Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"How many confessions do you think Mihawk gets a week? A day?" Shanks leaned heavily on the roof railing, watching the teen with the perfectly coiffed, inky black hair stare stoically at the stuttering, eager girl in front of him down in the courtyard. They were both dressed in the Grand Line High's school uniform, so Shanks knew that this girl at least went to their school. The girl from yesterday wore a uniform from a neighboring school. Shanks elbowed the blond next to him and bumped his shoulder against his friend's arm, staying pressed shoulder to shoulder as he leaned toward him. "What do you think, Rosi? Has to be at least a dozen a week. I mean, look at him, he's perfect."

Rosinante rolled his eyes and puffed on the cigarette that he was certain Principal Garp would kick his ass for having. "You just think he's perfect, Shanks."

Shanks gave a shocked gasp that was all drama, slumping over the railing like Rosinante had offended him greatly. "Rosi! How dare you? He's smart and he's tall and he has those piercing eyes..." He sighed, grinning. "And that ass... and he has abs! Abs, Rosi!" He stared dreamily down at the other teen, watching him speak to the girl in front of him. The girl was flushing red, her shoulders drooping.

"He's not perfect, Shanks. And you have abs too." Rosinante watched the girl hurry away from Mihawk, the teen undoubtedly rejecting her just like he'd done to others over the past couple days. There was a festival coming up next weekend and many students were hoping to have dates for the event, Rosinante included. "He runs in the same circles that my brother does." The blonde grimaced and ashed his cigarette.

"It's not like he's friends with Doffy, though," Shanks whined, watching Mihawk walk back across the courtyard to where Crocodile and Kuma were waiting. They were Mihawk's friends, Shanks knew, not Doffy and his merry band of assholes.

"No, but he spends time in the same space as him. Pretty sure his best friend and Doffy dated for awhile. Besides, Doffy is a piece of shit."

"You spend time with Doffy!" Shanks glared at his friend.

Rosinante glared right back. "Not by choice! He's my brother and Dad wouldn't let him go to Mary Geoise because he wanted us to have a 'normal' education." He rolled his eyes and sighed before taking another drag on his cigarette. "Look, I've never seen him actually speak to Doffy, so maybe he has that going for him. But, I also haven't seen you speak to him."

Shanks sputtered, throwing his hands up. "I have too!"

"Saying excuse me in the hallway isn't speaking to him."

"I asked to borrow a pencil once in the library," Shanks mumbled.

"And how did that go?"

Shanks sighed and tilted his head back. "He said no and I ended up borrowing one from Roux. It had teeth marks on the eraser."

Rosinante snickered. "And yet, he's still perfect."

Shanks ran his hands through his hair, pushing the red strands back from his face and tugging on them. He stared up the at sky. "Of course he is, Rosi." And then softly, "he doesn't have to be perfect for anyone else but me."

Rosinante sighed and put out his cigarette. He set the butt down on the railing before pulling his friend into a hug, holding him until Shanks hugged him back. After a few moments, he let his friend go with a pat on his shoulder and went to pick up his cigarette butt to stash it back in the pack so he could throw it away later. "If you insist he is perfect for you, you are going to have to talk to him."

"I know..." Shanks turned back to the railing, looking over to see Mihawk following Crocodile and Kuma into the building. The other teen stopped and turned to look up at the roof and Shanks swore their eyes met. He felt his heart beat faster in his chest, savoring the sharp features of the beautiful teen. He grinned down at Mihawk before pushing off from the railing, sliding his arm through Rosinante's as he steered them back to the door."I'm going to get Mihawk to go to the festival with me."

=-=-=-=-=

"You know if you just picked one of them to say yes to, the rest would stop asking. How many has it been since last week?" Crocodile adjusted his backpack on his shoulder, following Kuma's large frame down the hallway. The other students all moved out of Kuma's way, most of them just afraid of his size. In truth, Kuma was one of the nicest students in school, he just didn't talk much.

Next to Crocodile, Mihawk shoved his hands into the pockets of his uniform trousers. "Four last week and two so far this week. One on Saturday." He sighed. "If I say yes to one of them, I will have to actually spend time with them at the festival."

Crocodile grunted, knowing his friend was telling the truth. He'd spend the entire festival with whomever he said yes to, regardless of if he liked the person or not. "Then ask someone yourself. You're Dracule Mihawk, champion swordsman, smartest fucker in this school, too pretty to be alone."

Mihawk raised an eyebrow and glanced as his friend. "Be careful, Cro, someone else would think you were flirting." Kuma snorted a laugh in front of them before he turned to go into a classroom.

"You would love it if I flirted with you," Crocodile snorted, letting his eyes lazily wander over his friend's body. "Too bad goth fuckboy isn't my type." He stepped quickly out of Mihawk's range and into the classroom Kuma disappeared into, laughing the entire time.

"Idiot," Mihawk huffed and continued down the hallway, avoiding eye contact with the other students. He was getting tired of saying no. But, that didn't mean that he wanted to say yes to any of the people that confessed to him. What he wanted was for them to stop asking. What he truly wanted was to know if the person he actually wanted to go with, wanted to go with him. But, he would have to talk to them to find out and as brave as Mihawk was with sword in his hand, feelings were terrifying to deal with. It was hard enough for him to reconcile that maybe he liked more than just looking at the handsome, almost pretty boy he'd fallen for.

Laughter came from the end of the hallway and Mihawk's eyes immediately darted to the red haired teen as he slung an arm around the lanky blonde next to him. Rosinante grinned back at Shanks and the two headed down the hallway towards Mihawk, who froze next to the door of his next class.

