The Dark Knight of GLU

Chapter 15
The Jig Is Up

Smoker looked to his calendar and realized that it was already Saturday and he was due to have dinner with his mother tonight. She would probably bring another one of her friend’s daughters over to introduce to him and try to con him into taking out. Maybe he could fake an emergency at work and get out of it. No, he did that last time so he’d have to come up with something new. Looking over to Tashigi, he began to try to formulate a plan.

“Hey, do me a favor and call me around 1900. I need-“

“Your mother has already called me and informed me of tonight’s dinner. You will be attending and that’s final.” The young Sergeant gave him a stern look as she paused in filling out her report. “You have cancelled on her the last three times. At least give her the courtesy of a few minutes of your life.”

The moody detective frowned around his unlit cigar and gathered his things from his desk. If she was going to be like that, he was going home. The brown envelope made its way into his stack of files and was unknowingly set into Chief Garp’s inbox. Tomorrow would definitely be an interesting day for everyone else that came in. Good thing for Smoker that he had the entire weekend off.

Smoker sat in his truck outside his mother’s house praying that a large meteor would fall on it as he waited. When the door opened, he knew he’d been spotted and reluctantly got out of his vehicle to greet the annoyed woman.

“I saw you pull up almost fifteen minutes ago. Is there a specific reason you were delaying your arrival?”

“Hello, Mother. It’s good to see you as well.” Smoker kissed the proffered cheek and continued inside.

“Dinner is about to be served. Hurry to the table, Logan. I’ve seated you next to a lovely young woman named…” She stopped short at the unchecked anger in her son’s eyes as he turned sharply to look at her.

“You did what?”

“Well, I would have told you sooner if you had bothered to call me. To be honest, I’m surprised you showed up tonight at all. But, let’s not keep our guests waiting. Hurry now.” Mrs. Smoker pushed her son through a doorway to see several unknown ladies of various ages gathered. He assumed that most of them were mothers with their daughters due to the pairing and obvious shared traits. “Everyone, I would like to introduce to you my son, Logan. Dear, these ladies are from my bridge club. They’ve brought their daughters with them tonight for dinner. And this young woman was the caterer for our last luncheon. She is a world class chef, well on her way to being quite famous I hear.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you Logan. I’m Carmen.” The pink haired woman smiled politely and offered her hand to the near growling officer.

Due to years of proper upbringing, he shook her hand properly and tried his best to hide the brunt of his anger from her. “I hope my mother has not inconvenienced you in any way by bringing you here tonight.”

“Not at all. I am honored to have her high regards for my culinary expertise,” Carmen laughed.

“Wonderful! Now, please let us be seated. Dinner is ready to be served.” Smoker’s mother clapped her hands happily at what she thought was a beautiful beginning to a long relationship.

Smoker was seated between Carmen and another of the young women who kept trying to place her hand in his lap under the cover of the extra long tablecloth he knew his mother had chosen for that very purpose. The pink-haired woman paid him no mind, and for this, he was thankful, but the persistent woman on his other side was beginning to piss him off.

“So, Logan, you mother tells us you’re in law enforcement. That must be a stressful occupation, with all the violence these days.” One of the Bridge Club ladies spoke up.

“I can handle the violence just fine. There’s more stress in daily life than at work lately.” Smoker narrowed his eyes at his mother as he replied.

“I heard that you’re working on the cases involving the attacks on some of the local gangs.” A young woman who looked extremely uncomfortable in her dress was frowning at the large man. “Have you come any closer to catching the vigilante?”

“No, it seems that the citizens that he has saved have refused to speak a word about him. The only link I had is dead and nothing else has come up.” Smoker watched her reaction closely and began to wonder if it would inappropriate to laugh when she fell out of her top.

“I heard that he’s called the Dark Knight and he runs around town saving various people from vicious attackers,” another of the older women chimed in.

“That’s right! I read about that in the college paper. Sanji Black is the reporter covering it,” a pretty, black haired girl added.

“Sanji? I didn’t realize he was a reporter as well.” Carmen tapped her chin in thought.

“You know him?” Smoker turned to look at the chef.

