Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece.
The money is based off of Japan, so 10,000 Beli is almost equivalent to 100 dollars in the United States.
Ace saw a sleek white car speed through the road of his ten acre front yard. It only came here once a month, but the owner of it came every other week. But whenever the owner rode on that sleek, white car it meant one thing: the man came to borrow money. The man clicked his tongue as he watched it glide through from his twenty foot tall bedroom window.
He wasn't mad because the man, his closest friend actually, never returned the money he borrowed. Ace didn't care about money; he had so much it was rotting in his bank. His father was a powerful and notorious man, but when he died he left a huge inheritance on his only son. He was trying to get rid of it, so his friend was helping out a lot.
The main reason why he was mad was the fact his friend used it all up on one pretty woman, and then when he was dumped, he would go for another. This repeated for several times, so Ace assumed his friend was going out with several different kinds of women. Ace started giving money to him because he wanted to help him. The man was a commoner, so he couldn't buy a twenty-four karat diamond ring all of a sudden.
But he was a great guy. He was a charming gentleman who had good humor and etiquette. He worked at a renowned restaurant called the Baratie. He had two dreams: to build his own restaurant and be in a relationship. He was doing great with the first dream: he was saving all of his Baratie allowance, so he was living a very humble life. Ace wanted his friend to keep going at his dream but enjoy life also, which was why he let his friend borrow.
The second dream wasn't doing so well. Ace wanted his friend to settle for one, but it was always the women who left him. This concluded that it was his friend's fault, which might have something to do with his habit of jumping from one woman to another. If he did not fix this, he would forever be wasting money.
Ace was not going to give him the usual "50,000 Beli" easily this time. He was going to be mean by giving his friend a dare that would force him to realize that life wasn't free and people have to make sacrifices. He crossed his arms and got his 'mean face' ready when he heard footsteps approaching his room.
"Ace!" His friend, Sanji, opened the doors and greeted him a hasty smile. Sanji was in a hurry. He must have gotten his hands on a pretty girl who was slipping out of his fingers at this very moment. A sterling silver sapphire necklace would be the only trick to stop her-for a while.
"What?" Ace snapped.
"Whoa, why are you pissed off for?"
"Hm. Anyways, what?"
"I found someone who is definitely the one," Sanji started with his hackneyed phrase, "Her name's Caroline! She's the most gorgeous flower I've ever seen-"
"Yeah? What happened to Josephine, Catherine, Marigold, Jenna, Pillepita, Youko, Sarah, Beth, Rebecca, Adrianne, and all the other women you said were 'gorgeous flowers?'"
"Ahh, you know that all flowers have thorns...but Caroline is special-"
Ace straightened up, "Sanji. I had it with you."
"A-Ace?"
"I thought I told you last time that you better keep Jessica-"
"It was Jasmine."
"What matters is that you're going out with too many girls that even I can't keep count!" Ace held out the slender but fat envelope that had the 50,000 Beli, "If you want this, you're going to do a dare."
"What?" Sanji turned blue when he heard the word dare. Ace was cold, so dares sounded very dangerous coming from those lips. The blond swallowed, but remained where he was, "W-What do I have to do?"
Ace smiled. This was what he liked about Sanji; he never backed down. He waved the envelope around and saw those blue eyes following it.
"Do you know Tenryuu Brothel?"
He saw Sanji's frame go rigid, and his face grow very pale.
"...yeah." Sanji's voice was very low and stale.
"Go there, ask them to have a room with a video camera, and give me a tape of you having sex with one of the escorts."
"W-Why a video camera?"
"I need proof you're doing it without cheating me."
"B-But why the Tenryuu Brothel?"
"Oh, do you have a preference?"
"No!" Sanji shouted, but bit his mouth, "W-Why Ace? You know I don't-"
"I know. I know you're straight. I'm straight too." Ace lowered his voice, "But I'm getting tired of you spending money on a woman who only stays for the gifts and abandons you when you run out. Why do you always pick those kinds of women!?"
"I-I don't-"
"You're addicted to this cash and the women thing, so I'm going to make you stop and take time to develop love instead of throwing them riches." Ace walked up and took Sanji's car keys out of his pocket, "Let's go."
"W-Wait, now!?"
"You want the money right? We need to be quick or Catie's going to leave you."
"I-It's Caroline! Wait Ace, can't you come up with something else?"
Ace turned to Sanji and showed him his 'Do I look like I care?' face.
-.-.-
The Tenryuu Brothel is a male brothel, but it wasn't just any other brothel: it was for the wealthy. The price of an escort started from 30,000 Beli, and it was an extra 10,000 Beli for every hour. For Ace, he could go anytime he wanted because he had the money, but Sanji was a normal man. This would be a luxury for a commoner, but the blond wouldn't even want this if it were free.
Sanji and Ace stood before the doors of the brothel. Ace stared up with curiosity because he have heard of it, but never attempted to go. Sanji...well, who knew what his friend was thinking at this moment.
"It's your last chance to back down." Ace offered.
Sanji snapped out from something, and swallowed hard.
"I need Caroline."
Ace snorted, "Alright then." He shoved his reluctant and fearful friend into the doors.
Ace blinked to adjust to the blinding lights of the chandelier and the gaudy wine red walls. There were customers waiting or lounging with their escorts in the lobby. Sanji looked appalled and grew paler by the second. Ace located the clerk and grabbed Sanji by the arm. He dragged the terrified man through the glittering vases and the stunning artwork by famous artists and stepped up to the counter.
An man in a crisp, violet suit greeted them with a smile.
"Hello, and welcome to Tenryuu. Is this your first?"
"Yeah, my friend here wants to try one of your men. Do you have a list?"
"Yes." The man smiled as he took out what looked like an album, "What would you prefer?"
Ace glanced at Sanji who was lost in a different dimension. He decided to be nice.
"He likes a type who looks...or is close to a woman."
"Ahh," the man nodded and put the album back into the shelf. He took out another one and slid it toward Ace, "Then, this will do. Please return this when you have made a selection."
Ace nodded and took the book and Sanji back to a long couch. He opened the pages and was surprised to see pages upon pages of men who really looked like women.
"Look!" For some reason, Ace was getting excited, "She-I mean-he looks like your type! He has the long hair, the eyes!" Sanji peered over with a blue face, and then his eyes lit up also.
"...she-he's nice...I guess."
"Just imagine it's a woman with a dick and you'll be fine!" Ace stood up, "Hey, sir! Can we have-what was her...his name? ...Uh...oh, Azelantha?"
"Azelantha? Ahh, a wonderful choice." The man grinned, "We will get your room ready. It'll take about five to ten minutes."
"We can wait...ah, can you install a video camera too? He loves to be taped."
The man chuckled, "Alright."
Ace turned to Sanji, "I'll pay everything."
Sanji grimaced at the amount they have to pay. "This is crazy!"
"You finally realized?" Ace dropped his card onto the tray for the man to process, "Too late now. Get your dick ready." Sanji scowled and blushed red, but froze when another man appeared to speak with the man at the counter.
"It's ready." The second man led a hand, and Sanji swallowed. He glanced at Ace and his friend merely waved. When Sanji disappeared down the hall, Ace relaxed in one of the sofas. He ordered a bottle of wine and waited. He had nothing to do for at least thirty minutes (unless Sanji liked to take things really slow or fast), so he watched the customers and the escorts.
The customers were rich, and most looked snobbish. He wondered why they always looked like that. Did he look like that too? He ignored himself for today and frowned at one rich man who yanked a younger man by the arm and kissed him. It was a strange sight, but he didn't feel bad.
The escorts were different in personality and looks. Some were burly and were hundred percent men, except they were wearing dresses and heels. Some, Ace couldn't tell it was a man until he saw something growing between a woman(?)'s legs. Others looked like men or were too lazy to dress up fancy.
It was short, or it seemed short to Ace. He assumed that Sanji didn't want to take time. Ace sat up when he saw the blond appear from the hallway. He didn't look good, despite the fact that he had sex. He looked sick, and Ace was smiling like a child. He walked up to him, and instead of giving him a high five, he slapped the envelope in Sanji's hands.
"It's yours."
Sanji slammed the video tape into Ace's eager hands, "I'm going to take a shower and a hot bath. Twice."
Ace laughed and the two walked out of the door. As they walked past the tall double doors, he thought this was going to be the first and the last.
-.-.-
Two months went by since this event, and Sanji was doing great with Caroline. Ace received a text message with a picture of the hot couple. Sanji added a message that he was going on a date with her today to the movies and then dinner. Ace asked what movie it was and Sanji replied that it was an action packed detective movie. It was based off of a classic novel that Ace liked. He suddenly decided he wanted to see the movie also, so he called the chauffeur.
He was dropped off at the mouth of town because Ace wanted to act like everybody else instead of a rich man. He strolled through the jolly town filled with common folk. Ace sometimes liked seeing what normal people did in their daily basis, so he could learn how to do it too.
When he walked into the plaza, he saw a small restaurant with tables and chairs scattered outside. Three girls were sitting together in one table, but one caught his attention. She had short blond hair, dimpled cheeks, and a coy smile. Ace stopped to stare at the girl, and then pulled out his cell phone to see the message he got earlier. The woman with Sanji was the same girl who was talking with her friends.
Wait, what the hell?
Where was Sanji?
Ace walked toward the table, and the laughter from the girls gradually stopped. The three girls giggled and blushed for they thought Ace was interested in them. He examined the blond girl more closely and back at the cell phone. He wasn't mistaken, she was Caroline.
"Um...are you Caroline?"
The blond girl's eyes widened and she blushed, "Y-Yes..."
The other two were nudging her by the elbow and were whispering to her with excitement.
Ace glanced at the cell phone, "W-What happened to the movies?"
"What?"
"I thought you were going to watch a movie with Sanji-"
Ace did not expect the girl to stand up suddenly. And he definitely didn't expect her to slap him across the face. He recoiled, staggered back; his mind went momentarily blank from shock. Hand on his burning cheek, he stared back at Caroline who had tears welling in her pretty eyes.
"Sanji!?" Caroline screamed and caused many to look at their direction, "Sanji!?"
The brunette glared at Ace, "How dare you talk about him so easily!? She's still trying to get over it!"
"Get over what?"
"You don't know!? Sanji dumped her!"
"Oh Sanji! Sanji!"
"What?" Ace couldn't believe what he was hearing. Sanji wasn't going out with her? What shocked him the most was that it was Sanji who dumped her. "W-When?"
"It's a month ago! You bastard! I can't believe-!" The girls began shouting foul words at him, so Ace ran off.
Ace was mad. He couldn't believe Sanji lied to him. Then, where the hell did the weekly 65,000 Beli go?
When he was far from the commotion, Ace hastily punched in Sanji's phone number. He tried to calm himself down, but all he wanted to do was punch Sanji in the face. How dare he lied to him!
The first two times he called Sanji, he didn't answer. Ace cursed and dialed his other friends.
"Marco!"
"What happened yoi?"
"Where the hell is Sanji?"
"How should I know? I thought Caro-something was with him."
"That's what I've heard, but I just met Caroline!"
"And?"
"I got slapped and yelled at because the bastard dumped her a month ago!"
"Ouch yoi."
"Do you know where the fuck he'd gone?"
"Sorry Ace, but I don't. ...but-"
"What?"
"There's a weird rumor going around about him. My buddies say they saw a man who looked like Sanji enter the Tenryuu Brothel yoi."
"...what...did you say?"
"This might be a bluff because we all know Sanji's straight-"
"Yeah..."
"-if I hear something, I'll call you right away yoi."
"Thanks..." Ace hung up the line first and took a deep breath. He felt his ears go deaf because he could only hear the sound of his heartbeat. He thought he would never hear of the brothel again. Why did it come back and why was it connecting to Sanji? Why was Sanji, the straightest man Ace had ever met, was near the fucking gay brothel? He had to calm down; Marco said he wasn't sure if this rumor was right. But Ace had a feeling that this wouldn't end as a mere rumor.
His breaths were beginning to even, and he could hear his surroundings again. He flipped open his phone and redialed Sanji's number for the third time.
This time, it answered.
"Ace? We're in a middle of a movie-"
"Enough of this shit Sanji." Ace cut him off like a dagger, "Why...Why have you been lying to me all this time!? Why aren't you with Caroline!? Why didn't you tell me that you dumped her!? Why did my friends say they saw you at the Tenryuu Brothel!? Answer me damn it, or I swear I'm going to kill you!"
As expected, there was silence on the other side of the call. Ace tried to quiet down his breathing because they were bothering his sense of hearing.
"...I'm sorry."
"If only you can see how pissed off I am right now!"
"I want to talk to you."
"Oh now you realize!" Ace shouted, "If you don't come by my house by six, I'm going to order a whole army to find you!"
"Don't worry. I won't run away."
Ace shivered. Sanji's voice was way too calm. It made his blood run cold, but this also caused Ace to relax.
"I'll be waiting." Ace hung up the phone and stuffed it into his pocket. He needed the long walk home to clear up his mind.
-.-.-
Six o'clock. Perfect timing. Ace was at the door when Sanji walked through. The blond stopped in his tracks when he saw his friend standing there, but he didn't look afraid. Ace was trying to keep his composure as cool as Sanji, but he was shaking. His hands were involuntarily tightened into fists, and his teeth were gritting in his closed lips.
"Do you want a drink?" Ace managed to say.
"Yeah."
Ace called one of the butlers and asked for a strong drink; they both needed it. He urged Sanji to follow him into an enormous room called the lounging room. It looked like a casino, but since they were the only ones, it was eerily quiet. Ace walked to one of the elongated booths and sat down. Sanji sat on the opposite end of it.
They waited until a butler brought in with the drinks. When their glasses were filled halfway and the man excused himself, Ace grabbed for the glass. Sanji broke his 'serious' face and watched in fear as Ace drank it. The black haired man let out a loud snarl and slammed the empty glass down on the table.
"That's some strong stuff!" Ace breathed through his teeth, "Now Sanji! I'm ready! Tell me the truth!"
Sanji lifted his glass and took a small sip. He took a taste, nodded, and set it back onto the table.
"...Ace."
"What Sanji?"
Sanji rubbed his hands together, and squeezed his eyes. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you that I dumped Caroline. I-I was afraid that our friendship was going to end."
"Just because you broke up with a girl won't end our relationship." Sanji shook his head, "Am I missing something?"
"Your friends are right." Sanji raised his head, "I was at the Tenryuu Brothel."
Ace sucked in a breath and almost choked. "Why...?" Then his eyes widened, "D-Did you start going out with that blond chick guy that starts with an 'A'?"
"No...not him," Sanji held his head, "...Can you believe it Ace? E-Every weekend...when you give me the 65,000 Beli...I head to that place to fuck a man."
Ace swallowed so hard, it hurt his throat.
"Wait. Hold up Sanji. Can you go back a few steps? This isn't making any fucking sense. This dare was only supposed to be a onetime thing. Why the hell did you go back?"
Sanji thread and unthreaded his fingers together. He licked his lips and coughed to clear his voice. He hesitated because this was a massive barrier he needed to break. Ace watched him silently while setting his hands on his knees to prevent them from shaking.
"That night, when I got out of the room to get back to you, I felt so sick I blacked out a little. A guy saw me collapse and helped me get back on my feet. When I looked at him, he kind of smiled and told me he liked my eyes, said that he could almost see the ocean."
"Is this the guy you're..."
Sanji nodded. "Yeah."
"So you started visiting him because he liked your eyes?"
Sanji chuckled dryly, "I was curious. The way he looked at me and the way he said it...he was like a caged bird that wants to be set free..." Ace rolled his eyes when Sanji started to use pretty cheesy metaphors, "I suddenly wanted to know more about him. I visited him the next night using the money you gave me."
"How much was he worth?"
"50,000."
"Fif-that's 20,000 more than an average escort there!? Why the hell is he so expensive? And you used all of the money on that night!? Sanji!"
Sanji continued, ignoring Ace's indignation, "He's one of the popular escorts. We didn't do anything on the first night. I wasn't comfortable. I just wanted to talk to him. I don't know why, but I just did."
"So...how did it go from talking to fucking?"
"Zoro-"
"His name's Zoro?" Ace frowned, "That sounds really masculine."
Sanji blushed, "H-He's not like Azelantha. He doesn't cross-dress and doesn't wear makeup. He always wears this loose open shirt and fucking tight jeans, or a suit, or-oh, a really nice looking dress thing that Wa no Kuni people wear. Yeah...so, he looks like a man.
"...so on my third visit, Zoro told me that he couldn't accept my money without a fuck, so we...we did it."
Ace leaned into his seat, "How was it?" He scrutinized Sanji's face and saw how embarrassed he looked. The first time he saw this was when he tried to coax Sanji to tell him his first kiss with his crush.
No way...Ace breathed.
"H-He's great. I...I never experienced that kind of sex before," Sanji covered his mouth to hide his smile, "Definitely worth the money."
"And then?" Ace didn't realize that he was sitting on the edge of his seat. He wanted to know more about this new side of Sanji. Did he like this new Sanji? That was why he needed to find out.
"From there, I visited every weekend. I use most of the 65,000 to have him and have an extra hour. The rest of the 5,000 I either buy Zoro's favorite sake or save it for the next night, so I can be with him for three hours instead of two." Sanji rubbed the back of his head.
"When did you dump Caroline?"
"The next morning after the third visit."
"Is he that good?"
Sanji made a strange noise in the back of his throat, but it meant a yes.
"Hmmmmmm." Ace leaned back in his couch, "So...you're gay now."
Sanji chuckled dryly, "What? Is that hinting that we're not going to see each other again?"
"Huh?" The freckled faced man suddenly let out a laugh that startled Sanji. When Ace stopped, he tapped the wood on the couch, and a small compartment opened. Sanji's eyes widened as his friend drew out wads of cash, counted them, and pushed them in front of Sanji.
"75,000 Beli. From now on, you can stay with him for three hours and give him a present."
"A-Ace..."
"We're friends Sanji." Ace smiled, "I'll never hate you just because you suddenly turn gay."
Sanji let out a trembling laugh, but then let out a sob. He broke like a dam, and was able to release his emotions. Lying to Ace all this time had stressed Sanji so much, so he was glad that he was able to say it. Ace scooted to the side until he sidled up to his friend and gave him a manly hug.
-.-.-
Four months went by, and Ace checked the amount of Beli he had given to Sanji yesterday from a little notebook: 75,000 Beli. Sanji was still going out with the male prostitute at the Tenryuu Brothel. His friends gradually began to acknowledge Sanji's sexuality. Most were just as surprised as Ace since it was such a dramatic change. At the same time, they also liked how Sanji focused on this one man and loved him so much.
Ace really liked Gay Sanji. He wasn't acting pretentious; it was natural and free. He definitely was not stressed out by the fact that he was single (because he wasn't-kind of). He took time to look at women without jumping in front of their faces and asking them out on the spot. He wasn't as interested in them anymore though. Funny thing was that now their conversation topics went from 'hey, she's beautiful' to 'if I bought this do you think Zoro will like it?' or 'She's hot, but Zoro's better-'
Ace never set foot at the Tenryuu Brothel, so he never met Sanji's favorite prostitute. However, Sanji told him all about him. His friend was kind enough to leave out what things they did.
Zoro had been working at the brothel since he was young. He was bought by the brothel owner at a slave market because of his exotic green hair. At first he was there to clean silverware and handle the laundry, until he turned fourteen. When the sudden growth spurt caused him to grow into an incredibly handsome man, the owner didn't leave this great opportunity go to waste.
His first was with the owner's son, Charloss. The selfish brat had his eyes on Zoro since he was young, so when the opportunity came, the man took it. Zoro hated Charloss and what he had done to him, but he realized that this was going to be his job for the rest of his life. His price was like everybody else, but it didn't last. Within a few months, it rose from 30,000 to 50,000 because of the high demand. Over the years, he learned to not care about sex. He couldn't tell the difference between a man who caressed him gently while fucking or fucking him so hard Zoro couldn't get out of bed. It was until Sanji arrived that something stirred his body. He felt ecstasy for the first time when they had sex, and he found out what making love really meant. It was a wonderful feeling, and Zoro always felt forlorn when Sanji had to leave.
Ace could tell by hearing this that Sanji was subtly asking for a raise. Yeah, an extra hour or more would be great for both the prostitute and Sanji, but he wasn't into it. He was kind of expecting that Sanji would give up on the man by now or vice versa Zoro was a prostitute: he probably had many other men behind Sanji, so most of what he said might be rehearsed to get the customers back into his arms again.
However, as six months flew by, Ace found that the bond between Zoro and Sanji was strong, and he began to accept it. He also grew a heart to even root for them, despite the fact that Sanji was a commoner (and was using his money) and Zoro was a prostitute.
He glanced out of the window and happened to see Sanji running to his manor at a grueling speed. Ace squinted and saw an expression on the blond's face that scared him. He hoped that it was because the windows were slightly tinted. Ace put away the notebook in his desk and descended the stairs to meet up with Sanji at the entrance.
Sanji opened the door before Ace had the chance to. Also, the blond shoved the door open so hard it knocked Ace off, so he fell backwards. He scrambled to get up but stopped when he saw Sanji. He was trembling from head to toe, and his eyes were red with anger and tears.
Ace got up and grabbed Sanji's shoulders, "S-Sanji, what happened?"
Sanji gritted his teeth so hard that Ace heard the horrid screeching.
"Z-Zoro..." Sanji clenched his fists so tight it was shaking and turning white, "He got-oh my god!"
"My god, calm down Sanji." Ace looked around, to find somewhere to sit down, "Um...come here and sit down."
"I can't-!" Sanji clenched his fists, "I-I know I can't get the money until next week, but c-can I have the 75,000 now?"
"H-Hey..." Ace tried to ease his friend, but he was getting panicky also, "D-Did something happened at the brothel?"
Sanji sighed and stopped biting his lips, "Zoro got a new customer."
"Who?" Ace didn't understand why Sanji was in such a panic. Right after Sanji's time was over, a stranger was going to sleep with Zoro. It was typical, but Sanji's behavior was very abnormal.
"I-It's Marshall! Marshall D. Teach!"
Ace flinched because he recognized the name, "What...? He's gay!? When did that happen?" But it did make sense why he started going out with that women who looked like a man. Her nose was way too big and manly, not to mention her body structure. Along that, Ace knew many things about Teach, and he truly despised him. Betrayal, cheat, bribery, murder, and many other merciless things were what the man had done to obtain fame and fortune. He never liked the aristocrat the day he'd met him. "So, he started hanging out at the Tenryuu?" Ace didn't need to hear the rest of it because he knew how ruthless, cruel, and selfish the man could be. Sanji looked like he wasn't breathing.
The black haired man lowered his voice, "What did Teach do?"
"...He was trying everyone out, and when he got to Zoro...he's addicted to him. He comes there every day! And-oh fuck!" Sanji held his head and curled his body. Ace didn't move. He waited for his friend to continue, but at the same time he wanted him to stop talking. "When I went there last night, they told me to wait because Teach still had him..." Sanji raised his face and tears were falling from his eyes, "Ace...Ace, I could hear Zoro screaming from the lobby!"
Ace felt the blood burn in his veins. Sanji lowered his head and racked out a sob. "Everyone can hear it, but no one goes up to help! The owner there said they don't need help because they're men so they're built to defend themselves! He says it as if he doesn't care if Zoro gets hurt!
"-And the fucking bastard Teach, he looks so fucking satisfied coming down the stairs with that asshole grin of his!" Sanji's body trembled as if he was recalling the last night's event. As if there was the black bearded man standing right before him, making that smirk, and telling that he was disappointed that Sanji came to ruin his great time with Zoro.
Sanji let out a ragged breath and stopped shaking, "I...I went into Zoro's room after his break. They only gave him thirty minutes to recover and get ready for me...I felt so fucking bad. And Zoro...Zoro was bruised, his eyes were so red from crying-he wasn't ready to call in another customer at all. He couldn't even talk because his voice was so hoarse, but when he saw me...god...he looked so happy...!
"I told him to stop because I wanted him to rest, but he still wanted to make me feel good. He was so terrible at it because he was in so much pain, but I told him it was great." Sanji chuckled dryly, "He knew I was lying. He knows that I'm not rich too, so he never asks me to stay another hour."
Sanji's voice was getting harder to hear over his sobs, "-but, I'm an idiot! I paid the extra 10,000 yesterday out of my pocket just to let Zoro sleep! I don't want Zoro to return to that bastard's hands! I love him so much Ace! I can't stand seeing him like that!"
Ace glared at Sanji with resentment, "Chivalrous asshole. You know how much I hate these kinds of stories." The freckled face was red and his hands were curled into fists. He wanted to punch a wall, a pillar, or something hard that would break his knuckles.
Sanji held his mouth, "...I know."
Ace stuffed his hand in his jeans and pulled out a big wallet. He slapped it onto Sanji's hand. "Take it! I can't wait to see Teach's face when he finds out that you've reserved Zoro all day."
Sanji didn't say a word, but he hugged him. Ace sighed and squeezed his friend back. Ace patted his friend's back to ease his friend's pain. Why was love being so hard on Sanji? Ace pulled away from the embrace, and Sanji gave a quiet nod of gratitude. He watched his friend leave with his wallet and wondered how much he was going to spend it. If he was going to use it until it hit bottom, he didn't care. He had five other banks.
-.-.-
The following day, he heard shocking news.
He called the bank to know how much Sanji had used but was returned with an appalling answer: nothing. Ace didn't believe in the bank teller, so he went to the bank to see for himself.
It seemed like a chain of unfortunate events was happening because on the way, he bumped into Marshall D. Teach.
"Ahhhh, the face I would love to never see."
"Zehahaha, why are you being so cold Ace? We're good friends, remember?"
"Hell no." Ace snorted at Teach's suit. It cost a fortune, but it didn't really look good on him, "You look mighty happy."
"You can tell?" The larger man laughed obnoxiously, "I found a great place!"
"Oh yeah? Where?"
"It's called a brothel called Tenryuu."
"Ahh, I've heard of that place." Ace answered flatly. "But I thought it only has men."
"Zehahaha, yeah, you're right." The older man laughed, "Ace, if you ever feel like going there, don't pick the ones that cross dress. They're all pussies. If you want a good, hard fuck, get the real guys. They can take anything!"
"Huh," Ace made a crooked smile, remembering what Sanji said, "I see...but aren't you being a bit harsh?"
"Hm? Where did you hear that from?"
"I have a lot of friends."
"That's why you're still a baby! Those guys love that kind of fuck, the harder the better! But that place is expensive! An extra 10,000 Beli per hour! Are you fucking kidding me?"
"I think it's cheap."
Marshall D. Teach snickered at Ace's sour attitude, "It's stupid that I'm paying all that when I could just buy them all, so I did!"
Ace froze and turned to look at him, "You're kidding."
Teach grinned in triumph because he finally got Ace's attention, "I bought seven from that place! One of them, shit, he's the prettiest bitch I've ever seen." The man laughed, "I paid 7,000,000 per whore, but that one was 10,000,000 Beli! Roswald wouldn't back down. He said it was his son's favorite or whatever." Marshall looked up to the Grand Line Bank, "That's where I'm heading right now. I need to gather the money, so I told Roswald to keep them locked up and let nobody touch them."
"Y-You really bought them?"
"Yeah!"
"B-But did the escorts agree to this?"
"Why would they disagree? I'm helping them get out of that place, so they should be honoring me for saving them!"
Ace mentally slapped himself. Buying...of course! He should have encouraged Sanji to buy Zoro! Oh why did he get so conservative? Now it made sense why Sanji didn't use his money. Ace felt his blood run cold as ice. Then, what was Sanji doing right now? Ace was getting worried about him. He had seen his friend do some reckless things way too many times. Imagining Sanji breaking into the brothel, causing a great commotion, and then taking Zoro away with him gave Ace a headache. This time, it wasn't going to end with simple cuts and bruises.
"If you want to try him out, come to my house anytime! He can do anything!"
"Thanks, but I'm really not interested." Ace answered tersely, but he stopped when he heard strange music coming from nowhere. It sounded like a mixture between screamo and rap, so it was an uncomfortable sound.
"Oh, that's my phone."
"That's your ringtone?"
All of a sudden, Ace's phone started to ring also. His eyes flickered like ember because the specific ringtone was set to Sanji's. He quickly flipped it open and answered. Ace was about to answer, but Teach's yell interrupted him.
"What do you mean you sold him off to another person!? ...The other six are worthless to me, I wanted Zoro! ...you fucking bastard! You said you'll keep your promise!" Teach spilled out a list of curses and then threw the poor phone onto the ground.
Ace slowly put his phone back to his ear.
"Was that Teach?" Sanji asked.
"Yeah."
"Heh."
"Where are you?" Ace asked discreetly, so Teach wouldn't notice. It didn't really matter because the large was going throwing his arms around and screaming.
"I'm at my house."
"Cool, I'll meet you there."
Ace quickly hung up the phone and stuffed it into his pocket. He walked up to Teach, who was on his knees and still cursing, and patted him on the back.
"What happened bud?" Ace asked with a faint smile on his face.
-.-.-
Sanji's home was an apartment in the middle of the city. Cars were rushing by and honking for no particular reason other than impatience. People walked in the mornings off to work and walked on in the night to head home. Scraps of newspaper and litter twirled when a wind picked up. There was noise in all directions, and Ace wondered how people put up with it.
The third floor of the apartment, and Ace was knocking on room thirty-two. It didn't take a second for the door to open.
"Ace!" Sanji quickly pulled him in and closed the door.
Ace walked into the living room and saw a man sitting on the couch. He immediately knew this was Zoro because of the green hair; a rare exotic color that Sanji mentioned. He had a pretty face, perfectly chiseled like a bronze statue. He had three golden earrings on his left side of the ear, a gift Sanji gave on his tenth visit. Even though Zoro was the same age as Sanji, sexual fatigue took a toll on him, so he looked much older. However, how wine tasted better with age, it added a dark spice to him that made him look irresistible. Several large dark spots were on his exposed neck and other parts of his body. Sanji looked satisfied at them, so Ace assumed that his friend was the culprit.
Ace sat at a small couch, opposite of where Zoro was. Sanji sat next to Zoro and reached out to hold Zoro's hand. The other responded, actually it seemed like he was just tired, and rolled his head on Sanji's shoulder. His eyelids looked heavy from exhaustion from several nights before, and he was trying to bat his eyelashes to get rid of it.
Sanji was explaining how he bought Zoro without using Ace's money. He didn't want to use Ace's card because he wanted to save Zoro on his own. He had the money he was saving for his future restaurant, so he negotiated with Roswald. Roswald had sold Zoro for 10,000,000 Beli, so he demanded more if Sanji wanted to buy the prostitute. Within a few minutes of arguing, the deal was sealed with 15,000,000, almost all of his savings. Zoro was his and free from Teach's hands.
His friend was telling his knight-in-shining-armor tale in great detail and enthusiasm, but it went over Ace's head. All of his five senses were focused on Zoro.
Whenever Zoro crossed his legs or even blinked, Ace felt his face burn and his body quiver. Living in the brothel all through his life, Zoro's body had grown to know what men wanted. Ace could not take his eyes off him, and when he did they went right back. Zoro noticed Ace was looking, and he pulled a smug grin.
Zoro let out a yawn that sounded like a pleasurable moan.
Sanji turned to Zoro and smiled, "Are you tired?"
"Nnnfm," Zoro answered, his eyelids growing heavier to the point he wasn't opening them.
"You can sleep in the bedroom. Do you want me to make something after you wake up?"
"...waffles?" His voice was still hoarse, but Ace could tell that if it was normal it would sound really nice.
"Okay," Sanji caressed Zoro's cheek, and the other instinctively kissed him in the lips, "good night."
Zoro grudgingly got up and slowly wandered off to the hallway. Ace's eyes were glued onto Zoro's tight, round ass swaying gently to the side. He looked back and saw that Sanji was staring at the same place.
"He's cute huh?"
"Uh, ...yeah?" Ace tried to keep his emotions down.
"He's trying to get used to the fact that he doesn't need to seduce every time he sees a man."
"Ahhh..." Ace silently agreed, but obviously Zoro was still learning because Ace felt hot and lustful.
Sanji smiled, "Since he's free now, I told him he could go wherever he wants, but Zoro wants to stay with me. So, we're now official boyfriends."
"...Sanji," Ace started.
"Hm?"
"I'd love to fuck your boyfriend's ass."
Sanji's eye widened at Ace's sudden remark. His smile dropped and gawked at his friend with the wildest expression. The awkward congratulations on making Ace bi, and the rules to stay away from Zoro came after. Right now, all Sanji did was make an upsetting frown.
The End
A/N: If I get any plot bunnies, I hope to write short one-shots of AcexZoroxSanji. I don't know when that'll happen.