Chapter Ten
Later that night, Penguin helped Sanji push his bed next to Law's, then gave him a look. He didn't say anything, though, causing Sanji to wonder what that was about. He left with a light push of Chopper against the couch, Chopper running after him to bite him before hurrying back to the room. Sanji helped him make his bed, then searched for a nightlight, knowing that it was a lot darker out in the countryside than it was in the city.
"I'll be fine, Sanji, you guys are right there in front of me," Chopper assured him cheerfully, pulling the blankets up before Sanji turned off the lights. He could hear Penguin and Shachi talking low in the other room, their first language preventing him from knowing what they were talking about. It sounded like Penguin was angry about something, and Shachi had a whine to his tone, so it must have been some sort of brotherly reprimand for Shachi's actions.
Then, after some adjusting of the mattress, Sanji was lying next to Law on his good side. He reached between them to entwine his fingers between his, leaning over to kiss him goodnight. The man made to return the effort, but he was too far gone to put much strength into it. Sanji laid there with his thoughts, looking up at the ceiling. He couldn't believe how he could possibly think of another man while he was lying next to another. But he did think about how Lucci had looked at him – all awe and admiration, clearly recognizing him for his strength and ability. He couldn't remember Law ever looking at him in that way.
With every fight that came to him, Sanji hadn't been able to exert his full potential in any of them. Law was either there to step in, or one of Sanji's friends. He felt slighted by that, affronted that everyone either thought he was incapable of handling himself, or not believing in him. But this man, this enemy, admired him for it. Gave himself up to let Sanji have his way. And how many times did that happen? From the look on his friend's face, it didn't happen very often.
Sanji wondered about that. He rolled over onto his side and looked at his childhood companion, his live-in, his best friend, his lover, his everything. Just looking at him made Sanji regret thinking the things he did. He reached over and stroked the hairs of Law's goatee, pulling lightly to see if it'd wake him up. Then touched his nose, his cheeks, traced over his jawline. This silence, this stillness of this man made Sanji extremely nervous, and he couldn't help but pester him, wishing he'd just wake up and have a conversation with him. He just wanted some sort of acknowledgement in that Law was okay. He laid up over him, pressing his face up against his neck, smelling antiseptic, sweat, and traces of that spicy musk Sanji was familiar with. Reaching around, he found Law's ear, fiddling with the shell before finding his earlobes, playing with the earrings there before he eventually fell asleep in that position.
He woke up when the man began moving, cursing blearily. Then cursing outright because he'd tried to use his ruined arm, and Chopper was up quickly, on the bed before Sanji could do anything.
"How do you feel?" Chopper asked, as if he'd been awake and waiting for this very moment, leaning on his chest to look him over.
"Can't…breathe," Law complained tightly, causing Chopper some distress as he fretted, taking his pulse, looking at his pallor, using a penlight to examine the response of his pupils. Sanji removed him from his chest as Law looked at Chopper with a shrug. "I feel fine…for a guy that had his arm saved by his roommate's pet reindeer."
"Ass. I'm not - ! Ugh. Never mind. How does your arm feel?"
"The trauma caused allows it to feel as if there's something else there. It doesn't feel like my arm. Nerve endings are shot, aren't they?" Law asked low, touching the sling, the methodical wraps that kept his arm from falling apart. It was very tender to the touch, and throbbed with pain; the staples and stitches underneath were tight, his skin crawling with foreign sensation. His fingers tingled as he moved them, and even then, that was an intense effort. The thought that he wouldn't have full use of his arm again made him feel sick.
"It depends on your recovery, now, whether you'll ever get full use of it," Chopper said sadly.
The grim acknowledgement in that statement caused silence between all three of them. Sanji shifted up uncomfortably. "You have to piss? Shit? Hungry?"
"I smell like shit."
"No showers until these bandages can be removed. I'll run you a bath!" Chopper said, jumping off the bed and hurrying to the bathroom.
"I'll make you some food," Sanji said, moving to get up before Law reached out and caught his arm. He looked back at him, frowning with concern. Law looked at him for a few moments, a question forming on a dry tongue. Then he looked around himself, seemingly noticing their surroundings for the first time. "We're at Zeff's."
"Oh. Ugh."
"Stop it. Just until your arm heals. You and your kids."
Law looked at him sharply. "'Kids'? Is Shachi here, too?"
"Yeah, he's fine. I went and got him."
Law looked at him for the next several moments, and Sanji found himself discomforted by that silent expression. He had that thought that there was something Law was going to ask him – it suddenly made him think of Penguin hesitating last night, a question on his face. But Law just inhaled shortly, exhaling a moment later, letting it go.
"Thank you for that," he said low. "So, I'm assuming we're safe, for now."
"Yes. I haven't told anyone else, yet, and I think it was agreed that we shouldn't. Not yet."
"Good, because I don't feel like explaining myself to Cora."
"He would freak out," Sanji agreed, leaning in to hug him, grateful that things were going to be okay. Law returned the gesture awkwardly with his one arm, Sanji straightening away. "I'll go make you something. Zeff's having a wedding here later today, so it'll be a good time for you just to sit here and rest up. All of us non-injured will be helping out."
"Sanji…I…" But Law cut himself off, and looked down at his injured arm with a severe frown. He seemed to change his mind, Sanji feeling worried as he waited. "My arm hurts."
"I…fainted when I saw it."
"You did? What a pussy."
"Shut up! Fuck," Sanji said impatiently, rising up from the bed, annoyed. He found his jacket, checked to make sure his smokes were in there, and walked out of the room as quietly as possible, so not to disturb the other guests that had come in late last night.
Law watched him go, a heavy sensation to his heart that felt painful. Chopper returned, looking up at him cautiously from his side of the bed. Reluctantly, Law said, "Thank you."
Beaming, Chopper cringed, looking away with an embarrassed rub of his head. "Aw, enough of that sappy bullshit, just a 'thanks' would suffice! I know I did amazing! Your arm is saved, you know!"
"I could've done better. I'd intended on cutting it off at the shoulder and sewing it back together myself, but since you needed something to prove, I let you do it."
"Shut up, asshole! You were unconscious the entire time! Like a fucking pussy!"
"Who's the irresponsible asshat that taught you such vulgar language?" Law asked, managing to get up from the bed without assistance. It hurt, though, because memory caused his arm to want to reach out and assist, and it twinged with painful action, making it difficult to repress a growl. He held a hand under the area where Chopper had worked on, willing those twinges to go away. Chopper watched him with worry, and Law continued on, certain that the next few days were going to be difficult. Especially when he had a lot to think about.
Lucci's words kept repeating themselves over and over whenever Law looked at Sanji, and he knew he was going to have a difficult time bringing them up. But he knew he couldn't ignore them, either. The more he thought about them, thinking about the things that had happened a couple of nights ago, the angrier he grew.
