Invisible Ink

Chapter Seven

The door to the apartment closed loudly as Cid leaned against it, his eyes closing. He had practically run the entire way back just so he could be somewhere he knew well as soon as possible. His breath was hard to catch and he stood there panting, attempting to sort out some of the confusion in his mind and getting absolutely nowhere.

A spiky black head peered out from the living room. “Cid? Why do you look like you just saw a ghost?” Zack stepped out into the front hall.

Cid jumped at the voice, his heart suddenly pounding in his chest. “Zack,” he breathed out. “Ya scared me. Don’t do that.”

Zack chuckled a little. “Sorry, dude. Seriously, what’s got you so worked up?”

Cid’s gaze flicked to the floor. “I, uh… nothin’.”

Zack eyed him. “You sure? You don’t look like it’s nothing.”

“It’s nothin’,” Cid repeated, shoving away from the door and heading past Zack. Taking refuge in his room, he stretched out on his bed and searched his table for a crumpled pack of cigarettes. Unfortunately, his lighter was no where to be seen and right when he really needed a smoke, too. “Zack?”

A moment later, Zack peered into Cid’s room. “Yeah?”

“You have a lighter? Really could use one of these things right now.” He waved the cigarette he had pulled out for emphasis.

Zack blinked. “You smoke? … How did I not know this?”

“Dunno. Guess ya didn’t snoop around my room enough.” Popping the cigarette between his lips, Cid raised a brow. “So ya got a light?” he repeated anxiously.

“Um, actually, yeah. Reno leaves them all over. I’ll go see if I can get one.” Zack turned to disappear into his bedroom, looking around through discarded clothes and miscellaneous places on his dresser and desk. Finally he grabbed one and headed back to Cid’s room. “Doesn’t have much fluid in it, but it’ll be good for a few lights.”

“Thanks,” Cid mumbled as he reached for the lighter. The flame flared up in front of him and in a few seconds he sucked in the first calming breath of smoke. “Fuckin’ needed that,” he said, blowing out a stream of smoke and tossing the lighter back to Zack. He was still extremely unnerved and confused, but the nicotine helped.

Zack caught the lighter and pocketed it. “Why’d you need it?”

Cid glanced up at him before drawing another deep breath of smoke and looking down. “Did somethin’ stupid again,” he muttered softly.

Zack, rather unexpectedly, gave him a sympathetic look. “What?”

Cid sighed out a smoky breath. “Thought you’d be able to figure it out.”

Straightening a little, Zack folded his arms. “Something to do with Vince?”

Cid said nothing, just nodded and took another deep drag. He was slowly calming down, though it wasn’t as quickly as he had hoped. He still felt torn inside and had a slight hunch that no amount of nicotine would help him there.

“What happened this time?” Zack asked, trying to keep his mind from jumping to conclusions.

Cid leaned back, his head cushioned by his pillows. “Too much, I think.”

Zack’s eyes widened. Enough with this trying not to jump to conclusions thing. “Did you sleep with him?”

“What? No!” Cid sat back up suddenly, his cheeks warming. “I didn’t do that much with him!” He stopped, his mind supplying him with an image he wasn’t sure if he wanted to see or not of Vincent stretched out on his bed, nearly writhing in pleasure. He swallowed hard, rubbing his eyes to try and force the image from his head. “No, didn’t sleep with him.”

Zack grinned. He couldn’t help it. “But you want to.”

Cid’s eyes went wide and he nearly dropped his cigarette. “I… You’re fuckin’ crazy!” he yelled, trying to ignore the fact that his cheeks were incredibly warm. It seemed ridiculous to him that he felt like a teenager with all this.

Zack chuckled. “It’s okay, I won’t tell him.”

“I don’t wanna sleep with him,” Cid hissed sharply. “An’ ya better not go off tellin’ him any of this shit that you’re comin’ up with or I’ll kick your fuckin’ ass, ya hear me?” He leaned in close to Zack, trying to make his point stronger.

Zack just smiled. “I just said I wouldn’t tell him. Lighten up, man.”

“There’s nothin’ to tell anyway,” Cid growled, leaning back and taking another drag. The last think he wanted was for Vincent to think he had this urge to sleep with him, especially figuring on the fact that the professor had admitted he wanted the blond.

Zack plopped down on the end of Cid’s bed. “So what happened then?”

Relaxing a little bit, Cid leaned back again. “I… Fuck. I don’t really know.” He closed his eyes, stubbing out his cigarette in a small ashtray on his table. “I… kinda ended up kissin’ him after class. I dunno what happened. I just… did it.”

Zack grinned a little. “He’s a good kisser, huh?”

Cid wanted to deny Zack’s comment, but he couldn’t. The truth was, Vincent actually was a good kisser. A very good kisser. He sighed softly, nodding. “I… kinda freaked out on him though. Took off.”

