Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Law, my favorite little star, how are you?" 

Nami's voice purred through the phone as Law held it to his ear and sighed.

"What do you want, Nami?"

"Straight to business, as usual. I've always adored that about you, you know."

"Now I know you need something. Spit it out." Law knew all of Nami's games. They'd been working together for well over three years now since she pulled Law into this insane website of hers. He hadn't expected it to take off like it did, but he really didn't have any space to complain considering how much money he was making. Back at the tattoo shop, he was barely keeping the lights on and living on one meal a day. Now all his bills were paid without even breaking a sweat. He'd even bought a new car. Plus he got to work from home— his big, beautiful apartment on the nice side of town. All he had to do was take his clothes off on camera.

"Remember how you were going to star in one of my first exclusive films?" Law snorted. He remembered the conversation very clearly. Nami had called him up, excitedly chattering about how she wanted to build a whole film studio and get into professional films instead of all user-made content. She'd asked if he'd be willing to come be in one of the first videos since he was one of the few creators that were local. He distinctly remembered saying he would consider it.

"I don't remember agreeing to that."

"Oh, please, you'd look gorgeous in a professional studio, Law. Don't get bashful on me now."

"What's the pay and what's the catch?"

"You'll get a flat rate for each shoot, of course. After the first two, the rest will be behind a pay wall. Naturally, you'll get a cut of every subscription and your personal page will get first billing under each video. Obviously they'll all be pushed on the front landing page as well as in our promotional emails." Law caught the slip easily. He'd been suckered into too many schemes to let a single word slip past his defenses.

"What do you mean first billing?"

"Well obviously you'd have a co-star, love. If people want to watch you jerk off they can just go to your page for that. I've picked out a beautiful partner for you, too."

"Absolutely not. And you should know I'm not into women."

"Of course I know that, though really, I don't understand it. Women are so much better than men." She sighed through the phone as Law rolled his eyes. The entire point of the site was to be a space by queer people for queer people. It's not like hetero content wasn't allowed, obviously, but it wasn't the focus of the site. It was one of the main reasons he'd joined in the first place. The rest of the internet was centered around straight people and you had to search for the queer content. This was front and center for once.

"You'll like this guy, I promise. He's newer than you, but he's been a personal friend for years. He's been in the top ten male creators with you for the last two months, you know."

"I don't care. I didn't get into this to be some two-bit porn star taking orders for roles. You said I'd get to make the kind of content I wanted, remember? Turns out I like working alone."

"Of course, of course, you know all my creators get full control of all the content they make. I'd never force you to do something you weren't comfortable with, Law."

"Uh huh. But?"

"But..." There was always a 'but.' He squeezed the bridge of his nose and paced around his bedroom. He caught his reflection in the mirror and leaned close, prodding at the tiny fine lines that had started forming at the corners of his eyes. He was getting too old for this shit. Twenty seven was a perfectly good age to get the hell out of this and get a real job. 

"I also know you like money, love."

Law sighed. She was right. He really, really liked money. He'd never lived so comfortably in his entire life. Whoever said 'money can't buy happiness' had never been poor.

"How much are we talking?"

"For the flat rate? Hmm," Nami paused on the phone and Law was confident it was for dramatic effect. She never offered a deal she hadn't already examined from every single angle. "Well I'd planned on starting you with a six film series. Two thousand per shoot should cover you for your time, I think."

Law fumbled the phone and it bounced off the mirror with a bang as he swore under his breath. That was twelve thousand total. Even if he stashed half of it in his savings account, that would cover his living expenses for a while. Sure, he'd upgraded his lifestyle but he'd tried to be smart about it. He knew he couldn't do porn forever. He'd paid off all his credit cards, financed the apartment so he could pay double mortgage payments instead of rent each month, and even paid for the car in cash to avoid any interest charges. Half the amount she was offering could cover him for months. 

Then he remembered who he was dealing with.

"So, what do you think?"

"What's the catch, Nami? You're not just going to hand me twelve grand to fuck some twink on camera. I'm not an idiot."

"Always so suspicious. Look, if you don't believe me then come to the office and review the contract yourself. It'll all be written out in black and white, all professional-like. If there's anything in it you don't like then that'll be that."

"Fine. What time do you want me to come down? And who is this guy, anyway?"

"His name is Luffy— goes by 'PirateKing' on the site, don't ask me why. I told him it was stupid but he wouldn't listen. Anyway, swing by tomorrow around 11. We can get lunch after. It's been ages since we caught up." 

Law rolled his eyes. Getting lunch with Nami typically meant listening to her complain about the oppressive tax code stealing her precious profits and then paying for her meal and the three top-shelf cocktails she'd ordered because she conveniently "forgot" her wallet.

"Fine. Whatever. See you then."

"Lovely, just lovely! You're going to lo-"

Law cut the call and tossed his phone on the bed. He walked back over to the mirror and ran a hand through his hair. Twelve grand, huh? He caught a glimpse of a single gray hair poking out from just behind his hairline and yanked it out with his fingers. Going gray at twenty seven. He sighed. It was probably the stress of dealing with Nami for the last three years.

He should have told her where she could put her stupid business card that day. She'd come to the shop for a large shoulder piece. They'd had a meeting beforehand of course, but that was all business, no time for chit chat. The actual tattoo took several hours. He'd been trying to make some pointless small talk when he'd asked her what she did for a living. She was lucky he hadn't had the needle on her skin when she said, "I run a gay porn site," as if they were discussing the fucking weather. 

"A guy with a body like yours would pull a lot of money," she'd said at the end of the session. She didn't even try to hide it as her gaze dragged up and down his body. She pointed to the fraying seams on his shoes. "You'd probably be able to get a new pair of shoes in the first week. Some nice ones, too. Think about it." She pressed her business card into his hand with a 200 cash tip.

He'd been weak. Well, really he'd been broke. He had three bills declaring "Final Notice" in big, red letters waiting for him when he shoved his way past the half-broken door to the mail room at his old apartment building that night. 'Building' was probably too strong of a word for the mouse-infested garbage hole he'd been living in. He'd pulled up the website that evening after inhaling two shots of cheap vodka he'd stashed away in case of emergency. The site had been a lot smaller then with way fewer users. Even with two shots of basically straight ethanol in his stomach, he could do the simple math. The top guy on the site had 300 subscribers and each subscription was 15 each month. That was easily three times his rent. Just for some shirtless shots and some dick pics? Easy choice.

Of course he later learned that guy was absolutely not pocketing all of that money—Nami took a little over half—but still. It was more than he had been making at the shop for sure. He was tired of scraping by, forever one missed payment away from couch surfing. Again. He'd started making his own account that same night after two more shots and the third round of ear-splitting sirens screaming past his apartment window.

He grabbed his phone off the bed and wandered out to the living room, throwing himself down on the couch with a sigh. Well, he might as well look this guy up so he could walk into the meeting tomorrow prepared. He pulled the site up on his phone and clicked over to the categories menu. Nami had said he'd been in the top ten. It was time to start doing some fact checking.

Sure enough, PirateKing was number six on the top ten list in the "Men for Men" section, right under himself at number five. It was pretty easy to see why he was so popular— his profile picture was him absolutely inhaling a massive dildo and making it look easy. Low hanging fruit but reliable popularity for sure, though not particularly classy.

Law clicked on the link to PirateKing's personal page and started scrolling around. The free content was racy, but not explicit, just enough to tease people into paying for the full package. Lots of still photos of him sprawled out in bed with his shirt off, hands trailing just out of frame towards his waist or with various sized dildos in his mouth. Luffy (Law's brain helpfully recalled the name, even though he was usually dogshit with names) looked young, Law would have guessed barely over eighteen if he didn't know for sure that Nami would have confirmed he was twenty one before joining as a creator. 

Law looked through the photos with a critical eye. The lighting and editing were good, very high quality, and he clearly had a lot of different toys that he brought on screen. There were lots of short videos of him teasing an upcoming live stream while digging through a treasure chest full of sex toys and asking for requests. Clever. People loved feeling like they were getting an experience tailored to what they specifically asked for. 

Law's finger hovered over the 'Subscribe Now' button. He really should make sure he knew everything Luffy would be comfortable doing on camera. If they were going to be working together, that seemed like the bare minimum. He clicked the button and balked at the fee that was up over 30. He was still just charging 20, damn. Maybe he should adjust for inflation or something.

Fee paid, Law refreshed the page and scrolled through the previously pay-walled content. He clicked on one of the previous live streams. It started with Luffy fully clothed, sitting in front of the camera at a desk, chatting excitedly with viewers about a new toy he'd gotten in the mail. He made it feel so casual and friendly. Law always struggled with the live stream shit. He could barely do small talk in real life, let alone to some computer screen with people he didn't know and couldn't see. Luffy made it look easy.

After a few minutes of banter, Luffy placed a box up on the desk and began pulling it open, rambling about all the features on this new toy that he was excited about. Law would not be shocked if this toy company was paying him or something. Eventually, he pulled out a big, blue veiny silicone dildo and held it up to the camera.

"Hang on, I'm gonna go wash it real quick. You should always wash new toys before you use them, you know!" Huh. Surprisingly good advice. Especially if any of his viewers were new or young. Luffy re-appeared on screen a moment later, water dripping off the toy.

"Oops, forgot to dry it!" He dragged his tongue along the toy, catching the stray droplets before they fell onto the desk. That really shouldn't be as hot as it was. Especially since Luffy was still fully clothed.

"Oh! I got this new flavored lube too!" He pulled a brightly colored bottle out of the box that the dildo had come from and waved it in front of the camera. "What do you guys think? Should we do a taste test?"

Law leaned back so he was lying fully across the couch as he watched the chat section explode with requests for Luffy to break the lube out, as well as requests for lots and lots of other activities and a few general compliments about how hot he was. They weren't wrong. Even Law had to admit he was pretty cute. Damn, when had Nami gotten to know him so well?

"Alright! Alright!" Luffy giggled and unscrewed the top of the bottle. "They always make these so hard to get into," he complained, struggling to pull the seal off the opening. When he finally got it off, he held it up triumphantly. "Hah! Take that!" Law snorted. 

Luffy screwed the top back onto the bottle and held it up to the camera, holding it still this time so people could actually read the label. "Supposed to be blue raspberry flavored!" He winked at the camera and picked up the big blue dildo. "See? They go together!" Luffy giggled to himself and Law tried very hard not to find it adorable— it was supposed to be porn after all. Also, blue raspberry lube sounded gross.

Luffy squeezed a little of the clear liquid onto his finger. He stuck his tongue out and licked his own finger like a lollipop. Alright. Well. Now it was definitely starting to feel like porn again. 

"Mmm! It's good!" Luffy exclaimed after pulling his finger out of his mouth with a pop. He poured a truly excessive amount of lube onto the dildo and began licking it off, wrapping his lips around the tip occasionally and making obscene sucking noises as he murmured in a breathy voice about how sweet it tasted. Shit, that actually was pretty hot.

It had been ages since Law had subscribed to anyone on the site, and probably even longer since he'd actually gotten off to any of it. When getting off became his job, he really didn't have the urge to pleasure himself off camera. He realized he hadn't jerked off just for himself in entirely too long as he watched Luffy swallowing down the big blue dildo and moaning into the microphone. 

Law glanced at the clock at the top of the screen. It was 1pm. He'd planned on taking some pictures and maybe shooting something short at around 7 when the light in his apartment got good. The big windows flooded the space in a rosy orange glow right around sunset, really setting the mood for some more refined, quiet, intimate stuff. Six hours was plenty of time to recharge. Besides, if he rubbed one out now, maybe he could turn the short something he'd planned into a much longer something. He hadn't filmed anything long in a while. 

Yeah, alright, fuck it. Law pulled the zipper down on his jeans as Luffy pulled the dildo out of his mouth.

"Oh guys, I have such a good idea," Luffy purred and reached towards the camera. "Come with me!" The camera tilted a spun as Luffy, clearly carrying a phone that was doubling as his camera, walked across the slightly messy room and knelt in front of his treasure chest. He'd propped the camera on something directly behind him, getting an incredibly fantastic view of his ass as he leaned into the chest wearing a pair of thin athletic shorts that barely covered anything at all.

"Remember that one stream a few weeks ago with the red vibrator?" Luffy giggled to himself as he pulled out a big ruby red plug. "What if we really went all out this week?" he said wistfully and planted a kiss on the tip of the plug.

"Come on, let's go!" Luffy picked the camera back up and moved to the opposite side of the room, the treasure chest almost perfectly centered on the wall behind him. A small, sloppily-made bed was visible off to Luffy's left, next to what appeared to be the computer he was running the stream from, his own video playing in the background trailing a handful of seconds behind. The camera stopped moving as Luffy clicked it into some kind of stand, now centered on Luffy's lower abdomen and crotch as he adjusted something off screen. The tiny shorts did nothing to hide his surprisingly large erection.

"I love this thing," Luffy said, sliding the big blue dildo into some kind of bracket on the wall. Law wondered what he was planning on doing with it at such an awkward height. Before his questions were answered, Luffy got on his knees in front of the camera. The way the camera was positioned, Law could see Luffy's cock jump as he licked the dildo from base to tip excruciatingly slowly. Yeah, alright. That was a perfect height for that, actually.

"This is going to feel so good," Luffy moaned and pulled his shirt up over his head. Shit. He really packed a lot of muscle onto that tiny frame. The still photos really didn't do it justice. Law pulled his cock out and slid his jeans down a little lower.

Luffy took the red plug and made direct eye contact with the camera as he slid it into his mouth. He took his time getting it covered in split before pulling it out slowly, letting a little bit of drool dribble out of the corner of his mouth. Gods, he even looked good drooling.

"You guys wanna watch?" Law swallowed hard as Luffy turned around and shimmied his tiny shorts down to his thighs. Fuck his ass was gorgeous. That really was just unfair. Law started pumping his cock slowly as Luffy reached back and spread his ass cheeks apart. 

"Shit," Law swore into the empty room. 

Luffy teased around his opening with the spit-slicked plug. Wow, his little hole was so cute. Law felt his cock jump in his palm as Luffy began pressing the plug in with absolutely no further prep, a filthy disgusting moan drifting back towards the camera.  Law did not even pretend to stop the thoughts about how much he wanted to be in that plug's place right that second. 

"Oh fuck, that feels so good," Luffy groaned as he got the plug fully seated, looking back over his shoulder at the camera, face flushed and panting. Dear gods, that was hot.

"Alright let's get one more thing." Luffy sounded breathless as he slipped out of the shorts completely and rose from the floor. He stood directly in front of the camera as he grabbed something from off screen. His cock was immediately center frame and Law watched dumbfounded as a little bead of precum dripped from it. Wow this guy really knew exactly where to put his body and make it look accidental. It had taken Law ages to find camera angles like that. No shot has this kid been doing this for only six months like his profile claimed.

Luffy moved the rest of his body back into frame and set an expensive looking auto-stroker on the floor and knelt in front of it. Law immediately appreciated the camera angle again. It was perfectly aligned so Luffy and the big blue dildo on the wall stayed in frame as Luffy poured a generous amount of the flavored lube on his own erection. He pushed his cock into the auto-stroker with a guttural moan. 

"What should I turn on first?" Luffy breathed up to the camera. "Let's do the vibe first. Don't want to get too hot too soon," Luffy winked as he reached behind himself. His eyes rolled back and his tongue lolled out as the microphone picked up the pulsing vibrations from the plug. Law picked up the pace on his own cock, a drop of precum leaking out onto his shirt. Whatever. He was doing laundry today anyway.

"Oh gods, yes," Luffy said, voice breathy and wrecked. His eyes fluttered open and he looked up at the camera. Fuck that is so hot, what the hell. Law watched Luffy pour more lube onto the blue dildo mounted to the wall. Oh, shit, he was going to do all three. Gods, Law would be down for the count immediately trying to handle sucking something, a plug vibe, and an auto-stroker. That's so many sensations at once. 

Luffy began moaning around the fake cock in his mouth, lips stretched wide around the toy, vibe still buzzing away in the background. The bottom hem of Law's shirt was getting absolutely drenched in pre. Fuck, he hadn't been this turned on in a long fucking time. Gods, Luffy's lips were so pretty like that and those big brown eyes got a little watery as he took the cock deeper into his mouth. Shit he really just makes that look so easy. 

Law was so focused on the way the dildo was moving in and out of Luffy's mouth, he didn't even notice Luffy had reached down to turn the auto-stroker on until he practically screamed around the dildo. 

"Ugh, gods!" Luffy cursed with his mouth full, garbled noises of pleasure tumbling out of his mouth. Law groaned as he watched Luffy reach forward and brace himself against the wall, still swallowing the dildo down over and over again. Luffy began thrusting his hips in and out of the quickly moving machine. Fuck, he must have weighted it with something. Law had bolted his to the floor so he could do that since it had been too flimsy to stay upright on its own.

Law's hand moved quickly up and down his own length as Luffy moaned into the microphone, making absolutely filthy noises around the dildo and breathing heavily. His entire body was flushed a delicious shade of pink and his muscles rippled as he slowly gyrated his hips. Holy fuck that was hot. Law felt himself getting close as Luffy's moans got louder. Suddenly they stopped. 

"You guys want the money shot, right?" Luffy said breathlessly and reached for the camera. Law's breath hitched as Luffy set the camera on the floor so it was underneath his dick. He watched from below as Luffy swallowed the dildo again, shouting into it as he turned the pace up on the device jacking him off. It was an amazing view of his thighs trembling as he reached back and tapped the plug again. The buzzing noise got a little louder and Luffy keened, back arching, hands pushing off the wall. If Law had been close before, he was walking the tightrope now. Fuck.

"Ohhh, fuck, GODS," Luffy cried pulling his mouth off the dildo momentarily. "Fuck, I- ung," Luffy lolled his tongue around the dildo and his thighs trembled even more than before. Gods DAMN that was something. Law could hear his own moans echoing off the walls around him as his hips twitched under his hands.

"YES!"

Luffy wrapped two white-knuckled hands in his hair as cum shot out of his cock in thick ropes, a drop landing on the camera, partially obscuring the view as Luffy gasped and moaned. Law's own orgasm crashed over him and he came with a shout, release splattering on his shirt and dripping down his knuckles. His toes curled and his knees shook as the waves of pleasure rippled through him. 

He vaguely registered the noises from Luffy coming down from his own orgasm and turning off the auto-stroker. 

"Fuck," Luffy breathed but Law was zoned out on his own ceiling. 

"Oops, sorry guys!" Law looked back down at the screen just in time to catch Luffy picking his phone off the floor and dragging his tongue across the camera. Damn.

Luffy giggled and wobbled back over to his desk, fumbling to put the phone back in the stand by the computer. 

"Oh right, almost forgot." Luffy bent over in front of the camera and slowly pulled the red plug out of his, frankly, perfect ass. Bullshit he 'almost forgot.' He set the plug upright on the desk and giggled. 

"That was fun, huh?" Luffy made a little breathy laugh and ran a hand through his messy black hair. He sighed dreamily as he dropped himself back into his chair, still completely naked, lacing his fingers behind his head and leaning back. His cock flopped onto his hip, still shiny from his own cum and the lube he'd coated himself with. 

"Well," Luffy sighed. "Guess that's it for today, guys! What do you think of my new toy?" He winked at the camera and giggled a few more times. The chat absolutely exploded.

"Come back next week, guys! I've got a really special announcement! You're going to totally freak! I know I did when I first heard it!" Luffy blew a kiss at the camera and waved before he cut the stream off. Law checked the date on the video— five days ago. He wondered what the announcement could be as he tucked himself back into his jeans. He set his phone down on the coffee table and sighed as his eyes fluttered closed. Damn that felt good. He hadn't had an orgasm like that in a while. 

He wiped his hand on his pants as he tried to collect himself again. What was he supposed to be doing today? Oh right, laundry. He had some photos to edit too, and then the twilight shoot he'd planned to do. Ugh. So much work. 

He let himself melt into the couch. Work could wait. He didn't have any real deadlines anyway.

His phone buzzed on the coffee table and he groaned. Man what's a guy got to do to get a nap around here? He grabbed the phone off the table and unlocked it. Oh, an email from Nami. 

Oh right. 

His face flushed as he opened the email titled "Princess Law's Contract." Gods, he'd completely forgotten why he'd looked up Luffy's profile in the first place. 

For his majesty's review. 11am tomorrow. Don't be late. - Nami

Law opened the attachment that outlined the vague ideas for the six videos he was supposed to be doing with Luffy. The very first one was supposed to be Luffy giving Law a blow job. Law felt his face heat up even more. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to jack off to your possible future co-star. Or maybe it was? Law tossed his phone back on the table and dragged a hand down his face. When had his life gotten so weird?

He pushed himself up off the couch and grimaced at the mess he'd left on his shirt. Better get on with that laundry thing. He wandered into his bedroom and stripped his clothes off, tossing them in the hamper. His mind wandered as he pulled some sweatpants out of a drawer. There was certainly no doubt Luffy knew what he was doing so at least Law didn't have to worry about holding his hand through everything. 

He sighed to himself as he dragged the laundry hamper down the hallway. Luffy was pretty attractive, even if he wasn't Law's usual type. He certainly wouldn't have a problem keeping it up through a scene with him. Though he seemed kind of short, Law thought to himself as he watched the evidence of his sins disappear into the washing machine. He pushed a few buttons and tossed a soap pod in as he considered his options.

Worst case scenario was usually just that Nami didn't actually pay out what she claimed she would. Though there had been that one time where she'd asked him to pose for a few photos for her "friend" and then conveniently left out the part where her friend was a reporter writing a story for a queer magazine. Law hadn't gotten any extra cash for landing Nami's website on the cover. That was the last time he did anything for her without a written contract. That being said, he'd gotten a ton of new subscribers after that. 

Law sighed and leaned against the washing machine as he thought back through the video he'd just watched. Luffy was actually very hot and very good at this. His subscriber count was less than Law's but still very respectable considering he just joined six months ago. A whole lot of people would probably pay to watch them fuck around. If Nami actually gave them a fair cut of that, they would both be raking in some serious cash.

If the worst case scenario was that he got a little less money than promised, then best case scenario, he got to fuck Luffy silly for a cool twelve grand plus some.

Alright fine. 

He'd read the damn contract. 

Chapter Text

Law stood in front of Nami's downtown office, third coffee of the day in hand, and sighed. He'd slept like shit. He read the contract over before doing his shoot last night and then read it again after he'd finished. He just couldn't find the catch anywhere. It didn't help that he'd been very distracted thinking about all the ways it spelled out they were going to fuck each other. He'd actually gotten off during his shoot to the mental image of Luffy making direct, watery eye contact with the camera with his lips stretched tight around that ridiculous blue dildo. 

"I am an idiot," Law muttered to himself and pushed the office door open.

"Law! How lovely to see you again!" Nami exclaimed, though she didn't bother taking her feet down off the desk and actually get up to greet him. She waved in the general direction of the two chairs in front of her desk. "Take a seat, my favorite little fruit."

Law groaned at the term. She'd named the website Devil's Orchard so, naturally she referred to all the creators as 'fruits.' The joke had worn off after the first week or so. Law settled himself in one of the chairs and sipped his coffee. He was not caffeinated enough for this.

"So, Law, how've you been?" Nami purred, fingers laced behind her head, feet still propped on the desk.

"Fine," Law answered tersely. He hated when she beat around the bush like this and she hated that he didn't play along. It was always a battle to see who snapped first. She pulled her feet down off the desk and huffed, finally making eye contact. 

"Well aren't you just a little ray of sunshine this morning," she said flatly. She opened a folder on her desk and slid it towards him. The papers inside matched the e-mail attachment he'd spent too much time staring at last night. "I assume you've read this already then?"

"Obviously," Law said. "Still looking for the catch, though. You've always got one." 

He'd really gone through it with a fine tooth comb, though. Everything was there— the flat rate she'd said on the phone, the portion of the individual subscriptions, the scene outlines for each film and a clause that a new contract would be drafted if the company wanted to make more than six videos. Plus, he and Luffy had full control over whether or not the final cuts were posted. They both had to be in agreement before each video went live. Really, it all seemed shockingly legitimate. There was even a clause in there that they would both have to undergo STD testing before the first shoot and share results with each other. Nami had thought of everything, or at least her lawyer had.

"There's no catch, Law. You two are very popular on the site. Put together you'll make me a lot of money. If anything, I'm being too generous with your cut of the profits, considering how many new subscriptions you'll get." 

Law snorted. Fat chance. Fifteen percent was significantly less than what he took home from the subs on his account.

He was about to tell Nami exactly that when suddenly, the door burst open.

"Fowyy mm rate!" 

Luffy— of 'PirateKing' fame —crashed into the room, hot dog hanging from his mouth and fumbling with his soda as he tried to shut the door behind himself. He swallowed down almost half the hotdog at once and tripped over his own sandals trying to get to the other empty chair in front of Nami's desk. Law watched in absolute horror as Luffy, the hotdog, and the soda all landed in his lap. His coffee exploded onto the floor.

"Luffy!" Nami snapped and jumped to her feet. "You're paying to get this carpet cleaned!" 

Luffy looked up at Law with wide eyes and a smear of ketchup on his face. "Oh, shit you're here! Shit, shit, shit," Luffy mumbled to himself as he scrambled to get out of Law's lap. "Oh gods, I'm so sorry," he said, trying to brush the soda off of Law's crotch with his hands. Law pushed him away so he could stand and take in the damages. 

"Fucking hell." Law grit his teeth as pulled his hoodie over his head and tried to soak up the soda with the fabric. He'd literally just done laundry, damn it. He saw his poor, empty coffee cup still rolling across the floor and cursed again. Luffy rushed over and picked it up along with his own equally empty soda cup. 

"I'll buy you another one! Promise!" He grinned at Law as he carried it all over to the trash can. On his way back, he picked the other half of the hotdog up off of the floor. And then ate it.

Oh gods, this was the catch.

"Nami," Law groaned. "Why didn't you tell me he was a fucking moron?!"

"Hey!"

"Luffy sit the hell down," Nami said, flashing a dangerous look in Luffy's direction. His ass found the chair immediately and he wiped his face with his shirt. Gross. Nami turned her attention back to Law and gestured for him to sit down as well. He remained standing, still trying to dry his soaked pants. It was a lost cause.

"Luffy has talents other than academics, Law. Not all of us were built for med school," Nami sighed. "How's your plan for going back to school working out, by the way?"

"Fuck off." Well, he guessed that meant he'd snapped first today. Oh well.

"Hey, don't talk to Nami like that!" Luffy shouted from his chair.

"I'll talk to her however I want!" Law bit back. Really, what the hell had he been thinking, agreeing to something like this? Why was the guy even here? Nami had said nothing about them both being at this meeting. Though, in hindsight, maybe he shouldn't have hung up on her.

"Shut up! Both of you!" Nami shouted, leaning threateningly over her desk. "For gods' sake Law, sit down."

Law crossed his arms across his chest as he settled back into the chair. This twelve grand better be fucking worth it. 

"Luffy," Nami turned and regarded Luffy, who had both his legs up over the arm of the chair, sandals dangling from his toes. "Did you read the contract?" 

"Sure. Most of it." Law groaned. At this rate, maybe he should just be thankful the guy could read at all.

"Any thoughts you'd like to share with the class?" Nami rubbed her temples and grit her teeth. It was getting sort of fun, watching her lose her cool like this. She was usually the one getting Law flustered and pissed off as she slowly backed him into an under-negotiated corner. As far as he was concerned, this was long overdue karma.

Luffy pulled a small round lollipop from one of his pockets and took the wrapper off, tossing it on the floor before popping the piece of candy into his mouth. Nami's eye twitched as the little paper wrapper fluttered onto the carpet.

"We get twenty-five percent, not fifteen," he said calmly, the candy clicking against his teeth. Law raised an eyebrow. That was what he was going to ask for.

"Absolutely not. I've got to make money on this too, you know. That studio cost a lot of money," Nami said, sitting back down in her chair and tapping her fingernails on the desk.

"Well," Law chimed in. "Sounds like you'd still be making fifty percent to me." Luffy grinned at Law menacingly from between his knees in the other chair and, oh, that smile was doing things to him. Shit. Luckily, Luffy broke eye contact first as Nami began talking again.

"No. Twenty-five is too high, Luffy." She sighed deeply and tapped her nails on the desk. "Twenty percent. Final offer."

Wow. Nami was actually negotiating. She wanted this bad.

Law exchanged another look with Luffy, who smirked back at him. Maybe he was smarter than he looked.

"I dunno, Nami," Luffy said slowly, kicking his feet in the air and rolling the candy around in his mouth. "Don't think I can work for less than that. I've got my own stuff to worry about, you know."

"Now that you mention it, Luffy," Law purred, leaning back in his chair and propping his foot up on his knee. "I've got a really big backlog of things to edit. It's just been so busy, you know?"

"Right?" Luffy sighed and pushed himself up so he was folded in half, feet still draped over the arm of the chair, arms wrapped around his knees so he could look at Law more directly. "The fans are just so demanding these days." He held Law's gaze as he crunched down on the lollipop with a wicked grin on his face. It made Law's stomach flip.

Nami let out an exasperated groan from behind her desk. 

"Alright, alright, fine." She muttered something that sounded an awful lot like 'greedy fucking bastards' as she tapped something into her phone aggressively. Luffy spun around in his chair so his back was now draped over the arm rest and stretched a hand out towards Law. For the first time in years, Law actually gave out a high five. 

"Robin will have the new contracts together in an hour," Nami said with a sigh. "Unless anyone has any other changes to make?"

Law shrugged and Luffy shook his head, grin still plastered to his face. 

"Great." Nami said, obviously less than thrilled with how things had turned out. "Now, I want you two to get to know each other. Go to lunch or something. We start shooting next week so make sure it's not awkward."

"One more question, Nami," Law said, completely unable to keep the smug look off his face as he rose from the chair.

"What, Law?" Nami snapped.

"You still have my direct deposit info?"

"Get the hell out of my office!" Nami threw the folder full of papers in the air as he hurried out the door, Luffy snickering along behind him.

"So how about that lunch?" Luffy asked as the door closed behind them. Law sighed.

"Seeing as I'm soaking wet and sticky from your soda, I think I'll pass."

Law pulled his phone out to check the time and tossed his damp hoodie over his shoulder, trying to figure out what to do next. It wasn't even noon yet. And Penguin had sent an extremely informative text that simply stated "call later." 

"Let me buy you another coffee, then," Luffy said leaning towards Law's shoulder, entirely too close.

"Some other time. I need another fucking shower," Law muttered, opening his messenger to text Penguin back. Suddenly his phone disappeared from his hands.

"Well I'll plug in my number then! That way you've got it! What the hell kind of name is 'Penguin'?" Luffy giggled and tapped away at Law's phone screen. 

"Friend's nickname. Don't ask me how he got it, I can't remember." Law reached out to snatch his phone back but Luffy was infuriatingly fast. 

"Oooh 'call later,' huh? So mysterious!" Luffy finally handed his phone back and Law's face twisted into a scowl as he looked at the sticky, smudgy fingerprints on his screen. 

"Gum?" Luffy shoved a piece of gum in his own mouth and held another foil-wrapped piece out to Law. 

"I'm, uh, I'm good, thanks." Law was trying very hard not to march straight back into Nami's office and tell her the whole thing was off. How the hell was he supposed to work with this maniac? And where the hell did he keep all this candy?

"Suit yourself." Luffy snapped the gum between his teeth and the sound echoed down the empty hallway. Law turned to walk towards the elevators, hoping Luffy would get the hint and buzz off but, alas, the sound of sandals slapping on tiles followed closely behind him.

"Text me something so I can add your number!" 

Law rolled his eyes and typed his own name into a message and sent it off to the new contact titled "Luffy Best Coworker" with a smiling sun emoji. Luffy's phone chirped a happy little tone as Law finally made it to the elevators and hit the button. 

"So, To- Tra- Tuh-" Law pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers. Maybe he really couldn't read. He should have never agreed to this.

"Trafalgar," he offered with as much patience as he could possibly muster.

"Right. So, Torao-" Law groaned. "Is Penguin your boyfriend or something?"

"Nope. Just an old friend."

"So, do you have a boyfriend?"

"I don't really see why that matters." Why was this elevator so slow? Law hit the button three more times.

"Come on, Torao! Lighten up! Nami said we're supposed to get to know each other. It's just friendly small talk, jeeze." That was a reasonable point. He was supposed to fuck this guy literally next week, he could at least try to be friendly. Ugh. How tedious.

"No, I don't have a boyfriend." The elevator doors gloriously opened. Thank the gods. "How about you?" he asked, trying to sound like he actually cared as he walked into the elevator.

"Nah. Hard to find guys that are down with what we do, you know?" Law absolutely knew. He'd tried going on a few dates after he started making good money from the site but everyone he'd gone out with wanted him to quit so they could be exclusive. If he had a berry for every time some guy told him he shouldn't "debase" himself for money, he'd— well he'd have about a one month subscription to his own page, which wasn't a lot but it had happened enough that he'd gotten sick of it. As if he'd give up the easiest meal ticket he'd ever had for some random dude who wanted him to pay for dinner anyway.

"Yeah, no kidding," Law said and felt the weary sigh involuntarily leave his mouth. Luffy had literally just helped him negotiate the best deal he'd ever gotten out of Nami and he seemed friendly enough at least. Maybe Luffy was right, maybe he needed to lighten up. Maybe they could start over or something.

"So, about that coffee," Law started.

"I really will get you another one, I swear! I promise I'm not that hopeless, I just tripped!"

Law chuckled at Luffy's earnest apologies as the elevator doors slid open again. 

"How about I go home and change and we can meet somewhere in a few hours? What side of town are you on?"

"Really?! Uh, I'm on the south side. You know, by the railroad tracks?" 

"Yeah, I know that neighborhood. I used to live over there before I started doing this," Law admitted. He was a little surprised Luffy was still living in such a shitty area considering how much money he must be making every month. 

"It sucks ass, honestly. I keep saying I want to move but my brother wants to stay. He says the neighborhood will never get better if all the people who care about it keep leaving."

"You live with your brother?"

"Yeah! His name is Sabo, he's great." Luffy stretched his arms up, eventually lacing his fingers behind his head as they walked through the lobby. "He does outreach stuff. He's probably the nicest guy in that whole neighborhood."

"Wait, so does he know how you make your money?"

"Yup! Helped me buy my computer so I could run the streams. Old one couldn't handle it." Well, that seemed odd. Who buys their brother a computer to make porn with? Law found himself standing in front of the two large glass doors leading out of the building and considered what a strange family dynamic that sounded like. He reminded himself Luffy's family life really wasn't any of his concern as he stepped outside and the sounds of the city rushed up to meet him.

"Let's meet at a place in my neighborhood," Law said, really not wanting to get his car stolen this afternoon. "I'll text you the address later."

Luffy popped his gum again and smiled. "Sounds good, Torao!" 

Law was not prepared for Luffy to suddenly push up onto his toes and kiss his cheek. 

"See you later!" Luffy waved and rushed off down the street. Law stood completely frozen in confusion as he watched Luffy walk quickly down the sidewalk. 

What the hell? Who just leans over and kisses some guy they just met like it's completely normal? Well, maybe in some places it was. Though, Luffy didn't really seem like the 'study abroad' type.

Law turned to walk down the sidewalk towards the parking garage and continued to wonder what the hell he had gotten himself into. Luffy was nothing at all like he'd expected— not that he'd really put that much thought into his personality. He hadn't considered how much that actually mattered to him when it came to physical attraction. 

The guy was completely obnoxious. He really wasn't sure he could successfully separate his opinion on Luffy's personality from his body. What if he didn't find him attractive enough any more to go through with this? Shit. He should have thought this through more. What if all the videos were garbage? Gods, that would be embarrassing. Maybe he should call Nami right now and tell her he was out. This was a terrible idea.

Feeling himself starting to fly off the rails a bit, he decided to call Penguin and see what his cryptic message was about while he walked. Probably another case he wanted advice about. It would be a good distraction.

"Law! Hey man! Where've you been?" Penguin's familiar voice started to bring Law's heart rate back down and ease his anxiety just a little. 

"On my way back home after a meeting," Law explained. "What's up with the weird message?"

"Oh, yeah! Had a case today I could use a second opinion on if you've got a minute."

"You know I dropped out, right? You're the one out in residency at the moment, not me."

"Yeah, yeah, but it's a cardio thing. They've got me rotating through the free clinic this month and this patient can't get a consult, no insurance. You always mopped the floor with me on the heart stuff."

"You don't know any cardiologists who would help?"

"Nah, man. You know how the specialists are. If insurance isn't paying, they're not getting off their ass." There was a heavy sigh from the other end of the phone. "We've got a cardio doc that will come down to the free clinic sometimes but he's not coming for another three weeks and the wait list is probably at least a year long."

"Alright, I can take a look. What's the gist?"

"Some kind of bizarre arrhythmia I've never seen before. Patient is young too, no lifestyle factors or familial history to speak of, though he only knows his grandpa's medical history. Parents are both MIA I guess. I genuinely have no idea what meds would even be safe to start him on since I can't identify the rhythm but I'm also a little freaked that he might just keel over."

Law unlocked his car and slid into the driver's seat.

"Alright send me the signalment with the ECG and whatever else you've got and I'll take a look. Hang on, Let me turn the car on and get you on the speaker." The car hummed to life beneath him, an upbeat jingle playing over the speakers as it turned on. Law had searched every single setting to try and get it to stop doing that but apparently there was no way to turn it off. 

"Well, well, well, is that a new car I hear?" Penguin's voice filled the interior of the car as it pumped out of the speakers.

"New to me, yeah." He'd bought it used to save some money, but it only had ten thousand miles on it. He'd have kept driving the other one if it hadn't finally blown its transmission out a few weeks ago.

"You buy that with your porn cash? Hey, what kind of meetings do work-from-home porn stars have anyway?"

"Yes, I bought it with my 'porn cash' and the meeting was about porn, believe it or not." Penguin laughed through the speakers.

"Damn, man I really should have dropped out with you."

"Peng, I didn't drop out to do porn. You know that." 

"I know, I know. Sorry. I know Cora's anniversary is coming up soon, too. Let me know if you want to go do something to get out of the house." Penguin had been one of Law's best friends in both undergrad and med school so he knew full well that Law had dropped out to take care of his adoptive father who'd fallen ill. Diseases affecting the immune system were the worst. They don't even have the decency to kill someone outright— they die from something stupid like the damn flu.

Law sighed heavily. "Thanks. I'll think about it. I might be busy the next few weeks though. That's what the meeting was about."

"Oh? What's got you all tied up in knots? I can hear your blood pressure from here."

Law eased the car out of the garage and onto surface streets as he navigated himself back home. Luckily traffic was light today, and he'd gotten out before the lunch rush. 

"They want me to start doing real porn. Like fucking some dude on camera in a real studio and shit."

"Woah, the big times, huh?"

Law sighed again. "Yeah, something like that."

"Cool. Is the other guy hot?"

Law laughed. "We make porn, dude. Of course he's hot. That's not the problem."

"Then what exactly is the problem, Law? Because from where I'm standing, it sure seems like a win-win."

"He's a fucking idiot and I might murder him."

"Ah. I see, I see." There was a brief pause before Penguin so helpfully offered, "Have you considered lowering your standards?"

"Gee, thanks, Peng. No, I am not lowering my standards. Done enough of that already, I think."

"Well what's the plan then? Turn down the gig because, shockingly, not every guy who makes porn for a living is a genius?"

"They want to give me twelve grand to start."

"Oh shit. Ok, I think I understand your dilemma now." Penguin hummed into the phone. "How sure are you that he's an idiot? Do you already know him or something?"

"Just met him this morning. He was ten minutes late, tripped and spilled his soda on me and then ate the hotdog he dropped off the floor."

"Ouch."

"Yeah. He said he wants to buy me coffee to make up for the one he spilled all over Nami's carpet. I don't know what the hell to do here."

"You already locked into this thing?" Penguin asked as Law made the final turn onto his street. Luckily, Nami's office wasn't that far from his apartment. He wouldn't even have to wrestle with the freeway today.

"Technically no. They're sending an updated version of the contract for me to sign later today."

"So how about you go out for coffee and if he's really so dumb that you won't even be able to keep it up then tell them the deal's off. Sucks about the twelve grand though."

"Yeah no kidding. More med school money I guess I just won't have."

"When are you thinking about reapplying? This cycle or the next one?"

"Gods, I don't know, Peng. I have to retake all the entrance exams by this point. Who the hell knows if I can even still pass those. Plus how am I going to pay for it? I've got some money in savings now, sure, but I don't have four years of school plus residency time saved up. I can't afford that. I don't know if I'll ever get back at this rate."

"I can help you study for the entrance shit if you want, not that you need it. Don't stress so much about the money. Everyone pays for this stuff with loans and credit card debt. Besides, you already did the first two and a half years. Surely they won't make you repeat all that?"

Law pulled into his assigned spot and sighed. "It's been long enough that they probably will. I don't even know if I'd ever be able to get a job at this rate anyway. My dick is always just one internet search away for all of my future employers and patients. The tattoos don't help either."

"If you're good enough they won't care." Law briefly wondered if he was referring to porn or medical practice when there was a muffled conversation on the other end of the phone as well as the sound of papers shuffling. "Alright. I'll be out in a sec. Hey, Law, I've got to run. Listen, let's grab drinks or something soon, alright? I wanna hear about your date with this hot idiot."

"It's not a date."

"You're going out for some kind of food to try and figure out if you wanna fuck, right? It's a date."

Law groaned. "Whatever. Go do your thing."

"I'll send you that case stuff in a bit. Take care of yourself, alright?"

"Sure." 

The call ended and Law turned his car off but didn't get out. He stared down at the steering wheel for a long time, trying to figure out how his life had gotten him here. It was supposed to be a single semester break, damn it. Now he was years behind. What the hell had gone wrong? Cora would be so disappointed in him. Well, actually maybe he wouldn't. Cora had always been universally supportive— even about the weird stuff. He probably would have said something both unintelligible and somehow positive like, "I'm so glad you've found an outlet that's unique to your own sexual identity," or some shit. Law chuckled a little to himself at the thought as he finally got out of the car and dragged himself up to his apartment. 

He stripped his still soggy clothes off and tossed them directly into the washing machine. When he made it back to the bedroom, he sputtered to a stop. Instead of heading into the bathroom and washing the sticky soda remnants off his skin, he found himself getting lost in thought again. He caught his reflection in the mirror. Gods, he looked tired. And when did he start looking so old? It felt like Cora had died five minutes ago, not three years ago. 

Four years. In three weeks it would be four years. 

Law laid out on the floor of his room and stared at the ceiling. Four years. Where had the time gone? What if he never made it back to med school? Was that really alright? He'd always planned on being a doctor but now he wasn't so sure. His friends all told him he had a talent for medicine and that he was wasting it doing this crap. They didn't know what it was like, though. They all came from nice families— families that would bail them out if they got into trouble. Even Penguin had his rent occasionally covered by his parents when he was short. Law had no one else to turn to. The last man who had given a flying fuck about him was long dead.

Now here he was, nearly four years older and paying his bills with his dick. What a life. Some days he felt half a step away from a street whore. Other days, he felt on top of the world. People paid to see his body and that does something to your ego after a while. He'd felt nearly manic when he wrote out the check for that car a few days ago. He'd basically bought a car with cum shots and nudes. It felt insane. He felt insane.

He also felt lonely.

His friends didn't really understand why he wasn't already back at school. Even Penguin didn't really get it. Truth was, he was afraid. What if he did the math wrong and he didn't save up enough to cover his living expenses while he was in school? He'd have to go back to living in that falling over building or couch surfing. What if he couldn't even get in? He hadn't bothered to try to hide his identity in any of the content he posted online. He'd be easily identified by his tattoos alone. Would the admissions committee look him up? What would they think? What if he went through all of the expense, pain, and effort of med school and then he couldn't even get a job because of his past? Then what?

He'd tried to talk to the few friends he still had from school about his fears but it hadn't helped. They were all busy anyway and didn't have time to hang out with some drop-out loser. At first, it was fine. He had always been a bit of a loner anyway and he'd had plenty of other problems to keep him occupied, like food and where the hell he was going to sleep at night. Now that things had been stable for a while, he was feeling more and more isolated. He'd given up on dating. There was just no reasonable way to answer the question, "So, what do you do?" without inviting an entire conversation about his life choices. His friends really didn't want to hear about his job and usually just pretended he was unemployed. He had no one to talk to and nothing but time on his hands.

So, he'd found himself mumbling to Cora when he was alone in his apartment, drowning in his thoughts. Probably not normal, but it was better than drugs or alcohol, which he had also tried. They hadn't helped.

"I think I really fucked up this time," Law said to the silence. Cora of course never answered, but Law could imagine it. Cora would sigh and sit down next to him calmly and ask what was going on. 

"They want me to fuck this guy on camera and I don't know if I can do it. I don't know if I even want to do that. It feels like crossing a line, you know?"

Law tried to imagine what he'd say back to that. For years, Cora had been the only one he opened up to. He'd been hurt too many times by other so-called friends and even other adults when he was a kid. It didn't exactly make you want to spill your soul to the world. Cora was different, though. He was persistent, but never judgmental. Eventually, they'd gotten to the point where they talked about everything, no topic was off limits. He'd probably say something like, "you never know if you'll like something until you try it on for size," or the Cora Classic, "life without risk is just death with more steps."

"What if I'm bad at it? What if I hate it? I have to sign a contract for six of these videos, Cora. I can't just bail after the first one if it's not for me."

This response was easy to imagine. He'd heard it a million times. Cora would sigh and say, "Always the 'what if's with you, kiddo. What if the world ends tomorrow? It can't change how you live today."

Law sighed up to the ceiling. He needed to text Luffy about coffee if he was actually going to go through with it. He let his mind wander over their interactions this morning. Actually, it had sort of reminded him of Cora. He'd been a hopeless klutz too. He'd also been the best thing that had ever happened to him, even if Law had absolutely hated him at first. To be fair, he'd hated everyone at the time so it hadn't exactly been personal. 

Gods, he'd been so lonely the last few years.

He pushed himself up off the floor and picked his phone up off the dresser where he'd left it. 

"Meet me here at 2." He included a link to one of his favorite coffee shops up the street and hit send. 

"Alright, I guess we'll see how this goes," Law mumbled to himself and headed towards the bathroom.

"Thanks for the talk, dad."

He'd never called Cora that while he was alive. He regretted it every day. Maybe it was stupid, but if Cora was somehow still helping him from the afterlife then maybe, just maybe, he could hear Law when he said it. 

His phone buzzed in his hand as he walked towards the shower.

"Can't wait! See you then Torao!" 

Law rolled his eyes at the new name he was apparently stuck with. He prayed the second time he met Luffy would go better than the first as he turned on the water. He needed this money so he could get his life back on track. Maybe if he could salvage this, it could even be kind of fun. His brain unhelpfully supplied a series of images from Luffy's page on the website as he stepped into the shower. Frustratingly, his dick responded with interest.

Alright, maybe he could separate Luffy's personality from his looks. He'd really prefer if he didn't have to. Or maybe that would make things more complicated? 

Whatever. Just get through coffee first. 

Chapter Text

Law stood outside the coffee shop feeling a lot more nervous than he'd anticipated. It had taken him forever to leave the house. He'd changed clothes three times. It was stupid. There was absolutely no reason for him to feel so self conscious. It was just coffee with some guy, technically some guy from work.

Penguin was right. This really felt like a date. Unfortunately, it was also a date that had some very serious financial consequences. 

He fumbled with his phone as it buzzed in his pocket.

"Be there in 5!"

Of course he was late. Why the hell wouldn't he be? Law sighed and leaned himself against the wall in a pointless attempt to look casual. Gods, this whole thing was probably a mistake. He should just walk back home. He could call Nami on the way and tell her where she could put her stupid contract. He'd always done this stuff alone. He was fine alone. He was making plenty of money as things were now. He really didn't need this.

Just as he was deciding to leave, Luffy came running up the street towards him.

"Hey Torao!" Luffy leaned his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath, face flushed from running. "Sorry I'm late! The trains always run late out of that neighborhood." He grinned up towards Law—who's brain offered up a similar image of Luffy, flushed and breathless, coming down from an orgasm. So helpful. 

"No problem," Law said, willing his voice to be much more steady than his heart rate. Luffy pushed himself upright and pulled a hand through his wild hair. 

"Come on, let's get that coffee!" He reached out and grabbed Law's hand. Law stared down at his own hand linked with Luffy's in total confusion as he was led through the door to the cafe, barely registering when they stopped in front of the counter.

"Large iced raspberry macha latte with extra raspberry and extra whipped cream, please!"

What the hell kind of coffee order was that?

"And whatever he wants!"

The barista looked at Law expectantly as his brain tried to process what the fuck had just happened in the last thirty seconds. He pulled his hand out of Luffy's grasp and cleared his throat.

"Large hot coffee. Black."

"Lame," Luffy said, handing his card over to the very bored looking barista. They shifted over to the other end of the counter and Law's coffee gloriously appeared a moment later. He sighed deeply as he took a sip. 

"Won't that keep you up late or something?" Luffy asked, leaning his weight against the counter with a kind of casual confidence that could have implied he secretly owned the place.

"Nah. Caffeine barely affects me any more," Law replied as Luffy excitedly took his abomination of a beverage from the barista and grabbed Law's hand again.

"Let's sit there!" He pointed to an empty couch in the back corner. Law pulled his hand away and followed along behind him, settling on one end of the couch and expecting Luffy to sit against the other end. He decided he should just stop expecting Luffy to do normal things. He sat down right next to Law, draping his arm across the back of the couch and behind Law's shoulders as he crossed his legs up underneath himself.

