Really, Usopp was the only one Luffy could talk to about this. Chopper wouldn't be any help since he'd probably be just as confused as Luffy. Zoro might not even listen, and even if he did he wouldn't give any good advice, or at least that was the feeling Luffy had about it. And he did trust his feelings.
Robin could surely be a great help, but Luffy didn't want to tell her about this just yet. He didn't even know why, but he just didn't want to; perhaps because she was a woman. And he had already spoken with Sanji, who was able to help a bit, but he couldn't tell him the whole truth. So Usopp it was.
"Usopp?" Luffy shouted as he walked onto the deck of the ship. Usopp wasn't in the cabin, so he had to be here somewhere. Luffy was just about to shout out again when he heard Usopp call back. A big grin formed on his face as he followed the direction of the voice and found the sharpshooter.
"I have a question for you. Actually I have something to tell you too, but the question is more important", Luffy explained once he had reached Usopp, who was leaning against the railing. The man just nodded and waited for him to continue.
"What should I do?" Luffy asked, getting straight to the point. Usopp stared at him, puzzled.
"About what?" he finally asked. Luffy smacked his own forehead for his stupidity. Of course it would be more logical to explain the situation first.
"About Nami", he said and waited. Usopp looked even more confused, so Luffy decided to explain some more.
"I think I love her", he said. Now that he had told the important part Usopp would understand and help him. But Usopp just looked like he was going to choke and it was Luffy's turn to be confused.
"You think… you what? I mean… could you explain a bit more? Why do you think that?" Usopp asked as soon as he started breathing normally again. Luffy grinned.
"I like her hair! It has a nice colour!"
Usopp looked even more confused now. Luffy sighed. It seemed he would have to explain himself in full so Usopp wouldn't ask any more questions before helping him.
"Nami is nice most of the time and I think she's pretty. And I like her hair. It reminds me of oranges, and I like oranges. I think Nami likes them, too. And oranges remind me of Nami", Luffy went on, while waving his hands a lot.
"Ooookay. Anything else?" Usopp asked, sounding a bit dubious.
"When I become the Pirate King, I think I'll need a Pirate Queen by my side, and I think Nami would fit the role quite well. She makes me feel fuzzy and warm inside, too. And that's a good thing. And she smells good", Luffy said thoughtfully. Yes, there were a lot of things he liked about Nami. Though he liked his other crewmembers too, Nami was special. He didn't think of Zoro or Sanji the same way he thought of Nami.
"When she's around I feel much better than when she's not around. If she's happy, I feel like bouncing around and want to embrace her. When she's sad I also want to embrace her but it's different, because I'm feeling sad, too. And if she wants to hit someone, I want to be the one she hits so she can get rid of her anger and be happy again. Because if she hits me and becomes happy again, then I feel like I've helped her and then I feel extra happy", Luffy mumbled as he tried to collect his thoughts. Usopp nodded, seeming more interested in the matter. Luffy was quite sure that now the sharpshooter was beginning to understand what he meant.
"So I think that I love her. I asked Sanji about it and he told me that when you're in love you feel happy and want to help your loved one if she ever needs it", Luffy stated, while nodding happily. Now he had made himself clear and Usopp would help him with his problem.
"Okay, I see. So your problem is that you don't know how to tell her all this?" Usopp concluded. Luffy felt a bit disappointed. Usopp hadn't understood at all!
"No, no. I need a present for her!" Luffy said, and grinned. Usopp's face went blank.
"A present?" he asked, and scratched his head. Luffy nodded.
"Yes. Sanji said that when you confess your feelings, you gotta have a present. Then the girl will fall for you too!" Luffy could hardly control himself as he explained. He wanted to jump around and smile to the world. He could imagine Nami smiling at him when he gave her a present. And then Nami would love him back. Luffy would be so happy!
"Okay. So you don't know what to give to her?" Usopp tried again, folding his arms.
"Kind of. Actually I do know what I'd like to give to her, but the problem is that I don't have oranges! Or anything else for that matter", Luffy said a bit sadly.
"Oranges?" Usopp asked. Luffy huffed. How short a memory he had!
"Because her hair is the same colour! And she likes oranges. She even has those orange trees on the ship, but I can't give her those ones, because they're already her's and then there'd be no point in giving them to her", Luffy said, pointing in the direction of Nami's tangerine groves.
"If she has oranges already, what would be the point of giving her more of them?" Usopp pointed out, and looked at Luffy as if he was stupid. Luffy felt like hitting Usopp, which he did.
"Are you stupid? She has lots of money too, but is still always happy to get some more! So why not give her more oranges, too?" Luffy said, and folded his arms. Usopp rubbed the cheek that Luffy had punched.
