#with special guest appearance with the man of the hourrrr

[analogwriting]

Childhood Crush

Chapter 22: Bismuth

Killer x gn!reader word count: 2.3k a/n: got y'all two chapters cause it's the man's birthday, but who knows might fuck around and KEEP GOING next (end)

“What do you mean I have to fuckin’ drink this? It looks radioactive.” Eustass looked at you with pure disgust on his face as he held a cup of green liquid. You let out a hard sigh, looking at him.

“It looks like ass. It’s going to taste like ass. But I promise, it’s going to do a lot of good. It’s something I specially crafted.” 

You watched as he frowned, looking into the cup. He was sitting upright now, which was good. His injuries were healing well and almost didn’t need bandages at this point, so he could sit up without difficulty. “Just fucking drink it.”

“I’m getting there,” he snapped at you. Well, he seemed just fine. He was arguing just like he always did, so you weren’t going to complain. You were just glad to see him conscious. “I swear, I will shove a funnel down your throat and make you drink it if you don’t hurry-”

“Fucking okay!” Eustass quickly slams back the concoction you made for him. It was the smartest decision he’s ever made because you knew that shit tasted like ass so the quicker he downed it, the better. You watched as his eyes widened and he immediately started coughing. Luckily, he already swallowed it, so you didn’t have to worry about him spitting it out. You couldn’t help but snicker.

“That tasted like fucking ass! Are you trying to kill me, Bigs? Is this to get back at me for almost dying?” 

You put your hands on your hips and laughed loudly at his reactions. “No, but it is a brownie point, for sure.” You shook your head, taking the cup from him and setting it on to the counter across the room. “I did warn you that it wasn’t going to taste good.”

“I don’t think anything could have prepared me for how terrible that tasted,” Eustass grumbled. “You couldn’t make it taste any better? Aren’t you some groundbreaking scientist? Can’t even make medicine taste good?” You just chuckled in amusement as he grumbled, more or less, to himself. “Maybe I could, I just wanted to punish you.”

“I knew it!”

As things calmed down, you looked up at him from your clipboard. You followed his gaze over to where Killer was laying. You mirrored his frown, walking over to check on Killer’s vitals. He seemed to be healing up just fine, but something was just keeping him from waking up. 

“I did it, you know,” you said softly, not looking at your brother. You felt the air in the infirmary tense for a moment. “What?” His voice was laced with disbelief, soft.

You finished up checking on Killer before looking at your brother. His eyes were wide and his entire face showed the disbelief that was in his voice. “The reason I stayed in Wano? I did it.” 

Eustass looked from you to the bed where his first mate lay. “Well, why haven’t you given it to him yet?” 

You shook your head. “Not yet. I want to wait until he’s up and awake. I don’t want to overwhelm his body. He’s already got a ton of medicine pumping through his veins and his body is working overtime to heal itself. I didn’t want to add the antidote on top of it. Besides,” you paused, looking over to the unconscious man. 

“Right now that smile is a constant reminder that he is alive.” You looked back at Eustass. “You had your vivre card and he has that curse of a smile. Those are the two tell tale signs that you both are stable and okay. If someone with the SMILE fruit dies, their grins fade. And I…” You took a deep breath. “I had never been so relieved to see that dastardly smile when I found the two of you in the state I found you in.” You frowned.

A frown also settled into your brother’s face. The both of you were concerned about Killer - the whole crew was. Speaking of, you knew they should be waking soon. The sun was beginning to peek over the horizon, providing a warm glow to the room. “Better get ready, captain,” you mused, looking at him. There was a flash of something in his eye.

The look was much like that of when he came to you when you first set sail. He had been somewhat of a new captain and everything seemed to be going awry. It was doubt in himself. You walked over to him, sitting on the edge of the bed. He wouldn’t look at you, instead looking over at the floor. 

“Tungsten,” you said, voice softening. It was moments like this that you felt like you were kids again. Just the two of you, you giving him some kind of advice or instilling his confidence once more. It was when you took on the more parental role, consoling your little brother.

He still didn’t look at you. “What.” His tone was short with you and you knew he was going to be a bit more stubborn. “How about you tell me what’s on your mind?” 

“There’s nothing on my mind,” he said, trying his hardest not to look at you as your own eyes bored into him. 

“That’s a fuckin’ lie. Everyone says we’re ass at lying - it’s not in our genes. So, try again.” You narrowed your eyes at him and he finally looked at you with a scowl. “You’re annoying, you know that?”

“Annoyance runs in the family,” you retorted and he rolled his eyes. He let out a long sigh, mulling over his words before finally speaking. “I got my ass kicked and our ship was destroyed. I don’t deserve the title of captain anymore.”

You looked at him for a moment, thinking about your next words. “Well, you have this ship and you’re not the only captain who has had his ass kicked,” you said simply with a shrug. You knew the way to deal with Eustass wasn’t pitying him or babying him, it was laying out facts. 

“You still have your crew who cares a whole lot about you. It’s only a matter of time before they pile in here, actually. I had to basically lock them out of this room because they didn’t want to leave your side.” You figured you’d keep the small detail of Heat and Wire pleading for his life secret for now. They could tell him that.

“But we don’t have the Jolly Roger either. We’re not a pirate crew anymore. The Kid Pirates are dead,” he mumbled. Seeing him so broken and defeated…it hurt. Your face softened and you looked at him for a moment, thinking. You stood up, leaving the room for a moment before returning.

