DENIAL

This is Yaoi.

This is Cloud and Sephiroth.

This is rude and offensive and completely obscure.

This is sexy, irritating, sad, funny, confusing, surprising and glorious.

Chapter Four: Spanking


Cloud had spent the last few minutes reading a text he'd received after the sham of an assembly he'd managed to ruin. Of course, when seeing his phone flash, he had hoped that the General had somehow managed to require his number and was asking to de-flower him immediately, but of course, it was bad news, it was always going to be bad news.

The text stated that he was in serious trouble, and he was to report to a Soldier immediately, being given an apartment name and number to get to in the next hour. This was real business, this wasn't an office job, oh no, this was a 'sit on that chair and think about what you've done, whilst I pour you something to drink, you naughty little boy.'

He wished his punishment could be spanking…

Cloud jumped into the elevators, after asking a few of the employees where the apartment was and finally managing to translate the grunts he'd received. It turned out it was accessible through the Shinra building itself, with even better news! Sephiroth lived there too! The guy was considering just telling this Soldier to go fuck himself, whilst he went and got anally brutalized by the General.

If only stalking were socially accepted, or even more importantly, legal.

He watched as the interested glances in the elevator soon turned into smirks, and he felt them all nudge each other and whisper things. Now he was the company clown, like it or not, but at least it was better than being the company faggot.

The wait for the floor he needed seemed like a lifetime, and he reluctantly began to think about Sephiroth, and why he had run off so quickly, and what this whole thing actually meant. He wasn't a guy that could be easily frightened, or challenged, or manipulated, so why was something like this affecting him? Were Cloud's suspicions actually right?

It was insane though! He couldn't picture Sephiroth kissing a man, being romantic with a man, touching a man, although the thought did make Cloud want to touch a man... that man being himself. The guy just seemed too hard, too masculine, too… straight, for no use of a better word.

The riot that would be caused if Sephiroth did suddenly burst forth from the closet would be unimaginable. Respect he had would decrease, for stupid reasons, but it would. He would go from an inspiration to a laughing stock, shamed in the papers, recommended for ballet classes, not fighting missions. Cloud was a dramatic person, he pictured everything in big colour and bold print, but he knew how the Media was, and he knew how the Shinra Corporation was. There was no way in hell Cloud was the only gay one there, but because of the strict rules and constant watch from every employee, being the way he was seemed unnatural.

Was that the reason that Sephiroth avoided it?

Cloud had seen the way he'd looked at him that night, the glances, the licking of his lips, the sly smirks and the suggestive hints. He was sure the General had wanted to ask him somewhere, to do something to him, to meet a stranger and finally be himself - of course he'd have denied it if the news ever got out and killed the guy if he'd taken it further, but that wasn't the point. If Cloud hadn't have been part of the company, or if he had never slipped that information out, would Sephiroth have tried anything with him?

Might his sweet virginity have been stripped away by the man?

The lift gradually came to a painful stop, Cloud leaping out of it, like a deer to grass, like a faggot to a sweaty man. He quickly sprinted through the long alleyway and prayed to God that Sephiroth wouldn't erupt from behind one of the doors. Or did he want that? To see the man fall out in a towel, catch Cloud's eye and then sneakily invite him inside?

Oh, what was he kidding, the guy would probably strangle him with the towel if and when he dropped it.

The doors were packed so closely together that Cloud imagined the walls were made of nothing but solid cardboard. Only two apartments separated from the rest, and they lay opposite one other, no names to be seen, all hope lost of seeing Sephiroth. It was the one to the left that he had to knock, and walking towards it seemed like walking towards his death.

What if it were actually Sephiroth at the door, and the entire thing had been a ploy? That he had simply wanted to punish the guy himself, in his own apartment, away from prying eyes? Cloud would accept whips and chains, but like hell would he allow himself to be lectured.

His heart was hammering at the possibility.