Shanks lit up every room he entered and drew attention like he was a magnet. Mihawk found himself to not be an exception to the pull of the other teen. Everyone wanted to be Shanks's friend and the red head was also kind to everyone he interacted with. He'd rarely seen him without a smile on his face. Mihawk always found himself aware of the other teen when they were near, like Shanks was true north and Mihawk the needle on a compass.

He'd seen Shanks on the roof earlier that day, almost embarrassed that Shanks had seen him reject yet another confession, but unable to look away when their eyes met over the distance. They were too far to say anything, but then again, Mihawk had trouble getting words out when the red head was near anyway. He remembered the day Shanks had spoken to him in the library, Mihawk was so flustered all he could say was no in reply to Shanks. It was not one of his bravest moments.

Brown met gold when Shanks made eye contact with Mihawk in the hallway, his arm still around Rosinante's neck. He smiled at the dark haired teen, their eyes locking. Shanks and Rosinante walked past Mihawk, the red head turning to keep eye contact with Mihawk as he continued walking towards his classroom, his arm slipping from around his friend's neck. His smile grew as he held Mihawk's gaze for as long as he could. Mihawk found the corners of his lips turning up and he started to smile back at the red head, as his world narrowed to just himself and Shanks.

Shanks, who was smiling so brightly as he turned his body to keep facing Mihawk, his backpack hanging over one shoulder, his uniform jacket open, his tie loose, his shirt unbuttoned. The whole world felt like it was slowing down, Mihawk's heart pounding in his chest. He watched as Shanks took one step backward, and then another, not looking away from Mihawk. Then, Shanks tripped, his eyes widening in surprise as he stumbled.

Mihawk's smile burst into a laugh as Rosinante quickly caught Shanks before he fell to the ground. He felt light and buzzing with an electric energy, Mihawk's whole mood lifting from the red head's antics.

Shanks recovered quickly, him and Mihawk standing in the hallway, just smiling at each other as Mihawk's laughter quieted. Rosinante tugged at Shanks's arm, pulling him towards their classroom. Mihawk watched him go, feeling his chest full of an emotion he wasn't ready to examine and his cheeks slightly sore from smiling.

=-=-=-=-=

Rosinante followed Shanks to their usual table in the courtyard, sliding his tray onto the table next to Yasopp who was currently have a rather animated argument with Roux. "Did you not watch the last episode?" Yasopp practically yelled.

Roux rolled his eyes. "Look, I don't think Buffy is going to end up with Angel. I just don't think they are end game." Roux chewed loudly on his sandwich, watching the steam practically come out of Yasopp's ears.

"What do you mean, 'they're not end game'?" Yasopp shouted.

Rosinante rolled his eyes and elbowed Yasopp. "You're loud. Cut it out before the entire school knows you are Angel's biggest fanboy." Yasopp grumbled and picked up his sandwich, glaring at Roux across the table. Rosinante looked up at Shanks, who'd stopped to glance around the courtyard, obviously looking for someone. "Did you pay any attention in any of your morning classes? Every time I looked over, you were doodling."

Shanks set his tray across from Rosinante, dropping his backpack on the ground next to him. "I took some notes." He grimaced. Not that they were any good. The sketches, not doodles, were a lot better than his notes, he thought.

"I'll lend you my notes later," Rosinante sighed and picked at his food. He frowned and picked up a french fry, staring at it.

Shanks pushed his tray to the side and leaned across the table, getting into his friend's space. "Rosi."

Looking past the french fry and ignoring Shanks, Rosinante sighed again. "Shanks."

"What's wrong?" Shanks asked. He quickly reached out and smacked Roux's wrist as he reached for Shanks's lunch. "And, Rosi, so help me, if you say nothing, I'll put every single pack of your cigarettes in Principal Garp's mailbox."

"You're an idiot," Rosinante mumbled, delaying his answer by shoving the french fry into his mouth.

"I may be an idiot, but I'm your friend and you love me." Shanks leaned further into the other teen's space. "So, tell me so I can fix it."

Rosinante looked into Shanks's eyes and rolled his own. "I-want-a-date-for-the-festival-too," he mumbled, looking down at his tray.

Shanks smiled and sat back,adjusting his lunch tray back in front of him. "Then we'll find you one." He picked up a couple of fries and put them in his mouth. "I'm sure Robin or Mak would go with you," he said with his mouth full. He swallowed his food at Rosinante's frown. "Or, was there someone you had in mind? Maybe that guy we keep running into on the roof?" Shanks grinned.

The blond turned scarlet and jerked back, his arms flailing out to grab the table so he wouldn't fall off the bench. "Maybe?" he almost squeaked after he pulled himself back into the seat. Almost every afternoon, Rosinante snuck out to the roof for a cigarette. Most days, the other student was already there, but sometimes Rosinante was there first and got to watch the other teen take that first relaxing hit off his cigarette. They'd never really talked much, except to share a lighter or cigarette on occasion, but the teen with the short gray hair was hot.

"I found out his name." Shanks continued to eat, waiting for Rosinante to ask him what it was. When Rosinante didn't move or say anything, Shanks reached across and put his hand on his friend's arm. "Hey, I'll help you. I promise. Just like you kept me from falling on my ass this morning in front of Mihawk." Yasopp perked up at that and Shanks gave his head a subtle shake. The other teen went back to pretending not to listen.

Rosinante rolled his eyes again. "Okay. What's his name?" He gripped the edge of the table. The teen from the roof wasn't in any of his classes or in any of Shanks's.

"Smoker. Mak has swim club with his friend, Tashigi."

