Chapter Text
Zoro never felt lost until the day he heard that letter read out loud.
Going to meet a woman.
I’ll be back.
He told everyone that it didn’t affect him. That he wasn’t worried about the cook whatsoever.
But as the days passed and he turned every corner expecting a scathing kick or the smell of a good homecooked meal, he started feeling unmoored.
He had promised himself that he’d be there unconditionally for the rest of the crew from now on. That included the cook. And yet, he didn’t give himself a single chance over the past few days to really show curly how much he appreciated him…how much he had missed him.
And now it was too late.
He must have felt underappreciated to so willingly accept an arranged marriage proposal. What should he have expected anyway with the love cook? That man has always had a one-track mind when it came to the ladies, and if he could find love–true, genuine love, who was Zoro to stop him?
He had no right to step in the way. Especially since he hadn’t figured out his own feelings towards the cook yet. Or, he might have, he just didn’t want to accept them quite yet.
The concept of platonic love was still so new to Zoro, that it took him two years to start truly yearning for it. So romantic ? That was a whole other level that he didn’t even want to touch with the tip of his sword.
It was too distracting, too daunting, too… damaging .
If the way the cook’s departure left him was any indication, it was not for him. It wasn’t even the regret that was gnawing at him, but rather the realization that he would never know if he had a chance at all.
And he had accepted that ! It took time, lots of meditation, and more introspection than Zoro’s done in months, but he had accepted it .
So why the fuck was the cook on his heels every day since he’s come back? Wano is a big country, he has plenty of space to do what he wants and find other women to bother. Instead, he’s been following Zoro around like a puppy every day they’ve been preparing for the raid.
Balto give me strength . Groaning under his preferred napping tree, Zoro dug into his haramaki to take out a dirtied-up piece of paper that’s been with him since Thriller Bark. He’d never admit that he still has it, but Usopp’s drawing of Zoro taking on Balto in battle hasn’t left his side since that day. It’s reminiscent of Zoro’s own battle with Mihawk, except in this illustration, Zoro is the one cutting a large scar down through Balto’s chest.
He loves looking at it to remind himself where he came from and who he has now.
Too focused on the drawing, he didn’t notice when the cook snuck behind him and glanced over his shoulder.
“What’s that?”
Quickly folding it and hiding it back in his haramaki, Zoro looked away and crossed his arms.
“None of your fucking business, that’s what.”
Rolling his eyes, the cook kicked at him lightly with his toes. “ Marimooo , come on. Was the Balto I saw? It looked like one of Usopp’s sketches, right?”
Freezing, Zoro looked up at him with his one good eye. “You read Balto?”
The blond shrugged and made himself comfortable sitting cross-legged near Zoro. “Usopp showed me his book a little while back. It’s a cool comic. I mostly just read it so I could understand why he gave me a drawing of my “ Foxsona ”.”
Blinking in pure confusion, Zoro couldn’t even ask more about Sanji reading Balto because he was so stuck on the Foxsona bit.
“What the actual fuck is a Foxsona?”
The cook sniggered. “It’s me as a fox, apparently. I have it hung up in my locker. I can show it to you later.”
Zoro dryly opened his mouth but instead of saying anything, he just nodded. No need to tease him about something that Zoro felt similar about. Usopp’s drawings might be corny, but they were impressive and actually really touching. Zoro was happy to be thought of so deeply that Usopp personalized something for him, so the cook must obviously feel the same with how much of a lovebug he is.
“Why a fox?” Is what he finally settled on, trying to maintain neutrality.
“Beats me.” The blond whistled. “He said it had to do with our “inner animal.” He said he would be a dog, Luffy would obviously be a monkey, and you–”
Pausing for dramatic effect, the cook smirked before continuing. “You’d be a little kitty cat.”
“Oh fuck off!” Zoro kicked at him as he laughed. “Absolutely no way!”
Holding his stomach, the blond shook his head. “Alright, alright, I lied. He actually said if Balto didn’t exist in this universe, you’d be a wolf, but since that would feel like a sort of knockoff, you are a tiger.”
“That’s better,” Zoro huffed as he crossed his arms. “Hell yeah, I’m a tiger.”
“Yeah, mossy, you’re just a big kitty cat.” The cook goaded as he tried to stifle his giggles.
With a growl, Zoro grabbed Wado from beside him and used it to pounce on the cook, who was plenty ready to counter with a spin-kick. They went back and forth in their usual ritual to blow off steam until the cook made a comment that stopped the swordsman in his tracks.
