A/N: Not much to say. Snow x Hope. AU. Yaoi comes later, some fluff first. Drama here and there.

Summary: A game, that's was all it really was to Snow Villiers. Woman after woman, the relationships were booty calls, affairs, or relatively short relationships. However, after a bad date on a slow night, Snow comes to meet a young teenager who works at a local diner, where he had ventured off to to get some peace. Will this person put a stop to Snow's poor love life?

Disclaimer: I do not own the Final Fantasy franchise or Square Enix. If I did, everything would be a disaster of crack with a large sprinkle of yaoi. ._.


Chapter 1: Hate the Game, Especially the Player

'Damn...' Snow resisted from grinding his teeth together. The blond man had found himself yet again on a date with some gold digging woman he probably was not even interested in. If he were to be frank, his mood was fowl. This however was a typical night for Snow Villiers. In fact, there was not a day in the week when Snow would not face a situation like this. Why did he bother? Was he ever to find the true one?

The blond clenched his fists underneath the restaurant's fine marble table, which was covered with a crimson silken cloth atop of it. The woman across him wouldn't stop talking. Her laugh was almost witch-like; high pitched and cackly. Point is she was just a pain in the neck. A fake, smug smile played on Snow's lips. He glanced over at his wristwatch.

"-All of the effort I put in, my time, it wasn't even worth the lousy pay. I almost sued one of my co-workers for sexual harassment. Some men just don't know how to keep their hands to themselves." The lady across Snow proclaimed and lifted her glass of wine to her burgundy lips.

"Shut up." Snow breathed out very quietly, pictures and voices of his past relationships breaking and entering his train of thought. Well, about the two dozen relationshits he could remember thus far.

"Excuse me?" The woman displayed a subtle batting of lashes, a hand placed over her exposed bosom. She was clearly offended. But Snow couldn't care if he tried his hardest. He was done.

"I said shut up..." Snow's train might have crashed along the railroad because he would never speak to someone so rudely. It just wasn't part of his charming and friendly demeanor. The voices had now risen in volume in head.

"...M- Mr. Villiers! I can't believe you. And to think you were a gentleman who actually listened and treated my to a decent meal. My calculations have faltered. I don't think you have proven not to be among my standards."

Tch, stuck up rich narcissist..

"You want to know something? I think your standards are a bit too high for someone like you. Take a good look at yourself. The past what-25 minutes I've wasted my time with you-I easily read you like an open book. The hypocritical, playing the hard to get girl card, money hungry, dreaming to be the perfect plastic trophy wife. You aren't any different from any of the other pirate whores I've dated...!" He raised his voice, not caring who would hear around them. Forget this stupid social status bull. Like he gave a damn.

The woman was utterly offended, an 'o' shape forming on her lips. She slammed her gloved palms on the silk fabric above the marble table, her caramel eyes holding fury.

"You jerk!" She held up her glass of wine, and then proceeded to splash it directly into Snow's face.

Blue eyes slowly closed shut. Oh by dear god did Snow have the urge to physically harm this woman. No. He pushed the thought aside, trying to calm down. His ice cerulean eyes opened again, watching the retreating curvy woman, her pointy high heels echoing through the orchestra music filled restaurant.

Snow sighed and grabbed what seemed the whole batch of napkins, rubbing them all over his face, neck, and dress suit. Snow's $750 suit had been stained with a dark crimson color. Oh well, it wasn't like he did not have enough suits at home anyway.

Blond locks slightly bounced up and down as Snow power walked out of the restaurant, ignoring the flirty stares and chitchat of the women around. Snow had made sure to pay the ridiculously high bill just before he exited.

Forget this, I'm going home.


Snow however contradicted himself as he past by a small diner around the corner. He decided to empty his mind there, making a U-turn to go back.

Snow could really use a nice, hot cup of coffee right now. Hey, maybe even a sugar donut to top it off. Snow's mouth watered by just imagining alone. He hadn't even eaten his plate of food at the restaurant, he really hated seafood. The dish seemed to have a lot of good reviews though, so he took the risk. As a result, the taste immediately made him spit out the food subtly over a napkin. Never again.

Snow entered the bright, yet dead diner and sat down at the farthest table away from the counter. He didn't need any employees checking him out or watching him eat. No, especially not in the mood he was in. The blond just wanted to be alone in peace, as far as peace in his life goes, for now.

Snow had begun daydreaming, riled up in his own thoughts. He pictured a small house on a hill with a beautiful loving wife, a family, peace, nothing to piss him off. What a luxury it sounded like to Snow. That was all the blond had ever wanted. His mission was to find that hidden treasure.

Much to his dismay, most women whom are interested seek wealth and/or sex, as well as some stupid social reputation.

Snow had not even noticed the figure before him for the past few minutes standing awkwardly in silence, hoping the blonde would talk first. Snow was too dazed.

"Um sir, may I take your order?"

"Hm?" Snow's ice cerulean eyes fell on a slim, 13 year old looking girl with odd, short silver colored hair.

