This story has one sided romance between male characters, so if you don't like that, click away. Luffy is very OOC for obvious reasons, and there's a ton of angst but also a lot of friendship feels. This is one of my oldest fics, I wrote this in 2020, so two years ago! It's just been waiting to be posted. It's a My Hero Academia AU, but not a crossover. The characters are exclusively One Piece characters. Enjoy~


The hospital room was all white. The only color were the stickers on the walls and the vase of flowers beside his bed. He wasn't there long enough for any cards to be there, any sorts of gifts. But the room was also full of beeping, the sound of hissing oxygen. The sound of his ragged breathing through the pain that was dulled by pain medicine being pumped into his arm through an IV drip.

To keep him from feeling the full effects of what he'd been through. What the bandages on his left side were there for. The injuries he'd sustained while he was gone. The oxygen tube going through his nose would be itchy if he was awake. If he was allowed to be awake, as he was given sedatives to keep him under.

Doing their best to keep him from feeling the agony he no doubt would be in without medication to help him. He didn't wake from anything, anyways. He was too exhausted, too traumatized, so his mind was silent. He didn't dream, think, feel. Nothing. He was just there. Taking up a hospital room all to himself.

He was too old to be in the little kids' ward. The bed was too big for his small body. He was seven years old, and covered in cuts that would no doubt scar. Burns that would not fade. The burns that were covered in bandages. Cream on them to keep them from hurting, from getting infected.

Sabo came in, checking on his baby brother. But Luffy didn't wake. Sabo didn't try to make him, knowing he should sleep for a while longer. He was afraid of what would happen once Luffy woke up. He'd been asleep since he was found, so they didn't know what to expect. What to worry about. But they worried about everything.

Luffy's family couldn't even take his hands, as they were also covered in burns or cuts. They couldn't touch him at all besides putting their fingers through his hair. Though he couldn't feel it, most likely. He was trapped in his body, unable to get comfort from anybody. But would he even want it?

Would he ever want to be touched again? After what happened, would he want anybody coming near him? Would he trust anybody again? Ace walked in and sat next to Sabo, taking his hand to try and comfort himself and his brother. Sabo leaned against Ace's side. Dad was at work, trying to catch who had done this to their brother. Mom was getting food, finally eating something. She had barely eaten anything since Luffy was abducted. Ace and Sabo hadn't as well, but once he was found, they did.

Luffy didn't stir at all besides his noisy breathing that nobody could do anything about. They didn't know why he was breathing like that, as he had no internal damage that would cause this. But they tried to not think about that, not needing anything else to worry about. Ace and Sabo were sitting in the chairs when they heard somebody walk in.

They turned and saw Zoro there, holding flowers. Sanji had come in earlier, Luffy's two best friends. He put the flowers in another vase there, and stood at the foot of the bed, looking at his best friend, the state he was in. Sabo sighed, but knew Zoro didn't like people hugging him or showing any other type of care.

It wasn't that he was abused or anything, he just didn't like being "babied", as he called it. They could tell his dad was outside of the room, no doubt being the one to bring him to the hospital. Zoro quietly asked how he was, if anything had changed. He spoke quietly, even if his voice would be unable to wake his friend.

"No, no change," Ace answered, looking at Luffy, desperately wanting to hold his hand. But Luffy wouldn't feel it or respond regardless. He was too deeply asleep. Induced sleep. The pain medicine was also keeping him asleep, or he'd wake up from the hurt he would feel for a long time. The nurses and doctors said Luffy would have a long road ahead of him for healing.

Mom would stay home with him, as there was no way he could go back to school anytime soon. But his teacher and the school had said they wouldn't allow him to fail the year because of this. They wouldn't hold him back and make him more miserable. His family and friends were glad for this, that Luffy wouldn't suffer more than he already would.

Zoro walked to the other side of the bed, looking down at him with a sad expression. One of pity and worry. He was afraid of the outcome of this experience as well. Everyone who cared about Luffy was. Everyone was worried, scared, upset, horrified at seeing him like this.

He'd been missing for three days, and then they found him lying in a puddle of dried blood in an abandoned warehouse. The villains had left the place, nowhere to be found. Now dad was desperately searching for them, wanting revenge, even if he was a hero.

The man said that he didn't care if it tanked his career and reputation, but he wouldn't let anybody get away with doing this to his youngest son. His family and friends knew how he felt, and didn't try to convince him to not do it. They had to know they'd do the same as him if something like this happened to their loved ones.

Mom entered and sat in another chair, as there were three in there for the brothers and mother, and father when he visited. Though he had trouble looking at Luffy, knowing if he'd found him earlier, maybe this wouldn't have happened. Nobody knew what had happened, since Luffy was unable to tell anybody in the state he was in. Asleep for probably a while. They could only wait for him to wake up to know.

