After getting the news that they had arrived at an island to restock, Law sat down on his bed and leaned down before placing a soft kiss on (Y/N)'s temple. She clutched her pregnancy pillow tighter and let out a small whine. He shook his head to himself with a smile.

"Go back to sleep." he whispered and she let out a hum of approval.

A while into his work he heard her earpiece go off and after it had failed to wake her up, he decided to answer it. It didn't seem too complicated since there was only one button to press.

"Unauthorized recipient! Access denied. The caller will be notified."

He raised his brow and stared at the earpiece before placing it back down to go and wake (Y/N) up.

"Captain!" Bepo, Shachi, and Penguin burst in, jolting (Y/N) awake.

"What?!" Both yelled at the trio and Bepo got up while waving his arms frantically.

"(Y/N)'s crew are on the deck and they're really mad! They won't listen to us!" he cried and (Y/N) got up immediately.

She looked around the room while getting dressed before her eyes caught her earpiece being in a different place than where she left it.

She let out a deep sigh. "You answered it." she stated before picking it up and made her way towards the deck, followed closely by the others.

"Captain!" Belua hurried over before letting out a sigh of relief. Lex quickly climbed up (Y/N)'s shoulder and cuddled her cheek.

"We thought something happened. After the emergency notice went out to us..."

(Y/N) let out a dry laugh. "It was just Law. I'm guessing he was trying to let me rest for a little longer." she smiled. Belua glared in his direction while Navita was clinging to Bepo.

"Oh, you are so sweet!" Sagina squealed before wrapping Law in a bone-crushing hug. Being used to this by now, his arms were resting by his sides while he wore a bored expression.

(Y/N) couldn't help letting out a small laugh at the sight. She could never get over how cute it was to see Law being hugged by someone taller than him.

After the spectacle, the three women turned to (Y/N) with serious expressions.

"We need to talk Captain." Belua said and she nodded for her to continue, but the commander only glanced behind her captain's shoulder.

"They're fine. Talk." (Y/N) ordered and with a small 'tch', she continued.

"Plan S.A.S.O is in third place." she informed with her arms crossed, showing her captain that she did not wish to explain in further details in front of the Heart Pirates.

(Y/N) raised her brow and stared her down, but then decided to let it go. It wouldn't make much of a difference if they knew or not and if it caused her first commander that much unease, she'd go along with her wishes, for now.

"Very well. Have they been informed?" she asked and got a quick nod in return.

"Captain, don't you think," Navita glanced behind her, "that it's going to be risky?" she finished, immediately getting Laws attention.

"Everything we do is risky." she chuckled. "Have the others left already?"

The women shook their heads. "They're waiting for you."

"Alright then, let's go." she said and, with a quick reassuring glance to Law, left with them to get onto her ship.

Law sat by his desk and sighed loudly when he had re-read the same sentence for the fifth time now before he closed the book. He couldn't concentrate while (Y/N) still hadn't returned.

The only information he had gotten was from Sagina, who had stopped by to make his crew some food, where she had told him that everything was fine with her usual cheerful smile.

He rubbed his face in an attempt to get rid of his exhaustion, along with his worry, as thoughts he had tried to quiet down began to resurface. Deciding to let them come, he rested his face in his hand.

What was this plan her crew had mentioned? What is her end goal?
He couldn't ignore the fact that she kept so many, if not too many, secrets from him. He thought he could finally have some peace of mind once Doflamingo was defeated and Kaido turned out to be on at least (Y/N)'s side. But new problems and new risks kept transpiring.

"Law?"

He jumped when he felt the hand on his shoulder, but didn't move until the hand that covered his face was gently withdrawn.

"What's the matter?"

He said nothing and just kept his eyes closed while cherishing the touch across his face. He loved when she would do this. Gently touching his whole face, taking in every detail.

She would always start by stroking his chin with the pad of her thumb, slightly giggling to herself as she ruffled the hairs on his goatee. Then she would move to his bottom lip and give it a gentle poke to feel its plumpness.

She smiled when he placed a soft kiss against her thumb before running her hand up his cheek, gently gracing his lips once more in the process, and then let her fingers thread through his raven locks. He let out a soft hum before absentmindedly leaning into her touch, silently asking her to continue.

After a while, he snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him before resting his cheek against her belly. With a warm smile, she continued running her hand through his hair while her other found its way to his cheek, cupping it before lifting his face up to meet her eyes.

"Trust me." was all she said before she leaned down and pecked his lips. He frowned a little, but the lips that had suddenly traveled to his neck brought him out of his thoughts.

"I swear these kids." (Y/N) muttered angrily before climbing out of bed and wobbled at a quick pace to the bathroom. Law chuckled before getting up himself and put some clothes on. When she came back out he put his arms around her.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" he mumbled against her shoulder before hiding his face.

She giggled. "You're good." she assured before making her look at him. "Really, stop worrying too much."

He looked away. "I can't help it. Especially when..." he trailed off and she noticed his painful expression.

"'When'?" she urged while keeping a comforting grip on his face.

He took a deep shaky breath. "After Corazon died. I thought there was nothing left for me to lose. As I happy as I am that I have you..." he looked at her. "Them." he continued while gently touching her belly.

"I am terrified (Y/N). So terrified that a part of me wants to lock you and them up at a place where nothing can get to you... So terrified, that I almost want to cross that threshold of reason and sanity... It doesn't help that you're off doing risky things without telling me what's going on."

She kept quiet, but you couldn't miss the concerned frown on her face.

"Every day I feel like I am taking one step closer to accept the insane and paranoid thoughts that are plaguing me. I feel like I'm going crazy and I'm scared at how close I am to accept it..."

"Law..."

He moved away from her, his eyes shadowed over as he just stared at his hands.

"Some nights... I imagine my hands around you... You're crying and I'm... Smiling. Not because I want to do it... But because then, no one else can take you away from me. Just so that this endless agony, of fearing the day to come, ends already."

His hands began shaking as a sob escaped his throat. "When does it end? How much more do I have to lose?" his voice trembled and (Y/N) stared at him in shock.

No matter how much she already knew about his past when they were separated, it had never occurred to her just how broken Law really was.

And for the first time, he scared her.