Chapter Twenty Seven
Unveiled Emotions
"Alright." Robin approved before hanging up the Den Den Mushi and placing it on the table beside her. She had just ended a call between her and their captain who was currently at the park with the others. Since it was a sunny day, Luffy had decided to invite everyone for a picnic, and along with Usopp, Chopper, and Brook, he was tasked with finding a good spot to hold their event. They were also responsible for finding a kitchen near the park to be rented for a few hours while Sanji and Lassy would buy the ingredients to be prepared for the picnic.
"Alex?" Robin called out her partner's name as she knocked on the bathroom door.
"Yeah?" He responded as the sound of water rushing out of the showerhead echoed outside the washroom.
"Luffy asked me to buy some ingredients for the picnic today. Are you already done?" She asked as she laid her back against the wall next to the door.
"No, not yet. I thought Sanji and Lassy were supposed to buy them?"
"They were but Luffy's been craving for crab meat and he begged me to buy him some since Sanji refused to buy one. He was going to ask Nami, but Zoro said she's also taking a bath, and she'll probably reject him as well."
"Who eats crab meat at a picnic?"
"That would be Luffy."
"Alright, wait for me, I'll be quick."
"Okay." She uttered as she sat back on the sofa and grabbed her book she was reading earlier.
Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi rang once again and Robin quickly grabbed it before answering "Hello?"
"Yo! Robin!" A familiar voice echoed from the other line.
"Luffy?"
"Shishishi~! Have you bought it already? Sanji said if I really want the crab meat, I should bring it to him now because we only have limited time for the kitchen."
"No, I haven't. I'm still waiting for Alex to finish his bath."
"Eh? Why not go with Zoro instead? Please, Robin~?!" The captain pleaded like a child.
Just hearing their captain ordering her to go with the green-headed swordsman made her heart throb with excitement. "Alright, I'll ask Alex first if he's already done." She agreed with a smile smeared upon her lips.
"Oh! Take the groceries to Sanji as well. Thank you! Shishishishi~!" Luffy requested before hanging up.
"Alex, are you finished?" Robin asked as she knocked on the door again.
"Not yet, please give me ten more minutes."
"Oh… but I really have to go now. Luffy told me to go ask Zoro instead if you're still not ready. I'll see you at the park, okay? I'll be going now." She bid goodbye and left.
"Wait!" Alex yelled as he reached for his towel with suds still on his head but stopped upon hearing the door close, causing him to curse loudly. "Damn it!"
The raven-haired archaeologist went straight to Zoro and Nami's room and politely knocked on the door. It took a few seconds before the door opened and the person who appeared right before her was none other than the green-headed swordsman. Both of them felt their hearts skip a beat as soon as their eyes met and both of their lips curled up just by seeing each other's faces.
"Hey." Both of them said in chorus which made Robin giggle.
"What are you doing here?" Zoro asked for it was the first time the archaeologist went to their room.
"Is Nami already done?" She asked.
"No, not yet." The swordsman just gazed at her for he was unconsciously disappointed that she went to their room for the navigator and not for him.
"May I come in?"
"Ah yeah, sure." He scratched the back of his head as he fully opened the door to let her in.
The female archaeologist quickly poked Zoro's side, which made him smirk, before heading straight to the washroom. "Nami?" She called out her friend's name as she knocked on the door.
The sound of water droplets produced by the shower suddenly stopped and it took a few seconds before Nami hesitantly asked "Is Robin there?"
"Yes, I'm here." The archaeologist confirmed her identity when suddenly, she felt the only man in the room's arms wrapped tightly around her waist, causing her to slightly jolt from the surprise attack. She slowly turned her head at him and felt the smile on his lips as they pressed on her cheek, making her to giggle quietly.
"Oh! Sorry, I'm not done yet. Why are you here?" Nami asked as she opened the shower again.
"It's alright. I just want to inform you that I'll be borrowing Zoro for a while. Luffy asked me to buy some crab meat but Alex is still not done bathing as well. So Luffy asked me to take Zoro instead."
The swordsman remained silent and let his head rest upon her shoulder as he gazed at her unconsciously, feeling content that he was able to see and hold her. "What the hell is wrong with me? I swear this woman did something to me to make me act like this." He thought as he buried his head on her shoulder to avoid looking at her.
"I see. Does Alex know about this?" The navigator asked.
"Yes, I already told him about it. You could just knock on our room once you're done."
"Alright then, take care. See you later."
"See you."
"Let's go." Robin stated softly as she tapped on Zoro's arms which was tightly wrapped around her. She smiled as his clinginess whenever they were alone balanced the emptiness whenever they were with the others. It was comforting. His warmth was enough to make her want to stay in their position but they have to leave because of their captain's orders.
"Zoro, let's go before Alex finishes his bath or else he would be the one accompanying me instead." She uttered once more and it took a few moments before the swordsman's grip finally loosened up and slowly let go of her. Suddenly, she felt somewhat sad. The moment his arms left her figure felt like a piece of her was detaching from her whole being. It made her feel lonely, even if he was still beside her. The small distance between them felt like a thousand miles apart.