“Of course, he’s my greatest rival. Once he finally accepts my challenge I’ll crush him and take his position at the Baratie as well as his heart.” The pink haired woman stated firmly.

“I doubt that,” Smoker mumbled, wondering if Zoro knew about the woman’s claim.

“I can’t wait to see what the Knight does next. He’s the number one heartthrob of the campus at the moment. He even has edged Sanji out for the time being.” The cute raven smiled dreamily and appeared to be lost in thought.

“He’d better lay low if he knows what’s good for him.” Smoker was bored, annoyed and hungry for something solid to eat instead of this rabbit food in front of him.

“Well, that’s enough of that dreadful topic. Logan, I was telling the ladies from my club that you were considering a teaching position at the boys academy next fall.” Mrs. Smoker was nervous and worried that things were going downhill fast. She needed to get control of this quick.

“Really, what position have you been thinking of?” The women all leaned in to listen to his answer.

“Sex-Ed.”

The women all gasped in surprise and Carmen began to giggle. “I’m sure they’ll learn a lot from you.”

The girl on his left put her hand on his leg again. “I’ve heard that you attended Cambridge University. What did you study?”

“Political Science. I never finished because I was accepted into the Police Academy.” The tic had returned to his eye and he tried to remove the wandering hand from his leg again.

“That’s a shame. A good education will take you far in the world today.” The disapproval was clearly unmasked in the mother’s voice as she patted her daughter on the shoulder. It was obvious she noticed her daughter’s hand and where it was, but did nothing to discourage her.

“And so can a good pair of shoes. If you’re in need of a lighter, ask, otherwise I’d appreciate it if you’d stay out of my pockets.” Smoker grabbed the girl’s wrist and yanked it above the tabletop for everyone to see. She wrenched her hand back and pretended to be injured in order to hide her embarrassment.

“Logan, what is the meaning of this? You’re acting quite rude.” His mother held her hand to her chest in feigned shock as she tried to think of a way to explain her son’s rash behavior.

“Rude, you say?” He stood up and slammed his fist into the dining table. “I believe I’m well within my rights to be slightly upset at the constant manhandling I am forced to endure every time you bring home a group of women for my inspection.” Smoker’s voice was low and steady as he looked around the room. “I’m tired of being shown off like a prize bull, waiting to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.”

“Well, you wouldn’t have to do any of this if you would just choose one for yourself.” Mrs. Smoker snapped. “I’m not getting any younger and I’m tired of waiting for you to finish playing cop and settle down into a secure relationship.”

“Playing?!” he yelled. “I have worked hard to get to where I am in life. I am very happy with the way things have turned out and plan to continue this for a very long time!”

The women in the room pulled back, slightly afraid of his extremely loud outburst. His face was beat red and there was a slight tic in his right eye that told of the explosion barely suppressed beneath the surface. Whispers began back and forth between the women; mothers advising their daughters to take no further interest in the man before them.

“Then you’ll be alone for the rest of your life, not even a lover to warm your bed. There’s no one in this world that could put up with your overambitious work ethics.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. He puts up with them just fine.” Smoker gave his shocked mother a sinister grin before storming out of the room.

The room grew hushed for a moment before another fist was slammed into the abused tabletop.

“I swear! Have all the men in town turned gay? First Sanji, then that ogre Zorro, or whatever his name was, and now him!” Carmen shook with rage.

“Zorro?” Smoker’s mother pulled her eyes from the empty doorway he son had just exited to look up at the angry woman.

“He’s a green-haired, muscled-up barbarian with the charm of a turnip.” Carmen waved her hand to as if to dismiss him as unimportant. “Forgive me, Mrs. Smoker, but I must leave now. I have preparations still to finish for the dinner party I’m catering tomorrow evening.”

The woman barely nodded her head at Carmen as the tall woman swiftly walked out. The idea that not only her son, but her nephew also was gay had been a bit of an overload to her mind.

