When the Sunny was close to the port of Rustbay, he had seen more boats than usual. A few weeks ago, there were not as many boats docked there but because of the festival, there were probably more boats to bring in the tourists, he presumed. Different flower lanterns decorated the fences and lantern posts, hinting that Floraleigh was still going on. But that wasn't what Zoro was supposed to be looking at. When they arrived at the port, he saw Ben, along with Zo. That bastard. What the fuck is he doing here? He said he was moving from Amazon Lily to another island? And of all islands, he chose Rustbay? That son of a bitch. What is he planning?

As they headed down to the port, Zoro walked behind Robin, letting the woman be the first one to walk down and meet Ben.

"Why are you here?" Robin asked when she saw Zo beside Ben. Zoro could see that there was a slight twinge of disgust in her voice — probably just his imagination of how her voice sounded at that time.

"Ah! Ms. Nico! Zo said you already met him!" Ben interjected before Zo could answer the florist. "Zo, here , has been a great help in the shop, you know?"

"He's been helping inside the shop? Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"We wanted to surprise you! Are you surprised, Ms. Nico?" Ben smiled nervously, still, Robin was not amused as she shook her head.

"Okay, scratch that. Like Erin said, you didn't need to worry, Ms. Nico! Besides, what matters is that this guy helped us so much." Ben boasted with a playful grin, and slung his arm around Zo to prove his point.

Robin sighed, "Well, if that's the case, then we should go back now, Ben, I need to rest—"

"I wanted to see you, Robin." For the first time, Zo had spoken.

"Huh?" Robin blinked at him.

Behind her, her friends were both surprised and confused after hearing what he said, except for Zoro who had clenched his fist at his side. He was very much pissed off to see this guy show up for no apparent reason. Zoro's blood boiled, not at Ben, but towards this scarred twin of his which definitely was not his own brother. 'The nerve of this guy?!' Zoro cursed internally as his hand already moved close to his sword's hilt. Any moment now, there'd be a sliced bastard right in front of them but luckily for Zo, he was curbing his anger inside him right now.

"I was joking. I almost got you there, huh?" Zo grinned but nobody laughed along with him except for Robin who chuckled. It was completely different from her earlier mood, although Zoro could sense her tiredness from her sudden mood change.

"You're funny, Zo, but could we make jokes later because I really need to rest." Yet her smile wasn't the same as her usual warm smile. Zoro was sure that Robin, too, was pissed off at Zo — once again, it was just Zoro's imagination. She didn't explain herself further when she got inside the car along with the papers she received from Dr. Clover.

Ben gave Zoro a look, then his gaze fell back at Robin.

"Uh, Ms. Nico, isn't Roronoa going to come with us?" He pointed at Zoro with his thumb, however Robin only closed the door, and gestured to Ben to come inside the car. "Sorry, kid." Ben clasped Zoro's shoulder before following Robin inside the car. It didn't take long for them to depart from the port. Soon, the car was gone from sight.

"What the hell is he doing here?!" Zoro muttered out loud as soon as they left.

"You're angry at Zo."

Zoro winced in surprise when Nami nudged his side.

"I'm not, Nami. Try something else." He crossed his arms on his chest while his friends looked at him with pity.

"What are you looking at? Stop looking at me like that. Like I said, I'm not even mad. Do I look like I'm angry? How can you even tell?" He dismissed their looks with a smug look on his face.

"Don't deny it, idiot." Sanji rolled his eyes at the swordsman.

"Besides, you wanted to stab Zo on the spot. I saw it in your knuckles, Zoro." Usopp pointed at the swordsman's clenched fist right on top of his sword.

"Shut up." Zoro flexed his fingers just to disprove his point although the thing was: Usopp was right, he wanted to slice that arrogant prick.

The drive all the way back to Rustbay was silent.

Ben didn't talk. Robin didn't tell them stories of her travels. Even Zo didn't talk that much. Robin didn't have the energy to tell stories after all, and slowly, her eyes drooped, letting herself rest for a while as they traveled all the way back to central Rustbay.

She fell asleep moments after, when suddenly, she heard a knock on the door. Eyes slowly opening, she realized she wasn't inside the car anymore. She was confused when she found herself inside her room. Did they already arrive at her home? Did Ben bring her here? She knew he wouldn't do that unless—

"Robin? Are you already awake?"

