Road Trip: A Tale of Zombies, Friendship, and Romance
Chapter 10
When the city appeared in the distance, Nami let out a dramatic sigh of relief. With her luck, she had been afraid she'd come home to find the place burned down or overrun or completely deserted.
Nojiko was the first one to see them. She was back on gate duty, albeit with a new partner. In the time since Nami left to now, autumn had taken over, preventing any further lounging around in swimsuits. But this was okay for Nojiko, as it prevented her watch partner from ogling her instead of doing his job.
It was pretty hard to miss the approaching caravan, even without binoculars. She saw them approaching the gates and snapped to get her partner's attention. "Sanji. Binoculars."
He passed them to her and she peered through them. "What the hell? What is Boa Hancock doing all the way out here?"
"Empress Hancock?!" Sanji exclaimed, a mix of dread and excitement in his voice. "You're sure that's her?!"
"That's her symbol, isn't it?" Nojiko passed the binoculars back to him, and upon looking through them, he nodded.
"Wait... The car in front doesn't have... Holy shit! That's Nami in the front! Leading the pack!"
Nojiko yanked the binoculars away from Sanji, confirming this for herself. Her little sister, sitting in the passenger seat of the van out front. She recognized the black-haired woman driving, but no one else. "What the hell is going on here...? Dude, get my mom on the radio! Tell her Nami's back! And to... I dunno, prepare wine for Hancock? What do we do in this situation?"
There was a scramble to get things set up. Bellemere stood just behind the gate as it swung open to receive the town's guests. Her heart soared upon seeing her daughter safe and sound, letting the girl run forward and embrace her mother in a hug. "Oh my God, my baby's come home! You have no idea how worried I've been, literally every day!"
"I can kinda imagine..." Nami half muttered/half laughed.
"So what's with the... Parade? A celebration for the return of the conquering hero?"
Nami broke the hug, looking sheepish. "Ah. Well, look... There's a lot to go over and I'll explain everything but uh... Right now, you and Empress Hancock need to, well, negotiate a trade."
Hancock was approaching them, passing through the gate like the land was rightfully hers and all around her should be honored to breathe the same air as her. Even the normally unflappable Bellemere felt a little intimidated when Hancock stood before her. The fact that the sun was to her back, illuminating her like a divine being, didn't help.
"Uh. Hey. Empress. What brings you to our neck of the woods?"
Hancock scowled down at Bellemere. "You are Bellemere, the leader of this community?"
Bellemere nodded.
"I wish to speak to you. Your daughter and her lover shall join us."
Bellemere's eyes darted to Nami. She mouthed "lover?" and Nami frantically shook her head, waving her hands in front of her.
"It's not like that- it's- look, let's just get home and do this, I'll explain as we go."
Bellemere turned back to Hancock. "Is she in trouble or something?"
"No I'm not!"
"Yes she is."
Hancock's people began milling around the entrance, idly talking to the citizens of Funkytown. Coby, Vivi, Robin, and Luffy loitered around the gates, eyes on Nami. Hancock, pivoting on her heels, whirled around and beckoned for Luffy. "CUTE BOY! COME FORWARD!"
He walked up to them like a puppy who just heard its name, bouncing on his heels and staring between the three women with wide, curious eyes.
Bellemere leaned toward Nami, whispering through the corner of her mouth. "This your lover?"
"Yes-No! No it's not-! Ugh! Don't focus on that!"
"He's cute."
"Stop it!"
Hancock silence both of them with a wicked throat-clearing. "If you'll please take me somewhere we can have our meeting?"
Bellemere took one last look over Hancock's shoulder, at the mingling going on at the front gate. "Your troops aren't… gonna do anything, are they?"
"They have been ordered not to attack and they would rather throw themselves on a blade than defy my command."
Bellemere nodded. "You'd be my hero if I weren't actively terrified of you. Alright, let's go to my house, then."
