Chapter Text
almost immediately after dinner that evening, everyone in the crew drifts from the galley, intending to spend the rest of the evening wherever they please aboard the Thousand Sunny. usually, you tag along with Nami and Robin as they head down to the aquarium lounge, but tonight, you tell Nami that you’ll be heading to bed early, after you have some special tea Sanji prepares for you.
despite pouting at your response, Nami sighs and lets you go—“You better join us tomorrow night, hun! You owe me a drink, after all.”—and although you already feel your wallet sobbing, you can’t help but giggle and promise to do so.
towards him, Nami coos sweetly, “Make sure to bring Robin and I some dessert when you’re done, Sanji-kun!”
he spins to her instantly, his eyes glowing with all the love and affection that arises from him whenever she, you, and Robin—or any woman—are around him.
“As you wish, Nami-swan~! Just let me finish these dishes and take care of my Princess here, and I’ll be right with you!” Sanji declares, throwing you a pointed look that sends heat searing down your spine.
letting out a giggle, Nami exits the galley, leaving you alone with him.
he goes back to doing the dinner dishes. there’s a bit of a bounce in his movements now, as he’s likely looking forward to meeting up with Nami and Robin to give them their dessert later—when he’s finished with you, of course.
you stare at the expanse of his back, heat rising to your neck and your mouth suddenly dry as you take in the line of his shoulders, how his almost gold hair settles at the nape of his neck. you recall how, just a few minutes ago when you spoke to Nami, his blue eyes darkened knowingly when you mentioned wanting tea, how his warm, lovesick smile widened into a ghost of a smirk.
he already knows , you think, heart hammering against ribs. the two of you have been doing this off and on for a month now, already have a system in place when it comes to this sort of play, but you never fail to feel the thrill of it all. just confirm it with him.
but Sanji breaks the silence first.
“You really wanna turn in early, Princess?” he asks, his tone casual—like he’s talking about the weather—but the bass he puts into his voice hints otherwise.
again, that infernal blush that floods your face, you just can’t help it. by now, this dance is familiar to the both of you; and yet he still insists on hearing you voice your desires. it’s embarrassing and frustrating, but it also makes desire simmer in your blood.
so, you nod while saying softly, “Yes.”
he pauses for a second, right in the middle of drying a plate. then, he turns his face the slightest—still not facing you, but enough to see the curve of his cheek, the slope of his nose, a hint of his smile. (a smirk?)
he still asks, just to make sure you’re both on the same page: “Which kind do you want tonight?”
And you make sure to give the correct answer, so he understands what you’re asking for: “The passionflower blend, please.”
again, he pauses, revealing nothing of what he feels for a moment. then, with a slightly shaky exhale, he places the plate he’s dried atop the pile that’s already clean and ready to be placed back in the cabinets. you watch him then dip his hands in the sink again, his movements almost too meticulous, too slow . it feels like a tease, like the very string of sanity within your mind is being pulled to its limit. slowly, as your gaze takes in his beautiful hands, you swallow hard.
“Just let me finish this last one and I’ll get you your tea,” he tells you.
“...Okay.”
your hands clench together in your lap, palms pressed together and fingers twisting around each other. your teeth catch your bottom lip as you watch him. how he acts with you right now, as he’s acted during the other nights, is such a contrast that it steals the breath from your lungs. after sailing with the crew for two years, you are already quite used to Sanji being flamboyant in his affections; seeing him spin and cry out those nicknames at you and the other women have started becoming a comfort, even. those early days of him getting you flustered from his constant praises, and embarrassing flirting, are dead and gone. but these moments? when he’s in control of your reactions and he knows it—it’s different. it’s new, every time. it should be embarrassing, and to some degree it is; but it also offers a whole other layer of comfort.
it reminds you that you can always trust Sanji to care for you—to make sure you’re fed, to make sure you’re unharmed by any nearby enemies, to make sure someone’s there to listen to you in case the night terrors become too much sometimes, to make sure you feel loved , even by someone who loves other women so freely and fervently—and to make sure you get everything you need from him.
just like tonight.
you’re pulled from your thoughts when his hands finally place the last plate down, when they move to fill the teapot with cold water, and then—once the water inside begins to boil—when they search the cabinet for a packet of your favorite tea. after a minute, the teapot clicks to signal that the water is boiled, and then Sanji removes it from the stove to pour into the mug where your tea will seep. by now, your hands are atop the dining table, fingers tapping almost furiously against the wood.
Sanji takes notice, of course he does, his one revealed eye darting to you. he hums softly, smiling as he goes back to preparing your tea.
