymore. His chest began to hurt again but he hardly cared. It was that pain that caused everything in the first place, the pain that held him back from following his brothers, that torn the three of them apart and Ace hated the fact that he has to live with it every day. He hated the pain, he hated being so weak, he hated the sight of an empty house, and most importantly, he hated being alive through it all.
"I want to go with them too. I missed my brothers,"
"Um, Marco?"
Marco let out a short hum before looking up from the carrot he was dicing, "Yes, Ace?"
Instead of answering, Ace bit his lower lips, unsure of what to say. He's been running through yesterday's incident in his mind repeatedly before deciding to approach the older, and even now, he couldn't really find the right word to say. In the end, after Marco called for his name again, he started off simple, "I'm sorry,"
"About what?"
"About… about yesterday," he was scraping his foot on the ground now, a gesture he hadn't made since he was about 10 and was trying to muster his best puppy-dog eyes to the bakery owner to let him have just that one small cookie for free, "I didn't mean to, uhm, i didn't mean to… i mean, you were just asking a simple question but then the words, they just kept coming and… well,"
The longer the silence stretched between them the more Ace was aware of how hot his face was becoming. What is the correct way to tell someone you are sorry for the way you dumped your entire emotional baggage on them so unexpectedly?
Before Ace could actually figure out the answer, he felt a hand placed on the top of his head, ruffling his hair gently, "Don't apologize. It felt good to let it all out to someone, doesn't it? Those kinds of heavy thoughts shouldn't be bottled up and carried by yourself," with a hitched breath, the dark haired male looked up to see his house guest smiling benevolently, eyes full of patience, "And for the records, you had your brothers' best interest at heart, in spite of your own. Right or wrong, i think that alone made you someone really admirable,"
Ace could feel heat starting to creep up to his cheeks, "But…,"
Marco retracted his hand, and still smiling, he pointed towards the assortments of chopped vegetables he had in a bowl, "I'm sorry for the repetition, but it seems like we only have enough ingredients for rabbit stew again today. Will that be alright with you?"
Wordlessly, Ace nodded, far too rapidly for it to be normal, but Marco doesn't question it, simply going back to cooking.
When the blonde had his back turned, Ace hoped he couldn't see him reaching up to the top of his head with his own hand, ruffling his hair the way Marco did and feeling like his face has been set on fire.
Outside of the window, as far as he could see, there was nothing but white fog over densely snowed ground. It's been like this for the past 6 days, accompanied by the sound of howling wind and the rattling from the less than sturdy structure around him. Ace didn't remember the last time the snowstorm was this bad or if it ever reach this level of intensity, and it was starting to make him worry if the house can really withstand it all.
But what kept Ace standing vigilantly peering through the thick storm outside was not concern over the roof above his head. Earlier, the storm had actually calmed down a little and Marco had left to collect some extra food, seeing that their supplies had dwindled. Yet, it wasn't long after he stepped out into the wilderness that the storm seems to come back with vengeance, and now it's been an hour and there's no sign of him at all. As the wind outside seems to grow even louder, Ace pulled his coat closer, chest constricted in a way that has nothing to do with his old wound.
In only 6 short days that Marco had been around, Ace was surprised with how much he quickly welcomed having someone else to share the cottage with. There was suddenly another presence aside from himself day and night, someone to talk to, and even if Ace felt a little guilty about it, it was nice to have someone take care of him again.
He didn't really want Marco to, but ever since he passed out, he found it more difficult than usual to simply breathe normally, and the stinging dull pain has now become a constant that's made worse every time he did even the simplest things. Ace had tried his best to keep quiet about it, but Marco saw him coughing and breathing hard one too many time and practically ushered and ordered him to stay in bed. As a compromise, he would do whatever chore it is that would occupy Ace's mind and made him restless, and Ace could watch him to make sure he'd doing everything right as long as he won't leave the bed.
Not that Ace ever needed to, because the blond wanderer had done pretty much everything. Cooking, cleaning, melting snow to drink and for bathing and washing, and he had even taken up the time to fix the holes around the walls and making it harder for the cold to leak in. Ace had told him none of it was necessary, but Marco would always make him falter with just a single smile.
Just remembering the sight of it made a fluttering sensation in Ace's stomach. He felt really ridiculous, but he never had anyone giving him so much care aside from his brothers. Marco would always say it's because he's thankful for Ace's kindness, but as far as Ace was concerned, he had only allowed him to stay in this rickety shack until the storm was over and that hardly deserves everything else Marco has done for him. If anything, Ace owed him so much more.
The dull throbbing in his chest suddenly intensified enough for Ace to begin coughing, his throat sore just from how often he had been doing it since the day before yesterday. He felt like his lungs were being squeezed painfully from the inside, and after a while, the dark haired man felt something lodged in his throat, which came out like spit on to his palm. He knew what it was, recognizing it just by the foul coppery taste that drenched his tongue, and the more he coughed, the harder it was to breathe properly. Before long, he could feel his legs giving out on him, sending Ace falling to his knees and having just enough time to hold on to the wall with his other hand.