Once again, they would have to hide their emotions as soon as they get out of the room where anyone could see them. She had no choice. She thought that Zoro might still not be ready to tell everyone about them. In the first place, their relationship didn't even have a label. It's like they were more than friends but less than lovers. They just go with what their hearts tell them to do which was slightly worrying her. She didn't have any right to complain once he decided to leave her without a particular reason. But she didn't need to worry about that for now. She was quite sure Zoro wouldn't do such a thing to her.
The swordsman and archaeologist went out to buy the supplies their captain requested and as usual, they shared the same silence like whenever they sneak out. But unlike those sweet nights, their hands weren't entangled with each other. Instead, their hands, arms, or shoulders touched from time to time as they walk, making it exhilarating and heart fluttering every time they do. It seemed like both of them agreed and knew unconsciously that it wasn't the right time to be affectionate in public, especially since Zoro sensed that Nami might already be suspicious about them and could catch them any time. But that didn't stop them from enjoying each other's company. They still had room for laughs and conversations from time to time.
"Hold on, I need to buy something important." Robin said as she placed her hand against the swordsman's lower back while she stayed beside him and subtly pushed him to the female hygiene area.
Zoro slightly arched his back with a faint blush on his cheeks as he felt the soft hand of the archaeologist pressed against his back. He kept silent as he looked around, unfamiliar of the items stacked on the shelves in their location.
"Today is Friday, right?" She asked while getting two packs of tampons.
"Yeah, what about it?" He asked as he was about to take the packs from her but it seemed like she had no intention of giving them to him.
"I'll be expecting a war six days from now and it will be very bloody."
"Heh. Really? Who are we fighting? I've been itching to slice someone ever since we landed here." He suddenly felt stimulated and rested his hand on the handle of his precious white sword.
"My uterus." She uttered with an emotionless expression while staring at naught.
"Hah?" Zoro slowly tilted his head to the side while raising one of his eyebrows.
"Let's go." The archaeologist smiled and walked her way to the cashier.
"I don't get it."
"I'll be having my period next week." She said in a way anyone could understand.
"Ah…"
"You don't know what having a period is, don't you?"
"Yes."
"Having a period is like someone is squeezing blood out of my intestines and they are leaking uncontrollably out of my vagina." She explained in her normal tone.
"What the hell?!" His able eye widened with the thought of what she just said.
"It's like bleeding 24/7 for three to five days and it happens every month."
"Won't you be losing too much blood?"
"If that was the case, I would've died a long time ago." She giggled.
"Tch! Does Chopper know about this?"
"Of course, in fact, Nami get this as well. It's a normal thing for us women."
"Women are so complicated." He mumbled.
"Also…" The female archaeologist tugged on his arm as her words turned into whispers. "…you might want to get away from me during that time."
"Why?" He raised a brow as he let his ear get closer to her.
"I might get very horny and jump on you without a warning." She teased.
"What the?!" He suddenly backed away from her as his face turned bright red.
"It's true." She giggled softly.
"Tch!"
Sanji and Lassy's Whereabouts…
A cloud of smoke escaped from the blond chef's lips as he respired out the intoxicating vapor that was sedating his thoughts and added the finishing touch to their archaeologist's special bento. Sanji was thinking that maybe, he could steal the raven-haired beauty's heart from the wrath of the moss-headed swordsman through her stomach and allow him to be able to feel her lips against his or even more. He still couldn't believe that his woman was tainted by the mouth of a putrid beast he called nakama. He kept on telling himself that his poor Robin-Chwan was only forced by Zoro and it must have been hard for her to be struggling with such brute strength. But no matter how many times he convinced himself in his make-believe story, he still couldn't forget how the archaeologist was kissing the swordsman back. Not one trace of resistance was on sight.
Somehow, he felt betrayed. Of all the women in the world, why his sweet, mature, calm, and kind-hearted Robin-Chan? Why couldn't he just pick other girls to flirt with? Or better yet, flirt with none at all. In the first place, how did Zoro even considered the feeling of liking someone? It wasn't his thing. That swordsman must have been really bored and chose the raven-haired female as his playmate. "Well he chose the wrong woman to play with." The chef thought as he vowed to protect his Robin-Chan no matter what.
But aside from that, of all the men out there, why did the archaeologist pick Zoro? Couldn't she just pick the handsome, romantic, and gentleman chef instead? He was doing every little thing he could just to please the ladies but still, he always ends up with nothing but a "thank you". While on the other hand, the swordsman who does nothing but work his ass on training and sleeping gets the beautiful archaeologist.
Sanji was getting frustrated. He didn't know what to feel. Jealousy was overwhelming his thoughts even though he should be happy if ever the swordsman and the archaeologist's feelings were real. But what can he do when all he could think about was that Zoro would just hurt her? He didn't know how to treat a woman right. He just cared for his own feelings. He was a selfish bastard. He even had the guts to argue with the chef's precious Nami-Swan. It was unfair. Sanji really liked Robin.
"That's a lot of food for a picnic…" Lassy commented as he finished packing up the portion Sanji asked him to and gazed at the chef who looked like he was in a deep thought. "Sanji-Kun." He called.
