Thanks MyLadyDay and Vergina-spva for beta'ing


Chapter 13

Several weeks passed, and Thatch became more and more himself again. His arm had fully healed by now, and he didn't need a wheelchair anymore. He was, however, still living with Izo. Thatch took care of cooking and because he still wasn't working, he got bored easily, which prompted him to try out new recipes or make up his own. Twice a week, a cleaning lady came by Izo's house, and Thatch had befriended her, or he was just trying to fatten her up, Izo wasn't sure which. Either way, she spent more time eating his baked goods and chatting than she did cleaning, but Thatch took that task upon himself as well.

Thanks to Thatch's experiments in the kitchen, Izo had to admit he had gained some weight as well. It was amazing Thatch himself managed to stay in shape, but he could be found on a rowing machine several times a week that Izo had bought in a fit of insanity and never used himself. Izo had trouble not to stare when Thatch was getting all sweaty in the middle of the living room. Instead, he told Thatch that he stank and should open a window when he was working out.

Izo loved having Thatch around the house, and not just because he took the cooking upon himself. It was nice to have someone to talk to, and after dinner, they usually sat on the couch together to watch TV or just chatted. Thatch had taken to the habit of rubbing Izo's feet, to which Izo didn't complain whatsoever. It was nice living with Thatch. It felt domestic.

However, as of late, Izo started to realise that something was very wrong with that. Thatch wasn't one to just stay at home, he never had been. Thatch needed a job, he needed to have friends to go out with and a girlfriend. Thatch had never brought up the subject of moving out, but Izo knew this couldn't last forever now that Thatch was fully healed. The longer the situation continued, the more he would get used to it, and the more it would hurt when it finally ended. It may have pretty much felt like they were a couple, but they weren't. They were brothers. They just lived together, temporarily.

But then why did Thatch insist on shooting him smiles all the time?

Izo was slowly starting to panic. It was getting harder and harder to keep his secret from Thatch, because at certain points, it felt easier to just admit to everything. And maybe everything would be okay. Intellectually, however, Izo knew that wouldn't be the case. Thatch had just gotten used to their living arrangement, that was all. He just needed to go out with a nice woman and he would be ready to move out. Even if Izo wanted anything but that, he knew it was the right thing to do, for Thatch. And that was the only thing that mattered.

He started out subtle, pointing out women when they were out doing groceries – they really were getting too domestic – but of course, thick-headed Thatch didn't pick up on that. It was time for more drastic measures.

Izo had many female friends, but he didn't want to set up Thatch with them, mostly because they either already knew them or had dated him in the past. But fortunately, he had another source for eligible women.

Ace had pretty much moved in with Marco, so Izo wasn't surprised to find him there when he rang the doorbell. In fact, he was exactly the person Izo was looking for.

"Oh hey, Izo," Ace greeted him as he opened the door. "Marco's not here."

"I'm here for you," Izo said as he invited himself in.

Ace let him pass. "Okay, what do you need?"

Izo waited until he had let himself sink on the couch in the living room, musing about the way he could best ask this question. He knew Ace would refuse at first, or at least be very reluctant to grant him his request. Izo needed to convince him it would be best for everyone, which wasn't going to be an easy task. Ace was still rooting for them to get together, and Izo was aware that he had foolishly gotten his hopes up when Thatch moved in with Izo. It was sweet, but not very realistic.

Ace had taken a seat opposite from him and looked at him expectantly. Izo knew he couldn't evade the subject for long, so he decided to come right to the point. Taking a deep breath, he looked Ace straight in the eye.

"I need you to do me a favour." When Ace nodded to indicate that he was listening, Izo took a deep breath. "I need you to find Thatch a date."

For a long time, Ace just looked at him, blinking. Then he finally said slowly, "I'm sorry?"

"You know women, right? Set him up with someone."

Ace kept staring at him. "No," he said eventually.

"What do you mean, 'no'?" Izo asked indignantly.

Ace looked at his as if he were stupid. "How can you even ask that question? What's more, how can you ask me to set Thatch up with someone after what you've gone through?!" He was getting angry. "I know you're in love with him, so how can you expect me to do that to you? To both of you?!"