“You took off?”

Grimacing slightly, Cid nodded again. “Yeah. He followed me though. Said he wanted to get lunch.” Scoffing quietly, the blond shook his head. “Never happened.”

Zack was totally captivated. “So? What did happen?”

“Ah, some jackasses were throwin’ a party. Hit Vince with a buncha water balloons.” Glancing aside, Cid wondered why he was telling Zack all of this. “He had to go back home an’ change. Bastards soaked him.”

“So you followed him?”

“He… kinda asked me to. Still wanted to go get food, I guess.”

Zack nodded. “He would.” The younger man grinned. “I bet he looked great all soaked.”

Cid sent his roommate a rather harsh glare, not really understanding why. It wasn’t as if it was his place to defend Vincent against comments like that so why was he acting as if it was?

“What?” Zack asked innocently. “I’ve seen it before.”

“So?”

“So it was nice to look at. Especially when he’s just out of the shower with nothing but a towel on. Mmm, I used to love when that happened.” Zack grinned, remembering.

Cid’s eyes grew wide as he stared at Zack. He didn’t know what the other was getting at, but he didn’t think he liked it. “When’d you see him in the shower?” he asked a little shakily.

Zack tilted his head a little. “Me and Vince used to go out. Did I skip that detail too?”

“You… what?” Cid gaped at Zack, his inner voice not at all happy with what he had just heard.

“We used to date. Right after he graduated high school and I was a sophomore.”

Cid’s eyes flicked to the side and he felt a sinking feeling. Why, he didn’t know. It was almost as if he had lost a chance he wasn’t even sure he wanted. His expression fell as he sat there, wondering why he felt so dejected when nothing had even happened.

“He’s great in bed, in case you were curious. I fit better with Reno, but I had lots of good times with Vincent.” Zack looked over at Cid, smiling. “I’m glad he and I are still friends.”

Cid couldn’t bring himself to look at Zack. Those images he had seen before suddenly had Zack thrown in there too, acting as the one making Vincent writhe. Closing his eyes tightly, Cid flopped backward. The last thing he needed was to add Zack to his whole bout of confusion. Not to mention that he could do without the jealousy that was clutching at his chest.

Zack noticed Cid’s discomfort. “Sorry. You probably could have lived without that information, huh?”

Still saying nothing, Cid slipped off of his bed and headed for the bathroom, leaning over the sink. He kept feeling all these emotions that he could do nothing with and it was beginning to really get to him. Turning on the cold tap, he splashed his face with water, glaring at his reflection when he noticed there was still a rosy tint to his cheeks. He didn’t want to be jealous, he didn’t want to be thinking of Vincent in those ways, and he didn’t want to be fighting with himself over how he should feel and act. He was ready to be done with it, one way or another.

Zack watched him go, feeling a little bad. Sometimes he cursed his inability to hold his tongue. He got up and went to lean in the doorway of the bathroom. “So, uh… you say you didn’t eat lunch? You wanna get something?”

Cid blinked, drops of water making his vision blurry. “I dunno,” he said softly. He supposed he might have been hungry, but at the moment he wasn’t thinking anywhere along the lines of food.

Zack shrugged. “Or we can wait. No big.”

“Nah… We can go.” Pushing himself away from the sink, Cid wiped his face on his sleeve and moved past Zack. If anything, he needed a good distraction, hopefully one that made him stop thinking about Vincent for a while.

Zack smiled. “What do you feel like? There’s a great Chinese place on Main Street.”

Cid shrugged. In reality, he wasn’t in the mood for anything, but he wasn’t about to say that. “That’s fine,” he said absently, disappearing into his room to gather up his cigarettes. He had the intuition that he would probably end up needing them.

Zack went to grab his keys and his wallet. “Cool, let’s go.” He opened the front door, leaning on the frame and waiting for Cid to catch up.

Storing his pack safely away in his pants pocket, Cid followed Zack to the door. If anything, he wanted to lie down and forget everything that had happened. But he knew if he did that, he would just end up thinking more about Vincent, not less. Maybe getting out would help him a little. He hoped so.

Zack grinned amicably at him, turning to walk outside. It was a nice afternoon. “Make sure you lock that.”

Cid gave Zack a look as if he didn’t know what he was doing, finally figuring it out. He quickly locked the door and, after a short fight with his key sticking, he made it down the steps and waited for his roommate.

Zack started walking next to him, his usual bounce in his step. “So… what should we talk about?”

Stuffing his hands into his pockets, Cid fiddled with his cigarette pack to distract himself. “Dunno. We ‘sposed to talk ‘bout somethin’?” he asked, half to actually have something to say.

The younger shrugged. “Not necessarily. I just like to talk.”

