Cloud

This is actually one of the very few times I go out alone. Due to my fear of looking-like-a-loner, I tend to tag along in groups or a partner when I explore the Great Outdoors. So when Zack was surprised that I told him that I just needed to think things out alone at a random bar in the middle of the night alone, I wan't surprised either.

"You sure?" he had asked me.

"Positive," I assured, although I wasn't sure myself.

So now here I am. Alone. Drinking some foreign drink that seems to be really hard, because I'm already getting a buzz after a couple of sips. I did ask for the hardest thing they got though.

I needed to think things out. Sephiroth had told me that he had something very important to talk to me about involving our so-called "relationship." What is it? Have I done something wrong? We're not even like that yet! In fact, I don't know what to call us.

I sighed, holding my head in my hands and closing my eyes. Why is my life such a complete mess? I'd love to have a grasp on things for once, please Lord.

From the corner of my eye, a man that looked to be in his mid-forties eyed me down. He looked kind of suspicious and awkward at the same time, like he knew what he was thinking but he was wondering if people knew what he was thinking. He wasn't ugly, but he wasn't exactly my type either.

I closed my eyes again and let the liquor sink in. A couple minutes later I heard someone breathing next to me. When I opened my eyes, it was the same man that was gazing at me from a distance. I sighed. This isn't the first time I've attracted a middle-aged man. And they usually don't understand what "no" stands for. Hopefully this one won't cause that much trouble, because I'm seriously not in the mood for it.

The man smiled at me and raised an eyebrow. "You look drained out. You okay?"

"I'm fine," I muttered, only merely glancing in his direction. In order to drive him off, I have to make it seem like he's not wanted here.

"You look kind of pissed off. Something got you angry? Maybe it's this atmosphere. Perhaps, I can take you somewhere better? More... quiet?" he asked me, his voice getting a bit more husky. Yeah, this isn't working so well.

"Maybe I'm pissed off because you came over here to talk to me. Usually when someone isolates themselves, they don't wish to make conversation with strangers twice your age," I snapped. I felt a little bad for being so harsh but like I said. I wasn't in the mood.

"Aw, that's a little mean, don't you think?" he laughed. I groaned.

"Excuse me," I mumbled, getting up and heading for the bathroom. Maybe if I stay in there long enough, he'll go away. My phone vibrated in my pocket. I anxiously pulled it out and looked at it.

"Unknown number...?" I mumbled to myself.

If only you can know how I truly feel. See the way I see you in my eyes. Feel the way I do when I'm near you. Then maybe you would understand the pain I feel everyday sleeping in my bed without you next to me, knowing you probably don't even care.

Who was this?

I gasped. What if it's Sephiroth revealing his undying love for me but felt to embarrassed so he did it with an unknown caller? I bit my bottom lip. Is this what he wanted to talk about?

Who is this? Please, tell me more so I can understand, I texted back. I waited for a solid seven minutes. Nothing in return.

Finally, I just stepped out of the stall and went back out to the bar table, climbing(yes, climbing, I'm 5"4 leave me along) onto the bar stool and peering into my drink. It was a little less than halfway done. I knew I was driving my own car, and if I drank anymore I would impair my driving capabilities more than I'v already have. Nonetheless, I still finished it, since I paid way too much for this drink to simply dispose it.

I left a generous tip to the bartender and dug for my keys in my pockets, heading out the door. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, my head started to spin. The whole world became fuzzy, and I felt like my insides were going to implode.

Doubling over, the world around me slowly faded into a darkness. When I was able to peek one more time at the scene I was leaving, I saw the same middle aged man that tried to talk to me staring me down, a huge grin on his face, and a strange looking bottle in his hand.

Then I gave out.


Leon

I stared at the phone, pondering if I should reply or not. Was it safe to say it was me? Would he look at me the same if he knew it was me? Would I still have his respect if he knew it was me? What if he thinks I'm some horny bastard that only wanted sex? Which I'm going to get from him tomorrow, if I'm lucky.

I slowly put the phone down. I can't. I shouldn't.

Or maybe I should tell him. But in person. I don't think he'll take me seriously if I just text my inner feelings and thoughts. Cloud needs to know how I feel. He needs to take my emotions about him into perspective and decide from there if he still wants my offer. I feel guilty just using him like this. I don't want it to be this way.

That's when I decided that my conscience was right.

