Although Genesis was tired from a long day of being put through a battery of endurance tests that were sprang upon him and the other two elite without warning as usual. They seemed to do little with their health and fitness levels and a lot more to do with whatever Professor Hojo's twisted mind ordered him to inflict on them, he found himself in a 24 hour Wal Mart close to his home. He hadn't even known what a Wal Mart was until Tifa suggested he go there to clothe Aerith on the phone. Yet here he was. He wondered why he felt the need to do things for the petite woman when he never went out of his way to do any favours for his lovers, heck for anyone when he really thought about it. What was going on with him? It had been weird enough when he had started ferrying her about in his own car like she was a reigning queen and he, her loyal servant. Then he had started going into her actual shoebox she called a home and trying to charm her mother like he was some teenager attempting to court her daughter. He wasn't the sort to want to meet a person's parents. When he had been a horny teenager, he had normally run the other way when he saw them, with good reason; they were normally armed. Yet he liked the feisty middle aged woman that was Aerith's mother.

What was it about Aerith that made him act so out of character? Others had spotted it too. Just the other week, he had been talking in his office with Angeal and Sephiroth and Sephiroth was telling them how he was getting another medal. Genesis could feel him temper build and himself flush with anger. The words formed in this throat about to rush past his lips; about how Sephiroth was given medals just for breaking wind while the rest of them had to earn their commendations, when Aerith's hand touched the back of his own "cool your jets hot stuff, or I will give you that spanking" she threated him with a small smile. He looked down to where their hands were joined and could have sworn he could feel the warmth of her small fingers through his glove and his anger evaporated as if it had never been.

"Hot stuff? That's a new one on me. As for you spanking me, you never know, I might enjoy it. Shall I order you a leather outfit for the occasion?" He had joked back with a chuckle. Both other men had looked extremely stunned that there was a person on that planet who could calm his temperament while Aerith just looked confused, not understanding the BDSM reference.

What was he doing here? What was this woman doing to him?

Okay, He knew that Aerith would need clothes to go home in and didn't want to drive her the store in the morning with her wearing that red nightmare of a dress or his clothes, as if she were doing the walk of shame.

Instead, he was one of the few people in the women's section and found himself blushing when her overheard a staff member speculating he was buying the clothes for himself. He ignored them and wondered why they would think that, okay he wasn't wearing a wedding ring so most likely he wasn't buying them for his wife. Couldn't he just be buying a present for his girlfriend? Okay the timing was a little odd, but perhaps he worked odd hours? He kept glancing at the pale blonde with odd coloured lipstick. She had long bleached blonde hair and her nametag read 'Jenna', "haven't you ever seen a man buying women's clothes before?" He snapped in challenge at her.

"Yeah, that's Genesis alright, I told you he's a total douche" she whispered back to her friend and he just ignored this.

He turned his attention to the assortment of clothes in front of him and wondered what to buy Aerith. His eye came to rest on a pair of light blue stretch jeans and tried to imagine them on the long, slim legs of the girl that had been confirmed earlier that night. Then he remembered that he had never seen her wearing pants before and moved on.

He found a purple peasant top that gathered at the waist in elastic folds, it had a round neckline and three quarter length sleeves that looked conservative and practical enough for the demure girl, a black three quarter length skirt was thrown onto his shopping cart to match this.

Genesis was very good a judging women's sizes. Then he remembered underclothes and felt awkward as he headed for the lingerie section, he wasn't one to buy panties for women. He found himself intrigued by a hot pink and black lace panties set, thinking it would look great Aerith with her colouring. This got a laugh from Jenna. He even went as far as to search for a 32C bra and size small panties, when he realized how inappropriate it would be to present her with these. So instead, he grabbed a pack of plain white hanes her way briefs and a white utilitarian boxed bra; the type favoured by grannies everywhere. There was certainly nothing sexy about any of them!

He wondered if she would need pantyhose but decided she could do without for the ride home.

A quick stop at the shoe department yielded a pair of comfortable looking plain black flats, size 6, he had been able to get her size from her shoes.

These went into his shopping cart and then he turned into the pharmacy section.

