Sanji didn't protest a few nights later when Zoro brought him into their apartment bridal style. He would be lying though if he said he wasn't a little embarrassed being carried in, but obviously the swordsman seemed to be enjoying himself. The way he had gotten adjusted to scooping him up any chance he got, it set Sanji's cheeks on fire.
He didn't say anything when he noticed the bottles of alcohol scattered around the apartment. He could recall them from that night, when he had left to separate himself. It made his stomach knot, just knowing it had probably been his fault there was more than usual. Instead he clutched a grip on Zoro's t-shirt and turned his face back inward towards his chest.
Zoro's unscarred eye seemed to gaze over them as well, but instead of dwelling on what they were for, what he was trying to buzz himself into forgetting, he tightened his grip softly on the reason he was returning. He made his way around his furniture to a door on the far left and turned to push it open with his back. Stepping over some dirty clothes first, he settled Sanji on the edge of the bed.
He then took a step back, moving his arms in front of him. Sanji sighed, his grip on Zoro lost. His blue eye moved to the floor. "Home sweet home." He whispered, a small smile returning to his otherwise emotionless face.
Sanji actually knew this apartment quite well, and though he had never officially moved into it before, it was his second home from the Baratie. He looked up at Zoro. He longed to know what was going through his mind. The whole ride over, and the walk here had been silent. The new negativity inside Sanji made him wonder if perhaps Zoro had finally seen the picture and regretted his decision. After all Sanji had recently become a large liability. The swordsman cocked his head to the side and watched him.
"Yup." He agreed.
In all honesty on Zoro's part, he wasn't sure what to do now. His mind was in a bunch of different places, one telling him to do whatever the hell he wanted like usual, another hearing the non-stop do's and don'ts that had been shoved at him before he brought Sanji home. Sheesh, didn't anyone trust him?
Sanji studied the swordsman's face before glancing off towards the bed, contemplating what he could do now. Unfortunately he was kind of stuck here until Zoro set up his new... god he hated saying it…his wheelchair. His fingers drummed at the sheets.
"So now what...?" He wondered aloud, glancing back at the marimo who hadn't moved.
It seemed to snap Zoro out of some trance, which made Sanji smile. Idiot what was he daydreaming about?
"Oh um..." Zoro said awkwardly, scratching at the back of his neck. He'd lost focus there for a second. "Chopper said to get you settled in so..."
He glanced around the room trying to remember, moving his hand to his temple. "'Clean him up and let him rest for now'," he repeated Choppers instructions.
Sanji groaned, and leaned back on his hands. This was so annoying. Dammit if he wanted to freshen up on his own, he should be able to do just that. Why did he need the marimo's help? He clenched his teeth. It worried him how much he was beginning to rely on the guy, and just knew it would happen a lot more from now. Soon it would get to be too much, he just knew it.
"Ugh I'll be fine. I'll just go to sleep like this," he muttered, falling back on the bed. He turned his face away from Zoro and closed his eyes, as if that were final.
Zoro raised an eyebrow at the cook. What was his problem? He thought he wanted to do this? Well then again, he just wanted to help Sanji the best he could so in a way he did want to. And again, he hadn't been alone with the cook since... well it had been at least a week.
He unraveled his arms and moved over to Sanji, reaching out and beginning to undo the buttons on the blonde's shirt. Sanji's head perked up, and he looked down at what was going on.
"The hell are you doing marimo?" he hissed.
Zoro ignored him. "Chopper took out your stitches right?" he muttered, pulling the two halves of shirts to the side. His eye glazed over the nice pink and healthy appearing scar down Sanji's stomach. He was mildly impressed at how well the cook was healing, just like he himself seemed to do. So at least that had been normal.
"Oi. Don't get any idea's you know I can't-" Sanji began softly, but was interrupted when the swordsman reached up and settled his hand on his shoulder. They're eyes met and Sanji swallowed. Zoro's face held a determination he couldn't place.
"I know." Zoro said low. He leaned over Sanji's lean frame, his other hand dancing along the man's chest. His lips glided over the cook's before he kissed him. Then he pulled himself away slightly, his face hovering inches over the blondes. "It's fine," his words were reassuring, and he brushed away Sanji's bangs with his hand, his face softening.
Sanji forced himself to look at something else, his throat tightening. Fuck his situation. And fuck Zoro saying such nice things to him when this crap was going on. He just wanted to feel bad. "Is it?" he whispered.
