Chapter 4 - A Not-so-modest Proposal
"You're asking me for a date in exchange for my freedom? Now that's professional of you," she muttered sarcastically.
Zack smirked back at her; "I never said anything about being professional, now did I?" Every rational thought in her mind told her to decline the offer, prison couldn't be that bad, and Barret was surely working on a plan to break her out of there any minute. But the truth struck her suddenly, her team had abandoned her, the weak link was captured. They had no use for her; she was apparently only a burden to them. She looked Zack over once more as she weighed her options. He was a bit taller than her with a body fitting of a top rank SOLDIER, mako green eyes shone out beneath the black strands of hair that hung before them. All in all, he at least looked decent on the outside, but it was what kind of thoughts he had hidden beneath that exterior that worried Tifa. Finally, after the debate had ended in her head, she stood up from the cot and stretched her arms over her head.
"I accept...but you better not try anything funny, I won't let myself get caught off guard again."
Zack stood up before her, "What am I gonna do? Move you to a more decorative cell?" he chuckled a bit and pulled the handcuffs from his back pocket, grabbing her outstretched arms and securing them together above her head.
She brought her arms down and tugged at the restraints, "Handcuffs...now that's a great touch for a first date..." she mumbled under her breath. He ignored the comment and opened the door, dragging her past the unconscious guard he had knocked out earlier. As they went to access the elevators to the other levels, the main clearance guard stopped them.
"Where are you taking this prisoner?" he demanded, one hand on his radio.
Zack brushed the guard off with a wave of his hand, "The President wanted to see her, don't worry about it."
As they wove through the dim, twisted corridors past numerous doors leading to rooms containing god-knows-what, Tifa struggled to keep up as she questioned about their destination. "Hey, you're getting a tour that only SOLDIER members are normally privileged to go on...you're a lucky girl" he retorted, swiping his card key at another door to grant them access into the hallway beyond. The corridor contained countless rows of doors, each identical to the next save the number engraved on the front. Zack stepped up to one and swiped his card, allowing the panel to slide open and reveal a room slightly larger than her prison cell and about as adequately furnished as well. With a gentle nudge he motioned her into the room as the door slid shut behind them, an affirmative beep sounding that it was locked.
She stood in the middle of the room as he walked past her, stopping for a second to release the handcuffs and toss them upon the bed as he leaned against the wall. She rubbed her wrists where the metal had dug in and glanced up at him to find his eyes making an appreciative study of her figure, a slightly feral grin upon his face. "So what do you want from me? Just quit the games and let me know where this little charade is leading. The sooner you're satisfied, the sooner I can leave, right?" He chuckled a bit, straightening up and walking around behind her to slip his arms around her shoulders in an attempt to relax her. She shuddered at his touch and backed away, "I should have guessed..."
Tifa's expression turned distressed, almost as if she was in pain. Zack picked up on this and backed off a little, giving her a genuine smile. "Hey, I'm not that bad of a guy...if it'll make you feel better, I'll sneak you out for dinner and a movie first?" Her arms crossed over her chest as her palms gripped her shoulders, eyes shut in concentration. In her mind, Tifa was silently closing herself off from what was going to happen. She wanted to block it all from her mind; it was a temporary inconvenience to allow her to escape back to AVALANCHE.
It was then that the doubts set in. Would they accept her back after that failure, and would she want to be accepted back into a group that had left her to rot in a ShinRa prison? Finally, she answered him with closed eyes and a blank face, "Just...get it over with...if it'll get me out of here." His expression went from concerned to predatory as he moved in closer, bringing his hand up to her chin and tilting her mouth towards hers in a light kiss. Her lips pursed at the touch as she forced her body to ignore the feelings and remain cold. His free arm wrapped around her waist as he drew her in closer, moaning slightly as he nuzzled against her neck. The hand snaked its way to her stomach, fingers trailing lightly around her navel before dipping into the waistband of her skirt. Tifa soon found herself being slowly manuvered toward the bed where Zack would seal his end of the deal.
In the course of the events that night, Zack proved not only skilled on the battlefield, but skilled in the bed as well. Through her initial protests, she attempted to keep impassive to all the amazing minstrations he lavished upon her body. Tifa soon found herself submitting willfully to his touch, unable to even hate herself in the heat of the moment. But when their carnal desires were sated, Tifa slipped away and crouched against the wall at the foot of the bed. Zack sensed the change in her emotions and turned to face her, propping himself up on one elbow. Her eyes caught his, showing the mixture of embarrassment and despair hidden within their depths. He chuckled a bit, "So, looks like you ended up with a win/win situation after all, eh?"
She cringed slightly and turned her back to him, "Don't mock me," she sneered.
He laughed slightly before turning his back to her side with a grin, "I'll help you out in the morning...I'm sure you need some sleep now though. Goodnight Tifa." She turned back toward him to give another flippant remark, but suddenly something registered in her mind. Tifa. Her name...she had never given him her name, so how did he know it? Jesse had given them all fake ID cards, complete with false names, so there was no way that he could've run a check on her. Her mind ran itself to exhaustion as she pondered over just how much he knew about her. As sleep claimed her as well, the last thing she saw was a pale scar running along his side. SOLDIERs apparently had some battles they just couldn't forget about after all.
-
To be continued in Chapter 5 - Hey Bartender