clacky v-day fic!
Holy cheeeeese, it's been a zillion years since I've written a fic! *gasp* But I had to try and get one out for Valentine's Day, since I was too busy/ill to finish a Christmas fic. The boys need more holidays to keep me on track. xD
Title: Mystery Admirer
Author: rainbowserenity
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Pairing: Zack/Cloud
Rating: T
Disclaimer: Squeenix owns my soul.
Warnings: None except tooth-rotting fluff, which might be overkill if you're eating candy. :D
Summary: Cloud keeps finding roses on his door. Clearly this means his has a stalker and not a secret admirer, right?
A/N: This is dedicated to everybody! Especially if you don't have someone to be with today or your someone is thousands of miles away across the Atlantic Ocean. Ahem. ♥
When Cloud found the first rose on his apartment door, he assumed it was put there by mistake. Or maybe it was a joke; he did often keep to himself for the most part and maybe some bratty kid wanted to get a rise out of him.
It wasn’t working. He stared at the innocent red flower, which he found unceremoniously taped to his door after he’d gotten home from work. Though it was probably a mistake, he unstuck it from his door anyway and gave it a careful sniff. Even though he’d never admit it, he was actually pretty fond of flowers. He was sorry the intended recipient would never get this one, because he planned on keeping it.
In fact, as soon as he got inside, he filled an old jar with water and stuck the rose in there. It looked kinda lonely - maybe he’d pick up some more on his way home tomorrow.
--
“Hey, hey Cloud! Wait up!”
Cloud turned and smiled at the familiar voice that belonged to none other than Zack Fair. Zack had been the first person to befriend him when he’d moved here three years ago, and even though they were polar opposites, Cloud thought they got along better than anyone else they knew.
“You got off early,” he remarked as Zack leaned over with his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
“Figured...Kunsel...could handle...the rest of the day,” Zack answered, finally getting his breath back. He and his friend Kunsel owned a fairly successful gym, though it probably got as much business as it did so half of the town’s female population could ogle him. Honestly, Cloud couldn’t really blame them. Zack had offered him a job there many times, but Cloud knew better than to put himself in constant close proximity with the dark-haired man.
“Not much left in the day.” It was four-thirty in the afternoon; the gym closed at six.
“Eh, still got out early.” Zack grinned. “I figured since it’s your day off, we could grab dinner somewhere and meet up with everyone else after.” His eyes darted to the bag in Cloud’s hands. “Unless you’d rather have your takeout?”
The blond had indeed been walking home with a big takeout bag of several sandwiches since he wasn’t much of a cook. The thought of dinner with Zack sounded much more appealing. “Nah, I’ll go. Just let me get this home.”
“I’ll walk you.”
“Not exactly a strenuous trip.” Zack lived in the same building two floors below him.
“It’s the thought that counts!”
“Yeah.” A little smile quirked on Cloud’s lips. “Better walk slow, though. Sounds like you’re getting out of shape from the way you were wheezing just now.”
“Heeeeey,” Zack drawled in a warning tone, though he was smiling too. “I’ll have you know that I’m in the best shape of my life!”
“Not from what I just heard.”
“It’s cold out, you know!”
“That tends to happen in February.”
“But I could be wheezing ‘cause it’s cold!”
“Just keep telling yourself that.”
“Ohhh, whatever.” After a good-natured grin, Zack led the two of them in a chat about the past few days, easily catching up the time they hadn’t seen each other.
It was always like this between them - happy, easygoing. Zack was the only person who could make Cloud practically give away his smiles. Maybe this was why he liked him so much. Cloud was hesitant to call it a crush, but he felt something there that he didn’t with his other friends. He had no idea if Zack felt the same way, which was why he kept his mouth shut.
They reached their apartment building in no time at all. As promised, Zack walked Cloud up to his door, though he grew strangely quiet as they approached it. Cloud hardly noticed, however.
“Another one?” He carefully plucked the rose from his door, frowning in concentration. No note, no indication of who had been there - just another flower, the same kind as yesterday.
“‘Another one’?”
Cloud turned and nodded at Zack’s curious expression. “Yeah. I found one on my door yesterday, too. I thought that it was a mistake, but...” He tried not to blush as realization dawned on him. “I guess not.”
“Looks like you’ve got a secret admirer,” Zack said with a grin, following Cloud inside.
“You think so?”
“Yeah. What else would it be?”
“I dunno.” Cloud shrugged and added the new rose to his makeshift vase. To be honest, the thought of someone liking him like that made him slightly uncomfortable. Unless that someone was Zack, but Cloud knew he wasn’t that lucky. “Maybe they left it on the wrong door again.”
