I am a firm believer that when Ace has a s/o he won’t spare another person a moment of his time, and in the funniest way too.
Having someone as attractive as Ace on your arm was bound to have its challenges. From freckles that mimicked the constellations glittering the night sky to muscles chiseled by the gods themselves, there’s a certain level of security required to loving Ace.
You have to know the man would never entertain another soul once entering a relationship with you. Fiercely loyal, unwavering in his adoration. His eyes search for in every corner of the world, whether you’re alongside him or not. His heart beats to the syllables of your name and swells ten times its size when you merely utter a word.
Bars were a regular occurrence for the Whitebeard pirates. When they weren’t out conquering the sea, they were engaged in parties—drinks and food and dance until the crack of dawn.
A particularly attractive woman sauntered towards Ace, clearly drunk.
“Hey, handsome, whatcha say we get out of here?”
Ace, physically unable to entertain the thought, replied in a nearly robotic voice. “My partner kills people.”
You coughed up your drink, turning towards Ace with an incredulous expression, his face remaining stoic; the man was serious as a heart attack.
The woman was taken aback. She gazed at Ace with quizzical eyes. Your man, clearly noticing she hadn’t taken the hint, turned in his chair to face you.
“Hi, hun. Gotta borrow you real quick.” He said, smiling a bright smile. But by the time he’d turned around to face the woman once more, this time with you wrapped in his arms, his expression went dark.
“I wouldn’t want to unleash the deadly force of my one true love.” Ace threatened. He held you out as though you were a kitten between his palms, air jailed.
You nodded your head in greeting, tilting your drink in the woman’s direction, “I’ve been known to kill on occasion.”
She scurried away, leaving you there In Ace’s lap. You giggled, wrapping your arms around his neck and feathering his face in kisses.
“You’re such a dork.” You teased. He accepted it gratefully, returning your kisses with a flurry of his own.
And my, it’s far from the first time something like that had occurred.
“Hey there,” Another woman flirtatiously approached. “Aren’t you a sight.”
She traced a manicured nail along his bicep, planting her palm against his broad chest.
“Unhand me woman, I’m married!” Ace screeched, swiping her hand away as though it burned, flashing a toy ring you’d fake proposed to him with; having won it at a fair on an island a few months back.
But Ace took your faux proposal seriously, cherishing the ring that was a size too small and glittered red in the sunlight. The only time you’d ever seen him take it off was during a fight, worried he’d somehow burn it to ashes. His shorts had a designated compartment to carry it, and once business was handled he’d frantically fumble to find it again.
The woman took the hint, thankfully, and Ace fiddled with the ring, staring at it with a small smile. The sight had reminded him of you, of the love he wore as a badge of honor.
Deciding he’d had enough for the night, Ace took his (unpaid) beverage to go, running back to the ship so he could tell you all about the ring and how it’d saved him.
But your favorite occurrence of Ace curving women was one the entire crew told stories of to this day, your boyfriend’s face flushing red every time someone dared bring it up.
Actually, that’s an understatement, Ace was wrecked. Speech slurring and body rocking back and forth. Marco and Thatch had thought it would be the best decision for Ace to turn in for the night, the imminent hangover that would eventually ensue sure to be a whirlwind.
You agreed, letting Ace know you were gonna grab some food to go then you’d head out—the man was always starving after a night at the bar.
Ace stood in the center of the dance floor, lazily swaying to the music as his mind conjured thoughts of you. He’s an affectionate drunk, all cuddles and sloppy kisses. Marco once scoured an entire island in search of you because an intoxicated Ace was throwing a tantrum regarding your absence, body flickering in and out of flame.
Now, as he dreamt up cuddling with you beneath a mountain of sheets—takeout shared between you—he couldn’t have been happier.
That is, until someone had to go and ruin his fun.
A woman scarcely dressed swayed alongside Ace, mimicking his lazy dance moves and adding her own exaggeration. The man didn’t notice at first, far too caught up in his thoughts of you. So she shimmied closer, body a mere few feet away from Ace.
This, he noticed. Not thinking much of it, Ace scooted away. But she followed, closing the distance even more than before. Again, Ace tried to keep space between them.
But upon her third attempt, Ace panicked, not wanting to be around anyone but you for a moment longer.
Thus, the interaction he can never seem to live down:
In a high-pitched voice, Ace squealed for the entire bar to behold.
“Woman, you’re way too close, fire fist!”
A surge of fire erupted in his hand. He threw the flame down in the small space between their shoes, a plume of fire separating them. Ace was satisfied, a smile on his lips and hands triumphant upon his hips.
The entire bar erupted in boisterous laughter. Meanwhile, takeout in hand, you fought back tears of amusement.
You watched your boyfriend frantically search around, eyes finally locking onto you and scrambling to your side. His arms wrapped protectively around your waist, practically whimpering as he whined for the two of you to leave.
You hummed, shifting the food into one hand and fluffing his hair.
He huffed like a child, pushing himself further into your side. “She attempted my life.”
You laughed then, a full belly sound that ached your ribs and burned your lungs. Air felt as though it were in short supply, struggling to grasp what wisps you could.
“It’s not funny!” Ace defended, still violently intoxicated, words slurred like a ship on the sea. “I was defending our love!”
That made you stop, looking down at your lover and sighing.
How you loved that man. A burning pillar of everything you could’ve asked for and more. Love was simple with him, honest and passionate. He loved fiercely and was unapologetic in doing so. There’s never been a moment where you’ve questioned Ace’s feelings for you. He wore them proudly, his heart that called your name and cursed the heavens when you were away.
You kissed the top of his head, Ace visibly softening beneath the gesture. He rose then, cupping your cheeks and pressing a burning kiss upon your lips. The scent of alcohol and the flaming sea filled your senses, the two of you mingling, meshing into a single being of desire.
“Let’s go home.” You spoke softly, breaking away from the kiss.
Ace nodded in agreement. “Only if I get cuddles.”
The two of you departed from the bar hand in hand, the night sky and summer breeze guiding you back to the ship.
“You’re sharing that food, right?”