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Everyone that met Sanji could say he was a romantic after first meeting him. His relentless chivalry, flirting and devotion towards women made that pretty clear. What most people didn’t know was that Sanji’s childhood wasn’t as kind as he was. Despite being a prince, he was beaten to a pulp and verbally abused countless times, being royalty didn’t save him from Germa 66’s ruthlessness. However, the women in his childhood did everything to try and protect him, especially his mother, who he loved dearly. That was the main reason he worshiped the ground women walked on, and also because Zeff instilled those values in him.
The people around him, from the Baratie to his own crew, always teased him for being such a flirt and never actually scoring a date or a girlfriend. He knew that the jokes were light-hearted and came from a place of love, but he couldn’t help but feel down to be the butt of the joke. His flirting almost never comes from a place of actual want to the women he flirts with but it still hurt to be joked with like that. His unluckiness made him think that maybe Judge and his brothers were right to call him useless and a waste of space.
Sanji was in a dark place for a long time, where self loathing invaded him. As he got older, he started to smoke to cope with it and the habit never really stopped. With time, he learned to put up a happy front for the people he cared about, not wanting to burden them with his darkness. He had things to be grateful for, Zeff, who took him in like his own son, The Baratie, that exacerbated his passion for cooking and gave him great friends, Luffy, who gave him a place in his small but passionate crew, and the Strawhats, who gave a family that actually loved him. Even after all of that, Sanji couldn’t help but be plagued with his darkness that haunted him in his dreams. After a while, he started healing on his own, but he didn’t expect for his past to come to haunt him and take him back to the place he started. It hurt like hell but thankfully, Whole Cake gave him some much needed closure and made him be more honest with his crew.
Now, he was in a much better place. He had figured out so much about himself in these last few years. Although, one of the only things that still bothered him was his stupid crush on the stupid green haired swordsman. Because he was always scared to actually fall in love with someone, he was terrified when he started to like Zoro that way. He always thought he would fall for a lovely girl who he would settle down with, and that was that. Romantic love seemed like such a distant dream but it was always something he eventually wanted in his life and he thought that after finding a girl who reciprocate his love it would be simple, but with time Sanji has realized that love is actually so complicated and hard to grasp but insanely more beautiful than he thought it was, like the flurry of colors that forms in the sky and clouds with the sunset.
To Sanji, it seemed like Zoro wasn’t interested in something like love. He would have probably called it trivial and a distraction from becoming the greatest swordsman and protecting his crew, and Sanji would be right to think that. However, as his crush grew he started to get curious about what Zoro actually thought about the topic. One day, they were washing the dishes together after dinner as they usually did and because things had been calm for a while, Sanji got the courage to ask.
“Marimo…?” He said unsure.
Zoro just hummed in response.
“Have you ever liked someone, like romantically?” He asked as he assessed Zoro’s reaction to the question. The swordsman seemed a bit taken aback.
“What’s with the question, Shit-cook?” Zoro didn’t seem defensive but he was definitely a bit uncomfortable with the topic. They never talked about deep stuff like this so it only made sense.
“Just curious,” He shrugged, trying to fake disinterest even though he asked the question to begin with.
Silence settled for a moment as they kept washing the dishes, then Zoro decided to break it.
“I guess it’s never been a priority for me,” Zoro shrugged.
“That makes sense,” Sanji nodded.
“I think I haven’t found someone worth my time, but if I did I wouldn’t be opposed to the idea,” To Sanji’s surprise, Zoro elaborated on his answer. Instead of answering, Sanji offered the swordsman a kind smile which was a rare sight for both of them. Zoro freezed for half a second so Sanji didn’t notice, and he looked down before speaking again, “What about you, Curly?”.
Sanji’s surprised at the inquiry so he hesitantly answers, “I guess I… ,” He likes Zoro and he’s the only thing that comes to mind when asked that question but it would be stupid of him to reveal such a thing to the actual object of his affection. He should answer the question in a more general sense, but he has such complicated feelings about love at this point that he’s blanking on what to answer.
“Cook?” Zoro snapped him out of his thoughts, he looked a bit concerned. Maybe he was thinking a little too hard about his answer.
He sighed before answering, “I know I flirt with girls but it’s like I actually want to go out with them. It’s just that I really appreciate the ladies in general,” He would leave his answer at that because revealing anymore could be compromising to his situation.
Zoro just nodded in response and that’s where the conversation ended. They finished washing the dishes and went back to doing their own thing. Zoro probably went to the crows nest to start his night watch and Sanji decided that he really needed to smoke. He left the galley and perched himself on the rails of the upper deck to look at the ocean as he smoked. After a while, that’s where Nami found him.
