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Nami was late. It was hard to decide what annoyed her more: the taxi driver called Spandex (?!) who whined about having been skipped over for a government job – as if she cared –, the traffic, or Zoro’s texts. They were getting increasingly more frantic. He was a professional, he should be able to start without her. She was a professional too, and therefore shouldn’t be late but that was clearly not the biggest problem here.
When she spotted the tiny coffee shop Vivi had mentioned, she thrust some bills into Spandex’ hand and fled the cab. It was only two more blocks to the radio station, and judging by the pace of the moving cars, she would be faster on foot even if she stopped for coffee. And she had to stop for coffee, or Zoro might finally bite her head off.
The shop was cute, with blue cushioned chairs around tiny tables, a long dark wooden counter, floor-length windows. A man with dark hair, a straw hat and a huge smile who looked way too young to be working in any capacity, let alone at 5 am, stood behind the counter. While she headed towards the counter, the song faded and a very familiar voice came on. „Good morning early risers! I hope that you are having a warm cup of whatever you like this cold morning. I am sadly still waiting on my first coffee, so let’s play something upbeat to keep all of us warm and in a good mood.“
That asshole. Calling her out on the radio like that. Maybe she should only order a coffee for herself, then he’d see where being passive-aggressive on the radio would get him. Before she could order anything, someone piped up behind the counter. „Are you still obsessed with that radio host?“
Nami exchanged a look with Strawhat behind the counter who was beaming at her as if he knew something she didn’t.
Behind the coffee machine, a guy with dark curls was leaning into the back space from where a grumbled answer was being uttered, as if this wasn’t the first time the topic had come up. „His voice is hot.“
Well. Nami couldn’t debate that. She didn’t care about men in general, or about Zoro in particular – in that way! – but Zoro’s voice was objectively hot. Especially if you didn’t have to see his ugly mug.
„It’s been months! Maybe you should just call the station“, the curly haired guy suggested.
That was the worst idea Nami had ever heard. Of course they sometimes took calls into the studio for specific topics or a song request. And they had to read out cheesy requests sent through a messenger that embarrassed both Zoro and Nami. But they got paid to do it, and Nami wasn’t above saying weird shit for money. But only idiots and creeps called the station to get in touch with them personally. They were, thankfully, kept far away from the radio hosts by a team of dedicated students who worked on the hotline.
„That’s the worst idea I’ve heard this morning“, the guy in the back replied. At least he had some sense, barring his taste in men. „Do you think you can book him, as a DJ or something?“
That wasn’t a bad idea in general, but was stupid if you wanted to date Zoro. Zoro had principles – sometimes weird ones – and one was not dating co-workers. But it was a start, so Nami decided to meddle. Nothing was more fun than to mess with Zoro a little. „Yes you can“, she said loud enough for the two men in the back to hear her.
Strawhat was still beaming at her, not having said a word just yet. The curly haired guy whipped around as if she hadn’t stomped into the coffee shop with her five inch heels, and revealed a shocked expression and a cute nose. And finally the third guy appeared from the back. To her utter dismay, third guy had a gorgeous face, blonde hair in a messy bun, a slim waist, and the longest legs she’d seen in a while. He was so Zoro’s type it was almost disgusting.
Blondie and Nose exchanged a glance before Blondie turned on Strawhat. „Did this wonderful and gorgeous lady already place an order with you, Luffy?“
„No“, Strawhat – Luffy – declared without a care in the world.
Nami gifted all of them in turn with a bright smile. „I’ll take a big black coffee, no sugar, no milk, and an oat milk latte.“
Nose moved immediately towards the coffee machine while Nami handed her card to Luffy and fixed Blondie with a look. Before the coffee grounding could interrupt her, she repeated: „You can book him, by the way.“ She pointed to the ceiling behind the counter where a speaker was mounted to emphasize her point. „Zoro, I mean.“
As if on cue – and to stop any further conversation – Nose started grinding the coffee. Blondie had turned an adorable shade of red. Nami threw him one last bright smile, put a bill into the tip jar and winked at Luffy before she walked over to the pick up counter.
