An unexpected kick in the head and he fell face down into the muddy ground. Deserved, there were surely a few things he shouldn't have said during the past few hours. Grumpily he propped himself up on his palms, his eyes squeezed shut to keep the mud out of his eyes while he was moving up into a sitting position. There was laughter at his left, it rang in his ears like his alarm clock and only added up to his mood. He tried to wipe the dirt off his face but he only seemed to spread it more over his eyelids that he didn't dare to open. Stupid blondie and his kicks, he should learn to sense them coming so he could dodge them in the future.
The laughter died down when he sighed in despair, unsure what to do about his dirty face. He could feel that his whole shirt was covered in mud, so wiping his face with his sleeve was no option either. "Idiot, you're making it worse. Lemme do it." His friend's voice came closer to his ears, still carrying amusement in its undertone but it felt soothing nonetheless. Something soft and dry touched his eyelids and the sticky cold mud was wiped off his skin in smooth but efficient strokes, making him able to open his eyes without trouble. Into his vision came the face of his best friend, his soaked blonde hair clutching his face, his pale blue eyes shining like the sky in summer and his rosy lips curled up into a smile. For him, this face meant sunshine even in the darkest and rainiest hours of the day.
"Your clothes are all dirty! Your dad will be soooo mad at you!" the blonde boy giggled and straightened up again. He was safe in his blue raincoat; it protected his clothes from getting wet and muddy altogether and was also warm and cozy. When he had arrived at the other boy's doorstep, he had advised him to put on boots and raincoat as well but the stupid marimo had known it all better and insisted on going in just his jeans and sweatshirt.
His smile was replaced with a deep frown. He had a point there, his father would scold him for ruining his clothes and he would end up doing his big sister's chores as well. "Because you had to shove me!" he defended himself with pride but the sound of his voice couldn't hide the tears welling up in his eyes. If he was lucky, he would just get grounded for one week.
The blonde boy cocked his head to the side and put things together in his head. With Zoro's clothes ruined, the boy would get twice as much chores to do at home and possibly be grounded for the next few days, meaning they couldn't play together. "Oh no, I got us both into trouble, right?" he sighed and hung his head low.
"It's okay," Zoro shook his head; he hated to see his best friend sad like this. "The clothes are old anyway. And you can still say that we need to study for school."
"We did that last time." The idea didn't make him feel much better about it. "I tell your dad that I shoved you that way you won't get into trouble."
"But then you'll get into trouble," Zoro said as he stood up and cleaned in his hands on the hanky Sanji was handing him. The mud didn't go off his clothes though, all the wiping did was working it deeper into the already damp fabric. Thanks to the rain his clothes were soaking wet anyway, they stuck to his body like a second skin and along with the cold wind blowing he was freezing to the bone.
"Let's go home. You need a bath and something dry to put on." Smiling warmly, Sanji took his friend's hand as they set off to their homes. They would figured something out spontaneously he hoped, even though he was still aiming for taking the blame himself.
Releasing a heavy sigh, he parted his eyes from the framed photograph sitting on his desk. He settled his concentration back onto the stack of paper he was working on and that would be due to tomorrow. Even though he could take his work home, he knew he wouldn't get to work anyway and so he usually tried to fit such tasks into the few free hours he had during the week. Those free hours were rare, they were missing half of the teachers staff which made him the teacher of five classes at once in three different subjects. Additionally he was one of the three tutors of the juniors who were currently in internships for six weeks and much to his misfortune, the students he was assigned to were quite troublesome.
At the end of the day he couldn't say he hated his job. He had graduated over a year ago and was now in his second year at this high school, teaching physics, math and PE. The students were overall great, some of them were troublemakers but nothing he couldn't handle. His colleagues were nice as well, he was friends with two of them and he could also count the principal to that list. The whole atmosphere in this school made up for the tons of work he had to endure and the little time he had left for his boyfriend and social life.
Knocking on the door interrupted his train of thoughts on the test he was currently working through, he put his glasses down and called to the person to come in. The door opened immediately and one of his students burst into the classroom, then turned towards someone outside in the corridor whom he was obviously trying get to step inside as well. When the person didn't walk, the boy sighed and turned towards his teacher.
"Zoro, Chopper's unhappy with his internship," the boy spoke casually, holding the door open for his friend. The other boy was hesitant to enter, he had been talked into coming here and still wasn't sure if it had been the right thing to do.
