The Jade Dragon Ruler
Chapter 15: Naga
Ace x gn!reader word count: 3.4k a/n: heeeyyyy. sorry for the disappearance. gma was in the hospital and i had to drive across the country (13 hours) to visit her. i was there for a week only to come back and work for a straight week all while dealing with crazy work shit. can't catch a break but things are slowing down lmao. first|next
Well, you did have time to react; you were able to throw your hands over your face to brace yourself. You weren’t sure why considering these were bullets and your arms would do nothing against them.
Either way; the bullets never came.
You heard the gun go off, but were never hit. Two thuds could be heard on the ground and suddenly your chair was moving. Removing your arms from your face, you noticed Banshee was wheeling you inside. You tried to look back, not seeing much except two crumpled bodies on the ground and Yamato kneeling beside them. Did he kill them? He had to. How the hell did he do that so fast? And so well? What kind of fucking bodyguard work did he do?
Suddenly, you were glad he was guarding you now.
“Are you alright?” Banshee asked once she wheeled you into the safety of your home and away from the front windows just in case.
You were silent, still stunned by the turn of events. Your parents actually sent someone to kill you. They were so concerned about their image and their money that you have never had an interest in that they tried to have you killed for it. Being gobsmacked was putting it lightly. Hell, you couldn’t think of a term to explain the way you felt. Stupified? Flabbergasted? Aghast? Any and all of them felt like they applied.
“Y/n?”
You opened and closed your mouth a couple of times, trying to find the words. It felt impossible. How the hell were you supposed to respond? What the hell was there even to say?
Nothing to be said, but you could laugh. You started laughing. It startled Banshee and she looked at you cautiously. She was probably thinking that you officially lost it. She was also probably right, you more than likely did lose it.
“You gonna explain what’s so funny or…?” She took a seat on the couch, still watching you like a hawk. She was likely evaluating if you needed to have something more than your legs checked out the next time you were in the hospital.
Once your laughter died down, you shook your head. “The absurdity of it all. The audacity.” You snorted.
Your best friend just looked at you blankly, waiting for you to explain further.
You let out a long sigh. “I’m just…at my wits end, I guess.” With a shrug, you settled more into your chair. “All I do is try to live my own separate life and time and time again - they won’t let me. Ban, they literally just sent actual real life hitmen to kill me to secure their image!”
Banshee nodded slowly, her eyes slightly narrowed as she was trying to figure out everything, piecing it all together.
“It’s just absurd. I mean, I’ve never shown I was interested in anything that had to do with them. They cut me off; I’ve been living away from them, completely out of their lives and out of the headlines. I begged for years and years to just…get away from them. They finally grant it, I’m happy with it, then they do this?” You shook your head, another breathless laugh escaping. At this point, if you didn’t laugh, you would cry and you were sick of crying.
“At the end of the day, they think I’m some materialistic viper like them and I’m waiting for the right moment to strike but I don’t care.” You huffed out, folding your arms. “And now I’m going to have to live in constant fear that they’re going to kill me because they have green goggles of greed on!”
Banshee looked at your exasperated expression for a long moment. Then, she was just like you. She was laughing. It finally processed for her too. The entire situation was absolutely ludicrous. You joined in, laughing once more.
After the two of you settled down, a solemn tone came over the two of you.
“Yamato killed those people, didn’t he?” Your voice was quiet, tense.
Banshee was silent, just nodding. There was also that part. The whole two-people-now-dead-in-your-yard situation. Did Yamato really kill them? Just what kind of bodyguard was he?
“I mean…I’m grateful but…what the fuck?” Again, the craziness of the situation had the two of you laughing in clear disbelief. This was stuff from old noble times, not present. There were so many other ways people took care of things. Or maybe you really just have been naive this entire time. Maybe this is the way it was. Dumb as it was.
Then a realization hit you. You immediately stopped laughing, your eyes widening. The sudden change in your mood was enough to make Banshee stop laughing as well. “What?”
