Chapter Seventeen – Somewhere in a Restaurant

"No. Absolutely not."

"Nojiko!" Nami hisses, her voice thin with impatience, "For the last time, we don't need to go together in the car, all right? It's been over a month now. If I tell Tashigi I need to borrow a car to get something somewhere, I know she'll let me. I'll take a non-descript one. Without a siren."

"Do I have to remind you that last time you went to meet with him without me, I had to seriously think about taking you to a hospital?" Her fist clenches around the phone at the thought, at remembering a call she made to the police station when Nami never turned up at the restaurant; and being told that one Officer Tashigi had signed out with Nami in tow, heading to F District. Somehow, she'd known before she even demanded being put through to Tashigi that the officer would tell her the news she had.

"I'm taking her to the hospital," Tashigi assured her.

"Then turn your car around. Bring her home," Nojiko had demanded in turn.

Sure, in retrospect, she could understand how unreasonable, how selfish and cruel the demand would have seemed at the time. But, back then, she'd needed her younger sister home. Where she was safe. Where she was supposed to never get hurt, and certainly not at his hands. Not again, never again. Maybe, in time, she will look back on this thought and see how unreasonable this notion seems, too; how naïve and stupid.

Until then, she could pretend. If only her sister wasn't so annoyingly stubborn and just as capable of acting as impulsively and selfishly as Nojiko herself was.

"He won't do that again," Nami argues fiercely, "Last time, it was just because I brought a police officer along; but he wouldn't dare hurt me again."

No. Tools were only useful when they weren't broken. Nojiko bites her lip to stop from saying anything to that effect. Raging about Arlong and his manipulative, sick ways wouldn't help the situation at the moment. Before she could launch into a more reasonable argument however, Nami beats her to it.

"Stop arguing with me on this, Nojiko."

"I want to."

"I'm glad we agree," her sister seethes. But… but, after a moment, it seems this one venomous attack drains her more than its intended target. In the next breath, her words are tired and heavy, "Nojiko… you know. You know it can't – and it won't – end your way."

Silence.

"We're very different people, Nojiko. You know, even when everyone thought we were similar," Nami says, taking a breath, a swallow, "Bellemere knew we weren't, and we know it, too. And we're the ones who are right. So… so, you've always been the one who could get along better with the police, with anyone who aligned themselves on that side. (Including our mother, went unsaid.)

"And me? I've… always been better at dealing with Pirates, haven't I? It makes sense. It's consistent with the theory that we're opposites."

The cool, calm and collected bluffer. The confident and cocky bluffer. The one who was too reserved and the one who acted too brashly. One who made the rules and one who broke them.

"How can they look so different when they sleep?" Bellemere mutters one day, pulling a blanket over them both – over Nojiko's splayed out and messy form (not quite yet asleep) and Nami's soldier-straight position, "Deceitful little monsters these girls are, right, Gen-san?" She could practically hear the smile in her mother's voice, and definitely hears it in Gen-san's own when he chuckles in agreement.

"Opposites," he agrees, "Truly, these are two very special daughters you have, Bellemere."

"Right?" he mother beams with undiluted pride. Then, a cheeky undertone laces her voice, "Jealous?"

Nojiko had fallen asleep before she heard the answer to that. She suspects Gen-san would have just sighed in his exasperated way when he had to put up with Bellemere's frequent antics.

Opposites.

"I know," Nojiko murmurs into the receiver, "I know."

Nami is silent then, weighing her next words, maybe thrown off by the fact that Nojiko would assent so easily. Nojiko toys with the telephone cord, waiting for Nami to say the final argument, ask the final question, that Nojiko knows she will already agree to. She can no longer argue on this – either logic will defy her, or Nami will, regardless of what she says.

"Good," Nami says. Her voice is softer, but no quieter and no less firm, "Then, it'll help you understand.

"Let me deal with the Pirates from now on."

Despite her earlier conviction, protests still rise at such a statement in Nojiko's mind.

Let me stop you from ever having to deal with Pirates ever again. Let me keep you out of trouble. Let me keep you safe. None of those arguments seem particularly compelling and, and... not for the first time, Nojiko feels so tired. So damn tired of trying to be a mother instead of sister, having to keep Nami out of trouble and arguing with her when it doesn't work out.

