'Van here. Oh, the tragedy, my computer crashed and took the sequel to "Naptime Bothering" with it, so I wrote this to revive my dead sense of Zoro/Sanji goodness. Plus, I really wanted to write Sanji saying "wow". In the most yaoi context possible.

Warnings:The usual. Shonen-ai, kissing, snuggling, implied sex… Feel insulted by pretty gay pirates showing affection, feel free to leave now.
Disclaimer: I still don't own One Piece, the treasure or the series.

This story is dedicated to my lovely perverted muse, AnimeBride. Arigatoo gosaimasu, Mel-love, for keeping me alive!! –bows deep-

The heat still lingered in the air of the badly maintained hotel room they had stumbled in some hours earlier. Discarded articles of clothing littered the floor, the stillness of the air disturbed only by their audible gasps for air.

They laid still, cocooned in the sheets with their warm bodies tangled sensually together. Finally, when their afterglow was slowly beginning to diminish, other of them shifted, bringing a hand to grasp at the green hair, giving it a sharp tug.

"Oi. You're heavy. Get off."

A deep chuckle rumbled from the other one's chest, vibrating through their bodies. "You weren't complaining before."

"Well, I should've been. Get off me, asshole."

The other chuckled again and pushed himself up on his elbows. He yawned and rolled his tensed shoulders before flopping next to his blond-haired lover.

Sanji closed his eyes and shivered at the temporary loss of heat. He pushed his slim fingers through his dishevelled hair, wondering half-heartedly if he was recovered enough to find his cigarettes.

An arm came around his waist, and Sanji gladly decided he could wait, instead rolling into Zoro's embrace. He cuddled closer to the swordsman, matching the lazy, satiated smirk on his face. Zoro's eyes drooped half-mast as he shifted slightly so that Sanji was laying partly on top of him.

"Wow", Sanji breathed out, letting his eyes drift close as he snuggled into the crook of Zoro's neck. "We definitely don't do this often enough."

"Hmm. You're right", Zoro agreed, sliding his fingers down Sanji's spine, making the cook arch away, still over sensitized. "But the Merry isn't large enough to keep something like this as a secret." He leaned closer and kissed the sensitive skin below the cook's ear. "Unless you want to tell them, of course."

"Like hell", Sanji answered automatically, and shuddered as Zoro continued to nibble, kiss and suck his flushed skin, rolling over and away just to get pulled back. He had actually thought about it, more than once. But what he wanted to admit was something he wasn't sure Zoro would agree with. He wasn't sure if he agreed with it.

Sanji brought an arm up to play absently with Zoro's green hair. Even though they both never referred to these meetings without resentment, the cook had to admit he had started to look forward to landing on an inhabited island with the possibility of finding a hotel room with relatively little money.

And, as bitter as he was about it, it wasn't just for the sex. Not that there was something wrong with the sex – Sanji didn't remember ever having such an incredible bed partner – but there was more to it.

Apparently much more, judging from the way he instinctively snuggled closer to Zoro's chest, into that warmth so immense that a mere memory of it was enough to keep Sanji warm on long, cold nights. He'd grown to love that warmth, that feeling of complete safeness, and, reciprocally, it's creator.

Still, even as he was riding the natural high of orgasm, he loathed himself. He was always mocking the swordsman, picking every chance of messing with his green-haired head, and enjoying every second of it. But here he was, curled up and sealed in a ball of satisfaction and warmth, both emanating from the person he claimed to hate most in the world.

He had fought with himself countless times about telling Zoro how he felt. But uncertainty was too powerful and the swordsman wasn't being exactly helpful. He could act tender, even loving towards Sanji, only to insult or mock him the next second. It was impossible to tell whether his suggestions about telling the others were jokes or subtle hints of something else, perhaps similar feelings.

Sanji shook these thoughts from his head, biting his lip in secret. It was bad enough that he had fallen for Zoro, he didn't need the false hope of having those feelings responded. No, he'd better just stick to this kind of relationship. After all, this way he could at least pretend that there was something more than just lust between them and fall asleep in sweet denial.

Telling him how I feel wouldn't change anything to the better, Sanji reasoned. Worst case scenario: he'd push me away and never let me this close again. The thought alone made his stomach lurch and he shivered involuntarily.

Zoro, being pressed against the whole length of Sanji's back, noticed this. "Something wrong?"

Sanji shook his head again and sighed, when Zoro nuzzled his shoulder and neck. "You sure?"

"Yes, mom", Sanji groused, moving away, more annoyed with himself than Zoro. The arms around his waist tightened for a second before letting go, and air ruffled the blond tresses. "Fine. Be like that", Zoro huffed, and turned his head away.

Sanji bit his lip harder. This was his problem, he had no right taking it out on Zoro. "Sorry", he muttered quietly as his hand brushed against Zoro's shoulder. "I'm just… kinda uptight."

