Chapter Text
Lucy stared out of her bedroom window, her mind lingering on the vivid dreams that had been haunting her lately. They were like fragments of a story she couldn't fully grasp, yet they felt strangely familiar. She saw faces she almost recognized, heard laughter and songs she couldn't quite place. But there was also pain; now that the dreams were becoming more frequent, she was waking up in tears nearly every night. Sometimes, it was drowning. Other times, worse.
(Like kneeling down in front of Ace, a gaping, bloody hole in her big brother's chest-)
Lucy rubbed her temples, trying to get the gruesome images out of her head. Were they merely figments of her imagination, or was there something more to them? She couldn't deny how real they felt.
Usually, she wasn't one to take things so seriously. She was the type to sit back and go with the flow, ready for whatever life threw at her. But these dreams weren't normal, she knew it in her gut. And she always followed her gut.
Sighing softly, Lucy turned away from the window and flopped onto her bed. Maybe this thing with Bellamy was stressing her out. Before he had grabbed her, the dreams hadn't been too bad and were nowhere near as vivid. She traced the fading bruises, glad they wouldn't be around for much longer. They were so... ugly. She didn't normally care for that sort of thing, but...
Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on her bedroom door, followed by the sound of Sabo's voice. "Lucy, can I come in?"
"Yeah," she answered, sitting up.
Sabo walked in, giving her a kind smile. "Hey, kiddo," he greeted, ruffling her hair. "The police took Bellamy into custody yesterday. He got bail posted, but he's suspended from the school. Do you want to go today? We won't make you."
Lucy frowned, considering. Usually she was the first to skip school because it was so freaking boring. But she had been stuck inside with Ace and Sabo for days. She loved her brothers, but she could only take so much of them before itching to get outside. Besides, she wanted to see Zoro and Sanji. "I can go," she decided.
But she felt her cheeks warm as she thought about her two friends. Or, more specifically, the kisses she had shared with them. They had both been so gentle and sweet, so unlike Bellamy. And yet they were so different from one another.
With Sanji, she had seen stars. The kiss had been so passionate and hot that she had practically melted on the spot, her body bursting with such a strange- but wonderful- feeling. It had almost felt like Sanji had waited his entire life to kiss her and something about that excited her, made her tingle with want.
With Zoro, it had been like coming home. The kiss was steadfast and firm; warm and sweet, so simple but still just as full of love. And the kisses on her face had tickled, making her smile fondly at the memory. Zoro wasn't normally so affectionate, that was her job. But she wasn't going to complain about the change.
Sabo saw her face and scowled lightly. "I hope you're not thinking about that brat cook," he grumbled.
Lucy blushed at the accusation, but glared back at him. "So what if I was?" she challenged. Sometimes, she found Sabo being overprotective funny. Other times, it was annoying as hell. If he tried to stop Sanji (or Zoro) from kissing her, she would be very upset. She could kiss whoever she wanted!
"You're too young to date," insisted Sabo, looking away from her. She smacked his arm in annoyance.
"What?" asked Ace, standing in the threshold with his arms crossed over his chest. Lucy smiled at him, though she couldn't stop her eyes from flicking down to his chest. "No she isn't. I started dating at fourteen."
Sabo glowered at him. "Traitor," he claimed. "Why are you so calm about this?"
The freckled man shrugged. "We can't shelter her forever," he pointed out as he approached them. Huh, Ace being the reasonable one. That was new. "She's gonna be eighteen in less than two years, then neither of us will be able to stop her. Would you rather her first boyfriend be someone random she finds on the street, or Sanji who's always put her wellbeing before anything else?"
"I'd rather it be no one," the blond mumbled childishly. "Well, I wouldn't mind Zoro actually. He's loyal and he's never flirted with her right in front of us. Clearly, he's better husband material."
Lucy blanked. "Husband?" she parroted. WHY were they talking about marriage?!
Ace considered. "That isn't wrong," he admitted. "But he gets lost so much and Lu's an airhead. The two of them together sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. At least with Sanji there'll be one functioning brain cell between them."
She frowned at the insult. "Hey-"
"Which would only make it easier for him to take advantage of her-"
Lucy, growing agitated at being ignored, kicked them both. Not seeing it coming, her brothers doubled over in pain. "I'm going to school now," she announced. This was what she meant when she said being stuck with those two for days was driving her insane.
XXX
Zoro frowned as she sat down next to him in homeroom. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming in today?" he asked. "I would have picked you up."
Lucy grinned. "Shishishi, don't worry about it," she assured him. "I decided last minute. Ace and Sabo were being jerks so I left. The bus wasn't so bad." In fact, she like it a lot! So many interesting people to stare at! "Besides, you would have gotten lost and then you would have been late. We can't have that!"
He glared at her. "I don't get lost," he grumbled.
She stuck her tongue out. "Do too," she insisted. Her eyes wandered to Bellamy's empty seat, suddenly a little anxious. He was gone for now, but the school couldn't suspend him forever. And what if the cops let him go? Then he would have even more of a reason to target her.
As if on cue, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Clenching her jaw, Lucy slowly took it out and read the text notification. 'Can't hide behind your brothers forever, bitch.' The number was private, but she knew who it was from.
Lucy had never felt so angry in her life, but it wasn't at Bellamy. He was just an asshole idiot who picked on people because he could. No, she was mad at herself. He was right that she was hiding behind her brothers like a coward. It wasn't supposed to be Sabo, Ace, Sanji, or Zoro's job to protect her. She wasn't helpless!
Next to her, Zoro frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked, suddenly as tense as she was.
Lucy slipped her phone back into her pocket. "Nothing," she said cheerfully. He didn't believe her- of course he didn't, this was Zoro- but thankfully didn't push her. He leaned his head back, dozing off as he usually did.
She stared at him for a moment. Zoro was... pretty. Not pretty in the same way Sanji was, but Lucy couldn't help but admire his face anyway. She glanced at the clock and noticed that homeroom was almost over and most of the class had gotten up to get ready to leave already. Smirking to herself, Lucy leaned in and gently pecked the corner of his mouth.
That woke him up.
Zoro jolted, actually falling out of his seat. She slapped a hand over her mouth, trying to hold back her giggles as he glared at her, his cheeks red. "You think you're so funny, don't you?" he growled, climbing to his feet as the bell rang.
"I'm hilarious," retorted Lucy, allowing herself to snicker. It wasn't usual she was able to catch him off guard like that.
His steely eyes stared her down for a while before he leaned in real close. Lucy continued to smile, but her heart was beating wildly against her chest. Was he going to kiss her again? That would be nice.
But Zoro missed her face entirely, his lips stopping at her ear. "I'll get you back later," he swore lowly, his warm breath hitting the shell of her ear. The feeling sent shivers down her spine, her skin tingling in desperate anticipation. He pulled back, wearing a smirk of his own and clearly amused at her reaction.
Lucy's face turned red as she glared. "You jerk!" she accused, hitting his shoulder. "Don't tease me!" He just laughed at her, leaving for his next class while she stood in an empty class, flustered an embarrassed. This meant war.