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Zoro sighed as he glanced down at his phone, waiting for his date to show up. No calls or texts about a change in plans, so maybe he should just go.
It wasn’t like he even wanted to go to the stupid school carnival. But Hiyori had asked him, and Perona answered yes before he could say no, and even Mihawk said it was good for him to take a break from kendo every now and then and do normal teenager things like dates and carnivals.
He wasn’t even into Hiyori like that, like how she was clearly into him, but it wasn’t like he was asking his own crush out any time soon.
Not that he had a crush or anything. He was above such nonsense.
“Zoro!”
He glanced up to see Hiyori running up the block towards him. She stopped in front of him to catch her breath, and Zoro noticed she'd done up her hair all fancy, with sparkles and everything as she said, “Sorry I'm so late!”
Zoro grimaced as he glanced down at the jeans and t-shirt under the green zip hoodie he always wore, and wondered if he perhaps should have put a little more effort into this.
Ah well. She knew what she was getting into when she asked him out.
When she caught her breath, she straightened and wrapped her arm around his, “Shall we go?”
Zoro grunted his assent, then let her lead him into the carnival.
The school carnival happened each year at the end of the summer, one last hurrah before it was time to get back to the drudgery of classes. Zoro had skipped it the last few years, but now he was going into his last year of high school. This being his last chance to actually go was probably why Mihawk and Perona were so insistent he attend.
It was a pretty decent carnival from what Zoro could gather, plenty of rides and games and food stalls spread out across the field. He wasn't particularly eager to go any which way, so he figured he'd just let Hiyori decide their itinerary. This was mostly for her anyway.
“What do you want to do first?” He asked her.
She glanced around to see what was there, and her eyes widened as she spotted something.
“Osome!” She grinned and called out, waving at another girl across the way, “You’re here too?”
Osome turned at the sound of her name, her date turning with her, and smiled wide when she caught sight of Hiyori and Zoro. She waved back and dragged her date over to them, and only then did Zoro realize she was here with Sanji Black.
He and Sanji had been in the same class since middle school, and they had been eternal rivals since day one. They fought constantly, always getting in each other’s hair and on each other’s nerves. Every day he was determined to defeat Sanji, and his heart sang whenever Sanji rose to his bait, came back at him and gave just as good as he got.
Perona said he had a crush on him, which was ridiculous. Zoro didn’t do crushes, okay? Sure, Sanji was pretty cute all things considered, silky blond hair that looked like spun gold, bright blue eyes reminiscent of the sky, a swirled eyebrow that only served to draw him in further, and a crooked smile that radiated sunshine whenever it appeared. And yeah, Zoro thought about the guy constantly — because he was annoying — and always wanted his attention on him no matter what else was going on, but that didn’t mean he was in love with him or anything.
“Mosshead,” Sanji’s grin grew sharp when he approached, “I didn’t know you’d be here, and escorting Hiyori of all people. I’m surprised you could find the place.”
“Right back at you, Curly,” Zoro smirked as he crossed his arms, “Did you have to bribe Osome to bring you?”
Sanji’s brow twitched, and Zoro’s grin grew, loving the heat he could feel in his gaze.
“We should all explore the carnival together,” Hiyori decided, her hands clasped in Osome’s, “It’ll be so much fun!”
“Oh!” A light dusting of pink coated Osome’s cheeks, her eyes darting from Hiyori to Sanji, “W-well, if that’s alright with you…”
“Of course it’s alright,” Sanji tore his eyes away from Zoro, his smile softening as he looked at Osome, “The more the merrier!”
Zoro pouted as he looked away, something hot and angry boiling up in him at the sight.
“Wonderful!” Hiyori beamed, wrapping her arm around Zoro’s once more, “Let’s go!”
They fell in step as they walked, the girls talking amongst themselves. Zoro met Sanji’s gaze over their heads, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smile.
Maybe this would be fun after all.
They eventually end up over by the game stalls. The noise was louder here, lots of beeping and buzzing from the games themselves, but also the shouts of joy and anguish from the players rang out all around them.
“What do you think?” Sanji beamed as he turned to Osome, “Shall I win you a prize?”
Osome giggled and blushed, turning her face away as she stuttered out, “O-oh yes, if you want…”
Zoro ground his teeth around the frustration building up within him, and snapped out, “Bet I can win more prizes than you.”
“Oh, Zoro!” Hiyori flushed at his side, “You really want to win me something?”
“Uh…” His gaze darted to her for a moment before he found Sanji’s again, “Sure.”
Sanji scoffed, “If you think you can win more prizes than me, that moss on your head has truly infected your brain.”