DK*DK*DK*DK

Ace dodged another punch and crouched low to send a punishing blow to his opponents gut. The man gasped for breath and reached out to grab the front of Ace’s shirt as he tried to back away. A heavy fist came crashing into the freckled man’s jaw, sending him stumbling back several steps. The two men stood there facing each other and panting heavily from exertion. In a last-ditch effort to end the battle, Ace charged the other man and sent them both tumbling backward into the cold water below. Ace sat up first laughing and sputtering, followed by a scowling Marco who was clearly not amused.

“Oh come on, you knew it was gonna happen sooner or later. I told you we shouldn’t be fighting on the edge of the fountain. That rim was only a foot wide!” Ace splashed water at his friend.

“You told me? I beg to differ…” Marco cupped his hand and sent a wave of water back.

Though the water only came to their knees when they stood up, it was enough to hinder their movements and made chasing quite amusing. They both laughed and stumbled, acting like children as they splashed water everywhere. Marco was caught up in a bone-crushing hug as his playmate tried to spin them around in a circle. Ace’s boot caught on one of the pipes underwater and they lost their balance, falling in a laughing tangle of limbs once more. Ace was straddling Marco’s lap in a very provocative way and grinning madly as he leaned in close.

“Feeling better now, babe?”

“All thanks to you,” Marco answered sweetly.

“Good.” A familiar voice growled out. The two wet men snapped their heads to look at an angry detective.

DK*DK*DK*DK

Smoker pealed out from the curb and headed for the outskirts of town. He needed to clear his mind and come up with a way to explain his words earlier to his mother. She would never forgive him if he refused to give her a grandchild to spoil. He needed a plan to appease her and yet allow himself a pleasurable life; hopefully one that would include raven hair and tanned skin. Not wanting to head home quite yet, he turned on the Police Scanner and listened to the events of the night. A call came in from a quiet park claiming that there were two men wrestling and fighting in the central fountain. The following description had him reaching for the mic to let dispatch know he would take care of it.

The fountain was a short distance from the parking lot, and Smoker took his time walking through the winding paths. He could hear the two men well before they were in sight, and it seemed that whatever they were fighting about had been replaced with something of amusement. Laughter and splashing along with occasional shouts of encouragement settled uneasily around the confused detective. He rounded the last corner of landscaping and watched as Ace wrapped his arms around another man, pulling him close. Ace’s smiling face burned into his mind as Smoker watched the pair fall into the cold water. He dropped his cigar and crushed it into the ground beneath his heel when Ace didn’t appear to be concerned with his current position in the other man’s lap.

“Feeling better now, babe?”

Smoker’s blood began to boil.

“All thanks to you.”

Someone was about to die.

“Good.” After he accidentally admitted to his mother that he had someone, here that someone was in the arms of yet someone else. The familiar tinge of jealousy turned into a raging inferno of hatred for the unlucky man under what didn’t belong to him.

“Detective! Um. Hey.” Ace stumbled as he tried to get up off of his friend. He could see the pain clearly written across Smoker’s face and realized how bad everything looked. It would take only a moment to explain, but he worried that the older man would refuse to believe or even listen. “Look, I…”

“You seem to have a thing for blondes.” Smoker’s eyes never left the unknown man’s face as he watched him stand up behind Ace. They climbed over the wide rim and stood dripping before him, the blonde easily holding his fierce glare. “Go home.”

“Hey, babe it’s-“ Ace tried to take a step towards his favorite man, but was held back by a firm hand on his arm. “Damn it Marco, let go!”

“Why? You mean you’re really interested in a pissy guy like that?” Marco furrowed his brow in confusion.

“Hell yah! You think I’ve gone through all that trouble just for shits and grins?” Ace yanked his arm away and looked to see Smoker’s back as the man walked away. “Shit! Detective? Get your fucking ass back here old man! I’m not done talking yet!”

“Come on, he’s obviously not interested in you. You can come home with me tonight.” Marco wrapped his arms around Ace’s shivering frame from behind and rested his chin on the raven’s shoulder.

Smoker stopped dead in his tracks as he thought about the young man going home with someone other than him. He immediately turned around, stormed back up to the weary couple and planted his fist firmly in Marco’s face. Ace cringed when he heard the crunch of his friend’s nose breaking and turned around to kneel at his side while he waited for the man to regain his vision.