I picked my wallet, keys, and phone up, headed toward my front door, picked the first car in sight(a motorcycle), stuck a helmet on, and drove off, leaving my butler confused as I usually tell him my whereabouts.

I ended up pulling up to Cloud's apartment, which I found out only because he texted it to me when I needed his address to mail his supplies. Licking my lips in nervousness, I walked up to the door and held my fist up to it. Am I really going to do this?

I knocked.

A foreign boy answered. He was about head-to-head with me, and was very attractive. But of course, not as stunning as Cloud. What's with Cloud and his handsome companions?

Beautiful sees as beautiful does.

"Yes?" the man asked, his face feigning friendliness. Which put me at ease a little.

"Hi. I'm...uhh... a friend of Cloud's. Is... is he home right now?" I replied, nonchalantly peering around the man to see Cloud's apartment. It wasn't big, but it was surely enough for one person. And it certainly looked like someone inhabited it.

I smiled a little. Who knew Cloud's a little messy. It made him seem even cuter for some reason. As if the world's too big for him to even manage on his own.

The man shook his head. "Nah. He actually left for the bar down the street. If you want, you can find him over there."

I nodded, a little disappointed that I wouldn't get to have a one-on-one with him.

Expected Scenario:

Cloud opens the door.

"Cloud," I breathed.

"Squall... what are you doing here?"

I walked closer to him. "I came to see you. To tell you that... I love you."

"Oh Squall... I feel the same way!"

"Then let's make endless love until the dawn breaks wind."

"Whatever the fuck that means, then let's get it on!" Cloud exclaimed.

And we both made love until sunset peaked.

Real Scenario:

What's happening right now.

Riding my motorcycle was dangerous for me. If they say drinking and driving is dangerous, so is worrying and driving. I constantly found myself running lights, missing stop signs, and almost running over dogs in worry of Cloud's reaction when I tell him how I feel.

When I arrived there, I slowly pulled off my helmet and embraced for the worst response. The lower my hopes were, the greater I would feel when the results weren't as bad. I have to admit, I got gawked at from a handful of people, winking and smiling at me, girls and boys. Why?

I'm probably the most ugliest thing in the world.

Not probably.

I am.

Out of habit, my hand grazed my scar across my nose. I stepped inside and walked towards the bartender. He jerked his chin to me, acknowledging me. "Can I get you anything, sir?" he asked me, wiping a wine glass down thoroughly.

I looked around while talking to him. "Have you seen a short man with blonde spiky hair and features that lean toward a feminine angle? His name's Cloud."

He nodded. Cloud was not an easy person to forget about. "Yeah, I did actually."

"Can you tell me where he is?" I asked, not seeing him anywhere.

"He left a while ago. This man followed him. I don't think he really liked the man though."

"What?" I asked, not completely understanding what he was trying to tell me.

"This man was trying to flirt with Cloud. Cloud made it aware that he didn't like him that way, but the man didn't seem to get it. Next thing you know, Cloud's out the door and the man is closely behind. You know... I think I saw him try to put something inside Cloud's drink but I wasn't sure-"

I grabbed the man's collar and pulled him toward me. "Then why didn't you do something?!"

A drop of sweat dropped from the bartender's forehead. "I... I didn't know! I wasn't sure! I didn't want to hurt my chance of a generous tip, you know? Accusations make angry customers!"

"So you'd rather have a couple extra dollars in your pocket than the life of a customer?!" I spat at him through gritted teeth.

He shook his head fervently. "It's not like that-"

"Do you know what happens to people who drink spiked drinks? Do you?"

He shook his head even more.

"It involves blood. And it's not a clean result." I pushed him away from me. "Do you know who the man is?"

"No. I do know that he comes here a lot. Says he owns a storage house south of here."

"Where is south of here?" I asked, my anger starting to rise to my face.

"I don't know, but he says you should find it at an end of a street. And there's only one street here that ends and its-"

"I know where it is!" I exclaimed, picking myself up and walking away.

I didn't have much time left, but I did know that wherever that man took Cloud, it was probably at that storage place. The last place he would evidence of what he's doing is at his own home. So the storage place is the first place to visit on my list.

Before I drove off on my motorcycle, I picked up my phone and attempted to call Cloud. He didn't pick up, no surprise there. Gritting my teeth, I carelessly slipped my helmet on and accelerated down the highway.