Zoro smirked, the thrilling fire of competition lighting him up to his bones, “You're on.”
He glanced around the stalls, looking for which game they could play that would best prove his dominance over Sanji once and for all.
“Step right up and test your strength!” A man standing in front of a giant scale shouted, “Fabulous prizes for anyone who proves they're the strongest!”
That would do.
Zoro nodded towards the game, “What do you think, Curly? Got what it takes to beat me there?”
Sanji scoffed, his smirk growing sharp as he followed after Zoro, “Oh, I've got more than enough to trounce you at that.”
They both approached the game, the girls hanging back a little and whispering to each other. The man running the game grinned as he offered them a mallet.
“Halfway up gets you a prize,” he explained as Sanji took the mallet, “Ring the bell at the top for the giant prize.”
Sanji cracked his knuckles, then lifted the mallet up on his shoulder, “Osome! Watch me win this for you!”
Osome giggled and blushed, making Zoro scowl harder, “Just get on with it, you Curly-browed moron.”
Sanji scoffed as he took a huge wind-up, then slammed the mallet down on the launcher pad. The scale went about two thirds of the way up into the section labeled ‘Mighty,’ setting off a series of lights and whistles as it came back down.
“Not bad!” The man nodded, “That nets you a medium prize.”
Sanji huffed as he passed the mallet to Zoro, taking the pink teddy bear from the prize rack. Before Zoro could taunt him for only getting a medium prize, he swirled over to Osome.
“Here you are, my dear,” he smiled as he handed her the bear, “A beautiful prize for such a lovely date!”
Osome blushed about as pink as the toy as she took it, stuttering out a, “Th-thank you so much!”
Zoro snarled as he turned back to the game, upset that Sanji was so distracted when he was about to defeat him.
He’d show him.
“Good luck, Zoro!” He heard Hiyori shout, but he was too focused on the task at hand to acknowledge it beyond a simple grunt.
He took a deep breath, summoning all his strength as he slammed the mallet against the launcher.
The scale went up and up and up, reaching its peak just short of the bell, but in the area labeled ‘Amazing.’ Much higher than Sanji’s though, which made him the winner.
Hiyori cheered again as the scale came back down, and the man nodded, “Nicely done! That gets you a big prize.”
“Uh.” Zoro glanced at the prizes, not sure which one to get.
Hiyori slipped past him, grabbing a large pink dragon stuffed animal and hugging it close, “I'll take this one!”
That worked too. It didn't matter what Zoro won, as long as he beat Sanji to get it.
Hiyori turned to him and beamed, “Thank you so much, Zoro. I-”
She was interrupted by the clang of a bell, and they all turned to see Sanji standing by the game again, the lights all the way at the top going off like crazy. Sanji’s foot was on the scale and his fiery blue eyes glaring at Zoro.
“Don't kick my game!” The game owner snapped at him, “And you have to use a mallet, that's the rules!”
“Any idiot can get there with a mallet,” he huffed as he removed his foot, “It takes real skill to get there with your own grit and guts.”
Zoro’s smirk sharpened to a deadly point. It was so on.
“You're not getting a prize for that,” the man grumbled as Zoro approached the game once more.
Before the game attendant could stop him, he reeled his fist back and punched down on the pad. The scale shot up quickly, striking the bell hard and piercing it, sending into the air as the launch pad collapsed to the ground, destroying the game in one fell swoop.
Zoro turned to Sanji and grinned, “Well? How about that?”
The girls gasped at the destruction, but Sanji just laughed, “Shit, Mosshead. You're a menace.”
“You're both menaces!” The game owner shouted as he shooed them away, “You have your prizes, go away and terrorize someone else before I ban you from the carnival!”
Before Zoro could respond, Hiyori grabbed his arm and was rushing him away from the broken game, bringing them to more of the game stalls.
“We still only won one prize each,” Sanji reminded him as he and Osome caught up, “We can't leave this on a tie.”
“I got it higher, so I won,” Zoro pointed out just to see Sanji glare, “But sure. I can kick your ass at another game.”
Sanji's scowl lit that fire in Zoro once more, and they made their way over to the next game.
They ended up breaking even on the games. For every one Zoro won, Sanji demanded a rematch and was victorious, forcing Zoro to call for a rematch in return. It was frustrating, it was thrilling, and Zoro would never get enough.
But there was only so much they could do with the prizes.
“Oh, uh, gee,” Hiyori's smile faltered a bit when Zoro offered her his newest win, a green stuffed tiger, “I am just so touched you keep winning these for me, but…”
She gestured at her bag, already overflowing with everything Zoro had won, “I just don't think there's room.”
