I hope you all enjoy the cover image for this story! I made it myself. I can't tell you all how much I love ZoLu :)

Anyway, please R&R!

A Kiss and a Warning

If Zoro was completely honest with himself, spending time with Luffy was nice. The kid was pretty exciting and just all around interesting. There wasn't ever a dull moment when he was around.

Currently, the two of them were alone in the living room of their dorm, sitting side by side on the couch, double teaming a Grand Prix round on Mario Kart. Luffy didn't seem to care for first place nearly as much as he wanted to make sure they both placed in the top three.

"Even in video games he tries to be considerate of others." The marimo thought, before making a left turn in the castle.

"Zoro nooo! You're going the wrong way again!" the gum boy yelled when he saw it happen on the screen.

"Dang it!"

"How do you keep doing that when the arrows tell you where to go?! Now you're gonna end up in last place!" Luffy said poutingly. He was clearly more upset about the situation than Zoro was.

"I think I can still make the top six."

"No, everyone else is about to cross the finish line." Luffy said, and then made his character come to an abrupt stop.

"You don't have to lose the race for me, Luffy."

"I know, but if you go down, I'll go with you. We do it together."

With a sigh, Zoro got up and turned off the console. "Let's do something else." He said, and then put his controller on the floor in front of the television stand.

"What did you have in mind?"

When Luffy looked up at him, Zoro felt a tinge of discomfort in his lower gut again. It made him so uncomfortable that he had to look away. "I don't know… Let's go eat lunch or something… It is about to be noon."

"Yeah, good idea! I hope they have lots of meat!" Luffy exclaimed.

It really didn't seem to take much to excite him.

"C'mon then. I'll treat you." Zoro said with a smile.

During the trip across campus, which was bustling with other students eager for lunch, Zoro and Luffy were forced to walk close to one another almost the whole way. They ended up back-to-front in a tight crowd, trying to get through a narrow walkway.

With Luffy's backside right up against his torso, Zoro couldn't help but blush. It was too suggestive, too inappropriate. Luckily Luffy never turned around, otherwise he would have surely seen the redness on his cheeks.

It didn't take them long to get out of the crowd, and he was thankful for that.

When they literally popped out of the crowd, they went to stand off near the stairway in order to decide which restaurant they would eat at.

When he noticed someone familiar approaching them, Luffy tugged at Zoro's sleeve. "Oi, Zoro! Isn't that the girl you're always trying to avoid?" he asked.

"Uh- Perona?! Oh no!"

For a moment, Zoro thought about grabbing Luffy and ducking off into an alley or something, but that wouldn't work as she had them in her sights now.

"Zoro!" she yelled, and then started fast-walking towards them.

Said man stood in place, completely fearful of what was to come.

When Perona reached them, Luffy smiled at her. "How're you today, Ghost Girl?"

"That's not my name, baka! It's Perona! Pe-ro-na!"

"Oi, where's your bear thingy?" he asked, and then stuck his pinky finger up his nose.

"I left him in my room, not that it's any of your concern… Stop picking your nose in public, you urchin! So impolite!"

"What are you doing here, Perona?" Zoro asked, stepping in front of Luffy.

"I was about to get lunch and I just happened to see you here… with your boyfriend at that. What a coinkydink."

Taking the shorter boy by the arm, Zoro made to leave. "Well, we were about to try to beat the lunch rush so we don't have time to-"

"Hold it right there, mister! I've been suspicious of you since I heard that ridiculous tale about you dating this baka. I did some thinking, and I honestly can't believe you two are dating."

"How do you expect me to respond to that? Luffy and I are together and there's nothing more to say about it. Believe it if you want to, or don't."

Perona looked back in forth between the two in front of her suspiciously, and then she hatched an idea. "I want proof."

"Proof?" Both Luffy and Zoro asked at the same time, Luffy having asked from over Zoro's broad shoulder.

"Prove to me that you're dating. I want the two of you to kiss. For ten seconds!"

Zoro's jaw dropped. He could've gone through the ground for how unprepared for that he was. Though, he knew something like this would happen eventually with a lie of this kind. He closed his mouth, swallowed down a mouthful of saliva and felt himself getting sweaty all over, especially his palms. Looking down to Luffy, who was standing right next to him, he didn't know what to do. Should he go through with it? Or face Perona's punishment for lying to her…?

