8.3.2022
Author Notes:
This chapter turned into a bit of a monster and had to be sliced in two, so this fic is now at 8 chapters total. Let's hope it stays that way because if y'all forgot, this was supposed to be a one shot.
The past chapters have been cut into halves; Sanji's POV then Zoro's POV. This chapter is a bit different with them going back and forth constantly as they share many scenes together, but please bear with it and apologies if parts get confusing.
Trigger Warnings: mentions of abusive relationships and emotional manipulation.
Special thanks to Cyriusli for putting up with my shit first thing in the morning~
"Hi there. Welcome aboard. Good evening, welcome. Welcome aboard. Hello, welcome."
Sanji smiles as he greets all the uniformed troops as they enter through the forward door. Usopp is behind him flipping switches on the ovens and starts brewing coffee. He nods and smiles to the last few marines who enter before a familiar green patch of grass comes into view.
"Good evening, welc- oh god. It's you again," Sanji's smile drops at the sight of the intruder entering his aircraft.
"Well, hey there," the marine says with a sly grin, chewing gum crackling between his teeth.
Sanji suppresses an equally cocky smile, "Seat number?"
"Pardon?"
"Seat number," Sanji repeats and holds a hand out. "Your ticket?"
Zoro digs through his breast pocket and pulls out the boarding pass, obnoxiously chewing his gum as he looks for the information asked. "Uhhh, 28C."
Taking the ticket into his hands, Sanji finally allows himself a slow mischievous smirk that curls up into the corners of his eyes. "Oh, how lovely. Last row, next to the lavatories."
The lost moss quirks up a confused brow, "Um, no? I'm gonna go sit next to Ace. We don't have to sit in our seats." He states confidently.
And while what he says is true, anyone can switch seats at any time during the flight, even on commercial flights, this was a special case.
Sanji narrows his eyes at the man, already knowing the answer to his question, "Were you not listening at the boarding gate?"
"Nope," Zoro pops his lips childishly. "Was in the head."
"Charming." Sanji grimaces before his body straightens with a sharp inhale, arrogant smile returning to his cheeks, "Well, after the little bout of bullshit you and your friends pulled last time, your whole company has to sit in your assigned seats. Why do you think we separated you two?"
"What?" Zoro breathes and whips his head around. Portgas sits slouched in the aisle seat behind the bulkhead with his arms crossed tightly over his chest, his glare directed at a certain silver-haired major who sits stiffly in his own seat in the last row of the Plus section diagonal from the moping marine; the arrangement made so the officer can keep a close eye on the sergeant.
"Dude," the marine groans.
"Is there a problem here?" First Officer Nami appears behind them with a scowl. Sanji steps aside to give her room as he watches a flash of recollection spread across the marine's face.
"Ng- No ma'am," Zoro gulps, as he should. Nami had been a force to reckon with when she scolded them both for fighting. She had shouted at them during the walk into the flight deck and even continued to berate Sanji afterwards.
"I was just directing him to his seat, is all," Sanji says with a bow.
Nami scowls at the marine, "It's a straight path, how could he get lost?"
Zoro huffs with a pout, snatches his boarding pass out of the devilish blond's hands and marches to the back of the plane without another word.
"Bye mosshead~" the blond waves before turning to greet the rest of the boarding marines.
Zoro marches a little too loudly towards the back of the plane. He has to wait a few times as other marines rearrange their packs in the overhead bins so he has a moment to look around and see where everyone is seated, noticing that the usual groups are all seated together; Fullbody and Jango are with Hina, Eustass is with Killer and Wire, Yosaku is with Johnny, Drake is with-
Wait a minute.
Zoro stomps over a few rows down, "What the fuck is this?"
"A… cellphone?" Yosaku answers confused.
"No. Why are you two sitting together?"
Johnny looks up at him from over his shades, "Uhh, because these are our seats?"
"But I thought they separated us," Zoro says.
"Yeah," Yosaku smiles and gestures a hand between them. "They separated us from you two."
