Hi everyone! I'm kitty and I'm new to fanfiction.net as of Feb 25, 2001! Gawd I hope this formatted right. This is my first story here, a yaoi story at that, and although it's only PG-13 there's the obvious disclamer that this is about two men in adult situations, so if you don't appreciate that, you might want to leave. Future chapters may be rated anywhere from PG to NC-17. Oh yes, and these are Squaresofts characters, I don't own them, but I think they own me ^_^
To Kosta, my buddy, who will always be there to wave the concept of homosexuality in my face.
A Love Less Ordinary
CHAPTER ONE: Black-Mail
A knock on the door.
"Who is it?" Squall called from his bed. The door opened to reveal Irvine, dressed in the usual cowboy getup. He stepped in, and closed the door behind him. "Um, Squall? I think we should talk..."
Squall quickly sat up on his bed. "What's going on? Did something happen...?"
A half-goofy smile slowly spread across Irvines face. He laughed softly. "You're always on guard for something, aren't you Squall?"
Squall stared at Irvine. 'What the hell is he talking about..?' he thought 'If something isn't wrong, then what does he want...?'
"I was just thinking..." Irvine continued, noticing the look of confusion on the commander's face, "that I've been with you and your crew for quite some time, and I don't know that much about you-"
"-There really isn't much to know Irvine..."
The cowboy smirked, "I think there is..." He took off his hat and coat and placed them on the desk next to him, and then took a seat in the chair beside it, slouching in his "I'm too sexy for myself" way.
Squall looked bewildered. 'Jackass...' he thought. "Well then, why don't you just invite yourself in?" he said dully.
"I will," said Irvine. Squall stared. Irvine stared back. 'Irvine,' Squall thought with a giggle, 'A cowboy with a flamboyance about him that attracts the ladies from afar, rough and tough on the outside, but when it's time to get the job done, he can't even pull the trigger...' His giggling turned to laughter.
"What's so funny?" Irvine raised an eyebrow. Squall stopped abruptly and blushed.
"Nothing... Just... I dunno." Squall sighed, shifting his eyes to the floor.
"Well, it's nice that I can provoke some emotion out of you."
Squalls eyes flicked back to Irvine, who smirked shamelessly. 'Why can't everyone just leave me the hell alone?' Squall thought, 'I leave them alone, the least they can do is return the favor.'
"Look man," Irvine started, "You just need to relax. I can see where you're coming from, running this garden and all. It's a huge responsibility. Even I wouldn't be able to do it myself.."
'What's that supposed to mean?' Squall thought 'Does he think he's better than me?'... Squall stood up, "Look Irvine, I didn't ask for your advice. Why don't you just go bug Selphie if you want to talk?"
"I don't -want- to talk to Selphie." Irvine replied sternly. "I want to talk to you." Irvine rose and looked Squall right in the eye. "I'm sorry if I offended you. It's typical of me to get on a guys bad side. I'm not pushing any freak psychology or anything. I just really want to get to know you." A long pause. "I'm not asking you to open up to everyone, Squall. Just me. A man to man thing. For the sake of our sanities."
Something in Irvine's eyes told Squall to let him stay. "Alright..." Squall sat back down on the bed, "But not for too long. I gotta get some sleep."
"I getcha," said Irvine, sitting back down on the chair, "I've been touring the Garden. It's quite the place. The Training center is great. I don't think i've ever had as much fun."
"How's that?"
"Well, I need all the practice I can get, and I know that if i get knocked out, the infirmirary is there to fix me up," he smiled.
'Wow,' Squall thought, 'He's actually admitting he's not perfect. Mark this day on the calendar.'
"Yeah..." Irvine continued, as if reading Squalls mind: "I know that I act like a pompuss ass a lot of the time, but it's most likely to cover up my own insecurity..." Irvine's eyes shifted down, and he blushed. "The first mission was a perfect example."
Squall was impressed, but the fact that Irvine was sharing feelings like this made him slightly uncomfortable... "Well don't worry about it man," he quickly replied, "The important thing is you didn't fail us, and you did your best. The shot would have been perfect if not for that barrier she had up..."
"Yeah I guess you're right. But if you weren't there.. I don't think I could have gone through with it."
