phosphenes (n.) zoro x sanji [roommates au]

chapter 21 - redamancy

s/n : nothing's gonna hurt you baby - cigarettes after sex ( slowed )

" what is simple in the moonlight, by the morning it never is. "

[ zoro ]

MOST DAYS ZORO would stay shut in his room, surrounded by his paints, his crayons, colours, and a canvas. He would fall asleep in the afternoon on his blue couch, underneath the warm noon sunlight.

Night and day didn't really matter to him—he was awake either way. The tanned boy slowly dragged himself out of couch, scratching at his hair, shuffling to get his keys for the mail.

The brown envelope with its colourful, faded, stamp never failed to show up. He swiftly crushed it in his hands and threw it into the bin.

The rest was all flyers that followed the envelope's journey to the trash. The space in the room felt too big for him alone—it allowed too much dangerous thoughts to enter.

Being lonely wouldn't kill him. But it hurt him more than he'd admit. It hurt him enough to make him groan in frustration, get a beer, and pick the envelope back up from the bin.

He smoothed the paper and stared at it while chugging down his beer. One stray piece of sunlight lit up the corner of his name, the
name only his family would use.

The beer tingled in his tongue, as the enormity of the room engulfed him like a towering wave. He tore the side, the fear that he would regret his decision of picking it back up—
climbing up his throat.

'It can't be worse.' He thought to himself as he pulled out the letter, his eyes immediately recognising the handwriting of the sender.

After reading the letter, he chuckled to himself, sounding as hollow as his ribs.

"I hope Sanji wouldn't mind me touching his beer stash tonight."

• • •

He didn't notice Sanji was back until he heard the gas stove start.

"What time is it?" He asked his roommate, his voice painfully hoarse.

"Ten thirty," Sanji called from the kitchen. "At night."

Zoro turned to his side, his eyes still shut as he burrowed deeper into the couch. Soon as he caught a whiff of the food that Sanji was cooking, he squinted open his eyes and shamelessly asked if his blond roommate cooked any for him.

The blond ignored him and asked, "What made you get so wasted?"

So the blond saw the empty beer cans littered all over the floor. Zoro shrugged.

"Just...felt like it."

Sanji sighed and didn't press for more. He killed the fire and pulled out the plates with a ceramic clatter, and laid them steaming onto the table.

He walked to Zoro and kicked him mercilessly in the gut, making the tanned boy groan in pain.

"Get up and eat, emo Marimo. I'm not gonna feed you."