Chapter 16: The Detours
Law parked the car in front of Luffy's house. He had to dodge a truck and park a bit forward because there were people unloading boxes. When he came down he realized that it was at Luffy's house and it seemed strange to him. Why were they getting boxes into his house?
"Law!"
Marco appeared behind the truck with a box in hand, he seemed surprised to see him.
"Marco? He asked, turning his face, clearly as puzzled as he was. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm helping Ace move," he explained, pointing to some boxes in the truck. "We came with Izo's truck carrying his things."
His brows drew together not understanding.
"Give me another one!" Luffy yelled out the door. "Ah,Torao!"
Law smiled at the sight. Luffy looked very happy and bright. He could guess why; he was beginning to understand that picture.
"You are here early," the boy said, approaching them both.
"Are you guys going out?" Marco asked and Luffy nodded.
"We were going to eat at Cora-san's," he replied smiling.
Izo and Ace got out of the truck holding what looked like the last boxes and left them on the ground. Sabo came out of the house and stacked some boxes to lift, when he saw him.
"Law, how are you?" Izo and Ace looked in his direction and set the boxes down to come closer as well.
"Well, I was coming to look for Luffy-ya, did I arrive at the wrong time?"
Ace and Sabo looked at each other with a small smile and Law didn't fully understand the meaning behind the gesture. He was not overly concerned. He understood that there were secrets and codes between some people. Looks that only the two of them understood.
"Not at all," Sabo replied with a friendly smile. "Ace was moving in, but Luffy almost broke two fragile boxes so you better take him away."
"Hey, there wasn't a fragile label!" The boy exclaimed to defend himself.
"Yes, there was!" Ace snapped. "But you got it upside down."
"It's not my fault if it was turned around…"
Sabo and Marco laughed in amusement and Izo shook his head. He also looked at them with a small smile. Ace and Sabo's fight had made Luffy sad for a while and their complicated relationship had been difficult for the boy who wanted to solve everything with love. His two brothers living with him again, without drama in between, would make him happy without a doubt.
And that made Law happy.
"We'll have a welcome back dinner for Ace later, although Luffy won't be around," Sabo mentioned with his hand on his chin.
"Tomorrow we'll eat together." Luffy didn't look discouraged about not being there that night, although Law felt a little bad for taking him away.
"If you want you can stay, Luffy-ya ..."
"Are you kidding me? I want to eat at Cora-san's!"
That kid's impetus was hilarious and everyone laughed. Shirohige's people knew Law's father perfectly. Everyone put that smile on their face when they talked about him.
"So you'll leave your room empty at Shirohige's," Law mentioned thoughtfully and Ace nodded.
"More boys will be coming in in a few days and I…" His gaze met Sabo and he smiled, "I have a house anyway."
"I'm going to get my things, Torao, I'll be right back," Luffy said before disappearing into the house.
Ace continued to tell him how things were at Shirohige's and he listened with interest. Apparently Tama would be moving into her restored home shortly, and some of the boys and girls were having hearings with prospective adoptive parents. He was glad to know that. For now, Leo would still be at the Home. He would go to visit him soon, Cora-san would probably return and he was thinking of snatching that opportunity to accompany him.
He noticed that Izo held Marco's hand for a moment. Law was not intrusive but he paid attention to details and noted the connection between the two men. He remembered the chat messages of his friends, when Bepo said he believed he had seen Marco outside the hospital with a woman. It amused him to know that it had really always been Izo.
"I wanted to invite everyone, but the house is small," Ace mentioned looking at Sabo with a smile.
"In the end we invited our closest friends," Sabo added. "And we are still like twenty."
To Law this seemed like a celebration for the officialization of a relationship. He didn't think it was anyway, but it seemed like a nice initiative and it seemed to make them happy.
"Did you tell Kiku?" Ace asked, suddenly looking at Izo. "The last time I spoke to her she was taking hormone treatment, months ago."
"She was very into it, and her appearance change a lot," Izo exclaimed with a smile. "She is very happy."