Sighing heavily, the teacher brushed through his short greenish hair and closed his eyes for a moment. "Luffy, how many times have I told you not to call me by my first name in school?" He knew it was useless to ask, the boy would never learn to separate school from their private life. Putting the test and pen aside, he got up from his chair and walked around his desk, hopped onto it and looked at the other boy in the doorway. His name was Chopper, he was in all his classes and despite being a junior, friends with Luffy who was already in his last year of high school. "What's the problem you're having, Chopper?"
The boy looked from his friend to his tutor and back, unsure if he should really come clean or not. But Luffy had been so caring and insisted on him talking to his teacher and he didn't want to let him down. He tugged his dark blonde hair behind his ear, entered the classroom so Luffy could close the door and quietly started to talk. "I really like my internship and I want to continue but there's this cook and he's...," he paused to search for the perfect word to describe the man's personality without sounding rude.
"Oh hang on, you're..." Zoro turned around towards his folder for the internships and quickly flipped through the files. "Ah, you got that spot at the Baratie. I know most of the cooks and waiters there and I thought you would have a good time. So what's the matter?"
"I like it there! My boss is a fine man and he's very nice and everyone else is too!" Chopper rambled, feeling his confidence fading away again. "It's just... just... there's this man, he started working there again two days ago and he's the sous-chef and he... I have to work with him now and he yells at me for everything and makes me scrub the floor all the time... all I get to do is cleaning."
Zoro's facial expression grew darker the longer he listened to the student's words. He knew who that person was, and he knew he didn't like where this was leading. "I guess I know who," he grumbled and slid off his desk, making the young student flinch back a bit. "Thanks for bringing him here, Luffy. We're heading over right away and I'll have a talk with your boss, Chopper."
"See, I told you, Zoro's gonna fix it!" Luffy beamed at his friend and hugged him tightly, then turned back to the teacher packing his bag. "You gonna pick me up from school later? Bro's working late again."
"Yes, I know. He does talk to me about such things," Zoro shot back, he couldn't ignore the feeling that Luffy enjoyed to show off that his big brother and he were a couple. "I'll try to be there on time, just wait outside as usual."
"Ay, ay!" The raven boy waved at him one last time and left the room in a jog, leaving the teacher and other student alone.
Uncomfortable silence settled between them, the shuffling and shifting of Zoro packing his bag and cleaning his desk was the only noise filling the room. The boy standing at the door didn't move an inch from his spot, his head was hung low as he watched his tutor through his bangs, unsure if he was supposed to say something. They remained silent though, all the way from the classroom to the parking lot, and only stopped at the staff room so Zoro could excuse himself and his student from class for the rest of the day. The encouraging and soft smiles Zoro was offering the teen didn't really work their magic and so he decided to break the silence between them as soon as they were sitting in his car and driving to the restaurant.
Judging from his posture, the young student was ashamed to have mentioned his trouble with his workplace. Zoro had already noticed that sort of behavior during the classes and he usually tried to make the boy feel better about himself but it never really worked. Chopper was very insecure about himself and pretty much used all his energy on not causing any trouble or inconveniences. He was so absorbed in keeping himself hidden in the shadows and out of any risky things that he forgot about himself and his interests. In sports, Zoro would label him as defensive player, inflexible and unable to be offensive when needed. But that was about to change.
"It's okay to talk to someone when you're uncomfortable with something, Chopper. It's courageous to walk up to someone and tell them what you're feeling, even if it means to point out their mistakes. You need to learn to stand up for yourself, Luffy can't always be there for you." He quickly smiled at the teen on the passenger's seat, it bothered him to have this conversation right now and not face-to-face but he wanted him to feel better before they'd reach the Baratie.
"It was smart to come to me first though. We'll have a talk with your boss about that new co-worker and from then on, you should be able to talk to your boss on your own in case that new person doesn't stop mistreating you," he continued, "The school and your boss agreed on certain terms before you started your internship and everyone at your workplace is supposed to live by those terms. If they don't, you have to tell someone so we can fix this problem. It's kind of breaking rules and that usually doesn't go without consequences."
"I know...," Chopper nodded, kneading his hands in his lap, "I think that he doesn't mean to mistreat me, sir. Whatever he tells me to do is something that has to be done and someone has to do it."
