#op zosan

Well, Zoro wouldn’t lie to himself, he did find Sanji quite handsome and charming; but, at the same time, his… weirdness just pissed him off sometimes. He couldn’t explain in a way that made sense, but at the same time that the cook picked stupid fights with him, he also remembered every single one of Zoro’s culinary preferences, and was always ready with a smoothie whenever Zoro finished training. Is the stupid cook a psych or something like that? But he really couldn’t shake this strange feeling that stirred inside of him whenever he saw Sanji. He couldn’t even name it. 

He decided it was none of his business at the moment. He could always worry about it later, anyways. Zoro always prided himself in many aspects, but also in his methodical way of approaching things like feelings; if it was meant for him to understand at that moment, he would; if not, he would understand it later. His only worries now were finding new swords for a nice price, or else Nami would actually kill him.

–

Sanji always thought that Zoro was more than what he could see. At first, he thought the man to be stupid, like, really stupid. Facing Dracule Mihawk all by himself and refusing to give up on the fight is exactly what Sanji would describe as top tier level stupidity. However, after taking a bit of time to actually observe Zoro, Sanji came to the conclusion that he should not be underestimated. While yes, sometimes he did share the same braincell with Luffy, Zoro was actually pretty observant and reserved in this weird way that allowed him to be kind and playful, but also gave him a sobriety that was pretty enticing.

That is, unless when he was lazing around on the ship, of course. Sanji would say that his irritation would arise when he saw the whole crew working and Zoro just… sleeping!

One evening, he got fed up and actually walked over to where Zoro was napping with all the intentions to wake him up, but Chopper stopped him. The little reindeer was adamant on not letting Sanji wake Zoro up, since, apparently, Zoro had not had a single good night's sleep since they entered the Grand Line. And he would need all the sleep he could get so his injuries could actually heal right. Sanji thought for a moment; he did hear Zoro tossing and turning at night, but he was under the impression that the moss-head was just a restless sleeper.

Chopper asked Sanji once more to not wake Zoro up while he finished prepping a medicine that would help regulate Zoro’s… something that Sanji didn’t quite understand, but it would help Zoro sleep better at night. 

Well, what could he do? Doctor's orders.

He spared another glance at Zoro. He was breathing slowly, his swords on the ship’s deck beside him. His arms and legs were crossed, like he was ready to just snap his head back up and shout at someone. 

Sanji suddenly felt an urge to sit beside Zoro, and his body responded before his mind could catch up. He sat down and looked at Zoro again, this time a bit closer. He saw the sunset’s glow on Zoro’s tanned skin and the way his shoulders rose and fell with his breathing. 

He decided to stay a little while, just to ensure that the stupid moss-head would stay asleep until Chopper came back, of course. The ship was uncharacteristically quiet that day, but one could never be too careful. He let his head fall back and also closed his eyes just for a moment. 

After a few minutes, he woke up with the soft impact of someone’s head on his shoulder. When had he fallen asleep? Who was beside him- oh.

It was Zoro.

Sanji felt his whole body going stiff. Oh fuck. What should I do now?

He could always push Zoro away. He could always get up and let Zoro fall onto Merry’s deck.  

But Sanji was not a monster.

He tried his absolute best to stay very still. Chopper was going to show up anytime now, so it was just a matter of time. He felt himself start to relax. Yes, it would be only for a few more minutes and Chopper would come back and Sanji would be able to endlessly tease Zoro about him sleeping on Sanji’s shoulder. The perfect plan!

However, when Sanji turned his head to look at Zoro, he saw his eyebrows furrowed and he was mumbling something. Sanji dipped his head closer to try and understand what Zoro was saying, and he could finally hear, very softly:

“Kuina… no… Kuina…”

Sanji’s heart broke. Maybe that’s why Zoro hasn't been sleeping well? Nightmares about one of his best friends, and the first person who saw true potential in him.