"Kiku is Izo's sister." Watching Law's puzzled look, Marco began to explain. "She was doing a treatment with Ivan to make the transition, she is a trans girl."
It didn't seem strange to him. Ivan was an endocrinologist and he knew that a large part of his work in hospitals, clinics and even in social organizations had to do with hormonal treatments for trans people.
—Ivan is a great professional, surely he took good care of her.
"She's delighted, she's going to come today, so you'll see her splendid," her brother added with a proud smile.
Luffy returned with a backpack and a large bag. He looked happy and was grinning madly with the cellphone in his hand.
"How about we take a picture?" He asked, almost shouting.
They settled in front of the door, boxes in their hands and on the floor. Law wanted to take it, because he didn't feel like he had to participate in that moment, but Ace took him by the shoulder and wedged him between him and Sabo.
"My little brother's boyfriend has to be in the picture," he said with a happy expression when Luffy laughed, covering his face. The boy raised his arm and counted backwards with the camera in selfie mode. "But if you hurt him, I'll kill you."
The whisper didn't go unnoticed and a chill ran through his body. Luffy showed them the photo and Ace came out with a clean, perfect smile. No trace of what he said was on his face.
"Come on, Torao, I'm starving!" He grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the car.
"See you, have a good night," he greeted before letting himself be carried away by that boy.
When they got into the car and buckled up, Luffy sighed with a goofy, happy smile.
"Are you happy? He asked, although it was obvious, as he started the car and drove out of Goa.
Luffy looked at the photo and zoomed in on their faces.
"Today is a special day, Torao," he exclaimed, smiling. "Ace comes back to live with us and it's your birthday."
They briefly met each other's gaze before he had to watch the road again. Luffy looked amused and he snorted playing along.
"I thought you were going to say it there, in front of everyone." Luffy clicked his tongue and looked offended, which made him laugh.
"You have a bad concept of me, you know?" He snapped, scowling. "You told me you don't like your birthday too much, I wasn't going to expose you."
He closed his eyes for a brief but necessary moment to open them again and smile. He looked at Luffy laughing.
"You are a complete mystery, Luffy-ya."
The sea and storm boy smiled, showing him all his teeth and gums and Law couldn't help but to find him beautiful.
.
.
.
When Corazón opened the door his smile was huge. The representation of happiness. He lunged at Law and hugged him tightly, almost knocking him out of breath.
"Cora-san, wait." He gasped for breath and Luffy laughed at him. "It's not funny, help me!"
"Happy birthday, Law!" His father broke away from him and hugged Luffy with the same effusiveness, but the boy responded in the same way.
The heat definitely took over the city but Corazón's house was still just as hot as when it was winter. Luffy took off his thin jacket and was left with a short-sleeved shirt. Law also had to undress a bit.
"God, Dad, aren't you dying of heat in here?" He snapped and Cora-san looked at him smiling. He always liked it when he said that to him.
Luffy left his things near the door and entered the kitchen behind him, following the delicious smell of the food.
"Did you cook, Cora-san?" He asked, dazed looking at all the food on the counter. Law laughed.
"Where is your broken arm?" He raised an eyebrow and Corazon scowled at him.
He saw him roll his eyes and smiled, feeling like a winner.
"I bought it and had it delivered. It's a place Law liked when he was younger."
They used to order from the same bar when they didn't feel like cooking, or treating Cora-san whenever he cut himself trying. On his birthday nights they would buy there and eat on the couch watching a series.
"Law told me you like meat, so I bought hamburgers and fries too." He showed him a table with the food arranged perfectly and Luffy's mouth fell open, almost starting to drool.
"Let's get settled in before Luffy-ya eats the kitchen."
They brought everything to the coffee table in the living room next to the dining room and Corazón turned on the television. The sofa hugged the three of them with its trays and tables overflowing with food. Corazón had fries and grilled fish. Luffy his burger combo with fries and dressing all over the place and Law, in the middle, with his tray of onigiris, sauces and dressings and two grilled fish. Maybe it was too much, but it looked delicious.
