Surviving the Aces (#Wattys2018)

Meet His Forgiveness

I got a lot of looks from people on the plane. It got to the extent that I had to wear my hair hidden in my hat and hide behind sunglasses for the remainder of my trip home.

A lot if them tried to talk to me, but I ignored them and slumped down in my seat. I was never one to want to be in the spotlight, and definitely not in this type of situation. 

I didn't see any of the Aces when I arrived at the airport. When I tried to call Bailey I could barely hear, but I was pretty sure she didn't answer anyways.

I looked around the airport curiously as crowds of reporters roamed around the place, and I wondered who they were searching for. 

I continued to look for my ride, snaking in and out of the crowd and trying to see at least five feet in front of myself. I was starting to get anxious and I could feel thin trickles of sweat sliding down my face. I was getting hot and I was tired of all the walking and the people yelling in my ear.

When it was pretty clear that nobody had arrived to pick me up, I pulled out my phone and tried to think of who to call. My thumb hovered over Jace's number which was at the top of my contacts. 

I was tempted to call Jace even though he wasn't talking to me. It felt like I was seeing him everywhere in the airport. My hallucinations made it clear that I was missing him. One particular guy standing a few dozen feet away looked so much like him that my heart leaped in my chest. As I watched him though, my eyes fell on the sign in his hands; a sign that read Dakota Ace, please forgive me. Immediately, I felt tears prick my eyes as I realized that he was right. I was an Ace. It made me happy to be part of a family.

He beamed at me when he saw me, but I could tell he had been stressed. There were small bags under his eyes and he hadn't shaved or combed his long hair in what seemed like years.

I walked slowly to him just to make sure I wasn't seeing things.

"I'm really sorry Dakota." He said as soon as I stopped in front of him.

I smiled. "Are you saying you want me back?"

He shrugged. "That depends, if you say yes, then I want you back, but is you say no, I was never here." His lips tugged into a grin. 

I laughed. It felt great to laugh with him again, and I finally realized just how much I missed him.

"If I'm an Ace, doesn't that make us family?" I teased.

He looked down at the sign in frustration, then with one swift movement, he ripped it in half.

I grinned. "That's more like it." He said. He pulled off my hat and sunglasses pulling me into his arms and hugging me tight. I soaked in his warmth and his presence as we just stood there embracing each other. 

-:¥:-

"So what brought about the change?" I asked in the car.

Jace seemed to be thinking about his answer. His eyes were trained on the road and he wasn't looking at me. His fists clenched the steering wheel.

"Sulkin." He spat.

"Gregg?"

"He takes you away and then he nearly gets you killed. I want to kill him. He nev-"

"Jace. He was hurt too. It wasn't his fault." I said taking one of his hands and stroking it to calm him down. "He couldn't have stopped it. Plus, I'm fine." I assured him. I kissed his hand happily. "I'm perfect."

He looked over at me and smiled. "When I saw the news, the fact that I almost lost you made me want you back. I don't want to waste another minute because, eventually life ends and I want good memories with you when it does."