HEY EVERYONE!

So here's the last chapter! Sorry it took me a long while to update, this chapter became a bit longer than expected so it took a bit longer to write too! I also have a lot of pressure from school at the moment, so most of my summer vacation was spent studying biology. (Yes hello I'm almost as nerdy as Law).

I will reply to your super-duper awesome reviews!

SEllen23: Thank you so much for your review! And thanks for sticking around and reading this! Love you so much! THANK YOU FOR ALL THE SUPPORT!

Lenahanwoo: It is finished now; this is the last chapter! And I am SO flattered that you liked my story! Hopefully you won't be disappointed with this last chapter! J *hugs*

Nightmare02: Wah! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing AND liking! ( n v n )

xTheCherryx: I'm glad the smut scene wasn't all too terrible… xD AH THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SWEET COMPLIMENTS! And I owe a huge thanks to you for sticking around and diligently leaving super sweet reviews regularly! *hugs* THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH! *sends you millions of hearts*

LawLover: Ah, I feel so flattered that you like my writing! ;v; And I'm terribly sorry but this is the last chapter. Hopefully it won't be a disappointment :') THANKS FOR YOUR REVIEWS AND YOUR SUPPORT!

Miss Portgas: I hope your phone is okay after that you threw it on the floor! I'm quite glad I didn't delete it too, though I still sometimes see this fic as a big failure, haha! But I am so glad you've enjoyed it sweetie! And thanks, haha! I'm finally old! ( n v n ) THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

So here is indeed the very last chapter to this fic. I'm terribly sorry if it sucks, I'm suffering with a nasty flu and have been dizzy and sick most of the time I've been writing this. I really hope I don't disappoint you guys. (I was actually trying to draw some scenes from this fic for you guys but my art skills aren't the greatest, sorry!)

Well, what can I say?

I've been writing on this for a very long time and it has brought me a lot of stress and pressure, but also a lot of joy. I do hope that people have enjoyed it, despite my poor English and my silly ideas. I'm endlessly grateful for everyone who has read this and would absolutely love to hear your opinions! Please don't hesitate to leave a review, or to message me either here or on my tumblr! (my username is nebubu – please message me there if you wanna talk about kidlaw with me, hehe!)

SO! THANK YOU EVERYONE. I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE CHAPTER AND THE KIDLAW FEELS.

PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW, THEY MAKE MY MIGRAINES EASIER TO DEAL WITH (haha)

~Enjoy~

"Alright, now I want to play Rainbow Road!" Nami exclaimed, already bored of playing the easy maps over and over again.

"No!" Law insisted angrily, obviously incredibly frustrated that he couldn't win and that he just kept falling off the roads all the time. "You guys will just push me off the road again!"

"Aww, c'mon Law, I promise I'll play with the shittiest car in the game", Kidd tried to soothe the pissed off raven, but his attempts were in vain. "And, I will make sure to protect your car from the other contestants too."

"I refuse to play Rainbow Road", Law muttered angrily, staring at the TV-screen with disapproving eyes.

Yes, it was a sunny Saturday afternoon in September and the trio was inside playing Mario Kart on Killer's old Nintendo Wii that had been dragged to Kidd's place. Killer himself had gotten tired of playing an hour ago and had gone to the store. Just when the blond had finished purchasing snacks for their lazy day, Bartolomeo had called him and asked him to pick him up, which was why the shopping trip became longer than expected. Apparently Bartolomeo had heard about Law playing Mario Kart and had not been willing to miss the opportunity to see Law pissed off over trivial things. And who could blame him, since seeing Law act like a five-year-old was incredibly entertaining.

"Then we'll play without you", Nami simply said, growing a bit tired of Law's behavior. She liked Law, they did get along very well. And no one could deny that Law indeed was very attractive. But, oh god, he could act like a spoilt idiot sometimes. They had been trying to teach Law how to play for several hours but the raven was still completely hopeless. It wasn't Nami's and Kidd's fault that Law was terrible at playing video games!

"You guys can't do that to me!" Law cried out. He was so pissed off at this goddamned stupid game but he refused to give up. He had to win. He fucking had to win at least once! How did he always come in at last place?

"Yes we can. We haven't played a single proper game because you're so bad at this that we constantly have to help you and guide you", Nami didn't hold back and instead spit cruel truth out of her mouth. Law only dropped the console and crossed his arms angrily, which Kidd appeared to consider very cute and adorable.

"I'm sorry Law but she's completely right. You suck at this and it gets a bit boring to play with you", Kidd had to admit, shrugging a bit as Law only turned away from his boyfriend. The childish reaction made Kidd chuckle. "Now you're just being ridiculous."

"Now you're just being ridiculous", Law repeated what Kidd had said in a childish manner. This caused Nami to roll her eyes and Kidd to chuckle again.

"Come on, take some popcorn", Kidd tried to offer Law the bowl but Law just turned away, arms still tightly crossed.

"Come on, take some popcorn", Law repeated Kidd again with the same childish voice and manner.

"No matter how childishly you act we will still play without you", Nami said with a decisive tone. It was not unclear for her that Law acted like he did because Kidd had a soft spot for it. Law knew that Kidd would give in eventually. Cunning bastard.

Law persevered to sulk as the siblings started playing Rainbow Road without him. Glancing at his boyfriend every now and then, Law curled to a ball in the corner of the sofa and played with his fingers. Just when Law appeared to calm down, the door to the small, shabby apartment was opened and Killer and Bartolomeo walked in.

"Hey guys!" Kidd said, his eyes not leaving the TV-screen. Nami was quite an opponent and Kidd didn't feel like losing to his baby sister today. "What didya get from the store?"

"Chips, candy, chocolate and coke", Killer replied as he walked straight to the kitchen to start unpacking the plastic bag. "I also got us some ingredients for a dinner. I'm making pasta and you guys just have to deal with it. Actually, could you help me Kidd? The rest of you better stay out of the kitchen, since you'd probably set it on fire."

"Rude", Nami commented. The last round of Rainbow Road was going on and Kidd was not far away from her in the game. Shit, this is getting intense.

"Sure", Kidd said. When Barto slumped down on the sofa next to Law, Kidd decided to give the Wii controller to the greenhead. "You know how this works, right? Take this and beat Nami. She can't win." After this Kidd stood up and went to the kitchen to help his friend.

"Huh?! So you let Bartolomeo-ya play but not me?!" Law said, clearly offended.

"Like I said, can't let Nami win. You'd just lose right away", Kidd chuckled from the kitchen.

"Calm down Law", Bartolomeo giggled. Okay, Kidd had been right, seeing Law act like this was funny as hell. The usually calm and intelligent guy was so ridiculously upset over a small game. And the way he was curled up like a defensive cat was really hilarious too! "It's just a game."

"It's just a game", Law repeated Barto with the same childish voice as earlier. The fact that Kidd only laughed loudly from the kitchen clearly upset Law even more. "Laugh all you can!" Law shouted to Kidd from the sofa. "Next time we're playing chess and I'll kick your sorry asses! I will spare Killer-ya though, since he's the only one who hasn't been mean to me today."

"Aw, how sweet of you darling", Killer said from the kitchen, the teasing tone was impossible to disregard.

"No problem, sweetheart", Law replied back with the exact same tone.

"Why are you two having such sweet nicknames to each other all of sudden!?" Kidd's jealous side was quick to come out in situations like these. And by now, the tables had turned, since the one chuckling fondly was Law. "And what are you laughing about?!" Kidd stuck his head out of the kitchen to watch Law snicker teasingly.

"Chili, you should calm down with the possessiveness", Barto said, still occasionally using Kidd's old nickname he had come up with a year before. By now it was almost oddly nostalgic to use that nickname for the redhead, yet Barto was unable to stop using it every now and then. "Oh and I beat Nami by the way."

"Good job", Kidd said with a not-very-impressed voice. Instead of going back into the kitchen to help Killer, the redhead leaned against the wall lazily as his eyes studied Law. The raven only smirked back at Kidd with annoyingly teasing eyes. "Stop that."

"Stop what?"

"That."

"What that?"

"That that."

"Oh, Killer-ya darling", Law's annoying smirk only got wider and the eyes more cunning. "I think Kidd-ya might be jealous of our intimate relationship as a married couple."

