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"Oh my god!" Nami’s voice rings loudly over the calming sound of the waves gently swaying the ship. "Can you stop already? You're drooling all over the deck!"
For a moment, Zoro thinks she's talking to someone else— Brook, maybe? He'd like to say she's finally snapped at the shitty cook, but then again, Nami’s too smart to risk losing that idiot's attention no matter how annoying it gets sometimes. (Though he's also pretty sure that Nami’s rejection wouldn't put a dent in the cook's devotion for her— he's stupid like that.)
"Gross! You're so gross! Ugh!"
His vision goes black; and it's so sudden, it takes him a second to realize there's something over his head now— a shirt, to be precise. A black shirt with a heart on its side.
"Drooling! On the deck! You're drooling!" Nami exclaims when Zoro finally looks at her. "It's disgusting!"
"What are you on about now?" He asks, frowning as he takes the stupid shirt off his head. He doesn't give it back to her, though— there's no reason to, since it isn't hers.
"You've been looking at Tora-o all day! I don't get it—!" But she makes a pause, looks over the railing, to where Law is somewhat comfortably resting on the grass. " Fine , I kinda get it but it's been hours and it's starting to get weird! And more importantly, it's making me nauseous!"
Ah.
He blinks once, twice— then he scoffs, dimming the conversation over.
"Zoro!"
Whatever he does with his time, that's no one's business but his own.
Yeah, he's been looking at Law— just not all damn day . Maybe a few glances here and there. A prolonged stare now that Law has finally reached his limit and can no longer stand the strain of having used his devil fruit’s powers for so long and in such a way that left even the marines in awe.
There's just no reason for Nami to be screaming her head off over this.
He's just trying to figure things out— by himself, in silence, at what he'd say is a reasonable distance from the source of his most recent inconvenience.
If anything, he's a bit annoyed.
Trafalgar Law is strong, Zoro's known that much from day one. He's seen him in action, too. That stupid power of his has always seemed like a pain to deal with.
Just yesterday, Zoro saw him lift three whole battleships in the air before he cut them into pieces— all with a mean grin on his face.
It had been a wild show to witness— and an ugly smile to see, but what bothered him was the way he felt about it— all of it.
The blinding need to cut something overtook him.
I want to crush you, he thought just as his eye met golden ones.
And even though he somehow managed to reign in the urge to put Wado in his mouth and charge against Law, the itch remained beneath his skin, the idea well hidden within the confines of his mind.
Law's strong— stronger than what he lets on, stronger than what Zoro thought he was.
Kitetsu's screaming at him to unsheathe him, to put him directly to Law's throat. The thirst he feels is bleeding into Enma's energy too, leaving Wado Ichimonji as the only one capable of keeping Zoro grounded.
It's maddening.
His own needs and the ones his swords are trying to convey— they're similar but not the same, yet they all have something in common.
He wants to fight Law so badly— but it's not just that. It's not just that, because if it were— if all he wanted to do was fight him, that wouldn't be a problem. Even if he can't, even if Luffy doesn't want him to, he wouldn’t care.
But there's more to this than just fighting, and even though Zoro can't pinpoint what it is just yet, he knows . And he just can't stop wanting it.
Zoro's been thinking about Law.
He's been thinking about him way before yesterday, and he's beyond the point where the fact catches him by surprise.
The problem is— he can't stop.
It's stupid, he knows.
There's stuff that needs to be done around the ship. He has to train, give a hand where it's needed, then train some more— and he does. He does all of that and the more, and still his mind keeps looping back to him.
His mouth, his lips, the straight line of his nose. That ugly facial hair that is only ugly because Zoro's never been able to grow any.
His voice— how smooth it is, how funny it sounds when he can't help but yell in exasperation at the strawhat's antics.
Zoro smiles, and Nami shrieks. It's because of him, he's aware of that much, but he's not about to turn and acknowledge that she might've been right about him acting in a disgusting way.
Law's waking up, anyway.
From where Zoro's sitting, all he can see is a vague movement of his mouth— maybe he's saying something, maybe he's just smacking his lips the way Luffy does after a good night of sleep. Either way, it hardly matters.