“Don’t be such a pessimist.” Zack laughed and ruffled Cloud’s hair after he’d set the takeout down. “Where do you feel like going for dinner?”
“The usual place,” he replied, referring to a family-owned diner that knew the boys by name. It was a nice, quiet place to relax before meeting their friends at a big, noisy bar.
“‘Kay.” Zack smiled, looking relaxed as usual. “Let’s go.”
--
Though people would usually guess otherwise, Zack and Cloud were not big drinkers. In fact, they were usually the ones to stuff their drunken friends into cabs while they walked home, taking bets on who would have the worst hangover the next morning.
Right now, Cloud was betting that it’d be Zack. For whatever reason, the older man decided to get absolutely shitfaced and now Cloud was stuck lugging his ass home. He was beginning to wish that he’d stuffed Zack in a cab - the normally ten-minute walk to their building had taken more than a half an hour. It was a huge relief to finally get to Zack’s door.
“Now where’s your key...” Cloud muttered, sticking his hands in Zack’s pockets.
“Whooooooa, Spike,” Zack slurred incredibly loudly, especially for three in the morning. Cloud winced, hoping that people wouldn’t come out threatening them with baseball bats or something. “You gots wanderin’ hands, heh.”
“I’m looking for your key, dumbass.” Cloud finally found it and unlocked the door, dragging Zack inside.
“Ohhhh, getting’ frisky, arrrre we?”
“No.” Though he desperately tried to fight it, Cloud blushed a bit. Zack had a Southern accent that never seemed to come out unless he was drunk, and for some reason, it made his words seem more scandalous. “C’mon, let’s get you in bed.”
“Frisky!” Zack shouted with a laugh. Oh well, at least they weren’t in the hallway.
It took some struggling, but Cloud managed to get Zack in bed and slipped off his boots and belt, unable to help but blush a little more. But he dutifully continued taking care of his drunk friend and set out water and aspirin, knowing Zack would appreciate it come morning.
“I gotta get home,” Cloud said, shutting the curtains to the bedroom window. “You need to try and sleep, okay? If you do, you won’t complain so much tomorrow.”
“Friskyyyyy,” Zack repeated with a laugh.
“Whatever.”
“Clooooud.”
The blond had turned to leave, but faced Zack at the call of his name. To his surprise, he was met with the most vulnerable look he’d ever seen on Zack’s face. Something in those blue eyes made him want to climb in bed and have them talk for hours until they fell asleep in each other’s arms. It was an odd feeling and he wasn’t entirely sure how he was supposed to react to it.
“Yeah?”
Zack’s face scrunched up for a second, but he just grinned and cuddled up to his pillow. “Thank you.” A minute later, he was fast asleep. It was another ten before Cloud could bring himself to leave.
--
At first, he tried to leave so he could go check on Zack’s hangover, but Cloud was immediately distracted from that when he found rose number three attached to his door.
All he could do for a minute was stare. This was getting really bizarre - no way could whoever was leaving these have gotten the wrong apartment three days in a row, which meant the intended recipient had to be him.
But it didn’t make any sense. Why now? It seemed sort of random, and honestly, he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to feel about some creeper leaving flowers on his door. Maybe it was best not to think about it - whoever this mystery person was, well, they weren’t doing anything else but leaving the flowers. Plus, they really were very nice.
Cloud stepped back into his apartment and brought the rose to his nose, sniffing deeply. He’d always liked the smell of roses. They were sweet and fragrant, but not overwhelmingly so. It was the kind of flower you had to put right up to your face to smell.
With a little smile, he added it to the jar and poured in more water. He was just about to leave again to check on Zack when his cell phone rang. “Hello?”
“Spike?”
Cloud’s eyes widened. It was nine in the morning - waaay too early for Zack to be awake while he was hungover. “Zack? You’re awake?”
“Uh huh. Dirty rat Kunsel called way too early to tell me I didn’t have to come in.”
Even though Zack couldn’t see him, Cloud smiled. “At least you’re awake.”
“I guess.”
“I was gonna come check on you, but I guess - ”
“You can still come over,” Zack interrupted quickly. “Just, y’know. Quietly.”
“Alright.” Cloud had already left and locked his door. “I’m on my way.”
“Great.” There was a creaking noise, which was presumably Zack getting out of bed. “Ugh, room’s spinning...”
“Don’t hurt yourself.” Cloud hung up with a quietly amused chuckle. Even though it only took him a few minutes to trek down two flights of stairs, it was still awhile before Zack answered the door once he’d knocked.
And no wonder. “You look, uh...”
“Awful, I know.” Despite his words, Zack smiled and gestured for Cloud to come inside. “It’s Kunsel’s fault for waking me up.”
“At least you have the day off.”
