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Zoro places down his tray on a table before plopping down on the worn out booth sofa of the milk bar across from his workplace. Since he visits the place almost every day during his lunch break, he’s a regular and soon the old owner of the diner approaches him with a cup of free coffee. Zoro sends her a thankful smile which soon morphs into a furrow because of the loud voices coming from the entrance. And he hoped for a calm lunch time…“Zoro!” Luffy runs to him and sits down right next to the man, already stealing a fry, and then another one. “I knew we will find you here. Have you been avoiding me at work?” Luffy’s voice turns into an accusing whine when he is shoving more of Zoro’s fries into his mouth.“No, I was busy- Can you stop it?” Zoro pulls the tray away from Luffy when another man sits down on a sofa across from them, bringing more food much to Luffy’s excitement.“Thought you could escape from us, man?” Usopp smirks when popping a nugget into his mouth and then swinging a fry in Zoro’s direction, ketchup dripping onto the table. “You’re wearing that stupid grin everywhere and you think you can hide the reason from us?”“Exactly!” Luffy’s cheeks are full of food, this time stolen from Usopp’s tray. One glance at the amount of food his friend brought and Zoro knows that it’s actually for both of them. Luffy’s stomach is bottomless but the guy never gains weight. Zoro’s not going to dwell on the topic of Luffy’s magic gastrointestinal system right now though.“So… Who is he?” an eyebrow arches on Usopp’s forehead when he moves over the table to look at the green-haired man closer.“Huh?” is all Zoro can say when biting into his burger. He really needs to start eating healthier. Maybe starting tomorrow.“Oh, come on” Usopp sits down on the sofa more comfortably, arms crossed on his chest and eyes sparkling with excitement. “Even Luffy knows what’s up, and he’s never loved anything or anyone besides food”Luffy nods with a hum, as if not realising that Usopp’s just insulted him with that comment. Zoro focuses on his coffee and stirs it with a spoon, even though he didn’t add anything to it. He feels his face getting warmer and hopes the other two can’t see it.“Well… I met him at the store” Zoro starts, not looking up from his cup of coffee. He can feel Usopp and Luffy’s eyes on himself anyway. “He’s amazing, you know? And his son is fine, I mean, he can be a little shit, like all kids, but-”“Wait” Usopp stops him and when Zoro looks up, he’s met with a confused expression on his friend’s face. Zoro is just as confused for a second before chuckling and waving his hand.“Yeah, a store, not the most ideal place to ask for a number, but it-”“No, wait” Usopp interrupts him again and Zoro’s growing annoyed. What the hell is his friend’s problem? “You said… A son?” the frown on the man’s face grows deeper. Luffy only listens to the other two while munching on the fries he’s been stealing from Zoro’s plate after he finished all from the Usopp’s one.“Yeah. So?” Zoro’s expression is matching Usopp’s, although his forehead is creased more from annoyance than confusion.“You mean, a son?”“You forgot what a son is or what?” Zoro’s fingers tighten unconsciously around the spoon that he pulled out from his coffee. He knew his friends would be interested, yes, but what’s up with this strange interrogation?“Zoro, do you hear yourself? Are you… Are you sure it’s alright?” now Usopp’s tone gets more serious, almost worried. Zoro reaches for a fry to just get busy with anything but realises his plate is empty. A quick glance towards Luffy and the other is sending him an apologetic smile.“What’s wrong with that?” Zoro cocks his head to the side, growing more and more irritated as their conversation progresses. The fact that Luffy wolfed down half of his lunch doesn’t make it any better.“You hate kids” it’s the first time Luffy says something in a while.“I don’t hate kids, I just don’t understand them and because of that I don’t like them” Zoro corrects his friend, his teeth this close to gritting against each other.“But you never take classes with kids” Luffy continues, completely oblivious to the growing frustration inside of Zoro. The green-haired man’s fingers keep curling and uncurling themselves, itching to punch Luffy square in the face.“That’s obviously not the point here” Usopp waves his hand in the air to bring the attention of both friends. When they look at him, he continues “Zoro, are you sure you want, you know, bring up someone else’s child?”That’s not something Zoro’s even considered, to be honest. But the way Usopp said that only angered the man more. What’s wrong with liking someone who has a kid? Sanji is amazing and he would be amazing with or without Aito. Or maybe it’s completely different, maybe Sanji is that amazing thanks to Aito. Zoro admires Sanji’s strength as a single parent. He adores the way the man looks at his son. He’s amazed with the strange dynamics of the two. So wasn’t it the fact that Sanji is an amazing father in Zoro’s eyes the reason why he fell for him? Hell, they even met because of Aito. If it wasn’t for the boy, who knows if Zoro would ever have a chance like that?Besides, isn’t it too early for that? He likes Sanji, he likes him a lot actually, but they aren’t even a thing officially. He still needs to take him out on a proper date. Usopp likes to blow things out of proportions.