I do not own One Piece.
..
"Luffy? What are you doing?"
Robin asks in mild curiosity as she faces the everly bright beam her captain presents her with.
It's already nearing dusk and the sea colors with lustrous orange as the sun prepares to set, the illumination it created providing a glamorous setting even inside the Thousand Sunny. Robin is poise above the deck to admire the striking view one moment, but then on the next, she finds herself in the entrapment of a pair of rubbery limbs as she's brought to lean back against the railing.
Luffy's stretched arms have cut off any escape outside the use of her devil fruit powers, his fingers have gone to grip the railing on either side of her, and his face... Well, there's a notable mischievousness triumphing over his expression.
"What does it look like?" he asks back with a grin. He looks up to Robin, his eyes shining with childish innocence even when his actions promise mischief.
She hums, feigning nonchalance. "It looks like you have trapped me. I wonder why."
If she can move freely, she'll have a hand on her chin by now. But as it turns out, the distance between them is very scant and lifting an arm seems nigh impossible. She can only resign herself to stand placidly in there and wait for whatever her captain has for her.
"Shishishi. I just want to try something."
The corner of Luffy's eyes wrinkle in mirth when he grins widely like that. Robin thinks it's charming. She takes joy in watching him have fun and relishes in seeing him exhibit his high-spirits. If he wants her participation for this activity, then she'll be glad to provide it.
"Okay. Go ahead."
Luffy stretches his legs a little longer until his face reaches the same level with Robin's and presses her nose with his. The contact is extremely gentle and brisk, it only lasts for more than a second, yet the feeling of touch is unmistakable. Robin has her eyes widening slightly in surprise but quickly recovers as she receives another broad grin with a set of white teeth peeking over.
"I saw that from somewhere. What does it mean?"
"It's called Eskimo kiss," she says after making certain she's regained her bearings. "It's a way of greeting in some cultures. Is that what you wanted to try?"
"There's more!" he claims excitedly, prompting Robin to chuckle in quiet amusement. "What about this, then?"
Robin already expects to get subjected to with another extrinsic action from her captain so she isn't as surprised when he moves to peck on her left cheek before going to her right cheek and pecks on it, too. Then, he looks at her eyes as he anticipates her reaction.
"I'm a little amazed that you know that," she states, meeting his gaze with her soft ones. "That's a common gesture they do in other countries, as well. Sometimes, it can be a greeting. Other times, it can be a show of affection for someone."
"Shishishi. You really know anything. You're awesome, Robin!"
She smiles. "It's an advantage to have knowledge about different cultures. You never know when you might need to use it."
"Then..." Luffy trails, his gaze lowering for an instant as he appears to find himself in a maze of his own thoughts. Robin regards him with a mix of concern and interest. When he lifts his gaze again, however, there's hint of rare nervousness in his gleaming eyes that she finds considerably odd for someone like him. "Since you're really smart, I'm sure you know what this means."
All of a sudden, Robin's mind draws blank as she feels a soft pressure against her lips. Luffy is kissing her. Luffy, her captain, has his lips currently pressed against hers. It's merely a chaste kiss, a light contact of human parts to another human parts, yet it sparks a tingle down her spine and forms a bubble inside of her that she can't seem to expel.
After a short while, Luffy pulls back in silence. He goes down to his normal height and unstretches both of his arms, his hands letting go of his hold in the railing as if allowing Robin access to leave, as if he's giving her the free reign to decide what to do next.
"Lu—" She stops and blinks. Her train of thoughts halts with what she sees in Luffy's eyes. They're intense and fathomless, heavy and penetrating. They bore at her like they're spilling words, feelings and sentiments so abstruse even she finds it hard to decrypt. Yet there's a fascinating uncertainty in them that she connects to the Luffy she knows. The confusion, the inability to understand them and the interest and desire to know, they signify his immaturity and inexperience. Luffy has been having strong emotions that he can't fully grasp the meaning of.
Robin stares at him some more. Luffy's abruptness has shocked her before, but never like this, never in a way that renders her thoughtless. A kiss from a young man should have never even send her into frenzy, but because it's Luffy, and because he's never really been that simple, it does.
As if deducing that Robin isn't particularly repulsed with what he has done, Luffy decides to shed his tough demeanor and gives in to his impulse. He wraps his arms around her and slumps into her chest as if his strength suddenly leaves him. He buries his face into her collarbone and speaks in a muffled voice. "Hey, Robin. My heart is beating really loudly right now. I didn't even activate Gear Second but I can feel my blood pumping so fast. Can you hear it? Can you feel it? Hey, Robin?"
Robin exhales a breath she hasn't realized she's been holding. She yields on the embrace like she's done on the kiss, but she doesn't know how to tell him that she can't hear his heartbeat because her own is drowning out any other sounds, because her heart is going just as wild as his.
It seems the questions are only rhetorical, though, or perhaps, Luffy is not patient enough to wait for an answer as he poses another question, a question that startles and baffles her completely.
"Hey, Robin, does this mean I love you?"
She takes a moment to speculate if she's heard it correctly. With the unexpected occurrences she's been demonstrated to today, it's not too far-fetched to believe that she's only hearing things. But that reasoning also backs up the unpredictability of Luffy's knowledge, so really, it shouldn't have surprised her anymore.
Still, her bafflement leads her to ask in wonder. "You know what love is?"
Luffy looks up at her with a tiny pout. "A bit," he replies as he pointedly diverts his gaze away from her as though embarrassed to admit that he, apparently, knows.
She lets out a soft giggle.
"I see," she says eventually. "But I'm sorry, I don't really know if that what it means."
Because if it does, then I, too... She immediately disposes of that thought before it can even be finished while feeling a little silly for coming up with it. There's no way, is there?
"Hm. Is that so? Then." Luffy's pause is punctuated by a squeeze she receives from him that she notes is marginally tight for the first second before it loosens to give her air to breathe. In a way, it serves as an exposition signifying he's made up his mind about something. He's just had a decision he needs to declare. "Will you wait for me?"
Robin dips her chin in the manner that will stir her to look at him straight in the eyes. Once again, she feels herself getting lost in the vastness and sublimity of those bottomless orbs, but she wills her mind to focus on the topic at hand and repeats, "Wait for you?"
"Wait for me until I grow up and learn all about love, and then I'll show you."
"Show me what, exactly?" she asks with a smile as she feels warm inside.
He grins, determined and steadfast. "I'll show you how I can make you love me, too!"
She blinks calmly, processing his remark, word by gratifying word, as she ignores the stutter her heart makes without her permission. His radiant expression is almost blinding, his dedication and tenacity so palpable. He makes Robin feel things she doesn't know she's capable of feeling. He's just so young, yet so adept and so qualified to sweep her off of her feet. It causes her to fret and be tormented with the undeniable probability of her learning to love him even before he learns everything about love.
Nevertheless, Robin knows that when her captain puts his mind into something, there's no stopping him from achieving his goal. Even if she says no, it will only drive him to perform his best to obtain what he yearns. Perhaps, it won't be too bad to cut herself some slack and accept the things as they are.
She gives him a smile, genuine and saccharine, that reaches her eyes as a representation of her acceptance, her own resolution and all the feelings that have been revived the moment Luffy plants a kiss on her lips.
"I'll wait for you, Luffy."
Robin receives a blissful, contented smile in return that she finds herself cherishing followed by a youthful and more chirpy shout of "Yay!"
..
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