"So," Luffy started and took a sip on his drink. "Nami said you guys met when you did her tattoo." Oh right, Nami had said Luffy was an old friend. Of course she would have explained that.

"Yeah, I was a tattoo artist for a little while, a few years back. I did the piece on her shoulder."

Luffy looked at him in amazement. "That's so cool! Do you still do that?"

"No, it was just something I did to pay the bills. This pays my bills now so no need to keep doing that."

Luffy hummed in understanding and sipped on his drink more. Why was this stuff always so awkward? Law struggled to pull himself out of his own damn head and try to make some actual, real, non-awkward conversation.

"What about you? Do you do anything other than this stuff?" Law asked, sipping on more of his coffee. The familiar flavor eased his anxiety just a little. This place always brewed a great cup of coffee. They even roasted their own beans. He should probably pick up another bag to use at home before he leaves. 

"Just little odd jobs in the neighborhood for the people Sabo helps," Luffy said. "Little old ladies with home repair stuff usually. I don't charge them much anymore. I keep trying to do it for free but I usually end up getting yelled at in some language I don't know and cash shoved into my hand anyway."

That was... Really sweet actually.

"Sabo's your brother, right? What did you say he did again?"

"I didn't really say before. He's a lawyer. He goes to court for people who can't afford a private lawyer and the government pays instead."

"Oh, so he's a public defender." Damn. That was a tough job.

"Yeah! That's right. I always forget exactly what it's called." Luffy sighed. "Anyway, he also runs an advocacy group. He's trying to make prostitution legal to make it safer. He says it's not fair the whores always get charged and the customers don't." He held his hand up to his mouth. "Sorry, 'sex workers.' He'd yell at me for calling them whores."

Ah. That explains why he was fine with how Luffy made his money. And also that was pretty cool. 

"So he helped you buy a computer, huh?"

"Yeah! He said I had to donate the same amount that he paid for the computer to the advocacy group and I had to talk about safe sex stuff sometimes. I try to sneak it into the videos without being preachy, you know?"

Alright, maybe Law had jumped to too many conclusions after that first meeting. Luffy was actually kind of sweet. They also had more in common than he'd expected.

"That's really cool, Luffy. I try to do that kind of thing too." He did a special video every year around the anniversary of Cora's death where he went down to the free clinic and talked about STD testing and walked people through the whole process as he got tested himself. He prayed just one person would go get tested from watching it. Maybe he could save another family from the heartbreak he'd gone through when Cora had found out entirely too late why he was so sick all the time.

Luffy opened his mouth like he was going to say something and then hesitated. He took another sip from his drink instead. At least he wasn't the only one that was a little nervous.

Law decided they might as well stop dancing around the elephant in the room.

"I, uh, looked at your stuff. It's, well, uh, it's really good." Gods he sounded so fucking stupid. This was such a dumb thing to feel weird about. How long had he been doing this? How could he possibly still be embarrassed about it?

Luffy sat up a little straighter and looked at Law with bright, glittering eyes. "Really? You think so?"

Law nodded and willed his heart to stop racing. He tried to hide how red his face was by sipping on more of his coffee.

"Gosh, that means a lot coming from you, you know," Luffy said. "Your stuff is just so much more put together than mine. I don't know how you manage to make porn feel so classy."

Law felt his face get impossibly warmer. 

"Thanks," he said dumbly.

"You know," Luffy said, setting his cup on the nearby table. "I was pretty stoked when Nami said you might be willing to do this with me."

"Really? Why?"

Luffy giggled. Inconveniently, it was even more adorable in real life than in his video.

"Because you're just about the hottest guy I've ever laid eyes on, that's why! You're funny, Torao," Luffy said, leaning a little closer into Law's space.

"You're not half bad either." The words fell out of his mouth before he could stop them. Shit. He hadn't intended on flirting with the guy. It really was a date. Damn it. Luffy chuckled a little in response. When had it gotten so hot in this cafe?

"So do you plan on getting back to tattooing or something when you're done with this?" Luffy asked, still too close. "I still don't know what I want to do. I thought I wanted to be a firefighter but I can't pass the stupid test."

Firefighters had to take a test? Huh. That probably made sense but he hadn't thought much about it.

"What's the test about?"

"A lot of medical stuff. Like what to do with people who are passed out and memorizing numbers for what's a normal heart rate and stuff. I don't know. I just can't get it to stick."

"Actually, I was planning to go back to med school. I could probably help you study if you wanted." Why the hell did he just say that? He didn't need to tutor some idiot porn star. He just had to fuck him and move on with his life. This wasn't supposed to turn into some personal project. But, there was a little part of him that really wanted a chance to help Luffy out.

"Seriously? That's so cool!" Luffy said and then sighed. "Honestly, I'm probably a lost cause. If I'm not physically doing it then I just can't remember it, you know?"

"So you're just a hands-on learner. That doesn't sound that bad."

"What's that?" Law stared back at Luffy in confusion.

"Uh, it means you learn better when you perform a task than when you read or write it. How has no one told you that before?"

"Well Sabo's always so busy so Ace used to help me with my homework but he would get frustrated after a while because I always got distracted. So, I don't know, I guess they didn't notice. Then, well, Ace couldn't help me anymore. Honestly it's a miracle I even graduated."

It really just sounded like Luffy had ADD or something similar. There was absolutely no reason he couldn't pass that test if he was actually given appropriate study strategies. Tons of people learned how to work with their brain instead of against it. Hell, there were at least four medications Law could list off the top of his head that would help if he needed more than just study strategies to get through it, and he had barely paid attention in that abnormal psych course.

"I think you just learn differently than other people, Luffy. Have you ever heard of Attention Deficit Disorder?"

"Nope! What's that?" Luffy cocked his head to the side and leaned into Law's space to pick his cup back up off the table.

"It just means your brain works differently. You should ask your doctor about it." Luffy's brow furrowed a little.

"Hmm, really? Like I'm sick or something?"

"No, not 'sick', just different. Really, I can't believe you've never heard of this before. None of your teachers in school mentioned it?"

"Nah." Luffy chuckled a little and smirked. "They usually just called me 'disruptive'. Sabo got really sick of seeing that one on my report cards." Law laughed. He could only imagine what Luffy had been like in an academic setting. He probably drove his teachers nuts.

"You're so smart. I bet you'd make a really good doctor," Luffy said, downing the rest of his drink. He closed his eyes and sighed as Law tried to hide his blush in his coffee cup again.

"Oh! Did you see Nami's other email?" Luffy asked, eyes flying open and snapping his fingers like he'd just remembered something important.

"What other email?"

Luffy quickly set his empty cup down to pull his phone out of his pocket. The case was battered almost beyond recognition. Law was genuinely shocked that the screen wasn't shattered when he passed it over. The email had both their accounts listed in the recipients line. Law must have completely missed it while he was nervously walking around the block, killing time until Luffy showed up.

"The studio is located on the third floor of the building, room 357. Entrance code is 9845. You two should both go check it out beforehand and get comfortable with the space. If you flip the lock on the door, the sign on the front lights up to show the space is 'in use.' You guys aren't the only ones I'm recording videos with so do NOT enter if that light is on. Yes Luffy, that means you.

Law: Get that contract back to me ASAP. Don't drag your bratty feet or I'll come hunt you down. I know where you live— it's on your direct deposit form.

Luffy: If you break anything, I will charge you double the expense to replace it.

You'll get more detailed scripts and stage directions for the videos shortly. Let me know if there's anything in them you aren't comfortable with and we'll make whatever changes we need to.

Practice as much as you want, just clean up after. 

Nami"

Damn. He really should have used a fake address on that form.

"What do you think?" Luffy asked excitedly. "Wanna go check it out?" The look Luffy was giving him was full of mischief. He could have been asking Law to go rob a bank or egg someone's house. He still would have said yes. 

Gods, they really should turn on the air conditioning in here.

"Sure. The office shouldn't be too far from here." He handed Luffy's phone back and pulled out his own, opening the map to check how far it actually was. It was a little farther away than he'd expected, not exactly walking distance and Luffy obviously didn't have a car. Law downed the rest of his coffee.

"We can ride over together if you want. My car's just down the street." Luffy grinned and took Law's empty cup from his hand. 

"Let's go then!" Luffy tossed the empties into a nearby trash can and held his hand out to Law.

He was going to regret this. He could feel it in his bones. 

He took Luffy's hand and let himself be pulled up off the couch. They stood there for a moment, Luffy still smirking at him like they were about to go break into a building somewhere. Law realized Luffy had very pretty eyes, especially when they were filled with bad intentions. The look he was giving him was making his entire body feel hot.

Law pulled his hand out of Luffy's grasp and gestured towards the door. 

"I'll meet you outside, give me a sec."

"Alright!" Luffy practically skipped over to the door of the cafe as Law pulled up Nami's first email of the day on his phone. He briefly skimmed through the new contract and confirmed it was the same as the previous one but now included the increased portion of the subscription profits. Everything appeared to be in order. Well, except for Law's signature. He spent a moment considering his options.

Luffy was shockingly charming and Law actually had meant it when he offered to help him study for that test. Plus, he was really cute, despite the terrible first impression.  Honestly, this had gone a lot better than he had expected. Luffy was obviously a nice guy. Maybe he wasn't the sharpest crayon in the box but he was a whole lot smarter than Law had initially thought. He certainly wasn't a hopeless case.

If he was being honest, this was the best date he'd been on in years. Who cared if it was the only date he'd been on in years.

Fuck it.

Law scrawled his signature on the bottom of the document and hit send. No going back now. He had no idea how this was going to work out but he was sure about one thing: fucking Luffy sounded damn fun.

He took a deep breath and made his way outside. Luffy immediately grabbed his hand.

"Lead the way, Torao!"

Law looked down at their hands linked together and considered pulling away but thought better of it. Luffy seemed determined to touch him so he might as well get used to it, even if it was kind of odd. They walked hand in hand around the block until they reached the lobby of Law's building. He hit the button for the elevator.

"Is this where you live?" Luffy looked around the lobby, seemingly impressed. There was a small desk with a security guard in the center of the room along with a variety of fake plants and a running fountain against one wall. 

"Yeah," Law said. "Looks fancier than it is, really. I got the smallest two bedroom place they had."

"Two bedrooms? Do you have a roommate?"

"Nope, just me." The elevator made soft beeping noises as it descended to ground level. "I just wanted a room for filming stuff that wasn't my actual bedroom. I like the separation."

"Oh! That's smart. I'd love to see your set up some time! Maybe I can figure out how you get your lighting so good."

"Your lighting is fine from what I could see," Law said as they stepped into the elevator. 

"Yeah but you somehow get these dramatic shadows that make your tattoos look amazing," Luffy sighed dreamily. He stood directly next to Law in the elevator, leaving about two inches of space between them, despite the elevator being rather large.

"Oh that's, uh, probably not my lighting set up. I do a bunch of stuff at sunset because the windows on my room face west." Luffy hummed to himself and wrapped both his hands around one of Law's, tracing his thumbs across the ink there.

"These are so cool," he said reverently. "Did you do them yourself?"

"Uh, some of them, yeah. Mostly the ones on my legs." Luffy's hands were warm and soft as they gently wandered across his skin. He could feel his heart kicking into high gear again. He hadn't been this flustered by someone in a long time. It was such a bizarre feeling.

"Mmm, I think I like the one on your back the most." Law could feel his face warming again. Of course Luffy had seen that one. It was out there on his page for anyone to see. He just hadn't considered that someone would have a favorite one of his tattoos. 

Luffy looked up from his careful investigation of Law's hand tattoos. Their eyes met and the entire elevator jumped up another ten degrees. Luffy looked at Law like he would be more than happy to strip his clothes off right that second and devour him like that stupid hotdog from the morning. For a moment, Law considered hitting the emergency stop and letting him do just that, even though he was sure there were cameras in there. Fuck it. Let them watch. They should be grateful for the free show.

The elevator doors opened with a ding, pulling Law from his fantasies abruptly. He retrieved his hand back from Luffy's grasp.

Where were they going again? Oh right, the car. Yeah. Then the office. Right. Got it. Gods, he was losing his damn mind. Maybe he should get out more.

He led Luffy down the hall to the parking entrance and to his car, pressing the button on his keys both to unlock it and show Luffy which car was his.

"Woah! It's yellow!" Luffy giggled excitedly and ran up to the car. "I really pegged you for a black-on-black kind of guy, Torao!"

Law shrugged. "It's got some black on it." The new—well new to him—car was honestly pretty cool. He'd sprung for a very sharp looking muscle car, though the model was a few years old. Bright yellow with a neat black racing stripe right down the middle and an all black leather interior. Better than anything he thought he'd ever get to drive, let alone own. He'd gotten it for an absolute steal too since the dealership was desperate to get it off the lot to make room for this year's new models. He was still feeling pretty drunk on the feeling that he actually paid cash for a car. And with porn of all things.

He really didn't even need a car like this. He'd needed to replace the old broken beater he'd driven into the ground, sure, but this was purely self-indulgent. He'd berated himself over the extra money he needn't have spent after he picked up the keys from the dealership. After about five minutes, he decided his life had been absolute fucking shit and maybe he deserved something nice for once.

"Just bought it so don't get your sticky fingers all over the windows," Law said as he slid into the driver's seat.

"Gods, I want to make so much more than the windows sticky in here with you."

Law laughed as the engine revved to life. At least it seemed like he wouldn't have to wonder what Luffy was thinking. Really, he hadn't been hit on this hard in an exceptionally long time. It was thrilling and a little unsettling at the same time. He wasn't sure what to do with all of Luffy's compliments. He turned to check behind him to back out of the spot and found Luffy holding a piece of candy out to him.

"Want one? It's sour apple. Got blue raspberry too but you seem like a sour apple type."

"Alright, I'll bite," Law said, taking the candy from Luffy's fingers. "What's with all the candy?" He unwrapped the sugary treat and popped it in his mouth before pulling the car out of the parking spot.

"Having something in my mouth helps me focus. Can't tell you why, just does. It's like it gives one part of my brain something to do instead of wandering off and getting distracted." He unwrapped his own piece of candy and popped it in his mouth. "Helps when I'm nervous and stuff. Nami says I've got an 'oral fixative' or whatever."

"Pretty sure she said 'oral fixation.' Did I mention you should talk to your doctor about the attention deficit thing?"

"Well I talked to you about it, isn't that close enough?"

Law scoffed. "Hardly. I dropped out in the middle of med school."

"Better than I could do. Why'd you leave? I mean, no judgement. I hated school."

Law navigated his way towards the freeway and rolled the sour candy around in his mouth as considered how to answer such a loaded question. The whole story seemed entirely too much to dump on someone he'd just met. He reminded himself this was not actually a date and he was supposed to just have a professional relationship with Luffy, even if 'professional' in this context included sex. He settled on his usual two-word answer.

"Family stuff."

"So mysterious, Torao," Luffy sighed. "You could tell me the real reason, you know. I said I wasn't going to judge and I meant it." 

"It's complicated," Law said and turned towards the on ramp. He hit the throttle harder than was truly necessary, revving the car up to the highway speed limit in mere moments. 

"Oh fuck yes!" Luffy laughed as the engine roared and Law pulled into the fast lane.

There was absolutely no need to take the freeway to the office, it was literally only two exits down. So what if he wanted to show off a little? That's totally normal. It's not like he had anyone else to show the car off to. And he wasn't driving dangerously, just a hair over the speed limit, really. 

Luffy rolled down the window and the wind whipped through his hair as he whooped out into the lanes of traffic next to them. Law couldn't keep the smile off his face as he listened to Luffy giggling as they continued down the road. 

He changed lanes to get off at the exit for the office and caught Luffy grinning to himself, eyes closed against the bright sunlight of the afternoon, wild black hair still flying. Law practically rear-ended the car in front of them, he was so distracted. He jammed the brakes and swore, narrowly avoiding a collision as he pulled onto the off ramp and accidentally swallowed the remainder of the candy he'd been sucking on.

"Aw, man! We're going to have to do a road trip, Torao!"

"Pretty sure we're going to be busy for at least the next few weeks," Law said, turning towards the office. "Where would we even go?"

"Who cares where we go?" Luffy said wistfully. "It's not about that. It's about the adventure! Don't you want to go explore somewhere new you've never been before? Do something crazy you never thought you'd do? Get into trouble and get yourself out again?"

Law chuckled. "Sounds like a lot more than a road trip, Luffy."

"Nah! You can totally get all that in a road trip. You just have to do it with the right people"

"Hmm, and I suppose the 'right people' would include you?" Law pulled his car into the parking structure next to the office building. 

"Duh." Luffy rolled the window back up and leaned back in the seat and sighed. "You bring the car, I'll bring the adventure, Torao. Just say the word and I'm there."

"You just met me today, you know. You really want to just jump in my car and leave for destinations unknown after knowing me for, what, four hours? Not even?"

Luffy didn't hesitate for a second. "Oh yeah, no doubt."

Law put the car in park and cut the engine. "What if I was secretly a serial killer or something?" He turned and found Luffy looking at him with that mischievous smile again.

"I could take you. Besides, you're not a serial killer. Even if you were, you're a really hot one so it'd be worth it."

"You think you can take me, huh? I've got six inches and at least 50 pounds on you." Luffy's grin widened.

"Easy. Wanna go now? I'll mop the floor with you." Gods, that smile was dangerous. And it was mesmerizing. They needed to get out of this car before Law did something stupid.

"Nami would skin me alive if I left a single bruise on your pretty face before her precious videos were done," Law said, stepping out of the car quickly.

"My face is pretty now, huh?" Luffy followed Law out of the car. "Glad I've been upgraded from 'not half bad.'" Law snorted as he locked the car behind them, the chirp echoing through the mostly empty parking structure. It was already well after three in the afternoon and most people would have gone home for the day since the office was mostly full of executives. Nami only rented out the third floor to run her business. The rest of the building was filled with high-powered lawyer types and accountants. It was rare to see anyone here past lunch hour.

They walked along the sidewalk together, Luffy chattering away about places he'd like to go on a road trip whenever he bought a car. They pushed their way back through the large glass double doors. Luffy's voice echoed off the high ceilings and shining tile floor. 

"What do you think the studio is going to be like?" Luffy asked excitedly. "Seems like there are a bunch of different scenes so there must be more than one set, don't you think?"

"Guess we'll find out," Law said, hitting the button for the elevator. The doors slid open immediately and they stepped inside. The mirrored glass interior triplicated their reflections so it suddenly seemed like there were four Luffys standing there with him. He hit the button for the third floor and the doors slowly slid shut.

"Well there's one scene that's supposed to be in a kitchen, one on a couch, and one on a bed. At least those are the ones I remember." Luffy looped his arm around Law's and leaned his head onto Law's jacket with a sigh. "The kitchen one sounds really fun."

"Yeah we should probably talk about the scenes beforehand and make sure we're both comfortable with everything Nami's director friend wants us to do." He tried not to think too hard about any of the scenes Luffy had just listed off, trying not to get distracted.

The elevator rolled to a stop and the doors opened with a ding. They stepped out into the deserted hallway, Luffy still curled around Law's arm. He really was so touchy. It was something Law usually hated but for some reason when Luffy did it, it was almost charming. 

"I'm pretty much down for whatever," Luffy said as they wandered down the hall. "I haven't done a ton with other people, but I've done just about everything I can to myself. Haven't really found anything I don't like yet. Ok, I'll take that back. Sounding wasn't actually as fun as everyone made it seem like online."

Law's brain barely registered Luffy's other comment as it was thoroughly stuck on the earlier one.

"Really? You haven't been with a lot of other people before?" A guy with a build like Luffy's could probably take home anyone he wanted. Law found it honestly a little shocking that he hadn't slept with half the city already with how damn flirty he was.

"Nah. Had a hookup with one guy a while back and it sucked. Plus he got really freaked out when I told him about the site, too. Not worth it."

"More reasons we should probably talk about all this stuff more," Law said as they came up on the door for the studio. The light was off so he punched the door code in and something inside the door clicked loudly, echoing ominously down the hallway. 

"No way did you remember those numbers after you read them one time!" Luffy looked up at him in amazement as he pushed the door open. 

"I'm pretty good with numbers." He searched the wall for a light switch with his fingers. "Names are a different story. You're lucky I didn't have to ask for yours six times before I remembered it." 

His fingers finally grazed a switch and a handful of lights in the center of the room came to life, illuminating a large stage area. The remainder of the space was still shrouded in darkness and large vague shapes of camera equipment loomed in the shadows.

"Woah this place is HUGE!" Luffy took two quick steps in the direction of the stage before Law caught his wrist.

"If this morning is any indication, you are absolutely going to break something if you go charging in like that," Law said, searching the wall for more light switches. 

"Oh come on! I just tripped! I'm not like that all the time!"

"I'd bet good money you are." Not a single other switch to be found. There must be more hiding across the room somewhere. Law sighed. "We'll walk up together. Don't break anything."

Luffy huffed but didn't pull his wrist out of Law's grasp. Before they set off towards the stage, Law flipped the lock on the door behind them. Just in case.

"You can't possibly know that," Luffy said as they stepped deeper into the room together. 

"I know the type when I see it. Spent long enough living with a terminal klutz to recognize it from across the room." Law navigated them slowly around the large cameras and over thick cables on the floor.

"Ex-boyfriend?" 

"No, Co- uh, my dad. Almost burned the whole apartment down once just trying to light a cigarette."

Luffy laughed as they stepped up onto the stage. "He sounds fun! I'd like to meet him sometime."

"I wish you could. He passed away a few years ago." Law immediately kicked himself for the admission. He wasn't trying to spill his whole life story to this stranger he basically just met. Luffy didn't need to know any of his family drama. 

"That must have really sucked," Luffy said quietly. "I lost my brother a few years ago. It's probably not the same, but it still hurts, you know?" Law looked over at him with surprise. 

"Your brother that helped you study?"

"Yeah. His name was Ace." Luffy slipped his wrist through Law's fingers and squeezed Law's hand tightly. "I miss him every day. I bet you miss your dad too." 

"I-" Law found himself lost for words. He'd never actually had the chance to talk with someone else who'd lost family like he had. He gave Luffy full credit for not saying something stupid like 'I'm sorry for your loss' or some other platitude. It was incredibly refreshing. "Yeah. I do."

They stood in silence for a long moment, Luffy's hand still wrapped around Law's tightly, eyes locked together. Law could see the tired sadness in Luffy's eyes— easily recognizable since he'd seen the same look staring back at him in the mirror hundreds of times. 

Slowly, the smile returned to Luffy's face. 

"Come on, let's look around," he said, giving Law's fingers one more squeeze before releasing them. 

Law finally took in the set around them. Three walls partially enclosed the space, painted some kind of neutral off-white color with trim to make it look like it was someone's house. On one end, was a large, king-sized bed complete with some very fluffy looking pillows and a neat bed spread in navy blue. The opposite wall had a long black couch centered on it. Law walked over and dragged his fingers along the armrest. It was some kind of fake leather. Smart. Easier to clean than fabric.

"I wonder what's through here!"

Law watched Luffy pull open the door along the rear wall and gasp.

"Torao! Come look, there's more!"

Law followed him through the narrow doorway and onto the other side of the stage. This side was fashioned to look like a kitchen on one side and some kind of ritzy bathroom on the other. Luffy sprawled himself across the surface of the large granite-topped island over on the kitchen side and giggled.

"Oh this is the perfect height!" he said, swinging his arms up to grip the far end of the island, feet barely touching the floor. Law's memory handed him another scene from the outlines he'd briefly read over. 

"What's that one supposed to be called again?" Law asked, wandering around the island and trying to ignore how great Luffy's ass looked bent over in those jean shorts.

"'Luffy learns to Bottom'," he giggled and pushed himself up onto his elbows. Law leaned back against the opposite counter and snorted.

"These names are so dumb."

"It's porn, Torao, not some art film." Luffy slid off the edge of the island and leaned his hip against it.

"Just so we're totally clear, I'm not actually teaching you anything, right? You've done all this before?" 

Luffy nodded. "Yeah, yeah, I know how it all works, don't worry. Oh, how much prep do you want me to do to myself beforehand? Or would you rather do it yourself?"

"Oh, uh," Law struggled to pull a coherent train of thought out of his head. He'd never discussed this sort of thing so frankly with someone. Luffy really was completely unphased by the idea they would be fucking on camera for the entire world to see. Now that he was here, standing on the brightly lit set with Luffy slowly walking around that island towards him, things suddenly seemed very real. People were about to pay to watch them fuck in about half a dozen different ways. 

Law realized he found that a whole lot more exciting than he'd anticipated.

"How much prep do you usually need?" he asked, trying to get the burning desire in his chest to calm down.

"For the average guy? Not much. Most of my toys are bigger than that," he said letting his fingers trail along the island he walked up next to Law. "For you, though?" he looked Law up and down like he was appraising livestock at an auction. His eyes lingered on Law's jeans. "Probably a little more than usual."

"How much of it do you want to be on camera?"

Luffy stepped directly into Law's space, and set his hands lightly on Law's hips. 

"Everything." 

Law's breath caught in his throat. Luffy was looking at him with that mischievous smile again, daring him to make a move. He tried to steady his mind, and his heart rate. 

"You said you've been with a few guys, yeah?" Law traced his finger up Luffy's arm towards his shoulder and watched him shudder. "Tell me what you like. If it's good for you, it'll look better on camera." He rested his arm on Luffy's shoulder and played with the hair on the back of his neck. Luffy's eyes fluttered closed and he sighed into the touch.

"You've seen my page, Torao," he said, pressing himself up against Law's body. "I always make myself feel good."

"Of course, but it's different with another person," Law said as he wrapped his other arm around Luffy's waist. He vaguely wondered if this was going too fast. He had said they needed to talk about things and this was talking, right? "How do you want other people to make you feel good?"

"Torao, I've been with two guys. One was just blow jobs and hand jobs backstage at some show and the other was literally a quicky in a bathroom at a club. He finished in like three minutes and I had to jack myself off because he left."

Law's brain crashed back down to reality. 

"Woah, alright, hold it." Law pushed Luffy back half a step. "You're telling me you've never even fucked in a bed and you signed this contract? And that doesn't sound crazy to you?"

Luffy crossed his arms and blew out a breath. "Look, I told you before, dating has been rough since I started doing this and I've gotten a lot pickier about the guys I fuck around with since that hook up." He sighed heavily and leaned back against the kitchen island again. "It's been a while."

"The whole premise of this thing is I'm supposed to be showing you the ropes about this stuff since I've been on the site longer but I really would prefer if we didn't do that for real on camera. You're not going to like that, I'm sure of it." Luffy rolled his eyes and leveled a glare at Law.

"I told you, I know what I'm doing! I just haven't done a lot of it with other people before. It's not a big deal!"

It was definitely a big deal. Luffy was under-selling this situation by a lot.

"Luffy, look, I'm not saying you're some naive virgin here. Doing things for the first time with someone is always awkward and weird. Sometimes you think you'll like something and then when you actually do it, it's not your thing. That's all totally normal but it's not going to be fun to work through with a film crew staring at you and expecting you to perform." Law sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "I just think we should sit down and talk about all this for a second. Lay out some ground rules, alright?"

Luffy stared at the floor in silence for a long moment, arms still crossed, brow furrowed. Law could practically hear the gears turning in his head. He prayed that maybe he'd talked a bit of sense into him and they could actually sit down and talk about this more before they had to start filming. Law hadn't considered how he'd feel about a film crew staring at him while he figured these things out with Luffy, either. They both probably needed to talk this out.

Luffy heaved a huge sigh and let his arms fall to his sides. 

"I hadn't really thought about all that," Luffy said to the floor.

"I hadn't either. I think maybe we were both blinded by the zeros on the page when we rushed into this."

Luffy nodded, a small smile returning to his face. "Alright, so let's talk then. Where do we start?"

"Why don't we sit down?" 

Law walked back through the doorway to the other side of the set and sat down against the arm of the couch. Luffy settled himself on the opposite end, crossing his legs up underneath him. 

This was probably about to be one of the weirdest conversations Law had ever had. How to even start? He took a deep breath and decided to keep things multiple choice.

"So, how about this: I'll ask you about a sex act or position and you tell me if you've done it before and if you prefer to give, receive or both. How's that sound?"

"Deal, but only if you answer too."

"Fair enough." Law cleared his throat and mentally set the last of his dignity aside. "Let's start easy. Blow jobs?"

"Yeah, done that. Technically I guess I've only received the one time, but I'm pretty sure I like giving better."

Law snorted. "Yeah I guess I could've guessed that one."

"Your turn, Torao."

"Oh, uh, I'd rather receive, I think, so I guess that works out." He could feel his face warm despite his best efforts to set his embarrassment aside. It was a little odd laying everything out so frankly with someone he'd just met. "Next one to ask about would probably be rimming since we're on oral, I suppose."

Law was relieved to see Luffy actually blush this time.

"Haven't done that one with anyone. No idea if I'd like it or not but it seems like something I'd like doing."

"Maybe we should make a list of things we should try before we film it to make sure it's going to work." Law shifted to try to pull his phone out of his pocket to take notes.

"Or," Luffy pushed himself down towards Law's end of the couch. "We could just start fooling around and see what works. Then ask the director to put it in the script if we like it."

That actually wasn't that bad of an idea. Instead of approaching things like a checklist, they could organically explore whatever they wanted to and then tailor the scenes to their particular tastes. They could make the scene for them instead of bending themselves into the scene.

"That could work," Law said. Luffy was straddling his lap before the last word had even left his mouth. "What? Now?"

"Yeah, now. Nami said we could practice in here, right?" Luffy pushed his hand through Law's hair and let his fingers slide under his chin. He pushed up slightly to force Law's gaze up to his eyes, his lips curling into a dangerous smirk.

"I've wanted to kiss you since the coffee shop, Torao. Are you going to keep making me wait?"

This wasn't how things were supposed to go. They were supposed to be talking this out, setting boundaries, drawing lines in the sand that shouldn't be crossed. Law had been trying desperately to draw those lines in his head all afternoon, trying to separate his obvious attraction to Luffy from the business arrangement they'd just entered into. He could feel the lines blurring as Luffy smirked down at him, waiting for his answer. 

The smart thing would be to stop again, push him away, try to slow down and take the careful approach. He could feel his heart hammering away in his chest. Luffy's lips were so close and so, so tempting and it had been such a long time since he'd felt this way about anyone.

Logic and reason slipped away as Law closed the gap between them. Luffy's lips were soft, much softer than Law had expected, and tasted like sour candy and the last traces of raspberry from the drink earlier. Law felt his entire body begin to burn as Luffy pressed against him. There was nothing tentative or awkward about that kiss as Luffy pulled his tongue across Law's bottom lip. There was no point in putting up a fight now— Law's resolve had crumbled the second their lips met.

His lips parted and he immediately had Luffy's tongue exploring his mouth. It had been ages since he'd been kissed like this. Hell, it had been ages since he'd wanted to kiss like this. He'd been day dreaming about kissing Luffy for what felt like hours, maybe even since he'd first scrolled through his page yesterday. Now that it was happening, he didn't ever want it to stop. 

Law wrapped his arms around Luffy's waist and let his hands slip under his thin t-shirt. Luffy gasped into his mouth as his fingers met skin. Teeth nipped at Law's lips as Luffy's eager hands began nimbly pulling apart the buttons on his shirt. When the last button was finally unfastened, Luffy pulled away from Law's mouth.

"Shit," Luffy breathed. "You're so much hotter in person."

Law responded by pulling Luffy's shirt over his head, running his fingers down his toned waist as the fabric landed somewhere on the floor beside the couch. He had to agree with Luffy on that point— seeing him in person was infinitely hotter than any photo on his phone screen. Luffy's lips crashed back into him as hot hands began pushing his shirt and jacket off his shoulders. He shrugged out of the suffocating garments, pulling Luffy tightly against him. The skin-on-skin contact had Law groaning into Luffy's mouth already. It really had been forever since he'd been with someone else and his last partner had been miserable to deal with.

Luffy gripped Law's face in both his hands, teeth clashing as he kissed hungrily. He pitched his hips forward on Law's lap and they both moaned into each other. How had things already gotten so heated? Law felt like he was already close just from Luffy's tongue in his mouth and skin under his fingers.

Suddenly, Luffy pulled away. 

"You like top or bottom?" Luffy asked between heavy breaths, face flushed and lips puffy. What a sight. Law felt his dick straining against his fly. Maybe the skinny jeans hadn't been the right call.

"Both," he admitted. "Most guys expect me to top, though, so that's mostly what I've done. What about you?"

Luffy shrugged. "Guess I don't know. I only bottomed that one time. It was great for the entire two minutes I got." Luffy sighed heavily. "Two minutes is probably over estimating that."

For a random hook up in a bathroom, Law wasn't surprised. Belatedly, his brain kicked in and he remembered something else important he hadn't asked.

"Luffy, about that STD testing-"

"I went last week— Negative for everything." Law watched Luffy's cheeks flush dark pink. "I swear I don't hook up with guys in clubs anymore. I meant to bring the print-out to the meeting this morning but I forgot."

"It's alright, I believe you. I actually haven't gotten tested since last year but I, uh," he was suddenly really embarrassed to admit how long it had actually been since he last got laid. "I haven't actually been with anyone since then." Luffy smiled down at him.

"Been a while for you too, huh? That makes me feel a little better." Law's breath hitched as Luffy ran a hand roughly through his hair. "You wanna fuck on the couch? We've got so many options," Luffy purred. He leaned close and pulled Law's lower lip between his teeth for a moment. "I'm down for anything as long as it's with you."

Law's head spun from all the different scenarios that suddenly burst into his brain. He pulled Luffy's lips back to his as he thought through the options. They were supposed to be practicing for scenes they'd be filming later, but Law found that wasn't actually how he wanted this to go down. It sounded like Luffy's past experiences had been rushed and unsatisfying. He wanted to fix that.

"Bed," he murmured against Luffy's lips. Luffy looked down at him with a skeptical look.

"So boring, Torao," he complained.

"I can get plenty creative," Law countered. "Somebody has to show you how good it feels to fuck somewhere actually comfortable. Don't knock it 'till you try it."

Luffy rolled his eyes and reluctantly climbed off Law's lap. Law was very satisfied to see Luffy was just as turned on as he was. He turned and took a few steps towards the bed and Law pushed himself up off the couch and caught up to him, wrapping his arms around his waist from behind. 

"Torao, come on-"

"Shut up. We've got all afternoon." He trailed kisses down the side of Luffy's neck and felt him shudder underneath his lips. "Let me show you what it feels like to actually take your time," he murmured into Luffy's skin.

Luffy's breath hitched. "Shit."

He leaned back into Law, who let his hands wander along Luffy's chest. He kept his touch firm but gentle, continuing to press breathy kisses into his neck. He pulled his tongue slowly up his neck to below his ear, basking in the breathless whine that escaped Luffy's throat. He let his fingers brush across a nipple, doubling back when Luffy gasped. He rolled the bud gently between his thumb and finger and Luffy moaned, slipping down Law's chest and throwing his head back against Law's shoulder. 

"Fuck, Torao"

Law felt Luffy's hot skin beneath his hands as he dragged them down Luffy's waist and let his fingers slip under the waistband of his shorts, pressing down on the point of his hip before dragging one hand towards his center.

"Please," Luffy whispered. 

Law pulled open the button on Luffy's shorts and dragged the zipper down slowly, sinking his teeth into Luffy's neck just enough to be felt but not enough to leave a mark. He held Luffy's hip firmly with his other hand, keeping him from bucking up into his hand. As much as he desperately wanted to throw Luffy on the bed and fuck him into the mattress, watching him slowly fall apart from just simple touches was incredibly addicting. He wondered how long Luffy was going to let him get away with all this teasing. He didn't seem like the patient type.

He slipped his hand into Luffy's shorts and palmed his erection through the thin cotton he was wearing underneath. Luffy's back arched off his chest as he gasped, reaching behind him to grip Law's shoulder tightly. Law's lips wandered along his neck as he pressed his hand along Luffy's length, holding him still beneath him. Luffy was breathing hard now, and Law could feel the wet spot blooming beneath his palm where the tip of Luffy's cock strained against his briefs. 

"More, more, please," Luffy breathed. Law pulled his hand away and Luffy whined, his knees shaking just slightly as he tossed his head back again in frustration. "Tora-"

Before he could finish what Law was sure was a complaint, Law bent quickly to scoop his arm under Luffy's knees, sweeping him up off his feet. 

"Woah!" Luffy threw his arms around Law's neck and giggled. "You're stronger than I thought." Law chuckled and carried him to the bed, setting him gently on top of the blankets before turning to open one of the drawers on the nightstand.

"I won't break you know," Luffy said, laying back against the pillows with a sigh. "Don't treat me like I'm made of glass."

"I won't all the time, don't worry." The first drawer had nothing but small folded towels in it and Law frowned. Every porno ever had conveniently placed condoms and lube in these damn nightstands. He walked around to the other side of the bed to check the other nightstand. "Some of those scenes have me being pretty rough with you. Are you into that?" He pulled open another drawer and smiled as a bottle of lube rolled towards the front of the drawer. Score.

"Considering that's all I've ever done with other people, I guess I am"

"Well, we said we were going to try everything, right?" Law climbed back onto the bed, lube bottle and condom in hand.

"I guess we did." Luffy sighed. "I'm not some fragile princess, though."

"Never said you were." Law hooked his fingers under the waistband of Luffy's still unbuttoned shorts. "No one's ever spoiled you before, though. Don't you want to try it?" Luffy lifted his hips as Law pulled his shorts and briefs off in one fluid motion, tossing them onto the floor beside the bed. Luffy let out a breathy laugh.

"You didn't strike me as the 'gentle lover' type, Torao."

Law shrugged. "I like a little bit of everything I guess." He pushed Luffy's legs apart slowly and settled his weight between them. "It's a crime not to take my time with you," he murmured, admiring the sight of Luffy spread out on the bed beneath him. He really was a lot hotter in person. 

"Cheesy. That could be a line in one of these vide- AH!"

Law wrapped one hand tightly around Luffy's length as he popped the button on his own jeans. He pulled his hand along Luffy slowly as he pushed his jeans down with his other hand. If he didn't relieve the pressure on his cock he was going to scream. Luffy pushed up impatiently into his fist, back bowing off the mattress. Law pulled his hand away to pull his jeans the rest of the way off and Luffy let out a frustrated growl.

"Gods, you're such a tease. I'm dying." Law laughed and settled onto his elbows between Luffy's legs.

"You're not dying, don't be a drama queen." Luffy opened his mouth to say something else but Law began kissing along his inner thigh and a needy whine escaped his lips instead of words. Law groaned as Luffy's fingers carded through his hair. He worked his lips up Luffy's thigh and pressed wet kisses along his lower abdomen, stopping right next to where his length twitched and leaked onto his abs. He blew a breath across the tip of his flushed cock and Luffy's entire body shuddered. 

"Law, nngh, please," Luffy snapped his hips up, desperately searching for friction.

"Oh, so you know my name now?" he teased. He dragged his tongue slowly from root to tip and Luffy moaned loudly from the pillows. He gripped Luffy's thigh tightly as he wrapped his lips around the head.

"Oh my Gods," Luffy panted, fingers gripping Law's hair as he worked more of Luffy's length into his mouth. "Yes, yes, yes." 

Law swirled his tongue around Luffy's cock, moaning as more salty pre leaked into his mouth. Luffy tasted so good, especially paired with the incredible noises he was making with every tiny movement Law made with his mouth. Law felt his own erection throbbing in protest as Luffy's thigh began to tremble beneath his hand. Law wanted to show him how good it was to be with someone who actually cared about something more than their own pleasure. He hadn't anticipated how sensitive Luffy would be to what Law considered to be just a little foreplay. He'd really been missing out. 

Luffy pushed his hips up slightly into Law's mouth, pulling harder on Law's hair. "Oh fuck, your mouth feels incredible." It did not shock Law in the slightest that Luffy was a talker. He was more surprised at how much the praise affected him. He desperately wanted to make Luffy feel good. All his pretty words ran straight to Law's dick. 

"You look so pretty with my cock in your mouth," Luffy breathed. Law pressed his tongue flat against the underside of Luffy's cock and held his gaze as pulled up towards the head again, running his tongue along the slit. 

"Ah! Fuck- So hot. You're so fucking hot." Luffy's chest heaved as he panted. A broken cry punched out of his lungs as Law sank back down, swallowing as Luffy's tip pressed against the back of his throat. He'd had to work really hard to get over his gag reflex so he could do some of the oral stuff with toys that Luffy seemed to handle effortlessly. Luffy pulled up on his hair urgently.

"Wait, wait," he said between broken breaths. "Don't- I don't want to cum yet. Fuck." 

Law pulled his mouth away and sat back on his heels. Luffy looked absolutely wrecked. His whole body was shaking as his hands reached out towards Law.

"Fuck me. Fuck me, please."

Law swore under his breath. He could feel his cock throbbing along to his racing heartbeat. He tried to calm down as he squeezed some of the cold lube onto his fingers. If he didn't chill out he'd be done faster than that guy Luffy had fucked in the bathroom. He'd never live that down. He took a deep breath and placed Luffy's calf up on his shoulder.

"Anyone ever tell you patience is a virtue?" He pulled in another breath and held it as he pressed one finger against Luffy's entrance, letting it out slowly as he pushed inside. He'd learned plenty of techniques to get himself to last longer when he started making videos of himself. The breathing was definitely the easiest to do when his hands were busy with a partner.

Luffy moaned and pushed back against his finger. "I am so done being patient."

Law kissed along Luffy's calf as he pressed another finger in. Luffy swore and writhed on top of the blankets. Law curled his fingers against where Luffy's prostate should be, searching for only a moment— having intimate knowledge of human anatomy had its advantages.

"Yes!" Luffy shouted. "Right there, right there," he chanted breathlessly, eyes squeezed shut as Law continued to thrust his fingers, pulling them along Luffy's sensitive spot with every movement. He could have watched Luffy coming undone beneath his fingers for hours, but he was desperate to see Luffy cum on his cock. Based on his page, Luffy was obviously experienced at bottoming, at least with himself. He probably didn't need a ton of prep. Law pulled his fingers away and Luffy whined.

"You good or you want more?" Law asked.

"If you don't fuck me right now I am actually going to die."

Law chuckled. "Drama queen." Luffy glared up at him and pulled his leg down off Law's shoulder.

"Don't be mean, Torao." Law shrugged. 

"Can't help it, just who I am." Law picked the condom packet up off the blankets and held it between his teeth, searching for where the lube had gone. Luffy grabbed his wrist and pulled hard, knocking him off balance. He tipped forward directly on Luffy's chest. 

"I'm done waiting."

Luffy pitched his weight quickly, flipping Law onto his back and punching a grunt from his lungs as he tried not to accidentally inhale the condom packet in his mouth. 

"I'll take that," Luffy said, snatching the condom from between Law's teeth and tearing it open. Before he could protest, Luffy was rolling the thin latex over his length. He surprised himself with how loud the moan that escaped his throat was. Luffy scanned the blankets momentarily, eventually finding the bottle of lube that had almost rolled off the bed. He squeezed a generous amount onto his palm and gripped Law tightly as he positioned himself.

"Shit," was all Law could manage as Luffy began to sink down onto his length, moaning loudly and throwing his head back. Luffy worked fast, hips flush with Laws in what felt like an instant. Law thought he probably shouldn't be surprised considering how easily he'd taken that big red plug from the video he'd watched. 

"Ahh, Toraooo," Luffy purred, bracing his hands on Law's chest. "You feel so good." Law managed to pull in a singular breath before Luffy started moving and fuck it felt incredible. Luffy's body gripped him tightly and Law watched in awe as he fucked himself on his cock, moaning and gasping as he picked up the pace. Law let his hands slide up Luffy's thighs, and Luffy grabbed his hands and pulled them roughly towards his waist. Law gripped his hips tightly and met Luffy's body halfway down with his, pulling a loud moan from his lips. Luffy leaned back, holding himself up with hands wrapped tightly around Law's thighs as he thrust roughly up into him.

"Yes, fuck, like that!"

The sounds of skin slapping against skin and heavy breathing echoed around the large empty room. Law bit the inside of his lower lip harshly as Luffy rode his length with reckless abandon. It was incredible to watch him begin to unravel, rhythm faltering as his knees began to shake from where they were braced on either side of Law's hips. Luffy clearly liked it at least a little rough as he slammed down against Law repeatedly, moans and curses growing louder with every thrust of Law's hips up into his body.

Law could feel himself getting close again at alarming speed. That wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all. He wrapped his hands around Luffy's wrists and pried them off his thighs, jerking him forward. Luffy swore as he lost his balance and pitched forward, bracing his weight against Law's chest.

"Fuck you! I'm so-"

Before he could finish, Law flipped Luffy back onto the mattress, pinning his wrists against the pillows. He caught Luffy's mouth in his, and Luffy licked into him eagerly. It was messy— all teeth and hot breath as they fought for the same air, Luffy's tongue curling around Law's aggressively. Law pulled away as he released the tight hold on Luffy's wrists.

"If you don't let me cum, I fucking swear-" Luffy started.

"What are you going to do when we need to drag these videos out for fifteen minutes, huh?" Law said, pushing himself up onto his hands. He leaned into Luffy's neck, dragging his tongue along his neck and the outer edge of his ear. Luffy bucked his hips up, rubbing his length into Law's abdomen and groaning. 

"I'll let you cum, don't worry," Law murmured into the space below Luffy's ear. He sunk his teeth into his earlobe lightly, earning a desperate whine and another thrust of Luffy's hips. "I want to watch you cum on my cock," he purred into Luffy's ear. 

"Gods, Law, then make me."

Law sat back onto his heels, pulling both Luffy's legs up over his shoulders. He pressed himself back into Luffy's tight hole, hissing as the heat wrapped around him again. He held one of Luffy's thighs in one hand and leaned forward slowly, bending Luffy's body beneath him.

"Let me know if it hurts and I'll stop, yeah?" Luffy nodded quickly, groaning as Law pushed his thighs towards his head until he could reach the headboard with his toes. Law started slow, not wanting to thrust too hard if Luffy wasn't flexible enough for something like this. 

"Fuck, Law, more!" Luffy moaned loudly beneath him. 

Law picked up the pace, bracing his hand on the headboard and thrusting into Luffy roughly, practically folding him in half. If the incredibly loud curses and moans were any indication, Luffy was plenty flexible enough for this to feel good. Law filed the information away for later as Luffy curled his ankle around the back of Law's neck. The leg Law wasn't gripping tightly opened wider, letting Law hit even deeper with every thrust. The headboard clattered against the wall as he pounded into Luffy. Incoherent half-words spilled from Luffy's mouth as Law increased the tempo again. 

"Close, close, please! Law!" Luffy's shouts bounced off the walls in the big open room. Law could feel his own orgasm fast approaching as Luffy continued to fall apart beneath him. He released Luffy's thigh to curl his fingers around his length, pressing his thumb along the slit. That was all it took.

"LAW! YES!" 

White ribbons painted Luffy's chest and face as he came with a guttural scream, chanting Law's name as Law fucked him through his orgasm. His length twitched in Law's grasp with every thick rope of cum shot from the tip. Luffy's body tightened down around Law's length so much it bordered on painful and Law could feel himself hurtling towards the edge.

"So close, Luffy, so- fuck-"

Law's own climax ripped through his body violently as he pressed deeply into Luffy's body with a long groan. Stars exploded behind his eyelids as Luffy's tight heat fluttered around him. It was like he could feel the pleasure bursting across his brain, washing his entire sensory system with the feeling of floating. His toes went numb and his skin pricked and tingled. He felt euphoric as he rode out the best orgasm he's had in years, gasping and struggling to pull in enough oxygen to keep himself from collapsing onto Luffy beneath him. 

Law leaned his weight against the headboard as he tried to blink his vision back to normal, Luffy still breathing heavily beneath him. His leg slipped off Law's shoulder as Law looked down at Luffy's flushed cum-covered face.

"Shit," Luffy breathed, a weak smile on his face. He licked a smear of cum off his lips. Law's dick somehow managed to twitch again. Luffy smirked.

"You liked that, huh? You get to finish on my face in the first video, you know."

"Fuck, yeah. I know." Law was amazed he was able to form words. His brain felt like it had gone through a blender. He pushed himself back from the headboard, holding the condom in place as he slid out of Luffy, who let his legs fall open onto the mattress. 

He pulled the condom off and knotted it, eyes scanning the room. Luckily there was a small trashcan next to one of the nightstands. He wavered a little as he walked around the bed to toss the condom away, pulling a towel out of the first drawer he'd opened and tossed it to Luffy. He spent a moment searching the floor for his pants when Luffy called his name from behind him. When he turned around, Luffy was curled up under the blankets. He held a hand out towards Law weakly.

"Come back," he said quietly, voice hoarse and shaky.

He really wasn't usually one to cuddle after sex but he couldn't say no to the pleading look in Luffy's eyes. Besides, it had been about showing Luffy how nice it was to fuck around in a bed, right? Getting to nap after was one of those little bonuses everyone should experience at least once. At least, that's what he told himself as he slipped between the sheets and Luffy curled around him, resting his head on Law's chest with a sigh.

"That was way better than my last hook-up."

Law snorted. "That's a pretty low bar." Luffy trailed his fingers up Law's chest and under his chin, turning Law's face towards himself. Law met his gaze and felt his heart racing again, despite the minimal physical contact. 

"I've never cum that hard in my life, Torao," Luffy said, pulling his hand away from Law's face to run his fingers through his hair instead. "Better?"

Law couldn't help the smile that creeped onto his features as he closed his eyes. Luffy's fingers felt so good carding gently through his hair and he sighed into the touch. "I wasn't prying for compliments, you know."

