Find Your Way. Chapter 1: Shuffle or Boogie

Adan had arrived about half an hour after curfew had ended. His shoes rattled the mesh iron walkway leading to the Secret Area. Since his classes earlier that day, he'd dressed down from his SeeD trainee uniform, opting for a simple white T-shirt and loose jeans; he wasn't dressing to impress.

He was mildly surprised that Zetal had gotten there before him, considering how soon after curfew it was, but remembering the urgency with which Zetal had appeared to want to see him, Adan supposed it wasn't all that shocking really.

Like Adan, Zetal had left behind his uniform and chosen to wear something more casual; loose combat trousers hung from his waist, held in place by a number of low hung, lopsided belts. In contrast, his blue shirt clung to his upper body and arms. Noticing that Adan was there, Zetal turned and offered a meek greeting, revealing that his hair-usually pulled back neatly for classes-had been let out of its captivity and allowed to flow. It wasn't overly-long; it dropped down to just below above his cheek, curling a little and framing his eyes. The occasional stray strand floated over his eyes and nose.

Adan couldn't help but notice as he approached that Zetal looked really ... good. He couldn't say he'd ever noticed it before but there he was. Without the shackles of his academic regiment, Zetal looked so much more comfortable in himself; how he dressed, how he stood. Adan found himself wondering how he'd never noticed before.

Zetal was one of Adan's friends, sure, but one of his friends from class. He was the kind of person you got to know really well because of the hours you accumulated sitting next to them in class and talking. He was the kind of person Adan looked forward to spending a class with but, oddly enough, he wasn't the kind of person he saw outside of the classroom or the cafeteria. He wasn't there whenever Adan and his friends went to Balamb, or if they decided to do some practice in the training area. He was a good friend, and a good classmate, but he'd never really been there outside of his academic life. Adan wondered if he had his own friends he did all the things he did with. Of course he did. He had to have.

"Hey" Adan threw out casually, as if there was nothing at all different about this meeting than any other. Zetal, who was leaning sideways against the balcony ledge, had a momentary relapse of interest in his footwear before raising his eyes to look at Adan. He didn't make eye contact, choosing instead to stare somewhere around his cheek . Nervous, Adan thought. His ego would like that.

"He-Hey" he managed, "How's it going?" Adan had to admit he was cute when he was shy, but he wasn't going to endure his sheepishness through the whole conversation. Not that he wanted to be cruel, of course not. He just didn't want this talk, whatever it was going to be about, to be mired in mumbles or misunderstood because of cryptic timidity.

"I'm not too bad" Adan replied with a smile, "curious as to why you asked me to come out here tonight. First time I've seen you outside of class or the cafeteria." He laughed a little; a friendly laugh. Zetal joined him, the tension surrounding their meeting beginning to ebb away.

"Yeah..." he furrowed his brow, shrugging slightly, "I guess I can be a little reclusive at times, huh?" Zetal was back, the overly shy man in his place having melted before Adan's disarming nonchalance, "I guess I've wanted to talk to you for a while now..."

With an eyebrow raised in interest, Adan moved closer and took a position next to Zetal, leaning fully on the balcony, staring out over the Garden. He heard a shifting of material next to him as Zetal turned to mimic his friend's posture, joining him in surveying the grounds.

"You can guess what this is about, huh?" Zetal spoke into the silence. Adan nodded, confident that his friend would catch the movement. He heard a sigh, "I won't waste any time then" he continued, his voice losing its confident momentum towards the end, cracking under his own nervousness. Regardless of his fear, he continued, "I like you, Adan. You're probably my closest friend." He gasped a laugh, "I mean, you make SoJ bearable; that's got to count for something!" Adan laughed, the smile remaining on his face after the laughter had dissipated.

"But I think, more than that..." Zetal went on, "I think I'm attracted to you", he breathed a laugh, barely noticeable, "I didn't think people actually said stuff like that..." He cleared his throat, indicating he was finished and reassuring himself somehow, as if the cough asserted his decision.