"Not going to do it?" the pinkette asked.

"I… I…"

Luffy stared up at the stuttering Zoro for a moment. He was clearly frenzied about this. "Maybe we should do it somewhere less out in the open. Zoro's not the kind of guy who likes doing that kind of stuff in public."

"I don't care where you do it, just do it soon. I don't plan to stay with you two all day." The girl said.

"How about behind that building?" Luffy asked, and then pointed to the science annex.

"Your choice."

Zoro stayed quiet, even as he followed Luffy and Perona to their designated spot. He wasn't sure about this. He wasn't sure taking things this far was worth it. But honestly, Perona could do some frightening things when she was ticked off. The last thing he wanted was to have her find out that he had carried on with Usopp's lie.

Luffy stopped when he and the other two were successfully out of sight to the public eye. Surrounded by bricks on one side and trees on the other, this little walkway provided the perfect cover in case Zoro did actually want to go through with this.

Staring up at the man, he wondered what he was thinking about right now.

He looked really nervous. And uncomfortable.

This was no way for his nakama to be feeling while he was around.

If he admitted it, he, too was a bit uncomfortable. Kissing Zoro would definitely put a damper on their friendship. He had just gotten him to open up a bit more.

It's not like he really wanted to do this either. That was because of the talk they had that time in Zoro's room. He told him he wasn't going to start liking him, and that's exactly what he had done. Keeping that part of his emotions out of the equation of their friendship seemed to be the best option, as that is what he had told Zoro he would do.

"Are you two going to do it or not?" Perona asked, interrupting Luffy's train of thought.

"We're…" Zoro couldn't think of anything to say.

Cautiously, he lifted his hands and rested them gently on Luffy's slender shoulders.

"Zoro…" the shorter boy mumbled.

The two of them made eye contact and Luffy felt his body go warm, especially his cheeks. There was something about Zoro that he did like. He couldn't deny that any longer. But this was still so wrong…

"Luffy…" Zoro said quietly.

He leaned in slowly until he was only an inch away from the boy's nose.

Luffy leaned up and, instead of kissing Zoro, he pressed his lips against his ear. "Zoro… you don't have to do this, you know." He whispered, "This isn't what you really want, is it?"

Zoro shivered when he felt Luffy's lips moving against his skin. It was titillating.

"Luffy… I have to…" he responded.

Perona noticed their position and stomped her foot. "What is going on here?!" she shouted.

Luffy lifted his hands and gripped Zoro's arms softly. "It's okay. I'll take care of this." He said, and then stepped back from him.

"I knew you two weren't dating!"

"That's right, we're not! Zoro doesn't like guys and he doesn't like you either!"

"Oh!"

"Well, I guess he does like you as a person, but he doesn't want to be with you! You're mean and unfriendly and you call him a baka all the time! Of course he wouldn't want to date you again!"

Perona's pink eyebrows knitted down and she gripped her umbrella. "How dare you say things like that to me?! Zoro, make him stop!" she insisted.

Said man turned and faced Perona, then scratched his head. "He's right… I only said I was dating him so you wouldn't ask me to take you out. I don't want to date you, Perona. I just want to be friends."

And just like that, a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. It was all thanks to Luffy that he gained the courage to speak up for himself to her.

But he knew the fit was coming. Closing his eyes tight, he prepared himself for the punishment he was about to receive.

When it did not come, he opened an eye to make sure he hadn't died an instant death.

All he found was Perona standing with an unusually sad look on her face.

"You don't want to date me?" she asked crestfallenly.

"No… Not anymore. You and I are better off as friends. I never meant to lie to you, but you can be… kind of abrasive when you don't get your way."

Both Zoro and Luffy watched in anticipation as Perona stood in front of them, completely quiet and unmoving.

"Perona, don't be upse-"

"No, save your breath, baka! I've got plans today and they don't involve you! Goodbye!" the girl said, then turned and stormed off.

"Perona!" Zoro called.

"It's okay, Zoro. I think she just needs some time to be alone." Luffy said. When he got no response from the other, he put his hands into his pockets, "We don't have to get lunch if you don't-"

Quickly, Zoro turned, grabbed Luffy by the shoulders, and then pulled him into a kiss.

Luffy was surprised, so surprised that it took him a moment to react. Encouragingly, he placed his hands on Zoro's arms and returned his kiss.

