There is definitely more than just a nod to the amazing and fantastic web comic Teahouse in this chapter. Hope no one minds. :D

Teahouse website can be found at www teahousecomic (dot) com. If you haven't checked it out, you should, it's awesome.

Chapter 10

Aya's home was on the East side of town, far from the docks in a quiet neighborhood of tall apartment buildings and quaint shops. Sanji made a mental note to come back tomorrow and try out the little fruit stands that were now closed for the evening. He might even ask Aya to accompany him.

"Sanji?" Aya asked from the doorway.

Sanji turned to her and snuffed out the cigarette he had nursed on the way here. "Yes?"

Aya's eyes sparkled as she pulled her bottom lip through her teeth. "I know I said... I mean..."

Sanji smiled softly and reached for her hand. He brought it to his lips, never taking his eyes off her face. "I didn't expect anything tonight, love. If you want to end it here and go up to bed I won't be angry."

The way she was looking at him told Sanji exactly how much she didn't want it to end. He did a little mental victory dance and straightened, her hand still in his.

"How would you feel if I said goodnight now?" Aya asked, her lids heavy.

Sanji moved in slowly and leaned against the door frame. He tilted his head to the side and reached up his free hand to tuck another runaway lock of hair behind her ear. He had discovered fairly quickly that was her weakness.

"I'd be... disappointed..." he said softly.

"Just disappointed?"

This was actually easier than he remembered.

Leaning in, Sanji whispered against her cheek. "Okay, very disappointed. It's not every day you meet a girl that makes your heart pound."

It was partially true; she did make his heart beat a little faster. She was beautiful after all. It just wasn't that kind of thump against the ribcage he had gotten used to over the last few weeks.

Aya giggled. "Whatever, you're famous! I bet everywhere you go you have girls throwing themselves at you! Lined up even!"

Sanji shook his head pulling a serious expression over his features.

"No... not like you."

He felt her body relax. She leaned into him and he took her chin gently in his hand. Sanji felt a little sick lying to her like he was, but he was too far into the game to back down now. He tilted her face up to his and brought his lips down on hers as gently as he could. She reacted just the way he had anticipated and slid her arms around his neck.

Damnit, he was such a bastard.

Zoro sighed. This type of establishment was lost on him, and he considered turning right back around. It was the kind of place that put a lot of one's money towards the atmosphere and, Zoro frowned, companionship. Why the hell a brothel would bother to focus so much on the song and dance aspect of sex, the green-haired man did not know. He did not have any interest in pretending to court someone tonight, and he absolutely had no desire for tea. And that's what this place was, by the looks of it. A tea house. A tea, whore house. Did they even serve liquor?

This place was so well lit. And fancy. Not the velvet carpet fancy, more like lace and puffy sleeves-

"Good evening, sir," Zoro was stirred from his frustrated inner dialogue once again, this time by a manager type. "Welcome to The Tea Rooms."

Zoro snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. He needed to leave.

The manager seemed to notice Zoro's displeasure, and did just what a practiced salesman would do.

"You look like you could use a strong drink. Shall I show you to the lounge and we can discuss your requirements for the evening?"

That was more like it. Zoro chewed on it mentally for only seconds before sighing and nodding.

Alcohol. He needed some.

He let himself be led further into the establishment and into a busy lounge, where other patrons were being accompanied and served by a wide variety of attractive men. Zoro had been mostly right—this place was fancy, but not exclusively so. There were men in suits as well as men in seafaring attire. In other words, pirates like himself. The chatter was loud, but not raucous. There were a few bartenders, about a dozen waiters, and he couldn't count how many companions. Maybe this place would work out after all.

He was seated at a small booth near the entrance, and he was immediately attended by the waiter. After ordering "something decent", the manager slid into the chair across from him and produced a clip board.

"How shall I address you, sir?"

"Zoro's fine," he replied, nodding at the waiter who brought his drink.

"Very well, Mr. Zoro—"

"Just Zoro," he corrected.