He gazed at the shampoos and selected cherry blossom shampoo and conditioner, which he had smelled in her hair during the times Aerith hugged him. For body scrub, he choose vanilla scented and deodorant to match, having scented both of them on her. He wondered at body lotions and decided her could just let her use his own if she required any. A toothbrush and toothpaste later, he felt his shopping trip was complete. But stopped anyway in the feminine hygiene products aisle and eyed them speculatively and then realized that if she was having that time of the month, she most likely had an extra something in her purse. It wasn't like she was moving in with him.

He stopped in the grocery aisle to pick up fresh fruit, bread, eggs and bacon in case Aerith wanted breakfast and paid for his purchases and drove home.

His three bedroom house was pretty ordinary in size for a rich man but he didn't see the need to buy something bigger just for himself, he wasn't a humble man by any means and liked being surrounded by beautiful thing. However, growing up in a mansion had been an isolating experience for him, so he preferred something more modest that was entirely his own.

The main bedroom was his own with a huge white marble ensuite bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub and steam shower.

The second largest bedroom was his home office and the third, his little used guest room. It had a more modest ensuite bathroom that he was positive was unstocked. The last overnight guest he had had sleep over was Angeal when had had his place fumigated against termites and he had brought his own.

Turning into his driveway. He took the bags from his sports car, he crept into the dark guest room and left all the toiletries on the counter of the washroom for her to find. The clothes, he placed folded and still packaged on the nightstand beside her bed.

He gazed on her from the light in the hallway; she lay on her side hugging the pillow to her body while her head rested on the end of it. She looked little more than a child and he felt a wave of protectiveness wash over him and he frowned at that.

He'd been so angry to find her dressed like that in the officer's and club acting how she was, but knew he had no right to be, he was her boss, not her brother or father. He wondered at how protective of her he was, she was nothing to him, merely an employee. She had certainly proven she could protect herself and him. There just seemed to be something about her that made him want to be around her and have her touch him in the innocent ways she did.

His hand reached out of its own volition and almost touched her unbound hair, it looked so soft...and stopped himself, turning away from her with a soft curse. Stepping into the hallway, he went to his linen closet and retrieved another blanket, having been brutally told by Angeal that the window in the room wasn't sealed in the least and he could use that room for storing sushi.

Returning to his guest, he went to spread it over the sleeping bundle of a woman, when he was wrestled to the bed with some kind of karate move and pinned there. Well he could have easily broken the hold of the petite woman, but he was stunned at the moment that someone so tiny had wrestled him to the bed.

"Gen, what are you doing?" Aerith asked him, obviously now sober.

"I went and got some clothes and toiletries for you and was just putting an extra blanket on your bed so you wouldn't be cold" he explained, seeing no point in lying. She leaned over him, her small hands pinning his wrists to the bed while her gentle jade eyes bore into his.

"You did all of this for me? You do care" she said suddenly smiling.

"Well are you my guest and I have to make sure you're comfortable..." he protested with a blush and then plump lips covered his own.

"Aerith, what are you doing?" he said, breaking her kiss and his wrists were released and her hands quested up his t-shirt to stroke his sides and abs, causing him to shiver while she pressed a trail of kisses down his jawline to the sensitive column of his neck.

"Aerith" he said in surprise when she playfully nipped his earlobe before starting to nibble at the side of his throat and he jumped when she softly nipped his pulse point of his neck. By now, her hands roamed over his mostly bare chest, mapping out the impressive expanse of the hairless planes and grooves. Genesis knew he could move but it felt so good to be touched so reverently while gentle hands teased him and his mouth moved with hers this time when she reclaimed his lips.

Then he realized who he was being seduced by and she suddenly found herself pinned to the bed when he suddenly flipped them. "I can't do this, it's wrong. I told you, I can't do this with you ever" he said glaring down at her, his breathing was heavy and his large arousal apparent in his tight black jeans.

She easily yanked a slim wrist free of his gentle bondage and placed her hand alongside his face, cupping his cheek. "I want us to make love" she said.

Suddenly he was trembling like he was cold and her other hand stroked down the muscular slope of his back to rest upon the small of his back, tracing soothing circle there counteract his apparent fear, just above the waist of his jeans.

"I can't, you don't understand" he said relying on anger to take over as he did in every confusing situation.

She leaned up and kissed along his neck in a soft, random pattern and he made a noise like a soft whine.

"Please show me how to love" she whispered in his ear as her fingertips softly caressed his face.

