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previous challenge: kid pirates month, see them kiss
The first time Bartolomeo meets the Straw Hat crew in person, itâs everything he ever dreamed of.
âStraw Hat-senpaiiiiii!!!â He falls to his knees, tears streaming, hands clasped in pure, unfiltered reverence âI-Iâm not worthy to stand in your presence!!â
Luffy laughs, delighted by the over thetop reaction âYouâre funny, Barto! Letâs go eat!â
Bartolomeo practically ascends to another plane of existence.
One by one, he fawns over each of your crewmates âZoro-senpai! Your badassery knows no bounds!!â âNami-senpai! A goddess of the sea itself!!â âUsopp-senpai, your legendary tales are the stuff of history!!â Even Brook gets a full five-minute monologue about his status as a rock star and a living legend.
And then he gets to you.
Or rather... he doesnât.
Bartolomeo barely spares you a glance. No tears, no fangirling, not even a comment. Just a stiff nod before turning back to Franky and screaming about how âSUPERâ he is.
At first, you think nothing of it. Maybe he doesnât know as much about you. Not everyone gets the spotlight in every newspaper. But as time passes and Bartolomeo keeps ignoring you, doubt creeps in.
You watch how he interacts with the others, clinging to Luffy like heâs the second coming of the Pirate King (which, fair okay), showering Sanji in praise for his âdivine cookingâ, even giving Chopper one of those ridiculous âsenpaiâ speeches. But when it comes to you? Itâs like you barely exist.
âHey, Bartoâ you try to start a conversation one evening. He flinches like you just threw a punch âHow long have you had your Devil Fruit?â
âHuh?â He blinks at you, then shrugs, suddenly aloof âDunno. Long time.â
ââŠRight.â You shift awkwardly âI ate mine when I was a kid. Theââ
âAh, crap, gotta go! Luffy-senpai might need a drink!â and he bolts before you can say another word.
Your Devil Fruit ability, one that allows you to manipulate gravity in a small radius, suddenly feels useless. Not cool enough. Not impressive enough. Youâre not impressive enough.
Days pass, and it only gets worse. Bartolomeo is the loudest person on the ship, yet somehow, he speaks the least around you. He acts like youâre just⊠there. The way he hypes up the others makes it glaringly obvious that he doesnât think youâre at their level. Maybe he doesnât even think you deserve to be a Strawhat.
âYoâ Zoro drops next to you while you sit at the edge of the Sunny, staring at the ocean âYouâre sulking.â
You snort âI donât sulk.â
He gives you a look.
You sigh âItâs Bartolomeo. He never talks to me. Barely looks at me. Itâs like I donât measure up to the rest of you.â
Zoro raises a brow âYou actually care what that guy thinks?â
âNo!â You pause ââŠMaybe. Itâs just weird. Like, I know Iâm not as legendary as you guys, but I thought I at least mattered, just a little bit. Now Iâm not so sure...â
âTch.â Zoro leans back, arms crossed âYouâre an idiot.â
âWow, thanks.â
He jerks his chin toward the other side of the ship. You follow his gaze and freeze.
Bartolomeo is watching you.
Not just watching.... he's actually staring. Jaw clenched, fingers digging into his arms, looking like heâs barely holding himself together. The second your eyes meet, he panics and whirls away, nearly tripping over himself as he rushes below deck.
Zoro smirks âIdiot.â
Realization crashes over you.
Bartolomeo doesnât ignore you because he thinks youâre uncool.
He ignores you because he thinks youâre too cool. And now, you have a plan.
The next morning, you corner Bartolomeo before he can escape âOiâ you step into his path, crossing your arms âAre you avoiding me?â
âN-no! What? Pfft, no way!â His voice jumps an octave, and he wonât meet your gaze.