Zoro just sighed, standing straight back up, bringing Sanji to an upright position with him.
"Trust me," he finally said, a little irritated. He said it was fine, why the heck did the cook always feel the need to question it? He let his annoyance fall to the back of his mind for later. He had something to do for now. Sanji pulled the rest of his shirt off and threw it off to the side, where it landed among Zoro's clothes on the ground.
He moved his hands lower, unbuttoning Sanji's pants. He slid them off with no protest along with his boxers. A faint blush tainted his cheek at seeing the blonde's fully exposed body once again, as he just sat there on the bed temptingly... He forced himself to think somewhere else. "Be back in a sec."
Sanji's face had flushed again, and he felt exposed, having watched Zoro's eye trace him. It made him feel more empty than flattered, because even if he wanted to attract the swordsman, he would never be able to do the same in return. It made him sick about himself. He just nodded while Zoro turned and moved towards the bathroom.
Sanji crossed an arm over his chest, letting his hand rest on his shoulder. It was getting harder to lie to himself. Because it was times like this that even though Sanji knew he was alive, he felt more trapped than free. He reached over and grabbed his pants that had been flung onto the bed and fished out his cigarettes. He lit one just as he heard the bath water begin to run.
He took a nice long inhale of nicotine, mentally preparing himself for this. He wasn't exactly sure what the swordsman would do, he was unreadable, but he had a feeling he wasn't going to approve of it whether or not it was his choice.
Sanji enjoyed the rest of his cigarette, clutching his pack when Zoro came back to retrieve him. However, unlike the mood before, Zoro had more of a devious smile to his face. This made a chill run up Sanji's spine, and it didn't go unnoticed.
Zoro chuckled lightly, drumming his fingers on Sanji's shoulders and peering down at him.
"You ready?" He asked, not that he would change whatever outcome if the cook was ready or not.
Sanji stared up to him, his eyes narrowing. What was the marimo planning to do exactly? Oh god he really hoped this wasn't some kind of sponge bath.
"I can still smother you with a pillow marimo." He reminded his glare stern. Zoro just shrugged it off, picking Sanji up again for the second time in that evening, and bringing him toward the bathroom. Sanji wrapped his arms around Zoro for support, his cigarette still burning in his fingers. It was warmer in there, thank goodness, and it relieved Sanji to notice that it was just a normal bath being run. No weird sponges could be seen.
Zoro, his face slowly gaining more of a rosy complexion the more he moved, eased Sanji down in to the bath's water. It was still running and numbed at their ear drums, but he could still hear his heart beating in his ears. He really should calm down.
Sanji gripped onto his cigarettes and lighter, raising them up higher so that they didn't get soaked. He rested his lit one in his lips for safe keeping. Feeling the water touch his hips first was an odd feeling, but it soon became relaxing as his back met the end of the tub. It was times like this he thanked goodness Zoro was actually able to keep a nice job, and was able to afford a nice apartment. That way there would be a nice tub like this to rest in.
He settled his cigarettes on the side tile that wrapped around the tub. Bubbles in the water began to cling to his skin. He gave a muffled thanks and glanced back up at Zoro, who was checking him over. He could tell where he looked, his legs, which thankfully hadn't found themselves in an awkward position – that had already accidentally happened enough times - then at his new scar. Everything checked out.
That's when Zoro moved his hands to the bottom of his shirt and began to pull it off that Sanji's eyes widened with interest. What was this? Was the marimo going to join him? His mouth went dry.
"W-what are you doing?" He stuttered on the words. Jeez why was he acting so embarrassed, it wasn't like they'd never done something similar before. Why did everything feel so different and new? Oh yeah, things were a bit different, weren't they?
Zoro smirked watching Sanji's expression. Really, how did the cook ever expect him to control himself when he looked like that. So naïve and handsome. He began to undo his own trousers.
"I'm coming in," he said monotonously, as if it was something he did every other day.
Sanji brought his cigarette from his mouth, exhaling smoke.
"Why?"
"Cause we wouldn't want you to drown now would we?"
"Pfft, marimo I'm in a tub. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to drown." Sanji lowered his eyebrows. Really what the hell was this guy thinking? Always doing things his way and not thinking things through.
"Chopper's orders, watch Sanji. So, shit cook," Zoro, fully undressed now and hearing no protest about it from the blonde, reached over and stepped into the bath. He lowered himself slowly, easing in across from Sanji, repositioning his legs out of the way so that they could both settle inside. "I'm watching you."
