Ballad of a Broken High Schooler

by abcdefgHIJKLMFAOpqrstuvwxyz_0987654321_n

Summary:

Sabo and Koala used to be close, but something happens to Koala that puts a rift in their friendship. After years of estrangement, Sabo offers to tutor Koala so she can keep her scholarship and continue dancing. On the one condition she tells him what happened all those years ago. Now the two work on reconciliation and budding feelings while juggling school, life and drama.

 

OR

 

He was the light that glowed, banishing her shadows.

She was the music that pulsed in his ears and chest, though he had believed that would never happen again.

Two hearts synched as one, assumed to be on the opposite side of the same coin now faced one another with a fact very few could testify to.

They had overcome their “black swan” moment by beating death.

One literal and the other metaphorical.

Chapter 1

September

 

“Why can’t she come to karate this week?”

Dadan gave an apprehensive look, chewing her bottom lip as she contemplated answering his question.

Sabo just couldn’t understand why everyone was being so weird. Every time he asked where Koala had gone, why she wasn’t coming to school or why she couldn’t go to karate with him, the adults would start acting so strange. Why were they nervous? He just wanted to know where his best friend was. It wasn’t normal for the two of them to be apart for so long.

“Is she sick? Is it really bad? Can we go visit her in the hospital? I know she’ll be lonely, and I hated when I had to stay in the hospital when I got my tonsils out...,” he kept rambling on.

“Look, Sabo,” Dadan started, her voice unusually soft. That was extra weird. The last time he heard Dadan speak like that was when his case worker left him in her care, but she had soon gone back to her normal, shouting self he despised and loved. “There’s something I need to speak to you about—“

But she never got the chance to say what she needed to say. Ace’s mom interrupted them to tell her something, and after that he got to see his friend again. Then everything went back to normal. Everyone stopped acting so weird.

Well, everyone except Koala.

Now, blueberry eyes bore into his as that memory he had once forgotten played itself on loop as he gazed at her. His chest hurt, all his memories of her tinged by pain. He couldn’t read the expression on her face. Funny, because once upon a time, they could almost read each other’s minds.

Clenching his fist, he turned his head away. He didn’t want to hear as the homeroom teacher introduced Koala as a new student. Bullshit. Everyone in that class knew damn well she wasn’t new. The first time it happened, they were all too young to know. The second time Koala disappeared, the halls, the lunchroom, the changing rooms were flooded with rumours and whispers. No one knew what had happened or why she’d suddenly left. And now she stood in front of them all, a week into the new school year, just when everyone was starting to forget about her.

Sabo could feel her gaze on him, but he refused to acknowledge her presence. It was strange. She used to be a grade higher than him. Missing her final year of school must’ve been why she was held back.

The bell for first period rang. He quickly gathered his things to make his way to his first class, unlike him, but he didn’t wanna risk—

“Sabo.” Of course he wasn’t getting out of there that easily. Koala intercepted his path. She gave him a small, unsure smile as she gazed up at him with those big, blue eyes of hers. They seemed to be exactly like when she was a kid. “It’s been a while—“

He sidestepped her and continued walking. If she wanted to disappear so badly, he was going to let her. Hell, he’d help her. The first step would just be to acknowledge she didn’t exist.

But that proved to be hard as the week went on. After that pitiful reunion, she got the message and didn’t try to speak to him again. A part of him regretted how he’d handled that situation. Maybe he should’ve at least let her finish what she had to say. But what was done was done. He planned to just finish high school with as little trouble as possible.

“Hey, Sabo. See that chick over there?” He didn’t even look up to see whoever Ace was gesturing to. He just wanted to eat his lunch in peace.

“I am not helping you hit on freshmen, Ace,” he replied curtly, stabbing at his plate.

“What? No! I don’t hit on freshmen anymore. And isn’t that that one girl you were close friends with when we were kids?” he explained. “You guys would go to karate together and shit.”

He dropped his fork and turned to his brother. “Her name’s Koala, and I’m really not in the mood to talk about this right now—“

“What happened to her? I mean, she’s hot, but why’d she disappear all of a sudden?”

Sabo pressed his mouth into a thin line.

Ace took the hint finally. “You didn’t ask her? Have you even spoken to her?”

“Look, Ace,” he said, tone exasperated. “I don’t wanna talk about it. I don’t even wanna think about it. We were close once upon a time, but that was a long time ago.”

He’d tried to keep his thoughts free from her, but seeing her again after almost a year of being gone again unleashed a bought of memories he’d kept locked and hidden for many years all in an attempt to protect himself from the pain. Who knew simply remembering could hurt so badly?

He nodded. Something in his eyes signalled he didn’t believe it, but Ace didn’t push it any further. “Fine. That’s fine.” When he got up, Sabo thought he’d finally get to eat in peace. Oh, how wrong he was. How very, very wrong he was.

Sabo’s eyes nearly popped out of his head when Ace returned with Koala and sat with her across from him. If there weren’t so many witnesses, he’d wipe that shit eating grin off his face.

“Koala, meet Sabo. Sabo, meet Koala. But there’s no need for much introduction, is there? You two already know each other. You used to do nearly everything together, remember?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Yes, we remember, now leave the poor girl alone, Ace,” he said through gritted teeth. His glare didn’t deter that grin on his face. What the hell was he planning?

“She’s fine. I’m not bothering you, am I, Koala?”

She looked back and forth between the two. “Um, if this is a bad time, I can go—“

Ace pulled her back into her seat when she stood. “What? Never. We just wanted to get back in touch. It’s been too long. Tell us, why’d you suddenly disappear last y— Eek!” Ace doubled over, clutching his leg.

He yelped in pain when Sabo kicked him in the shin. “Looks like this mentally challenged buffoon is in pain.” He stood and grabbed Koala’s wrist. “Let’s leave him alone, shall we?”

He dragged her out of the lunchroom and kept walking. He couldn’t believe that idiot. What did he think he was trying to accomplish?

“Where are you taking me?”

He turned and realised he was still holding her hand. He let go. “Sorry,” he muttered, looking away. “He… he can be a bit much sometimes.”

“He’s exactly how I remembered him.”

“Trust me, he’s somehow managed to get worse. He’s still as annoying as ever.”

Koala giggled. When he looked over to see her smile, he felt his longing worsen. His chest squeezed uncomfortably. He cleared his throat and said, “well, I should get going.”

“Oh, okay.“ Sabo tried to ignore the slight disappointment in her voice. He wasn’t going to succumb. He wasn’t going to succumb. “I guess I’ll see you around?”

He gave a short wave before walking away.

 

———

 

“Mrs. Mom, your son’s getting on my nerves again.”

“I was helping.“

"If this is your idea of helping you are seriously twisted."

"Why won't you let me take care of you—"

“Can we have one family dinner with no drama?” Dadan finally interrupted the back and forth between Ace and Sabo. “Luffy, just because I’m distracted doesn’t mean you can steal off of my plate. Don’t let me warn you again.”

The youngest retracted his hand.

“Now, both of you, I don’t know what’s going on,” she continued, glaring at her two adopted sons, “but can it not wait until after you’ve finished eating?”

They huffed and shut their mouths.

“Come on, Dadan,” Rouge said. “At least let them explain what’s wrong. Sabo, what’s going on?”

He hesitated. Every time he tried bringing it up, everyone would get nervous. “Remember Koala?”

The shift in the atmosphere was instant. Rouge and Dadan stopped what they were doing. They avoided his gaze yet muttered quiet answers.

“I knew this would happen! I don’t know why you guys keep acting like that whenever someone says her name. Whatever… she came back.”

“She did?” Rouge asked startled.

“Why? Is that a bad thing?” Ace asked. “What’s with that look?”

“No, it-it’s a good thing. How is she?” Her voice sounded thick with emotion, yet it never lost its usual softness.

“That’s the thing,” Ace exclaimed. “He won’t talk to her. You two were close a long time ago. What’s your deal?”

“My deal? Why’re you trying to meddle into my life?”

“No need to raise your voices at each other,” Dadan scolded. “If you’re going to be like this, take it elsewhere.”

“I’m done eating.” Sabo got up. “I’ve lost my appetite.”

“Can I have it?” Luffy asked, already eating off Sabo’s plate.

“Sure, Luffy. At least you have the decency to actually consider my feelings before doing something.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ace demanded as he followed Sabo.

“I’m done talking to you.” He slammed the door in his face.

“Screw you, Sabo!” Ace called through the door before stomping away.

As much as he loved his current living situation, Sabo couldn’t stand Ace sometimes. Why did he have to be so annoying? Damn him and his meddling. He should just mind his own business.

He grabbed the first cassette he found and put it in his Walkman, covering his ears and turning the volume up so he could drown out his feelings with the sound. It being a school night, he decided to get work done. Anything to distract himself. He didn’t want to think about Koala. He didn’t want to think about their conversation in the hallway earlier and how normal it all felt for a fraction of a moment. He couldn’t think about how much he still missed her after all those years.

A tap on his shoulder pulled him out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Rouge and turned his face away in shame.

“You wanna talk about it?” she asked gently.

He shook his head but turned to look at her. “What happened to her? Why won’t anyone talk about it?” He was expecting this— her shoulders tensing and lips pursing. “Don’t tell me you don’t want to talk about it. What happened? Just the mere mention of her name is like dropping a bomb.”

Rouge sighed as she pulled her shawl over her small, frail frame. “It’s not that I don’t want to talk about it. It feels like something I can’t talk about, Sabo. Now that she’s back, it’d be best to ask her yourself. Just talk to her.”

“I—“ he stopped himself. “Ace is being a jerk.”

She chuckled. “I know, honey, I know. It comes with choosing to be brothers. Just know his heart’s in the right place.” Pressing a kiss to his forehead, she left.

He gazed out the window. All he had to do was ask. Simple enough. Right?

 

———

 

Rouge was right. He was being silly. Sabo was already eighteen, he was nearly done with school and was already looking at universities. He was becoming an adult. Part of adulting was communication. Right?

He thought on the advice he’d been given and decided to go and talk to Koala. Just ask her what had happened, but the moment he saw her surrounded by a group of friends, laughing and chatting, he couldn’t do it. Something in his chest tightened. Seeing her become popular and amass a group of friends reminded him why he’d been playing Houdini with her in the first place.

Feeling pitiful for himself, Sabo sat in his car as he waited for Luffy’s club to end. The horn blared when he hit his head against the steering wheel over and over. He’s always been a sociable person; he could talk to anyone. Why couldn’t he talk to Koala? The whole ordeal brought back memories of when they’d chat on the phone until late. That brought back the full aching in his chest he’d been feeling every time he passed her in the hallway, glanced at her from across the classroom or heard her infectious laugh from across the lunchroom.

Why did it have to hurt? He just wanted some closure, so why was it so hard?

He looked out the window, looking to see if Luffy was in sight. After no sign of the boy, he contemplated going in to look for him— an excuse to not be left alone with his thoughts— when he caught sight of blue, waist-length hair and tanned skin.

Sabo just vaguely knew of her. He’d seen her hang out with Luffy and more importantly, he’d seen her around Koala a lot.

He threw the door open. “Vivi!”

The startled girl turned to look at him only for her eyes to widen. Vivi turned on her heel and started walking fast.

“Wait, I just wanted to ask you something. Vivi?”

“Sorry, I don’t know you.” She started walking faster.

“We did MUN together,” he called after her, taking longer strides to match her pace. Why wasn’t she stopping? “I just need to ask you something.” He could’ve sworn she started jogging, and he was getting more confused. Had he startled her that badly? “You hang out with my brother. The one with the scar under his eye?”

“Luffy? He doesn’t have a brother.” There was clear panic in her voice. Now, it was broad daylight in the middle of a busy parking lot at school still bustling with students. Sabo had no idea how he’d managed to scare her. Was he intimidating since he was an upperclassman? “Vivi, I just need to ask you some— why are you running?”

Damn, that girl could run. She sprinted past the gates and down the street, leaving a bewildered Sabo behind. What the hell just happened?

If he couldn’t ask about Koala through Vivi, he’d have to think of a backup plan.

 

-

 

“Luffy! How was the comic book club?”

“The usual,” the younger boy answered as he buckled himself into the passenger’s seat. “Zoro and I nearly started a fire, and Nami threatened to kick us out.”

“You must be hungry from… whatever it is that you do in that club of yours.” Luffy had explained it to him multiple times— it was a comic book club where they were supposed to be talking about comics, but every time he asked Luffy about what comic they were discussing, he’d instead talk about how he and his friends caused trouble again. He didn’t quite get it. “Here.”

Luffy’s eyes nearly popped out of his head at the overflowing bag of snacks Sabo just handed him. “Thanks!”

“No problem.” He gave a wide grin. “Anything for my dearest brother.”

He stopped rummaging through the bag and side eyed him. “This is the only time I’ve ever been nervous about food.”

“But it’s one of your favourites,” Sabo reassured with a not so convincing grin. “Everything from the vending machine. Now eat.”

Happily, he attacked a pack of potato chips.

“Great, now that you’ve taken a bite, listen.”

“Oh, dammit! I need to stop falling for these things. That’s why I’m in so much debt with Nami.” He huffed and frowned yet still kept eating.

“Unlike your ‘friend’, I’m not trying to extort you for money. But it is about Nami. You’re going to ask her about Koala.”

“Huh? Who?”

"You know— short, ginger, blue eyes."

Luffy stared owlishly, lost. 

Sabo huffed. "We used to hang out... like a lot."

"Oh! Your old friend."

He grimaced at that and bit his lip. “Yes, her. Just ask her if she knows why she disappeared.”

“Why would I ask about her? I don’t even know her.”

“Just do it.”

Luffy groaned. “Damn you and your tricks.”

At home, Sabo put Luffy in front of the landline. “Remember, do not mention my name or that I was asking. Understand?”

“Yes… no. Why am I doing it? Why can’t you do it?”

Without answering, he picked up the phone and handed it to him. “Less questions. Just call her.”

“Fine.” After punching in the numbers to Nami’s home phone, they waited for it to ring, Sabo pressed next to Luffy to listen to the conversation. “Oh, hey, Nami. You know that girl? K… um, what was her name again?” he whispered to Sabo.

“Koala,” he whispered back, dumbfounded by his ability to forget names so easily.

“Right. Koko.”

“Koala!”

“Koala. Why’d she go away last year?” He shoved his finger up his nose absentmindedly. 

There was silence on the other end before she responded. “Luffy, is that one of your brothers beside you?”

He looked to Sabo for help who shook his head. “Umm… no?”

There was an even longer pause. “I don’t know if it’s Freckles or Blondie putting you up to this, but tell him if he wants to know, it’s going to cost him. After all, knowledge is very valuable and I bet this one is of utmost value to him. Also tell him to stop harassing Vivi.”

Sabo grabbed the phone from Luffy. “I wasn’t! And I’m not giving you any of my money, Nami.”

“Okay then.” The line clicked. He stared at it for a few seconds. Did she really just—

“Wow, you went to Nami?” He didn’t have to look up to see who had joined them. “Are you that desperate to know? Just ask the girl herself.”

“Goodnight, Luffy,” Sabo said, walking back to his room and ignoring Ace.

“You still not talking to me? Real mature, Sabs!”

 

———

 

Ace was an idiot. He wasn’t going to take his advice. Nope. Not even going to entertain it. He would give Koala her space. They’d remain acquaintances, hi-bye friends (barely). Nothing more.

He so desperately tried to convince himself. That was Sabo’s initial plan, but how is he supposed to ignore the tears that rolled down her face and the quiet sobs she tried to hold back? Damn his compassion.

He wasn’t even supposed to see her crying. Nobody was.

He stumbled across her in the dark room when he’d been sent to get developer by his teacher. She sat in a corner, crying into her knees as she hadn’t noticed him yet. He contemplated quietly walking out and pretending he hadn’t seen anything, but he couldn’t. He just couldn’t. Why couldn’t he just walk away?

Koala didn’t even look up when he flipped the light switch. He sat beside her.

“You okay?” he asked softly. It was a dumb question; of course she wasn’t okay.

She sniffled and wiped her face, smearing her tears and snot all over her reddened cheeks. “I’m fine. You don’t have to worry about me, I’m fine.”

She clearly was not fine. He should’ve left, respected her wishes to be alone and left with his developer. But he stayed. Why? He wasn’t sure.

“Koala, you clearly aren’t fine.”

“Sabo, just go—“ she snapped but stopped herself. When she realised he wasn’t going to leave, she sighed. “I’m failing econ,” she said quietly, handing him a crumpled up test paper.

He looked over it. “This is the end of topic test we did last we—“ he stopped when he saw the mark. “…yeesh.”

“Yeah.” She continued sniffling, trying to hold back her tears. “I just don’t get it. It won’t stick, but I need to get higher grades if I want to keep my scholarship.”

Now he understood her distress. They weren’t that far into the school year, but if that test was any indicator of what her final grade could be… she needed help. He knew he could help.

“I can tutor you,” he said before he could stop himself. It’s not that Sabo was repulsed by the thought of spending time with her in close proximity, one on one, just the two of them. He was just hesitant. They hadn’t talked in years. Things were beyond awkward between them.

Koala’s tears stopped. “Really?” There was so much hope in her eyes. He couldn’t take it back now. “But… I can’t afford a tutor.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll do it for free.” Sabo didn’t care about the money. He had something else in mind— a different form of payment.

She threw her arms around him, and he froze, his hands hovering over her sides, unsure of what to do at the sudden contact.

“Thank you so much,” she said next to his ear. He wasn’t sure if hugging was an acquaintance type thing, but it felt nice. Something in his chest warmed as he held her. All those years of being estranged, all that awkwardness, just melted away. Just for a moment. They were no longer Sabo and Koala, the troubled teens with dark pasts; they were just Sabo and Koala. Just for a moment.

“I'll tutor you for free.” That moment passed when he pulled back. “On one condition.”

“I’ll do anything,” she was eager to say with a smile.

“You tell me why you disappeared.”

Her smile fell. Emotions he couldn’t read passed behind her eyes. She looked like she was about to decline. “Fine,” she finally said, her voice strained.

He held out his hand. “Do we have a deal?”

She stared at it for a moment before taking it. “Deal.”

Chapter 2

Summary:

Koala finds out more of Sabo’s reputation at school. The two have a chat about their new arrangement.

October

Koala was starting to wish Sabo, of all people, hadn’t found her in the dark room that day. What were the odds? He just so happened to stumble upon her when he’d been avoiding her for weeks? How was she supposed to know he was doing photography? And why had he decided to finally stop ignoring her?

Sure, she’d been trying to talk to him and every time she got close, he’d evade her like the plague. She just wanted to talk to him. But now that she was given the opportunity, her feelings began betraying her.

Maybe it was a good thing. A killing two birds with one stone type situation. He’d tutor her and she’d keep her grades up and keep her scholarship and be able to continue ballet. She would also be able to somehow reconcile with him. Everybody’s happy. Yay.

Except she was starting to get cold feet about the whole arrangement. A part of her missed him deeply, but an even tinier part of her resented him for so easily turning her away. Admittedly, it was Koala’s fault for their estrangement, but acting like they didn’t have something special when they were young and acting like she no longer existed? That was a new type of pain she was struggling to deal with.

Koala was so lost in thought, she nearly jumped out of her skin when Vivi spoke up beside her. That startled her friend too. “Geez, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Releasing a heavy sigh, she replied, “don’t worry about it. I just… zoned out.”

“You sure you okay?” She gave her a worried look. “You’ve been zoning out a lot lately.”

“I just have a lot on my mind.” Koala avoided her speculating gaze as she pulled on her leg warmers. She focused her attention on her hands undoing her ribbons and not Vivi’s frown. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Now you’re making me worry.”

She shouldn’t have said anything. “Okay, I may have failed an end of topic test and started freaking out about my scholarship, but it’s no big deal.”

“Oh my gosh. What subject?” Sitting beside her, Vivi made sure to listen closely. Them becoming close friends since “Koala’s return”— she’s heard some people call it— she was one of the few aware of Koala’s position.

“Econ. But it doesn’t matter because I found someone willing to tutor me for free.” As relieved and excited as she should have been, all she felt was sick.

Vivi’s face lit up with excitement. “Yay! Isn’t that a good thing? Why don’t you look happy?”

Koala gave her a look. “It’s Sabo.”

Vivi stared at her blankly for a moment. “Who?”

At this point, Sanji added himself to the conversation. “That would be one of Luffy’s brothers,” he said while taking Vivi’s bag for her. “Let me. We wouldn’t want our Snow Queen burdening herself, now would we.” Helping Koala to her feet, he offered to take her bag.

“I’m fine. When you say Luffy, do you mean that kid that used to eat crayons?”

“Wait, Luffy has a brother? Did you say one of?” Vivi looked between the two, lost.

“Luffy still eats crayons.” He gave a slightly disgusted face as he thought about his friend. “Everyone at school knows of the ASL brothers. Since you’re a latecomer, Vivi, you’ve still got stuff to learn. Sabo’s the one with blonde curls, snake bites and always talking his way out of trouble with that obnoxious smile of his.”

Recognition dawned on her face then it turned to horror. “Him? He’s the one tutoring you?”

“Is there something wrong with him?” Koala asked, intrigued by her reaction. Of course, she’d known Sabo once upon a time so she knew all about his knack for getting into trouble and causing mischief, but the girl looked pale.

Vivi looked at her feet, suddenly bashful. “I’d rather not talk about it.”

“You’re being tutored by Sabo?” Sanji turned to Koala in shock. “He’s smart, but a fair maiden like yourself shouldn’t get caught up with the likes of those boys. They’re bad news.”

“Sanji, I see you hang out with Luffy, like, all the time,” she reminded him.

“Luffy doesn’t understand the word ‘no’ once he’s decided something.”

“Sweet boy but no sense of personal space,” Vivi added.

“And I’m just looking out for you. If you needed help with school, I could have assisted you.”

“We aren’t even in the same grade.”

“Grades are but a number.”

“And I need my grades to stay in school!” Koala exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. “Look, Sabo and I used to be friends… a really long time ago. He can’t be that bad. Plus, he’s going to help me keep my grades up. It’s bad enough I’m repeating my final year at school. I’d like to actually pass.”

Sanji and Vivi exchanged a look. Clearly, they weren’t on board with the idea but couldn’t really talk her out of it.

How bad could he actually be, she found herself wondering in homeroom the next day.

Akainu— their homeroom teacher— was listing off their names for registration. He looked around the room and sighed deeply when he realised Sabo wasn’t present yet. He announced his presence by strolling in ten minutes late with so much casualness she could feel the intensity of Akainu’s glare from where she sat.

“Outlook. Late,” he spat, narrowing his eyes at the boy.

Sabo scratched the back of his neck and grinned. “I have a valid reason this time, and it’s gonna make you laugh. On my way here—“

“I don’t care. Sit.”

“You didn’t even hear what I had to say—“

“I said I don’t care. And take off that jacket. It’s against the dress code.”

He shrugged off his blue, paint-stained jacket. “Heavens forbid I feel cold,” he muttered under his breath as he made his way to his desk, but Akainu stopped him.

“What was that?”

“Uhh, brrr I’m cold?” His comments, heard by the whole class earned a few chuckles, even from Koala.

Akainu pointed at him. “One more thing out of you and I’m sending an email home.”

“No, don’t tell my mommas. I won’t get TV time,” he whined as if wanting to test Akainu’s (none existent) patience further. More of the class chuckled more at his antics.

“Sit!”

He turned and continued to his desk, a suppressed smile on his face. As he passed Koala’s desk, he dropped a folded piece of paper in front of her without glancing. She stared at it before opening it. Sabo didn’t meet her gaze when she turned to him. She opened it.

 

———

 

“Meet me in the dark room at lunch?” Nami asked.

“That’s what it said.”

She looked to be in disbelief. “You’re not going are you? Are you? Koala!”

“He probably just wants to set up a schedule for when we can meet,” she responded, taking books out of her locker.

Nami leaned against the locker next to hers. “I can’t believe you actually said yes to this whole thing.”

Koala shrugged. “Not like I had much other choice. I’m pretty desperate.”

“You could’ve come to me.”

Shutting her locker she turned to give her friend a deadpan look. “You may have been smart enough to skip a few grades, but you charge crazy prices.”

“You’re my friend. I’ll give you a discount.”

“I’m not that desperate. And why does everyone think it’s such a bad idea?” she couldn’t help but ask, confused by the consistent negative responses she’d been getting. “All that matters is that he’s smart.”

“Koala, he’s part of the ASL trio. He’s one of Luffy’s brothers,” she said with a hint of disgust.

“You’re friends with Luffy. When you’re not hanging out with me or Vivi, you’re with him!”

Nami didn’t have an answer for that. “It doesn’t matter. He and his brothers are well known for all the wrong reasons.”

Koala pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’ve been gone for a year. Before that, I was basically a social pariah. Somebody better start filling me in on details or stop telling me this is a bad idea. You’re my friend; you should be happy for me.”

“I am happy for you, just… a little skeptical.”

With a roll of her eyes, she turned to leave. “I’m walking away.”

“Wait! We have maths together. We’ll walk and talk.” Linking her arm with her friend, Nami began, “Ace and Luffy are both on the hockey team. Ace being the leader automatically gets a lot of street cred. Plus, he and his boyfriend throw some sick parties everyone wants to get invited to. Luffy’s just Luffy. He makes friends with literally anyone, despite their age or grade. Teachers hate him ‘cause he never focuses in class, but we all love him— if you tell him I ever said that I’ll kill you.”

Koala made a zipping and locking motion of her lips. “And Sabo?”

“More nerdy than his brothers.”

At least that much Koala knew. After karate, they’d read comics together and gush about how cool the superheroes were, rant about the strength of the villains and talk extensively about what their superpowers and superhero names would be. Then they’d get chased out of the comic store for reading without paying. Her heart squeezed at the reminiscence. Now it felt she was listening to stories of an entirely different person. Someone she never knew.

“He’s artsy, used to do model United Nations, so he’s got a sharp tongue and can be so sly sometimes. Kind of like me, but we won’t talk about that. But he’s quite charming, so he’s broken quite a few hearts. See that girl over there? She confessed to him with a gift on his birthday. Turned down in front of her whole class. Embarrassing.”

“You gotta give her some credit for trying,” Koala defended. She didn’t know the girl but knew it wasn’t easy to be the first to confess.

“I’m just saying, she’s got questionable taste. Anyways, all three of them have earned a reputation amongst teachers for being headaches, but amongst students, you either love them or can’t stand them. No in between. Seriously, they’ve gotten into so many fights I can’t believe none of them have been expelled yet.”

“Fights?” She just vaguely recalled always seeing them with scratches, scrapes or bandaids.

“A reason why so many people love them is their loyalty.” Nami got a fond look in her eyes, clearly remembering a good memory. “They’ll fight for you.”

“That’s sweet,” Koala said. “I don’t get how that’s such a bad thing.”

“Luffy fought with a local gang.”

Her jaw dropped. “Oh.”

“They roughed him up, but he pulled through.” Now she was beaming, absolute pride in her eyes. “With the help of some friends though.”

 

———

 

Sabo wasn’t a stalker. He wasn’t obsessive either. It’s just that he would notice Koala only came to homeroom three times a week. Akainu never mentioned her absence, so maybe it was a good reason?

He didn’t care. It didn’t matter to him. He wasn’t obsessing over it. Same way how he wasn’t obsessing over her.

He wasn’t. It’s just that he would also notice the way Koala would also nod off during the classes they had together. He had no idea what was going on with her, but the poor girl looked exhausted always.

But it didn’t matter. It was none of his business. None of his concern. Yet he found himself packing a few protein bars into his bag one day. He wasn’t packing them for Koala specifically. They were emergencies. Just in case he needed a little pick me up between classes. He just couldn’t help that Koala needed it more than him. So he would drop one on her desk every time he walked by.

It was just classmates looking out for each other. Right?

So he wasn’t obsessive, wasn’t stalkerish and definitely wasn’t focusing on every conversation that even briefly mentioned her name. Like when Koala would be late to a lesson and the teacher would ask where she was.

It’s not his fault he would conveniently have an excuse for her like a doctor’s appointment or needing to see the dentist or a family emergency or having to speak with the head teacher.

Sure their teacher got suspicious when it seemed like Sabo of all people was the only one who ever knew where she was. Considering his track record, he wasn’t the most credible, but bless Koala for always going along with the lie despite never knowing where it came from. She didn’t need to know he was covering her ass all the time.

Sometimes she’d try to thank him for the food, but he’d just shrug it off.

What were friends for— he’d stop that train of thought every time it sprung up. They weren’t friends anymore. If they were no longer friends why would he do all these things, he’d wonder to himself sometimes.

Just classmates looking out for each other, would be the lie he’d convince himself of.

 

———

 

Everything Nami told Koala didn’t seem all that bad. A lot of it sounded pretty admirable, and it made her look at Sabo in a different light. But as she approached the dark room, she felt her heart rate pick up. There used to be a point in time where she’d never get nervous seeing or even being around Sabo. Now, her heart raced, and she was reluctant. These feelings were unfamiliar to her.

In her mind, his offer replayed. “You tell me why you disappeared….”

The offer of being tutored for free had sounded too good to be true, but she hadn’t been expecting that of all things. She didn’t blame him for being curious, yet she also couldn’t shake the cold feeling that gripped her when she thought back to those times. She was recovering, but the wounds still ran deep.

Koala pushed the door open to the dark room to see no one there yet. Before she could decide whether she should stay and wait or come back later, there was a tap on her shoulder. She jolted and turned, and the flight part of her fight or flight activated.

Sabo stood before her, looking surprised. “Woah, it’s just me. Did I scare you that badly?”

Her heart raced in her chest, but she forced a smile. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“Okay.” He didn’t look entirely convinced yet decided not to comment on it. “I just wanted to go over a few things so we can work up some kind of schedule?”

“Sure, that- that’s fine with me.”

The two sat in silence for a moment. The awkwardness was so palpable, Koala wanted to choke on it. She hated this. Where were the times where they could sit in comfortable silence for hours on end?

“So,” Sabo was first to finally break the ice, “do you have a timetable I could look at?”

“Oh, yeah. Let me just—“ Koala pulled her timetable out of her bag and handed it to him. “The yellow highlighter are my classes and pink is ballet.”

“You do ballet?” He glanced up at her.

She blushed, a hand tugging on her earlobe. “Yeah, but I started it kinda late.”

“When did you start?” Now his full attention was on her, his blue eyes meeting hers.

“At about twelve.” She didn’t understand why she was feeling so shy about it now. With anyone else, at the mere mention of ballet, she’d go off on a rant. In this moment, with Sabo sitting so close and staring at her with so much intrigue, she felt uncharacteristically shy.

“Wow. That’s considered late?”

“Usually if you wanna become a pro, it could be considered late. It’s better to start at a younger age ‘cause I guess it makes it easier since you’re more flexible.”

“Ohh.” He nodded in understanding. “So… was it easy?”

“No.” She quickly shook her head with a chuckle. “It was so incredibly hard.” The more they talked, the more that earlier tension eased and the more comfortable she felt.

Sabo hummed as he looked over the timetable again. “You wanna become a prima or whatever it’s called?”

She nodded. “I know it sounds silly, but that’s my dream. I wanna perform with the Grand Line Company. They’re one of the most renowned ballet companies in the world, and it’d be such an honour to perform with them one day.”

“That’s not silly.” During her rambles, she hadn’t noticed the way his gaze had softened. Sabo smiled at her. “As long as you love it and you’re passionate, it isn’t silly. You obviously work hard considering how much of this timetable is highlighted pink, so I believe in you.”

I believe in you. Four words. They were just four words, yet they were doing a number on Koala.

“I am a little concerned though. When do you find the time to sleep? This seems like a lot.”

Koala spent almost as much time at the academy as she did in school. “I guess that’s why my grades have been struggling. My uncle and I made a deal. I can pursue my dream of becoming a prima, but I can’t let it affect my school work. And if my grades slip any further, it could affect my scholarship here. Sabo, I really need this. I need you.”

His expression was unreadable, but he nodded. “I’ll help you. Don’t worry about that. We can do Mondays first two periods, Wednesdays period three and four.”

“That works for me!”

“What exactly are you rehearsing for? Must be important if it was written in sparkly gel pen.” He tapped the word REHEARSALS scrawled over Saturday and Sunday.

“My academy’s putting on the Nutcracker in December.”

“We’ll do more sessions before your Saturday rehearsals. Doing it afterwards wouldn’t make sense. I’m guessing you’ll be exhausted after.”

“I’ll do whatever I can to keep my grades up.”

He observed her for a second. “I admire the grind, but you really gotta be taking care of yourself.” He scribbled something below the schedule before handing it back to her. “Call me whenever you need anything.”

“I don’t know what to say.” Just a few days ago, Koala had been wondering if she was going to flunk economics and have to drop out. Now she had hope.

Her high spirits were dashed when he reminded her, “just don’t forget our deal.”

Of course. How could she?

Notes:

hey so i completely forgot i made a playlist for this fic based on how some of the songs fit character vibes, scenes, moments, etc. i just wanted to share. some of the songs make more sense later on lol:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1wjxHlM2CllZYQVa9FFyxu?si=fhatSLeZRjaP1l33I-901Q&pi=aC5-hVlwQ_Soa

Chapter 3

Summary:

After bumping into Sabo's ex, he and Ace have a drink and have a talk with their fists. Koala's body gives up on her like my will to live.

November

 

“So you two are talking, huh?”

“I’m just her tutor, Ace.” Sabo could feel his gaze bore into the back of his head. He refused to look at him, instead scrutinising the pack of grapes in his hands. He only looked back when an orange hit him. “What?” he spat.

Ace stared for a second. “Nothing.”

“Ugh, why did I bring you? I should’ve brought Luffy,” he muttered as he pushed his trolly away from the produce aisle.

“Luffy? To a grocery store?” Ace deadpanned, and Sabo knew he had a point. That would either spell disaster or end up with him broker than he already was. “There’s a reason why neither mom nor momma let him go food shopping with them.”

There was a pause. “Soooooo,” Ace drawled out. “You and Koala.”

Sabo rolled his eyes. Of course he’d circle back to that topic.

“I see you’re taking my advice and talking to her—“

“How many times must I tell you that we’re not talking? I’m just helping her keep her grades up.”

Ace grabbed two bottles of wine. “So you’re telling me that in the past weeks you’ve been spending time together— being very close to her— and all you do is talk about schoolwork? Are you slow?”

“Is this why you volunteered to do the groceries with me? Take the red,” he said pointing to the bottle in his left hand. “And what exactly do you want me to do?”

He stopped in front of the trolly, blocking him. “Have you asked why she disappeared yet?”

“No,” he murmured. “But we did make a deal,” he said before Ace could continue his pestering.

His brows raised at that. “A deal. What kind of deal?” His eyes sparkled, and a smirk tugged at his lips.

Before Sabo could explain, someone behind his brother caught his eye. His smile dropped. Noticing the shift in his expression, Ace turned around only to scowl when he locked eyes with Sabo’s ex.

“Yuck. Look what the cat’s dragged in.”

“Ace,” Sabo warned as Law approached them.

His heart rate picked up as he sauntered over, a lazy smile on his face, what looked like amusement in his eyes. It had been months since they’d broken up, yet Sabo still felt so small. Metaphorically and physically. The dude was tall.

Law wasn’t much of a smiler, but when he did it always left an unsettling feeling in Sabo’s chest. With the way he held his chin up and scanned them made him feel so tiny, helpless—

“How long has it been?” his low voice shook him out of his thoughts.

“Not long enough,” Ace said. Grabbing hold of the trolly, he manoeuvred around the older man. “Come on, Sabo, let’s go.”

He followed, avoiding Law’s gaze.

“Call me when you wanna have fun,” he called after them.

It felt like someone gripped his heart in a tight fist. They both stopped. Sabo had to grab Ace to keep him from going after him.

“Asswipe!” he shouted instead, earning a few stares from nearby shoppers.

“Leave it, Ace.”

“He’s such a dick.”

As grateful as Sabo was for Ace’s supportive nature, right now he just really wanted to get away from Law. If it weren’t for his brother, he’d probably still be in that relationship or whatever their situation was. For now, he was just glad it was over and was trying to leave it in the past.

Eventually, he got Ace to drop the subject, but in typical Ace fashion, he’d somehow circle back to it.

“I told you dating a uni guy was a bad idea,” he muttered as they were loading their bags into the car.

Sabo released a deep, inward groan. “Yes, Ace. You were right. And I was a fool for allowing myself to get used and played by an older guy.”

Ace winced at his words. “Come on. I didn’t mean it that way—“

Sabo slammed the boot shut. “How else did you mean it?” He didn’t mean to snap, but his negative emotions were starting to pile up against each other, and it was only so much he could take. “Let’s just forget about the whole exchange.”

Wordlessly, he walked up to Sabo and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Do you need a drink?” It was more of a statement than a question.

That’s how the two ended up getting shit-faced in their kitchen.

“That’s why I’m the oldest!” Ace was rambling, swishing a beer in his hand. “I’m so knowledgeable about feelings, emotions, people— I know about everything.”

“You thought fish were mammals—“

“Psshhh, that was a long time ago. And book stuff doesn’t mean shit. It’s all about—“ he pointed at Sabo’s chest.

“Just because you and your boyfriend are oh-so-happy doesn’t make you a relationship expert— Luffy! I just bought those.”

Said youngest stopped in his tracks. He was in the middle of stealing snacks from the pantry when he was caught. He slowly turned, his arms full of beef jerky he was stuffing in his mouth. He swallowed before smiling. “I thought you’d be too drunk to notice me. Besides I’m hungry.”

“Eat some real food,” Sabo scolded. He just didn’t want to see snacks he’d spent a fortune on get chowed down in ten minutes or less. Knowing Luffy, it would be less. 

“Luffy,” Ace called. “Come tell this hardass why he should take my advice a-and just fucking talk to her.”

“Luffy, tell this idiot to mind his own business.”

“Huh? Who you callin’ an idiot?”

“Who you calling a hardass?”

The two started to bicker in their intoxicated stupors. They didn’t notice the ringing phone that Luffy answered.

“Hello, this is Monkey D. Luffy and I’m gonna to become a capoeira master! Who is this?” he happily announced. This got his brothers’ attentions.

“Who you talkin’ to?”

“Who’s calling this late?”

He ignored them. “Sabo? He’s here. But he’s been drinking all night. I don’t think he wants to talk to you though, Koala—“

Sabo snatched the phone out of his hands. “Hello? Koala?”

“Um, Sabo?” her unsure voice crackled through the static.

Ace pressed his ear to the other side of the phone, desperately trying to eavesdrop.

“You okay?” she asked. “Your brother said you—“

“I’m fine,” he hastily answered. “Don’t listen to him. He… he’s a liar.” Luffy gave him a shocked, questioning look, yet Sabo shrugged.

“Okay…. I was calling ‘cause I wanted to know if you’re free next weekend?”

“I’m not sure. I’ll have to check my schedule. Is that the only reason you called?”

“Yeah. Sorry, did I interrupt something?”

“No. Please try not to call if it’s unrelated to school.”

“Oh, okay. Sorry—“

“Goodnight.” The moment he hung up, Ace was on his back.

“You idiot! ‘I’ll have to check my schedule’,” he mimicked in his best Sabo impersonation (which wasn’t very good). “She was clearly asking you out on a date. You were supposed to say you’re free!”

“We’re barely friends. I don’t wanna date her.”

“But you don’t have to be so rude about it. Telling her to only call if it’s school related? What, do you hate her or something?”

Sabo huffed in exasperation. He was not in a clear enough mental space to be dealing with Ace. “I don’t hate her. I just… I just… it’s complicated, okay?” He shoved Ace away, intending to retreat to his room and sleep off the alcohol, but Ace only followed with a quiet Luffy watching.

