The baby brother of ASL

Chapter 24

from two chapters ago

Since that very day Sebastian stayed away from schools and children his age filled with fear, terror, anger and resentment, regualry making sure to bleach the roots of his hair and with the help of Makingo kept his hair silky smooth with some special shampoo.

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Voices filled his head whenever even a peek of red hair would pop out. 
Voices that surrounded and suffocated him. 
Voices that snakes around his neck until his vision were all blurry and filled with black dots. 
Voices that whispered to him.

' Monster.'
'weirdo.'
' No one wants you.'

As he stared at his hawk like horrid eyes, the children and adults filled his head.
He could clearly see the disgust in their eyes.
The way they looked at him as they pointed at him and flicked their tongues.
They way they looked at him as if he was a druggie.
They way the parents pulled their children out of his way when he walked past. 
The ring the children formed around him to mock and tease him.
He remembered it all. 

Sebastian couldn't stand it, he wanted to run. 
He wanted to hid. 
He wanted ..... Luffy, Sabo, Ace.
He missed Luffy, Sabo, Ace, Gramps Garp, Gramps Sengoku, Makino, Dadan.

As pirates besides rushed back and forth around him to continue on their lives after the arrival of the red haired captain, he tried to stop his eyes from watering. 
He tried to hid his shaking hands that wouldn't stop no matter what he did. 
Why was he like this??
Why was he such a monster?? 
Was his hair color horrid and cursed??

" Is that supposed to be an insult??"

A man's cocky, confident yet warm voice shattered through Sebastian's trance. 

" My hair color is the color of passion, love and strength,"

Was that the truth? 

He wanted to cry.

He wanted to scream.

Was that the truth?

" I am not ashamed of it" 

The simple words that left the lips of the man he had come to respect, seemed like a hand that reached out for him as he was drowning. 

Those words seemed like an embrace filled with overflowing love to a child that had never in his life been embraced. 

It seemed like a sip of water after living in the desert for so many years. 

Since he had been a child, he had not cried, he had refused to show anyone his tears. 
He had suppressed emotions, bottling them up ever since he had been young. 

But, something... a warrm liquid slid down his cheeks. 
One stream by one dripped down onto the floorboard, until those liquids wouldn't stop as it fell endlessly onto the floor boards. 

The tears blocked his sight.
There was an itchy feeling at the back of his throat. 

A warm, soft and comforting hand landed on his hand softly on the little boy's head, pulling the young child into a tight, warm hug, " Cloudy... it's okay to cry," the man whispered, running his hand up and down the child's back," if you want to cry, cry, no one will see you cry, I will protect you." 

Sebastian couldn't speak, there seemed to be something stuck on the back of his throat, and suddenly he found himself  wailing into the man's warm embrace.

A wail that had been bottled up for so long flooded out. 

" It's okay, Cloudy," the voice reassured the child, as the world went pitch black after a quick movement of fabric," no one can see you, you're safe. You are a precious person." 

The cry that he had  suppressed as the children pointed at him, 

The scream that he had oppressed when he ran away from the eyes of the people,

The yell for help he had swallowed as the voices of the people followed him,

The wail of pain he did not allow to escape as people prodded his hair and peered at his eyes, 

" You're not weak," Shanks spoke," People who cry are not weak, they are crying because they have been strong for too long." 

It all came out, 

It flooded out,

He screamed, wailed, cried, yelled and wailed all the anger, grief. 
He cried until the shirt he held onto was soaked,
He wailed until his own knees were to weak to support him and slid down to his knees

Soon his eyes grew tired, he clutched tightly to the man and soon he was dead to the world. 

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Everyone's attention had been turned to the young boy when he had started to cry, yet when Shanks embraced the young child and covered him with his cloak, glaring at them with such great force of anger everyone looked away and scattered. Even without the use of the conqueror's haki, Akagami Shanks was a force to be afraid of. 

" Is he okay," Marco whispered when all he heard from the two under the cloak was small snores, he had been feeling overwhelming guilt as the child had broken down after he had insulted the man, " I'm.... sorry." 

The red haired man, gave him a nervous smile," Yeah, no problem, I got this." 
' Liar,' Marco thought as he nodded and walked away without saying anything,' that is not the face of someone who is okay.' 

Indeed, the red haired man seemed so pale and shaken beyond what words would and could describe, so panicked and alarmed. His arm was snaked around the sleeping child so preciously and held the child close to his own body. It seemed that the man had hid the child out of sight in pure instinct from Marco when they had talked.

" I'll be returning to my ship, see you tomorrow, old man," Shanks commanded, leaving no place for argument, " see you later and don't you dare mention this to the kid tomorrow or else." He strided  off, leaving the deadly threat in the air.