"No" he insisted, suddenly holding her hands away from him but with no heat in his words and his glowing eyes bored into her own. "I can't...not with you...never with you. Aerith don't you understand? I'm trying to protect you. I'm tainted, I...care for you. Everything I touch, I corrupt, can't I just have one thing in my life I don't sully?"

"You're not tainted, you never were. Underneath your bright protective coating you're kind and gentle and I want you. Give me a good reason why we can't make love?" she said taking her wrist back from him nerveless hands and running them along the length of his trembling arms as if to soothe him."Make me a women" she urged him as she captured his face between her hands and brought it down to her own, their warm breath mingling before the heat of their mouths met and it was like something ignite between the two of them. This caused any resistance in him to unravel. Aerith's only experience with males was kissing them and she was a damned good kisser as result. She helped him take off her overly large t-shirt to expose her slimly muscular torso and gravity defying breasts. His t-shirt soon joined hers and then her boxers and then both reached for the button on his jeans and they descended long legs to bare him completely to her gaze.

He felt nervous, his emotions were all over the place as he held her angelic form against his own. She was so tiny, he was afraid to hurt her, yet longed to claim her as his lips plundered her own. She clung to him trustingly while waves of emotion washed over her, most of them confusing and her heart beat in triple time. Her hands stroked the soft skin of his muscular back, pulling him as close to her as possible, wanting to possess every inch of him.

"Please show me how to pleasure you" she pleaded with him and he was a man lost as he took her delicate hands and showed how to stroke and tease a man until his head lulled back as his mind raced, it was too overwhelming. It was too much and yet not enough, the feel her soft skin intoxicated him.

That was nothing compared to how it felt pleasure her, to map out her sweet pliant body with each touch and taste until she moaned praises to him, her own gentle inexperienced hands on him seemed to sear into his very soul and her kisses fed his starving heart. His loneliness evaporated with each healing touch from her, making him truly believe he was how she saw him: worthy, desirable and loving. Unfamiliar emotions gripped him, threatened to tear him apart reminding him only of how it had felt to be with his mother, but only on a deeper level.

Her legs were trembling when he gently parted them as if he were a conquering male, when it ludicrously felt to him like he was the virgin about to be taken for the first time. He was gripped by a fear the likes of which the brave man had never known. Then he realized it was fear of hurting her. His largely swollen erection pressed against the glistening gates of her womanhood, poised to take her virginity. He bit his lip as he slowly moved forward into her depths with gentle nudges until he could go no further. He took a breath to calm himself as his heart was racing, ready to retreat at the first sign of discomfort from her.

However she cried out as own her hips surged up to complete the act of tearing her hymen and joining their bodies, not giving him a choice. He gasped and held the girl as she mewed in his arms, shuddering a bit at the pain.

"Are you okay? Do you want to stop?" he asked her going to draw back.

Her hands suddenly gripped his hard buttocks. "No, I want this, I want you. Make love to me" she desperately said.

He was uncertain, the foreign emotions he felt overwhelmed him and he longed to run away, to flee from her clinging walls that seemed to hug him as if his welcoming home. She was so impossibly tight and felt exquisite, as if her small taut body had been designed for him alone. He couldn't believe he was fucking...no making love to Aerith. She let him be her first man, accepted him into her unsullied body and he vowed he would never let anyone else have her while his heart soared with joy.

He didn't believe in emotional love between a man and a woman, had fought against it his entire life. Yet he was in love, that is what Angeal had been trying to tell him, what his own heart had been trying to tell him and he didn't listen. He realized you don't have any control over love, it would find you even if you guard yourself against it. He had no basis to even process such an emotion, he was careful and he was guarded. He hadn't even had puppy love in his life, there had been no sweet girl or an awkward seduction. His first women had been twenty-four to his own fourteen years and there had been no seduction, he had kissed her and then bent her over to cling to the Banora Whites apple tree in his front yard and took her with little thought to his virginity in full view of his father. He hadn't cared about his virginity or the woman, it been sacrificed just to prove a point at the insult his father made to his sexuality. Genesis didn't even care if he had been gay, you don't insult someone that way and make assumptions about them.

