Debt
Nami had always felt indebted to Luffy, and if you knew Nami you knew she did not like being in debt. Though she'd never say it aloud, the rubber idiot was her knight in shining armour. Sailing on the Sunny certainly wasn't a fairytale ending and it wasn't as if Luffy had rode in on a white steed and swept her off her feet, but he had saved the day in his own way. He'd saved her life and the lives of her entire village. He'd saved her from an eternity of servitude under the wicked that was Arlong and for that, she owed him more than she could ever repay. At least, that's what she'd thought.
Luffy was their rock, the stronghold that held them all together and Nami hadn't ever expected to be able to pay back her fearless captain. He didn't need anything at all, at least not from her. Then she met Boa Hancock.
At first Luffy had reacted as he did to any old comrade and he greeted her enthusiastically. Hancock's feelings gushed from her body like blood from Zoro, endless and messy. She swooned and trailed behind Luffy like a moth to a flame, doe eyes shining with adoration. Nami found it creepy. I mean seriously, who could be like that about Luffy?
By the end of the first day Hancock proposed to Luffy three times undeterred by Luffy's instant denials. The crew disregarded the strange woman's antics, after all Luffy tended to attract odd friends and it was just one more to add to the group. Luffy also seemed accustomed to the sudden proposals but as the second day stretched into the third even his patience wore thin. It had become perfectly obvious to the bystanders as they watched their captain flee from the obsessed woman that she was a crazy fucking bitch. They each had their own moment of fantasy where they imagined how they would free their distressed captain from her clutches, but according to Luffy he owed her his life and more, so their restrained their desires.
By the fourth and final day Luffy's tolerance waned. With Boa suctioned cupped to his side he couldn't eat so fast or sneak up on Zoro or steal food with both hands. Nami watched as Luffy crossed the deck and tried to tug his arm free from Boa. She watched as her frazzled captain whined for Boa to release him and as he lifted his gaze again he caught Nami's eye. To her surprise with a small burst of effort he pulled himself free from his captor and bolted towards her. The next thing she knew, Luffy was stood behind her with his hands on her shoulders and Boa was stood before her with a glare so intense it could melt diamond.
For a moment Nami contemplated abandoning her thrust upon duty as a shield for her captain, but Luffy was not one that often needed help defending himself – especially not from the likes of her. With an aggravated sigh and a slight twitch of her eye, Nami took the plunge and did what had to be done. She turned on the spot and cupped Luffy's elastic cheeks, then without hesitation she locked their lips together.
It wasn't necessarily what Nami would call the most romantic kiss of her life and in fact was somewhat awkward. Neither of them closed their eyes and they both stared without so much as a blink during the length of the kiss. Her annoyed glare burned into his own blank one and she was somewhat inclined to compare it to kissing a dead fish. Not as slimy, just as weird. Nami felt a pang of satisfaction though as a shrill shriek sounded behind her followed by the thud of a body hitting the deck.
She pulled away from Luffy though her hands lingered on his face as she turned to inspect the fallen snake princess behind her with a smug smirk. As soon as she was sure Boa Hancock would not be getting up to bother her captain again, Nami turned her attention back to Luffy and with a tight pinch she stretched his cheeks out as far as her arms would allow.
"Ny... Nyami?" Luffy lisped through stretched lips. Nami recognised her name and the question in his voice regardless. He wasn't questioning the kiss, oh no. All Luffy was worried about was if he was in trouble with his lethal navigator. It was typical, really. It was as though the kiss hadn't even happened, but then again this was Luffy.
"You owe me." Nami stated simply and released the pinched cheeks. They snapped back into shape and Nami didn't wait for an answer as she brushed by Luffy and made way for the galley. She had no doubt he would return the 'rescue' a hundred times over in adventures to come, but she couldn't deny as she heard Luffy's mischievous laugh behind her that it felt good to be the 'hero' once in a while. It didn't hurt to clear her debt, either.
