Our Arranged Love Story

Chapter -15-

Momonosuke was up bright and early swinging his bamboo sword; breaking into a sweat, lost in determination. His aim for that morning was 25 swings but he kept on losing count. He had only known how to count up to that point recently from pre-kindergarten but he knew that with practice, he'll learn.

"Momonosuke! Hurry up and get ready! We'll be leaving soon!" his dad, Kin'emon called out.

Momonosuke sulked. He hated school. It got in the way of his dream.

Luffy and Nami said goodbye to each other at the school gate. Nami scurried in and Luffy watched her go with a smile on his face. They called her the day after her interview to let her know that it was a success and she was jumping with joy and was flushed with delight when she told him. She was so cute that he had to embrace her. He too shared the excitement.

Before he turned to leave, he heard a commotion coming from closeby. It was Momonosuke sitting on the pavement outside refusing to budge despite his father's pleas. He had his arms folded and his face turned the other way, completely ignoring his dad.

His eyes opened wide in surprise when Luffy grabbed him, picked him up and rested him on his shoulders; spinning him around a few times causing his cheeks to become tickled pink as he laughed at the unexpected fun.

Luffy grinned at his change of mood and said, "My name's Monkey D. Luffy. What's yours?"

"Momonosuke," Momo said with a big smile. He really liked Luffy.

Kin'emon looked on speechless.

"You're giving your dad a hard time," Luffy began," What's the matter? Are you afraid of school?"

"I'm not afraid of anything! I just don't like school and I don't like hanging out with the other kids. I would rather stay at home and practice kendo. To be the greatest kendo fighter in the world. That's my dream!"

Momonosuke came from a long line of kendo practitioners. He was passionate about the sport.

"Hoh?" Luffy was impressed.

"Momo, here's a secret."

"What kind of secret?" He wanted to know so bad.

"In order for a man to have such big dreams, he's going to need friends."

Momonosuke mouth gaped. "Friends?"

"Yes. Friends. Friends are important."

Momo turned to look at his school building and Luffy placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Go see if you can make a friend or two today. It will make school so much more fun. Trust me."

When Momonosuke said bye to Luffy and his father, Kin'emon turned to Luffy and bowed thanking him for his help. Luffy marvelled at his height. He was as tall as Brook.

Kin'emon wanted his son to interact with kids his age since having him at the dojo everyday even though the child did not mind was not healthy for his growing mind and spirit.

He made faces of disgust at the moms who wore clothing above their ankles; the careless show of their bare shoulders and their demeaning display of their cleavage. The women of today he thought were shameless and obscene but despite that, a dust of red sprinkled on his face because somewhere deep down, he liked it.

He then made way back to the solitude of his morning class.

Nami spent the early part of the day getting acquainted with the teachers: Camie, Conis and Perona. The worker she was filling in for was Tashigi, a quiet girl she learned who would go on occasional business trips with her strict boss for her second job. Nami had also become familiar with some of the kids she was helping to look after and the environment. It was off to a great start since she asked her colleagues about her duties and even memorized the day's schedule. She wanted to be of much help as possible. Her job was mainly to assist the teachers outside of teaching. Her duties consisted of monitoring the kids while at play, record keeping and participating in activities with the kids. She was dedicated to doing her job well.