Cloud

"Who is this Squall person trying to contact you, huh?" a man asked, showing my phone to me. "If he keeps calling, your blood is gonna be on the walls faster than I expected." Another man simply walked up to him and threw the phone on the ground, stepping on it and finally shot it.

"There. If you still get a call from him, go ahead and shoot yourself," the man assured.

I wanted to scream, but I couldn't. I was too weak to even speak. Whatever they made me drink, it certainly worked at shutting my body down. I even felt like breathing was a difficult task to do. My hands and feet were tied up, my mouth was taped down, and a gun was constantly pointed to my face. Even if I wanted to fight, I didn't exactly have options here.

But Squall. He was calling. He knows about all of this. He cared. He wanted to help.

The thought made me weakly smile behind my tape.

At that moment, the door burst open, and a familiar man with silver long hair came in with a curious face. "Who do you guys got this time?" He turned to me and stopped. I slowly looked up and widened my eyes. Can this be?

Sephiroth?! Is he here to save me?

He gulped and looked down. "On second thought, I got stuff to do guys."

"Really? But this one's a keeper."

"Nah... I'm going." And he left. He straight-up left me here with these horny rapists with guns.

I can't believe him. He's getting a word from me once I leave this.

If I leave this.

The man from the bar walked up to me and smiled, his breath suggesting he was somewhat on the influence. "So... what's your name, cutie?"

The man pointing a gun at me suddenly ripped off my tape on my mouth. My mouth throbbed, and I yelped. Everyone laughed. I looked up at the man and narrowed my eyes, deciding not to give him an answer.

"Babe, you're dying here tonight. Might as well tell me who I'm going to finish off."

I widened my eyes, tears filling them. Die? But... so many things I wanted to experience that I haven't got the chance to yet.

"Okay, that's fine. We'll nickname you Spiky. You won't ever see me or this life again so I'll tell you who I am. I'm Auron, and this is my crew here. We're not going to kill you just yet though. We're going to have some fun first. All of us. Hope you're tiny little hole can take us all in one night."

I gasped. No. I've never been raped before. Nonetheless by seven men.

"Don't," I mumbled weakly. "Don't."

They all laughed again. "Turning me down? I think not. DJ," Auron said. The man with the gun to my head pulled out a knife and suddenly sliced the rope holding my legs together in two. He pushed the gun further into my head. "You kick, I shoot. Nothing slick."

I gulped and listened. I didn't kick. But no one said I was going to open my legs.

Auron put his hands on my knees and yanked them apart, his strength alarming me. Two men held my legs apart as Auron started to remove him pants. "Put him on his knees." I was pushed forward, a gun pointed to the back of my hand, and forced into a knee position.

"Let's give me a nice hard-on first. I think you should give us a warm-up, no?" Auron asked. They all cheered in agreement. I gulped. What if this man has STD's? I'm screwed. That means if I don't die here(which I will), I'll die later on from STD's. It's a lose-lose situation.

He held my head tightly and pulled his boxers down. "Suck," he commanded.

This sounded so familiar. Only the way I remembered it it wasn't this forceful or violent. And I enjoyed it.

I pursed my lips.

"I said suck!" he shouted. The man pushed the gun harder into my head, reminding me that I didn't have a choice. But did I honestly care? I'd rather die of dignity than die of this humiliation.

"No."

"What?" Auron asked, his face contorting to anger.

I looked up at him. "No," I croaked a bit louder. Auron suddenly grabbed my neck and strangled me. All the blood rushed to my head, my face turning blood-red.

He narrowed his eyes. "You wanna die? You must be feeling suicidal, don't you?"

I winced. I really couldn't breathe.

He threw me on the floor and slapped me. I yelped, and he grabbed my head and pulled me toward his man part. I gulped as tears started to roll down my face. So this is how it's gonna end, huh? I was originally hoping for old age.

The door slammed open and a guy ran toward Auron and kicked him in the balls from the behind. Auron screamed and doubled over, clutching his dick. Serves you right, bitch.

The man ran to me, giving a better view of him. He smiled. "C'mon."

It was Squall.

My heart melted. In a good way.

"Open fire!" someone shouted, and all the men started to point their guns at Squall. He quickly grabbed me and rushed out of the door. One of them barely missed his arm, skinning it. He lightly groaned, but kept moving. Shutting the door behind him, he guided me through a series of stairs.

"How did you know I was here?" I asked.

"I put the pieces together on what the bartender told me."

"You went looking for me? Why?"