"Okay, whatever. Give her oranges. So what was the problem again? Oh, no, don't say it. I remember. You don't have any. So? Go get some?" Usopp said, sounding a little irritated. Luffy felt irritated too.
"Where? We're in the middle of the sea, I can't find oranges here. That's the problem!" Luffy said , and hung his head. He wanted to give oranges to Nami so badly.
"… How about you wait until we get to the next island?" Usopp suggested, sounding less irritated now. Luffy lifted his head and smiled broadly.
"Of course! Thanks Usopp!" he said, and laughed happily. Yes, as he'd expected, Usopp was the right man to solve his problem!
ooooo
It had been a while and the island had yet to come, but Luffy waited patiently. He'd buy oranges for Nami as soon as he stepped foot on that island. And then he would be able to confess his feelings and Nami would love him back. He hadn't actually planned what would happen after that, but it wasn't important. Things would go by their own weight. He grinned at the thought and stared at the horizon from his usual sitting place on the Going Merry's figurehead. Maybe the island would be there today.
"Luffy?" he heard Nami's voice behind him. His heart began to beat faster and his grin widened. He turned around to face the orange-haired girl.
"Yes?" he asked, and looked into Nami's pretty eyes. She looked a bit worried, so Luffy tilted his head questioningly.
"Is something bothering you? The past few days you've been spending all your time on the figurehead, excluding when you eat or sleep", Nami said. Luffy smiled reassuringly.
"I'm just extra eager to arrive at a new island! I can't wait!" Luffy was truthful, though he left unsaid just why he was so eager. But Nami hadn't asked that. Said girl smiled.
"Alright, we should arrive at the next island soon, at least I have this feeling we will", Nami assured him, and leaned against the end of the prow. Luffy stayed where he was and admired Nami's hair. He really did like it a lot.
"… What are you staring at?" Nami asked after a while. Somehow she seemed to be offended about it. Or no, not offended… confused. Yes, that was it.
"Your hair", Luffy answered honestly, and continued staring. Nami lifted her hand to her hair and brushed it with her fingers. It looked so soft, Luffy wanted to touch it, too.
"Does it look strange?" she asked before Luffy made up his mind about whether to touch it or not.
"No, it looks nice. It looks very bright today. That's nice. I like it", Luffy replied, and still considered stretching his hand to pet her. But his thoughts were interrupted when he saw Nami smiling in a manner she rarely did. He couldn't put his finger on it. He couldn't find a word to describe it just then. She blushed a tiny little bit too. She rarely did that either. It suited her well.
"Thank you", she said with that smile still on her lips. Luffy felt his heart become lighter and he felt warm inside. Just like how he had described to Usopp a few days ago. And he also had this urge to hug Nami. Actually, why not do that?
"Nami-saaan! Dinner's ready", Sanji shouted just then, making Nami turn her head in the direction of the voice. Luffy felt that the special moment was somehow ruined; it was too late now. He just felt it in his gut. For a second he felt kind of sad, but then realized that Sanji had just said "dinner".
"Yay! Food!" he shouted, and jumped on the deck. But at the same moment he heard Usopp hollering.
"Hey! There's an island!" the sharpshooter called from the crow's nest. Luffy turned to look, and indeed saw an island. It wouldn't take long to reach it.
"Finally! An island!" Luffy shouted, and started to jump around. Then he came to a halt. Wait a minute. He could either stay on the deck and wait for the island, or he could go to the cabin and eat. Which one should he choose now?
…
"Fooood!"
ooooo
After devouring the last bits of their food, Luffy was ready to head to the island. He heard Sanji call after him, but he didn't have the time to listen. He had to get the oranges as soon as possible.
"Oranges for Nami, oranges for Nami, oranges for Nami…!" he sang as he walked down the streets, trying to find any stalls that sold fruit. Soon he spotted one and headed over.
"Hello! I'd like to buy some oranges!" Luffy announced once he was in the hearing range of the merchant. The old man looked at him with a smile on his wrinkled face.
"How many?" the man asked, as he started putting oranges in a paper bag. Luffy thought about it. What would be a good amount?
"Ten", he decided. That was the largest number he could count with his fingers, so it was logical. He was also quite sure that one hundred, another logical number, would be too much. It would be hard to carry.
"Here you go", the shopkeeper said, and gave the bag to Luffy, who paid for it. A big smile formed on Luffy's face. Now he had all he needed.
"Thanks!" he shouted as he started running back to the ship. Now he needed to find Nami.
"Luffy!" he suddenly heard someone shout, and stopped in his tracks. He looked around and saw Usopp heading his way; he lifted his free hand and waved happily. The sharpshooter jogged up to him and looked at his bag curiously, which prompted Luffy to open it and show his recent purchase.
