Hello everyone,
I hope you enjoy the new chap.
I don't own One Piece nor any of the characters.
Ace
The wind has picked up over the last few hours, driving stray rain drops and the distinct smell of sea and salt into his face. He sighs, tugging the collar of his coat up. What an odd night it has been. Odd…disappointing…appalling and aggravating. All at once.
Luffy really is able to make him feel all sorts of things, things he's never even felt part of his personality before, and he doesn't quite know if he is entirely thrilled about that. Now that he knows the boy, and the more time he spends with him, the uglier, more miserable traits surface in his own character. And it fascinates Ace, as much as it concerns him.
He is on his way back from Robin's birthday party. He said goodbye and wished her and Luffy's friends a good night. After learning the boy left the group had been considerably more silent and concerned, sitting in the living room, whilst the rest of the party guests still drank and celebrated to their hearts' content.
Ace had asked if they should look for Luffy, but Nami, Luffy's flatmate, had smiled tentatively at him and shaken her head. "He's going to be alright, no worries. If you want I'll text you later when he's home."
Ace had agreed and given the girl his number. And when he'd been about to leave the crowded, and yet suddenly so joyless living room, he'd been able to hear her hiss to her friends: "That freaking bitch…gonna have a word with –"
He'd turned around to see her stand up, but decided against his curious and bothered heart not to linger. Better to not get mixed up in too much trouble, after all. But he wonders if with "bitch", Nami has meant Sabo's girlfriend Koala. Whom he'd seen leave the kitchen right before Luffy bolted out of the house. Just a…weird coincidence?
No…coincidences like that don't happen so easily…
He's a scholar and a scientist, he doesn't believe in coincidences, although sometimes he wished he did. The reality, however he views it…looks different. Ace sighs deeply, his gaze travelling upward, the way it always does, because looking up at the sky is as natural as breathing to him, and yet… The universe holds so many unimaginable mysteries, so many secrets and answers to so many, endlessly many curious questions and yet, no matter how vast and deep and ethereal it is, it has no answers to Ace's wonder.
Just…what should he do? Whom should he believe? What happened to Luffy and his ex…? How should Ace proceed from here? And what can he do, to avoid his heart getting broken…?
And…what could he do to help Luffy? If he wanted and needed the help, of course. The thing is… no matter how confusing the boy is, and sweet and kind and sad, he is still a puzzle to Ace, a labyrinth of memories, thoughts and emotions, attitudes and opinions, and Ace doesn't know whether he could…or should… try to analyse and challenge it.
He likes the boy, more than he'd like to admit to himself. But…he doesn't know if he wants to risk his heart for this very young, very fragile romance just yet. Ace frowns at his own thoughts. He feels disgusting when he puts it that way – as though he was measuring if Luffy and their fresh relationship were worth getting hurt over.
Of course he's worth it…!
He walks faster, as if trying to run from his own thoughts.
…Well, is it…?
His heart may be convinced…but in his tiny, ugly part of his head he is sure, either way, he will be the fool in the end.
When he gets home, it's 2:30 in the morning. The flat is quiet – no sounds are coming from Kidd's room. So either him and Law are already sleeping or they went out.
The fatigue creeps into Ace's body, he can sense his mind slowing down, the exhaustion colouring his thoughts darker and more destructive. He cautiously puts his phone away when he finally gets to lie down in his bed. He wishes he could just switch off his busy head for the night, relax and rest and it all will look differently in the morning, because it normally does.
But Ace is one of those people who keep turning things over and over in their heads, as soon as they are in the soothing, encouraging silence and darkness of a closed room. And so his brain replays the events of this evening over and over, until he feels his chest squeeze painfully with remorse and he curses at his own lack of action when encountered with Luffy's obvious distress.
I should've done something…
But no, he's an adult, and he wanted to be alone. This is no freaking mind game, he wanted to leave, so letting him leave was the reasonable thing to do!
But what if he expected me to come with him? He seemed in emotional distress, and I left him all on his own, walking into the night –
STOP IT!
Ace turns to his side, punching his pillow. This isn't getting him anywhere. He rubs his eyes, staring blankly into the absolute darkness of his room. Why is this…so difficult? Truly, studying space and time is easier than puzzling out another human being one cares for. He blinks, and then reaches for his phone. No new messages from the boy. Or Nami.
He wants to send a message to Luffy. He thinks about what he should type. How to make it sound casual, but not too casual. Make Luffy know that he cares without giving him a bad conscience…?
