So Good So Far

by BregoArodShadowfax

Being in love is hard, especially when the person you want doesn't feel the same. When Zoro rejects him, Sanji finds comfort from the one person he never would have even considered before. And if Zoro eventually decides to change his mind, well, he'll still be waiting. Zoro/Sanji, Law/Sanji, eventual Law/Zoro/Sanji.

9. Chapter 9

Title: So Good So Far
Author: AoiTsukikage
Rating: NC-17 overall
Characters/Pairing:Zoro/Sanji, Law/Sanji, eventual Law/Zoro/Sanji
Chapter: 9/?
Word Count: 3538
Summary: Written for a prompt from curlybrow who requested "Sanji confesses his confused love for Zoro, but Zoro refuses him, then Sanji turns to Law for comfort, and when Zoro secretly learns that Sanji and Law are doing it, he becomes really jealous…".
Spoilers: For recent chapters

Chapter Nine

He woke up to somebody petting him awake, and he was deadly still for a few long moments until he realized there was only one person it could have been.

"Hey. G'morning," he mumbled, and Law's hands stilled for a moment before continuing their actions, trailing lightly over his back and shoulders and up into his hair. The realization Sanji had come to just before falling asleep was still bouncing around in his mind, but he told himself he'd deal with it later…when he wasn't comfortable and happy and warm.

"How are you feeling?" Law asked softly, and Sanji shifted a little, trying to gauge how sore he was. It didn't seem bad, though, and he doubted he'd be able to feel it for long.

"Fine," he decided, turning more fully against Law and half-closing his eyes. "What time is it?"

"Mid-morning," Law answered glancing out the balcony door. "So far nobody from your crew has seen fit to disturb us, but I can't say how long that will last."

"Not long, knowing them," Sanji mumbled, letting himself drift.

"So. Mr. Zoro has found us out, has he?" Law murmured a few seconds later and Sanji wrinkled his nose because, well, that had rather killed the mood.

"Yeah. It's not like we were being subtle about it," he muttered. "But he seemed to have more of a problem with you than anything."

"Most people do," Law noted, not sounding put-out at all. "Although I suppose I don't do much to convince them otherwise."

"Sometimes it's safer to pretend you don't care," Sanji replied, because he knew that well enough.

"Mm," Law agreed vaguely, his fingers never stopping their almost hypnotic movement across Sanji's skin. "I've been like this for so long it's almost hard to recall if I was the same as a child. I doubt it; at least, not to the extent that I try to push people away now."

"You've got enough reason to," Sanji nuzzled his nose against Law's neck, sighing, He couldn't even begin to fathom what Law had been through, losing everybody he loved not only once but twice, and it made a part of him ache to think about how alone Law had been for so many years.

"Maybe," Law didn't sound like he was agreeing. "Speaking of, I've told you an awful lot about my past but you've yet to reveal more than the basics. I think you owe me," he trailed his hand up into Sanji's hair again, fingers clenching and tipping Sanji's head back, and Sanji swallowed and shivered a little. He didn't know if Law was even trying to be seductive or if his voice was just so damn sexual that anything he said made it seem that way, but it wasn't good for his libido.

"There's not much to tell," Sanji admitted. "I never really knew my parents, and all I can remember is hanging around the kitchens of cruise ships until I was old enough to do grunt work, and then I was stuck on a rock with a pirate who ended up teaching me damn near everything I know about cooking and fighting," he glanced up at Law, who loosened his grip and slid his hand back down Sanji's back. "I don't know how it feels to lose somebody I love, because there's only ever been one man I consider a father to me and he's still alive…stubborn old bastard will probably live forever," he smiled wryly. "Sometimes I feel like I don't belong with the rest of them, because they've all lost somebody close to them, but…"

"The pain of losing somebody can linger forever," Law said quietly, something purely soothing about his tone now. "But it's pain that can be overcome. What you went through….I think very few people could ever understand it. Just because your trauma was different doesn't make it less valid, and from what I can see, your crew considers you very valuable."

Sanji wasn't sure how to respond to that, because he wasn't used to such heartfelt things coming out of Law's mouth, so he pushed himself up and kissed the other man, hoping that it conveyed his gratitude. He knew that he'd always had self-worth issues, and regardless of their pasts, that was something he and Law certainly did have in common.

"Why me?" he asked when they broke away, because Law was in a rather candid mood and it was something he'd been curious about.

"Hmm?" Law blinked and Sanji knew that he'd been a little unclear.

"When we started this, you claimed you just wanted to fuck me. This," he gestured between them, "it was never part of the deal, but you're not pushing me away. So there's something else."