"Look! I found oranges! Now I need to find Nami, is she on the ship?" Luffy asked with a huge grin. Usopp chuckled, but shook his head.
"No, she went to look around, I don't know when she's coming back", Usopp said. Luffy almost felt disappointed. Almost. Not quite.
"Oh well, I guess I'll have to wait for her then!" Luffy said, and turned to walk back to ship, but then stopped and turned back to Usopp.
"Were you about to say something? When you shouted after me? Oh, and what was it that Sanji tried to say when I left the ship?" he asked. Usopp looked lost for a moment, then caught on.
"Oh, I was just going to tell you that Nami left. And Sanji… umm… he was about to tell you to wait so he could come with you. But it doesn't matter anymore since you're already heading back and he left on his own. So it's nothing important", Usopp said, waving it off.
"Ah, okay. What about you? Are you going somewhere?" Luffy asked. He had spare time now that Nami was doing something somewhere else. Usopp shrugged.
"I was just strolling around. I can go back to the ship with you and we can plot your confession to Nami together, eh?" Usopp offered, and elbowed the captain gently. Luffy grinned. He hadn't actually thought about the confession too much, and Usopp made it sound like fun.
"Okay!" he said, and grabbed Usopp by the wrist and ran towards Going Merry with a flailing sharpshooter.
ooooo
"So, what were you planning to do?" Usopp asked once they were sitting in kitchen and ready to scheme. Luffy rolled an orange on the table while contemplating the question.
"Well, I was going to wait until she comes back and then I will give her the oranges and say that I love her", Luffy answered with a grin. Usopp looked thoughtful.
"Well, not bad, but… where will you do it? It wouldn't be a good idea to confess that kind of thing out loud on the deck, because Nami might… I mean… you know, if she doesn't feel the same, she might…" Usopp stumbled over his words slightly and for a good reason too, because Luffy immediately began freaking out.
"What?! Of course she'll feel the same! I got her a gift!" the captain yelled, and looked at Usopp as if he was an idiot. Really, how bad was Usopp's memory? They had already discussed this when Luffy first brought up his feelings for Nami! Luffy had told Usopp that Sanji had said that girls will love you if you give them gifts! Or was it just too hard to understand?
Usopp watched how Luffy's expressions changed and he could almost hear the process of gears turning in his captain's brain. He sighed.
"Luffy, listen. Sanji told you that, right? Have you paid any attention on how Sanji's love life is actually doing? He showers Nami and Robin with presents all the time, but do you see any romance going on with them? No, you don't. So can you really trust Sanji's theory so much? I mean, you should prepare for the possibility that Nami might not love you back. I mean, it's not like you don't have any hope, and maybe she will love you back after you confess, but don't get your hopes up too much or you'll just fall harder", Usopp rambled. Luffy stared at him with his mouth slightly agape.
"… But I'm not going to fall from anywhere, what does that have to do with anything?" he asked after a short silence. Usopp looked at him in disbelief.
"Okay, whatever. The point was that you should be ready for rejection, just in case. And weren't we actually trying to decide the place where you were going to confess to her?" Usopp continued, rubbing his temples. Luffy nodded.
"Can I confess to her in the kitchen?" Luffy asked. They were in the kitchen right now so it was the first thing to come to mind. Usopp shook his head.
"No, Sanji will probably be in here and he would kick your head in if he overheard your confession to Nami", Usopp reasoned, and Luffy made small 'ooh' of understanding.
"The girls' room?" Luffy suggested, but Usopp shook his head again.
"Robin is in there", he said, and Luffy tilted his head, feeling confused. So what if Robin was there? But oh well, Usopp seemed to know these things so Luffy might as well listen.
"At the orange groves?"
Usopp shook his head again. "Giving oranges at the orange groves? Bad idea."
Luffy didn't quite get it, but let it go. "The prow?"
Usopp looked thoughtful for a second, then seemed satisfied.
"Yeah, that will do. But maybe we should make sure Zoro won't be there", he said, and Luffy was lost.
"Why can't Zoro be there?" he asked, and caught the orange that tried to roll off the table. Usopp leaned closer with a mischievous smirk on his lips.
"Because... Zoro's a secret agent who will tell the whole world about this and then Nami will be devastated!" Usopp whispered, and Luffy's jaw dropped to the floor. Literally.
"REALLY?! Zoro's a secret agent?!" he blurted, and Usopp couldn't help feeling proud of himself.
"Yes, and that's why he shouldn't be there when you confess to Nami!" he said, and Luffy nodded in agreement, looking serious. If Usopp said so, then they should make sure Zoro was somewhere else at that moment.
"What shall we do?" Luffy asked. Usopp rubbed the side of his long nose in thought.
