Work Text:
“Hi.”
Law startled.
He had been so engrossed in his studies that he hadn't even realized someone sat down next to him. And very closely, for that matter.
Scooting away just a hair as he turned toward the other, Law first noted he didn't know the person—nor had he ever seen him on campus before. Then he noted the lack of a backpack or computer bag or even a single book to read from.
The last thing he took in was the person's appearance. The guy appeared younger than him and assumed shorter, too, since most people were. He had on an oversized pullover sweater - a deep, handsome red - which seemed appropriate for the fall weather.
Glancing down, Law did not feel the same about his choice of leg coverings. Sweatpants that had been cut - no, ripped - to mid-thigh length… and flip flops. Interesting yet impractical combination. All tied together with a sun hat that hung from his neck, the string resting against his throat. A bright red, canvas ribbon was tied around the top that gave it extra flare.
Law flicked his eyes back to the other's smiling face.
“Hello,” he finally greeted.
“Hi,” he said again. “My name's Luffy.”
“Uhm… hi, there.”
They stared at each other, neither breaking away until Law felt a little irritated he was being interrupted. He had a lot of research to do for two separate papers. There was no time to have staring contests with random students.
“I was told you'd be interested in my services?” Luffy said, his smile going crooked.
Law looked around the library in confusion.
There were only a few people in this back corner of the library and it was out of sight from the information desk at the front. Only someone who knew of Law's frequented studying spot since he was a freshman would know he was here.
“Bepo?” was all he said. Luffy nodded and Law sighed. “I don't know what he told you, or what services you provide, but surely there has been a mistake. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to my work.”
“He said you would say that,” Luffy laughed, making the skin under one of his eyes crinkle oddly. There was a scar. “He also told me you have been in here nonstop since Friday.” He propped his elbow on the table to rest his cheek in his palm. The other hand rubbed over Law's shoulder - instantly causing Law to bristle - and looked at him with half-lidded eyes. “You could use a break, don'tcha think? Lemme help.”
“Wh-what?” Law stammered. He actually didn't catch what Luffy had said at all, too busy short-circuiting from a stranger's touch. The attention threw Law off. “L-like I said, whatever it was Bepo t-told you, you have been greatly misinformed.”
Luffy dropped his hand and set it over his thigh. “You sure? First session is free.”
“Y- yes!” Law still stuttered out, dramatically pulling his belongings closer to him to get away.
“Well, alright,” Luffy shrugged and stood.
After pushing his chair back in and Law had thought he left, suddenly there were two arms snaking over his shoulders—Luffy laid his chest against his back.
Frozen in place, Law didn't move an inch. Didn't even blink. Could only stare ahead at the red business card being presented to him, held between pinched fingers in both of Luffy's hands.
Then Luffy's lips were at his ear.
“If you change your mind.”
Slowly, he set the card down on the table. As he let up, he dragged his arms over Law's shoulders and then gave them a good, kneading caress before finally leaving—for real this time.
A shiver ran through Law's entire body.
After a whole minute had passed, he found the strength to look around himself. That guy was nowhere in sight.
What the fuck?
~~~
It had been a few days since that really weird and strange encounter he had in the library. Law hadn't had a chance to bring it up to Bebo, one of his dormmates, just yet. Too busy lately but also a little afraid to admit how awkward he had been about the whole thing. Although he never confirmed what Luffy's services actually were, with the way he looked at him and touched him, Law could only assume it was something sleazy.
But, that didn't make any damn sense! Not since considering it was Bepo who had referred him! Such an honest and pure human - a celibate virgin, no less - would never even speak to someone who offered sexual favors in exchange for money, let alone send them Law's way! The idea alone would have made him faint, honestly!
Law tore at his hair after thinking about it again. It just didn't make sense at all.
No, no—he had to ask Bepo. Tonight.
When he arrived back at their dorm after another long day in the library, he saw Bepo - and his other two mates, Penguin and Shachi - eating together at the bar behind the sink. The three of them simultaneously looked up when he entered.
“Hey! You're back!”
“We didn't think we'd see you before we passed out for the night.”
“Hi, Law,” Bepo greeted softly.
“Hey.”
He set his belongings down while slipping his shoes off and made a beeline for the stove. Loading up a bowl of stir fry for himself, Law wolfed down a few spoonfuls before managing to speak again.
“Tomorrow I turn in my last big project. Should be around more the next few weeks.”
“You work way harder than the rest of us do.”
“I want to graduate at the top of the class,” Law reminded them. He took another few bites. “And that means more effort, which requires more of my time.”
“We know, we know.”
Law followed Bepo into his room. Before he could shut the door, Law slipped inside, so when he turned around, he screamed.
Law slapped a hand over his eyes and dragged it down his face with a long sigh. “Sorry, Bepo. I didn't mean to scare you.”
Holding his chest for comfort, Bepo finished closing the door and sat on his bed. He looked up at Law with his big, dark doe eyes.
Law blinked. “Right, uhm. I wanted to ask you about something.” He backed up and leaned against the door, hands crossed over each other behind him. “Does the name ‘Luffy’ ring a bell?”
Immediately upon hearing the name, Bepo's face brightened and his posture straightened. “Yes! How was it?!”
Law scrunched his eyebrows. “Excuse me?”
“The session! I heard Luffy is good at what he does. I reserved a few days with him around prelim testing, actually.”
That was unbelievable. For a moment, Law had no words. Trying to speak, he opened his mouth more than once and moved it, yet nothing came out. Eventually, he was able to blurt out a single, “ What?!”
Bepo cocked his head—so cute. “Yeah, why not? I've got the extra funds and I've heard from Cavendish and Bonney - and Ikkaku, actually - that his services saved them last spring.”
“Ikkaku?!” Law sputtered. He shook his head trying to rid the images from his mind.
“Yeah, I know! I was surprised she'd consider it, too. But she told me she pays extra to do it in her bed because it's more convenient.”
“Okay!” Law shouted, holding his hands up in surrender. “Got it. I'm out of here.” He opened the door and before he closed it entirely, he poked his head back through. “I have to ask, though. What made you send him to me?”
“Seriously, Law?” Bepo was quick to say. His voice lowered and he seemed somehow saddened by his next words. “You're too hard on yourself. He can help you relax. I truly believe you'll benefit from his services. I’ve heard really great things about him.”
Law nodded and shut the door. Retiring to his own room for the night, he sat there on his bed staring up at his ceiling. He could faintly hear Shachi and Penguin in the bathroom brushing their teeth - loudly goofing off as usual - and then their voices retreating as they, too, broke off into their separate rooms.
Then the dorm was maddeningly quiet.
Law rolled over and connected his Bluetooth to the speaker so the ringing in his ears didn't deafen him and rolled back. This was his nightly routine. He would lay awake thinking about all the unfinished work he still had, answering questions he couldn't solve earlier in the day, and organizing everything else he had to do for the next day for the best efficiency.
This type of brain activity never allowed Law to get a full night's sleep, but eventually, his mind would overwork itself to the brink of exhaustion and he'd fall into a deep sleep until he had to wake up and do it all again.
~~~
That guy - the one with the large sunhat - hadn't clogged Law's thoughts any longer than another day. New assignments were passed out to start the whole project cycle over and so any sort of 'services' were long forgotten.
All until he saw him again a few weeks later.
Law had been exiting the medical building to cross campus when he saw that straw hat out of the corner of his eye. That unmistakable red ribbon stood out too much to not notice. He slowed his pace so he could inspect the scene before he passed it by.
Sitting against a tree was Luffy with a girl's head in his lap. Currently, he was leaning forward over her - showing off the top of the hat, the only reason Law even noticed them - to reach for a slice of pizza. The box haphazardly opened next to them on top of three others.
Law turned his head more to see who the girl was. Pink hair and a loud laugh… Then Law remembered Bepo mentioning Bonney paying for Luffy's… services … before.
Jewelry Bonney kicked her feet in the air as she cackled with her mouth full, Luffy laughing right along with her. Laying over her chest was an open book, adorned by two more next to her. A large satchel with its contents spilled out next to Luffy's feet.
They looked… comfortable.
Law wanted to look away, feeling invasive spying on a possible intimate moment between them… but he couldn't.
Almost passing them by entirely, he witnessed them goofing around. Bonney snorted and bopped Luffy's hat off his head. It was airborne for only a moment before it rolled across the crispy, dead leaves over the grass. Luffy dove for it, slightly bucking Bonney off his thigh.
When he straightened and plopped his hat safely back onto his head, he glanced up and connected eyes with Law. Just before Law could snap his head in the other direction - pretending he was looking forward that entire time - Luffy childishly stuck his tongue out at him.
Taking longer strides, Law quickened his pace back up to get the hell out of there. He didn't mean to stare and certainly didn't mean to get caught doing so. Although, involuntarily, he looked over his shoulder one last time at the couple shrinking behind him.
He could see their silly antics died down and Bonney had her book hovering over her face while munching on a new slice of pizza. Luffy was sucking grease from his fingers.
It was not a completely uncommon sight to see on a college campus. People did much worse than lounging around together in public. That was nothing. As he walked the rest of the way to his dorm building, Law thought about how he had never seen that kid before in the four years he had been there but now had spotted him twice. He must have been a freshman, then.
Law pushed him and Bonney out of his thoughts. He had way more important things to occupy his mind. Busy, busy, and no time for a break.
~~~
The sun had disappeared a few hours ago even though it was hardly past 6:00pm.
Stretching his limbs to the library ceiling, Law was impressed with himself for getting his worksheets done so early. He planned on scarfing down whatever food he could find in the fridge and attempting to pass out for the night. Maybe a shower.
He lifted an arm to sniff himself.
Definitely a shower.
With the rest of his night planned out, he packed his things back up and headed back. He dreaded the walk back in the chilly wind but it would only get worse the longer the sun had been down.
Unlocking the door, stepping in, and removing his shoes, Law threw his bag on the island counter and opened the fridge.
“Hey~!” He heard Bepo vaguely call out from the living room to see who had come home.
“It's me,” he answered, ducking to the lower shelves to see what fruits and veggies needed to go first. Which was all of them, apparently. He sighed.
Instead of only snacking enough to satisfy his grumbling stomach, he decided he'd make a meal for everyone—giving Shachi and Penguin something to look forward to after a teasing picture when it was done.
He stepped into the living room just enough to peer over the couch. “Hey, do you like eggpl—”
What the fuck?!
“Eggplant?” Luffy finished for him. “Yes, I do.”
Bepo was laying on his belly in the middle of the living room floor - having moved the small coffee table off to the side - and had surrounded himself with his schoolwork. Which was something he did all the time. While Law liked the solitude of the library's back corner, Bepo liked the comfort of his own familiar and safe home.
But—but!
Now!
Now that straw hat kid!
He was laying over Bepo's back, draped over his shoulder, and looking down at the book opened on the floor.
“Be- Bepo?!” Law shrieked.
“What is it?” He asked, then immediately saw where he was looking. “Oh, this is Luffy—that guy I told you about, remember?”
“Hiya,” Luffy chirped with a nonchalant wave. His smile pulled the skin around his scar taught.
“And yes, I do like eggplant. Were you going to cook?”
“I… I was, yes…” Law didn't know how to react.
Never in all the time he had known Bepo had he ever seen anyone grow as close to him as he did himself. They were best friends! Since childhood! Who the hell did this Luffy guy think he was?!
And did this mean Bepo truly did pay for his services?! What was going on! What had happened before Law had entered the room? Or would happen later in his bedroom?!
“Do you think you could make enough for Luffy, too?” Bepo asked, pushing up to see Law over the couch after he had backed up in horror. “Feeding him is part of the payment and I haven't ordered anything yet.”
Fuck, fuck fuck.
He was freaking out and needed to not freak out. They were all adults and Bepo could do whatever he wanted with his parents' money. If he wanted to hire someone for sexual favors then—well! He could, dammit!
“Right,” Law squeaked before clearing his throat. “Right, yes, I can do that. I was thinking some sort of garlic eggplant pasta.” He turned away and feigned calmness as the other two cheered with excitement.
It took about an hour to prepare and serve. Law had memorized the recipe since he had made the dish so many times before. While the eggplant baked in the oven and the water boiled on the stove, Law would occasionally peek over the couch to spy.
When he looked next, they had changed their positions. Bepo was now sitting against the couch with Luffy behind him on a cushion. He was curled over his friend, resting his chin on his head. Law's eyebrow twitched when he noticed Luffy's arms were wrapped around Bepo's shoulders—just like he had done to him in the library.
Gritting his teeth, Law looked away to continue cooking. He didn't want to ruin dinner just because he didn't understand his friend's new lifestyle.
The three of them ate at the counter bar. Luffy groaned with every bite of food, and every three bites he thanked Law for making it. Law had to refrain from rolling his eyes. This guy was unbelievable.