In the end, he keeps it rather short:
- I hope you're alright and that you feel better tomorrow. Please text me when you're home, stay safe x
He reads it few more times before he hits send. Then he slumps back into the pillows, throwing his phone back onto the nightstand. He forces his eyes close and prays for sleep to eventually wash him away.
When he is just about to enter that promising realm of dreams and numbness, the doorbell rings. He frowns, laying still. Now, a soft knock on his door. What, ok, so he didn't just imagine that. He sits back up, running a hand through his messy hair. Who could it be…? Maybe Kidd and his boyfriend did go out after all, and Kidd forgot his keys… or lost them, it wouldn't even be the first time.
He sighs, swinging his legs out of bed and stumbling through the silent apartment toward the front door. He already has an amused comment on his lips when he turns the keys and opens the door, but the words get stuck in the back of throat and his heart does a rib-breaking somersault backwards before it starts pounding like mad.
He stares at Luffy, who leans against the door frame, visibly shivering, and the distinct smell of salt water and sea weed feels Ace's nostrils. Luffy looks at him through his wet bangs, his eyes very dark and unreadable. His normally so tanned skin is unhealthily pale, his lips are blue from the cold.
"L-Luffy, wh- are-?" Ace stutters, before he clears his throat – he feels the familiar heat rising to his cheeks, and his fingertips itch to pull the boy inside the apartment. He opens the door wider and steps aside.
"Please, come in. D-do you… Are you ok? Need a hot shower?"
"Th-th-thanks," Luffy says hoarsely, and now Ace sees that his clothes are dripping and he swallows down the majority of his questions.
"Is it raining outside?" Ace asks with a frown, gently ushering the boy down the hallway into the bathroom.
"No. W-went t-t-to the b-beach," Luffy stutters, and his words come out so uncomfortably laboured, Ace feels the initial excitement decrease, and the worry spreads through him. He switches on the light in the bathroom and Luffy almost falls.
He catches the shivering body and when Luffy's hand claw into his shoulder for support, he flinches – his fingers are so hard and icy cold it nearly hurts touching them, the impossible coldness is burning. Ace tries hard not to show his discomfort. Luffy's teeth chatter so loudly he grimaces with pity and he hurries, all embarrassment aside, to pull the soaked clothes off of the boy's body. He throws them into the bathtub.
When he turns around he flinches, freezing in his movement.
What the –
A massive x-shaped scar covers the boy's chest. The scar tissue is dark and rough-looking, and stands in a stark, appalling contrast to the rest of his otherwise flawless tanned skin. Ace stares.
God, what a horrible injury was that - ?
"D-did you go for a swim – in February? Luffy, that was dangerous, all alone!" Ace wills himself back to focus and he tries to fill the silence between them. He helps Luffy's clammy fingers to open the button of his jeans and pull the zipper down. He avoids staring at the boy's chest.
"I-i-it was more c-c-c-cold than d-d-d-dangerous," Luffy manages to smile and he nearly rips his underwear away. Ace immediately turns around to give Luffy a chance to preserve his modesty, and he hears how the boy ambles over to the shower and a few seconds later, the shower is on.
Ace turns around and sees Luffy's dark silhouette behind the milky glass. He still…he still can't really believe this is happening.
He slowly walks out of the bathroom and closes the door quietly behind him. Then he pinches his arm, hard, and the pain is proof enough that he isn't sleeping anymore. No, ok, this is absolutely confusing, if he wouldn't know any better he'd bet money that this is some sick, black-humoured fabrication of his tired brain, but apparently – it's not.
Ace is still shaking his head in utter disbelief as he walks back to his bedroom to get the boy a new change of clothes.
He really wouldn't have thought that the boy would turn up in front of his doorstep in the middle of the night, soaking wet and shivering with cold. A small part of him is happy that Ace, of all people in the boy's vast social circle, was the one to whom Luffy went, but it also concerns him, because looking at it rationally, they haven't known each other for long yet – and Ace is not sure at all what Luffy now expects of him. Or how far Luffy's feelings go after this demonstration of apparent trust so deep in the night.
Perhaps, maybe… his flat was just the first he came across as he stumbled through the city, and his head was all muddled up from the cold water and the icy wind. Ace frowns, grabbing a pair of joggers and a thick sweatshirt.
There are endless possibilities as to why Luffy came to him instead of going home or going to his friends' places, also as to why he has that scar on his chest. But no matter how much Ace turns it over in his head, he won't find an answer if he keeps standing here in front of his drawer like an idiot.
He sighs, returning to the bathroom. The shower is still running.
"Luffy? I put some dry clothes for you onto the shelf here, ok?" Ace asks loudly.
"Thanks!" Luffy replies through the curtain of water surrounding him and Ace is glad that his teeth aren't chattering anymore.
