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This is dedicated to everyone that's left me encouraging comments when I, as one reviewer put it, lost my boner for this fanfic. I appreciated every single one, they made me laugh and smile whenever they appeared in my inbox. I'm also sorry for being such a butthurt-butthead.
Important: The second half is still in the process of being finished, and I'm aiming to finish it before the end of January, because I preordered XIII-2 and will definitely be too distracted. (also, the ending of this chapter is different than the previous version. and stuff's been edited, woo!)
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"Guys," Hope called out to his two companions, both of whom had dragged him to the nutriculture complex to train "Couldn't we have just gone to Gapra Whitewood? I don't think the Captain wants us using the flanitors as training dummies."
The taller of his companions, Rhys, smirked "What? You scared of a little ooze, Estheim?"
"Tch." Hope caught up with the two, both well on their way to leaving the shorter man behind, "Like I'd be worried about that!" he said as he elbowed Rhys, running past the brunet and quickly tying his hair in a loose ponytail. He stopped for a moment, before walking farther into the complex "But if we get in trouble again, I am not taking the fall this time."
"Wha-" Rhys protested as he ran after the shorter man, the group quickly approaching a pair of flanitors "You make it sound like I always get us in trouble."
"You do." Hope said simultaneously with the blond – Lucas – causing the Rhys to pout.
For the rest of the day the trio ran up and down the nutriculture complex, slaying flanitors and lucidons. Skipping out on guard duty wasn't something they did on a regular basis, but when the amount of work given to them had begun to slow down considerably – it seemed citizens didn't enjoy getting caught shoplifting as often these days – Rhys suggested training with the bioweapons to keep their respective skills sharp in case the chance of any real missions arose.
Just as the three men were ready to leave the complex, a flanitor succeeded in getting the preemptive strike against Hope, pinning the young man against the floor. Overpowered by the bioweapon's weight on top of him, Hope began throwing punches at the flanitor, all seemingly ineffective against the flexible jello-like body.
"Agh! Get it off of me, guys!" he yelled out to his two companions, neither noticing the bioweapon smothering Hope within its grasp. Hearing the urgency in the male's voice, both men turned – immediately rushing to Hope's aid at the sight. Rhys jumped in first, pulling out his baton and whacking the bioweapon square in the face, causing it to stumble backwards, dangerously close to the edge of the floating platform. As the flanitor shook its head in an attempt to break free of it's daze Lucas quickly ran past Rhys, flipping onto his hands as he began to twirl, successfully kicking the bioweapon off the edge.
The brunet sauntered up behind Lucas, casually wrapping his arm around the blond's shoulder as he whistled, "I almost feel bad for that thing." Both men turned back around only to find Hope thoroughly covered in the murky ooze from head to toe.
Hope glared back as his companions, seeing their faces turning red as they tried to contain what would've been hysterical laughter, "We're going to Gapra next time." he mumbled as he walked towards the elevator, very much in a rush to get home and take a shower.
o-o-o0o-o-o
Hope dragged himself home after parting ways with the two men whilst trying to ignore the feeling of the ooze leaking into his uniform – something he was not enjoying in the slightest. He sped up his pace considerably, only stopping when he noticed a figure standing outside of his apartment. Hope could just barely make out who it was, at first a little wary that the figure was trying to break into his apartment – a stupid choice on their part if that had been the case – but he soon recognized the long trench coat and blond hair peeking out from under a black bandana.
"Snow?" he called out to the figure, confused as to why the Bodhum resident was all the way out in Palumpolum, and more importantly at his apartment. Hope's contact with his former group of friends had been rather sporadic since Orphan's defeat some years past – the only real substantial conversation having been with Lightning when he entered the Guardian Corps, though they both knew he could have easily joined PSICOM if he wished it.
Snow, leaning against the wall next to Hope's apartment door, smiled and ran up to the young man – still at least a head taller than Hope, "Hey kiddo, how ya' been?" he asked, about to wrap his arm around Hope's shoulder – somehow missing the ooze covering the young man's uniform – but was stopped by a gloved hand.
