Chapter Text
The shop wasn't huge, but it always seemed to be full of light. The entrance, with its floor-to-ceiling window, faced south, affording a view of the park across the street. To Zoro, having known it for so long, the building was more of a home than half the places he'd actually lived.
"Shimotsuki Flower Shop and Nursery," Zoro said into the phone, cradling it on his shoulder as he hoisted a pot of daffodils with his other arm.
"Hey, Roronoa! Haven’t heard your voice for a while! It’s you, yeah?" boomed an unmistakable voice from the other end, so loud Zoro almost dropped both the plant and the phone.
"Mr. Garp, hello," he said briefly, settling the flowers on a shelf to better grip the phone. "If you’re calling about rent or maintenance, Kuina's not here right now–" A gruff laugh cut him off.
"No, no– she’s paid up right on time as usual and everything else is fine. Actually, you'll do perfectly to help me out. Koushirou still have the key to the place above the shop?"
Zoro glanced behind the counter at the corkboard full of odds and ends, helpless to know if any of the keys hanging there might be the one the landlord meant.
"Uh…" he supplied helpfully, earning another raucous laugh.
"Ok son, ask Kuina when she gets there! They’ve got to have it somewhere, I just need ya to head up there and make sure the place's in halfway decent shape. Y’know, check if lightbulbs need replacing, open the windows to air it out for a bit. Gonna have a resident soon."
The second floor of the building that Garp owned housed a spacious apartment that had been vacant for at least the several years since Koushirou had moved the shop there as an updgrate from their previous, smaller location. From what Kuina had said, Garp really had no need for it, and Zoro occasionally wondered why Garp didn't just sell the place. However, none of that had been his concern– until today, apparently.
When did I become his maid? Zoro thought, and as if his scowl could be seen through the phone, Garp chuckled again into his ear.
"Consider it a good deed for your dear boss’ favorite landlord," he drawled. "He should be there within the next couple days!"
"Who–" Zoro began, but was met with a click and silence. Frowning at the phone, Zoro turned as the bell over the door chimed and Kuina walked in.
"Customer already?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "We aren't even open yet."
Zoro shook his head, setting the phone down to resume shifting planters into the range of the sunlight that was now streaming through the front window.
"Garp," he grunted as he shoved a box with his foot. "Asking about a key to the apartment upstairs?"
Kuina looked baffled for a moment, then realization dawned.
"OH, right… I think dad put it in the drawer." Shuffling behind the counter and putting down her bags, she rummaged around behind the cashbox before triumphantly holding up a key with a faded leather keychain attached. "And this is important… why?"
Zoro explained (well, explained what little he knew), Kuina let out a guffaw and handed him the key with a dramatic gesture.
"Ok, errand boy, I'll finish prepping to open then so you can go start your duties," she teased.
Zoro frowned at her and snatched the key.
"Screw you, Ms. Manager," he retorted, but started for the door anyway.
–
The staircase to the apartment ran along the shop's west side. Zoro clambered up and unlocked the door, stepping into the large space that served as a living room. Though plenty of light was coming in through the huge sliding door to his right, he had his duties to accomplish, so he hit the switch on the wall and was rewarded by every light turning on except one. Ok, one light bulb, he mentally noted.
Almost directly across from him was an open entryway to the kitchen and dining area, with a short hallway branching off of that room to the left. A quick examination showed Zoro that there were a bathroom and bedroom in that direction, and further investigation that there was a second, smaller bedroom accessible from the back of the living room.
"A nice place Garp's been sitting on this whole time," he muttered aloud as he continued to check lights and open windows. It was furnished simply, but comfortably. Having completed his circuit, he returned to the entrance and opened the sliding door, stepping out onto the small balcony that overhung the shop's entryway below.
You could grow some good flowers here, he thought, but was interrupted by a voice calling up from below him.
"Oi! Are you Shimotsuki?"
Turning to his left, he squinted a bit against the sun and leaned over the railing to see a young man around his own age, dark hair mussed and a huge duffel bag slung over his shoulder. His face was open and friendly and his bright eyes stared up at Zoro expectantly.
"No, uh… she's in the shop," he offered, gesturing vaguely downwards towards the door. Then, his brain catching up, he continued, "are you… Garp's… new tenant?"
