Safe Bet (Zack/Tifa) Title: Safe Bet Author/Artist: sekiharatae Fandom: Final Fantasy VII Pairing/characters: Zack/Tifa Rating: T Warnings: Vague references to sex. Prompt/challenge you're answering: Tifa owes Zack, and uses sex as an alternative form of payment Note: This is very sappy. I blame Cloud, as he kept trying to turn all my attempts at smut into a threesome. It wasn't until I tried a different take that he agreed to mind his own business.
His handsome face was comically surprised when she made the offer, features gradually relaxing into boyish enthusiasm when he realized she was serious. Really, how could she not be? Charming and light-hearted, with a smile that came easily and often, he stole her breath and reason just by virtue of being himself. Having caught his appreciative glances, and knowing his willingness to spend time in her company, she’d thought maybe the feeling was mutual.
Losing the bet was just an excuse to act on her feelings.
Which was not to say she hadn’t been nervous. Despite her flirtatious tone and the sidelong glances she cast him from under the brim of her hat, it took an enormous amount of courage to get the words out, and even more to tug teasingly at his belt before disappearing into the empty chocobo stable. It wasn’t until he followed her into the building like a loyal and enthusiastic puppy, his demeanor unchanged save for the fact that the heat in his eyes was open and unmasked, that her nervousness began to fade.
When he kissed her in the shadowed depths of the stable, the sunny scent of fresh hay rising about them, she found that boyish didn’t mean inexperienced, and that his open, friendly face hid unexpected depths. That for all his eagerness, he could be patient and thorough, and knew how to seduce with his touch. His fingertips skimmed her shoulders and breasts with care, his tongue courted hers with finesse, and she was overwhelmingly glad to be with him. To have Zack – with his soft heart and desire to please – as her first experience, rather than sharing the moment with some untried and impatient Nibelheim boy she’d long since surpassed in both ambition and outlook.
She knew she’d made the right choice when he responded to her hesitant whisper in a voice that was both soft and tender. There was nothing mocking or dismissive in his response, just a greater desire to tease away her embarrassment, to make sure she enjoyed being with him.
He took her slowly, her small body shivering with orgasmic aftershocks in the shelter of his much larger form. Big as he was it hurt more than she’d expected, causing her to cry out, and he whispered apologies in a voice that was slightly choked.
Only after, as he lay on his back and she cuddled against him, completely content in her own skin, did he venture to criticize her approach, his tone affectionately teasing.
“You could have just told me you wanted me,” he whispered, the words both confident and cocky, filled with male satisfaction. “You didn’t have to lose a bet on purpose and offer your body as payment.” His free arm moved to scratch his chin thoughtfully, “It wasn’t even a big debt, either.”
“Zack?”
“Yeah?”
“Shut-up.”
Obligingly, he fell silent. At least for a moment.
“Tifa?”
“Hmmm?”
He smiled at her drowsy contentment, she could hear it in his voice. “You’re worth way more than any bet. You know that, right?”
She rose up on one elbow to lean over and kiss him. “Yes, Zack, I know.”
“Good. Just checking.” There was silence again, but it was filled with the expectation of more words. How he could fidget while lying still Tifa didn’t know, yet he somehow managed to convey that impression. Patiently, she waited, hiding her smile in the hollow of his shoulder, until finally he shifted, rolling over to settle between her legs. “As long as that’s settled... what do you say to double or nothing?”