Familiar

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THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS ACELU!
Level: MAJOR!

Might be some OOCness for Luffy... maybe? He's still dense af though.. kind of.

Pairing: AceLu ROMANTIC
Type: ONESHOT?

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A sharp connection formed quite suddenly when Luffy was at a retail store. It was warm and familiar. Something he could never forget. He stopped short in his tracks to follow the feeling.

And there Luffy found a muscular man, half naked, carrying tons of heavy boxes at once. He couldn't get a good look at his face but he had medium short black hair that reached slightly above his shoulders.

"Portgas!" A voice yelled from behind, "Uniform on, you caveman! One more warning and you will be packing, yoi!!"

Luffy turned his head to the other speaker. He couldn't help but gawk at the crazy hairstyle the blonde had. Where had he seen it before?

The black haired man dropped the boxes with a plop and started to chuckle. Everything was so familiar. "C'mon buddy," he said in a playfully laid back tone, "You know you wouldn't kick me out! We're bros!"

"Really! Watch me then." The other called out in annoyance. The muscular man only laughed harder, and then he saw Luffy.

"Oi!" He shouted, but proceeded to walk over, "Need help with anything?" It wasn't until the man had talked to him had Luffy realized that he had been stupidly standing there watching.

Now the man was closer. Close enough for Luffy to see freckles on his face? But he couldn't be sure, for the lights were too dim.

"Daydreamer, are you?" The man raised an eyebrow and knocked on Luffy's head. This caused Luffy to stumble backward slightly.

"Hey!" Luffy cried out, "What was that for?" And just then, he saw his face up close. Luffy's heart raced at the slightly tanned skin and the freckles arranged like clusters of stars across his face. His head hurt, aching to remember something he didn't even know he forgot.

The slightly older man only shrugged, "You awfully remind me of someone I'd been waiting for." He said. Luffy wasn't sure if it was a joke or anything but his thoughts raced as the man smiled. His face was only a few inches from Luffy's and it made his breath hitch.

"Portgas! What did I say about invading a customer's personal space, yoi??"

The man's eyes rolled a 360 before he slowly retracted his bare upper half from Luffy's beet red face. Luffy then noticed how tall he was. It sent shivers down his spine.

"Man, do you gotta target me every time I show up? I've been working here for like 3 years already!" The man's deep voice grunted, as he slumped toward the other, who was crossing his arms in annoyance.

"Ace, I don't know who you're trying to impress or what you're trying to show off, but I want that uniform on right now. You don't know how many dirty looks you're getting, yoi." The blonde, funny haircut guy said sternly, eyeing the man, so tall to Luffy, who was actually only up to the blonde man's shoulder. Yikes. Luffy didn't even try to guess how tall he would be.

Ace. Ace was his name of the black haired man. Luffy was never good with names, but he'd remember that one for sure. His name alone spoke danger and savageness. It went well with him. A cool name for a guy so handsome. His tattoos make him look so hot-- why was it so hot in the room all of a sudden? There's literally air conditioning!

"You gonna stand there or are you gonna buy something-?" Ace stopped and looked over in Luffy's direction with a questioning expression. Luffy jolted at his mature voice. It was calm, but every time he spoke for the last few minutes, it startled Luffy for some reason.

"U-Uhm," Luffy answered, he scanned the floor hoping to find a script of some sort, since he did not think of anything before replying so quickly. Why was he nervous over a guy he just met, at a retail store of all places? His eyes wandered everywhere and you don't even need to be an expert at reading people to know that Luffy was panicking. He wasn't an open book, hell, he was a clear picture that even illiterate people could understand. 

And that would also mean Ace knew because he just smirked and casually put an arm over the counter for his head to rest on, "Ah." He said smugly, "Someone likes what they see." Luffy blinked rapidly and turned away as fast as he could. This earned a chuckle from Ace, butterflies swirled in Luffy's stomach at the sound. 

The older adult seemed to enjoy his suffering, or at least in Luffy's point of view, that's how it went. "I'm just kidding," Ace laughed, Luffy could feel and hear his footsteps. Then a hand on his shoulder sent electrical shock waves all throughout his body. 

Luffy was so confused at the feeling, was he sick?

Or was it the thing he overheard his friends talk about and giggle over? Especially Sanji?

Yeah. Like Sanji. 

Because he felt his legs being funny, they weren't doing their usual work of helping him stand straight... Luffy prayed that his eyes didn't turn into hearts. That was just freaky, especially if Ace was right there. Wait when did he feel shame?? What was this??

"You okay there bud?" Ace's booming voice once again brought Luffy back into reality. His face turned mad red.

"N-No, I'm okay," Luffy was surprised at the words that came out of his mouth, they didn't feel like his.

Ace laughed and slapped him hard on the back, "You're funny, little guy! What's your name?" It was such a casual question and a friendly gesture. Maybe too friendly. Damn it, he was even more extroverted than Luffy was.

Luffy shook his head, this time he actually thought of what to say, "..Luffy." He said carefully, succeeding in his attempt not to stutter. He didn't want to embarrass himself further.

"Luffy, huh?" Ace repeated, nodding acknowledging-ly, "Nice to meet you Luffy, I'm Ace."

Luffy knew that.

"Wanna exchange numbers?" 

Why did that make Luffy jump and want to run out of the store in, an unexplainable feeling he's yet to understand?

Luffy played it cool. He was an extrovert, a "literal crazy monkey" said by many people. It was just a guy without a shirt, what the hell was he afraid of? His friend Zoro, sometimes doesn't wear a shirt while he lifted his weights. Luffy certainly didn't feel anything like this when he saw Zoro's body, nor anyone else.

"I uhm.." Luffy tried to speak, but he shakily held his phone out. Luckily for him, Ace knew what it meant. The older smiled as he took Luffy's device from his hands. Luffy shivered at the strong fingers that brushed against his own. Seriously, what was happening to him? 

Ace returned the phone within seconds, "I also added a contact name for easier access! Hope it helps." Luffy stared at him stupidly before looking down at the phone, "Chat 'n' call with me whenever!"

"Ace" it said, with a "🂡" Ace of Spades playing card at the end of his name. Luffy looked up to see the freckled man grinning at him. He managed to smile back, in a goofy and crooked manner.

And Luffy knew, that things will never be the same. Familiar or not.

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FULL STORY ON FF.NET LOL (Yet to be continued, soon)

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14357089/1/Familiar

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