“Then you figure out somethin’ to talk about.” Cid set his gaze on the ground, watching the cracks in the sidewalk. “I dunno anythin’ to suggest.”

“Well… I wanna hear more about Vincent, but you probably don’t wanna talk about that.”

Cid glanced up quickly just as the toe of his boot caught on a raised crack. He stumbled forward and managed to regain his balance, only giving Zack a short look before focusing on the pavement again. “Whaddid ya wanna hear?” he asked quietly, unsure he wanted to know Zack’s answer.

“Whatever,” Zack said casually. “I’m just interested.”

“Don’t have anythin’ to say unless there’s an actual subject,” he replied, his voice incredibly hushed. It seemed strange to him that he had been reduced to some quiet, thought-plagued person just from a couple of accidental kisses, but there was little he could do about it. Even if he had felt like yelling, he wasn’t sure if he could.

“Well… you didn’t say if Vincent felt anything about the situation. You just said what happened.”

Cid nearly winced. What was it Vincent had said? That the situation wasn’t exactly right, but he wanted Cid anyway? He didn’t like hearing that sort of thing and certainly not from his male teacher. “He… I dunno.” Shrugging, Cid pulled out a cigarette and popped it in, chewing on the filter a little. “Somethin’ about wantin’ me,” he mumbled around the cigarette, hoping Zack hadn’t actually heard him.

No such luck. Zack’s eyes widened considerably as he turned his head to look at Cid. “He said that? Wow…”

Cid’s head whipped up. “What ‘bout it?” he asked, his voice growing a little louder than before.

“It’s just… Vincent’s so work-oriented. He never does anything that would get him in trouble with the job.” Zack couldn’t help letting his mouth hang open a little as he turned to look ahead of them again. “It’s just very unusual for Vincent to even consider doing something outside protocol.” The spiky-haired student suddenly grinned happily. “He must really like you.”

Cid frowned a little without meaning to. “Why’re ya so fuckin’ happy about that?” he asked, his cigarette hanging from his lips. “Just sounds like he’s fucked up in the head to me.” He stopped, shaking his head. “Then again, guess I am too.”

“Nobody’s fucked up,” Zack said with a quiet chuckle. “Doesn’t it make you feel good to know someone likes you that much? It makes me feel good simply because I’m happy for my friends.”

“I dunno what it makes me feel like, but it sure ain’t happy. I don’t want someone encouragin’ this shit that’s goin’ on in my head an’ as far as I’m concerned, wantin’ me is about as encouragin’ as anyone could get.” The blond kicked at a rock in his path, wishing it was really a bundle of his problems and that it was as simple as just kicking it away from him.

“Why does it get to you so bad?”

“‘Cause I…” Giving a loud groan, Cid searched unsuccessfully for a lighter. “Fuck, I don’t even know anymore.”

Zack turned the corner, putting them on a busier street. “I think you’re making too much of a big deal about it. You’re just stressing yourself out more.”

“Then gimme a suggestion of what the hell’m ‘sposed to do. ‘Cause until I find somethin’ like that, I’m just gonna keep doin’ the same shit.” He let out a breath and looked down the street. “So… where’s this place of yours?” he asked, almost eager to change the subject.

“It’s just down a few blocks this way,” Zack said, continuing to walk. “And I think you should first, chill the hell out. Second, go for it, dude. Vincent’s HOT.”

Cid let his gaze wander down the sidewalk, watching the people as they passed. “But… he’s a guy. An’ not only that, he’s my fuckin’ teacher. I couldn’t do that shit even if he was a chick. I’d get my ass kicked outta school an’ there’s no way in hell that’s happenin’.”

“He’s only your teacher for another few weeks. Then you don’t have to worry about it anymore. Plus, isn’t he younger than you anyway? There’s less scandal there.”

“But…” Groaning again and running his hand over his face, Cid shook his head. “Look. Let’s just drop it for now. We’re not gettin’ anywhere.”

“We’re not getting anywhere because you’re not letting us get anywhere. I’m trying to tell you to chill out and do what makes you feel the best, but you’re pretty much ignoring me.”

“I… I’m not ignorin’ ya on purpose. It just that nothin’ feels right. It feels so fuckin’ wrong that I want somethin’ to do with him and that he wants anythin’ to do with me.”

“Well, it’s not wrong.” Zack turned to a building and pulled the door open, gesturing for Cid to enter first. “And we’re here.”

“Try tellin’ my mind that,” Cid muttered as he slipped through the doors, glancing around the place. “So where do we sit?” he asked, taking in the brightly colored decorations and the several tables laid out before them.

A happy-looking girl stepped up to them. “Hi, there. Two?” she asked, picking up two menus from a pile next to her.

Cid glanced to his roommate, nodding. “Yeah. Don’t think we have anyone else that’s gonna show up unless ya called someone to meet up.”

