Redemption

by Livia Lang

  She felt a pressure on her knee, and realized Ace had put his hand there, giving a calming and reassuring presence. Martina froze, unable to look down. She worried that if she did, Ace might realize what was happening between them and pull back. The magic in the air could disappear at any moment.

  "But you turned out ok. You did great in school and now have your own charity. I, on the other hand, just managed to become a fuck up."

  Martina shook her head. "I think you turned out much better than you think you did. Besides, I've had way more time to process everything that happened. Things get easier; it doesn't need to hurt forever. And if you ever want to talk more about it, I'm here."

  They sat in silence for a while longer, taking the last sips of their beers. The sun was now fully set, and the last rays of light were dancing across the water. On the beach, the bonfire was raging as someone turned up the music, no doubt preparing for a long night of dancing. Ace's hand stayed on Martina's leg, although neither of them mentioned it. It just seemed natural for them to be touching, enjoying the evening.

  "Martina, can I tell you something? Something I've never told anyone else?" Ace's voice was deep and serious, and Martina looked over in surprise.

  "Of course," Martina began to say, wanting to put him at ease. However, their quiet bubble was shattered before she could get another word out.

  "Yo, Ace. What's happening over here. This nerd trying to hit on you again?" came a drunken, nasty voice behind them.

  CHAPTER 12

  A ce swung his head around at the sound of Bruce's voice. He was so startled by the intrusion that he pulled his hand off Martina's knee. He immediately regretted that, as the loss of connection seemed to break the magic spell that had protected them. He suddenly felt chillier, a tendril of unease uncoiling in his stomach.

  "What do you want, Bruce?" he ground out, gripping his beer bottle tightly.

  He sensed Martina's fear, and out of the corner of his eye he could see the slender woman shrinking down into herself.

  Fuck, this is not what I wanted. Martina doesn't deserve to have a High School Bullying 2.0 experience right now. Not on my watch.

  Bruce sauntered up, his doughy face red and his eyes shiny. He was, luckily, alone, but shouting so loudly that people in other parts of the party were turning their heads to see what was happening.

  "Nothing man, just coming over to say hi. And noticed you have your little friend here. Better let her down easy, don't want her to cry over you all the time again." Bruce sneered down at Martina, his thick lips pulled pack into a snarl.

  "Lay off. She's just here to enjoy the party, same as you or me," Ace said sternly, fighting the urge to throw his beer bottle at Bruce's stupid face.

  "Well, she is ruining the party for me. No one wants this loser here. Shit, even her mom hated her!”

  Ace stood up slowly and deliberately, feeling the veins in his forehead beginning to pound dangerously. Bruce's cocky talk was making him furious and he was going to end that bullshit right then and there.

  "Fuck off, man. No one wants you here. You are ruining my buzz with all your bitching. So just get out of here."

  Bruce's mouth popped open in surprise, and his eyes quickly swung back and forth between Ace and Martina. It was obvious his mind, which worked slowly even on a good day, was struggling to make connections through its drunken haze. However, eventually he did seem to form a coherent thought, and a nasty smile spread across his face. He narrowed his eyes and took a step towards Ace.

  "Looks like that little loser isn't the only one trying to make a move here. I thought I knew you better, Ace. So why don't you go and make me fuck off, eh? If you are going to embarrass me in front of this whole party, then do it like a man. Come at me!" Bruce bobbed erratically. He was well into his liquor by this point and his lumbering looked more like that of an overgrown sloth than any sort of fighter.

  Ace stepped back, easily out of Bruce's range. The two men then circled slowly, their eyes narrowed and locked on each other. Ace could hear worried shouts in the distance, and knew the party must have picked up on what was happening. It was the last thing he wanted, but he also knew it was too late to diffuse the situation peacefully.

  Martina, ever the pacifist, didn't know Bruce well enough to understand that fact, however. She continued to try and make them break apart. "Come on, guys. There is no need to do this. Ace, think of your probation. This is so not worth it."