Later that morning, as Penguin and Chopper were unraveling the bandages to change them, Shachi approached them cautiously, watching with much apprehension as Law's arm was revealed. Chopper's stapling were precise and even, and the animal 'hmm-ed' as he examined it. He sniffed it, causing the three of them to look at him with disgust. Shachi frowned deeply as he remembered watching Lucci biting hard on that limb as Law drove his Gamma Knife into his chest, slicing down to his stomach, both of them refusing to move until it was absolutely necessary. In the end, the leopard hybrid was broken from the inside, and Law was just trying to hold his arm in place while Jabra made off with Shachi, powerless in that animal's grasp. It was a horrifying scene. Guilt made him sick.
"It seems to be holding up just fine," Chopper decided, pulling out a couple of vials from his suitcase, then selecting a syringe. "I made this myself. It's actually a muscle regenerator. It's capable of repairing microscopic tears in muscles, and it'll assist with the redevelopment of the connective muscle tissues that were torn. I've used it on homeless victims were chewed upon by other humans, and by animals. It has a one hundred percent effective rate. It'll assist with your healing capabilities caused by your own unnatural regenerative healing ability given to you by your abilities. Most of those with unnatural abilities are very fast healers. I suspect I will be able to remove these staples in just a couple of days."
Law gave the semi-clear liquid a suspicious look. Penguin watched him from the corner of his eye as Chopper injected it into the area with acute concentration, the man twitching only slightly in response to the hot flash of pain caused by the action.
Lightly patting the area clean, Chopper nodded at his work. Then set that syringe aside, reaching for another. "This will aid in the prevention of infection. Injected into the site, it will discourage any further degeneration caused by this trauma."
"That muscle regenerator…it's helpful for anything? Maybe you should make me another one of those. For…personal use."
"You plan on doing this again?" Shachi asked him cautiously, Penguin rolling his eyes skyward.
"Oh, I'm planning on future muscle tears. But not on myself."
Shachi frowned. "You're going to torture somebody with it? Cut them up, heal them, then cut them up again?"
Law looked at him, inspired. "That's a great idea. Not the one I had in mind, but that'll work, too."
"You'll not use my medicine for evil, you bastard," Chopper told him sternly.
"Senpai…keep that shit to yourself, please. This is a serious situation. You could've lost your arm," Penguin admonished firmly.
"But I didn't. So it's fine if I bitch about it, now."
"You've still got a few weeks before I can say it's fully healed," Chopper said.
"I…I'm so sorry," Shachi said, dropping to the floor in a deep dogeza, startling them with his sudden action. "I'm so sorry, senpai! This is all my fault!"
"It sure is," Law said, placing a foot on his head and pushing him. "This was my masturbating arm, now I have to relearn with my other – "
"Stop it!" Penguin and Chopper snarled at him, one hitting him on the shoulder and the other hitting his knee.
"Ow. Hey, I'm injured."
"I'm being serious!" Shachi exclaimed, shoving off his foot.
"I am, too. Look, it's not a big deal. You're back, and that's all that matters. What we should focus on is what will happen if all of Chopper's experiments blow up and I grow a super bioweapon capable of rendering all my opponents – "
"I swear to God, I will fuck you up," Shachi growled, up in an instant and grabbing his shirt, threatening to choke him.
Penguin gave an impatient sigh as he pulled Shachi away. "Anyway, senpai, please go visit Bepo in the woods. That bear is pissing me off with all this business about being upset over you. I don't know why. You're still an ass."
Law looked at him with concern, worried about Bepo's wellbeing in such a strange area. "He can't come inside? I'm sure if we open a window, he can sneak inside. He's the quietest undercover agent I have. Zeff will never suspect."
"Fuck that bear!" both men snapped, walking away from him, Chopper looking after them with dismay. "We're going to work!"
Law scowled, then looked at Chopper, considering him to get the windows open. With his hands on his hips, Chopper said, "Zeff won't even let me go downstairs, today. Because of that wedding. I'm going to rewrap your arm, and you'll rest, today. I don't want you doing anything strenuous."
As Chopper set to work, Sanji walked in, dressed up in a black shirt, pink tie and fitted slacks, one of Zeff's aprons tied on tight. He brought with him the smells of the kitchen, flush-faced and cranky from arguing with Zeff most of the morning.
"Now that the worst part is over," Sanji trailed off, watching Chopper work for a few moments before looking at Law. "I heard you were doing a lot better, today."
Shrugging, Law looked at the bandages.
"Does it hurt?" Sanji asked, watching as Chopper concentrated on the project. He bent to kiss the man, a little surprised when Law shifted his head to avoid the touch to his lips. Straightening with a surprised expression, confused, Sanji frowned at him. "What?"
"I refuse to be babied in front of others."
"Hmm."
But Sanji knew that there was something bothering the man. He didn't want Chopper caught in the middle of it. He studied the man that didn't meet his eyes, then turned and left the room to finish working, and Chopper looked at Law suspiciously.
"Why did you act that way?" he asked.
"I just didn't feel like talking. I'm tired."
"Right," Chopper murmured, frowning slightly. "Well, rest up. I don't advise going outside, today. It's a very small wedding, but these elderly people are very talkative and curious. They'll bore you to death with their observations."
The thought of mingling amongst the elderly made Law frown. So, for most part of the day, he remained in the room. Chopper busied himself with watching videos on one of Zeff's iPads, then fell asleep. Once he did, Law left the room, intending on finding Sanji so they could have a few words to themselves now that everyone was occupied.
The wedding was being held near the lake's edge, and there wasn't a large crowd – he estimated maybe fifteen people in attendance, including Zeff, Penguin and Shachi, Brook, couple of the catering staff, the officiator, and the wedding party. It was a couple of older people that were being married, and it was quite lively. Sanji was watching from afar, smoking against a tree, and Law headed in that direction, wearing a coat that hung from his shoulders, hood raised over his head.
When Sanji saw him, he smiled brightly at him, in a better mood from earlier. All Law felt was a pressing anger in his chest, frustration building in a hard lump in his throat. So he didn't return the smile. Once he reached his side, he leaned against the tree, fiddling with the sling with his other hand.
"Feeling better?" Sanji asked him, flicking ashes to the side.
"Yeah, whatever. Why are they even bothering? One of them will wind up in the ground, tomorrow."
"Don't be a dick. They're happy. Everyone's having a lot of fun."
Law looked at him. "So, you had no problems getting to Shachi, yesterday?"
"No," Sanji answered. "In and out."
"Did that guy give you any trouble?"
Sanji shook his head, looking at him cheerfully. "You did him in pretty good. None of them had a chance."
"Oh? Bad ass motherfucker to the rescue?"
Sanji looked at him, detecting a tone. He studied his boyfriend's expression for a few moments, then asked, "What is your problem?"
"Nothing." Law then glared at the officiator that laughed, along with the couple, as the vows were exchanged.
