Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He comes here every day. For a perfectly good reason. You can't seriously expect him to find inspiration without a nice cup of coffe can you?

It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the barista behind the counter was fucking gorgeous.

Okay, maybe that was the biggest reason he came here every day.

Which was the perfect invitation for his friends to tease him once they found out the truth. 

“Why don't you just ask him for his number?” Penguin said this with such confidence, which is what Law wished he had. It's not like he hadn't considered it. It'd be easy, too. Just a quick walk to the front and he could do it. There's also the possibility that he'd embarrass himself and get kicked out, which would suck ass. He had a pretty good routine going on. 

He comes to the coffee shop, laptop in hand. He orders the same thing. Black coffee, two spoonfuls of sugar. Sometimes a chocolate scone if he had been too preoccupied to make his own breakfast. To him, having a clean shaven face is more important than wasting time trying to open and eat a few granola bars. And no way in hell would he make toast.

He sits at the same table by the same window, with a perfect view of the counter. If he only looked up every few seconds it wouldn't seem too creepy. He wasn't a stalker, not at all. There was nothing weird about going to the coffee shop every morning and writing.  

Even though he's a doctor, and a damn good one at that, probably best in the state, Law loves to write. He's been doing it since a very young age. Started helping his father write medical reports when he was six, and even went through a superhero phase and made his own little comic books which had long since been destroyed. Law uses writing as a way to cope with stress, and he's even shared some of his stories with the rest of the world. He wasn't sure if it was unfortunate or not that not everyone on the Internet can be nice as opposed to real life critiques. A few of his reviews come from people who are more than likely douches with their fingers shoved so far up their assholes they can't manage a coherent thought. 

But he's got fans, he knows that. People actually read his shit, and apparently they like it. He wished they'd stop asking to meet him, because he's not too eager at the thought of meeting a possible serial killer. Still, it was nice to know that he wasn't actually that fucking bad at something he loved to do. 

Heart surgeries don't really count, he supposed. That's what he got money off of. Sure it was fun, but it was dangerous too. Not because of the sharp objects he surrounded himself with every day, or the possibility of losing a patient and feeling the wrath of their loved ones. Those were all sweet blessings compared to having an actual fire hazard as a nurse. Sometimes he wondered how Rocinante even managed to get a job like that in the first place. 

Law supposed he couldn't really complain. Rocinante had been the one to bring him into his home when he had no one else to turn to. The man was like a father to him. He was like a guardian angel sent to watch over him. A crummy, clumsy angel that trips over the air and always catches fire every five minutes. 

There was a soft tap on his shoulder, and it was enough to get Law out of his trance. He had an awful habit of losing his train of thought, he blamed it on his lack of concern for most things. The doctor pulled his head phones out and looked to the left of him, almost falling out of his chair as he did so. 

“What music is that? I thought I heard Kansas but I might be wrong.”

God that voice. He would never get over how breath taking it was. 

Why the hell was this guy talking to him? Shouldn't he be working? Certainly he had better things to do than waste his time on Law and risk the chance of losing his job. The owner of this place was a mean old bag of dicks named Garp or some shit and only hired family as his employees. Whenever his workers got side tracked they'd earn a fist to the top of their heads and a harsh lecture about how working was important in the middle of the God damn shop. Seriously, for everyone to hear. Law agreed with the whole 'having a job and earning money is the only way to get you somewhere in life' stuff but the guy only had three baristas. You'd think yelling at them all the time would become cumbersome. Then again, they could always learn to benefit from their mistakes. 

And there he goes getting side tracked again. When Law finally managed to escape la-la land he was met with soft ebony starring right into his own brown pools. He could have had a fucking heart attack right then and there, he swore on his lucky leopard patterned hat. That'd be bad for business, but anything to get out of this situation. 

“Um...n-no you were right. I was listening to Carry on Wayward Son. It's...a good song.”

“Ohh! I thought it sounded familiar. Sabo likes to watch this show called Soup or Natural or whatever and it's like a recurring song on that show. I thought it was about soup but it's just these dumb brothers who kill demons! I tried watching a few episodes but I thought it was stupid. It's not as cool as Pirates of the Caribbean! If I could be a pirate captain that'd be awesome!”

