Leon's brooding, Zack's angsting.... sounds like a story.

Rewritten Oct 1.

Zack was amazed at just how much of his combat training he still remembered. After over ten years of disuse (how old was he now, anyway?), he fell into position easily and while some of the movements were stiff, they all came to him naturally. He felt no small amount of pride in that.

What really impressed him was how well Sora kept up with him. There were very few out there who could hold their own against a fully trained SOLDIER, especially a First Class. This barely-seventeen-year-old kid was doing a fine job of it, without any kind of enhancement.

Then again, he was the Keyblade Master.

However, the boy did not have his endurance and after nearly two hours of solid fighting, he was clearly showing signs of fatigue. Zack kept one eye on him, gauging when they should call it quits. He did not want to wear the kid out completely.

The other eye was repeatedly being drawn to the deck, or more specifically, to the man still sitting on the deck. That steely gaze had not removed itself from Zack once since the fight with Sora began. The intensity of it had threatened to break his concentration several times.

Sora was nearly panting, his posture much slacker than it had been at the start. His blue eyes expressed wariness. Yeah, it was time to finish. Besides, Zack was rapidly becoming distracted.

He darted forward and to the left, Sora automatically ducking right. The boy dropped low as if to kick out with his left leg but he never got the chance. Zack's move was a feint, making it look like he was going for a lower body hit.

He whipped his open palm into the back of Sora's head. As the teen stumbled forward off balanced, Zack reversed his position and with the same hand slammed his palm dead center against Sora's chest. Before he had a chance to hit the ground, the ex-SOLDIER had the brunette by the waist, with his other arm wrapped around his neck.

Both were on their knees, Zack holding the back of the boy tightly against his chest. "I'd say you lost."

Sora was breathing heavily. "This time… Hand-to-hand isn't my thing."

"Fine." Zack released him. "Next time, weapons."

Sora grinned widely. "Oh, I will soooo kill you."

"Yeah, we'll see about that." Zack hopped back to his feet. His knees were dirty and grass-stained now, but he did not care. The misty drizzle was enough for him to use the moisture and wipe the knees clean.

Sora was doing the same. Taking advantage of his slightly bent position, Sora eyed first Zack and then Leon. The intense stares those two were giving each other were obvious even to Sora. He recognized the complicated desire, confusion and fear despite not fully understanding it.

He straightened out and stretched his arms above his head. "I think I'm gonna hit the sack. It should be safe to go in there now."

Zack nodded but Leon did not react. He was no longer even trying to disguise where his attention was.

Sora bit his lip, looked once more between them, and headed up the deck steps. As he passed, he set his hand on Leon's shoulder. "See you tomorrow."

The brunette man spared him a brief glance. "Yeah."

Once Sora was gone, Zack wiped his hands together and casually approached the deck. "Well, I suppose I should get out of here…Long day tomorrow."

He felt Leon's eyes burning into him.

He risked looking over, and then he could not pull his gaze away. Those grey eyes were burning with such an intense mix of emotions; Zack couldn't begin to identify them. More importantly, there was no way to tell which of them would win out.

"You don't love me."

The words were so sudden, so out of place, that Zack was certain they had not really been said. Even though he had seen Leon's lips move, nothing had actually been spoken. So why did he respond? "I never said I did."

"I don't even like you." He used the same emotionless tone.

Leon slowly stood, never breaking eye contact. He left the deck and approached Zack, who remained riveted to his spot. He walked right up to him, close enough to take the raven-haired man by the neck and…

"What are you doing to me?" His voice cracked on the last word. The little bit of rain fall was matting his hair and coloring his shirt.

Zack continued to stare, confusion tainting his violet eyes. "I think you have that backward."

"Do I?"

"You think any of this is normal for me?"

"How long did it take for you to bag Cloud?"

Zack almost never lost his temper. Leon could not have been anymore surprised than he when Zack shoved him forward. Leon's back slammed against the low stair railing, the breath knocked out of him. The ex-SOLDIER fisted the younger man's shirt and pressed against him.

He literally hissed at Leon. "Do not bring Cloud into this. If you have an issue with me, leave it with me."

Leon managed to push Zack away. Anger flared brightly in his eyes, jaw locked and brow furrowed. It made the scar on the bridge of his nose all the more prominent. "Why did you pick me?"

"Pick you?" echoed Zack. "What the hell does that mean?"

"You could have found anyone in that bar to fuck. Why me?" Something in his expression twisted. "Do you have any idea…?"

"What? What, Leon?" Here they both were, right at the edge of what needed to be said...to be acknowledged. "Do you even know?"

He somehow dodged the fist that was aimed at his face. He took hold of Leon's hand, twisting it and throwing the man down on the wet grass. He straightened and waited for Leon to lift himself up halfway and flip his body back over.

