AN: Again, I would like to thank those that read/followed/reviewed. It really means a lot to me to see people enjoy my writings. Now, I know I said that I would post two a week and all, but an unexpected family matter has appeared so I'll try and do one a week.
Warnings for this Chapter: Smut (Not much. I mean like very little, but I'm still warning) and Language
Prompt 3: Water
Darkness lingered at the extremes of Luffy's vision. It crept along the sides of his fading view as his eyes stung against the foreign water that assaulted his nerves. Limbs thrashed, to no avail, against the overpowering water. Clutches of the souls lost at the bottom of the ocean reached their pale white hands out to welcome their newcomer. Death roamed above the sinking boy; the presence of the looming shadow was an overbearing one. He waited. Soon, the final beats of the young boy's heart would cease, and he would be embraced by the still reaching hands.
"Join ussss." Their voices, rasped and a whisper, called out to Luffy, tempting him to join their ranks. "Luffffy." They continued to call out to him, raising pale hands to try and sink Luffy down to their home within the depths of the sea.
The sun, in the high noon position, fragmented itself when it grazed the surface of the water causing the illusion of multiple glowing orbs in the sky. Luffy absorbed the sight of daylight, as he knew it would be his last. Sinking into the homes of the other victims of the unforgiving waters, he accepted his fate. He knew that there was no returning to the surface that he so longed to see once again. He was an anchor, and right now, Luffy was weighing down his life - bringing it to a halt.
Regrets of his life filled his forethoughts. There weren't many, but they still existed. Most of them were petty, not truly regrets, but there was one qualm that held his attention. One that he wished he could set straight. Knowing that he would never see his brother's face again hit Luffy hard. It made him think of all the life adventures they were going to share and all of the memories they had yet to make.
Ace's face, childish yet plastered with a scowl, snaked into Luffy's thoughts, and the sinking boy closed his still stinging eyes. He would miss his brother. They're adventures, they're trivial arguments, they're comforting moments – albeit those were rare – all of it, he would miss them. Luffy wasn't sure if there was a heaven or not, but he knew that anywhere without Ace would be his own personal Hell.
Luffy held on to the image of Ace a little longer, relishing in the soft features that decorated the tanned complexion. Freckles, prominent against the complexion, were scattered along his cheekbones, and a smirk – unique to Ace – formed on his lips. A warm feeling, that of deep admiration, pooled in Luffy's stomach as he recalled the warm touch that Ace always produced.
The earlier regret made itself present once again, tugging at the fading consciousness of Luffy, demanding his clouded attention. He had always known that what he felt for Ace was more than a brotherly connection. Blush always found a way onto his cheeks when Ace was around, and his heart would rise in his throat, constricting his words. All of it was wrong, Luffy knew it, but the desire that nagged at his being around Ace was too tempting to dismiss.
If only once, Luffy just wanted to have a taste of his brother's mouth; he wanted to kiss the smirk from his lips and replace it with a slightly parted mouth, allowing him entrance. But now Luffy would never get that chance, he would never get to squeal in excitement again at his brother's mischievous plans that he always seemed to conjure up. Now, he would never again get to snuggle up close to Ace during the nights that their night terrors become too much to bear alone.
Ace. He was the one person that could change the very being of who Luffy was. He could change Luffy's mood in a matter of seconds; he could make Luffy drop anything just to have more brotherly time together. They were inseparable; it was as if they were one being, one soul. And now, as Luffy sank deeper and deeper and deeper, he realized that death would deprive him of all these joys, of all these wonders.
Although one would not notice, a silent tear found its way into the mix of salt water, soon to be forgotten and lost. Luffy wanted – more than anything else – to just find his way back up to the surface and to see Ace one last time. He tilted his head towards the place he so longed to be and opened his eyes, ignoring the dull sting that followed.
Death must be teasing him with the wants he so badly desired, for he could have swore that just above the surface – blocking out some of the diffracted lights – the body of his brother loomed. It looked as if it was searching for something lost, a look of complete worry on his youthful face.
"Ace," water filled Luffy's mouth as he uttered his last word. A word of such longing and remorse. Just as Luffy's mind slipped into the state of near-death, the figure dove in the water, sending white bubbles to scatter around the intruding being.
Ace. Eyes shutting and lungs screaming for air, Luffy flitted into unconsciousness.
