52Sorry for the long hiatus! I'm finally back with another chapter :) I also made some minor edits in earlier chapters.
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6. An Apology
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Marco hummed softly to himself as he tidied up Ace's room. Since that day about a week ago, Thatch had taken it upon himself to spend as much free time as he can squeeze in between his busy schedule with Ace. However, he was currently away at the kitchen, getting dinner ready for their big family. Knowing that Thatch did not want Ace to be left alone, Marco had silently patted his shoulder and took over the bedside vigil.
Marco was about to reach across Ace's bed to adjust the ever-growing pile of get well cards so they would not topple over, when he noticed a faintest twitching in the boy's eyelids.
Marco froze. His heart skipped a beat.
The eyes that had been closed for so long crinkled once, twice, and then slowly fluttered open.
"…Ace?"
Marco whispered, finally letting go of the breath he was not aware of holding.
Ace's eyes were dilated and unfocused as he blankly stared up at the face above him.
"S…s'rry…."
Ace breathed out a barely-there sound and closed his eyes again.
Marco stood in the exact position, still struck in disbelief, until a member from his division came to call him to dinner.
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Marco was distracted throughout the dinner. As soon as it was over, he grabbed Thatch and returned to Ace's room.
"You were right, Thatch. I saw Ace opening his eyes," Marco said as soon as they were in the room.
Thatch's jaw dropped open. "Unbelievable. And what, you couldn't tell me this, oh I don't know, before the freaking dinner?!"
Marco sighed. "I didn't want to let others know just yet. Frankly speaking, I'm not entirely sure if it weren't just my eyes playing a trick on me. But I think I saw him open his eyes and… apologize."
"Apologize? For what?" Thatch asked, incredulous.
"No idea," Marco just shook his head.
The two brothers sat side by side in bedside vigil until deep into the night. The only sounds that kept them company were the familiar beeping of the machines and gentle rolling of waves outside.
"I'm going to get some coffee. You want some?" Thatch yawned as he stood up. Marco was about to answer positive when his heightened senses picked up slight movements from the bed.
"Thatch," Marco grabbed Thatch's arm and gestured him towards their youngest brother, "is that…?"
"Oh god," Thatch murmured as he quickly sat himself down again.
Ace's fingers were twitching.
Soon, the boy who had been slumbering for so long opened his eyes for the third time. This time, they stayed open and were lighted with recognition.
"Ace?" Thatch asked in a trembling voice.
Ace slowly shook his head, "Ssss… sss'ry…."
"Here, drink this," Marco grabbed a cup of water and supported Ace's back as he took slow sips from it. "There you go, slowly does it..." Marco murmured soft words of encouragement as he held the cup to Ace's mouth.
"Sorry, 'm sorry," Ace whispered when he finally found enough voice in him to form words. His voice was scratchy from prolonged disuse, but to his brothers' ears it sounded like the voice of an angel.
Thatch shook his head vigorously, "Don't, you got nothing to be sorry for, little brother. You're here, you're awake, that's all I, we, could have asked of you."
Ace's eyes were sad as he lowered his gaze to his feeble hands. Just like the rest of his body, they were mere skin and bones. Even though he just woke up, exhaustion sat deep inside his bones.
"I'm not Ace. At least, I'm not your Ace," he whispered. Just saying those simple sentences took out a lot more than Ace had expected. It was like he was relearning how to speak. Ace wanted more than anything to stop talking and go back to sleep, but he knew that he owed Little Ace and his family an explanation.
"…What do you mean?" Marco quietly asked. His brain was refusing to process what the boy was saying, what he was implying.
"Can you call the others? I… I don't think I can bear to explain this twice," Ace asked.
Marco nodded his head jerkily and went out to call his siblings.
Soon, the division commanders spilled into the room with quickened steps and disbelieving yet hopeful expressions. They all stood short when they were greeted by the sight of their youngest brother, awake at long last.
"Ace!" Multiple voices cried out, as they rushed to cross the short distance and reassure themselves that they were not just seeing things.
"How are you feeling, Ace? It's so good to see you awake, dear one," Izou said as he lowered himself on the edge of Ace's bed. He lightly brushed away stray locks from his face with a practiced movement, which told Ace that he must've done this countless times over the past seven years during his bedside vigil.
"I—I'm okay, really." Ace attempted at a smile. He must not have been successful, as he was met with tearful eyes instead of returning smiles. "I've got something really important to tell you though. I'm, I'm not your Ace. I'm Ace from another universe."
A silence met his words.
