Chapter Text
Last week, Trafalgar Law moved to a new place. His new home is in Shabondy, a city a two-hour drive from Dressrosa. The reason Law went out of his way to move all the way to Shabondy was for university. Law entered college later than average. He is 26 years old—an age at which most people would have graduated from college long ago. This was especially rare for someone as intelligent and talented as him.
It would be a lie to say he didn’t care at all about what others thought. Law hadn’t yet figured out how to respond when people asked why he had entered college so late. In fact, he wasn’t even sure if he could carry on a normal conversation with others.
Still, he felt a sense of anticipation and excitement—emotions he hadn’t felt in a very long time. Becoming a doctor had been a dream Law had cherished since he was very young. It was also the only hope he had left. But for Law—who didn’t even have a high school diploma, let alone proper identification—to be able to attend medical university was nothing short of a miracle.
The reason this was possible was that Doflamingo had personally gone so far as to forge a fake high school diploma for him. The reason he had to come to Shabondy was also because Doflamingo had said it was the closest school where he could be slipped in through his connections. Or maybe not. After all, there are medical universities in Dressrosa, too. It might have been something Doflamingo made up just to kick Law out of the house. Or it might have been true. After all, in just one week, Rosinante visited five times and Doflamingo twice at Law’s new house (which, technically speaking, belonged to Doflamingo). They visited too often and nagged him too much to simply call it ‘abandoning’ him.
The house was too big for one person to live in alone. The kitchen and living room were spacious, and it even had a small terrace and four bedrooms. He set one up as a bedroom, one as a study, and one as a dressing room. He couldn’t find any other use for the remaining room, so he turned it into a guest room. At first, he thought it would be completely useless, but considering how many times the Donquixote brothers had visited in just one week, it turned out to be a very wise choice.
In any case, this house was more suited for a family with several children than for a college student living on their own. Over the past few years, Law had grown accustomed to Doflamingo’s extravagance, so he simply accepted it. Having such a spacious house wasn’t necessarily a good thing, but it wasn’t inconvenient either. And from the terrace here, he had a clear view of the university he would be attending. He really liked that.
As he sat on the terrace enjoying the early spring sunshine and the cool breeze, he heard a commotion from below. The sound of furniture being dragged, men arguing, and the raucous laughter of several people all came at once. It seemed he had new neighbors.
Since Law strongly preferred a quiet and predictable environment, he hoped his new neighbors would be a sensible family.
-
Yesterday, Nami moved to a new place with her friends. Some of her friends had been living there for a while, while others had come to Shabondy from other countries. Nami was one of them. It was university that brought this scattered group of people together.
This was because Luffy and Usopp had also started attending Shabondy University. With Nami and Zoro, who had been attending since last year, and Robin, who had just been appointed as a professor, the five of them naturally decided to live together. They managed to find a house that was close enough to the university and big enough for all five of them to live in. Although it cost a bit more because they had to find it in a hurry, the building was clean, well-soundproofed, and even had an elevator—it was perfect.
With five people and only four rooms, the fact that two people had to share a room was pretty much the only downside. Even that was resolved without any major issues. Luffy and Zoro ended up sharing a room, and they got to take the largest one. They decided by drawing lots. When Zoro saw the result, he shouted, “You rigged it, you witch!” but he couldn’t prove it was a cheat. After all, Nami’s skills were still top-notch.
Zoro’s grumbling stopped after just one day. That’s because, back on the ship, eight of them used to share a single room. To be honest, even if Zoro and Nami had shared a room, he would’ve only been annoyed for a day or two. Sanji would have hated it, though. Anyway, they will gather in the living room every night to watch Netflix, do homework at the dining table, and play pranks in the bathroom. Even the crew members who didn’t live in this house would drop by at any time. Sanji lived a 20-minute walk away, and Jinbe could get there in 15 minutes by car. The others were in Shabondi too—they just weren’t in this apartment.
The Straw Hat Pirates were all together, gathered so close like this. Nami was filled with anticipation and excitement. She wasn’t the only one. Although the crew had traveled together or celebrated holidays before, this was the first time all ten of them were living close, so everyone was excited.
Luffy and Usopp hummed a song and danced. Franky and Brook, who had come to help with the unpacking that wasn’t quite finished yet, joined in the dance as well. Robin was laughing as she filmed them on her phone. Zoro stood beside Robin, watching his friends while gathering up plastic trash bags. Sanji didn’t show it, but he moved his shoulders to the rhythm of their song as he prepared lunch. Happiness really wasn’t such a complicated thing.