Zack shook his head. “Just us, Tifa.”

The girl, Tifa, smiled. “All right. Seat for two.” She started walking through the lines of tables, her long brown hair waving slightly behind her. Cid followed, wondering how Zack knew the waitress. Then again, he had said the place was good. No doubt it was one of his favorite spots to eat, so it wouldn’t be all that strange for Zack to know names. His attention flicked forward as he bumped an empty seat, deciding it was probably better to focus on where he was going. Unfortunately, doing so put his eyes somewhat on the waitress’s behind, which happened to move in a very appealing manner.

Tifa led them to a booth, setting the menus down on either side. “You can order from the menu or you can use the buffet. You want your usual drink, Zack?” She tilted her head a little, giving both of them a friendly smile.

Zack grinned back and nodded. “Sure.”

Tifa turned to Cid, holding her writing pad in both hands, which pushed her rather large chest into full view. “And for you?”

Suddenly Cid was having a very hard time keeping his eyes on her face, but he somehow managed it. “I, uh… ya have tea?” he asked, sitting a little awkwardly.

Tifa nodded, moving out of the way so Zack could sit on the other side of the table. “We do. What kind would you like?”

“Uh… just iced, I guess.” He scooted his seat a little closer to the table, wondering whether it would be rude to just start looking at the menu just to keep his attention off of her chest. She was rather nice and in his mind it was rude, but just to be safe, he did anyway. “I mean, if ya have it. Know a lotta places around here don’t.”

Tifa smiled. “Sweetened or not?”

Zack hid a grin behind his hand. He couldn’t imagine what it must have been like to be Tifa. Anyone who saw her for the first time did nothing but stare at her chest, and it looked like Cid was no exception.

“Sweetened,” Cid said somewhat distractedly, trying to keep his eyes on the words in front of him.

Tifa didn’t seem to notice Cid’s distraction. “You got it. I’ll be right back to take your order.”

Zack chuckled as soon as she was gone.

“What?” Cid asked, trying his hardest to not watch her walk away and failing horribly. He had to admit, she had a very nice behind and he found himself drawn to watching her hips sway.

“She’s a looker, huh?” Zack asked, still amused. “You’re not the first one to stare.”

As soon as she disappeared behind a door set in the wall, Cid flicked his gaze back up, peering at Zack over his menu. “So? No harm in lookin’,” he said with a shrug.

Zack chuckled again. “I’m going to the buffet.” He stood and started walking in that direction.

Looking up, Cid frowned. “What?” he asked, standing to follow him. “What?”

“Nothing,” Zack said. “I just like to laugh.”

“Uh huh.” Cid caught sight of the stack of plates, picking up one and a set of chopsticks. He wasn’t very good with them, but it was always something he liked to try, just to see if he could do it. “No reason you’re laughin’ at me then?” he inquired, one brow raised.

“Nope,” Zack said, putting a little pop on the P sound. He started making his way through the food, picking out the dishes that appealed to him and serving himself.

Cid just more or less stood there after he left, looking over the buffet. There weren’t all that many labels so he hadn’t a clue what most of the stuff was and he didn’t have as good an amount of experience with Chinese food as Zack to tell things apart. Chewing on his bottom lip a little as he thought, he decided white rice was always a safe start. He could figure it out from there… maybe.

Zack went quickly through the buffet, getting back to the booth, where their drinks had already been set. Finally picking out a couple of things, Cid stood in front of something he didn’t even have a guess about. He poked at the mix with the tongs, utterly confused as to what it might be since it didn’t look like anything in particular. He half wanted to call Zack over and ask him, but he felt that would have made him look stupid.

Tifa happened to be walking by, on her way to the kitchen, when she saw Cid. She smiled a little, amused, and approached him. “Need some help? Ugh, I swear, if these labels keep falling off…” She reached in front of Cid and fixed a small piece of paper over the food he was poking at.

Cid leaned back a little, allowing her to fix the label. His mouth quirked into a little smile as he thanked her, half because he suddenly noticed she had a very pleasant scent to her. He stood there a moment more, forcing himself to look at the label. “So, uh… what is it?” he asked, unable to read the writing and waving the tongs toward the food a little.

Tifa looked at the food. “It’s spicy chicken. It’s pretty good.”

“Oh.” Normally Cid didn’t care for spicy food, but he felt that he could try it, at least that once. “Guess I’ll give it a shot,” he said with a friendly smile, scooping some of the chicken onto his plate. “So, uh… does Zack come here a lot or somethin’?” he asked out of sheer curiosity.

Tifa smiled, nodding and lifting her arms to pull her hair back. “Yeah, he comes here with Reno. I pretty much live here, so I see them all the time.”

“Guess this is where they got supper the other night,” he said, mostly to himself. Feeling confident enough about adding another dish to his plate, he did so, looking over his shoulder at her. “So why d’ya practically live here? Just work all the time or somethin’?”