"Might want to hold off for a bit, unless you want to be covered in murky ooze too." Hope said as he gestured to the ooze dripping off of his arm.
"Ah, thanks for the heads up." Snow brought his arm down and followed Hope back to his apartment, "Rough day, I take it?"
"You have no idea." Hope muttered as he reached for his keys – now also in need of washing – and unlocked the front door, gesturing for the blond to follow him, "So, what brings you here?" he asked as he slipped off his boots on the lynoleum of the entryway, not wanting the carpet that covered the majority of his apartment to get dirty as well.
"I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd say hi." he smiled, closing the door for Hope.
"Is that so? I didn't know Bodhum was so close to Palumpolum," Hope said, mockingly tapping his chin, "Seems I might need to get a new map." He led Snow into the living room, "Well, whatever the reason, it's good to see you. How're things going with you and Serah? That plan for a 'big, happy family' anywhere near completion?" he chuckled, remembering bits of their somewhat one-sided conversation years prior, just before being flung off of Felix Heights – thanks to PSICOM – and, of course, how enthusiastic the older man was about the wedding as soon as Serah woke from her crystal stasis. Must be nice, spending your life with someone you love, he thought to himself, envious of Snow's seemingly good luck.
Snow turned his head away for a moment, the action going unnoticed by Hope as his attention focused on the ooze that was now dripping down his leg. "Good, we're good." he said, uncharacteristically quiet "No kids, yet."
"No worries, I'm sure you'll be a dad any day now," Hope paused to grab the box of tissue laying on the coffee table, trying to keep the ooze from getting onto the floor, "You'll be an.. interesting dad, that's for sure," he laughed.
"Yeah." Snow laughed with Hope, quickly changing the subject, "Hey, wanna grab a drink?"
"Huh? Sure, there's a bar not too far from here," Hope paused as he looked at his uniform, "Just, ah, lemme take a shower first, I won't be too long."
"Yeah, of course." Snow nodded as Hope left him to look around the living room.
Hope dropped his gloves in the bathroom sink first – not wanting to get anything else he might touch dirty – before heading to his bedroom. He grabbed a change of clothes from his closet, soon returning to the bathroom – leaving the door unlocked out of habit – and turned on the shower. He began to strip out of his uniform, placing each article of clothing in the sink with the gloves – he'd deal with that mess later – and waited for the water to warm up. Meanwhile, Hope looked at himself in the mirror, cringing at the sight staring back at him. His silver hair looked a horrible mixture of brown and green, with sections sticking out at odd angles – how Snow managed to miss that obvious sign will forever remain a mystery – as well as a thick trail of ooze having bypassed his uniform and smeared across his chest.
Sighing, Hope got into the shower and quickly began massaging at his scalp, hoping that his hair would return to its natural color when he stepped out. He relaxed slightly under the warm water, the heat easing the tension in his muscles as well as washing away the dirt and sweat that had accumulated during training.
o-o-o0o-o-o
In the living room Snow wandered aimlessly, eyeing the photographs that littered the room. He recognized a number of them from the brief stop at the Estheim household five years ago, while others were newer – pictures of Hope had taken with his father when he was able to return home, and some more recent; when Hope had been accepted into the Guardian Corps for instance. But one picture in particular stuck out, and though it was older than the rest Snow was able to recognize Nora instantly, with a young Hope standing next to her with a trophy held in his hands.
Before he could meander any further, Snow heard Hope call him from the bathroom. Concerned with what could possibly be wrong, Snow quickly made his way down the hallway, halting when he reached the closed door, "You all right in there?"
"Yeah," Snow could vaguely hear the embarrassment in Hope's voice, "I just.." he heared a muffled sigh before Hope continued, "I kind of forgot to grab a towel. Could hand me one? They're in the closet across the hall."
"Sure." Snow looked around until he caught sight of the hallway closet. He quickly grabbed a towel and returned to the bathroom door, "Got one."
"Door's open." was the only response.
