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“Hey Sephiroth,” Angeal calls out.
Sephiroth turns to look at his only real friend. “What?”
“Are you busy right now? No new immediate missions or anything?”
“No missions,” says Sephiroth and shakes his head, his shoulder-length hair tickling the skin of his neck. He still hasn’t decided what to do with it; to cut it short like Angeal’s, or to just grow it out to spite Hojo. “There is always some training to do, though,” he adds very seriously.
Angeal grins at him, all calm expressions and relaxed body language, as if he was made to be a friend as much as he was made to be a soldier. Sometimes—oftentimes—Sephiroth really envies him for the ease with which he faces the world.
“So serious. Practice can wait. You’re already perfect.”
“Not perfect,” Sephiroth notes, a bit irritated, an uncomfortable feeling churning in his belly. He shoots Angeal a glare.
But Angeal isn’t easily affected. “Sorry, sorry. Of course not. Full of faults, both of us.”
Sephiroth rolls his eyes. In fact, this is a rare moment of free time with no immediate missions, no scheduled training sessions nor painful, nasty lab visits. So…
“What did you have in mind?” He’s feeling slightly curious because Angeal rarely comes up with any wild ex tempore ideas. And his friend is definitely not the delinquent type, so Sephiroth wonders why the secrecy…
“We’re going to go for a coffee, of course!” Somehow Angeal manages to sound like it’s the best idea in the world.
“Coffee,” Sephiroth answers somewhat blandly and his fingers twitch. He’s not feeling the excitement at all. It’s not that he doesn’t drink coffee. Rather, his experience of coffee is mostly limited to that tasteless instant trash that is often served alongside his sorry meals, and it’s difficult to conjure up an image of something else.
“Yup. My best friend from Banora has started working at the Shinra Cafeteria.” Angeal starts walking towards the elevator and Sephiroth easily follows him, his leather boots thumping lightly against the shiny floor. “He wanted to leave Banora as soon as he turned 20 and finished his studies, come to Midgar and make something out of himself. Unfortunately Shinra Cafeteria was the only place I had any connections to so I pulled some strings and here he is! Working in this very building.”
Something twists inside Sephiroth at the words. Angeal’s best friend in Banora? How lucky they are, to have best friends. It’s a concept completely foreign to Sephiroth, although having Angeal alongside him has started to get him thinking about how it could be like to have a best friend.
He quickly buries the thought. However: “Isn’t that a bit dishonorable? Using your connections like that?” The words bubble out of him before Sephiroth can stop himself. He immediately wilts inwardly. It’s not his aim to insult. He’s just… not very good with words and the ways of the world, most of the time.
But Angeal merely laughs and his eyes twinkle merrily. “Ah, Sephiroth. Normally I’d say I agree, but… is it truly so wrong to want to support your friend, considering you have the means of making it happen? There’s nothing more important in this world than friendship, and sometimes it means giving them a bit of a helping hand. Or two.”
“Or the whole arm,” adds Sephiroth, remembering all the times they’ve sparred together, fought together, looking out for each other.
“Yeah. And toes, too. So. Come one, let’s go meet him.”
Sephiroth doesn’t quite know what to make of Angeal’s friend. Genesis—yes, it's ridiculous but that’s his name—has auburn hair and nice blue eyes, and he’s about the same height than Sephiroth. However, as opposed to Sephiroth’s often sullen expression he’s all confident smirks and easy grins. There’s an air of effortless grace whenever he moves, and Sephiroth idly thinks he could have made a fine swordsman.
Genesis also seems to be an endless source of Loveless quotes, but Sephiroth promptly ignores them all to protect his sanity.
“So Sephiroth,” Genesis speaks, looking at him and Angeal. “Do you like coffee or are you here just to see me?”
Sephiroth sputters and next to him, Angeal laughs heartily. “You’re embarrassing him, Gen. Besides, I thought it was a fantasy of yours to meet him and not the other way around.”
Genesis doesn’t even blush. Instead he scoffs. “It’s all a matter of perspective,” he says half-flippantly, returning his attention on Sephiroth. “Well?”
Sephiroth stares, raking his brain for an answer. “I don’t particularly like coffee so yes, you could say I’m here to see you because Angeal made me.” It’s the truth.
