DOMINO - Eustass Kid x Reader

CHAPTER FORTY FIVE: Change

It was nice, being back on the sea again, but I still missed being with my big brother.

We had managed to avoid the Navy, which was a complete miracle, though we had to keep a close eye out. Nowhere was one hundred percent safe, after all.

Kid and I had inadvertently decided to act the same as we always had around everyone else, but they weren't stupid. I could see the small looks and smirks. It didn't bother me, but there was one person I felt like I needed to speak to about it.

"Yo, Killer. What's cookin', home skillet?" I wandered into the galley, all quiet apart from the faint sizzle of meat on the grill. The blond didn't look up from his meal prep, chopping what looked like bell peppers on a board.

"Beef noodle stew. Could you pass me the onions?" He motioned towards where we kept the fresh produce and I scurried over to lend him a hand, grunting once I set the heavy sack onto the counter.

"So...how have you been..?" I asked in likely the most pathetically awkward manner I possibly could have.
"The usual. Why? What have you done this time? Your tone's telling me you've caused trouble." Killer paused and turned to me slightly.

Really? You're not feeling the fifty thousand tonnes of awkward right now?

Without being asked, I pulled out an onion and began peeling the papery layers away, hoping it would somewhat distract me.
"N..No, I just...Well, I wanted to talk. You know, about-"

"About what? Apart from the new additions to the ship, I don't recall anything happening lately." Wow. Was he really going to play that kind of game with me? The 'it never happened' routine? Absolutely not.

"Don't go starting that crap, Killz. You kissed me, and we need to sit down and talk about it. Y'know, like adults?" I handed him the flayed onion, but didn't let go once he had his hand on it too, forcing him to give me all of his attention.

There was a slight deflation of his shoulders during his short silence, but eventually he tugged hard enough to get the vegetable out of my grip.
"There really isn't anything to discuss. It was just a push to get you to finally seal the deal with Kid. It worked, didn't it? That's why I found you two doing your walk of shame up the street."

Was it, though?

Repeating my process, I eyed him carefully, trying to figure out what the real go was.
"Just a push, huh? Felt pretty genuine to me." I pointed out, starting a pile as he began to chop the first one up. "You can't lecture me for being immature and then do this. It's hypocritical."

The sound the sharp edge of his knife made when he scraped the diced onion to the side of the wooden board made my skin crawl.
"Whether or not it was genuine is entirely my issue, girl. All that matters is that you two finally saw sense."

When Killer reached for the next onion, I snatched it up quickly, narrowing my eyes in the face of solid blue and white.
"Nuh-uh, no way, Mister Massacre. The second you kissed me you made it both of our issue, so man up. Talk to me."

I was definitely grating on his last nerve, but if he wasn't going to cooperate I didn't have much of a choice. Whether he felt weird about it or not, I knew I would until we cleared the air.

He was scowling, I could feel it, but he made no move to steal the vegetable back from my clutches.
"Fine. I did kiss you to make you realise you were in love with Kid, but there were selfish elements to it, I'll admit." He sighed, digging the tip of his knife into the wooden cutting board.

I feel horrible.

"I'm sorry for that. If there was just a slim, minute chance that you didn't actually love him, I was prepared to take the risk." He went on to explain softly. "Either way, we both found out, and that's the end of it. Our relationship stands as it was, unless you want to cut it off."