A/N: This chapter is also naughty, consider yourselves warned…again!
"For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."
– Newton's third law of motion
4
Physics
Cloud sat watching the cars as they sped past, counting off the red ones quietly in his head as they moved down the freeway; Hollow Bastion getting smaller and smaller behind them. Dollet was a good five hours ahead of them, but in the small seaside town lay Leon's beach house and a few days rest from the media disaster that had been their lives for the past two weeks.
Autumn had well and truly come and the early morning air had been freezing, a thin layer of frost covering everything, making the trees that lined the avenues of the Bastion city look pale and wraith-like.
Cloud reached over to turn the heating down, looking across at Leon who was checking the rear view mirror, his steady arms out straight in front of him as he gripped the steering wheel and Cloud was struck by how incredibly handsome he was. Leon's profile was smooth and refined; the casual grey loose-knit jumper hung off of his broad shoulders and complemented the stormy colour of his eyes, which were fixed on the road ahead, his fine brows creased ever so slightly in concentration.
Feeling Cloud's eyes on him, he looked over, one brow quirked, a vague smile ghosting his lips when he saw the younger man's appreciative stare.
"See something you like?" He teased.
Cloud rolled his eyes, turning back to the road beside him and tried not to let his gaze wonder back to his rather distracting partner. He had to admit, he was incredibly excited about their little escape plan. It had been far too long since they had done anything together or been anywhere outside of Hollow Bastion, and Cloud knew just how he wanted to spend the four days.
He felt a hand take his own and when he looked over he found Leon glancing at him. The older man brought their hands up to his lips and kissed Cloud's fingers, giving them a little squeeze.
"I'm proud of you, you know that?" He said, watching the slight blush rise on the blond's cheeks.
Cloud turned away to watch the cars again, unable to bring himself to either answer the man or even look at him; Leon's rich chuckle only compounding Cloud's embarrassment.
"What on earth makes you say that?" He asked finally, still unable to tare his gaze away from the passing cars.
"I just am. Can't I be proud of you if I want to be?" He asked, completely aware that he had not said these sorts of things nearly as much as he should have. He made a mental note to remedy that.
Cloud's bewildered silence was his only answer, but the small blush that remained on his cheeks reassured Leon that his mercurial lover hadn't taken it too much to heart.
"I don't ever want you to think that I'm ashamed of you, Cloud." He continued, feeling all of a sudden like he needed to set a few things straight. "That's not what these last four months have been about. I... I didn't hide you away because I was ashamed."
He watched his younger lover as Cloud's jaw tensed and his brows knit together; his expression upset.
"I... I just didn't want you to get hurt. I knew what would happen when all of this... I... I'm not saying I did the right thing, but, I need you to know, I did it for the right reasons. I only ever wanted to protect you. I never meant to make you feel like I did."
Cloud nodded, looking down at their joined hands that rested on the console between them and he had to remind himself of Doctor Houseman's words: about allowing people to care for him; giving himself permission to be cared for. It was difficult, especially when all he wanted to do was deny Leon's words and assume the worst instead; believing that he wasn't worth protecting and that Leon was tiring of him. Those were big voices to talk down and drown out, but the doctor had told him it would get easier with practice. He had to start being kinder to himself.
"I know." He let himself say, realising that as soon as he'd said it, he knew it to be true. "I... I'm sorry for saying those things... about us. I never meant... I mean..." Cloud let out an exasperated sigh, frustrated with his lack of eloquence. "I guess… I really sounded stupid, huh?"
"You weren't stupid, Cloud. You could never be stupid; not to me."
The brunet's words warmed Cloud, who let himself be affected by them without putting up too much of a struggle. Sometimes, it was easy, really.
"You know what I've always wanted to do?" Cloud asked suddenly after a few long moments of comfortable silence. Leon looked over at him, noting his light and care free expression. "I've always wanted to have a campfire on the beach."
Cloud looked over at Leon's amused face, knowing full well that his confession was silly and childish, but not really caring.