Sanji watched them for a few minutes, thinking about his childhood goals. Wanting to be married, wanting to exchange vows with someone that he intended on being with for life. He had to admit, it made him feel warm and fuzzy inside, just thinking about it. They would marry, buy a house, fill it with kids and a pet. Maybe they wouldn't be a perfect family, but it would be one full of love and joy. He'd had the idea in his head what he was looking for since he was a child – he'd be the attentive, loving father, his wife a caring mother, and two (or three) kids loved and adventurous like himself. Quite the opposite of what he grew up with, but something he'd always dreamed about.
But that dream had changed over the years, and while he still imagined having a loving family of his own, things had changed a bit. He watched the couple hold each other's hands, looking at each other's faces, giggling and smiling as their friends cracked jokes. A part of him felt he'd never have that – but he recognized that wasn't his life, now. This life, though, was different. Now there was a possibility where he could be married in front of friends that joked and cheered as he faced the one he wanted a life with.
He looked at Law, chewing on the inside of his cheek before saying low, "It's legal, you know. For men."
Law rolled his eyes, giving him a scornful snort. "You don't even want to share a house with me. What makes you think I'd want to share my name with you?"
Sanji wouldn't deny the painful twinge he felt at those words. He felt a frown pull at his lips as he looked at him with a furrowed brow. "You're being a real dick, today. And why not my name?"
"Because your name's stupid."
"Wow. What is your fucking problem?"
Leaning on the tree with his good arm, keeping his voice low to Sanji as he stood over him, Law said, "That guy was the one you were talking about, wasn't it? He made it real clear you guys had something going on. It's fucking funny how you'd find something like that to your taste. Manbun wearing piece of shit is exactly your type, isn't it?"
Sanji reddened. At first he didn't know what to say. The happy couple laughed, rings exchanged. Most of their party clapped and called out jokes regarding how many times the bands had been recycled.
"He was nice enough to let me know how much you were into it when he was feeling you up the other day. Made sense when I came home and you were taking a shower. You didn't tell me about that part. You know. It being him, and all. 'Never without your permission', huh?"
Sanji stared at the couple being showered with rice and flower petals. His mind was a complete blank. He felt both guilty and outraged and helplessly frozen, all in a heavy mixture. He knew he didn't do anything wrong, but at the same time, he felt he'd done everything wrong.
"You have nothing to say? You come up and say shit like how much you love me, and wanting this shit, and yet you're over here, making fish eyes with someone that's been threatening you, your friends and mine? This is something that gets your dick twitching?"
He knew nothing he said would explain anything. So Sanji remained quiet and watched the couple walk back up the aisle, their friends clapping for them.
"No wonder it was so easy for you to retrieve Shachi. Which, thank you very much, I honestly thought they'd go so far as sending me pieces of him until I signed their stupid little agreement. Yeah, I'm grateful you had the balls to do something right. You know what really makes me steamed about the whole thing? Not only do you admit to being attracted to something like that, a half man, half beast - interesting choice of fuckery by the way - but you came home hot to me after every visit. He must really know how to get you going, huh? That's why you've been begging for it, lately. Hot little freak. Fucking whore."
Sanji said nothing in response, watching as Brook caught the flowers tossed out by the grinning bride. Law continued to call him names, everything he could possibly think of, and Sanji couldn't think of anything in response. He felt guilty, caught, and so he felt he deserved the ugly sludge of verbal abuse. His cigarette burned down to the filter, and he didn't notice the heat burning his fingers; he was impervious to it, really.
By the time Law felt satisfied with getting his point across, he pushed away from the tree and began walking away, feeling white hot anger burning in his torso. Then he turned back, keeping Sanji to the tree, saying, "For these months I essentially paid to keep you sheltered, fed and alive, you'll pay it back, in whatever services I desire. You don't like it, get the fuck out of my home, and take your fucking pet with you. Come back to Zeff, like the useless retard you are. You don't want to do it, then you tell that old man what I just said to you. I'm going to make you fucking hate me for doing this to me. I gave you a large part of my life, even when you weren't there, and you do this to me. Fuck you."
"So that's it?" Sanji asked shakily, catching sight of Penguin frowning in their direction, pausing in mid-step with his hands full of food set for the nearby picnic tables. "You feel better getting that off your chest? You big baby?"
"Not really. I don't think I'll feel satisfied until I'm sure you feel the exact same thing I'm feeling. Listen, if you truly loved me like you said, then you'll just take it. Just do as I say. I spent a lot on you. I should at least get some of it back, don't you think? All's fair? Then, after I'm done using you, which, depending on my mood, might be for a few days, maybe a week, you can go to him. And then I'll make your life even more miserable after that. If you actually really loved me like you say you do, then this should be nothing. Now, I really need you to prove it, because I honestly don't believe it at this present moment. If you can't handle the shit I'm going to put on you, then walk away right now. This is your only warning."
Sanji felt like throwing up. He wasn't sure what to think or feel, but there was a lot of horror and hurt building up in his stomach, like a pool of acid, chewing through his insides. He'd never felt this way, before. He wasn't sure how to deal with it, blindly looking around himself for something to tether himself to. The utter venom coming from the man he told 'I love you' to regularly spewed such bitter anger into his words that Sanji felt like he was a complete stranger. He even looked at him, sure that this man had been switched with somebody else.
But those angry amber eyes watching him belonged to the man he'd woken up with this morning, and there was no give in them. He couldn't speak. The lump in his throat was too big. Once he realized Penguin was striding over, intending on intercepting, he felt relief because he couldn't breathe. He was frozen solid.
Law then leaned in close, saying, "Come up to the room in ten minutes. You're going to prove to me whether or not you've been letting him up your ass."
"Not here."
"Hiding something?"
"No, just…please…don't…don't be like this, please. You're just…angry…"
"Prove it. Prove it."
"Senpai, stop," Penguin said low, coming up between them, inserting himself so forcefully between them that Sanji nearly stumbled, and Law jerked back from him. "Not like this. Not here. I knew you were going to do something stupid, but not here at Zeff's. I'm sorry, Sanji, I should've warned you he was mad about something."
"Fuck you, Austin. Whose side are you on?"
"I'm always on yours, and that's why I'm here, because I'm not having Zeff kick your ass again," Penguin said firmly, making sure no one was looking their way. Then he grabbed Law's jacket with both hands and pulled as the man glared maliciously at Sanji, and Sanji felt he couldn't do anything in response. But he looked away, looking back at the lake with mute shock, unsure of what to think. Feeling violently ill from the inside out.
Nearly fifteen minutes later, when everyone was celebrating the wedding over a dinner that had Zeff acknowledging his talent with introducing him to the party, Sanji managed to sneak away. He went up to the room, heavy hearted and afraid. When he shut the door behind him, he didn't know where Chopper was, but the reindeer wasn't in sight. He could hear everyone laughing and having a good time outside – the windows were open. He felt sick, acid eating at his guts as he found Law waiting for him by the bed.
"Are you serious about this?" Sanji asked hollowly, looking at him with pure pain in his features.
"Let's go. Prove it."