“Yeah.” Zack led them to his blessedly dark bedroom where he immediately flopped back into bed with a groan. “Even so, ugh.”
Cloud just made a sympathetic noise. “Can I get you anything?”
“Uh...” Zack’s eyes cracked open. “Another glass of water? I only took one aspirin before I called you.”
“Okay.”
After Cloud dutifully got the water and watched Zack toss back two more aspirin, he just stood there awkwardly. Zack probably called him over just for that, really. In fact, the older man looked about read to pass out for the next week or so.
However, to Cloud’s surprise, Zack patted the empty space next to him on the bed. “Stay with me?” He managed a smile. “If you have nothing better to do than keep a stupid hungover guy company, that is.”
“You’re not stupid.” Cloud gingerly lay beside Zack, his mind instantly flashing to that moment last night, that vulnerability. It was doubtful that Zack remembered, but Cloud still blushed a bit at the thought. He racked his mind to think about something, anything that would take his mind off of it.
“I got another rose.”
Zack was quiet for so long that Cloud started to wonder if he’d spoken at all, but finally there was an answer. “Really?”
“Uh huh. Still no note.”
“That’d defeat the purpose of a secret admirer.”
“You really think that’s what it is?”
“I dunno.” Zack smiled again. “What else could it be?”
“I don’t know.” It made sense, but Cloud felt kind of uncomfortable with the idea of a mystery admirer. Well, unless it was a certain someone, but he wasn’t about to voice that out loud. “Someone still getting the wrong door?”
“Pffft. So pessimistic.”
“Just realistic. Someone has to be.”
“So what does that make me!?”
Cloud chuckled. “Way too optimistic.”
“Heh.” Zack grinned, rolling onto his side to gently ruffle Cloud’s hair. “Someone has to be.”
--
Either Cloud’s realism was failing or Zack’s optimism was working way too well, because for the next week, the roses kept coming. There was never a note and they were always weirdly fresh enough that made it obvious that they were being left either right before Cloud left his apartment or shortly before he got home. This worried him a little - what if he had a stalker? - but nothing had been left aside from the flowers, so he wasn’t too concerned.
The makeshift vase was filling nicely, and he vaguely hoped that the mystery flower-giver would continue for at least two more days so he could have a dozen. It really was nice having flowers around. Maybe once these roses wilted, he’d get bouquets once in awhile.
He was gazing at the flowers, lost in thought, when the door to his unlocked apartment suddenly burst open. Cloud nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Spike, you shouldn’t leave your door open! Some whacko could just waltz right in!”
“Yeah, or you.” Cloud willed his heart to quit racing. “To what do I owe this invasion of privacy, Zack?”
“I wanted to ask - ” Zack let out a low whistle as he spotted the bouquet. “Wow, you definitely have a secret admirer.”
“Maybe. It’s kinda weird to think about.”
“Not really.” Zack quirked a weird little smile and turned back to Cloud. “Anyway, I wanted to know if you were working this weekend.”
“Nope.” It was Cloud’s first free weekend in months and he planned to thoroughly enjoy it.
Apparently Zack had the same idea, if the way his face lit up was any indication. “Really?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Ohhh, just wondering.”
Cloud raised a suspicious eyebrow. “You came barging into my apartment to ask me something that you could’ve easily asked over the phone?”
“Yup.”
There was a pause. Cloud rolled his eyes so hard it was a wonder they didn’t fall right out of his head, which was apparently answer enough.
“Heh, we’re still friends, right?”
“Of course, you big dork.”
“Good.” Zack grinned. “But hey, I’ve gotta go. Got some shopping to do.” He gave a two-fingered wave and scurried off. “I’ll see you later!”
“Zack -!” Cloud frowned a little. The abruptness of his friend’s departure was weird - as weird as the way he could hear Zack literally counting his steps out loud as he headed down the stairs. Strange.
--
When Cloud woke up a day later, he was already smiling. The last few roses - including the eleventh one yesterday - had all been there in the morning. Though he was still weirded out at the thought of having a potential stalker, the flowers never failed to make him smile.
He was about to go check his door when his cell phone rang. After lazily picking it, he discovered to his delight that it was his friend Tifa. “Hey, Tifa.”
“Hey Cloud! Happy Valentine’s Day!”
“Huh?”
There was a pause. “It’s the fourteenth, silly.”
“Oh, right.” Cloud barely kept track of the days, much less a lesser holiday that had nothing to do with him. “Why are you telling me this?”
“No reason.” Tifa sounded a little disappointed for some reason.
“Right.” Silence. Long pauses seemed to happen around most of his friends - except Zack, who filled it with inane chatter. “Are you and Rinoa doing anything?”