"What the fuck? That's not fair."
"Why not?" Johnny crosses his arms in front of him.
"Yeah," Yosaku mimics. "We didn't do anything wrong last time."
"Yeah."
Zoro stares at them incredulously, "Weren't you the ones collecting bets?"
"That was Portgas' doing." Yosaku waves the accusation away.
'But you helped," Zoro reminds them.
"Still Portgas." Johnny smiles up at him mockingly, "You'll be fine~ You're a big boy now Roro, you can sit by yourself and be okay."
Zoro scoffs at them and continues down the aisle, their snickers fading away behind him. He makes it to his seat and notices the whole row is still empty. He looks behind him and doesn't see anyone else approaching and the rest of the company are already on board. He sighs and settles into the aisle seat. If no one else comes, maybe he'll spread out on all three chairs and get some decent sleep.
When everyone is seated and the main door is shut, Sanji grabs the PA handset, bracing a hand on the bulkhead as the plane rolls away from the jetway.
"Good evening troops and welcome aboard Flight 212 with service to Katorea, Arabasta. We are currently second in line for take-off and are expected to be in the air in approximately six minutes. We ask that you please sit down and fasten your seatbelts - Portgas - at this time. Kindly stow away all baggage, firearms and any other weapons underneath the seat in front of you - Portgas. We also ask that your seatbacks and tray tables be in the upright position for take-off. Smoking is prohibited for the duration of the flight. That means you, Portgas."
"But I didn't smoke last time!" the sergeant shouts, waving both fists in the air and garnering laughter throughout the cabin.
"You might as well have. On behalf of Grand Line Airways, thank you for your service. Enjoy the flight."
Sanji replaces the handset and buckles up into his jumpseat. He waves to Usopp who's seated in the jumpseat by the aft door, the man offering a thumbs up signally everything was ready in the rear of the plane.
"This is bullshit," he hears Ace whine. "If you wanted to keep an eye on me, wouldn't you rather have me sitting next to you?"
Smoker turns and pushes his sunglasses down his nose. "No, you deserve no such privileges. Corporal Helmeppo here, on the other hand, is a far better seatmate."
"But I'm his superior!" Ace whines again.
"But I'm more mature," the corporal pipes in.
"Hush," Smoker berates the blond before turning back to the First Sergeant. "You will sit there and you will like it."
The freckled marine slouches even deeper into his seat, the collar of his jacket coming up over his nose. Sanji breathes a silent laugh, not wanting to be rude, but the man's gaze still meets his and Sanji half expects him to throw another fit for calling him out in the announcements but instead the marines face softens and his eye crinkles, lopsided smirk hidden under his jacket and he turns to stare out the window.
Shortly after, they're in the air, and Sanji and Usopp serve dinner to their hungry passengers. They make it to the last row where only two marines sit on either side of the aisle.
"Sorry, we ran out of pasta. There's only fish left." Usopp informs the two, but they both don't seem to mind. Sanji pours the marine with long blond curls a cup of cranberry juice and turns to Zoro.
"Something to drink?"
"Can I get a beer?" The marine asks with hopeful eyes.
"No, you're going back to work. You know this," Sanji says with his hand on his hip. Why this man always had to be so stubborn, Sanji couldn't fathom. It was standard protocol that no alcohol was to be served on flights flying into the bases.
"Fine," he says reluctantly, staring at his meal in thought. "Got ginger ale?"
"Yes, we do." Sanji pours him a cup and after a moment of thought, hands both the cup and the can to the marine.
The marine takes it with a mumble of thanks but doesn't take his eyes off the flight attendant. Sanji narrows his eyes at him before pushing the trolley into the galley; a smirk hidden behind his hair.
They lock the trolleys into their stations and Sanji moves to go to the Plus cabin when Zoro waves for his attention. "Excuse, um, could you give this to Ace for me?"