Luckily Zoro drove them to the restaurant's parking lot without any trouble and stopped the car at his usual spot. He unbuckled himself, turned around to grab his bag from the backseat and then towards his student. "Of course, someone has to scrub the floor, and it's definitely okay for you to do it but not all the time, Chopper. And it's not okay to be yelled at all the time. That's not what I agreed on with your boss."
They exited the car in silence and walked up to the front entrance next to each other. Before entering, Zoro made sure to smooth out any wrinkles of his dress jacket, brush the last crumbles of his breakfast off his black jeans and turned to his protégé one last time. The teen was pale and trembling from nervousness in contrast to the frown on his features, as if he was convincing himself that he would be fine.
With a soft smile, Zoro ruffled his hair affectionately and said, "You will be fine. Whatever happens, don't back down. Don't let him take the upper-hand, you have every right to voice out your complaints about his treatment. You're a good student and I haven't heard anything contrary from your boss yet either. There's really nothing to worry about, okay?"
The expression of pure insecurity on the teen's face was replaced by determination, he nodded with his head held up high and made his tutor smile even wider. Together they entered the restaurant, Chopper occasionally bumped into his side as he tried to stay as close to his teacher as possible. He had seen the new cook kicking one of the waiters into a wall just yesterday and had no intention of ending up on the same spot for bringing his tutor to this place. Part of him knew he would end up getting yelled at again anyway as soon as Mr. Roronoa would leave but he still hoped that his teacher could work something out for him.
It was still very empty, only the usual guests were dining in their usual spots, most of them being businessmen from across the street on their lunch break. Zoro guided them straight towards the back, greeting some of the waiters on his way to the kitchen. He had always loved the way they welcomed him here, even after all those years, as if he was family to them. The same treatment was used for his boyfriend and said one's little brother, even though latter's manners usually brought them into trouble. Whenever Luffy was with them, they weren't allowed to sit in the public area of the restaurant but had to dine on the little back porch, hidden from the diners' eyes.
As he reached the huge swinging doors towards the kitchen, Zoro bumped into Patty who was carrying a few plates and looked displeased about something. It took him a few seconds to really recognise Zoro, the smile on his lips growing in stages. "Zoro! Good to see you!" He bowed down instead of petting him on the shoulder and did the same to Chopper as well, "I see, you're not here for food. Hey there, lil' bud."
"No, though I wouldn't mind a plate of that delicious risotto you're holding there," Zoro chuckled politely and rested a hand on his student's shoulder when the teen scooted closer, "Where can I find Zeff? There's something your intern and I have to talk about with him."
The cheerful expression on the cook's face grew darker in an instant and Zoro understood that the blue-haired man knew exactly what he meant. "I see... he's not here. There's a huge event over at the bank and he's taking care of the catering. But you might want to talk to the devil himself instead... he's out on the porch."
Zoro sighed, it was exactly what he had wanted to avoid. "Fine... thanks. Can you prepare some takeaway for me for dinner? I'll get it once I'm done here. Just make whatever you feel like, you know what we like." The cook nodded with a smile, happy to be entrusted with that order and set off to serve food in a better mood.
Sighing again, Zoro brushed through his short green hair, thinking about what to do. They had to pull this through no matter what, he couldn't let Chopper down now and have that arrogant idiot humiliate him further. Gently he pulled Chopper aside so they wouldn't block the way to the kitchen and sat down with him at a table in the corner. The boy had become nervous again, his face was pale and his eyes slightly widened as if he was in panic. "Okay, we have two options and I leave the choice up to you. Either we'll wait for your boss to return which could be in hours or we'll talk to the responsible person face-to-face and confront them with your problem. Whatever you choose, I'm right there to help you and step in, okay? If we talk to him now, you're done with that and you can be proud of yourself for being so self-confident and standing up for yourself. We can talk to your boss later on nonetheless," Zoro offered in a soft voice.
The boy nodded, his head hanging low and his shoulders dropped again but Zoro knew he was considering the two options. After some time of weighing out what would be the best, Chopper looked up to his teacher with a determined expression adorning his features and said, "I want to do it now."
