cranky cook - sanji x you
BASICALLY sanji is sleep deprived and gets cranky and a lil bit jealous. brooke makes a guest appearance
I bolted upright in my bed, letting out heavy pants as I felt chills go down my body. My entire figure was shaking, but I couldn’t help it. These dreams were always too real, too lifelike. I glanced around the room, shared with Robin and Nami, to make sure I hadn’t woken them up. As soon as I confirmed they were asleep, I tiptoed out of my bed, curling my arms around myself, to protect me from the cold, and from any nightmarish zombies that could spring out at any moment. Despite knowing they weren’t real, I couldn’t shake the terrifying feeling that coursed through me. I quickly made my way down the hall, hoping my lover, Sanji, was occupying the kitchen, and that this journey wasn't for nothing.
I reached my destination perhaps a bit too quickly than I should’ve, but the nightmarish zombies had only spurred me on. I gently opened the door, afraid to awaken him should he be sleeping at the table. The view of the kitchen spread out before me. He certainly was at the table, but no more asleep than I was. His legs were spread out as he slouched over the piece of wood, one hand holding a cigarette just centimeters from his mouth.
He immediately perked up when he saw me, eyes scanning my body to take in my disheveled state. It didn’t take him long to put the pieces together. After all, while this may have been the first time I sought his presence after a nightmare, he knew I had been dealing with them ever since we left the zombie island.
His face morphed into concern, but I beat him to his words. “Can you… Hold me?” I asked in a hoarse whisper, my wavering voice giving away how shaken I was. Despite asking the question, I was already shuffling towards him.
“Mellorine, do you even need to ask?” He quickly extinguished his cigarette and turned his chair, opening his arms for me.
I silently straddled myself in his lap, molding my chest against his. I hugged him tightly, burying my face against his neck. My breaths fluttered across his neck, bouncing back to warm my face. I answered sleepily and somewhat incoherently, “Yeah, because you’re a zombie…”
His hands gently found their way under my shirt, skimming every inch of my bare waist. His warm fingers caressed my hips, nearly sending a chill through me, before settling his arms comfortably around me, and holding me tight. As he eased into my hold, I could practically see the fear melting off of me, being replaced by something much more warm. I could feel him burning with questions, especially since he wasn’t normally this quiet when comforting me. But I couldn't be more thankful as his lack of conversation allowed me to slowly fall asleep. My lips twitched against his neck, despite the fear I had felt only moments ago. How observant this man was.
“I should really hope not…” He murmured. I heard the click of his lighter flaming another cigarette, just moments before succumbing to sleep.
And so the cycle began. I awoke, terrified out of my skin. I found Sanji’s presence. I slept through the night.
After about 4 consecutive days of this, the effects of my endeavors were beginning to make themselves known. Specifically through the darkened, sleep-deprived eyes of Sanji. Every night, this man had ensured he stayed awake until I found him. And even then, would only allow himself to sleep in brief increments, checking on me occasionally. Despite that, I had felt increasingly guilty that I only realized this after Franky had said something at breakfast this morning, and that I hadn’t figured it out myself.
We had all made our way to the kitchen per usual. Breakfast was an interesting meal, as there wasn’t a set time due to everyone’s sleep schedules. However, due to my nightmares, I had become increasingly clingy towards Sanji, and would hardly leave his side. This meant I sat through every serving of breakfast the cook would serve for the crew.
About an hour after we had woken up, Franky and Robin made their way to the kitchen, sitting at their respective seats at the table.
“Morning guys,” I yawned.
Robin gave a small smile, “Morning.”
Franky gave a silent large wave as he ran a hand down his tired face.
Sanji whisked by, carrying two dishes that he dramatically placed before them. “For the beautiful lady, and the robot.”
“Ahh,” Franky began, practically salivating at the food, “Looking SUPER as always!” Whatever tiredness there was before, seemed to have been instantly dispelled at the sight of food.
