A/N: This is a two-shot. Hasn't been beta'd so excuse mistakes and all. Got the idea when at work and listening to the radio. Avril Lavigne's 'Sk8ta boi' or however it's spelled, came on. I don't mind the song, but I rather don't like it either, so it's a little meh. I like how this fic turned out in the end.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or any of it's characters, I do not own the lyrics to Trapt's 'Headstrong' or Linkin Park's 'Burning in the Skies' and nor do I own Disturbed's 'Stricken'.

Pairing: LuZoLu

Warning/s: Swearing, rated T for it and yeah.
Universe: AU

Headstrong

Chapter 1: Times Past And Present

Luffy had to get backstage. He just had to! After buying these tickets with the last of his pay, Luffy wasn't going to be denied the chance to see the one person he had come to this place for. Roronoa Zoro. The band he had become a part of, was now world famous and he was the leading guitarist. No singing from that man, though he did love to shout out random crap about the lead singer, Ao Sanji, quite a bit.

They had a fantastic drummer, Cutty 'Franky' Flam and a beautiful back up singer, Nico Robin. The group shot to fame in no time once they had been discovered. Sanji's melodious voice, Zoro's excellent guitar playing, Franky's amazing drummer skills and Robin's dark, mysterious beauty had been an instant hit. East Blue was their name, and it had become an almost household name to any teenager around these days. Sanji's voice was ringing out across the packed stadium, the band's gig having been going for the past hour and still had another hour yet to go.

"I'm swimming in the smoke... of bridges I have burned... so don't apologise, I'm losing what I don't deserve!" the blonde man sang, making the dark haired man's heart beat slightly. Luffy had to see Zoro, though. He didn't care about the others, he wanted to see Zoro. How long had it been? They'd only been young teens when they'd first met.

Flashback

"Where am I?" Luffy muttered, looking at the map in his hands and then around the small town he was wandering around in, "This doesn't look like that..." Huffing and pouting a little, the 16 year old brat trotted off down an alley and stopped when he came across a pair of narrowed, almost evil eyes glaring at him from the shadows directly where he was heading.

"Are? Who're you?"

"It's not polite to ask someone else's name before introducing yourself first," the voice was slightly squeaky, but deep all the same, indicating it was a teen not that much older than he was. Luffy tilted his head a little before rubbing at the back of his neck.

"Wari wari, I'm Monkey D Luffy! I was just heading through to try and get to the store. My brother and I just moved here, so I don't know where to go..." He looked quite distraught about this fact and the man in the shadows slunk forward and revealed himself, a small, cheeky smirk on his face.

"Roronoa Zoro. I'm just creeping you out is all, don't worry, you can go through here," the teen shrugged. Luffy was indeed correct, this man was maybe a year or two older than he was. He was quite... lanky, really. Luffy was of course no better, but the guy in front of him looked as though he would fill out a bit more in a couple of years judging by the width of his shoulders. Zoro turned to walk away but Luffy flailed a little before grabbing the back of his shirt and stopping him.

"Na, don't go! Can you show me the way? I was supposed to be home an hour or so ago," Luffy whined, looking up at the taller teen with big eyes and hoping that his puppy dog charm would work. Amazingly, it worked very, very well.

"... Fine. I can't guarantee anything but I can try and get you there quickly."

"Thank you so much!" The younger teen cheered a bit before noticing that the taller had light green hair that looked soft and quite fluffy, really. He was almost tempted to pet it but stopped himself. After all, he'd only just met this guy a moment ago.

"How old are you?" Zoro glanced back at Luffy, raising a slight eyebrow as he asked his question. As they stepped into better light, Luffy also noticed then that the older teen had deep, almost marbled green eyes.

"Fifteen! But I'll be turning sixteen in May. What about you?"

"Seventeen, but I turn eighteen in November."

"So cool!"

End Flashback

They had gotten completely and utterly lost that day, and Luffy had only managed to get home sometime early in the morning. Zoro had stayed with him the whole time, apologising for getting them lost and then attempting to help the dark haired teen find his way home. When that didn't pan out, he'd just simply stayed and talked with the kid as they had walked. Zoro had no family to go home to, he lived on his own. Sanji's next song was starting up now and Luffy fidgeted a little.