Adan exhaled slowly. So he'd been right. Although it cleared the fog of mystery surrounding the situation-the fog that had clouded Adam's thoughts-it raised a new dilemma. Namely; did Adan feel the same way? Did he reciprocate the feelings enough to think there was something there? Adan didn't have a fast answer to those questions.

He knew Zetal well, he'd already given that thought, and he'd already admitted he thought Zetal looked good, even hot tonight. But whilst he knew how Zetal acted, how he would speak, what he would say or do, he didn't know the small things. The small things were important in relationships, weren't they? Favourite colours; types of chocolate; seasons; sports, smells...

But wasn't that the point: To get to know these things? If people already knew everything there was to know, how do you forge a relationship? It was part of the fun, wasn't it?

Adan sighed. Too many questions, not enough answers. He liked Zetal, he really did. He thought that maybe—possibly—there was something there that could work. But he didn't want maybes, or possibilities. He wanted to know something could work. Adan was well aware that relationships broke down, but he didn't want them to break down because he didn't care. If he broke up with someone, he wanted to know within himself that he tried his very hardest. He needed to think more, and he realised that all his contemplating had left Zetal waiting, having finished a sentence that had taken him years of stored courage to finally say.

"I have to admit, I'd sort of already figured that out". He was stalling for time, delaying the inevitable response he'd have to give. Zetal laughed, again barely a breath. "I don't know why, though, I'm nothing to brag about". Zetal looked ready to say something in defence, but Adan continued, cutting him off.

"To be honest, I don't really want an explanation right now" he smiled at his friend, "I'm not after an ego trip. I feel lucky enough you do". Adan gripped a little tighter on the balustrade; the point of no return was upon him. He couldn't spend his life waiting for perfection; there was no perfection. He had to enjoy what he had; maybe he'd have it forever. Adan turned from the view to face the other student. Zetal shied slightly under his gaze.

"You ... look good tonight". Adan spoke slowly, inching his hand along the railing. Zetal's breath hitched when he felt the other gently stroking the ends of his fingers. A slight breeze drifted across the open area. Adan moved closer. Stunned, but determined not to miss his opportunity, Zetal mirrored his movements.

"So do you. You always do". They were very close. Zetal swallowed thickly as the last few inches between them vanished. They met in a light, chaste kiss. Zetal sighed. Then, almost as soon as it had begun, it was over. Zetal opened eyes he hadn't realised he had closed to see Adan smiling back at him.

"Let's go for it, huh?"

Zetal's stomach made a motion he was unused to, but not wholly against. He nodded and returned the smile. The breeze had fallen silent and, all around them, nightlife chirped and clicked away. The ambient cliché was apparent to both of them, so they laughed and eased back into a comfortable environment.

Not soon after, the two parted ways. Time dragged on and, before long, the Disciplinary Committee—the real Committee—would be along to disperse them and hand out punishments. Adan felt confident in his decision, realizing that wasting his time on constant consideration would leave him nowhere but alone. Conversely, Zetal just felt lucky that Adan had given him a chance, and was determined not to waste it.

The Secret Area, now empty, fell silent other than the babble of Crickets and the rustle of the breeze.

Some miles away, in Balamb, an explosion rocked the center of the small town. The fire erupted from the epicenter, red clouds blossoming further into the sky before dissolving into plumes of acrid, black smoke that was immediately lost to the darkness of the night. As the citizens of the sleepy, seaside town awoke and rushed to the source of distress, the rest of the world continued to sleep.

The sea lapped against the shore, whispering for silence.


Well this took me what, YEARS, to upload. I know I must seem like a very bad writer at this stage but I've honestly been working on it, in bits and pieces, for that amount of time. However, I have got a better grip on myself and my writing schedule since I first started this, so I hope to have the next part done by the end of April. Shall we say the 29th? Yeah, why not.