It was innocent. Nothing serious. Just a simple kiss on the lips.

Zoro pulled away and avoided making eye contact with the shorter boy in front of him. "That was for helping me… I'm still not into guys, but you deserved that. So thanks, Luffy…" he said nervously.

"Zoro…" Luffy began, "You stole my first kiss!" he shouted.

"W- what?" the marimo asked, voice full of shock.

"I was going to kiss Traffy and have him be the first guy I kiss, but you stole it from me!"

"I … Gomen, Luffy… I didn't know…" Zoro muttered sincerely.

Although, to his own surprise, he was disappointed that Luffy wanted that Trafalgar guy to be his first kiss. He didn't realize that Luffy had never kissed anyone before.

"I guess it's okay. I mean, it was just a kiss."

"Yeah…" the marimo said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Oi, let's go get lunch! I'm really hungry and you said you were treating me!"

"Oh, right. Let's get going then."

Nami, having just gotten out of her history class, walked fast in the direction of her dorm. She had important news to share with her friends that could not wait. Of course, it would probably be announced across campus towards the end of the day, but she wanted to do it as soon as possible.

Looking up at the sky, she wondered how it had come to this.

"I hope we'll be okay…" she thought.

Just as she came up on the library, Robin stepped out of the massive building with a book under her arm and greeted her, "Good afternoon, Nami." She said with a welcoming smile.

"Robin! You have to come with me!" Nami responded.

She quickly grabbed Robin by the arm and led her in the direction of the dorm.

"Nami, what's going on? Is everything alright?" the raven-haired woman asked.

"Nami-swaaaaan! Robin-chwaaaaan!"

Both women turned and saw Sanji coming their way with an excited look on his face.

"Sanji-kun! Perfect timing!"

"Helloooooo ladies! Did you two have a lovely day?!" the blonde asked eagerly.

"No time for that right now! Come with us, Sanji-kun! There's something important I need to tell you all!"

"Anything for you, my dear! I'd follow you to the ends of the Earth and back if you asked me to!"

With Sanji and Robin behind her, Nami hurried to their hall and entered the lobby. She rushed over to the elevator, pressed the button, and then waited for a few seconds as it came down from the eighth floor before she could take no more. "Raaaaagh! Up the stairs!" she exclaimed, and then took off with Sanji right on her heels and Robin just a few paces behind them.

When the three of them got up to the fourth floor, Nami tore down the hallways and banged at her door. "Vivi! Vivi come outside, hurry!"

Robin leaned heavily against the wall to catch her breath. Sanji came over to her and took out a notebook to use as a fan for her, "Oh Robin-chan! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. It's just been a while since I've had to run so fast!" the woman responded with a smile.

As soon as Vivi opened the door, Nami nearly pounced on her. "Vivi, I'm so glad you're here!"

"What's wrong Nami?" said girl asked confusedly.

"The other guys aren't here, but I guess I can tell you three and just let the word spread…"

"Nami, what has you in such a frenzy?" Robin asked.

"There's a storm coming! A hurricane! They're going to cancel classes for the next two days until it passes and have us stay in our dorms. I'm so worried about everyone... The weather seems fine right now, but near midnight things are going to get ugly…"

"That sounds horrible." Vivi said, "Shouldn't they move us to the university center? It is the largest place on campus…"

"They can't. There's some kind of mold in the ceiling from the last storm they're still taking care of. So my professor said they were going to just have us stay in our rooms and have hall monitors on the first floors of each building."

"I'll tell the guys about it. If you're concerned Nami-san, I know this is going to be serious." Sanji said.

"Good. And tell Chopper, too. He should stay with us during the storm instead of being alone in his room."

"Right." Without another word, Sanji hurried down the hallway and rounded the corner to get to his room.

Vivi got an idea and stepped out into the hallway. "Nami, do you think… maybe we should stay with the boys during the storm? I'm kind of worried about them."

"Hmm. I don't think so. Besides, there's no room in their dorm for three girls." The orange-haired girl responded.

"Why don't we ask them to stay with us then?" Robin asked. "We have the extra bedroom for now. Plus you and I can share a room, which will free another room up for them instead of making them sleep on the couch. Chopper can sleep in Vivi's room, if she doesn't mind."

"Oh, that sounds like fun!" Vivi smiled.

"Wh- Don't I get a say in this?!" Nami asked.