“I don’t know what you mean” Zoro answers finally, relaxing against the back of the sofa. Usopp lets out a deep sigh, knowing already there is no reason to argue with his hard-headed friend. He’s just worried that if Zoro backs out later, he’s not going to break just one heart, but two. “Thank you so much for agreeing, Nami” Sanji’s voice is sweet when he’s pouring tea for his beautiful friend. He can always count on her when it comes to taking care of Aito. Well, most of the time, at least. She already has a child of her own to look after so it’s obvious she’s not available every time he asks.“Don’t mention it! I can take care of two kids, can’t I?” Nami smirks, accepting it like a challenge. “Besides, my little girl mainly sleeps all day”Sanji chuckles and sits down at the table with Nami, before glancing towards the living room, where Aito’s staring at Nami’s daughter with big, shining eyes. The little girl is sleeping in her crib and Aito can’t take his eyes off of her. The sight of his son being so careful around the toddler warms Sanji’s heart instantly.“Now, now” Nami’s voice brings Sanji’s attention back to the woman in front of him. She’s wearing her significant devilish smile and Sanji knows what it means. “Is he handsome?”“Well…” a sheepish smile appears on Sanji’s face when he looks away from his friend and scratches his chin. “Of course he is… I mean, he’s handsome and caring, I don’t know him that well yet but he seems really thoughtful. And funny too. A bit awkward. Stuff like that”Nami lets out a short laughter when listening to her male friend’s silly description of his date. He told her about Zoro as soon as he gave his number to the man, not able to contain his excitement. They spent good half an hour later talking about a man Sanji had just met and knew nothing about. It didn’t stop them from gossiping and speculating about it for a while.“Sounds like a good guy” Nami drops her teasing tone and instead smiles warmly at the sight of her flustered friend. It’s been a good while since she saw Sanji like that. “Alright, you better get going or you will be late!” Nami stands up abruptly and pulls Sanji into a stand too. She fishes a comb out of her purse and fixes a few stubborn cowlicks back into place on top of the man’s head.“Do I look okay?” Sanji asks and glances down at himself. He doesn’t want to look dolled-up but he wants to be presentable.“Perfect” a nod from Nami after she smooths out some creases on Sanji’s dress shirt before she’s pushing him towards the door. “Now go or I will have to kick you out!” she adds humorously. Sanji lets out a chuckle too and waves goodbye to Aito before stepping outside. ‘You got it’ he thinks to himself when walking away from Nami’s house. He’s even more nervous than the first time, probably because this time it’s a real thing. There’s no Aito at his side, he’s going to be alone with Zoro. It was a bit easier when he was with his son – not only did he serve as a kind of mental support to Sanji, but he was also the main topic of their conversation. What if this time, when they are alone, Zoro finds him boring? There’s never been only the two of them; even in the mart, back when they first met, Aito was there.Sanji wants to pull at his hair in frustration but opts for a cigarette, since he doesn't want to ruin his hairstyle. His lighter clicks and the nicotine seems to calm him down but only to some extent. His heart keeps pounding in his chest when he realises he’s getting closer and closer to their meeting spot.“I didn’t know you’re smoking”Sanji’s been so deep in his thoughts that he didn’t realise someone approached him. Well, not someone, but Zoro himself. The blond man looks around confused and understands he’s almost where they were supposed to meet.Sanji takes a look at Zoro. He looks so good, even if he’s wearing a casual shirt with two buttons let loose at the top. His hair seems to be a green mess but Sanji thinks it’s intentional and it looks hot as hell. Zoro looks hot as hell. Damn, Zoro’s hot.“Oh, I don’t smoke around Aito” Sanji mumbles around the cigarette and then takes it into his hand. “I can put it out if you don’t like it”“No, it’s fine. Makes you look hot”Fuck, Sanji’s sure his face is beet red in this moment and he hopes it’s already dark enough that Zoro doesn’t notice. He always says stuff like that so nonchalantly, so smoothly.Too bad Sanji doesn’t know that right now Zoro wants to throw himself under a passing car for being this straightforward. Why does he always say weird stuff without thinking first? There’s a high chance Sanji didn’t hear that.