Author's Note: So hello again. For those of you who may have already read any of my stories (you never know), thank-yous to everyone who reviewed will be found at the end of the chapter in a second author's note where I might comment on what you said, or just say thank-you (my mother would be so proud, I've got manners, FINALLY!). I decided to update a bit sooner than I expected because when I got the point of my story being up for about 8 hours, I had as many followers and now I have 13 follows, 4 favourites and 3 reviews. I was REALLY happy to get any reviews for this since I wasn't sure how people would react to it and all, but I'm really glad people like it! An explanation in terms of why this chapter is written a bit differently from the last one: I have a writing style which I describe as the following: 3rd person version of 1st person. Basically, it's told in the 3rd person (he said, she watched, they saw), but it follows only one character the same way 1st person does so that all thoughts that occur are all through the perspective of the chosen character for that chapter, or section of the chapter. Zoro and Sanji will be working on a rotation, odd numbered chapters are Zoro's to control and even numbered chapters are Sanji's. In translation, this chapter is told by Sanji so none of Zoro's thoughts are present. I had to make some adjustments to the Baratie to help the story and a few other things, but I tried to keep it as similar as it is in the anime/manga. The only named staff of the Baratie are Carne and Patty, so I have a request for those who read long author notes. Please come up with other staff members of the Baratie for me. Give me their names, their age, their appearance and how they act. Unfortunately, they all have to be cruel to Sanji, however you can make them one of the less harsh ones, or maybe one of those people who just follow what others are doing. Either way, the Baratie needs staff! I do not own One Piece, welcome to the next chapter of Beautiful Disaster!
Beautiful Disaster
By: Setkia
Full Summary
Sanji is the assistant cook of the world-renowned restaurant, the Baratie, the only restaurant like it in the world. He's a successful chef and flirts with the customers every chance he can get but there's a problem. It's all a facade. The cooks give a new meaning to the word "abusive", both mental and physical. The only thing keeping Sanji alive is his love for cooking and a good ol' pack of cigarettes.
Zoro Roronoa is a swordsman who suddenly has more change in his pocket than he expected and enters the Baratie by recommendation. His waiter happens to be a curly browed man with an adoration for cigarettes. An attempt speak to the head chef goes horribly wrong and he gets sucked into the crumbling world of the chef's, wondering how he can possibly save him and better yet, why does he want to save him in the first place?
Chapter 2: That Marimo Bastard
The bastard was there again.
He didn't know why, but for some reason, that annoying moss-headed idiot was sitting at a seat in the corner of the room, this time in a smoking-permitting zone.
Sanji knew that pretending to be a waiter had been worth the abuse. True, he was more bruised than he probably would have been if he had just stayed inside the kitchen, but socializing with the customers was something he hadn't done in so long. The look on their faces when they ate their food, especially when it was food Sanji had prepared, was priceless. He liked to know that his hard work payed off, at least for one of them.
The waiters had ignored him unless they were forced to acknowledge his presence and the others in the kitchen had given him scowls, but took the orders he had submitted and allowed him to return to serve them to the customers. It had worked once, maybe it could work again?
Sanji didn't care about the consequences, he was beyond caring at this point. He just wanted to see the restaurant he and Zeff had made, being run the way it was meant to be. When he was out there with the clients, it certainly felt that way and he'd take whatever punishment they deemed necessary to see the beautiful, tame Baratie that the customers were under the illusion it was.
With gritted teeth, he took a long drag from his cigarette before approaching the moss-haired idiot, a notepad clutched in his hand, a menu in his other.
He doesn't know that much, he reasoned as he took each step, though he couldn't seem to convince himself, no matter how much he wanted to. You don't know how long he was there, he could've seen nothing. Or he could have seen everything.
"Hello and welcome to the Baratie," he greeted him. If he remembered him from the night before correctly, then that man's wallet had been nearly empty. How was he here again? It didn't make sense, but he decided not to question it and instead put on a warm smile. They said it took less muscles to smile than to frown. Sanji thought — no, he knew they were fucking liars. "Is there anything I can get you to drink to start you off?"
What was his name again? It was a strange one, there was a book about it somewhere, wasn't there? Some Spanish person, maybe? It started with a Z, right? Zephyr? Zander? Zack? No, he wasn't even close, was he?
Sanji glanced up for a moment, staring at one of the many TVs that were spread across the Baratie in case someone happened to want to hear the news. He found it was a pointless thing to spend the budget on, especially since the TVs clashed horribly with the colour scheme and nearly completely shattered the sophisticated atmosphere the restaurant had. There was a blonde woman on the TV at the moment, speaking into that stupid looking mic, something about an athlete. The heading read:
Zoro Roronoa takes first place prize in national Kendo competition!
