I'm just gonna say that this chapter ended in a way that I absolutely did not expect and I am screaming.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or the characters, they belong to Eiichiro Oda.
Heart Pounding
With the Fishman gang dealt with and no longer a threat, Nami was free to move into her new home. The weeks before the townhouse was ready for her, were spent cleaning up her old apartment and shopping for new furniture. Kid volunteered to help Franky with the apartment in order to avoid her shopping trips, which were taken with Robin, Sanji, and Zoro tagging along most of the time. He wasn't going to get out of helping her move, though.
Moving out of Kid's after growing accustomed to the new routine was going to be bittersweet. She had meant what she said about having him around as much as possible when she moved into the new place. She had come to appreciate his presence in her daily life, no matter how simple and almost domestic their nights were together. It was a comfort she had never imagined having with him.
While Kid claimed that his favorite part of having her there was all the sex he could have, she knew that wasn't the case for either of them. He certainly took advantage of that early on, but as the weeks wore on, there were nights that they went to sleep without doing more than share a few kisses as they laid there talking. They had gone into their relationship with a mutual attraction pulling them together, now she could say what they had was a real relationship, one with a genuine friendship and bond.
Even better, Kid was getting along with her friends. Franky had taken to him quickly, becoming a big brother figure and giving Kid an outlet for his interests that he didn't have before. That hadn't surprised her, but it made her no less happy. After a few visits to her old house to see the guys, though, Kid started getting along with Luffy and Usopp, the latter especially surprising to her. Usopp was still scared of her boyfriend, but it was offset by their mutual interests in Franky's work, and Kid's unexpected appreciation for some of Usopp's design work. As far as Luffy went, Kid found him amusing and a ton of fun, even if his hyperactive personality could grate on his nerves after a while. Those two genuinely liked and respected each other, and that had Nami thrilled.
Zoro and Sanji were the last to warm up to him. Sanji got along great with Killer, which helped him open up to accepting Kid. On the other hand, Kid was not a huge fan of Sanji, mostly because of the blond's perpetual fawning over her and Robin. He was still learning to ignore it and let Nami handle him. With Zoro, Nami felt they respected each other, and they were capable of sitting around and having a beer together, but Zoro wasn't inclined to start conversations with Kid, and vice versa. It was only lately that she caught the two joking about something to do with Sanji, and there was a night at the bar they had teamed up in a game of billiards against two other regulars at Shakky's. They won and when Zoro gave Kid a friendly punch in the arm after a winning shot, Nami guessed that meant they were on good terms.
It was vital that they all got along. The more she grew to care for the Kid, the more she wanted her friends to approve of him. She was starting to think ahead to a future that she wanted to include him in, and that meant their independent circles of friends would be around each other more often. If he was able to hang out with her friends, that meant she didn't have to worry about picking between him and the people in her life who were so important to her.
When she was in her own place again, that would be of vital importance to their relationship.
Some part of her was worried that the bond they had begun to form would weaken with the distance, and she suspected Kid had that same concern, even if he would never voice it. He begrudgingly understood why she needed to move out, doubly so after Killer walked in on them when they were in the dining room… not eating. She needed her privacy. They both needed their privacy. And they wouldn't get that in a house with three other men who could walk into the room at the most inopportune time because Kid sometimes had a hard time keeping his hands off her.
Moving out was for the best, even if some part of her wished she could stay.
The day of her move came faster than she expected, but when it came, she was up bright and early with a small army of men, and Robin, to help. Kid was not pleased with how early she dragged him out of bed – which she literally had to do. Once he was out of bed, he was little better than a whining child that had her rolling her eyes enough to make her dizzy.
He didn't want to be up at the crack of dawn. He didn't want pancakes for breakfast because he didn't want to be up for breakfast. He didn't want to lend her one of his shirts to wear during the move because he only wanted her to wear it in his bed. He didn't want to help pack the things she had at his house. He didn't want to carry furniture all day. He didn't want to do anything but sleep, preferably with her in his bed. He didn't want her to move, even if he knew it was for the best.
The first two hours of the morning were spent smacking him upside the head and enduring his snarls. By the time she kindly reminded him that there was a large tub at her new place and that if he was a good boy and helped, she would give him a backrub in the bath, he was in a slightly more agreeable mood.
In order to save money, Nami had enlisted the help of Kid, Killer, and all of her friends. They had Kid's SUV and Killer's Jeep to load boxes in, and Franky's truck for her new furniture waiting to be picked up. She was not about to pay for delivery fees, or movers, or even a moving truck when she had plenty of willing friends… depending on your definition of willing.
"Alright, so here's the plan," Nami called out to her friends in the parking lot outside her old apartment. Kid was slumped over the hood of his car beside her, grumbling under his breath that it was too damn early to follow a plan. She shut him up with a smack to his head, and he buried his face in his arms with a growl, but no further protest. "Sanji-kun," she said, pointing to the blond, "you'll be handling the kitchen with Usopp."