Genesis bursts out in laughter. “You’re precious,” he coos.
Sephiroth swallows and looks at Angeal for help. His friend merely grins and shrugs. And so, he tries again. “I don’t have many fond memories of coffee.”
“Aha,” Genesis smiles this time, wide and alluring. “So. Basically I just need to help you create some good memories with coffee, right? Consider it a mission accepted,” he places his hands on his hips, cocking his eyebrows.
Sephiroth feels a bit faint, not really sure why. There is something deeply unsettling about Genesis in general, although he can’t pinpoint the exact reason.
He turns on his heels and leaves, not bothering to see whether Angeal follows or not.
“I’ll send a message when I have something good to offer!” Genesis shouts after him.
The first offer comes three days later. Sephiroth makes his way to the Cafeteria after his training session, not sure what to expect. As soon as Genesis spots him, he waves. There is no queue, so Sephiroth walks directly to the counter.
“Hey there,” Genesis says huskily.
“Hi,” Sephiroth answers awkwardly. “I came.”
Genesis laughs, then. “You sure did,” he says and winks. “And fast, too.” The way his smirks at Sephiroth—not unkindly, more like in that very special teasing way Sephiroth can’t quite grasp—makes him think there is something about the wording that he doesn’t get.
A double entendre, and innuendo. Something. He often feels like he’s not getting it, though, so it's nothing new.
Oh well. He’s here now. “So. What do you have for me?”
Genesis spreads his arms and sighs theatrically. “Apart from myself? Coffee, of course. Are you ready to have your taste buds obliterated?”
“No,” answers Sephiroth flatly. “I’m pretty sure I still need them.”
Genesis barks a laugh. “It was a figure of speech, love.”
Sephiroth’s blood freezes. Love? No one was ever called him that. No one has wanted, no one has dared. Who does this civilian country bumpkin think he is, treating him like this? Like he’s a… stuffed toy or a mascot instead of the best SOLDIER currently walking these corridors!
Genesis seems oblivious to Sephiroth’s fuming, or maybe he just ignores it. It’s difficult to tell. Instead, he hands him a cup of freshly brewed coffee. “Cosmo Canyon Cream flavor coming up!” Genesis smiles at him boldly and Sephiroth feels his belly flip in a peculiar manner.
“Is there… alcohol in it?” He asks somewhat hesitantly, only to make Genesis snort.
“Gods. You’re so adorable,” he says, blue eyes boring into Sephiroth’s. “Of course not. It’s just coffee that I went through a lot of trouble sourcing. Just for you. Go ahead, have a taste.”
Sephiroth takes the cup tentatively and sips the hot beverage Genesis has prepared for him. It’s… not good. His face twists.
Genesis gives a small rueful rumble of a laugh. “I guess you didn’t like it, then.”
Shaking his head, Sephiroth slowly hands the cup back to Genesis. “It was… not a favorite.”
“Oh?” Genesis perks up. “So you do have a favorite?”
“I wouldn’t say that,” hums Sephiroth as an answer.
“I see. Maybe you just haven’t found your special blend yet?” Looking at him, Genesis winks, and once more Sephiroth is left with the feeling that he’s missing something.
“Yeah. Maybe that’s it.”
“Well,” Genesis notes. “I just gotta try harder. Ah. More customers. Until next time, Sephiroth.”
After that to be invited to the Cafeteria becomes somewhat of a thing. Genesis seems relentless in his pursuit of a perfect blend for Sephiroth, and Sephiroth, for some reason unknown, wholeheartedly indulges him.
One day there is hazelnut. It leaves Sephiroth gagging. Genesis winces.
The next time he’s got Salted Caramel, which Sephiroth thinks shouldn’t have been made into coffee at all. Genesis sighs.
After that Genesis seems to have changed tactics, going for deeper flavors such as Mint Chocolate or Dark Chocolate. Sephiroth thinks these are slightly better, but still, not a perfect match.
“I’m beginning to wonder if there is something terribly wrong with your taste buds,” Genesis grumbles after one more missed attempt, this time with Chococream.