Zoro frowned as he glanced down at the tiger. As a trophy of his victory he didn't want to just throw it out, but he knew he'd never hear the end of it from Perona if he brought something cute home with him.
He glanced over at Sanji, and an idea struck him.
“Here, Curls,” Zoro grinned as he offered him the tiger instead, “Something to remember how I'll always be better than you.”
“You’re such dick sometimes,” Sanji growled, but he did take the tiger, even giving it a little squeeze before he tucked it under his arm, holding it against his side.
Zoro flushed at that, his heart soaring at the idea of Sanji keeping something he gave him so close, of treasuring it.
He shook that thought out of his head as Sanji handed him a yellow duck plushie he'd won the game before, “Here.”
Zoro blinked, a little surprised by the offering since Osome had already refused it due to her bag being full, “What's this?”
“Something to keep you humble,” Sanji smirked and crossed his arms, “A reminder that I always win in the end.”
“Jackass,” Zoro mumbled as he slid the cute little duck into his hoodie pocket, knowing he'd keep it forever.
“I think we've had enough games,” Hiyori said as she wrapped her arm around Zoro’s once more, “Let's try something else now. Sound good?”
Osome and Sanji agreed, so Zoro grunted his assent as they went on their way.
After wandering around for a bit, the group started to get hungry, so their next stop was towards the food stalls.
Sanji scowled as the two of them waited in line to get food, and Zoro knew exactly what was bugging him, “Don’t tell me you’re above fried food.”
“Of course not,” Sanji scoffed, “Fried food is a staple cuisine around the world. What pisses me off when they don’t do anything with it but chuck some powdered sugar on it. It’s bland and full of empty calories.”
“But you’re buying it anyway.”
“Well.” He crossed his arms and huffed, “Osome asked me to. It’s only proper I get it for her.”
Zoro’s teasing smile fell at the mention of Sanji’s date, “Why’d you come here with her anyway? I didn’t think you guys were, you know,” he kicked a rock with the toe of his shoe, “together.”
“We’re not really,” Sanji clarified, making Zoro perk up, “She asked me, and I didn’t want to disappoint her by saying no.”
“I see,” the corner of Zoro’s mouth twitched.
“I’m surprised to see you here,” Sanji continued, his eyes darting away, “With Hiyori of all people. I didn’t even think you liked girls.”
“I don’t,” he scowled as he rubbed the back of his head, “But she asked me, and Mihawk and Perona wanted me to go out and be a teenager for once in my life. So here I am.”
“I see.” Sanji bit his lip as his brows furrowed, and Zoro wondered what it was that had him so deep in thought.
But they were next to order, so he put it out of his mind as they got their food and made their way back to where the girls were waiting at the picnic table.
Zoro handed Hiyori her snowcone as he dug into his corn dog and sat down across from her. Sanji handed Osome her funnel cake, then slid into the seat next to him with his pretzel, setting his tiger plushie on the table. His knee touched Zoro’s as he did, sending a little thrill through him, but Zoro didn't pull away.
“Zoro,” Hiyori’s voice pulled his attention away from Sanji tearing off a bite of his pretzel, instead turning his focus to her, “Would you like to share some of this?”
She held out the snowcone, really just a mound of frozen ice coated in colorful syrupy-sugar, and winced at the thought of something so sweet touching his tongue.
“No thanks,” he grumbled as he took another bite from his corn dog, “I don't like sweets.”
“Oh.” Hiyori deflated a little as she glanced down at her treat, “I see…”
“I’ll share it with you,” Osome said, her face tinted pink as she offered Hiyori her funnel cake, “We can split this too.”
Hiyori’s smile softened as Osome slid the funnel cake between them, “Yeah, that would be nice.”
Zoro glanced back to Sanji, who was watching the two of them eat with a frown on his face as he idly dipped a piece of his pretzel into a little thing of mustard.
He didn't like that Sanji’s attention was elsewhere when Zoro was right here. It wasn't right of him to ignore his rival.
Zoro took a huge bite from his corn dog and let out an exaggerated moan, “Wow, this is so good.”
Sanji immediately turned to glare at him, “What did you say?”
Zoro grinned, something in him singing at having Sanji’s full attention again, “I said it’s really good. Probably one of the best things I’ve ever eaten.”
Sanji growled as he leaned in closer, “I’ve made you restaurant quality meals seasoned to perfection, and you’re telling me you prefer some fried meat on a stick?”
“Maybe you should take notes,” Zoro laughed, “Next time try deep frying it and putting it on a stick.”
“That’s sacrilege.” Sanji hissed, “Disrespecting food in front of a chef. I could kill you for that."
