The moon had climbed high over Whiskey Peak.
The streets were littered with unconscious bounty hunters, their weapons scattered like confetti. Zoro sat casually atop a pile of defeated enemies, arms crossed, one eye closed as if he were bored. Usopp snored upside down on a bench, legs dangling. Luffy, full of meat and dreams, lay curled up beside a barrel with a smile still on his face.
Sanji stood near the inn door, exhaling smoke into the cool night.
Inside, the candlelight flickered across tired faces.
And Nami sat at the bar, arms folded, chin resting on her palm.
She was smiling.
"Hey," she said, tilting her head.
Rex looked up.
He was leaning against a column, gloves off, drink in hand. His coat hung over the chair beside him, and his usual sharp posture had finally softened a little.
He looked… human.
"I was wondering when you'd stop watching everyone like a bodyguard," Nami teased.
He raised his cup. "Habit."
"You're allowed to relax, you know," she said. "We're safe. For now."
He looked at her for a long moment.
Then smiled — a real, small, unrushed smile.
"You did kiss me," he said casually, tilting his head. "Might've triggered something."
Nami's cheeks flushed. "That was for saving my life."
"Mm," he took a sip. "Then save me next time. I'm curious how your kisses work under pressure."
She narrowed her eyes. "You're getting cocky."
"I'm always cocky," he said. "I just hide it behind brooding silence."
Sanji stuck his head in. "That's my line."
Usopp suddenly sat up. "Who kissed who?!"
Zoro cracked one eye open. "We're all gonna die."
Luffy, still half-asleep, raised a hand. "We having a party?"
"We already did," Sanji said. "You slept through it."
Rex turned to the group, finally stepping away from the shadows.
"Let's call it what it is," he said. "A win."
He raised his cup.
"To surviving our first Grand Line trap."
Zoro tapped his sake bottle against it. "To staying sharp."
Usopp raised a half-empty mug of juice. "To not dying!"
Sanji poured wine for Nami. "To beauty."
Luffy raised a chicken drumstick. "TO MEAT!!"
Nami sipped her drink with a smirk, then glanced at Rex.
"To being kissed by a mysterious idiot."
He laughed softly.
The crew clinked their cups.
And for the first time in a long while… Rex laughed with them.
The Next Morning
The sunlight cut through the windows of the inn, catching dust in lazy beams. Nami stretched out on the floor, groaning as she blinked awake. Usopp was buried in a curtain. Luffy had kicked over three chairs in his sleep. Sanji was up early, cooking hangover soup. Zoro snored against the wall.
And Rex?
He was awake.
Shirt half-unbuttoned, eyes relaxed, hair slightly messy.
He leaned against the balcony, looking down at the street — where a strange blue-haired girl in a white cloak stood surrounded by a few bounty hunters.
She looked too calm to be caught.
Too precise to be random.
Then — in one flash — she kicked one of the men in the gut, flipped backward, and landed in a crouch.
"Interesting," Rex muttered.
He dropped from the balcony, landing silently behind her.
The girl whirled, daggers drawn.
Their eyes locked.
Neither moved.
"Who are you?" she demanded.
"Hungry," Rex replied. "And curious."
She didn't lower her daggers.
But she hesitated.
Then—
"Vivi," she said, voice quieter. "You shouldn't be here."
He nodded toward the inn. "Too late."
Sanji kicked open the door, apron still on. "SOMEONE SAID A WOMAN'S OUT HERE?!"
Nami stormed out behind him. "She's Baroque Works!"
Vivi's eyes widened.
Rex didn't move.
But when the girl looked at him again… something in her gaze cracked.
She was scared.
Not of the Straw Hats.
Of something worse.
And Rex saw it.
Like he always did.