Chapter 4 is up! ... obviously... did anyone miss me? Oh, sure you did. ;D
This chapter contains crazy mums, equally crazy overprotective friends... And well... Just read it! xD
I also forgot to add in the beginning that this contains crossdressing. Oh yes, you heard right. Not all too much though... Can anyone tell me a great name for a female Luffy? Luffyko sounds too suspicious (you'll understand why) We went with Lucy, but any better suggestions would be great!
"Up and away, Sunshine!"
"Umm... five more minutes." Luffy mumbled, shuffling around in Ace's soft bed.
She laughed at this, sitting beside him. "I'm not bringing your breakfast to your bed! This isn't a fancy hotel!" she exclaimed.
Luffy stirred slowly, the sunlight hitting his eye as the curtains was pulled away from the windows.
And he had such a nice dream too...
"Kay..." he rubbed his eyes as he sat up in the bed, the bed hair right on time for his morning job, strands of hair sticking out in every direction. He looked up at who was waking him up at this hour of the day, not being used to the female voice that he heard, not used to being woken up in general. At least not as gently and nicely as this. how could he tell? Because nobody had done an attempt at turning the bed upside down to see how long he could hold onto the sheets before he crashed to the ground yet, thinks like that was normal occurrences to him, this however was a nice change.
He blinked upon noticing who it was. Oh, right, Ace's mum. He almost forgot about what had happened last night. He blushed slightly from embarrassment considering the casual way he had just acted towards her.
"Sorry." he said.
"It's alright, don't worry." She smiled kindly. "are you able to get up?"
Luffy couldn't help but smile back. "Yepp!" He stretched his arms out happily, feeling a sudden pain in his side as he moved a little. "Ouch..." or maybe not.
"I'm sure it'll be fine soon. the cut didn't seem to be as deep as we thought. Come now to get something to eat." she said and headed downstairs to the kitchen.
"Thanks!"
He quickly advanced downstairs after putting on clothes laid out for him on the bedside table. He looked around, recognizing the living room he had witnessed yesterday. Ace's house was cool! Much better than his shithole of a place.
He proceeded to the dining room where he saw Ace's mother getting food ready for him on the table.
"You managed to sleep last night?" She asked, putting down a plate which appeared to be his considering she hadn't gone through the trouble of preparing a plate for a second or third person.
What was the time exactly?
"I'm very sure Ace did not..." She mumbled, frowning slightly.
He tried to remember his manners, which he had been forced to learn by none other than his friend Nami. He didn't see the use of it, couldn't he just say what he wanted to? Not be driven by regular things people said daily to each other... Where was the character in that? Everyone couldn't be saying the same things! That would be so boring!
But just this once, he felt in need of it. Wouldn't do to make his only crush's mother dislike him!
"Yes, I did. Thanks again. I'm sorry I came .. barging in to the place. Miss... Portgas." He said, coughing slightly. Did he get that right? Was it wrong?!
He sat down at the chair she gently shoved him to, looking at all the food she had set out for him. Ah! He must've gotten it right and this was his prize!
"Haha, that's no problem. I wish Ace would bring home friends more often..." She uttered, pouting childishly. "He only ever brings this weird pineapple... And I don't like him, he stares at Ace funny."
Luffy blinked, was he talking about the person he was teasing the other day? That guy?
"But you seem like a sweet person!" She finished, interrupting Luffy from his thoughts.
He nodded, reaching out slowly and almost shyly to take some of the food sitting on the table. Was his hand shaking? What was this?! He never had this problem eating around anyone before! Why was he so self conscious now...?
"I'm Rouge by the way. Please call me that. Titles are weird."
Wow! The food was great! There was meat too! He reached swiftly for another slice of bread, then reaching for the meat, it going down his throat as quickly as the first one had. He stopped to look at Ace's mother, not realizing she had started speaking again.
Rouge huh? That was a nice name! Reminded him of a colour!
