Pairings: FrankyxRobin, ZoroxPerona, most definitely NamixLuffy

Warnings: Slightly adult themes, a lot of cussing, very PG-13, stereotypes of native americans and shooting figurines of them (along with stereotypial cowboys) in shooting galleries, OOC dick-like Zoro, NEVER MPREG

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, anything A Fine Frenzy does, or real life. I also don't own an elephant, but I am always open to donations. ;3

Near to You

He and I had something beautiful,
But so disfunctional, it couldn't last.
Loved him so, but I let him go
cause I knew he'd never love me back.

~A Fine Frenzy, 'Near to You'

This was suppose to be simple.

She would force it to be uneventful, no matter how awkward it got, or how emotional she felt. She wouldn't let herself see that smirk on that egotistical bastards face-she wouldn't give anything away that would make him recognize that she wasn't over him yet. Because she was over him.

...Right?

Nami shook her head. After grueling minutes of pausing frozen at Zoro's door, the weight of the box in her hand hurting her wrist, she finally sucked in her anxious face to a determined one. She knocked on the door, and waited.

...And, waited.

She sighed, knocking harder this time. Was he going make her wait out here forever? Well, if he wasn't here, she'd just leave it here on the ground-

A voice came from the door: "Hold on, hold on-I'm coming."

Nami blinked, but before she could decipher why Zoro sounded so different, someone with wild black hair and monkey-like ears opened the apartment door.

He smiled sleepily at her, like he had just woken up. "Oh! Hey Nami."

Nami blinked in surprise. "L...Luffy? What are you doing here?"

Luffy sucked his bottom lip in and cocked his head. "What? I moved in with Zoro from my Gramps. Ace went off to melt stuff at art school. Didn't Zoro tell you?

An angry blush flashed across Nami's face. "He didn't tell me anything."

Luffy scratched his head, as if that fact confused him. She locked her jaw and added quickly, "Is Zoro here?"

"Eh? Um...no, he isn't." Luffy grinned. "He went to the seven eleven to get food-ah, do you want me to call him Nami-"

He was cut off from having an aged cardboard box shoved at his middle. "No!" Nami snarled. "And don't tell him I came over here, alright? Just put that in his room-Don't drop it, you idiot!"

Slightly too late-Luffy managed to grab the box before it hit the ground, but some of the contents still spilled out. Nami growled another "idiot" as he bent down to pick the stuff up.

"What is this stuff?" he said, as he picked up one of the random articles. "Eh? Boxers...?"

Nami's blush deeped. "They're clothes he left at my house, alright...? Just...just dump em somewhere."

"Eeeeh? Why you got Zoro's clothes? ...Laundry?"

Nami's fist steamed as she pounded it into Luffy's skull. "STUPID! Can't you hold anything in that sieve of a head of yours?"

The orange-haired young adult sighed, and bent over to pick up the rest of the clothes to store them back in the box. She looked up again, and Luffy was rubbing his chin and thinking.

"Hmm..." He rubbed his chin and furrowed his brow further. "...mystery reason?"

He was hit again. "IDIOT!"

Two lumps appeared on the back of his head-he rubbed them and whined loudly: "Ow...Nami! Why ya keep hitting me!"

"Shut up! How can Zoro's best friend not remember who his last girlfriend was?" While Luffy continued to whine pitifully, Nami snarled. He was one of the last people she wanted to see right now-now she was too pissed to see straight. Why couldn't this be smooth sailing?

"Oi, Luffy?" said a gruff voice behind her. "Is my ex knocking you around again?"

'Shit!' Nami froze when Zoro's voice came from behind her. She slowly turned around, and he was smirking at her-how I hate that damn smirk of his!-with, more irritatingly, a pink-haired goth girl draping over his shoulder. While she stared at the other girl, Luffy was behind her chattering away.

"Ey, Zoro! Hurry up and fix some food! ...Heh? Who's the girl?"

"Horo horo horo horo..." Leering, the girl smirked at Nami, who finally veered her eyes away from the sight, away from Zoro's obvious progess in moving on.

She felt him coldly hit her shoulder as he brushed past her to address Luffy. "This is Perona." After a long pause, he finally felt it obligatory to give better introductions. "Perona, Luffy."

Luffy, picking his nose, dug his hand out of his nostrils and held it carelessly out to the girl. "Nice to meet ya."

Perona crinkled her nose, not bothering to comply. "...How uncute."

Her green-haired boyfriend snickered, leading her to the door. "That's Luffy." Suddenly, his leg hit the box of clothes lying in the middle of his door way. He looked down and untangled himself from Perona to pick it up. "Eh? What's this?"

Nami flushed. Yet before she could say anything, Luffy said brightly, "Nami brought it over. It's your clothes-from your sleepovers."