“Can I have more?” Luffy asked, staring at the pan on the trivet.
Law nodded and told him he already dished out his other housemates' portions and tucked them away in the fridge. Luffy was not shy by any means—getting multiple helpings until it was gone. Law was actually grateful seeing as how the veggies he used were going bad anyway. It needed to get eaten.
After they were stuffed and done, Bepo rubbed his eyes with his palms and said, “I need to finish my paper. It's due in the morning.” As he stood and collected his and Luffy's plates, he thanked Law for dinner. “C'mon, Luf. Just a little longer.”
“Okay!” He said cheerfully with a smile from ear to ear.
“Hold on,” Law said, pushing from his spot in a hurry. The other two both stopped to see what Law wanted, but he was only glaring at Luffy. “Can I talk to you for a minute? In private?”
“Sure,” Luffy said, following after him down the hall. “But I can't be away for too long because Bepo needs me.”
Law decided not to answer. He needed to bring him to a neutral place, so instead of his bedroom, he walked into the bathroom. The moment Luffy was beyond the door, Law slammed it shut, grabbed the front of Luffy's sweater with both fists and lifted him against the door so they were at eye level.
Luffy's eyes widened with shock, but only for half a second. They narrowed into a nasty snarl of a scowl. “You better put me down right now, Law.”
“Listen here, you little shit,” Law hissed through his teeth, inches from Luffy's face. “You keep your fucking hands off my friend out there. Whatever you’re being paid, I'll double it for you to leave immediately.”
“No thanks.”
Law shook him, causing the door to rattle. He hoped he wasn't being too loud to worry Bepo. “What do you mean, 'no thanks?!' How much do you want,” Law asked, setting Luffy down and pulling his phone out. “Triple?”
“It's not about money,” Luffy said while fixing his sweater. “I'm helping him relax so he can focus better.”
“Yeah? And what does that consist of?”
Luffy shrugged. “It's different for everyone. Bepo wants company while he works, but I've noticed he fidgets less if we're touching.”
“Touching?!” Law parroted with incredulity. “Like how?!”
Luffy blinked at him a few times, his eyes searching Law's. “Oooh, I get it. You don't know what I do.” Law scoffed, but he was right, unfortunately. “You think… it's sexual.”
“If not, then what the fuck are your 'services'?!”
The cheesy smile was back. “I'm a professional cuddler!”
“A… a what?”
“I cuddle people so they feel better,” Luffy explained. Then just as quick as the smile appeared—it morphed into a frown. Luffy grabbed Law by his collar and yanked him down to his level, their noses merely touching. “And Bepo paid me to keep him company because his friends are never there when he needs him.” He pushed Law away, who stumbled, shocked and slightly hurt to learn such a thing. “You've stolen enough of Bepo's time.”
Then Luffy left and Law couldn't move from his spot.
Waiting to leave the bathroom was best. He decided to splash his face with some water to cool his temper and get his thoughts in order.
So Bepo hired a stranger to hang out with him while he did his school work because Law, Penguin, and Shachi weren't there? His chest twisted with guilt. What made him feel even worse was Bepo had sent Luffy his way…
You're too hard on yourself. He can help you relax, Law. I truly believe you'll benefit from his services.
Was Law really that wound up over his deadlines? He splashed another handful of water over his face and scrubbed until it hurt.
Bepo meant for Luffy to get Law through the first rounds of testing for the semester and he had shooed Luffy away… he didn't need any of those services but he still felt bad. His friend meant well and only wanted to help.
Law finally left the bathroom and headed back to the kitchen to clean up. He avoided looking into the living room and instead kept his nose down.
At least he tried to.
Just as he was cleaning off the area where they sat, swiping a damp cloth over the granite, Law glanced over.
They were on the couch together now. Bepo sitting in the corner typing away on his laptop with Luffy leaning against his side, head limp on his shoulder.
And as if he could feel Law's stare, Luffy cranked his head around and plopped his chin on the back of the couch to stare back at him.
Unsure how to act after their disagreement earlier, Law gave him a weak, lopsided half-smile. Luffy slow-blinked once and turned away. He didn't know if that was a good or bad sign. He felt the need to apologize but he didn't want to do it in front of Bepo—hoping to keep him in the dark about what just happened.
Law mumbled a quick 'night' as he left for his room, skipping his shower, and didn't come out once.
All he was able to do was sit at his desk - forehead laying on the surface - and think about how shitty he was to not just Luffy, but to Bepo's generosity.
The heartbreaking memory of Bepo's crying face during last year's finals had Law squeezing his eyes shut with regret. Law had worked himself into a sickness, overworking until his stressed-induced anxiety sent him into a panic attack that put him in a hospital for the weekend.
He will never ever forget Bepo's face as he leaned over him, sobbing because he didn't know how to help Law from hyperventilating and shaking.
Law promised to take better care of himself.
He was starting his senior year—the most stressful one…
Each damning thought made Law knock his head against his desk to punish himself.
In the middle of Law’s self-deprecation, he heard a distant goodbye from Luffy and the dorm door opening and closing. Law sat up, looking at the clock.
11:04pm.
As quick and gracefully as he could, Law scrambled from his seat and bolted to the front door.
“Law?” Bepo questioned, mid-bend to grab his bag.
“Wait!” He shouted at Luffy who was halfway down their hall.
When he stopped and turned around, Law put the door stopper in and met Luffy halfway. Luffy opened his mouth to speak but Law cut him off.
“I'm sorry.”
A knowing, sly grin formed as Luffy raised his eyebrow up at him.
“I didn't know what you did and—and I know Bepo was just looking out for me.”
Luffy crossed his arms and leaned on a hip, his expression becoming all the more smug.
“And I'm grateful you're able to help my friend.”
“Okay, apology accepted,” Luffy grinned with closed eyes. “Yanno, you're lucky you let me go when you did. I was ready to knock your pretty, rich-boy teeth into your skull. Hehehe.”
Law gawked. How could he giggle after saying something so violent? Also, he seemed pretty small, making Law wonder how much of him was bark and how much was bite. But if Law were being honest with himself, when Luffy had yanked him close, Law didn't think he could have resisted even if he tried.
“R-right… sorry, again.” Law scratched the back of his head and looked away. “So yeah… I guess that was all I wanted to say.”
“You gonna reserve a spot with me, then?” He asked, stepping closer. Law stepped back. “Bepo said he'd pay for all your sessions, too.”
“What?! No!” That was ridiculous. He would never let that happen. “And no, I don't think I'm really in need of your services, but I appreciate the offer.”
Luffy pursed his lips as he studied him. “Hmm. Mkay, but remember; the first session is free. You won't be out of anything if it ain't right for you.” Luffy reached up to place his index finger under Law's chin and flicked. “But something tells me I'm gonna be seeing a lot of you.”
At that, he spun on his heel and skipped away.
Law waited until he was out of sight before heading back. At the door, Bepo was there waiting for him expectantly.
“Everything okay?” He asked, closing the door behind him. “Did he forget something?”
“No, I did, actually,” Law admitted. He gave Bepo the best smile he could before disappearing into his room once again, hiding from any sort of emotion he might be feeling.
Law grabbed his wallet from atop his dresser and pulled out the business card Luffy had given him. He sat on the edge of his bed and looked down at it. The whole thing was red, the front decorated with a yellow straw hat graphic that resembled Luffy's seemingly iconic sun hat. And on the back… Law twisted it over. Same bright red background but with a single QR code.
Law fell backward, the bed slightly bouncing from the sudden force. While he held the card above him and stared at the straw hat, Law wondered if that guy was just a con artist. This was a prestigious school for the elite, and almost the entire student body was from very, very well-off families, Law included—sort of. Luffy had called him a 'rich boy,' which implied he wasn't from money, though. It would be easy to manipulate the freshman who didn’t have mommy and daddy monitoring their bank accounts anymore, siphoning their funds with the dumb idea of cuddling for therapy just by sticking the word 'professional' in front of it.
Rolling his eyes, Law flung the card somewhere on the other side of his room and got ready for bed. The whole thing was placebo and Law was too smart for therapy of any kind. Tomorrow he would talk with Bepo, telling him thank you for his concern but he really wasn’t interested—and would apologize for not being around enough.
When Law finally crawled into bed, he immediately began going over his schedule for the next day. He had finished early today but that didn't mean he was off the hook for the week. There was a shit-storm brewing headed straight for them.
End of term exams.
~~~
Two weeks left until the exams started and Law was going to throw up.
There just wasn't enough time in the day to cram all the required knowledge into his brain. Every time he successfully managed to memorize a chapter's terminology, the next would have a whole new diagram with one hundred more foreign words Law swore he never saw in his life.
One of his classes was released early due to the professor having an appointment, so Law jogged across campus to the library. Zigzagging his way through the shelves and lounge areas - making a beeline for his spot - he saw that damn sun hat again.
Stopping mid-step, Law looked to see who Luffy was with now. On one of the couches against a low bookshelf, Luffy was snuggled up with someone, their limbs entangled. A male, but Law didn't recognize him. His legs were as long as Law's, he guessed, and he had pale blond hair. Other than that, his face was buried in Luffy's chest. They were sound asleep.
Since they couldn't see him, Law didn’t think it would hurt anyone if he got a little closer. It was just a glance and it would only take a single second.
Slightly leaning over them, Law confirmed he didn't know the other person—possibly a freshman or maybe someone who spent most of their time in a different building. Whoever he was, he held Luffy tight - his arms wrapped around his torso with clutching fingers, even in his sleep - and around his eyes were red and puffy. Luffy held him close around his shoulders, his face buried in the fluffy hair.
They looked content. Comfortable.
A level of calmness that Law could never achieve. Especially with all the shit he had to do still.
Speaking of that—he had to get his ass seated and continue cramming for the exams. He took off, leaving Luffy and his blond client behind.
~~~
One week and one day before exams started and Law had thrown up multiple times. If anyone asked about his well-being, he would not even hesitate to lie, of course. But his nerves were getting the better of him now.
The entirety of his future career was riding on this last year of schooling. If he bombed the first semester, he didn’t even want to know how badly he would do during the second. He made it this far—having stayed in the top ten students of his graduating class all three years. Just one more year. Just one more…
Law’s eyes crossed from nausea, his stomach flipping.
The closer the date was to the tests, the more he was consumed by jitters and anxiety. He wished he could just take them all now and get them over with.
Bile rose halfway up his esophagus making him groan. The acidic burn hurt so much. Law kept one hand clamped over his mouth just in case while the other clawed at the wooden table with desperation.
Maybe he needed to eat…
Law stuck a few quarters in the vending machine outside the library for a granola bar. It dropped. A few more quarters for a bag of mixed nuts. It dropped. With shaking hands, he tore open the nuts and threw them back right away, then pocketed his trash while chewing his mouthful.
On his way back to his table, he bumped into - literally - the one and only straw hat Luffy.
“You should watch where you're going,” Law grumbled as he shuffled by.
Without skipping a beat, Luffy came up next to him and shoved his arm under Law's, hooking them together. “You look like shit!”
“I know, you jackass—I own a fucking mirror.” Law attempted to yank himself free but was unsuccessful.
Luffy laughed loudly, gaining multiple people's attention but he didn't pay them any mind. “What I meant was; I can help with that.”
“Not interested.”
“I don't have anyone booked for the rest of the day,” Luffy went on happily, ignoring the rejection. “Pack your stuff up and let's head back to your dorm. I'm gonna fix you up.”
Offended, Law scrunched his face and roughly pulled away from Luffy. “Go away, will you? I have shit to do.” He slid his chair out and sat down, scooting it closer to the table. He planned on ignoring Luffy standing next to him.
Suddenly, and viciously, Luffy grabbed Law by his face—fingers digging into the sides of his cheeks as he pulled Law closer by the jaw.
“I was told to fix you,” he growled out between gritted teeth, “because you're not doing well on your own. And your friends have noticed.”
Law's heart raced as he stared wide-eyed up at Luffy as he continued. The grip was painful. This had never happened to him before, had never been nonconsensually manhandled and treated so carelessly.
“I can help you feel better. We can do it right here where people can stare at you - I don't give a shit - or we can go back to your dorm for privacy. You choose, but those are your only options.”
An ultimatum where Law lost either way?! What would happen if he chose neither?! Judging by the strength in Luffy's hold on his face, keeping his whole body in place with just one hand, Law assumed this guy would resort to more violence. Despite not being willing to admit out loud he would be useless in a fight, he surely was admitting it to himself in his head.
Then there was the tidbit of his friends sending Luffy his way again. Were they worried? Had he started outwardly showing signs of his breakdown from last year? Did he look worse than he felt? Which must be terrible because he felt like absolute shit. Fuck, this was a stupid situation.
