Zangeal Short "LitD"
Title: Light in the Door
Rating: PG
Pairing: Angeal/Zack
Summary: Zack misses his mentor dearly, so much that it’s having a negative impact on every other aspect of his life. He can only hope Angeal comes home soon.
Setting: Unspecified / Pre-Crisis Core
Disclaimer: Do. Not. Own.
Warnings: Unholy amounts of fluff.
A/N: Dedicated to amarissia , lily_uzumaki23 , kamuinoxdream , wickedorin , tazzles & ardwynna_m for always being uber-awesome. Hope you enjoy this small ball of fluff!
For the last several nights, Zack found it almost impossible to sleep. Ever since Angeal had left for his mission, in the borderlands surrounding Coral, the teen found himself longing for his mentor’s presence more and more with each passing second. In the beginning, the coal haired teen had tried his best to brush the feelings of loneliness off, telling himself such childishness was highly inappropriate in the world of SOLDIER, where men often went to battle only to return in boxes-- if at all. However, as the week advanced, Zack found that his mantra of, “Oh, grow up, Zack! He’s just gone on a mission, for Shiva’s sake!” had somehow changed into, “Gods, he better come home in one piece and soon…”
As ridiculous as it was, Zack still couldn’t help but feel anxious as time went by and he received no word from the stoic older man. That same anxiousness-combined with more than a couple of sleepless nights-helped sap whatever concentration or focus the already easily distracted teen could manage to scrounge up in himself and it showed clearly in everything he did. In his mind, Zack gave a weary little smile, thinking Angeal would pitch a fit when he returned to his ever restless puppy. To think, all this because the First went on a standard mission for a few days! At this rate, Zack would never obtain his dream, not if he couldn’t stop acting like this…
Like a neglected puppy waiting for his master to come home from work. Now that he thought about it, that was what he essentially was. Heaving a deep seated sigh Zack wasn’t sure whether or not to cry or laugh at the realization of Angeal being right in his assessment of the teen’s personality. In the end, though, he chose a center look between the two-something along the lines of a pitiful wail/laugh-which would have left those around him questioning his sanity had there been anyone there too hear it. Luckily, he had the dorm room all to himself for now.
“Jeez, what am I going to do when it’s more than just a simple, ‘clear the place of monsters’ mission?” he asked himself, folding his arms under his head and staring at the pockmarked ceiling.
“What if it’s another Wutai? What then?” He shuddered at the thought of his mentor being forced into another situation like that and wondering if he would be allowed to fight at his side.
“Not if I can’t keep myself together during something like this,” he snorted to himself, feeling pathetic. What good was a soldier who suffered from anxiety induced insomnia-apparently any other type was fine, according to Shinra, and made visible by Sephiroth-or a soldier who couldn’t focus for more then ten seconds? Not only was he a danger to himself, but to others as well. Angeal had told him that a thousand times.
Rolling over on to his side, the one that faced away from the doorway, Zack prayed a small prayer that he would be able to find sleep that night.
____________
It was the sound of heavy footsteps against metal flooring that woke Zack up from the first real sleep he had in days. At first, he thought it was the sound of his roommates returning after an evening of partying at some under-the-plate bar. What changed his mind, however, was the steady chorus of snores and in-sleep mumbling around him. Listening hard, with one eye cracked blearily open, the teen waited for the footsteps to retreat and to continue down the long hallway.
They didn’t.
At the sound of a keycard being swiped through the card reader and the resulting beep of the releasing lock, Zack pulled himself up on to his elbows, waiting. It took a long moment before anyone came through the door.
It wasn’t the man’s face that alerted Zack to the identity to his visitor so much as it was the large and familiar silhouette, which made an almost startling contrast against the bright light behind it.
“Angeal,” the teen managed, softly. His voice was still thick with sleep.
“Zack,” the man acknowledged after a small hesitation, no doubt a little surprised to see a pair of pale blue eyes watching him. “I thought you would be asleep by now.”
“Was,” the teen replied, as way of explanation, feeling more exhausted after a few hours of sleep than he had after almost a week going without. “But you woke me up.”
Gathering his wits a bit more, the raven haired teen threw a quick glance around at his still sleeping companions. Rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hands to try and remove the slight burn from them, Zack wondered if he was still asleep too or if he was suffering from a hallucination from his bout of insomnia.