“No. So not okay. Something about this girl has been fucking you over, and it’s not okay. Why won’t you tell me what it is?”

“It’s none of your fucking business!” He didn’t like talking about how losing Koala as a friend had messed with him.

“You guys,” Luffy tried to cut in, only to be ignored.

“Is it because she disappeared and you don’t know what happened to her?” Ace just wouldn’t leave him alone. “If you wanna know so badly just ask—“

“Why won’t you leave me alone?” He pushed Ace as he shouted.

Ace jabbed a finger in his chest over and over. “Because you won’t be fucking mature about it and talk to me. It's me. The one that picked you up after Law destroyed your heart.”

Somehow, they ended up on the ground, rolling over each other as they threw punches and shouted in each other’s face. All while Luffy stood to the side, helplessly watching his brothers fight.

“Guys, stop—“

“I can tell you’re hurting.” Ace had him pinned down, but he wasn’t angry. “I hate seeing you hurt in silence.”

“She hates me!” he found himself confessing his true feelings he’d kept to himself for years. As kids, Koala had gone for a month. When she returned, it was like she was a whole new person. “She pushed me away and refused to talk to me. I thought she hated me. She was my best friend, and it made me hella insecure. Happy? With all the shit that was going on with my parents, I was at an all time low because one of my closest friends didn’t want me anymore. There! That’s why I don’t wanna talk to her, ‘cause a part of me thinks she still hates me or is gonna push me away again.”

Ace stilled over Sabo. “Sabs—“

“Now, get off me!” He finally managed to get him off. Beside him, Ace was quiet as he processed his words.

Before he could say anything, they heard sniffling. They both looked up to see Luffy’s eyes threatening to spill tears. At the same time, they heard a car pull up the driveway. Ace and Sabo froze. Their moms were back from work. They scrambled to Luffy, desperately trying to get him to calm down.

“Luffy, don’t cry. Please don’t cry.”

“Ace and Sabo keep fighting. And I’m hungry!” he whined, wiping at his eyes.

“Ace and I are friends now. See? We’re not fighting anymore.”

“Don’t tell them we were fighting,” Ace begged. “We’ll buy you all your favourite meals. Just don’t tell them we were fighting.”

“Ace, we’re so screwed if they find out.”

“They’re not gonna find out. Right, Lu?”

At the sound of food, Luffy stopped sniffling. “You’ll buy me food?”

“Of course! All your favourite foods—“

“Ace, I can’t afford that,” Sabo hissed.

“Just do it!” he hissed back. “Do you want mom or momma finding out we got pissed face drunk, fought and made Luffy cry?”

He could already feel his wallet crying, but it was the lesser evil. “Just don’t tell them, Luffy.”

Their brother was an awful liar, but the fear of their mothers overrode their faith in his lying abilities.

Luffy smiled. “I’m okay now! I just don’t like it when you guys fight.”

“We won’t fight again. Just keep your mouth shut,” Ace warned.

The front door opened, and all three boys turned with picture perfect smiles plastered on their faces.

Dadan and Rouge stopped in their tracks, eyeing their sons suspiciously.

“You boys look like you’re up to something,” Dadan commented, placing a cigarette in her mouth. “I don’t trust you.”

“But we’ve been so good all night,” Sabo lied through his teeth. They clearly didn’t believe it.

“Uh-huh?” Dadan motioned over her face. “What’s with the scratches?”

“Oh my goodness. What happened?” Rouge’s brows creased with worry. She approached them only to recoil at the stench of alcohol. “I see you two have been drinking. You didn’t give Luffy any, did you?”

“Of course not!” Ace answered too eagerly. “You know I’m too well behaved to do that, mom.”

She side eyed him. “You two didn’t fight, did you?”

“They—“ Luffy opened his mouth to speak, but they were quick to clamp their hands over it and start dragging him away.

“We’re gonna go sleep now.”

“Goodnight, momma! Goodnight, Mrs. Mom!”

 

———

 

Drinking on a Friday night wasn’t something completely unheard of, but Sabo was seriously starting to regret it as he pulled up to the cafe he and Koala were supposed to meet at. Sure, it was past noon, but that hangover was particularly unforgiving now that he had somewhere to be.

He was on his second coffee when Koala arrived.

“I’m so sorry I’m late,” she said, breathless. “We had some difficulties, so rehearsals overrun a bit.”

Sabo stared a little longer. He could tell she’d just come from rehearsals. What must’ve given it away? It was either the pink leg warmers and skirt peaking out beneath her coat or the small, white flakes in her hair. He pointed at her head.

Taking her fingers through the ginger strands on her head didn’t do much. She ordered herself a double espresso before sitting down and saying, “snow” without further explanation.

It wasn’t snowing outside.

He decided not to pry any further. This meeting was already feeling strange enough, and he was starting to wonder if he’d drank more than he’d thought and was still drunk.

Now Koala was giving him a strange look. “Did you get in a fight?” She pointed to the bruise on his face.

“Don’t worry about it. Oh, about last night,” he started sheepishly. He barely remembered the call itself but remembered Ace lecturing him about the way he’d handled the phone call and felt bad. “Sorry if I sounded rude or anything.”

She stared at him for a moment then smiled. “Don’t worry about it. It was weird of me to call you so late.”

“Don’t worry about it. Also I am free next weekend.” He deeply hoped this wasn’t another date proposal. Five people had already asked him out that month. He didn’t want to have to keep dishing out rejections.

Koala’s eyes lit up, and Sabo was already feeling guilty. He watched as she dug around in her bag and pulled out a folder. She slid it across the table to him.

“I want you to come see me perform next week. I got you a few tickets.”

Huh? Relief— and was that disappointment?— flooded him instantly. He would be lying if he said he was fine with how things were between them now, but this was still good.

“This is sweet and all, but can you still do sessions with me if you’re preparing for your show?”

He swore he saw her eye twitch, but her smile stayed plastered on her face. “I’m fine. We can still meet up. Remember, Sabo, I need this.”

When he’d made that deal with her, a small part of him had felt triumphant for some reason. Now he just felt bad and very deeply concerned. But if she needed his help, who was he to say no? They were friends once upon a time. He didn’t want to turn his back on that. “Fine.”

 

———

 

How long could the human body survive without sleep? Because it has been two days for Koala, and she was starting to feel jittery. She was running on caffeine, faith and pure adrenaline. She gave herself a couple hours before her body gave out and she would collapse.

She tried to sleep, but every time she shut her eyes, they’d refuse to stay closed. So she’d spend her nights going over her notes from Sabo or going over her parts for the show that was in just a week. She would have the odd Power Nap here and there, but they never lasted longer than an hour.

Grabbing two energy drinks, she waved bye to her uncle. They weren’t related; she just liked to call him that.

“I’m off to ballet.”

Fisher Tai set down his newspaper. “Aren’t you gonna eat something?”

“Nope.” She tried hurrying to the door but stopped when he called her name with that tone. The you’re not going anywhere, young lady tone. The where do you think you’re going tone. The stop giving me attitude; I’m doing this for your own good tone. She hated that tone.

“Don’t frown at me. Your body can’t operate on coffee and energy drinks alone. You need to eat something for energy.”

She grabbed an apple. “Happy?”

He gave a pleased smile. “Have fun.”

As much as she loved Fisher Tai, she just wished he’d chill out some times. Koala was nineteen. She could take care of herself. So what if she fainted that one time because she forgot to take her iron tablets for a week and hadn’t eaten all day? Not to mention that other time she had passed out from practicing all day with no breaks. Also not to mention that other, other time she practiced fouettés so much to the point she threw up so hard she made herself dehydrated.

She could still take care of herself. Sort of.

 

———

 

As the divertissements continued on stage, Koala decided to warm up in the wings before she had to go on. She frowned at her pile of dead shoes. She picked the ones with the hardest box and squeezed. Also quite dead.

“It’s been a week,” she muttered in disappointment. As much as she loved ballet, she hated how quickly she went through her pointe shoes. Uncle Tai and his friends funded them for her, but she still felt guilty since the pile at her feet costed a damn fortune yet lasted a month at best.

She slipped on a pair and got up to test their feel, only for her head to go weightless and the world to go black.

When her eyes fluttered open, she could see the flowers dancing on stage. A few people were over her, fussing and calling her name. She shot up into a sitting position and tried to reorientate herself. The waltz was almost over. She needed to go on soon.

“Where’s Sanji?” she looked around for her partner.

“Koala, are you okay?”

“You sure you can go on?”

“You should sit this one out—“

The small crowd gathered continued fussing over her, but she ignored them. There was no way she would sit this out. They were a few days away from show day.

She got up and stumbled. Someone caught her. It was Sanji, and he was giving her a concerned look. “You should sit down. I can’t let you perform like this—“

“Sanji.” She smiled but her voice was tight. “I’m fine. Now, let’s do this.”

He didn’t argue with her any further. With no time to do a more proper warm up, Koala did what she could to prepare her feet as they waited for their music to start playing.

The moment it did, she stepped out and felt her brain empty. Her sole focus was the pas de deux and Sanji. She couldn’t afford to linger on anything else— bad grades, lack of sleep, fainting spells— it all went out the window as they performed the same moves they’d been practicing for months.

On stage, she didn’t have to be Koala with all her baggage and trauma. She could just be free. It was freeing. Tight costumes (tighter buns), heavy makeup and dead shoes that threatened to roll her ankles— but it was a feeling so intoxicating she would trade it for nothing. 

But that high ended the moment they finished their final waltz and their directors stood before the entire cast for feedback.

They did not look happy.

Bon Clay and Viola made sure to point out every detail that either needed working on or a miracle to fix.

“Why are we late to our positions?” Viola demanded, but no one dared to answer. “We have double show day on Friday. You need to get to places on time. No rushing to catch the music please.”

There were murmurs of “yes ma’am” around the stage.

“And can we please remember to be taking care of ourselves?” Bon Clay said, looking pointedly at Koala. She avoided his gaze. “We want you all to be healthy and happy for the show.”

There was more discussion before everyone was dismissed. Everyone but Koala. Hanging her head, she stood before her teachers already anticipating where this was going. She didn’t dare meet their gaze.

“Koala,” Bon Clay started, his voice uncharacteristically serious and low. She hated when he got serious. It usually meant you fucked up, and she was too much of a perfectionist to handle his “you fucked up” lectures. “We heard what happened—“

“I’m sorry, sir,” she quickly apologised.

“Sorry about what?” Viola asked. “You can’t be sorry about those things. They are normal. You can’t control it.”

“Look, Koala, you’re really talented. You have great technique and are quite skilled, but you can’t keep pushing yourself like that. You were great on stage, but next time, let someone else take over your role. That’s why we have multiple people for each part.”

“I don’t want to sit out on anything,” she said, looking up to meet their gazes. They looked so disappointed; her heart squeezed. “I miss dancing and performing.”

“We get that,” he continued. “But if you keep pushing yourself you will be forced to sit out one way or another.”

“You just got back,” Viola added. “Take it slow.”

Notes:

woah new character, new conflict👀 👀 👀

Chapter 4

Summary:

Sabo goes to see Koala perform. They have a quiet moment together. They're slowly becoming friends (if you squint)

Early December

 

“Did you hear? Apparently Koala’s playing Sugar Plum?”

The sound of her name had Sabo turning his head, eavesdropping on the two women’s conversation. He couldn’t help himself.

“Really? That Koala?” the second woman said with an incredulous tone. “I didn’t know she was back to dancing.”

“I know. After that hiatus I thought she was done. But I saw her at a comp a few weeks ago.”

“First place, no doubt.” The tone was snooty and sharp with a scoff that held nothing but contempt. 

Temptation to stick his head into a conversation where he didn't belong guided his feet towards them, but he stopped. He had nothing to do with her. It was none of his business. 

“Here are our seats,” Dadan called.

Sabo let Rouge enter the row first before sitting next to her. On his other side sat Dadan.

The curly haired woman heaved a heavy sigh. “This reminds me of my glory days.”

He looked at her inquisitively. “You did ballet?”

“Yup. I was the prettiest darn ballerina in my class. I was about Luffy’s age when I quit.”

He gaped at her. The thought of his momma in a tutu and ribbons made him burst out laughing.

“What you laughing at, boy?”

“Shh!” Rouge hushed. “The show’s starting.”

When Koala gave him those tickets, he nearly returned the two extra. She probably expected him to invite his brothers— bless her soul. Those two couldn’t be taken anywhere. Luffy especially. With his inability to sit down and focus on something for even five minutes, bringing him to watch the Nutcracker would end up being a nuisance for everyone around. Even watching the most thrilling, action packed movie was a struggle for him sometimes.

Ace would be easier to manage. On his own that is. With either of his brothers present, he’d start acting out and causing mischief. Heavens know Dadan and Rouge have suffered taking all three out for anything.

That’s why he brought his mothers instead. They were full grown adults. They were tons more mature and wouldn’t loudly ask “how much longer til it’s over?” or eat all the popcorn they could get their hands on.

It made Sabo seem elitist, but he was in the same boat with his brothers. Just with better self control, that is. He could thank his bougie parents and all those opera house visits for that.

Plus, he was doing this for Koala. They were… uh… they were getting closer? Could they be considered friends? They were definitely not hi-bye friends. They were past acquaintances. Yet he hesitated to call her a friend.

The moment he heard the overture, it brought back many memories— good and bad. Mostly bad. But he forced himself to enjoy the scenes unfold on the grand stage at the front of the hall.

“Oh, look that’s her.” Rouge pointed out Koala who had just been carried out of a box.

With her frilly, pink tutu and giant ribbon in her hair, Sabo couldn’t help but think of how cute she looked. She had huge, orange circles on her cheeks. It was adorable. She looked just like a doll which made sense because this was the toy scene.

Her movements were stiff yet so well articulated. She looked like she was having fun the way she was prancing around the stage as the toy master chased after her. It may have been his imagination, but he could’ve sworn she looked him in the eye when she started blowing kisses. But it was definitely his imagination. There was no way she found him in a sea of people while blinded by the lights. Right?

He admired all the dancers, but he missed seeing Koala on the stage already. He hoped to see her again in the second act, but another dancer caught his eye.

“Is that Vivi?” he said a little too loud. He got shushed and whacked. He was still trying to understand that girl. She’d been going to his school for about a year now but still acted like she didn’t know him. Or maybe she didn’t like him? He didn’t know. He just wanted to know why she kept running away every time he got close.

The curtains closed, and the audience applauded.

“I’m gonna get you a treat,” he said to Rouge.

“You don’t have to—“

“Your doctor recommends you keep your sugar levels up. I saw a vending machine outside.”

“I don’t think he meant sugar filled ultra processed foods.” She gave him a look, but he was adamant about it. She had a rough birth with Ace and never fully recovered. Sabo and his brothers would always fuss over her and her health. More Ace and Sabo than Luffy; the youngest cared in his roundabout Luffy ways. “Fine,” she relented.

“Momma, do you want anything?” He turned to Dadan.

“I’m fine, sweetheart, but buy flowers if you see any.”

“Flowers? What do you need those for?”

She gave him a look like she couldn’t understand why he even asked. “Just get the damn flowers.”

He obliged, yet he wasn’t sure why she wanted flowers so badly. Would they even be selling flowers in a thea— oh, look a flower stand. There was actually a flower stand right outside the theatre doors.

With a small, modest bouquet and a few protein bars, Sabo made his way back before the performance continued but stopped when he heard Koala’s name mentioned yet again.

“—should’ve just stayed hidden. Then the rest of us could have a chance.”

“In the year she’s been gone, you’ve barely been able to place the top ten. Get over yourself.”

“Excuse me,” he called out to them. “I heard you talking about Koala?”

The two girls from earlier glanced at each other before looking at him.

“What? Do you know her or something?”

“Um, well— I’m her friend.” He thought it’d be best to just call her a friend instead of explaining their complicated situation. Mistake. That was the wrong answer.

Panic filled their expressions, and they scurried away. Okay. Definitely not weird at all.

What was up with this girl and her past? And why did nobody want to talk about it? The more he got to know her, the more mystery surrounded her. It only filled him with more intrigue.

By the time Sabo got back to his seat, what looked like a Middle Eastern inspired scene was being performed. It went from a bunch of kids around a Christmas tree, to dancing snowflakes and now this? He probably should’ve done some research on the Nutcracker before coming.

“Here are your flowers,” he whispered, trying to hand them to his momma, but she gave him a weird look. “What? You don’t like them?”

Dadan rolled her eyes. “You hang onto those for now, my sweet, stupid son.”

“I can’t believe you came without flowers,” it was Rouge’s turn to voice her disappointment and slight disbelief.

“We have a lot to teach him, Rouge.”

“Mhmm.”

Lost, Sabo sat between the two trying to figure out what he’d done so wrong. He kept his mouth shut as he watched the performance.

The dancing flowers parted (he assumed they were supposed to be flowers) and in ran a familiar face. Before he could stop himself, he was grinning ear to ear. This time, she wore a purple tutu with a crown on her head. Koala was the personification of grace with the way she moved across the stage. Her movements were so fluid, precise and executed in ways that showed off her hours of hard work. Added with the music, he understood why she was so passionate about her craft, why she was so desperate to get her grades up just so she could continue dancing.

He thought back to the timetable covered in pink highlighter and sparkly gel pen. All that hard work for this moment. You could see her love for ballet and absolute passion in her turns, jumps and that smile. It was like it lit up the entire room— the stage was illuminated by her grin alone.

The music swelled, the percussions rumbled and the strings chimed an elegiac melody. It all added to the dramatic yet whimsical nature of the scene. She truly looked like a fairy.

Sabo was speechless. He’d never seen anything more beautiful.

Even as around him erupted in applause for Koala and her partner as they finished their duet, Sabo sat their entranced by her beauty and skill.

Dadan had to reach over and shut his jaw for him. She chuckled at his star struck expression.

When the performance finally came to an end, he was on his feet applauding with everyone around him. The clapping went on and on. Koala gave a grand bow and accepted the flowers brought to her, her smile stretching from ear to ear.

He turned to his moms, also beaming. “She was awesome!”

“That’s what you thought? Good. Now we’ll go tell her how amazing she was.”

Sabo’s smile fell at Dadan’s words. “What?”

“Come on, they’re going backstage. Let’s go.” Rouge ushered him out of the row.

He had no time to question what was happening because suddenly they made it backstage to where friends and family of the dancers were handing out bouquets and congratulating them.

“Let’s go find her.”

“Wait, wait—“

“There she is. Koala!” Rouge waved at her.

She looked surprised, but then broke out into a grin. She made her way over.

“Ms. Rouge. Ms. Dadan.” Still in her costume, she curtsied to the older women. She looked at Sabo. “I’m glad you all were able to make it.” Her crown was crooked, some jewels had fallen off her skin and she was covered in sweat. Yet she was radiating, beaming, as if crowned with a halo.

“Koala, my dear, you were amazing,” Rouge praised. “You must’ve worked so hard.”

“We think you did great. Right, Sabo?” Dadan shoved him forward and that’s when it clicked.

He was so dumb.

“We… we got these for you.” He held out his bouquet of pink roses and white forget me nots.

Koala blushed as she accepted them. “They’re lovely. Thank you so much. And I’m so glad you enjoyed the show.”

“Tell me,” Dadan continued. “Are any of your uncles here?”

“They’re coming for the second show tonight. They’ll be here later.”

“And what are your plans for lunch?” Rouge asked, and this time, Sabo wasn’t as slow. Inviting her to have lunch with them wouldn’t be so bad.

“I have a few snacks with me—“

“That’s no good. A young dancer like you needs to be getting properly nourished. You can’t survive on just snacks.”

“I agree with Dadan. Especially since you have another show to put on today. Sabo was just about to get some lunch. You should join him.”

“You should totally— what?” Sabo turned to his mom. Did she just say his name? She wanted him to get lunch with her? Alone? They hadn’t talked about this.

“You two are in the same class now right?” Dadan added. “You can chat about school, studies, life— whatever you kids nowadays talk about.”

“Wait, but I drove us here,” he whispered to Dadan.

“We’ll find our way home.” She slipped money into his pocket then winked.

“Momma—“

“You kids have fun!” Rouge gave him a thumbs up.

“Mrs. Mom—“

Smiling giddily to themselves for playing matchmaker, he watched his mothers walk away.

“Did they just…?”

“Set us up on a date?” Koala finished for him. She laughed. “I think they did. But we don’t have to—“

“It doesn’t have to be a date,” Sabo said. “They’re right. You should get a proper lunch. I’d imagine you would’ve worked up an appetite after all that dancing.”

She nodded her agreement. “That sounds a lot nicer than a packet of chips and an apple.”

Maybe it was a good thing that his mothers set them up. “That doesn’t sound healthy,” he said seriously.

“I know.” She looked bashful. “Give me ten minutes to get changed and we can look for lunch together.”

“Great. Together.”

Their tutoring sessions helped ease the tension between them, but there was still a bit of awkwardness whenever they discussed anything outside of schoolwork. Sabo couldn't help but feel a sense of apprehension at the thought of getting to know her again.

 

———

 

“Any place that serves coffee,” was Koala’s answer when Sabo had asked where she wanted to get lunch, but she was on her third expresso and still fighting to keep her eyelids open. She was interested in what Sabo was saying. She just couldn’t help the yawn that overtook her.

He gave her a concerned look. “You okay? You keep yawning.”

Rubbing her eyes, she apologised, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t get any sleep last night.”

“Like, at all?”

“I know it’s bad. I… struggle with sleep sometimes. And with the excitement of today I just couldn’t sleep at all. My teachers stressed that we need to take care of ourselves and I feel I keep letting them down.” Before she could stop herself, Koala was venting to Sabo.

“No, I doubt you are.”

She looked up from her empty mug. Sabo gave her a soft look. There was no judgement or disapproval behind his small smile.

“I don’t know much about ballet, but you were amazing out there. You definitely made your teachers proud.”

They were words of encouragement she’d received a hundred times before, but when Sabo said it, it was different. It made her feel different. Why was her body reacting so differently when he told her those words.

“Come on. Let me take you somewhere.” After paying for their meals, Sabo led her to a small library nestled in a quieter part of town. The bell above the door chimed when he pushed it open.

“Welco— Sabo, have you come to actually take out a book this time?” the woman at the counter asked with a hand on her hip, her silky, black hair swaying when she tilted her head.

He gave a sheepish smile. “Come on, Robin. You and I both know I’d lose it if I did.”

“So it’s best you hide in here when you’re skipping class?” she said pointedly.

“Robin, don’t out me.” He threw a nervous glance to Koala. “We’re going to the action section.”

“You kids be good.” She gave them a look.

Koala wasn’t sure why that comment made her face warm. Sabo didn’t look at her as he led her to the top floor. The higher they went, the fewer people there were. He took her to a quiet corner behind a shelf.

“What’s this?” she asked, smiling at the pile of pillows and bean bags. It looked so cozy.

“Ta-da!” He gave her jazz hands. “This is my and my brothers’ escape from boring lessons and annoying teachers.”

They settled in bean bags next to each other. They were so close their shoulders nearly brushed.

“Action books don’t really sell well,” Sabo explained, his voice low. “So you can relax here without worrying about being disturbed. Since it’s a library, it’s always quiet. Plus, Robin’s really cool, so she’ll never tattle. And if you manage to fall asleep, it’s an added bonus.”

She chuckled, relaxing into the cushions. “Do you come here often?”

Sabo scratched his neck. “I try not to, but sometimes those lessons are a real pain. And I always end up here somehow.”

“Lucky you.” She rolled her eyes. “Some of us aren’t smart enough to be skipping class whenever we feel like it.”

“Just because you’re behind in school doesn’t mean you aren’t smart.”

“Sabo. I’ve been held back a year, yet I’m still behind in some of my subjects,” she said pointedly with a serious tone. “I’m not like you or Nami. I can’t ace every test, be ahead of my class, correct the teacher—“

“That was one time.”

“I suck at academics. Dance comes so easily to me, yet my brain balks when it comes to studying. It’s frustrating.”

Sabo was silent as he observed her. “So you suck at academics. They’re not the end all be all of life,” he said softly. “We can’t be good at everything in life. Sometimes we struggle, and that’s fine. It’s okay, Koala.”

It was her turn to observe him. For a moment it sounded like she wasn’t the one he was talking to. Like he was trying to convince himself of his own words. She wondered what was going on in his brain, behind those soft, sky blue eyes that seemed to sparkle.

“You don’t have to worry. I’ll make sure you keep your scholarship so you can keep dancing.”

“My hero.” They both chuckled at that. She felt so comfortable sitting next to him like this. All her stress seemed to slowly ease.

“Hey, Koala? When did you first realise your passion for ballet?”

With a hum, she racked her brain. “People ask me when I started dancing or for how long I've been dancing, but I don’t think anyone’s ever asked me that. It started with an interest in theatre.”

“You’re a theatre kid?” he asked incredulously.

“Why do you sound so shocked?”

“It’s just… you never would’ve struck me as one. I mean, we used to do karate together, and you were ruthless—“

“Um, I can be aggressive and love to sing and dance at the same time thank you very much,” she said, mocking hurt, but she found his shock to be amusing. “I’m not much of a theatre kid now, but I will always be one at heart. I remember my very first production was Matilda.”

“Really?”

“Can you stop sounding so surprised and let me finish?” He shut his mouth. “Now where was I— uhh, I played the girl with the pigtails. Amanda.”

“The one that gets thrown around by Trunchbull?” He started chuckling.

Koala couldn’t contain her laughter either. Her muscles eased and relaxed. With all the warmers she had on, she felt her body trying to shut itself down into a blissful sleep she barely knew of. “They used a doll for that. That much I remember. But my hair was too short, so I was given a wig. It itched so badly.”

Even though it was a library, they were laughing loudly now.

“That’s what I hate about dancing. The costumes always smell bad. I swear they’re older than my uncles.”

“That’s disgusting.” Sabo struggled to catch his breath.

When they managed to calm down, she continued, “I started out with contemporary at ten. I tried out ballet at my uncle’s suggestion and instantly fell in love. It was a distraction, an outlet— it was a way of dealing with feelings a twelve year didn’t know how to deal with.” Her whole body felt so relaxed. Her limbs grew easy and her eyelids heavier. Koala yawned. “When I’m on stage, I can conquer the world. I’m a whole other person, and I don’t have to pretend.”

She didn’t look at Sabo’s inquisitive gaze. She only shut her eyes and felt her body relax into the bean bags further.

“Do you ever get nervous?”

She shook her head. “The nerves only hit when the music stops and I step back into my regular life…. I missed this,” she murmured as she finally let sleep overtake her.

 

———

 

Me too, Sabo almost said. He was able to make out the words as her breathing evened and he heard soft snores.

He stretched his legs out and lay back in his bean bag, staring up at the cracks in the ceiling and wondered where it all went wrong. What happened between them? They were essentially strangers but with all these tutoring sessions he for some reason agreed to, were they becoming friends? Was that what he wanted? Was that what she wanted?

But as he lay next to Koala, his heart ached with a certain kind of fondness for his former friend. She looked so peaceful when she slept. Her cheeks and nose tinged pink from the cold. Looking closer, he could see her shivering. He took off his jacket and lay it over her, hoping to give her warmth.

“No… no,” she muttered in her sleep, eyes squeezing.

Sabo reached over and combed his fingers through her hair. She must’ve been having a nightmare. Dadan or Rouge would stroke his hair to calm him down whenever he had a night terror. The soothing motion seemed to help calm her. She settled. Sabo’s heart fluttered. She looked so cute. Pulling his hand away, he noticed a tiny speck of white on his finger— snow, he realised. OR whatever fake snow they had used in the show. Glancing out the small, circular window on the opposite wall, he noticed similar small specks flitting against the glass pane.

It sparked a sudden, buried memory.