Luffy hummed contentedly. "I know. I meant it though." He pressed light kisses against Law's shoulder as his fingers wandered down Law's neck and onto his chest again. "This is going to be fun," he murmured against Law's skin.

"Yeah," was all Law could manage as he melted under Luffy's gentle touches. They should probably get up. They had no idea if anyone was supposed to be using the space this evening. He foggily remembered that he'd at least locked the door so no one would come barging in on them. Thank the gods his brain had thought that far ahead.

His body felt so light and warm. He could feel Luffy's soft breaths against his shoulder and sleep tugged at him. He really hadn't slept much the night before, he'd been too distracted thinking about the contact. He tried to push the sleep away, get his brain and his body into gear and go home already, but it was much too little and much much too late.

Law drifted off into sleep as Luffy's hand stilled on his chest.

Chapter Text

Law jerked awake to the sound of his phone ringing from... somewhere. 

"Shit." 

He scrambled out of bed and squinted against the bright lights in his face. Where the hell was his phone? He stumbled around towards the sound of his ringtone, eventually finding it on the floor next to his jeans that were turned inside out next to his boxers. The gears in his brain finally clicked into place as he picked his phone up off the ground. 

He was at the set, still buck naked, after fucking Luffy basically hours after meeting him and setting exactly zero boundaries about literally anything. 

And now Penguin was calling.

Fuck.

If he didn't answer, Peng would absolutely guess something was up. Law always answered calls since he was basically unemployed. Law cursed under his breath and answered the phone as he quickly pulled his boxers on.

"Hey," he said, willing his voice steady.

"You sound out of breath. Did I catch you on a run?"

Damn it.

"Uh." He reached into his brain for some kind of reasonable excuse. "No, just cleaning up."

"Well you definitely must put your back into cleaning," Penguin teased. Law desperately tried to flip his jeans the right way out again and pull them on without dropping the phone. 

"How was your date with your hot idiot porn star?"

"Torao! Where are you going?" 

Gods damn it all to hell. Why was Luffy's voice so loud? He turned to face Luffy, who was standing next to the bed in all his glory, not a stitch of clothing on, stretching his arms above his head lazily. Law gestured pointedly towards the phone he held to his ear and turned away to try and hunt down his shirt.

"Oh, are you guys still hanging out? I thought you were meeting him at like two in the afternoon."

"I- uh, yeah. We, uh, got caught up talking." Penguin snorted.

"Uh huh. Sure. It's after six, Law. You barely even talk to me for more than fifteen minutes at a time."

"Peng, what do you need?" Law asked, exasperated. He'd never live this down.

"Just wanted to see if you wanted to grab a drink and talk about your date. Guess it went fine though." Law could hear the shit eating grin through the phone line. He still couldn't find his shirt.

"Damn it. I will tell you about it if you don't tease me for the rest of my fucking life, how about that?"

Penguin started laughing and Law grit his teeth. Where the fuck was his shirt?

"No can do, buddy. I'll buy the first round though."

"Fine. Fine. Whatever. Give me like an hour, alright?"

"Alright Romeo, see you in an hour. Usual place?"

"Sure. Fine. Bye." Law disconnected the call and shoved his phone in his pocket. He leaned over to look under the bed and cursed. The shirt really was nowhere to be found. He stood up and ran straight into Luffy as he turned around. 

"Looking for this?" Luffy held his rumpled shirt and jacket up by the collars. He'd at least put his shorts back on while Law had been on the phone. The look he was giving Law was not exactly friendly.

"Sorry. Thanks." He took the shirt and jacket from Luffy and pulled them on. "Help me clean up and I'll give you a ride home?"

"Well I was going to see if you wanted to grab dinner but I guess I'll settle for a lift home." Luffy turned on his heel and walked quickly towards the couch, pulling on his T-shirt that Law had tossed on the floor earlier.

Shit. Luffy was mad. This was a disaster. They were supposed to be taking this slow, acting like professionals, not rushing into things and getting hurt feelings.

"Can I take a rain check on dinner? That was my friend, Penguin, the one who texted earlier. I haven't seen him in months," Law pleaded. He wasn't trying to pull a hit and run. It was just bad timing. Besides, it hadn't actually been a date, Law reminded himself. He technically didn't owe Luffy anything outside what the contract said.

Then why did he feel like an ass?

Luffy sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It's fine. I'm just hungry."

It didn't exactly seem fine but Law wasn't about to call him on it. He stripped the blankets and sheets off the bed and set them in a pile on the floor. Turning his phone's flashlight on, he stepped off the stage in search of a laundry basket. He eventually found one next to a set of doors that appeared to lead to another room. Curious, he pushed one of the doors open and found a spacious private bathroom, complete with a shower and a stack of white fluffy towels on a nearby table. He made note of it for next time. 

He turned and found Luffy carrying the blankets through the darkness. He tripped on a cable and landed face first in the pile of bedding and cursed. A chair next to one of the large cameras clattered to the ground next to him.

So he was a klutz all the time.

Law crossed the space carefully and helped Luffy to his feet before flipping the chair upright.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Luffy muttered, swatting Law's hands away. He moved to pick the pile of bedding back up off the floor but Law beat him to it.

"Let me get it."

"I don't need your help, you know!" Luffy snapped.

"I- what? I know that." 

Luffy sighed heavily and turned to walk back towards the stage. Law quickly stuffed the bundle of bedding into the laundry basket and caught up with Luffy as he stepped under the bright lights. 

"Luffy, hey, wait."

Luffy turned around quickly, arms crossed tightly in front of his chest and glared.

"Woah, alright. What did I do?" Law wracked his brain searching for some button he'd pushed or boundary he'd crossed. He hadn't felt like he'd pressured Luffy into anything. If anything, Luffy had pressured him.

Luffy's expression softened and he let his arms fall to his side.

"Sorry, I'm just being stupid. Forget it."

"Luffy, this isn't going to work if we can't communicate about stuff. What is going on?"

He watched Luffy worry his bottom lip between his teeth for a long moment, apparently trying to decide what to say.

"I just-" he started and stopped again. "I didn't expect you to be a nice guy. Nami said you were kind of an asshole."

Law laughed. Of course Nami thought he was a jerk. Good to know they had the same opinion of each other.

"Yeah Nami and I don't always see eye to eye," Law explained. "I don't really see why that's a problem though."

Luffy rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath.

"What?" 

"I said I didn't expect to actually like you! There!" Luffy's cheeks turned bright pink as the words left his mouth and he looked like he immediately wanted to take them all back. Law felt his face flush at Luffy's comment. He hadn't expected to like Luffy so much either.

Maybe this was a bad idea after all.

"Oh, uh," Law fumbled for words. He'd really never been good when it came to talking about feelings. Luffy's brow furrowed again and he crossed his arms and turned towards the door.

"No wait! It's not like that, Luffy. I just- I-" Luffy whipped around and shot daggers from his eyes.

"You what Torao? Use your words. You said we had to 'communicate'." Luffy made big, exaggerated air quotes around the word with his fingers.

Ouch. Fair point but also, ouch.

"I like you a lot too," Law blurted out. He felt his chest warm as the smile broke across Luffy's face. Gods, he was so cute.

He was so screwed.

"I'll hold you to your dinner promise then," Luffy said and jerked his head towards the door. "Come on, gotta get you to your date with a penguin."

Law rolled his eyes and followed behind Luffy, shining his phone light onto the floor in front of them to hopefully prevent Luffy from falling on his face again. 

"He's just a friend. A very old, very obnoxious friend."

Luffy pulled his battered phone case out of his pocket as Law turned the lights off and they made their way back down the hall to the elevators.

"Oh! The director person sent scripts!"

"Really? That was fast." Law pulled his phone back out and actually looked at the screen this time. Sure enough, he had a notification about another email titled "Scripts and Intros" from someone named Iva.

"Oh I know Iva!" Luffy exclaimed as they made it back to the elevator. "They help out with Sabo's advocacy thing!" 

Well at least they weren't a stranger to Luffy. Law decided he'd read over the scripts in the attachment after drinks tonight. This Iva person wanted to meet for a run through early next week and asked what time they would be available.

"What time do you want to meet up for the run through?"

Luffy shrugged. "I don't care, I'm not really doing anything that day so whatever you want is fine."

"How about after lunch? Like one-ish?"

"Sure." Law began typing his reply on his phone as the elevator doors opened onto the ground floor. They stepped out together and Luffy placed a hand over Law's phone screen. 

"I'll see you before then for dinner, right?" Luffy's eyes searched Law's face nervously. He had no idea why. It's not like he had it in him to say no, even if he probably should.

"Sure," Law said. "We can, uh, talk about more stuff." This was so stupid. He wasn't supposed to catch feelings for his co-star in a porno. Now he'd agreed to go on a real date with the guy. What the hell had he gotten himself into? His heart fluttered as Luffy grinned up at him. 

He shoved his hands in his pockets so Luffy couldn't grab at them again. It didn't help. Luffy slipped his arm around Law's as they made their way back to the car, chattering away about Iva and all of his other friends he spent time with regularly. He had a very large social circle. Law could barely keep up with all the names and connections he rattled off.

"Tell me about your friends, Torao," Luffy said as the car rumbled to life. "How did you meet this Penguin guy?"

"Oh, uh." He'd met Penguin, Sachi and their best friend from down the hall, Bepo, at his first foster home. It had been an emergency placement after Law's family died in the massive block fire that ripped through the neighborhood, so he'd only been there six months. Law had been a particularly jaded kid, not exactly easy adoption material, so he'd languished in the system for a good long time before Cora came around. At least he'd been able to stay in the same school district as his three new friends for the first couple years. 

Law searched for an answer that wasn't a lie and also wouldn't lead to more questions about his past. He didn't need to unload a sob story on some guy he'd just slept with after a pathetically short first date. If it could even be called a first date.

"We met when I was ten and went to the same school." 

"There is so much you don't say, huh?" Law felt the heat rush to his face. Completely busted.

"My life is just," he hesitated. "It's been complicated. I don't talk about it much."

"Mine too, you know. It's nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone's got shit in their past."

Law thanked his lucky stars they made it to the exit of the parking garage so he could change the subject. 

"Which way am I going to get to your place?"

"Take the highway south to Exit 3. You said you lived out there once, right? I'm off Merry Street right behind the big train station."

Law knew exactly where that was since it was only about two blocks over from that falling down apartment he'd been so desperate to get out of. Another reason he'd wanted to leave was because the train was so damn loud all hours of the day and night. Luffy must have the entire rail schedule memorized in order to film stuff without a ton of background noise.

"Yeah, I know where that's at." He eased the car out onto the street. "Doesn't that train drive you nuts? How do you get any sleep?"

Luffy shrugged in the passenger seat. "I'm a heavy sleeper. You get used to it."

They made their way across town, Luffy carrying the vast majority of the conversation. He talked about Sabo, his friends, his misadventures fucking around on the train tracks at night, the trouble he used to get in at school, the fights he'd picked— anything and everything. 

"Oh! That's my street! Turn here!" Luffy gave Law about two seconds of warning. Luckily there wasn't anyone behind them as Law jammed on the brakes and took the turn a little too fast, tires squealing across the pavement.

"There's my place on the corner." Luffy pointed to a large red building with flaking paint and Law pulled the car up to the front steps. 

"Thanks for the ride! I guess in more ways than one," Luffy said with a wink and Law felt his face warm again. Gods, did he ever stop flirting? Luffy leaned over from his spot in the passenger seat and kissed Law on the cheek. "Can't tempt you upstairs for round two, can I?" he purred into Law's ear.

Law cursed himself for making plans with Penguin without thinking it through first. If he was going to get to the bar within the hour, he'd have to leave straight from here. Not even time for a shower.

"Supposed to be at the bar in twenty minutes," Law said with a sigh. Luffy stuck his lip out in a particularly pathetic pout. 

"One more kiss then?" he said softly. His hand drifted from its perch on Law's shoulder across to the middle of his collar and pulled. 

"Had no idea you'd be so needy," Law murmured, letting Luffy pull him in for a kiss. He'd been expecting a quick chaste kiss on the lips, but instead he got Luffy running his tongue across his bottom lip with purpose. Law's lips parted and he felt himself melting into Luffy's mouth. The way their tongues brushed together set Law's whole body on fire again. He would have absolutely been down for round two if he didn't have somewhere to be back on the other side of town. 

Luffy pulled away first, leaving Law breathless and half-hard in the driver's seat as Luffy giggled to himself. 

"I like getting you all worked up, Torao." He pinched Law's cheek between his fingers and winked again. "I like that cute dumbstruck look on your face."

"Are you going or what? I told you I have to get back across town," Law grumbled, running his hand through his hair and gripping the steering wheel tightly. 

"Oh, there's the asshole Nami warned me about." Luffy giggled again and stepped out of the car. He leaned down before closing the door behind him. "Text me later about dinner, ok? Oh, and watch the stream tomorrow. You'll like it," he said with a smirk and finally shut the door, taking the steps two at a time up to his building. 

Law took a deep breath to try to clear his head. He usually didn't get so worked up from just kissing. Had it really been so long that a kiss like that was enough to set him off? When did he get so lame?

He typed out a quick 'on my way' on his phone and sent it to Penguin. At this rate, he was probably going to be a little past the one hour mark they'd agreed on. Oh well. He put the car in drive and made his way back across town and towards the bar he and his friends usually met up at. It wasn't anywhere fancy, but it was near his apartment and better than the old one they used to frequent that got burned down by an arsonist a few years ago— drawbacks of drinking on the rough side of town. The new neighborhood was definitely an upgrade to where they'd come from.

He mulled over the situation with Luffy while he drove. There was no denying it, he definitely had a very problematic crush going on. So much for keeping things professional. Law hoped that maybe this would make things easier. He wouldn't have to fake wanting to fuck him, at least. The problem would be if things started to go poorly off-screen, he'd still have to perform on-screen. Talk about awkward— and with a ton of money on the line too. No pressure or anything.

He sighed as the bar appeared when he rounded the corner. He pulled into the parking lot feeling extremely conflicted about the situation. He definitely needed a drink. 

He spotted Penguin sitting in a booth in the back corner of the bar. His heart sank as he saw Sachi and Bepo had somehow gotten word and decided to join in. Great. He'd have the pleasure of being teased in triplicate.

"Law!" Bepo cheered and rushed out of the booth to meet him, pulling him into a massive bear hug. Law thought if he squeezed any harder, his ribs might break. "I haven't seen you in forever!"

"Hi," he choked out. "Can't- breathe-"

"Sorry!" Bepo released his bone crushing hold and they walked back to where the others were sitting. "Penguin said you had a date?! Tell me about him!"

"Yes, Law, tell them about it," Penguin smirked from behind his beer.

"Hey, man, long time no see," Sachi said, sliding a full glass of beer over to Law's seat.

"Thanks." Law drained half the glass in one go.

"Oh no, was it bad?" Bepo whispered.

Law shook his head. "No, not 'bad' just, uh, unexpected I guess."

"Well who is he? Is he nice?" Bepo prompted. 

"He's, well, uh, technically he's a coworker?"

Sachi sputtered into his glass, half choking on his beer. "He's a fucking porn star?!"

Law glared at Penguin, who grinned innocently back at him. "So you didn't fill them in, huh?"

"How many times have you told me not to spread your business around? You can tell them yourself."

Law sighed and took a more reasonably sized sip of his beer. 

"Fine. Nami built a studio to make real videos, you know like-" Law decided he didn't actually need to explain all that out loud. His friends could be dense but they knew what pornography was. "Well, anyway, she wants me to be in some and this is the guy I'm supposed to do them with. It wasn't a date." He shot a pointed look at Penguin, who shrugged and sipped on his beer. 

"A business meeting then," Penguin offered. "Not sure why it took nearly five hours and you were so out of breath when I called though."

Three sets of eyes bore down on him from around the table.

"We, uh-," Law cleared his throat and prayed they would just let this go. "We had to look through all the scripts and check out the set. It takes time, you know."

Sachi caught on in an instant. "Ohhhhh! You guys fucked. That's why your hair's such a mess."

"Sachi! Rude!" Bepo exclaimed and placed his hand over Law's where it was wrapped around his glass. "If he doesn't want to talk about it then we won't pry." 

Law clicked his tongue and pulled his hand away, running it self consciously through his hair instead. Bepo was always so touchy. It had taken him years to get used to it. And his hair was not a mess. He'd checked before he got out of the car and it looked, well, messier than usual but mostly fine.

"Speak for yourself. I need to know why mister No-Thanks-I'll-Go-Alone somehow ended up sleeping with this guy after a single mid-afternoon date at a coffee shop," Penguin said. "I thought you said on the phone he was so dumb you weren't sure if you'd even be able to get it up. What the hell happened?"

"We don't need the details." Thank the gods for Bepo. Law polished off the last of his beer entirely too quickly.

"What's he like, Law?" Bepo asked politely. He was obviously fishing for information but at least he was being nice about, unlike the other two. They'd never let it go if he didn't answer.

"He's uh, well-" Law struggled to find the right words. Nearly half a dozen popped into his head at once: sweet, funny, hot, exciting, adventurous... flexible. None of them were words he was actually going to say out loud.

"He's fine."

His three friends exchanged a meaningful look.

"Fine?" Sachi asked skeptically.

"So, not 'could be worse' or 'tolerable'' or-" Bepo shrugged and made some kind of sour face Law imagined was supposed to be an impression of himself. "Like, actually 'fine'?"

Law nodded and examined the bottom of his beer glass.

"Bring it in," Penguin said and the three crowded their heads together.

"Did you hear that?" Sachi said in a stage whisper. Bepo nodded enthusiastically. Law groaned.

"I think it's actually happening, guys. It's been twenty seven years of life but it's happening," Penguin whispered loudly. Law grit his teeth and began to wonder why the hell he even still hung out with these idiots. He needed another drink. They nodded once at each other and leaned back into their seats.

"Trafalgar Law," Penguin started slowly. "Do you actually like him?"

Curse his stupid, traitorous body. He could feel the heat rising to his face despite all of his best efforts to keep his expression completely neutral.

"He does!! It's happening!! Law actually has feelings!" Bepo threw his arms around Law and squeezed him in another tight hug, giggles bubbling out of the grin he wore.

"It's not like that," Law grit out, prying Bepo's arms off him. "It's just sex."

"Yeah. Ok, sure," Penguin said dryly. "You haven't been on a date in years, and then you hang out with this guy all afternoon, sleep with him, and blush like a school girl when you talk about him. But, sure, man. It's 'just sex.'"

Law put his head down on the table. "Can we please talk about something other than my sex life?" he said to the worn wooden surface.

"Considering you haven't had one in ages— no," Sachi said, setting his glass down roughly, the sound rang in the ear Law had pressed against the table.

"Will you guys be nice to him? He's obviously very uncomfortable with this brand new love affair." Bepo pulled on the back of Law's collar, convincing him to sit back up. Law groaned as he leaned back into the booth. He should really just go home. "Can we at least see a picture?"

"Absolutely not."

"Oh come on, don't be so stingy! It's just a picture," Sachi whined.

"He's on that same website as you, right? Can't we just look him up?" Penguin pulled his phone out of his pocket. The image of Luffy's profile picture— the one where he is absolutely inhaling a giant dildo —flashed into Law's brain.

"Nope! We are not doing that!"

"Come on, Law, don't be such a stick in the mud. You said none of the free pictures are usually nude, right? What's his username?" Penguin began typing something into his phone.

"If you pull up his profile, I will force you to look at mine," Law snapped. "I'll tape your fucking eyelids open if I have to." Penguin immediately set his phone down with a clatter.

"Woah, alright, alright. Chill. I desperately do not want to see your dick."

"Great, glad we're all in agreement. Now can we please change the subject?" There was a brief moment of silence and Law thought maybe, just maybe, they were actually going to drop it.

"When are you going to see him again?" Bepo asked quietly. Gods, not Bepo too.

Law stood up from the table and moved to leave. Bepo grabbed his wrist as Penguin rose from the other side of the booth.

"Sit down, dude. Don't be so dramatic," Penguin said, rolling his eyes. "I'll buy you another drink, alright? Just answer the question."

Law slumped back down into the booth and sighed. "He wants to get dinner."

His three friends cheered. Law wanted to become one with the floor.

"Hey! You got a second date!" Sachi said, reaching across the table to punch Law in the shoulder. Penguin ruffled his hair as he made his way back up to the bar to order more drinks.

"That's great, Law!" Bepo beamed at him. "I'm so excited for you!"

"I didn't say I was actually going to dinner, you know."

"Woah, time out," Sachi said, suddenly serious. "Why the hell not?"

"It doesn't seem like a good idea," Law explained. "I mean, we're supposed to do these videos and what if something happens? I can't break the contract just because we had a fight or something." He sighed as Penguin sat a full pint of beer in front of him and sat down again. "This is way too complicated. We should just keep it professional and leave it at that. I just have to find a way to tell him that, I guess."

Bepo actually gasped. 

"Law, listen to me-" Bepo gripped his arm tightly, a determined look on his face. "I absolutely forbid you from doing that."

"Why?" Law tried in vain to pry Bepo's fingers off his arm. He was so much stronger than he looked. "What's it matter to you?"

"Are you really that much of a fucking idiot?" Penguin pointed an accusatory finger from across the table. 

"Hey!"

"No, no, he's right, Law," Sachi chimed. "You're being stupid."

"What the hell do you guys know?" Law snapped. "It's my life and my paycheck!"

"Law, please," Bepo said, still gripping his arm like a vice. "At least give this a chance. It seems like you really like him. You've basically never liked anyone you've dated before." Bepo looked like he might actually burst into tears. Gods, he was always so dramatic. It's not that Law hadn't ever liked someone else like this before. It was just rare. So what if it hadn't really happened since undergrad? That was only... seven years ago. 

"So, what, I should try to date this guy and do the videos at the same time? What if it all goes to shit, huh? You guys going to come pay my mortgage when I have to give Nami all her money back plus the contact violation amount? Because that's what I have to do if I break this thing."

"I'm sure as hell not paying your bills," Penguin said with a sigh. "But I'm still with Bepo. Go to dinner with him." Sachi nodded in agreement.

"Why?"

"Because, Law-" Penguin sipped his beer and the snarky smile fell from his face. "You finally find someone you're actually interested in, who doesn't care that you pay your bills with nudes on the internet, and you even manage to lose track of time with the dude and hang out for hours. Sounds like you actually fucking relaxed for once."

"It's just dinner," Sachi said, reassuringly. "If it sucks, just let the guy down gently. I'm sure he'll be fine."

Law looked over at Bepo, who was still desperately gripping his arm and nodding emphatically.

This was a losing battle. At this point, if he didn't go out to dinner with Luffy, he'd hear about it until the day he died.

"Alright, fine." 

"Yes!" Bepo released his arm and gave Sachi a high five from across the table.

"One dinner date. Now, please, I am begging you people to drop it."

"Deal," Penguin said with finality. "Oh by the way, did you look at the stuff for that cardio case yet?"

Law shook his head. "Sorry, I completely forgot. I'll look tonight or tomorrow morning, promise." Law added Penguin's case to the mental list in his head, immediately after the scripts he needed to read over. His phone began buzzing repeatedly in his pocket. He pulled it out to see who the hell was texting him since basically everyone he knew was sitting there at the table. 

Four unread messages. Naturally, they were all from Luffy.

"Thanks for coming to coffee, Torao! I had fun checking out the set with you ;)"

"Let me know when you're free for dinner! My treat, ok? You pick the place!"

"Oh, just not tomorrow night because I'm doing the stream then. Starts around 7 btw." 

"Next time, I'm leading. I need to know what the rest of you tastes like. If it's half as good as your mouth, I'll be addicted before we're done."

"Hot," Bepo said, suddenly entirely too close. Law practically jumped out of his skin.

"Damn it, Bepo! Don't read over my shoulder!"

"Are you going to flirt back? Need help?" Bepo asked excitedly, grabby fingers reaching towards Law's phone.

"What?! No! Fuck off!" He shoved his phone back in his pocket. "I'll text him later. It's none of your business, " he snapped. "I thought we agreed to change the subject."

Bepo held his hands up innocently. "Alright, my bad. Just figured you were out of practice and could use a hand, that's all." Law rolled his eyes.

"I'm fine. Thanks." His friends exchanged a meaningful look with each other. Law didn't give them the satisfaction of reacting. They could use their damn words. Luckily, it seemed like they were done pushing Law's buttons. At least for now.

Finally, the conversation shifted to other topics. Sachi asked Penguin how his rotation was going, who then rambled on for entirely too long about the two nurses he was trying to get to go out with him, which was probably a horrifically bad idea considering his track record with women. Bepo gave updates on his new research project at the university's newly formed Ocean Science and Biomarine Technology Institute, which sounded very complicated but Law figured PhD work usually was. Sachi talked about life at the hospital and all the crazy drama between the nurses over there. He'd opted for nursing school instead of the med school route that Law and Penguin had picked. At first, Law had thought Sachi would regret it, but it seemed he really liked interacting with the patients like that. He also gave Law plenty of examples of how not to talk to his nursing staff if he ever actually finished med school.

Law tried to follow the conversation but he found his brain kept wandering off. He couldn't stop thinking about Luffy. Flashes of the moments they'd had that day kept popping up in his mind. That searing hot kiss in the car was constantly on loop. He had to keep consciously pushing it away to keep up with all the people and events his friends were animatedly discussing.

In a flash, an hour had gone by and then some. Law had finished his second beer ages ago and he was feeling completely worn out, despite the unplanned afternoon nap with Luffy he'd had earlier.

"Come on, Law! Stay for one more round with us!" Bepo pleaded. It was barely after nine.

Law shook his head. "I still have to drive the car back to my apartment. I'm not leaving it here overnight, I just bought the damn thing."

"Oh right, the new car! Hang on, let me cash out. I want to take a look at this thing," Penguin said excitedly and rushed up to the bar to pay his tab.

"You'll tell us how your dinner date goes, won't you?" Bepo put on his best set of puppy dog eyes. 

"After tonight? Absolutely not." 

Bepo scoffed. "Rude."

"You know we're going to ask anyway and we won't stop until you tell us something," Sachi said as he slid out of the booth and pulled his jacket on. Law pulled himself up out of the booth and started making his way towards the door.

"I'll consider it. You'll all have to be at least 50% less obnoxious about it though."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. We're perfectly pleasant," Bepo said as they met up with Penguin at the front door. Law snorted.

"You're delusional, too."

"Quit bitching and show us the new ride already!" Penguin gave Law a firm shove through the doorway as they spilled out into the parking lot. Law clicked the lock button on his keys. The bright yellow car chirped and flashed its lights.

"No. Fucking. Way." Sachi punched Law's shoulder after each word. "I take it all back. Porn was the best career move you ever made!" He rushed over to the car and peered through the windows, Penguin following closely on his heels.

"Law," Bepo said quietly now that just the two of them stood together in the middle of the parking lot. "Even if you don't want to tell those guys, you know I'll always listen if you want to talk."

"Thanks, Bepo. I might actually take you up on that."

"Dude! Come on! You gotta start her up for us!" Sachi waved at Law excitedly, hands pressed against the driver's side window.

"Woah, mitts off the glass! You'll leave prints."

"Don't be such a neat freak and start the damn car," Penguin whined. Law rolled his eyes as he made his way to the door. He revved the car up, much to Sachi and Penguin's enjoyment, and rolled the windows down to enjoy some of the crisp evening air. Penguin leaned into the window as Sachi waved his goodbyes and followed Bepo to the bus stop up the road.

"Tell your porn star boyfriend I said 'hi' when you see him," Penguin said with a smirk.

"He's not my fucking boyfriend. I said one dinner date and you guys act like I'm getting married."

"Look, I'm just saying, if you ever need relationship advice I am a simple phone call away." Law almost burst out laughing.

"Your longest relationship was three weeks and you cried for a month when she dumped you."

"Hey, at least I have feelings." Penguin's expression drifted to something more serious as the smirk fell from his features. "I'm serious, and you know they are too. We just want you to be happy."

"You guys have a funny way of showing it." Law sighed deeply and ran a hand through his hair. "Thanks, I guess."

"It was good to catch up tonight. Don't be such a stranger, ok?" 

"Alright. See you later, Peng." Penguin waved and wandered off towards his own car as Law backed out of the parking lot. His friends really could be a lot. Sometimes they were too much for him, really. But at least they cared about him, which was more than he could say for just about anyone else on the planet.

He made it back to his apartment in a few short minutes, throwing himself across the couch the second he got through the door, feet hanging off the arm rest. He slipped his shoes off and sighed as they clattered to the floor, trying to remember everything he'd said he needed to do when he got home. He suddenly recalled he still needed to run the laundry, his soda-soaked clothes were still sitting in the washer from the meeting that morning. Gods, had it really just been one day? It felt like a week.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and Law realized he still hadn't texted Luffy back from before. It was, of course, another message from Luffy. He clicked it open and was met with a slightly blurry photo of a shirtless Luffy, covered in sweat, grinning up at the camera with his arm wrapped around a sweaty guy with green hair wearing a damp t-shirt and a scowl.

"Just got back from a run with Zoro! He's my best friend I was telling you about before! He says hi! You'll have to come on a gym date with us some time!!" 

The text ended with about a dozen emojis that ranged from various smiley faces to weights and treadmills to pink hearts. It felt a lot more enthusiastic than necessary for a comment about a work out. What the hell was a 'gym date,' anyway? Is that something people did? Also, wasn't it a little late for a run? That neighborhood he was in wasn't exactly the safest to wander around at night. Law would know, since he used to do just that when he was spiraling and looking for fights to pick after Cora died. He'd gotten in half a dozen pointless fist fights on those street corners just to try to feel something. It was a miracle he hadn't been shot.

Law definitely had to text something back. He didn't want Luffy to think he was ignoring him or something. Maybe he should say something flirty? Maybe a comment about the picture? Maybe he should just try to make dinner plans?

Oh, damn it, maybe he was out of practice at this.

He set the phone on the coffee table and decided to text back after getting changed and starting the washer. He stripped his shirt off and threw it into the washing machine on the way by and got halfway to his bedroom before turning around. He snatched his phone off the coffee table and took a quick picture of himself that probably wasn't horrible. 

"Looks like my evening's been way less sweaty than yours. Just got back from the bar. How about day after tomorrow for dinner?"

He attached the photo and hit send before he could wuss out. Dropping his phone on the couch like it might catch fire, he rushed to his room to change into some sleep pants. He heard the tell tale sound of a message coming through as he tossed his jeans in the washer and his heart leapt into his throat. Why the hell did he feel so nervous? It was literally just a text message. Gods, he had completely forgotten what this was like. He was 27 years old. He shouldn't be getting stupid butterflies over texting. What a mess.

His phone went off two more times before he finally decided to go retrieve it from the couch and put himself out of his self-inflicted misery.

The first text message was just three drooling emoji faces.

"Fuckkkk it should be illegal to be that hot"

"Day after tomorrow is fine! How about 6? Tell me where and I'm there!"

Law found himself blushing furiously in his own apartment. Luffy was going to have to stop talking like that if his brain was going to be functional ever again. He really should be used to it. Random strangers commented similar things on his photos and videos all the time. It was somehow different coming from Luffy, though.

He had not even considered where they should actually go out to eat. Suddenly, the name of every restaurant in the city evaporated out of his brain. He struggled to come up with a single option that wasn't a total dive.

Maybe he should call in reinforcements.

He pulled up Bepo's contact and typed out a message, praying he wouldn't tell Sachi or Penguin about his plight. 

"Need suggestions for dinner spots somewhere between here and the old neighborhood. Got any leads?"

Bepo was somewhat of a foodie, so he knew most of the best spots in the city. He'd definitely be able to come up with something. He must have still been on the bus riding home because he texted Law back immediately.

"I KNEW you needed help!!! Never fear, I am here to save you!! What's the vibe? Fancy? Casual? Sushi? Italian? Comfort food? Give me something to work with"

Law rolled his eyes and made his way back to his bedroom. This was a conversation he'd need to deal with laying down after the stupid day he'd had. Besides, he wasn't going to get anything productive accomplished at this point.

"Casual. I don't know what kind of food he likes so nothing too foreign I guess"

He considered who he was talking to and decided to add another request.

"No weird cheesy romantic shit either"

He went to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face. He'd barely gotten toothpaste on his brush when his phone started buzzing again. When he was done with his nightly routine, he slid under the covers and pulled his phone back out to see what Bepo had come up with.

"So uninspiring but I'll see what I can do"

Bepo had sent three options. Law looked through them and found one of them was a restaurant he and his friends used to go to somewhat frequently back when they were first going to college together. They'd all gone to the university in the city since it was inexpensive and local while still managing to have an excellent set of science departments. The area that the campus buildings were in also had a ton of restaurants and bars, some of which managed to not be flooded with students every night. Law recalled this restaurant was one of them and hoped it still was.

"Thanks"

"You officially owe me a detailed post-date review!!!"

Law sighed. He'd definitely have to tell Bepo how it went now or he'd be insufferable. He sent a link to the restaurant to Luffy and asked if it was acceptable. He hoped Luffy wasn't a super picky eater and then remembered how he literally ate a hot dog off the floor earlier that morning. Probably not all that picky.

"Looks good to me! See you there at 6. Maybe we can have dessert back at your place ;)"

Relentless. His flirting was relentless. 

"Only if you manage not to spill anything on me this time"

"Oh my GODS that was ONE TIME!!!!!!"

Law plugged his phone in and set it on the night stand. He caught himself smiling as he turned off the light. He leaned back into the pillows and felt exhaustion wash over him. It was barely after ten. How could he be so tired when he had already slept in the middle of the day?

His phone lit up again with another message and Law considered ignoring it for the sake of sleep but his curiosity got the better of him. 

"Seriously though, I can't wait to see you again. I haven't been able to get you out of my head since you left. Two days is so far away"

Law's breath caught in his throat. Luffy had been stuck in Law's head all evening too. Shit this was... a lot. He felt his chest warm and his heart fluttered again. Had he ever had a crush creep up this fast? Was this normal? Was he losing his mind? 

He should probably say something sweet back.

Law thought through a couple options and none of them felt right. Ugh. He was so bad at this. 

Better go with what he was good at.

"I'm sure you'll live."

He hesitated as he moved to set his phone back down. Maybe that was too aloof. He wasn't trying to make Luffy feel like he wasn't interested or something. He probably shouldn't fuck this up right from the start.

"Heading to bed. Looking forward to dinner"

" <3 Night Torao!!"

Law set his phone down with finality and curled into the pillows. His thoughts swirled in a dozen different directions, rolling through one worry after another. Every single worst case scenario popped in and out of his brain uninvited. What if the coffee date was a fluke and dinner went terribly? What if Luffy found out he actually was an asshole and decided he didn't want to do these videos with him after all? What if he couldn't perform in front of the camera crew? What if the videos were terrible? What if, what if, what if....

What if the world ends tomorrow? It can't change how you live today.

Cora's words echoed in his head. If only he were still here. He always knew what to say to make Law feel like things weren't all about to fall to pieces. He sighed heavily and tossed around in bed, searching for a comfortable position that would somehow shut his brain off. He vaguely wondered what Cora would have thought about Luffy as he flopped back into the pillows.

He really didn't have to wonder. Cora would have obviously adored him. He'd have been worse than his friends had been when he learned about this inconvenient crush. He would have been over the moon about it and it would have driven Law nuts. He forced his mind to wander in that direction instead of his aimless worries, imagining a thousand different ways Cora would have reacted to his current predicament. 

He finally drifted off to sleep imagining the dozens of incredibly uncomfortable hugs he would have had to endure as Cora waxed lyrical about stupid things like "young love." He found himself eventually dreaming about another world where Luffy sat at Cora's table as they shared a real family dinner. Maybe the apartment would have even made it through unscathed. Hey, dreams didn't have to be realistic. That's what made them good ones.

Chapter Text

The clock next to the bed proclaimed it was 5:25am. Law briefly wondered why he even bothered setting that 8am alarm anymore. He hadn't slept that late in possibly years. Well, at least he'd slept more than 4 hours this time. There was no point in trying to go back to sleep so he might as well get up. He had a whole list of stuff to work on anyway. Those scripts weren't going to read themselves.

The day-after second guessing began almost immediately after he'd remembered the scripts. As it so often did, his brain started along its familiar path of "what the hell were you thinking" closely followed by "you really fucked up this time." Such a wonderful morning soundtrack.

He reluctantly rolled out of bed and wandered to the bathroom, checking the forecast on his phone. It looked like it was actually shaping up to be an unusually warm day for early fall. He decided to take advantage of the nice weather while he could and pulled on a pair of running shorts and a t-shirt. A run always cleared his head anyway. 

He started down the street without a real plan for where he was headed, enjoying the slight chill in the air that signaled fall would be coming in earnest soon. He tried to focus on his breathing but his mind kept slipping back to his worries about the contract. Eventually, he gave up trying to avoid his anxiety. There was no point fighting it, so he might as well just let it run wild for a while. 

He grit his teeth and imagined all the worst case scenarios he was trying not to think about. Paying Nami if he broke the contract was just about the worst one, and it wasn't just the financial aspect. He didn't want to give Nami the satisfaction of handing over a big check and admitting he couldn't do it. Just imagining the amount of groveling he'd have to do made him want to turn around and crawl under his bed.

He'd barely been paying attention to where he was headed and suddenly realized he was in a park towards the south side of the city. If he'd kept running, he'd have landed at the front steps of the apartment he lived in with Cora. They'd come to this park often, initially against Law's will. He'd really been a pain in the ass kid at first. Cora had to drag him kicking and screaming to literally everything. Eventually, they walked along this cracked pavement together a few times a week, just talking about anything that popped into their heads. It had been one of Law's favorite routines they had. He hadn't been back outside of a handful of times immediately after Cora died. 

He slowed to a walk and checked the time. He'd already been out for 45 minutes. Damn. It felt like he'd just left the house. Time really flies when you're imagining all the ways life could fall apart. Again.

He wandered up to the top of the hill inside the park where the playground was. At this hour, it was completely abandoned, so Law climbed up to the top of the monkey bars and let his feet hang off the side. He couldn't quite see the sunrise, but he could watch the eastern sky slowly tumble through the various pinks and yellows as the day finally got started. From this spot, he could just barely see the ocean in the distance between the tall buildings that surrounded him. He let his mind wander down a frequent fantasy he had of simply jumping in a boat and sailing away. Just drift off into the endless blue waves where no one knew his name. No rules, no bills, no contracts.

If only.

There was still time. They hadn't filmed anything yet so Nami hadn't paid him. He could probably email her today and beg to break it. She'd likely let him— she really was serious about making sure her creators only did what they were comfortable doing on camera. She'd pressure him and tease him but ultimately, she'd let Law walk away if that was really what he wanted.

Is that what he wanted?

He figured it was probably time he started being more honest with himself about all of this. The truth was, he could have found any other way to pay his bills but he chose— and kept choosing —to strip bare and sell his body for anyone who wanted to see. He'd recorded himself doing just about every sex act that can be performed solo and posted it for all of his monthly subscribers over and over again. He could have stopped at any time, especially after he paid off all his debts. 

The truth was he liked recording himself like that. The idea that other people wanted to watch him get himself off was thrilling. It didn't just make him feel desirable, it made him feel powerful. He was the one in control, pulling the audience along with him at his own pace and they ate it up for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The high he got when a new video pulled more viewers than the last one was better than the vast majority of drugs he'd tried. Plus, he was good at it. He'd been in the top ten to twenty content creators since about eight months after he joined the site. He'd been raking in cash hand over fist for years.

The thought of doing what he'd already been doing with Luffy made his blood run hot and his mouth water. He wanted everyone to watch him make Luffy come undone. The idea that they'd be doing what they did yesterday in front of a bunch of camera people and a director was incredibly enticing. He was a little surprised at just how excited he was for it now that he was finally letting himself think about it.

He took a long breath and jumped down off the monkey bars. Every worst case scenario has a best case one too, right? He started back down the hill to the park exit and tried to imagine what things would look like if everything actually went well. 

Obviously, the videos would be popular and he'd rake in a bunch of cash from the subscriptions. What about Luffy, though? Did he want something more than just someone to screw around with on camera? Luffy didn't exactly seem like the type to want anything serious. Law really wasn't looking for anything like that right now, anyway. He still had to get his shit together and get back to school. The plan had been to seriously start dating after he'd finished residency and all that. 

He shook his head and picked his pace back up as he made his way back home. There was no point in getting into a real relationship with where he was at in life right now. He'd be a busy, overworked and half-broke med student again soon enough. No time for relationships when you're making up for years and years of lost time.

Besides, it was still just sex. 

Sex with dinner dates, apparently.

He finally made it home and kicked himself for running so far out in the first place. He hadn't gone on that long of a run in a long time and he'd probably pay for it tomorrow. He got himself put together and thought about all the things he had to get done, while he sipped on the coffee he'd rushed to brew when he made it through the door.

He figured he better start with Penguin's case before the scripts. The scripts would probably be.... distracting. He went and grabbed his cardiology textbook off the shelf before opening up the email he'd gotten yesterday. He opened Penguin's case notes and started working through them.

The arrhythmia on the ECG was weird, especially since the patient was so young, but at least it didn't appear to be life threatening. The patient claimed he didn't feel any weakness or chest pain when they occurred, which was a good sign. With completely normal chest x-rays and blood pressure, the next most reasonable step was just to get him some kind of heart monitor. There were some watches out there that had them now, so Penguin wouldn't have to order an official medical-grade monitor if the patient couldn't afford it. Without insurance, those could run in the thousands. It really was odd for a 22 year old, otherwise totally healthy guy to have these random runs of ventricular tachycardia though. Even weirder that it didn't seem to affect him in the slightest.

Law sighed and pulled out his phone to see if Penguin had time to talk. Penguin always got flustered about cardiac stuff and immediately wanted to put every patient on some kind of medication. It really didn't seem like that would help in this case.

Luckily, Penguin picked up right away. Law launched into his opinion on the case and they talked back and forth about the pros and cons of putting the patient on an anti-arrhythmic medication. It was so refreshing to talk about a real case again. He'd missed it more than he'd realized.

"Anyway, see if you can get him to wear a monitor for a while. Do you think he'll do that?" Law said, leaning back in his desk chair and finishing his coffee.

"Who knows," Penguin sighed. "He acted like I'd just kicked his dog when I said he should avoid strenuous activity until we had more information for him. He said he didn't want to sit around all day just because of some squiggly lines on paper."

Law snorted. "Well you can't fix stupid. See if he'll wear the monitor and then maybe have that cardio guy look at it when he comes up to the free clinic next."

"Hey sounds like a plan to me. I was about to just throw him on every arrhythmia med I could think of and pray."

Law couldn't help the exasperated sigh that came out of him. They'd had this same conversation ten million times. 

"I'm telling you, those meds can cause more harm than good," Law said. "Every single one of them can cause just as many arrhythmias as they treat. The guy says he feels fine, so let the cardiologist handle it once you get the monitor data."

"Alright, alright. Thanks for taking a look. You know heart stuff makes me nervous."

"No problem." Before he could end the call, he realized he had one more thing on his to-do list that Penguin could help with. 

"Oh, by the way, I need to come in for my annual testing again before this contact starts," Law said, hoping it was a slow day over at the clinic. "Think it would be alright if I took a few pictures in the exam room when I come down? It's for that educational thing I put up every year."

"Yeah, sure, I don't see why not. I'm sure as hell not doing your exam though."

Law laughed. "What? Not interested in a free trial? I'll give you my friends and family discount."

"Gross, dude. Absolutely not, you can see the other poor sap out here on rotation with me. If we're in the same room, you are keeping your damn pants on."

"Your loss. You guys busy? I can swing over now." He knew he was a patient just like any other but it wasn't urgent and he wasn't trying to take up anyone's time if they had real patients to treat.

"If we were busy, do you think I'd be gabbing with you? Nah, come on over."

"Cool, be there in a bit then."

He checked his hair in the mirror before filling up a travel mug with coffee and heading out the door. The free clinic was over by his old neighborhood and he hoped traffic wouldn't be too bad. He wasn't trying to spend all day on this. He hoped he could just drop in, take a handful of pictures to knit together later, get the testing done and get on with his life. 

Penguin, apparently, had other plans for Law's time. It was indeed a slow morning at the clinic, so Law got paraded around and introduced to practically every person that worked there, including the two nurses Penguin had droned on and on about the night before, who seemed entirely too polite during their entire conversation. Much to Penguin's annoyance, one of them tried to give Law her number as they walked back up the hall. The poor other resident that was there was incredibly awkward about the whole thing once they finally got around to the exam. Luckily, that part only lasted about five minutes. The nurses really did all the heavy lifting as far as testing went. 

Nearly two hours later, he finally made it back outside. He still had to go grocery shopping and pick up more coffee from the cafe before he could retreat back to his apartment. When did life become so tedious? 

He took out his phone on the way back to the car and was surprised to find another text from Luffy waiting for him. 

"Morning Torao!! :)"

Oh no, was this a thing they were doing now? When was the last time someone sent him a 'good morning' text? Would've had to have been Cora. 

What was he even supposed to say? Law felt like he probably wasn't caffeinated enough for this. He made it back to the car and decided he better text something back.

"Morning," he replied. Gods, he really wasn't good at this.

He leaned his head on the steering wheel and sighed. This was already a lot more than he bargained for. He'd thought about Luffy basically all day yesterday and then pretty much all morning. Now they were texting each other good night's and good morning's. He hadn't done that with anyone except for Cora, who had demanded daily updates when he first moved out of the apartment. 

His phone started ringing. It was Luffy.

"Hi Torao!" 

Yeah, he definitely wasn't caffeinated enough for this.

"Hi?" 

What did he need? Had Law forgotten something already? Did they secretly have plans today that he'd forgotten? Did he just realize yesterday was a mistake and they should forget all this ever happened??

"How were the drinks with your penguin?"

Or maybe he just wanted to chat.

"Oh, uh-" Oh hell, how does small talk even work again? "It was fine. Our two other friends from the old neighborhood came out too. I hadn't seen them in a while."

"That sounds great! Who are your other friends? Did you meet them in elementary school too?"

Why did he care? 

"Uh, yeah. Sachi is Penguin's brother and Bepo lived down the hall from them."

"They sound nice! I'll have to meet them sometime. Maybe they'll actually get you to open up a little bit," Luffy said and his giggle filled Law's car as he finally pulled out of the parking lot.

"You want to meet my friends?"

"Yeah? Why wouldn't I? If you like them then they're obviously worth knowing."

Law had no idea what to say to that. Half the time, he was shocked his friends still even wanted to hang out with him. Luffy was giving him far too much credit. 

"How was your run with- uh, what was his name again?" Curse his stupid brain and it's complete inability to remember names.

"Zoro! Yeah, it was good! And then afterwards I met up with my friend Franky. He's the engineer guy I was telling you about." With that, Luffy was off to the races, giving Law detailed descriptions of the projects he helped Franky with (by mostly holding up heavy pieces of metal, from what he could tell) and what they talked about and who else came over to help and on and on. Law had no idea anyone could ever have so much to say.

"Anyway, I didn't get to bed until like one in the morning! Do you usually go to bed so early or did I wear you out yesterday?"

Law snorted. "You wish. No, it was just a long day and I slept like shit the night before. I'm usually more of a night owl than that."

"What are you doing for the rest of the day? Did you read the scripts yet?"

Law sighed as he pulled up to the grocery store's parking structure. "No, not yet. Had a bunch of errands to run this morning. Did you read them already?"

"Well... Technically I only read the first one and then I got kind of zoned out. I was going to see if maybe you wanted to meet up and read through them together?"

Law wasn't an idiot. They would get exactly zero reading accomplished if they tried that. There was no way he was going to be able to sit calmly next to Luffy and read about all the debauched things they'd be doing on camera and not want to immediately try them all. Besides, he really needed to restock his fridge and it was nearly noon.

"Can't today. Have to go grocery shopping."

"Boring!!" Luffy sighed heavily. "Alright, I guess I'll just have to try to make it to dinner tomorrow night without seeing you. Text me what you think of the scripts when you read them, maybe? You said we should talk about them."

"Yeah I'll do that." 

"Alright I'll let you go do boring stuff, I guess! Don't forget the stream tonight though! I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, alright. See you tomorrow."

The car felt shockingly empty after the call ended. They'd talked— well, mostly Luffy had talked —for over half an hour. Law genuinely couldn't remember the last time he was on the phone that long with anyone. It had actually been fun listening to his goofy stories about practically dropping a very expensive piece of Franky's equipment on his foot and wrestling Zoro in the middle of the shop floor just for the hell of it. Luffy's friends sounded just as crazy as he was. 

Law sighed and gathered himself to brave the chaos of the grocery store. Luffy would figure out soon enough how boring and shitty Law's life was. Law had absolutely no doubt that Luffy would be completely bored with him by the time all these videos were finished. Well, bored or frustrated. Basically everyone Law had ever dated told him they couldn't deal with how closed off he was. One guy had even said robots had more emotions than he did. 

It wasn't like he had zero emotions, he just didn't see the point in blabbering on about them all the time. No one cared anyway. If he had a problem, he just fixed it himself. Sure, sometimes it took a while to get through it but he'd always made it out the other side mostly in one piece. Talking to people about worries and insecurities just gave them ammo to use against him later. 

Law rushed through the remainder of his errands and was extremely thankful to be home afterwards. Grocery shopping was by far his least favorite chore. There were entirely too many people, they inevitably didn't have a thing he needed, and he always had to double back for something because they constantly moved things around. Disgustingly tedious and excruciatingly inefficient. 

By the time he finally sat down to look at the scripts it was much later than he'd thought it would be. He'd managed to putter around the apartment, dragging his feet and finding a hundred other things to do for hours and now most of the day was gone.