He stopped and looked at me. "Well because I-"

The door four stories in front of us slammed open and they quickly searched the stairwell. They weren't going to give up that easily. Squall suddenly picked me up and threw me over his shoulder and started to run down the last couple of stories. I gasped. This was so heroic. I felt like a princess.

I mean, cough cough, a prince.

I think.

Once we were downstairs, he kicked open the exit door and ran out, not bothering to close it. Fervently, he searched the area for something sharp. He found a broken piece of wine glass. Then he walked toward me and started cutting my ropes up.

"You're bleeding," I mumbled.

"I know."

I gazed at him. He came to save me, regardless of how his life was put in danger. And Sephiroth-

Oh, I'll remember him.

Once all my ropes on my hand were gone, Squall took my wrists and examined the red bruises and cuts from the tight roping on them. He shook his head, his face contorting to anger, and gestured for me to follow him. I did just that.

We reached a motorcycle, a very very fancy, expensive, and sexy-looking motorcycle. He took a helmet and slipped it on my head.

"What about you?" I asked.

"I'm fine."

I gulped. He was doing so much for me. And I couldn't do nothing to help him.

He looked at me. "Your car is still over at the bar. You wanna go get it, or I can drop you off at home?"

I shook my head. "I'll get it tomorrow. I think I'd rather be in the safety of my house and contemplate on things instead of drive."

He nodded and smiled. "I'm glad I found you alive." And he pulled me in a hug. I warmly hugged him back. Oh Squall, I personally believe you deserve so much more than a hug.

"You see 'em?" a man shouted.

Squall quickly hopped on the motorcycle. I hopped on behind him. He turned his head towards me. "You've ever ridden on a motorcycle before?"

I shook my head. I'm actually terrified of them, but now's not the time to say that.

He gently took my hands and put them around his waist. "Keep them there. That's your only seat-belt." I gripped him tightly in response. He lightly laughed and revved the engine, pushing his legs off the ground and rolling forward slowly.

"There!" they shouted, and started shooting again. Suddenly, a sound of police sirens came, and all the men's faces looked like they were going to pee in their pants. I grinned.

"So who called the cops?"

Squall smiled. "Did I mention that I can be a snitch sometimes?"

