phosphenes (n.) zoro x sanji [roommates au]

chapter 35 - schwellenangst

s/n: ocean eyes - billie eilish (slowed & reverbed)

" To love someone is to firstly confess;

I'm prepared to be devastated by you. "

[ zoro ]

It wasn't a problem with the couch,
he was used to uneven soft and hard spots digging into his spine. He generally had a hard time falling asleep; but knowledge that the blond boy was barely 4 metres away from him kept cutting through the waves of sleep like a brilliantly bright and annoying lighthouse.

Sanji had those nightmares. Can he sleep well? Can I be one there for him? Am I allowed to offer? The thoughts consumed him. He didn't want to overstep the boundary between them in case Sanji disappears again like an elusive summer breeze.

Like a devil, he appears.

And like a devil, he was so beautiful under the moonlight.

"You're not asleep yet, Marimo?" The blond boy turned to him with a brow raised in surprise when he saw the tanned boy made eye contact with him as he tried to sneak into kitchen quietly without disturbing Zoro.

"Can't sleep. Shitty couch." He grumbled.

Sanji scoffed as he poured a glass of water for himself. "No one forced you to sleep there and the floor is always an option."

"The hallway too, by the way." The blond added with a smirk.

Zoro grunted in response and reached from behind him to grab a pillow, and threw it forcefully at Sanji.

The blond boy quickly raised his free hand to block the pillow but the sudden movement caused the water in his glass to spill.

"Bastard!" He glared at Zoro.

The tanned boy only shrugged. It was revenge for before.

He got up to get a glass of water for himself when a gust of evening wind blew in, causing goosebumps to raise above all his exposed torso. He had removed his shirt before lying on Sanji's couch as he didn't want to dirty it, but the evening wind was too cold to suffer naked without a blanket.

As he turned to get his shirt, he forgot that his scars were in full exposed view to Sanji.

"Marimo..."

"...the hell is up with those scars?"

The tanned boy froze, suddenly realising that the most vulnerable part of him was under scrutiny and it felt like his back was on fire.

He pulled the shirt over as nonchalantly as he could and turned away to avoid those baby blue spotlights.

"It's nothing."

The blond didn't say a word and Zoro felt worry bubble in his chest that he brushed the question over too harshly.

"I-" He hesitated.

"If you tell me you got those while falling down the stairs," Sanji said drily, somehow teleporting beside him and making his heart accelerate like war drums in his ears. "-I swear I'll kick you out the window."