A late update but better late than never.
Chapter 32: Home.
As she got closer and closer to her home, Nami's heart couldn't calm down because of the anxiety she was feeling, it was really hard for her to come back after so many years and she knew it was even worse for Nojiko because she did not visit her even when she was living in Cocoyashi in Arlong's house. The redhead knew her sister wouldn't accept her as long as she continued to walk the road of crime, but now it was different, Nami decided to quit everything and change her path, which is why she was a little confident that her sister was not going to chase her away.
The painful tension that signaled to Nami that she was beginning to lose control over the stress that was gnawing at her grew increasingly alarming, making it difficult for her to breathe and causing her a disturbing tachycardia as her heart strained to do its job due to its accelerated rhythm, it was stronger than her and she couldn't calm down because Nami's task was not easy. She wanted to pick up what was broken between her and her sister and be forgiven for all the shit she did when she was blinded by greed, she regretted having lost her temper and having chosen a dirty way to get rich.
"Do you feel good?" Corazon asked while looking at her out of the corner of his eye, breaking the heavy silence that reigned in the car, he had apparently noticed Nami's anguish because in her voice, there was concern.
"Yes, I am fine." She lied with a fake smile.
The last thing she wanted was another therapy session with the blond-haired man, she had already had her dose of comfort during the first hours of the trip. Nami was in a terrible mood when she left Raftel, her depression was caused by Trafalgar Law, the man had disappeared and that is why, she did not say goodbye to him. She didn't understand why he did such a thing after everything that had happened the day before, he had told her that he loved her and the next day he hid like a moron, not even having the courage to see her before she left.
"Good," He nodded as he stared straight ahead, concentrating on his driving. "Am I heading in the right direction?"
"Yes, continue straight ahead until the next turn to the right, you take it to enter the tangerine field." She guided him by making signs with her hands so she could better explain to the man who was super clumsy.
Since the beginning of the trip, improbable incidents have happened because of the man, they took the wrong boat which caused them to lose a lot of time, they also spent more than an hour looking for the luggage that Corazon had misplaced, he almost set the boat on fire as he lit his cigarette and he fell off the railing as he admired the dolphins swimming in the water, which caused a general panic and everyone on the boat had a phone in hand, filming the rescue to post it probably on social media.
Fortunately, Nami was already aware of the man's incurable disease, which is why she remained on her guard to minimize the damage he caused on his way. She had noticed the clumsiness of the man during the last week and Shachi also explained to her that Corazon could not help but goof up, it was his nature and he had no control over it. Although it was a little humiliating, there was a good atmosphere in the trip and it was not boring because of the animation of Corazon.
As the car started rolling through the middle of the tangerine field, chocolate brown eyes sparkled as they enjoyed what they were looking at. Nami felt like she was dreaming because she missed the scenery around her so much and she still couldn't believe she was back home, she could feel her soul rejoicing to be there and all negativity in her disappeared. The others only saw a simple field of tangerine but for her it was a divine place, it was her paradise.
"Wow that's beautiful," Corazon commented with amazed tone, slowing down so he could take in his surroundings as he had a childlike expression on his face. "Did you grow up here?" He asked her, turning to her.
"Yeah," Nami nodded proudly before pointing her index finger at the little house at the end of the road. "It's my home." She whispered as she couldn't hold back the emotion any longer, tears started rolling down her cheeks.
"You are lucky to have lived in such an environment." He noticed with a slight frown, inwardly wondering why Nami had gone wrong.
"I know." She moaned as she tried to stop crying, inhaling slowly to calm herself, but the pain rising in her throat had increased, causing her a feeling of suffocation.
Her anxiety attack increased as the car pulled up in front of the house, now the seconds began to tick by for Nami as she waited for her sister's imminent appearance. She was petrified in her place, looking at the front door with great concentration, which is why she jumped when she heard the car door open, apparently Corazon couldn't hold himself back from going out to stretch his legs.
Feeling alarmed, Nami followed the man as she hurriedly got out of the car after him, especially after seeing him put a cigarette in his mouth. She knew he was a walking catastrophe who could set the tangerine field on fire by lighting a cigarette, that's why she had to stay close to him as a precaution. She sighed in relief when the cigarette was successfully lit and she almost applauded the man's great feat. Nami was so busy watching over Corazon that she didn't even notice the woman standing on the porch, staring at her with wide eyes and an open mouth.
"Nami!" The blue-haired woman called out to draw attention to herself, from the look on her face she was in utter surprise.