"When I was a kid, I saw this picture in a magazine. These boys had a fire on the beach… they were camping and stuff... It looked like fun. I always wanted to do it."
Leon's heart warmed to see the blond's goofy grin, his pulse doing uncomfortable little flip flops when he heard his boyish chuckle and he promised himself right then, that he would do whatever it took to make Cloud laugh and smile like that as much as he could.
"Right, then we'll do that!" He promised, unable to take his eyes off of Cloud's relaxed and happy face.
"You'd better watch the road at some point." Cloud informed him after a few obvious seconds of open staring.
The moment they arrived in Dollet - Leon's much more modest and discreet BMW pulling up into the long private drive way of his secluded beach house - Cloud practically fell through the front door in his rush to get inside. Not only was it at least 10° colder on the coast, but the house was his most favourite place in the whole world.
They had come here only twice in the year they had been together, their first time had also been their first Christmas; the second had been a family get together over a weekend barbeque.
Cloud threw himself down onto the couch and sighed a deep breath of contentment.
"Yeah, don't worry; I'll get the bags then." Leon called out sarcastically, disappearing into the bedroom with a large duffle bag.
Cloud rolled his eyes, standing to follow his lover into the bedroom, picking up a bag from the entry way as he passed. He was caught off guard by Leon who grabbed him from behind, wrapping his arms around the blond and pressed warm kisses under the felt collar of his coat to the nape of his neck, moving them closer to the bed.
Cloud let himself be moved, warm butterflies tingling in his stomach at the feel of Leon's cold hands working their way up underneath his light sweater, dragging frigid circles across his abdomen and raising goose bumps. Cloud felt his nipples go hard and a solid shiver scrape down his back at the feel of Leon's already rock hard cock pressed into his backside.
He let Leon undress him, a soft affectionate smile on his lips every time Leon caught his eye as the older man took his time peeling away the cotton of his jumper, the buckle of his belt; unlacing his boots. Leon peered up at the younger man through thick choppy bangs as he ran his hands up the length of Cloud's thighs, tugging on the material to bring the jeans down.
Cloud stepped out of them gracefully; completely unaware of his own natural beauty and the effect it had on the older man, who looked at him with a mixture of bewilderment and awe. A fine curl of lust, slipped into Leon's gaze and his breathing hitched when his eyes finally locked on his younger's face.
Cloud was staring at him with open want. The intensity of his lust was palpable in his wide dilated pupils and ragged uneven breaths, his pulse point jumping under flushed skin at his neck and his straining erection. Cloud stood completely unabashed, confident in his nakedness and under the intense scrutiny of the older man. A charged moment ignited between the two that had been missing for what seemed like years.
"God, I've missed you." Leon whispered, rising from his crouched position. He reached out and cupped Cloud's face, reading the relief in his lover's large blue eyes. He pulled him in, pressing his still fully clothed body against Cloud's naked form, crushing the blond to him in a desperate, consuming kiss.
Cloud fisted his hands in the front of Leon's coat, the chill from the autumn air still clinging to the fibres and causing him to shiver. He had no words for the immense rush of relief that had flooded him with Leon's confession; there was simply no way to explain how good it felt to be wanted again – to be desired. It had been so long since Cloud had felt even remotely connected to Leon, even faintly confident in the older man's feeling towards him. But Cloud couldn't deny the way that Leon pawed at his skin, his large hands gripping the flesh of his buttocks as he moved them towards the bed, the soft covers brushing the back of Cloud's legs. He tugged at the older man's clothes, managing a hoarse "these… off" before turning them and tipping the older man back onto the bed.
Leon chuckled darkly, helping his eager lover with his clothes and soon his arms were full of Cloud again as the younger man pressed his body against Leon's newly exposed skin, and there was only one thing that Cloud wanted to do.
He raised himself up onto his arms, purposefully brushing his hips against Leon's and relishing in the dark brunet's sharp intake of breath through gritted teeth. He gently slid his body downwards, kissing patches of toned, tan skin that stretched over the lean muscle of Leon's stomach. He stopped, feeling the brush of Leon's cock underneath his chin and the light musky scent of arousal as it hit his nose.
