He ought to be asleep. In just a few hours, he'd be making a breakfast big enough to satisfy even Luffy's bottomless stomach.
He'd been preparing and stockpiling ingredients for weeks. Some for a huge breakfast, and some for a big cake.
Yet, somehow, Sanji had completely forgotten one key detail.
Zoro hates sugar. The last time he'd been offered chocolate, Zoro wrinkled his nose so hard he looked like a pig. Sanji thought about making a chocolate cake at first—and he almost let his intrusive thoughts win—but he decided to hold off on his pettiness for one day.
For today at least, he'd be nice.
Yet kindness did not satisfy the issue at hand. He needed to come up with a cake idea—and fast. Something that wasn't sweet, that still tasted alright to Zoro's uncultured tongue.
A few ideas came to mind. A green tea-flavored cake wouldn't be bad. Neither would several onigiri stacked in a pyramid. Zoro was, after all, very fond of onigiri.
Sanji checked the pantry and then the fridge, scratching his blond head and racking his brain thinking of what to do.
Then, the kitchen door squeaked open. In entered the chill of cold winter air.
He knew that curly hair and long, brown nose from anywhere.
"Usopp?" Sanji asked in a mildly surprised tone. "A little late to be up right now, isn't it?" He rubbed his arms and shivered.
"You're up too though, right?" Usopp very honestly pointed out. He was blushing from the cold.
"Yeah, for that dumbass Marimo," Sanji murmured. It was nearly inaudible.
Usopp surveyed the kitchen counter. "You're making the cake this early?" He noticed the absence of sugar but did not comment on it.
Sanji perked up and nodded enthusiastically.
"I wanna make a nice one, so I've gotta make it in advance." Usopp came a little closer, obviously interested. "By the way, you and him are pretty close," Sanji began.
He turned to Usopp with desperate blue eyes. "You got any idea what cake flavor I should do?"
Usopp cocked a thick brown eyebrow. "Sanji," he began, "aren't you the cook?"
"I make sweet cakes," he said. "Sweet. That guy doesn't like sweet anything. It's why he's so grouchy." Sanji folded his arms. Usopp laughed and humored him. They talked for a little, discussing different cake ideas.
Usopp seemed open to the idea of the onigiri pyramid but suggested something that hadn't crossed Sanji's mind for a second.
"Why not make a carrot cake? Those aren't sweet."
Sanji brought a hand to his hairy chin and began to ponder for a few moments.
"Not a bad idea, right?" Usopp inclined his head. He was already going on about how he "could've been a chef in his previous life." Sanji didn't buy that crap for a moment. Usopp was just as devastating in the kitchen as Luffy. And the last time Luffy cooked, the rice came out raw and hard.
"Spice cakes can be pretty damn good," Sanji pointed out. "Alright, I think I can work with that. Thanks Usopp."
"You can just call me," Usopp struck a ridiculously embarrassing pose, "Usopp Ramsey."
Sanji gave him a blank stare.
He compiled his ingredients on one counter, cake pans ready and oven preheated. Usopp hadn't left.