“Oh shit, Marco, you ok?” Ace quickly pulled off his wet t-shirt and offered to hold against the blonde’s face to help with the bleeding. Before he could even touch Marco, his arms were forcefully pulled behind his back and cold metal cuffs were locked into place around his wrists. “What the fuck?”

“You have the right to remain silent.” Smoker yanked him up to his feet and began dragging him back towards the truck. “If you give up the right-“

“You’re arresting me?” Ace tripped and would have fallen, save for the firm grip on his arm. He looked pleadingly back to Marco as the blonde stood up and started after them.

“-you will be returned home instead without a second chance.”

Marco paused in his pursuit and waited for any further plea from his friend for help. All he heard was the slightest hint of giggles as he watched Ace almost bounce down the path to the detective’s truck. He shook his head and prayed that Ace would come back in one piece so he could kick his ass for getting his nose broke… again.

Ace tried to control his blood flow as he was tossed into the floor of the truck. He was fairly sure that the only reason was because his clothes were soaked, but the thrill of being manhandled in such a way was still turning him on. His dark eyes met with Smoker’s smoldering brown ones and Ace let out a small moan at the unrestrained lust he saw in them. The door was slammed shut and he waited for the man to enter the driver’s side and take him to their next destination. Ace prayed it would be somewhere with a large bed and no interruptions.

Smoker paused with his hand on the handle and wondered if he was just making a bad situation worse after what had happened with his mother earlier that evening. He could take the brat to his own apartment and apologize to his mother, ensuring that there would be countless more dinners with desperate old women and their daughters… or enjoy a night filled with what promised to be mind-blowing sex that could lead to a very lucrative future of erotic pleasure. He opened the door and slid behind the wheel, wondering why there was even a second choice.

He glanced down to see Ace looking up at him with hungry eyes, a few drops of water still falling from black hair to run across his naked chest. Smoker reached down, grabbed a fist full of the wet locks, and roughly yanked him up to crush their mouths together in a harsh semblance of a kiss. When he pulled back, they were both out of breath and eager to progress to more intimate activities. Ace’s mouth opened slightly before snapping shut, obviously remembering that he was to remain silent if he wanted this to continue. A sly smile spread across his freckled face as he settled back down on the floorboard, causing a shiver of excitement to run across the detective’s body. Quickly, the older man started the engine and burned several feet of rubber tracks into the asphalt as he slammed his foot on the gas, wondering which of their places might be closer. Remembering something about a younger brother, Smoker decided his own home would be best. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Ace edge his way closer. Not much further and the raven’s face would be against his leg. What was that fool trying to do?

“If you’re looking to get me to let you in the seat with those wet clothes on, you’re out of luck.” Smoker saw him back up a little and returned his eyes to the road. When Ace began struggling and making small grunting noises, he forced himself to look back. The young man had kicked off his boots and was currently working on trying to get his soaked shorts over his hips without unfastening them, since his hands were still cuffed behind him. A horn blared, warning the fascinated man that he should be watching the road instead of the strip show currently going on in his front seat.

Beads of sweat began to form on the frown-creased forehead of the driver. His knuckles were white due to the strength of his grip on the wheel. Blood pulsed through his veins at a high rate, pooling in his groin and feeding the growing bulge in his jeans. His house was only a few minutes away now, yet still not close enough for his liking. The tearing of fabric caused a lump to form in his throat, and he forgot that there was even a second pedal on the floorboard, pressing harder on the gas. The truck tipped precariously as he rounded the last corner and gunned it down the last short stretch of road. He knew there would be several stripes of black marking his journey, and he would likely need a new set of tires soon, but if he didn’t hurry up and make it into his garage right now, the entire neighborhood would know his lover’s name.

Ace struggled with the wet fabric that seemed to be glued to his body. He had finally managed to rip the button off and was now silently cursing the strength of the zipper as it refused to give. About the time he heard the metal teeth breaking, the truck slowed down and the light from outside changed to a dim glow of a household light bulb. They must be in the detective’s garage, because the man had put the vehicle in park and shut off the engine before turning to look down at him. Ace licked his lips in hunger, wondering just how long he was supposed to refrain from speaking, and if moans of pleasure were banned as well. If so, he was screwed. There would be no way in hell that he could keep quiet while being taken by this wild beast.

