Thank you everyone who have reviewed/followed this story so far. And I apologize for my lack of updates.

I would also like to thank Is-Simple for their review which gave me some ideas for the stories future.

Here is chapter 4 (sorry its a little short. I hope to write more after I finish my papers tomorrow).

Enjoy!

Chapter 4: Alikeness

"Irvine why don't you come with us?"

The auburn haired man looked up to the raven haired woman, coming out of his bitter thoughts, "What?"

"Squall told me you had wanted to go out with him somewhere today but the jerk refused to mention it to me until after he told you about our plans and you left the cafeteria."

"Uh…right…" if only she knew what he really had planned…she wouldn't be feeling so bad for him right now. If she knew what they had already been doing for days, months, she wouldn't be saying this now. But she didn't and he wasn't planning on telling her anytime soon. And why would he? It wasn't like squall would choose him over Rinoa. Not in a million years. This would be all he could have of the brunet; stolen kisses and meetings in the dark…

"Irvine?"

He looked up to see confusion growing in her expression along with something else. Was it concern? He wanted to laugh in the wrongness of it all. Then, as if to complete the picture, Squall emerged, wrapping an arm around Rinoa's waist, looking between the two of them, blind to the pain he was causing the cowboy.

"Are we going?" he asked simply, to her of course.

She looked from him to Irvine, who could only turn away. To keep from breaking…

"Hey!"

Irvine was torn back to the present by a particular blonde yelling at him. Then forced back into his own body by a swift kick to the side, causing him to fall to his side and look up to the blonde in shock, mostly of being brought back to the present so suddenly.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" the blonde question, gazed mixed somewhere between confusion and unease.

Realizing he must have done something to make the blonde feel so, he tried to quickly remedy the situation, "I'm sorry, what did I—"

"You're wrong you know—About Leon, I don't love him. That's just- No, you're wrong. And why would you go and say something like that when you're …And why the hell did you just blank out all of a sudden and fall to your knees?! You weren't even responding to me? What's wrong with you? If Leon—"

"Wait…" Irvine had to stop him before he got anymore lost. What had happened before this? What had he done?

"You…You're in love with Squall."

His eyes widened with realization. He had actually said those words to the blonde and then…then he must have fallen into the past…

So strange…he really thought he was there in that room with Rinoa…it had felt so real…

"You're doing it again. Come back!" The swift kicked the auburn haired man back to the ground of which he had just gathered himself up from only a moment before.

Irvine blinked and quickly got to his feet. He didn't feel right. He wasn't in right mind. Perhaps the heartless hit him a little too hard earlier…

"Okay, okay! I'm here! Sorry…I can't explain what happened, but I'm sorry for startling you—"

"I wasn't worried about you."

Irvine blinked for a moment, watching the crystal eyes glower at him under the soft blonde locks. It was like looking into a mirror from the past. Irvine couldn't help but laugh, though it sounded genuine, it was laced in the burning pain he had held within himself from all those years ago…

"What is so funny?" The blonde demanded.

Coming back to the present, Irvine gathered himself, "I'm sorry," after he took a breath he continued, "Really. But yeah about before, you don't seem ready to talk about it, so forget what I said before." Irvine dusted off his khaki pants and rested the hand holding his faithful gun over his shoulder as he turned to a dumbfounded blonde.

"So, if you could direct me in the direction of the Bailey I'm sure I can find my way from there." Irvine threw on the most charming smile he could, hoping to make the blonde feel a little less like killing him and more keen to help him find his way.

After the blonde seemed to recover from his confusion, shaking his head, he looked to the auburn haired man with an enervated expression and sighed, "You can't make it on your own, you have no ammunition."

"But we took care of all the heartless in this area right?" Irvine tried to reassure the blonde.

Though Cloud just looked back to the other annoyed, "Yeah, but there is most likely more back up by the Bailey by now and the Claymore may not take out all the enemies along the way."