"If you need anything else, just tell me," Ace says and then after an approving hum, he retracts back to the living room.
He's tempted to call Kidd and ask for his opinion on this matter – he hasn't come out of his room yet to see what was going on, so Ace is pretty sure he isn't at home at the moment – because Kidd normally knows what to do in such a bizarre situation, given he's dated some fucking weird people in the past.
On the other side, however, Kidd would probably just take the piss and tell him to check if his condoms were already out of date and whether he still had enough lube for the sex left. Ace rolls his eyes. Yes, that would most likely be Kidd's reply if he'd call him now. Explaining the whole matter to him would take way too much time.
So, looks like Ace, once again, has to decide for himself and regarding the fact that he's entirely new to this whole dating thing, he's prone to make every wrong decision he can actually make.
Yeah, it's Murphy's Law again.
"Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong."
He stiffly sits down on the sofa, leaning forward on his elbows, and he blindly stares at the open magazine in front of him. It's a medical journal, Law probably left it before he and Kidd went out. Ace sighs and closes his eyes for a moment. His general fatigue doesn't help, either.
Should he…offer Luffy to call a cab or so? Or would that be rude?
He would probably think I don't want him here…which isn't true…
Ace scratches his neck. Should he just offer him to crash here for the rest of the night?
Should I…offer him to sleep in my bed…?
Or…is that too early? Or will that scare him?
The thought alone makes Ace blush and he internally scolds himself for being such a goddamn idiot. Goodness, he's twenty-four, he really shouldn't feel embarrassed about such a thing anymore, and it's honestly not like it's the first time he's been sharing a bed with someone.
However, in this case it would be the guy he has a crush on. Ace is no saint, sure, he's imagined the two of them in a bed together, with little to no clothes on, but…that was in his fantasies, and these fantasies had a much happier sentiment to them than there is now manifested in this reality, to be honest.
Ace groans, his thoughts in his already fuzzy mind tumbling over each other. This is just getting more and more ridiculous by the second. He may not have much experience, but Ace knows that dating someone should normally go much smoother and easier and not become such an emotional chaos of the bad kind.
He notices that the shower has stopped running and Ace stands up again, willing a smile back to his face. Maybe his tired mind is making this all much more difficult than it actually is and tomorrow morning he'll wonder what he's been mulling over. Yeah, probably. Ace nods to himself. He'll offer Luffy to sleep in the bed with him, and if he doesn't want to, he'll offer the boy to take the bed and he'll sleep on the sofa. Yes, this sounds like a plan…
The bathroom door and Luffy steps out, clad in Ace's way too big clothes, with his hair still looking damp and a warm blush spread over his cheeks. Ace feels his own face heat up at the adorable sight.
"Ah, thanks for letting me use the shower," Luffy says with a shy smile that tugs embarrassingly hard at Ace's silly heart.
"Of course, no problem," Ace croaks. "Ahm… it's already quite late, so do you want to s-stay here?"
The dark eyes light up with a relieved spark and Luffy nods.
"Yes, I mean, if that's ok with you, I don't to cause any trouble –"
"No! No, of course not, you're more than welcome," Ace a little too quickly.
He rubs his neck, chewing on too many words at once, each not at all enough to voice out his thoughts, before he lets out a long breath and he shyly smiles at the younger man. "Sorry about earlier at the party. I think…I was just very confused tonight. And…I should've…said something, anything really, instead of keeping silent. I'm sorry."
Luffy's eyes widen at that and he shakes his head, slowly approaching him.
"No, don't, you don't have to apologise! If anyone should apologise it's me," he says with a sigh as he halts in front of him. His raven hair is tousled from the shower and underneath the artificial odour of the shampoo Ace believes to scent salty ocean water and the faint smell of wet wood.
The heat from the shower still sticks to Luffy's gorgeous tanned skin; he stands so close Ace could touch him with ease, and he wants to, but more than that – he wants answers. But before he can ask any of his many, many questions, Luffy starts speaking again.
"I mean… I was fucking upset about what Koala told me and what she said about Sabo and… I don't know, I ran away, again, fucking mature of me, huh?" Luffy says with a grimace. "Listen, Ace, I…I really want to tell you what's going on. J-just…not now, ok?"
Ace looks at him for a moment, and he wonders what he should say, if he should ask when – but then his gullible side gets the better of him again and he just nods and slowly pulls the slender body into a hug.
"Sure, no worries. Tell me whenever you feel ready," Ace says reassuringly and he feels how Luffy's hands wander around his neck, holding him tightly.