“Or maybe it’s just your shitty brewing skills,” Sephiroth blurts. His eyes immediately grow big and slightly wild. “I’m terribly sorry!” he all but screeches, but Genesis actually laughs.
“Oh damn. You really are so precious, kitten. I knew you had it in you. Some real claws.” And then he turns around like it’s nothing and starts chopping veggies for the sandwiches, leaving a befuddled Sephiroth stand there with his mouth open.
There are numerous other attempts after that, and while Genesis hasn’t been able to spark Sephiroth’s love for coffee, he has definitely sparked something. Every time Sephiroth leaves, he can feel his heart beating a bit faster, his legs turning a bit wobbly. He briefly wonders if Genesis is trying to poison him, but when he mentions that to Angeal, his friend laughs out so hard he falls from his chair.
“You’ll figure it out,” he says gently after his laughter dies down. And then, “Wanna spar?”
Sephiroth, of course, does because there is no way better to get rid of those peculiar feels than a violent, excruciating and utterly exhausting spar in the Combat Simulator, preferably with an extensive use of materia and his mana.
It’s been half a year of those regularly irregular visits to the Shinra Cafeteria when Genesis finally proclaims that this is The Coffee that Sephiroth will like.
At this point Sephiroth doesn’t even know why he’s keeping up with this farce anymore. He obviously doesn’t like, and isn’t going to like, coffee. In addition, whenever he sees Genesis’ auburn wildly cropped hair and those plush lips turned into a good-natured smirk, his insides flip and flop so pitifully that he wants to wheeze.
Indeed, he should just stay away, but the thought of not going makes him lightheaded, too.
Genesis waves, as always. “Just a sec, kitten,” he says and saunters off to get the coffee. By now Sephiroth knows it’s all Genesis’ own money that he’s spending on these coffees, and he just can’t fathom why.
He leans against the counter.
“Genesis.”
“Mmhm. What’s it?”
“Why are you doing this?”
“This? As in gifting you coffee?”
“Yes. And just generally, this,” Sephiroth says, waving around vaguely. “Working here at Shinra Cafeteria. Surely there is something else you’d like to do with your life.”
Genesis hums contemplatively. “Let’s start from the second question. Yes, of course there is.” He casts Sephiroth a look. “This is just a stepping stone. I want to be a chef and have my own bistro, a place that is completely mine and where I can create meals that are so good that they resemble art.”
”Will you grow your own vegetables?” asks Sephiroth curiously.
”Gaia forbid, no,” Genesis huffs. ”That’s Angeal’s job! I want to create combinations of flavors that will send people to the heavens and back, their mouths filled with ecstasy.”
Sephiroth blinks and feels his cheeks get pink. “Food ecstasy,” he echoes rather intelligibly.
“Yeah. Food ecstasy. Or maybe even…” Genesis suddenly strides to where he is standing and brings his lips close to his ear. “Food orgasm.”
Sephiroth chokes, making a noise deep in his throat.
Genesis laughs brightly, no doubt proud of how ruffled he’s just made Sephiroth. Then a cup of coffee appears in front of him and for once, Sephiroth actually finds himself fancying the scent.
“Cinnamon-cardamom. A very special blend reserved for times that feel like home.”
“Times that feel like home?”
“Yeah. Times that feel like home.”
Sephiroth’s heart beats impossibly fast when Genesis slowly clasps his hand and looks into his eyes. “And that’s related to the first question. I always wanted to meet you, just didn’t know what to expect. But seeing you there, like deer caught in the headlights, oozing all that vicious power and strength and yet, so ill-experienced of all things lovely and sweet… I thought, then, that why can’t your home be with me?”
Sephiroth is shaken senseless at the words. He doesn’t even realize he’s actually not only letting Genesis to hold his hand, but actually clasping it even tighter.
“Home?” he croaks.
Genesis cocks his head and smiles irresistibly. “Yeah. Home. The coffee, Sephiroth?”
He stares at the cup blankly, but somehow manages to bring it to his lips and take a sip.
And yeah, he’s totally not prepared for the warmth that blooms in his mouth and attacks his senses, the spicy, earthy taste of both cinnamon and cardamom tickling his tongue, accompanied the mellow bitterness of Genesis’ light roast.
