"I can't believe it's already been ten years, Nojiko... I wonder if she would have been proud of me if she saw me right now."
"Of course she would, Nami. I know I am. You've accomplished so much and you know what? I think this move is going to be really good for you." said the woman from the other line.
Nami was pacing continuously along the cool tiled floor in the kitchen. She had a towel hanging around her neck and used one end to dry her long orange locks that were still damp from her much needed shower, whilst her other hand gripped her cell phone tightly to her ear.
"Thank you, that means a lot." she smiled warmly to herself. "But I think if I hear the word 'move' one more time, I'm gonna lose it. I didn't realize how much stuff I needed to pack." she groaned before eying her now empty home. All of the furniture had been shipped to her new home with Nojiko, or sold, and the remaining boxes had also been moved out.
Nami had been living in the quaint ranch home her entire life, along with her sister, Nojiko, and their mother. Then both girls were left alone after their mother, Bell-Mere was tragically killed when Nami was ten-years-old. It took a toll on the girls. Being alone at such a young and tender age was extremely difficult for them, but it strengthened their bond as sisters and the experience taught them to fend for themselves.
After graduating High School, Nojiko moved away to another city across the country to follow in her mother's foot steps and saved enough money to open a thriving tangerine farm all while now attending her last year of university.
And Nami? She was now in her first year of university after graduating High School at the top of her class. She had taken a year off before starting college to work and save up some money. Nami was a very intelligent and independent person, but she had to admit that living alone was taking its toll. She often times felt herself craving human interaction but refused to develop relationships with people who would distract her from her dreams. Nojiko was her only family and she wouldn't be moving back to their small home town, at least not any time soon, thus both girls decided mutually to sell their family home meaning that Nami would move across the country to live with Nojiko. It wasn't an easy choice, in fact it was...
...terrifying.
Nami wasn't one for change. She had schedules and routines that she strictly adhered to. It was all work and no play when it came to her lifestyle. She liked everything in its place and made a place for everything. She made very minimal time and effort for nuisances like boys or friends. Why would she? She only had one goal in life: Becoming a famous cartographer; and she wanted nothing getting in the way of that.
When she was younger, she promised her mother that she would do everything in her power to make her dreams become reality and after all these years, she still had absolutely no intention of breaking that promise. Cartography was a passion that was rooted in her since she could remember. She would often beg her mother to buy her cartography books, brushes, pens, etc. She developed a deep fascination with maps, often drawing them to the best of her abilities. It brought her immense comfort knowing she had at least some control in her life and she was pretty damn good at what she did too if she had to say so herself.
"I told you to stop hoarding stuff! That's what you get for not listening to me."
Nami rolled her eyes, basically hearing the smirk on her sisters face from the other line of the phone.
"Yeah, yeah" she mumbled. "I just gotta get this last suitcase ready and I'll be done."
"I can't believe my little sister is going to be my new roomie!" she squealed. "Get some rest as soon as you finish up okay? You have an early flight. Call me as soon as you land!"
"I will. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, roomie." she exaggerated her sister's new title and giggled.
Nami sat in her seat on the plane, glancing outside from the window. This new town was nothing at all like back home in the countryside. As they neared their destination and the lower the plane dropped, the more she could see the lighted towering structures and how the cars below them scurried about resembling little ants on the ground. She gripped onto the hem of her skirt tightly and leaned her head back against the headrest with her eyes shut tight.
I hope I'm making the right choice Mom...
This new experience was undeniably nerve-wracking. Would she be happy here? Would she be closer to achieving her dreams? Or is she making a huge mistake?
She wasn't sure.
She had so many questions plaguing her mind but took a deep breath and forced a smile, remembering that she at least had her sister to help her along the way.
After landing, Nami gave Nojiko a quick call to let her know she had arrived and after boarding the plane and a very confusing bag retrieval process later, she found her sister waving in her direction ecstatically at the main gate within the plethora of people.
"Nami!!"
Nami immediately teared up upon seeing her older sister. A long time had passed since they last saw each other in the flesh and she looked even more stunning in person. Her lavender hair had grown long, now hitting her mid back, and she looked slightly older, her features beautifully matured.
"Nojiko! I'm so happy to see you!" Nami set her bags down and threw her arms tightly around her sisters shoulders, the lavender-haired girl reciprocating.
"Me too, Kiddo. You look so grown and absolutely beautiful." she broke the embrace to carefully take in her appearance. "You look more and more like Mom every time I see you." a small tear cascaded down her cheek.
"Geez, don't get all emotional on me." Nami choked out a shaky laugh, holding back her own tears that now trailed down her face.
"Look who's talking, Dummy." She laughed, using the pads of her thumbs to wipe away her little sisters fresh tears. "Come on, let's go home."
The women arrived at the high-rise flat. Their flat in particular was on the 12th floor. Nojiko stood at the entrance, dramatically covering the front door with one arm as if getting ready to show Nami the worlds most top secret location, her other hand gripping the door knob tightly.