“You mean this one?” You walked over, handing him his Jolly Roger that was folded neatly. He took it, his eyes widened. “But…wh-” He was stammering, flabbergasted. “How?” He finally spoke, looking at you.

You just shrugged, a grin on your face. It had actually washed up on the shore of the island they had been on. It was an extremely lucky coincidence. A sign that the Kid Pirates weren’t over just yet. A sign of hope. “Now, you have your Jolly Roger, a loyally devoted crew, and a ship. So, I’d say that you’re still a captain.” You grinned at him. “I’m manifesting that your vice captain is going to wake up and you also have me, the world’s best scientist.”

He just stared at you for a long moment, opening and closing his mouth as he tried to find the words to say. “You look like a fish when you do that.” His face immediately turned into a glare as you laughed. 

“Is that captain awake?” you heard from down the hallway. You looked over at Eustass and grinned. “They’re awaaaake.”

“Yes!” you shouted and there was suddenly a collection of footsteps rapidly running down the hallway towards the room. You moved as everyone piled in, dogpiling their captain. “Be careful, he’s healing!” But your cries fell on deaf ears. You let it slide this time. Eustass was mostly healed by now, it was just getting him back into moving around. 

There was a lot of crying and cheering. You took this time to slip out of the room to start cooking for the crew. You figured you’d make your brother’s favorite since he was finally awake. The kitchen wasn’t too far away, so you could hear their excited chatter from where you were cooking. 

--

“So, I’m all good?” Eustass looked at you from where he was sitting. He was on the edge of the bed. You had just given him a full inspection. You nodded. “Yeah. Just don’t go too crazy, but you’re good to start moving around. I’d give you a cane to help you, but I know you wouldn’t even use it so there’s no point.”

“You’re fuckin’ right there’s not. I don’t need a damn cane. I’m not old!” 

“It’s not even that deep. It’s literally to help you walk and it wouldn’t be forever. Just until you were used to walking again.” You rolled your eyes at him, turning to put some things away. His muscles had atrophied a bit since he was in bed for so long, so he was going to be stiff and struggle with moving around properly for a little bit. Sure, you moved them around while they were unconscious, but that only did so much.

You heard as he shifted to stand up, grunting a little bit. You so badly wanted to make fun of him for grunting like an old man, but held your tongue for once. “Like I said, don’t try to move too fast, alright?” You turned back around to see him doing some simple stretches and you sighed. “Careful.”

“What? I’m just stretching.”

“You’ll pull something!” 

“Shut your pus, I’m fine. I’m taking it easy, chill out,” he grumbled, stopping his movements. 

“It’ll probably be another couple of weeks before you can walk normally and about a month before you’re mostly recovered. You…really got fucked up there, Tungsten,” you said with a small frown. He looked over at you, shuffling towards you. He placed a hand on your head and looked at you.

“I…” You looked at him, blinking.

“I’m sorry I made you worry,” he mumbled.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” you mused, looking at him with a smug smile. Both of you were somewhat terrible at being serious and sappy, so you always looked to lighten the mood.

“You heard me, I'm not saying it again.”

“No, I don’t think I did.”

“Fucking, c’mon. You know this is hard enough.”

“I think it’s well deserved.”

Eustass groaned, rolling his eyes. “I’m sorry for making you worry, Bigs. You specifically told me not to go and get myself killed and I almost did and I’m sorry for that. There. Happy?”

You smiled up at him. “Very.” You wrapped your arms around him, hugging him gently, but firm. You felt him relax, wrapping his arm around you. “Just…please take care of yourself. I can’t stand the thought of losing you.” You wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if something happened to your brother. He’s been there since you were three. It’s always been the two of you against the world. Well, at least until the other three entered the picture, but for a long time it was just the two of you.

You pulled away, sniffling. “Alright. Take a lap around the ship. Carefully. You need to get used to moving around again. I’ll set up some simple weights to help with your arm as well.” You looked at him, putting a hand on your hip. “I’ve already given everyone else a firm talking to. So, they know not to push you.” You headed over to a closet, rummaging around.

“I need you to get used to moving around so gentle exercise is the way to go, but don’t push yourself. Take frequent breaks. Like I said, this ship is much smaller than the Victoria Punk, so don’t think it’s a large task, okay?” You presented him with his feathered cloak. “Put this on. The breeze is a little chilly and the last thing you need is a cold on top of everything else.”

He took the piece of clothing from you, putting it on. “You worry too much, Bigs,” he said with a sigh.

“I feel like it’s warranted.” You looked at him with a deadpan expression. 

“Fair enough.” He rolled his eyes, heading out of the room and down the hallway. In the distance, you heard everyone greeting him excitedly. You figured it was also time to do check ups for everyone. You were so focused on Eustass and Killer that you weren’t able to focus on much else. Yes, you did make sure everyone was healed up and taken care of in that sense, but they needed their routine check ups. You didn’t even get a chance to do that before they departed from Wano.

Wire making you sleep really helped set your mind straight as well, so you silently thanked him for that. You weren’t about to admit it. Like your brother, you were prideful.

You were standing at your desk, examining your papers when you suddenly felt a pair of strong arms slowly wrap around your middle accompanied by someone’s face pressing into your neck. You tensed for a moment before you looked down, realizing. Your eyes widened as your heart raced.

“K-Killer?”