Tifa nodded. “I work almost 70 hours a week.” She leaned her hip against the buffet counter. “So what was your name again? I should probably know it if you plan on coming in with Zack all the time.”

Cid couldn’t help himself. “Holy shit! You’re kiddin’, right? Doncha get any time off?” He let out a quick breath. “That’s gotta suck.”

“It’s not bad. I don’t have much else to do.” She smiled.

“Yeah, but what about just havin’ fun? I mean, ya gotta get out an’ do shit every once in a while. Keeps a person sane, ya know?”

Tifa gave the barest hint of a smirk. “Are you suggesting something?”

Pausing for a second, Cid thought. He hadn’t been intending to hint at something. “Dunno. Guess I could be.” he said, giving her his own tiny smirk. He had to admit, it would be interesting to just go out and have fun without it ending disastrously. “Depends on if ya want me to be suggestin’ somethin’.”

Tifa smiled more. “Well, that depends on whether I’m allowed to know your name or not.”

Giving a little bit bigger smirk, Cid held out his hand to shake hers. “Name’s Cid.”

Tifa took his hand gently, more amused by him. “I’m Tifa, but I guess you already heard that from Zack.”

“Yeah, got that one down.” He gave a little laugh. “An’ I tend to remember people’s names better than food names, if that’s worth anythin’.”

Tifa laughed quietly. “Should I be impressed by that?” she asked with a wink.

Cid grinned. “Dunno. Depends on if you’re impressed with that kinda stuff. Can’t really come up with anythin’ better right now, so I’m kinda hopin’ it works.”

“Oh, you’re hoping, now, are you? What are you hoping for, exactly?”

The blond shrugged. “Can’t say I know. Hopin’ for a lotta stuff, I guess. But right now?” He gave her a little smile. “Maybe hopin’ if I ask ya out for a drink after ya get off work that you’ll accept an’ not think I’m some creep?”

Tifa folded her arms, smirking a little. “I might accept. Maybe I’ll let you know after you’ve finished your dinner.” She winked again and headed for the kitchen, purposely putting a little sway in her hips.

A grin settled itself on Cid’s face as he turned and headed back to his seat. Sliding into it, he set his plate down and gave Zack a little smirk of satisfaction.

Zack lifted an eyebrow, his plate totally empty. “Took you long enough. What’s that look for?”

“That I just got the best distraction from all this shit possible. Well, maybe.” He started in on his food, still moderately satisfied with himself. At least this way his head was thinking right and being attracted by the right things. Maybe he could even manage to straighten himself out.

Zack just raised that eyebrow more. “You asked Tifa out, didn’t you?”

“Maybe,” Cid said before popping a piece of chicken into his mouth.

The younger man nodded to himself before smirking. “She looks a lot like Vincent.”

Cid scoffed. “She does not. For one, Vincent doesn’t have…” He held his hands in front of him, signifying the girl’s large chest. “An’ for two, he’s a guy. She’s a chick. Nothin’ alike between ‘em.”

Zack just let his smirk grow. “Hmm… long, dark hair. Nice curves. Vince may not have gigantic boobs, but he’s got a pretty nice ass on him.”

Cid’s smirk fell and he narrowed his eyes at Zack over his glass. “Look. Don’t go fuckin’ this up for me by makin’ me see shit that’s not there. All right?”

Zack shrugged, looking innocent. “I’m just saying.”

“Just sayin’ my ass.” He took a drink of tea, pointing his finger at Zack as he swallowed. “Just keep all that to yourself, ‘kay?”

Zack grinned. “No problem, buddy. I’m getting seconds.” He got up, heading back to the buffet.

Cid watched him go, turning his attention to his own food which he’d barely touched. Then again, Zack had been eating while the blond had been making plans with Tifa, so it wasn’t all that surprising. Besides, the darker-haired man had the odd ability to scarf food down as if he hadn’t eaten in days.

Tifa walked by the table, carrying a tray of drinks. When she saw Cid, she winked at him as she had before, and continued on her way. Cid sent her a grin as she passed, leaning back in his seat a little to watch her walk. She really was nice to watch, what with her curves and shapely hips. She was almost so nice to watch that Cid didn’t even notice anything else around him.

Zack got back after a few minutes, plopping himself down in the booth with a thump and a rush of air. Only the sound made Cid snap out of it and he glanced over at Zack. “Whaddid ya get?” he asked more to have something to talk about than any care of what the other found appetizing.

“Lots of stuff,” Zack said through a mouthful. “These little sugar-coated donut things are great. I could eat them all day.”