Smoker’s eyes trailed over his body, pausing as he noticed the damaged state of his fly. Ace gave another hard yank to his waistband and the zipper broke free. Dark brown eyes widened in surprise before narrowing in desire, a growl of approval emitting from the large man’s chest. Before Ace could work on pealing the damp fabric down again, Smoker got out of the truck and rounded to the passenger side, yanking open the door. The raven almost fell out on his face as he hurried to exit the vehicle, anxious to finally reap the benefits of all his teasing.

Smoker pulled the man flush against his body as soon as Ace had gained his feet. He aggressively attacked the smiling fool, not bothering to show any tenderness or mercy as he took what he wanted. He thrust his tongue into his victim’s mouth, relishing in small whimpers that were released. His large hands slid under the cold wet fabric to grab Ace’s firm ass and grind their hips together. He realized just how much the younger man’s body temperature had dropped from the condition of his clothing and cursed himself for being so unobservant. With an annoyed grunt he turned Ace around and shoved him towards the door leading into the house.

Ace had no time to process any of the rooms he was being directed through, though he was obviously more interested in the one they were headed to. A bright light was turned on and he pouted to see this was a bathroom instead of somewhere with a bed. The cuffs were removed and set aside on the countertop, followed by a gun, holster, badge, belt… oh gods he was stripping right behind him. Ace made a quick decision to remove the rest of his own clothing before turning around to assist his detective with his remaining garments. The wet fabric was pushed to the floor and hot hands grabbed his hips before he could stand back up. He looked between his legs and frowned that his lover still had his pants on. Slowly he straightened and melted into bare chest the instant it touched his back.

“Shower.” Smoker’s voice was harsh and strained with desire.

The glass door was opened and Ace stepped in, pleased, yet disappointed at the same time, with the size of the enclosed space. Warm water began cascading across his skin, and he realized just how cold he had actually been. Is this why they were here instead of the bed? So his detective did have a soft spot for him. Ace turned around, and was caught up in another aggressive assault. This time the hands searched out more than just his backside. His half-hard cock was taken into a firm grip and stroked roughly to its fullest. His cry of pleasure was swallowed by the mouth currently plundering his. It was all he could do to dig his nails into flexing biceps and hold on tight while his body was ravaged in ways he could only dream of before this day.

Ace practically screamed his lover’s name and his body shook as he released his first orgasm of the night. He felt his knees give way and slowly lowered himself to the floor, realizing that he was about to make one of his fantasies finally come true. With a seductive smile, he looked up into the face of the most perfect man in his life. He had known it the first time he had opened his eyes and looked up at the officer’s face all those weeks ago. Never before had he even entertained the idea of love, but something inside him stirred as he lost himself in those sad brown eyes. Tonight there wasn’t a single hint of anything but lust hidden in their depths as Ace stuck out his tongue and traced the underside of the large cock directly in front of him.

Smoker had never been as turned on as he was in that instant. Such boldness, courage, loyalty and it all belonged to him now. The brat had no idea what he had gotten himself into, because if he thought he could go out and play with his friends again as he was doing earlier, he was dead wrong. His body was no longer his own to do with as he pleased. It was now property of one very possessive, jealous, and over-aggressive Lieutenant Logan Smoker of the Grand Line Police Department, and he would completely fuck up anyone who dared interfere.

Soft lips closed around his head and sucked hard. Smoker’s hands flew to the raven’s hair and he began thrusting into the wet cavern. He could feel his lover’s throat relax and was amazed at just how much the man could take in. The pressure was building, but he refused let it end like this. It was the first time he had brought anyone to this house and he was damn sure gonna christen every single room of it properly in the next few days… starting with this one. Ace was pulled to his feet and spun around to face the wall.

“I’m pretty sure we forgot to frisk you. Assume the position.”

