Aria's Pov
I woke up choking on sand.
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was water. Blue, endless water, stretching so far into the horizon it looked like the whole world had been drowned. The sky overhead was just as infinite, blazing with light. The gulls circling above cried like they were mocking me.
I sat up slowly, coughing, spitting grit out of my mouth, and looked around. Nothing but sand, trees, and a half-wrecked boat that had washed up not far from me. No people. No roads. No buildings. Just isolation.
For a long minute, I thought: Oh. So this is it. I died. And now I'm stuck in purgatory with seagulls for company. Perfect.
But something felt… off. The air was too warm, too real. My skin prickled with salt from the sea breeze. It wasn't fuzzy like a dream.
And then it hit me: the sea, the trees, the shape of the wreck, the whole scenery. Being on an island. It looked familiar. Too familiar.
I froze. My brain whispered the impossible. What if… I'm in One Piece?
I laughed, a dry, shaky sound. "No way. That's impossible. I was joking about being isekai'd with the truck. I'm hallucinating. My brain is short-circuiting while I die in the real world."
Still, curiosity won out. My legs wobbled as I stood and picked my way toward the wreck. Broken boards groaned under my steps. Inside, tucked neatly in the remains of a crate, was a wooden box.
Because of course there was.
I lifted the lid, and my stomach dropped.
Nestled inside was a fruit.
Not just any fruit—a Devil Fruit. Swirls etched every inch of its skin like a signature. Its colors pulsed faintly, purple and orange, as though daring me to take a bite.
I snorted. "Sure. Why not. Dream fruit, death fruit, whatever."
I picked it up and sank my teeth into it.
Instant regret.
The taste hit me like burning garbage. It was bitter, rubbery, sour, and rotten all at once. I gagged so hard I almost hurled it back up."Bwahh—god—ew—blegh! that's disgusting! Why does anyone willingly eat this in the anime?! This is—this is a hate crime!"
I spat the pulp into the sand and dropped the rest of the fruit. My tongue felt scarred for life. I sat there coughing, eyes watering, waiting for… something. For the dream to shift. For the world to melt away. For me to finally keel over.
Instead, I kept sitting there. Very much awake. Very much cursed with the aftertaste of tire-flavored death.
Dragging myself away from the wreck, I wandered the island. There wasn't much to see—sand, trees, the endless ocean. No people. No sign of civilization. Just me and the gnawing feeling that somehow, impossibly, this was real.
Eventually, I looked at my reflection in the sparkling ocean.
The girl staring back at me wasn't the one who had dragged herself out of exams minutes ago.
My hair was long, tumbling white like snow, my eyes sharp green, too bright to be natural. My skin was smooth, glowing like I'd never seen a breakout in my life. And I wasn't wearing the hoodie and sweatpants I'd died in. No—this was a cropped black shirt , fitted trousers, and flip flops me. I looked like I belonged here.
I touched my reflection, whispered, "Okay… at least I'm hot."
Still, the weight of reality crashed in. I sighed, voice cracking. "This is ridiculous . I wish I wasn't dead. I just… I just want to go home."
And then the world shifted.
It wasn't like moving. It was like being yanked through a drain, my stomach flipping inside out. A second later, I was no longer on the island.
I stood in front of a house. A perfectly ordinary wooden house with a front porch and flower boxes in the windows.
"What the—" I gasped, looking wildly around. The island was gone. Sand, gone. Sea, gone. Nowhere in sight.
The door creaked open. An older woman appeared, carrying a dish towel. She froze when she saw me.
"Where have you been?!" she cried, dropping the towel. "You had me worried sick!" Her scolding face softened into relief. "But you're finally home."
I just stood there, staring at her like she'd sprouted three heads. "What…?"
This wasn't my home. This wasn't even my Earth. What the hell was happening?
My brain scrambled. Wait. The fruit. The disgusting fruit. I'd wished to go home, and then—this.
Did… did the Devil Fruit do this?
I swallowed hard. "Home," I whispered again, ignoring whatever the strange woman was saying.
Nothing.
"Take me back to Earth," I tried.
Nothing.
I clenched my fists, heart racing. Okay. Maybe not Earth. Maybe just… the island.
"I wish I was back on the island."
The world flipped again.
I stumbled, falling to my knees in hot sand. The wreck. The trees. The sea. I was back.
I gasped, laughter bursting out of me in disbelief. "Holy crap. It is the fruit."
I tried again. "Earth. Please—take me to Earth."
Nothing.
My smile faltered. So that was it. I could go anywhere… except home.
A lump formed in my throat, but I shoved it down. Fine. Fine! If I couldn't go home, I could at least test this thing.
I straightened, dusted off my pants, and said the first place that came to mind. "Take me to Water 7."
The flip. The dizziness.
And then—
I staggered onto cobblestone, sunlight reflecting off crystal-clear canals. Boats pulled by bulls glided along waterways between buildings, their window glass reflecting. The city thrummed with life, people going about their business.
I spun in a circle, my jaw hanging. "Oh my god. Oh my actual god. It's Water 7. It's real. It's actually real."
I wandered in a daze, taking it all in—the colors, the architecture , water everywhere.
It was overwhelming. I wanted to cry and laugh at the same time.
And then… the thought hit me.
If I could go to places… what about the people?
I froze in the middle of the street. My pulse quickened.
Characters.
Not just places. Not just pretty canals. But them.
Zoro. Ace. Sanji. Law. Shanks. Robin. Katakuri. Vivi. Lucci. Mihawk. Smoker. Crocodile. Nami. Sabo.
The intrusive thought rolled over me like a tidal wave.
I could meet them. I could talk to them. I could—
My face heated.
I choked on a laugh. Then another. Until I was standing in the middle of Water 7, cackling like some deranged genius who had just unlocked the cheat code to life.
"Oh my god," I wheezed, clutching my stomach. "I can actually do it. I can live every fangirl's dream. I can sleep with them. I can sleep with all of them."
Heads turned, confused stares burning into me, but I didn't care. The world had just cracked open, and I was holding the keys.