I'm on a roll here! I want to thank everyone who reviewed and favorited 'Markings'. I've never recieved so much attention for a fic! Thank you so much! I hope you'll enjoy this little oneshot as well. (I hope I didn't make Cloud way OOC)

Happy birthday, Sorceress Fantasia! You are certainly not ancient and you won't be for a long, long time, so don't worry. This is really, really short, but at least I got the inspiration in time (11:59 PM last night, lol)! I hope you'll enjoy it and have a wonderful birthday!

Cloud loved Zack's smell.

He couldn't really explain why, nor could he describe the scent exactly. He just knew he loved it and tried to get as much of it as possible.

It already started in the morning, whenever he had spend the night at Zack's (for the nights in the barracks, he had one of Zack's shirts – but Zack didn't need to know that). Due to his rank, Zack usually had to get up at least an hour before Cloud did. He would rise, shower and dress as quietly as possible as not to wake Cloud, before finding Cloud looking at him with sleepy eyes anyway. A peck or lingering kiss – depending on the events of the night – on the lips and away he was.

This was Cloud's cue to roll over to where Zack had lain, bury his head in the pillow and inhale until Zack's musky sleep-scent and the surplus of oxygen made him dizzy.

Then, though he didn't have to get up for a long while, he would immediately hop into the shower because Zack's heady shower-scent still lingered there (it was probably just the soap, but it still smelled like Zack and that was what mattered to Cloud).

If there was still time, Cloud would sometimes – after dressing and eating – lie back in the bed, as if to absorb the smell of Zack into his own clothes to carry with him during the day.

And that was just the morning ritual.

During the day, he almost never saw Zack, but in the evening he was usually there and Cloud didn't have to look for alternatives (like the sheets) because the real thing was there.

Sometimes, though, Zack had meetings or late night training or – worst of all – missions. On nights like those, Cloud ventured into Zack's closet to wrap himself in that intoxicating fragrance anyway.

By now, he knew which clothes to pick and which not to. His favorite garments were undoubtedly Zack's sweatpants and –vest. They were much too big for him, making him feel like he would drown in them, like how he felt he could sometimes drown in Zack's mere presence.

One time, though unaware of it himself, Cloud had fallen asleep on the living room couch wearing aforementioned outfit while Zack was away on a mission. Or so Cloud thought. In fact, unbeknownst to him, Zack returned that very night, and found Cloud sleeping on the couch wearing his clothes.

Frankly, Zack had thought it was one of the most adorable things ever, and proceeded to gently carry Cloud to the bedroom, strip him, and curl up around him to fall asleep.

From that moment on, Zack only enjoyed it when shirts went missing and returned smelling of Cloud.

Reviews make me happy! :)