Here is the next chapter :) I struggled a lot with the damn conversation, just so you know. I hope it came out alright.
As always, beta-read by Aerle :)
Chapter 10
There is silence on the other end of the line. It lasts longer than the astonished pause Ace expected, and he begins to worry. Has he rushed too much? What if it isn't Sabo who answered the phone? It could be Luffy or —Ace pales in horrified realization— maybe Gramps is paying a visit.
Before he can blurt out a panicked countermeasure to his previous words, the person on the other end speaks.
"Explain." It is Sabo, but Ace doesn't have a chance to feel relieved. Sabo has spoken in an eerily even tone, the one that reveals, in no uncertain terms, that you have three seconds to explain yourself before he decides to bite your head off.
It is the voice he reserves for when either Ace or Luffy do something especially stupid, the voice not even Luffy argues against.
"It wasn't intentional," Ace hurries to say first of all, because Sabo usually isn't so angry when whatever event triggered his temper was an accidental one. "But it's a long story," he adds and then, realizing there is no explaining the situation without bringing certain things up, he takes a deep breath. "You're not gonna believe me."
"Try me," Sabo says, in nearly the same voice that has, fortunately, gained an exasperated note to it. If Sabo is showing exasperation it means he is less inclined to just yell Ace's ears off. For now. "It can't be worse than Christmas last year."
"It was an accident," Ace says immediately, as he has been repeating every time that incident has come up in conversation, but he doesn't let himself be distracted by that. He doubts he will ever convince anybody he really hadn't intended to do that. "And it's worse. Well, not worse, nothing that'd sent me to spend the night in a cell, it's just you won't believe me."
Sabo sighs, and Ace can picture him moving to sit down, or leaning back if he is already sitting. Sabo likes to get comfortable for long conversations that look like they are going to be frustrating.
"Just stop stalling."
"Okay." Ace takes a deep breath, reminds himself that he is no coward and Sabo will eventually see he isn't making it all up anyway, and plunges into the story. "I'd been a week here and it was raining a lot. I got bored of the entrance of the cave, so I headed down the tunnel to explore a little." Nothing odd there, that is something he did a lot with his brothers when they were kids. "After walking for a while I found this drawing on a wall. You know those prehistoric cave paintings we saw in history class back in high school? Kind of like those. It was tiny and showed a blue bird. I approached it —I didn't touch it, I'm not that stupid–" he adds before Sabo can ask. Ace has done many stupid things in his life, but he has limits. "I just wanted a closer look. I don't know what the hell happened then, but next thing I knew I was on my back, there was no wall and instead there was this giant fucking blue bird, only then the bird was gone and it was a man in there."
He falls silent, waiting for Sabo to digest the information and say something. But Sabo doesn't speak, and Ace isn't sure if it is because he is giving him a chance to explain everything or because he just doesn't know what to answer to the sheer craziness Ace knows he is saying.
Ace continues.
"The guy was totally lost, and naked, and he didn't speak a word of English. Not even when I started yelling at him. He didn't even seem to notice I had a gun." Or care, Ace adds mentally, because explaining the story now allows him to realize Marco doesn't even know that the gun is a weapon. It is a good thing Ace removed the bullets and hid it, he thinks, or Marco might have shot himself by accident. Ace doesn't want to contemplate if the blue fire would have been able to heal that.
"You threatened him," Sabo repeats. It's not a question, not really, he is probably past asking questions at the moment, but Ace knows to interpret it as one.
"He… kind of kissed me," Ace confesses, somewhat embarrassed now that he thinks about the panic that followed that act. He would like to say he kept his cool, but he knows that would be a very serious lie.
There is another uncomfortable silence in which Ace isn't sure how to continue until this time Sabo does speak.
"You like him." And that one is definitely not a question, not even an implied one. Ace would be surprised, but Sabo is one of the people who know him best in the world, probably better than Ace himself does.
"How did you know?" he asks instead.
"You're not pissed." And, yes, that is a very good observation. Ace would probably still be at the very least annoyed at the incident if he didn't like Marco so much.
"I was," Ace says, and finds a good way to continue, "but it was hard to stay angry at someone who was so lost about everything. He didn't even know how to dress himself." He chuckles, and wonders what, exactly, was in Marco's mind while Ace dressed him that first night. Maybe they should try a reenactment of it at some point. "I actually convinced myself he had some sort of problem —I went through everything from mental disability to amnesia— and that I'd imagined the drawing and the bird."
"But?" Sabo prompts him.
"But then he hurt himself," Ace says in a low voice, "and blue fire appeared out of nowhere all over the wound and it was as if he hadn't been hurt at all." Ace remembers the astonishment he felt, the realization that he had been in denial. He also remembers Marco's panic.