 

~~~

 

"Snow again?" Koala glared up at the sky as if it had offended her personally. 

"What did it ever do to you?" Sabo asked from where he was lacing up his shoes. They had both finished their karate class when the heavens decided to open and release its frozen flurry. 

Turning to him she said, "nothing. I just hate the cold."

"But winter's the best time of the year."

She rolled her eyes. "You only say that 'cause you never get cold, you freak."

"You're just being a baby. A little snow never hurt anyone." He dashed out the door before she could land a hit. He stuck his tongue out at her. Sticking his thumb to the tip of his nose, he wiggled his fingers in a teasing gesture.

Koala stamped her foot. "I am not a baby. Get back here!"

"You'll have to come and get me!"

"So not fair. I don't wanna chase you in the—" a ball of snow hit her right in the face before she could finish her sentence. Sabo erupted in giggles, pointing at her face covered in ice. 

"You should see what you look like," he said between wheezes, clutching his stomach as he continued laughing. 

Her face burned so hot, it was a surprise the snow on her cheeks hadn't melted. "I'll kick your ass." She marched out into the cold to chase after him. 

"You said a bad word," he continued teasing. 

"Get back here!"

The cold didn't register to her as she scooped up what little snow had settled to form into a ball and throw at Sabo. It was freezing, and neither of them were properly dressed for the weather, but it didn't matter. They kept themselves warm with chases and laughter. And when they finally stopped, falling over one another in a mess of limbs and cheeky grins, they lay on the cold grass, staring up at the sky as it continued its downpour. Glancing over to her friend, cheeks red from the cold, she thought to herself that maybe the snow wasn't so bad.

Notes:

i wrote this chapter like a year ago when i was in the middle of exams and going over it i can see the pain i was in T__T i try to update on the weekends but this weekend just got so busy with packing and everything. enjoy<3

Chapter 5

Summary:

CW// vomiting

Dadan plans a dinner with Koala and her uncle. Sabo is not pleased. They watch fireworks at a bonfire party.

Late December

 

It was the worst time of the year. Winter break.

Dadan loved her adopted sons, but this year's winter break felt like eternity. Not to mention her bank account took a massive hit from all the festive lunches they’d been making. Damn their massive appetites.

With a sigh, she pulled the fridge open, intending to grab a drink of orange juice— a full day’s worth of vitamin C— only to find herself disappointed. Yet again.

“Boys!” she screamed, slamming the fridge shut. “Who the hell puts back an empty carton into the fridge?”

“Luffy did it,” Ace was quick to point the blame, not even bothering to look up from his game boy.

“What? No, I didn’t. I saw y—“ his words were cut short with a cushion to the face.

“What did I say about throwing cushions?” Rouge frowned from where she sat in her arm chair.

“Sorry, mom. But Luffy’s a liar.”

“Am not.”

“Are to.”

“It was Ace!”

“Liar, liar. Pants on fire!” Ace shrieked when the younger boy tackled him. “Help, he’s biting me!”

That’s when Sabo decided to show his presence. He took one look at the chaos and turned around. “Nope, not dealing with this.”

“Get back here,” she demanded. “Who drank—“

“It was Ace,” Sabo called over his shoulder.

“Bastard,” he screamed in retort. “I thought you had my back. We’re supposed to be brothers, you traitor!”

“Yet you tried to throw Luffy under the bus for something you did.”

“If I hadn’t done it, Luffy would have.”

“But I didn’t even do it!”

Dadan released a heavy sigh. Why... why did she even bother?

As the boys continued arguing amongst themselves, she muttered bitterly to herself, “if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself. You ungrateful brats oughta learn the value of a Berry.”

“Are you going to the shop?” Luffy eagerly exclaimed once he heard the jingle of keys. “Can you get—“

“No. I’m getting my orange juice, and that’s it.”

“But—“

“We’re out of eggs,” Rouge called.

“Orange juice and eggs. That’s it. If you want something, go get it yourself.”

 

———

 

Browsing the aisles in search of her precious vitman C, Dadan noticed a familiar face at the end of the aisles. She and Fisher Tai were never close, but they ran in the same circles back in the day.

“Look what the cat dragged in,” she said, strolling up to him.

He gave a lopsided smile. “You’re still as sour as ever,” he replied, looking her up and down. “How long has it been?”

“Not long enough. Yet my sons tell me Koala’s back in school. How’s she been doing?”

Tai let out a sharp huff, clearly disapproving. “I was against it. I suggested homeschooling, but she kept going on and on about how ‘lame’ it is. Something about social suicide.”

“You know how kids these days are. They care too much about the thoughts of others.”

“Yet your boys care too little,” he muttered.

She narrowed her gaze. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

Tai levelled her with a stare. “Their reputations precede them, Dadan, I’m just saying.”

“You know better than anyone what it’s like raising children who’ve been through too much, seen too much. They start acting out.”

Before he could respond, the very subject of their conversation came up behind Tai, holding a gallon of milk. “They didn’t have semi-skimmed, so I got two percent.”

“Thanks, sweetie,” he said. He gestured to Dadan. “Koala, you remember Dadan.”

“Of course!” She beamed.

“There’s our little ballerina.” Dadan couldn’t help but gush. The girl was adorable, and she was so well mannered. She tried getting Ace and Sabo to spend more time with her when they were young in the hopes they’d learn a thing or two from her. It didn’t work.

“Ms. Dadan came to one of the shows with Ms. Portgas and Sabo,” she said quietly, giving her uncle a shy look.

“Oh,” he said simply. “Sabo came to your show?”

“Yeah, I invited them. Didn’t I tell you?” Her eyes sparkled with mischief.

Dadan knew damn well she didn’t tell him. The way he hummed had her wondering just what he thought of his niece and Sabo's relationship.

“You two are speaking again?”

“You could barely call it that.” There was a hint of disappointment in her voice. “We share economics and homeroom. That’s it.”

He was also tutoring her, but it wasn’t Dadan’s place to say anything. That would be on Koala’s own time and be her own battle— and heaven's knew she had fought many a same battle with her own sons.

“Ms. Dadan.” Those crystal blue eyes settled on her. “I need to ask you something. Girl stuff.”

Before she could respond, she was getting dragged away, leaving a confused Tai behind.

“Dear, what are you—“

“It’s about Sabo,” she said once they were out of ear shot.

“Did he do something to you?”

That startled her. “No, of course not. I just wanted to know if… maybe….” She looked down at her feet. Her hand tugged on her earlobe. “Does Sabo still hate me?” When Koala looked up again, Dadan felt a cracking in her chest where her heart was supposed to be. Her blue, doe eyes shone with unshed tears, her lips tugged down into a delicate frown.

She covered the girl's hand rested on her arm with her own. “I’m not sure what he’s said to make you think that, but I’ll go talk to him.”

 

———

 

“I invited Tai and Koala over for dinner.”

Sabo nearly choked on his food. “You what—“

Smack! Dadan’s hand landed upside his head.

“What was that for? I haven’t even done anything yet.”

“What have you done to that poor girl?”

“You mean Koala?” Sabo rolled his eyes heavenward. “I haven’t done shit—“

“Don’t speak to your mother with that language,” Rouge was quick to correct.

He huffed, feeling a sense of irritation begin to bubble within. “I don’t get why you’re mad at me when she’s the one that left.”

“And now she’s back. And I had to see her almost cry just because you won’t stop being so stubborn.”

Pushing away from the table, Sabo looked her right in the eye with an intense glare. “All that girl has to do is shed a few tears and bat her eyelashes and everyone’s on her side.” He got up and dumped his plate in the sink. “No one gives a damn about Sabo’s feelings.”

“I do!” Ace unhelpfully added.

“Shut up. You’re a dick.”

“I’ll rip yours off, asshole. I’m trying to make ya feel better.”

“It isn’t fucking working.” He turned on his heel to storm off, but his momma followed.

“I’m just trying to understand why you’re still upset over something that happened years ago,” Dadan continued. “You’ve both changed. Why not give it another chance?”

“You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me.”

Sabo turned to stare at her then huffed. “Whatever! You shouldn’t have invited them to dinner.”

“You are joining us.

Slam! His bedroom door shut.

 

———

 

Sabo took a moment to catch his breath as he gazed up at the cerulean blue sky, clear without a single cloud in sight. He loved the winter sky and how clear it was. A crisp, cool breeze blew through, tugging at his blond locks. The sun shone bright, but the cold was biting. Yet he couldn’t feel its sting over the pain that bloomed across his cheek.

It hurt. Bad. His opponent played dirty. Who the hell brings a large stick to a fist fight?

“Oi, are you dead?” he called. It was the same bitch that sat behind him in computer science. He’d run his mouth about something, Sabo’s mind was too hazy to remember what.

He had let it slide only until they bumped into each other at the game store.

“Watch it, bitch.” It was just a bump of the shoulder.

Sabo had stopped. “Who you calling a bitch?”

“Your mom, that’s who….” The words had died in his throat once he saw who he was talking to. “Shit.”

“No hard feelings,” his assailant shouted. “I know about you and your brothers, and I’d rather not die today.”

Sabo chuckled to himself. He was going to kill him.

As the adrenaline continued to fill in his veins, all he could think about was the need to feel something more. He was pissed off at his momma for being a pain in the ass. Pissed off at Koala for pushing him away. Pissed off for whatever the boy in front of him had said. Pissed off at Law for breaking his heart. Pissed off at the crazy fucks who’d birthed him—

Pushing himself up, Sabo attacked. He dodged as the stick swung in his direction. He loved the rush he got— this feeling of finally being alive. The pain in his knuckles, his lungs burning from the exertion, his muscles tiring. Sure it hurt like hell getting whacked in the shoulder with that stick, but at least it meant he was alive. His mind turned to static. All he could focus on was the next hit. And the next. And the next. And the next. And wham!

He sucker punched his opponent in the nose with a satisfying crunch.

 

———

 

Koala looked nice. She looked like a million Berry. And it pissed Sabo off.

They sat across from each other at the dinner table. It was the fated night. He side glanced Dadan who was currently catching up with Tai. He glared. Damn her.

“Dude,” Ace whispered. “Cool it. You look like you wanna commit a murder.”

“You’re first on the list.”

“Funny. Enough ciders for you. How many have you had?”

He glanced at the empty cans he had crushed under his foot. “Does it matter?”

So maybe he was a little tipsy. He looked back towards Koala. She frowned at him. Was she uncomfortable? Good. He didn’t want her there. He wanted nothing to do with her. He regretted that offer. Sure he wanted to know what her problem was, but could he stand being around her this much without screaming out his frustration at her?

Her eyes shown with worry. “You okay?” she mouthed.

Sabo was taken aback. He was trying to make her feel discomfort not worry. That would mean she cared about him, and he was certain that well had dried up a long time ago.

He got an idea.

He gave a quick tilt of his head to the side, gesturing towards the hallway. Getting up, he didn’t wait to see if she’d follow. Sabo waited around a corner until she appeared.

“Boo!”

Koala startled. He chuckled and pressed her against the wall. He brought his face down to her eye level and smiled, pleased with the surprise on her face. “Relax, it’s just me.” Wrapping a hand around her wrist he pulled her along.

“Where are we going?”

“I need your help with something.”

Why he so suddenly wanted to creep her out, Sabo wasn’t sure, but the idea sounded fun in his semi (mostly) intoxicated state.

“I’m bored,” he said as he pushed his bedroom door open. He turned on a lamp and got busy gathering the supplies.

Koala hesitated at the threshold, taking in her surroundings before looking to Sabo. “You said you needed help with something?”

“Yup. You’re gonna do it for me. Sit.” He patted his desk.

“Okay,” she said slowly, perching on the wooden surface. “What exactly—“

Sabo whipped out his lighter and picked up a needle he’d managed to dig up somewhere. He began burning the length of the metal.

“Please tell me you don’t want me to do what I think you want me to do.”

He gave her a smile that was nothing short of demented. “You’re giving me a new piercing. Any problems with that?”

That was what he was looking for. The unsure twist of her brows. The frown that painted her soft features. The way she tugged on her earlobe when she got nervous.

“You sure? Don’t we need something to numb it—“

“Nope.” He plopped himself in his chair before her. Her legs dangled between his spread ones. His gaze lingered at the way her muscular thighs, defined from years of dancing, spread on his desk. His stomach flipped. Drinking always came with its… side effects. “Come on, sweetheart, what’s a little blood?”

He held the burning hot needle between them, a challenge.

With tentative fingers, she accepted. “Wh-Where do you want it?”

Now he was plain amused. “Here.” He tapped on his daith.

“Don’t blame me if this gets infected.” She was awfully calm about this, and Sabo had to wonder just how much she had had to drink.

The needle went in. Sabo didn’t think about the burning sting as hot metal pierced flesh. All he could focus on was how close she was.

“You’re wearing makeup,” he stated.

“Of course,” she said with a scoff. She was intently focused on getting the piercing right. “It’s a special occasion.”

She’d expressed zero interest in it as kids. And now her lips were painted, her cheeks powdered, her brows done nicely. She looked like a doll. His stomach flipped again, a familiar warmth spreading through his torso.

“You’re wearing perfume.”

Koala rolled her eyes. “Come on, Sabo, I’m a girl.”

She smelled so nice.

“You got any earrings?”

Sabo didn’t respond for a moment. “In the box behind you.”

Koala grabbed any one and stuck it in. “Done!” She beamed, proud of her work.

This whole plan had backfired. Badly.

He’d tried making her uncomfortable to the point she’d run away again, push him away, but now that’s all he wanted to do. Being so close to her, like this, was overwhelming but in all the best ways. He really should’ve eaten more and drank less. The haze that clouded his mind had him thinking wild things. He could barely concentrate. He had to focus on her eyes and not her thighs squished together or the curve of her breasts beneath her sweater. His hands balled into fists on either side of her hips, and it was all he could do to keep from grabbing them and pulling her closer.

Makeup, perfume, curves… she’d really changed and grown as a person. In more ways than one….

Her proud smile fell, the corner of her lips tugging down into a frown. Fingertips brushed against the healing bruise on his left cheek. “What happened? You’re all scuffed up.”

“I fought a bear and won,” Sabo lied with a grin.

Koala rolled her eyes with a small smile. “You did not.”

“I so did. It was twice my height and had these huge paws and terrible claws. Nearly chewed my face off too.”

She let out a laugh that had his heart racing. How could a sound, so simple and pure, sound so sweet? Koala went quiet. A soft hue of pink tinted her cheeks as she stared back at Sabo.

“We should do you next,” he said softly.

Her eyes widened. “My uncle would kill me,” she said through a chuckle.

“Stick it to the man,” he said, his eyes darting down to her lips briefly. “Who gives a damn what the older generation thinks?” Sabo pressed forward, lips mere centimetres from her neck. His breath fanned her skin. He could see the goosebumps raising on her skin. “I think they’d suit you. Here.” His teeth tugged on her earlobe. “Or here.” They moved a bit higher and tugged again.

Koala let out a quiet whimper.

The more he did, the more he wanted to do. He was more than tipsy, semi-hard and had the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen right in his bedroom. Of course Sabo wasn’t thinking straight. Their friendship status was complicated and messy, but he decided to go for it anyways.

He pressed his lips to her neck, just below where her ear met her head. His teeth nipped her skin.

“Sabo—“

He groaned. The way his name fell from her mouth, breathless and needy, sounded like sin. Any more and he would’ve done something they both would have regretted.

Knock knock.

Her hands were on his shoulder, and she shoved him back hard. 

“Sabs!” The door pushed open before he could say anything, and Ace pushed in, a hand over his eyes. “Are you guys clothed?”

“Ace.” As annoyed as he was, Sabo was glad for the interruption. They were heading towards very, very dangerous territory.

He peaked through his fingers. “Good. Your uncle’s looking for you,” he addressed Koala.

She pushed off the table and ran. Ace looked after her then turned to Sabo, grinning like a madman. “What was that?”

Sabo hung his head in his hands. “Remind me to never touch another can of cider. Please.”

“Oh please, I’ve done worse on less.”

He wanted to scream. What was that? Why’d he do that? This was fucked up.

 

———

 

Well, that was fucked up.

Koala could hardly breathe. She couldn’t think straight. On the car ride home all she could think of was his teeth on her neck.

She knew Sabo was weird, but that was new levels of weird. Why’d he do that? What was it supposed to mean? Did she… enjoy it?

“You okay?” Uncle Tai asked.

“Yes,” she answered too quickly, her voice an octave higher.

“You sure? Your face is red.”

“I-It was nothing.”

He obviously didn’t believe her. “Sabo didn’t do anything to you, did he?”

“What? No! Why do people keep thinking that?” Koala dragged her hands down her face. She just wanted to curl up into a ball and evaporate. This was too much on her mind. She had semi finals coming up. She needed to focus. Not get distracted by whatever the hell those mixed signals were. She thought Sabo hated her. What was that?

Maybe this was a good thing. Maybe it was a sign from the heavens that their acquaintanceship was moving towards the direction of a proper friendship. At the beginning of the night, he’d barely paid attention to Koala, leaving her to have to chat with Ace. Good to know he was no longer the bully she used to know.

Right, she told herself, this was a good thing. The icy wall between them was melting.

Only for Sabo to build it right up again.

While some saw the New Years as a time to party and have fun, Koala just saw it as more time to practice. She had a comp coming up, so she needed to focus. Too bad Nami didn’t exactly share the sentiment and only convinced Vivi to drag her to a bonfire party.

“It’s gonna be fun,” Nami was saying. “It’s, like, one of the biggest parties Yamato throws each year. Anyone who’s anyone gets to go.”

“As fun as that sounds, I’d rather go practice.” It was too late. She’d already done a full face of makeup and spent too much time picking out an outfit. No way she was gonna waste all that effort, and her friends knew that.

“Well, Vivi’s competing at the same competition, and she’s coming.”

Nami had a point.

“Koala, you’re basically a genius,” Vivi said. “You can afford to take just one day off.”

Vivi had a point. She did note that she was feeding her ego just to get her to comply. It worked.

“Exactly! Let’s have some drinks and let loose.”

“We can find you a boyfriend,” Vivi added, and Koala winced. She opened her mouth to shut down the offer, but Nami beat her to it.

“Don’t say no. Do you know how many guys at our school are practically foaming at the mouth to date you? Plus, you need the distraction from that person. You hang out with him too much.”

“You can barely call it hanging out. Also he has a name,” she muttered.

“Don’t say it,” Vivi said, shaking her head with a frown. “You’ll summon him.”

Koala giggled. “He’s not a demon. Don’t be silly.”

Her friend didn’t look convinced. “You don’t know that for sure.”

That had her laughing. “You think Sabo is a demon or something?”

“Don’t say his name!” She looked around wearily.

“The devil’s spawn more like,” Nami commented.

“Who’s the devil spawn?”

All three jumped as a voice sounded behind them. Relief filled Koala when she saw it was Ace and not his brother. It was short lived when she saw Sabo standing right behind Ace. She couldn’t read his eyes as he looked her over.

“I’m looking right at him,” Nami said, not missing a beat.

“Oh, ha ha,” Ace laughed dryly. “Who the fuck invited you? Vivi’s cool, but I don’t like you.”

“Yamato told me the deets. He and I are close.”

“I don’t believe that for a second.”

Vivi tugged on Koala’s arm. “Are you thirsty? I’m thirsty. Let’s go get a drink.”

“I don’t get why we’re running away from Sa—“

“Don’t say his name.”

Koala let out a laugh at her friend’s antics. “I’m not sure what’s gotten into you, but we’ll get you a drink.”

A few drinks and laughs later, and Koala felt herself start to genuinely open up and relax. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe it was the environment and having her friends to feel safe with. She’d spent so much time dancing and studying, she had forgotten what it felt like to cut loose. As long as Vivi and Nami were by her side, she felt a sense of calm.

The calm instantly vanished once she noticed her friends missing. They’d probably gone of to have some “private time” which Koala didn’t mind, but it was times like this when she hated being a third wheel.

“Great,” she muttered bitterly to herself as she weaved through the clusters of people scattered around the blazing hearth. Koala didn’t want to disturb her friends’ private time, but she didn’t want to be left alone. The feeling of unease started creeping up on her like ice cubes pressed down her back.

She made a beeline for the drinks table, intending to fill herself with liquid courage until Vivi and Nami decided to stop shoving their tongues down each others’ throats.

Whatever was mixed in the punch bowl would hopefully do the trick. Unfortunately, it’s pretty blue colour did nothing to stop it from tasting like pure cleaning fluids. She was about to toss the egregious excuse for a drink when she caught sight of Sabo on the other side of the bonfire. He was chatting to a group of people she assumed were friends. Even from this distance she could hear his infectious laugh ringing through the clearing.

Her heart fell a little seeing him do so well with others. It wasn’t that Koala was unhappy for him. It was good to see him happy in the presence of others considering their twisted past. She only wished she was the one making him smile like that. The longing to be by his side once more had her eyes burning up.

This wasn’t the place to cry. Squeezing her cup, she tipped her head back and downed as much as she could without throwing up.

“Woah there, you’ll make yourself sick if you don’t slow down.”

She set down her drink to face the boy who approached her.

“Didn’t mean to startle you.” His lips tugged up into a half smile. “I noticed your friends were missing and wanted to offer some company.”

“Oh,” she said softly. She tugged at her earlobe, offering a small smile. “That’s kind of you.”

“You’re Koala, right? I’ve seen you around school.”

She wasn’t sure why she felt so bashful all of a sudden. “Right. Sorry, I don’t know your name.”

He opened his mouth to respond, but somebody else cut in.

An arm wrapped around her shoulders, and she was tugged into someone’s side. “Is this guy bothering you?”

Lo and behold, it was Sabo. She frowned. He’d been avoiding her all night, and now he was holding her so close? She looked up at him to glare, but couldn’t bring herself to. Being in his embrace felt so nice.

“Umm, I…,” she wasn’t sure what to say.

“We were just talking—“

“She’s coming with me now.” Sabo was steering her in another direction before she could react.

“You can’t just do that, jackass.”

He stopped and turned to Koala. It took her a moment to realise he was waiting for her response. She couldn’t help but giggle at the absurdity of the situation. For some reason it was funnier to her than it actually was. She turned to the boy whose name she hadn’t even gotten and waved. “Bye!”

And just like that, she was whisked away like a damsel in distress saved by her Prince Charming. She was too much in a good mood to question what was happening. All she knew is that she felt good despite the lingering burn in her throat and gut from that vile drink.

With the warmth from the bonfire and being pulled into Sabo’s side, the biting cold was chased away, leaving her feeling warm and suddenly shy. She could smell his cologne. Koala didn’t even know guys her age wore cologne. His warm scent of cinnamon had a hint of an acrid smell from being so close to that fire. Her face burned like a fire.

“Where are we going?” she asked as he walked them further from the party, passing couples hiding their love in the shadows of the trees.

“Best seats in the house,” he said with a grin. “We can avoid all the lovebirds as we watch the fireworks.”

His grip loosened on her shoulder the further away they walked.

“Why didn’t you invite that guy back there?”

His expression turned sour. “He’s a snake. I saw him shedding his scales the other day.”

She shoved his shoulder, and he feigned a pained expression.

“He seemed kind enough.”

“Nah, don’t trust those beady, little eyes of his. You’ll get caught in his spell, and before you know it….” He then paused, a mischievous gleam to his eyes. “Snap!” Koala jumped. He gave a big smile, satisfied with her reaction. “You’ll fall victim to his lies.”

“You’re full of it!” she said with a laugh.

When Sabo grabbed her by the wrist, it sent a shock down her spine. The heat from his hand heavily contrasted the freezing night. “This way,” he said, leading her to a tree that stood in the middle of another clearing. Its branches were twisted and gnarled and still full of vibrant, green leaves. “Still remember how to climb a tree?”

She swatted his arm. “Of course I do.”

“Race you to the top.”

It was sudden and childish, but she still ran after him. Two drunk teenagers climbing a tree. What could go wrong? Koala, ever the more cautious one, always found herself getting influenced by Sabo’s reckless, impulsive antics.

Once she caught up to him on a large branch near the middle of the tree, Koala had to pause to catch her breath. It’d been a while since she’d done this, and who knew it could be so physically taxing?

“No fair,” she huffed. “You got a head start.”

Sabo didn't respond. He’d sat himself down and was staring up at the sky, through the gaps in the leaves. Casting her gaze up, she understood why he’d gone so quiet. Little pinpricks of light that shone between the leaves. Even with the obscured view, she couldn’t help but stare at its beauty.

“Careful.” His hands were on her, holding her close. She hadn’t noticed she was swaying. The world kept spinning. “It’ll be a pretty nasty bruise if you fall.” Warm breath fanned her face. She could smell the sweetness of his drink on his breath. The reminder of how high up they were made her stomach churn. The alcohol wasn’t sitting well, but she shoved that thought aside.

Her mouth went dry. If he leaned in any closer their noses would touch.

“This is where we kiss,” he said quietly.

Taken aback, her eyes went wide, cheeks ablaze. “Wh-What?”

Sabo chuckled. “It’s the New Year.” He gestured up with his head.

Fireworks. Bursts of colour filling up the sky in their booming glory. The claps of thunder had been drowned out by her own thundering heart. She hadn’t noticed.

Koala gave a small smile. “How pretty,” she said, feeling her head swirl. Looking up made her dizzy, but she couldn’t look away.

“Very pretty,” he said, tone just as soft, his eyes still on her. She glanced back at him, and he pulled away. Maybe it was her drunken haze, maybe it was the light from the fireworks reflected on him, but she could have sworn his face was red.

She giggled.

“What’s so funny?”

Koala shook her head. “Nothing. I hate the cold, but now I can’t feel it. Isn’t that weird?”

“Did you drink the blue stuff?”

She nodded eagerly before hanging her head in her hands. The world wouldn’t stop moving.

“Ace’s Miracle Drink. Think you’re gonna be sick?”

She shook her head. “I’m fine, I’m fine.” She desperately fought back the feeling of nausea, the rising bile in her throat, but not even two seconds later it all poured out, and she was leaning over the edge to throw up. A mix of liquid and chunks of whatever snack she'd had for dinner poured out from her like a gushing faucet. Sabo had to hold her to keep her from falling over. His hand patted her back.

“I saw you chugging it like water.”

“Big mistake,” she groaned. At least she felt tons better. Sure, she just emptied the contents of her stomach in front of the last person she’d want to do something so humiliating in front of, but she felt so relieved.

Koala didn’t remember how she got down, but suddenly she was on the ground and Sabo was supporting her.

“I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

“I am. I promise,” she tried to convince him. She tripped, and Sabo caught her. Now she was on his back. “Put me down, I’m heavy.”

Sabo didn’t respond. “Let’s get you back.”

Warm. Sabo was so warm. It radiated off him like a furnace. Koala shut her eyes and savoured it. His back expanded and contracted in a rhythmic way. She snuggled against him, intending to drift off to sleep, but he stopped, angry voices had her eyes fluttering open.

“What do you think you’re doing?” It was Nami.

“She’s wasted. I was helping her,” Sabo stated flatly. Whatever gentle tone it held earlier was long gone now.

“As if. Hand her over.”

Too soon, she was being lowered and dragged away from her personal warmer. She tried to protest, but her friends held onto her.

“Wait, but—“

“You’re drunk, Koala,” Vivi hushed, side eyeing Sabo. Her grip tightened around her friend. “You need to be more careful.”

“Darn, there goes my plan of murdering her and burying her in the woods.”

Koala rolled her eyes at his dark humour; Vivi looked horrified. “It’s just a joke,” she tried to reassure her.

Nami placed a protective arm around her, and together they dragged her away. “Stay away from her!”

“Bye, Sabo.” Koala tried to wave. Her head lolled back, and Nami had to support her.

He stood there, looking unimpressed, but gave a small wave.

Notes:

i love this chptr so much and i was so excited to post it. i just love the tension and silliness of it all. lmk what you think in the comments below!!

enjoy<3

Chapter 6

Summary:

It’s not a date, it’s not a date, it’s not a date (it’s so totally a date). Sabo gets offered a job but hesitates when he hears what it is….

Early January

 

“I need a fucking job,” Sabo wheezed as he sprinted. He was late. Dammit if only his pickup hadn’t broken down. Again.

It was only made worse when Ace had mocked him.

“How the fuck did you get a job before me?” Sabo had retorted in frustration. He had been looking through newspapers for job listings, yet every one that he’d found had crazy work hours that clashed with school.

“Are you tryna say that you’re better than me or something?”

Sabo had given his brother a smirk. “You said it, not me.”

Of course, that had upset Ace, but Sabo didn’t really care. “Need I remind you that I am the oldest?” he’d said.

“If you’re not gonna be helpful, scram!”

Ace rolled his eyes with a scoff. “Whatever. You should just start charging Koala for—“

“No. Not an option.”

Ace had looked at him in shock for how quickly he turned him down. “What? Are you two friends now or something?”

“I’m not gonna take her—“ Sabo froze. “Shit.” That’s when he grabbed his things and dashed out the door. It was Saturday. They had a session together which he had completely forgotten about. And if that piece of junk hadn’t failed its last MOT he wouldn’t have had to sprint all the way to their meet up place.

“I made it.” He found her sitting in the cafe, flipping through her notes. When she noticed him, she frowned. “I’m late, I know,” he wheezed as he pulled up a seat.

“You look like you ran all the way here,” she remarked.

Sabo looked her in the eye. “I did. My car keeps breaking down, at its last MOT, they found a bunch of problems with it which I can’t afford to fix ‘cause my ass is broke and unemployed and I see you’ve been studying while waiting for me— how was the competition?” He decided to change the subject.

Koala stared at him as he rambled, eyes wide with confusion. “Why didn’t you take the bus?”

“Bus drivers are on strike. Again,” he said with a strained tone. “Yeah, and I can’t find my bike and that’s why I’ve been consistently late to homeroom this entire week and Akainu’s been on my ass about it and I think he hates me. But none of that matters. How have you been?” He gave a very forced, painful smile.

She wasn’t sure how to answer. “Um… I came first at the semi-finals.”

“What? That’s amazing.” He was happy for her, truly. But he paused. “What exactly did you come first in?”

“I told you about this before I left? I was gone for a week,” she said slightly bemused.

Oh. He laughed dryly. “Must’ve slipped my mind.”

Koala was dumbfounded. “So this entire time I’ve been gone, you didn’t once wonder where I was?” Her tone was demanding, but Sabo sensed a little hurt in her voice.

“I thought you were skipping class for ballet,” he defended.

She pinched the bridge of her nose and inhaled deeply. “You’re weird,” she said finally. “Anyways, I was at Water 7. I competed in the YGLGP. The Youth Grand Line Grand Prix. It’s one of the biggest ballet competitions in the entire world.”

“And you won?”

“I came first in the semi-finals. Finals are in a few months.” She looked down.

“What’s with that look? Are you not feeling up to it?”

Koala hesitated. “I don’t really get stage fright, but when I think about it, my hands shake and I start messing up in practice.” She gave a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“There’s nothing wrong with you. Everyone gets a little nervous. I’m sure you’ll smash it.” When he smiled this time, it was genuine.

Koala stared at him before rolling her eyes with a huff. “You’re only saying that ‘cause you don’t know anything about ballet.”

“Am I that obvious?” He scratched his neck. “I don’t need to be some expert to believe in you.”

Her eyes shone, her brows furrowed. “Excuse me for a second.” She hastily got up and rushed to the restroom.

Sabo sat there wondering if he hurt her feelings. Maybe he should’ve listened to her more and let her vent. Did he say something to upset her? Ah, shit. He feared he messed up. They were starting to become friends, and he’d gone and ran his mouth.

When she did return, he spoke before thinking. “You wanna get out of here?”

“Huh?”

“We can go somewhere to celebrate you coming first at the… the Y… YMCA?”

Koala burst out laughing. It was nice to see. Her laugh was like chiming bells, light and jovial. Even when she snorted and slammed her hand over her mouth to cover up the sound in shock.

Sabo started laughing at that.

“It’s not funny!”

He continued laughing to the point people started staring.

Koala blushed a really deep shade of red. “Shut up.” She grabbed her stuff and stormed towards the door.

He chased after her. “Wait. I’m sorry.” He caught her wrist. “I wasn’t laughing at you, I swear.”

With a pout, she glared. “Then why were you laughing.”

“I… remembered funny.”

She turned on her heel and started walking off.

“Koala, wait. Your laugh was cute.”

She paused momentarily to look at him. It might’ve been his imagination, but he swore she was blushing harder.

“You’re just saying that to make me feel better.” Those deep blue eyes of hers scanned his face as if looking for a lie.

“I mean it,” he said softly, but Koala turned and continued.

“Whatever. Let’s just go.”

Her pouty lip and huffy attitude reminded him starkly of when they were kids. She would always have a no nonsense attitude with him— rolling her eyes at him and calling him dumb yet always helping tend his wounds. The sudden memory brought a painful pang to his heart. He decided to ignore it. They could have fun today and worry about their pasts later.

 

———

 

“I don’t need to be some expert to believe in you.”

It was like someone placed jumper cables on her heart and jump started it. Why was it beating so sporadically in her chest?

“Excuse me for a second.” Before she knew it, she was on her feet and rushing off to the restroom. She locked herself in a stall and took several deep breaths to try to calm her racing heart. Oh gods, why was her face on fire? Was she blushing?

Koala splashed her face with water and nearly yanked at her hair. She and Sabo were just friends. Nothing more, nothing less. Why was she reacting like this?

When she calmed down enough, she left.

Sabo offered to take her out to celebrate her coming first at the semi-finals. Him messing up made her laugh until she snorted.

She snorted.

It was so embarrassing. Koala wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Even worse he had the nerve to start laughing? It’s not that she had a huge, one-sided crush on him or anything, but he was really cute. Something about doing something so ugly in front of someone she found attractive made her want to run away and never show her face around Sabo again.

But he called her cute. Technically, he called her laugh cute, but the details didn’t matter. That sent her heart racing. Again.

Damn, she needed to get her hormones under control.

Now, they walked side by side. Aimlessly wandering around, looking for something. Anything.

She wasn’t sure she wanted to find it just yet. The two had settled into a comfortable silence. They hadn’t done that in years. She was enjoying her time with him.

Koala held her hands behind her back. When she looked over, she saw Sabo’s arms swinging by his sides. If she reached over, she could hold his hand.

But that would be weird, right? Right?

“What do you wanna do?”

His words broke her out of her thoughts. Koala looked up at him. Wow, he was tall. When had he grown? She used to be taller than him.

“Um… I’m not sure.” Now, Koala and her uncles had already done a ton of celebrations— they sure knew how to party, but now that the choice was hers, she wasn’t entirely sure.

“Here,” Sabo said as he offered her his blue jacket. The same paint stained one he was always wearing in school. “You were shivering.”

She hadn’t even noticed that. They were still in winter, and she had underestimated how cold it would be. Just that gesture alone made her warm up.

“Thank you.” Wearing it made her look so small. She was practically drowning in it, and her hands didn’t even reach past the cuffs. “You sure about the celebration? Didn’t you say you were broke?”

“I did say that, didn’t I? But it doesn’t matter.” He dismissed with a wave. “We should still celebrate you. C’mon, anything you want.”

Koala hummed. “Anything?” She couldn’t beat the smile that crept onto her face. “We did do a few celebrations at my academy—“

She stopped and tugged on his sleeve. Something across the street caught her eye.

“What is it?”

She grinned up at him as she pointed to the arcade across the street from them.

He made a face. “You wanna go to an arcade?”

Koala’s head bobbed up and down in barely constrained excitement.

“Really? Don’t you wanna—“

“It’s my celebration. We’re going.” She dragged him with her.

“If it’s about money—“

“It’s not about money.” She was practically skipping as they crossed the street. “I’ve always wanted to go to an arcade.”

“That’s fine and all. I just wanna give you something nice—“ he paused when her words registered. “You’ve never been to an arcade?”

Koala didn’t give an explanation as they browsed the different machines. She was never given an opportunity to visit one. Her mother called it “a waste of money like you.” Now that she was older, she was going to play until her eyes went square.

But she soon found herself overwhelmed by the selection of games. She didn’t know what she was doing.

Helplessly, she looked towards Sabo.

“It’s your first time in an arcade, huh?” He tapped his chin in thought. “How about DDR?”

She made a face. “It’s ’cause I’m a dancer, isn’t it. I’m not totally clueless. I know what that game is.”

“You don’t have to be a good dancer to play it. It’s fun. Trust me.”

Koala was skeptical until she started playing it. Okay, it wasn’t that bad. All she had to do was step on the squares as they lit up and follow the pattern on the screen. She soon found herself laughing at how badly she was doing. She would miss squares, step on the wrong ones and just completely mess up the rhythm.

“Gosh, you suck at this!” Sabo called at her.

“I know!” she said in distress, her grip tightening on the bar behind her. She looked over at his score. “You’re not much better.”

When the game finished, they ended up laughing hysterically at their abysmal scores.

“This is so embarrassing as a dancer,” Koala said around her laughter. She wiped away a tear.

“I told you you didn’t have to be a good dancer to play this.”

“I know, but you still sucked!”

“You were as bad as me. I can’t dance for shit.”

“That was fun!” She tugged on his sleeve eagerly. “Let’s do something else.”

Her heart was racing from all the excitement. Koala couldn’t recall the last time she’d had this much fun. Her days had been endless, packed to the brim with studying, classes and dance; her nights filled with nightmares of her past and constant breakdowns. Now, she felt the same freedom she felt on stage. Except this time, she didn’t have to pretend. No over the top makeup, no pretty tutus that either smelled or suffocated her, no blinding lights, no perfect smiles and constant corrections. She was free.

Truly free.

“What’s this game?”

Sabo explained to her the aim of Ninja Baseball Batman.

“Ace, Luffy and I would frequent this place a lot. I think Luffy still does with his weird group of friends.”

“They’re not all weird.” She knew a few of them, so she felt the need to defend them.

Sabo gave her a look. “Have you met them?”

“I’m close with Nami and Vivi. I do ballet with Sanji— okay, he’s not the best example.”

“Nami puts a price tag on everything.”

“The financial market just collapsed,” she defended. “Can you blame her?”

“And Vivi… I thought she was the most normal one of them, but every time I try to approach her she runs away.”

Koala laughed at that. “So I’ve noticed.”

“I’ve never even interacted with her. Do I scare her or something?” He looked so confused, Koala laughed harder. She recalled her friend going on about “the devil’s child” and him being otherworldly. “Whatever, let’s just play the game. Press this to jump. That let’s you move. You press this to attack. Now pick a player.”

“I want the red one.”

“I’ll take blue.”

The name of the game sounded pretty mild. Koala assumed it was a simple baseball game.

“Hit it!”

“I’m trying.” She desperately smashed at the buttons.

“You’re hitting the wrong button.”

Her health bar was quickly depleting. She pressed anything in hopes to actually land an attack. It didn’t work.

“Ugh! Let’s go again. I’ve got it this time. We can do this.” She was determined to beat at least Stage 1.

Koala and Sabo continued playing, shouting curses at the game until the final boss for the round appeared.

“What’s that?”

“Doesn’t matter. Just kill it!”

“It’s killing me!”

They were dead again.

The two exchanged a look.

“Windy Plane’s going down,” Koala said.

Sabo nodded in agreement. It continued like this. After several failed attempts and many inserted coins, they watched as Windy’s health bar turned fully red and it dropped food all over the place.

“We did it,” she said in amazement. “We did it!” She turned to Sabo and they cheered their accomplishment, pulling each other in a hug without thinking about it.

Realising this, they promptly pulled apart, refusing to meet each other’s gazes.

Koala’s heart was still racing and she blamed it on the adrenaline from winning.

She coughed. “Stage 2?” she asked without looking towards him.

He didn’t look her way either. “Sure.”

 

———

 

They were in the arcade for hours on that singular game. Sabo had no idea Koala could get so competitive in a video game. She’d always been competitive in karate—that much he remembered. But it was amusing to see her refuse to play any other game until they cleared every stage. Which they ended up doing.

By the time they reached the final stage and defeated The King Babe, it was dark outside.

“My eyes have fully gone square,” he groaned as he massaged them.

Koala had a bounce in her step. She was still riding her high from that win. “We beat The King Babe. Yes!”

He watched as she twirled around in her little happy dance. His heart swelled.

Turning to him, she gave him a huge grin that stretched from ear to ear. He liked that smile. This one seemed genuine like she was actually happy. Not that same polite smile she always sported.

“Thank you, Sabo. I had so much fun.”

“You’ve worked hard in ballet and classes. You deserved it.”

In the dim streetlight, he could still see the way she blushed from the praise. He racked his brain of something to say before things got awkward. He was enjoying this. He didn’t want to say goodnight to her yet. 

“Um—“

“Do you wanna grab something to eat?” She beat him to it.

He smiled. “You read my mind.”

They stumbled across a little burger joint. It was nothing fancy, but they were starving, and it was affordable.

“By the way, Sabo,” Koala started as they waited for their food, “do you mind if we move next Saturday’s session to Friday? I know Nutcracker season passed and we don’t have rehearsals for now, but I wanna get started on my piece for finals.”

“Is this for the YM- YG-“

“Let’s call it the Grand Prix.”

“That.”

She hid a chuckle behind her hand. “That,” she agreed.

He huffed. “I wouldn’t mind, but I have detention next Friday with Akainu.”

She grimaced.

“Yeah, I know. He said I missed homeroom too many times and issued me a detention and called home about it. But my moms don’t care.”

“Ninety minutes after school with him of all people is not good for your mental health,” she sympathised.

“Tell me about it. He hates teens. And children. And any form of species with its own thoughts and opinions. How’d he even get a job as a teacher?”

“I saw him screaming at a girl for wearing the wrong coloured socks because it was ‘against dress code’.” She rolled her eyes. “That girl was colourblind.”

“Fuck the dress code. He’s had it out for me and Ace since we started high school. I got unlucky by being placed in his homeroom for my final year.” Sabo huffed as he crossed his arms.

“At least we have, like, half the school year left.”

“I just hope Luffy doesn’t have to suffer the same fate as me.”

“I think Akainu would be more upset of having to be his homeroom teacher than your brother would be,” she added.

“Agreed. But it’ll be karma for all those times he’s told me to take off my jacket.”

“It is against dress code.”

“Whose side are you on?” She gave a shy look as she shrugged. “He reminds me of that teacher from Matilda. What’s her name?”

“Trunchbull?” Koala burst out laughing.

“Her! That’s who he is. Fucking Trunchbull with his hatred for children yet still teaching.”

She stayed laughing until their food arrived. Koala was struggling to catch her breath.

“That’s so like him,” she wheezed.

“Anyways, I’m dreading Monday.”

“What’s happening on Monday?”

“Besides a meeting between Trunchbull and one of my moms, I have to start my exam portfolio for photography.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad.”

“It accounts for forty per cent of my grade.”

“Oh, you poor thing,” she said quietly. “We have another end of topic test in economics next week, so I’m not too excited about that.”

“You’ll be fine. You’ve been improving.” He gave her a fond look. He was so proud of her. For months, they would go over the different chapters from class, reworking it so it would make more sense for her, and he was so proud of her growth.

“That’s because I have such a great tutor,” she started with her praise. “But if that tutor wasn’t always so late to our sessions together….”

He scoffed at the jab but didn’t take offence. “Don’t blame me. Blame that piece of junk I called a car. If it hadn’t broken down on me—“

“So it’s the car’s fault?” She cocked her head to the side.

“Look, I blame the economy for making it hard to find a job.”

“That’s so unserious.” She shook her head at that. “Yet so like you. But if you are struggling with money, I could start paying you—“

“No. We had a deal. I do this for free. I won’t start taking your money now.”

At the mention of their deal, her mood shifted. Koala turned her attention to her fries. He felt a bit bad for bringing down the atmosphere.

“I’ll do everything in my power to help you pass, Koala,” he said, his tone soft and low. 

She looked up at him and gave a small smile. “You don’t know how grateful I am,” she said just as quietly.

Unfortunately to them, their night had to eventually come to an end. Despite her protests, he paid for the both of them. It was her night. He didn’t want her spending a Berry on anything.

“I’ll walk you home,” he mustered up the courage to say. He didn’t know why he got so nervous about that. Sabo may have been totally clueless on dating and romance, but he knew this much at least. No thanks to Law. Plus, he wanted the night to last a little longer.

She nodded. “I would like that.”

As he walked her to her home, there was a sort of tension in the air that wasn’t there before. He wasn’t sure what it was. A thousand different thoughts ran through his head. Was he supposed to hold her hand? Was that something friends could do or was that purely for couples? Should he make small talk? What would they talk about? Why was he so nervous?

“This is me,” she said.

Sabo looked up to see they’d arrived at her home— completely different to the one she grew up in that he was used to.

He felt a little disappointed that they had to say goodnight now. He wasn’t sure why he felt like that though.

“About Saturday’s session.” His mind grasped for anything to say, but why this? Of all things— “we can chat later for a makeup session.”

She nodded. Koala looked towards her front door before looking back at Sabo. She stepped closer to him. “I really enjoyed myself today. Thank you.”

She pressed up onto her tippy toes to kiss his cheek. Then she turned and ran to her front door. Before closing it, she called over her shoulder, “call me when you get home.”

 

———

 

He was high. Which was weird because he hadn’t slipped into Ace’s stash. But Sabo knew that feeling of light headedness, the increased heart rate, the feeling of euphoria. Was there something in the air? Why was he feeling like this?

The place where Koala had kissed burned. He liked it. Strangely, he wanted more. But she was just a friend. That would be weird. 

When he made it home, Ace was sitting on the couch looking cross. He huffed at Sabo. “What time do you call this?”

He just grinned in response. “I lost track of time.”

“Sabo, I saved you a plate,” Rouge called from the kitchen.

“I’m not hungry.”

She popped her head out, a look of concern on her face. “You’re not hungry?”

Ace gasped. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” he said, taking his shoes off by the door. “I had dinner with Koala—“

That was a huge mistake. Suddenly, Rouge, Ace and somehow Dadan were in front of him interrogating him.

“Dinner? Where’d you go? Was it her place?”

“Y’all went on a date? I thought you were studying.”

“You finally grew a pair of balls?”

Sabo rolled his eyes at Ace’s comment. “It wasn’t a date. She won the semi-finals at some ballet competition. I took her to an arcade to celebrate and then we had some dinner together.”

They blinked in unison.

“An arcade?” Dadan questioned. “What are you? Middle schoolers?”

“It’s what she wanted, and I was happy to take her. We had fun.”

When he tried to walk past them, they followed. “What more do you want to know? I told you everything.”

“Tell us more!” Rouge urged. “What was she wearing? Did she put on makeup?”

“Uhh, I think she was wearing makeup—“

“That was totally a date, dipshit,” Ace spat. “How could you be so dense?”

He rolled his eyes again. Ace was one of the only people who knew how to wind him up without making him snap.

“Wait.” Dadan grabbed his arm. “Who paid?”

They stared at him expectantly, and Sabo began to sweat. Why were they interrogating him? It was just two friends hanging out. No big deal.

“I’m a feminist, so I won’t mind if she wants to split a bill—“ They opened their mouths to reprimand him, but he spoke over them. “I paid. Yeesh, what is wrong with you people? Now, if you’ll excuse me I need to go call her.”

“Call? You’re calling Koala?” Rouge gasped. Like a bunch of baby chicks, they followed him to the kitchen.

He picked up the landline and dialled. “After I walked her home, she told me to call her when I get back.”

Rouge covered her mouth as she gasped again, and Dadan held her. He looked at them strangely.

“Rouge… he’s becoming a gentleman.”

“Shoo!” He tried to get them to leave as the phone rang.

“Nuh-uh.” Ace had a mischievous smile on his face. “We wanna hear.”

“Go away— Koala?”

They went quiet as she answered the phone, watching and listening closely.

“Hey Sabo,” her sweet voice came through the other end.

He subconsciously smiled. He liked hearing her voice. “Just letting you know I made it home okay. Didn’t get… kidnapped or anything.” He regretted it the moment the words came out of his mouth. In the corner of his eye, he saw Ace cringe.

Koala just laughed. “I’m glad to hear. Um… about today, thanks again. I know I keep saying this, but I really did have so much fun.”

“If you had fun that’s all that matters. I’m glad…. I really enjoyed myself too.”

There was a pause, and neither of them said anything. Sabo was fine with the silence save for the fact that his little audience had grown with the addition of Luffy, stuffing his face with a snack as he watched.

“Sabo,” she said suddenly.

“Yeah?” His gaze flickered to the piercing gazes.

“You know, I may be able to help you get a job.”

“Really? That would be awesome.”

“You used to play piano right?”

His smile dropped at that, and his heart fluttered in fearful anticipation. His family were now concerned at the shift in expression. “Yeah, I did.” His voice didn’t hold the former liveliness it had when speaking to her. “Why?”

“Viola’s looking for a part time pianist. Come to the Academy of Ballet, Contemporary and Dance tomorrow afternoon. If you get the job, you’ll be able to fix your car in no time!”

Koala sounded so enthusiastic about it. But Sabo wasn’t so sure.

“Look, Koala, that sounds great and all, but—“

“The pay’s five thousand Berry an hour.”

That changed everything. “I’ll be there.”

“So I’ll see you tomorrow?”

Now he couldn’t say no. The pay was way too enticing. “I’ll see you.”

“Goodnight, Sabo.”

“Goodnight, Koala.”

For a moment, neither of them hung up. Sabo was the first to put the phone down, and his audience immediately pounced on him.

“What was that? What did she say?”

“Why’d you start frownin’ suddenly?”

“Hey, Sabo, can I borrow your Walkman?”

“What did you two talk about?”

Sabo zeroed in on Luffy. “No. What happened to yours?”

He looked like he’d just been caught. He nervously side glanced his moms. They had just bought him that for Christmas. “So… how’s Ko… Koko doing?” He offered a sheepish smile.

Sabo dismissed it to address their other questions. “Looks like I’m getting a job.”

“Great, but why don’t you look excited?” Dadan voiced their thoughts.

He hesitated before answering. “It’s a job as a pianist.”

Their expressions fell.

Chapter 7

Summary:

Why is Sabo so hesitant about working as a pianist? We find out his messy past with the piano. Koala resolves her feelings towards her blond idiot.

Mid-January

 

“Again.”

“But my arms hurt—“ 

“Again,” came his mother’s biting tone from where she watched in the corner. The piano teacher gave her a nervous glance.

Sabo turned to the black and white keys, blurring grey as his vision swam— eyes burning from staring at the same score and hands cramping and biceps screaming from practicing tirelessly for hours on end. The music notes on the sheet before him started moving, dancing across the paper until he wasn’t sure of what he was supposed to be playing anymore.

His arms assumed position to start the waltz from the beginning. He looked at his teacher, waiting for him to start the metronome.

In his peripheral, his mother smiled, her perfectly painted lips twisting up. “Remember, Sabo, doing this makes your parents happy. Don’t you want us to be happy?”

He turned back to look at his trembling hands. He didn’t want to do this anymore. But he didn’t want to let his parents down. They would stop loving him.

The metronome swung.

Tick, tick, tick—

The world went black.

 

~

 

Sabo wasn’t sure why that of all his memories from playing the piano resurfaced. Surely, he must have happier moments with the instrument. He’d spent years pushing it down, hiding it away, doing anything and everything to forget. Yet as he stood in front of the ABCD building, he felt a chill go up his spine.

He needed the money. What’s a little childhood trauma? He’s been through worse— the scars scattered on the left side of his body were testament to it.

He would be fine.

Sabo wandered around the building. The woman at the front desk told him to go to studio D after he had introduced himself.

The first thing he noticed over the faint music and sounds of chatter from varying rooms was the rosin. That was something he had never thought he’d ever smell again, and it pinched a nerve in his brain that unlocked a whole boatload of memories from competitions when he briefly did violin. Sabo shivered. As he wandered around the halls, passing classes of dancers young and old, he bumped into the last person he wanted to see. Or at least, he was the last person she ever wanted to see because he still could not understand why she was so damn scared of him.

“Vivi.” He nodded his head in acknowledgment, trying to keep his distance. He tried to keep his voice as low and gentle as possible lest she sprinted off like a startled bunny. He still had no idea why she would run from him. “Do you know where Koala is?”

Wordlessly, she pointed to the side— to studio A— brows tugged down in bewilderment and confusion and— was that fear?

“Thanks.” He flashed a toothy grin which only made her frown deepen.

Sabo walked up to the glass door and stopped. Koala and another woman were inside. He assumed she was her teacher. She was tall and tan with long black hair that reached her hips. Her dark brown eyes analysed every move Koala made as she danced.

“Leg! Leg!” she shouted in what he assumed was supposed to be an encouraging tone. “Up, up, up,” she said as Koala spun around the room on her tippy toes.

When her eyes caught Sabo’s she faltered in her step and fell. She let out a little scream as she hit the floor but quickly got up and straightened herself.

“You okay?” her teacher called, not moving from her spot. It must have been common for how unconcerned she seemed. She did, however, give Sabo an annoyed look.

Sabo panicked. He rushed in to check up on her. “Oh my gods, are you okay?” he fussed.

Koala brushed him off. “I’m fine. I’m fine.”

“You sure? It sounded like it hurt.” It was a very loud, painful-sounding thud.

“It’s more common than you think,” she explained, pointing to her shoe. “I just went over the box a bit. No big deal.”

“Right.” He nodded despite not knowing what she meant.

“And who is this?”

With an excited grin, Koala pulled Sabo to meet her teacher. Her eyes shone with pride as she introduced the two. “Ms. Viola, this is Sabo. The one I was telling you about?”

He held out his resumé to her, suddenly feeling nervous again. Her eyes scanned the papers before looking at him unsure.

“You started piano at three?” She had a thick Dressrosan accent.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You can sight read?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She studied him for a second, her gaze scrutinising. Sabo would be grateful when people stopped putting him under a microscope like he was some organism to be picked apart.

She turned to Koala. “Flats or pointes?”

“Uh, pointes?”

Viola gestured for both of them to follow. Studio D was much larger than A, but like the other one it, too, had barred lined up on the walls without mirrors. Unlike the other one there was a baby grand piano in the corner. Seeing it made his heart spike a bit. Taking deep breaths, he pushed aside his negative thoughts. He was ready. His family had spent all weekend helping him work over his “fears” as they dubbed it.

“Sabo, you come here.” She ruffled through a cabinet and pulled out a stack of sheet music. Handing them to him, she said, “you play, and Koala will dance. I want you to start playing for barre exercises. Go warm up.”

Sabo couldn’t remember the last time he played the piano. Which was probably a good thing. He recalled lessons, rehearsals, recitals, but drew blanks at when he actively decided to abandon what used to be his passion and the one thing he loved. And now, he flipped through the stack of sheet music he was handed to help aid in Koala’s passion. What a funny twist of fate. 

He glanced over to see Viola explaining an exercise to Koala. She’d been so excited about this for his sake. He wanted to do this for her sake. Plus, he would get to hang out with her more.

As he warmed up his hands he couldn’t help but keep sneaking glances at her. He’d only seen her in her tutus and full makeup for the Nutcracker. Now, she was dressed in a striped leotard under tights. Her hair pinned back in a neat bun with a few bangs hanging loose.

“Sabo,” Viola snapped him out of his thoughts. She looked back at Koala then at him and frowned. With one hand on her hip, she wagged her finger at him. “If you want to work here don’t get distracted by my dancers. And don’t distract my treasure.”

“Yo-Your what?”

“For barre exercises, we use either 2/4 or 3/4. Understand?”

He nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Good. I give you a counting start, and I want you to watch the dancers. Match the energy. Pay attention to how they react to the music. I tell you when to slow down or speed up or play more lively. Understand?”

He nodded again. “Yes, ma’am.”

In all honesty, Sabo thought he had forgotten how to play the piano. Having learned from a young age, it’s become second nature to him. So many years of hard work engrained into every last corner of his brain and turned into muscle memory.

Once he got used to the repetitive bars of the piece, he glanced up at Koala. Her body moved expertly to the beat of the music. Her leg would move out, come in, move out, come in. Her arm came over her head; she bended forward—

Out of respect, he looked down at his hands on the keys. He could feel Viola’s gaze boring into the side of his face.

The piece ended, and they both watched the ballet teacher expectantly. She hummed and walked back to her cabinet. Was that a good thing?

He looked to Koala for help. She shrugged.