You smirk âReally? âCause it kinda seems like you are.â
âI... I just...â He grits his teeth, then groans, dragging his hands through his hair âUgh! Fine! I am avoiding you!â
You tilt your head âWhy?â
Bartolomeo groans again, this time slumping dramatically against the mast like youâre physically torturing him âBecause youâreâsoâdamnâcool!!â He throws his hands in the air âLike, I saw you in the papers and thought, âDamn, this oneâs gonna be strong.â But then I met you and youâre not just strong, youâre awesome! The way you fight, the way you talk, your Devil Fruitâitâs all soâgah!!â He grips his head âAnd I... I get nervous! I donât get nervous! But around you, I feel like a dumbass, and I donât wanna say something stupid and make you think Iâm lame!â
Silence.
Then you laugh.
Bartolomeoâs face turns bright red âOi! Whatâs so funny?!â
âYou! Youâve been acting like Iâm nothing special this whole time because youâre nervous?â You grin âDude, I thought you hated me.â
His eyes go wide âWhat?! NO! Never!! Youâre...â He grabs your shoulders, shaking you slightly âYouâre amazing! I could never hate you! Iâm just a dumbass who doesnât know how to act around someone that cool!!â
You blink âWow. Thatâs⊠actually really sweet.â
Bartolomeo freezes, realization hitting him like a truck. He just admitted all of that out loud. To you.
He promptly screams, lets go of you, and sprints away at full speed.
You watch him go, shaking your head âIdiot.â
But this time, youâre smiling.
Bartolomeo avoids you even harder after his accidental confession, but this time, itâs not because he doesnât know how to act, instead itâs because heâs utterly convinced thereâs no way you could ever return his feelings. To him, youâre like an untouchable star, way out of his league. Just being near you makes his heart feel like itâs about to explode.
And you? Youâre getting really tired of this his nonsense.
The entire crew notices. Luffy, as oblivious as ever, just assumes Bartolomeo is naturally weird. Sanji is too busy trying to flirt with Nami and Robin to care. But Zoro? Zoro is actively annoyed.
âFor fuckâs sake,â he grumbles one night, sitting next to you while Bartolomeo pretends to be fascinated by a wall on the other side of the ship âAre you seriously just gonna let him keep running?â
You scowl âOf course not.â
âGood. Because it's annoying to watch.â
It takes another day before you get him alone. You corner him in the storage room, blocking the only exit with a casual lean against the doorframe âAlright, enough of this.â
Bartolomeo stiffens like heâs been caught committing a crime âE-enough of what? Haha! I donât know what youâre talking aboutââ
âYouâre avoiding me again.â
âIâm n-notââ
You step closer. He steps back. His face is redder than ever âBarto.â
His breath hitches âY-yeah?â
You smirk âFor someone who thinks Iâm so cool, you sure keep running away from me.â
His brain short-circuits âIâuhâIââ
âWhy?â
He looks away, gripping his jacket like itâs the only thing keeping him standing âBecause someone like you⊠you could neverâŠâ he swallows hard âYou deserve someone better.â
Your expression softens âThatâs what you think?â
He nods âYeah. Like Zoro-senpai... heâhe takes good care of you.â
You sigh, then grab his hand. He jolts like you just shocked him with a lightning bolt.
âBarto, you dumbass,â you say fondly âIf I didnât like you back, I wouldnât even be standing here.â
His jaw drops. He blinks once. Twice.
Then... âEH?!?!â
You grin âTook you long enough.â
Bartolomeo malfunctions entirely. His knees wobble, his face somehow gets redder, and he looks two seconds away from passing out âB-butâbut IâIââ
You roll your eyes before pulling him down by the collar and pressing a kiss to his lips.
For one terrifying second, you think he actually did pass out. But then his hands snap up, gripping your waist like heâs afraid youâll vanish. The kiss is messy, desperate, and so incredibly Bartolomeo that you canât help but smile against his lips.
When you finally pull back, his eyes are wide with disbelief âHoly shit.â
You chuckle âWell, yeah.â
Then he promptly screams, lifting you into the air and spinning you around in sheer joy âIâM THE LUCKIEST MAN ALIVE!!!â
Somewhere outside, you hear Zoro groan, âFinally.â
Bartolomeo ignores him, holding you close like youâre the greatest treasure heâs ever found. And to him? You absolutely are.