Again, there is silence, but this one feels heavy to Ace, less awkward than the previous ones. It is Ace who breaks it this time.
"I told you it was crazy."
Sabo scoffs, and then he chuckles. The sound is a little forced to Ace's ears, and there is a touch of incredulity in it.
"That's a way to put it," Sabo agrees. He sighs —Ace can imagine him rubbing a hand over his face— and continues. "I don't know what to think. You obviously believe it: you're a terrible liar, you would've already given yourself away if it was a joke or something, but…"
Ace isn't offended. It is true, the only one in their family who can lie worth anything is Sabo.
"But it's insane," Ace finishes for him. "Maybe I'm just mad," he offers, and Sabo chuckles.
"Maybe. Let's say I believe you, for now. Do you have any proof?" Ace feels immensely grateful. If anyone else had tried to spin this tale to him, Sabo would have told them to go to town and straight to a doctor —or to fuck off, if there was the smallest chance of it being all a deception— but Sabo trusts Ace. He is willing to accept the possibility that Ace's insane tale is true. Ace owes Sabo big for this.
"Sort of. Nothing about the fire, I've only seen it those two times, but I got some pics of Marco."
"Marco?"
"It's his name," Ace explains, and he can't believe he hasn't mentioned it until now.
"Doesn't sound very… prehistoric," Sabo points out.
Ace scoffs. He is tempted to mention the Roman civilization here —not prehistoric, but certainly ancient— but he is pretty sure Sabo is baiting him now.
"Of course it doesn't," he answers instead. "I named him."
It takes Sabo a moment to respond.
"You named him. Like a pet." He sounds incredulous, but Ace can't find it in himself to be amused, not when he remembers how he came to name Marco.
"He didn't have a name, Sabo. We managed to communicate enough for me to ask, and he said he had no name. He needed a name."
Again, Sabo doesn't reply immediately.
"I see," is all he says, and Ace is grateful that he doesn't press the issue, because Ace doesn't know any more about Marco's background than he did that first day. He knows, however, that Sabo understands the implications of Marco not having had even a name: they both know quite well what it is to feel like they don't have a real place in the world. It's not a nice feeling. "Send them."
Ace pulls the phone away from his ear to look at the screen. He doesn't have internet access here, which means he will have to send the pictures in a traditional message. Man, it's been years since he sent pictures that way.
Once he is done, he raises his phone back to his ear and waits for Sabo to look at the images.
"I thought you said he was naked?"
It takes a moment for Ace to understand why Sabo is asking him that.
He scoffs.
"You didn't expect me to have him walk around naked, did you?" Not that the idea doesn't have its merits.
"That's not it," Sabo replies, and by his voice Ace can say he has rolled his eyes. "These aren't your clothes."
"Oh." Ace nods, though Sabo can't see him. "I bought him some stuff when I went into town."
"Like his own toothbrush and all that?"
Ace pauses.
Toothbrush? And then it hits him.
"The fuck?" he asks out loud, but doesn't let Sabo speak. "I hadn't even thought about that! How the hell does he have those teeth?!" Because, the thing is, Marco's teeth are perfect. They are white, perfectly lined up as if he has worn braces for years, and absolutely nothing has tipped Ace off on the fact that Marco should need to brush them. Except that, apparently, he doesn't.
Sabo laughs.
"Are you serious?" he exclaims, amused. Then he ponders. "We could be so rich if we figured this out."
"Hey! No experimenting on my boyfriend!"
Silence.
Ace realizes belatedly what he has said and he winces. He didn't intend to tell Sabo just yet: the plan was to ease him slowly into the idea. Not because of Ace's homosexuality, Sabo is perfectly fine with that, but because of the whole not-quite-human, maybe-ancient-being thing.
"Boyfriend?" Sabo asks, and a hint of the eerie calm has returned to his voice.
"You already knew I like him," Ace points out.
"Yeah, but having the hots for him and acting on it are two very different things. Ace, you don't know anything about the guy."
"That's not true!" Ace snaps. "We've been living together for nearly a month," he reminds Sabo. "I've learned a lot about him."
"Really?" Sabo asks, and he sounds skeptical. "You can't even talk to him."
"Not exactly true," Ace mutters, and he starts to tell Sabo about their lessons, about how Marco is quick to grasp concepts and is really smart, about his eagerness to learn, about how he is so curious at everything and —generally— gets over his surprise quickly, but not over the wonder he feels at certain things, like the camera. He explains about how they do things together, how Marco is so eager to help and how he always brings food as if hunting is the easiest thing in the world. He talks about their training and confesses that if Marco wanted to hurt him he wouldn't need to trick him in any way, because he is so much stronger than Ace that Ace has started to suspect he could even fight Gramps one on one —it usually takes the combined efforts of Ace, Sabo and Luffy to do that.