Sanji found his way back to my side at the bar. We faced the other crew members at the table and I cracked a smile at Franky’s enthusiasm over food.
Sanji leaned against the bar, “The captain’s favorite is on the menu today,” he replied.
Robin took a bite, “Shouldn’t you call him before the food’s gone then?” she hummed.
“That idiot’s always stealing food. It’s on him if he’s late,” replied the blonde with a yawn.
“Would you save the food if I was the late one?” I asked teasingly, simply wanting a flirty response in that moment.
Before Sanji could reply, however, the blue-haired man beat him too it. “As if you would be late. You’re practically machine-welded to the side of that man.”
“Well, he’s like my personal therapist. So…” I trailed off.
Franky slurped his food, “Is he your therapist at night too?” He said this so matter-of-factly that I almost didn't pick up on the underlying message he sent.
Sanji crossed his legs, his head now resting on his shoulder with his eyes closed. Had he not spoken I would've thought he was asleep. “She has nightmares, cyborg. Get off her case.”
I bit my lip, why did both of them sound almost irritated right now?
Franky raised an eyebrow at him, “Well in that case maybe she gets a pass.”
“Is there something going on?” I spoke up.
The robot-man looked up at me from eating another spoonful. “You’re running him dry. Don’t you see how exhausted that man is?”
Sanji sat upright, repositioning himself in his seat as if he had just woken up. He let out a yawn, “Don’t listen to him, Mellorine. Nothing you’re doing is wrong.”
I glanced at the blonde. As if my eyes had finally been opened, I took in just how exhausted his man looked. The overly-dark circles under his eyes, the disheveled hair, the fact that he had been wearing the same outfit for almost two days straight. I gulped, “Sanji have you been getting any sleep…?”
He nodded and let out a hum, but not before letting out a long yawn. “I wouldn’t mind a quick nap though.”
I turned to Robin, who had a knowing look on her face. “I’m surprised you didn’t realize it, but... No offense Sanji, but you've been less and less yourself the past couple of days. You need your sleep.”
I reached for his hand, gently wrapping his fingers in between his, “Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked quietly, guilt running through me.
He faced me, trying to blink away his exhaustion, but the simple fact that he didn’t respond to Robin’s allegation spoke more than words. “Who says they’re right? A man should protect his woman at night. Even from fake foes.”
I shook my head, “Sanji, you need your sleep.”
“Stubborn moron,” Franky muttered. But despite his choice of vocabulary, it was clear that he had begun this conversation out of concern for the man.
And with that, I had made the terrifying decision to conquer my fears by myself, and not let my nightmares interfere with him ever again. I had purposefully spent most of the day away from him, trying to silently tell him that he needed his sleep, and trying to decrease my own clingyness. I spent most of the day with Luffy, playing random games to pass the time, or simply keeping him company.
Around lunch time was the first time I ran into Sanji again. The meal was served later than usual, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it was due to his sleep deprivation. While everyone was chowing down on their food at the table, I slipped towards the counter, where Sanji was fashioning a number of fancy drinks. I leaned my back against the counter, watching as his fingers expertly added perfect amounts of syrup and juice to each glass.
“I was wondering when you’d show up,” he said. His voice was gruffer than usual, a tone he very rarely used with me. But the brief flick of his eyes towards me spoke a different story, like he had actually missed my company over just a few hours.. The dark circles under his eyes hadn’t lessened in the slightest. I had to physical resist the urge to grab hold of him and show him to bed.
“Did you not get any rest?” I asked, somewhat concerned.
“Mellorine, I already told you, I’m fine,” he replied firmly.
My brow furrowed, watching as mixed each glass, “Um, sure. I don’t want to be blunt but… You look awful.”
A testy tone entered his voice, “And there’s things that need to be done, lunch doesn’t cook itself.”
I huffed, “It did not take you four hours to make lunch.”
He scoffed, “Maybe it does when I’m busy at night dealing with more important matters.”
“Sanji, I know you want to help me with my nightmares, but if it’s impacting you this badly-”
His jaw flexed “I’ve helped you through every night, and now you’re acting like you barely appreciate it!”
