Work Text:
Law slumped into his chair, the strings of words on his laptop screen blurring into black lines before his eyes.
He had made a mistake.
Agreeing to lead this behemoth of a research project had been a bad idea. To make things worse he knew he had himself to blame on this. His love for a challenge and regrettably also his pride had gotten the better of him.
Now he was stuck with a topic not many had tackled before him, almost no preceding studies to refer to and the issue of how to even approach the medical experiments effectively cost him his last nerve.
To top it all off his body was begging desperately for a break. He sighed and rubbed his eyes, feeling the soft skin of his eye circles. He probably looked terrible.
Darkness had already fallen outside. Only the colourful city lights and a yellow glowing floor lamp still illuminated the room. Traffic had quieted down, and the soft thud of rain droplets began to drag Law into slumber.
That was at least until the rattling of the apartment door lock cut through the serenity, startling him. It took him a moment to register that it was just his boyfriend coming home from his night out with friends.
He listened to Kid ‘s heavy steps becoming louder as he ponderously walked through their corridor. Law could tell when he stopped at their shared, overcrowded coat rack and tried to shove his own coat into it, which judging from his frustrated grumbling was quite the struggle.
Kid did not seem to be in the best mood himself. That suspicion was further confirmed when his boyfriend turned around the corner and leaned against the door of their living room with an exhausted huff. Even in the dim light Law could see his partner’s empty expression.
He groaned internally. If whatever happened with Kid was serious, he was not sure he could deal with it tonight. Sure, he would be able to comfort him, but he was certainly too tired to give good advice.
Tomorrow maybe.
“Hard day?” he asked quietly.
Anything could be the matter. Perhaps something had gone wrong at work? An unhappy client? Maybe he had gotten into an argument with Killer, Heat or Wire? An accident? Oh god, what if someone was seriously ill…?
“They called me a goddamn tulip.”
Law’s train of thought came to a crashing halt. For a few seconds he could not stop himself from looking at Kid completely dumbfounded. Kid sighed.
“Great, you think I am an idiot.”
“No, I just need context… I guess? Should I bring you a glass of water?”
Law was trying to help, really, but he was aware he sounded like he was questioning Kid’s sanity. And he could not help but doubt that his boyfriend was entirely sober.
Of course, Kid saw right through him.“I am not drunk, I drove all the other punks home after they got shitfaced.”
He walked up to Law and took a seat across from him. “We went to the Thousand Sunny. Strawhat got a raise so he announced he would pay half of the entire tab.“
For one second the faintest curl of a smile graced Kid‘s lips. “Zoro’s included, that goddamn maniac. After everyone had at least their second round of liquor, the mood all around was pretty wild. I don’t remember who started it and why, I think we were talking about late bloomers originally, but all of a sudden, the conversation had shifted to a discussion about which flower everyone would be.”
“And they said you’d be a tulip,” Law concluded. He looked pensively at Kid from across the table. “By all means, I kind of see it. Your hair really does the trick. What is it about this that bothers you?”
Law could see how Kid squirmed in his seat while he furrowed his brows. He almost seemed…insecure? Embarrassed? Whatever it was, Law had rarely seen this reaction on him before. His gaze softened.“Look, whatever it is, I’m not going to laugh.“
Kid let out an exasperated sigh. „It‘s just…tulips are so goddamn lame. Everyone agreed Hawkins would be a Black Lily, and they look so much more interesting. Zoro, according to them, would be a Wisteria. Again, very cool looking as well as poisonous. Strawhat got the sunflower, which grows really tall, oh and Killer would be a snowdrop.“
Law thoughtfully scratched his goatee. „Seems arbitrary. Besides, a snowdrop isn’t the most exciting flower either.“
“It blooms in early spring and pierces through the last snow of the winter, l think that’s pretty badass,“ Kid grumbled. “Tulips on the other hand are stupid garden flowers, they are overbred and honestly have nothing going for them except looking decently in a bouquet, I guess. What annoys me about this the most is that Strawhat adopted tulip-head as another nickname for me. And you should know ‘Torao’ once he gives you a nickname you will never get rid of it. So not only was I the most boring flower at the table, but I am also now stuck with a really shitty nickname.”
“Well, every flower has a wild origin, maybe you underestimate tulips.”
Kid scoffed. “Yeah, sure tulips grow in the wild. Probably in the flatlands where it’s warm and cosy and they peace out as soon as the temperature drops like what, five degrees à la ‘ugh, I can’t deal with this anymore’?”
“Now you are being overly dramatic.” Law stood up, picked up his laptop and walked across the room towards their couch. “Come sit with me. We better talk where it’s comfy. Doctor´s orders.”