He teased Leon, placing small, moist kisses to the patches of skin around his groin, and he gave a little smile at the feel of Leon's impatient hands as they thread their way into his hair.
"Pushy, aren't we?" he said before licking his way up Leon's shaft, placing a light, wet kiss to the head.
" 've no idea." Leon breathed, unable to form any kind of come back with Cloud's mouth just inches from where he wanted him.
Cloud took pity on him and parted his lips, pushing the head of Leon's cock past his soft moist lips, swirling the flat of his tongue around the shaft as he pulled him in further. If there was one thing that Cloud knew how to do well, it was suck cock. His bright eyes sparkled in response to Leon's deep moan, drawing his lips tighter as he pulled back, cheeks hollowed.
"Fuck, Cloud… if you don't stop… 'm gonna…" Leon let Cloud suck him for a few moments more, before gently grasping his chin, pulling the younger away.
Cloud placed himself back over Leon, letting the older man turn them, manoeuvring himself into position above Cloud.
"Turn over." He whispered to him, placing a fleeting kiss to Cloud's lip as he ran the back of his knuckle along his jaw.
Cloud obliged, twisting himself onto his stomach, ass raised slightly as he felt Leon settle himself in between his legs again, palm cupping the back of his thigh to spread him a little wider. He shivered, hearing Leon spit into his palm and then the thrilling sensation of something hot and blunt at his opening. His hands fisted the sheets, his hiss of encouragement vented through clenched teeth as he tried to relax against the slow roll of Leon's hips as stroke by stroke, he worked himself inside.
He felt Leon settle against his back, his body weight braced on his forearms as he stared to move, breath ghosting the back of Clouds neck as the younger man ducked his chin, cheek pressed to the cotton sheets as he moaned and rubbed himself into the mattress in slow easy circles.
He felt Leon open his legs a little wider, the angel of the man's thrusts changing to hit that spot inside of him, just where he wanted him and Cloud tried to work a hand down underneath him, unable to properly jerk himself off but the slow ululations of Leon's movements keeping him just above frantic.
He let Leon fuck him into the mattress, completely giving over control to the older man as he moaned and gasped his way to completion, his orgasm only moments before the older brunets.
Sated and recollected, Leon rolled off his younger partner, pulling the quietly quivering man into his chest.
"Just so you know," he panted. "We're gonna be doing that a lot, this weekend."
Cloud snorted, kissing the skin under his cheek as he lazily ran his fingertips along the ridges of Leon's ribs
"Fine by me."
Leon stirred; looking at his wrist watch he poked Cloud in the side.
"Hey, I need you to go get some groceries. Shops will be shutting soon."
Cloud grunted, not quite ready to move just yet, nuzzling his cheek harder into Leon's chest in protest. It had been a long drive and he was almost on the cusp of sleep.
"Don't wanna." He moaned, only relenting after a good few seconds of incessant poking. He stood up and flipped Leon the bird before wondering into the bathroom for a quick shower.
The moment Cloud walked back through the front door, he knew something was up. The lights were out and the patio doors where stood wide open, allowing the freezing sea breeze to billow the curtains into the empty living room. There was silence apart from the far off murmur of music and Cloud thought that it was coming from the porch. He placed the bags of groceries down by the door, calling out suspiciously.
"Leon?"
When there was no answer, he moved towards the patio doors, finding a note taped to the sliding glass, hidden underneath the flapping curtains.
There's a first time for everything…
Outside; follow the lights.
L. x
Cloud looked up, allowing his puzzled gaze to slip past the veranda and up the sandy path that led through high twisted banks of dunes to a private beach, which was now lined with torches, dotted sparsely along its length, disappearing around the first bend.
Cloud stepped out onto the porch, the shale and grit from the beach crunching under his heavy boots as he trudged cautiously through the sandy hills, bewildered and completely lost for words as he came out onto the beach, the dark waters crashing softly in the distance.