And the motorcycle sped down the street. I laughed and caressed Squall the entire time, completely forgetting everything that just happened and just being happy that I was safe in his company.

~~~~Cleon~~~~

As usual at two in the morning, the parking lot was empty of visitors. Only the resident parking were full, meaning Zack and Axel went off, assuming I ditched them after being out for a long time, which in fact, wasn't my choice.

Squall walked me up to my front door, a tear somehow falling down my face. Squall noticed, and stood in front of me, causing me to stop walking. He held my chin towards him and smiled. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head and smiled with him. "I'm just so happy. That I'm alive. That I wasn't able to catch any STD. That..." I wanted to say that I'm with him, but I wasn't sure that would sound right. I mean, do I love him? I couldn't say for sure. But I could say that every ounce of attraction I had left for Sephiroth was gone. I was over him.

Squall shrugged. "It's nothing, really. People do crazy things for love." I titled my head in confusion and examined his face. It was almost as if he was speaking to himself and didn't remember I was hear.

I looked at Squall's arm. "You should come inside. I have something that can fix that." Yes squall, I am inviting you into my house. Where only the people I truly care about come inside. Not even my dad came in. Well that's because... well fuck dad.

Squall held his hand up. "I shouldn't. I have people that can take car of this for me. It's fine. I'll just-"

"No, really-"

"I don't want you feeling like you have to treat me like this because I-"

I put my index finger on his lips, having to go on my tippy toes to reach it. "Squall. Please."

"Just call me Leon."

My cheeks turned pink while my insides melted again. He told me to call him Leon. A nickname that he only allowed his brother to say. Such an advancement, going from calling him "boss" or "Mr. Leonhart" to simply Leon. It made me feel special.

"Leon, come inside." I grabbed his hand, a spark being felt between us, and I pulled him inside my apartment.

Leon

I looked around, observing the nicely-sized TV in a room full of well-placed couches, accompanied by a couple of half-filled plastic cups. Around the room everything was nicely arranged, but had a couple of "accessories" ruining the illusion. I didn't care. The fact that I was in Cloud's home made me high.

"I'm sorry," he laughed, running toward areas in room where there were misplaced dishware, clothes, and papers while picking them up. "As you can see, I can be a bit messy." He blushed. "Or a lot."

I shook my head and smiled. "It's fine, really."

While he was organizing the place, I walked over to a desk with some pictures on it. There was one of him as a little toddler, grinning happily, his bright blue eyes lighting up. There was one of him on a swing, a boy about his size pushing him. There was one where he had his hand over another boy's shoulder, both of them looking to be about 12 with smiles on their faces. One had dark spiky hair and the other had smooth blonde. Cloud used to have smooth hair?

Moving along the timeline, I was able to observe how Cloud's hair slowly got spiky over the years, and how his face started to mature but his short stature remained. The same boy with him in the swing pictures continued to be with him on the others, only you could see that he was getting a lot taller and maturing as well.

It ended in two photos being closely together. One being a picture of Cloud in a gown holding a diploma in the air, caressing a very young woman with almost the same facial features as him. They both looked genuinely happy. The last photo was a picture of the same guy that opened the door for me to this same house earlier along with Cloud. Both of them were doing funny faces while pointing at each other, and the frame said "Best Friends Forever and Always."

"I see you stumbled across my photo collection," Cloud mumbled as he walked up to me. I looked around and sure enough, the house was spotless. He moves quick.

"Yeah. I noticed the same number of people show up in these repetitively. You mind telling me who they are?" I asked softly. I liked how the tension between us wasn't there anymore. How I felt so relaxed next to him. How I didn't have to hold up a wall and make him feel nervous. I didn't see him as a worker and he didn't see me as his boss anymore. He saw me as Leon.

"It's my mom and Zack, my best friend. I had a small family, but... they were all I needed." He smiled at the thought.

I nodded. I wanted to ask about his dad, but I felt like I would be sticking my nose in his business, and I didn't want him to see me as nosy. But sure enough, he looked at my face and nodded. "You want to know about my dad?"

I quickly turned to him. "Oh! Oh, that's, uh..."

"My dad divorced my mom when I was 13. And it was because of me. When I came out to him at 11, it seemed to completely shatter his little world of a family with a straight-son who would carry on his name and give him grandchildren. But it wasn't like that. He was getting the feeling that I was gay since I was five, but it seemed like telling him straight-forward just blew the whole thing up. He started to hate my mom more and more. Two year later he finally he told her that she was a piece of shit for birthing a gay son. Then he just took off, not telling me anything. It devastated my mom, and it made me feel horrible, like I was to blame. But my mom assured me that it wasn't my fault, and continued to love me. She never judged me. And I love her to death for that. At that time I was very clingy, since I lost my only father. But they didn't care. Zack and my mom comforted me and stuck with me even when I needed them the most. You can't find people better than that."

I nodded. and empathized. I understood where he was coming from. Cloud, I mean.

