Kid hated the way that the crowd around him had gotten louder. Clearly, this was a match that everyone had been looking forward to, though Bellamy appeared to think otherwise. It pissed Kid off to think he was being thought of as weak because of something that had happened over a week ago.
"Want to get this over with?" Bellamy taunted. "Or do you want to give up now? You look like you won't be able to stand for long."
"Why don't you come over here and find out?" Kid ignored the unease he felt, because shit, he knew that he was in for a hard night. From the louder cheers and jeers that erupted from the crowd at his and Bellamy's words, everyone did know about Kid's unfortunate shakedown, and more worryingly, of his injuries. Kid sneered at the man across from him. "I think you're all talk, jackass."
"Those scars are an improvement, aren't they?" Bellamy directed to the crowd. "Maybe we can take him seriously in the ring now."
There was a smattering of hoots and hollers intermixed with laughter.
"I can give you some scars, if you'd like." Kid retorted, feeling his anger rising at the teasing from the crowd. He didn't give a fuck what he looked like, or how many scars he accumulated. But Kid wouldn't stand for assholes making fun of his appearance. "How about I give you one on your face, for starters?"
"Why don't you try? If you can even tag me tonight, that is." Bellamy laughed. "You'll probably end up missing me a lot 'cause you can't see properly through that eye."
Kid knew he shouldn't have allowed himself to be goaded, but fuck, he hated being made fun of. The red head hated even more being laughed at, so he went right for Bellamy, ready to punch the smug look off the son of a bitch's face. Too late did Kid remember that the bastard knew about his sore knee, because Bellamy dodged the swing and lashed out with a foot, landing a solid hit to Kid's right knee.
The red haired mechanic went down with a curse but he had enough presence of mind to roll away and back, tuning out the crowd around him as he zeroed in on Bellamy.
"Maybe you should just forfeit. We both know you can't do shit when you're recovering from those kind of injuries."
Kid offered a bit of a crazed smile. Bellamy wouldn't let an opponent forfeit. Not without beating them up first before the person dragged themselves off, or were dragged off by unofficial refs. So it was another laugh at his expense, because the blond knew that Kid wouldn't forfeit even if he had broken bones. Kid clenched his right fist tight. He was going to wipe that smug smile off one way or another, but it would have to be quick.
"You shouldn't be here." Bellamy taunted again, feigning a punch toward Kid's face, only to land a punishing fist into his abdomen, doubling the red head over.
Kid knew what was coming, and jerked his head back desperately to avoid having Bellamy's knee smash into his nose. Kid had had his nose broken enough times, and could do without another one. Kid couldn't avoid the strike altogether, and grunted in pain as his bandaged cheek took the hit instead. Kid swung his right fist in retaliation, and landed a solid blow to Bellamy's own cheek in retaliation.
The two men stumbled apart, cursing and ramping up for their next strike.
Kid fell into a rhythm of feigning and stepping around his opponent, allowing the noise to fade into the background as he looked for openings. Seconds dragged by, and before long, both Kid and Bellamy were breathing heavily. Neither had yet landed too damaging a blow, but Kid knew, as did the muscular blond facing him, that it was only a matter of time before Kid would tire out and make a mistake.
A minute later and Kid was on the floor of the makeshift ring, spitting out blood as the jeers came back full force. Ordinarily, ending up on the ground meant that the fight was at an end, but not in this particular kind of place. Kid barely rolled onto his side to avoid a kick to his side. It was Kid's first mistake of the night.
Pain exploded through Kid's head as Bellamy pivoted and caught him against the side of his head with his other foot, dangerously close to the red head's temple. The strike nearly took Kid down and out, but at the snigger that came from Bellamy overhead, Kid saw red. With a snarl, the red haired mechanic shoved past the agony shooting through his head to tackle Bellamy.
Fucker dared to laugh at him one too many times.
Kid wouldn't be held responsible for what followed, and with a savage grin, began to pummel Bellamy with both of his fists despite the fact that he knew he had had to be careful with his left wrist. But Kid was too far gone in his rage to allow something like that to bother him. Instead, he focused on beating the piece of shit he got pinned beneath him, and no one watching bothered to step in.