Sanji takes the given pound cake, bread and butter with a small smile as he remembers the previous flight with this company. "I can, but I'm sure the others already gave him enough."
"Oh, trust me. It's not enough," the marine chuckles as he speaks and Sanji is again reminded of their last encounter; the way he smiled in the glow of the TV screen. How many times has he thought about that in the last two weeks. he wondered?
"Alright." Sanji smiles and he takes his time to look the man over before leaving. He's gained a bit of weight since he last saw him, or perhaps his muscles have just softened from being able to rest at home again. Not needing to train so much every day with regular morning drills, but he still looked firm, evident by the curve of his pectorals pulling at his tight white undershirt. The sight does something for the blond, and a patch of dryness blooms in the back of his throat. Sanji sucks on his teeth as he starts to second guess himself, but with a breath for encouragement, he speaks again, "How was your stay?"
Zoro, who had been watching him patiently, shifts in his seat to face him better, "It was good. I, uh, I had a lot of fun."
They exchange soft smiles and Sanji nods, "Good to hear. I'll take these up."
He spares the man one last glance and heads up to the front of the plane. It's nice to be able to converse with the marine civilly now, last time having been way too hostile on Sanji's part. He regrets his behavior and mixing his personal life with his work, and he can only hope that the marine can see past that and they can start anew.
"Special delivery for Sergeant Portgas~" he chimes as he reaches the bulkhead. He does a double take at the sheer amount of sides piled onto the little foldable tray. "Jesus…"
Ace smiles up at him, cheeks puffed up full of bread and cheese sauce. "Ish shat fom Wowo?"
"Excuse you?" Sanji grimaces. This grown ass man, a man of the Marine Corps at that, sat with food in both hands, looking like a chipmunk scavenging for winter. By rank alone, Sanji knew the marine was older than him, but he evidently acted like a little kid.
Swallowing thickly, Ace wipes his mouth - with a napkin, thank fuck - and smiles at the flight attendant, "Is that from Roro?"
Roro. Now is that short for Roronoa or a cute way to say Zoro? Either way, Sanji tucked that bit of information into the depths of my mind to save for later. "Yes, he said you wouldn't have… enough."
Taking the food with both hands, the freckled marine tries to find a place to balance the items on his compromised Jenga tower of food. "If there's anyone that knows me so well…"
"Do you need more?" Sanji asks warily, half hoping the answer is in the negative.
"No, he doesn't," a deep voice grunts from behind him. "Don't give that pissant anything else, he's already spoiled as it is."
"I'm not spoiled, Smokey. I'm loved."
"Don't call me that, brat." the Major huffs and turns back to his own meal.
Ace hums and shoves more bread and ravioli into his mouth. "Thanks, Sanji."
"Sure thing," Sanji smiles at him and walks into the forward galley. Despite being a bit immature, the marine has good manners and Sanji believes that under better circumstances they would have made decent friends.
Sanji makes a mental note to make amends with this marine as well and goes through the checklist hanging on the wall.
Zoro watches quietly as his friend talks with the blond, hands idly mixing his salad. The flight attendant walks off and Ace leans out into the aisle to wave at him. Zoro waves back and they exchange a few random gestures before they return to their meals. He eats while half listening to a couple of episodes of a random TV show he's not really interested in but Chopper had recommended; just something to create background noise that wasn't the hum of the engines and he could catch a couple jokes that his little brother said the show was notorious for.
Even after dinner service and the lights dim down, he still watches and the show turns out to be more entertaining than he had first judged.
He sticks his head out into the aisle and mentally calls for Ace to turn around. For once it actually works; damn his good luck.
They gesture to each other again, neither of them knowing real sign language but they're still able to understand each other. Ace waves his hands around, mouthing silently, and tells him about the movie he's watching. They snicker both at the story and just the over goofiness of Ace's facial expressions. Suddenly, Ace straightens up and looks away, the expression on his face providing enough proof that he'd been caught by the major. Smoker stands from his seat and marches the length of the cabin over to Zoro.