I'm not Bellemere-san, Nojiko thinks to herself, properly and wearily admitting what she tried so hard to deny for years. She couldn't protect Nami like Bellemere had, and... and maybe, that was for the best. They are older now and capable of taking care of themselves. Besides... If Nojiko still insists on following her late mother's footsteps exactly, would she end up in the same place, and Nami back to her own dark place she found herself following Bellemere's death?

Is that possible? She'd never considered it before.

"Nojiko? Are you still there?"

"I'm here."

"Then reply!" her sister snaps impatiently, "Geez... So, about what I said...?"

"Let me deal with the Pirates from now on."

Nojiko lets her.

At first, when Ace sees the path in front of him light up with a car's headlights, he thinks momentarily that with his luck, this will be the car that runs him over. Death by vehicle. Disgraceful for a Pirate, really.

But then, he hears a low, familiar voice, "You're a little far from your tour route, Mr Guide."

"I offer more tours than just those to the police station, I'll have you know," he returns, turning around, "What kind of cheap, non-savvy businessman do you take me for?"

"At least one that is savvy enough to accept this deal," Nojiko grins, "I'll give you a lift the rest of the way to our apartment if you tell me what your intentions are. Deal?"

"How do you even know that's where I was heading?" Ace mutters to himself, but he ambles to the passenger's side and lets himself in, embracing the warmer interior of the car.

"Where else would you be going in this direction? Actually, now that I think of it, we do have a very nice laundromat. Not that you seem to need one. Out of curiosity, why do I never see you with a proper coat even when the weather's freezing?" The sentences are said in rapid fire succession, in such a neutral, but blunt, tone that Ace can't help but laugh, immediately warming to her.

"Thanks for the lift," he only says as Nojiko peels out from the curb once more and they speed through the dark streets winding up to the apartment. Ace had never been here before, but Luffy has, and Luffy always describes everything in such animated, ridiculous detail whenever he finds something fascinating or cool. Admittedly, he had to wait until Luffy and Nami's little spat was over before he could ask for the details on this one. When he did though, Luffy didn't disappoint.

"The area's kind of boring and there's not much cool stuff nearby. Maybe a laundromat?" he frowned, thinking.

"Focus, Luffy."

"Oh, right. Well, they live in the rooms upstairs…"

"So, tell me," Nojiko says, leading Ace up old wooden steps that curve over once to form two flights of stairs, "What made you come out to see us this evening?"

"The rooms inside are kind of small, but it's cosy. If you turn right, there's the kitchen and to the left is the dining area. And if you keep going straight, there's a little hallway where their rooms are."

"I was wondering if I could have a word with Nami. If it's all right, that is."

As they enter the apartment, Nojiko seems to mutter under her breath, "what has she done this time?" Ace turns left, per Luffy's instruction. Nojiko turns right, to dump her keys on the kitchen bench and flick on the lights. Moments later, Ace hears her rummaging for cups and running water.

"If you're looking for Nami, she won't be back until late – something about doing some overtime work for the station."

"At this hour?"

"I only let her do this on non-school nights. There's always some job that needs doing around that place and Nami often volunteers to help out." This statement is followed by the click of a stove lighting up. Curious, Ace leans to the side, so he could glimpse into the kitchen and blinks once. Twice.

So, there were still people in the world who put kettles on the stove apart from Makino and Dadan. To be fair, it wasn't like Dadan had much choice, having limited to no access to electricity being all the way up in the isolated mountains, a fact she regularly grumbled about.

"I know it's old-fashioned," Nojiko laughs, coming out to join him at the dining table, "But it works. I'm afraid I don't have much substantial food to offer you right now. I hadn't anticipated your visit and I only brought back enough dinner for two."

"It's fine. I'm staying at Makino's tonight and she always has food."

That makes her smile and they talk animatedly along similar, boring lines (though their ability to banter off each other prevents the conversation turning monotonous or dull) until the water boils and Nojiko prepares two cups of tea. It isn't until they've both sat down opposite each other, nursing their respective cups, that they actually delve into the topic Ace originally came for.

"So, lay into me – what has Nami done?" Nojiko asks, seemingly used to this routine. The words 'this time' hang off the end of sentence, unspoken, but implied. If that wasn't a perfect mirror image for Ace's own relationship with his younger sibling. It is the knowledge of that – and knowing how he would feel in a similar situation – that makes him say, directly and honestly:

"Do you know Nami is a thief?"

Her shoulders rise once. They do not drop, and neither of them seem to breathe.

