Hey everyone! Sorry for the long wait for this chapter - as I mentioned before, this semester has been crazy! Hopefully we'll get the next few chapters done over our upcoming break and the updates will become semi-regular again! Enjoy!

We don't own KH/FF.

XXXX

Xigbar frowned at Cid's chicken-scratch handwriting, absently picking up his cell when it started buzzing, "Yeah, hello?"

"Hey, it's Reno."

"Reno? What's up?" Xigbar asked, leaning back in his chair.

"Was making plans for Nam for her birthday and realized that I should probably check to see what your plans were before I attempt to kidnap her for three days."

"Well, you know they're going to Sora's during the day, right? And then I figured the four of us could grab dinner or something, and I've got something special planned for that night for Kairi," Xigbar said.

"Kay, so as long as I return Namine Saturday morning, everything should be fine, right?"

"Yeah, that's about right. Hey, what're you planning exactly anyway? Didn't you already do the big getaway?" Xigbar asked out of curiosity.

"Yeah, but..." Reno paused for a moment, "Dunno if Kairi told you what happened yesterday, but I've decided I need to seriously up my plans because of it. So, I'm taking her down to Las York."

"She told me, yeah. She also told me that afterwards Namine was dazed and couldn't stop smiling, so..." Xigbar grinned, giving Cloud the finger when he yelled something sarcastic about being on the phone instead of doing his job.

"Yeah, it ended well." Reno's smile could be heard in his words, "But I'm still stealing her for a few days."

"Should I not mention it to Kairi?" Xigbar asked.

"You can tell her, just make sure she doesn't tell her sister."

"Got it. I gotta go, Blondie here is having a fit. If you need any help or whatever, lemme know," Xigbar said, rolling his eyes at Cloud.

"Will do. Thanks, Xigbar."

"No problem," Xigbar said, hanging up and standing from his desk. "Keep your panties on, I'm coming!" he yelled at Cloud.

"If you'd actually work and not chat on the phone, I wouldn't be stuck under this hood waiting for your lazy ass," Cloud snapped.

"Touchy, touchy. That time of month or Leon just not doing it for you?" Xigbar snickered.

"You're dead when I get my hands on you," Cloud snarled.

"Promises, promises. Now, what'dya need?" Xigbar grinned, walking over after pocketing his phone.

XXXX

Larxene startled as the door opened, quickly saying her goodbyes to whoever she was on the phone with before hanging up and peeking over the back of the couch to see who had walked in.

"Oh hey." she smiled. Demyx was pulling his coat off, Yuffie standing slightly awkwardly behind him, not sure what to do.

"Hey." Demyx nodded, "Yuffie, you met Larx the other day, right?"

Yuffie nodded, sending Larxene a hesitant smile, "Hello."

"Nice to see you again." Larxene smiled again.

Cloud yawned, walking out of the kitchen with a drink, stopping once he spotted the two teenagers, "Oh, hey. How was school?"

Demyx shrugged, "It was school."

"Do you love school as much as Dem here?" Cloud asked Yuffie, grinning.

Yuffie chuckled, "Probably not." she smiled.

"Where's Zex?" Demyx asked his two housemates.

Larxene grabbed the remote off the table, turning the volume on the TV up to an obnoxious level, making Demyx wince. "You know, I can just go get-!"

"Nah, why move?" Larxene cut him off, yelling over the noise from the TV.

Yuffie blinked.

"What now?" Zexion snapped, suddenly appearing in the living room, scowling.

Larxene muted the TV. "Dem asked where you were." she shrugged.

"And was completely willing and capable of walking and getting you." Demyx added.

Larxene just rolled her eyes.

Zexion sighed heavily, turning to Demyx and smiling, though his smile dimmed a little when he noticed Yuffie. "Hello, Yuffie. How are you?"

"Hi. I'm okay." Yuffie answered. Directing her next sentence to all of them, she said, "Thanks for letting me hang out here for a bit."

"Not a problem." Larxene smiled.

"What're you guys up to?" Cloud asked, leaning against the wall and taking a drink.

Demyx shrugged, "Not sure yet." he glanced at Yuffie and Zexion.

"I suppose we could go out for entertainment," Zexion suggested, at a loss.

Larxene thought for a minute, "You could go see a movie or something." she shrugged.

