Chapter 25

Growing Intimacy

Summary:

Cloud and Zack finally get to be with each other.

Cloud hadn't expected Zack to go along with his joke of giving the mattress a try when he brought them over, but apparently he had been far more prepared for this scenario than Cloud had anticipated; Zack pulled out a pair of headphones he had bought for Roxas and went to busy himself with helping Roxas get as much music onto his phone as it could hold.

When he returned he shut the door firmly behind him and laid himself next to Cloud.

"I'm still up for it, if you are," said Zack rolling onto his side so he could look at Cloud.

"All the magic is gone now," came Cloud's rueful response.

"Let's see if we can't get it back then."

Zack leaned over and gently kissed Cloud. As he pulled away to gage Cloud's response Zack felt an arm wrap around him and pull him back down. Cloud hungrily kissed Zack, and Zack eagerly reciprocated. Cloud worked on untucking Zack's shirt, eventually managing to pull it off over his head. The brief loss of contact between their lips quickly ended with an even intenser kiss. Cloud rolled Zack over, so that he could be on top. He started trailing kisses down Zack's neck, working down to the shoulder and bicep. Cloud took Zack's nipple between his lips and sucked, while rubbing his thumb over the other to see what response he would get. Zack moaned softly and ran his hands up and down Cloud's torso, working his fingers beneath the fabric eventually, to feel the smooth skin of Cloud's stomach, and the rough skin of his cut up back.

Cloud froze as he felt Zack's finger brush his back.

Zack stopped immediately as he felt Cloud stop playing with his nipples. He removed his hand from Cloud's back and propped himself up on his elbow.

"Cloud, is everything ok?"

Cloud sat up, straddling Zack's waist. He could feel Zack's erection underneath him, but he also felt his own waning somewhat.

"I'm just… you know…" 'ashamed, disgusted… an aberration' Cloud berated himself. He sighed.

Zack sat up, wrapped his arms around Cloud and pulled them both back down towards the mattress.

"I can wait without waiting. There's no rush. I'm just happy to be like this with you, Cloud," Zack brushed the hair out of Cloud's face, cupped his cheek and began tenderly kissing the man he cherished. It wasn't very long before Cloud managed to dispel his demons and join in wholeheartedly with the kissing, deepening it and reveling in the closeness and care he felt from Zack.

Both men had to adjust to their new found relationship and how it worked with them running a business together.

Cloud felt himself looking forward to the early mornings even more so as he was greeted with the same old familiar 'Good morning, Sunshine!' but with the added bonus of being followed up by a long kiss. The first day they had both laughed and smiled at each other shyly, but over the days the kissing grew more lustful and needy.

During the workday Cloud stayed focused but also felt himself eager to get back to Zack as quick as possible so they could have lunch together and resume the kissing.

On Wednesday they had made it up to Zack's bedroom. Zack lost his shirt halfway up the stairs, his belt buckle had been discarded on the sofa and Cloud's shirt had finally come off and had been left at the foot of the bedroom door. Zack made sure to not touch Cloud's back, instead roaming his hands around the front of Cloud's chest where he had found yet another cut. They had stopped as Zack caressed the scar which ran the full width of Cloud's chest.

"This was the last cut he ever got on me," Cloud said defiantly. "I see it every day, and I know I made the right choice."

Zack had nothing to say to that but he felt his heart swell with pride at the confidence that Cloud exuded.

"I love you, Cloud." It might be stupid, and cliched, but Zack felt it with every fibre of his body. Cloud leaned down and kissed Zack passionately and deeply. Zack wrapped his arms around Cloud's neck and head, massaging his skull. After a while Zack's hand started to drift down over Cloud's back subconsciously. He just wanted to touch Cloud all over, and explore. He wanted to find out what made Cloud moan and squirm with pleasure. But clearly having his back touched wasn't going to net him anything positive.

Cloud tensed up again and pulled away.

"Sorry," let Zack out apologetically, figuring that Cloud would call it a day. He propped himself up on his elbows, ready for them both to get up and leave. Cloud scooched further down, getting off Zack's crotch but then instead of getting up he unzipped Zack's pants deftly, pulled the flaps aside and Zack's boxers carefully up and over to reveal his erection.

"Cloud, you don't have to do thaaaa….t!" Zack fell back onto his bed as Cloud took Zack's erection into his mouth and began sucking and swirling his tongue around the rock hard penis. Zack breathed out heavily and it turned into a moan as Cloud rubbed his tongue over the slit. Zack lost himself in the sensation of Cloud around his cock. How often had he imagined Cloud doing this to him? And now it was an actuality.