"Are you ready to see the flat of your dreams?"
she exclaimed in an over-the-top fashion.
"Ready!" Nami chirped, going along with her sister's antics.
Nojiko nodded deeply and swung the door open, immediately shifting to the side with her arms out, signifying Nami to lead the way. Nami's jaw dropped.
It was absolutely gorgeous.
The flat had a very modern look to it with glass windows making up most of the wall on one side of the living room. The floors were a light bamboo color and the theme consisted of cool tones and greenery. The windows gave the flat a bright, warm feel and the layout was very open. It wasn't super big but seemed spacious enough for the both of them. Nami's room was on the other side of the flat which gave her enough privacy and quiet to work on her maps during her downtime.
Nojiko moved into this flat about 3 months ago, but her roommate had to unexpectedly move out so it was the perfect opportunity to convince Nami to move in. Everything worked out and fell right into place.
Nojiko gave Nami a quick tour of the flat, and started helping her unpack the mountainous suitcases.
"Woah, you weren't kidding about all this stuff. Looks like I'll have to take some of this off your hands so you can have space in here." Nojiko laughed cheekily, holding up a cute tube top to her chest to inspect how it would look on her.
"Very funny."
The orange-haired girl rolled her eyes and they drifted to a framed picture of her and Nojiko, standing behind them with a huge smile was their mother. Nami's lips tugged upwards slightly into a small smile and she retrieved the picture frame that was nestled in between her clothes. She eyed the picture momentarily and got up from her bed to find it a new home.
"Soooo Nami."
"Hm?" She hummed, not bothering to turn around as she inspected her new room.
"There's this college party I'm headed to tonight, and I think it would be good if you came. Maybe you could make some new friends."
Nami turned slightly, looking at her sister from over her shoulder with a brow raised in question.
"Nojiko, my first day of class is tomorrow and I'm pretty tired. Why don't you go without me."
"Come on! I'm not taking no for an answer. Plus, there's this super hot guy that's gonna be there and I really wanna see him. Please?"
Nami turned around, taking in Nojiko's reaction. She was always the more dramatic one between the both of them which was usually very entertaining. She sat on the bed, forcing a quivering lip and flashed puppy dog eyes in her direction. Nami sighed, feeling defeated.
"Fine, but we can't stay too late."
"Yes!" she cheered, holding her fists up victoriously. "Get ready then! The party starts at 9."
I regret everything...
Nami trailed behind her older sister, cautiously taking in her surroundings. They were at this place called "Party's Bar" and everyone and their mother seemed to be there. Nami was never one for partying. She considered herself to be more on the introverted side and would much rather stay at home tending to her maps instead of partying with a bunch of strangers.
Music echoed off the walls in the room and everywhere they turned, there was a new person greeting them. Nojiko seemed to know everyone there. She always admired how her sister could make friends so effortlessly. Growing up, Nojiko was always very popular, even amongst her classmates in school during the time Nami and Nojiko attended together. The entire school knew of her and it seemed to be no different here.
"You okay, Nami?" her sister asked.
"Yeah, totally." she nodded.
No, she was not okay. She wanted out. But this was for Nojiko, so Nami swallowed her selfishness and followed her older sister around like a lost puppy. Eventually Nojiko waved to a man with shaggy raven hair and freckles sprawled across his cheeks then called out to him.
"Hey! Ace!"
The man turned towards the source of the voice and smiled wildly at Nojiko. He left the group he was chatting with and made his way over to the sisters.
"Yo, Nojiko! Glad you could make it." he grinned.
"Well thanks for having me and letting my sister come along. This is Nami."
The orange haired girl bowed slightly in his direction and gave a court smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is all mine, Nami! In case you haven't noticed, your sister is pretty famous around here." he laughed, playfully elbowing Nojiko in the side softly.
"Yeah right! All these people are here for you, not me, Mr. Popular!" she giggled, poking him in the chest.
Nami chuckled, now realizing this must be the guy Nojiko was referring to. He seemed nice enough, and well-mannered. Her sisters happiness was extremely important to her and right now, she seemed to be over the moon.
"Hey Nami, you're going to be attending Logue University right?"
She nodded in response.
"That's great! My little brother goes there too so I'll make sure he takes you under his wing. In fact, he should be around here somewhere." he said, while visibly scanning the room. "Oh, there he is. Hey, Luffy!"
She saw this so called "Luffy" turn around quickly after hearing his name, then smiled brightly, now making his way towards Ace.
"Oi, Ace! Nojiko!" his eyes immediately fell upon Nami, and his smile only grew wider.
"Luffy, this is my little sister, Nami. She's going to be attending Logue University with us."
Nami could only stare at the man. He had disheveled raven hair and a scar underneath his left eye. He wore a red hoodie and Nami couldn't help but notice how... attractive he was.
He's kinda cute...
"Nice to meet you, Nami. I'm Luffy."
"Nice to meet you too, Luffy." she muttered softly.
"Are you a freshman?"