"Ah, how unfortunate. Kidd should by now have realized that nothing will separate the two of us, my love", Killer seemed to be enjoying this evil game of theirs. They had started doing this occasionally ever since Kidd had – without any proper reason – gotten jealous of Killer hanging out with Law. Killer and Law had merely been talking about books and the redhead had thrown a huge tantrum about it.

"Alright, stop it you two or my gorilla-brother won't cook for us", Nami said, obviously a bit irritated over the fact that Barto had beaten her in the game. It was a true tragedy to lose to Barto, especially since Nami had proclaimed herself as the Mario Kart Queen.

"Fine", Law muttered. "Can I at least get to play now?"

And Nami couldn't say no. Neither could Barto. So they attempted to teach Law how to play again while Kidd and Killer were cooking pasta for them. Even if Nami tried her very best to teach Law how to play and even if Barto used all of his patience to explain techniques for Law, Law remained hopeless. He did insist that he had improved, however. He insisted that playing at least felt easier than before. No one else was able to see this improvement in his playing though.

The day had been quiet and nice and the evening continued in the same mood, even if things had become significantly louder as soon Bartolomeo had stepped over the threshold to the apartment. Just when dinner was ready, Nojiko arrived as well. The home which previously had been dominated of fear and violence due to Kidd's father had successfully been replaced with a big group of friends. Eating dinner with all of them together, talking about the past week, joking about politicians – it was all so delectable. Kidd felt like he had gotten a new family – a family that could heal the scars of the past. And Law felt like he finally, for the first time in his life, actually belonged somewhere.

§

A lot of their weekends were spent like this, together, enjoying each other's companies. They strengthened and supported each other, turning into a group of people with strong bonds. Law's studies were going well even if they were utterly demanding, Bartolomeo was happy studying economics, even if he hadn't been accepted into a good school, and Killer was for the first time in a very long time actually motivated to do something with his life. Nojiko was feeling happy about her decision to send Kidd to the boarding school, which eased Kidd's guilt of forcing Nojiko to use her savings. Nami, in other hand, forgot all about Arlong, even if there were some dark nights when she would feel anxious and walk a bit faster than usually.

The autumn passed by quite nicely. Kidd and Law met regularly, despite Law's prestigious studies and Kidd's difficult work shifts. The leaves of the trees had fallen down and danced around in the air. It was especially the windy afternoons that left pleasant memories in Kidd's mind – the windy afternoons with long walks in the empty parks, and the leaves getting caught on Trafalgar's coat. And the way Trafalgar would turn around and pick out leaves of Kidd's hair, and laugh because Kidd's pale nose would be red of the chilliness.

It was the rainy days spent on Trafalgar's balcony, with both of them wrapped in blankets, drinking coffee and smoking hours on end. It was the crows and the pumpkins on Halloween. It was Nami who hugged Kidd goodbye when she went on a two-day-trip to the boarding school to meet Luffy. There were so many memories, so many good memories. This autumn had created so many wonderful things, and Kidd didn't dare to look back. He only wanted to see the now.

He was forced to look into the future, however. Still not being able to decide what he wanted to do with his life, Kidd was starting to feel pressured. No one forced him to choose anything – in fact, everyone around him told him to take his time. But Kidd felt like he was being left behind when all of his friends were studying and he was stuck working, unable to move on. He wanted to do something amazing; he just didn't know what that amazing thing would be.

The suggestion to start culinary school came from Blondie. Kidd and Blondie still kept in touch and would meet up every now and then to discuss recipes and to whine about their boyfriends, even if there really wasn't much to complain about. Blondie had probably not realized how much the suggestion had affected Kidd, but it really got the redhead thinking. Culinary school… Kidd would like that, to become a professional chef. And maybe, sometime in the future, open a restaurant.

Law would meet up with Robin a few times in the month. At first it had been a bit awkward between them since they were used to regarding each other as teacher and student, but Robin would make a big effort to introduce Law to his new-found family. She would show him family trees and show him pictures of his biological parents – and yes, both Kidd and Law had to agree that Law really looked like his dad. Eventually the siblings got less awkward with each other, and Law got used to referring to Robin as his older sister. At some point Robin even took Law to meet his uncle, but like Robin had warned him, Law hadn't been very fond of the man and his family.

Law also kept in touch with Baby 5, whom he also introduced as his sister. They had not agreed on calling each other siblings, which was why it surprised Baby 5 when Law introduced her to Kidd as his sister. Mostly it made her happy, because Law was one of the few people she had left in her life after betraying Doflamingo. It became their unspoken rule to refer to each other as brother and sister.

That was why Kidd's home was really crowded on Christmas Eve. He had invited his friends and family, and over the past year his family had grown a lot. He didn't bother to contact dad anymore – he had of course tried to call the old man a few times, but his father had always threatened him and shouted at him, which had made Kidd give up. He didn't need dad when he had Nami, Nojiko, Killer, Law, Bartolomeo, Smoker, Robin, Baby 5, Blondie and Moss-Head. He had so many people who cared so much for him, who cared so much more than dad ever had.

That Christmas Eve became a direct contrast to the Christmas Eve the year before. The big group of friends and family had gathered around the dinner table at Kidd's place – they had been forced to bring an extra table from Law's apartment to get everyone to fit. Killer's ill mom had been up on her feet and had joined them as well. But everyone knew she only had a few years left. Even if the doctors previously had seen progress in her healing, it had been false hope. Killer was dealing with it the best he could.

Nothing had disturbed their peaceful dinner. Somehow, despite everyone's contrasting personalities, they had gotten along perfectly. Kidd and Blondie had together made a big effort in cooking a delicious meal while Nami and Baby 5 had been very eager about decorating the place. The small, shabby apartment had miraculously been turned into a beautiful home filled with joy and celebration. Together they had afforded a proper Christmas tree and the lights had illuminated the apartment in a way no lights had done ever before. Warmth had filled the rundown place that usually felt chilly since some of the windows were leaking. It had been like a scene straight from a movie – Kidd had never imagined he'd get to spend Christmas like that.

Gifts had been exchanged, snowmen had been built and Kidd hadn't hesitated to attack Law with kisses when he had gotten drunk enough. Law had been a bit flustered, Bartolomeo had shouted at them to get a room and Smoker had looked like he was either about to kill Kidd or encourage him. The last hours they had been awake, people had wrapped themselves in blankets and drunken hot chocolate, slowly falling asleep on each other. Just before Kidd had fallen asleep he had wondered how long he would remember this particular Christmas Eve, how merrily he would think back at it and how much the memory would pull his heartstrings.

During the Christmas holiday, Kidd really started to consider going to culinary school for real. He discussed this with Blondie, who told him the culinary school he was studying at would be accepting new students in the beginning of February. Blondie spoke very warmly about the school and seemed eager to get Kidd to join. Kidd had told him that he hadn't been sure about it yet, even if becoming a professional chef was something he slowly was starting to dream of. The thought of getting to prepare wonderful meals every day was perfect, Kidd could barely think of a better job. Naturally, he had to be prepared for the fact that he at first would have to work at cheaper restaurants where he wouldn't be able to face many challenges. But later on he would surely get a job at a better restaurant, getting to challenge himself and develop his culinary skills.

He spoke about his plans to his sisters and Law. Nami thought it was a good idea, seeing that Kidd already had a lot of experience since he was working in a fast-food restaurant and had been cooking meals for them for several years. Nojiko said she didn't care whether Kidd became a chef or an astronaut or a mechanic, as long as he was happy with his job. She did say she thought he would make a good chef. Law was only happy for Kidd, though he warned Kidd to still not put strange things in his food, since Law was – despite Kidd's efforts – very picky when it came to food.

It was also during the Christmas holiday when Kidd went to visit dad. He didn't know why he even bothered to visit the old man, he just did it. A part of him still wanted to be accepted and loved by his dad, a part of him still wished he could go back to the time before mom had died. He knew it was impossible, and he knew that he most likely never would have met Law if mom had been alive. Kidd felt that it was weak of him, but for some reason or another, he really felt like he needed his dad's acceptance and love. In the back of his mind he still blamed himself for dad not loving him.