He could see Zoro there, right there, and he would want to reach out and touch the guy. Make sure it really was him. It had to be. That green hair and voice was simply unmistakable. The crowd nodded along to the beat of the music, some even starting to bounce as the base kicked in and made Luffy's ribs thump and the ground beneath his feet seem to shudder.

"Back off, I'll take you on... Headstrong to take on anyone... I know that you are wrong... Headstrong! We're headstrong!" Luffy watched with wide eyes as Zoro played his guitar, smirking down at it with so much passion in his expression that the dark haired man was almost mesmerized.

"I... can't... give everything away...! I... won't... give everything away...!" Luffy edged his way through the crowd, trying to get closer to the stage but it was a hard task, that he really had to admit. He still loved him... he needed to see him and talk to him again.

Flashback

Tomorrow was Luffy's birthday and he was quite excited to be honest. He had something very important to tell Zoro when he came for the party and he just couldn't wait. It would be the highlight of his day, but he was also extremely nervous. Ace had braced him, said everything would be fine either way. Luffy believed him quite thoroughly. So, his head had been laid on the pillow and within moments, he had forced himself to sleep, ready for what his birthday would bring.

The party wasn't much seeing as Luffy and Ace had only been in the town for about three months, it wasn't like they had made many friends. Zoro was there along with Vivi, one of Ace's new co-workers. Vivi was very nice, Luffy liked her a lot even though she was kind of clumsy and a bit nervous. Zoro was first there whilst Ace was out picking up Vivi for the party and Luffy grinned at the taller man and fussed around him, making sure he was comfortable and everything.

"Oi oi, enough already eh?" Zoro chuckled a little, shoving Luffy to sit on the couch and wandering past to sit on the floor against the wall and cross his arms behind his head. That was his favourite spot, it was kept clear especially for the green haired man to sit there these days. Luffy peered at him with a smile before jumping up and moving to sit on the floor beside the older man.

"Ne... Zoro, can I ask... you something important?" Luffy's voice was suddenly a lot less boisterous and a lot more timid and shy.

"Mm? Go ahead, I guess," Zoro shrugged, eyes opened just enough that he could see Luffy from the corners of them. It really must have been something important for the kid to fidget and carry on like he was doing.

"Um... I... I wanted to ask..." Luffy's cheeks were going slightly pink before he huffed softly and looked up and directly at the older teen, "... if... you would go out with me?" Of all the things for Luffy to ask, Zoro had not expected that. What an unpredictable kid this guy was. Mind you, the colour that flooded the older man's cheeks was equally unpredictable. He cleared his throat a little before looking to the kid to see if he'd gotten the question right. When Luffy just continued staring at him, the boy's face bright red and his eyes filled with a determination Zoro hadn't seen yet, he knew it had to be real.

"Uh..." That was the most intelligent response he could get out? Way to go there, Zoro. Tch. Scratching at his hair a little, he then let his arms fall to his lap and looked at his fingers for a few minutes before swallowing a little. He really wasn't sure what to make of this. He was pretty close to Luffy, the two were damn near inseparable these days. Dating? He wasn't sure if that was a step he wanted to take or not. It... didn't sound so bad he guessed and it wasn't like he wasn't interested in Luffy or anything, he just... well... what could it hurt to go out with the kid? What harm would come from it?

"I..." Zoro managed and then cleared his throat and rubbed at the back of his neck, "I... guess... we could go out, ne..." The pure and utter, unadulterated joy that passed across Luffy's face made the older teen feel good that his answer had made the other this happy. He always tried his best to keep the guy as happy as he could and this was another of those times, it seemed.

"Really? A-awesome!" Luffy's grin was so wide it was a wonder his face hadn't split in half yet and in a swift movement he hugged the older teen and then jumped to his feet to run and get the door as he heard Ace's car pull up outside. Zoro rubbed at the back of his head, his cheeks still bright red.

"ACE!" Luffy's voice was echoing outside the house and into it as well, "He said yes!" Zoro couldn't stop himself from driving his palm into his now vibrantly glowing face.

