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A/N: This story contains spoilers from the latest manga chapters. Please, read at your own risk.

“Um... h-hi.” You turned your head to the heard greeting and found a pair of deep blue eyes staring into you (E/C) ones. You were sure, it was this girl called Koala. You had been introduced to her earlier. Nodding your head as your sole response, you noticed she kept being a bit more insecure. She looked like a cheerful girl, so why was she acting so strange? “M-May I sit?”

“Sure.” You replied quickly, turning back to your food. She sat down to your left and started eating as well, all the while looking at you from the corner of her eye. A sigh falling from your lips made her look to the front again, but it was too late; you had noticed her staring. “Is there something you need, Koala-san?”

“No!” She squeaked, lifting her arms in defense. “It's just that since you are new here I wanted to meet you... B-But that's a quite gloomy face you have here...” You sighed, trying your best to soften your expression so you could look at her normally.

“I've just... been through something bad...” You mumbled, and she nodded, not really coming to understand. She finished her meal and got up again, closing her eyes, as her expression suddenly turned sad.

“A friend of mine is not okay, so I'm a bit down as well.” You looked at her with a reassuring look in your eyes. “Do you want to see him?” Shrugging your shoulders was everything you could do, as she led you somewhere within the Revolutionary Base.

“So this is Sabo...” You muttered, stoic look on your face as you eyed the unconscious boy. He seemed to be sleeping, but you knew it couldn't just be a brief slumber.

“He's been out for three days now. I'm really worried.” A sniffle came her way, and you realized she really must love him. Next to her was a fishman who had been introduced to you as Hack. He looked just as worried as Koala.

“What happened to him?” She looked at you with teary eyes and bit her lip.

“He broke down when he read the latest newspaper. They were shocking news, apparently.” Your eyes widened, realizing what those news were. Feeling your heart being pierced, you had to resist the urge to show anything. It had been just a few days since that happened, yet it kept recording into your mind. It was horrible. “Sabo!” You snapped your head towards the mentioned blond, and your eyes widened in disbelief. He immediately sat up, eyes wide and disbelieving. “You had us so worried!” Koala kept on babbling while the boy looked around, as if searching for answers.

“Koala... Hack...” He mumbled, taking a hand to his head. His eyes were then on you, and he grimaced while arching an eyebrow, maybe because of an intense headache. “Who are you?” You couldn't answer, too surprised and bewildered to actually do anything. How was this possible...? He is-

“She is a new Revolutionary, (Y/N).” Dragon explained calmly, coming out of nowhere, and you looked down, instantly dashing for the door while avoiding any contact with the leader.

They just stared at you speechless for some seconds of pure silence, until Koala started whimpering how much he had missed him. He had to keep telling her that he was okay -although he wasn't. And what Dragon had said moments ago had woken up his curiosity about you. What did he mean by connection?

“Who is she, Dragon-san?” A closed-eye smirk slowly appeared on said man's face, as he crossed his arms.

“She is (Y/N), from the Whitebeard Pirates...”

Luckily for you, the showers were now empty, so you had decided to take a quick wash and gather your thoughts. The early past is painful, you kept repeating to yourself, blinking back tears. Hadn't you had enough? Enough crying and despair? But why did it still hurt so much? It's horrible to lose a loved one, that's for sure. But you thought you had overcome it after days of helpless sobbing and pain.

Also, that boy, Sabo... You had heard that name before, you were sure. He was his foster brother, he had told you. But, anyway, he couldn't be here. He couldn't be in this world...

“(Y/N)?” A female voice brought you back, drawing a gasp from your lips as you turned the water out and reached for a nearby towel. It was Koala. She was looking for you, apparently.

“W-What is it, Koala?” As firmly as you could, you stepped out of the shower, indifference written all over your face, trying to hide the fact that you had felt vulnerable and harmed seconds before. The girl looked worried, but with a determined look in her eyes.

“Dragon-san told us about you, (Y/N)...” You bit your tongue to keep from talking before having chosen your words wisely. But you couldn't decide which ones would express your feelings better and not hurt your new friend in any way. She just went on. “And Sabo wants to talk to you.”