"Th-thanks for being understanding. I-I mean it, ok?" Luffy says and smiles up at him, the conflict so evident in his eyes, like a desperate flame jittering in the wind. "And…you know, I'm sorry for…just turning up here, ok?" Luffy adds in a low voice. "I know it's a rude but…I felt I had to see you and tell you that I'm sorry."
"Don't be. It's ok. I'm just glad you're safe," Ace says soothingly. He presses a light kiss to the raven mane.
"Still. Thank you, Ace," Luffy mumbles into his shoulder and he feels the boy's lips press a peck to his jaw.
Ace is about to lean down and capture the soft lips in a loving kiss when his own body overwhelms him with a long yawn and the lithe body pressed against his own trembles with laughter. He smiles despite his yawning. Hearing Luffy laugh eases the weird discontent from his chest and he once again blames his tired brain for forming such dark and mean thoughts despite knowing better.
Luffy is in no way obligated to tell him anything, not until he feels ready to do so. No matter how much they've hung out or how well Ace thinks they're getting along, rationally seen they have known each other for barely two weeks. And if Luffy needs more time to build more trust, to get his own emotions in order, then Ace will give him as much time as he needs.
No matter what Luffy's ex-boyfriend says to Ace. Luffy came to Ace, despite their weird conversation at Robin's birthday party, Luffy went out of his way to see him again and apologise. Not only that, he also seems to be aware of Ace's interest and questions regarding his and Sabo's past. Luffy isn't actually running away at all. Just his way of facing things is different from how other people do it.
But that, too, is nothing bad or concerning and it's just Ace's exhausted brain turning things over and over, pulling them out of proportion and seeing problems where there are none.
Ace sighs, finally relaxing as the storm of questions inside his head dies down for the night and he gently nudges Luffy back toward the bathroom.
"We need sleep, I think. But brush your teeth first, there's a spare one in the cabinet."
Luffy blinks thankfully at him and walks back to the bathroom. Ace's gaze follows him, even after the door has closed his eyes are glued to where the younger man disappeared into the other room and Ace lets out a long breath. He feels he should relax now, finally, let himself calm down and rest – but somewhat, his heart refuses to slow down. But this time he doesn't feel entirely giddy and cheery, no, this time his pulse drums warningly through him.
Ace curses in a low voice. Chaos, such chaos, inside his head, inside his heart, and with every minute, with every second more he spends with Luffy, it just gets worse and worse.
Is this…is this actually how dating is like…?
To be honest, he doubts it. And the curious part of him finds himself even more intrigued and demanding for answers he has yet to wait indefinitely for.
Good god. Just what has he gotten himself into?
Around two hours later Ace jerks awake as his phone buzzes next to his ear on the nightstand. He grunts, lifting one hand to blindly reach for it in the darkness and he squints at the enlightened, too-bright screen. He yawns, it takes him a moment to understand what his visual reception is reading until he realises that it's a text of Nami, Luffy's flatmate. She's asking if he's heard anything of Luffy, which tells Ace that apparently Luffy didn't let anyone else know where he was.
Is that odd for him? Ace can't tell. Maybe.
He types a quick response, assuring her that Luffy is safe and sound with him and that he'll let Luffy know that she asked about him. Then he gently places the phone back. It's barely 5am – way too early to be up.
He turns back to his other side, draping his arm comfortably around the slender frame of the younger man and pulling his back closer against his chest, spooning him form behind. Luffy is still fast asleep; his breathing is calm and even, and he doesn't move even an inch. Ace smiles a little and presses a small kiss to the back of Luffy's neck.
He gently takes Luffy's hand into his own, holding it gently, and he's about to settle back into the pillows when he notices something, beneath his tips, that has him frown in confusion. He sits back up, straighter this time, as his brain starts to comprehend what his fingers are feeling.
Wait…is that…?
He grabs his phone once more and switches the torch on, carefully avoiding shining directly into Luffy's face and waking him up. Ace lifts the hand up he's holding and points the torch at it. His eyes grow wide, his mouth opens in surprise.
Webbing…?
He leans even closer; his hand around his phone tightens. He gently touches the fine brownish-transparent membrane with his thumb. The membrane is between all of his fingers, connecting the digits.
He flinches at the rubbery feeling of it, but it seems surprisingly tough. Ace shakes his head in wonder. Is his mind playing a trick on him? Is he…asleep already? He puts Luffy's hand back onto the mattress and switches the torch off. Well, some people do have these webbings between their fingers, it's nothing abnormal, they're just born with it.