He sat down at his desk and started reading through the first scene. The premise was simple: Law was the experienced content creator for the site that agreed to help Luffy improve his page, with every intention of demonstrating exactly how it should be done. The dynamic between them had some Dom/sub tones, with Law's character being much more aggressive than Luffy's. He idly wondered what Luffy actually thought about that since he didn't exactly seem like someone that enjoyed being bossed around. Who knows though, people's preferences in bed often clashed dramatically with their public faces. 

The dialogue was cheesy and thankfully there wasn't much of it. The scene moved fast— they went from introductions to Luffy swallowing down Law's dick in practically no time at all. Typical porno logic. The entire video was intended to be about twenty minutes. Law thought maybe he might have to practice lasting long enough since he was supposed to basically fuck Luffy's face for close to half the scene. 

Luffy had asked for Law's opinion on the script and it would probably be a good idea to talk about it before meeting with the director. Law pulled his phone out and typed out a quick text to Luffy asking what he thought about it. Luffy texted back right away.

"The lines are kind of dumb but I guess that's how all this shit sounds anyway. I think the rest of it is hot as hell."

"You're cool with the dynamic between us? I boss you around and talk down to you a whole lot. Could probably get that changed if it's a turn off for you," Law texted back.

"I told you I'm down for anything. Sounds hot on paper. Don't get used to it tho. Ur not running the show off screen ;)"

"We'll see." Law really could not imagine Luffy bossing him around or manhandling him basically at all. No one ever did that, probably because of his height and general appearance. It occurred to him that he might be just a little disappointed about it.

"Gotta get ready for the stream! You better watch. I'll be thinking about yesterday the whole time."

Oh, shit. The idea that Luffy was going to jerk off on camera to him was incredibly hot. 

"Better make it worth my time"

"Bet you cum before I do" Law snorted to himself and tapped his reply out quickly. He never could back down from a bet.

"You're on"

Law checked the time— half past six. He pulled up the script for the second scene and tried to read through it. It was the kitchen one called 'Luffy Learns to Bottom' and was supposed to be about Law teaching Luffy about how to position his body so it looked good in different kinds of lighting but almost immediately devolved to him bending Luffy over the counter. Law got about one third of the way through before he got distracted thinking about how hot Luffy had looked leaning over that counter yesterday. Before he knew it, his heart was beating entirely too fast and it was already five after seven. Shit.

Luckily, it seemed like Luffy was universally late to everything in his life since the stream hadn't started yet. Law left his office to grab a freshly re-stocked beer from the fridge. By the time he made it back, Luffy was plastered across his computer screen, adjusting the camera and clicking on a few things with his mouse.

"Hi guys!" Luffy grinned into the camera and waved. It was truly unfair how adorable he was. Law popped the cap off his beer and propped his feet up on his desk. He idly wondered why Luffy had been so insistent that he watch the stream tonight. Was he maybe just that much of an exhibitionist? Or was he just trying to drive up his view count?

"Alright! You guys remember that big announcement I talked about last week?" 

Oh yeah, he had said something like that in the video Law had watched. He wondered if Luffy had been referring to the videos they were going to be recording together. That didn't make sense, though. Law had only heard about this a few days ago and that video had been recorded last week.

"You guys are going to go completely crazy. Who wants to guess?"

The chat lit up with people speculating what the announcement could be. Mostly they were about new toys Luffy would be using or positions they wanted to see him in. Law was a little impressed by how creative some of the requests were. 

Luffy giggled to himself. "You guys are never going to guess it so I guess I'll just tell you! Devil's Orchard is going to start making their own professional videos and they want me to star in some!!" 

Oh, cool, so Nami had just told Luffy well before she'd told Law. Typical. Law took a swig of his beer and tried not to be too annoyed about the lack of heads up he'd received. She'd basically forced him to make a decision in less than 24 hours while Luffy had known for at least a week. He made a mental note to call her out on that next time they met up.

"That's not even the best part, you guys." The chat was going absolutely nuts now. Luffy was extremely good at this kind of engagement. Really, he could teach Law some things in these videos. 

"It's not just going to be me on screen! You guys have GOT to see this guy they want me to do this with. Have any of you ever seen DeathSurgeon's stuff?" 

Law felt himself start to blush. He hadn't expected Luffy to call him out like that. 

Luffy giggled a little and began clicking his mouse and smirking to himself. 

"Here, I'll show you guys. You've gotta see this guy!"

He felt his face warm even more as Luffy split the screen in half and pulled up Law's site page. Law's gaze flicked to the chat. Apparently, he and Luffy had some overlap in subscribers as a whole bunch of people were already commenting about how good Law's stuff was. 

"Should we look at his stuff together? You guys can tell me if I should do it! What do you think?"

Letting the audience think he actually hadn't decided yet was a smart move. It would make people feel invested and come back for updates. He vaguely wondered if he should do something like that on his page as he took another sip of beer.

Luffy started scrolling through Law's photos. Naturally, he was already subscribed. Luffy must have wanted to see his stuff before agreeing to the contract, too. There was something about that idea that didn't feel quite right though. Before he could figure out what it was, Luffy started talking again. 

"Isn't he so hot? Ugh, I love these tattoos, guys." Luffy clicked on one of Law's photos that he must have taken in the late evening because the whole room was bathed in orangish-pink light, including himself. 

"Fuck, I mean look at these. Gorgeous." Luffy traced his mouse along the lines of Law's chest tattoo in the photo. Law could feel himself getting more worked up the more Luffy spoke. This should probably be weird. He shouldn't get so turned on watching Luffy's face flush as he scrolled through more of Law's photos. He really hadn't expected this to be so hot.

"Shit, he's so big, look at that."

Luffy had pulled up one of Law's videos. He watched Luffy watching him stroke his own cock, sprawled out on the bed with his eyes closed, pulling in shaky breaths. Damn, he did look pretty good in that one. Luffy licked his lips and reached a hand under the desk, gasping as he palmed himself through his clothes.

"Guess we should figure out if I can take him, huh? Let's see if I've got anything the right size."

Luffy walked off camera and some noises that sounded approximately like Luffy rummaging around in that ridiculous treasure chest filtered back towards the camera. There was a quiet "This one!" and a moment later, Luffy re-appeared and set a large, black dildo on the desk. 

That thing was absolutely larger than Law's cock. He laughed a little as Luffy picked it up and showed it to the camera. He appreciated the sentiment at least.

"What do we think? About the right size, yeah?" Luffy winked at the camera and Law's breath caught in his throat mid-chuckle. Fuck that really felt like it was directed at him. Law took another long sip of the beer he'd partially forgotten about and set it on his desk.

Luffy pulled up one of Law's nudes and left it up on the screen, centered on how Law was gripping his own cock.

"Have to make sure he's not too big for my favorite activities, right?"

Luffy made direct eye contact with the camera as he slowly swirled his tongue around the tip of the dildo. He worked the toy into his mouth, dragging his lips along the shaft as he took his time pulling it out. 

"I bet he tastes so good," Luffy breathed, cheeks already flushed a dark pink.

Shit this was really hot.

Law hesitated momentarily before pulling the zipper down on his jeans. He still wasn't intending on losing the stupid bet he'd just made with Luffy but, well, he just looked so pretty working that dildo in and out of his mouth. Law watched as Luffy dragged his tongue along the bottom of the toy, whining as he glanced over at the computer screen where Law knew he still had the picture of himself pulled up. 

"Let's see if he'll fit other places," Luffy purred. He clicked a few buttons and Law's photo disappeared from the screen. Setting the dildo down on the desk, he pulled the camera off the desk stand and took a few steps away from his computer set up. He pressed the camera into another stand with a loud click and Law watched Luffy make his way around the side of the bed to a nightstand and pull the drawer open. The camera was perfectly centered on a bed that was covered with a plush-looking bright red comforter and a handful of fluffed-up pillows. He must have the camera stand right at the foot of the bed with how close it was. It made it seem like Law was standing right at the edge of the mattress.

"Hmm, what flavor do you think we should use?" 

Luffy rummaged through the nightstand, leaning over so his shorts were pulled tight across his ass. Fuck, Law was not getting over how hot his ass was. Ugh, he just wanted to grab it.

Luffy pulled something out of the drawer and disappeared off camera for a second. After a moment, he returned, crawling across the mattress from the opposite side. He settled on his knees and held the bottle of lube he'd gotten out to the camera.

"He seems like a sour apple type, don't you think?" Luffy licked his lips as he pulled the bottle back away from the camera. He looked down at the lube in his hand and smirked. "It tastes just like those little candies, too." 

Luffy huffed out a short breathy laugh and looked straight down the camera. "You know the ones." 

Oh.

Law recalled the candy Luffy had given him in the car on the drive over to the studio and his heart skipped a beat in his chest. No chance had he done that on purpose.

Right?

Fuck that was really hot if he had.

Law had never been with anyone who was into this level of teasing. He realized all at once that he absolutely loved it. His mouth watered as he remembered the way that candy tasted. On screen, Luffy slowly stripped his shirt off. Law gave in to desire a little more, shimmying his jeans down his thighs and easing himself out of his boxers.

"I wonder what those pretty hands feel like."

Luffy looked incredible on screen as one hand teased his nipple while he pressed his other palm against his crotch. The flush on his face began to spread down his neck as his breathing picked up. Law let his own hand start to work up and down his length as Luffy popped open the button on his tight jean shorts. 

"Bet he's got a-" Luffy made a soft gasp as he pinched his nipple between his fingers. "light touch." His eyes fluttered open and he locked eyes with the camera again, pushing his clothes down his thighs until his cock sprang free towards the camera. He placed two fingers in his mouth and groaned as he stroked himself slowly. He let his damp fingers trail along the side of his neck that Law had lavished all that attention on the day before. 

"I hope he takes his time."

Law gasped as his erection jumped in his palm. Fuck Luffy was actually getting off on how they'd fucked yesterday. Holy shit. Law felt his whole body begin to burn and a low groan escaped his lips.

Luffy leaned back onto the bed and pulled his clothes the rest of the way off. His black hair splashed over the bright red blanket, framing his flushed face perfectly. Gods, he was gorgeous. Law had never wanted so desperately to be in a room he was just watching on a screen. Luffy was just so incredibly beautiful— the way his skin was flushed down to his chest, the way a few pieces of his hair clung to his face, the way his eyelashes fluttered closed as he began stroking himself again. Law couldn't stop the noises that quietly tumbled from his mouth. 

The hand Luffy didn't have wrapped around his cock wandered across the bed, searching for the bottle of lube. When he finally felt it under his fingers, a smile twitched onto his lips. The cap on the bottle clicked open and he poured some onto the tip of his cock, using a finger to catch a heavy drop that had rolled off the side and down his shaft. He pressed the digit into his mouth, licking it clean with a sigh, as he spread the lube along his erection with his other hand.

Law could already feel himself getting close. He better slow down if he was going to win this bet. Luffy spread his legs wide and released his cock. It fell back onto his abdomen with a wet slap, causing Luffy to gasp. 

"I bet his fingers would look so hot inside me," Luffy said breathlessly. Law felt a bead of precum roll over his thumb where it was pressed tightly just below his head. He'd stopped his hand to try to cool off, but if Luffy was going to keep talking like that it was a lost cause.

Law released his cock completely as Luffy circled his finger around his entrance, moaning deeply. Fuck he sounded so deliciously good. His cock ached as he kept watching Luffy on his screen. Luffy slipped two fingers inside himself and began pumping them in and out, back arching off the mattress. The lean muscles in his legs flexed as he pushed down on his heels and rut himself into his own fingers. Law watched, slack jawed and half drooling, as Luffy scissored his fingers and moaned.

After a few moments fingering himself open, his fingers slipped out and he pushed himself onto all fours.

"Wonder if he'd let me just ride him until I cum on his cock." Oh gods, why did he have to have such a dirty fucking mouth? Law thought he might cum right then and there without even touching himself. He bit his lip harshly and sucked in a breath through his teeth.

He crawled down the bed towards the camera, perfect ass held high in the air, and reached just off screen to retrieve the big black dildo he'd been sucking down earlier.

The dildo Luffy was imagining was Law.

Oh shit. He had not expected how into this he would be.

Luffy poured some lube onto the toy and held it between his legs as he pulled himself back up onto his knees. Luffy groaned as he pressed the toy into himself, his cock dripping onto the blankets. He looked into the camera and smirked.

Holly hell this was hot.

"Hah- he- he feels so good," Luffy murmured breathlessly.

Luffy moaned as he fucked the toy into himself, his abs flexing as he rocked his body up and down along the length of the dildo. Fuck, fuck, he was so hot. Law remembered how incredible he'd felt, buried inside Luffy's tight hole as he rode him on that bed back at the studio. He took himself in hand again and groaned. He was hard as a diamond, shit. He was about to lose this fucking bet.

Gods, his ego would just have to take the hit. 

He tried to move his hand slowly to try and hold back his orgasm but he needed something. His heart rate kicked into high gear as he pulled his thumb across his slit to spread some of the precum along the head and help the glide. Luffy began jerking himself off as he picked up his pace on the dildo. His heavy breathing and choked-off moans filled the room as they came through Law's speakers. Law remembered how he'd sounded, pinned beneath him and moaning his name while he practically folded him in half. 

Shit he was so close already. His breath came in short bursts as Luffy's legs began to shake on screen. Fuck this might actually be a close race. Luffy looked like he was nearly falling apart too. Luffy arched his back and keened as he shifted the angle of the toy beneath him. 

"Fuck- you-" Luffy whispered between shallow breaths. "You feel so good, so good. Please, please..." His eyes fluttered open and he stared straight down the camera with half-lidded eyes, lips parted and panting.

"You fuck me SO good, La-ahhh" 

Law's climax ripped through him like a lighting bolt and his shout echoed off the walls of his office. His fingers tingled as the sounds coming through the speakers wrapped around his brain. He stroked himself through every wave of pleasure as Luffy whined and writhed, his own orgasm splattering across the red blankets on screen a moment later as he whispered something under his breath that sounded a whole lot like Law's name.

Law pulled in deep gulps of air and tried to swallow as he blinked away the stars in his vision. When the rushing in his ears subsided, he finally pulled his screen back into focus. Luffy licked the cum from his fingers and sighed contentedly, letting the dildo roll across the bed. 

"I definitely won that one," Luffy mumbled to himself with a smirk.

Brat.

Law pulled his feet down off the desk and looked down at his shirt. Fuck he'd really made a mess this time. He had streaks of cum all the way up by his collar. Damn.

Luffy crawled towards the camera and pulled it out of whatever stand he had it in and walked with it back over to his desk. He set the camera back up and melted into his desk chair, running a hand through his sweaty hair. 

"Well, what do you guys think? You want to see me and DeathSurgeon do some of that?" Law snorted as he tried to pull his shirt off without getting cum in his hair. They'd have to make sure there really was a scene like that in the videos now. Luffy giggled into the microphone again as Law used his shirt to clean himself off before flipping it inside out and tossing it onto the floor.

"Yeah, I'll let you guys know when the first video comes out, ok? You all better watch it! I think it's going to be a lot of fun." Luffy winked and blew a kiss to the camera before he cut the stream off.

Fuck. 

Law downed the last half of his completely forgotten and now room-temperature beer.

Gods, if it was going to be like this it would definitely be a whole lot of fun. And he'd get to see Luffy again tomorrow before filming even started.

Yeah, maybe they could have desert at his place after all.

Chapter Text

After the stream, Luffy texted him again, the flirty bastard.

"I won, didn't I?"

He'd texted as Law was tossing his absolutely ruined shirt into the hamper. Usually, he would have felt embarrassed getting called out like that, but with Luffy it was starting to feel like a game they were playing— half in public and possibly over the next several weeks. It was thrilling and Law had become resolutely committed to keeping it going.

"Made me ruin my favorite shirt," Law texted back. "Now that I know what you're up to, you won't win next time."

"OoooOoo I like the sound of that next time"

Law had puttered around his apartment after that, not able to focus on anything in particular. He'd tried pulling up the scripts again so he could actually finish reading the second scene that he'd started earlier, but his thoughts kept drifting back to Luffy and his stream. 

That had been so hot.

He'd been so completely zoned out on the couch that he jumped almost half a foot in the air when his phone started ringing. He was a little surprised that it was Luffy again. Had he willed the phone to ring? Surely the world didn't work like that.

"Hey" Luffy's voice was breathy and quiet.

"Hey yourself," Law said. "That was one hell of a show you put on."

"Mmm, said you'd like it, didn't I?" Luffy's voice purred in his ear and Law felt his heart rate pick up.

"Well I definitely liked it."

Luffy sighed into the phone. "I can't sleep. Can't stop thinking about you."

Law glanced at the clock on the wall. Damn, it was nearly eleven already. He'd been zoned out doing absolutely nothing for hours. Shit, when was the last time he'd just done nothing? Suddenly, a thought slammed into his head at top speed.

He hadn't been doing nothing. He'd been day dreaming about Luffy for hours. Law couldn't recall ever feeling this intensely about someone so quickly. His breath caught in his throat.

"Been thinking about you too," he breathed. He hadn't actually intended to say it out loud and his face flushed at the admission. 

"I can't wait for tomorrow, Torao," Luffy murmured into the phone with another soft sigh. "I want to hear about that complicated life of yours this time. Promise you'll tell me?"

"I'll think about it." It wasn't personal. He didn't talk to anyone about his past, especially after he'd had more than one boyfriend use it as a weapon. Since then, he'd decided his life wasn't anyone's business but his own.

Luffy laughed softly and his breathy chuckle wrapped Law's brain in soft cotton. He felt like he was floating. "So mysterious, Torao. Guess I'll get used to it."

"We should probably go to sleep."

"Mmm, we should. I just wanted to hear your voice again before I went to bed."

Law swallowed and struggled to come up with literally anything to say to that. Luckily, he didn't have to.

"Night, Torao. See you tomorrow."

"Good night, Luffy."

Law stayed on the couch, frozen in stunned silence as he stared down at his phone. He just wanted to hear his voice? Gods, that was so cliche.

Law's cheeks began to burn.

Really? His voice was that last thing Luffy wanted to hear before he went to sleep? He sighed to himself and tried to sort out why his chest felt so tight all of the sudden. 

When he finally made it to bed, he slept like crap. He tossed and turned most of the night, waking up in the middle of multiple barely coherent sex dreams, all staring Luffy, of course. When he'd finally given up and rolled out of bed just before sunrise, the sheets were soaked in sweat.

He'd tried everything to escape his thoughts after he woke up. Two long runs around the neighborhood, reorganizing his bookshelves, scrubbing the bathroom he'd literally just cleaned a few days ago... everything. He was a hopeless case. He flopped face down on his bed— freshly made because he'd decided to strip it and wash the sheets earlier —and groaned. It was only one in the afternoon. He had hours until dinner with Luffy.

He pulled out his phone and opened Luffy's last text message again.

"Morning, Torao!!" 

He felt his lips twitch into an involuntary smile as he looked at the picture Luffy had sent of himself, soft smile on his lips, eyes still tired from sleep and hair a mess. Gods, he was so cute.

Law was suffering.

This was too much. Something had to give. This must be an act Luffy was putting on, trying to build chemistry between them for the cameras or something. It had to be fake. No one was like this in real life.

Right?

Fuck, this was a lot.

Law's head was spinning and having nothing to do wasn't helping. He had been trying desperately to ignore how much he wanted this since he'd gotten out of bed. It wasn't supposed to be this way. They were just doing these stupid videos. It was all for the paycheck. 

Right. The money. He was doing this for the money. 

It was just sex.

He wasn't supposed to feel warm all over when Luffy texted him good morning. He wasn't supposed to be thinking about how cute his sleepy voice was over the phone. He wasn't supposed to be constantly day dreaming about how his lips had tasted, or how his laugh sounded. 

He wasn't supposed to care.

This was a mistake. It was too much. Law paced up and down the hallway in his apartment nervously. It was an act. It all had to be an act. There was no way Luffy would be like this with Law when they'd only met a few days ago. It didn't make sense. He was already acting like they'd been together for months or something. They weren't even together at all.

He hadn't wanted anyone like this before. He wanted to bolt, but he couldn't walk away now. Not when Luffy would keep haunting his dreams like he had last night, not to mention the contract he'd signed. Right, this was supposed to be professional. All spelled out on paper in black and white. No off-screen, inconvenient feelings. No late night phone calls. No.. whatever the fuck that stream had been yesterday.

Law felt his heart hammering in his chest. He should stop this. He needed to stop this before things got out of hand. It was the only reasonable option. Stop the dates, stop the games, stop the flirting. It all had to go. 

Fuck, fuck, but he didn't want it to.

Damn it.

He grabbed his phone from where he'd left it on the bed and unlocked it with trembling fingers. He needed help. Talking to a dead man wasn't going to cut it this time. He needed someone real.

"Hello?"

Thank the gods for Bepo and his cushy academia job. He picked up on the second ring.

"Bepo, I-, Shit. Damn it." Law resumed his pacing around the apartment as he struggled to pull a coherent sentence out of his head. "Fuck, how do I explain this?" he muttered mostly to himself.

"Law are you alright? What's going on? You sound freaked."

"Ican'tdothisdinner," Law blurted out, words blurring together as he spoke too quickly.

"What? Why not?"

"Because, I- I-" he choked a little on the breath he tried to take and cursed through the resulting coughing fit. Gods, he couldn't even fucking breathe right. What a fucking disaster.

"Shit, hang on." Law heard the sound of a door closing through the phone. "Alright, come on. What is happening? You can tell me anything. I promise I won't say a word about it to anyone."

He tried to slow his breathing down with some difficulty. He kicked himself for flying off the handle over something so pointless. It was supposed to be just sex. He decided he better sit down. He let himself fall back onto the couch in the living room and struggled to find a place to start. 

"He called me. Yesterday. We talked."

"Who? Your porn star guy?"

"Luffy, yeah. His, uh, name is Luffy." He reached for the glass of water he'd left on the coffee table earlier and drained it.

"Ok? So he called you? What did you guys talk about?"

"I don't know, I don't know. Nothing I guess. Just, nothing." Law sighed deeply. He knew he probably wasn't making any sense right now. He was still struggling to string words together. "He- well, he called me twice actually. I- uh. Well, we talked for a while, I guess."

"Alright, please tell me you are not having a panic attack because this guy just called you to chat."

"No, no, that's not it." Ugh. He definitely wasn't making any sense. Shit, this was so hard to explain. Why was it so complicated?

"Ok then what is it? What the hell has you so worked up?"

"He's- I-" Law swallowed hard and decided he better just say it already.

"I think I really like him, Bepo."

"Oh." There was a pause and a muffled cough which Law knew for a fact was Bepo trying to stifle his laugh. He knew all Bepo's bad acting 'tricks' at this point.

"It's not funny, Bepo."

"I, uh, didn't say it was." Bepo cleared his throat loudly. "How does, uh- How does that make you feel?"  

"Fuck, don't try to be my damn therapist right now. This is a fucking problem," Law growled.

"Law, please. Please, I'm begging you— explain to me how this is a problem." Bepo sounded completely exasperated and Law honestly couldn't blame him. From the outside, this probably sounded nuts.

"I'm not supposed to like him! I'm just supposed to fuck him." Law groaned and laid flat on the couch. This was such a fucking mess. "I have to cancel dinner. I can't do this."

"Alright, wait a minute. Let's not do anything stupid." Law snorted. He'd already done so many stupid things. Like signing this insane contract in the first place. This is what he got for being impulsive. He'd been sucked in by Luffy's cute smile and his little giggles and all that sweet hand holding and -

"Listen to me. You still have not told me why this is a problem. What is wrong with liking him? I don't get it."

"Because, ugh," Law groaned into the phone. "Bepo, come on."

"Nope. I'm not letting you off that easy. Use your words and tell me."

Law whispered a curse up to the ceiling. He didn't want to say it. If he said it out loud, it was going to come true. That certainly wasn't how the world worked but it was definitely how his brain was working right now.

"Come on, Law. What's happening in that head of yours? Let me help. You called me to help, right?"

Well Bepo had him there. 

"I think he's faking."

"Hmm," Bepo hummed into the phone. Law could easily visualize the look on his face as he likely tapped his finger to his lips. He had known the guy since they were ten. "Do you have any evidence to support your hypothesis?" Spoken like a true researcher.

Obviously, he did not have a single solid date point to add to Bepo's investigation.

"No."

"Ok, so, if you're not supposed to like him anyway and you think he's faking it, tell me again what the issue is?"

There was a long, excruciating beat of silence. Law grasped for words and came up empty.

"You don't actually think he's faking, do you?"

"No," Law murmured.

"What's going on, Law?" Bepo asked gently.

"He's-" Law's breath hitched and he knew he was going to have to tell Bepo the truth he'd been trying to hide from all day. 

"He's going to find out what an asshole I am and-" He hesitated.

"And?" Bepo prompted. He had developed and immense amount of patience when it came to Law's anxieties, which is the whole reason he'd called Bepo in the first place.

"I think he's- ahh, fuck. Fuck." He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. Gods damn it all. He didn't want to actually admit this out loud. It sounded completely insane. He ran a hand through his hair and stopped mid-way, gripping a handful in his fist tightly, trying to use the stinging sensation across his scalp to ground himself a little more.

"He's fucking perfect, Bepo. I'm going crazy over here. I don't know what to do. He's so fucking sweet, and gods he's hot. I just- Shit. It's too much. I- I don't want him to- I can't let him find out I'm such a jerk. Fuck. What do I do? I can't do this."

"Ok, alright, take a deep breath. Come on, breathe." Law pulled in a few slow deep breaths and let go of his hair, shaking the few strands he'd pulled loose onto the floor. 

"Listen to me, ok? Are you listening, Law?"

He nodded and then realized Bepo couldn't actually see him. "Yes," he said. "I'm listening."

"You are not an asshole or a jerk. I would know, I've been dealing with you for almost two decades now, haven't I?" 

"Yeah, but-"

"No buts. I know why you haven't been going out lately, even if you won't tell any of us. I don't know what that last guy did or said to you but if I knew who the hell he was I would beat him to a pulp myself." 

Law sighed. He probably should have told them all when it happened. He'd been seeing the same guy for several months, which was already unusual. At first, he'd acted like he was fine with the stuff Law posted on the site, but after a while, he'd started dropping comments about it. About how it was too slutty, not a 'real' job, things like that. He'd throw a fit, sling insults and barbs about how he was just some drop-out, stupid, loser whore. The next day he'd buy Law flowers, take him out to some expensive restaurant and tell him how beautiful he was, bragging about how lucky he was to all his friends. 

Law thought every day about leaving, but he was damaged goods, right? Anyone else he met would have to accept how he made his money and that was asking so much, too much based on every other guy he'd tried dating up to that point. No one else would want him. At least this guy wasn't demanding he stop doing the only thing keeping a roof over his head. He thought he could handle the bad moods and pointless arguments. He hoped they would get better with a little more time.

It happened on one of the good days. He'd taken Law out on the town to some trendy night club after he'd cooked dinner for them both. Law was three drinks in and his glass was empty. The guy was supposed to be right back with more drinks but the time ticked by and he hadn't returned. Law wandered over to the bar to see where he'd gone.

He certainly found him. He found him pinning some other guy to the wall with his mouth.

They'd had it out in the middle of the street. How dare he cheat after Law had put up with all of his bullshit, Law had screamed at the top of his lungs. How dare he cheat? The guy scoffed and spit in his face. According to him, Law was no better than a corner prostitute. If he had to tolerate Law baring every inch of his skin for anyone to see then it was only fair that he got to cheat too. He'd let it all out for the whole city to hear— how Law made all his money jerking himself off in front of a webcam because he didn't have the brains to finish med school, how he hoped Law realized what he was throwing away because no one was going to want what everyone else had already had. That he was a slut, a whore, and a useless, soulless, piece of shit that not even his own family had wanted.

Law left him with a black eye and bloody nose right there in the middle of the sidewalk outside that stupid nightclub. Thankfully, he never saw the guy again after that, but it didn't matter. The damage was done. He stopped talking to his friends, stopped leaving the house, stopped doing much of anything. He even took a break from the site for nearly a month. 

That was the last date he'd been on. 

"He cheated," Law said simply. 

"I know there's more to it than that. You don't have to tell me, I don't need to know. But I need you to know that you are not this person that you keep saying you are. You are one of the smartest and kindest people I have ever met. Sure, you're a little blunt sometimes but that doesn't make you an asshole. Come on, Law, don't you think you should give this thing a chance? Don't you think you deserve someone you think is 'perfect'?"

Law cringed to himself. "Ok, maybe 'perfect' is too strong of a word..."

"It probably isn't, judging by how freaked out about this you are."

"I don't know, Bepo. What if-"

"Nope. I'm stopping you right there. You know what Cora would say to that— hell, what he would say to all of this."

"Alright, alright. You're right." Law sighed deeply. "Yeah, he'd be pissed."

"Damn right he would." Bepo paused for a moment. "Listen, if you're not ready, then don't do this. I think you should back out of the whole thing though if you're going to bail. Don't lead him on with the porn stuff if you're not alright with it." He sighed heavily into the phone. Law knew what that sigh usually meant.

"But?"

"But I think you should try, Law. I've never seen you like this with anyone before. Can you just please try to let yourself actually enjoy this for once?"

Law bit his lip and tried to make up his mind.

"Come on, dude. It's just dinner. Who's paying?"

"He is."

"Great. Worst case scenario, you get free food!"

Law huffed out a single laugh. Bepo and his stupid foodie obsessions. Any time Bepo had been on a date, the update he gave Law always started with an in-depth review of the food he'd had. 

"Fine. I'll go to dinner." He let out a slow breath and pulled himself back upright on the couch. "Thanks, Bepo."

"Anytime, man. Go get 'em, tiger."

"Gross. Never say that again."

"What? It's a totally normal phrase people say to each other."

Law scoffed. "It most certainly is not."

"What time is the big date?"

"Six," Law said with a sigh.

"Tell me how it goes. I want to hear more about this 'perfect' man."

He felt his face warm. He really should have picked a different word. "Shut up. Don't make me regret calling you."

"Love you too. Alright, go get ready for your date. I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah. Later, Bepo." 

Law set his phone down on the coffee table and held his head in his hands. He felt slightly better at least, more grounded. He was still really nervous, but he supposed that was probably normal. It was the first actual, real date he'd been on since that complete disaster of a sort-of relationship, which had been close to two years ago. Law sorted through his sorry dating history in his head for a moment and came to a particularly depressing conclusion.

This was the first date he actually wanted to go well in an extremely long time. Much longer than two years. He'd been tuned out of his own romantic interests since around when Cora got sick. Everything since then had been about hiding from his own pain between the sheets, even that toxic piece of garbage he'd tolerated for entirely too long. He hadn't cared who it was he climbed in bed with, just that they got his brain to shut up for a few minutes. 

This thing with Luffy was different. Law couldn't put his finger on it, but he just could not get Luffy out of his head. Luffy obviously wanted to actually get to know him, too. He'd asked about his friends, his past. Sure, he could talk a whole lot about himself, but looking back, he'd been trying to get Law to talk too. And he'd actually listened and remembered the things he'd said, even his friend's name. It was so refreshing.

Law pushed himself up off the couch with a sigh and decided to brew more coffee. Would it help with his anxiety? Absolutely not. Would it help with the fact that he felt like he'd slept a grand total of five minutes last night? Yes. If he was going on this date, he wasn't going to show up half asleep.

After turning the kettle on, he marched himself down the hallway to stare into his closet again. This was the only date he'd given a flying fuck about in close to half a decade, so naturally he'd have absolutely nothing to wear. He pulled three different shirts out with four different pairs of jeans and threw them on the bed for later inspection, hearing the kettle click off in the kitchen. Coffee first, then fashion decisions.

The last couple hours before the date flew by, mostly filled by various costume changes and nervous pacing. He'd settled on a black T-shirt that had some dark red details on it and a deep cut neckline that gave a glimpse of the ink on his chest. He'd switched the black denim for a pair of grey skinny jeans, but stuck with his well-worn black leather jacket that he'd worn out to coffee the other day. Luffy seemed to like it.

He spent a considerable amount of time trying to decide if he should put on the eyeliner he used to do when he'd actually had a social life. Maybe it was too much. He decided to try it out in the mirror and just wash it off if he didn't like it. He got sidetracked in the bathroom for entirely too long, fiddling with his earrings and fixing his hair, praying it would actually stay where he put it for once. Before he knew it, it was time to leave to go pick up Luffy. 

The drive to Luffy's apartment building was tense and Law momentarily regretted the extra two cups of coffee he'd had before leaving the house. His heart was racing when he finally pulled up in front of the old red building at a few minutes past six. He typed out a quick text to Luffy, letting him know he was outside.

"Be there in a sec!!"

A few moments later, Luffy came bolting down the steps in a bright red oversized t-shirt and a set of loose jeans. Law realized he'd actually only ever seen Luffy in shorts and flip flops and figured this must be Luffy's definition of 'dressing up' since he was actually wearing real shoes. Luffy wrenched the car door open and caught Law completely off guard when he climbed over the center console and directly into his lap.

"Uh- Hi, Luffy."

"Shit," Luffy breathed, as he cupped Law's face in his hands. "The make-up is hot. Did you put that on just for me?"

"Yeah."

Luffy smirked. "Cute." Law had half a second to prepare before Luffy crashed their lips together in a bruising kiss. Law struggled to remember to keep his foot on the brake as Luffy shoved his tongue into his mouth with a soft groan. Fuck this was one hell of a start.

"Luffy-" Law managed to say when he was finally given a chance to breathe. "Dinner."

"I know, I know," Luffy murmured against his mouth, catching Law's lower lip between his teeth briefly. "I wanted a snack."

"Well I'm in the middle of the street. At least let me move the car." Luffy sighed and shifted himself into the passenger seat, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. 

"Mmm. Anyone ever tell you how good you taste?" Law wondered how he was even supposed to respond to that as Luffy clicked his seat belt into the buckle and clapped his hands together. "Alright, dinner! Let's go!"

They made it to the restaurant too fast for Law's liking, having lost track of time just talking to Luffy about what they'd both been up to the last few days. He was almost sad when they pulled up to the parking lot before Luffy was done telling a story about how Zoro had almost gotten them killed by turning down the wrong street on their run and nearly landing them in the middle of a gang brawl. 

"You guys have got to get out of that neighborhood," Law said, putting the car in park and cutting the ignition. 

"Nah, we're fine," Luffy said as they got out of the car and made their way to the restaurant. "I knew one of the guys on the one crew. He wouldn't have let anything happen to us. Besides, me and Zoro are pretty tough."

They were led to a table near the back of the dining room and ordered drinks. Law glanced through the menu briefly as Luffy rattled off all the things he saw that sounded good. Unfortunately, Law really wasn't that hungry. Probably all the caffeine suppressing his appetite. The stupid, silly nerves weren't helping either.

The waitress returned with their drinks and took their order. Luffy got an appetizer and two entrees because he couldn't decide which one sounded better. Law got something that looked small enough for him to stomach through his childish butterflies.

"So, Torao," Luffy said, setting his hand on top of Law's from across the table. "Are you going to tell me all the things you wouldn't say the other day or what?"

"I, uh-" He hadn't decided yet if he was actually going to tell Luffy about his life, despite Luffy's request over the phone. He pulled his hand out from underneath Luffy's and sipped on the beer he'd ordered.

"I'll go first if you want," Luffy offered.

"Alright."

"But you have to give me something when I'm done. Deal?" Law supposed that was only fair. He nodded. 

"I've never met my parents, my grandpa took care of me, Ace and Sabo most of the time, but he was in the military so he left town a lot. We bounced around a few different places when he'd leave so Sabo and Ace practically raised me and we're not even related," Luffy laughed to himself. "Actually, Sabo doesn't think my grandpa was even legally his guardian at any point. I think there's still a missing child report out for him from when he ran away from home the first time. He keeps saying he's going to ask his police friends to close it but I think he's full of shit. He likes it because it's funny."

Luffy sipped on the sugary cocktail in front of him and nudged Law's foot under the table.

"Your turn, Torao."

Law sighed and fiddled with the silverware on the table. Luffy's story really wasn't that much different from his. Maybe he'd actually understand. He bit his lip and tried to make up his mind. He didn't want Luffy's sympathy and he certainly didn't want anything he said tonight to be thrown back in his face later.

Luffy really didn't seem like that kind of guy, though.

"My family died in the big block fire a few weeks before my tenth birthday," Law said. 

"Oh shit, I heard about that. I don't remember it much because I was only five, but Sabo's got a big burn mark on his face from when we ran out of the house."

"You guys were there?" Luffy nodded grimly.

"I still feel like I can smell it sometimes."

"Me too." It was true. Sometimes he woke up in the middle of the night and he swore he could smell the smoke. There was a long beat of silence and Law struggled to figure out what to say next.

"Wait a minute, I thought you said your dad died a few years ago," Luffy said in confusion. "I'm bad at math, but I'm not that bad."

Law was surprised to find himself laughing at Luffy's comment.

"Yeah, I was talking about the guy who adopted me, Cora. I wasn't placed with him until I was fifteen though. Bounced around a lot through the system before that. I met Penguin, Sachi, and Bepo at my first foster home."

"That's cool that you guys have been able to stay in touch through all that. They must really love you." Law felt his face burning. He hadn't thought about it like that. Maybe he should be more appreciative of what he has.

"Yeah. I guess they do."

"Tell me about Cora, Torao. I mean, if you want to. I know when Ace died no one wanted to talk about him anymore and it made me feel like shit." Luffy sighed deeply and sipped on his drink more. "It made me feel like people were pretending he had never even been there, you know?"

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I'll tell you about him someday. Not tonight though."

"Alright, I guess you can't share all your secrets in one night," Luffy said, a sly grin on his face. Suddenly his expression shifted and a real grin replaced the one he'd been wearing before.

"Oh! I meant to ask you. Are you doing that STD screening video again this year?"

"Oh, uh-" Had they talked about that? Law couldn't remember now but he must have mentioned it at that coffee date. "Yeah, I went to the clinic yesterday and got a bunch of pictures. I just have to record the voice over and code in the links and stuff."

"I just think that's such a cool idea, you know? Where did you come up with it?"

The waitress returned with Luffy's appetizer and his eyes lit up like it was the most exciting thing he'd seen in weeks. Thank the gods, because Law had no intention of answering Luffy's question.

"Finally! I'm starving!"

Luffy insisted Law try some of the appetizer before he absolutely inhaled the rest of it on his own. Conversation was easy after that point, with Luffy telling stories about his friends and Law sharing a few of his own stories about the things he and his friends had gotten up to in school. By the time Luffy had polished off both of his plates, Law's sides were almost sore from laughing. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had so much fun just sitting and eating food. 

When the waitress walked off with Luffy's card and the empty plates, Luffy pulled another card out of his wallet and held it up for Law to see.

"Guess what I've got," he said, flashing that dangerous grin again.

"What? A piece of plastic?"

"Well, yeah, but this piece of plastic," he tossed it down on the table in Law's direction, "gets us into Nami's office building after hours."

Sure enough, it was a security badge with the building's name on it and a black magnetic strip down the side. Just how well did those two know each other? She'd certainly never offered Law a key to the office building. Law finished off his beer and slid the card back towards Luffy. 

"She did say we should get to know each other," Law said slowly. "Would hate for that first video to be awkward."

Luffy's smile widened. "Now you're getting it."

The waitress set the check with Luffy's card down on the table, clearing the empty glasses and telling them to have a nice night.

"Guess we could squeeze some practice in," Law said, pulling his jacket back on as Luffy scribbled something unintelligible onto the receipt that Law assumed was supposed to be his signature. He checked the time on his phone. "It's not even late yet."

Luffy walked around the table and wrapped his arm around Law's waist, pulling him tightly against his body. 

"I wouldn't mind staying up late with you, Torao," he purred and pushed up onto his toes to plant a firm kiss to Law's lips in the middle of the restaurant. Suddenly he was gone, looking back over his shoulder as he walked towards the door. "You coming?"

Shit.

Yeah. 

Law tried not to trip over his own feet as he followed behind Luffy like a lost puppy. It took him a long moment to remember where he'd parked the car when they made it back out into the street. He felt like Luffy had short circuited his brain with one single flirty comment and a chaste closed-mouth kiss. 

They made it back to the car and Law drove entirely too fast to the office, windows down, Luffy's hand gripping his thigh tightly the whole way there. Every tiny shift of his fingers made Law's heart race as he wove the car around the minimal traffic on the freeway. They made it to the parking structure next to the office in record time. 

Law threw the car in park and cut the engine. Before he could get out, Luffy grabbed him by the wrist. 

"Wait" 

Law pulled his hand back from the door latch just in time to catch Luffy as he practically threw himself into Law's lap.

"You are so fucking hot in this car," Luffy breathed and grabbed Law's shirt roughly, pulling him in for a searing kiss, their teeth clicking together from the force. Luffy's mouth tasted a little like the fruity drink he'd had at the restaurant as Law slid their tongues together. He slipped both his hands under Luffy's shirt and Luffy moaned into his mouth as his fingers dragged along Luffy's warm skin. It was one of the hottest sounds Law thought he'd ever heard. Luffy licked into his mouth hungrily, sliding his hand through Law's hair, dragging a soft whine from Law's lips. Time ground to a halt as the sounds of their messy kisses filled the car and the windows began to fog over.

Law let his fingernails dig a little into skin as he dragged them down Luffy's back. Luffy gasped and pulled hard on Law's hair, tipping his head back against the seat. 

"If you're leaving marks, so am I," Luffy growled into his ear. Luffy's teeth sank into the flesh on Law's neck as he pitched his hips forward. A shockingly loud moan slipped from Law's lips at the sudden friction. He was glad the parking structure was empty. Fuck, he really shouldn't be this turned on from a five minute sloppy make out session. 

"Fuck, I love the sounds you make." Law felt Luffy's words break across the damp skin on his neck and shuddered at the sensation. Luffy licked and sucked his way down Law's neck, his hand still tangled tightly in Law's hair. He ground his hips down against Law's again as he pulled his mouth away with a deep groan that Law felt through his chest. Gods, they were grinding against each other like teenagers and he loved it. Luffy released his hold on Law's hair in favor of running his hands along the collar of Law's shirt.

"Such a fucking tease," Luffy murmured as Law tried to catch his breath. "Making me look down this shirt all night."

Law smirked. He thought he'd caught Luffy staring a few times. 

"Poor baby," he said, pulling Luffy's hands off of him by the wrists and turning his head quickly away from Luffy's lips that surged close. "Hurts to watch, when all you want to do is touch, doesn't it?" This was absolutely payback for that stream. Luffy glared down at him and rut their hips together again. Law caught his moan in his throat that time, refusing to give Luffy the satisfaction of pulling the noise out of him.

"Who's the tease, again?"

"Torao, one day I am going to fuck you in this car. Count on it."

Law shrugged and released Luffy's wrists. "Hey you're the one who wanted to come here and practice. It's not my fault there's no car scene in the scripts."

"Bastard," Luffy bit out and then a mischievous smile spread across his features. He leaned in close, his hot breath ghosting over Law's ear. Law couldn't help the shiver that ran up his spine in response.

"I'm going to make you beg tonight," Luffy breathed into his ear.

Law let out a breathy laugh. "I don't beg, Luffy." He hissed as Luffy's teeth pressed into his ear just above his earrings.

"You will for me."

His mouth went dry as the car door opened and Luffy pushed himself off Law's lap and out into the parking garage. Luffy looked down at the bulge in Law's jeans with a smug look on his face that Law had half a mind to slap off. Gods, did he have to be such a cocky bastard?

They made their way to the front of the building, Luffy sliding his card through the reader when they made it to the tall front doors. Somewhere unseen, a lock clanged ominously. Luffy pushed the door open with a hushed giggle and grabbed Law's hand. 

"Quick, before someone busts us," Luffy whispered. 

"Luffy, you have a key," Law whispered back, following Luffy into the dark lobby. Luffy's stifled laughter echoed off the tiled floor and high ceiling. He wasn't sure why they were whispering but it made it feel like they were breaking in. It was fun as hell, actually. 

They made it to the elevators and Law was surprised they were even on this late at night. Luffy pressed the button and the doors opened with a cheerful ding that sounded like a gunshot in the dead silent lobby. Law tossed Luffy roughly against the mirrored wall of the elevator once they made it inside and shoved his tongue back into Luffy's mouth. Luffy's hand flailed out towards the buttons and Law heard about half a dozen of them clicking as Luffy moaned into his lips. 

They shared heated kisses as the elevator began to move. Law felt like he was sweating bullets in his leather jacket as Luffy gasped and whined against his mouth. In this position, he loomed over Luffy with one hand pressed into the mirrored glass above Luffy's head. Luffy wasn't that short, but he'd slipped a little down the wall, making Law feel like a giant.

Luffy tugged on Law's belt loops to try to pull him closer as the elevator doors slid open again. Floor four. Luffy hadn't even managed to hit the button for the floor they needed. Law pressed his weight against Luffy's hips when he tugged again, harder this time, and glanced over at the buttons. 

It looked like they were headed to floors six, eight, ten and eleven, too. 

Oh well.

He slapped the button for the third floor and captured Luffy's lips again. Fuck, he tasted so good. Law was confident the hand he had braced next to Luffy's head was going to leave a very incriminating print on the mirrored glass but he didn't care. The only thing he could think about was the way Luffy gasped when he bit down on his lower lip and how his hot hands felt as they wandered up underneath Law's shirt. He vaguely registered the elevator doors opening again as they continued their trip up through the random floors. 

Law let his hand graze along the top of Luffy's jeans towards the center. He pressed his palm into the bulge in Luffy's pants abruptly as the elevator doors opened to the eleventh floor. The loud half-moan half-shout Luffy made echoed down the dark empty hallway. Law clapped the other hand he'd been using to brace himself over Luffy's mouth. 

"Shh, what if someone else is here?" Law whispered, though he wasn't sure why, since the elevator doors had closed again. 

Luffy pried Law's hand off his mouth, gripping his wrist tightly.

"Don't be so fucking hot then," he hissed. Law gasped as Luffy grabbed his ass with his other hand, pitching him forward so they were both pressed tightly against the wall. Luffy held Law's wrist as they kissed deeply again, Luffy groaning into Law's mouth. Gods, kissing Luffy was addicting. He couldn't get enough. 

Eventually, the doors opened onto the third floor. They stumbled out of the elevator, Luffy giggling as he dragged Law along behind him down the hallway. Strangely shaped shadows crisscrossed along the floor, the hall illuminated only by the city lights outside the row of narrow windows on one side. Luffy slid to a stop in front of a door and pulled Law in for another kiss. At this rate, they were never going to make it to the studio. Luffy wrapped both his hands around Law's ass as he nipped along Law's lips, their frantic breaths echoed up and down the otherwise silent space.

He was not doing this in the hallway.

He grabbed both Luffy's hands by the wrists and pinned them over his head.

"You want to fuck or you want to make out like horny teenagers all night?" Law hissed as Luffy struggled against his hold. 

"I'll do it right here, I don't care," Luffy snapped in a hushed whisper.

"I don't feel like getting busted for public indecency tonight. We do it in the studio or we don't do it at all. Choose."

Luffy glared at him and tried to twist his wrists free another few seconds before he huffed and leaned his head back against the door.

"Fine. Studio. But I'm making you pay for this."

"Sure you are." Law smirked as he released Luffy's hands and turned down the dimly lit hallway. He heard three quick footfalls come up behind him before Luffy launched himself onto his back. 

"Carry me then, since you're so determined to get there already."

"Brat," Law bit out but scooped his arms under Luffy's legs anyway and started back down the hall. Luffy pressed quick, soft kisses to the back of his neck as they made their way past a dozen or so closed doors before finally reaching the keypad for the studio room. Law punched the code in and Luffy slid down off his back, yanking the door open at the sound of the lock releasing. He turned the stage lights on as Law closed and locked the door behind them.

"Oh, look, someone put new sheets on for us."

"Pretty sure it wasn't specifically for us," Law said, following Luffy as he moved quickly towards the stage. Luffy tripped over a cable and Law managed to barely catch him by the collar before he smashed his face into the floor. "Careful."

"Careful's never any fun," he huffed, pulling his feet back underneath himself and brushing off Law's grip on his shirt. They somehow managed to make it to the stage without Luffy breaking anything, despite two more close calls. Law added 'find other light switches' to his mental list of things he needed to learn about the set along with all the different places the lube was stashed.

Luffy stood center stage, hands on his hips, surveying the set. He glanced over at Law and smirked.

"Wanna practice the first scene?"

"Sure. I don't have all the lines memorized though."

"Me neither. We'll just roll with it." Luffy pointed over to the couch. "You start over there, I think."

"Yeah that sounds right." Law knew he could pull the scripts up on his phone but this seemed like more fun. He shrugged his coat off and tossed it onto the bed on the other side of the stage. He was pretty sure he remembered most of the lines anyway, it wasn't like it was complicated. He sat down in the center of the large black couch and stretched his arms out across the backrest as he crossed his ankle over his knee. In the script, this was supposed to be his house that Luffy was coming to for advice about the site. He better act like he owned it.

Luffy giggled and walked in from downstage left. Law braced himself. The dialogue in this scene was cheesy as shit. He'd have to learn to keep a straight face.

"Thanks for helping me with my page," Luffy said eagerly as he walked onstage. Law was already trying not to laugh as Luffy batted his eyes dramatically. 

"Shit, Luffy, come on."

"Hey, don't break character, Torao," he teased. Law rolled his eyes and cleared his throat.

"No problem. Always happy to help the newbies," Law said, trying to swallow down his laughter as Luffy continued to flutter his eyelashes. He patted the couch cushion that was slightly upstage. "Have a seat and let's take a look."

