Love Is Blind | ZoLu

43

When the Captain's tender reunion with Chopper and Jimbei came to an end, a while after the Doctor started to examine them to see how they were doing, he mentioned that Jimbei was in a much better condition than before.

As for Luffy, his body would be healing soon: In approximately a week and a lot slower than Law had expected it to. But nevertheless, he was out of harms way.

"I'm getting a what? Huh?"

The boy questioned with curiosity and in a slightly judgemental voice range, right after Law and Chopper explained to him the procedure he would be getting done.

"Alright, now that you guys have settled down a bit, I think we should go over what your Doctor and I had discussed before, in my office."

Law calmly responded as all heads turned over towards him, each one harnessing an attentive facial expression.

In particular, Jimbei, who was new to this type of information, and in dire need to understand more about Luffy's condition.

"Tanuki-ya did a proper eye exam on you before, the first time that he diagnosed you with permanent blindness."

The Surgeon spoke, engaging in a serious conversation as Luffy nodded in agreement to the sensitive topic the older man had brought on as he continued to speak.

"However, we were diving deeper into your case and figured that there is an eighty percent chance that you might be able to recover part of your vision through a new and advanced surgical procedure for your corneas."

Luffy and Jimbei's eyes were as wide as their mouths upon hearing Law's revelation that lifted their spirits.

Especially the young Captain, who felt a rush of adrenaline travel throughout his body, restoring the energy he had been drained of by his own mental health deterioration.

"The surgery is a cornea transplant. And there are two main types: There's the common and traditional, full thickness cornea transplant, also known as penetrating keratoplasty, or PK.

And the other is a back layer cornea transplant, which is endothelial keratoplasty, or EK.

Here's how it works,"

The man paused for a moment to demonstrate part of the procedure to Jimbei with the help of a special object he placed above a table beside the hospital bed Luffy was impatiently swinging his feet back and forth on.

"This sculpture is an eye anatomy model. This small circular part here is the cornea, that's the part I'm gonna be working on.

A graft replaces central corneal tissue, damaged due to disease or eye injury— Which is an injury, in your case— With healthy corneal tissue donated from a local eye bank."

The dark haired Doctor's detailed explanations and use of words that were foreign to Luffy, made the boy space out all the way until he mentioned one thing that piqued his interest.

"Eye bank...? People... Are robbing eyes!? That's insane!"

In spite of being interrupted by the younger man in the middle of his important speech, the Doctor wasn't offended by his improper act, because he could feel the happiness seeping through every word that would slip through his lips.

Oppose to scolding him, the Surgeon silently chuckled at the young man's eager behavior,  finding it rather pleasant, before he could continue speaking.

"Eye banks are facilities where eye bankers obtain and distribute eye tissue for transplant purposes. They do this with people who have passed away and previously signed up to donating their eyes after their death."

Though his explanation was as clear as day, Luffy misunderstood the concept that Law had given him, and came up with his own version in the back of his vivid imagination.

"You can do that!? Then can you give me bionic eyes, so that I could be like Franky? Ones that shoot laser beams!"

Listening to the charismatic tales that the cheerful Captain had conjured in his mind, Jimbei started laughing to the point where he felt woozy afterwards as a consequence of the amount of blood he had donated to Luffy.

"Vwoom! Vweum! Pew!"

And as the young man continued with his shenanigans and made funny sound effects with his voice, the Surgeon decided to go along with his playful beliefs by joining in on the fun, for just a little while.

"Hmm, I don't know. Bionic eyes that shoot lasers out of them? That's a little too far-fetched." The man sighed, rubbing his chin.

"But I'm sure I could hook you up with a pair of color changing reptilian eyes that change every time you blink."

He mentioned in a sarcastic yet serious sounding tone of voice, to make his false information sound as realistic as possible to the younger boy.

Looking over at Luffy, Chopper nudged him with his elbow.

"How's that sound, Luffy? You'll have a new color whenever you open your eyes in the morning!"

The shorter Doctor teased in a playful way that wouldn't make his Captain feel upset.

Much to their surprise, Luffy gathered up the words he wanted to say, and gave the Surgeon and the Doctor an answer so unexpected, that they were left speechless.

"A new eye color would be a fun upgrade, but I wouldn't mind keeping the ones I've got."

The Captain smiled brightly, leaving everyone in a state of suspense before he could finish his sentence.

"Even if I couldn't see any colors at all after the surgery... Seeing everyone in the recovery room when I wake up would be more than enough for me!"

~~~