CharactersSquareEnix.
Chapter 3; revised.
Seifer grunted as the stripper fell into his lap, his free hand grappling for his gun that he always kept on him as he looked for the shooter but by the time he looked, the man was gone. The crowd was in an uproar, shrieks filling the air as everyone looked scared and nervous. Seifer got to his feet and looked at Squall intently, "You okay?" He asked, lips curled into a frown. The killer had gotten away and he cursed himself for that failure.
xxx
Steel colored eyes scanned the crowd, picking out a familiar face here and there. Squall would have had to have been blind to miss the mysterious blond sitting near the stage, but he didn't acknowledge the man other than a passing sweep of his gaze over him as he turned around and grabbed the pole. He wasn't sure why the man's presence even mattered to him, and he wasn't going to think about it right now, of all times. As long as the cheapskate actually tipped tonight, then he as far as Squall was concerned, could sit there and ogle him all night. After all, beggars couldn't be choosers, but Squall would be sure to mention it to the bouncers if the guy cheaped out on him again, he wasn't 'dancing' just because he liked it so much.
The brunette went through the motions of his routine, his face expressionless except for the tiny scowl on his lips. He crawled and moved with the music around the edges of the stage, picking up the stray bills here and there. Seeing a twenty land in front of him, stormy gray-blue eyes shot up and landed on the mysterious blond. The guy smirked at him and nodded, giving Squall a good view of the scar across the man's face. It mirrored his own, which was usually hidden by his chocolate colored bangs, and it only made the stripper more curious about the man before him. It took Squall a lot of effort not to flat out roll his eyes at the man, after all, the guy had a bit of a cocky attitude, and instead he managed to return the nod before making his way further down the stage to collect the rest of the money there. Squall crawled back to his pole, subtly giving the blond a pretty nice view, after all, he didn't get twenty dollar tips all the time, and slithered back up to the metal.
Squall had been in the process of reluctantly gyrating his way up to his feet again from being on the floor when he felt his wrist grabbed and he was pulled down, landing on something solid. The brunette didn't even have time to blink as the crowd started screaming and panicking and whoever had grabbed him fumbled for something. It was only then that Squall realized he was crumpled up in the mystery blond's lap, which had been the solid mass he'd crashed into, and that the man was holding a gun. The stripper recoiled as the man moved to stand up, the first thought in his mind being 'I bet he works out,' which Squall immediately chided himself for in his head. The brunette stared up at the blond above him, his expression showing his confusion at the entire situation. "...Fine." He finally replied, noticing the man's frown. "..." Squall moved to climb to his feet, dusting himself off and looking around the club, noticing that he and the blond were the only ones not completely freaking out right now.
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Had the situation not been so serious, Seifer would have made an arrogant comment about how lucky Squall had been to fall into his lap but yet he kept his quipped remarks to himself. After all Squall or any other stripper wasn't out of the danger zone yet. With the man running free and obviously interested in Squall for him to attempt to shoot him during his work, Seifer knew he couldn't let Squall be for the night. Possibly even after. What was also an issue right now were the people that were freaking out, the bouncer's trying to calm them down as well as the bartender and the owner. The club was filled with frantic voices trying to explain what happened, that they had nearly been killed which was obviously not the truth, and exaggerated events all together that was giving Seifer a headache. How was it he and the stripper who had been shot at the only calm ones here?
Letting Squall go, Seifer stepped onto the stage and called loudly, "If I can have everyone's attention. I am Lieutenant Seifer Almasy, of the Balamb PD. I need you all to calm down!" He showed them his badge quickly before he put his gun away and glanced down at Squall briefly. He had to either convince Squall to end his shift early or to convince him to let him guard him until he knew the man and the rest were safe. Hopping down, he began going through the crowd asking what they had seen. They gave only minor descriptions for the man had been covered head to toe but he wrote it all down before he thanked them and had them return home safely. Then he turned to the bouncers to see if they had seen anything and all they had seen was the man jump into a black SUV-type car and drive away. With all that information, he went back onto the stage and found the dart that had been shot at Squall and examined it. He'd take it to a weapon's expert tomorrow and try to trace all that had bought them recently.