"You," he states simply.
"Sir?" Zoro sits at attention and awaits the coming beration.
"Cavendish," Smoker turns to the only other person sitting in the back row.
"Get down!" the blond, who had been sleeping, shouts resulting in several marines near them to look over. The man rubs his eyes and waves his apologies to the others, who then sit back down. "I'm okay."
"Swap seats with Roronoa."
"Yes sir," the blond, gathers his bag from under the seat and stands.
"What?" Zoro says, because he most certainly doesn't whine. Not when speaking to his C.O. at least.
"Get up, gunny. I don't need you and that damned son of the devil over there getting any bright ideas. I want a nice quiet flight back to the base or so help me, if you two fuckups do anything to piss me off, I will have you scrubbing grout with a toothpick."
"Yes sir." Zoro obeys, knowing full well the Major would deliver on that promise, as he has done many times in the past, and moves to the other side where there's only two seats. So much for stretching out.
As if reading his mind, Cavendish buckles into the middle seat, flips up both armrests and lays down on the pile of pillows and blankets Zoro had pushed aside. Great.
Zoro pulls out his phone and types in a message to Ace.
Cavendish took my seat ;-;
Big deal at least you're alone
I'm next to Teach and he snores! D:
Gross.
Good luck with that mouth stank ;)
Fuck you Roro :P
Good luck with that ass stank [toilet emoji]
[curing emoji]
Zoro chuckles softly before he sighs and leans his head back into the seat. He stares at the flight map on the monitor through heavy lids, unbothered to bring up the show again. He hears mumbling to his right, something about an enemy attacking and the need to fall back, and finds Cavendish fast asleep; the blond sleep talking again as per usual.
He's tired but not really in the mood for sleep, so he props his heavy boots up onto the other seat and leans against the window, closing his eyes to get a few moments of meditation.
Sanji refills the coffee pots and confirms a few things with Usopp before walking towards the aft galley. He sees a patch of green stick up above the passengers heads looking like forest lichen inching its way up the cabin walls. As he approaches, he finds the marine with his eyes closed; face soft and brow relaxed. Sanji thinks he's asleep but the man's hands come up to rub his temples and he groans as he tries to stretch in his seat.
"Did I wake you?" Sanji asks.
"Nah," Zoro waves a hand in the air. "Just resting my eyes. Not really tired."
"Hmm," Sanji nods. His eyes wonder, avoiding eye contact with the marine as he thinks of what to say next. "Can I get you anything?"
"No, thanks. I'm good."
"Right." Sanji gently sucks on his bottom lip."You switched seats."
"Got in trouble," Zoro replies to the not-a-question.
"I saw," that devilish smile from earlier reappears on his lips. "You're really immature, aren't you."
"We all are," Zoro isn't ashamed to admit. Just because they're military doesn't mean they're not still human; they're allowed to enjoy simple things. "Smokey's just a hardass."
"He doesn't like to be called that," the purser leans an elbow on the headrest with a raised eyebrow.
"That's why we say it." Zoro flashes his own mischievous smile and revels in the way the blond's tongue swipes as his bottom lips.
Sanji lingers, watching him intently. He obviously has something to say but Zoro is unsure of how to encourage the words out of him.
"You wanna sit down?" Zoro drops his feet to the floor and dusts off the seat for the blond to sit beside him.
Sanji grins but hesitates in the aisle. "I shouldn't."
"Are you not allowed?"
"No, we can." He hesitates again, eyes looking about the cabin as if checking to see if someone was watching him. "But I shouldn't."
"Oh." He's… disappointed, to say the least, but Zoro can kind of understand why. After what happened last time, they need to be more careful so as not to alert suspicion from Smoker else they'd get reprimanded again.
"Want some coffee?" Sanji offers.
Zoro shakes his head. The man lingers still and Zoro can't help but feel a bit hopeful that the flight attendant is actually interested in him now. He had said he wasn't not interested when they arrived in Loguetown but that doesn't mean things didn't change. He pushes his luck, "Tea would be good."
