I hope you Enjoy this chapter... please don't come after me...
for the person asking if i will be killing someone off. I will not give away such info! You'll ruin the plot!
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Lies with smiles can cause heartbreak with apologize.
The living room filled with laughter, not only from the siblings but from the guest too. How could they not laugh? The most powerful couple in the world met because of a spilled milkshake. Not only that, Roger kissing Rouge when he landed on top of her is fucking hilarious!
Rouge covered her face in embarrassment. That story is always is a cherished memory, but also a mortifying one. "So let me get this straight, our dad poor milkshake on the ground. Then slipped on it and kissed you. THEN he groped you? Hahaha!" Shanks could stop laughing. This almost makes up for what Makino did to him… almost.
The woman is devil, putting him through hell over and over again. Shanks can barely contain himself as is, but with her… she's scary!
"Alright, I get it! Go to bed!" Rouge shouted in embarrassment. The strawberry blonde woman got up and stomped away.
The siblings took pride in making their mother so flustered, but she was right. It was getting late. The siblings said goodbye to Rayleigh and their friends.
Law drove Corazon home, and had a stressful conversation on the way. "Any word from Shachi?" The golden blonde asked. The man studied the surgeon's body language for his answer. The brunette let out a silent breath, gripped tighter on the steering wheel, and buckled his knees. "So no." Corazon concluded with a sigh.
The surgeon may not show it, but he is worried about Shachi. More worried than he ever was. He wanted to send other people, anyone besides Shachi… but he couldn't. Shachi has the perfect set of skills for this mission, and he's the only one who can complete it. Penguin is better at technology and hacking. The man can unlock all kinds of information if you give him a computer. But when it comes to detective work, Shachi is the perfect man for the job.
He's supposed to come back on Thursday, if he doesn't… Law gripped the steering wheel tighter. He will come back, I'm sure of it. "He'll be ok." Corazon said, once the car parked. The blonde leaned to Law and gave him a kiss. The blonde's soft lips calmed the brunette's nerves, something only Corazon can do.
Law was the one to break away from the kiss, the sight of him panting made Corazon smile. "You know Law, it's so much fun watching you turn into this." Law whipped the string of spit of his lips and snorted.
"Don't tease me Cora." The surgeon only calls the blonde Cora when they're alone. Even though he uses it often, the blonde loves it every time.
"Then I'll stop teasing…"
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"Stop staring at it and walk in, yoi." Marco said, trying to push the redhead in his biology class. So many things are flowing through the redhead's mind, and all were negative. Shanks has a low self-esteem. That's one of the reasons he drinks a lot, but it's gotten worse since alcohol can't save him anymore.
Shanks is a smart man but being smart has its flaws. For example, being smart makes failing a whole lot harder. He doesn't want to let down his friends, his family, and worst of all Makino. Even though the woman puts her full faith in him, that makes it harder.
"Marco, what if I failed?" The blonde is still pushing him, people are starting to give them weird looks.
"I doubt you failed, yoi." Marco was getting nowhere, at this rate, the redhead won't make it to class. Luckily, reinforcements arrived.
"Need help?" Marco turned around and saw his teacher, Benn. Benn is a close friend of Shanks, and the person Shanks trusts the most.
"What the hell are you doing Shanks? Do you want Makino or not?!" Shanks snapped his head back from the familiar voice. He couldn't help but smile when he saw Benn, "Benn… you don't get it." his self-esteem became lower from the thought. Shanks isn't as smart as Sab and Law. He isn't as hardworking as Ann. and he isn't as… Luffy as Luffy. The man is the older brother, but he always feels like the lesser sibling.
"I do understand, Shanks, I know you, better than anyone else." Shanks turned his head away from Benn, not wanting to show the sadness in his eyes. The teacher let out a sigh and dialed a number. When it picked up, the voices made Shanks's eyes widen.
"Yo Benn!" Lucky said.