  Bruce's attention was drawn from Ace to Martina, and his pudgy face twisted as he locked onto the smaller target. "Shut up, whore, this is between Ace and I."

  "Just stop. I'll leave the party if you want. But Ace doesn't need to have a fight on his record right now." Martina put her hands up and began to back away slowly.

  Bruce growled and lunged at Martina. His face showed all the stupid, blind hate that flowed through his body, incoherent and mindless in its application. Martina flinched, putting her palms up in defense as a meaty fist came in her direction.

  Something in Ace snapped. He looked at Martina's fearful face, the woman's delicate features scrunched up in a resigned look, waiting to take the pummeling that Bruce was offering. The pummeling that bullies had been piling onto Martina since high school, since Ace threw her under the bus and mocked her just to hide his own crush.

  As Ace saw the situation unfolding before him in slow motion, his heart made its claim. Somewhere in the past several weeks, Martina had become his. His. He wasn't even entirely sure what that meant, he just felt it in his very bones. Martina was as vital to his well-being as air, and Ace was going to be damned if Bruce laid a single fucking finger on her.

  Ace launched himself forward, straining every muscle. Bruce had a head start, but his drunken state made him slower; Ace was able to grab the bully’s shoulders and swing him around before the he got within a foot of Martina. Bruce's face showed nothing but surprise as he suddenly found himself facing Ace, and he only avoided falling down thanks to the firm grasp his former friend was using to hold him up.

  "You are a complete and utter asshole," Ace murmured, raising his fist into the air.

  "Fuck you," Bruce sneered, trying to wiggle free.

  Ace brought his fist down, striking Bruce's cheek with all of his force. Then he let go of the other man's shoulder, allowing the jerk to stumble freely on his own. Bruce tried to get two swings in, but his confusion – only elevated by the blow he had just sustained – made him completely miss Ace both times. Ace responded by several strong jabs of his own, causing Bruce to finally drop to the ground in a heap.

  Ace drew back his foot, ready to kick Bruce in the ribs, when he felt another hand on his arms. He looked down and saw Martina's face peering up into his with concern.

  "Ace, stop. He's not worth it. Please, let's just leave."

  Taking a deep breath, Ace put his foot back down. "Fine, but only for you." He pointed at Bruce and spoke in a harsher tone. "You hear that? I'm only going easy on your sorry ass because Martina is a good girl and doesn't want me to rip you apart. But I swear, if you come anywhere close to her again, I will be your worst nightmare."

  The lake rang with silence after his words. He looked up and found the rest of the party circled around them, their faces hard to make out in the gloom of the evening. He pulled himself up, squaring his shoulders, ready to take on all of them if need be.

  "Any of the rest of you want to chime in? Any other smartasses who thinks they can talk about my life or my friends?" he yelled, trembling with adrenaline.

  "Chill, man. Bruce was a fucking prick and we all knew it," came Jessica's voice. She walked out of the gloom, shaking her head in amusement. "Come on everyone, let's get back to having some fun. Bruce, you need to get out of here real fast before I call the cops."

  The crowd around them began to disappear back towards the other end of the beach, wanting to make more s’mores and enjoy the bonfire. Even Bruce got up and limped away, but not without flipping everyone off defiantly a final time before hea
ding to the parking lot.

  When only Martina, Ace and Jessica remained behind, the former cheerleader turned to pat Ace on the shoulder. "And we also all knew you were into her, so don't act like it's a big deal."

  "What?" Ace sputtered, the wheels in his mind locking up completely. "I…it…I mean…"

  Jessica rolled her eyes and a smirk spread across her carefully painted pink lips. "Please. You haven't ever had a girlfriend for more than a day, but you’ve looked at Martina all night like she walks on water. And I threw myself at you tonight and you turned me down flat. Which is pretty much a first for me."

  Martina chuckled next to Ace and muttered, "She’s still as humble as ever, I see."

