John "Ace" Merrill x reader
Warnings: vaguely bad language, mention of injury (very vague)
Context: This was requested by @theghostof-myndi , so here it is! The overview of the request is like this: Ace and the reader are childhood friends, though the reader moved away from Castle Rock at some point in the fifties (given that this is now set in the sixties). When the reader eventually moves back with her father, she and Ace resume their friendship as he shows her around again, the two of them getting along very well and basically flirting with each other (unfortunately I'm terrible at writing flirting so it's not particularly obvious in this) . The fathers of the two know that they like each other and work to get them together, given that they are also old friends.
A/N: There will most likely be a part two to this fic! I haven't quite gotten to what is probably the better part of the actual plot, but I will write it at some point soon with the help of @jawline-of-steel , whose help I have enlisted to help me with ideas.
Edited By: @jawline-of-steel
"Hey, Stranger, it's been a while." A familiar voice greets from behind me, the perpetually snarky tone unchanged and still as rough as it used to be.
Whirling around, I grin as I recognise the person standing behind me, my instincts taking over as I lunge forward and wrap him into a hug, pressing my face into his shoulder with happiness.
"Ace! It's been too long!" I exclaim, smiling broadly as he returns the embrace and crushes me into him, burying his face into my hair like he used to do.
"Yeah, where've you been these last few years? You've missed so much!" The blonde pulls away slightly to look down at me, his icy blue eyes regarding me carefully as I shrug.
"Eh, we've been near enough everywhere." I reply, moving so I can stand back, looking him over, "It's good to be back, though. You're gonna have to fill me in on what's different now."
"How about I show you around again? That way I can introduce you to all the new assholes that have joined the Cobras and show you what's changed in town." Ace offers, gesturing to his car, "The new look is great, by the way, doll."
I blush slightly at the old nickname, thanking him as I climb into his car, picking up the baseball bat that he has propped against the dashboard.
"You guys still go around knocking down mailboxes?" I ask, thinking back to all the times we used to do it as teens, back when none of us had any inhibitions and the only problems we had were trying to hold up a reputation in town.
"Yeah, but only when my ass of a dad isn't looking." He smirks, "Wanna play a bit now?"
"Game on, Blondie." I respond, taking the bar in hand as he climbs into the car and starts it up, pulling out of the parking lot we were in and onto the main road, where there are fewer cars than I remember, "Hey, what happened to everyone? I swear there were more people around?"
He nods, shrugging a little as he navigates the sparse traffic, chewing lightly on the toothpick in his mouth.
"There were, but most people moved away over time. Now nearly everyone that lives here is from the old families, and everything is basically family owned, too." He explains quickly, pointing out a small diner as we go past that has a flickering neon sign hanging outside it, the word unclear as we speed past.
"Oh." Is all I say, before I stand up in my seat, the bat ready in my hand as I line up with the next mailbox I can see. Gripping the bat with two hands, I swing hard at it as we approach, whooping loudly as the bat clangs against the metal, knocking it to the floor with a crash behind us. Knowing the rules of the game, I instantly get ready to strike again, managing to knock down a good eight before I miss one, only just tapping it as we go past.
"Aw, come on! You swerved on purpose!" I complain jokingly, pouting as I sit back down in my seat, "You want a go?"
"Sure, I'm gonna completely show you up!"
"Keep telling yourself that, Blondie." I lean over and take the wheel for him, steering the car as he stands up and starts batting down the mailboxes that are unfortunate enough to lie on our route.
Looking up at him, I smirk to myself and wait until we're close to another one, harshly jerking the car to the side before he can actually hit it, drawing a frustrated groan from the blonde standing over me. He swiftly returns to his seat, taking the wheel from me as we steer back into town.
"You totally cheated." He says decisively, looking across at me with his signature grin, to which I act mockingly offended.
"How could you even imply that? I would never!"
"Yeah right." Ace chuckles, shaking his head.
Laughing, I turn to look at the surroundings, remembering all of the more dilapidated shops and houses, alongside some of the larger, grander ones, which I've always enjoyed looking at. As we drive, we pass another parking lot, where a group of boys are standing around their cars, smoking and talking with one another, beer bottles held in hand as they laugh and joke about. Upon passing them; Ace calls out to them, waving at them genially as they do the same.
"Friends of yours?" I question him once we've passed, lifting an eyebrow at him.
"Not really. They're just members of the gang that I have to keep up appearances with. Their old men are pretty big around here." He clarifies, rolling his eyes at the reminder.
"Their old men? Since when do they make a difference?"
"Since they took over the Cobras. My old man is the leader, but they're still pretty important."
"Oh. I guess my dad will be looking for a place in the group, too, then." I muse, rubbing my temples a little.
"Yeah, most likely." Ace frowns and looks over at me, "We gave you the mark, didn't we?"
"Yeah, you did." I confirm, easily recalling the pain from the knife as it cut the cobra shape into my upper arm.
"That's good. It means you're already basically a part of the gang, so you'll fit right in."
"Like I wouldn't anyway." I chuckle, punching his arm playfully.
"You know, I reckon they'd make a great pair, those two." Ace's father comments to (Y/n)'s, gesturing with his beer to the two young adults as they talk with each other, sitting very closely and behaving as if no time had passed between them.
"Yeah, they would. I don't think (Y/n) ever really gave up on him." The other man responds, taking a sip from his own drink.
"John definitely didn't. He's shown no interest towards the other sex since you guys left, except of course to fuck someone, but that never really means anything to him."
"Likewise with (Y/n). She has never brought home another boy who has stayed any longer than a few days."
The two of them stay in silence for a minute, both starting to think up a plan that could help them bring together their children again.
"We've gotta figure something out. We owe it to them, and to ourselves." Ace's father eventually breaks the quiet, sighing deeply.
"Yeah we do." (Y/n)'s father thinks a moment longer, "You know, I think I've just had an idea."
"You have?" The older Merrill shoots a surprised look at his friend.
Grinning, the two men lean into each other, conspiring together as they used to back in their day.
