This fic is set after Fishman Island Arc and before Punk Hazard. Warnings of spoilers for the Whole Cake Island Arc ahead because we adore Luffy and Sanji nakamaship.
The first rays of the early morning sun shone through the crow's nest windows and Sanji slowly made his way down to the galley for breakfast duties. The waves were calm and the sky fairly clear as the strawhat chef took a quick survey around him, inhaling the sweet smell of Nami's tangerine trees mixed with the familiar salty air that signifies home. He is here, they are here, he is here. After two years of separation and intense training, all nine of them managed to get back to the Sunny and continue their long overdue adventure to the New World. Sanji allowed a small smile on his lips, they're here in the New World now.
No words could describe the pain, agony, and in Sanji's case, the horror that was their two-year separation. It would have been easy to hate Luffy for making them (and Nami-swan and Robin-chwan especially) go through such a long time away from each other, not to mention the dangers each of them have experienced with whole two years of trying to get stronger for his sake. It would have been easy to blame Luffy for the horrible choice to stay on that nightmarish island with not a single woman for Sanji to fawn over (although a big part of his hatred goes to Kuma for sending him there of all places, surely there were better islands to choose from?) when he can always opt to escape from the island and away from those people.
It would have been easy, Sanji thought, if not for the devotion and trust they hold for Luffy, for their captain, who treasures them as much as he does to his beloved strawhat. If Luffy was one of those captains who treat their crew like mere tools and subordinates, then Sanji would have had things easy, they would have had things easy. But Luffy is nakama, and he sees each one of them as nakama, and Sanji would never trade his crew or his captain for anything in the world, may it be the world's most beautiful woman or his mermaid paradise. No. Sanji would definitely go to hell and back if it means he could get stronger for his crew and Luffy.
Because he was distracted by these musings, Sanji didn't sense the approaching doom. Luffy reached the deck and proclaimed as a morning greeting, "SANJI, BREAKFAST!" he chuckled heartily after, his smile as bright as the early morning sun.
Sanji had to scowl at that. Shitty captain being so loud in the morning. What if he wakes up and disturbs the sleep of the gorgeous ladies of the ship? Time to drill morning lessons to the idiot.
Sanji raised his right leg and promptly kick Luffy in the face, sending him tumbling on the grassy lawn.
"On it, bastard. Keep quiet. My dear Nami-swan and Robin-chwan are having their beauty sleep."
The chef walked to his galley with a bruised Luffy following him.
"Shishishi. What are you cooking for breakfast, Sanji?" Luffy asked once he was settled on the dining counter.
"Shut up and be patient." Sanji automatically answered, then he thought. "Why are you here anyway, get out and play, or do something. Don't stay here in my kitchen." Knowing Luffy, he will just cause trouble in the kitchen and Sanji cannot afford more of his precious plates to be broken, or his cooking be disturbed.
Luffy pouts like a two-year-old when his toys were snatched away.
"But they are still sleeping!" By they, Luffy means Usopp and Chopper, his playmates and partners-in-crime.
"Then go to sleep too."
"But Saaanjiiiii! T's booooriing!" Luffy whined. Honestly, Sanji sometimes wonders if Luffy is really 19. Most of the time he acts just like a ten-year-old, or younger.
Sanji eyed the whining captain for a second longer before sighing. "Fine. Just stay right there. Don't move and don't touch anything. Geez captain, why do you have to wake up this early today anyway." It's not like something exciting is about to happen. Sanji added to himself. Usually, his captain would have been in bed for an hour or more before he came barreling into the galley with his usual morning greeting of pestering Sanji for breakfast.
For just a brief fraction of a second – Sanji wouldn't have caught it if not for his quick reflexes – Luffy stilled uncharacteristically and a shadow on his eyes. But it was immediately replaced by his usual Luffy expression and he smiled brightly at Sanji.
"Guess I woke up early. Shishishi."
