A/N: This might be a little late (I was exhausted from being up all night) and a little short (I literally finished this at 12:12am), but I hope you like it!

Happy New Year, everyone!

Ace liked taking walks. The fresh air was good for him. Not only was it a reminder of freedom, it was also a good way to get some exercise, especially since he no longer had a definite training location. Sabo said they had to stop training in the backyard lest they destroy a wall of their house. They really needed to find a new space for training. He wondered if there was a space in Pops's house.

Anyways, Ace liked taking walks. Was that said already? The fresh air was nice. He wasn't allowed to drive many places (he shouldn't have been driving at all) because of his narcolepsy. It was a nice way to keep himself awake, though he occasionally collapsed anyways. This worried Marco greatly, so the man walked with Ace whenever he was around. Sadly and disappointingly, e took some of the fun out of Ace's walks (though he did add another brand of fun).

He didn't let Ace pick up all the cool things he found on his walks.

Sometimes Ace would luckily find a couple of beri bills on the ground. Maybe a dropped key-chain or two. Of course there were also... questionable things (he shuddered just thinking about how that used condom ended up on the sidewalk). Those he didn't opt to pick up or even go near. But this, on the other hand, was possibly the best "walk treasure" Ace had discovered yet.

In front of him was standing the most adorable beagle puppy that he had ever seen.

Okay. Usually, Ace would never admit things cute and adorable. It would be much too embarrassing. But it just had these big, shining eyes and perked ears that made his heart melt! Ace whistled to get its attention. Oh my goodness. It just tipped its head at him!

"Hey... Er-" he looked down, "boy. How ya' doing?" He held out his fingers and wiggled them in front of the puppy's face.

The puppy sniffed his fingers before licking them with its tiny tongue and yipping happily. Ace almost screamed. His heart had completely melted now. This puppy was just the most precious thing!

And luckily for Ace, he didn't seem to have a collar; therefore, he probably didn't have an owner.

"You poor thing." He hoisted it up to his chest carefully. "Looks like you'll just have to come with me!"

Thankfully, neither Luffy nor Sabo were home, and Marco had not arrived yet. This was perfect. He could introduce the puppy nicely into the home.

"Here you, little guy," he said, setting the puppy down on the carpet. He stared at Ace with confusion, looking as if he had never touched such a material before. He flopped down onto his back. "So cute," Ace whispered to himself, reaching out a finger to rub its belly.

"What should I call you then?" he wondered, moving back to cross his legs. "I can't keep calling you 'boy.'"

The puppy sat up and began wandering around the living room while Ace listed off names to himself. "Ace Jr.? Marco Jr.? No... That would be better for a pet bird, and you're way better than a bird. Don't tell Marco I said that." Despite there being no possible way for that to happen, Ace took the puppy's wagging tail as a yes. "Hm..."

And then the puppy pawed at something at the edge of the coffee table, knocking it onto the ground.

"Hey!" Ace called, rushing over to pick it up. The puppy shook its tail, unaware that it did something bad. "You can't just go around-" Ace stopped, spotting what had fallen. It was some playing cards that he had never cleaned up, and of course in his hand he held the Ace of Spades.

"That's perfect!" he exclaimed. He beamed at the puppy, rubbing its head. "You'll be Spade because I'm Ace!"

The puppy seemed to like that name because he yipped again and spun in a circle.

"We're the perfect pair!" Ace cheered. "Now let's find you something to eat!"

After doing some research on his phone, Ace decided that it would be safe to share his steak sandwich with Spade. While he was doing that, he got a text from Marco saying that he would not be able to make it in time. Oh well. He would show Spade to Marco tomorrow. Now, he would just play with the cutie!

He spent the afternoon throwing around random things seeing if Spade would go get them. He succeeded with a ball of old socks. The beagle seemed to take a liking to it. They also played tug-of-war. That was certainly entertaining. The little pup tried so hard, but there was no way that he could win against Ace! After that, he ended up chasing Spade around the house, exhausting both of them afterward. They had become fast friends, but now it was time for some rest. Ace allowed the little guy to hop into bed with him and they fell into a peaceful slumber.

That tiny warmth beside him had gone.

Ace had just awoken when he noticed that Spade wasn't curled up with him. Sitting up, he looked around, and the beagle was nowhere to be seen. That didn't make any sense. Ace was sure that he shut the door when he fell asleep and it was shut now. That dog sure wasn't a dream, so where was he?