Naturally Kidd hadn't expected much of the visit. In fact, he had prepared himself for one of the most painfully awkward situations in his entire life. Yet his hope had been completely crushed and disappointment had swallowed him whole. Dad had been sober, which was to be expected since alcohol was forbidden at the prison, but he had still been hateful towards Kidd. He had told Kidd to go away, that Kidd was a bother and that Kidd was the reason his life had gone wrong. "If you hadn't been born things would still be good."

The visit was short. Stepping out of the prison, Kidd had just felt completely empty, holding onto the small gift he had gotten his dad and wondered which way home was. It felt as if home was in no direction at all – it was as if his home had disappeared. The gray building, the gray asphalt, the gray clouds. Gray everything. Kidd had just walked off to a random direction.

That was why he now sat on the roof to a random abandoned building, having no idea of where he was. A part of him was frustrated, filled with anger and determination to prove his dad wrong. Another part of him was depressed, empty of hope and will to live. Why did he long for his dad's acceptance this much? Why did he care about dad this much? This entire autumn he had been happy that dad hadn't been there and now he suddenly felt like he needed his dad? Kidd swallowed as he looked at the small box of marmalades. Why had he bothered? He hated dad. He hated dad. He hated dad so much.

He hadn't realized that he had been sitting there for nearly an hour when his phone buzzed in his pocket. His hands were ice cold and it took him a while to answer the phone. The one calling was Trafalgar.

"How did it go?" Law asked, not even saying hi or anything.

Kidd didn't know what to say. He was cold. It hurt. He wanted to disappear. That was why he decided not to say anything at all. 'Everything I say is stupid anyway.'

"Your silence implies that it didn't go very well", Law said, his voice a bit more hesitant this time. It was as if Law once again expected Kidd to say something, but since the redhead kept being silent, Law persevered talking. "He's an asshole Kidd. Don't care about him. You don't need him – you're way better off without him."

"He didn't want my gift", Kidd finally said. Admittedly he was a bit surprised of how pitiful he sounded. Was that his own voice? Really? How uncool.

"He didn't deserve your gift", Law said sharply. "He doesn't deserve your time."

"I… I need you", Kidd whimpered. "Can you come here?"

"Yes, where are you right now?" Law said. It sounded as if he was putting his jacket on and fumbling with some keys.

"I don't know", Kidd replied, realizing how incredibly stupid he had been. He was outside in the middle of nowhere on a cold winter day. His phone battery must have been almost empty and random pain hit his body as it realized it was cold. "I have no idea. I am- this is stupid- I don't want you to get sick- you should- just stay at home I'm sure I'll-"

"Shut up I'm on my way", Law cut him off before he had a chance to continue stuttering about how he would be fine on his own. And Kidd knew there was no point in telling Law not to come – the raven had made up his mind and he would come there even if the world would have been ending. "You can send me your coordinates by using the GPS system on your phone. I should be able to find you."

"Law, you're so smart", Kidd said.

"No I'm not, stop being a crybaby", Law said. Kidd chuckled, but the laughter sounded terrible. A small silence occurred. "Kidd, don't worry, I'll be there soon, okay?"

"Okay."

"Don't do anything stupid, okay?"

"Okay."

"Now send me the coordinates. I promise you I'll call you back as soon as I have located you, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good."

Law did as he had promised. It took him thirty minutes to get there, but he talked to Kidd the whole way. Kidd didn't speak much, just listened to his boyfriend ramble on about biochemistry. Every now and then Law commented something that happened in the bus he was in, and every now and then these small stories got Kidd to smile. Law must have been worried as fuck, Kidd realized that the next morning. Usually Kidd expressed his depression by being angry and destructive, so the unusually quiet and moody behavior must have gotten him alarmed on a whole new level. After that day, Kidd decided not to visit dad again. Law supported this decision strongly.

§

Two years had been spent. It hadn't been two lonely years. It had been two different years. The breaks hadn't been spent playing basketball with his brothers anymore. Instead they had been spent by watching Usopp draw in his sketchbook or by meeting new students and hanging out with them. It was safe to say that things had changed drastically when the seniors had graduated. Trafal-guy and the strange redhead had disappeared, Sanji and Zoro had disappeared and his brothers had disappeared. Things had naturally become different with them gone.

A special kind of smell lingered in the room. It was the smell of that boarding school. A smell he had gotten very used to at this point. The white and modern room was like his home. Well, to be completely honest, it was his home. It had been his home since Ace and Sabo had graduated and gone separate ways. Luffy had barely had any contact with them the past two years. He had only been writing some e-mails to Ace, whereas he had been Skyping with Sabo. Safe to say, he missed his brothers a lot.

Now it was his turn to say goodbye to the school. His turn to say bye to the teachers and to the hallways. The smells, the colors, the lights – the fragments of that school. Somehow it made him a bit sad. And at the same time it made him excited to finally go out there and live his life. He had already applied to drama school and would study both media and drama, probably take some literature too. He wasn't quite sure yet, but he knew he would love it all. The thought of meeting new people, moving out on his own and start working was making him feel incredibly pumped. It would be like a huge, never-ending adventure – amazing!

Sighing a bit, Luffy looked around himself in the dorm room. It wasn't the same dorm room he had shared with Ace and Sabo. Instead he had gotten a new one and had been living with Usopp. Looking around Luffy could almost see Nami before him, remembering how she had visited him several times the past year, gossiping about Trafal-guy and her brother. He remembered how he, Nami and Usopp had sat there, playing cards together and laughing until Luffy had fallen to the floor. He remembered how he had struggled writing essays and how he had spent hours on end trying to understand math. This room had a lot of important memories that Luffy wished he would carry with him the rest of his life.

Tomorrow Luffy would graduate. He had packed his stuff already – well most of it at least. He had invited both Sabo and Ace but he didn't know if they would make it. To be completely honest, stuff was still a bit awkward between them. It wasn't like they held a grudge against each other or anything. But even Luffy, who always would be a child at heart, had matured enough to understand why Ace had been so reluctant about the whole romance-business. Even Luffy could tell why they were so hesitant and awkward around each other.

The worst part was that both Sabo and Ace barely had been replying to his messages the past few weeks. Maybe they were just fed up with Luffy. Maybe the whole business two years ago really had permanently ended their brotherhood. Maybe they would grow apart and just see each other coincidentally at some kind of party in the future. Imagining this scenario made Luffy's stomach uneasy and cold, as if someone was pulling a cold ghost-string through his stomach, if that even made sense. Lately Luffy had been bad at describing things too.

Usopp was away at the moment, Luffy didn't know where his long-nosed friend was, to be honest. Luffy had simply been told that Usopp had been busy drawing or something, and since Luffy had been in an odd mood the whole day, he hadn't been motivated to find Usopp either. Sighing again, Luffy collapsed down on his bed and stared up at the white ceiling, wondering what kind of ceiling his future apartment would have. Maybe it would be white too? Or maybe it would be brown. He could impossibly know. He kind of wished it'd be white, he had gotten used to it at this point.

Suddenly the door to the dorm room was opened. Luffy didn't bother to get up, instead he continued lying on the bed on his back staring up at the ceiling.

"Got tired of drawing?" Luffy asked, knowing that the only one who could enter the dorm room was Usopp since he was the only one with a key. Well, the only one beside Luffy.

"No, still studying art", a familiar voice said. The voice made Luffy jump up from the bed. He knew exactly whose voice that was.

"Ace!" the shout came with astonishment. And he got even more surprised when he spotted Sabo behind his freckled brother. What on earth were they doing here? They had only visited him a few times the past two years and each time had been painfully awkward. "Sabo! What are you two doing here? Graduation is tomorrow, not today!"

"Yea we know", Sabo said, chuckling at his little brother's shocked face. Damn, he had missed Luffy so much. The last time he had seen Luffy had been almost six months ago, and even then their meeting had been cut short. "We just wanted to spend some time with you."

"Eh? Really?!" Luffy said. His heart pounded of excitement. All the previous encounters with his brothers had been short, painful and awkward. Maybe if they spent a bit more time together they would grow close again. "What are we going to do? Oh, oh, are we going to an amusement park? Or a festival?!"

"Woah, calm down Lu", Lu? Ace hadn't called Luffy that for a long time. Even if it was obvious that Ace still was a bit hesitant and awkward, one could tell that he really tried his best to act normal. "We can do that too, but first we have some news to deliver."