"That's the spirit!" Zoro smiled broadly at him and ruffled his hair again. He laughed when Chopper glared at him and straightened his messed up hair again, it just reminded him too much of his boyfriend. Side by side they walked back towards the heavy doors leading to the kitchen and stepped into the chaotic room of steam, smell of food and cooks rushing from one side to the other. They were both too familiar with the scenery as to be intimidated by it and worked their way through the counters and cooks towards the next door leading to a corridor. It lead to several other rooms as well to a second floor and to the little back porch on which he and the brothers usually ate together. The sliding doors were open, revealing the back of a suited man leaning over the balustrade just a few steps away from them. It made Zoro feel slightly uneasy himself, in a matter of seconds he felt a dozen of different emotions crashing down on him but he forced himself to push them aside for now; he could still sort them out later. This was about Chopper and not him, he had to be strong for his protégé now.
When they reached the porch, the teen couldn't help but hide a little behind his tutor when said one knocked on the doorframe to announce their arrival. The blonde man turned around wearing an expression of confusion and surprise, a swift spring breeze blew through the bangs covering half of his face as he looked his visitors over. His gaze moved from their intern to the larger man next to him, obviously the protector of the little boy judging from the way he hid behind him. A little triumphant smirk crawled onto his lips at the sight of their intern, he'd probably whined about the hard work at the restaurant and brought his brother to help him sort this out. Turning his gaze away again, he took a few drags of his cigarette and waited for the larger man to speak up, he hadn't really paid much attention to him yet, the sight of the scared out kid was just pleasantly amusing.
"I heard you're disregarding the terms of the internship contract and are mistreating my student." Zoro kept his voice steady and calm, it was hard to not jump at the other man's throat.
The blond turned to look at him in surprise, his eyes wide for a moment in which his mind comprehended the sight in front of him. But the green hair, the thin lips and those almost golden eyes only belonged to one person he had ever known, there was no doubt about it. "You? What are you doing here?"
"Don't change the subject. Is there anything you have to say about the way you're treating my student?" Zoro glared at him through his glasses, luckily unnoticed by Chopper.
"Oh, did he cry about it? I knew he was a spoiled little brat. I don't get how the old geezer can put up with a piece of shit like him." Sanji laughed arrogantly and took another drag from his cigarette.
If it weren't for the teen watching them and clinging onto his pants leg, Zoro would be punching some common sense into the other man. Instead he forced himself to stay calm and spoke in a firm voice, pressing each word. "I dare you to use that kind of foul language in front of my students."
"And do what? Threaten me with detention? Look at you... teacher, huh? Doesn't suit you at all." Sanji tilted his head back to release some of the smoke and suck at the butt again. He had heard about his old friend's new profession from his father but didn't want to believe it at all. Though, thinking about it, he had always been prude and fancied a boring lifestyle.
"How dare you to talk bad about Mr. Roronoa! He's the best teacher at our school!" Chopper had finally found the courage to step in front of his tutor and defend him, the insulting words of his second boss had provoked him to speak up. The sous-chef's head turned towards him, eyes narrowed at the high schooler, waiting for him to continue. "He's the funniest and nicest teacher I've ever had. There's no one at our school who doesn't like him and I am happy to be his student."
The young student's words made Zoro smile and well up with pride. He had obviously gotten through to the boy and inspired him so much that he had found the courage to disagree with the one person he feared. Not to mention the surprised look on Sanji's face, he hadn't expected anything like that to happen and quickly grew annoyed by the embarrassment.
Straightening up, Sanji ditched his cigarette in the ashtray and turned to glare at the intern. "You'll regret that. Kids have no permission to talk when adults are in a conversation."
Zoro folded his arms in front of his chest. "He's not a kid anymore and besides, this is his conversation, not mine. He's free to talk and say whatever is on his mind."
"Oh, is that so? Then let's see if the crybaby has the balls to tell me what he's upset about!" Sanji settled on glaring the boy down, partly to prove his point that the kid wasn't self-confident enough to stand his own ground.
Feeling intimidated by the blond's stare, Chopper stepped back a bit but didn't allow himself to look away. He had to stand up for himself, now or never. "I... I'm no kid and I'm not spoiled. I-I don't mind help cleaning but... before I didn't have to do it all alone. I don't like how you talk to me and I don't like being yelled at, sir."