Luffy sat down on the couch, except Law remembered he was supposed to already be holding a tablet with Luffy's page pulled up on it. He vaguely recalled he was supposed to pull it out of the side table next to where Luffy was sitting. He easily could have asked Luffy to grab it, but that was no fun.

"Oops, hang on," he said and leaned over to the table, pressing Luffy into the couch cushions with his full weight as he pulled the drawer open and pulled out the prop tablet. He pressed a kiss into Luffy's lips briefly as he moved back to his spot.

"That's not in the script, Torao."

"Hey, I said I didn't have it memorized." He leaned back and clicked the button on the tablet to turn the screen on. Just for the hell of it, he pulled up the browser and was pleasantly surprised that it actually worked. He typed in the site URL and pulled up Luffy's actual content page. He started scrolling through it— the free version because he wasn't logged in —as Luffy leaned over his shoulder to look at the screen.

"Hmm," Law tried to remember what stupid shit he was supposed to say next. "Not bad, but you need more focus." The line was something like that anyway. He paused his scrolling on a particularly good photo of Luffy sprawled half-naked across that red bedspread from the stream that made his mouth water.

"What do you mean?" Damn, what's his next line? Oh, yeah.

"You've got to figure out your best assets and tailor the content you make to show them off," Law said. 

"How do you do that?" Luffy asked, leaning closer to Law so he was almost in his lap.

"Well we'll have to find your best assets first, won't we," Law murmured, setting the tablet down on the empty cushion beside him. He traced a finger along Luffy's bottom lip and was a bit surprised when Luffy actually blushed a little. "These for sure, but what else have you got?"

"I've got lots of pictures," Luffy said breathlessly. Law shook his head.

"It's better in person." He gestured towards the center of the stage and pulled his other hand away from Luffy's lips. "Show me."

Luffy stared back at him with his best fawn eyes and actually stuttered his next line.

"Y-you mean right here? Now?"

Law honestly hadn't thought Luffy would be able to pull off this naive innocent newbie thing, but he'd obviously been wrong. Luffy was probably a better actor than he was. Well, Law could at least play a pretty good cocky asshole. He'd been doing that for years on the site and people ate it up for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Law smirked and licked his lips. "Do you want my help or not?"

Luffy swallowed and pushed himself up off the couch, making his way to the center of the stage while Law leaned back into the cushions. Luffy held his arms out to the side and did a little turn.

"Like this?" he asked quietly.

"Good start, but I'll need to see what's underneath."

Luffy turned around so his back was facing Law and slowly inched his shirt up over his head. Law watched with rapt attention as the muscles on his back flexed when he tossed the shirt off the side of the stage. He appreciated the light pink stripes he'd left along either side of Luffy's spine from their make out in the car. Luffy ran both his hands through his hair as he slowly turned back around, trailing his fingers down his neck until he clasped them together in front of the large scar on his chest.

Law took a moment to take in the view before he pushed himself up off the couch and crossed the stage so he was standing right in front of Luffy, pulling his shoulders back a little to really exaggerate the height difference between them.

"That's good," he purred and pried Luffy's hands apart with his own. "Don't be so shy." He released one of Luffy's hands to hook a finger under Luffy's chin and pull his gaze up to his eyes. "You're too pretty to hide under all those clothes."

Law couldn't remember what came next as he looked down into Luffy's lightly flushed face. He looked genuinely flustered. Interesting.

Law released Luffy's other hand and palmed him through his jeans. He could feel Luffy was already half hard and he gasped and tipped his head back at Law's touch.

"You like me watching you like this?" They were off script now, Law's mouth was just running with whatever popped into his head. He'd completely lost where they were in the scene anyway. He was entirely too distracted.

Luffy nodded. "Yes," he whispered, his eyes fluttering closed as Law wrapped his hands around Luffy's waist.

"Good, because I like watching," Law murmured and pulled Luffy in for a kiss. Luffy gripped his shirt tightly as he pressed their lips together, whining when Law refused to part his lips and allow Luffy's tongue entry again. Law smiled and pulled away, much to Luffy's frustration.

"Easy, Luffy. I'm supposed to be the one in charge here." He pulled Luffy's hands off his shirt and took a half step back.

"Fuck, Torao, you started it. That last bit's not in the script and you know it."

"Tell me what comes next then since you're such an expert."

"I- uh. Shit." He squeezed his eyes shut and ran a hand through his hair, obviously thinking very hard to try and remember what was supposed to happen now. "You say something stupid about talents, I think."

"Oh yeah, that's right." Law smirked and stepped back into Luffy's space, leaning down to whisper into his ear. "There's more to it than just showing skin. You should showcase your talents too." Law traced his finger back across Luffy's lips and they parted slightly under his touch. He let his finger slip inside and hooked it behind Luffy's bottom teeth, pulling down sharply. Luffy gasped.

"Why don't you show me what your pretty mouth can do?" They were missing some lines between where they had been before and where they were now, Law was sure of it. But he knew where things were supposed to go at least.

Law pressed down on Luffy's shoulder and he sank to his knees. 

"Torao, your shirt's supposed to be off."

"You're right," Law said, and whisked his shirt up and over his head. It landed somewhere behind him, he didn't bother to look where. "Better?"

"Much." Luffy licked his lips and reached towards the button on Law's jeans. Law pushed his hands away and Luffy frowned.

"Shy and timid, Luffy. Remember? I make all the moves."

Luffy huffed and rolled his eyes, letting his hands fall to his lap. Law cupped Luffy's face roughly in his hand and smirked at the surprised gasp he got in return. He remembered his next line, finally. It had sounded really dumb on paper, but now that they were actually here doing it, it felt a lot hotter.

"Be a good boy for me and I'll show you what I can do too."

Luffy whined as he released his face and Law began to unzip his jeans. He decided he should probably check in since they'd never done anything like this before.

"You good?"

"Fuck, yeah," Luffy said from his position on his knees. "That's actually pretty hot."

Law chuckled a little as Luffy tugged on his denim, yanking it down roughly. 

"Not gonna get away with that at the actual shoot," Law warned as cock bobbed out into the cool air of the studio.

"Fuck it, I want to taste." Luffy opened his mouth and leaned in quickly. Law grabbed him by the hair.

"You need to learn to follow directions." Luffy huffed and Law felt his hands sliding up his thighs. "No hands. This is about your mouth, remember? You do what I tell you to."

"Then tell me to do something," Luffy whined.

Law held Luffy still by his hair as he ran his other hand along his length. He could feel Luffy's hot breath breaking across the sensitive skin of his glans. He tried to think through the rest of the script.

"Open your mouth."

Luffy did as he was told, even jutting his tongue out a little as he looked up at Law defiantly. He was supposed to be wide eyed and nervous, but Law liked this much better. This felt like more of their games. He intended to win this one.

He guided Luffy's head forward until the tip of his cock rested on Luffy's tongue. 

"Show me what you've got," he recited what was probably the line and released his hold on Luffy's hair and immediately felt Luffy's hand wrap around his shaft. He flicked Luffy dead center in the forehead. 

"Jerk." Luffy rubbed his forehead and frowned.

"No hands."

"But-"

"You want this, or not?" He pressed the tip of his cock against Luffy's closed lips just to be an asshole. "I told you to be a good boy, didn't I?"

Luffy shot him a glare and Law smirked back down at him. He'd only known Luffy for a few days, but he got the impression Luffy was used to calling all the shots, especially since he'd been the one initiating most of the stuff between them so far. It was kind of fun, watching him struggle with restraint and taking orders. 

He pulled back just a little and carded his fingers gently through Luffy's hair. 

"Be good and I'll make sure you cum. What do you say?"

Luffy's face flushed dark pink and his breath hitched. Something unreadable flashed behind his dark eyes.

"I'll be good," he breathed. Luffy inched forward on his knees and let his mouth fall open again, this time waiting for Law to move first. 

He stroked his cock a few more times before setting it on Luffy's tongue again. Luffy's lips wrapped around him and he groaned as Luffy swirled his tongue. After so much teasing on the way up here, Luffy's mouth felt like heaven. Luffy gripped Law's thighs with his hands as he worked more of his length into his mouth. 

"Fuck, that's it," Law hissed.

Luffy moaned as he swallowed down more of Law's length and Law felt the sound in his toes as the pleasure pulsed through his body. Fuck Luffy was really good at this. The way he was dragging his tongue along the underside of Law's cock had him twitching into Luffy's mouth already. He ran his hand through Luffy's hair again as he bobbed his head up and down his shaft with purpose.

"Oh, fuck, Luffy"

Gods, his mouth felt so good. Fuck, and he hadn't even let him use his hands. Law's eyes fluttered closed as he thrust his hips forward just slightly into Luffy's hot mouth, testing the waters. Luffy moaned again and gripped his thighs tighter, which definitely seemed like a positive response. He pushed deeper, holding Luffy's head still with his hand. He heard Luffy suck in a quick breath through his nose and then push himself forward, swallowing around the head of Law's cock and pressing the tip of his nose against Law's skin.

"Oh shit," Law gasped. He'd never had anyone suck him off like this before. Holy shit. Luffy held himself there for a long moment running his tongue up and down the underside of Law's shaft and swallowing again. Law could feel his throat constricting around him. Fuck that felt amazing. 

Luffy pulled back beneath Law's hand, cock slipping out of his mouth as he gasped for air. Law looked down to find Luffy's flushed face panting back up at him, lips puffy and slick with spit, a single tear track down one side of his face. Law's eyes locked with Luffy's watery ones and Luffy smirked back at him.

And then he knew, he'd fucked up.

Luffy moved fast, tackling Law at his waist and sweeping him up and over his shoulder. Law barely had time to process what the hell had just happened before he was being roughly flipped onto the bed, the bedframe creaking in protest at the sudden weight. Luffy hooked his fingers under the waist band of Law's jeans and pulled them off so roughly that Law was impressed they didn't rip. 

"That good enough for you, Law?" Luffy's voice was dark and rough as he pushed himself quickly out of his own clothes. He climbed back onto the bed, straddling Law's hips and pulling both Law's wrists into one hand. Law opened his mouth to say something but Luffy lurched forward, pinning his wrists to the bed in one swift motion.

"Didn't I say I wasn't taking orders off screen? Practice is over."

Fuck, this was a side of Luffy that Law hadn't anticipated. He was used to being bigger and taller than all his partners, which meant he was usually the one making the calls and doing the rough handling. The fact that Luffy could easily lift him up off the floor and toss him around like that had him breathless beneath his tight grip. He'd never been treated this way. It made his heart race and he felt his arms tremble slightly under Luffy's hand.

Luffy yanked the drawer to the nightstand open and pulled the lube bottle out. He pulled out a condom as well and held it in front of Law's face, eyebrow raised. Law shook his head and the condom was tossed back into the drawer.

"Dirty," Luffy teased. He crashed their mouths together, shoving his tongue past Law's teeth. He pressed their lips together so tightly it almost hurt, and Law gasped into his mouth. Luffy didn't let up for a second and Law struggled to pull air in around Luffy's tongue as it probed into him aggressively. His suddenly neglected cock ached between his legs as Luffy continued his assault on his mouth.

Without any warning or slowing down, Luffy sat up abruptly, releasing Law's lips. Law actually shocked himself at the whine that came out of him at the lost contact.

"You'll make sure I cum, huh?" Luffy scoffed and popped the lid open on the lube bottle. "I told you, Torao. I always make myself feel good."

"Fuck, Luffy-" A finger was firmly pressed against his lips.

"Shh. My turn," he said with a wink. He huffed out a sigh and dragged his fingers down Law's chest.

"Really, Torao, I know they're your lines but do you have to be so hot when you say them?" His hand stopped less than an inch away from Law's flushed and leaking cock. "Such a tease." He ran a single finger lightly through the bead of precum gathered at the top of Law's dick. 

Law gasped and tried desperately to buck his hips up into Luffy's hand, but Luffy had him very thoroughly pinned to the mattress, his knees digging into Law's thighs. He reached his hand down to touch himself to get some release but Luffy snatched it away.

"No hands, Torao."

"Fuck, Luffy." Law tossed his head back against the bed in frustration.

"'Luffy' what, Torao? Come on."

Law recalled Luffy's comment back at the car and grit his teeth.

He would not beg. He had significantly more patience than Luffy. He bet he could out last him if the game was denial. 

Luffy clicked his tongue and sighed at Law's silence. "Suit yourself."

Law watched as Luffy poured a generous amount of lube onto himself, sighing as he spread it along his length. He caught Law's gaze and smirked.

"Guess you just get to watch then."

Fuck this wasn't fair. Luffy let his head fall back as he moaned and stroked himself slowly. 

"Ugh, it feels so good"

Law bit down on his lip harshly to keep his own sounds in check. Shit, Luffy was so hot, touching himself like that. His mind wandered back to the stream from the night before, with Luffy getting off on how he rode Law's cock in this very bed. He couldn't help how his dick twitched as Luffy moaned loudly up to the ceiling, treating Law to his own private show.

"Fuck, Torao," Luffy breathed as he looked down at Law from his position over his thighs. "How'd you like my mouth, huh? Come on, tell me. Was I good?"

Law nodded once, not trusting his voice. It was taking nearly all his self control not to wrap his hand around his length at the sight of Luffy pleasuring himself in his lap.

"Come on, Torao," Luffy purred and trailed his lube-slicked fingers up Law's hip and waist. "Tell me I was good. That's what you wanted, right?"

"Fuck-" Law gasped out. "Yes, fuck, you were good. So fucking good."

"Ahh," Luffy bucked up into the hand he still had wrapped around his length. "Yes," he said breathlessly. 

"You want me to touch you too, Torao?"

"Yes," Law bit out. 

"Say more nice things then."

Shit, really? Gods, this was torture. 

Delicious, delicious, torture.

Law's cheeks burned as he tried to decide what to do. He wasn't one for praise or dirty talk during sex most of the time, so it would be a significant amount of effort to meet Luffy's request. 

On the other hand, if he kept his mouth shut, Luffy really might just get off without him. As much as he would enjoy watching that, his erection was actually starting to hurt. He had a high pain tolerance, but not down there.

Damn. 

Luffy had disarmed and rendered him helpless immediately.

Fuck, that was hot.

"Luffy, gods, I love watching you touch yourself like that," Law breathed. He saw stars when Luffy wrapped his hand loosely around his cock and he slammed his eyes shut.

"Keep going," Luffy groaned. 

"Fuck, I- I couldn't take my eyes off you during that stream. You-" Law gasped as Luffy gripped him a little tighter. "You looked so good spread out on those red blankets."

They both moaned together as Luffy moved his hand faster along Law's length. Law was hurtling towards his climax at record speed. It felt like he'd been holding it in for hours. He gasped and gripped the blankets beneath him tightly, wishing Luffy would get off of him so he could thrust his hips up into his hand. Suddenly, Luffy pulled his hand away. His eyes shot open.

"You fucking-"

"I said you get touched when you say nice things," Luffy purred. "You stopped, Torao."

"Shit, shit," Law cursed and tossed his head back against the bed. Fuck he was losing his damn mind. He couldn't think let alone form sentences.

"You can keep talking or you can ask me nicely."

Fuck. 

No.

Luffy had to be able to hear Law's teeth grinding against each other at his comment. The fucker had the balls to actually giggle.

"You want to go back to watching, Torao?"

"No," he said, his voice tight.

"You were saying such sweet things," Luffy sighed. He leaned forward over Law, holding himself up with a hand on Law's chest. "You're so pretty like this," he whispered. Law struggled to breathe. It wasn't from Luffy's weight on his chest, either.

Luffy released the hold he'd still had on his own cock and it dropped down, bouncing off of Law's and pulling a gasp from his lips. 

Luffy held his gaze and his expression softened just for a moment. "Do you want me to stop?" he whispered.

Law probably should have put some thought into his answer before it tumbled out of his mouth.

"Fuck no."

Their lips met again for the briefest of moments, Luffy's mouth disappearing just as Law's brain registered the taste.

"You taste so good, Torao," he said, leaning back again, his weight lifting off Law's chest. "Gods, you tasted so good." Luffy curled his hand back around his length and began to stroke himself slowly again, a long moan dripping from his lips.

"Fuck, I want to touch you so bad, make you scream and cum on my cock, Law," Luffy murmured, pressing his hot palm to Law's abdomen but holding it perfectly still as he continued to move his other hand along his own cock.

"Do you want that? Do you want me to touch you?"

"Yes," Law hissed, as he tried to move underneath Luffy's hand and shift it to where he actually wanted it. The hand disappeared and Law whined loudly.

"Hands and knees."

Finally, Luffy lifted his weight off Law's thighs, moving backwards on the bed to give Law space to reposition himself. Law rolled into his chest, expending nearly all his self control to keep from rutting his hips into the blankets, which he was sure Luffy would get pissed about. He pushed himself onto all fours and pulled in a shaking breath as he heard the top open on the bottle of lube again.

Oh thank the gods, Luffy was finally going to touch him. 

Luffy roughly grabbed a handful of Law's ass without warning. Law gasped and fell onto his elbows.

"So pretty," Luffy whispered and let out a long sigh. "I'm glad you liked the stream, Torao. I've been dreaming of doing that for you." Law felt a wet, slick finger slide down his center and stop directly above his entrance.

Fuck he was going to scream.

"Tell me what did it for you, Torao. How did I make you cum?"

"Fuck, gods," Law gasped out. "Name," he breathed. "You said my name." Luffy traced his finger around Law's opening. He moaned loudly into the blankets that he was holding on to for dear life. "Hot-" he choked out. "The hottest thing I'd ever seen."

Luffy pushed his finger inside and Law didn't even recognize the sound that came out of his mouth. 

"Shit, you're so tight," Luffy murmured and groaned from behind him.

All Law wanted was for Luffy to keep touching him. There wasn't a single other desire on his mind. Law knew he'd keep going if he kept talking and praise began pouring from his mouth in earnest.

"Fuck, Luffy, I couldn't sleep last night thinking of you-ahh" Luffy pushed another finger in. Law felt his brain slowly unraveling. His legs shook as Luffy moved his fingers slowly in and out of his body.

"Dreamed about you, " Law moaned. "Dreamed of you riding my cock like that."

Luffy cursed under his breath and moved his fingers faster. Law pressed back into his hand, he didn't care about self control any more. He needed Luffy to move his fingers just a little farther.. a little closer. 

"Gods you're so hot on your knees," Law gasped out. "Was trying not to cum down your throat."

Fuck he was close. He needed Luffy pounding him into the mattress already or at least touching his cock with those hot little hands. He could hear Luffy's ragged breathing and the mattress shifting rhythmically behind him. Law moaned at the mental image of Luffy touching himself while fingering him. Fuck maybe he could cum like this. Luffy's fingers felt so good.

Just a little more, a little harder.

Entirely too soon, Luffy's hand disappeared.

"FUCK"

"Are you ready?" Luffy's voice was dark as night and he was breathing hard too. There was no way he was holding this together much longer. 

"Yes, damn it!"

"Be nice, Torao..." He could feel Luffy shift closer on the bed and something thick, hot, and wet was placed at the very bottom of his lower spine.

Fuck this was too much. He needed something, damn it. He pressed his face to the sheets, shifting his weight off his arms and slowly inched his hands down lower. Surely Luffy was too far gone to noti-

"Tch. Torao." Luffy's hands wrapped around Law's wrists and jerked them both backwards, pinning them tightly to the small of Law's back. "No hands."

Law pulled in shaking breaths as Luffy pressed his cock to Law's entrance and then didn't fucking move. 

"Ask nicely, Torao," he purred.

Fucking HELL. 

Where did all this even come from? He'd had the impulse control of a fucking squirrel earlier. Gods damn it all. Law was losing his mind. His entire world shrunk down to that moment and the feeling of Luffy's hand pinning both his wrists behind him and his cock pressing not hard enough against his center and oh Gods he couldn't take it. He couldn't take it any more. He was going to go completely insane.

No, he was already there.

"Please!" he half choked, half sobbed. "Please, Luffy! Fuck, I need it- Gods- give it to me- please, please-"

Finally, FINALLY, Luffy pushed into him and Law practically screamed. He vaguely processed that the noises echoing through the room were coming from his own throat as Luffy set a brutal pace. He released Law's wrists in favor of wrapping one hand around Law's hip and the other gripped his ass cheek in a hold that was sure to leave a bruise. Law didn't fucking care. Luffy could leave marks anywhere he wanted if it meant he'd keep touching, keep moving. 

"So good, Law," Luffy panted and moaned as he continued his near frantic pace. "You feel so good. So good for me."

Law was fresh out of words. He'd said plenty. He prayed Luffy would actually fucking touch his poor neglected cock before his brain went so off the rails he never recovered. He picked deities at random and wished they would actually give a shit about his suffering as it felt like his entire nervous system was set on fire when Luffy pulled his fingernails down his back. He'd always been partial to the god of the ocean and the god of death, though he figured they probably didn't give a fuck about this.

"Law," Luffy moaned and wrapped his hand tightly around Law's hip again, nails digging into skin, sending lightning bolts of pleasure up Law's body at each stinging point of contact. "Close," he gasped. His pace faltered for just a second. "You want it? Gods, can I?"

Fuck Luffy's hands felt so good on his skin and his cock was so exceptionally close to hitting where he fucking wanted it as it split him in half and- oh, shit, he'd asked a question that required an answer, hadn't he?

Words. What were words?

"Yes, yes, yes," Law chanted and gripped the blankets tighter as Luffy slammed into him repeatedly, the sounds of skin slapping against skin bounced around the empty room, adding to the debauched cacophony they were making. 

"Fuck- give it to me! Please!" his words melted into a broken moan as he tried to keep pushing back into Luffy. His knees were shaking and he was drooling into the sheets beneath him and fuck he was so close, so fucking close he just needed something, anything. 

Luffy nudged Law's knees farther apart with his own and pushed down on Law's lower back. Luffy moaned so deeply it was practically a growl as he shifted his angle just a little. Stars shot across Law's vision at the change and he gasped and moaned into the sheets, a stream of garbled curses flowing from his mouth. The head of his cock brushed lightly across the blankets once, twice, three times-

"LUFFY!!"

His vision went completely white. His mind went blank. Someone was shouting. Was that his voice? Fingers tangled in his hair and pulled his face up off the sheets. Oxygen. Glorious oxygen. Every inhale ripped more noises from his throat and every movement of Luffy's hips sent shockwaves through his entire body. It was the most intense sensation he'd felt in his life but it was too much. It was bliss and torture. Like finally being released from barbed wire only to be tossed into boiling water. Heaven and hell. So much, too much, and Luffy kept moving, not slowing for a single moment. 

This was death. This had to be what it felt like to die. He could barely breathe. He couldn't think. Everything was on fire.

Fuck it was amazing.

Just as he thought his body was going to shatter into a thousand pieces and his heart was going to beat directly out of his ribs, Luffy collapsed onto his back, moaning Law's name into his ear over and over again. Law's mind reeled with the feeling of Luffy's breath breaking across his neck and their hips pressed so tightly together he thought they might never come apart. Everywhere their skin touched felt like it buzzed and burned at the same time. He felt Luffy's cock twitching inside him and more intense waves of pleasure washed over him, forcing the breath from his lungs and his vision to blur again. They stayed pressed together, suspended in time and drowning in pleasure, for longer than Law had ever thought possible.

After a hundred years that was somehow also half a second, Luffy murmured something vaguely sweet in his ear that Law didn't comprehend and began pressing light kisses along his neck and shoulder. The tiny brushes of Luffy's lips on his skin left an intense tingling sensation in their wake and shivers ripped down Law's spine. Luffy slowly pushed himself up and off Law's back and the most embarrassing noise fell from Law's lips when Luffy pulled out completely. His legs shook violently and he just wanted to collapse onto the bed, but Luffy held his hips up. 

"Not yet, Torao, you'll get it all over."

Huh? Get what all over? His legs hurt. Probably from entirely too many runs he'd tried to use to deal with his anxiety. He'd jogged a little over a marathon in the last 24 hours. This was a much more effective treatment. He didn't have a single thought in his head as Luffy's release began to drip out of him. It was so blissfully quiet.

"Fuck, that's hot. Can I take a picture?"

Law grunted his approval. Words were entirely too difficult. He felt Luffy's weight briefly disappear from the bed and return a moment later. He hissed as Luffy pressed a palm on his right glute and pulled a little. 

"So pretty," he breathed. He released the hold he had on Law's ass and shifted up the bed. "Look how pretty you are."

Luffy held his phone in front of Law's face so he could see the photo he'd taken. The backs of his thighs were pink from how roughly Luffy had been slamming into him. His hole was puffy and raw, a fluid that was so obviously semen was dripping from it and down his balls. He blushed furiously as he saw the small black bullseye tattoo on his left ass cheek that he always forgot about. He'd gotten it after trading hits on his coworker's blunt behind the shop one night after closing and he really couldn't remember why he'd thought it was a good idea. The flesh underneath the ink in the photo was bright pink and Law realized it was what Luffy had been holding onto so tightly. That probably really was going to bruise.

"Can I keep it?" Luffy asked wistfully.

It was a pretty hot photo. There were probably worse ones on his page anyway, though not many.

"Sure," he managed to mumble. 

"Don't move."

That was honestly asking a lot and he was done taking orders from Luffy. He flopped his hips down onto the bed and winced as something slick and cold smeared across his stomach. Luffy giggled and pushed Law's shoulder until he was rolled over onto his back.

"Told you you'd get it all over. You made a mess, Torao."

Law pushed his incredibly heavy body up on his elbows and finally figured out what the hell Luffy was talking about. Both his abdomen and the blankets were smeared all over with cum. He hadn't even processed his own orgasm. That was a first.

"Fuck, you didn't even touch me," Law said, pulling two fingers through the mess on his stomach in disbelief. Yeah, that was definitely cum. 

Who the hell was this guy?

Luffy giggled more. "Yeah, I know. It was the hottest thing I think I've ever seen." He reached out and pulled at Law's hand, bringing the soiled digits to his mouth and licking the mess off of them with a sigh. A seriously pathetic noise dripped from Law's mouth at both the image and the intense sensation of Luffy licking cum off his over-sensitive fingers.

Satisfied with his clean-up job, Luffy pressed a peck to the tips of Law's fingers before he rose from the bed and held out his hand.

"Come on. You found a bathroom and stuff last time, right?"

Law nodded once and rolled away from Luffy's hand to the opposite side of the bed. He was fine, he didn't need any fucking hand holding. He pushed himself up off the bed with significant effort, wobbled, and immediately sat back down. 

Damn it.

Luffy sighed and walked around where Law was staring at the floor, gripping the blankets tightly. Really, he just needed another minute and he'd be fine but Luffy was looking at him and smiling and it was humiliating. He was not prepared for the inevitable teasing that would be coming his way.

"So stubborn, Torao," Luffy said with a sigh. He sat down next to Law and leaned his head over onto Law's shoulder. "Are you ok?"

"I- yeah." Huh, maybe the teasing wasn't actually coming. "I just stood up too fast. Give me a minute."

"Want me to carry you?"

Kind of, actually.

"No."

"You sure?"

A long beat of silence.

"Maybe." Luffy pressed a delicate kiss to Law's shoulder.

"Alright," Luffy said, rising to his feet. "Put your arms around my neck, ok?" Law nodded and did as he asked. Luffy slipped an arm behind Law's back and the other beneath his knees and lifted him off the bed with minimal effort. He stepped off the stage and Law realized he'd yet to see Luffy navigate the equipment surrounding the set without falling.

"You fucking drop me and I'll murder you."

Luffy giggled again and pressed a kiss into Law's hair. "I've got you, don't worry."

They miraculously made it to the set's private bathroom without any broken equipment or bones and Luffy set Law slowly back down onto his feet. He had to admit, being carried around like that was pretty nice. He'd never had anyone do that before. 

Luffy squawked when he tried to turn the water on and it pelted him in the face. Law laughed and willed his lead-filled legs over to the little table with neatly folded towels on it. He caught his reflection in the mirror on the way by.

He wasn't just a mess. He was a disaster. 

His hair stood in every possible direction plus a few more. The small amount of eyeliner he'd put on before he'd left the house was smeared and streaked down his face and he had bite marks down the side of his neck from that make out session in the car. Between that and what he knew the rest of him looked like thanks to Luffy's little photo op, he was a nightmare on legs.

He grabbed two towels and hung them on the towel bar next to the shower as Luffy stepped underneath the running water. A wet hand reached out from behind the curtain and wrapped around Law's wrist loosely, guiding him into the steaming shower. The water felt like heaven on his flushed and still tingling skin.

Luffy pressed soft kisses into Law's shoulders as he lathered soap all over his chest and stomach. Law sighed, too tired to push Luffy's hands off him and do it himself. It felt so nice anyway. He'd let him do it just this once.

"You sure you're good? You're quiet," Luffy said softly, gentle hands turning Law's shoulders so he could apply soap to Law's back.

"Yeah. Yeah that was just-" he hissed as Luffy pressed a little too roughly against the newly forming bruise on his asscheek.

"Sorry, sorry," Luffy murmured, peppering the back of Law's arm with more feather light kisses.

Law sighed. "That was just really intense for me. Never had anyone treat me like that before."

"Did you like it? Was it too much?" Luffy sounded genuinely concerned as he convinced Law to turn back around under the water and rinse the soap from his back.

"Almost," Law admitted. "I'd have stopped you if it was, though. Not sure I'll be down with that all the time but I'd definitely do it again."

Luffy smiled up at him and wrapped his arms up around Law's back, sighing as he leaned his head forward into Law's chest.

"But really, Luffy, do we need to change that script? You seemed like you were really struggling there."

Luffy shook his head against Law's skin. "Nah, I'll be fine. I was just worked up from yesterday and making out in the hallway and stuff." He looked up and grinned. "I'll actually be good, I promise."

They finished up in the shower and stripped the sheets from the bed again. By the time they made it back out into the dark hallway, Law's phone informed him it was after midnight. That and he had four unread messages from Bepo, two from Sachi, and three from Penguin. Nosey bastards.

Luffy knit their fingers together as they made their way slowly back to the elevator. Law felt tired all over. He realized he still had to drive Luffy back across town, the last train back to the south side had long since left the nearest station. Then he'd have to drive all the way back to his own apartment. Oof. So much driving and he could basically fall asleep standing up. 

"Want to crash at my place? It's late. I'm only ten minutes away," Law offered as they stepped into the elevator. He cringed a little at the smeared hand print he'd left on the glass. Oh well. Maybe it would give the cleaning crew something fun to gossip about.

"Mmm," Luffy hummed softly to himself and leaned against Law's arm. "Do we get to cuddle if I come over?"

"Sure, but if you kick in your sleep, I'm sending you to the couch."

"Hey, that's not fair! How am I supposed to control what I do in my sleep?"

Law shrugged and the elevator doors opened back out into the dark empty lobby. "Not my problem. Kickers get the couch. House rule."

They drifted back to the car and Law managed to keep his eyes open through the entire short drive back to his apartment, though it had been a struggle. Luffy was mostly asleep in the passenger seat when Law pulled into his parking spot in the garage. He groaned and slumped across the center console as Law stepped out of the car.

"Carry me," Luffy whined. Law laughed.

"You wish. Now that I know you can carry me, you're not getting the princess treatment. Sleep in the car if you want." Luffy stuck his lip out in a pathetic pout.

"So mean to me." 

Law leaned back into the car and pressed a light kiss to Luffy's jutting bottom lip.

"I thought you wanted to cuddle. Can't do that in the car, can you?"

With an overly dramatic groan, Luffy pulled himself out of the car and followed him through the parking structure. He leaned against Law in the elevator and pressed his whole weight along Law's arm as he unlocked his apartment door. Law finally gave in and swept Luffy up into his arms after he pushed the door open. 

Luffy rested his head in the crook of Law's neck and sighed as he carried him through the apartment. 

"You're so sweet," he murmured into Law's skin.

"Hmm, I thought I was so mean to you," Law said, setting Luffy gently onto the bed. "Come on, shoes off."

With as little movement as possible, Luffy flipped both his shoes off his feet and onto the floor. He shimmied out of his jeans and kicked them off the side of the bed as he curled up under the blankets. Law changed into some sleep pants, tossing his clothes in the hamper and hanging his jacket up in the closet. He walked towards the bathroom, intending to brush his teeth.

"Torao..."

Well...

He would brush his teeth in the morning anyway.

Luffy curled tightly around Law when he settled under the blanket. It was surprisingly comfortable, having Luffy's weight pressed against him like that. He listened to Luffy's slow and steady breathing, trying to remember the last time anyone had spent the night in his bed. He couldn't come up with the answer, his brain was far too tired from another long day on minimal sleep. He wrapped his arms around Luffy and sighed. 

Maybe it was alright that it wasn't just sex. Maybe it would work out. For once.

He didn't really pray much, but he sent another request up to the heavens anyway.

Please, let this be the one thing that went right.

Chapter Text

Law woke up to the sound of a phone ringing... again.

This time it wasn't his.

Something warm and heavy shifted against him, whining and moaning in the general direction of the other side of the bed. Law's brain struggled to boot up, and he momentarily wondered if he had woken up three years prior to the present day, after having another completely unsatisfying half-remembered one night stand.

"Wadduwant, Sabo?" 

Luffy's voice slurring into his phone pulled Law back into the present. The events of the previous day finally filled his head— the freak out, the dinner date, the "break in", the completely mortifying begging and drooling and babbling he'd done.

And possibly the best orgasm he'd ever had.

"No, I- Yes. Yes. He didn't-!" Luffy growled into the phone and sat up in bed. "I texted you last night I was staying over, alright? I'm FINE!"

Someone's voice (Law assumed Sabo's) was now audible through Luffy's phone. It was not a happy voice.

"Oh well SORRY Mister Porn Star! Too good to have a brother who WORRIES now, are you?! Too much of a CELEBRITY?!" 

Law snorted and decided he probably shouldn't be eavesdropping. Unfortunately for Law's conscience and Luffy's privacy, the bed was entirely too comfortable to leave. Besides, it was his damn bed. If Luffy didn't want Law hearing how his brother chewed him out for sleeping around, then Luffy could get his own skinny ass up.

"I didn't say that! You worry too much! I told you where I was, didn't I?"

"That was TWELVE HOURS AGO!" Law checked the clock. Damn. It was already noon. When was the last time he'd slept that long?

"I WAS SLEEPING!" Luffy bellowed. "YOU SHOULD TRY IT SOME TIME!"

"DON'T YOU DARE TAKE THAT TONE WI-" Luffy rolled his eyes and smacked a button on his phone before tossing it through the open door of Law's closet. Law was slowly understanding why his phone case was in the state that it was. 

"Ugh." Luffy flopped back down in the bed and wrapped himself back up in every single inch of the blankets, leaving Law high and dry. "Brothers," he muttered.

"Wouldn't know," Law said with a sigh and grabbed his phone off the nightstand. The number of unread texts from his friends was roughly double what it had been before he'd gone to sleep. Whatever. He didn't have the energy for all their probing questions yet. He'd need at least a half a pot of coffee for that. He put his phone back down and moved to pry himself out of bed as Luffy's arms wrapped back around him.

"Noooo," Luffy whined quietly, half muffled by the nest of blankets and pillows he'd somehow created. It was almost cute and Law almost stayed but his bladder had other priorities. 

"Nope." Law said curtly, pulling Luffy's limbs off of him. 

"You're the worst," he mumbled into the bedding.

"Yup. Heard that one before." Law left Luffy's muffled complaints behind on the bed and took care of both using the restroom and the parts of his nightly routine he'd skipped the night before. When he'd finished in the bathroom, he looked back over to the large Luffy-shaped pile of bedding in the center of the mattress and decided he must have gone back to sleep. Well, whatever. He'd kick him out after coffee. 

To his surprise, he found a still minimally dressed Luffy standing in his kitchen and frowning into the open refrigerator.

"Where's all your food? I thought you said you were going grocery shopping the other day."

Law shrugged. "Check the freezer." He had gone grocery shopping. He'd stocked up on all the necessities: coffee, coffee brewing supplies, protein shakes, microwave meals, and beer. He knew his diet was garbage. His annual bloodwork was always fine though, so he figured he'd work on it later.

Luffy opened the freezer and gasped. "How do you live like this?! What do you eat for breakfast?!"

Law sighed and tried to decide which coffee beans he was going to brew up today. "I don't eat breakfast."

"WHAT?" Luffy jerked Law's shoulders so they were standing face to face in the kitchen and held the back of his hand to Law's forehead. "Are you sick or something? Is it terminal?"

Law batted his hand away. "No? I just don't eat breakfast."

"Hang on. I'm fixing this." Luffy padded off down the hallway in bare feet and Law took the opportunity to finally start boiling some water. Luffy returned as Law was pouring a generous amount of freshly ground beans into his extra large French press. He had a feeling he'd need the extra caffeine despite it already being the middle of the day.

"Here." Luffy held out his phone to Law. "It's the best breakfast place I know. Order something."

"I really don't-"

"You need to eat. You barely even ate dinner last night." He grabbed Law's hand and shoved his phone into it. "Just get something. I promise it's good."

This was clearly not worth arguing about since Luffy wasn't going to accept no for an answer. Law begrudgingly scrolled through the menu and he had to admit, a lot of it did actually look pretty good. He picked something that would probably still be reasonably edible when it was delivered and passed the phone back to Luffy.

"There. Happy?"

"Yes! What's your address?" Law rattled off his street address and apartment number so Luffy could plug it into the delivery app. Luffy was gloriously quiet for a moment as Law finished filling his French press with the freshly boiled water.

"You want coffee?" Luffy wrinkled his nose and didn't look up from his phone.

"Ew. No."

"Seriously? Those are fighting words in this apartment," Law countered. He was barely limping through most days on three cups in the morning. Zero coffee sounded like torture, the bad kind this time.

"There! Food will be here in half an hour!" Luffy set his phone down on the counter and regarded Law critically. "Sanji says food is fuel for the body. Maybe you need so much coffee because you barely eat." Law rolled his eyes.

"You crash in my bed, steal all the blankets, complain about my food and now you're giving me unsolicited nutrition advice?" Luffy held up his hands.

"Hey, I'm just saying." A soft smile grew on his lips and Law felt his heartrate pick up. Why did he have to look like that? He was all soft and tired and cute as hell in just that oversized t-shirt and a pair of navy blue skin-tight boxer briefs. He wasn't playing fair, damn it.

"Thanks for letting me sleep here last night, by the way. Your bed is comfy." Luffy closed the space between them in two short strides and wrapped his arms around Law's waist. "You are too."

"Don't get used to it." Law found himself running his fingers through Luffy's messy hair before he could stop himself. "I'm usually not that much of a cuddler."

Luffy smirked up at him. "I hear you don't beg either."

Law scoffed but didn't pull away. "Smartass. I'll kick you out and eat alone, you watch." Luffy gasped in an excellent display of fake shock and indignation.

"You would never!"

"Getting tired of listening to you tell me what I will or won't do, Luffy."

"Well then make me shut up."

When their lips met it was unlike any of the kisses they'd shared previously. It was slow, delicate, and unhurried. Luffy's lips brushed briefly across Law's, feather light and soft as a cloud, before Law caught them again with his own. When their tongues touched just barely, it stole the breath from Law's lungs. Time stopped completely as they stood there in the kitchen, both half-dressed and half-awake, lips glancing off each other with as much force as a butterfly landing on a flower petal. Law thought he could happily kiss Luffy for hours and hours right there if it kept feeling like this— if it kept feeling like flying.

When they finally parted, Law couldn't look away from Luffy's eyes. He hadn't noticed how incredible they were before, especially when they were looking at him like that. He suddenly felt like he'd somehow forgotten every word he'd ever learned to speak. 

"Your coffee's getting cold," Luffy whispered.

"You taste better." What? He hadn't meant to actually say that out loud. But, gods, the smile Luffy gave him in return was worth it. 

"You taste good too, Torao. I could kiss you all day and all night." Luffy slipped his hands from around Law's waist and up his chest, wrapping his arms around his neck. "Would you let me?"

Yes.

"Maybe," Law breathed and pulled him close again. What was he doing? He hadn't let anyone spend the night in his bed for years in an effort to avoid the morning-after awkwardness. He didn't cuddle all night or offer to make coffee the next day. He didn't stand in his own kitchen in nothing but a pair of fleece pants and let some guy he barely knew drag sweet nothings from his mouth. He'd never done any of this.

"I'll have to convince you then," Luffy murmured and pulled Law in for another kiss. The running commentary in Law's brain was reduced to a quiet hum as Luffy's fingers played with the hair at the nape of his neck. Luffy's lips were so soft and his hands were so warm and when he pulled in a soft little gasp when Law gripped his waist tighter, Law thought his feet might actually float off the ground.

Luffy's phone buzzed on the counter, shattering the quiet stillness of the moment and causing them both to jump.

Luffy pulled away slowly, holding Law's hand in his own as he reached over to check the status of their breakfast delivery.

"Food will be here in ten minutes," he said with a sigh. 

Damn. They'd been making out for nearly twenty minutes. And he still hadn't had any coffee.

"Guess I should put a shirt on so I can go get the food from downstairs," Law said, finally pressing the grounds down to the bottom of the glass container and filling his mug with the coffee he'd brewed. At least it had cooled down enough to be drinkable. He liked it strong anyway.

"That should be a crime," Luffy muttered. 

"What?"

"You wearing a shirt." 

Law chuckled as he made his way back to his bedroom and pulled a random t-shirt over his head. The fleece pants could stay. It was Saturday after all.

"Food's here!" Luffy called from the kitchen. Well that was a short ten minutes.

"Alright, alright, give me a second," he grumbled back. He took a quick stop at the kitchen counter to take another sip of coffee. 

"Come on! It'll get cold! Do you want me to go get it? I can go!" Luffy drummed his fingers on the countertop impatiently and tapped his foot.

"Will you calm down? I'll be back in two minutes."

Luffy let his head sink onto the counter and groaned. "I'm starving! I haven't eaten since yesterday!"

Law snorted. "You'll live. Don't touch anything, I'll be right back."

He left Luffy sighing dramatically into the countertop to go retrieve the food from the front desk. He was surprised to find two completely overstuffed bags worth of take-out waiting for him. His stomach growled as Luffy's mini breakfast buffet filled the elevator with the scent of grilled sausage and butter. 

Juggling the two large bags and the doorknob, he finally arrived back in his own living room.

"What the hell did you or-"

He didn't finish his thought as his brain tried to process the image in front of him. Luffy was laying on his stomach in the middle of the floor, the entire contents of a bookcase spread around the carpet, TV on, and some kind of pop music playing entirely too loud over the speakers. 

"What the fuck?! I was gone for five minutes!"

Luffy pushed himself to his feet and shrugged. "I got bored. Also your books are boring. Oh! But look what I found!" He held up Law's senior yearbook from high school, a gleeful look on his face and pointed to a photo in the middle of the page. "You were so cute! I can't imagine you without all that ink!"

Law very carefully and deliberately reminded himself that murder was still indeed a crime in this country and generally frowned upon by society as he plunked the food down onto the dining room table. He had just reorganized that shelf. Who just barges into someone's life and starts rifling through their high school year book? That was criminal. Surely, a jury of his peers would understand. And really, murder was only a crime when you got caught.

He took a measured breath and tried to decide which limb he should remove first and which dumpsters he could hide all the parts in without arousing suspicion from the local police. Luffy carried the yearbook with him over to the table, flipping through the pages. 

"How come you aren't in any of the club photos? Didn't you do sports or anything?"

Law snatched the stupid book out of Luffy's hands. "No. I did not do sports," he snapped. He stalked over to the mess that used to be his living room and turned the sugary pop song off and tried to take another deep breath. "Ok, alright. Whatever. Just eat."

Coffee. He needed more coffee.

Luffy unpacked the various containers onto the table as Law grabbed plates and utensils from the kitchen and swallowed half his mug of coffee in one swig on the way by. Naturally, Luffy hadn't waited for him, and was gleefully stuffing half a waffle into his mouth with his bare hands by the time he'd returned.

Really? This guy? This had to be the guy? He cursed his own stupid, weak-willed heart as he stared at the chaos unfolding in his apartment. Of course the tiny corner of his unintelligent, minimally evolved hormone-driven lizard brain would pick this absolute fucking moron to fixate on and not let go of. 

Perfect. 

And he'd actually thought he wanted this to work out last night. Gods, that dopamine rush from the sex was seriously one hell of a drug.

As Law silently berated himself, Luffy loaded about six different breakfast foods onto a plate and pushed it towards him.

"Come on, eat already! It's good, I promise!"

Instead of sitting down at the table, Law walked back to the kitchen to retrieve the rest of the coffee he'd brewed. His instincts had been right. He was definitely going to need it.

To Luffy's credit, the food actually was very good. Law couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten so much in one sitting, especially right after waking up. Luffy still easily ate twice as much as he had, but still. Law finished the entire pot of coffee as Luffy rattled off stories about his friend Sanji and all the times he'd tried to teach Luffy how to cook (and all the various ways that had ended in disaster) in between stuffing his cheeks full of food like some kind of horrifying human-chipmunk hybrid.

"So," Luffy started as Law gathered up the dishes and took them back to the kitchen. "What should we do now?"

"Well someone fucked up my living room so I guess I'm cleaning in there today," he muttered and looked at the stack of dishes in the sink. "And washing up." 

"Boring!" Luffy proclaimed, wrapping his arms around Law's hips from behind where he stood at the sink. 

"Well then maybe you should go amuse yourself somewhere else."

"Or..." Luffy slipped his hands beneath Law's shirt and pressed a kiss into the skin just above his collar. "We could finish reading those scripts. Iva sent the first three but I only finished one the other day." He trailed his lips along the back of Law's shirt collar, tugging a little with his teeth. "Maybe you can help me focus?"

The two halves of his brain locked themselves in a battle to the death. On one side, his compelling urge to tame the chaos, get his house back the way it fucking belonged and kick this walking ball of bad decisions out of his space. The other side was driven almost entirely by the pleasure-seeking, high-chasing sliver of ancient mammalian DNA that wanted nothing more than an instant replay of what had gone down the night before. Neither side fought fair and the outcome wasn't going to be pretty. Law called a truce.

"How about you help me put this place back together and then we'll look at the scripts?"

Luffy groaned and slumped against Law's back.

"Alright, fine, I guess." He stepped out from behind Law and stood next to him at the sink. "I can do dishes!" 

That sounded like an excellent way to end up with a sink full of broken glass.

"Nope. You made the mess in the living room, so you get to fix it. Put my books back."

"Ugh! You're so bossy," Luffy whined but made his way back to the living room anyway. "Can I at least turn the music back on?"

"Only if you play something good. That crap from before is officially banned."

"Well then you come pick something Mr. Picky Pants!" Law couldn't help but laugh at Luffy's stupid childish taunt. He joined Luffy in the living room briefly, turning on one of the playlists he usually listened to while he was editing photos for the site that had most of his favorites on it. 

He got to work on the dishes as Luffy began singing off-key to the song coming through the speakers. He sounded absolutely terrible, but he knew all the words at least. Law realized about halfway through the third song that he was smiling like a fool to himself as he dried off the dishes and put them away. Luffy's stupid warbles really weren't that cute. The coffee had clearly just put him in a good mood, obviously.

"All done!" Luffy shouted and Law finished wiping down the counter to go fact-check his declaration. Well, at least all the books were back on the shelves. They weren't even remotely organized like he'd had them before and some were definitely upside-down. Law noted he'd left the yearbook out on the coffee table. Half credit. He appreciated the effort at least. 

Luffy retrieved his phone and they settled onto the couch to read through what was sure to be the most elegant and dignified dialogue in all of film in 'Luffy Learns to Bottom.'

The next couple hours flew by and they actually got a lot of work done. 

They read through the entire second script, though Luffy really needed to act out things to stay focused. And they definitely had to practice the positioning with Luffy bent over Law's kitchen counter since obviously they'd have to make sure that was comfortable for Luffy. He'd have to stay there for at least ten minutes in the video, and it was only gentlemanly to ensure it would feel good for the entire time Law was fucking him senseless. 

And then naturally they'd spent a while having a very productive brainstorming session about other positions to include in some of the later videos. Iva had said they'd be happy to take requests.

Of course, after that there were showers to be had. Personal hygiene is so very important in this line of work. Law felt that was definitely why they'd spent nearly 45 minutes helping get each other so clean and running up his water bill.

Really, all in all, it was a very productive afternoon.

Law had just finished getting dressed into actual clothes when he glanced over at the clock. It was nearly five. They'd spent almost the entire day "working" which was actually pretty surprising considering Law had originally planned on kicking Luffy out immediately after they'd woken up.

"I better go. Sabo will probably kill me if I'm not home for dinner," Luffy said, pulling his shirt back over his head. 

"I can give you a ride."

"Are you sure? I can just take the train, it's no big deal."

Law was already pulling his coat on. "Nah, it'll be way faster if I drive you."

"Thanks, Torao!" 

Law thought idly he might never get tired of how Luffy's arms wrapped around him and his face pressed against his chest. He had never considered that hugs could actually feel nice sometimes since they had usually been the bone-crushing variety from Bepo or embarrassingly affectionate from Cora.

As they made their way down to his car, Law opened up the group chat he had with his three friends and typed out an impulsive message.

"If you want to hear what happened, be at the bar in one hour or forever hold your peace."

He tossed his phone into the back seat as the messages started pouring in.

"Don't you need to answer that?"

Law shrugged. "They can wait until I'm good and ready to deal with them."

Luffy giggled and rolled down the window. "Don't be so mean to your friends, Torao."

"I'm not mean to them. They bring this on themselves."