Zoro raised a brow, “I’d like to see you try.”
Sanji’s leg was hot where it still pressed up against him, warming Zoro right to his core with its touch. Despite all the huffing and puffing, Sanji still hadn’t pulled away.
Zoro grinned, contentment settling over him now that Sanji’s full attention was on him and him alone.
Sanji leaned in, close enough for Zoro to smell the shampoo in his hair, and took a bite out of the corn dog.
“Hey!” Zoro snapped as Sanji pulled away with a grin, “What was that for?”
“You were raving about it so much,” Sanji chuckled as he swallowed the food, “I just had to see what all the fuss was about. As usual, your tastes leave much to be desired.”
Zoro clicked his tongue, his eyes darting to Sanji’s half eaten pretzel. His hand darted out to snag a bite for himself and popped it into his mouth.
Instead of yelling at him like he expected, Sanji just grinned and pushed it towards him, “You can have some. Here,” he nudged the mustard forward a little, “Try it with this too. You’ll like it.”
Zoro raised a brow, but took another piece and dipped it into the mustard as he was told. It wasn’t bad, tangy with just enough of a kick to make it interesting. Still, it had nothing on what Sanji made for him regularly.
Even so, he couldn’t admit that to his face, “Delicious. You could learn a thing or two from these guys.”
“Asshole,” Sanji growled, then sat up a little straight as he turned to Osome, “Oh! You can have some too, if you’d like.”
“I’m good!” She assured him with bright eyes and a wide smile, the snowcone held tight in her hand as Hiyori licked at the powdered sugar from the funnel cake on her fingers, “I’m glad you’re enjoying it.”
The corner of Sanji’s mouth twitched as he turned back to Zoro. Zoro just shrugged as he finished off the rest of the pretzel.
Under the table, Sanji’s leg still rested against his. Zoro pressed back against the warmth, a calm peace washing over him.
The four of them continued exploring the carnival, moving from stall to stall to see everything it had to offer.
As the day wore on, Zoro found himself more often than not drifting to Sanji’s side. Mostly to tease and and goad him into snapping back, but occasionally they fell into a comfortable silence as they walked next to each other.
Hiyori and Osome didn’t seem to mind, whispering and giggling to each other as they walked just a little ahead of them.
“Oh!” Hiyori perked up as she pointed at something, “We should ride the Ferris Wheel!”
Zoro’s gaze followed her finger to the giant wheel looming over the fairground.
“Yes!” Osome agreed as she held on to Hiyori’s arm, “It’s almost sunset. The view from the top should be just wonderful.”
“If that is what you want, then that is what we’ll do,” Sanji said to her with a grin, making Zoro roll his eyes.
They wait in the line for it, Hiyori and Osome chatting in the front while Zoro poked and prodded at Sanji until he got the explosive reaction he was looking for. With Sanji’s attention on him, nothing else in the world seemed to matter.
They were so busy arguing, it took them a moment to realize they were at the front of the line, and the girls had already boarded.
“Uh…” Sanji stepped forward as the ride attendant shut the carriage behind their dates.
“It’s only two to a car,” she explained as the ride started moving again, “You’ll have to wait for the next one.”
Sanji frowned as he stepped back, shooting Zoro a nervous look. Zoro just shrugged, “If they minded, they would’ve said something.”
“I guess so,” Sanji sighed, letting his hand fall into the space between them.
Zoro’s hand twitched as he let his fall too, his knuckles brushing against Sanji’s fingers.
When the next carriage arrived, the attendant opened the door to let the previous passengers out, then waved Zoro and Sanji over, “Okay, you’re up.”
Zoro let Sanji enter the car first. When he found a spot and settled down, Zoro slid in across from him, their knees knocking together. Sanji placed the stuffed tiger on his lap, and — not to be outdone — Zoro pulled out the little duck and put it on his knee.
Sanji smiled at the sight, his cheeks dusting just the right shade of pink to have him glowing.
The attendant shut the door, and the ride began moving.
The sun started setting as they made their way up, the dazzling rays of it bouncing off Sanji’s golden hair and making him shine even more.
Zoro felt something pleasant swoop in his stomach. He swallowed thickly and looked away, his face flushing.
They reached the top just as the sun was dipping below the horizon. The Ferris Wheel came to a stop then, allowing them a view of the carnival below and their little hometown beyond.
“Wow,” Sanji moved closer to the side to get a better view, “It’s beautiful up here.”
“Yeah,” Zoro said, his eyes going to Sanji once more, “It really is.”
Sanji hummed as he rested his arms on the side, and Zoro found he couldn’t look away.