“Not ‘til tonight.” As usual, Tifa’s voice grew chipper at the mention of her girlfriend. “She’s gotta work an early shift, but we’re having dinner and doing presents tonight.”
“What’d you get her?”
“...A coffeemaker.”
Cloud actually pulled the phone away from his ear and stared for a moment, wondering if he’d heard that right. “A coffeemaker?”
“Don’t ask.”
“That’s a weird Valentine present.”
“I said don’t ask!”
“You know -” Cloud was smirking a bit, but it turned into a frown when he heard a thump at the door. A knock? “Tifa, I gotta go. I think someone’s at the door.”
“Okay.” She sounded amused for some reason. “Talk to you later.”
“Bye.” He hung up the phone and got up, quiet as he waited for another knock - but nothing came. That was odd, but it suddenly occurred to him that maybe it was whoever had been leaving the roses! Cloud suddenly raced for the door and yanked it open so fast it was a wonder it didn’t go flying off the hinges.
No rose.
Cloud’s shoulders sagged in disappointment. Maybe he’d heard wrong. Maybe it was just a neighbor making noise. At any rate, he still had eleven other flowers to enjoy. He turned to head back inside, but a little glint of something caught the corner of his eye.
There was a piece of candy on the floor in front of him.
With a curious frown, Cloud picked it up and examined it - a chocolate-covered caramel, one of his favorites. Well, hey, it was Valentine’s Day. Maybe someone had dropped it.
At least, that was his theory until he noticed another identically wrapped chocolate a few feet away. When he went to pick that one up, he noticed another one. And another and another...
For whatever reason, Cloud decided to follow the trail. It was obvious that these were dropped here on purpose, though it found it odd that they started at his door. Though Cloud didn’t pick up every piece of candy, he did unwrap and nibble on quite a few. In fact, it seemed to be a wonder that he didn’t choke on them when the candies led him down two flights of stairs...and then turned onto Zack’s floor.
His heart immediately began to pound. This had to be a mistake, he thought. He kept thinking that even when he slooowly followed the trail with heavy steps, only for the chocolates to stop in front of door 325.
Zack’s apartment.
He could’ve easily turned and ran back home to pretend this never happened. He knew that, but Cloud felt he’d come too far to turn back now. With a shaking hand, he lifted a fist to knock on the door, matching it with the fast pace of his heart.
Zack immediately flung the door open with a hopeful, slightly anxious expression. “Hey.”
Cloud didn’t answer. He couldn’t, because in Zack’s hand was a rose.
A rose identical to the eleven in his apartment.
“Zack...?”
The older man laughed nervously and stepped aside to let Cloud inside. “I was hoping you’d see that trail. You wouldn’t believe all the brats that kept trying to steal my candy stash.”
“Zack...” Cloud felt like all of the air had whooshed out of his lungs. “What is all this?”
“Well...” Zack let out a breath, relaxing himself before presenting the rose to Cloud. “Will you be my Valentine for today and the days after for as long as we can?”
“Huh!?”
“I really like you,” Zack explained quickly, apparently taking Cloud confusion as a negative thing. “I have for a long time. I figured today was a good one to make my move.”
“You...You’ve been leaving the roses?”
“Uh huh. I didn’t want to overwhelm you with a dozen of ‘em all at once, so I decided to spread it out.”
“Zack...” Cloud was absolutely touched. Only male pride kept him from crying, though his eyes did fill with tears. No one had ever done anything so sweet for him before, especially someone he liked. “Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Yes.” Cloud smiled and flung his arms around Zack, grinning as he squeezed him tightly. He chuckled lightly when Zack stiffened at first, since Cloud was never physically affectionate with anyone, but eventually the embrace was returned with gusto.
“Really?” Zack asked breathlessly, his grin a mile wide. “You’re not just messin’ with me?”
Cloud shook his head, also smiling. “I like you, too. I have for awhile.” He finally took the last rose with one hand and twined his fingers with Zack’s with the other. “C’mon. I have a bouquet to complete.”
“I never would’ve guessed you for such a flower guy,” Zack teased, letting Cloud lead him.
“Yeah, I know.” A pause. “You know what?”
“What?”
“It’s gonna be really hard for you to top this next year.”
Zack’s grin grew sly as he paused in front of Cloud’s apartment door. “Let’s make this one the most memorable then, shall we?”
“Gladly.” Cloud pulled them inside and added the last rose to the vase, admiring his finished bouquet - it was how he felt now.
Complete.
---------------
Ahahaha, I'm such a fluffernutter. See, my brain's made of cotton candy! It's delicious! Wait, don't eat my brain. >> Unless you're really hungry.