"Of course. Well, Zoro, forgive me for saying so, but I could tell from the moment you walked in that The Tea Rooms was perhaps not what you were expecting, or, perhaps more accurately, what you were hoping for. I'd like to assure you that no matter your expectations, this establishment is more than capable of addressing your specific needs. Were you looking to stay for the evening?"

Zoro nodded and took a drink.

"Excellent. And would you prefer to select your companion—"

A dull ache started in Zoro's chest again, and he took another drink.

"- or would you like the house to provide you with a selection?"

The swordsman had sworn a long time ago, to never again let "the house" choose for him, but he wasn't going to fall into the trap of picking someone that looked like Sanji.

"I'll choose, but no blonds."

"That can be arranged. Are there any other considerations you would like me to keep in mind when assembling some choices?"

As long as he didn't look like the chef, he didn't care.

Sanji took a moment to survey the small apartment as he made his way through the entry and passed a tiny living room. The place was clean, smelled nice, but a little too cluttered for his taste. Every surface was covered in nick-knacks, vases filled with flowers, or books. It was homey, appealing, but just a little too much for Sanji and his need for organization.

Aya had gone in ahead to "freshen up", so Sanji wandered into the kitchen. He spotted a bowl of fruit on the counter and decided to check the cupboards. He found a bottle of rum that was about two-thirds full, so he took down two glasses from the top shelf and pulled a small knife from the rack. When Aya returned, smelling like soap and cherry lotion, she started to offer Sanji a drink, but he beat her to it. The chef handed her the fruit and rum concoction and she hummed her approval after taking a sip.

"This is amazing," she murmured, taking another swallow. "How did you do this?"

Sanji shrugged. "Everyone underestimates what they have in their kitchen."

Aya smiled sweetly and lifted the glass to her lips again. She moved closer, and lifted her hand to gently loosen Sanji's tie.

"You don't have to get me drunk, you know," she said softly. "I'm pretty much a sure thing at this point."

Sanji scoffed and took the glass from her fingers. "Nothing's ever a sure thing." Unless they were prostitutes. Prostitutes were usually a pretty damn sure thin—

Blocking that particular line of thought from his head, Sanji downed the rest of the punch rum and set the glass on the counter. Aya's hands were making quick work of his tie and belt, and he wasn't about to let a beautiful woman do all the work.

Sanji wrapped his arms around Aya's waist. He grabbed a couple handfuls of her perky little ass and lifted her easily. Her legs came around his waist and her arms wrapped around his neck. He breathed in her distinctly feminine scent and kissed her neck.

"Where's the bedroom, princess?"

From the balcony, Zoro examined each companion as they sat in a group, pretending like they didn't know they were currently being inspected. There was one—about his own height, short brown hair, strong build. He seemed like a good candidate for a hard, angry fuck. But there was also the smaller one, with copper red hair pulled back in a braid. He looked younger, but he also looked like he had the energy to take Zoro's mind off everything.

"The one with the braid," Zoro said after considering in silence.

"Lev is an excellent choice, sir. He will join you in your room shortly. This way please..."

Women were perfect. Women were soft and smelled so good. They made the sweetest noises when you touched them there, and they moaned so beautifully when you rubbed them there and there. Aya was perfect. Aya was a dream. She was soft and supple and her legs were long and her breasts were so firm and her nipples tasted like cherries and her hands were so small and gentle on his cock and he just…

…God damnit. Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuuuuuuuuck.

Sanji lifted his head and growled under his breath. He sat up and ran his hands roughly through his hair. This was not happening. This was not fucking happening.

"Sanji?" Aya panted beneath him. "Sanji, are you okay?"

Sanji shook his head. No, he was not okay. He was never going to be okay again.

Aya sat up and put a gentle hand on his cheek. Her scent was all around him, it was heady, intoxicating, but not enough. She wasn't enough and Sanji hated himself at that moment. He had taken advantage of this woman to sate his own personal struggle, and now she was the one that was going to have to pay for it.

He was such an asshole, he didn't deserve to figure himself out.

