"What are you talking about?!"

"I knew something happened with Luffy. You may as well tell me before Franky does."

"I love him," she said hiding her face in the pillow.

I chuckled, "And what's wrong with that?! He clearly feels the same?!"

She shook her head.

"I don't want to hurt him."

~Ryu POV

"Who's this?" I asked as Apis stood in front of me with a boy from the year below me.

"This is Jiro, my little brother," she answered letting go of his shoulders.

She climbed onto the table and sat down, kicking off her shoes.

"Do you guys hang out in the library often?" he asked taking a seat.

I nodded, "I'm Ryu by the way."

"They're getting a divorce," Apis said swinging her legs over the side of the table.

"How come?" I asked.

"She wanted to love dad, she really did. But in the end she couldn't forget about him," Jiro said sighing.

"How's your dad?"

"He's surprisingly fine," she answered. "He actually smiled when he found the ring."

"Dad knew when he married her that she didn't love him. Not like he loved her. He knew that she was just trying to block something out. He wanted to help her, no matter what that meant," he added. "He wanted her to realize that by staying with him she was only ignoring her own feelings."

"Jiro?!" Apis said pinching her brother's shoulder. "How do you know so much?"

Jiro rubbed his shoulder before answering.

"Because I talked to Nami."

And then I stopped breathing. Again.

"Ryu! Ryu!" I could hear his voice calling me back.

I slowly opened my eyes to Apis and Luffy's worried faces as well as the intense lighting in the nurse's office.

"Luffy?" I whispered sitting up.

My head hurt like hell but even so I knew I had to say something.

"Luffy?! Can you give us a moment?! I need to talk with Apis," Luffy nodded and left the room with Jiro trailing behind him.

"Did you know that's she was my mum?" I asked as the door slammed after Jiro.

She shook her head, "Luffy only just told me. So she was the reason..."

"The reason why I tried to kill myself last year."

The tears began welling up in her eyes.

"Ryu, I'm so sorry."

~Zoro POV

Ryu arrived home at one with Luffy and two others she introduced as Apis and Jiro. There was this air of uneasiness but I thought it best not to bring it up whilst the others we here; I'd talk to Luffy and Ryu once they we gone.

"I called Usopp, he said he'll bring over the things you left last time you went there," I said handing round a tin of biscuits we had stashed in the cupboards.

I heard the doorbell in the background.

"That'll be him," I said.

I ran to get the door. Usopp had a habit of being late when I asked him over even though he only lived next door. I opened the door.

"Hi Zoro..."

I slammed the door.

"Zoro! Wait!" she banged on the door.

I lent my head against the door.

"Dad?!" Ryu's hand was on my back. "Who's at the door?!"

I squeezed my eyes shut.

"Zoro! Let me in! I just want to see Ryu! I just want to see my daughter!"

"DAD!" Ryu had taken her hand off my back and was screaming.

I turned around to look at her. Her hands were covering her ears and tears streamed from her eyes as she continued to scream. Luffy and the others came running out of the living room to see what was the matter. I couldn't do anything but stand there listening to the woman I loved and my daughter.

~Luffy POV

Zoro wasn't doing anything. He just sat slumped against the door with his head in his hands. Apis and Jiro had gone outside to speak to Nami. I had finally got Ryu to stop screaming but her hands still covered her ears as she clenched her eyes shut. This was the worst panic attack she'd had in her life. Even though she hadn't passed out yet I was so scared that at some point she'd stop breathing and would never start again. So I held her. I whispered to her that it was going to be alright despite the fact that she couldn't hear me. All the while Zoro sat there. Unable to do anything for Ryu or himself.

Slowly, Ryu's hands fell from covering her ears and she wrapped her arms around my back. Her hands desperately grabbing at my shirt as she buried her head into my chest. I held onto her as though I'd lose her if I let go for even a second. Because honestly, that's how I felt.

~Nami POV

I should have known better than to come here unannounced and demand to see Ryu. I was shocked to see Jiro and Apis emerge from their apartment.

"What are you doing here?" Apis asked her arms folded and an angry look written across her face.

"I just..." I looked down at my feet.

"You just what?!" she said her voice raising. "You just wanted to see Ryu!? Well guess what!? It doesn't work like that! You can't abandon her and then show up whenever you like!"

"I was trying to protect her."

"That doesn't change the fact that you left her when you decided you could no longer cope!" she was crying now, she knew what it felt like to leave someone behind for your own benefit.

"That isn't something a mother does! You're luckier than most though," she said chuckling. "She gave you a second chance last year when she wrote to you. You never replied but the letter from her would always be there in the mail, every morning. You thought we wouldn't notice."

She tutted lowering her head.

"The same address written on the back as the one you had on the notice board. She had waited for you! Staying there in case you ever felt like coming back! Then when she called you," she paused, lifting her head a bit to look at me. "You rejected her again! How could you?! If I'd been given the chance to change what I'd done I would have."

"Apis," I said stepping forward in an attempt to comfort her but she pushed me away.

"She wanted to die!" she yelled. "Do you know what it's like to hate yourself so much that you want to kill yourself!"

The tears streamed down her face as she turned away from me. Jiro stepped forward, a look of utter disgust on his face.

"You need to go."

And that was that. They went back inside the apartment without saying anything else to me. I left after that.

~Apis POV

I hadn't thought about that since before I met Ryu. It had suddenly all come flooding back as soon as she told me her name. I had heard the stories. There was no one in school who hadn't. I knew that she didn't have many friends if any at all. She had people who looked out for her but that was mainly because they pitied her. I however understood what she'd gone through.

I'd only just turned sixteen when me and my boyfriend began to sleep together. Everything about that world was different to me, it was new and exciting. We weren't always so careful though and I ended up pregnant. I knew I couldn't keep it so I had an abortion. The weeks following that I felt so guilt ridden and cowardly. I had wanted to die just like Ryu.

So this is double the length of my usual chapters I hope you all liked it and I would really like your opinions now that Nami has officially re-entered the story. Luliyah x