Archive of Our Own

Zoro braced one hand against the table in the galley, gripped his shoulder, rubbed it and craned his neck. After he’d placed Chopper upon it, the little guy had all but refused to climb down, and after a while all his bouncing, flailing, and excitement had caused muscle or joint soreness. It wasn’t possible he’d pulled something during the battle, nor during the sex, so it had to have been Chopper. Either way, he hadn’t begun to feel it until after everyone else had turned in. A little ache wasn’t enough to keep him up, but he still had training to do.

But first, to take some of the edge off, he was going to scrounge the galley for any spare alcohol that cook might’ve been hiding.

He got two steps toward the fridge in the dark before a light came on and he stopped, and realized he wasn’t walking toward the fridge, but instead the trash shoot.

“Zoro?” Luffy was whispering, and that could only mean he was also up to no good.

Zoro half-turned.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, but he only needed one guess.

Instead of responding, Luffy tip-toed across the space between them and when he reached Zoro grabbed onto his shoulders from behind like if he clung to Zoro he’d be safe from getting kicked if the cook caught him.

“Haven’t you already gotten in trouble once for stealing food this week?” Zoro asked.

“Yes, but this time I’m really hungry,” Luffy said, patting Zoro on the shoulder, “Sanji understands that better than anyone,” he walked around Zoro toward the pantry and picked up a banana, “but, also, what he doesn’t know can’t hurt him,” he spun it like a revolver and then pointed the brown end at Zoro, then stuck it in his pocket and entered the pantry.

Zoro figured there might be wine or something in there too, and decided to follow him.

“If I hadn’t killed that giant lizard, I might say something about rationing,” Zoro said as he entered, “but that jerky should keep us fed for weeks.”

Luffy was already taking things off the shelves, sniffing them, then taking a bite or a handful before putting the rest of it back.

“Tell me if you find any wine, or beer, or anything,” Zoro started sifting through labeled food items and spices for something that deserved his attention. A bottle behind some large glass containers of snack food drew his eye, and he reached between them. He grabbed the neck of the corked bottle and pulled it out.

“What is that?” Luffy came bumbling over and Zoro had to yank the bottle of his reach before he could finish reading the label.

“It’s not food,” Zoro knew this was all Luffy would need in order to leave him alone. The man was so handsy, but Zoro wasn’t sure he was fully aware of just how tactile he was. Even now, with his hand on Zoro’s shoulder and leaning some of his weight on it, Zoro could feel his thumb rotating against his shirt, as if it enjoyed the way the fabric felt.

Zoro rolled his eyes and bowed his head to look at the wine in his hand just as Luffy went to reach across him because he’d spotted something on the opposite side of where Zoro was standing, and had no sense of personal space. It was close enough that Zoro could smell his hair, which he might’ve recently washed with one of Nami’s soaps.

Just as Zoro discerned that he was holding a bottle of cooking oil, not wine, he heard the door to the pantry fall shut.

“Oh, shit, um…” Usopp’s voice and cough were obvious, “sorry, ha, I didn’t mean to interrupt, I—,” he pointed his thumb backward at the door then reached for the handle like he intended to leave immediately.

“Usopp!” Luffy released Zoro and left his personal bubble to greet the newcomer. Zoro put the oil back where it was. “We’re just here for a midnight snack.”

“If… that’s what you call it…” Usopp’s eyes were shifting between them.

“Do you want some too?”

“Um…” Usopp had gone deathly pale, and speechless, and Zoro was distracted by his search, but aware enough to find it odd.

“Here, this tastes amazing,” Luffy had taken a container of popcorn drizzled with chocolate off the shelf and offered it to Usopp.

“Oh, that’s what you meant, yeah,” Usopp said, “sure. I was just having trouble sleeping.”

“Looks like we all had the same idea,” Luffy tried to stick his hand in just as Usopp did but they both wouldn’t fit so Luffy frowned and his impatience waiting for Usopp to get a handful and get out of the way showed on his face. Once he’s shoved a massive fistful of popcorn into his mouth he was smiling again.

“Almost like we’re a crew,” he said with chipmunk cheeks.

“Yeah, well, don’t tell Sanji or Nami about this,” Usopp said, “Sanji’s anal about food inventory, and Nami’s anal about budget.”