Apparently the boy found the question amusing, because his face split into a huge grin and he broke into a peal of laughter.
"Haha, yeah, I guess that's me!" he stated, still smiling up at Zoro. For some reason, it made Zoro want to smile back.
"I'll bring your key down, just a second," he said instead, returning inside and loping down the stairway a moment later, reaching the bottom just as Kuina propped the shop door open.
"Oh, hello," she said, earning another brilliant smile.
"Garp's ten–" Zoro began.
"Grandson!" offered the boy, sticking out his hand. "I'm Luffy – Monkey D. Luffy, nice to meet you!"
"Grandson?!" chimed Zoro and Kuina in unison, forgetting all pretext of manners, Kuina recovering first to shake his outstretched hand. "Shimotsuki Kuina. I didn't know Garp had a grandson, though I guess it's not my business to know the ins and outs of my landlord's family."
Luffy laughed again – Zoro was starting to see at least one family resemblance – and heaved his bag off his shoulder, dropping it solidly onto the ground.
"Man, that thing's heavy! Walked all the way from the station, and I had to skip breakfast too… is there any food up there?" The last part was directed to Zoro, who could at least helpfully reply that he thought there was some instant ramen in the kitchen cupboards.
This guy sure changes topics quick, Zoro thought, and as if on cue, Luffy continued.
"Gramps offered his place since I'm starting at the university over there," he said, sweeping his whole arm to indicate the southwestern direction.
Zoro raised an eyebrow.
"Ryugu?" he asked, and Luffy brightened.
"Yeah!! You know it?"
"Yeah, I go there."
Suddenly Luffy was right in front of him, both of his hands clasping one of Zoro's and smiling that huge smile not even a foot away from Zoro's face.
"Nice! Then we're schoolmates! Er, college mates? Classmates? Uh… you're–"
Zoro, though taken aback, realized he hadn't introduced himself.
"Roronoa Zoro," he said, and Luffy's eyes shone.
"Nice, Zoro!"
Zoro blinked again, making Kuina chuckle.
"If you're just starting, you won't be classmates, since Zoro's already been there a year," she supplied, and Luffy's face finally showed an exaggerated frown.
"Ohhhh… so you're… 20, Zoro?" he asked.
"21 this year, yeah," Zoro replied, wondering as soon as he said it why exactly he was sharing his personal details with a complete stranger. "I started late–"
"Shishishi, like me! 'Cause I'm almost 19!" Luffy exclaimed, crossing his arms proudly as if this was some sort of great discovery, then tilting his head to one side and making a puzzled face again as his eyes swept over Zoro's arms and torso. "Though you're a lot more muscley than me."
Kuina laughed again.
"That's just this dummy's hobby," she began, but thankfully for Zoro, she was interrupted by the arrival of a customer. "I have to get to work," she said to Luffy, with a pointed look at Zoro and a wave as she headed inside. "If you need anything, at least one of us is right downstairs most of the day, every day!" she added over her shoulder.
Zoro fished the key out of his pocket and offered it to the other boy.
"Your door key," he said. "I gotta get to work too."
"Hehe, thanks, Zoro!" Luffy said, grabbing the key and his bag in one large motion. "I can't wait to–" A loud gurgle from his stomach punctuated his sentence, and Zoro finally cracked a smile.
"Better go eat," he said, turning to go inside.
"Fooooooood!" Luffy exclaimed from behind him, and pounded up the stairs.
-
Most of Zoro's morning was spent as usual– transplanting bulbs that had outgrown their pots, cutting stems for prefab bouquets, fertilizing and watering.
The only difference was the amount of noise from upstairs.
"You think he's really almost 19?" Zoro asked at one point when Luffy, obviously enjoying exploring his new home to the fullest, had leaned out from the balcony too far and almost fell over the railing.
"Not everyone's as stoic as you," Kuina joked as a chorus of "oooohs" and "uwaaas" came drifting out of the kitchen window.
Zoro glanced up at the balcony from where he was working on a planter box in front of the store.
"Sunflowers, maybe," he said.
"Huh?"
"They'd grow well up there. Full sun all day."
Kuina laughed.
"Sunflowers again? You insist on having some every year."
Zoro scowled at her.