Nodding, Sanji turns back into the kitchen, grabs a paper cup, and pours the tea but doesn't bring it to Zoro. Instead, he stays at the counter and side eyes Zoro expectantly. Zoro takes this as an invitation and stands, entering the galley.
"Thanks." Zoro takes the cup and blows at the steam.
Sanji nods and leans against the bulkhead. "It'll help you sleep."
"Oh," Zoro pauses before the cup reaches his mouth. "I definitely will not be sleeping on this flight."
"How come?" Sanji asks, concerned. "We'll arrive in the morning, you'll be reporting right when we land."
"And miss hanging out with you?," Zoro gives a lazy shrug as he takes a sip of his drink. "Worth it."
A light blush heats up Sanji's ears. He wants to protest but decides against it, so he smiles, grabs a cup of his own and pours himself some coffee. "How was your stay on the mainland?"
They chat for the next couple of hours about everything and nothing at the same time. Sanji learns that Zoro grew up in a foster home with several other kids, the youngest of whom was Chopper, which he's the closest with. Chopper is also planning on joining the military soon and becoming a combat medic, having been influenced by the need to treat all of his older siblings' reckless injuries throughout the years. Over the past two weeks, the two took trips to various parks, zoos and carnivals. Ace also happens to be from the same area so he and his own brothers joined them most days. A story about Ace hurling into the log ride river after eating too many turkey legs, and the accompanying souvenir photo the marine showed him had Sanji covering his face tightly with both hands to keep from waking any passengers with his laughter.
Sanji shares his own stories about when he started working for the airline and how he met Usopp and Franky. About his own childhood of living above a small pub that Zeff used to own and how he learned to fight from kicking lousy drunks who won't pay their tabs out every night. He even tells the man of his dream to open a restaurant of his own some day. He had only become a flight attendant for the travel benefits so he can learn as much about cuisine from other countries as possible without breaking the bank. They're able to speak to one another so easily and it makes the blond's stomach flutter; he can't remember the last time he was able to talk to someone like this.
Sanji's leaning his hip against the aft door as the marine, who sits comfortably enough in the little jumpseat, lists the different MRE meals you should absolutely, never eat.
"The veggie omelet looks like vacuum sealed vomit-"
"Like Ace's vomit in that photo earlier?"
"Worse. And it smells just as bad, too. Never got that stench out of my boots."
"Oh, no, poor Roro." Sanji teases and they both snicker.
"And the vegan burger tastes like a flip flop fished out of a lake. The pork and rice, now, that looks exactly like Sabo's dog's diarrhea, no joke. But the worst of them all," his hands shake in the air and his face sours at the memory, "the King of Nast, is the chicken. If someone ever offers you a Chicken ala King MRE, shoot them in the foot; they are not your friend."
Sanji doesn't know how to react to the man's passionate hatred for their only sustenance out on the field other than to laugh wholeheartedly behind his hand; his overdramatic expressions causing Sanji to snicker as Zoro explains himself, arms waving enthusiastically as he speaks. "I'll keep that in mind."
There's a lull in the conversation and they stay in idle silence, but the light blush on the marine's cheeks as he so blatantly stares at him through lidded eyes makes Sanji's smile fall. Of course he had forgotten.
"I should apologize," he starts.
"What for?"
"For before. I," he breathes a heavy sigh and rakes a hand through the hair at his nape. "I wasn't in a good headspace."
"No," Zoro sits up straight in the jumpseat and faces him fully. "I should apologize. What I said was kind of… crazy."
"Yeah, it was, but… I should have reacted to that better. The truth is I had gotten out of a really… really bad relationship a couple years ago." Sanji worries on his bottom lip again, it's chapped and he suddenly wishes he had a cigarette. "He was jealous, angry, contradictory, and I realize now that he was abusive."