Zoro was quiet for a long time, making Sanji almost fidget with nervousness, before he sighed deeply and kissed a bite mark on the cook's shoulder. "That must mean I'm not very good company", he whispered humorously, hand stroking Sanji's side soothingly. "Growing bored of me?"

"It's not about you", Sanji lied quickly. He shivered again, shifting closer to the scarred chest behind him, and pulled Zoro's arms around him. "I just… No, forget it."

Zoro let out a sound of disbelief before pulling the blanker more securely over them both. "Whatever. Let's go to sleep already, we gotta get up early." With that he snuggled to the crook of Sanji's neck, closing his eyes contently. Sanji jabbed him with an elbow.

"Oi, marimo. Don't you dare use me as a pillow."

"Nngh. Shut up already."

"You've got a pillow right there! I'm not listening to you snoring right into my ear, so move it!"

Zoro grunted in annoyance, but shifted higher, resting his head against the only pillow and bowed his arm so that Sanji could use it as a pillow. The blonde shifted slightly, yanking the blanket further over them both with his free hand. Zoro's other hand slid down to Sanji's abdomen, earning another shudder of pleasure.

They didn't say anything for such a long time that Sanji was sure Zoro had fallen asleep like he usually did. Gritting his teeth, the cook let out a frustrated sigh. He was pathetic. He was just using Zoro, sucking up the feeling of security. I should tell him. He deserves to know. But…

"Zoro."

The name slipped from his lips before he even noticed it. It wasn't as he had intended to say it, he had just though about confessing so hard that his voice had taken a life of its own, almost challenging him to say it, get it over with.

To Sanji's surprise, the swordsman responded, grunted sleepily and tightened his arm tenderly around Sanji. "What is it?"

Say it now! a voice snapped at the back of his head. Now, here's you chance, use it!

But what if Zoro would push him away?

You don't know if he'd do that!

What if he'd lose this warmth?

Say it!

"I…" Sanji started, but stopped himself from finishing the sentence. No, he couldn't say it. Not now. He didn't want to get pushed away now, no matter what. You'll never reach anything if you don't take chances, the voice chastised, but fear of rejection was just too strong. I can't do it. I really am that pathetic. "It's nothing."

Zoro grunted again, sounding annoyed, but after a moment his hand wandered to stroke Sanji's cheek and he nuzzled the crown of Sanji's head. "Yeah right. Just go to sleep, stupid cook", he murmured against the golden hair.

Sanji let out a short sigh when the fingers traced his chin and down his neck to rub soothingly at his shoulder. Relaxing unwillingly, he leaned reflexively into the touch. He hated himself, but couldn't help but to love the warmth spreading inside him and the closeness of their bodies, the feeling of absolute safety he derived from that intimacy.

The silence stretched, and Sanji's body became comfortably heavy, his eyes closing on their own accord. Pathetic or not, nothing would get him to pull away now. This was what he wanted, after all, and as long as he could stay here, the reason for it all didn't really matter.

As long as I can keep him with me… As long as we can be together, even if it means only this, I'm fine with it. I don't really care what he thinks about me, as long as he stays with me.

These thoughts relaxed Sanji furthermore, until he was balancing between awakeness and sleep. Zoro's fingers moving through his hair was the only thing keeping him anchored into the waking world, but he didn't want to say anything, didn't want to tell the man to stop. The though his arm is going to be absolutely numb in the morning, wandered through Sanji's mind and he smirked, tilting his head back so that it touched Zoro's chest.

Zoro's fingers faltered, losing their track through the sandy blond tresses. Then he huffed, his breath warm against Sanji's scalp, but didn't bother to move otherwise. He resumed stroking the cook's hair with exceeding gentleness, which went unnoticed by the cook in question.

Sanji was almost gone, barely dangling on a single thin thread above the deep oblivion of sleep, when Zoro's fingers stopped, making that thread sway and Sanji right with it. He groaned quietly, trying to get even closer to the warm body behind him, and clutched the swordsman's arm around him more out of sleeper's reflex than aware decision.

If he could've seen the sleepy contentment in Zoro's eyes, if he could've seen the small smile that tilted his lips and softened his face, then he might have guessed what came next. But at that moment, sleep intoxicating his mind like a good wine, he barely realized what was happening when lips pressed against his hair and Zoro murmured four short words with almost no audibility.

"I love you, Sanji."

And just at that moment, Sanji's brain ceased to form coherent thoughts, the thread snapped and he fell backwards into the warm, welcoming bliss of sleep.

He didn't know whether he'd stop falling. And laying right there, on the bed of the messy room of a run-down hotel, in the arms of the man he claimed to hate, the man who loved him, Sanji didn't really care.

… I'm going to hell. To the section reserved for horrible writers.

Please review! It only takes a couple of minutes and makes us writers really happy!!

Thank you for reading!!
'Van the pervert