~!~

CHAPTER 5

~!~

It was really late.

So late, that it was actually considered 'early'.

"An' then I slammed my fist over the engine, and it started working smoothly."

Cid laughed heartily, waving his hands as he spoke, as if to help his companion imagine the situation he was describing.

"And then what?"

"The damned thing worked fine all day long!"

"And they say brute force is not the answer."

"They talk nonsense!"

Both men laughed. After they decided to leave the restaurant, Sephiroth paid everything, while receiving a thankful glance from an embarrassed Cid.

They both were enjoying each other's company so much that they decided to walk around for a while longer.

Sephiroth and Cid came to a stop when they reached the edge of the plate, and wandered around, talking about anything that came across their minds.

By the time one of them remembered to check the time, all public transportation was out of the lines and Cid had no other way to return home, except to walk all the way through each Sector. Sephiroth had offered a ride, but Cid refused.

So they ended up spending the rest of the 'morning' in the park, waiting for it to hit five o'clock.

Sephiroth was sitting on a bench next to Cid, half turned to the blonde so that he could see the man's features under the moon's light.

~Such bright eyes~

The next moment must of have happened out of tiredness, but it felt magical to both men. They were talking, but began leaning into each other.

Sephiroth's eyes moved down to Cid's inviting lips. When he saw that the youth was also leaning forward, he took the chance and touched said lips with his own.

Cid unconsciously closed his eyes and leaned forward a bit, just to be sure that he was really feeling those soft lips of the general on his.

Neither of them was sure how long it lasted. Eventually one of them began to move and the kiss ended. Blue-sky met sapphire green and both stared at each other for a moment.

The moment was broken by the high pitched song of a morning bird doing its usual tasks. Both the blonde and the silver watched the birds moving out of their nests, one by one, and noticed how the sky was taking color in the far horizon.

"I need to be back for my duties as a general."

Sephiroth spoke with a hint of regret in his tone, and lifted himself from his seat. Cid's eyes followed.

~Wonder how he looks without those clothes o'his~

"Can I see you again, today?"

Sephiroth asked and Cid pondered for a moment. He really had no plans for the time being, so he nodded at the tall man.

"Yeah, sure! What time?"

"Same time, same place?"

Cid nodded with please. That would give him enough time to go home, shower, change and return to Sector 8 in time to meet with Sephiroth again.

"Same time, same place."

Cid repeated, grinning.

"I'll see you then."

Sephiroth nodded with a smile and turned, his hair following with smooth waves behind him.

"Sure."

The blonde man remained on his spot, his fingers tracing along his lips as if to recall how everything happened in the first place.

~!~

Zack whistled, making his way calmly back to Sector 8. He knew he would regret coming back so late, with barely any time to sleep, but right now he felt good.

After his training, he gathered with his cute friend, Cloud, and his colleagues at a chosen bar located in Sector 3. All of the present infantrymen were surprised to see a Second Class to join them and he became the main point of interest for the rest of the night.

After everyone settled down with their drinks, Zack found himself some time to chat with the blonde one. They lost track of time and when the bar closed, Zack ended up walking with Cloud over to Sector 5, the section ShinRA had built specifically to train their troops.

The black haired man enjoyed the blonde's company. It relaxed him after a tough day of training. His mentor had left Zack to try and finish thirty missions without taking a break in between them, to which he did excitedly.

Zack was glad that he was gifted with unnatural boosts of energy that never seemed to run out. Even after all that drinking he had with Cloud, he still felt wide awake. He couldn't say the same thing for his little friend, who started to yawn quite often during their walk together.

~That was really cute~

Zack felt his heart warm at the thought of the blonde. He felt lucky to meet Cloud. He was nice, playful, easy to tease and a good friend.

~Wonder if he would like to be more~

Zack looked over to the sky to notice on how some clouds were being lit by the upcoming sunrise. He got distracted with the blonde and knew he would not be able to sleep at all.

~Angeal is probably heading to my room around this time~

The black haired male felt the sides of his mouth turn upwards; thinking of his mentor's annoyed face upon finding that Zack was not in his bed.

~My phone should start ringing any minute now~

Zack decided to run towards the tall building, not only to make it in time, but also to warm himself up for the next training sessions.

"Zackary?"

The man froze upon hearing his name being called. He spun around, recognizing the voice.

"Sephiroth?"

Zack watched the Silver General walk towards his direction. He was no longer in his car, or with that person he was with.

~Wonder if it went bad~

Zack doubted that was the case. The tall man did not seem upset or stressed.

"What are you doing out here so early?"

"I could say the same to you, Sephiroth."

Zack grinned, watching the other man agree to his point of view.

"I was just heading back to my office."

"And I was just heading back to my early training session."

Sephiroth nodded and continued to walk, being followed by Zack.

"I saw you heading somewhere with someone."

Zack pointed out, watching the way the General reacted. Sephiroth kept walking, but answered.

"And you saw things correctly."

"So? How did it go?"

The black haired man watched the taller man stop for a moment, as if contemplating.

"It was good."

After the curt answer, Sephiroth continued on his path.

"Just good? Nothing else?"

"I also saw you with someone, Zackary."

"C'mon now, just call me Zack."

Zack complained, but that remark made him scratch his head sheepishly.

"So you did."

He answered the taller man's question.