“I didn’t mean to, Pup. I just came to check up on you. Heard you were having a hard time of it lately,” the older man replied, watching Zack with some interest.
“Nothin’ I can’t handle,” the teen lied, running a hand through his hair. It caught on a tangle, causing him to wince. Letting his hand drop limply to his side, he struggled to keep the bleariness out of his eyes and voice. According to Angeal’s reaction, though, the teen felt it safe to assume he failed.
“I’ll say,” the First said with a raised eyebrow. “But we’ll talk about that tomorrow morning. Get some sleep, you look like you need it.”
“’Kay,” Even though he wanted to deny it, Zack didn’t hesitate or fuss in the least when Angeal motioned for him to lay back down and began to tug at the blanket that he managed to fall asleep atop of earlier. Almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, Zack’s eyes became too heavy to hold up anymore, and he felt more than saw the older man drape the warm heavy material over his body. It felt nice.
“See you in the morning, Zack. Sweet dreams,” a rumbling voice from above him added, before his consciousness began its downward descent to dreamland for the first time in too long.
“G’night, Angeal,” he slurred, with a sigh.
“Goodnight, Puppy,” came the older man’s reply, but by then Zack was already too deep into sleep to hear it. That night, he slept better than he had in a long time, his mind free of worry and concern; free to dream about playing hero to damsels in distress and fighting seemingly unbeatable monsters at side of the very best.
That morning he did not remember who tucked him in or why he felt so calm, but the feeling of worry for his mentor was gone and he couldn’t help but whistle a little tune under his breath as he made his way to the showers, intending to grab a quick breakfast afterwards. All he could remember, though, was the feeling of being loved, safe, and warm, but that was more than enough for him.
Stepping out of the showers, he decided he would have eggs for breakfast, and the try to make up for all he missed or messed up in the few days prior. After all, he wanted to make Angeal proud when he got home, whenever that may be.
What he didn’t already know, was that he had already accomplished that goal, almost twenty times over in fact. So, when he saw Angeal’s smiling face sitting at their usual table, with two plates of eggs and bacon in front of him, he knew this was no dream and that everything would be all right.
“Welcome back to the world of the living, Zack,” the older man said with a motion towards the seat facing his with his chin.
“Welcome back, just… welcome back.”
Rating: PG
Pairing: Angeal/Zack
Summary: Zack misses his mentor dearly, so much that it’s having a negative impact on every other aspect of his life. He can only hope Angeal comes home soon.
Setting: Unspecified / Pre-Crisis Core
Disclaimer: Do. Not. Own.
Warnings: Unholy amounts of fluff.
A/N: Dedicated to amarissia , lily_uzumaki23 , kamuinoxdream , wickedorin , tazzles & ardwynna_m for always being uber-awesome. Hope you enjoy this small ball of fluff!
For the last several nights, Zack found it almost impossible to sleep. Ever since Angeal had left for his mission, in the borderlands surrounding Coral, the teen found himself longing for his mentor’s presence more and more with each passing second. In the beginning, the coal haired teen had tried his best to brush the feelings of loneliness off, telling himself such childishness was highly inappropriate in the world of SOLDIER, where men often went to battle only to return in boxes-- if at all. However, as the week advanced, Zack found that his mantra of, “Oh, grow up, Zack! He’s just gone on a mission, for Shiva’s sake!” had somehow changed into, “Gods, he better come home in one piece and soon…”
As ridiculous as it was, Zack still couldn’t help but feel anxious as time went by and he received no word from the stoic older man. That same anxiousness-combined with more than a couple of sleepless nights-helped sap whatever concentration or focus the already easily distracted teen could manage to scrounge up in himself and it showed clearly in everything he did. In his mind, Zack gave a weary little smile, thinking Angeal would pitch a fit when he returned to his ever restless puppy. To think, all this because the First went on a standard mission for a few days! At this rate, Zack would never obtain his dream, not if he couldn’t stop acting like this…
Like a neglected puppy waiting for his master to come home from work. Now that he thought about it, that was what he essentially was. Heaving a deep seated sigh Zack wasn’t sure whether or not to cry or laugh at the realization of Angeal being right in his assessment of the teen’s personality. In the end, though, he chose a center look between the two-something along the lines of a pitiful wail/laugh-which would have left those around him questioning his sanity had there been anyone there too hear it. Luckily, he had the dorm room all to himself for now.