With your heart clenching painfully at the mention of the name you had avoided thinking about in these days, you twirled your lower lip between your teeth and nodded slowly, following her. Maybe you would find the answers you wanted this way.

Sabo was still lying on bed, eyes seemingly lost and fingers intermingled together. The door creaked open and his head snapped that way, round eyes widening at the sight of the two females. In a harsh movement, he sat up and gasped, but before he could move any further, Koala raised her hand.

“Stop right there, she isn't going anywhere.” She sighed, and you slowly made your way towards his bed. Carefully sitting next to him, you heaved a deep breath before opening your mouth to speak.

“You wanted to talk to-”

“Do you belong to the Whitebeard Pirates?” He interrupted you, calmly but obviously nervous, and your gaze averted his as you turned your head sideways.

“You mean I belonged. I left to become a Revolutionary.” You finally answered, trying to keep your voice as steady as possible.

“My... my bother belonged to the Whitebeard Pirates. I read it on the newspaper. Ace. Do you know him?” It was really difficult to hear such broken words coming from him. From anyone really. Hesitation drowned you for a moment in which you had tried to unburden by clenching the thin sheets, but you finally answered, voice coming out as a trembling mess.

“Ace was my... my partner... We were in a relationship.” Both of them looked at you surprised, while you desperately tried to ignore the memories from his death. As they didn't seem to be able to say anything for the time being, you decided to add something else. “He told me about you and Luffy. The crazy adventures you lived years ago. And... he also told me about your death...”

“Oh...” He was now looking down, unable to keep eye contact, and you frowned sadly.

“When I first heard your name, I thought it had to be a coincidence. But now I'm sure. You are Ace's brother: Sabo. and were saved by the Revolutionaries... right?” A slight nod was all the response you were seeking for, as the blond lay back down, exhaustion giving the best of him.

“And now you belong to the Revolutionary Army, (Y/N)?” He asked, suddenly changing the subject. Confused, you made a small sound of approval. Sabo closed his eyes and frowned, deep in thought.

“You shouldn't have.” He said simply. You creased an arched eyebrow and coughed, silently demanding an explanation which never came. Instead, Koala strolled over to you and patted your shoulder, shaking her head towards the door; catching the message, you left the room with her.

“Don't take it seriously, (Y/N).” She muttered once in the tranquility of the corridor. “He's just hurt... just like you. I feel so sorry for you both...” Faking a smile, you hugged her; maybe it was just a vain attempt to comfort yourself, and not to assure the girl.

“It's okay. Oh, could you show me the building. I don't quite know it yet...”

“Of course.” Came her eager answer. Despite the tragic memories, you realized you had to move on, and the Revolutionaries just seemed a perfect chance to do so. Or so you had thought...

As weeks passed by, you got to know everyone in the place, and to start building new happy moments with new friends. However, much to your desperation, every time Sabo just came in sight, a painful feeling would overwhelm you, and you would instantly lose color, despite Koala's attempts to get you back to your lively self.

What the brunette didn't know was that every night you wouldn't sleep, rather sneak out of your bed and go to the showers to cry. You wanted to believe you had overcome the trauma, you really did. But it was no use. Nightmares would haunt you whenever you closed your eyes; dark bags had formed under your eyes, and you had lied to everyone about them, saying that they were just because of the stress.

There were some persons, however, who were able to see through your fake smiles and lies. Sabo, for example, wasn't that easily deceived. Not after having suffered such despair himself. So, one night, he finally caught you.

At first, when he saw you tiptoeing across the lobby and towards the showers, he wavered. Maybe you were just looking for a hot shower... But, then again, it was true that you were obviously lacking sleep, so it couldn't just be that. He sighed. Koala shouldn't have such deep slumber...

The moment after he had decided to follow you, know lost from his sight. The door to the showers, unlike usually, were slightly opened, signaling that there must had been someone there. Then, something he truly had to admit he was expecting reached his ears: the echo of sniffles and whimpers. This room was pretty empty, and in the silence of nighttime it was even more recognizable.