"Did you enjoy your night? Or did you 'crash' it?"

Sephiroth smirked to himself at his own words.

"Oh, that was low!"

Zack cried out, crossing his arms over his chest, but what he really wished to do was to cover his face right now. Sephiroth let out a small chuckle.

"You're still embarrassed by that?"

"Well, wouldn't you be?"

"I suppose I would."

Before the conversation could prolong any further, both males were already inside the white building of ShinRA, and were immediately greeted by the employees working in the main entrance.

Once inside the elevator, towards the SOLDIER floor, both Zack and Sephiroth stood side by side.

"And yes, I did enjoy my night."

Zack finally answered with a smile. He could see the Silver General nodding his head from the corner of his eye.

~!~

"Bend over, sexy."

A deep voice spoke breathlessly.

~Touch~

~Caress~

~Nibble~

~Suck~

~Press~

~Pinch~

Genesis woke up with a startle, gasping for air. He was having one of his famous wet dreams. But something felt strange around the bed he was sleeping on.

~This pillow feels weird too~

The red head tried to readjust his sight, but found himself feeling slightly nauseated when he turned his head around to look for a nightstand.

He groaned in victory when he found the switch of the lamp, but soon regretted it when the light pierced straight into his eyes.

"Oh….."

It took him a while, but eventually the red head managed to withstand the illumination and got himself off the bed.

~Is this Angeal's room?~

Genesis recognized the room. There were pictures of his family scattered around, as well pictures of Angeal with Genesis and Sephiroth around the time they joined SOLDIER. The room was also lively due to the presence of plants and flowers (and a very peculiar Cactuar) placed around the corners and window.

~He is such a family man~

Genesis groaned, holding his head at the searing pain. Today was not going to be a good day. He made his way out of the room, and took notice of how he had gone to bed with his clothes (now wrinkled) still on.

~Sloppy….how unusual of me~

He then assumed that it was Angeal who must have placed him on the bed. That assumption was confirmed when he stepped out of the room and found Angeal lying on the couch. His snoring told the red head that he was still sleeping deeply.

~Poor guy. I should prepare something for him~

And with that thought, Genesis made his way to the kitchen, knowing that his dark haired friend always kept the fridge stocked.

He decided to make a breakfast as a form of 'thank you' for listening to him last night. He knew he could be hard to deal with, but he wasn't that selfish.

~!~

"Strange…I can't find Angeal."

Zack spoke out loud to himself as he finished walking around the hallway and found himself in front of the Training Room.

His mentor was nowhere to be seen, and Zack already sent him a message asking about his whereabouts.

"Yo, any luck?"

The dark haired man heard the familiar voice of his friend speak.

"Nope. Can't find him."

"If I see him, I'll send you a word."

"Cool. Thanks, Kunsel."

With those words, Zack made his way into the training room by himself. He knew that there was nothing else he could do, except to wait for something to happen.

~I know it's useless trying to chat with Cloud. He can only check his phone after his training~

~!~

"Do you want to go out with me?"

"Oh? I mos' certainly do."

The Dark General smirked down at the shorter man that was sitting next to him. He had brought a hand to caress the young blonde's chin, admiring his features before leaning down.

"You're beautiful, you know?"

Angeal murmured as he pressed his lips against the blonde's ones, not wasting time in sneaking his tongue in the man's moist cavern. He could hear Genesis buzz uncontrollably from the seat next to his.

~Buzzing? Genesis doesn't buzz~

"Hum…"

Angeal woke up from a sudden vibration coming from under him. More specifically, his ass was shaking.

"Who…?"

He groaned at the little pain from his hangover and sat up a little. While his hand was snaking around his behind to look for his phone, his eyes looked over to his room.

~The door is open~

The dark haired man then noticed that the kitchen was lit, and he quickly presumed that Genesis was awake and preparing something in the kitchen.

~Hopefully he is not wrecking it…~

Angeal took a quick glance at his phone and groaned at the time and message inside.

~I'm late. Puppy's going to tease me about this all day long~

But his sense of duty spoke louder than his hangover. He had a Second Class to train, whether he was late or not. With that decision made, he got himself up and walked into the kitchen.

"Oh, good morning."

Genesis greeted when he turned around with some fresh made pancakes still in a frying pan on his hand. Angeal looked around the place. There was juice already set up in the cups, and it became complete when the red head placed the pancakes stacked on the main plate that sat in the center.

"You cooked? Without causing a mess?"

Genesis snorted a 'very funny' under his breath, but continued.

"Sit down and eat. I made these for us."

Angeal watched his friend speak as he sat slowly on one of the chairs.

"Thank you. Now, this is a rare occasion."

The dark haired man spoke, and joined Genesis at the table slowly and careful as to not wobble. Even with Mako infusion, alcohol could still affect their bodies greatly.

~At least I can smell the food without wanting to hurl~

"I also want to thank you, old friend."

Genesis's sentence made Angeal snort.

"I'm only one year older than you, 'old friend'."

"Hey, never say old to a lady."

"What lady?"

They both laughed, but soon groaned at the same time when another wave of pain came through their brains.

"I am never drinking again."

"You said that the last time, Genesis."

Angeal pointed out as he took a handful of pancakes and ate them.

"Yeah, oh well."

Genesis shrugged his shoulders and began to eat.

~!~

TBC