puppycrush2 | week four

[ She immediately drops the mask. More than the mask, actually — she drops, too, onto her hands and knees, tears staining the floor of the cell in the same place Sanji's had. For once, even Yoru offers no harsh retort; though she's unaffected by the awfulness of the vision, her only comment is that "truly, you humans are capable of things no devil would dream of." A simple observation from an ancient practitioner of violence, not intended to praise or deride.

Asa doesn't respond. Slowly, she curls into a ball on the ground, one hand reaching out to take hold of the mask again and draw it into her chest, clutching it tightly. Until something forces her to move, this is where she'll stay, forgoing any thoughts of looking for a way out. ]

[Time passes—for how long, who can say?

Eventually, the air stirs before Sanji staggers inside. His breath hitches at the harrowing sight of Asa curled on the floor, and he can't help fearing the worst as he rushes over to her side with a look of mounting horror.]

Asa! What's wrong?!

[ It takes her a few seconds to realize the voice she's hearing now is real, and not another part of a vision. She lifts her head to look at Sanji, eyes wet and reddened, still clutching the mask to her chest. ]

How? [ Her tone is openly incredulous. ] After all that, how are you so — you should hate everyone! You should hate me!

[ She's done nothing but complain about her own life, in front of someone whose suffering is deeper than she can comprehend. At least her childhood was normal, despite how it ended; it didn't even occur to her that such cruelty could exist, let alone in the past of someone she's spent three weeks talking to like he understood nothing. ]

[What did she see? His mind races frantically while his gaze stutters on the mask in her embrace. He drops to his knees, panic sinking in at the wetness in her eyes. What did she see?]

How could I hate you? You're you! You have nothing to do with those scums!

Are you kidding? All I've done is complain, and insult you, and mess up our date, when that's what you've been dealing with, all this time!

[ She throws the mask at him, weakly. ]

You didn't think of revenge. You just wanted to be free — you wanted to be a cook. They tortured you, Sanji, and you still didn't... why aren't you more selfish? Even now, you're still letting people [ me ] use you! Stop being so blind!

[He flinches when the mask hits him. It bounces off his knee and rolls onto the floor in a series of cacophonous clanks that echo off the prison walls. Panting from the effort to maintain his bearings, Sanji finds himself unable to remain quiet any longer.]

I don't care about that! I don't want to think about them. They hated me, and I hate them. I left, because they wanted me gone. They're probably better people for it now, but that doesn't concern me anymore!

[He grasps her by the hand, desperate yet gentle.]

Listen! I . . . I'm indebted to everyone I've ever met. That includes you! You didn't ruin the date, and it doesn't matter what the other person has gone through. You're hurting, too! How can I resent you for that?!

[ Sorry, she's just.

She needs a second to stare at him in complete disbelief as he takes her hand. ]

Sanji, I tried to kill you. You're not indebted to me for anything. [ She sighs. ] I still feel bad knowing you wasted all those flowers. If things had been different... I think I would have really enjoyed spending that time with you.

[Yes, he is. Nothing she says will change his mind. In fact, his expression hardens with resolve at her sweet admission.]

Then we can go on another date. And if that devil interrupts us, I'll take you out again! I'll keep taking you out and bringing you flowers, so don't feel bad about them. What matters more is that it's you!

Didn't I tell you not to say things like that...?

[ There's no real annoyance behind the question. Whereas before, she'd dismissed Sanji as someone with only surface level resolve, after what she's just seen... it's hard not to believe that maybe he can follow through, even on an impossible promise made against equally impossible odds. In the back of her mind, she can hear Yoru's voice reminding her of how foolish she's being, but for once, Asa doesn't listen to a single word of the devil's barbs. Her focus is on something else. ]

... Stop me if this isn't okay. [ Kneeling on a prison floor, having just cried her eyes out, with the both of them still half-delirious from panic — it's hardly the time or place for romance. None of that keeps her from reaching out with her free hand to grab his shirt and pull him into a kiss. ]

[He opens his mouth: First to apologize for ignoring her previous directive, then second to defend his intentions, because his feeling that she deserves this much has always been sincere. Still, while there's a large part of him that's unrepentant, another no small part is truly remorseful for the sin of having made her cry. At the very least, he desperately wishes to make it up to her by starting with an "I'm sorry."

Those words catch in his throat when her fingers twist into the fabric of his shirt. He's pulled in with her lips pressed against his before he knows it, thrusting him into a state of stupor as he stares wide-eyed at her face. Asa is close, so close. Sanji's hands twitch where they're otherwise frozen in the air and around one of hers, too stunned even to consider bringing her even closer.

The basement cell from his childhood is hardly the place for anything, but, in this moment, there's no right or wrong. There isn't even a prison. Asa is all there is, and the realization of what's happening sets Sanji's face aflame as he struggles to think and manages only to feel.]

[ This is, frankly, one of the more awkward kisses to ever exist — even if Asa has exactly one (1) reference for what constitutes a normal kiss. Not that accidentally slicing a guy's chest open with your claws in a desperate attempt to earn more time to talk is normal either... you know what? Maybe this one isn't so bad.

It certainly doesn't feel bad, at least. He isn't pulling her in, which makes her feel self-conscious somewhere in the back of her mind, but he's not pushing her away, either. His lips are distractingly nice against hers, and she lingers for a few seconds longer than last time before abruptly jerking away, eyes wide. ]

I can't believe I just— [ Seriously, Asa? (Her own thoughts this time, not even Yoru's.) ] A-are you alright, Sanji?

[After what feels like an eternity, they part as quickly as they'd come together. Sanji blinks owlishly down at her, beet red in the face and lips tingling.]

Uh . . . y-yeah, I am . . .