Nami had been speechless as her tongue twisted in her mouth, all she could do was turn slowly to face her sister. At that moment she didn't know what to do as she stopped thinking, her eyes once again started to sink as her guilty conscience returned. She was ashamed of herself and she regretted the wrongs she caused her sister, her boundless selfishness had driven her to act stupid, but now that she saw the consequences of her bad choices, she discovered the importance of family and peace. Money does not buy happiness, especially dirty money earned by illegal means.
"Hello," Corazon interrupted the tense silence and painful staring session, wanting to lighten the mood. "You must be Nami's sister, nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too." Nojiko replied out of politeness after becoming aware of the strange man who accompanied her little sister. She raised an eyebrow as she began to examine the blond's odd clothing choice; she mentally wondered why he had his face covered in make-up that way and what his relationship was with Nami.
"I'm back," Nami whispered before starting to approach her sister, walking quickly. "I'm back," She repeated with a louder tone when she came to the other woman, staring at her with determination despite the cascade of tears streaming from her eyes. "It's true that it took me a long time, but I ended up stopping everything like you asked me to, I'm not going to screw up anymore and I'm going to try to become a good person so that you forgive me and …"
"Calm down Nami," Nojiko interrupted her as she wrapped her arms around her, finally hugging her after all the years of being apart. "Oh god, how I have missed you little sister." She gasped as she cried herself, she was tired of pretending to be strong and pretending she wasn't sad.
"I'm so sorry," The redhead apologized with a muffled voice, nuzzling her face into her sister's neck. "I am sorry." She kept repeating, sobbing.
"Look at me," Nojiko grabbed Nami by the shoulders and shook her to force her to face her. "I'm not mad at you anymore, that's in the past now," She said as their teary eyes met. "I knew you'd be back sooner or later."
"I'm so sorry that I left." Nami moaned.
"I told you that's in the past, now let's all forget that," Nojiko insisted on refusing to let her sister continue talking about the painful past. "When we heard that the whole Arlong gang was decimated, me and Genzo didn't accept the assumption that you were dead, we searched everywhere for you," She said with an expression that reflected the pain she felt just remembering. "Fortunately, you sent your friend to let us know that you are still alive, despite the fact that he was late in giving us the information."
"I knew you were going to be worried, so I sent Hatchi to reassure you." Nami explained with a sad half-smile, feeling relieved to have managed to survive the event thanks to Law.
"Ah, but I have no manners," Nojiko gasped as she realized that they were still outside the door of the house. "You should be tired from the trip, please come in." She turned to Corazon and invited him, feeling ashamed that she had forgotten the presence of the odd man who accompanied her sister.
"I'm not going to refuse, I'm tired," He complained frankly as he began to follow the two women who entered before him. "Especially after swimming with the dolphins." He added with a sarcastic laugh.
The blue-haired woman looked at him over her shoulder, wondering what he had said.
"It's a long story." Nami whispered before rolling her eyes back in exasperation.
Corazon and Nami sat around the dining table while Nojiko made tea. The redhead's eyes scanned the room in utter adoration, feeling her heart flutter with joy because she was finally home. All the fears accumulated in her quickly dissolved and the painful lump that tormented her was gone. Now she was safe in this little house in the middle of the tangerine field.
"So," Nojiko hesitantly started as she arrived with a tray in her hand. "You are going to introduce me to your friend now," She looked at her sister with a raised eyebrow. "Don't tell me he's your boyfriend." She whispered quietly, thinking the man couldn't hear her when the opposite was true.
"Oh no." Nami shook her head from side to side, her expression turning horrified as her face paled.
"I'm relieved, he's too old for you," Nojiko continued to whisper, still thinking her voice wasn't reaching the ears of the man who was growing more and more embarrassed. "So who is he?" She asked as she began to pour the tea into the cups.
"You probably won't believe me," Nami smiled before sharing a knowing look with the man. "He is a friend of Bellemere."
"What?!" The blue-haired woman exclaimed, almost dropping the teapot in surprise.
"I swear, it's the truth." Nami looked at her sister seriously.
"I am Rossinante, but everyone calls me Corazon," He introduced himself with a smile. "Once again, nice to meet you."
"Wow, how did you know Bellemere?" Nojiko asked after she felt curious.
"We were colleagues in the police." He answered happily.
"You are a policeman!" Nojiko couldn't hold back her comment. "And how did you two meet?" She addressed her question to her sister.