He sure was...talkative. Law shouldn't be surprised. Luffy loved talking to customers. Even if they were completely disinterested, he kept on flapping that jaw. Some of them don't seem to mind. He thinks they might actually be friends of Luffy's. A young woman with orange hair comes in here often and sits by the counter with a glass of tangerine tea and listens to whatever stories Luffy has with a content smile on her face while he cleans counters. At first, Law thought she was his girlfriend. He actually got a bit upset over the thought and wasn't proud to admit he kicked a couple of cans on his way home. But the next day the woman (Nami, he had heard Luffy call her) came in with her arm around another young woman with striking blue hair and they acted all lovey dovey. 

Which was a fucking blessing.

“You have awesome taste in music! I usually listen to the older stuff, too. I really like the Beatles. That's cause dad used to blast them in the car when I was a baby. Ringo is probably my favorite cause he's underrated, plus I really like that song about friends helping each other.”

“Don't you have a job to be doing?”

Okay, that was way more rude than it should have been. Fuck. 

Luffy blinked. He cocked his head to the side like a puppy, and glanced back at the vacant store. When had it become empty? 

“Not anymore. It's closing time, I'm supposed to be kicking you out.”

Well wasn't that a fucking laugh. He thought he'd had a good track of the time, but apparently getting sidetracked was easier to do with a guy like Luffy around. 

“Shit, I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was this late.” He turned his laptop off and closed it, putting it into its case. He hadn't written much today, just a page and a half about some office romance novella he had in mind. Maybe he'd get back on track once he was home, test the waters with same sex couples. He knew a bunch of his teenaged readers would go ape shit over that.

Law downed the rest of his (cold) coffee and threw the empty cup in the trash. He checked his pocket to make sure his phone was still there and made his way to the front door. 

“Hey!”

The door was halfway open. Law turned around and saw Luffy standing in front of him again. A bit closer than he probably should have been. 

When did it get so hot?

“You know, you come here every day with that laptop. Ordering coffee and stuff. And it got me really curious. Are you a writer?”

Guy was smarter than he looked.

“Uh...yeah.” That was all he managed to get out before he was out of the door and calling a cab. It was clear Luffy wasn't ready for the conversation to end, but Christ if Law had stayed any longer he'd get hotter than molten lava. That boy was doing something to him that he wasn't sure whether he liked or not.

Law decided, as he was climbing into the back seat of the cab of a driver who had some human decency to stop and let him in. He decided that talking to Luffy anymore could be bad for his health. In the span of two minutes he had experienced ecstatic heart beats, clammy hands, light headedness, a flushed face and a shamefully erect cock. There was no fucking way he could manage a normal conversation with Luffy. 

Law wasn't very good at the whole 'love' thing. Sure, he's screwed around a bit. But prostitutes that charged 30$ an hour didn't really count as love. He wasn't sure he'd ever actually fall in love. Truthfully, he was sure of it, because honestly he deemed himself incapable. 

That is, until a few months ago. The new coffee shop opened up, and everyone wanted to see if it'd be any good. Law saw the joint as the perfect place to get some work done, so the first day it officially opened he found himself in the midst of an all-too-eager coffee loving crowd. The coffee was above average, not as strong as he liked. It tasted like okay shit. The atmosphere was way too welcoming, and he had a feeling the place would always be crowded. 

All in all, it wasn't somewhere he'd want to spend his time. 

He remembered everything that had happened that day. After he got his coffee, and made his way to the only available seat in the store, some moss headed idiot knocked into him from behind and made him spill his coffee. Law was ready to turn around and show the guy why he had 'DEATH' tattooed on his fingers when a loud sigh caught his attention. 

“Man, I'm gonna have to clean this up. Ace, where's the mop, can you get it! Hey, you didn't get any on you did you?”

When Law turned around he hadn't expected to come face-to-face with the literal embodiment of perfection. That may be a little exaggerated to some people, but you can't fake that much perfect. 

A flush rose to Law's face as he struggled to find his voice, and the barista just laughed and picked up the cup. He dumped it in the trash can. 

“I'll make you another one, on the house, to compensate! If you need anything else just ask for Luffy!”

That was when his entire world changed. It took him a while to realize what he felt for Luffy was some form of love. He feels like he's in some cheesy romance movie sometimes but like fuck he cares. 

His whole life he's been cursed with tragedies, shit he didn't deserve to go through, that he wished he could just permanently erase from his mind. Yet now, some higher power has obviously started feeling sorry for him. A bit late to the pity party, but Law couldn't find himself to complain. Especially not when his little slice of pure happy comes with a goofy smile and an out of place straw hat. 