Not right away.
When two other men leapt into the makeshift ring, it was to secure Kid's arms and drag him away from Bellamy, who had gone limp a punch or three ago.
Despite knowing in the back of his mind that the match was over, Kid still strained against the men who held him back. At least until a familiar slim figure appeared before him. Kid briefly stilled, pain-filled mind trying to place the man, and when he realized it was the spokesmen of the group that had jumped him in his shop, Kid's rage transferred to him. Skinny fuck was lucky he was restrained at present.
"Not bad, ginger." The man taunted, clearly knowing that Kid wished to strike him, "Though you do remember that you're not supposed to kill your opponent, right?" The man dared to step forward and pat Kid's nearest shoulder, "After all, most of you idiots have a shit ton of debt to pay back, so unless you wanna pay Bellamy's, calm the fuck down until your next match, yeah?"
"You gonna get in the ring any time soon?" Kid hated how heavily he was breathing, what with the way his chest rose and fell rapidly as he struggled to get it under control. It didn't bode well for the rest of the evening.
"Nah, not tonight." The man grinned crookedly. "But you still got some life in you, so I went ahead and told the announcer to move your next match up sooner."
Kid longed to do something, anything, to take out his frustrations, but knew better than to do it at present. He'd learned over the years that it wasn't good to goad some of these assholes, no matter how much he wanted to.
"See you later, ginger, if you win tonight. Gotta get payment from you, ya know." The man vanished into the surrounding crowd, and Kid reluctantly allowed himself to be led out of the ring, to take a breather. When he was seated, Kid realized just how shitty he felt, and the way he felt his vision blurred now and again from the knock to the head earlier.
Not good.
-x-x-x-
Hours later…
-x-x-x-
Kid's third and last opponent of the night was half dragged and half carried out of the ring, and the crowd began to disperse now that the entertainment for the night was over with. No one lingered longer than was necessary as of late, due to the police beginning to stick their noses into the business of finding and shutting down the underground fighting rings. No one wanted to be caught, as the consequence wasn't always being caught by the cops. Kaido buying into the rings was a big factor, as no one wanted to find out what would happen should someone ruin the income that came in.
"Not bad, ginger."
Kid twitched from where he was still standing in the ring, but he didn't rise to the bait, even when the speaker came up alongside him.
"You lucked out, and even beat Bellamy up. Bastard needed to be taken down a notch or two. He'd been boasting too much the past few weeks." The man held out a plain white envelope. "You managed to make a dent in your debt. And like we said before, your fee to enter was doubled tonight. But you get the rest." The man waited until Kid picked the envelope out of his grasp, and stepped discreetly out of the red head's reach. "Since the cops seem to be breathing down our necks lately, we're gonna have to have the next round further out." A pause, and then a flash of crooked teeth. "Though you got pretty banged up this time around, so maybe that's good for you. Maybe take a bit of a break."
Kid barely held his tongue about the breakdown at his shop, and could tell that the other man knew what he had wanted to say.
"Well, make sure you keep your trap shut about this, yeah?" The man turned and waked away, a bit quicker than was necessary. It was only when Kid was alone, and sirens began wailing in the distance that he realized what the other man meant.
Shit.
Someone had called the cops, and those assholes had left some of the more injured men behind to try and slow the cops down.
Including Kid himself.
Fuck that.
Kid had told Law that he'd be back at Zoro's place that night, so being in a jail cell wasn't in his plans. Kid ignored the pain he felt from his knee and wrist and now other places on his body from the matches that night, and left the building. Kid made his way down the sidewalk as quickly as he could manage, racking his brains for an alley to duck down to wait out the cops that would soon swarm the building he had just vacated. Kid thought to give Killer a call, until he remembered that he had left his cell back at the apartment.
Dammit.
Kid felt like shit and the longer he stood on his feet, the more agony began to flow throughout his body. The red haired mechanic was very surprised he wasn't already unconscious, but then again, he could take a lot more damage than most people. Kid backed further into the alley as police cruisers sped by, sirens and lights flashing. One of them slowed near the alley, and Kid cursed and turned, hoping to slip out of sight.