They took the long way across town, Law using the construction on the freeway as an easy excuse, even though it hadn't stopped him the day before. He was not dragging his feet about dropping Luffy back at home. It was a nice day and they were simply enjoying the weather. 

Luffy traced idle patterns on the back of Law's hand as they navigated the various neighborhoods of the city, intermittently pulling Law's hand away from the gear shift to press gentle kisses into the letters on the backs of his fingers. They still made it back to Luffy's apartment building too fast, despite the small detour Law had made after that "wrong turn."

He put the car in park and let himself be pulled into Luffy's lips. The way Luffy slid his hands up Law's chest and into his hair had him desperately wishing they could just turn around and go back to bed. He had no idea how long they stayed there on the street like that, sighing into each other in the late afternoon sunlight. 

"LUFFY! Get your ass up here right now!" Law spotted a blond haired man, probably about his age, though maybe a little older, leaning out of one of the windows on the second floor.

"I assume that's your brother?" 

Luffy rolled his eyes as he slowly moved away from Law, a hand trailing down Law's arm and lingering over his fingers. 

"He really does worry too much. Do you want to come upstairs? You can stay for dinner."

Something cold and icy rushed into his chest. Stay for dinner? Meet his brother? He didn't do that. He'd never done that. He decided he'd done entirely too many new things for one week.

"I think he's got a few things to say to you that I don't want to hear," Law said, starting the car back up. 

"LUFFY!" 

"Alright, alright," Luffy muttered. "Your loss, Torao. Neither of us can cook for shit but the Chinese place up the street is really good." He pressed another light kiss to the back of Law's hand. "I guess I'll see you at the run through on Monday."

Right. Today was Saturday. They didn't have any other plans until they met with the director on Monday afternoon. Suddenly that seemed like a lifetime away. Law wasn't sure what to do with the nervous feeling in his chest. 

"Yeah. See you Monday."

He was not staring as Luffy made his way up the building's steps, shouting back at Sabo the entire way.

"I am 22 years old, Sabo! You're so embarrassing!"

Law couldn't make out what Sabo said back to that as he finally fished his phone out from the back seat. He scrolled quickly through the messages he'd been avoiding. It sounded like Bepo and Penguin were already on their way to the bar. He put the car in drive and tried to figure out what the hell he was going to say to them when he got there.

The bar materialized in front of him in what felt like record time and he hadn't even been speeding on the freeway. He still wasn't completely sure what he was going to say about the date yesterday. He had hoped just going through it with them in person would be easier than hashing it all out over text but he was getting the sinking feeling that he'd hoped wrong. He pushed the door to the bar open and found Penguin and Bepo waving at him enthusiastically from a table in the corner.

He pulled up a chair and shrugged his jacket off and a full pint of beer magically appeared in front of him. It was a pretty good bribe, all things considered.

"Sachi's got late shift at the ER tonight but I promised I'd fill him in," Penguin said. Bepo looked at Law with eager eyes and a wide smile.

"So?! How did it go?!" He was practically vibrating in his chair with excitement. Law remembered the comment Luffy had made over dinner about how much his friends must love him to still be in his life after all these years of chaos. Nearly a dozen foster homes, juvie for a while, then finally Cora's apartment, college, getting into med school, dropping out of med school, and then all of the horrible coping skills he'd flexed after Cora's death— and they were still here, eagerly hoping for an update on a silly little date he'd gone on with a boy.

He took a sip of his cold beer, and Law noted it was one of his favorites.

Maybe Cora didn't have to be the only one he opened up to.

"Best date of my entire life."

Bepo squealed and wrapped his arms around Law's shoulders tightly. 

Penguin tapped his half empty glass against Law's and smiled warmly. "You gonna tell us about this guy or what?" he said before taking a long sip of his beer.

"Yeah, guess I could do that. What do you guys want to know?"

"Does this guy have a name?" 

"It's Luffy!" Bepo said confidently, finally releasing Law's shoulders. "Right?"

"Hey no fair," Penguin whined. "How does he know? I've known you longer!" Law couldn't help the chuckle that came out of him. Penguin had only met Law about two seconds before Bepo had come barreling down the hallway without looking, crashing directly into the case worker who had escorted Law to his brand new foster home with a box full of donated clothes in his arms. 

"Holy shit, are you laughing at my joke?" Penguin and Bepo exchanged a look.

"What? Am I not allowed to laugh now?"

"Uh, no, it's just-" Penguin ran a hand through his hair and furrowed his brow. "Help me out here, Bepo."

"You usually just tell Penguin he's being stupid or to shut up," Bepo offered. That was completely untrue, he'd definitely laughed at that exact joke before. He just couldn't remember when that had been. 

"Come on, Law. What's he like? What did you guys do? More importantly, what did you eat? Did he like the restaurant?"

Those were a lot of questions Bepo had rattled off at once, and the first one was going to be entirely too hard to answer. 

"Uh, I didn't exactly ask him for a review but I think he liked it. He ate two whole entrees, for what that's worth."

"Ah! A man of taste, finally!" Bepo sighed longingly and leaned his head on his hand. "I need to go back there for those loaded potato skins again."

"You're not getting out of telling us about him," Penguin said from across the table.

"Right, well, he's- uh," Law sighed and opted for another sip of beer to stall for time. He swallowed and still had nothing. "I don't really know where to start."

"Just start with what he looks like," Bepo offered. 

Law decided if he was actually going to open up then he'd have to go back to how he'd started doing it with Cora. He closed his eyes and pretended he was talking to himself.

"He's, uh, about six inches shorter than me I guess. Messy black hair, like constantly, I don't know if he even owns a brush. Strong. Really strong. He actually carried me around at one point and acted like it was nothing. Dark brown eyes you could drown in and this smile that's just-"

He realized entirely too late that he was rambling and the table had fallen completely silent. He opened his eyes and found two grown men staring at him with their jaws on the floor. He felt his face begin to burn.

"What?"

It took them a moment to respond. Bepo got his words together first.

"I've never seen you smile like that."

"Smile like what?" He hadn't been smiling, he was sure of it. "You guys asked. I was answering."

"Yeah and you don't usually do that either," Penguin said slowly. "Damn, now I've got to meet this guy."

Law bit his lip and tried to hide his intensifying blush behind his beer glass. "I just figured I'd actually tell you guys something for once, alright? You wanted to know so bad."

Bepo suddenly pulled Law in for another hug, almost making him spill his beer in the process.

"I like him," Bepo declared.

"You don't know anything about him!" Law set his glass back on the table and tried to pry the two strong arms off of him without success. "How could you possibly know you like him?"

"Because we're not blind, Law. You're head over heels for the guy. Hell, anyone could see that," Penguin said without a hint of sarcasm in his voice for once. 

Law thought if he blushed any harder, his face might actually catch fire. 

"So I like him? Big deal," he muttered into Bepo's shoulder where he was still being held against his will. He finished his beer when he was finally allowed to move.

"Dude, for you, that's a pretty big deal," Penguin said. "When are you guys going out again?"

Law shrugged. "We don't have any plans, I guess. We meet with the director on Monday to talk about stuff and run through the first scene."

Bepo clicked his tongue. "He invited you to dinner the first time so now it's your turn to ask him out, you know." He sighed dramatically. "Really, you should just make me your official relationship coach. You have no idea what you're doing."

"Well technically he asked me out again when he invited me to stay for dinner with him and his brother when I dropped him off this afternoon," Law corrected.

"Woah, woah, woah, wait a second," Penguin held a hand up and regarded Law critically. "You, Trafalgar Law, let a guy spend the night and then all afternoon at your apartment? And then you actually gave him a ride home instead of kicking him out on the curb to fend for himself?" He turned to Bepo and slammed his hand down on the table. "I knew it, it's a body double. Let's go Bepo, we don't know this guy." 

Bepo giggled as Law rubbed his temples with his fingers. 

"See? This is why I don't tell you people things."

"Why didn't you just stay for dinner, Law?" Bepo asked and sipped on his drink.

Law sighed. "We've been on one date. I'm not meeting his damn family. It's too much."

"Ah, there he is. I'd missed my favorite, deathly-allergic-to-commitment friend." Penguin mumbled into his glass, "Really had me going there for a second."

"What? It is too much. We're just messing around. It's not that serious!"

"Does he see it that way?" Bepo's gaze wasn't exactly judgmental but it still made Law squirm in his seat.

"We didn't exactly talk about it," he said to his empty glass.

"You better be nice to this one." The now definitely judgmental glare Bepo was leveling at Law was a look that would have probably been more fitting for a ruthless criminal taking the stand in his own defense.

"I am nice! Didn't you just say I was one of the nicest guys you know?" Penguin snorted.

"First of all, I specifically used the word 'kind.' There's a difference," Bepo said tersely. "Second, I saw for myself how most of your relationships, if you could even call them that, ended in college and it was never pretty. So, I'll say it again." He doubled down and leveled another ferocious glare at Law. "You better be nice to this one."

Law rolled his eyes. Bringing up college was a jab below the belt in his opinion. He'd been bored through most of it and knew he'd be dragging himself through med school in no time flat. He'd never had any intention of dating seriously since he knew no one wanted to deal with a med student anyway. He was saving himself and his partners the trouble by cutting them off before they got too attached. So what if that was well after he got what he'd wanted? He didn't lie to anyone about anything. He was very upfront that he was looking for a good time, not a long time.

He still had no intention of having any serious relationships, Luffy included. He was cute and he was fun, but he wasn't forever. The plan was to get back to school, finish his classes and residency and then, maybe, find someone worth dating. 

Bepo did not let up on his glare.

"Law, I'm serious. Don't mess this up."

"How many times do I have to tell you guys this? I don't want anything serious until I'm done with school. It's really not that complicated."

"You know, I keep hearing you say that, year after year, and I'm just not buying it," Penguin said, draping his arm across the back of his chair. "I think you're scared."

Law scoffed. "Scared of what, exactly, Mr. Relationship Expert?

"Actually loving someone, that's what." He leaned forward over the table and held Law's gaze. "Go ahead, tell me I'm wrong. I've only known you for seventeen years."

"Must be hard spending that long with your damn eyes closed," Law snapped. He'd come here with the intention of actually sharing something nice with these clowns and this was the thanks he gets? He wasn't scared, he was realistic. The fact of the matter was that the minute he was too preoccupied with school to go on dates or fuck around every night, he'd be left high and dry. No one wants to date someone who doesn't have any time for them. There wasn't any point in getting attached if everyone was just going to leave the moment things got slightly complicated.

"Whatever. I know what I know. You're probably already coming up with half a dozen ways to leave this one too." Penguin drained the rest of his beer and put his glass down on the table much harder than was necessary. "You're wrong on this one, Law. Don't fuck it up."

"You guys haven't even met him. We've been on one date, two if you count whatever the hell coffee was two days ago." He couldn't stop the frustrated growl that bubbled up out of his throat. "For all you know, he's just looking for a good time and a warm bed and I'm it. Don't make it something it's not."

"Alright, alright," Bepo said in an attempt to break the tension. "Peng, you know we've been down this road before and gotten nowhere. Let it go." 

He wasn't wrong. Penguin had laid out his opinions on Law's dating habits multiple times over the years. The only reason it hadn't come up recently wasn't because either side was less heated about it, it was only because Law hadn't been bothering with the dating scene at all. 

"I'm not letting it go this time," Penguin barked, still glaring down Law from across the table. "Someone has to tell him it's not a personal failing to want someone to love you."

It took a significant amount of self control on Law's end not to jump over the table and break Penguin's nose. The cracking noise that escaped his jaw when he grit his teeth at the comment was plenty to get his point across. 

"Well, I think Luffy sounds like a nice guy and maybe they can just take it one day at a time." Bepo's hand pressed against Law's chest and he realized he'd been half out of his seat, leaning over the table. Sure, he loved Penguin but that didn't mean he didn't sometimes want to throttle the guy. He knew exactly how to get under Law's skin and wasn't afraid to remind him of that particular skill every once and a while.

As Law slowly leaned back into the chair, Penguin held his gaze.

"You're going to freak out about how much you actually like this guy when you finally get your head out of your ass." He looked over to Bepo and smirked. "Next two rounds are on me if he makes it more than two weeks."

"You're on, bastard," Law spit.

Bepo looked between them and sighed. "Gods help me, they're both idiots," he said to his hands before leaving them both still seething at the table as he took the empties up to the bar. Penguin pulled out his phone and started tapping the screen.

"There we go," he said with finality and set his phone on the table. "Reminder set for two weeks from today for 'See if Law chickens out'."

He was really pushing it this time. Law had half a mind to punch that smug look off his face for implying he didn't have the guts to simply date a guy for more than two weeks. As if he hadn't saved Penguin's ass at least ten times back in high school from all the jocks he'd managed piss off with that smart mouth of his. He'd have spent the last of his teen years enjoying his meals through a straw if Law hadn't been there to issue the beat down when required.

"You know what? At least I could probably make it more than three damn weeks before being so clingy he had to head for the hills." It was a low blow. Penguin had been crushed when that girl dumped him but it had also been years ago so as far as Law was concerned, it was fair game.

To his surprise, Penguin smiled. "Alright, fine. We'll make it three weeks." He tapped away at his phone screen a few more times. "Three weeks, three drinks. Unless of course, you really are chicken..."

Law scoffed. Three weeks? Hell, three weeks was nothing. He could keep people at arms length for years. He was a professional, after all. If all he had to do was string Luffy along for three weeks, he'd basically already won. Gave him a good excuse to get laid in between the shoots where he'd get to blow Luffy's mind for the entire world to see. Win-fucking-win. Bepo returned to the table, balancing three full beer glasses in his hands.

"I could keep him eating out of my hand for months. Hope you've got room in the budget for this, because I'll be ordering some top shelf liquor when I make you eat your words."

"You two have never grown up," Bepo said with a sigh as he passed out the drinks. "If you really want to keep this going Law, you'll need to ask him out again."

"I'm already seeing him on Monday."

Bepo rolled his eyes. "That's work, it doesn't count."

"Does it count if work includes sexual activity?" 

Penguin made an exaggerated gagging motion over his beer.

Bepo wrinkled his nose. "Ugh, no. If he's getting paid for it then it's not a date."

Law shrugged and sipped on his freshly refilled beer. "I guess we could just go out to dinner again or something."

"Maybe something a little more romantic," Bepo said, tapping his finger to his lips. "What if you cooked for him?"

"Nope. Can't cook. Next."

Penguin snickered. "Really, you still can't cook?"

"I can still make a mean knuckle sandwich you piece of-"

"OKAY," Bepo said loudly and grabbed Law's collar before he could actually jump over the table and break Penguin's nose. "What does he like? What did you guys do all day today?"

"Uh-" Law was pretty confident they wouldn't want the full answer to that question. "We, uh, went over some scripts."

Bepo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, so do you have any idea what he likes to do? I mean besides you, apparently."

"Well, he goes out on runs with some guy with green hair and uh- Well, he really likes food I guess."

Penguin whistled. "Wow, such a deep connection you've forged here."

"Alright, I'm assigning you homework," Bepo said, waving off Penguin's comment. "Find out three things he likes and report back to me by the end of the day on Monday."

"Tch. I'm not doing any stupid homework."

"You will if you're going to win the bet you've got with that one now." Bepo hiked his thumb in Penguin's direction. 

"Hey, you can't pick sides like that!"

Bepo scoffed. "I'll do whatever I please." He turned back to Law and smiled. "We'll make it easier, two things he likes instead of three, alright? Just ask him what he does in his spare time or where his favorite place in the city is or something."

"Alright, alright. I'll ask him tomorrow."

"Let's get some food. I skipped dinner for this," Penguin said, pulling up the bar's food menu on his phone. They each ordered something to eat and conversation slowly drifted to new topics. They all must have been feeling nostalgic that night, since they traded stories about college and the old neighborhood through the entire meal. He couldn't remember the last time he'd heard some of them. A wandering thought drifted through his mind that maybe he should tell Luffy some of them when they went out next. 

He texted Luffy when he got back to the apartment.

"How bad was it with your brother? He sounded pretty pissed."

"He's fine. He wanted to make sure you weren't 'taking advantage' of me lol"

Law felt a pang of guilt shoot through him. Maybe he shouldn't have let that competitive streak he's got drag him into this dumb bet. He sighed and wondered again if he could weasel his way out of this contract before filming started but he knew he wasn't going to. Besides, Luffy was an adult who signed the contract just like Law had. He knew what he was doing. Nami had even warned him that Law was an asshole.

He thought about Bepo's accusatory glare and frowned. He really hadn't been that bad in college. 

Right?

Three weeks. He just had to be nice and play along for three weeks and then let him down nice and easy. Give him the 'it's not you, it's me' or something else he can't argue with. He's done that dozens of times. Easy.

Just had to get there without catching any unnecessary real feelings. 

"Thanks for today, I liked having breakfast with you"

His chest tightened at the message Luffy sent. He stuffed down the urge to just turn his phone off and never respond. He had to say something. 

"You weren't kidding about that breakfast place. It was pretty good."

"Mmm yeah. I love the sausage from that place. Yours isn't bad either"

Law snorted at the bad joke and then remembered he was supposed to be collecting information for a possible second date. When he actually sat down and thought about it, he probably didn't need to ask Luffy those questions Bepo had wanted him to. He didn't know much but he knew Luffy liked food and adventures. That was plenty to work with.

"Have you ever been to the bar at the top of the tower downtown?"

If Bepo wanted romantic, he would get it. The rooftop bar at the top of Sabaody Tower was pretty much the best date spot in the entire city, especially after the sun went down. Plus, the handrails around it were made of glass, so it felt like you could just walk off the edge and drop down the 150 floors on a whim if you wanted. Luffy would love it.

"I've always wanted to go!!! Isn't it expensive tho??"

"Want to go after the shoot on Monday? I'll get the tab this time if you promise to only order one entree."

"Yeah?!?? Really?!" Law laughed to himself at Luffy's over the top reaction.

"Yes, really."

"Omg yes!! Let's go!!"

It had been years since Law had been up to the tower, even longer since he'd gone with anyone. He found himself looking forward to seeing Luffy's face looking out over the city at sunset. He'd look good in the pink and orange hues as the sun sunk behind the edge of the city, breeze ruffling his soft hair. Maybe Luffy would look at him again like he had in the kitchen this morning. His heart skipped a beat at the memory.

He frowned as he realized he was day dreaming again. 

Three weeks. Not forever. Just three weeks.

Easy.

Chapter Text

"Beautiful! Just beautiful!" 

Law winced as Iva clutched his face in their hand, nails digging slightly into skin as they turned his face side to side in what felt like a clinical examination.

"Yes, I definitely see why Nami wanted you two to get these started." Luffy giggled as Iva finally released the hold on Law's cheeks. "Alright, take a seat, boys. Let's get going." They gestured to the couch and perched in a large director's chair that had been placed center stage. Law sat on the upstage end of the couch as Luffy bounced down next to him excitedly. 

Iva was... something. Law had run into some pretty, uh, loud people in the city's queer community but the fishnet tights and red thigh high leather boots seemed excessive. He wasn't totally sure if Iva was directing these videos or had plans to be in them based on how they were dressed. Their tight purple curls bounced slightly as they crossed their legs and looked from Luffy to Law and back again.

"Nobody has to take their clothes off today if you don't want to," they started. "This is mostly to make sure we're all on the same page and everyone's comfortable with the script material." Iva's gaze settled on Luffy. "Did you read the scripts I sent?"

Luffy blushed a little and looked at Law as if he was going to somehow bail him out. He had truly no idea how he'd gotten that impression.

"I read the first two!" Luffy said confidently. Iva rolled their eyes and sighed.

"You're everything your brother said you would be." They looked over to Law. "What about you?"

"Yeah, I read them." He'd finished the third script late last night after frantically trying to shove all the dialogue lines into his brain from the first one for most of the afternoon. Unfortunately his character did the vast majority of the talking in these scenes. Especially the first one, though he figured that was probably just because Luffy would be reasonably preoccupied through most of it. It was rude to talk with your mouth full, after all.

Iva smiled. "Good. At least one of you can follow directions. Anything in there that either of you have questions about?" Law shook his head and Luffy giggled and popped a piece of candy in his mouth.

"It all sounds fun to me!" 

"Well, good. Let's go over a couple of things and then if you boys want to, we can do a run through with cameras off to start."

Iva walked them through the stage directions for the first scene, pointing to the off stage positions where the cameras would be. There was a lot more to think about than Law had initially anticipated as he tried to keep track of how to position Luffy so the cameras could capture both of them at good angles. He figured since his character was the one calling all the shots, he'd probably also need to be the one making sure Luffy got into the right spot. They also established some non-verbal cues they could each use to warn the other when positions were changing or when they were moving on to the next part of the scene. It actually was a lot to try to shove into his brain all at once.

Luffy interrupted periodically to ask questions but mostly he hung off of Law's arm and murmured dirty, flirty comments in his ear when Iva turned away. It most certainly was not helping Law remember all of the information Iva was throwing at them. 

"Anyway, don't get too hung up on all the details and try to just enjoy yourselves," Iva said finally. "Even if you don't hit every line right, it'll look fine if you're both into it. I can edit just about anyone to look good as long as you give me something to work with. Any questions?"

"Do we get to fuck around now?" Luffy asked, sprawling himself on the bed with a sigh.

"If that's what you want, sure. I want you two to feel comfortable with me and the camera guys here."

Luffy shrugged from where he laid across the plush red blanket. "It's not that different from when I do the streams. Torao and I have already practiced anyway."

Law felt his face rapidly turning a particularly dark shade of pink. Those "practice sessions" probably didn't actually count.

"Ohho? Is that so?" Iva shot Law a knowing grin. "Well then, do you want the cameras on or off for the first run through? I'll give you the option."

"On!" Luffy said, pushing himself up onto his elbows. "What do you think, Torao?" He had that conspiratorial smirk on his face again. Law felt his heartbeat start to quicken in his chest. He figured it was time to give this a real shot. 

"On," he said, holding Luffy's gaze and smirking right back.

"Excellent! Let's see what you've got!" They turned and shouted off stage, "Make-up!"

"How's this?" Luffy asked in a soft voice as he held his arms out to the side and made a slow turn center stage. The loose t-shirt he had on was long enough to skim the hem of the pair of silky running shorts he was wearing that hugged his skin in all the right places.

"Good start, but I'll need to see what's underneath," Law purred from his position on the couch. He vaguely registered one of the cameras off stage moving into position as Luffy slowly stripped his shirt off. His attention immediately returned to Luffy when he turned back around with his hands clasped over his chest and met Law's eyes. The cameras wouldn't pick up the heated look Luffy was giving him from their angle.

"No need to be so shy," Law said, actually getting the line right this time. "Here, it's like this." He stood up from the couch and slowly pulled his own shirt over his head, holding Luffy's eyes until the last possible second.

This was wild. It was like completely silent foreplay, all secret glances the cameras wouldn't find but they both knew the meaning behind. He could feel the heat building in his gut as he crossed the stage and grasped Luffy's wrists in his hands.

"You're too pretty to hide under all those clothes," Law said, just loud enough for the microphone above his head to pick up. He wondered if Luffy knew that he meant it. "Let's see the rest."

Luffy's breath hitched as Law hooked his fingers under the waist band of his shorts and slowly slipped them down over his hips. He looked up at Law, wide eyed with pink dusted cheeks, as the fabric hit the stage floor. 

"There you go," Law said, taking a small step back to admire Luffy's naked form in the center of the stage. "You have a great body for this. But-" he crowded back into Luffy's space and cupped his face in one hand, running his thumb across his bottom lip. "There's more to it than just showing skin. You should show off your talents too."

Luffy's lips parted slightly and a soft whine escaped his throat. There was no defiance in his eyes this time, no bratty comments, no pushing boundaries. Luffy was completely pliant underneath his hands as he hooked a finger behind his bottom teeth and pulled down sharply. That cute little gasp made his blood burn.

"I hear you've got a bit of an oral fixation," he murmured, withdrawing his finger to lean in close to Luffy's lips. "Why don't you show me what that pretty mouth can do?"

Luffy's mouth was hot on his own when their lips finally met. They hadn't kissed since he'd dropped Luffy off two days ago, and a high-pitched needy whine reverberated into Law's mouth when he swept his tongue across Luffy's. He tasted like strawberry candy and bad decisions. Law thought idly that it was a perfect flavor combination. He groaned as he wrapped his hands around Luffy's waist and pulled him against his chest. He could tell Luffy was desperately trying to hold himself back as his fingers trembled slightly against Law's skin. 

Law tried to time in his head how long they had been kissing, but that was shockingly difficult when Luffy's breath hitched like that as he dragged his teeth across his bottom lip. When he finally pulled away, Luffy's cheeks blazed bright pink and his eyes were dark with a look Law had become extremely familiar with over the last handful of days. 

"Let's see what else you can do," he said with a smirk and guided Luffy down onto his knees. He recalled that this was approximately where Luffy had lost it last time as he vaguely heard a camera moving from behind him. There was going to be one essentially right over his shoulder to capture Luffy's face during the rest of the scene. He carded his hand roughly through Luffy's hair and slid his fingers under his chin, forcing his gaze up to his own.

"Be a good boy for me and I'll show you what I can do too," Law purred down to Luffy and watched that blush get a little darker as he eased himself out of his jeans. He was already sporting a full erection by that point, just seeing Luffy naked on his knees again was enough. 

"What do you say?"

"Yes, please," Luffy breathed. "I'll be good." He began slowly running his hands up Law's thighs as he looked up at him through long eyelashes. 

"Open," Law said firmly. Luffy complied immediately, letting his tongue roll out of his mouth with a soft, needy noise. "Good boy," Law murmured as he let one hand rest in Luffy's hair. He took note of the genuine shiver that ran up Luffy's spine as he guided his cock into his mouth. Law's brain completely forgot the cameras as Luffy's lips wrapped around him and his tongue began to move.

He watched Luffy's soft full lips begin to move up and down his length, eyes fluttering closed against his flushed cheeks. Law let his hand move slightly to push a lock of dark hair gently out of Luffy's face. The next word he spoke wasn't even in the script.

"Beautiful," he breathed.

There was still some part of him that knew where they were, knew the cameras were rolling, but it was a distant corner of his mind as Luffy's fingers tightened around his thighs. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the sight of Luffy working his mouth farther and farther down his cock. Soft, almost timid moans slipped from Luffy's lips when he looked up and met Law's gaze, mouth hanging open and dragging his tongue along the underside of Law's cock.

Fuck, he was getting paid for this. The realization slammed into him and he felt himself twitch in Luffy's mouth, earning a long and much louder moan in response.

"Fuck, yes," Law groaned as Luffy wrapped his mouth back around him and hollowed his cheeks. Gods, why did he ever think he wouldn't want to do this? Luffy was incredible with his mouth. He pulled himself almost all the way off Law's cock and swirled his tongue around the tip. 

"Gods, yes," he gasped. 

Every line of dialogue from here to the end was just Law telling Luffy how good he was and he meant every single word of it as Luffy continued giving Law the best blow job of his entire life for the cameras. Law controlled the pace with subtle tugs on Luffy's hair, slowing him down a few times to cool himself off and drag the scene out to their time target. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Iva hold up a hand, their agreed upon signal for five minutes left in the scene. He tapped his fingers twice on the back of Luffy's head to let him know the pace was about to pick up. He felt nails digging into his thighs as Luffy sucked in a deep breath through his nose.

Law pressed himself roughly into Luffy's mouth as Luffy moaned and swallowed around him.

"Good, fuck," Law breathed. "Take it. I know you can take it." He was properly fucking Luffy's face now and hurtling towards his own climax that he'd been holding back for what felt like a decade. Tears began to stream down Luffy's face and broken, garbled noises of pleasure escaped from his throat between thrusts. After a particularly deep moan from Luffy vibrated around his cock, Law knew he was close. He gave two sharp tugs on Luffy's hair in warning and jerked his head back off his cock.

"Open up for me one more time, baby," he grit his teeth at the stupid pet name that was in the script as he slid his hand quickly up and down his length. Luffy looked up at him with watery eyes, tear tracks down his flushed cheeks, panting on his knees as his cock leaked between his legs. As Luffy slowly stuck his tongue out, a loud moan ripped from Law's throat as he painted Luffy's face with streaks of cum. Luffy's eyes fluttered closed and he whimpered, swallowing the thick globs that had landed in his mouth. Law took a second to pull in two deep breaths before he remembered what he was supposed to do next.

He dragged his finger down through some of the mess on Luffy's face as Luffy looked up at him again. He slipped the digit into Luffy's mouth and the hot tongue curling around his finger almost stole the words from his lips before he could say them.

"Such a good boy," he half-moaned. "Do you want your reward?"

"Please," Luffy whined as Law's finger fell from his lips. The flush on his face had extended all the way down to his heaving chest and he looked completely desperate for Law to touch him. It was insanely hot.

Law sank to his knees and impulsively pulled Luffy in for a deep kiss, tasting himself on Luffy's tongue and groaning into his mouth, a little of his own release smearing on his cheek. He wrapped his hand around Luffy's throbbing cock and he shouted a curse against Law's lips, leaning back onto his hands as his legs melted beneath him. He stayed in that position, knees spread wide, hips jerking up into Law's hand, back arched and arms trembling beneath his weight as he tossed his head back in ecstasy. Law worked his hand quickly along Luffy's length, kissing his way up his chest and swirling his tongue around his nipple. Law knew he was sensitive there from that first time they'd fooled around in here and he was glad he'd made note of it because he wanted to pull that noise from Luffy's mouth again and again. 

Luffy's entire body began to tremble, his muscles pulled tight beneath Law's lips as he worked his way up Luffy's neck. When he'd made it up to the spot right beneath Luffy's ear, he decided he didn't give a fuck about the script any more.

"I want to watch you come for me, Luffy," he whispered into Luffy's ear, soft enough that no one else would be able to hear. Luffy's entire body pulled taught as a bow string and Law managed to move his body out of the way of the view just in time. 

"Oh Gods!" Luffy practically screamed up to the studio ceiling as his orgasm ripped through his body, his hips jerking and entire body trembling with every streak of white that painted his chest.

Law wrapped an arm beneath Luffy's back as he collapsed his full weight into Law's body, pulling in ragged breaths. A hand wrapped behind his neck and Luffy jerked him down, crashing their lips together roughly.

"Cut!"

To Law, the room was silent except for the beautiful sounds escaping Luffy's throat. His entire consciousness was enveloped by the feeling of Luffy leaning into his mouth aggressively, breathing heavily in between soft whimpers and gasps. It took longer than Law would like to admit for his brain to actually register Iva's voice, completely enraptured by the feeling of Luffy's mouth on his own. Luffy released his near bruising hold on the back of Law's neck and crumpled into his chest instead, hot breaths breaking across Law's bare skin in short bursts.

"Shit, Torao," he said between breaths. "Fuck, that was hot."

Law chuckled softly and lifted Luffy's limp body up off the floor. Law realized belatedly he was still half wearing his jeans and managed to step out of them, leaving them lying in the middle of the stage with the outfit Iva had picked out for Luffy to wear for all of five minutes.

"Boys, you two are my new favorite stars!" Iva said loudly, striding onto the stage. Law thought he would feel slightly more uncomfortable having essentially a total stranger talking to him while he was buck naked and holding a cum-covered Luffy in his arms. Apparently he was making progress on getting over the lingering embarrassment he had over his job, because he was minimally phased as Iva stood just a few feet from him under the bright lights.

"I think we might just use that take for the final product," Iva said, beaming. "What do you think?"

"Sounds good to me," Law said with a shrug and looked down at Luffy curled against his chest. "How about it, Lu?" He surprised himself at the nickname that just slipped out of his mouth.

"Can we watch it when you're done?" Luffy asked with a hoarse voice without looking up from Law's chest.

"Of course, dear! Go get cleaned up and head home. I'll send you two some times to meet up for the next scene." Iva turned to the unseen stage crew in the shadows. "That's a wrap! Let's flip the set for the scene tomorrow with the ladies," they said into the darkness as Law carried Luffy to the private shower just off stage. 

"Did you call me 'Lu'?" he murmured with a little giggle.

"Guess I did."

"Mmm, I like it." Law couldn't keep the stupid smile off his face and was grateful for the dim lighting as they finally arrived at the bathroom. 

"Too bad, I don't do pet names." 

He could feel Luffy's grin against his skin. "Sure, Torao."

He set Luffy down onto his feet and turned the water on. A warm set of arms wrapped around his waist with a sigh as he waited for the water to warm up. He winced a little as he felt the sticky mess smearing along his lower back.

"Do you have to get it all over me?" Luffy let out a weak, breathy laugh.

"It's half yours and we're about to shower, you know." Law felt Luffy rub his still cum-streaked face into the skin between his shoulder blades and rolled his eyes. 

"Get in the water already and quit being gross."

"No!" Luffy said childishly and gripped Law tighter, pressing every inch of his chest against Law's back. Law somehow managed to twist around in Luffy's hold so they were facing each other and slowly inched his way backwards into the running water, pulling the curtain closed behind them.

"Kiss me," Luffy demanded. Law sighed and realized that stupid smile he'd had on the way to the bathroom was back and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

"If I kiss you, will you let go of me and shower already?"

"Only if it's a good one."

"Deal."

Luffy pushed up onto his toes and wrapped his arms around Law's neck, sighing into his lips. It was like the kitchen all over again. Law felt like he could barely breathe through the tight feeling in his chest as Luffy's lips brushed softly across his own. He had no idea how long they stayed like that, sharing slow lazy kisses under the running water. Eventually, Luffy pulled away just slightly and their eyes met.

There was no lust behind his eyes now, no heat like there had been before, but Law's heart still raced in his chest. He ran his hands along Luffy's waist slowly, trying to memorize the feeling beneath his fingers. He couldn't explain it, but he never wanted the moment to end. He wished Luffy would keep looking at him like that forever. No one had ever looked at him like that before and it made his heart soar.

Six days. He'd known Luffy for six days. This was too much. These feelings were too big. He closed his eyes and sighed. 

He was just lonely. That was it. He was desperate for connection and he'd latched on to the first person who'd shown him a teaspoon of affection. It wouldn't last. It never did.

"We should get cleaned up," he murmured, eyes still closed. He felt Luffy lean his head into his shoulder. 

"I don't want to," he whispered, barely audible over the sound of the water cascading around them. Law didn't either, but they needed to get on with it. He couldn't stay here, not with this hot, tight feeling in his chest that wouldn't go away. Besides, they had places to be.

"Don't you want to go to dinner?" Luffy immediately picked his head up off Law's shoulder, pressing his lips into his skin as he did so.

"Good point," he said with a sigh. He took a half step back and lathered soap in his hands, but instead of washing himself, he began to pull soap-slicked fingers along Law's chest. Law rolled his eyes.

"Pretty sure I can handle this on my own."

"I know. I just like touching you."

Law decided it wasn't worth arguing about and grabbed the soap to start scrubbing Luffy's skin too. The rest of the shower passed in silence and Law found himself wondering what was going on in Luffy's head, which was strange. Luffy seemed to always just blurt out whatever was on his mind. The silence was so out of character compared to how he'd been acting the last several days. 

They stepped out of the shower and Law decided he had to say something.

"Are you alright?"

"I-" Luffy bit his lip for a moment. "Yeah, I'm fine." He smiled softly as he wrapped the towel Law handed him around his waist. "Let's get dressed."

They both stepped out of the bathroom towards the set of lockers they'd stored their clothes in. Iva caught them halfway.

"You boys do know there are two showers, right?"

Luffy grinned and wrapped his arms tightly around Law's waist. "I just wanted to shower with Torao!"

If Law blushed any harder, there wouldn't be any blood left to circulate in the rest of his body. He tried to pull Luffy's arms off of him without success. Iva looked at them critically, expression stern. Their next sentence was definitely not directed at Luffy. 

"I hope you know what you're doing."

Dear gods, he really didn't. He had no fucking clue what he'd gotten himself into. Now was definitely not the time to figure it out, either. He plastered a half-hearted smile onto his face and shrugged.

"He's just like this," Law said, trying to sound nonchalant. Iva's eyes narrowed and then a smirk formed on their lips.

"You haven't met his brother yet, have you?" The ice Law had apparently swallowed at some point grew in his stomach.

"No." 

The smirk twisted into something slightly more sinister.

"Good luck."

With that, Iva turned on their glossy red heel and walked back towards the stage crew, stopping to tell a stage hand where to move one of the large cameras. Luffy sighed against his chest.

"Aren't they nice? I like Iva."

Nice was not the word he'd been thinking of. He couldn't calm the growing sense of dread that had taken hold of his entire body. Luffy finally released his hold on Law and pulled a backpack out of the locker he'd claimed. 

"We're going to that bar from here, right?" Luffy swung the bag over his shoulder as he asked.

"Uh-" Law's brain took a second to catch back up. Right. He'd asked Luffy out to the rooftop bar downtown for another dinner date. Fuck, that was probably a huge mistake but it was too late now. He'd already extended the offer... and bet Penguin he'd make this last for three weeks before bailing. Gods above, maybe he should just change his number and skip town.

Alright, maybe that was a bit extreme. It was still just dinner.

"Yeah, let's leave from here. The place is kind of swanky. Did you bring anything to wear?" Law had warned him he'd have to wear something nicer than a t-shirt to this place. It was basically the nicest place in town. Well, the nicest place Law could afford anyway.

"Yeah! It was tough though, I don't have a lot of nice stuff. Nami took me shopping!" Luffy pressed a quick peck to Law's cheek as he walked back off to the bathroom with his backpack. Just how close were those two? Had he told Nami what they'd been up to off screen? Fuck, he'd never live this down now.

Law pulled his own bag of clothes out of the locker and moved to the other bathroom on the other side of the stage. He could feel the frown on his face as he changed into his best pair of black skinny jeans and his black button-down. He rolled the sleeves up to his elbows as he glared at himself in the mirror.

Three weeks. Just three weeks. That was it. They weren't anything more than that.

A part of his brain reminded him that he'd offered to help Luffy study for that firefighter exam. Well, they didn't have to be together to do that. He could maybe still help a little. Maybe they could stay friends when they were done with this contract. That wouldn't be so bad. He'd basically only had three friends his entire life. Four wouldn't be too hard to keep up with.

He rifled through his bag and found the eyeliner pencil he'd grabbed impulsively on his way out the door and stared down at it in his hand.

He didn't need to dress up for this guy. He wasn't special.

But then again... the way Luffy had looked at him when he got into the car and saw it last time had made his blood burn and his heart race. 

It wasn't for Luffy anyway. He could look good if he wanted to.

A moment later, he stepped out of the bathroom with the bag over his shoulder. Luffy was there waiting for him. 

"Damn," he said, looking Law up and down. "That's really just not fair."

"What?"

"How you can be so hot and make it look easy."

"You're one to talk." Luffy was wearing a slim-cut short sleeved red dress shirt and a pair of dark-washed jeans that were actually cut close enough to his body to show off the curve of his hips and legs. He had the first button undone on the shirt, and a small gold chain with a single red bead in the center hung off his neck. Law didn't miss the flip flops he still had on, though.

"Sandals?" 

Luffy's face flushed bright red. It was adorable.

"I forgot to bring other shoes." 

Law couldn't help but smile because honestly, he'd been impressed Luffy had even remembered to bring nice clothes in the first place.

Law shrugged. "It's a vibe. Roll with it." Luffy smiled at him and Law felt his heart rate pick up. Gods, had he been this pretty the entire time? 

"Ready to go?"

"Almost," Luffy said and took two quick strides into Law's space. He pulled open the top two buttons on Law's shirt, exposing the top of his chest tattoo for the world to see. "There," Luffy said with satisfaction.

Law chuckled. "You just can't help yourself."

"If I could see all of you all the time, I would," Luffy looked up at him and Law knew he wasn't just saying that. There was something genuine and warm behind his eyes. He couldn't help but return Luffy's soft smile.

"Let's go," Law murmured. He let Luffy link their fingers together as they made their way out of the studio and back to Law's car. 

The drive downtown was a short one since Nami's office building was already most of the way there and Luffy remained uncharacteristically quiet the entire way. It was making Law anxious. He didn't want to press again and make things awkward, so he let Luffy continue to stare silently out the window as they drove. 

Law decided he felt fancy and sprung for the valet parking Sabaody Tower offered as they arrived at their destination. They stepped into the elevator and Luffy wrapped himself around Law's arm with a sigh. 

"I've never gotten to come here before," he said, leaning his head against Law's shoulder as the elevator began to carry them up above the city. 

"Really?" Law peeled Luffy off his arm and turned him around so he was facing the glass wall of the elevator. "You should watch, then."

Luffy gasped as the metal behind them fell away around the tenth floor. The entire city began to expand out the floor to ceiling window, buildings slowly shrinking as they continued the journey up to the rooftop. 

Cora had brought him here on his eighteenth birthday and he'd had much the same reaction to the elevator ride. The glass was so clear, interrupted only by thin intermittent metal support beams, that it felt like you could fall right through it and onto the busy city streets below. As the elevator reached about floor 50, Law pointed out the same thing Cora had nearly a decade ago.

"There's the train tracks and the neighborhood. Do you see it?"

"Yeah!" Luffy giggled and pressed his fingers against the glass. "Look! That's my building!"

Sure enough, Luffy's little red building was easily discernible from the rest of the run down structures surrounding it. Law's eyes followed the roads and he found the park he and Cora used to walk through and smiled. He could pick out their old building from here too. He could still see the small garden on the roof that Cora had liked to spend so much time sitting in, watching the city go by on the streets below. 

A distant memory slammed into him like a gunshot.

They'd been sitting on some cheap folding chairs at the edge of the garden, watching the sun set behind the buildings. Law was seventeen, he'd just been dumped by his first ever boyfriend and it hadn't gone well. Cora pulled a beer out from the cooler he'd brought up and passed it to him. 

"I don't care if you're too young. Some life events just call for a drink," he'd said, lighting a cigarette. Law took a tentative sip on the beer and wrinkled his nose at the unfamiliar bitter taste. 

"You want to talk about it?" Cora asked.

"No," Law had said curtly. Cora sighed. They'd been pretty close by that point but there were still some things Law wasn't ready to share, heartbreak was one of them.

"Listen, kiddo," Cora said, taking a long drag on his cigarette. "These things are going to happen and it's alright. Everybody's different, so it might take a while to find someone who's right for you, but there is someone out there." Law didn't say anything to that. He took another sip of the bitter alcohol and stared straight ahead. After a moment, Cora set his hand on Law's, pulling his gaze.

"I'll tell you what you should look for, alright?" Law nodded silently. "They'll be someone that doesn't care where you live, what you wear, what kind of car you drive — none of that matters. They'll just love you, as you are, no holds barred. They'll look at you like you hold the whole world in your hands." He squeezed Law's fingers tightly. "And they'll make you think that maybe you could, too." 

Cora sighed deeply and leaned back into the chair. 

"That's what love is."

The elevator dinged behind him and he jumped at the sudden sound. Luffy had laced their fingers together at some point while Law had been lost in thought and he tugged on them now in earnest. He smiled up to Law as he released his fingers slowly.

"Come on! Let's eat!"

They checked in at the host stand and were led to a small table next to the glass railing overlooking the city. The bar had a half-roof overhang that blocked the wind just enough to make it comfortable sitting out in the open. They were 150 floors above the city, and the cars looked like ants as they navigated the streets far below them. Usually, the bar played pop music over some speakers but tonight there was a small jazz quartet set up on a short stage at the other end of the space. Law had no idea there'd be live music that night. He hadn't even checked the website before he'd asked Luffy to come up here with him, which was actually a little strange now that he thought about it. He usually looked into things like that.

"Wow," Luffy breathed, looking over the railing next to the table. He hadn't even sat down yet.

"Just wait until the sun sets in an hour," Law said, picking up the drink menu. Luffy looked back at him and beamed, eyes shining with unbridled delight. Law's breath caught in his throat. 

"This is awesome!"

Law felt the smile pulling on his lips and he once again had no control over it. He looked through the drink menu as Luffy finally took his seat across from him at the table. He inwardly cringed at the prices before he remembered that he'd have an extra two grand in his bank account by the end of the week. Fuck it, he could live a little for once.

He decided on one of the fancy city-themed mixed drinks and passed the menu to Luffy. 

"Holy shit, these are like twenty a pop!" Luffy said as he looked over the drink selection.

"Get whatever you want. Don't worry about it," Law said. "Just one dinner this time though. Not sure my wallet could handle two here."

Luffy giggled and looked at him over the menu. "It's not like I need two dinners. They just both sounded good!"

"Can I get you two something to drink?"

Law hadn't even noticed the waitress walking up to the table, he'd been so distracted by Luffy's little giggles and the way his eyes lit up when he smiled. Gods, he was so cute.

They ordered drinks and looked over the food menu. Luffy had an extremely difficult time choosing just one thing to order. They bargained and Law let him order an appetizer too with a promise of dessert later. All together, that was probably the cost of two entrees but who cared. 

They sat in silence for a long moment after placing their food order. Law was again struck by how quiet Luffy had been since the shoot.

"Luffy," Law started, and Luffy jumped a little and looked back at him from where he'd been staring out over the city. "Are you alright? You're really quiet all of the sudden."

"Yeah, I'm ok," he said quietly. "Just thinking."

Law raised an eyebrow at that. Luffy? Thinking quietly to himself? Sure he'd only known the guy less than a week, but even he thought that was odd.

"What? I'm allowed!" 

Law chuckled and shook his head. "Never said you weren't, I just feel like you aren't this quiet that often. You can tell me I'm wrong though." He took a sip of the expensive cocktail he'd ordered. Gosh, they pour them strong here. Maybe that's why they were so expensive.

Luffy sighed and took a sip of his own drink, his nose wrinkling just slightly. "Woah they put a lot in there, huh?"

"Not sweet enough for you?"

"No, no, it's good. I can just taste the alcohol." He sighed again as he set the glass down. "Been thinking about Ace today, if you want to know."

"Do you want to talk about it?" 

"Do you want to listen?" 

Law nodded and a weak smile spread across Luffy's features. 

"Really?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, tell me about him." He knew exactly why Luffy had asked twice. He'd stopped talking to his friends about Cora a while ago. He couldn't stand the tragic looks on their faces and the way they suddenly acted like they had to walk on eggshells whenever his name came up. The only one who was reasonable about it was Bepo, but even he still did it sometimes. Law was determined not to make Luffy feel like his brother's name was some kind of bad word.

Luffy began playing with the red bead on the thin gold chain he'd worn and leaned his elbow on the table with a sigh.

"I just wish he could have seen this," he said. "None of us have ever been up here, but we always wanted to come. We'd talked about it but things always got in the way, you know? Plus the tour of the building and the observation deck is so expensive, especially for three people to go together." He sighed and looked out over the city again. 

"What did you guys do together instead?"

The smile returned to Luffy's face. "Caused trouble, mostly." 

"I don't doubt that for a second."

Luffy launched into a series of animated stories about Ace and exactly how much trouble they got up to on a regular basis. Most of the stories ended with Ace beating Luffy's ass for somehow messing things up and making the trouble even worse. They always managed to get themselves home in the end. It seemed like Luffy was usually the one to get them into trouble and Ace typically got them out.

Their food arrived entirely too soon, interrupting another of Luffy's stories, this one about how he'd accidentally pissed off some low level gang goon by tripping on the sidewalk and covering him in the soda he'd been drinking. It wouldn't have been such a big deal if it hadn't soaked through the guy's jacket, drenching all the drugs in his pocket that he was supposed to be selling. It sounded like Ace had really had his hands full.

The food was absolutely delicious, and Law actually finished his plate this time, his nerves much calmer than the last time they'd gone out together. Luffy seemed back to his normal self finally, rambling on about how delicious everything was and stuffing food into his face like he hadn't eaten in weeks.

When the waitress came to clear their plates, Law ordered dessert for them.

"Do you still have that mile high ice cream pie?" he asked, blushing a little at ordering something so childish. He wasn't much for sweets but Luffy had him feeling nostalgic.

"Of course! I'll bring it right out," their server said with a smile, setting the two fresh cocktails they'd ordered on the table for them.

"Wow, do you have the menu memorized or something? Do you come here a lot?" Luffy asked, taking a sip of his second drink.

"No, I haven't been here in a long time," he said. He took a deep breath and decided if Luffy could share about Ace then maybe he could talk about Cora. 

"Cora brought me here for my birthday once."

Luffy smiled softly. "Cora was your dad, right? The one who adopted you?"

Law felt his heart squeeze. Nobody called him that. Even Law hadn't until after he died.

"Yeah. That's my dad." He took a drink to compose himself. "Anyway, I remember the ice cream." He chuckled a little as another memory crashed into his brain.

"He asked them to put birthday candles in it and then set his sleeve on fire when he reached over them for the damn spoon."

Luffy laughed, open and bright. He hadn't heard anyone laugh when he'd talked about Cora for years. That dumb smile was back, he could feel it.

"You weren't kidding, he really was a klutz, huh?"

"Oh yeah, he was hopeless. Some days I still can't believe we- I made it out of that apartment alive." 

He looked up and found Luffy staring at him, an unreadable expression on his face.

"What?"

"Ace would have liked you," he said softly. "I wish you could have met him."

"I-" he tried to speak but the air suddenly felt very thin. "I wish I could have met him too," he said, surprising himself that he meant it.

An enormous slice of chocolate and vanilla ice cream cake, complete with whipped cream and half a dozen cherries, suddenly appeared between them. Luffy's eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning. 

"You didn't say it was HUGE!"

Law laughed and grabbed one of the dessert spoons the waitress had set down. 

"Good thing I've got you to help out, huh?"

