4. Title: Sucrose
Timeframe: Five Months after Laryngitis
Rating: K+
Spoilers: Mild DoC
Notes: Mindless almost-fluff, with a bit of expository musings. And cream puffs! Plus, it kind of sets the tone for their pre-romance relationship, if you get my meaning. I'm also churning these chapters out pretty fast. Unfortunately, things will slow down after the next update. Classes are getting harder... my appologies! In return for your patience, and reviews, the next chapter will be far... darker.
"In general use, non-scientists take 'sugar' to mean sucrose, also called 'table sugar'."
"I'm hungry."
With no further warning than that, Yuffie grabbed his arm, propelling him across the square and into a small café. Passersby stared, some more openly than others, at the sight of the small, brightly clothed figure towing the tall, imposing man behind her. Still more stares were earned from the plump woman behind the counter of the café. She covered it quickly, turning the expression into a bland smile.
He shouldn't have minded. It was useless to care so much about the looks, the confusion they garnered from the casual observer. All the same, it rankled.
"Buy me something."
Her voice caught him off-guard. He looked down. Dark eyes were turned up at him, full of innocent pleading. A shy smile graced her face. It was her most dangerous expression.
"You have your own money," Vincent said flatly, well-aware he was playing into her little trap. Whether she "borrowed" it, or whether it came from their dark-haired employer, chances were, Yuffie had some amount of cash on her at any given time. At least, that was how things usually worked in their months of work.
"The WRO needs a couple of people out in the field. You two are the best we have right now."
"So we're doing your dirty work?"
"In a way."
Her voice snapped him back from the past. "Well… I did. But… I kinna…" Yuffie's gaze fell from him to her feet. "I spent it all." She looked up again, hands clasped. They released each other quickly, flailing out at her sides as she spoke. "And Reeve won't send any more for a whole week! Vinnie, I'll starve!" One step closed the distance between them. He didn't budge. "You gotta help me!"
He made the mistake of blinking. The proprietor was finding the entire exchange hysterical, and made frantic efforts to stifle the sentiment. Not wishing to give her a further show, he started for the door. "You're exaggerating," he said. "We have a schedule to keep."
"Just a minute!" Yuffie's shoes squeaked against the tiled floor. "I'd like a cream puff," he heard her say.
Only slightly puzzled, he turned back to face her, and was promptly confronted with the sight of the girl handing over a few gil from an abused, black leather wallet. He sighed. It really was stupid of him to have blinked.
"How long have you had that?" he asked, after she had received her treat and all but shoved him into a seat. She sat across from him, contemplating the large, custard-filled pastry before her with no small amount of glee. Said custard proceeded to squirt out either side as she took a far too-large bite.
"Since payday," she snickered, licking her lips.
There goes that theory.
"You just crammed all your cash right on in there." Another bite, accompanied by a munching sound effect—care of Yuffie. "Easy pickin's! It was so fat, I didn't even have to stick my whole hand in."
That gave him cause to hesitate. As if sensing her description had gone awry, Yuffie quite nearly choked, face flushing. They both knew where exactly she would have had to place her thieving hand to collect the ill-gotten wallet. Although, how exactly she'd managed to duck under his cloak, and dip her hand into his back pocket was very much a mystery.
"It's not what you think!" she shouted frantically, waving her arms about. "I mean… it sort of is! But I didn't like, feel your butt or anything—oh geeze…" Yuffie's face continued to redden as she tried to desperately explain herself. The effect only caused the flecks of custard speckling her face to stand out brighter. "I'm not making this any better, am I?"
He quirked an eyebrow. "You're a mess," he told her.
"That's not fair!"
"I mean it."
Slowly, as if not to startle her, he reached out, brushing a blob of custard from her cheek. For lack of anything better to do with it, he held it up for her examination.
Yuffie gaped.
"It's all over your face," he continued, trying to flick the blob off his gloved finger. "You need a napkin." Dark brows furrowed. "Or several."
Sputtering, she stood up to do so. As she did, he caught her wrist, gently taking back his much-abused wallet. Her snicker gave him pause, and he cracked it open, only to be met with the sight of leather, not gil. He stifled a sigh.
"Yuffie…"
"Yep?" She plunked herself back into her seat. All traces of mess were absent from her face. "You wanna bite?" The pastry dangled under his nose, still oozing custard.
"Where is the money?"
She gave an evil chuckle. "Right under your nose, Vince." A dark glance downwards implicated the pastry. "You want your fair share, right? After all… you did buy it.
To argue with her in this mood was pointless. She would keep waving the thing around until he gave in, or left. Considering he had no idea as to what exactly she'd taken from him earlier, it was against his better judgment to leave. Plus, that would only earn him a series of shouts, followed by a frantic chase down the streets, and, if he were exceptionally unlucky, an attempted blow to the head.
Awkwardly, Vincent inclined his head, keeping his hair well away from the pastry. The bite he took was delicate in comparison to hers, as if he were loathe to touch it as much as possible. It was almost too sweet for his liking.
Victorious, she snatched it back, reclining in her chair to finish her desert. A mischievous grin plastered itself across her face.
"Now, give me my gun back."
Her eyebrows shot up into her hairline. "How'd you know I…?"
He didn't bother explaining. Some things, you simply missed more than others. Huffily, she returned the weapon, purposefully leaving traces of custard across the sleek metal. As her attention remained focused on her food, he set to cleaning it, pausing only slightly when a particularly large glob attached itself to his glove. He glanced at her, then back to the glob.
It was almost too sweet.
"I saw that!" Yuffie shouted, triumph in her voice. She nearly fell over in laughter, watching him remove his now-clean finger from his mouth. "I knew you'd cave!"
Black brows arched. "Only getting my money's worth," Vincent replied shortly, then set back to cleaning his gun.