“T-thanks” the blond man stutters out and places a strand of hair away from his eyes.Well, he did hear that.Zoro clears his throat and decides to man up. He needs to do his very best if he wants to win over Sanji’s heart and sweep him off his feet. He really, really wants them to get closer. He’s been thinking a lot about many possible places they could go to and when an idea struck him, he almost felt a lightbulb go off in his head. He couldn’t wait to tell Sanji about it now when the man arrived.“Where are we going?” the blond man asks when crushing his cigarette on the pavement before throwing it into the bin. He just can’t stand people who throw the butts carelessly anywhere.“It’s a surprise” Zoro grins mischievously and Sanji can’t help but chuckle when the other man already starts walking.“Lead the way”Sanji puts hands into his pockets before glancing to the side at Zoro. There are earrings dangling from his left ear, reflecting the artificial light coming from the street lights. He’s wearing a smile on his face and his hands are shoved into his jeans’ pockets just like Sanji’s. The man’s gaze moves towards his broad shoulders and muscled biceps and he has to wet his dry lips at the sight. Is Zoro working out?“Are you working out?” Sanji decides to speak his mind and Zoro peeks at him curiously with an eyebrow raised.“Why’s that?” a smile on Zoro’s face turns into a flirty smirk when he raises his arm and flexes his biceps. “Like what you see?”Sanji wants to punch and kiss the man’s face at the same time. He can’t tell which one is stronger though. Zoro soon drops his arm and scratches it with the opposite hand, growing a bit embarrassed from that little show off.“Yeah, I work out, plus I work as a martial arts teacher, mainly kendo”Sanji chokes on air, realising he took an inhale bigger than intended. The more he finds out about Zoro, the curiouser he gets. His cooking job suddenly looks like the most boring career in the whole universe, compared to freaking martial arts.“Wow, that’s something” the blond man finally comments, his gaze still lingering on Zoro’s biceps. “Correct me if I’m an ignorant jerk, but kendo is the one where you fight with swords, yeah?” Sanji tilts his head to the side like a curious kid. He looks very much like Aito when doing that, Zoro notes.“Ah, yes, mainly bamboo swords. If you’re hardcore, like me, you can try with a katana” Zoro’s chest swells with pride and Sanji notices, letting his gaze fall on the skin peeking from under those two undone buttons of his shirt. When he imagines Zoro with a katana, he needs to move his eyes away before Zoro notices they got darker. Shit, it’s not like he only lusts for Zoro’s body but the man is sculpted like some piece of art.“I should see you swishing that sword around” Sanji says with a chuckle when his head (and body) cools down and he can look at the man again. Zoro’s grin widens and he raises a thumb up eagerly.“It’s another promise then”When they arrive, Zoro waves his hand dramatically towards the entrance, like a seller presenting a new car to his customer. Sanji’s eyes literally sparkle from all the flashing neon signs and blinking lights. It’s some kind of a club or an arcade, with bowling and games and other fun activities to discover. When was the last time Sanji visited one of those places? Even though he’s not even that old, he suddenly feels at least five years younger.“What do you think?” Zoro answers, a bit nervous with the lack of response from his date. Sanji turns to look at him with round, eager eyes. Before he realises that, Zoro’s being pulled inside with Sanji’s fingers wrapped around his wrist. A happy chuckle vibrates in his chest at the sight of the excited blond.“Let’s go bowling!” Sanji exclaims with a newfound energy and Zoro follows him like a good puppy. They get everything ready (this time Sanji insists and pays for everything with his card, Zoro not even close to pulling out his own) and enter the bowling alley. Sanji’s walking with a spring in his every step and Zoro finds it utterly endearing.There are not many people in this part of the club. There’s a group of teenagers laughing loudly and teasing each other about their scores. Right next to them is a family, much calmer than the others but you can see they are having fun too. Sanji and Zoro choose a lane on the far end of the place, for privacy reasons. They are on a date after all, aren’t they?“I think we should have a challenge” Zoro speaks when he looks at the bowling ball from all sides. Sanji cocks an eyebrow but lets the man continue as he sits down on one of the sofas lined up at the wall. “The first one to achieve a strike wins”“Sounds about fair” Sanji nods, getting even more excited. The kid inside of him gets impatient at the mere mention of the word ‘challenge’. “What’s the prize?” Sanji’s legs cross on top of another and he watches the green-haired man as he hums, deep in thought. Of course Sanji knows what’s going to be the prize. By the way Zoro is smiling, he knows too, but he’s acting all oblivious. He’s pursing his lips just the tiniest bit, giving hints to Sanji who already knows what that bastard wants. “A kiss” Sanji finally blurts out and Zoro keeps his act, looking at the man with a perfectly fake surprise.“Oh? A kiss?” Zoro’s ridiculous blinking is met with Sanji’s eye-roll.