"Huh?" Luffy suddenly felt his excitement drop. News? So the actual reason behind their visit was that they had some important news to tell Luffy? It was probably something about Gramps… Otherwise they wouldn't have bothered. That would have made sense. That was probably why they had disappeared for a few weeks.

"Aw, don't look so sad, it isn't bad news", Sabo chuckled heartily.

"Then what kind of news is it?" Luffy asked, his hope gradually returning again.

"Well, depends on what you think but I'd say they're good news", Sabo said in his usual responsible and sensible manner. Ace cleared his throat awkwardly, creating a small silence that reminded Luffy painfully much about the situation two years back.

"The truth is that Sabo and I have been meeting quite a lot the past year, especially the last months", Ace said. Luffy blinked at this piece of information. So far Luffy had always met Ace and Sabo separately. The three of them had only gotten together once the past two years. That was why it really surprised him that Sabo and Ace had gotten in contact again. Admittedly, it made him a bit sad. Ace and Sabo had been hanging out with each other and had barely kept any contact with Luffy.

"And, well, we noticed that we're getting along quite well", Sabo continued happily. "So…"

"So?"

"So we bought an apartment together", Ace said proudly.

Luffy felt his heart sting. So Ace and Sabo would be living together? That really hurt. They had completely left him out of this decision and opportunity. It was as if Ace and Sabo continued being brothers without Luffy, as if Luffy had been completely excluded from their circle of friends. Besides, how could Luffy even be sure that Ace and Sabo had been meeting as brothers? What if they had been dating and were moving in together as a couple? The terrible feeling in his stomach returned. This reminded him of the situation two years back.

"Heh, that's great!" Luffy said, trying his very best to sound enthusiastic.

"Best part of this is that it's big enough for all three of us!" Sabo exclaimed. "And each one of us should be able to make it to our schools from there too, so that shouldn't be a problem either!"

Hearing what Sabo was saying made Luffy freeze. What was his older brother implying? That they would all live there together? Like they had done when they had been younger? That would be perfect. But Luffy must have misheard. Sabo and Ace wouldn't want to live with Luffy. No, how could he have misheard? He had heard each and every word perfectly well.

"W-Wait I'm moving in with you guys?" Luffy wanted to confirm, staring at his brothers with serious eyes. He really wondered if this was a strange dream. It was too bizarre. He hadn't seen Ace and Sabo this relaxed and casual for a long time and now they were suddenly suggesting that the three of them would be living together?

"If you want to, yes", Ace said. "I mean, it's understandable if you've made up other plans since we're delivering these news kind of in last minute but", taking a small pause to search for the right words, Ace swallowed in thought, "we'd like it if you'd be able to live with us."

Luffy was at loss of words for a few seconds. He just breathed and grimaced in confusion. Then he frowned at his brothers in even more confusion, squinting at them as if he tried to find out if they were lying or not. This was weird. This was weird as fuck. And it would be a bit weird to live with them again, considering that they hadn't spent time with each other properly for a long time. But oddly enough it also felt like a great idea.

"The only plans I made was to study drama and media", Luffy said. "And a bit of literature too. But I haven't decided where to live yet."

"Oh, that's kind of a relief. We thought we'd be too late", Sabo admitted. "So what do you think about our suggestion?"

"I think it'd be really awesome."

§

Life had changed. The small, shabby apartment in the Black Elephant had been sold and none of the three siblings had lived there for years. Bus numbers and routes had changed and old stores had closed while new ones had opened. People had moved in and out of the city, neighbors had come and gone. New lives were being created. Dreams were being achieved. Life was being lived.

Six years had passed since Kidd had met Trafalgar. Even if Kidd legally had become an adult around that time, it was only now that he truly started to feel mature enough to be considered an adult. Back when the two of them had met they had just been small brats – naïve and arrogant. And in a way they still were the same brats they had been six years ago. But in many ways they also had changed and grown, matured and developed as people.

At this point Law had completed his medical studies and was a doctor. But he wasn't satisfied with just that. He was going to continue specializing himself and therefore continued studying while taking patients. Microsurgery fascinated him immensely much and for the past few weeks Kidd had been forced to listen to detailed descriptions of ophthalmology, neurosurgery and orthopedic surgery hours on end each night. At this point even Kidd would be able to get into med school since he got unwanted private lessons each time he was with his boyfriend.

The two of them had been living together for many years by now. It had started with Kidd moving into Law's old apartment. A few years later, after earning enough money, they had gotten a bigger and nicer apartment together. Despite their differing opinions on certain things, living together had worked perfectly well. Naturally there were some mornings when Kidd wanted to throw a bucket of ice cold water on Law to get him out of bed. And some evenings Law got so frustrated at Kidd for messing up their apartment that he felt like throwing books at him. But usually they solved their conflicts quite fast. They really, really hated to fight and be apart from each other, so it usually didn't take long for them to make up and solve their problems.

Kidd had ended up going to the culinary school. In the end he had become a professional chef together with Sanji. The studies had been quite short and the two of them had swiftly been thrown into work. Sanji and Kidd had ended up working at different restaurants for quite a long while, but one year ago Sanji had taken contact with Kidd again. It wasn't as if they hadn't had any contact at all, but Sanji's request to suddenly meet Kidd face to face had been a bit unexpected. Turned out that Sanji's deceased adoptive father had owned a restaurant and that one of the old workers there had ended up buying it. Unfortunately the old worker had gotten sick and had contacted Blondie, offering him the old restaurant for a very beneficial price. Together they had decided to open their own restaurant.

With the help of family and friends they had managed to remodel the small and slightly shabby place into a modern and homely restaurant. Nami, who had ended up studying architecture, had been a huge help during the small renovation. Thanks to her studies and her trained eye she could help with choosing colors and placing the tables in a good and logical manner. Nojiko had been very proud and had of course helped Kidd and Sanji with finding cheap and good utensils – she had good contacts through her bar.

Finally, after months of work and preparation, the restaurant All Blue had been opened. At first things had been very stressful for both Kidd and Sanji – they had invested a lot of money in opening their restaurant and had even hired a waiter. They had really been really dependent of their customers. Luckily All Blue received a warm welcoming by the inhabitants and gained popularity fairly quickly. Soon they had afforded to hire a larger staff and the level of professionalism had risen remarkably much.

One morning Kidd had discovered a small article about All Blue in the newspaper. The critic had given the restaurant warm compliments and described in outmost detail how delicious the food had been. Getting incredibly excited, Kidd had called Sanji immediately. After the short phone call he had attacked Law with a huge bear hug – poor Law had been way too sleepy to comprehend what had been going on. Later that evening they had gathered at Sanji's and Zoro's place for a dinner to celebrate.

Speaking of Zoro, he had ended up as a personal trainer. Being incredibly specialized in various kind of exercise, the green-haired man was able to coach various kinds of athletes. Not only that, he was a highly-respected kenjutsu-teacher. Together with Tashigi, a friend he had been training martial arts with for as long as he could remember, he had opened a dojo.

Zoro and Sanji made a strangely good couple. Their tendency to fight about the smallest things imaginable had stayed, but at the same time, they got along incredibly well too. It had been rather entertaining to observe the two of them prepare the dinner party together. When Zoro had put some music on it had resulted in a random fight because Sanji had completely disagreed with the choice of music. Then again, when Kidd had suggested they'd listen to one of his favorite bands, Zoro and Sanji had randomly gotten along perfectly well and agreed that no matter what they would listen to it wouldn't be Kidd's abnormal and weird music. Law had only patted Kidd's knee because Kidd had gotten a bit hurt by how they had made fun of his taste in music.

In completely other news, Barto had ended up as some kind of businessman. To be completely honest, his business was rather obscure and Kidd was quite sure that his friend wasn't up to quite legal things. At the same time he felt that it was none of his concern what Barto decided to do with his life. Personality-wise Barto had barely changed. He still loved to make fun of Kidd and Law and he still had a weird obsession with Luffy-kid and his two brothers. Barto traveled quite a lot, but he still made sure to drop by regularly. He would often bring Kidd weird souvenirs and he always had the wildest stories to tell. One time he had been imprisoned in Kenya, another time he had gotten aboard a random ship in the East Siberian Sea. It seemed like he always experienced the craziest things on his trips. He always made sure to e-mail Kidd pictures of where he was and what he was doing.