"Fuck." They both hear, because Nami’s still here, observing. "Who's fuckin' dying?" Law asks in a raspy voice. Neither he nor Nami answer him.
It's very clear that he hasn't fully escaped the haze that comes after a much needed rest. He groans when he sits up, his hand already looking for his nodachi as he quickly scans his surroundings.
"He's such an old man, gross," Nami whispers right beside him, before walking away.
Zoro looks at her briefly, if only to confirm that she's finally going to let him be once and for all, then he inevitably looks back to where Law’s still sitting, golden eyes already waiting to be met by Zoro's silver one.
"Who's dying?" Law asks again, a hint of suspicion bleeding into his otherwise bored tone.
"Why? Does it look like we need your assistance, doctor?"
He watches on as Law’s face goes from confused to annoyed to exasperated in the span of five seconds, before settling into his signature I-got-a-stick-up-my-ass expression. Then he clicks his tongue and gets up.
That could've been the end of it.
Law could've walked away, and Zoro would've stayed right where he is to think about him some more. It wouldn’t have been anything out of the ordinary, because they’ve hardly ever talked to each other before, so why would it be different now?
Why would Law, say, decide to make his way up the stairs, so he can stand right beside the place where Zoro's sitting?
Why would he do that?
Why did he do that?
They stare at each other.
Law's got a bit of eye boogers at the corners of his eyes, but it doesn’t seem to bother him so Zoro doesn't really pay much attention to it.
"Is that—?" Law starts— then he stops. Then he stares again. "Where did you get that from?"
For a second, Zoro's confused. He frowns, not really understanding what's the other on now— then he remembers he's still clutching to his stupid shirt.
"Nami threw it at me a while ago."
"Why?"
"Dunno. Try asking her, bet she'd give you a better answer."
And she sure as hell would. She'd give a whole speech about the reasons why she threw Law's shirt over Zoro's head, and he can say without a doubt that she'd give her all to make it the most embarrassing experience of his entire life.
It's up to Law whether he wants to make all of that happen or not. Though, judging by the sudden vacant expression on his face, it seems like his desire to find out the truth isn't that strong.
"Just give it back," he ultimately says, visibly done with the whole situation.
"Why?"
"It's mine, and I want it back."
It's a miracle in itself that they're still holding a conversation at all, but that doesn't stop Zoro from playing with his luck a little longer.
"Yeah, no."
"No?"
He shrugs.
To be fair, the shirt is on his lap but he's no longer holding onto it like it might grow feet to run away from him. Law could easily take it, but he's not doing it and Zoro doesn't really get why.
There's a beat— a pause.
Law rests a hand on the railing, just a few centimeters away from Zoro's thigh. He leans some of his weight into it, suddenly getting into his space like it's nothing.
He stares— it's all he can do, really. Cat got his tongue and all that.
Zoro stares, and Law reaches out. He takes what's his but doesn't go away immediately.
"There's some blood in your hair," he suddenly says.
"Not mine."
"Figured." Another pause, then, "behind your ear, too."
He instinctively puts a hand where Law mentioned, and immediately confirms that it's true. He scratches away the dirt. Part of it, at least. He says nothing.
"I'm taking a shower," Law finally says, his eyes not on Zoro but somewhere else.
He's waiting for an answer, that much Zoro's certain about. But he's got nothing, so he says, "okay." And Law just walks away.
Zoro finds him again like twenty minutes later— it's not by chance, no matter what the smug expression on Law's face tries to convey when he taps Zoro on the shoulder and asks him if he's looking for something.
"Just you," Zoro says, and he takes Law's startled expression as his victory, though it doesn't last for long.
Always quick to recover, Law scoffs at him and says, "just come with me."
And he follows him— despite his better judgment, despite how much he hates it when people try to tell him what to do, Zoro follows him.
He missed his bath day this week, after all. Though he usually doesn't care all that much about it, this time he just can't ignore the fact that he fell in the Grand Line's salty waters way too many times in the last three days to feel like anything but a salt-baked fish.
Law looks over his shoulder once, twice.