Then he moved over to the side, cutting the water off.
Sanji just seemed to pout, glaring over at Zoro. And here he thought the bath would be relaxing. Zoro rolled his shoulders back, his arms resting on the edge of the tub while he rested his eye. A silence fell over them except for the random buzz coming from the bubbles. They smelled sweet and calming, and Zoro made sure not to forget them just because he knew that the blonde specifically liked this scent the best when he bathed.
"Enjoying yourself?" Sanji finally said from the other end. He sounded a little irritated and it only made Zoro want to pry it further.
He grinned, opening his eye slowly and gazing at the blonde. He watched him as he finished off his cigarette and discarded it to the side. How convenient that they usually kept an ashtray on the edge. Then he settled his arms back to holding himself up on the rim.
"What if I am?" Zoro mused.
"You look like a dog waiting to be thrown a bone." retorted Sanji.
"Nah." Zoro slid his arms inward. He shifted and sat up straighter. His hand swam calmly outward, and up one of Sanji's legs. Sanji couldn't feel it, but he was watching intently. Something about it made his chest palpitate. "More like a dog with a job to do."
Zoro reached over to the side against the wall where all the shampoos and whatnot were lined up. Specifically organized by one diva cook no less, but still he grabbed the loofa lingering among them. He brought it in, along with a bit of soap from the bottle he set aside before, presumably the one that he had used to create the bubbles with, and soaked it. Then, with a concentrated look across his brows and eye, he raised Sanji's leg carefully and brushed it against it.
Sanji's body tensed. Zoro was washing him. His stomach felt like it might drop. Just watching it made him nervous. Why would the swordsman be doing this for him? It seemed so unlike his character. He was treating him so kindly and yet at the same time absolutely normally. It was shocking to see so much of this caring side to Zoro that he had only marked as rare before.
"You don't have to do it." Sanji said, his lips pressing against one another. He was half tempted to actually reach forward and yank the loofa away, but it was the fact Zoro wasn't annoyed that kept him at bay. He didn't look angry or upset for having to do this. He almost looked content about doing it. Which on the other hand, Zoro was. He loved his cook, and he wanted to be there for him no matter what the cost. It didn't pain him to have to do any of this. It brought them closer as something he never did with anyone else, and never would want to do with anyone else. This was something only he would do with the cook, and would never let anyone else do.
He moved Sanji's leg back under the water, his eye gazing up to steal a peek at Sanji's expression. He had figured the cook would react this way, but it was something Zoro wanted to do to show him that even if he had to care for him and do things like this to help Sanji, it could be intimate. It was nothing to be embarrassed about.
"I want to do it" he said as his eye found Sanji's when the cook dared to look up at his face. Sanji froze again before letting out a huff and leaning his head back.
"Shitty marimo" he cursed, using his arm to cover his face. He pressed his lips into the curve of it. What was this guy doing saying stuff like that? Of course it was all stuff to make Sanji feel better, he realized that, and the way Sanji's eyes seemed to dry in an advance warning that tears could be coming it was working and that frustrated him. He didn't want to appear in front of Zoro always so vulnerable. "You can't just do what you want," his voice dropped to a whisper.
Zoro dropped his eye back to his work; washing up Sanji's other leg. He couldn't always he agreed, but at least this he could. The hell if he'd ever let Sanji's grudge against the world change that.
"You wouldn't do the same?" He asked.
Sanji's eyes relaxed as he pondered the question. He hadn't expected that to ever come up. He uncovered his arm from his face, and pulled himself up a bit in the water. He frowned. Of course he'd do the same, who was dumb enough to ask that? But in a way the shit head had a point. He was letting his pride get the better of him, whatever pride he seemed to have left.
"I would..." Sanji replied low. "You know I would."
Zoro nodded, pushing Sanji's leg off to the side again along with the loofa. He leaned in closer to the cook.
"Exactly. So this doesn't bother me." His chin lowered and a flush blended into his cheeks. "It's fine shit cook," he echoed his words from earlier. His hand was resting absentmindedly on Sanji's knee. "We'll adjust. We always do," he muttered. Why did everyone seem to forget that fact and start a panic?
He gazed over at his hand, knowing full well that while he held it there on the knee the blonde didn't feel it. He drummed his fingers on it anyway. They were just as much a part of the equation, working or not, he figured. "We'll find a way we both can be happy." Although he had continued to speak in a calm normal tone, the blonde couldn't help but pick up on its confidence. The swordsman had a will he definitely envied, and he didn't ever let himself easily stray from any path he found himself on.