“Ace. You. Both of you aren’t safe. I have Yamato, but what about the two of you? And Gran?” If your family were gunning for you and failed, they would try your closest links. You’ve always been concerned about Granny and Banshee. Now, you’ve got Ace to worry about as well.
Your friend could see you were beginning to spiral and she knelt down in front of you, taking your hands in her own. “Hey.” Her voice was soft but firm.
You turned your gaze to her, stunned for a moment. “We’ll be fine. We always have - we always will.”
“But-”
“But nothing. You can’t protect us forever, y/n. Besides, even if they do off you - what’s to say they don’t off us next to keep their secrets? We all knew what we were getting into when we associated ourselves with you. We know how tricky it can be to be close to a noble, especially if you’re a commoner.” She smiled widely, filling you with relief. “We’ll be just fine. As we always have.”
“You’re right. There’s nothing I can do except hope they leave y’all alone.” Except, you’ll still worry. You always do. It was something you couldn’t really help.
Before the two of you could say anything else, Yamato walked in. “I heard laughing, you two good?” He raised an eyebrow, folding his arms across his chest.
“Are you alright?” You asked, ignoring his question. Part of you had been a little worried the shots didn’t get them and he would end up in a scuffle.
Puzzlement crossed his features. “Yes…?”
You smiled. “Good.”
Yamato blinked looking at you for a moment before looking at Banshee who just shook her head with a smile. “You two are in a really good mood for people who were just shot at.”
“Correction, wasn’t shot at. You were quick with it. Impressive.” You grinned.
A lopsided grin spread across his face and he laughed. “Not best in the biz for nothin’!” He puffed out his chest slightly, clearly enjoying the praise.
Again, the solemn tone took over.
“So…are they…?” You couldn’t find yourself to say any of the words.
Yamato’s face softened and he nodded. “You needn’t worry about them. They’re all taken care of and they won’t be coming around clearly.”
You nodded slowly, your brain finally catching up.
“I guess it was a good idea that Ace hired you, huh?” You grinned again, causing both Banshee and Yamato to laugh. You didn’t want to dwell on the negatives for too long. You’ve already been beating yourself up enough and you didn’t want the two of them to worry about you anymore than they have and will.
The door burst open, causing all of you to jump and fear to seep into your bones. What now?
However, a rush of relief washed over you as Ace rounded the corner into the living room followed by Deuce. He was on his knees in front of you in a second, looking you over. Worry was written all over his face and in his movements.
You took his face in your hands, trying to stop him from freaking out. “Ace.” The gentleness that came from you was a surprise to yourself. Fortunately enough, it worked. He stopped his motions, seemingly melting into your hands with a small sigh. “I’m fine.”
He let out a long sigh, nodding. “Okay, okay. I’ll stop pestering." He took a deep breath. “I just…when I got that call…” He trailed off, clearly not wanting to speak it into existence.
He stood back up and you let your hands fall into your lap. “Good thing I was already on my way back for a quick visit,” he said with a sigh, running his hand through his hair.
“Nice to know that Yamato hasn’t lost his edge,” he teased the other with a wink, earning him an eye roll and a punch from the other man.
Ace turned his attention back to you. “I’m surprised the two of you are doing as well as you are?” He had probably been expecting you to be a little more shaken up. It seems you were doing a good job hiding it all.
“What? Expecting me to be shrivelling and crying? Well, lucky for me, I only thought about doing that for a moment.” You stuck your tongue out and Ace rolled his eyes. You couldn’t tell if he was relieved to see you in this state or if he was more worried.
After all, you felt like you could crack at any moment. You just had to keep pushing. You’d probably just cry later tonight. Once you were alone with your thoughts and the realization of how close to dying you really were hits you.
“You know, you just went through something really terrifying. I wouldn’t blame you if you cried,” he said, his voice surprisingly soft.
There was a moment of silence before Deuce spoke up. “Well, I have food on the way so shall we get ready for dinner?”