With all his evidence gathered, Seifer walked up to Squall and crossed his arms over his chest. "You are no longer safe. The man is targeting you and I have every right to believe he'll try again. I've been tracking him down for a while now and I won't let another person be killed. I suggest you let me drive you home so you are not hurt along the way." If he was lucky, Squall wouldn't be stubborn and thickheaded and would let him do what he needed to do to keep him safe. It was his job after all.
xxx
Squall pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a migraine coming on from all of the excited noise in the club. He knew he shouldn't have agreed to work, it was supposed to be his night off, 'And now look how it turned out,' he thought bitterly. The brunette didn't even turn to look as the mystery blond climbed onto the stage an announced who he was, the gun and the fact that he saved Squall had already tipped the stripper off about who the man might be. 'Cop... hn, I should have known.' Squall caught his gaze as the officer put his weapon away and jumped down, already feeling his headache grow as he realized the man was probably going to hassle him about what had just happened when he was done in the club.
While Seifer was questioning witnesses, Squall had found his tear-away pants and put them back on, it went without saying that his show was done for the night, and he didn't quite feel like standing around as a piece of free eye-candy for everyone there. At one point Squall's manager had made his way over to the stripper, practically hysteric, and only calmed down and left the brunette's side when Squall told him to shut the hell up or regret it. He didn't need or want anyone fawning all over him or freaking out, it really irritated him. The stripper spent the rest of his time watching Seifer work, his mind running a mile a minute as he observed the man. The guy had saved his life, true, but he'd better not expect anything from Squall for it.
Squall mirrored Seifer's actions and crossed his own arms over his chest, a defiant air settling over him as the man spoke. "I don't need a ride." he stated bluntly. In truth he did need a ride, but something about this guy just irked his nerves for some reason. Squall held his head high, his arms remaining firmly crossed, and he never broke his steel blue gaze from that of the man across from him. Maybe it was the fact that he'd been targeted and that he would be dead if it hadn't been for the blond, or the fact that the officer had pointed out how vulnerable he was, but Squall suddenly felt defensive, a feeling which he loathed. He wasn't a baby, or some damsel in distress, and he didn't need some hot shot cop chauffeuring him around and playing hero and making him look weak. Just because he was a stripper, it didn't mean that he wasn't a man and couldn't protect himself...
xxx
By the way Squall copied his pose, Seifer knew this one was going to be difficult. Why couldn't Squall be like all the other wimpy and needy victims? A little thank you was also in order but this one seemed to forget about manners. Seifer was an arrogant man and he hated being rejected in any manner and this was top of the gun rejection. To say it got under his skin was an understatement. His eyes narrowed at the brunette as their eyes locked defiantly, neither backing down from their position. Squall was the ice and Seifer the fire and they clashed like two natural born enemies. Seifer could feel the coldness rolling off the brunette, the defiant yet disinterest in those cloudy blue eyes but Seifer wasn't bothered by it. He could melt that ice easily and he was not afraid to in order for him to get what he wanted. Even if he was a cop, he wasn't afraid to play a bit dirty. It was one reason not many of his fellow officers liked him.
"Well I think you do need a ride. Unless you want to be shot at again or worse then I suggest you take up my offer." Seifer said in a stern voice, his lips quirking up into a smirk. It may have annoyed him a bit that Squall wasn't complying to his wishes right away but the challenge was always fun. Seifer was a bit sadistic and competitive like that, enjoying a good fight in which to prove his prowess to others and he was going to show Squall that. No one said no to Seifer Almasy. Running a hand through his hair, he dropped it into his pocket and pulled out a packet of cigarettes and a lighter. Thrusting his head towards the door, he signaled for Squall to follow him outside so that he could have a smoke while he tried to convince the brunette to bring him home and make sure he was safe.
Lighting up one of the white-papered sticks, Seifer took a long drag before blowing out the smoke. "I understand the whole pride thing but there is no reason to be stupid. If I let you go home on your own, there is no telling what would happen to you. After just saving your ungrateful ass, I don't like the idea of leaving you alone to be killed. I didn't save you for no reason." It was his job first of all and second of all he couldn't let an attractive being such as Squall die a painful death that was way before his time. Seifer was an arrogant man who did play dirty but he was honorable and it would prickle his pride if he didn't do the right thing and make sure Squall was safe.
xxx
Squall snorted softly as Seifer tried to get stern with him and scare the brunette into agreeing. Not only that, but the bastard had the nerve to smirk at Squall like he was enjoying all of this. Well, Squall Leonhart took orders from no one, especially not some asshole cop, and he certainly didn't need his protection. He was a wild lion and no one could tame him and make him submit. Tonight on stage was the one exception; it wouldn't happen again if the stripper could help it. Squall narrowed his eyes slightly and followed the blond outside, not because he wanted to, but because he was too tired to argue and those patrons and employees that were still inside the club had begun to stare at the pair.
