A familiar musical tune seeps into your deep slumber, closely followed by a loud knock, the sounds drawing a disgruntled murmur from your lips as your tired eyes struggle to slide open. 

Judging by the horrid brightness of the room, you'd assume you had falling asleep while watching movies with Sabo last night and now it's morning. The blonde in question laying beneath you and still very much asleep, his eyes shut but mouth agape as a small line of drool trickles out the corner of his lips.

I wonder what he's dreaming about...

The question quickly leaves your mind when another knock sounds, you can gather already that somebody is at the front door so taking a half-arsed glance at your clock, you roll out of bed and slip into your dressing gown.

9am...how long was I asleep for?

Your legs protest as you make your way out of your bedroom and down the stairs, sluggishly rubbing your eyes as you blurt a lazy; "Gimme a second!" upon reaching the door, retrieving the key that's dangling on a hook beside the wooden barrier before beginning to unlock it.

This better be urgent, I do not appreciate being dragged out of bed by anybody!

Though upon opening the door, your eyes widen and you quickly find that it just might have been worth the wake-up call after all. 

Stood before you is a certain brunette, the male looking somewhat tired with his hair tied in a loose bun rather than in the style of a pompadour but you still know that face anywhere.

"H-Hey, Thatch...!" Suddenly you feel so much more conscious about the fact that you're wearing a dressing gown and your hair currently looks as if it has been back-combed, your hands instinctively tugging the gown tighter around your figure as you offer the tall male a nervous smile, it's not that you're indecent under the clothing but...you still feel highly under-dressed considering the eldest brother always appears so formal. 

"G'morning! Sorry if I've caught you at a bad time, I tried to call but I couldn't get through so I thought I'd just try your door since we're making a delivery to Mr. Dracule's house, we have to drive through here anyway so it's no problem for us!" All you can do is simply nod your head in response, your face must be appearing completely blank as your brain struggles to process all the information he had just given you, it's far too early for this. "I was able to work out a deal with one of my employee's last night so we got your olive barstools, you wanted the fabric to be lime green, yes?" 

I asked for those yesterday, at 8pm, how the hell are they done and here only 13 hours later?!

"Heh! Thatch is still a hard worker, it appears." Sabo's airy voice catching your ear, you don't even need to look at him to know he's just woken up also and isn't likely wearing a shirt, a warmth enveloping you as he playfully leans his chin on top of your head, staring up at his brother but unlike Luffy, the brunette doesn't seem to be able to see him.

Or if he does, he hides it well.

"How'd your employee pull this off?" Your voice riddled with bewilderment as you politely move aside, watching a familiar tall blonde with long hair that you had seen working for them before carrying one stool inside, if you remember correctly - his name was Killer. He's closely followed by a younger male carrying the second stool you had ordered, he has purple hair and a slightly grumpy face - judging by his eyes anyway, his mouth and nose is covered by a black face mask. 

"Well, Eustass Kid is our best craftsman, not to sound as if I'm picking favourites. But in short; he wanted to spend today with his girlfriend, apparently they had a nasty fight and he wishes to make amends, so in return for the day off, I had him stay late last night and dye the furniture for you." The brother politely chimes, following his workers into the kitchen and signalling to them where to put the stools with his thumb. You don't miss how his brown eyes scan the room either, a somewhat distant look in his orbs as his brows knit together faintly. "At least we have the opportunity to see how our new employee does, right, Page One?"

Page one?

You don't miss how the boy with purple hair glances into Thatch's direction, only grunting from behind his mask before setting the chair down and removing the plastic that protects the seats. 

"He's not too talkative but considering Kid's attitude toward customers, I'd consider that a blessing." Killer voices calmly, the blonde mimicking his temporary partner's actions and removing the protective packaging from the stool that he had carried in here, his comment earning a small scoff from Thatch in return. 

"I won't argue with that! Kid's pretty lucky he's so good at what he does, otherwise we would've probably fired him by now."

He...paints furniture, how's that so irreplaceable?

"Nah," Sabo chimes as he makes his way past you and toward his brother, clearly listening to your thoughts as usual while idly poking the brunette's man-bun, something that causes the older brother to shudder a little before placing his hand on the back of his neck, confusion filling his expression. He felt that. "A lot of the furniture they sell, Kid likely made himself. The guy has always liked making things, he's good with electronics, woodwork, robotics and even eco-friendly mechanisms from what I can remember."

"Huh? You remember Kid now?" You admittedly didn't mean to blurt this question out so boldly, you were just under the impression that Sabo's memories had faded over time so for him to remember so many direct things about the redhead has you slightly surprised. 

