Summer was there in Law's hospital room the day he was allowed to be discharged. She was relieved, so very relieved, that all things had worked out fine. Penguin was making a good recovery, though he wouldn't be released for another few days. Corazon was doing very well, and would be discharged later that same day. Summer had already set up an appointment for a wedding job the following week to get back into working again. Other than Law's warrant, which was hanging over their heads all the time, everything was as good as it could be.
After scribbling a few more things on his medical release papers, Law returned the clipboard back to the nurse. "That should be everything." She said with a smile, nodding to both him and the Commissioner, who was ever-present in the room. "Would you like a wheelchair to bring you down?"
"That won't be necessary." Law replied, standing confidently on his own feet. He felt miles better than he had a week ago. The last vestiges of his beatings and fights and being shot and stabbed were finally gone. Other than a few new scars he was completely free of any reminder of what had transpired. He didn't need any help. Plus, he didn't like the thought of being seen in a wheelchair. "I'll be fine, but thank you."
The nurse took her cue and left the room. After she disappeared behind the door, the Commissioner cleared his throat awkwardly, shifting in place to gain their attention. Law looked over at him with an expectant expression.
"Yeah, I know what you have to do." He sighed, turning in place and crossing his wrists behind his back. "Let's just get this over with."
"Well, it'll look good on the police report that you're cooperative. If that counts for anything." The man said, pulling out his handcuffs from his belt and walking closer. Summer glanced between them, eyes widening. For some reason it hadn't quite hit her that Law was indeed being arrested. Right here and right now. They'd both just recovered, and he was being taken into custody already? She hadn't even gotten to have a proper day to enjoy the fact that they were both alive yet.
She turned to her boyfriend with a worried frown. "Law-"
"It's alright." He said gently, the sound of the handcuffs being clicked into place around his wrists interrupting his words. At least the Commissioner wasn't unnecessarily rough with the arrest process. "We both knew this would happen."
For his sake, Summer nodded quietly. She had no clue what being arrested was actually like. She couldn't imagine what Law was about to go through. Not knowing his near future was causing her anxiety. Because there was nothing she could do to help, at least that she could see.
"Let's get going, they'll want to get your paperwork started." The Commissioner said, leading him out the door of his hospital room. Summer followed right behind them, intent on seeing Law for as long as she could before he was taken away.
"Wouldn't want to keep the cops waiting." Law remarked snidely, which earned a chuckle from the officer guiding him.
"Authorities who have to work late just to book you aren't exactly your best friends. Keep that in mind."
"Right…" Law sighed. They walked the short distance to the elevators without incident, though Summer noticed a few curious stares from nurses and passersby who walked past them. It was instinct to wonder what was happening when the cops were involved, but Summer wished they would just keep their noses out of it this one time.
The Commissioner jabbed the button for the elevator, still holding on to Law's elbow to make sure he didn't run away or something. But the bartender was cooperative and looked completely calm. She wondered how he could possibly be this cool about being arrested. At this point she would have been a bawling mess.
The elevator dinged and the group stepped into the empty cabin when the doors opened up. Summer settled herself on the opposite side of the cabin to Law and the Commissioner. None of them said anything and it was a thick silence that filled the empty space. The doors closed, but were stopped at the last second by a thin hand pushing its way through.
They opened again to reveal an older woman, who stepped forward to enter the cabin. Then, she stopped suddenly, seeing the Commissioner and the man with his hands cuffed behind his back. "Oh, my…" Summer heard her mumble underneath her breath.
"There's room for one more, Ma'am." Sengoku said cheerfully, gesturing to a spot beside Summer.
The old woman stepped back out of the cabin, shaking her head and gripped the rosary that was dangling around her neck. She peered at Law fearfully. "I…think I'll take the next one."
"Suit yourself." He said as the doors began to close once more, this time shutting entirely. It slowly rumbled to life and they all felt a slight plunging sensation as they began to descend.
They reached the ground floor quickly. Summer stepped out of the cabin first, allowing Law and the Commissioner to follow suit easily. They made their way through the main lobby and exited out the main entrance. Out front, Summer spotted the police car he'd be taken away in. She swallowed silently. This was it...
The Commissioner stopped Law directly next to the vehicle and opened the door to the back seats. "Watch your head. I've heard the doorframe is harder than it looks."
Law was already moving to get in the car, but the blonde stepped forward. "Wait…"
They both looked at her expectantly, and she stared at Law. "Can we…have just a moment to say goodbye?"
Sengoku looked like he took pity on them, and eventually caved. "Alright, you've got one minute. But I'll be right here, keeping an eye on you." Sengoku said, stepping back a few feet to allow them some small semblance of privacy, while still remaining close to make sure nothing funny happened.