“What’s anal?” Luffy asked. Zoro stifled a cough and it turned into quietly choking on his own spit.

“Uh…” Usopp sounded stunned again, which was peculiar. Zoro would have expected him to laugh at that.

“It’s when someone is… particular about stuff," Usopp answered. Zoro was side-eyeing them, and for some reason Usopp’s awkward gaze shifted to him.

“Next time I’ll just say particular,” he forced a lopsided grin and then was looking down, “well,” he focused his eyes on Luffy again, as if Luffy was the more comfortable one to acknowledge even though he’d been the one to ask the awkward question, “good night.”

Zoro didn’t get a chance to say a thing before Usopp had done what he did best, and fled the scene. Luffy was still holding the container and shoving handfuls of popcorn into his mouth.

“More for us,” he sauntered back over to Zoro.

“I told you I’m not here for food,” Zoro grumbled.

“I mean, no, you didn’t say that exactly,” Luffy examined what was left in the container as if contemplating if Sanji would notice some was missing. He definitely would, but Luffy’s expression made him seem confident he didn’t think he could tell.

“Whatever,” Zoro said, suddenly tired, “I’m tired of this, I’m going to bed.”

Luffy madę a sort of pouting face at him, but when Zoro ignored it and stalked toward the door with his hand rested on Kitetsu, he must’ve gotten over it because he said, “all right, good night! Hey, maybe we’ll be in Alabasta by the time we wake up!”

“Doubt it,” Zoro left the pantry and closed the door behind him. Something about all of that had been exhausting, and his desire for sleep now outweighed his desire for booze or physical exertion. He walked out of the galley and decided he was too tired to make it to bed, sat down against the wall next to the door, crossed his arms, and closed his eyes.

“Hey, Usopp, have you—,”

Zoro was trying to finish the question with “—seen my sword cleaning kit.” But he was cut off when Usopp jumped, released a squeak, and spilled tobasco all over his hand.

“Fuck!” He dropped the little ball he’d been filling with hot sauce in favor of grabbing a nearby dirty rag. “I had a cut there, what the hell Zoro!” He scowled while wiping the sauce off his hand.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” Zoro felt a little bad, “you’re the one who’s always so jumpy.”

Usopp scoffed, “I’m not always this jumpy,” he argued under his breath.

“What does that mean?” Zoro sneered, not actually caring that much, but Usopp hadn’t been making sense since last night, and it was getting annoying.

“Look, it’s just you and me here, so let’s get it all out on the table, maybe,” he gestured between them. Zoro didn’t like the sound of that and started inching backward. “I already suspected anyway, I wasn’t that surprised, but I feel like you should know that I know, maybe just to get it off my chest," he emphasized with a gesture to himself.

Zoro stopped inching when he became curious enough to.

“Know what?” He narrowed his eyes.

“I…” a pause, then a shrug, then a bashful bowing of his head, “...accidentally saw you with Dalton.”

Zoro’s mind was a train wreck for half a second.

“Accidentally?” Was what he decided to question.

“Well, yeah, I wasn’t gonna peak at that on purpose!” Usopp presented the idea as if it were absurd, following it with stuttered raspberry-like mouth noises.

“Forget you saw that,” Zoro said, darkly.

“Uh-huh, yeah, okay,” Usopp snorted, “do you have the ability to just erase things from your memory?”

“Yes.”

Usopp was quiet for a moment of incredulity, then relented, “somehow I actually believe that,” he let out an exasperated sigh, “look, it’s not like I have some problem with the men with men thing. Syrup Village was never like that, and like I said, I thought so anyway, it’s just the…” he shrugged, “you know…”

“What?” Zoro cocked his head.

“Well, isn’t he like, old…?” he trailed off.

“I told you to forget it,” Zoro stepped forward and hissed, “we’re never going to see him again anyway.”

“I mean, we might,” Usopp had the nerve to argue, “if we make it all the way around the grand line, find the One Piece, Chopper will probably want to go back to Drum Island to see his friends again…”

“That’s only on the off chance we all survive,” Zoro hoped it sounded like the threat he meant it to be.

He couldn’t tell either way, because all Usopp did was release and exasperated sigh. There was a moment of exhausted silence between them.