To the right, tucked away in the leeside of the towering grass dunes was a figure, tall and dark, silhouetted against a fire that was burning orange against the inky blackness of the beach. By the time Cloud reached it, his heart was thundering in his chest and his smile was awestruck, his eyes wide. Somewhere in the distance, the music could still be heard, light and unobtrusive and as Cloud came closer, he saw a large blanket spread out.
He stopped in front of Leon, his smile wide and infectious, white plumes of breath ghosting out as he gave a little chuckle. Leon smiled back, the collar of his coat turned up against the light wind, his hands stuffed into his pockets.
The older man stepped forwards, reaching out to take Cloud's hands in his as he tugged lightly, pulling them over to the roaring fire and sat them both down on the blanket, producing another and wrapped it around them both.
"Is this what you had in mind?" he asked, shuffling closer and curling his hand around Cloud's knee.
"Uh, yeah… I… guess…" Cloud replied, still entirely too bewildered to form proper sentences. He looked across at Leon's smug face, and laughed. The bastard knew he'd impressed him.
"I bought some of these." Leon said, placing a bag full of sweets down in front of them, his heart nearly skipping a whole series of beats as he heard Cloud's full laugh, as the younger man pulled out bags of marshmallows and M&Ms.
Leon had never forgotten Cloud's love of sweets, despite his insistence that he would never be addicted to anything.
"Well, you just think of everything, don't you?" Cloud replied, cheeks red not just from the sting of the bitter wind.
"I like to be efficient."
Cloud scoffed, feeling the uncomfortable but not unpleasant feelings that filled his stomach whenever Leon paid any attention to him. They warmed him, making his head spin and his heart try to pound through his chest. He settled himself into Leon's side, allowing the older man to place his arm around him, pulling the blanket tighter around them both as they sat and watched the fire.
After a long and comfortable silence, listening to the sound of the crashing waves and the spitting and crackle of the fire, Cloud spoke.
"So how does a spoilt rich kid billionaire learn how to build a fire, anyway? Do they have, like, special finishing schools where they teach you how to do rugged man stuff?"
Leon laughed; his chuckle rich and smooth.
"No, I just got my butler to do it." he said pointing over his shoulder. "I keep him locked away in the cellar so you'd think I was really cool and butch."
"Butch?" Cloud repeated, his top lip curled and his eyebrow raised. "If there's one thing you'll never be, Leon, it's butch." Cloud laughed as he was pushed sideways, falling into the sand as Leon gripped his foot, tipping him.
Once Cloud had righted himself and his chuckles had died down, Leon opened a bag of sweets, throwing one or two idly at his blond lover who tried to catch them and throw them back.
"My dad used to bring us out here for summer vacation. Him and mom used to camp down here on the beach with us." He said, pointing a way off down the sandy coast line.
As much as Cloud tried not to, he couldn't help the feelings of jealousy and envy seep through him. It wasn't Leon's fault that he had had such an appalling childhood or that Leon had had such a wonderful one, and it wasn't fair to be so childish over something that he couldn't change. He thought of the picture he had seen in one of his mother's magazines, and he thought of the scene Leon had just described and realised how similar they were, and yet, at the same time, how completely opposite. Cloud's mother had been nothing like a mother should have been. She had been cold and illusive – drunk most of the time – only paying attention to Cloud when she needed someone to tell her how much they loved her. Cloud's early childhood had been filled with a random carrousel of men, coming and going, picking up and dropping his mother as it suited them, and he had been left to fill the empty void in between – desperately wanting to please his mother, because he loved her, but hating her in a weird way that made him feel uncomfortable and ashamed. He knew he shouldn't hate his mother, but yet he had.
"What was your mom like?" Cloud asked, eager to know what other people's moms did, if they weren't drunk or high or with other men.
"She was beautiful." Leon replied simply. "She always had this happy little smile on her face, no matter what was happening."
