The Spice of Life [M]

"True love that," Reno snorted with a shake of his head. "Trying to clean out your boyfriend's pay check and actually seeming pleased about this plan. What if I'd actually gotten something good planned that my pay is going to, huh?"

He sat back with a dramatic sigh, shaking his head again. "There goes my plans for your birthday this year...."

Reno groaned at that smile and slumped back into the padding of the booth. "Guess I better cancel the whole thing then," he grumbled, mostly to himself. "Not going to get that deposit back..."

He looked up at Zack as the heat crept across his face and couldn't help but chuckle. "It's adorable that you still blush," he grinned. "I think Tseng's quiet forgotten how to." He stuck his tongue out at him and sat a little straighter again. "I guess I've gotten lazy at finding new ways to make you flush, my love."

"You'd think with all that mako and supposed higher intellect that he'd be able to remember a simple order," he snorted softly, slipping out of the booth and heading to the bar.

He approached Sephiroth and hopped onto the stool next to him. "Well... I got him here... that was the easiest part of all this," he said with a quiet chuckle. "He's suspicious but he's always suspicious when it comes to me... Sad state of affairs when this is probably the only time he has reason to be."

Reno pulled one of the glasses towards him and filled half of it from the pitcher. "Nope, I'm completely winging this," he admitted with a grin before taking a mouthful. He put the glass down and looked at the General with a softer smile, stirring the ice in the pitcher with the straws.

"C'mon Seph, you've known him longer than I have so you know that you can never make contingency plans when it comes to that man. Hell, I just found out he knew I was trying to take him on vacation for a weekend for his birthday - and I've been careful to leave no breadcrumbs for him to follow. Imagine how disastrous it would be if I'd actually planned any of this."

He sighed and took the glass up again. "Icicle Inn really hate it when you cancel a villa booking," he grumbled. "Say, you aren't looking to take Zack on vacation are you? I'll give it to you for half the price... I might be able to buy him something decent with just half..."

It had been unusual at first for others to call him that, something that had taken time for him to get used to. It had been started by Angeal who expressed the need for something shorter, a need Sephiroth himself had not understood. It was just one of many things he had difficulty with, raised by scientists and lacking many of the social exercises one grew with and learned to be aware of such awkwardness. From Angeal beginning it Genesis had continued it, and eventually those allowed to call him such had begun to include Zack, Tseng, and Reno.

Sephiroth placed his glass down after he took a gulp. He knew it was pointless to plan. Even if one did manage to keep it a secret around Tseng it was highly likely that he could manage to do something to throw it off balance.

"Keep him conscious Reno, I will try to steer him in the right direction however if Zack starts singing we may all be chased out."

Slowly his glance flickered to the Turk. "It was not in my plans however it would not be such a bad idea," it was rare he ever took time off, and trips away from Midgar with Zack were so often secluded to missions with no time for privacy. A vacation, though unusual for him, would be welcome. As would discovering what other clothing that would make Zack try to jump him on the spot.

"I will deliver the money on Monday Reno."

"Concious is a given," Reno snorted, amused that he'd allow anything to happen to Tseng that he wasn't fully aware about... if a little too inebriated to consider saying no. It's just a case of remembering that his alcohol tolerance is... pretty low."

He chuckled as he thought about how little it took to get Tseng drunk, but then it was common that the Wutain people just couldn't drink as much as others. He wasn't as bad as he used to be, but it wasn't as though Reno had been forcing the drinks down him at any point.

"Sounds good to me - no sense in losing a chunk of money when someone else will enjoy my romantic weekend getaway for two." There was a quiet sigh of resignation. "One day I'll convince him that leaving Midgar for something other than work is not "abandoning" his post. Until then... well, expect I'll be financing your love life on occasion."

Reno drained his glass and helped the bartender arrange them all on a tray as the food tray was bought over. "Back we go, then."

Reno nudged the tray of food onto the table and towards Zack, snagging his nachos and settling next to Tseng again. He lightly brushed his lips over his lover's cheek.

"There we go," he said unable to keep the sigh out of his tone. "Seph said he'll take the weekend at the villa so I won't lose all my money. You don't have to miss work... I'll just... take you somewhere for dinner, I guess."

He shoved a nacho in his mouth before he could sound any less disappointed that his surprise was not only ruined but unwanted.

"The villa at Icicle Inn - the birthday getaway you apparently knew about and weren't as keen on as I was," he replied with a shrug, taking another nacho. "It's ok, it's my fault for not thinking and doing it on impulse."

Another nacho popped into his mouth as he gave a quiet chuckle. "What villa... You two must have been talking about something interesting to forget about it so quickly."

Reno gently kissed his cheek and pulled Tseng into him. "I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at me. Anyway, like I said - it's fixed. No damage done, you're off the hook for another year."

He leant over to the tray of drinks, grabbing the glass he'd already drank from and a clean on, filling his own and half filling Tseng's. "In case you don't like it," he explained, not sure if he'd inflicted this on his lover before.