Cloud knocked on the door, delicately, in hope that it would go unnoticed. But of course, he heard footsteps, loud footsteps, and he prepared himself for a giant fist to come hammering down. He wasn't manly in the slightest, and if he got punched, he'd probably clutch his face for a few seconds and then flee into the sunset. Cloud couldn't be violent, it wasn't how he was, gay or not, he'd just been brought up too well.

And then the door finally opened.

There was no punch to the face for the blonde, there was no sigh of disappointment, or the look of shame and dishonour, oh no, only a face of pure beauty stared down at him and turned his body into a throbbing heat. Cloud felt himself whine, only quietly, but enough to rare his senses into action. It wasn't Sephiroth at the door, but, this sight was still satisfying enough.

"Hello again, Strife."


Cloud could barely respond without spewing his own semen. "Hello, Zack... I think it was?"

Oh he knew very well what his name was; the guy had mentally saved it in his brain and vowed to keep it there until the day he died, or even better, the day he turned straight. That face was certainly not one he could forget so easily, not that smile, or that godly build.

Why couldn't he have met THIS guy first?

"Come on in," Zack purred, leading the way for the trembling blonde. "Excuse the mess."

That wasn't an exaggeration.

The blonde had to clamber over sprawled boxers, discarded towels and empty food packaging. It was like walking through the slums, only indoors. The urge to pick up a pair of tight Calvin Klein's and sniff them was strong, before he remembered that would most definitely get him locked up, or even worse, put down. Cloud decided to ignore the wonderfully tight items of clothing below him and instead followed the gorgeous man into what he imagined was the living room. Or, should he say, that gorgeous ass.

"Would you like something to drink?" Zack asked him, throwing himself onto the sofa.

Cloud awkwardly perched opposite him. "No thank you, I'm not thirsty."

I'm not thirsty, he said, as his mouth began to leak dust and fill up with saliva. Oh God, was he thirsty, but holding a glass of water seemed a task, as he was shaking so much.

"Well, let's get started then," Zack said, his tone becoming much more serious. "You know why you're here, right?"

Cloud fidgeted in his seat, panicking, knowing that his body would soon be turned to nothing but sweat, and leather wasn't something that agreed with bodily fluid. "I imagine it was the assembly."

"That's correct, you made a fool out of the General, and they've asked me to punish you."

There was a twinge in the blonde's groin.

"However, they've asked the wrong guy," Zack smiled, leaning forward to pat his knee. "I don't think you meant to cause any of that, and I'm not the type of person to start screaming."

The touch of that hand felt orgasmic.

"So why have you called me here?" Cloud asked, barely able to keep himself from shuddering. "What's the need to see me if I wont be punished?"

There was a suspicious glint in the Soldier's eyes. "I was curious, that's all."

"What about exactly?"

"You seemed to run out pretty sharpish," Zack pointed out. "I wondered if it was anything to do with Sephiroth."

Cloud felt like he were swallowing his entire mouth. "No, not at all, why would you imagine that?"

"Intuition is all, I know a lot of guys get nervous around him, but never enough to flee from him."

… What on earth was Cloud supposed to say?

Own up to why he had tried to run? Go into detail about his little suspicion? For all he knew, Zack and Sephiroth could know one another, be in a relationship, be somehow related! This might be a test sent from the General, to assure his trust remained, before slitting his throat if he dared to speak up.

"No, not at all, I just really needed the toilet."

Cloud applauded his efforts, at least, but not his honesty.

There was silence in the room, not awkward, but a tad uncomfortable. Zack was clearly trying to work things out in his head, and the blonde was trying to think of all the comebacks he may need. This was much more casual than it should have been, so relaxed. Cloud enjoyed being so close to such a high member in the company, actually associating with someone of high ranking. He enjoyed it so much, so lost in the moment, that his next sentence took them both by surprise.

"Is there anything about General Sephiroth that you'd consider different?"

Oh God.

There was no turning back now.

"What do you mean?" Zack asked, raising his eyebrow. "There are many strange things about Sephiroth, were you thinking of one in particular?"