Viola walked over and handed him another sheet of music. “Play this.”

The “Sugar Plum Fairy”. He knew this one like the back of his hand, yet he set them up anyways. One look at the opening brought back a wave of memories so strong he wasn’t sure whether to sigh with nostalgia or cringe with how much he’d played it.

“We use live pianos so our pre-pro dancers get used to it. Understand?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Koala, Sugar Plum.”

It didn’t matter how many times he watched her dance, Sabo would always find her grace and artistry to be breathtaking. Even during an interview where she was only being used as practice, she took to her role with the same seriousness as she did on stage. He was bewitched.

When the piece ended, Koala looked at Viola, but Sabo was still staring at her.

“That’s my treasure,” Viola said with a fond smile to Koala. She turned to Sabo with less enthusiasm. “I want you here right after school on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Then again on the weekend.”

He stared at her in bewilderment. “I got the job?”

“Yes, but I have a few things for you. You like watching Koala dance, no? She is a very lovely girl. Talented dancer. But don’t get distracted by my treasure.”

“Y-Yes, ma’am.” Was he seriously that obvious?

She gave a tight lipped smile. “Good. Koala, your private class is finished.”

She walked up to her and curtsied before curtsying to Sabo. She giggled at his confused expression.

“Ballet culture,” was the only explanation she offered. “You wanna walk home together?”

“Sure. I’ll help you with your stuff.” He moved to follow her, but Viola stopped him. 

“You stay here. Only dancers can enter the changing rooms.”

“Of course… sorry.” Sabo was quite the rebel at school and home, but something about Viola had him biting his tongue and lowering his head. She scared him. 

 

———

 

“I think she hates me.”

Amuses, Koala glanced up at her brooding friend. “What? Viola doesn’t hate you.”

Sabo released a long, heavy sigh. “All she did was glare and narrow her eyes at me. The entire time!”

“It’s a cultural difference,” Koala excused. “She is from Dressrosa after all. They probably do things differently there.”

After she offered they walk home together, Sabo had agreed when she totally expected him to shut her down. He was such a gentleman. He was even carrying her bag for her. Now, Koala wasn’t interested in Sabo like that, but if she were to date anyone, she wanted to date someone like him.

“This is all easy for you to say because she loves you.” He rolled his eyes. “My treasure this, my treasure that.”

It was true she was the only student Viola had a pet name for. “Well… it just….”

“See? Favourites.”

“It doesn’t mean Viola hates you. She hired you on the spot!”

“Probably ‘cause you recommended me.”

It was Koala’s turn to roll her eyes. “Why are you being so sour? You finally got a job. I thought you’d be happy.” His sour mood was starting to sour her mood. She was trying to be happy for him, yet he was brewing with negativity.

“I am happy. I’m just tired of adults always looking for reasons to hate me.”

“That’s because your reputation precedes you.”

“What reputation?”

She stopped and stared at him. “Seriously? Sabo, I’ve been gone for a full school year, and even I know.”

“Know what?” He scratched his chin, looking genuinely confused. “What have I ever done wrong? Okay, there was that one time I accidentally got a teacher fired, but he had it coming.”

“What?” Her eyes widened in disbelief.

“In my defence, I was tired of the way he kept belittling us and never actually teaching the syllabus. I may have questioned his qualifications as a teacher, and he may have blown up at me in front of the principal— but it wasn’t really my fault.”

She didn’t know what to say to that. “Okay,” she said slowly. “What my sources told me is that you used to cause fights?”

“They started it. Not me.”

Koala decided not ask who “they” were. “And that you’re a heartbreaker.”

Surprised, he whipped his head towards her. “I’m a what?”

“I was told you keep breaking people’s hearts by constantly turning them down.”

“Well… I mean I do, but that doesn’t make me a heartbreaker. I’m not tryna string anyone along or anything. It just… happens.”

Now she was interested. Koala blocked his way, looking up at him with a questioning gaze. “Really? How?”

He avoided her gaze. “I’m just… not ready for a relationship. That’s why I keep turning people down.” He walked around her.

“You sure it’s not a special someone you’re interested in?” Why the hell did she ask that? Before she could stop herself, she was asking the question against her better judgement. Maybe it was just her protectiveness taking over, but the thought of Sabo having some crush he was pining over to the point of rejecting everyone that made an advance on him didn’t sit well with her. She wasn’t sure why.

Sabo faltered. He let out a chuckle. “No such thing.”

Koala wasn’t sure which response would’ve upset her more. She didn’t like that answer.

They spent the rest of the walk in silence.

Sabo was about to say goodnight, but she didn’t want to leave him just yet.

“Come inside,” she blurted out. He was now staring at her. Koala rushed the rest of her words. “We can’t meet on Friday, so why not just have our makeup session today? If it’s okay with you that is. I know it’s short notice but still….”

Heat crawled up her neck in embarrassment. Why did she have to go and open her big mouth?

A corner of his mouth tugged up in a smile. “Sure.”

 

———

 

You fool, Sabo mentally cursed himself.

There was a moment in his life where one could have labelled him a player, fuckboy, manwhore (Ace’s favourite one) or anything along those lines. He’d been inside a girl’s room before, but stepping into Koala’s room had his heart threatening to jump out of his chest. Everything just screamed her— from the Uta posters to the countless trophies and medals adorning the walls and the shelves with multiple pictures of her grinning for each occasion she’d won something. There was a pile of ballet shoes in the corner and a few pairs on the windowsill. 

Sabo was trying to explain to her the marketing mix when he heard her laugh.

“What’s so funny?” He was barely able to look at her.

“Are you shy?” she whispered.

He glanced at her before looking back to her notes. Even her hand writing was pretty.

“Why would I be shy?”

She bumped his shoulder. “I don’t bite.”

That’s not what he was worried about. But her voice was right next to his ear. It gave him goosebumps, and his blood rushed to his lap.

No. He couldn’t be thinking like that now. They were studying. They were just friends. He didn’t want to ruin what they had going on with his stupid hormones.

“Sabo,” her voice called out, low and smooth. Ugh, the way his name rolled off her tongue was trouble on its own.

He looked over at her. “Yes?” he breathed.

Looking at her, he noticed how close she was sitting. Clearly, it was for the sole purpose of seeing the notes in front of them. But if he leaned over….

“I just wanted you to look at me,” she whispered.

His heart started a whole gymnastics routine in his chest. A fire lit in his gut, and he was overcome with how badly he wanted to taste her lips, as plump and rosy as they were.

Before either of them could make a move, however, the landline rang. It caused both of them to jump.

“I’ll go answer that.” Koala rushed downstairs to pick up the phone.

It gave Sabo reprieve. He took deep breaths. Wow… wow. He really let his hormones take over for a second. He could’ve really destroyed things between them. What if she didn’t reciprocate? What if she pushed him away and cursed him?

Yet a small part of him wondered, what if she didn’t?

Koala eventually returned, and Sabo felt his head was clearer. Being in such close proximity to her in her room really fucked up his feelings for a second.

She looked a little disappointed. “That was Ace. He wanted to know if you were here.”

“Did you tell him I was?”

“Yeah. Was I not supposed to?” She tilted her head.

He shut his eyes. Ace was going to be on his case the moment he stepped through that door.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I should probably head home.”

Koala didn’t say anything as she walked him to the door.

He turned to say bye. She was pouting, her eyes staring with a silent plea.

“Can’t you stay a little longer?”

Sabo wanted to. He so desperately wanted to. “I really should head home.”

That deepened her pout.

He got an impulsive thought. Leaning forward, Sabo pressed a kiss to her cheek before turning and walking away, muttering a quiet “goodnight” as he fled.

 

———

 

“You… you what?”

Koala rolled her eyes at Nami’s dramatics. “Enough with that face you’re making. I’ve already told you what happened.”

Nami tried to relax her look of disgust. “I’m just trying to wrap my head around this. He took you out on a date—“

“Not a date.”

“Sounded like a date to me,” Vivi piped up.

“Whatever. After that, you kissed him on the cheek and then he kissed you on the cheek, and you two aren’t a thing?”

Koala stared at her friends as she answered simply, “yes.”

They both sighed deeply.

“Now you understand my distress?” she asked.

“What’s with all the cheek-kissing? What is this, middle school?” Nami scoffed. “You have a crush on a boy— ew. And that boy is Sabo— double ew.”

“Nami!” both Vivi and Koala reprimanded her.

“What?” she demanded. “Vivi, you don’t even like him. You’re scared of him ‘cause you think he’s a vampire.”

Koala turned to her in disbelief and watched her friend get all shy.

“Haven’t you seen that movie that came out recently?” was her defence. “The one of the werewolves and vampires that sparkle in the sun? He’s really pale, he’s got those snake bite piercings—“ she lowered her voice. “And he looks like he would drink blood.”

Koala didn’t even know where to start. “Vivi. Vampires aren’t real.”

“But—“

“I grew up with Sabo. He’s not a vampire.”

“But he’s Luffy’s brother,” Nami added. “I warned you about those three.”

She rolled her eyes heavenward. “What’s the worst that could happen? He’s literally just a boy.”

“Not just any boy,” Vivi said. “I swear something’s up with those brothers. Him especially.”

“You both hang out with Luffy. What’s so wrong with me hanging out with Sabo?”

They didn’t have an answer for that.

“Hypocrites.”

Nami got up and waltzed to her bedroom door.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m gonna go find out what Sabo thinks of you.” She sprinted downstairs as Koala got up to chase her, Vivi following close behind.

“Nami!” Koala started panicking. She had no idea what her friend was going to do. “Nami, don’t you dare pick up that phone.”

“You said you like Sabo, right?” She slowly picked up the phone.

“No! Yes? I don’t know, but please don’t dial their house number.”

Vivi stood between them. “Why don’t we all just calm down? We should think about this rationally. Nami, Koala’s still processing her feelings. Koala, Nami just wants to help. We should just think of a different, less drastic solution.”

Nami stared in awe at her girlfriend. “Aww, babe, you look so pretty when you’re being all diplomatic. But it’s too late. I have their house telephone on redial.” She pressed the button, and Koala had to choke back a scream.

She lunged for the phone, but Nami held it out of reach. Vivi desperately tried to get her friends to stop fighting.

“Hello?” came a voice on the other end of the receiver. “I’m Monkey D. Luffy, and I’m—“

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. We get it, Luffy,” Nami promptly cut him off, putting him on speaker. “Where’s blondie?”

“Huh? Blondie? You mean Sabo?”

“Yes, him. Get your brother on the phone.”

“Luffy, don’t—“

Nami clamped a hand over Koala’s mouth.

“Sabo went out with Ace for drinks. They should be back soon.”

Koala felt so much relief to hear he wasn’t home. Yet Nami persisted.

“Ugh, fine. Luffy, what do you know about Sabo when it comes to Koala?”

“Nami!” Vivi hissed. “You can’t ask someone else what he thinks about Koala.”

“Vivi?” Luffy excitedly called. “Hiii!”

“She’s here. Now answer the damn question.”

There was a long pause on the other end. “Who’s Koala?”

Okay, ouch. She used to give him candy. Granted, he was in diapers but still! She used to go over to his place whenever Sabo was around which was pretty frequent before his parents got really strict about his piano classes.

“Short, ginger. Blue eyes?”

“Uhhh.”

“Doesn’t your brother tutor her?”

“Oh, Panda!” he said in recollection. “Her. They went on a date recently, but Sabo refuses to call it a date, and Ace says he’s in denial—“

“We already know— did you just call her Panda?”

Koala didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Panda? Where the hell had that come from?

“Oh! He said he doesn’t wanna date her.”

Now, that actually hurt her. “What?” she asked quietly. Her friends glanced at her, worried.

“Luffy, explain yourself,” Nami demanded.

“He and Ace got drunk and started arguing. He said he didn’t wanna date her, but Ace knew he was lying, but he kept saying it was complicated. Then they got into a fight.”

There was chatter in the background. Conversation that they couldn’t make out properly. All three girls pressed close to the phone to try to hear.

“Oh, I’m just talking to Nami and Vivi.”

“Luffy? Who is that? Is it Blondie? Put him on this damn phone!” Nami was upset on her friend’s behalf. Luffy’s words didn’t sit well with any of them.

“She wants to talk to you.”

“I don’t wanna talk to her,” they heard his voice faintly, and Koala felt her heart squeeze. She was still confused about her feelings towards him, yet hearing his voice made her body react against her will. “If it’s about money—“

“Sabo, get on the line!” Nami screamed.

“What do you want?” he asked, annoyance in his voice as he finally picked up the phone.

Nami forced a smile. “What do you think of Koala?”

They could hear the surprise in his voice. “Wh—“

“Answer the question.” Her teeth gritted together.

“Koala’s a friend. She’s a hard worker. She’s… dedicated.”

Nami rolled her eyes. “Those are the obvious things. Everyone knows that.”

“I’m sorry, what exactly are you asking me?”

“Don’t play dumb with me. You know exactly what I’m asking.”

“Why does this feel like a trap?” he muttered to himself, but they all heard. There was hesitance on his end before he sighed and admitted softly, “she’s cute.”

Vivi turned to her in shock and shook her arm. Koala could hear her blood rushing in her ears.

“Uh-huh. Tell me more.” Nami, for some reason, had a smug look on her face. She didn’t like where this was going.

“Have you ever seen her dance?”

“Of course.” She could practically hear the grin in his voice. “She’s a beautiful dancer. I don’t know much about the world of ballet, but she’s incredible on stage. Her smile, her presence, the way she moves… it’s all amazing. You can tell she’s put in a lot of time and hard work, and I admire that about her.”

Koala was damn near certain her entire face was redder than a tomato. There was a flame in her chest, spreading its warmth through her body.

“That’s all sweet, but why did you say you didn’t want to date Koala?”

Nami’s words brought her down from whatever cloud she was on. They all waited expectantly for his answer.

“What? When did I—“ he released a frustrated groan. “Where did you— I was drunk and my feelings were in a mess. I didn’t mean it like that.”

“You were just out drinking. So everything you said about Koala now was also due to the alcohol? You don’t mean it?”

“Nami,” Koala whispered. She was starting to feel bad for him.

“Who the fuck do you work for? Cipher Pol? Look, Nami, I don’t know what games you’re tryna play here—“

“I’m just trying to make sure you’re not playing games with my friend.”

There was silence. When he answered, there was a tightness to his tone. “Koala’s a lovely girl. But after everything that happened with Law, I just don’t know if I’m ready for a relationship again. I’m still trying to sort out my feelings from that mess. Now, goodnight.”

“Wait—“

Click. He hung up.

Nami stared at the phone, offended he’d hung up on her. “The nerve. Wipe that grin off your face, Koala.”

“I think that was a good thing,” Vivi said, still somewhat unsure. “He said lots of good things about you.”

“He also said he isn’t ready for a relationship,” Nami added.

Koala didn’t care. She was elated. She liked Sabo.

Notes:

now we’re actually getting into the story ayyy. hope youre excited cuz i cant wait to show y’all what ive got in store :DDD

spoilers: it aint all sunshine and rainbows. enjoy<3

Chapter 8

Summary:

CW// masturbation

Koala gets horny, then she gets jealous. They kiss. Properly this time.

Mid- to Late-February

 

One kiss. Koala was losing her mind over one kiss.

And it was pretty tame. It’s not like he kissed her deeply on the lips or anything. It was a quick peck on her cheek. That set her entire body ablaze. Who knew it would take so little to do so much to her? Nami was right. She was acting like some middle school kid. She needed to act her age and get her hormones under control. Yet every time she thought about that kiss, she could feel a warm tingle where his lips briefly touched.

The moment she had closed the front door, Koala started jumping up and down in pure glee. It may not have seemed like much to an outsider, but to her it meant more than even she would have thought.

And all it took was that small kiss to set off everything in motion.

It was a rare night of undisturbed sleep. It was an even rarer night where she remembered her dream when she woke up. 

“Oh gods,” she muttered to herself after she woke with a start, groggy and disoriented. In her chest, her heart hammered wildly. She felt a throbbing between her thighs as she rubbed them together for more friction. Remnants of the dream floated around in her head, only amplifying her horny state.

A wet dream. She had had a wet dream of Sabo.

Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods— 

Was this normal? She didn’t want to be a pervert about her developing feelings for Sabo. Sure, she might’ve been interested in him, but it wasn’t that deep of an interest. Was it? 

But he was really cute. And he was so handsome. The way he exuded confidence made him look cocky at times, but she thought it made him look even more handsome. And the way he grabbed her waist to move her out the way of a cyclist one day. It had flustered her because it made her realise she was into small things like that— being held by the waist. And the way those long, slender fingers of his would spin his pen absentmindedly that would tap against his lips from time to time.

As she daydreamed about Sabo, her thighs only rubbed together more. Her hand travelled into her pants, fingers brushing against her wet entrance. She let out a small gasp at the contact.

Pushing in a finger, Koala bit her blanket to muffle her moan. She pulled it in and out, relishing in how easily it glided, coated in her juices.

Her mind raced with thoughts of Sabo. She wanted him. Wanted him to kiss her, touch her, hold her. Every time he smiled, every time he spoke in his deep, soft voice, every laugh, every glance— it had taken forever to realise it, but she was well aware now. She was so attracted to him. He set her heart on fire in all the best possible ways.

“Sabo,” she murmured. The feeling in her gut tightened. Her finger moved faster. She was so close. The pleasure was going to her head. Her whole body felt weightless.

Knock knock.

Jolted out of her headspace, Koala quickly turned over and pretended to be asleep. Where her face had heated up with pleasure, it now burned with embarrassment.

After a few seconds of no answer, the door pushed open.

“Koala?” Uncle Tai called softly as he popped his head in. “I just got back from my trip. You should start getting ready for school.”

The door closed.

Koala was mortified she’d nearly been caught touching herself. Well, at least she was now fully aware of her feelings for Sabo.

She just didn’t realise girls from her class would go after her man. Her soon-to-be man to be more exact, but the details didn’t matter. She’d be damned if she let them get their hands on him first.

Sabo started work on Tuesday with Bon Clay. But he worked with a younger group of kids, so seeing a bunch of tiny kids in awe about how tall he was and how well he played the piano didn’t phase her. It was the cutest thing she’d seen in a while, and it made her heart burst.

It was Wednesday that made her blood boil. There were whispers immediately after Viola introduced Sabo as their new part time pianist. As she helped move barres across the room, she noticed how a few of her peers swarmed Sabo only to get shooed away by Viola.

But could she blame them? Not only was he insanely attractive, but he was also really talented.

His piano playing paired perfectly with their barre exercises. Every time she turned she would sneak a glance at him. He looked so focused, trying to match his playing to their energy. A silly grin crossed her face, she was so proud of him.

“Focus.” Viola snapped her fingers at her. She nearly messed up the combination.

Viola made sure to stand at the piano as they moved the barres away. A silent warning to all.

“Why’s he here?” Vivi whispered to her, nodding her head towards Sabo.

“He’s our new pianist,” she said simply.

“You know that’s not what I meant!”

“I’m with Vivi on this.” Sanji joined their conversation, glowering at the new, intruding blond. “I don’t like him.”

“Sanji, what’s Sabo ever done to you?”

He pressed his fingers to his forehead dramatically. “He’s stealing the attention of all the pretty women.”

Koala ignored him. Honestly, it was her fault for asking. “He needed a job, so I suggested him to Viola—“

“Koala, Sanji, come demonstrate,” Viola called.

As they made their way towards the centre, Vivi mouthed, “favouritism.”

Koala internally rolled her eyes as she stood before their male teaching assistant to demonstrate a press lift. Viola was not playing favourites all because she hired Sabo just because Koala had recommended him personally— okay, the more she thought about it, the more she saw Vivi’s point, but she was being lifted into the air before she could ponder it further.

 

———

 

There they were again. Like a pack of vultures to fresh meat, Koala watched as more girls surrounded him at the piano. After their bow to Sabo, they went straight to bombarding him with trivial, nonsensical questions like:

“How old are you?”

“What school do you go to?”

“Are you single?”

“What’s your home phone?”

He balked at that one. But he rejected all their advances or expressed a lack of interest. That he was just there to play the piano, and that was that. His answers clearly had no influence from Viola who watched like a hawk from across the room, clear disappointment towards her students written across her face. “Girls!” she called, and they scattered momentarily. The minute her back was turned, they scampered back to him. Koala subconsciously clenched her fists.

“…drop you off?” Vivi was saying.

Koala turned to her. “What? I didn’t get that.”

Vivi gave her a look. “Were you even listening?” She glanced at Sabo then back at her. “I said, after your next class do you wanna hitch a ride with me?”

“Oh, no thanks. I’ll walk home with Sabo.”

“I could always walk you home, my dearest Koala.” Sanji’s offer went ignored.

“Seriously? You’re choosing him over me?”

“Vivi, it’s not like that. We can still hang. I just have to sort this out then we can head to strength training together.”

“Koala—“

She got up and headed to the piano. Koala pushed herself through the small group gathered at the corner. They were all laughing at something Sabo had said. Standing before him with her hands behind her back, she gave her brightest smile, feigning innocence and good intentions.

“Hey, Sabo.” She needed to make it known to his little fan club that they were friends. She was his friend first. Normally, she wasn’t very possessive or one to get easily jealous, but seeing him surrounded by fawning, attractive girls his age made her eye twitch.

He smiled at her. “Hey, Koala. You looked amazing as always.”

He was basically doing her job for her. As always? Her heart melted.

She leaned against the piano and placed her chin in her hands, batting her lashes down at him. “I have another class but do you think you can walk me home?”

“Sure. I don’t mind waiting.”

His smile nearly brought her to her knees. Thank goodness she was leaning on the piano.

“I’ll see you after class.” She made sure to look the girls in the eye as she waltzed back to Vivi.

Great. Now everyone knew he wasn’t available. Or at least she planted the seeds in their minds that he wasn’t. Either way, Koala was satisfied she’d managed to get everyone to assume they had feelings for each other. She just needed to get Sabo to realise that too.

 

———

 

Sabo wasn’t jealous. No. Of course not. It wasn’t like he and Koala were dating or anything. So what if they spent almost all their time together? And they went on what could basically be called a date…. And they kissed…. But it was on the cheek, so it didn’t count. They weren’t dating, so Sabo had absolutely no reason to be jealous.

And Sanji had no business putting his hands all over Koala like that. Okay, maybe he did. The class had moved on to partnering. Sabo understood the importance of Sanji having to hold Koala so closely like that. He understood the need for him to be holding her so much when they did lifts, spins, catches— why was his hand so high on her thigh?

He nearly said something but remembered his place and bit his tongue. They were just friends. And he needed to focus on his piano playing.

See? He wasn’t jealous.

“You’re Sabo, right?” Swarmed. That’s how he felt as soon as the class had ended. A bunch of the girls had surrounded him at the piano.

He was cordial enough, despite his stark disinterest. Sabo wasn’t dumb. He could tell most of them were trying to make a move. The dancers were lovely and quite talented, but he just… wasn’t interested.

His gaze would keep darting back to Koala. Why was she glaring? Did he do something wrong? Was she mad at him?

When she finally did walk over, she seemed completely fine. Like they were still good friends and nothing was the matter, even though he could tell something was off with her smile— her eyes promised pain, and it made him nervous. Regardless, he smiled. She had that affect on him.

Even as he was walking her home, their was a smile on her face and pep in her step.

He studied her before asking, “did I do something?”

“Hm?” She gave him a puzzled look.

“It’s just that earlier, it looked like you were glaring.”

“Was I?” Koala gave him the most innocent look.

He was starting to second guess himself. Maybe he’d seen it wrong?

“Anyways, what were you talking about with the girls?”

“What?” He nearly tripped over a stone at the suddenness of her question. “Why?”

Koala’s smile grew wider, yet he felt nervous. There was something menacing in her gaze. “Don’t worry about why. Just answer the question.”

Sabo grew more bewildered by the second. “Are… are you jealo—“

“Oh, look! There’s my home.” She walked faster as she spotted her house at the end of the road, but he only kept in pace with her.

“Wait. Are you jealous? Koala.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Under the dim glow of the streetlights, he could see the faint red on her cheeks. He stood in front of her, blocking her path. With a smug smile, he leaned down so they were eye level.

“Were you jealous about me getting all that attention back there?”

Koala rolled her eyes yet refused to meet his gaze. “Of course not. You can talk to whoever you want.”

“Then why are you pouting?”

“I’m not jealous.” She pushed past him, but Sabo stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

“Look, those girls were just curious since I’m new and all. It was all harmless. If you want I can make it clear to them I’m not keen on making anymore friends?”

Sabo thought he’d said the right things, but her scowl only deepened. She shrugged off his hand and stormed off.

“Okay, now you’re mad at me. What did I do this time?” He couldn’t understand what he’d done so wrong.

Like a kicked puppy, he followed her to her door. He handed over her bag. She ruffled through it for her keys.

Leaning his head against the door, he studied her quietly. She wasn’t scowling anymore, but her lips still tugged down in a pout.

“Are you mad at me?”

She looked up through her lashes. “Of course not.” She jabbed her keys in the door.

Sabo placed his hand on her wrist to stop her. “Talk to me. What—“

Tiptoeing, Koala leaned forward to press her lips against his. He was completely taken aback by it. It felt sudden and out of nowhere, yet it felt… expected. Hands on his chest, her body relaxed into his. Before he could overcome his shock, she was pulling away.

Her deep azure eyes bore into his, waiting for a response or rejection. Her cheeks tinged pink; her hands still rested against his chest, no doubt feeling his racing heart as it thrummed beneath her fingertips. As she began to step back, Sabo grabbed her by the back of her neck to kiss her again.

His heart raced. He couldn’t believe he was kissing her. Sure, he’d had dreams about it and couldn’t help but notice the curve of her ass every time she bent over or her boobs pressing into him the last time she gave him a hug, and her lips always looked so tempting as if inviting him in for a taste— but he’d always push those thoughts aside. Except for that one time he’d woken up with a raging boner after dreaming about her. But all those feelings he’d chalked up to lust.

However, this felt different. His heart burst in his chest with a type of feeling that was wholly new and unfamiliar. He craved more of it. He craved more of her.

Her lips were so soft, her body radiating warmth and he felt the way her curves pressed against him.

Sabo lost himself in the kiss. His body ached for more as his lips moved against hers. She gasped when his grip tightened against her side, pulling her in closer, and pressing his lips deeper.

The porch lights turned on. They both pulled away when the front door opened. At the door stood a scowling man he’d only heard of and hadn’t met yet.

Sabo offered a smile, sure that her lipstick was smeared all over his mouth. “Good evening, sir.” He tried his best to act as normal as possible like he wasn’t just kissing the man’s adopted niece.

Fisher Tai did not look impressed. He continued glaring at Sabo. “Koala,” he said, voice low but strained. “Say goodnight to your friend.”

Sabo couldn’t tell if she was blushing from the kiss or from embarrassment. “Goodnight, Sabo,” she said quietly before going inside.

He opened his mouth to say something only for the door to slam shut in his face.

Notes:

If not dating, why dating coded??

idk if i mentioned this before but im a ballet dancer and we just had our performances this weekend, and i miss it already. currently editing and posting this while on my train home and im exhausted. a bit sad cuz its all over and im gonna miss the ppl in my class cuz starting September, im moving up a grade!!! im so excited (and nervous lol) so im feeling many emotions rn

Anyways, enough about me. How are you all lovely ppl?? (Can you tell i love you guys) tell me about your day or your week or your plans. Enjoy<3

Chapter 9

Summary:

CW// explicit sexual material, fingering, blowjobs

They reach third base. Ace has a chat with Koala then gets scolded by Sabo. Koala and Tai have a sweet, intimate moment in their father-daughter type way.

Early February

 

“So the formula for marginal costs is MC equals the change in total costs over the change in quantity. But to find average costs, we divide just the total cost—”

Every word that came out of Sabo’s mouth went into one ear and out the other. Koala was not paying attention. How could she when he sat so close? She was in his bedroom, currently getting lectured on calculating different costs, her weakest link in the subject, so she should have been paying attention.

But her heart wouldn’t stop its fluttering.

He tapped his pen against his lips and she was taken back to that night. She had kissed him. And he’d kissed her back. Sure, Uncle Tai had caught them and she had wanted to so badly die of embarrassment, but she was on cloud 9. He didn’t push her away in horror or disgust. Did that mean he liked her back? Was he just using her for fun? Surely he would’ve just rejected her like he’d done so, so many others in the past if he didn’t feel the same way.

“…got it?” Sabo asked, looking back at her.

“Hm?”

“Were you listening to a thing I said?”

She looked down at the diagrams with its annotations. It looked like chicken scratch. She really should have listened.

Sabo let out a low chuckle. She found herself getting pulled in more with every little thing he did, like she was trapped in quicksand with no way out. However, she didn’t want to ever get out.

“I get it can be boring, but this topic’s pretty important. You gotta stay focused.”

“We’ve been doing this for hours, it’s never gonna stick,” she huffed, frustrated at the subject and herself. Her mind was in the wrong place.

“It hasn’t even been ten minutes, Koala. You’ll get there.”

“Whatever. Can we take a break?”

“Of course.” His eyes were soft as they looked at her. “Anything you want.”

Anything? The only thing she wanted right now was grab him by the shirt and kiss his stupid face again.

They still hadn’t talked about it which was beyond frustrating.

Feeling nervous, she rubbed her earlobe before speaking. “So about the other night….”

That got his full attention.

“Uncle Tai was not pleased… at all….”

“I get it. Parents have never liked me anyways.”

“With the amount of broken hearts in your wake, I can see why.”

“I guess I’m just too much for this world,” he joked, combing his fringe out of his face. It gave her a better glimpse of his scar, but it didn’t repulse her. How could someone so beautiful ever repulse her?

Koala smiled. Tai was over exaggerating. After he’d found them on the porch, he’d sat her down and given her a lecture on the importance of finding “the one” and not some “good for nothing”. He had made it clear as day his dislike for Sabo on many, many occasions, and the kiss had only worsened things. Everyday was blah blah this, blah blah that, you could get your heart broken, yadda yadda yadda.

She loved Tai, deeply. But she wanted Sabo, badly.

Leaning forward, she pressed her lips against his. It was short, chaste and sweet. 

Sabo smiled all giddily. “What was that for?”

“Just because.” Her shoulders gave a light shrug.

His smile grew wider. “‘Just because’?”

“Mhmm. And a reminder.”

“Reminder?” he asked, leaning an elbow on the table. His bright eyes were trained on her and only her. It made her chest go warm. “What for?”

“Not to look at other girls.”

“Are you jealous or something?”

“I just noticed some of the others at the academy getting really close with you.” It made her feel a bit insecure. Sabo was truly a great guy, and the academy was full of equally as great girls, who she would begrudgingly admit were prettier, smarter and more talented than her.

Sabo pressed forward to kiss her. “I have eyes only for you.”

Koala melted. That was all she wanted. Him. Not only did she want him to want her, she wanted Sabo to like her as much as she liked him. And heavens knew just how head over heels she’d fallen for him.

“Do you mean it?” she asked quietly.

“As sure as the sun rises,” he whispered before reconnecting their lips.

Koala threaded her fingers through his hair. He groaned a deep, guttural sound in his chest as she tugged on his roots. It made her heart flutter. There was a bit of apprehension in the back of her min for where this could go because she’d never done more than a heavy make out session with someone, and Sabo was already tugging her out of her chair and into his lap.

She straddled him, legs on either side of his waist. This was what she wanted, but Koala couldn’t help but feel nervous. What if Uncle Tai was right? What if Sabo didn’t really care for her and was just using her for her body and she was going to get hurt?

In the midst of her worrying, she hadn’t noticed that Sabo pulled away. Her eyes fluttered open to meet his worried looking ones. His cheeks had a faint blush on them. His hands had settled on her waist, fingers teasing the band of her skirt.

“You okay? You’re really tense,” he spoke softly.

Koala gave a curt nod.

The corner of his mouth tugged up slightly. “We don’t have to do anything you don’t wanna do if you’re nervous or anything.”

Chewing her lip, she hesitated. “A bit nervous.”

“We can take things slow. We don’t have to go all the way.” He gave her a quick peck on the lips. “You still wanna do this?”

She nodded, this time with more enthusiasm. When they kissed again, it was a clash of lips, teeth and tongue. It was messy, but Koala was all giddy and smiley. It took her a while to realise her feelings for Sabo, but now that she was here with him, she felt so overcome by her affection towards him her head was about to implode. She wanted this, she wanted him so badly there was an aching between her thighs. 

It went from gentle kisses to deep, passionate ones that had her heart racing a thousand miles an hour. Sabo’s tongue pressed into the cavern of her mouth, and he tasted her. Her hands found purchase on his shoulders, fingers skimming the collar of his shirt to brush his hot skin beneath.

Koala moaned into his mouth as his hands squeezed her sides. His fingertips trailed up her back beneath her shirt. Who knew such light touches could have her stomach flipping within its confines? Her gut filled with desire, and her head filled with ecstasy.

“More,” she just barely managed to whisper against his mouth. “Please.”

Arms wrapping around her waist, he lay her back onto the desk, on top of their abandoned notes and diagrams. Pens and books pressed against her back, but she was too lost in the heat of the moment to even register what they were. Koala threaded her fingers through his hair as his head moved lower. Sabo buried his face between the junction of her neck and shoulder.

A small gasp fell from her swollen lips when his teeth nipped her skin. Subconsciously, her hips moved up against him, desperate for more friction. One hand gripped her waist, holding her down. It was torture in its sweetest form. Her body craved more despite her heart’s hesitation.

Sabo’s free hand moved higher underneath her shirt to her chest. He pulled back to look her in the eye as he pulled down her bra.

“Is this okay?” he asked, voice low and husky. She felt she could cum from his words alone.

Words failed her. She could only bob her head up and down in a nod. A knot seemed to form in her throat as his hand cupped her breast, preventing her from forming any coherent speech. His hand, warm and firm, squeezed the mound of flesh, eliciting a soft moan from her. It fit so perfectly in his hand. With each squeeze, his palm rubbed against her hardened nipple. Her hand lay over his, spurring him on to keep squeezing.

The hand that held down her waist travelled along her hip and rested against her crotch, no doubt feeling how wet she was beneath her panties.

“Yes,” she breathed, wanting to feel him inside her like in her dreams. Those wet dreams that would find her in her rare nights of sleep paled in comparison to the actual thing.

His hand snuck beneath her skirt and into her panties and brushed against her clit. A jolt of electricity went up her spine. Fingers brushed up her slit.

“Shit,” she cursed. Sabo watched her with hooded eyes. One finger teased her soaking wet entrance before pushing in.

The senastaion was familiar yet uncomfortable at first. Koala was only used to her own hands. No one else had ever touched her there before. His finger pulled out slowly before pushing in at its slow pace. She sighed. She could get used to this. The more he did, the better it felt. Her mouth dropped open. Damn, did it feel good.

”Like this?”

”Y-Yes.” 

Gauging her reaction, Sabo pushed in another finger. Koala gasped quietly. His two fingers pumping in and out of her made ungodly sounds that were only covered up by her steadily increasing moans.

“Sabo,” she breathed.

He leaned down to kiss her. “You’re beautiful,” he whispered.

Her nails dug into his shoulders, needing something to hold onto as the feeling of euphoria began to spread, taking over every last fibre of her being. Her hips rocked up to meet his hand. Sabo increased his abuse on her cunt. Legs wrapped around him to keep him close. He let out a startled grunt against her lips.

“You like that?” he asked with a rasping tone.

She barely managed a nod. The only response she could muster up was squeezing his hand that groped her chest. “S-Sa… Sabo!” His name came out in a high pitched whine. A jolt shot through her lower back when his fingers brushed her G-spot. She didn’t even know she had one, but it had her arching her back and seeing stars.

A smirk played at his lips. “That feel good, huh? You want more?”

Usually, a guy’s overconfident attitude would instantly kill whatever attraction she may have had towards him. Not this time. It only turned her on more. Her head bobbed up and down pathetically in agreement. She hated begging, but in this instance she was ready to say anything and everything to make him keep going.

“Don’t—“ she let out a gasp— “don’t stop. Please. Sabo. Sabo!”

Pressure began to build within her gut. Between his hand playing with her nipple and the other playing with her pussy, Koala didn’t know how much longer she could last.  She was desperate for that sweet release. She gazed up at Sabo’s beautiful face, unbelieving that of all the people that had poured their hearts out to him, she was the one lucky bastard to snag his heart.

That pressure kept building until it was unbearable. Every time she opened her mouth to beg him to keep going, all that came out was panting and moaning. She was so, so close.

“You’re so fucking hot,” he whispered next to her ear. It was like a dam broke. Her arms wrapped around his neck to hold him so tight she nearly squeezed the air out of him. Her walls clenched around his digits. He was in so deep hitting every right spot. His palm, pressed up against her sensitive clit, sent jolts of electricity up her spine with each rub. Words formed and melted on her tongue, her cries nothing more than babbles that fell from her swollen lips.

Even as she came down from her high, Koala still clung onto him. Sabo pulled his hand away from her quivering thighs.

“You did so good for me,” he whispered to her right before he pressed kisses all over her face. He pulled away to gaze at her. “You’re gorgeous.”

Pushing up onto her elbows, she leaned forward until their noses brushed. “Not too bad yourself.” Their lips reconnected. Koala swung one arm around his neck and the other arm snuck between their bodies until it brushed over the bulging tent in his pants.

There was a sharp intake of breath from Sabo. “Koala….”

She began to massage him through his jeans. Bottom lip caught between his teeth, he tilted his head back in pleasure.

“You like that?” she said through a chuckle, copying him.

“Yeah.” His tone was pained.

“Sit back. Let me take care of you,” she spoke softly.

With an eager look he sat back in his chair, Koala following suit by kneeling before him, right between his legs.

A part of her felt that nervousness again, since she’d never given a blowjob in her life, but she really liked Sabo and wanted to make him feel good. So that fear was overwritten by her eagerness to please and her curiosity. Not only was she still horny enough to suck a dick, but she was highly curious of what it’d be like. What would it feel like? What would it taste like? Would she even enjoy it? Nami and Vivi were each other’s firsts for everything, so it wasn’t like she had any friends who could share their wisdom on the experience.

A warm hand cupping her face pulled Koala out of her thoughts. Sabo gazed down at her with a soft expression.

“You sure?” he asked softly.

She gave a small nod. Her hands palmed his erection. She looked at him to gauge his reaction. Sabo’s cheeks were flushed. His breathing was slightly laboured. Pride filled her at the thought that she was making him feel like this.

Hesitantly, she undid his zipper and pulled back his underwear. The thing sprung out so suddenly it nearly hit her in the face, but she kept calm and gently stroked it.

Koala had managed to go her entire teenage years without ever seeing an actual, real life penis up close. It looked nothing like the ones scribbled all over desks, chalkboards and any surface teenagers had access to. And all those sex ed classes certainly hadn’t prepared her for the real thing. She wasn’t sure if he was big or just average— her hands just managed to wrap around his girth. His skin was velvety and tanned, the tip a rosy hue. It glistened with precum.

“Y-You ever done this before?” Sabo seemed to be struggling to keep his composure. He looked so cute all flustered and turned on like that.

“Is it that obvious?”

“No, no, you’re doing— shit!” he cursed when she gave an experimental lick. “Do that again. P-Please.”

Her tongue stuck out again to brush up the length of his cock. She did it again and again until she worked up the courage to finally shove it in. Starting off slow, she wrapped her lips around the head. Her tongue brushed the tip, and he let out a string of curses.

Salty. She wasn’t expecting it to taste salty.

Her head moved slowly yet deliberately. Every time she bobbed her head up and down, she would bring her head lower and lower, engulfing more of him. It was a weird sensation, yet she didn’t hate it. His dick was hard, but the skin felt so smooth. It glided so easily over her tongue. The part that she couldn’t fit in her mouth, Sabo guided her hand that rested on his thigh to stroke.

“Fuck, you feel so good.”

Koala’s jaw began to ache, but Sabo was close. His dick twitched in her mouth before he shot his load. It was so sudden she acted on reflex and turned her head to spit it out.

He burst out laughing. “Sorry, I should’ve given you more warning.”

She gave a sheepish smile. “My fault. It caught me off guard. I’ve never… done that before.” She felt self-conscious all of a sudden.

“You did great, Koala.”

“You’re just saying that.”

“I mean it. Seriously,” he said softly, leaning down to kiss her. “You’re amazing.”

Before he could kiss her again, there was a knock at his door. “Sabo!” Dadan called. “Why’d I just get an email that you played hooky on your photography class?”

The two scrambled to dress or fix their clothing. He went to open the door, and she packed her bag, trying to catch her breath.

“How many times do I need to tell you and your brothers to stay your asses in school or….” Her tirade died off when she noticed Koala standing sheepishly behind him. “Oh, dear. I didn’t know you had a special guest over. I’ll just leave you two on your own. Nice seeing you, Koala.” She smiled and waved.

“Don’t worry, momma. I was just walking Koala out.”

“You sure I wasn’t interrupting anything—“

“Yes, I’m sure. Come on, Koala,” he said hastily.

She shouldered her bag and curtsied to Dadan. “It was nice seeing you again, Ms. Dadan.”

“Nice seeing you too, darling. I hope you kids are being safe.”

“Momma!” Sabo grabbed Koala by the wrist and sped-walked to the front door.

She giggled at his horrified expression. “I really like your momma.”

“That’s ’cause she actually likes you.”

“She likes me?” Koala asked, elated. Hearing that made her so happy.

“When we were kids it was always ‘Koala’s so nice’, ‘Koala’s well behaved’, ‘why can’t you be more like Koala?’ blah, blah, blah.” He made a talking motion with his hand as he rolled his eyes.

“Are you jealous your momma likes me more than you?” she teased, a cheeky smile tugging at her lips.

“She adores you. You can have her for all I care. Just wait until you have to live with her. She’ll be nagging your ear off over every little thing.”

“Nothing I can’t handle. All grownups like me. I just have that charm.”

His eyes softened as he looked down at her. “You do have that effect on people.”

Her heart skipped a beat. His words alone had her melting. Koala pressed up on her toes to kiss him. “We’ll have to reschedule our session. We didn’t get much done today.”

“And whose fault was that?” He leaned into her space, pulling her closer by the waist.

“Like you said, I have that effect on people.”

They leaned in to kiss again but were disrupted once again. They heard the chaos before they saw it. Sabo sighed.

“You might wanna take a few steps back,” he warned. She did as he advised, and just as he opened the door, Luffy burst into the house. He ran around the living room, screaming as a green haired boy chased after him, Sanji following close behind. A few others she recognised as Luffy’s main friend group walked in, including Nami.

She stopped mid-step. “Koala? What’re you—“ Nami took one look at Sabo then Koala, then back to Sabo. She gasped and turned to her friend. “Fisher Koala—“

“Gotta go. I’ve got chores to do back at home.” She rushed out the door before her friend could stop her.

Nami turned to Sabo, pointing an accusatory finger. “Blondie,“ she said through gritted teeth.

“I’d love to stay and chat but I need to go get screamed at by my momma.”

“Wait—“ she called after him.

“Nami! Help me!” Ussop called. He had somehow gotten dragged into the commotion.

With a groan, she gave up on Sabo and turned to the mayhem.

 

———

 

“…so I join this chick and follow her back to where all her friends are— and of course they’re all dressed as fairies with so much glitter the club lights made them look like disco balls— and they offered we keep the party going, right? Head back to their place while the night is still young, right?”

Ace zoned out of whatever crazy shit Skull was talking about. He was stretched out on a half empty bean bag in his friend’s basement, staring at the burning embers of his fizzled out joint. It just didn’t make sense— Sabo. The boy was like a puzzle, and Ace hated puzzles.

“…so she’s speeding down the highway like crazy, and I’m holding on for dear life. But her friends didn’t give a shit that we might hit a tree at terminal velocity. The pink one pulls out a small, white bag from her bra. So of course, she did a line of coke off my dick—“

“I just don’t get it,” Ace said quietly, which was totally uncharacteristic of him.

Deuce, who was currently curled up in a corner, spaced out of his mind, turned to his friend.

He rolled onto his tummy so their red eyes could meet. “We used to do everything together, share all our secrets, and-and… now he’s distant. He’s supposed to be my other half and now I have no clue what the hell’s going on in that thick head of his.”

“That sucks.” Deuce nodded slowly. “Who are we talking about?”

“Sabo, that idiot!” He abandoned the finished joint in favour of booze. “I need a beer,” he loudly announced as he got up and stumbled towards the busted up mini fridge.

“Isn’t that your fifth one?”

He used his teeth to open it and spat the cap at Saber. “But who’s counting?” He tilted his head back and drank as much as he could before the bubbles built up and he let out a large belch. He continued drinking.

“Woah, you gotta slow down there,” Saber warned.

Trying not to sway, he pointed the empty bottle at him. “Don’t… you don’t tell me what to do.”

“Come on, Ace,” Deuce piped up from his corner where he was now cuddling a shoe. “Sabo’s a man. He can do what he likes.”

“Is this why he’s been so whiny and melodramatic?” Skull scoffed.

“Is it true your brother’s dating that ginger chick?” Mihar asked, getting side tracked as usual.

“Who? Nami?” Ganryu looked offended at the mere mention of her name. “That witch is only into girls.”

“The other one. You know, the quiet one who disappeared out of nowhere last year and she came back, and now she’s smoking hot.”

“She is a total babe.”

“Don’t say that around Sabo,” Saber warned. “I’m pretty sure the two are a thing since he stops coming around. Right, Ace?”

He glared. “I. Wouldn’t. Know.” All he wanted to do was throttle his brother by the neck. “The bastard won’t talk to me!”

“If he won’t talk to you, then you talk to her.”

Ace turned to Deuce. “What?” That sounded like such a dumb idea— “Wait… you’re onto something. Keep talking.”

“No, don’t listen to him,” said Skull. “He’s higher than a motherfucking cloud. And I’m pretty sure the asshole got into my shroom stash—“ his concern went ignored.

“There’s obviously something going on between the two, so if Sabo won’t open up to you about it. Just get Koala to talk about it.”

“Yeah.” He nodded along. “You’re a genius!” Grabbing his friend by the face, he pulled him in and kissed his forehead.

“Are we just going to ignore the fact that you used to bully this girl when y’all were kids?” Mihar added, much to Ace’s dismay.

“Ace used to bully everyone,” Deuce corrected. “He was a menace to all.”

“Psssh! That was forever ago. She’s surely gotten over it.” Or at least he hoped she had. It’s been years since he’d last spoken to her, and he vaguely recalled that conversation ending in him laughing in her face as she cried angry tears. He had walked home with a black eye that day— her parting gift to him.

Hopping onto his bike, he sped off. He remembered Sabo mentioning his new work place was where she trained. The ABCD building. A ridiculous name if you asked him. And why was there even a whole academy dedicated to dancing anyway? That’s the shit you do in your bedroom or the garage or in front of your parents after you and your friend had too much sugar and decide to show off your non-existent dance skills to them and their friends. Only the posh and ultra wealthy would go to some fancy pants building with stuck up rich kids.

The thought only fuelled his anger. Who did she think she was? Surely, it wasn’t the alcohol or the weed or his tendency to act on impulse instead of reason influencing his anger. Ace was thinking mostly straight. Mostly. He just wanted to make sure his baby brother was being treated right.

He abandoned the bike and rushed inside the building only to find himself… lost. The place was bigger than he thought. Ace had expected one big room with mirrors and those bar thingys.

“You are?” a voice called out, sounding almost accusatory. 

He turned to see a slim, tanned woman narrowing her eyes at him. She crossed her arms and lifted a brow at his silence.

“Oh, um, I’m here to see… a girl.”

“A girl?” Her brows furrowed. “How you know this girl?” Her heels clicked across the floor as she walked towards him. Something about her intense gaze made him step back.

“She— uh, um… she’s….” His mind went blank. The longer he stalled the more disappointed she looked. So Ace did what he did best. He turned on his heel and sprinted. “Koala!” he shouted at the top of his lungs. He didn’t even want to see if she was chasing after him. His long legs ate up distance as they carried him down a random hallway.

This first door he saw after rounding a corner, he threw open. “Koala?”

A bunch of girls screamed. He shut his eyes just as he realised it was a changing room. “Shit, sorry. Sorry.” He bowed, and what felt like a brick hit him in the head. Was that a shoe? One of those toe shoes ballerinas wore? Why in the hell did it hurt so bad? “I thought this shit was made of fabric. Fuck.”

There were shouts back from where he came. A surge of adrenaline pushed him forward, down another corridor with a few doors on either side. Music played from different directions. He quickly peaked through each door to find that little heartbreaker—

There. There she was. In a class of students all wearing black leotards— was that what it was called? She and a few others were dancing across the room. They jumped, leaped and twirled from one corner to the other. When they finished another group took over, doing the same moves. Koala moved to the side but faltered when her eyes met his. She looked confused.

“Koa—“

He was tackled to the ground.

“Get off me!” He struggled against the security guard that held him down. “I know her! Koala! Koala—“

“Throw him out.” It was that same accent from earlier. That same woman that scared him.

Koala, along with the rest of her class, watched in shock as he was dragged away.

“Wait! Ms. Viola, wait.” Finally, she jogged over to the commotion.

Ms. Viola turned her fiery gaze at her. “Explain.”

She fiddled with her fingers. “This is Ace… Sabo’s brother.”

Viola opened her mouth to say something but was cut off.

“Ace is my friend. He just wanted to come see me about school. Right, Ace?”

At her pointed look, he nodded. “Y-Yeah, that’s right. School. So can you let go of me now?” The heavy weight stood off of him, and Ace got up to hide behind Koala. Not that he was fearful or anything, but if looks could kill, Viola would be a top assassin.

Nails dug into his arm, and he was getting dragged away. “Come on, Ace. Let me show you the way out.”

The moment they were out of earshot, she let go of his arm. “What the hell, Ace? Why are you here?”

“Why don’t you drop the ‘tude?” He brushed off where she was clutching him. “And cut your damn nails, woman.”

She huffed and crossed her arms. “Ace.”

“Chillax, I just wanna talk.”

“Can it wait? I was just in the middle of a class if you couldn’t tell.” She angrily gestured from head to toe.

“It’s about Sabo.”

She calmed down at the mention of his name. “What about Sabo? Is he okay?”

For some reason, that angered him. “You know what? I lied. This isn’t about Sabo. This is about you.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, you. Little Miss I Like to Vanish from People’s Lives Only to Waltz Back in Because Everyone Will Forgive Me Just Because I’m Pretty.”

Koala scoffed, looking appalled. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” He got all up in her space. “How dare you tear my brother’s heart into shreds and try to pry yourself back into his heart like-like some… parasitic neophyte!”

Confused, she blinked at him. “Wh-What the hell is a neophyte? You know what? Whatever! First of all, you reek—“ she took a step back to get away from the stench. Rude. Ace may have spilled some drinks, but he couldn’t have smelt that bad— “and second, I don’t know who you think you are coming here and speaking to me however you like when you don’t even know the half of it. What happened between me and Sabo is between me and Sabo, got it?”

Koala turned around and stomped away in her little toe shoes, leaving Ace flabbergasted at the sass and the nerve she had. He grabbed her wrist and yanked her back.

“I’m just trying to make sure you don’t go and stomp all over his heart again. What do you plan to do with him?”

“You’re drunk. And probably high. And I don’t have time for this.” When she tried to pull away, he only held on tighter. “Look, Ace, I really like Sabo. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt him.”

“Like leave him again?” he asked quietly.

Koala went quiet. Her face went pale. A look he could only describe as pure and utter… grief. He’d never seen her so troubled and so hurt. Seeing her around school, she always had a smile on her face, so this felt so out of place, so uncharacteristic, so wrong. It was true he had no idea what was going on with her, whatever her past was, but when it came to his brother, none of that mattered. Sabo’s welfare would trump any guilt Ace felt for causing her or anyone any hurt. Always. If it meant protecting his brothers, he’d be the asshole if need be. She wasn’t the one that held him when he cried over her. She wasn’t the one that slowly watched his confidence diminish and his light dim. She wasn’t there to pick up the pieces.

With glistening eyes, she finally pulled away and walked back quietly to her class.

 

———

 

Ace woke from his nap to chatter outside his bedroom.

“…keeps doing this.”

“He just wants to help.”

“I’d rather he didn’t.” There was knocking at his door. “Ace? I’m coming in.”

He hissed at the light that streamed in from the hallway as the door swung open. He was too blinded to see him, but he knew who it was.

“Close the door,” he croaked, head pounding as if it’d been bounced around like a basketball.

Sabo shut the door but flicked on the lights, causing Ace to whine at the sudden brightness.

“Give a guy a warning, geez.” He turned over and yanked his covers over his head, but they got yanked away. There wasn’t enough strength in his body to fight back. Gravity was heavier than usual. He could barely move. “What do you want?”

“I just got back from a tutoring session with Koala.”

Ace groaned, knowing damn well where this was gonna go. “Whatever she said, she’s a liar.”

“Ace, why the hell did you turn up at her academy just to berate her?”

“I did not berate her. I just… asked her a few questions.”

“This is what you skipped school for? I thought you were hanging out with the guys not stalking and tormenting my friend.”

He turned over and gave Sabo a funny look. “Oh, so you two are friends now?”

“That’s not the point. The point is you were the one practically begging me to reconnect with her but now you’re upset that she and I are talking again? I don’t get it.” He threw his hands up in disbelief.

Ace tried to sit up but immediately lay back down once the world started spinning. He lay spread out on his back, staring up at the ceiling because he couldn’t bring himself to look at Sabo.

“I don’t want to see you get hurt again. Happy?”

His brother went quiet. The mattress creaked and shifted as he sat down next to Ace. “This won’t be like Law.”

“I’m not talking about Law,” he admitted, his throat threatening to close up on him. “I’m talking about her and you and-and the way you got so sad whenever she got brought up. Just a couple months ago, the mere mention of her name would fill your eyes with so much pain, and I hate seeing you like that. I wanted you to get closure not become best friend. If I’m being honest, I don’t like you hanging out with her. Not after she abandoned you like that.”

Sabo let out a sigh. When he spoke, his voice was thick and his tone heavy. “We were just kids.”

“But it wasn’t fair!” he couldn’t help but shout. Ace forced himself to sit up despite the wave of nausea. He looked Sabo in the eye and almost faltered. He looked tired. “That’s what you used to say, remember? Just last month you’d go on and on about how it still wasn’t fair how she treated you like you no longer existed. Remember? And I don’t give a damn what she’s been through because it wasn’t fair.”

“I know.”

“I don’t want to see you go through that again.”

“I know,” he barely whispered.

“Do you at least know what you’re doing?”

He opened his mouth to try to muster up an answer, but the look of uncertainty was enough. Ace understood.

“I love you, Sabs.” He dragged him into a hug. Sabo slumped against Ace’s shoulder.

“Love you too, Ace.”

They stayed like that for a moment, absorbing each other’s warmth and basking in the embrace. A part of Ace was still disappointed that his brother had chosen to let himself be blinded by nostalgia instead of thinking logically. That was Sabo’s speciality, not his.

“You’re not letting go of me, are you?” Sabo asked.

“Nope.” Without protest, he let himself get dragged down to the sheets, their arms still wrapped around each other. Ace played with the curls in his blond locks. His fingers brushed against the shell of his ear, and he noticed a new stud. “What’s this? New piercing?”

Sabo hesitated to answer. “She gave it to me. I asked her to.”

That was something they usually did with each other and now he was doing it with her? All Ace could do was nod and hope that this, whatever it was, didn’t end in complete and total disaster.

And as they drifted off to sleep, he thought back to their last meeting as kids.

 