"Hey, it's okay, you don't have to ex-"
"No," Sanji holds up a hand while the other rubs his forehead. "You deserve an explanation."
Zoro nods and sits patiently as the blond continues.
"He was… charming? At first? But he'd make promises and do the opposite. I tried to break up with him once before and he begged me to stay. Made new promises; broke those too. And when he got drunk his true colors showed, but I had always tried to convince myself that it was just the shitty liquor talking.
"When you…" the blond breathes a heavy sigh and squares his shoulders. "When you said you were gonna make me your husband, as you so eloquently put," a small smile curls on his lips at the memory. "It uh…"
He pauses a moment and his smile wavers. "He always said he loved me and I was the only one for him, but when I brought up the idea of marriage, he laughed and said I was too high maintenance and not worth-" Sanji's voice catches in his throat and the back of his eyes sting. He shouldn't have done this, he shouldn't have dumped his mess of a life onto Zoro like this. He deserved an apology not a rambling fuck show.
"I'm sorry," he says softly.
"Don't be." Zoro's voice is low and he furrows his brow in anger. He hadn't expected the blond to be so honest and open on the matter, and now he feels an ache in his chest. He couldn't have known what he said would have been so triggering for the blond, but still. He should have been more considerate with his words. "He's a fucking jackass. You deserve better than that."
"Yeah," Sanji says quietly. "He hated my job the most. Something about me being gone for so long surrounded by men; how he'd lose me." His ex had said much more than that the night they had that fight; calling him many hurtful terms. Sanji had tried to reassure him that it would never happen but when Zoro had flirted with him before, he almost started to believe those words.
"What the fuck? This is your job. A job that's helping you work towards something greater. If anyone complained about me being in the armed forces, serving, being away for months only to come home for a couple weeks then leave again, they wouldn't be worth my time. Fuck them. Fuck him." Zoro looks away, shaking his head and clicks his tongue in frustration. He knows this was already so long ago but the want to protect Sanji from this asshole continues to grow the more Sanji reveals. "That's fucking stupid. I'd never hold that against you."
Sanji can't help the swell he feels in his chest; something reminiscent of hope. His ex had made him feel inadequate and flawed for pursuing his dreams, but the marine understood and accepted it so earnestly. Sanji had kept himself from getting close to anyone after, had hardened himself and refused to date again in fear that the next person would also try to dissuade him from his goals.
"Well, I had broken up with him for good but somehow, he'd gotten my number and called me the morning of your flight screaming at me. It's why I was so on edge. I shouldn't have mixed my personal life with work, and I shouldn't have taken it out on you."
"I'm sorry. I didn't know. I couldn't have known… if I had I-" If he had he would what? What would he have done? Zoro breathes deeply through his nose and tries to still his racing heartbeat. "What about now?"
"What about now?"
"Is he still bothering you? Are you safe?"
'There he goes again.' Sanji curls his lips between his teeth to keep from smiling. This green headed swamp algae really knew how to push all the right buttons and make his stomach tie in knots. "Yeah, it's fine now. He's not coming back… Ever."
The marine stares at him, searching those deep blue eyes. He furrows his brow in silent question and the blond returns it with a not-so-innocent raise of his curly eyebrow while his eyes dart to the side only to return to him with a poorly concealed smirk. "Ominous," Zoro grins. "Good."
They sit in idle silence once more, exchanging glances and small smiles. Sanji licks his dry lips and Zoro's eyes follow the movement and when the flesh slowly pulls from between Sanji's teeth, the marine can't stop himself from licking his own. Sanji breathes a laugh through his nose and turns away, covering his face with the back of his hand in a poor attempt to hide his blush. He looks back at Zoro but the man's face has shifted into a confused twist, his brow furrowed and nostrils twitch. Sanji thinks he might have done something to offend the man when suddenly a deep yawn escapes the marine's mouth.
His shoulders rise and fall with the deep breath and he thinks it's over when a second even bigger one pulls through him again. Zoro can't stop his voice and he shakes his head clear from the intensity of it. "Hm, shit."