End Flashback

"Alright everyone, settle down now!" Sanji was yelling, his chest heaving at his exertion but he was far from worn out. Zoro was breathing just as heavily, strumming a random few notes in the background as the blonde was speaking.

"We love you, Sanji-kun!" Female voices shouted in the distance which made the blonde instantly twirl on the spot.

"THANK YOU, CUTIE-CHWANS!" He bellowed back, waving happily to them.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please don't be alarmed by this moronic display. At least you all don't have to work with him," Zoro spoke, twitching mildly at the display the blonde man was putting on.

"Shut ya face, Marimo!" Sanji snarled back, glaring at the green haired man violently and Zoro played an 'Uh-oh' sounding few notes on his guitar which made quite a few people in the audience chuckle in amusement. These two's antics were quite the cover for the band and it was no act either. They were completely natural when insulting each other horribly like they did. Luffy watched them intensely, eyes focused on Zoro almost the whole time and occasionally shifting to Robin or Franky in the background.

"We're gonna go for a quick costume change but whilst we do, I'll leave the muscle headed marimo idiot here, to entertain you with a guitar solo," Sanji said, raising a hand and gesturing towards Zoro before the lights shut down and the three other members of the band disappeared into the background.

Zoro snorted softly before raising his guitar and setting his fingers on the strings, eyes focused and lips set in a small frown before he began to play. The notes at first weren't anything special, nowhere near fast and seemed to follow a slow, melodic tune that Luffy was sure he'd heard somewhere before.

Flashback

It was just after a year now that Zoro and Luffy had been going out, and today was the first day in a week that the dark haired man had found enough time to go and see his boyfriend. Zoro lived almost at the other side of the city to him and that made it also a little harder for them to get to see each other considering the bus system was pretty crappy. There was no line that went even near to Zoro's place, always away. So it was a taxi, a car, or walking. Usually, walking was the only option.

Zoro had no money for a car, Luffy was under age and Ace was often out on work trips and Taxis were often way too expensive for either of them to even consider. Finally, Zoro's apartment block came into view and Luffy grinned widely, looking up at it and scratched at his dark hair. He was seventeen now and Zoro was eighteen, about to turn nineteen. Wow. Time sure flew quickly. Heading into the place, Luffy tugged his key to Zoro's door from his pocket and hopped into the elevator. He smiled at some lady with her dog and then got out when the bright number 5 popped up and the doors dinged open. The lady remained in the elevator and the dog gave a bark before the doors closed again.

As Luffy marched his way down the hall to Zoro's door and was about to open it, he paused and leaned closer to the wood to listen. Faintly, he could hear the older man strumming on his guitar and Luffy grinned. He loved to hear Zoro practise. One day, Zoro wanted to be a guitarist. A famous one, one of the best if not the best in the whole world. Opening the door as silently as he could, Luffy snuck in and then poked his head around the hallway corner to see the older man sitting in the middle of his lounge room floor, bits of paper ripped, crumpled or just normally flat lay scattered around him everywhere and his guitar was seated across his lap.

"Damn it..." Zoro muttered and leaned forward to mark something on a sheet, "Goes... there. Ne." His hands danced over the strings again, playing a tune that Luffy closed his eyes and listened to thoroughly. It was a nice tune, very soft and melodic and made him want to just curl up and listen and be content. A string snapped in the middle though and Zoro grunted sharply, the tune cutting short as the older teen sucked on his finger where it had been cut as the wire had gone crazy.

"Lousy... too strong, Zoro. Too strong," he said to himself as he got up. Turning, he spotted Luffy and blinked for a second before scowling, his finger still in his mouth.

"Oi oi, you know I hate it when you do that, asshole."

"Wari wari, it's just nice to listen to you when you think nobody's looking," Luffy chuckled merrily as he said this, wandering into the apartment after he had tugged his shoes and jacket off. That tune was still playing in his ears and he had to wonder if it would be one that would become recognised around the world. Zoro grunted, not in the mood to respond with anything more than that. He felt the other's arms wind around his waist and leaned back into the embrace slightly.