"Yeah, or to an arcade or mini-golfing or bowling," Cloud said, smirking at Zexion.

"Or the two high school students could do their homework," Zexion countered, giving Cloud a look.

Yuffie made a face and Demyx groaned.

"Well you have to do it eventually," Zexion muttered.

"Yeah, I know." Demyx sighed, before glancing at Yuffie.

She shrugged, "Doesn't matter to me."

"Oh, c'mon! You guys are in high school, are you seriously telling me you'd rather do homework than go out?" Cloud asked incredulously. "Don't let him scare you, go have fun!"

Demyx shrugged, "I dunno. Zex didn't seem like he wanted to go out." Glancing at Zexion, he shrugged again.

"We can go out if you want," Zexion said, blushing slightly.

Demyx chuckled, "It really doesn't matter to me."

"Well, this is the most uneventful get-together ever." Larxene rolled her eyes, "Make a decision or I'm taking all three of you to the Happy Funtime Place."

Yuffie raised an eyebrow.

Zexion headed for the door, "Movies it is, let's go."

Cloud laughed, shaking his head and going to his room, thoroughly amused.

Demyx chuckled, pulling his coat back on before glancing at Yuffie, "That okay?"

"Sure." Yuffie smiled.

"You drive while I find us a movie," Zexion said, heading out the door and pulling out his cell phone, absentmindedly calling over his shoulder, "Bye, Larxene, don't hurt Cloud while we're gone!"

"I make no promises!" Larxene called back as Demyx grabbed his keys.

XXXX

Reno leaned against his car, waiting for Namine to get out of her last Thursday class so that he could almost-literally kidnap her.

Namine smiled, hurrying down the stairs and out of the building, looking around for Reno.

Reno waved when he saw her to grab her attention.

Her smile widened when she caught sight of him, hurrying over and adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "Hi."

"Hey," Reno said, leaning down to kiss her.

Namine was blushing when he pulled back, "So you never said where we were going."

"I know." Reno answered, opening her door for her.

She shook her head, getting in and placing her bag in the back, waiting for him to walk around and climb in himself before asking, "And you're not going to, are you?"

"Nope." he smiled, kissing her again before starting the car.

Namine sighed, still blushing. "We'll be back by Saturday, though?"

"I promise." Reno smiled.

"Tifa must hate me at this point," Namine chuckled. "I'm responsible for you taking all this time off of work lately."

Reno chuckled, "Before I met you I hardly ever took days off, so I'm pretty sure she's happy I have a life now."

Namine smiled, turning to look out the window, frowning when they made their way out of town. "Aren't you... going the wrong way?"

Reno raised an eyebrow, "Uh, no." he chuckled.

Namine frowned slightly, "We aren't going to Disneyplace?"

"Er, no." Reno said, "I didn't want to do the same thing two surprise dates in a row. Do you mind?" he asked, suddenly worried.

"No, not at all," Namine assured him. "I had just thought I'd figured it out, that's all."

Relieved, Reno smiled, "Well, not yet." he said.

"And you're sure you won't tell me?" she teased with a smile.

"Yep." Reno smiled again.

Namine sighed, "Well, will you tell me how long the drive will be, at least?"

"About two hours." Reno answered.

"Hmm," Namine hummed, trying to think of where he could possibly taking her before giving up and deciding to just wait. "You didn't have to take me on a big trip for my birthday, you know. I would've been equally happy with just being with you at home." She smiled at him.

"I know." Reno shrugged, "But I like taking you on big trips."

Namine shook her head. "You're spoiling me," she murmured.

"I'm okay with that." Reno smiled.

She shook her head again but couldn't stop the grin from spreading across her face.

XXXX

Namine hummed along with the song playing, a comfortable silence between herself in Reno. The car turned to get off an exit and Namine curiously looked at the sign, blinking at it.

"Reno..." she said hesitantly.

"Yes?" Reno smiled.

"...Are we staying here?" Namine asked.

"Yep."

"Las York? We're staying in Las York? Reno, this is way too much!" Namine said. "The hotel rooms alone..."

"Not a hotel room." Reno said, "I've got friends, and one of them happens to have an apartment that she doesn't actually use anymore. You met her on my birthday, do you remember Paine?"

Namine nodded, "She's letting us stay in her apartment?"

"Yeah." Reno nodded, "That okay?"