But it's weird how he never noticed them before. He thought of himself as a more observant person, to be honest. He grins tiredly. Or he was just too busy staring into Luffy's handsome face to notice. Maybe.
He thoughtfully places his phone back onto the nightstand and closes his eyes, resting back into the pillows, albeit keeping his arms by his sides. Tomorrow he will just ask him about it.
Luffy
The smell of eggs and bacon fills his nostrils, causing Luffy's empty stomach to contract and growl with hunger and he is awake at once. He blinks, confused for a long moment. This is not his bed, is it…? He squints into the bright sunbeams smiling through the half open shutters and then the memories flood his mind with a scaring intensity.
He's at Ace's place! He walked here last night, after he went to the ocean…after – after he just ran away from Robin's birthday party, without even saying goodbye!
He groans, hiding his face in his hands. Robin must've wondered where the hell he disappeared to! He needs to text her and apologise –
His hands fly to his trousers to pull his phone from his back pocket when he realises that he isn't wearing his jeans from last night anymore. Instead too-big joggers loosely hug his hips and now Luffy also recognises the t-shirt that reaches to his elbows, clearly meant to be worn by someone much taller and broader than him.
Luffy blushes.
The clothes smell like Ace. No, actually – this whole room smells so distinctly and deliciously like him that it makes his head go a little hazy from the sudden overdose.
Luffy stands up and the soft brown carpet beneath his bare feet is unbelievably comfortable. He moves toward the window, carefully steps around the telescope standing there, and pulls the shutters up entirely; warm morning sunlight floods the room and Luffy squints into the brightness, a smile spreading over his face. It looks like it's going to be a nice day, despite the rain last night.
He turns around, examining Ace's bedroom. It's bigger than his own, and surprisingly neat considering the owner is a university student and currently doing his MSc. Luffy would've expected a likeable chaos, kind of like the one he lives in, but no – looks like Ace likes a bit of order.
There's a desk in front of the window, on top of it the gadgets Luffy would've suspected anyways, laptop, speakers, books and notepads, too many pens and charger cables. The white bookshelves are packed with books, and even from afar Luffy can read that most titles are related to space, chemistry and physics, which makes sense, of course. Also a few science-fiction titles stand there, the spines broken from so much reading. There's a wardrobe in one corner, a dresser – and aside from that, the beige walls are decorated with posters. Showing their solar system, showing Milky Way, and one over the bed shows a UFO and underneath it says "I want to believe". Luffy believes it's from that one TV show he's watched a few times…
On top of the dresser, two globes stand. One is a normal globe. The other is one that shows the night sky and all the different constellations one can see.
He doesn't know why, but Ace's room makes him smile and a little ache settles in his heart, a strange pain he hasn't felt till now, at least not in that way. Luffy thinks it's a mix of homesickness, but not homesickness in the conventional sense but the homesickness to planets and worlds far, far away, and the other is that dull throb that comes when you wonder if you haven't wasted away your life studying the entirely wrong university course.
He turns back to the bed. The sheets are navy blue, the bed linen white – the whole room just looks so well-combined Luffy is a little jealous. His own room is just a great chaos of colours, stuff and clothes all thrown together and normally it looks like a bomb went off inside. Ace's room, on the other hand, is nothing but nice and welcoming. He touches the cool sheets and then grabs them with both hands. Might as well make the bed, since he already crashed here unannounced.
"Good morning," a familiar voice greets from the right and Luffy lifts his gaze from the pillows he's rearranging, and an instant blush heats up his cheeks as he sees Ace in nothing but grey joggers and a white wifebeater that shows off his tanned skin and athletic arms. Unbelievable that someone as perfect as him studies astrophysics…
"M-morning," Luffy replies shyly. "Th-thanks again for letting me sleep here."
"No worries," Ace replies warmly and strides over to him.
His black mane is still sleep-tousled and this still-tired glow is gleaming in his eyes as he pulls Luffy into a warm hug. Luffy sighs into the welcome touch, wrapping his own arms tightly around the man's neck.
They didn't do anything last night as he remembers with a deepening blush. He'd been way to fuzzy-headed last night, he can barely remember half of the things he'd said to the other man, too coated with salt was his tongue still, too blurry his tired and exhausted mind. Despite his exhaustion, however, he remembers his quickening pulse as Ace had showed him too his bedroom, and the giddy excitement spreading all the way too his fingertips as they'd lain down next to each other.
Luffy hasn't slept like that next to someone since…well, since Sabo had broken up with him. And of course, his body had remembered; faint touches, finger searching the naked, heated skin, and the frantic movement of building desire…
Luffy feels Ace's hand gliding over his back and then a small touch on his chin. His face is angled up and Luffy feels, more than he sees, Ace bending down and gently bringing their lips together.