Sanji didn’t know what to do. He wanted to wake Zoro up, but Chopper’s words kept coming back to his head. He, then, decided to apply the technique Zeff always used on him when Sanji was having nightmares as a kid. He started petting Zoro’s hair softly and slowly, carding his fingers through the short green locks. He couldn’t believe he was actually doing this, but he recognized the soft spot for the swordsman that appeared in his heart; it reminded him of his own restless nights back at the Baratie, when his past would come back to haunt him and Zeff would caress his golden hair until the nightmares released him. Sometimes, Sanji would wake up during this, but would stay very still and pretend to still be asleep just to enjoy that moment a bit more.

Fuck, now his eyes were wet.

He kept his ministrations on Zoro’s hair, and apparently it worked! Zoro was more relaxed than before, and the nightmare seemed to have subsided. 

Sanji then had a slip on his better judgement, he wouldn't be able to describe it in any other way. He slowly dipped his head and pressed a kiss to the crown of Zoro’s head. He immediately regretted it and also stilled his hand, staring at Zoro’s face just so he could be 100% sure that he was still asleep. 

After a few seconds of absolutely nothing from Zoro, Sanji sighed, relieved. Thank gods the moss-head didn’t wake up.

Chopper then, almost as on cue, trotted happily to where they were and announced his new medicine. Sanji then woke Zoro up.

“Hey, stupid marimo, wake up. Chopper made medicine for you”.

Zoro grumbled in response and lifted his head, turning his face away from Sanji and in Chopper’s direction. If his face was red, Sanji didn't notice.

“Thank you, Chopper” Zoro said, taking the medicine in one go. He then turned to Sanji. “And thank you too, for not waking me up, curly brow.” He got up without waiting for an answer.

“Go back to sleep now, Zoro.” Chopper said while Zoro reattached his swords to his hip. “The medicine will help you sleep better, but you will probably be out until tomorrow morning.”

“That’s okay. Thanks again.”

With this, he spared one more glance at Sanji, nodded and went to the quarters.

Sanji also got up to get dinner ready. Zoro wouldn’t eat dinner, but Luffy wouldn’t mind eating an extra portion today. But he couldn’t figure out what that glance and nod meant.

What Sanji didn’t know at the time, is that Zoro woke up as soon as Sanji’s fingers made contact with his head. He kept pretending to be asleep because he didn’t know what to do with all the butterflies that were revolutionizing his guts, and he also didn’t know how to face Sanji after that. When Sanji kissed his head, he almost gave himself away, but by sheer willpower, he stayed quiet.

After laying back down at the quarters, Zoro couldn’t shake the feeling of Sanji’s kiss and fingers on his head. He found himself wanting to feel that again, to fall asleep on Sanji’s shoulder again. His last thought before Chopper’s medicine kicked in was that he wished Sanji was there, sleeping beside him.

He slept a dreamless sleep.

– 

The next day, Zoro woke up feeling energized. Chopper was a saint. By the sun’s shadow, it was past nine in the morning, so he decided to get up. Merry wasn’t rocking like crazy, so he figured that the rest of the crew had found an island and decided to explore a bit. 

When he entered the kitchen, he saw Robin sitting at the table reading one of her books. She glanced up and smiled at him.

“Good morning, Zoro,” she said, gesturing to the kitchen counter. “Sanji made breakfast for you.”

“Good morning, Robin. Yeah, he kinda makes breakfast for everyone, doesn’t he?” Zoro replied, grabbing the plate with three onigiris and pouring himself a mug of coffee.

“Well, he does, but I think this one is special”

Robin handed him a folded piece of paper. It read his name in Sanji’s swirly handwriting. He opened it.

Good morning, moss-head.

Did you sleep well?

Here’s your breakfast. Eat it. Chopper said you need to eat well, especially since you didn’t get dinner yesterday.

Little Robin will be taking care of the ship today. Help her and don’t stress her out, or else. We found an island and decided to explore it a bit. I'm gonna bring you a bottle of sake if you are nice to Robin.