"You're too smart for your own good, brat," Law chuckled. "I wasn't lying when I said that I found you attractive and intelligent, but out of everybody on your crew, you were the only one besides your captain to never think ill of me or suspect that I had sinister motives in aligning myself with you all. From what I know of you, you're not one to stand quiet when something you don't approve of happens. So I suppose I was…intrigued by you more than anything, as to why I was the exception," he clicked his tongue and Sanji had to admit that he had a point.

It wasn't something he understood himself, really, because normally he was inherently suspicious of everybody, but especially since his time on Kamabakka Island he'd been more in-tune with how other people felt and he wasn't sure what it meant. He'd always been a little too affected be people in need, maybe, but not to the extent that he knew exactly when somebody truly needed help or when they were faking.

"Your captain said you had Haki," Law mentioned. "What kind do you specialize in? Observation?"

"Yeah," Sanji said slowly. "Why?"

"It's not that well-documented, but there's very solid proof that those with strong tendencies toward that type of Haki can not only sense things like movement and objects, but also emotions. Maybe you're unaware of it, but if somebody is projecting their emotions clearly enough, you seem to have at least a bit of talent in recognizing that," he murmured, and Sanji realized that he was right. With Tashigi back on Punk Hazard, with Kin'emon, he'd known they'd needed help without recognizing exactly why he had.

"Fuck," he murmured, frowning, because that could definitely prove useful if he could actively control it. Still, it had only helped them so far. "So you…"

"When it comes to my gratitude toward Corazon, and my utter hatred of Doflamingo, perhaps I cannot hide that no matter how hard I try. So even if you don't feel like you can understand what I've gone through, a part of you can sense it, and perhaps that's why I was drawn to you," he pulled Sanji into another kiss, open-mouthed and searing in a way that Sanji felt it down to his toes.

But it was too much, and he pressed a hand against Law's chest and pushed himself away, trying to collect his thoughts. If what Law said was true…then that meant that his feeling that Zoro was starting to come around maybe wasn't so off-base and wasn't just a pipe dream. That was encouraging, at least, even if Zoro himself couldn't fathom the possibility yet.

He sat up, running a hand through his hair, and Law made a curious sound in his throat. Sanji pulled his still blanket-covered knees to his chest, resting his forehead against them, and wrapped his arms around his legs.

He had to stop this…thing with Law, because it was going way too far and he needed to lay some boundaries before Law started getting the wrong idea.

"Forgive me," Law whispered, resting a hand on Sanji's back. "If I did something you don't approve of…"

Sanji shook his head but didn't answer, not trusting his voice, and when Law wrapped his long arms around him and hooked his chin over Sanji's shoulder, he stayed completely still until the surgeon moved back.

"I understand," his tone was back to being ice-cold, and Sanji felt like he'd been stabbed through the heart. "I suppose I was the naïve one to think you viewed this the same way that I did."

"I do," Sanji mumbled, not wanting Law to leave angry. "But I'm doing this so that Zoro will fall for me," he wanted to make that very clear, at least, and he heard Law sigh heavily.

"I do realize that. I've never entertained any delusions that this was more than a form of temporary stress relief, but I had assumed you were…happy. Your actions last night and this morning up until now certainly indicated so," he sounded bitter and, well, Sanji couldn't blame him because his actions were confusing to himself, so he could only imagine how it would look to anybody else.

"You've been hurt so fucking much," Sanji turned to look at Law, who glared back at him defiantly. "I don't want to be somebody who hurts you more."

"Let me decide that," Law said firmly. "Your feelings toward Mr. Zoro have been building up for years, and are infinitely more genuine than anything you might feel toward me in the span of only a few days. You feel sorry for me, perhaps, and you might care for me because you think I somehow am entitled to it. I appreciate it, certainly, and I feel…safe being a little vulnerable around you, but the way I see it, denying yourself any sort of pleasure over hypothetical hurt feelings is only detrimental in the long run."

Sanji turned back to him, but Law was back to looking smug and half-smirking, leaning against the headboard with one knee up and the blanket draped between his legs.

"Asshole," Sanji grumbled, because he didn't know what else to say, but Law could be a smug bastard when he wanted to.

Law's smirk only widened at that, and Sanji found it impossible to be angry with him when he was right, damn it, so he unfurled his body and moved back across the bed, slumping on top of Law and feeling exhausted again even though he'd just woken up.

Fucking emotions, he thought bitterly, but in the end Law was right.

Whatever they had, it felt good, and he was far too much of a hedonist to deny himself pleasure when it was so freely offered.

It might fuck him over in the end, but until that time came, he'd try not to worry about it anymore.