"If you say something cheesy along the lines of her stealing your heart…" Again, that smile and quiet fondness that conveys it is something that Nojiko seems apparently used to hearing. Anybody else could have been easily drawn into the new line of conversation, even feel inclined to agree with her, but Ace only smiles back cheerily.

"That doesn't work on me."

"Thought I'd try anyway." She stirs her tea absent-mindedly, never allowing the spoon to hit the side of the cup and maintaining their mutual, not-quite-yet stifling silence. Finally, she says, "I knew." Quieter: "Of course I knew.

"She thinks I don't notice these things, but I do."

Ace doesn't push her until he's absolutely sure she won't continue otherwise. He asks, "Has it been going on for a while? Just for my knowledge." He adds the last part hastily when Nojiko's eyes drift around the apartment, as if looking for others listening in on their conversation.

"It's not that," she murmurs in return. Finally, her eyes settle on something and she stands up, walking over to the window. When she returns, she holds a small pot and a worn, but well-maintained, book. Ace raises his eyebrow as he realises the latter is a book on cartography.

"When we were younger, our mother grew and maintained a tangerine grove," Nojiko began, "One day, Nami and I were running around town and we stumbled across a neighbouring property that grew lemons. Nami was amazed. She thought they were gold tangerines." She laughs a little at the memory, "Next thing I knew, Nami told me to 'wait' and scrambled over the fence onto the property. She stole this," she flicks the small pot, "and tried to grow gold tangerines, as she called them. She gave it a name and everything, even though it was something no one else could pronounce." She puts the pot down and, sure enough, Ace sees something scrawled on the side in faded, unreadable childish script, "It never worked, obviously, and it's long dead now. But that was the first time.

"When she got older, she started stealing books. She stole atlases and encyclopaedias to read at home. Back then, she seemed to always get caught. A local police officer, Gen-san, and our mother always scolded her. They made her return everything she took." But she strokes the cover of the book with a distant expression, "That they knew of, anyway.

"Later, we were put into foster care and we went to many families – some which were OK, and some which were not. For the latter, Nami rebelled against more. She started stealing again and sometimes stopped being careful about it. It was as if she was asking to be kicked out, and most of the time, we were." After a moment, a moment which Ace feels something passes her mind but never makes it to her lips, she says, "She told me she'd stop making trouble. To her, that just meant doing more, much more, that I wasn't supposed to be aware of. But I knew, at least some of it."

"How did you know?" Ace asks.

Nojiko shrugs a shoulder, "Birthday presents that were too… nice. Spontaneous gifts. When we were older and I was between jobs, our bills would be paid without too much of a hassle, even though I thought we shouldn't have been able to afford it. Nami started wearing new clothes I knew she couldn't have bought." She shrugs again, a slow, tired motion, "I just knew. But I'm her sister. The more interesting question, I think: how did you find out?"

A valid question. Ace drinks the remainder of his tea before he replies, deciding whether it would be better to tell the truth or lie, and ultimately deciding in favour of the former.

"Gramps usually sends me on weekend jobs – just general patrolling and controlling any ruckus in certain areas around town. He heard a new Pirate crew moved into this area and told me to have a look. So, I saw Nami in F District." And almost got caught by the girl herself, too, though Ace doesn't mention that. At the time, he hadn't known whether to confront her. It wasn't as if she could claim she was out for leisurely stroll in that crime-infested cesspool, but, he could hardly accuse her of anything either, until she gave him a good reason. Plus… she wasn't in danger then, despite the target that was usually attached to young, attractive women. In fact, the others… avoided her, as if knowing some unspoken consequence of laying a hand on her. Which was also suspicious, but again, nothing particularly damning. So, there was no reason for Ace to intervene and he kept his distance as a result, though he still quietly followed.

Just in case, he told himself at the time. Just in case of what exactly, he never found the answer to.

Just in case she was a criminal? Just in case she was placed in danger?

(Maybe both, if he reflects on it now.)

He goes on to explain the rest of the story: how she led him back to the main streets and then to the front of fashion boutique. Ace left her then, certain she just chose strange places to spend her spare time – not the weirdest of things from characters in these parts – and partially enjoyed himself that night, drinking himself into a stupor with his crew.

The next morning, the shop was robbed. Even in his hungover state, and consulting only a few traffic cameras that showed a familiar car driving away along a familiar route, Ace could put two and two together. Fortunately, no one else at the station could, nor had the capacity to care about such a case for very long.

