Luffy dragged me off the sidewalk and into the forest, our hands intertwined. We ran into the woods and towards the hill, in which the cave was in. After more than a few minutes of running, I couldn't take it anymore. I pulled his hand so we would stop, but the boy just didn't seem to notice, as his arm stretched a few meters.

"Luffy, stop!" He did what I asked and looked back.

"C'mon, Candy. Don't be so lame." I glared at him and refused to move. He walked back and his arm unstreched back to its normal size.

"Some of us don't have such high stamina!" I huffed and tried to catch some breath. Luffy frowned when I laid on the ground, but didn't protest. It was I who protested when he picked me up like some rag doll and threw me over his shoulder. "What the hell is wrong with you?!" He only laughed while I countinously stabbed him in my mind. No one has ever humiliated me this much in my life, and this kid did it in a couple of days! "Luffy, if you don't put me down now, I swear I'll never let you eat candy again!" But he didn't. He kept running and running until I finally gave up and made myself more comfortable on his shoulder.

At the top of the hill, Luffy put me on my feet and I barely resisted the urge to slap him when he let out a loud: "Phew, you're heavy!"

"And you're an idiot!" I was more than annoyed, not to mention tired and sleepy. I'll probably regret this in the morning. He ignored my insult and pointed at a small hole in the ground. It was just big enough for one person to go through. "That leads into the cave?" He nodded, smiling. I went closer and peeked through. There must have been at least ten meters before we could reach the ground, but I didn't need to question how Luffy climbed up. He was Luffy after all.

"Let's go in!" Before I could respond with a determined 'No!', he was already gone and down there. "Jump, I'll catch you!" He spread out his arms and my heart beat sped up. There's no way I'm doing that! "Candy, don't be such a scaredy cat!" If he thought saying that would make me become as insanely brave as him, he was dead wrong. I shook my head and took a step back, but a hand grabbed my ankle and I fell right down and through that small hole. I tried to grab onto some grass, but the hand was stronger. My scream echoed throughout the cave, every time louder than before.

I can't die now, I have so much to do before that. I need to make sure my parents stop fighting once and for all. I want to see Sugar one last time and say goodbye to Vickie. I still haven't spread my shop across the sea and became the best candy maker there was. What would everyone think about my death. I'll die because I trusted a pirate. That damn pirate who never stopped smiling. Will he still smile when my body lies dead on the ground? He probably won't even feel guilty. We don't know anything about each other. I wish I could've known him better.

It seemed like I was falling forever and just when I closed my eyes and prepared myself for the impact, I landed on something soft and realized that maybe it was me who was wrong all along. Why didn't I trust Luffy would catch me? Because a little part of me still thought of him as a filthy pirate, who doesn't care about others. Maybe he didn't care about anything at all. Maybe he was just an idiot.

I opened my eyes and was faced with Luffy's red shirt. I didn't bother to sit up, knowing I'd probably get a headache, but that didn't stop me from hitting Luffy's side. He laughed and said: "I told you I'd catch you."

"You idiot, I thought I'd die." I wanted to yell, but it only came out as a whisper. I guess the adrenaline rush was ending. "God, I was so scared." The boy laughed and his chest vibrated.

"Wow, Candy. You're more pathetic than I thought."

"At least now, you'll stop asking me to join your crew."

"What? No way, I'll train you!" He smiled and sat up. "I still need more candy and Chopper likes Sugar, so I can't let you stay here!" I stared at him, not wanting to have anything to do with his 'training'.

"Not happening." I shook my head no. "I'm taking Sugar right now and we're going home. Take me to your ship." Luffy bit the inside of his cheek and frowned.

"You're no fun." Suddenly his eyes brightened, like he got an idea, and I grew worried. "Hey, Candy." He bit his lip in excitement. "Why exactly don't you want to come with me?" I smiled, kind of surprised, but also happy he was interested in something other than food or himself.

"Well, my dream is to have the best candy shop in the world, but I can't do that on a ship, when everyone thinks I'm a criminal." I explained, wanting to go into more details, but Luffy interrupted me.

"I could take you around the world and you could get all kinds of new candy flavours! Sanji told me that, he's the best chef in the world!" I gulped and looked away. I could not argue this, but I've never left home before. And for such a long time too.

"Luffy, I don't know... I've never left this island before. The world is such a big place and full of dangers. I'd miss my family too much..." I didn't know how to explain it to him. He probably never had any doubts about his decisions, while I'm full of them. "It's not that simple." I wasn't sure if he heard anything that I said. I spoke so quietly, I barely understood myself. "Besides, I don't even know you!"

"Bullshit!" I looked at his face, my breathing quick. He didn't look angry, but his tone made me a little scared. I half laughed at myself. If I was scared of this, I had no business going to the sea. "I promise..." He put his hat on my head. "I promise I'll show you the world! And then you'll create the best candy there is." I smiled at this and hugged him, breathing in the scent of sweat and food. He probably hasn't showered for days, but I didn't care. "And I'll be the first one to eat it!"

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Omg, guys! I fangirled so much while writing the last part. I know it's kind of short, but I have a lot of work at the moment. Anyways, thank you for reading and hope you liked it. If you did, votes and comments are greatly appreciated.

Kisses.

~ChocolateLuffy ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