You got designer shades
Just to hide your face and
You wear them around like
You're cooler than me.
And you never say hey,
Or remember my name.
Its probably cuz,
You think you're cooler than me.

Cooler Than Me—Mike Posner

~'I'm Not Most People'~

Grand Line High was known all over the world as the famous fighting school. It wasn't particularly a violent school; if you didn't want to fight, you weren't forced into it. But most of the students found themselves enjoying a good one whenever they could. Perhaps it was because this was the only school that would openly allow devil fruit users to attend; the school was filled with highly competitive, strong bodied students. Everyone had some kind of skill to show off; even if it wasn't an athletic ability. It is in this school, where our story begins.

Like many stories, this one starts with a boy and a girl, unnoticed by anyone who was not searching, the two stood atop the schools roof. A first year girl and a second year boy. The girl was facing away from the other, clutching the wire railing that surrounded the roof. All colour faded to white as she stood facing the sun. The boy strained his eyes to see her clearly, the sun burning his across his vision. He wondered how she could stand facing it like that, but appreciated the smooth silhouette she produced. After what seemed like a lifetime, she turned to face him slowly. A soft breeze ruffled her orange hair and she raised a hand to tuck a few strands behind her ear. She raised her eyes to meet the boys own, a small frown on her lips. The boy stepped a little closer to her before she raised her hand for him to stop. He obeyed at once and waited for her to speak.

"Sanji, I'm really sorry," she mumbled, just barely audible to the boy, Sanji. "I really... I can't go out with you. I don't want to be with you." Sanji's breath hitched in his throat. He took another trembling step towards her, his hands outstretched. The girl stepped back, keeping the distance between them.

"N-Nami, why... After all... Is there... someone else?" Sanji let the words spill from his mouth, unable to form any coherent thought. He was in love with Nami; he was sure of that. So if there was any reason he couldn't be with her, he desperately needed to know. But he couldn't really decide if he wanted to know or not, the thought of her being with someone else grated at his heart. Nami took another nervous step back, her back leaning against the metal fence. She turned her eyes to the floor and fought the sprinkle of pink that graced her cheeks. Sanji took a step closer to get a better view of her face. She pursed up her lips and furrowed her brows.

"There's..." she chose her words carefully, closing her eyes and leaning her head against the railing. "There's someone I like." Sanji stumbled backwards. Nami raised a hand to hide her blushing face. She leant forward to look up at Sanji seriously. "He doesn't know I exist yet, but... I want to be with him no matter what! I'll... I'll make him notice me. I'll do anything!" Sanji stared at the girl before him. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, but was sure hers was doing the same thing. He felt terrible. He'd practically forced the poor girl into confessing her love for another man to him. He wondered if this was her first love, which made him feel even worse. You were only supposed to talk about such things with your best friend or your lover and here he was, making her blush before him, spilling her heart out. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to control his breathing. A soft sob left the girls lips and he opened his eyes immediately to see a stream of tears pouring down her cheeks. He stifled his own cry before rushing to hug his underclassman. She stiffened, but eventually leant into the hug, freely allowing her tears to dampen Sanji's shirt. For a while Sanji just held her before softly pushing her back to look her in the eyes, a look of determination on his face.

"I'll help you, Nami," he stated. Nami stared at him, a confused expression on her face. He pulled her into another hug, resting his nose in her hair, secretly sinking into the smell. "I'll help you make him notice you. It won't take much... You're so beautiful... It'll be okay." The girl contemplated the boys words before nodding her head slowly, finally fully returning his tight embrace.

"Thank you, Sanji-kun..." They stayed as they were for a little while, the sounds of distant birds and Nami's soft sobbing the only background sounds. Sanji hesitated, a question hanging on his lips.

"W-Who is it?" Nami stiffened and pulled away. Sanji scratched the back of his head, looking into the distance. "Uh... I need to know who it is, if I'm going to help you..." Nami glanced around nervously, not resting her vision on anything for more than a moment. Finally she conceded and drew in a deep breath.

"His name's Roronoa Zoro."