By the time Ace stops talking, his throat feels dry, and he has to drink from the canteen at his waist.
"You're in deep," Sabo says finally, and thankfully he doesn't sound angry or disappointed, just a little worried. That is fine, it is normal that Sabo is worried, and Ace knows he will get over it once he meets Marco.
"Yeah, I am," Ace admits, because there is no point in denying it. He is perfectly aware that he is falling in love with Marco, and he doesn't mind at all.
"What do I tell Luffy?" Sabo asks. They both know that Luffy won't mind Marco living with them, Luffy has brought people over to stay with them —sometimes complete strangers— often enough, but they still have to tell him.
"Just that I'll bring over a friend, and that Marco doesn't know much English. I think it's best if I tell him everything else in person." Luffy isn't very good at keeping secrets unless he knows they are truly important ones. The best way for him to realize it, Ace knows, is to tell him those secrets in person.
"Okay," Sabo agrees. "He's going to love this."
They both chuckle. Ace can easily imagine Luffy pestering Marco with a lot of questions Marco won't be able to understand or answer, and Ace hopes he doesn't find Luffy too overwhelming. Luffy overwhelms everybody at one point or another, but there is a difference between the people who like him and can deal with him and those who can't. Ace thinks, and hopes, that Marco will be in the first group.
"Sabo is okay with you coming," Ace says after dinner, lying on the grass and staring up at the sky.
Marco lowers the camera to look at him. He has been taking pictures of the sky for the past half hour, moving all over the clearing. Ace thinks Marco is a little obsessed with that camera, but Marco is enjoying himself and the memory card has a lot of capacity. Though, at the rate he is going, Marco might fill that thing before the month is up.
"Luffy?" Marco asks.
Ace grins up at him.
"Sabo will tell him. He'll be okay with it." Ace can't explain he isn't worried about Luffy's reaction, because he thinks he still has a lot to cover before he can explain a concept as complex as 'worry'.
Marco nods, accepting Ace's certainty, and a sudden flash makes Ace close his eyes reflexively.
Ace looks up at Marco, who is aiming the camera at him, and this time he expects the flash and doesn't close his eyes. Marco circles him, taking pictures, and Ace barely moves, just following him with his eyes.
"Sit," Marco tells him, and Ace does, unsure what to think of having suddenly become Marco's model.
Six pictures from different angles later, Ace has an idea.
He grins and takes his left hand up to the third button of his shirt, the first two being unbuttoned already. He suddenly feels very glad he chose to button his shirt up earlier today.
Marco stops, but it lasts just a moment before he grins and starts taking pictures again. Ace unbuttons his shirt, slowly so that the camera can catch as many of his movements as Marco wants, and he stares right at the lens, a challenging smirk he knows Marco likes pulling at his lips.
Once his shirt is open, he leans back and runs his hand, slowly, over his stomach —his right hand supports part of his weight— and up his torso until he finds his right nipple, which is already hardening on its own, and twists it. Ace gasps, and so does Marco, who is now before him, slightly to his right.
Ace sits up entirely again, so he can raise both hands to his shoulders to start sliding his shirt down his arms until it is trapped at his elbows. Then Ace runs both his hands, touch barely ghosting over his skin, across his torso, down his sides and back up his abs. He catches both nipples this time, throws his head back and moans up at the sky.
Marco kneels before him now, and when Ace looks down he can see, in the light coming from their campfire, how tight Marco's pants have become. Ace licks his lower lip, parts his legs and very deliberately palms his own hardness over his shorts.
They are both panting by now, but Marco is still taking pictures, and Ace is nowhere near done.
Slowly, he doesn't want to risk fumbling, Ace opens and takes off his belt. Once has unzipped his pants he allows himself a moment to feel grateful for his refusal to wear underwear here before taking hold of his cock to ensure it is perfectly visible.
He looks straight at the camera again, smirks, and run his thumb over the head.
It is tortuous, really, but Ace forces himself to keep his movements slow and measured as he runs his hand over his cock, as he twists it and applies pressure. Even when he starts thrusting up into his fist, he somehow keeps a pace that he hopes won't make most pictures appear blurred.
It doesn't take too long for him to come —it should have, with this pace, but the fact that Marco is devouring him with his eyes and immortalizing every one of his actions is an incredible turn on— and when he does, it is with a long moan and a full body shudder.
Ace lets himself fall backwards, and grins contentedly up at the camera.
A while later, a minute maybe, Marco puts the camera down, out of the way, and then he is on top of Ace, kissing him hungrily and battling his clothes out of the way.
To be continued
...Yeah, I'm not used to writing Sabo.
Now, I'm going to do something I never do and drop the oh-so-subtle hint that I'd love some fanart of that last scene –winks-
Remember to review before you go :D