He turned back to eating without answering, too busy gobbling down the food and forgetting those so called manners, reaching around the table for different kinds of food almost like he was made out of rubber and his arms allowed him to stretch.
She only smiled. "You're Ace's future boyfriend, am I right?"
Luffy spat out the food he was eating from the sudden question.
His eyes widened as turned to face Rouge. He knew he was blunt about things, but her? She would top his straight forwardness any day.
"Tell me you have a crush on him!" Rouge almost seem to beg. "I mean, it's not everyday Ace brings a 'friend' home, and never have I seen him run out to check on someone in case they're in danger... Which brings me to, Ace must be physic, don't you think? knowing you'd be in danger... And the way he was up last night! I couldn't force him to bed no matter what! In the end I just gave up... Well, actually very easily, but I was tired! You can't blame me..." She spoke without stop, not pausing to let Luffy talk for even a second.
He blinked, taking in the words she was saying. It's not like he didn't know he followed him to check on him. That was obvious, right? Considering how far he was from the house... But he hadn't thought about this till now. Hell, he hadn't gotten the chance to think clearly about anything regarding yesterday at all! And he also thought Ace had new girlfriends almost every week? and had sex with them? wasn't that the rumours? but maybe he didn't tell his mum, that would be understandable. Either way hearing her say this was kind of ... well, it made him happy, okay?!
"Umm... Well, not really. We... It's not that I don't like him. But I was only here for a project we have together yesterday, I barely know him..." Half lie, half truth. She didn't need to know everything!
She stared into his eyes, like a very curious child hearing about a great story about a brave hero of some sort. "Just... As... a friend...?" She spoke, saying the words slowly as if she had a hard time believing it. Which she surely did like the rest of us. "Then what's the blush then?"
W-what? Was he blushing?
He touched his cheek, as if that would help him, or atleast feel if it were there. But all he could feel was the heat of the blood rushing to his face. Ah, this was embarrassing. He sucked at lying!
Rouge pouted.
"Maybe a little... But don't tell Ace!" He said strictly and seriously, hoping the rather childish woman would understand. The last thing he needed was another rumour about how Ace gained himself a fanboy! Who crept into his place and even snuck under the covers in his own bed! Besides, his group of friends would hate him! No, no, no!
Rouge only smirked. "Of course, I won't." She sat down on the chair beside him, handing Luffy another plate of food. "I'll help you!"
Oh great, Ace's mum...was a matchmaker.
An enthusiastic one at that.
"Thanks." He said accepting the plate, probably saying this well mannered word for the umpteenth time that day. "Help?" He thought about this for a moment. "I don't think Ace is like that... I'm not really sure." He nearly began to mumble, chewing on the new piece of meat handed out to him.
It's not like he had given up on Ace knowing he was way too out of his league! No, Luffy never gave up! But something inside of him told me the kind of help she was offering didn't really involve magically making Ace feel differently towards him. Plus, matchmakers was creepy. He knew cause Nami was one of them, and she had mistaken many to like both him and others in the friend group.
"Is like what?" Rouge tilted her head in confusion.
He finished eating in a matter of seconds, to Rouge's great surprise. "Does all guys do that?" She mumbled, hardly audible for Luffy to hear.
"I mean that he doesn't like guys... He seems straight." Luffy answered.
"Oh!" Rouge sparked. That wasn't such a complicated thing! Or uhm well... honestly she wasn't sure herself. "Hmm... That is... I'm not sure either." She turned away, deep in thought for a moment before she turned back just as excited as she had previously been. "Aha! I know! You can turn to a girl!"
Scratch all the things previously mention before. She was crazier than Nami.
"What if you dress up as a girl and see if he likes you? I after all thought you were a girl at first right?"
"Eh?" Luffy was confused. Ace already knew who he was and how he looked, was she supposing he'd forget so easily? Just like all the previous people he had... s-slept with?
"Come on!" She said, trying to push him into the crazy idea of hers.
Tap tap.
Did he just hear footsteps?