Warm hands cradled around Luffy's limp figure as Ace sprinted towards their home. He was fighting back tears and the urge to just unravel right then and there. To think that his dear brother would have been gone had Ace not just happened to walk by his usual fishing spot. It scared him to no end. There was so much still left for the two to do together in life; there were still memories to make.
The paleness of Luffy's face was unreal and the limpness of his body due to the struggle was deathly frightening. Ace gripped his hands a little tighter and sped up his strides; he couldn't let Luffy die. Not yet.
Bursting through the door, Ace screamed for their caretaker to hurry and come here. "Help," he said his voice hoarse and breathy from all the physical effort that he had put out. Luffy was soon taken from his arms and set on his bed with care. The tears that were held back before free flowed down freckled cheeks as Ace dropped beside Luffy's bedside.
Overwhelming thoughts of what could have happened dominated Ace's thoughts and tears found their way down his face. Ace pulled his knees to his chest and wept as their caretaker worked on reviving the unconscious boy. Tremors encased him as he silently regretted not accompanying his brother earlier in the day. If only Ace had put aside more time for his dear brother, this would not have happened. A small feeling of regret began to form in the bottom of his gut. It was small, but it was present, nonetheless.
If Ace would have lost his brother today, he would have never gotten to tell him what he truly felt. Luffy, to Ace, was more than just a brother, and he couldn't help but have blush color his freckles when Luffy was around. One innocent look from his brother and Ace would melt into a puddle right then and there.
Of course, it was wrong, even if they were only adoptive brothers. That's what held Ace back on most occasions. He knew his brother could not feel the same way.
I mean how could he? The question always bothered Ace. He knew that his brother could not, and it always hindered Ace's confidence. Longing always tugged at his gut whenever he got the urge to blurt his love out to Luffy, but that one thought always reeled his desire back in to a manageable level.
Coughing shook Ace out of his inner struggle, and with a hopeful gleam in his eye, he shot his glance up to his waking brother. Luffy coughed and spat water out of his mouth between heaving breaths.
"H-h-how," the word was labored and coated in confusion. Luffy eased his hand up to his head to scratch it. Ace rose to his feet and grabbed his brother in his arms.
"Luffy! How could you be so reckless?" Ace's words were laced with relief as he tightened his grip on Luffy. He dismissed their caretaker with a nod.
"S-s-sorry," Luffy was trembling from the sudden shock of being alive and awake.
"No, no. Don't worry. You're fine now, and that's all that matters."
"Ace…"
"Yes, Luffy?" Ace could feel the apprehension in his brother's voice and curiosity nibbled at his thoughts.
Hesitation filled the younger brother as he snuggled his face into the crook of Ace's neck. Ace could feel soft tears travel along his collarbone; he buried his face in Luffy's raven black locks.
"Take your time, Lu. I'm not going to leave you alone. This will never happen again, I promise," Ace's muffled words seemed to comfort the younger, for his trembling ceased to an almost unnoticeable magnitude.
Soft cries echoed throughout the room as Luffy let all of his past worries of never seeing his brother again out through salted tears. When he finally pulled away from Ace, he smiled with timid eyes as his locked contact with Ace's midnight orbs. With a deep breath, Luffy finally spoke.
"Ace, I…" still tinted with hesitation, Luffy's words were fumbled and forced, "I love you."
Blinking a few times Ace replayed the sentence that just came out of Luffy's mouth. Could he be really saying what Ace thinks he is, or is it just an innocent comment? Much to Ace's dismay, it was probably the latter.
"Lu, I love you, too," Ace knew those words didn't hold the same meaning, but they needed to be said – regardless of what his younger brother meant.
"No, not like that. I meant that I love you. More than a brother ever should." Luffy avoided Ace's widening eyes.
Ace ignored the urge to just smash his lips against his brothers, no matter how tempting it was. Luffy couldn't possibly be saying this, saying those words. There was no way that they came from such an innocent child's mouth.
"Lu-"Ace was cut off by a pair of hungry lips. A pair of hands tangled themselves into Ace's hair, locking him in place as Luffy quelled his desire.
At first, Ace didn't respond; he didn't give in to his desire. This was all too surreal for his liking. How could his brother, Luffy, feel the same way as Ace did? Digging his fingernails into his palm, he came to realize that, this indeed was all really happening. Luffy was kissing Ace. He felt as if he could soar through the clouds and no amount of physics could stop him.
