The clock ticked steadily, counting down time until Cloud got back home. They picked that clock out together – it had Vs and Is for numbers from one to seven, and the rest of the hours were represented by a sun, a cloud, X and XI were numbers again, and midnight was a moon. Cloud said that was the first clock he saw that featured both their nicknames. Zack Fair is the always sunny kind of guy, while Cloud's nickname is obvious. He also said that if either of them is away on a mission, when the clock strikes midnight they will be looking at the moon together.
Who would just randomly make a clock that had numbers everywhere but 8, 9 and 12 was beyond Zack, but he didn't see another one like it at the store since. All the rest had either all the numbers or all the pictures, or other designs but never this one. Made it all the more special.
The water was boiling on the stove and Scry was watching it like it was the most fascinating thing in the world. He was a fluffy black cat with a single white ear. They had him ever since he was a kitten. One day Cloud came back and saw Zack playing with this tiny kitten who had boundless energy despite being rather thin and having a certain street cat look about him. They never found his owners, so he became part of the family.
'Whatcha looking at, cat?' asked Zack the creature, with an amused smirk. 'There is no meat or anything cool there, just water.'
Scry mewed and continued watching the water and the steam that was rising above it. Zack petted him and laughed. Silly cat.
'Here, have a little treat' Zack walked over to the plain-looking fridge in an equally boring looking kitchen. Neither of the guys spent much time here – preferring cooking something simple or just ordering out – so no one saw a need to decorate it.
There was a single magnet on the fridge however, some random cow chewing on Shinra's company logo. No one knew where it came from or why exactly.
Zack took out a handful of shrimps and put them on the counter in front of Scry. The cat purred the second he saw shrimps, and continued purring while crunching them down.
The water was really boiling now, so Zack had to attend to it fast. He opened five packets of ramen at once, since Cloud could easily wolf those down. That and he now had to cook for two. There was something nice about that simple fact, to be able to share your daily meals with someone you care about. Over time he picked up on favorite foods that Cloud has, and ramen and tea was one of them. Brussel sprouts was something Cloud despised, on the other hand.
Zack never tried them, and he didn't quite believe they were that bad, so one day he boiled a few of them and just put them on the table along with other food. Cloud's face when he saw them was priceless. After chuckling a bit, Zack casually stabbed a brussel sprout with a fork and popped it into his mouth. Wow, it really was very…very nasty. Cloud's hearty laugh was worth it though, so Zack tried a few more. Each managed to taste even worse than the one before, but Cloud was doubling over and could no longer stop the laughter so it was pretty awesome.
Since then he would eat brussel sprouts every once in a while when on long missions. Others commended him on being all healthy and even gave him more brussel sprouts since he ate so many and must have loved them. Each time they tasted horrible but the memories they caused warmed his heart.
All the packet opening and the fridge door slamming caused a rush of claws against the linoleum as Trevor left his usual spot under the big potted plant and made it a matter of life and death to get to the kitchen. Scry ignored the commotion and was busy giving Zack pleading eyes, taking short breaks every once in a while to dramatically sniff the place where shrimp used to be.
'You big goof,' laughed Zack. 'You just had your meal. You are acting like we never feed you or give you any attention. Whatsoever.'
He petted the dog as its tail wagged madly from side to side and its tongue hang from its smiling mouth. Trevor was a Siberian husky puppy that Cloud brought home. He showed up one day in the army barracks, no one knew from where. Naturally he couldn't stay there, since they had strict no pet policies. Zack took care of him for a while, since SOLDIER members had better accommodations. At first Trevor and Scry weren't on the best of terms, but now they got along like best buds.
'Alright alright, I'll give you a treat. Just don't go complaining to Cloud that I am making you fat. You hear me?' Zack looked the dog in the equally blue eyes and nodded, since it looked like Trevor understood.
He gave him a generous slice of turkey and gave Scry another helping of shrimps. Scry mewed happily and quickly began devouring them.
In a few minutes ramen was done, so Zack turned off the stove and got out the bowls and chopsticks. He also got out two Shinra issue trays, plates for the salad and sushi and some napkins. Before putting all the food together he went and got a green bird out of his cage – Manchu – since he was screaming to be let out for quite a few minutes now, but couldn't be out because of boiling water.
'Seriously, you are like a kid sometimes, Manchu. I wasn't going anywhere.' Manchu chirped from Zack's shoulder and chewed on a strand of his hair.
Zack shook his head and returned to assembling the meal as the animals watched. Soon everything was all set on the low small table next to the couch in the living room. Living room was much better decorated than the kitchen, with various interesting trinkets each man brought back from missions, a case of neatly stacked Materia that belonged to Cloud – Zack didn't bother to understand how it works –, a giant plant (named Green) that grew all the way to the ceiling and that Trevor liked to hang out under, since he thought he was a jungle dog or something.
Footsteps and Trevors excited barking alerted the SOLDIER that his husband was home.
'Welcome home, Chocobo!' Zack greeted Cloud with a smile and pulled him into a tight embrace and a kiss before he even had a chance to respond. Kiss lasted for a few minutes, and all through that time Manchu stayed on Zack's shoulder, trying to peck at both Cloud's and Zack's hair.
'It is good to be home,' Cloud finally got a chance to answer the greeting, with that quiet but actually incredibly happy smile of his. 'I was trying to get back earlier, with it being company holiday tomorrow, but they wouldn't budge. You even had time to make dinner. Is that…' Cloud sniffed the air 'ramen?'
'Aye, I picked some up on the way back home. I chose the kind we didn't try before, so I am not sure if it is good or not. I got sushi too, in case it is not edible,' Zack took Cloud's gun from him and set it on the rack by the door. Zack's Bustersword was there as well, together with smaller swords that actually were used in combat.
'I am sure it is great either way. I am starving' Cloud wasn't kidding, the guy was known to eat an entire pizza at once and still ask for more.
'Well eat your fill, Cloudy, we got plenty of food' Zack ruffled the guy's hair and went to turn the TV on, while Cloud changed out of the uniform and into casual clothes.
They ate mystery ramen together and watched the tv, sharing a few quiet moments together and tossing stories back and forth about such and such cadet who forgot to wear his second boot, or Kunsel and his need to get a life since otherwise he spends it texting everyone about a cockroach in the briefing room. Scry climbed on the back of the couch, while Trevor curled up next to their feet.
After the meal Zack brought out a nice ceramic teapot to the balcony and poured them a cup of hot tea to wind down the day with. City lights shimmered in the warm night air. Manchu stole some fruit and was happily eating on it, ignoring the free open air all around him. There was no other place he would rather be.
Cloud was looking out at the lights as he sipped his tea, and Zack smiled at the sight. Such simple moments of happiness are what life is made for.