He looked around, which made Rouge chuckle. His concentration didn't last long huh?
He couldn't see anything so he turned back to look at Ace's mum, seeing how her eyes had turned all watery, looking like a small adorable puppy, which forced Luffy to comply and answer.
She got up from her spot beside him, picking up things as she went, not leaving his side completely, but just doing some cleaning, like paper laying mindlessly on the floor. What were they doing there? He looked closer to see. Oh, Ace's drawings! ... Haha! He just threw them around like that, huh? Funny guy.
"Well, we are doing this play thing, which is really girly and lame... And the lines are so cheesy." Rouge giggled at this. "And I play Juliet." He sweatdropped, immediately imagining himself in some weird princess-like dress, yelling for Romeo to rescue him. He smiled and blushed slightly at the next thought coming into mind. "Ace plays Romeo."
Rouge threw away everything she held in her hands, drawings and other doodled papers and notes flying everywhere almost like confetti. Her eyes sparkled in excitement. "Waah! That's perfect!" She squealed, reminding him about Hancock and her weird daydreams about whatever it was.
She quickly waltzed over to Luffy and hovered over him, suddenly turning serious. "Are you required to kiss or did they skip that part?"
"We have to kiss, but..." Luffy bit his lip, feeling rather uneasy thinking about how Ace seemed to force himself so hard to kiss him yesterday.
"There's your chance to make him fall in love with you!" She giggled.
"Who's gonna fall in love with who?"
Luffy turned to who said that in shock. Ace suddenly standing behind him. How long had he been there listening?!
"Oh Ace! Welcome home, how was school?" Rouge asked, changing the subject entirely as she started picking up the papers laying sprawled around on the floor and the different furniture in the house.
So school was already over huh? Shit! His friends must be wondering where he was! If Ace told them he was sleeping at his place they would definitely get the wrong idea.
Ace raised an eyebrow, not forgetting the subject at hand in the slightest and seeming to have no intentions of doing so. "Love who?"
"She was talking about .. The play?" Luffy tried to lie. He was so horrible at this!
Ace looked at him suspiciously. "What's that got to do with someone falling in love with you?" He sighed, turning to his mum who was hurrying to pick up everything and just flee the scene as soon as she could. "Why can't you stay out of others' love lives for once?"
Did Luffy hear a tone of jealousy? ... No, it couldn't be. He was imagining things, he always seemed to have useless hopes about simple things he would do around him the past days... Even when Ace looked his way at school!
"It's nothing, haha!" Luffy laughed, rather nervously at that, getting up from his seat to fully take a look at Ace. "I'm leaving, old man must be wondering where I am by now... See ya later Ace!" He waved from the door, smiling at him as he opened it and hurried out.
Ace frowned slightly. Both knowing full well that old man of his wouldn't be worrying any time soon. He waved back, smiling slightly. "See ya."
"Goodbyeee!" Rouge ran back in to wish the small boy farewell for now, just as friendly as she had been from the moment he came. "Good luck with your crush!"
At this Ace went up to his room silently.
"Bye..." Luffy replied, his smile faltering at the way Ace was acting. Did he have a bad day? Or could he simply not endure anymore of his lowlife presence?
All this worrying and thinking was making him hungry! Perhaps he should just go home and grab a snack. He had already eaten, but it wasn't far by enough for his black hole blindly labelled the stomach.
"Hello!" Luffy yelled through the house or run-down shack, depending how you looked at it. "I'm home! If anyone cares..." he mumbled the last words incoherently upon no answer. As quietly as he could he stepped inside, putting his things down and taking off his shoes. If he was only silent, perhaps he wouldn't be spotted and could pass to his room unnoticed without any complains and scolding.
"Luffy! There you are!"
Forget it. He dropped his bag noisily, figuring there was no option in just making a run for his asshole-less room now. He headed towards the small dark living room, where Garp was seated by his desk probably doing work, considering he was even home at this hour. Normally he was out working. Not that he complained, all the times he was ever home, ...well they weren't exactly drinking tea and creating cheerful memories to smile about later.