“I’ve never done… that… before,” Usopp finally confessed, and Zoro’s nostrils flared in disgust, not toward the confession but that the topic was being broached as if it were remotely welcome. “Maybe if I had I’d get the whole any port in a storm thing, and well, I’m only seventeen, and there’s Kaya, so…” Usopp was rambling on and on and all Zoro wanted now was to curl into a ball and die.

“What about those girls at Whiskey Peak?” He tried to keep the subject on Usopp’s sex life rather than his own, at least.

“When it started I figured maybe we’d just kiss and stuff, and if it got to be too much, I could just let Sanji handle the rest,” he shrugged, “also, I was a little drunk, and not really thinking straight,” he shrugged.

Zoro just nodded in understanding, not having anything more to say on the subject. More time passed than he realized while he stood there, considering the details of this conversation far more deeply than he liked.

“You and Luffy were pretty close in the pantry,” Usopp was mumbling so Zoro didn’t catch what he said at first, but when he did a shiver shot down his spine, “I guess I sort of already thought something was going on with you two…”

“Nothing is going on with us,” Zoro’s voice all but boomed, and he was glad he didn’t erupt with more, because as he spoke the door to the men’s quarters opened and Nami walked in. She stopped dead in her tracks looking at Zoro with a furrowed brow and a question in her eyes.

“Hey,” Usopp was quick to address her, calm and casual like they hadn’t been discussing anything untoward, “no girls allowed.”

Zoro had never been so grateful that Usopp could lie.

“Luffy mentioned he still had money in his pocket after Loguetown,” Nami announced, striding in, “I’m here to check his pants.”

Usopp went back to filling a little rubber casing with tobasco, Nami started rifling through the mess of clothes on Luffy’s hammock, and Zoro left the room, ending the unnerving conversation, hopefully for good.

“Going on with you and who?” Nami spoke these abhorrent words on a calm, clear, warm, sunny day, destroying any enjoyment or peace Zoro could have gotten from the weather.

“Huh?” Zoro played dumb.

“The other day, I just remembered I forgot to ask, you told Usopp nothing was going on.”

“Nothing was,” Zoro stayed calm, “it was a boring day,” he kicked a peanut shell that was on the deck by his feet.

“Uh-huh.”

Zoro wasn’t looking at her, but could hear the smirk in her voice and it made him want to flee. He was beginning to realize she was among the few people who could make him feel that way, always getting into his head like some kind of sea-witch.

“You know, Kaya told me nothing was going on with Usopp,” Nami fluffed the newspaper in her hands and raised her eyebrows accusingly.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Okay,” Nami said, seeming to concede with a shrug, and refocused her attention on the newspaper. “Vivi says there’s still a few days between us and Alabasta though. Now’s the time.”

Zoro snorted.

“Vivi,” he felt the perfect vengeance bubble to the surface of his clever, conniving mind. He looked her in the eye, and waited for her to look back at him before deadpanning: “now’s the time.”

He pushed away from the railing after getting a glimpse of her scandalized frown.

“That proves you knew what I was talking about,” she reminded him as he walked away, but he was confident enough it was more of a snail-mic drop than a retreat.

“I always thought orange and blue looked good together,” he called back, and got no response before he entered the men’s sleeping quarters. Thankfully, this time Usopp wasn’t in appropriating it as a workshop anymore. Instead Chopper was sitting on the newly installed hammock they’d set up for him, looking forlorn.

“Something wrong?” Zoro asked, because he could use a distraction.

Chopper swung gently in the hammock, “it’s a little big. I didn’t sleep very well last night,” he admitted, “it was like I was being swallowed by it.”

“You can’t sleep in your big form?”

“Then I’m too big,” Chopper rocked back and forth, “I guess I never really fit anywhere,” he forced a smile but there was pain behind it.

“You can share with one of us until we get a smaller one,” Zoro decided, “they have to make kid-sized ones, right?”

Chopper’s smile became more genuine and five times brighter, “right!” He affirmed. “Could I sleep in yours tonight?”

“Sure, I can sleep through anything.”

“That’s perfect! Thanks Zoro!”