Cloud turned to me. "Well now you're added to the group of people I care about." He grinned, his perfectly white and straight teeth showing. He was as beautiful as his mother. And she was really lucky to have a son like him.

"You still want to know why I only hire pretty people at work?"

Cloud nodded, his eyes widening.

"Let's sit down," I told him, and he led me to a the room full of couches. I started to sit on one, but he stopped me.

"I suggest you don't sit on that one for now."

I nodded and looked at it, noticing something dry and crusty on it. I didn't ask what it was, but I had a feeling I knew.

I sighed. He was the first person I would ever tell about this. Not even Rufus knows. Not even my family knows. Just him. Because he was special. I felt connected to him somehow.

"It's a long story," I warned.

Cloud smiled. "So you gonna start?"

I took a deep breath.

"I came from a very wealthy family. And a stuck-up one too. I was an only child at the time. My father had many wives over the years. He slipped up on one of them and had me. He didn't want any children. It slowed him down on his progress to even bigger success. And so he hated me. He would avoid me as much as possible, and tell lies to his wife, causing her to hate me too. Constantly, people would compliment our family and say how we were all so beautiful, especially the son. It made him jealous of me, and he hated me even more. I was under constant pressure to be the best, never settle for less. I never had any friends, or pets. I was alone almost 24/7, seeing as how my father was always out. I was underage though, and couldn't stay alone at night. And so he hired a nanny.

"The nanny was a thief though. Once a pattern of missing jewelry and artwork was connected to her, she was fired, and they never trusted a commoner in the house again. The only person that was constantly available was my retired yet rich uncle. I didn't know him. He didn't know me. But he watched me. And I listened to him. After all, he was the only person who took care of me in a big, empty mansion.

"I was tutored privately, and I had a different tutor for each subject. I learned to play many instruments, and I was well-advanced with handling money. I was always reminded of how beautiful I was, and that I should use that to my extent. It got old after a while, and I disregarded it. I never cared about how beautiful I was at the time. Regardless of the compliments my father got about me, he still hated me. And every time someone told him how handsome I was, he would get angry.

"When I was a preteen, I came to realize I was different from the rest of the family. My parents would always bring home different female ares of rich people, showing me my options to marry when I grew up. But I wasn't interested in the slightest way in any of them. I never was. One day he brought home a boy about my age, comparing his successes to mine, and he noticed my sudden interest in him, regardless of my attempt to hide it. I didn't know what I was going through myself. I just knew I was different. My father later pulled me in, and told me I was gay. No hesitations. Just blunt. He told me he didn't care, as long as I kept my success as my main goal. I listened to him and accepted the newly found fact that I was gay.

"That's when my uncle started to treat me differently. He would give me nasty looks and make it his aim to make me feel stupid and useless. He would walk around naked and ridicule me about it, claiming that I was attracted to him and I wanted to do 'dirty things' to him. I was deeply hurting inside, and I felt like an outcast. But after all those years spent learning how to say only 'yes' and 'no' without adding any opinions, I learned how to keep emotions to myself. And almost 24/7, I had a poker face. So I never showed any of my pain. I simply ignored him.

"But my uncle started to get more aggressive and invasive as the years went by. He would sit in the bathroom and watch me take a bath, sometimes forcefully jumping in washing my body himself. I would come to my bed at night only to see a bunch of gay magazines staring at me. He would take my underwear and towels away and force me t walk around the house naked to find them, staring at me the entire time I did it. When I did my homework, he would touch me in places that shouldn't be touched. My parents knew what was going on. They just decided to ignore it, since they had no one else to watch over me. Seeing this not only made them hate me, I started to hate them back.

"Finally one day I had some free time, and I was reading. My uncle came to me, a knife in his pocket, and he sat next to me. I can remember that evil grin on his face, how he knew what he was doing. He forced himself on me, kissing me and touching me. No matter how much I tried to push him away, he was much stronger than me. When my uncle was starting to go too far, I finally gave my input, something I have never done. 'Stop it,' I had said. But he ignored me. 'You stop it," I continued, pushing harder and harder for him to get off. 'This is disgusting and I don't like you! Get off me now!' I had finally shouted, and he pulled away, shocked at the tone I had. I was shocked myself. Never have I done that in my life at the time. Like I said, I only gave firm 'yeses' and 'nos' with a straight face, never have I screamed a personal feeling of mine.

"This caused my uncle to snap. He kept commenting how I think I'm too good for him, how I'm too good for everyone. Hearing himself reason made him angrier and angrier. He scared me, and for once I showed it on my face, my fear, my feeling that he was going to do something that would traumatize me for the rest of my life. He yanked my clothes off and tried dragging me to the couch, I held on to everything I could, knocking expensive glass statues and family paintings. I screamed for help, but the mansion was big and it only had the two of us. No one heard me. I was on my own.