May your day be filled with chocolates and roses and awesome stuff! \o/ Comments are loooove, like Clack. ♥
For more of my stuff, check this out! You know you wanna. xD
♥
RainbowSerenity
Title: Mystery Admirer
Author: rainbowserenity
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Pairing: Zack/Cloud
Rating: T
Disclaimer: Squeenix owns my soul.
Warnings: None except tooth-rotting fluff, which might be overkill if you're eating candy. :D
Summary: Cloud keeps finding roses on his door. Clearly this means his has a stalker and not a secret admirer, right?
A/N: This is dedicated to everybody! Especially if you don't have someone to be with today or your someone is thousands of miles away across the Atlantic Ocean. Ahem. ♥
When Cloud found the first rose on his apartment door, he assumed it was put there by mistake. Or maybe it was a joke; he did often keep to himself for the most part and maybe some bratty kid wanted to get a rise out of him.
It wasn’t working. He stared at the innocent red flower, which he found unceremoniously taped to his door after he’d gotten home from work. Though it was probably a mistake, he unstuck it from his door anyway and gave it a careful sniff. Even though he’d never admit it, he was actually pretty fond of flowers. He was sorry the intended recipient would never get this one, because he planned on keeping it.
In fact, as soon as he got inside, he filled an old jar with water and stuck the rose in there. It looked kinda lonely - maybe he’d pick up some more on his way home tomorrow.
--
“Hey, hey Cloud! Wait up!”
Cloud turned and smiled at the familiar voice that belonged to none other than Zack Fair. Zack had been the first person to befriend him when he’d moved here three years ago, and even though they were polar opposites, Cloud thought they got along better than anyone else they knew.
“You got off early,” he remarked as Zack leaned over with his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
“Figured...Kunsel...could handle...the rest of the day,” Zack answered, finally getting his breath back. He and his friend Kunsel owned a fairly successful gym, though it probably got as much business as it did so half of the town’s female population could ogle him. Honestly, Cloud couldn’t really blame them. Zack had offered him a job there many times, but Cloud knew better than to put himself in constant close proximity with the dark-haired man.
“Not much left in the day.” It was four-thirty in the afternoon; the gym closed at six.
“Eh, still got out early.” Zack grinned. “I figured since it’s your day off, we could grab dinner somewhere and meet up with everyone else after.” His eyes darted to the bag in Cloud’s hands. “Unless you’d rather have your takeout?”
The blond had indeed been walking home with a big takeout bag of several sandwiches since he wasn’t much of a cook. The thought of dinner with Zack sounded much more appealing. “Nah, I’ll go. Just let me get this home.”
“I’ll walk you.”
“Not exactly a strenuous trip.” Zack lived in the same building two floors below him.
“It’s the thought that counts!”
“Yeah.” A little smile quirked on Cloud’s lips. “Better walk slow, though. Sounds like you’re getting out of shape from the way you were wheezing just now.”
“Heeeeey,” Zack drawled in a warning tone, though he was smiling too. “I’ll have you know that I’m in the best shape of my life!”
“Not from what I just heard.”
“It’s cold out, you know!”
“That tends to happen in February.”
“But I could be wheezing ‘cause it’s cold!”
“Just keep telling yourself that.”
“Ohhh, whatever.” After a good-natured grin, Zack led the two of them in a chat about the past few days, easily catching up the time they hadn’t seen each other.
It was always like this between them - happy, easygoing. Zack was the only person who could make Cloud practically give away his smiles. Maybe this was why he liked him so much. Cloud was hesitant to call it a crush, but he felt something there that he didn’t with his other friends. He had no idea if Zack felt the same way, which was why he kept his mouth shut.
They reached their apartment building in no time at all. As promised, Zack walked Cloud up to his door, though he grew strangely quiet as they approached it. Cloud hardly noticed, however.
“Another one?” He carefully plucked the rose from his door, frowning in concentration. No note, no indication of who had been there - just another flower, the same kind as yesterday.
“‘Another one’?”
Cloud turned and nodded at Zack’s curious expression. “Yeah. I found one on my door yesterday, too. I thought that it was a mistake, but...” He tried not to blush as realization dawned on him. “I guess not.”
“Looks like you’ve got a secret admirer,” Zack said with a grin, following Cloud inside.
“You think so?”
“Yeah. What else would it be?”
“I dunno.” Cloud shrugged and added the new rose to his makeshift vase. To be honest, the thought of someone liking him like that made him slightly uncomfortable. Unless that someone was Zack, but Cloud knew he wasn’t that lucky. “Maybe they left it on the wrong door again.”
“Don’t be such a pessimist.” Zack laughed and ruffled Cloud’s hair after he’d set the takeout down. “Where do you feel like going for dinner?”