Sanji lifted his head and looked at her. He studied her long hair falling over her shoulders and over her breasts. Her lips were kiss-swollen, the flush on her cheeks was dark and easy to see even in the low light.

"God damnit," Sanji whispered, agonized. "You're so beautiful…"

Aya scooted forward, folding her legs and placing her hands on Sanji's thighs. "Do you need help? It was hard a second ago, is there something you need me to—"

"No!" Sanji held up his hands. "Oh God no, no! Everything down there is working perfectly fine! It's not… it's not that kind of problem."

Aya rubbed her thumbs in gentle circles along Sanji's muscles. The cook wanted to crawl in a hole and die. How could he have done this? Wasn't he a gentleman?

"God, I'm so sorry…" Sanji slid back to sit and folded his legs, mirroring Aya. He put his forehead in his palm and closed his eyes, shame washing over him in waves, stronger than any he had ever felt before in his life.

Aya's fingers pushed through his hair. "There's someone out there, isn't there?" she whispered gently.

Sanji sighed heavily, but didn't deny it. Why should he? There really was someone else, and fuck all if he hadn't been thinking about them the whole time his hands and tongue were on Aya.

Her hands were soft and warm as she rubbed his arms. "There's a girl that you love somewhere but she doesn't love you back, right? But even though she doesn't love you back, it doesn't stop you from feeling unfaithful, does it?"

Sanji chuckled without humor and ran his hand over his eyes. "If only it were that simple."

Aya shifted again, pulling the sheet from where it had fallen minutes ago and draped it around her naked body. She scooted closer and took Sanji's hand.

"Tell me."

Zoro groaned and ignored the urge to close his eyes and let his favorite chef-based fantasy overwhelm him. He focused instead on the swollen lips at the base of his cock, and the straining sounds Lev was making to accommodate Zoro's length down his throat. Holding his head in place, Zoro slowly pulled back, and Lev sucked hard, closing his bright green eyes and moaning as the worker lathed his tongue along the bottom of the swordsman's swollen member. The green haired man sighed in pleasure and rocked his hips forward, giving a gentleman's amount of attention to not startling or choking the guy.

Lev encouraged him by relaxing his mouth, inviting Zoro to fuck his face.

His hips jerked forward at the show of submission. His cock twitched in Lev's mouth which seemed to excite the prostitute. He put his hands on Zoro's hips and tried to encourage him to utilize a faster pace. Zoro obliged, cradling Lev's head with both hands now and pumping faster. And harder. Lev made loud, sucking, gulping sounds but never pulled back from Zoro's thrusts.

Zoro felt himself winding up for release, but he pulled back and Lev gasped, blinking away tears that streamed down the sides of his face. He licked his lips and smiled.

Breathing heavily, Zoro sat back on the bed, and Lev sidled up to his customer, settling on his knees before the swordsman. He reverently stroked Zoro's cock, flicking his tongue out occasionally to taste.

"Feeling relaxed now?" Lev's breathless voice washed over Zoro like a warm bath. He only "hm'd" in response and nodded. Lev smiled, his bright white teeth dazzling, and he climbed up on the bed behind Zoro, settling on his stomach and biting his lip invitingly.

"Forgive me—I'm not usually so quick to the fuck, but I need your cock in me. Now." He spread his legs shamelessly, and Zoro's length twitched again. Lev's green eyes smoldered with lust.

Zoro doubted the prostitute was typically more demure, but he was not going to refuse that invitation. He snatched a rubber from the stand next to the bed and ripped it open, quickly rolling it on before settling in behind Lev and flipping him onto his back. Lev seemed surprised, Zoro noted, but not unpleasantly so. He needed to see the starkly different face, the bright green eyes and the red hair. None of it reminded Zoro of anything, so he needed to focus on that.

Sanji couldn't look at her. He was so afraid of what he would see. He had told her everything, everything, and now it was just a matter of seconds before she would ask him to leave.

But, like so many as of late, Aya surprised him.

Her fingers returned to his cheek and she cupped his jaw in her hand. "That's so sad…"

Sanji's eyes snapped open, finding her face. What did she just say?