“There you are. This is the Zoro that I’ve missed.”
Backing up a few steps, he cocked his head, bewildered. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“Oh, come on!” Swinging his hands out, the cook yelled back. “You can’t seriously tell me you haven’t felt something off between us since I’ve been back. I know I fucked up by leaving, but please , I am trying to be better! So why do you keep avoiding me?”
“I–I’m not avoiding you!” Zoro stammered, trying to defend himself. “I–I’m just focusing on prep stuff! We have a big raid coming up, you know!”
“Oh, bullshit!” The cook exclaimed. “You don’t talk to me. You leave every time I enter a room. You don’t stick around any longer than needed during meals. We haven’t sparred once since I’ve arrived. And worst of all, you don’t even try to fucking tease me anymore.”
“That’s–” Zoro stopped when he realized the order in which the cook listed their regular interactions and how he emphasized the importance of their typical banter and joking. “You like it when I tease you?”
“W–well–” Now the blond was the one stammering. “Maybe! I like how it’s our thing ! It’s how I know everything’s okay between us. It’s how we show each other that we care…right?” He hesitated on his last sentence, getting quieter when asking for confirmation.
Was it? Zoro thought back to past interactions and tried to analyze why the hell they do tease each other. And why exactly he never hated it. It’s never been hostile or come from a place of malice. It’s just been the easiest way to communicate with him, especially considering that Zoro was never really a “words” man. The cook was right, it was just their thing .
“Right…” Zoro cleared his throat and scratched at the nape of his neck.
“Right. Well then. Yeah,” the cook ran a hand through his hair and groaned. “So please, Zoro. Just speak to me. I know it’s not your thing, but I can’t read what’s on your mind and this is starting to affect my cooking, which you know I can’t have. What can I do to earn your forgiveness?”
The swordsman hadn’t noticed anything strange with the cook’s food recently, but then again, he had been scarfing down his meals and fleeing as fast as he could.
“Nothing, curls. There’s nothing to forgive.” He moaned internally, trying to sort out his own thoughts. He was being unfair to the cook. He had come back and now he was here, trying. And wasn’t that what he wanted? “Sorry, it’s my problem to deal with. Just don’t worry about it. I’ll be normal from now on.”
“That’s not good enough, mossy.” Taking a tentative step forward, the cook reached out his hand and gently ran it down Zoro’s arm. “What’s on your mind?”
Sighing, Zoro relented and shut his eye. “It’s hard getting used to caring about people. And I thought it hurt when we all got separated from each other for those two years, but then you chose to leave, and I– I felt…” He groaned, unable to come up with a word.
“Abandoned?” The cook answered for him.
Yeah, that was the word. Nodding, Zoro opened his eye and looked at the blond who had a strange sanguine look on his face.
The cook slid his hand into the swordsman’s before reassuring him with a soft tone. “I apologize for abandoning you, Zoro. But I promise you I’ll never do it again.”
“Good,” He managed to croak out. He didn’t know what his heart was doing right now, but he didn’t like it one bit. Feeling the sweat start to gather in his palm, he pulled away with a forced smirk. “How else am I supposed to target practice without those dartbrows, lovecook?” He pushes his finger against the visible eyebrow to emphasize his quip.
“Hey!” Slapping away his hand, the cook pouted before allowing his face to soften into a smile. “Why don’t you let me take you out for a drink tonight? On me, of course. We can catch up and relax for a few hours.”
“You know me too well, whirly. Would I ever say no to that?” With a grin, he lightly punched the cook’s shoulder. They could be normal again. Zoro just needed to forget about whatever weird thing his brain was going through right now. And booze always helped with that.
~
They stumbled out of the bar into a dark and quiet night. The cook had his arm strung over Zoro’s shoulder as he used the swordsman’s body to hold himself upright. Zoro tried to support him by grabbing his hip, but nearly tripped when he saw the surprised blush that it evoked.
He’d just blame it on the alcohol.
“Hell, curls. I always forget how much of a lightweight you are. Are you even able to walk?”
“M’yes!” Confidentiality holding up a finger, the cook took a step forward only to stumble and be held up by Zoro again. “I m’gotta walk us back to home base! You just gen’t us lost mammimo.”
“I won’t get us lost, shit cook.” He started walking down a path only to be pulled sharply to the right by the blond.
“Nuh-uh! Up the lil hiwl and blue roof!” The cook tried to direct him but Zoro was more confused by his explanation than by the shifting streets.