And why didn't his quirk get him out of there? It was strange and upsetting that he could have left easily, but didn't. Why?

-x-

Luffy woke up covered in bandages, wires attached to him with multiple IVs. He was in a hospital, that was easy to see. There were some flowers he saw in the peripheral of his eye. He couldn't turn his head. He knew it would hurt.

He looked down at his hands and saw the fingers were bandaged, as was most of his arms. He bit his lip and then closed his eyes tightly when he saw the man in front of him, hitting him in the side with a metal baseball bat.

The boy didn't scream, he didn't want them to find him again. He wanted to stay quiet, or they might find him. They might beat him again. Cut him everywhere, hit him, stab him, burn him. He couldn't even remember why. All he remembered was the pain and the single man laughing as he was beaten by both him and now faceless lackeys.

He was so afraid to make any noise. Plus, screaming or crying might hurt the burns covering half of his body. He could tell his hair was still there, but he was covered, so he didn't see the extent of the damage. He knew it was bad. It would be very bad, hard to see. And burns… if they were bad enough, they'd never go away, right?

He slowly moved his right hand to the side and pressed the red nurse button, even though it made his hands and fingers ache and burn. He would be unable to do anything after this for a while.

The nurse hurried in and loudly said she was happy Luffy was awake. At the loud sound, Luffy flinched and then hissed at the pain the movement made. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. How do you feel?"

But no words left Luffy's mouth. He was silent, uncertain about why he was afraid to talk. A vision of him screaming and being hit harder went through his mind and he shut his eyes tightly, trying to think orf anything else. Anything else. The nurse asked him again, but he couldn't speak. He shook his head to her, and luckily she seemed to get the jist.

"I'm going to call your mother, okay? She's getting coffee right now, so she'll be here right away," the nurse said kindly. Luffy didn't nod, not wanting to hurt himself more. Could he talk to mom? He had to, he had to be able to talk to them. But the feeling of defiance he got was so overwhelming.

Like he'd be angry at himself if he spoke. He was scared, and then another flash of nightmare memory came back. The fear was so thick that he was unable to use his quirk. He hated it. What good was it for if he couldn't even save himself? He was weak, and useless. His quirk was useless, too. He was angry at it.

Mom entered in a hurry and got to the side of the bed immediately sitting in the chair and scooching it forward. Luffy still couldn't say anything. Even to mom. She asked how he felt, but like with the nurse, he couldn't bring himself to speak, to answer even a basic question. It would only take a few words.

The boy tried to mentally shove his voice out, and opened his mouth, only nothing came and he shut it again. Mom took his hand and smiled at him. "You don't need to speak until you're ready," she said in assurance. Finally, the tears came, and Luffy started to sob quietly, hiding his noises even as he cried.

He couldn't be hugged, so all he got was another hand gripping his lightly, to not hurt him. "You'll be okay, baby. We'll get through it," Rouge said kindly. Luffy didn't feel too hopeful, but nodded in response, not knowing what else to say. "And when you're better, if you still don't want to talk, we can each learn sign language."

She was so kind and accepting of Luffy's new weakness. They could only see how bad it got. Luffy wasn't hopeful that he'd be okay anytime soon, if ever.

-x-

Luffy was confined to the hospital for three weeks. His burns were that bad, as were as all of the cuts on his feet, so he couldn't walk anywhere even if he wanted to. He was bound to the hospital bed. The cuts on his fingers got better, and he could messily write things on the whiteboard he was given.

He dropped the pen a lot as his fingers got sore, but he had to communicate somehow. He and his family were sure he wouldn't be talking without time or counseling, or both. Probably both. But not while he was recovering.

Nobody had asked him to tell them the story. With his newly diagnosed, but not surprising, PTSD, purposely making him relive the memory would be cruel. He was miserable, and felt so weak. He didn't know why Sanji and Zoro were still hanging around him. He… he wasn't who he had been. He didn't know if he'd ever be that person again.

He was too scared. Scared of leaving the room, scared he'd be taken again, scared his quirk would fail him. He used to love it, but now he despised it.

The recovering boy was embarrassed to be around his two best friends. When they first came to visit the day after he woke up, Luffy wouldn't make eye contact. Apparently they'd been told about Luffy going mute beforehand. So they didn't seem surprised when he was completely silent. They just looked at him with pained expressions, and then Zoro said they were still friends. They'd never ditch him for something like this. Luffy didn't really think they'd stick around too long. They'd leave him eventually.

He had to get better soon. Then everything would hopefully be better and easier. He'd be able to force himself to speak. He could move again, could stand, could finally go home.

