act three

▬╔═══════════════╗just like last year.╚═══════════════╝▬

DOMINATEDACE X READERONE PIECE FANFICTION - AU

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As soon as your friends heard the news, everyone stood beside you, eyes worried as they offered you a ride to the local precinct. Thanking your friends, you told them you were fine, and you would just take a cab to your father. "Are you sure? Do you want me to ask Sabo to act as your father's lawyer? " Koala asked, hands on your shoulder as she tried to relax your form. "I think Shanks isn't that stupid to need a lawyer for his offense. Thank you, though. " You smiled at her, giving the rest a nod of appreciation as they let you go after hearing your phone beep for the cab. You were waving your hand goodbye to them, and were about to leave the coffee shop when you suddenly remembered something, making a stop. You turned back towards your girlfriends, and you watched them look at you, confused. "As alarming as the situation might sound, please don't tell anybody about it. Okay? especially Ace. I don't want to ruin his party just because of my stupid father. " Everyone made their promises, hearing the plea in your voice. You know, along with everyone else, that once Ace' hears about it, he'll come running to you and help you solve the problem. He was the type of friend that would ditch everything just to help. He has proved it to you over and over again. And as much as you wanted someone to comfort you just to ease you, you knew it wasn't the best time to stress your freckled best friend out, especially when he has a celebration later that day. Staring out the cab's window, your thoughts were filled with nothing but worry for your father. According to Benn, they were just having an early drinking session, and when it was time to go home, your father was the first to leave, driving your Avanza a bit tipsy. Benn Beckman was the last to leave the pub when his phone suddenly rang, Shanks' caller ID appearing. When he answered it, he was surprised to hear a younger man's voice, informing him that his red-haired friend was currently being held at the local city jail. He didn't go on with the specifics with you. All he said was that your adoptive father wanted to hide the situation from you, but Benn knew it was a stupid idea Shanks made while drunk, so he still relayed the information to you. Thanking the cab driver after telling him to keep the change, you went out of the vehicle, eyes glued to the logo of the precinct Shanks was in. Walking in with your duffel bag on your shoulder, you were immediately greeted by bustling police officers. After looking around for a few seconds, you finally approached one of the many cops around you, asking for the name Benn had told you to search for. "Excuse me, do you know an officer with the name Koby?" Checking at the blonde cop's name tag on his uniform, you learnt that his name was Helmeppo. "He's with Officer Garp over there." Helmeppo replied, poking his finger towards your front left side. After thanking the busy man with a nod, you slowly walked to where Helmeppo told you to go, eyes glued to the familiar old man picking his nose together with a pink-haired lad beside him reporting. Making your presence known, you let out an awkward cough, making both of them turn. Seeing your face, the older officer immediately broke into a grin, greeting you. "If I knew you'd be here in a jiffy when your old man's in prison, I should've arrested him ages ago!" Laughing, you greeted Garp with a grin. Beside him was a confused Koby watching you two. "Are you handling his case? If so, what is it and where the hell is that geezer? " You sighed, your eyes looking from one bar to another just to catch your father's blazing red hair. "Officer Garp requested to bring him to the interrogation room." Koby, who you forgot was there a few seconds ago, answered. You immediately raised a brow at him, curious as to why your father was being interrogated. When Garp noticed your expression, he suddenly laughed, making you turn towards him again. "He was caught drunk driving and didn't pay for the ticket fee for parking. He's in the interrogation room, and said he wanted some sleep. " Putting out a sigh of relief, you couldn't help but be thankful. This was his first time getting jailed for his offenses, but as far as you were concerned, his drunk driving has been recorded more than you could remember. The only things that were keeping him away from jail were his money for bail and his connections with the chief of police. "This lad here caught him." Garp snickered, patting Koby's back loud enough for it to echo in the busy room. "He had multiple records. I couldn't just give him a ticket." He reasoned, eyes seriously staring at you as if he was trying to prove a point. Smirking at the man, who you thought was a few years younger than you, you patted his shoulder. "Thanks, Officer Koby. You did the right thing. My father's a pain in the ass and he should learn. I hope everyone can be like you. " Overwhelmed by your simple praise, the pink-haired boy immediately blushed, his ears as red as a tomato as he waved your compliments. Watching him, you can't help but laugh. The man looked adorable and quite out of place in a room full of gruff-looking men, but for you, he was the most dedicated and responsible. "Now where's the geezer?" After scolding your adoptive father for a total of two hours, you finally calmed down. Sitting in front of him inside the interrogation room, you knew Garp, together with Chief Officer Sengoku—who you and Shanks are well acquainted with too—were watching you both at the one way mirror, quite probably snickering to themselves. It was when Shanks was finally sober that you told him what he should do, making him whine like a child. After talking with Koby, you learnt that your father actually had eight cases of drunk driving and a total of twenty tickets for illegal parking and avoidance of parking fees. Realizing Shanks was getting out of hand, you told Koby, Garp, and Sengoku to let your father go through the process of filing papers before bailing. Amused with your decision, all three