Squall stood in Laguna's office with a firm grasp on the paperwork he held in his hands, his lips pursed, and just generally feeling like getting the hell out of there. He'd stayed up late last night helping Cid with some new recruits in the Training Center so he wasn't in the best of moods to begin with. His head hurt, his muscles ached, and he just generally felt like hell. He had rushed to Esthar to deliver some paperwork to Laguna, but it felt more like he was there just to make sure the president didn't do anything stupid. He hated feeling like a babysitter, but it was unavoidable in Laguna's presence.

As Squall thrust the paperwork that Cid had tasked him to deliver towards Laguna, Laguna took it and actually dropped it on the floor behind him, some of the papers scattering away. Squall's jaw dropped in awe as Laguna moved towards him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and telling him that he'd take care of it later.

"Laguna," Squall hissed, pulling himself out of the president's surprisingly tight grasp, "Cid said that it's very important that you look those over. It's about the upcoming-"

"Ah, ah ah, Squall," Laguna said shaking his hand dismissively as he led the way outside of his office and into the hallway. "What did I tell you about being a worry wart? Just trust me, man. I'll take care of it later. Now, let's just go for a walk, okay? Chit-chat a bit."

"Later?" Squall's eye twitched at the thought of leaving anything for later. He prided himself in being punctual and it boggled his mind that Laguna, a president, literally didn't take anything seriously. "But-but Cid said -"

"So, how are things at Garden anyway?" Laguna interrupted. "Is Cid working you like a dog? How are you and Rinoa doing? Are you guys taking things slow?"

Usually when Squall came to Esthar, he was quick to accomplish whatever task needed to be done and barely spoke to Laguna at all. Or at least tried to. It seemed that no matter how hard Squall tried to make things quick, Laguna always managed to prolong things as much as possible. He'd ask him about his daily life and his friends and even start talking about his own past, among other random things. Every time Cid told him he had to go to Esthar it was hard for Squall to not feel like he was about to be fed to a bunch of hungry lions. He just couldn't stand talkative people to begin with. Squall preferred to only say what needed to be said. People who spoke just for the sake of speaking grated on his nerves. This was why he generally preferred to speak to Kiros whenever it wasn't necessary that he speak to the president himself. Plus, Kiros was so much more responsible and his personality in general was much less abrasive.

They had begun to walk down a hallway and through the presidential palace on the way towards the exit. As they passed by Kiros and Ward who were walking in the opposite direction, Squall could have sworn he saw Kiros wink at Laguna.

"Everything's fine," Squall muttered grudgingly as they exited the building side by side. He let out a yawn that he'd been holding back since he'd arrived. "Not really. We're fine. And yeah, I guess."

Laguna sighed then. "You're killing me Squall! Come on... Give me the deets!"

"The...deets?" Squall asked perplexed.

"Yeah," Laguna said. "Tell me about your first kiss, the first time you said 'I love you' to her, and stuff like that." He then paused to scratch the back of his head. "Just please tell me you're taking things slow?"

Squall frowned at him then not understanding where this was coming from. "We are, not that there's any reason why you should care."

"Right," Laguna said with a nervous laugh. "Sorry about that. Just being nosy I guess."

As they walked down a path around the city, Squall sneaked a peek at Laguna who was nodding his head to passersby and raising a hand in acknowledgment of people. He had to resist rolling his eyes at his people pleasing attitude. Maybe if Laguna cared so much about what people thought of him, he could actually do the work he's asked to do instead of leaving it for the last second?

Still, Squall couldn't help but watch with interest as they passed by hovering transporters carrying people around the city through large tubes. Despite having visited Esthar many times by now, Squall was always left in awe of the technological advancements of the city. It was truly a marvel to look at. Although it made the fact that a dimwit like Laguna was the president of such a city seem all the more bizarre.

"It's weird being in charge of a whole city," Laguna broke the silence, as though he'd heard Squall's thoughts. "So many people look at me like I'm some kind of god or something. Like I'm not like everyone else. I never even wanted this job, you know. I was pretty okay with just being a soldier. Although I guess a part of me doesn't exactly miss killing people that much either."

"So then what do you want?" Squall asked. He wasn't really interested. He just felt like his input was required.

Laguna looked at him and chuckled. "You of all people know what I want, Squall. I wanted to be a writer. I really like writing stories about love and heartache...just sappy romantic stuff."

"Hmm," Squall said, not knowing what else to say.

"But I guess it wasn't meant to be," Laguna said a bit sadly. "Ah well," he said, brightening up. "All that matters is making the most of what you've got. Don't you think?"

"You know, I just came here to deliver the paperwork. Not talk and walk around aimlessly," Squall said a little more irritably than he meant to.

Laguna turned towards Squall, his face falling. He stopped and Squall stopped with him, the two of them facing each other. "Sorry, I just thought you could use a bit of downtime since you're probably stressed out with your new job."

"It's not that stressful," Squall said, though not with much conviction. The truth was he wasn't getting much sleep and he actually barely even saw Rinoa ever since he'd been appointed the commander. He was constantly being given missions and office work to take care of. He and Rinoa were just trying their best to make the relationship work despite this, although Squall knew it was taking its toll on her. "I could probably use some sleep is all," Squall said, instantly regretting it upon seeing the look on Laguna's face.