-- Sanji 

He didn’t know why his face felt hot, if it was from the sheer absurdity of Sanji of all people leaving him a note, or if it was because he asked if Zoro had slept well. He cleaned his throat and pocketed the note.

“That stupid cook”, he mumbled to himself before sitting down to eat. Robin looked at him with a weird expression, a sly smile. “What?”

“Nothing”, she answered, getting up to fill her mug once more. “It’s just that you are interesting. The both of you, I mean.”

Zoro hummed and started eating the onigiris. They were delicious, as always.

After a few minutes of silence with Zoro eating and Robin reading, Zoro finally asked what has been plaguing his mind since last evening. 

“Robin, what is it like to be in love?”

Robin paused mid page-turn, a bit taken aback at the straightforward question.

“Why do you ask?”

“Because I think I’m in love, but I’m not sure, I’ve never felt it like this. And I thought you could help me, since you know a lot of things.”

Such a strange man, Robin thought, but closed her book nonetheless.

“Let me see”, she started, resting her chin on her hand. “Being in love is feeling like the whole world fits inside someone’s hand. You hear their laughter and it becomes your favorite sound. You feel their touch and become addicted to it. You feel butterflies at first, but they eventually go away and give space for a warm feeling of safety whenever you see the person, like they are your safe haven. You want to be around them all the time, and to talk to them about every little thing that comes to mind.” She looked at Zoro, who was very quiet, staring at Sanji’s note in his hands. Robin smiled. “Did I answer your question?”

He raised his head and gave Robin a small smile.

“Yes. Thank you, Robin.” He got up and washed his plate. “I will be on the deck, if you need anything. Want to know if there are any Marine ships getting closer.”

“Alright.”

He left and Robin smiled again.

Young love is so cute.

—

The island was nice, Sanji thought. Colorful streets, nice shops, pretty women, all of that. He would be in his element when they got to the market, all different types of fish, fruits and spices; and while he didn’t let any of this go unnoticed, he was uncharacteristically quiet for the whole trip.

Nami and Chopper were on the other side of the market looking for paper and medicine, while Sanji and Usopp browsed the spice alley searching for different kinds of pepper.

“Look, Sanji!” Usopp hurried to one of the vendors, pointing at colorful peppers. “We can try them to see which one is the spiciest! I think they’ll help a lot with my Kosho Boshi!”

He showed Sanji the spices and started to ramble about the effects of capsaicin on the enemies and how he once defeated a whole army of a thousand men with just three Kosho Boshi, but Sanji’s eyes were unfocused. He wasn’t listening at all, his mind wandering until his gaze fell on a small potted cactus.

“Hey, Usopp,” Sanji interrupted Usopp’s excited rambling. “You love Kaya, don’t you?”

Usopp seemed confused.

“What do you mean? Of course I do! Kaya is the most beautiful, delicate, amazing, intelligent, kind-”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” He didn’t meet Kaya in person, but he felt he did just by listening to Usopp talk about her for hours on end. “But that’s not what I meant.”

“What do you mean, then?”

Sanji hesitated.

“What did you do when you found out you loved Kaya?”

Usopp thought for a moment.

“I don’t really know. I think I’ve loved her since we became friends. Nothing really changed in the way we treated each other.” He tilted his head and followed Sanji’s gaze to the cactus. Usopp smiled. “But, if you’re asking me what you should do about your love for… someone… then I think you should just tell him. Life at the sea is unpredictable, you don’t know when or if your paths will depart.”

He patted Sanji’s shoulder.

“Now, let’s buy these peppers and head back to the ship! I want to make my new Kosho Boshi!”

“Yeah” Sanji replied, gaze still on the cactus. Then he snapped back. Tell him? How did Usopp know?!

“Hey, Usopp, what do you mean by telling him? Come back here!”

Later that day, Zoro found a little potted cactus next to his training equipment. Another note beside it, written in swirly handwriting.

It reminded me of you. Don’t be weird about it.

-- S

Zoro smiled. 