That was it! Zoro! That was his name! Thank you TV— wait.
"You're Zoro Roronoa, the Kendo champion?"
Zoro looked up at him, confused. He raised an eyebrow and nodded slowly. "Yeah? So?"
Oh, this was great, wasn't it? Just fucking fantastic. Not only was he seen at his lowest point by a mere customer, that mere customer had to be Zoro Roronoa, the famous Kendo star. When he thought about it, considering the money he was certain Zoro got from winning his matches (and receiving the gold, as often as he did), Sanji was surprised he hadn't seen Zoro at the restaurant any time before. Maybe he had come and Sanji had just been stuck in the kitchen. It didn't matter now anyway.
Sanji wanted to hit himself. Of course Sanji should have known who Zoro was and to make matters worse, his name was written on his reservation and yet Sanji had never put two and two together and gotten four, he had gotten five and if he had known and been just a bit better at math, then he probably wouldn't have been in this stupid predicament. Then again, Sanji had the rottenness luck so he couldn't be sure.
"I'll have water."
"Pardon?" Sanji asked, pulled out of his thoughts.
"My drink," Zoro said. "I'll have water." Zoro seemed to think for a moment before adding, "you wouldn't happen to have magic ice cubes, would you?"
Magic ice cubes?
What was Sanji worrying about? If this guy believed in magic ice cubes, he was clearly a blockhead and probably had tried to put two and two together and ended up with twenty-eight. There was no way an idiot this big could possibly think anything more of what he may or may not have seen.
Now Sanji was just deluding himself. There had been screaming, there had been a SMACK and then Sanji had been on the floor. It didn't take a genius to figure it out. Still, Sanji hoped the marimo had an IQ of 0, or maybe even negative numbers.
"Of course, right away sir," said Sanji, pushing his thoughts away and flashing him a fake smile.
"What? No Mr. Roronoa today?" asked Zoro. "Or is that just a one-time special?" he teased.
Sanji bit his lip to stop himself from saying anything and instead, told him that he'd be back soon with his water.
Sanji knew that the earlier in the night he entered the kitchen, the better it would be since the longer the night wore on, the more the chefs stole from the champagne cabinet and the less sober they'd be. It was currently eight thirty, which meant that for the next hour or so he'd be safe to enter the kitchen with little more than a slap.
Still though, he didn't want to go in the kitchen at a time when it wasn't necessary. Spotting a tray on an unoccupied table, Sanji took the pitcher from it and returned to Zoro, pouring it into his glass. The swordsman gave him a smile, one that, after some time of thinking, Sanji realized was genuine. How long had it been since he had seen someone smile for a reason other than eating food with such sincerity? Better question: when was the last time someone smiled at him, Sanji?
Unsure of what to do in response, he looked around the restaurant at the others enjoying their meals. From the look on the customers faces, they liked his famous soup, not that anyone had to know it was his. After all, what was an assistant chef who took credit for his own work? No, Patty could take all the credit he wanted. Sanji couldn't wait for the day when the media finally asked him how he made it and Patty gave them that blank stare.
There was a tugging at his cuff and he looked down at Zoro.
He hadn't put much notice into it, but now he realized that unlike last night, Zoro was dressed more casually. The green-haired man had been wearing a dress shirt (horribly ironed) and nice slacks to the restaurant last night, along with a reasonably presentable jacket, but tonight he wore a plain black shirt and a pair of jeans with sneakers. The Baratie didn't have a dress code, but it was almost like an unspoken rule that one had to be dressed proper. At least, according to the other chefs it was. As long as they were hungry, Sanji was willing to fed them. So was Zeff, he knew, but the other cooks didn't see things the way he did. Of course they wouldn't, they didn't know the pain of hunger the way he did.
"Yes?" he asked the man.
"I'd like to order now, cook."
Sanji's eyes widened in shock. The rare times he managed to get out of the kitchen and serve, he always had to state that he was not a waiter and yet this man had remembered. No one had remembered before.
Sanji shook off his surprise and nodded. "What will it be, Mr. Roronoa?"
"I think I'll have the tempura for my main dish."
"And for your appetizer?"
Zoro smirked. "The soup."
Sanji didn't have to ask which one.
He nodded and went to the kitchen, entering with caution. He looked both left and right, making sure Patty was no where to be seen. Carne was harsh, but he wasn't as harsh as Patty. He approached one of the less aggressive cooks (they were all aggressive in the end though) and placed the order before leaving the kitchen quickly and swiftly.