Summer was thankful, and immediately stepped forward to hug Law. It was awkward, since he couldn't exactly reciprocate the gesture, but he did lean his head on the top of hers to try to at least show that he felt the same. And that was good enough for her.
"When you get out of there, you owe me an expensive dinner and an entire weekend of spending time together. Got it?" She demanded teasingly. She hoped it would mask the fact that a tiny part of her was terrified that she wouldn't see him again.
Law smiled, placing a tender kiss against the top of her head. "I owe you a lifetime of quality time and a hundred dates to the best places in town. But I'll make it all up to you. I promise you that."
The blonde found herself smiling, the feeling of safety returning as she leeched his warmth for herself. Even while being taken away in handcuffs, he had that effect on her. Her smile twitched a bit wider when she felt him breathe in deeply, taking in her scent as best he could, knowing it would be some time before he got to experience it again.
"Be safe while I'm away, ok?" He said familiarly. She let out a huffed laugh, pulling away to look him in his gray eyes again.
"I should be the one telling you that."
He managed a slanted smirk for her sake, and she leaned forward on her tiptoes, pressing their lips together in a deep kiss. Their eyes closed happily, and her fingers gripped his jacket to pull him further into their lip lock.
"Ah-ahem…em…" They heard beside them, and they separated to see the Commissioner stepping carefully closer. "Sorry to interrupt your, ah, moment, but time's up. I can't justify staying here any longer."
Law looked back down at Summer, catching her attention once more. He leaned forward briefly and captured her lips in one last quick, deep kiss before flashing her a confident smile. "I'll be alright. Don't worry."
"That's my job though." Summer said sadly, releasing his jacket and stepping away so he could get into the car. If it were up to her, she'd grab him and run as far as she could from here, but that probably wouldn't get her farther than her own set of handcuffs and charges for obstruction of justice.
The bartender ducked down enough to step inside of the back seat, shifting to get himself more comfortable. Summer watched with fading happiness as the door thunked closed between them, and the Commissioner turned to her.
"I'll be sure to put your contact number for any trial information they have. You'll be the first to know. And I'm sure he'll eventually be allowed to receive visitors, so, I'll request that you be notified of that too."
"Thank you." She said genuinely, shaking his head when he extended it. He was doing so much for them, and being so courteous about it. She'd never met a more professional and nice member of law enforcement.
"Have a good day, Ma'am." He bid with a nod, touching the brim of his hat and turning on his heel to get into the driver's seat. Summer took a few steps back to allow the car to start up without fear of her toes being run over.
Law's face was turned to the car's floor, but after a moment he looked up and locked eyes with her briefly. Summer raised her hand as farewell, and a moment later, the car jerked forward, on it's way to the station so he could be arrested. Her hands clasped together in front of her, rubbing instinctively because she was anxious.
She only hoped things would continue to go right for them.
Law's head tilted back to lean against the back headrest as he sighed deeply. The car rumbled as the Commissioner drove them out of the hospital's parking lot. The station wasn't far, so at least it would be a fairly quick drive. He could hear the police radio at the front of the car, but he ignored it, staring up at the ceiling of the vehicle.
Summer's friend, Hitomi, had seemed confident she could successfully defend him in court. Even if it was ultimately all for Summer and not for him, he knew she'd still try her damndest to keep him a free man. To his knowledge, she was a prosecuting attorney, not a defender, however. He didn't know how that was going to work, but at this point he wouldn't turn away help by asking too many questions.
He wished he could have seen Corazon before they'd taken him in full custody, but he supposed he wouldn't know quite what to say to his boss at the moment. He didn't know how he was going to face him at all, now that he thought about it, if—when, he reminded himself—he was released.
"Quite a girl you've got there." The Commissioner remarked out of the blue, ripping the bartender from his inner thoughts. "You don't see too many ladies like that."
"Like what?" He questioned, wondering if this was the set up for a compliment or an insult. He didn't like the latter option, frowning slightly.
"Loyal. Positive. Pure." He said evenly, eyes cast ahead to pay attention while he was driving. Law watched him glance his way in the rearview mirror. "Definitely a nice one to bring home to the parents."
Law averting his eyes and stared out the window, refusing to talk about that. The Commissioner dropped the subject, thankfully getting the clue that this wasn't a topic Law wished to pursue, but continued talking nonetheless. "If I were you, I wouldn't take her for granted. If she's really willing to be with you after all of this, don't be an idiot and lose her now."
"…" He didn't quite know why Sengoku was telling him this. "I won't."
"Good." The Commissioner chuckled. "Corazon made me promise to say something to you about it when I saw him last. Well, his version contained a lot more swearing than mine, but I'm sure you get the gist."
Law grinned to himself, nodding silently. That definitely sounded like Corazon. "Nothing I don't already know. Trust me."