Cloud's sucking increased. Soft lips went all the way down his shaft, and Zack reveled in the warmth of Cloud's mouth and throat. Cloud wouldn't stop until Zack came. He just knew it, so he let himself go. Zack focused on the insane pleasure; on the tingling and the increasing tightness in his abdomen. He focused on Cloud's breathing, on the content murmurings, and on the flicking of his tongue. He focused on how much he loved his stupid spiky hair and his endearing quality of worrying too much about things. Cloud gave an extra hard suck and it brought Zack over the edge. His body shivered and tingled with pleasure all over. His toes curled and a warmth spread through his entirety as he came and released into Cloud's mouth. Zack gave a muffled moan and sigh and then he was spent.

Cloud swallowed every last drop with satisfaction. He felt butterflies in his stomach as a wave of pleasure flooded him at knowing he had done this for Zack. Knowing he had made Zack come and release himself. That was enough for him. It wouldn't be enough forever, but right now it was all he had wanted. He lay down next to Zack, who looked at him with glazed eyes and breathing deeply. Zack lifted his hand, cupped Cloud's cheek and kissed him deeply, tasting himself on Cloud's tongue.

Pleasant shivers ran down Cloud's spine. Sephiroth had never wanted to kiss him after Cloud had given him a blowjob. He had always considered him dirty after the fact. But Zack… Zack just wanted everything that Cloud was. Zack's hand drifted over Cloud's back again, but this time Cloud didn't even flinch. He merely rolled on top of Zack and enjoyed the heat underneath him.

"Are you really ok with Roxas not calling you every couple of hours?" inquired Zack as they drove down the interstate. He remembered the promise he had made to Roxas about keeping Cloud busy but he still felt mystified how Roxas had managed to weasel his way into this favorable situation.

"Yeah. As long as I hear from him once a day… it should be alright. He's had some pretty bad timing in the past," chuckled Cloud, remembering the first kiss he shared with Zack in the back of this very van.

"It's good to see you relaxing more, you know? You deserve to enjoy life, and not feel like it's always a do or die situation."

"Being vigilant has paid off in the past," said Cloud knowingly.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Roxas doesn't even know how close he came to finding us and getting us back… on multiple occasions." Cloud shuddered at the memory. "I have no regrets about having kept us moving."

"Do you ever think he'll stop chasing you?"

Cloud pondered this for a while before his hesitant response, "I hope he will stop. He lost interest in me fairly quickly after I turned sixteen. That's probably why he started cutting deeper. Get more pleasure out of it that way."

Hearing Cloud talk so matter-of-factly about it made Zack's skin crawl. Zack thought about how far Cloud had come in just a week. The shame he felt over his back definitely seemed to lessen considerably after that Wednesday lunch break encounter. Zack's toes still curled in pleasure at that memory.

"Once Roxas is eighteen he will have no power of custody over him anymore. Then he'll be able to get the law on his side if he still pursues him at that stage."

"I can relax and have a happy life after that." Cloud looked at Zack and they both smiled at each other.

"What do you imagine you'll do with yourself when that time comes?" Zack was genuinely curious. Cloud had never been so relaxed for them to be able to have conversations like this before. Zack was downright enjoying himself.

"I… maybe it's stupid but… I want to run my own mechanic shop. I like building things, fixing things. I loved working on Fenrir when I was at school… going through… all that shit. It was good to be able to focus on something other than my worries at home."

"Mechanic? That's an awesome dream to have, Cloud! You can rent out the warehouse next to mine. We could live together. If Roxas is still planning to stay with you I can just build another room in my apartment. Sound proof it." Zack laughed as Cloud's face turned slightly pink. Zack adored how shy Cloud still was sometimes, despite how intimate they had been the last few days.

"We'll cross that bridge if we ever get to it."

"What's that thing that Aerith always says? … 'I want to hear more conviction in your voice'." They both laughed.

Saturday had come and gone. Aerith had instantly noticed that there was something different between Zack and Cloud. After some prodding she had gotten it out of them and gushed over their changed relationship status. Yet she also pouted about the fact that this meant she could no longer get a piece of Zack when she needed it. Zack had just laughed and talked about a threesome, while Cloud had been mortified at the thought of sharing himself with two people at once. Cloud had overheard Zack tell Aerith that he'd 'work on it', followed by one of his trademark mischievous winks.

Cloud lay in bed reflecting on his day. He felt exhausted from all the manual labor that Aerith had insisted that he and Zack do. His only respite had been when Denzel had requested Cloud's time to help him construct a new robot with all the bits and pieces that Cloud had brought with him. Cloud thought a bit more about Denzel and marveled at how clever that boy was. His mind ticked over, only to be pulled back to reality when he heard the bathroom door open.

"You know, it's kind of a waste for Denzel to stay in this small town. Maybe when he's a bit older he can come and work for me at my mechanic shop." Cloud thought out loud.

He felt his mattress dip and looked up at a half naked Zack who smiled down at him. "Your mechanic shop? Feeling a bit more optimistic about your future already?"

