N/A: Just a very short One Shot I wrote to keep the wheels turning. Pretty simple and a bit forced, but anything to fight the dreaded Writer's Block, right?
One more time. Maybe in private. Less embarrassing. He can do this. He can definitely do this. It's just Zoro. Just do it.
Sanji downs the last of his whiskey and turns to look at Zoro, who's leaning back against the bar with his arms crossed and a completely annoyed look in his face. He doesn't like clubs, they all know it, but it was Nami's turn to pick the location for get-together, so he can't complain.
Sanji clears his throat but Zoro doesn't even look at him.
He can do this. Yeah, totally. Just say it. Spit it out. C'mon, Sanji, you got this.
"So…the whiskey's pretty good."
Fuck, you're such an idiot. Really, Sanji? Coward.
Zoro only grunts, but his scowl deepens when some bastard that smells too much like Axe gets too close. The man takes the hint quickly enough and leaves Zoro's side without asking anything.
Try again, Sanji. Don't chicken out this time. You got this.
"It'd pair really well with a steak—maybe I could take you out and share a meal—." Sanji's voice dies out when Zoro turns to glare at him with a strange expression on his face.
"Are you really fucking asking me this?" he growls and oh, shit, he looks pissed.
Sanji swallows thickly, but his usual instinct to butt heads against Zoro kicks in and he simply shrugs and gives the green-haired swordsman a cocky grin. "Yeah, why not?"
Why not go out with me? Why not let me kiss you? Why not give me a chance?
Zoro scoffs and shakes his head, not even bothering with an answer before he leaves Sanji's side.
Fuck. Sanji wipes his mouth with the back of his hand and signals for the bartender to give him another glass of whiskey. Shit. He shouldn't have said anything. Sometimes he thinks he has a chance, that Zoro maybe likes him just as much as Sanji likes him, but whenever he tries asking the other man out, he's always turned down.
Zoro has yet to give him a reason. He sends out such confusing signals that Sanji doesn't even know what to think anymore. Does he like Sanji or not?
Sanji thanks the bartender and quickly finishes the new shot of whiskey. Maybe it's best to just go home. It's gonna be dawn soon, and even though the sun won't kill him, no vampire likes the burning sensation left behind by the sunlight.
He says goodbye to Nami and Robin and avoids looking at Zoro, who's joined Usopp and Franky.
Perhaps he should just give up. Perhaps he's been reading Zoro wrong all this time. Maybe he should just resign himself to the fact that he's to live eternity on his own.
Zoro visits him at the Baratie the next day. He orders his favorite food and makes Sanji sit down next to him. Usopp and Brook join them, and Zoro acts as if he didn't turn down Sanji yesterday. He even laughs when Sanji makes a dry comment about Usopp's fears.
When Zoro says goodbye, he places his hand on Sanji's shoulder and gives him a smile.
Kiss him. Kiss him. Kiss him.
"What are you doing?"
Sanji blinks and pulls away from Zoro. "Nothing."
Zoro's eyes narrow and he stares at Sanji suspiciously. "Were you just about to—."
"No!" Sanji exclaims hurriedly, wincing when Zoro's eyes narrow more. "I mean—can you blame me?"
Zoro scowls and he stands up angrily. "You're really fucked up, you know that?"
"Z-Zoro, I—."
Zoro holds a hand up to stop him from talking and angrily walks out.
Sanji stares at the empty table. It's moments like these that he's glad his heart doesn't beat anymore. If it did, it wouldn't stand this pain.
It's already been two years since he met Zoro, five months since he realized he wanted more than a friendship from the other man. He spent a lot of time debating himself—after all, he's an undead. It's not like he can exactly have a normal relationship with a mortal. But there's just something about Zoro that makes Sanji want to give it a try, even pretend that they're just a normal couple.
But it's clear Zoro doesn't feel the same way.
Sanji sighs and stands up, motioning to one of his waiters to clean up the deserted table. Maybe it's just best if he gives up.