“You still need to work on your patience, dearest,” he tells you while removing the teabag—the water now a light and fragrant, near orange color—and then adding a little something extra to your tea. “Things like this shouldn’t be rushed.”
you shrink back a little, shoulders hunching. “I know,” you say, voice small. “I-I’m sorry. I know I ask so much from you—”
“Oh, no, I have no problems with that. Sweetness, I’d do anything for you— anything ,” Sanji says, his gaze warm. With a glance at the mug, he picks it up and brings it over to you, taking a seat across the table from you. With a sly grin, he reaches out and strokes his finger along the curve of your cheek, eventually bending it under your chin. “But you are a bit of a brat.”
a smile spreads across your face, a mix of sweet and cheek, as you say, “Only sometimes.”
“That’s enough, isn’t it?”
“Well, if it bothers you that much, you could always do something about it.”
“You shouldn’t tempt me, I might take that offer one day.”
“I wouldn’t mind that,” you reply, heat rising to your cheeks. “I trust you, Sanji.”
he pauses to level you with a stare, his eyes suddenly resembling the ocean during a storm. you watch his chest expand as he takes one breath, then another, the tips of his ears turning hot pink. then he nods towards your steaming mug of tea.
“Drink your tea,” Sanji says, a gentle command that has you sitting up straight. “Before it gets cold.”
you reach for the mug instantly and tilt the opening towards your mouth, the first sip of tea dripping onto your tongue. you taste the bittersweetness of the passionflower, mixed with chamomile and other herbs, along with that other special ingredient. after swallowing, you rest the mug down and pause to lick your lips, looking Sanji right in the eye all the while. there’s a tense moment where you two stare at each other before you lift the mug again and take another sip.
it isn’t long before your cup begins to empty, but it will still take some time for the tea to take effect. to help pass the time, you decide to start a conversation with him.
“I really liked how you made that dish tonight,” you say. “I’ve never had anything like it. How did you learn to make it?”
his eyes light up instantly—Sanji is always ready to talk about his craft, though he does keep some secrets to himself—and he goes on to start a story about a time when he was still working in Baratie. his voice is full of excitement, nostalgia; you almost feel like you were there, like you can see the restaurant that was his home for much of his adolescence.
it’s a beautiful story—any time Sanji opens up to you about Zeff and Baratie, you are immediately engaged—and you can’t help but feel soothed by the timbre in his voice. it’s easy to let it all wash over you as you finish your tea, as the drink settles in your blood and begins to weigh heavily on your bones, your eyelids, your mind.
you don’t remember the end of Sanji’s story. you don’t even remember falling asleep.
…
…
…
there’s a story you once read, not long ago. it’s about a princess who was cursed by an evil fairy, to sleep for a hundred years after she came of age; this curse also spread to the kingdom. for a hundred years, this castle stood with its sleeping inhabitants, gathering dust and wearing down to time as the land outside moved on without the former monarchs and their court of nobles.
then one day, a prince arrived. he intended to break the curse, and he knew precisely what needed to be done. so, he broke through the vines that had begun to grow along the castle; he swiped through the dust and spiderwebs, climbed the long spire of stairs to head to tallest tower; and when he finally found her chambers, he came into the room like a fog after the storm.
he took in the beauty sleeping in her bed, his hands caressing her face for a moment. then, he began to remove his armor until he was only in a tunic and his leather breeches. next, he undressed her, ripping away her nightgown and then squeezing at her bare body like she was a ripe fruit perfect for picking. after taking in more of her beauty, he began unfastening his pants; and then he slid into her bed.
it’s a rather horrifying story, honestly, both during this and after this moment in the book. it’s a tale of a Beauty and her Dark Prince, his demanding mother, and the many princes and princesses that are left at their mercy. it should have disgusted you—but you read on and on, until you had the entire novel memorized.
…
…
…
when you stir not long after, your mind is in a fog, your vision blurry. despite this, you still feel him forcing your thighs apart with his own, moving his long, turgid cock inside you at a near relentless pace. you hear how he groans his pleasure and adulations in your ear, how the movements of his body make the bed creak underneath you, the very wet smack of his thighs against yours. you feel how his mouth sucks and nips at the base of your neck, no doubt making bruises bloom there. his hands are everywhere, leaving trails of heat in their wake as he toys with your body.
for a moment, you wait for the panic, the kind of existential horror of it all. that’s the right reaction, correct? no one should want this, let alone enjoy it. many would argue that it’s a spit in the face of many survivors of this type of abuse. and let’s be honest, it’s a little fucked up. you are fucked up—that’s what a normal person would say.
but remember, you are not normal.