+x+x+x+x+

Usopp sighed deeply. He'd been on the phone listening to Sanji whine in his ear for over an hour. Sanji was his best friend, but too much of his moaning could drive anyone crazy.

"Well," started Usopp when Sanji was forced to stop talking for air. "If Nami's into this Zoro guy, there's not much else you can do about it." Sanji paused on the other end of the phone. Usopp rose from his living room sofa and paced the room. "But, why the heck did you agree to help her, wasn't that really dumb?" He stretched his arms above his head, waiting for Sanji to answer.

"...I just want to help her... Make her happy." Usopp sighed and stretched across his sofa.

"Yeah, but at the cost of your sanity?" Sanji snorted on the other end of the phone.

"It's fine, I'll be fine." Another pause followed and Usopp picked up his slingshot, stretching it with his free hand. "So do you know anything about this Roronoa guy?" Usopp nodded his head before quickly remembering Sanji couldn't see him.

"Yeah, just some trivial stuff." He dropped his slingshot to the floor and pulled a small notepad from the front pocket of his dungarees, flipping it open. "His best friend is that Monkey D. Luffy guy, y'know? The one with the straw hat?" Sanji hummed on the other side of the phone.

"Isn't that guy really nice? Is Roronoa nice too?"

"Actually, I hear he's pretty much an asshole." Sanji's brows furrowed.

"That can't be right, why would Nami like an asshole?" Usopp shrugged, stifling the laughter he felt creeping up his throat at the weird sounding question.

"They say that girls tend to like bad boys or something like that, don't they?" Usopp snickered at the annoyed huff his friend let out. He held his mobile to his ear with his shoulder and proceeded to inspect his nails, lifting his notepad with his free hand. "Looks like she met him through Luffy. She's been spotted hanging around with him allot lately."

"She's been with Roronoa allot too?"

"Nope, seems like Zoro only likes to hang out with Luffy and two other guys. Uh... Johnny and Yosaku. They're in the kendo club with him." Sanji hummed again.

"Then she's been admiring him from afar..." Usopp hummed back in response, yawning loudly.

"I guess it's something like that. Apparently she's been hanging around the Kendo grounds allot. She's probably been trying to get his attention or something."

"...Okay, thanks for that, Usopp. I'll see you tomorrow at school, ok?"

"Ah, wait! There's something-" click! "Else..." Usopp held his phone in front of him, an annoyed look on his face. "He makes me get all that information and then doesn't listen to the most important part... Oh well." Usopp stood up and stretched, letting out a long yawn before heading for his bed. "He'll figure it out tomorrow, probably."

+x+x+x+x+

Sanji hurried into the school. He'd usually hang around the gate, waiting for Nami to appear so he could escort her in, but he couldn't bring himself to face her just yet. He was very committed to helping Nami with her love life, and was completely willing to help her with anything she wanted to make her happy, but he was still a little crushed. He was completely in love with the girl and had his feelings shot down before he could even express them. He checked his watch and groaned when he realised he was half an hour early for class. He shrugged his shoulders and went to his classroom. If he was going to have to wait, he'd might as well get comfy. Sliding open the door, he was met by an appreciated empty class room. That is until he scanned the back of the room, finding a muscular boy sitting in the seat behind his. He recognised him as his class mate, but failed to even say hello to the man, moving to sit in his usual seat. Silence followed, Sanji leaning his head in his arms on the desk in front of him, completely intending to ignore the other boy and take a nice long nap.

"... Aren't you here a bit too early?" Sanji's eyes flickered open. He turned his head a little to look at the man behind him. His sight trailed up to look at the tuft of green hair sprouting from the man's head. He suppressed his laughter, silently wondering why he'd never noticed a guy with such ridiculous hair sitting behind him all this time. Well, it was only the beginning of the year, and he'd changed his usual classroom, so it was completely understandable not to recognise the boy sitting behind him. He'd probably been in the other classes before. Sanji processed the man's question and turned away.

"I usually don't come in this early, but here I am." He rested his head in his hand and listened to the silence surrounding them. "Anyway, you're one to talk, moss head." He heard an angry grunt behind him and turned just in time to see the flash of a pout before it completely disappeared and the boy regained his stoic gaze.