The day before he went home, the bandages were removed completely from his burned side. The burns covered most of his left side. His arm, his leg, his side, his neck and cheek. It barely missed his eye and his ear was still there. His hair had not been burned away. He wasn't bald on one side, thankfully.

It was obvious he would always look like he'd been through hell, scars littering his body with severe burns. Everyone was gone to get food. So he was alone when he slowly ventured into the bathroom, in pajama clothes and not a hospital gown anymore since he was no longer connected to any machinery or equipment.

He turned on the bathroom light and kept his eyes closed, fists clenched. He didn't want to see, but needed to. He had to know how he'd look when he left the hospital. When he went out in public. Plus, he didn't want everyone to see his reaction when he saw his new face and body. He already knew how his arm looked. Pink and wrinkly.

The doctors told him he was very lucky with how the burns left no serious complications other than the appearance and a few of the areas no longer were able to feel pain. So if he slammed his elbow on something, it wouldn't hurt.

He opened his eyes to see the side of his face, from his neck to his chin to his cheek, were red and damaged as well. He took off his shirt to see the rest of the damage. It was horrible, but he'd expected it to be bad. Tears still went down his face, regardless of whether he knew it would be bad or not.

Since the burns were on his face, too, there was no way he could hide it. Everyone would see it. Not to mention the red, fresh scars and some scabs that would turn light pink, littered everywhere. His face as well. He was just lucky his eyes were fine. His hands went to the red ring around his neck, but the moment he touched it, he had a flashback to when he was hung on it, just long enough to make him pass out. They didn't kill him. They had fun torturing him.

He pressed his lips together tightly, gripping the basin of the sink. He took deep calming breaths before he turned and walked back into the room, turning the bathroom light off on his way. He got into bed and brought his legs up closely. He was still green and purple all around his body from bruises, but they'd go away eventually.

Everyone who saw him would know he was hurt deliberately. If you were in a house fire and got burns, you wouldn't also be littered with scars. Everyone would pity him. And he knew that, yet was still physically unable to speak. He couldn't even talk to himself. Say anything. His body and brain told him he couldn't, that it was dangerous.

That was why he was mute, he knew that now. It was easy to tell why. Luffy may be seven and a complete idiot, but he wasn't stupid. Well, sometimes. But, now he was mute, too. He looked down at his hands, the things that would speak for him, either with sign language or writing. He hated when Zoro and Sanji promised to learn sign language, too.

They didn't have to stay with him. He was a burden now. He wasn't fun anymore. Wasn't who they'd made friends with. The only reason they probably stayed with him now was because they felt obligated as his former best friends. They were good people, and they wouldn't leave him for this. Even though they must want to.

Maybe he'd get better someday. But when? He didn't want them to have to wait around for years for him to be normal again, if ever. Luffy put his face in his hands and cried.

-x-

"The fuck you say?!" Zoro demanded to the kid who now lay on the ground, his nose bleeding from a punch from the young teen. Sanji yelled at him to stop, but Zoro just shoved him away violently. "He called Luffy a freak! You gonna let that stand?!" the tallest of the three demanded. Luffy grabbed his shoulder to stop him, shaking his head, even though his eyes were red rimmed.

He should be used to this by now. It had been too long for him to be sensitive anymore. I don't want you to get in trouble, Luffy signed quickly. Everyone around him, closely around him, were able to tell what he was signing no matter how fast his hands moved. Zoro scowled down at the kid, who was crying.

He was a year older than the three, but still got his ass whooped. Ever since they were little, Zoro had had a short temper with people who were disrespectful to him or his friends. It only resorted to violence and not good insults when it was directed specifically at Luffy. Either for him still being mute, his PTSD flashbacks sometimes during class, or his marks.

They were so recognizable. He couldn't hide them, no matter if mom offered to buy some concealer on them to try and hide them. They still looked wrinkly and damaged, even if they weren't red anymore. Besides, everyone at school knew about his scars. At least, those who he'd been with since the torture.

It was easy for even seven year olds to grasp what had happened. With him going missing and then coming back to school covered in mostly or fully healed wounds. All his classmates didn't understand why he didn't speak anymore, and Luffy was unable to tell them. He hadn't spoken in five years, and he also hadn't used his quirk in that time. He threw it away since it failed him so devastatingly. He didn't trust it at all.

"Zoro, you'll get suspended again if you keep punching people," Sanji said sternly. "You're already on thin ice. Do you think Luffy is happy when you risk not being here by acting out whenever somebody is an asshole to him?" Zoro scowled, but looked away. He glanced back at the kid.

"You insult or make fun of Luffy again, I'll tell everyone how you squealed like a little girl," he snapped. The kid's face turned red and he got up before running away. Luffy would be surprised if he told anybody about this. He had indeed screamed in a very high pitched tone. Zoro turned to Luffy to see him looking at him in light disapproval.