He took a bite and it was exactly as he remembered it. It was still entirely too sweet. He'd sat there and dutifully finished every bite with Cora, though. No one had ever done anything so nice for him before and he was determined not to let a single drip of slowly melting ice cream go to waste. He'd had an awful stomach ache on the drive home, which he hadn't uttered a single word about.

Luffy had no such issue with sweets, apparently, as he plowed through the majority of the gigantic dessert with gusto. Law was genuinely shocked at himself. He'd usually be horrified by the way Luffy ate, chocolate sauce smeared across his lips and a bit of whipped cream clinging to the tip of his nose, but tonight, he found it incredibly endearing.

The ice cream slowly disappeared and the waitress returned to drop off the check. Law slipped his card inside as Luffy tried in vain to get all of the chocolate off his face, a tiny smear still clinging to the corner of his mouth. 

"Missed a spot," Law said and he didn't even realize what he was doing until he'd already licked his thumb and wiped it across the little chocolate stain on Luffy's mouth. It was something Cora had always done to him, even well after that trip on his eighteenth birthday. It used to drive him insane.

"Sorry," Law murmured, pulling his hand away. Luffy caught his wrist in his fingers.

"Don't apologize," Luffy said, smiling at him softly again. "It was sweet."

The checkbook arrived back at the table and Luffy quickly released his hold on Law's wrist. He scribbled his signature on the bottom of the bill, leaving a very generous tip since the waitress had been smart enough to basically leave them alone for the whole meal. 

They rose from the table and Luffy walked back over to the railing to look out over the city again. They should probably just go. He should drop Luffy back off at home and pretend the butterflies in his stomach didn't exist. It had been a long day already anyway. 

Too bad his mouth had other ideas.

"Do you want another drink, Luffy?"

Luffy turned to look at him in confusion. "Didn't we just cash out?"

Law shrugged. "We can order at the bar. I want to stay and watch the sunset anyway."

"Alright, but I'm getting this round. Those drinks are too pricey," Luffy said, pushing himself off from the railing. He grabbed Law's hand and started off towards the bar. Luffy ordered them both another overpriced cocktail, grinning ear to ear the entire time. They found a standing table over on the west side of the building and sipped their drinks as the sun began to sink slowly towards the horizon.

Law had come here a few times after Cora had passed, always alone though. He'd stay for a few drinks and watch the sunset. Then he'd drive back home in silence and wish he could have had one more chance to take Cora up there for his birthday. 

He wondered if it had really been a good idea to bring Luffy up here as he watched him sipping his drink and smiling. He looked so happy, so joyful. It was something Law wasn't sure he'd ever feel again, but it was just so beautiful to watch. Luffy rambled on about how pretty the clouds looked as the sky rolled through its pinks and golds. Law agreed with him completely, though he'd barely seen the sky. 

"Take a picture with me!" Luffy said suddenly, whipping his phone out of his pocket. 

"Sure, why not," Law said, following Luffy the short distance over to the railing. Luffy held his phone up and snapped a picture. 

"Do you guys want a picture together?" Their waitress had wandered by and was smiling at them politely.

"Yeah! Would you? Thank you so much!" Luffy excitedly passed his phone over and grabbed Law's hand. Law found himself smiling a little wider than he'd intended.

"Torao, kiss me."

He turned to look over at Luffy, who'd slipped closer, his free hand braced against Law's chest.

"What? For the picture?" Luffy nodded emphatically. Law hesitated but he didn't know why. There were way more compromising photos out there of him. Hell, Luffy had one on his phone right this second.

"Please?" 

He was never going to say no to that look on his face.

"Alright."

Their lips met briefly, just glancing off each other really. It still managed to take Law's breath away. Luffy grinned up at him as he pulled away, looking like he'd just won the lottery.

"You two make a cute couple," the waitress said, holding Luffy's phone out to him. 

"That's mostly him," Luffy giggled. "Isn't he cute?" Law felt the heat rushing to his face. Gods, Luffy was so incredibly good at making him suddenly feel like he was under a microscope.

The waitress simply smiled politely and laughed a little. "That's so sweet," she said as Luffy retrieved his phone from her hand. "Have a nice night!"

Luffy excitedly looked through the photos she'd taken.

"These are great! I'll send them to you!"

They made their way back to the table and slowly finished their drinks, watching the sun slip behind the city buildings. Luffy pointed out different landmarks in the city, tossing in little stories of the ones he'd been to. 

"I like sunsets, but I think I like sunrises better," Luffy said as the last rays of sunlight escaped from beyond the horizon. 

"Really? Why's that?" Law finished his drink and sighed contentedly. He didn't understand Luffy's opinion. Sunsets were great.

"Because it's over the ocean on that side." Law turned to look at him. 

"Have you ever been to the beach?"

"Yeah! All the time! I love the water." He sighed wistfully. "Sometimes I just want to get on a boat and sail away, you know? Leave all this behind and start over. You can be free on the sea. No rules, no bills, no jobs." He slowly drained the rest of his glass and didn't seem to notice the stunned silence he'd left Law in.

He had absolutely not expected Luffy to just rattle off his old childhood fantasy he'd had since his whole world crumbled to ash. How many times had he imagined watching the city shrinking into the distance while he floated away on the waves? Had to have been at least in the hundreds.

The small ensemble struck up a familiar tune that pulled Law's brain into a whole different direction. He turned to watch the band.

"Do you know this song?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah," Law said, still watching the bass player plucking along with the tune. "Cora used to have a ton of old jazz records he'd listen to. I know most of the standards."

"Come dance with me!" That got Law's attention back on Luffy.

"What? No. I don't dance."

"Sure you do! Come on, please? Other people are!" Law had noticed the dozen or so couples that had wandered on to the dance floor at the start of the song. Not surprising, as it was a very well known love song and it was sunset at a romantic rooftop bar.

Luffy tugged at his sleeve with urgency. It was the alcohol, it had to be, because he'd never danced to some sappy love song with someone before. He looked at the pleading look in Luffy's eyes and something shifted in his brain.

Maybe he could try it. Just this once.

"Fine," he said and they abandoned their empty glasses on the table as Luffy led him to the dance floor. Dim, twinkling lights began to turn on as the sky darkened around them. 

"Do you even know how to dance?" he asked Luffy when they found an empty corner to take up.

"Nope!" Law rolled his eyes.

"I'll show you." He recalled the awkward and bumbling dance lesson Cora had given him in the middle of the living room one lazy Saturday afternoon as they'd listened to yet another one of Cora's lame jazz albums. He set one of Luffy's hands on his shoulder and laced his fingers through the other. He set his hand on Luffy's waist and began to sway him along to the music. After a moment, he realized he'd begun to hum along to himself.

"Does it have words?" Luffy asked softly.

Law nodded. "Yeah it's pretty famous. I'm surprised you've never heard it."

"Will you sing it?" Law snorted.

"I'm not much of a singer."

"I bet you are. Come on, I want to know the words." 

"Absolutely not," he huffed.

Luffy pressed himself closer, his fingers threading through the little hairs at the base of Law's neck. 

"Please? No one else can hear if I'm this close, right?"

He could feel himself blushing furiously, suddenly extremely aware of what a public space they were in. The song would be over soon. He could just say no. 

He found himself murmuring the words in Luffy's ear as the chorus came around for the last time. He really wasn't much of a singer, but Luffy had asked for it. He hoped he still remembered the lyrics right since he hadn't heard the song in years.

"Someday my happy arms will hold you

And someday I'll know that moment divine

When all the things you are, are mine"

It really was a cheesy love song, but Law had heard it a million times in Cora's tiny apartment. He really had been a hopeless romantic, Law thought to himself. Law had never seen the appeal of that kind of thing. He let his voice trail off as Luffy squeezed his fingers tightly. They danced together for a few more moments until the band struck the final chord. 

As the song ended, they pulled apart slowly and Luffy looked up at him, smiling. 

It hit Law like a freight train.

He looked up at Law like he was the sun, the moon and the stars. Like Law never had and never could do anything wrong. 

Like he held the world in his hands. 

Law pulled their fingers apart as if burned and took a full step back. Luffy's smile faltered.

"Torao?"

"We should go. It's getting late," he said. 

"Aww, I wanted to dance some more," Luffy whined. Law looked past him, over the railing where the city lights were twinkling on in the distance, making it seem like there were two sets of stars. He had to get out of here. They should have never come up here. This was all a huge mistake.

He turned and began making his way to the exit. 

"Torao, wait up!" Luffy grabbed his hand and Law jerked it away. This was stupid. He didn't hold hands. He didn't dance. He didn't whisper lyrics from love songs in some guy's ear. He didn't even recognize who he was any more. What the fuck was his problem?

They arrived back at the elevator and stepped inside.

"What's wrong, Torao?" Luffy's voice was strained with worry. Law skillfully ignored the way his chest burned when he heard it. 

"Nothing. It's just late," he said flatly. He didn't turn to watch the city through the glass this time. He leaned his hips against the wall instead and crossed his arms, willing the elevator to move faster.

"You're a terrible liar," Luffy said. "Fine, if you don't want to tell me, then don't." He sighed and slid over next to Law and leaned his head lightly on his shoulder. "You could if you wanted to though. Promise I won't judge you or anything."

He had no idea he was making things so much worse. Why did he have to be so sweet? Why did he have to constantly be pushing himself into Law's space? Why did he have to be so good at wiggling past all the little walls and booby traps he'd had set for years? And why did he have to be so damn cute while he did it?

Why did he have to be so perfect?

This wasn't what was supposed to happen. They were supposed to just be getting paid. This wasn't part of the contract— part of the plan.

The elevator doors opened and Luffy didn't try to grab his hand again as the valet pulled Law's car around, probably because Law had his fists shoved in his pockets, keeping a careful distance between them the entire time they stood waiting. 

The car was oppressively silent as he got on the freeway. Finally, Luffy said something.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

"For what?"

"Tonight. I told you before, I'd always wanted to go there." He sighed and ran the bead up and down the chain around his neck again. Law decided he actually did have more he wanted to say that night.

"The necklace is nice," he said. "You didn't strike me as a jewelry type, though." 

"I'm not, it's not mine." He undid the clasp behind his neck and let the chain fall into his hand. "It was Ace's. Well, technically it was Dadan's, our unofficial foster mom when gramps would leave town, but Ace wore it after we moved out and she moved to the next city over. We didn't see her much after that."

He sighed heavily and gripped the bead tightly in his hand.

"I wanted to bring it. Since he never got to go up there but he always wanted to take me."

Law knew exactly what that felt like. He'd wished he could have brought Cora back there too. He recalled the plain silver ring he'd found when he was clearing out Cora's apartment after he'd passed. It was in a small shoe box with a handful of photos of a much younger Cora in a neat simple suit, grinning next to a woman he'd never seen before in a white dress. He'd never even known he'd been married. Law had been pissed when he first found it, angry that he'd kept such a secret and now couldn't even answer for it. But he kept the box. It was up on the top shelf of his closet.

He swallowed down his lingering fear and reached his hand out, setting it lightly on Luffy's leg as he changed lanes. 

"I'm glad you brought it."

Luffy stuffed the necklace into his pocket and wrapped his fingers around Law's hand. The silence didn't feel quite so cold anymore as the street lamps streamed past them. Law found his mind wandering again, but this time he found himself thinking about waking up next to Luffy like he had a few days prior. His warm arms wrapped tightly around his waist, soft hair sprawled out across his shoulder, it had been surprisingly comfortable. He'd slept like a rock for hours, too. He considered turning the car around and driving back to his apartment, which was probably a huge waste of time and gas, but suddenly he just really wanted to fall asleep like that again.

"What's on your mind, Torao?"

"Uh-" He really didn't have an appropriate answer to that. "Just, uh, thinking."

Luffy chuckled softly and squeezed Law's fingers. "Just tell me, jeeze. I guarantee it's not that big of a deal."

Maybe he shouldn't have had that third drink because he suddenly blurted out, "Do you want to sleep at my place?"

Luffy laughed and it began to slowly melt the ice in Law's gut. "Sure! Your bed is comfy! Wait, aren't we going the wrong way for that?"

"Yeah. I don't care." He got off at the next exit and got back on going the other direction. 

This was some of the dumbest shit he'd ever done. He didn't even want sex, he actually just wanted to go cuddle up under the blankets with Luffy— the guy he'd just face fucked on camera to pad his savings account and then taken out on a hopelessly romantic date for no reason other than Bepo had sort of suggested he should. All that combined with the completely impulsive and ridiculous bet he now had with Penguin about this whole impossible situation had him feeling completely nuts. 

He could feel the giggles bubbling in his chest before they suddenly burst out of him. 

"What's so funny?" Luffy asked and started giggling along with him.

"It's so stupid, it's just so stupid," he said between his laughter.

"What is?"

"This. Us." He sighed and tried to calm his weird semi-hysterical giggles. "It's supposed to just be porn, Luffy. We fucking make porn, of all things."

"So what? It can be whatever we want," he said confidently. "Do you want it to just be porn?" he asked, suddenly serious.

Law bit his lip. He didn't know what he wanted any more. He thought he'd just wanted to fool around, make some cash, and then move on with his life. He'd still only known the guy for less than a fucking week. But, gods, this feeling. He couldn't get enough of it. 

"Gods above, Law, will you just tell me what's on your mind already? Why's it got to be such a big secret?"

"I don't- I don't talk about stuff with people just sort of in general," he said. "I only ever really talked to Cora. It's not personal. It's a habit."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why be so secretive all the time?"

"Because," Law said gravely and gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. He almost pulled his other hand away from Luffy but something stopped him. "The world is full of people who want to see you suffer. They'll use anything you give them to do it."

Luffy was quiet for a moment until he lifted Law's hand and gently kissed the ink on the back of his fingers.

"Do you really think I would do that to you?"

Law pulled his hand away without hesitation this time, not bothering to even look over at Luffy as he did it.

"You never know."

"When you finally get around to telling me who hurt you like that, I'll beat their ass with my own two hands." The resolute determination in Luffy's voice caught Law off guard as they rolled up to the stoplight. He turned and found Luffy looking right back at him, an intense expression on his face. It made Law believe he'd meant what he said. It also made it very difficult to breathe.

"It's a long list," Law finally managed to say.

"Do you think that matters?"

The light changed and Law dragged his eyes away from that look on Luffy's face so he could continue navigating them to his apartment. 

When they finally arrived at the parking garage, Luffy swung his backpack over his shoulder with a bright smile on his face, a far cry from the blazing look he'd had in the car before. Law locked the car behind them and Luffy pulled at his hand again. Law let him knit their fingers together as they made their way up to his apartment. 

He knew he was probably giving the most confusing mixed signals ever at this point but he was finding it harder and harder to care. He was who he was, Luffy would just have to deal with it. If he couldn't, the problem would solve itself just like it usually did.

Luffy slipped out of his sandals as he set his backpack on the floor and flopped onto Law's couch with a sigh.

"Uh, make yourself comfortable, I guess."

Luffy giggled. "So there."

"You want a beer or anything?"

"Nah, I'm good. I'm kind of sleepy actually." As if proving his point, he yawned and stretched his arms over his head.

"Yeah, me too," Law said. "Want to just head to bed?"

"Kind of. Is that lame?" Law shrugged.

"Nah, I'm tired too. I can find you some pajamas to wear." He walked back to his room and heard Luffy slide off the couch and follow behind him. 

"I usually sleep naked, honestly."

"Well you can do that here if you want, I guess. Not like I haven't seen that." Luffy came up behind him as he was pulling a t-shirt out of his dresser. Two warm arms wrapped around him as Luffy pressed his face against Law's back. 

"Please tell me you're not going to wear that."

Law chuckled. "I guess I don't have to." He set the shirt back in the drawer and closed it. Luffy didn't move. "Come on, I've got to wash my face and brush my teeth."

"Noooo," he whined. "The make-up is so pretty on you."

"It's literally the smallest amount of eyeliner and you're not going to see it while you're asleep."

"You don't know that."

Law sighed and slowly unwound Luffy's arms from around his waist. "You're ridiculous. At least let me brush my teeth."

"Fine, fine," he said with a sigh. Law made his way to the bathroom and realized Luffy obviously hadn't packed for an overnight stay. 

"I've, uh, got a spare toothbrush if you want."

"Cool, thanks," he said and followed Law into the bathroom. They stood in front of the mirror and brushed their teeth together, which was not at all helping the icy dread that was still threatening to creep through Law's veins. He tried desperately to squash the thoughts of things going too fast, and Luffy being too close as he finished his nightly routine. Well, most of it. He still hadn't washed his face.

He slipped into the bed next to Luffy, wearing only a pair of shorts per Luffy's previous request. True to his word, Luffy was stark naked as he tapped something into his phone.

"If I don't tell Sabo where I am, he'll totally freak again," Luffy said with a sigh. 

Law's own phone buzzed on the nightstand and he glanced at it briefly. Two messages from Bepo, one from Penguin, and the latest one appeared to be from Sachi. He rolled his eyes and set it to silent as he placed it face down back on the table. Luffy placed his own phone on the other nightstand and shimmied down into the blankets as Law flicked the light off. 

Luffy immediately curled his entire body around him, pressing soft kisses into his shoulder and chest. He traced his fingers along the ink on Law's chest with a sigh. 

"This is perfect," he whispered.

Law hummed in agreement and stilled Luffy's hand on his chest with his own. Luffy traced gentle patterns on the top of Law's hand with his thumb and leaned his head onto Law's shoulder, his soft hair brushing against his neck. 

It really was perfect, Law thought, taking a long breath. Luffy's hair smelled a little like the soap from the shower back at the studio and something warm, like a late summer afternoon. Law felt his eyes fall closed as Luffy's soft breathing surrounded his ears. 

It was the fastest he'd fallen asleep in years.

Chapter Text

2:47am

Well, he supposed it was a little optimistic to think he could reverse over a decade of horrible sleep by just having Luffy in his bed. It didn't help that the guy was a human furnace. Law felt like he was burning alive under both Luffy's hot skin and the warm blankets. 

He tossed the blankets off and tried to get comfortable again, gently shifting Luffy off his shoulder and grimacing at the string of drool he left behind. Luffy mumbled something unintelligible at the movement and curled up around the pillow, immediately falling back asleep. Must be nice.

Despite his intentions to get back to sleep himself, Law's eyes stayed open. Luffy looked so peaceful like this— dark eyelashes fanned out gently over soft skin, messy locks of hair splashed across the pillow case, lips parted just a little. Law found himself slowly tracing his fingers across the small raised scar beneath Luffy's eye, his touch feather light to keep from waking him. A word broke across his brain like a tidal wave— insistent, unrelenting, and outside his control— "Perfect."

He pulled his hand away quickly and decided he better go do something else.

He shifted out of bed and walked noiselessly down the hall to the kitchen, turning the living room lights to their lowest setting so he had just enough light to see but hopefully wouldn't wake Luffy. He'd pulled the door mostly closed behind him on the way out but the hinge usually squeaked loudly right before it closed all the way, so he left it open just a bit. He filled the kettle with water as quietly as possible and stood staring at the floor while it began to warm. 

He made an attempt to sort through what the hell had gotten him here. It was never supposed to be like this. This was way too much, way too fast. It was supposed to just be a temporary arrangement. Just a job. How many times had he told himself that over the last week? He sighed to himself in the dimly lit kitchen. 

How many more times would he have to say it to believe it?

His head felt like the coastline after a hurricane— windswept and covered with things that weren't supposed to be there.

He looked across the kitchen counter into the dining room at the small collection of photos he had of Cora on the wall. 

"You spent all that time talking about love and all that stupid shit," Law muttered, nearly silent. "You didn't tell me what it was supposed to feel like, you know." He sighed again deeply and walked over to the small table in the dining room, sitting in the chair across from the photos. 

"It's been a week, Cora. A week." He put both his elbows on the table and held his head in his hands. All their conversations about love had been completely one-sided. Cora would ramble on and on about how great it was and how Law had some special person out there and to always be ready for it and blah blah blah. 

"When can I meet this one?" Cora would ask, whenever Law would admit to actually seeing someone, no matter how intermittently. 

"Never," Law would say. "It's not serious. Don't worry about it."

Cue the lecture on what love is and how he shouldn't be so flippant about relationships and how everyone has someone out there for them and on and on and on about things that had more in common with fairytales than reality.

"I told you I'm not figuring this out until after med school," present-day Law murmured to the half-lit empty room. "It's not worth it."

Yet another easily imagined response. "Not worth it?! Love is always worth it," Cora would say. More conversations they'd had a million times. Law couldn't even hold back the eye roll at the imagined comment, it was such a deeply ingrained muscle memory.

"Tch. What the hell would you know about it?" Law muttered, hearing the water finally starting to boil behind him. 

"Torao?"

Law jumped so high he nearly fell off the chair.

"Seriously? You can sleep through a train but not an electric kettle?"

Luffy shrugged. "I don't sleep as good in a new place." He'd obviously raided Law's dresser, since he stood in the hallway wearing only a black t-shirt with some punk band's logo on it from nearly a decade ago that reached halfway down his thighs. Law found his gaze got stuck on the hem of the shirt and how it contrasted with the slightly tanned skin underneath.

"Who were you talking to?" Luffy asked, eyes wandering around the room obviously searching for the other side of the conversation Law was having.

Law sighed and glanced back over to the photos on the wall before he pushed himself up from the table.

"No one."

He walked into the kitchen and opened the coffee cabinet, reaching behind the multiple bags of roasted beans to retrieve the small container of chamomile tea he kept on hand for particularly sleepless nights. 

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," Law said, pulling down a mug. "Want some tea?"

"Sure." Luffy wandered over to the kitchen counter and propped himself on his elbows as Law pulled down a second mug and some honey that probably hadn't expired yet, despite Law never using it. They stood in silence for a moment as Law poured the water over the tea bags. 

"Torao," Luffy started slowly, and it was the most hesitant Law had ever heard him. "Have you been in a lot of relationships?"

Law kept his gaze fixed on the countertop. "No, not really."

"Really? It seemed like you've been with more people than me so I thought maybe..."

"I've been with plenty of people just-" he sighed again and ran a hand through his hair. "Just nothing serious."

"Oh."

Luffy was silent again as Law poured a generous amount of honey into one of the mugs and slowly stirred it with a spoon. He didn't actually know if Luffy took honey in his tea, but based on the intensity of the sweet tooth he had, he figured it was a safe bet.

"You didn't, um, answer me- in the car, I mean." Luffy's voice was quiet and unsure as he fumbled his way through the words.

Law slid the mug slowly across the counter towards him. 

"I know."

Law placed the box of tea back in its place and let his head rest on the cabinet door. Why the hell did he have to wake up? Why did they have to have this conversation now? It was three in the damn morning. He just wanted to be alone with his thoughts like he usually was, arguing with a dead man in his own damn head for a while. Was that really too much to ask for?

"Have you ever been in love, Torao?"

Luffy's question broke through the violent tumult in Law's brain and wrenched him back to reality. He risked a glance over at Luffy and found him with both hands wrapped around the mug, staring into it intently and worrying his lower lip between his teeth. 

"No," Law said quietly. "Have you?"

"No," Luffy said to the mug. 

"Why do you ask?"

Luffy shrugged and said nothing, still staring into the steaming liquid. Law finally lifted his cup up off the counter and made his way to the living room.

"Come on, no sense in standing around in the kitchen." He sunk into the couch cushions and set the warm drink on the coffee table as Luffy followed slowly behind him, setting his own mug down carefully. 

"So, um, why haven't you had many relationships? Is it on purpose, or?" Luffy fidgeted with his mug where it sat on the table while he spoke. 

"Guess you could say that, yeah," Law said. "Had a few explode in my face and then I just sort of decided I wasn't going to try to find anything real until after med school." 

"Why?"

Law heaved a long sigh. "Nobody wants to date a med student. It sucks. Broke all the time, long days sitting through lectures, then hours of studying for the tests every couple of weeks. And that's just the actual school part." He leaned back into the couch cushions and dragged his hand down his face. 

"Then there's residency shit, which is basically glorified slave labor. Lots of long hours on your feet in some gods-forsaken hospital saying 'yes sir' when all you really want to say is 'fuck off.' Not to mention board exams and trying to get a damn job," Law sighed again. "Nobody wants to date that."

"Hmm." Luffy took a tentative sip of his tea. "Did you ever ask them?"

"Ask them what?" 

"Ask if they'd still want to date you through all that."

Law clicked his tongue and leaned forward to blow over the hot tea. "No point. I know the answer."

"So, you don't think someone who loved you would be willing to go through that with you? Isn't that what love is about? Being there for someone even when it's tough?"

"Love is about knowing that even on your worst days, the one who loves you will still be there, still loving you even when you can't love yourself." 

Another one of Cora's stupid, useless, pointless, made-up lines about love slammed into Law's head. He almost dropped his mug on the carpet. 

"That's a fantasy," he muttered. "The real world's not like that."

"How do you know? You've never even asked."

Law finally looked over at Luffy where he was curled around his knees on the other end of the couch. He had that intense look on his face again, like the one he'd had in the car. He was deadly serious about this and daring Law to answer. 

"What are you, some expert? Thought you said you'd never dated anyone either."

Luffy shifted so his legs were crossed beneath him, pulling his arms across his chest, and frowned. "Nobody's an expert, Torao. You don't have to be. It's just something you know in your gut."

Law scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Alright. What's your gut telling you then, huh?"

Law watched Luffy's face flush dark pink in real time. It would have been cute if it hadn't caused Law's heart rate to immediately double. Luffy quickly looked away towards the floor and shifted his weight a little on the couch. 

"I don't totally know yet," Luffy said quietly. "But I've got a few ideas."

They were silent again for a moment as Luffy took another sip of his tea. Law wished he'd never asked Luffy to come back to his apartment. He wished he'd never gone on that dinner date. Hell, he wished he never went out for coffee. He should have told Nami he just wasn't interested in her stupid videos and her stupid money and-

"Listen, Torao," Luffy said and Law realized he'd been biting the inside of his lip almost to the point of bleeding. "I know you, um, don't like talking about stuff but I think we should talk about what I asked earlier. You said we should communicate, right?"

Law nodded and tried to take a sip of his tea since his mouth suddenly felt as dry as a desert.

"Guess I did say that." He set his mug back down carefully on the table.

"So, I guess I'm officially asking; What do you want this to be?"

Law glanced over and met Luffy's eyes. He looked at him then, really looked at him. Luffy's expression was nervous, his cheeks still dusted pink, making that little scar under his eye stand out even more. He looked nervous but not afraid, not really. There was something else there behind his eyes that was hard and unflinching. Like he was still daring Law to make a move and he wasn't scared of what that move would be.

What does it feel like to have that kind of confidence?

"I don't know, Luffy. I don't know." Law squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What the hell, this was supposed to be easy."

"Maybe it would be easier if you talked about it." 

Law blinked his eyes open and found Luffy looking back at him with a soft smile on his face. Law had expected him to be frustrated or upset, but here he was still sitting there, just taking Law at his word and trying to help. No judgement and no pressure. How long had it been since he'd had someone treat him like that?

Probably about four years.

Law took a long drink of his tea now that it had finally cooled down enough. Luffy was right, he had said they'd need to communicate or this wouldn't work. He wasn't totally sure what "this" was anymore, but if they were going to keep working together, they would certainly need to figure it out.

"Well, what do you want this to be, Luffy?"

Luffy shrugged and took another sip of tea. "Not sure, either. I know I really like you a lot. I mean," he paused and blushed again, "a lot more than I think I expected." 

"Well, that makes two of us I guess," Law murmured, a blush forming on his own cheeks. He very closely examined the coffee table as he felt Luffy shifting down the couch towards him. 

"I won't do anything you don't want to," Luffy said softly, his weight now settled directly next to Law. "But I think I-" he stopped abruptly and set his hand gently on Law's arm. Law shifted just slightly on the couch and forced his gaze up to Luffy's. 

"I really like our dates and I, well, I'd really like to keep going like this with you. So, I guess, can we make it both?"

"What do you mean both?" Law asked as Luffy's fingers trailed lightly down Law's arm to his hand. 

"I mean, can we do the videos and do things like this? Can it-" he sighed and squeezed Law's fingers. "Can it be a little more than just the contract stuff? I mean, if you want. But if you don't want that it's ok, I guess. I just- I really like you and I've never felt this way before about someone and I wasn't really expecting it but I was hoping that maybe you also felt-"

Law stopped Luffy's anxious rambling by pulling him by the shirt collar and capturing his lips. Luffy's arms wrapped around his neck as Law released the front of the borrowed shirt and in short order, he had Luffy in his lap and kissing him like he was about to disappear off the face of the planet. His mouth tasted like honey and the way his lips pressed against Law's made his heart hammer in his chest. It was like the feeling right before jumping off the side of a building. Just an incredible rush of excitement and danger mixed with a little of something else he just couldn't put into words.

Gods help him, he would never get enough of this feeling. 

Luffy pulled away just slightly and a handful of breathy giggles escaped his lips. 

"So is that a yes? You gotta use your words, Torao."

Law blew out a half laugh. "Gods damn it all to hell, Luffy. What is this? What am I agreeing to here?"

Luffy shrugged. "Me, I guess." 

Law leaned his head onto Luffy's shoulder with a sigh. "That doesn't make any sense."

"Alright, well, you said you haven't really tried anything serious before and you said we were going to try everything, right?"

Law rolled his eyes into the shirt Luffy had stolen. 

"That really wasn't what I meant."

Luffy's fingers drifted beneath Law's chin and gently lifted his head up off his shoulder. 

"Come on, Torao," he said, a hint of a smirk on his features. "Not scared of trying new things, are you?"

"Scared? Of you?" Law scoffed. "You wish."

A conspiratorial smile spread across Luffy's lips.

"So are we trying this or what? You know, since you're not scared or anything."

Maybe, Law thought briefly, he should give up on all of this romantic shit and just throttle the guy and get it over with. 

What did it matter, really? So they do this dating thing for a bit, so what? It was just some stupid infatuation. Luffy would get bored in a few weeks and leave the second the contract was up anyway.

Everyone always does.

"Fine. We'll try it. But it's not my fault when you get sick of me and want to bail."

Luffy threw his head back and laughed. 

"Sick of you? Are you crazy?" He pressed their foreheads together and sighed. "I don't think I could ever get sick of you."

Law huffed out a single laugh. "You say that now, but I am definitely the jerk Nami warned you about."

Luffy hummed contentedly and pressed a light kiss to the tip of Law's nose. "I think you're sweet, a lot sweeter than you'd ever admit." He sighed and ran his fingers gently through Law's hair. "You know I like sweet things."

"Ugh, that's corny as hell," Law groaned.

"I think you like it."

"I think you're crazy."

"That I definitely know you like," Luffy murmured and brushed his lips across Law's gently. "Because you're just as crazy as me and I love it."

The two mugs sat abandoned on the coffee table as Law captured Luffy's lips with purpose this time. Fuck, this was insane. This was so unlike him. None of this fit into the damn plan. 

Luffy sighed against his lips as fingers drifted through Law's hair. 

Gods be damned. Fuck the whole plan. Who even needs plans when being off-script felt like this?

Law wrapped his arms around Luffy's waist and pulled him closer. Luffy clasped his hands on either side of Law's face and pressed their bodies together. He kissed Law like he was the only man left alive, like he'd never kiss anyone else ever again. It was like everything else was stripped away and there they were, just two people clinging to each other like there was nothing else that could ever matter as much as this. 

"Law," Luffy whispered into miniscule space between them. "I-"

Law wasn't sure what was about to be said, but he was confident he was already feeling completely lost and overwhelmed. One more sweet thing from Luffy's mouth was going to well and truly break his brain.

"Shh, Luffy, come on. It's three in the morning, let's just leave the talking for when the sun's up, huh?"

Luffy's breathless laughter filled Law's soul with an impossible warmth that made head spin.

"Alright, alright." He sighed and pressed a light kiss beneath Law's ear. "Come back to bed with me then?" he murmured against Law's skin. 

Law wrapped his arms tighter around Luffy's waist and pushed both their weights up off the couch. Luffy giggled with delight and curled himself around Law's body, peppering light kisses along the skin he could reach as Law carried him back to the bedroom. He didn't even bother turning the lights off in the living room as he made his way down the hallway, and weak tendrils of light streaked across the bed as Law set Luffy down reverently on top of the blankets. He followed closely behind, running his fingers through Luffy's hair and trailing his other hand down Luffy's waist and thigh. Luffy gasped softly against Law's lips when his fingers finally met bare skin at the end of the too-big shirt he'd borrowed. 

Law savored the taste on Luffy's lips as he slowly dragged the soft cotton up to Luffy's hip, letting his hand wander over the soft curves contrasting with tight toned muscle there. Luffy's hand tangled in his hair, the other braced firmly against his chest. Law wondered if he could feel how fast his heart was beating. 

It didn't matter how many times they'd already been like this, tonight was somehow completely different. 

Law recalled the distant memory of when he'd first been up to the top of that tower with Cora. They'd gone up three more floors to the observation deck before sitting down for dinner. There was a deck that hung out over the city with a glass floor that was so clear, it felt like you were walking on the sky. He distinctly remembered the feeling he'd had as he walked up to the edge and tentatively set his foot on to the glass, half-expecting to fall straight through to the city streets below where ant-sized people rushed around the crowded sidewalks.

He hadn't expected to feel that way again in his own bedroom at three in the morning on a Tuesday. Luffy's eyes fluttered open and met his gaze, dark eyes sparkling in the dim streaks of light. He looked up at Law just as he had on the dance floor— like Law was the most incredible sight he'd ever seen. It made him want to melt, freeze, and run all at the same time, but this time he couldn't look away. 

"Luffy," he breathed. "I really have no idea what I'm doing."

Luffy trailed his fingers gently through Law's hair and smiled softly. 

"I don't either, but I know I want to keep going anyway." He pressed a feather-light kiss to Law's lips. "Come on, it's like an adventure," Luffy said with a smile that Law wished he could bottle and save for later.

Law let himself get swept onto his back as Luffy shifted their positions. As Law's head sank into the pillow, Luffy cupped his face in his hands again and melted against his lips. Law had never been kissed like this, like he was precious. All he'd ever known in this bed was a frantic sprint towards a finish line and a blank brain with people whose names he'd barely bothered to learn. No one had ever held him like he could break, whispered like he might shatter beneath the noise, touched him like he was made of porcelain. 

Gentle hands caressed his chest and ran along his waist, as if determined to feel every inch of skin possible. Law could barely breathe when Luffy's lips finally left his and began following his wandering hands, stopping every so often to drag his tongue along some of Law's rapidly overheating flesh. Slowly, he began inching Law's shorts down his thighs, mouth following closely behind to press warm kisses to every new inch of exposed skin. When at last the garment was tossed to the floor, Luffy pulled his borrowed shirt off to join it. 

He climbed between Law's legs, pulling Law's wrists up into his warm hands, pressing more kisses to the backs of Law's fingers, eventually releasing one wrist to shift himself lower on the bed. He knit his fingers with Law's and gripped them tightly as he pulled his lips up Law's inner thigh with a soft chuckle.

"I know we just did this but," he pressed a wet kiss to Law's opposite leg, "I want to do it this way now. Will you let me?"

"Yeah," Law said, unprepared for how shaky his voice was. 

When Luffy's tongue connected with his shaft, Law hissed and held on tighter to Luffy's fingers. It was the opposite of what they'd done in the studio as Luffy took his time licking and kissing along every inch of Law with a level of patience he hadn't known Luffy could even have. 

"I really love the way you taste," Luffy murmured and pulled his tongue through the bead of pre that had gathered at Law's slit, pulling a shiver down Law's entire body. "I could just taste you like this for hours." Luffy's breath broke across the sensitive skin of his glans and Law shuddered again. 

Luffy squeezed Law's hand as he wrapped his lips around the head and slowly swirled his tongue around the circumference.

"Lu-Luffy," Law breathed, resting his other arm across his face to try to hide how red his face was from such simple movements. Luffy's mouth worked slowly along his length, drawing languid designs with his tongue as he moved without any urgency whatsoever. Law struggled to keep breathing when Luffy hummed contentedly to himself and pulled his tongue through Law's slit again. 

Luffy's mouth suddenly disappeared and the cold air of the apartment pulled another shiver across Law's body as Luffy began pressing soft kisses to his lower abdomen.

"Tell me what you want, Law," Luffy murmured, his lips brushing across Law's stomach with each word. Law squeezed his eyes shut. He'd never felt like this during sex, so completely vulnerable and exposed. But with Luffy, it felt safe. Terrifying, but somehow safe. 

"T-touch me." Law's voice was barely above a whisper. "Please."

"Where do you keep-"

"My nightstand. Top drawer."

Luffy slowly untangled their fingers and Law reeled from the loss. He hadn't realized until then how much Luffy's hand was grounding him. He heard the drawer slide open slowly and the very familiar sound of a bottle opening. 

After a moment, he felt Luffy's hand return to his body, sliding down his leg and guiding it up onto a warm, muscular shoulder. The hand disappeared from his leg and slipped back over his fingers, intertwining them once more. Luffy sighed as Law squeezed his fingers again. 

"I really think you're the most beautiful person I've ever seen," Luffy whispered and pressed a kiss to Law's calf. Law gasped as Luffy's fingers circled around his entrance. He kept his eyes closed against the back of his arm as Luffy pressed into him slowly. Luffy's movements were measured, gentle, and patient. It somehow made it even harder to breathe. 

"Law," Luffy said, and pressed another wet kiss to Law's calf. "Let me see you. You're so pretty. Please."

With a significant amount of effort, Law pulled his arm away from his face. He forced his eyes open, and met Luffy's gaze and they both gasped when their eyes met. The way Luffy was looking at him defied all logic. He looked at Law like he was the most incredible work of art he'd ever laid eyes on. He watched Luffy's face flush in the dim light of the room and didn't look away as Luffy licked his lips slowly.

"You're so beautiful, Law."

Another finger pushed into him and Law tossed his head back into the pillows, a quiet moan escaping his lips. Luffy held Law's hand tightly as he continued his careful ministrations with his other hand, pulling Law apart piece by piece, inch by inch. Law felt a lot more than just his self-control crumbling beneath Luffy's gentle hands. 

"Lu- Lu-," he gasped and began to writhe on the bed. "Please, more, please."

"Yeah, yeah," was Luffy's breathless reply. He pulled his fingers away and Law pulled in a shuttering breath. Luffy untangled their fingers again to push on the back of his thigh.

"Are you ready?"

No. He would never be ready for anything with Luffy. 

But that wasn't what he was asking.

He pulled Luffy's hand from the back of his thigh and gripped it tightly.

"Yes."

Luffy pushed into him slowly, a far cry from the last time they'd been like this together. There was no rush, no urgency, no chase. Just the slow knitting of their bodies together without any sense of time or place. They were suspended above and outside the world when Luffy pressed their chests together and Law wrapped his legs around Luffy's waist. 

Their lips met and Law stopped breathing entirely. 

"Law, Gods, I- I-"

"Luffy- please-"

Luffy began to move and Law thought his soul might burn right out of his body at the feeling. He pressed their lips together again and they gasped into each other with every shift of Luffy's hips. He held on tightly to Luffy's hand as he moved, sliding his other hand up to tangle in Luffy's beautifully soft hair. 

"Law, oh-" Luffy moaned softly into Law's lips. 

He moved slowly, and Law felt overwhelmed by the feeling where their bodies connected. He felt every fraction of an inch of Luffy as he moved inside and his head filled with static at the sensation. He felt Luffy's hot breath against his neck and his lips, and yearned to be somehow closer. 

"I want- ah-" he squeezed Law's fingers tightly as he thrust in again, knees beginning to shake. "I want to feel you too. C-can I?"

"Yes, Gods, yes, Luffy"

Luffy pulled away and Law didn't even have the presence of mind to feel embarrassed about the whine that escaped his lips. He hissed as Luffy spread cold lube along his length and climbed over his legs to straddle his hips. He did, at least, remember to open his eyes as Luffy's trembling hand held him still as he sank down slowly. 

"Law-"

Luffy's eyes fluttered closed as Law watched him sink down onto his body, lips parted in an almost-silent moan. Law thought Luffy had clearly been mistaken with his earlier comment. There was no way Law could be the most beautiful person Luffy had seen if he got to see himself in the mirror every day. 

When Luffy's hips were flush with Law's body, he pitched himself forward, caressing Law's face with his fingers and pressing their lips together with another soft moan. The dichotomy of having Luffy inside him and then around him had Law's mind reeling. 

Law trailed his fingers along where Luffy's hand rested on his cheek and Luffy took the opportunity to knit their fingers together again. He pulled back just a few inches, pulling a gasp from Law's lips at the movement. He felt like he was going to fall into those dark eyes that Luffy had locked on him. He had no idea if he'd end up drowning at the bottom, but at that moment, he didn't care. 

Hell, with Luffy, maybe he could learn to breathe underwater. He was already in completely impossible territory anyway.

Law shifted his hips and set a slow, but steady pace. Luffy pressed urgent, open mouthed and breathless kisses to his lips as they moved together, too lost in each other to care about real words. Mumbled fragments of names passed between their mouths, barely escaping beyond the heat of their tangled breaths. Law could feel that finish line he usually raced to slowly building closer and closer as they rocked together on top of the blankets.

"Luffy, I'm-"

"Touch me, Law," Luffy whispered urgently. "Please, please-"

Luffy pushed himself up, still holding tightly onto Law's fingers with one hand. Law curled his other hand around Luffy's length and began moving along with their increasing pace. 

"Law, Law, yes- ah- please, please," Luffy gasped and twitched in Law's grip. "More, more, more.."

Law squeezed a little tighter and Luffy took over the pace, pushing himself up and down along Law's length with slowly increasing speed. Law pulled his thumb across the head of Luffy's cock and Luffy's body squeezed tightly around him.

"Lu-!" was all he managed to gasp out before his body fell over the edge. His climax started in his toes and left static tingles all the way up to his tongue as Luffy's pace faltered. He felt Luffy's release streaking across his chest as he gasped and shuddered, every tiny movement sending zings of electric pleasure up Law's body. 

"Law, hell, I- I can't- can't breathe-"

Law managed to pull his eyes open as Luffy wavered on his lap. He guided Luffy's body down onto his own and pressed soft kisses into his hair as Luffy pulled in several deep, shaky breaths against his skin. Luffy still hadn't let go of his hand, and his fingers trembled in Law's grip. 

They stayed there for a long moment, Law listening to Luffy slowly catch his breath. He wished the moment would never pass. Maybe they could stay like this forever, suspended between the days, hidden away in this tiny corner of the city where no one would come looking for them. 

But as time often does, it slowly marched forward and Luffy sighed deeply into Law's chest before shifting down onto the bed, keeping their hands linked and pressing the length of his body against Law's.

"Wow," Luffy breathed. "It's never felt like that before."

"Yeah," Law whispered. "It's never been like that for me either."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

The heater in the apartment kicked on and Luffy shivered as the air around them began to stir. 

"Come on, let's get some sleep," Law murmured, shifting the blankets out from beneath them. 

"Only if you promise not to leave again," Luffy said, barely audible. 

"I won't." He realized too late that Luffy may not have been referring to the bed. He picked up the shirt Luffy had borrowed off the floor and tried to clean some of the mess off his chest. Showers could wait until the morning.

Besides, he'd just promised he wouldn't leave. 

Law pulled the blankets over himself and wrapped his body around Luffy's, curling his arms around Luffy's waist. The warmth of Luffy's skin against his chest felt comfortingly warm now instead of oppressively hot like it had before. Luffy tugged at Law's hand and knit their fingers together again, just as they had been from the start.

Law felt himself getting pulled deeper into whatever this was that he'd agreed to. 

Five more videos. Three more weeks. 

Maybe he could let himself hope for just a little more than that.

The morning came too soon.

The sun streaked through the horizontal blinds with vicious intent, but Luffy continued to slumber in Law's arms, completely unbothered. Law on the other hand, squinted against the offending light and mumbled a curse up to the heavens.

Fuck mornings.

Somewhere unseen, a low chiming noise slowly began to increase in volume. What on earth?

Oh, that was his 8am alarm. Right. That was what it sounded like.

Luffy squirmed against him and Law shifted onto his back to try to reach his phone to turn off that damn alarm.

"Mmf, too early," Luffy slurred and rolled onto Law's chest so he could reach the nightstand, smacking the phone aggressively with his hand until the offending chiming noise had ceased. 

"Better." 

He failed to actually roll back off of Law's body once he'd accomplished his mission, instead resting his face on Law's chest and beginning to snore again.

"Tch, Luffy..." Law shook him by the shoulders and tried to wake him to no avail. He sighed and let his head fall back onto the pillows. It wasn't like he'd intended to get up anyway. 

With Luffy now mumbling something in his sleep against his skin, Law was trapped with nothing but his mind to keep him occupied.

And his mind had opinions about what had just happened the night prior.

What the fuck had that all even been? What was he thinking, agreeing to something like this? Any of this, for that matter. Now he'd be juggling some kind of bizarre romantic entanglement at exactly the same time he was bumbling his way through this stupid contract. This was exactly what he'd intended to avoid.

It didn't help that his entire body warmed from the inside out when Luffy shifted against him, his fingers trailing lightly across Law's chest until they wrapped around his upper arm loosely. 

He tried desperately to calm the anxious voice in his head that was quickly growing in volume and intensity.

Fuck, he'd said he wasn't going to catch feelings. Temporary, it was all temporary.

Oh, Gods, he was so fucking screwed. 

This one was going to hurt like hell.

That's it, he decided. No more dating after this. Ever. And he's quitting the damn site. He doesn't need the money anyway. He needs to buckle down, cut out the distractions and get back to-

"Mm, Torao," Luffy mumbled, obviously still mostly asleep. "What's for breakfast?"

Really? Food? Already?

Law sighed and rolled his eyes, unceremoniously pitching Luffy off his body and back onto the bed.

"I picked up some frozen waffles the other day. That good enough?"

"Waffles..." Luffy murmured and hummed to himself. "Thought you didn't eat breakfast." 

Law was grateful Luffy still had his eyes closed so he couldn't see the bright blush forming on his face. 

"They're for you, idiot."

Luffy's lips curled into a sleepy grin, eyes still closed against the morning sunlight.

"So you knew I'd be staying the night again, hmm?"

"Keep up the shit and I'll throw you out on the street with an empty stomach."

"Mmmm, such a mean guy, Torao. Buying me food to eat and giving me a toothbrush to use at your place." His eyes fluttered open and he leveled a smirk at Law's bright pink face. "What a jerk."

"Fuck off. You want the waffles or not? Brat."

Law moved to roll out of bed but a pair of strong warm hands wrapped around his shoulders.

"Only after I get a good morning kiss." Law looked over and found Luffy making the most ridiculous kissy face he'd ever seen. 

"Absolutely not," he said, pushing Luffy's face into the pillows and slipping out from beneath his fingers.

"Hey! Where'd that sweet guy go from last night, huh?"

Law shrugged. "Wouldn't know him. Last call for waffles. Take it or leave it."

Luffy huffed and tossed off the blankets, stretching his arms above his head. "Alright, alright, I'll take it."

Law retrieved his shorts from the floor and wandered to the kitchen, getting a pot of water boiling before he pulled the box of waffles out of the freezer. He was finally turning the living room lights off from last night as Luffy wandered down the hall with a yawn.

"Oh, Iva wants to shoot the next one tomorrow or the day after. What do you think?"

"Either one's fine with me," Law said, pulling the coffee beans and grinder down from the cabinet. "How many do you want?"

"Mm I usually eat a whole box of those," Luffy said, tapping something into his phone. Law noticed he still didn't have a single stitch of clothing on.

"Why am I not surprised? You'll have to make due with three. Clothing will be required to eat, by the way."

Luffy's nose wrinkled in disgust. "What? Why?"

"Because I don't want your bare ass in my chairs, that's why. It's fucking weird to eat naked anyway."

"Ah, come on, Torao. You've really never just dug into a huge meal totally naked before? It's not that big of a deal, you know."

Law was struck again by how completely absurd his current situation was. Who the hell thinks it's completely normal to eat while naked? 

"Luffy, if you do not drop this and put on some damn clothes before I'm done brewing coffee, I'm throwing you out of here in your birthday suit."

Luffy scoffed but still turned on his heel and headed back down the hall anyway. "So cranky, Torao. Sheesh."

They managed to get through the rest of the morning relatively peacefully. Luffy didn't even complain about only having three waffles for breakfast, probably because Law made him another mug of chamomile tea doctored with multiple tablespoons of honey to make up for it. 

They both showered and dressed, Luffy taking every opportunity to get in the way and sneak kisses along every bit of exposed skin Law was attempting to cover. 

"I promised Sabo I'd meet him at the courthouse for lunch today," Luffy said with a sigh. "I guess I should go."

They were standing in the living room, Luffy's arms wrapped around Law's neck and pressing kisses along his collar bone. 

"Guess you should," Law said, pulling Luffy's lips to his for what had to have been the hundredth kiss they'd shared that morning. It was still not enough. 

"I had a lot of fun yesterday," Luffy murmured and connected their lips once more.

"Yeah, me too."

"I'll pick the next place, yeah?"

"Alright."

They shared a few more slow kisses in the living room, Law trailing his hands along Luffy's waist and Luffy tangling his fingers in Law's hair.

"Are you sure you have to go?" Law whispered.

"Hey, there's that guy from last night," Luffy said with a smile against Law's lips.

"Shut up, Lu."

"Mmm, no. You're just so cute, I can't help but tell you."

Law sighed into Luffy's mouth. "I thought you said you had somewhere to be."

Luffy clicked his tongue and slowly unwrapped his arms from around Law's neck. "Yeah, I guess I do." He walked towards the entryway and slipped his sandals on. 