Chapter Text

“We have everything we'd ever want right here! All of our friends are here, our coffee shop does really good business. That old fart has gone mental if he thinks we'd be able to make it in a big city like that.” Ace got all red and puffy when he was upset, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting as if that would help to put his point across.

“Garp is just trying to do what's best for us,” Sabo reasoned. “We're all out of school now since Luffy graduated last year. He made it pretty clear he's not going to college, so now Garp can move us somewhere more promising. I'm gonna miss this place too but you're acting like we'll never see Foosha again.”

Luffy nods in agreement, mostly about the whole 'never going to college thing'. A high school education was good enough, considering he didn't have to worry about getting a job. Garp promised him one at the new shop. He was gonna be a bearsta. It was what Ace and Sabo did, which was just taking people's orders and making their coffee. Pretty easy.

Why do people drink coffee anyway? It's really gross. It always leaves an awful taste in his mouth, and his brothers would pick on him and say he wasn't a man if he didn't like coffee. They sure are stupid!

Ace never wanted to move here. He had told Sabo and Luffy that about a million times, that he didn't understand why they'd have to leave Foosha for a place like New World. Sabo always told him he'd get over it eventually. Luffy didn't see the big deal.

Sure, he'd miss his friends. What few he had. But to him, this was like a whole new chapter in his life! He'd have the chance to make new friends, see what a big fancy pants city had to offer him. Maybe he'd finally get his own room!

All of this and more, he soon found out.

Garp bought a reasonably large house in a reasonably large neighborhood filled with reasonably nice people. Luffy got his own bedroom, as he had wanted. In fact they all did. Ace was still grumbling about moving, and added on the fact that he was way old enough for his own place, him and Sabo both. But when he saw how big his room was he stopped complaining as much. They had to share a bathroom though, because gramps' room was the only one with an attached potty house. Other than that Luffy had no problem with the living arrangements.

They had an agreed upon schedule every morning (actually, to be fair, they didn't get a say in what time Garp would be rolling them out of bed. If Luffy got to decide they'd be asleep until two in the afternoon). The first instance the boys heard about this somewhat unfair schedule was opening day of the shop, when gramps went to them individually and tore their sheets off, leaving them bare and cold at eight in the morning.

Of course Ace had to open his big mouth and complain, so now they have to get up at seven every morning.

Luffy got used to it though. He had no reason to stay up real late so he just went to bed around nine every night.
But he had a reason for getting up.

Yeah, there was the shop. He guessed it was fun working there, cause he had already made a lot of friends! Nami and Vivi always came in, and sometimes Zoro and Sanji dropped by but Sabo would have to draw them out for causing a disturbance. He wished they wouldn't fight so much!
Usopp came in for a caramel mocha every morning and could only stay long enough to order, but Luffy always managed to squeeze in a conversation. Besides, he'd always be able to see the artist on breaks. Robin and Franky would bring Chopper in during their walks, because Garp allowed dogs. Franky didn't like coffee so Luffy had convinced his grandpa to start selling cokes. And he'd only see Brook if he had a knack for the way Ace made his tea, but it was still nice talking to him, even if it was stuff Luffy didn't understand sometimes.

All of that was great, because moving to a new town wasn't fun without meeting new people.
There was another reason he didn't care about getting up so early, and if his brothers ever found out he would never hear the end of it.

See, there was this...guy. He came into the coffee shop literally every day. He sat at a table near the window facing the counter, and ordered the same thing.
A black coffee with two spoonfuls of sugar. He always brought his laptop with him, and seemed to be doing something very important on it.

The first time Luffy met him he ended up cleaning his spilled coffee. That was entirely Zoro's fault, but he was glad it happened.

He knew he'd instantly recognize him if he ever decided to come back. You couldn't possibly miss him in a crowd. He had all these cool tattoos on his body that probably went all the way up to his shoulders! Luffy also found out, thanks to a little bit of Internet searching, that he had a skin condition called vitiligo. Honestly he just thought the guy looked really cool with random patches of peach on his body. If he ever found himself staring it was out of wonder and curiosity, not confusion or disturbance like most people.

Luffy spent weeks trying to figure out how to approach this strange man. He could have went about his normal way to try and make friends with him right off the bat, but something kept him from it. He felt like maybe that'd be too much for this cool guy, so he waited for the right moment.