Snow slowly opened the door, noticing Hope's back facing him from the shower. He couldn't help but stare at Hope's frame, nothing that he had grown considerably in the last five years – Snow couldn't quite recall when he had last seen Hope since returning to their lives on Cocoon, and even then Snow had always seen him with clothing on. His eyes wandered down Hope's body, quickly taking note at how soft his hair looked as it clung to his fair, wet skin – what he wouldn't give to runs his hands through those silver locks, yanking them as he whispered into Hope's ear. His eyes traveled further, taking in the sight of Hope's broadened shoulders as the water trickled down his back, glistening ever-so-slightly in the dim lighting. The mental image of Hope's back flush against Snow's chest, writhing in ecstasy, flooded his thoughts – sweat gleaming beautifully as he imagined thrusting deeper and deeper into that ass – gods, that ass was taunting him. The firm, full cheeks stared at him, almost urging Snow to strip right in the doorway and pin Hope against the tiled wall, ravaging him under the warm water.
As Hope turned around Snow was quickly brought out of his reverie, not wanting to get caught staring. He hurriedly handed the towel to Hope through the small gap in the shower curtain, "Thanks. I'll be out in a sec." Hope spoke, barely audible over the sound of the rushing water.
Snow nodded and quickly retreated back to the living room, silently willing away the erection he knew he was bound to get if he continued his previous thoughts – it was a miracle he wasn't already sporting a nice sized tent in his pants.
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With Snow out of the bathroom, Hope turned of the shower and began drying his hair, carefully stepping out. He dried off the rest of the body and changed into the clean clothes he had brought with him. When the fog cleared from the mirror, he was pleased to see that his hair was no longer a dull grimy-looking bronze, but back to its intended silver.
Hope quickly grabbed a pair of shoes from his bedroom and continued down the hallway to the living room. He leaned against the nearby wall as he slipped his shoes on, looking around for Snow. When he spotted the man at the other end of the room, "All done." he said motioned for Snow to follow him, quickly washing off his keys in the kitchen sink before leaving.
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Two hours and 6 drinks later Hope found himself seated in the bar explaining – drunkenly – why he was covered in murky ooze when he arrive home. Snow cracked a joke, as expected, and patted Hope's head as if he were still a child – a gesture he could have lived without. Hope leaned against the counter as he took another sip of his drink, absentmindedly staring at the assortment of liquor bottles lining the shelves on the other side of the bat, "You're really lucky," he mumbled quietly, "you have Serah and..." he paused and turned to look at Snow, trying to figure out what to say, "And you'll probably.. have a big, happy family, surrounded by people that love you."
Snow tilted his head as he looked at Hope curiously, "Really, now?" he asked, more to himself than to Hope. He placed his own drink on the bar counter and let Hope continue talking.
"I'm kind of jealous," Hope murmured, a small pout forming on his lips as he stared at his drink, "I really wish I had that too. I've never had someone like that. To laugh, cry and love with." Hope buried his face in his arms, "Nearing 20 and not so much as a kiss; it's depressing."
Snow sighed and gave Hope a sympathetic look, "Don't worry. You got plenty of time for that, kid."
Hope only grumbled at the comment and took another sip of his drink.
They had already talked for two hours, and any subject Snow could've possibly used to get Hope out of his slump had already been used in catching up. He chugged the last of his drink, stood from his seat at the bar and placed a hand on Hope's shoulder, "You've had a lot to drink, why don't we get you back home, huh?"
"It's not like I've got work in the morning." Hope scoffed, but shakily stood anyway and followed Snow out of the bar.
o-o-o0o-o-o
Ten minutes into walking Hope back to his apartment, Snow halted to a stop and turned around to see Hope still moping as he sluggishly tried to keep up with Snow's larger strides. He crossed his arms over his chest as Hope caught up to him and sighed, "Does it really bother you that much?"
When there was no response, Snow took Hope's silence as a yes. Inhaling calmly, he closed the distance between them – grasping Hope's chin in his hand and pressing their lips together.