Work Text:
Art was Usopp's passion. Ever since he was a little kid, he's just wanted his skills to be noticed and praised. His dying mother especially encouraged it and when she passed, it was all he had left. But then he made a new friend, Luffy, who was into photography, and the both of them made a promise to shoot for the top of the art kingdom. He was absolutely determined to keep that promise! But first he had to pass college...
The Grandline College for the Arts was an amazing school. All kinds of artists gathered to go there. Usopp made new friends, too, mostly through Luffy. There was Zoro, who did ice and hedge sculptures. Franky did marble sculptures and dabbled in metal work, and Robin made art out of flowers. Chopper made his own dye out of a wide variety of berries and other resources and made brilliant shirt designs. Of course, those weren't the only kind of art in the school. For example, Brook did music and Nami wrote stories alongside drawing detailed maps. Those two introduced him to someone into the culinary arts – the only man in that subject, currently: Sanji.
Usopp did a good amount of different arts, but he'd never been a good photographer. However, there was something about the passion that Sanji poured into his cooking that made Usopp's fingers itch do something other than sketching the blond's perfect legs or intense eyes. Plus, he needed a reference for future Sanji art besides sitting quietly at a distance and drawing from afar. Usopp asked Luffy to borrow his camera and it was passed over without question.
“What is this for again?” Sanji asked as he leaned against the wall, hands in his pockets.
Usopp hadn't expected Sanji to ask, but of course he would, and he scrambled for an answer.
“The subject for the photo has to be something we find beautiful,” Usopp blurted out – a sort of half truth (with the last half being the true part).
He needn't worry about Sanji having an averse reaction, however, as the blond's face pinkened and a broad grin stretched across his face.
Click.