Sanji is doing well. He's kept things with Zoro entirely between friends. He's stopped trying to ask the other man out on dates, kept himself from any staring. He's the perfect friend—well, as perfect a friend as he can be.
That doesn't mean he doesn't get to feel jealous when he sees another man flirting with Zoro at the bar. He stares at the other man darkly, puffing on his cigarette angrily as he uses his enhanced hearing to listen to the man's corny pick-up lines.
It's clear they're not working on Zoro. Sanji can tell from Zoro's body language: the way his arms are crossed, his body angled away from the other man, his eyebrows pulled down into an angry scowl. But the other man is insistent, picking up the conversation every time Zoro drops it.
Sanji can tell Zoro is this close to throwing a punch. Part of him wants to let Zoro punch the shit out of the guy, but the better part of him—long-thought dead but born again after meeting Luffy and the gang—is telling him to intervene before Zoro can get himself banned from his favorite bar.
He asks for a shotof whiskey, gathers his strength, and advances on the arguing couple. Zoro notices him first, looking up when Sanji takes the seat on his left.
"Hey, babe," Sanji says loudly, placing a hand on Zoro's thigh. Zoro raises an eyebrow, but he doesn't move him away. "What's going on?"
The other man stares at Sanji with narrowed eyes, then moves his gaze to the hand on Zoro's thigh. "Fucking tease," he mutters and walks away.
"Thanks," Zoro says grudgingly, shoving Sanji's hand away. "Not that I needed it."
"Of course not," Sanji says amiably, squeezing his hand into a fist. He takes a sip of whiskey and tries to ignore the coldness coming from Zoro. "You can handle yourself."
Zoro glares at him then snatches the glass of whiskey from him before downing it.
"You know, I was drinking that," Sanji remarks. "You owe me a drink."
"Whatever."
Sanji sighs and moves his gaze forward. His attention stays on Zoro, though, but he doesn't want the other man to notice it.
"What are you staring at?" Zoro snaps and well, so much for that.
"Nothing," Sanji shrugs. "Just…staring."
"Well, stop it," Zoro says. "You're freaking me out."
"Sorry," Sanji mutters. "You don't have to be so fucking hurtful, you know."
"Hurtful? Me?" Zoro exclaims incredulously. "Look who's fucking talking!"
Sanji glares at Zoro. "What have I ever done to you? You made it very clear you want nothing with me and I backed off, but that doesn't mean I don't care about you!"
"Ha!" Zoro barks. "Yeah, right. You kept asking me to 'go out for a meal'. I know you're a fucking vampire, so I'm pretty damn sure what you mean by that!"
Sanji's mouth falls open as he stares at Zoro, his words slowly registering in his brain. "What?"
"Didn't think I knew, huh," Zoro snorts. "Knew it from the moment I met you. Of course, I didn't guess you would be such an asshole, taking advantage of my feelings to try and feed off me."
"Are you stupid?" Sanji snaps and continues before Zoro can snap back. "You're a werewolf—your blood is fucking poisonous to vampires!"
This time, Zoro is the one who stares at Sanji flabbergasted. "You knew"
"You stink of wet dog, you think I didn't notice?" Sanji rolls his eyes. "You're still mortal, but you're definitely not human."
"So…when you said 'go out for a meal'—."
"I meant food," Sanji finishes. "Steak, maybe. Rare."
"Oh." Zoro stares at the floor and Sanji enjoys the way his cheeks fill with blood. He might not find Zoro's blood tantalizing, but that doesn't mean he doesn't enjoy seeing it. "So…does the offer still stand?"
Sanji rolls his eyes, glad again that his heart cannot beat. If it did, it would probably kill him right now. "You're such an idiot. Tomorrow?"
Zoro grins wolfishly and Sanji is sure that if he was in his wolf-mode, his tail would be wagging.
"Tomorrow."
A/N: This is a re-upload of my story. Thank you for pointing out my mistake, I accidentally published this story with the first chapter of The Game Plan, another story I'm working on with the lovely Zosanlaw. If you enjoyed that story, please look it up, we've already posted chapter two. Thank you :)