Nojiko – to her credit – doesn't even seem surprised that Nami frequents F District, or if she does, she doesn't show it.

Doesn't that bother her? Ace wonders, a familiar suspicion playing in his head. It is not distrust of Nojiko, nor Nami, yet… Yet, something doesn't feel right, all the same.

"I see," Nojiko allows. Her own tea has grown cold after she only stirred it and it sits, seemingly forgotten, in her cup.

"What was it, then?" she asks, "Your purpose here after speaking to Nami?" Her eyes ask, is it to arrest her?

She is too calm… too calm, in light of everything Ace has told her. Utterly in control and confident. He feels almost intimidated, which is normally unheard of, especially against someone he knows he could easily overpower. But then, he also sees an untouched cup of tea and he thinks, for the second time that night:

That doesn't work on me.

It was a perfect plan in theory. Nami stayed overtime once more, assisting Tashigi with the mountain of work that seemed to grow larger and larger by the day; and even borrowed bulldog clips from another division to ensure bundles of paper would actually stay together. She photocopied, scanned and printed various documents, organised them into piles, sealed them in envelopes and ran them to various floors or outboxes to be forwarded on for signatures in the morning. She proof-read and typed up reports submitted by officers on duty using Tashigi's laptop while her senior tackled the written correspondence on behalf of Smoker. They were an effective team by now and finished quite efficiently with plenty of time before ten.

The only bump in the plan is being refused a car.

"You know our vehicles aren't for personal use," Tashigi explains, politely but firmly, "And Nami, I truly appreciate your help around here but don't believe that doing that will suddenly entitle you to start asking for special favours. Is that understood?"

Though tempted to pursue the matter doggedly, Nami could only reply, "Yes" before being dismissed.

When she leaves the station empty-handed, she doesn't say a word as another person falls in step beside her. Ain doesn't seem too fussed, even though she must have drawn her own conclusions from Nami's silence.

"How inconvenient," the other girl only murmurs and she deviates abruptly from the path, walking out to the opposite side of the street. A slight incline of her chin beckons Nami to follow. A short distance away from the station, Ain finds what she is looking for. Nami wasn't in the habit of stealing vehicles, but she could still deduce Ain's intentions when she approached a non-descript black car parked in a deserted lot.

"Hey," Nami hisses, "What are you doing?"

"We need a vehicle to get there, don't we?"

"Sure, but there's plenty of time now, unlike last time," Nami points out, "I can ask Nojiko to drive the car down for me to use." Her mind works quickly on the new plan: she could ask Nojiko to bring the car down and wait at the station for her to return, provided she wouldn't insist on tagging along. Given her assent over the phone, that wouldn't likely be a problem. Nami could pick up Ain on the way if Ain would wait a couple of streets over and drop her home afterwards before returning to the station. That way, Nojiko would not be aware of someone else's involvement. Easy enough.

But Ain shakes her head, impatience making her features stiff and sharp.

"We already agreed to your way once and it didn't work out."

"Then I admit that was a bad call— Ain!" The other girl had been reaching towards the door, so Nami blurts out the first thing she can think of, "Don't touch that or you'll set off the alarm!"

That makes her hesitate, at least. When she turns around, Nami realises Ain is just as clueless when it comes to stealing vehicles as she is. Just how bold could a person be in her haste to get to a Pirate?

"You stole cars?"

"Not such a big stretch for a Pirate, is it?" Nami asks, somewhere between mockery and sarcasm even if she is lying so brazenly, "And we both know you don't exactly have the moral high-ground at the moment. We're not stealing that car." Given that much is final, she adds, "Let me borrow your phone."

"Stealing a car to confront a Pirate crew seems to be worth some moral high-ground compared to stealing for fun," Ain mutters, but she passes over her phone anyway. Nami closes her hand around it, but Ain doesn't let it go, forcing Nami to look up into her eyes. When they meet, Ain's eyes narrow, "Isn't it?"

Nami snatches the phone forcefully, though she suspects Ain let it go willingly, having made her point.

"I never steal without a good reason, or with any other alternative," Nami says, "If that means anything to you."

"It doesn't. That sort of judgement is subjective. It's meaningless."

"So is your means-to-an-end judgement," Nami retorts, "Who is supposed to judge what is worth doing to achieve a result?"

"If the result is achieved, it justifies the means. So, you see, my way of thinking is objective."

Distantly, distantly, Nami hears her mother declare herself so boldly.