"Please…please don't be this way. Don't do this."
"The longer you take, the more I think you're hiding something."
"Don't be unreasonable. Please. You're not this kid, anymore, you can't just retaliate in such ugly ways because you're feeling hurt - !"
"So, what you're telling me by refusing me is that you're still hiding things from me. I don't trust you, anymore. And you didn't even deny what happened. So, now I think you've been doing more than what you're telling me. I have every reason to think you've done something wrong, and the more you talk, the more you hide your guilt from me. I only asked you for one thing, so far, and you're denying it. You're stalling, so what else are you hiding?"
"I'm not hiding anything. I told you. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry that – "
"Your apology doesn't mean anything to me. I did everything possible for you. Even those years when you weren't here. And, now, look here – I learn from any enemy that you were fucking around with him. And you like him. 'Physically attracted' is what you said, right? If you love me, prove it."
Sanji didn't know what to say. He couldn't think. He knew he should be reacting differently, he should be outraged and furious, but he was struck with how furious this man was. And, combined with his guilt and confusion over his own actions, he knew he had to make up for it in some way.
He swallowed tightly. Then reached for his belt. His fingers were numb. He couldn't look at the other man, anymore. He didn't know who that was, looming over him so menacingly. He felt ashamed of himself for putting himself in this position in the first place. For saying anything. For feeling anything.
"Why are you doing this?" Sanji asked, looking up at him with every emotion he felt on his face. His fingers wouldn't work. He kept fumbling with the latch, so Law reached over and yanked it from him, then shoved him on the bed. Sanji felt numb. He covered his face with both hands and didn't move, feeling Law yank and pull at his pants and underwear. When they were tossed back at him, he heard him walk away.
The silence stretched for so long, that when Sanji heard Zeff's first shout for him, it seemed like hours had passed. He removed his hands from his face, looking around himself. Law was no where in sight. The entire incident left him sick. He removed his pants from his face, then pulled them back on. As soon as he was able, he then raced to the restroom, and vomited up all the stress and anxiety that had built up because of this mess. He sat at the toilet for some time, trying to compose himself. Once he was sure he was okay, that Zeff wouldn't suspect a thing, he flushed then rinsed his mouth out. Quickly ran his shaking hands through his hair, and examined his expression for any signs of trouble.
He practiced smiling a couple of times, then nailed the third smile. Sure that no one would suspect a thing, he hurried back down stairs, complaining loudly as Zeff yelled at him for slacking off.
: :
Zeff put down the last of the food trays, looking over at the two men in the kitchen. One was doing the dishes, the other was scowling off to the side, looking murderous. The tension was obvious, and he didn't like it one bit. Especially when his son seemed strangely subdued, today, a stark contrast to his usual loud, outgoing self. The man standing next to him wasn't saying anything – in fact, it was the first time he'd seen Law, today. Zeff frowned over at the bandages covering one arm, picturing the man that did it.
Lucci had always been an aggressive man – never apologetic for it, always willing to push the limits once it interested him. While Lucci didn't want power or position to be where Spandem stood, he wanted a position that allowed him to feed off the weakness of others. And his friends fed into it, relying on him to be this person that coveted a strange sense of justice.
Lucci hadn't ever challenged Zeff – but Zeff knew he'd sized him up. Looked for weakness, like a predator would. But in the end, the man gave Zeff a wide, respectful berth, and didn't challenge him the way he did with Spandem. Zeff wondered what Lucci thought of Sanji, who was quite capable of outthinking him when it came down to it.
"What's your problem?" he asked Law gruffly, not really caring.
For a moment, the man chewed on an answer. Zeff saw the slight tension in Sanji's neck, heard the slight drop of dish against sink.
Then Law muttered, "I can't see my forehead."
Zeff didn't even try to understand that answer – he threw a plate at the man's head, snapping, "If you can't act like a goddamn adult, then don't breathe the air of adults!"
"Old man," Sanji said, turning to frown at him, "It's your fault for falling for that shit in the first place. Second, is that all the dishes?"
"Yeah," Zeff grumbled, sitting at the counter, looking at the decorative items that made it a welcome place to sit. He could hear the voices of Brook entertaining the two men, Chopper, and one of the other older guests in the living room. Some gallant story involving himself, a friend, and a whale from Sea World. He tapped his fingernails against the marble surface, then looked at the pair again. He didn't like how close Law stood next to Sanji. The man hovered around him a lot, but this was a different sort of hovering. In fact, the more Zeff looked, the more he felt it was a type of smothering.
"Give him some damn space," he finally said. "I don't know how anyone can breathe like that when someone's looking down their damn neck like you are."
There was that odd tension, again. But after making direct eye contact that could have meant anything, Law took a very slight step to the left. Zeff looked for something else to throw at him, but Sanji turned and looked at him tiredly.
"You should retire to your room, you're too fucking old to be up this late," Sanji told him in their language.
Zeff snorted. "At my age, there's no need to sleep. I might not wake up."
"I don't think it'd be old age for you."
Zeff laughed. He said, "In any event, should such a thing happen, at least I'd lived a full life. Not too many regrets will follow me. There will be just enough to keep me from that special place."
Sanji scrubbed at a pan, then looked out the window. Law was barely a foot away from him, but he felt penned by his foul temper. He didn't have to say a word – it was the very aura of it, all the dangerous things he could repeat, all the angry words that he still had left after that encounter this afternoon. Either he was just waiting for the moment he could release them, or was just using his presence to drive the point home.
"I remembered something of that day," he said, still talking in their language. Not to keep the conversation from Law, but because it was just a habit when he was with Zeff, who insisted on it. "Especially that moment when you hesitated."
Zeff said nothing; just stroked one of his braids with a thoughtful air. Looking off to the side with a distant expression, letting the silence linger. Brook said something that caused Shachi to laugh uproariously, Penguin shooting in his own comments while Chopper yelled with indignant action.
"It's either the zoo or stewpot, you little mutant!" Penguin suddenly laughed.
"If anybody cooks me, I'll make sure you all get shits for a week!" Chopper yelled at him. "And being around you guys makes me feel as if I'm already in a zoo! You're a bunch of animals!"
"I did," Zeff said low. "Of course I did. I'm surprised you remember that, after all this time."
"Sometimes, these things just come to me. What was in that drawer?" Sanji asked, scrubbing once again.
"A gun."
"You said you weren't involved – "
"I wasn't. I told you that. But I hesitated because what the fuck was I supposed to do with a kid? Especially one like you? The way my life was at that time, there was no room for a kid. That was me, then," Zeff said, looking off to the window once more. "I'd lost my own family to this violence, and here, this girly-faced, snot-nosed brat was seeking my comfort while his family was being slaughtered? What the hell was I supposed to do? Of course, I hesitated. I should've walked away. Let them finish the job."
"You had a family?" Sanji asked, turning to look at him, speaking with surprise. "You never said anything like that."