"It's been a while!" Yasopp said.
"Yeah i know it has, it's great to see you guys and i can't wait to see you after school for our redhead's surprise party. But right now, our captain is doubting himself, so let's give him some advice." There here? Lucky and Yasopp haven't been in town for a long time, and there here now? For me?
"GET YOUR ASS UP AND GO IN THAT CLASSROOM!" they both said in unison.
"Where's that man who helped me overcome my past?" Yasopp asked. Yasopp met Shanks when he was living on the streets, at his lowest. His wife died and his kid was taken away from him. He was in a deep state of depression. He was at rock bottom, yet nothing in his life made him want to fix it. Well, until he met Shanks. The man turned his whole life around. Made him pick himself back up, even got his kid back during trial. And all that started with Shanks asking him one question, "do you want to turn the world upside down?"
"Where's our captain?" Lucky said. Lucky met Shanks when he was in a gang. The man tried to mug the redhead when he, Benn, and Yasopp were heading to a bar. When he stole Shanks's wallet, the redhead did something unexpected.
"You can keep that if you want." Lucky froze in his tracks and turned his head. The dirty blond and brunette beside Shanks were scowling. But the redhead was grinning.
"I'm not giving it back; I have a debt to pay." Lucky tried to walk away but stopped from the redhead's words.
"I feel like our meeting was destined, now tell me. Do you want to join me?" Lucky turned around and gave the man an 'are you crazy' look.
"I'm Shanks by the way. I think we'll be great friends, and I don't take no as an answer."
"Come on boss, go in there and get your test score. Then when you see it's an A, you can devour that lady of yours." Shanks's cheeks reddened from Yasopp's words, but nonetheless, it gave him courage.
Shanks smiled, "alright I'm going! I'll see you guys tonight." while Shanks walked into the room, Marco asked Benn a question that sprouted from their talk.
"Aren't you guys older than Shanks? Why do you guys call him boss, yoi?" Marco heard Yasopp and Lucky laugh at the question. Benn cracked a smile, "there's not a clear answer for that."
"Yeah, he is Shanks, and that's all he needs to be to be our boss." Lucky said between his laughter.
"We'd bet our life on that man, and never regret it." Yasopp added.
Marco was baffled by their statements and their confident tones. All their loyalty is placed on Shanks and his abilities. It made Marco wonder how they met, or what Shanks did to get their loyalty. But, knowing Shanks… he probably said something ridiculous and did a miracle. Yeah, that sounds like him.
The sound of the pencil tapping against the desk disturbed the silent atmosphere. The people around the pencil tapper fumed, especially a certain brunette.
"Can you stop that Mr. Benn!?" Ann shouted, pushing herself out of her seat. Benn assigned them three papers to finish before the end of the class. But Ann can't think straight with the pouting man and his damn pencil. The student gave a death stare to the pencil, before giving the same one to Benn.
All the other students felt the same way, but none of them said anything. "I'm sorry Ann…" Benn's frown deepened. He looked like a kicked puppy, making Ann roll her eyes. "What is with you? You've been frowning since we walked in. I know Thatch is a terrible student but-"
"Hey!" Thatch yelled, with giggles coming behind him. Thatch glared at his laughing girlfriend with a frown.
"It's not Thatch… for once."
"Hey! I'm not that bad!"
Benn ignored Thatch's whine and continued, "I'm worried about your brother, what if he didn't do good on his test?"
"EH!?" the whole class shouted. HAS HE REALLY BEEN FROWNING LIKE A SAD PUPPY DOG BECAUSE OF ANOTHER STUDENT'S TEST GRADES?
A sigh escaped Ann, "he'll be fine. Can you please let us concentrate? You can visit him at Lunch." The rest of the period, Benn pouted in silence at his desk, which made Ann happy. While walking out of class, Thatch asked her a few questions about Benn and Shanks's relationship. Like how the two know each other? And how are they so close?