Killer's mom had passed away one year after the Christmas dinner at Kidd's place. Her death had been really hard on him and all of the previous motivation he had felt had disappeared. Kidd hadn't wanted Killer to waste his life on sorrow and pain and had helped him up back on his feet. Nowadays Killer was a tattoo artist. He had actually completed Law's tattoos when Law had decided what he had wanted to do with them. Killer also had a cat named Pizza. Lately Bonney had been hanging out at Killer's place more than usually and Kidd suspected that the two of them had something going on. It was impossible to be sure about it though, since Killer was very secretive about his love life.

As mentioned previously, Nami had ended up studying architecture. She and the long-nosed guy Usopp still kept in contact – both of them were interested in art and drawing after all. They had even gone out for a few months, but had quickly noticed that dating didn't suit them. Instead they were better off as friends. And a few months ago Nami had met a girl named Vivi. Kidd didn't know much about this mysterious girl Vivi – all he knew was that Nami got very excited while talking about her. Their relationship was still very new and awkward; Nami would often come to her brother and his boyfriend for advice, though asking Law for relationship-advice probably was one of the dumbest ideas ever.

Nami had also kept in contact with Luffy. In fact Nami had met Vivi thanks to Luffy. Apparently Luffy had taken an animation course together with Vivi and had somehow, in his straightforward and rum way, befriended her. Despite his extreme enthusiasm for animation, Luffy had failed the course, which he kind of had expected all along – he could barely draw after all. Otherwise his drama and literature studies were going quite well and evidently he did a lot of work with movie directors as well. Even if Kidd never really had befriended Luffy back at the boarding school he still got along with Luffy whenever Nami dragged him along.

Admittedly, Kidd had no idea of what had happened with the three brothers back at the boarding school when they had gone separate ways, but now the three of them suddenly lived together. The freckled one, whose name was Ace, Kidd had learnt that by now, had become an animator. The blond one, whose name was Sabo, apparently worked with developing games. To be completely honest, Kidd didn't know either of them very well, but they seemed alright. Nami said that all three of them were very friendly and nice. She also urged Kidd not to call them brothers anymore, she hadn't explained why but Kidd didn't think too much of it either.

Robin and Franky had gotten married nearly two years ago and were now expecting a baby. Poor Law was very stressed about becoming an uncle and sometimes stressed even more than Robin herself about the baby. Law and Robin had grown quite close over the past six years. Franky and Robin's wedding had been very modest and small with only a handful of guests and those guests had included Kidd and Law. Robin had even asked Law to help her pick a wedding dress. Well, in the end Law hadn't been much of a help since he wasn't very good with fashion, but he had gladly joined his sister on her important journey to find a pretty dress. Law kept her and Franky's wedding photo on his desk at home.

The dream of having a nice house in the countryside really did become Nojiko's reality. Unlike most people surrounding her, she found herself the happiest by herself and a nice garden. Planting flowers, watching them grow and admiring their breathtaking beauty was enough for her and brought her joy. She had tried dating, but she hadn't found any particular joy or pleasure in it. Instead she found it way more delightful to spend her time with family and friends. Her bar was still going strong but she didn't need to work there herself anymore. Naturally she still went there a few times a week and took care of its economy, but cleaning and bartending she had left to her workers. Whenever someone asked her if she got lonely in the spacious house out in the countryside, she tended to answer that she always had Lady Luck on her side.

The only one who barely had changed was Smoker. He was still as stern and strict as ever, and it was still quite awkward between Kidd and Smoker. Especially if Kidd kissed Law in front of Smoker. It had definitely been indescribably embarrassing when Kidd and Law had been making out at Franky's and Robin's engagement party and Smoker had walked in on them. Ever since then Kidd had desperately been trying to ease the slightly tense mood between him and Smoker. For some reason or another Smoker thought that Kidd was taking advantage of an innocent and helpless Law. Well, it was safe to say that Smoker was completely biased when it came to Law.

Just like people, society had started to change too. Kidd and Law had of course gotten used to getting strange stares when kissing or holding hands in public. Sometimes some people even shouted offensive things at them. Gradually they had learnt to be more and more discreet in public, even if Kidd always had gotten very provoked when someone had been nosey or rude. Lately, however, people had become less and less judgmental. The people who stared or commented their affectionate behavior towards each other in public were a clear minority.

A sure indication of that society was changing was when politicians started considering to legalize same-sex marriage. Kidd and Law had never discussed marriage, even less considered it as an option for them. Despite this they followed the news eagerly.

The one who called Law that night was Baby 5.

It was a dark night in November, stormy and rainy outside. Luckily they were kept warm and dry inside and could safely listen to the heavy raindrops smattering against the window panes. City lights illuminated the sky in various kinds of colors and created a sentiment of safeness. The soft noises of Kidd cooking dinner in the kitchen kept Law at peace. Every now and then Kidd would randomly start humming on some unknown melodies and the tunes brought small smiles to Law's lips. Law himself lay on the sofa reading a book about microsurgery. He would most likely bother Kidd with these complicated facts by the dinner table again, which would eventually lead to Kidd just dragging him to the bedroom to shut him up.

Abruptly his phone started to ring. The sharp and metallic sound of the device cut through the calm sounds of rain, boiling water and Kidd's murmuring voice humming in the kitchen. Law frowned to himself, finding himself a bit disturbed by the annoying sound the device made. Baby 5? Wondering why Baby 5 would be calling him at this hour of the day Law answered the phone.

"Yes?" like usually, he skipped saying 'hi'.

"Turn on your TV", Baby 5 was just like him and thought greetings were unnecessary. Her voice sounded very excited though, like it usually did when she found a new guy from a dating app. Law had really tried to make her understand that most of the guys there only met her for sex… She just got way too easily flattered by their compliments and always ended up disappointed when they left her after the sex.

"Sure, is anything up?" Law asked, narrowing his eyebrows in confusion. He found the remote control under his thighs and turned on the TV. Had something happened?

"Yea, switch to channel seven", she said, the excitement in her voice was spilling over and she giggled a bit on the other line. Law obeyed her. His eyes widened as he heard what the news reporter was saying.

"-we can naturally not force the Christian community to wed same-sex couples, but the magistrate will be accepting same-sex marriages starting the 1st of December at 9 a.m."

"So, when's the wedding? Wouldn't Christmas Eve be really romantic?" Baby 5 said dreamingly. "You guys could have a snow-themed wedding! Ah, ice sculptures and-"

"W-Wait, wait", Law said shakily, his whole body tense of excitement. He jumped up from the sofa and rushed to the kitchen. "Eustass-ya, you have to see this!" he hissed to the redhead who was making dinner. Kidd turned around, confusion evident on his pale face. Despite this he followed his boyfriend to the living room to see what was going on. "Thanks for calling me Baby 5, but I think I should go now and-"

"Yea, yea, yea, you two need to celebrate this properly", she chuckled suggestively. Then she hung up, knowing that her mission was completed.

Kidd stared wide-eyed at the TV-screen. Absent-mindedly grabbing the remote control, he increased the volume. Then he turned to Law, a huge grin on his face. Law only jumped at Kidd, nearly knocking him over, and kissed him. Chuckling into the kiss, Kidd wrapped his arms around Law's thin figure. This was huge news. Even if they never had considered marriage it was huge news. And they both knew that Zoro and Sanji had been waiting for this. Marriage was, for some reason or another, a big deal to Sanji. And it wasn't just about being able to get married, it was also about being accepted by the society, about being treated equally.

A sudden noise disturbed their passionate embrace. Kidd narrowed his eyebrows in irritation as he realized that the noise was his phone. He carefully let go of Law and took the phone out of his back pocket. The one calling was Sanji. He had most likely seen the news. Kidd answered the phone while Law continued hugging him tightly, burying his face into Kidd's neck.

"Hey", unlike Law, Kidd usually greeted the people he talked to. One time Kidd and Law had actually had a long debate on whether greetings were necessary or not.

"You guys are invited to mine and Moss-Head's wedding in two weeks", Sanji said. Excitement was clear in his voice and Kidd could hear Zoro talking to someone in the background; he was probably also inviting people to their wedding.