"Wait, you told Mak about him?" Rosinante hissed.

Shanks shook his head. "No! I took Mak up to the roof and he was leaving a couple of days ago."

"Shanks, why did you take Mak up to the roof?" Rosinante asked slowly, though he was relieved that Shanks didn't tell Mak about Smoker, that his crush was still only between the two of them... and possibly Yasopp and Roux now. He glanced as his friends and they were acting like they were a little too involved in their empty food trays. Yasopp pulled out a comic book and held it upside down. Roux reached out and flipped the comic right side up. Rosinante sighed.

"She asked me to!" Shanks said too loud, like he was guilty of something. When Rosinante stared at him, he pushed his fries around some more. He and Makino had gone to the roof at her request, but the run in with Smoker had gotten Shanks distracted and he'd ended up asking her if she knew him at all. She said she thought she knew someone that hung out with him, but didn't know him herself. Shanks had kept talking about anything and everything after that, unable to stop his excitement. They didn't have long before they had to go to their next classes and he remembered Makino's disappointed look when they went through the door to go back to class. He wasn't exactly sure why she was disappointed but when he saw her the next day, she'd said it was nothing and told him about Smoker. "Anyway, what is important is that his name is Smoker and you should talk to him. Unless... you want me to talk to him first?"

"You can't even talk to Mihawk. And, earlier does not count. You have to actually say words to him not just fall all over yourself in front of him." Rosinante rolled his eyes.

Shanks looked offended. "Well, I don't have a crush on Smoker. I can talk to him." He shoved a fry in his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. "Hey, that might be a good idea. I'll talk to Smoker and you talk to Mihawk!"

Yasopp chose that moment to groan and shake his head. "Be a chicken then, Shanks," he said and Roux snickered. "You don't shut up about the guy and then you want someone else to talk him? Chicken." Roux made a little flapping gesture and he and Yasopp burst out laughing as Shanks turned almost as red as his hair.

"Fine!" The red head pushed himself up from the table, annoyed with his friends but more determined than ever. "I will talk to Mihawk." He pointed at Yasopp and Roux. "I am not a chicken."

Roux started to make a chicken noise again and Shanks gave him a shove that barely moved the larger teen. Yasopp just laughed harder. Rosinante rolled his eyes at his friends until Yasopp reached to grab his arm, his laughter at Shanks trying to shove Roux off the table slowing to chuckles as he tried to get out what he wanted to say. "You should talk to Smoker. I'm not going to call you a chicken like that asshole because I know it won't help, but you should. You deserve someone who makes you smile."

Rosinante looked at his friend, startled and turning red. "Uh, yeah... Thanks Yasopp." He blinked at the other teen as Yasopp gave him a little grin before turning to make chicken noises at Shanks again. Rosinante smiled at them, seeing Shanks turning redder as he tried to argue with Yasopp and Roux but it only escalated things until Shanks was about to climb across the table to shove Yasopp. He laughed at them and decided that he'd try to get to know Smoker, at least, even if he came out of it with another friend and not a boyfriend.

=-=-=-=-=

"Fuck off, Doffy," Crocodile hissed, jerking his shoulder out from beneath Doflamingo's hand. "Do not touch me. Do not speak to me. Just. Fuck. Off."

Mihawk shifted his backpack on his shoulder, watching Kuma step between Doflamingo and Crocodile as the blond just grinned his broad, creepy grin at Crocodile. Despite the best efforts of Mihawk, Kuma, and Crocodile, Doflamingo refused to get the message that they didn't want him around. When Doflamingo had shown up at the school as a new student, he seemed to fit right in with them, a smooth, privileged teen that was just eager to make friends. He and Crocodile started flirting and it was a couple of months before Doflamingo started to show his true colors. By then, he and Crocodile had gone on a couple of dates. Mihawk had wanted to put Doflamingo through a wall after Crocodile had called him sobbing one night, but Cro had asked him not to.

Crocodile stood behind Kuma, letting his larger friend loom over Doffy until the blond got bored and wandered back over to his table of cronies. He took a shaky breath and put his back to his ex, sitting down as Mihawk sat at the table across from him. "Fucking prick," he mumbled.

"Are you alright?" Mihawk asked quietly as Kuma finally slid into the seat next to Crocodile.

"I hate that question," Crocodile hissed. Mihawk looked expectantly at his friend. Crocodile sighed and folded his arms on the table. "I wish he'd just go away. Be grateful he hasn't decided you are his type."

Mihawk snorted and glanced over to where Doflamingo laughed with Trebol and Diamante. He was fairly certain that Doflamingo wasn't interested in people beyond what they could do for him. Crocodile's father was the mayor of their city. Mihawk and his family were more private. "Just keep telling him to go away. Or, I could do something about it."

"We have another couple of months before we graduate. You don't need to get expelled over me." Crocodile twisted the cap on the drink he got out of the vending machine.

"I'd get him expelled," Mihawk scoffed. He pulled out his bento box from his backpack.

"Do you really want that kind of attention?" Kuma asked softly, studying his friend.

Mihawk met Kuma's eyes briefly before turning his attention to opening his lunch. He didn't want the kind of attention that would come from fighting a fellow student, even if said fellow student was an asshole. He studied the carefully prepared onigiri in front of him. "If he hurts you again, I am putting him through a wall."

Crocodile made an unhappy noise. "Not for me."

"Cro, you're my best friend." Mihawk watched the other teen. "I will protect you."

A blush formed on Crocodile's cheeks. "Ah, fuck off, Hawkeyes," he said, embarrassed.