“The usual place,” he replied, referring to a family-owned diner that knew the boys by name. It was a nice, quiet place to relax before meeting their friends at a big, noisy bar.
“‘Kay.” Zack smiled, looking relaxed as usual. “Let’s go.”
--
Though people would usually guess otherwise, Zack and Cloud were not big drinkers. In fact, they were usually the ones to stuff their drunken friends into cabs while they walked home, taking bets on who would have the worst hangover the next morning.
Right now, Cloud was betting that it’d be Zack. For whatever reason, the older man decided to get absolutely shitfaced and now Cloud was stuck lugging his ass home. He was beginning to wish that he’d stuffed Zack in a cab - the normally ten-minute walk to their building had taken more than a half an hour. It was a huge relief to finally get to Zack’s door.
“Now where’s your key...” Cloud muttered, sticking his hands in Zack’s pockets.
“Whooooooa, Spike,” Zack slurred incredibly loudly, especially for three in the morning. Cloud winced, hoping that people wouldn’t come out threatening them with baseball bats or something. “You gots wanderin’ hands, heh.”
“I’m looking for your key, dumbass.” Cloud finally found it and unlocked the door, dragging Zack inside.
“Ohhhh, getting’ frisky, arrrre we?”
“No.” Though he desperately tried to fight it, Cloud blushed a bit. Zack had a Southern accent that never seemed to come out unless he was drunk, and for some reason, it made his words seem more scandalous. “C’mon, let’s get you in bed.”
“Frisky!” Zack shouted with a laugh. Oh well, at least they weren’t in the hallway.
It took some struggling, but Cloud managed to get Zack in bed and slipped off his boots and belt, unable to help but blush a little more. But he dutifully continued taking care of his drunk friend and set out water and aspirin, knowing Zack would appreciate it come morning.
“I gotta get home,” Cloud said, shutting the curtains to the bedroom window. “You need to try and sleep, okay? If you do, you won’t complain so much tomorrow.”
“Friskyyyyy,” Zack repeated with a laugh.
“Whatever.”
“Clooooud.”
The blond had turned to leave, but faced Zack at the call of his name. To his surprise, he was met with the most vulnerable look he’d ever seen on Zack’s face. Something in those blue eyes made him want to climb in bed and have them talk for hours until they fell asleep in each other’s arms. It was an odd feeling and he wasn’t entirely sure how he was supposed to react to it.
“Yeah?”
Zack’s face scrunched up for a second, but he just grinned and cuddled up to his pillow. “Thank you.” A minute later, he was fast asleep. It was another ten before Cloud could bring himself to leave.
--
At first, he tried to leave so he could go check on Zack’s hangover, but Cloud was immediately distracted from that when he found rose number three attached to his door.
All he could do for a minute was stare. This was getting really bizarre - no way could whoever was leaving these have gotten the wrong apartment three days in a row, which meant the intended recipient had to be him.
But it didn’t make any sense. Why now? It seemed sort of random, and honestly, he wasn’t sure how he was supposed to feel about some creeper leaving flowers on his door. Maybe it was best not to think about it - whoever this mystery person was, well, they weren’t doing anything else but leaving the flowers. Plus, they really were very nice.
Cloud stepped back into his apartment and brought the rose to his nose, sniffing deeply. He’d always liked the smell of roses. They were sweet and fragrant, but not overwhelmingly so. It was the kind of flower you had to put right up to your face to smell.
With a little smile, he added it to the jar and poured in more water. He was just about to leave again to check on Zack when his cell phone rang. “Hello?”
“Spike?”
Cloud’s eyes widened. It was nine in the morning - waaay too early for Zack to be awake while he was hungover. “Zack? You’re awake?”
“Uh huh. Dirty rat Kunsel called way too early to tell me I didn’t have to come in.”
Even though Zack couldn’t see him, Cloud smiled. “At least you’re awake.”
“I guess.”
“I was gonna come check on you, but I guess - ”
“You can still come over,” Zack interrupted quickly. “Just, y’know. Quietly.”
“Alright.” Cloud had already left and locked his door. “I’m on my way.”
“Great.” There was a creaking noise, which was presumably Zack getting out of bed. “Ugh, room’s spinning...”
“Don’t hurt yourself.” Cloud hung up with a quietly amused chuckle. Even though it only took him a few minutes to trek down two flights of stairs, it was still awhile before Zack answered the door once he’d knocked.
And no wonder. “You look, uh...”
“Awful, I know.” Despite his words, Zack smiled and gestured for Cloud to come inside. “It’s Kunsel’s fault for waking me up.”
“At least you have the day off.”
“Yeah.” Zack led them to his blessedly dark bedroom where he immediately flopped back into bed with a groan. “Even so, ugh.”