Taking a deep breath, he looked around the restaurant and found that people watching was becoming a habit of his. Cabin fever, or rather, kitchen fever, did that to him. He would stare at the others around the restaurant, memorizing everyone within his line of vision just so he could know for sure that they were there and he stored it away until he needed it again, when he was sick with loneliness.
For some reason, his eyes kept being drawn towards the green-haired man who stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the regulars.
"Sanji!"
Sanji turned at the sound of his name to see Moodie, the blonde beauty. "Hello, darling," he said with a bright smile.
"I haven't seen you in a while," Moodie said, "Fullbody's gotten unbearable, you know. I was honestly thinking about taking you up on that offer, if you know what I mean?"
Sanji offered her a smile in return. Fake, forced, but not as forced as usual. "I wish I could, honey, but the head's got me running in circles." Placing a hand on her shoulder, he let it trail down her arm and rest on her elbow. "Hang in there, alright? You're far too pretty to be wasted on some idiot like Fullbody."
Moodie smiled and let out a giggle. "I'm pretty, am I?"
Sanji let out a short laugh of his own. "Absolutely stunning," he assured her. "Now, I have to get going but I'll see you later, okay, sweetie?"
Moodie nodded and returned back to her table, where she sat with the idiot lieutenant who knew nothing about being fair to a woman. Sanji didn't have much experience, to be honest, but it was clear that the way Fullbody showed her off like she was a trophy was not the right way to handle a woman. If your date felt the need to leave you to visit a worthless cook, a cook who was posing as waiter no less, and needed to be told she was pretty when it was obvious, something wasn't right.
He took a deep inhalation of his cigarette, letting it fill him before letting it out slowly, feeling it calm his head.
"Sanji, your order's here!"
Sanji quickly checked his watch. It was nine. Okay, he was still safe. Hopefully.
He dove into the kitchen quickly, grabbed Zoro's order and was half-way out the door when he was grabbed by the collar of his shirt and yanked back by a big, meaty hand.
Fuck.
"What were you doing out there, eh, shit cook?" demanded Patty. "Playing fucking servant?" He looked at the bowl of soup in Sanji's hands and scowled. "You wanna feed someone this shit? Fine, be my guest. You need to clean up the puke when they hurl though." Sanji lost his balance when Patty punctuated his sentence with a push forwards and Sanji tumbled out the swinging doors, the bowl falling from his tray. There was a clatter and everyone's eyes turned towards him. Including Zoro's. Fuck.
Sanji tried to ignore the eyes and the whispers as he cleaned up the mess quickly before racing back into the kitchen. Apparently, Patty was back from his break and he wasn't in the mood to see Sanji playing waiter. He knew already that it wouldn't be long before Patty started everyone up on the booze.
He ran to the backroom to make a fresh pot of the soup, mumbling under his breath all the while. Wasting perfectly good food, the bastards.
Once it was finished, he made extra sure that no one was around and quickly dashed out the kitchen doors. Speed was something he had learnt was very beneficial to him if he used it to his advantage. He could be in and out of the kitchen in no time at all, leaving the other cooks wondering if he had ever really been there to begin with.
He walked over to Zoro's table with a fake smile plastered on his face. His shirt clung to his body, still damp and probably smelling of soup but he ignored it and placed the soup on Zoro's table. "Sorry for the wait, there were ... complications," Sanji told him.
Zoro gazed at him, staring at his shirt. "Complications?" he repeated.
Sanji knew that Zoro had seen his fall, which meant he wasn't staring at his chest in order to identify the wet blotch, so then, why was he staring? He wasn't wearing white, there was no way Zoro could see the scars— was he … checking him out? Sanji mentally shook his head. That was preposterous. Paranoid anyway, he swiftly left Zoro to his own devices and headed towards his next client.
Once Zoro's food was ready, Sanji speedily went in and out of the kitchen, returning quickly before Patty had another chance to get to him. It was nine thirty and though he hated to admit it, Zoro's dining experience was probably crippled due to the long waits.
Placing the food on the table, this time Sanji stuck around, watching as Zoro ate, seeing the joy that flickered across his face with each bite he took. As Zoro cleaned his plate, Sanji spotted Moodie sitting next to Fullbody, a grimace on her face, tarnishing her beauty. That man was pure scum and yet somehow, a woman with as much beauty as Moodie had become his latest reluctant companion. It made Sanji's blood boil—
"—was yours, right?"
Sanji's head snapped back to Zoro and gave him a strange look. "Pardon?"
"That soup, it was yours, right? You made it."
Sanji could only nod numbly. How had this man figured it out before the press? Wasn't he stupid? Wasn't he the one who had thought the water had magical ice cubes? Was he still the same man?
"Anything for dessert, Mr. Roronoa?" asked Sanji, trying to cover up his surprise.