His reactions must have shown on his face because Genesis laughs, drawing closer. “You’re so sweet,” he drawls and just like that proceeds to kiss him breathless. “Want to know a secret?” he asks when their lips part, and Sephiroth nods in a daze, a string of saliva connecting their lips. “Nothing is better than a shared cup of coffee.”
It’s Sephiroth who barks a laugh this time, utterly helpless before and besotted with this wonderful flirt of a man.
Later that day he finds out that Genesis is talented in not only giving food orgasms but actual orgasms as well. In fact, Sephiroth can’t quite understand the turn his life has suddenly taken when he finds himself dry humping against Genesis in the dark of the cleaning cabinet of Shinra Cafeteria, panting like a dog in heat with neural sparks attacking his every sense as their clothed cocks rub together.
“Fuck,” Genesis growls and tugs both of their pants down to their knees, gripping their hard shafts together in his palm.
Sephiroth groans, leaning against the wall as Genesis presses against him, pushes his tongue inside his mouth while working on their hard-ons, pumping and pleasuring, smearing wetness all over them just so to make a mess.
And Sephiroth, too, is nothing but a mess, a bundle of nerves and wonderful ecstasy under Genesis’ touch, too long gone to even be ashamed.
“Fuck,” he howls pitifully as his orgasm draws closer.
“Oh, kitten,” Genesis croaks and bites into the skin of his neck. It feels so good, amazing, really, and Sephiroth shudders. He knows the mark will heal all too soon, but he loves it regardless. As Genesis works his hand faster, the movements becoming erratic just as his breath hitches, Sephiroth feels an errant tug in his belly, a monumental wave of something unknown about to engulf him.
And, for once, he lets go, coming all over them with a low whine. Genesis follows suit, humping against him while panting into his neck.
It takes a moment for them to calm down their heartbeats and gather their wits. Suddenly unsure of what to do, Sephiroth starts to disentangle his body from Genesis’ embrace, only to be pulled further in.
“What am I supposed to do now?” Genesis sighs, his body shuddering with aftershocks. “Now that I have you, how am I supposed to ever leave Shinra Cafeteria and chase my other dreams? Oh, the Gift of the Goddess has turned sour!”
“Poetry?” Sephiroth snorts but can’t quite stifle the silly grin that’s tugging on his lips. Tomorrow he will go back to training, back to his missions, back to those nasty lab visits, but maybe, just maybe, now he has something worthwhile to look forward to when he’s not otherwise occupied, and that’s not coffee, no.
It’s a completely different special blend.
Five years later
Sephiroth walks confidently on the streets of the Sector 8 with a clear destination in mind. His long, long silver hair billows after him as he strides on, leather boots thumping against the cobblestone. People stop and stare and whisper—Look! It’s the hero! Oh my gods he is handsome!
Sephiroth normally tends to ignore it all. However, today he’s in a good mood and so, he shoots a smile or two at some passers-by who almost faint from being noticed like that.
Finally Sephiroth reaches his destination, a tiny door located in a very narrow alleyway in the center of the entertainment sector. There is no name plate, no clear sign other than a gently flickering “welcome” on the humble door.
If one didn’t know better, it would be impossible to tell that behind those doors lies one of Midgar’s top restaurants, an elegant yet cheerfully laid-back bistro that offers an innovative menu with what reviews have praised as “unforgettable taste sensations and combinations”, made only with the best, hand-picked and freshly sourced ingredients.
Sephiroth steps inside and makes his way to the last seat at the counter without hesitation. It’s free, of course it’s free. It’s his seat, after all.
He sits down and only then raises his gaze, only to be faced with Genesis’ beautiful eyes that scorch the bottom of his soul even after five years.
“Hello, kitten,” Genesis drawls, completely uncaring of the fact that everyone at the bistro can hear.
Sephiroth sends him an amused smirk. “Gen.”
And just like that, the bone-seeping tiredness from his weeks-long mission dissipates, leaving nothing but mellow happiness behind.
“Today’s special,” he orders. Then he hums. “Coffee first.”
Genesis winks and gets to work, gifting Sephiroth a wonderful view of his ass.
Sephiroth smiles.