Did she hear that right? Was that Zoro's voice?

"Zoro, is that you?" Voice a little raspy from her nap, Robin slowly sat upright, hand gripped on her blanket. She was just making sure whether it was him or not. Then her door slowly pulled open, and her guess was right, it was Zoro who called out her name.

"You're late for work." He was leaning against the door, arms crossed as he gazed at her.

She knew she had seen this scene before but when was it?

And there it was, that soft smile she always wanted to see. He was here, and it was him.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, puzzled that he was at her door. Did he bring her here with the help of Ben? But Zoro never dared to set foot in her room nor tried except for one time, but that was another story to tell. How was it different the other days?

"I thought you were still at the port?" She asked further.

"I was there earlier this morning. You and I were both there, remember? And after that, I sent the deliveries with Ben." There was a hint of a grimace on his face as he mentioned Ben, then he said, "Look, I've made you coffee, wait here." He was gone for a moment before he came back with a cup of coffee in his hand, then took a seat beside her bed.

Robin took the coffee with a faint smile but placed it on her night stand.

"How are you feeling?" Zoro asked.

"I don't know exactly…" Robin mumbled, eyes gazed down on her lap. 'How was she really?' Robin asked herself.

"Look, I'm here now, Robin." Zoro said.

"He wouldn't say that." She was still looking at her lap.

"What are you saying, Robin?"

"Did you change your mind about staying here? With me, Zoro? Tell me the truth."

Her voice was hopeful and desperate although she already realized that this was just a dream. Too quick, since it was so obvious that Zoro wouldn't have never made the choice to stay here. Robin then moved her hand on top of his, yet Zoro slowly pulled away. He wasn't even looking at her. He avoided her longing eyes. There was it again, that flat expression on his face that she couldn't read.

"Zoro? Why can't you answer me? Tell me!" She asked once again, slowly, intertwining her hand with his. There was no response from the swordsman, instead there was a dark matter, engulfing his hand.

"Zoro?!" She tried snapping him out of his unusual appearance but Zoro's eyes appeared lifeless, and he wasn't responding. She reached out for his hand, yet she couldn't grab it as if it had turned to fluid. Zoro was only static— cathartic, as she tried calling out his name, nothing happened. She was starting to get nervous. What the hell is happening?! As she panicked, Zoro disappeared in a blink of a blinding light.

"Zoro?! Where are you?!" She called out his name in desperation, yet nothing came out from her voice. With all of her might, she tried to stand up on her feet, but her bed pulled her to stay put, placing her in a powerless state. All at once, everything she saw was fading— her bed, her room, her body. There was nothing she could do when everything around her was getting dragged to an endless void. She gave a useless scream of help as if someone would save her from this misery. Sooner or later, her vision would turn black and she would be gone…

"Ms. Nico?"

She could still hear someone but she couldn't see anything, thanks to the pitch-black void.

"Ms. Nico?!"

This time, she forced herself to open her eyes.

One…

Two…

Three..

There was nothing yet. She still couldn't see anything. She could do this. She wasn't giving up. Once again, she gathered all of her strength so that she could open her eyes.

One…

Two…

Three—

She successfully opened her eyes, defeating that unbending void.

Robin was sweating in her seat. Chest heaving as if she had run for miles for hours— she was back inside the car.

"Ms. Nico, are you alright?"

"You look like you've seen a ghost. Are you okay?"

Robin blinked her eyes fast. Was this still a figment of her mind? Was she still dreaming? She touched everything she could touch. She took a look at everything she could see. She wasn't dreaming… Hopefully… Her room was gone in a flash. Robin was back in the car. No Zoro in sight. It was just herself, a dream, and she was brought back to reality. Instead, it was only Ben who was with her inside the car. The question was: Why did she dream of that? Was that her mind's way of telling her to stop her own feelings?

"Are you alright?" Ben asked her for the third time.

Robin could only muster a forced smile when she tried to assess what was in front of her. "I couldn't be better. Thanks for your concern, Ben."

"If you say so, Ms. Nico." Ben gave her a nod despite being worried about her.

"Where is Zo?" She tried to change the subject.

"Oh, he went to the market first. I said we could wait for him but he seemed adamant on heading out first so I let him."