Squall blushed, "Of course you would have. You need to have more confidence in yourself. Real confidence. Not that bullshit you put on to impress Selphie."
"Hey buddy, First of all..." Irvine laughed and started to take down his tail "That is not bullshit, and it's definitely not to impress Selphie." A pause. "What are you staring at?"
"I've never actually seen you with your hair down before." Squall replied. 'I guess I can kinda see why Selphie and Rinoa are always all over him. From a girls perspective.' he thought.
"So? Do you think I look like a woman or something?"
"Hey, Women are your specialty."
"Ass!" Irvine whipped off one of his boots and chucked it at Squall. Squall fell back on his bed laughing, the boot missing him by a longshot. "And I suppose men are your specialty?!"
"Damn Straight!" Squall laughed, "But apparently aim isn't yours."
"Hey, don't go dissing my aim! Without it, you'd be dead after some of those battles we've been through, you know?" Irvine laughed.
"HA! Really now?"
"Probably not." Their laughter subsided, and both were left with just smiles. "Doesn't it feel good to just talk about stupid shit, let everything go once in awhile?"
Squall sat silent for awhile. "Yeah I guess it does. I've had a lot on my mind lately. It feels nice to get it out." he said. 'But why Irvine...' Squall thought, 'What's so intriging about him that lets me talk so openly...?'
Irvine stood up and kicked off his other boot, and then sat on the bed next to Squall. "I have an idea you might like.. turn around."
Squall looked at him strangely. "Huh?"
"Turn around. It's all part of trust, isn't it?"
"I guess..." Squall reluctantly turned around and sat crosslegged on the bed. Irvine placed his fingertips on Squalls back and began to rub. Squall instantly whipped himself around.
"Whoa, um, that's a little too close for comfort dude," Squall said nervously.
"Jesus Christ, give it a rest. I'm not going to hurt you."
"But doesn't this seem kind of... "
"Gay?"
"Well, sorta."
"Listen, I'm really good at this, and you really need it. I'm not trying to hit on you or anything. I'm not like that. I mean, I learned how to do this from one of my instructors, and I definitely didn't have a thing going with -him-." They both laughed. "Just let me try it out. If you get really uncomfortable, just tell me, and I'll stop."
"....Alright." 'Irvine seems like a good guy. Maybe he's right. Maybe I just need to trust people a little more.' Squall turned back around and Irvine began again by rubbing his thumbs over Squalls shoulderblades. He continued upwards to Squall's shoulder and neck, rubbing just enough to relieve some tension. 'I never thought I'd let a guy be doing this...' thought Squall, 'Or anyone for that matter...'
"So, we sucked the other night, didn't we?"
"Huh?"
"Us. Our band."
"Oh. That. Well...."
"It was pretty bad. I screwed up on the score."
"Apparently," Squall laughed. "But you're not too bad on guitar. You know it pretty well."
"What do you expect? I'm a classic cowboy."
"Heh, yeah..."
...."Rinoa told me things didn't go too well that night. She was pretty upset." Irvine's rubbing became more intense.
"It's not my problem. Wow, that feels good."
"Where? Here?"
"Go left a little."
"Aren't you interested in Rinoa?"
"What makes you think that?"
"Well, what guy wouldn't be? She's gorgeous."
"She's also whiny."
"Aren't they all?" Irvine said with a laugh. "I mean, don't you ever want to enjoy the company of a woman?"
Squall thought for a second. "I guess I never really think about that stuff. Being a SeeD is important work, especially now that i'm 'commander'. I don't have time to fool around."
"I guess that's true, but you've gotta have a little fun..."
"Why are you so interested in Rinoa and I anyway? Is that what you came here for?"
"Not at all. I told you, just to get to know you."
"......."
"Selphie isn't that great when you get down to it. She's kinda ditzy."
"Really? I never would have guessed." Squall rolled his eyes. Irvine laughed. "I guess..." Squall said reluctantly, "I just don't feel comfortable sharing my feelings with Rinoa. Then again, I don't really share my feelings with anyone."
"Until now."