As was to be expected, Hancock wasn't exactly impressed with Bellemere's home, but when you live in the White House, not much else can compare. She didn't say anything of course, because that would be rude. Seated at the kitchen table, both Luffy and Nami couldn't help but feel like grade schoolers who had been caught teaching swear words to other kids at recess and now had to be picked up from school by their parent. Even though he had never met Bellemere before, Luffy could feel the stern, badass, motherly aura that radiated off of her.
"Alright. Before we begin anything, I just… I want all the cards out on the table." Bellemere turned to face Nami. "When you left, you had a bunch of cultists. You came back with one cultist, Empress Hancock, and a new boyfriend. So… How was your trip, honey?"
Luffy and Nami exchanged a look. For the third time, they launched into a well-rehearsed summary of their adventure.
Outside, Nojiko weaved through the crowds, seeking out the would-be savior of humanity. Sanji was right on her heels the entire time, completely in the dark on everything that was going on.
"YO!" She called out when Robin came into view.
Robin was leaning against the wall near the gate, observing the crowd without actively participating in anything. The same went for her companions, although they were sitting on the ground.
"Raven!" Nojiko said when she and Sanji were within talking distance.
"Robin," she corrected.
"Rrrrright! Sorry. So you're back! Is Nami with you? I wanna see her!" Nojiko was already scanning the crowd.
Robin shook her head. "She had some immediate business with Hancock to take care of... I think they went to your house."
Nojiko's shoulders sunk a little. "Damn it, just missed her... Ugh, well, how'd the whole world saving thing go? You get that cure set up...?"
Robin gritted her teeth. "No... No, not exactly… That did not work out."
"Howso?" Nojiko asked, sliding up against the wall to mimic Robin.
"Your sister cost me the respect of my peers and then an incident I will never know the truth about cost me any chance at salvation."
Nojiko gave a quick glance to Sanji, who shrugged.
"That's rough."
"I'm dealing with it."
"On the plus side, her journey led her to us! And then led us to here!" The blue-haired girl chirped, suddenly standing up. "I'm Vivi, this is my husband Coby," she offered an outstretched hand for Nojiko to shake. "Do you know who we can talk to about housing? We'd like to live here."
"Uh…" Nojiko looked around at the crowds. "All… Of you?"
"Oh, no no!" Vivi waved her hands in front of her. "No, just the two of us! And Robin. But Coby and I would like our own house, if that's possible?"
"Well, in that case, I can actually set you guys up with something right now. My mom runs the place, so I have general authority to make major decisions like letting new people into our community that I've never met before, without consulting anyone else. Follow me, I'll show you what we can give you."
Nojiko led Vivi and Coby away, leaving Robin and Sanji alone. He put his hand on the wall, leaning against it with the smoothest, most heart-melting smile he could call forth. "Y'know, if you need a place to live…"
Robin gave him a quick once-over, starting from his face and scanning down to his feet. She thought for a second. "No."
He did his best to suppress the dejection and didn't let his smile falter for more than a split second. "Alright," he said, with all that same smoothness. "It was worth a shot~"
Once Luffy and Nami's reacap had ended and the negotiations actually began, Nami could understand entirely why Luffy had come out of the bar looking so dazed. Hancock was a dangerous woman, crossing her meant bad news for everyone, and yet at the same time, Bellemere couldn't just let herself become a doormat. The two of them were going at it, eyes locked on each other, neither flinching, neither showing any sign of weakness. It was a battle of "yes" "no" "yes" "no" "yes" "no" and Nami had lost track of what they were even arguing about five minutes ago. Before she lost track of everything, she tried to stress, as casually as possible, how important it was that Luffy stay in a safe, normal community instead of as Hancock's... Whatever. "No offense," she would add after every statement towards Hancock and her ruling method.
Luffy hadn't even bothered trying to keep track of the conversation. He immediately blanked out and instead kept his gaze toward Nami. In the drifting wonderland that was his mind, his thoughts bounced around, regarding his future in her town. Would they continue living together? Would he have to get his own place? What kind of work was he going to do? Were they ever going to talk about making out? We're they going to make out again? What is the appropriate time to ask someone to make out?