He pulled the door slightly more open so he could fit and looked around. Gaze jumping from shower to shower, he finally found the one where such grieved sounds came from, and he started walking over to it. He made sure his steps were muffled as not to startle you, but it was a certainly difficult task.

Once standing in front of said shower, he breathed in slowly and released the air seconds after, grabbing the curtain, followed by an almost high-pitched gasp. And there you were: curled up in a ball and lying on your side, eyes red, wet and wide open as they scanned the man, and a thin trail of tears falling all the way down your cheek, forming a small, salty pool on the white floor of the shower.

“I never heard of a ghost in the showers, you know...” He joked slightly, hoping for an amused reaction. However, a growl was everything he got.

“Leave me alone!” You croaked, hugging your own shaking body as more suppressed sobs came out. His eyes softened, and he knelt down, trying to reach for you. As his gloved hand was going to touch your quivering shoulder, you quickly and clumsily slapped it away, giving him your back. “Go away! Dammit...”

“I thought you had already overcome Ace's death.” His own voice sounded too quiet, and you flinched when he finally managed to stroke your back with the palm of his hand. “It's really sad to see a lively girl having to fake smiles.”

“I'm not lively. You don't know me.” You kept growling, the sound only being briefly paused by a series of hiccups. His hand traveled upwards and ended taking a lock of hair, as he carefully got into the shower, still kneeling down, now next to you.

“But I do want to.” He confessed lowly, and your eyes widened. A chuckle came his way, and you looked at him from the corner of your eye to see a melancholic smile on his face. “Do you know what Ace and I did when we were younger? We sparred. We fought. We competed. We were rivals. But still, we were brothers. I lost my memories about him and Luffy, about everything we went through. And only when I had notices of his death did I remember him.” At some point, his hand left your hair and started twitching, and his voice became lower and unsteady.

Finally looking at him, dry tears now on your cheeks, you realized that fresh ones had gathered in his eyes. You realized that he must be suffering the same as you, and instantly felt guilty for being so selfish. You and Ace were a couple but they... they were siblings. The love is still present, and you hadn't had his feelings in consideration. How could you...?

“I'm so sorry...” Apologizing would do nothing. It wouldn't bring Ace back, let alone numb the pain. But as Sabo reached to hug you, you realized that maybe sharing this pain with him would help heal it sooner. Reciprocating the action, you once again started crying, now slightly relieved. You were sure that Ace would have wanted you to live on, no matter what.

“It's okay. I should have done something sooner as well...” He sniffled, and you slowly lifted your hand to wipe his tears away, to what he smiled. That smile brought butterflies to your stomach; those butterflies you felt when being with your deceased love. “(Y/N)... I'm glad I met you.” He said lowly, and you nodded your head, a true smile showing again.

“Ace will always be here, won't he?” Sabo hummed, hugging you again.

“You are like him, anyway.” That got you rising an eyebrow, and he laughed. “That's why I told you that you were lively. Ace was, and you are just like him. I like having you around.” You couldn't be sure, but you swore there was a slight pink mist on his cheeks and nose, giving him the cutest expression you had ever seen.

“I could say the same, Sabo. And... I'm sorry for lying to you, but I couldn't sleep with all these nightmares.” You admitted softly, and the blond grinned, lifting your chin up.

“I have bad dreams too. If you want... we can try something out... and... well...” You giggled at his flustered attempt to invite you to go to sleep with him that night. Smiling brightly, you nodded, settling a relieved expression on his face.

Getting up, he stretched a hand to you, which you took softly, and he guided you towards his room. And you had to admit, it was the first time in a month you found decent sleep. You came to realize, before falling asleep, about the crush you had developed on Sabo, and worriedly started to wonder if it was okay to love the brother of your former boyfriend.

“(Y/N)...” He hummed, cracking an eye open. “Don't think too much about this or Ace. I'm sure he would prefer you to be with me than with Luffy...” You snickered, wrapping your arms around him, and snuggling into his chest.

“What a great brother you are. I shall meet Luffy someday, you know...” He chuckled, closing his eyes and sighing.

“You will regret what you have said that day...”