"I usually get lost, but I managed to get here early today." Sanji turned to face the front again and raised an eyebrow. So he was a new kid? That'd explain why he'd never noticed him before. Although, to be completely honest, Sanji always struggled to remember any of the male body, his interest lying only with woman. The silence returned, both boys struggling to continue the conversation. Sanji's stomach rumbled when he'd remembered he'd forgotten breakfast and he quickly pulled a lunchbox from his backpack. The boy behind him stared at him, smelling the delicious aroma of Sanji's bento. His stomach growled loudly and he cursed to himself from embarrassment. Sanji turned his head to study the other man before letting out a bark of laughter. He turned his seat around to face the other boy. The boy jerked his body back slightly, staring at Sanji with sceptical eyes. Sanji raised an eyebrow and placed his lunchbox on the other boys table, holding up a pair of chopsticks.

"What's with you?"

"W-What's with me?" Asked the boy, incredulously. "What's with you?" He gestured to the large box of bento. Sanji shrugged his shoulders, forcing his spare set of chopsticks into the other boy's hand.

"You're hungry, right? I heard your stomach rumble." Sanji lifted a foot to pat the other boy's stomach under his desk, who jerked back in response.

"I don't... Aren't you hungry too? I can't eat your food, and I don't have any money or anything..." he grumbled. Sanji shook his head and grinned. He liked honest guys like that.

"Its fine, I always make too much just for myself. Let's call it charity." The boy huffed and shot Sanji an annoyed look.

"I don't need your charity, cook!" Despite his words, he snapped the chopsticks apart and went about shovelling food into his mouth. Sanji grinned again and went about eating his own share. A peaceful silence passed between the two as they ate, neither noticing as the class began to fill up, Sanji was too busy thinking about his lovely Nami and her troubles to realise when the teacher was about to enter, so was silently thankful when his new companion patted his shoulder.

"Oi, Sanji, teachers about to come in." Sanji nodded and packed away his lunchbox. He thought it a little embarrassing when he realised he didn't even know the other man's name, but he knew his. He couldn't just ask what it was, that'd be too rude. So he silently resolved to listen carefully when the class register was being called. He froze when the man behind him raised his voice to answer to the name Roronoa Zoro. He silently cursed Usopp for having not told him such an important fact.

+x+x+x+x+

Sanji was forced out of his thoughts when he heard the harsh clang of the school bell signalling the end of class. He jumped again when he heard Zoro, Nami's Zoro, grunt and call out his name. He quickly packed his things together and went to rush out of the room before a large hand clamped on his shoulder, spinning him around. The room fell silent. Roronoa Zoro never spoke to anyone in class, so he must have had a problem with the blonde prince. Knowing the blondes reputation, he'd probably stolen his girl. Not that Zoro had ever actually been seen with a girl, but it could still happen. Zoro ignored the other classmates, focussing only on Sanji. But he was completely caught off guard when faced with a blushing boy with slightly teary eyes. He stared at him for a moment, not sure what to do. He wondered if he'd upset him in some way, tracing his memory for anything he might have done wrong. He wondered if he'd gripped his shoulder too tight and dropped his hand at once. Sanji took the opportunity to dash out the door. Zoro could only stare at the space the blonde had until recently occupied. He raised a hand to cup his mouth, fighting his own blush. What the hell was wrong with that guy? What the hell was wrong with himself...?

+x+x+x+x+x+

"USOOOOOOOOPP!"

Usopp cowered in the hallway, recognising the angry voice of his friend instantly. He hid behind a group of girls in an attempt to avoid the man. Such an act proved fruitless when the man in question skidded on his heels to stop in front of the girls, showering them with compliments. Usopp ducked, earning a scream from one of the girls who thought he was trying to get a look up their skirts. Sanji ducked to protect them out of instinct, letting out a growl when Usopp sheepishly waved up at him from the ground. The air seemed to distort around the blonde and an annoyed smile spread across his lips. The girls scurried away when the blonde raised his leg above Usopp's head.