As Nami sat at the dining table watching her friends’ performance, she suddenly found herself thinking about her neighbors. It was common knowledge throughout the entire sea that the Straw Hat Pirates were noisy. Extremely so. On top of that, she was worried that moving in would have caused even more noise. She didn’t want to have a conflict with her neighbors right after moving in. Nami put a few pieces of the bread Sanji had baked into a bag. Since there was only one household per floor in this apartment building, she prepared just two bags—one for the apartment above and one for the one below.
She was curious about what kind of people her new neighbors would be. It would be great if they went to Shabondi University. They could throw parties together and go to the library. Making new friends sounded like fun. Especially since the landlord had mentioned that someone new had moved into the apartment above them last week. If they moved in at this time of year, there was a high chance they were college freshmen like them. Hmm, but if they were students at Robin’s, it might be a bit awkward, so she hoped they weren’t in the archaeology department.
As Nami walked out holding the bag of bread, Luffy noticed her like a ghost and rushed over.
“Luffy! It’s polite to say hello to the neighbors. We’re about to have lunch, so just wait a little!”
“Oh! Oh! Oh! Then I’m coming too!”
“Don’t get into trouble, don’t start any fights, and just behave yourself. First impressions are important.”
Luffy nodded vigorously. Nami gave Luffy a suspicious look. After all, the odds of Luffy behaving himself were about the same as the odds of Zoro finding his way in one go. Which meant it was practically a miracle.
Even though it was late February and cold outside, Luffy had come out wearing the same short-sleeved T-shirt and shorts he’d been wearing at home. He was even wearing slippers. Even though they were inside a building, his outfit stood in stark contrast to Nami’s coat. But no one told Luffy to put on more clothes. They were all used to it.
Luffy and Nami went to the apartment downstairs first. A newlywed couple and their newborn baby lived there. They had been living there for a year. They were kind people. They were delighted with the gift and gave Luffy and Nami some orange juice in return. Just receiving the juice was enough for Luffy to already consider them friends. The couple seemed surprised to see Luffy hopping around, but they found it amusing rather than being annoyed.
They explained that they had moved here because of the soundproofing, worried about the sound of their baby crying or running around. Nami felt quite relieved to hear this. She didn’t want to have to deal with noise issues—because that was something that could never be resolved.
The two of them drank orange juice as they climbed the stairs to the upper floor. Luffy finished his juice in the short time it took them to climb just two flights of stairs. The neighbor they met for the first time was friendly, but they weren't a student at Shabondy University. Nami recalled what the landlord had told her and held out a glimmer of hope. However, if this person turned out to be rude, she hoped they wouldn't have anything to do with the university at all.
Nami pressed the doorbell. Luffy stood behind her, needlessly fiddling with the empty orange juice carton. When no one answered after she rang the bell, Nami pressed it repeatedly. She turned her head toward Luffy. Luffy shrugged.
“I wonder if they’re out?”
“Oh, then can I eat that?”
“No! Ugh… I guess I have no choice. Let’s come back tonight.”
She pulled the bag closer to her body, away from Luffy’s hand as it crept toward her. Luffy, whether out of disappointment at not seeing the neighbor or sheer greed for the bread, kept pressing the doorbell repeatedly for no reason. Just as she was about to open her mouth to scold Luffy for his childish behavior, the front door burst open.
His black hair was disheveled and untamed, and his empty, golden eyes scanned the two of them sharply and anxiously. The man was tall. Judging by the fact that he was taller than Robin, he was clearly over 190 cm. He was wearing a black turtleneck and gray sweatpants. Nami noticed, out of the corner of her eye, a menacing yet familiar tattoo on his hand.
It was Trafalgar Law.
“Torao?”
Nami gasped in surprise, and Luffy broke into a wide grin. What were the odds that the neighbor living upstairs in the apartment they’d just hurriedly moved into was their ally, friend, and practically family? Since they’d never even heard a rumor about him before, their joy knew no bounds.
Law said nothing. He was probably just as surprised, so it was only natural that he froze.
No, no. Something was different. The anxiety in his eyes hadn’t faded in the slightest; if anything, he seemed to be on guard after seeing Luffy and Nami’s reactions.
“…What’s your purpose? What is Torao?”
His voice was subdued and quiet, as if he hadn’t spoken in a while. Maybe he’d just woken up. It was impossible to tell at this point. When a startled Luffy reached out his hand, Law hid himself further behind the front door. Law was now glaring at them without even half-stepping out from behind the door. Luffy flinched at Law’s reaction and had to lower his hand.