Cloud could see the wistful smile of remembrance play around Leon's mouth and he realised that was the look of someone who had never hated their mother. In a million years, Cloud could not imagine a person who could make him feel like that. His chance had been and gone, and his mother had let him down, badly.
"What about your dad?" Cloud asked when he realised he had at least some idea of what a mother should have been. Some small part of Cloud still remembered his mother telling him she loved him, kissing him good night and in that way, he could relate, at least in part, to the rest of the world. However, Cloud had no notion what so ever of a father. What was it like to have one? The idea of a man who was supposed to love you unconditionally, without insidious intentions or perverted desires was something Cloud had never been able to picture before, and even though he had never considered Riven to be anything other than a horrific monster, he had been the closest thing to a father that Cloud had ever had, and that thought made him incredibly sad.
"Up until mom died, he was the best." Leon said. Placing a marshmallow on the end of a stick and holding it over the fire. "He was always laughing with us and taking us places."
Cloud watched the sugary sweet as Leon turned it in the flames, its pink coating slowly turning black and them bubbling under the surface.
"But afterwards… I don't know, he just kind of… faded away." Leon confessed in a small voice, his inner eye lost with memories. "It was like he went away, from all of us, even though he was still here. And when he came back, he was a different person. Does that make sense?" The brunet turned to Cloud, who was watching him with thoughtful eyes, his mind slowly turning over his words as he thought about them.
"I guess, you can't go through something like that and not expect it to change you." he said eventually, picking up a marshmallow and following Leon's example. "I mean, it was his wife… and she didn't just leave him… she died. Nothing's as permanent."
Leon nodded, knowing deep down that Cloud was right, that maybe he should have given his father a lot more credit. But still, that childish need to have his father was still buried deep within him, and he rebelled because the man had failed him. He was bitter with the realisation that he had not only lost a mother, but a perfectly good father as well, and that the slow eroding of his family had begun a long time ago.
Leon shook himself, not wanting to think about morose thoughts anymore. He had brought Cloud out here for a special night, not to wallow in his own angst.
"Anyway, it doesn't matter now. It's all in the past." he said, reaching over to pull Cloud into a kiss. He placed his lips against his younger's and relished in the way their warm breaths spilled over chilled skin, lips tingling from the play of sensations. He stroked his cheek, rubbing his thumb over the soft, peachy flesh and pulled away, tenderly carding his fingers through the bangs around Cloud's face, pushing errant strands behind his ears.
"Now we have each other." He said, his eyes, dark and sincere.
The deep rumbling of an engine rolling up the long private drive towards their beach house woke Leon, and he looked across bleary eyed and confused at the digital clock on the bedside cabinet. Untangling his legs from Cloud's and unwrapping his arms from around the blond's waist he pulled away, placing a quick kiss to a chilly shoulder.
Cloud stirred, raising his head from the pillow and looked over his shoulder as Leon swung his legs around and sat up.
"Whassup?" he mumbled, rubbing his cheek back into the pillow and stretching out further onto his stomach.
"I think I hear a car." Leon replied, voice thick.
Cloud turned over, puzzled expression softened by the grogginess of sleep and the pillow lines etched into the side of his face.
"What time is it?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Almost nine thirty." Leon replied, pulling on a pair of sweat pants. He rose and walked to the bedroom door, only halfway across the wide expanse of carpet before he heard a knock at the front door. He turned to cast a confused look at his lover.
"Who knows we're here?" Cloud asked him, sitting up and throwing his own legs over the side of the bed. Leon had to shake himself after a few moments of staring at Cloud's ass as he pottered about the bedroom, picking up their discarded clothes and slipping on his own pair of plaid pyjama pants.
Cloud followed his older lover and watched from their bedroom door; arms folded over his broad chest as Leon reached the end of the hall and pulled open the front door.
"Laguna?" he heard Leon say in mild surprise, stepping back as the man's father pushed past him and into the house.
"Don't give me that 'Laguna' crap, Squall. It's dad. I don't have time for your games." Cloud heard the man say as they moved off into the living room.