"No, wait, Sanji," cried Usopp, dropping to his knees before the blonde. "I've got a terrible disease! The If-You-Kick-Me-I'll-Instantly-Die disease!" Sanji cracked his neck above him.

"That sounds just perfect!" All that could be heard in the now rapidly clearing hallway were Usopp's screams and the loud laughter of the only person brave enough to hang around and watch the show. Usopp thought his heart would stop when he watched, in what felt to him like slow motion, a foot smash into the wall just beside his head creating a deep imprint in it. Usopp foamed at the mouth and dropped back to lie on the floor. Sanji knelt forward and lifted the boy by the collar of his shirt, obscenely bending Usopp's nose so he could get his face a little closer. More loud laughter erupted behind him, which he promptly ignored.

"Whatever I did I'm really sorry!"

"The most important fact and you didn't tell me?" Usopp instantly understood the situation and raised his finger to poke the blondes head in defiance, his attitude switching quickly when he realised he wasn't in the wrong at all.

"I tried to tell you about that, but you hung up on me!" The watching boy nodded appreciatively at Usopp's sudden bravery.

"Don't you think you should have called me back about something like that? Or even a text at the very least!" He let go of the boy's collar, dropping Usopp limply to the ground before he shoot to his feet and crossed his arms in anger. He turned his head away from his best friend and proceeded to pout. "Seriously... Zoro was in my class all along?"

"Na? You know Zoro?" The two turned their heads to stare down at a boy crouched beside them. Usopp studied the straw hat that hung loosely from his neck, piecing the puzzle together.

"Hey, aren't you that Straw hat Luffy guy?" The boy nodded and gave a bright grin.

"That's me. You know Zoro?" Sanji's face paled a little and he turned his head, scratching at the back of his neck.

"Something like that," grinned Usopp, nervously. "That guy's in his class." Luffy nodded again and gave the two a once over. He rested his sight on Sanji, studying him carefully.

"So you're Sanji?" Sanji looked up at Luffy who had clambered on top of him, wrapping his legs around the cook's waist to make a more thorough inspection. He furrowed his brows. Luffy was infamous around the school for being a free spirit and choosing his friends very carefully. But why did he know Sanji? He was only really infamous around the girls. Luffy caught the sceptical look and tried to think of his excuses. "You're in the kickboxing club, right? But you practice Savate, right? And you do cooking too?" Sanji rested his eyes on Luffy for a moment before nodding his head slowly. So Luffy knew him from his club?

"Yeah, that's me..." Usopp looked expectantly at Luffy, crossing his arms and raising his nose in the air.

"And I'll bet you know the great Captain Usopp, right?" Luffy looked at him and blinked.

"Who's that? He sounds cool!" Usopp's jaw hit the ground and Sanji suppressed a laugh.

"H-How do you know that idiot and not me?" He raised a shaky finger to point at Sanji, who tossed his hair, a superior smirk gracing his lips.

"Ha? Who are you? I wanna meet that Usopp guy too." Sanji laughed through his nose and clapped a heavy hand on Usopp's shoulder, said boy having long lost consciousness.

"This guy here is Usopp." Luffy stared at Usopp once again before nodding his head.

"Well... You can't be captain, but you can be my nakama!"

"Nakama?" Sanji raised a sceptical eyebrow.

"Nn. I'll be friends with pretty much anybody, but only special people can be nakama." Both Sanji and Usopp blushed slightly at the comment. Luffy had a wonderfully earnest way about him that would overly exaggerate any emotion he was making you feel. Sanji scratched his nose lightly and looked up to the ceiling. Luffy grinned again and asked the two to join him for lunch. Sanji's thought's touched lightly on Nami. He usually waited for her every lunch, where she'd meet him at his classroom. He let out a dry laugh when he realised she'd probably only been doing it to catch glimpses of Zoro. None of that really mattered anymore as last night she'd told him to stop waiting because she wouldn't be calling on him anymore. She'd claimed it'd be too painful to see Zoro everyday like that. At the time Sanji thought that a little confusing, completely oblivious that the man had been in his class the entire time. Sitting behind him no less! He looked down at Luffy and finally nodded his head reluctantly, casting one last glance in the direction of his classroom before allowing Luffy to pull him along by his wrist.