"I see." Robin rested her head on the window.

It was just her own daydreaming at work. Too vivid, she thought it was real. She thought Zoro had stayed. He hadn't. It was foolish of her to think of that. How could she possibly believe that Zoro would change his mind about staying? She chuckled to herself bitterly. It would only be in her dreams that he would stay. If there was a chance, she wouldn't want to wake up from that bittersweet dream even if it meant hurting her own heart and mind— No, that wouldn't happen. She ignored her own vivid dream, it was only a thought after all.

This was reality, and in a few days, everything would go back to what it used to be — living without the swordsman.

"We're here." Ben said with a worried smile as he looked at her in the front mirror.

They were once again back in the familiar streets of Rustbay.

There were already so many tourists on the streets. Unlike the previous weeks, you could see them everywhere, with their delighted eyes and smiles as they toured around Rustbay, waiting for the last eventful days of the Floraleigh festival. Robin couldn't help but smile as well. All the shops were still business as usual thanks to Floraleigh's impact. As soon as they were back in her shop, her workers greeted her with smiles. A series of 'Welcome back, Ms. Nico,' greeted Robin as soon as she stepped inside the workshop.

"Nice work around here, Zo! You're the best!" One of the workers praised Zo.

Robin looked back, and there: the one being praised by her workers was back. When did he even get here? The workers then continued to praise Zo once more to which Robin was surprised because back when Zoro was here, they weren't acting like that. What was the difference between Zo and Zoro? Wasn't Zoro the one who assisted them most of the time?

"Roronoa is more aloof, that's why we couldn't be closer to him." One of her workers answered the question inside her mind.

Why would she even think of Zoro at this moment?

She had already decided that it was for the best— for her own good and for his — that it was better for them to stay farther away from each other. Thinking about her life before Zoro had appeared in it, she had managed herself without anyone beside her — without Zoro, but with herself and her determination. If she could do it before, then, this would not be new to her. She was her own self even without him.

But it was hard. Hard to think that in a few days, Zoro would be back to where he came from, and she would never see him again. Ever again.

"Ms. Nico! You're back!" Erin said merrily before she hugged Robin, snapping Robin from her rushing thoughts.

"How are you guys doing?" She managed to ask. "Have you all been resting?"

The younger woman almost sobbed as she rested her head on Robin's shoulder.

Ben interrupted the candid reunion. "Zo, here, helped in the shop! Like I said, Miss Nico, he helped more than Roronoa did!"

"Zoro has done his part here—" Robin stopped mid-sentence, realizing that she mentioned his name. "Never mind, then what happened here while I was gone?"

Erin recovered quickly from that short sob, and started to show what the flower shop had done the past few weeks, from the logged deliveries and walk-in orders. Just like what she said back during the call, the shop was doing great.

"Thank you, Erin, I knew I could trust you. You did well." She smiled at Erin.

"By the way, speaking of Zo…" Robin said in a hushed tone, not wanting others to hear them. "How did he even get here in the first place? Here at the shop? You didn't tell me a thing about it when I asked you what happened." Robin raised a brow at Erin, who pointed at Ben to explain themselves.

Ben was the one who told Robin that Zo introduced himself as the brother of Zoro. "Look, Ms. Nico, I was convinced that he had a good heart! Also, given that Roronoa and Zo look alike except for the scar — they're twins, right?"

Was she hearing it right? Zo and Zoro, brothers?

"You know, Zo even said that he didn't have any place to stay so, as generous as I was, I gave Zo a spare key of your home—"

"You what?!" Robin exclaimed, startling some of her workers while Erin gestured towards them and shooed them away to resume their work.

"Look, Ms. Nico, I knew that guy had good intentions!" Ben reasoned once more. "He even helped us in the shop and—"

Robin fumed in anger but instead of letting out her anger on Ben, she stormed out from the lobby — which was not very like her. Usually, Robin listened to his explanations but this time, all of a sudden, she left them. Robin clenched her fist at her sides. Sure, she was tired from her journey, and this is not the time to be pissed off, but what kind of news was this?

Robin was about to go back upstairs when Zo blocked her way.

"What do you want?" Robin eyed him tiredly. Of all the people, he was the one she bumped into.

Zo crossed his arms. "You should thank me."