Of course, now Thatch and Killer are both looking at you like you've just praised Hitler or something.

"Huh, I don't know where all those memories came from..." Sabo sheepishly admits as he takes a small step back from his sibling, his wide eyes filling with both amazement and worry as they land on you. "They just came to me suddenly." 

"Uh...yeah? He's only been gone a day." Thatch softly murmuring in response to your question with a small smirk tugging on his lips, you know damn well he thinks you're dumb and possibly adorable due to your 'dumbness' and that just forces a pout to gradually etch itself into your features. 

Shut up, I wasn't speaking to you.

 You don't miss how Sabo's face suddenly darkens either, his stare shifting toward the brunette as a frown etches itself into his features, a low growl rumbling in his throat followed by a clear grumble; "Don't you dare."

Dare? Don't dare what?

Almost immediately the brunette shivers before taking a glance over his shoulder, obvious confusion radiating from him as he subtly glances around the room before finally pulling himself together with a slight shake of his head and gesturing to his workers. "Uh...g-get back to the van, Mr. Dracule will go full Karen if we're late with his furniture." He lowly rumbles, the two both staring at him with clear concern but they don't voice their worries at least, instead they obediently make their way out of the kitchen with begrudging grumbles, it would seem this 'Mr. Dracule' isn't their favourite customer either.

But Thatch lingers a little longer before following the duo much more slowly, his eyes scanning your walls and a slight change taking over his aura, he seems melancholy, but of course...he is the oldest so he likely remembers the fire best out of all the brothers. 

But speaking of brothers...

"Thatch," You address the male while trailing behind, earning a small hum in response as he stops just before reaching your front door but he doesn't look at you, instead his eyes stay fixated on the wooden staircase leading upstairs. "Not that I don't like your presence but I thought Ace and Luffy were taking over the business, why aren't they here?" 

You can only see the man's side profile but it's still enough to see how his brows quirk at your question, his jaw stiffening for a moment before he murmurs a tired response. "Luffy has other jobs today and Ace...well, he has his reasons." 

His answer brings a deafening silence to the room, even Sabo has nothing to say and you can feel the slight pain radiating from him as reaches out to touch his big brother's shoulder but his hand just goes through him, only causing the older male to tense and readjust his coat. 

"It's cold in here." He mutters under his breath, drawing a small giggle from Sabo's lips, much to your surprise. They seemed so vulnerable just mere seconds ago, now Sabo and is laughing and Thatch is...well, cold. 

"You've always been a wimp with cold weather!" The blonde chuckles out, though his brother doesn't respond at all, instead the brunette just straightens himself up before heading outside. 

"My apologies for being so abrupt, Miss [L/N] but I must go, I wasn't joking when I said we've got a difficult customer to see next. I-I...wish I could stay longer." The response once again causes Sabo's aura to grow cold, the boy shooting his sibling a warning glare, though it has become quite obvious that Thatch can't see it. "I'll see you around and I hope you like living here, this home meant a lot to me once. S-See ya later!" 

And without a seconds hesitation, the man leaves as quickly as he came, leaving you with a somewhat-sulking ghost. 

"He totally has the hots for you." Sabo informs, his eyes slowly relaxing as a slight smile tugs at his lips, though the expression seems to be shrouded in agony also. "That old pervert." He lightly chuckles under his breath as a single tear rolls down his cheek. 

"Sabo?" You quietly murmur upon closing the door, moving into embrace the boy now that you've gotten your privacy back, your forehead resting against his scarred bare chest as your arms tightly wrap around his torso. "What's on your mind?"

The blonde stiffens slightly, seemingly uninterested in answering your question as he hesitantly returns the comforting hug, his arms only tightening around you when he finally speaks, as if you're all he has in this moment. "He can't see me..." 

"Mmh...no, maybe not, but he definitely felt you." Your heart feels like it's bleeding as you cuddle the sweet ghost, glancing up at him with a saddened smile as your warm hand gently caresses his burnt cheek in an attempt to comfort him. "He knew you were here somewhere, I'm sure of it." 

Sabo doesn't necessarily respond to your claim with words, the boy staring silently into space for a few moments before eventually running his hand over your own and pulling it away from his skin softly, only to place a light kiss in your palm as a handsome smile spreads across his lips.

It's so strange how someone else could just walk straight through him yet you feel his touch so vividly. 

"Yeah, you're right. Maybe I can prank him next time."

"Heh? you're wicked, Sabo!"

"Maybe but you love it~!"

Hmph...Maybe...

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