The marimo lifted himself out of the water, leaning in and brushing his lips on Sanji's forehead. Sanji's eyes widened as he looked up, his face burning. Zoro kissed his head, and then stood straight up before climbing out of the tub. Sanji went to say something, but ended up swallowing his words when he noticed something in particular about the swordsman.
"Oi. Wait." He said, watching the sculpted man pull a towel off a rack and glance back at him.
"At least let me help you with that." He suggested, gesturing to in between Zoro's legs. He was obnoxiously hard.
Zoro blushed, turning his face away in embarrassment of being caught. He had hoped that if he moved quick enough he could sneak out of the bathroom without Sanji spotting him and his problem. He gave a dry chuckle, wrapping the towel around his waist. "Don't worry about it," he muttered. Although his mind didn't want to protest to the offer, there was still a part of him that didn't feel right doing anything like that when he couldn't exactly return the favor.
Sanji couldn't help but feel a little discouraged at that, and he frowned while watching as Zoro left the bathroom to give him time to finish cleaning up. When the door shut, Sanji glared down at his lower half. Absolutely useless. He clenched his hand into a fist, tempted to slam it into the tile but had to remind himself that he needed to take even more care of his hands than before, considering they were part of the only control he had left of his body. Instead he reached back over to the cigarettes and lighter he put to the side and lit another one up.
After Zoro returned some time later and Sanji had finished his bath in the comfort of his alone time, they left the bathroom and both slipped into something more comfortable. Sanji was nestled into bed first of course, himself being placed onto his side in the middle. He had protested about how he could at least move around a bed, idiot marimo, but Zoro did well to ignore his comments as per usual.
Then after turning off the lights, Zoro eased himself in the bed behind Sanji, resting close to him. He brought the covers up to roughly their hips, taking advantage of the exposed room to wrap his arm around Sanji's frame.
Sanji had to secretly admit inside himself that he had missed this. Settling into bed with the marimo, their bare chests exposed and radiating heat and comfort to one another. He faintly smiled, feeling the marimo pull himself closer, his face nuzzling into Sanji's back. He felt Zoro's lips plant a sweet kiss on the top of his spine.
He pressed his face into his pillow more, and tucked one hand underneath it. With the other, he reached down and settled his hand on top of Zoro's.
Zoro moved his head up a bit, peering into Sanji's blonde locks and the back of his head. His eye was drowsy, but he couldn't help but wonder what the cook was thinking now. Was he still bothered about earlier?
"Idiot cook." He groaned in whisper. "You're still doubting me aren't you?"
Sanji opened his eyes that he had been resting, trying to force sleep to come faster. His heart seemed to speed up after acknowledging that the marimo had spoken out to him. He sighed. Dammit, he was wasn't he?
"I'm not a vulnerable person. I'm not fragile," he finally whispered in response.
Zoro closed his eye, listening. If he weren't so tired he would've nodded, despite the fact Sanji wouldn't have been able to see him do it anyway.
"I know."
Sanji swallowed again. He interlocked his fingers with Zoro's that seemed to be asleep on their own.
"I hate having to rely on you so much..."
Zoro grunted. What the hell had he just repeated twice earlier? But before he could retort, Sanji continued.
"I know one day it'll be too much."
Zoro sighed. "Isn't that for me to decide?"
"I just... I don't want you wasting yourself on me. You have goals to work towards. I don't want to be what holds you back." Sanji's voice nearly cracked.
Zoro placed another kiss on his back. "You piss me off when you talk like that curly." He whispered. He squeezed Sanji's hand. "I'm going to prove you wrong, like always." he grinned, several occasions where he had actually been right coming to mind.
Sanji chuckled dryly. "How will you do that?" he questioned.
"You'll just have to shut up and wait and see. Now let me sleep, damn." Zoro chuckled, closing his eye again. Then, like it was nothing, he quickly fell asleep.
When his eye opened again though, it grew very wide. He stared blankly at the space next to him in the bed that was completely empty. Where the hell had Sanji gone? He sat up immediately, tossing the cover to the side in a panic, as if he'd find him there. "Sanji?" He called out, looking around the room. There was no answer.
He turned himself over quickly, jumping out of the bed. Had he fallen out? He rushed to the other side, only to see nothing on the floor. His heart began to race. Fuck, fuck, fuck! He rushed to the bathroom, checking inside of it. No cook there. He rushed to the bedroom door, grabbing the frame and looking out.