"The idea's growing on me." Cloud pulled Zack down into an embrace and they started kissing again. Zack ran his hand down Cloud's bare chest and hooked his fingers around his waistband. They still hadn't seen each other completely naked, though Cloud had seen most of Zack by now.

Feeling the tug on his bottoms Cloud disengaged the kiss.

"H-hey Zack, where's your phone? I want to call Roxas." Cloud began crawling out from under Zack's weight but was pulled closer again.

"Stop changing the subject. It's happening tonight." Zack started kissing the nape of Clouds neck causing a ripple of pleasure to cascade down Cloud's body.

"You… keep… pleasuring … me… but… I never… get to… do… the… same… to … you," Zack said between kisses as he trailed down Cloud's body, stopping at Cloud's pants. He looked up to see Cloud hiding his face behind an arm. Zack laughed softly at the sight. "You look so tragic. Anyone would think I was about to murder you horribly."

They had spoken about this before. Zack wanted to help Cloud to climax but Cloud always refused, without being able to give a reason. Cloud didn't know why he didn't want Zack to pleasure him… because he definitely wanted Zack. No doubt about it. But maybe… maybe he felt like… Cloud felt his pants get pulled off. He lifted his hips to make it easier. Zack pulled the pants all the way off and planted an appreciative kiss on his hip bone before pulling back to gaze upon Cloud affectionately. Zack found him undeniably gorgeous. Creamy white skin and downy soft blonde hair. Zack ran his hands along Cloud's stomach and to his groin.

"Is this ok?" asked Zack as Cloud squirmed.

Cloud nodded, feeling his heart racing. He had never been on the receiving end. He had only ever be asked… told… to give.

Zack lifted Cloud's leg and kissed the inside of his thigh gently, working his way up towards Cloud's growing erection.

Cloud loved the care that Zack took with him. He loved the slow and gentle pace; the sense that they had all the time in the world to be together. He sighed in pleasure and gasped a little when Zack cupped his ball sack with the other hand, and ever so gently massaged him.

Cloud's thigh was released and he saw Zack come back up to kiss him some more while he wrapped his hand around Cloud's shaft and started pumping steadily. Cloud nipped and sucked on Zack's lips as the tightness and pleasure in his abdomen increased. Zack ran his thumb over Cloud's slit, spreading the pre-come to help his hand glide over more easily.

Cloud felt Zack pull away. The tongue left his mouth and kisses trailed down his body again, making a purposeful stop over the cut on his chest with more affectionate kisses, before continuing to head towards his groin. This was it, thought Cloud. This was what he had been waiting for without realizing how much he had actually wanted it until it happened.

Zack had finally arrived at his destination. He looked up at Cloud only to see him lost in a wave of pleasure. Zack smiled to himself, feeling thrilled and excited by what he was about to do for Cloud.

He licked the length of Cloud's erection, starting from the very bottom of his sack and stopping at the very top of the tip. Zack licked Cloud's slit, tasting the salty liquid. Cloud gasped and moaned. The moaning only grew louder when Zack took Cloud into his mouth. He went deep, using just his lips at first, bobbing his head up and down Cloud's shaft slowly. When he got to the top he would swirl his tongue around Cloud's head and give him a suck, increasing the pressure every time he repeated the process. Zack reveled in the sounds escaping Cloud's throat. He felt his own erection throbbing in time with his heart beat, but today wasn't for him. It was all for Cloud.

Zack began scraping his teeth along Cloud's shaft as he pulled up, netting a deep moan and a hand tangling into his hair. He wasn't sure how close Cloud was but he thought he must be getting there very soon.

Zack focused on Cloud's head, increasing the pressure he used to suck on the throbbing flesh and running his tongue along the delicate grooves. He cupped Cloud's sack again and massaged it like he did before. Cloud moaned deeply but his breath hitched mid way to a higher pitch and he came. Zack sucked the liquid down hard and fast, trying to keep up with Cloud. Cloud shivered when he was done and Zack slowly released the wilting erection from his mouth, giving Cloud one final suck and lick before coming back up to join Cloud on the pillow.

Cloud breathed heavily, feeling the aftershocks ripple through his body. His body felt like putty. He had masturbated in the past but it had never left him feeling this good. He smiled at Zack weakly through teary eyes.

"I hope those are tears of joy." Zack smiled at Cloud and wiped his cheeks dry.

Cloud felt overwhelmed. It had been amazing. "I don't deserve you, Zack," rasped Cloud.

Zack looked at him for a second, brow furrowed slightly. "You're right. You deserve so much better." Zack brushed blonde strands aside and chastely kissed Cloud's lips only to be pulled into a much deeper kiss by Cloud.

A note from Cream Pudding -

This was a looooong time coming. I hope you guys enjoyed it ;)