Sanji was smoking outside, looking out towards the horizon, imagining finally finding the All Blue, seeing Luffy becoming King of the Pirates, seeing Zoro becoming the Greatest Swordsman in the World-

Footsteps. Familiar ones. Footsteps that normally would have been silent, which means that their owner wanted to be noticed.

Zoro.

He approached Sanji and reclined his back on the ship’s railing, crossing his arms.  

“Thank you,” he said.

“For what, marimo?”

“For the cactus, and the breakfast,” he hesitated. “...and the notes”.

Sanji’s ears turned pink, but his voice stayed as neutral as he could muster it when he replied:

“You’re welcome. Can’t let you starve, after all.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t need to write the notes, nor buy the cactus.”

“Do you want to fight? I wrote the notes so your stupid ass wouldn’t be all nervous not seeing us on the ship! And if you don’t want the cactus, well, just throw it away! Fucking moss-head.” 

Sanji turned to leave, but Zoro held his wrist. 

“Wait, Sanji. I didn’t mean it like that.”

Sanji stared at him. He never calls me by my name. What the hell?

“I just want to thank you. You didn’t need to do any of that, but you did nonetheless, so…” Zoro brought Sanji’s hand to his lips and kissed his knuckles. “Thank you.”

And, as simple as that, Zoro released Sanji’s hand and walked back inside, leaving Sanji with his jaw on the floor and his legs feeling like jelly. 

Sanji gripped the ship’s railings to steady himself. He desperately needed another cigarette. What the fuck just happened?! Was moss-head going insane? Sanji couldn’t tell, but he could feel his own heart beating like it wanted to jump out of his ribcage. He took a deep breath, lit another cigarette and spent the next thirty minutes trying to convince himself it was all a joke. He thought he got it when he finally mustered the courage to go back to the kitchen, but felt all his composure start to slip when Zoro glanced up at him from whatever map Nami was showing him at the table. Zoro’s expression didn’t change when he looked back at where Nami was pointing, but Sanji thought he saw a light dust of pink on his cheeks. His own face shouldn’t be any better. 

–

As said by Usopp, life at sea was indeed unpredictable.

Spending two years away from their crew and from each other was consuming, to say the absolute least, for both Zoro and Sanji.

They didn’t talk about their feelings for each other before getting separated, and regret is not a word that can begin to cover what they felt. 

Zoro missed their sparring sessions, their nicknames that started as insults, but  became thinly-veiled displays of affection. He missed Sanji’s cooking, his ever present cigarette, his stupid bangs and even stupider attitude towards Nami and Robin.

Of course, he missed all of his crewmates, but Sanji’s absence was eating him alive. He tried not to show his longing in front of Mihawk, but Perona was his shoulder to cry on in many nights of those way-too-long two years.

Sanji wasn’t doing any better. He felt empty every single day without his crewmates on Kamabakka Island. He missed them so much.

He missed Zoro so much.

And he wasn't entirely happy to admit it to himself. But the thing is, even with all the chaos that he needed to face on that island, he found people willing to listen to him ramble about that damned marimo for how long he needed to. They even gave him advice on how to navigate his feelings for Zoro without tearing his own hair off. In the end, Sanji was grateful – not that he would admit that, of course. If not for them, he would surely have gone insane with longing. 

He awaited for the day he and Zoro would finally meet again.

–

When that day arrived, Sanji couldn’t be any happier.

He hugged every single one of his crewmates for what could be considered an embarrassing amount of time even for his lovey-dovey personality. When it was Zoro’s turn, Sanji hesitated. Zoro was just standing there, arms crossed, swords at his hip, staring Sanji down. 

Zoro looked… amazing. His muscles got bigger, he was wearing a kimono that showed his chest scar. He also had a new scar on his left eye, and Sanji could not refrain from making a mental note on how fitting it was that Zoro’s good eye is the same eye that Sanji covers with his hair. We are mirrored.

All of Sanji’s emotions were being held back by sheer willpower. He couldn’t afford that dam to spill in that moment, so he was truly debating whether to hug Zoro, or to just pat him on the back, or just nod acknowledging his presence and say some stupid thing along the lines of “hey marimo, see you got bigger, huh”.