"Yes, Nami-swan!" Sanji called out, standing straight with his hand on his forehead in salute.
"Franky and Robin," she said, turning to the pair, "I need you two to help set up and unpack my bedroom and office. I already planned how I want it arranged with Robin, so you won't need my supervision."
"Got it, girlie," Franky saluted, Robin nodding beside him.
"Zoro, Kid and Killer," she said, smacking her boyfriend on the back of his head to get his attention, and then kicking Zoro where he sat on the ground at her other side, napping quietly. "You three will help with bringing in the living room and dining room furniture." She ignored Kid's groan and turned to Killer. "Can you put together the dining room table by yourself?"
Killer nodded.
"Good, then that leaves Kid and Zoro to help me arrange the living room and set up my new entertainment center." She ignored Kid's second, and louder, groan.
"Nami, what about me!?" Luffy called out from the hood of Franky's truck, waving eagerly to get her attention.
She frowned at him. She still wasn't quite sure what duty to give him. He definitely couldn't be trusted to help in the kitchen, at least not after Sanji went to the grocery store to stock her fridge for her. He was good for heavy lifting, but his attention span wasn't ideal for arranging furniture.
"You'll help carry boxes in," Nami decided. "And…" She glanced over at Killer. "I suppose you can help Killer set up the dining room if he needs it." Killer nodded his agreement at that plan. He had the patience to keep Luffy on task, and not get annoyed if the younger man ran off to do something else. "And Franky might be able to use your help to put together my new bedroom set while Robin's unpacking my office." The other two nodded, as well. They had more than enough experience dealing with Luffy's attention span, they should be a good option for him, too. "But, under no circumstances will you go near my kitchen."
"But what if I get hungry?" Luffy whined.
"I'm ordering pizza for lunch," she said, rolling her eyes when he fell back on the hood with a shout of glee.
"I don't want pizza," Kid grumbled beside her.
She smacked him again. "That's too bad. You'll eat whatever I order and stop complaining."
Kid released a long suffering groan, but didn't argue.
"And when Sanji goes to the store, I'll make sure he picks up a case of beer," she added. That case would be gone before the afternoon was out between Zoro and Kid, but it should be enough to placate the both of them.
Kid's responding groan sounded more begrudging, but at least she took it to mean he was fine with that.
Nami rolled her eyes one last time, kicked Zoro awake again, and pointed to her apartment building. "Let's get to work, guys."
As her friends trickled off toward the building, Nami grabbed Kid by the arm to stop him. He glared down at her, but his annoyance was lost the moment she pressed her lips to his ear. He huffed to cover up the barest hint of a shiver as he leaned closer.
"Don't forget, Kid," she whispered, smiling as he groaned and shut his eyes to the feeling of her lips fluttering over his skin. "I plan to pay you for your help with my body tonight."
He growled, the sound defeated, and turned to snatch a quick kiss. His eyes opened to spare her a tired glare before he stole one more kiss. "Damn right, ya are."
"Keep complaining, though, and you get nothing," she warned.
He chuckled for the first time that day as he reached down to palm her ass. "Nah, you'll still reward me." His grip loosened as he gave her a quick peck and pulled away. "Now, let's get going, Kitten, before I start thinking about gettin' an advance on that payment."
She didn't have much to move from her old apartment. Most of it had been destroyed by the fishman gang, but what she could salvage had been carefully packed and organized for each room. She had two boxes of books, one box of kitchenware, and another box with the movies and CDs that hadn't been damaged. Three more boxes contained clothes and shoes to add to what she had packed up from Kid's house, totaling five boxes of clothing that Kid made sure to complain about the most. Those boxes weren't even heavy, except the ones with her shoes, but he still had to say something, especially since one of the boxes from his place were all brand new clothes that she probably didn't need but couldn't help herself from buying over the time she stayed with him. She had to remind him that half of one box had some of his stuff that he was willing to keep at her place, and she had left a drawer of her things to keep at his place.
Most of her furniture had been destroyed, but her dining room table was still in good enough shape to hold onto if she could. It was too bad it didn't fit into her new dining room, so she had to give it up, but she found a perfect replacement at the thrift store she donated it to and got a great deal because of it. Her bureau was definitely going with her. It hadn't been damaged much, only a few scratches in the wood, but it was old and worn so they hardly stood out after Franky sanded the surface down. Kid and Zoro helped carry her bed to Franky's truck and proceeded to get into an argument the whole way down, but it was loaded and no punches were thrown, so she overlooked the fight.
Her couch was heavily damaged, but not in terrible shape, so she donated that to a shelter where they said they could use it after she patched up the tears, along with a stack of old blankets and clothes she couldn't wear anymore. The shelter at least had people to pick all of that up, so it saved the guys from moving it.
The broken coffee table was given to Franky for scrap wood, and he took her old bookcase in the living room to make an attempt at salvaging it for his workspace. The only things she tossed out entirely were the broken dishes, everything else found somewhere to be used again.