Eventually it came.

It was closing time, and the store was empty save for this tattooed guy. Luffy knew if he didn't kick him out someone more aggressive would. Besides, now was his chance! He knew exactly what to talk to this guy about.

And he learned some very interesting things as well. It seemed this guy got flustered easy. Maybe he was shy? He was a writer, and liked classical music. That alone was enough to make Luffy like him!There was a 90% possibility this guy agreed that Pirates of the Caribbean was far superior to Soup or Natural. Take that, Sabo!

Luffy wished he could have talked with the guy longer, but he seemed to be in a rush. Bummer! Maybe he'd catch him again tomorrow when he wasn't busy. Now he kind of wondered what'd happened if he waited just a teeny tiny bit longer to make friends with him. He didn't even know the guy's name!

That was a few hours ago.
Ever since, Luffy's been locked in his room, thinking about that guy.
He supposed he could call him Tattoo Guy for the time being, cause he had so many.
He'd noticed DEATH tattooed on Tattoo Guy's fingers which was pretty weird, but cool nonetheless. There were also these circle thingies on his hands, and more weird circle thingies on his forearms surrounded by spikey stuff. Maybe they were sentimental? Like Ace's tattoo.
ASCE, with the S crossed out. It was a way to remember Sabo becoming part of their family. Sabo had said something about getting a similar one on his opposite shoulder.

Luffy pursed his lips. He tried to imagine himself in a tattoo parlors chair, getting a ham sandwich or something on his leg. He wondered if tattoos hurt? Maybe he'd ask Ace, though he'd more than likely be bombarded with questions.
You can't ask for the time of the day without sounding like you were up to something! It was crazy.

“ I'll ask Tattoo Guy, ” he said aloud, throwing his arms down to his sides. “I'll bet he's got a whole bunch more! He seems like the type. Maybe he'd let me see them if I asked really nicely.”

It was a unanimous decision. Luffy inquired Luffy, who was more than pleased with the outcome, and the two shook on it.
Shaking his own hands was starting to get a little weird. He had to get a bear or something.

Chapter Text

 “Man, you look like you haven't slept in days.”

Law paused, his hand hovering over the hot water nozzle. Couldn't a guy use the shitter without someone bothering him?

“Shachi, have you got some kind of obsession with my health? First it was 'oh you should eat more than half a salad for lunch, have a hot dog' even though you know I'm vegetarian. Then it was 'you haven't taken a shit since yesterday morning, are you constipated?' Now, once you follow me into the bathroom and have successfully heard me take a dump, you bother me about my sleeping schedule. It's starting to get a little creepy.”

His red headed companion sighed, shaking his head and letting out an obnoxious chuckle. “It's a good thing that I care so much. You have to realize that people do actually love you, Law. Bitch all you want but there's no way you'll ever get rid of me or anyone else.”

He sounds really proud about it.

“Don't act as if I actually want to destroy any shred of happiness I have left.“ He finally turns on the water, scrubbing the now partially dissolved soap off of his fingers. “Normal people don't obsess over someone else's diet and bowel movements, in case you weren't aware. Between you and Cora-san, I'm surprised I can actually manage to get a good nights rest. Penguin worries too, which is nice. But Christ at least he lets me breath.”

“I've noticed a bit of a change in you, dude.” Shachi chose to completely ignore everything Law had said and jump straight to his own point. “Ever since you started going to that Garp's Coffee House or whatever. That barista has had a huge effect on your everyday life, and whether that's a good or a bad thing has yet to be decided.”

At the mention of Luffy, Law once again paused his hygienic assault on his hands, letting the water run out of the faucet and down the drain. Conservatives and environmentalists would no doubt have his head for wasting so much water but he couldn't bring himself to actually fucking care.

He tried not to talk about Luffy too much in front of...well, anyone. Personal shit like that was no ones business apart from his own. He was still trying to figure out how the barista fit under personal business...

“You've been beating around the bush for too long. Just ask him out.”

“You sound like Penguin.”

“Well, come on, you can't really blame us for trying to push you to this. You talk about him so causally, all the time! You think we don't notice, but trust me, we do. 'This coffee doesn't taste as good as Luffy's', 'Nurse Baby has a cut on her cheek, it looks just like Luffy's', 'I wonder if I gave Luffy this still beating heart he would accept my love and affection-'”

“What, why would I say that-”

“I wouldn't be surprised. My point is, you gotta get going while the going is still good, if you catch my drift?”