Leaning against the back wall, Squall watched as Seifer lit up his cigarette and proceeded to explain his intentions. Stormy gray eyes narrowed even further at the cop's remarks, and lean but muscular arms folded themselves across Squall's chest. "I didn't ask for your help." he said quietly but firmly in response. This guy made it sound like Squall owed him everything, and maybe he did, but the brunette meant it when he said he hadn't asked to be saved. It wasn't that he had some urge to be hurt or killed, but he hated how this guy was making it sound like the stripper should be groveling on his knees in thanks and praising him. Besides, wasn't this guy a cop? That made it his job to protect the innocent, and even the not-so-innocent, so Squall didn't exactly feel the need to shower him with thanks and appreciation, after all, the guy was just doing his job. It's not like he saved Squall just because it was Squall.
The brunette had had about enough of this conversation, and could already feel the migraine forming. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Squall pushed himself off of the wall and turned towards the door. "Whatever." He said, not in response to anything in particular and pushed open the back door to the club. Shaking coffee colored bangs out of his eyes, the stripper stalked down the hall to his dressing room, not bothering to look if the cop was following or not. He unlocked the door and stepped inside the room, only making it a few steps before something caught his eye. Very neatly placed in the center of his dressing table was a new red rose, along with the previous two slightly wilted roses. "..." Not bothering to shut the door behind him, Squall slowly moved towards the table, a slightly disturbed expression on his face.
"...I didn't ask for your help."
xxx
How many times had he heard that before? A lot and always in the end they came running to him, pleading for him to save their sorry asses because they had thought they were tough enough to take care of themselves. It was a tiring process for Seifer and he wasn't about to let this one go so easily. Whether Squall liked it or not, Seifer wasn't going to leave until he agreed to take him home and make sure he was safe for the night. This man was more stubborn than any of the other people he had had to help in the past but that didn't deter him. Pride was a huge thing amongst men and Seifer understood it may prickle Squall's pride to be helped by him but did he care? No. His own pride would be chipped if he just left and let Squall go home on his own which meant if he did, he lost the challenge in a sense. And there was one thing Seifer despised; failure. "No one ever asks for help and that's when you get your head blown off." He retorted, having seen it plenty of times in his field. Many people tested the person with the gun or whatever weapon they had, thinking they were tough shots, and ended up dead. Seifer didn't want that fate bestowed upon Squall.
Flicking the ashes off his cig, Seifer blew out a ring of smoke as his eyes wandered over Squall skeptically. It didn't take a genius to realize Squall was becoming annoyed very quickly. It seemed Squall had a pole shoved up his ass for he was one of those rigid sorts, he could tell. It seemed Squall had woken up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Shaking his head, he flicked his cigarette butt away and moved to follow Squall inside. Seifer was just as stubborn and didn't mind annoying a person until they broke, anything to get what he wanted. So he simply followed Squall to his dress room with a smirk on his face as he looked around the nice little room that definitely showed Squall's station as an upper class stripper. Isn't that a nice honor, he mused as his eyes traveled over to Squall who now was holding a few roses with a strange look on his face. This made him raise a brow as he pushed off the door frame and stalked over.
"Got many admirers I see." Seifer taunted, glancing at the dead roses then the fresh one in the middle. By the expression on Squall's face, he could tell something was up and he poked the brunette in the shoulder. "What's the matter? It looks like you saw a ghost. Who are these roses from that have you all freaked out?" His voice was slightly condescending as he spoke, eying both the roses and Squall weirdly. Who would have thought a stripper would be so damn stubborn and strange? They were only supposed to be sexy. Shaking his head, he folded his arms over his chest and awaited Squall's response, getting a strange feeling that these roses were connected to the man that he was trying to capture and arrest. If that was the case he would have to take these roses into evidence as well.
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Squall didn't acknowledge that he'd noticed Seifer join him at the dressing table. He was too busy staring at the roses like they'd committed some crime against him. In a way, they had, intruding into his personal space, and even cutting his fingers, besides, he didn't like the color red all that much anyways. Squall snorted quietly in response. "Whatever." he shrugged, more than annoyed with the entire situation already.
Once again spotting no note or indication of who had left the flowers, Squall frowned as he was poked and shook his head at Seifer's query. "...I don't know." He said quietly and dropped the flowers on the table again. The stripper turned away from the table and started taking off his collar and leash. "...They just keep showing up." He added as an afterthought. Once he removed the collar and leash, Squall quickly took off the belts across his chest and dropped everything on the floor. Without paying Seifer any more attention, the brunette headed into his bathroom and slammed the door shut behind himself. After a minute or so the shower could be heard running.