"…" The chef didn't respond as he was still thinking of Robin.
"Sanji-Kun." He called once more.
"…" But still no response from the blond cook.
"Sanji-Kun!" Lassy shouted as he hit his palms together to make a loud sound, causing Sanji to slightly flinch and wake up from his deep thoughts.
"Yes, Lassy-Chan?" He asked as he blinked.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just thinking of how should I prepare Luffy's dish, that's all." He said as he prepared the ingredients for Luffy's food.
"Are you sure? You've been acting strange since last night. Is there something bothering you?" The blond revolutionary worriedly asked.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. Nothing's bothering me, so don't let it bother you, okay?" He smiled and started doing his work.
Lassy gazed at the chef for a few seconds before arranging the containers full of food in the large picnic baskets. Somehow, he felt a slight pain coming from his chest. The kind of pain you feel whenever you know the person you started to hold dear doesn't trust you. It was annoying him since it shouldn't have bothered him whether Sanji trusts him or not, especially because they've only met a few days ago. But he only wanted to know what was causing the chef to act so strange. He wanted to know so that he would be recognized by the cook as the only person comforting him. He wanted to at least be the person Sanji would open up to whenever he needed someone to talk to, especially in times when no one is there for him.
Somehow, Lassy was still glad about how their relationship was growing. Even though the blond navigator is a man physically, it seemed as if the chef could sense that Lassy had a woman's touch in him. Sanji treats him less than a woman but more than a man and that alone made the navigator feel somewhat special. Even so… he still wanted to be treated more… more than a woman. But what can he do when the guy he likes was somewhat sexist and he was part of the gender Sanji discriminates?
"Sanji-Kun." Lassy broke the silence as he sat on the chair by the table.
"Hm?"
He took a deep breath and hesitantly asked "I'm just wondering… Would you… would you be treating me differently… if I was a woman?"
Sanji just stared at the blond revolutionary as he tried to think of what to respond. Honestly, he had never thought Lassy would ask such thing. He doubted the guy would even care since they weren't friends or anything close to begin with. He was a pirate and the other guy was a revolutionary. They only met because they were Robin's common friends who somewhat landed on their ship and were arranged to be partners. There was no special connection between them because they were both men. So it didn't matter on how he treated Lassy because he treated most of his nakama worse than him.
"Where is this coming from, Lassy-Chan?" Sanji was getting confused. Was he really treating the guy that bad? In the first place, why would he even care if he was treating Lassy wrong? The blond navigator is a man and shouldn't receive any special treatment as with the women. But somehow, deep inside him, he felt guilty as if he was really hurting Lassy with his biased behavior with the guys.
"I-I just thought…" He stuttered as he tried to speak out what was in his mind. But before he could even open his mouth once again, a familiar voice echoed from the front door.
"Sanji, we're here." Robin greeted as she walked towards the two with Zoro following her at the back with the groceries.
The blond chef's eyes quickly turned into hearts as he heard the soothing voice of his sweet archaeologist and cheered "Robin-Chwa— Ehh?! Marimo?! What the hell are you doing here?! Why are you the one with my Robin-Chan?!" but turned violent as soon as he saw the green-headed swordsman behind her.
"…" Lassy kept silent as he realized it was hopeless trying to reach out to the cook.
"None of your goddamn business, Cook. What are we eating later?" said Zoro.
"You're not eating anything."
"What?!"
"Where should we put these?" The raven-haired archaeologist asked as she took the groceries from the swordsman.
"Let me take care of that, Robin-Chwan~!" The cook quickly took the bags of groceries from her and yelled at the green-headed man. "Oi, Marimo! How dare you let Robin-Chan carry these groceries?!"
"I was the one carrying that earlier, you idiot!" The swordsman protested.
"I don't care." Sanji mocked.
"Tch!" Zoro grumbled and rested on the couch.
"Are you okay?" Robin asked Lassy as she sat next to him by the round table.
"Hm? Yeah, I'm fine." The blond navigator smiled.
At the hotel…
It was an awkward situation for Alex as Nami gazed at him with a mischievous smile on her lips. They were talking about how he noticed that Zoro and Robin seemed to be so utterly close with each other, and he was laying out the scenarios that showed his theory while she countered them with possibilities. The lively exchange of words they shared suddenly fell silent as the orange-haired navigator pointed how observant he was with the mentioned archaeologist. Of course, the raven-haired swordsman couldn't utter a word because anything he would say might be used against him, but being silent about it also tend to make it clear that what she said was true. He had to think of a quick excuse. But as he did, the navigator opened her mouth for another unbearable question.
"You like Robin, don't you?" Nami asked with a confident tone.
Yooo! Wazzup?! Sorry for the very late update! I know, almost two months, but at least I updated! I was busy with all the exams and believe me, it's draining the life out of me. And choosing the title for this chapter was hard and was only done tonight. By the way, the next chapter might be late again because finals week is fast approaching. I have to prepare. So please be patient with me! Anyways, how was this chapter? Tell me! Review please!