"What are we gonna watch?" Luffy asked eagerly and Law laughed.
"I don't think you're gonna like it."
Corazón put on a random episode of Dr. House and Luffy threw his head back booing.
"Boooooring," he yelled even though Law and Corazón laughed at him.
Anyway, the food was so exciting that Luffy forgot about the program and concentrated on eating wildly, filling himself with ketchup and sauce and opening his mouth wide to eat that triple burger.
"God, I don't understand anything, what has he got?" Luffy asked, trying to follow the show carefully.
Cora-san, with his handkerchiefs on his nose and Law with his impassive face, continued to stare at the screen.
"Cancer," they both replied.
Luffy smirked looking sideways at Law. He looked so engrossed by the medical fiction that he didn't notice the boy's intense gaze. Only when he finished eating and wiped his hands with a napkin did he notice Luffy's hand against his.
It reminded him of that day at the beach and without hesitation, he took it.
They finished the chapter in silence, interrupted by Corazón blowing his nose or Luffy's heavy breathing telling him that he had fallen asleep. That didn't bother him. It was something very typical of him.
He woke up when Corazón got up from the couch to go to the bathroom and saw him rub his eyes in the dark.
"What happened? Is it over now? Was she cured?"
The giddy questions were hilarious and Law smiled looking at his sleeping face.
"Yes, it finished and yes. She was cured."
Corazón appeared with ice cream served in glasses and passed them on. Luffy regained his energy upon seeing it. They ate dessert while chatting. Law never feared what the relationship between Cora-san and Luffy would be like. He knew them and knew that they both would fit together like two pieces of a puzzle.
He still didn't know how he fit in, that being so different he adapted to both of them in an amazing way.
He was startled when Luffy jerked his knee and stood up abruptly.
"I've been waiting for this moment all night, I'm so excited!"
He raised an eyebrow without understanding but Luffy didn't bother to say anything to him. He just got up and came back with the huge bag he had seen him pick up at his home. He handed it to him with a smile and sat cross-legged on the floor, watching him closely.
Law knew it was a gift and opened it carefully. Inside the big paper bag was a package. It wasn't heavy but it wasn't light either. He unwrapped it slowly and the first thing he noticed was the softness of a fabric. Then the little brown spots.
"A hat ..."
Cora-san's eyes also bulged when he saw it. He was absorbed in running his fingers through the hat over and over again.
"It is like…?"
He was speechless and Luffy laughed upon seeing him shocked. How could it not be? It was a hat almost identical to the one he wore in his childhood photos; the one that Corazón had given him.
Months ago he told Luffy about it in one of his first early morning text conversations. Luffy had said they had to get him a new one, but Law thought it impossible.
"I bought the fabric, Sabo helped me choose it," Luffy mentioned with a smile. "And I hired the best craftswoman and the best weaver to do it."
Law closed his eyes with a smile and bitten lips. His mind was filled with images of Leo and Tama holding their wares at Shirohige's fair. There were no doubts.
"Working together they are faster than anyone," the boy added.
The hat was different from the one of his childhood. It had a front visor and it wasn't round, but the fabric was almost the same and the design was the same. Luffy took it in his hands and placed it on his head.
"Now we both have our hats," he muttered happily.
"Luffy, this is amazing!" Corazón was still around Law looking stunned at the hat, he touched it without believing it and felt the soft texture of the fabric.
Law remained silent because he felt that a lot of things were crowding in his chest. It was not just the hat and the fact that it was Luffy who gave it to him, but he knew how important the boys and girls of Kamabakka and Shirohige's were to him. He was related to them and it was a huge gesture to have something they made with their hands.
He looked at his boyfriend. The word seeped into his thoughts and he didn't push it away. He felt that he was becoming friends with it more and more. His hand took Luffy's face, which seemed to be small between his long, tattooed fingers. Luffy smirked and his grimace turned to surprise when he pulled his face up for a kiss.
Corazón smiled, feeling like a spectator of a moment in which his son made him participate. After all, there was no other person who knew him like his father. He knew his misfortunes, his joys, the reasons why he got up every day. And now he knew this.