"That's fucking awesome, congratulations man!" Kidd chuckled. "We'll definitely come!"

"Good, we'll be sending official invites soon but I just had to call you", Sanji said eagerly. "Okay, gotta call more people, bye!"

"Bye", Kidd said but Sanji had already hung up by then. "So Blondie and Moss-Head are getting married in two weeks."

"Mm", Law mumbled happily. It was quite clear for Kidd that Law wasn't very interested in their wedding at the moment. Instead the raven went right back to kissing Kidd and took the phone out of Kidd's hand. "But let's not think about them when we can think about us."

"Point made", Kidd said with a smirk upon his lips. His arms found themselves around Law's waist and his lips gladly accepted Law's tongue into his mouth. It had been six years but making out with Law was definitely one of the best things on the planet. Like, definitely. Like very much definitely. Unfortunately the potatoes were boiling in the kitchen and Kidd had to break their kiss. "But first let's eat dinner."

"No", the sharp voice immediately got Kidd aroused. And when he saw Law's gorgeous eyes determined he got even weaker. "I want you now."

"Alright, damn, I'll go turn the stove off", Kidd said, unable to hide his excitement. Even if Law had nothing against sex, he usually wasn't very eager. In fact, Law was quite passive about sex and rarely got aroused or craved sex. The one who usually initiated things was Kidd. To have the tables turned always managed to get Kidd weak of arousal.

When Kidd returned from the kitchen Law had already taken his shirt off. Well damn, someone was excited. Law didn't hesitate at all, instead he plastered himself all over Kidd's body, one of his hands immediately traveling down Kidd's muscular back.

"I'm all yours now", Kidd mumbled, an excited smirk resting on his lips.

"Perfect."

§

Only the raindrops and their breaths were heard. Otherwise silence filled the apartment. It was somehow utterly calming to only listen to the rain and to each other breathing. The fact that it was so dark and cold outside but so light and warm inside made it feel like they lived in their own little world, completely safe from the rest of the world. It was almost as if they were floating around somewhere, disconnected from everything else. As if no one else mattered. And to a certain extent that was true, because the one who mattered the most to them was right there, in their arms.

Well, one thing was surely a bit displeasing about the whole thing, and that was the fact that their sofa really wasn't that large. Another slightly dissatisfying thing was the fact that their naked skins were quite sweaty and that they were getting sticky. They would slowly start to smell too, because of the sweat. Just for a while longer, they wanted to stay like that.

But then Kidd started to move beneath him, probably trying to tell him that they were in need of a shower and that he wanted to finish their meal so that they could eat. Law didn't want to get up quite yet though; he was so satisfied lying there, on top of Kidd with Kidd's body warming him up. It was really peculiar but Kidd's body was always warm. Law wondered how it was possible. It was as if Kidd was a human radiator.

"Okay, Trafalgar, we should take a shower and eat something", Kidd said, persisting to move beneath Law. It wasn't like lying there was uncomfortable – Law didn't weigh a lot to begin with. But his stomach was rather empty and they really were getting a bit sticky due to their sweat. "I'm starving."

"Don't wanna", Law said, wrapping his thin arms around Kidd's waist and burying his face into Kidd's neck. His pointy hair tickled Kidd a bit and the redhead couldn't help but to smile at Law's adorable behavior.

"C'mon, get up", Kidd said, patting Law's naked back carefully. He was partly glad that Law had gained a bit weight. Now his ribcage wasn't all too visible and finding clothes in his size had gotten a lot easier too. But it hadn't been Law's weight that had made Kidd fall in love with him, so in the end it really didn't matter to Kidd.

"Eustass-ya?"Law mumbled into Kidd's neck, still having his face pressed against Kidd's shoulder.

"Yes?"

"Will you marry me?"

"Huh?" Kidd froze. Was Law proposing to him? His heart started beating faster and suddenly he felt just as nervous as he had back when he had confessed his feelings to Law. Strangely enough he started blushing. To prevent Law from seeing this he tilted his head away a bit.

"I mean, we don't need to get married now. I was thinking maybe June. I like June, it's a pretty month, with all the flowers blooming", Law continued, face still pressed against Kidd's shoulder. Kidd felt how Law's lips moved against his shoulder and his warm breaths tickled against his neck – it was turning him. Goddammit.

"Are you proposing to me while lying naked on top of me on our sofa?" Kidd chuckled, finding it all really unbelievable. This was really Law-like. Only Law did weird stuff like this.

"Well…" Law seemed to be thinking of a proper answer. It didn't seem like he came up with anything so he just ended up saying; "yes. Yes I am."

"In that case I'm saying fuck yes", Kidd said. Now Kidd didn't want to get up either, even if he was hungry. Instead Law's warm breath against his shoulder only made him horny again. Stupid Law and his stupid breath.

"But I won't be Eustass Law, just so you know", Law said, shifting his position so that he was staring into Kidd's eyes seriously. "And Trafalgar Kidd would also sound dumb. So I say we just keep our names the way they are."

"Aww, I would love to call you Mr. Eustass", Kidd said in faked disappointment and pouted a little. Then he pulled Law's face down so that he could kiss him properly. Law chuckled into the kiss. The heat of their bodies connected as they embraced each other tightly. Kidd once again remembered that making out with Trafalgar indeed was one of the best things the world had to offer him. After a while Law hesitantly broke their kiss as his sharp eyes gazed at Kidd in their usual analytical and observing manner.

"I will stay as Dr. Trafalgar", Law whispered huskily, but the smirk on his lips indicated that he was about to say something else. "So how about that shower, my dear fiancé?"

"I'd say I want a second round first, Dr. Trafalgar."

"Well, in that case there's no need for a shower yet."

§

They didn't announce their engagement until one month later. They decided it was for the best to let Sanji and Zoro have their spotlight and therefore decided to announce their news a few weeks after Sanji's and Zoro's wedding. The wedding had been a huge delight, it had been something the couple had been waiting for to happen and their enthusiasm had been noticed in the way they planned it. It had been a big wedding, despite the short notice, and countless of people had attended. People had gotten incredibly wasted at their wedding party and danced until sunrise. All in all, the whole thing had been great fun.

The first person Law called was Smoker. Smoker took the news well, which probably was because the one announcing the news had been Law. Kidd knew that mentioning their upcoming honeymoon to Smoker would have been a mistake, so he decided to be as quiet and modest about it as possible. He didn't want to get any more trouble with Smoker. It was already enough to have the gray-haired man glaring at him at dinner parties ever since Robin's engagement party.

The first person Kidd called was Nojiko. He had naturally prepared his ears for her squeals so he wasn't shocked when the loud scream came. As expected, Nojiko was extremely happy and immediately promised that she would arrange an engagement party for them at her place. Kidd had tried to convince her that an engagement party really wasn't necessary but she had been as persistent and stubborn as ever. Instead she had kept sending Kidd pictures of decorations and asked him what kind of food she should make. She was really too kind for her own good sometimes.

One by one, everyone had been informed about their incoming wedding. They decided that it wouldn't be a small nor big wedding – something in between would be good for them. Nami was eager to make invitation cards and together with Vivi they created probably the prettiest invitation cards ever. Sanji had immediately announced that he'd make the wedding cake. Robin had said she'd help Law find a suit as to return the favor for when he had helped her with the dress. Both Kidd and Law agreed that there was no reason to rush the whole thing – they had decided to get married in June after all, and it was about six months until then, so they had plenty of time.

Exactly ten days before their small engagement party at Nojiko's house, Robin gave birth to her and Franky's small baby. It happened in the afternoon when Law had been in class. The lean raven had naturally excused himself and rushed to the hospital to meet his tiny little nephew. Kidd also came by to see the small thing, and seeing the small baby made him realize just how wonderful small babies were. It kind of got him thinking of getting one of those things too, those small squeaking things that smelled like life.

The night of the engagement party there was a snow storm. Luckily everyone still made it to the party. Poor Nojiko had shoveled snow all morning to get the driveway to her house useable. She had also put out some lights to make it easier to spot her house in the darkness. Everyone had arrived before Kidd and Law, so when the couple stepped through the door, they were surprised by cheers. Law got so flustered that he hid his face from the camera – Nami had insisted to take loads of pictures of the night. Kidd still teases Law about that particular photo.