Robin sighed deeply, massaging her temples. "For what? Lying to Ben and maybe half of Rustbay by saying that you were Zoro's brother?" She was already tired and Zo wasn't helping.

"Look, I don't know if you're up to something but this is not the time to piss me off." She told him, and Zo fell quiet after that. She was about to head up when she forgot that her room was locked.

"And also, where's the key to my door? I need it."

Zo handed the key to Robin, and she took it without hesitance from his hand.

"Robin?" Zo called out when Robin was opening her door.

"I wanted to get closer to you." He said all of a sudden.

"What did you say?" She shot him a confused glare. She wasn't supposed to be mad for that reason. It was too soon to be angry, yet, looking at Zo reminded her of the splitting image he had with the swordsman. The swordsman who had tried to get close to her, attached, so much so that she wanted him to stay and never go away.

"Get out." She was not playing these games anymore. She didn't want any of this to happen again.

"I said get out of my sight!" Two warnings from Robin, and Zo left her sight.

Later on, instead of heading to her bedroom to sleep or stay inside her library, Robin was inside the dining room, sulking with her coffee. Moments like these, it calmed her whenever she felt agitated or stressed. Then, moments later, she would expect him to show up. Ask her whether she was okay or not, but not anymore. Loss for words that when he was gone, she craved his company. He was here when she needed someone to talk to, but did she already forget what happened back in Ohara? She already pushed him away. It was the right thing to do, said her own conscience. She had done the right thing, right? Yet, why did her heart keep on reminding herself that it wasn't?

She just hoped that he wouldn't magically appear once more. How could she possibly ignore him every time he appeared?

"Robin?" A voice said.

Every time she wished that he wouldn't show up, it never worked. Guess the universe was laughing at her right now. Right when she wished he wouldn't appear, he appeared right at that moment.

She didn't want to see him again but at the same time, she didn't want to admit that she was glad to see him again. Did that make any sense? She didn't know anymore because at that point, she still didn't understand how her feelings worked.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him instead.

If she did have the same dream again, she wanted to wake up from this nightmare.

Meanwhile, Franky escorted Zoro and the gang all the way to Central Rustbay, except Chopper and Usopp, who already parted ways with them. Leaving Zoro, Nami and Sanji to walk around town, making the swordsman the third wheel of the group. Nami and that stupid cook could do what they wanted while he trailed behind them.

They were walking through the marketplace when Zoro had heard some of the locals gossip about him. As if he wasn't used to it ever since he got here. That's what they did, talk as if they knew what they were talking about. While some of the townspeople who knew him hadn't gossip about him, there were some people who had been talking behind his back whenever he had passed them by. Like he could care what they said about him, and besides, he would be off of the island in a few days.

"Was that Zo's twin brother?"

Zoro heard a conversation of some townspeople at the stalls.

"The swordsman? Yeah, Zo said he was."

The so-called brotherhood he had with Zo had been the talk of the town. That bastard really had the nerve to spread fake news.

"Then I think Zo is better."

Zoro could ignore all that they said except for that.

"How I wish Ms. Nico had met Zo rather than that lost swordsman who never did anything good for her—"

That was when he ran away from Nami and Sanji.

"Zoro, where are you going?" Nami tried calling out his name but Zoro was already on the run. Without looking back, his feet took him to the pavements he remembered so well, leading to the flower shop. He was acting on impulse again.

'Like he would care?' Bullshit, he really cared after all.

Zoro didn't hesitate to open the door as soon as he stepped inside the flower shop. Greeting them in their usual spot, Ben and Erin were in the lobby with surprised looks, seeing the swordsman inside the shop once more.

"Zoro?!" Erin exclaimed as she walked towards him while the older man just fixed his gaze on him without saying anything.

"Hey…" He caught his breath as he spoke, raising a hand in the air to wave at them.

"Good thing you showed up!" Erin clasped his hand with her own.

"Where's Robin?" Zoro asked, ignoring Erin's hand.

"Oi, oi. What are you doing here, huh? What if Ms. Nico doesn't want to see you at all? She was already in a bad mood which wasn't very like her." Ben pried Zoro's hand away from the younger woman's.

"Why would she be in a bad mood?" It was Zoro's turn to ask.

