The Bell's Chime
Chapter 8: Heart to heart
A slight swell rocked the ship gently and Nami felt as though she could fall asleep right there and then, if she wasn't currently struggling to feed an exeedingly fussy toddler. The day had both of them thoroughly exhausted and it most definitely showed.
"You look tired, Nami, why don't you go take a bath and unwind a little?" Robin suggested to the drained mother from where she sat with them in the kitchen.
Nami looked at her Nakama astounded, almost not daring to consider her words an actual invitation. The eldery men of Weatheria had all been much too bewildered by Bell for any of them to ever muster the courage and watch her alone. And no matter how much Nami loved her daughter, after over a year of being solely responsible for her supervision, the prospect of passing Bell off to someone genuinely willing and dependable gave her an almost overwhelming sense of relief.
The mother jumped up, pouncing at the chance that her friend might actually be serious.
"I'm sorry, Robin! Could you take Bell and read her one of those fables you guys bought? I'm sure she will be out like a light in a bit!" Nami suggested hopefully.
Robin looked at the little girl's face, covered in drool and food mush and possibly other ungodly things.
So cute! The older woman swooned internally.
"I'd love to!" she quickly replied to the request with an expression that clearly showed her enamoured state more than she could poker face away.
The infatuation on Robin's face was soon replaced with a canny smile when she watched her younger Nakama head out the door in joyous anticipation of the hot bath and the hour of quiet that were just gifted to her.
o-o-o
Nami entered the dressing room, where a bodyless hand dissolved unnoticed just in time. She welcomed the large amount of cozy steam still hanging in the air, indicative of someone having taken a bath just before her.
The young woman tied up her long, tangerine hair, then slid her short dress down her waist and onto the ground along with her panties. Stepping out of both, she advanced towards the large mirror inside the cramped room, where she wiped some condensated steam off of the silver surface, just at the height of her lower belly.
Discontent, Nami contemplated the scar of Bell's birth. Naturally, this wasn't the only scar on her body; There were plenty to find for who knew where to look. The most prominent one, and yet not, was the mark on her left arm, mostly covered by her windmill tattoo. Two more noticeable scars she had gotten courtesy of Miss Doublefinger when she was stabbed through the shoulder and foot.
The memory made her thoughts trail off to Vivi, who had remained in Alabasta instead of sailing with them. How hard must it have been for her to make that decision? Had she really done it out of deep love for her country, or was it out of a sense of reponsibility? The young mother wondered what her friend would say if she found out about their daughter. Maybe she could go visit her once she left the crew... Alabasta should be fairly safe now...
Quickly, the mirror began steaming up again, blurring the sight of her abdomen bit by bit.
Nami didn't even know why she hated this scar so much. Why she was trying so hard to hide it. Probably because this had been a fight that she had been forced to struggle through alone, far away from her Nakama. None of them should have to know the anguish that she had gone through just a little over a year ago. How her body had torn and broken and almost given up on her from within itself with none of them there to witness her demise. That she, like Ace, almost left Luffy behind in this world, leaving him to wonder why she never returned to Sunny and to him. Even when she was still leaving him now, at least this time he would know why and that she would be okay.
She would be okay... She had only been a Straw Hat Pirate for a short time after all. Shorter even than the crew's separation. Returning to an inconspicuous life on land would be a breeze if it served to keep Bell safe. Just like Belmere-San had done for her.
Nami wiped across the mirror again, this time higher to see her face. And for a moment she felt taken aback by the dismayed figure staring back at her, slightly distorted through water droplets clinging to the reflective surface. She watched the traces of dissatisfaction and doubt dominate her features involuntarily. Was this really what she looked like lately? What everyone saw when they looked at her face? Angry with herself, she turned away from the picture of self-loathing, that was slowly beginning to fog up again.
o-o-o
Still in deep thought, Nami stepped inside the bath, letting the warmth of the steam-infused room engulf her bare skin and soothe her inner turmoil. She had not gotten a moment to herself like this in such a long time.
The young woman immediately tensed up again when she opened her eyes to a raven-coloured tuft of hair poking out from the tub. Her wide eyes caught on the ink-stained pair of jeans and red shirt, lying discarded in the corner of the bath, a mucky, dark stream running from them towards the drain.
It just now dawned on the speechless girl that the reason she had not suspected anyone in the bath was, because this idiot had taken his clothes inside to rinse them off instead of leaving them in the dressing room!
Embarrassment instantly washed over Nami when her former lover seemed to rouse from his dozing state.
"DON'T LOOK!" she yelled the instant he began turning his head, just before his face connected with a wash basin, preemptively thrown by the naked girl.
"NAMI?!" Luffy yelped.
Nami immediately turned to make for the door, but came to a halt after two or three steps. She took a moment to compose herself before looking over her shoulder, where Luffy was now strenuously staring at the opposite wall, as per her order.
For a moment the young woman assessed the situation. For now, there was no Bell, no pressure to perform or proof something to her daughter. Just him and her, no audience. If Usopp was right and Bell picked up on her anxiety towards Luffy, then what she really needed to do was get more comfortable around him again...