"Oh geez, they really spoiled you," Sanji shook his head in disbelief, "See, you're not getting anywhere with that sort of treatment. Life doesn't offer you your favorite jobs on a silver plate. And what do you think am I supposed to do, I can't have the other cooks clean the floor because you know why? THEY'RE COOKS, NOT CLEANERS! YOU want to work here? Then you have to put up with the fact that you're just some little intern who's only good for cleaning. Oh wait... you are even too stupid for that!"
"Hey, keep it down, Sanji!" Zoro frowned at him and stepped between him and his protégé. "I really have no idea what's wrong with you and I really don't want to know. But I suggest you let your temper out on someone else and not on Chopper who by the way is doing all he can to live up to the Baratie's standards. He's a remarkable student and I have been talking to everyone here over the past week to keep track on his development and no one so far has ever complained about him but you!" He rested a hand on Chopper's shoulder and pushed him gently inside. "I will talk to Zeff about this tomorrow and we'll figure something out. If you don't change your behavior towards my student, I'll have Chopper switch to another place and note down that we're not sending any interns to this place ever again. It would be sad and surely creating some sort of bad reputation but you seem to be able to afford it."
They left the restaurant in silence again, each of them in their own little pool of thoughts. Patty had apologized for his sous-chef's outburst and prepared a little lunch bag for the teen as well to cheer the boy up at least a little. When they reached Zoro's car, he put the bags of his own dinner onto the back seat, trusting Patty's skills to seal the food into cartons that would withstand his driving style, and turned to Chopper behind him.
"You're excused from school for the rest of the day. Want me to drive you home?" He knew the boy lived outside of town and usually had a long way home even though he was taking the bus.
"I appreciate the offer, sir, but you've done enough for me for today," the teen declined politely with an honest smile on his lips.
"You're too kind, Chopper," Zoro chuckled and ruffled the dark blonde hair again, "Now get in, I'll drive you home."
The TV was on, showing some ridiculous contest show, with two pairs of eyes glue to the screen while their owners blindly shovelled food into their mouths. Though this was the usual sight, Zoro found himself annoyed by it each time again; the stupid TV was running from the second on one of the brothers entered the room till the very last minute before bedtime. It wouldn't be as annoying if they wouldn't block out the world around them while they were sitting in front of it, and if it wouldn't lead to Luffy ignoring his homework. He had given up on making him help around the house, Luffy had a talent for breaking everything he ever got into his hands and Zoro really had no intention of buying a new set of plates every other day. It was enough for him if the troublemaker would study for school and do his homework but that was wishful thinking as well.
Usually Zoro didn't bother to start any conversation during meals, anything he could possibly say would be drowned out by the TV anyway and he wasn't fond of wasting energy by talking to himself. He knew that his boyfriend was indeed interested in hearing him talk about his day but even he was so addicted to the stupid television that he never asked him about it either.
Today though, Zoro couldn't keep to himself what had happened earlier and he intently hoped it was interesting enough to earn his boyfriend's attention. "You know I was at Zeff's tod-"
"Oh, how did it go with Chopper?" Luffy interrupted him, that question had apparently burnt on his tongue but he had forgotten about it over the food and TV.
Zoro glared at him for interrupting his speech but was relieved and grateful to have at least Luffy's attention. His boyfriend's head turned towards him as well, surprised that anyone but the showmaster was talking. "Luffy brought him to me today, that little guy has some serious problems at his workplace," Zoro explained, "He's an intern at the Baratie and he was doing good according to Zeff and everybody else but there's someone disagreeing."
"I hope you kicked that guy's ass!" Luffy's face turned serious as he continued, "When Chopper told me what that guy makes him do and that he yells at him, I wanted to punch his face personally."
"Trust me, I was close to do the same," Zoro said, his expression darkening when the memories of his encounter with the sous-chef flashed up before his eyes, "But that would've brought us all into trouble."
"Who are you talking about?" Ace looked from his little brother to his boyfriend and back, the way they seemed to mentally kill someone made him feel a little uneasy.
"Well, I took Chopper to the restaurant and wanted to talk to Zeff since he is Chopper's boss and it's against the rules of the contract that any intern gets yelled at, insulted or otherwise mistreated. Everyone there thinks that Chopper is a kind and dedicated guy, it's just that certain person who started working there about two days ago. Since Zeff wasn't there, I got to talk to that person myself and... guess who's back in town." Zoro leaned back in his chair next to Ace and watched him figuring out whom he could be referring to.