That he had no more fear, no walls. Not for him, not for Luffy.
.
.
.
When they entered his apartment, Luffy took off his jacket and threw himself on the sofa with a tired smile.
"God, I ate too much," he gasped with his hands on his stomach. Law rolled his eyes.
"You shouldn't eat so much, you know that, right?" He exclaimed, looking for some cups. "I'll make a digestive tea, you're going to drink it."
Luffy laughed mischievously and stretched out further on the couch smiling.
"Cora-san is amazing," he whispered to himself, but Law heard perfectly and couldn't help but smile fondly as he poured hot water into the cups.
He approached the couch and Luffy made space for him although he placed his legs on his lap and sat up a bit to be able to drink the tea. The heat comforted them and began to warm the atmosphere.
"Are you happy that Ace is living with you again?" He asked, looking at the boy sprawled out beside him.
Luffy brushed his hair back from his face and smiled, showing him his incredibly bright gesture.
"I'm very happy! We agreed that tomorrow we'll have dinner together when I come back."
The next day would be a challenge for both of them. First thing in the morning they would have a hearing at the Dressrosa court for Bellamy and then they would go to the Kamabakka. Law would have to arrive at 9 o'clock but due to the hearing he delayed the consultation hours because neither Marco nor Ivan could replace him. He would almost overlap with lunchtime, but at least it would provide attention. Luffy had his soccer group at two in the afternoon and it was easier for them to go together.
Although he had the feeling that from that moment they would begin to go places together because of other reasons. Wasn't it like that with couples?
"You have to get up early tomorrow," he warned, looking at the boy with threatening eyes.
He didn't know why anyway. He was the one with the sleep problems.
"You set the alarm, I'll get up."
Luffy finished his tea and carried both cups into the kitchen. Law decided to find his sleeping clothes.
"Did you bring something to sleep in?" He asked from his room, changing.
"Yeah, in the backpack. And a toothbrush too."
He stood still, staring at the yellow shirt in his hands. It was silly, and especially for him who had always been out of those kinds of cliches, but the fact that Luffy left his toothbrush, his things, that he inhabited his environments, made him feel deeply accompanied. Much less lonely than he always felt.
The soccer boy appeared in his red shirt and shorts, walking on tiptoe with only his socks on. He threw himself onto the bed and fell into a sitting position.
"Are you tired?" He asked when he finished changing his clothes. He slid onto the bed next to Luffy and smiled.
Being around him no longer worried him or made him feel anxious or tense. Now there was an air of naturalness around them, a domestic and daily atmosphere that he wanted to get used to.
"Not so much, although I'm kinda tired."
They looked at each other and Law took the time to detail his face. Black hair, big eyes. The pupils were not noticeable because of the dark color of the iris. His own eyes, between brown and gold, stood out from his normally dark face, but Luffy seemed more harmonious. Except for the scar under his left eye that made him look eccentric and mysterious.
"What are you looking at, Torao?" He asked in a low voice looking at him. Law laughed.
"Nothing."
He raised his hand to go around Luffy's cheek and bring him to him. The boy didn't refuse and closed his eyes as the impulse guided him to his lips. He had gotten used to those gestures and displays of affection between them.
Luffy bit his lower lip and he opened his mouth to let his tongue pass. It was warm and soft and always invaded him with incredible power. As was Luffy in general, invading everything with the force of storms.
His hand climbed up the boy's chest and grabbed the back of his neck, stroking it absently. Luffy flinched, apparently it had tickled him and he couldn't help laughing between the kisses. Luffy's hands also didn't stay still and roamed his chest, as if stroking the tattoos on the shirt he was wearing.
He had found that not thinking so much was good sometimes. With his eyes closed and given to kissing, there was nothing else in his head that was not to continue doing what he was doing. Luffy also didn't move away and his traveling hands touched him eagerly to know him more.
