Hello!
Sorry for not updating for AGES! Life has been crazy tough these days and it's really been a struggle trying to find time to sit down and work on translations... *sobs* Either way, this chapter has been lying around for some time and I've finally gotten off my butt to post it up. Enjoy!
Betaed by the lovely beposbutt.
Original fic (pixiv,net/series,php?id=277975) Replace all commas with full stops~
FORTUNE: CHAPTER 4
~What is done cannot be undone.~
XxXxXxX
That day, Law returned home around noon.
He was slightly surprised to find that Kid wasn't in the apartment, but he knew the redhead usually went out even on his rest days.
Law padded to his room, spotting a line of laundry fluttering in the wind on the veranda connected out his window. Kid typically preferred to hang his laundry in his own bedroom whenever he had to be out for the day, so seeing the clothes outside probably meant that Kid was out on an errand and would be back soon.
With that thought in mind, Law went about his chores, sweeping the floor and cleaning out the fridge. That done, he settled down in front of his laptop and spent some time browsing through the Internet. When the sun was about to set, he went outside and gathered up the clean laundry.
It suddenly occured to him how little clothes Kid owned. Not that he'd expected the other man to own an entire wardrobe like some fashion-conscious girl, but compared to all of Law's past lovers, the redhead's collection was measly at best. Just then, he heard the front door opening.
"Welcome home," Law called out.
Kid appeared exhausted as he bent to peel off his shoes at the entryway, and Law wondered if he'd heard him at all. It was only when Kid straightened up and entered the living room then did he notice Law.
"I'm home," he sighed in lethargic response.
"I've brought in the laundry."
"Yeah, thanks. Just leave them on my bed."
"OK."
Law gathered the pile of freshly-laundered clothes and dumped them onto Kid's bed. All this while, Kid stood in the middle of the living room, glaring at the floor. Law wondered if the larger man was just too tired to move.
That said, it had been a blistering hot day. Summer wasn't truly here yet, but the rainy season seemed to already be over, and each day felt stiflingly hot. Law wasn't surprised that Kid's errand out in the heat had sapped all his energy.
Law would have loved to make things more bearable for his red-haired housemate, but alas, they didn't own an air-conditioner. Thus, he moved the electric fan next to the open window, hoping it would help encourage the circulation of cool air throughout the apartment. Sadly, it didn't seem to work.
"Would you like to take a bath? I just washed the tub, I can-"
"No... I'll do that later..."
'-fill it up for you.'
The rest of Law's sentence remained unspoken as he anxiously took in Kid's sweating form. Afraid that he was suffering from heatstroke, Law pulled the man into the kitchen. Digging out a can of barley tea from the fridge and filling a glass full with the chilled drink, Law passed it to the larger man, who downed its entire contents in a single gulp.
He was relieved to see the other male finally responding, but Kid still appeared gloomy as he wordlessly waved away a second glass of barley tea.
The two stood in silence for a few moments while Law sipped gingerly at the glass of tea the redhead had rejected. Slowly, he noted Kid coming back to his senses, and was quietly glad when the redhead finally grabbed the nylon bag he'd brought back with him from his errand and opened it, showing its contents to Law.
"Look, I got some apples here. Wanna try them?"
"Yes," Law nodded gratefully.
"Alright, wait here. I'll cut them into slices."
Kid moved to the bathroom to wash up, before returning to the kitchen. Grabbing a knife, he skillfully skinned the apples and cut them into slices.
Law thought he looked like a real chef at work, and said so.
"You're really good at this, Eustass-ya."
"Really? But everyone can do this, right?"
"But look, the skin is still all in one piece. That's amazing," Law gushed as he picked up the discarded skin from the kitchen counter, staring at it in awe like a child. The sight made Kid smile.
"Shall I make you a rabbit then?"
"You can?!"
Law's eyes positively sparkled as he watched Kid make several incisions on an apple. Soon, the apple's skin became long bunny ears, and Kid handed the apple-turned-rabbit to a delighted Law.
"Wow! I've never seen anyone do this before!" Law exclaimed as he marvelled at Kid's handiwork. The redhead grinned as he stabbed a slice with a toothpick, before feeding it to Law.
"Is it sweet?"
"No, it's sour," Law couldn't help but grimace at the taste, before adding hurriedly, "but it tastes alright!"
