The falls in love with wolves

Shanks had gotten far more attached to Luffy than he had intended to. He'd not even been on Dawn for that long, sure they'd been floating around for a few months but it was basically nothing. The kid just had such a big personality, he'd made impressions on the entire crew, and they were all feeling the loss as they sailed away to never return. They couldn't go back, Shanks had given that order the moment they'd raised anchor.

If they went back, he couldn't guarantee he'd leave without Luffy again, and that risk wasn't worth it. Garp was not someone Shanks wanted to trifle with.

He'd slipped away to hide in his cabin, a bottle in hand. He didn't plan on getting drunk, just drinking a little to take the edge off.

It wasn't long before Benn joined him, maybe fifteen minutes, and he took the bottle, not to take it away from Shanks but to drink from it himself. He dropped heavily onto their shared bed, and lifted his arm for Shanks to lean in closer. His arm still hurt, and now the ache seemed to be worse, but it matched the ache in his heart.

"I'm proud of you." Benn said, taking Shanks' hand in his own, lifting it up to kiss his knuckles. "What for?" Shanks asked with a wet sniffle. "Saving him, and knowing when to leave to keep him safe, even though we all wish he could come with us." Benn said, and Shanks just sighed and closed his eyes, taking comfort in his lover's body. "You make the right choice, and I know you're strong enough to stick to it."