"Who said that was my share? That's… for my two daughters."

In the distance, she hears a gunshot.

Sure, her mother achieved the result she wanted. Nojiko and Nami… were proof of that. Did that justify the means? Maybe to her mother, it did.

But to Nami, it didn't. No way. Whose judgement mattered more? Though she supposed it also didn't matter, since only one of them was still alive.

She didn't want to think about this anymore. She says, "Maybe." Both of them know they still disagree with the other, but neither choose to pursue it any further, not tonight. The air is calm.

After a few seconds, Nami even feels sure enough to ask, "Ain?"

"What is it?"

"Um… this phone. It's not like Tashigi-san's old model."

"So?"

…

"You don't know how to use it," Ain deadpans.

"Don't sound so incredulous!"

"This is ridiculous. Are you prehistoric?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? Don't laugh!"

"I'm not. Hand it over – what's your sister's number?" Ain asks, one hand covering her mouth, the other held out for the phone.

"No, you are definitely laughing," Nami accuses, but she returns the device and begins reciting the number. Ain interrupts her three numbers in.

"That's a landline number."

"So?"

"I wasn't aware those still existed."

"AIN!"

Nojiko doesn't know what exactly to expect when she picks up the phone but it is certainly not Nami snapping about how landlines do still exist and yes, even outside of old retiree homes and mountain lodges. A cool female voice remarks, "I'm sure. The call's connected."

"Huh? Oh – Nojiko?"

"Nami?"

Immediately, Nami delves into her plan, sheepishly admitting that Tashigi refused her borrowing a car and ending with a request to borrow the car if Nojiko drives it down.

"Of course," Nojiko replies, mildly surprised. While her sister took care to avoid stating what the car was to be used for, she still talked so openly in front of this cool-toned woman who Nojiko assumed she borrowed the phone from. Strange things were certainly happening to her sister in this place. After they both hang up, Nojiko turns to her guest, "Nami has to borrow the car for a bit so I'm driving it down for her at the station. Do you want a lift to Makino's on the way?"

"I'll come to the station with you," Ace replies. In his arms, he has the clothes Nami stole. He says, "Since I have to hand this in anyway. Thanks for giving it to me. The police won't settle the case fully until they have the evidence. But with this, it should be over."

"I should be the one thanking you," Nojiko only replies. Even if she is now indebted to this boy who is also a Pirate. And an older brother, who also knew what it was like to look after his own younger sibling.

Because of that, she prefers it to being indebted to someone else.

"Come on," she calls, swiping up the keys once more, "If you can guide me down an even quicker road to the station, it'd be much appreciated."

"Only if I get to drive."

"No chance."

Ace argues, but it is still Nojiko who ends up on the driver's side when they get to the vehicle. Still, refusing to admit complete defeat, he returns her look directly when he moves to change the stations. For God's sake, what near twenty-year-old listened to oldies from the 50s— was that country he could hear?

"If you drive, it's only fair I choose the music."

"You're such a backseat driver-type," Nojiko grumbles, but she doesn't say anything when he flicks through, finally settling on one. He turns it down somewhat though, out of some courtesy for her, since he was in her car and her ears were apparently used to country from the 50s, whatever the heck that was.

"How's your younger brother?" Nojiko asks as she drives. There's something strange about her tone of voice, but Ace doesn't choose to question it.

"Same as ever. He gets in trouble too often, but I'm not worried if his crew is nearby. What?" he glances her way, noting the slight purse of her lips.

When it is clear he won't drop the topic, she says, "It's such a fickle thing – a crew. A group of like-minded people, that's all it needs, whether it's a team of staff, friends or a Pirate gang. It can mean something so positive and negative all at once." That's all she says even though her expression suggests there's so much more to the story that she is refusing to bring up.

"Are Pirate gangs supposed to be the negative variation?' Ace laughs but he agrees amiably, "Crews are like that. It's a common term that's thrown around to describe anything. We're all guilty of it. If you want to narrow the category, I have another word you can use.

"It's called 'nakama'."

"How is that any different?"