000

"Sounds like you had fun last night," Usopp dropped down beside him, wiggling his eyebrows and grinning rather knowingly.

"More fun than you," Sanji flicked some ash off of his cigarette, not really surprised that they'd been found out.

He hadn't been quiet, after all.

Usopp, though, wasn't really a problem, because for as different as they seemed at first glance he and the sniper had always gotten on remarkably well and it was inevitable that Sanji's preference for sleeping partners would have come up in one of their many conversations.

"Weren't you worried Law would walk in on you?" Usopp asked, and Sanji looked at him, frowning. "I mean, you're sharing a room with him…how'd you get him to stay out?"

Sanji bit his lip, knowing they were at a crossroads of sorts. But then, Robin and Nami knew, and he trusted Usopp to not run his mouth about things like this, so maybe the best thing to do was be honest. "It would be very hard for Law to walk in on something he's already a part of."

There was silence for a good ten seconds until Usopp squeaked, his wide eyes even larger than normal, and he sputtered something for a while before choking out, "Him? You're…s-sleeping with him?!"

"Keep it down," Sanji grabbed Usopp's nose to get him to quiet down and he did…well, at least about Law, although he started to complain rather profusely about Sanji's methods of diverting his attention. "Did Chopper and Luffy…"

"Luffy was sleeping," Usopp sniffed, touching the end of his nose gingerly. "And Chopper said something about 'anal tearing' and 'proper lubrication' before pulling his hat over his ears and sticking his nose in a book," he replied, and Sanji sighed because that wasn't as bad as it could have been. So Chopper knew he was with a guy, but he knew the little reindeer wouldn't make a big deal out of it. Luffy…well, he wouldn't either, but chances were he wouldn't understand exactly what was going on with them, so it's better if he never asked any questions about it. "But seriously, Sanji…"

"I don't to fucking hear it, long-nose," Sanji grumbled, although Usopp's hand landing on his shoulder made him look up.

"I was going to say that I can't exactly blame you," Usopp smiled hesitantly at him, jerking his head to the side, and Sanji looked up to follow his gaze.

They were sitting down near the beach that was part of the Inn property, the day hot and sunny, and apparently the island was truly a tourist haven because it was fairly crowded out on the sand. Most of the crew was scattered, doing their own things and enjoying their downtime, and Law was sitting in the shade of a tall palm tree, seemingly oblivious to the world. He was flipping through a book, sunglasses covering his eyes and wearing only his jeans, and Sanji thought it was the most undressed he'd ever seen him outside of the bedroom.

Sanji certainly didn't mind, of course, but he didn't think Usopp would notice.

"I thought you were in love with Kaya," he teased, because he couldn't not say anything, and Usopp turned a rather interesting shade of red before clearing his throat.

"The great and magnificent Usopp's heart does indeed beat only for the fair maiden Kaya," he declared triumphantly, sticking his index finger up in the air to emphasize his words. "But that doesn't mean I don't have eyes, and…"

"Yeah. He is," Sanji agreed, because that was one thing he'd never deny.

"You're not…I mean, he's kind of…scary," Usopp finished in a tiny voice and Sanji glanced sideways at him, taking his cigarette out of his mouth before starting to laugh. "It's not funny! He's all…dark and creepy and…"

"You don't really believe that, do you?" Sanji nudged the younger man in the side, and Usopp mumbled something that told Sanji he did still buy into the stories about Law. "He's not…like that. Not really. But it's not my place to say anything more," he finished, staring at Law.

"Okay. Good," Usopp swallowed, digging his toes into the sand before he asked, "So…you're boyfriends?"

"Fuck no," Sanji coughed, almost choking on smoke, because the thought of Law calling anybody a 'boyfriend' was ludicrous. "Fuck-buddies, maybe. It's just about getting laid," he threw the cigarette down onto the sand and put it out with his shoe, draping one arm over his bent knee.

Usopp didn't answer, but a quick glance sideways showed his brow was furrowed and he looked decidedly unconvinced.

"Look, it's not really any of your business," Sanji cleared his throat, trying not to sound rude but Usopp wasn't an idiot and Sanji didn't need anybody trying to make this more complicated than it was already becoming. "I can sleep with him if I want to."

"Yeah. Of course you can," Usopp nodded quickly. "Nothing wrong with that at all," his voice was a little too high and his smile a little too strained, and Sanji knew that he wasn't buying it for a second.

He thought Usopp would stay quiet about it, though, since it was none of his business.

At least, he hoped he would, because the last thing Sanji needed was everybody trying to convince him it was okay to have feelings.

He was too damn close to realizing that himself to need any help with it.