At least Luffy knew he wouldn't want to get all touchy-feely in public. He was right—privacy was better. The thought alone of cuddling a stranger was already going to make him turn inside out from embarrassment—he couldn't even begin to fathom people witnessing it.
“M-my place,” he managed to squeeze out from between Luffy's death grip, conceding.
“Hehe, sounds good.” After releasing Law, he rubbed the sides of his face and apologized, sounding genuine. “Is there something I can help carry?”
“No, I've got it,” Law said, looking at his belongings spread out before him.
Making haste while packing up, Law suddenly felt anxious for a whole different reason.
On the way, Law didn’t talk. Although, that didn’t defer Luffy in the slightest. On and on, he babbled about his friends but Law didn’t listen to a damn word. There wasn’t any room in his head with all the constant worrying.
This was wasting precious, valuable time he could be using to make a new set of flashcards or quadruple-checking for any skipped pages. There were only eight days between now and the beginning of the end and holy shit that made Law’s knees weak. Eight days. That was it.
“Look, I actually can’t make time for this,” he blurted. He made a 180 and started going back the way they came. “Sorry, I just need to—BLAGH!”
Law coughed from being choked by his own shirt. Luffy grabbed the back of his collar to stop him from going any further. Flailing to regain his balance, Law righted himself and glared down at the other.
“Rude,” he snapped.
“So?”
“Inappropriate.”
Luffy rolled his eyes. “Don’t care.”
“Brat!” Law yelled, leaning down into Luffy’s face. He jabbed his finger into his shoulder with each word. “Noisy, undisciplined, half-witted prick who doesn’t keep his nose out of other people's business!” Law pushed at his shoulder for good measure. “You can’t just drag me around campus and expect me to listen to you—I don’t even know you!” Law flung his arms out as he looked around with a smile on his face, eyes wide and looking crazed as the anxiety began to bubble up. “You’re just some feral, nobody kid who exploits the wealthy! You might have conned my best friend, yes, but you won’t get me.” Law looked down his nose as he scanned the length of him. “You’re not even a student at this school, are you? Do you even have a hom—”
Law’s last word was cut off by a powerful shove, sending him stumbling backward until he fell on his ass. Luffy was on him in a second, giving him no time to recover. He had Law’s button-up clenched in both fists as he held Law up and screamed into his face.
“You think that hurts my feelings or something?!” he started off with bared teeth, close to growling like the wild child Law truly believed him to be. “Why won’t you let your friends help you?! Why do you ignore their hand every time they reach out to you?!” Luffy shook him. “Since you pushed them away, they came to me - a stranger, as you say - to get you right again!”
Weakly, Law grabbed at Luffy’s hands, barely even trying to peel his grip away. He could feel himself shaking and hated how Luffy was all blurry suddenly. He squeezed his eyes shut, ignoring the feel of tears falling down his cheeks. A few people that had been nearby approached and were asking if Law was alright, but he didn’t hear them.
“Well?! What is your problem?!” Luffy gave him another shake. “Why can’t you accept my help?!”
Each breath Law took was stuttered and hurt and came faster and faster. As he just let his tears fall - openly crying now - his face scrunched with fear. It was getting harder to catch his breath.
Law let his head fall back to lay limp in Luffy’s hold. Looking up at the grey sky above, Law tried his best to control his breathing using exercises he had learned.
Quietly, he admitted, “...I don’t want to fail.”
The expectations for him - even when a child - were set too high. This stupid, punk kid who came out of nowhere was forcing Law to face the real reason he was constantly putting his health at risk. But that was it! He couldn’t let his family down. The goals set for him were bordering unrealistic, but year after year, Law achieved his goal and more.
“Then let me help you win.”
Slowly, Law’s eyes closed as a bitter smile crept up onto his face. “It’s not something you can ‘win,’ you idiot.” He sniffled and lightly pushed at Luffy, signaling for him to get up. Law rested his arms over his knees and waved the bystanders away as he told them everything was fine. Hesitantly, and eyeing Luffy, they moved on.
He scrubbed over his eyes and wiped his tears on the ends of his sleeves. Giving in, Law sighed, “I do not understand how a ‘professional cuddler’ is going to help me in any way. I should probably be on medication, not…” Law glanced at Luffy, giving him another once over, “relying on some therapy dog.”
Luffy sprang to his feet in excitement. His mood swings were going to give Law whiplash. He bent down to grab at Law’s wrists and pulled him to his feet. “If you can’t trust me that I can help, won’t you trust your friends?”
Big, bright eyes stared up at him, hopeful and waiting, paired with an even brighter smile. Law winced, looking away. The innocent and cute face reminded him of Bepo. “Stop looking at me like that.”
“Like what?” Luffy asked, getting closer and standing on his tippy toes. He was laughing now, realizing the sudden power he discovered.
“Ugh—yes, like that!” Law groaned and palmed Luffy’s face away from him.
Muffled by Law’s hand, Luffy giggled even more. Law thought this guy was scary with how quickly his temper would flare. Maybe he wasn’t the only one that needed to be medicated…
“So, let’s go!” Luffy then shouted, taking off toward Law’s dorm building—but not before scooping up Law’s fallen bag and dragging him along by the hand.
Thankfully, no one was there when they arrived. Law didn’t think he could take any more excitement of any kind right now.
“Which one’s yours?” Luffy asked, waiting at the mouth of the hallway.
Defeated and following after him, Law mumbled, “Second door on the left.”
Luffy opened the door and immediately jumped on the bed, spinning in mid-air to land on his back. “Comfy!” He sat up. “This is perfect.”
To buy himself more time, Law closed the door and tucked his bag under his desk, well out of the way. Just in case this Luffy kid decided on scrapping again, he wanted to make sure his schoolwork would be safe.
Luffy was already getting situated on his bed by scooting to the top, readjusting a pillow behind him, and leaning against the headboard. After tossing his hat to land over the lamp on the nightstand, he spread his legs wider and held his arms out toward Law.
Suddenly shy, Law didn’t move when he asked, “You didn’t do this with Bepo…” but he knew he had done it before. He couldn’t tell him he crept on him sleeping with that blond freshman last week. “Can’t we do this sitting next to each other?”
Luffy shook his head. “Nope. Not everyone is the same. You need it like this. Now c’mere,” he said, wiggling his fingers for emphasis. When the other still didn’t make an effort to get closer, Luffy’s eyes darkened. “You wanna make this harder than it’s gotta be?”
“...No.”
“Then come here,” Luffy said harshly, his jaw set.
Feeling a little skittish about the whole idea of getting in bed with an ill-tempered stranger, Law hesitated. But the moment Luffy leaned forward to swipe at Law’s arm, he was quick to move it out of the way and join him on his own. One knee propped up, the mattress sunk under his weight, and even more when he got on all fours to crawl between Luffy’s legs.
Luffy still held his arms out, a friendly smile splitting his face, even as Law got closer. When he was within reach, Luffy stuffed his arms under Law’s armpits and draped Law over his chest. Instantaneously, Law’s heart rate began to skyrocket with rapid breathing.
“It’s alright,” Luffy said quietly. “Lay your arms here.” He guided both of Law’s arms to his side and gently stuffed them under his back until he got the idea and sunk them deep under and his fingertips touched.
Only when Luffy held Law’s head down to his chest did he realize he was holding himself up.
“Relax.”
Law tried, he really did but he couldn’t stop feeling ridged and stiff.
“Relaaax…” Luffy said again, even quieter this time.
Law stared off at the closet door across the room and was startled when he felt a hand at the back of his head, cradling it.
“Don’t you think this is weird,” Law gasped out, tensing up again. He began to pull his arms out from under Luffy when he was stopped by his hair being pulled.
“I will pin you down to this bed if you don’t relax on your own, Law.”
A little afraid, Law was quick to fully lay down again. “Okay, okay.”
The hand in his hair loosened to instead rake through his thick hair. That single scrape across his scalp gave him goosebumps. And when Luffy’s scratchings elongated to massaging over his neck and between his shoulder blades, Law let out an embarrassingly loud groan.
His eyes shot open and the tension came back as he froze in place.
“It’s okay, you’re supposed to feel good,” Luffy cooed as he continued that same motion.
It took a few minutes of Luffy rubbing over his back and clawing through his hair for Law to really sink into the delicious feeling. When Luffy’s fingers raked behind his ear and up to his temple, then back down again, Law’s eyes rolled as he let out another soft moan. Law tightened his grip around Luffy each time a certain touch felt especially good.
After a while when his body and mind were getting used to the repetitive motions, it was easier to think…about school and assignments and tests and due dates and—
As if he could just sense Law’s anxiety spiking, Luffy changed tactics, reeling Law back in.
Lazily, he snaked his legs around Law’s torso, thighs constricting his ribs with just the right amount of pressure. He could feel Luffy’s bare feet settle over his lower back. At the same time, he crept his hands over Law’s face to cup over his cheek and cradle his head again, hugging him all the more closer to his chest.
It was acutely intimate. Law felt his cheeks heat up. Especially when Luffy started talking to him.
“Doesn’t this feel good?” he whispered.
He lightly caressed him, his fingertips gently grazing his cheekbone, creating minuscule circles. Law bunched Luffy’s sweater up in his nervous grip and nodded against him.
“Close your eyes.”
And so Law did, shutting out the dim lighting of the late evening shining through his window. Unable to see made his chest feel tight with worry.
“Take a deep breath,” Law did, “hold it,” and Law did, “now let it out.”
And Law did.
They went through that a few times, Law going on to the next step only when Luffy directed him to.
“How do you feel?” Luffy asked.
Law could hardly move his mouth to speak. He felt a little numb—but the good kind. Same with his mind. It was a little hazy and dizzy but nothing… bad. He simply floated there… peacefully. Managing to hum his approval, Law hoped that would be enough.
“That’s good,” Luffy told him. For some reason, that made Law hum through a groan, happy to hear praise. “Next, I want you to let go—” slightly panicked, Law tightened his muscles as he held Luffy to him, “—not of me, not of me,” Luffy reassured. “Let go in here.”
Luffy began to pet over his forehead, swiping his hair back and massaging his temples and the top of his skull. Subconsciously, a weight Law hadn’t even realized he was holding onto—released.
He felt completely and utterly calm. If someone asked for his name, Law didn’t even think he could give it to them. There wasn’t much he could even think of, just the blanket of black he was seeing behind his eyelids and little white speckles that dotted in and out. Beyond that… only comfort remained.
“There… that was easy, wasn’t it? Let’s take a nap together, now.”
Law knew naps weren’t useful for his academic life, they only wasted time he could spend studying. Although, the thought of a nap right now didn’t sound too bad… in fact, he could already feel himself drifting off. So deeply sedated under Luffy’s spell, Law couldn’t muster up the strength - or brain cells - to make his mouth move and answer him. Even humming was hard. All he could do was… let himself go.
“Hey, you,” came a voice much too close to him.
“Hm?”
“Let’s wake up, or you won’t be able to sleep tonight.”
In his mind, he scrambled to the surface and pulled himself out of the black hole he had found tranquility in. Little by little, sounds from the living room, shapes in the darkness around them, and the identity of the person he was laying on all began to flood his thoughts.
“Fuck,” he rasped out, smacking his lips together. He pushed to his elbows, holding himself up over Luffy, and grimaced at the long, thick string of drool that was attached from his cheek to the sweater below him. More feeling returned to his limps and when he felt he had control over his motor skills he shook his head while furiously blinking. “Christ, what did you do to me?”
Luffy untangled his legs, letting Law go, and fully sat up. “Helped you.”
“By drugging me?!” Law half-joked, cleaning his face off and sitting up, too. “What time is it? How long was I asleep?”
“Mmm, about three hours,” Luffy said casually.
“Th- three hours?!” Law spat. “Why would you let me sleep that long?!”
Ignoring him, Luffy instead asked, “How do you feel?”
“I don’t feel any different! I feel…”
Well, hold on a minute.
That was a lie.
Dropping his shoulders, Law took a moment to really assess how he felt. And actually… he felt…
“Amazing.”
Even without light, Luffy’s smile was visible. “Hehehe, seeeee! I knew I could do it. You were easy, too.” Luffy scooted to the edge of the bed. “Thought you’d be difficult but once I got you to lay down—easy-peasy.” He snapped his fingers in Law’s face. “Nothin’ to it.”
Slightly offended, Law crossed his arms and mumbled, “M’not easy.”
Going unheard, Luffy talked over Law. “I think you would benefit from having me around. I could really change your life.” Law watched the black, Luffy-shaped blob get closer only to settle between his legs. He sucked in a breath when he felt Luffy’s finger under his chin again. He scratched at the coarse hair of his beard a few times before giving it another flick. “Think about it, kay?”
Then grabbed his hat and left.
And Law was left sitting in his room, in the dark, alone— dumbfounded.