It didn't take the older man long though. "You mean... Sanji's back? Wasn't he like in England or whatever? I thought he never wanted to come back. I hoped he wouldn't," Ace grimaced disgustedly, oh how he couldn't stand that narcissistic macho with his stupid eyebrows and his annoying pick up lines.
"Me too, I thought I would never have to see him again. And now I have to deal with him at work, that's even worse. I can't punch that smug grin out of his face while I'm on duty," Zoro growled and reached for his can of soda. "I bet you can guess how uncooperative he was when I confronted him with Chopper's problems. He was so fucking indiscreetly, you should've seen how frightened that little guy was!"
"So what will happen?" Luffy asked and popped the last bite of his burger into his mouth.
"I'm going to talk to Zeff tomorrow, maybe he can rearrange Sanji's shifts so that he doesn't get to work with Chopper. I know for sure that Sanji won't stop treating Chopper like shit so it's better they don't meet again," Zoro answered calmly.
"Did he say anything to you? I remember he gets personal very quickly," Ace threw in, turning in his seat to have a better view on his boyfriend.
"Yeah, he had this mocking tone again and said the job wouldn't suit me. He wasn't taking me seriously at all," Zoro confirmed, "His choice of words was so inappropriate and unprofessional, not to mention his behavior. You don't believe how hard it was to stay calm when all I wanted was to beat him all the back to England."
"Oh geez, I would've helped out!" Ace laughed and nudged his lover's shoulder. "You know I won't be able to resist when I see him. That asshole deserves to get his scrawny ass kicked."
"I bet the old geezer does that already!" Luffy joined in his brother's laughter, he knew too well what happened when you got on the chef's nerves. From his big brother's stories he also knew quite a lot about that Sanji-guy, especially what he had done to Zoro.
"I hope so," Zoro smirked, "I'll make sure to choose my words wisely to give Zeff enough reasons to beat the shit out of Sanji."
"Don't forget to take a video for me." Ace got up from his chair and leaned over to collect their plates, doing the dishes was his task today. He ruffled his lover's hair and slapped his little brother in the neck before heading off into the kitchen to clean.
Luffy threw his brother's retreating back a 'what was that for?' look, dropped the subject quickly though and focused back on the TV. The show was over by now and some anime was on, not that Luffy was interested in it but that never matter to him, he would watch TV nonetheless.
"Hey, don't you have homework to do?" Zoro wasn't Luffy's teacher, thankfully, still he knew when the teenager had to do homework and after all, it was his responsibility to make him do it.
"Hmm, yeah." He didn't move or even look at the older man though.
"I hope you're aware that Nami could easily find another boyfriend who doesn't need to copy her homework each time," Zoro remarked and took another sip from his soda. "Girls don't like to do all the work, especially not someone like her."
"You mean she would go out with someone else?" Luffy stared at him in shock, still hoping his friend was only fooling him.
"Sure. Someone who sees more in her than the homework to copy from," Zoro said with a nod, "All you ever want from her is her homework, if I was her I would look for someone else."
The teen's eyes widened even more while his brain worked out the possibility of his girlfriend breaking up with him. Just because he was too lazy to do his own homework. "I have stuff to do," he mumbled and dashed out of the room.
With an amused smile, Zoro leaned back in his chair and almost choked on his soda when he heard Ace calling for his brother but said one only yelled back, "No time! Have homework to do!" followed by a door falling shut. Why hadn't he thought of that already? Though he was still quite surprised that it worked so well on Luffy, no matter how naïve and manipulative the boy was, above all, he was lazy.
"I told you not to use any of your psychological shit on my brother!" Ace burst into the room, a stern expression on his features while he was drying his hands on the dish towel. When his boyfriend only smirked at him, the raven-haired man chuckled and walked over to sit down next to him again, dropping the towel on the table. "No, seriously, what the fuck have you done?"
"Just told him to do his own homework and not use his girlfriend for that. Never thought that would work out," Zoro smiled in triumph, "That should keep him focused for a while, I hope. He's not a dumb kid, he's just too lazy. But that's family genes I assume."
"Hey, I help around the house and go to work, okay? And I've always done my homework, sir." Ace shifted closer to his boyfriend, wrapped an arm around the younger man's shoulders and husked into his ear, "I've always been a good boy, sir."