(and that’s okay.)
breathing deeply, you are further embraced by the smell of spices, some sweat, and of course, the faint smell of cigarettes. as you turn to bury your nose in his shoulder, a soft sigh leaves you, just enough to make it seem like you’re still sleeping. he’s not being gentle tonight, which is rare for him and a surprising treat for you. no, you realize with a little whimper, feeling the swollen tip of him brutally kissing the deepest part inside your pussy, his length dragging against every inch of your walls, forcing pleasure to nearly spill from your body. usually Sanji is sweet and gentle, even at his most passionate—but it seems something got a hold of him tonight. even when he thinks you’re still sleeping, tonight, he is being relentless .
a little moan leaves you at a particularly deep and rough thrust of his cock, his pelvis grinding right against your clit, driving you higher and higher, setting your whole body on fire. your trembling hands grasp at the back of his shoulders, then moving to curl in the open collar of his shirt.
“S-Sanji, Sanji,” you whimper into his neck, making him freeze, his moan choking in his throat.
“Shit, Princess, sorry, I thought—” he starts to say, lifting his head to look at you with worried eyes, his whole face red. “I didn’t realize how rough I—”
but with your hands still on the collar of his shirt, you drag him down to your lips, moaning as you start giving him fervent kisses, your hands moving to cradle his face.
“Faster, please,” you beg against his mouth. “Please, please, please… ”
Sanji lets out a deep groan and kisses you back one more time, then places his mouth on the side of your temple. his arms wrap around your waist, your hands right on your ass as he adjusts your hips the slightest, and the— Oh. your head falls back against your pillow, wide eyes on the ceiling, clouded with lust and blank of any thought. Oh, god—!
the sounds leaving your mouth are so shameless , it’s embarrassing but you can’t help it with how he batters inside you, using all the strength you can handle from his legs. every time he forces his body to meet yours, you see stars and colors. your hands scrabble along his arms to keep yourself grounded, until one rests near his elbow while your other squeezes his shoulder, nails nearly ripping into the cotton of his shirt.
somehow, Sanji manages to keep enough composure to speak to you as he presses gentle and sweet kisses on your face.
“Like that, baby? Does that feel good?”
“Mm-hm, mm- hm ,” you whine back, breaking off into a moan.
“Me too. Fuck, you’re always too good for me, so perfect,” he rasps, his mouth spreading into a grin against your jawline, unable to hide his excitement. “Getting close?”
gasping, you nod a little too fast, too eager to care about how it makes you look. he chuckles and kisses your lips with a soft moan.
“I got you, baby, don’t worry. Gonna give you just what you need,” Sanji says, moving one of his hands to thumb at your clit, his eyes drinking in how you arch into his touch, how what’s left of your control breaks under his touch. “You’re so beautiful…”
you can’t reply beyond the cries that leave you, a mix of words and praises that you don’t really think about before saying. you can barely think at all. all you can do is clench your eyes closed and hold onto him as he makes your body explode, your little pussy clenching and gushing around him as he draws it out, forcing wave after wave of your pleasure out of you.
as your voice grows strained, your throat rough and post-orgasmic fatigue (and remnants of the drug in your system) fogging your mind, Sanji finally moves to wrap your legs around his waist, pressing you against the bed. he fucks into you with absolute abandon now, intending to lose himself inside you. the force behind his thrusts makes you whimper into the side of his neck, your pussy still so sensitive, that boundary between pleasure and pain wearing away. Sanji makes sure to hold you close to him, soft and sweet, despite it all.
“Just a little more, a little more,” he is promising in your ear, his voice strained. then, about a moment later, “Shit—!”
with a turn of his face, Sanji presses his lips to yours, parting your mouth with his to deepen the kiss as you thread one of your hands through his hair, tugging at the root. as your tongues twist together, you feel him flood you with his warmth, thick and gushing. groaning into your mouth, he thrusts inside you a few more until he’s completely spent.
you both stay in place for a few moments, enough for you both to regain control over your breathing. Sanji takes a deep breath and parts with you, slowly pulling out, and then turning to lay next to you on the bed. once the sense of calm enters your system, a giddy sort of feeling flutters from your belly, making you settle deeper against your pillow.
“That was good,” you almost purr, turning to face him.
Sanji chuckles, still a bit shaky as he looks at you. “Do you need anything, Sweetness?”
you think for a moment before a yawn crawls from your mouth, leaving your mind and eyelids heavy. you shake your head.
“No, I think—I think I’ll sleep for real this time.”
“Okay,” says Sanji as he reaches out to stroke your face, his expression tender. “Go ahead and sleep, Princess. I’ll see you in the morning.”
you watch him a moment more, until your vision begins to blur and your eyelids begin to lower. you catch a glimpse of soft blue and a familiar smile before you allow sleep to claim you once more, knowing that no matter what and even if it’s only for a moment, you are safe and loved.