Zoro shook his head, no. "Can I have the check please?"
Sanji nodded and returned moments later with it in hand.
As Zoro was leafing through his wallet, searching for 130 00 yen, he paused briefly. "How's your diaphragm?"
Sanji looked at him in surprise, but tried to cover it quickly. "You're short about 50 00 yen," he said, changing the topic.
"Yeah, sorry 'bout that," said Zoro. "I don't really make that much and besides, I have to keep bailing my friends out of jail so with those fees and all—" Zoro coughed into his hand and Sanji wondered why the man was sharing so much.
It was official; Zoro Roronoa knew about the abuse of the cooks. Did he feel sorry for him? Was that why he was sharing so much? The last thing Sanji wanted was pity. What could he possibly do to keep Zoro from telling? How could he make Zoro forget?
Seeing the trouble the green-haired man was in, Sanji came up with an idea. It was a long-shot but he needed to try it.
Leaning over the table, Sanji lowered his voice. "I'll let it slide, the money I mean, if you forget about what you saw."
Zoro looked at him in shock, his eyes widening.
"So?" Sanji asked. "What do you say?"
"Fuck no!"
Everyone turned to Zoro's table once again and Sanji sighed, biting down harshly on his cigarette. Would it kill the moron to be quiet? Last night it was the moan (a very seductive moan, Sanji had to admit) and now it was the screaming. Honestly!
Sanji sent him a glare and Zoro at least had the sense to look slightly embarrassed. "Fuck no," he repeated in a quieter voice.
Sanji sighed and took a long drag of the cigar before letting it out slowly. "What do you want?" he asked. "What's it going to take for you to forget?"
Without a moment of thought, Zoro replied, "This table."
Sanji let out a laugh. "Sorry Mr. Roronoa, we don't sell them. Go out to a nice furniture store, I'm sure you can find one just like it."
Zoro gritted his teeth. "No, you bastard, that's not what I meant. I meant I want this table reserved for me. Every night."
Sanji raised a surprised eyebrow. Last night the man could barely pay, now he couldn't pay in full and he wanted reservations every night? "Okay," Sanji said disbelievingly.
"I want this table reserved for me every night," Zoro repeated, "and I'll pay you whatever's in my wallet. All of it. If I have 150 00 yen, I'll give it to you, even if the meal only costs me 125 00 yen. Whatever cash is in my wallet at the time, I'll use to pay you. The whole contents of it."
"What, nothing left for gas money?" Sanji sneered.
Zoro glared. "Do we have a deal?"
Sanji looked at him and paused. "If I do this, reserve this table for you every night that is, will you forget what you saw?"
Zoro nodded. "On my honour."
"Oh, a swordsman's honour! It's practically like God's word!"
"Do we have a deal or not?" snapped Zoro.
Sanji sighed and crumbled his used cigarette, taking out another from his blazer pocket. He put it between his lips and lit it with his lighter, before pocketing it. The new cigarette allowed him to fill his lungs with the smoke before letting it out. "Deal." Looking behind him, he saw Patty's silhouette in the kitchen doors and instantly knew trouble was coming. "Now, if you would excuse me, Mr. Roronoa, I have a job to do."
"Zoro," the swordsman said. "Call me Zoro."
Sanji let out a bitter laugh that held no happiness or joy. He sent him a harsh glare. "Don't push it."
With that, he walked towards the kitchen, already able to feel the rolling pin crushing his ribs.
Author's Note #2: Now for the thank yous!
VictoriaLovesSmut: Well, Zoro did come back! He came back and he will be coming back much more often, or else we wouldn't really have a story, would we? Anyway, i hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for being the first one to review!
fanfiction lover 228: Thank you! I really wanted to be original and that episode (which number I can't remember), in which the cooks were really mean to Sanji about his soup (which is the "famous soup" mentioned in this chapter) made me think about, what if it wasn't an act? Because they legitly convinced me until they admitted to it and I can imagine with the way Patty and Carne look, they could totally be abusive. Therefore, this story was born and I'm glad you like it!
a1wonder50: I did not know that, but until I can think of another reason why Zoro would stay and try to get to Sanji after his meal was done, I'm sorry, but Zoro will have to want to tip him, otherwise the story doesn't move along. I have been looking further into things so I can use proper terminology, but I'm not Japanese, so I'm probably going to screw up a few times. I also realized that Zoro never said "Itadakimasu", but then I realized with manners like Zoro's, you'd never really expect him to say that anyway. I will try to think of another way to get Zoro near the kitchen though and the first chapter will be changed once that way makes sense! Thank you for telling me!
1st Edit: August 5th 2015