"Okay, you should go sleep," Sanji chuckles and checks his watch. "Wow, we've been talking for hours now, I'll let you get back. I didn't mean to keep you for so long."
"It's fine, I had fun." Zoro stands from the jumpseat and stretches his back.
"I had fun, too." Sanji smiles. He's been doing that a lot today. More than he's done with anyone else other than Usopp. "Except, you know, that last part."
Zoro nods and loiters a bit. That story had been quite heavy and while he was still really interested in the blond he didn't know if it was a good idea to bring that up again or not.
"Zoro?" The blond's voice calls his attention back to him.
"Yeah?"
"Last time, when you asked me if I was single. Not gonna lie, it triggered me a bit. But looking back - had I not received that phone call - I think I might have answered the question."
"Wait, really?"
"Yeah," the blond flight attendant says softly and though he's feeling vulnerable being this honest, he doesn't break eye contact with the marine.
"Does that mean…" Zoro shifts his stance and leans suggestively against the bulkhead. "You also think I'm attractive."
Sanji rolls his eyes as a big grin splits his face and he chuckles. "Maybe" he says teasingly. He makes a show of letting his eyes roam over the marine's body. The man stands lazily leaning on his right shoulder, ankles crossed with his hands in his pockets of his fatigues, elbows pushing his unbuttoned issued jacket behind his arms, exposing the white undershirt that pulls tightly against his chest and waist. The marine stares at him with an arrogant smile and the blond bites his lip. "Maybe not."
'Holy shit.' An excited shiver goes up Zoro's spine and he finally pushes all thoughts of the blond rejecting him out of his mind.
"So I was thinking we could start over." The blond takes a step forward and extends a hand out. "Sanji Legge."
Zoro takes a step forward as well and grasps his hand. It's warm and soft with thick calluses on the ball of his palm. "Zoro Roronoa."
They separate again and Zoro leans back on the bulkhead. "So Legge, huh? Never heard that one before."
"Well, it's pretty rare. Nordic; from the vikings."
Zoro raises both eyebrows, "Whoa, that's badass."
Sanji chuckles, crosses his arms and leans against the bulkhead facing Zoro. "And you? Rorona? Can't be Japanese," he says, remembering the bit of information the marine had shared about his background.
"It's not, not really. French actually."
"Really?" Sanji asks, a bit taken aback, but in a good surprised kind of way.
"Yeah," Zoro blushes slightly. "You know that French pirate, Francois L'Olonnais?"
"Vaguely?" Sanji tilts his head as he tries to recollect his history. "I've heard the name before, though."
"Descendant." Zoro raises a shy hand. "Just years of bastardized spelling and mispronunciation."
"What the fuck?" Sanji laughs the words and shakes his head. "Wow. So you're a pirate and I'm a viking."
Zoro nods with practically his whole body, giant smile plastered on his face. "Looks like it."
Sanji laughs jovially again and Zoro stares at him with a soft, lopsided smile, dark eyes gazing into deep blue and his steady heartbeat pounding in his ears.
"I like your laugh."
Sanji blushes and grins with his bottom lip between his teeth. "I like your goofy smile"
"I like your weird eyebrows."
"I like your stupid hair."
"I like your dumb face."
"I like you."
Zoro's smile drops and his breathing halts. He doesn't know what to think, or even how to think but he knows he's made a decision. He leans backwards and looks up the aisle to make sure no one is coming before crossing the space towards Sanji. He stands tall as he gazes into the blond's incredibly beautiful eyes and they stare back at him shining. He leans in cautiously and just when their noses brush gently, Sanji leans back.
"Don't."
Zoro pauses and pulls back slightly. "And why not?" he asks calmly. He's not upset, but he won't do anything the flight attendant doesn't want.
"Because I said so and you should listen to me." Sanji's voice is low and husky, and the sound sends shivers down his spine.
Zoro groans. The flight attendant was obviously teasing him, and he leans in again. "I don't want to."