“What, these things?” Reaching over with his chopsticks, Cid snatched one of the puffed dough treats up and managed to get it to his mouth without dropping it. “Not bad,” he said after a moment, licking sugar from his chopsticks. “Might have a sugar overdose if ya did eat ‘em all day though.”

“Hey! Get your own!” Zack said good-naturedly. He pulled his plate closer to himself, shielding it with his arms.

Cid gave him a blank look and held up his hands. “Hey, I didn’t do anythin’,” he said with feigned innocence.

Zack actually pouted. “You ate my sugar dumpling.”

“You’ll live,” Cid said as he took the opportunity to snatch another one, this time dropping the thing and just barely saving it with his hand. Popping it into his mouth, he smiled at Zack.

Zack kept pouting, wrapping one of his arms tighter around his plate and pulling it even closer to himself in an attempt to protect it. “My food.”

Tifa happened to pass by at that moment, catching Zack’s movement and laughing quietly to herself. She turned to Cid, pointing at Zack with her finger. “What’d you do to him?”

“Ah, I didn’t do nothin’,” Cid said with a smirk. “He’s just doin’ that to get attention.” Reaching over, he poked Zack’s forehead with the butt-end of a chopstick. “He’s addicted to poutin’ or somethin’.”

“Am not!” Zack said, still hoarding his food to himself. He looked up at Tifa and pointed with his free hand. “He stole my sugar dumplings.”

Tifa laughed again. “You guys are like toddlers.”

“Hey, don’t go lumpin’ me up with him here,” Cid said with a laugh, giving an innocent look again. “An’ for the record, he was practically offerin’ those things.”

“I was not! I was just telling you how good they were.”

“Well, they are pretty tasty,” Tifa said. “We just set out a fresh batch at the buffet.”

“There. Now ya can go get some to replace your precious lost food.” Smirking, Cid leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms over his chest. He wasn’t sure why, but all of a sudden he felt more comfortable around everyone than he had for the past week put together. Not that it was a bad thing.

Tifa covered her mouth as she laughed again. “Or you could go get some of your own and leave poor Zack alone.” She smiled at Cid, glad she had some nice customers.

“Ah, but that’s no fun,” the blond complained playfully as he slid out of his seat and passed by Tifa toward the buffet.

Zack carefully set his plate back down on the table once Cid was gone, looking up at Tifa. “So I hear he asked you out.”

Tifa grinned. “Yes, he did. Where’d you find him? I figured if he was hanging around you, he’d probably be gay.”

Zack mirrored her grin. “He claims he’s not.”

Tifa lifted an eyebrow. “Claims, hmm? Well, I’m definitely not a guy, so he’s at least a little straight.”

Zack just kept grinning. “We’ll see.”

Turning the corner with another plate, Cid stepped up behind Zack’s seat and dropped two of the Chinese donuts on his plate. “There. Now ya get ‘em back, practically with interest. Happy?” he asked with a little smile.

Zack grinned happily, like a kid who had just gotten his favorite toy for Christmas. “Sweet!” Without ado, he popped them both into his mouth immediately. Tifa just laughed again.

“For godssakes, Zack, chew once in a while.” Shaking his head, he sighed. “Guy’s gonna choke himself some day, I swear it. ‘M just waitin’ for it to happen, ya know?”

“Ahm noth. I know how thoo shoo my foodh,” Zack said, his cheeks puffed out with food.

Tifa laughed again and shook her head. “You guys are two of a kind.” With that, she walked away, shaking her head.

Taking his seat back, Cid followed Tifa with his eyes. “Ya look like a giant chipmunk, ya know that?” he said absently to Zack, only turning his attention back to his companion when Tifa had disappeared behind a set of doors. “Really fuckin’ ridiculous.”

Zack swallowed his food before grinning. “That’s why I’m lovable.”

“Uh huh.” Smirking again, he popped his own donut into his mouth. “So what’s that make me? The annoyin’ sidekick or somethin’?”

“Well, if you insist,” Zack lilted.

“Insist on what?”

“On being my sidekick.”

Cid laughed. “Shit. Why would I really wanna be your sidekick? ‘Sides. What the hell would I do? Assist ya in sleepin’ an’ eatin’?”

“Hey, I have plenty of misadventures that could be helped by a sidekick.”

“Right. Like what then?”

“Like…” Zack started, tapping his chin with his chopsticks. “Like going to find The Prince!” he exclaimed with a wide grin, knowing what that would make Cid think of.

The blond’s smile disappeared as did Cid’s rather happy mood. Vincent was the last person he wanted to be thinking about right now. Giving Zack a hard look, he silently worked on finishing his tea. Zack was unfazed. He just continued eating his food, satisfied that he had planted a seed in Cid’s thoughts.