~~~
For the next seven days, Law didn’t see Luffy on campus. Which he barely noticed since he was busy spending the last four of those days fighting off another anxiety attack. It would have been better to let his friends in on that little detail but Law didn’t want to bother them this close to finals. They had their own shit to worry about.
Three of his six exams were the next morning and Law couldn’t stop throwing up. The shower was running while he played his Bluetooth speaker to drown out his wretching. On his knees and peering into the toilet full of his breakfast - only just now realizing he hadn’t eaten since then, now that the evidence was right there in his face - he knew he had to do something or he would for sure start spiraling.
Panting, Law shakily got to his feet. Wobbly in the knees, but he did it. He rinsed his face and cleaned his mouth out before leaving the bathroom.
There, he stood outside Bepo’s door. One hand raised and ready to knock. It was just after 10:00pm, he might not even be asleep…
But what if he was?
And Law was robbing him of much-needed sleep before the big day?
What if he saw what state Law was in and freaked out?
What if he got Shachi and Penguin involved? More support to calm him down and they all three didn’t rest for the whole night all because Law just couldn’t function properly!?
No, he didn’t want that.
He lowered his trembling hand and disappeared back into his room. He knew who he would contact. Right away, he began hunting for the business card he had been given a few weeks ago. Opening drawers, rustling papers, and searching behind his desk.
Shit, shit shit, he couldn’t find it.
Fuck, his chest hurt.
Thoughts of school and his family and Luffy all mixed together to create one big panic. He shuffled around on his hands and knees, scanning the floor.
Finally - wedged under a designer boot - Law found it. He hurriedly turned it over and cursed that idiot for putting a fucking QR code on there. As he clumsily scanned it with his phone, he mumbled about no one even using those anymore.
The code brought him to a website—something about a king but he didn’t care. He was already on the appointment page and scrolling through openings.
His heart dropped.
Sunday had already been filled.
“No, no, no, no!” Law reasoned with his phone, giving it a shake. His eyes zipped across the screen as he read through Luffy’s scheduling system.
Available to book for any hour of the day, but he only worked twelve hours total. Once those twelve hours were filled, he was done. So that means if Law booked a 12:00am session on Monday he could still get a slot in a few hours!
Clicking back to the appointment page, Law whined as he bit his bottom lip. “No, dammit!” Monday was filled, too! And Tuesday, and Wednesday… and!
He was just about to drop his phone and curl in a ball of defeat until he scrolled to the bottom of the page and saw a phone number under Contact Me.
Law wasted no time to press it. It started to ring.
And ring.
And ring.
And ring.
Voicemail.
“FUCK!”
Law hung up and tried again, tears streaming down his face. The ringing started up again.
And kept ringing.
And ringing.
And ringing.
But then it stopped.
On the other end was loud music and laughing. An obvious party going on before end-of-semester finals—one last hurrah before Hell Week. Law scoffed, wishing he could be that easy-going, wishing he could just ride through college without a care in the world. Instead, his brain was melting out of his ears because it couldn’t process the idea of failure when Law had worked so hard to gain the best of the best marks.
“—Hellooooo~?” Luffy called again, breaking Law from his panic.
“Luffy!” He hissed, trying to keep his voice down. He turned around, crouched low to talk toward his mattress. “Luffy, what are you doing, where are you? I need your help right now, that magic shit you do, please.”
“Wha-wha?! Slow down! Who is this?” A bark of laughter sounded in the background, followed by a group of people cheering. Luffy’s words were cut off to Law, unable to hear what he said.
“Please, please, I just need a little help. I’ll pay whatever price you ask,” he said, remembering he never checked his rates.
“Ooh, are you tryna book a sesh? Sorry, man, I’m full untillll, I think two weeks from now!”
Law knew that already but hearing it confirmed made him choke on a sob. Pulling at his hair, he spoke as clearly as he could in his sloppy state. “Please, Luffy, it’s an emergency.”
“Shit, really?” Luffy questioned, then let out a few grunts as he maneuvered through people, the loud noises getting smaller and smaller until it was a dull buzz. “Hello? Who is this? What do you mean it’s an emergency?”
“Luffy,” Law pleaded, trying his best not to peel his skin off. “Luffy, this is Law, we had a session a few—”
“Law? Are you okay? What’s wrong?”
Gritting his teeth until his jaw hurt, he forced out, “I think I’m having a panic attack.”
“Wha—HEY, now—you need to get to Bepo! Are you in your dorm?”
“Yes, yes, I’m in my room and I don’t feel well.”
The loud music was back.
“Bepo can help you, you just have to ask.” Luffy’s voice sounded far from his phone. “M’leaving—catch up with you guys later.” Once the music faded again, Law could hear Luffy breathing heavily into the phone. “You there? Wake Bepo up—he’s your friend!”
No, no, Luffy didn’t understand—he didn’t see Bepo’s face over him the last time this happened. He never wanted to be the cause of such a painful moment for his friend again.
“Law—are you there?!”
“Yes,” he whispered. “I can’t ask them for help, I don’t want to bother them with my problems so close to—”
“Shut up with that bullshit!” Luffy snapped. “I’m on my way. Like twelve minutes. Give me twelve minutes.” The panting became louder as he picked up his speed. “Remember the breathing? Do it with me, okay? Can you?”
“Yeah, okay,” Law said while nodding in the darkness of his room.
“Breathe in,” he started, just like last time.
They went through it over and over. Every two minutes, Luffy gave him an update on how far away he was. The monotonous, repetitive technique helped calm Law enough that he was able to stand and quietly leave his room. He opened the front door and stood in the doorway, watching the elevator at the end of the hall.
But Luffy didn’t come from the elevator; instead, bursting through the heavy stairwell doors and running down the hall toward him.
“Law!” he yelled, where Law could hear both in person and echoing over the phone. Luffy only pocketed his phone when he saw Law do the same. “I’m here—are you alright? Did you wake Bepo?”
“No,” he confessed, and even just thinking of him finding out had Law’s bottom lip trembling. “Please don’t tell them,” he whispered as he glanced over his shoulder into the apartment.
That answer did not make Luffy happy - a flash of anger before he masked it - but he nodded and herded Law inside regardless. As Law led the way, he could feel Luffy’s hand at the small of his back, never leaving him since he arrived. Luffy was sure to carefully close the door, but then he was quick to back Law up until his legs hit the bed.
“Sit in the middle and cross your legs,” he directed with a point after setting his hat on a chair. Then he took off his sweater to reveal a plain blue t-shirt. One of the sleeves looked wet. “Sorry, I got beer spilt all over me earlier.”
Law’s nerves were escalating all over again but he did as he was told. Luffy joined him by crawling right into his lap and wrapping his legs around his waist and arms around his neck, bringing him down until Law’s forehead rested against the shoulder not soaked in beer. The position was so suggestive and provocative but the smell of sweat and hops was more distracting. Very pungent.
“Put your arms around me,” he said, turning his head into Law’s neck. The guidance prompted Law to participate in Luffy’s ‘magic,’ and he grabbed Luffy tight. “There… good. Just like that.”
Then his hands started to languidly rub over his back—never scratching like he did last time. This time he was all soft with feather touches. Law started to feel himself evening out, but all his coils hadn’t been unwound just yet. The subtle rocking back and forth was soothing, though, and helped loosen him up. Luffy didn’t ask anything of him, only simply letting Law regain control over his own body.
After ten minutes of them sitting there together, entwined with no space between them, Luffy finally spoke, his lips brushing the skin of Law’s neck as he did so.
“Did you wanna tell me what happened?”
The hot breath ghosting over him made him shiver. Law gripped Luffy’s shirt to hold him all the more closer. He didn’t want to tell him, really.
“You’re wet everywhere,” he said instead, changing the subject. He ran his hands haphazardly over Luffy’s back and even his neck as if to prove his point.
Luffy huffed a laugh. “Mmhm. Because I ran, yanno.”
“Yeah,” he said and slowed his hand movements. “Thank you.”
Luffy rested his chin over Law’s shoulder and continued to rub his back. The comfort of holding someone and also being held… the warmth… the safety… the even breathing to focus on, to center himself with…
Law thanked him again and Luffy hummed back. Silence as time crept by. Then Law sighed.
“Sometimes I feel powerless in my own life,” he mumbled, also placing his chin over Luffy’s shoulder, mirroring him. “Even though I hold the reins, I don’t feel in control.” The hands on his back snaked into his hair, gently petting him through his explanation. “I guess I don’t know how to live for myself and only for my parents’ expectations. M’afraid… of failure.”
Law sucked in a long, deep breath and slowly let it out. For the moment, there wasn’t anything else he wanted to say, so he didn’t. The two sat in the stillness of the room in each other’s arms until Law felt himself getting worked up again. His breathing hitched at the thought of disappointing his family. The thought of failure made him feel shameful. Useless.
“Hey, hey,” came Luffy’s low voice. “You were doing so good. Relax, okay?”
“I-I-I can’t,” Law sputtered with each desperate breath. “Just a few more hours until—”
“—Shh, shh, listen to me and only me—”
“—I feel so guilty, so wrong, so disgusting,” he hissed out, hating himself. “I should be using this time to cram any last-minute information but instead I’m being childish by crying to a stranger!” Law heaved in a much-needed breath, a wheezing sounded deep in his chest. “The guilt, it’s eating me but I couldn’t read a single sentence right now if I tried—”
“Please listen to me… it’s going to be okay.”
“No, you don’t understand,” he said and his voice cracked. That’s all it took for the dam to break and the tears freely flowed all over again. He sobbed into Luffy’s shirt, drenching his shoulder. “What if I forgot something—what if—” he coughed, choking on another hushed sob, “—what if there was something I’ve forgotten? Or didn’t catch? That everyone else learned and I didn’t? I can’t score better than them if they know more than me.” His breathing seemed ragged and he felt dizzy—the bad kind. “Every day the GPAs change by a fraction but that means it takes almost nothing to be knocked out of the top ten. I have to be perfect—” He swallowed back the snot running down his throat and gasped for air. “I have to be absolutely perfect or—”
“Law.”
Just hearing the calmness in Luffy’s voice as he spoke his name made his insides hurt. He cried even harder.
“It’s alright.”
“No, no, it’s not,” he pleaded more to himself, not willing to accept anything other than perfection.
Luffy leaned back and took Law’s face in both his hands, lifting his head so they were eye to eye. “What makes you think you’ll fail?” Law didn’t answer but turned his eyebrows up in question. “Have you failed before?”
Law’s brows scrunched. “Like…” he sniffled. “In college? No, never.”
“What about high school? Did you fail then?”
Now Law was actively frowning, not understanding where Luffy was going with this. “Absolutely not.”
“And before that?”
“No, I excelled in every subject,” Law said, attempting to pull out of Luffy’s hands. The hold only got stronger, keeping him in place.
“Then why do you think you’ll fail now?” he asked, locked onto Law’s stare. “Why do you think you will fail if you’ve never dunnit before?”
Law resisted the urge to scream in Luffy’s face that it wasn’t that simple, so instead he admitted something aloud that he had never said before, even to himself;
“Because… I greatly suffer from mental illness.”
“But it’s never held you back before, has it? While testing?” Luffy asked, squeezing his cheeks until they mushed. “You are super smart—Bepo talked about you a lot, yanno!” He snickered. “You’re his hero, Law. He loves you. Every time he came across a difficult scenario, he said you could’ve solved it before the question was finished being read aloud.” Law scoffed and tried to look away. Luffy didn’t let him. “He bragged that you’re the only one of you four who made it to the top ten this last spring—and every semester before that.”
“So?” Law pouted. He played with the hem of Luffy’s shirt, rolling it up and twisting it.
“So—! How could someone who’s never left the top fail a stupid test?”
“It’s not stupid, those tests—”
“Are just paper,” Luffy interrupted. He kept one hand over Law’s cheek, running his thumb back and forth while the other ran through his hair. “And paper is really weak, you are so much stronger than paper.” Law rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness of his logic. “You’re too caught up in here,” he knocked his knuckles against Law’s skull a few times. “When you should remember to take care of this here.”
Luffy placed a hand over Law’s chest, where only just a few inches deep, his heart sat inside him.
“How many hours until your first exam?”
Law shook his head. “You really don’t go here, do you?” Luffy gave him a pointed look so Law looked at his alarm clock. “Eight and a half.”
“Lemme help you sleep.”
Already, just hearing the support had Law sagging with relief. He nodded weakly with another sniffle. “I was really hoping you would say that.”
And so they stripped down to their underwear and got under the comforter. Law objected to taking their clothes off but Luffy insisted it would work better if their skin touched. Entirely convinced Luffy was making that tidbit up, Law caved anyway. So long as Luffy performed his little witchcraft voodoo, then Law would have agreed to anything.