Squall grabbed his soap and lathered himself up, narrowing his eyes as he thought back to the stubborn blond who was more than likely still out there in his dressing room. He wished the man would just leave, he didn't want or need him here. Sure, the guy had saved him tonight, but that didn't mean he had the right to harass the brunette until he gave in to what he wanted. The brunette scowled deeply, wondering what crime he'd committed against Hyne to deserve this. Shaking the thoughts from his mind, Squall quickly finished his shower and stepped out. He grabbed a towel and dried himself off quickly and reached for the spare clothes he always kept waiting, dressing quickly.
The stripper stepped out of the bathroom, wearing his standard leather pants with more than the necessary amount of belts and toweling his hair dry. He completely ignored Seifer's presence as he chucked the towel back towards the bathroom and grabbed his white t-shirt off of the bed and pulled it on quickly, followed by his socks and boots, just like always. Still determined to pretend the cop wasn't there, Squall snatched up his hair brush, running it through his still dampened locks a few times until he was satisfied. Squall set the brush back on the table and grabbed his wallet before pulling on his leather jacket with fur around the collar and heading straight for the door, pleased that he'd managed to effectively pretend the blond annoyance wasn't there, especially since he really didn't feel like discussing what had happened again. Hopefully the man wouldn't follow him out, though Squall had a feeling the other wouldn't give up so easily as he headed to the back door of the club.
xxx
The roses were definitely symbolic for something. Of what though? If they knew who it came from then the answer would be clear. It was strange by the way Squall said it that they kept popping up. Apparently Squall had a stalker and Seifer had a good clue who said stalker was. It was the killer and it seemed they were getting closer onto his trail but yet one step forward led to two steps back. They seemed to be getting closer but it always backfired in a way. Seifer was already getting tired of this cat and mouse game between him and the killer. Every time he came close to capturing the man, he got away. There was no positive identity, no name, nothing. Just these minor clues that led to him being the one doing all of this. It seemed he was dealing with a man of intelligence for stupid criminals got caught so much easier than this. But Seifer knew the man would miscalculate and mess up and when that happened he'd be right there to handcuff him and throw him into jail. Patience was virtue but one virtue Seifer did not possess at all.
Out of the corner of his eye, Seifer watched Squall take off his accessories before grabbing fresh clothes and heading into the connected bathroom. It amused him how the brunette was so intent on ignoring his presence. He was doing good so far but he knew he wasn't an easy person to ignore. As Squall took his shower, Seifer took it upon himself to explore the room for any signs of who had trespassed there and gave Squall the flowers. Since he had no idea how the room was put together in the first place, he couldn't go by if something was moved or not for he didn't know of the layout beforehand but he did his best to make a good judgment on what may or may not be misplaced or messed with. As his investigation turned to the floor to examine any foot marks in the rug, he found a strange piece of hair that didn't seem to be like Squall's. It was a bit darker, with a hint of blond in it. Smirking, he went out to get a plastic bag from the owner of the club which he placed the strand of hair in to look into later before he returned to the room and continued his investigation.
As he was looking over the flowers, Seifer felt the vibration of his phone in his pocket which he took out quickly and snapped open, "Hello? Oh...yes sir. I'm here at the club, I got everything under control. I know, I know. I'm getting close, I just found a piece of hair that may help us identify the criminal plus the dart he shot. I'm going to trace it all to see if we can pinpoint who. Yes, I'll report to you in the morning. Night boss." He said before hanging up with an annoyed expression on his face. It always ended up if the case dragged on that he got yelled at. It wasn't his fault these cases were never easy and took longer than most. Running a hand through his hair, he turned at the sound of footsteps and watched Squall return to the room to brush his hair and gather his jacket. "So, are you going to take me up on my offer or what?"
No response.
Seifer's eye twitched as Squall went around doing his own personal business while not even acknowledging his presence. The little bastard and to think he was attracted to him! Growling in frustration, he stalked after the stripper as he left his room. "You don't ignore an officer of the law, princess. No matter who you are." The last person who should think they were high above everyone else was a damn stripper. As they got into the back of the club, knowing Squall wouldn't give in to him, Seifer grabbed the scarred brunette around the waist and threw him over his shoulder as easily as if the man weighed nothing. "Sorry I gotta do it this way but if you would stop ignoring me and do as I say, I'd let you walk on your own. But since you aren't cooperating, I have no other choice." He made it seem so logical as he spoke and carried Squall to his squad car, throwing the stripper into the back before he got into the driver's seat and took off. "So where do you live?" He smirked cockily into the mirror, eyes glittering with triumph as they met furious blue ones.