There's a bewildered look on his face that's clearly there because he can't believe Zoro decided to go with him just like that, no questions asked.
And well— he gets it, but after the fifth time he turns around to make sure Zoro's still around, he has no other choice but to slap him on the back.
Law huffs at him, and does what Zoro guesses is his own version of being playful— he elbows Zoro's side with a mean smirk on his face. And fuck, it's so ugly— why can't he stop looking at it?
"What is it, Zoro-ya?" Law suddenly asks, and Zoro knows he's been caught. Doing what exactly? Thinking about what? He doesn't really know.
He shrugs, because that's the best answer he can give at the moment, and Law takes it.
They walk in silence for a bit.
There are things he just accepts as they are— like Luffy's dream to become the Pirate King, or Usopp's lack of courage despite the many battles he's been a crucial part of up until now. Things that he sees as unchangeable, so there's no other option but to accept them and move on.
There are other things, though— things that he doesn't fully agree on, things he wishes to change even if it seems impossible to. Like that stupid cook's existence as a whole, just to give an example.
Either of those things, he doesn't think much about.
Zoro doesn't think much about anything, he's not that type of guy. So he doesn’t really get why his mind keeps circling back to whatever it's going on in his brain everytime he hears Law's name, let alone see his face even by chance.
It used to be annoying, now he just wants to understand.
There's a constant burning sensation inside his chest that keeps getting stronger no matter how many times Law comes and goes.
And the thing is— the thing is, that it's so easy to forget it even exists when Law isn't around. He still thinks about him, he stills waits for someone to say something about him, but in the end, it's nothing but a dull ache.
Yet when they're together— not even that. When Zoro knows it wouldn't take much for him to find Law because he's not aboard Sunny but somewhere close, that's when he gets burnt.
Law grabs him by the lapels of his robes, and— ah, right. They weren't walking around just for the sake of walking around.
He makes a face.
"What," Law says. "No backing down now, Zoro-ya."
"Who said anything about backing down?"
Without saying another word, Law lets go of him and walks into the bathroom.
A nodachi and three katana propped up against the wall in a perfect line.
The first thing Law does is take off his earrings. That catches Zoro's eye.
"You take them off?"
Law glances at him, briefly. "You don't?"
He shurgs— what else is he supposed to do? His earrings are like an extention of his ear by now, he doesn't even remember they're there most of the time.
"Well," Law says as he places both pairs of earrings on top of the shirt he took from Zoro back at the deck. "Once in a while, you should."
Little by little, they get undressed.
Law folds his clothes carefully, places his ugly hat on top of the pile, and then walks away before Zoro's even done throwing his haramaki to the floor, uncaring.
Steam starts to fill the space, the sound of water running in the background.
Getting naked takes him no more than a few minutes, but he stands in place for a little longer, staring. Law's earrings glint at him as if on purpose.
Zoro touches his left ear.
Once in a while, right? That's what he said.
They're out of his ear before he can think too much of it. Then he leaves them where Law left his, certain they won't get lost that way.
It's a strange feeling, not having his earrings perpetually attached to his ear— but he'll manage.
When Zoro turns around, he finds Law crouching down next to the large bathtub, testing the water's temperature with his hand.
He's looking a little pale already, but that's to be expected given his curse.
"Ah," Law says just as Zoro sits on one of the stools in front of the showers.
"What?"
"No—" but he cuts himself off, like he can't decide if what he's thinking is worth saying. "I'll do it."
"What?" Zoro repeats for lack of a better answer. To be honest, he's not sure what the other is talking about right now.
Law walks over to him, grabbing a stool for himself in the process. He places it a little bit closer to him than any other member of the crew ever does, but Zoro's not about to complain about it.
"Your hair," he finally says. "It's dirty."
Zoro looks at him like he suddenly grew another head. "Yeah, you already made that clear."
"Well, no— I mean, yes." An exasperated sigh, then he's reaching out for a shower head. "Let me."
"Wash my hair?"
"Yes."