At first, they lay facing each other. Luffy had a leg swung over Law’s boney hip, clamping him to his body like a vice. Law didn’t know what to do with his hand, so Luffy guided it to his ribs to sit. It was nice. Luffy stroked the back of his fingers over every inch of Law he could reach and Law just let him.
The voodoo was working its magic because before long, Law’s eyelids began to droop. When Luffy noticed, he told Law to turn over to face outward, so he did, and then Luffy scooted flush against him—once again, hiking a leg over Law’s hip to rest.
Law’s eyes widened when he could distinctly feel a cock pressed against his ass. That had never happened before and he was suddenly very aware of how erotic this was. The thought alone made his own dick swell with curiosity. Law willed it away as hard as he could, despite Luffy not being able to see or feel it. It just felt wrong to sexually enjoy the moment when Luffy was treating this as completely professional—technically this was his job and he was working overtime for Law.
Then Luffy broke him from his less innocent thoughts by poking his arm under Law’s to rub over his chest. He played with the hair between his pecs and massaged them. Sniffing along his back, Luffy grazed his nose over his skin until he reached the back of Law’s neck, which was where he settled by nestling into his hair. He told Law he smelled good, to which Law told him he didn’t—stinking of sweat. This didn’t embarrass Luffy like it would have Law. He only giggled and asked to use the shower in the morning.
Sleeping would have been an absolute nightmare—out of the question, honestly. On a regular night, Law barely got the correct amount of sleep, but during Hell Week? He could kiss those Z’s goodbye. So when Luffy had him purring like a kitten from all the scratching, massaging, and those teeny, delicate touches that left his whole body in goosebumps… Law was ready to hand his life over to him.
Whatever Luffy’s superpower was, worked like a charm.
Law woke to his alarm going off. He didn’t feel the normal anxiety that followed that annoying noise but he still felt rushed to start his day. No matter how much he felt the need to jump out of bed, he couldn’t, because he was trapped under Luffy.
Having rolled onto his back sometime in the night, Law had been consumed by Luffy’s octopus-like limbs. Which was fine and dandy—Luffy was a cuddler, after all. But that wasn’t quite what had Law stuck in place.
No, Luffy’s hand was down his underwear.
Fingers sifted through the coarse hair and rested there like it was no big deal. Law’s morning wood lay flat over Luffy’s knuckles. What does someone even do in this type of situation? How could he be upset when Luffy had done it in his sleep?
Carefully, so as not to disturb the other, Law maneuvered Luffy’s hand from his pants. As his skin grazed against his erection, Law had to bite his lip to stifle a groan. The movement caused Luffy to wiggle around through a stretch, only for his hand to flop back over Law’s chest and begin mindlessly caressing his pecs again.
Then came the leg.
Law’s eyes widened as he watched Luffy’s leg swing over - towering over him and practically dropping in slow motion - to land over his middle, locking him down once again. Grabbing Luffy’s calf to begin prying him off, Law nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt something hard press against his thigh.
Luffy sucked in a breath as he rolled his hips, grinding himself against Law's leg. He clawed over Law’s chest, scraping his skin with his short nails, and moaned.
“Luffy!” Law yelped in his ear, pushing the other off of him.
Propping himself up on an elbow, Luffy looked around. Hair stuck out every which way and his eyes were barely open. “Hm?” When he noticed how they had just been laying, and felt his own erection, Luffy was actually quite quick to put two and two together. There were four bright red lines etched into Law's skin. “Oh—sorry if I—I didn’t mean to—” he scrambled up and off the bed, keeping his body facing away to give each of them privacy. “Sorry,” he said again.
“It’s cool,” Law mumbled and followed suit. Then he placed his hands over Luffy’s shoulders, kicking him out of his room by guiding him to the door. “You smell so fucking bad. Go shower.”
While Luffy occupied the bathroom, Law pushed all those tingly, naughty thoughts he was still envisioning to the back of his mind and kicked them under the rug. He had to get his things in order and eat a proper breakfast. Luckily, Law wasn’t in charge of cooking this morning.
By the time he entered the kitchen, the other three were already awake, dressed, and bustling around. At least Shachi was, who was scrambling a pile of eggs and frying sausage patties. The other two were seated at the counter watching, munching on apples. Penguin tossed him one.
“Wait,” Shachi said slowly. He pointed the spatula at each of them as he counted. “One, two, three,” then to himself, “four…? Uhm. If we’re all here, then who the hell is that in the bathroom?”
“Oh, you’re right, the shower is running!” Bepo chimed in.
Law scratched at the back of his neck as he leaned against the hallway entrance. “Uhm… yeah, I had Luffy over again. He helped me sleep.”
They each piped up to say their opinion about him, whether they liked him or not or if he was even a student at the school—if not, then why was he around? Etcetera, whatever, Law wasn’t really paying attention. As long as they weren’t going to pry for the reason Law couldn’t sleep, then let them talk. He was just glad they understood Luffy’s occupation, which Bepo’s testimony helped with that one.
Shachi was cooking up another round of food while the others were finishing their first when Luffy emerged from the bathroom. Four pairs of eyes landed on him.
He held a towel loosely around his waist and was dripping all over as if he hadn’t even attempted to dry himself off before coming out here. “Do you have a shirt I can borrow, actually?” he asked, then added, “Mine smells, remember.” Law stood from his stool to go grab him one and saw him eyeing the sizzling, hot food laid out. “Is some of that for me?”
“You may have some as long as it’s balanced,” Penguin emphasized, holding a finger in the air. “It’s important on exam days.”
Law rolled his eyes. “He doesn’t even go here.”
“How’s it balanced?” Luffy asked with a cocked head.
“Start with fruit,” Shachi said and tossed an apple at him. “Then you can have some of this.
Instinctively, Luffy caught the apple, except he used his dominant hand.
The one that had been keeping his modesty and holding the towel closed.
When the cloth fell into a pile of itself at his feet, Luffy looked down at it like he had no idea how that happened. The rest of the room was very obviously staring at the area that used to be covered not one second ago.
Shachi was the first to speak. “Uhm. Hey, Peng?”
“Yeah, Shach?”
“Why does the shortest person in the room have the biggest dick out of all of us?”
“Dunno, Shach.”
The room was silent. Luffy actually seemed a bit self-conscious from the attention. His knees twitched as if he meant to bend down for the towel but then he stopped, frozen in place.
“Hey, Sach?”
“Yeah, Peng?”
“Why are we all still staring at his dick?”
“Dunno, Peng.”
“I can’t look away,” Bepo admitted in a monotone voice as if he had been hypnotized.
“Me neither,” both Penguin and Shachi said in unison.
Even Law had to snap out of a trance. He cartoonishly shook his head from side to side to get ahold of himself, then stepped up to Luffy to grab his towel from the floor for him, wrap him up in it, and force him back into his room.
“Why did they say that?” Luffy whispered as he looked down the hall at them through the doorway.
Rummaging around in one of his bottom drawers, Law searched for a particular shirt he had in mind. “Because you're huge, Luffy,” he said without turning. Finally, he found an oversized t-shirt that he stole from Bepo a few years back. A very soft cotton. Something Law only occasionally slept in during the winter, but this seemed more Luffy’s style. “Massive, actually. Anyway, here,” he said passively and tossed the shirt into Luffy’s face.
From there, they ate their balanced breakfast together and got ready to leave the dorm room as a group. Luffy parted ways with them and it took no time at all for Shachi and Penguin to pounce.
“You said he came over to help you sleep, Law!” Penguin screeched, pointing back at the tiny Luffy in the far distance behind them.
Law defended himself, looking to Bepo to back him up. “He did!”
“Helped you how?!” Shachi cried. He swung his hands by miming a baseball bat motion. “By knocking you out with that thing?! It’s a fucking weapon!”
The rest of their walk to the medical building consisted of dick-envy and the salary of a professional cuddler and how it compared to their current major. Law didn’t actively participate, but there were a few things he needed to say, only chiming in when he felt his correct and important opinion was needed.
Regardless of their conversation topic or what actually went down in Law’s bedroom last night - whether anyone believed him or not - all Law could really think about was how fantastic he felt.
He was ready to face the day, head-on.
~~~
Without being asked, Luffy came back each night even though Law insisted he didn't have to since his next set of exams was not until Thursday afternoon.
On the contrary, in all his life, Law didn't think he had slept so well.
Every step felt as if there was a little spring behind it, bouncing his way across campus instead. His thoughts weren't so tangled, and he got an odd amount of compliments on his smile—whatever that meant.
Up until late Wednesday night, Law was confident his little hang-up was gone for good. But then he got a text.
The two of them were on the bed, facing each other, deep in conversation about anything and everything that came to mind. Since Law didn't have to get up early and he had spent a significant portion of his day after classes studying for Thursday's exams, he felt at ease doing nothing at all—at least with Luffy's help, he did.
In the middle of him telling Luffy an embarrassing story about Shachi and Law's sister, he heard his phone buzz against the wood of his nightstand. Furrowing his brows, he rolled over to check who it was—eyes going wide.
Just two words from him had ruined his night.
good luck.
“What's wrong?” Luffy had asked, noticing right away something had changed.
Law set his phone back down and returned to Luffy. He rubbed his chest. “S'nothing. Just my uncle stressing me out like usual,” he said with a roll of his eyes.
“Does it hurt? Here?” Luffy was looking straight into his eyes and holding a hand over Law's on his chest. “Let me help.”
Luffy suggested he lay on his back and Law did so without question. Then he watched Luffy sit up and mount him, both hands reaching out to grip his pecs. Nervously, Law's hands slapped over Luffy's thighs.
“Wh-what are you going to do?”
“Massage you,” Luffy said innocently, already beginning to add pressure as he rubbed circles into his muscles.
Was this guy trying to kill him?
They were only in their underwear. There wasn't exactly much separating their genitals - Law already could intimately feel everything of Luffy's - there was no way he could currently survive the torture Luffy was performing.
“Listen,” he started, sucking air between his teeth when Luffy leaned forward and harshly caressed his sides. Law curled his fingers into the fabric of Luffy's boxer briefs, unaware he had bucked his hips for more. “Listen, I won't say no to a massage… but how about my back instead, yeah?”
Ceasing his movements, Luffy easily agreed and allowed Law to turn over. They took a moment to get comfortable and then Luffy continued. Already, Law felt less exposed this way. He wasn't sure if Luffy was completely oblivious to how much he fucked with Law's head like that, or if he knew exactly what he was doing…
No matter the answer, Law didn't find out because he began to feel good all over again. Long, languid strokes from his shoulder blades to the small of his back. Hands slipped to his hips, gripped with a squeeze, released, and moved on to line his spine until they reached his neck.
Law groaned and grumbled under his breath, letting out every noise that made him feel good so Luffy knew just how talented he was.
“You like, then?”
“God, yes,” Law breathed.
“Feel good, then?”
“Yesss,” he hissed, gripping his pillow.
Luffy slid his hand over Law's neck and up into his hair, grabbing a handful to lightly tug on it. “I like to make you feel good.”
The tingling sensation from those words paired with his scalp being scratched caused Law's toes to curl and his lips to part, letting out a jubilant sigh.
The hand released and Luffy went back to feeling over every inch of exposed skin, leaving Law high on serotonin. Not even ten minutes had passed since Luffy began touching him and already Law's mind was turning to gooey mush.
“You really are… magic,” he slurred into his pillow.
It was interesting how Luffy had noticed a minuscule change in Law's behavior and immediately set into action to prevent his anxiety from rising. Despite the text reminding Law who truly was expecting the best of the best from him, he felt alright. Like it was going to be okay.
Another content sigh escaped.
“'s so nice…”
The massaging eventually began to slow. The strokes became longer, lazier. Fingertips lingered with less intention and melted into abstract shapes.
Slowly, Luffy leaned over until his nose grazed over the area between Law's shoulder blades. From there, he dragged his lips ever so lightly up to reach Law's neck and then behind his ear where Law's face was turned. His nose lined the shell and lips just brushing...
Law closed his eyes to relish the heat spreading through his body.
Then Luffy lowered down his back, lips barely touching and Law was shocked into a stillness when he felt - heard - Luffy kiss his skin.
Once.
Twice.
Three to four to five to six times across his upper back until he returned to hover next to Law's head, then dipping to nuzzle his face into messy, black hair.
“What was that all about?”
Luffy bonelessly draped his body over the length of Law's, laying parallel on top of him. “What was what about?” He asked. His cheek smushed as he rested it on Law's head, the both of them staring at nothing in particular across the room together.
“What you just did,” Law said shyly, hating that Luffy was going to make him voice it aloud. “With your mouth.”
“Mm? You can't recognize a kiss?” Luffy asked, sitting up to stare down at him.
Law kept his eyes squeezed shut. “I know what a kiss is, you asswipe! I meant… why did you do it?”