He didn't even realize that Marco had returned home shortly, until he heard a panicked voice shouting his name, "Ace!"
Through the foggy haze in his head, Ace was only half aware of being carried back to his bed and hearing Marco saying something but couldn't actually decipher what was being said. Any of his attempt to reply to Marco only resulted in a strangled moan, and the more time passed, the more Ace felt like he was drowning.
But then, something odd happened.
He could feel like there was something moving over his chest, seeping into his skin, something warm, like the comforting heat of his furnace. With the peculiar sensation, it brought along comfort, and as if his pain was a simple block of ice, it melted it away. Slowly, Ace could feel the dull aches slowly dissipating like a smoke blown away by the spring breeze, and after what felt like an eternity, he took in a deep breath, filling his damaged lungs as much as he could and was surprised by the lack of pain.
"Ace!" he heard Marco shouting somewhere close, and sure enough, when his eyes began to flicker open, Ace could see that he was actually leaning against the older man, head rested on broad chest and one of his arms supporting the back of his head. His other hand, Ace felt a moment later, was right in the middle of his stark apparent scar, emiting the same warmth he felt before, "Ace, are you alright now? Say something,"
"Marco?" the dark haired one rasped out, mind oddly clearer and even oddly still, his chest felt lighter than before. He took a deep breath, noting with surprise that while the dull pain was still there, the same constricting tightness was less so, and the breath he took wasn't accompanied by the immense pain like before, "What the…,"
Next to him, Marco let out a chuckle, "Are you feeling better now?"
"Yes," Ace gasped, putting his hand over where the faded remnants of that odd warmth as Marco removed his, "But how did you— What did you do?"
For a brief moment, he thought he could see Marco's posture stiffening, and the laugh he gave held a hint of nervousness in them, "It was just a basic treatment, something to give you a quick relief, but never mind that," his expression suddenly turned grim, and any other concern or question Ace may have suddenly dissipated from his mind, "Ace, i think you've been getting worse since i got here. You said before that your brother paid for your medicines. Why haven't you been taking them?"
Ace broke their eye contact, flickering his gaze away from Marco's, "I… i used it all up. After the war, their prices had gone up drastically and just those medicines would cost over a month of my brothers' income to buy. Without them around now, i just couldn't afford it anymore,"
What little food, wear and money that he had came from the small jobs he could do around town and the generosity of the townsfolk who knew of him and what had happened to him. But even that was mere bits and scraps, and as hard as he tried, he couldn't save enough to last for winter, the one season he knew he wouldn't be able to receive those generosity anymore. Something about the chill during the winter always seems to exacerbate his aching wound, making him unable to even get out of bed most of the time and thus couldn't make his way to the town every single day. The day he rescued that bird had been done out of necessity, but even the journey towards the town had taken a large toll on him.
To be honest, Ace himself wasn't even sure he'd survive this first winter by himself.
He didn't tell Marco of that last part, of course, but from the intense frown on the man's face, he had this slight notion that perhaps he understood all the same, "I-it's just a painkiller, really, and most of the time, they don't even work properly. I told Sabo and Luffy many times to stop buying them because they'll just be wasting money, but they wouldn't listen,"
The look on Marco's face was similar to the one Sabo would get every time Ace told him not to go to the apothecary anymore. Thin lipped, hard frown, and they way those eyes would look at Ace was full of exasperation and indignation. As if Ace was the one in the wrong in this conversation, "Get some rest," Marco told him, the arm supporting Ace's head lowering itself to the futon. Ace allowed his body to follow the motion, suddenly feeling worn out from his episode, and Marco's voice only made the drowsiness worse. It was like magic, almost, "I need to take care of something,"
Ace hadn't even finished hearing the last of that sentence before he arrived in the depths of slumber.
He woke up to a dark sky seen through from the still unfixed hole on the ceiling, and with what he quickly recognized to be a hand on his chest, fingers pulling down on the lower cut of his flimsy shirt and tracing along the jagged lines that made up his scar.
Ace jolted up with a quick start, reflexively pulling away from the touch and pulling his coat tighter around himself in an unconsciously demure display. He calmed down by a fraction when he realized it was Marco, but that doesn't stop him from nearly shrieking, "What are you doing?!"
Marco, to his credit, looked just as startled, and after a while, incredibly guilty, "I-i'm so sorry, i wasn't— I swear, i wasn't doing anything bad," he looked and sounded flustered, probably as much as Ace himself is feeling, and that, at least, allowed the younger to put down his defense a little bit, "I.. I told you i was a wanderer, but that wasn't entirely true. Truth is, i'm a… a doctor,"
Slowly, the hands clutching the coat slowly relaxing their grip, as Ace frowned, "You're a doctor?"