No Sanji in the living area. He sprinted out, sliding on the hardwood with his socks. He had to grab onto the kitchen counter, that merged into the living room, to stop himself from falling flat on his face. His heart dropped when he found him.
Sanji was laying down on the floor, flat on his stomach. His legs were bunched up behind him. His face was turned to the side, and he was staring blankly out at nothing.
"Sanji!" Zoro yelled, rushing over to him. What was he doing out here? What was going on?
This seemed to startle the cook, and he jumped to alert. His eyes raced to Zoro and grew wide.
"Zoro!" He said rather surprised. "Calm the fuck down!" He raised his head and moved his arms underneath him to prop himself up.
Zoro bent down and displayed a crude scowl on his face. The cook sounded fine, but still he was concerned because he still didn't understand what the hell was going on.
"What the fuck are you doing out here?" He barked frustratingly.
Sanji gave a slight pout. "I woke up." he said flatly, as if that explained everything.
Zoro brought his hand up to the bridge of his nose. And he was often referred to as the moron?
"No shit, cook. I meant how did you get out here?"
Sanji sighed. Well, he knew after he had failed that this would happen. It wasn't like he could actually climb back into the bed and act as if it he didn't try sneaking away from his nurse marimo.
"I rolled out of it." He said softly, then changed his tone quickly when he saw Zoro's eyebrow twitch. "But only because I wanted to crawl in here and climb into my chair." He turned his head to look up at the counter. His temporary wheelchair was lying on it, folded up. "But, it wasn't set up." His tone had a hint of annoyance.
Zoro narrowed his eye, feeling he didn't have a right to be annoyed at that when Zoro just got to wake up to the most frightening morning of his life.
"You idiot you could have just asked," he mumbled, standing back up. He moved to the counter and grabbed the wheelchair, inspecting it to see how the hell it opened.
Sanji shrugged, still lying on the tile. "I wanted to do at least something on my own." He responded.
After figuring it out Zoro pulled the wheelchair into place and locked it. Then he assisted, or more likely forced Sanji down into it. Stubborn cook.
"Chopper will kill me if he finds out you fell out of bed." He growled. Sanji didn't seem too phased by that.
He studied the cook for a moment more, participating in an unannounced staring contest, and then turned back toward the kitchen. Well, that had definitely woken him up much earlier than he had wanted to. He glanced around at his kitchen, trying to find something to say now that the situation had calmed itself, and they both didn't know what to do next.
That's when his cellphone, that had also been on the counter, began to vibrate. Both men glanced at it, and then exchanged their own glances. Zoro moved a step closer and grabbed it, spying at the caller ID. Nico Robin.
Sanji tilted his head, shifting his weight to one side as he watched the swordsman answer his phone. His expression of course, that stupid always scowled face, gave nothing away on who it was. Considering the time of the morning though, he assumed maybe it was one of the men Zoro worked with. Or it could have been Luffy. His mind drifted back to when he was still at Robin's and Luffy had tried smothering him with meat because he felt that would make him better. He honestly hoped it wasn't Luffy.
He sighed. Instead of staying around and prying, he figured he might as well get dressed. He moved his hands to the wheels and slowly backed away from the kitchen area. Luckily, Sanji was able to practice this before when he was still at Robin's, thanks to Chopper finally lecturing everyone, minus the lovely ladies of course, about how Sanji wasn't some kind of ride.
"Hello?" Zoro said before yawning. His body was beginning to realize there wasn't a panic anymore and could shut back down.
"Zoro?" It was Robin, just as the ID had said. "We've found some information. Will you come to my place around six?"
Zoro's eye glanced at Sanji while he wheeled himself away. So Robin had already dug up some information on the All Blue, had she? Well, that worked out just fine for him. He personally couldn't wait to give them a piece of his mind.
"Yeah. I'll be there." He lowered the phone from his ear and ended the call, staring at it a moment longer.
Hopefully then they could start to take some action, and afterwards, he hoped, Sanji would finally be able to start to heal.
Author's Note: This is probably the most.. I dunno how to say it, intimate thing I've ever written Lol :'D. Did I do good? I've never really wrote intimacy like that before! I have no idea so I hope it worked out well. I just wanted there to be some between the two, Sanji needs a little lovin'. I torture him to much. Whoops! Review's are always welcomed and highly appreciated!