Crazy In Love | Buggy

t h i r t y

When Buggy came back, I tried my best not to show how upset I was. Somehow, despite my smiles, he saw right through me. The second he set his eyes on me, he said, "What's wrong?"

Should I tell him? I wondered. I was scared that if I told him a mutiny was close, he might fly off in a fit of rage and make things worse.

I decided that I would tell him, but not tonight. Not when emotions were so fresh.

I gave him my best smile, which was a weak one. "I'm still just upset about everything today."

He nodded in acknowledgement. "Here. I got you some pain berries," He told me, pouring me a glass of water to take them with.

As I took them, I felt Buggy's eyes on me. It was as if he was scared to look away from me, even for a single second. That was sweet.

"Do you have anything I can wipe my makeup off with?" I asked him.

While I was changing my top, I had caught a look at myself in the mirror. Somehow, some of my makeup had remained. It was smeared, mixed together. But it was still there.

Buggy poured a bowl of water, and grabbed a small town. "Do you want me to do it?"

I felt embarrassed making him do so much for me but I wasn't sure if I had the strength to do even this on my own.

"Yes, please."

So, he did. He had me sit down on the bed, him kneeling slightly so that his head was level with mine. He dunked the towel into the water, then ringed it out so it was wet and not soaking.

He was gentle. I was always surprised at how gentle he could be with me. I saw the water in the bowl turn from clear, to a murky burgundy colour.

When he was done, he got a fresh towel and dried my face off. It was a relief, to feel a bit more clean.

"In the morning, you can take a bath," He told me.

A bath sounded like heaven. It was also considered a privilege. Most of the clowns just washed in the ocean, or with rags, not baths. It was just Buggy that got baths, usually.

"Really?" I asked, feeling almost giddy at the thought. "I thought those were a privilege reserved for you."

"Normally, they are. Under the circumstances, I think I can allow you to have one." He then thought for a moment. "My baths aren't really a privilege though."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't think I told you, but when someone eats a devil fruit, they lose their ability to swim."

I was shocked to hear that. "You're a pirate... who can't swim? Why would you eat the fruit then?"

He couldn't hide the annoyance that flashed across his face. "I was actually trying to steal the fruit, but this horrible red-haired pirate... Shanks... scared me and I swallowed it by accident."

"You must really hate him, then."

"You have no idea," He told me with a smile. "It just means it safer if I wash in a bath, where it's impossible to drown."

"Technically, you can still drown in a bath."

He tilted his head to the side. "Can you imagine a pirate as great as me drowning in a bath? God, I'd be a laughing stock."

I actually laughed at the thought of that, it was just so ridiculous. Then, I had another thought.

"Aren't you going to take off your make-up?"

He seemed taken aback by that. "No... I-I... I don't take my make-up off."

"Ever?" I asked, to which he shook his head. "I had noticed you sleeping with it on, but I assumed that you were just lazy."

He shrugged. "I'm that, too. But I just don't like to be seen without it."

I decided not to push the subject any more than I already had. He was clearly sensitive about it.

"Would you mind if I went to sleep? I know it's super early, but... I'm just so tired all of a sudden."

"Of course. The pain berries I gave you do that."

I'd almost forgotten about those berries. They were working well, the pain had dulled. Now, it felt more like a sunburn, hot and burn-y but not overly painful.

I crawled under the covers, looking over at Buggy who still kept his eyes on me. He was kneeling now, by the bed. All I wanted was to have him here, with me under the covers.

Not for anything sexual, just for comfort. I felt so safe in his arms. But I knew I had to stop this, whatever this was between us. It couldn't happen.

So, I pushed down the urge to ask him to stay with me. Instead, I told him, "You should go be a captain. I think your crew needs to see you out there with them."

His eyes widened. "You don't want me to stay here with you?"

Everything in me screamed yes I do! But I pushed it to the side. If the crew was thinking of a coup, him staying with me all day was only going to make that worse.

"I'll just be asleep all day, so there's no point in you staying."

He stood. "If you're sure. I might take this opportunity to throw that purple haired idiot over board."

"No!" I basically screamed, which shocked Buggy. "I just mean... what he did was an accident. You shouldn't kill him for it."

"I'm surprised you're defending him. He almost killed that old man. You think he doesn't deserve to die for that?"

I did think he deserved to die for that. But Buggy killing him would just make the animosity amongst his crew ten times worse.

"Make this strike one," I urged. "If he does something bad again, then you can kill him."

Buggy looked unsure. I worried that he wouldn't listen to me, that he'd just kill him anyway. But after what felt like forever, he finally nodded.

"Maybe you're right. Anyway, don't you worry about that. Just get some sleep."

With that, he left. The minute he was gone, I felt unsafe again. That didn't matter because I was asleep within minutes.

🤡

I can't believe I'm 30 chapters into this already! Time goes so fast, it feels like I began writing this yesterday!

reads: 28k
published 9th October 2023