Izo waited patiently until he was done with his rant. He hadn't expected Ace to agree right away, but his words still hurt. It reminded him how much Ace was rooting for him and Thatch, and it touched him deeply. When Ace was done, however, it was time to convince him. "Ace," he said in a soft voice. Ace's face immediately softened. "I know you mean well and I appreciate it, but this is the best thing for the both of us. It has been fun while it lasted, but it's time for Thatch to pick up his life where he left off. That means going back to his own place, back to his old job. And I think a girlfriend would help him ease back into it."

"But…" Ace started, but Izo lifted up his hand.

"It's for the best, you know? I've already explained why it wouldn't work between us, so please, stop trying to get my hopes up, I beg you." Izo closed his eyes and sighed. "Please, it seemed to work well between him and Nojiko until his coma."

"I only set them up because he asked me," Ace protested.

"Exactly. He'll ask you again in time. I'm just helping speeding things along."

Ace still looked doubtful. "I just want you to be happy," he finally said.

"I'll be happy when Thatch is, I promise." Izo placed a hand on Ace's leg. "Please, do what I ask. Please."

Slowly, Ace nodded. "Alright. I'll find someone for him."


"So, Ace just said he found a woman I was sure to like," Thatch said.

It was a few days since Izo had begged Ace to do just that, and he had been dreading this moment ever since. He hadn't told Thatch that he had asked Ace, though.

Trying to be casual, he looked up from his sketch. His painting of Cavendish had long since been finished, so now he was working on something of his own. "Did he now?" he asked light-heartedly, or at least attempted to sound like that.

"Yeah. Apparently, he's determined to fix me up, even after what happened with Nojiko." Thatch leaned against the wall, his arms crossed before his chest. It was hard to guess what he was thinking.

"Well, to be fair, there will be no coma in the way this time," Izo replied as he continued his sketch, though his movements had become brusquer. He didn't like the idea of Thatch going on a date with someone, even if he knew it would be the best for everyone.

"I declined."

The point of Izo's pencil broke when he pressed too hard on the paper. This was not going according to plan, and Izo wasn't used to his schemes failing. Wide-eyed, he looked up. "Why?"

Thatch shrugged. "I don't know. I don't really feel like dating."

"You might soon." Izo's heart was racing, but whether it was from excitement because Thatch didn't want to go or because he knew he had to convince Thatch somehow, he didn't know. Still, he managed to sound casual.

Thatch shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not."

"Still, I think you should take Ace up on his offer," Izo replied. "He found you a good match in Nojiko, didn't he?"

"He only arranged that because I asked if Nami had a sister, as a joke," Thatch said. "And yeah, it was fun while it lasted, but I was fine when it was over too."

"In the past two months, you hardly have been out of the house," Izo tried, "which is very much unlike you."

Thatch shrugged again. "That's because I have everything I need here. If I need a friend, you're there, if I need a brother, you're there, and if I need someone to try my food, you're there too. Besides, Marco and Ace both live close by. Honestly, this is the most I've seen of my family on a regular basis since we lived under Pops' roof. I'm fine here."

Izo's heart skipped a beat at Thatch's words. Of course he knew Thatch liked living with him, but hearing he was pretty much all Thatch needed was nice nonetheless. That didn't change the fact that he still needed to convince Thatch to go on a date, and everything would go back to normal. "'Fine' is not good enough. Go out, have fun. You love meeting new people."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you'd wanted to get me out of the house," Thatch said with a snort.

It was meant as a joke, of course, but Izo decided to go with it, no matter how mean it was. "Like I said, you've been living here for two months now. This would be my first night by myself, you know."

The smile disappeared from Thatch's face. "Well, fine. If that's the case, why didn't you say so sooner? Please, let me get out of your way! I'll call Ace right away and I'll be gone all night. Would that please His Majesty?" He made a mocking bow and left Izo's studio.

Izo didn't see him for the rest of the day. He knew he shouldn't be worried because fights with Thatch never lasted long, but they never failed to make Izo feel bad. Especially since this one was his fault, even if he was doing it for Thatch's own good.

He was sitting in his bedroom tidying up a bit when there was a soft knock on the door. He sighed in relief, and a smile appeared on his face, because it could only be one person. Thatch wouldn't show himself if he was still upset. Izo called to enter.

Thatch opened the door hesitantly. He was already dressed for his date, Izo guessed, though he seemed to have spent most of the time on his hair. As usual. "Hi," he said softly. "I er… made you dinner."

It was a peace offering if he had ever heard one, and Izo smiled. "I have lived by myself, you know. I can make my own dinner."

