And even more drabbles... As always, everything was beta'ed by lunarshores.

AceLu

When my mother first met Dragon, I thought that their relationship wouldn't last long. I thought that he'd break up with her when he found out that she has a 10-year-old son, like all of the others before him. Yeah, well, needless to say it didn't turn out that way. In fact, he also admitted to having a child. I think that his son's name was Luffy. I didn't meet the kid until after they got engaged, though.

Luffy was always happy. And for some reason, it really pissed me off. The stupid kid kept getting himself into all sorts of trouble trying to make me his friend. His brother. I didn't want a brother. Dragon, I could tolerate. He made Mom happy. But this brat? Because of him, Mom had less time for me. When I told him to piss off (I had quite a mouth on me, even as a 10-year-old), he never listened to me. He would either pretend that he didn't hear me, or he would start talking about something weird.

And then, mom and Dragon got married. He and his son moved into our house, and Mom had even less time for me. I often found myself taking a walk alone in a nearby park and watching other kids play with their parents.

Why couldn't I have a normal, functional family?

When I came back home that day, I didn't talk to anyone. I took off my shoes and jacket and went straight to my room. If Mom noticed my bad mood, she didn't say anything.

Except for school, I didn't really leave my room for the next few days. I knew Mom was worried, but I didn't care. She tried to get me to come out a few times, but I locked the door and put a pillow over my head as I lied in my bed.

One day, though, when I came back from school, I found Luffy sitting on my bed. I threw my backpack into the corner of the room and ignored him. It went on like this for about half an hour, me just sitting at my desk, and him watching me.

"What?" I finally ground out, glaring at him.

"Why do you stay here every day?" Luffy asked. I frowned in annoyance.

"What's it to you?" I countered. Luffy turned his head to look at his feet.

"Because you seem lonely, and I'm lonely. I don't have any friends here. All I have is Mom and Dad, but it's not the same. You used to be there, but now you're not, and I'm all alone. I don't want to be alone." My frown slowly disappeared as he talked.

"Why would you want me to be there?" I asked hesitantly. I had to admit, I was curious. No one had ever said anything like that to me before. I had no friends at school. Mom had said not to worry about it, that it wasn't my fault. Apparently, my biological father had been a criminal, and other parents were afraid to let their children play with me. The prospect of having a friend peaked my interest.

"Because you're my brother." Funny how he decided that, and I had no say in it. Not step-brother. Just brother. I sighed but cracked a smile. Maybe, just maybe, I could do something to chase the loneliness away for both of us, at least for a little while.

"Then how about we go get some ice cream?" Luffy looked up at me with those big, brown eyes of his, full of surprise and disbelief.

"R-really?" I nodded. I almost jumped in surprise when I felt his arms wrap around me in a hug. I had no idea whether or not I should hug him back, so I just sat there awkwardly.

"You're the best, Ace!" Luffy's grin was contagious, and I couldn't help but return it.

I had no idea just what I was signing myself up for with that simple offer. Having a little brother like Luffy isn't ever easy. But I don't regret that day for anything.