Ace whimpered in excitement and leaned forward to place his hands on the wet tile, spreading his feet wide. The water was turned off, and a soap-slick hand started at his ankle, sliding up the inside of his thigh and across the crack of his ass, teasing the tight ring of muscle, but never entering.

“So far nothing of interest. Shall we continue?”

“You never know what I might be hiding.” Ace groaned in frustration and tried to push back, wanting more than the light touches he was currently receiving.

“Hiding things from me would be unwise.” Smoker chided and his hand continued down the inside of the other thigh, past the knee and to the ankle before moving back up and returning to tease once more.

“I thought you liked my defiant nature.” A slap was heard, accompanied by the sting in his right ass cheek. “Oh fuck!”

“I thought I told you to remain silent.” He brought down a heavy hand on the other cheek, leaving a bright red handprint on the un-tanned skin.

Ace wondered how many of his past lovers the detective had talked to, to gather this kind of information on him. Smoker seemed to know every little trick, kink, and word play that affected him the most. “You could have let me go home with Marco.”

“Over my dead body.” A deep growl echoed in the small space and suddenly there was pleasurable pain as Smoker thrust in completely.

“Shit!” Ace welcomed every inch of him, ignoring the tears that had formed, and concentrated instead on trying to relax. It had been quite some time since he had a lover, and never before one that rivaled the size of the detective. “Whatever you say, sweetheart.”

The pace was hard and slow, Smoker’s hip snapping at the end of each thrust, trying to hit Ace’s prostate and rouse more of those delicious cries from his lover. He could feel Ace’s body starting to shake and reached down to take the dripping cock in hand and bring them both to completion.

“Logaaaannn!” Ace held noting back as he let the waves of ecstasy ride over his body,

“Aaaahhh!” Smoker started slamming hard into Ace’s ass, holding out as long as he could before giving into the pleasurable bliss of his orgasm. “Ace…”

The word was barely above a heavenly moan, but the raven heard it clearly. They remained joined together, leaning against the wall until they could both stand properly, well properly for Smoker. He allowed the silent man to take a wet cloth and clean him up again. Ace grinned at the level of pain he was currently feeling and looked up into the relaxed face of the detective.

“What took you so long, Detective?”

“Don’t get cocky brat.”

Smoker picked him up gently and carried him to the bedroom, refusing to say another word. He’d take a short nap and continue with his earlier plan. There was no way the guy would be walking tomorrow, or the rest of the week for that matter. His mother, the department, his cases… everything could go to hell. He had two days off of work and was going to take advantage of every moment of it. .

DK*DK*DK*DK

His minions were dropping like flies, the cash flow was decreasing, and other factions were beginning to try and invade his city. Up till now, all other gangs operated under the frightening knowledge that if they overstepped their boundaries they would be eliminated. Now, with the emergence of this hero, he was beginning to lose control of it all. Somehow, it was only his group that had been targeted by this vigilante and every amount of snooping he did was coming to a dead end. The only connection he had was the blonde reporter, and now the men that had been sent after him were in either jail or the hospital. He had underestimated this Knight for the last time. If the guy wanted to play with swords, he’d just have to fight fire with fire.

“Boss! Jack and the others just got back. They’ve had the shit beat out of them, but apparently they got a lead on that reporter you’re after.” A man with short white hair came running to where his leader was sitting in the dark.

“Out with it! I want that fool taken care of immediately!” The Boss grabbed the man by the front of his shirt as soon as he was within arm’s reach.

“He came to the defense of a weird looking guy tonight in the alley that runs behind that restaurant he works in. He said the freak belonged to him. Maybe it’s his boyfriend or something.” The man struggled against the strong hold on his clothes.

“Oh really?” The Boss dropped his hold and began pacing. “I want him found!”

“We’re already working on it. The guy dropped his Student ID so some of the men are trying to find out more on him. Don’t worry, Boss, we’ll get that green-haired freak in no time.”

“Green hair? GREEN!?” The boss’s face grew red with anger. His voice dropped to a threatening growl. “Just what was this ‘freak’s’ name?”

“Um, let’s see… Zoro Roronoa. He goes to college with the reporter.”