***
In a stellar mood, Nami stalked into the radio station. She ignored everyone’s glances and whispers, and walked straight to the recording studio. The „on air“ sign was on, so she stood on tiptoes to glance through the glass window. Zoro was furiously typing into his phone, and she could feel her phone vibrating in her pocket. Not technically on air, then.
Without further ado, Nami opened the door and waltzed into the room.
Zoro whipped around, mouth open to probably shout at her for barging in. When he recognized her, his lips turned into a thin line. „You’re late.“
Nami rolled her eyes, closed the door, disabled the „on air“ sign and put down the coffee. Only then did she turn to Zoro, hands on her hips. „Stop whining, you’re a professional, aren’t you?“
„So are you“, he shot back, and Nami hated when he was right. She usually didn’t give him any opportunity to hold things over her head, but well. This morning, she’d been distracted.
„Just tell me you’re late because of that blue-haired lawyer Robin introduced us to“, Zoro prodded while grabbing his black coffee.
She hated even more that he knew her so well. Sometimes, in the privacy of her own mind, she wondered how this random jock she’d met in college had become her closest friend who knew her better than even her own sister.
Zoro’s face turned into a sly smile because he could read her face as well as she could read his. „Good for you, witch. Tell me everything.“
„Are you sure you wanna know everything?“ Nami shot back, raising an eyebrow.
It was Zoro’s turn to roll his eyes at her. „You know what I mean.“ His eyes wandered to the clock above the door. „Raki will be here with the news in a bit, let’s go over the schedule.“
Nami waved him over to his seat and slouched down in hers. She took her notebook out of her bag and wheeled herself closer to Zoro who had already opened a spreadsheet on the screen.
***
Hours later, when they’d long finished their coffee and had devoured breakfast, it was time for Nami’s segment.
Zoro started them off. „Thanks to Raki for delivering the news as always. It’s after 8.30 now, so everyone who listens regularly knows, it’s time for Nami to enlighten us on something new today.“
„Well, thank you, my dear Zoro.“ She threw him a bright smile across the desk to which Zoro only rolled his eyes.
„Actually“, Zoro cut in, one eyebrow raised. She nodded furiously, and gave him a thumbs up for good measure. „I still have a bone to pick with you before you get started.“
„And what would that be?“ She curled a strand of her hair around her finger, cocking her head at Zoro. She appreciated that he was always ready to do her a favour or help her out. Even if it meant he had to do a little acting.
„As our listeners might have realized, you were late today.“
Nami shot him a warning glare. „You mean with the coffee I brought you?“
„Obviously.“ Zoro shot her a smug look in return. Of course, he would never air her personal stories on the radio. She knew that.
„My dear listeners, if Zoro would finally agree to a video stream, you could all see his pout right now.“
Now, he was glaring. „Not pouting.“
„This is as good a time as any to inform our viewers that Zoro usually brings breakfast while I bring coffee. As you can imagine, having to start this early without coffee is a real punishment. Sorry for being late, honey.“ She threw in a wink for good measure, even though the listeners couldn’t see her.
„Whatever“, Zoro grumbled, obviously ready to get away from this conversation.
„Actually, thanks for reminding me. I picked the coffee up at a new place today, on the recommendation of a friend.“ She noticed Zoro’s eyes gleam when she mentioned the friend and she barrelled on as to not give him a final opportunity to comment on her relationships on the radio. „Did you like it?“
The caught-off-guard look was priceless. Zoro shrugged. „It was coffee.“
„Yeaaaaah, but did you like it?“ she pressed. She knew the answer to that. He’d been ecstatic about the coffee, practically requesting she stop by that shop for the foreseeable future.
„It was better than the usual“, he finally conceded, eyeing her cautiously.
And with good reason! She smirked. „A rare compliment from our dear Zoro.“ Then she launched into a short history of the block the coffeeshop was situated in – something she had had to throw together in her three hours on the show because that was decidedly not what she had planned yesterday – and ended with a little segment on the shop. „Soooo, if anyone wants to get some really good coffee, they should head to ‚On the way‘ on the corner of Grand Line Central and Blue Street. They did not pay me to say that, by the way, but maybe they should.“
„Nobody is gonna believe you“, Zoro cut in.
