Final Fantasy VII (Zack)
Short, bristly hairs rasped against his palm as he rubbed his cheek, squinting at his reflection and trying to decide if he needed to shave again. It wasn’t a daily occurrence for him yet - thank the gods who watched over those who liked to sleep in - but the shadow rimming his jaw was looking rather more obvious than he figured he could probably get away with when he was on duty today.
Zack hummed lightly as he wet his razor, absently grinning at how different the stubble made his face look. Scruffier than usual certainly, and yet somehow strangely defined, drawing attention to the hollows of his cheeks, the faint cleft in his chin - chiseling his features in a way that he claimed made him look rugged but Cloud said made him look like a hobo. Zack set razor to skin, careful to keep his face still as he chuckled ruefully. Cloud was right, of course - all that dark hair peppering his face really didn’t suit him - but Zack couldn’t help enjoying the feel of stubble anyway.
And there was something about the whole shaving thing that made him feel awfully mature. Which was patently ridiculous when he was a SOLDIER First Class and had more responsibilities than most people twice his age, but Zack had never been particularly bothered by being ridiculous. And there was a lot more to being mature than the speed and strength and power of a SOLDIER.
The razor arched cleanly across his cheek, firm patience and a desire not to cut off his own nose helping Zack keep the blade steady. He’d been getting a lot more practice at that over the last few months - an ever-increasing amount of stubble making it clear that, though the mako in his veins wanted him ageless, some part of him was determined to mature at a normal rate. And Zack liked that idea, even though he wagered Shinra didn’t. And SOLDIER or not, he didn’t think he’d finished growing just because his body had. Not when it was still so much fun to be immature.
A sleepy figure wearing Zack’s pajamas wandered into the bathroom, blond hair sticking out all over in an erratic tumble of sleep-tousled spikes.
“Morning sunshine,” Zack greeted, tilting his chin up to get the spot below his jaw. “Sleep well?”
“Mmm,” Cloud answered unintelligibly, shuffling forward to wrap his arms loosely around Zack’s waist. “M’ning.”
Zack wasn’t quite done shaving but set his razor aside anyway, bending towards Cloud’s upturned face to share a good morning kiss. Cloud murmured contentedly into his mouth, purring as Zack’s unshaven cheek rasped against his skin. Zack smiled in fond amusement, wondering if anyone would notice if he left the rest of his face stubbly till tomorrow.
Because really, whether it made him look like a hobo or not, there was something immensely satisfying in knowing that Cloud liked the feel of his stubble as much as he did.
~owari
Zack hummed lightly as he wet his razor, absently grinning at how different the stubble made his face look. Scruffier than usual certainly, and yet somehow strangely defined, drawing attention to the hollows of his cheeks, the faint cleft in his chin - chiseling his features in a way that he claimed made him look rugged but Cloud said made him look like a hobo. Zack set razor to skin, careful to keep his face still as he chuckled ruefully. Cloud was right, of course - all that dark hair peppering his face really didn’t suit him - but Zack couldn’t help enjoying the feel of stubble anyway.
And there was something about the whole shaving thing that made him feel awfully mature. Which was patently ridiculous when he was a SOLDIER First Class and had more responsibilities than most people twice his age, but Zack had never been particularly bothered by being ridiculous. And there was a lot more to being mature than the speed and strength and power of a SOLDIER.
The razor arched cleanly across his cheek, firm patience and a desire not to cut off his own nose helping Zack keep the blade steady. He’d been getting a lot more practice at that over the last few months - an ever-increasing amount of stubble making it clear that, though the mako in his veins wanted him ageless, some part of him was determined to mature at a normal rate. And Zack liked that idea, even though he wagered Shinra didn’t. And SOLDIER or not, he didn’t think he’d finished growing just because his body had. Not when it was still so much fun to be immature.
A sleepy figure wearing Zack’s pajamas wandered into the bathroom, blond hair sticking out all over in an erratic tumble of sleep-tousled spikes.
“Morning sunshine,” Zack greeted, tilting his chin up to get the spot below his jaw. “Sleep well?”
“Mmm,” Cloud answered unintelligibly, shuffling forward to wrap his arms loosely around Zack’s waist. “M’ning.”
Zack wasn’t quite done shaving but set his razor aside anyway, bending towards Cloud’s upturned face to share a good morning kiss. Cloud murmured contentedly into his mouth, purring as Zack’s unshaven cheek rasped against his skin. Zack smiled in fond amusement, wondering if anyone would notice if he left the rest of his face stubbly till tomorrow.
Because really, whether it made him look like a hobo or not, there was something immensely satisfying in knowing that Cloud liked the feel of his stubble as much as he did.
~owari