They both fell silent for a few minutes as Irvine worked magic with his fingertips up and down the middle of Squalls back. Squall could feel shivers going up his spine. It was the most physical pleasure he had ever gotten from anyone.
"You're really tense" said Irvine.
"You can tell that from rubbing my back?"
"I can feel the muscles. This might be easier if you take your shirt off and lay on your stomach." Irvine said nervously. Squall turned around and looked at him.
"Are you serious?"
"Hey man! I told you I'm not coming on to you! If you're not comfortable with it i'll stop!!!" Irvine said defensively. Squalls eyes widened as Irvine threw his hands in the air in some sort of disgust. He stared for a moment, and then started to giggle and pulled his shirt off over his head.
"You're too funny, man...."
"I am?" Irvine's eyes swept over Squalls built chest.
"Most definitely," said Squall. 'I'm too tired to even care about keeping my feelings to myself anymore,' Squall thought, 'I know I can trust him. He has no need to say anything to anyone. What the hell is he staring at?' Squall looked himself up and down. "What? Did I grow a third nipple or something?"
Irvine laughed and started blushing. "Nah, I was just thinking about how scrawny you are."
"Liar," Squall replied, "You know you want this big hunk o' man...' Squall did a fashionable twirl.
"Oh woww...." said Irvine, blushing even more, "Are you okay? Ten minutes ago you didn't even want to talk to me, now you're acting all buddy-buddy like."
Squall fell out of his glamorous pose. 'What IS wrong with me....' he thought. "I don't know, maybe it was the massage or something. I just feel really loose now. Am I bothering you or something?"
"Not at all," Irvine smiled, "Up for some more?"
"Sure,"
Squall laid down on his stomach, and Irvine began his massage again. Squall closed his eyes and smiled. "You learned all this from your instructor, huh?"
"Ee-yup." he replied. Squall giggled. "What is it?"
"Oh," smiled Squall, "I was just thinking about the many times Instructor Trepe tried hitting on me." They both laughed.
For hours apon hours they laid apon the bed, talking about the past, the present, and the future. Surprisingly enough, Squall spoke the most, revealing his feelings about his years at the Garden and the lonliness he had felt for so long. All the friends that he made eventually quit garden or got lost in some other group of friends, and soon enough, Squall had become a loner. Irvine listened to every word quietly, and soon the light of the moon began to shine through the window. During a silence, Irvine spoke up:
"I wonder what time it is..."
Squall sat up quickly, surprising Irvine. "Shit" he said, looking at the desk clock, "It's 1:30."
"Seriously? It doesn't feel like it."
"I know."
"I better get going,"
"Yeah..."
Irvine stood up and put his coat and hat on. Squall watched him in the moonlight. He was a real person, in a way that the others weren't. Irvine headed towards the door. "Well, I guess i'll see you tomor-"
"Wait!" Squall said, jumping up in front of Irvine. "You're not going to say anything, right? To the others? About me? About my life."
"Of course not..." Irvine said softly.
"Cause I mean... You have a lot of black mail on me now, and, you could probably really use it to your advantage, and I can see why you would, cause I mean, i've been betrayed before, you know that of course, and I guess that's why I don't open up, and--"
Irvine grabbed onto Squalls hips and looked straight into his eyes before he pulled him into a deep kiss. Squall was astonished, but didn't push away. He closed his eyes, and felt electrical energy run through him from head to toe. 'I felt this coming,' he thought, 'Did I want this coming? Do I want this now? Things like this aren't supposed to feel right...'
Irvine broke off the kiss. Squall turned his head down, but Irvine brought it back up with two fingers and pushed a small strand of Squalls hair back. "I like you, Squall," Irvine breathed softly, "And I think I just gave you all the blackmail on me you'll ever need. I wasn't planning on it, but I think you felt it too..."
Squall looked at Irvine in a daze. He tried to open his mouth to speak, but couldn't find a single thing to say. Irvine's eyes fell over Squalls body one last time before he opened the door to leave. "See you tomorrow..." he said with a smile. He walked out, the door closing tightly behind him. Squall stood frozen.
"See you tomorrow..." he sighed softly, and fell backwards unto his bed.
END OF CHP 1
So, what'd you think?! I know I can do better! and I will. Review please!