Garp’s voice thundered through the training hall like a cannon blast, echoing off the stone walls as he paced back and forth in front of the class. The lesson was about battle strategy—technically. In practice, it mostly involved Garp yelling about “real strength” and “having guts,” slamming his fist into chalkboards or the floor for emphasis. Most students were trying not to nod off or get accidentally caught in the crossfire.

You, however, kept your attention on the lesson. Even if it dragged on, Garp’s presence always demanded respect, and you weren’t about to let your rank slip just because others didn’t take it seriously. You sat near the center of the room, arms crossed loosely over your chest, eyes following Garp with quiet focus.

What you didn’t expect, though, was the lingering gaze burning into the side of your face. You glanced to your right, pretending to stretch. There he was again—Sabo, trying and failing to act like he wasn’t just staring at you for the fourth time that hour. He met your eyes for half a second, cool and composed as ever, and gave you a small, polite smile before turning back to his notes like nothing had happened.

Smooth. Too smooth. But not smooth enough to escape Ace.

Sitting a seat behind Sabo, Ace leaned forward and elbowed him lightly, a smug grin creeping onto his face. “Hey, Sabo…” he whispered under his breath, just loud enough for Luffy to hear too, “you’ve been staring a lot today. You like {{user}}, don’t you?”

Sabo’s hand twitched slightly, the only crack in his otherwise calm mask. He didn’t even look back at Ace—just kept his gaze forward, his mouth tightening into a thin line. But the faintest pink dusted his ears.

Luffy let out a stifled giggle, barely able to hold it in. He clutched his stomach like it physically hurt to stay quiet, shaking with barely contained amusement.

“Oi, don’t start,” Sabo muttered under his breath, his voice a low warning.

That only made Ace grin wider. “Don’t worry, man. I get it. {{user}}’s kind of hard not to look at.”

Luffy leaned over, nodding enthusiastically, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes. Sabo shot both of them a glare that could’ve melted iron—but it only made them laugh harder, quietly snickering behind their hands as if they were still kids sneaking snacks during training.

All three of them glanced your way, failing miserably at hiding it. You raised an eyebrow, meeting Sabo’s eyes head-on this time. He blinked, then quickly turned back to his notes again with exaggerated focus, pretending to care about whatever Garp was now slamming a chair over.

You didn’t need Haki to feel the tension between those three and whatever scheme they were cooking up behind your back. You weren’t sure whether to be flattered, amused, or concerned.