Huffing, he just decided to turn at every corner that he thought looked familiar until he somehow magically managed to get them back to somewhere they could sleep for the night. It wasn’t their base, but the Heart Pirates’ and it would have to do for tonight.
“Hey look, lovecook, just like I planned. We can crash here tonight. It was closer to the bar than our place.” Confidently grinning, Zoro blushed when the cook patted his cheek.
“I’m proud.” With shining teeth, the cook gave Zoro a wide smile before breaking out into a fit of giggles.
Those words, although minimal, sent a rush of warmth through Zoro and suddenly he couldn’t take his eyes off the blond. His laugh was enchanting. The way his hair ruffled with the wind and allowed for his second gorgeously blue eye to barely peek through a curtain of bangs was too overwhelming under the light of the moon.
Fuck it, he was about to do something spectacularly stupid. The only solace he had was knowing the cook wouldn’t remember any of it in the morning.
“I love you.”
The giggles stopped faster than they started and those daring blue eyes pierced holes through Zoro’s soul. And suddenly those beautiful eyes disappeared and soft lips were pushed onto his as the cook slamed their faces together in a drunken kiss.
In trying to push him back, Zoro just earned kisses all over his neck and face rather than stopping them like he wanted to. “Wait! Curls! Stop, you’re drunk. You don’t know–”
Ignoring him, the cook just said a word in between each kiss as he continued attacking the swordsman’s face. “Charming. Pretty. Sweet. Stunning. Beautiful.”
Ah, so the cook probably thought he was one of his beautiful ladies right now. That would make sense for how drunk he was. He’d never even dare to kiss a man, let alone Zoro.
However, the next word stopped his heart and erased everything else from his brain. “Delectable.” The cook said. Zoro was delectable to the best goddamn chef on the four seas, and suddenly all of his self-restraint was gone.
Instead of pushing the cook back, he grabbed onto his collar and pulled him in. As good as it felt to be kissed by the cook, actively engaging and matching his every move like they usually do in battle made him feel like a fire had been lit between them.
They explored each other's mouths until a sweet moan escaped from the blond which moved the swordsman to lean down to his neck. He wanted the cook’s mouth free to make more of those delectable noises.
He’d take turns between biting and kissing, allowing himself the pleasure of sucking on what was possibly the most delicious neck in existence. That would surely leave marks in the morning, but at this point, Zoro didn’t care. Here was the focus of all of his desires, melting in his arms and letting out such beautiful sounds.
As he moved lower, he was startled by the door harshly sliding open. Flying away from the cook in fear of getting caught doing something badly mischievous, Zoro finally looked to see Penguin standing with a stiff posture and sleep in his eyes.
“Uh, hey guys.” Penguin hesitantly murmured. “What’s up?”
Trying to hide the blush in his cheeks but failing miserably, Zoro cleared his throat before speaking. “Hey, uh, sorry–”
The cook piped up, turning away from Zoro and strutting into the house. “Sleep! Borrow! Thanks!”
Penguin and Zoro stared at each other for a silent moment before Penguin shook his head and waved the remaining Strawhat inside. “Come in, I guess. We’ve got a few spare cots and mattresses. And I’m not even going to ask.” He raised his hands in defeat before turning back inside.
~
Zoro had woken up early to take a walk that would hopefully clear his head and help him avoid the cook. Curly’s hangovers were horrendous anyhow, it would take the man half the day to recover.
And this time he meant to walk into the forest. There was no way he could show his face to any of the Strawhats yet. He knew he could keep a placid expression when it counted, but something about last night made him feel so off-balance that today would in no way be normal .
He just felt so guilty, taking advantage of the cook that way. The man was obviously drunk and imagining he was with some pretty lady. Zoro was simply a terrible person for letting his craving get ahold of his sanity.
What the fuck was wrong with him anyways? He would have never done that. Not even if he was the one plastered. There was just something about last night. Something about spending so much quality alone time with the cook after months of not having him present. And the moon definitely played some sort of trick on his eyes, because San– the cook was bewitching .
It was just a combination of wrongs that came together in a storm that drove them together.
He didn't even realize that he unsheathed Enma until he let out a guttural scream and was cutting off the edge of the clifface.
Hell, he was a terrible person. He’d always known that. But forcing his own desires on a friend? On Nakama ? He deserved death by Seppuku.
