Hello there, everyone! Whoo, it was such a stressful and difficult week, but I hope we are all good. I was so happy to see reviews, follows and favorites from new members and really, I wouldn't be here without your support. Maybe that was also a source of motivation for me to update a little bit earlier this time. I just wanted to inform you that the rating of the story will change from T to M, because of the introduction of adult themes (I am not going to spoil anything, but if anyone who doesn't want to go through with the story because of that aspect should know). I hope you like the plot, I was rather contradicted to whether to choose this or another alternative but I decided to risk it. I still do not own One Piece or any of the characters (sadly). Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 4: Haunted Memories

"I don't want to leave from here", Nami said with a sigh. She clearly wasn't ready to go home just yet, but it wasn't like she had a choice in the matter. She had to go home, otherwise she'd get into trouble. Arlong was the last person you could call an overprotective guardian, but he was persistent on Nami spending the night at "home". She could not do much about it as she was still under aged and under his command.

"Then, don't", Zoro replied simply, occasionally sipping at his beer. They both had relaxed in each other's company, but he had sensed Nami's tension when she mentioned her departure. He could clearly see that something was off with her connection to her stepfather. Before he was gone, Nami's mother, Bellemere, had been married to Arlong, one of the most famous businessman of the area. He had heard that after a while, her mother passed away and although he wanted to come back and be with her at such a difficult time, he couldn't because of his own mother's situation.

She sighed again and after that he heard her say, "I can't, Zoro. I have school tomorrow and Arlong insists that I am home after 10pm because of it. It's already late". She did not want to leave there, leave him but she wasn't able to.

"Fine, I guess I'll see you tomorrow then", Zoro grumbled, clearly dissatisfied with her decision to depart.

"What do you mean tomorrow?", Nami asked puzzled.

"Well, genius, listen;", he said sarcastically to Nami. "I need a cover if I am to track that bastard down so no one suspects me. I mean, sure, it would be weird for me to return after 3 years, but it would be less suspicious if I appeared like I'm still interested in school and similar shit. I mean, come on what a 17 year old student would possibly be able to do?", he smirked evilly and she was sure she saw a glint in his eyes. However, she was not scared as any other person would, but, instead, his stubbornness and determination brought a smile to her lips.

"Sounds good to me, but even without the cover, you will screw up eventually, you moss for heads baka", she mocked him and although he growled to highlight his irritation to her statement, she could swear she saw a smile light up his features as well. "Well, I have to be going. See you tomorrow then, classmate". She showed him her tongue and turned to leave, but was stopped by a grip on her wrist that made her turn around and bump into him.

"First of all quit mocking me, witch", he stated sternly, no emotion showing, his dark eyes glued to hers. "Also, you might want to give me your cell number so I can contact you if I need anything or vice versa. We found each other, let's not get lost again, shan't we?". He was pleased to see her eyes brighten and reach for her purse. The one thing Zoro could not stand was wasting more time being without her.

Nami pulled a small piece of paper and a pen out of her bag and noted down her number. She passed him the note and turned to leave. She took a few steps until she turned back to him and addressed him. "Zoro?"

"Hmm?", he murmured.

"Try not to get it lost". She winked at him and crossed the distance from the booth they occupied to the door. She opened it and exited the bar leaving him behind.

Zoro stood in the booth alone, drowning down the remainders of his drink. A slight smile appeared on his face and he took a glance at the door across from him. "Witch", he whispered.

Nami buttoned her woolen jacket up to the neck and started walking, confronting the cold she had escaped for some time. The rain had stopped, but it didn't have any real effect as the wind was powerful, messing up her orange locks. Despite the extreme weather conditions she was through, she made no effort to speed up as she knew what awaited her. She had to return to a place that felt strange and unfamiliar to her; a place she did not feel comfortable at; a place where her worst nightmare lived only a room away from hers.

She tried to push all these thoughts away, but without success. She hated that guy's guts. Sure, he hadn't done anything to her. On the contrary, he always had been respectful and kind towards her. But, his attitude towards her did not matter. All that mattered is that he was the one responsible for her misery.

Arlong was the cause of her mother's death. Her mother, Bellemere, had been a beautiful woman with an even brighter personality. Nami's childhood was the best a kid could have, full of love. Her mother was there at all times and never abstained from showing her daughters her love for them in any possible way. The only downside was Bellemere did not have the financial power to support a 3 member family at some point. She had to lend money from close friends or banks and the agonizing nature of such actions started showing. She didn't sleep, eat and overworked herself to an extent that she became sick.