Long pale fingers come up and gently caress the marine's collarbone, neck and jaw, stopping his advance. "Well, you don't have a choice."
"Says who? You can't tell me what to do."
"Actually," Sanji elongates the word, his head tilted back so he's looking down at Zoro with an arrogant smirk. "I can. As purser, the lead flight attendant. I am. The. Law." Sanji breathes the last two words against Zoro's chin and another ripples makes its way up his spine. "Now back up."
The green haired marine glares down at him with thinly narrowed eyes. He really wants to kiss that smirk right off the blond's face but he had already promised he wouldn't do anything the other man didn't want. He growls - not whines, thank you very much - in the back of his throat before stepping back. "Mmmmmmm fine. You don't make this easy."
Sanji's face beams in victory and now he's giggling at him. "Nope. Can you please get back to your seat, now? You really are distracting me."
With a huff, Zoro walks backwards not taking his eyes off the flight attendant. "Night, Curly."
"Good night, Roro."
Zoro scoffs at the nickname but trudges around the bulkhead and plops into his seat, head turned up to try to continue watching the gorgeous man of his dreams who actually likes him back but he doesn't come into view. Zoro lets his head hit the headrest of his seat and stares at the console above him. He doesn't want this flight to ever end.
Once the marine is gone, Sanji turns around to face the aft door, hands rubbing his face before pushing his hair back so both eyes can look at the ceiling. He sighs deeply and contently, with a goofy smile he can't fight back spreading up his cheeks. He can't believe how well things are going and as much as he also wanted to kiss the marine, he knows it's still too soon, no matter how much they both wanted it. He slides his hands back down his face to rest his jaw in and he looks out the tiny window, out to the dark night sky where masses of gray clouds engulf the aircraft. It's as peaceful as his heart feels and he can't tell if the lightness he feels in his step is from his happiness or the pitch of the plane in the headwinds.
Breathing in one last heavy sigh, he pats his thighs and slides the jumpseat back into its narrow cubbyhole. "Time to get back to work."
End Notes:
I thought about leaving this at a cliff hanger but decided not to do that to y'all. After all, y'all been nothing but suuuper supportive. I'll play nice.
Also, if anyone knows how to add emojis to this please let me know. It won't let me do it.
TERRIBLE HISTORICAL INACCURACIES: French pirate François L'Olonnais was born Jean-David Nau in 1630 and brutally cannibalized in 1669 at the age of 38/39 by an indigenous tribe somewhere in Panama. He was infamous for sacking treasure ships, specifically those of Spanish traders, and for eating the beating heat of a Spanish rival. According to Zoro's family line (aka me), one of Francois' grandsons had traveled to the east and laid roots in Japan some time in 1710. However, the surname registration law in Japan was not passed until 1875, and before then a decree in 1587 stated only samurai could have surnames. I took MANY liberties here, don't come at me.
History behind Sanji's name: I wanted something that would match both him and Zeff because personally I don't prefer "Prince" or "Black". Zeff is neither a prince nor Black Leg. Zeff is Red Leg. There was Blue, Ashi (Japanese for leg), Jambe (French for leg), but decided to go with "Legge". It's English but records state it has a dash of Viking. For origins it may derive from the Norse personal name "Leggr" or of early medieval English from the word "legg", and probably used as a metonymic nickname for someone with long legs or who was a swift runner. The most famous Legges in history are 1st-7th and 10th Earls of Dartmouth all named William Legge, George Legge the 1st, George Legge the 3rd and Gerald Legge the 9th; all Barons of Dartmouth. What I find the most hilarious: they're all from Dartmouth. Dartmouth. Dart. Mouth. Cuz Sanji got that nasty mouth hehehe. When I discovered this, Legge was my final choice (chosen in 2014, I had this waiting for a long time).
Thanks for reading~ Any comments, questions, suggestions, blood sacrifices and interpretive dances are always welcome. Have a great day 3