+x+x+x+x+

"Ah? I can seriously eat this?" Luffy stared at the handmade lunch box Sanji had dropped in his lap.

"Yeah, I usually make a few." He handed another to Usopp and went about distributing chopsticks.

"He makes them for the girls, but only Nami ever eats them," explained Usopp. He noticed Sanji flinching at Nami's name, but directed his attention to his own food. No matter how painful it would be, he couldn't just stop mentioning the red headed girl. Not only was it hard to do when she was his friend too, but it wouldn't be good for Sanji to just bottle it all up and pretend she didn't exist. Luffy nodded his head thoughtfully.

"Oh, right, I get it now." He snapped his chopsticks apart and went about shovelling food into his mouth. He let out a loud satisfied burp when there was nothing left in his box and chuckled. "Man~! Zoro would be so pissed if he knew I was eating your bento right now!" Sanji glanced at Luffy with a questioning face. Luffy coughed and looked away, whistling. "Ah, you know, because you're well known about being the best cook in school and stuff." Sanji flashed him a confused expression before relenting and finally looking away, mulling over the suspicious behaviour.

"Oi, Luffy," called Usopp, looking out to the distance. "You usually eat with Zoro?"

"Nn," nodded Luffy. "Nami too most of the time."

"Ah, I see." Usopp turned his head to Luffy and pointed over his shoulder with his thumb. "So that's why they're both heading over here then?" Sanji froze, his face turning red. He breathed in deeply, trying to calm his fast beating heart. Usopp gave him a comforting smile. He nodded in reply. He knew there was no way around this, eventually he'd have to face Nami. And, thanks to last night, Zoro too. He had promised to help Nami and that was exactly what he was going to do. With that in mind, he stretched his mouth into a wide smile and watched the two approach. Sanji inwardly grimaced when he noticed Nami's arm wrapped daintily around Zoro's. But what annoyed him even more was the annoyed face Zoro was pulling every time he looked at said arm. He stretched his mouth even more as they came over. He couldn't hide the popping vein from Luffy, however, who looked at his face closely, studying it, humming thoughtfully. Zoro stopped in his tracks when he saw Sanji and Usopp. He looked at the floor and made his way up the hill to sit next to Luffy. Nami followed, looking a little nervously before sitting in the grass beside Zoro.

"You made it before lunch ended today!" Luffy smiled and patted Zoro's back.

"I had to show him the way though," smiled Nami. "I even had to hold his arm so he wouldn't wonder off when I wasn't looking!" She let out a small laugh and turned her head away to hide her blushing features. Zoro leant back and scratched at his neck, grumbling. He turned his head and studied the box Luffy held in his hands. Luffy grinned and held it up before him.

"I got to eat some of Sanji's cooking! Cool, hu?" Zoro looked away, a little nervously.

"I... Already ate some of his food today." Luffy's head darted from one side to the other looking at both Zoro and Sanji.

"Ah? You did? When? Why didn't I know about it?" Sanji turned to look down at Luffy before Zoro continued.

"We met before school... He shared some with me." Luffy nodded and studied Zoro's face again carefully.

"Like, outside of school? I didn't know you were friends yet, did you—mph!" Zoro clamped a hand over Luffy's mouth and proceeded to explain the situation. Luffy nodded and allowed himself to lie back in the grass, his hat covering his face. Sanji glanced over at Zoro and Nami. It pained his heart to admit it, but they really did look good together. Though he'd never admit it out loud, Zoro was pretty good looking. It went without saying that Nami was incredibly beautiful, so when the two were together, one's eyes were attacked from all fronts. He blushed again and turned his head away from them. He secretly wondered if he'd look as good with Nami. He doubted it. No one could look as good as those two. He became lost in his thoughts, not noticing, or perhaps ignoring, the conversation around him. It was only when a large hand hesitantly clasped his shoulder did he snap back into reality to face Zoro himself. The man seemed to hesitate before motioning to the school with his thumb.

