"Five years." Law muttered into her hair and she felt herself tear up. 

"I'm sorry." she whispered.

"You made me search for five goddamn years, (Y/N)." 

The lump forming in her throat made her unable to answer, but she did return his hug.

God, she hadn't realized how much she had missed him until he was in front of her.
His voice that tickled her skin as he spoke, his smell that calmed her racing heart and his eyes. Pulling back a bit, she stared into them until the tears made it impossible.

While wiping them away, with such tenderness that had his crew dropped their jaws in shock, he took in the changes of the woman he had spent years finding.

Her hair had gotten a bit longer and she had obtained some more scars along the way. 

But he didn't care. It was (Y/N), his (Y/N).

Pulling her into his arms again, he held her tightly while brushing his lips against her ear.
"I'm never letting you go again." he whispered before picking her up and carrying her back to the submarine while the crew reluctantly followed.

She didn't make a move of protest. Any willpower had completely washed away and she could only hold onto him while her face was hidden in his neck, trying to block out the hostile stares.

After a while, she felt him stop before hearing him mutter something and felt her stomach churn a bit at the sudden movement.

She peered up to see they were inside a room. From the looks of it, it seemed to be Laws room.

He walked over to the bed and sat them both down, shifting her to sit in his lap sideways while her grip on him didn't ease up. So they stayed like that for a while, only breaking apart momentarily when Bepo had knocked to ask what the orders were.

He felt her tense up when he told his navigator that they were leaving, finally getting back to reality and quickly sat up to look at him. 

They only stared in silence, his eyes daring her to try and leave him again while reading her doubtful expression.

"Law, they hate me. I-I don't blame them." A finger to her lips stopped her.

"Then they'll have to accept it until they see what I see."

Feeling her face heat up she lifted his hoodie before crawling inside, thankful that he had a shirt underneath, and curled up to hide her embarrassment.

He couldn't stop the chuckle that bubbled in his chest while rubbing her back to comfort her.
She had just cocooned herself inside his hoodie and it was hands down the most adorable thing he had ever witnessed.

(Y/N) started to snicker from the way his chest heaved, causing her to bounce, and when he saw the lump in front of him tremble from her giggling, his amusement increased and on it went until they both broke out into a laughing fit.

After a few minutes, he was lying on his back panting with her on top of him, still inside his hoodie, as they began to catch their breath. 

He bent down a bit to place a tender kiss to the lump he believed was her head before running his fingers up and down her back. "I love you." he breathed, happiness still lingering in his voice.

Watching the lump shuffle for a bit, he smirked when she poked her head out. Luckily the hem of his hoodie was rather wide so the tight fit wouldn't choke them. 

He cupped her cheek and ran his thumb gently across the skin, with nothing but admiration in his eyes.

"I love you too, Law." she said before nuzzling against his palm. "But I'm scared."

"If you're talking about everything that happened, I already know. I read them." he said before wrapping his arms around her when he felt her tense up. 

"Don't run away again, (Y/N)-ya. I won't abandon you because of this. So please have the same faith in me that I have in you." He looked down at her with earnest. "Because I'm scared too."

She rested her cheek on his chest, "You are?" and looked up at him with an innocent expression and slight disbelief while absentmindedly drawing circles on his shoulder.

He nodded. "You know more about me than any living person does. It's... unsettling."

At first, she felt a bit offended but soon realized that it didn't necessarily have anything to do with her personally, but more of the fact that this was probably the most vulnerable Law has felt in his adult life. 

Which was very true. He simply wasn't used to someone having this hold on him. He felt weakened from the fear of anyone ever knowing that there's someone in his life he cares this much for besides his crew. But despite that, the feelings he held for (Y/N) were on a whole other level.

"Do you regret it?" he heard her whisper and looked down at her with a small smirk.

"At one point I did." He chuckled at her pout. "Not anymore though. But there are things we need to talk about, (Y/N)-ya."

Knowing what he was referring to, she sighed before crossing her arms across his chest and rested her chin against them. "What do you want to know?"

He decided against asking her why she had not told him about her condition or question why the hearts didn't matter at all when Akuma took over. It would only hurt her to overthink the details of when he had gotten fatally injured. But she was prepared for the guilt and the accusations.

However, she was in no way prepared for his next choice of words.

"Was Akuma there before the marines took you?"

From the way she tensed up and visibly winced, it wasn't even a question anymore.

"(Y/N)-ya?"

Shuffling, she hid inside his hoodie again. "She's been here for as long as I can remember."

He looked down at her trembling form. "Go on."

She moved a bit so that he could hold her properly, resting her ear against his chest and let his heartbeat calm her. Anything that showed her that he was still there, alive, eased her mind. 

"I can't really remember." she buried her face in his chest, muffling some of her words. "I only remember darkness - then she was there and my father hated me."

"Calm down." He held her closer when her trembling got intense. "I got you."

Taking a deep breath, she managed to calm down a bit.
"I honestly can't remember if there ever was a time that he didn't. I don't know when my mother left us. She just wasn't there. I don't know Law, it's all hazy." 

He kept quiet while staring at her, his mind drifting elsewhere until he quickly raised a hand to his face with a grunt that caught her attention.

"Law?- Akuma stop it!" she yelled when she saw the drop of blood beneath his nose.

'He tried to scan us.'

She looked at him in disbelief while he wiped his upper lip and looked at the blood with a sigh.
"I wanted to confirm something."

"Law." she shuffled out of his hoodie and stood up. "Akuma absolutely hates anything involved with doctors."

He got up and walked over to her before gently placing his hand against her cheek as a silent apology.

"You should have told me first." she muttered while refusing to look at him.

"Hey." He raised her chin to meet his eyes. "I just want to make sure everything is alright with you." When her look of disapproval didn't change, he sighed as his hands dropped to his sides. 

"I hate to say it, but your condition worries me and I need to confirm my suspicions." He nudged her nose with his, "I don't want to lose you if I'm right."

'No.'

"I'm sorry." Her eyes met his once more. "She's not going to let you and I don't want you to get hurt. So please don't try it again." She linked their hands and rested her forehead against his. "Please give it some time."

He squeezed her hands while his lips ghosted over hers. "If you show the slightest sign of being unwell, I'll use force if I have to." Her cheeks flushed a bit before she giggled at his pout and placed an innocent peck on his chin. "Deal."

'We shall see.'