The man's presence was a shock in itself. After all, Cloud hadn't seen any of Leon's family since the media broke their little 'scandal' well over two weeks ago. Cloud had no idea exactly what the older man thought of his previous profession, but he could only guess that it wouldn't be very much. And judging from the way the man had breezed into their hideaway, so obviously flustered and brittle did not bode well for the younger man. He padded his way, softly down the carpeted hallway, hovering as discreetly as he could in the entryway to the living room.
"What the hell are you doing here, Laguna?" Leon demanded, completely ignoring his father's words. He stood in the centre of the room, hands on hips watching his pacing father march up and down in front of the cold, empty fireplace.
"What am I doing here?" the older man, who was almost the living image of Leon, asked with a raised eyebrow. "What do you think I'm doing here, Squall?"
Leon pulled a hand through his hair, turning about the open plan space of the living room and spread his arms out wide, clearly exasperated before any real conversation had begun.
"Well, apart from interrupting our weekend away, I haven't got a fucking clue." He snapped.
"Don't give me that crap. Your 'weekend away?'" Laguna mocked. "You take a weekend away, right in the middle of one of our company's biggest shit storms and you ask me why I'm here?" Laguna asked, mimicking his son's stance, hands on hips, clearly unimpressed. In that moment, Cloud thought how incredibly similar they both were, not just in looks but in mannerisms and most importantly, temperament, and for the fleeting span of a second he wondered if he in any way resembled any of his long absent father, before the thought was gone again upon Laguna's next words.
"And it's all your fault, Squall. You've been fucking around with a god dammed whore."
Laguna's caustic words stung. As common as they were, and as many times as Cloud had heard them, right now, in this place, after everything he had been through, they hurt worse than they ever had done in his entire life.
"You watch your mouth, Laguna." Leon growled darkly, finger raised and pointed at him in warning.
"Am I wrong? Have the media got it wrong?"
"He's my partner!" Leon barked back, his gaze stern and hot.
"Your partner?" Laguna laughed. "He's a hooker! If you think for one moment that the board will let you keep your job while you're openly fucking a prostitute, you've got another thing coming." Laguna's tone was sharp and cutting. The man had obviously never been angrier or more serious in his life. "They're calling for your resignation, Squall."
Cloud's insides went cold. It was the thing that he had feared, but had never allowed himself to give voice to. It was the thing that he could never let happen, no matter what. He would not ruin Leon.
"You can't let them." He found himself saying suddenly, stepping out from his hiding place and into the living room. Laguna turned his gaze on him, and the eyes that Cloud had always thought of as father's eyes - that had always held some measure of warmth and laughter - had turned cold. The older man scoffed and turned away.
"I can't believe you brought him here," He muttered in disbelief. "Right in the middle of all this shit. You run away and bury your head in the sand and not only that, you take your little whore with you. Do you have any idea what this would look like if the press got wind of it?" Laguna asked, addressing only Leon and pointedly ignoring Cloud. The younger man's cheeks burned from the humiliation. "I'm used to your little games Squall, God knows I've had to put up with them all these years, but this is far and away the stupidest most disrespectful thing you've ever done. If your mother where alive-"
"I told you to watch your mouth." Leon repeated himself, stepping closer to his father. He had never hit Laguna before, but then again, the man had never given him reason to. "I don't give a shit what the board think. If they want to fire me, fine. I'll make it easier for them – I quit."
"Leon, no, think about what you're saying." Cloud warned him, desperate for this not to happen. There was no way in hell he'd let Leon throw everything away. He'd leave him first.
"As for the press, I could give a shit what they print about me." Leon continued without so much as a glance at Cloud. "And you?!" Leon spat, his voice low and deadly now, "You I care about least of all." Leon let his heavy words sit in the dense silence that followed them, his eyes never wavering from the eyes of his father, who looked at him in a mixture of shock, rage and hurt betrayal.
"You've never given a shit about me or what I do since the day mom died, so don't bring her into this. There is nothing between us apart from business and now even that is a pain in your ass. Your opinion means shit to me."