He heard the door open and his attention snapped there. "So you're awake," Sabo said. He looked a bit... annoyed. Does that mean that he saw...?

"Er- hey, Sabo. I know this is a weird question, but-"

"You're wondering if I've seen that dog that somehow ended up in your bed," he stated bluntly.

"Yeah! Heh." Ace rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Funny story 'bout that. Well...?"

Sabo sighed. "I'm not sure you'll like that answer."

Ace froze. Wait. Did that mean-

"Marco came here earlier and took him. Said that it wasn't safe to keep a stray without-"

"What?!" Ace leaped up, snatching his phone from his bedside table. He punched in Marco's contact and started talking as soon as the other picked up.

"Marco, Where's Spade?" he shot.

"Ace... It's not safe to keep a stray in the house. There's a lot of-"

Whatever Marco had to say, Ace didn't want to listen. "He could've played with Stefan and everything! Why did you take him?"

"Ace-"

"No! I hate you!" He hung up.

Meanwhile at the Moby Dick, Marco sighed. "I didn't mean to anger him, yoi."

"I know you like surprising him, Marco dear, but maybe you went a little too far."

"Just trust me, Izo."

Ace was still angry at him. To be fair, Marco should have explained the situation to him, but the boy was too stubborn to respond to his text or calls.

And now it was New Year's Eve and Ace bad showed up to the party with a pout on his face. Well, he had been smiling, but the pout appeared as soon as he saw Marco. He was still as stubborn as ever.

Honestly, Marco didn't think that Ace would be this angry (the silent treatment wasn't befitting of someone like him). Ace was pretty good at holding grudges he must say.

It was time that he pulled Ace aside to talk.

He approached Ace from behind, gripping the freckled boy's shoulder firmly preventing him from escaping. "Are you going to talk to me, yoi? It's New Year's Eve."

Ace frowned at him refusing to speak.

Luckily, Marco knew a few things that might get some words out of Ace, "You know," he started, bringing out a teasing tone, "you might not get a midnight kiss from me if you won't talk~"

Marco noticed Ace's expression falter.

"I guess you'll have to wait another year."

He turned away only to have Ace grab his wrist. "You're mean," he stated, pouting.

"Do tell."

"Spade was just too cute!" he whined. He pointed at Marco accusingly. "And you took him! I'm responsible to keep a dog!"

"I never said you weren't, yoi."

"You suck."

Marco sighed. Maybe it was time he come clean. "Come with me." He took Ace's hand and dragged him off before any protests could be made.

"Oi, Marco! What gives?" Ace asked when they stopped in front of one of the living rooms.

Marco just smiled at him. "Just wait. This will make up for it." He opened the door and a high-pitched yip came out. When Ace heard it, his face brightened.

The lights were flipped on and sitting there was little beagle puppy Spade with a bow around his neck. He bounded up to Ace happily, wagging his tail.

"Spade!" Ace exclaimed. He held Spade up and the puppy licked his face.

"It's not safe to keep a stray in the house," Marco started. He took a seat on the couch near Ace. "So I made sure that the little guy had all his shots, yoi. I also bought all the supplies you need. He's already wearing his collar."

Spade sat proudly displaying his shining tag.

Ace turned to his older lover, eyes bright. "Wow, Marco! I can't believe you did all this!"

"It was nothing, Ace." Marco leaned down, kissing Ace's forehead. "Happy early birthday."

He heard Ace gasp and he pulled away to see eyes widened from shock. "B-but how?" Ace stuttered. "I never told you."

Marco ruffled his hair. "I always wondered why you never told me," he said. "Your brothers told me that you never liked making a big deal of it, but I wanted to make you happy this year." He dropped his voice low and huskily whispered into Ace's ear, "And since tomorrow is your birthday, we can do whatever... you... want."

Marco could feel Ace melt into his arms.

"Now let's go countdown."

"Okay!"

When they arrived back at the party (Ace still cradling Spade in one arm carefully), the mood was high as everyone counted down to the New Year. Pops smiled proudly at them, raising his glass.

"Ready, Ace?"

"5!"

"4!"

"Yeah, Marco."

"3!"

"2!"

They leaned in, foreheads touching.

"1!"

Their first kiss of the year was wonderful, one that they would surely never forget.

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