Nami laughed. „I know you liked the coffee Zoro, so why don’t we go there after our shift, so if our listeners would like to get a little glimpse of our pretty faces, they can try to spot us there.“
It wasn’t really a question, it was a promise made on the radio. She could watch the understanding slide into place on Zoro’s face when he realised that she had tricked him, and that he had no way of getting out of this. Her smirk widened and she put her chin on her hand, looking at him.
„Maybe our listeners will get lucky today“, Zoro choked out, and then segued into the next song. Once they were off air, he swiveled around to face her. „What was that about, witch? You were in the shop already this morning!“
Nami shrugged. „You know our listeners. They like it if they get a chance to spot us, and you’ll like the shop, relax. It’s tiny and quiet.“ He’d also like the pretty cook/barista/blondie, but she wasn’t about to say that out loud.
„Not now, it isn’t“, Zoro grumbled. And he might be right about that. Since they didn’t do video streaming, their listeners liked to spot them in the wild. There even was a social media account for that express purpose, littered with photos of them being outside together. Plus a whole barrage of people speculating if they were a thing which had been happening to them since college. Neither of them had any interest in setting that record straight because it had the practical side effect of keeping their actual relationships out of the spotlight.
***
They finished their sift at 10 am, handing over the torch to Jinbei and Brook, two seasoned colleagues who had been doing the lunch segment for approximately twenty years. Nami and Zoro made their way over to their cubicles and got started on planning the next day. While Zoro put together some information on his segment – usually something sports related that Nami only paid half attention to – she filled their playlist for the coming day. They always added songs spontaneously and usually picked some listener requests, but they came prepared with a somewhat cohesive playlist at the start of the morning.
„If you keep going like that, people will spread rumours again.“
Nami jolted out of her zone, looking between the screen and Zoro. „What are you talking about?“
He indicated his own screen. „It’s only love songs.“
Nami narrowed her eyes at her screen and re-read the titles she had added. „Oops.“
„So you really like her“, Zoro pointed out, regrettably on point, again.
„You’ve met her, so you know she’s amazing.“
Zoro shrugged and stood, grabbing his jacket. „If you say so. Let’s get out of here.“
Nami grabbed her own jacket and followed after him through the office. They said their goodbyes to a few colleagues, waved at Brook and Jinbei through the glass panel, and headed out of the building. Zoro turned right – to go where, noone would ever know – and Nami grabbed him by the elbow to steer him straight down the road. „We promised we’d go to the coffee shop, remember?“
Zoro grumbled under his breath, but didn’t say anything else. So she rewarded him with the retelling of her evening, and to his credit, he was being his best self: laughing at the right places, teasing her and – most importantly – being genuinely happy for her. Maybe this was why she tolerated him in her life.
Before long they arrived at the shop and Nami pushed inside with confidence. It was much more busy than it had been this morning around 5 am which could have been the time, or could have been her annoncement. Probably the latter. In the background, Jinbei was making a joke on the radio which meant they had listened to the whole show, and were aware that Nami had advertised them. People actually paid good money to be featured in their show, so the coffee shop people should count themselves lucky.
Strawhat was still behind the counter, a glint in his eyes when he spotted her. Nami winked at him, and his smile got even brighter. Nose was busy at the coffee machine, filling in orders. Blondie was nowhere to be seen which was a shame. Instead, a very cute guy was leaning at the counter next to Strawhat and talking at him in incredible speed.
Nami came to a stop next to him, looking between the two. Zoro stood at her other side.
„You mentioned us on the radio!“ Strawhat interrupted the other guy, still without a care in the world, and the other guy’s head whipped around, moving from Nami to Zoro behind her. He did have some pretty freckles. Nose’s face appeared behind the coffee machine, smiling at her. Then, his eyes moved to Zoro behind her and went wide.