Aerith wondered why he was taking so long, it did hurt but it was no worst then spraining an ankle. She looked into his face to find naked fear in his eyes before they glazed over and he focused back on her and flex his hips into her, driving himself slowly into her tight and narrow channel. She still felt pinched at first and but rode it out and soon the slow friction started to ignite a flicker of pleasure in her loins that made her cry out. He paused, afraid he had hurt but she urged him forward with her hips, needing more. His thrusts increased. They wrapped around each other tightly, as they made the bed rock. They kissed and caressed each other as if starved for each other and he whispered sweet nothings to her and meant every one. It was a sweet moment and they never wanted it to end.

Sensing she needed more, he moved them so she straddled him and pulled her in for a sloppy kiss while his hands guided her hips up and down on his length, giving himself to her completely. Surrendering everything he was to her: his mind, body and soul.

Aerith cried out with each thrust into her body, her hands balanced on his wide shoulders and the curved ovals of her nails bit into his very flesh, spiking his pleasure. Her strong thighs flexed, driving herself firmly down, while he bucked into the hot slickness that was her until they caught a rhythm that intoxicated them both.

Their kiss ended when she threw her head back, her eyes clenched shut as she sought release and with a sobbing cry that was his name, she found it and a split second later his flow joined hers, "I love you" he cried as his orgasm tore from himself like a bullet shot from a gun, painting her walls white hot. Her eyes flew open in the realization of what had occurred between them, it hadn't been just lust as she had tried to convince herself, they'd made actual undeniable love...she was in love with Gen..but Zack,she thought and burst into tears at her heart's fickle betrayal of him.

Genesis leaned back but his arms tightened protectively around her when he realized she sobbed against him. "Are you okay?" he asked her in a breathless voice.

"It was so beautiful, so perfect" she lied, yet hadn't lied, it had been like the wedding night she had dreamed about, but he wasn't Zack. It wasn't supposed to feel like this with another man.

"It's okay, first times can make people really emotional, I've got you" he said stroking her back not realizing that made her feel worse. Genesis would never lie about loving someone, yet he said it to her and she couldn't claim him.

"Now what?" she asked him woodenly.

"We get cleaned up and get some sleep" he said "you can use the bathroom first of course."

"And after that?" she asked him.

"I would like you to take you on a date. I've never been on an actual date before. I guess that's silly at my age" he said sounding shy but with such hope in his voice that it broke her heart.

"Should we go to your bed?" she asked him.

"I don't want to you in that bed ever. I'm getting rid of it" he said with certainty in his voice as she got up and walked to the washroom. She gingerly sat on the edge of the bed before arms snaked around her and drew her in before him, spooning her with his body, cuddling her, "Genesis..." she began.

"Oh now we're back to formal names again? I meant it; love you, I know you can't say it back, my timing is lousy as ever. I'm ready to wait" he promised her and fell asleep. Aerith couldn't sleep, she wiggled out of his arms and then sent a text. Vincent met her at the door with her wearing her new clothes and drove her into the night.

Genesis reached for her when he woke up with a smile on his face, imagining them spending the day together, of course he wasn't going to press her for more sex. She would be sore, a leisure day spend cuddling was enough for him. He put on pair of lounge pants and padded throughout his place looking for her, thinking she might be in the kitchen. He must have been more tired than he thought the night before that the little sneak could steal out of bed without waking him. After all his flexes were well honed like a true warrior.

He grew concerned when he couldn't find her and returned to his guest bedroom and noticed the clothes he had bought her were gone and yet her outfit from the night before remained. Her purse was gone as well, thinking she might have gone to buy breakfast, he tried calling her PHS and then put it down when there was a knock at the door. "Hey beautiful" he said flinging it open.

"Hello Gorgeous" Vincent deadpanned. "We need to talk" he said brushing by him.

"She's gone to a retreat run by the Goddess's church for people who are questioning their faith. She's conflicted about her relationship with the Goddess, Zack's death...and now you" he explained to the high strung carrot top.

Genesis glared at the crimson eyed brunette "I did nothing to coerce her into bed with me" he said.

"I know or I would have shot you at the door, I don't know the full extent of your relationship with her..." Vincent said.

"I love her" Genesis defiantly said and was surprised at the expression of pity on the other man's face.