"Well, that's just too bad," Kid laughed, and Law was relieved to see the larger man smiling again.
Kid then tried a slice himself, before confirming that it was indeed too sour. Law giggled at the sight of Kid scowling at the apple slices.
After filling their stomachs with the fruit, Kid went to take his bath, while Law started on dinner preparations. His plan was to improvise a dish of yakisoba with all the random ingredients he'd found in their fridge. The resulting dish turned out to be as tasty, beautiful and fragrant as he'd imagined, and Law gave himself a satisfied pat on the back at his masterpiece.
"That looks really good," Kid commented as he stepped into the kitchen, fresh from the bath with a towel around his neck and red hair dripping wet.
"Hey, don't drip all over the floor," Law scolded as he grabbed the towel off Kid's shoulders, attempting to dry the other male's hair, only to find himself coming up a few inches too short. Unfazed, he stood up on his tiptoes, using his fingertips to towel the dampness from Kid's hair.
It took a while before he realized that he was standing almost nose-to-nose with Kid, who was smirking like a devil.
"Stop smiling and help me out a little here!" Law huffed as he rolled his eyes.
"Sorry. You're just too cute like that."
Kid laughed as he took the towel from a stunned Law's hands, before heading back into the bathroom to use the hairdryer.
Law refused to admit that Kid's words had stirred a strange feeling in his heart, as he threw himself into the task of serving the steaming yakisoba onto two plates and setting them on the low table in Kid's room. Kid soon came in as well, bearing two cups and several cans of chilled barley tea.
"You didn't have to wait for me," Kid commented as he sat down at the table. In fact, he was slightly impressed that Law actually possessed the manners to wait.
"Well, I feel that food tastes much better when you're eating it with someone," Law smiled as he tucked into the meal. After pouring out drinks for both of them, Kid started eating as well.
"Delicious."
"That's good to hear."
That was another reason why Law didn't mind waiting for Kid to start the meal together. The redhead's comments and praises always made his heart full, and even if they didn't talk about much else, the smaller male always enjoyed dinnertime with Kid.
After the meal, Law went to take a bath, and was pleasantly surprised to find the dishes in the sink already washed and put away when he returned. Grabbing a can of beer for Kid and Chuhai for himself, he made his way to Kid's room.
"Thanks for washing the dishes."
"No problem. Thanks for the delicious meal."
Kid thanked him once again when he passed him the beer, and Law found himself smiling at the casual formality of their conversation.
In truth, he didn't need Kid's gratitude. Law cooked because he loved doing so, and since he usually cooked meals for himself, cooking for an additional person was no trouble at all.
Of course, the fact that he secretly enjoyed being on the receiving end of Kid's attention and consideration was just a bonus.
Sitting down next to Kid, he opened his can of Chuhai and took a sip. Enjoying his drink, it was only after a few long moments that he noticed how Kid was staring at him. More specifically, at his legs, clad only in a pair of pajama shorts he usually wore to bed.
Belatedly, his mind registered the feeling of Kid's fingers stroking along his bare thigh, and he flinched in shock, almost spilling his drink. Unfazed, Kid's fingers continued their movement down his thigh, stroking down the length of his calf.
"W-what...?"
"It's nothing. Just...do you shave?" Kid asked curiously as his eyes and fingers continued roaming the smooth, silky skin of Law's legs.
"Well... Once in a while... I've never had much hair on my legs, but I don't like the feeling, so I shave sometimes..."
Law's past lovers usually didn't mind it either way, and while a few had loved his smooth legs, Law remembered how a couple of them had been disgusted by what they termed his "girly" habit. But Law had always believed that his body belonged to him, and he had every right to do whatever he wanted to it. It wasn't as if he was trying to imitate a woman or male model, he just personally preferred having his legs smooth and hairless.
"That's nice... You have really shapely legs too, much prettier than most girls I know..."
Law's face turned scarlet upon hearing Kid whisper those words in a low voice. Flustered, he swatted Kid's hand away.
"Stop saying such lewd things! You're straight, aren't you!"
"What has me being straight got to do with anything?"
Unable to come up with a reply, Law could only gape as Kid laughed.
"N-no more touching allowed! I'm not some free petting zoo!"
"So you'd rather I ogle from a distance?"
"Stop talking like that! Why must you ogle me?! You're such a brute!" Law protested as he shuffled further away from the grinning Kid.