Law's hands were dripping water onto the floor. A puddle had formed underneath of him, spreading towards his shoes. There were paper towels in the dispenser, plenty enough to dry his hands. 

He wiped them on his jeans, leaving wet streaks on the fabric, and turned to leave the bathroom, not waiting to see if his friend would follow.

Of course Shachi would follow. The sound of boots clamping against the tiled hospital floor verified this. An arm was thrown over his shoulder, and Law was half tempted to reach into his coat pocket and grab the gel pen laying neatly inside, only to stab the other in the hand. But he decided against it. 

It may ruin his favorite pen. 

“Luffy is still young and vulnerable. He hasn't had the luxury of experiencing what all life has to offer yet! By that I mean relationships and sex.”

The way Shachi talked made it seem like he was one of Luffy's best friends.

“I've been to that coffee place, ya know. Seen what kind of person this Luffy character is. Cute kid, very amiable. So sweet, so innocent. I may have gotten a few cavities...anyway! There's plenty of people lookin' to snag someone like that. Like Kid-”

Law snorted. Actually god damn snorted. “You're joking.” That was almost enough to get him rolling on the floor. He had too much dignity for that. “I thought Kid was sleepin' with what'shisface? Killer? Last time I saw them they were pretty close to each other. Disgustingly so. No way Kid'd wanna sleep with Luffy when he's banging someone else.”

The two came to a halt at the end of the hall, and Shachi leaned against the wall next to Law's office. Law knew they'd both kill for a fucking fag, but there were rules to be followed, and enforced. He'd wait til lunch break to ruin his lungs some more. 

“Yeah, they're pretty close. Kinda like Siamese twins.” Law couldn't help but mentally picture the two connected at the hip, or maybe the head. Naturally or surgically so. It was ammusing. “But ya never know, hm? Kid isn't the only potential cherry popper you gotta compete against.”

“Christ, do you have to say it like that?” His hand twitched, fighting the urge to reach for the carton of cigarettes in his pocket. “He may not even swing that way.” Law didn't want to think about it, but he couldn't ignore the possibility. Maybe Luffy was only into chicks. He'd only had one conversation with the guy, if you could call it that. He was sure there was plenty of shit he didn't know about the barista. 

“Are you kidding?” Shachi almost seemed a bit disparaged, hand clutching at his chest. “He's got all these big breasted beauties coming in and out of the place all day long, and he never gives them a second glance! I saw Boa Hancock go in there the other day and he barely even looked at her! Just took her order and acted like she wasn't there! Oh, the humanity, I nearly fainted!”

Normally, Law would scoff at Shachi's over exaggeration, but Hancock was no scoff-worthy manner. There are people who have compared her charming beauty to that of the Greek goddess Aphrodite, when really she was more like Medusa. Unless you were a straight woman or a gay man, there's no way you'd squirm out of falling "under her charm." All things he's been told, because honestly he didn't think she was all that pretty. 

“No freakin' way is he into chicks. Not after ignoring Hancock. You've got a chance dude!”

Maybe he did. Maybe he shouldn't rush into this. He had never actually had a partner before, so he didn't know what to do. Luffy probably didn't even feel the same way. This was a bad idea. 

Yeah. This was definitely a bad idea. Asking Luffy out on a date in  front of all these people, and his brothers. You'd have to be stupid. 

Law was a fucking moron. 

There were a few people in front of him. Taking their sweet time ordering. But it didn't matter. He had all the time in the world. He kept rehearsing in his head how he was going to ask Luffy. So far, all bad. 

His eyes wandered around the store until landing on Sabo, who stood by the back window, talking to a brunette. Her name was Koala if memory serves, a teacher aid at the high school. Why anyone would want a job that involved being around those punk dicknobs was beyond him. Even when he himself was dragging his body heavily and annoyedly through the unending halls of complete and utter Hell, he would look on at other students with disdain. 

Rocinante said it was because he was anti social. 

Someone cleared their throat. Law turned and met ebony eyes. But not as warm as he remembered. 

“Black, two sugars?” Ace's voice was strong and expectant, not soft and friendly. Law almost felt threatened. 

“Excuse me?” His own voice was strained, and touched with a hint of disappointment. 