Once at her new place, Franky and Robin disappeared upstairs to set up her bedroom and office like planned. Franky handled putting together her new desk, bed frame, and headboard, while Robin unpacked her books and clothes, hung a few pieces of art she had picked out, and organized her bathroom. Downstairs Sanji busied himself in the kitchen with organizing everything, Usopp helping as he was charged to do. Killer somehow managed to keep Luffy focused on the dining room table while she attempted to direct Zoro and Kid in the living room.
"I said to the left, Zoro!" she shouted for the fifth time, pointing toward the side of the living room closest to the arch leading to the front entrance and stairs. Every time she directed them to move the sofa, Kid would move in the direction she told him, while Zoro moved the opposite direction. She knew that was going to happen. It was the crux of his argument with Kid earlier. "Your left!" she shouted again when he swung his end of the sofa further into the living room. "Toward the damn hallway!"
"Why didn't you say that in the first place?" he hollered and finally moved his end in the direction she wanted.
"I said it five times! You should know left from right!"
"Shut up! I know which way is left and right! I thought you meant your left!"
"I was pointing! How did you not get it when I pointed!?"
"Your directions were confusing!"
"You're just an idiot! Now drop the couch there and get the end table and chair from the truck!" Her order was met with both guys literally dropping the couch with a loud thud onto the floor.
Kid snarled as he slumped over his end of the couch. "I'm fuckin' starving, and I can't take any more of this idiot's shitty sense of direction."
Zoro's responding outburst was ignored.
"I ordered the pizza a few minutes ago while you guys were unloading the sofa," Nami sighed, ignoring Luffy's cheer from the dining room.
"I said I don't want pizza."
"Well that's too bad! Now go get the last few pieces so we can get this done!"
"I need a break, too," Zoro said before Kid could argue with her. Her friend went to collapse on the sofa with a heavy sigh.
"We ain't your slave-boys," Kid agreed, throwing himself onto the couch beside Zoro.
"Why are you two agreeing now!?" she shrieked. They both frowned at her, and she threw her hands up in the air in defeat. "Fine, you lazy jerks, just sit there, but you're not getting any of the lunch I bought for everyone."
"Wooo! More for me!" Luffy hollered.
She ignored Sanji peeking out to frown at her. He didn't like her threat, but he held his tongue. She would let them eat, and he knew it, but she was trying to get them to do one more thing before they took a break.
Kid turned to Zoro and smacked his shoulder. "Oi, there's a place with good wings a few blocks away."
"Sounds good to me," Zoro grunted, picking himself up with a groan.
"Killer! You want to come?" Kid called out, ignoring Nami as she gaped at them suddenly siding against her. That wasn't fair.
"Sure," Killer said as he turned her dining room table onto its legs. "I'm done with this." She turned to stare at him, silently urging him to take her side. It really wasn't fair that Kid and Zoro were arguing her. Killer frowned, pursed his lips in thought, and then turned to Kid. "But first we should get the last two pieces of furniture up here for Nami."
Nami grinned victoriously as she turned to a glowering Kid.
"Don't take her fucking side," he grumbled.
"It's only fair since you and Zoro took the same side," Nami huffed.
The two men shared a look while she stood there, arms crossed, foot tapping on the floor. They finally gave in with loud groans and slumped toward the back alley. Killer followed after them, slapping Kid on the back to console his defeat. A few minutes later, the two guys came back, each carrying a piece of small furniture. They dumped the pieces in the middle of the living room before Nami could direct them.
"We'll arrange 'em after lunch," Kid growled, pointing at her to keep her silent. He held her glare for a moment, and when she didn't argue further, he led the way to the door. "We'll be back in a few," he called out.
As Zoro passed by her, she shot him a hard stare. She wanted the guys to get along, but not if it meant they worked against her. Her friend ignored her, as she knew he would, and the second they were gone, she let out a heavy sigh.
"Sanji-kun," she said tiredly, turning to her friend. "Go ahead and take a break. The pizza will be here soon. Can you go down to the store for some drinks?"
"Of course," he said, grinning as he headed toward the back door. "Anything else?"
"Get some non-alcoholic beer," she said, snickering to herself. "We'll hide the good stuff and make those two think that's all I had you get."
"They're going to be pissed," Sanji chuckled.
"Good," she chirped, collapsing onto the sofa. "That should teach them a lesson about fighting me."
"What the fuck, Nami!?" Kid hollered in her face, holding up a can of warm non-alcoholic beer. "This shit is disgusting!"
"She had the love cook get it on purpose, I bet," Zoro growled, standing beside Kid. His glare was set on the can, as if he could will it to vanish.
Nami shrugged calmly as Kid leaned down and growled. "It was all they had left," she explained sweetly.
"Bullshit," Kid snarled.
"That is honestly the worst lie I've ever heard you tell," Zoro huffed. "Where's the good stuff?"
She blinked at Zoro, trying to look as innocent as possible. "Good stuff? I told you, that's all they had left. I think it's just fine."