His eyes flitted across the room, searching for some way to change the topic, when he caught sight of Kid's shirt hanging on a hook on the wall.
"Your shirt... One of the buttons is coming loose..."
"Huh? Oh, yeah... And it's quite a new shirt too," Kid commented off-handedly as he lit up a cigarette. Thankfully, he seemed to have gotten bored of teasing Law.
"And you're not doing anything about it?"
"What can I do?"
"Shall I sew it back for you?"
Kid's eyes widened. "You can do that?"
Law nodded, "I have a sewing kit..."
"Oh... Whatever for?"
"It's always good to have a portable kit in case of emergencies," Law reasoned as he grabbed his bag, which had been lying in a corner of the room, and pulled it towards him. Taking out his tiny sewing kit, Law proceeded to mend the shirt.
"Wow... I never knew you could do something like that," Kid mused as he watched Law deftly sew the button back in place.
"It's actually really easy. Eustass-ya, you should learn how to do it too. It's an essential skill for people who live alone."
Law finished up with a couple of extra rounds to ensure the button stayed secure, before tying a knot and cutting off the needle and excess string with a small pair of scissors.
"Well, they always say the most important things one learns in school are Japanese, Math, English, Science and Home Economics," Law said with a smile.
"What about Social Studies?"
Law cast his eyes down at Kid's words. Society had never truly been accepting of people like him.
"Has it always been like that...?" Kid's soft voice pierced through Law's thoughts.
"Huh?"
"Have you always lived alone?"
He could have just given a short affirmative answer and let the issue slide, but for some reason, Law felt like he could talk to Kid about it. In fact, he needed to talk about it, to share with Kid something he'd never shared with anyone before.
"My family is one of doctors, so I was nurtured ever since I was a child to become one too... But unfortunately, I just wasn't cut out for it."
The high school that Kid and Law had attended had been quite a prestigious establishment, but apparently, it had not been good enough for Law's parents.
"After high school, I went to a medical college, but I couldn't cope. I spent my time flirting with the guys there instead of studying, so my grades plummeted, which then led to my parents finding out that I'm gay..."
Law recalled how he had been told to come straight home that day, only to be told that he was no longer part of the family and chased out.
"My elder brother had always been the better one, so I never felt like I mattered in that house anyway. My sexuality was just a good excuse for them to get rid of someone they've never truly wanted."
Thus far, Kid had been listening silently to Law's recollection, a slight frown on his face.
"After they cut all ties with me, I couldn't afford to pay my tuition fees, so I dropped out of school. Since then, I've been moving from job to job..."
Law sighed. He hadn't meant to divulge as much as he did. As if sensing that, Kid hesistated a moment before asking.
"Do you regret it?"
"No."
Law's answer came almost immediately, his voice soft but firm.
"No matter how fucked up my life was, it's still my life. I've faced lots of obstacles and trouble, but there were times when I felt happy too."
With the Chuhai settling warm in his tummy, Law lit up a cigarette. He pictured the rising smoke wrapping around his painful memories, carrying them away as it drifted towards the ceiling.
"I see," Kid whispered in understanding as he lit up a stick of his own.
Please leave a review or comment if you can. All of them will be translated and presented to the original author. (・ω・*)
DropTheBeat: Thank you! I'm so glad you love this story, cause I do too! ^_^ And Kid can be such a nice guy!
LunaPieces: Yep, I guess many fics from the Japanese fandom choose to focus more on development of feelings and describing emotions and stuff. It does give the fics a very homey and sweet feel~ :)
Childerika: Heheh, but Law doesn't know it yet. Neither does Kid, in fact. They've still got a ways to go before they fall hopelessly for each other! XD
sadlymumbles: *hugs you* Don't cry dearie, hope you enjoyed this cute chapter!
Guest: Thanks! Hope you'll continue to support this wonderful story~!
Guest 2: Hahah! But I think deadline Law's depression has reached depraved levels. This Law is still quite sane (thankfully lol). And yeahhh, Law should fall for Kid like, now! He's such a gentleman! And thanks for your concern from tumblr! *hugs your love, chocolate and kittens*
loogoo: Lol I knoww! I wanna try Law's cooking too!
Shiina Yuki: Thank you for all your support sweetie! *hugs you tight*
cantorahagedoorn: Here's more! Hope you enjoyed it! :D