Those Eyes Book One-Complete

Day Fourteen

Sam POV

"Wakey, wakey, lovebirds!"

"Go away, Aerith," I mumble groggily.

"Five more minutes," Sephiroth groans next to me.

"No, get up now before Zack eats all the waffles I made!"

I sigh and sit up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Sleeping with Sephiroth wasn't at all what I expected. It was just like sleeping with a giant, warm, living teddy bear, really. The sound of his heartbeat was so calming, too.

"Waffles...sound good..." I murmur. "C'mon, Sephiroth...or there won't be any left..."

Reluctantly, he, too, gets out of bed. Somehow, his long hair isn't a huge tangled mess like mine. It looks absolutely perfect as always. How does he do it?

Zack is sitting at the table drowning a stack of waffles in syrup, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce. No wonder he's usually so hyper if he eats monstrosities like that every morning. Maybe some high levels of sugar will bring him back to normal.

"I'm not even going to ask how you can eat that," Sephiroth says, making a face. He puts a waffle on his plate and lightly drizzles syrup on it.

"Ith goo' yoo thoud twy ith," Zack says through a large mouthful.

"Ew, keep your mouth closed while you're eating," I complain, drizzling chocolate sauce on my own waffle.

He only opens his mouth wider and sticks his tongue out. "Myah!"

Sephiroth slaps him on the head. "Manners, Zackary Fair!"

Zack gasps, nearly choking on his food. He swallowed before saying, "you promised you'd never use my full name! You're a promise-breaker, General Sephiroth Crescent, Hero of the Wutai War!"

Sephiroth scowled. "I told you not to call me that!"

"Well, I told you not to call me 'Zackary'!"

"Ladies, please, you're both beautiful," Aerith cuts in, earning glares from them both. "Our vacation just started. Please try not to ruin it on the second day."

"Hey, Aerith. Do you want to check out the town with me today?" I ask, finishing my waffle.

"I'll-" Sephiroth begins.

Aerith shushes him. "No. We're going to have some girl time while you two settle your differences and grow up."

After helping her clean up the kitchen, Aerith and I get changed and head into town. Costa del Sol is pretty small for such a big tourist stop and vacation spot. There are a few gift shops, a general store, a couple restaurants, an ice cream shop, and an inn. It's nice to be away from the city for a change. I didn't realize how much I missed the fresh air and sunshine.

Around noon, Aerith and I have explored most of the shops and decide to head back. As we walk down an empty street, a group of young men block our path,

"Hello, ladies," the one in the lead says.

"We're not interested," Aerith says sharply, grabbing my arm and pulling me away. 

More young men block the other end of the street, grinning. I feel my pulse quicken. Aerith presses me behind her as the advancing men corner us against the wall of a building.

"Don't make me call my boyfriend," my friend warns them.

"Ooh, I'm so scared," one of them says mockingly. "The last girl who pulled that card had some little weenis of a boyfriend. The only tough boys around here are in this group, girlie."

"Oi! Why don't you pick on someone your own size, you dumbass pig fart!"

All eyes turn to land on Zack standing at the other end of the street with Sephiroth right behind him. Aerith smiles. "Right on time, Zack!"

The gang of boys all crack their knuckles. The leader grins. "There's only two, we can take them."

"Sephiroth! Thank heavens, you came!" I call to my boyfriend dramatically.

The young men all freeze.

"Did she say-?"

"Come to think of it, the silver-haired guy does look like him..."

Sephiroth scowls. "Which one of you is the leader? I want to personally tear him to shreds for even looking at my girlfriend."

"Dude, that's definitely him!"

"Man, we're doomed!"

"Let's get out of here!"

They all dash away faster than a rabbit being chased by a fox. Aerith and I both relax and sigh with relief. It's scary to think about how close we were to being attacked just now...

"Are you both alright? Did they hurt you? Did they do anything to you?" Zack asks rapid fire.

"Calm down, we're fine. Though, we wouldn't be if you both hadn't come when you did," Aerith says gratefully.

Sephiroth has such a dark look on his face. "How dare those vermin try to attack you like that! I ought to-"

He stops when I grab his hand. "We're fine, Sephiroth. Really. Please don't murder anyone while we're on vacation."

"Fine," he mutters, shooting another murderous look in the direction the young men ran off in. "But next time, let Zack or I come with you guys."

"I agree with His Majesty," Zack announces.

"And this is why I'm not a do person."

"Does his oh so highly esteemed heroness prefer cats, then?"

"Yes, I do prefer cats, little puppy dog."

Aerith and I exchange exasperated looks. I guess they still haven't worked things out since this morning.