Zeff gave him an impatient look. "Why do you think I keep telling you to find yourself before you commit yourself to one person? I did the very same thing you did. And it didn't turn out well."
"But I'm not you."
"You're not, I agree with you on that one. Does not mean that I'll stop pushing for it. Instead of tying yourself down to an idiot that keeps glaring at me like I'd just shit in his socks, get out there and find out what sort of life exists beyond what you're already familiar with."
Sanji set aside the pot he'd just spent the last few minutes scrubbing, frowning at the soap suds. Then he said low, "What were they like?"
"They were beautiful," Zeff answered vaguely.
Sanji looked back at him, now intensely curious about this aspect of Zeff's life he'd never even heard of.
"STOP!" Chopper screamed, Penguin laughing as Brook said something that sounded affronted. "You guys are mean!"
"Penguin's the ass!" Shachi was laughing.
"No, you stupid ass, I didn't get here in the front grill of a goddamn slaughter truck from Canada! What is wrong with you?" Chopper cried before growling, Penguin yelling out with pain.
"How did they…?"
"I made too many enemies, too many mistakes. Let me tell you something, you domestic little shit stain – this theory of having a happy family while you're involved in this world isn't a reality. It's a dream. It does not last. They either leave you, or they're used against you. I kept you from this world because I didn't want you repeating my fucking mistakes. And what do you do? Get yourself involved in it, months from my retirement!"
"Admittedly, you old fart, what I have now isn't like yours."
Zeff looked at him with a cynical frown, like he'd heard this before. "Oh? How so?"
"It's not exactly…conventional," Sanji said carefully.
"That's exactly what I thought when I had mine. I had certain expectations based on their strengths that made me feel we'd be a forever sort of thing. And maybe it would have …unfortunately, both of us went soft at the wrong time, thinking this was how it should be, and it got them killed while I was away."
Sanji frowned at him while Law just looked at Zeff, eyebrows furrowed. Then he looked off to the side, plunging his hands back into the soapy water. "You should've just followed your instinct," he muttered, "and left me there."
Both of them ducked at the plate that shattered over their heads. Zeff looked furious as he said, "Saying shit like that is kind of pointless at this time, isn't it? After all this fucking time, I don't want to hear anything like that from you again, you fucking brat. I didn't sacrifice and fumble my way through raising you just to hear you saying stupid shit like that. What's done is done. I'm going to bed. If I die, it's because you pissed me off."
Zeff left the kitchen, then went into the living room to snap at the group for being so loud. Brook just returned a few words of his own that had Zeff snarling at him, then he made his way upstairs.
Feeling reprimanded enough to feel shame for uttering those words, Sanji returned to his task. After a few minutes of contemplative silence, Law said, "He made his relationship very ambiguous."
Sanji looked at him with a start, surprised. In English, he said, "You knew what we were saying?"
"I grew tired of being excluded from your conversations, so, yes, I learned. Enough to get by."
"You never said anything…I could've taught you – "
"Admittedly, I wasn't going to say anything, but that surprised me enough to slip. And shut up. Don't talk to me. I didn't say you could talk to me."
Sanji rolled his eyes and frowned down at his task. "You're just going to stand there and glare at me all night?"
"If I have to feel discomfort, I'm going to make sure you do, too."
"Can I at least have my cigarettes, back?"
"Would it make you happy having them?"
"Goddamn it, it's a fucking addiction, I need them, all right?"
"So it makes you feel miserable not having them? On that note, then, no."
"You never change," Sanji muttered, picking out pieces of a broken plate from the water. Then he continued washing, filling the other side of the sink with dishes needing to be rinsed. Law glared off to the left, lips tight.
"And why should I?" he asked sharply. "Obviously, it doesn't do me any good. In the end, I get shit on for it. I changed myself because of you, for you, and what happens? You confess to finding fucking psychopaths 'attractive', to fooling around with them while fighting them."
"He touched me – "
"But you told him 'never without your permission', which is a fucking obvious invitation. You're not rejecting him – meanwhile, I'm the idiot thinking that you…" Law trailed off, red faced and angry. Hurt. "And you're not denying any of this, which I'd hoped, so…knowing that it's true just…"
Sanji didn't know what to say, so he said nothing.
"You made me believe in all these things. All these things that I couldn't imagine anyone thinking of me, because of who I am as a person. Knowing that it was just easy lies for you makes me believe that changing oneself for someone else is just bullshit."
"Everything I said, I meant it."
"Bullshit. All of it. Fuck you. I've already decided what I'm going to do. I'm going to make you just as miserable as I feel."
Sanji understood that the other man was hurt. He knew nothing he said would fix anything. So he gave a one-shouldered shrug of acknowledgement and began rinsing. The silence was thick between them, and he felt uncomfortable with the stranger standing next to him, giving off such an angry aura.
One day, this'll only be a small blemish in our history, he thought morosely, only vaguely comforted by the hope he felt in that.
"Hey, senpai, I need to talk to you," Penguin said, walking into the kitchen with phone in hand.
"I'm busy."
"You are just standing there, like an asshole," Penguin said impatiently. "Don't you need to put Chopper to bed, Sanji? It's the little turd's bedtime."
Law frowned at him. "Chopper can put himself to bed. There are dishes to be done."
"SENPAI, GO OUTSIDE SO WE CAN TALK!" Penguin growled as he saw that Law wasn't moving.
"I'm going to put Chopper to bed," Sanji told Law, understanding that Penguin needed to talk to him in private. He drained the sink, reluctantly letting the rest sit until he could get to them later.
"I'm not ready for bed! I'm not tired!" Chopper shouted from the living room.
Reluctantly, Law straightened away from the counter. Hesitated for a moment, then looked at Penguin impatiently before the man gestured at the back door, holding up the truck keys.
: :
Sanji hauled Chopper to bed under one arm. The reindeer had wanted to stay up with Brook and the others, of whom were trading ghost stories, but Sanji wasn't about to deal with Chopper's nightmares afterward. Chopper protested, yawning heavily, so when Sanji had him brushing his teeth and putting him into the couch bed, his efforts wore him out.
"When will we go back home?" Chopper asked curiously, looking at Sanji while rubbing his eyes.
"Soon."
Chopper stared up at him for a few seconds, then furrowed his brow. "Why are you acting funny?"
"How so?"
"I heard Zeff getting mad at you earlier, but I haven't heard much from you all day – and Law is mad. I'd never seen him so mad. Did something happen?"
"It's nothing for you to worry about."
"But why would he look at you that way?"
Sanji shrugged. "I can't make excuses for that ugly mug of his."
With a heavy sigh, knowing that the reindeer's fear of being 'abandoned' played a lot with his close attention the pair, he knew nothing he said would soothe that anxiety until Chopper saw for himself that things were fine. "Chopper, Tony, stop worrying about it."