Once he sat down Law started to type again. A few seconds later Kid’s heavy weight pushed the cushions down next to him.
“Are you still working?”, Kid asked, peeking over his shoulder.
Law let out a short incredulous laugh and shook his head. “I have so far managed to avoid a burnout and I very much prefer to keep it that way. No, I am doing something else.”
It did not take him long to find what he was looking for. Information. Information which he hoped would prove to be a good cure for Kid’s sour mood. Once he skimmed the article, he could not suppress a smile. This would work.
“You were absolutely wrong about the flatlands part”, he mused.
Kid´s heavy head came to rest on his shoulder as he took a look at the article himself as Law read triumphantly: “‘While tulips are commonly known as a staple in beautiful spring gardens and pretty bouquets in the wild, they are way tougher than one might expect.’ Hey, they are actually calling you out.”
A slightly sceptical grumble vibrated through his shoulder.
“Wild tulips thrive in harsh landscapes and can often be found high up in the mountains where they cling to barren ledges. They are incredibly resilient and are able to withstand strong winds, cold and drought.”
Kid lifted his head in surprise. Then he hummed in acknowledgment “This is indeed the absolute opposite of what I expected.”
Law watched with relief how the liveliness returned to his boyfriend’s eyes. He was able to achieve a small victory today after all.
Fuelled by his success he skimmed the text further until he stumbled upon one juicy titbit that made him giggle. He could not help it, the opportunity to tease Kid was just too tempting. “Look, there is actually a kind of wild tulip that is called ‘Little Princess’. It’s a reddish flower too.”
Kid almost choked on his own spit, his gaze rapidly turning towards the picture Law was pointing at. Law noted with delight that the colour on his boyfriends’ cheeks nearly matched his crimson locks. After Kid had inspected the picture, his gaze slowly turned back towards Law and his eyes narrowed.
Law only giggled harder when Kid poked him in the ribs and pointed frantically at his hair. “You ass, you spooked the shit out of me! There is clearly yellow in that flower, do you see any yellow in here?”
Law chuckled and pinched Kids’ cheek. “No. Just beautiful shades of red.”
Kid rolled his eyes, yet a small smile graced his lips. Only a few minutes later he pointed at the screen. “This one is red,” he noted. “The tulipa linifolia. Though…the flower is pretty flat. Not spiky like my hair.”
Law gave an amused snort. “For someone who did not want to be a tulip at all you are now pretty choosy which tulip you want to be.”
“Well, I am curious to see what else we can find.” Kid eyed him challengingly.
“Well…” After a few clicks Law looked at his boyfriend triumphantly. “What about the tulipa praestans? Its flower can be crimson, and its shape matches your hair.”
“Neat!” Kid boomed. “Any more details that would be cool to know?”
“Not on this site. Let me see.”
It didn’t take Law long to find more entries. “Here, there is actually a paragraph on toxicity. ‘The contact with the plant may cause a skin reaction. All parts may cause severe discomfort when ingested…”.
He had barely finished his sentence when Kid’s hand had found its way to his sensitive neck and gave it a featherlight stroke. Law gave an irritated hiss as goosebumps ran across his arms and back.
Well, that definitely was a skin reaction,” Kid grinned triumphantly. Law grumbled discontentedly but his protest was cut short when Kid continued: “And concerning the ingestion…”
Any complaints Law still had in mind about his boyfriend tickling him were quickly forgotten when he was pulled close and kissed deeply. A content sigh escaped his lips as he melted in Kid´s arms. This was much better.
Kid released him gently and hummed thoughtfully. “No discomfort. Well, I guess I cannot hit every criterion. That’s fine.”
“You could always eat five cloves of garlic and try again,” Law suggested playfully.
“But then you wouldn’t want to kiss me. And I would rather be an imperfect tulip than unable to kiss you.“
Law nodded in agreement and leaned his head on his boyfriend´s shoulder. He yawned.
Kid took the laptop off his lap. “You know what? After you ordered me as a doctor to have this little couch session, I think I have a little order for you as a mechanic.”
“That so?” Law murmured drowsily.
“Yes. Your battery seems to be low and in need of a recharge. So, my prescription for you is bedtime.”
He didn’t protest when Kid scooped him up and carried him upstairs.
Later, as they laid in each other’s embrace in the soothing darkness of their bedroom, Kid placed one last kiss on his boyfriend's temple. Law barely registered what Kid whispered to him, but it nevertheless made him smile before he finally drifted into sleep.
“Thank you so much. I am a proud tulip-head now.”