There was a mumble of agreements. It was best not to dwell too long. Could you even eat right now? You weren’t sure. You did know the stress was getting to you. You tried to distract yourself by focusing on the others in front of you for now.
--
As you expected, you didn’t eat too much for dinner. You had been much too stressed and shocked from the entire ordeal that your appetite went down the drain. Sounds like you would be eating leftovers the next time you were hungry. It would more than likely hit you come morning.
Exhaustion hit you like a ton of bricks after dinner. Sleep was the only thing you wanted. Even if you were scared out of your mind that people would kill you while you were unconscious, your body didn’t care. The stress and anxiety was wiping you clean out.
You excused yourself from everyone else, making your way to your room. Once settled, a knock came at your door and Ace came in when you granted permission.
You were curled up under your covers. When you saw him walk in, you sat up, leaning against the wall in bed. “What’s up?”
Ace sat at the edge of your bed. “I just wanted to check in on you.” His voice was quiet and tense.
Concern was etched deeply into Ace’s face. You knew he was worried about you and he had every right to. You were almost killed today, after all. “Sorry to make you so-”
“Don’t apologize.” His voice was gentle but firm. It was clear he didn’t want you to even think about saying anything close to an apology, so you stayed quiet. You almost ended up apologizing for apologizing but then realized it would just end the same. Not to mention redundant.
The two of you fell into a comfortable silence. You looked down at your hands, just revelling in the quiet, playing with the sleeves of your nightshirt. He reached over, taking your hand and holding it in his. He interlaced his fingers with yours, causing your face to heat up.
Honestly, you were starting to think that this wasn’t just a fake thing anymore - Ace had to have had actual feelings for you. Why else would he stay with you like this? Despite being disowned from your family and sending hitmen after you. The fact that he hired Yamato to keep you safe. The soft way he looked at you and the gentle way he spoke to you. You definitely know you were catching feelings.
You watched Ace as he looked at the both of your hands intertwined together. He looked like he wanted to say something, but you weren’t sure what it could be. Something was weighing heavily on his mind. Or maybe it was the weight of today’s events.
If you were going to be truthful with yourself, you hated seeing him so worried. You wanted him to be able to focus on work and not have to think about your wellbeing too much. Sure, it came with being partners, but you didn’t want him to have to do it all the time. You wanted to be someone who could defend themselves to a certain degree and maybe he would worry a little less.
“Do you think Yamato would teach me how to shoot?” The question came from you suddenly; popping out of your mouth the moment it appeared in your head.
Ace’s whole body tensed and he looked at you. “What?” His voice was soft. He didn’t seem upset, just more caught off guard.
“Well, I want to be able to defend myself. Just in case Yamato is preoccupied. Or maybe a whole gang of them show up! Or maybe-”
“Okay, okay.” A gentle chuckle came from your fiance, stopping you from listing what other crazy scenarios pop in your head. He nodded, looking back down at your hands. “If that’s what you want.”
You nodded with a smile. “Yes!”
“However, you can’t learn just yet.”
A deep frown settled into your features. You even pouted a little. “Why not?”
“Well, you need to finish healing up for one. For two, you need to learn basic defense first. Once you are strong in your own abilities of defense, then we’ll teach you offense.”
You blinked, looking at him. It made sense. Focus on healing up, strengthening yourself, then learning how to use something like that. You’ve heard about kickback and how it can be no joke. It was on the wiser side if you strengthened up a little before using a deadly weapon. The thought of using a gun terrified you, but you didn’t want to be helpless if you were going to be hunted. You couldn’t rely on Yamato to keep an eye on you every single second of every single day for the rest of forever.
“Does that sound good?” Ace spoke again, making you realize you never said anything. Looks like you let your thinking take over.
“Ah, yes. Sounds great.” You smiled widely and nodded.
He returned the smile before squeezing your hand softly. “Then I’ll let you get some rest.” He stood up to leave.
