Interpersonal Synchrony

Interpersonal Synchrony

Here’s my contribution to @zolo-san’s ZoSan Community Collab!

Written using @breathing-and-stuff’s prompt: canon compliant zsz three/whatever number of times when Sanji and Zoro share a comfortable silence together and one time when they acknowledge it and maybe do something about it too

Hope you all enjoy!

Summary:

Zoro and Sanji don’t say a word to one another for an entire week, and it isn’t by design. Sanji eventually notices and decides it’s high time they do something about it. Zoro is one hundred percent onboard, especially when he gets to see Sanji’s smile in the process.

Or;

Three times Zoro and Sanji unknowingly calm one another’s racing hearts with the rhythm of their breathing without a word, and one time they have a chat that leads to some heavy breathing that makes their heart rates spike.

Here’s a little snippet!

Excerpt:

And then there is another life force in Zoro’s bed, and as strange as it is sharing space with someone who isn’t cuddly Chopper or tactile Luffy, it isn’t.. bad.

Sanji crawls over him, bodily shoves Zoro over (“Oof!”) so he’s lying on his side, slots himself against Zoro’s back, hooks a leg over his hip, gets all nice and comfortable on top of him like he’s just allowed to be here. And instead of slicing him in three pieces to match his name, or even the usual shout of protests and profanities, Zoro just allows it all to happen.

His cheeks feel warm — Zoro curses his blood vessels for being stirred up so easily, because it clearly isn’t him who’s flustered right now — and he hangs his head forward to hide it.

Sanji seems to take this as an invitation to bury his face against the nape of Zoro’s neck. As much as it scratches at his slice-or-dice response, it also.. leaves his back feeling utterly protected.

Zoro realizes, with a start, that this is the first time he’s been able to comfortably lay on his side since he was a kid.

Normally, Zoro will find a corner or a wall to prop himself up against for a nap. When it’s the floor or a bed, he’s always on his back. It just feels so naked and vulnerable to have his back on display when he’s unconscious, even if his observation haki has never failed him during slumber and he knows his nakama have his back.

That being said, Sanji — someone who Zoro secretly admires for his immeasurable strength, and is just as devoted to the crew as Zoro is — being wrapped around him like a layer of armour… Zoro feels safe, in his hands.

…

The very same hands that have settled against his pecs.

Seriously?

Zoro swats at Sanji’s hand — deliberate in his gentleness; he would never risk harming those precious hands — and is unsurprised by the amused, sleepy smile that spreads against his nape as Sanji’s hands resituate themselves around Zoro’s waist.

And then he’s out.

Zoro assumes he must have woken Sanji up. He had been snoring, earlier, now that he thinks about it, but the faint sound is so familiar to him that Zoro doesn’t even remember when it stopped.

It starts up again, now, though. A soft rumble on the intake, then a near silent release that Zoro tracks as it fans over his own skin. Cool inhale against his neck, warm exhale across the expanse of his shoulders.

It’s weird, really, how almost instantly it begins to slow the racing of his over-caffeinated heart.

Thanks for reading, let me know what you think so far! The rest can be found here!