"Did you eat all the food again?" Garp eyed him suspiciously, as if though he were never gone and he had just called him to speak with him. "Go out and buy food now! I've been food-less all day, and who's fault is that?"
Luffy didn't even have to sit down to ponder over things to know where this was going. He wanted him out of the house, to the store, grab him something to eat and... hopefully not come back again in a few good hours.
"Sorry if I got hungry!" he spat back, not allowing to be treated and stepped on this way without a fight. His side began to hurt again, which meant it was his cue to give up, he really wouldn't fight him like this. "Give me some money and I'll leave." he gave up, preparing to leave again.
"Why don't you go and buy it with the money you've earned yourself for once! Would be a nice change. Maybe you'll learn not to eat everything the fridge has to offer next time."
"Cheep old man..." Luffy mumbled under his breath as he walked out, slamming the door shut behind him before he could hear any more complains and stupid retorts about himself.
What a shitty old man. Couldn't he do things himself and not order him around like his slave? He just couldn't wait to leave that hellhole. Once school ends he could be free! But that wasn't before another 3 years... He really wished his mum was still alive.
Forgetting about these matters for now, he set foot into the store, the place he could always be welcomed because –
"Food!"
his eyes sparkled, standing by the entrance to the store. If there was anything he loved the most, it was going into this store...and having money with him to actually buy things! He drooled as he looked over to the meat , hurrying over to it immediately as he pondered over what he should buy. Everything looked so tasty!
"Luffy!" he heard someone yell his name. He turned to look who in the world that could be only to notice his small reindeer friend, Chopper, who giggled, happily running over to the taller of them.
"Chopper! Hey there!" he stretched his arms upwards to wave at him, but felt the pain in his side as he moved his hand and decided against it. Ouch... the pain just had to still be there. He thought this things would heal quickly! It's not like he hadn't been in a fight or two before.
"Why weren't you at school today? I was going to ask Ace if something might have happened, but then Nami thought that it was his fault you weren't there and chased him through the school." Chopper spoke, following Luffy as he went to find different things.
Nami CHASED him?
No wonder Ace looked so pissed off! ...Why did he have to have such crazy friends?
"Did Ace tell you anything about were I was?" And here comes the bomb. Everyone, atleast his friends ... or more specifically, Nami, knew now. And had probably gotten the wrong idea long since while he was sleeping carelessly in Ace's very own bed!
Chopper shook his head. "He refused to say anything... Which made things even more suspicious. Nami thought Ace raped and killed you." Just those words coming from Chopper's mouth sounded so awfully wrong, especially Ace's name in the same sentence!
Upon no reply, the smaller looked up to face him, worry crossing his features. "Did he do something to you?"
Luffy snapped out of his thoughts, realizing it sounded even more suspicious when he didn't even answer to the sick things Chopper was uttering.
"Oh, I'm fine. Nothing happened, we just talked and when I came home I got a little sick. Nothing to worry about!" Remind him to thank god or whatever was out there for granting him the ability to lie for once in his miserable life.
"But why did Ace refuse to say it?"
"Shhh, I'll tell you about it later." He whispered secretly. "But don't tell Nami, she'll hit me!"
This made Chopper curious. What could be as bad that their red haired friend absolutely couldn't get to know about?
"Let me get some food for the old man first." He said and put the last thing on his list in the cart, heading to the cashier to pay.
Goodbye his precious money, is all he could say.
"D-did he actually do something to you?" Chopper followed closely after.
Luffy couldn't help but laugh at this. "Nope! He's really nice. I like him."
To Chopper, this was everything he needed to hear. If Luffy liked him, so would he. His judgement on people always seemed to turn out right, so if Luffy said so, then Ace must be quite a nice guy.
"Shi shi shi."
"A-All of this, sir?" The female cashier asked, looking at everything Luffy dumped beside the cash register. She sweatdropped at this, wondering how many years worth of meals he was buying for.