“Sanji-kun,” She called out.
Sanji was startled by the sudden noise, he was so lost in thought that he failed to notice his beautiful Nami, “Oh, Nami-swan, you scared me,” He answered.
She chuckled, “I noticed,” Nami said as she settled down next to him.
A comfortable silence washed over them. Despite all the worshiping, Sanji and Nami had a beautiful friendship that he wouldn’t trade for the world. After he got better, he started confiding in Nami for everything and he found that the navigator was a great listener and gave amazing advice. So, of course she knew about the whole Zoro thing.
“What are you thinking about, Sanji-kun?” She asked, with worry laced in her voice.
He sighed, “You know, the usual,” He admitted.
A smile was drawn on Nami’s face and she reached to caress his back, “Ever the overthinker, aren’t you?” He melted under Nami’s touch and felt instant relief.
“I guess I am,” he chuckled.
“Well you already know what I think you should do,” She shrugged since they had had this conversation countless times.
“I know, I know. But it’s not so easy, you know how the Marimo is,” Sanji replied, defeated.
She hummed in response and they stayed there for a while, contemplating the ocean that surrounded them. Smoke hung in the air, the starry night twinkled as it was reflected on water, it was a beautiful sight really and Sanji wished he could share it with Zoro but the swordsman probably wouldn’t appreciate it in the same way. Well maybe sharing this view with his precious Nami was almost as good. After what felt like hours, Sanji spoke again, “I asked him if he had ever liked someone,” This seemed to catch the navigator’s interest and her eyes glowed at the prospect of some gossip.
“What did he say?” She urged.
“He said he had never been interested in things like that but if he found someone ‘worth his time’,” He airquoted, “He would be open to it,” He finished the sentence by sighing and he leaned his head on the railing in defeat.
Nami frowned at Sanji’s reaction, “What? You don’t think you’re worth his time?” She replied, her voice raised in bubbling anger. Whenever Sanji slipped back into his self sabotaging tendencies Nami made sure to set him straight, maybe it was harsh the way she did it but that was exactly what Sanji needed to snap out of it.
“No, no!” He exclaimed defensively, “I just… I don’t know what to think anymore,” He said in defeat once again.
The navigator sighed, “I don’t want to pressure you but I swear one of these days I will lock you in a room with him until you confess. You’re getting nowhere by just pining and I hate to see you suffer Sanji-kun,” She frowned with worry for her dear friend.
“You’re right, maybe I should just rip the band aid off,” He sighed for the umpteenth time, “Fuck me,” He cursed under his breath and took a long drag of his cigarette.
“Maybe you should ask Zoro to do it,” Nami laughed when Sanji choked on the smoke of his cigarette.
“Nami-swan!” He exclaimed and she just kept laughing.
“I’ll leave you to it, Sanji-kun. Don’t think so much, for your own sake,” She said before waving the cook goodbye and leaving.
Sanji was left alone with his thoughts again and even though Nami warned him not to do it he couldn’t help but overthink. Would tonight be a good time to express his feelings? I mean, things had been quite peaceful for their crew so it felt like the right time. Or was he being too rash in his decision? No, he had liked Zoro for such a long time he doesn’t even remember when he started feeling this way. Maybe it was a long time coming. With that, he decided he would try to find the right moment tonight, taking advantage of the fact that Zoro was on night watch.
At this point, everyone had gone to bed so Sanji went back to the galley with determination. After doing inventory, he would fix Zoro a snack. He had been working on an onigiri recipe Zoro mentioned he wanted to try a long time ago, the filling was kind of tricky to achieve but today he would try again. After a while of experimenting with different temperatures and spices, the cook got the recipe just right. He looked at the spread with pride, the elusive onigiris were displayed elegantly, a bottle of a particular sake that would pair perfectly with the rice balls, and a homemade sauce to dip the onigiri, all of which were neatly placed inside a basket with everything needed to eat and drink. As he started wrapping it up to take it up to the crows nest, butterflies started to invade his stomach, with each second that passed they fluttered harder than before and Sanji felt like he could vomit them right up. He coughed and tried to compose himself, eventually he got it together and headed to the crows nest. With each step he took up the ladder he cursed under his breath, when he got to the trapdoor he took a deep breath before entering.
Zoro was sitting next to the window, one of his legs was propped up on the seat and his head rested on his knee, you could tell he was struggling to stay awake. He probably had overdone it with training today. All Sanji could think at the sight was how good the swordsman looked, he blushed at the thought. He waited for the blush to dissipate before fully entering into the crows nest. Zoro turned around at the sound of the door closing.
“Cook?” He said, still drowsy.
“Midnight snack,” He announced as he set the spread on the floor, “Wouldn't want you to fall asleep while on watch, right?” He added.