~~~

 

“Koala! You have some nerve showing your face around here. You know Sabo dropped out of karate, right? He was only doing it for you, and now he doesn’t wanna go back if you’re not there.”

Despite how fast she tried walking away, Ace kept up with her pace, which made sense since he was now the same height as her. Even though there were clear signs she was trying to ignore him, he kept going.

“He misses you, you know? Would it kill you to pick up his calls? He keeps trying to reach out to you, even though he’d be better off,” he spat. His tone was biting and sharp. “Sabo would be much more happier if he’d stop thinking about you all the time. You’re like some virus he can’t get rid off.”

She stopped walking. Her gaze was cast down at her feet. She couldn’t bring herself to look at him. It’d been months since everything had happened, and she still couldn’t sleep at night. On top of that, it felt like every move she made was like moving through thick molasses. There was a dark film over all she used to love, causing her to lose her passion for the things she used to do. She was tired.

“Please,” she spoke quietly, her voice wavering slightly. “Ace, just leave me alone.”

“Why should I?” He stood directly in front of her, a cruel smirk on his face. “After all the trouble you’ve caused for my brother? I’d be embarrassed if I were you. How do you still walk around like you still deserve to live, huh? Huh?” he cackled.

His fingers flicked her forehead for some sort of response. That’s when she snapped. Before she could stop herself, her fist had connected with his face. Ace flew back, landing with a thud and groan. Angry tears blurred her vision as she turned and fled.