I blinked at his outburst, “I really do appreciate it, but this isn’t about me. You’ve had your turn to help me, and now you deserve a break.”
“Like you can take a break on relationship things.”
I sighed, “I really appreciate the chivalry, I really do. But at this point, you have to draw the line.”
He set both hands on the counter and flashed me a glare, but one that spoke of exhaustion more than actual anger, “Is there anything else you’d like me to put a break on then, Mademoiselle,” he threw out heatedly.
I shook my head, knowing it was pointless to have this conversation when he was this exhausted. I reached for his closest hand, lifting his fingers off the counter before entwining mine between his. Both of our gazes were enraptured by the simple physical contact. I gave his hand a squeeze, somewhat stupidly hoping if he took a second to process the conversation then he would see that he needed sleep.
Eventually, his eyes flicked back towards mine, but there was little emotion behind them. He pulled his hand out of my hold, somewhat rougher than usual. “I need my hands for cooking,” he said distantly.
I clenched my teeth. “Guess you need them for your stupid pride, too,” I threw back. I shouldered my way past him, ignoring the glances the rest of the strawhats threw at me while I exited the kitchen. The only comment I actually made out was a confused “Yo ho ho…?” from Brook.
I didn’t see Sanji the rest of the day. It wasn’t a petty effort to get back at him for the argument, but more of a way to shout to him that he needed sleep. But even with that, I went to bed that night silently hoping the argument would work itself out tomorrow.
Hours later, after another horrendous nightmare and very well into the depths of night, I found myself walking along the deck of the Sunny. By force of habit I was walking towards the kitchen, but I knew that wasn't a wise choice. If Sanji was there, I couldn’t make him suffer another sleepless night, and if he wasn’t, I didn’t want to fall asleep there, only for him to find me and feel regretting not being there for me.
Instead, I made my way to the upper deck on the back of the boat. I leaned against the rail, curling my fingers tightly around the wood to relieve my anxiety. No matter how many times I had these nightmares, my mental response was always the same, and I simply couldn’t escape the terror of it. I let out a deep sigh, trying to calm myself with the gentle noises of the sea, and the wafts of saltiness from the waves. But even with that, I couldn’t shake the feeling that a horrible, mutilated creature from my nightmares was watching me.
I let my chin fall to my chest. My heart burned with desire for Sanji’s comfort; to feel his arms wrap around me, and his soft whispers. My jaw began to tremble as I fully comprehended that I would be facing my horrible, awful, fears all alone tonight. I bit my lip, trying to wrack my brain for anything to latch onto, words that Sanji used to comfort me. A joke Usopp had made to cheer me up. An adorable act Chopper had done while he healed me. Or… I remembered the words Brook had once said when he tried to conquer his own fears. “I hum when I’m frightened, and I like to think it helps.”
I lifted my head, letting the light of the moon shine brightly upon myself, as it peeked out from behind the clouds. I bit my lip, and performed a quick scan of the area, ensuring no one was in hearing range. I took a breath, and let out a singular high-pitched note of the first song that came to my mind- and old sea shanty. A second note followed just as smoothly, and soon the entire song was tumbling out of my lips. The sound of my voice complimenting the night sky beautifully as I sang to the stars. My anxious frown soon lessened as I imagined the whole world to be my audience.
Within minutes, the song came to a close, and I contently leaned against the rail, searching for another song I knew just as well. As my eyes darted across the ocean waters, I realized not a single thought of my night terrors occupied my mind. I let out a small smile, but that thought brought me back full circle to my original thoughts of monsters and zombies. Dark figures that were stalking me- Crawling up to this deck on the outside of the boat- Creeping eerily up the stairs-
I whipped around, terror overtaking me. Before I even had time to process my view, I dropped to the deck, my knees unable to handle the fear of the thing before me. Directly in front of me was a terrifying creature. One that reached unimaginable heights.