"This is quite the mini-vacation," Namine murmured, slightly overwhelmed. "You really didn't have to do this."

"But I wanted to." Reno smiled, pulling into the parking lot of an apartment building and parking the car, "She's meeting us up there to give us the keys."

Namine nodded, climbing out of the car and taking his offered hand.

Reno squeezed her hand, and led her up into the apartment. Knocking on the door that Paine had told him was hers, they waited for a minute before she swung it open and grinned.

"Hey!" she grinned, letting them in. She grabbed keys off the kitchen table. "I'll get out of your hair in a minute," she promised, handing the keys over to Reno, "The front door is there, as well as the key to the elevator in the back, since this apartment building is convinced you need a key to take an elevator here."

"Well, you're only on the second floor, it's not like it's an exceptional amount of stairs." Reno shrugged.

"Still. Sometimes I'm tired and don't want to take any stairs." Paine rolled her eyes, "Hi again, Namine." she smiled.

Namine smiled back, "Are you sure this is all right? I don't want to inconvenience you."

"Of course it's alright." Paine smiled, "I only still have this apartment because breaking my lease to leave would cost me more than paying it out." she shrugged, "I live with Baralai most of the time."

"If you're sure..." Namine said hesitantly.

Paine smiled, "Of course I'm sure. And happy birthday." she added.

"Thank you," Namine said helplessly, giving in.

Paine smiled, "Alright, I'm gonna get going. Have fun, try not to destroy anything." Grinning, she waved to the two before leaving the apartment.

Namine watched her leave before turning to Reno, "So do you have any specific plans or are we just here to sight-see?"

"This is your birthday trip." Reno answered, "It's up to you."

Namine grinned, "I want to see everything, then. All the wonderful places that are said to be here."

"Sure, sounds good." Reno smiled.

"Let's go, then!" she grabbed his hand, heading for the door.

XXXX

Seifer pulled up in front of Hayner's house and parked his car, hopping out and walking up to the front door.

Hayner closed the door behind him, meeting Seifer halfway up the path to his house, pulling his (Seifer's) jacket closer around him. "Hey."

"Hey." Seifer smiled.

"How was work?" Hayner asked as they went to the car.

Seifer shrugged, "Eh. Not particularly irritating for once."

Hayner nodded and climbed in, waiting for Seifer to walk around and do the same. "You know you don't have to walk up to the door every time you pick me up - you could honk or text me or something."

Seifer raised an eyebrow, "Well, we're dating-the last thing I want is to be rude." he chuckled, starting his car.

Hayner flushed, staring intently out the window. "I'm not a girl," he muttered.

Seifer raised an eyebrow, "That doesn't change anything."

Hayner let the subject drop, "Dinner, right?"

"Yeah." Seifer nodded, "Then a movie. Still okay?"

"Yeah," Hayner shrugged. "Gonna let me pay this time?"

"Nope."

Hayner sighed in frustration, "How is it fair if you pay for everything? When I do stuff with Rox, we split it."

"Yeah, and are you dating Roxas?" Seifer raised an eyebrow.

Hayner gagged, "What? Dude, that's so gross!" He grimaced at the mental image, shuddering.

Seifer laughed.

"Roxas is my best friend, I did not want that image in my head," Hayner said, still grossed out. "What the hell does me not dating him have to do with us splitting the bill when we go out, anyway?"

Seifer sighed, "Look, sweetheart, it just means that I'm going to keep paying for things. Especially considering that I have a job and you don't."

Hayner blushed lightly at the nickname but managed to glare at the blonde, "Why do I get the feeling that even if I had a job, you still wouldn't let me pay?"

Seifer didn't answer that, laughing instead, as he pulled into Dragonfly Soy Sauce.

Hayner threw his hands up in frustration, "Fine. Whatever. Waste your money, see if I care."

Seifer chuckled, "C'mon, sweetheart."

Hayner sighed, climbing out of the car. "Is it really necessary to keep calling me that?"

"Well, if you can come up with something better, then I guess not." Seifer shrugged, "What would you rather?"

"My name. Do you hate it or something?" Hayner grumbled.

"Of course I don't hate your name." Seifer blinked.

Hayner stared at him for several seconds. "You're so weird," he declared before turning and walking towards the restaurant.