"…What do you mean?"
At the end, Vista broke the silence and asked.
"…There's something called parallel universes. I don't really know whole lot about them, but Marco from my universe told me about them before." Ace looked up at Marco with questioning eyes, who slowly nodded.
"Yes, I've read about them. Supposedly, there are countless number of universes out there that are similar yet different from this world. It's all theoretical though, there's no evidence to prove or disprove it," Marco cautiously replied.
"Well, it must be right, because here I am, right?" Ace laughed mirthlessly. "I'm really from another universe. I was 20 and got captured by the Marines and died there. When I regained consciousness, I saw a younger version of me. He said that he had been waiting for me for the past seven years, ever since he was attacked by Kaido's men."
"Wait, what? Kaido's men?" Thatch exclaimed. It was just too much information to take in. All he wanted to do was to hug that little kid and never let go of him again. But what he was saying made it hard to just let his emotions freely flow.
"The other Ace said that they beat and dragged him to the warehouse and caused the building to collapse to hide their crime. Ever since then, he stayed in this… sort of limbo between life and death. He said he saw Mom and Roger? He could also visit himself here. He wanted to say thank you to all of you," Ace said. This time, when he smiled, it did not feel forced. "For loving him, not giving up on him. He loves you and he wants you to know that he'll be alright and cheering for you from the other side."
"My baby," Izou choked on his words, his eyes glistening with tears, "he's moved on then? He's not here anymore?"
Ace swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yeah. I'm sorry."
Jozu, ever the reasonable one, sighed as he gently patted Ace's head. "It's not your fault, kid."
"I'll let Oyaji know," Marco muttered as he silently excused himself. Thatch debated going after him, but he turned his focus back to others in the room.
Grief hung heavy in the room, as the group processed the news of their littlest brother. Even though they had many years to prepare for what many of them felt was inevitable farewell, it was hard for them to hear the fate of his brother. Some of them were also shaking with repressed anger against Kaido, which they valiantly hold back to not overwhelm the newly awoken boy.
"…I've got his memories. Not completely, just bits and pieces. But I know for sure that he knew he was loved. He was happy. He was proud to be a Whitebeard pirate and he loved you guys." Ace quietly told his not-brothers.
"How about you? Where you came from, how was your life?" Thatch asked.
"It wasn't easy, but it was good. I joined you—well, the Whitebeard Pirates in my world, after I set sail. I don't really have any regret." Ace wore a small smile, his eyes gently lowered as he thought of his beloved family.
"Then you're our brother. No matter which universe you're from, you're still our brother," Thatch said. "Get some sleep… Ace. Let's talk more in the morning, hmm?"
Ace looked around the room. Izou was still silently crying on his perch near his head, as were several others. He lowered his gaze again.
"Okay."
"Good night, Ace." Thatch tucked Ace him in, his hand gentle as he smoothed the covers across his chest. He then turned around to face his siblings, "And all of you, shoo. Go back to your rooms and we'll hold a meeting first thing in the morning. Keep things quiet until then, we'll break the news to everyone after the meeting."
The rest of the commanders nodded their heads in agreement. They murmured good nights to Ace and slowly shuffled out the door.
Thatch stayed until everyone was out to blow out the bedside lamp.
"See you in the morning, kid," He whispered before he too headed out.
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Thatch thought about going to his room, but he decided otherwise and headed to Oyaji's room to check up on him and Marco. He was about halfway there when his steps faltered at the familiar presence in an unexpected place.
"Marco?"
Thatch called, as he approached the slump figure in the darkened hallway.
Marco didn't look up, but Thatch caught a glimpse of his wet face. Although the eldest commander tried to rein in his emotions in front of his siblings, he must have broken down before he could make it to Whitebeard's room. Thatch silently sat down next to him and slung his arm across his brother's shoulders, pulling him close. Together, they mourned the loss of their youngest brother.
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Ace stared at the darkness that was enveloping him. Despite bone-deep exhaustion, he was unable to fall asleep. He could still feel the grief that lingered after the commanders left. The grief hung heavy in the air, palpable and suffocating. Little Ace said that he was sending Ace as a gift to his family. But he was wrong—Ace could never be a gift to anyone. It would be a cruel joke to stay with the Whitebeards, his presence a constant reminder of their loss. Ace couldn't do that to his family, because he still loved them even though they were not really his family. He sighed. He hoped it wouldn't take too long for him to recover enough strength to leave the Moby.
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The next chapter will be another memory chapter :) Thanks for reading!