"Benn used to live in the same orphanage as Shanks, that's why they're so close." the siblings and Ann talked about it until they got to lunch. They're surprised not to see Luffy and the crew there, instead they saw Koala and Sab talking to Killer and Kid.
"Where's Lu?" Koala turned around and smiled at the other twin. "Just who i was looking for! We have to go to the student council room! They want to talk about tomorrow in more detail and rehearsal."
Ann let out a groan, "does that mean the outfits too?" Ann has been regretting her decision to join since she saw the outfits. Not only is her's revealing, but embarrassing. "What's wrong with the outfits?" Izo asked.
"You'll see." Sab said with a groan. The twins lazily followed Koala to the council room. The three weren't surprised when they saw Luffy and Zoro dying on the couch. Sanji drooling over Robin. Chopper Usopp and Franky playing a board game, Brook watching the game, and Nami yelling.
"You guys! This is important!" the woman screeched. Sometimes the friends wonder how Nami has not lost her voice yet. She must have super lungs or something. "Hello guys!" Koala greeted as she pranced into the room.
Nami stopped her yelling and turned to the twins, "I'm glad you guys are here. We need help, do you have any ideas for another teacher supporter? As you can see, we have one, but Sengoku says we need two for this event."
Sab and Koala shrugged, they aren't 'friendly' with any teachers besides Smoker and Benn. Both men would never become a teacher supporter, especially with Lu as captain. "Why don't you try Jinbe? He's a new teacher. He comes by the Revolutionary Ring a lot, that's how I know him." Ann suggested.
Nami let out a sigh before pushing Zoro and Luffy out of the room. "Go and find that man!" She yelled and slammed the door. The partners in crime groaned, "Nami is mean." Luffy whined. Her and Zoro were side by side, Luffy took this opportunity to link hands. Zoro nodded, "very." The two walked down the halls aimlessly until they spotted a girl with pink hair. At first, Luffy thought it was Bonny, but the hairstyle was different yet familiar. When the woman turned around, she saw the big round eyes that could only belong to one person. Perona…
Perona is Zoro's adopted sister. She is a couple years older than Zoro, three to be exact. The two of them try their hardest not to see each other, but I guess luck wasn't on their side. Perona snorted at her kid brother, not having to use words to express her disgust. Zoro snorted too, him and Perona bicker and fight about everything. Whether it's clothes, food, games, they have even fought about who can breathe the most. It has gotten so bad Mihawk has had to put them outside, just so they'll leave him alone. He tried putting them in separate areas in the house. But then they kept screaming insults till his ears bleed. These two are like cats and dogs.
So, imagine Zoro's surprise when Perona's eyes lit up and her lips turned into a smile. Well, once Zoro realized why she was smiling, he wasn't surprised. The only thing going through his mind were many curses. Persona's mischievous smile brewed from the sight of Luffy and Zoro's hands linked.
Not only was Zoro screwed, but he was double screwed. The tag team of Perona and Mihawk is too much for any human to deal with. He can already imagine the lectures now, 'son, I told you so. Now that you've fallen in love with her, I'm stuck with her.' Damnit! Zoro tried to take his hand away from Luffy's, but the woman held on. To add onto Zoro's predicament, Luffy looked up to him, flashing her puppy eyes. The woman's lips quivered. "Do y-you not want me to hold your hand?"
Zoro felt his heart break, the woman looks devastated. Unlike her usual puppy dog eyes, these ones jumped levels. The woman resembled an abandoned puppy. What could Zoro do? Kick the puppy? Oh, Zoro wanted to kick the puppy, so bad, but… he couldn't. Not this puppy. "No, I like holding your hand Luffy." Zoro said in a whisper so Perona couldn't hear. The smile Luffy gave him made his heart race. The feeling Mihawk told him before was coming back. The feeling has become more and more common every passing day. And the weird thing is… I never want it to go away…
Zoro turned his head to his sister, who was still smirking. "What Perona?" Luffy ignored the irritation in her best friend's voice. She knows how the siblings could be, she rather sit back and watch. "Oh nothing, I can't wait to tell Mihawk about your little girlfriend. Which is weird because you're not cute at all." This caught Luffy's attention. Before Zoro could snap back, Luffy butted in. "Why would you say that Perona?" Zoro was caught off guard by the question but knew no good could come from it. "Because your holding hands of course, that's something couples do. They also kiss, spend a lot of time together, go on dates. A lot of things." The older sister is aware of how naive Luffy could be, right now she's enjoying it.