Tonight just wasn't his night, and it was about to get worse, because while he wasn't going to end up in prison, he very well might have preferred it over what he got.
Before Kid could try and hide against a wall of the alley, someone came up from behind and seized him. Kid, still not out of fighting mode, tried to swing his fist at the person who'd jumped him. Kid ended up against the alley wall after trying and failing to land a hit, and it hurt a good deal more as he was being pinned by a firm grip. And there were only a few people who'd be coming down an alley after him in the dark that would dare to try and restrain him.
"Enough, Kid. No more fighting tonight."
It was Killer.
"And if you insist, I will be more than happy to knock you out and drag your unconscious body to the car." Killer's grip tightened when the other man tried to move. "Don't, Kid. You look like shit, and I'd rather not add to the list of injuries you've already accumulated tonight."
Kid let out a shaky breath, but it wasn't so easy to calm down after the way his night had gone thus far.
"You found him?"
"Yes."
Shit, the other voice was Zoro, meaning that the police car that had slowed down had to have been his. So much for Kid keeping his activities that night under wraps, but with his beat up appearance, there was no way Kid could hide what he had been up to anyway. And since he didn't want to be bitched at by Killer, he decided to not argue with his friend. He did feel like shit, and allowed the long haired blond to lead him in the direction of where the car was parked.
"You were in that building, weren't you?" Zoro asked once when Kid was close enough. "It sounds like there were some other guys who were not able to get out as quick as you did."
"Don't wanna talk about it." Kid muttered, and now that some of his adrenaline had worn off, he was exhausted. So much so that he didn't offer any resistance to being helped into the cop's car. Kid was, however, confused that Killer didn't get in the car with him.
"I'm going to have to look after the ship while you recover." Killer said, sensing the red head's confusion. "Try not to do anything stupid in the meantime."
Kid settled in the seat with a slow sigh as the door shut, not up to arguing. It seemed like he wouldn't be getting that lecture tonight after all, and that was a small mercy.
"Don't fall asleep." Zoro said from the front seat. "Talk."
Kid started, not having noticed that he had started to doze off, but he was not in any shape to be holding a coherent conversation. Especially not with a damn cop. His body ached all over, and being jostled in the car only reminded Kid of every nick and scratch and bruise he had taken in his matches that night.
"This had to do with those underground fighting arenas around the city."
It wasn't a question.
Kid grunted something in return, and that was it for any attempt at conversation for the remainder of the drive. The silence in the car was awkward at best, but what Kid hadn't been thinking about was that Law would see him in this state, and the red head only realized it when Zoro pulled into the driveway. Kid was unusually quiet as he waited for Zoro to open the door and help him out of the car. As much as Kid didn't want the assistance, he knew that he needed it, as now that the adrenaline was all but gone and with it came the wash of agony from all of the hits he had taken that night.
"I called ahead to let them know what happened." Zoro informed the red head as he unlocked the front door and shoved it open.
Kid raised his head, frowning, but allowed Zoro to help him through the door.
"What the hell happened to you, Eustass-ya?" Law was suddenly standing there wearing a harassed expression. "Why is it that every time I see you, you have accumulated new injuries?"
"Hello to you to, doc." Kid cringed inwardly at the disapproval in the doctor's golden eyes as he attempted a lame comeback. "I told you I'd be back."
Law gave Kid a dark, unamused look, before he seemed to start taking in the red head's appearance, and cataloging his possible injuries. Shaking his head, Law reached out with his left hand and rested it lightly on Kid's right forearm.
"Bathroom." Law said simply, as he wrapped his hand around the red head's forearm once he deduced there was no wound there. "Now."
Kid grumbled but a soon as Zoro let go of him, he did as Law asked, and allowed the dark haired doctor to lead him to the bathroom. Kid held still as soon as he sat down on the edge of the bathtub, figuring in his pain-addled mind that he ought to do as Law asked, so that the doctor would be in a better mood. Kid bit back the urge to tease the other man about treating him with only one functional arm.
"Need some help?" Zoro asked, standing in the doorway.
"If you must." Law said shortly, focused on the red head before him. "It will be rather difficult to treat injuries with only the use of one hand."