Green-blue eyes flinched at the older man's gaze. "May I take your order, sir?" The teen tucked a lock of silver hair behind his ear, a gel pen still in his grasp while doing so. The silverette's other hand was occupied with a small black notebook on a clean sheet of paper.

So she is actually a he. "Oh, I'll have a cup of coffee."

"Would you like that strong or light, sir? The teen asked as he began to write the order down. "

"I'll leave that up to you. Just a normal cup of coffee will do for now." Snow smiled at him.

"Alright, I'll bring it up shortly." He nodded gawkily.

Snow watched as the boy nodded before walking back to his work station. That boy looked so young. How was he able to work here, especially at this hour? Snow checked his watch. It was about 9:38 pm. One would expect a young boy like him to be home by at least 5:00 pm.

Perhaps he was to be sent home even earlier, depending on the kid's parents. What kind of parents did that boy have? Snow would like to give them a piece of his mind if he were to ever meet them. Snow had been keen on asking, but...

'It's none of your business, Snow' Snow told himself mentally in a warning tone.

"Here you go, sir." The silver haired boy said a little timidly before he placed the coffee on the table near Snow's chest. It was obviously muscled and toned out, especially since the fabric was semi see through.

The man's dress shirt buttons were a little low, a portion of thin blond chest hairs cast over his fair skin entwined. The silverette immediately regretted eyeing the man's chest as his hand slipped, tipping over the hot cup of coffee on the expensive looking suit.

His peach lips elipsed a small gasp and he quickly held back the grip on the cup.

To his relief, only about three to four inches had poured onto the man's dress shirt. That still did not mean the substance wasn't scorching hot.

"I-I'm so sorry, sir!" Ash light gray eyebrows knit together. The boy grabbed a handy cleaning wipe from his apron pocket and carefully wiped at the dark stain on the man's shirt thoroughly. It looked like there had been another fresh stain marked on it as well. He wondered what could have spilled.

The boy could feel the man's breathing on his arms, stern blue eyes on his face, and he could smell a husky attractive aroma from this man. Green-blue eyes slightly narrowed as he struggled cleaning the stain, the right side of his body mildly bent over the table.

Snow had been studying the teenager during this process. He had come to a conclusion that this boy was...beautiful.

Even though he was a he, a minor, pale, fragile looking and thin, he was absolutely beautiful.

Hope's description wasn't exactly his type. Snow usually aimed for the girls, or women rather, with curves. The hips were the most important for Snow. That little dip just turned him on. But...this guy didn't have any of that, so why...? Snow's breath hitched. He had to know more about him. But, Snow wasn't some kind of sicko. This was a minor! Yet, even worse, a HE. Snow was definitely not a homo.

Snow gripped the boy's wrist, getting his attention. "It's alright; my shirt, it had gotten stained just earlier anyway. Don't sweat it." Snow winked with a grin.

"Uh? But-" The boy resembled that of a lost puppy.

The blond chuckled and ruffled the boys silver hair. "My name is Snow Villiers, not sir. And you, you got a name?" Snow smiled warmly.

The teen stood back in place. "Hope. Hope Estheim."

"Hope..." Hope's name rolled off Snow's tongue. How lovely that name was.

"Yeah." Hope's irises wandered to the side of his shoe.

"Hope, do you care to share a donut with me?" Snow smiled once again.

Wow...that sounded more stupid than it did in his head.

"Ah...well" Hope looked around the diner donut shack hybrid. It was a slow, dead night. There was no one around but him and Snow. "Sure, okay."

"I'll take a sugar donut. If it's against your work policy, I'll be more than glad to pay for you."

"There's no need to do that" A barely noticeable half smile was present on Hope's lips.

"Hey, my treat. Allow me." Snow said reassuringly.

Snow was born with such a charming smile. A strange whirlwind of butterflies flew straight to Hope's stomach. "O-Okay." Hope said just before walking towards the counter.

Hope slid open a small sliding window. He grabbed a pair of large tweezers and picked up a nice warm sugar donut as well as a jelly filled sugar donut for himself. The young employee shifted around and placed the two pastries a top a tray. Hope then went to the large see-through fridge and grabbed a bottle of chocolate milk.

With everything settled on the tray afterwards, Hope's frail arms carried away the food to Snow's table.

Snow smirked as Hope sat down, intending to make his stare uneasy. Apparently, it was working.

"So, kid, why are you working here so late? Aren't your parents worried?"

"Um...I don't exactly have parents." Hopes eyes drifted to the bottle of chocolate milk, to the tiny droplets of condensation forming at the near bottom of the bottle.

"Then how?-"

"You see, I ran away from home just a couple of months ago. One of my old friends, Sazh, allowed me to work here and sleep in his son's room at his house. I'm used to staying here most of the time..." What am I doing? I shouldn't give out my personal life so carelessly!

Snow furrowed his eyebrows. "How old is uh, Sazh, it was, and his son? How is your living environment? I mean, come on. What about school? Don't you want a good future? You've got a whole life ahead of you, kid."