"Uh…" Ace closes his eyes, crossing his arms and tilting his head to the side, "How should I say… Crews need like-minded people, yeah? People with the same, common goal. Your nakama won't, necessarily. They're capable of having different objectives, their own dreams and desires. When you're in a crew, achieving the goal comes first because to achieve the goal means to achieve what everyone, as a whole, wants. But nakama… nakama turn their back on the goal to help someone else first, whether that means neglecting their own objective or sacrificing it entirely for someone else's sake. I guess it would be more accurate to say my little brother's crew is a group of nakama." He laughs good-naturedly, "My bad." His eye catches something and he lights up, sitting up straight in his seat and using his fist as a makeshift radio. He mimics a few static noises before: "This is your tour guide speaking – in 400 metres up ahead on our left is a road cutting through an alley that will let us reach our destination in t-minus 3 minutes, not 10."

His companion has no problem keeping up with his spontaneity, "Siri: Tour Guide Ace version, tell me the pros and cons of executing such an action."

"Cons: it has perpendicular corners which are known to be dangerous, and possibly a few suss characters. Who are less dangerous, if we're being honest." He sees her stifle a laugh which motivates him to keep going, "Pros: you receive the eternal respect of the artificially intelligent version of yours truly and a damn good soundtrack." Here, he reaches over and twists the dial to raise the volume so a pounding bass resonates in the car, "Which will it be?"

For a second, he thinks she might actually pass it. Which would make him feel like an idiot.

She shouts something over the music, which may have been either 'sold' or 'soul'; and Ace would have retorted that he is now AI and 'what is this soul you speak of'… but then, they turn sharply into the alleyway, battling perpendicular corners with EDM music and laughter blaring and they are both too caught up in the sheer absurdity of the moment to care.

And this, Ace thinks looking at her; this… this is what a twenty-year-old should look like, sound like. So, he smiles as much for her as he does for himself.

It doesn't last long. Until the exact moment when they arrive at the station, in fact. Ace noticed the tell-tale signs of her eyes dropping to the clothes in his arms to his face, asking an unspoken question between them.

"Don't let her see, right?" he says, his voice still slightly hoarse from laughter that suddenly seems so long ago. He mumbles to better preserve it, "I got it. I'll be discreet."

"Thank you for the tour." And this goes unsaid. He would take what he could get.

He doesn't have a hat, but he mimes tipping one anyway, "Thanks for the lift."

A ghost of a smile passes her lips, a poor imitation of what could have been, what Ace knew could have been. He'd seen it two minutes ago, after all. But, he takes care to leave first, skirting around the vehicle and ducking into shadows to avoid being seen by the flame-haired girl approaching them from the other side.

-x- End of chapter -x-

From this point onwards are my 3AM Thoughts – jump forward to the next chapter if you so please (double. Upload. Guys. Clearly, we've fallen down the rabbit hole into a land of madness – but seriously, this is my way of saying thanks for putting up with the bull and these rambles below); otherwise, read on:

So, as you might have noticed, this story has expanded in leaps and bounds beyond what it was originally confined to – which was a straightforward, modern retelling of the Arlong arc, with Ace thrown into the mix because why the heck not.

To be honest, a year ago, I struggled with the fact that I really bit off more than I could chew for lack of a better term. I had overlapping timelines, character stories and backgrounds, references to the main series and brought in material that was both canon and non-canon in this one piece (haha) of fanfiction. I didn't feel I had the ability to write such a story – and sometimes, I feel like I still don't have it; which is why it sometimes takes so long for an update. I could write a whole chapter and delete that whole chapter in the same night to repeat the same thing again. This isn't something I'm bringing up as an excuse, or to invite pity, but simply to explain one reason why I'm MIA for seemingly very long periods of time. The people who favourite, follow, review and most importantly, read, this story – you guys – are really the best! Thanks for always asking for another chapter, another update – it really brightens my day.

As to the direction of this story now… it's going to be guided by the characters. They'll write the story for me, and we'll just have to see where they take us. I'm looking to explore a lot of what the One Piece series left open-ended, or how things would have could have been, if things had taken a different turn. On that note, I fully recommend watching/reading at least as far as the time-skip and beyond in order to avoid any major and undesired spoilers.

Overall, I've just decided to have fun with it – one way or another, some kind of story will emerge and I can only hope it will be to your taste and it will reflect what you've signed up for when you initially clicked on this story.

Right, well, that's the end of 3AM Thoughts. I don't really do Private Messaging (though I'm open to it), nor do I invest any time at all in this website beyond uploading my stories (as you might notice from my half-assed profile), but I do enjoy hearing the thoughts of my readers. Feel free to let me know your own thoughts, your own what-ifs and what-abouts, or calling me out on shit in my story – I'd love to hear what you have to say!

'Til then,

BTS-Silverlinings x