Sanji searched the boy's eyes for that brief change of expression. Then he took a long drag of his cigarette as he gathered ingredients and materials to cook for breakfast. They remained silent for about ten minutes. Sanji cutting up vegetables and mixing ingredients while Luffy with his ear-to-ear smile watching Sanji prepare breakfast.
Ace. Sanji thought. He is not entirely sure how to deal with it. If anything, this is the first time he knew of Luffy dreaming about Ace and the war ever since they reunited. He figured he could ask the young captain about it, but then again what could he offer to him in return? Sanji is not one to press his crewmates for details of their personal life. It may not look like it in a rambunctious crew like this one, but the Strawhat pirates value each other's privacy and personal life and they would not press it unless the person is ready to tell them themselves. And Sanji understands that this is not the right time to ask Luffy about the events that happened two years ago.
For the sake of conversation and because he knows Luffy could get troublesome when bored, Sanji took a glance at his captain and was about to asked.
"Luffy, what do you think-"
"I'm really glad you're my cook, Sanji." Luffy said suddenly, out of the blue, drowning what Sanji was about to say. It took the blond chef by such surprise that he quickly spun his head to stare at Luffy, wondering why his captain exclaimed such. Luffy gave him his usual wide smile, so genuine and positive and Sanji's cigarette fell from his mouth.
"What's this about?" He tried to sound suspicious. As if daring his captain to admit that he said those to be awarded more meat. He went back to preparing the food to hide the smile that was slowly making its way to his lips. Luffy, you bastard.
Luffy titled his head to the side curiously. "Because you are. You're the best cook in the world!"
Sanji didn't know what prompted this conversation from his idiot captain. It isn't the first time Luffy proclaimed how he is the best chef there is, but with their separation and everything that happened in between up to now, Sanji has to admit (to himself only, hell if he would admit this to anyone else or Luffy) that the words made him idiotically happy.
A thought suddenly struck him while he stirred the vegetables in the cooking pot and Sanji turned to Luffy again.
"Hey, shitty captain." Luffy's ears perked up and he looked at Sanji.
"Why did you choose me as a cook?"
Luffy's expression turned from curiosity to utter cluelessness and Sanji had to restrain himself from kicking the boy in the face.
"Eh? Why are you asking me that, Sanji? Are you sick?" He crossed his arms and let his head drop to his side idiotically.
He went to flip the burgers. "I'm not, shitty captain. It's just that-"
Ah, what was it? Sanji thought. He was not sure what made him ask the question. It's not like the answer matters right now what with they've come this far after all. But it is not every day that he gets to have this conversational moment with Luffy that does not involve beating up someone or getting out of trouble, and he figured he might as well ask while he can.
He went to mixing the sauce. "Just… just because. I don't have to give you a reason for that! Just answer, shithead."
Luffy still does not understand why his cook is asking him such but he felt from Sanji's words that this was important to him.
"Because you're a good guy." He said simply, like a fact. Sanji noted how there was a hint of pride in those words.
The blond chef knows he should have known. The first time Luffy bugged him to be his cook was when the rubber captain saw Sanji gave food to some vicious pirate named Gin. Then and there Luffy decided to make him a part of his crew.
"Cheh. You're looking for a cook, not a philanthropist. The qualifications are different." He muttered.
"Is it? But you cook really good food."
"How would you know by then, you haven't tasted my cooking when you recruited me, don't you? What if I turned out to be a crappy cook?" he wasn't entirely sure why he was suddenly spouting all these nonsense, but he found he can't stop himself from spilling these words.
"But I like you. And I've decided to make you my cook."
"Geez, Luffy. Look, what you were looking for was a cook, right? If you look for a cook with the basis of just a good guy, then that wouldn't take you anywhere. You might as well pick some random passerby and ask him to cook for you. You know, a cook's job is essential on a ship. What would have happened if you picked up some low-class cook, how are you going to survive at sea?" Sanji continued mumbling, all the while Luffy just brandished his ever-bright smile at him.