“Yo ho ho! What a wonderful voice you have!”
That voice… I blinked, shaking my head to clear my vision. Standing opposite of me, leaning against the other rail, was the one and only skeleton, Brook. I should’ve known it was him. He often roamed the ship at weird times of the night because he rarely ever needed sleep.
“Do you need help?” he asked innocently, scaling the short distance towards me.
Guilt immediately wracked through me for thinking he was a monster. I shook my head in response, my hand reached for my own rail. I heaved myself up, trying to conceal the trembling that shook me from my head to my toes. “I.. I didn’t think anyone else would be awake.”
He stood next to me, and leaned over the railing, just as I had done moments ago. “Oh my, did I scare you?” he asked, with some concern.
I gave a weak smile and copied his position, “Only a bit.”
“I tend to have that effect on people, don’t I? Yo ho ho!”
I stayed silent, the adrenaline rushing through me keeping me from giving me an empathetic response. I wouldn’t be falling asleep anytime soon, that much was certain. “What are you doing out here?” I eventually asked.
“You do have a wonderful voice,” he repeated, giving me a toothy smile.
“Oh, um, thanks,” I said shyly, realizing he had probably heard most of my song.
“Do you sing often?” he asked curiously, seemingly undeterred by my quiet demeanor at the moment.
I shook my head, staring out at the water. Sometimes I forget this man had only been on our crew for a couple of weeks. “No not at all. Sometimes when we have a celebration and the crew makes me sing, but that’s about it.”
“Ahh, you should sing more!” he replied encouragingly.
I shrugged, slightly embarrassed, “I don’t know. It’s not a huge hobby of mine.”
“Well, what got you started singing tonight?”
I dropped my head, letting out a small disbelieving laugh, “Well, this is a little dumb. But it was actually something you said when I first met you.”
I couldn’t watch his expression, but slight silence left me even more embarrassed, “If you weren’t with Sanji I would assume you were in love with me,” he finally replied with awe. His strange, romantic tendencies getting the better of him.
My eyes widened and I jerked my head to look up at him. I gave an awkward laugh, “Oh um, it was actually about facing your fears.”
“Well, you said that you hummed to yourself when you were frightened, and I’ve been dealing with a lot of nightmares lately so… I decided to put my own spin on that idea.”
He let out a low hum, as if testing his own idea, “And did it work?”
“I mean, I’d like to think it did.”
“Would you like to sing again?” he asked simply.
This question caught me off guard, “Uh, I… Why?”
“To help you! I can play my violin if you’d like.” He pushed himself off the rail, and made his way across the deck, where his violin case rested. I hadn’t noticed it there before.
“Well… Only if you play really loudly, then maybe,” I replied.
He took out his violin and played a few practice notes. “Is that loud enough?” he asked warmly.
I nodded hesitantly, a new bubble of anxiety rising in my throat at having to sing in front of someone, “I guess?”
He repeated the notes again, but with more sharpness, increasing their volume.
I gulped, “Yea that works.”
“Why don’t we do the song you just sang?”
I gently hummed, warming my voice again. I let out a breath to calm myself, “Yeah… Let’s do it then.”
“Yo ho ho!” he let out excitedly.
And with that, his violin lit up the night with his expertly played notes. On cue, I joined with my voice, creating a melodic duo that snaked through the length of the boat, and beyond into the sea. We played on and on, our talents colliding in perfect synchronization with each other. When the song came to an eventual close, after many minutes, not a single terrifying thought occupied my mind. A grin stretched across my face as I felt the effects of the song channel through me, elating my mood beyond what it had been all day. Brook beamed at me as he set his violin down.
“That was really good!” I exclaimed.
“Yo ho ho! You’re even better with an accompaniment!” He hopped around the deck, practically dancing with glee.
I let out a small laugh, “You’re not so bad yourself.”
“Another?” he asked excitedly, jumping over to me. He suddenly link one arm around mine and spun me around once, before releasing me.