"Just let me do this for you," Thatch said. "I know it's not much, but…"

"Thank you." Izo smiled again.

A grin appeared on Thatch's face, and he seemed to relax. "Good. I was wondering if you could help me pick a tie." He stepped into the room and showed some options to Izo. Despite the fact that he slept in Izo's bed more often than not, his clothes were still kept in the guestroom, mostly because Izo's closet was full and he wasn't willing to make more space.

Izo rose from the chair he had been sitting on and examined them carefully. "I thought I told you to destroy this one." He picked up a brightly coloured tie between thumb and index finger as if it was something dirty.

"If it were up to you, I'd have to burn three quarters of my tie collection," Thatch complained.

"Stop buying ugly ties then," Izo deadpanned as he searched for something acceptable. There was only one he liked, but that was all he needed anyway. Izo discarded the other ties on his bed and put the one he picked around Thatch's neck as he started tying it.

"Thanks," Thatch said.

"No problem," Izo replied and hesitated for a second before continuing. "You know I didn't mean what I said, right? That I want you to get out of my way."

"Yeah, I know." Thatch scratched the back of his head and grinned sheepishly. "I realised you were just saying that for my own good. Though, I meant what I said. I don't really feel the need to meet new people when I'm with you."

Izo gently tightened the tie and let his hand rest on Thatch's chest for a second. "I'm not sure that's a good thing. I don't want to hold you back."

"Who said anything about holding me back?" Thatch grabbed him by the shoulders and smiled. "I'm happy when I'm with you."

"You do realise what our relationship as it is now looks to the outside world?" Izo hesitated. "I mean, with the way we behave, we could be an old married couple."

Thatch stared at him for a moment, but then threw his head back and started to laugh. "Who cares what anyone else thinks? I'm happy, what about you?"

Izo smiled. "I am too."

"Good, good." Thatch grinned at him, but soon his smile disappeared again and he scratched the back of his head. "I guess I have to go then."

"I'm sorry I pushed you into going on a date," Izo said softly. "If you really don't want to go, you can still cancel."

"If you don't mind, I think I will." Thatch actually looked relieved. "I don't think I'm ready to start dating again yet." He took out his phone and looked for a number. "Hey Ace," he said as Ace no doubt picked up. "I know I said I would go out with your friend, but I don't really feel up for it tonight." He paused for a second as his look turned puzzled. "What do you mean, 'thank God'?"

Izo's eyes widened, and he held out his hand.

Thatch understood. "Izo wants to talk to you." He handed Izo the phone.

"Ace?" Izo asked sharply as he put the device to his ear. He could practically hear Ace gulp. Izo left the room, gesturing to Thatch he would be right back. "What did you mean by 'thank God'?"

"N-nothing," Ace's voice sounded on the other end of the line. "Only that she just called to cancel as well. I was about to call Thatch."

Izo's eyes narrowed, despite the fact that Ace couldn't see him. "You'd better not have planned it that way."

"I told you I'd find Thatch a date, and I did," Ace said indignantly. "I can't help she cancelled. Besides, Thatch cancelled too, and I'm sure he wouldn't have unless you let him."

Izo remained silent for a moment. In the short time he had known Ace, it would seem that Ace had learned to see right through him. "He's just not ready yet," he finally said.

Ace hummed in a way that indicated he didn't believe Izo at all. "I'm sure that's the case. Well, have fun tonight!" With that, he hung up.

Izo sighed and returned to his bedroom where Thatch was busy collecting his ties. "Well, apparently, you wouldn't have had a date even if you had decided to go."

Thatch laughed and shrugged. "Just as well. I mean, I'd feel pretty bad cancelling at the last moment. But now we can hang out." He looked so genuinely happy Izo almost melted.

"What do you want to do then?" he asked.

Thatch thought for a moment, the ties hanging over his forearm. "Well, I'm all dirked up. It'd be a shame to let that go to waste. Besides, I think you're right about me not going out enough. So how about you and I go to a restaurant?"

"Are you asking me out on a date?" Izo asked jokingly, ignoring his racing heart.

Thatch grinned and shrugged. "Why not? At least I know it'd be a successful one."

"As long as you don't expect me to put out on the first date," Izo replied with a serious face, but he only managed that for a few seconds when Thatch started to laugh.

"We'll see."

Izo laughed as well. "Alright. Looks like I'll have to eat the food you made tomorrow. Now, get out. I have to change."