A/N: This is inspired by a list of AU's I saw on tumblr. I can\t find the post anymore, but the one that stuck out to me was something along the lines of "you can't stand eating alone so you keep bringing food to class and sharing with me college AU"

Commence Story

"Another day, another boring-ass lecture," Zoro muttered to himself as he slumped down in his usual spot. He opened up his laptop to take the half-assed notes he knew that he would never look at again. Just as the prof was about to start speaking, some blond who idiot was trying to sneak in, knowing full well he was late, tripped and fell on his face right inside the door.

Without missing a beat, the prof. said "there's an empty seat there" and pointed to the desk on Zoro's right. When the blond guy got up Zoro realized that he was definitely new to this class. He would recognize eyebrows that ridiculous.

"My name's Sanji," said the new guy as he took the seat, smelling of smoke, "I just switched into this class. Do you have notes for the first few classes?" That's when Zoro realized how early into the term he still was.

"I have time after class but we're starting now." And he settled in and tried to pay attention to yet another boring lecture, but he couldn't help but sneak glances at this weird new student.

A few minutes later Zoro caught Sanji pulling a container out of his bag. It contained some sort of food. Zoro had no idea what it was, but it sure looked tasty. And it made Zoro realize that he hadn't eaten yet that day. His stomach grumbled. "You want some?" Sanji said as he offered up a piece.

"Uhh, sure," said Zoro, who would have probably eaten just about anything at this point, "What exactly is it?" Zoro couldn't even recognize the culinary terms this guy was listing, but watching his face light up with enthusiasm felt amazing. He actually looked pretty cute. Stop getting distracted, dammit! I'm here to get an education, not to find a relationship, he thought to himself.

Zoro tried to pay attention, but his mind kept wandering to how strange this new student is. Finally, class ended and Zoro was about to bolt when suddenly somebody tapped on his shoulder. "So about those notes." It was Sanji.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. I'll email them to you. Just type in your address here. Oh, and thanks for the food. It was great."

"I'm glad you liked it. I made it this morning. It was why I was late."

"You sure it had nothing to do with cigarettes?"

"Okay, I did smoke a couple on the way, do I really smell that strongly?"

"Yeah, you kinda do. Anyway, I guess I'll be seeing you soon."

In the next few weeks, Sanji managed to arrive on time to classes, but the rest stayed similar. Sanji continued to bring food and share much of it with Zoro. It was quite a while before Zoro mentioned anything about it. "You sure are generous with your food!" he said.

Despite only sharing the one class with him, the two had formed a bit of a bond; Sanji felt close enough to him to tell the truth, or at least part of it. "I'm kinda uncomfortable eating when the people around me aren't." He was sure it was a common enough issue, so he didn't think it would tarnish Zoro's image of him too much.

"I can understand not wanting to be the odd one out like that," said Zoro.

"Yeah..." Said Sanji. That was part of it, but it was by no means the biggest part. He didn't mention how he survived two months as a little kid without food after getting lost at sea. He certainly didn't mention how by all accounts he really shouldn't have survived at all. And he sure as hell didn't mention how he never learned to eat normally after that. "Anyways, wanna come to my dorm tonight and study for the midterm? I'll throw together something to eat."

"Alright. I'll see you then." This guy sure is friendly to me, Zoro thought to himself. He must want something. But then again, I'm pretty sure I'm willing to give it.

Sanji went back to his dorm's kitchen and got to work, excited to have someone to cook for. He had always loved cooking since a very young age, but it usually felt wrong to prepare intricate meals for only himself. Being alone brought him back to being a little kid fighting to survive for as long as possible, which meant eating as little as possible each day. He rarely ate anything without others around to share with. It saved him money on food, but that money went to cigarettes anyways so he was no better off in the long run.

The first thing that hit Zoro when he walked through the door was the stench of cigarette smoke. It's gonna take a lot to get used to that. How many packs must he go through in a day. The second was the sheer amount of food laid out. "Fuck dude! I was expecting a few snacks not a ten course meal!"

"I don't mess around when it comes to food." To stop himself from eating any before Zoro's arrival (thus ruining the beautiful presentation), Sanji decided to prepare even more food.

"If you're putting nearly as much effort into school, you must be getting perfect scores on everything."

Not wanting to reveal how low his grades really were, Sanji said "Let's just get to work." and they did. As it often does, working together proved much more effective than working alone.

"Wow, I'm really starting to understand this," said Sanji. "I could kiss you right now." Then he started blushing as soon as he realized what he'd said.

"Go right ahead," Zoro said, cracking a genuine smile, instead of the smirk he usually wore. And ahead Sanji went, placing his lips on Zoro's as though he'd done it a thousand times before. Zoro responded by deepening the kiss and letting his hands begin to wander Sanji's body. The longer it went the better it felt for the both of them.

Sanji took a deep breath, "We actually did that. Th-that was my first real kiss"

"I wouldn't have known that. You're a natural." And there he was, smiling again. Sanji couldn't help but to smile himself. Never before had everything felt so right.

"I think it's a bit late to walk back to my dorm alone now," said Zoro with a wink wink nudge nudge heavily implied. It was pretty clear that he would have no problem defending himself should anything happen. Is it okay if I stay the night?"

"As long as you promise to keep me warm."