Title: Beautiful Goodbye

Author: Ari

Plot: One Shot. AlbelxFayt (kinda sorta) FaytxSophia, AlbelxNel. Fayt thinks about his past relationship, and the beautiful goodbye they shared. Kinda sad I guess…

Notes: I don't know WHAT this is! I have scared and disgusted myself! Remind me to NEVER write at 3am anymore! Look what happens! No! I take it back! Don't look! It's horrid! This is what I get for reading sad, depressing, Gundam Wing fics! It depresses me and then I get a depressing plot bunny that wont go away!

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Ocean or any of its characters. If I did, I wouldn't be up at 3 am writing Fanfiction about them, I'd be making movies and games instead. I also don't own the song 'Beautiful Goodbye' Amanda Marshall owns that. Enjoy I suppose.

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Fed up with my destiny

And this place of no return

I think I did my part. I save the world. I save the universe. Afterwards, all I really wanted was to settle down; maybe build a home to come back to. I wasn't asking for much. I wasn't asking my mother to let me stay with her. I wasn't bothering anyone; at least I don't think I was. But people just kept expecting more out of me. I was the 'leader;' I was supposed to continue doing great things for the world. No one really cared what I wanted.

I think I'll take another day

And slowly watch it burn

And so I left. I left my mother and Sophia. I left Nel, Cliff, Maria; I left everyone to go wandering. For some reason, I wasn't happy afterwards. Everyone loved me, praised me, I wouldn't be surprised if statues of me began to pop up for people to worship. You would think I was God here. But that wasn't what I wanted.

I just wanted to forget that battle. I wanted to forget that I was different, that my body had been changed; and by my own father! And so I went wandering. I think I was actually planning on going to Greeton, but I never quite made it there. And you know why.

It doesn't really matter

How the time goes by

You followed me and found me, you stubborn bastard. And when I told you to fuck off, you laughed at me and called me a 'fool' not that that was odd or anything. I yelled and said I wanted to be left alone; I told you I didn't want you or anyone expecting anything more from me. I asked you, hadn't I done enough for the world? Did they have to keep asking for me to fix this, or change that? Why couldn't they—why couldn't you see that all I wanted was to be left alone?

But you wouldn't leave me alone. You gave the excuse that I was weak and stupid, and you followed me. I suppose, after awhile, I really didn't care. You carried your own weight. And we traveled to so many different places. All over your world, meeting people and seeing sights. I wondered sometimes if you found it boring, but every time I asked, you told me to shut up or threatened me.

I think we became good friends. Close I guess. I could tell how you were feeling without even looking at you. All you had to do was be in the room or in the area and I could tell if you were angry or irritated or even hungry. I think the same went for you too, you always knew when to yell at me, and snap me out of my growing depression-like state.

Cause I still remember you and I

And that beautiful goodbye

Too bad it didn't stay like that. Too bad everything changes eventually.

We staggered through these empty streets

Laughing arm in arm

Do you remember that night? I do, and I hope you do too. We were so smashed that night. I never knew Winking Sage Cider had so much alcohol in it…or did we just drink a whole lot of it? I think we drank a lot…

We wandered down the road, a bottle for both of us. I remember pointing out the cracks in the buildings and laughing at them, when I tripped on the uneven cracks in the road. You caught me and hauled me back up, and told me to be careful. You said you'd be sad if I was hurt. This conversation would have been much more serious and odd if we hadn't been drunk off our asses.

The night had made a mess of me

Your confessions kept me warm

I brushed you off, but you came back and slung an arm around my shoulders, dumping half the bottle on my head with a laugh. Who'd have ever guess that you were a silly drunk? You steered us down some road towards the inn, but before that, you stopped and stared at me, with hazy eyes and told me that you were serious. That you did care for me, and you would be sad if anything happened to me.

The next morning I didn't bring it up, figuring you wouldn't even remember. You weren't one to go and confess things like that. But you did bring it up, and I was glad. And as you know, things slowly progressed from there. Too bad it didn't last.

And I don't really miss you

I just need to know

But that's okay. I started that journey alone, and I really didn't care if I end it alone either. You gave up and left, but that's okay. Remember? It was you who chased after me; I was just fine on my own. I think it was you who needed me.