Zoro looked at Nami-up and down. His eyes were cold, but his mouth twitched at some internal joke. It made her face flame up in anger. "Oh. Hey, thanks."

Nami couldn't speak. She didn't want to think why him saying that made her feel so happy. What was wrong with her? All she could do was stutter around, trying to find something to say.

Perona frowned, not happy, but Zoro grinned when he turned from the embarrassed Nami to look at her. Leaning over, he intimately whispered something in her ear. Slowly, her frown into a mocking smile, aimed straight at Nami.

Nami stopped, furious. She immeadiately tried to hide her hurt under a blank face and clenched fists-she could just imagine what he was saying to her. And to think he was her first time! A year wasted-what had she been thinking? Hell, what was she thinking now? She tried to defend herself, "I...thought you weren't home."

Zoro snorted. "Yeah, sure." He turned to Luffy. "Sorry, man-you're going to have to get your own dinner."

The kid's jaw dropped instantly. "Wha? Whhhhyyyy?"

A wierd smile quirked on his room mate's lips. "I got...sidetracked from seven eleven, and bumped into Perona at a bar. So you're going to have to use your own money and get some food yourself."

"But, Zoro-"

Suddenly, Zoro's voice dropped. He hissed in Luffy's face, "You might also want to goof off with something for the next couple of hours-me and her are going to be here, and we're going to be very busy..."

"Yea, but-"

"BUSY." And with that, he shoved Luffy out and slammed the door on both his and Nami's face.

-x-

Instantly, Luffy was pouting. "Jeez...I'm hungry." As if on cue, his stomach growled. He sourly rubbed it, and sighed.

Nami wasn't listening. She was too busy standing like rigid stone in front of the door, disbelief clouding her eyes. Finally, the orange-haired girl bit her lip to hide her tears-she quickly turned to leave.

She didn't expect Luffy to reach out and grab her wrist. "Ey Nami! Wait-"

She instantly snatched her wrist from him. "Leave me alone, Luffy-fucking annoying me!"

Nami could barely see through her murky vision, but somehow she managed to shake him off in the apartment complex's hallway, watching the elavator doors close on his face. She sighed, pushing her back on the wall as the machine hummed to life. This had not gone smoothly, she thought.

In the empty elavator, the tears finally came. She put her hands to her face, trying to stop them-they came either way, in huge hot globs. God, why was she getting so upset? Why? All she could think of...was how they had used to be, her and Zoro. She was so frustrated with herself, but so hurt at the same time that she barely cared at the fool she was making of herself.

She had never loved someone like she had loved Zoro-she had never felt jealousy, or this intense need to be near someone, even if they didn't want her around. It was a feeling so tangible, it racked her body with her hurt and pleasure, begging to shatter her to touch something that was untouchable.

'I want it to end,' she kept wailing in her head, her shoulders shaking as she continued crying. 'I hate him...I hate him so much. He just keeps making fun of me, and I just keep taking it. Why...? Why am I doing this to myself?'

The 'ping' of the last few floors rang in the tiny box. She sniffed, sucking in her tears and trying to pull herself together. She was rubbing her face and sighing to relieve the pent up emotions when the doors opened again. There, in front of her, was Luffy.

He was bent over, panting and sweating. She wondered if he had run down the twenty flights of stairs to get here, but her thoughts were interupted when he finally caught his breath to speak.

He looked up into her red-rimmed eyes, still panting a little. "Na...Nami...Do..."

She waited, a little impatiently. The exit was behind him, and he was blocking her path.

"Do...Do you have any money I can borrow?"

Nami deadpanned. And she had thought...but her face looked... and did he just...! Slowly she felt a pulsing vien appear at her neck. Her fist clenched automatically as she raised it.

"...BASTARD!"

The front doors of the building slammed open with a 'BANG' as Luffy was nearly catapulted into busy traffic. He slammed hard into the sidewalk, skidding across on his face and scaring a few innocent pedestrians. "Nnnn..." he groaned, rubbing his head as he sat up.

The clapping of heels on cement caught his attention. He looked up just as Nami stepped down the front steps in a huff and coldly walked away down the street. He was almost instantly at her heels. "Oi! Wait up!"

Nami snorted. "Go away. You already owe me money-with interest. I'm not loaning you anymore!"

"Aww! Don't say that-look, I promise promise PROMISE I'll pay you back...just wait till I get my paycheck from Franky and Usopp's garage next week. Please...?

Nami stopped when he blocked her way again, hands clasped and looking pitifully up at her with those puppy dog eyes of his. Her face twisted; damnit, she thought. Not thelook! She always hated the look-he had used it ever since he, she, and the others had been in high school. And every time, she had been a sucker for it.

Well, said a tiny voice needling in her head. Sooner or later, he does pay us back... She shook her head, irked, but the voice wouldn't let up. Finally, she sighed in defeat. Yet she didn't let up glaring at him as she said, "...Alright."