"Come on, Nami. It'll be a good way for everyone to bond." Robin offered.

With big puppy dog eyes, Vivi turned to Nami. "Pleeeease?!" she said.

"… Fine… But don't come crying to me when the bath tub is filled with hair and dirt and… ugh, I don't even wanna think about what else…"

"We'll at least have Sanji's heavenly cooking to hold us over."

"Hm, you're right! Why didn't I come up with this idea?!" Nami grinned.

She stepped into the dorm, followed by Vivi and Robin, and then went into her room alone to prepare it for the boys' arrival.

When Sanji walked into the dorm, he noticed that only Chopper and Usopp were there, playing video games. "Where's Luffy and that marimo?" he asked.

"They're at lunch." Chopper smiled.

"Lunch? They're eating lunch… together?"

"Yup! I saw them on my way here. I was going to eat with them, but they seemed to be having a good time together, so I kept going."

"And I saw him, so I let him in with me." Usopp added.

Sanji put his booksack down on the floor and took a seat at the kitchen table. "Well, I guess we can tell them when they get back."

"Tell them what?" Chopper asked.

"Nami-san said there's a hurricane approaching the school. Classes will be cancelled for at least two days until it passes and we're all going to be confined to our dorm halls."

"Oh… I guess I'll be all alone in mine…" the reindeer muttered.

Sanji shook his head disapprovingly. "Urusai. You're going to stay with us."

"Really?"

"Of course! We'd never leave you all alone, you know." Usopp assured.

"… I…"

"Hey, I'll go with you to pick some stuff up from your room if you need it." Sanji said, and then stood from his seat.

Eagerly, Chopper hopped off the couch. "Okay! Let's go now!" he said.

"Hey Usopp, you can hold down the fort until we get back. If Luffy and the marimo come back before we do, tell them about the hurricane."

"Gotcha! Don't anger any giants on your way across campus!" The long-nosed boy replied before continuing his game.

"Be back in a few."

Sanji walked over to the door, opened it, and let Chopper leave before he left the room himself.

With a large plate full of meat, Luffy practically danced his way across the restaurant back to the table where Zoro was seated.

"Oi, Luffy. How much do you plan to eat? I know it's a buffet and all, but still… I think your eyes might just be bigger than your stomach…"

"I'm almost done! I promise!" the gum boy said, and then took a seat next to the marimo.

"So…" Zoro began, and then looked down at his empty plates, "I- uh, I'm sorry about earlier… I didn't know you were saving your first kiss... I was just being stupid."

"No, you were just being nice and thankful to me for helping you with Ghost Girl. No worries."

"You sure?"

"Definitely." Luffy assured. It's not like he hadn't enjoyed it…

"Alright then."

"Hey there, Mugiwara."

Zoro looked up and Luffy turned around at the sound of that voice.

"Traffy! What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way back to my room and I saw you here, so I thought I'd see what you were up to."

"Sit with us!" Luffy said excitedly, and then pulled a chair out from under the table.

Zoro leaned forward and rested his head on his fist apathetically. This was the last person he wanted to see right now. The way Luffy looked at him, the way he acted around him, and the smiles he gave him… those kinds of things unsettled him for some reason.

Law took a seat next to Luffy and across from Zoro. "Do you want to start on our project in a bit?" he asked.

"I guess we should…"

"Alright. … I wonder what they're having for lunch today."

When Law turned and looked at the buffet line, Luffy quietly scooted his chair a little closer to him. Zoro noticed and felt himself growing jealous.

Not wanting to feel like a third wheel, but with some reservation about leaving Luffy alone with Law, Zoro stood up from his seat. "Luffy, I'm going back to the room. See you later."

"Huh?! Okay, but we can go with you! I wanna introduce Traffy to everyone. Let me finish my food!"

"Don't you need to work on your project?"

"I guess. Oi, Traffy," the boy said. Law turned his attention back to Luffy.

"Yeah?"

"Wanna go with me to my room?"

"What about the project?"

"We can figure that out later. I've got some Adobe programs on my computer that Ace bought me so we won't even need to go to the lab."

Law sighed. "Well hurry and finish eating so we can-"

As wide as he possibly could have with the Sea Prism-infused walls around, Luffy stretched his mouth open and emptied his plate. Zoro was shocked and a little disturbed, but not as much as Law.