Her thumb caressed his skin. "Maybe you should talk to him?"

Sanji laughed, and this time it was for real. The notion of talking to Zoro about his new unrequited feelings for the stupid swordsman seemed about as preposterous as talking Luffy into becoming a vegetarian.

"He wouldn't listen," Sanji murmured. "Or he'd just get angry or disgusted. We'd end up tearing the ship apart."

"You don't know that," Aya said. "From what you've told me, he sounds like he cares about you."

Sanji huffed through his nose. "Maybe you weren't really listening."

Aya smiled. "I think you would be surprised. You found out his secret and instead of freaking out, he trusted you with it. And then he let you into that part of his life—"

"That's really not how it happened—"

"Yes it is! He trusted you with his secret and then let you into even more vulnerable territory when he went with you to the dinner! It's one thing to tell someone or to confess about some secret that you have, but letting them see you in that secret is… enormous. I think you're selling him short."

Sanji didn't have even the faintest idea what to say to that. He found himself completely at a loss for words. He knew Aya was romanticizing the whole thing - there was so much she couldn't possibly understand - but still, what she was saying did make sense. In a way.

Oh God, what was he supposed to think now?

He sat with her for a while longer, letting her comfort him, but then he kissed her softly on the forehead and told her that he needed to go. She helped him dress and walked him to the door.

"If you…" she started, but then stopped herself. "Never mind."

Sanji didn't hesitate. He pulled her close and kissed her. He tried to thank her for what she had tried to do, and apologize for the awful way he had treated her. He tried to show her in these last few moments that he did find her beautiful, desirable. She was wonderful and perfect and any man was more than lucky to have her.

When he left her place, she was smiling.

Nails dug into the skin of Zoro's shoulder, but it didn't hurt. He paid careful attention to Lev's gasps and cries, pulling back intermittently to make sure his face was screwed up in pleasure, not something else. He was taking his frustration out on this boy, but Lev seemed not to mind. Quite the opposite, in fact. His creamy thighs were wrapped tightly around Zoro's waist as the swordsman plunged his cock into that tight heat with a determined pace.

Zoro leaned down to take a dusky nipple into his mouth, snapping his hips forward harder as Lev whined. He kept one hand busy stroking the red head's length, not too committedly, but enough to keep his partner near the edge. He teased one nipple for a little while before moving to the other, letting Lev's musical composition of sounds and breathing drown out the green-haired man's thoughts.

Lev bucked his hips to meet each of Zoro's thrusts, his back curling and arching in turns, his hands grasping at Zoro's skin, his hair and sometimes the sheets and headboard. Zoro pulled himself up and Lev vocalized his displeasure, but Zoro took both his wrists and pinned them above him, giving the companion a silent command to keep them above his head. Then he grasped the boy's thighs and pushed them further apart, increasing the speed of his thrusts as he felt the wave of his orgasm build.

Lev struggled to leave his arms above his head, but Zoro ignored his plight and took the red head's straining cock back into his hand, the prostitute's precum making it slick as he stroked the hot length quickly.

"Uuungh, Zoro, Zoro-" Lev cried, and Zoro reacted to the call, losing momentary control of his thrusts as he tried to finish the boy off at the same time his orgasm came crashing down on him. He faltered again as Lev bucked wildly beneath him, streams of hot cum splashing between the two of them and Lev's muscles twitching and clamping around his own cock.

The swordsman snapped his hips forward and bore down on Lev selfishly as he sought to ride out the rest of his own release. Lev finally could no longer keep his hands in place and he reached out for Zoro, pulling him down and kissing him as Zoro's orgasm finally receded.

His thrusts slowed as he let the boy caress his mouth with his own. He wasn't thinking about Sanji. He wasn't. He couldn't be. He couldn't do this to himself any-fucking-more.