Cloud could feel his heart breaking, and he didn't know why. Maybe it was because a family, no matter how illusionary and deep down broken, was finally shattering right before his eyes. Cloud's own pathetic, warped upbringing had been so far from anything normal or healthy and yet Leon had all the ingredients, all the components of a family right in front of him. But no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't seem to make them fit together. Cloud didn't know which was worse: never having a family to begin with, or having one and not being able to make it work?
"If you think I'm going to put your interests – the company's interests – over the interests of him, then you're completely out of your fucking mind." Leon said, pointing to Cloud who stood with a burning shame and sadness on his face.
"And what about your loyalties? To me, to your family?" Laguna's voice was dangerously low. "You'd throw it all away, for him?" Laguna asked, not even bothering to glace at Cloud.
"I love him." Leon's words were firm, his eyes ablaze with fire and conviction.
"But you don't love me?" Laguna asked; his voice cracking and his face breaking under the strain of saying what he had long feared.
Leon's silence spoke volumes in the deafening quiet, and Cloud had to swallow past the painful lump in his throat. He didn't want this. He never wanted this.
"Leon, you don't mean that." He whispered; voice thick with the emotion that his lover should have been feeling.
At last, Laguna's pained and wounded gaze fell on Cloud and the blond didn't know whether he'd be able to stand the hurt and betrayal he found there.
"Are you happy now?" Laguna asked him, his voice cracked. "Are you happy with what you've done?"
Heavy, piercing pain shot through Cloud's chest as the weight and implications of the man's words sank in. Cloud's presence - his very existence in Leon's life - had not only caused his lover to lose his reputation, his credibility, and maybe his job, but had caused the biggest, most unforgivable of loses. Cloud had broken a family. In all of his life, after everything that he'd done and had been done to him, he had never felt more ashamed.
"I… I didn't…" he stammered; bewildered and hurt as a tear slipped free and tracked its way down his hot face.
"Don't you dare blame him." came Leon's smooth, dark voice.
The weight of Laguna's stare lifted as his eyes slid back to his son.
"I'll do what I can to hold back the board's decision. They need a majority vote to gain a movement of no confidence. I have two thirds of them, but I won't be able to hold them for long." Laguna said, his voice regaining some of its authority. "Sooner or later, you'll have to come back and face them."
Leon's dark scowl remained; his silence deep and uncomfortable. Cloud just wanted to disappear, his arms wrapped tightly round his middle as if he wanted to sink into himself as he took a few steps back.
"Is that all?" Leon asked eventually.
Laguna nodded, his face so broken and lost as he turned to leave.
Leon watched him go, his hot anger only subsiding once his father had shut the door behind him and the distinct sound of a car revved up in the driveway. He turned to Cloud, almost surprised to find his younger lover so upset.
"Cloud!" he exclaimed, moving closer to him, the red mist of his anger all but evaporated. Cloud stepped away from him, his hand reaching up to scratch at the back of his head in awkward shame as he fought with all of his strength to keep the tears down. He knew that if he looked at Leon, he wouldn't be able to keep it together.
"Cloud, don't you dare listen to a word he says, okay?" Leon demanded, holding out his spread hands in supplication. "Don't you dare think that-"
"Leon, just…" Cloud stammered, backing away. "Just, shut up, okay?"
And Cloud disappeared, taking himself away into the bathroom to shower alone, unable to pinpoint why he felt such a keen and impermissible loss.
A/N Extra: I'm completely aware that I've made Laguna into a bit of an arsehole here. He is nowhere near as lovely as his FFVIII character is and for that I'm sorry. But to make this work I had to make someone the bad guy and I figured a man like Laguna, who is head of a national corporation, couldn't have gotten where he is today playing the bumbling fool that we all know and love. (Even though Square Soft had us convinced he'd be able to run a presidency! – yeah right, pull the other one Square Soft.) So for the purposes of this little tale, I've made him a bit more of a douche, but I think we can all see (hopefully) that it comes from a good place