"She'll need time to figure out her heart. No one's allowed to contact her until the first month is up but immediate family members. "She asked me to give this to you" Vincent said and showed himself out. "Zack was my best friend, if you ever her hurt in any way, I shall introduce you to the business end of my gun" he called back before shutting the door behind him. Finding it odd he was feeling a little sorry for the slutty SOLDIER.

Genesis opened the letter.

"Gen,

I'm sorry, it's not that I don't care about you but I'm so confused right now. I knew you would be there last night and would rescue me, it was staged except for those men. I borrowed the dress from Tifa, it was an old Halloween costume where she dressed as a call girl and Vincent as her pimp.

I thought I could convince you to have sex with me, I knew I wanted you to be my first with Zack gone. Zack was my intended and one night of passion can't change that even it was the best night of my life. The hurt is too fresh.

I don't know how I want our relationship to be.

If you will wait, I can give you my answer but I will understand if you don't.

Love,

Aerith"

Angeal wasn't happy to be woken so early. "Angeal" he growled into his PHS.

"Hewley, you asked me to keep an eye on your nutty ginger friend and now he's here taking an hatchet to his bed in his front yard and threatening to burn it" Genesis's neighbour, the elderly Mr. Mortensen groused.

"What?" Angeal asked him, certain he was hearing things.

"You heard me, it's bad enough that he had girls coming and going at all hours like he's running some personal way station. I didn't complain about that. I thought it was men I would be seeing coming from his place when he first moved in with his flashy clothes and fae ways, not that I mind that. I had a gay uncle. Nice people. He's not a bad neighbour for the most part but can get a little eccentric. But now he's in his driveway, he dragged his round sex bed there and is taking a hatchet to it. He's acting like a crazy man, when I tell him to stop it; he keeps on saying he's going to chop it to bits and burn it. You have to come stop him before I call the police, folks are entitled to their rest" he said and hung up.

Angeal sat up in bed and hurriedly dressed and ran a brush through his hair. Ensuing his coffee, he got his car keys and drove over to his peevish friend's place to see what bug had crawled up his ass this time.

He drove up to find the picture Mr. Mortensen had painted was accurate, Genesis wore the black and red crocs that Angeal had got him as a gag gift once, not able to picture him ever wearing them but did because he found them quite comfortable. He also wore a pair of red lounge pants and a black button up shirt that was unbuttoned. He had given up on the hatchet and now was hacking at the half collapsed bed with his blazing sword. "Genesis what are you doing?" Angeal demanded.

"I'm getting rid of this bed of sin, I don't want it anymore" he said, raising the mako glowing sword again.

"Come inside, I'll call a junk man and have that hauled away. That's an order; not a request" he said catching his sword arm.

"No I have to get rid of this" he said with a sob of anguish.

"The junk man will, I'll call him as soon as we get inside" Angeal said, buttoning up his shirt and leading Genesis inside. "You want to tell me what this is all about?" he asked the distraught looking man, sensing something behind it more than the man's usual flights of temper.

"We, I slept this Aerith and she used me" he said.

"You use women all the time" Angeal said.

"This is different, I love her. I didn't even use a condom, dear Goddess I always do. What was I thinking? She could be..." Genesis said and burst into tears held out Aerith's note to his friend.

Angeal put his arms around the slighter male as he had been doing for years and read the note he had given him over his shoulder. "You silly man, I told you one day you would meet someone and fall in love. You just got her at the wrong time. Give her the time she requests, until then, it looks like we'll be a pair of bachelors together. As far her being pregnant, time will tell. Would that really be so awful, you being a father?"

"I'm tainted" He said.

"I don't want to hear that speech, you don't know why your birth mother didn't keep you. Perhaps she was really young and couldn't? There's nothing wrong with you but your lousy temper and prissy, precise ways, you fussy man. No wonder more than half the people you meet assume you're gay. We'll keep each other company...and I'll help you shop for a new bed" he offered. "Should we call up Sephiroth and see if he wants to come over for a guy's night? Oh wait, it's Saturday night. Singing in the Rain" Angeal dismissively said.

"I'm singing in the rain/just singing in the rain" Sephiroth joyfully sang as he danced with his umbrella, wearing a brown fedora hat, brown leather shoes and a gray suit. He went onto to tap dance in exact time with Gene Kelly on the screen, yes Sephiroth elite SOLDIER 1st Class could tap dance with the best of them. He was a tap dancing fool.