Merry chatter and delighted laughter had filled the usually rather empty house. It had gotten very hot inside thanks to all the guests. Barto and Killer made an embarrassing speech about Kidd during the dinner; Barto revealed all kinds of awkward details of how Kidd had denied his interest in Law back at the boarding school and Killer told them how he had recalled the panicked texts he had gotten from Kidd about Law. Everyone burst into laughter, even Kidd himself. He vowed to eventually get his revenge for that, though.

Barto had actually traveled all the way from Bolivia to make it to the engagement party. He had been completely suntanned and fresh of sunshine. When the others had been busy mingling around and dancing, he had told Kidd that he had the most awesome wedding gift ever, but refused to reveal what it was. Admittedly, he had managed to get Kidd ridiculously curious about the gift.

For the first time since the awkward incident at Robin and Franky's engagement party, Smoker didn't glare at Kidd anymore. Which was a huge relief, because Smoker was in many ways like an older brother to Law, and to have someone's overprotective older brother hating on you would have been very problematic. Another mysterious thing also happened at the engagement party; Kidd saw Killer hold hands with Bonney. It had been mysterious since Killer really was the most secretive and private guy when it came to his love life.

Whilst a snowstorm raged outside, people enjoyed themselves in the warmth inside. Some smooth jazz music was playing from the speakers and Vivi and Nami brought life to the party by dancing happily. Barto of course joined the girls and a few minutes later Franky had been unable to refuse the dance floor as well. Baby 5, for some reason or another, plastered herself all over Barto and Barto seemed to enjoy the attention. Smoker found himself in an interesting discussion with Nojiko while Killer and Zoro had gotten into a deep conversation about different types of swords. Sanji and Kidd were, like always, talking about their restaurant and cooking. Bonney and Luffy quickly joined their conversation because food interested them too – in a different way though. They preferred eating food rather than making it. Meanwhile Penguin and Shachi found themselves sharing old high school memories with Heat and Wire.

Penguin and Shachi had namely also been invited to the party. Law had kept contact with both of them, even if Kidd hadn't been very happy about Law being close to Penguin. By now Penguin had naturally completely overcome his feelings for Law, and the two of them acted like completely normal friends. Law had never actually noticed Penguin's crush on him. Of course Law had noticed Penguin's peculiar behavior around him but had been unable to realize what it had meant. Only when Kidd had explained to him that Penguin had been in love with him did Law realize it.

Law and Robin were the only ones who sat still at the party. The two siblings sat on the sofa in the living room, Robin holding her small baby and Law admiring the small thing. Franky and Robin had named him Tony, but for some odd reason they kept calling him Chopper.

"Tony-ya doesn't seem sleepy at all", Law commented with a soft voice, eyes observing the small baby who gurgled happily. "I mean, it is getting quite late."

"Chopper had a long nap before we got here so he's quite energetic now", Robin chuckled and caressed Chopper's incredibly soft cheek. Robin had been completely charmed by the small being. Chopper was just so incredibly beautiful in every way. She could spend several hours with just watching him sleep.

"I wish I was as energetic as him", Law mumbled. He was getting a bit sleepy himself. He had always had a bad alcohol tolerance and sometimes drinking got him a bit drowsy. Besides, he had gotten up early that morning so it was only natural that he was getting a bit somnolent.

"Robin! Come dance with me!" Franky shouted, waving for his wife to come and join him. He was obviously having fun, and Robin couldn't help but to chuckle at her silly husband. "They'll play our song next!"

"In that case I can't say no", she smiled in her usual charming manner. Turning to Law, she carefully handed Chopper over to him. "Can you hold him? I will be back soon."

"W-Wait, I can't hold a b-baby", Law panicked, terrified of holding the small living thing. What if he'd accidentally break it? What if he'd drop it? Oh no Law couldn't deal with this. He'd surely screw up. No, no, no. He had to give Chopper back to Robin. "What do I do with this?"

"Relax, he seems content with you", Robin commented, obviously entertained by Law's outburst. "You're a doctor, you should know what people do with babies."

"Wait- Robin-ya- ah fuck", unfortunately Robin had already left to join her husband. Law frowned down at the baby. Chopper hadn't opened his eyes properly yet but they were somewhat open. Law knew that babies didn't see quite well in the beginning, that it took a while until their eyes developed properly. He wondered what the small being was thinking about. What did it think of the strange man holding it? Did Chopper even recognize Law or was Law just a random person to him?

Hesitantly and carefully Law caressed Chopper's chubby cheek. It was the smoothest and softest thing Law ever had touched. Chopper moved his head a bit, probably reacting to some sound in the distance. The warmth and the light weight of the baby felt nice against Law's chest. He held him carefully, scared that he'd hurt Chopper otherwise.

"You're quite small you know", Law finally said, after a long moment of silence. "But don't worry, I've also been that small and look at me now."

"You're quite cute with babies", Kidd appeared out of nowhere and sat down next to Law. Law jumped at the sudden voice. Luckily the small jump hadn't disturbed Chopper. Wrapping his arm around Law's shoulder, Kidd leaned in to get a better look at the chubby little baby. "He's really adorable."

"He is", Law agreed, persevering to caress Chopper's crazily smooth skin. It was so soft and smooth that it almost was weird. How could a human being even be this soft?

"Wouldn't it be awesome if we had a kid too?" Kidd asked. Leaning a bit closer again, Kidd used his other hand to hold Chopper's tiny, tiny hand. The hand was indescribably smooth and soft. What kind of magic lotion had this baby used to get this smooth skin?

"I already have you", Law said sarcastically.

"Ha, ha really funny", Kidd said. Chopper instinctively wrapped his tiny hand around Kidd's finger. It was warm and soft. This caused Kidd to smile, which in turned caused Law to smile at Kidd. Kidd could sometimes be the cutest man on earth. "No but seriously, I think having a kid would be awesome, don't you?"

"No, never, I suck with kids, I mean look at me", lifting his arms a bit to emphasize the fact that he had no idea of what he was doing, Law sighed. "Besides, neither of us would have time to become a parent now."

"I guess you're right."

"I know I'm right."

Luckily Robin returned and took Chopper back, since Law really had absolutely no idea of what he was doing. Kidd sulked a bit, pouted at his fiancé and nudged Law's shoulder playfully. It was not unclear for Law that Kidd had gotten a bit offended of what Law had said. But Law was not going to back down. Instead he stood up from the sofa and went to the kitchen to get another drink. They were not going to discuss this matter any further, not tonight at least. Fortunately, Kidd had forgotten all about this conversation the next morning.

§

Ironically enough clouds had painted the sky that day. Everything was so oddly gray – the cement buildings, the snow on the roads, the sky, even the clothes people were wearing appeared to be gray. It was almost as if the sporadic snowflakes that fluttered down from the sky were gray as well.

Their boots created small squeaky noises when walking on the marble floor. The block of flats was gray too. The walls were made of ugly cement and the marble floor had different nuances of gray. Even the doors to the elevators had been of metal. The only thing that wasn't gray or black was the color of Kidd's flamingly red hair. It stuck out of everything else, made him easily distinguishable – made him feel vulnerable.

This had been Kidd's own idea. Law had in fact insisted that they would not do this, but Kidd had been stubborn. Even when taking the elevator up to the right floor Law had suggested that they'd go back home and instead spend their day by watching TV. Kidd had told him that his stupid suggestion had been out of question.

They were going to see dad.

Kidd hadn't been in contact with the old man for many years. Dad had been released from prison and now lived in a small apartment all by himself. Nojiko had called him a few times and had been able to help Kidd find him. But even Nojiko had felt hesitant about actually letting Kidd visit him. She knew how much it would pain him. She knew her little brother still sought acceptance and love from his dad. She knew a part of him still believed that it was his own fault that dad didn't love him. She knew he still hadn't understood that it was dad's fault for not loving Kidd like he should have. And she wanted to protect her baby brother from all of this.

Kidd rang the doorbell to the apartment. His heart pounded in his chest and he could swear that his hands were shaking. Feeling Law's worried eyes on him, he forced himself to look and act strong. But on the inside he was nervous as fuck.

The door was opened and a tired-looking man opened the door. Law could easily tell from where Kidd had gotten his tallness. But otherwise they looked very different. The tall man before him had brown hair that was shifting towards gray, a quite ugly face and distant eyes.