Kid frowned deeply when Zoro entered the bathroom and brushed by Law. As near as Law was to him, Kid could see a shiver go through the doctor's frame at the close proximity of the cop, but Zoro seemed to be oblivious to the effect he had. It seriously ticked Kid off, and since his temper was still simmering just beneath the surface, he got to his feet abruptly.
"Eustass-ya, sit back down." Law reached out and seized Kid's right forearm. "You are in poorer shape than you are letting on."
Kid silently put himself between Law and Zoro, and despite the dark haired man tugging on his arm, Kid let his gaze bore into Zoro's. Had he any strength left after standing back up, Kid might have been tempted to try and punch the cop. Instead, he remained standing, though not without his right knee shaking the longer he stood on it. But his feelings on the matter between Law and Zoro were incredibly hard to hide right now when he felt like crap.
"What is with the two of you? You're horrible about your wounds being treated." The dark haired doctor muttered under his breath crossly, unaware of the way Kid glowered at Zoro. "Especially when you don't realize how injured you really are. Why haven't you passed out yet?"
"M'fine." Kid grunted in response, his eyes still locked with Zoro's. He wasn't looking away. Not until he could figure out how to put into words that the cop needed to stop fucking touching Law, due to the way the doctor reacted to Zoro's touch. Kid wasn't sure what to make of the thoughtful look that crossed the cop's face. For some reason, that expression pissed Kid off even further.
"Well, if you're going to stand, then hold still." Law let go of Kid's forearm. "Zoro-ya, hand me those-"
"I can take it from here, Law." Zoro said, cutting Law off. The green haired officer stepped toward Kid, and actually forcefully moved him to one side to create a path to the door. "You should rest, Law. You've been on your feet all day."
"Zoro-ya…" Law looked very much like he wanted to protest as he walked straight over to the other man. "I can…"
"Law." A single word, and a single touch to the shoulder were all Zoro needed to end any of the doctor's protests.
Law instantly caved in at that touch, and he left the bathroom without another word.
That rubbed Kid the wrong way. It was wrong for someone to still be so attached to an ex. For someone to be so…so…Kid scowled. Son of a bitch, how in the hell did the cop not-
"Stop making that face." Zoro commented as he set out the medical supplies. "You don't have to worry so much."
"Worry about what?" Kid snapped peevishly. The red head let out an undignified yelp when Zoro pressed a damp washcloth against his left arm, obviously noticing that Kid was favoring it. "Shit, what the hell?'
"Law and I aren't together anymore." Zoro said simply.
"Dunno what yer getting at." Kid grumbled as he wiped the washcloth over some dried blood, grimacing when it revealed scratches. But even as shitty and knocked around as he was the red haired mechanic damn well knew exactly what the cop was getting at.
"There isn't anything between us anymore." Zoro continued on, passing Kid some bandages. "It's just been hard for him to move on." Zoro pivoted Kid around, frowned at the way the other man held himself and said. "Shirt off."
Kid snorted something under his breath, but awkwardly removed the article of clothing. Frowning at it, the red head wadded it up and tossed it to one side. He hissed in surprise when Zoro swiped some disinfectant across a gash.
"He is interested, you know. I can tell." Zoro swiped the disinfectant over another wound to silence Kid. "Law has trouble opening up to people, and he has an even harder time letting go of the past."
"No shit." Kid groused, determined to get a word in. He half turned to face Zoro, even though it gave him a brief moment of vertigo. "Haven't you noticed the way he acts around you?" Kid cussed again when Zoro found a sore spot on his shoulder. The red head held his silence in order to wrap some bandages around his wrists and hands after cleaning them, as Zoro moved on to another one of his wounds.
"I have noticed. I know it is part of the reason why he wanted to keep his distance from me after we went our separate ways." Zoro shook his head. "I'm sure Law knows that he has to let go of me, but-"
Kid felt the room shift, so he ended up missing the last bit that Zoro had said to him. In fact, Kid was having a bit of difficulty hearing now. Kid reached out and managed to rest a hand against a wall, blinking at the floor of the bathroom.
"Damn. I was wondering if you hit your head."