 

~~~

 

Koala gazed at her knuckles. She could still remember the way they’d stung after she’d socked Ace in the eye. She truly hadn’t meant to, but he’d kept pushing and pushing and pushing until she had finally snapped. And the guilt had eaten her up since. No matter how hard she had tried to be better, to keep her feelings under control like her therapist at the time had said. She didn’t want to be like that— take out her anger on others. Snap and hurt whatever was nearest at every minor inconvenience. Like her….

And when she looked up into her reflection in the vanity, all she could see was her mother. With tentative fingers, she reached up to touch her nose, her cheekbones, the curve of her jaw. She was a spitting image of her mom in her youth.

Knocking at her door pulled her out of her thoughts.

“You can come in.”

It creaked open. Uncle Tai stood at the threshold. She didn’t bother looking back at him. She could feel it in his gaze. He was worried.

“So… are we no longer a fan of my world famous coconut rice?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“This may sound shocking to you, but young athletes, especially ones in highly intense training like yourself, need a proper diet to survive.”

It was this lecture again. She inwardly rolled her eyes. “I already brushed my teeth.” Picking up her hair brush, she started working on the knots in her hair.

“Koala.” His tone was stern. He sighed before walking over. “Let me.”

Wordlessly, she handed over the brush. Koala closed her eyes and focused on the feeling of the bristles scraping against her scalp before sweeping through her locks.

“I wanna dye my hair,” she spurted out.

“And ruin this gorgeous colour? I don’t think so.” He was swift to shut down the idea.

Koala wasn’t often impulsive, but she couldn’t stand her reflection showing the last person she ever wanted to see. “Maybe black? That would fit my complexion.”

“Or hot pink to show the world you’re a dropout and hooligan.”

She opened her eyes just to frown at him, meeting his eyes in the mirror. “That thinking is so old school.”

“Wanna tell me what sparked this sudden urge to self destruct?”

“It’s not self destructing.”

“Impulsive, out of character, could impact your life in some way….” He hummed.

“It’s just hair dye,” she argued. Koala lowered her voice. “I look too much like mom.”

His hands stilled for a second before continuing. “That’s how genes work.”

“Uncle Tai? Do you think I’ll end up crazy like her?”

“Your mom, as troubled as she was, was not crazy. She was sick.”

Koala scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. As if that excuses her behaviour.”

“Gambling is an addiction. And addictions are an illness. But that does not and will never justify all the things she’d done.”

“Calling it an illness means she could have been fixed. And if she could have been fixed then I wouldn’t have turned out the way I am— damaged, a burden, hopeless—“

“Woah, you are none of those things, Koala.” He looked shocked at the words she had said.

“Ace doesn’t seem to think so,” she muttered.

“You’ve been speaking to that Portgas kid?”

Koala was relieved for a topic change. She hated speaking about her mother. Thinking about all the things that could have happened differently, if her mom could have been “cured”, if she had help, if she was treated— it drove her crazy. What happened had already happened. It was all the past now.

“He… bumped into me at the mall.” Omitting a few details was for Tai’s own good. If he found out Ace had shown up at her school heavily intoxicated to rip her a new one… she feared for Ace’s life. “We got to talking, and he… he’s upset. At how I hurt Sabo.”

“That was years ago.”

“He doesn’t care.” Her eyelids drooped. The rhythmic brushing soothed her to the point she could feel sleep clawing at her limbs. “He was really upset.”

“Well, damn him. All those knocks he takes to the head from his street fights has him brain dead.”

Koala managed a sleepy chuckle. “He… he just wants… Sabo to be safe….” Her words trailed off as sleep finally took over. She slumped over, but Tai caught her before she could hit the floor. Scooping her up in his arms, he carried her over to bed and tucked her in.

Notes:

Look out, we’re getting more of Koala’s lore👀👀 also intimate platonic moments>>>>>>

this chapter has smut, fluff AND angst. damn, am i a triple threat or what? but anyways, this chapter got longer than i had originally planned but the thought of Ace and Sabo cuddling was much too soft to not include. also i personally find hair care moments to be so sweet and so intimate. its like a love language to me and i rly wanted to include it

Enjoy<3

Chapter 10

Summary:

Our two lovebirds decided to ditch class and face the consequences.

Mid-February

 

“Can you help me with something?”

Koala didn’t know how she could possibly help Sabo with his photography coursework when she didn’t know shit about the subject, yet she agreed to do it anyway.

She loved spending time with him. And what better way to do that by helping him with his schoolwork when he’d helped her so much with hers? 

What she wasn’t expecting was that he would ask her to dress up in her leotard and pointe shoes and stand in front of a backdrop. This was her only free period of the whole week where she wasn’t at ballet or tutoring with Sabo. She stood in a corner of the art studio, hugging her body as she suddenly felt self-conscious. She walked in circles to fight off the February chill.

Sabo fiddled with the controls of his camera. She watched him consult his teacher on a few things. He wasn’t even trying, yet he looked so attractive. Her mind wandered back to the other day in his room— he was on top of her, she was on top of him— they had reached third base. Together. Her face heated up like a furnace.

She forced herself to snap out of her daze. She should warm up. Even as Koala was doing releves and bourrées she would still glance over at him.

Her thoughts wouldn’t stop wandering to that “lesson”. He sure taught her something all right. Something she would never forget in the best way possible. They hadn’t talked about it since. Hadn’t talked about them. What even were they? Lovers? Friends with benefits? Just a few weeks ago, the thought of being his friend again seemed near impossible, and now they were a mess of hormones and unsaid feelings barely strung together to form a “relationship”. It frustrated Koala. Especially since some girls at the academy were still trying their advances on him, and she couldn’t even tell them he was her boyfriend. Because what were they?

“You ready?” he asked, and that smile— goddammit.

She smiled back. “Ready. What do you want me to do first?”

For a total novice to ballet, Sabo was surprisingly good at this. Sure, he was still unsure of some terminology, but it seemed like being their pianist really paid off.

“Next, try a back attitude en pointe but with your back to the camera. Give me a soft face and look off to the side.”

“What do you want me to do with my arms?” Koala was used to being given directions and making corrections, but she’d never done a photoshoot before. She was the least photogenic person ever in her eyes. This was an experience.

He thought about it, fist against his mouth as he pondered. She wanted to kiss those lips again.

“Do left leg attitude. You’re gonna reach up with your left arm and to the side with your right. When you’re ready.”

She turned her back to the camera. Pushing herself up, she did exactly as instructed. Snap! He took the shot.

“Okay, great. Try to reach your left leg higher and place your right arm lower.”

A few more tries before he got something he was satisfied with. He gestured for her to come over. “Look.” He flicked through the shots to show her. “You look amazing. I like this one especially.”

“I like this one better. I have a tighter bottom knee here.”

He hummed in consideration. “I hadn’t considered that. This is why I need you.”

She tried to not let those words have more of an effect on her than they did.

Clearing her throat, she said, “so, what’s next?”

“Can you do a needle?”

“Your wish is my command.” She gave a grandiose bow. “Just say it, and I’ll do it.”

Sabo rolled his eyes. “I don’t want you hurting or straining yourself.”

“You underestimate me. Of course I’ll do a needle. En pointe or flats?”

“Do what you can.”

“En pointe it is.” She skipped back to her place.

“Seriously though, don’t hurt yourself. Viola will kill me if you get even a tiny scratch.”

She dismissed his concerns with a wave. Truthfully, a needle was tricky enough. En pointe was a lot harder than she was letting on. But if he knew that, he wouldn’t let her do it. She wanted him to get good photos. She wanted to make him happy.

“When you’re ready.”

Standing en pointe, Koala took a few seconds before throwing her left leg up, grabbing her ankle and pulling forward before she dropped. She caught herself before her knees hit the ground.

“How is it?”

Sabo was stunned. “That looks insane. Oh my gods, Koala.”

She felt so proud of herself. “I told you not to underestimate me,” she boasted.

“I want one with your head dropped back, but watching you do this nearly gave me a heart attack.”

“Aww, you care for me.” She gave him a sentimental look despite her teasing tone.

Was that blush on his cheeks?

“Of course I do,” he murmured to himself, avoiding her gaze. “I just don’t want you rolling your ankle.”

“I promise I’ll be careful.”

She positioned herself again and repeated the needle, this time dropping her head back as low as she could.

Snap!

She rushed to his side to see the picture, a little breathless. They were both beaming.

“This one!” they said simultaneously.

“You have… pretty arches? Is that right?”

She applauded him. “You’re learning!”

“I’ve been spending so much time at the ABCD. I’m just parroting what I heard people say.”

“You’re so cute,” she cooed with her hands over her mouth. He blushed more deeply.

“We have econ together next,” she said as he packed up his things. “Wait for me while I get changed?”

“Won’t I look like a creep waiting outside the girl’s changing room?”

“Please?” she pleaded with a pout.

 

———

 

And that’s how Sabo ended up standing outside of the girl’s changing room, trying to keep his head low as he received weird stares.

He was so relieved when Koala finally came out.

“Let’s be quick,” she said. “The bell went like five minutes ago.”

“We’ll be fine.”

“I can’t keep being late to class.”

“What about that week you were late to like all your classes? You even kept skipping homeroom.”

She gave an annoyed look. “I had a good excuse that time. I was practicing for the Grand Prix.”

“Oh yeah, the YGAPLTR-“

Koala burst out laughing. “It’s like you’re not even trying.”

“I am,” he defended. “I got the first letter right.”

“You two!” They both startled at the sudden, booming voice. Akainu stood at the other end of the hallway, glaring at them. He wagged a finger at them. “Where should you two be right now?”

Sabo scratched the back of his neck. “Hmm, looks like I’ve forgotten my timetable. Do you remember, Koala?”

Koala glanced at him then Akainu. She shrugged and shook her head, giving her most innocent look.

He narrowed his eyes, clearly not believing their bullshit. “I have you and your brothers’ timetables memorised. Don’t try to pull a fast one on me, boy. I already gave you detention last week and met with your parents.” Akainu glanced at Koala. “I’m giving both of you a pass this time.” He brushed past them.

Sabo was surprised he lucked out. If it weren’t for Koala, he’d certainly have received another detention. But he blew it when he muttered under his breath, “Trunchbull.”

Koala had to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep from bursting out laughing.

Akainu stopped in his tracks. He turned, a vein in his forehead pulsating. “What did you say?” he said slowly.

“I didn’t say anything.” He tried his best to suppress a smile. It truly had slipped out, him not intending to get Koala into trouble. A mistake born from bad habits.

Akainu wasn’t having it. He pointed at both of them. “You and you. Detention. One week.”

They weren’t smiling anymore. Koala looked to Sabo in panic.

“I have to practice for the Grand Prix,” she whispered to him, distressed.

The guilt set in. “Sir, Koala’s a well behaved student. This is all my fault. Please don’t punish her.” He couldn’t let her miss her classes. Viola would definitely kill him.

Akainu considered it for a moment. “Fine. Fischer, I’m letting you off with a warning. Three weeks detention for you, Outlook.”

His jaw dropped. Sabo had to bite his tongue to keep himself from getting in further trouble. He couldn’t dig himself a deeper hole.

“Fine,” he said. He turned to go. “Come on, Koala. Let’s go.”

She didn’t budge. Cupping her hands around her mouth, she shouted, “Trunchbull!”

“What did you say?” Akainu roared. He looked beyond pissed. “Detention—“

“Run!” Sabo grabbed her wrist, and together they bolted. Holding hands, they ran down corridors, completely forgetting about class. Adrenaline ran through their veins, spurring them to run faster, consequences be damned.

When they stopped, they were huffing and panting yet still holding hands.

“Dammit, my momma’s gonna kill me,” Sabo complained. “When she hears I got detention again—“

He was cut off when Koala grabbed his shirt, pulling him in for a kiss. He reciprocated by pushing her against a wall and kissing her deeper. He blamed the adrenaline still coursing through his veins. It was in the heat of the moment. They were making out in the middle of the corridor where anyone could come across them. Lucky for them, everybody else was in class.

Sabo pulled back, taking in her flustered, breathless face, and he felt his pants get tighter.

“Who needs economics anyways,” he whispered.

“We’re already late. Let’s just ditch,” she said, playing with his hair, and by the gods did that only make it harder to concentrate. “I want you to come over. We’ll get back before lunch.”

He grinned. “Forget Viola. Your uncle’s definitely gonna kill me.”

She shrugged. “He thinks you might be a bad influence.”

“But I’m so well behaved.” He took one of her hands and kissed her knuckles. “Let’s go.”

 

———

 

Koala pulled Sabo behind their neighbour’s shrubs once she spotted Tai’s car in the driveway. He must’ve forgotten something if he was home. 

“Follow me,” she said to Sabo, pulling him around the house and to the backyard.

After her uncle had caught them on the porch that day, he’d ingrained in her over and over again the importance of consent, condoms, practicing safe sex, staying away from “trouble”- blah, blah, blah. She was nineteen. She could take care of herself. Plus it had been so mortifying having him trying to explain how to use a condom. She opted for the pill.

Koala was sick of getting warned, getting told to stay away from “trouble”, i.e Sabo. She liked him. So he could get a bit mischievous every now and then. So what? A little mischief was warranted. And it excited her.

When Akainu had given him three weeks of detention, she knew he couldn’t do it alone, take the fall for her. It wasn’t fair. She laughed at the joke; she was just as much deserving. Tai was definitely going to kill her once he found it. But that was something she could worry about later once she came down from this high.

“Where are we going?” Sabo asked.

“My uncle’s still home. We’re using the entrance I always use when I try to sneak back in.” At the back of the house, she pointed up at a window. “That’s my room.”

“Wait, so you just climb the side of your house to sneak back in?”

“Look me in the eye and tell me you haven’t.”

He didn’t say anything. Using the lattice panels, they both climbed up to her window which she always left open for this occasion, she explained to Sabo.

“My uncle should be leaving soon,” she explained. They both heard the car pulling out of the driveway. She smiled, and Sabo applauded her.

Her heart rate picked up. He was in her room again. She’d never wanted something this bad. Eyes dripping with lust, she practically undressed him. Sabo was so beautiful.

He moved towards her. Lips connecting, he pushed her against a wall. A hand cupped the side of her neck and the other grabbed her waist. His lips met her cheek and kissed a trail from under her ear to do along her neck. She dropped her shoulder to give more access.

“Ah-“ Koala gasped as he bit the skin there, sucking until she was sure there would be visible bruises. She smiled at the thought. All this time he’d been rejecting people’s advances, but not hers. She wanted everyone— from the girls in her academy to everyone at school— to know she was the only one he couldn’t say no to; the only one he could never deny. Maybe it was the situation giving her this sweet, intoxicating feeling. Maybe it was her possessiveness. She didn’t care. She wasn’t going to share.

Sabo’s lips stilled.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, somewhat breathless.

He gazed into her eyes, absolute want in them, yet he hesitated. “Are you sure?” he whispered.

She pushed him back until the back of his knees hit the bed, making him sit . Koala didn’t say anything. She only looked him in the eye, watching his expressions as she undid the buttons on her shirt then let the fabric fall to the floor. She peeled off her vest before reaching behind her and undoing the clasp on her bra. It fell to the floor, and Sabo’s gaze dropped to her chest. She smirked at the growing tent in his pants. 

His gaze travelled down to the scars on her sides- reminders of a dark past, but right now she didn’t care. His hands came up to her hips, and he pulled her closer. Sabo kissed her, his hands moulding her as they explored her body. His lips left a burning trail around her torso as he praised her form.

Pushing herself onto his lap, she threaded her fingers through his hair and tugged his head back.

“I may not be your first, but I want you to be mine,” she said faintly against his lips. “I want you, Sabo.”

She undid the buttons on his shirt, hands exploring his chest. He wasted no time in taking it off before flipping their positions.

He crawled over her, eyes taking in everything. The sight of him above her, shirtless and flustered, had her nipples growing harder. He seemed to noticed.

Her eyes followed as his tongue dragged against his bottom lip, wetting it. “You’re fucking me up, Koala.”

That was it. That was what she wanted to hear— the way her name rolled off his tongue.

“Come fuck me.”

His eyes met hers, slightly taken aback by her bluntness. He smirked.

“I don’t have any condoms.” Yet his hands moved to undo his belt.

“I’m on the pill,” she said, taking off her skirt and panty.

Sabo attached his lips to her collarbone, kissing lower and lower all while his hands smoothed over her thighs.

Every nerve ending was wide awake. Koala could feel his touch scorching hotter than the sun. He still had his boxers on, yet his erection pressed into her thigh, signalling his need.

She let out a strangled moan once his tongue brushed over her painfully, sensitive nipple. His hand cupped her pussy, and she was breathless. He closed his lips around her nipple. His tongue lapped at it. His teeth bit down on it. Koala was gripping the sheets doing everything in her power to stay tethered to reality.

It became so much harder when he began stroking her.

“You’re so wet,” he breathed against her skin.

“Sabo,” it sounded like a plea. A finger pushed into her, going at a slow, steady pace.

“Yes?” He looked her in the eyes, that smug look on his face. His cheeks were red, and his voice breathy. She could feel his erection press harder against her.

“Sa— ah!” she moaned when she felt another finger push in.

“You look so gorgeous,” he praised. “All needy and calling my name like that.” He kissed her cheek. “You’re so beautiful, Koala.”

She nearly came all over his fingers, but he pulled them out. Koala glared at him. She was close.

“Calm down. I’ll make sure you feel good. Promise.” He lifted himself to pull off his boxers and— great heavens. Why did it look bigger than last time?

Koala was so horny it was starting to hurt. She needed to reach her climax. She needed to feel that dick inside her. She needed Sabo.

“Tell me if I should stop,” he said softly.

She shook her head desperately. “Don’t. Don’t ever stop—“ a shriek escaped her as he pushed in.

He rested his face in the crook of her neck, breathing heavily. “Fuck,” he breathed against her.

Koala gripped his shoulders, her short nails digging into his skin. He slowly moved his hips, rocking them and pushing himself deeper and deeper.

Her eyes closed shut, adjusting to the way he filled and stretched her out. Discomfort soon turned to bliss, and it was like heaven. The pleasure went to her head, and she felt intoxicated. If Sabo was a drug she was higher than the fucking stratosphere.

Fingers threading through his hair, she pulled him into a heated kiss. His teeth grazed and tugged at her bottom lip. She flicked her tongue against his, inviting him. He met her request by delving his tongue into her mouth, rolling them over each other. She revelled in the action.

He invaded every one of her senses, flooding them until she wasn’t sure where she ended and he began. His hands travelled down her body and traced her curves like she was made to be touched, praised and held. He whispered her name between kisses like muttering thanks to the gods for sending her to him.

Warmth spread in her gut as she felt her climax approach.

“I’m close,” Koala breathed shakily. “Fuck. Sabo,” she called his name like a lifeline.

She could tell he was close from the way he was losing his rhythm. His eyelids were hooded. He looked at her like she was the most beautiful person he’d ever seen, and with him, she actually felt it— beautiful. All insecurities gone whenever he looked at her with the affection his soft eyes always held.

“Koala—“ his low, raspy voice was enough to snap whatever was tethering her to the mortal plane. She was floating. She was falling. She saw stars. She screamed his name with a mix of curses. Her toes curled and thighs squeezed around his hips.

“Koala!” her name dripped from his lips like honey as he came in her.

He collapsed on top of her. They lay in a tangle of limbs as they panted heavily, catching their breaths.

 

———

 

“If we hurry, we can make it back before the end of fifth period.”

Sabo was having a hard time focusing on lacing up his shoes. He watched as Koala, with her back to him, buttoned up her shirt. He couldn’t stop admiring her.

“…in homeroom.” She turned to him and caught the dopey smile on his face. She placed hand on her hip. “Were you listening?”

He shook his head.

Koala sighed as she walked over to sit next to him. “I said, Akainu’s gonna tear us a new one in homeroom.”

Shit. He’d forgotten about that. Sabo threw his head back. “Dammit. I’d rather not go then.”

She reached over and rummaged through her bedside table. She pulled out a box of cigarettes and offered him one.

He stared at it then her in disbelief. “I didn’t see that coming.”

She shrugged. “We’re at the age of experimentation. I don’t do this often, but I think I’ll need one before facing Trunchbull. Plus, my uncle doesn’t know, so let’s keep it at that.”

Cigarettes, he could handle, so he took one and let her light it for him.

They enjoyed their little smoke break in silence.

“I don’t think I remember ever getting detention,” she broke the silence, taking in a deep huff.

Sabo watched as she exhaled, a cloud billowing from her mouth and nostrils. He wanted to kiss her so badly. Why did she look so hot like that?

“I get it at least once a month,” he admitted. “All you do is sit there for like an hour and a half doing nothing, reading a book or finishing homework or something. It bites.”

She threw her head back as she groaned. “I’m so fucking dead.”

“I’ll be in even more trouble with your uncle once he finds out it was my fault.”

“It wasn’t your fault. I’m the one who chose to scream at Akainu.”

He chuckled. “That was ballsy of you. But he’s gonna blame me one way or another. I’m surprised he still lets me tutor you.”

Koala went quiet as she stared at the ashes that flickered down. “He doesn’t know you’re tutoring me.”

His jaw went slack. “What?”

“I just told him someone in class offered to help me. I never said who.”

“You bad girl,” he teased.

She rolled her eyes. Getting up she said, “let’s just go. I got a lesson after lunch.”

“I don’t.” He got up and grabbed her face. Sabo smashed his lips against hers. He got lost in their kiss, hands grabbing at her ass.

Koala, ever the more focused one, had to pull away. “We can’t.”

He pouted. “You’re no fun.”

She rolled her eyes before giving him a quick peck. “Come on.”

 

———

 

The door to the dark room slammed open.

“Respect the sign!” Sabo shouted. He had just been using the photogram to experiment with some photo transfer paper. Now it was ruined. He turned to the perpetrator. “Goddammit, Ace.”

“Oops,” he said, not so apologetically. He waltzed in. “This place needed some light anyways.”

Sabo pointed at the red lamp.

“I mean actual light. How do you even see in here?”

He rolled his eyes. “What do you want?”

“You in a lesson right now?”

“No. I was just getting some coursework—“

“Great. Can you buy me something from the tuck shop? I’m low on cash.”

“Me too.”

“Aww.” Ace deflated. He sniffed Sabo. “Liar! If you’re so low on cash where’d you get the cigarettes then, huh? Can I bum a cig, by the way?”

“They weren’t mine.”

“Whose?”

“Koala—“ he said before he could stop himself.

Ace’s jaw dropped. “Koala? That Koala? Damn, I never would’ve expected that from her of all people.”

Sabo side eyed him. “What do you mean by that?”

He held his hands up in a placating manner. “Hold your horses. I didn’t mean it like that geez. I’m just surprised. She just seems like such a goody two shoes.”

“Whatever.”

“Wait.” Ace pointed his finger at Sabo, eyes wide. “I just passed her in the hallway. You’re the one that gave her that hickey?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Sabo turned back to his ruined experiment. 

“So you two played hookey? Aww, I would’ve joined if I knew there were free cigs.” He pouted. “Didn’t you quit smoking?”

He pulled out another sheet of photo transfer paper to try again. “I quit weed. I don’t mind tobacco and—“

The door swung open again.

“The sign—“ he stopped when he saw Koala at the door. “Oh. Hey, Koala.”

“Hey, Koala,” Ace mocked. “But when I ruin your stupid coursework I get shouted at.”

“Am I interrupting something?” she asked, moving to leave.

“Yes, actually—“

“No, you’re good.” Sabo glared at Ace. He glared back.

She looked between the two. “Whatever it is, it’s gonna have to wait. Trunchbull wants to see us.”

“Fuck,” Sabo groaned.

“Tr— who?”

He dismissed Ace’s question. “You wanted to ditch with us? These are the consequences of our actions.” Sabo followed Koala.

Ace saluted his brother. “Not sure what’s going on, but it don’t sound good. Nice knowing you, brother.”

 

———

 

“Fingers crossed for good luck?” Sabo offered.

Koala wasn’t impressed. “It’s Akainu.”

“You’re right. Not even the gods can save us.”

She chuckled at that. “Why are we even waiting out here?”

“Usually, teachers will call or send an email home and have a meeting with you and your guardian if possible.”

There was panic in her eyes. “Please tell me you’re lying.”

He gave her a pitiful look. “I wish I was—“

“Koala!” They both turned to the man who’d called her. His eyes zeroed in on Sabo, and he avoided his gaze.

“Uncle Tai, I can explain—“

“Save it.” He crossed his arms, glaring at Sabo.

“Hey, Uncle Tai,” he tried as cordially as possible.

He didn’t respond. He only turned to his niece. “Please don’t tell me you were ditching school with this-this delinquent.”

“Woah, I am right here.”

When she didn’t answer, he sighed, clearly disappointed. Koala looked ashamed. Sabo knew that feeling. He wanted to hug and comfort her, but Tai looked like he was about to call him every name in the book and then some. 

The door to Akainu’s office opened. He inspected the little group. “Looks like we’ll have to make a start without your guardian, Outlook. Enter.”

The kids sat in the seats against the wall as Tai sat before Akainu, listening to him as he detailed their defiant behaviour.

“—to make matters worse, they both failed to show up to their economics lesson.” He was red in the face as he continued shouting, making a bigger fuss than it actually was. Sabo had to fight the urge to roll his eyes and talk back at him. They were in enough trouble already. He looked over when Koala placed a hand on his leg he couldn’t keep still. 

“Koala’s a well behaved girl,” Tai said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. “Is there anyway you can let this slide just this once?”

Akainu looked like he was actually contemplating his plea. When he opened his mouth to say something, the door flew open and slammed into the wall so hard the pictures on it shook.

Sabo’s fight or flight was triggered. Why was Garp here instead of either of his moms? His first instinct was to run, but his grandfather’s booming laugh made him freeze.

“You sit right where you are,” he said to Sabo with his usual maniacal grin. “Sorry I’m late, Akainu.”

“Garp, I was just explaining to Tai the behaviours of your grandson and his friend.”

Sabo must have been as pale as a sheet because Koala bumped his shoulder with a questioning look. If he wasn’t nervous before, he definitely was now. His moms must’ve been swamped with work if they sent Garp in their stead. He and his brothers were no strangers to this room and the whole “your son is acting out of line” spiel. But their moms reacted differently than their grandfather. He was now truly fucked.

It was only made worse when Akainu turned his computer for them to see.

“I wouldn’t mind letting your niece off with just a warning this time,” he explained. “However, our hallway footage caught this. Need I remind you that PDA is against school policy?”

Horror. If there was a stronger word for that, that would describe Sabo and Koala’s reactions when they watched the footage of them making out. They both looked away, avoiding their guardians’ disbelieving and amused gazes. Oh, they were seriously fucked.

Fisher Tai was silent. Garp had burst out laughing and wouldn’t stop.

“Could you please be serious?” Tai asked, his tone displeased.

“Come on, they’re just kids. And kids do dumb things.” He kept cackling. “This is my favourite parent-teacher conference!”

His words didn’t make Sabo feel any better. 

“I’m thinking of three weeks of detention each.”

All four of them were taken aback.

“That’s too much—“

“It was just a minor offence—“

“Not only were your children defiant by ignoring a member of staff and running off while name calling said member of staff,” Akainu started, “but they also skipped out on a lesson and broke school rules with their public display of affection which is highly inappropriate.”

“Is it really PDA if everybody else was in class?” Garp challenged. Akainu glared at him as if understanding where Sabo got his snarky attitude from.

“Please don’t punish her too harshly,” Sabo begged. “Like Tai said, she’s a good, hardworking student—“

“Sabo—“ Koala started, but he cut her off. He didn’t want her missing practice when she was approaching competition season. As much as he hated to admit anything to Akainu, he needed her to get a lighter punishment.

“I started the name calling—“

“It was my idea to ditch,” she said.

“What’re you doing?” he turned to her.

“It’s not fair for just you to get punished.”

“Koala, you have a bunch of performances and competitions coming up. You can’t miss your ballet lessons.”

“But you’ll miss work. You’re saving up to fix your car—“

“See?” Garp’s booming voice drew their attentions. “They’re good kids who did something bad. Don’t be so hard on them.”

Fisher Tai chewed his lip. “The kids are showing remorse. There’s no need to punish them so severely.”

“Enough! I’ll give you two one week of detention each. But you both have to write apology letters to your teacher for skipping class.”

They looked at each other with wide grins. Sure, a week was still bad, but it was much better than three whole weeks.

“I wouldn’t start celebrating if I were you two,” Garp called.

He was right. That was just the start of their punishments. As soon as they stepped outside of Akainu’s office, their guardians started laying into them.

Fisher Tai expressed his gratitude to Sabo for stepping up for Koala, yet still forbid her from seeing him outside of school for the rest of the week. Considering it took place in school, anytime they weren’t in a classroom together learning the same thing, she wasn’t allowed to speak to him.

She sadly waved him goodbye as her uncle made her go to the car. He bid Garp a good day and left without acknowledging Sabo again.

Sabo wanted him to come back because now he was left alone with his grandfather.

“Y-You’re not gonna snitch on me, right?” He tested the waters, and Garp burst out laughing.

“Ha! I wish I could take a copy of that video to show Rouge and Dadan.” He continued his cackling. Of course he was going to tell them.

“Sabo!” With no warning and out of nowhere, Luffy threw himself around his brother. “Can you buy me—“

He stopped when he noticed Garp. Luffy got down and tried to run, but Garp caught him by the collar.

“I believe I have a meeting with one of your teachers about a prank you pulled.”

He dragged a struggling Luffy down the hallway.

“Help me! Sabo, help!”

He shrugged and wished him luck.

 

———

 

“A-And then the kids started fighting about who should take the punishment.” Garp was having way too much fun on recounting his meeting with Akainu to Rouge and Dadan, who shared equally horrified expressions.

“Holy shit, and it was all on camera?” Ace gasped. For some reason he believed he just needed to be present for this meeting.

Sabo had his face buried in his hands. There was only so much embarrassment a person could handle. “Ace. Please, shut up.”

“You should’ve seen the looks on their faces. They looked like ghosts!” Garp slammed his hand against the table as he struggled to catch his breath.

“Um… well,” Rouge started unsurely, “I’m sure I speak for both me and Dadan when I say I’m glad you and Koala are close, Sabo. We just hope you two are being safe about it—“

“Mrs. Mom!” He slumped down further in his seat, praying for he ground to crack open and swallow him whole.

“And please,” Dadan added, “try not to do it in school.”

Ace decided to join in. “If you are gonna do it at school, have some dignity and do it in the locker rooms like the rest of us.”

They all turned to Ace to gawk at him in disgust or disbelief.

“Are you guys talking about sex?” Luffy finally piped up from where he’d been sitting, uncomfortable from Garp’s detailed description of what was now the most humiliating day of Sabo’s life. “Do I have to be here for this?”

“I was just about to get to you,” Garp said. “You won’t believe what this kid managed to pull.”

Their moms sighed, aging a few years and probably regretting not being child-free as their grandfather explained how Luffy had single handedly managed to get all the frogs in the science lab to revolt in class.

Notes:

ive only ever gotten detention once in my life (quiet kid things lol) and it wasn’t even my fault cuz it was for homework that was handed out before i even joined the school and my teacher was like “yh, just do it and ill remove the detention” and i couldn’t find it so i emailed him and i was like “hey, where’s the work i can’t find it??” And he never responded. So i never showed up to detention

anyways i love this chapter so so much cuz it’s just hilarious to me and i was sooo excited to post it. Our lovebirds are finally happy… maybe a little too happy…

look out for an early update next week!! Enjoy<3

Chapter 11

Summary:

CW// child abuse; self-harming

Nightmares bring up ugly feelings, and our couple have their first fight

Late February

 

Sabo was elated. He’d spent months with his teacher practicing for the exam. Sure, he didn’t pass, but he was only a few points off. And the examiner said he was far advanced for his age. That was a good thing.

But not to his parents.

Quietly, he stood at the door, in the shadows and out of sight, as they argued. At his young age, he couldn’t quite understand why they were so upset. Even his teacher was elated by the praises he had received from the examiners.

Sabo felt his small fists clench, nails digging into his palms as he watched his father berate his mother. He couldn’t stand that man. Sure, his mother had her moments, but she wasn’t as heinous as that waste of space that wouldn’t stop his incessant screaming. If he were any stronger, he’d step in and protect her. That was his mother after all. She loved him and would do the same for his sake.

Once finished, Outlook stormed out of the kitchen, leaving Didit to fill a cup with wine. Sabo cringed. She was already scary enough when sober. Grabbing a cloth and bottle of bleach, she started obsessively cleaning. She only did that when stressed, so the house was always spotless— no mess, no blemishes. Perfectly perfect. That’s how she wanted it to be. That’s what Sabo strived to be if it made her happy.

“Mom?” Sabo hesitantly called out as he stepped into the kitchen. He didn’t have enough time to duck as her wine glass flew right a him. Pain exploded along the side of his head. Glass exploded in a mess of red.

Horrified, he stared down at his hands painted crimson. He couldn’t tell if it was his blood or wine.

“Rotten child,” she muttered, eyes cold.

 

~

 

Sabo’s eyes fluttered open. He was glad to see himself in his bedroom, but the dream— nightmare-memory— had him feeling a sense of disconnect. There was a gaping hole where his heart was supposed to be. He rolled over and hugged his blanket as he cried.

There went his sleep. Even if he wanted to, there was no falling back asleep.

There was one thing he’d always do whenever he got those nightmares again. Memories of his past carried his footsteps out of his room and down the hall. Pushing the door to Dadan’s room open, he walked over to her and shook her awake.

She stirred, a cranky look on her face.

“Sabo? What the hell are you doing? Do you know what time—“ she stopped and reached over to turn on her lamp. She noticed the tears on his face. “Sabo—“

“Momma, do you love me?” His voice was nothing short of fragile and empty.

“Sit down. Let’s talk.” Dadan sat him down beside her and wrapped her blanket around his shoulders. “Do you want me to make you some tea?”

He shook his head. “Can you please just answer the question?” 

Dadan sighed. “You wanna tell me what prompted this?”

He hesitated, and she waited as he took his time. “I dreamt of them again.”

She nodded slowly. “Have I ever told you I never wanted kids?”

Sabo tried not to roll his eyes. “Everyday.”

“My whole life I hated them. Thought they were gross, needy, clingy. But you boys have to be the best things that have happened to me.”

He turned to face her fully, the vision in his left eye partly gone. Now that she rarely ever said.

“Don’t tell your brothers. Can’t let them know I actually give a damn about you lot. But to answer your question, of course I love you, Sabo. I would trade the world for you. Now, give your momma a hug. Don’t get used to it; I have a reputation to uphold.”

He threw himself into her arms and sobbed. “I’m sorry,” he cried into her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“Who are you apologising to? There’s nothing to be sorry for.”

“Momma.” He held her tightly.

 

———

 

Now, Sabo loved his brothers to bits. He’d do anything for them, but damn their high emotional IQs and insane perception.

The moment he parked his car in the school parking lot, he made to get out, but Ace stopped him.

“You’re not going anywhere.”

He sighed. He anticipated this. “Just let me go to class.”

“Give me the keys. I’m driving.” There was no room to argue with Ace’s abrupt tone.

Sabo narrowed his eyes at him. “I’m not letting you drive my car when I just got it fixed—“

“Give. Me. Those. Keys.” He was not backing down. Sabo relented and handed them over. “Good. Now, Luffy, get out and go to homeroom.”

“What? I wanna come too.” He pouted.

“No. You’re just a kid. You need to stay in school.”

“But you and Sabo—“

“Do as I say, not as I do, Lu.”

“Ugh! You’re no fun,” he grumbled as he grabbed his bag and left.

With Ace in the driver’s seat, Sabo remembered why he never let him borrow his car, and why he was their designated driver for nearly everything. His hand gripped the door handle as Ace took a sharp right, forgetting to indicate.

“Where are you taking me?”

“Somewhere where we can talk without the prying eyes and ears of our baby.”

He scoffed. “You gotta stop treating him like a little kid, y’know?”

Ace hummed. “I’ll do that when he learns how to read.” He pulled up in front of the library.

Of course. Why was Sabo not surprised?

“Hey, Robin.” They both greeted the librarian.

“Hmm, let me see.” Robin looked at her wrist watch. She pointed at Sabo. “Photography.” She pointed at Ace. “And… geography.”

“Wow, you’re getting good at this.” Ace applauded. “But actually it’s homeroom right now. Geography starts in five.”

“Who needs to learn about rocks, eh?” Robin gave Sabo a once over and smiled. “Rough sleep?”

He averted his gaze, and she chuckled.

“My lips are sealed.” She went back to reading her book.

“You’re the best!” Ace called out to her, immediately getting shushed. Once they made it to their quiet corner, he started, “you wanna talk about it?”

Sabo shook his head. “Not particularly, but you have a knack for always getting me to talk, so why not? I dreamt of them.”

“Ohhh, that’s why you’ve been off all morning.”

“Was it really that obvious?”

“Yeah. Even Robin noticed. That’s why I brought you here.” Ace placed his hands behind his head as he relaxed into the bean bag. “Can’t have you entering school looking like you got the life drained from you.”

“I might as well try to get some sleep while I’m here. I barely slept a wink.” He relaxed into his own bean bag, and as he stared up at the ceiling, he thought back to when he’d brought Koala to that same spot. She’d curled up into and slept. It was adorable. “I brought Koala here.”

Ace whipped his head to stare wide eyed at his brother. “You two didn’t—“

“We didn’t. Gross! Why is that your first thought?”

He shrugged. “You’re two hormonal teens with a lot of tension between you two. This is a secluded, cozy place. I mean, I brought Yamato here just the other day, and we—“

“Ew. Moving on…. Gods, why are you like this?” He didn’t even want to think about it. He just hoped the pillows were washed. Knowing Ace… yeah, he really shouldn’t have thought more about it.

“You’re one to talk, you little slut.”

Sabo side eyed him. “They weren’t my proudest moments. Besides, I was going through a rough patch.”

“Yeah, yeah, don’t act like you weren’t enjoying yourself. I don’t get why people felt the need to come up to me and tell me all about what you’d been doing—“

“Moving on. Please.”

“So are you two friends or—“ Ace passed out on Sabo’s shoulder mid-sentence. He snored softly.

Sabo sighed. “Yes,” he answered the unfinished question. “I think.” He dragged his hands down his face and groaned. “I don’t know anymore.”

 

———

 

Luffy was still annoyed at Ace.

“Come on, now you’re just picking favourites,” he grumbled.

“Sabo’s nicer anyways!”

“Excuse me? I’m the one always buying you treats from the vending machine, you ungrateful, little shit— get back here!” Ace sprinted after a screaming Luffy.

“Help me! Help me!” His pleas carried through the house as he ran.

“Ace! Be nice to your brother,” Rouge called after them.

All of this was just background noise to Sabo. He was used to the fuss, but as he stared at the landline, all other noise seemed to drown out.

Ace had helped him out of his earlier stupor, but he found himself falling back into unhealthy habits. His last interaction with Law floated to the forefront of his mind. All he had to do was dial his number. It would help ease the pain if he went over to his place, just for a short while, but it would help. It would fill the void in his heart— make up for that hole that seemed to grow with every passing second, increasing that searing pain in his chest. All he had to do was dial—

“Are you waiting for something?” Rouge’s voice pulled him out of his trance. He looked at her, confused. “You’ve been staring at that phone really intensely. Are you waiting for a call?”

“Um.” He looked at the phone then back at her. “No. It’s… it’s nothing.”

She didn’t look convinced. “You’re not planning on doing anything stupid, are you?”

“No, Mrs. Mom. Of course not,” he lied through his teeth, giving a non-convincing smile. It didn’t have to be a lie, but the thought weighed heavily on his mind. It was a choice he wanted somebody else to make for him. Why was this so hard? 

That’s why when everyone went to bed, he snuck quietly into the kitchen and picked up the handset. His fingers hovered over the numbers he had burned into his mind. He put down the phone. He couldn’t do it.

“This isn’t right,” he whispered to himself.

“What’s not right?”

Sabo nearly jumped out of his skin. He turned to see Luffy standing at the door to the kitchen. 

“Why are you out of bed?”

His eyes darted to the fridge then back to him. “Why are you out of bed?”

“Just go get whatever snacks you came here for. I won’t say anything.”

But he didn’t. Luffy stood there, analysing Sabo with that unsettling owlish stare of his. He walked up to his older brother. “What’re you waiting for?”

“None of your business, Luffy. Go back to bed.” His persistence was starting to annoy Sabo.

Those big, doe eyes bore into him, through him and seemed to pick his mind apart. Like he knew exactly what he intended to do.

“I’m not going to call him,” he said as if trying to convince himself, buckling under the pressure of his baby brother’s stare.

For a moment, Luffy didn’t say anything. His face broke out into a grin. “Okay! ‘Night, Sabo.”

“Goodnight, Luffy,” he said quietly, watching his brother leave. He glanced at the phone, put down the handset with a sigh and decided to go to bed.

Just as the plastic left his fingers, it rang.

 

———

 

“Are we there yet?”

Her question went unanswered for the umpteenth time.

“Focus on your colouring, sweetheart,” her mother said, voice wavering. Koala watched from the passenger’s seat as her hands clenched and unclenched the steering wheel. Her nails were cracked from periodically chewing on them. Her gaze kept darting out the window as if looking for something or someone.

“I don’t wanna do my colourings. It’s boring.”

“Do your fucking colourings!” she snapped. That was mommy’s angry voice. The voice she used when she was tired, sad, angry or upset. Koala was too used to hearing that voice. She hated it. She went back to her colourings, her small hands trembling in fear.

“Mommy?” she said quietly, scared to anger her again.

“Yes, sweetheart?” Her voice was calmer now. Koala didn’t look up at her face yet saw the way her free hand kept scratching at her leg.

“Do you hate me for being a bad child?” Tears streamed down her face. That’s what her mommy always told her. She was a bad child and bad children needed to be punished. She was the reason there was no food to eat. It was all her fault.

Koala cried quietly as her mother refused to answer, her silence answer enough.

 

~

 

When her eyes opened, Koala found herself on the ground tangled in her blankets. Still shaking off the remnants of sleep, she thrashed, screaming and crying as she tried to get herself free. She was stuck, trapped, drowning. She couldn’t get free. She couldn’t breathe. Why couldn’t she breathe? Was she underwater again? Not again, not again—

The door to her bedroom flew open. Tai rushed to her. “Koala? Koala, you’re okay. It was just a bad dream.”

He held her as she cried, her fingers digging into his skin.

“Remember your breathing. Take deep breaths. In through your nose, out your mouth.”

His calming voice and constant reassurance helped ground her. She focused on the warmth of his embrace, his rough hands smoothing of her skin, his warm-scented cologne invading her sinuses. She was safe and on dry land, not fighting for her life underwater. He whispered sweet nothings into her hair until her breathing evened, and she was asleep in his arms.

After that it was like she was off kilter. And it was starting to show.

“Turn out more on bottom leg,” Viola was saying during their private. They were going through her variations for the YGLGP and the Prix de Sabaody finals. She clearly wasn’t on her A-game. “Leg higher. Higher!”

She stopped the music, analysing her with confusion and concern. “Koala, what’s wrong with you today? You not focusing, why?”

Breathless and exhausted, she looked down at her dead shoes in shame. Some of the satin was beginning to fray on the platform of her left shoe.

“You feeling sick? Did you take iron?”

“It’s not that. I… I’ve just had a long day,” she whispered, trying and failing to push away the dread that settled in her chest. “I’m fine. Let’s go again from the top.” 

That “long day” had spanned over nearly a week, leaving her feeling numb, sluggish and dispassionate about everything. Even her greatest passion. She couldn’t have her slump impacting the one thing that actually made her feel alive.

Naturally, Koala was frustrated. Why had her heart abandoned her again? Especially now of all times when she needed to focus— exams, practice, studies, rehearsal. It was all so much, and her heart barely kept up.

She rolled and tossed and turned in bed, desperately trying to catch a sleep that evaded her like sand through her fingers. Of course it did. For as long as she could remember, it never came easy.

Something that she had tried to keep together for so long finally snapped. She couldn’t sleep, she couldn’t dance, she couldn’t study, she couldn’t do anything right like the failure she was, and enough was enough. Koala didn’t want to feel this anymore. She didn’t want to feel anything. It was like a chip pan fire ready to explode and burn everything down to a crisp; she just wanted to get rid of it in any way possible. Even if it meant digging through her drawers and pulling out her shaving stick and going back to old ways she swore she’d never ever resort to again. But here she was, swiping the sharp blades over the marred, ruined skin of her hips until the blood fell, oozing from her self-inflicted wounds as she focused on the sting. 

The more it hurt the less her heart weighed. As if her heart was only gratified once she received the punishment she deserved. It cleared her mind.

Only for a moment.

The guilt settled in.

“What am I doing?” she whispered to no one. Just her and the deafening silence.

She wanted— needed to feel something else and not the crushing weight in her chest.

That’s how she ended up calling Sabo.

 

———

 

“C-Can you come over?”

Usually, Sabo would get excited when asked to come over to someone’s place in the dead of night. But now, he felt nothing but worry. She didn’t sound right. So he agreed. If something was up with Koala— which sounded like there was— he didn’t want her to be alone.

Knock knock. His fist rapped against her window. Her uncle’s car was in the driveway, so he opted for the “back entrance.”

“It’s open,” she called. He saw her pacing her bedroom floor as if deep in thought. When her eyes turned to him, he noticed how bloodshot and soulless they were; void of the usual sparkle he’d come to adore.

“Koala, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she said dryly. Sabo wasn’t sure he believed that.

“You sure? Over the phone you sounded really—“

She was on him. In a few steps, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a kiss.

Sabo pulled back. “Koala, wait—“

“I need it. Please,” she begged, pressing her lips against his once more.

This time he didn’t resist. It was like slipping back into his old ways when he’d always succumb, letting himself be used time and time and time again as he deluded himself into believing it was love. He allowed himself to be pushed back against the bed. Koala mounted his lap, kissing him deeply, the taste of her tears on his tongue. His hands snaked up her thighs, settling under her shirt on her hips. He felt her jolt as if he’d hurt her. 

