Resurfacing

He stretched out on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. His usually calm features were narrowed in thought and worry, the cool air blowing in from the open window above his head.

Things were going well for Vincent. He had a life, a love, and a (cheesy as it sounded) 'song' in his heart.

Things were going TOO well, actually.

He had expected at least ONE bad thing to have happened already, but so far nothing had and it was making him nervous. He rolled over onto his side, sighing into the crisp linen sheets that smelled too clean for his own, newly reformed tastes. The usually lingering, musky scent of the pilot he was used to sharing a bed with now-a-days wasn't present, and it irritated him. Downstairs he could hear someone, someone he assumed was Shera, moving around. It sounded like she was pacing back and forth, and it was only when the front door opened and closed did Vincent open his eyes to stare into the dimly lit room. He lifted his head from the sheets, and sat up with a grunt as he looked at the alarm clock. It was close to five in the afternoon, and with a sigh he stood up and stretched.

Cloud's wedding had gone as well as it could have after Cid's 'out of closet' experiance, minus the wide eyed stares/glares from Reno across the room and Tifa's off and on giggling over what she thought was the cutest damn thing in the world to her. The two men have behaved themselves, or at least Cid had. Then gunman couldn't help but see (now that all of AVALANCHE minus Yuffie knew about their budding relationship) just how much of what he could get away with.

Two 'deep on the inside of the thigh' strokes and looks that turned Cid to goo later, he'd gotten a look from the pilot that plainly said 'stop or I'll make you, dammit!'. Vincent smirked to himself, tugging on the edge of the high turtle kneck he was wearing to hide Cid's reprimand for his actions. Try to explain THAT hickey. The two of them grudgingly returned to Rocket Town, only for Cid to be once again yanked away by Reeve and the WRO to shuttle the president wherever, leaving Vincent stuck by himself, in town, in the house, with Shera.

He frowned, pulling his hair back into a loose pony tail as he made his way down the stairs. Shera...she'd been acting strange, not just towards Cid and Vincent but everyone since the two men had gotten back. When the pilot had finally left, she seemed distant to Cid before she retreated back into the house and to her room. The stairs under his bare feet were colder now that the winter season was settling in, September finally fading into October and bringing with it a chill that settled over the town.

The downstairs living room was a temperature that made him shiver as he looked around the vacant house. The usually strong smell of brewing tea was absent, along with the walking back and forth of Shera between the laundry room and the back door with basket after basket of laundry. Vincent sighed and made his way to the kitchen, thinking to himself as he made himself a pot of coffee. The strong, acrid smell filled the kitchen, making him not quite as awake as he thought it would. He only took the moment to realize he wasnt alone in the house anymore when a hand softly touched on his shoulder.

"Vincent?"

The gumman turned, looking down with a surprised look at the shorter brunette in front of him. Shera stood in front him, a little furthur away than she usually did. Her face was flushed, and she had what looked like an oversized jacket wrapped around her. "Shera, you look frozen...here." Vincent placed his hand on her back and turned her towards the living room. "Go sit down, warm up and I'll make you some coff-..."

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" She had raised her voice, sounding slightly desperate and irritated as she cut him off. Her eyebrows were slightly knitted, and she sighed heavily as she shrugged off his hand.

"...Of course. Take a seat and I'll get some coffee, and we'll talk, alright?" Vincent did his best to keep his voice level and calm as he looked down at the her irritated look. He'd never seen Shera like this before, and wondered vaguely as she nodded and walked off wether or not Cid's moods had finally rubbed off on her. He turned back to the now finished brewing coffee, knitting his brows in confusion as he poured two large cups full of it.

She was sitting on the couch, legs curled up to her chest as she shivered slightly in the coat she wore. She didn't even look up as Vincent handed her a cup, merely took it and stared down at the swirling black liquid. Her eyes barely flitted to land on Vincent as he sat down on the arm chair across from her, concern on his face. She sighed and took a sip of the coffee, making a face as she did so.

".....What did you want to talk about, Shera?"

She lifted her eyes back up to look at him as he stared at her, red eyes on her own brown ones. Shera sighed, sitting up straight as she settled back down into her coat. "Vincent.."

"Yes?"

"...Would you say you know Cid very well?"

Vincent shifted in his seat, one brow lifted. "As well as a man should know another man, I suppose. Why?"

"I know everything about him...everything down to what kind of shampoo he hates to use and how much creamer he uses in his tea...I measured it once."

"That kind of dedication is admirable, I must admit." Vincent smiled softly as he said it. He was telling the truth, after all- he was sure Shera knew more about Cid than Cid's own mother did.