Kuma sat quietly next to them, his lunch tray barely touched. His steady gaze moved between his friends before he picked up the cheeseburger on his tray. "I have faith Doffy is going to leave you alone, Cro."

Crocodile's blush darkened at Kuma's words. "Is it feelings day or something? You two are the worst." He grabbed a fry off of Kuma's tray. "Can we talk about something else? Any new confessions, Hawky?"

Mihawk rolled his eyes. "No." He pulled an onigiri out of his bento and started to quietly munch on it. After his interaction with Shanks in the hallway earlier, which still had a small smile appear on his face every time he thought about it, Mihawk had did his best to avoid anyone else.

"No?" Crocodile snuck another one of Kuma's fries, which the larger teen obviously saw but said nothing about. "You made it through two classes and all the way to here without someone confessing to you? Bullshit."

"You are exaggerating." Mihawk picked up the third onigiri in his lunch and held it out to Crocodile. He wasn't looking forward to the last half of the day and the walk home, knowing he'd have to have another conversation that ended in rejection. It was getting to be annoying, but the only way that people would stop asking was if they thought he was unavailable.

Crocodile took the onigiri. "Hardly. I still think you should just say yes to one of them."

Mihawk picked up the last onigiri left in his bento. "Not one of them." He chewed quietly.

"Wait. If not one of them, then who? I won't say yes and Kuma..." He looked to their friend who was quietly sipping on a bottle of water. Crocodile looked back to Mihawk. "You're going to ask someone? Since when did you talk to anyone but us?"

A blush crept over Mihawk's cheeks. "It would stop the confessions."

"And then you'd have to spend the entire festival following someone else around." Crocodile took the last couple of bites of the onigiri.

Mihawk supposed that was true. If he said yes, he would give the person his attention and try to give his best effort. "There might be someone I would not mind going with."

"Since when?"

Another eye roll. Crocodile was his best friend but they didn't really talk about crushes. Well, Mihawk didn't. Crocodile did. It was how he knew that the Doflamingo thing wasn't going to work out. He'd seen the two of them together and then Crocodile told him things. He has been starting to figure out that Doflamingo wasn't what they thought he was. In the end, Mihawk did his best to be supportive and give his friend some gentle advice, but the other teen hadn't really listened. Then, Doflamingo blew up the relationship by being a selfish shithead. Mihawk shook his head and reached for his own water bottle in his backpack. "Awhile," was his vague answer, hoping Crocodile would take it and not press.

Crocodile snorted. "Awhile? Really, Hawkeyes? That is all you are going to give me? I spill my guts to you and all I get is that?" He gestured with his drink.

Mihawk sighed at the drama and carefully put the lid back on his lunchbox. He could tell Cro now or listen to his friend bitch for the rest of the day. Though, if he told him, he'd still likely never hear the end of it. "Yes."

Crocodile glared at his friend. "You are such a prick."

"If that makes you happy." Mihawk tucked his lunchbox back into his bag. Kuma was sitting quietly, clearing his lunch tray slowly. Mihawk was sure he was listening, not that it mattered. Crocodile was keeping up with his string of insults to Mihawk, but the dark haired teen had tuned him out already. He wasn't ready to tell his friends who he had a crush on. It was bad enough they knew he liked someone. Now, he just needed to muster the courage to talk to Shanks and maybe the other teen would reciprocate his interest. If Shanks had been flirting in the hallway earlier, which Mihawk thought he had been, then Mihawk had a chance. He'd just have to get there before anyone else did.

Chapter Text

"I have never seen you wear a hoodie outside of the gym or your house," Crocodile said, staring at Mihawk as the other teen tugged the hood of his black Kuraigana Kendo hoodie down further over his face. Maybe he should have grabbed a pair of sunglasses on his way out of his house.

Mihawk scowled at his friend. "There were three girls waiting outside the front of the school yesterday." It was absurd to him. Three girls were waiting to talk to him. He'd just scowled at them and politely declined. One of them cried.

Crocodile chuckled. "You know, you have a whole week left of this. Just pick one."

"No." He hunched his shoulders, glancing ahead of them. Kuma was waiting patiently next to the gate, alone. He lived in the opposite direction, but always waited for Crocodile and Mihawk in the morning.

"The alternative is telling me who you are crushing on so I can help." Crocodile leaned in close, grinning so he could see Mihawk's face.

Mihawk blushed and walked faster towards Kuma. "No."

"Which one of us has more experience?" Crocodile asked, not picking up his pace but talking louder.

Stopping, Mihawk turned and gave Crocodile an annoyed look. He didn't want to bring up Doffy. It would hurt his friend and Mihawk didn't want to hurt him, even if he was driving him crazy. For all of their sniping, Cro was his best friend. "No," he said again. He took a deep breath, turned back around, and walked up to Kuma's side. "Hello, Kuma."

The bigger teen looked down and gave Mihawk a smile, reaching out to pat his shoulder before he turned to start walking into the school's courtyard. "I didn't see anyone from any other schools this morning," he assured.

Crocodile greeted Kuma when he caught up with them just inside the main gate. Then, he went right back to pestering Mihawk. "Alright. How about a deal? I'll ask some questions and all you have to do is say yes or no."

"What about that is a deal? Will you stop telling me to just choose anyone?" Kuma walked quietly at Mihawk's side.

"Sure. I can live with that. You say yes or no to my questions and I'll stop trying to get you to say yes to any of the girls that think they can tame your cranky ass." Crocodile grinned.

Mihawk huffed and looked up at Kuma, who shrugged. "Fine." There was at least a couple of loop holes in there, but it would mostly shut Crocodile up. Mostly. He huddled down in his hoodie a little further.

