"'Lai?"

The only answer Gippal received was an unintelligible mumble, muffled by the pillow. He grinned and leaned in, blowing into Baralai's ear. Baralai jumped, jerking away and sitting bolt upright, a hand clapped reflexively to his ear. "Gippal!"

"Not my fault you weren't paying attention to me," Gippal said with a lazy grin. He was completely unrepentant, and Baralai shook his head in irritation.

"I was trying to sleep," he said, turning his body and leaning back against the headboard. "What is it?"

Gippal shrugged, leaning back next to him. "We never talk much anymore. You're too busy lately."

"Well, elections are coming up." Baralai considered him. "You don't actually want to talk politics in bed, do you?"

"Nope. I was actually thinking more along the lines of, I dunno, the Sphere Break coming up. You gonna compete?"

"I don't think so. Sphere Break isn't really my game."

"Too bad there's no chess tournament," Gippal said. "You'd take 'em to the cleaners."

"Are you going to compete?"

"In the tournament? Yeah, probably." Gippal answered dismissively, but Baralai knew he was looking forward to the challenge. Not many people enjoyed the game as much as Gippal, and he'd even beaten Yuna, last year's champion, a few times. "Why not, right? Maybe I'll give you the prize if I win."

"I hope it isn't another dressphere," Baralai remarked. "I don't know about you, but I have no desire to end up in one of those scant outfits the former Gullwings parade around in."

Gippal laughed. "Yeah, somehow I have the feeling those are better suited to the ladies. Not that you aren't just as lovely." He cast Baralai a sidelong glance, a lopsided smile on his face, and Baralai's heart did that little skip it always did when Gippal flirted.

"I don't like to spoil the mood," he said, "but I have to return to Bevelle in the morning."

Gippal groaned, his head falling back to hit the wall with a thump. "You just got here yesterday!"

"I can't be away too long, Gippal. I have mountains of work, and if my advisors start to suspect that these are more than friendly visits—"

"I know, I know." Gippal's tone was sulky.

"I'm sorry," Baralai added, but it felt feeble and useless. Gippal shrugged it off, and he turned to Baralai with a look on his face that was all too familiar. "Might as well make use of the time we have, don't you think?"

Baralai laughed a little. "Gippal, I haven't put on clothes since I arrived. Don't you think we should get up? I should say hello to Rikku, and we could go for a walk—"

"But this is way more fun," Gippal said, his voice low and husky. Baralai's eyelids fluttered as Gippal's tongue dipped into the notch of his collarbone and Gippal could feel his throat work as he swallowed.

"Yes," Baralai agreed faintly, his hand sliding up Gippal's thigh to curl over his hipbone. "It really is."

Gippal laughed into his neck, the hot air tickling Baralai's skin, and then his hands were exploring Baralai's torso, tracing muscle and teasingly dipping into the small of his back. Baralai could almost forget about the mess waiting for him back in Bevelle, about elections and campaigning and the shaky economy, if only Gippal would just do that again…