"Look Leonhart, you think you're the only one in the middle of an emotional nightmare? You don't think this entire thing isn't freaking me out also?" Zack spat at him. "I'm fucking wracking my brain out, trying to figure out how this happened!"

He could not deal with this any more. Without further word, he stalked off, leaving a very confused and terrified Leon behind.

He intended to go home, curl up in his bed and force himself to sleep. Instead, he somehow ended up at the bar. Why, he did not know but at that moment, he did not particularly care. He just needed to not think any more.

He ordered the strongest thing they had. Then he took the entire bottle. He doubted it would be enough to get him drunk but as long as it was enough to numb him, he would be happy.

"Zack?"

He did not bother looking. "What?"

"It really is you." In his peripheral vision, Tifa Lockhart slid onto a stool beside him. "It's been a long time."

"Yeah, it has." He took a long drink.

"I hope you got munny, that stuff isn't cheap." She spoke with humor.

"Right about now, I don't really care."

She frowned heavily at him and after a moment, stood. "Come on. Leave that here."

He did not want to, but he got up and followed her upstairs. She turned into a room to the right, flicking on a light. He had assumed she was living over the bar and he walked into a rather large, spacious studio apartment.

"This is nice," Zack commented.

"I like it," She said casually. She motioned him to sit in a large plush chair by the narrow row of windows. As he did this, she went over to a small cabinet set on the floor. After rummaging a moment, she pulled out a bottle of amber liquid. "Here. You look like you need something strong."

"That bad, huh?"

She laughed a bit. "Oh, I recognize that look, believe me. Use to see it every day in the mirror."

She handed him the bottle but he only set it down on the floor. "Thanks for the offer, Tifa."

She took a casual sitting position on her bed. "Leon's really done a number on you."

"I did it to myself." He sighed, combing his hair with his fingers. "I knew better."

Tifa tsked and shook her head. "When it comes to love, no one knows better."

Zack stared at the pale wood floor. Of anyone, Tifa would know something about what this felt like. How long had she pined for Cloud, even knowing she did not have a chance?

She gave him a rather gentle smile, resting her chin on her fist. "It sucks, doesn't it?"

He really did not have to answer that.

With a sigh, she stood. "If you want to stay, there's a small room down the hall."

"Aerith will worry if I don't come home." Not that he really wanted to go back there. He loved the flower girl but he just did not think he could handle her right now.

Tifa laughed. "Who do you think told me to be on the look-out for either you or Leon? I knew it was serious when both she and Cloud came to me."

Despite his depression, Zack smiled a bit at that. It was comforting to know that he had people looking out for him. "Should've known you weren't doing this out of the kindness of your heart."

She tilted her head and gave him a condescending look. "Now you know I thought you were the sexiest man I'd ever seen when I first met you."

"Well everyone thinks that." Zack rolled his eyes.

She came over, smacked his arm and somehow managed to stand him up at the same time. She pulled him from the room and to the other room she spoke of earlier, pointing out the bathroom on the way. Then she pushed him into the much smaller room.

"This isn't a room, it's a closet."

"Oh, quiet. It's a place to sleep away from everyone else." The rain had picked up again and pattered against the small skylight. "Now, don't stay up all night worrying. Come find me in the morning."

"Yes, dear."

She left him alone in the darkened him. With a sigh, he flopped down on one of the twin beds. It happened to be the one under the skylight and he found himself staring up at it, watching the tiny drops of water from the sky pummel the plastic.

He wondered if Leon was all right.

-0-0-

Sora blinked in the relative dark. Dawn was making a very weak attempt to break through the lingering clouds. It had to be about four thirty in the morning. Normally, Sora loved this time of day.

He had awoken earlier than usual, something nagging at him. He glanced behind him and realized Leon had not shown up last night. He frowned and quickly got out of bed.

He may not have been the smartest guy when it came to love, sex and all that but he knew Leon. In addition, he knew that something had been wrong last night. He had a really bad feeling as he hurried downstairs.

The rainfall had stopped but the edges of the awning still dripped. The smell of wet grass greeted him and he took a few steps forward on the deck before seeing what he did not want to see. He took off in a run, slipping a little on the step as he rounded it.

"Leon!" The man was sitting numbly on the lowest wood step, staring at nothing.

Sora gripped his shoulder, noting the other was completely soaked through. "Have you been out here all night?"

"I, I really…" He brought his hands to his face.

Biting his lip, Sora pulled on Leon's arm. "Come on, you're gonna be totally sick."

Leon did not fight him as he was dragged indoors and up the stairs. Sora led him into the bedroom and ordered him to strip down as he began the shower. Then he left the room.

Leon barely noted the sound of the shower starting. Why had he said those words to Zack? They were cruel and had served no purpose. He was disgusted with himself.