000

"I didn't know they made seaweed flavored ice cream," he wandered up beside Zoro, who looked back at him and grunted something unintelligible in what Sanji assumed was supposed to be some form of greeting. "You're talkative today. Did you actually hurt yourself thinking?" he presses his hand against Zoro's forehead under the pretense of checking for a fever, and to his surprise Zoro doesn't try to bat him away. "Seriously, Marimo, you're scaring me."

"It's nothing," Zoro pulled away from his hand and moved up in the line for the ice-cream stall, Sanji following along behind. "I just…still don't like that you're doing…that…with him."

"But what don't you like about it?" Sanji asked, crossing his arms. "That I'm doing it with him? Or that he's doing it with me?"

"There's a difference?" Zoro blinked at him and Sanji rolled his eyes, because of course that would go over Zoro's head.

"Yes, there's a difference," he didn't want to say anything more, waiting for Zoro to find the answer by himself, but he looked like he was concentrating so hard steam was going to start pouring out of his ears soon.

"So I need to figure out if I've got a problem with him or if I've got a problem with you being with him?" Zoro guessed, and Sanji clapped his shoulder.

"Hallelujah, he gets it!"

"Oi," Zoro nudged him in the side and Sanji let it go, because that was obviously progress. "I don't hate him…I mean, I might not trust him, but I don't have a problem with him otherwise," he frowned. "That doesn't mean the reason I have issues with this is because I want to be in his place, though," he added quickly, and Sanji sighed because if Zoro was so quick to dismiss having any sort of sexual attraction to Sanji they could still be a long way away from making any progress on that front.

"Well, I suggest you figure it out," Sanji stepped up to the cart and placed his order, getting an extra cone partly because he wanted to do something nice for Law and partly so that Zoro would notice. "My feelings might not change, but that doesn't mean I'm going to sit and wait for you just because there's something about him that you don't like. And especially not when he's so damn good in bed," Sanji fluttered his eyelashes a little, licking at the curl of ice cream on the top of his cone as suggestively as he could, and the fact that Zoro blushed a little and averted his eyes certainly wasn't lost on him.

He turned on his heel gracefully and strode away, knowing more than ever now that Zoro was attracted to him whether he was willing to admit it or not.

Although, one way or the other, Sanji was going to make sure he did admit it.

He just had to figure out how.

000

"Ice cream?" he held out the cone and Law looked up from his book, taking it but staring at it rather suspiciously when Sanji took a seat beside him.

"What kind is it?"

"Umeboshi," Sanji replied without missing a beat, grin widening at the rather disgusted look on Law's face.

"The urge to swap out your head with this cone is strong right now," Law muttered, his voice dark, although Sanji knew he wouldn't act on his threat.

"I wouldn't do that to you. I have a policy about not feeding people things I know they don't like," Sanji promised, and Law was still regarding him suspiciously while he tried the ice cream but his face relaxed after he'd seemingly assured himself there was no umeboshi present.

"Thank you. You didn't have to bring one for me," Law looked a little unsure as to what it meant, and Sanji by now had come to realize that he found Law's insecurities over the tiniest things more than a little endearing, if only because it clashed so horribly with the name he'd built for himself.

"Of course I did," Sanji didn't elaborate, letting Law draw his own conclusions as to why he'd done it. He laid his head on Law's shoulder, closing his eyes and enjoying the warmth of the day, and he felt Law hesitate for a few seconds before his own hand came to rest rather possessively in the small of Sanji's back.

It was a tiny gesture, maybe, but it spoke volumes considering how hesitant Law had been to casually touch him even the night before.

Law was one of the most closed-off people Sanji had ever met and if even he was starting to let down his walls a little and not worry so much about whatever would become of their…arrangement, maybe that was a clear sign that Sanji should start doing the same.

Zoro would come around, he was sure of that, and maybe he might need a little coaxing but…

But in the meantime, there was still nothing wrong with enjoying what he had.

So from now on, he was going to do just that.

Notes:

1. While it's never explicitly stated in canon as far as Sanji is concerned, one of the attributes that can come with strong Observation Haki is being able to sense strong emotions or need (Otohime could consciously do it), and Sanji's done a lot of things since the time-skip that seem to imply he's at least aware of this even if he doesn't know what it is (he immediately believed Kin'emon when he said he was looking for his son and wanted to help him despite everybody else doubting his motives, he came back to help Tashigi because he could 'hear the fall of her tears', and even with Viola he knew she truly needed help even when she claimed it was a front). So that's where that part of the fic comes from because I think it's a rather interesting concept and I hope it's explored further in his actual storyline.

2. I don't think I have anything else to say, but thank you to everybody who's still interested in this fic and I'm glad so many people are enjoying it!