Why couldn’t he have just kept it continued like he had for the past two years? He didn’t need to tell Sanji that he loved him. If anything, he should have told the rest of the crew first. But fuck, the way he felt about Sanji was just so different from the rest of his family and no amount of self-convincing would change that.
It’s then that something pinpricked at the edge of his peripheral and he turned to see the metaphorical devil himself standing in a tense gait with a look of upmost rage.
The cook was pissed .
Fuck, so he must remember at least part of last night. Zoro could die right there.
“Look, I know,” Zoro raised his hands in a placating manner. “I’m terrible. I took advantage of the situation and I’m a shit of a human being for that. I’m so sorry cook, I fu–”
Sanji is on him in mere seconds and Zoro doesn’t fight back. He deserved whatever beating the blond would give him.
“You fucking idiot!” The cook straddled him with a bewildered expression. Breathing heavily, he let out a guttural groan before leaning down and kissing Zoro.
The swordsman lay there confused and paralyzed as Sanji leaned back to meet his eye again.
“You absolute fucking shitty idiot! Why’d you run away this morning?” Yelling, the cook knees his groin and Zoro moans out in pain. That he was expecting, but Sanji’s question he wasn’t.
Except, the cook didn’t even give him a moment to answer anything before he’s ranting off in a rave. “You didn’t take advantage of shit, dickbag. I only pretended to be that drunk so I’d have an excuse to fall back on when I confessed to you ! Gods, I’ve been wanting to kiss you for so long that I couldn’t hold back when you said it first! You have nothing to apologize for, marimo, because I wanted that . I wanted it all .”
Now they were both breathing heavily as Zoro’s heart jackhammered in his chest. “You what?” He managed to squeak out.
Sanji’s eyes opened wider–if that was even possible–and he leaned closer, inches from Zoro's nose. “Idiot, I love you too. I’m in love with you.”
After saying that, he closed the remaining distance and bashed their faces together again. Although this kiss was more forceful than the last, he took his time in moving his lips, waiting for Zoro to reciprocate.
Which he did, only after shaking off the shock. In seconds, Sanji was once again letting out little moans every time he opened his mouth wider to accommodate Zoro.
As the cook moved down to pay attention to his jaw and then his neck, Zoro grabbed his strong defined hips and tried to hide a mewl as Sanji bit into a tender spot by his ear.
“Fuck,” the cook half-whispered, half-chuckled. “You’re delicious . Last night you gave me my new favorite craving and you should know– I am insatiable .”
“Fuck, Sanji .” Zoro whined. If this was a dream, he didn’t want to wake up. This wasn’t a dream, right? “This is real?”
The cook stopped on top of him and pulled away, giving him a weird look. “Now I’m starting to think that I’m dreaming. Mossy, did you hit your head a bit too hard?”
“No? What? Why?” Zoro stared up at him confused and replayed the last few moments in his head. It only hit him after a long pause that he used Sanji’s name for the first time. “Sanji,” he gulped.
The cook was hesitant, slowly leaning back down where his face was hovering over Zoro’s before finally answering. “Yes, Zoro?”
“Last night was the first time I ever said that out loud.” The swordsman confessed with a hoarse voice. “ Love isn’t easy for me. So I don’t want this to just be a dream.” He turned his head to the side, trying to hide away the blush that came with such a statement.
That was when Sanji slowly climbed off of him and sat down at his side. The swordsman was pulled up to a sitting position by his hand, and before the cook spoke, he turned Zoro’s head to face him. “I’m actually quite similar to you, you know…”
Zoro tilted his head in a question before the blond continued.
“Before Luffy, I had never heard anyone tell me that they loved me before.” Sanji sighed. “I knew Zeff loved me, but he was never really a verbal person. He’s my dad and he showed it in how he raised me. While everyone else in the Baratie would let me know in different ways.
So when I came onto this crew, I had a hard time accepting that phrase. I never really understood the true weight of that word– “ Love ”. So it was always easy to throw around…until it wasn’t. Until I felt wrong using it on anybody but one of our Nakama.”
He caressed Zoro’s face, running a gentle palm from his scar down to his chin. “So believe me when I tell you, marmio: I love you.”
Zoro looked like he stopped breathing, which made Sanji decide to resuscitate him with a soft peck to his lips. And then his cheek. And then his nose. Finally, his forehead, after which he came back and kissed his lips again.
“I–” Zoro croaked out before clearing his throat and trying again. “I love you too.”
Zoro was finding it easier to say now. In the future, he may be able to say that more often. He really hoped so. Because damn, he loved his family.