It wasn’t unprecedented for Zoro to be the first one to start moving towards bed, provided he wasn’t on watch. As was not uncommon, he was the first one into the men’s sleeping quarters, but was followed by Chopper shortly after. He recalled their agreement from earlier that day, but it seemed Chopper might not have.

Zoro didn’t say anything at first, because they’d already come to the agreement so there was no need to discuss it further. Yet, when he started getting into his hammock, he noticed Chopper was headed to his own.

“Didn’t you say you wanted to sleep here?” Zoro asked.

“Oh!” Chopper feigned surprise, and like he’d forgot. Zoro suspected he’d really just expected that Zoro had forgotten. “Right, of course!” He looked relieved as he made his way over, and Zoro remained still to allow him control as he hopped up to get his front half in, then climbed the rest of the way in, hooves flailing for a moment right at the end.

Once inside the hammock, he shifted around for a few seconds, partially on top of Zoro and mostly in his armpit, then settled down with a contented sigh. 

No sooner did Zoro allow a small smile onto his face than did the door fly open, and in sauntered Luffy. The second he saw the two of them, he shouted:

“Slumber Party!” And was running toward them at full speed.

“Luffy, wait, don’t—,” it was too late, he’d run around the other side and was climbing into the hammock with them, “Luffy, hang on!” Zoro tried.

“Luffy, stop it! You weren’t invited!” Chopper flailed his little hooves at Luffy, who seemed to be concentrating too hard on squeezing in to notice the objections. It took mere seconds for him to worm his way into their little cuddle bundle, and unlike Chopper, he was lying almost entirely on top of Zoro.

“This is nice,” he tilted his head up to look at Zoro and grinned. Zoro tried hard not to lock eyes with him.

“You’re squishing my arm,” Zoro said, because that was his immediate concern, and it took his mind off the other thing,

“There’s no room anymore, Luffy!” Chopper objected again, and climbed out of the hammock in his discomfort. Once on the ground, he glowered at Luffy.

“Sure there is, we were all just in here,” Luffy shifted enough for Zoro to free his arm.

“We might all fit, but we’re not all going to be able to sleep,” Zoro argued, “Chopper was in here because he was having trouble sleeping, you don’t need to—,”

Zoro was cut off when the door opened again, and in walked the cook. He paused to observe, then furrowed his brow and tilted his head. It wasn’t until then that Zoro noticed Luffy’s face was inches from his, and his hand was resting on his chest, that he realized what this looked like.

“I’ll give you guys a minute to finish up…” Sanji said, and turned, and walked out, shaking his head as he went.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Zoro tried to jerk out from under Luffy but he was thoroughly pinned. When he looked back at Luffy it was supposed to be a scowl, but with Luffy looking back at him with a blank, sheepish expression and his mouth hanging open as if speechless, Zoro felt his tight expression loosen. He was waiting for some sort of apology, explanation, or maybe just a question about why this was a problem.

Somewhere along the way, Luffy closed his mouth but just kept staring at him, and Zoro’s eyes drifted down to his lips and heard his own breath hitch. He watched Luffy’s mouth open again either to speak or in a gasp and didn’t wait to decipher which.

“Get off me,” Zoro commanded, loudly to drown out the pounding in his chest.

“Zoro—,”

“Get off.”

Luffy scrambled to do as he was told now that Zoro had spoken more firmly. Zoro immediately rolled onto his side and subtly pulled down the front of his haramaki.

“Sorry,” he heard Luffy’s voice break. He swallowed the lump in his throat, and it took until his vision came back from the blur to notice Chopper was still in the room. His eyes were shifting between them, and he was backing away.

“It doesn’t matter, go to sleep,” Zoro muttered to Luffy and tried to pretend not to notice Chopper. He closed his eyes.

“Zoro…?” He heard Choppers little pleading voice a few seconds later.

“Yes, Chopper, you can still sleep here.”

Nami, Usopp, and the cook. Zoro didn’t have a strong grasp on how dangerous of a combination that was, until he was watching them chatting up by the galley railing from the main deck. Gossip-wise, that is.

He swore the cook had glanced at him at one juncture, and Nami’s playful grin after Usopp whispered something in her ear made him slouch into the wall behind him.