When he had finished his drink, Cid looked down at the table. Shaking his head, he stood abruptly, muttering a short, “Bathroom,” to Zack and hurriedly heading the way he had half-noticed upon entering. He didn’t actually need to use the restroom, but what he did need was cold water on his face, hopefully cold enough to snap his mind away from the professor and back to where it should be. He needed to stop thinking about Vincent.

Tifa was on her way out of the kitchen, which was right across the hall from the bathroom, when Cid approached. At first she smiled, but then she noticed a strange look on his face. “Cid? Something wrong?”

“Fine,” he said quickly, slipping inside the bathroom. He felt a little bad for just skipping over her like that, but his main priority was to get Vincent out of his head before he could put someone else in there. Turning on the tap, he leaned heavily against the sink and waited for the water to get icy cold. Unfortunately, that was just enough time for him to recall the ebony-haired professor and their kiss.

Tifa blinked in confusion, looking at the door for a minute before shrugging and walking back out into the dining area to take care of her customers.

His eyes clenched tightly, Cid slowly lowered himself to his knees and rested his forehead against the sink. All he wanted was to forget Vincent. All he wanted was to get back to his normal life. All he wanted was… He paused, an image much like the one he had seen earlier popping into his head of Vincent sprawled out on a bed, this time beckoning to him with a little smirk. Cursing, Cid shook his head hard. He didn’t want to be seeing those things.

After a few minutes, Tifa came back to the hallway, going to give an order to the chef. She noticed the door was still closed, so on her way out of the kitchen, she moved to knock quietly. “Cid? Are you all right?”

Cid’s head shot up, hitting the underside of the sink. “Shit!” he yelped out, rubbing the spot furiously. “‘M fine!” he called back as he ignored the slightly higher tone to his voice. Not only did he have Vincent plaguing him, now he had a headache. “I need a fuckin’ drink,” he muttered to himself as he unsteadily made it to his feet.

Tifa jumped a little. “What happened? Do you need anything?”

“I—ah, fuck… I’m fine.” Pressing his palm to his forehead, Cid slowly opened the door. “Just, eh… lost my balance an’ hit my head. No big deal.”

Tifa gasped quietly, moving to take Cid’s wrist gently and move it away from his forehead. “It’s starting to turn red. It might bruise.”

Cid grimaced a little, but at the fact that Tifa was unknowingly copying Vincent from earlier. “It’ll be fine. I’m kinda clumsy or somethin’.” He gave her a little smile to try and reassure her. “Happens all the time.”

“I can get you some ice, if you want,” the girl said, looking up at Cid earnestly.

“I, uh… I dunno. D’ya really think it needs it?” he asked, not sure what to do. He liked her attention on him, but the fact it was paralleling Vincent’s so closely was beginning to be far too strange for him.

“It might swell.”

“If ya think it would help…” Cid shrugged.

Tifa took Cid’s hand in hers, leading him into the kitchen. “You might just want a little bit.”

Slowly following, Cid kept his eyes on her. “Ya really don’t have to do this, ya know,” he said softly.

“It’s no trouble,” Tifa said, leading him past all the cooks to the back of the room where there was a refrigerator. She pulled open the freezer and took out some ice cubes, moving over to a shelf where there were various kitchen supplies. She pulled a baggie out from a box on one of the shelves and put the ice in it, sealing it and wrapping it in a few paper towels. “Here, this should help.”

“Thanks.” Pressing the wrapped ice to his forehead, Cid sighed. “Sorry for causin’ trouble like this. I know you’re pretty damn busy out there.” He gave a little laugh. “Bet this sure gives ya a good impression of me, huh?”

Tifa smiled. “It works in your favor, if you’re wondering.”

“You’re kiddin’, right?” Cid was genuinely surprised. If anything, he had always been looked down upon if he made a fool of himself in front of a girl.

Tifa stepped a little closer. “I think it’s kinda cute.”

“Really?” Grinning softly, Cid locked eyes with her. She had interesting eyes, full of life and the oddest brown color that held the barest tint of red to them. “Guess I’m pretty thankful for that then.”

Tifa smiled more, making it a little sultry. “So I suppose I’ll accept your invitation, then. I’m done here at ten.”

Cid grinned again, trying to turn on as much charm as possible. “Then I guess I’ll be comin’ back around then, huh?”

“Only if you don’t mind me wearing my work clothes.”

“So you’re sayin’ I should give ya some extra time to go change then?” Smiling, Cid shifted his feet a little. “Hope you’re gonna tell me where to pick ya up then or at least where I can meet ya.”

“You can meet me at my place, if you want. Remind me on your way out, and I’ll write down the address for you.” She smiled more, reaching to lift the ice pack away from Cid’s forehead. “Is that feeling any better?”

“Much better, actually. Thanks.” Giving her a smile, Cid reached up and moved his hand over the spot, intentionally brushing her fingers. “I’ll keep that in mind to ask ya about where to find ya then.”

