Silent Affection

Silent Affection

Sanji x f!reader drabble

Summary: Sanji is Sanji and it’s not unusual to witness his displays of affection. However, you never seemed to pay attention to the silent displays of affection that are reserved solely for you. Typical Sanji nicknames and f!reader.

Masterlist

It was natural in an almost startling way.

Sanji was a man that showed his affection for those around him loud and proud. He would dote on you, Nami, and Robin around the clock. Any of your compliments of his food would turn him into the physical embodiment of heart eyes. None of you would ever go without.

But aside from all of the showmanship, there was a silent affection that was reserved for only you.

In the way that he always managed to hand you your sun glasses on a particular bright day, when you’re squinting uncomfortably and attempting to shield your eyes. No words passed between you or call to attention. Just the simple act of noticing.

It was in the chore rotation. How any time you were assigned your least favorite task, Sanji suddenly had the free time to get to it before you. It didn’t matter how many times you protested this, because often times this meant you aided him in his own chores and the man would do anything for that extra time to spend with you.

And above all else, it was the extra sprinkling of oregano in your pasta sauce. The day your nose crinkled when Sanji asked for you to taste test for him, announcing the sauce needed some oregano, he was instantly sent back to the Baratie. Of course, Sanji couldn’t stop himself from uttering the phrase “oregano is for savages”, just as he had so many times to Zeff. He didn’t have it in him to throw the ingredient into the whole pot, but he found himself adding the ingredient to your plate alone.

But all of these acts seemed to fall on deaf ears. You didn’t acknowledge them, for the most part, as this was just Sanji. Despite being reserved solely for you and you alone. You never seemed to notice.

When the Sunny docks onto an island, much to everyone’s relief, the crew is more than ready to head out and explore. Groceries are the number one priority with a captain that could consume the entire ocean three times over. But, groceries are not Nami’s main concern as she is dragging you and Robin away from the group and to a couple of shops nearby.

You spend your day split between a dress up doll and personal hype woman for the navigator. When Nami deems herself done and the shop keepers are all seething in rage at her lack of purchases, you meet your crew outside of a restaurant. Luffy had decided your chef needed a break and, after hearing a local rave about the marinated meat that was a local delicacy, he was more than excited.

Your waiter is an older man that regards your group with immediate distaste and huffs off when Luffy orders one of everything.

When the man returns with a tray of drinks, he places the glass of ice directly in front of you, a lemon wedge on the edge of the glass. Your nose crinkles at the sight. Sanji, caught up in a conversation with Nami about the grocery bill, doesn’t even seem to realize as he plucks the lemon off of your glass to drop it in his own water. After all, your chef knew of your distaste for lemon in your water.

And you simply shrug it off, because he is Sanji after all.

Before the food arrives, Nami requests you follow her to the bathroom, a silent plea in the room full of unfamiliar faces. You follow her with little protest.

Upon returning to the table, plates litter the surface and your food is presented at your seat. You notice Ussop’s eyes lingering on you for a beat too long as you settle down. An arm swoops in at your side before you can question it and a small ramekin of sauce is placed next to your plate. You cast a confused look to the waiter but he is already off.

“Sanji asked for it for you.” Ussop answers your silent question, his brows raising. “And he did that.” He nods towards the raw circles of onion placed on the edge of Sanji’s plate. The raw onions you specifically had asked to not come with your meal.

“Oh.” Is all you can mumble out.

“Oh.” Ussop mocks you with the roll of his eyes. “You should be used to this, ya know.”

Your brows pull together, “What do you mean?”

A smirk pulls to his lips, “So you really are just dense?”

“Says you.” You scoff defensively. At your weak retaliation, Ussop drops the issues and focuses on defending his own plate from Luffy’s hungry gaze. Your eyes drop to your plate as the words ring in your mind. “You should be used to this.”

The meal is good, the marinated meat just as lush as described, but you couldn’t seem to focus on your plate. Sanji’s knee knocks against yours under the table and you are quick to meet his eye.

“Everything okay, darling?” He prompts, lifting his drink to take a sip as his eyes level at you. You can only focus on the extra lemon swirling in his cup.

You clear your throat, “Yeah, i’m fine.”

“Enjoying your meal?” He asks further.

“ ‘S good.” You nod slowly. Your next words leave you before you can even process them, “But i’m almost certain you could do better.” And you begin to wonder just how long you have spoken so freely to Sanji without any thought.

A bright smile pulls to his lips and heat rushes color to his cheeks. “Thank you, mon amor.” He hums in thought. “The marinade is quite good, I believe I could recreate it if i tried hard enough.” That was the thing about your chef, he was excellent at dissecting a meal and recreating it to be a thousand times better. “And I could easily make it more to your taste.” He bumps your knee again with a smile and you find yourself leaning into that touch, much to his surprise.

Your knee rests against Sanji’s as you turn back to your plate- which looks suspiciously lacking from when you last focused on it. Across the table, Luffy chews with a goofy grin on his face.

Yet, you cannot bring yourself to care. Your thoughts rush in your mind as you attempt to piece together just when this all started. When it stopped just being Sanji.