"Hmm, so, is this person in our class?" Crocodile looked around him as they walked towards the front doors.

"No." Mihawk pushed his hands into the hoodie pocket.

"Our school?" When Mihawk hesitated giving his answer, Crocodile sighed. "You said you would."

"Yes," Mihawk grumbled glancing at the students having conversations in the courtyard. A group of girls squealed and jumped up and down and he quickly shifted his attention away. Excited girls were starting to make him uncomfortable. He'd had too many interactions recently where girls would giggle and then one of them would be pushed forward to approach him. "You get one more before we get inside, Cro."

"That was not the deal, Hawky."

Mihawk gave Crocodile a bored look. "One more." Crocodile made a face. Mihawk rolled his eyes. "For now."

Crocodile seemed satisfied with that answer, glancing around him at the group of girls that were still bouncing around in excitement and then two boys arguing about Buffy of all things. A lanky, blond boy and a red haired boy stood with them, the red haired boy trying to get the other two to stop arguing.

"Are you two going to stop arguing about this any time soon?" the red haired boy said, throwing his arms up in the air.

"Tuesday," the largest of the two boys replied.

"Tuesday?"

"Next episode," the other boy chimed in.

"That just means they'll be arguing about something else," the blond grumbled. The red head just looked up at the sky as the other two boys start protesting.

Crocodile shifted his attention away from them and back to Mihawk, who he caught looking over at the boys. His eyes shifted from the group of boys then back to Mihawk, who was starting to slow down, his jaw tightening with determination. "Is-"

"Shanks!" A girl with dark green hair hurried right in front of them, saying a quick apology for almost crashing into Mihawk as she went.

"Mak!" the red haired boy greeted as she reached the group.

Mihawk stopped, watching as the girl with the green hair smiled brightly at Shanks, her body swaying towards him. Kuma stopped to Mihawk's side, looking down at his friend before looking over to the group he is watching. He quietly watched, catching Crocodile looking rapidly back and forth between the group and his friend.

Shanks smiled at the girl and she seemed to sparkle under his attention. Mihawk stiffened, frowning. He watched Shanks start chattering at his friends, not really paying attention to the words, only really seeing the girl, Mak, watching the teen Mihawk was pining for. He wondered what the girl was to Shanks and if even had a chance. She was pretty and looked nice next to him.

"I have my question." Crocodile stepped up enough to block Mihawk's view.

Amber eyes moved directly to the other teen's face. He was almost thankful that Crocodile was there to distract him. He didn't want to get lost in guessing just who Mak was to Shanks. He raised an eyebrow and waited for Crocodile.

"Is the person a girl?" Crocodile frowned harder, like when he was trying to fight a smile.

Mihawk snorted and quickly started walking towards the school entrance. "No," he called over his shoulder. He regretted allowing Crocodile to ask questions.

Crocodile smiled and followed his friend into the school, watching the other teen stalk off towards his locker. "I'll think of a good question for later!" he called after him.

Mihawk huffed and tugged the hoodie off, shoving it in his locker and running his fingers through his hair to fix the strands that were now out of place. Who was the dark green haired girl? He'd seen her around, of course, but she wasn't in his class. Did Shanks have a girlfriend? He thought the boy had been flirting with him in the hall the other day, but maybe it was just a game? He frowned into his locker, taking a deep breath before he shut it.

Kuma stopped next to Mihawk. "Crocodile just wants to help."

"I know." Mihawk turned around and tilted his head back to look up at Kuma. "I just-" He sighed. "What if he says no?"

"Then he says no." He started walking towards their classroom. Kuma smiled and added, "We'll go out for taiyaki."

Mihawk snorted at the addition. "We can go out for taiyaki either way, Kuma."

The tall teen chuckled. "I knew you'd see it my way, Mihawk."

 

=-=-=-=-=

 

"It's Friday," Shanks moped.

"I know." Rosinante ashed his cigarette.

"It's almost time to go home."

"I know."

"We haven't talked to either of them." Shanks leaned on his folded arms, staring down at the courtyard as students crossed to their classes. Mihawk was not among them. He pouted a little.

Rosinante sighed and took a deep drag on his cigarette. "I know."

Shanks pushed himself up and held onto the railing as he leaned backwards. "Why is this so hard?" he tilted his head back to stare up at the sky. "I just want to hold his stupid perfect hand."

Rosinante snorted and then choked on the smoke he just inhaled. He coughed, grabbing the railing as he tried to catch his breath. He took a wheezing full breath after a few seconds, his eyes watering. It had been two days since he'd found out Smoker's name and he hadn't seen Smoker since before then. Shanks hadn't made any progress with Mihawk either.

"Maybe kiss his perfect lips," Shanks mumbled.

"We have class." Rosinante stubbed out his cigarette, disheartened that Smoker hadn't been here when they'd come to the roof.

"Definitely kiss his perfect lips." Shanks smiled to himself. He closed his eyes, daydreaming of what it would be like to kiss Mihawk.

Rosinante rolled his eyes and reached out to smack Shanks's on the back of the head. "Class. Now."

"Ow!" Shanks startled, letting going of the railing and stumbling back. "We can just skip, Rosi. It's just a two periods before the end of the day. Before the weekend." He rubbed the back of his head and scowled at his friend through his hair.

"You can skip. I am going to class." Rosinante tucked his finished cigarette away. He headed for the door, leaving Shanks scowling at his back.

As he reached the door the roof, the door slammed open and Rosinante jerked back. He stumbled and tripped, falling flat on his ass. "Hey!" he yelled, already irritated but now just mad. He looked up through blond fringe and froze.