"Will I see you-"

Law cut off his thought with another kiss, cupping Luffy's face in both his hands and reveling in the shocked gasp he got in return. He just couldn't get enough of the way Luffy's lips felt on his, the way he always tasted like something sweet, and the way his whole body melted against him when he held him like this. When he pulled away, Luffy blinked up at him with wide eyes.

"Tomorrow," Luffy breathed, his face flushed. "I-I want to see you tomorrow. Not just at the set."

"Yeah. Text me later."

"Yeah. Alright. Ok." Luffy pulled the door open and looked back over his shoulder with a soft smile. "Bye, Torao."

When the door clicked behind him, Law's apartment felt emptier than he ever believed it could. He poured himself another cup of coffee and threw the mug in the microwave to warm it up. Sure, it would probably taste like crap but he really couldn't be bothered to brew a fresh pot right now. A few moments and some beeping later, he settled in front of his desk with a fresh-ish cup of coffee and a plan to finally tackle his inbox since he'd been putting it off for days. He needed something to distract his brain anyway.

He found the first message was the email from Iva about the next shoot along with Luffy's half-assed response that simply said "sure Iva!!! We're down with whatever!!!" So helpful. He hadn't even picked one of the four day and time options Iva had asked them to.

Law replied that he could do 4pm tomorrow or 1pm the next day. Iva would have to force Luffy to pick one of those times. There was no way in hell he was getting up for a fucking porn shoot at 10am.

He scrolled through the rest of his inbox reluctantly. Plenty of spam crap and about a million notifications from the site. He got an email every time he got a comment on something he posted or a new subscriber, plus all of the advertising stuff that all the viewer members get on top of the creator-specific updates from Nami and her tech team. It really was a lot to sort through.

It looked like the vast majority of the emails were actually new subscribers. Must have been from Luffy's stream the other day. He realized belatedly he hadn't actually thanked him for the shout out and had done absolutely nothing equivalent on his own page. He should probably fix that.

He started deleting all of the new notification emails since he could just look at them all at once through the site portal anyway. He hadn't actually gotten a new batch of subscribers in a while, and he thought idly he should check his stats again to get the updated count. It wasn't completely necessary to know, but he kind of liked watching the number climb up.

Wait.

He hadn't gotten any new subscribers in a while.

But Luffy was already subscribed to his page during that stream...

Wait a second.

He quickly logged in to his creator portal on the site page and pulled up his subscriber list. It was automatically sorted by most recently subscribed, and Law started scrolling through it searching for Luffy's username. He got most of the way through last month and still didn't see it. 

What the hell? He couldn't have had a separate account up while he was actively streaming from the PirateKing one— the back end of the website wouldn't allow it unless he was doing some very fancy footwork with his network at home and that didn't really seem like Luffy. He sorted the list alphabetically instead and scrolled down to where his name should be.

There he was, PirateKing, date first subscribed.... What the hell?

His heart fell out onto the floor.

The date listed for his subscription was nearly two and half years ago.

He squinted at the date, praying it would magically change. After a long moment of denial, he realized it wasn't some terrible typo.

Oh no.

Oh hell no.

Lots of missing pieces began to fall into place. Luffy had said he'd "dreamed" of doing that stream for Law but they'd only known each other for 48 hours by that point. You don't build fantasies like that over night. 

Shit, and he'd made some comment about Law's STD testing video that he did every year when they were out at dinner that first night. He would have had to scroll through nearly a year's worth of content to find that. Luffy didn't have that kind of attention span, unless he'd seen it when it came out.

Fuck, oh fuck, seriously? 

Law scrolled back through some of his older posts from when Luffy would have first subscribed and, oh good gods, he knew that username sounded familiar. This was so much worse than he'd feared.

He'd commented on dozens of Law's photos. 

And they were exactly like his texts and in-person comments.

"Omggg hottest man I've ever laid eyes on!"

"That ink on your back is the hottest of all your tattoos. Totally my favorite"

"Ugh, those letters on your hands are so pretty"

"I love those sounds you make"

"So beautiful"

Law's gut tightened and a wave of nausea washed over him. His office was suddenly a thousand degrees, and he stumbled out into the hallway towards the kitchen. 

This was a fucking disaster. Oh, gods and he'd actually thought he was... Fuck. This is where all that fucking optimism and rosy romantic shit always fucking led. There was never any point in fantasizing about love. The real world was too fucked up to allow it.

When was Luffy planning on bringing this up? Was he just going to pretend he hadn't been subscribed to Law's channel since practically the beginning? That he hadn't commented on dozens and dozens of photos and videos over the years? Had this whole thing been a fucking set up from the start?

He leaned over the sink, white knuckles wrapped around the counter, heart racing as another wave of intense nausea threatened to pull those stupid fucking waffles out of his stomach.

Fuck it all to hell.

He's been sleeping with a godsdamned fan.

Chapter Text

Liars.

Everyone he'd ever met was a fucking liar.

"Don't worry, the firefighters will be here soon."

"Be a good boy and you can stay here forever."

"Tell the social worker that you're happy here and I won't use the belt again."

"Nah, he's just a friend. Don't worry about him, you know I love you."

"This experimental treatment will help him get better faster."

"Sure, baby, I love those photos you post. Give me a sneak peak."

Everyone lies. And they do it with a smile every damn time.

But not Luffy. He was supposed to be different. He was going to be the one damn thing that worked out. 

After Law got done emptying his gut into the sink, he rinsed his mouth and made some decisions. 

First, he pulled his trusty handle of cheap vodka out from the cabinet under the sink. Cora was right, there really were some life events that required a drink. If this wasn't one of them, then Law had no fucking clue what was.

He knocked back two shots in rapid succession, the burn of the alcohol bringing his head back down to the real world. The real world requires action. He couldn't just drown in all the ways humanity had let him down for the rest of his fucking life. He pulled his phone out and began working on the other decision he'd made.

"Law! What a pleasant-"

"You bitch." He had absolutely no interest in listening to Nami's fake-ass platitudes. Not today.

"Woah, hang on. Usually I know what I've done to deserve that. What's-"

"You knew. You fucking knew this whole damn time, didn't you?"

"Knew what, Law? What the fuck are you on about?"

"Luffy, that's what. You fucking knew he was some creepy obsessive fan and you hooked him up with me anyway to try and make a quick buck." He knocked back another shot and slammed the shot glass back down on the counter. It shattered beneath his hand, slicing his finger and pulling another curse from his lips.

"You're a real piece of work, you know that? I knew you were sleazy but this is something else entirely."

There was a heavy sigh from the other end of the phone. "I fucking told him to use a different username when he started making his own stuff, but does anyone listen to me? Of course not."

"So you did know," Law spat. "You're not even going to deny it?!"

"Of course I knew he'd seen your stuff, Law. I wasn't going to link you guys up if you were both fucking strangers." She sighed again into the phone. "You've really got this all wrong. It's not like that."

"Not like what? He's been subscribed for over two years, Nami. Two years! Did you think I wouldn't notice?" He could feel his voice rising and he couldn't keep it from shaking. "Did you really fucking think I wouldn't catch on eventually? Is this a godsdamned game to you?! Do you just fuck with me for fun?!"

"You need to calm down. I'm trying to tell you it's not like that. Luffy isn't obses-"

"I want out," he said flatly, pulling another shot glass from the cabinet, not even bothering to clean up the shards of glass that were still littering the countertop. 

"You signed a contract, Law. And you're over reacting."

"I want out and I'm not paying you a fucking dime, you witch."

"Will you take a damn breath? I'm trying to explain!"

"And I don't want to hear it. This is your notice. I quit." He filled the shot glass with more of the cheap alcohol that smelled like it could peel paint off the walls. "Find someone else for your games." He let shot number four climb down his throat and burn a pit into his stomach. 

"And I never want to see that slimy, lying bastard of yours ever again."

"That's it. I'm coming over."

"What the hell makes you think I want to see you either?" he growled down the receiver.

"You will shut up and you will listen to me, you fucking drama queen," Nami spit. "No one, absolutely fucking no one talks about Luffy that way and someone needs to tell you why. You might not consider us friends but I care about you a whole damn lot. I would never hurt you and neither would Luffy."

"You're both such excellent liars."

"You can't stop me. I'm already on my way." Law's phone beeped in his ear and he stared down at the screen. The bitch had actually hung up on him. The absolute fucking nerve. 

Shot number five suddenly didn't taste as good as shots one through four as he stared down into the kitchen counter. He could feel the heat rushing to his face and the tightness in his throat. He'd wanted this so fucking badly. He knew it was too good to be true. It always fucking was.

No. He wasn't going to let this stupid stalker bastard pull a single tear from him.

He bit the inside of his lip harshly and glared at the half-empty bottle of vodka. It had been so fucking long since he'd busted it out. He'd thought he finally had everything under control. He'd been so close. 

This was it. He'll pack the car today. He'll sell the stupid apartment remotely. He'll block Luffy's number— no, he'll just get a whole new phone. He'll drive across the country and start over in a new town where no one knew his name, where no one would drag him through an office building in the middle of the night, or dance with him on a rooftop at sunset, or sit up at three in the morning to talk about love, or look at him like-

There was a sharp knock on his door and Law realized Nami had actually been serious about coming over. At a minimum, he needed to move farther away from that damn office.

He considered just leaving her there as the knocking continued. She would deserve it. It serves her right for all the shit she's pulled over the years. He stared down at the broken glass, the empty shot glass, the smear of blood across the counter. The knocking continued. 

She had no right to be here. She had absolutely no right to his time. He didn't want to hear whatever it was she had to say. It would all be more lies.

The knocking suddenly stopped.

"For gods' sake, Law, I know you're in there. I can practically hear you brooding through the damn door."

Nami's voice actually sounded strained. He really should just let her stand there. He could go down to his bedroom and pretend she wasn't even there. Blast some music to drown her out or something.

"Please, Law. Luffy told me a little about what's been going on with you two. That he-" She stopped and Law could just barely hear the sigh through the door. "I know you're hurt. Please, let me explain."

Law had never actually heard her say 'please' like that before.

He rinsed the blood off his hand and reluctantly made his way to the door, pulling it open slowly. He let his entire body fill the doorframe. He knew he was a big guy. He could be pretty damn imposing when he needed to be, not that Nami would ever actually be deterred by that, but it sure made him feel better.

"I want out, Nami."

"If you listen to what I have to say, I will let you out of the contract," she said, arms crossed in front of her chest. 

Law leveled a glare down at her. "I won't be paying you any money back and I won't be paying the contract violation fee either."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. But you have to listen first."

Law considered slamming the door in her face. She shouldn't have even been able to get on the elevator without him telling security to let her up. How the hell had she gotten up here?

He moved himself out of the doorway to allow her in. "How did you get past the security desk?"

"I gave him a bill with a couple zeros on it and he swiped me into the elevator."

Law couldn't help raising his eyebrows at that. She'd given away that much just to come see him? The woman who would do almost anything to get out of paying for her own drinks?

"I see you're revisiting your tried-and-true coping methods," she said, hiking a thumb towards the bottle of vodka still sitting on the counter, surrounded by broken glass. He could feel some of the alcohol he consumed starting to finally metabolize as he made his way back to the kitchen and pulled down a real glass instead of a shot glass. He filled it with water and closed his eyes, trying to pull himself together so he could pay attention to whatever smoke Nami was about to blow his way.

"Say what you're going to say."

Nami found her way over to the couch and sat down where Luffy had been just a few hours ago, though it felt like a different lifetime.

"I've never told you about how we know each other. It's a bit of a story, you should sit down."

Law drained the glass and refilled it before slowly making his way to the couch. He sat as far away from Nami as possible, half hoping she would just get offended by his piss-poor hospitality and leave.

"It was before we met," she started, gesturing between them. "I'd had the website up for about six months and it was basically just hemorrhaging cash. I was broke as hell. I've told you before I'm from that same neighborhood, right?"

Law nodded. One of the times they'd gone out for drinks together, before he'd gotten fed up with all the finance talk, they had traded stories about growing up over there.

"Well, I was out drinking alone at that dive on the corner of Arlong Parkway and Broad Street." 

Damn that really was a dive. Law sipped on his water and kept his mouth shut.

"There was this guy who was hitting on me the whole time. You know the type— pushy, can't take 'no' for an answer, all flattery and sweetness until you say you're not interested." Law nodded his understanding. As a man, he dealt with a lot less of that than she probably did but he'd certainly had his share, especially back in college when he'd honestly been kind of a slut. You could find any kind of trouble you wanted in this city if you knew where to lurk.

"I paid for my drinks and left about a half hour before closing. He'd left a while before me, so I thought I was in the clear. It was stupid, gods, it was so fucking stupid." She stared intently down at the floor and balled her jeans into her fists.

"He caught me completely by surprise. I should have looked around, damn it, but I was drunk. You know I can usually take care of myself but he grabbed me so fast, Law. He was so fast." She squeezed her eyes shut. "There were half a dozen other people on that fucking sidewalk and they just watched, they fucking watched him drag me around the side of the building."

Her fists shook just slightly. He'd never seen her this emotional. Hell, he'd be just as emotional talking about something like this.

"Luffy was barely nineteen. He'd been out with Ace doing who knows what unhinged shit," she said with the tiniest chuckle. "I'll never forget his voice when he started cussing that guy out, demanding he let me go." 

She became very quiet, her voice barely above a whisper. "Honestly? I think Luffy killed him. I'd never seen anyone so strong up close before. When Ace finally pulled him off the guy, he just grabbed me and ran. And, gods, I let him. I let him just pull me all the way to their apartment, these two guys I'd never fucking met."

Her eyes fluttered open and she wiped a tear from her face. Fuck. He'd never ever seen her cry. All the times they'd argued, all the times they made up and went out for drinks, the nights he got wasted and said too much and she drove him home. He'd never seen her so vulnerable.

Their eyes met and she held his gaze. "He probably saved my life, Law. Nineteen years old. You know what he said when I asked how I could ever repay him?"

Law shook his head. Nami let out a single pained laugh.

"He laughed. He actually laughed. And then he said, completely dead serious, 'No one should get paid for just doing the right thing.'"

"I don't see how-" 

"He's not like us, Law," Nami said. "We're broken, jaded, selfish. He's not and he never will be, even though he has every reason to."

"What do you mean?"

She smiled. "You two are pretty alike in a lot of ways, do you know that?"

"No." Now she was really spinning something. He and Luffy could not be any farther apart.

"Well it's true. His childhood was a fucking disaster, too. He told me you guys talked about it a little, that he's not actually related to basically anyone he considers family."

Law closely inspected the floor. "He mentioned it."

"I'm sure he left a lot out. Did he tell you his grandfather was a military man?" Law nodded. "Bet he didn't tell you that he ran the house like a marine base. Every mistake Luffy made ended in some kind of punishment, usually physical. You've met him now, do you think he's that good at following rules?"

Law didn't say anything to that. How could he? She was right, their childhoods were probably a lot more similar than he'd realized.

"Did he tell you about Ace?"

"He told me he died."

"Sure, but did he tell you how?"

"No. I didn't ask."

Nami sighed and rolled her eyes. "Of course you didn't. You never tell anyone about yourself so why would you even bother to learn about- Well whatever, I'll tell you." She took a deep breath.

"It was a few years ago, Ace was picking Luffy up from somewhere, I don't remember where. They were almost home and they rolled up on a huge fight going down in the middle of the street. A bunch of thugs were wailing on one of Ace's high school buddies, it was nearly a dozen to one. Ace pulled over and they both jumped out, trying to get everyone to calm down and let the guy go before they killed him." She ran a hand through her hair and closed her eyes.

"Someone tipped a garbage can and started a fire. Some other guy grabbed some burning debris and began using it as a weapon. Luffy got burned. Ace ran over to get him away from the flames when the cops showed up. They thought Ace was part of it."

She swallowed and bit her lip. 

"I liked Ace. He was a good guy. They all are." She ran a hand through her hair again and pulled in a shaking breath. "They shot him-" her voice cracked "-right there in the street. Luffy- Luffy held him while he died."

Law's heart ached. He knew exactly what it was like to watch someone you love die right before your eyes. He knew entirely too well. It's the worst torture imaginable.

"I didn't know," Law murmured. 

"I know you didn't." 

They were both silent for a long moment as Law tried to process everything he'd just heard.

"Honestly, Nami, that doesn't really change how fucked up this is."

"I'm getting there, I'm getting there," Nami said, leaning back into the couch cushions and pulling in a long breath. "You're right, I knew Luffy followed you on the site. He said if he was going to do the videos for me, that he'd only do them with you. I told him that was a bad idea but, well you've met him, he never listens."

Law had to chuckle at that one. That definitely rang true. 

"Why did you let him demand it then? You had to know I'd find out. He's left comments on more than half of my stuff for the last couple years." He sighed and sipped on more of the water he'd completely forgotten about. "I really don't see any other explanation for it other than he's a completely obsessed stalker."

Nami laughed. "A stalker? Luffy? No, he just has a huge fucking crush on you, dude. Though I seriously cannot understand it even a little."

Law rolled his eyes. "You should see the comments, Nami. They're a lot."

"Of course they are, it's Luffy. He just says anything that pops into his head. Do you think he spent more than two seconds thinking about those comments before he left them? They're his honest feelings, that's it. I promise you, I would have never allowed you two to meet if I thought he had less-than genuine intentions."

"So, what, you just thought you'd let me believe that he was only in this for the same reasons I was? And that doesn't excuse the fact that he's been hiding this from me." Regardless of the context, Luffy had still been keeping secrets and this was a pretty damn big one.

Nami rubbed her temples with her fingers. "That one's on me. I told him not to tell you."

"What? Why?"

"Because I knew you'd react like this, obviously," she snapped and then sighed heavily. "You always think the worst about everyone, Law. I know you've got your reasons but Luffy wouldn't understand it. He wanted to tell you from the start. I told him you'd never agree to it if he did."

Law thought about that for a bit. What would he have said if Luffy had told him everything at that first meeting they'd had at the coffee shop? He felt like he knew Luffy at least a little by now. He probably would have said something like, "I've followed you for years, I love your work," or some other gushing, over-the-top comment. 

Nami was right, that would have had Law heading for the exit immediately.

But the alternative felt just as bad.

"I don't know, Nami. This is still really fucked up. I don't understand why you'd do this."

"I know, I know. I tried to tell him about you, you know? I told him that you've been through hell and back, that you never let anyone close, that you absolutely bark and bite." She laughed a little to herself. "I think that one made him more interested, actually."

She let out a long sigh and looked at the floor. "I also told him you're one of the smartest and most driven people I've ever met and that I have no idea where you get the strength to wake up every day after the shit you've dealt with."

Well, damn. Law fiddled with a stray thread on the arm of the couch. He had no idea she'd felt that way. Sure, he had said a little more to her than usual over drinks a few times but he'd honestly left the worst parts out. She knew about Cora, his parents, juvie, and some of his foster homes but certainly not the worst ones. He hadn't even thought she cared.

Nami shifted on the couch and was silent for a long time as she fiddled with her hair nervously.

"Law," she started, and her tone pulled his eyes to her. "I know you've had a hard time finding someone. You probably don't remember that one night we went out after you had that huge fight with that guy you were seeing since you had so much to drink. It was the first time you'd really opened up about some things."

Law had some vague memories of the night she was referring to. In a moment of weakness, he'd called her up a few days after that outrageously bad blow up in the street. He was feeling like absolute garbage and he needed to fucking vent. She'd always been the only person he could actually talk to about the site and all the weird stuff that came with it. Plus, Nami had always been down for a good bitching session, especially if it was about men. He vaguely realized that the incident she'd described earlier was probably why. 

They'd met up at some random bar and he'd rapidly ingested enough alcohol to become barely coherent. He didn't remember how late they were out or what they talked about. Mostly he remembered leaning on her while she unlocked his door for him because he couldn't manage to get the key in the lock, and the splitting headache he'd had the next morning.

"Oh gods, what did I say?"

Nami chuckled a little. "Nothing bad, really. It was kind of cute."

He felt his face warm and he stared down into the coffee table.

"You said you were tired of dancing around your history and all the shit that's happened to you with people. You said you just wanted to find someone who would understand, and wouldn't hold it all against you later."

She sighed and her voice dropped all of the edge it usually had, all the bravado she typically held out in front of her disappearing completely for the first time.

"You said you just wanted someone to love you for exactly who you were, the way Cora had promised someone would. I-" her breath hitched and Law could feel tears threatening to tear from him at the sound. 

"I just wanted to give you a chance at that, Law. You deserve it."

Fuck.

He felt his heart ripping in half. It was true. He'd always wanted it, that fairytale love Cora had filled his head with. He wanted so badly to believe it could really happen, that there really was someone out there that would just take him for what he was and love him anyway, even all the sharp edges and broken pieces.

Hell, he'd never believed anyone would want him at all before Cora had come around. He'd been alone for so long, bouncing from one foster home to another. Some were actually alright, like the first one with Penguin and Sachi, just well-intentioned people with big hearts trying to help out. But many had been cold and cruel, with people who only wanted the paycheck from the government for their "generosity." He'd learned never to unpack his things, never trust that tomorrow would be any better than today, and never believe a damn word anyone said— especially if it was something he wanted to hear.

Cora had been different. Law had shown up on his doorstep, fresh out of a summer in juvie, and completely ready to just be shipped off to the next living hell in a few weeks. It had taken months before he finally started to believe that Cora was serious when he'd said he would never let Law get swallowed up into the system again. He watched Cora follow through on every single promise he made. After ten months, all the paperwork had actually been filed for once. He was really going to stay.

He'd finally unpacked his bag, setting the only photo he had of his family on the nightstand in his room for the first time since he was almost ten years old.

"I can't, Nami. Not like this," he said, voice shaking. 

"Why not, Law? You should hear him when he talks about you. He told me he wasn't going to get attached, that he just wanted to meet you and do these videos. But last week, do you know what he told me?"

Law shook his head that he held in his hands.

"He said that dinner he went to with you was the best date he'd ever had. He couldn't stop talking about it. And when you asked him to go to Sabaody Tower with you, he begged me to help him find something to wear. He said he wanted to look like someone that deserved to go up there with a guy like you." She blew out a half-laugh. "Gods, Law, if you told him you could walk on water, he'd believe you. He told me you're the most incredible person he's ever met."

Nami's perfectly manicured hand wrapped around his wrist and pulled gently. He twisted his wrist out of her grasp and hurried to wipe the tears from his face so she wouldn't see him falling apart like this.

"I can tell you like him, you know. I know you well enough by now. You've never taken anyone up to that tower, and Iva told me about the shoot. Apparently he was hanging off of you the whole time before the scene started and you let him. I didn't believe it when they said it but then I watched the raw cut. The way you looked at him when you picked him up at the end, Law— I've never seen you look at anyone like that."

She stood up from the couch with a sigh.

"I'll give you 24 hours and I'll tell Iva to delay the next shoot. Don't worry, I'll just say you're not feeling well." She made her way slowly back to the door of his apartment. "Let me know what you want by then. If you really want out of this contract, I'll release you. No fees or anything, you have my word."

Law didn't look up as the door clicked closed behind her. 

Empty again. His apartment was so fucking empty.

He stopped fighting the damn tears. He'd said he wasn't going to do this. He wasn't going to let him get close. He wasn't going to hope. He wasn't going to care. 

Because everyone always leaves.

And it's killing him.

Why can't his life just be fucking normal? Why can't he just have ONE THING go right? Why does he have to completely fuck up every single damn thing he ever tries to do?

What the hell was he supposed to do now? It's not like he could just pretend that everything was totally fine and he somehow hadn't figured out that Luffy may or may not have been creepily obsessed with him for literal years. Frankly, he didn't want to. This was a fucking shit show. Everyone had been lying to him from the damn start!

And Luffy! Even Luffy, the lying little brat, had said-

Wait, had he actually ever said he wasn't a fan?

Law thought back through the conversations they'd had since the start. Luffy had actually been pretty open that he liked Law's content. He'd mentioned a bunch of stuff about his photos that very first day; talking about the lighting and his tattoos at length. 

He mentioned that awareness thing Law did every year, but he'd never denied that he watched it when it came out.

And Law had never explicitly asked Luffy when he'd subscribed either.

Ok but the comments were creepy, right?

He recalled all the times Luffy had just blatantly hit on him when they were together. The gods knew there had been plenty of that. He'd never gotten the impression that Luffy was lying about what he said, nor had it actually sounded creepy. A little excessive, sure, but not creepy.

Ok so maybe the comments on his stuff really were just how Luffy talked.

But to keep it a secret? Come on, that was too much.

Except Nami had said that he'd wanted to tell Law from the start but she'd stopped him.

That's if he believed Nami.

Fuck, he didn't know what to believe any more. 

This was too damn much. He had known from the start something about this was wrong, hadn't he? Luffy had immediately acted like they were best friends that had known each other for years. That wasn't right. Normal people don't just automatically share all this stuff, all these feelings, with people they've just met.

They also didn't usually agree to fuck people they'd just met for a paycheck either, so maybe he and Luffy weren't the best standard for "normal."

This was too damn complicated. 

He laid down on the couch and closed his eyes as his head spun. Shit, so what now? Does he just call Luffy up and tell him off? Tell him he's figured out the big fucking secret and make it crystal clear they'd never see each other again? 

He definitely could do that.

He just wasn't sure that was the right thing to do anymore.

Decisions. He'd said he was going to make decisions.

Fuck, this wasn't hard a few minutes ago! This was cut and dry before Nami had come over and said all that shit. He should trust his gut. He should have trusted his gut this whole damn time and gotten out while he could. He never fucking does this, any of this. He always leaves before they can leave.

Gods, but staying had felt so good. 

And when Luffy had looked at him like that...

No, no. It wasn't real. It had never been real.

Law's phone started ringing from over on the kitchen counter. He dragged himself up to his feet with a sigh and wandered over to retrieve it, the floor shifting beneath his feet. Maybe five shots was excessive. At least his liver was probably working as intended.

He saw the words "Luffy Best Coworker" with that stupid little sun emoji plastered across his phone screen.

He turned the cursed device off, threw it in the junk drawer and stalked over to his front door, throwing the deadbolt since apparently the security desk can be bought now.

His body moved down the hall, his mind following about three feet behind. The walls rippled and warped as he made his way through the apartment. Those shots were definitely doing their job now. What a mess.

No, if he'd thought it was a mess before, it was an absolute disaster now. No doubt about it.

He fell face-first onto the bed and groaned. Of course his sheets still smelled like him. He'd literally just been there. His mind offered up the memories of the night before, how soft his voice had been, the careful hands, the light touches, the sweet kisses.

Law rolled himself onto the floor. He let the jolt of the movement rip more tears from his body.

A lie. It was all a lie. He knew it was too good to be true. It always fucking was. Gods, where was Cora now? He wished he could run home and get wrapped in one of those stupid, mushy hugs one more time. That last day they'd spent sitting up on the roof in the garden felt so far away. What would he say now? Would he let Law rant and curse and spit about how horrible men were? Would he try to convince Law to slow down, talk it out, and not fly off the handle?

Would he offer him a cheap beer and talk about what real love was?

Fuck, why couldn't he be here this time? Law needed him and he was gone just like everyone else.

A tiny voice in the back of his head began to whisper.

What if it wasn't a lie? What if Luffy really was just like this? What if everything Nami said was true? What then?

His tears dripped onto the carpet beneath his face.

It was never true. It couldn't be true. The world wasn't like that. No one on the planet is so sweet and open and genuine. Even Cora wasn't. Not like Luffy. 

He couldn't be real. He was never real. 

Gods, but what was he going to do now?

Chapter Text

Long shadows stretched across the floor when Law finally woke up. 

It was one of the reasons he kept the vodka around, it always knocked him out when he needed his brain to just shut the hell up for a while. His head ached from both the alcohol and all the stupid, pointless crying he'd done. Fuck, why did he always have to be such a pathetic loser? Crying into the carpet next to his bed over some stupid boy who'd broken his heart again. 

He made his way very slowly to the bathroom and splashed water on his face, his back and neck protesting from too long spent on the unforgiving bedroom floor. He washed the cut on his hand and carefully pulled the small piece of glass still embedded in it out with a set of tweezers. 

Now completely sober and slightly more calm, he thought back through the situation with Luffy as he applied a bandage to his hand. He tried to make the Luffy he knew in real-life fit with the one that had left all those comments on his videos and photos. It wasn't really that much of a stretch now that he'd slowed down and considered it. Luffy had always sounded like that— a little too honest and much too forward. Law realized he'd actually kind of liked it. 

He reviewed everything that Nami had said to him as he made his way to the kitchen. She certainly had seemed genuine, probably more genuine than he'd ever seen her before. If what she said was true, Luffy was still just as good of a guy as Law had originally thought. That and he'd been through a lot— maybe just as much as Law had, and that was certainly saying something. 

If there was anyone on the planet that had even a miniscule chance at understanding what Law had lived through, it was probably Luffy. He was starting to understand why Nami had thrown them together in the first place, though he still didn't approve of the methods she'd employed.

He carefully cleaned the shards of glass and dried smears of blood from his kitchen counter. The handle of vodka returned to its home under the sink, next to the bleach where it definitely belonged. 

Alright, he was an adult. He could admit when maybe, just maybe, there was a tiny chance he had over reacted just a little. He could at least entertain the possibility for a moment, as a theoretical mental exercise, perhaps.

That being said, he seriously did not appreciate the secret keeping. Hiding something like this to try to allegedly protect his feelings made him very suspicious about what else could be lurking around for him to discover. He'd said from the beginning that they needed to communicate, right? So why the hell hadn't they been communicating about this of all things? 

Law pulled his phone out of the junk drawer and hesitantly turned it back on. 5 missed calls, two voice mails, and eight texts. All from Luffy. He pressed play on the first voicemail.

"Hey, it's me. Nami told me you figured out I'd been following you on the site. Listen, Torao, I swear to you I can explain. I just- I-" Luffy sighed into the phone. "I won't make you talk to me. I just want you to know I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you the whole time, I swear. Nami said you wouldn't like that and it would freak you out. She's a lot smarter than me, so I was just trying to do the right thing. I don't know what that is anymore." There was a long pause and another resigned sigh. "Well, anyway, call me back if you want to talk, I guess."

Law sat down on the couch to listen to the next one.

"Torao I- I said before I won't make you talk to me and I mean it. I'm just, I'm worried. Your phone isn't even ringing and Nami said you were really upset. I just want to know you're ok. You can tell Nami if you don't want to talk to me, ok? I just- I-" His breath hitched and the next sentence came out tight and strained. "Gods, I guess I can't say that to a damn recording." He took a deep breath. "Whatever, just- I- just take care of yourself and eat something. Please."

Law had to admit that there wasn't a single part of either of those messages that sounded like some unhinged stalker. Actually, it sounded a lot more like someone who would let Law walk away if he really wanted to and wouldn't fight him on it. He hadn't expected this kind of space from Luffy.

He pulled up the text messages next.

The first four messages were the pictures from Sabaody Tower.

"I forgot to send these to you. Thought you might want to see them."

"I think that was the best night of my life, going up there with you." The next two messages were sent about two hours after the first ones.

"I want to talk to you. About everything. I know you might not want that, so that's ok. I'm just worried. I haven't heard from you in hours. Nami said you were really fucked up about it. I didn't mean to hurt you, I swear. I would never do that. I just want to know you're ok. You don't have to talk to me ever again after that, I guess. If that's really what you want."

"I'll miss you tho"

Law opened the pictures. They were beautiful with the sunset painting the city behind them in a full spectrum of golden hues. Luffy's phone camera was obviously very nice and Law briefly wondered if it was the same one he used for filming all his stuff for the site. He scrolled through them and the first two were just the two of them standing and smiling. Totally normal photos.

The next one was that kiss Luffy had asked for so earnestly. It made Law's heart hurt.

The last one must have been taken immediately after the kiss. 

Oh gods, Bepo had been right— Law had never seen himself smile like that either. And Luffy was looking at him like he was a god that had somehow fallen from the sky. 

Fuck. 

That small voice in his head continued to whisper. What if they could fix this? What if everything Luffy had said to him was the truth? What if he really did-

Law was ripped from his thoughts by a soft knock at the door.

What the hell? Nami had given him the impression that she was actually going to give him some fucking space. A small, strained voice drifted through from behind the door.

"Torao? I'm, um, I'm sorry to just show up but I was really worried and I just wanted to make sure you were alright. Ok, well, maybe not alright, but- Oh gods, I'm so fucking bad at this."

Law was really going to need to talk with the landlord about the fucking security desk.

There was another very soft knock on the door and an audible sigh from the other side. 

"I'm sorry, Torao. I-" There was a long pause. "Yeah, alright, I guess 'sorry' isn't really going to cut it, huh? Gods, where do I even start? Hell, you're probably not even there."

There was the sound of something sliding down the door. 

"I always fuck things up." It sounded like Luffy was mostly talking to himself now, especially because he was suddenly a lot quieter. "I know I'm a lot, you know? Everyone always says so, anyway. It's fine. I'll be fine. You'll be fine. You won't even think about me in a week." Luffy let out a sharp breath that was almost a chuckle. "Why would you? You could have anyone you could ever want and I'm just..." There was a heavy sigh and some unintelligible mumbling. 

Law pushed himself up off the couch and walked silently to stand in front of his door, trying to decide what the hell to do next. Maybe he should just let this go. It was too good to be true anyway. And he'd always done everything alone. He didn't need this. 

"Yeah," Luffy's quiet voice drifted through the door, dripping with pain. "Yeah, alright. I'll go. I'll just go."

Law flipped the deadlock and wrenched the door open in one swift motion. Luffy suddenly tumbled backwards into his apartment from where he'd apparently been sitting and leaning with his back against the door. He looked up at Law from his position on the floor, and that stupid, bright, beautiful smile broke across his face.

"Torao!"

Law didn't say anything as he watched Luffy scramble to his feet. He also did not move from the entryway, electing instead to stand with his arms crossed and a blank expression on his face.

"Thank the gods you're alright! Nami said you were drinking a lot and, well, she said sometimes you get into trouble when you drink like that." His smile faltered and fell. "I mean, I wasn't prying for information from her, ok? She just, well she told me you were pissed."

Law continued his silence. If Luffy was trying to guilt him into a conversation, he wasn't going to get one. He didn't give a shit if Luffy felt bad for pissing him off. 

"Ok, well, actually she told me if I didn't fix this that she'd cut my nuts off," Luffy said and the color drained from his face, leaving his complexion tinged with a bit of pale green. "I think she's serious, Torao."

Law couldn't stop himself from laughing. That definitely sounded like Nami. Gods, this was so fucking ridiculous.

He turned and walked back into the living room and Luffy closed the door softly behind himself. 

"So when were you going to tell me that you'd been subscribed to my page for two and a half years, Luffy?"

Luffy stood in the entryway, hands fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

"I wanted to tell you, trust-" He flinched a little and bit his lip as he stared down at the floor. "Ok, not 'trust me,' bad wording."

"You're right," Law said coldly. "I don't trust you. I don't trust anyone, Luffy. And shit like this is why."

Luffy looked up from his close inspection of the carpet and met Law's eyes. "I know. I wanted to tell you from the beginning. I told Nami I wanted you to know. She said you'd never talk to me if I did that. I realized I fucked up on our first date, you know? But I didn't know how to bring it up after that." He took a hesitant step towards the living room. "I wanted to tell you last night but I was-" he bit his lip again and ran a hand through his hair. "I was scared, alright? I was afraid I was going to fuck this up."

Law leaned his weight against the wall and closed his eyes. It sure seemed like Luffy was being genuine. And he still wasn't demanding a single thing from Law, nor was he hurling insults or gaslighting him into thinking all this was an over reaction. He could still throw him out of the apartment. He'd be well within his rights to. This whole thing was a shitshow. 

"Please, Torao, I'll tell you anything you want to know. I just want to explain."

Law sighed and walked over to the couch, gesturing for Luffy to join him. He might as well get his questions answered if Luffy was going to offer. He'd make his decision once he had all the available data.

Luffy hurried to slip off his sandals and tripped over his own feet trying to scramble to the living room. Law was a little impressed he didn't fall face-first into the coffee table. He watched in silence as Luffy pulled his knees to his chest on the opposite end of the couch. It looked like Luffy was half hoping the cushions would simply swallow him whole. 

"Why-" Law was going to ask 'Why didn't you tell me,' but he realized Luffy had basically already answered that one. He went with the next question on his list. "Why did you ask Nami to put me in these videos with you?"

"Well," Luffy sighed. "I've liked you for a while, you know?" Law raised an eyebrow. Luffy's eyes darted to the floor.

"Ok, maybe you know now. Um, well, I follow other people on the site too but they aren't like you. I just, I don't know, I wanted to meet you and I thought maybe I could actually learn some stuff about all this from you and I- Shit, I don't know, Torao. I just kind of said it, you know?"

"Alright, so let me get this straight." Law pinched the bridge of his nose and took a breath. "You just blurted it out on a whim and then when Nami told you I'm a huge asshole, you still wanted to do it. Why?"

Luffy began to blush furiously. "I just, I um, I think you're really pretty, ok? I didn't-" He stopped talking and started playing with the band of the sports watch he wore on his wrist. There was a long stretch of silence as Luffy appeared to try to make up his mind about something as he chewed on his lip and shifted uncomfortably at the edge of the couch.

Law sighed. "Just tell me, Luffy. How much worse can this get?"

"Fine, alright. You're right." He sighed deeply and didn't look up from where he was still snapping his watchband against his skin. "I don't actually usually feel that attracted to other people like this. It's really only been you and like a couple others. But really just kind of, um, you, recently. So, if I was going to do anything on camera with someone else at all it would sort of have to be you or it wouldn't, uh, work, ok?"

That had both Law's eyebrows raised.

"Are you telling me you're not physically attracted to anyone other than me?"

Luffy nodded and rested his head on his knees.

"I know it's weird. I promise it's not in a creepy way or anything. It's not like I've never been attracted to someone else that way. I just don't think about a lot of people like that, I guess. I don't even know why it happens sometimes, it's just sort of this feeling. I don't know."

They were both quiet for a moment.

"I know you probably think I'm a freak," Luffy said so quietly that the sound barely carried across the couch.

"What? No, of course not." Law hurried to explain himself before Luffy thought he was just spitting polite platitudes. "I'm just surprised. The way you act, well around me I guess, I- uh, I thought you were like that with everyone."

Luffy finally looked up.

"Really?"

"Yeah." Law sighed. "Look, I'm a gay man that posts nudes on a fucking porn site, ok? I'm not going to judge you for your sexual preferences, Luffy. I don't care about that. That's not what this is about."

Law took a deep breath and tried to piece together some words to actually explain what it was about.

"Think about what this looks like to me, ok? I don't usually do this, any of this, with anyone, alright? And then I find out that you've actually been following my stuff on the site for years longer than I expected. And you've left comments, tons of them." He sighed and ran a nervous hand through his hair. "Typed out in black and white, they look crazy, ok? I've had people get weird in my comment sections before. I've even blocked some people. I'm a little surprised I hadn't blocked you based on how many comments you'd left."

Luffy wiped his hand down his face and groaned.

"I know, I know. I just-" he sighed deeply. The blush on his face from before hadn't let up even a little and Law watched as his face somehow managed to turn an even darker shade of pink. "I just think you're really cute, ok? I don't think before I speak most of the time. I just say stuff. Nami tells me all the time I need to keep my mouth shut but I really just can't. I've tried, I just- stuff pops into my head and then it comes out of my mouth and there's nothing I can do about it sometimes. Happens with a keyboard too, I guess."

Law snorted. "Yeah, I can see that."

An uneasy silence drifted across them again. Law decided he better ask the question that had been burning in his brain since he'd figured this all out to begin with.

"Why did you sign this contract, Luffy? I mean, what did you want out of this?"

"Well, a couple things, I guess." Luffy ran his hand through his hair and shifted so his legs were crossed beneath him. "I wanted the money to help Sabo with the rent and everything. I want to move us both somewhere nicer, and Sabo doesn't make that much with his job and he's still paying off law school. He's always been the responsible one." He leaned back into the couch cushions and closed his eyes.

"I wanted to meet you too, obviously. I figured you'd never even talk to a guy like me if we met on the street or something. You're just, I don't know. You're so hot and confident and put together in the stuff you post and I'm- I'm just me, you know? I'm a mess."

Luffy was quiet for a moment before he took another deep breath. It was a little shocking to see him so unsure. His typical, unwavering confidence had evaporated into thin air.

"I figured the most I could hope for would be fucking you for a paycheck. I didn't know what to expect when I met you, anyway. Nami wasn't very nice when she told me what you were like. I was fine with it, I really was. At least, at first."

That really wasn't that far off from how Law had been feeling about all of this. He'd signed up for the money and to get laid, honestly. He thought Luffy was cute and that screwing him would be fun. He hadn't expected everything else that happened after.

"Torao," Law looked over at Luffy from where he'd been staring into the coffee table. "You know how you said you hadn't been in any serious relationships?" Law nodded. "Well, I haven't either, obviously, but it wasn't because I didn't want to. People just-" he sighed heavily and fiddled with the hem of his shirt again. 

"I know I come on kind of strong most of the time. I don't really mean to. It's just when I find someone I like, I just can't get them out of my head, you know? They kind of take over and all of the sudden I'm texting them all the time and calling and hoping for more dates and all that stuff. The couple times I've done this with people, well, they told me I was 'too much' and they left. I was trying really hard not to do that with you, I swear."

Law could definitely see how Luffy would scare people off with things like that. Hell, he'd thought the same thing, hadn't he? He'd said it was too much, too fast. Luffy had started texting him multiple times a day almost immediately after that coffee date. (Was it really a date? Ok, maybe it was a date considering where they were now.) He'd even called twice the next day. Law had never had any of his other dates do that, that was for sure.

Law realized he'd kind of liked all that, though. It made him feel like Luffy cared and that he was actually interested in him as a person instead of just for sex. He'd actually really liked those little 'good morning' texts and pictures. They were cute. No one had texted or called him like that since Cora had passed. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed knowing someone out there gave a shit about what he was doing during his boring, solitary life.

"I, uh, I actually kind of like that about you, I think," Law said quietly. "The texts and stuff, I mean."

Luffy offered him a small, hesitant smile. "Really?"

"Yeah, I think so, anyway. I like that you just say whatever is on your mind. It feels, I don't know, honest, I guess."

Luffy bit his lip and let his eyes wander around the room as he spoke next. "Do, um, do you still want to try this, maybe? I mean, I- If you just want to do the contract that's fine. We don't have to do anything else."

Law couldn't keep the skepticism off his face or out of his voice when he replied, "You'd really be alright with doing only the contract stuff and nothing else? Are you sure?"

Luffy met Law's eyes and then immediately looked away again. "Yes. Maybe? If it's what you want."

"Luffy, has anyone ever told you that you're a terrible liar?"

Luffy huffed out a weak laugh. "Yeah, all the time, actually. I can't lie for shit."

"So just tell me the truth, then. What do you actually want?"

Luffy looked back over at Law and he smiled softly. It made Law's heart rate kick into high gear.

"Alright, you asked for it." He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He kept his eyes closed as words began to pour from his lips.

"I want to do everything with you. I'm fucking nuts about you, Torao. I really mean it, you're the hottest man I've ever seen. I like how you're so tough and scary, and how you can be sweet in the best ways. You taste like the best candy I've ever had and you have the most beautiful smile I've ever seen. I wish you would smile more." Luffy opened his eyes as he slid himself into the middle of the couch. Law was worried he was going to try to climb back in his lap like he had the night before, but he stopped about a foot short with a sigh.

"I didn't think I would like you so much, you know? I tried, Torao, I really tried not to but-" Luffy stopped and ran the palms of his hands along the fabric of the denim shorts he had on. "Shit, it's probably too much. I know. I should just stop. I've been trying to stop, I swear."

"Trying to stop what?"

Luffy stilled his anxious fidgeting and sighed before he looked up and met Law's gaze.

"Falling in love with you, Law."

Law stopped breathing as all of the oxygen in his apartment vanished. He could feel his heart racing. He hadn't really just said-? No, he definitely had. He said it. 

Luffy's eyes dropped to the floor again.

"It's alright. I know it's too fast. You probably don't- I'll just, I'll-" his voice cracked and Law watched a tear streak down his cheek. Luffy stood up from the couch quickly. 

"I'll go, I'll just go," he muttered to himself. 

Law grabbed Luffy's wrist before his brain had caught up with the movement.

"Don't." Law whispered. "Don't go."

Luffy slowly lowered himself back onto the couch, tears still steadily slipping past his lashes and pulling in short, stuttering breaths. 

"I can't- I need to know what you want, Torao," Luffy said in a tight, broken voice. "I can't just do the contract anymore. I- I- think I love you. I wanted to tell you last night. I should have told you then."

"I-" Law's voice was shaking now. "I don't know how I feel, Luffy." Luffy sighed and tried to pull his wrist out of Law's grasp but he held firm. "But I don't think I want to just do the contract either."

Luffy stopped squirming beneath Law's hand.

"What do you mean?" he whispered.

"I told you last night, Lu-" he surprised himself at that little nickname slipping out again, "I have no idea what this is or what I'm doing. This is- shit- this is a lot for me. You're asking a lot, honestly. But I-" he slipped his hand down to Luffy's fingers and gripped them tightly.

"I'm scared, too, ok? I don't know if I should stay or leave most of the time. I'd usually leave, I always have, but with you..." Law slowly reached his other hand out and gently wiped a tear from Luffy's cheek.

"Gods, Luffy, I've never felt anything like this before. I don't know what to do. This is a mess. Such a fucking mess."

Luffy smiled as Law pulled his hand away. 

"You know, people always tell me I can't help but make a mess." 

Law blew out half a laugh. Fuck, he was so cute and so sweet. Just the feeling of Luffy's hand in his made his whole body feel light and warm. Maybe that quiet little voice was right. Maybe they could fix this.

"Hottest man you've ever seen, huh?" Law said with a smirk, leaning a little closer to run his hand through Luffy's hair.

Luffy nodded and leaned into Law's touch. "Yeah. Absolutely." 

Since Luffy had been so honest, maybe Law could open up a little more about how he'd been feeling too. They were supposed to be communicating, after all.

"Well I think you're beautiful, Luffy."

Luffy's breath hitched. "Really?" he breathed.

"Yeah. Really." Law met Luffy's eyes and felt heart leap into his throat. His eyes were so breathtaking, glittering in the dark orange evening light streaking into the apartment. He let his hand rest on the back of Luffy's neck, idly playing with the soft strands there. His brain finally realized how close they suddenly were. He could feel Luffy's breath breaking across his lips. 

"I want to try, Lu," Law murmured into the tiny space between them. He could barely believe he'd said the words out loud. Barely ten minutes ago he'd been considering leaving Luffy sitting alone in the hallway, hadn't he? He felt his heart racing as the roller coaster he was on tipped over another hill at top speed when Luffy began closing the gap between them in half a dozen different ways.

When their lips met, Law thought his heart was going to just stop beating altogether. A foreign, intensely hot, but somehow pleasant feeling bloomed in his chest as Luffy's lips parted against his mouth. He felt light as air again, like suddenly everything he'd been worried about before was completely pointless. Had he really actually considered never seeing Luffy again? Never feeling this again?

Then he remembered how much it had hurt when he'd thought Luffy had lied to him. He'd thought his whole soul had ripped in half, like someone had buried a knife in his chest and left him to bleed out on the floor. The roller coaster slammed to a halt. He gasped and pulled away from Luffy's lips abruptly.

Luffy looked back at him with hurt and confusion written all over his face.

"Listen, Luffy. I've been- I need you to know that this is-" Law sighed. Words. He needed the right words. Words to explain to someone like Luffy that the world has taught him to never trust when things are too good to be true. 

"I'm not like you. I can't jump into this head first, alright? I've paid for that before and I can't do it again."

Luffy set his hand gently on Law's cheek. 

"I will never hurt you like those other people, Law. I promise."

Law let out a short breath. "Everyone says that."

"Well, then I'll just prove it instead." Luffy pulled his hand away and set it on top of the one Law was holding. 

"We'll go as slow as you want. And I won't keep any more secrets, you have my word."

Law was silent for a moment, still not completely sure he was ready for whatever was going to come next with Luffy. He hadn't been prepared for any of this— the contract, the dates, the videos, Luffy's crazy fan comments, and most definitely not his own feelings about the insane and beautiful person sitting across from him. 

"Have you eaten anything?" Luffy asked gently.

Law huffed out a laugh. "Do five shots of vodka count?"

"Gross, no." Luffy pulled his hands away to pull his phone out of his pocket as he slid a few inches down the couch. "Let me order you some food, alright? I'm not asking to stay, I just want you to eat something."

"Yeah, food sounds good." Law let the weight of the day wash over him and he slumped over to lean against Luffy's shoulder. He realized he didn't really want to deal with his empty apartment again quite yet. "Stay and eat with me, maybe?"

Luffy leaned his cheek against Law's hair. 

"You had me at 'food,' Torao." Law snorted. At least that part of Luffy was predictable.

Law sighed and pulled himself up off the couch to retrieve his phone from the kitchen counter. He pulled up Nami's contact and typed out a quick text. 

"Did you really have to threaten to castrate him?"

Nami responded instantly.

"I would have done it and he knows it. I trust that means he made it over there to grovel? I told him he'd probably have to beg."

Law rolled his eyes. 

"Yeah he's here." Law had no intention of giving her any more information or an answer about the contract today. He needed to sleep on it, it was the smart thing to do. He'd rushed into it the first time and he wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. He did have one more thing to say though.

"Thanks, Nami. I'll call you tomorrow."

"Do you like pizza?" Luffy called from behind him. "I think pizza is the best sad-day food, you know? Or any day, really. Maybe it's just the best food."

Law didn't bother to stop the smile that climbed onto his face.