"Well, you're dating me anyway, so I guess that means something." Seifer chuckled, hurrying to catch up with him.

Hayner rolled his eyes, pulling the door open. The host smiled at them and soon they were seated, waiting for their waitress.

"So what's your schedule like this weekend?" he asked.

"Working Saturday evening, but that's it." Seifer said, "Yours? Anything going on?"

"Nah," Hayner shrugged, glancing up as the waitress appeared, dressed in traditional silk clothes.

"Welcome to Dragonfly Soy Sauce," she said, bowing and offering a soft, shy smile. "My name is Miranda and I'll be your waitress tonight. Would you like to hear the specials?" She said this last part directly at Seifer, clearly checking him out.

"Sure." Seifer offered her a friendly smile.

Miranda beamed, rattling off the list from memory. "I'd highly recommend the chef's special tonight - it's nice and sweet with just a subtle kick of spice." She smiled again at Seifer, shifting slightly to better show off her curves.

Hayner clenched his fists under the table, realizing that this idiot was flirting with Seifer!

Not really concerned with the flirty waitress, Seifer glanced at Hayner.

"Actually we want the large combo to split," Hayner ground out, flushing when the waitress absently turned her attention to him.

"Ah," she said. "Very well." She sent one last smile to Seifer and sauntered away, swaying her hips.

If looks could kill, Hayner's glare would've dropped her on the spot.

Seifer raised an eyebrow, having never seen Hayner glare quite that angrily at anyone before. (Roxas included.)

Once she disappeared from sight, Hayner turned to Seifer and said apologetically, "I hope that was okay, ordering for us both like that." He blushed lightly.

"Of course." Seifer chuckled.

"So did you want to hang out this weekend or did you have plans with your friends?" Hayner asked.

"Sure. I've got nothing going on." Seifer shrugged.

"Okay!" Hayner grinned, clearly happy.

Seifer smiled.

A few minutes later, Miranda returned carrying a large platter of food. She bent over to place it on the table directly in front of Seifer.

Hayner scowled at her, glaring as she told them to enjoy their meal before moving off to another table.

Seifer pushed the plate forward so that it was more between them and Hayner could actually reach it.

Hayner nodded his thanks, grabbing a fork and digging in. He was just swallowing his first bite when Miranda appeared again.

"Everything okay?" she asked with a smile.

"Fine," Hayner snapped harshly.

"Oh, your drink is almost empty - let me refill that for you," she said, taking Seifer's half-full glass and walking away.

Seifer raised an eyebrow, "Girls do realize that pushing themselves on you doesn't work, right?" he asked Hayner.

"Apparently not," he muttered darkly as Miranda reappeared with a full glass, placing it in front of Seifer. "Is there anything else I can you? Either of you?" she added with a glance to Hayner.

"No," Hayner ground out and she merely smiled and nodded, moving away again.

Seifer reached across the table and squeezed his hand, "Deep breaths, dear." he joked.

Hayner glared at him but didn't pull his hand away.

Seifer chuckled, maneuvering his left hand so that he could attempt to eat despite Hayner's grip on his dominant hand.

They ate in silence for a few moments, just enjoying the food, when Miranda appeared again, not at all faltering in her blatant flirting with Seifer despite the fact that the two were clearly holding hands.

"How are we doing?" she asked with another smile.

Hayner snapped. "We'd be doing better if you opened your fucking eyes and realized he's taken!"

Miranda jerked back, "Sir, I-"

"Just shut up and leave us alone to eat in peace!" Hayner growled. "He's mine." He lifted their linked hands for emphasis.

Miranda nodded, appearing to be on the verge of tears before she fled from the couple.

Hayner scowled for a moment longer before sheepishly looking at Seifer, blushing bright red.

Seifer, quite pleased and smirking a little, raised an eyebrow.

Hayner ducked his head to stare at the food, mumbling, "Sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?" Seifer chuckled, "That was awesome."

Hayner's head jerked up as he stared at Seifer, still blushing. "Yeah?"

Seifer nodded, smiling at him.

Hayner grinned back, obviously glad Seifer wasn't annoyed with him.

XXXX

*blinks* Hayner willingly declared Seifer his boyfriend? THE WORLD IS ENDING! :D

Hope you guys liked that, we've got some great plotlines coming up next!

Thanks for all the support! Reviews are lovely!