But…

Do you ever think of you and I

And that beautiful goodbye

But I find myself wondering sometimes, if you ever think of us, and how we used to be. I know I do. I think about us all the time. It could've worked, if you had been more tolerant and I had been less pig headed. But then, I suppose it's better that it hadn't dragged out longer than it already had.

When I see you now I wonder how

I could've watched you walk away

I suppose the only time I really regret not chasing after you was when I came back to Aquaria that one time, and saw you at the palace. I hadn't planned on you being there, but you were. I remember watching you from the balcony over the chapel as you talked with Nel.

Not only did you talk with her, you were laughing too, and I felt a stab of something in my chest. I don't remember you ever laughing with me. I watched you silently as you did the most absurd thing ever; you reached up and brushed away the hair from her eyes with a small smile on your lips. It was so unlike you. You had never touched me like that, except when we were drunk or making love. And you never smiled for me.

If I let you down

Please forgive me now

For that beautiful goodbye

You always called me a fool. And a maggot. Stupid, weak, ignorant, blind, baby, child, and any other names you could think of. I suppose I just figured harsh words were in your blood and ignored them, telling myself that you didn't mean it. But I don't hear you calling Nel stupid.

I guess I was—am weak. I could never compare to you; I could never beat you. I would try as hard as I could, but you always came out on top. If I managed to beat you in combat, you found a way to get me back later. Sometimes those revenges were more pleasurable than others. But just remember, you were the one that walked off, all I did was wave goodbye and go the other way.

In these days of no regrets

I'll keep mine to myself

But you know, I left Aquaria, and now I really don't care. As long as I don't see you, hear about you, or see anything that reminds me of you, there isn't a problem. Obviously I left your planet, I wouldn't stay on it. I could probably sense you all the way on the other side of it, and the sickening thing would be that I would find you happy, or at least as close as possible for you to be happy.

I can't believe you left me for your sworn enemy, and for a girl no less. But it really doesn't matter and I really don't care. No one asks about it and I don't tell. It really isn't anyone's business what happened between us. I found myself traveling with Cliff, Maria, and Mirage again. Oh, and Sophia was there too.

And all the things we never said

I can say to someone else

I told you it would all work out. You're happy, and I'm happy. I have my girl and you have yours. That's how it's suppose to be, right? And just the other night, I pinned Sophia to the wall, kissed her breath away, told her I loved her, and asked her to marry me, and she said yes.

I'm not bragging at all, I'm just making a point. The point that life goes on no matter what happens. I was a video game freak, then I was a hero, then I wandered around with you looking for something in life. You left and moved on, and I simply followed your example. I wish you as much happiness as I have.

And nothing lasts forever

But we always try

And like I said before. Our 'relationship' if you could call it that, was based more off a need to be physically close to someone. It really had nothing to do with feelings at all. I need someone to push me around and be in charge for once, and you needed someone who would do more than cower in fear of you.

If worked for a while, but after that, we really didn't need each other anymore…

I just can't help but wonder why

We let it pass us by

With a beautiful goodbye

But you know, it sure was fun. We had some wild and crazy nights. We'd stay up for days on end, drinking and having fun, hunting together, camping out, and trying to scare the hell out of each other.

Remember that night you filled my socks with fire ants? Yeah, I still hate you for that, but you got yours a couple days later when I loosened all the bolts on your claw. It fell apart right in the middle of a battle, and the look on your face had been priceless.

But we didn't always act crazy. We sat up sometimes, sharing stories about our home or childhood. Those were the nights I think you forgot who you were supposed to be. You became Albel instead of Albel The Wicked. I believe if we had really cared, and really put some effort into it, we could've made it work.

Aw… but that doesn't matter now. You have your life and I have mine. And were both much happier now.

So why can't I forget that night, and why does it still hurt? From when you looked me straight in the eye, and told me you didn't love me? And when you left me that night with a single, beautiful goodbye.

Do you ever think of you and I

And that beautiful goodbye?

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End Notes: Okay, shoot me now. I just wrote an AlbelxFayt break up fic, and then repaired them up with Sophia and Nel. I think I'm getting sick…something is most defiantly not right with my head at the moment.

Don't even bother R&R-ing, I wouldn't. You can flame though! I encourage flames for this story!

Also, my grammar probably sucks in this fic, its 3 am and I only went through it once before I posted it. I print it and go over it a bunch later, then repost the edits; I'm just too lazy right now.