Nami's mouth watered at the thought of how much she could sell some of the things in the room for, but she quickly dismissed the feeling. She wasn't going to steal from a girl who was just trying to make a living. In fact, Nami was a little jealous. Kaya had to be there while she was working like a slave for Arlong. She frowned to herself as she looked at the blonde's clothes.
"That bed looks so comfy!" Luffy shouted, running to jump onto the furniture. Suddenly, two figures knocked him to the ground from behind.
Zoro and Usopp had seen what the straw hat boy was about to do, and there was no way they were going to let it happen. "Idiot!" Zoro shouted, jumping up from the floor. "You'll soak the bed if you do that. You don't want Kaya kicking us out in the rain, do you?"
"What he said!" Usopp exclaimed, getting up and standing next to Zoro.
At that moment, the door opened and Kaya came back in carrying a stack of towels. She looked at the boy on the floor and the two standing next to him and smiled. "Here you go," she said, walking over and handing each of them a towel. They all thanked her and began drying themselves while she let them resume their conversation, turning to walk toward her closet, where Nami was going through her clothes. "Did you find anything?" she asked the orange-haired girl.
Nami grabbed a white T-shirt with the word "doctor" on it and striped sleep shorts. The shorts would be fine, but the T-shirt might end up looking more like a crop top. She shrugged to herself before turning to the girl who had spoken to her. "I think this will be okay," she said, holding up both garments. "Is there somewhere I can change?"
The blonde girl smiled and pointed to a corner of the room where there was an opaque screen. "You can change there. I'll make sure no boy tries to peek," she said, laughing.
Nami glanced at the boys in question, who were chatting amongst themselves as they dried off. "Honestly, I don't think you need to worry about it," she said, approaching the screen. "Luffy didn't even look at me while we were naked," she added, walking behind the screen. She was pretty sure Zoro wasn't too keen on looking either. Usopp... He probably wouldn't mind a peek, but she figured he might have his eye on someone else.
Kaya gasped as she felt steam rising from her ears. Had those two already been naked together?!
Nami laughed from behind the divider upon hearing Kaya's reaction: "It's not really like that. I asked her not to look and she didn't. It's that simple."
Kaya's face flushed deeply as she asked her next question, speaking softly so the boys wouldn't hear. "Did... you see him?" She covered her eyes with her hands. She was embarrassed to ask, but curious. She couldn't help it! It was the first time she'd ever been able to talk to another girl her own age!
Nami's face turned bright red. Thank goodness she was behind the screen. "N-No, of course not!" she lied. She was too embarrassed to admit it. It would only make all of Luffy's comments about them looking at each other seem more true. She wasn't a peeping Tom!
Kaya thought she detected a lie in that voice. She blushed even more as she glanced at Luffy and then at Usopp, quickly looking away. Suddenly, her hands seemed very interesting to her. "Oh, okay," she said. "Sorry for asking. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything."
The redhead stepped out from behind the screen in her new outfit; the old one hung over the edge of the divider. "It's fine, whatever," she said, the blush completely gone from her cheeks. She wouldn't let Luffy see her like this, never. Her shirt almost reached her waist, but still revealed a bit of her midriff, and her striped shorts were short, showing quite a bit of leg. "Thanks, Kaya! You have no idea how good it feels!" Nami exclaimed, sighing and walking over to the blonde.
Kaya quickly forgot about the naked men and smiled at the girl. "I'm glad you like them," she replied, pouting slightly. That shirt was too big for her...
Nami sat down at a table covered with open books. She looked them over and saw that they were all medical books. "Are you studying medicine?" asked the orange-haired girl.
Kaya approached the table and sat down opposite Nami. She picked up one of the thick texts before answering, "Yes, I want to be a doctor," she said, smiling at the book.
"Do you mind if I ask why?" Nami asked, her eyes taking in the room around her, "I mean, from what I can see, you're doing pretty well."
Kaya sighed and carefully put the book down. "You're right, I don't need the money. I just want to help people," she smiled to herself. "Like my parents."
"Are your parents doctors too?" asked the orange-haired girl.
"No, they were actually merchants," she smiled sadly. "They died two years ago when their ship sank at sea." She missed them dearly and always would. At least she still had Khlahadore and Merry.
Nami gasped, "Kaya, I'm so sorry, I didn't know."
"It's okay, Nami. I've had time to process it. It still hurts, and I think it always will, but it's gotten easier over the years." Her smile brightened. "I know they're always with me." She gestured to her head, then to her heart. "I'll always hold them here because no one is truly dead until they forget."
Nami looked away from the little girl as she felt her eyes welling with tears. Those words felt too close to home, but at the same time, they made her smile. "Mom..." she thought, her hands over her heart. She looked back at Kaya, wiping away her tears. "Thank you, Kaya, those were such kind words."
The blonde girl's eyes widened. She hadn't tried to make the other girl cry! "I didn't mean to upset you, Nami, and I... I'm sorry..."
"You didn't bother me," Nami interrupted, smiling gently, "You just made me think of my mom."
Kaya quickly put two and two together. "I'm so sorry for your loss, Nami," she said, reaching out to cover the redhead's hand.
The orange gave him an appreciative look: "Thank you, but it's been seven years. You don't need to apologize."
Kaya smiled gently at him: "Well, I do. I'm sorry you had to lose someone close to you. I wouldn't wish that pain on my worst enemy."
Nami's eyes widened. She didn't know if she'd ever spoken to anyone so genuinely kind. Kaya barely knew her, but Nami knew she meant it. "Thanks, Kaya. You really know how to treat a guest, huh?" the girl said, laughing, trying to change the subject. Enough with the revelations for today.
"Speaking of guests, it's getting dark outside, and I feel bad about the four of you walking back to town in this weather," Kaya said, catching the girl's subtle hint. "I think I'd like you to spend the night here."
Nami smiled at the girl. It was perfect; now they wouldn't have to pay for an inn. "I think we'd all be very grateful, Kaya. But don't feel obligated," the orange-haired girl promised.
"Nonsense," he paused, frowning slightly. "The only problem would be Khlahadore." He shook his head. She owned the mansion, and he was the butler. No way was he going to let her stop him from having his first sleepover! "I'll make sure the boys have a room to stay in, and you and I can stay here."
"Looks like you've already got it sorted," Nami laughed. She wasn't going to refuse if the girl wanted them to stay so badly.
Kaya stood up from her chair and said, "Yes, I accept." She turned to the boys to tell them about her stay, but was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Kaya turned toward the door, her eyes wide with surprise at who had opened it.
"And I wonder, what could we possibly have here?"
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👀Hi everyone, what do you think of the story so far?💣 The book has over 300 chapters😲. If you'd like to download the complete book, it's available on my Ko-fi page. Here's the link: 👉 🤩 ko-fi.com/winterstar01 🤩