Rainy Day

A cloudy sky loomed overhead, thunder shattering the silence inside the little house. A few more crashes outside and then the rain started, hard and loud upon the roof. Lamps flickered as the sky was filled with lightning, the small outputs of artificial light threatening to leave the single occupant in darkness.

Another crash and the house was engulfed in blackness, the figure settled on the couch giving a start. He wasn’t afraid of the dark, but it had startled him to be plunged into a world of nothing. When the lights gave no indication that they would be returning, he stood from his seat and slowly made his way to the house’s small kitchen. He could see a little, his eyes picking out faint shapes. He finally reached the pantry he was looking for, drawing out a box of candles.

“Now where is that lighter?” he mumbled to the darkness, searching through the box. But he came up with only candles and nothing to give them life. Giving a little sigh, he shuffled back into the living room and then into the adjoining bedroom. Sure enough, he found a small stash of four lighters and a book of matches in the bedside drawer. A smile crossed his lips as he lit one and held a candle to the flame, a pool of golden light spilling over his face and the floor.

Pocketing the lighter for good measure and for a little company, he moved back to the main room and settled back onto the couch. He lit five more candles and set them on the table, creating a soft glow that encompassed a globe of the room. Satisfied with his new light, he settled back into the cushions of the couch, drawing a thick blanket over himself.

A few hours passes in the silence and he awoke from a light slumber he had fallen into at the sound of a door slamming shut. He sat up from where he had slumped over onto the arm of the couch, his eyes fighting to see what had made the sound. Tugging the blanket around himself more, he leaned his head back against the cushions, waiting.

“Dammit. Lights’re out here too.” There was a soft grunt and a crash as the newcomer ran into a stray box that was sitting next to the door. “Vince! Ya in here?”

Vincent sat up a little more, smiling. “In the living room,” he called back softly.

More sounds of crashing reached him and he bit his lip lightly to keep from laughing. Finally the globe of light trembled along the edge as the newcomer approached the couch. “’S pourin’ out there. Where’d ya find candles?”

“In the pantry. I had to borrow one of your lighters.” Vincent stood slowly, coming closer to the dripping other. “You’re soaked. Let me get you a towel.” He started toward the small bathroom down the hallway, laughing at the call of “I can do it”. He grasped the first towel he felt, returning to the main room. “You could, but you would have knocked down half of the house while doing so.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” A rough hand grasped the towel that was being offered, scrubbing it over short blond hair. “’M gonna go change, ‘kay?” And with that, the blond was gone, trying to make it to the bedroom without tripping over everything in the house. From the sounds, he wasn’t doing a very god job.

Vincent just smiled as he spread out the candles some. He figured it was better to have the light everywhere and not just on the table, just so the other wasn’t stumbling everywhere. He turned at a small creak of the floor behind him to see the blond making a beeline to the couch, promptly flopping down where Vincent had been. “That’s my spot,” he said with a lilt of amusement.

The faint glimmer of blue eyes flashed up at him. “So?”

“So, you took my spot.”

“Is that a bad thing?” A smirk crawled across the rough-shaven face. It was obvious from the look in his eyes that he loved messing with the gunner.

Giving an exaggerated sigh, Vincent shrugged. “Perhaps I shall just go in there and sit,” he said, his tone giving away his smile. He turned and started for the other room, only stopping when arms wrapped around his waist from behind and pulled him down. With a yelp he landed, held against a warm chest with lips brushing his ear. He gave an uncharacteristic squeak as the arms tightened and legs moved to cover his own, trapping him on top of the other. “Cid! Let me go,” he said with a little laugh.

“Nope. Not until ya warm me up. It’s freezin’ in here, ya know.” A nose nuzzled against Vincent’s nape and he squirmed, trying not to laugh. He wasn’t much for laughing, but sometimes the pilot found just the right spot to turn ticklish. Finally it stopped, just calm breaths washing over his neck.

Vincent tipped his head back until his cheek brushed Cid’s. “The heat goes off with the electric, remember?” He smiled as lips caressed his cheek in a kiss.

“Yeah, I remember. Still… it’s cold an’ I don’t like bein’ cold.” The blond loosened his grip, rubbing the gunman’s stomach a little. “Why’re you warm?”

“For one, I wasn’t out traipsing around in the rain. Two, I’ve been under a blanket this whole time. Three… you say I’m always warm.” Giving the pilot a small smile, Vincent relaxed against him.

“’Cause ya are. Which is why I’m sayin’ warm me up.” He brushed another kiss against the candlelit cheek. “Please?”

Vincent smiled again, rolling over to face the pilot. “Perhaps. If you’re good.” He watched as Cid rolled his eyes, the light shimmering on his hair. Reaching back, he grasped the blanket he had been nestled in and draped it over them, tucking in the edges. “Better?”

“Mhmm.” Blue eyes closed as Cid laid his head back, rubbing a hand against the gunman’s back. Vincent rested his cheek on a firm shoulder and breathed out, almost laughing when Cid jumped. “That tickles,” he said with a little laugh, brushing away some of the ebony hair that had fallen against his neck with the breath.

Saying nothing in return, Vincent nuzzled his nose against his lover’s neck, calming instantly at the scent of rain that the pilot still carried on his skin. He loved moments like this, when all they had to do was lie around in each others arms. “So what were you out there for anyway?” he asked after a few minutes of silence.

The shoulder under him shrugged, displacing him a bit. “The shop called. They were havin’ some sort of problem with the generator an’ were worried about the ‘lectric goin’ out.” He gave a little laugh, snuggling down under Vincent more. “Guess it doesn’t really matter now. Not like they’re gonna die without ‘lectric.”

“You sound tired,” Vincent whispered softly, reaching up to brush blond bangs back.

“I am,” Cid replied, the end of it trailing off in a stifled yawn.

Curling his arms under himself and around Cid, Vincent kissed his jaw. “Sleep then. The storm will probably be over when you wake then.” He earned a small nod in response, the candlelight showing the contours of the pilot’s face as his yawned again. Settling his head down again, he let out a soft sigh.

To lie there with the one he loved, that was his favorite thing to do. To forget about the world and the people in it save for the one he was with… he wished it could happen every moment of every day. Yet he was content to curl closer to Cid and fall asleep in his arms, his breath evening out to match the others in a delicate dance of air in the candlelight.