Panic settled into your chest causing you to pull him back to the bed. “Will you actually…” You trailed off mumbling and looking anywhere but him. Embarrassment heated your face. Part of you felt like a child even though your fear of being alone right now was warranted.
Ace chuckled lightly and nodded. “Yes. I’ll stay in here with you tonight,” he said, moving to the other side of the bed and settling under the covers with you. You slowly slid back down so you were laying down, your fiance pulling you to him. He pulled you close, effectively spooning you. Him being the larger one. His warmth radiated off of him, covering you with another blanket of safety and it wasn’t long before you were out cold.
--
Unfortunately, Ace had to go back to work the next day. He really didn’t want to leave, but you also didn’t want him getting in trouble so you sent him on his way despite his protests. He only ended up going because you agreed to text him regularly about what you were doing even if he didn’t answer. He just wanted to make sure you were still alive. Deuce left with him.
Banshee didn’t want to leave you either. She had ended up staying overnight just in case. She and Deuce apparently stayed out in the back yard all night just talking until the wee hours of the morning while simultaneously keeping an eye out for anything weird or suspicious. The only reason she ended up leaving was that she had a store to run and Gran to check on.
Soon, it was just you and Yamato again. Despite him quite literally killing people the day before, you didn’t feel any fear around him. Perhaps it was because he had only done so because he was protecting you therefore, you were perfectly safe. You also just knew Yamato wouldn’t hurt you - that was something you felt deep in your bones.
The following weeks, Yamato stuck right by your side - even more than before. He really didn’t want to take any chances. Not that you minded. You were on edge as well from the entire ordeal. No other attacks came though. Did your parents give up that easily? You did the math, but it just didn’t add up.
Perhaps if killing you didn’t work, they were hoping you were frightened enough to come back. They wanted to break you and wash away your colors - but you were stronger than that.
Along with just staying by your side in general and helping you around the house, Yamato also helped you slowly walk again. A physical therapist came by after you had your bandages taken off, teaching you to walk again. Your muscles had atrophied quite a bit; you felt like you’d been on a boat for weeks and you were trying to develop your landlegs again. Yamato helped you practice in between visits from the at home PT appointments.
It didn’t take too long to get used to walking again. You graduated from your wheelchair to a cane and now only really needed it if you were walking long periods of time. It was nice to be able to move around again, able to kneel down into your garden without an incredible pain shooting up your legs.
You were currently working on a large garden on the side of the house. Your bodyguard helped you place the large rocks that acted as some kind of fence to outline what you wanted the garden to be shaped like.
“Yamato? Will you grab me some soil from the shed?” You had just finished cultivating all the dirt and deweeding it. All you needed now was to add some soil and all that would be left is to plant and water! You were genuinely excited. The house was coming together nicely. It went from an empty shack to a lovely little home for the two of you.
Yamato looked a bit weary, leaving you alone for longer than a second. You smiled at him. “I’ll be fine, okay?” As Ace promised, you had also been learning self defense from Yamato. Nothing too insane considering you were still pretty restricted. But some good moves with your cane should you need it. “There hasn’t been any attacks in weeks and nothing suspicious around either. I think I’ll be just fine if you leave me for a whole two minutes.”
The man watched you for a long moment, debating. You could tell he was about to ask for you to go with him, just to be safe. You huffed at him. “Yamato. Go.” Your voice was firm and he sighed, nodding. “Okay, okay.” He held his hands up as he turned, heading towards the backyard where the shed was located.
You turned back towards pruning one of the bushes that you had planted in your garden a few weeks ago. You appreciated that Yamato was worried, but you also knew that he couldn’t be nervous forever. He had to eventually loosen the reins.
Footsteps came from behind you. “Well, that was quick,” you said, sitting back up only for a bag to be shoved on your head before you had a chance to look up. There was a blunt hit at the back of your head, promptly knocking you out cold. Looks like Yamato wouldn’t be loosening those reins ever again.
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