The Heart and Soul of Monkey D. Luffy: One Piece (Luffy x OC)

Chapter 8: Falling

The sun began to rise over the ocean, casting a warm glow over the Thousand Sunny, which was anchored just offshore the mysterious island. Luffy stirred slightly as the sunlight began to peek through his eyelids. He opened his eyes slowly, blinking a few times to adjust to the light. He suddenly noticed the weight of something on his head. He turned to see Aria sleeping on the lounge chair beside to him, her arm stretched out between their two chairs, her hand resting on the top of his head.

Luffy smiled and felt a warm sense of contentment knowing that she had stayed by his side all night as he recovered. Maybe I should wake her up? He thought to himself. No, she looks so peaceful. But I kind of have to pee...

Luffy hesitated a moment before deciding to gently shake Aria's hand a bit. "Hey, sleepyhead," he said in a soft but teasing voice, "wake up already."

Aria's eyes fluttered slowly and she began to stir awake. She opened her eyes to see Luffy looking at her. "Hey," she mumbled. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling much better now, no more pain," Luffy muttered. "But I really need to use the bathroom."

"Oh!" Aria exclaimed as she realized her hand was still resting on top of Luffy's head. She retracted it and let out a soft laugh. "Sorry about that. I guess I fell asleep like that."

Luffy chuckled and waved off her apology. "No biggie," he said, getting up from his lounge chair as he hung his straw hat from the back of his neck. "I appreciate you taking care of me last night."

"Yeah, of course." Aria said as she sat up in her chair, rubbing her eyes.

"You stayed with me all night." Luffy added, smiling at her.

Aria returned his smile. "Yeah, I did." she said softly.

Luffy felt a warm feeling in his chest as he looked at her, and he realized the depth of his affection for her. He shook the thought from his head and quickly changed the subject. "Anyway, I guess I better go take care of business before my bladder bursts."

"Oh, right." Aria said, raking her fingers through her disheveled morning hair.

Luffy made his way to the bathroom, leaving Aria sitting on the lawn deck, still half asleep.

Zoro, who had been nearby keeping an eye on them, couldn't help but smirk at their interaction. "Looks like you two are getting pretty close." He said.

Aria shot up from her chair, startled by the sudden sound of Zoro's deep voice, not realizing he had been there the whole time. "Zoro!" she said in surprise. "G-good morning." Has he been there all night?! she thought to herself.

Zoro chuckled at her reaction. "Good morning to you too," he said, still smirking. "Looks like you and the captain were pretty cozy last night."

Aria felt her cheeks flush slightly at Zoro's comment. "He was injured. I was just taking care of him."

Zoro leaned against the railing. "Sure, you were just taking care of him." He said knowingly.

"Hey, I was!" Aria said, somewhat defensively. She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks.

Zoro chuckled again. "I'm just teasing, chill out." He said with a smirk.

Aria averted her gaze.

"It's obvious you both care for each other." Zoro said, his smirk growing wider.

Aria's eyes widened in surprise. "W-what do you mean?" She asked, her heart fluttering a little.

Zoro shrugged. "Come on. You stayed with him all night, taking care of him. Hell, you even fell asleep with your hand in his hair."