“Jeez, what am I going to do when it’s more than just a simple, ‘clear the place of monsters’ mission?” he asked himself, folding his arms under his head and staring at the pockmarked ceiling.
“What if it’s another Wutai? What then?” He shuddered at the thought of his mentor being forced into another situation like that and wondering if he would be allowed to fight at his side.
“Not if I can’t keep myself together during something like this,” he snorted to himself, feeling pathetic. What good was a soldier who suffered from anxiety induced insomnia-apparently any other type was fine, according to Shinra, and made visible by Sephiroth-or a soldier who couldn’t focus for more then ten seconds? Not only was he a danger to himself, but to others as well. Angeal had told him that a thousand times.
Rolling over on to his side, the one that faced away from the doorway, Zack prayed a small prayer that he would be able to find sleep that night.
____________
It was the sound of heavy footsteps against metal flooring that woke Zack up from the first real sleep he had in days. At first, he thought it was the sound of his roommates returning after an evening of partying at some under-the-plate bar. What changed his mind, however, was the steady chorus of snores and in-sleep mumbling around him. Listening hard, with one eye cracked blearily open, the teen waited for the footsteps to retreat and to continue down the long hallway.
They didn’t.
At the sound of a keycard being swiped through the card reader and the resulting beep of the releasing lock, Zack pulled himself up on to his elbows, waiting. It took a long moment before anyone came through the door.
It wasn’t the man’s face that alerted Zack to the identity to his visitor so much as it was the large and familiar silhouette, which made an almost startling contrast against the bright light behind it.
“Angeal,” the teen managed, softly. His voice was still thick with sleep.
“Zack,” the man acknowledged after a small hesitation, no doubt a little surprised to see a pair of pale blue eyes watching him. “I thought you would be asleep by now.”
“Was,” the teen replied, as way of explanation, feeling more exhausted after a few hours of sleep than he had after almost a week going without. “But you woke me up.”
Gathering his wits a bit more, the raven haired teen threw a quick glance around at his still sleeping companions. Rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hands to try and remove the slight burn from them, Zack wondered if he was still asleep too or if he was suffering from a hallucination from his bout of insomnia.
“I didn’t mean to, Pup. I just came to check up on you. Heard you were having a hard time of it lately,” the older man replied, watching Zack with some interest.
“Nothin’ I can’t handle,” the teen lied, running a hand through his hair. It caught on a tangle, causing him to wince. Letting his hand drop limply to his side, he struggled to keep the bleariness out of his eyes and voice. According to Angeal’s reaction, though, the teen felt it safe to assume he failed.
“I’ll say,” the First said with a raised eyebrow. “But we’ll talk about that tomorrow morning. Get some sleep, you look like you need it.”
“’Kay,” Even though he wanted to deny it, Zack didn’t hesitate or fuss in the least when Angeal motioned for him to lay back down and began to tug at the blanket that he managed to fall asleep atop of earlier. Almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, Zack’s eyes became too heavy to hold up anymore, and he felt more than saw the older man drape the warm heavy material over his body. It felt nice.
“See you in the morning, Zack. Sweet dreams,” a rumbling voice from above him added, before his consciousness began its downward descent to dreamland for the first time in too long.
“G’night, Angeal,” he slurred, with a sigh.
“Goodnight, Puppy,” came the older man’s reply, but by then Zack was already too deep into sleep to hear it. That night, he slept better than he had in a long time, his mind free of worry and concern; free to dream about playing hero to damsels in distress and fighting seemingly unbeatable monsters at side of the very best.
That morning he did not remember who tucked him in or why he felt so calm, but the feeling of worry for his mentor was gone and he couldn’t help but whistle a little tune under his breath as he made his way to the showers, intending to grab a quick breakfast afterwards. All he could remember, though, was the feeling of being loved, safe, and warm, but that was more than enough for him.
Stepping out of the showers, he decided he would have eggs for breakfast, and the try to make up for all he missed or messed up in the few days prior. After all, he wanted to make Angeal proud when he got home, whenever that may be.
What he didn’t already know, was that he had already accomplished that goal, almost twenty times over in fact. So, when he saw Angeal’s smiling face sitting at their usual table, with two plates of eggs and bacon in front of him, he knew this was no dream and that everything would be all right.
“Welcome back to the world of the living, Zack,” the older man said with a motion towards the seat facing his with his chin.
“Welcome back, just… welcome back.”