Bellemere was getting frustrated. Just like the cultists, her daughter had forced herself into something way over her head, and this time it was for a guy Bellemere didn't even know. In the polar opposite of Luffy's growing thoughts of togetherness with Nami, Bellemere was struck with the realization that she was getting wrapped up in payments and trading options with a warlord empress for... Some dude.
Nami slumped against Luffy's shoulder, leaning on him for support. Her eyes slowly moved up and her head tilted, allowing her eyes to meet with his. "I get that your fate kind of rests in the balance here and this is important?" she whispered softly enough that only he could hear it. "But if this ends up being the last time I ever get to see you, this is a hella disappointing way to spend it."
The mouse, finally reaching the cheese in Luffy's mind-maze, squeaked out the other question Luffy had on his mind. "Do we have to even be here?" He asked aloud, interrupting Hancock and Bellemere.
The two women stared at him, suddenly quiet.
"I'm just asking since no one's actually asked me what I wanna do or where I wanna live." He said that without a hint of sarcasm or negativity in his voice. He was just stating the facts.
Still, Nami's chest tightened. So did Hancock's and Bellemere's, but Nami's especially did. "You... You want to stay here, right?" Nami said.
"Obviously he would prefer to stay with someone as beautiful as me. That is why I have to bargain for him, after all," Hancock said, flipping her hair.
This whole time, Luffy hadn't actually made his intentions known. Nami just assumed. She was certain they all did as well. Robin, Vivi, and Coby all probably assumed Luffy would want to stay together. But, maybe he was cunning enough to know the power that could come with serving Hancock…
"Well, kid?" Bellemere asked. "What do you want to-"
"I wanna stay here with Nami."
The tension in Nami's chest immediately melted and she sank back in her chair. If she weren't trying to keep up appearances, she would've let out a sigh of relief.
"What did you say?" Hancock asked. It didn't come of quite as threatening as she wanted it to. "You want to stay here?"
He nodded. "That's what I said. I'm sure Washington DC would be cool, but it wouldn't be any fun without her! Nami's the first person I met after all that time, she's the one that lets me have, y'know, FUN!"
Bellemere looked from Luffy to Hancock, totally expecting to see her head engulfed in flames of rage, but instead the empress just looked stunned. Her hand moved to her mouth in surprise. Hancock had dealt with people swearing to bring her death. She had dealt with people spitting on her in defiance to her claims on territory. But never had anyone so casually dismissed her like this. No one had ever been given the chance to live in glory, and passed because it didn't sound as fun.
"I'm offering you glory, a chance to live at my side, in my palace. To be waited on, like a king… And instead you choose to live with this… skinny, pale, spastic girl?"
"Hey!" Nami and Bellemere shouted at the same time.
"You're damn right!" Luffy shouted back at Hancock.
"HEY!" Nami and Bellemere again shouted to Luffy this time.
The gears in Luffy's head creaked off some of the rust. "I-I mean-! That's-! Don't- Don't say mean things about Nami!"
"So what are you gonna do, Empress?" Bellemere said, her arms crossed. She was vaguely challeging Hancock at this point. "You gonna drag this kid away? You gonna make an innocent man do something he doesn't want to? That the kind of leader you are?"
Hancock had to will the embarrassed blush away from her cheeks. "Of course not. I would never… Hmph." She bit her lip, taking a deep breath and exhaling sharply. "I respect your bravery, speaking to me so clearly! If you wish to come to my domain one day, know that I will welcome you at any time."
"Well, thank you! I'm not ever gonna do that, but thanks!" Luffy said.
Hancock suppressed the hurt in her heart. She buried it deep like a healthy person would and turnd on her heels. "We've wasted enough time here. Good day to you, Bellemere. My people and I shall take our leave."