“Right,” Zoro answered as he got up and sat next to the spread that Sanji had carefully put down. Sanji followed suit and sat in front of the swordsman.
“Zoro…” He started as he fiddled with his fingers. In front of him, Zoro’s eyes widened at the mention of his name coming from the cook’s mouth. Sanji pretended he didn’t see that reaction and kept talking, “I have to tell you something,” He declared.
“Right…” Zoro replied and it was more of a question than a statement. Not knowing what to do, he shoved a rice ball in his mouth and munched on it while waiting for Sanji to keep speaking. The blonde rolled his eyes at Zoro’s reaction but was also relieved that the swordsman was displaying his usual bruteness.
“You may be surprised to hear this, but I… like-like you,” Sanji confessed and the room was invaded with a tense silence. Zoro was left speechless, and again shoved an onigiri in his mouth. He didn’t seem mad, just surprised, and Sanji was relieved. He had thought for sure that Zoro would get mad and they would start fighting, but their fights were never really serious, were they?
After a while it was clear that Zoro wasn’t planning on talking any time soon so Sanji decided to break the silence, “You don’t have to give me an answer right now, just… think about it,” And with that, Sanji was quick to try and leave.
The swordsman swallowed all the rice he had in his mouth in one big gulp before speaking, “Wait!” He exclaimed and grabbed Sanji’s wrist to stop him. They locked eyes, “I like-like you too,” Zoro confessed. Sanji's eyes widened and he froze on the spot. Silence enveloped them again, both waiting for the other to speak.
Sanji eventually snapped out of it, “You do?” He asked, confused. He never thought about this possibility, it seemed like such a daydream.
“I do,” Zoro answered with complete sincerity, he looked as serious as when he went into battle.
The blonde felt like a wave of emotions was crashing in on him and he fell to his knees. Without realizing it, tears started rolling down his face. He covered his face in embarrassment, “Shit,” He cursed under his breath.
Zoro grabbed his shoulders carefully, “Cook, are you okay?” He asked, letting worry lace his voice.
“I never thought…” Sanji managed to say between tears. He couldn’t get himself to look at Zoro again, was this really happening?
“You know I’m not with words, but… It’s always been you, Cook,” Zoro assured. Sanji couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
After a while, Sanji managed to calm down and he got the courage to look Zoro in the eye. When his own ocean blue eye locked with Zoro’s hazel eye, he thought of what he pictured love to be, a sunset painted with a flurry of warm tones that reflected on the clear blue water of the ocean. How funny it was that their eyes are exactly what he imagines love to be.
“It’s always been you for me too,” He finally replied and Zoro gave him something he didn’t offer much these days, a wide smile.
“Can I kiss you?” The swordsman asked.
“Yes,” Sanji answered, not afraid of coming off as eager.
Zoro slowly rested his hand on Sanji’s cheek as he leaned in, Sanji responded by carefully grabbing Zoro by the nape of his neck and finally interlocking their lips. Their kiss started slow and timid but as they grew comfortable with each other's touch the kiss became more passionate with each second that passed. Sanji reveled in the taste of Zoro’s mouth, he tasted of the food he so lovingly made, of alcohol, and of steel, he never thought he would find such a thing so attractive. Suddenly, Zoro grabbed him by the waist and pulled him closer to him, Sanji melted under the touch of the swordsman. After a few minutes of making out, they ran out of breath and had to separate to catch their breath. They looked at each other and both of them glowed with excitement.
“So… I’m worth your time, huh?” Sanji teased Zoro, recalling their earlier conversation.
“Shut up,” Zoro answered, flustered, and Sanji laughed until he was out of breath again.
“You know what?” Zoro talked again when Sanji had calmed down and he thought the swordsman would start to bicker with him, “I actually love you,” He confessed out of nowhere.
On instinct, Sanji started tearing up again and without thinking, because he had done a lot of that already, he answered, “I love you too,” He replied.
They kissed again… and again… and again, until they couldn’t anymore. Eventually, sleep got the best of them and they fell asleep in each other’s arms. Even though Zoro was supposed to be on night watch, Sanji wouldn’t scold him for not fulfilling his duties because he was completely complicit in it.
When Sanji woke up the next morning, it was early dawn and only a few rays of light filtered through the window that hit Zoro’s ear and his earrings sparkled under the light. Sanji caressed it with care and he thought that he couldn’t recall the last time he had felt such genuine joy. Now more than ever did Sanji think that love was not at all cut and dry, but it was actually complicated and totally worth it in the end. Now everytime he would see a golden sunset, he would think of Zoro, of his scars, of his green hair, of his earrings, and of how much he loved him.