  Jessica continued on. “So yes, the more you teased her, the more we knew you liked Martina in school. But I’m glad to see you are finally mature enough to actually talk to her, instead of being a little shit.” She gave him a small smile. Ace continued to flounder, but Jessica just winked and sauntered away. When she was nearly too far out of range to be heard, she turned and called back, “You two are really cute together, though."

  After that, Martina and Ace were left alone in the dark.

  CHAPTER 13

  M artina shuffled her feet, not sure what to say. There were a lot of emotions to unpack, and the past half hour was flashing through her mind continuously like a movie reel on fast-forward. There was her newfound closeness with Ace, Bruce trying to attack her, and Ace saving the day. And then there was the little bomb that had been dropped at the end by Jessica. Ace stood beside her looking equally dumbfounded by everything that had occurred.

  Martina couldn't stand the silence, and finally cleared her throat. "So, should we get into the car to head back?"

  Ace nodded mutely and began to walk back towards the parking lot. He ran a hand over his head several times, and kept his face tense and drawn. He only flashed his gaze towards Martina once, but didn't seem able to make eye contact.

  Even after they had both slid into the vehicle and buckled up, the silence persisted. Martina kept waiting for something, anything to be said, but Ace was far too locked into his own head to communicate. Sighing, Martina began the drive towards town with a heavy heart. The miles passed in total silence.

  The initial exhilaration from the earlier adrenaline rush had completely faded, and the only thing she currently felt was tired. Maybe she was tired of not knowing where she stood with Ace, or not feeling like she fit in anywhere. Or maybe she was tired of always struggling to prove that she deserved love, even if her own mother had rejected her. It didn't really matter why she felt so exhausted, though; she just knew the result was that she had run out of fucks to give.

  "So I guess I'll drop you off and see you at work on Monday," she said at long last when they were nearly back to town, not even attempting to keep the despair from her voice. "Not that it matters because we'll have to shut the park soon anyway."

  Ace grunted and shifted in his seat. "Whoa, what's wrong with you?"

  "What's wrong with me?" Martina gripped the steering wheel and reminded herself that she needed to stay in control while she drove. However, the words that were bubbling up to her lips were not to be stopped. "What's wrong with me? Seriously? I feel this crazy attraction to you, even though you have been a jerk to me for years, and I start thinking that perhaps you feel it too. And that maybe something could possible happen between us. Oh, but then my worst nightmare from high school comes to life and fucking Bruce tries to punch me in the face in front of everyone. As if I don't have enough social anxiety. However, there you are saving me like some hot knight in shining armor, but instead of being able to talk about what happened you've now clammed up tighter than Scrooge's fist at a charity ball. Never mind that my sanctuary is on the verge of closing, which is fucking terrible. So yeah, there are a lot of things wrong with me right now."

  Several seconds ticked by and Martina considered just slamming on the brakes and making Ace walk home. But at last she heard a deep rumble from the passenger seat. "You thought I was a hot knight in shining armor, eh?"

  Martina rolled her eyes. "Of course that is the part that you heard. Look, we'll be at your house soon. I don't have time to play games so I'll just see you Monday."

  "I'm not playing games. I just…don't know what to say. Shit, I've never done this before."

  "Done what before?"

  "Gone to a party with a girl I liked, even if I can barely admit I like her. I'm all twisted up inside, ok? I'm a fuck up and I never have been able to say what I feel. I was good at throwing footballs and being a smartass, not spilling my feelings. Shit, you know I barely passed English." Ace hit the dashboard in frustration, before slamming his head back into the passenger seat. "These words are hard, so be patient with me. I don't know what's happening here, but I feel a crazy attraction to you too. And when I invited you along tonight, if I'm honest with myself, a big part of me wanted something to happen between us."

  Martina pulled into Ace's driveway and put the car into park. Then she turned slowly and looked at Ace, her heart lodged firmly in her throat. "Really?"