"Well, why do you even care?" Ben asked him instead.

'Why did he care?' Zoro also questioned himself.

"As if I didn't notice what was happening between you two." Ben continued.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Zoro shot the older man a look, confused why he brought that up.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. You think I don't know about you and Ms. Nico? Your long looks, and stolen glances?"

"I think you mean the 'will they, or won't they?', Ben." Erin added, as Ben let out a chuckle, leaving the swordsman confused.

"What 'will they, won't they? I don't understand you two." Zoro looked irritated.

What did they mean "long looks"? The stolen glances? When? He and Robin didn't even look at each other that much, except for that time in the workshop where Robin was busy checking her logs. Then the other time when he came in, she instantly gave him a smile. Maybe that time at the drink fest where despite drinking all night long, it was only her smile that he never wanted to erase from his mind— wait, oh…

Erin dismissed it with a smile. "Just don't think about it that much, Zoro."

However, Zoro was thinking about it right now.

Erin continued on, "We know you're one of Ms. Nico's close friends that are here right now… Can you help us?"

Zoro came back to his senses, and managed to say, "Look, I only came here to check the shop and I'll be on my way."

"You know you're lying, Roronoa. Admit it, you wanted to see Ms. Nico."

Zoro tried to retort at the old man, but he couldn't think of anything right now except: He was here to see Robin again, it was why he ran away from Nami and the others.

"Please, Zoro, can you go upstairs and talk to Ms. Nico? She needs company right now. Please, you're our only hope." Erin pleaded at the swordsman.

At first Zoro tried to refuse, but eventually, he made up his mind. He took a deep breath. Once again, 'This was what he wanted, right?' and 'That's why he was here?' repeated inside his head. "Fine, I'll do it." Zoro said, and went upstairs to Robin's home.

Talk to Robin and see how she was doing, then he could leave — as if he could follow the plan.

The door to Robin's home upstairs wasn't locked, so he got in easily. Once inside, he already knew Robin's home like the back of his hand since it wasn't that big, making it easier to memorize. If he was right, he also knew where Robin would stay at these moments. When Robin wanted time for herself, he knew where to find her: Not in the library, but in her dining room. She would be there seated alone, drinking coffee while staring at the window. She would smile whenever Zoro saw her there. And he was right, she was there except for the usual smile she had on her face. It was replaced by a blank emotion which he couldn't read.

"Robin?" He mumbled.

"Why are you here?" Robin wasn't looking up at him but Zoro knew that she had already acknowledged his presence.

From a distance, Zoro was leaning against the door of the kitchen. He was silent for a moment, unsure, which took him seconds before he came up with a definite answer.

"Ben and Erin said I should ask if you're fine. Are you?" Zoro asked.

Robin only nodded even though from the look of her face, she wasn't. Seeing her like that without any expression on her face was like walking into unknown territory. He wasn't sure whether in a moment, Robin would be calm or she would snap his neck into two— he didn't know — Still, Zoro took that without explanation.

"That's good to know." Zoro said.

After that, it was just a moment of silence, purely unbearable so he took it as a cue to leave. Zoro was about to leave when Robin called out his name.

"Zoro… Can we at least talk for a moment?"

Zoro halted his feet, yet he didn't look back. Robin took his silence as his agreement for her to speak.

"I will be joining you in the ruins when the last day of Floraleigh arrives to avoid suspicion that we went away so… Please… Stay here for the rest of your remaining days. Stay with me for the last time."

Zoro shouldn't be looking at her but he couldn't fucking resist. He looked back over his shoulder, and there, Robin was now staring at him intently for the first time. There was that pleading look, not the teasing one, that made him want to say yes, made him wanted to stay, and made him want to be together with her.

She was the reason— Nico Robin.

But he shook his head instead. After all, it wasn't meant to be. That was the truth.

"I'm sorry, Robin…"

How many times had he been so apologetic since he had stepped onto this island? He couldn't count on his fingers anymore. He didn't want Robin to suffer anymore being with him, it was why it was for the best that he strays further away from her. It hurt him but it was the right thing to do in this situation. Brief moments after talking to her, he was at the lobby again. With one last look from Ben and Erin inside the shop, he waved goodbye at them before leaving the shop completely.

Now… Where would he go to spend his last days here on the island?