"Good day", the man said, but his eyes seemed confused. Nojiko had warned Kidd that dad had been getting very forgetful and strange lately. "I'm not buying anything if you're trying to sell something."

"Dad, it's me, Kidd", Kidd said. He tried to keep his voice calm and confident, but he knew that Law was able to see through it. Ignoring Law's worried eyes, Kidd focused on dad instead.

"Kidd? Was it today? Oh yes, oh yes", the man seemed like he hadn't remembered that they were coming. To Law it even seemed as if the man had forgotten he had a son. How pitiful. This man was truly a pitiful excuse of a human being. Law couldn't help but to feel angry towards the man who had hurt his fiancé in the past, to feel angry at the man who had caused the nasty scars on Kidd's back. "Come in."

"Thanks", Kidd said, entering the small apartment. It was surprisingly tidy, and dad was definitely sober. Nojiko had told him that dad had stopped drinking completely and didn't touch alcohol at all anymore.

Both Kidd and Law removed their boots and winter jackets. Kidd's dad gestured them towards the living room. Awkwardly sitting down on the sofa, Kidd gestured to his fiancé to do the same. This was important to Kidd, Law knew it, so he tried his best not to punch Kidd's dad.

"I had completely forgotten you were coming over", dad said and went absent-mindedly into the kitchen. Truth to be told, he didn't seem the slightest happy to have them there. Instead it almost appeared as if he'd rather be alone than to have them over. He reappeared to the living room with a glass of water. He drank it himself. "So, uh, son, how's life been treating you?"

"Good", Kidd replied politely. By now he had already been disappointed. Dad had obviously not recognized him at the door and had no idea of how Kidd was doing. And he didn't seem like he cared about how Kidd was doing either. "I own a restaurant nowadays."

"Oh, I see, so you're a chef?" dad asked. Kidd nodded awkwardly. Law bit the inside of his cheek, desperately trying to keep himself from scolding Kidd's dad. "And you are? I know I don't have a second son so don't even try." Dad chuckled playfully, but the worst part of it was that Kidd was sure that dad couldn't recognize his own son. If Law had introduced himself as dad's son, he might as well have believed it.

"I'm Eustass-ya's fiancé", Law said with his cold and distant voice. Kidd knew that he was trying his best but he also knew that Law wasn't fond of his dad. Well, it was only natural that he didn't like Kidd's dad. Besides, Law had a tendency to dislike large men overall, Kidd being an obvious exception.

"So my son's gay huh?" dad said.

"He's bisexual", Law replied before Kidd had a chance to say anything.

"A fucking faggot?" dad said.

"A skilled chef", Law shot back at him.

"So you two are going to have some kind of gay-ass wedding? What's wrong with you Kidd? Pretending that this guy's your wife?! Why don't you just get a real woman instead?!" dad threw the glass against the wall. It scattered all over the floor. The sound awakened horrible memories in Kidd's mind.

"Nothing is wrong with Kidd", Law said and stood up from the sofa. Dad ignored him completely. Kidd was terrified. All the terrible memories were coming back to him. Why had he thought that this had been a good idea? Why, why, why? He was so goddamned stupid.

"What would mom say if she knew?" dad said, his voice dark and just straight up evil.

"She would probably congratulate him like any other proper parent would", Law said.

Grabbing Kidd's wrist, Law pulled him up from the sofa. He was having none of this. He was not going to let this fucking bastard hurt his beloved Eustass-ya more than he already had. Dragging Kidd out of the cramped apartment, Law took decisive and angry steps. While Kidd hurried to put his boots and winter jacket back on, Law turned to the man whom he hated. The man whom he hated so incredibly much, even if he had met him for the first time just now. Kidd's dad stood there, looking like he was about to strike either of them anytime soon.

"You two stay here", dad growled. "I'm going to beat some sense into you, Kidd!"

"Only the cruelest of mankind disown their own children like this", the cold voice echoed through the apartment, leaving Kidd's father dumbfounded. With that, Law turned around and got his boots on.

Kidd opened the door and stepped out, still too scared to think properly. Law yanked the box of chocolates from Kidd's hand. "Let's give him his fucking gift and hope that our gay love gives him AIDS", Law muttered and threw the chocolate box into the apartment as hard as he could. Then he slammed the door shut.

Several minutes were spent in absolute silence. Only their boots squeaked as they walked on the oddly gray snow. A few lonely snowflakes fluttered down from the sky and landed on their shoulders and in their hairs. Kidd's father's apartment was already long behind them but nothing had been said. Law had naturally noticed how Kidd had been trembling the first few minutes. Knowing that Kidd hated to be pitied, Law hadn't commented it and instead let the redhead calm down on his own, just like he preferred things to be.

The streets were oddly empty. Oddly empty and oddly gray. Suddenly Kidd stopped dead in his tracks as he realized how much these streets reminded him of the Black Elephant. He remembered that he was a Black Elephant, that no matter how hard he worked he still was the son to that bastard. That no matter how hard he had worked dad still didn't love him. He was still Kidd, and Kidd wasn't lovable.

"I really thought he'd love me", Kidd finally mumbled. "I thought that eventually, if I just work hard enough, if I just make him proud, he would love me. But I totally forgot that it's not my lack of… achievements he hates. It's me as a person. The problem is me."

"The problem is him", Law said. Suddenly something warm surrounded Kidd's hand and he realized that the warm and smooth thing was Law's hand. "Don't associate yourself with him."

"Half of my genes are from him", Kidd muttered in frustration.

"Actually, you have gotten more genes from your mother since-"

"Please Law, no med talk now", Kidd whined.

"Make me stop", Law smirked.

"Heh, you really know how to distract me from shitty things don't you", Law's smirk appeared to be contagious because suddenly Kidd found himself smirking too. He bent down and gave Law a small peck on the lips. "Gonna shuddup now?"

"Maybe", Law's smirk got even more cunning. In reality Law just felt relieved that Kidd was thinking of something else. He knew Kidd would be down because of this for a few days, but if he could get Kidd distracted from thinking of this incident for at least a few minutes, he'd be happy.

"I liked your comment about AIDS by the way, very creative", Kidd said and chuckled. His laughter didn't come naturally but it was better than nothing. It was better than that sweltering silence that had occurred before.

"I try to be original when insulting people", Law chuckled. "By the way Eustass-ya, I've been thinking…"

"Thinking of what? I swear to god if you say anything about medicine I will throw you into that pile of snow over there."

"No, I've been thinking of what you said when I was holding Chopper back at our engagement party", Law said, honestly a bit offended by how tired Kidd was at listening to his med talk. Law hadn't realized that it had made his fiancé that irritated. "You know, about getting a kid and stuff…"

"Huh?" suddenly Kidd seemed excited for real. The redhead turned to face Law properly and clear excitement was evident in his eyes. A few snowflakes had gotten stuck in his bright red locks and Law picked them away. "And?"

"And I am willing to consider it. But, first I want to complete my studies", Law said, concentrated on plucking snowflakes from Kidd's hair and jacket. It was adorable how Kidd's nose always got bright red when it was cold outside.

"Are you serious?" Kidd asked, the excitement spilling into his voice. "I mean, of course, you gotta complete your studies and shit but, damn, this makes me so fucking happy!"

Law chuckled, happy that he successfully had managed to distract Kidd. He had purposefully saved this talk until now, knowing that it most certainly would cheer Kidd up. Hesitantly leaning closer, the slightly shorter raven pressed his lips against Kidd's. The peck was short and innocent, but enough to warm Law up.

"And I know, despite whatever you're thinking of yourself, that you'll be the best dad ever", Law murmured and kissed Kidd again.

Once upon a time, Eustass Kidd had thought that hatred was a magical spell that gave him an unimaginable strength. He had thought that his hatred towards his dad had helped him earn money when he had beaten up people at his school. He had thought that hatred was all he had needed and that his future hadn't mattered.

But life had thought him that no matter what kind of unimaginable powers hatred could give him, nothing could beat the flawless feeling of making out with the biggest nerd on earth called Trafalgar Law.

Alright you nerds, you did it, now go and listen to My sweet Baby by ONE OK ROCK and cry about kidlaw like I have while writing this.

~Thanks for Reading Everything~