"Lunch is over, Curly-Sue." Sanji couldn't hide the scowl that spread across his face. How he hated this man! He stared at him for a second, studying his face a little more carefully. The other boy just stared back at him, an unreadable look on his face.

"Sanji-Kun, are you ok?" Nami peaked behind Zoro's shoulder. "Luffy and Usopp already went ahead; it's time for class now." Sanji turned his head to smile at Nami, his vision resting on Zoro for only a short moment. He stood up, collecting his things and walking behind the two; just slow enough for them to keep a short lead on him. He slowed down when Zoro stopped in his tracks, waiting for the blonde to catch up. They each looked at each other in annoyance for different reasons. Nami gave Sanji a short glance, her lips pursed. Sanji got the idea and briskly walked past the two. If Nami wanted to be alone with the brute then of course he'd grant her wish. Even if it was painful for him. Of course it wasn't that big a deal. They'd only be walking down the hallways a little, it wasn't like they were actually together yet. Sanji still had hope that Nami would see what an idiot Zoro really was and come running back into his arms. This plan was ruined, however, when Sanji heard the tell tale signs of heavy boots stomping towards him.

"Oi, what's with you?" Zoro jumped in front of Sanji, forcing him to stop walking. Sanji stared at the boy as if he were stupid causing him to shift nervously on his feet. Sanji let out a deep growl.

"Where's Nami-San?" Zoro's eyebrows furrowed.

"How the hell am I supposed to know? She's probably gone to class." Sanji turned his head to scan the hallway Zoro had appeared from. When he was satisfied Nami wasn't trying to find them, he brushed past the other boy, making his way to his classroom. A strong hand clamped around his arm, stopping his movement.

"Oi," called the swordsman. "Why are you acting like this?" Sanji just barely turned his head in response.

"I always act like this." The low, almost violent tone of his voice sent a warning shiver down Zoro's spine. He could feel the malice laced in his voice and felt his blood pumping a little faster. He was aching for a fight, but suppressed the feeling, choosing to stare holes into the back of the blondes head instead.

"You weren't acting like this this morning." Sanji stilled for a moment before breathing in deeply and turning to face the other man face on. Zoro took note of the slight blush on his face just barely hidden by an angry scowl.

"Nami-San," stated Sanji, simply. Zoro stared at the boy like he was a hard puzzle Zoro was trying to solve. He drew in another deep breath and continued. "How do you feel about Nami-San?" The question hung in the air like a bad smell. Zoro had visibly stiffened, his face scrunching up in distaste.

"Is that any of your business?" He rested his arm against the wall behind Sanji, leaning into his face so the other boy felt incredibly uncomfortable. "Do you like Nami?" Sanji's face turned beet red, his head turning away from Zoro's to face the ground from embarrassment. Zoro lingered by the blonde for a moment before straightening his back and clicking his tongue. "So you're acting like this out of jealousy? How pathetic." With that the boy turned on his heels and strolled down the corridor to enter their classroom. Sanji raised a hand to cover his mouth.

The way Zoro was talking... Does that mean he likes Nami in return? Sanji leant against the wall for a while trying to steady the pounding in his chest. So it was really all over for him? He leant his head back against the wall and closed his eyes, drawing in deep breaths. He opened his eyes again in resolve, turning to stride confidently into his classroom. He ignored the shouts from his angry teacher and stared at the green haired boy sitting at the back of the class. He mumbled out apologies and took his seat, fully intending to ignore Zoro for the rest of the day. He chanced a glance at the other boy, aiming to give him an angry scowl to show him he didn't care what he thought, when he was completely taken aback. Zoro was grinning. He whipped his head to the front quickly, hiding his blush. What the hell was that? Zoro had been grinning at him. Sanji couldn't put his finger on it exactly, but the man had looked almost kind. Coupled with the fact it had been directed at him, Sanji had to wonder what this Roronoa guy was really like. Hadn't he heard he was an asshole? But that didn't fit the look he'd just given him before. Perhaps he'd given his Nami that look too? That would certainly explain allot, especially how his beautiful swan had fallen for the moron in the first place. He jolted out of his thoughts when he felt a foot nudge his back. He turned around to look incredulously at the boy behind who had his chin resting in his hand and was nonchalantly looking in the other direction. Sanji narrowed his eyes before turning again to face the front. A minute passed before Sanji felt another foot tapping his back. He let out an angry growl and this time turned to see Zoro grinning at him cheekily. Sanji was a little shocked at the boy's new reaction and turned back quickly. His face was a bright red and his heart beat a little faster. He had to think on why he was blushing, but quickly decided it was from anger. How dare the boy kick him! Even if his face only suggested he wanted to play with him, it was still annoying... right? He broke from his thoughts when he saw a folded piece of paper land on his desk. He stared at it for a while with a look on his face that would suggest the note had just spoken to him. He tentatively stretched his hand forward to touch the paper, dragging it slowly towards himself. He unfolded it carefully as if a monster would jump out at him from the folds if he wasn't careful enough.