He's about to ask why. The question is at the tip of his tongue, ready to be hung in the air between them. But he says nothing, because frankly— he doesn't mind Law touching him like this, or in any other way. So, if he wants to…
"Sure," he says, shrugging. "Suit yourself."
Law's mouth does this wiggly little thing— like it'll lift upwards if only a certain someone would let it.
Zoro wants to see more, but he's already been pushed in the other direction. He looks at the wall as Law starts pouring water on him; his shoulder first, perhaps to make sure it doesn't startle him, then the back of his neck, then his head.
He takes his time making sure all of his hair is soaking wet before turning the water off and reaching out for the shampoo.
Silence reigns in the bathroom, but what's surprising about that?
Silence is kind of their language— at least that's what Zoro thinks, that's what Law has led him to believe.
He likes the ease that comes with knowing there's no need to say meaningless things just for the sake of keeping up an equally meaningless conversation.
And it's not like Zoro ever felt the need to make other people comfortable, but of course, with Law —for him—, his brain functions slightly differently.
Long and skilled fingers dig deep into his scalp, and it's not gentle at all but it feels kind of nice.
"Lean back a little," Law says, rather absentmindedly, and Zoro lets himself fall back, certain the other is going to catch him.
Indeed, he feels Law's pointy knees dig into the back of his shoulders before they both find a position that's comfortable enough.
"Like this?" He asks, leaning back his head too to see if he can catch a glimpse of Law's expression.
He's close, and this surprises them both, because there's no other explanation for the sudden change in the other's expression once their eyes meet.
"No," Law says, his hands stilling for a second. "But I'll manage," he then adds, a tension around his words that just wasn't there before.
Zoro hums and stares a little longer.
Law's face is really close.
He looks ahead again, and not a second later, the intense digging resumes as if nothing happened at all.
(He's sure about what he's doing, but fuck if it doesn't feel like he might burst into flames.)
Even though Zoro offers, Law doesn't let him return the favor.
They wash themselves up thoroughly, though it's hard to ignore the fact that with every passing second Law struggles to keep his arms up more and more.
Right.
The devil's fruit curse thing.
Must be a real pain in the ass.
He thinks back to the last time he and Luffy bathed together. He had to hold his captain upright until he managed to get a hold of the edge of the bathtub— and even then, Luffy almost drowned a few times.
Yeah, a real pain in the ass.
Zoro rinses off every last drop of soap still clinging to his body before standing up and walking straight to the tub— and into it.
The water's scalding, but it feels so damn nice. His body begins to react to it in an instant, muscles unwinding, the tension he didn't even know he was carrying slowly fading away.
He quietly sighs as he sits down, and then he waits.
Law takes his sweet time, but eventually, he too makes his way to the bathtub.
For the first time ever, Zoro can tell— he can see Law's being hesitant about getting in. And he gets it.
Getting in would mean leaving his fate in Zoro's hands. And it doesn't matter how much trust there's between Law and his crew, it's still a big risk to take.
Zoro wouldn't do it— if he were on Law's shoes, he wouldn't even think about exposing himself this much in front of someone that wasn't part of his crew.
So, frankly, he's half expecting Law to bolt. He's expecting him to say fuck it, it's not worth it. He's expecting to be told he isn't worth Law's trust.
Instead—
"Zoro-ya."
"Hm?"
"Get over here."
—this happens.
Confused, Zoro does as he's told.
A hand lands on his shoulders once he reaches Law, and, ah— he's been used as a crutch.
"I'll fall."
Their eyes met.
"I'll fall, so— catch me."
Law's gritting his teeth, like it physically pains him to be saying any of this.
"Got it."
He doesn't really know how the curse works.
Which water is good and which one is not, if someone were to ask him, he wouldn't be able to give an answer.
All his knowledge comes from the years he's spent by Luffy's side, so at least he knows that when Law says I'll fall, it doesn't mean he'll do it right away.
He steps back to give Law some space, and just like he predicted, he steps into the bathtub just fine.
His face is as white as Brook's and he might look like he's about to throw up, but he's on his feet and that's all that matters.
Now, the catching part comes when he starts to lower himself into the water.