In the doorway stood the focus of his current crush, gray hair swept back from his face except for a few strands that fell over his forehead. He was broad for a teen, like he actively spent a lot of time at the gym or playing some kind of sport that kept him in shape. He stared at the blond on the ground and swallowed, blinking a few times before he quickly let the door fall closed behind him. "Fuck, sorry," he said in his voice that sounded almost too deep for a teen. He offered his hand.

Rosinante stared, anger and irritation falling off his face in favor of surprise. He looked from the offered hand and then up to the other teen's face.

"Are you alright?" Smoker asked. He crouched down, searching Rosinante's face.

His face turning red, Rosinante nodded quickly, trying to stop staring at the teen he'd been waiting to see. "I'm okay." He smiled. The other teen smiled back. Rosinante blushed harder.

"I'm glad." Smoker pushed a hand through his hair, glancing down and then back up, his cheeks tinted with a light blush. "I'm Smoker." He offered his hand again.

"Rosinante. My friends call me Rosi." He slid his hand into Smoker's and held it. Smoker shook Rosinante's hand but didn't let go.

Behind them, Shanks was grinning. He carefully stepped around them. "Bye, Rosi! I'm going to class!" He disappeared through the door.

Rosinante gave a half-hearted wave to his friend as Smoker helped him off the ground. Rosinante didn't want to let go of his hand, but reluctantly did to brush off his pants.

"Were you leaving?" Smoker asked, taking out his pack of cigarettes. He leaned against the wall next to the door to the utility room that was on the roof. He held out the pack to Rosinante.

Rosinante looked to the door and then back to Smoker. He didn't think he would miss anything in his next class and he could get notes from Yasopp anyway. "I'll stay." He smiled at Smoker and took the offered cigarette.

 

=-=-=-=-=

 

Shanks bounced down the stairs, grinning happily. Rosi and Smoker finally met! Now, he just had to find Mihawk and ask him. They went to the same school, how hard could it be to find him? And then ask him? Shanks groaned and pushed through the door into the main stairwell.

How hard was it to just be able to kiss Mihawk? Or, just hold his hand? All he had to do was talk to him first, right? And find out if he liked him back. And not be awkward. Shanks was going to be so awkward.

Shanks stopped and leaned against the wall in the quiet stairwell. He tapped the back of his head against the wall like it would shake something loose in his brain. Maybe some courage, or at least audacity. He could probably muster some of that, at least. Maybe a plan too. First, he would find Mihawk and then he would worry about the rest.

Down the stairwell, a door banged open."I told you to fuck off!" The voice down the stairwell wavered just slightly even though the words were biting. Shanks froze, not knowing if he should make himself known or not. The next period for the day had either started already or was about to start judging by the lack of people in the stairwell. That meant that Shanks was probably going to be for his art class, but he knew Kanjuro-san wouldn't care all that much.

There was a reply, and a low laugh and then more words that Shanks couldn't quite hear. He slowly stepped away from the wall and peered down the stairwell, unable to see who was in the stairwell below him.

"There isn't an us and won't be an us again," the voice bit out. Then, there was a bang, a body colliding with a wall.

Shanks's eyes widened and then he grit his teeth. He was down the next flight of stairs before he could think about it, catching himself to slow down as he saw Doflamingo with another student caged against the wall. Doflamingo's hand was on the other teen's chest, right below his neck. The blond was looming over him. The teen against the wall looked like he had dark hair, Shanks couldn't quite see his face, but the hand that Shanks could see was white knuckled and shaking.

"Hey!" Shanks called, clattering down the last set of stairs to stand a couple of feet away from the other two.

The dark haired boy froze but Doflamingo just tilted his head to look at Shanks. "Hey yourself, Red," he said, oozing the sleazy kind of calm that never failed to make Shanks feel like he was on a hair trigger. Whether the hair trigger would make Shanks start a fight or run, he didn't know.

Shanks looked at the dark haired boy who was all stiff, his hand still white knuckled and shaking. He thought he recognized him, but he was more concerned with making sure he was alright. The teen's dark eyes were moving between Doflamingo and Shanks, not sure what was going on. "Are you okay?" Shanks asked, looking directly at the other teen, ignoring Doflamingo. Was he Mihawk's friend, Crocodile?

Doflamingo frowned and looked at the teen under his palm and then back at Shanks. "He's fine. Just a lover's spat."

"I didn't ask you," Shanks said with an edge to the grin he gave Doflamingo. He stepped closer. Doflamingo was bigger than him, but Shanks didn't care. He turned his attention back to the teen pinned to the wall. "I'll walk you to class?" he offered.

"Red!" Doflamingo said with a growl, pushing on the other teen's chest. The dark haired boy jumped at Doflamingo's voice. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something then quickly shut it when Doflamingo's attention turned back to him.

"Get the fuck off him, Doffy," Shanks said, his voice even. He didn't like the way the other teen reacted to Doflamingo.

"Now, why would I do that, Red?" Doflamingo pulled back, removing one hand from the wall next to the dark haired boy, but leaving his hand on his chest. He let his gaze linger on the boy under his hand. "We have things to talk about, don't we, Crocy?"

So it was Crocodile, Shanks thought. He fought to keep himself calm. He honestly wanted to haul off and hit Doflamingo, but he wasn't confident that Doflamingo wouldn't move and his fist would hit Crocodile instead.

Crocodile's face flashed angry for a moment before he let his face fall blank. "Don't call me that," he said. "We have nothing to talk about."

Doflamingo laughed, low and dangerous. Both of the other teens in the stairwell stiffened. "Aw, don't be that way, baby."

