Dropping his clothes in a messy pile beside the tub, unbothered by the fact that they would get drenched in water afterwards, the Captain stepped into the shower, feeling an instant relief as the water caressed his cold skin.
His body temperature was lower than usual, causing him to shiver, the second he felt the water come in contact with his back.
When he got used to its warmth, he no longer hesitated to submerge himself beneath the flowing stream that cascaded over him.
The heat it provided him with reminded Luffy about the dream he had, in which Ace was keeping him warm with the flames within his hands.
Although the chance of that dream being real was irrelevant, given the fact that the fire was coming from the Sunny when he woke up...
Something in the back of Luffy's mind wanted to believe that there were still traces of Ace near him, in spite of that being impossible.
His older brother was buried beside Whitebeard's body, both of them were deep beneath the ground.
But Luffy was no longer starting to see it that way.
He knew that Ace would never come back to life, but he also speculated that his soul wasn't entirely buried along with his body.
Such intrusive thoughts that the Captain was better off ignoring, were all that he could think of, ever since that article landed in his hands.
"Luffy! Dinner's ready, don't take too long in there or it'll get cold! And reheating burgers isn't the same as eating them when they're freshly made."
Sanji indicated from outside of the other bathroom that he thought that Luffy was inside of.
"You've got the wrong guy, man. Pretty sure Luffy's in the other bathroom."
"Oh, thanks. Sorry about that." Sanji responded to Zoro who was inside of the other restroom.
"WOO! Both of them are showering this time? Is this a miracle or am I dreaming?" The Cook chuckled to himself on his way to Luffy's room.
On his way there, he knocked on the Captain's door, but received no answer in return.
This encouraged him to knock against the door harder, so he did.
"Luffy, I served your plate already!! It's burgers tonight, so get 'em while they're hot!"
Before leaving, Sanji expected to hear a response from Luffy, at least once.
But to his unpleasant surprise, he didn't hear Luffy's voice. Not even a mumble.
Shrugging at the Captain's silence, the Cook headed back outside, where he accidentally bumped into Zoro who was on his way to his own bedroom to change out of his bathrobe.
"Hey, you sure Luffy's showering in the bathroom?" He asked the Swordsman, out of curiosity.
"What else would he be doing in there? His laundry?"
"Writing your dismissal letter is my best guess." Sanji teased, annoyed by Zoro's arrogance.
"Why would he write a dismissal letter? He's not my boss, lousy love-cook."
The older man questioned, equally as annoyed by Sanji.
"Of course he's not your boss. Not anymore, he ain't. I'll bet that the moment he walks out of that bathroom, he'll be shouting "YOU'RE FIRED!" all throughout the Sunny!"
Testing the Swordsman's temper, Sanji walked away after making his harsh comment, not paying attention to what Zoro had to say in response.
When the Cook disappeared from Zoro's sight, the Swordsman made his way towards Luffy's bedroom.
He might not want to admit it, but Sanji's words had affected him to the extent of wanting to see Luffy, just to make sure he wasn't at risk of losing his position in the Sunny, let alone their friendship.
And although the chances of that happening were highly unlikely, the Swordsman was still doubtful.
He nonchalantly walked into the Captain's bedroom, still hearing the shower running from a few miles away.
The man then took a few steps forward and stood behind the door.
His intentions weren't to spy, but he somehow ended up eavesdropping on a one-sided conversation Luffy appeared to be having with himself, on the other side of the door.
"Maybe I won't get rid of it... Not yet, at least. I still need it..."
Zoro's eye widened, hearing the confession Luffy just made.
The statement he just made could have meant anything, but it was enough proof for Zoro to believe in what Sanji had jokingly spoken about before.
Not wanting to listen to the Captain any longer, the Swordsman firmly grasped onto his sword with a heavy heart from deep within, and walked out of his bedroom, keeping his head down.
On his way back out, he found Sanji standing behind the door with a proud grin plastered onto his face.
"So? How'd the job interview go?" He asked.
"You ought to be a Psychic instead of a Cook..."
The Swordsman replied with a dark tone of voice, almost hinting at the sorrow he was now experiencing.
"Why's that?"
Sanji asked as Zoro passed him by, emitting a strange aura, as if all of the energy he had before, had diminished, leaving him with an empty feeling from the inside.
The Swordsman stopped walking but kept his back turned around.
Sanji found his behavior out of place: He may not entirely understand the Swordsman at times, but he knew for a reason that he wouldn't normally act this cold-blooded unless something was bothering him.
"Why? Heh... Because I received my dismissal letter, just as you predicted."
Nothing but silence followed behind the words Zoro let out of his mouth.
"What... What the hell's that supposed to mean?" The Cook questioned with less sarcasm in his voice than before.
"You still don't get it? Want me to spell it out for you, or better yet, shout it out loud!?" Zoro's body tensed up as he clenched his fist.
"I did get fired! But when he comes out of there, he's gonna hear me out. I'll give him a piece of my damn mind."
Sanji was left speechless as Zoro went back to his bedroom and slammed the door shut behind him, out of anger and disappointment.
"That Luffy..."
~~~
YOU ARE READING
Anxiety | ZoLu 𔘓𓂃 ִֶָ
Fanfiction"I just need some air." "But we're outside- Luffy... What's wrong?" "I don't know! I can't breathe, help me!!"