[You pissed off at me?] Sanji read over the words a few times before turning his head to stare at the boy behind him. He was resting his chin on his hand again, but this time his serious eyes were resting on Sanji. He held the gaze for a moment before turning back around in his seat to stare at the paper again. He re-read the message before lifting his pencil and scribbling down on the paper, tossing it behind him when he was done. Zoro fiddled with the paper a little nervously before reading the reply.

[Not particularly, but that doesn't mean I like you. I hear you're an asshole.] Sanji was straining his ears, so was happily satisfied when he heard Zoro laugh softly from his nose. When he saw the blur of white sliding past his cheek to delicately land on his desk, he picked up the paper with a bit more haste than the last time to read the scruffy handwriting.

[That's probably right.] Sanji let out a snort.

[Most people aren't usually happy about that kind of thing.]

[I'm not most people.] Sanji grunted at the last line. He didn't know how he knew it, but he felt that line was very Zoro. He was getting agitated at the way it didn't bother him when Zoro had rested a foot against his back and how it seemed they'd easily clicked despite their dispute over his lovely Nami. Even more of a mystery was why he'd completely forgotten about the girl until then. He found it completely frustrating that this guy he'd known for five minutes had thrown him so much off his game and broken his walls so easily. This was why he raised a hand for his teacher's attention.

"Sir, Zoro's trying to pass notes to me! It's distracting me!"

"What?" Sanji laughed good naturedly when he saw the incredulous look Zoro was shooting him. Maybe this Zoro guy wasn't so bad?

+x+x+x+x+

When the bell sounded for the final time that day, Sanji heaved out a steady sigh and collected his things. He felt a little frustrated that the guy he wanted so desperately to hate turned out to be not all that bad. And the worst part? He was exactly Sanji's type of person, someone he could easily see himself becoming friends with. He drew his weary eyes to look at the hand Zoro had clapped around his shoulder.

"Oi, wanna walk home together, question?" Sanji furrowed his curly brows at the nickname, but turned to face the other boy, scratching the back of his neck thoughtfully.

"Depends on where you live."

"Only a couple blocks away, opposite the park." Sanji's eye widened just a little.

"Me too..." Zoro let out a broad smile and nodded his head, almost knowingly. Sanji watched him with suspicion as he gathered his things. Zoro hadn't even raised an eyebrow knowing that they lived so close together. Although he supposed it wouldn't be that surprising to think he lived around the area, he'd probably come to this school for the small commute. They walked to the shoe lockers in relative silence, Sanji still eyeing Zoro with suspicion. He changed his shoes hastily, trying to ignore the other boy.

"Eh?" Sanji looked up upon hearing the small uttering from Zoro, who was looking at a small letter as if he were trying to read the scrawling of another language. Sanji rose to his feet to peer over his shoulder. His face reddened when he noticed the feminine writing and small drawn hearts littering the piece of paper. It was a love note.

"S-Sorry! I shouldn't have looked!" Sanji turned abruptly, trying to keep his eyes from reading the name signed at the bottom. Zoro looked at the blonde and then at the letter, stuffing it into his pocket with a small, half hearted growl.