Pathetic.

But before he could actually make a decision about this, Zoro uncrossed his arms and abandoned all his aloof attitude when he gave Sanji a bone-crushing hug.

“Hey, perverted cook” Zoro said against Sanji’s ear. “Cat got your tongue?”

Sanji couldn’t even be mad. He just hugged Zoro back and buried his face on his shoulder. His heart was finally at peace.

The crew threw an absolute party. Food, drinks, music, everything. Luffy was laughing like a maniac, and that alone was enough to lift everyone’s spirits even more. Zoro was quietly sitting at the corner of the table, eyeing his captain with fondness and a small smile. He didn’t feel the need to be as loud as he once would have been, but he also didn’t become allergic to a good time, so he just let himself be present at the moment. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and kept listening to whatever absurd story Usopp was telling, when he felt a pair of eyes falling on him.

He opened his eye and locked it with Sanji’s, who promptly looked away, face flushing slightly.

Cute, Zoro thought with a silent chuckle. He solved this the only way he knew how to.

He picked a fight with Sanji.

After Nami broke the fight with two well-thrown punches, both of them were sent outside to resolve their differences.

They got out laughing.

“Did you see her face?” 

“Don’t mock Ms. Nami, stupid marimo!” Sanji answered, kicking Zoro’s back.

They sat down side by side and let their giggles die out. They could still hear the chaos inside the ship’s kitchen, the warm light bleeding out into the chilly night’s air.

Sanji tilted his head back and took a deep breath. He exhaled softly and sagged.

“I’m happy, Zoro,” he said. “So happy to finally be with you all again… happy to be with you again.”

Zoro looked at Sanji and smiled at his wine-flushed face. He would blame his and Sanji’s actions on the booze later, but he took Sanji’s hand and, mimicking something he did more than two years ago, kissed Sanji’s knuckles.

“I’m happy too, Sanji.”

Sanji turned his head and also smiled.

“Why are you saying my name like this?”

“Would you prefer me to call you ‘curly eyebrow’?”

“You’re no fun, goddamned moss-head”.

They kept bickering and holding hands until Luffy came looking for them and begging Sanji for more food. Sanji just laughed at that and got up to find something to fill the black hole that was his captain’s stomach.

He was home alright.

–

They finally decided to do something about their messes of feelings only the next week. 

Zoro would argue that he didn’t like talking about feelings when he was drunk. Sanji would call that bullshit. But again, they seemed to be reading each other’s minds, since they wordlessly decided to properly talk when they would be 100% sure that their every word would be coming from the heart. If it was just an excuse to keep dancing around each other for a little while, they would never admit it, but it was surely driving everyone else insane.

On a very beautiful morning, Sunny found another island. Nami had volunteered Zoro and Sanji for watch duty, so they could be alone in the ship. She gave Sanji a thumbs up when he helped her off the ship and he felt his stomach drop when he saw the mischief behind her eyes.

He got back inside, to where Zoro was cleaning his swords..

“How many times will I have to tell you not to put your swords on the dinner table?”

“You don’t really mind, do you?” 

Sanji tsked and turned to put some coffee to brew. He needed caffeine in his system.

They stayed in a weird silence while the coffee got ready. Sanji then poured two mugs and walked over to Zoro, handing him one of them.

“There.”

“Thanks, curly.”

“What? Aren’t you gonna kiss my hand?” Sanji said, sipping his coffee.

It was meant to be a joke, but Zoro did put his mug down, grabbed Sanji’s hand and kissed his knuckles, twice. 

“Thank you, swirly brow,” Zoro said, still holding Sanji’s hand and looking up at him through his lashes.

Sanji almost dropped his mug.

“Stop doing this shit if you don’t mean it, stupid marimo!”

Zoro just stared at him. Still holding Sanji’s hand, he turned on the bench so his back was turned to the table, took Sanji’s mug from his other hand and put it on the table.

“What if I do mean it, cook?”