All three of them had voiced implications, all three of them suspected something, and not a single one of them knew the reality of the situation. That it was almost certainly one-sided, hopeless, and a pathetic distraction. Worst of all, the very fact that it made Zoro’s chest tight just to think about it like this.

Usopp had talked about it like it was already happening, Nami did like it was inevitable, and the cook reacted as if he wasn’t remotely surprised. None of them understood what it was like, especially not having to hear every judgement he passed upon himself or Luffy in Dracule Mihawk’s demeaning voice.

It would be a waste of both your time.

Zoro closed his eyes.

Especially his.

He tried to listen to the ocean.

You know where your potential worth lies, and at this rate you’re still eons from realizing it.

“Zoro,” Chopper’s voice nearby made him open his eyes. Zoro turned his head to see the little reindeer taking cautious steps toward him with his hooves folded in front of him, “are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” Zoro looked away, “I certainly don’t need a doctor.”

Chopper shrunk back, especially his ears. A few beats, and then: “what about a friend?” He asked, hopefully, and Zoro got the idea that Chopper needed Zoro to need him more than he needed it in that moment.

“Everyone’s talking about me,” Zoro grumbled, and it did help to get it off his chest.

Chopper looked over at the rest of the crew. “Do you think they’re saying bad stuff?” He asked. “Do you want me to listen in?”

A shiver ran down Zoro’s spine at the prospect of Chopper reporting everything they were saying to him. Considering he couldn’t cut any one of them to ribbons, he really didn’t want to know.

“No,” Zoro said, “but would you mind just sitting with me for a while?” The company might do him good.

“Um, okay,” after a moment of uncertainty, Chopper seemed happy to oblige, and settled down next to him. Zoro remained still, aware of Chopper trying to imitate his cross-legged pose but not having long enough legs, so settling for just sitting on his butt with them sprawled out.

It wasn’t sixty seconds before Chopper started to hum a little tune to himself. Instead of being an irritant, it made a little smile pull at Zoro’s lips, and he felt at least two percent better about the whole thing.

While the sun was setting, once he’d slept as much as anyone could, he took to looking out at the sea. The breeze was cool and the air less fishy than it had been mere hours ago, so it was refreshing enough to set him at ease.

Then he felt an arm wrap around his shoulders, a casual lean against his side, and a hand heartily patting his chest.

“How’s it going, Zo—,”

Zoro shrugged him off, hard, and moved a few inches left.

“—ro?” Luffy’s brow was furrowed in confusion. Zoro rolled his shoulders and focused his eyes out on the horizon. There was a period of silence until he could see from the corner of his eye that Luffy had crossed his arms and looked like he meant business.

“If you’re upset with me you’d better tell me why,” it sounded more like a command than a request.

“I’m not upset with you,” Zoro mumbled, feeling some guilt about his overreaction, “it’s just been a weird couple of days.”

“Anything I can help with?” He stepped forward again and put his hand on Zoro’s shoulder, only to have it shoved off. Luffy looked confused again, standing there, staring at the side of Zoro’s head, waiting for answers.

“Look, you can’t do stuff like that,” Zoro said, gripping the railing and focusing his attention out to sea, “it gives people the wrong idea.”

A pause.

“What idea does it give them?”

“Don’t act like you don’t know,” Zoro huffed, “I know you’re not stupid, not really, and everyone’s been…” he gripped tighter and pointedly looked in the opposite direction so he couldn’t see Luffy’s curious head tilt, “…and I’ve… been…”

Luffy’s silence in response was maddening. Zoro’s heart was pounding, and he didn’t enjoy talking about this at all. He was beginning to feel as if he should never have brought it up, he could have gotten the point across with body language, rather than having to say it out loud.

“What have you been?” Luffy asked this after too long of a pause, his tone even softer than before.

“…off,” Zoro found himself responding easily, “really, really off, in Drum Kingdom I…” Zoro leaned harder on his outstretched hands and shifted his weight, gaze drifting down to his feet, “…did something, and I didn’t even regret it until now. I don’t know why I do, regret is pointless.”

“So maybe you should let it go?” Luffy was trying to help.

“I’m trying!” Zoro spoke too harshly. “That’s the point, I’m trying to let it go, but you’re making it harder.”

“I’m making it harder to let go of what happened in Drum?”

