Happy birthday to @bluesoilder4710 who I’ve been talking to for the past few months! She’s super nice and a really good friend of mine <3 and I love talking to her about our little domestic!AU that we put together. This is in tribute of that! Happy birthday! And also a sort of birthday present for Marco.
Ace groaned when he felt a weight bouncing up and down on his bed. Surely it was much too early to be woken up like this, right? “Mn. Five more minutes, Marco.”
“I’m not Papa, Daddy!” he heard Ann whine. He turned over, opening his eyes. They still stung from the sudden awakening. “Papa went out already!”
Was it already that time? At least it was Saturday. “C’mon, Daddy! We have to get everything ready!” She hopped off of the bed, her ponytail bouncing as she moved.
“Slow down, slow down,” Ace said. “Is your brother awake?”
Ann hummed, looking away.
“Can you go wake him up while I get ready, princess?”
“Okay, Daddy!” Ace chuckled as she scampered off to Ed’s room. Of course she had been so eager as to forget to wake up Ed, though he wasn’t an early bird like she was. There was a good reason why she was more hyperactive than usual: it was Marco’s birthday today.
Typically, the Whitebeard family had a big celebration for different months in the middle of a month, but little Ann was dead set on having a little celebration for Marco with just the four of them. Even though it was a small thing, they still had a lot of work to do. They needed to get some balloons, a gift, and a cake! Then they still needed to cook dinner all before Marco got home!
Ace was pulling on his jacket when Ann and Ed, who was sleepily rubbing at his eyes, came down the stairs. “Let’s go! Let’s go!”
“I’m sleepy, Daddy,” Ed groaned.
Ace smiled at him, bending down to fix his shirt. “I know, buddy, but you can take a nap in the car. Can you hold onto the grocery list for me?”
“C’mon, Puppy!” Ann cheered, reaching to grab the leash, but Ace stopped her.
“Now, Ann,” Ace said, “Puppy has to protect the house while we’re gone, okay? He can’t do it if he’s with us at the store.”
She pouted, reaching for the leash again.
“You know, Puppy really wants to prove himself as a warrior today for you, Ann.” Ace bent down to whisper quietly so the dog wouldn’t hear. “We can buy some dog treats for him too. It’ll make him really happy.”
At the mention of making her special companion happy, her eyes brightened. “Sorry, Puppy!” she said. “But we’ll go on a long walk next time. With Papa!”
And then, they were off- well, after Ace made sure that Ed and Ann were securely buckled into their car seats. First stop: grocery store.
Ace had hoisted Ed into the shopping cart’s seat, and Ann held his hand as she walked beside him. Ed was still clutching the grocery list in his little fist as he snoozed away, Ace taking it with a chuckle.
“I wanna read it!” Ann chirped as she tugged on his shirt. “Please!”
Ann read off the list quickly, stumbling over some of her words. She still struggled with bigger words, but she liked to take things at her own pace and it made her rather adorable. Marco was the one who helped her practice reading. Though the word “coriander” wasn’t something that came up in children’s books.
After paying for their last item, a delicious-looking strawberry shortcake, they headed off to buy a gift for Marco.
Ed was finally awake when they reached the store. He wasn’t the “bright-eyed, bushy-tailed” type like Ann. He still held Ace’s hand tight like Ann had in the grocery store, but this was moreso because he didn’t want to get lost.
“Daddy,” he said quietly. “Do you know what you want to get for Papa?”
“Hm, dunno yet. Got any ideas?”
“We should buy him something really, really cool! Like this!” Ann held up a copy of Finding Dory that she had grabbed from the shelf. They had all watched it together as a family in theaters, but it would be nice to watch it all together after their family dinner.
“But Papa said that he wanted a new book to read,” Ed mumbled. He was probably doubting himself again.
Ace lifted his son up, kissing him on the forehead. “We can get both. Can you pick out a book for Papa then? I know you can find something he’ll like.”
Ed nodded, and when Ace set him down, he tugged Ann along with him to the book section.
Finally, it was time to cook, and Ann and Ed were ready to be his little helpers. He made sure to keep them away from the knives or heat though (didn’t want them to cut or burn themselves).
“Here, Daddy,” Ed piped as he handed him some of the vegetables.
They were making a chicken stew. Ace hadn’t tried the recipe yet, but from what he read in the cookbook, he thought Marco would like it. It smelled delicious so far, and it had a hint of cinnamon that made all the flavors pop.
“Set the table, please!” Ace called as he stirred the pot.
Like a dinner they would have on typical days, Ed took the plates and Ann grabbed the utensils (her enthusiasm made her clumsy at times, which would result in broken dishes). Meanwhile, Ace made sure to set the cake and gifts on the kitchen counter so they could be easily retrieved when Marco came in. As for the balloons- well- Ed and Ann had already tied them to Marco’s chair.
Suddenly, Puppy began to squirm and shuffle near the door. Marco was home.
“Already?” Ace exclaimed, he quickly rushed over to the lights to turn them off. “Get ready!” Ann and Ed rushed to his side- Ann was bouncing up and down once more- and when Marco entered through the garage and switched on the lights, they yelled:
As Ace laughed at the startled look on Marco’s face, Ann rushed over to Marco’s side, Ed calmly following behind.
“Welcome home, Papa!” Ann cheered as she hugged Marco’s leg.
The shock wore off in that moment, and Marco bent down to hug his daughter back as he chuckled. “It’s good to be home, yoi. How was your day with Daddy?”
“Mm, Papa.” Ed held his arms out, Marco smiling back at him.
“Couldn’t forget about you either, buddy,” he said lifting Ed up as he carried him towards the kitchen table.
“We wanted to celebrate your birthday, Papa!” Ann sang proudly as she followed them. “Look! We bought balloons!”
“I see that. Thank you very much.” He finally set Ed down when Ace walked over to press a soft kiss against his cheek.
“How were your errands for Pops?” Ace couldn’t help smirking. Marco never actually told him that he had to run errands today, but Ace had been the one to ask Pops to distract him of course.
“You’re sneaky, aren’t you?” Marco mused. He wrapped his arms around Ace’s waist to pull him close. “I love it when you surprise me, yoi.”
“Papa, I bought you a book,” Ed said. Ace had no idea how he had reached it on the counter, but maybe the stool that had been moved out of place had something to do with it. “Happy birthday.”
Marco took it, reading the title. Ace didn’t quite remember what Ed had picked, but it was some sort of mystery book. “Thank you, Ed. I’’ll try to find time to read this sometime.”
“Can I sit with you when you do, Papa?”
“Papa! Let’s eat!” Ann said, tugging Marco towards the table. “We helped Daddy make stew!”
“Smells delicious, princess. You should all wait for me next time though so we can all cook together,” Marco said.
“Well, how are we supposed to surprise you then?” Ace asked. “Come on. I want you to compliment my cooking already.”
“You know you love it,” Ace whispered.
Ace was pretty sure that Marco had to squish a blush down throughout dinner. And dessert. And the movie.
Thankfully, the kids had fallen asleep in their laps by the time the credits started to roll. “So did you have a good birthday?”
Marco wasn’t even looking back at him, but Ace didn’t mind. The way Marco looked at their children, with pride was just breathtaking. “You’re all perfect, yoi. I love you.”
Those words warmed Ace up inside as he cuddled up closer to Marco. He was right. Even just being right next to his family made him smile. He could ask for nothing else.
He shifted so that his mouth was close to Marco’s ear. “I have a special present for you now that the kids are asleep.”
Even though they tucked Ann and Ed into their beds quickly, their movements were gentle and full of love. They had had a good night with the kids, but Ace and Marco’s night was far from over.
