Ace swallowed thickly. Wow. That was all he could really think about. Marco sure was scary when he was like this. He had taken his beating, physical and verbal and now well...now he actually did feel better. Marco and Thatch knew he had issues with thinking people really didn't love him. Or thinking he didn't deserve that love. Truth was, the simple fact all of those people came to save him made him realize that perhaps he did matter enough. Still it didn't get rid of the guilt he felt. Only time could heal that.

He also didn't regret his decisions. He hated the outcomes, but he knew for a fact if given another choice he still would have done everything exactly the same. Ace was quiet for a very long time. Finally, he cleared his throat and whispered with a small smile on his face.

"You punch like a little girl." It seemed to be the only thing he could think of to say to diffuse the tension and let Marco know that he was going to be alright.