Sanji sucked in a breath.

“Then you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”

Zoro pulled Sanji closer to him.

“Show me the consequences, then.”

Sanji stepped between Zoro’s knees, free hand coming up to rest on his shoulder. He took a moment to really look at Zoro, the tanned skin, the scar on his eye, his other eye, staring at him. He felt Zoro squeezing his other hand lightly.

Sanji's hand slowly crawled up Zoro's neck in a feather touch, feeling the warm skin. He explored Zoro’s face with his fingertips, felt the cool metal of his earrings, followed his hairline, traced his scar, and felt the smooth skin of his cheeks. Sanji held Zoro’s chin lightly and then caressed his lips with his thumb. He wanted to kiss Zoro so bad. So bad. It wouldn’t be the end of the world. But he couldn't do it, no, not like that. He wanted Zoro to want this too. He didn't want to be selfish, he wanted to know that Zoro also felt the same way. 

Sanji hesitantly raised his gaze to Zoro's eyes, and his heart throbbed.

Zoro's lips were parted because of Sanji’s touch, pupil dilated, face red, his eyebrows furrowed, and he was looking up at Sanji from where he sat almost expectantly, like he was trying to solve a puzzle. He was still holding Sanji’s hand, and his other fist was clenching and unclenching on his thigh, unsure if he was allowed to touch Sanji more or not. Sanji was so close, but his hand was itching to pull Sanji just a little bit closer.

"Want to say something, stupid marimo?" Sanji whispered, inching his face closer to Zoro’s. "If so, now is the time.”

Zoro felt almost dizzy. He held Sanji by his waist and pulled him closer. He tugged on Sanji's tie until they were nose to nose. 

"Shut up and kiss me"

Sanji felt ready to oblige, but he couldn't resist being a little shit just once more.

He gave a little kiss to Zoro's nose, then, his scarred eyelid, then, the other eyelid – the moss-head had closed his eyes! How cute! – then, cupping Zoro's face with both hands, kissed his forehead and went back to the tip of his nose. When he got to the corner of his mouth, Zoro lost his patience. 

"Kiss me already, perverted cook"

"Why hurry, marimo? We have all the time we want-"

"Sanji"

This snapped Sanji back to Zoro's expression. There was something close to desperation in Zoro’s eyes, like he wanted something that was being held just above his reach.

"Please, Sanji. Kiss me."

Now, he obliged.

Sanji touched his lips to Zoro's, and the world got back on its axis. He moved closer to Zoro and slid one of his hands into Zoro's hair, caressing his scalp slightly. Sanji felt Zoro going stiff and immediately pulled away.

"What's wrong?" He asked, scared of pushing too far. He couldn't bear the mere thought of scaring Zoro and losing him because he was too impatient, too hungry for the swordsman's affection that he couldn't wait.

"Nothing, it's just that..." Zoro looked down. "I've... never done... this... before."

Sanji could see the tips of Zoro's ears going red. 

“You've never done this... with a man?" Sanji asked, after a few seconds trying to understand what the actual fuck was the moss-head telling him.

"No, I've... never done this, like, ever" Zoro answered, averting his gaze. He couldn’t look at Sanji without feeling like dying.

Sanji wanted to tease him so bad, it was almost an itch. What do you mean the great Roronoa Zoro never kissed anyone ever? But Zoro seemed so... vulnerable. He saw it on the way he was clutching his waist like a lifeline, like he was going to get lost if he ever so slightly relaxed his grip on Sanji. 

Sanji nodded. 

"That's okay. It's fine" he said, more to calm himself down than to reassure Zoro. He was this close to freaking out. He was going to be Zoro's first kiss! Was he also going to be his first boyfriend? His first time? His first God-knows-what? He felt giddy with excitement at all the possibilities, but so scared to fuck up at the same time.

"Hey, blond, don't make this stupid face. Are you mocking me?"

Sanji didn't even realize he was smiling like an absolute idiot until Zoro's annoyed voice broke him out of it. Zoro's eyebrows were furrowed and he was pouting. For fucks sake, he was pouting!

