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His boyfriend is a dumbass. That means admittedly little as Zoro himself is very much a dumbass, however that doesn’t mean he can’t recognize that trait in his partner. Especially in situations where Luffy is in the comfort zone of his weird collection of skills. Regular skating had been very difficult to teach to his lover. Impatient and impulsive, Luffy had fallen on his ass many times before he could even stand up. Skating along the rink and stopping took many more attempts before his boyfriend was roller-skating at the same level as the children around them. So how was it possible that his partner, who had been so unable to roller-skate, could ice skate around a frozen-over lake with ease? Because Luffy is Luffy, that’s why.
Zoro learned how to skate at a very young age. His adoptive father Dracule Mihawk had been a hockey player himself as a boy and thought that it would be a good outlet for his highly aggressive new son. It also taught Zoro discipline which helped to moderate his temper enough that Mihawk decided to teach him swordsmanship. His adopted sister Perona also loved ice skating, but she preferred figure skating over hockey and had no interest in swords. She enjoyed what she called the “cuter things in life”. Hmmm, he hasn’t called his family in a while. Perhaps he should do that later…Zoro is snapped out of his thoughts by his lover’s loud voice calling out, “Hey, Zoro! Come skate with me!”
Right, he had just been standing at the edge of the ice watching for a while. A small shift in his feet to lower himself down until he was squatting, and he pushes off with a low grunt. The wind bites at his face in a comfortingly familiar way. He can almost hear Mihawk instructing him on how to move his feet as he skids to a stop next to his boyfriend. Luffy gives him a wide grin, “Finally! C’mon, gimme your hand. I wanna skate together.” Zoro easily surrenders his hand, and they push off at a more subdued pace to circle the lake. The slower pace allows the taller man to get a good look at his partner. Luffy had been rushing around the lake while doing poses and tricks like the monkey his friends often likened him to.
The wind left a streak of red across his cheeks and nose. He was panting like a dog from the effort with a sparkling gleam in his brown eyes. A natural smaller smile curves his lips up. His shaggy black hair, even messier from the wind and his snow hat, catches every fleck of snow that drifts softly from the sky. Zoro mumbles, “You’re handsome.” Luffy freezes for a moment with a shocked face before he pulls his knitted hat down into his face with a flush heating up his whole face. He grumbles, “Shut up…you’re the handsome one.” Zoro smiles lightly and bumps against his boyfriend. They continue to circle the lake for a while before the taller man hears a soft request from Luffy, “Dance with me?” He hums a soft affirmation.
Not wanting a sharp blade to the face, Zoro is the one to move and start skating backwards. They move together in a fluid dance that would be seen in a figure skating event. Zoro ended up falling into the man’s part while Luffy took to the woman’s part thanks to his much better flexibility. The swordsman would have no issue taking the other role except he was too muscular in a buff way. He was not able to lift his foot up to his head and hold it. He couldn’t lift his legs much higher than his hips and even that took a lot of effort. Luffy’s slim build with his leaner muscles and high flexibility allowed him to do moves generally reserved for women.
It wasn’t like he minded at all being a bit more flexible not only in body but in gender roles too. The smaller man is still firmly a man, but he sees no reason to not wear make-up, dresses, skirts, or high heels if he wants to. Zoro was snapped out of his thoughts again by Luffy pressing a kiss to his lips. He looks into soft brown eyes that glow with light concern underneath as those cold lips move to speak, “Zoro’s thinking too hard again. Do we need to head home?” Zoro shook his head, “No, sorry sunshine. I’m okay. Skating makes me think a lot.” The concern transforms into curiosity, “What’s Zoro thinkin’ about?” He snorts with a shake of his head dislodging some of the snow caught in his green hair, “A lot. My mind is wandering everywhere. The most important thing I was thinking about was my family.”
Luffy starts tugging the swordsman towards the lake edge with a chuckle, “Old man Mihawk and Perona? Christmas is comin’ up. Wanna spend it with your folks this year?” Zoro gives an uncertain shrug, “I dunno. My old man is a little weird about having guests over. He loves hosting but he always has a scowl on his face and acts like it’s a big inconvenience.” His boyfriend smirks, “So, he’s like you when we hang out with all of our crew?” Zoro loudly groans and pushes his lover away. The smaller man knows damn well that he hates being compared to his adoptive father even though the grim man has had a major impact on him. Luffy’s smirk softens into a gentler smile, “So, that’s a yes?”
Zoro rolls his eyes, “Yeah, yeah, fine. We’ll go to my father’s house for Christmas. Better text the group about our plans.” They reach the edge of the lake and step off the ice. The pair sat down on the only bench nearby and took off their ice skates. Luffy takes out his phone to type out a quick message to the group chat. He put it back in his pocket even as multiple pings rang out in the cold winter air. Zoro takes the ice skates in one hand then his lover’s hand in his other. They walk down the path with the snow crunching beneath their feet. The opening song of 1931 Dracula, which was a song from Swan Lake, somehow fit perfectly with the icy environment around them.
Zoro cut off the classical music by answering his phone, “Hey, dad…no, I didn’t forget that Christmas is next month…you seriously want an answer to that now?” He glares lightly at Luffy who was stifling amused giggles behind thick gloves, “Yes, dad, I’m still here…yeah, me an’ Luffy will be there for Christmas…dad, no one says ‘and I’ when talking about themselves and someone else…no, I don’t care that it’s grammatically correct, it sounds weird…I’ll see you soon, bye dad.” Luffy sways their joined hands, “Sounds like Mihawk’s being Mihawk. Is he gonna ask when you plan on proposing again?” The reminder makes Zoro let out a long, loud groan. He already regrets agreeing. Now, he’s thinking about his dad harassing him about getting married and Perona trying to take all of Luffy’s attention for herself. But then a smaller hand squeezes his own and makes his chest warm. Maybe it won’t be too bad.