"But I do! Especially because…people go away, Sanji, and even if their reasons are important to them, when they leave, they don't come back." Chopper frowned up at him. "Even if it'll only be us, you don't have the qualifications to support us. We'll have to live on the street if you don't want Zeff to help us. Or do you think we can stay with Zoro? I'm sure he won't mind if we stay with him, Sanji. I can ask him if you don't feel comfortable doing so - "
Sanji reached over and closed his fingers over Chopper's snout firmly. "I can't imagine that a fight would lead to that. Despite the stupid things Law says, I'm not going anywhere. If he feels looking at me the way you said helps him get through it, then it's not hurting anybody."
Chopper pulled away impatiently. "But what happens if he doesn't want us? Sanji? What if he doesn't ever stop being mad?"
"Calm. Down. You're going to give yourself the shits over all this stress."
"I can't help it!" Chopper shouted at him, his young voice filling the room with obvious distress. "I can't help but think about it! Yes, Kureha was old, and Dr Hiluluk - he was messed up but they were all I had! And when they were gone, they never came back! You keep saying 'don't worry about it, don't worry about it', but I'm going to worry about it because what will happen to us if nobody wants to take care of us?"
"I hate having to repeat myself, Chopper, so this is the last time. Stop overthinking this. Couples fight. They say things in the heat of the moment, and do things to go along with it, but it's only a blemish, a bump in the road to get over. It happens to everyone."
Chopper was quiet for a few moments, until he settled back into the cushions of the couch. Then he exhaled heavily, and said, "Okay. I'm going to trust you, Sanji. You're taking responsibility of this from now on. I'll try not to think about it, anymore."
"Thank you, pest."
Chopper rolled over, and Sanji could see that the reindeer was not done thinking about it. He lifted away from the edge of the sofa bed and heard Chopper say, "Then why are your beds separated? He doesn't want to lay next to you?"
Drawing his hands down his face with exasperation, wanting a cigarette so badly, Sanji said, "People do this all the time! When you're mad at someone, sometimes, you just want space from them."
"Well, maybe it's a good idea," Chopper then mumbled. "So his arm…won't get bumped. So. Well. Good night. I'm tired."
"Then go the fuck to sleep."
"Sanji…?"
"YES?"
"You can sleep with me if he doesn't want to sleep with you."
"Go to sleep, please."
Once he heard the low snores coming from the small form, Sanji wiped his eyes again. He pushed his bed back up against Law's. If the man wanted to deny him this, then he would have to say so to his face. Just because he was mad at Sanji didn't mean they had to be separated. He then went to brush his teeth, changed into his cleaned pajamas, then headed down to Zeff's room.
He knocked once then walked in without waiting for an answer, seeing that the man was already in bed, back to the door. He shut the door behind him, then crawled onto the bed to flop back first over his shoulder, saying, "Old man. You never said anything about having a family."
"Could you not, right now? This old man is trying to sleep," Zeff grumbled in their language.
"Could you not use slang like you're in fashion?"
"Your goddamn ribs are digging into my goddamn arm. Go eat a tub of butter."
"Why have you never spoken of them?"
"Because that's a completely different life from this one. Look forward, not backward."
Shifting so that he was sitting back to back with him, Sanji yawned noisily and ground an elbow into his spine, causing Zeff to curse at him. He picked at his fingernails. "I'll respect your privacy, it's just…it's strange. I didn't…like, you just threw it out there."
"Because I keep telling your dumb ass over and over again to be someone different, and nothing was working."
"Look, admittedly – I get why people are concerned over how I live my life. But get it in your head – when did I start talking of wanting this sort of life?"
"Much too young," Zeff admitted, untangling an arm from his blankets to push Sanji away from him so that he could sit up. Back against headboard, he folded his hands over his stomach as Sanji sat beside him, knees pulled up slightly so he could rest his elbows on them. "I get it. But that doesn't mean I'll give up pushing you to do something different. When you got your entire life ahead of you to explore, why tether yourself so soon to something that's not even – the ideals that you had as a teenager aren't the same as you have as an adult. That's what I'm saying. You have it in your head that this is ideal, and it's not. It changes as you change."
"People can change together to fit," Sanji said patiently to him. He picked at his pants hem. "That's what happened with us."
Zeff rolled his eyes. "Look, brat, I admit – I will be forever grateful for that shithead's persistence, and everything he's done to take care of you when I couldn't. I won't deny that. But I still feel that he's not the type of person I'd want you to settle down with when you don't even know what you're capable of as an individual adult. I understand that he might, at his age, feel as if he's found what he is comfortable with, but you're younger. You've yet to wet your feet."
"Zeff," Sanji said firmly, "almost everyone feels this exact way, and, really, who the fuck are all of you to say this? To know what I want? I don't even know what I want, lately, and I know it's because of Hiluluk. It causes people problems, yeah, but you guys aren't helping. You keep telling me that, and it feels wrong to me. At the same fucking time, I know what I want, but it feels wrong, because you keep telling me shit like that! Quit fucking telling me what I'm supposed to be doing and what I'm not supposed to be doing, or what I should be feeling versus what you think I should be feeling! I'm feeling mixed up inside, and you're not making it any better!"
Zeff reflected on this for a few moments, then drove the palm of his hand down atop of his head with a hard slap. "Why haven't you said anything about this? Had I known I was fucking up your brain with my caring, I wouldn't have even cared at all!"
"I just did, shitty old man!"
"Well," Zeff said with a huff, crossing his arms over his chest, "is that what that is? Is that what this is about? I had no idea."
"Now, you do. So lay off."
"What are you going to do about it, eggplant? Lay it out. What do you plan on doing?"
"Finish getting my GED, first. Then I'd like a job. Something decent while I look into school – there are good ones in the area, I'd like to do that. If possible, if he wants, I would want Law to finally go out and get a decent job himself – he has a very good degree, he could get any job as a surgeon anywhere in the city. Or even switch to pediatrics, because I know he thinks about his sister a lot – that's his domestic dream, and I think he's quite capable of following it. Meanwhile, I'd think Chopper should take on medical duties for the syndicates, where they'll pay him extravagant amounts of money for the injuries caused by all the fighting they get into, so he can treat the homeless, a low-key sort of thing he's been talking about."
Zeff gave him a look of disgust. "I didn't ask about those two. I asked about you. I specifically said, what do you plan on doing?"
"I just told you."
"And…and that's it. That's all you want. That's all you imagine for yourself, is getting a meager degree and a meager schooling for food arts, and you imagine that fucking punk as a specialized doctor, and that mutant a savior. There is everything wrong with this fucking picture."
"Oh my god, what is wrong with it?" Sanji asked impatiently, giving him a disgusted look.
But Zeff reached out and patted his head again, smiling tightly. Not out of anger or exasperation, but only because it threatened to show his true feelings.
"Some of us like to dream more for you, you know. That's all I'm saying. I've argued with you all your life, and even now, it's getting nowhere. I hate to say it, but if that's what you want, then I just have to accept it. But don't think I'll let it go too easily, you still being involved with this world."
"We're not the crooks," Sanji reminded him.