That was a load of shit and everyone knew it. There was no way she'd drink cheap, fake beer, which was why she was drinking juice rather than give away she had bottles of ale stashed in the fridge already.
"You ain't even drinking it," Kid pointed out.
"I don't want to drink," she said, shrugging again. "We still have a lot of work to do. This isn't a party. You don't need alcohol."
The look of utter horror that passed over both men's faces nearly made her lose it. She bit the inside of her lip to keep herself from laughing.
"She's right, shitheads," Sanji chimed in. "Hate to say it, but that's all they had when I went to the store."
Their horrified looks turned to anger as the men glared at him. He didn't even bat an eye as he leaned over the island, enjoying a cigarette.
"If you guys had been here, working like you were supposed to, while I sent Sanji-kun to the store, you would have heard that they were out of stock and maybe asked me to send him to the liquor store, instead." Nami's voice was light and uncaring, even as their anger returned to her.
"That's some seriously petty shit there, Kitten," Kid growled.
"And another load of crap," Zoro added. "The love cook would have gone to the liquor store anyway to get you a new bottle of wine."
"Wine? What wine?" Nami's arms spread wide to indicate the kitchen and dining room around her. "Do you see me, or anyone, drinking wine? Obviously I didn't have Sanji-kun pick any up."
Another lie. There was no way she was going without wine to celebrate her first night in her new home. Her refrigerator was well stocked with beer and wine, and she already had a cabinet dedicated to hard liquor. If they wanted to throw a party right then, they were perfectly set up for it.
Zoro immediately looked toward Robin to see what she was drinking. Muffling her snickers with a tight-lipped smile, Robin held up her cup of tea. Franky had a can of cola, but he rarely drank so that was no surprise. Luffy, too, but he was too busy inhaling a whole pizza by himself to drink, or even pay attention to the conversation. Usopp and Sanji each had juice, and Sanji was drinking it with such a smug look, it was obvious he knew there was alcohol somewhere in the house. They all knew the ruse wouldn't last long with those two, but it was still fun to watch them question if it was true.
"Sorry, guys," Killer said where he settled in at her dinner table with a container of chicken wings. He shared a knowing look with Nami. "Looks like you'll have to settle with that."
"Fuck that!" Kid shouted and turned back to seethe at Nami. "I know you got alcohol here somewhere. This prank's gone far enough."
"Prank? This is absolutely not a prank," she huffed. It wasn't. It was punishment.
He leaned in further, lip curled in an impatient snarl. A hand landed on his shoulder, and he glanced toward Zoro beside him.
"I have an idea," Zoro grunted, pointedly looking toward Luffy who was still perched on the counter.
She frowned as she watched Luffy pause in the middle of shoving the last slice of his pizza into his mouth and blinked at the two men now staring at him.
"What?" he asked, or attempted to with his mouth full.
"Where's the beer, Luffy?" Zoro asked.
Nami tried to signal her friend to keep his mouth shut, even though she knew it was futile. He cocked his head to the side as he chewed, glancing between the two men now patiently waiting for his answer and Nami. He swallowed and then grinned.
"Are you two stupid?" he cackled and pointed to the fridge beside him. Nami smacked her hand to her forehead. "It's in the fridge, of course. Where else would it be?"
"Luffy," Nami groaned. She frowned at Kid as he went to grab two bottles for himself and Zoro. "I told you not to say anything."
"Oh… Sorry, Nami," he said, tittering with laughter. "I forgot."
Kid and Zoro gloated openly as they popped the caps off their bottles of ale, and she sent them both a withering glare.
"I take back every time I hoped you guys would get along," she huffed.
"That's what ya get for somehow conning my best friend into taking your side all the time," Kid snorted.
She cocked her brow. "He only sides with me because he's the reasonable one who knows I'm right most of the time."
Kid glanced to Killer. His friend shrugged as he continued to eat. It was her turn to gloat. Kid sneered at her, but dropped the subject in favor of eating.
"So, how much more do we have left to do?" Zoro asked, his mood quickly improving once he had his drink.
Nami hummed in thought. "Well, the dining room is done except for some decoration, but I can do that myself another day. I think the kitchen is unpacked." She glanced at Sanji to see him nod. "The living room is almost done." She shot Kid another glare, but he was too focused on his food to notice or care, so she sighed in defeat and turned to Robin. "How's the upstairs looking?"
"Your office is set up. I believe your bookcases are organized how you prefer, but you might want to double check later," Robin explained. "And I believe your bedroom is almost done. I unpacked some of your clothes, but there's still two boxes left. The bed just needs to be made, and I left the new picture frames we bought for you on your bureau. You just need to decide which photos you want in them."
"I'll do that tonight," Nami said with a nod. "I guess we're done. Kid can finish up the living room."
"Oi, don't volunteer me to do the heavy lifting alone," her boyfriend grunted, finally looking up from his nearly finished wings to glare.
