Her Safe Haven

Thirteen.

With a crutch under one arm, and a man on the other, it was no surprise that Rebecca literally dropped what she was doing upon seeing the female. "[NAME]!" She had just begun to run out from behind the counter when she suddenly halted, her eyes widening as she fully registered the tall blonde man beside her boss. "oh." Dressed in a fine black suit, a dark pink tie, and his beautiful feathered shawl draped over his shoulders, he was quite a sight to see. His scowl didn't really help him blend in, either.

[Name] flashed a smile, "hey Rebecca," she said uneasily, glancing around the café. The tables were full, and being accompanied with a handsome, tall man was capturing some attention. Doffy didn't seem to notice, maybe he's used to this attention. "This is..." Lying wasn't difficult for her, yet the words seemed to catch in her throat.

Doffy wrapped his arm around her torso, smirking at the pink-haired woman. "I'm her boyfriend, Doflamingo." Rebecca's eyes suddenly lit up, quickly looking to her friend for confirmation. When [Name] nodded, the girl grinned, closing the distance between them.

"whaaaa! [Name] I can't believe you didn't tell me! Is that where you've been?! Oh, your face! Wait your leg! What happened?!" [Name] shook her head, trying to stop the female before she got frantic.

"I got into an accident, but please don't worry, I'm okay, honestly."

Rebecca pouted, accepting [Name's] vague response for now. Rebecca's eyes suddenly lit up, "oh wait, she's going to be so relieved you're back! I know you told her you were out of town for a while but Viola was for suuuure stressed while you were away!" She was slow to follow Rebecca towards the back room, her brain lagging as she processed what was just said. "I followed your recipes, but the pastries just didn't do as well when you were away-I'm sorry! We did sell them, I promise! But we didn't sell out like normal."

"Hey Rebecca," [Name] softly asked, taking advantage of the distance as Doffy began to lag behind them, "what exactly did Viola tell you?"

They were almost in the back room now, just behind the counter. Rebecca blinked, head tilted in confusion. "Viola? Well she told me what you told her: you had to quickly leave because you had a family emergency out of town! But don't worry, she instructed us all and ran the café when you were gone. I see why you left her in charge!"

[Name] glanced over her shoulder, brows knitted as she looked towards Doffy, wondering if he had overheard this conversation. His gaze was noticeably distracted as he glanced around the café, a frown set as he examined every inch. [Name] turned back to Rebecca.

Had Law informed Viola on what had happened? But why... Why would he? From her knowledge, Viola and Law had rarely ever spoken, so why would Law trust her with something so important?

"Yes... I'm glad she was here to run things," she spoke uneasily, her stomach knotting up. An unpleasant thought began to blossom. She forced the building anxiety away, a plan already developing as she smiled to her employee, "do you think you could message Viola for me right now? Tell her I'm back."

Rebecca nodded vigorously, "of course!"

"Thank you," she praised, glancing back towards Doffy, who remained on the other side of the counter. It was kind of funny to see him look so out of place. "Doffy?" She called, "do you want to help me upstairs?" With one hand in his pocket he slowly looked towards her, jaw clenched as he awkwardly began to walk around the counter, heading into the back to join her. Rebecca held her fingers in front of her mouth, as if she were supressing a giggle at the 'adorable' sight of their romance. [Name] was mildly surprised to feel his large hand press against the small of her back, silently guiding her up the stairs towards her home. Even his comfort felt awkward, and she had no doubts that the man had never been affection in such a gentle way before; the lack of experience was evident.