"Yeah, all of it!" Luffy smiled, not questioning her reaction in the slightest.
"O-okay..."
"Really! How is Ace like?" Chopper continued the conversation from earlier.
He paid the dumb cashier and left, picking up the few million bags of food and heading out together with his friend.
"Come again~"
"Ace, isn't bad. I thought he would be a jackass with a low attention spam, but he is—" Luffy started, but got caught off by a sudden sharp pain emitting from his side. Shit.
He fell down on his knees, dropping the bags to the ground, pressing his arms against his side as if that would help to stop the pain.
"Are you alright?!" Chopper shrieked in panic.
Luffy got back up slowly, picking up the bags in the process. "Yepp, I'm okay! It's just that..." He decided he'd just tell Chopper everything before he started worrying and telling the rest of the group Luffy developed a mysterious wound in his right side after innocently hanging out with Ace, whom had just invited him home to himself out of the blue instead of taking studies together at school, and refusing to tell anyone a thing about what happened. Doesn't sound suspicious in the slightest.
"You remember Kid?"
Chopper nodded. He knew who he was and how he was after Luffy, that was for sure... How could he forget after what he had done earlier to his friend.
"He attacked me last night and Ace saved me, but when Ace came he had already managed to stab me...That's the whole story." He smiled, happy to be able to share that with someone.
Luffy grit his teeth as the pain spread.
At this, Chopper panicked. "Somebody get a doctor!" He yelled to the people around causing people to stare, silently judging the two. Helping others in need? Pfft, people were too cool for that.
"Wait, I'm a doctor..."
Luffy managed to walk straight, trying to pull through the pain, it wasn't the worst. He had known worse in different places. Far worse places. "Old man will yell at me for not getting his food on time."
The small reindeer like boy reached to take his hand in his own, supporting his balance, if only just a little. He was too small to do anything else to help in this situation. "Okay."
The other smiled back, holding his hand tightly as to not lose his tiny friend somewhere as he went. "I'm fine, Chopper."
"I'll treat your wound when we get home!" He offered in return. Chopper was for a fact, on the way to becoming a great doctor, even at such a young age. The grandmother he lived with taught him these things so he knew alot about treating a person. He studied a lot for it too.
Learning to help people was nice, he couldn't wish for a better friend. That's right, all his friends had a certain quality, and some downsides. But you couldn't be human without it.
Just then, as they walked, Ace passed by, noticing him easily. "Hey Luffy—" he started, waving to him, but then seeing who he was walking with, and also, holding hands with. "...ah."
Luffy giggled, ruffling Chopper's hair before he turned around to look for the person who called his name. Nobody was there. Was it just his imagination?
He turned around to Chopper's giggling, supposing it really just was his mind playing tricks on him.
"Hey old man! I'm home! And I got your food!" Luffy yelled through the house as they went home to his place. Not the smallest sign of anyone being home at all. "Hello?"
So he wasn't at home... Not surprising in the least.
"That old shit bag isn't even home!"
"Now let me look at your wound, it must be awful walking around like that!" Chopper said, as Luffy put down the bags in front of the door and proceeded to the living room.
"Thanks Chopper!" Luffy sat down on the sofa, taking off his shirt so that he could have a better look at his injury.
The young doctor frowned at the sight. "It's not the worst fortunately, but … you shouldn't walk around like that."
Luffy got up to look in the mirror to see the wound he had gotten, noticing how it had turned to a scar. A big at that. "Wow! It left a scar!"
Chopper nodded. "does it still hurt?"
"It's so cool!" he ignored him, admiring the scar he had just recently obtained. Don't ask, it was Luffy logic.
"Yeah!"
"I look so badass!" Luffy laughed excitedly, but happened to let a yawn escape his lips. "...I'm getting tired though... want to watch a movie or something?"
"Sure!" Chopper agreed.
"What do you want to watch? How about..." he went over to the dvd shelf with Chopper to look for a movie they could watch for the night.