"I think you're more than strong enough to move the living chair and set up my new TV, that you helped me pick out, all by yourself," she said sweetly. She would have added that he was staying the night, and if they didn't need their friends' help anymore, it meant they could start enjoying her new home the way he wanted to a lot sooner, but he shouldn't need that reminder. When he held his glare, she leaned over the dining room table and bit her lower lip, the move dragging his gaze down.
"Cheater," he huffed quietly, and then sighed loudly as he went back to his lunch. "Fine. I'll do the last of it."
She sat straight with a victorious grin. She never tired of getting her way.
Lunch naturally turned into a party. That was the reason she wanted to have as much done as possible before they ate. The kitchen and dining room was filled with laughter and half-hearted arguments for hours thanks to all of her friends. It was the best way to welcome herself into her new home.
By the time she was shoving her friends out the door, the sun was sinking low on the horizon. Kid leaned on her head from behind as she waved at their friends from the door. He and Zoro had polished off the beer and a good amount of liquor, as she knew they would, and now he was in a state of laziness that meant it would be a struggle to get him to do anything else.
"Now that it's just the two of us," Nami chirped brightly, "we can get back to work."
Kid groaned loudly, his arms slipping down to wrap around her shoulders as she shut the door. "We can leave it for tomorrow. I don't wanna do anything else."
She spun in his hold to point up at him in warning. "This is why I wanted you to finish everything before we ate. I agree we can save a few things for tomorrow, but I want that TV set up tonight." He groaned again and embraced her, burying his face against her neck. He was acting like a child, and all she could do was roll her eyes. "It shouldn't take you more than a few minutes, and you don't have to mount it tonight. Just hook up the cable and make sure I can watch the news tomorrow morning while you sleep in." She eased away and nudged his head up to smile at him. "I'm going to make the bed, and then we can spend the rest of the night doing what you want to do."
He grumbled, but grudgingly leaned down for a short peck. "Make it the rest of the weekend." He chuckled. "And don't expect to be leaving bed that whole time if we're doing what I want to do."
She rolled her eyes, but her smirk said she wasn't annoyed, and shoved him away. "I expected nothing less. Now get to work."
He made sure to steal one more kiss, and a quick feel of her ass, before heading to the living room to do his last task for the day. She tossed a throw pillow from the couch at his head on her way upstairs, laughing at his playful growl and then dodging when he threw it back.
As she was spreading out her pink sheets and cream comforter a few minutes later, she heard Kid drilling in the living room and smiled to herself. She knew once he started programming the new TV, he'd end up working on the mount. By the time her bed was made and she had her new picture frames tossed on it, along with her small safe, he was done. She heard him trudge upstairs and make a quick stop at the bathroom to wash his hands. Once he was done, he came into her room and tossed himself onto her bed beside her, the force making her bounce on the mattress.
"Got the mount up," he said.
"I heard you working on that," she said, laughing. She set down the frame she was opening to lean over and give him a kiss. "Thanks."
He grinned and stole one more kiss before she could pull away. "Still gotta put the TV on it, but it'll be easier with an extra pair of hands to keep it steady."
"We can do that in the morning," she agreed while sliding her safe toward her.
Kid stretched out beside her and leaned over to watch her punch in the code and pop open the safe. "No cash?" he asked.
She knew he was confused. He had never seen what she kept in there, but now he would.
"I'm not going to leave cash lying around, though I might keep some in here now that I live in a safer neighborhood," she explained while pulling out the small manila envelopes. "I mainly use this safe to keep things I don't want to lose in a fire."
He grunted and edged closer, watching as she opened one of the envelopes and slid out a small stack of photos. That envelope held pictures of her family in Cocoyashi and her mother. Nojiko had sent her off with as many as she could, and regularly sent her new pictures of the town and their friends. They were her most valuable treasures.
Kid reached out to take one of her mother as she shuffled through them. "Yer mom, right?" She nodded in answer, and he snorted. His head nudged her arm. "She looked like she was a tough broad."
"She was," Nami said. She couldn't help but feel wistful as she took the picture back and stared at it, fingers tenderly tracing around Bellemere's face and magenta hair. Kid leaned his head against her arm, quiet support that reminded her he was there. "I heard she was a huge troublemaker when she was a kid. Constantly getting in fights and stealing." Kid snorted in amusement. "But, she still became a police officer. She retired early after taking Nojiko and I in. She never did stop being a bit rebellious. Every time I was caught shoplifting, she'd tell Genzo that she'd repay him with her body."
"I see ya took that lesson to heart," Kid said with a chuckle.
"Mhm." She sent him a sly wink. "But don't worry, you're the only guy I've actually followed through on that offer with."
"Good," he grunted, turning to kiss her arm. "That Genzo guy… he in any of these?"
"Yep," she said, setting aside the picture of her mom to search the other photos. When she found one with her and Nojiko, she held it over to him. "He was the mayor for a while, and sheriff. He was the closest thing to a father I had."
Kid hummed as he stared at the picture. "What's up with the pinwheel?"
Nami laughed. "When I was a baby, I always cried when he was around. To get me to smile, he stuck a pinwheel in his hat. It worked, and he didn't take it out until I moved away. The pinwheel in my tattoo is for him. The tangerine is for my mom."
