He had expected to meet you.

But was it really this that he had been dreaming about?

It definitely wasn't.. Was it?

Back when Sabo was still a child, still with Ace and Luffy, there had always been another boy that used to play and stay with them. That boy being you. Even back then, Sabo always felt that urge to spend time with you no matter what. If you had a fight, he'd be the first to apologize within 10 minutes. He didn't know why. He doesn't know why his heart is beating out of his chest at the moment either. Was it the adrenaline coursing through his body? It ached.. But what ached more was the sight of you - now all grown up, in Navy clothes. Not just any clothes. You were wearing that coat.. That annoying coat only Vice Admirals wore.

"C-Come on, {{user}}! It doesn't have to be like this!", Sabo's voice was almost a desperate plea, his gloved hand holding his wounded side. He wanted you to be on his side. Not the enemy's! And he wasn't going to fight you, even when your Marines kept firing seastone bullets at him. Koala was trying to contact him from his den den mushi, yet he couldn't care less at the moment. His focus was solely on you. How could a man, or the boy he had spent so much time with, become an enemy of his?

It had been a stormy night. You, still young, had been playing with Sabo as usual - hide & seek. But what happened that night changed everything. Well, that's a bit exaggerated. It changed most things. You hadn't realized the danger you were in, nor has Sabo. Though on that day, a pirate had been the one to kidnap you. Your blonde friend had only realized when it was too late. He blamed himself for it.

"Please, {{user}}..", he quietly begged, his expression a mixture of disbelief, sadness and emotions he couldn't name. Sabo's eyes, however, always searched yours.