He squeezed him when it became apparent that the kiss would lengthen and was relieved when Luffy reacted positively, moving closer to his body and wrapping both hands around his neck. He enjoyed the stroking of his hair and even his restless fingers touching his sideburns. He seemed curious about his body and that kind of contact and the conversation they had had days ago, when they talked about Luffy's sexuality, floated back into his mind.
Luffy seemed to be asexual and demyromantic, but he also didn't feel reflected in categories that he didn't fully understand. What was Luffy but someone who was out of any control; of any norm?
He pulled back for air and that was the moment that Luffy needed to move. Law hardly noticed. When he opened his eyes, the boy's face was closer than he thought. His body sitting astride his.
The heat that Luffy gave off could be addictive and Law relaxed under his touch. When they kissed again, he felt like he could melt under the gentle, warm touch of that twenty-two-year-old boy. There in his room, safe from monsters and slavers, he felt immune.
He went around Luffy's back and caressed him gently over the shirt, carefully and when he felt him shudder and laugh between the kisses, he verified that he had tickled him again. Luffy's skin crawled under the shirt and he could tell when he dared to reach inside and scratch gently with his nails. Luffy moved like a snake, but from the noise it made against his mouth, he could tell that he liked it.
He didn't stay behind, either. The boy's hands were eager and filled with his characteristic curiosity. He had crossed them behind his neck but now he was also holding his shirt between his fingers and gently caressed his back. Law knew that was too much, at least for what they had been doing.
"Luffy," he managed to say, forgetting about the honorific. The boy seemed to ignore him and moved against him.
What that movement caused was indescribable. He bit his lip and muffled a sound that would have left him very exposed. Luffy didn't seem to notice or want to stop. He buried his face in his neck and kissed him.
His hand escaped from Luffy's back and grabbed onto his hair, stroking it carefully as the boy kissed him. His breathing was getting out of control and he knew what that meant. He wasn't going to deny that he wasn't looking forward to it, that he didn't want it to happen, but he had certain fears regarding what Luffy really wanted, or if he was doing it to please him.
When Luffy bit hard on his skin he couldn't help but gasp. There would be a mark there in a little while and he hoped that by tomorrow, at least, it would be gone. He held the boy's body from behind, as if he had to keep him secure on his legs while he sank into his neck with unknown intentions. However, the gentle sway of his hips had clearly defined intentions and he was having a hard time resisting it.
"Luffy," he said again, testing what the name sounded like, almost as if he reserved it that way for those intimate moments. "What are you…?"
The little demon dragged his hips over his, as if to shut him up and Law bit the inside of his cheek but moaned anyway. He was breathing heavily and Luffy was too. His hands had moved to the boy's hip and he began to guide him in that gentle and intimate movement.
It was different from what he remembered as intimacy. With Kid, those moments were filled with irrepressible desire, almost chaotic and uncontrolled. Luffy was the opposite; it was sensual and soft, as if he had a kitten rubbing himself in his lap.
He began to think that sexuality was even more complex to claim that it was unique to each person. Maybe it was unique to each relationship. Kid had arrived at a very particular moment in his life, with a diametrically different personality than Luffy, with other stories and tragedies. It was logical to think that he was not going to bond in the same way as with that boy who, despite living hard times and a deprived childhood, had grown up full of the love of his brothers and his friends.
It was a new sexuality for Law, full of discoveries and new sensations and he didn't try to stop it. When Luffy detached himself from his neck and looked at him, he clearly saw the signs of desire in his pupils. His cheeks flushed, his breathing ragged. He felt the same way too and wanted to find out what it was like to be intimate with him.
He licked his lips as he held Luffy's hips with both hands and continued to push him to move them over him. Luffy held onto his shoulders and dropped to his knees on the bed to deepen the contact.
The sound that came from Luffy's lips startled him. He had never heard him moan, although he never thought about it before either, but now that he heard him, he couldn't deny that it did things to him. He tried to breathe normally, but he couldn't fool his body anymore or pretend he wasn't feeling aroused. He could feel Luffy in the same condition and when the boy raised his face to see him, he found the same thoughts in his eyes.
"Torao," he gasped in agitation and Law looked at him carefully. "Can we ... touch each other?"
