Calling out from work was not exactly something Zelda did on a regular basis. She loved her job despite the chaos and the rude people, so the thought of just taking a day never crossed her mind. When she called Peach to inform her she was taking the day the designer went overboard with her concern, making the assistant smile.

"You didn't need to call out," Ike grumbled from her couch. Zelda looked over at him, loving the sight of him wrapped up in her blanket and laying down. He was tall and took up the whole couch, but something about the whole image just made a warmth spread through her.

"I know you're not helpless if that's what you're trying to say," she started as she leaned her elbows against her counter, "but it makes me feel better to be here."

"I like you being here," he said before a cough roughly escaped his throat. "I would be freaked out the whole time that you're calling the cops saying I broke in."

"I wouldn't do that to you." She rolled her eyes as she straightened up. "I'm going to make some soup for you, an old family recipe. It's always helped me feel better when I'm sick."

"You don't have to but if you want to I'd love some." She watched as his eyes slowly slid shut and shook her head, amused.

XxX

Ike sat one the couch, unsure exactly what he was looking at. Zelda hovered above him, her smile far too happy for what she had placed in his lap. The bowl of chicken noodle soup, an old family recipe, did not look appetizing.

Warily Ike picked up the spoon and dipped it into the broth, trying to hide his grimace. Not once in his life had he seen a chicken noodle soup with such a bizarre browned broth. It had been awhile since he'd had chicken noodle soup sure, but there was no way whatever he was about to raise to his lips was it.

He cut his eyes to her once more and noted the way she stood there nervously and he knew, no matter how awful it tasted, he was going to lie. With that in place he raised the spoon and took a bite, choking back a cough at the abundance of pepper and some other seasoning attacking his tastebuds.

"How is it?" Zelda's voice made him cringe internally and he schooled his features into a happy smile.

"It's great," he lied as he dipped the spoon in to get another bite. "What's all in this?"

"Well chicken, chicken stock, I didn't have fresh vegetables so frozen ones, some spices..." she trailed off and Ike nodded as he raised a bite of definitely overcooked chicken to his lips. "My mom used to make it for me all the time growing up. Whenever I needed comfort she made it. I don't uh... Honestly I don't cook much so I wasn't sure if I did it right."

"I think you should definitely cook more." Ike tried to say it like a compliment and felt a wave of relief when she beamed at him. It felt awful lying to her, but he could just see how it would crush her if he admitted it was terrible. Besides that he went from picking at questionable food left in dumpsters and trash cans to a badly cooked soup made just for him and he reasoned the thought counted more than the execution.

With that he decided to grit his teeth and gulp it down as she poured the soup into a container for storage.

XxX

Zelda was running late and she blamed Ike. Well, that wasn't fair. He was just curled up on her couch passed out like a wonderful mix of adorable and sexy and she had made herself fall behind schedule by watching him. But she blamed him. She rushed from her spot in the kitchen back into her room and slipped on her boots before going back out into the kitchen and moving to her coffee maker.

As she started the machine she opened the fridge for her creamer and froze at the sight of the soup. Ike had said he loved it and it had definitely been steadily decreasing in the container, so she decided to take some with her to work. Judging by the emails she had already received she was in for a rough day and only having to step away to heat up lunch would be better than leaving.

The coffee machine beeped and Zelda pulled both the soup and creamer from the fridge. She poured and stirred the creamer with practiced ease before chancing a glance at the still sleeping Ike. With a smile she got out a travel bowl and filled it with the soup, trying to remember if it was ever that dark when her mom had made it.

XxX

As Zelda listened on the phone to the director of the fashion show drone on and on about how much she couldn't wait to see what Peach had designed she warmed up the soup.

"Yes Peach has been doing some incredible things," Zelda cut in finally when the woman took a breath. "And I promise I will get the finalized list of how many items as soon as possible." She listened for a minute more as she pulled the soup from the microwave. The woman could and would go on for hours, the praise falling on deaf ears.

"I'll be sure to let Peach know," Zelda managed to slip in as she walked back to her desk with the bowl of soup balanced delicately in her hands. She reclaimed her seat and rolled her eyes as she pulled up her email on the computer.

Absent-mindedly Zelda dipped her spoon into the soup and raised it to her lips, rolling her eyes at the obvious ass kissing director probably hoping for some goodies. She blew a soft stream of air over the steaming soup and smiled to herself as she thought of Ike most likely eating his own bowl by now. Smile still in place she took a bite.