Luffy wonders of Ace had secretly hoped for something to happen as well.
Ace's lips are warm, almost lazy against his own and yet Luffy sighs. His stomach tightens, buzzing with butterflies, and Ace's lips start to move, gently coaxing Luffy into an innocent dance, sharing warmth and comfort, and before long Luffy feels a wet tongue probe his lips, asking for entry…
He opens with a sigh, lets the other man in as deep as he pleases, and he feels the strong arms around him tightening, pulling him even closer, and his tongue comes deep, so deep and it makes Luffy weak to the knees and seeing stars at the same time.
At some point they break away, both of them a little out of breath and faces positively flushed. Ace grins at him.
"That was one hell of a good morning kiss. Not that I'm complaining…"
And Luffy smiles at that, and he presses another small kiss to the man's nose. "Same here."
"I'm glad," Ace smiles and nods back toward the kitchen. "Anyways, you hungry? I made breakfast."
"Hell yeah!" Luffy exclaims, his stomach once again growling and Ace nods, obviously pleased with his enthusiasm and leaves first. Luffy follows him slower, self-consciously tugging at the oversized shirt hanging off his frame. It shows way more cleavage than his own clothes would…
But then again, it's Ace. So that isn't actually a bad thing.
Luffy stands in front of the sink and washes the dishes, Ace stands on his left and dries them with a towel. The breakfast was amazing, his belly is warm and full, the radio plays in the background and the window above the sink is open, letting in fresh February air and the pleasant chirping of birds. Ace chats happily about the latest shenanigans at work.
Luffy laughs, listening closely. He should perhaps visit Ace at his work place again. The book store is really nice, and if he has like one or two hours free between classes, he could come and kill some time there.
"Oh, anyways, do you where my clothes are?" Luffy suddenly remembers. He still hasn't talked to his friends. Nami is surely already pissed off, he realises with a bad conscious. After all he didn't care telling anyone where he went after he'd left the party…
"Ah, I put your clothes in the bathtub last night," Ace replies. "And I forgot to mention, Nami texted me last night and asked if I knew where you are. I told her you're with me."
"Oh ok, thanks."
And now Luffy remembers how ridiculously cold he'd been, soaked wet with ocean water, and… a-and Ace had helped him take his clothes off…
Luffy blinks. Did Ace see the scar…?
"I'll put them into the dryer, if you want. Anyways, I meant to ask already, what did you actually do by the ocean? Did you actually go for a swim?" Ace asks him casually, a hint of amusement in his voice, but also disbelief.
Luffy grimaces, handing him a wet but now clean plate.
"Listen, I was kinda drunk last night…," he tries half-heartedly.
He avoids Ace's stare from the side and resumes rinsing the next plate. There's no way in hell he can tell him, Ace would tell him to go see a doctor or worse, call the police, it's not stuff you just tell someone… And Luffy wouldn't even know how to phrase it so it wouldn't sound like complete and utter bullshit fabricated by a drunken, hazy mind.
"Well, not that drunk," Ace insists. "C'mon, you can tell me. You have no idea what weird shit I've pulled already. Drunk and sober."
Luffy grins at that. "Tell me and I'll be the judge of that."
"Happily, but you're changing the topic, babe. C'mon, tell me. It was dangerous, ok?" Ace sighs. The endearing pet name makes Luffy's heart jump, but his lips pull down, forming a stubborn line. He doesn't want to tell him.
And more than that…he feels like he shouldn't. Not after what happened with Sabo…
"You know –," Luffy starts when suddenly he feels a warm hand on his shoulder and he's gently turned around to face the older man.
Ace's gaze is nothing but sincere, his dark eyes glowing softly and yet with that spark of distress and knowing that he, Luffy, is the cause of it makes him shift anxiously. There's genuine concern written across the handsome face and Luffy's heart skips a beat, too long has it been since someone looked at him like that, more than that it's his crush, the man of his dreams looking at him like that and Luffy's resolve falter, nearly…
But then again…
Remember what happened with Sabo –
"Luffy. Please. I know we haven't known each other for long and I you are completely free to keep whatever secrets you want. I don't want to push. But I was worried, ok? Still am, to be honest. Walking around in this city in the middle of the night. Going swimming in the ocean in the middle of the night. That stuff is dangerous, babe. So…if you need to talk to someone about anything really, like – I'm here and very glad to listen. I know I said that before, but I mean it, ok?"
Luffy stares at him, his vision starting to blur and he quickly turns his gaze away so Ace wouldn't see the raw emotion.
