Ace Of Spades (Complete Raw First Draft, Unedited)

Twenty- One: Comfort

Today had been a good day.  The tattoo Bonnie did for Kelly looked amazing, and Kelly had been ecstatic with it.  The three of us had spent the afternoon in the back lounge at the Specters, and, after a while, we were joined by Amity and, later, Katy.

It had been fun, and the time flew by until Bonnie and I had to leave to meet Clyde and Ace at the shop.

Ace and I hadn't long gotten home.  He was in the shower, and I was currently in the kitchen with a glass of water, staring out the window, smiling, just because I could.

I didn't hear him as he approached, and I jumped when I felt his hand on my waist, swinging around to face him.

"Ace!"  I cried out, more with relief than anything, that it was only him.  "You scared me."

"I'm sorry, darlin'" he chuckled as I put the empty glass in the sink, trying to hide the way my hands shook as my heart still raced.  "I didn't mean to frighten you."

I smiled, and ducked my head, feeling foolish.  He put an arm around my shoulders, gently holding me to his chest, and I resisted the urge to pull away from him, trying not to tense.

Ace isn't going to hurt me, I had to remind myself.  I can relax.

"What were you looking at?"  He wondered, fixing his gaze out the window I'd just been staring out of.

"Nothing, really," I admitted.  "I was just daydreaming."

The days here were warm, but the nights quickly turned cold, and I stepped a little closer to Ace for his warmth, wishing I had my jumper.  I only had one, along with a few other things that I bought when Katy and I went shopping last week.  It was in the washing machine, but Ace had lent me one of his for the cold evenings, which was currently folded on the end of my bed.

Just like the shirt he'd lent me to sleep in on my first night here, it was huge on me, but I didn't mind, because it was warm, and it smelt like him, the scent becoming increasingly comforting and soothing to me.

"Marcus sent me a text just a minute ago," he told me.  "The Reapers are all going over to his place because Axe is home.  They invited us along, if you feel up to it."

I bit my lip, stepping away from him, and he let me go.  I was nervous of crowds, especially where alcohol was involved.  I wouldn't know any of the people there, or what they would try to do once I was there.

But it wasn't fair of me to expect him not to go, just because I was anxious.  He had waited so long for his father to come home, and I didn't want to be the reason that he couldn't go to see him.

Axe must have picked up on my hesitation, because he smiled that kind smile of his, and pushed my hair back, brushing his fingers against my cheek.

"It's fine if you don't want to," he told me.  "If you want to stay home, you can.  I'll stay with you, if you want me to.  Bonnie and Clyde will be there, though, if you're worried about being stuck there on your own."

"No," I shook my head.  "We should go."

He seemed so happy when I said it.  His whole face lit up, and I knew I made the right descision.

"Are you sure?"  He pressed, searching my face for any sign of hesitation, but I gave him a small smile and nodded.

Bonnie and Clyde picked us up, and the four of us drove there together.  They had music playing, something fast and loud.  They sang to the chorus, laughing at how off key they both were, but talked through the versus, which sounded like the singer was screaming the words anyway, teasing one another as usual.