"It's alright. I can run." The auburn haired man said with a smile. Pathetic sounding but hey, bullets weren't exactly going to be raining out of the sky for him and he highly doubted the blonde wanted to be bothered with his presence any longer than needed. He didn't blame the blonde for this either. He understood. And that was why he wanted to go off on his own.

"You're hurt." The blonde said simply…perhaps a little despondently?

Irvine took that moment to feel out his own body and realized he did feel a little weak. Those heartless did a number on him. He felt fine mostly besides a good gash on his side and his leg throbbed enough to slow down his running. But he was sure he would make it through fine since—, "I've been worse off than this."

Irvine wasn't looking to the blonde, but to the ground now, remembering all the old wounds and pains he suffered through, all those years he was on his own. Not a soul around to help, but so many ready to end him if he stood around long enough.

The blonde noticed a sad smile creeping onto the auburn hairs man's face. His eyes looked so haunted. They shouldn't look that way, the blonde decided; the eyes of this man should not ever be so dark. Those beautiful purple-blue eyes should only be alive with joy.

Irvine felt something bonk him on the head, shattering as it hit him. A blue-green glow enveloped him for a moment and, before he realized it, much of his pain had dissipated as a blue-green glow faded. He looked to the blonde confused.

Cloud closed the distance between them and placed a Hi-Potion into the others hand, "If you insist on going on your own, then at least take this with you."

Irvine eyed the item naively before looking back to the blonde, "Is this what you just used on me? What is it?"

Cloud frowned, "It's a Hi-Potion. You…you've never used one?"

Irvine shook his head as he looked back to the item, eyeing it, completely captivated by it, "The place I was before—"

For a moment he was there, in the dark glow of the neon lights that lit Dark City. He was bleeding, alone, and, as always, hiding, bracing for the next encounter with death, which seemed to never cease its looming.

He smiled weakly, "It was near impossible to come across even simple tools for healing. I was lucky to find a thread and a needle to sow shut my gaping wounds or bandages to wrap the others less server wounds…"

He looked up the blonde, who appeared shell-shocked, "I haven't used potions since I was back in my own world... and this," holding up the Hi-Potion Cloud had just given him, "Is a little different looking than ours…"

Irvine lost himself in thoughts of his own world and the Dark City he was in so long, before gathering his thoughts and looking to the blonde and giving him a small smile, the best he could manage with the dark memories dwelling within his mind, "Thank you, Cloud. I'll repay you for this. I swear."

Before the blonde could respond, the auburn haired man began walking away.

"Hey…you don't know where you're going!" the blonde called after him, after recovering enough to do so.

The man turned back and smiled at the blonde, purple eyes swirling in an unreadable expression that caused the blonde's heart to squeeze painfully.

"It's ok. I realize I just need to back track now that I think about it. From there I have the map. I'll be fine on my own."

With that the auburn haired man turned and continued in the direction he had come.

The blonde couldn't help but feel awestruck by all that had passed between the two. Initially he had hated the man but now, after only hearing the little he had said about the world he had left and recalling all the healing that had come about just the day before accompanied by the bloodcurdling scream the other male had released through the process…

After revisiting all he has learned in this short time he realized he knew absolutely nothing about this man. He had thought he was just love-sick skunk after Leon but now...now he knows that's not it. He must have been alone for a long time…fighting all alone…

He must have thought all his friends were dead. Cloud wondered how he managed all this time…completely alone. Not knowing if his world still existed or anyone he loved for that matter…

Cloud realized he couldn't hate this man now. Not with the little he has already learned about him. He felt the man deserved some of his respect, though he still loathed him for being with Leon in ways he could only imagine and have haunting dreams of.

No he couldn't leave things the way they were nor could he hate or kill this man Leon so cared for.

He was beginning to see a little of perhaps the brunet saw in the auburn hair cowboy. But he hoped he could still find a way to be with the brunet even with the auburn haired man's presence. Even if the auburn haired man still was with Leon.

Even if it hurt this man he was beginning to feel drawn towards.

Please review to tell me your thoughts.

I hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will continue from here (just bring us back with Irvi) Take care!