“Uh, um… We moved in yesterday. We’re your downstairs neighbors! Uh… We brought a gift to say hello…”
Nami tried her best not to stutter, but it didn’t help at all. Still, her explanation must have helped, because the sharp wariness in the man’s eyes softened. His golden gaze, which had been shifting between Luffy and Nami, moved to the bag in Nami’s hand.
Nami reached out to hand over the gift, but then quickly pulled her hand back and clutched the bag to her chest. Damn it, of all things, it’s bread.
“Sorry. It’s bread. I’ll bring you something else. You… you don’t like bread. Ahaha… I’ll be right back! Wait just a sec!”
Nami ran down the stairs as if fleeing. Luffy stammered for a moment, then followed her without saying a word.
Good. That’s awesome. Luffy said exactly one word to a neighbor he’d just met. It’s a miracle. But that word was ‘Torao', and the neighbor had no idea what ‘Torao’ meant.
As soon as they stepped inside, Nami and Luffy collapsed onto the floor. The other crew members saw them and rushed over in shock.
“Are you okay? What happened?”
“Wait, wait. Why are you guys reacting like this? Our neighbor isn’t a serial killer, is he??”
Usopp bit his fingernail in fear.
“A serial killer? Well, something like that.”
Nami sighed as she tossed the bread she hadn’t been able to give to Law to Luffy. Luffy caught the bread, but he didn’t look happy at all. Far from opening the bag, he just hugged it to his chest and slumped his shoulders. As Luffy began to sniffle with a hurt expression, the crew was on the verge of panic.
“So what’s going on? Please, just tell us.”
“Good news: Torao is living upstairs.
Bad news: He doesn’t remember us.”
A wave of sighs washed over the group. Law wasn’t the only one who couldn’t remember his ‘past life’. Gaf, for example, had no memory either. Some people regained their memories later in life. Brook didn’t remember his past life until he was over 60. Others only remembered fragments. Smoker remembered that he had been a Marine during the Great Pirate Era, but he didn’t remember who Luffy was.
Nami gently rubbed Luffy’s back as she stood up. Since their first impression had been a disaster, she had to bring Law a nice gift—one that wasn’t his least favorite food.
While Nami and Sanji were looking for other snacks, Zoro pulled Luffy to his feet. Franky lightened the gloomy mood in the house and said,
“Hey, hey, hey. Don’t worry too much, okay? He’s a neighbor! He lives upstairs. We just need to become super friends again!”
“Yeah, once we’re friends again, we can eat together, throw parties, and go on trips.”
Robin added. Luffy barely nodded and smiled. Luffy’s heart ached at Law’s wariness and anxiety. It was the gaze of someone who saw him as an enemy. It was the first time Law had ever looked at Luffy that way. It had never happened even once before. But his friends were right. He’d be able to become friends with Law again. He’d already done it once—the second time would be even easier!
Luffy hopped up the stairs, holding the chocolate and biscuits Sanji had given him.
The front door was tightly shut. Law wasn’t waiting for them. Luffy felt sad again, but since it was still winter, he might have closed it because it was cold. Torao isn’t very sensitive to the cold. Pushing aside the quiet voice in his head, he rang the doorbell three times in a row. After waiting a moment, the door opened again.
“Here! Sanji said these were chocolate and biscuits! Oh, I didn’t touch them at all! I definitely didn’t take any out or steal any!”
Law meekly accepted the envelope Luffy handed him. A tattoo depicting death was etched onto his long fingers. When Law’s finger brushed against Luffy’s hand, Luffy felt a tingling, burning sensation. Even though Luffy had been talking nonstop and suddenly stopped, he didn’t seem flustered. Rather, he looked indifferent.
Law moved away from the front door and tilted his head toward Luffy. They closed the distance until their noses were almost touching. Luffy suddenly realized it had been a long time since he’d looked up at Law. Up close, Law had severe dark circles under his eyes and seemed thinner than Luffy remembered. He could also see the earring hidden among Law’s messy hair. Everything was incredibly attractive.
“Thanks.”
A soft voice, almost a whisper, slipped out from between his lips. It was a sweet voice that tickled Luffy’s ear. Luffy held his breath. This isn’t fair. He only ever said things like that when we were in bed.
Before Luffy could say anything else, Law straightened up and slipped back inside the house. The front door slammed shut and locked with a sharp click. Sitting on the steps between his house and Law’s, Luffy denied the fact that he’d gotten an erection over just a single word.