“Don’t act like you didn’t think of it. And definitely don’t get all weird about it” Sanji warns the other man and his face drops all the falseness, instead replaced with a happy smile as he moves closer to the blond with the ball still in his hands. “I meant a simple peck, you pervert”“You are the one who said it, not me” Zoro passes the ball to Sanji before raising his hands up in the air, feigning innocence while a playful smile still dances on his lips. Sanji can only shake his head and pass by his date. He understands that by giving him the ball, Zoro chose him to go first.“I am warning you though” as Sanji turns around, Zoro is already seated on the couch and watching the other carefully. “I have no idea what I’m doing”Zoro barks with a loud laughter and waves his hand in the air. No matter how annoyed Sanji acted earlier, he is smiling too. Zoro’s laughter is definitely contagious and he could listen to it for the whole day.“Don’t worry, I have no bloody idea either. Just throw the ball and try to hit all the pins, I guess”“Thanks, Mr Obvious” Sanji faces the lane once more after sticking his tongue out at Zoro. Even if it’s just a fun game between them two, his compete-for-life switch flips on inside his head. The tip of his tongue peeks out for some kind of added concentration and he bends down his knees, one leg stretched backwards like he’s seen in countless movies. Zoro tilts his head just a bit for a better view. Not of the lane, but Sanji’s long leg and round butt, perfectly accentuated in this pose. Zoro thanks any gods that are listening to him now for enlightening him with the idea of a bowling date. Amen.After a while of preparations Sanji pushes the ball along the lane and then moves his hands in fists up and down slightly, cheering the ball to move and hit the pins perfectly. About halfway there the ball leans to the side more and more before dropping into the valley at the side and disappearing then, not even close to hitting the pins.“Come on!” Sanji whines frustrated and drops arms at his sides. He walks away from the lane and joins Zoro at the table, huffing in annoyance. The other man smiles warmly, finding Sanji extremely cute when getting annoyed, either from his silly flirting and teasing or losing like right now.“Let me show you how it’s done” Zoro is full of confidence and Sanji spreads himself on the sofa, the irritation oozing out of him when the other man stands up.“Swordsmanship skills won’t help you much!” Sanji calls after him. Zoro snickers when putting his fingers into the three holes in the ball before striking a pose similar to Sanji’s. He closes one eye, not really sure if it’s going to help him anyhow, and focuses on the pins in front of him. His hand swings backward with the ball before driving it forward and knocking four of the pins down.“Ha!” the green-haired man fist-pumps the air and turns to Sanji like a kid ready for approval. “You saw that?” he nearly runs back to the table and leans closer to Sanji, who only pushes him away with a hand, even more annoyed.“You’re just lucky!”Zoro smirks and pokes Sanji’s arm with a finger, knowing full well that it will drive him even madder than he is already. The man stands up abruptly and stomps to the lane as if weighing three times more. Zoro can’t lie, it’s entertaining as hell.As Sanji’s eyes train themselves on the pins, Zoro silently walks behind the other man, wiggling his fingers in the air to warm them up for his devilish plan. He can’t help it, Sanji’s too easy to tease and his reactions are absolutely adorable. Zoro will make it up to him one way or another later. Sanji mumbles a silent ‘alright’ to himself and thrusts the ball just in time when Zoro’s fingers find his sides and start tickling him. The blond man lets out a yelp and turns to Zoro quickly, his eyes wide at first before they squint at the other.“That’s cheating!” his voice comes in a squeak, the corner of his eye catching only two pins falling down from his hit. Zoro shrugs and puts hands into his pockets."I have no idea what you’re talking about”Sanji literally growls when raising his hands up and putting them inches away from Zoro’s throat, ready to strangle the man. Everything is so natural between them, like they’ve known each other for years and such bickering was something of daily occurrence. And even if Sanji acts annoyed, he loves that comfortable feeling to no end.“My turn” it’s a calm statement from Zoro and Sanji doesn’t go back to their table this time. Oh, he’s definitely not going to let Zoro win. Not without a little revenge. Zoro can feel Sanji’s presence next to him but he’s positive no amount of tickling or anything of this sort will bring him down. Martial arts trained him not only physically, but mentally and he’s sure he can focus on his task pretty well.That’s until he feels a gust of warm air right next to his ear, his long earrings tingling gently. Sanji’s face is so close to his own that if he concentrates on the feeling enough, he can almost feel the other’s lips on his ear. And he’s whispering endless chants of ‘miss, miss’ so silently, so teasingly that the short hair on his nape stands up with a shudder. Zoro doesn’t really notice that he dropped the ball and it rolled away and into the valley on the edge before Sanji pulls away and claps his hands in victory. Suddenly, Zoro feels like he’s freezing without the other man’s heat.