Before Hancock could reach the door, Bellemere sighed. "Wait. Wait, wait, you're already here. Come on, sit back down. We might as well… Try to work a thing out. You want tobacco, I'm sure you have some stuff we could use… Let's work out a trade process or something. No sense letting all this go to waste."
Hancock, still with her back to Bellemere, nodded. "Yes… Yes, there's no sense letting all this go to waste. We shall continue our discussion, then."
"And this time without as much hostility," Bellemere said, grinning. She tilted her head back, toward Nami and Luffy still standing in the kitchen. "Nami! Take your boyfriend and go show him around. Grown-ups gotta do grown-up stuff."
Nami was quick to grab Luffy's hand and he was quick to squeeze as tight as he could. Stepping outside was like being hit with a blast of freeing fresh air. The two of them felt lighter than ever.
"We can get you a place near my house, that won't be a problem. Everything's technically near my house since the town isn't that big but you know what I mean. I bet I can get you a spot on wall duty with me, if you're into getting up early. Maybe scav shifts or something..." Nami was rambling a little, leading him down the streets of her neighborhood. "Whatever you're into. We get a lot of downtime here, no matter what."
Luffy was rocking side to side as they walked, nodding enthusiastically at everything she said. Eventually Nami had to stop walking and turn to face him.
"Alright. I'm just gonna say it. When you say you want to stay here with me, do you mean... With me? Or just in the same area as me?"
"I wanna date you. Like everyone thinks we're already doing."
Nami's voice came out a bit strained. "Okay! Well! That was... I am still constantly caught off guard by your brutal honesty."
Luffy's head cocked to the side. "Why? Do you not want to?"
"No, I do! It's just most people tend to keep their feelings for someone else buried deep inside and they wait for the other person to pull them out."
"That's stupid. What a terrible way to deal with stuff like that."
Nami just shrugged, laughing. "That's just how it works, dude."
"So... Can we make out again?"
Nami responded by hooking her arms around Luffy's back. Their lips met and this time... This time they couldn't blame the alcohol on their complete inability to kiss properly. Teeth clacking, tongues prodding against each other awkwardly. They gave it a few attempts before agreeing to stop while they were behind.
"We'll figure it out as we go."
"Yeah, that... That sounds about right."
Even so, they still stayed wrapped in each other's arms. "Alright. I'll find you a place nearby. I don't think my mom would like me moving in with some guy she just met today? So we'll give THAT a little time."
"But until then we can hang out and date and kiss and stuff?"
"Yeah dude, all that romantic shit," she said, planting a kiss on the corner of his mouth.
So the world-saving thing didn't quite work out. There was no cure. No chance to eliminate the infection forever. But that wasn't so bad. They didn't really LOSE anything as a result. Even Robin couldn't complain too much when she was given her own house. And when Bellemere learned that her immunity to the virus made Robin invisible to the undead, Bellemere gave her a sweet gig as a scavenge leader.
Coby and Vivi also got what they wanted, a cushy house with a backyard and neighbors to talk to. It was a much, much better situation than the apartment, that was for sure. Nojiko didn't even intend to do it, but they ended up with a house that already had a swingset in the backyard. Which got them thinking about kids, and while they both agreed they would wait a little longer, talking about kids led them to talking about the method used to make kids, which led to taking advantage of not having neighbors directly on the other side of their bedroom walls.
They are having, like, so much sex you guys. Like, oh my God so much.
So is this the end of the story? Well, no, of course not. This is one particular incident in the lives of a bunch of different people. Their lives aren't just over after this, things will keep going. If they're lucky, things will keep going for a long time.
It's not a conclusion. It's another paragraph in the MLA-format essay of their lives. Robin didn't learn about her own personal worth, didn't form friendships with people who care about her, just for her story to end. Luffy and Nami didn't get together just to coast through the rest of their days. Coby and Vivi didn't settle in just to do nothing. The story isn't over until you're dead, and sometimes not even that's the end.
Maybe one day I'll tell you another story.