"Sorry, marimo. I'm not mocking you, I promise,” he said, smiling kindly down to Zoro and petting his hair. "I'm just impressed that such a handsome man like you has never been kissed properly until now.”

This turned Zoro even redder, if that was possible, and he tried to turn his head to hide his face from Sanji, but the blond grabbed his chin lightly and turned him back.

"No, no, no! Don't hide from me. Let me see you. Let me kiss you"

"Teach me how," Zoro whispered.

"Okay" he murmured, "then, open your mouth a little, love."

Zoro's breath hitched and Sanji felt his own face heat up. Where did that come from? He didn't know, and he decided to worry about this later, because now Zoro was tentatively parting his lips. Sanji then touched their lips again, angling their heads so he could kiss Zoro deeper. He then slid his tongue into Zoro's mouth, slowly. Zoro made a sound at the back of his throat that almost sent Sanji into orbit and made him question himself on why he hadn’t kissed the swordsman earlier.

They kept kissing for a few seconds when Sanji's head started to form a thought about their position being kinda weird and uncomfortable. He wanted to be even closer to Zoro, he wanted to press against him, he wanted to crawl under his skin if possible. But before the thought and the wants were fully formed, Zoro seemed to read his goddamn mind, because he broke the kiss and wordlessly manhandled Sanji until he was sitting on his lap.

Zoro hugged Sanji's middle and pulled him flush against himself. Sanji seized the opportunity to wrap his arms around Zoro's shoulders.

"Is this better, cook?" Zoro asked, with a lopsided grin, nose touching Sanji's.

"So much better, moss" Sanji pecked his lips. "Now, let me kiss you again.”

And, after what felt like an eternity, Sanji couldn't remember his own name. He could only surrender to the shivers that ran down his spine whenever Zoro sighed softly against his lips. Zoro proved himself to be a fast learner and an excellent kisser; Sanji was actually impressed. Marimo, full of surprises.

Zoro's hands were slowly roaming Sanji's torso over his clothes. It wasn't a rushed touch, Sanji noted; Zoro was touching him with delicacy, with reverence, and this realization made Sanji sag even more into Zoro's hands, his own caressing Zoro's scalp, neck and face. 

They finally parted with one, two, three pecks to each other's lips. 

"Still there, marimo?" 

Zoro wrapped one arm around Sanji's waist, and lightly squeezed his thigh with the other hand.

"Yes, dear. Still here."

Sanji felt like he was hit by a freight train. 

"D-dear?"

"Yeah, you called me 'love', didn't you?"

"I did, but..."

Zoro looked at him.

"Was it an accident?"

Sanji hesitated.

"I mean, kinda," he touched his forehead to Zoro's. "But... it's also true."

Zoro smiled and closed his eye.

"Good."

After a few seconds of silence, still with his eyes closed, Zoro broke it with a voice so small it didn't even feel like his.

"Can you call me that again? Please?"

What's with moss-head and all the begging today? And who was Sanji to deny it to him.

"Love."

"Again."

"Love."

"...just one more time."

Sanji then held Zoro's face and waited for him to open his eye.

"My love" he whispered.

Zoro sighed. 

"Thank you."

It was the end of the world, indeed. 

Zoro pulled on Sanji's shirt, looking at him with an indiscernible soft gaze.

"Already, marimo? You're impatient, huh?" Sanji said, but his heart was racing.

"It's not like that, swirly eyebrows," Zoro scoffed. "I just... want to feel your skin. You're warm."

Sanji nodded, and he wanted to laugh. Zoro was so cute like this that he couldn't even believe this was the exact same person that could cut through pretty much anything with his swords. The same person that came back so aloof and serious that intimidated those who didn’t know him well.

"Okay... alright, my love." Sanji unbuttoned his shirt and took it off. "Anything you want."

