Today is Shinning

Cloud & Zack

-A/N: Hey everyone! This will be my first ongoing fic, it's all a bit exciting :3 I'm trying not to rush things, so sorry if it ever seems like that XD Enjoy!-

Prologue

000

"I…am going to die." The raven-haired teen sighed, his face plastered against the window of the train, watching as rolling hills belonging to the Kyoto countryside flew by. The budding cherry blossom trees were blurs of white and pink, reminding the boy of cotton candy. How am I susppose to stay here for a week? I don't know anyone. Zack let out another angst-filled sighed, turning back around in his seat and slouching down. The young college student was traveling to Kyoto to study modern Japanese traditions for his Culture class, against his will. Zack never liked to leave Tokyo, he thrived on city life, but everyone had told him that a little fresh air would do him good. Yeah, yeah. He was waiting for something convincing, something to pop out at him and say 'Welcome to Kyoto! I know you'll enjoy it here! We have a lot offer!' So far, the convinced score stood at a flat 0 .

"Now arriving at Shijo Station. Please take all your personal belongings and exit in a calm matter." The overhead announcer shook Zack from the light daze that he had drifted into as he stood up and shouldered his duffle. He looked around, the only other person in the train car with him was a school girl who had been on her cell the whole 8 hours. I don't wanna see her phone bill. The train doors opened with a quiet woosh as Zack stepped through, squinting in the bright sunlight. Wow… The dark haired boy turned his head skyward, amazed by the clarity and blueness of the atmosphere above. A refreshing and cool breeze flooded around Zack, drifting through his hair. Never in his life had Zack seen the sky so big, bright, and blue. It was almost like he had left the world he once knew behind, and had entered another one, a completely different place with a completely new sky. There was a word to describe the way he felt, but Zack couldn't seem to put his finger on it. He didn't want to say 'breath taking'…but that's just what it was. A sudden jab to the ribs brought Zack back down to Gaia with a start.

"Ah! I'm so sorry." Zack rubbed his sore torso, a weak smile playing on his face.

"It's alright. I'm at fault here." Bringing his head up, the dark haired boy got an eyeful of soft yellow spikes. The owner of the eccentric hair lurched backwards, a somewhat embarrassed look on his face. It was a boy, probably a bit younger than himself, with blue eyes that matched the sky perfectly. He returned the smile with the same lack of ethusiasm.

"It's okay, I ran into you while you were…" Zack chuckled, realizing that he had been caught admiring the scenery above.

"Ah, I was just…looking for my wallet. I dropped it." Was the hesitant response.

"…you dropped your wallet…" The blonde said, an amused smile coming over his face.

"Yeah! I tend to loose stuff a lot." The city boy ran hand through his hair, laughing again.

"Okay then. So why were you looking at the sky if you most likely dropped your wallet on the ground? The forces of gravity still apply here in Kyoto, things don't just float upwards."

"Heh, so you caught me there." It was the younger boy's turn to laugh, hiding it behind his hand. The two stood in awkward silence for a few seconds, both unsure of what to say now. I've just never seen the sky so…bright as it is here."

"Hm, you're not from around here, are you?"

"Yeah! How'd you know? Do I look like a tourist? Oh man," Zack looked down at himself. He looked like a regular college student would. Or…at least one from Tokyo would.

"No, no. It's just that not too many people from here admire the sky nowadays…I'd know, I've met most of the population around here."

"Wow, so are you a pop idol or something then?" The blonde laughed.

"No, I just work at a very popular place. Lots of people stop by."

"Where do you work?" A blush came across the face of the owner with brilliant blue eyes.

"…a tea shop." Oh, that was unexpected, "Go ahead, you can laugh." Zack's face was taken over by a blank expression.

"Why would I? I love tea. It sounds like a fun job, you must get a good feel of all the different types of people here." The boy nodded.

"It seems that way. We got everyone in there-" He paused, suddenly reaching into his pocket and fishing out his cell phone. Flipping it open, he held it up to his ear, mouthing 'one-sec' to Zack. "Cloud speaking." Cloud? His name is Cloud? Zack looked the boy up and down, taking in his soft features and the way he held his body while standing. Woah, easy there Zack. Keep the eyes to yourself. He didn't want to send the boy the wrong vibes right upon meeting him. "Really? That many?" He made a face at his phone, "Yeah, I can be there in 10." Cloud shut his phone, sighing and placing it back into the pocket of his jeans.

"Sorry about that." He mumbled.

"Cloud, eh?" Light pink tint appeared on the teen's face, "It suits you."

"Thanks." Was the half-hearted reply, "Um, I have to run to work. They've got customers backing out the door."

"Oh, it's alright."

"So…sorry for running into you. It was nice talking to you, though." Cloud turned, but Zack called out to him.

"Wait, what's the name of your tea shop?" Cloud froze mid step, and after a second of thought, pivoted around, fishing something out of his pocket. A piece of paper and a pen. Quickly scribbling something on it, he handed it to Zack, who thanked him.

"I'll come see you- I mean you're shop, sometime. Is that okay?" Aw shit. That was smooth. To Zack's surprise, Cloud nodded with a sincere smile.

"Sure. That'd be cool…"

"Zack. Zack Fair." The boy gave a pleased nod.

"Zack. Suits you as well," Cloud waved over his shoulder as he turned, jogging down the train platform, "It was nice meeting you!" Zack smiled back, pocketing the slip of paper before strolling down the other side of the train platform toward his hotel.

"It was nice meeting you too, Cloud."

000

-A/N- Thanks for reading! Comments are greatly appreciated - They give me confidence to continue :3 I'll get more up soon, so hang tight!-

ChocoboCloud