Standing this close to each other, Zoro's able to see as the brightness slowly fades from Law's golden eyes. His grip starts losing its strength, and then he's dead weight.
It's just a second.
Law's eyes go blank, and Zoro's already catching him by the arms like he was supposed to but there's a sudden knot in the pit of his stomach that he can't explain.
"Fuck," Law mumbles and Zoro couldn't agree more.
They've fully lowered themselves into the water, and even though he thinks Law might want him to let go, he just can't do it.
"How you doing?" Zoro asks, mostly because Law's eerily still and his quietness isn't helping the irrational uneasiness building at the very back of Zoro's head.
"Havin' the time of my life," Law throws back, lacking strength but not intention. "How do you think?"
Yeah, alright. He's fine.
Despite the jumbled state of his thoughts, Zoro makes himself comfortable.
He crosses his legs and rests his back on the tub— then he moves Law around(completely ignoring his half-assed protests) to make him face away from Zoro, so throwing an arm around his torso and ensuring that he won't just slip and drown is easier.
To be honest, it's kinda weird to be this physically close to Law.
If it were Luffy— sure, no problem. Luffy's like that , after all. He's all that, and Zoro knows him.
Law, on the other hand… Law keeps people at arm's length. He's known him for years, yet he doesn't — and that's fine, really. Everyone has their secrets. The important thing is that despite them, Law has proven time and time again that he's still a trustworthy person.
It's just that there's always been a wall separating Law from him and the rest of the crew. And even though it's all worn down and full of cracks, Zoro just knows none of them have ever been able to break it no matter how much they've tried.
And now it's gone. He doesn't know how, why or when, but it's clear.
Law rests his head on Zoro's shoulder, his breathing even and somewhat relaxed.
It's gone.
He blinks, taken aback. Then he rearranges his arm's position to take a better hold of Law's body.
It's hard to know how much time they spend in the water, but it's only when Zoro starts to feel dizzy that he decides it's time to get out.
He hauls Law out first, leaving him on the edge of the tub 'cause he guesses that's better than simply throwing him to the floor. He grunts but no other protest comes out of his mouth.
Then Zoro stands up and walks over to where the towels are.
Law grunts again and when Zoro makes his way back, he sees why. He's sitting up now, looking disheveled and still kind of out of it.
"So you alive," he says as he dumps a towel on Law's head.
"Barely."
Smiling to himself, Zoro puts his own towel over his shoulders before crouching down in front of the other.
Though it's kinda hard to see, Zoro can tell Law's golden eyes are slowly recovering their brightness.
He reaches out; but before he can make it anywhere near him, Law puts a hand over the lower half of his face.
Zoro imagines that if it weren't for the remaining effects of the curse, the grip would've been at least a little bit painful. But as things are, it just feels like his cheeks are being squished by Chopper's little hooves.
"Don't even think about it," Law says. He's trying so hard to sound mean, but he's not there yet.
"Good luck trying to stop me," he retorts, just for the sake of being contrary.
To be honest, he hadn't thought about what he'd do once he put his hands on Law. Reaching out was just an instinct, a thoughtless action. But now— now he knows. Now the idea is very clear in his mind.
His hands are on Law's head in a heartbeat— over the towel, rubbing the excess of water away.
Law's tough. He's stubborn, and in some ways, he's also unexpectedly prideful. And it's very clear that he won't let himself be manhandled like this. It doesn't matter that right now Zoro's faster and stronger than him, he just won't go down without putting up a fight first.
It's a bit messy, this whole affair. Law's trying so hard and with each passing second his body regains a little bit more of its strength but it's not enough.
It's not enough because Zoro doesn't want it to be, because he's not the type of guy who plays nice, because he just doesn't want to let go.
Still, given enough time, Law manages to squirm around enough to get part of his head out of the towel.
The look on his face is priceless. He's so mad— fuck, those eyes of his are shinning with rage.
Zoro cracks up.
He doesn't mean to, but Law's murderous expression is just too funny. It's impossible to hold back.
Be it rage, smugness, fondness or whatever else— it's always fun to see Law's armour crack.
And now he's fuming, and Zoro can't stop laughing.