“That's what you normally get when you come in, right? You're in here like every day, I picked up on it from watching Luffy take your order.” Ace grabbed the largest choice of cup they had, scribbling the order on the plastic. He handed it to Sabo, who had apparently come up to the register without Law noticing. The blonde immediately moved to start on the doctors order, beside the shop owner who had also apparently been standing there. 

Jesus he really needed to pay attention to his surroundings. Law decided to keep quiet, scooting over to let the customer behind him order. 

A caramel mocha. 

“Where's Luffy?” The long nosed guy's voice was full of concern. One of Luffy's friends. He took the words right out of Law's mouth. 

“Sick.” Ace answered. Law felt his throat tighten up. “He started coughing last night, woke up this morning with a fever. I told him not to play in the rain, but he never listens. It's like talking to a brick wall for the most part. He insisted on coming into work today, but owner wouldn't allow it.”

“Like hell I'd let him infect my paying customers.” The voices in this family must get deeper with height. Garp wasn't even yelling and no doubt the whole place could hear him. “He'll get better in a few days.”

There was still that tightness in his throat as Sabo handed him his order. Of course Luffy would get sick today. The universe did always have a grudge against him. 

Law didn't bother staying today. The laptop he had with him felt heavy in its carrier as he walked out the door, the bell usually for signaling a new customer ringing in his ears as he did so. He didn't care. There was no point staying in such a dark store; fluorescent lights as bright as could be, but nothing compared to his own little piece of the sun. 

Maybe Luffy would be back tomorrow. Or the day after, at the most. 

He remembered what Shachi told him yesterday. Law was determined. He needed to get going while the going was still good. 

Chapter Text

It was an entire week before Law saw Luffy again.

Every time he came into the coffee shop, he had his head held high (only relatively speaking, he preferred to stare at the fresh wooden floorboards). He was always mentally prepared to ask the inevitable, and only pouted a little bit when he saw a lack of sunshine in the store. He still ordered like normal, but refused to drink in a suddenly suffocating environment.

For seven days he followed this new routine. He had started getting to work an hour early again, as opposed to the thirty minute arrival beforehand he had gotten used to. Penguin and Shachi would nag him about it, but it was easy to ignore their comments and just converse with Bepo instead.

On his days off, he didn't have to worry about accidentally staying past closing time, since he left earlier. Instead of staring at his computer screen in a public location, he would stare at his computer screen in his dark, bare apartment. At least he had finally come up with a story idea. Two baristas fall in love and have to feel the homophobic wrath of their parents.

Chapter one was already up. So far, he was getting positive feedback.

But it wasn't long before everything was back to the way it used to be. When it was Monday morning, the day began as normal. Law parked his beat up Volkswagen in the parking lot of Garp's coffee house, taking up two spaces in the strangely small area. The car door shook when he closed it, threatening to fall completely off its hinges. You'd think someone like a doctor, who makes a pretty good deal of money, would want a nice car like a Mercedes or a Mustang.

Yeah, you'd think so. A waste of money is what they really are. Besides, there's nothing wrong with his Volkswagen. It just needed a few repairs and it'd be good as new.

His hands were buried in his pockets, so he pushed the door open with the help of his shoulder, careful not to get his foot caught in the way. The line today was, thankfully, only about four people, five now including himself. He knew it'd be packed soon, though, so he wanted to hurry and leave.

He didn't see Luffy.

Law recognized the long nosed guy at the front of the line, and the moss headed idiot from before behind him. He hadn't seen that guy since the place first opened up, mostly because he doesn't pay attention to a good deal of his surroundings when he's here. Moss Head was speaking to an unknown blonde and a pink haired girl with pigtails wearing a Ghostbusters shirt. He wasn't sure if the fact that he knew none of these people was a bad thing or not. He had been living in New World what? Eleven years?

He chose not to care. It wasn't like he'd ever actually want anything to do with them unless they needed heart surgery or something.

“ Are you gonna get something different for once, Perona? ” Moss Head's voice was deep. It fit his appearance. “ You always get those nasty pink teas. ”

“ How dare you! For your information, it is a bubblegum mint blend and it comes with a cute little umbrella! What about you, huh? At least I have some taste. Only grandpas ever get straight black coffee. ”

Law felt a bit offended.

Pink haired girl (Perona) crossed her arms. Moss Head rolled his eyes. Blondie turned around, in the process of ordering, just to yell at Moss Head for 'fussing at a lady!' and 'how dare you question Perona's taste!' Fuck why couldn't they just hurry and finish?

