Acacia knocked on the door three times and waited patiently for someone to open the door. She picked at her nails with her thumb, swaying back and forth on the tip of her toes. She showed up here with a purpose, and it will be fulfilled because tying loose ends is what she does best.

The door opened, revealing her best friend on the other side. His eyes widened in shock as if he did not expect her to show up here. She gave him a small smile and he returned one for her.

“What’s up Ace?” Rian asked.

Ace shot her friend a meaningful look and he immediately knew the answer to her question.

“Ace, do you think now is the best time to tell him that?” He sounded uncertain.

He wants more than anything for her to be happy, but the timing of everything is wrong. Instead of fixing everything, it might ruin everything.

“Rian, I am ready to do whatever it takes to make up with him. I am going to marry him and apologize to him for taking so long to decide. Maybe he is still mad at me, but I cannot take this anymore.” Ace ranted on.

Hesitantly, Rian stepped aside for her to enter the loft. He knows that everything will result in chaos if things went down the way he imagined it to be.

“What’s wrong, Rian?” She asked when she noticed the look of discomfort on his face.

Her friend shook his head at her, trying to think of different ways he can stall her. As a best friend, he wants to find ways to protect her from harm. But in order to protect her from harm, he needs to keep things from her and that’s just not what he should do. He needs to let her see things for herself and decide on how she will handle it.

However, the longer he puts it off, the better.

“Nothing, I just want to talk to you, take a seat.” Rian said.

Sighing, Ace folded both of her arms across her chest and pursed her lips at the man in front of her. He gestured toward the couch but she is not buying it.

“What is so important that you need to hold me back from one of the biggest decisions I’ve ever made in my life?”

Rian opened his mouth, trying to think fast. An alternative method of holding her back temporarily appeared into his head.

“I don’t want you to marry him.” He said quickly.

Tilting her head, Ace raised an eyebrow at her friend. She is confused.

“What?”

“I’ve been in love with you ever since we were young. I can’t let you marry him!” Rian exclaimed.

The two stared each other down for a few moments. Both of their eyebrows furrowed, letting that confession hang on in the air. Ace’s lips tilted upwards into a smile. Moments later, she broke into a fit of laughter.

“We both know that’s bullshit, Rian!”

She’s known Rian ever since they were in diapers and probably knows him better than anyone else in this world. He is definitely not in love with her, because if he does by some chance, she would know.

He shot her a smile that told her she is right.

“Fair enough… but…”

“Look, whatever reason you are holding me back, I can handle it. He’s heartbroken and everything… I’ll make him better. I promise I won’t hurt him anymore!”

She came to a conclusion that the reason Rian is trying to prevent her from expressing her decision is because he did not want her to lead him on just to break him down.

“Acacia, that’s not it… it’s just that…” He started, ready to tell her the actual truth.

Shaking her head, she brushed past her best friend and aimed for the door. She didn’t even bother knocking before turning the unlocked doorknob and pushed it right open. As soon as it shot open, she did not hesitate to invite herself inside the familiar bedroom.

“I’ll marry you!” She declared confidently.

When she turned her head to view the direction of his bed, her eyes widened in shock and dismay. A gasp escaped her lips as the actual thought of what is happening in front of her stopped.

He dared to bring a woman into his bedroom and seduce her with his abilities to play the guitar.

The redhead sat down on top of his lap removed herself from him, bringing his acoustic guitar with her. It seems like he was trying to teach her how to play the guitar; the sight bothered her because she had once been in this position with him when they just started dating.

“Zack…” She stared at him in disbelief.



“Ace!”

The blonde female detective shook out of her daydream in order to revert her thoughts back to the present time. When she snapped out of her daze, she is met with a picture of a happier version of herself and Zack, her ex boyfriend. Sighing loudly, she placed the picture back on its usual place beside her computer.

She turned to the owner of the voice and sighed in relief that it is her partner, Detective Iverson beside her instead of any other people. Her eyes blinked at him several times before she shot him a forced smile.

“You really need to remove that picture.” Iverson remarked.