You're too good for me…
"Ok," he chokes out and feels himself being pulled forward, into a hug so hard and reassuring like the beach, like the land itself, and Luffy practically melts into his touch, closing his ears to the faint rush of the ocean reaching for him through the open kitchen window.
Ace
The day after, it's early Sunday evening; Ace sits in front of his desk, breeding over his studies. He went for coffee with Luffy, which was pleasant and chill, and after the boy had asked if they'd want to hang out a little more. Ace would've loved to, but he has an early class tomorrow and he still needs to read the fifty pages on thermodynamics his lecturer send to them last week and he hadn't looked at them at all the past few days.
He sighs. The topic is interesting, but his heart is not with him today. Instead it twists and itches in his chest, demanding for him to grab his phone, send Luffy a message or better even, call him, so he could hear his voice again. Ace shakes his head at his own silliness. These pages are not going to read themselves, and he's been plain lazy the entire week – he needs to sit his ass down and do his work.
He manages another ten pages in a painfully slow pace before he stands up. Might as well prepare a cup of coffee, at this rate he'll sit here until after midnight. He walks into the living room to see Kidd and Law sit on the sofa, for once not in the middle of sex, watching some sitcom. They greet him.
Fresh coffee and an apple in his hands he plans to move silently through the living room as to not disturb them, when Kidd suddenly turns around to him, a smirk on his pale face, and Ace knows within an instant what his best friend is about to ask.
"So – how're things with you and your boy going?" Kidd asks, his deep voice laced with slightly mocking glee. But that's really just him.
Ace rolls his eyes. "He's not my boy –"
"Yet."
"And I don't know. It's…weird."
Now Law turns around as well, pausing the episode.
"What do you mean?" he asks. "Is it not going well?"
"Did you scare him away?" Kidd adds.
Ace frowns, shaking his head, and he walks over to the other sofa to sit down. Well, if they're asking, he might as well tell them. After all they both have much more experience with dating than he has, no matter how funny that sounds when looking at Kidd as a person. But after all, perhaps their objective eye might give him a hint on what to do with Luffy.
Kidd and Law listen carefully as he explains what happened at Robin's birthday party and how Luffy ended up at his house. He also mentions Sabo and Koala. As he tries to reconstruct all the events he realises how damn twisted his story sounds like, although all of it happened over a span of like two weeks. Which isn't a lot of time, but damn, all the things that happened sound like taken straight out of a cheap TV drama.
As he's ended, the couple changes a gaze. Kidd's smirk has vanished, replaced now by a deep frown.
"Dude, this sounds messed up," Kidd says after a moment. "Like, seriously messed up."
"Hm, if you hadn't mentioned that Luffy's ex-boyfriend had a new lover now, I would've said that he tries to get between you two and maybe even try to get back together with Luffy. But if even his new girlfriend is saying shit, then I guess that's not the case," Law says thoughtfully.
"Wait, but didn't that Sabo-guy say that he got an injury from Luffy? Maybe he just tries to protect you, Ace," Kidd says.
"Well, Luffy has an injury as well. Here," Ace remembers, drawing an x on his chest above his clothes.
"What?"
"Yeah, I saw it, Friday night, when he came here, I said that, right? He was soaking wet, apparently he went for a swim in the middle of the night," Ace explains.
"What, that's dangerous –," Law starts, but Kidd interrupts him.
"So do you think they hurt each other? This is getting pretty serious here, man. This isn't stuff that normally happens when you start seeing someone," Kidd says, surprisingly stern.
Ace looks at him. Kidd's expression is completely sober and nearly blank. The clear eyes capture his meaningfully; his lips are forming a tight line, with the hint of bitterness around the corners.
"Ace, I know you're into that kid. But that doesn't sound normal anymore. At all," Kidd says grimly. "Honestly, you need to talk to Luffy and if necessary, even to his ex-boyfriend. Hurting each other on a physical level is not a joke anymore. You don't want to get in-between and end up hurt yourself."
Ace shakes his head, his irrational defiance sparked. "Yeah, I mean…yes, you're right, but –"
"Ace. We're just trying to help, ok?" Law says a lot friendlier than his boyfriend, but nevertheless serious. "Look, how's this: If Luffy doesn't want to say anything, ask his ex-boyfriend so you at least get one side of the story. And talk to Luffy's friends, you said they were friendly, right? Try to get some sort of picture of what went down between them. I know you don't want to push him or anything, and that is good and right, but you need to look out for yourself. As Kidd said, physical violence between couples isn't normal. It's abuse."