"Don't worry about it, I get 'em every once in a while." Sanji peered over his shoulder. So he got them so often he could just stuff them into his pocket without a second thought? Jealousy struck Sanji at once. What he wouldn't give to be able to stuff love notes away without thinking about it, but he got so few, so far apart, that he held every single one with high regard, reading them on a regular basis. So that meant Zoro was popular amongst the girls then. That wasn't unthinkable, Sanji thought, when even Nami had developed a soft spot for him. As the two left the school to lazily walk out the gates, Sanji had to drift his eyes over Zoro. Actually, if one were to look closely, really fucking closely, added Sanji's mind, Zoro wasn't actually all that bad looking. He guessed. He wasn't entirely sure what to look for when deciding whether or not a man was good looking. He was a fully committed ladies man, after all. Zoro could feel Sanji's gaze on him, and had been feeling it since he'd found that annoying note. He turned his head to catch the blonde staring at him, who promptly let out a yelp and turned his red face to stare straight on.

"Sorry, didn't mean too, uh..." Fuck, stare. "A-Are you gunna read that letter?" Zoro stared a second more before sniffing and fishing the note from his pocket.

"I guess. I'll look at it when I get home." He held it towards Sanji. "Why, you wanna read it?" Sanji looked at him, a shocked expression on his face.

"Of course not! That's a private letter!" He pushed Zoro's outstretched hand away and quickened his pace just a little in an angry stomp, offended by the simple idea Zoro had offered to let Sanji read the note. Even if he was that tiny, minute, teensy weensy little bit curious about who would find the moron attractive enough to confess their love to him. He shook his head abruptly at the thought. "What if you wrote a love letter to someone and I read it."

"If... you read it?"

"Yeah, you'd be really pissed off, right? Think how embarrassing that would be." Zoro let out a snort.

"Yeah, guess you're right." Zoro stopped in his tracks, his hands on a small metal gate. "This is my stop." Sanji looked over to regard the apartment building with interest.

"Ah? You live right across the park from me." Sanji turned to point to an old fashioned looking building decorated like a fish. "It's a restaurant, but I live above it." Zoro nodded his head, leaning back on the gate.

"I'll probably visit some time. Food I usually eats' shit anyway." Sanji grinned at the roundabout compliment before nodding his head and turning to leave.

"See you at school tomorrow," called the blonde, waving as he went to hop over the small park fence. Zoro leant against the gate to his apartment building, watching the blonde as his figure got smaller to finally disappear into the previously mentioned restaurant. He never thought he'd ever walk home with Sanji, he always assumed the man thought of himself as being a little bit higher than Zoro. Too cool to even remember his name, let alone glance at him like he had done that same day. He let out a deep sigh and turned to go into his own room. He needed a shower.

+x+x+x+x+

The next day found Sanji arriving at school half an hour early. He cursed himself for being so stupid, but couldn't help the small sense of excitement he felt creeping around his stomach. He'd packed too much food that day by far and needed to get rid of it somehow, and that was the reason he was secretly hoping the shitty swordsman would be already in class. He felt his own mouth widen into an enthusiastic grin when his eyes rested on the dozing moss head. He raised his foot to dip into the back of his skull earning a satisfyingly muffled grunt.

"What the hell do you want, cook?" Sanji remained silent as he pulled out his box of food. He'd never admit it, but it was a specially-for-Zoro made lunch. He'd enjoyed how Zoro had appreciated his food before, and was always happy to feed someone who would be happy about it. Zoro stared at the box for a moment, his mouth watering with the thought of a delicious breakfast. Sanji lent back in his chair, unable to help the wide grin that pulled his mouth.

"You gunna eat that or are you just going to stare at it?" Zoro needed no more invitation and quickly went about gulping down the delicious food. He couldn't help but notice Sanji leaning back in his chair, a smirk on his face and his chin resting on the back of his fingers.

"Bwap buu wookin ab?" When faced with the confused look on Sanji's face, Zoro hastily swallowed and tried asking again. "What you looking at?" Sanji smiled again and shook his head, moving to open his own lunch.

"Nothin'."

Yeah, he could see himself becoming attached to this man.

Even if he was a complete idiot with ridiculous hair.