“So,” Zoro said as he leaned against the side too, “Enjoying your date with Osome?”
Sanji winced, “I think I fucked that up severely.” He sighed, his gaze finding Zoro’s, “Spent pretty much all day bothering you.”
Zoro blushed, but he couldn’t find it in himself to be upset at stealing all of Sanji’s attention for himself.
“It was nice though,” Sanji smiled, not one of his usual sharp, teasing smiles, this one was softer, more open and honest, “I liked spending time with you like this.”
“What,” Zoro scoffed, “At each other’s throats?”
“Well, yeah,” Sanji laughed, “But just hanging out too, doing things together. It was nice.”
He turned towards Zoro, “Did you have fun?”
“I did,” Zoro admitted softly, scooching over a little so he could feel the warmth coming off of Sanji, the duck brushing up against the tiger as their knees bumped together, “I had a lot of fun today.”
Sanji hummed again, his hand sliding across the side of the car until it touched Zoro’s. When Zoro didn’t pull away from the contact, Sanji thread their fingers together. Zoro squeezed his hand, a thrill going through him at the touch, and he rubbed his thumb across Sanji’s knuckles.
Like this, in this moment, it was almost like he was on a date with Sanji instead.
They observed a comfortable silence for a moment until the wheel started up again, bringing them back down to earth.
Through it all, their hands stayed clasped together.
“Where are they?” Sanji growled as he looked frantically around, “Hiyori and Osome got on the ride ahead of us…they should be done already…”
Zoro glanced down at his phone, but saw no messages from Hiyori. The date had been her idea in the first place, where had she run off to?
Sanji rounded on him, his eyes wide and panicked, “What if they've been kidnapped?”
Zoro rolled his eyes as he returned his phone to his pocket, “They haven't been kidnapped.”
“They're cute girls,” he scowled at him, “Who wouldn't kidnap them?” He groaned and clenched the hand not holding the stuffed tiger in his hair, “We're their dates, we're supposed to protect them from this kind of thing.”
“What are you, a medieval knight sworn to defend their honor?” Zoro growled as he started walking, “They probably just wandered off while waiting. Let's at least look for them before jumping to conclusions.”
Sanji snatched his wrist and tugged hard, “Don't really need to look for them back at the ride, Lost Moss.”
Zoro growled, but easily followed Sanji’s lead, enjoying the warmth of his hand on his skin.
As they made their way back through the carnival, Sanji began frantically shouting, “Osome? Hiyori? Where are you?”
Zoro swiveled his head to and fro, keeping his eyes peeled for them.
Movement caught his attention from behind a darkened lemonade stand. Zoro tugged his wrist to get Sanji to stop, then nodded towards the stand.
Sanji rushed forward to look for himself, then stopped suddenly, his eyes going wide and his face flushing a brilliant pink.
More curious now to see what had him startled, Zoro came up behind him, his mouth falling open at the sight.
Hiyori and Osome were there, their lips locked together in a heated kiss. Hiyori had a hand possessively on Osome’s waist, while Osome’s were clutched on Hiyori's shoulders as if her world would crumble if she lost contact. The two were so lost in each other they didn't even notice them, completely blind to the rest of the world outside of the kiss.
Zoro turned to give them privacy, but paused when he saw Sanji still watching, his face redder than a tomato as he stared at them with unblinking eyes.
Zoro rolled his eyes as he snatched Sanji’s wrist, “C’mon, ero cook. They're fine, leave them alone.”
Sanji made a sound like a dying fish as he rounded on Zoro, “I wasn't…I would never…”
“Uh-huh,” Zoro smirked as he pulled him along, “Sure you weren't.”
Sanji growled, but he slipped his hand into Zoro’s to hold it properly as they continued on together.
Realizing he should probably be polite about this, Zoro took out his phone and texted Hiyori: Continuing with Sanji. Have fun with Osome.
Just before he slipped it back into his pocket, he caught her response: Have fun 🤭
He grinned, and continued through the carnival with Sanji.
This was better than the competition, he decided. Besting Sanji in everything they did was its own reward, but being with him, having fun with him, having his whole and undivided attention without having to badger him for it, that was even better.
Zoro never wanted the night to end.
“You know, Mosshead,” Sanji said after a while, “As far as dates go, this hasn't been so bad.”
“Really?” Zoro smiled wide as he gave Sanji’s hand a sure squeeze, “I'll be sure to make the next one even better.”
“Idiot,” Sanji muttered, but his cheeks were pink as he leaned in and kissed his cheek, making Zoro’s heart flutter in his chest, feeling on top of the world with Sanji by his side, “You better.”