#fairlion

It was always gone in the blink of an eye, Zack mused in puzzlement. There was never a proper chance to check just what his housemate was shoving into his back pack before he wandered out of the student house for his classes. If only Leon didn’t hide it so quickly, maybe Zack could find something new to talk to him about.

Truthfully, the ebony haired uni student had become much closer to his friend of a friend of a friend... was that enough friends? Leon had been introduced to Zack a few months ago when they had moved in with their mutual friends – Yuffie and Cloud – to share a house for the upcoming year. It was quite a shock to meet the brunet for the first time. Though really, Zack hadn’t been sure who to expect. Certainly he hadn’t expected someone quite so intense and... he tried to think of the word that best described his house mate. Probably something along the lines of ‘prickly’, but that didn’t seem quite right. Either way, Zack had soon assessed that Leon liked to keep to himself and have no-one bother him. It didn’t surprise him in the slightest when Yuffie commented she had to ‘coerce’ Leon into moving in with them: the brunet had apparently been originally set on living by himself for the rest of his years at university. Just thinking about that solitude had the puppy frowning deeply.

Zack was so very thankful that he had finally found something he and Leon could connect over when he’d – inadvertently – discovered that Leon didn’t just read and shut people out, but that he was actually interested in video games. After the first instance, it had been a ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ situation with finding proof to back his observation up. But Zack was nothing if not persistent. Keeping his ears open for the familiar sounds of games – as clever as the ebony haired male believed Leon to be, he marvelled at how he hadn’t thought to use headphones just yet – and actively seeking the brunet’s company out had Zack finding out just how much Leon did actually play games. He even knew that Pyroar was his favourite Pokémon. That had to mean something right?

So why did he still not know what Leon actually studied?

The brunet kept his course of choice a very well kept secret: if it was comparable to anything, it was probably on the same scale as the location of the holy grail. ...maybe that had been an exaggeration, but even Yuffie hadn’t known. Had sworn up and down how annoyed she was that she had no clue what her long time friend studied. The fact that the self proclaimed ninja (who seemed to know everything about everyone’s secrets) had no clue just piqued Zack’s curiosity further. Too bad Leon had near perfected hiding his text books.

It had been an evening stroll home when the criminal justice student’d been musing about this, his mind so focused on the thoughts that he was back before he knew it. Back to a probably empty house. As far as he was aware, Cloud was out on a date with Tifa – finally! – and Yuffie had cheer practice until late at night. Leon had stated he was thinking about going to the library, but it depended on how he felt. Regardless, it meant that Zack could finally start Bayonetta 2. Maybe if Leon was in, he could convince him to give the game a go. Or at least to keep him company.

What he hadn’t been expecting was a slumbering brunet on the sofa, book resting on his chest from where he’d been reading it prior to his impromptu nap. An amused smile spread across Zack’s lips as he looked over the peaceful, relaxed features of Leon. He’d probably been stressing himself out again, maybe over his studies? ...speaking of...

Quietly, the taller student crept closer and peered at the title of the book. It couldn’t have been his usual romance novels: it was far too big for that. So it had to be one of Leon’s secret text books! If he could just read the title...

Achieving Excellence in Nursing Education

...nursing? Zack couldn’t help the little chuckle that emitted from him as he finally understood. Of course tough, stern Leon wouldn’t want people to know he was a nursing student, it went against his whole image. But for some reason, it fit him. Maybe because beneath all the bravado, Zack knew there was a genuinely caring person beneath.