"I understand."
"So…old man…." Sanji chewed at his nails before saying, "What was your family like?"
Zeff looked down at his hands. "Those are best kept to myself."
"Is that how…?" Sanji trailed off, gesturing towards his half leg, visible under the folds of the blanket.
"Back then, we didn't have the medical resources that are available today. And I used it, thinking it would be impervious to bullets. Of course, that was proven wrong."
"Do you still think about them?"
"Every damn day."
Sanji peered at him, asking, "Wife? Or…husband?"
"All I'm saying is, my family was beautiful. And they'll always be in my heart. I've a new one, now."
"Is my family similar to yours?"
"What else do you remember of that day?" Zeff asked him, ignoring the question. "Tell me in detail."
"Hmm, I remember…a brother. I don't …remember his name. Standing next to me. The others were around as well, and…two were on the couch, and my sister, she…was looking outside. We were told to wait there. I remember feeling tense, like…we were arguing while waiting. It was a family room, grand and extravagant, and the furniture looked like something out of a Hollywood movie set. Like it wasn't supposed to be for kids. Everything looked so expensive. Fragile." For a moment, Sanji's face scrunched up as he examined the memory, then grew distracted. "None of that stuff would survive a day with mine. Law would make a mess wherever he went, Chopper and Bepo would have their fur over everything, Penguin and Shachi would be pushing each other over furniture, Luffy would break something just looking at it, Nami would be selling it off to the best Craigslist buyer…"
"Your family, the Vinsmokes, were very high class. Super snooty rich that none of them had to lift a finger to exercise themselves in anything that you'd consider normal. And you were part of a set, you know. Quadruplets. You were the third, but you were the runt of the litter. You had an older sister. Your father's favorite. He was grooming her to take over should anything happen to him. Your brothers, well…they were spoiled thugs. Nothing compared to the one you're seeing, just…when they grew up, they'd be the sort of trash you'd feel no sympathy for if they finally caught what was coming to them."
Sanji looked at him with a startled look. "I am detecting a lot of dislike in your tone."
"I'm not going to lie, brat. I hated that family. Bunch of snobbish, good for nothing, shit-don't-stink punks – they had the power, but they lacked people skills, which made them good assassins. Because they didn't care for others other than themselves, they could kill. But you…you were different. You were picked on a lot. They would bully you, and you would come into the kitchen because you knew they wouldn't dare cross the line there. They thought of us workers as slaves. Low class trash. And when you escaped there, it was…a safe zone. So, of course, that day when those men stormed the mansion, you went to the kitchen because you knew it would be safe.
"I wasn't about to die that day with this family. So I defended myself. I heard the kids screaming as they were killed, and thought that was it until you came in. I did hesitate because I just lost my family – I hadn't any idea how to raise one. And how could I? And what would happen if I took you? In my relationship, I didn't know a thing about kids, but my partner did. A thousand things crossed my mind at that moment, and none of them were the right things. But I eventually picked you up, and regretted every day because you've caused me hell like I've never felt, and I've never wanted to kill you more because of the shit you put me through, caring for you. So, when this old man dies, I would need you to lower me down into the dirt, so that you could let me down one last time."
"Old man….you suck at expressing yourself, and you suck at hiding the fact that you're just a big softie," Sanji snickered, elbowing him with a bright smile on his face.
"Once that faction realized they missed a Vinsmoke, I went back and dealt with them so that we'd have no trouble after settling in the States. And that was Hiluluk's wife's family, a growing faction of Mafia there. I knew this life would never leave me, so I formed this one, here, knowing that I didn't have a choice. It was who I am as a person. Once you're in, you can't ever leave it. You have to learn to live with it, within it, and control it on your own terms. Now that you're involved in it, fucking eggplant, you have to choose carefully. Know that every small step you take, it's not just you taking that step. You also have those you take in taking those steps with you."
'We'll be fine."
"Times are different now, I admit," Zeff said. "Everyone has…special abilities, now. There's these idiots in the syndicates with their powers, and there's your group with your little talents. By the way…I heard what you did to Spandem's building."
"I knew I couldn't get to Shachi by talk, alone."
"You can't always solve things with your feet, stupid."
"They gave him up right away."
"Which is very rare. You must've made quite an impression."
Sanji recalled Lucci's look of awe. But he didn't want to say anything about that. He shrugged.
"Not everyone is capable of destroying buildings without abilities, and the fact that you did – well, it made an impression. Just don't think it'll stop there. They'll expect you to keep impressing them. But you also made a very grave mistake. You showed a family of assassins just exactly what your weakness is." Zeff frowned at the ceiling, looking at something far away from them while Sanji realized that this was true. But he didn't regret his actions. He had no doubt that Law was right, about them sending Shachi back in pieces.
"We'll be fine," Sanji insisted firmly.
Zeff exhaled heavily, smoothing the sheets along his thighs. "I have no doubt that you will be, but…don't hold yourself back. Never keep things to yourself. You don't want to feel that forever regret of knowing that you could've done something, but you talked yourself out of it. So don't do anything half assed. Put both cheeks into it."
Sanji took those words to heart. He nodded gravely to show that he understood. Then said low, "Law has never complained about the effort I put my cheeks into, so – "
"GET OUT OF HERE WITH THAT."
Sanji laughed, then leaned over to bite him in the shoulder before wrapping the man's head to him in a squeezing hug. He was off the bed in almost the same moment, cheerfully wishing him a 'Good night!' before shutting the door behind him. Zeff just sat there for some minutes, smiling to himself before he reached for the nightstand nearby. He turned on the light, found a cookbook in the drawer, and opened it up, to look at the only picture he had of his family. He smiled at it fondly before closing it up, and carefully setting it back.
: :
"First off, the forums are going crazy with complaints," Penguin said, pulling off his hat and setting it aside, fluffing up his black hair as Bepo turned up the heater so that the three of them could warm up. The bear had wandered the area out of sight, swimming in the lake to catch fish, but returned to provide night watch in case they were approached. He sat in the back seat, allowing Law to take the passenger side, Bepo looking at him in concern.
The countryside gave them twinkling stars up in the empty skies, with the city skyline lighting up only a sliver of it in the east. The darkness around them gave them fleeting glimpses of headlights as a car passed through on the main road. It was almost too dark. A pair of animal eyes flashed on them from the trees, illuminated by the faint lights of the house until headlights behind them alerted it to be a cat.
"All of them have mixed things about Spandem and the others taking over. Kid, Apoo and Bonney were put on probation status, right? Well, right after, Bonney began freaking out about being forcefully restrained. And then most of her girls were rounded up by law enforcement – most of them runaways, petty thugs, repeat offenders. Spandem told her she would have to find 'professional' girls to replace those ones; ones that take tests as requirement, that pay her a higher amount so she can give back to the community. She's pissed because those girls that were taken were her friends, I guess girls that felt they couldn't go back home. I don't know.
