fight from the heart

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Sometimes, putting them first meant hurting them too. He was yet to master the exact art of choosing his words right, always quick to say the wrong thing and send Goose running. That’s what had gotten them into the mess they were in now, and if they ever managed to get him back, he was certain it would happen again. Gordon Woodrow Jr was a good-for-nothing waste of space who’d never amount to anything. He’d known that for a long time now, but he’d always hoped his role as big brother might remain firmly intact, with at least a couple merits to the title. Turns out, he couldn’t get that right either. 

He couldn’t stand the way he’d unraveled, but there was no stopping it now. Sobs racked his body as he allowed his baby brother to hold him tight, the guilt that he felt entirely outweighed by the fear that was gripping him now. What good was it to be strong and stoic if he couldn’t even convince his brother to come home? Why even bother when Goose was out there hiding from him, with no intention of ever returning? He’d driven he youngest Woodrow away, and now Ace had to suffer as a result of his bullish behaviour too. 

“I didn’t do nothin’, not really,” Gordy blinked, tears still dripping from his lashes. He couldn’t stand to look Ace in the eye, not knowing what a mess he must looked right now. His head ducked and dipped as he tried to avoid his brother’s gaze, but Ace held firm and steady, proving himself once again to be the real glue that held them together. Gordy hadn’t ever been the one they’d needed to keep them grounded. It had been Ace all along. 

It wasn’t like Gordy to be self-deprecating, and in his heart of hearts he knew he had always looked out for them. Even before they’d lost their parents, he’d fought tooth and nail for the knuckleheads he called his brothers. He’d never stop fighting for them, but that didn’t mean he’d earned the right to any of Ace’s good graces right now. 

Slowly, he followed his brother’s instructions and did as he was told. As the minutes slowly slipped away, his pulse drew to a steady rate, his breathing matching Ace’s own. Less shallow, if still a little unsteady. His grip had loosened, his knuckles no longer clenched into a fist, his palms flat instead as he laid them against his brother’s back. 

“He hates me, Ace,” he sighed, shame engulfing him as he finally met his brother’s eye. “I don’t think he’ll ever forgive me.” 

What he could do was what he was good at. He could just be there for his brother.

With no smarts under his belt, and no future that stretched beyond anything involving manual labour and cheap work, Ace knew he wasn’t destined for greatness. He wasn’t athletic like Gordy or brainy like Goose, and he’d made his peace with that. He knew that there were dead ends a-plenty in his life, places he couldn’t go to because he didn’t have the skills needed to unlock all the doors keeping him out. So he had to search inwards for the strengths that he did have, and he was happy being the guy that people could count on. The one they went to for a pick-me-up, or to be a shoulder to cry on.

He might have been tough in the ring, and could go wailing on a guy in a street fight back home, but on any other given day, Ace was as soft as they came.

“I got’cha,” he reassured Gordy, stroking a hand up and down the other man’s back.

He listened carefully as Gordy’s breathing slowly evened out, his own shoulders exaggeratedly heaving up and down as he illustrated how he was inhaling deeply, then exhaling. Maybe he looked like an idiot, but if helped Gordy, Ace wouldn’t see past it.

“No, he don’t,” Ace argued, the minute Gordy claimed that Goose hated him.

Ace didn’t like to contradict people. It was impolite. And he knew there were tactful ways to do it, but that didn’t mean he was in the business of hitting someone with an, “actually…” But in this instance, he took no issue with shutting down his brother’s claim. He knew that was what Gordy believed, but for a guy who looked to his brothers in order to gain their worldly knowledge on an opinion he didn’t know shit about, Ace was pretty confident in his stance this time. 

“Goose don’t hate you,” he told Gordy, firmly. His hand reached up to roughly cup the back of Gordy’s head so Ace could lean in and meet his eyes, fixing him with a look that would let his brother know just how serious he was.

“He ain’t ever hated nobody, ‘specially not you. He loves you, Gordy. And we love him back. That’s how this family works. I know a lot of shit’s happened to try and make us forget that, but we’re brothers, okay?” His own eyes stung a little as he blinked rapidly. “We’re always gonna come back to each other, alright?”

As his vision blurred, he huffed out a little laugh at his own habit to get emotional when he was meant to be comforting Gordy. Shaking his head at himself, he ducked his head down to press his eyes against his shirt sleeve. Then, he looked back at Gordy, brown eyes wide and imploring.

“You gotta stay with me here, yeah? I can’t lose my big brother too.”

With a downward glance, Fliss easily tucked her hand into the purse she was holding and brandished an unopened packet of tissues. Breaking the seal and pinching a tissue free, she held it out to him. Oddly enough, it was quite the relief to see him cry. Not nearly in the same way that New Yorkers turned a blind eye to the tears of strangers on the Subway, but just in that it was refreshing to see him so comfortable in his masculinity. It hadn’t been lost on her the amount of times Goose had tried to hide his tears beneath the collar of his t-shirt during their movie dates. There was absolutely nothing to be ashamed of, quite frankly, and Fliss had always fought her father on the ridiculous ideal that crying was somehow girly. 