He turned to glance at her tattoo with another hum, and then looked back at the picture. "The other chick… She's yer sister, right?"
"Nojiko." She nodded.
"So yer both into tattoos," he said, chuckling.
"I guess we are now, but she got those when she was twelve after I joined Arlong's gang. I was ashamed of the mark Arlong tattooed on me, thought it would mark me as a bad person. The next time I saw her, she had all of those tattoos and told me they were just decoration." She laughed. "It was her way of making me feel better and show her support for me. And, it inspired the design of my tattoo when I was able to remove Arlong's mark."
She set the picture aside and grabbed another of Nojiko that was newer, her sister's blue hair almost as long as her own now. Kid shifted to peek at the other photos she went through until a folded piece of paper slipped from the stack.
"What's that?" he asked, reaching out to pick up the paper and carefully unfold it. It was an old piece of parchment, weathered and worn over the years. She was glad to see him open it so gently. "A map?"
"I drew that when I was ten. It's of the island I grew up on."
"Franky mentioned somethin' about this," Kid mused. "You drew this at ten? That's a lot of detail."
She smiled proudly. It was a lot of detail. She had the topography of the island drawn out, as well as the geography and formations in the ocean around it and the currents that they created. She could draw something even better than that now, but she would never be prouder of a map than she was of that one. It was her first real map.
"Is that a bloodstain?" he asked, tilting his head as he inspected the map closer.
Her pride was lost to a frown. "It's seen a lot," she answered. "That one was from the day Luffy fought Arlong. I had stabbed myself in the back of the hand to make Arlong think I stabbed Usopp."
"Brutal," Kid said, handing the map back to her. "You really went far to protect those guys, huh?"
"Mhm," she hummed while slipping the map and other pictures back into the envelope. She went for another one that contained pictures of her friends. "And I'd do it again in a heartbeat if I had to."
She was glad the next set of pictures were of happier times.
"Who's that?" Kid asked, stopping her as she searched the photos.
She giggled and pulled out the one he was asking about to hand over to him. "That's Princess Nefertari Vivi of Alabasta."
"You know a fucking princess?"
"I do," she said, laughing. "Actually, Shirahoshi is considered a princess among the fishmen population. Her family is descended from royalty. So I know two."
He snorted and handed the picture back. "My girl's rubbed elbows with royalty. That's fucking awesome."
She giggled and searched for a picture she knew he would love. The second she found it, she held it out and watched his eyes widen. She and Vivi had dressed in traditional belly-dancing garb for a party at her palace.
"Holy shit," he said, snatching the photo to look at it closer. "You still got that outfit, Kitten?"
"I should have it at the guys' house in storage. Vivi let me keep it as a gift."
"You should wear it again. Bet you'd fill out that top even better now."
"We'll see," she sang, returning to her search.
She slipped a picture of her and Robin out from the stack. They were standing in front of ancient ruins Robin was studying, and in the background she could just make out Luffy climbing up a set of massive stone steps with Zoro and Usopp at the bottom, watching their friend get into trouble. Kid's attention returned to her other pictures when she got to their visit to Water 7, where they met Franky, and he stopped her at a picture of her at a party.
"Who's the blond yelling at you?"
She snorted. "That's Paulie. The poor guy couldn't handle my sense of fashion." She handed over a picture of her friend trying to cover her with a towel while a few other guys they knew were watching nearby. "You should have seen him when I changed in front of everyone."
"You changed in front of a bunch of guys?" He glanced up at her with an annoyed frown.
"We were in a small room and I had nowhere else to change," she said with a shrug. "It was no big deal."
She ignored his low growl and slipped out a picture to distract him with.
"Damn," he said, drawing the word out as he took the photo of her with her back to the camera. Her head was turned back with a sultry smile as she lifted her hair from her shoulders. "I wanna keep this one."
"No," she said shortly before snatching the picture back. "When we go to the beach in a few weeks, we'll take a new one of me that you can have."
He groaned and slumped against her arm. Once she had a few more pictures picked out, she began to tuck the envelopes back in the safe, but Kid stopped her.
"What's in that third one?" He went to grab the last envelope that she hadn't opened, and she smacked his hand away. He looked up at her with narrowed eyes. "What are ya hidin', Kitten?"
"Nothing," she answered in a rush, holding the envelope away from him.
"You're a shitty liar," he growled while reaching to grab the envelope from her. She stretched as much as she could until he pushed her back on the bed with a shriek of laughter. "What is it? Pictures of an old boyfriend?"
"You know I've never had a boyfriend before."
"That's what ya said, but…"
"They're not of an old boyfriend," she huffed while trying to scoot out from under him. She flipped to her stomach in her attempt to escape and groaned when he put his whole weight onto her back to keep her in place while he stretched over her shoulder. She reached around with her other hand to shove at his head. "Get off! You're heavy!"
"I wanna know what you're hiding."
"I'm not hiding anything. I'm saving these to give to you when we go on our trip."