A familiar laugh came from presumably the register, and for a second Law thought he was hearing things. But then a loud voice exclaimed, “A black coffee, bubble gum mint tea, and a regular iced tea? Coming up! Knowing your orders beforehand really makes my job easier, guys. Who's next? Oh! Is that you Tattoo Guy? I know what you want, black coffee with two spoonfuls of sugar! I'll make it myself, good thing there's no one else behind you, shishishi! ”

Maybe there was a God after all.

Law's heard stories from semi reliable sources that people have been known to break down in tears at the sight of natural phenomenons. Something like an eclipse, or a sunset.

He was certain no one had ever cried at the sight of a smiling ball of pure, uncensored happiness in a straw hat and apron. Not yet at least.

All of a sudden it was like the entire building was shrouded in this holy light shining from some possibly existent heaven. Angels were singing, and Christ it was like he was floating on some fucking cotton candy cloud bullshit.

He forgot how nice it had been to see Luffy's face. Sure, it was only a week. But you get used to seeing perfection everyday of your life only to have it torn away from you without caution. It's not fun.

An attempt at speech was made, albeit a bit awfully. All that came out was a soft wheeze and Law really wanted nothing more than to die. Again.
He nodded, confirming that 'Yes, that's what I want' and stood aside amongst the others waiting for their coffee.

Luffy wasn't joking when he said he'd make Law's coffee for him. He made his brothers do the rest of them, and earned a few grumbled curses. There were no complaints from the surgeon. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to your regularly scheduled program.

“ Feelin' better, Luffy? Ace told us you were really sick. ” Long nose was standing right next to him, arm leaning against the cabinet. He was fiddling with the napkin dispenser.

Luffy laughed, the same laugh that always punches Law in the gut and makes him feel gayer than usual, and answered his friend. “ I wasn't that sick! It was just sniffles, I feel fine, Usopp! Gramps wouldn't let me come, which was the worst part. I had to stay in bed all day! It was awful! ”

“ I'd love to do that. ” Moss Head's voice.
“ You already do! ” Blondies voice. It sounded annoyed.

“ You had a really high temperature, Luffy. We'd have been nuts to let you come to work. ” Sabo was always the calmer brother it seemed. He handed Long Nose (Usopp) his drink and went to start on another.
Usopp left after that, saying his goodbyes and heading out the door.

Down to four.

“ How long does it take to make a cup of black coffee? You know I hate waiting. ” Moss Head was starting to tick him off. But it was better to keep to himself. Blondie was more than happy to lecture his green headed friend about manners, but it seemed to be like talking to a brick wall.

“ You're more impatient than me, ” Ace was pouring what was presumably tea (it was a very light pink) into a plastic cup, and placed a little umbrella in it. “ That's saying a whole lot, honestly. ” He then handed it to Perona, who happily accepted it and made herself comfortable at the nearest table.

Moss Head merely grumbled, rolling what one eye he had left (that scar on his left eye looked pretty sick) and briefly made eye contact with Law. The part-time writer hardened his gaze, as if daring the impatient shit to say anything. Law wasn't entirely sure why, but he felt like he needed to put across the point that he belongs here just as much as everyone else does.

“ Here you are. A black coffee and a regular iced tea. Enjoy your drinks. ” Moss Head averted his gaze and turned back to Ace, who had a seemingly forced smile pulled across his face. Blondie elbowed his grass headed friend in the side and grabbed his tea, immediately making his way to the table Perona occupied. Moss Head cursed after him, and now Law was the only one waiting.

It didn't bother him that Luffy was taking too long. You can't rush perfection.

“Tattoo Guy! I'm real sorry for taking forever! I had to look all over the cabinets for the sugar we put in coffee, I couldn't find them anywhere! But anyway, here you go! A black coffee, two spoonfuls of sugar.”

Tattoo Guy. So he has a nickname? Maybe it would be better to tell Luffy his actual name.

“ Thanks... ” His voice was soft as he grabbed his coffee, bringing it to his lips and taking a drink. It was good. It was always good, especially when Luffy made it. “ I have a name though. It's Trafalgar Law, but most people call me Law.”

This was the most he had ever said to the coffee maker. It felt...empowering. Maybe soon he could ask Luffy...