agreed. So here you are now, sitting beside your sulking father, who had to sign and read a total of twenty-eight written complaints. "What!? I'm not going to give up my driver's license! " He suddenly exclaimed beside you, making you jump. "Sorry, Red hair. Blame your daughter for it. " Garp laughed, amused that Shanks couldn't do anything against his adoptive daughter. "You little gremlin, I should've left you in the orphanage. " Shanks mumbled beside you, making you snicker. "Too bad you loved me the first time you saw me." It was already night time when your father finished the papers, courtesy of his never-ending conversations with Garp and Sengoku. Feeling the cold breeze touch your cheeks, you let out a sigh, cloud smoke filling your vision as you felt a presence beside you. "They towed your car." Shanks huffed, looking at you through his peripheral. "Yeah, so I'll have your trailblazer." Before your father could even protest, you waved your hand and entered a taxi, leaving your bewildered father on the sidewalk. The driver was about to go when Shanks held his hand, jogging towards the front door of the car before joining you inside. You could hear your father mumbling nonsense when your phone suddenly vibrated. Checking your notifications, your eyes grew wide after seeing how many missed calls and text messages were there, all from Ace. Your stomach dropped as you opened each one. Because you were busy chatting with Koby and the rest as you waited for your father to finish, you didn't notice the time. You suddenly felt bad for forgetting the party and even though it was mostly Shank's fault, you were also to blame. How could you forget your best friend's birthday party? A total of seven messages with an hour difference greeted your face, making you pale. Reading them, you can clearly see how Ace was starting to get upset and at the same time worried. Ace of Spades:Oh, don’t be late!14:08 Ace of Spades:The party starts at 8, ok?15:11 Ace of Spades:Don’t sleep in! I know you’re snoring there.16:24 Ace of Spades:Do you have formal attire that's white? Wear white, okay? And come here early!17:49 Ace of Spades:Don’t pull that shit on me just like you did last year, okay? Be sure to attend the party.19:04 Ace of Spades:Hey, why aren't you texting back? :(19:57 Ace of Spades:Did something happen? Even Shanks isn't here. Where are you?21:18 His last message was an hour ago, and you couldn't help but groan. Hearing your frustration, your father looked at you from the front seat with eyebrows raised. Shutting your phone off, you stared at him back, a pout forming in your lips. "Because you got caught, we're going to be joining the party late. It started two hours ago. " You whined, leaning your whole weight on your seat. "If you just let me pay the bail, this wouldn't have happened." Shanks replied matter-of-factly, lips in a firm line as he raised both his brows as if he was proving a point. "Oh shush, old man. If you just paid the ticket fee and didn't drive while drunk, this wouldn't have happened. " You snapped back, your father snickering before muttering "touché." After sitting in silence for a few more minutes in the taxi, you and Shanks were finally in front of your house. You entered the place first and went straight to your room, telling your father that if he was going to the party, he better dress quickly. Looking at your closet, you skimmed through all your clothes, trying your best to search for something white that could be worn to a formal event. It didn't take long for you to spot a white satin dress on the farthest side. You were too rushed to think whether you liked the dress or not, so you grabbed it out and went straight to your on-suite bathroom. Thirty minutes passed, and you were now blow-drying your hair in front of your vanity. A loud knock suddenly caught your attention, making you turn. You watched how your room's door knob slowly turned. The first thing you saw were strands of blazing red hair, followed by a scarred eye checking on you. "I see that you'll finally wear that dress I bought you ages ago." Shanks raised a brow as he shamelessly poked all of his heads in, a grin slowly breaking its way to his face. True enough, the satin dress you were going to wear for the party was indeed his gift. Shanks gave it to you years ago, telling you to wear it to Thatch's wedding. It was simple yet elegant, its length reaching mid-thigh as its spaghetti strap held it all together. It was beautiful, but you didn't wear it. Ever since you got into MMA, you've started to grow conscious about your build. Having to train and fight large guys, your body wasn't really society's description of how a woman should look. You weren't bricks and stones, but your muscles are visible. Because of this, you become too self-aware to wear anything feminine or fitted, opting to wear large shirts or button-ups. But this time, you didn't know why, but you felt like wearing it — and also the fact that you didn't have enough time to rummage through your closet once more — so you did. After Shanks had excused himself to let you get dressed, you finally wore the material, and you couldn't feel any more beautiful. The silk glided on your skin smoothly, its white fabric matching your beautiful skin color, making you glow. The dress wasn't as revealing as you thought it would be. It was just enough to showcase your assets, such as your neck and collarbone.

It was also low enough to reveal your cleavage but high enough to leave you wondering what was beneath it. Its length was long enough to cover your private parts and have room for comfortable sitting and walking. After ogling at yourself in the mirror, you decided that it was time to do your makeup, keeping it simple. Choosing to let your hair down, you decided to let it sway dashingly as you walked. Finally done, you picked your present for Ace that was sitting lazily on your side table, ready to leave. As soon as your father saw you walking down the stairs, Shanks immediately broke into a grin, happy to see you confident in how you dressed. "You really went out for your little boyfie's birthday, huh?" He snickered, making you blush. "Oh, shut up!"