"Well, of sorts," the blonde added with a little quirk to his lips, but what could possibly be amusing, Ace couldn't tell and Marco never explained as he continues, "I just wanted to do a quick check up on you, find out what's the main core of your sickness and what i could've helped with. I… realized now that i should've waited for you to wake up and asked for your permission first. My apologies,"
He sounded genuine enough, and Ace realized that if he really had been someone who had any ill intent, he could've done so much earlier with plenty of opportunity. He took in a shaky breath, still feeling his heart pounding against his rib cage, but eventually nodded, "Okay," he murmured, glancing unsurely to his own bed, "Um, do you need me to lay back down again?"
With a sigh of relief, the blond shook his head. When he lifted his head, however, his lips were pressed thin and his tone grim, "Based on everything that you told me yesterday, as well as what i… felt - my apologies for that again - it would seem that your condition had just been getting worse. I don't know the real extent of your injuries, but if your lungs had suffered some level of damage, you may be coughing up blood and feeling short of breath due to internal bleeding caused by rupture, and that could be fatal if left untreated. The harsh exertion that you did a few days ago with the bear trap might be the reason for it,"
Marco sneered in disgust as he shook his head, mumbling seemingly to himself, "Disgusting humans. To make young children suffer because of their own war, causing so much pain yet having the audacity to abandon them like this…,"
Ace wasn't quite sure what was truly said, but he knows that the angry look felt so foreign on Marco's face. Perhaps its because for the few days that he knew of the man, he only ever saw him smiling, "Marco?"
That seems to broke through whatever was in the blond's mind, and when he looked up again, he was already smiling, all traces from his previous expression gone, "Sorry, i was just talking to myself," he raised one of his hand and uncurled it before Ace's eyes, revealing what was held within. A small vial rested in the middle of his palm, filled with a translucent liquid that at first glance, Ace had mistaken it to be water, until he noticed that the liquid moved with a much thicker consistency.
"This is a very potent medicine, capable of healing any wound," Marco explained after Ace gingerly took the vial, inspecting the rippling fluid inside, "Usually, a single dose would be more than enough, but considering how old your wounds were and the extent of the damage that had ravaged your insides, it might take some more than usual,"
"Any wounds?" There's doubt in his voice, Ace knew, but it just sounded too good to be true.
The blond nodded, "Any. Give it a try,"
Hesitantly, Ace pulled off the lid on the top of the vial, and after quickly bracing himself, he downed the entire content with a single gulp.
In an instant, the same warm sensation from before returned, stilling before it began to fill his chest cavity, exuding heat that shifted between bursting in different places of flowing, drifting him along like a calm wave until it all slowly ebbed away to nothingness. It was the weirdest experience he ever had, but it was even harder to wrap his mind around it when he took a deep breath and barely felt any pain, when he was so sure he still felt it just a few seconds ago, "What…,"
A warm chuckle sounded next to him, sounding amused more than anything, "I'm guessing that it worked,"
Ace found himself at lost for words, alternating his shocked gaze between the empty vial and Marco, one hand clutching his chest and still feeling just how deep he could inhale. He took another deep breath carefully and slowly, until at some point, he felt the twinge of pain returning, stopping him almost made him choke at the sudden pain. As he rode off the wave of pain, a hand was placed on to his back, comforting and supporting. To his side, Marco wore an unsatisfied frown on his face, mouth pulled to a grimace, "Shit, i was hoping it'll fix a bit more than that,"
"But it still fixed me," Ace said once he finally managed to find his voice, breathless in amazement.
At his words, the look on the older's face faded, replaced by a small smile that is a lot more at home and familiar for Ace.
"If my prediction is correct, then tomorrow will be the last of this storm,"
The voice pierced through the night's silence, previously only filled by the sound of the crackling fire from the furnace. Ace turned to his side, where Marco laid on Sabo's worn out futon, one arm pillowed underneath his head, staring skyward. The wind outside was steadily blowing harshly just as it did these past few nights, but at this point, what was originally a disturbance had become a white background noise.
Especially in light of what Marco just said, "…Oh," was all Ace can truly say in reply, while trying to squash down the disappointment he felt. Right, Marco was only staying here as a shelter against the storm. Once it was gone, he'd no longer had any reason to stay.
And Ace, Ace will be back to living in this small house all by his own.
"Still, such a long storm doesn't bode well for the rest of the season, and there is no telling if another one won't come again just mere days after this one ends," the blonde continued, breaking Ace out of his silent, gloomy reverie, "And by then, i might not be so lucky as to find another shelter,"
With a smile, Marco turned to him, expression holding the barest hint of sheepishness, "I don't want to impose on you much further, but do you think you could be so kind as to let me stay even further, until the end of this season? I feel like it'll be much safer for me to stay in one place until then,"
Ace's answer came in an instant, before his own mind could even process what was being asked out of him.
At the sight of Marco's grateful smile, he realized that the man could ask him to stay until the end of time, and Ace would not be able to find it in him to say no.
This story has become much longer than i intended it to be. But then that is the story of my fic-writing life.
Tell me what you think and thank you so much for reading, i really hope you enjoyed this one!