I don't want you to fight my battles.

"If you don't do it yourself, who will?" Zoro asked in a sour voice. Luffy sighed, and signed, Nothing will change. I don't speak, I don't use my quirk, I'm covered in scars and burns. It's obvious something is wrong with me.

"That doesn't mean people have the right to insult you about it!" Zoro erupted. He was easily the more protective one of Luffy. The smaller one flinched at the shouting, and Zoro had a look of guilt when he apologized. Luffy looked away, ashamed. He shouldn't get worried about loud, sudden noises so much.

Luckily, he didn't have many flashbacks from loud noises, they just scared him. He didn't realize he'd flinched when he did. It had always been like that after the torture. Zoro then, in a quieter voice, told Luffy that it was wrong to let people walk all over him. Luffy could honestly deal with jerks. As long as they weren't friends or even acquaintances, he knew and expected to be teased or seen as wrong.

Look like a freak. He did, so he was used to it and expected it. The tears and red face were seemingly automatic. He couldn't hide them, so they made him look emotionally weak, too. Sometimes he felt like he was just dragged along as his friends changed for the better. Luffy was stuck in time.

I know I'm weak. I've known that for a long time, but when you beat up other people because they made me upset, it just makes me feel weaker, Luffy signed honestly. Zoro's face turned to shame and Sanji was frowning sadly.

"Why didn't you say that earlier?" Zoro asked quietly, not making eye contact. Luffy shrugged. Maybe he should have said it a long time ago. "You still feel like baggage, don't you?"

Sanji stepped in and said, "Maybe let's not talk about this during lunch break." Zoro huffed, but understood that anyone could be around, though not everyone knew how to read sign language. Their teachers mostly knew it already. Almost every teacher he'd had since the nightmare had known or partially known sign language.

Luffy wasn't deaf, so it was easier for everybody that the boy could understand them just fine. They only need to know what he was saying. He was glad he wasn't even more of a bother. The bell rang, and class started again, though Zoro was very obviously upset. He hid it alright to strangers, but to Luffy and Sanji, he was the picture of self hatred. Maybe Luffy shouldn't have said anything. Maybe that was a mean thing to do. Yeah, he shouldn't have said anything about it.

After school, Luffy usually walked home, but this time he stayed after class, the three of them going out to the baseball field for some privacy. Sanji and Zoro both rode their bikes home, so the three were not making their parents wait to pick them up.

"Have you always felt that way?" Zoro asked, getting right to the point. Luffy looked down, clenching his fists into his uniform.

I always feel that way. You two would be happier without me.

Both of them grew angry, but not loud, insisting that they didn't think he was a burden at all. They weren't obligated to be his friends. Luffy didn't believe or understand why anybody would willingly stick around with him. His appearance made it hard for the three of them to make new friends. Though Zoro wasn't good at that regardless.

Luffy didn't look at either of them while they tried to get him to believe their words. I'm nothing like who I was when we met.

Sanji replied, "We've been around this you more than the other you." Luffy pursed his lips, not having thought of it that way. "If Zoro didn't care about you, do you honestly think he would have stuck around this long? It's not like he's charitable. We both still hang out with you and all because you're our friend. Whether you have problems or not, you're our friend."

Luffy sniffled once, still not looking up. It was true that Zoro didn't do anything he didn't want to. But Luffy was still deeply insecure. About everything. Zoro sighed and said, "What will it take for you to believe we are willingly your best friends?"

The mute one didn't know, and so he signed that. Then he added, Time. I don't know how long. Sanji said that they'd wait for then if necessary. "Please don't think we're only here out of pity." Luffy nodded, though he knew he'd still feel that way. He'd just hide it better from now on. His phone buzzed. A text, since he didn't speak over the phone. It was Ace asking where he was. Still at school. I'll come home now, he messaged back.

I should get going, Luffy signed after putting his phone in his pocket. Zoro and Sanji nodded, and the three stood up and the taller two got their bikes while Luffy put one earbud in and started walking home.

He was halfway there when he was hit by a flashback. It was only a couple seconds, the sting of a needle shoved into his arm.

He was left curled in a ball on the sidewalk, head between his knees, trying to deal with it. Once it was over, he stayed sitting, his backpack on the ground beside him. Tears of anger fell down his cheeks. Angry that he was still so broken, five years later. He was so weak it was shameful. His friends and all of his family didn't seem to judge him.

And he was telling the truth when he said he was used to the way strangers treated him. But it didn't mean it didn't leave a bad taste in his mouth sometimes. Of embarrassment when somebody asked him a direct question and he said nothing. They either got angry or offended. He eventually stood up, though his legs were a bit shaky in the aftermath.