Sengoku nodded to himself and left the rest of the car ride to the station quiet. Law was lost in his own head, staring out the window without really looking at anything. Even he wasn't certain what would happen to him from here. Though he didn't exactly look it, he'd never actually been arrested before. He'd always managed to stay above the risk of getting caught, all these years.
But he'd gladly take the chance if it meant being able to finally put everything behind him, once and for all. He'd be able to have that domestic life with Summer that he was growing more and more attached to. Birthday dinners. Mornings waking up to breakfast. Video games in the living room. And…so much more he wanted to experience with her.
One last hurdle and it would be his.
Instead of going home after Law was taken away, Summer turned back into the hospital and headed for the 4th floor, where the last person she needed to visit was. This visit was long overdue, and she felt a smile widening on her face as the elevator brought her back up the building.
Corazon's hospital room door was open when she reached it, surprisingly, and he was reading over a magazine when she walked inside. There was barely any evidence that he'd been shot several times. Besides looking a little tired and evidence of a few bandages under the hospital gown, he was otherwise the same as she'd always remembered him. He looked up at her entrance and grinned brightly.
"There she is!" He proclaimed, setting the magazine down and gesturing for her to come inside. Summer did so, and happily accepted the hug he gave her when she got close enough to the bed. "It's about time you stopped by."
"I know, I'm sorry, I-"
"Ah! Say no more. I know." He said evenly, releasing her from the hug and gesturing for her to take a seat. "I'm just glad you're alright. Both of you."
"Me too." She sighed in relief. "Law was just released and...taken into custody." She admitted with a frown. "I got to see him off, at least. The Commissioner is a good man."
"Yeah, he's an old friend." Corazon said quietly, nodding to himself with a faraway look. She could tell he was missing his cigarettes, because his hand twitched at his side, and then he frowned, as if realizing what was missing. "I couldn't ask for anyone else to be handling the case. I heard your friend is defending him." He added.
"Yes." Summer smiled, finding something to be hopeful about. "She's the best I know. I mean, normally she's on the opposite side of the courtroom, but I have faith that Hitomi will be able to win the case."
Corazon gave her a small smile. "We can only hope at this point."
They fell silent for a moment, before the blonde man shook his head and sighed.
"Hey, I've been thinking everything over and...Summer, I wanted to apologize to you…and to Law, when I see him, for everything you've gone through."
She cocked her head to the side. "Why would you have anything to apologize for?"
"He's my brother." He responded with a shrug and a defeated expression. "Was my brother. I knew he was going down a bad path but I...thought he could get better. And when that didn't work I thought pretending we weren't related was the best solution. But I was very wrong. And because of that both you and Law have suffered so much. So many people have suffered..."
The photographer shook her head in disbelief. "Corazon...there wasn't anything you could have done to stop it! He was crazy!"
"Maybe there was...and maybe I just didn't do a damn thing when I should have." He retorted glumly. His gaze was fixed down at his hands. "He was my responsibility after our parents died, even if I was the younger one. Doflamingo was...always troubled. And I knew that."
Summer frowned sadly, upset that the bar owner was beating himself up over this. Even if he wasn't Law's real father, she could definitely see how similar they were personality-wise. "Cora…you can't look back at the past and dwell on what you could have or should have done. Because you can't change it. You can only think about the future. That's all any of us have left."
For awhile it didn't look like he was really taking her words to heart. He just continued staring down at his lap sadly. She had a feeling this was a long-standing issue that he had been thinking about for years. She doubted one little talk with her would make a dent in his opinion. But eventually he nodded slightly, and gave a sad smile. Maybe just to make her feel better about it. Finally, his eyes met hers.
"You've grown into a very mature woman, Summer. Law is lucky to have you."
She smiled bashfully and looked away. "Thanks…"
And just like that, he shook the sadness away and clapped his hands together. "I almost forgot! They're sending me home today. We can catch up over some lunch later if you're up for it?"
"Sure." She said happily. If Corazon was done talking about the heavier stuff, she was fine with that. It was giving her small snippets of memories from the warehouse. "Any idea when they're releasing you?"
"The doc is supposed to give me one last once over in a few hours. As long as everything is still normal, they should be letting me out. I can't wait to leave."
Summer chuckled. "I felt the same way, but I was only in for a few days. I can't imagine being in for this long." Corazon gave a long-suffering sigh.
"Mostly I'm just worried about the bar…hopefully Zoro and the others have got it covered." For a split second, he allowed his worry to slip through the front Summer knew he tried to maintain for everyone else's sake show. But it was gone just as quickly as it had appeared.
"I'm sure everything's fine. You have very dedicated employees." Summer smiled.
Corazon nodded contentedly. "I sure do…"
ns 15.158.61.50da2
