A/N: This is my first of many One Piece one shots. Please tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I'm sorry. I don't own One Piece. If I did, Sanji and Zoro would be doing that tango on the Thousand Sunny every day...and that would be their only real reason for being on the show....

NOTE! THIS IS NOT A YAOI FANFIC! THIS IS A LOOK ON THEIR RELATIONSHIP AS CAPTAIN AND FIRST MATE!!

Everyone needed a constant, be it a person, an item, or even a memory. You had to have it. First, Ace was Luffy's constant, and then Shanks. Later when Shanks went back out to sea, the hat that he had given him became his constant, because it was still there even when Ace left to become a pirate. Now, Zoro was his constant.

He was the first one to join his crew, and the only one that remained by his side time and time again. Nami left once to save her village, Chopper was traded to that Foxy guy during their Davey Back Game, Usopp left when they got into a fight over Merry, Robin left to save them and end her life, and Sanji disappeared for awhile and became Mr. Prince. The first time Brook agreed to become his Nakama, he then left to get back his shadow, and even Franky didn't return until forced to after saving Robin. But Zoro was always there, standing by his side, helping him in and out of trouble.

A lot of the time, the swordsmen reminded the captain of a Log Pose. From what Nami had explained about it, and from what he was able to understand, the mechanism would always lead you to the next island with patience and would never try and fool you. Zoro was like that. He would always remain by his captain's side, with unwavering loyalty. He never tried to lie to him or even leave him, and at times, would patiently put him on the right path it he ever strayed. Yes, Zoro was like a Log Pose, his own personal Luffy Log Pose.

Yes, there were times they didn't quite get along, and they weren't best friends, but their relationship was deeper then it seemed to be. He had Chopper, Usopp, and Brook to play around with, act like kids with, but Zoro was different.

He could play around with him, but the older man hardly played back. He thought he remembered Nami describing it like a kitten trying to bait a tom cat into playing, whatever that meant.

He was his first true nakama, and he would always be there with him, that much the pirate captain was sure of. That was the only was he could really describe how much Zoro meant to him, and when people asked how their relationship was, it was the only answer.

Nakama.

But, sometimes, even that didn't quite suit it. Because he had lots of nakama now, but only one Zoro, and though he loved them all the same, each love had a different flavor to it. It was very confusing.

He once asked Robin to describe this to him, and she helped a great deal. She said that everyone loves someone, and that the love two people share is different than the love those two people share with others. Trying to decipher that made the rubber boys head hurt, so she chuckled and put it into simpler words. Luffy loves meat, just as much as he loves cake, but the love for the two is different. Yes, he understood that quite well. Luffy also loves Nami, just like he loves Usopp and Chopper, but those three loves were each different from the other.

Like different flavors of ice cream. They each taste different, but they are all still ice cream. That Luffy understood.

And then, he remembered one night in his home town, having a fun time with Shanks and his crew. He saw that the pirate captain acted different with his first mate, and when he asked Yasopp, the sharp shooter explained that the relationship between a pirate captain and his first mate is a special bond of friendship that would never fade. Though some nakama may leave in time, between a captain and a first mate, it would always remain.

Yes, that was what Zoro was to him. He was his first mate, and he would never leave. He was his constant, and that alone was enough to make the boy who was aiming to become the pirate king smile for the rest of his life.

Done.

Please review and tell me what you think!