"It's a very bizarre story," Nami said to avoid recounting her humiliating encounter with the man, but her sister's insistent stare gave her no choice. "It's been less than a month since we met," She paused to think of a way to tamper with her story a bit and when she looked to Corazon for some help, she felt hopeless watching him dry the hot tea he had spilled on his shirt with a towel, of course it was because of his clumsiness. "I was kidnapped by a psychopath because of a mistake, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"It's awful!" Nojiko commented, almost spitting out the cookie she was chewing.
"Basically, Corazon helped save me," Nami recounted feeling already tired as she gave a very short summary of the story. "In truth, he didn't save me because I did the dirty work myself." She corrected after reflection.
"What happened?" Nojiko asked, looking at her sister with a frown, concern shining in her eyes.
"I managed to escape on my own," Nami replied after she sent a desperate look at the man who was still busy with his shirt problem. "Long story short, I managed to run away and after that I met Corazon because he is allied with Law, the man who saved me from the eradication of the Arlong gang and with whom I lived for the past few months." She shortened the remaining 80% of the story because she knew her sister couldn't bear to hear the rest, she's been pretty tormented by everything she's heard so far and that was just the censored version of the story.
"What an adventure!" Nojiko mumbled sarcastically, feeling giddy to hear a snippet of her sister's eventful life. "I'm glad you made it out," She smiled at Nami happily. "How did you decide to leave your old life?"
"I've wanted to come home for a long time, but my life was way too complicated," Nami replied before turning to Corazon. "You gave me courage to do it, thank you Corazon." She added softly keeping eye contact with the man.
"Oh my little Nami," Corazon cried because he was so moved. "I'm so glad to hear it."
"It's the best day of my life," Nami smiled as her eyes traveled to Nojiko. "I am with my family."
"Nami!" Nojiko was joining the whining clan as she started to cry too.
"Please stop crying, I don't want to cry myself." Nami remarked, forcing herself to keep the tears in her eyes.
Nami couldn't believe she had finally found the feeling she had been looking for so much, her mind was no longer tormented because she was at peace. All she needed to be fully fulfilled was her love Law, but she knew she shouldn't overdo her wishes and be content with the happiness she felt now.
"How Arlong and his men were decimated? I still don't understand what happened, how could he lose when he was the head of the East Blue Mafia." Nojiko asked after the mood relaxed, wanting to create a conversation to drive away the sadness.
"His brother is responsible." Nami started laughing hysterically because she still couldn't believe the blood bond Corazon shared with Doflamingo.
"How?" Nojiko blinked in confusion.
"Unfortunately my brother is the devil himself, he is the leader of a big mafia gang in the new world, he killed Arlong to be able to take control of East Blue." Corazon explained using a serious tone for the first time since his arrival.
"It's horrible, we didn't need another monster to replace Arlong." Nojiko covered her mouth with her hand in shock.
"Since I found out that Doflamingo is your brother, nothing can surprise me now," Nami continued laughing frantically, slapping her palm on the table. "The guy is completely opposite to you, he even ordered Law to kill me."
"Oh my God!" Nojiko exclaimed even more than she was before.
"Don't worry, I'm still alive," Nami said, stopping to laugh after noticing her sister's concern. "Law took pity on me and he refused to kill me, he even took me to his house to protect me." After saying the last word, Nami felt indebted to Law for the first time and she discovered the importance of what he did for her.
"Law is a good guy, I practically raised him myself." Corazon commented with a sweet smile.
"Luckily you came across a good person." Nojiko underlined with a relieved voice.
"Yes," Nami nodded as she thought of the man she loved and the impact he had on her. "Law helped me a lot and thanks to him I have progressed a lot, I hope he will find the right path as he helped me find mine."
"Don't worry about him, he is very strong and I am with him to protect him." Corazon gently reassured her, he already knew that the woman was a little too attached to Law and that it was mutual.
"Did you miss your room?" Nojiko asked, clapping her hands, wanting to change the subject because of the depressing mood that was starting to prevail.
"So much." Nami replied with a smile.
"So don't stand there," Nojiko got up and rushed to her sister. "What are you waiting for to go see it?" She screamed at the redhead as she started to pull her by the arm.
When she entered her room, Nami was shocked to see that it hadn't changed after so many years. Nostalgia welled up inside her and she was relieved when her sister left her alone to give her some privacy, she sat on the bed and admired the world of her childhood.
"I'm back." She whispered with a smile.