Sora came back to find that Leon had not moved. He sighed and began removing Leon's clothing. "Ya know it's a good thing I've seen you naked before; otherwise this would be a lot more awkward."

"Why do you like Zack?" Leon whispered, breaking his silence.

"Huh?" Sora looked up.

"What is it about him that won't let him leave my thoughts? Why can't I push him out?" He was practically rambling. "I built those defenses so carefully and he just… walked right through them."

"Leon." Sora began quietly. "We don't choose who we love, our hearts just connect with certain people."

Leon fell silent again.

The spiky-haired youth finished undressing him and shoved him into the shower. "Warm up in there for a while. I'll be back with dry clothes."

Sora shut the door behind him and sighed. This was going to be harder than he thought. He had expected some conflict, had known the road would be difficult for Leon but… There was a lot more damage to his heart than Sora understood.

"Sora?" Riku's sleepy voice came from his room. Upon seeing his best friend's expression, he woke up further and fully entered the hallway. A pair of sleep pants hung low on his hip, obviously thrown on. "What's wrong, Sor?"

"Leon was out on the deck all night."

Riku frowned and blew out a breath. He rubbed at his tousled hair. "Well, we knew something was going to go down. Any idea where Zack went?"

Sora shook his head. "Honestly, I haven't even thought about it."

Riku was not surprised that Sora's focus was entirely on Leon. He pursed his lips a moment. "Leon's in the shower?"

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna try to talk to him. I don't know that he'll listen but maybe since I'm not directly involved I can get somewhere."

Sora smiled a bit. "Thanks. I really don't know what to say or do for him."

"Hey, he's my friend, too." Riku made a face. "Just 'cause I've never slept with him doesn't mean I don't care."

The younger of the set stuck out his tongue.

The silvered one smirked. "Save it for Pacifica."

"Whaa…?" Sora gaped. How did he know about that?

Riku grinned as he passed Sora. "You all seem to think all Cloud and I do is have sex."

He lightly tapped on the door. "Leon? It's Riku, I'm coming in."

When there was no answer, he frowned at his best friend then he went in.

--0—0—

"Hey, there sleepy."

Zack blinked against the light. As his eyes came into focus, he saw a slight mass of blue and pink topped with brown. A glow seemed to radiate around it. "Hey, Angel."

Aerith laughed. It was an old joke between them, going back to when he fell through the roof of that old church in Sector 5 she was at. When Cloud did the exact same thing a few years later, it had to be total déjà vu for here.

"What time is it?" Zack sat up. He was on top of the blankets, fully clothed. He had not even known he had fallen asleep.

"About noon."

"Noon?" He echoed. He swung his legs off the bed. "Leon's gonna kill me."

"I don't think Leon will be doing much of anything for a while."

"What?" An unreasonable panic seized him.

She smiled gently at him. "It's just a chill; it hasn't even truly hit him yet."

He stared at her. "How'd he get that?"

"I think that's a story you should hear from him."

"He doesn't want to talk to me." Zack stood, taking the few steps to the tiny window across the small room. "He doesn't want me at all."

"You know that isn't true." Aerith chastised.

"No, I don't." He snorted.

"Yes, you do," Aerith spoke a bit sternly. "Neither of you are listening to your hearts."

Zack smiled tightly. Leave it to Aerith. "You know, sometimes I really don't like you."

"Funny, Cloud's taken to saying the same thing."

He stared out the frosted glass for a long moment. Listen to his heart, huh. He could do that. Just stop thinking about what he felt and why he felt it and simply allow himself to feel it. "I care a lot for him, Aerith."

"Then you know what the next step is."

"Yeah." He was going to have to make Leon talk to him. He dreaded it but they had to figure this out.

"Good." His ex-girlfriend stood and smoothed out her skirt. "I knew you'd be the easy one."

"I'm not easy."

"No, you're a tease." Tifa grinned from the doorway. Had she been there the whole time? "I've got food for you downstairs."

"Ooh, food?" He perked up considerably.

Aerith lightly hit his stomach. "You and Sora. You're both bottomless pits."

"It's the metabolism."

Tifa opened her mouth to say something but held back.

"What?" Zack narrowed his eyes at her.

"Nothing." She turned, nearly black hair swinging behind her. "I've got a bar to open."

Zack looked at Aerith but the woman only shrugged. "I brought you fresh clothes."

"Good. Where are they?"

"In the bath. I figured you'd want a shower."

"Probably a good idea." He did rather smell like sweat and dirt, not to mention the dried smears of grass stains on his skin. "Sora's a damn good fighter."

"He is." She agreed. "And he fights his battles on every level."

Surprisingly, he understood exactly what she was saying.

"See you downstairs."