The way his breath tickled Zoro's ear and the tone of his voice went straight to his crotch, however the words sent uncomfortable shivers down his spine. "Didn't we agree on not using my teaching job for that?" Zoro let his own breath fan the other man's neck to pay him back, he was really getting into the mood, just the topic was leading into the opposite direction.
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself," Ace snickered and pushed his hand under his boyfriend's hoodie, "I still gotta do the dishes, wanna help? The nag should be busy upstairs."
Feeling Ace's calloused and rough hands brushing over his bare skin had always been an argument Zoro couldn't beat, and having Luffy up in his room for once providing them a little bit of privacy was a chance he definitely didn't want to pass on. And it usually only took Ace's hands and lips on him to let him forget the events of the day.
"What happened to your clothes, Zoro?"
They both knew the question would come and all the way home they had been coming up with excuses that would prevent them both from getting into trouble. By the time they had reached Zoro's house and his father had opened the door for them, they were as clueless about what to say as back on the playground.
Zoro gathered all his courage, straightened up and looked into his father's slowly growing impatient face, ready to take the blame and accept the consequences like a man. His father was never too strict with him; he had never been slapped or yelled at, his only punishments were doing twice as much chores around the house and getting grounded for latter meant that he couldn't play with his best friend. And that was the worst kind of punishment for both of them.
"I-I shoved him, sir," Sanji burst out before Zoro could say anything. "I... we fought and he said something mean and so I... I kicked him." His gaze was fixed on the little flower pot next to the door, he didn't dare to look up into old swordsman's face. He wasn't really lying; they had really been fighting until he had snapped and kicked Zoro in the head, very well aware that the boy would fall into the mud and dirty himself.
He felt his best friend elbow him in the side but Sanji just glared at him and shook his head; he wasn't going to back down now. Putting on a determined expression, he looked back up into the dark-haired man's face and said, "It's not Zoro's fault. I shouldn't have shoved him because I knew he would slip and fall and get his clothes dirty."
The older man held his gaze with a stern expression on his features, "You're taking the blame for him?"
"No, you idiot," Zoro hissed at Sanji and tugged at his coat's sleeve as he leaned in closer to his ear, "Your papa will make you clean the dishes all day and then we won't have time to play!" But his words didn't have their desired effect, instead Sanji pulled his arm away and balled his hands into fists, always a sign that he was dead set about something.
"Yes, sir." His reply was short and steady, mirroring the look in his eyes. He would get into trouble at home for sure, his old man would kick him through the whole restaurant before he would be instructed to scrub the kitchen floor. The kinds of punishments he usually received were a lot more physical than Zoro's who would usually just get grounded and forced to study or help around the house. Though the marimo got himself into trouble more often than Sanji so this time wouldn't be too heavy on his record.
"Good. I'm going to call your father and tell him to pick you up. Wait in the kitchen until he arrives. And you," the adult said sternly, his arms folded in front of his chest as he turned to his adoptive son, "Get yourself clean and then help me outside in the garden."
"Yes, sensei," Zoro mumbled and got out of his shoes before stepping over the threshold into the house. His father waited for them to enter and say their goodbye's, to make sure Sanji wouldn't sneak away and wait in Zoro's room. The two of them were very creative at finding ways to be together even when they were both grounded, their will to be together was just that strong.
Before he climbed up the stairs, Zoro turned to his best friend again to say a proper goodbye. Their time spent together would be reduced to phone calls the upcoming days and Zoro was already sure that he would be missing his friend too much. The blonde's hair was curtaining his face, he was ashamed of what he had done and felt guilty for the trouble he had gotten his friend into but Zoro could never be angry at him for too long. So he stepped closer and brushed the hair out of his friend's face to look him in the eyes with a smile and whisper, "Don't forget to call me later." He stood on his toes to kiss the other boy on the top of his head and hugged him one last time before they parted ways.
This story takes place in some fictional town in the US, basically right now. I hope that I changed their age differences doesn't hurt the story, it was just easier to make use to the characters that way.
There'll be a few more flash-backs in the following chapters that will explain the whole background story of the main characters. I hope that for now, it's not too confusing. (Any feedback is appreciated, as long as it's put into friendly words :3)
Oh, in case you're wondering why Chopper's internship isn't in a hospital - he's was too insecure to accept a job with such high responsibility, although he'd prefer that of course.
I really hope you enjoyed reading and stay tuned for the next chapters!