Nami smirked. „Did it help business?“
Strawhat – Luffy – was already nodding enthusiastically and opened his mouth to speak, but Nose was faster. „I’m not sure.“ He leaned back a little. „Sanji! How was business today?“
Nami watched Zoro while Blondie came out from the back drying his hands on a towel. Zoro’s eyes moved from the man’s face to his small waist down his long legs and back up again. If you didn’t know him, you would never notice, but she could see the tiny ways in which his jaw worked. She’d totally nailed it. Was it embarrasing that she knew exactly what got Zoro going? Maybe. But it made her the best wingwoman that idiot could ever hope for.
„The pastries sold out at 10, so I needed to bake a whole new bunch. Thank you so much for mentioning us on the radio, my dear.“ Sanji’s eyes flit to Zoro for a split second before turning back to her. „I’m so sorry I didn’t recognize your wonderful voice this morning.“
There was an opening if she’d ever seen one. „I’m sure you would have recognized his voice.“ She indicated Zoro with her head.
Sanji blushed from the tips of his ears down to the open button on his shirt. „I don’t – my dear Nami that’s -“
Nami smirked. „I won’t repeat what I’ve heard.“ She winked. „But don’t try to deny it, or I might just let it slip.“
„What? That he thinks that guy’s voice is hot?“, Freckles interjected, a shit-eating grin on his face.
Nami gave him an appraising smile. Apparently she wasn’t the only wing-person in the building today. „Clearly it’s common knowledge then.“ She turned to Zoro whose blush had spread over the bridge of his nose, and patted his cheek. „And you, put that scowl away, I promised the listeners they’d see our pretty faces today.“
Zoro’s scowl only deepened at that which Nami decided to ignore, turning back to Sanji who was still a deep red. „You know, people pay decent money to be featured on the show.“
„Stop trying to make money off of other people, witch“, Zoro growled beside her.
Sanji’s face had soured considerably. „Why would you talk to a lady like that?“
„Mayyyyybe“, Freckles cut in from the side before anyone could say anything else and turn this into an argument of sorts, „you could get them something on the house for their free advertising.“
„An excellent idea.“ Sanji was immediately back with his best customer service voice. „What can we get you two?“
„I’ll take another oat milk latte and a cheese cake.“ Nami leaned in closer to peer into the display. „This oaf doesn’t eat sweet things so maybe a lemon tart for him. And a decaf.“ She threw Zoro a questioning glance to which he nodded. She sighed. „Sometimes I can’t believe you’re getting paid for talking.“ She smiled at Luffy behind the counter. „We’ll be right over there.“
She shoved Zoro towards a table next to the windows and slumped down on the opposite chair. Meddling in other people’s lives was exhausting. Zoro was stealing glances at the counter and she followed his gaze. Luffy had turned back to Freckles who was talking at an incredible speed. Nose was frothing milk while Sanji was plating the desserts. He, in turn, was stealing glances at their table.
She could leave it at that. Now Zoro knew the place, he had seen the barista, he clearly liked what he saw. He could take care of this himself. On the other hand, Zoro would never find this place without her help again, and he was incapable of making it clear to people that he was interested because of his resting bitch face and his incessant need to be contrary. Chin in her hand, Nami fixed Zoro with a stern gaze. „You should talk to him.“
Zoro crossed his arms over his chest and stared resolutely out the window. „I don’t know what you’re talking about.“
„You can’t hide anything from me. You should know that from years of experience.“
Zoro opened his mouth in protest, but they were interrupted by Sanji who delivered their drinks and desserts with a grace that was rare to see. „Enjoy your treats, and thank you again for boosting us on your show.“ Although he was looking at Nami, one of his hands brushed Zoro’s shoulder before he was gone again.
Nami gave Zoro her sweetest smile. „If you don’t get his number today, I’m gonna talk about your crush on the radio for the next two weeks.“
Zoro ignored her for a few moments, sipped on his decaf, tried the lemon tart. Then he stood. „I hate you“, he murmured before turning around and stalking to the counter. Nose looked terrified for a second, but then gestured him through the back door. When Zoro was gone, Nose threw a glance at Luffy and Freckles who broke out into laughter.
Nami smiled and took a sip of her latte. Her work here was done.