Polar Planes [Luffy x Nami]

Nineteen

As soon as Koala made the right turn onto the inner road leading to the freeway, Nami knew something was wrong.

"Are we picking up anyone else?" she asked.

"No," Koala said. "Why?"

Nami turned to look at the road behind her through the backseat window. "Luffy's house is that way."

"Oh, we're not going to Luffy's house," Usopp said.

"What? Why not? It's his birthday party, is it not?"

Usopp rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling sheepishly. "Garp doesn't know he's throwing a party, so we all decided to move it to Hancock's house."

For a second, Nami thought she lost her jaw. "You what?"

"Her house is a lot bigger, so she can accommodate more people," Vivi said.

"Vivi, do you not understand that I can't be within a one-mile radius of her?" Nami emphasized.

"Relax," she said. "She treats everyone like she hates them. Doesn't mean she actually does."

"No, no, no...." A headache was forming at her temple. "She hates me. I know it."

Rebecca groaned. "What did you do?"

Nothing she could've said would make sense. "Can you just go back and drop me off at my house?"

"Absolutely not," Vivi snapped.

"Please," Nami begged. "Just give Luffy my present."

Koala began pulling off to the side. "I don't know, Vivi. Nami sounds serious. Maybe I should drive her back."

Finally, Vivi let up. "Okay. But this isn't over Nami. You're explaining everything later."

Nami nodded. "Deal."

⤧

A week had gone by and it didn't look like Luffy bothered with Nami's present. She had braced herself for that reality, but it still hurt all the same.

She had completely fixed his varsity jacket, making sure that the embroidery matched with the old threads, but still looked fresh and new. She secured all the seams, fixed the buttons, and fixed the slight fraying that was edging at the collars. After all of that, she washed it several times with stain remover and bleach, and she had been proud of the result.

But perhaps she was a fool for thinking he would forgive her after everything she said to him. If he had thrown the jacket away, she couldn't be mad at him.

Besides that, he seemed completely happy and energetic, even more so now that Ace was going to school again. Nami had seen him get around in crutches, but his bulky knee brace was what truly made it an unfortunate sight.

Now that all the testing was done, Mr. Newgate gave total freedom during his morning periods. People started bringing their own board games and balls to play with during class.

"Alright, enough is enough," Vivi said harshly. "What happened between you and Hancock? If she did anything to you, I swear I will-"

Nami cut her off before she could continue. "You're taking it too far."

Usopp frowned. "But still. It sounds like something serious happened."

"I didn't do anything to her," Nami insisted.

"So why do you keep saying she hates you?"

"After what I told Luffy, she got mad, I guess. It doesn't help that I'm from Mary Geoise," she explained. "She seems to hate Mary Geoise a lot."

Usopp nodded slowly. "Now that you mention it..."

"Doesn't she just hate all smart kids?" Vivi offered. "It's just that the bulk of them come from Mary Geoise High."

"I wouldn't word it like that," Nami said.

Vivi shrugged. "All I see is a pattern. I think about a year ago, Hancock and her sisters got into a fight with a group of kids from Mary Geoise. Apparently, they were a bunch of high-GPA brats with insanely rich parents."

Usopp cringed. "That couldn't have ended well for her."

"Actually, Hancock's family has a lot of important connections, so she was able to get away without any severe consequences."

Sabo suddenly turned around. "Don't mean to eavesdrop, but are you guys talking about Mary Geoise High?"

Nami was hoping she'd be able to make it through the year without Sabo knowing she went to Mary Geoise, but that was wishful thinking.

"Do you know anything, Sabo?" Vivi pressed eagerly. "About why Hancock hates everyone from there?"

Nami elbowed her. "Will you cut it out?"

Sabo chuckled nervously. "It's alright. Many people have wondered the same thing."

"It's okay Sabo," Nami said. "You're not obligated to tell us anything."

He raised an eyebrow. "If she's giving you crap based on the school you went to, isn't that a little concerning?"

"Exactly!" Vivi said.

"I'm in no way here to pick a side or voice my opinions, because I'm just not that involved in all the drama going on," he warned. "But it doesn't seem like you guys know much about Hancock."

"Well, I did just meet her this year..." Nami said.

He leaned in closer, his voice reduced to a volume just above a whisper. "This is as far as I know, and I don't mean to justify anything she does, but I think it's important you knew that she went to Mary Geoise Middle School."

"What?!" Vivi exclaimed. "Her?"

Sabo nodded grimly. "I don't know much of the details, but she got expelled."

And Nami thought losing her scholarship was bad. Though, given Hancock's short temper, it made sense.

"Did something happen between her and the other students?" Usopp asked.

"That's what I assume," Sabo said. "But I wouldn't jump to conclusions."

That's what had to have happened. Back in the locker room when Nami confronted Hancock about breaking the force gauge, Tashigi told her that Hancock "hasn't had the best time dealing with people like you before". This must have been what she meant. Given Nami's own experiences at Mary Geoise High, it was somewhat... understandable to get expelled.

What frustrated her, though, was that Nami wasn't like the students at Mary Geoise. Was she?

She grumbled. "I think I'm starting to overthink this."

"Don't spend your energy on her anymore," Vivi said. "Let's just ignore her."

Sabo shrugged. "That's probably the best thing to do."