“Roronoa…“ A high-pitched, insane laughter rang out through the rundown building. “It’s time to end this charade. If I can’t have one, I’ll take the other. Boys, head over to Joseph Street to the Higa Dojo and deliver a message. Tell them it’s time to atone for the past. I want that man to suffer.”

DK*DK*DK*DK

Frank Roronoa was a reasonable man, or so he thought, but these two idiots were pushing the limit of his patience. Wanting to know just how his son was doing back in the States, he cornered Johnny and Yosaku in the back of their favorite club. Both had given evasive answers and refused to meet his eyes when speaking. They were sweating profusely and oddly holding hands.

“I’m not going to ask again. What is going on with Zoro?” the jet pilot growled out.

“We can’t tell you Roronoa-san, I’m sorry,” Yosaku pleaded.

“Why the hell not?” Frank threw up his arms in frustration.

“He made us swear to keep quiet. You have to trust us.” Johnny tried to reason with him.

“If it’s about that whole saving the innocent shit, I know already. What I don’t know is why.”

“Blond hair, blue eyes, long legs and a perfect ass,” Yosaku grinned, but yelped in pain immediately after when Johnny smacked him hard upside the head.

“Shut-up! Aniki will disown us if he finds out you told his dad,” Johnny hissed.

“A blonde? Did you get to meet her while you were there?” Frank stopped abusing the wall and perked up.

The two young men became uneasy again. “Well, yah kinda. We were invited over to a party and met most of Zoro’s new friends.”

“That was probably the best food I’ve ever eaten. If those two ever pull their heads out of their asses they’ll make a great couple.”

“So she cooked? That’s a start. So does she work? Is she in school with him? Is she sweet?” Frank was excited to think that his son had possibly found someone special.

“Um, I think Zoro said something about a job as one of the number one chefs at this place called Baratie and they have one class together. I don’t know if I’d use sweet as a description, but they fit each other perfectly. You’ll have to ask him if you want to know more. It’s not our place to tell you. He’ll kill us if he ever found out we said this much.” Yosaku shuffled closer to Johnny.

“How about a name?” Frank prodded, hoping for anything to go on.

Johnny thought hard, wondering if he gave him just the first name if any harm could come of it. It wasn’t as if the man would be going to see Aniki any time soon anyway. “It’s Sanji. I’m not sure of the last name.”

Frank frowned for a moment in thought. Why did that name sound familiar? He was sure he had heard it recently, and that was surely an unusual name so there couldn’t be too many out there with it. Maybe he had read it somewhere. His eyes shot open wide as he remembered the name under the dark bold headlines of the collage paper. The fearful looks on his son’s best friends’ faces was the only confirmation he needed. He only had a short time before his flight left and a lot of research to do in the mean time. He wondered if that person was still around. Would their number be the same after all these years? Would they welcome him or turn a cold shoulder? Frank left the club in a daze with the two young men staring after him in concern.

DK*DK*DK*DK

Zoro shifted in the sunlight, groaning at the ache in his back from sleeping on the hard floor. He wrapped his arms around the warm object snuggled into his chest and sighed in contentment. His body stiffened when a hand tightened on his hip and soft lips brushed against his neck with just a whisper of a kiss. Memories of last night came flooding back and the green-haired man began to panic, trying to remember whether he had gone to sleep alone last night or not. Carefully, he opened his eyes to look upon the sleeping beauty beside him and breathed a sigh of relief when he found Sanji still in the land of dreams. He lifted his hand to lightly brush the golden hair to the side so he could look at the cook’s peaceful face in the morning sun. His pocket began vibrating, causing him to jump and scramble to pull out his phone, ungracefully pushing Sanji off of him in the process.

“This better be good,” he growled.

“Ah, mon ami, you’re awake! Manifique!” The frighteningly familiar voice sent chills down Zoro’s spine.

“How the hell did you get this number?”

“Oh, I talked to a good friend of ours, Monsieur Igaram Igarappoi. He was more than happy to help me out with your personal information, mon Noir Chevalier. We are both very grateful for your heroics and wish to offer our assistance in any way we can.”