"I'm not allowed to like flowers? As a flower shop employee?" He turned to look across the street. "Seems like that's a useless one, though. The wisteria. Hasn't bloomed a single summer since they planted it."
Kuina followed his gaze.
"Hmm. It's still too young. It'll get there."
The sound of a muffled cartoon theme song wafted outside, and Zoro sighed.
"Things sure will be a lot more lively around here now, I guess."
-
"I doubt we're getting many more customers in today," Kuina said late that afternoon. "You can probably head out early."
Zoro nodded.
"I'll finish this planter box and then go," he said, turning his attention back to the seeds he was spacing in the soil.
Kuina peered over his shoulder and laughed.
"You're really planting them? The sunflowers?"
Zoro rolled his eyes.
"Yes, we've already been through this today."
Kuina wrinkled her nose at him.
"Can you even see what you're doing? Turn this on at least," she said as she flicked on a nearby lamp.
Zoro almost dropped the seed he was holding.
"Shit," he said. "The light. I forgot the lightbulb." Quickly shoving the remaining two seeds into the box, he stood up, brushing his palms off on his pant legs. "We got any extras in the back?"
Kuina nodded.
"Should be a box in the storeroom."
"Can you just water those for me?" Zoro called over his shoulder as he rummaged through the shelf until he found the box he needed.
Kuina made a noise of agreement as Zoro extracted a bulb, then headed out the door and jogged up the stairs.
It seemed surprisingly quiet on the other side of the door, and for a moment Zoro had the thought that Luffy might be asleep and that he could just give him the bulb tomorrow, but before he realized it fully, he had already knocked. After what seemed like only half a second, the door was flung open and Zoro was once again face to face with Luffy and his disarming grin.
"Heeeeeey, Zoro!" Luffy exclaimed as if it hadn't been a matter of like, 6 hours since he had seen him last. "What's up? I'm gonna make dinner! Wanna come in? Well, it's ramen again, so not fancy, but there's a lot in the cabinet so we can each have three, maybe."
Zoro held up a hand in an attempt to slow him down.
"I just came to give you this, actually," he said, holding up the lightbulb. Luffy stared at it like he'd never seen one before in his life, then raised his eyes to meet Zoro's, full of questions.
"There was one that was out–" Zoro said, leaning slightly inside the door and pointing to the burnt out lightbulb… only to discover that it was now working just fine. He stared for a minute, wondering seriously if all he'd end up doing around Luffy was stand and blink, before Luffy chuckled.
"You're right! It was out, but when I tried to unscrew it, it turned on again, so I guess it works ok!" he said happily. There was a beat, then, "Is it dyed?"
It took Zoro a solid thirty seconds to realize Luffy meant his hair.
"Uh. No. Natural. Some kind of freak genes, I guess."
Luffy looked suitably impressed.
"Oooooh, that's cool!" And with no warning, his face was right next to Zoro's head again, staring at his ear. "Did those hurt?"
Zoro almost hit his head on the doorframe as he quickly shifted back.
Does he have no concept of personal space? he wondered, but found himself answering all the same.
"First one's kind of unexpected, but not really painful," he said truthfully. "By the third it was like… whatever."
Luffy squeezed his hands into fists and his eyes lit up again.
"That's cool too! Zoro's a cool guy! Maybe I should get my ear pierced, but maybe I want a tattoo instead… my brother has one that's awesome, but I don't want one that big. Maybe I should design my own? What do you even draw for that?" he said, frowning at nothing as he pondered the possibilities, and Zoro found himself amused at the pure energy radiating off the other boy.
He didn't get it. This kid was a complete stranger that he had known for less than a day, but there was something about him that was magnetic. It was weird, but not like, uncomfortable weird.
"Well I… gotta go, then. I can catch an earlier train home if I leave now," he said, offering yet more unnecessary details to his new acquaintance. "Glad the light works."
Luffy looked disappointed for a moment, then smiled again.
"Ok, maybe next time!" he said cheerfully.
Zoro allowed himself the smallest approximation of a nod, then headed down the stairs. As he reached the bottom, Luffy's voice came floating down from the still-open door.
"See you later, Zoro!"
Zoro turned back to see Luffy, silhouetted against the light from his apartment, waving one arm and grinning. Zoro raised his hand and smiled back.
"Yeah," he called.
It was spring, and the daffodils were in bloom.