“Guess you’re better with your swords than the bowling ball” Sanji giggles innocently when reaching for another ball. Zoro just walks to the table and lets his body fall down onto the sofa, still in a daze. The memory of Sanji’s breath on his ear is still so fresh and real.The blond man looks at Zoro before taking his chance and focusing fully on winning, now that Zoro is too disoriented to disturb him in any way. He doesn’t want to take too long preparing because he doesn’t really have any idea what he’s supposed to do for his move to work. So instead he simply lets his ball slide gently on the lane and a bit to the side. It hits the pins on the right, which knock all of the others. A short victory jingle plays on their part of the alley, lights flickering with all colours of the rainbow.“I did it! It’s a strike!” Sanji turns around to Zoro. The other man is confused at first, before realising that Sanji did knock down all of the pins. The sight of his date being this genuinely happy melts his heart and brings a smile on his face as well. Even if he’s just lost, it’s worth it to see such a raw emotion on the other’s face.“Yeah, looks like you won” after standing up, Zoro walks closer to Sanji and smirks playfully. "So, since you won, I get a kiss”"Huh?” Sanji’s happy face morphs into a frown in a trice "What kind of logic is that? The winner gets a kiss!”Zoro laughs calmly before taking another step closer and Sanji looks away."Sorry, just joking” Zoro whispers before pecking Sanji’s cheek, dangerously close to the corner of his lips but Sanji decides not to mention that. No matter how innocent the kiss was, he enjoyed it a lot. At first he was worried that a kiss as a prize would be too daring this early but who cares? He’s an adult, they both are, and he can kiss whoever he wants, whenever he wants and however he wants. Well, in this case, he can be kissed just the way he wants it to be.Zoro’s heart is beating fast when he moves away and looks into Sanji’s eyes, the blue orbs so deep and calming he could get happily lost inside of them. For a while it’s just them staring at each other before it gets too overwhelming and Sanji looks away first, mumbling something about approving that kind of a prize.They stay at the club for a while longer, sipping some mild drinks and talking about everything and nothing. Sanji doesn’t want to stay out for too long. Not that he’s not enjoying Zoro’s company, but he doesn’t want to abuse Nami’s kindness. So about half an hour later they are taking a walk towards Nami’s place and Sanji can’t put his finger on what’s making him feel this good around Zoro. They barely know each other and yet it feels so right."Thank you so much for taking me out” Sanji starts and glances at Zoro, who hums, indicating that he’s listening. "It’s been a long while since I was out without Aito. It’s good to take a break, you know?”Zoro thinks he understands how difficult it must be to reconcile social life with parenting. And he’s glad he was able to help Sanji unwind a bit and just enjoy their time together."No big deal. I enjoyed it a lot”Sanji stops then and Zoro looks around confused. He’s sure that the last time he met with Sanji and Aito, their uber brought them to a different location. It was late and dark then, yes, but he’s pretty much positive it was a different neighbourhood. The blond notices the confusion on Zoro’s face and gasps silently."Ah, I asked my friend to take care of Aito before I come back” Sanji explains and Zoro looks at the house behind Sanji’s back. There’s a woman standing in the window, obviously peeking at them. "What? You see something?” when Sanji turns around, the person is gone. If it’s Sanji’s friend then Zoro’s sure her curiosity will win over and she will be back in the window soon. "Anyway… I really had a blast today” Sanji continues when looking at Zoro once more. His hands are busy wringing each other before he raises them up and gently cups the green-haired man’s face. Zoro’s eyes widen a bit but he doesn’t move away. Sanji tilts his head and leaves a kiss on Zoro’s cheek, letting his lips stay against his skin for a second longer than a simple peck. When he moves away, his cheeks are growing pinker and warmer. "Goodnight”Sanji’s voice is a whisper and Zoro feels hypnotised by it. Unfortunately, soon Sanji opens the small gate and slips inside before walking to the front door. He turns around though when Zoro calls him silently."Goodnight” he waves at the blond man from behind the gate with a bright grin. Sanji raises his hand in a farewell gesture too before another hand takes a hold of it from behind him."I swear, if you don’t get inside this instant and tell me everything I will leave you outside for the night” there’s a dangerous glint in Nami’s eye as she speaks and Sanji can only laugh sheepishly while slipping inside through the front door.