Cloud just made a sympathetic noise. “Can I get you anything?”
“Uh...” Zack’s eyes cracked open. “Another glass of water? I only took one aspirin before I called you.”
“Okay.”
After Cloud dutifully got the water and watched Zack toss back two more aspirin, he just stood there awkwardly. Zack probably called him over just for that, really. In fact, the older man looked about read to pass out for the next week or so.
However, to Cloud’s surprise, Zack patted the empty space next to him on the bed. “Stay with me?” He managed a smile. “If you have nothing better to do than keep a stupid hungover guy company, that is.”
“You’re not stupid.” Cloud gingerly lay beside Zack, his mind instantly flashing to that moment last night, that vulnerability. It was doubtful that Zack remembered, but Cloud still blushed a bit at the thought. He racked his mind to think about something, anything that would take his mind off of it.
“I got another rose.”
Zack was quiet for so long that Cloud started to wonder if he’d spoken at all, but finally there was an answer. “Really?”
“Uh huh. Still no note.”
“That’d defeat the purpose of a secret admirer.”
“You really think that’s what it is?”
“I dunno.” Zack smiled again. “What else could it be?”
“I don’t know.” It made sense, but Cloud felt kind of uncomfortable with the idea of a mystery admirer. Well, unless it was a certain someone, but he wasn’t about to voice that out loud. “Someone still getting the wrong door?”
“Pffft. So pessimistic.”
“Just realistic. Someone has to be.”
“So what does that make me!?”
Cloud chuckled. “Way too optimistic.”
“Heh.” Zack grinned, rolling onto his side to gently ruffle Cloud’s hair. “Someone has to be.”
--
Either Cloud’s realism was failing or Zack’s optimism was working way too well, because for the next week, the roses kept coming. There was never a note and they were always weirdly fresh enough that made it obvious that they were being left either right before Cloud left his apartment or shortly before he got home. This worried him a little - what if he had a stalker? - but nothing had been left aside from the flowers, so he wasn’t too concerned.
The makeshift vase was filling nicely, and he vaguely hoped that the mystery flower-giver would continue for at least two more days so he could have a dozen. It really was nice having flowers around. Maybe once these roses wilted, he’d get bouquets once in awhile.
He was gazing at the flowers, lost in thought, when the door to his unlocked apartment suddenly burst open. Cloud nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Spike, you shouldn’t leave your door open! Some whacko could just waltz right in!”
“Yeah, or you.” Cloud willed his heart to quit racing. “To what do I owe this invasion of privacy, Zack?”
“I wanted to ask - ” Zack let out a low whistle as he spotted the bouquet. “Wow, you definitely have a secret admirer.”
“Maybe. It’s kinda weird to think about.”
“Not really.” Zack quirked a weird little smile and turned back to Cloud. “Anyway, I wanted to know if you were working this weekend.”
“Nope.” It was Cloud’s first free weekend in months and he planned to thoroughly enjoy it.
Apparently Zack had the same idea, if the way his face lit up was any indication. “Really?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Ohhh, just wondering.”
Cloud raised a suspicious eyebrow. “You came barging into my apartment to ask me something that you could’ve easily asked over the phone?”
“Yup.”
There was a pause. Cloud rolled his eyes so hard it was a wonder they didn’t fall right out of his head, which was apparently answer enough.
“Heh, we’re still friends, right?”
“Of course, you big dork.”
“Good.” Zack grinned. “But hey, I’ve gotta go. Got some shopping to do.” He gave a two-fingered wave and scurried off. “I’ll see you later!”
“Zack -!” Cloud frowned a little. The abruptness of his friend’s departure was weird - as weird as the way he could hear Zack literally counting his steps out loud as he headed down the stairs. Strange.
--
When Cloud woke up a day later, he was already smiling. The last few roses - including the eleventh one yesterday - had all been there in the morning. Though he was still weirded out at the thought of having a potential stalker, the flowers never failed to make him smile.
He was about to go check his door when his cell phone rang. After lazily picking it, he discovered to his delight that it was his friend Tifa. “Hey, Tifa.”
“Hey Cloud! Happy Valentine’s Day!”
“Huh?”
There was a pause. “It’s the fourteenth, silly.”
“Oh, right.” Cloud barely kept track of the days, much less a lesser holiday that had nothing to do with him. “Why are you telling me this?”
“No reason.” Tifa sounded a little disappointed for some reason.
“Right.” Silence. Long pauses seemed to happen around most of his friends - except Zack, who filled it with inane chatter. “Are you and Rinoa doing anything?”
“Not ‘til tonight.” As usual, Tifa’s voice grew chipper at the mention of her girlfriend. “She’s gotta work an early shift, but we’re having dinner and doing presents tonight.”