"We should probably tie him up and throw him in the boys' room, but... damn, he's too strong. ... I think we should leave him some sake near his weights, that'll pretty much guarantee him to stay there", Usopp said, and Luffy grinned. That was a great plan!
"Okay, we'll do that! So I'll be alone with Nami at the prow, and I'll give her the oranges and tell her I love her, and she will love me back, right?" Luffy asked, the grin still firmly in place. Usopp looked a bit unsure, still considering the possibility of Nami not loving Luffy back, but nodded anyway. Luffy giggled with enthusiasm. It was going to be awesome!
ooooo
Luffy was sitting on his special seat and waiting for Nami, with the oranges in a bag right by the figurehead's base. Usopp had already set Zoro's sake trap in motion, and the swordsman fell for it in no time, resulting in him drinking contentedly at the other side of the ship. Everything was going perfectly, except that Nami had yet to show up. But she would sooner or later, hopefully sooner.
It took another hour, but Luffy was finally able to see her approaching the ship. He clapped his feet together excitedly and waved to her, but she didn't notice. Well, it wasn't unexpected since she was still far away from the ship, and Luffy was only able to see her bright orange hair amongst the numerous crowds of people. But soon she came closer and finally saw Luffy. She smiled and waved back, carrying a bag in her other hand. Luffy felt his heart beat faster and he wanted to run in circles just to burn up some of the energy, but he had decided to wait patiently, so he would do exactly that. And it meant no running.
"Hey Nami! Come here!" Luffy called out as soon as Nami boarded the ship. The orange-haired woman looked a bit surprised, but smiled soon after.
"I'll just drop this bag in my room first", she said, and Luffy nodded. He could wait a little longer.
Soon enough Nami came out of her room and walked towards the prow, where Luffy was waiting.
"What is it, Luffy?" Nami asked, and glanced curiously at the bag on the deck. Luffy grinned, and hopped down from his seat. He lifted the bag and gave it to Nami.
"It's a gift for you! I bought it", Luffy said, and his smile broadened. He could hear his own unusually fast heartbeat in his ears and kind of hoped that Nami didn't hear it. It would be distracting.
"Oh, thank you", Nami said, and looked in the bag. Her smile fell when she saw the oranges. Did Luffy steal them from her groves? Wait, he said he bought them. Why did he buy her oranges when she already had lots of them?
"Do you like them?" Luffy asked, sounding very excited. Nami lifted her chin and looked at him with confusion.
"They're very nice, but why did you buy me oranges? I mean, I already have lots of them", Nami asked, and now it was Luffy's turn to look confused. Nami was a bit like Usopp when it came to this idea.
"Because you like oranges, right? And you like money. When you get more money, you are happy, so when you get more oranges, you'll be happy too, right?" Luffy asked, and looked a bit concerned. Had he chosen the wrong gift after all?
Nami blinked, but then she started to laugh. Luffy tilted his head, still perplexed with her responses, but then he began to laugh too, because Nami was laughing and it made him feel happy. They continued for a while, until Nami's laughter calmed down to occasional giggles.
"Yes, I love them. Thank you, Luffy", Nami said, and smiled sweetly. Luffy felt his heart burst with joy. Nami liked the gift! Oh, and now the confession part.
"Hey Nami, I actually have something to say too", Luffy started, and the orange-haired woman looked at him with curiosity. Luffy took Nami's free hand into his hands and fell to his right knee the way he had seen Sanji do. He looked into Nami into eyes and grinned.
"I love you", he said, and waited. Nami blinked. She blinked again. Then she looked confused. Then she looked around, seemingly expecting something to happen. Nothing happened. She looked at Luffy again.
"Pardon?" she asked, and Luffy blinked confusedly before smiling again.
"I said I love you", he repeated, and nodded for emphasis. Nami blushed a bit as she began to finally realize it was sincere.
"Oh", she managed to say. Luffy stood up, but didn't let go of her hand. He looked at her expectantly. Nami bit her bottom lip and thought it over. Well, Luffy was cute. He was strong. He had saved her more than once. He was the captain. He was going to be the Pirate King, which would make her the Pirate Queen, right? And she would get lots of treasure. And Luffy was cute. Wait, she thought that already? But he really was.
She made up her mind.
"So you want me to be your girlfriend?" she asked, and smiled.
"I want you to be my Queen", he corrected.
"Well, that's okay with me", Nami said with smile, and kissed Luffy on his right cheek. Luffy grinned that impossibly wide grin of his and pulled Nami into tight hug. The navigator giggled, and dropped her bag of oranges on the ground to return the embrace. They just stood there in silence, holding each other, for a while, until Luffy decided to make one thing clear.
"Nami?"
"Luffy?"
"I really like your hair."
Nami couldn't help but laugh again. Being Luffy's girlfriend was going to be very interesting.