Instantly, the look was replaced with a huge, childlike grin. He watched her rifle through her purse, his gratitude barely contained in his voice while Nami completely ignored him. "Ey, thanks Nami! You're the best!"

Grudgingly, she shoved twenty bucks into his hand. "Here. Now, leave me alone alright? I mean it."

Luffy didn't say anything, but turned around to watch her brush past and head to the Baratie. His feet soon carried him in the exact same direction.

-x-

"...Why did you end up following me?"

Nami was addressing the best friend of her ex, who was sitting across from her at a Baratie table, obnoxiously stuffing his face with twenty dollars worth of food. He swallowed and grinned, while she held her chin in her hand and picked at a light cheesecake in before her. "Zoro said I needed to goof off...but I got nothin' to do. So I've come to see what your plans were-"

"What makes you think I'd want you in my plans?" She sneered. All this yelling at him was making her throat start to hurt. She grumbled incoherrently in her drink as Luffy whined.

"Naaaami! You're so meeeeaaaaannnn-"

"Nami-swaaan!"

Suddenly, Sanji appeared at thier table. The tall blond was dressed in his kitchen attire, yet balancing trays on his arms like a waiter. She wasn't surprised to see him. Ever since his last year of high school, he had been working at the restaurant and other odd jobs to pay towards a chance to own a restaurant.

He was grinning goofily at Nami, as he cooed, "I am overflowing with rich emotions at your glowing presence coming here to visit me! Can I get you anything-a free drink, or another desert? Ask and I will be a slave to your beauty-"

"It's alright Sanji-kun," Nami politely replied, quick to cut him off. "I'm fine for now."

He smiled, this time looking less like a goof and more like a friend. "I'm surprised to see you here, Nami-swan. You haven't visited much since you dumped that shitty marimo bastard. That damn bastard-I still can't believe he..."

While Sanji continued talking, Nami felt the frown she couldn't hide crawl into her face. She had forgotten that Sanji already knew. Shit, did that bastard feel like he had to tell everyone? Well, at least Sanji made her not feel like the bad guy. What could she do? It was either dump him to save her feelings, or stick with him and unrequited love. That was the price of dating a best friend gone 'player'.

Trapped in her thoughts, the oranged haired girl nearly missed what Sanji said next.

"...only came here with a date. Hey, you're not dating this shitty bastard, are you?"

When Nami saw him pointing at the oblivious Luffy, her eyes widened. She choked on her drink. After a few minutes of coughing, and Sanji hovering her in a guilted frenzy, she finally managed to choke out, "N-NO! What? Sanji-kun, what are you saying? Of course not!"

Luffy's voice brightly rang out from the other side of the table. "Yea, she's paying for my dinner!"

"WHAT?"

Sanji's roar was followed by his foot kicking straight into Luffy's chair. The black-haired grease monkey was knocked off with an 'oomph', and Sanji followed him to shout in his face: "YOU SHITTY SHITASS SHITHEAD-HOW DARE YOU MAKE A LADY PAY FOR YOUR MEAL? Bastard, you want manners kicked into that thick head of yours? HAH?"

"Sanji!" Nami frantically squealed under her breath. "Stop it, it's alright...he's paying me back. For crap's sake, you're making a scene...!" She didn't have to turn that much around to prove this. Eyes were boring into Nami's back by the many faces turned in thier seat to watch the sous chef beat senseless on of the restaurant's patrons. Obviously the one's who faces weren't frozen in shock were veterans of this place.

The blond looked up in disappointment. "Yeah, but-"

"OI! LITTLE EGGPLANT!"

Sanji cringed bitterly at the voice screaming from the kitchen at him: "YEA, YOU! STOP DICKING OFF AND GET IN HERE RIGHT NOW! We're short of hands!"

The sous chef's eye brow twitched as he turned around to shout back, "I'll be in there in a second, you old geezer! Gimme a minute..."

Sanji sighed, muttering under his breath. When he looked back at Nami, his temper instantly flip-flopped. He sighed. "Seems I'm being called back, Nami-swan...I am forced to leave your side. But please, do not hesitate to ask for me if there's anything you need."

Nami felt like rolling her eyes, but instead she shot him an illuminating smile. "Thank you, Sanji-kun."

Instantly, as if she had shot an arrow at his chest, he charged to the kitchen in a flurry of hearts, noodle-dancing the entire way while singing "Mellorine~! Mellorine~!"

Luffy was hyucking when he got back to his chair. As usual, physical damage never phased him. "Hyeeah ha ha-What a funny guy."

He was talking to deaf ears. Nami was too consumed with thinking of what Zoro was doing right now, jealousy churning her stomach so hard she was in danger of making a sobbing mess of herself in the middle of the Baratie. She sniffed, and snapped her head to the enormous windows their round booth was beside. It helped-she turned her eyes up at the evening sky, paying more attention to the mixing hues of twilight and finally finding some peace.