Shera didn't say anything at first, only sipped her coffee. Her eyes seemed to haze over a bit as Vincent guessed she was thinking about what to say next. Her voice was shakey when she finally did. "I don't know everything...I don't know what he does when he's not here...who he's with...but you would know, wouldn't you?" She looked up at him, her knitted eyebrows relaxing slightly.

Vincent Valentine considered himself a very tough man to read. He'd been trained as a Turk by some of the best of the best, making his poker face one of the best he'd ever known. It'd helped him immensely during his Turk days, but he'd never had to try to keep it up under the intense stare of a lover's wife. He shifted again, making sure his face didn't convey any other emotion but complete confusion. "I can imagine most of the time he's staying at the ship, fixing SOMETHING....he never enjoys the trips Reeve makes him take anyways, so he says. That's what he does whenever I go with him anywhere...man's impossible to get away from that ship. Why do you ask, Shera?"

"..." She opened her mouth to say something, but stopped before he could get a word out. Shera leaned foreward, setting the coffee cup on the table in front of her before she curled back up, arms wrapped around her legs.

"...Shera?"

"...Is Cid cheating on me, Vincent?"

"Wh...?" Vincent shook his head, narrowing his eyes as he looked up at her. "what?"

"Cid...he's cheating on me, isn't he?"

Vincent felt the lump of worry that had forming in his stomach all morning harden and jump into his throat. He sat his coffee cup down, trying to keep his voice steady as he looked back up at Shera. "What in the world makes you think that?" Shit...she knew, she knew, how the hell did she know?! The red panic button in the back of his mind was very close to being pushed, he was sure.

"Vincent, it's so obvious....he's....he's not the man I married..I mean, look at him, he's so...different now, and I don't know why! He never used to be so clean...he's stopped yelling at me, even, and..." Vincent could hear the 'cry bubble' forming in the back of her throat. "Vincent, he's not the same! He's changed and...and it's not for me!" She buried her face in her hands, and Vincent could see the initial shaking of her body as the first sobs escaped from her.

"Shera.."

"I waited for him, Vincent, I WAITED for him! I know I ruined his life with the rocket and I'm sorry about that! I've tried to make it up for it..."

"SHERA...."

"But it wasn't good enough for him, was it?! Nothing I do is good enough for him, and I was okay with that, but now he's not even himself anymore!....Vincent...please just tell me the truth..." Shera lifted her face from her hands, the obvious tear streaks running down her face as she wipped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"No."

Wet brown eyes met scowling red ones. "...No?"

"No...No, I won't tell you Cid's cheating on you because he ISN'T! No, I wont say he's seeing another woman because he's not, and NO, I don't know why Cid's changing but I fail to see why thats a bad thing!...Shera, listen to yourself! CID? Cheat on you?" Vincent angrily sat down his coffee cup, staring at her through narrowed eyes. "Listen to youself...'Cid's cheating on me, he's changing and it's not for me...' Shera, everything he does is for you! Working his ass off, constantly on the go flying Reeve and his cronies back and forth to the same damn places all of the time...and for your information, he talks about you all of the time when he's not home. I've been with him on these trips and Shera....there is NO other woman!" Vincent leaned down to rest his arms on his knees, looking at her evenly. Everything he said was true- Cid was always working hard to upkeep his daily living, Shera included. Cid did talk about her but off and on when he was asked, and Cid was definately, definately, NOT seeing another WOMAN.

Shera stared at his angry expression, a last few tears leaking down her face. "....Are you lying to me, Vincent?"

"I don't lie, Shera. It's dishonerable from where I'm from and offensive to be accused of such." He made sure his voice held some offense as he said so, and he leaned back into his chair with a snort. Shera sat there for a moment before nodding, wiping her eyes with the overly long sleeve of her coat as she sat up. She gave Vincent a weak smile and a nod before she put her hair back behind her shoulder. "Now, no more crying and no more worrying about Cid...he's as loyal as a dog, you know, and about as sharp as a blunt spoon when it comes down to anyone flirting with him."

Shera smiled a bit, nodding her head again. "Amen to that...thank you Vincent...I knew I could ask you about this."

"I'm glad I could put your mind at ease...now..." Vincent stood and picked up both coffee cups. "How about some fresh coffee and some ice cream?"

"...I'd love that."

"Good. Plug in a movie....something sappy." Vincent turned and walked back towards the kitchen, making sure Shera was busy finding something before he sat the cups down on the counter and leaned his hands against it. He was shaking, something aweful, his poker face sliping away into one of complete worry and guilt. He'd just lied, he was convinced, straight through his teeth to the rightful, legally married wife of the man he both loved and was sleeping with, and the big red 'panic' button in the back of his mind was pushed...HARD.

If all of it weren't enough, the theme to "Gone with the Wind" started playing from the living room.
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AN- if anyones seen GWTW, they know what im talking about. -_-