He can't stop even when Law takes his chance and grabs Zoro by the towel still hanging from his neck. He doesn't stop even when he's yanked forward, not even when his face is no more than a few centimeters away from Law's.
His belly hurts, the corner of his eye is wet with joyful tears.
Then Law does the unthinkable— he kisses Zoro.
It's sudden. It's really fucking sudden— it's— fuck.
He swears— to himself and into the kiss.
Law pulls back, who the fuck knows why, but Zoro's already chasing after him.
Come back here , he wants to say, what the fuck are you doing? But he doesn't. Instead, he kisses Law and Law kisses him back.
This .
A kiss.
The taste of Law's lips on his own, the silky feeling of another's tongue inside the warmth of his mouth— it's new. It's weird. And he didn't know he wanted it but now it feels like he can't get enough of it.
The frantic beating of his heart is an all consuming feeling that flows through his veins and blocks his ears— it feels like he's preparing for battle. It's as if he's already going at it, unable to stop.
It's taking his breath away.
It's making him ache in a way that he's never experienced before, and he's just so— lost . He's so stupidly lost in this new feeling, he can't imagine there's a way out of it.
"Zo—" Law's trying to say his name— he's trying to put an end to this, but Zoro's not having it.
He's not ready to let go just yet. (And that's a hard pill to swallow right there, but he's not about to think about that right now.)
"Fuck! Zoro-ya."
Ah.
Law's lower lip is bleeding. Not— not a lot, but that's blood right there.
He blinks once, twice. There's a hint of a smile on his lips, and Zoro can pinpoint the exact moment when Law notices it because he's suddenly being pushed back with enough strength to make him land on his ass.
Law's on his feet and walking away before he can say anything.
Zoro reaches out to stop him, and ends up fully laying on the floor with a hand around his ankle. "Oi. Oi, Tora-o."
"Don't call me by that stupid nickname— let go."
"No," he says, now frowning. Why is this even happening at all? What's the big deal? "You know I didn’t mean to do it."
"Yeah," Law admits, but he doesn't sound happy about it, "but you could be a little more apologetic about it."
"I'm not sorry." He lets go after saying that, and Law walks away.
Standing up is easy for him, but he still takes his sweet time to do so.
Zoro wasn't lying when he said he hadn't meant to bite Law the way he did. He wasn't even aware of what happened until the damage was done— it was purely unconscious.
He could lie and apologize, make Law even madder. He could let it slip away, he could act like nothing happened— but in reality, no. No, he couldn't do any of that.
So he stands up at last, walks over to where Law is already getting dressed.
"I'm not sorry," he repeats, just in case it wasn't clear the first time, "and I don't really regret doing that to you."
"I can tell," Law says, scowling. He reaches out to take his earrings but accidentally grabs one of Zoro's Instead. "I wasn't expecting you to apologize."
"You said I should be more apologetic about it."
"That's not the same thing."
He doesn't get it, but if he didn't want an apology… "then what do you want? Did you hate it or something?"
Law looks at him from the corner of his eye. His lip is already swollen, but at least it's not bleeding anymore.
"No," he says, carefully. "You just looked way too pleased with yourself… It pissed me off."
"So you mad or not?"
He makes Zoro's earring roll on his hand, then he takes it with two fingers to inspect it a bit more closely. "Yeah."
"Doesn’t look like it."
He's not even frowning all that much— not more than he usually does, that is.
"Why do you want to change that so badly?" Law snaps.
"Now you do sound mad, okay." There's a smirk on his lips, he's about to start laughing again.
It's just— Law's words and actions don't match at all. Why does he insist on playing pretend when Zoro can see right through him? He doesn't get it.
"Stop laughing at me."
"Can't," Zoro says, stepping closer. "You're just too funny."
"I forgot you were this annoying."
Despite the harsh words, Law welcomes Zoro's closeness with a simple gesture: he takes the earring in his hand, and puts it where it belongs— all three of them, in fact, with careful fingers.
Zoro stares.
Law's eyes are bright and alive.
Ah.
There it is— the spark needed to catch his world on fire.