He opened his mouth and closed it several times, not knowing how to speak. Not that he didn't have a clear answer, but there were things he didn't know regarding Luffy, sex, and pleasure and he needed a roadmap for how to act.
"Have you ever..." he said, his voice hoarse and deeper than normal, "have you done it yourself?"
Luffy nodded softly and he was shocked. When they talked about sexuality and estimated that he could be asexual —despite the fact that he refused to categorize him— his mind cataloged it under that label. He realized now, when he couldn't conceive that the boy had masturbated before.
"From time to time," he replied in a low voice, also more serious. "When I'm lonely and bored It feels good."
"And what... Do you do for that?" He felt like an idiot asking without being entirely clear. "I mean... Do you watch a video or read a magazine?"
Luffy denied and his face showed bewilderment.
"No, I just... touch myself because it feels good."
It couldn't be otherwise with that boy. He didn't imagine him watching some erotic video or reading those adult magazines. Luffy had a strange head that worked differently from the rest of the people he knew. It was interesting to note how it happened to him with those things as well.
"So you want us to touch?" He repeated to be sure and Luffy nodded, serious in the darkness of his room.
He bit his lip, it was strange to feel insecure, but the whole situation was unexpected. However, it was not uncomfortable or unpleasant. He wanted Luffy's closeness, his touch.
"Do you want me to do it for you?" He asked softly, stroking his hair carefully and looking into the black eyes that glowed like obsidian.
Luffy, as an answer, stood up to lower his pants a little. Law followed suit, trying to arch up and remove his clothes while still sitting with Luffy on top of him. In the dark they couldn't see each other clearly, only his face and the shape of his body. Touch was the privileged sense, the one that could perceive and know the other. Undressing was never easy but Law felt sheltered in the intimacy of those walls, of that darkness and Luffy's touch.
He felt carefully until he found the boy's erection and tried to observe all his gestures as he stroked him. Luffy gasped and bit his lip, moving against him again as he embraced him with his entire hand and stroked him at a steady but gentle pace.
Luffy seemed to enjoy it, his gestures and sounds showed it to him and he smiled looking at him. He liked seeing him like this, so devoted to that moment of enjoyment together. He paused for a moment and the boy's gaze penetrated him with deep-set eyes as if asking him not to stop. He laughed softly.
He took his own erection and made use of his long fingers to also embrace Luffy's and caress them at the same time. The boy shuddered and so did he; The feeling of being against him, so hot and full of desire, took hold of him. He moved his hand and let the other hold Luffy's hip to guide his movements against him. They were slow at first. The swaying of his hips and his hand at the same rhythm brought them to a very pleasant ecstasy.
Luffy gasped and complained, sometimes looking at him, open to let Law see him enjoy, and other times hiding in his neck, biting and licking his sensitive skin. He was just as out of control, feeling on the verge of giving up all rationality to indulge in the sensation of Luffy's erection pressed so close to his own.
The breaths, the gasps, the movement, everything sped up and increased. He no longer had control over his body or what was happening, the end was near and he had no intention of stopping it. Luffy crawled onto his neck and moved his hips against his hand. He wrapped his other arm around him and held him there as he felt the boy crumbling on his chest between gasps and moans.
And he, in front of that image, of that feeling, of that unique and unrepeatable moment in which Luffy enjoyed in his arms, could not help but let go as well. He buried his face in his boyfriend's wild hair and breathed heavily.
They held on without letting go for long moments. Luffy didn't show his face and Law gently stroked his back with his nose through his hair. When they finally parted ways, Luffy's satisfied smile said more than a thousand words.
"We're a mess," Law murmured looking at his hand but the smile on his mouth spread more and more.
Luffy got off his lap to let him get up. Law found a towel in the bathroom and cleaned himself. He let the boy do it himself too and tossed it into the laundry basket to get into bed.
He didn't expect Luffy to seek his contact, to hug him from behind, burying his head between his shoulder blades. It was warm and it made him feel loved in a very different way than how he used to experience it with Corazón or his friends.