“Fuck.” Zoro got up off the floor and walked over to the window, his heart racing in his chest as he realized how totally screwed he was now. Not only did one of the people he rescued know his identity, but they were informing others of it as well. How the hell did this fucking okama figure it out to begin with?

“You really should be more careful about showing your face, Chérie. How that incroyable garçon could not have figured you out yet is beyond moi!”

Zoro wondered if this was how many people felt when he began mixing his English and Japanese. He couldn’t understand a single thing that the creepy man was saying. Zoro ran a hand through his hair and leaned his forehead against the cool glass, trying to decide if he would live to see another sunrise.

“What do you want?”

“You to model for me of course!” came the joyous reply.

“WHAT!?” Zoro paled several shades as he realized he was being blackmailed.

“You ok there Marimo?”

Zoro spun around to watch Sanji as he lit his first cigarette of the morning. The blonde’s hair was still tousled from sleep and his pajama pants were riding very low on his hips. He sauntered over to Zoro and pried the phone from his vice-like grip, giving him a quick kiss on the lips and a wink before bringing the cell to his own ear.

“This is Sanji, can I help you?” When Zoro had shoved him to the floor earlier, Sanji had immediately woken up in a bad mood. He was about to kick the stupid idiot in the head when the uneasy tone in Zoro’s voice piqued his curiosity. A moment later and he began to worry that maybe the man was in trouble of some sort. If this ass hole did do something stupid he wasn’t about to go down with him.

“Sanji, mon Chérie!”

“Bon Kurei? Why are you calling Zoro?” Sanji almost started laughing as he began to understand the frightened look on his friend’s face. Any good-looking man would feel the same way if the Theater Director called them out of the blue early one morning.

“S’il vous plait! Tell him to say yes. He is exactly what I am looking for. No one else will do!”

“What exactly am I supposed to get him to agree to do?” Sanji’s mind ran through a dozen possibilities, none of them pleasant.

“Modeling! You would need to take him shopping of course first. I can’t photograph him in the clothes he normally wears. Mon Dieu! How can he stand to look like that? I know what he’s hiding, and it’s a crime! I want to show him to the world!”

Sanji’s first impulse was to tell the bothersome man to fuck off, but when he mentioned the idea of shopping, the blonde couldn’t get the image of dark slacks and dress shirt out of his mind. Dressed like that, Zoro would be the envy of every man and woman on campus, and they would all have to face the fact that they would never have a chance in hell because Zoro belonged to him now. Or would soon…

“I’ll see what I can do.” Sanji closed the phone and handed it back to its owner. “Get a shower while I cook breakfast. We have a lot to do today and not much time.”

Zoro looked at him wearily for a moment, apparently still concerned about the strange request from the even stranger man, but nodded just the same and headed to do as instructed. Sanji debated joining him, but knew that there was little time before he needed to head to work and he wanted to get as much done as possible. Bon Kurei’s request was bizarre, but then again, everything the man did tended to be that way. He would comply with it for the moment, but if that bastard tried to lay a hand on Zoro, he’d kill him. The idea of anyone other than himself touching that muscular body sent waves of jealousy crashing over him.

He thought back to the morning after he had first been rescued by the Knight. He had been thinking about finally settling down and finding a steady partner, no longer being the famed playboy he currently was viewed as. True, he didn’t sleep around with that many people, but as much as he flirted with everyone, he couldn’t get past that image in their minds. His last steady boyfriend had hurt him deeply, not by betraying their relationship but his trust. Gin had gotten involved with a drug ring and began selling and using. Little by little, the person Sanji fell in love with had disappeared and was replaced with just a shell of a man.

Sanji wondered if Zoro was the one to fill in the empty space in his life now. Maybe he could invite Zoro on a date later in the week so they could get to know each other better. It had felt wonderful to fall asleep wrapped in someone’s arms last night. Granted, it sucked to wake up the way he had, but he really couldn’t blame the man now. If he had gotten a call from someone as scary as that asking those things from him, he’d probably be a little out of sorts too. He’d just have to find a way to have Zoro make it up to him later. For the first time in years Sanji felt hope, the escapades of the Dark Knight temporarily forgotten.