“What’d you get her?”
“...A coffeemaker.”
Cloud actually pulled the phone away from his ear and stared for a moment, wondering if he’d heard that right. “A coffeemaker?”
“Don’t ask.”
“That’s a weird Valentine present.”
“I said don’t ask!”
“You know -” Cloud was smirking a bit, but it turned into a frown when he heard a thump at the door. A knock? “Tifa, I gotta go. I think someone’s at the door.”
“Okay.” She sounded amused for some reason. “Talk to you later.”
“Bye.” He hung up the phone and got up, quiet as he waited for another knock - but nothing came. That was odd, but it suddenly occurred to him that maybe it was whoever had been leaving the roses! Cloud suddenly raced for the door and yanked it open so fast it was a wonder it didn’t go flying off the hinges.
No rose.
Cloud’s shoulders sagged in disappointment. Maybe he’d heard wrong. Maybe it was just a neighbor making noise. At any rate, he still had eleven other flowers to enjoy. He turned to head back inside, but a little glint of something caught the corner of his eye.
There was a piece of candy on the floor in front of him.
With a curious frown, Cloud picked it up and examined it - a chocolate-covered caramel, one of his favorites. Well, hey, it was Valentine’s Day. Maybe someone had dropped it.
At least, that was his theory until he noticed another identically wrapped chocolate a few feet away. When he went to pick that one up, he noticed another one. And another and another...
For whatever reason, Cloud decided to follow the trail. It was obvious that these were dropped here on purpose, though it found it odd that they started at his door. Though Cloud didn’t pick up every piece of candy, he did unwrap and nibble on quite a few. In fact, it seemed to be a wonder that he didn’t choke on them when the candies led him down two flights of stairs...and then turned onto Zack’s floor.
His heart immediately began to pound. This had to be a mistake, he thought. He kept thinking that even when he slooowly followed the trail with heavy steps, only for the chocolates to stop in front of door 325.
Zack’s apartment.
He could’ve easily turned and ran back home to pretend this never happened. He knew that, but Cloud felt he’d come too far to turn back now. With a shaking hand, he lifted a fist to knock on the door, matching it with the fast pace of his heart.
Zack immediately flung the door open with a hopeful, slightly anxious expression. “Hey.”
Cloud didn’t answer. He couldn’t, because in Zack’s hand was a rose.
A rose identical to the eleven in his apartment.
“Zack...?”
The older man laughed nervously and stepped aside to let Cloud inside. “I was hoping you’d see that trail. You wouldn’t believe all the brats that kept trying to steal my candy stash.”
“Zack...” Cloud felt like all of the air had whooshed out of his lungs. “What is all this?”
“Well...” Zack let out a breath, relaxing himself before presenting the rose to Cloud. “Will you be my Valentine for today and the days after for as long as we can?”
“Huh!?”
“I really like you,” Zack explained quickly, apparently taking Cloud confusion as a negative thing. “I have for a long time. I figured today was a good one to make my move.”
“You...You’ve been leaving the roses?”
“Uh huh. I didn’t want to overwhelm you with a dozen of ‘em all at once, so I decided to spread it out.”
“Zack...” Cloud was absolutely touched. Only male pride kept him from crying, though his eyes did fill with tears. No one had ever done anything so sweet for him before, especially someone he liked. “Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Yes.” Cloud smiled and flung his arms around Zack, grinning as he squeezed him tightly. He chuckled lightly when Zack stiffened at first, since Cloud was never physically affectionate with anyone, but eventually the embrace was returned with gusto.
“Really?” Zack asked breathlessly, his grin a mile wide. “You’re not just messin’ with me?”
Cloud shook his head, also smiling. “I like you, too. I have for awhile.” He finally took the last rose with one hand and twined his fingers with Zack’s with the other. “C’mon. I have a bouquet to complete.”
“I never would’ve guessed you for such a flower guy,” Zack teased, letting Cloud lead him.
“Yeah, I know.” A pause. “You know what?”
“What?”
“It’s gonna be really hard for you to top this next year.”
Zack’s grin grew sly as he paused in front of Cloud’s apartment door. “Let’s make this one the most memorable then, shall we?”
“Gladly.” Cloud pulled them inside and added the last rose to the vase, admiring his finished bouquet - it was how he felt now.
Complete.
---------------
Ahahaha, I'm such a fluffernutter. See, my brain's made of cotton candy! It's delicious! Wait, don't eat my brain. >> Unless you're really hungry.
May your day be filled with chocolates and roses and awesome stuff! \o/ Comments are loooove, like Clack. ♥
For more of my stuff, check this out! You know you wanna. xD
♥
RainbowSerenity