Her peace was quickly broken. Like nails on a chalkboard, Luffy's voice scratched in the inner cavities of her ears. "Ey," he said, around a mouthful of food packed in his hamster-like cheeks. "Oo onna eet dat?"

The orange-haired woman glanced down to see what he was referring to. His fork pointed at her half-eaten cheescake. She looked back at the window, muttering, "Yea, I don't care."

"Shishishi!" She could hear him drag the dessert plate over to his side and began noisily consuming it. Whatever-she didn't mind. Hopefully he would find her to be boring company, and just leave. That would be a heavensent.

Nami returned to looking at the window, but quickly lost interest in the sky. Suddenly, blinking lights across the street caught her eye. Enormous thin structures in the empty grass lot were being lit up for some sort of fair-it's seemed the annual festival had come to town again this summer. 'Wow,' she thought to herself. 'I'd completely forgotten it was that time of year.'

Gradually, swells of people began lapping up at the entrance-families laughing with the zeal of thier wide-eyed children, groups of rowdy high schoolers meeting and traveling amongst friends...and finally, something she didn't feel like seeing. Couples, fingers interlaced with another's, laughing, leaning on each other in the fluorescent glow. She looked away, feeling sick. Maybe she should just go home-a nice bubble bath, a half-read harlequin book, and a few teeboed episodes of mind-numbing reality shows would probably make this evening just a glimmer of a memory. She turned her head to tell Luffy she was paying her bill and leaving-sorry, that's just life.

Yet his voice was in her ear. "Nami, you okay?"

She nearly jumped three feet in the air-he had been pratically breathing in her ear, so close from scooching to sit near her, and talking so low. He grinned at her face, perhaps at how she had reacted. Yet his attention was captured by the window, leaving her no time to react.

"Hey! The fair's here. I didn't even-" Suddenly, his mouth dropped and his eyes sparkled. "WHOA! They gotta rollercoaster this year! EHHH? And BUMPER CARS! SO COOL!"

The orange haired girl rolled her eyes at his childlike enthusiams. Over rusty metal death traps...sigh. Suddenly, a thought occured to her, making her blood boil. She said in a low voice, "If you think I'm giving you more money to go over there, you're wrong."

He pouted. "I didn't say that."

While she blinked incredulously, he grinned. "Come with me!"

Nami crossed her arms. "I can't, I'm busy."

"With what?" He tilted his head.

She opened her mouth, then slowly closed it. She had nothing. Scoffing, Nami retorted, "I just don't want to go, Luffy. Why can't you understand? I don't want to hang out today!"

"Well why not? Is something bothering you?"

Nami's face froze; he had hit the bulls-eye, the thick-headed dunce. Ofcourse something was bother her-she was brimming over with unbottled rage and jealousy, and it was eating her alive while she sat in her seat. Yet she couldn't tell him that, right? She knew Luffy pretty well...hell, almost better than anyone. She knew he wouldn't do anything to purposely hurt her; yet she also knew about his big mouth. If she admited anything to do with the real reason that was bothering her, would he blab it to Zoro? Nami could imagine that bastard's ego swell in her face, having found more things to whisper to his flaky girlfriends' ears: "She still can't get over me" "So sad" "I feel so bad for her..."

She sucked in her bottom lip. Definitely couldn't let that happen.

Luffy's eyes caught her attention again, huge and puppylike. "Come on! Please? Pleeeease...?"

Must...turn away...eyes... Nami tried to turn her head, but...damn, it wouldn't work. She opened her mouth, and words started coming up. "Ah...well..."

Damn him!

A/N: I have no idea why I veered from Onederland to write this. I blame the enormous number of songs on the radio about unrequited love playing one right after another. Curse you music, my eternal muse! (Real life also had a ploy in this...the song 'Near to You' didn't directly, though, but the lyrics fit it right? Well, maybe not...but in the next last part they will.)

Yea, so...no wanton romance in this part. :3 But I'm one of those people who likes romances to drag out-love at first sight is a myth to me, and rushed romances are only good in musicals. ...And black and white comedies (See the 'Road to insert country here'). So, yea, romance in the end. Not in the beginning. First there must be Zoro looking like a tool.

MY APOLOGIES TO THE VAST AMOUNT OF ZORO FANGIRLS I MIGHT HAVE PISSED OFF! o.o Don't kill me with your katanas of deathz. (I just like him less than Luffy, Franky, Sanji, and Ussopp! T.T)

Dearest reader, our time in these notes are ending. However, I would deeply appreciate in hearing YOUR thoughts on this piece of bandwith. Please review-constructive criticism is most welcomed! (I.E., I am screaming at you to flame me. FLAME. ME. PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEZ. *constructively!*)