Ace blinks, lowering his gaze. Suddenly, he feels sick to his stomach and he wishes he hadn't prepared the coffee. He feels if the bitter liquid touches his tongue now, he'll surely throw up everything he had today.
Kidd and Law are right. It's just that he didn't want to see it, through his rose-coloured vision, didn't want to admit to himself despite how obvious it is to the objective eye. If Luffy and Sabo actually hurt each other then he needs to stay away from them as far as possible. It's not a path he wants to walk down; he isn't capable of dealing with that and also not willing to. Hell, he'd get both of them professional help, but after, he couldn't...he wouldn't dare meeting either again.
But then again…Ace knows that he read somewhere that people surround themselves with like-minded people. And Luffy's friends were amazing, wonderfully friendly and inviting. Ace can't imagine they'd hang out with a guy who gave his boyfriend a face injury that severe that the scars would never fade. Heck, if Sabo had reported it, Luffy would've at least ended up in prison. And also vice-versa.
He scratches his neck. None of this makes any sense.
"Ace?" Law asks and he reluctantly looks up to meet the man's patient gaze.
"Yeah. Ahm…you're right. Both of you," he says after a moment. He smiles tentatively at them grabbing his apple and coffee. "I think…yeah, I'll talk to them. Thanks guys."
"Anytime, man," Kidd says, still grimly.
"Good luck," Law says with a reassuring smile.
Ace leaves them and returns to his room. He sets the mug down much harder than necessary, the brown liquid spills over the rim and soils the wooden surface of his desk. He sighs and grabs a tissue to clean the mess.
His phone buzzes and the display lights up.
He looks over, and sees an unknown number.
Luffy
"Hey, can you go to the market really quick? I need cucumber and aubergine, ok?" Nami asks him instead of greeting him.
"Can't you go yourself?" Luffy sighs, of half a heart to just hang up. He's just on his way back home, and honestly not in the mood to turn around and walk the way back.
"I'm in my pjs and my laptop won't let me leave. Pleeeaaaase, you can have half of it later," Nami pleads and he rolls his eyes.
"Ok, fiiine…," he drawls. "How many do you want?"
"Two of each. Will give you back the money later."
"Ok."
He slides his phone back into his pocket and turns around; walking the exact same way back he came from. He'd gone for coffee with Ace, which had been really nice – the memory of Ace softly kissing him goodbye brings the blush back to Luffy's face – and after he'd gone and hung out with Sanji and Zoro at their flat. Now he actually just wants to go home, eat and chill in front of his laptop. But no, Nami had to call him…
The market is inside a large hall in the city centre. Most of the sellers have started packing up for the day, it's 7pm, but they're still open and practically throw the rest of their goods at anyone who happens to walk past.
On his way back from a vegetable stand where he knows the guy, he walks past a fish seller. The smell gives it away from afar, the distinct smell of fish, salt and shrimps fills Luffy's nostrils and he feels his mouth watering. The woman is in the middle of packing her stuff when he stops in front of her stand.
Seems like she sold well today, just a few sardines are left, not looking entirely fresh anymore. The cold, dead eyes stare blindly up at the ceiling, the scaled bodies frozen hard between the ice cubes.
Yummy.
Without another thought he buys the rest of them, and happily humming a tune he finally makes his way home. But this time he takes a detour. He walks the longer way, close by the ocean, instead of straight ahead, and although this route takes much longer, it's definitely nicer, and who wouldn't want to enjoy the view of the ocean?
He sits down on a bench, not caring at all about Nami who's still waiting for her vegetables so she can make dinner. He instead grabs the bag full of fish from his backpack and opens it. The strong scent wafts up into his nose, making his mouth water once more, and he licks his lips.
The fish is still mostly untouched, the belly isn't open so he suspects that the grates and brains and organs are still inside. He grins, grabbing one from the bag – it has started to defrost already, and although the skin is still painfully cold and slimy, it's not hard anymore.
He looks over his shoulder but he's alone. So he lets his head fall into his neck and swallows the fish down whole.
To be continued.
So, I hope this chapter revealed a bit more of what this story will actually be about. I was and still am pretty concerned about how people will respond to these "revelations" and hints.
Including supernatural elements is not something I normally do, it's either supernaturel but fits within canon, or it's modern setting/University AU and it is stricly without any supernatural or fantastic elements.
However, I wanted to try out something new and perhaps more unpredictable and I hope people will like it and not be disappointed.
Also I tried to give Ace's and Luffy's interactions a sense of restraint and distress, and not make it feel as cheesy and cute anymore as it was in the first few chapters. I hope I succeeded in that respect.
And for those who came for the smut: No worries. It's on its way.