"I'm not your baby," the dark haired teen hissed, reaching a slightly shaking hand up to shove at Doflamingo's arm. "Get. Off. Me."

Shanks watched as Doflamingo leaned again on Crocodile and Shanks had quite enough with Doffy in that moment. He swiftly stepped forward, angling his shoulder into Doflamingo's chest as he pushed out with his hand to shove Doflamingo's arm away from the other boy. He put enough force behind his short, controlled movement that Doflamingo was pushed away, banging into the double doors and stumbling as they opened freely behind him. He fell into the hallway.

Shanks met the wide eyes of Crocodile briefly before he stalked over to where Doflamingo was halfway through the double doors, angry but still not quite sure how he had ended up on the floor so quickly. "No means no, you shit." He smiled brightly. "Now, fuck off before I kick your ass," he said cheerily, the threat still clear in his tone.

A voice down the hallway called out and Doflamingo scrambled to his feet, glaring at Shanks with every move. The double doors swung shut between them and Shanks gave the blond a little wave through the window in the doors. "Bye bye," he mouthed as Doflamingo turned to head towards whomever was down the hallway. Shanks hoped it was Garp.

Taking a deep breath, Shanks turned to the other teen, noting that he didn't run off. The dark haired boy was leaning his head back against the wall, taking deep breaths. His hands were still curled into fists but they were no longer shaking. Taking a moment, Shanks looked at him, tilting his head a little. "You're Mihawk's friend," he blurted, trying to break up the awkward tension.

The other teen studied him, the mask of indifference falling into place again. "Yes." He let his eyes travel over Shanks, recognition flashing in his eyes. "You're… Shanks?"

He looked startled for a second then grinned brightly. "That's right."

"Crocodile." He gripped the strap to his book bag and pushed away from the wall. "I'm curious, though. How do you know Doffy?"

Shanks rubbed the back of his neck and stepped back to allow Crocodile more space. "His brother is my best friend. Rosi is a great person. Doffy…. is not."

Crocodile nodded. "True." He looked at his watch and sighed. "Thank you for your help."

Shanks smiled again. "I've always wanted to punch Doffy." He shifted awkwardly. "I guess that was close enough." He shrugged. "He needs to get punched at least once in his life."

"Probably more than once. He has a thick skull." A ghost of a smile appeared on Crocodile's face and Shanks just smiled back brighter.

"He does have a punchable face," Shanks mused, looking to the double doors.

Crocodile laughed, not a rumbling chuckle, but a full laugh. He leaned against the wall behind him and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "You're right. You are absolutely right."

Shanks glanced back to Crocodile, relieved that the other teen was relaxing a little. He wanted to ask what the deal was with him and Doffy, but didn't want to upset him. Rosi probably knew. "Well, I know I'm not going to my next class now."

Crocodile looked at his watch again, pushing off the wall and starting towards the stairs going down. "I should go."

"I can still walk you? You know, just in case. I still wouldn't mind punching Doffy."

Nodding, Crocodile started down the stairs. Shanks followed, taking a few quick steps to catch up. "You know Mihawk?" Crocodile asked after they reached the first floor.

Shanks turned red. "Know of him." He glanced at Crocodile to see the other teen's gaze on him. He wanted to know Mihawk more than anything, but didn't want to ask his friend. It felt like cheating to do it that way. He wanted Mihawk to tell him himself.

"You want to know him?" Crocodile asked and Shanks's steps faltered.

They stopped, Shanks staring at Crocodile as the other teen turned towards him. "Yes," Shanks said, quietly. He swallowed as Crocodile studied him, very aware that Crocodile was probably seeing more than Shanks wanted him to.

Crocodile smiled. "Glad to hear it." He motioned to the closed door next to him, signaling they were at his class. "For what it's worth, I think he'd like to know you too."

Shanks watched Crocodile open the door the classroom and disappear inside, the door closing behind him with a gentle click. Hope lodged in his throat and he knew he was still blushing by the heat he felt in his face, but he still couldn't believe what Crocodile said. Did he mean it? Shanks wasn't sure, but he definitely wanted to find out.

 

=-=-=-=-=

 

Mihawk had his hoodie back on, hood up, and was in the courtyard waiting for Crocodile and Kuma. He'd made it through the day without having to refuse anyone else. He was looking forward to the weekend. Besides Kendo practice, if he wanted to, he didn't have to go anywhere where he could run into anyone he didn't want to see.

But, it was also the weekend and he was running out of chances this week to talk to Shanks. They hadn't run into each other all day and he glanced up towards the rooftop. No one was there, but it was Friday. Everyone was rushing out to go home or meeting up with the their friends. Shanks had a lot of friends. He probably already left.

"So, you practice Kendo?" someone asked and Mihawk was tempted to not turn around. He had to though. He had to let them down too. There was no way they could be who he wanted.

He pulled down his hood, running his hand over his hair and turned, letting the blank mask he normally wore fall over his face. "Yes. Before you say any-" Mihawk froze, his lips parted, the rest of the sentence falling away.

Shanks was standing in from of him, a nervous look on his handsome face, dark brown eyes bright, a tentative grin on his face, his red hair a little disheveled like he had run his hands through it too many times or he had tugged at it. He looked like he wasn't used to doing this and Mihawk felt he understood. The red haired teen shifted slightly, pushing his hands into the pockets of his uniform pants, his jacket already unbuttoned halfway down his chest to show the button down beneath was unbuttoned as well, but not nearly as far. "Before I say?" he asked quietly, nervous.