Luffy listened to bare feet walk across wet tiles, then the turning of the shower knob. Soon the pitter-patter of streaming water mingled with the sound of another person scrubbing the sweat and grime of the day off of their body. The young man sat stiffly in the tub, continuing to stare straight ahead as instructed. Unsure of whether he was permitted to speak, he waited patiently for several minutes, until he could hear the shower knob squeak a second time and the sound of flowing water gradually ceased.
Luffy listened to Nami's next steps intently, realising through both, the audible tapping of her feet and his Haki of observation, that they were directed towards him rather than the door. He shifted in the tub nervously, anticipating another onslaught of violence.
"Scoot," Nami's voice suddenly commanded him in a placable tone and he could feel her bare foot execute a docile forward push on his back, which Luffy soon followed.
He froze slightly when he felt his girlfriend's nude form slide in between the edge of the tub and his own body, causing the young man to grow something in between excited and anxious. Slowly, he began feeling dizzy, as the blood in his head apparently decided it had somewhere else to be. Luffy struggled against the overwhelming heat, engulfing him from the tub and the body of the woman behind him, as well as his cautiously growing errection.
"Nami," Luffy panted.
"Hush," the girl murmured embarrassed while trying to ease her tension and calm her heart, that was beating in her throat. "Let me try and enjoy this," she uttered as she ridgigly draped her arms around his shoulders from behind, carefully keeping a bit of space between them.
Luffy flinched shortly at the touch, but soon raised his hand to put on Nami's, which was hanging loosely in front of his chest. Following the reassuring gesture, the young woman felt herself instantly relax in the presence of the man that she once thought of intimately. No matter how much she dreaded the precariousness of his constant antics, when it was just between him and her, he, as a person, never failed to make her feel incredibly safe.
She slid her legs to his sides and let her bare chest sink into the back in front of her now all the while tightening her embrace affectionately. She was still anxious about their future apart, yet, just for this moment, it felt as though she was finally absolved from the weight of that violent separation in the past.
Nami closed her eyes and rested her head in the crook of Luffy's neck, where cool water droplets brushed off against her cheek from the tips of his short, raven hair. She felt his elevated heartbeat judder his body slightly at each thump, much like her own. Nami was very much aware that he was aroused, and she would be lying to say that she wasn't. But she wasn't here for that. If she slipped like that, there was no way that she would still go... or that he would let her.
The young woman gave both of them a moment to adjust to the sudden skin on skin contact and within a few minutes of conscious, deep breaths, she could feel Luffy's heartbeat take back on a more composed rhythm, as well as her own anxiety subside.
"Luffy," Nami hummed, "I want you to know that I haven't stopped loving you."
The man in her lap squeezed her hand in a reassuring manner while continuing to look at the wall in front of him diligently. Nami couldn't see the smile on Luffy's face, yet she could hear it in the spirited tone of his comforting voice.
"I know, Nami."
o-o-o
Weird, Luffy thought when he stepped into the dressing room a while after his girlfriend's escape. He could have sworn he left his hat right ontop of that bench. For a moment he wondered whether Nami could have taken it, just before his eyes fell on a suspicious mound underneath. Happily, he pulled away the towel that lay draped over his treasured hat, shielding it from view.
„There you are!" the pirate captain cheered merrily before placing it back on his head. "I wonder how you got there!"
Author's Notes:
For those who don't know this: The Thousand Sunny is equipped with a Japanese style bath where the big tub is much like a hot spring, only meant for soaking. In Japan, the water in the tub will usually be used by several people and not be replaced throughout the day. That's why it's common to shower before entering the tub.
To my reviewers:
Mario64: Thank you for your lengthy review! I see my story has got you pretty worked up, haha. I guess I'm just not the fluffy kind of author. About Zoro and Robin, I don't really see how those are the prime choices for advice, lol. Zoro was the first one to be like "off you go" and doesn't really want to get involved. And back in Water 7 he was ready to ditch Usopp, no regrets. Robin, I guess, is doing her part in her own way. But I couldn't see any of the crew actively try and change Nami's mind, as it's not really their decision to make. Well, maybe Chopper, just because he's more emotionally unhinged, not because he actually has any advice to give.
Nadylyn Lilac: Thank you for another lovely review! Who knows, if Luffy would be a good father. Maybe he's just accidentially slingshot Bell into the ocean, lol. He is a bit rough sometimes, even with kids I think. Thank you for acknowledging Usopp's role in this chapter! I just love his relationship with his Nakama a lot and he's going to get some more recognition from me. All in all it's actually been quite fun to put some focus on all characters this time, rather than only Luffy and Nami, like I did in Happiness Punch. Back then I wanted to get them alone, because I thought that, as an author, I wouldn't be able to handle the colourful mess that is the whole bunch, lol.
Xerzo LotCN: Hm, what do you mean 'told no one'? She was on Weatheria when she found out, so there was no one left for her to tell. I'm also curious where exactly you think she's wrong about Luffy. About the watering system (because that's obviously the most important issue here, lol) even if the parts are not giving out, it probably has very limited sized fresh water tanks. If those aren't refilled (and rain water won't touch the ship, so...) the system would just run dry the minute the fresh water supply runs out.
StrongGuy159: Thank you, I'm working on it! :)