Sanji ran a hand through his hair. "Ugh, idiot captain. Do you get what I'm saying?"
As if proudly, Luffy says, "Nope."
Sanji drags on his cigarette. "Why did I even bother."
"But it's all good, ne Sanji? You are a great cook. I'm really lucky to have met you."
And Sanji has to stop what he was doing to stare back at his captain, who was beaming with pride and joy at his own words, who was smiling at Sanji wholeheartedly because he means every word, and nothing can change that. And Sanji has to turn around and busy himself because his captain looks so bright and happy and all the good things in the world and Sanji felt his cheeks blush.
"Idiot captain." He finally let out. "I'm the lucky bastard to have met you."
Somewhere on the back of his mind, Sanji was a little kid again. Alone and abused by his own family with no one to love him but his dear deceased mother. He was that pitiful Sanji again, locked behind the cells which his father threw him into, a heavy and iron helmet on his head. He was a no-good, a failure to the point of his own blood family disowning him. But here is a pirate captain, whom Sanji knows would still gladly accept him even if he turned out to be mediocre of a cook, simply for the reason that he is a 'good guy'.
Sanji exhaled deeply. Thirteen years ago, his blood family would have beaten him up repeatedly for showing kindness to people, or animals for that matter. Yet here is Luffy, a naive, idiot-brained of a captain who accepted him largely on the basis of his kind nature.
He was thankful of course and would forever be grateful to the old geezer who took him and raised him despite having no obligation to do so. Sanji owes Zeff his life, his skills, and everything that he became under his wing. But life at the Baratie, as much as it was fun, Sanji always had a dream he always had even back in that dark cell. It was a dream he almost left out of gratitude for the old man, because he thought that working til death at the old man's restaurant was enough.
Then Luffy came bouncing into his life with that wide smile on his face, refusing his refusal, igniting the desire of a dream Sanji thought he could continue on living without. He was happy at the Baratie, but Luffy came and dragged Sanji into his crew, and Sanji was welcomed into a new family he never thought he needed in his life.
Zeff saved his life and gave him purpose, but Luffy gave color to his life. And it was a rainbow of colors he painted for Sanji - red, green, blue, yellow, pink, orange, violet.
"Someday, you will find people who will treat you the way you deserve to be treated!" the voice of long ago rang in his ears. I'm here, Reiju.
"Sanji, are you crying?" the face of Luffy suddenly appearing in front of him brought Sanji back to reality and he gave his captain a swift kick to the head.
"Don't creep up on me like that, idiot." He tried to sound annoyed but refused to look at his captain in the eye, that was when he realized his eyes were indeed wet.
"But you were crying! What happened, Sanji? Did someone hurt you? Do I need to kick someone's ass?"
The sincerity in his captain's tone made Sanji chuckle a bit and he quickly made an excuse of doing something to wipe away the tears on the corners of his eyes before looking at his captain who was sitting sprawled on the kitchen floor. He gave a small genuine smile of thanks to Luffy.
"You can't kick the past in the ass, captain. I'm fine, I really am." I'm in the best place I could be in the world.
He knows by the looks of it that Luffy didn't quite catch what he meant but the young captain stood on his feet anyway and neatly arranged his hat on his head.
"I see. I'm glad. Shishishi."
And because he knows he is such an ungrateful lucky bastard, and that Luffy, despite being an annoying idiot that he is, deserves all the good things in the world, Sanji finally gives in and grins widely.
"Ne, Luffy. How about I cook you something special for breakfast. Anything."
Luffy's eyes were as wide as saucers. "Really?!"
"Yes, now what do you want?" he asked despite anticipating the answer.
"I want meat, Sanji!" Lots of meat!"
"Then settle down and I'll whip up some good meat for you," Sanji said, determined to show his captain the new cooking techniques he learned over the two years.
"Meat! Meat! Meat!"
"Shut up, shitty captain!"
I'm glad I met you, Luffy.
END.