He laid back down. “Because it made you feel better—didn't it?”
Law didn't answer.
Luffy waited for him to speak, but when he still refused, he then added, “Did it not?”
In embarrassment, Law buried his face into his pillow.
“Hmm?” Luffy prodded at his sides, tickling him. “Answer me. Do you not want me to do that?”
“No, it's okay,” he quickly said, afraid he had messed things up.
“So it made you feel better?”
Law nodded and peeked an eye out so he could see Luffy's smirk above him. Watching until he disappeared as he slunk backward on him once again.
“I know~ I can tell,” he purred, and gave him one last kiss to the middle of his back, then rolled over to flop next to Law.
Luffy made every hair on Law's body stand on end with that last gesture and those… those words . To hide his heated, blushing face, Law turned into his pillow again to smother the emotions.
“You use that kind of treatment often?” Law asked with a muffled voice, wondering if Luffy wooed his other clients like he was for Law—driving him crazy.
“Hmm… kissing?” He wondered out loud for a moment. Law pushed himself onto his side to face Luffy better. “No, not until just now. Everyone needs something different, remember?”
Law wondered if that meant they were meaningless. If they were hollow touches. And Law supposed Luffy had every right to caress and touch him as he did with zero ulterior motives. Luffy had said from the very beginning what his services entailed, this was the type of thing he did all the time.
“Right,” Law whispered, just to fill the empty space.
As he looked at Luffy, who was staring back, he wondered how Luffy did it, how he had managed to fix his anxiety. Not cure it, of course, but a real temporary fix that Law couldn't ignore. He ended up giving Luffy a small smile—one he hoped showed his thanks for what he had done for him.
A lopsided grin shined back.
Luffy lifted a hand and reached out to play with Law's hair. Twirling it around a finger or sensually petting him from his hair down to his cheek. Just once, his thumb gently swiped over Law's bottom lip. He would be lying if he said there was no urge to stick his tongue out and give that finger a lick. Remembering Luffy's intimacy was being paid for kept him in check, though.
The buzz Law received from the touch of Luffy's lips soon settled into a comfortable numbness—chilling him out. Law felt as if he was sinking into that cozy black abyss again, a muted and safe place for him to rest.
And maybe he dozed off for a while. Simply enjoying the attention Luffy was giving him was more relaxing than he could fathom. Sometimes he could still feel Luffy's skin touching his, grazing so lightly that Law could even say he might have imagined it.
Behind him on the nightstand, his phone vibrated again. The sound of it was so jarring - jolting him from his lucid trance - that he nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Was just your phone.”
“Yeah.”
He knew who it was but he checked anyway.
call me when you've finished your last test.
Law sighed while setting his phone back down. Luffy popped over his shoulder to peer down at him.
“S'nothing,” he told him again.
“Was it your stressful uncle?”
Law huffed an apathetic laugh.
“Yeah.”
“Is he the bad guy?”
Another laugh.
“Yeah.”
“Want me to punch’im in the face?” Law flicked his gaze to Luffy's. “Y’want me to?”
Stretching and moving onto his back, Law said, “Yeah, kinda.” Luffy moved with him, curling along his side as he did so. He placed a hand over Law's chest and drew invisible creatures, shapes, and ideas onto him. “Did you know… I'm not actually rich at all?” He laughed bitterly. “Like—my parents, I mean.”
“Scholarship?” Luffy asked, wondering how else he got into a college for the elite.
“No, they don't offer those here. Because ‘commoners’ can get in with scholarships.” Law grimaced. “You can only buy your ticket in.” Law waited for Luffy to speak but he said nothing—finger still drawing away. “I didn’t even choose this school, but it’s the best for my field. I’m only here because my uncle pays for me.
“Thing is, he's not a nice man,” Law continued. “My family is greatly indebted to him because of this. Since he knows my parents could never pay him back financially… we are indebted in… other ways.”
Luffy's finger stopped. He flattened his palm over Law's sternum, slowly moving it until he was directly over Law's rapidly beating heart. He kept it there.
Law lowered his voice to just above a whisper. “I have to pass everything - I have to be perfect - or it would all be for nothing. We have endured many hardships, and I don't want them to be in vain.”
Why was he even sharing this with someone? Not only did Luffy probably not give a shit, but what could he do about it even if he cared? But Luffy didn't stop him.
“When I graduate, I'll be cut off.” Law smiled. He wouldn't be free from his uncle, but his parents would be. Law made sure that was the deal.
“So you spend the money he gives you… on me?” Luffy asked slowly as if he were trying to work it out in his head. He propped himself up on an elbow and smiled. “You must really like what I do for you, huh?”
“I do,” Law admitted. “Did you know he asked me why there was a spike in my spending recently?” Luffy shook his head. “Mhmm. I told him I needed a mentor to support me through my senior year. Don't think he was entirely convinced, but,” Law shrugged, “my account was still replenished the next day.”
“But I'm not a mentor.”
Law raised his eyebrow. “I know that. What was I supposed to tell him? That I pay for someone to hug me because I can’t breathe on my own?”
“Sure?” Luffy was skeptical of the lie. “Mental health is important. He should understan—”
“Wouldn't fly,” Law interrupted. “Look, I know I brought it up, but can we talk about something else? I'll spiral if I think too hard about my life outside of this room.”
Luffy wiggled up higher on the bed and shoved his arm under Law's neck, the other holding his face to look at him. “I don't mind helping you forget about everything outside this room.”
They were so close together. And growing closer as Luffy gradually leaned toward him.
Law's eyes flicked down to Luffy's lips, then back up to his curious eyes. “I… wouldn't mind the distraction…”
“Yeah?” Luffy breathed, his lips just over Law's. He brushed their noses together as he turned his head for a better angle. Then Law felt Luffy's tongue licking over his lips before he said, “I just thought of a new way to help you feel better.”
Law challenged him, so quietly, it would have been missed if Luffy weren't already so close to him.
“Show me.”
Luffy hummed in reply as he finally sealed his mouth against Law's. Even though he had been expecting it, Law still sucked in a sharp breath of surprise. The kiss didn't last long, and when Luffy broke away, he searched Law's gaze for any hint of rejection or discomfort.
Seeing nothing of the sort, he went back in for another, this time adding his tongue until Law opened his mouth for him. Immediately, Luffy lathed his tongue along Law's in a sensual lick. The taste of him made Law moan.
There was no rush to their movements. Lazily, they explored each other's mouths, mapping out each and every curve and corner, memorizing each other's taste, and searing their shared heat under their skin to remember well after they had parted.
Law had wrapped his arms around Luffy's torso, holding him so he wouldn't dare pull away. He felt dizzy. He was glad he was laying down because he surely would have lost his balance if not. Luffy was consuming him with each roll of his tongue, every suck on his lip, and every pant into his mouth—devoured alive.
He was just as affected as Law was…
It was already late into the night, but they stayed like that, in each other's arms and slowly kissing, until the wee hours of the morning. Stopping only after they couldn't feel their lips and the muscles of their jaw and tongue were sore. More than once, Law woke up to Luffy placing soft kisses over his eyelids or cheeks or forehead…
And each time, Law drifted back into a deep sleep.
~~~
Exams were over for everyone by Friday night. Which meant every single dorm room in every single building was either hosting a gathering of some sort or at least attending one.
Law's roommates chose where they went, hopping from room to room, and Law closely followed. As long as he wasn't in charge of making decisions then he would go along with anything. Everywhere they went so far was loaded with people, beer, and a lot of naked bodies.
While Shachi and Penguin hammed it up with a group of women, Law and Bepo stood in a corner with their drinks to people-watch. That's how it always went and that was okay—that's how they liked it. And when the more sociable ones got bored of their surroundings, they grabbed a hold of their little introverted counterparts and pulled them to the next place.
It was fun.
Especially knowing he had a whole month until he had to start stressing again. Law felt loose and carefree. The alcohol had helped him unwind much more quickly than he could have on his own, but that was the point of getting trashed—so he could forget all his responsibilities.
Settling into the new room they found themselves in - two buildings down from their own - Law sat back on a couch and rested his new drink over his knee. Alone and waiting for Bepo to return from the bathroom. Law looked around.
This was the first time he had enjoyed himself since the semester started back up. He realized he narrowly missed a massive breakdown just over a week ago and Law couldn't believe how easily his mental state had been remedied. All because of a single person.
Law pulled his phone out and went to a website he had been frequenting all week. Since the semester was over, Luffy's schedule cleared up immensely.
Was he allowed to still book him even if he didn't need him? He reserved Luffy for his services on 'overtime hours' labeled under emergencies. But there wasn't an emergency anymore and Law wouldn't need the same amount of support until the middle of next semester—months from now.
That didn't mean he didn't miss the feeling of a warm body next to him.
Or maybe it was that particular warm body he missed.
Law was a little too drunk to think of the details and quite frankly, there was no way he was going to tackle that shit while sober, either.
These were the years of his life he was supposed to be adventurous, right? And so far he had been doing a shit job of that. Nose tucked deep into the spine of a book or his fingers aching as they continuously tapped away over a pristine, laptop keyboard for the eighth consecutive hour.
Fuck it.
Law clicked a day that had the most hours left open. His thumb hovered over the plus sign that indicated how much time you needed. Law had paid a hefty sum over and over for Luffy, but that was so he didn't tear the skin from his face and rip it down to his groin.
Law's skin felt fine, at least for now, so did he only book an hour of Luffy's time? Leave him open for other people who needed him more?
Law crinkled his nose and scoffed. Yeah-fucking-right.
“What's that face for?” Bepo teased as he squeezed between him and another person on the couch. He leaned over Law's shoulder to peer at his phone screen. “Gonna see Luffy again?”
He gave a shrug. “I guess.”
Bepo stretched his arms above his head and then quickly reached forward for Law's drink in his other hand, downing the rest of its contents. “Does your uncle know what you spend his money on?”
Law shut his phone screen off and pocketed it. “No.”
That was the end of that conversation. Not because Bepo dropped it, but because Shachi pushed someone into a wall and Penguin was egging him on to finish the job.
The four of them ran - and tumbled - through the snow across campus to various other parties, drinking their alcohol and mouthing off to the wrong people. By the time Law crawled into his own bed, the sun was already up.
Sprawled out and flat on his stomach, day clothes and all, Law let out a long, exhausted sigh through a pleased smile. He was on the verge of passing out but there was something digging into his hip.
Oh, right.
Clumsily, Law worked his wallet and phone out from the depths of his pocket and dropped them over the edge of the bed. They landed with a loud clang. If his phone broke, he could just get a new one. His fuzzy brain remembered something, though.
He reached out with one hand, then the other, to grab the side of the bed and sluggishly pulled himself just over the edge. The movement made his stomach feel gross, having to actively hold back a burp that he was positive would be followed by something much worse. Peering down at his cell, Law gave a slow blink to bring it into focus.
Then, of course, he snatched it up.
And, of course, he opened up the web browser that still had a certain website up.
And,
Of course,
He selfishly booked five hours with Luffy, for no reason other than to see him.
And promptly passed out.
~~~
Four whole days had passed and finally, the day of Law's session came. It felt like forever since he had nothing to do. It felt even worse because Shachi and Penguin had left earlier that morning to go home for the break. Bepo didn't plan on leaving Law alone and had only met up with someone for a date and wouldn't be back until later that night.
Perfect.
He had Luffy all to himself.
And technically he already did because he paid for him, but it felt so much better when it truly was just the two of them.
When Luffy knocked on his dorm's door, Law felt a tingle of excitement.
“Hi,” he greeted before Law could.
“Hi… Luffy.”
“I was afraid you didn't like my new treatment,” Luffy said grabbing his chin as he exaggerated huge, marching steps inside the apartment. Law closed the door and Luffy spun on his heel to face him. “But then I got your email. I was very happy to see it.”
Law chuckled and shyly looked down to his feet. “It's okay to make appointments even if I'm… yanno. Not in need?” He asked quietly.
Luffy hopped up onto a bar stool and slapped his hands over the counter, drumming his fingers in a rhythmic pattern. “Absolutely! I get all sorts of reasons—even no reason at all.”
Law moved to the kitchen and immediately started pulling stuff out for sandwiches. Feeding Luffy was half the payment, after all.
“Besides,” Luffy continued, giving his hat a quick flick to fall off his head and lay against his back. “Youuuu~ are my favorite client, so I don't really care why you book me.”
A smile adorned Law’s lips as he spread mayonnaise across the bread.
They talked while eating, and then talked some more after they were done. All while Luffy touched him; His arm, his leg, held his hands, rubbed his shoulder.
The conversation moved to the couch where they made themselves comfortable. Law put some music on with Bluetooth and sat close to Luffy, leaving no room for anything but them. They talked until they kissed and they kissed until they were too loopy and stupid with giggles to keep themselves upright.