Her eyes widened and Zelda immediately spat it back out, coughing up a storm. "Goddesses," she breathed around another cough, "how did I burn soup?" After profusely apologizing for coughing into the phone Zelda vowed to nag Ike for lying to her.

XxX

After a week of resting and taking his various medicines Ike felt better than he had in a long time. He woke up to Zelda trying to be stealthy as she made her morning coffee. The sight of her walking around carefully and mumbling a curse word when the coffee machine beeped made him laugh and she whirled in surprise.

"Sorry! Did I wake you?" she asked and he shook his head.

"Just woke up on my own." He sat up and stretched, his eyes falling to the faded scars that littered his body. Growing up for him had been anything but easy, but he wouldn't change a thing. His eyes flicked to Zelda as she poured an ungodly amount of cream into her travel mug and he realized that the week of resting and healing seemed worth the months of homelessness. If she kicked him out now that he was better he wouldn't blame her and he would carry the memories with him for the rest of his life.

"I'm not sure if you're tired of my awful attempt at chicken noodle soup or not yet," she said and he chuckled, "so I'm going to leave a few rupees on the counter. There's take out menus in the drawer, just find something you like and order it on my laptop."

"Okay," he nodded and she moved into the living room with her travel mug in hand. "How's the schedule for today?"

"Ugh," she groused as she sat beside him to slip on her warm looking boots. "I've already got the planning committee for the fashion show breathing down my neck, and the fabric Peach really wants to use on this limited line is not only incredibly expensive and irreplaceable, it's stuck in customs so I've got to fight them on it today."

"You'll get it, I know you will." She smiled at him for that and he tried to ignore the way it made his chest feel warm.

"I'll be back after work... Bye." Their goodbyes when she left had begun to feel awkward to him. He could almost swear it felt like she wanted a hug and he was more than willing to offer one, but he wasn't sure. His past relationship had seriously skewed what he thought he knew and the last thing he wanted was to do something wrong with Zelda and make her regret taking him in.

"Stay warm, you're never too busy for lunch, and-"

"And don't pull out my phone while walking." They shared a laugh at that and Ike shook his head. She leaned towards him and instinctively his arm went around her shoulders. He tensed slightly until he felt her relax against his side. They sat that way for a silent moment until she stood up. "I'll be back before you know it."

With that she left and Ike stared at nothing as he tried to think of something to do for her to show her that he appreciated everything. Taking him in, feeding him, getting him to a doctor... He couldn't pay her back in money at that moment but maybe a small gesture of appreciation would show her how much it meant to him.

XxX

Zelda felt like a super hero as she presented Peach with her long awaited fabric. The fight at customs had been intense but she had prevailed. The fashion show would have it's stunning centerpiece and that was what mattered to her boss.

"Zelda you're a goddess!" Peach shrieked as she leapt from behind her desk littered with fabric swatches and pink picture frames.

"I'll send over the sketches for approval immediately." Zelda smiled as she turned on her heel, mind already on the dozen other things she needed to get done.

"Quick question!" Peach called out and Zelda half turned. "Did you get a boyfriend you're hiding from me?"

"What?" Zelda asked while her heart sped up.

"You're coming in with a smile on your face now and leaving in more of a rush... seems fishy to me." Peach shot her a wink and Zelda laughed nervously. How could she say that she had a homeless veteran living on her couch and he made every day better? That going home even if he was asleep made her heart soar? If she said it out loud she was afraid that would solidify her confusing emotions, and that's something she was not ready to handle.

"I've uh, met someone but he's not a boyfriend." It wasn't exactly the truth, but it wasn't a lie. She had met Ike and he wasn't her boyfriend... the way she worded it was just very misleading.

"Girl if you keep coming in here smiling like you have I suggest getting that man locked down into a relationship."

"I'll keep that in mind Peach," Zelda said around a nervous laugh as she left the office.

XxX

The smell of cooked food made Zelda freeze in the entry way of her apartment. "Hey!" Ike greeted her immediately in the narrow hallway, a grin on his lips that made her feel relaxed. "How was work?"

"I got everything done and Peach was happy. A-are you cooking?"

"Yeah I made dinner," he said with a shrug as he moved forward to help her out of her coat. "You left me twenty rupees and I just thought that instead of some premade meal why not make something we can both hopefully enjoy?"