Sabo couldn’t do it anymore. What made this time different from all the times he used sex and ecstasy to cover up a lingering pain was that it was her. This was Koala. She wasn’t some one night stand to chase a temporary high. She wasn’t a tool to be used to forget his problems. He actually liked her. And she wasn’t in the right headspace. He knew ‘cause he’d been there more times than he could count on both hands and feet.

He broke the kiss. “Koala, this isn’t right.”

She looked confused and hurt. “Why? Don’t you want me?” Her eyes searched his for something, and he wasn’t sure what.

“Of course I do. I really like you, but we—“

“You don’t want me.” Her tone was brittle and sharp, but her eyes seemed to glisten with tears.

“It’s not like that,” he said gently, hands massaging her sides in a soothing manner. His hands stilled when he felt it. Wet and warm. 

Koala realised why he froze. She swatted his hands away and got off him.

He sat up, his heart falling for her as he stared at his bloodstained hands. Clearly, there was something troubling her. “Koala—“

“I don’t wanna talk about it.”

“Talk to me,” he persisted. “What is up with you? You’ve cancelled all our sessions, I haven’t seen you all week. Why did you call me over? I only wanna help.”

“I don’t know,” her voice broke with the admission. “I don’t know.”

“If you want my help—“

“I don’t want your help.” She was pacing, hands gripping her hair. “I just want to forget. I wanna feel something, dammit. Sabo, that’s why I called you over.”

It was like he’d been gut punched. “That’s why you called me over?” he asked quietly. “You wanted to use me to forget?”

“Yes!” Her face dropped the moment she realised what she had just admitted to.

It stabbed his heart. “Is that what I am to you? Some toy you can have fun with when you’re feeling miserable? I thought you liked me.” He wasn’t entirely sure who the words were directed to, who exactly he was speaking to. His ex lover or the girl for whom he’d begun to blossom feelings.

“I do like you—“

“Then why am I here?” he demanded, feeling like a total fool. “Why did you call me over?”

She didn’t have an answer for that. She bit her lip, staring up at him, and he wished he could tell what was happening in her mind.

It hurt. Right now, she reminded him of Law, and it hurt so bad he could hardly breathe. He took a deep breath to keep from tearing up or screaming.

“Wow.” He laughed mirthlessly. In some ways it was funny. It was fucking hilarious. Just his luck. “Wow, and to think I’d actually fallen for you. You start treating me like a stranger out of nowhere, disappear out of everyone’s life, only to turn up and start playing games with me? Like something at your disposal?”

Koala shook her head frantically. “I was never playing games with you.”

“I thought you hated me,” he finally admitted, voice raising. “When you started pushing me away back then, I thought it was some sick, twisted way of you saying you wanted nothing to do with me. It took almost forever to heal and just when I was getting over it, getting over you, you waltz back into my life and-and then you start acting like you like me and now this?”

“That’s not fair,” she whispered, tears starting to fall. “You can’t bring up the past. It’s not fair—“

“What’s not fair is how you’ve been treating me like shit practically our whole lives.” His vision blurred, and hot liquid brushed his cheeks. He furiously swiped at his face.

“I had my reasons!”

“Ones you won’t tell me! And you just want me to be okay with it?”

They both stood there, tears pouring down their faces, too many unspoken words between them, yet neither had the strength to tear open their wounds and clear the air. They didn’t even get the chance to.

“Koala?” They both turned to the door when they heard Tai’s voice from downstairs. “You okay up there?”

Sabo turned and left.

 

———

 

When he got back, Rouge and Dadan were waiting for him with similar looks of anger.

“Where have you been?” Rouge started. “It is a school night. You know better than to be out so late.”

Dadan said, “we came to check up on you only to—“

Sabo didn’t have the strength to fight back. He was exhausted. He’d been losing sleep from stress and that whole ordeal with Koala left him drained. He promptly broke down in a bought of ugly tears.

The two shocked mothers exchanged glances, no longer upset at the sight of their son’s distress. Hesitantly, they tried to calm him down.

“I like her, momma,” he sobbed. “I really like her.”

“It’s okay, Sabo,” Rouge hushed, stroking soothing circles down his back.

“This is about Koala?” Dadan’s question was more of a statement.

He nodded, hanging his head in shame. He was such a fool. “I don’t want it to be like Law all over again.”

Notes:

you get trauma, you get trauma, YOU ALL GET TRAUMA!!! :D dw folks, it only goes downhill from here

posting this early cuz I’m preparing for a trip with a friend in *checks watch* T-9hours. will be gone for a short while, hope you enjoy<3

Chapter 12

Summary:

CW// rape; drug abuse

A look into Sabo’s relationship with Law. Sabo and Koala are on speaking terms (but in the worst way).

February/March

 

“Do you love me?”

The expanse of his back was to him in all its tattooed glory, the smile on his back seemingly laughing and sneering at him. He didn’t think he’d be able to see his reaction. It would hurt too much, because Sabo was sure he already knew the answer to his naive question. He fought against his heavy lids that begged to close, limbs heavy and tired.

He heard Law’s scoff. “Is that what you want this to be?”

The bed shifted under Law’s weight. He could smell the weed in his breath as he moved closer.

Sabo’s response? Silence. He regretted opening his big mouth.

“Come on, babe. Talk to me.” His hand smoothed over Sabo’s nude thigh under the blanket. It was soothing, adding to his drowsiness, but no matter how hard he tried he just couldn’t fall asleep.

“What am I to you?” he asked, turning to face him. His eyes travelled to Law’s lips and watched as they stretched into a smirk.

“You’re my loving boyfriend of course.” His lips pressed against his neck.

“We’ve been together for half a year,” Sabo spoke low, “but you… you….” Whatever balloon that was inflated in his mind was making it hard to focus. Multiple thoughts passed through his head at once. He was hungry. He was tired. What time was it? How long had he stayed at Law’s? Were his moms looking for him?

“I what?” Those dazzling gold eyes gazed into his. That’s how he ended up in this whole mess in the first place. Fallen for his pretty eyes and saccharine words like the desperate fool he was. “I treat you well, don’t I?”

He nodded slowly. He was right. Law did treat him well. Most of the time, but those one off moments didn’t count because he would still show him he cared by… by….

Law sighed. “Open.”

Used to this, Sabo opened his mouth, ready for him to blow a puff of weed into his mouth after Law took a puff from his joint. 

He kissed his cheek. “Good boy. That should make you feel better.”

It only added to his dizziness. He already smoked a few blunts. Law basically blowing the smoke into his face helped prolong his high. But it was like hearing in 4D. He could hear every sound— his heart pounding in his chest, Law’s inhales and exhales, his roommates watching some action movie down the hall. He swore he could hear the lights flicker. Law’s eyes seem to glow as they watched him.

“What? Still not feeling better?” He got up and rummaged through his dresser. Turning Sabo’s face to him, he forced his jaw open to put in a few small pills.

He instantly tried to spit it out, knowing immediately what it was. He didn’t want it. The last time he took codeine while on other drugs, he’d had the worst trip of his life. He went from fighting ghosts of his parents to waking up under a bridge with no recollection of getting there. Dadan and Rouge had never been angrier and sadder. Apparently, he had disappeared for nearly two whole days. After that incident, he swore to never touch codeine or shrooms ever again.

Law’s grip on his jaw tightened. “Swallow,” his voice was low and dark.

He had no choice but to swallow.

“I’m doing this for your sake.”

Sabo wasn’t quite sure he believed that. He wanted to argue back, but he just felt so damn tired.

“You know this shit is expensive. But I’m willing to share it with you.” He scoffed. “You need it more than me.”

Law was right. Sabo was messed up. He was right… he was right. He cares for me, he thought. He needed to be grateful.

“Thank you,” he whispered.

“What for?”

He didn’t know. He’d said it on impulse.

“I don’t know,” he admitted quietly.

Discarding his finished blunt, Law brushed Sabo’s hair behind his ear. He kissed the side of his face. It felt so tender, so gentle. But the pills made his brain relax, suppressing any and all warning bells that be gged him to snap out of his trance. 

“You’re so cute.” His teeth nipped at his earlobe. His hand travelled down his torso, making Sabo shivere. He gripped his ass.

Sabo hissed. He was still sore. He tried pushing him away, yet Law persisted, massaging his ass as his teeth nipped at his neck.

“No,” he said meekly. He tried shoving, but he wouldn’t budge. His arms felt weak. His whole body ached. His mind felt like mush. But he was lucid enough to at least try to fight back. “Stop. Law!” he shrieked when he felt his teeth dig into his skin harshly.

Law pulled back. “Don’t you wanna know what it’s like to be loved?”

His hands froze. He always knew the right words to say to get his way with Sabo. It was humiliating that he was that easy, that naive, that  gullible.

“That’s why you came to me, right?” A finger pushed into his hole, and Sabo shut his eyes, hissing at the pain and lack of preparation. “We can pretend it’s love if you want. That is what you want, right? To be loved. Be grateful I chose to be with someone like you.”

When Law pulled out his finger, he was relieved. It gave him a brief reprieve. He knew he should’ve said no. He should’ve gotten up, gotten his things, left and never looked back. But he couldn’t. He was too intoxicated to think twice about his words, and Law always had a way of messing with his inhibitions, sober or not, playing with his feelings as easily as a child played with their favourite toy.

“Ah!” Sabo cried when Law flipped him around and pushed himself in with no warning. He was lubed up, but he’d completely skipped foreplay and any other form of preparation.

“Shh,” he hushed, kissing away Sabo’s tears.

Regardless, they continued to fall. “I-It hurts.”

“But you’re doing so well.” Law kissed along his jawline, a deep groan rumbling in his chest that pressed against his back. “Look at you taking me so well. You’re my good boy.”

He didn’t want it, but Law’s praise had his head swimming in confusion. They’d been together long enough for him to know every right button to press.

Closing his eyes, he tried to ignore the pain as Law’s hips moved.

“You feel so good,” he groaned. “Look at me. I wanna see your pretty face.”

He sniffled and tried to calm down. Sabo did as he was told. Law smiled down at him. He could see how dilated his pupils were. Right, he’s high, Sabo thought in a daze. Neither of us are in a right state of mind, so it doesn’t count.

Gripping his face, Law kissed Sabo deeply. It was tender. It was sweet. It helped fuel his delusion that this could be something more innocent than it was.

Law’s pace became unsteady. With a final thrust of his hips, he came in him.

Sabo was just glad it was finally over. He curled into a ball as Law fetched a towel to clean them up.

When he returned, he wrapped his arms around his torso, and Sabo let him. He let him use him for sex. Why not for cuddling? He hurt him. Why not let Law take care of him too?

“Do you love me?” Law asked, throwing his own question back at him.

Sabo was silent. They both knew the answer.

With a scoff, he said, “there’s your answer then. We’ll pretend it’s love if that’s what you want.”

That wasn’t what he wanted, but snuggling deeper into Law’s embrace, he muttered to himself, “we’ll pretend.”

 

———

 

It didn’t matter what Viola was talking to Sabo about. Koala didn’t care. Well, she tried not to. She was still furious. So what if her heart ached every time she looked at him? She didn’t want to care about the shit he did. Her friends were worried, but she was totally, perfectly fine. A little heartbroken and reevaluating every life choice she’d made up until this point but still fine regardless.

“Koala, what happened between you two?”

Oh, what a silly little question Vivi had just asked her. They were sitting in the communal area, waiting for their next class to start.

“I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about, Vivi.” She didn’t look up to see her worried glance, instead focusing on the new pointe shoes she was prepping. Another couple of ten thousand Berrie down the drain.

“Don’t play dumb with me. You know who I’m talking about.”

They glanced at the studio Sabo was in. He was now chatting with both Viola and Bon Clay. He looked really jolly and happy. Not like it made her heart hurt more or anything. The audacity he had to be happy like she wasn’t still hurting. How could he move on so quickly?

“Nope. No idea.” She went back to breaking in the shanks.

“Here are the drinks you requested.” Koala was glad for Sanji. It turned Vivi’s attention away from her and to him. “Chai latte for the wonderful Vivi. And a double espresso for— oh, did something happen?”

Koala rolled her eyes. “Why do you all think something happened between me and Sabo? Nothing happened between us, and we’re perfectly fine!”

Okay, maybe she was knocking the shoes into the ground harder than usual.

Sanji and Vivi exchanged a look.

With a scoff, Sanji stood up straight, taking a protective stance. “If that punk hurt you—“

“Don’t you dare bother Sabo, Sanji.” Koala glared at him.

He reverted back to his golden retriever attitude. “As you wish, my dear Koala.” He still cast a nasty glance towards Sabo.

Vivi wasn’t as easy to deter. She moved to sit closer to her. “I’m worried.”

Koala scoffed. “I thought you didn’t like Sabo.”

“But you do.”

She stopped scrutinising her ribbons and stared at her friend. She chewed her lip in thought. A part of her felt she was being unreasonable. It would probably be healthier to just talk to him, but right now all she wanted to do was scream at the blond idiot and knock him into next year.

“It’s complicated,” she finally said.

“So something did happen.”

“Don’t tell Nami. She’ll harass him and probably Luffy about it. Same with you, Sanji. Keep your lips sealed.”

With his hand to his chest, he dipped his head. “I will obey your request.”

She was too used to his strange behaviours  to comment.

Koala wasn’t sure why she was telling Vivi. Of course she was going to tell Nami. The girl couldn’t keep anything from her girlfriend.

“We got into an argument a few nights ago.”

“What about?” she pressed.

Koala was hesitant to say. “He accused me of playing with his feelings. I wasn’t. I really do like him. Then he brought up how I used to treat him— it doesn’t matter. It’s all stupid anyways.”

“How did you treat him?” Vivi asked.

She felt embarrassed about that. “We used to be really close friends, Sabo and I. But after that thing with my mom happened, I started pushing him away. I started pushing everyone away actually. I’d ignore him, snap at him— gods, I was awful.” She covered her face, feeling immense guilt at her embarrassing behaviour.

“You have your reasons.”

“That’s what I said! But he’s still upset I won’t tell him why.”

“A true gentleman should never pressure a lady to do anyth—“

“Shut it, Sanji. We haven’t spoken since.”

The door to the studio opened.

Bon Clay, with all his usual peppiness and enthusiasm, made his grand entrance. Every dancer present in the hallway turned their attention to him. He gestured to Sabo as if he was some shiny trophy.

“Some of you may already know him,” he announced jovially. “But I want everyone to meet Sabo! He’ll be helping us as a videographer, isn’t that great?”

Videographer? There was a ripple of confusion through the room and excitement amongst some of the students. Koala tried to keep her smile yet glared at the group of girls snickering and ogling him. 

When she looked back at Sabo, he was looking at her, watching her reaction. She looked away and focused on sewing her ribbons. Anything but him.

“Not the reaction I was expecting, so let me explain!” His tone never once dropped its enthusiasm. “Each and every dancer will have an opportunity to have their pieces recorded if they want to go over and check their technique, and he’ll now be filming entries for future competitions. He does photography, so we’ll put our faith in his grand skills. Now, we’ll start with our National Ballet Audition competitors. Going up first—“

“Me!” Koala was on her feet, her hand in the air. All eyes were on her except for Sabo’s. He’d rolled his eyes, casting his gaze away. She frowned. “I’ll go first.”

Vivi tried to pull her down. “This isn’t a good idea,” she hissed. “You aren’t even competing in the NBA—“

“Darn these for me.” She handed Vivi her shoes and grabbed her bag, rushing to the dance studio at the confusion of her directors.

 

———

 

It was Sabo’s idea. He offered up his minimal videography skills to help at the ABCD. He could get more money and after… recent events, it would also serve as a distraction. The more work he could focus on, the less he could think about that night.

As Sabo set up the camera, Koala pulled out different pairs of shoes from her bag, scrutinising the softness of their boxes (she once explained to him). He’d watched her do this at least a hundred times. She puts tape around her second toe before pulling on what she called her toe pad. Or what was left of it. It was probably a healthy pair of toe pads once upon a time. But after years and years of dancing, it just looked like a pathetic piece of fabric to “protect” her toes.

He couldn’t help but admire her even though he was still angry. She always took such care when preparing to dance. Practicing her demi pointes, flexing then pointing her foot, doing bourrées at the barre to help warm up her feet and ensure a better, safer performance. He admired her. Deeply.

But he was getting distracted.

“When you’re ready, state your name and the piece you’ll be performing and what competition you’re partaking in,” he said as he adjusted the camera settings.

“I thought you’re supposed to look someone in the eye when you talk to them.” She had a biting tone, yet her smile never fell.

He bit back a retort. Turning to her, he made sure to look her in the eye. Things between them had gotten complicated after their fight. Admittedly, they were somewhat complicated to begin with, but that fight had worsened everything. “Your name, the piece you’re doing and the competition.”

Koala’s eyes seemed to brighten in triumph. “My name is Fischer Koala. This is grand pas classique for the Youth Grand Line Grand Prix.”

She went to take her starting position, and all her sassiness drained, giving way to her professionalism. A handful of dancers gathered at the door to watch, Sabo, Viola, Bon Clay and two other teachers stood at the front behind the camera.

Sabo tried to not look at her as she danced yet struggled to keep his gaze away. He was still upset with her. At least he thought he was? He wasn’t all too sure. All he knew was that his heart squeezed painfully, yet he didn’t know much about love. Was it supposed to hurt this bad?

When the music stopped, Bon Clay applauded her. He made his comments. “Lovely doubles, Koala! Make sure to not let your leg drop in your back attitudes. But you looked a bit distracted. Is there anything on your mind?”

Her eyes caught Sabo’s. “Nothing. I’m perfectly fine.”

He scoffed before he could stop himself.

“What?” She pinned him with a glare, smile falling instantly.

“Nothing,” he muttered.

“Didn’t sound like nothing. Do you have something to say to me?”

“No, but you have something to say to me.”

“Me? What could I possibly have to say to you that isn’t a long list of curses?”

It was immature, he knew, yet he kept going still. “Hmm, I don’t know. Maybe a sorry?”

“‘Sorry’?” she asked incredulously.

“Apology accepted. But maybe try again with more remorse this time—“

“You’re impossible!”

“I’m impossible?”

“Enough, you two!” Bon Clay finally chimed in, looking back and forth between them. “Geez, and I thought you were supposed to be close. Is there something going on that I should know about?” He pinned them both with a look. To the side, Viola (who was oddly quiet) watched him carefully.

Koala looked at him expectantly. Sabo looked away.

“Whatever!” She stomped back to the corner of the room. “I wanna do it again.”

“Are you sure?” Bon Clay. He walked up to her, and they talked quietly. For once, Sabo didn’t need to eavesdrop to hear most of the conversation.

“I can do it. I’m not tired or anything.”

“You need to be taking care of yourself—“

“I am,” she stressed. “With comp season coming up, I’ve never been better!” Her words sounded a little too forced. 

He hesitated. “Fine. Sabo, we’ll film again,” Bon Clay relented. “With this much sass you should be doing Kitri.”

She gave a strained smile at his joke, which went over Sabo’s head.

The music started, and every trace that she’d been annoyed at him vanished. Her smile was wide and polite, her posture perfect and her attention laser focused as if she was on stage. She was dazzling, as if donned with a halo by the gods themselves and dammit, Sabo wanted to stab himself in the eyes for being so easily swayed.

When the music stopped, she let her limbs relax, slouching down on the ground as she caught her breath and listened to comments from the teachers present, ever the attentive student (unlike in econ). 

“Great!” Bon Clay clapped. “And Sabo can help with the technical stuff and email it to you.”

She gave him a side glance. “Do you even have my email?”

“Do you have mine?”

He got her there. He sighed. They couldn’t keep being petty like this.

“Come and write it down, and I’ll email it you.”

Koala got up and only made it a few steps. Sabo caught her in his arms just as she fainted. He was used to Ace and his narcolepsy, so he had acted on instinct as if sensing it would happen. But once he realised what was going on, Koala wasn’t narcoleptic, he panicked and looked at Bon Clay for help.

“I’ll go get Inazuma. She’s fine. Get her on the ground.”

Sabo had no idea what was going. Gently lowering her to the ground, he held her in his arms, cradling her. Sabo’s heart raced. There was so much he still had left to say to her, and as she lay in his arms, he realised how silly they had been acting.

He swiped the sweat off her forehead. “You worked hard,” he whispered.

Koala’s eyelids fluttered. She gazed up at him in confusion.

Relief flooded him. “Koala? You okay?”

“Huh?” It took her a second to realise what was going on. She pushed away from him and tried to get up.

“Careful, you just collapsed out of nowhere.”

She swatted his hands away. “It’s nothing. I’m just a bit anemic.”

“That’s not nothing. You could’ve gotten hurt if I hadn’t caught you. You should be taking more breaks—“

“I don’t need this from you. I already said I’m fine.”

He could tell she wasn’t fine. Her face was a bit pale, but he decided not to pry further. He let Bon Clay and Inazuma— their medic— take care of her, Viola following after them as she glared daggers at him.

Notes:

guys, gals, nonbinary pals, i would like to announce that it gets better from here… but that would be a lie. as much as i do wanna say it gets better, it gets worse. im a sucker for angst and i regret nthn（╹◡╹）♡

no one asked, but i got back from my trip a few days ago. i am officially broke but i went to two concert showings of my all time fav band (ateez) and it was the greatest experience of my life. i couldn’t speak properly for 3days but it was amazing, totally worth the jet lag. lowkey makes me wanna write an ASL idol au

enjoy<3

Chapter 13

Summary:

CW// dance related injury; panic attack; mentions of rape

As my mother likes to say, things have gone “from worse to worser to worsest.” After injuring herself, Koala hits a low. After finding closure with ex, Sabo also hits a low. But we get (bitter) sweet moments with our adoptive parents.

Notes:

The original plan for this story, that I actually wrote the first third of over a year ago, was supposed to be like maximum 30k. That has gotten out of hand. And it continues to get out of hand bcuz I know it say it’s gonna be 23 chapters, but as I’m writing future chapters and bringing things to a close (I finally see an end in sight🙌) I see that we might go over that number. Everyone cross your fingers that we don’t and I somehow manage to keep it contained🤞🤞🤞

As much as I enjoy writing this (it’s been sooo fun) I don’t wanna like bombard y’all or anything. Sorry, we’re looking at at least 100k now😓😓

Early March

 

Let it be said now that if, for whatever reason, Koala snapped at her Uncle Tai, he deserved it.

She hadn’t meant to. Especially not in front of his friends, her other adopted uncles, but she was tired of all the pitiful stares, the concerned questions, the “are you all right, honey?” over and over again like some broken record. Why was everyone acting like she was some fragile piece of glass that needed putting back together? She and Sabo had had a falling out and that was that. So what if she didn’t want to talk about it? It was nobody’s business but their own.

Koala knew Uncle Tai meant well, but his constant persistence was starting to bug her off. As if no one understood what needing space meant.

He was nowhere near a helicopter parent and he always treated her with respect and never ever made her feel like a burden— unlike her mother. And Tai always knew the best ways to cheer her up— except for today. Everything had bubbled and boiled over like a pot left unattended for far too long, and she had snapped as if trying to bite his head off; lashed out at him for something that was never his fault. Then she slammed her bedroom door shut as if punctuating her fury and hurt. As the night air cooled down the steam that still billowed from her ears, Koala looked back on the exchange.

Koala had stormed up the steps.

“We’re worried about you,” Tai had called after her, following her angry footsteps. “You’re not eating, your eyes are always red and puffy, your friends keep asking me what’s wrong—“

“Nothing’s wrong!” she said louder than she had intended, but there was a burning in her chest that needed somewhere to go. 

“Bullshit. I know you’ve been crying yourself to sleep.”

“What do you know?” Spinning on her heel, she had looked him in the eye. There was not a sign of anger in his dark eyes; just concern. It had made her chest tighten and twist in a way that only made that burning sensation more intense, more painful. At least if he had been angry she wouldn’t have felt so bad about what she said next and how she had said it. “I’m just some broken kid you pulled out of the water. You think cleaning me up and giving me a home makes you a father? Who do you think you’re kidding? Who do you think you are? You should’ve just thrown me back into that river!”

Tai then went silent. Whatever concern that used to be there was overwritten by the last thing she ever wanted to see from him— hurt. His mouth had twisted into a thin line, his eyes darting away from hers.

“Wait, Uncle Tai…,” she started, trying to undo what she’d done, but it was already too late, all of her feelings spilling out of her like a grotesque, acidic word vomit. Her hotheadedness had gotten the best of her.

Shaking his head slowly, he had turned his head and walked away. Why… why didn’t he say anything? His absence of anger and lack of retort was like fuel to a flame born from shame. Her chest thrummed with the need to expel this uncomfortable feeling. Running to her room, she had slammed the door shut and threw herself into bed. Her pillow was shoved into her face just as she released all that angry energy in a raw, guttural scream that strained her vocal chords.

Everything hurt, and she just wanted to get rid of the fist that held her heart and lungs in its vice grip. She threw the pillow towards the far wall with a yell.

She needed to get out.

Grabbing her bag, Koala clambered out her window and scaled the side of the house. Once her feet hit the ground, she was running.

 

———

 

When things went wrong and Koala needed something to help her, she would always turn to dancing. It was her greatest remedy.

A few weeks ago, Viola had asked her to try the Kitri variation with Sanji, so that was what she was going to do. It was one of the hardest variations she had ever done. Which was perfect for right now because it would be her greatest distraction. She was going to practice thirty-two fouettés and forget. Simple.

With a quick warm up in her lucky leotard— pink with yellow duckies that she’s had for years and still fit somehow— she stood at the back of the studio, taking a deep breath and just trying to let it all go. Thirty-two fouettés. That’s all she had to focus on and not the crushing weight in her chest that made it hard to breathe.

The music signalled her cue.

The switch was instant, Koala playing the part of an actor on stage well. She rolled up over her box and brought her arms into first, up to fifth, then out to second as she brought herself down into fourth position. Pushing off her foot, she willed herself to get through the turns. Her leg went out and in, out and in, in rhythm of the music, every muscle in her supporting leg squeezing and working to get her around.

An image of Sabo flashed through her mind unbidden. Tears formed in his eyes, a look of hurt and betrayal on his face.

Koala stumbled out of her turns. “Shit!” she cursed. She hadn’t even done five. She stormed over to the radio and restarted.

From the top. No thoughts of anything related to Sabo.

She forced her biggest smile and started the sequence again.

Hold your turnout.

Spot the centre, that clock in the mirror reflection.

Keep an open chest.

“That’s why you called me over?”

She stumbled but managed to keep her balance.

Forget.

Forget.

Forget.

She’d lost count of her turns, the muscle in her supporting leg burned, her arms were tired, the muscles in her face strained from that fake smile. Koala was breathing hard by the time she finished.

Again. Until she was satisfied. Until she could forget. Until the constricting pain in her chest went away. Until she was perfect.

The music ran again. She gave a big smile, but the person in the mirror looked pathetic. She looked stressed, exhausted, haunted. A near spitting image of the last person in heaven and hell Koala wanted to be associated with.

She looked like her mother.

It sent a shiver down her spine, but Koala chose to ignore it. If she focused on that, with everything else going on, she would spiral and that was the last thing she needed.

One, two, three….

She spun like a top. She was getting dizzy, fatigued.

Seven, eight, nine….

Her breathing wasn’t improving. Each breath felt like inhaling shards of ice.

Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen….

Her foot was cramping. She was moving too much. She needed to stay on centre.

Eighteen….

She was just like her mother, heartless.

Nineteen….

She’d hurt Sabo.

Twenty….

Again. She hurt him again. Just like she did all those years ago. She messed up. It wasn’t fair. Why did they both have to hurt?

Twenty-one….

Why couldn’t she just be happy?

Twenty-two….

Hadn’t she been through enough?

Twen—

Koala hadn’t even made a full rotation when her ankle rolled. Pain erupted up her right calf. Dropping to her knees, she cradled the injured foot only to find she couldn’t breathe. As if her throat had closed up into the size of a needle, she couldn’t get enough air in. Her veins filled with ice. Her brain turned to mush. All she could focus on was the all encompassing feeling that her world was coming to an end.

I can’t breathe. I messed up, I’m such a screw up. I need air. I don’t want to be alone. Please. It’s dark. I’m scared. I can’t breathe. Help me. I can’t breathe I can’t breathe I can’t—

Choked sobs ripped out of her chest as she tried to focus on anything other than the impending sense of doom. She wrapped her hands around her sprained ankle and squeezed. She yelled. It hurt like hell, but the pain in her leg distracted from the sudden onset panic.

Dragging herself to a corner, Koala curled up into a ball and cried an ugly, broken cry that had tears and snot running down her face. It was like someone had yanked the rug out from underneath her. She felt so lost and so alone. What was she supposed to do to fix things with Sabo? All she had wanted was her old friend back. But now things were muddled, confused and torn up.

She was just so sick of being alone. The feeling that she was doomed to forever suffer on her own grew. She’d spent most of her life as an outcast for battling the demons her mother had left her with.

It’s not fair.

Why did she have to spend years living in fear of others to the point she had actively ostracised herself, only to get ridiculed? She’d spent most of her life suffering. When would it finally end?

Koala leaned her head back against the wall, nails digging painfully into her arms it nearly drew blood, and stared up at the ceiling. She wondered aloud in the hopes she would hear, “I should have just died with you, mom.”

 

———

 

The good news was that her ankle wasn’t broken. She could walk, but it was more of a limp. After her little pity party, she’d gathered her things and limped all the way back home, planning on popping some painkillers and hopefully sleeping it off. If she was lucky, the pain would be gone by the morning and she could resume classes like normal.

Luck chose not to be a lady tonight.

The front door clicked softly when she closed it as slowly and quietly as possible. She didn’t want to wake her uncle, but she couldn’t climb up to her bedroom window. Her heart nearly dropped out of her chest once she noticed him sitting in his usual armchair, head rested against his fist and eyes shut. She breathed an inward sigh of relief when she realised he was sleeping.

Tiptoeing as best as she could, she tried to bypass him. But as luck would have it, he wasn’t actually asleep.

“Have fun?”

She kept walking, intending to ignore him.

“Where’d you go?”

“Where do you think?”

“Sabo’s?”

That’s when she stopped and turned to him. “We’re not doing this right now.”

“Doing what exactly?” he challenged, crossing his arms.

She huffed and continued walking (limping) towards the stairs.

“What happened to your leg?”

“I fell.”

“You fell.” It was accusatory, seeing through her lies.

“I… rolled it while practicing, but I just need to sleep it off,” she finally admitted, and he let her go… for now.

Not even twenty minutes later as she was getting ready for bed, Aladdin showed up and both he and Tai were fussing over her and her ankle.

 

———

 

Thoughts swirled inside Sabo’s head like a fearsome, angry whirlwind. In the short time he’d managed to warm up to piano again, he’d just as quickly learned to hate it once more. All those newer, happier memories he once associated with the majestic instrument had, once again, become tainted.

It didn’t matter to him. He was doing it all for a paycheque anyways. So what if he lacked artistry and soul? He was nothing more than a backdrop for the dancers to better their own craft. Nothing more than a tool to be used as a stepping stone into their professional career. Then, once again, when his job was done he’d be discarded.

Shaking the heavy thoughts out of his head, Sabo chided himself. Where did all this dark thinking come from? Why did he find himself distracted yet again? But as his fingers ran across the keys to warm up before the ballet dancers begun their own warm up, he found his arms grow heavier and heavier, and not with the kind of fatigue accompanied with long hours of passionate practice, going over the same set of bars again and again until it sounded right.

It was a drowsiness that settled hard and fast like the first snow before a snowstorm, leaving his chest empty and his days dull. Where his heart used to beat at the excitement of showing others his hard practiced skill now lay a dread that weighed him down. His only solace the monetary reward that came with it.

Thud! A stack of papers landed heavily in front of him. An angrier-than-usual Viola standing beside him. 

Great, he thought bitterly. She was still mad at him. This was exactly what he needed right now (hint the sarcasm and exasperation).

“We do new music for today,” she said, her words sharp. She flipped through the pages, explaining what she wanted from him. “I want you to learn this for pre-pro, these ones for intermediate. We’re going to do these for advanced 2….”

Sabo tried not to zone out as he listened. He bit his tongue, knowing damn well he was not their only pianist. Why was she giving him so much work?

His answer waltzed right in.

Oh. That’s right. He’d hurt her “treasure”, so now Viola was pissed. He should have listened to everyone’s warnings.

“Viola!” Bon Clay happily exclaimed. What the hell was he so chipper for? “Stop pestering the poor boy. You already work him hard enough.”

She ignored him. “I need you to film some of my private classes.”

“Viola,” he said again, placing a hand on her shoulder. It gave a squeeze in reassurance. Bon Clay grinned with his usual peppiness, unperturbed by her glare. He nodded towards the other side of the room. “She’s here.”

Throwing a glance back at Sabo, she marched over to Koala. A few words he was too far away to hear were exchanged before the two were leaving the hall, a look of fear on Koala’s face.

His view was obstructed when Bon Clay stood right in front of him. Sabo looked away.

With a sigh, he said, “I haven’t seen her this down in a while.”

Sabo nearly let out a scoff.

“Congratulations, my boy. You’ve awoken Viola’s wrath.” Bon Clay skipped off to the front of the room to announce the beginning of class and animatedly demonstrate a combo for barre, leaving Sabo feeling bitter. Of course he was getting blamed.

When Viola returned it was without Koala. The young dancer ended up not returning until an hour into class, looking furious. They were just beginning centre pieces. She marched up to Bon Clay and Viola who stood at the front of the room, in front of the mirror and spoke to them quietly.

Sabo was too focused on playing to hear or try to lip read what they were discussing, but based on expressions alone, whatever it was made Koala upset. Her shoulders sagged as she asked something. They both nodded, and she sat down in a corner, scribbling down notes in her pastel pink notepad. With a glittering-pink pen. He had to admit, he respected the dedication to the colour pink.

As they reached the end of their centre work, Sabo neared the end of his shift for the night. The class would continue for preparations for whatever auditions, competitions or performances he was too tired to remember. Though, the thought of leaving so early did unsettle him, despite how badly he wanted to go home and sleep for the next twenty-four hours. Something wasn’t right with Koala, and of course it bothered him. This was the same girl who sacrificed sleep just to make time to dance. He’d watched her practice variations while sick. Despite his efforts to get her to rest.

But now she was sitting down and not actively participating in class.

As he gathered up his things to leave, he couldn’t help but overhear her conversation with her friends that swarmed her.

“…Inazuma says I’m lucky it’s not broken,” she explained.

“This is why you need to be taking more breaks,” Vivi fussed.

Koala met his eyes briefly as he passed by the little group. She turned her head away, as if an act of defiance. Something about the action pissed him off. He rolled his with a scoff. If she wanted to be difficult, fine!

Yet he hesitated outside the studio. The math was adding up against his favour.

Koala injured her foot somehow.

She usually walked home after night classes because the buses stopped running in this area that late.

It was a forty minute walk.

Begrudgingly, he took a seat in the common area. Sabo watched the wall clock as its minute hand slowly ticked away, each minute dragging on for longer than the last. For the next hour that their class continued, he tried (and failed) to convince his legs to get up and walk away. She wanted nothing to do with him. Again. Why was he fishing to get his heart broken? Again. Why was he so addicted to pain?

The class soon finished. The dancers filtered out into the common area. When Koala didn’t step out, he popped his head in to see her chatting with some of her friends, which, now that he thought about it, were some of the same weirdos part of Luffy’s strange circle.

Vivi saw him first. Her frown made Koala turn around. She looked away.

“Come on,” Sabo called. “I’m driving you home.”

“I’ll be fine getting back by myself.” She couldn’t even look at him when she lied.

“Oh yeah? With that busted up leg of yours?”

“Rude,” Vivi whispered.

It was Sanji’s turn to voice his thoughts, which Sabo promptly drowned out. He was still trying to figure that kid out, and he feared he never would.

“Really?” he said. “You’re going to be difficult?”

She didn’t respond. He let out a huff through his nostrils. Marching over to where her dance bag was, he tidied everything into the pink duffel and slung it over his shoulder. When he returned, Koala eyed him suspiciously when she spotted her bag.

“What’re you do—“

Her words were cut off when she got swept off her feet. Literally. In one swift movement, Sabo had picked her up bridal carry style.

“Put me down!” She demanded, arms clutching onto him. Koala looked furious. He tried not to smirk. Her face was a deep shade of red likely from the embarrassment of being carried past her friends, classmates and teachers. Both Bon Clay and Viola looked to be in disbelief as they watched Sabo walk by with Koala in his arms.

“Sabo!” She yanked on his ear. “Put me down.”

“No.”

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

He waited to respond once he stepped out into the night air. “Viola hates my guts. Your uncle probably wants to kill me. And your friends… well, they never liked me to begin with. But my point is, Koala, I don’t care. I don’t give two shits what they all think or say. I’m pissed off at you, but I’m not a heartless monster, regardless of public opinion.”

She let out a scoff. “You think giving me a lift when I’m injured is gonna count as an apology? Denied.”

“Apology my ass,” he muttered. When they reached his car, he set her down gently. “You’re the one who owes me an apology. I’m only doing this ‘cause I don’t want you injuring yourself further when you have a bunch of performances coming up soon. Viola would murder me if I let that happen. Now get in the car. Please?”

She got in and slammed the door. He followed suit.

They drove in a tense silence for a while.

“What happened to your leg?” he felt the need to ask.

“Why?”

“Just trying to make conversation. My bad for asking.” His knuckles were white from how hard he gripped the steering wheel. The car jolted to a stop as Sabo pulled over. His finger tapped rhythmically against the leather wheel. He had to take deep breaths to calm down.

This is fine, this is fine, this is fine—

“What is it this time?” Koala asked, her tone strained.

He turned to face her. A few strands had come loose from her bun. Arms folded across her chest, she faced forward, refusing to meet his gaze.

“How do you sleep at night?” he asked plainly.

She scoffed at the irony of the question since he knew damn well she was an insomniac. “Like a baby, but I don’t get why you ask.”

The nerve—

“Are you seriously going to be like this right now?”

“Like what?” She met his gaze head on. “Explain to me what I’m doing so wrong.”

“Wow, I cannot believe—“

“What I can’t believe is you acting as if I’m the one in the wrong here.”

He was so frusrrated he could cry. He wanted to cry. “I’m trying to have a conversation here, yet you’re being so damn stubborn.”

“It feels more like you only offered to drive me home to corner and berate me.”

“Like I would ever—“

“Then what is this, Sabo?” she begged, and for a moment he wondered just what exactly she was referring to: their fight or the weird situation(ship?). “What… what are we doing?” Her voice was quieter when she asked, and his stomach churned at the bewildered look on her face. 

It did little to clear the angry haze in his mind. Sabo couldn’t help but feel a little hurt to see her question their relationship. Worse, she was right. What were they doing? Just at the beginning of the school year he wanted nothing to do with her, finally having found peace with the fact that they were no longer friends. But he’d let his feelings get in the way, blinded by a nostalgia that had him in a chokehold and a lust he could only attribute to raging hormones. In a sense he had only used her to satisfy his own selfish goals of foolishly, desperately convincing himself that everything was okay between the two of them.

That realisation had him sick to his stomach. He’d used her? The same way Law had used him? He was no better than his ex, yet he still wanted to continue holding onto her, selfishly.

Sabo had no answer for her except, “I guess hurt people hurt people.”

Grabbing her dance bag, Koala got out and slammed the door shut.

 

———

 

A tiny part of Koala was disappointed when Sabo’s car drove off. He’d stopped just a block away from her place, but her ankle still hurt, leaving her to limp slowly all the way home.

She wished he would have at least chased after her and given her a proper answer.

How dare he? Hurt people hurt people? She scoffed. He had the gall to call her “hurt”. Like he knew what she was going through and had been going through for the better part of her life.

Jamming her keys into the door, she threw the door open to see Tai at the breakfast table going through some paperwork. He glanced up at her before commenting, “how was class?”

She rolled her eyes. “You snitched.”

He set down his pen. “I did not ‘snitch’. I simply made sure your teachers were reminded of your injury just in case you forgot to tell them. You did tell them, right? Because you know damn well dancing on an injured leg will only worsen it and cut your career shorter than it already is.”

Koala looked away. He was right. She was being dumb and stubborn, but when Viola had called her out of class to speak with her about her twisted ankle, she felt herself fill with anger. Not at Uncle Tai for outing her like that, but mostly at herself for being so stupid.

Why was she so stupid? It felt like she couldn’t do anything right. It all weighed so heavily on her heart and mind to the point she couldn’t think straight. Viola’s disappointment. Inazuma’s cross face when she asked to be cleared to dance again. Her friends’ worried glances. Sabo… that was a whole ordeal she was still struggling with on its own.

Before she knew it, her cheeks were wet with tears streaming down her face, unbidden and unwelcome. She was sick of crying, sick of feeling so pitiful for herself, but with the crushing weight of despair it was all she could do from collapsing.

“Koala,” Tai said softly.

“Are you mad at me?” she asked, drawing herself closer to him.

“Of course not, and I assure you absolutely no one is mad at you.”

She stood before him, looking down at the pink booties that kept her feet warm, her gaze blurry. “Sabo hates me,” she whispered.

He sighed before holding his arms out. “Come here.”

Taking the invitation, she curled up in his lap and buried her face into his chest just as the sobs broke loose. His hand rubbed soothing circles down her back as he whispered sweet nothings into her hair.

Again. She’d done it yet again. Gone and hurt Sabo again. Tried to push away the people around her and isolate herself again.

“I-I’m sorry,” she said through hiccups. “I’m so sorry.”

Tai held her tighter. “I’ve already forgiven you.”

 

———

 

Sabo continued his drive in silence, replaying the conversation in his head. He had intended to try to make amends or at least see where her head was at, if she was feeling remorseful. How did it go so wrong? 

He had to pull over once his eyes started to burn and his vision blurred. Sabo sat back in his seat and just breathed. That was the only thing he could do in that moment. Breathe.

As he exhaled he felt his whole body deflate, and with it, his heart empty. It was quiet. The only thing to fill it was his cracking heart and his shaky breathing. He was shaking all over and not from anger. He felt a crushing sense of defeat settle over him, making his limbs weary and his mind heavy.

They were doing so good! Everything was perfect between them. Where did it all go wrong? Were their destinies intertwined with misfortune, cursing them forever with tensions and bad blood? Was this all a mistake? Maybe their estrangement was a sign that they weren’t meant to be in one another’s lives, wether platonic or romantic. But now that he had her back in his life, how was he supposed to walk away? Koala made him feel things he’d never felt before, in all the best and worst ways possible. Maybe the only reason he held onto her so tightly was because he was addicted to the pain and the way it hurt, and gods, did it hurt bad.

Sabo turned his head and stared out at the road, getting an odd sense of deja vu. He recognised the area. That’s when he realised he was in his neighbourhood. Law’s flat was just around the corner. And this time, he wasn’t strong enough to fight the urge.

Like a siren call, he made his way out of his car, down the street and up the stairs to the same flat he knew he’d be in. Any and all warnings that screamed at the back of his mind were drowned out by the cravings. He yearned to be held, touched, sedated. It was so easy to slip back into his old ways even though he’d spent the last two years trying to recover and do better.

It would be this one time, he promised himself. He’d gone almost a year keeping himself away, so he would go in and get closure tonight then start again tomorrow. A fresh, clean slate.

Just this once.

But he couldn’t bring himself to do it. His body froze up as he stood before the door. He was in two minds about it, and the one that reminded him of all the hurt and pain was winning. Sabo desperately tried to think about the few, sweet memories they had, but they felt tainted and poisoned. It made him angry. Why could he never have anything good?

“Well, look what the cat dragged in.”

Like ice cold water poured down his back, Sabo froze. It was too late to run.

Penguin, who was first to spot Sabo from down the hall, jogged up to him. Behind him trailed Shachi, a few others he recognised from their friend group and the man himself.

Law stopped in his tracks when he met eyes with him. Just from his look alone, Sabo was rooted to the ground. He truly had nowhere to run now. Penguin threw his arm around him and dragged him close. He could smell the alcohol on his breath when he said, “look who it is! You guys remember Baby Blue?”

He cringed at the nickname and tried to pull away. They only called him that because he was just a high schooler when the rest of them were university students or already working.

“You came back!” Shachi exclaimed as he got pulled into their flat.

Shit. He should’ve run when he had the chance. He shouldn’t have come here in the first place.

“Join us for a drink!” Penguin and Shachi were still pulling on him despite his efforts to pull away.

“Guys!” They looked at Law when he spoke. He stood at the door, hands in his pockets and a twinkle in his eyes as he examined Sabo, taking in every inch of him. He felt violated from his look alone which was funny because once upon a time, he would have done anything to have him look at him like that. “Lay off him a moment. It’s been forever since we’ve last seen you, Baby Blue. What brings you here?”

He approached him, and his friends backed away. Sabo glared. “Don’t call me that.”

“Tsk!” he scoffed with a smirk. “You’re gonna come into my house and tell me what to do? Why are you here, Sabo?” His tone was serious, questioning.

“I….” He chewed his lip and glanced nervously at the onlookers that watched in amusement to see what he had to say.

Law took notice of his uncomfortable shuffle. “Come on. Let’s talk somewhere private.”

“Boo,” Shachi called after them. Chatter and laughter drowned out behind them once Law closed the door to his room.

“Now we can talk without those bastards bothering us.” He plopped himself down on his bed, arms stretched behind him. His golden eyes looked at Sabo. “What do you want?”