I shouldn't have said a thing, what if he turns me in?

"I don't know how old they are. I only know that his son is probably five or so. I'm comfortable there. With the money I earn, I spend a very small portion on the bills and save the rest in Sazh's other bank account that he doesn't use. Oh and about school...I haven't really thought about it."

"And..?"

"My dad knows I've run away. I left him a note on the counter the same day I left. He doesn't even care about me, so why should I bother worrying about him." Hope balled his fists.

Snow sighed. "And your mom is..." He asked, though he already was suspecting he knew the answer.

"She's dead." Hope continued.

"I'm…I'm so sorry to hear that." Snow frowned. This kid, he was living it rough.

"Don't be. I'm fine as I am right now. I have…I have every basic thing I need to survive." There was a small crack in Hope's voice. "What more could I ask for?" He said a bit cheerily, and Snow couldn't tell if it was genuine or not, but when he smiled gently with his eye closed, Snow couldn't think properly.

Hope quickly nibbled on his donut after a few moments of silence.

"Listen, Hope I...what time does your shift end?" Snow asked curiously. He was really worried about the kid.

"10:00" Hope replied as he glanced outside the window, then back at Snow.

The blonde tipped his head to the side that similar to a dog, blonde strands of hair moving in sync with his motions."So do you just...walk home? Isn't that dangerous?"

Hope was starting to get suspicious. Why was this man interrogating him?

"I ride my bike here at five o' clock in the afternoon and then I ride home on my bike as well. Just five minutes before the clock strikes ten."

"Hey Hope, let me give you a ride. If you want, that is. Don't do anything you don't want to."

"I appreciate it, but..." Hope glanced at the look on Snow's face. It felt like a rock dropped at the pit of his stomach. Could Hope trust this man? "Uhm...a-alright."

I mean just by looking at him I could tell he is a good guy. The way Snow talks and carries himself around, it's so…charming. I feel like I have a sense of comfortability, and maybe even a connection with him. That does sound pretty stupid though, I've just met him. I'll stay cautious as I can, but…oh god, he is smiling at me again.

Snow smiled in response. They then ate together quietly; both of them not uttering a word to each other and having wandering thoughts that none of them dare speak of out loud. Snow kind of liked the silence. It felt strangely comfortable. It was something he had never experienced before with a stranger.

"Burp."

"Heh, nice." Snow grinned.

"Ah, excuse me." Hope smiled, quickly covering his mouth.

Snow cleared his throat gruffly just before-"BUURRP."

"Whoa. I didn't know coffee could do that." Shyness and slight humor laced Hope's voice.

"Psh, wasn't the coffee. I just happen to be a natural expertise...in many other things too, not just in burping." Snow smirked cockily.

Hope raised an eyebrow. He choked a bit on his chocolate milk, a few droplets flying out his nose. Snow bursted with quieted down laughter.

A pink blush dusted Hope's cheeks as he wiped his mouth and nose; flustered.

"Haha. You're blushing." Snow leaned in a bit close and poked Hope's cheek lightly. He was almost reluctant, but he felt comfortable around the guy, and he was pretty sure vise versa.

"No, I a-am not." A darker shade of pink adorned the teen's face, biting a piece of his sugar jelly donut. A glob of jelly trickled down the corner of his lip as he tried to convince Snow that he indeed had numerous allergies and whatnot.

Of course Snow didn't buy it, but still listened to the silverette's ramble go on. Seeing him all flustered up was simply an adorable spectacle.

Snow studied Hope's flushing cheeks; milkened glossed, parted lips, to the purple trickling jelly still on his chin.

Crap...it's...kind of arousing.

The blond mentally smacked himself to be thinking such a way about this boy. He couldn't be thinking perverted things about someone so soon!

"-Snow? Snow?" Hope knit his brows together.

"Oh I'm sorry...what?"

"I said my shift is over." Aqau orbs landed on his lap. "…If we can go now."

"Yeah a' course. Let's go." Snow stood up and held his hand out for Hope.

"Uh, thanks" Hope said nervously and stood up. Hope looked up at Snow's face. He was gigantic! "

"W-Wow...you're really tall." Hope said with his eyes wide.

"No need to state the obvious, kiddo" Snow ruffled Hope's hair for the second time that day.

Hope parted his lips with a rose pink blush falling on his cheeks. Snow Villiers...he liked this man. Hope really smiled sweetly for the first time up at Snow.

Snow smiled warmly back at Hope.

Funny thing, Snow had one of the worst dates of his life, and now he has just met somebody that he actually liked for a change. Snow thought it was crazy how events could just go from very bad to what may be meeting that special person in a matter of small talk.

Could it be fate?

"C'mon, let's go, Hope."


A/N: I hope you like it!

I'm not sure if my writing style is mature enough like some other authors of FF13 on so if there are any mistakes please do tell me! I will continue once I hunt for some more plot bunnies.*Whips out mah spear for bunnies*. Oh and please drop by a lovely review. It would really encourage me and make me happy :) Thank you for reading the first chapter.

Have a nice day!