After discarding his hat, Luffy wrapped his arms around Law and tugged him down in front of him into a spooning position. Content and warm. Luffy spoke to him from behind, his breath tickling the back of Law's neck. Little mundane things, blabbing away like he always seemed to do.
The excitement died down and they became quiet. It was still nice to just lay there, even in the silence. Law would have been fully content with that—falling asleep for the remaining time. He didn't care. He would just book Luffy again tomorrow. If he was going to be cut off financially once he left college, he might as well spend however much of his uncle's money as he could.
But then Luffy placed a single kiss on the sensitive area between Law's neck and shoulder, making him shiver. He made the mistake of letting out a low, growly hum in reaction.
“You are so cute when you do that,” Luffy said into his ear. His arm wiggled its way under Law's to grip his chest over his shirt. “Makes me wanna keep doing it. So I can hear more.”
Luffy trailed a finger down, down, down until he reached the bottom of Law's shirt, and then went right back up—pressing his fingers hard onto his bare skin as he did so.
It was maddening.
Law sucked in a breath and slapped his hand over Luffy's to stop it from giving his nipple another flick.
“Luffy…” he warned.
A giggle. “But I think you like it,” Luffy whispered, “Isn’t that right?”
His strength hardly could keep the other from continuing, pinching him and making him moan. Another caress over his pec and a delicious squeeze to his ribs, Luffy was making his way lower once again.
“Luffy,” he repeated, except much more breathily.
“Right?” Luffy tried to confirm. “I just wanna make you feel good.” He lined his finger over the top of Law's slacks, tracing the fabric. “So, so bad.”
Law reached behind him, cupping the back of Luffy's head and turning just enough to see him over his shoulder. “Then do it.”
With their lips sealed together, Law bucked his hips toward Luffy's retreating hand. A low whine sounded in his throat when Luffy fully pulled away.
“Tell me, though.”
“Please—” Law grit his teeth and yanked at Luffy's hair in frustration. He was such a prick for making Law say it. “Make me feel good.”
Law could hear his cheeks pull into a grin. “Perfect.”
Then Law had two fingers placed over his bottom lip, Luffy pressing until he opened his mouth for him.
And he did.
Eagerly.
When Luffy told him to get them nice and wet for him, Law knew where they were going next. As his tongue slipped and sucked on those fingers, Law shakily undid his pants and shimmied them down. A long, thick string of saliva stuck to Luffy's fingers when he pulled them out, high above his head as if to show off how good of a job he did. When the string broke, he moved on.
Fingers slipped right between his cheeks and rubbed at his entrance. Law placed a hand on the cushion to brace himself.
“Sh-shit,” he gasped with anticipation.
As Luffy fingered him, in and out and massaging along the way, he kissed over Law's exposed neck. Small nibbles and little kitten licks.
“You like?” he asked, running his tongue along Law’s shoulder meat.
“Yes.”
“Feel good?”
“Yes, Luffy —it feels good!”
Law pressed his ass backward for Luffy to get deeper, and when he did, his eyes shot open. In a panic, he pinched the tip of his cock while bending his knees to fold in on himself.
“One—one second,” Law panted, smacking Luffy's hand away. “Just give me one second.”
Law rolled off the couch and hurriedly pulled his pants up, stumbling over himself to skid along the wooden floor and race to his bedroom.
“Law?” He heard Luffy call out.
Dropping to his knees and ripping open a drawer, Law knew he had supplies somewhere. He just hoped they weren't expired - and they weren't when he did find them - so he made his way back to the living room.
Luffy had sat up, torso twisted to look back at the hallway Law was emerging from. The bottle of lube and condom were thrown to the side so Law could rip his shirt off and jump out of his pants.
“Oooh~ hehehe. Okay.”
Luffy sprang to his feet and did the same, sitting down and leaning all the way back once he was naked. Law watched him struggle to put the condom on as Law hopped on one foot to take off his other sock, but he eventually got it, and then Luffy was slicking his cock up in a thick coating of lube.
“Christ, you really are massive,” Law muttered under his breath. How was he expected to just take that? It was even bigger when it was hard. It was intimidating.
A little doubtful Luffy would even fit inside, Law made to climb on top of him anyway. But Luffy spun his finger, gesturing for him to turn around. Law had never done it like that before but there was a first time for everything. Slowly, he eased himself into Luffy's lap.
“Bring your feet up here for me,” Luffy told him, tapping the cushion at their side. Law complied, spreading as wide as he could and feeling extremely vulnerable—everything of his open toward the rest of the room.
Strong, capable hands grabbed around Law's ribs and hoisted him up so Law could help aim Luffy's cock riiiight into—
“Ahhnnn…” they both sighed together as Law sunk down.
Gradually, Law released the tension in his body and flattened himself against Luffy's chest. His head fell to lay over the back of the couch as Luffy wiggled a little deeper into the cushions to get in the best position.
“Gorgeous,” Luffy whispered, peering down his chest while his hands explored. Heat filled Law’s cheeks. Luffy gave light massages all over, even wrapping him arms around Law’s torso for a crushing hug. A tongue poked inside Law's ear, making him cringe, but Luffy was only teasing. He apologized by sensually kissing his neck and down to his shoulder. “Ready for me to make you feel good?” Law nodded. “Hold onto my arms,” he said after gripping Law from under his thighs.
Law nodded again, much more desperately. The girth stretching him open was already overwhelming.
And then Luffy lifted him—just enough so he could thrust upward.
Even though the pace started out gentle, Law was still biting his bottom lip and holding his breath. It felt so good. Paired with Luffy under him, breathing heavily with exertion, holding him up. So very gentle and careful with him that Law was going to melt into a puddle. Luffy was honestly too much for him sometimes.
“Harder,” Law demanded. “Please, harder.”
The thrusting became pounding. Luffy used the rebound of the springs in the couch to help give him the extra movement, able to bounce Law in his lap. A downright filthy moan was pulled right from the depths of Law's soul. Their position perfect , Luffy hitting that spot just right and so, so hard…
Law brought his arm up to cup Luffy's cheek and smooth it down his jaw. “I'm not gonna last,” he nearly sobbed. Luffy seemed to fuck him all the harder, even quickening his pace as if to force Law into orgasm. His neglected erection bounced against him with each one of Luffy’s thrusts. “Yes, just like th—aghnnn…mmm…”
The rest of Law's moans were cut off as he silently called out as he came. Cum spattered over his chest. Luffy didn't let up until Law begged him to stop.
“M'sorry,” Law mumbled out as he tried pulling himself together.
Luffy sucked on the skin of his neck, letting up with a wet pop to say, “What for?”
Law waited until Luffy slipped his dick out and lowered him to rest in his lap. His long legs fell to the floor like useless noodles. Luffy's hands roamed his chest once again, smearing the thin layer of sweat everywhere.
“I finished so quickly,” Law said, distressed. “I wanted it to be good for you, too.”
“It's okay, this part was for you—to make you feel good.”
“Yeah, but—”
“And now~” Luffy said, talking over him. He tossed Law to the side as if he weighed nothing, where he landed on his back. Luffy had one knee on the couch, the other foot braced on the floor as he guided one of Law’s legs to lay straight out… and mounted it. “I'm gonna make me feel good.”
Staring up at Luffy - watching his tongue lick over his lips as his gaze screamed with his hunger to eat Law alive - Law felt his mouth fall open with desire. He let loose a guttural moan when Luffy bent his other leg, restraining it there with a surety to dominate him, and slipped back inside.
Just for the moment, Luffy went easy on him. Allowing him to readjust to the feeling of being filled to the brim. Then, one hand at a time, Luffy clapped his palms over the expanse of Law's ribs just under his pecs and clamped his fingers so tightly, Law shouted out with pleasure. It only drove Luffy to do it again and fuck into him just as hard. Short, harsh thrusts that were going to force their imprint on Law's insides, make him feel for them for days to come even when Luffy was long gone.
“You're gorgeous, you know that?” Luffy panted as he looked down his nose at him. His eyelids were hardly open, the whites of his eyes mere slits—but visible enough to see the way they occasionally rolled to the back of his head.
“You - ah, ah - might’ve mentioned it.”
“I can't even look at you right now.” Luffy tilted his head back to face the ceiling as he kept his pace up. His breathing was so heavy, Law was almost concerned. The thought didn't last, though, because when he returned his gaze, the hunger was back.
Harshly, Luffy gripped under his ass and yanked his hips higher onto Luffy's thighs. They both let out low moans from the new feeling—how deep Luffy could reach. It encouraged him to throw Law's legs over his shoulders.
He couldn't help it—he just couldn't. Law was whining with every pump inside him, close to tears from the pleasure. Luffy's fingers dug into his skin as his smile widened—looking absolutely maniacal as he did so.
It made Law feel self-conscious. Knowing he looked a complete mess and was letting out regretful, embarrassing, pathetic sounds, Law made sure to quell his moans by covering his mouth so he could freely scream into his palm without feeling judged.
“Don't deprive me like that,” Luffy said around wanton, lewd grunts.
He let Law's legs go to snatch his hands up and lock them above his head over the arm of the couch. This made it so Luffy hovered right over him, mouth hanging open, eyelids heavy, and sweat on his forehead as he peered directly into his eyes. The way his arms looked over him… the muscles straining as he held Law down. The way his skin stretched over those muscles, taught with tension.
Law was losing himself all over again. He knew Luffy was fit - he had accidentally seen him naked after all - but this was different. As Luffy worked him over, giving Law all he had, his entire body was continuously flexing. He hadn't realized just how strong he looked…
He also hadn't realized that his second orgasm was creeping up on him. Law called out, a high pitched whine that fell into a deep moan. Hurriedly, he tugged one of his hands out from Luffy's grasp - so very thankful when Luffy didn't stop him - and wrapped it around his cock to start jerking himself off.
But then Luffy slowed down, slowing, slowing, too slow for Law to get off. He growled and bucked his hips for Luffy to keep going but he wasn't paying attention—he was looking off to his left into the kitchen.
“Don't fucking stop, you brat!” Law snapped and pulled him in with his heels.
Luffy looked down at him - blinking with a shocked and surprised expression - then it melded into a devilish smirk. “Alright~”
And so Luffy returned to his brutal thrusts and it took no time at all for that attention on his prostate to bring him right to the edge—and Law helped turn up the intensity by gripping himself harder and matching Luffy's pace with his hand.
More cum spurted out over his chest, joining the first round and Law let out the loudest yell he thought he had ever made in his life. Mouth still wide open even after the sound stopped. Law was still lazily stroking himself as he took the brunt of Luffy's pounding, the aftershocks of his orgasm still coursing through his body, his extremities numb and useless.
Just in time, Law looked up to see Luffy's devilish face slowly change into something much more desperate. He bit his bottom lip as his eyebrows turned up upward, almost looking pained, but Law knew it was anything but—he was going to cum.
Luffy squeezed over the wrist he still had in his grasp and the other blindly searched for anything to support him—having landed on the back of the couch. It creaked under his crushing grip, knuckles white.
“I'm… aghnn…”
The fast thrusts turned into lazy grinds until they ceased altogether. Luffy was still leaning over him, panting out every ounce of air in his lungs. Eyes connected with Law's—fighting to stay open.
For the first time, Law reached out to touch Luffy first. He hooked his hand around the back of Luffy's neck and pulled him down into a kiss. Luffy moaned happily against his lips.
Before Law could get lost in their makeout, Luffy backed away - pulling out and releasing Law's other wrist - to bend down and begin licking up the mess Law had made on his stomach.
Law grimaced and tried pushing Luffy off by his shoulders with what little strength he could muster. Luffy literally growled at him like an animal and continued lapping up his cooling cum. Easily giving up, Law just rolled his eyes and watched Luffy's tongue slide up and down his torso.
After each swallow, Luffy would kiss his cleaned skin, then move on for more. If it wasn't such a filthy act, Law would have considered it very intimate and endearing to witness.
Once he was freed from being trapped under the other, Law sat up and stretched, placing his feet on the floor. Luffy stood in front of him and pulled the used condom off. A smug grin adorned his face as he tied up and threw it by the wrapper. Then he placed his hands on his hips and smiled triumphantly—proud to have conquered the grumpy med student.
“You're so stupid,” Law mumbled, covering his face to hide his own smile.
“Maybe,” he said and bent for their clothes. He tossed Law's to him and they began to get dressed. “Was that a good method? How do you feel?”
Law looked at him with disbelief. “Why do I have to say it? Was it not obvious enough? ”
“I wanna know,” Luffy said, buttoning his jeans. “I ask because it helps me be better for you. If something doesn't make you feel good, I wanna know so I can try something else.” He held his shirt in his hands and flapped it open a few times. “Remember, everyone is different.”