“I… I’m not sure,” he said lowly. Before he could stop himself, tears poured from his eyes, and like a pent up dam with too many cracks, he broke. Ugly sobs ripped from his chest as he dragged his feet towards Law, fat tear drops staining the carpet. Sabo placed himself in Law’s open arms, sobbing into his chest.

“It’s okay, baby, I got you,” he whispered into his hair, hands rubbing circles down his back.

“Y-You hurt me.”

“Shhh,” he hushed. “That was in the past.”

Sabo continued crying at the shitty situation he was in. There must have been something seriously wrong with him if he was turning to his ex, of all people, for solace and comfort.

“She doesn’t want me,” he cried pathetically. Of course she wouldn’t. He was too fucked up and damaged to ever love.

“Then she’s an idiot.” He cupped his face, brushing a tear away with his thumb. “How could no one want you when you’re as hot as hell, Sabo. Always sweet, witty, smart….”

His tongue dripped with gold. Sabo swooned, almost lost in the trance.

Almost.

It broke the moment Law’s lips were on his. The bitter taste of booze filled his mouth when he forced his tongue into his mouth. Sabo shoved him away.

“What the hell—“

“Don’t fight it,” he hushed, pushing him back onto the bed, pressing himself down against him. Law’s presence was overwhelming— the pungent cologne, his chin stubble scratching him, sharp nails digging into his arm and waist, erection pressing into his hips. Law tried to kiss him again, but Sabo fought. He actually fought back despite him wanting to cower and succumb like always.

He pushed Law away before punching him in the jaw, sending him flying back onto the bed. Breathing ragged, Sabo stumbled away but didn’t run. He wasn’t done yet.

“You’re sick!” he screamed.

Sitting up, Law wiped the blood on his busted lip away. “You’re the one that came to me.”

“I did come to you. And this was a huge mistake, but you’re sick. I was fifteen when you first raped me. You’re a monster,” he said, voice lowering. “And you don’t even care.”

“Rape?” He barked a laugh. “You must be remembering wrong. You enjoyed it.”

“Pumping me full of pills and drinks sure as hell makes it harder to say no,” he argued. “You never once cared about me, yet I… I did. I would have done anything for you no matter how fucked up it was. Orgies, sex on the highway, every fetish and drug in existence— yet you used me like I was your toy. And I, like a fool, let it happen.”

Law looked bored. He didn’t even flinch at Sabo’s outburst. “Stop being a baby, Sabo. That’s why we call you that, y’know. Baby Blue. You’re just a child.”

Sabo couldn’t even be mad. Law was pathetic. Even he knew how fucked up he was, and he himself couldn’t give a rat’s ass about it? Pathetic?

“Exactly,” he said quietly. “I was just a child.”

He threw the door open and stormed out of the flat, Law’s lackeys calling him names and jeering after him. Once he got in his car, he drove off to the nearest pub. Sabo drank to his heart’s content, and it yearned to drown. Tonight the moon danced a silent serenade. Yet Sabo heard it. As it shone like a precious jewel, its companions obscured by the increasing light pollution, he listened to its cries and calls for attention. He only hoped someone would do the same for him.

With the few Berrie he had left, he hopped on a bus and made his way home.

The smell of food wafted up his nose like a warm greeting, but with the alcohol filling his belly and his abysmal interactions with both Koala and Law still daisy fresh on his mind, he couldn’t stomach the thought of food.

“Sabo,” Rouge called from the dinner table. “You’re just in time for dinner.”

“Hurry before your brothers finish it all,” added Dadan.

“I’m not hungry.” He stumbled in, nearly tripping on his two feet.

Everyone instantly stopped what they were doing to stare at him. Except for Luffy who reached for more food. There was a silent exchange between the adults.

Finally Rouge spoke, “well, looks like it’s my turn.” She got up and dusted off her lap. “Come on, dear. Time for us to have a chinwag.”

Sabo blew raspberries. “What? There’s nothing to talk about. I-I feel great, Mrs. Mom. There’s nothing— get back to your food. I’m-I’m good.”

Despite his protests, he got dragged down the hall and into her bedroom. He immediately plopped down on her bed, giggling at nothing in particular as the imaginary weight on his head dragged him down into a sprawled out position.

“What’s so funny?” Rouge asked, sitting beside him.

“Isn’t it funny?” he asked. “Nobody wants me. And it’s all because I’m so damaged and broken.”

She released a heavy sigh. “Sabo—“

“Listen, listen. The same woman who gave birth to me, brought me into this world, nearly took me out of it when she threw that damn drain cleaner at me,” he said with a cackle. “She only loved me when I made her proud. B-But the rest of the time? Nothing but a burden, ha! Law tricked me into thinking he was some godsend from heaven before ripping my heart out of my chest and-and stamping all over it because, and let’s be honest, who wants to be with a messed up kid? That’s why Koala started distancing herself from me, and I-I can’t blame her for that. But-but then she starts saying all these things and making me feel all these things and pretends to actually give a damn about me again.”

He rolled over, laughing to himself. Rouge sat silently, watching as her son delved further and further into madness.

“If laughter is the best remedy—“ he started— “then why the hell does it still hurt?” Sabo pressed his palms into his eyes as the tears threatened to spill. “Nobody wants me. Nobody wants me.”

A pair of lips brushed his hairline. Warm hands pulled him into a warm lap. Rouge was silent as she held Sabo, fingers massaging his scalp.

“Why… why does nobody want me?”

“Dadan and I want you in our family. Always.” Her voice was soft and low. Her gentle ministrations on his head and the warmth from her embrace pulled him into a serenity that beckoned sleep.

“Why? Haven’t I caused you guys enough trouble? Why haven’t you gotten rid of me yet?”

“You underestimate our love for you.” She kissed his temple.

“Why do you love me, Mrs. Mom?”

“I don’t ever need a reason to love you. We love you simply for existing.”

“Hm,” he hummed, letting himself get dragged further towards sleep.

“Let me get you some water.”

He quickly shook his head. “Don’t leave me. Please.”

“Of course, my love.”

“Mrs. Mom,” he whispered, eyes drooping shut, “you’re my mom. My real mom.”

“I know.”

“And momma’s my real momma.” And he was fast asleep.

Notes:

pls forgive me. at least we get cute moments with the parents🥺🥺

they say that losing your passion for what you love is the first death for any musician, artist, dancer, etc. as someone who has experienced this to a degree, i had to fight back tears writing parts of this chapter. And dw y’all i swear this time it’s gonna get better

enjoy<3

Chapter 14

Summary:

CW// mentions of rape; explicit sexual content

They kiss and makeup.

Notes:

Ok who uncrossed their fingers?? The chapter count increases with each passing day I work on this story😭😭

Mid-March

 

“You wanna wha—“

Click. The line went dead.

Ace stared at the phone in disbelief. What the hell did Nami want from him? Why was she calling him of all people? All she said was they needed to have a deep talk. They never talked. Ever. Why now?

Deciding to get to the bottom of this, and out of pure curiosity, he hopped on a bus to the restaurant she named.

The bell above the door chimed as Ace slammed it open. His gaze found Nami, and he glared.

“You.” He pointed, garnering the attention of a few customers. “Why did you call me all the way here? I’m not giving you any money—“

“It’s about your brother,” Nami stated simply.

Sitting down before her, Ace immediately bowed his head. “I am truly and deeply sorry for any inconvenience or distress Luffy may have caused you. I’ll work harder in raising him.”

“What? This is about the blond one.”

“Sabo?” He looked up, confused. That was almost unheard of. It was usually Luffy he’d get chewed out for by his brother’s weird friends. “What’d he do to you? Are you two even friends?”

“Oh please, being friends with one of you is more than enough.” He opened his mouth to retort, but she kept going, “this is also about Koala.”

Oh. Ohhhh. That made so much more sense….

“And I had to meet you in person because…?”

“This isn’t just a quick chat and calls are expensive.”

“Fair enough.”

“Now—“ she leaned forward with her fingers interlocked. “What the hell did your brother do?”

Ace was instantly offended. “What did my brother do? More like what did your friend do?”

“Why do you assume Koala had any fault in this?”

“Why do you assume Sabo had any fault in this?” he retorted. Ever since that night he’d snuck out, Sabo had been sad to the point Ace was worried he was depressed. He wouldn’t speak about what happened, yet he heard from their moms it had everything to do with Koala.

Everyone had noticed. The two had gotten so close and suddenly weren’t on speaking terms. Again. People kept asking Ace if they’d broken up. He wasn’t even sure if they were together in the first place.

All he knew was that he was worried about how it was affecting Sabo. He couldn’t stomach seeing him so down in the dumps.

“Every time something goes wrong in a relationship, it’s usually the guy’s fault.”

“Oh please, Nami. That thinking is so old school.” He rolled his eyes.

“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”

“Don’t accuse my brother without any evidence.”

“The same brother with a track record of breaking girls’ hearts.”

“What?” he shrieked. “That’s so not his fault.”

“Whatever! Koala won’t tell me why they fought. I was wondering if you knew?”

“Like I would tell you shit.” He sat back in his seat, arms crossed. “You call me out here to shit talk my brother then start demanding answers? Why would I tell you anything?” He at least expected an apology.

Nami gave him a deadpan stare. “If you’re expecting an apology, you’re never getting one.”

“You money hungry, ice hearted witch.”

Her jaw dropped, and her gaze narrowed. “You half brained, mentally challenged dimwit.”

It was his turn to be offended. Sure, he started the name calling, but it still caught him by surprise. That was totally uncalled for.

“Your brother’s dead meat anyways since her uncle’s told his old biker gang.” She had a satisfied smirk on her face.

“Well, I don’t— what? Biker gang?”

Leaning back, Nami crossed her legs and gave him a smug look. “Didn’t you know? Her uncle used to be part of a biker gang. They called themselves the Sun Pirates. He’s retired from that lifestyle to take care of her, but most of its members are still pretty active.”

Ace’s expression must’ve been priceless. The witch cackled. She got up and sauntered off.

“Warn blondie,” she called over her shoulder. “Also thanks for covering the bill!”

He looked at the drink and cake she’d been eating. Ace hung his head in his hands. “Dammit Sabo,” he mourned, fearing for his brother’s life.

 

———

 

Sabo and Luffy were at the computer, watching funny videos online to cheer him up when Ace burst through the front door.

He shoved them aside and backspaced the search bar to frantically type something despite their protests.

“We were watching that—“

“Shut it, Sabo. I’m doing this for you.”

“Huh?”

“Momma—“

“Luffy, keep your mouth shut if you want our brother to live.”

He promptly clamped his hands over his mouth.

“Ace, what the fuck are you doing? Have you been in the hard stuff again?” Sabo demanded at his brother’s stranger-than-usual behaviour.

“I am perfectly sober right now for your information.” Now he was scrolling through a Wikipedia page. Ace stepped away from the computer, eyes so wide they nearly popped out of his head. “Oh my gods… the witch wasn’t lying.”

“The what?” Sabo looked at whatever article he was reading about some biker gang. They looked really tough.

He and Luffy stared in utter confusion as Ace ran around the living room, closing curtains, shutting blinds and turning off lights. “Quick! Sabo, hide.”

“Is this some new game you’re playing?” Luffy asked. He broke into a grin. “Can I play?”

“This isn’t a game!” Ace shook the youngest. “Sabo’s in danger.”

“What?” they asked simultaneously.

Now he was peaking through the curtains looking for some threat that probably didn’t even exist. When he returned to them, his voice was lowered. “I was just speaking with Nami about you and Koala.”

“You what?” Sabo asked incredulously. “Ace, what the hell?”

“I had no choice!”

Ding dong!

Ace shrieked and nearly jumped out of his skin. “Quick, Luffy! We need to hide him. They’ve come for Sabo.”

He resisted when Ace grabbed him. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Luffy, innocent and impressionable, joined Ace in trying to wrangle Sabo into a safe hiding place.

“Let go of me— ah! Luffy, you bit me.”

“This is for your own good— ah! Why’d you bite me too, Luffy?”

There was knocking at the door just as Ace and Luffy managed to get a hold of Sabo’s legs, trying to drag him away as his fingers dug into the floor.

“Let go of me!”

“What the hell are you boys doing? And why is it so dark in here?” Dadan demanded as she came across the scene in the living room. She rushed to open the door. Rouge stood on the other side.

“I forgot my keys,” she said. “Why was nobody ans— what is going on here?”

Ace and Luffy finally let go.

Getting up, Sabo turned on the two. They all started speaking at once.

“Ace is a fucking nut job and needs to be put in a psych ward.”

“Sabo’s in danger, I’m tryna save his ungrateful ass and Luffy bit me.”

“I bit both of them ‘cause I thought it was a new game.”

“Woah, woah, woah.” Rouge held her hands up. “I just got back from a twelve hour shift. I’m not dealing with this.”

“One at a time,” Dadan said.

“Ace is losing it,” Sabo said simply.

“Looks like you’re the perpetrator,” she said, turning to the oldest. “Ace, explain yourself.”

“Did you know Koala’s adoptive uncle was part of a biker gang?”

“Yes,” she answered.

That was news to Sabo. He turned to Ace. “What?”

“You didn’t know? Nami told me. She said you’re dead meat since you broke her heart. What the fuck did you say to her?” His twin, obviously distressed, started pacing.

Sabo grit his teeth. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”

“You better start talking if you want us to help keep you safe.”

“What happened between us, stays between us.” Usually, he was fine with sharing things with his family but not this. It was too personal.

“Oh yeah, I heard from Jimbe,” Luffy started speaking. “He and the others aren’t happy with whatever you did to her. She cried her eyes out and wouldn’t talk to anyone about what happened. Yeah, they’re pretty pissed.”

All three turned to Luffy.

Ace opened his mouth before closing it. When he opened it again, he shouted, “and you’re only telling us now?”

“Wait, Luffy, how do you know Jimbe?” Dadan asked.

Sabo marched away.

“Wait, we need to keep you safe!”

“Ace, his life isn’t in danger. I know Tai. He won’t do anything like that.”

“But, momma!”

Sabo slammed his door shut and wrapped himself in his blankets. He was beyond upset with Ace for doing this and filling his head with whatever new delusion this was. Why did he think believing Nami was a good idea? It was probably some ploy to trick them out of more money.

There was a knock at his door.

“Go away,” he called. It opened anyway.

He turned to see Dadan walk in. “Don’t worry. I’ve calmed Ace down.”

“He’ll believe what he wants to believe,” he muttered, covering his head with his blanket.

“Want me to book you a rabies shot?” she asked. “I don’t know where Luffy’s mouth has been, and I don’t want you getting an infection.”

That garnered a small chuckle out of him. When he realised she wasn’t going to leave, Sabo finally said after a moment, “it’s not fair.”

“What isn’t?”

“This whole thing! She hurt me, yet I’m the bad guy. Why is everyone mad at me?”

“Nobody’s mad at you.”

“Momma, her uncle hates me, her friends keep giving me death glares and she keeps getting an attitude whenever I’m around.”

Dadan was quiet for a second. “Still don’t wanna talk about that night?”

He shook his head.

She sighed. “Let go. Move on. You can find someone else.”

“No.” He threw his blankets back, frowning up at her. “I like her. I don’t wanna find anyone else because there’s no one like Koala. She-She’s… perfect.”

“Then there’s your answer.”

“But it’s not fair.”

“Sabo, are you sure you didn’t say anything that night to upset her? This whole thing is Koala’s fault and Koala’s fault alone?”

He gulped and couldn’t meet her gaze.

“Then there’s your second answer.”

“Answer?”

“On what to do.” She shrugged as she left, muttering to herself, “kids these days. Always overcomplicating things.”

 

———

 

Koala missed Sabo. 

She missed him so much it hurt. Uncle Tai just went on and on about how he was no good for her. His friends agreed. Her friends agreed. Koala wanted to agree. Wanted to move on and forget about him. But the more they talked at her, the less she agreed and the more her heart ached.

Beside her, Nami was ranting about how rude Ace was to her.

“Leave his brother out of it,” she said with her face on the bar counter. She couldn’t care less about what drinks had been spilled on it, leaving it sticky. “He has nothing to do with it. Neither do you.”

“I’m just looking out for you. I can’t believe he’d have the nerve to treat you like that.”

“Nami, I didn’t even tell you what happened.”

“You don’t need to.” She winked. “In my mind, he’ll always be in the wrong.”

Koala wasn’t sure how she felt about the sneaky smile she gave before sipping on her screwdriver.

“I need to speak to him.”

“What? Why?”

She bit her lip. “I have to apologise.” Covering her eyes, she said, “I keep thinking about it. I feel bad— I feel so pained, but I need to at least hear him out. He sounded so hurt, Nami. You should have seen the look on his face.”

Just thinking back to it made her want to be sick. She had never meant to hurt him, truly. If she could take back everything she had said, if she could do anything just to get a do over, she would. But the damage had already been done, and she needed to make amends. She couldn’t live without him in her life.

“Don’t feel bad.” Nami was so adamant that Koala had done nothing wrong, yet she didn’t share the sentiment. “He should be the one— are you crying?”

“No.” She sniffled, fighting back tears. She failed. A few escaped through her fingers.

“Aw, don’t get all sappy with me,” Nami complained. “You know Vivi’s better with tears than I am.”

She wiped her face. “I miss him.”

“You need a drink. Bartender! A coke with vodka for her. And make it double.”

Koala glanced at Nami before taking her new drink. She was initially against the idea of going to a pub to “drown her feelings” yet her friend had insisted it would help (it didn’t). And she made Koala pay for their drinks. Of course.

“Fuck it,” she whispered before downing it.

“Woah, slow down. You’ve barely eaten all day.”

“I just wanna drown my feelings, Nami. I need….” Her words reminded her of that night and the things she’d said to Sabo.

“You wanted to use me to forget?”

Yes. She had said yes like the fool she is even though she didn’t mean it. Not like the way he thought at least. The word had come out of her mouth before she could stop herself, before she could fully process what he had meant. The look on his face still filled her with regret. Tears sprung to her eyes.

“Oh, honey.” Nami pulled her into her side, rubbing her hand up and down her arm as the tears spilled forth. “It hurts, I know.” She pulled back and eyed her. “Is that his jacket? I swear I’ve seen him wear it.”

With a pout she said, “I forgot to return it. He used to give it to me when I was cold.” She cried harder at the thought of his chivalry. “I’m gonna go call him.”

“Koala, no! That’s not a good idea.” Nami called after her as her friend got up and made for the door.

She ran back and threw a few notes on the counter to cover their bill before leaving.

Koala was on her way home when she stopped at a pay phone. They were becoming rarer. Nami was right. This wasn’t a good idea, but all those vodka cokes were getting to her. She should have listened to Nami and paced herself instead of drinking like a fish in water.

She slipped in a few coins and punched in his home number, a part of her hoping he wouldn’t actually pick up.

He did.

“Hello?” Sabo… it was Sabo’s voice. She spent a second just listening to make sure her mind wasn’t playing tricks. The chances of him answering were one in five, so it was a miracle, or curse, that he had picked up. She was just glad it wasn’t Ace who picked up. He probably hated her. “Um, hello?”

That’s when she realised she hadn’t said anything.

“H-Hi,” she said meekly.

There was a pause then a sigh. “Koala—“

“Please listen.” She shouldn’t have mixed alcohol with her feelings. Maybe she was making a mistake, but it was too late now. “I wanna talk to you. In person. I… I just wanna see you,” she whispered as her tears fell. “I miss you.”

There was more silence on the other end, and Koala thought he was going to hang up on her.

“Meet me at the library.”

 

———

 

Sabo sat in the action section, mindlessly flicking through a book he wasn’t paying attention to. He just needed to keep his hands busy.

He heard footsteps behind him before he felt Koala’s back against his. How did he know it was her? He could smell that sweet cinnamon scent that wafted off her in waves that pulled him in, drawing him into her orbit. If he shut his eyes he could hear her small breaths he’d come to recognise from spending an ungodly amount of time just watching and admiring her, memorising every part of her existence. Every one of his senses was acutely, painfully aware of her being. And besides his brothers, no one else came to the action section.

For a moment, neither spoke.

Over the phone, he could hear she was either on the verge of tears or had just finished crying. If he looked at her now, he would fold. He knew he’d grovel at her feet for forgiveness; blaming himself, accusing himself for everything that had gone wrong between them. The urge to instantly yield was so strong tears sprung to his eyes and his muscles twitched to move, yet he stayed steadfast. He couldn’t revert to his old, unhealthy ways. He needed to stay strong.

“You came,” she said quietly. He felt his heart strings tug.

“You called,” he responded as nonchalantly as he could.

She chuckled, but it lacked humour. “I wasn’t expecting you to even answer.”

“If it’s you, I’ll always answer.”

“Sabo, I—“ she took a deep breath. “I really do like you. That night… I wasn’t in the right state of mind. I shouldn’t have said those things. I’m really  sorry. You were right; I was so awful to you.”

Sabo didn’t reply. He only listened. For a moment, he felt elated. For once, he wasn’t the one in tears feeling sorry for himself. But it was short lived. He didn’t like that she was in the place he used to be in. He didn’t want her to feel beneath him in any way. Ever. He had enough grace to recognise that he was wrong too.

“I’m sorry too,” he said. “I’ve… I haven’t had the best experience in relationships or dating or romance. That night I just freaked out because it brought up bad memories, and I couldn’t handle it. It was unfair to bring up the past like that.”

The weight shifted behind him. Arms wrapped around his form. His body immediately warmed. It was either from the close proximity or from her little body leaning against his and warming him.

“Am I forgiven?”

Turning to her, he gave a small smile. “Of course.”

He leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers.

“We still need to talk,” he said seriously, brushing his fingers against her cheek, admiring her eyes. “About our pasts, what happened to us. I don’t want us to keep hurting each other.”

Her gaze fell, and he could see the conflict in her eyes.

“But not tonight,” he said softly. “We’ll do it when we’re ready and more preferably when you’re sober.”

She looked a little startled. Koala shook her head. “I am sober.”

“I can taste and smell the alcohol in your breath. And your speech was slurred over the phone.”

“Was it really that obvious? I thought I would’ve fully sobered up by now.”

He hummed, gazing at her mouth. Her lips were sweet. She was so close. Sabo couldn’t help but kiss her again. He readjusted so he was in between her legs, pushing her down into the bean bags.

Koala’s fingers combed through his hair. She giggled against his mouth.

Pulling back, he pressed a peck against the tip of her nose. “Let’s get you home, okay?”

She gave a little pout.

“There are people here.” He gestured to a person who had just entered on that floor.

“Don’t you wanna be adventurous?” Her fingers traced circles against his chest, and he nearly caved. He was so weak….

“That’s the alcohol talking. I’m taking you home.”

“Boo!” she heckled through a giggle.

“How much did you have to drink?” He held her hand as he carefully guided her down the stairs.

“I had just one drink, I swear.”

He threw her a look.

“I did! It was coke with a double vodka.” She gave a tilt of her head to show her (false) earnestness. 

He scrunched his nose. “You can do better than that, Koala.”

“What’s so wrong with a coke with— bye, Robin!” She waved enthusiastically at the librarian. “We didn’t do anything. Don’t worry.”

With red cheeks, Sabo ushered her out of the library more quickly, unable to meet Robin’s cheeky smile.

“Bye, lovebirds.”

 

———

 

By the time Sabo walked Koala to her door, she had sobered up. More or less. But she was glad they managed to make up.

“You’re wearing my jacket.” He gave her a fond smile as he noticed. “I’ve been wondering where it went.”

The jacket was way too big for her. Nearly touching her knees and going past her fingertips, it made her feel so small. It kept her warm and reminded her of him. She loved it.

Koala glanced at the empty driveway. “Come in for tea; it’s cold,” she said before she could lose her nerve. Where was that liquid courage when she needed it? 

His brows raised slightly, yet he smiled. “I’d like that.”

The moment he sat down in her kitchen, she began to lose her nerve. She needed liquid courage now more than ever. Koala, think! she thought to herself.

“You got any coke?”

She turned to Sabo. He’d made himself comfortable at the breakfast table. He rested his head on his fist and gazed at her. A lazy smile graced his lips.

Koala clearly wasn’t thinking straight because she blurted out, “I’ve never done drugs.”

Sabo looked taken aback. He burst out laughing, and she realised the mistake. As much as she loved his laugh, she just wished he wasn’t laughing at her little slip up right now.

“It’s not funny!” Her cheeks burned.

He eventually calmed down. “I mean the drink!”

“Yeah, I got that.” She searched the fridge. 

“It can be lemonade or orange juice or even an energy drink since you love those so much.”

“I don’t love it. I drink it out of necessity.” She approached the table with drinks in her arms. “We got half a bottle of orange juice, no lemonade, some coke— the drink— and energy drinks galore.” She deposited the drinks before him. “Why did you ask for these?”

When he gave her a mischievous grin, she felt her heart flutter.

“These are our mixers. What alcohol you got?”

“You know how to mix drinks?”

He shrugged. “Ace and I—”

“Party animals. Got it.”

“Technically, I wouldn’t call us that.”

She threw a smile over her shoulder. “Whatever you say. I don’t know if we have any vodka, but we do have gin—“

“No.”

“Whisky?”

“Ooh, yes. You got any rum?”

Koala returned with a bottle of white rum in one hand and vodka in the other, a victorious smile on her face. They both cheered.

She looked at their drinks. They were getting wasted tonight.

 

———

 

“I still prefer vodka-coke,” Koala said, cradling her precious drink to herself.

Sabo made a disgusted face. “After all these, and you choose the worse mixed drink?”

“It’s good.”

“It’s so sickly sweet, Koala.” He grimaced as he eyed her drink as if planning to take it away from her.

She cradled it closer. “You can pry this out of my cold, dead hands!”

“Drink your damn sugar concoction.”

“The rum and coke was actually pretty good.”

He pumped his fists into the air. “I’ll take it as a win.”

Koala was so glad it was a Saturday night. She’d lost count of how many mixes they’d tried, and her face felt numb. Everything felt great, and she wouldn’t stop giggling. It seemed Sabo got fidgety when drunk. He kept shaking his leg and cracking his fingers as if itching to do something.

“Hey, Sabo,” she started, her eyes analysing his relaxed frame but lingering on his lap and the way he was manspreading. Her body either buzzed from the alcohol or from desire. She shook her head to focus, feeling a wash of heat spread across her face and neck. “When did you have your first drink?”

“You’re not gonna like my answer,” he said with a grin. “Guess.”

It couldn’t be that bad?

“Uhmm, fifteen.”

“Nope.”

“Sixteen?”

“Lower.”

She thought for a second. Lower? “Thirteen?” she asked incredulously. There was no way it could be that low.

Sabo shook his head.

“Lower?”

“I was ten years old when I had my first drink.”

“Ten?” she shrieked. “You were ten?”

“It was less of a drink and more like a sip of some sake we found in Dadan’s cupboards. Ace, Luffy and I did it together. And from that day we’ve considered ourselves to be brothers.”

His look was so soft and fond when he spoke of his brothers. It was the most precious thing in the world. She wanted to protect that goofy smile.

“Wait. Wouldn’t that make Luffy—“

“Seven.”

She placed a hand over her mouth. “Wow…. I had my first drink at, like, seventeen.”

“What?” He turned to her in shock. “That would be, like, two years ago.”

“I know. Boring.”

“I only started proper drinking when I was maybe thirteen? Fourteen?”

She opened her mouth to say something, probably reprimand him for starting so young, but what he said next had her speechless.

“I was removed from my parents’ house at twelve by Child Services, but even before then I was like a stranger in my own home— well, it was supposed to be a home,” he said calmly, swirling his drink in his hand. There was a distant look in his eyes where they glazed over, mismatched blue and grey swirling with emotions she couldn’t pin. “I started spiralling. I was desperate for any form of love. I didn’t care where it came from. I wanted to feel anything that would distract me from all my issues. Ace and I were just… two broken kids.” He took a deep breath, struggling with his words. “We would steal, fight, cause all sorts of trouble. We were angry and had no proper outlet.”

His confession had a sobering effect on her. The two had fallen out a long time ago, so Koala had no idea of any of this. She knew Sabo never liked his parents, but having them turn their backs on him at such a young age? Then getting removed? She could only guess it had to do with the scars she was always too hesitant to ask about. She never knew. She was his best friend once upon a time, yet she never knew. Guilt clawed at her throat with anger towards everyone that not only wronged but also failed him. There was truly no justice in this cruel world.

“We got on the wrong side of the law,” he continued with a deep sigh. “But our moms— my adoptive moms— and Luffy’s grandad were able to set us straight… somewhat. I eventually met my first serious partner. A guy named Law. He was fresh out of secondary school and I had just entered secondary school. So you can imagine how well that went.”

“Sabo….”

“He introduced me to stuff like pot, codeine, shrooms, a few other things.” He sighed again, this time shaky. “That’s why I freaked out that night you called me over. It reminded me of him and how his version of consoling me when I was down was drugging me ‘til I couldn’t remember my own name and taking advantage however he liked. I’m sorry I snapped at you.”

How the hell was she supposed to respond to all of that? And worst of all he was apologising? 

“You don’t have to apologise for anything. You didn’t deserve that.” Koala clasped his hand between both of hers, squeezing tight as she kissed his knuckles. “Nobody does.”

”Yeah, I know, but—“ he took a deep breath, dragging his free hand down his face. “It’s you. I never want to treat you like that. It made me sick how I acted, so I really am sorry for that.” She didn’t miss the way his eyes glistened when he looked over at her.

“You… you okay?” she asked quietly.

He gave her a small smile. “I will be.”

“Of course you will. It’s you! You’re, like, one of the bestest and most resilient people I know. You even stand up to fucking Trunchbull,” she rambled.

“What a pain in the ass.” He rolled his eyes.

“Exactly! You’re awesome and amazing and talented and brave and….”

“Handsome?” He gave a cheeky grin.

She rolled her eyes and swatted him. “Hot headed more like.” But yes, very much handsome, she wanted to say. She felt a throbbing between her legs at the way he looked her over, eyes taking their sweet time to study every inch of her form. She said, “my first serious relationship was this one guy I met at a comp. I only said yes because I had no friends at the time, and I guess I felt sorry for him? He was isolated like me. But I quickly found out why he was such an outcast. He wanted me to have his babies and tried to… touch me, so I kicked him in the face and… broke his nose.” She hid her face behind her hands.

Sabo guffawed. He laughed so hard he had to wipe away a tear. “Have his babies? How old were you?”

“Fifteen! He then started stalking me and I feared for my life.”

Sabo stopped laughing. “Oh, shit.”

She waved away his concern. “Doesn’t matter. He’s on death row for multiple counts of rape and murder. May his victims rest in peace, but fuck him!”

“That’s my girl!” He gave her a high-five.

“To awful exes!” She raised her glass. “May they burn in the deepest pits of hell!”

“Hear hear!” They cackled as they clinked their glasses and downed them like shots.

Koala felt so content, her chest ignited with warmth that wasn’t just from the alcohol. She cared about him so deeply, she didn’t know what she would have done if they hadn’t been able to make up.

“Sabo.”

Setting down his glass, he turned himself fully to her. “Koala.”

She smiled. “What are we?” Her eyes searched his.

He leaned forward and kissed her, quick and chaste, yet it made her head spin. “That’s not just up to me, is it?”

For a moment, Koala didn’t know what to say, bewitched by the man for whom she was head over heels. “Be mine and only mine,” she breathed. “Any person with sense would give you the love and respect you deserve.”

He was so close she could smell the liquor on his breath. She pushed herself into his lap just to get a taste of the rum he seemed to enjoy so much. He wrapped an arm her waist, pulling her close. His hand smoothed up and down her thighs. Koala’s hands explored his chest and torso.

She kissed along his jawline and bit right below his ear. It elicited a startled moan, and Koala giggled into his neck, proud of herself as her fingers traced just beneath his shirt.

His hand explored between her thighs. She sighed, relaxing into his hold. With the way her limbs felt like jelly, she was glad he was holding so tightly onto her. She was basically melting in his arms.

“I want you in my bed,” she whispered to him.

 

———

 

They didn’t make it to the bed.

The clothes started coming off the moment they entered Koala’s room.

Sabo pushed her against a wall, his hands touching her, caressing her, feeling her. His hands moved behind her back to undo the clasp on her bra as his knee pressed between her legs. It was just enough friction for her to rock her hips against him, tiny pants escaping her parted lips. 

He pulled back to watch her flustered expression— reddened cheeks, hooded lids and swollen lips. Nails dug into his shoulders.

He was already rock hard. He needed to be in her so badly, feel her body mould with his, hear her pretty, little moans. Every fibre in his drunken being screamed at him to just put it in, but he wanted to enjoy this more. She looked so pretty.

His hands groped her boobs, and he delighted in the way they fit so perfectly in his hands. His fingers brushed over her hardened nipples. Koala gasped. He did it again, this time with more intention. Moving both fingers in circular motions over her breasts, he watched as she pressed her head back against the wall.

“You like that?” he whispered in her ear before tugging on her earlobe with his teeth.

“Don’t stop,” she begged, her hands gripping his wrists.

He did. Koala whined. She glared up at him with a pout that almost made him chuckle. What a cutie.

Grabbing behind her thighs, he hiked her up against the wall. He waited, searching her eyes for any uncertainty.

“You still sure—“

“Just put it in.”

At least he knew she was as desperate for this as he was. She released a pleased hum when he finally pushed in. Her mouth hung open. Sabo wasn’t much better. He feared this wouldn’t last very long.

Pressing his forehead against hers, he rolled his hips up. He let out a pained moan as he kissed her neck.

“You feel so good,” he said against her skin.

“Just like that… fuck me just like that.”

…New kink unlocked. He never found cursing attractive until that moment.

He took a deep breath of her intoxicating scent. She shuddered when he licked her neck, her skin salty from sweat.

Each time he pulled out only to push back into her warm, sopping wet hole was like hell in the best ways. Her strong, muscular thighs squeezed around his hips, securing him against her. He kept his arms secure around her lower back, hands guiding her hips in time with his. 

Koala really wasn’t making this easy for him. Sharp nails dug into the soft flesh of his back. He hissed at the pain that only added to the heady feeling. She gasped and panted and moaned his name. He kissed her again and again and again only taking breaks to mutter her name through a groan.

His pace stuttered.

Koala, sensing he was close, grabbed his face in her hands. She brushed his bangs out of his face. “I want you to look me in the eye when you cum.”

That was enough to push him over the edge. The pressure building up in his gut finally snapped. He let out a desperate cry as he came inside her. He could feel her walls pulsing against him and came harder, his vision blurring as he did.

“Koala… Koala,” he moaned, her name falling from his lips so easily. Before his hips stopped moving completely, he used his thumb to massage her clit and encourage her own orgasm.

Her mouth popped open in shock and out came the sweetest sounds he had the pleasure of hearing. With a broken whimper, her grip on him tightened as her whole body convulsed.

She stilled against him finally, huffing as they both came down from their highs.

Koala grip around his neck loosened, but her arms stayed purchased on his shoulders. “Stay the night. Please,” she whispered into his ear.

He shuddered. “Let’s get cleaned up first.”

“Then we can cuddle?”

He smiled at her sleepy smile. “Of course.”

Notes:

can you tell that i love drinking and am a heavy drinker? is it obvious? ive been at my parents house for about three months, they hate alcohol so ive been sober for about three months and god do i need a drink rn with all the be ive been having to deal with

im finally putting them out of their misery (for now) everybody clap👏👏👏 there’s just smthn about the “they all say youre no good for me” trope that just🤌✨✨

Chapter 15: Intermission

Summary:

Only fitting that a fic inspired by dance and music should have an intermission hehe

The piece described in this fic is the Odette variation. More specifically, the rehearsal of the performance by Chloe Misseldeni, a principal dancer at ABT. There’s just something about this performance specifically that touches me.

**IMPORTANT**
I’m not sure if I’ll be able to post the next chapter this weekend. It may be late. Check end notes for a full explanation but TLDR: ao3 curse got me with stressful landladys and childish roommates :’)

Notes:

I’ve mentioned it before that I love to dance. I also love making art, singing, playing my instruments, anything and everything that has to do with the arts and creating. This chapter (tho made on a whim) means so much to me bcuz there was a point in my life where I had lost that passion. I was dead. It was painful. I’ve gotten it back but sometimes I still struggle and it still hurts. I took inspo from the song “Black Swan” by BTS and “First Love” by SUGA bcuz I’ve never seen lyrics so vulnerable yet so true and it comforts yet pains me to see I’m not the only one to experience such a horrid phenomenon. If you’ve ever had to experience the death of a passion, you’re not alone

Two souls synched through one medium.

One, a pianist whose passion had died the selfsame day his innocence had been shattered, marring his relationship with the majestic instrument.

The other, a dancer whose passion bled through the cracks of a twisted, ruined childhood like liquid gold holding together broken pieces.

Sabo had never feared death. Why would a bright-eyed, gifted young boy with all his years ahead of him need to?

For Koala, on the other hand, it was the only thing she feared more than her mother, having seen it claim many a victim of those who could barely support themselves.

Why would children, young and pure, ever need to worry about something that should never have to cross their minds? Only good tidings and sweet memories should come to those of our most vulnerable group in our sick  society.

Yet these two kids would find themselves staring down death with a rude awakening forever scarring them— physically, mentally and emotionally. As if what little good was left in the world had turned their backs on them, casted them down into a deep dark place where the light failed to glow and the music failed to resonate; not even a heartbeat to pulse in their ears to signal they are still living.

Only silence so loud it deafens. And a weight so heavy it felt like being chained at the bottom of the ocean, all that pressure finally claiming victim as you crumble and fold. The only thing left to feel is a biting coldness that racks through your form and throws your all of your senses in a panic filled frenzy. Ice chips tear through your veins, frost permeates your lungs, every single cell hardens like glass and all you can do is beg to shatter and bring an end to the agony. Bring an end to the suffering.

And finally when you’ve given up all hope and succumbed to your inevitable death, arms wide open to embrace the peace you’ve been begging for, your eternity is brought to an end and you find yourself on solid ground, unsteady, sinking still, yet made to keep fighting for a pyrrhic victory.

Congratulations. You have survived your first death. Now you get to live as a shadow of yourself, formless, void of the things your heart used to race for, uncertain and lost as you ghost through the motions of everyday life.

An artist’s worst nightmare.

That’s where Sabo finds himself, completely unaware that the girl he used to call “friend” had had to endure the same torture.

But for her, it was all literal.

And now his biggest foe becomes her greatest remedy. An ally, at first, that started as a curiosity which led to an escape from the hell that was her reality.

She may not have known how to make the jovial tunes that caused her body to sway in rhythm, but each note was like a whispered reassurance— a promise that it would all get better. A wordless comfort that soon became her everything as she ran from the darkness of her past that claimed her in her weakest moments.

Koala had discovered dance.

Sabo had found himself staring his grim reaper in the face. Had he known being in Koala’s life again would bring him back to his first love and first heartbreak— his torturer and oldest friend— he would have run. Staring it down now he felt sick; with its sleek black body that seemed to reflect his deepest insecurities and its jade-like keys that always knew how to unlock his thoughts and worries; its strings within that tugged at his heart; the pedals that stomped away his ego, leaving him humbled and low.

No worse instrument had ever been created.

Yet like a siren call, he found himself drawn to it. There was a time it stood taller than him, but even as he towered over it, he felt so small.

No thinking was required as the memories engraved into his very muscles brought him down on the stool before it and moved his arms and feet into their proper positions, back straightened and eyes already scanning over the special language that translated a very moderate piece— the piano may very well have been Gepetto pulling at his strings.

Bile rose up like a bubbling fountain. Muscles froze. White and black blurred grey through tear-obstructed vision.

Those pesky thoughts that brought him back to a harder time that no longer existed just couldn’t stay away.

Sabo only looked up when a hand squeezed his shoulder. Like a flip had been switched and the lights had turned on, his dark thoughts were scattered under the radiant glow of Koala’s smile. Something knowing shone in her gaze that didn’t judge or force. She simply stayed by his side as if sharing with him what had cruelly been taken away.

Ba-dump… ba-dump… ba-dump….

He had long established his deep feelings for Koala. Now, his heart drummed a different rhythm, one he hadn’t heard in a lifetime. The ice that had claimed his very soul for near a decade now melted at the edges.

Could it be…?

Koala took her stance, the practice engrained in her from years of training— from the tips of her fingers to every muscle in her toes.

It was nothing to see. She wore a dust-pink leotard she had pulled at random, a white practice tutu that encircled her like her halo, her hair was all a mess in its haphazard bun— a far cry from the polished perfection she was on stage.

However, this wasn’t the big stage with its glaring lights that stared down at her from above, highlighting her every success and mistake. There was no mute audience with their peering gazes or full orchestra to add to the grandeur of it all.

Only one other got to bear witness.

It was imperfect, crude, unrefined from a lack of rehearsal.

Yet beautiful. So achingly beautiful.

There was something so raw, so modest, so vulnerable about performing for your reflection which exposed your every flaw. It was always hard to please the one that uttered no lie. There was no blaring orchestra to dull the sounds of heavy breathing and gentle thuds of cardboard shoes. There was no ballet corps to fill up the space around her dancing and twirling form.

It was all stripped away down to its bare bones until all she had to give was humble moves still imperfect in all their ways and the melancholy act that came with playing Odette. As if she wasn’t worthy of its splendour. 

Koala wasn’t sure why she had felt the sudden urge to rehearse this variation in particular. Sabo hadn’t questioned it when she had wordlessly handed him the sheet music. Their silent exchange had borne something intangible and sacred, something no one else would ever get to bear witness to.

It was almost divine the way the piano echoed through the small studio, each note and chord reverberating through every working muscle in her body. The piece demanded her all as its increase in pace only increased the way her heart thrummed in her chest. She was lost. Her soul ached and yearned as if feeling Odette’s turmoil, crying out along with the piece that pulled from her her most gut wrenching and painful feelings.

It was disembodying and grounding at once. Her heart threatened to jump out of her throat in a pathetic offering for mercy to ease the pain in her mind that never ceased.

Despite the lack of audience, she had never felt so exposed. She felt pathetic yet uplifted. 

Electricity danced along her arms that carried her through her turns, sobs threatened to burst her constricted lungs, her brain melted at the onslaught of information it had to process.

It was all so tragically beautiful how dance could beat her down and build her up in one breath. It was addicting.

She pushed through the intensity of it all, chasing the finish and bringing the dance to a satisfying end that had her huffing and shaking.

It wasn’t until the music had stopped fully that she realised she was crying. Maybe she would have felt embarrassed if it wasn’t for the fact that Sabo looked at her with tear-stained cheeks.

Footsteps carried her towards him, and before she knew it, she was holding him in a crushing embrace which he reciprocated as he sobbed into her chest. The silent cry that screamed within his soul was not only heard but felt. They needed no words to understand the pain that always lingered and threatened to strike them at their worst and leave them fighting demons that have long since drowned.

Koala kissed his temple as she cried into his hair. Sabo could only hold onto her as if she were his only lifeline.

He was the light that glowed, banishing her shadows.

She was the music that pulsed in his ears and chest, though he had believed that would never happen again.

Two hearts synched as one, assumed to be on the opposite side of the same coin now faced one another with a fact very few could testify to.

They had overcome their “black swan” moment by beating death.

One literal and the other metaphorical.

Notes:

I know we like to joke about the ao3 writers curse but I think my time has come lmao. Whether you believe in the curse or not I just want to get off my chest that these past few weeks have been stressful but manageable and in the past 48hrs have become barely manageable

Im returning to uni in two weeks and live with 3 others. The problem is one of them has dropped out and we need to replace him but he barely gave us enough notice and my other 2 friends and I have been scrambling to replace him even tho we’ve also been extremely busy with plans that have been in the making for months now which he knew about and I’m frustrated he sprung this on us last minute (less than a month ago) and won’t even take accountability when we called him out and is being a douche about it all

And now I feel like I’m stuck in the middle cuz on one side I have this douche ex roommate and my landlady hounding us to find a replacement cuz we have to pay rent today and we need to get the keys to move in but we can only do that after she gets all her money (which the douche ex roommate will refuse to do until we replace him) and on the other side, my 2 friends are disappointed with me cuz I made the final decision on a roommate (cuz I’m lead tenant) and said that I didn’t give them a chance to have a say which is not true. Friend 1 was the one that interviewed her and said she’d be a good fit and Friend 2 stated many many times he didn’t care about who we pick; and it’s not fair that they’re “unimpressed” with me and are being snappy with me. I never expected a “thank you” I just wanted acknowledgement that at least I’m getting shit done when they keep dragging their feet just cuz they hate ex roommate.

I hate him too for involving my parents when they didn’t need to be involved (and other shit I’ve been sworn to secrecy on) but I just want this situation over. We start uni in 2 weeks, I go back to work soon and I have to sort out my schedule. I don’t need to start this year on such a stressful note.

I wrote this chapter cuz I’m stressed but I’d sooner tie a noose around my neck than give anyone the satisfaction of me crying. My parents are stressed enough. I love my friends but they can go to hell for being radio silent when it’s important then blowing up my phone with texts and calls when I’m trying to get some peace. The ex roommate can go to hell for getting his mommy to write an email full of lies (I have text receipts that his mom lied) and involving my parents when they’re tryna catch a break from work and running the church. My landlady can go to hell for patronising me when I’m tryna get her her fucking monies.

Idk how the situation will turn out. I’m not homeless (atm) cuz I’m at my parents home but I need that place for uni cuz I live two hrs away from my parents. And it’s not like the US where everyone drives everywhere. I’m posting this chapter now cuz I genuinely dunno if I’ll be able to post this weekend like usual. I’m sorry you guys if the next chapter is late

Notes:

look what i found in the drafts !! its been collecting dust for about a year now, decided to read through it and decided the world needed another saboala au fic. and by "the world" i mean me. im starved and honestly this was so fun to write

enjoy<3