“ That sounds really hard to pronounce, I'm just gonna call you Torao! ” Luffy seemed really proud of himself for coming up with that name, a smile as wide as it can possibly be blessing his features, as well as the entire world. Law wanted to correct him, and tell him that 'No, it's Trafalgar!' but why pass up the opportunity to have Luffy call him something unique and self thought?

“ Um...Torao is fine, I guess. So uh...Mugiwara-ya...” Keeping up with the nickname thing. “ Listen, I was wondering uh, maybe when you aren't busy you'd like to have dinn-”

“ Everything okay over here? ” Sabo came up behind Luffy, empty coffee pot in hand. He looked at Law a bit too sternly, and suddenly the doctor felt a bit unwelcome. Ace followed shortly after, putting an arm around his younger brother, and smiling at Law.

The same one he had given Moss Head.

“ Luffy...is this guy bothering you? Cause we can kick him out if you'd like. ” His voice sounded sincere. Law felt eyes from all over staring at him, but that wasn't what bothered him. It was these two. Overly protective brothers are a nightmare.

Luffy's face scrunched up, and he looked between both of his brothers. “ What? Torao isn't bothering me, I think he was just about to ask me a question! ” All three of them were looking at Law and he felt like a circus act or something. “ I wanted to ask him a question too! ”

That seemed to throw the brothers and Law off guard. They were all staring at Luffy now, and the young boys mouth opened to form an 'O'. “ Do I get to ask first?! Okay! Torao, do you have vitiligo? Is that how it's pronounced? I think that's how you pronounce it, I spent an hour last night trying to figure it out. ”

That...was a bit unexpected. Law looked down at his arm, staring at a particular patch of peach, then back up to Luffy. He had a rather innocent smile on his face, and was looking at Law expectantly. It seemed Ace and Sabo were just as surprised as he was, because they both sighed and shook their heads at their brother.

The doctor took another drink of his coffee, this time downing a bit more than before, because he would need it. If only it were some kind of alcohol. He chuckled, accepting that it was actually kind of funny.
He wondered idly what went on in that young mans head sometimes. If only he could delve deep into Luffy, into every nook and cranny. It was a scary thought.

“ Cool, isn't it? ” Law tried to keep his voice from breaking. Today was supposed to be his victory day, and no one would screw it up. Especially not himself. “ My dad had it, so I guess I got his curse. ”

“ A curse? Oh, like in dragon movies and stuff! Torao...are you a dragon? ”

A loud laugh suddenly came from behind him, and Law turned around fast enough to see Moss Head clutching his stomach and slapping Blondie on the back.

“ A dragon, he says! Luffy's hopeless! ”

“ STOP SMACKING MY BACK ZORO, YOU DICKWAD, THAT FUCKING HURTS! ”

“ Hey, if you guys are gonna do that take it outside! You can't keep fighting in here! ” Sabo seemed to temporarily forget the situation with his brother in order to set "Zoro" and Blondie straight. The two mumbled angrily at each other under their breaths and went back to their drinks. Perona seemed very amused by the whole thing.

Law looked down at his watch. It was almost thirty minutes before he had to be at work.
Damn.

“ Mugiwara-ya, listen... ” He squeezed the coffee cup, a bit roughly, and took a small step away from the counter. “ I really need to head out, I've got work, but I guess I'll... ” The doctor looked at Luffy, then towards his brothers, who still had very fake and very forced smiles on.

“ Yeah. Bye. ”

Dammit. He couldn't get anything done with Luffy's knights in shining armor always ready to rescue him. He had to come up with some way to ask him-

“ Enjoy your coffee Torao! ” Law was halfway through the door when Luffy's voice called out to him. ” It's made with extra love! ”

Was it hot in here? The door was open, wind blowing, but Law's entire body felt hot. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

Quickly he rushed out the door, drinking the rest of his coffee. There was a trash can next to his car, and he was about to toss it in when he noticed something had been written on the cup. The surgeon turned it over, a bit surprised to see digits scribbled down messily on it.

-***-***-****
Call me :D ; <3 Luffy

Was he going blind? That was a reasonable explanation. He blinked, and looked over his shoulder, directly at his car.
No. He could see fine. So he looked back down at the cup.

This was...Luffy's number? Luffy...actually gave him his number? And...he wanted Law to call him?

He would have had a broken phone if he hadn't caught it, whipping it out of his pocket at the speed of light to add a new contact.