Her Safe Haven

Seventeen.

The change was subtle at first.

Sanji's presence came with the baggage of his friends. Luffy- Ace's younger brother and Sanji's close friend- would visit the café nearly every day demanding pastries and food. He particularly enjoyed the meat pies, which were Sanji's brilliant addition. Along with Luffy came the rest of his crew, including Nami, Zoro, Usopp, Frankie, their bandaged friend Brooke, and their adorable pet reindeer, Chopper. It was rarely all together, but with their different timings it felt as if someone from Luffy's crew was always at her store.

Luffy's presence, and perhaps the concern after the run in with Smoker, brought Ace in more often, followed by others from the Whitebeard gang.

Smoker visited again after two weeks, and seemed to notice the change as well, surprised to find Luffy sitting at the bar stools near the hand-off counter. Luckily [Name] wasn't there for that encounter; she'd gone out for more milk when he arrived, having to hear from Nami the snide remarks he made. Something about it becoming a hide out for criminals- and the man must had jinxed it, because from that moment on it really did seem to feel that way. Every day [Name] was greeted by at least one person from either the Straw Hats or the Whitebeard crew. Nami came in the most, beginning to bond with [Name] as they found a shared a mutual interest of finances. She seemed to adore the kind owner even more when [Name] had offered her free coffee.

They made a deal; Nami gets free coffee in exchange for tangerines.

It took two weeks for this new routine and clientele for [Name] to get used to it, used to seeing friendly familiar faces. Two weeks, and [Name] was officially healed and working full time again.

The third week was when the truly weird change happened.

After their date, Doffy had taken [Name] home, the entire time debriefing her on the murders that had been happening. There were eight in total now, all showing sloppy signs that pointed towards Doffy's family. That felt concerning enough, causing an anxious feeling to blossom in the young woman's chest. The last thing she needed was police further involved in her life.

That, and the fact that she hadn't heard from the blonde man since.

So it was quite a surprise to look up from her pastries and see the tall blonde standing in the café, a look of disdain on his face as he slowly looked around. As if this was his first time – again – and he still disapproved.

Nami, who was sitting at the bar by the espresso machines, straightened. She flashed a sideways smile as she looked quickly at her new friend, wagging those brows.

Who's the hottie?!

[Name] grinned, a little boast of confidence.

Sorry girl, that one is mine~

Even if their relationship is fake, it felt good having others think she could reel in such a handsome man. Nami wasn't the only one to take notice of Doffy's arrival; a few women around the café had paused to look, their gawking obvious. [Name] blinked, head tilting. Hmm, there's actually been a lot more women in here recently.

"I still don't see why you choose to stay here," his tone was low and blunt, his annoyance obvious.

"My place is better than this," he grumbled, almost sulking. [Name] shook her head, hand on her hip as her smile faltered.

"That's exactly the point, it's your place."

His head slowly turned, finally looking at her, his scowl fading. [Name] continued to look up at him, the corners of her lips awkwardly lifting as she shifted under his gaze, fully aware of the smirking ginger who sat just on the other side of the counter. She wasn't sure if he was trying to process her words, simply unable to empathize or understand her point.