That when he showed up. Arlong was one of the most prestigious businessmen in town. His wealth was that great that could not be perceived by human imagination. Bellemere had met him at a charity event he attended and where Bellemere worked as a waitress. Upon the time Arlong set his eyes on her, he fell in love with the pink haired beauty. He tried to approach her, but she always told him that she had a family to take care of and settling down with a man was not in her future plans. Arlong was hurt but then, he found out about her debts. He offered to pay them off for her if she became his wife. Her mother, thinking that this marriage could benefit her daughters in any way, agreed to his terms and they got married.

However, in a marriage where love was one sided, someone was bound to suffer. Bellemere appreciated Arlong for what he had done but the fact she had to share a bed with a man she could not love was nerve-wracking and awful for her. He tried approaching her, but she was always closed in her shell. Nami started losing her mother. Bellemere started drinking so that reality could seem a little better in her eyes. Sure, she had her daughters, her ray of hope, but that did not mean she didn't feel miserable in a marriage devoid of love where she had to sacrifice her existence every day.

At some point, Arlong snapped. He was used to obtaining anything he wanted by using money and his failure to receive Bellemere's love was driving him insane. One day, when Bellemere was sitting in the kitchen all by herself drinking trying to wash away the feeling of self-loathing, he approached her. "You never loved me, did you? You only did that for money, you cruel, money loving whore!". Anger taking over him, he slapped her hard in the face and she fell on the floor. Nami and Nojiko heard their mother scream, but when they reached the room, an outraged Arlong told them to get the fuck out. Both of them, started crying, trying to reach her side, but were locked out by a furious man. They could hear him hitting her over and over again and by her muffled screams, they assumed something really bad was happening.

They decided to look through the peephole and what was before their eyes was unbearable. They saw her mother lying on the floor, barely conscious, and Arlong forcing himself on her. He pounded hard inside her and they saw her eyes water, her expression hurt beyond repair. "Please, stop", a barely audible sound escaped her lips and upon hearing it, both the girls snapped. The started kicking the door until it finally opened. By then Arlong had stopped what he was doing and started heading out with a blank expression decorating his face. He slammed the front door closed and left the small apartment.

The two girls immediately rushed to her side, throwing their hand around her neck and waist with tears rolling down their cheeks. "Shh, I'm okay, girls. Now, calm down, everything is okay. Let's go to bed now". Bellemere pulled herself up and took the girls to the room they shared. She put them in their beds and kissed their foreheads. They seemed to relax a bit but were still stiff. "Can you do me guys a favor?", she silently spoke. Instantly, they nodded their heads with eagerness. "I want you to close your eyes and go to sleep. Just don't think about what happened. Can you do that?", she asked. Nami and Nojiko followed suit and closed their eyes. "I'm sorry. You are everything to me and you can't imagine how much I love you", she whispered and closed the door to their room. The girls fell asleep not long after that.

The next day, they were awakened by the sun rays getting through the window. They quickly rushed outside looking for Bellemere around the house. After a while they spotted her. Their mother lay on the bathroom floor unconscious with a bottle of whiskey and another half filled with pills beside her. Shocked at first, they tried to wake her up but without any success and both the girls wailed heavily. Getting over the initial surprise and hurt, they called 911 with the hope of saving her. Unfortunately, such a thing did not happen.

Nothing could make the situation worse for Nami. First, she lost her best friend, which hurt her deeply but just when she started getting over this event, her mother left her, too. It was unbearable for a 14 year old to deal with. At that moment, she just wanted to die. However, when they found out that Arlong was set as their legal guardian rage filled her insides. She hated him so much that she couldn't give him the satisfaction of dying as well. She would live to get her revenge on him, whatever it took her to achieve such a goal. He had to pay for all the pain that caused to her mother, to her sister and herself.

She tried to take hold of the tears that were staining her cheeks, but it was no use. Her puffy eyes blurred her vision, but she did not care. She reminded herself why she had to survive, why she had to get her revenge on him, why she needed to make him pay. Without realizing it, she had reached her destination. She calmed herself down despite the fact she was on the verge of screaming. She opened the door to her house and was greeted with a smiling Arlong and she was even more infuriated. "Well, look who's here. Welcome home, Nami".

So, I hope it's not too dark. Please, leave your reviews so I can know if I should continue on this path of writing or reform it a bit. Special thanks to Shivisdivis, demoiselle-irrealiste and valentina14 for their reviews and support! I love you all, guys!
-T