“Great. I’ll take you back out to your seat. Zack’s probably wondering where you went.”

“Ah, that guy doesn’t worry ‘bout me. I tell him not to anyway.” Even so, he figured if they didn’t get back, Zack would come searching for him and cause some sort of ruckus that probably would hurt his chances with Tifa. Just as long as his roommate didn’t make any comments that made him think the wrong thing again.

Tifa chuckled to herself. “Well, even so. Someone has to stop him from eating the entire buffet.”

Cid laughed. “That’s true. Guess I better get him outta here then. Can’t have him eatin’ ya outta a job.”

“Exactly,” Tifa said, laughing again and starting to lead the way out of the kitchen. Cid’s attention made her feel good, so she put a little sway in her hips again, knowing he would notice.

And notice Cid did. He could hardly keep his eyes off of her hips and his entire being was practically itching to feel the way she moved. A soft grin appeared on his face as he stepped into the main room. He could hardly wait till this evening and just hoped that Zack behaved himself until after he was gone.

Tifa led Cid back to his table, taking the mostly melted bag of ice to dispose of it. She smiled at him as he sat down again, giving him a wink before walking away.

He gave her a smile of his own, turning his eyes to Zack when she was gone. “Thanks for that, by the way. Think ya actually helped me out.”

Zack had yet another plate of food. “What? What’d I do?”

“Ya made me end up hurtin’ myself on accident an’ then Tifa got all worried over me.” He grinned, helping himself to one of the donuts that was surprisingly still on his plate. “Guess she thought I was kinda cute an’ that she’d accept goin’ out with me later.”

Zack chuckled. “You’re welcome?”

“Mhmm.” Sucking sugar off of his fingers, Cid glanced up at the clock. “Guess I’m meetin’ her a little after ten. Have to get her address though. Remind me if I don’t, kay?”

“Yeah, will do,” Zack said. He was pretty confident that Cid wasn’t going to forget about Vincent so easily, so he decided it was fine for Cid to try for Tifa.

Wiping his hands, Cid glanced around. “So ya ready to head out? Can’t let ya stay an’ eat everythin’ here, ya know.”

Zack chuckled. “Yeah, yeah. We can pay at the register up there.”

Searching his pockets for his wallet, Cid made his way up to the indicated register. “Ya comin’ or what?” he asked, looking over his shoulder at Zack.

Zack stood up and stretched, patting his full belly. “Yup.” He also reached for his wallet, pulling it out of his back pocket and going to the register.

Looking around, Cid wondered if Tifa would be taking their money. He needed to ask her about her address so he could find her. Hopefully it would be within walking distance since he didn’t have a car anywhere near the campus.

Zack pulled the money out of his wallet, already knowing how much it would cost. He grinned as he looked behind him, watching Tifa jog to the register to take their payments. She smiled at them. “Everything okay?”

Zack grinned back. “As usual.”

Cid grinned at her, holding out a twenty. “Pretty damn good to me,” he said, leaning against the counter.

Tifa took his money, making the correct change. She gave him a sensuous smile. “I’m glad you liked it.”

Zack rolled his eyes a little. “Jeez, get a room,” he said good-naturedly. He handed Tifa his money too, refusing the change.

“Shut it, Zack.” Cid playfully nudged the other with his shoulder, folding up a few of the bills and placing them in Tifa’s hand with a smile. “So I’ll be seein’ ya tonight?”

“Oh, that’s right, I have to give you my address,” Tifa said, placing the bills in her pocket. She grabbed a piece of paper from the receipt printer and wrote her address down, handing it to Cid when she was done.

Cid smiled again and pocketed the paper. “Then I’ll be by around 10:30 then or somethin’?” He shifted, slipping his hands into his back pockets. “Should I fix myself up or stay casual? Just so I know.”

“I would think that’s up to you,” Tifa said, suggestive in her tone.

Raising a brow, he gave her a little smirk. “Then I guess I could clean up a little for ya,” he said as he leaned over the counter a bit toward her. “I’ll see ya then.”

Tifa smiled. “Yes you will.” She started back toward the tables to continue working, once again swaying her hips. She turned a little to wave at them. “See you boys later.”

With a satisfied grin, Cid turned toward Zack. “All right. We goin’? I gotta remember how to make myself look good before tonight.”

Zack held in a laugh and purposely cocked his hips to the side, waving his hand in front of him. “Oh my gawd, yes. And I’d totally LOVE to help you with matching your clothes! Like, this will be so much fun!”

Cid halted and gaped. “The… fuck?” Shaking his head, he shoved past the other. “You’re crazy, hope ya know. An’ I’m not lettin’ ya dress me up like a damn doll or somethin’.”

Zack laughed loudly. “I’m just kidding!” He followed Cid out the door and back toward their apartment. Cid was too easy sometimes.