Sanji walked the streets. He knew what he wanted to do, and it was completely possible to do it. It wouldn't even be that hard. He'd just go back to the ship, act like he was changing out of his sweaty shirt, then slip into the kitchen and grab it from the can in the back of the supply room…

No one would know. He had overheard Zoro's plans to hit up a bar and get drunk, so there wasn't that great of a chance of running into the swordsman. Well, there was definitely still a chance but… if Zoro had indeed discovered that there was a male brothel here, it was late enough that the Marimo was already deep into… whatever he was into, right? Sanji could slip in, request what he wanted and then disappear, right?

Shit, okay, this was a bigger risk than he had first anticipated. But whatever, fuck it. He was going to do what he wanted to do, and no one was going to stop him.

Not even Zoro.

Zoro sat quietly in the lounge, this time tucked away at a table more towards the back. It had been a couple hours since he'd asked to be excused from Lev's company. He was physically hungry and sexually sated for the moment, and didn't really care to keep any further company beyond the bedroom. No chatting with prostitutes or divulging his inner desires. No crafty prostitutes to trying to play games with his head this time.

He emptied the third bottle of sake and was thinking of approaching the manager to see about another companion—Lev had been a great fuck, but he thought he'd take pity on the guy and give him a break for the rest of the night. He had a bag full of beli, enough to cover a generous tip for Lev and someone else if that's what he decided. He was about to call for the waiter when the hair on the back of his neck stood up, and he instinctually looked towards the entrance of the lounge.

Fuck. Him. Running.

His mind wildly told him it was Christian. Christian had followed him to this island and was stalking him. But that voice, that wasn't Christian's voice. And Christian wouldn't have walked into a brothel looking like he was going to jump out of his fucking skin.

Zoro quickly plastered himself as far into the booth as he could and ducked under the table. If that pervert chef saw his green hair—

Then the swordsman's common sense started to kick in. Why the fuck was he hiding? And why the fuck was Sanji here? Was he looking for him? Had something happened with the crew—

The manager that Zoro had spoken with before approached Sanji and tried to usher him into a seat. Sanji refused and rubbed the back of his neck in a nervous motion. He spoke a few soft words to the manager and slipped his hands into his pockets. The more the cook talked, the more comfortable he seemed. He couldn't have been there for any kind of… No way. The idiot had to be looking for him. He had to be.

This was why when Sanji headed out with the manager in the direction of the "tea rooms", Zoro got even more confused.

The swordsman sat still as stone, tension rippling through him until a waiter approached his table.

"Can I get you another drink, sir?"

"I need to see the manager."

"Yes sir."

He turned smartly on his heel and Zoro watched him walk promptly out of the lounge.

A few agonizingly long moments later, the manager returned.

"Were you looking to choose-"

"The man that just came in here," Zoro interrupted, "-the blond. Was he looking for me?"

The manager's mouth twitched and he paused, and then said, "Any patron who receives visitors is notified of their presence immediately."

Zoro opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

"Is there anything else I can help you with, Zoro?"

Sanji wasn't looking for him. But Sanji was here. What the fuck was Sanji doing here?

Suddenly Christian's smug, smiling face flashed through his mind. Why the fuck do you think he's here? he seemed to sneer.

Zoro had to act quickly, and judging by his impeccably professional response to Zoro's query, the swordsman knew he'd get no favors from the manager. He'd have to try something else, short of causing a very unfortunate scene, because he would if it came down to it.

"I'll take you up on your early suggestion."

The manager perked up at that response. "Of course. Would you please follow me?"

Sanji thought to himself for the millionth time that he was an idiot, but then the door opened and several men entered. The cook stood on the small balcony with the attendant and watched as each companion moved easily into the room and sat down. They spoke to each other, low voices wafting up from below, tickling Sanji's senses.

"Do any of them please you, sir?" the attendant asked.

Sanji looked them over. He had asked for men of his height with short hair and a muscular build. He didn't think too hard about why he had chosen that type, he didn't have to. He didn't want to depress himself.

And fuck it, if Zoro could go into male brothels and have sex with guys that looked like him, he could sure as fuck do the same thing.