Ace decided not to think too much about it; displaying too much vulnerability is never a good thing, especially for a homicide detective. She needs to be strong for herself, because what happened between herself and Zack was over a year ago. Fretting over the regrettable decision she made would only make things worse.

“Did you file the APB yet?” She asked her partner.

“Yeah, I did. Hopefully someone will find that scumbag. The longer we take to capture him, the more danger he will cause this society.” Iverson said.

Acacia nodded silently, returning her attention back to the picture of Zack. She closed her eyes for a brief moment and the image of the redhead woman appeared in her mind again. Sighing loudly, Ace reopened her eyes and they wandered over to a small box on the other side of her office computer.

The box was delivered to her a few hours ago, and after she opened it, she instantly knew that it was a gift from Rian, her best friend since childhood.

“You know, I think this guy is crazy for you. So, instead of holding onto the lingering memories of Zack, you should probably move on and appreciate Rian’s affections for you.” Her partner suggested.

Scoffing, Ace turned to Iverson.

“Oh please, Iverson, I am long over Zack by now. And second, Rian has a girlfriend that he loves very much. Oh and third, I know that we love each other, but not in a way that the rest of you think!”

Iverson shrugged at her, completely unconvinced. He did understand the friendship between the female detective and her rock star best friend, but sometimes he sees the potential of it being something more.

He just wants Ace to be happy, and he also knows that deep down inside, she has never gotten over Zack. He moved on with Wallace Poulsen, the redhead model for the infamous Lockheart Empire, leaving Ace helpless and destructed.

“Detective Kovacs!” Detective Jacobson called out from the other side of the precinct.

Ace turned to the male detective.

“Rian is here to see you, again.”

Laughing, she got up from her desk and patted on her partner’s shoulder several times. Iverson shot her a suggestive look.

“Come on, James, you know he’s only here because it’s my birthday, right?”

“Alright, whatever you say!” Iverson teased just as Rian approached the partner detectives.

The musician grinned at his best friend when he approached.

“Hello birthday girl!” He pulled her into a hug.

While in the hug, Rian noticed that the picture of Ace and Zack is still resting on her office desk. He scowled at the image and broke away from the hug. When she smiled at him, he returned it instantly. In his heart, he feels really sad that his friend is still not over his band mate yet.

“How are you, Rian?” Iverson asked.

“I’m great, James! Today is my best friend’s birthday! The best day of December—well excluding Christmas.”

“And Gaskarth’s birthday?” Ace asked.

“Haha, no, you know your birthday is more eventful than his!”

“No, but what about your own birthday?”

Rian scoffed.

“Yeah, my birthday was like three days ago, no one gives a shit anymore. Today is your day!”

Ace laughed, giving his shoulder a nudge.

“Which is why I am bringing you to a special lunch at Jamison’s right now!”

The blonde detective opened her mouth in protest. She stared at her computer screen and then at her partner. Iverson gave her an encouraging nod but she is still not convinced that she should leave her work for a nice lunch break.

“Ace?” Rian placed a hand on her shoulder.

Ace opened her mouth and then closed it again.

“We have a criminal to track down, I’m not sure if I deserve a break right now!”

Detective Iverson scoffed before shaking his head. He shot his partner a disapproving look before walking off to his own desk.

“Oh please, Acacia, every homicide cop in Baltimore deserves a lunch break—and especially on the day of her birthday.” Rian broke into a smirk.

Ace studied her friend for a few brief moments before giving in.

“Ugh, fine, but if the criminal gets away or moves out of the country, it’s all on you!”

“Sure, let’s go!” Rian pulled her away from her desk.

As the pair walked out of the precinct, Rian turned to her with a satisfied smile on his face.

“By the way, did you get my gift?”

Ace laughed, shaking her head. This morning, when the gift was delivered to her, she opened it and saw a stuffed bear wearing a cop costume. She knew it was from Rian instantly because he is the only one who liked to tease her about being too much of a serious cop.

“Yes, I very much enjoy it, Dawson!”

Notes

Alright, if you haven't read the first two stories, go do that. If you really don't want to, you'll survive. You just will lack some knowledge of the history of some of these characters.

Anyways, leave your comments, tell me what you think!