"Oh Ike you didn't need to-"

"I wanted to." She smiled a little at that and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I woke up feeling better than I have in a long time and figured the walk to the little market would do me good. Come on."

They walked to her seldom used table and Zelda felt her jaw drop as she saw the pan seared chicken, some sort of rice dish, and a delicious looking mix of steamed vegetables. "You did all this with what I left here?" she asked incredulously and he chuckled.

"You really don't cook much huh?"

"Not really... usually I'm too busy with work to have time and well, you tasted my chicken noodle soup I'm not the best cook."

"I kind of grew up cooking. Mom loved doing it and showed me the basics at a young age which ended up being really useful when my dad died. She would barely get out of bed so I had to take care of her, Mist, and myself." Her heart ached for him as he pulled out the chair for her to sit down.

"Ike I'm sorry," she said gently as she took the offered seat, noting how he shrugged it off.

"I'd do anything to keep the people I care about safe." He sat across from her and Zelda couldn't help but feel the date vibes this arrangement gave off. "Anyway," he flashed her a smile and raised his glass of iced tea, "I did this as a way of saying thank you. You've done more for me than I could have ever dared to hope, and I promise you that I will pay you back. It's gonna take me some time but I swear I will."

"Ike-"

"I mean it." He was so serious about it she could do little more than nod. "And I'm feeling completely better now so..." He took a deep breath and she leaned across the table. His words died on his lips as she took his empty hand and squeezed it gently.

"I want you to stay here with me Ike. I don't want you to go unless you want to. I'm not kicking you out, I'm not tired of you being here... stay Ike, please?"

"You want me to stay?" His voice was filled with a raw hope that made tears spring to Zelda's eyes. Wary of betraying her emotions she settled on a nod and watched as a previously unnoticed stress left his shoulders. "Okay, if you're sure."

"I love having you here. It's nice to come home and have someone to talk to, eat with, and watch trash tv with." He grinned at that and Zelda felt his fingers squeeze hers. "Now let's eat this amazing food you made!" She withdrew her hand from his and tried to ignore how she missed the rough warmth as he picked up his knife.

XxX

Ike chuckled at the lame joke made by the late show host, truly happy for the very first time in months. He had a home. A real, official, not for the night home. It wasn't a cold dirty alley, wasn't the shelter with the odd smells he didn't want to think about, but an amazing apartment. He glanced at Zelda as she typed on her phone, a ghost of a grin on his lips.

He had a roommate. The woman who refused to listen to reason had offered him her own home and he couldn't be more grateful. He'd get a job as soon as possible and help pay whatever bills he could.

She looked up from her phone and gave him a warm smile. "My doctor friend was asking about you. I told him you were feeling better and he's glad." He nodded and turned his attention back to the television, swallowing a lump in his throat.

How long would this last? How long would she be single and able to house him? Any man would take issue with him shacking up with her, and then what? Ike shut his eyes tightly and tried to calm the wave of panic. He could worry about that later.

As Zelda laid her head on his shoulder and curled into his side he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He tried to keep his voice steady when he opened his mouth. "I'm gonna job hunt tomorrow. There's got to be a lot of places hiring for at least seasonal help this time of year."

"I'd recommend getting some new clothes then," she said cheekily as she poked his bare skin through a rip in his jeans. "I'll call out tomorrow and we can go shopping. I get some freebies from working for Peach but I could also use some new stuff."

"You don't-" she cut off his words by pressing her finger to his lips.

"I want to. Now, let's watch this boring interview."

Ike nodded and tried to ignore how her finger lingered on his lips. When she pulled it away he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding and whispered to her. "You can tell they don't get along, he's usually much more enthusiastic."

"I hear she's a bitch to work with," Zelda whispered back. "She was a model before acting became her thing. Peach always refused to work with her. She is pretty though."

"That's a matter of opinion," he fired back honestly. "She's not that attractive to me."

"She was voted hottest woman last year!" Zelda exclaimed incredulously and he shrugged.

"Well my vote wouldn't have gone to her." Zelda laughed and shook her head. She settled back down and Ike absent-mindedly rubbed his thumb on her arm. He hoped to have plenty of evenings just like that.

XXX

How was that? I hope you all enjoyed. Thank you everyone for reviewing, it means the world to me. The notifications make my day. Let me know what you think! Much love, Leigh