"He pulled out his... his penis, and he jabbed it in me. It hurt a hell of a lot, seeing how nothing ever went in there before. He would put it in my mouth and force me to swallow, that salty nastiness. He punched me in my face, causing me to fall over. In a last attempt to get away from him, I crawled to a corner, pain filling me everywhere. 'Please... stop," I had managed to speak. He laughed evilly while watching me crawl, and then he kicked me. I would always get up, and he kept kicking me until I stopped getting up. He rolled me over and screamed in my face, telling me how he would make sure that I couldn't think I was better than everyone anymore. And he just pulled out a knife and blindly scraped it across my face. Because i moved my face, it ended up only cutting across my nose. I remember screaming in agony, clutching my face. 'What did you do to me?!' I remember screaming. He just laughed. 'Ugly you are and ugly you will be for the rest of your life.' That's what he told me.

"I hid myself in my room for days, scared to show my face to anyone. I had a black eye, a swollen lip, scratches from the broken glass on my legs, and a cut across my nose. Before I never cared about my beauty that everyone loved to tell me I had. But after that event, that was all I worried about. I would constantly stare in the mirror and cry, realizing I would never look the same. My parents stopped bringing me in public to their business conventions. My father refused to give me eye contact on those very few times he actually came home. My mother was repulsed at my presence. They knew everything that happened. But they didn't care. They didn't say a word either and they threatened me not to say anything as well.

"After a couple of weeks the bruises and scabs finally healed, and my face got its original complexion back. But my nose never healed. It was ugly. My tutors never complimented on my looks anymore. My parents never got any either. I was no longer 'perfect.' I was flawed.

"I started to hate mirrors over the years, to the point where I couldn't even look at one anymore. I always feared at what would look back at me. I hated myself. I longed for the old comments on how beautiful I was. the ones I used to not even care about. I learned to accept who I was. As I grew up, I met a man who I got along with well. You met him. His name's Rufus Shinra. He was from a wealthy family as well. We both had the same ambitions: to own a computer tech business and become successful. I didn't love him, and he didn't love me, but we clicked very well. And so we got married. I was hoping I would later fall in love with him and vice versa, but we didn't. And it was starting to not work out.

"His hours would interfere with mine. We would never see each other. There would be nights where one of us came home but the other didn't. We would argue a lot. So we decided to end the relationship. He moved out, and I was alone again. The good thing about having Rufus around is that he helped me forget about my past pains, and he would always disregard my scar on my face. When he was gone, it forced me to remember it, and sometimes I couldn't help but wonder if it was my scar that made us separate. It's an inner weakness of mine I get touchy about. People may see it as stupid. But I see it as a flashing sign on my face that prevents me from moving on from the past. I'm always forced to remember it.

"After that, I fired all of the people I personally believed weren't as physically blessed as other workers. People with ugly flaws were fired too, like fat people, wrinkles and acne. Everyone was forced to succumb to a strict rule and keep up their beauty. I put the retirement age at an immense drop, going from 65 to 45. When I saw a person that was significantly less attractive than the rest, or even a pretty person with a defined flaw that lowered their attractiveness, it instantly reminded me of myself, and I hated that feeling. I noticed myself becoming stricter and moodier, disregarding people's feelings and just doing everything I wanted, kind of like my father. I hated who I was becoming, but I couldn't stop it. But then you came and..."

Cloud continued to gaze at me, waiting for me to finish.

I sighed. "You changed things."

Cloud nodded and bit his bottom lip. "I'm so sorry. Here I was moping about my shit-headed dad, and here you are with a much worse past than mine."

I shook my head and lightly smiled. "It's fine, Cloud. The past is the past. I just have to learn to move on."

"If it means anything to you, I think you're beautiful."

I stopped and stared at him, trying to contemplate on the words he just told me. "Please don't give me any sympathy words. It hurts more than just not saying anything at all."

"No, I mean it." He got up and walked over to me, sitting next to me and leaning on me. "I think you're beautiful. I actually had a crush on you for a while."

For a while. Meaning, he's over it now. But the fact that he called me beautiful had me. I looked down at him. "What happened to that crush now?"

"I don't know. I stopped calling it a crush because I realized it's something much deeper now." He looked up at me, creating eye contact between us, and smiled. His smile warmed my insides. Cloud was undefinable. I couldn't find a good word to describe him, but I just knew that I needed him in my life.

We both stared at each other, and then Cloud got up. "I should really, uhh... fix that wound on your arm."

"It's not a wound. The bullet barely skinned me-"

"Barely skinning doesn't make someone bleed."

"It didn't even hurt. It's fine."

"Is everything fine to you?"

"Cloud, all it needs really is a Band-Aid."

