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Luffy hums a tune as he walks across the deck of the giants' ship. The banquet is winding down, laughter and music bouncing off of the waves and into the darkening sky.
When he reaches the railing, he leans over it to look at the deck of the Thousand Sunny. His face lights up when he spots Zoro and Usopp sitting on the grass.
He grabs the railing with both hands and takes a few steps back. "Incoming!" he shouts before rocketing to his ship. Zoro yelps, his drink sloshing around in his mug as Luffy slams into him—deliberately, because it's fun and Zoro can take it, and he kind of deserves it for being moody all day.
"Luffy," the swordsman groans, trying to right himself.
Luffy snickers, his hat lopsided on his head as he hooks his chin over Zoro's shoulder to look at Usopp. "What are you guys talking about?"
Usopp enthusiastically goes into way too much detail about the story he was telling.
From the corner of his eye, Luffy notices the light blush on Zoro's cheeks, the way his gaze isn't entirely focused.
"Zoro's drinking good?" Luffy asks with a giggle.
"Mm." Zoro grins, "This stuff's strong."
Luffy's still sitting behind him when Zoro leans back, settling comfortably against his captain's chest. He glances up at Luffy and lifts a hand to straighten his hat, earning him a smile. Luffy leans back on his palms as they listen to Usopp's chatter.
"Would you look at that," Sanji drawls as he strolls over, a plate of steaks in one hand and the grin reserved for making fun of Zoro plastered on his face. "The captain's lapdog lying on the captain's lap."
Usopp snorts into his mug. Zoro's eyebrow twitches, his ears burn. "What the fuck did you just call me," he sneers darkly, starting to push himself up but Luffy throws an arm around his chest to pull him back against him.
"Zoro," he whines into his ear. "This is a banquet—no fighting."
Never mind that Zoro hasn’t initiated contact like this perhaps ever and Luffy really wants to hold him a bit longer.
Zoro tilts his head to glance at the pout on his captain's face—a rookie mistake—and huffs before making himself comfortable again.
"All bark and no bite, you're like a Chihuahua," Sanji incenses as Luffy reaches for the steaks over Zoro.
"A Chihuahua?" Usopp holds his chin in his hand as he appraises Zoro. "I would rather say a Rottweiler."
Zoro misses the good old days when Usopp was afraid of his death glare.
"Perhaps a Doberman?" Robin adds in from where she's perched on the railing of the giants' ship, listening in with amusement.
"Nah," Luffy interjects lazily. "Zoro would be a Golden Retriever."
Zoro tilts his head to the side and back to give his captain an unimpressed look. "Don't you start as well."
"Shishishi, dogs are great, you know! They're strong and loyal." Luffy has a passing thought for Chouchou. He grins down at Zoro and the frown on his face disappears before he turns back to the drink in his hand.
"So whipped," Sanji quips, exchanging a knowing look with Usopp.
Zoro straightens a leg to kick at Sanji's ankles.
Luffy's eyes light up. "Sanji, what about the pancakes with whipped cream and blueberries you promised me?"
Sanji rolls his eyes. "They're in the kitchen," he gestures with the hand delicately holding a cigarette between two fingers. "Finish your meat first."
Luffy nods vigorously and starts devouring his steaks. Zoro sips his drink quietly. When he gets to his last steak, Luffy looks down at his swordsman. "Want a bite?" He offers, bringing a piece of meat near Zoro's face.
Zoro looks up at him in surprise. "Did you... drop it? Throw it up?"
"No!" Luffy laughs. "I'm just sharing," he says easily. For some reason Zoro looks even more confused. "I'll eat it if you don't want it," Luffy grins.
"...thanks," Zoro mutters before leaning in to take a bite of the juicy steak. Luffy throws the rest of it into his own mouth.
"Sanji, dessert!" Luffy shouts like Sanji and Usopp weren't watching the whole exchange silently.
"Aye, captain," Sanji says with a smile in his voice as he pivots to head back to the kitchen.
Luffy taps the fingers splayed on Zoro's chest impatiently. "Sanji said he'd make them eeextra fluffy," he says, drool already pooling at the corner of his mouth.
Zoro huffs amusedly into his mug.
Luffy observes him for a moment. "Comfy?"
"Mm," Zoro agrees quietly, his droopy gaze on the waves beyond the railing.
Usopp looks around before excusing himself and leaving in a hurry. Robin is speaking animatedly with the giants. Nami is checking their course on the prow of the ship.
Luffy sips some orange juice from Usopp's mug. "Zoro was mad earlier," he says into the comfortable silence.
"Wasn't mad," Zoro mutters, blinking a bit to clear his hazy brain. "It's just- did you see who we were up against? We should be counting our blessings that no one on the crew got hurt badly."
Luffy hums. "I can still be sad about old man Vegapunk, though."
"I know, I just"–Zoro rubs a hand across his face–"worry about you sometimes."
The ship creaks under them, rocking them gently.
"After Ace?" Luffy asks. Zoro stiffens against him. He looks up in alarm, a worried eye meeting Luffy's strong, steady gaze.
"Yeah," he breathes out.
"You don't need to worry about me, Zoro," Luffy smiles, winding his other arm around him as well and squeezing a little. "After all, I have the bestest crew on the seas!"
Zoro's face softens, and it’s that look he’d often get when Luffy does something stupid or saves a kingdom, and it makes him feel all jittery inside. He drums his fingers on Zoro's chest.
Zoro sighs, melting into him.
"What's after, Captain?" he asks quietly after a while.
"What's after what?" Luffy blinks down at him.
"After the One Piece," Zoro says, something sad in his gaze.
"What, you think we're that close?" Luffy teases, nose crinkling slightly.
Zoro wets his lips, his head lulling against Luffy's chest. "I can't lose you," he admits suddenly. "Even after."
Luffy looks at him with surprise. Zoro holds his gaze silently.
Luffy tightens his arms around him possessively. "I'm not letting you go," he tells him, decisive, eyes boring into Zoro's. "After, or ever."
Zoro searches his face. "You won't have a reason to keep me around anymore," he says quietly.
"Silly, we'll keep sailing and go on even more adventures!" Luffy grins. "If that's not good enough for you, we could always get married," he adds before throwing his head back in laughter.
When he looks back down, Zoro's eye is wide, his cheeks a lot redder than they were before. It throws him into another fit of giggles.
"I would marry you," Zoro admits quietly, face ablaze but still holding Luffy's stare.
Luffy's smile gets gentler. "Yeah?" he speaks softly, his fingers finding the scar on Zoro's chest and tracing it lightly. "It's decided, then."
"How exactly”–Sanji's voice pipes up suddenly, making Zoro jump, mortified, and Luffy look up at Sanji in surprise–"did you two go from talking about dogs to marriage in the time it took me to fetch the pancakes?"
Luffy cackles and reaches for a plate of the fluffiest pancakes he's ever seen. "Zoro got sappy."
"I did not!" a red-faced Zoro denies indignantly, pushing off of Luffy.
"Did too," Luffy counters in a sing-song voice before plopping a forkful of pancake and cream into his mouth and moaning in bliss. "These are soooo good."
Sanji smiles proudly at the praise, his face looking boyish for a moment. He looks at Zoro only to find him trying to drown himself in his tankard. "Haven't you drunk enough?" he deadpans at him.
"...Shut up."