As she dropped the remaining tissues back into her bag, she retrieved her phone instead, mind wandering at his question. Swiping through her apps with one long, manicured finger, Fliss frowned at her calendar, lips puckered into a pretty, though albeit petulant, pout. She wasn’t seeing Goose on this particular weekend, on account of the fact that she had dinner scheduled with her father. He had some ridiculous, grand opening that he insisted on her joining him for. The last thing she wanted now was to dampen the hopes of the lovely, curly boy beside her after he’d come so far and waited so long. 

“I’m not seeing him this weekend, no,” Felicity admitted, offering him a sad smile. 

There was a brief pause as she eyed him, a curious smile brightening up her features when she heard his name. Ace. How quaint! Gordy could only be short for Gordon, which was quite regular if she did say so herself! But Goose and Ace were charming in ways that Fliss could hardly stand it. Her heart leapt in his chest as he smiled at her, gentle and dimpled and completely adorable. Even as he insisted that he was better at talking to girls, she didn’t doubt it even for a second. She was already completely won over and she’d already watched him cry on a street corner! She couldn’t even begin to imagine how delightful he must be when operating on top form. 

“Never by name, no. But he’s mentioned having brothers, he’s been very... Private, I suppose. But he’s coming out of his shell, slowly but surely,” she told him, hoping that he might find some semblance of reassurance in her words. It was all she had to offer. 

Lifting a hand, bold as ever, Fliss joined him in coaxing a hand through his curls. Only, where his movements were frantic and nervous, tugging at the ends of his luscious hair, Felicity’s were far gentler. She smoothed a hand over his hair, playfully batting his hand away before sliding her fingers along his jaw. She gave his cheek a playful pinch and looked at him, a kind smile on her face. 

“Well, Ace. I’m Fliss, and I think you’re absolutely lovely,” she promised him. Her fingers tickled his jaw as she traced soothing patterns into the space below his ear, her thumb moving to delicately swipe at a rogue teardrop that had lingered on his cheek. “Tell me, Ace. Do you and your brother have somewhere to stay? Because I’d love to help, if I can. I’m not seeing Goose this weekend, but... Perhaps you could come and stay with me? And I could help you reach out to him when the time is right?” 

He tried not to be too disappointed when she told him that she wasn’t seeing Goose this weekend. Even though this was the strongest - and only - lead they’d gotten this far, he knew that Gordy would only be half-pleased with it. They might now vaguely know of Goose’s whereabouts but Gordy wasn’t going to be happy until he actually had Goose in front of him, safe and healthy. Ace wouldn’t lie and claim to not feel the same, but he didn’t want to look ungrateful when this woman, miracle that she was, had already done more than anyone else in the city had to help them find their brother.

“That’s okay,” he told her, trying to keep his voice as light as possible. It was a little harder when she revealed he hadn’t spoken to her about him and Gordy, not by name. But he kind of got that.

Goose could be real guarded when he wanted to be. He took after Gordy like that, even if he was sure that both of them would deny it. Not Ace though. No, Ace was an open book, always wearing his heart on his damn sleeve. Sometimes, it was like he’d never heard of subtlety in his life.

Evidenced by the way he let his eyes flutter shut, his foot nearly thumping against the ground like a damn rabbit when the woman coaxed her fingers through his hair. It felt good, way too good. He was almost glad when she took her hand away to pinch his cheek instead, if only so he didn’t immediately pop a boner in the middle of the street. He figured New York liked to keep things family-friendly in the middle of the working day when everyone else was innocently walking around in broad daylight.

“Nice to meet you, Fliss,” he beamed at her, already liking the way her name tasted in his mouth.

He listened to her offer, his eyebrows slowly inching their way up his face. 

“We’re uh, crashing with a friend right now. But it’s kinda crowded. She has a roommate and her roommate has a kid so… we’re all elbows and knees,” he said. He let out a disbelieving laugh and leaned in closer, narrowing his eyes playfully. “Are you actually bein’ serious, ma’am?”

Gordy had once told him that Ace could be easily taken in by a serial killer if they had a pretty face. His brother had been joking, but Ace was doing nothing to disprove his theory right now.

“‘Cause I wouldn’t say no to not waking up with a toddler being tossed at my head,” he grinned. Clover had never actually been tossed at him, but he did find himself playing babysitter more often than not.

He pulled himself up tall again. With more than a little flourish, he leaned forward and grabbed Fliss’ hand, pulling it up to his face so he could lean in and press a kiss to her knuckles. Just so she wouldn’t think he was lying about being much better at talking to women.

“If you’ll have us, we’d really like that,” he said, more confident than he felt. Man, this was going to be one hell of a tough sell to Gordy.

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