Warnings: Zoro being gross.

"you better let somebody love you, before it's too late"

He doesn't notice he's shaking until he's feet from the door and his fingers are inches from the doorbell.

"Tell him, boy." Zeff had sent him off with a clap on the back and a grin that both gave him courage and sent fear through his bones. "Stop runnin'."

When the door opens, Zoro's in an old pair of grey sweatpants that should've been thrown in the trash years ago. They're the same ones Sanji met him in, the ones with the mysterious washer stains accompanied with oil stains from his motorcycle.

All Sanji can think about is how Zoro probably hasn't showered for at least three days because he kind of smells like it, and hasn't shaved in double that time. There's a stain that looks suspiciously like barbecue on his shirt and those gaudy gold earrings of his are as ever-present as any other day.

Zoro grins at him, "I swear, I was just going to shower." He's lying; Sanji can see it in his eyes.

"Doubt it."

"Anyways." Zoro rolls his eyes and gestures for Sanji to come in, "So you're gracing me with your presence? I don't deserve it, really."

"Shut it, Marimo."

"Oh, someone's sassy today."

He shoves his finger up his nose as he ventures into the house and Sanji kind of regrets ever being born and ever thinking this moron was cute in the first place.

"I changed my mind. I'll just-" He turns to go.

"I'm sorry."

Sanji stops in his tracks, but doesn't look back, "What?"

"I haven't showered in probably like, two or three days and you look like you're ready for a date or something and I'm-"

"Picking out a mountain of nose gold, I know."

"I swear to god, I'm not, Luffy shoved something up there this morning and I still can't get it out. I think it was like, a raisin, or something?"

"Why did you let Luffy shove a raisin up your nose?"

Zoro doesn't answer that one, but he does remove his hands from his face, "Fine, fine, I swear I'll wash them and I'll even go over to the sink now, just wait a second."

Sanji wants to bury himself in the ground, except Zoro has green carpet and that isn't really close enough, "You should call Chopper."

"No way, dude, he'll yell at me for ever letting Luffy even think of shoving a raisin up my nose."

And suddenly, Sanji isn't scared anymore.

This is the guy who pees in bottles during road trips and out windows and writes his name in snow. This is the same moron that once spent an hour trying to stay in a perfect handstand just to prove Sanji wrong and this is the guy who had a nest of mold underneath his bed from all the old food he had shoved under there during college. This is the guy who broke a leg jumping off the roof because he couldn't back down from a bet. This is the guy who gets lost in his own house. Honestly, Sanji worries about him sometimes.

"I need to tell you something."

All traces of fear leave his body when he looks back at Zoro, who's concentrating on looking up his nose through the mirror, "I can see it, it's up there, just, I need a tweezers or something-"

"Zoro."

Zoro turns around to look at him and Sanji kind of thinks he looks sort of like a puppy. A really, really stupid puppy.

"What?"

"I like you."

"I know." He's back to concentrating intensely and Sanji wants to smack him upside the head.

"Did you even hear me?"

"You like me." A grin stretches across Zoro's face and Sanji briefly wonders if it hurts because it's that obnoxious.

"Be serious."

"I'm always serious."

Sanji rolls his eyes and shoves Zoro, "I mean really, I like you."

"I'm your boyfriend. You're kind of obligated to."

"You're a douchebag."

"I love you, too, though," Zoro mumbles, looking genuinely serious for once.

This time, it's Sanji who's grinning.