He froze above her, only adding to the weight slowly crushing her. "They're the pictures you bribed me with, aren't they?" he asked, and before she could answer, he began to struggle with her for the envelope again.
"Can't you just wait a few more weeks?"
"No. I want to see 'em now."
She groaned loudly and smacked his hand away. "Fine, just get the hell off of me."
"I don't wanna," he grunted, sinking down on her more.
"Then you don't get to see the pictures."
Sighing in defeat, he pushed off of her and let her sit up. She shot him an annoyed glare as he sat up beside her, but it wavered in the face of his eager grin.
"When did ya even take them?" he asked as she carefully slid the pictures out, angling them so he couldn't immediately see them. She had them in a specific order, but she didn't want him to accidentally get a peek at any… especially the last one.
"I had Robin come over last week while you were at work and we locked ourselves in your workshop to take them. Remember that night you couldn't seem to find your hoodie?"
His eyes widened. "You stole my hoodie."
"I gave it back, and it was part of the agreement," she said with a laugh.
"I couldn't find my boots or wallet chain that night, too," he said, eyes narrowed in suspicion. She didn't respond, merely gave him a cheeky smirk and handed over the stack of pictures.
His grin turned impossibly wide the moment he snatched them from her.
"Nice," he said, appraising the first picture.
She was wearing a green bikini as she sat on his bike, her legs propped on the front end, ankles crossed. She sat back on one arm in the picture, her head tilted back and hand raking through her long hair as she smiled up toward the ceiling. She stood in stark contrast to the hard black metal body of his bike, and the dark greys and browns of the shop around her. She and Robin spent hours editing the pictures to make the space look even rougher and darker. The hard texture surrounding her softer figure was so symbolic of Kid and the fact they were in his space, on his bike, that she knew the effort would be worth it.
He went to the next one, and she forced herself to hold back her smile as he stared at it. She could see he was noticing something that she had hoped he would pick up on, but it took him a minute before he realized what he was looking at.
"That's what ya wore when we met!" he exclaimed when it clicked into place.
She had managed to find her old navy blue skirt and cream colored blouse in storage at the house. That night had stuck in her memory, despite how much she had wanted to forget it at the time, so it was easy for her to remember what she had on. She also had a few pictures from that night, since it was her going away party, to refresh her memory with the details. In the picture he held, she was leaning against the bike, facing the camera as she tilted her head down, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, and nibbled her lip in what she hoped was a demure, seductively shy look, playing up the falsely innocent act she used on him.
"I'm glad you remember." She giggled, nudging his arm as he turned to grin at her.
"I'll never forget that night," he said. He snagged a quick, teasing kiss, and pulled away just enough to let her see that softer smile he graced her with from time to time.
"Good." She leaned in for one more kiss, sharing his smile.
The next picture earned a long whistle of approval.
"That…" He paused, searching for words as he stared, his jaw going slack as his eyes raked over her in the picture. "Guess I know why I couldn't find my wallet chain… Damn."
She laughed loudly, but it didn't distract him from staring at the picture. She had found a pair of black leather shorts that hugged her hips and left very little to the imagination. She knew Kid would love them, especially with the addition of his wallet chain dangling over her hip.
On top of the shorts, she borrowed a pair of Robin's black leather, high-heel boots that came up to nearly mid-thigh. The heel was a sharp stiletto, and around the ankle, the boot was decorated with silver buckles and chains, adding to the rocker look she had been going for. She wore her black leather jacket on top, her hands slowing pulling down the zipper to expose tightly held cleavage and a peek of red lace from her bra.
In that picture she posed leaning against the bike, but she kept her legs spread wide and knees bent to highlight the boots. Her hair was wavy and tousled, looking a touch wild as she kept her head angled down and to the side, as if she was looking at something on the floor to the front of the bike. Her lips were parted and painted a dark, burgundy red, while eyes were shadowed a smoky grey and outlined with black eyeliner. She rarely ever wore makeup, especially not such dark, harsh colors, but she knew Kid would appreciate the addition.
It was his lipstick she was wearing, after all.
"I think this one's safe to hang in my shop," Kid said. His voice was thicker than it had been. He still had more pictures left, but if he was getting this excited over the ones where she was clothed, she figured it was safe to assume she was in for a very long and wild night.
"I think so," she agreed and nudged him. "But you're not done. I think you'll love the next one more."
He hastily flipped to the next one and she watched his jaw drop. She was still in the leather shorts and boots, but her jacket was gone, and the red bra she had been wearing was draped over his bike's handlebar. She was laying forward over the bike, her bare breasts pressed to the fuel tank, while her legs swung up behind her in a more playful pose. Her head rested on a folded arm while the other arm stretched out to dangle over the front while she looked at the camera with a smile full of laughter.
"Fuck you're gorgeous," he coughed out. His breathing was growing harsh and she could feel tension radiating off of him. He was holding onto his restraint by a thread.
"You have two more," she whispered, trying not to break the spell he was under.
