Tick Tock [Portgas D. Ace/Sabo Fan Fic]

No Red Paint

Disclaimer: I do not own OP or any of the characters involved.

A/N: So, I hope you enjoyed the almost happy chapter last time.

Trigger Warning: Blood

Was he supposed to be happy that Sabo had yet to tell Luffy? Maybe. It certainly gave Ace an edge that he hadn't had in a long time. Why spoil the fun after all when he could wait and see the surprise upon his brother's face? The thought alone was enough to bring a smile to his face. Luffy deserved some happiness.

Because he truly would be happy.

Ace on the other hand- Well, he didn't know quite what to feel. Happy didn't quite nail it. Apprehension... Definitely. Worry? There was certainly some of that too. It was an entire mess of nerves and emotions, like a dark cloud hovering above his head. His own personal shit storm. Lovely. Huh, maybe he'd draw something like that later. It would give him something to do at least.

The weekdays were boring after all. Luffy was off at the university for the most part, leaving Ace alone with not much to do aside from the odd request sent in via email or text. Hey, it paid the bills though.

A glance at the clock revealed the time, though the setting of the sun could have told him just about the same. Once again, ace found himself before an easel, knuckles and fingers an odd mixture of grey and blue from where paint had rather spontaneously attacked him. Okay, so he got distracted and the brush slipped a few times... It sounded more exciting when he acted like they attacked him.

Wiping his hands onto a towel balanced one knee, the familiar irritation once more sprang to life in his chest and Ace coughed, once and then twice. "Damn it..." Stupid asthma. A scowl was quick to spread across his features as he rose from his spot, ignoring the cough that threatened to wreak his form once more. It was nothing a glass of water couldn't cure. That was always how it had been, Ace convinced that he had just gotten some nasty form of asthma from one of his birth parents. What else could it be?

6:26

Ace rubbed at his throat as he made his way from the study to the living room, already taking inventory in his mind of possible meals for tonight. He had gotten distracted again. Luffy would probably be home any second and he hadn't even started thinking abou-

Another cough. This one came on more suddenly and Ace paused in his steps to lean one hand against the wall. They were heavy, painful coughs, something he hadn't dealt with in a while now. A hand rose to cover his mouth as he allowed the coughs to run their course. Another sharper cough and Ace's eyes flew open, bending into himself as he allowed he last of the wave to pass.

Vaguely he heard the door slide open across the hall, footsteps approaching and Luffy's familiar chatter already ringing through the air. Ace wasn't focused on that though. He was staring at his hand blankly.

Red, a sharp contrast when compared to the grey and baby blue. It stared back at him from the center of his hand, warm and sticky.

Funny... Ace didn't remember using any red paint...

-

Conversation came to a quick and abrupt halt as Luffy rounded the corner, typical wide smile freezing in place as those dark eyes slid to his brother. It wasn't necessary his gaze that was troubling, not even the paint at first either though it was the bright splash of color that drew his attention.

No, what truly made Luffy's blood run cold was that same shade of color staining his brother's lips, a single trickle of crimson escaping from the corner of his lips and the splattering so plain to see across his chin and hand.

"...Ace...?" His book bag dropped at his side, the thud suddenly too loud in the quite room. It was as if that noise alone set off a train wreck. It was obvious suddenly yet the thought still didn't sink in quite fast enough.

Luffy didn't make it across the room in time to catch him as Ace fell.

-

There was something surreal about waking up in a hospital bed. The mattress was too soft for one, not quite like the one back home. The sheets were too thin and the blankets on top too heavy. The air was stale with an overused air freshener.

And everything was white.

Really, everything about the situation was annoying, and yet that was where he woke up who knows how much later.

Sun, bright and just as annoying as always fell across his face, Ace blinking at the sudden light as brows furrowed into a sleepy scowl. And then suddenly, it just wasn't there. A moment of stilled silence passed as Ace turned to stare in the direction of where the light had been only to find shut blinds instead. And a woman in white and blue.

Oh.

"Sir. It's best if you stay where you are a while longer. We're running the scans right now." Scans? Ace stared back at her, ignoring the 'request' as he pushed himself into a sitting position. the action was met immediately with another set of coughing. There was a hand on his shoulder when he finally stopped again, relieved this time to see no red staining his hand. It would have been nice to pas that entire event off as a bad dream, but his presence here was enough to dash that hope.

"What scans...?" He brushed her hand aside, suddenly recalling how often Sabo or Luffy had done the same. A bittersweet thought. "Where's my brother?"

"They're downstairs. I can send them up after the results come back if you want." Ace nodded once, not really listening.

"Yeah, sure. Whatever."

She was gone a while before Ace finally realized that she had said brothers.

A/N: Any guesses yet?