Cloud couldn't think of any excuses. "It's nothing serious, I just… had a suspicion."

His head was bowing to the floor.

How on earth was he supposed to ask such a bizarre thing?

"Well, state what you find strange," Zack said, genuinely interested to know. "And I'll try my best to answer it."

Cloud looked up at him, thinking of the best way to word it. There were ways he could avoid this mess, but if he were being honest, half of him needed to know if anyone else thought what he did, or whether he was just being paranoid about it. Besides, these men were sworn to confidentiality, right? And Cloud could easily blab himself, blackmail him with the information that the 1st Class Soldier they'd sent to deal with him had in fact ignored all punishment together.

"You wont tell anyone I said it?" Cloud practically begged.

Zack nodded his head. "I promise, I'm not like that in the slightest, and it's probably something we all know."

There was really only one simple, frightening, ridiculous and utterly blunt way to put it.

"Is the General… gay?"

Cloud had expected many things; maybe a look of horror, or a punch to his stomach, or maybe even a double take and request to repeat the question. But he couldn't believe, as he stared as Zack with what could only be described as an ill expression, that all that fell from his mouth... was laughter.

The man was LAUGHING at him!

"Is that a genuine question?" Zack wheezed, clutching himself from all the hysterics. "Are you being serious?"

The blonde shuffled in his seat. "Yeah, I suppose it was a little strange."

Now he looked utterly ridiculous, perched in his seat, blushing like hell, sweat pouring from his forehead like water from a tap. What sane person WOULDN'T find that question funny? Why had he even had the guts to ask someone like that? Cloud didn't want to look needy, or give his position away, but there didn't seem to be any other reason as to why he would ask.

It was obvious… Cloud was infatuated with him.

"Let me tell you something," Zack said, leaning forward to clutch his leg. "Never go repeating that, seriously, because the company will tear you apart."

He had expected that.

"Sephiroth is about as gay as your hair is flat, which judging by those spikes, is not at all."

But not that.

Cloud felt something form in his throat, which he quickly swallowed down, afraid it was tears, worried he were about to break down on the floor. It wasn't sadness though, or anger, it was just embarrassment, embarrassed that he'd even put himself in this situation.

What if Zack were right? What if the General wasn't gay? What if Cloud had just been hopeful?

He knew how people could become when obsessed, they would make up scenario's in their heads, see things differently to reality, imagine one thing meant another, when actually, it meant nothing. It all seemed to piece together now, why Sephiroth had gotten so angry, why he'd backed off quickly. Cloud had come on too strong, assumed things, given the wrong message, and Sephiroth had ran away.

Was that it?

Could Cloud really have gotten all the signs wrong?

"Can I ask you a question?" Zack said.

Cloud nodded his head with whatever energy he had left. "Yeah."

"Are you gay?" he asked, frowning a little as he did. "Does this have anything to do with your orientation?"

"Uh…"

Cloud turned towards the window.

Zack turned towards the hall.

There was somebody knocking at the door, praise Gaia, there was somebody here to save him!

"I'll just go get that," Zack said, patting the blonde's knee as he got up. "Don't look so worried, kiddo."

Cloud wasn't worried, oh no, he was DISTRAUGHT. He felt like he were about to vomit blood.

He listened as the footsteps got quieter and quieter, but the knocking grew louder and louder; the guest impatiently hammering at the same beat as Cloud's heart. The sound of Zack turning the handle made him all the more queasy, and he hoped it would be something to get him the hell out of this apartment.

There came an irritated voice. "Take your time answering the door, why don't you."

"Oh, it's you!" Zack tittered, the door closing behind him. "My apologies, I have a guest, but that's a different story all together."

It was the next sentence that killed him.

"How very ironic of you to show up."

But the second one brought him back to life.

"We were just talking about you."


Sorry it took so long to update, busy life, work, college, actually making one self leave the glory of her secluded room.
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