He turned, brow cocked in his confusion. "That makes six. I thought ya said I could only have five?"
Nami shrugged and leaned back on her arms. "There was an extra that I really loved and couldn't keep from giving to you. We'll call it part of your birthday present." When he only continued to stare at her, she smacked his shoulder with a short laugh. "Hurry up. I want to see your reaction to them."
He forced himself to put down the topless picture, and barked a loud laugh. "Not only my hoodie, but ya stole my fucking boots."
"I had my reasons," she said, snickering. In the picture he held, she sat on the bike with her legs curled up to her chest. Robin took it from the front as she leaned back, so Kid could see not only the boots that were far too large for her as they hung open in a sloppy fashion, but also that the hoodie was mostly unzipped, barely covering her enough to keep her decent.
"Wait… Are you naked under my hoodie?" he asked, bringing the picture closer. "You are. Holy shit, that's perfect."
She bit her lip to keep from laughing as she watched him move on to the last one.
She couldn't have imagined a better reaction.
Kid's mouth fell open, and then shut, and then open again. Over and over, he searched for words. She was certain he had stopped breathing, too.
This time the picture was from the side as she sat straight up on the bike, her feet planted firmly on the floor to either side of it… And she wore nothing but his boots.
With her head thrown back, she had one hand pushing through her hair so he could see the look of ecstasy on her face. Her other arm crossed over her chest, only partially concealing her breasts, and her back was slightly arched to add to the erotic bliss of the shot.
And Kid still wasn't speaking or breathing beside her.
"I take it you like that one," she teased.
He continued to gape like a fish and his gaze was so hard she thought the picture could go up in flames from it.
"I know I said no nudity, but it came out looking so good," she said, keeping her voice breezy. The tension would snap at any minute, and she couldn't wait. "Robin got such a great angle for it. Maybe I should rethink my career options. I could probably make a killing modeling for pin-ups…"
She didn't get a chance to say any more before Kid snapped. With a low growl, he spun and tackled her to the bed, his lips hard against hers. His hands were everywhere, pawing at her chest and hips as he tried to get her shirt and shorts off. He was too eager and excited, making his movement rough, sloppy. He couldn't seem to decide what he wanted to do more: kiss her with wanton abandon, or tear her clothes off? He was having too much trouble doing both.
"Kid." She laughed when he broke away to suck wildly on her neck. She shrieked when he nipped her and somehow managed to get between her legs to grind against her clothed core. "I thought we were going to break in the bathtub first."
"Later," he grunted, finally managing to push her shirt up over her head. His lips wrapped over her collarbone with a deep groan. "Need to…" He paused to leave a hard, open-mouth kiss to the top of her chest. "Kiss you…" He nipped along her chest to the other side. "Every inch…" He sucked on her other collarbone while his hand wrapped around a breast. "Every… perfect… fucking… inch…" He broke up each word with wet kisses trailing back up her neck.
Her mind was hazy and her breathing nothing more than shallow pants when he reached her ear to nip at while he crushed his body to hers.
"Mine," he whispered, the fluttering kiss he left to the skin just behind her ear making her shiver in his arms. "All mine," he said, his breath washing over her neck bringing a deeper shudder as she wrapped her legs around his waist. His lips brushed over her cheek as he began to regain some control. He left teasing kisses until he reached her lips, and sank into a deep kiss with a satisfied groan.
His hand came to dig in her hair as he tilted his head to swallow her moans and quiet mewls with languid sweeps of his tongue, taking her every breath away with a soul-searing kiss. He pressed into her so hard, she felt he was trying to draw her into him, to consume her so fully that she had no choice but to be as much a part of him as he would be a part of her. Nothing else existed but her and him and the pounding of her heart in her chest that felt as if it were beating at her ribs, trying to break through, to reach out to him, to grasp his heart tight and never let go.
They were so wrapped up in each other, they completely forgot all the things strewn over her bed until something fell to the floor when Kid shifted his leg to grind against her harder. Even then, they didn't care enough to stop. Nothing could distract them in that moment. Not a frame crashing to the floor, nor the safe right behind it. Not the crinkling of photos. Not the chime of her cell phone on the nightstand.
Not even the earth-shattering realization that struck her in the space of a breath, short-lived…
She loved him.
A/N: I have never screamed so much over a fic. I am just... THEIR EMOTIONS ARE SO FUCKING INTENSE SOMETIMES IT HURTS! To make it all worse, I was listening to Florence and the Machine while writing the last few paragraphs.
I know a few of you were hoping I'd write the party after the fight with the fishmen, and I had originally intended to, but I was really light on material for it and it wasn't going to move the plot forward, so I decided it would be best to move on to this since it obviously moves the plot along (faster than I had actually anticipated, tbh). Now I can write their trip to the beach. :)))) Luckily I already screamed about it when I came up with the idea for it.
Anyway, sorry for how late this update is. Holidays dragged me down in terms of motivation to do anything and I'm still struggling to catch up. Hopefully it was worth the wait.