“No! You’re the reason that happened, I—,” Zoro stopped short, and pulled away from the railing, “—or maybe not, I don’t know why, I just know that I wanted it to be you,” his voice cracked under the weight of the confession.

Luffy was quiet again. When Zoro finally looked at him, his expression was like he was desperately trying to interpret the things Zoro was saying and arrange them in a pattern that made any kind of sense. He had that blank, mouth open, eyes darting around look, everything but the sweat dripping down his temple.

“You really don’t have any clue?” Zoro realized.

Luffy just looked even more embarrassed and remained speechless.

Zoro couldn’t help it when his face broke out into a pained smile, and he looked away again. 

“It’s better that way,” he gave a solid nod, and retreated below decks to find a spot to nap in peace. “We’re fine, Luffy, don’t worry about it,” he called back as he went.

“Nami!” Luffy shouted as he entered Nami’s room, and it was the only announcement he gave. Nami’s eyes were huge as she stepped back from where she was leaning over Vivi who was seated the corner of the room.

“Luffy,” Nami looked only half as irritated as Zoro had earlier, so she was probably fine, “what do you want?”

“Do you know what Zoro did in the Drum Kingdom?” He asked.

Nami just looked more annoyed, and just as clueless.

“I think Usopp said he fought off Wapol’s deformed monster army with the rest of the town, why?” She said. Luffy looked at Vivi to see if she had more.

“That’s what I heard too,” Vivi shrugged, then added, “though I guess he took on the role of head of the guard for Dalton at some point when Dalton went after Wapol on his own.”

Luffy thought hard about this.

“What, are you concerned he didn’t contribute enough?” Nami said it like it was absurd, which was good because it was.

“Zoro said he did something he regretted in Drum, because he wished it was me,” he recounted the conversation, “if he was fighting that monster army, does that mean he wants to fight me?”

Nami stifled something like a laugh that came out as a snort and she covered her mouth and the smile that broke out across her face.

“What?”

“I think you’re on your own for this one, Captain,” Nami shook her head, “now get out of my room.”

Still confused but recalling something Makino had instilled in him about privacy, he nodded, straightened his hat, and left the room to find Usopp.

“Usopp!” Luffy spotted him on the far end of the upper deck, sitting cross legged on a blanket and looking down at something. “Wait, are you having a picnic?” He rushed up the stairs, holding his hat on when the wind caught it, but stopped at the top when he found Usopp surrounded by vials and herbs rather than food.

“No, just working,” he seemed focused.

“Do you know of anything Zoro did in Drum with someone else that he wanted to do with me?”

Dead silence, a gust of wind, and then Usopp’s cheeks puffed out like he was holding something in, and Luffy clocked it immediately.

“I don’t think it’s any of my business…” his awkward smile as he shook his head was even more damning. Luffy stamped over in two long strides, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, and lifted him off the ground.

“Tell me what it is,” Luffy demanded.

“What? No, no way, it is not part of my job description to have this conversation.”

“Tell me what he did in Drum!”

“No, I mean it, Luffy, put me down!” Usopp demanded, tugging at Luffy’s fingers to try to unfurl them from the fabric of his clothes. Luffy dropped him on command, though from a little higher than Usopp would have liked. When Usopp landed, he knocked over a vial of highly refined explosive powder.

“Damn it, Luffy,” he crouched immediately to gather it back up, “that whole thing is between you and Zoro, I’m not getting in the middle of it, so go talk to him about it.”

“I already tried,” Luffy was at the end of his rope, here.

“Well just don’t talk to me about it!”

Luffy backed away slowly, thinking about what to do next. Usopp’s final words gave him a last ditch idea.

“Sanji!”

“Evening, Captain,” Sanji shot him a smile from where he was sprinkling something colorful over something pink and frosted.

“Whoa!” Luffy ran to the countertop in the center of the galley. “Is any of that for me?”

Sanji shrugged, still focused on his work, “it was made with Nami in mind, but everyone gets a taste.”

“It looks amazing, is it done?” Luffy reached, and had his hand slapped.

“Not quite,” Sanji’s voice stayed calm despite the violent act. Luffy shook the negligible pain from his hand, and reminded himself why he was here.

