Day 4: make-up

...

Zack tracked Cloud down to one of the trooper's kitchen which was empty except for the blond spikes poking out of a corner. He closed the door behind him slowly as to make no sounds. Cloud's irritated mutters helped cover his tracks.

He rounded the kitchen island and plopped on the ground face to face with a surprised Cloud. The blond almost stabbed himself with the knife he used to peel potatoes. There was something on Cloud that made Zack pause but he couldn't pinpoint what.

"Man, I thought peeling the potatoes as a punishment was some sort of urban legend," Zack commented before freezing, knowing what caught part of his mind's attention. "You're wearing make-up!"

"Yes," Cloud said, bored out of his mind by his activity.

Zack leaned toward the blond to study him. Not that he needed to be near to see perfectly, it was just and ingrained habit that never went away. Cloud's make-up entranced him. It was just so carefully done, strange for a boy, and enhanced Cloud's qualities rather than being a splash of colours without goal. Thing that a lot of women higher up loved at this time. A tendance that hurt Zack's eyes. And others SOLDIERs.

"Where did you learn to do make-up?"

"Uh? Videos. And Sephiroth's secretary. I liked her make-up, so I asked for tips."

Zack hummed. Diana started following the ongoing trend to blend in before the General, with his brutal honesty, had told her she looked awful and he preferred her old make-up.

"So, why are you wearing it?"

"The guys from my squad challenged me to do it and wear it for one day."

"So you won?"

"Obviously. That's not hard, I told them. I even told them to propose another bet but they were stuck on the make-up."

Zack hummed again as he played with a potato peel. He put his elbow on his knee and let his head fall on his hand, "You know make-up is for girls?"

Cloud snorted, "City boys think that?"

Zack grimaced, he hit right: Cloud's backwater background had dragged him down again.

"They do. At Gongaga too, make-up is for girls."

"This is paint, Zack. It's not for girls or boys. Like a knife isn't for a girl and a hammer for a boy."

Zack scrunched his nose, knife for girls and hammer for boys? That was the first gendered stereotype Cloud thought off? He sighed and shook his head.

"Well, duh. We all have our shitty beliefs, Spiky. I mean, at Nibelheim girls are still married by their parents, sometimes without their consent."

Cloud bristled and stopped peeling for a second. He took a deep breath not to snap at Zack, "Yeah. Not in every house. My mom would have killed anyone doing that if she could get away with it."

"Badass mom," Zack said in aparté. "Anyway. They were trying to humiliate you, Cloud."

"Well, joke on them. I look dope in make-up."

"Sure you do." Zack paused. "You aren't feeling down about it?"

"It the less humiliating thing they tried to make me do, and the less embarassing situation I ended up in. It's been months they started doing things to push me out of the squad. Since I calmed down on the fights. There things that make my blood boil, but I promised I would calm down so I wasn't risking my place in SOLDIERs. I made a promise." Cloud waved his knife at Zack. "Do you think I don't keep my promises?"

"No!" Zack exclaimed. He sighed, carding a hand through his hair. "Damn, I thought it was your attitude that drew you apart from them. But they seem to just be assholes."

"Maybe it's still my fault. I didn't give a good first impression," Cloud mumbled, returning to his potatoes. "Or good second and third and millionth impression."

"You made a good impression with me!" Zack exclaimed, a big smile on his lips.

Cloud glared at him, "I hit you in the knees then told you to get out of my sight as I scrubbed the floor."

"I like bossy people," Zack answered with a grin.

"No you don't. Last time Genesis bossed you around you cursed under your breath the whole time."

"Touché. I like only one bossy person then." Zack stayed silent a moment before murmuring. "Can I mess up your pretty manly-paint? I really wanna kiss you."

"Colonel Smith will come soon to relieve me."

"Don't care."

"If he saw us together, he's gonna punish me again for bothering you or having a friend when I was punished. Whatever. My squad will know somehow and use it to mess with me."

"Not a problem. You've been selected for SOLDIERs."

Cloud froze on spot, his brain short-circuited. He blinked owlishly at Zack.

"That's why I came down for you. Next week you'll meet your new squad and then you'll be programmed for your first mako shot in the next month. Everyone know the SOLDIERs cadets are out of their reach. If they mess with you, they'll be the ones in troubles." Zack smiled at his cute blond that didn't move an inch. "Cloudy? I broke you?"

The second after that, Zack had a handful of trooper on his lap pulling at his collar. Cloud's hands moved to held Zack's face and knocked their nose together as he tried to kiss him. Cloud groan made the dark-haired laugh before any sounds he made was swallowed by his trooper pressing against him. Zack hummed in the kiss and leaned back, forgetting he was on a stool. He tipped to far and fell, taking Cloud with him.

Cloud looked stunned to have been stopped by such a trivial thing as gravity. A bubbling laugh escaped Zack. He held tighter on Cloud's waist and pressed an open mouthed kiss to the nap of Cloud's neck. A whine escaped the throat under his mouth, he smiled wickedly then liked the skin near his mouth. Zack pulled away to look at Cloud's flushed face.

"I want to mess your clothes too, now."

For only answer, Cloud pulled him into another heated kiss.

.