"Okay, let's go!" the gum boy shouted.

Usopp was glad to see Luffy and Zoro when they entered the dorm, but he was unsure who the other person was that accompanied them.

"Hey Usopp!" Luffy smiled, and then walked over to him. "What you up to?" he asked nosily, then put his hands behind his back innocently.

"Just playing some Mario for now. Oh, and Sanji-kun told me to tell you and Zoro that Nami said there's going to be a storm coming tonight. A hurricane, I think."

"A hurricane? But it looks fine outside." Zoro said, and then took a seat on the couch next to the long-nosed boy.

"I know, but if Nami says it's going to happen, I believe her." Usopp looked up to Law when he came and stood next to Luffy. "I'm Usopp. Are you a friend of Z-"

"That's Luffy's friend." Zoro interrupted.

"His name is Traffy!"

"No it's not. My name is Trafalgar. Trafalgar Law." The tattooed man stated.

"Oh, well it's nice to meet you, Trafalgar."

"The same to you."

"Oi, Traffy, let's go to my room! We can start thinking about what we're going to do for our project."

Law stepped back and motioned for Luffy to lead the way.

Luffy did just that with a big grin on his face.

Zoro rolled his eyes and folded his arms together before sitting back on the couch.

Once they were gone and he heard the door close, Usopp turned to the tan marimo. "Hey Zoro…"

"Huh?"

"Um… well never mind…"

"I… think I'm gonna go take a nap." Zoro said.

He stood up, stretched his arms out, and then headed to his room. Nothing would clear his mind better than taking a nice long nap. After all, he had had a long day with Luffy... Not to mention getting unusually stressed when that Law guy came around.

When he got into his room, he closed the door and walked over to his bed. After taking his boots off, pulling out his golden earrings, and taking his shirt off, he fell face first onto his bed.

"… Luffy…" he mumbled into the sheets, before he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Sanji opened the door to the dorm and let Chopper and Nami walk in ahead of him. Nami had seen him coming and decided to join them since she had nothing else to do.

"Hey Nami." Usopp smiled.

"Hi Usopp." Said girl responded. She walked to the center of the living room and put her hands on her hips. "Where are Luffy and Zoro?"

"They're both in their rooms. I think Zoro said something about taking a nap."

"Well, I wanted to tell you guys are going to stay in our dorm with us for the next two days until the storm passes."

Sanji's nose started bleeding profusely, causing Chopper to run over to him. "Is that so?!" he asked.

"Yes. After talking about it, we all realized it would be better to have some guys around to keep us company during the storm."

Chopper changed from his regular state to his human one to catch Sanji as he collapsed from nearly fainting.

"There won't be any funny business, though… Sanji-kun. It would just be safest for us all to be together, that's all." The orange-haired girl said.

"What about me, Nami?" Chopper asked.

"You're going to be staying in Vivi's room with her. Two of you will use my room, and the other two will use our empty room. … Which makes me wonder if we're ever going to get another roommate…"

It would be nice for another girl to join their group.

"Who's staying in your room?!" Sanji asked, and then held his nose tightly shut.

"I don't know. You boys will have to figure that out on your own."

"So wait… You're going to be sleeping in the same room with Robin-san?"

"Yes. This is basically a win-win situation. You boys won't have to be so cramped, and we get gourmet food and protection during the storm."

Failing to see the logistics in this scenario, Usopp scratched his head confusedly, "But… if we just stayed here in our room, we'd be fine. It kind of seems like we'd be inconveniencing ourselves to stay with-"

"Well we want you in our dorm for the storm. Are you objecting to that?"

"No he's not! And neither are Luffy or the marimo!" Sanji answered for Usopp.

"Good. You guys can follow me when I go to the room later… Oh… and Robin said something about a cyborg visiting us, so be prepared for that."

"A CYBORG?!" Chopper and Usopp asked excitedly, their eyes glimmering unrealistically bright.

"I think so… Anyway, give me a controller, Usopp. I wanna play, too." Nami smiled, and then took a seat next to him on the couch.

She hoped that the hurricane would come and go without doing too much damage.

Many of you have been pushing and asking for SOMETHING to go on, so I decided I should reward you. Their kiss didn't greatly interfere with the direction I had planned for them, so there you go. There's a lot more development to come, but you'll all have to bear with me. I hate to rush things haha