The older teen had filled out quite a lot in the past year, his body size and shape becoming much more pronounced whilst his voice had finally dropped and hit it's proper pitch. A very low, smoky, almost dangerous sounding voice that Luffy definitely loved to hear. It was a great voice in his opinion. Actually, very little about this man seemed to be bad to Luffy. Maybe his habit to get into fights that he ended up getting fairly badly hurt in or his strange occupation with sharp, shiny things.

Those were about the only things about his marimo he couldn't stand. His friends that he had made during the year, weren't big fans of Zoro but they said very little about the matter. Luffy loved Zoro and that was that.

"Ne, Zoro?" Luffy asked, smirking a little into the other's back and hugging him a bit closer, "You looked really cute with your finger in your mouth like that..." The growl in Luffy's voice was hard to miss and Zoro rolled his eyes slightly, holding his finger under the cold water until the blood stopped running and congealed.

"Oh did I now? Huh. Funny that," he said. Luffy grinned and chuckled through his teeth. He wasn't half bad himself, body wise. Still lanky but possessing a definite muscle structure and some serious strength that rivalled Zoro's almost easily, and the older man practised his three blade art, Santoryuu and lifted heavy weights on a daily basis. So that said something about Luffy's strength right there. Skinny fingers traced over Zoro's stomach and up to his chest, pressing there and then suddenly Luffy had dipped the green haired teen and was holding him easily at a 45 degree angle to the floor.

"Funny, ne?"

"Oi oi, don't do that kind of crap all of a sudden like that!" Zoro yelped, grabbing onto Luffy's neck as the kid dipped him. Grinning widely, the younger man just laughed at his boyfriend's reaction before kissing him on the forehead and then standing him upright again.

"Seems I'm doing a lot of unexpected things today, eh?" The purr in Luffy's voice was just as unmistakable as the growl from earlier.

"Seems so," Zoro said, leaning a hand on his kitchen counter and propping his fist on his hip, crossing his legs and shrugging at the younger man.

"Maybe I can do some more unexpected things?"

"I think those have been very much expected for a while now, kiddo," Zoro smirked, enjoying teasing the other and playing this game.

"Oh? Then you should be well prepared by now then, huh?" Luffy grinned widely, enjoying the game just as much as his partner was.

"I... wouldn't go that far."

"Can I help in any way?"

"I very much doubt it, you have a habit of fucking things up."

"And down," Luffy said, raising an eyebrow in a suggestive manner. Zoro shrugged one shoulder, offering lazy, bedroom eyes at his boyfriend.

"If you say so."

"Zoro?"

"Mm?"

"... Your finger's bleeding again."

"Ah? Oh crap..." Zoro grunted, staring at the blood coming from the cut on his finger and shoving that digit into his mouth again. That was it for Luffy. He dived the older man and fairly dragged him into the bedroom, slamming the door closed behind them.

End Flashback

Zoro's guitar solo was reaching it's peak, the man's green hair dripping with sweat as what had started out as a slow and melodic tune, had turned into a fast paced, rocking beat that had everyone cheering the guitarist's name. Luffy felt his heart thumping in his chest as Zoro's hands and fingers twitched at an insane pace, the muscles on his arms bulging from the exertion and his feet twisting every now and again as he jerked his whole body to produce the perfect note.

Zoro really had become amazing... and Luffy regretted what he had done. He really needed to see the man. Apologise. Set things right between them, if Zoro ever wanted to see him again. He wouldn't be surprised if he didn't. What a fool, Luffy had been. The guitar solo ended, hitting it's high note and then with four other well placed, awesome sounding notes, it was over. Panting, Zoro smirked and then looked up as Sanji walked back out onto the stage again.

"Ahhhh, come on, Marimo. I could do better," the blonde grinned, hands in his pockets. Zoro tugged the guitar off and handed it to Sanji who gladly took it.

"This oughta be good," the green haired man said into his mic, still panting heavily after everything. Sanji held the guitar a bit awkwardly for a moment before setting it right and then starting to strum at the strings in a horrible, ear breaking manner.

"Oh man! That's horrible, bro!" Franky shouted from the back. The crowd laughed heartily at this.