Laguna reached out to place a hand on his arm in concern. "Squall, I had a feeling you were being overworked. Every time I see you, you look like you're about to die on the spot."

Squall shifted away from Laguna's touch. "I do not," he said feeling slightly embarrassed that his physical state was that noticeable.

Laguna leaned back and shook his head. "Look, there's no way you can go on like this. You're gonna make yourself sick, bud. You gotta ask Cid to give you a break. No, wait. I'll talk to him." Laguna then grinned at him. "Being the prez comes with its perks. All I gotta do is tell him -"

"Laguna," Squall ground out, suddenly deeply annoyed. "Just forget it, okay? Besides," He looked at his watch eager to find an excuse to leave. "I think it's time for me to go. I came here for business reasons, remember? Not to pretend that we care about each other."

"Right," Laguna said after a beat.

Something in his face almost made Squall wish he could take back what he said. Maybe he'd imagined it, but he thought he'd caught a flash of hurt in the man's eyes. There was something about the way that Laguna looked at Squall at times, his eyes twinkling with some hidden knowledge, that made Squall deeply suspicious of him. It also made him feel like he must mean something to him, although he couldn't fathom what it could be.

"Well, it was nice of you to come over and deliver the paperwork to me. I just love me some paperwork..." Laguna said with a sigh.

"Alright, well, I guess I'd better get going," Squall said, eager to get away from Laguna. He wasn't sure what it was, but the more time he spent with him the more uncomfortable he felt. Maybe it was just that a part of him still hated getting close to people...especially morons. Squall didn't allow Laguna to get another word in as he began stalking off towards the closest exit from the city. But before he could even get out of Laguna's viewing range, his name was called out, making him wince.

Dammit...what now?! Squall cursed inwardly.

Laguna caught up to him in just a few seconds with a nervous smile on his face. "Sorry. Just...just wanted to say that if you ever need a place to sleep or whatever, you can stay at my place." He then scratched the back of his neck and Squall saw to his confusion that Laguna was blushing a little. "I mean, we got some pretty comfy beds and you can just chill and watch TV if work gets to be too much. You can bring Rinoa over too if you want." Laguna looked up at him with a hopeful look in his eyes.

Squall ground his teeth and narrowed his eyes. He could feel himself beginning to fall apart at the seams. "Okay, what's the deal?" he snapped. "Every time I come here...every time I see you, you act like we're old buddies or something. I see the way you look at me and it's like you're keeping something from me. And why the hell would I even want to stay here with you? We're like complete strangers, Laguna. Why are you acting like you're my...like you're my..."

Squall couldn't even say it. The word couldn't escape his mouth because it was just too ridiculous to even fathom. He almost wanted to laugh that it had even popped into his mind.

"Like I'm your...?" Laguna looked stricken as even he was unable to say it.

There was an awkward silence as Squall turned his face away not even wanting to look at Laguna. There were now people nearby who had stopped to stare at them mostly due to Squall having raised his voice. Neither of them seemed to care, though.

"Whatever." Squall said finally, wishing that Rinoa herself would magically teleport over here and drag him away from this lunatic. Enduring the embarrassment of seeing him in those stupid dreams was bad enough, but actually having to hold conversations with him was somehow even more distressing.

To Squall's surprise, though, Laguna suddenly also looked uncomfortable as he began rubbing a hand against the side of his face. After a few seconds he stopped and forced as bright a smile as he could manage although it was lacking its usual sincerity. "I don't know, Squall. I guess I just feel lonely sometimes. Being the president gets tough sometimes, you know? It's kind of nice to see you whenever you drop by. And you..." He hesitated then looking very clearly like he was about to say something risky.

Squall however grew interested in what Laguna had to say. "What?" he asked cautiously.

"You...You remind me of Raine." Laguna clearly had difficulty spitting it out although Squall couldn't imagine why. Unless he meant this as some sort of flirtatious thing which would make the man even more irritating, if possible.

"I think I'm gonna go," Squall said coldly, not even knowing why he felt this way. It was like Laguna was trying to tell him something while also holding back. There was something in the back of Squall's mind that was trying to tell him to look deeper into what Laguna was saying, but he did his best to shove it away.

Before Squall could lose his sanity, he briskly turned away from Laguna and marched off not even aware of what direction he was heading in. All he knew was that he had to get away. He had to get away from Laguna's kind eyes, his warm touch, his carefree attitude...He just had to get away now or else he'd tell the man exactly what he thought about him. And honestly he just didn't need that kind of negativity right now. The thought of having to return here to deliver more paperwork or for any other menial task that would lead him to encounter Laguna again almost made him want to crumple up and die.

As Squall exited Esthar he released a shuddering sigh of relief and dropped to his knees on the road that led to the desert. Balamb Garden was parked about a mile away, but for now he just needed to rest. It was true that he was badly in need of sleep. All he could hope for was that when he did sleep he wouldn't dream of a certain president.

And that he wouldn't have to come back here anytime soon.