The action surprised me a bit but I remained my composure. I gave a small stretch as I tried to hold back a yawn, “Surprisingly… I actually want to, but I feel like it’s getting kind of late,” I admitted.
He gave a nod, “Ah, I understand.”
I smiled, “Another time though, definitely.”
He matched my expression, “Thank you for tonight then.”
With that, we had a bit of small talk before I made my way to the sleeping quarters. On my way there I briefly overheard Brook talking to himself. “I haven’t done that in… Many decades,” he said almost sorrowfully.
I frowned, but any thoughts relating to that were quickly overrun at the sight of something else- the kitchen door cracked just enough to reveal a sliver of light from it. A light wave of dread washed over me, had the blonde man stayed awake in the kitchen for me?
I reached the door, hesitating outside the room for a moment. I wanted to check if he was sleeping, but if he wasn’t… I didn’t want to keep him awake more than he needed to be. He needed to sleep. Despite the overwhelming thought that I shouldn’t enter, I did so anyway, and was quite relieved to see the sight before me. Sanji hunched over the table, resting his head on his crossed arms. I gave a small smile. A long-cold cigarette fell from between his fingers, signaling that he had been out for quite some time. While I knew it couldn’t have been the most comfortable, I was relieved he finally was receiving the sleep he deserved.
I glanced around the room as I made my way towards him, trying to eye his suit jacket that so often accompanied him. But a quick scan proved it wasn’t anywhere in the room. Without a second thought, I removed my own jacket and spread it over his shoulders, like a blanket. It may have been two sizes too small for him, but I became satisfied knowing he had some sort of layer over him. He shifted slightly in his sleep, but I continued to tuck it around him. Eventually, my work was done, and he came to a still. I took a step back and admired the sleeping blonde. His features finally earned the peaceful look they deserved after so many sleepless nights. I reached down, and gave him a small peck on his warm cheek, while also removing the cigarette from his hands.
I moved to make my way out of the room, but upon reaching the door I hesitated once again. I looked back at the man, hoping he wouldn’t beat himself up too much in the morning, when he would see the jacket and realize I had been there, but hadn’t woken him. I shook my head. If that happened, then so be it. I shoved through the door, letting it close silently behind me.
The following afternoon greeted me, as I quickly made myself ready for the day. A quick once over of the sleeping areas, told me I had slept far past the morning. And I certainly needed it too, because for the first time in over a week I had gotten the sleep I so desperately needed.
I made my way up to the deck as soon as I had freshened up, and was taken aback by the sight I saw before me. We were docked at a port town, and no one was on deck. In fact, they had probably all gone into town. I blinked, wondering why no one had even thought to leave me a note to inform me. And also a little hurt by the fact that I was now expected to watch over the ship alone.
But just as all these thoughts were hitting me at once, no one other than Prince Charming came walking down the steps of the upper deck. He focused on the cigarette in his mouth, trying to light the thing in the slightly breezy weather. When he reached the deck, he successfully lit it, and shook out his lighter, setting it into his pocket. He finally gave his attention to his surroundings, and immediately our eyes connected, spanning the length of the deck.
Tossed over one forearm was something similar to my jacket. At the sight of me, he reached for it with his free hand, gripping it tightly. He meandered towards me, a million thoughts scrawled onto his face, while I quickly paced the distance towards him.
Half way towards him, I called out, “Were you finally able to sleep?”
We met at the midway point of the deck, with him leaning over the rail. He set my jacket next to him. “I was,” he replied, almost begrudgingly, with a puff of his cigarette. His rosy cheeks and bright eyes confirmed his statement.
I settled to the left of him, keeping my jacket slightly in between us. I nodded, happy that we were both well-rested. Despite that, his closed-off body language spoke more than words, and it was clear that something was bothering him. Considering the course of the past 24 hours, I had a few different guesses.
“I didn’t see you last night,” he remarked. He moved his hand to grip my jacket again, as if that part of me was the only thing reassuring him right now. But it also served as a clear signal to tell me that he knew I had visited him in his sleep.