"URESAI!" The blonde man snarled back at his blue haired compatriot before sticking his tongue between his teeth... and was suddenly playing like a pure and utter professional.

"Ooo hoo, someone's been practising," Zoro chuckled into the mic, watching as Sanji played the guitar for all it was worth. He wasn't anywhere near as good as Zoro had been and he only played for a quarter of the length the green haired man had but he had still proved himself as an good guitar player and upon finishing his little ditty, took a grand bow.

"... Who was better, ladies and gentlemen?" The guitarist called, tugging his guitar back on again, "Me or eyebrows?" The crowd looked at each other and some, not many, yelled a distant 'Sanji!' but the rest of the crowd shoved their fists in the air and screamed a chorus of 'Zoro!'.

"Aw man," Sanji pouted, slumping and taking the mic from it's stand, "That's not cool."

"Sounds about right from my angle," Zoro grinned wickedly and received a pretty middle finger as a return.

"Alright enough kidding around, ne?"

"You started it," Zoro muttered, making Sanji shoot a quick glare at him before the two settled. The crowd chuckled appreciatively of the performance, clapping a beat to try and get the band back into action again. Some people yelled out Sanji's name, some yelled out Zoro's and then alternated to Robin and Franky's.

The new song started up and Luffy spotted a break in the security line. After this song, he would run for there and get up on stage, and he would make Zoro listen. If not to everything Luffy had to say, then at least to his apology. The crowd was singing along, bouncing to the music and enjoying the gig very much, showing their appreciation with cheers and whistles.

"... That I am stricken and can't let you go...! When the heart is cold, there's no hope, and we know..! That I am crippled by all that you've... done...! Into the abyss will I run...!" Sanji and Zoro had shifted so they were now back to back, the blonde man suddenly having a guitar in his hands as well and the two played. A combination that lasted a fair while as they played, striking the notes perfectly and making the crowd scream their approval as Zoro and Sanji finished the solo and the blonde returned to singing again.

The song ended and while the crowd was screaming and cheering and the band was bowing and smirking at their own awesome performance, Luffy took his chance. In a swift movement, he had dodged into the break he had spotted in the security and had clambered up onto the stage. The guards didn't even realise he was up there, but Luffy could see Robin's eyes turn to him in confusion. Soon, Franky's followed and Luffy gathered his breath before yelling for the person he wanted to speak to.

"ZORO!" The guitarist jerked slightly and turned to stare at the man who had yelled his name. His usually slanted, sleepy eyes, widened with realisation as he recognised the figure. Zoro's teeth clenched and he held his guitar just a little tighter and watched as security guards ran for the kid to get him down from the stage.

"ZORO! ... You have to listen to me! I have something important to tell you, so you have to listen, okay!" Luffy was yelling as he fought off the guards, trying to get a response from the older man so he knew Zoro was listening and this wouldn't all be wasted. Sanji blinked, still holding his mic before he slowly turned to face the green haired man.

"... Zoro? You know this guy?" His expression and the tone in his voice was quite obviously confused as he waited for an answer from his friend. Zoro swallowed a little, not really paying attention to Sanji before he finally, slowly shook his head.

"No... I've never seen him before in my life," he said, frowning and watching as the guards began dragging Luffy down and towards the stairs. Sanji frowned a little at that response before turning to watch as the guards took the guy away. Luffy fought tooth and nail at that point, taking a few of the guards out but each time, they grabbed him around the face to keep him quiet, and then around the waist to throw him back down the stairs of the stage again. Finally, he managed to get his mouth free and he drew in another breath.

"I'M SORRY! ZOROOOO! I'M! SO! SORRY!" After that, the guards got a good hold on him and carried him away, tossing him out of the place and slamming the door in his face. The last thing he had seen before they'd managed to pull him away, after he'd screamed his apology, was Zoro's almost sad expression and the grim set of his mouth. He'd heard him, then. Good. Luffy would still want to see him one last time, apologise to him better than he just had then, but if that didn't happen... at least he had had this chance. That was the positive way to think about it. Sighing, Luffy pushed his hands into his jeans pockets and began the walk to home again.

... You have no idea how sorry I am, Zoro...

0o0o0o0o0o0o

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed :)