A/N: So I had my senior prom a few weeks ago and it was lovely…this is a high school one-shot. Het at the beginning, yaoi at the end. Just random bits of fluff, but I'm trying to stimulate my writing.
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Zoro decided that he definitely didn't like the prom.
He stood there in his rented tux, leaning against the limousine that was definitely too expensive for his wallet, wearing the uncomfortable shoes that he'd been forced into buying while out shopping with his friends, and eyeing the girl that he was escorting to the prom.
Escorting, tch. Not even a real 'date.' What am I, a male prostitute?
She smiled nervously at him and he forced his facial muscles to form what might have been a smile. Or a snarl. The tux was uncomfortable in all the wrong places.
She seemed to relax. Maybe it looked like a smile.
She's not so bad looking, I suppose. Nice legs, if a bit clumsy.
Tashigi tripped over her heels as she trotted out the door to her house calling, "I'll be back home safely, okaasan!"
Zoro caught her as he relaxed into more of a pleasant smile. "Watch it, Tash. I don't want you to muss up that pretty dress of yours."
Tashigi raised an eyebrow at him as she dusted herself off, adjusting her glasses and tucking a strand of hair behind one ear. She smoothed out the navy blue dress she had donned that evening; it was a fairly conservative piece considering the event, but showed just enough of her pale skin to be attractive.
How the hell does she walk in those things? I pity women for their choice in footwear.
"Pretty dress, Zoro? I never thought you'd call anything pretty," she snorted as she stepped into the limo.
"Well, you're pretty," he admitted honestly. Duh, why else do you think I asked you to this damned event? Other than the fact that you're one of my only female friends that I consider to be tolerable…
It was dark in the limo—the tinted windows added to that effect, as did the late hour—but he could still see her blush.
"Thank you, Zoro. You look quite…handsome yourself."
He looked himself up and down. A black tux with a navy blue vest that matched her dress to a tee. He pulled out the corsage that Vivi had bought for him after he had told her the color they would be wearing; it was made of baby's breath and white roses with a lacy dark blue ribbon. Even he knew that it was a good choice. Awkwardly, he put it on her slim wrist; she then pinned the boutonniere she had bought for him on his vest, only stabbing herself once with the stay.
The ride was quiet, until they began to pick up other couples.
"Hey Luffy," Zoro greeted as they stopped by the Monkey residence. "Is Nami here?"
"Yeah!" Luffy said enthusiastically as he leapt into the limo. "Wow! Is that a mini fridge?"
"Yep," Zoro said. "Help yourself."
"No, Luffy!" Nami cried as she clambered in unceremoniously after her unruly date. Her crimson red dress was a sharp contrast to the dark clothing that Zoro and Tashigi wore; Luffy's matching red vest added another blob of brightness to the space. "If you mess up your tux, I swear, you're not dancing with me tonight."
"Aw, Nami…" Luffy whined. His usually mussed up hair looked as though it had just barely lost in a battle with styling gel and a comb, and was tamed for the moment. Zoro resisted the urge to rub his own slicked back hair and sighed as he closed the door.
"I guess it's time to pick up Usopp and Kaya, then."
They picked the next couple up at Kaya's house; Usopp and Kaya were both wearing cream, and Usopp looked absolutely floored by how fabulous Kaya looked in her elegant attire.
Zoro groaned as he mentally ticked off the last couple.
"Sanji and Vivi…"
---
"Vivi-chwaaan, you look absolutely marvelous in that sky blue dress—"
"Thank you, Sanji-kun."
"Does the corsage suit your tastes? I asked for the freshest—"
"Yes, Sanji-kun. It's lovely."
"I'm sorry," Zoro whispered into Vivi's ear as Sanji continued to praise her and the ground she walked upon.
Vivi smiled weakly. "It's okay, I knew what I was getting into the minute he asked me."
Once everyone was settled—settled being an understatement, as Luffy kept fidgeting excitedly—they were on their way to the building their prom was being held.
---
"Wow, I never knew the museum could look so snazzy!" Vivi said in awe as she stepped out of the limo, with Sanji holding her hand to support her. "The lights and decorations make it look really good."
The group made their way to the entrance where teachers sat waiting at tables for the incoming students.
"My, don't you all look very nice," a soft voice said pleasantly. "Especially you, Zoro. I've never seen you in anything more formal than your ceremonial kendo gi."
Zoro turned to the speaker. "Hey, Nico-sensei," he greeted with a slight bow. Tashigi bowed as well.
Robin smiled as she looked at a list of names. "It looks like you two are cleared for the dance. Have fun tonight."
"Wow, you guys look supa frrrresh!"
"…hello, Cutty-sensei," Zoro said to their mechanics teacher.
"I'm tellin' you, just call me Franky! No one calls me Cutty Flam anymore!" Franky cried. Zoro didn't fail to notice that Franky's vest was the same deep violet color as Robin's low-cut dress; were they here together? I always knew they had a thing going on.
Zoro snapped back to attention when Franky continued, "Don't forget to use protection tonight!"
Sanji sniggered in the background, and Zoro groaned before walking off quickly with Tashigi in tow.
---
Zoro and Tashigi sat at one of the little round white tables placed around the dance floor as everyone else danced.
Another advantage to having come with Tashigi…
She smiled at him as she tapped her fingers along silently to the music, showing no predilection for dancing.
…is that she won't whine about me not dancing with her.
"Marimo, why aren't you dancing?"
Asshole.
"Sanji-kun, leave him alone, please?"
"Hai, Vivi-chwan!"
Zoro snorted as he heard the refrain to some popular song being mixed by the DJ. "You don't mind the fact that we both just blew a couple of hundred bucks to get these fancy clothes for a fancy dance that we aren't really attending?"
Tashigi shrugged. "We took pictures already. If I have children, I can tell them that I went to the prom. I don't really care much for the social scene, anyways."
"You're here because Smoker asked you to keep an eye out for kids spiking the punch, right?" Zoro asked wryly.
"Of course. Also…"
"Hm?"
She turned carefully so that she was staring out at the dance floor, not really taking in where her gaze led. "I was kind of honored, to be the girl asked to the prom by the famous Roronoa Zoro."
"'Famous'? I know I'm a damned good swordsman, but really?"
Tashigi laughed. "You're quite popular among the ladies, you know. At least, with the ones who haven't had any personal contact with you."
"…thanks, Tash."
"They think you're the kind of guy who's secretly very romantic, and who's actually chivalrous under the layers of muscle and gruff exterior," Tashigi continued absently.
Zoro snorted. "What are these girls on, crack?"
She went on as though he hadn't said anything. "They think that you're really like their Mr. Prince, but you just don't whore yourself out to any woman."
He followed her gaze to where Sanji was dancing with Vivi; Sanji spun her and caught her in what might have been a kiss, had Vivi not turned her face to laugh with Nami. The blond and blue-haired girl went well together, like angels dancing in the heavens. Vivi wore a sky blue dress of some exotic Egyptian style, while Sanji wore a more traditional tuxedo—albeit a white and blue one. Zoro looked down at his dark blue and black tuxedo and Tashigi's navy blue dress and smiled slightly; they were like polar opposites, even in their choice of color and dates.
She's a sly girl, that Vivi. Knows how to handle that idiot.
"Do you think that?"
She looked up in surprise. "Do I think what?"
"That I'm 'secretly romantic' or some bullshit like that."
She looked at him for a moment, her face unreadable. "I know you, Zoro. Better than some people in some ways, and not so well as others in other ways. I think that you're just…Zoro. You do what the situation calls for when you feel like it."
The song changed subtly from fast to slow and dreamy as the DJ put on a track for a slow dance. Zoro stood and Tashigi looked at him in surprise.
He held out one hand to her. "Would you like to dance?"
"…this isn't just because of what I said, is it?"
Zoro's only answer was to grip her hand firmly and lead her to the dance floor. With one hand resting on her shoulder to guide her and one strong hand firmly resting on her waist, he corrected her tiny slips and bouts of clumsiness while she corrected his footwork until they were moving smoothly amongst the other couples.
"You're actually quite good at this," Tashigi remarked.
"I'm good at everything."
"Still so arrogant," she sighed.
"I'm even good at being arrogant."
She rested her head against his shoulder in a sign of either defeat or acceptance.
He looked over her head and saw Sanji whispering something into Vivi's ear.
Probably endearments or some other disgusting crap like that.
"Are you okay, Zoro? Your heartbeat just spiked," Tashigi said, looking up to him. "I could feel it through your chest."
Zoro shook his head. "Don't worry about it."
He didn't tell her that Sanji had just looked over Vivi's shoulder and stared at him. It was a piercing look, one that tore right into his core and reminded him.
Don't forget, the look seemed to say.
Tashigi saw him looking but didn't turn around. She knew what that look meant.
---
The night was winding down; the buffet tables were empty after Luffy had torn into them while Nami rested her feet from wildly dancing (and from when Ace crashed the prom; he was a University student, after all, and not allowed at these high school functions). Zoro and Tashigi made their way back to the limo with the others; no one failed to notice how her fingers were slightly touching his, and how he made no move to notice or remove them.
"We're going to have a girl's night at Vivi's. Want to come, Tashigi?" Nami asked as she yawned and stretched across Luffy's lap.
Tashigi looked at Zoro. "We're not doing anything right?" He shook his head. "Then, sure!"
When they arrived at Vivi's house, Zoro stepped out of the car with Tashigi.
"Oi, mossbrain, it's a 'girl's night.' You're not supposed to get out," Sanji snapped.
Don't forget.
"Shut up," Zoro shot back. "I'll just be a second. Tashigi…"
She smiled at him as she put a finger to his lips. "Thank you for tonight, Zoro. Don't say anything," she said as he moved to speak again. "I know that after tonight it'll be like nothing ever happened. I'm just glad that I could have this one night with you, even if deep down I know that you belong to another…"
He stared at her in shock. "Was it that obvious?"
She nodded before kissing him softly on the cheek. "Good night, Zoro. No hard feelings, eh? I'll still kick your ass in kendo next Monday."
He grinned as they parted. "I had fun tonight because of you…thanks."
They parted.
---
"See you on Monday, Luffy."
"Later, Usopp, Chopper." The underclassman was spending the night with Luffy and Usopp to make up for the fact that he had missed going to the prom.
"Bye, Zoro!" Chopper squealed as he waved from the door in his brown and white striped pajamas with the matching cap on his head. [1] "Bye Sanji!"
As the door closed, they could hear Usopp already getting into his storytelling mood. "Let me tell you about the haunted house…"
"Oi, Usopp! Don't tell him anything that'll give him nightmares!" Zoro roared out the window as they pulled away.
"You're cute."
"What was that?" Zoro growled as Sanji grinned cheekily at him from across the limo.
"I said, you're cute," Sanji repeated. "You're a really good sempai, to care about your kyouhai that much."
"He's Chopper. Of course I care about him," Zoro grumbled as he crossed his arms and leaned back. "So, I guess we're dropping you off first?"
"If you wish," Sanji said, reclining with all the regality of a prince. "You care about Chopper, then?"
Zoro stopped short before snorting derisively. "Well, doesn't everyone?"
"It's odd to hear you sound so sentimental."
"It's not odd for you to be such an asshole about it."
"…touché."
They sat in silence save for the jazz music streaming out of the radio. Finally, they stopped in front of the small apartment that Sanji shared with his foster father.
"I guess that's it," Zoro said, opening the door for Sanji. "Get out. I'll see you on Monday."
Sanji lingered near the door, one hand fiddling with the button on his coat. "You know…the old fart's out in Paris giving a seminar."
"So?"
"Want to come in for some coffee?"
Zoro stared. "Not only are you offering to let me into your house, but you're offering me coffee? What's wrong with you?"
"Fine. Don't come," Sanji snapped as he left.
Zoro slammed the limo door shut as he followed Sanji while calling to the driver, "The rate's already covered, right? You can go now."
Sanji turned around and saw Zoro standing sheepishly on the sidewalk.
"I don't have a ride home. Can I stay?"
Sanji's only answer was to punch the entrance code into the apartment's lock and open the door for him.
---
The coffee was hot when Sanji handed it to him in a clean, plain teacup. Zoro set it on the table before staring at the apartment. It was small, as was to be expected for a two-person affair; the kitchen was richly furnished, but other than a tiny television and radio—plus two chairs around a table—it was bare.
"This place is…clean," he said awkwardly.
Sanji looked up from his task of pouring milk and sugar into his cup. "Of course it's clean, idiot. I live here."
"Well, two single men living in an apartment. You'd think it'd be messier than this," Zoro remarked. The coffee was steaming in his cup but he let it warm his hands. "Why'd you invite me in?"
Sanji shrugged. "You look…good today. In your tux. I've never seen you like that. You were even acting chivalrous to Tashigi-chan."
"Um, thanks?"
"Do you feel it?"
Zoro blinked. "Feel what?"
Sanji sipped his milky coffee, eyes half closed. "I don't know. I feel it…this something. Seeing you with a girl, dancing, being polite…it makes me feel odd."
Don't forget.
Zoro merely nodded. "It wasn't odd at all seeing you act like that tonight."
"Well, yeah. That's me. But you really are the Dark Prince."
"The hell is that?"
Sanji grinned. "You know that I'm Mr. Prince, right?"
"Allegedly, yes."
"The girls call you the Dark Prince. Some of them have dreams about being whisked away by you to dance under the moonlight."
"…they've been reading way too much shoujo…"
"They think that you hide your gentle exterior because of your goal."
"When did you hear this?"
Sanji looked rather miffed. "A prince ought to listen to every girl's woes, even if she speaks of a rival."
"Well, did you call me up here to find out?"
Sanji took another sip of coffee and didn't answer.
Zoro stood and began to walk.
Sanji wondered, Is he tired of my prattling and leaving?
Zoro walked up to the radio and fiddled with the dial. The station he landed on was playing a smooth jazz number; he must have taken the station's number from the limo.
Zoro held out a hand. "May I have this dance?"
Sanji stood, not caring about the situation, or that Zoro was asking him to dance like Sanji was a girl. He loved being Mr. Prince for the ladies, but sometimes he wished they would take time to take care of him once in a while.
He wondered if Zoro wanted to take care of someone, if he was tired of being emotionally self-ostracized.
Maybe that's why he likes Chopper so much.
I don't want to forget this night.
As he was dipped towards the floor, supported by one solid hand as the other hand held his own, Sanji smiled slightly.
He could learn to like this kind of treatment.
---
The next morning Zoro woke up to find himself in unfamiliar settings.
"Oi, marimo…your heart is racing like a rabbit's," Sanji mumbled as he propped himself on his elbows over Zoro's chest.
Zoro breathed in deeply as he remembered what had happened last night. He could see the pieces of Sanji's tuxedo laid carefully across a chair, mixed with pieces of black and dark blue. The radio was still playing jazz in the background, and two cold cups of coffee sat on the table. He could recall feeling his body pressed against Sanji's as they danced; one of their hands had dimmed the lights until the only illumination came from the streetlamps and sliver of a moon outside.
There was the first awkward kiss, the admittance to that feeling.
Taking off the vest had been the second step.
He would never forget that night.
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[1] I couldn't resist making Chopper tiny and cute today.