"Kid put a complete stop to his selling – disbanded his operations from the bottom up. Starting over, he said, by restructuring his business. He pulled his name from the seller's base, and people are complaining because there were orders up, and he hadn't fulfilled them. So they turned to Doflamingo, but Doflamingo is pissed because of the way he was treated at the meeting, so he put a stop in sales. When two major weapons sellers put a stop to their operations, it causes a lot of people to react. So now they're sending complaints to the street and going to small town dealers, and these dealers are thinking they're top cash cow, now."
"Crocodile wants everything in writing. He wants contracts, he wants lawyers up front. He doesn't trust Spandem, and he doesn't want him anywhere near his casino. I think he agrees with Spandem's way of thinking, but he knows he's at the disadvantage. All the others are game to fit in. And Spandem asked all of them for our known whereabouts. After Sanji left it, Arlong had to blow the rest of the place down."
"Why?"
"Total structural damage from the inside out. He targeted the load bearing walls from the bottom floor up to the fifth – enough to have it collapse partially from the inside. Senpai, he basically kicked the building down with his bare feet." Penguin put his phone away. "He asked about that one day. How buildings were made. So, of course I showed him to answer that question. Random at the time, but I never thought he'd actually put it to use."
"Hmm."
"Oh, yeah, Bepo. Shachi put out some extras from the wedding dinner on the back porch while you were gone," Penguin told the bear, Bepo lighting up.
"I'll be right back," he said excitedly, awkwardly pushing out from the front seat. Once he closed the door, ambling carefully in the darkness to avoid being detected by the motion detector light, Penguin leaned over the bench seat to frown at Law.
"That guy got into your fucking head. You're being a fucking jerk. And I can say this because you're my friend."
"I didn't say you were mine," Law said stubbornly, looking out the window.
"I don't care what you think, ass. Whatever he said, you've been acting like a jerk this entire time. Why? Is it really worth coming off as a stupid shithead? Look, whatever happened, why are you taking it out on Sanji? The only reason why I'm saying this is because you don't handle competition very well. And you're letting it take over your common sense."
"'Competition', eh? It's not competing if there is already a victor."
"Oh, shut up. This is coming from a guy that didn't allow Bepo to talk to anyone else for years! Yeah, I get you're a child trapped in a man's body, but there is no excuse for you to be acting like this! If I'm guessing right, Lucci has a thing for Sanji, right? Who cares? What makes him different from Gin? From a passerby on the street?"
"Sanji confessed to having his attention returned."
Penguin exhaled low. To him, he'd never seen Sanji look at anyone but Law. The kid worshipped the other man, so to know this – but then he heard what Lucci was saying to Law in that fight, so to have Law confirm it…
Not that he was a professional at relationships himself, but Penguin felt that Law's anger was justified. Of course he'd take his side, but he wanted to be sure Law was angry for the right reasons. "Did you actually catch them in the act?"
"No, but – "
"I get it, so what if Sanji thinks he's cute, or whatever? Humans do! The only thing that separates people from appreciation to a total act is their actions! I can tell you for sure that he hasn't done anything you think he's done – "
"You don't know that – "
"The only reason why I'm jumping in the middle here, is because that guy now knows your weakness. How do you know he hadn't targeted Sanji because of you in the first place? This was his first step into the situation, and you let him play you! And it's so fucking obvious!"
"Stop yelling at me. You spit when you get excited."
"Just…you're making things worse, right now," Penguin said, drawing his hands down his face with exasperation. "Right now, you need to do something about this thing with the bakery. Will you fall in line with them – ?"
"No."
"He's setting you up. As your friend, I need to step in and remind you what's more important. Stop letting your insecurities rule you. And I hate to say it, but Sanji's only letting you bulldoze him because he's still not right in the head. So, there it is. You're not only an ass, you're an ass for bullying someone that can't fight back. Before Hiluluk took him, he would've never stood for this shit. After Hiluluk, he would've kicked you to the curb without a look back. But now, there's this weird period where even he doesn't know what he's doing, and you're fucking it up.
"SO! As your friend, I'm asking you – which is easier? Giving Rob Lucci the edge, and letting him win, or accepting that Sanji is as human as the rest of us? You have him on this pedestal where he's not allowed to be wrong or do anything wrong, and that's not right, especially if he slips up and does something anybody else would have done if they were in his shoes."
Law frowned. He made to reply when Penguin hit him in the shoulder, the action causing pain like none other to shoot up his ruined arm, entering his spine, and causing the ends of his hair to lift. He grit his teeth as he reached to soothe the spot, fingers shaking.
"Shh. Bepo's back. Don't say anything, because I don't want him on your side and thinking you're right when you're not," Penguin said, both of them watching the polar bear walk back to the truck with a food tray of food.
"Who is the dictator here?" Law asked incredulously, looking at him.
"This is so great!" Bepo said as he climbed back in, setting the tray down in the middle of the seat. "Everyone is in bed, already. You guys should go back inside. It's a little chilly. Plus Shachi's crying in the living room because he thinks you guys are talking about him."
"We are! Little shit. Getting caught and all that. I'm going back inside," Penguin then said, opening the back door and hopping out, slamming it shut behind him.
"How is your arm, today?" Bepo asked Law curiously, chewing on a large chunk of duck breast. "Chopper has done an amazing job. I can tell. I can't smell anything rotten from it."
"Yeah, it's adequate. Listen, Bepo. Between me and you…do you think I'm an insecure person?"
"Is that a serious question, senpai?" Bepo asked cautiously, furrowing his brow. "Because I can never tell if you're messing with me."
"Question: if someone you love admits to physically admiring another, how should you feel?"
"Does it apply to a celebrity?"
"No, Bepo. It does not. It applies to a living, breathing person that could be better than you."
"In what way?" Bepo asked, outraged. "Who could be better than you?"
"You think so?"
"It bothers me to see you looking sad, senpai. When every one of them out in the city would love to be in your place! There's no one with your wit, and you're fast and cunning, and there's no one else as perfect as you are! There's no one as admired as you! All the women love you, and most men want to be you!" Bepo declared.
"You are absolutely correct. I am individually stunning."
"No one tangles like you. Or thinks of all the best plans like you. And when it comes to hand to hand combat, no one fights dirtier than you."
"I work hard at it."
"Not a single bit of you is unkept, and you're well groomed. No one can complain when we emerge from a mess and you're still perfect while the rest of us look like shit."
"Who does he think he is, anyway? He can be replaced, just like that."
"Exactly! There's a whole list of people that wish they were in Sanji's place! …wait, what?"
Law scowled at him, then opened the door. "We'll spend half a day here, then we're going home. This place gives me the creeps. There's a lot of old people here, smelling like prunes."
"You're going to be old, one day, too! And what did I just agree to?" Sullen, aware that he'd fallen into some sort of trap, Bepo finished eating. Then texted Penguin, "I'm sorry."
'BEAR! You're fired! I'm driving you to the fur coat store tomorrow!"