Unfortunately, none of the men looked like Zoro. However, there was one that was close to the same build, and he had almost the exact same haircut. A little more jewelry than was probably necessary, but that didn't really matter. The guy had some scars, and his face was rough and handsome.

"That one," Sanji said, "the one with the brown hair and earrings."

"Trope," the attendant said. "He is very accommodating. I'm sure you will find him satisfactory."

"Whatever," Sanji folded his arms over his chest. "Just tell him not to speak to me, and don't turn on the lights. I don't really want to see him."

The attendant nodded. "As you wish, sir."

Zoro picked the youngest one, and then he asked for Lev as well.

The manager raised an eyebrow, and said delicately, "That will triple the original agreed upon price, as you may be aware."

Zoro hadn't thought of that. He didn't have the cash on hand. But he could let them hold on to Sandai while he returned to this ship for the rest.

Thankfully, the manager agreed, and Zoro was escorted to his room where Lev and the other boy were waiting for him.

It was an astronomically embarrassing tail, but Zoro weaved it without any embellishment and got his point across as quickly as he could. He might have sounded a little more desperate at times than he really liked, but that was just the way he was starting to sound when he was talking about Sanji.

Lev was teary-eyed by the end of his rushed tale, but Zoro had made a critical mistake thinking the younger one, Von was his name, would also be sympathetic. Lev had summed it up perfectly when he'd put his hand on his hip and muttered, "greedy bitch" in response to Von's demands in return for their help.

But Zoro had agreed. Nami would no doubt be pleased when he came crawling to her for the money, but the she-demon be damned.

Now, Zoro pressed himself against the wall and peered around the corner. Lev was standing in front of the door whispering animatedly to a companion that looked familiar.

This is insane, he thought, and not in the way he was used to. Zoro was used to impossible odds, fighting invincible monsters and carving his captain's way through the New Age, fucking up everyone who got in their way.

Now, he was about to bust in on Sanji in a gay brothel. He had no fucking idea what he was going to do past the point of opening the door.

But key to his motivation was knowing that he wasn't going to let some fucking stranger touch Sanji. No one else was touching Sanji. If that fucktard chef wanted to experiment with his god damn sexuality, then he was fucking going to do it with Zoro. He was the first in line, and he'd been in line for a long, long time.

Seeming very confused, the burly, brown haired companion made a face at Lev before he shook his head and moved down the hall. Lev turned to Zoro and waved him over.

"Follow me." Lev walked quickly and silently in the same direction as the other prostitute, and Zoro jogged to catch up. Whispering, Lev filled him in. "We're just going down the hall to swap clothes. Take out your earrings and take off your clothes. Put on what Trope gives you.

"What?" Zoro whispered, "Why?"

"You think your friend isn't going to know it's you the second he smells this thing?" he tugged on Zoro's haramaki.

"What? I wash this thing like every other day!" Zoro growled.

Lev waved his hands. "No! It's not that it smells bad! It's actually... well, never mind. If Sanji really is your friend, and he really does live and fight with you, one second in the same room as you and this and he's going to know."

"Know what?"

"Shush, just get in here."

Zoro moved into the room and glanced over at who he assumed was Trope. The man looked at him and shook his head again as he pulled off his vest.

"Here, give me your earrings," Lev held out his hands.

"I still don't understand why I'm changing clothes," Zoro pulled his earrings out and handed them to Lev. He felt very out of the loop and it was starting to piss him off.

"Trope was instructed not to speak and to keep the lights off." Lev explained. "The room is pretty dark, and you and Trope have pretty similar body shape. If you put on his clothes and jewelry, you might be able to play around a bit without Sanji knowing it's you."

Zoro was dumbfounded. "You... I'm going to be the prostitute?"

"You're a companion," Trope murmured in a low voice as he tossed Zoro his clothes, "Not just some prostitute, so don't act like some Goddamned street hooker. You might want to put on some cologne too. You smell like you just killed someone."

Zoro's head swam as he mindlessly pulled off his shirt and haramaki. This was so wrong. This was going to backfire on him so badly.

TBC