“I’ve been asking everyone about Zoro,” he said, and Sanji gave a noncommittal nod, “no one seems to want to help me,” he lamented.

Sanji looked up mid-way through squeezing a piping bag of rose-colored frosting, “don’t they?” He seemed confused by that, which made Luffy feel hopeful.

“Yeah, everyone’s too busy, I guess,” he said, and Sanji looked busy, but he was also such a kind person, and easily a good enough cook to work and talk at the same time.

“Well, it is a sensitive topic,” Sanji shrugged, “but luckily, you’ve come to the right place.”

“I have?” Luffy beamed.

“Of course,” Sanji picked up a shaker of some kind, held it sideways, and started tapping it gently until blue glitter came twinkling out, “I mean, I’m a little more adept when the ladies are involved, but when it comes to matters of the heart…” Sanji sighed romantically, and shot him a smile. “Love is love, am I right?”

Luffy was quiet for a moment.

“Yeah,” a euphoric smile came over him, and he sat back into the swinging bench next to the table. He felt like he was having some kind of epiphany, or at least intense relief thanks to Sanji’s cooperation.

“So, tell me about it,” Sanji encouraged, “what’s wrong?”

“Well,” Luffy sighed, “Zoro won’t talk to me, and every time I touch him it’s like he’s grossed out by me or something. Last night I tried to sleep with him, and he acted like it was the worst thing ever.”

Sanji didn’t answer for a while, and when Luffy looked up, he could see that Sanji had stopped moving and was looking at Luffy with wide, surprised eyes.

“Okay, maybe this is a little much for me…” he muttered, then loudly cleared his throat.

“And he won’t tell me what’s wrong,” Luffy said, “he definitely tried to say something was wrong, but he wasn’t that clear about it, because you know, Zoro doesn’t talk that much but usually I get it anyway because he’s Zoro, and I get Zoro. Zoro isn’t complicated.”

“Right, and you don’t do complicated.”

“Exactly,” Luffy pointed at him, appreciating his understanding.

“Well, I hate to break it to you, Luffy, but these sorts of things are always complicated, whether you want it or not,” he said, “trust me, you can’t ignore that, or you’ll end up kicked to the curb before you know it.”

Luffy looked thoughtful.

“Mosshead’s no lady, but the way you’re talking about him reminds me of how it is with one,” he shrugged, “and love is always complicated.”

“You keep saying that,” Luffy cocked his head at him.

“That’s because it’s true.”

“No, not that, love,” Luffy highlighted, “you keep saying love.”

“Maybe it’s a strong word for some people, but it describes the feeling well enough, doesn't it?”

“I do love Zoro,” Luffy confirmed, “but I love you, and Usopp, and Nami and Chopper, and Vivi too, so why does that make a difference?”

Sanji was silent again, this time for longer.

“All right, now I’m the one who’s confused,” he started to work again, and still didn’t say anything for a long time. Luffy was becoming more and more distraught, thinking now that this was no more helpful than Nami or Usopp had been.

“I think you should talk to the mosshead about it,” Sanji finally said what Luffy didn’t want to hear.

“Everyone keeps saying that, but I already tried.”

“Try again,” Sanji advised. Luffy was still lost, but since Nami and Usopp had advised the same, he reasoned that maybe it was worth a shot, and took his leave.

***

“Z—,” Luffy didn’t call out, because he noticed at the last moment that Zoro was sleeping. He crept into the starboard storage compartment, where Zoro was leaned up against a crate in the dim light, legs and arms both crossed, head lulled back and to one side.

He wasn’t complicated while he was sleeping, so Luffy tried not to wake him at first, approaching slowly both to work out what he wanted to say, and also because he’d found he was enjoying looking at Zoro’s face while he slept. The soft frown on his lips, the fluttering behind his eyes, the slow movement of his chest and shoulders with every breath.

Luffy loomed over him and stared for a while, realizing all at once that maybe there was something complicated about Zoro even while he was asleep. Maybe Sanji was right, and there was no way around the complications. Maybe Luffy himself was the complication.

Luffy had seen cakes he thought were beautiful. White frosting, covered in flowers. When someone said that cake was beautiful, Luffy agreed. It was the only thing that had given him a solid understanding of the word for most of his life.