Out of habit, I reached his hand, but remembering the events that happened yesterday, I shifted my aim, and settled my fingers on his sleeve cuff instead. I gently played with it, running the material back and forth between my fingers. The weight of my single finger burned against the skin of his wrist.
“I thought you knew I didn’t want to bother you,” I finally said, wondering if he still held anything against me from our argument.
He out a puff of his cigarette, “So you bothered Brook instead?” he asked. His voice was low, but not the angry sort. The low that suggested he was trying to mask over whatever pain that idea brought him.
My fingers froze, coming to a still at the left edge of his sleeve. “How…?” I trailed off, not quite sure how to ask what I wanted to. Hadn’t he been asleep for that, after all?
He tilted his head to meet my eyes, “You have a beautiful voice, Mon Cheri,” he spoke quietly.
I opened my mouth to speak, a thousand questions rushing through me, but he beat me to it. He turned his entire body towards me, “It was the things I said yesterday, wasn’t it? That pushed you away...” His brow was creased, like he hated the idea of me confirming his words.
I took a breath, not too surprised he came to that conclusion. “No… Sanji I honestly don’t even care about the things you said. I didn’t bother anyone last night. He just showed up.”
He shook his head, dismissing my explanation, “I shouldn’t have said what I said,” he paused, “I’m sorry, my love. My hands are for far more than cooking.” As if to prove his point, he reached to grab my hands in his. “They’re for loving you. They’re for caring for you. For protecting you.” He reached up to caress my hair, “For stroking your hair, and holding you. Even when you have nightmares,” he added.
I stood there, completely starstruck by his words, a smile slowly spread across my face with the more he spoke, growing larger with each word. “I um…” Not having the words to convey my feelings, I reached my arms around his neck, pulling him towards me. My eyes briefly flicked to his lips, before I leaned into him. Just as our lips skimmed each other my mouth parted. I whispered against him “I love you too.” My lips brushing against his as I spoke.
His shudders, yearning for my lips. “Don’t do that,” he warned quietly, his warm breath scattering across my face. He arms reached around my hips, squeezing me against him to show his affection. A smile briefly flickered across me, before he shoved his lips onto mine, devouring me in every way he craved. Both of us were enraptured in each other’s burning romance, after having no contact for the past day.
Eventually, we pulled away, his hands instantly reaching for my cheeks to keep me from retreating too far. He gazed into my eyes, “I adore you, Mon Cheri.”
My cheeks heated at his intensity, something that hadn’t happened in a while. I placed my hands over his, rubbing my thumb across his knuckles. With my other hand, I tilted his hand, pressing a kiss to his palm. “Are your hands for kissing too?” I asked fervently.
“For anything you could ever need,” he replied.
I showed a sly smile, “What a tempting offer.”
He raised his eyebrows, an intrigued smile on his face as if waiting for me to continue that thought.
But I did nothing of the sort, and instead turned the conversation to another matter. I let his hands fall to his sides, and leaned my back against the rail. “So… Do you always get jealous of talking skeletons?” I asked coyly.
The smile on his face faltered slightly, and I had to bite my tongue from laughing at his semi-defeated expression. He parted his lips slightly, taking a moment to form his response. He smoothly replied with, “I’d like to think a man would never question his lady’s loyalty.”
I pursed my lips in amusement, “Oh? Well, liking to and actually doing it are two different things.”
He leaned his arms against the rail, facing the sea as he turned to look at me. He swiftly lit another cigarette, trying to hide his own smile behind it now that he picked up on my humorous intent behind my words. “It’s the thought that counts.”
I playfully elbowed him in the ribs, “Not sure that thought was there in the first place.”
He let out a puff of smoke, taking my physical jab without a problem, “Can you blame me?”
He eyed me up and down, “You have one too. And a hot one at that,” he smirked.
I rolled my eyes, “Whatever.”
He let out a laugh, letting our playful banter continue through much of the rest of the afternoon.
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