Huh. Kid didn't exactly think the cop swearing was a good thing, but he did let out a hoarse laugh.
"Got kicked…in head." Kid managed, and didn't really understand why Zoro had urged him out of the bathroom and into what appeared to be the living room. Time seemed to jump forward, because one moment, Kid was standing, and the next, he was propped up on the couch.
Law was also suddenly very close to him.
Kid was a bit confused as to why the dark haired doctor had his left hand on his cheek. Kid didn't mind the way that Law was staring at him right now. It was better than the look of disapproval from earlier.
"Can you hear me now, Eustass-ya?"
"Hey, doc." Kid slurred, and that didn't seem exactly right, but it did earn him a faint, if strained, smile.
"I suppose that that will have to do." Law furrowed his brow. "You should have mentioned you took a hit to the head sooner. How were you even able to function for so long?"
What Law was saying to Kid right now wasn't nearly as important as the fact that the doctor's mouth was close enough to stare at and watch move.
"Are you even listening to me?" Law asked with an exasperated huff.
Kid blinked owlishly at Law, before the red haired mechanic had the brilliant idea that he ought to kiss Law. He really should thank the doctor in some way, for dealing with his ass getting kicked around again. A kiss seemed like a good thank you, seeing as Law was so close to him already.
"Eustass-ya." Law said sharply, fingers lightly tapping Kid's cheek before he dropped them and reached for the red head's shoulder. "Where do you feel pain?"
"I like your eyes, doc." Kid said seriously, reaching up with bandaged hands to cup Law's cheeks. "They're pretty." Kid grinned lopsidedly at the sight of the faint flush that rose on the other man's cheeks. Since he didn't feel any resistance, Kid urged Law closer for a kiss that lingered on a bit longer than he meant it to, as Law parted his lips to allow him to deepen the kiss. It was nothing like the way Law had forced him to take the medicine, and nothing like the brief kiss Kid had given Law when the other man had been asleep. Kid drew back and absently ran his thumbs over Law's cheeks, amused with the way the doctor's lips were still parted, breathing hard like he hadn't expected Kid to do that.
"Enough of that for now. Let Law take a look at your head."
Kid felt someone other than Law try to move his hands away. Kid allowed it, but didn't let the doctor slip away from him that easily. Instead, once Kid was free of the other person's hands, the red head reached out and pulled Law onto his lap so that he could childishly cling to him with arms wrapped around the other man. In the back of his mind, Kid hoped he hadn't jostled the doctor's mending arm. Kid could have sworn he heard some laughter overhead, but he was more distracted by the way that Law's uninjured hand had freed itself from Kid's hold to hesitantly thread through his hair.
"Eustass-ya?"
Kid quite enjoyed how breathless Law sounded. It was nice. Kid made some nonsensical sound, and settled Law comfortably against his chest. "Don't go anywhere." Kid mumbled against the side of the other man's neck.
"You need to let me take a look at your head, Kid."
"Won't throw up on you." Kid assured the dark haired doctor, though there was no reason to suspect that he would. "Don't wanna mess up yer looks." Just as he was about to doze off with an actual live and breathing body pillow, Kid heard Law speak again.
"You may as well get some rest, though if you fall asleep, I'll have to keep waking you up."
"Concussion?" Kid wouldn't be surprised.
"Entirely possible."
"Don't wanna fall asleep." Kid mumbled drowsily in return.
"I'll still be here." The doctor's voice was soft and barely audible as his hand ran through Kid's hair reassuringly. "Just wake up soon."
It amazed Kid how Law's words in that moment could contain so many different emotions.
Amusement, disbelief, exasperation, worry and hope.
It was a good thing that Kid passed out, because he wasn't very good at dealing with emotions. On the other hand, Kid had no idea that he had given Law quite a lot to contemplate while he was unconscious.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
A/N: And one more chapter while I'm still feeling motivated but hey, I got up 3 chapters up within a few days, so yay.
And no, Kid doesn't lose an arm. Yet. It'll be awhile before that happens. So as you can probably guess, the idea of a 15 chapter fic is going out the window. This is probably going to be turning into a longer fic than first anticipated. As seems to be the case with a lot of fics I end up writing.
