"He sucks at lying." commented Ace. His eyes scanning Shanks' face as the red haired man tried to calm down his wife.

"He kinda does..." You deadpanned.

If Shanks had someone as beautiful and caring as Makino, why would he stare at other women?

"A... Womanizer?" You concluded, nodding to yourself in confirmation. Ace glanced at you and chuckled, nodding in agreement.

When the two of you came back, you had witnessed Makino seeing Shanks stare at the nurses passing by Law's room. Who knew someone as sweet and gentle as Makino could have a dark side?

"Are you alright?" You giggled at Law.

He was wrapped in bandages from head to chest, and his arms as well. You wanted to laugh because he looked like a mummy ready to kill as he glared at everyone in the room, especially Corazon.

"You were suppose to watch over the boys." Robin scolded him. Corazon bowed apologetically to her and Law, his cheek swollen from a large black and blue bruise.

You stared at the wound with concern and wondered where on earth had he gone to get that. He seemed nice so you figured that he didn't have any enemies.

Ace noticed your stare and eyed Corazon, who looked back at him with a sheepish grin.

"Come on." Ace sighed and took your hand. "Let's go before all hell breaks loose and you get scolded by the hospital for property damage."

You blinked rapidly and opened your mouth to ask what he meant, but the hot white fury of Makino and Robin combined shut you up and followed him out obediently.

The sun was up but you were still dead tired. The warm sunlight made you even sleepier and your ears just blocked out all the noise of the park.

You had a sway in your step and Ace had to pull you in the other direction to keep you from falling face first to the concrete. "(Name), you sleepy?" He asked worriedly as you groggily hummed a response.

Taking that as a yes, Ace brought you back to the hotel room and jumped into bed, pulling you down with him into a cuddle. His muscular torso on your back made you blush lightly and look down in embarrassment.

"Aww, are you shy of guys cuddling you?" Ace teased, poking your cheek to annoy you further.

"N-No..." You lied instantly. The rapid beating of your heart made you panic internally and Ace could see it in your eyes.

He laughed and nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck, "You're as bad as Shanks!"

"Sh-Shut up!" You covered your face in your hands and blushed heavily. Your cheeks were growing hotter by the second and you had this fluttery feeling down in the pit of your stomach.

Ace laughed harder and let go. He layed down on the bed and stretched his arms over his head, closing his eyes and grinning.

You pouted, having missed his arms around you, but stayed still in your spot. Rolling over to your side, you watched as your friendly apparition exhaled a breath. The dim light of the room made him alive, even if it was just for a little bit.

Oh what you would sacrifice to be able to hold him right now. To feel his warmth and to feel his touch.

He felt your eyes on him and glanced your way, smiling as he caught your lonely gaze. "Wanna cuddle some more~?" He teased, rolling to his side and facing you.

The question was embarrassing. Even if you knew he was just teasing you, you wanted to. But you didn't trust for your voice not to stammer so you simply gave him a shy nod, earning a surprised stare from him.

"D-Don't ask if you d-don't like the a-a-answer!" You exclaimed, grabbing the blankets and pulling them over your face to block his sight of your scarlet red cheeks.

Ace propped up his head on his hand and grinned. Using his free hand, he reached out and pulled the top of the blanket down to peek at your face. Your (H/C) hair was messy and all over the place, but to him it didn't make you any less beautiful.

"I never said that I didn't like your answer." He chuckled and tugged on your arm.

There was the feeling of hesitation.

But as soon as you looked up to those dark onyx eyes of his, you gave in and crawled your way towards him. Ace laughed lightly as you snuggled close to his chest and hummed contentedly.

Just being near him made you calm and relaxed. The feeling of... Security?

Yes... That was it...

"Good night, Ace..." You yawned and slowly closed your eyes. "Don't disappear on me, okay...?"

The soft snoring made it clear that you had drifted off to dreamland.

Ace played with your hair, watching as you slept peacefully next to him. "Sweet dreams, princess..." He smiled and leaned down, planting a soft and gentle kiss on your cheek. "I'll be here when you wake up."