Author's note: I don't own FF8 or its characters. This story is AU.

Rest and Recovery

With a smile, Quistis pulled her socks out of the dyer and put them on. There was nothing like warm socks. It was her evening off, and she was spending it doing laundry and other household chores that had gotten ignored over the course of the past week. It wasn't a bad way to spend a Monday night. Quistis had her regular housecleaning music on and was working her way down her list of chores. The kitchen had already been cleaned, and the laundry was now about half done.

The sound of her apartment door buzzer made Quistis jump. She wasn't expecting anyone. With a frown, she went to answer the door. The way Seifer was standing in front of the door and the takeout bag he carried told her everything she needed to know.

"Come on in. You can get the movie set up while I grab the laundry."

Seifer followed her silently. Quistis didn't press him. If he needed to tell her what had happened, he would when he was ready. He headed into the living room while Quistis went back to her laundry room. This was a tradition that had started soon after Seifer had started working at the police department. When there were cases that really got to him, the ones that kept you up at night with dreams, he would come over to her place, and they would watch movies and eat Chinese takeout. It had become Seifer's way to decompress, and Quistis honestly didn't mind the tradition.

When she returned to the living room with her laundry, The Italian Job was starting, and Seifer had set out cups for the two of them and made tea. Quistis settled down on the couch beside him and reached for the box of cashew chicken. They didn't talk as they ate except for the odd comment on the movie. By the time the movie was half over, the food was long gone, including the fortune cookies, and Quistis was folding laundry. As was Seifer actually. He didn't do a half bad job with t-shirts and pants, though Quistis wasn't about to let him touch her underthings.

By the time The Italian Job was over, all the laundry was sitting neatly folded in its basket. Quistis slipped into the kitchen to fix them both some ice cream while Seifer put in the next movie. She curled up beside him on the couch, her ice cream in her lap and her head resting on his shoulder. Seifer had one arm loosely wrapped around her, and Quistis would admit that she was quite comfortable sitting there snuggling with him.

It was towards the end of the second movie that Seifer finally spoke.

"The last case today was a woman your age. Long blond hair, but she had grey eyes, not blue. She was doctor, a pediatrician. And her brother beat her to death because she decided to move in with her boyfriend." Seifer's voice was almost emotionless as he spoke. "She was wearing that t-shirt that says 'Not That Kind of Doctor'. Just like the one you have. I thought she was you at first."

And that explained why he was here tonight. She couldn't blame him. Quistis knew that if had walked into a crime scene where someone who looked like Seifer was dead, she would want some assurance that he was all right. She snuggled a little further into his embrace. Seifer just sighed and held her. They stayed like that for the rest of the movie, not moving when it was over either except to turn off the TV.

When Quistis woke with the sun in her eyes the next morning, she found herself sprawled on the couch with Seifer laying behind her. She was using his chest as her pillow, and he had an arm wrapped around her waist cover the light blanket that covered them both. He was still sleeping peacefully. Quistis smiled.