  In the moonlight, Ace's face appeared a mask of shadows and light. It highlighted the crisp cut of his jaw, and the slight bump in his nose from when he broke it during football season their senior year. It also highlighted his eyes, which were burning into Martina's from across the car. Ace was gorgeous, and as he sat there smoldering in the dimness Martina thought she might burst into flame.

  "Yes, really," Ace breathed out at last, his voice husky and needy. "Shit, why do you think I was such an asshole in high school? Because every time I looked at you, I could barely focus. I was a punk kid running from everything in life, especially from love, and then there you were looking perfect and sweet and sassy. So I did what I do to everything – I messed it up."

  Martina’s breath hitched. She’d dreamed of someone talking to her like that one day, like she was their sun and moon, but to actually hear it from Ace was so good that it almost hurt. He cared about her, liked her, wanted to be more than friends. She had to blink back tears.

  "You don't mess everything up. You just convince yourself you are worthless, and then act like it." Martina put a hand out gingerly, and placed it on Ace's knee. "Yeah, the past was rough. But now that you've told me the truth, well, it makes more sense. I'm sorry we both had to figure out things for ourselves…I feel like if we had only been honest back then we could have been there for each other. Maybe we would have gotten through life with a few less bumps so far."

  "Maybe. Although the only way I learn is by bumps to the head." Ace smiled ruefully, and ran a finger along the back of Martina's hand. "Do you know what I was really thinking about that day in the barn?"

  "What?"

  Martina's throat tightened, and her whole body tingled. She felt like she was at the edge of a steep cliff, looking down into an abyss she had never seen before. She wasn't afraid, but she knew that once she made that leap, there was no climbing back up. She'd be in it for good, committed to the life that followed.

  "I was thinking that I wanted to do this," Ace said, reaching out and cupping Martina's face tenderly before drawing her closer.

  The next thing Martina knew, they were entwined; their arms wrapped tightly around each other's shoulders as their mouths sought each other hungrily. It was the type of kiss Martina had dreamed of her entire life – Ace's lips were cool and soft against her own, and the thrill of feeling the sexy man's tongue slide against hers was enough to make her feel faint.

  Time stopped and all she knew was how good it felt to be in Ace's arms and feel the strength of those big muscles encircling her body. She loved the spicy aftershave Ace had on, and as she closed her eyes and sank into the kiss, she let the sweet scent burrow under her very skin. In a primal way, she hoped the smell would rub off on her, claiming her.

  She belonged to him and him to her. She didn’t fully understand it yet, but her heart knew it. They’d been dancing around each other ever sinc
e they were kids, but now that they were adults there could be no running from it. They fit together perfectly.

  CHAPTER 14

  A ce knew kissing Martina would be a watershed event in his life. Even when he was old and grey he'd look back on their first embrace, fumbling and needy in the dark car, and realize it had been one of the most important moments of his life.

  How did he know? Because he had never felt a contentment like this; finally holding Martina's body close. Yeah, it was hot and he definitely felt lust for the slender girl next to him. But it was more than that – Ace felt like he was home.

  The way she sighed and snuggled closer. The faint smell of lilac from her body lotion. The way her hands kept drifting lower and lower on his waist, making his cock want to burst from his pants. Every part of it was perfect.

  He wasn't sure how long they stayed wrapped up in each other, kissing slowly and deeply, but eventually the porch light flicked on and Ace realized there were people still up in the neighborhood. Including his father. As much as Ace wanted to tear off her clothes right there, he knew they should pull back. So, with much reluctance, he was at last forced to pull back from Martina.

  "Wow," he managed to get out. He immediately wanted to kick himself. Suave speeches were obviously not going to be in the cards for him that night.

  "Yeah. Wow." Martina looked up at him with big brown eyes, a bewildered smile across her face. "I've never actually kissed anyone before, but I didn't think it would be quite like that."

  "You've never kissed anyone?"