Zoro starts yanking on Luffy's hand, trying to get her away from Perona before it gets worse. "Perona? What is love?" And just like that, it got worse! Damnit! Perona gave out a laugh from the question, "you'll know when you feel it. It's like your whole-body aches for the person, you never want to be without them, and it kills you when you are. Your chest tightens and your heart races. It's having a deeper bond, a bond that you'll cherish forever if things go right." God this is getting worse! The swordsman kept pulling, but the brunette wouldn't budge. "What do you mean if things go right?"
"Well, if you ignore the feeling many things could happen. Depression is one. And if it goes wrong, like a breakup, the same could happen. Think of it as a fire burning within you. Without the person you love, the fire expands so much that it rips you to shreds." Luffy gulped at the comparison. She doesn't want love to burn her alive, but the feeling Perona described is how she feels with Zoro. Does that mean Luffy's in love with Zoro? Is Zoro in love with her? Zoro took this time to drag Luffy away from his conniving sister.
The rest of the time, Luffy was quiet, which worried the best friend. He tried to ease her into conversation, but he kept getting one word replies. It took a while, but the two finally found the new teacher Ann was talking about. "Your Jinbe, right?" Luffy asked. That is more words then she has said to me in the last ten minutes. Zoro mentally huffed. Am I jealous of a teacher talking to a student! How lame! I'm turning into that stupid cook!
First Mihawk, then Perona? I'll never make it through this year alive! And with all this stuff about loving Luffy, which I do not. It does not matter that my chest tightens so bad it feels like I am having mini heart attacks. It doesn't matter if her smile makes the sun shine brighter. It does not matter that every time I'm away from her I can't stop thinking about her. No! No! No! Mihawk is not right! And definitely not stupid fucking Perona! Never! I can't love Luffy because we're best friends! That's impossible!
"Zoro…" Luffy pulled at the green haired man's sleeve. He has been staring at Jinbe for the whole conversation. Zoro turned his head to look at Luffy, "yeah, sorry, I was thinking."
"Jinbe said he'll join. I asked him to go into the student council room so I can talk to you about something." Luffy gave a bow to Jinbe and he excused himself.
When Jimbe left, Luffy turned her attention back onto Zoro. Her grip tightened around his arm, "Zoro… do you love me?" The question pulled at his heart strings. For once, Luffy wouldn't meet his eyes. If I say yes, it'll change everything… Luffy… "as a friend yeah." Luffy's grip lessened. Her head picked up with a grin. "Ok! Go to the council room, ok? I have something to take care of." Her cheery voice made Zoro sigh in relief. "Got it!" The best friend walked off, keeping the image of Luffy's smile in his head. For him, he thought he did the right thing, because he came to the conclusion, he did love Luffia. Not the way a friend should, but the way of a lover. When she asked that question, he wanted nothing more than to scream yes. But kept it to himself. It hurts, but at least I got to see her smile. Even though it feels like my heart has broken into a million pieces.
What Zoro didn't know was that it wasn't what Luffy wanted to hear. The cherished grin he pictured was forced, and Luffy lied. Tears streamed down the woman's face, her smile faded, her body trembled, and all her happiness drained out. She sat in the bathroom, dreading the question. Now she realized that she has fallen in love with Zoro, and the pain is eating her alive.
I'm sorry that I'm in love with you… Zoro.
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