Zoro hummed in approval and pulled his own arms from inside his kimono, letting it fall around his waist. He stayed still for a few seconds, watching Sanji's gaze wander. He normally didn't like to be scrutinized like that, but he felt safe under the blond's stare. Zoro answered with a stare of his own at Sanji's body; he wanted to trace every muscle with his fingers, he wanted to spend hours and hours just admiring Sanji, just mapping all his moles and kissing every single scar. 

But he would have time to do that later. 

For now, he just wanted to feel Sanji's skin against his, so he hugged Sanji’s waist and pressed his lips against his shoulder. He felt Sanji hugging him back and starting to draw little spirals on his shoulder blades.

Zoro's fingers found Sanji's spine. He ran his fingers over all its reachable length and found rhythm on the vertebrae, raising goosebumps where his fingers passed. Kinda like a rosary, he thought. Zoro wasn't one to pray, but he did know how to meditate, and how to repeat mantras. He smiled to himself, kissed Sanji's shoulder again, and restarted his finger’s path, all the way from the base of Sanji’s skull.

I want you to be happy

Next vertebra.

I want you to be healthy 

Next vertebra.

I want you to be safe

Next vertebra. 

I want you to be loved

Sanji realized what Zoro was doing when he was about halfway down Sanji's back, when the whispered well-wishes started to sound suspiciously like I love yous being repeated over and over. Sanji realized he wasn't exactly supposed to be hearing that, but Zoro didn't seem to realize that he was speaking out loud, so Sanji just closed his eyes and let it happen.

After reaching the last bone he could, Zoro started a path of small kisses on Sanji's neck, going up to his face. The blond tried his best to maintain what was left of his composure, but it was proving itself a very hard task. He felt so warm, so at ease, that he couldn't formulate a rational thought. He just wanted to feel Zoro all around him, so he relented to tilting his head slightly so the moss-head could have easier access to his neck. 

Finally, a murmur, muffled against Sanji's pulse point:

"I love you, Sanji." 

Sanji almost missed it, were it not for Zoro being so close to his ear. But he understood, and a wave of affection washed through him, and he felt his eyes filling with tears. I'm that moment, Sanji felt like he could conquer anything he wanted. He felt he could destroy the World Government all by himself. In that moment, he felt truly loved. He kissed the side of Zoro's head.

"I love you too, Zoro.”

Zoro pulled back, smiling softly, and wiped a stray tear on Sanji's cheek. He pushed Sanji's bangs up, uncovering his other eye. Were his eyes always this blue? Zoro couldn't tell, but he decided that that was his new favorite color.

"Don't cry, cook."

"They are happy tears, moss-head."

Zoro raised an eyebrow.

"Happy tears?"

"Yes" Sanji held Zoro's wrist and kissed his palm. "I want you, Zoro. I don't know what overcame me to just… actually kiss you, but I'm glad I didn't chickened out." He pressed another little kiss against the corner of Zoro's mouth. "We both know you wouldn't have taken the initiative."

"Oh, shut up, you perverted cook. I literally asked you to kiss me."

"Yeah, but I set the mood first.”

Zoro rolled his eye and pulled Sanji in for another kiss. He would tell himself it was just to shut him up, but he couldn't deny the shivers that ran through his whole body when their lips connected once more. Zoro ran his hand through Sanji's hair and lightly gripped the blond locks. They only parted because Zoro tasted blood... that was dripping from Sanji's nose.

"You really are a pervert, aren't you?” Zoro laughed, wiping the trail of blood trickling down to Sanji’s mouth. 

"Can you really blame me? I have all this hot stuff pressing against me and pulling on my hair! I can't help it!"

"You are insufferable."

Zoro then took off one of his golden earrings and clipped it to Sanji's ear. 

"There,” he said and kissed Sanji's cheek. "Now everyone will know that this hot stuff here is all yours."

More blood dripped.

"All mine?"

"All yours."

When the crew came back, they were in the middle of bickering like always. But if the crew noticed the earring on Sanji’s ear, or the hands on waists, or the touches on faces, or even Zoro stealing a kiss, they didn’t mention anything.

Let them think they're slick.

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