"Yeah, you?" she grinned.
He seemed even happier with her response, a little too happy, thing that took her slightly aback. She wasn't entirely sure why but his smile left her feeling a bit tingly inside.
"Same here! I'll show you around if you like. In fact, why don't you eat lunch with me and my friends tomorrow at campus?"
"Your friends?" she repeated.
"Yeah! It'll be fun! At the West garden, we usually meet there and eat before our afternoon classes."
"Oh... uhm well I-"
"She'd love to!" Nojiko interjected, placing a firm hand on top of her little sister's shoulder. Nami snapped her head in Nojiko's direction, giving her a death glare.
Feigning ignorance, Nojiko proceeded to consolingly pat her sisters shoulder. "Luffy, I'll leave her in your care. She just moved into town today, so maybe show her around the hot spots too."
"Nojiko!" Nami snapped sotto-voce.
Oblivious to the palpable tension between the two sisters, Luffy reached for Nami's hand, causing the girl to squeak.
"Sure! Come on, Nami!" he exclaimed, dragging her along behind him.
"Oi, Luffy! I don't think she meant right now!" Ace called out to no avail. Luffy was long gone with Nami in hand. He and Nojiko erupted into laughter after witnessing the interaction.
"They look cute together." she mused.
"They sure do." he replied.
She now found herself walking side by side with this strange guy she just met but somehow felt... calm? Nami needed an excuse to ditch the party anyway. She wasn't fond of the loud music and crowded atmosphere.
She became aware of the warmth that engulfed her hand. After a moment, she expected him to let go of her when they left the party but his grip only seemed to tighten with every passing step. As a red haze began to flood her cheeks, she coughed slightly to get his attention.
"Luffy, you can let go of my hand now."
"Oh." he looked down to eye their entangled fingers. "Nah. I like it."
Her blush only intensified and she gawked speechlessly at him.
"So what made you move over here?" he asked, snapping her out of her perplexed state.
She glanced at him, pondering at his question.
"I wanted to be closer to Nojiko. I was living alone before so I guess it was just time for some company."
He nodded, listening to her response.
"You don't have family back home?"
"Well, no. I don't really have family. All I have is Nojiko. It's just been me and her since we were little."
"Really? What about your parents?"
"I don't know my father. He left us when we were babies and my mom... uh... she was murdered when I was ten." Nami answered, feeling a bit awkward. She had never been this open with anyone before and felt like she was betraying herself by telling Luffy all this. She had no interest in making new friends, but for Nojiko's sake, she'd entertain the idea at least for tonight.
"I'm sorry to hear that. That must have been really hard to go through especially as a kid."
She grinned softly, not really expecting him to be so consoling. Whenever guys spoke to Nami, they were only ever interested in hooking up with her so this was a nice surprise.
"Thanks Luffy."
He smiled in response.
"What about you? Do you have family here?"
"Yeah! I never knew my Mom but I have my Dad, Grandpa, and two brothers around. You met Ace already. I have another brother, Sabo, he couldn't make it but all three of us live together."
"Sounds like a full house." she giggled.
"It's super cool! You should come over with Nojiko next time."
Nami lifted a brow in his direction. "Does she usually go over?" she asked slowly.
"Every now and then, her and Ace are best friends and she's pretty close with Sabo too." he smiled.
Well this is new information. Falling in love with your best friend, are we, Nojiko?
Her cell phone suddenly began ringing inside her pocket and she picked it up upon seeing it was Nojiko on the caller ID.
"Hello?"
"Hey, kiddo. Are you and Luffy making out yet?"
She immediately choked. "Very funny, are you ready go home?" she snapped causing her sister to immediately burst out in laughter.
"Yeah, you can head on back."
Ending the call, Nami turned her attention back to the raven-haired man.
"That was Nojiko, she's ready to go."
"Okay, let me walk you back." he smiled.
They made their way back to the bar still making small talk. When they arrived, Nami found Nojiko standing at the entrance, tucked away in Ace's arms, embracing him tightly.
Geez Nojiko, just marry the guy already.
She laughed internally and coughed harshly at them. Nojiko's head snapped in Nami's direction, causing the woman to groan under her breath. As Nojiko and Ace said their goodbyes, Nami also found herself now bidding someone farewells of her own. Something she wasn't quite used to.
"I'll see you, Luffy." she smiled softly, turning to head towards the car.
"Nami!" he called out.
She immediately stilled and turned back around, regarding the man behind her.
"Tomorrow at noon at the West garden. I'll see you there, right?"
Her chest tightened and her heart began to thump upon seeing the hopeful expression that flashed across his features.
Huh... That felt weird...
She nodded slightly, reassuring him. "I'll see you there. Good night, Luffy."
He gave her a small cheesy smile and raised his hand up, bidding her farewell.
"Good night, Nami."
To be continued...
A/N: Hey hey! I'm back with another LuNa story! Let me know what you guys think of this one so far :) as you could probably tell it's slightly ooc and in a different setting. Hope you guys like it!