Disclaimer : Oda-sensei owns One Piece
Summary : He barely understood what was happening, but then, why was he crying? AceXLuffy brotherly fic.
A.N: Thank you so much for Saiyan Angie for beta-ing this story!! My first time to write a fic with Ace in it, and if he went OOC, please let me know!
UNTOLD SECRETS FOR MY LITTLE BROTHER
Ace walked slowly to his one-story house, carrying 7-years old Luffy on his back. A bloody scratch was visible on his little brother's left forehead. The older boy sighed heavily, if Luffy could just ignore the village kids' mocks about their parents, he wouldn't ended up fighting and getting injured here and there.
The grip on his throat tightened, and there came a sleepy whimper on his ear, "Ace?"
He turned to Luffy, "Sssh…go back to sleep."
Luffy nodded and buried his face on his brother's warm back, humming softly. Ace merely sighed again, "Luffy, you shouldn't have—"
The smaller boy glared and cut his words abruptly, "But they said that our parents didn't love us so they left years ago, and…and they said bad things about you, too!"
Ace stopped for a moment and titled his head back, smiling, "No, it's okay, Luffy. I'm not mad at you. Just… stop making me worry all time, ok?"
The smaller boy nodded weakly as Ace continued to walk them home. "Ace?" Luffy called, earning a soft 'hmm?' for an answer.
"You won't leave me too, will you? You won't leave me like Mom and Dad did, will you?"
Ace stopped and turned his head slightly, his eyes met a pair of huge obsidian eyes that were exactly the same as his, "No, I won't leave you. Not until you're big enough."
"I don't want you to leave me, Ace! I don't wanna be left alone! Ever!"
"You'll never be alone, Luffy. There's always Makino and The Mayor, and you'll make a lot of friends!" Ace smiled widely, reassuring his pouting little brother.
"But—"
"You want to be a Pirate King, right? Eventually, either you or I will have to leave this place one day."
Luffy fell silent at the mention of 'Pirate King' and buried his face deeper into his brother's back, "But I'll never forget Ace, because Ace is my most favorite person in the world!"
Ace, struggling to loosen the tight grip on his throat, grinned widely, "I know!"
xxooxx
Ace frowned as the knocks on the door grew louder, "Hai, hai, coming!" he yelled with annoyance and ran to open it. He saw Shanks smiled widely, carrying Luffy on his back, "Hi, Ace!"
"Ah, hi!" he muttered softly and let Shanks entered his house. "Um, sorry you had to carry him back." He bowed politely and reached out his hands to take his brother.
The red haired pirates shook his head, "No, don't be. It's okay, Luffy's not that heavy. He just wouldn't go home until I finished my stories. Where's his room, anyway?"
"We share the same room." Ace led the older man farther into the house, entering a room with a double-sized bed in the middle.
Shanks laughed as he put the small bundle onto the bed, "What, he is still afraid to sleep alone? Does he always ask you to come along if he needs to pee, too?"
"He does, "Ace merely shrugged, pulling the covers up to the boy's chin, "besides, I don't mind."
Shanks laughed hard and ruffled the sleeping boy's black locks affectionately, "How cute, despite how hyperactive he is during the day."
Ace grinned widely, "Yeah, and sometimes it's hard to keep an eye on him—" he trailed off and coughed harshly. He clapped both his hands over his mouth and Shanks' eyes widened at the crimson liquid began trailing down Ace's fingers.
"Kid, you…" he hurried to fetch the swaying boy, but Ace quickly steadied himself and smiled, wiping the blood on the corner of his lips with his thumb.
Ace put his index finger on his lips, and smiled weakly at the older man.
'Keep it a secret…'
xxooxx
Ace curled up into his brother's side as he heard the heavy thumps of Shanks' boots slowly fade. After hearing the door close, he pulled the covers up to his torso, smiling softly at the boy's small figure beside him. He reached out a hand to rub the scar under Luffy's left eye.
Stupid little brother and his stupid ideas.
Ace chuckled softly, but his smile faded quickly. How would Luffy live if he had to leave? Would he be okay? Could he feed himself? No, he had Makino, and The Mayor for that matter. Besides, Luffy was a strong boy, albeit dumb. He could take care of himself.
He should have nothing to worry about, then.
Ace gulped silently, trying to force back his tears and failing miserably. He coughed softly and his chest heaved in pain. He raked the boy's black bangs gently as tears freely running down his cheeks. He couldn't leave him…
He just didn't want to.
A.N : hopefully the next chapter would come pretty soon, --and the more reviews I get, the faster I will write! XD
THANK YOU FOR READING!