Mihawk closed his mouth and continued to stare, not sure what he wanted to say next. He was prepared to reject someone, but the one person in front of him was the one person that he didn't want to reject. He cleared his throat, trying to give himself some space, tearing his gaze away from Shanks to see if any of his or the red head's friends were nearby. They weren't. He looked back to Shanks, seeing the tentative grin had fallen more. "Nothing." He shook his head. "I meant, yes. I practice Kendo." Mihawk wanted to kick himself.

"Me too! I don't compete or anything, but my Dad got me into it when I was a kid. I wanted to be just like him and he practiced Kendo his entire life," Shanks happily chattered. His expression got brighter as he talked and Mihawk found himself smiling back, still nervous, but not quite like before. "Do you compete?"

"Yes." Mihawk couldn't take his eyes off of Shanks, but also couldn't make himself come up with more than just replies to Shanks's questions. The red head was so attractive. Looking at him was like looking at the sun. Mihawk felt his cheeks warm.

"Oh, wow. Dad wanted me to and I did when I was little. It just isn't for me." Shanks shifted, rocking a little on the balls of his feet and back to his heels, like he couldn't stay still. "My name is Shanks."

"Mihawk."

"I know." Shanks turned red when he spoke, like he hadn't meant to say it out loud.

Mihawk gave a short, quiet laugh, deciding to take pity on the red head. "I knew your name already too."

It should have been impossible, but Mihawk could swear that Shanks was now blushing, furiously, even though he was still red from embarrassment. It made Mihawk smile more and he knew he was blushing too.

They stood quietly, sneaking glances at each other as they waited for their friends. Their smiles quieted, but Shanks's would grow more every time he met Mihawk's eyes. Mihawk was content to be next to Shanks, although the pressure of asking if he would go to the festival with him was still there.

"Do you want to be friends?" Shanks asked quietly, gazing at Mihawk for a second before looking back towards the door to the school.

Mihawk studied the other teen's profile for a moment, disappointment tugging a little at him. Maybe being friends was okay. It wasn't quite what Mihawk felt like he wanted, but maybe it would be enough. "Yes."

"Great!" Shanks lit up, gifting Mihawk with a brilliant smile again.

They waited for a little bit longer, Shanks unable to stand completely still. He hummed a little too and Mihawk found he didn't mind. The whole interaction had gone better than he could have hoped, minus the whole friends thing. He still wasn't sure about that. He'd have to sit with it a bit longer.

"Don't look so gloomy, Hawkeyes," Crocodile said as he joined them. He hadn't realized he had been making any sort of face. He glanced at Shanks who was looking at him, puzzled.

"He doesn't look gloomy?" Shanks replied to Crocodile. He titled his head like he needed to so he could get a good look at Mihawk.

Crocodile chuckled. "That is his secret, he always looks gloomy."

Mihawk rolled his eyes, blushing. Crocodile laughed. "You are a prick."

"Guilty." Crocodile turned his attention to Shanks. "Shanks."

"Uh, hi." He looked between Mihawk and Crocodile. Mihawk is now looking at him a little puzzled before turning an accusing gaze to his friend.

"You know Shanks?" he asked, unable to stop himself, like Shanks penchant for just blurting things out was contagious.

"Yes, Hawky, I do." He was smug, watching his best friend.

Mihawk felt the tips of his ears warm and he didn't know what to say to Crocodile. Could it have been that easy if he had just told Crocodile who he wanted to ask to the festival?

"Uh, we met earlier today," Shanks said, sounding nervous. His eyes kept moving between Crocodile and Mihawk.

Mihawk pressed his lips together and glared at Crocodile, who had the genius idea to start cackling at his friend. He was going to kill him. He was going to take his bokken and beat the ever loving hell out of his best friend. His face felt so hot and red.

Shanks looked nervous still. He had a question in his eyes before he looked past Crocodile and Mihawk to see Rosinante. "Rosi!" he called, relief in his voice.

"Hi," Rosinante said when he joined them. He was chewing a piece of gum as he looked around the small group of people.

"This is Crocodile and this is Mihawk," Shanks said quickly, fidgeting a little like he wanted to go to Rosinante's side right away. He snuck a glance at Mihawk who was still very red in the face and glaring at Crocodile.

"The good brother, not the evil brother, Rosinante," Crocodile said with a smirk.

Rosinante rolled his eyes. "Rosi," he corrected. "Nice to see you too, Crocodile." He shoved his hands in the pockets of his uniform pants.

Mihawk took a deep breath and tried to push the embarrassment aside. "Nice to meet you," he said to Rosinante, hoping that he wasn't as flushed as he felt anymore. Crocodile knew how to push his buttons.

Rosinante smiled at Mihawk and his eyes moved to Shanks. "We still good for tomorrow, Shanks?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'll meet you outside the arcade." Shanks smiled.

Mihawk looked between the two of them, Rosinante moving his hand at Shanks like he wanted him to keep talking and Shanks giving his friend a puzzled look.

"I invited Smoker," Rosinante added, still moving his hand like he wanted Shanks to say something else.

Crocodile watched the interaction like it was fascinating.

"Oh?" Shanks paused. "Oh!" He looked at Crocodile who nodded to him then looked to Mihawk. "There is a new fighting game cabinet at the arcade at Sabody Grove Mall. We were going to go try it out." He hesitated. "Do you want to come? We're meeting at 1." He glanced at Crocodile who was grinning. "You can come too, Crocodile."

Mihawk nodded. "Yes. I have practice in the morning, but I'll be free by then."

"Great!" Shanks smiled brightly again and Mihawk knew he would do anything to keep Shanks smiling like that. Especially if that smile was directed towards him.