He hit his knees softly in front of Zoro.

He’d never found a person he thought was beautiful before. When he did, he’d always thought it was going to be a woman in an extravagant dress with massive hair and sparkles everywhere.

This was far from what he'd anticipated.

He carefully moved closer to Zoro, examining his face, his eyelashes and lips, lifting one of his knees to put it behind Zoro’s thigh, then the other one, so he was hovering over Zoro’s lap. He didn’t want to wake Zoro up, he just wanted to get as close as possible, to explore the feeling that made his chest pound and his stomach flutter.

Once he was close enough, he realized that there was a smell, too, and not one he was unfamiliar with. His logic reasoned that it just smelled like Zoro, but another part of him insisted that for that reason, he inhale it deeper, so he did.

He closed his eyes as a feeling washed over him, a memory of a desert courtyard, a satisfying battle, the fear of ultimate loss in Nami’s dim-lit room on the Merry, followed by a most cathartic relief. He relaxed into it, and his body relaxed too, eyes popping open when he realized he’d sat down in Zoro’s lap.

He looked down, saw Zoro twitch and start to stir, and all he could think was that Zoro was going to freak out or shout like he had the last however many times Luffy had touched him, so he grabbed Zoro’s head and held his hand over his mouth.

“It was an accident,” he said when Zoro opened his eyes, keeping his voice low and calm. Zoro looked alert at first, but then his expression turned into something more like confusion, so Luffy released him and allowed him to speak.

“What was?” Zoro’s voice was groggy instead of angry. “Why are you on me again?” Zoro asked this, but as he did Luffy felt the unexpected sensation of one of Zoro’s hands settling on his waist. Luffy looked down at it, and then so did Zoro, surprised like he hadn’t realized he’d done it.

Luffy looked into Zoro’s eyes but Zoro’s gaze was still focused on his own hand, and Luffy watched him swallow a lump in his throat. When he started to pull the hand away, Luffy grabbed it to stop him, pushing the palm firmly back to his own side and leaning in with the frenzied urge to have his mouth pressed up against Zoro’s mouth.

He was almost surprised when he didn’t miss, and Zoro didn’t turn away, and instead tilted his head up into it and made a sound that made Luffy’s heart beat at double it’s already increased rate.

“Luffy,” when Zoro whispered his name his heart could have exploded.

“Please don’t push me away anymore,” Luffy’s mouth stayed close to Zoro’s when he spoke, and his words were followed by another firm, desperate kiss which Zoro met in kind, “I think I want to be closer to you.”

The sound Zoro made was something like a helpless whimper, and Luffy’s hands started to wander. He knew about this stuff, more or less, he’d just never wanted it before. Now the appeal was hitting him all at once and he didn’t know how or where to stop, and why should he need to?

“Luffy,” Zoro said his name again, “we shouldn’t—,” he said this and Luffy hated it but he didn’t get to protest the absurd notion because Zoro had him by the waist and had pushed him onto his back with Luffy’s legs wrapped around his torso, still kissing him.

When Luffy felt vulnerable, is knee-jerk reaction was to fight for some level of control. He found Zoro’s shoulders with his hands and gripped them with intention to gently and strategically flip their positions. Zoro felt this right away though, and pulled back to grab both of Luffy’s wrists, and pin them down next to his head.

“So you do get it,” Zoro said to him, voice low and husky between heavy breaths. It made Luffy want to be touching him all over, but his hands were firmly restrained.

Luffy squirmed half-heartedly for some freedom.

“Uh, yeah, of course I did, the whole time,” he said, like it was obvious. Zoro smirked down at him in a way that made Luffy finally believe everything was all right between them again. Better than all right, with the way this situation was making him feel in his chest, gut, and everywhere else.

“Sure you did,” Zoro sounded like he didn’t believe him, smirking like he was all that. Luffy answered with a frustrated huff and struggled harder. He would have gotten the upper hand, too, if he hadn’t been weakened by a kiss. The softest touch of Zoro's lips, and he was sapped entirely.

When Zoro broke away from his lips to kiss down his cheek, jaw, and neck, Luffy took a deep breath, and on exhale he said, “you’re dangerous to me.”

He felt Zoro bury his nose in his neck and inhale, “yeah, you too.”