Driving wasn't exactly one of Ace's favorite things in the world-it was necessary, could be pleasant in the right conditions, but it was a chore to deal with other assholes on the road, Sabo and Marco and Izou all individually got on his case if he got a little too fast or reckless, and his Mom tended to worry about him remembering to take his medication when she knew he had to drive somewhere. So their apartment in the city, close to the university and clinic, was a godsend most of the time.
But he didn't mind driving so much on nights like this, taking back roads home from wherever they had gone with their friends for the night, Deuce in the passenger seat beside him, leaning against the car door to watch the landscape passing out the window.
Or snoring lightly with his head leaning against the window, in this case. Deuce kept weird hours, between classes and lab and his internship, and Ace knew they were lucky to get nights out like these with the Newgates and Sabo and Luffy and their friends as often as they managed to. Deuce needed breaks like these, and he liked driving even less than Ace did, so it wasn't a hardship to take responsibility for transportation and give Deuce time to actually relax, to nap or read on his phone or scribble excitedly in his journal if the right mood struck and he couldn't be bothered even if the roads were bumpy or uneven, I have to get this thought down right now, Ace.
The radio sang softly, some pop song Ace didn't particularly care about one way or the other, one he knew he'd heard Luffy and some of his crew screech-singing along to earlier in the night. It was enough to keep Ace's mind from drifting, wandering thoughts, enough to keep him focused, but not loud enough to disturb Deuce's rest. Blue hair gleamed as they passed by a streetlight, and again when another car went streaking past theirs. Deuce's nose scrunched, a sigh leaving his lips and pale eyelashes fluttering briefly as he shifted a little in his sleep, and Ace smiled before turning back to the road again. He would've gotten an earful for looking away so long to watch those little reactions, but more often than not he found it hard to look away in those moments. Quiet moments where Deuce was too absorbed in a book, or the more hectic moments when he scrambled to try and salvage their dinner, when he didn't notice Ace watching and didn't get flustered the way he often did when he found himself under someone's gaze. Deuce at his most natural, most comfortable, was a sight Ace treasured above all others.
He pulled into their parking lot slowly, trying to keep the car's jostling to a minimum, and Deuce huffed another slow, sleeping breath as he parked and collected his phone and wallet, hooking the key ring around his finger for the moment. Deuce's hand lay limp in his lap, the silver band around his finger shining even in the half-light of the parking lot street lamps, and Ace lifted it slowly to place a kiss against the ring and Deuce's knuckle before leaning over to leave a kiss on Deuce's pale cheek next.
"Hey, we're home," he whispered, barely muffling a snort when Deuce whined dramatically at being bothered. "Come on, you know you'll be pissed if I let you sleep in the car all night."
There was an awful lot of grumbling at that, and Ace snickered all through sending various texts: to his mother and Pops that he survived driving them home, to Izou that they'd see him and Sabo in a few days for some tattoo expo thing, to Koala to thank her and Betty for the first round and Ace's sole drink of the night, to Robin and Franky to thank them for getting Luffy and the rest of his crew of goofballs home safe and apparently with only minor dramatics.
By the time he turned his phone off again, Deuce was blinking at him blearily as he straightened his glasses, and Ace couldn't stop the warm, fond feeling in his chest anymore than he could resist reaching out to brush his fingers against the smooth skin of his cheek and jaw.
"Come on," he repeated with a grin, squeezing Deuce's hand gently and feeling the cool metal of the ring warm slightly against his skin before he let go. The matching ring on his own finger caught the light as he opened the car door and got out, waiting for Deuce to slump back against his side before locking the car and leading them inside, up two flights of stairs and down four doors, until they were met with woven welcome mat decorated with a seascape and a ship that Nami and Vivi had gifted them for their housewarming, and the hanging wooden sign on their door bearing Portgas in Izou's calligraphy.
They were practically the same height and size, but Deuce did an admirable job tucking himself into the crook of Ace's neck and under his chin, breathing lightly against his skin, and Ace laughed as he tightened his arm around his husband and fought with the lock that always seemed to stick on nights like this before shoving the door open triumphantly. They'd left one of the lamps by the couch on, the one set next to the big, ridiculous group shot from their wedding a few months earlier, and it cast just enough light that Ace figured he'd be able to navigate the kitchen without having to turn any more on. He nudged Deuce toward the hall leading back to their bedroom and little office space once he'd gotten his shoes off, but Deuce didn't go more than a few steps before pausing to wait for him.
"Go to bed, I kept you out too long," Ace said, gesturing toward the hall again as he hopped on one foot to try and wrestle his boot off. Deuce looked a little more awake, a bright-eyed little smirk on his face as he watched Ace barely catch himself before falling on his face.
"Anyone ever tell you you're grace and poise incarnate?" Deuce sniggered, and Ace flipped him off even as he grinned and finally kicked the boot off. He padded over toward the kitchen, happily pulling his shirt off now that they were home, and Deuce turned to watch, sniggering again when Kotatsu appeared out of a shadowy corner and wound around Ace's feet, nearly sending him tripping to the floor. "Are you seriously hungry again? Didn't you demolish most of Thatch's pantry with your brothers right before we left?"
"'M makin' you coffee," Ace replied around a yawn as he grabbed for the coffee canister. Definitely needed to go to bed soon. "You gotta be up early for work tomorrow, right? Just hit the button before you get in the shower and it'll time out alright."
He didn't hear Deuce's approach, but he felt his arms wrap around his waist, cool hands spread over his abs, and then Deuce's chin hooked over his shoulder, curling around him as easily as he'd curled into Ace's side before.
"Thanks," Deuce murmured, brushing his nose against the delicate skin under Ace's ear briefly. "Love you."
"Love you too," Ace replied, letting his left hand rest against Deuce's at his stomach, their rings softly clinking against each other at the touch. He turned to press a light kiss to Deuce's lips before nudging gently again, and his husband whined again once but loosened his hold until just their hands were linked. "Bed. I'll be right behind you."