He felt his deep breath and gently caressed the hand that was around his chest, feeling Luffy so small behind him. His breathing was deep, surely he would have fallen asleep.
"Torao," he managed to mutter before falling asleep. Law grunted softly in response. "I love you".
He opened his eyes and his hand twitched against Luffy's but it took him so long to respond that the first snoring seeped into his ears as proof enough that he had nothing more to add.
He bit his lip and smiled, unable to believe what that boy was capable of. He destabilized him even then and he always got away with it. It was good. Luffy didn't need an answer. He had felt it.
He closed his eyes and decided to sleep. With Luffy quartered on his back, monsters would think twice before appearing in his nightmares.
.
.
.
On the fifth ring of the alarm clock, Law opened his eyes. He groped for his cell phone and checked the time.
Hell, it was so early, the sun wasn't up yet and he just wanted to keep sleeping.
Luffy didn't even move on his back, he was still glued to him like an octopus —or a tick— and he didn't acknowledge the alarm.
He sat up rubbing his face and moved Luffy to wake him up. It was very difficult, but when he opened his eyes and positioned himself, he managed to get him up.
"Let's buy some coffee, we woke up a little late," he said as he got dressed. Luffy was brushing his teeth in the bathroom and growled demanding food. "I'll buy something on the way, don't worry."
That scene reminded him of several others. How many times had he woken up with Luffy reliving that same day? At the camp, when they got up in the tent and bribed him with food to wake him up. At Sanji's house when he had to leave early for work. In his own house, when he stayed to sleep on the couch and when they had their first kiss. He always had to mention food to get Luffy to leave his shelter.
The soccer boy came out of the bathroom with a sleepy face, backpack on his shoulder and a lazy smile. Law looked at him carefully, not feeling alarmed from spending so much time checking his face.
He leaned closer and stretched his hand to encompass Luffy's cheek. He pressed his thumb over one of his eyes and rubbed it clean. Luffy complained but didn't stop him and he chuckled softly.
"Come on, I'm starving," he snapped, his stomach roaring like a lion.
Law took his keys, his cell phone and a backpack where he had some papers for the hearing and important documents. When they were in the car, he made sure to stop by a gas station to refuel and bought breakfast. Luffy revived just by looking at it.
As he drove to Dressrosa, he glanced at him. Full of crumbs from his sandwich, coffee and cell phone in hand. His slippers were off and one leg was on the seat.
He was the boy he had been told so much about, the one he never wanted to meet. He was the boy who came into his life to destroy everything and show him another way of living.
"Luffy-ya," he murmured, staring at the road leading out of town. He watched him as dawn spread its domain behind him. "Me too"
It was not necessary to say more. He saw him smile and knew he understood. After all, Luffy was the smartest boy he had ever met, the one who read emotions with unthinkable clarity.
Luffy was an unforeseen event that he could never have predicted. He appeared overnight, his face covered in soot and crawled into his bones, pressed against his skin. He shared his dreams, his commitment to the Kamabakka, and his drive to stop mobsters like Bellamy.
And there, driving to those destinations that reconciled his interests and concerns, with that boy in the passenger seat, he felt safe. Because even if Luffy couldn't guide him even two streets and didn't have the assurance of arriving safely, he no longer cared about taking detours.
There was no point avoiding the unpredictable or controlling everything. The detour had its risks, but also an incredible gain. Like the boy next to him, the detour was freedom.
And Law had been in jail long enough. Now he wanted to win it back.
Final Notes: Well, there are many things I want to say. I hope you liked the fanfic, the development and the ending it had. This story means a lot to me because it has a lot of my thinking, experiences and also experiences of people that I love and admire. Plus, it gave me the chance to meet amazing people in the fandom. Thanks to the Strawheart crew Discord group for being such a source of endless fun and support. To Daena for always being with me and sharing this madness together and to Chainedkura for taking the incredible job of translating this fanfic into English. More people were able to read it thanks to him.
Thank you for accompanying me on this path, you made this quarantine fun and made me happy thinking about Law and Luffy during all these months.