Without a second more of holding himself back, Ace moved his lips against his brothers' as they fulfilled their long suppressed wants. Climbing up on the bed, Ace laid his brother down and hovered over him. With gasping breaths, the two brothers broke apart and stared into the other's eyes. This moment was long awaited for both, and it was such relief to find out the other felt the same.
"Lu," Ace ruffled his younger brother's locks and smiled. Nothing could ruin this moment for him. Nothing.
"I needed to get that out," a small amount of embarrassed paint formed on Luffy's cheeks as he glanced away in shame, "When I was sinking, all I could think about was you, and when all my regrets made themselves present, the one that really nagged me was that I never told you about what I felt for you. I mean I get that you probably don't feel the same way, but I couldn't help myself. I ju-"
This time it was Ace's turn to cut his brother's words off. Lowering himself onto his younger sibling, Ace chuckled against Luffy's lips – which were gaining more color with each passing minute. Everything about this moment was perfect. The way that Luffy's breaths were hard and labored against Ace's hunger filled kisses, the way that Luffy's hands were tangled in Ace's hair, the way that warmth pooled and overflowed throughout his body, the way the Luffy squirmed under each and every touch: they were all perfect. It was as if the two siblings belonged together.
Their bodies fit together with perfection as Luffy arched his back of his bed, closing the gap between the two lovers. Gliding his warm hands under Luffy's soaked shirt, Ace felt every ridge and plane of his brother's muscled stomach. When Ace reached Luffy's nipple – already pert and soaked with sea water – a small moan was released from the younger's mouth.
That moan sent Ace into even more of an erotic state. How could his innocent brother make such an endearing noise? Taking advantage of his brother's open mouth, Ace slipped his tongue in and took the dominant position. Exploring every part in reach, Ace's tongue took the lead with the passionate kiss.
Fingers, shaking with nervous fits, untangled themselves from Ace's hair, and began to claw at his back with need. With his own hands still roaming over his brother's torso Ace sat back from his brother, positioning himself against Luffy's groin. Each brother was panting from the heated moment, and Ace's hands stopped their exploring. Each button on Luffy's red vest was undone with quick movements of Ace's fingers.
Ace needed to feel more than just a soaked shirt under his torso. He needed to feel Luffy's own muscled body underneath him as he finally subdued all his yearnings. Once the water logged vest was discarded, Ace lowered his face towards his brother navel gliding his tongue up the toned torso. He stopped his travels when he reached his brother's chest, a glaze of lust covering his eyes as he traced each nipple with care. Moans, lust-inducing and erotic, escaped from Luffy's mouth; his hands gripped Ace's messy locks.
Looking up to his unraveled brother, Ace smirked, "You know Lu, if you keep making those noises I'm not going to know when to stop."
Once again, Luffy arched his back, pressing his bare chest to Ace, "I c-can't help it. It just feels so right." Each word was breathy and coated with audible aches for more.
Just as Ace was going in for more teasing, a voice, not belonging to either brother sounded throughout the house, "Ace! Luffy! Get your asses in here for dinner!"
A sigh produced itself from Ace's lips. It reverberated off of his brother's chest. Snaking his way back up to Luffy's face, he laughed at the interruption.
"Leave to Dadan to interrupt something just as it was getting good," Ace smiled at his visibly disappointed brother, "Don't worry, Lu. I promise that we can continue where we left off later."
With those last words, Ace dragged himself off his brother and offered a hand to lift Luffy up. As Luffy accepted the hand, Ace pulled him close – slamming their bare torsos together. Leaning down towards his brother's ear Ace nibbled slightly at the lobe before speaking.
"After we eat, you are all mine. No exceptions," his voice was low and caused Luffy to moan at the seductive tone that dripped from it.
Pulling back from his ear Ace smirked and let go of his brother, "Now, get a new shirt on and let's go to dinner before Dadan decides to kick some ass," and with that Ace smirked and strode out of the room, leaving his brother breathless and wanting more.
Once Ace closed the door behind him, he pressed his back against the wall and took a deep breath. He could not believe that Luffy felt the same way as he did. Euphoria pumped through Ace's body as he raked his hands through his hair. Who knew that such a small, innocent boy could cause Ace to unravel so quickly.
With more of a skip to his step, Ace wandered down the hallway towards the kitchen. Oh, how he couldn't wait until after dinner.