"Yeah, because Band-Aids fix everything. They even fixed my herpes," Cloud droned sarcastically. I was learning to get accustomed to Cloud's dry humor. It was a part of him. He used it for everything. As a weapon, to make a sad person happy, even to comfort himself when he was doubting the world. So I just have to accept that that's how Cloud is.

"Herpes? Sheesh. That's bad. But my so-called 'wound' isn't. A bullet skinning skin is a scrape. Herpes is an infection."

"Well as long as we have our trusty Band-Aids, an infection doesn't seem that bad either, does it?" Cloud asked me. Then we both laughed. That was our first mini fight. And I didn't mind it.

"Alright, fine. I'll let you treat my arm. But don't strain yourself."

I should've known Cloud would strain himself. After thoroughly searching the place for some gauze, alcohol, and disinfecting ointment, he took his precious time treating it. I didn't mind though. We both talked together as well as shared some laughs. We got to know each other even better than we did before. I felt even closer to him. I didn't want this night(more like early morning) to end.

"And...there," Cloud stated, closing up the gauze on my arm and lightly patting it. "Take it easy on that arm or else it'll reopen."

"This gauze?"

"That wound." He looked me and smiled. "You know you're really strong, right?"

I looked to at him in confusion. "How?"

He pointed to my arms. "Your arms are so... big and buff. You weren't even flexing and it was swollen with muscle." Cloud looked down, blushing. "I wish I had that kind of muscle. Makes me wonder what's under your shirt too." He widened his eyes as his whole face tinged rose. "That wasn't meant to be said out loud."

I laughed. "Thank you. You don't need muscles anyway. If you weren't so delicate and short like you are now, how would you pull off your cuteness?"

He rolled his eyes and pouted. He looked so adorable when he did that to his lips. His pink, full, moist, kissable lips.

"Yeah, whatever," he mumbled.

I rolled my eyes. "So how do you know how to treat this 'wound' so good?"

Cloud tilted his head to the side. "You didn't know? I went to college to major in medicine. I wanted to be a doctor."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "Really? You still studying?"

He shook his head, his smile still there but his eyes filling with sadness. "I couldn't stay. My mom couldn't afford to pay for it much longer. And then my mom had to get a kidney transplant... it was too much money. I didn't want to cause that much burden on her. So I took my savings and spent it on her kidney. Then I just took on waiting tables to pay for my bills. Well, until now."

"And the college?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I gave it up. I can always go back to that." He looked down, his eyes filling with happiness again. "I'm just happy my mom is alive and healthy. I don't know what I'd do without her. Without Zack either. Without..." he looked back up at me and smiled wider. "Without you."

I smiled along with him. He gave up his future and waited tables in exchange for his mother's life. He'd rather have family than success. I didn't even know my family's whereabouts to this day.

"Cloud," I mumbled.

"Hmm?" he replied.

I got up, walked over to him, and kissed him. Not a lustful kiss like at the office. But a sweet one. An appreciative one. One that would give him the message that I wouldn't know what to do if he wasn't in my life either. He made me feel whole. Like I had meaning in life. Like I was beautiful.

We made a sucking sound as we parted. I looked down at our hands. I didn't even realize we were holding each other's. I looked back up at him and he was smiling. "You're different from the rest of the people I've met in my life. It's insanely hard to get you out of my mind, no matter how hard I try."

Cloud raised an eyebrow. "Is that a good thing?"

I laughed. "That's a good thing. That means I won't forget about you, no matter how far you push me away one day."

Cloud rolled his eyes, and then he sighed and really pulled away from me, letting go of my hands. "I'm afraid I gotta kick you out," he said with a coy grin.

I raised my eyebrows. "Oh really?"

"It's getting late, and I got work tomorrow. My boss might be angry, you know?" he reminded me, and he winked.

I grinned. "Alright, guess I spent up all my hospitality." I lightly kissed Cloud's forehead. "Please stay safe."

He nodded. "I promise. No more late-night journeys alone."

I waved and I stepped out of the apartment, closing the door behind me. As I was walking, Cloud opened his window and called out to me. I looked up at him and gave him my attention. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything! For saving me. For being here with me...everything."

I nodded. "Anytime."

Suddenly he threw something at me. I looked down and picked it up, further analyzing it. It was a Trojan condom. I widened my eyes and looked up at him. He was biting his bottom lip in a coy, flirty way. He winked and then he closed his window, and I saw the lights turn off, basically meaning there were no questions to be asked. I looked back down at the condom, still in shock. What was he trying to tell me?

Well what else does a condom say? He wants to fuck!

No he doesn't. He's just showing how deep his feelings are about you, Leon. He really likes you.

Oh come on! It's obvious the man lusts for you. He wants. The D.

This condom is a token showing that he officially removed all the barriers in your relationship. He just DTR'd.

What the fuck is that?

It's Define The Relationship.

Hey Leon. Cloud wants to be your boyfrien. And don't worry about the D. That comes later, along with this condom in your hand!

Leon, go to sleep.

And the voices left my head. I sighed an ran my hand down my face. Why was Cloud so complicated?

I then lightly smiled to myself. If he wasn't complicated, he wouldn't be as interesting.

I just shook my head, laughing, and went on my motorcycle, heading home.