[His voice is airy from a sudden bout of breathlessness. Too stupefied to string together a single thought or even draw back, he gazes into her eyes instead. Then, after a moment of silent searching, a wide grin slowly splits his face as he moves his hand to support her back.]

Are you, Asa?

Yeah, I'm...

[ She blinks, suddenly more flustered by his reaction than the kiss itself. ]

W-what the heck are you smiling about, huh? Did you think of a way to get out of here?

[He nods as he pushes onto his feet, guiding her to stand with him. His expression has nothing to do with getting out of here; if that's what she wants, however, he'll serve it to her on a silver platter.]

If it's an exit, we just have to go through the door. Leave it to me!

[For this, he regretfully releases her to approach the cell door that goes up to his waist in the corner. He kicks it clean off the lock and hinges, sending it flying back with enough force to crack a large portion of the wall behind it, then snaps his head in Asa's direction and gives her a thumbs up.]

[ This is what she's good at — focusing on what needs to be done right now. Back on her feet, Asa nods, ready to help in any way she can... only to gawk when Sanji goes and does his thing. ]

Holy crap. You kicked it right off... [ She walks over to the newly created opening, crouching to look through at the cracked wall beyond. ] Seriously, what the hell? Only people with devil contracts are usually this strong.

This is nothing. If you want, I'll show you what else I can do once we're out of here.

[As he says that, he ducks through the opening, then turns around to offer her his hand and help her along.]

[ Her mind immediately goes places it shouldn't with that statement. Flustered, she reaches out to take his hand and follow him through the doorway. ]

And you're sure you know where you're going? I don't wanna be stuck here for the next... [ She thinks about how long he might have been here as a child, and cringes at her own comment. ] ... Nevermind. I'll just follow you.

[With a rueful smile, he pulls her upright and leads her to the staircase beyond the cell's perimeters. They step past the tear stains and mask lying discarded on the floor on the other side of the bars, and Sanji doesn't look back as they begin the climb.]

There's a door at the top. Once we go through that, we'll be back in the house.

[A ship's basement can only go so deep. Now that he's older and bigger, the climb is even shorter than he remembers it being as a child. Halfway to their destination, the voice of an unseen girl, strained and teary, tumbles down the dark corridor: "The sea is vast. You'll definitely meet kind people someday! Now run! Don't look back!"

Sanji's steps don't falter as bidden, stopping only once he and Asa reach the top. He grasps the door by the handle and pauses.]

Asa . . . My past was never meant to be known to anyone. After this, there are questions I won't be able to answer. If you can't forget what you've seen, just remember that the boy who was once imprisoned here died 11 years ago.

[ Selfishly, she's glad for Sanji's companionship. He's been a reassuring presence more than once in the last few weeks, and while she feels guilty she hasn't been able to return the favour... she doesn't know how long she would have sat there if he hadn't shown up. Even now, as they climb, the sense of foreboding in the air weighs heavy; enough to overpower her if she was on her own.

Her head turns to the side at the sound of the voice, looking for the speaker, but just like Sanji doesn't stop, neither does she. She follows him footstep for footstep, only pausing when he finally does. ]

Okay. I'll remember. [ Because she definitely can't forget. She squeezes his free hand, patiently waiting for him to take the last step. ] ... I'm still glad I got to meet him, though. Even if it didn't change anything.

[What is she saying?

Sanji's hand lingers around the handle in a tight grip. His gaze, though trained on the lever, is unseeing. Something warm trickles from his nose as he swallows down the sudden lump in his throat. His hand grips hers, more out of reflex than a conscious decision on his part, while his lips tremble in tandem with his pounding heart.

All throughout his early childhood, only a single person had ever been happy to see him. Years of trying hadn't changed that; if anything, trying and failing had made it worse. Nothing he does now will change that fact. But Asa . . .

It does change something, because the part of him he desperately wishes to believe is dead quavers at the unspoken love in her words. It changes everything when his heart aches from gratitude insofar that he almost collapses then and there. He clutches the handle and her hand like precious lifelines, desperate to stay afloat and put this behind him, but all he manages is a choked sound as he continues to stand before the door in a stupor.]

[ Oh... now she feels guilty for making him freeze up. But rather than put him on the spot with an are you alright or is everything okay — both of which she already knows the answer to — Asa stands on her tip-toes to give him a quick peck on the cheek; soft and feather-light. ]

C'mon, pirate. You've got this.

[An explosive breath escapes him at the fleeting kiss, cheeks flaring. He heaves as he works through the torrent of emotions welling up inside him, and then he yanks the door open.

Light from the house floods the darkened staircase, warm and bracing unlike the cold basement air. Sanji's hand squeezes around Asa's before he leads them through the threshold and into the kitchen, where he exhales heavily. The foreboding door behind them has already vanished, tucked out of sight and mind as if it had never been.]

Phew! We made it . . .

What a relief...

[ She braces herself against the counter, still unconsciously holding onto Sanji's hand. Normally she'd try to make herself feel better by thinking of ways she totally could have handled it alone, actually, but for once, she doesn't even try. ]

Thanks for coming to get me. I really owe you one.

["That place was never meant for you," he wants to say. After what he just said to her at the door, however, it would be hypocritical of him to bring that place back up.]

No, you don't have to thank me . . .

[If anything, he ought to beg her forgiveness for putting her through all of that. He takes a tentative step around, facing her halfway with his heart still pounding.]

Do . . . do you want something to drink?

Sure... [ She pointedly waits until he's not looking at her anymore to add: ] Um, but what you said about showing me what else you can do... n-not in front of the cameras.

[ wow ]

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hgeegh - 2024-12-08 15:05 (UTC) - Expand

week four | mingle

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