Law crinkled his nose. That made it sound as if sex worked on other people and Law wanted to know how much of what they just did was part of Luffy's services and how much of it was real. He wouldn't lie if someone asked him to admit his feelings for Luffy. He liked him.
“Yeah. It was a good method, Luffy. I feel… amazing.”
And he did, he really did. But insinuating that sex was more of a job to Luffy rather than a spur-of-the-moment, lust-filled decision to seek nothing but each other's ecstasy was threatening to ruin his high that he refused to come down from.
“Can I come out now?” A sheepish voice asked from the hallway—which certainly didn't belong to Luffy and sounded much more like his best friend.
Law twisted around after having pulled his slacks up—startled to see Bepo poking his pointer fingers together nervously.
“Bepo?!” Law shrieked. “How long have you been here?! I thought you were gone!”
Luffy was laughing while tugging his shirt on over his head and shimmying into it. Bepo guiltily shook his head. Blood going cold, Law stood - uncaring his pants were open and showing off his boxer briefs underneath - and waited for his roommate to explain himself.
“Uhm… in my defense,” Bepo started as he rubbed the back of his head and avoided eye contact. “I didn't realize what was going on until I was already in the kitchen.” He tapped his ears and said, “Headphones.”
“Oh… that was why—” Luffy slowed down, he finished in his head.
Oh no…
Law covered his face and whined. “I am mortified.”
“It's totally fine!” Bepo shouted, putting his hands out in front of him. “I'm happy if you're happy!”
“That's not even why I'm—”
A chime sounded in Luffy's pocket, interrupting. “Oh, das me. Hehe.” He pulled his phone out and turned off the alarm. “Gotta go to my next appointment! It's across campus so I'ma head out now.” Luffy plopped his hat over his head, then lightly grabbed Law's chin, giving it a shake. “Book me again, kay?”
Unable to speak, Law just nodded.
Both he and Bepo watched him slip his sandals on, wave to them, and leave. But just before the door closed, he popped back in and spoke to Bepo.
“Hey, so… can you not tell anyone about what you saw? I don't want people thinkin' that's a service I started doing.” He turned to Law and pointed with a playful scowl, “And you either, young man! No telling about your new treatment.”
Then he disappeared and the door shut with a click as it locked.
~~~
And so Law booked Luffy five days a week until he graduated. His account always had the funds and so Law did what he wanted with the money and spent it all on buying Luffy's time.
Although Law had many, many ulterior motives to keep Luffy next to him, he actually still needed him to survive the last semester of his senior year. Luffy immensely helped him through multiple breakdowns and managed to keep Law from having a single panic attack. He just happened to also get fucked stupid at the same time.
It was awesome.
This type of behavior made him feel more like a real college student instead of a slave to his own mind. With Luffy's therapy - which is what Law deemed it since Luffy insisted it was just cuddling - Law was able to have more time during the day to do things he never allowed himself to do. Always been too high-strung and strict with his studying schedule to justify doing anything that didn't involve his work.
Now Law went out more.
Luffy took him on walks around campus or nearby parks to get exercise, he introduced him to his one-million friends, they shared meals in restaurants, and even attended parties together. If anyone looked closely at who booked Luffy the most often, they would notice it was Law - always Law - who was seen with him everywhere.
So often that people began to expect Law to be dragged behind Luffy when he went to other places.
‘They asked about you,’ he would tell Law the next time he saw him.
That type of inclusion made Law feel warm. And that's how he felt most of the time, too. Warm and content and calmer and happy.
Only when someone asked about the title of their relationship did Law feel ice form in his veins. When people asked if Luffy was his boyfriend, followed by the one inevitable, ‘aw, why not?’ Made Law want to tear his fucking hair out. Even Luffy didn't want people to label them—worried it would give his clients the wrong impression and hurt his business.
He loved Luffy down to the marrow of his bones and yet, Law was still paying to see him five days a week. And when Luffy's timer went off, he left. That little ball of sunshine wormed his way into Law's life and he would blind himself in that light if only it meant he could call Luffy his.
Until two days after Law graduated, it stayed the same.
It was Law's last full day in his dorm before he had to move out the next morning. Law was stressing about paying for his new apartment - which he got keys to a few days prior - since he still needed to find a job.
So, like any rational person struggling financially, he spent the last of his money on one of life's guilty pleasures; sex.
And Luffy came over, just like he always did when Law called, and was currently fucking his brains out into his mattress.
“You look so good like this,” Luffy said, thrusting with speed. So unashamed of what he blurted while they fucked. The wet slap of his thighs smacking against Law's ass was obnoxiously loud. “I could stare at you like this all day.” The hands settled over Law’s hips flexed as a warning just before Luffy began yanking him back onto his cock harder, over and over.
Law had been on all fours but the longer Luffy fucked him, the less strength he had. He had fallen to his elbows at first but now had his face buried into his pillow—muffling his screams.
He shivered through his second orgasm.
Luffy groaned above him when Law clenched and writhed as he came. He waited until Law had gone completely boneless before unceremoniously flipping him over like a rag doll. There wasn't a damn thing Law could do to retaliate, not after what Luffy had put him through. He was so exhausted, he just let Luffy do whatever he wanted with him.
Luffy placed his hands over Law's knees and slowly spread his legs until they were at their limit. Then he crawled between them and blanketed himself over Law's sweaty, disheveled body. He maneuvered one arm under the curve of Law's back and the other held under Law's neck.
He took his time after that. Sealing his lips over Law's to kiss him slowly and sensually while his hips ever so slowly fucked into him. Only when he was reaching his peak did he detach himself from Law's mouth, having kept them sealed together the entire time.
Luffy rested his forehead against Law's as his face screwed up and he unabashedly moaned. Blunt nails dug into his skin that would leave the desired marks Law craved to see on his body after Luffy left him. The biting sting always let Law know how red the marks would be.
Then when Luffy spilled over the edge, he dropped his head onto Law's shoulder, gritting his teeth to hide the low whine he always seemed to do lately. As if he didn't want it to end either.
Luffy pulled out and teetered for a second before flopping to the side with a bounce. They lay there like that for a while, just silent and catching their breath. One thing that Luffy seemed to always do since their first time together was hold his hand after sex. Luffy patted the mattress in search of Law's hands until it found it and brought it to his mouth to kiss his knuckles—also like he always did.
Brain cells back online and working again, Law was able to tell his limbs how to move. He sat up to prop his pillows against the headboard and pulled Luffy closer to lean onto his side. Law wrapped his arm around him. He had been casually admiring Luffy's sweaty, naked body when he realized—
“No condom?”
“Hm?” Luffy hummed. He felt over his crotch as if he didn't know the answer and said, “Yeah, didn't wear one. Yesterday neither.”
“What, really?”
“You said you were okay with it,” Luffy shrugged.
“But you said - months ago - that you wanted to keep wearing them.”
“Well yeah,” Luffy chuckled and held himself up on his elbow so he could give Law eye contact. “But you're not my client anymore, so I didn’t think it was necessary. Don'tcha think?”
Not his client? But he was still paying for Luffy…
“I got notifications for my payment being rejected,” Law said more to himself as it started to make sense why. “So… are you… are we not doing this anymore?” Law asked, not even trying to hide the sadness in his voice. Suddenly he felt vulnerable in front of Luffy, and even more ashamed of himself for how he had spent his last year of college. Luffy really was going to waste no time in dropping him since he was leaving.
“I don't want a work-relationship with you anymore. It was already hard enough to do.”
Law didn't quite understand, and because of that, he couldn't look Luffy in the eye anymore. Instead, he brought his knees up to hide himself and asked, “Then what do you want with me?”
“Everything,” Luffy whispered desperately, his face contorted with worry as if he was moments from rejection. He placed his hand over Law's chest until it was over his rapidly beating heart. “I want everything with you.”
Entirely too shocked by what he was hearing, Law blurted the first thing that came to mind—which was putting himself down in order to convince Luffy he was making a mistake no matter how much he wanted him.
“I'm a mess!”
But Luffy was ready for it. “I know how to keep you together.”
“I can't stay asleep on my own.”
Luffy rolled his eyes. “Where do you think I’ll be sleeping?!”
“I can’t really cook anything other than rice and pasta.”
“I love rice and pasta!”
“I'm a prodigious know-it-all.”
“I'll humble you over and over. Always do, don’t I?”
There was still an import factor, one that even Law was worrying about. “I won't have a penny to my name in less than a week.”
“That's okay.”
Law frowned. “No, it's not.”
“Sure it is!” Luffy said with a smile.
“And how can that be,” Law demanded, angrily smacking the bed next to him.
Luffy sat up and pulled his knees to get his chest to mirror Law. Then he cheesily smiled and laughed like a child. “Because I have all your money!”
Law’s frown deepened. “What do you mean?”
“Well,” Luffy started. “You said your uncle was gonna cut you off after you graduated right?” Law nodded. “But for some reason, he paid for a mentor, right? ”
Again, Law nodded, but he was getting impatient. “Yeah, so?!”
“Well he can't take your money if I have it— and I do.” Luffy laughed again, this time so hard he fell backward kicking his feet. Then he sighed and talked up at the ceiling. “I haven't spent a single dollar of alllll the money I made from alllll my clients, including you.”
“An exaggeration,” Law scoffed. “You had to eat and live somewhere.”
Luffy sat up again. “Nope. My clients fed me, remember?”
Law thought about it, but that still didn't mean he didn't have some sort of place that needed to be paid for. “And your housing? You’re not attending this college, so I know you aren't in a dorm. And,” Law said before the other could answer, pointing a finger in his face, “Your clients are only on campus, so I know you live nearby.”
“Nope,” he repeated while swatting Law's hand away. “Wrong. You're bad at this. I slept on others’ couches and beds and even in the library.”
“What?!” Law gasped. He was not expecting any of this. “Wh-what about clothes?!”
Luffy tilted his head to the side. “Think about how many shirts just you have let me wear. You even let me use your shower.”
“This is… crazy. Wait, is that why you were wearing a purple crop top that one day?!”
Luffy nodded. “Bonney's.”
“But, but—what about—phone?!”
Luffy flicked his head over to the nightstand where it lay inside his straw hat. “I found that on the ground like, four years ago. Gets thirty minutes free every month.” Luffy smirked. “You even commented on how shitty it was.”
“Cause it is shitty,” he said absent mindlessly. Law rubbed his aching temples to soothe the throb. This was too much news all at once. There was never any real need to question where Luffy went after he walked out his dorm’s door. “So you… really just… have thousands of dollars in your account? Because you mooched off of others?”
“Pffffft, hundreds of thousands,” he corrected. “And yeah! I’d do it all next year, too, if I wasn’t gonna come with you.”
“Come with me? You really… want to…” Law felt over his chest, attempting to alleviate the twisting knot that began to swell. “You want to spend it supporting me or something? Is that what you're suggesting?”
“You got it!”
Law was still so flabbergasted over the idea of Luffy wanting to pursue him, he couldn't even fathom the idea of why he would even want to. So he asked.
“Why, though?”
Now Luffy looked confused. “Why what?”
“Why would you do that!” He snapped. He wanted to hit Luffy. Was he fucking with his emotions?! This was ludicrous.
Luffy offered his hands, opening them with the palms up to invite Law to take them. And he did. Rubbing his thumbs over Law's knuckles - where he loved placing kisses - and studied their hands for a moment. Then, without lifting his head, spoke—sounding much more serious now.
“Well… I think you need someone to take care of you. Not entirely, of course,” he was sure to clarify. “But sometimes you need someone there for you. To calm you. To assure you. To… love you.” He looked into Law's eyes. “Annnd~ since I want to take care of you, and I already love you—I think that person should be me. Right? Don'tcha think?”
Despite how much he willed it to stop, Law's bottom lip quivered, to which Luffy laughed at that reaction. He fumbled his way into Law's lap and held his cheeks, squishing them so his lips pursed like a fish.
“I like making you feel good. And I'm really good at it. I know you. I've spent a whole school year perfecting how to fix anything of yours that breaks.”
Law gently, and maybe even a little hesitantly, placed his hands over Luffy's sides. He nodded, silently agreeing with everything. The pressure over his face loosened and then Luffy gently pulled him by the back of his neck for a chaste kiss.
“I wanna hear you say it, though, okay? Tell me what it is that you want.”
God, and wasn't that just like Luffy to do? Forcing Law to say things even though no matter what Law had to say, the answer was always obvious.
Fingers curled as Law gripped Luffy's sides before pulling him into a hug, Law turned his face into Luffy's neck and breathed in his addicting scent. He loved this man—who had saved him from himself and—and he loved him back.
Oh, that feeling was better than Law could have ever imagined.
He sat up straight again - reluctantly leaving the warmth of the sun - so he could properly give Luffy what he wanted. And with a voice so quiet that no one but Luffy would ever hear, he said,
“Please, Luffy. Make me feel good.”