Chapter Text
Nancy woke up in her childhood bedroom and stretched out her arms. She took a moment to smile in the soft yellow light that filtered through her curtains. It was so nice to get a night off after the past few months of waking up constantly to feed Lucy. She was so grateful to Ace for insisting that she crash at her dads’ house for a night. Nancy would reflect more on this, but at the moment she had a singular thought blaring through her mind: coffee. She shuffled over to her closet and picked out a simple top and jeans. She didn’t bother with the ascots much anymore; they took too much time and Lucy would inevitably mess them up somehow. She would tug them loose, spit up on them, or just generally crush them with her tiny fingers and mouth until they were an unrecognizable shape. Something about the room seemed different than the last time she had visited, but sleepy Nancy brain took over detective Nancy brain on this one. It had probably just been a while since she went in here last.
After fluffing up her chin length hair and brushing her teeth, Nancy trudged down the stairs in search of life-giving coffee. She walked into the kitchen and Ryan and Carson both looked at her like she had two heads. Nancy looked around and was about to make a beeline for the coffee maker.
“Nance? I love your hair.” Ryan sounded really shocked. She appreciated the compliment though. Nancy had gotten this haircut months ago, when Lucy was first born and wouldn’t stop pulling on her long hair. As a new mother it was hard to find time to maintain her looks. Maybe Ace was right, sleeping in was all she needed.
“Thanks Dad.” Ryan looked at Carson with an even more confused expression. Carson just shrugged and looked back.
“Okay you guys, what is going on? Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?” Carson was about to say something when Nancy looked at the clock. It was already 11:30! “Shit! Shit shit shit shit shit. I told Ace I would meet him at the Claw at 11:00. I’ll get coffee there okay don’t worry. I’m feeling much much better after last night. Thanks for letting me stay over. Gotta go!”
She raced out the door, grabbing her keys off the hook and leaving a baffled pair of dads behind.
As Nancy pulled up to The Claw she couldn’t help but feel butterflies in her stomach. Everyone said that eventually you would stop “catching feelings” for your husband, but she just couldn’t believe this to be true. Ace is the love of her life and she can’t stop thinking about him. Even though they had just spent one night apart, she would never stop making up for lost time. When Ace and Nancy were cursed that was the hardest part of her life so far. It only came second to the pain of losing her mom.
The door jingled and Nancy stepped inside The Claw. The familiar smell of sea and grease hit her nose and she smiled. It was hard to make it over here much during the late stages of her pregnancy and Lucy’s lifetime. Becoming parents took up a lot of Nancy and Ace’s time, but they still tried to see their friends whenever possible. Of course, they had the best babysitting network a couple could ask for when it came to Lucy. Ryan simply couldn’t get over how adorable his granddaughter is.
“Nancy?” George looked up from wiping the counter. It was slow in the restaurant and there weren’t any customers yet. It almost reminded Nancy of how bad business was a couple of years ago, before Nick went to business school and improved their marketing technique. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.” She says almost sarcastically. Nancy feels a twinge of guilt. Had it really been that long since she’d made it back in here?
“Oh, don’t listen to her.” Bess said and came out from the back to hug Nancy. It was a tad long and Nancy was about to ask what was wrong when Bess said, “It’s been too long! I’m so glad you finally came around. I’ve been trying to convince Ace that he should just talk to you and see what’s wrong, but he refused. He’s just being an idiot I’m sure you guys will be fine. And your hair! It suits you so well. I haven’t seen you in a month Nancy but the hair is another thing entirely! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.” Bess was rambling and at the end had a little pout like she might have said too much. Now Nancy was very confused. George was one thing, but she knew for a fact that Bess had babysat for them just last week. Her brain fog wasn’t so bad that she couldn’t tell the difference between a week and a month. She needed to find Ace and ask him what was going on. And get some coffee. That too.
“Bess? That doesn’t make any…” She trailed off when she saw Ace. His hair was so cute and floppy and the force of her love hit her like a truck. If she could see herself in a mirror she’s sure that her eyes would be shining with happy tears. Sometimes her hormones still made her so emotional and she had missed Ace a lot last night. She recognized the focused furrow in his brow as he scrubbed the dishes in the back.
Bess looked on in shock as Nancy practically flounced to Ace’s side. Before he could even register her presence she was sliding her arms around his waist and hugging herself into his back.
“Hey babe,” She said. “I missed you so much last night. I told you you don’t need to keep taking these extra dishwashing shifts.” She kissed his neck and then gently took his hands out of the water. “I don’t want you to work so hard. I know Lucy is safe with Nick at the Youth Center but you deserve a rest too.” She shifted him towards her and gave him a soft kiss.
Nancy jumped as she turned around and saw that Bess had dropped an entire tray of glasses that shattered on the floor.
“What the actual fuck?” George said. Nancy looked back to Ace and he was completely stunned.
“What?” Nancy asked. “Can’t I kiss my husband?” All three of them stared at her open-mouthed.
“Nancy,” Ace stared at her seriously, his focus starting to come back. He blushed a deep red. “I haven’t seen you in a month. The last I heard, you didn’t love me and you never wanted to see me again.”
“Fuck.” Nancy said. “I need coffee for this."