A/N: Okay, so a little longer than expected to write this chapter. It was written in 15-20 minute intervals when I found a free moment here and there so I'm sorry if it doesn't flow like the rest. I also felt, while writing this chapter, that it is more of a filler chapter. I'm sorry if it's not up to standards and I hope to remedy that with the next, but until I find time to actually write that chapter please feel free to drop me a review? Enjoy!

-o-o-o-

Cloud followed Leon out of his room, a pace behind, watching in awe as the brunet led them to the kitchen. He couldn't get over what had just happened; his dream had come true. He never considered himself to be a romantic but he always dreamed that he would meet someone who genuinely cared about him, someone he could have fun with and was as secure about his sexuality as he was. Being drop-dead gorgeous didn't hurt, either.

Still, he had a hard time comprehending that this was all real; that he wasn't going to wake up to find himself alone in bed with the pit of his stomach dropping with disappointment. At that moment, Leon glanced back at him, a quiet contentment in his eyes telling Cloud that he had no reservations about potentially exposing their new-found relationship to his roommate. Cloud smiled at Leon. He was so damn happy.

They entered the kitchen just as Irvine took a seat next to Zell at the table, breakfast already in front of them.

"'Mornin'" Irvine greeted, smiling at Cloud before looking down at his paper.

"Good morning," Cloud responded, causing Zell to look up.

"You two came in late last night." Zell commented, grinning at Leon.

"Keeping tabs on me now?" Leon said nonchalantly, making his way to the fridge.

Cloud wasn't sure whether he should follow Leon or stay near the doorway. He took a few steps into the kitchen before stopping, rocking back on his heels and shoving his hands in his pockets. He still felt a bit of the headache from the night before but the dizziness came from what happened that morning.

"Gotta watch over you, ya know?" Zell responded, winking at Cloud and earning a smile in return.

"Sure…" Leon looked over his shoulder at Cloud and beckoned him over. "You cook the eggs and I'll cook the bacon." he instructed, handing Cloud a carton of eggs.

Cloud grinned and nodded as he took the carton, watching Leon pull out a couple of frying pans out of the lower cupboard.

"Have fun last night?" Zell asked, all of a sudden not interested in the newspaper in front of him.

"Yeah," Leon answered, not acknowledging Zell in any other way.

"Where did you end up eating?" Irvine asked, putting down his paper.

Leon looked over at Cloud then refocused on the stove. "Teethers." he answered, pouring oil into the pan.

"Teethers?!" Zell asked enthusiastically before getting a kick to the shin courtesy of Irvine. "Good food." he recovered, glaring at Irvine before looking back at the two by the stove.

Leon ignored Zell as he threw of strips of bacon on the heating pan. Cloud began the eggs and looked over at Zell.

"It was good food. It was a good suggestion."

"Zell has good taste." Irvine added, glaring at Zell once Cloud turned back to the frying pan.

"I have good taste." Zell said mechanically, not trying to hide the fact that he was a little surprised at the information he'd just learned.

Leon glanced over at Zell with indifference before turning back to the task at hand. He wasn't surprised that Zell was being weird; it just annoyed him a bit.

Cloud, seemingly oblivious of what was going on around him, simply smiled.

"What are you two up to today?" Irvine asked, deciding that it would have to be up to him to break the momentary awkward silence filling the room.

Leon pursed his lips before looking over to Cloud. Cloud looked back at Leon and offered a quick shrug before tending to the eggs.

"Don't know yet." Leon answered quietly.

"Maybe we could take a walk?" Cloud suggested. "It looks like its really nice outside."

Leon looked back at Cloud and although his expression offered nothing, his eyes seemed to lighten. "That would be nice."

Zell snorted then pouted playfully. "Aww… the lovers don't want to spend time with us, Irvine. My heart just broke a little."

Both Leon and Cloud looked over at Zell; neither surprised but both reeling slightly over the older blond's comment.

"Stop being a dick." Irvine said coolly, sipping on his coffee. "New love needs time to grow uninterrupted."

Cloud held his breath at the 'L' word and tried not to look back at Leon to see how the brunet took it. Of course, he only had the self-restraint for a few seconds before his eyes met blue-gray.

It wasn't all that uncommon, but Cloud couldn't get a reading from Leon's eyes as they roamed from Irvine to Zell then finally to his. He still held his breath waiting for an indication of whether he should laugh, scowl, or just ignore the other two.

"I just want to spend some time with Cloud." Leon finally responded, eyes shifting back to Irvine. Cloud's heart stopped. Was Leon attempting to hide their relationship already? He fought the urge to frown before Leon spoke again.

"Our relationship is only a half an hour old. Forgive us for not wanting to hang out with you two idiots."

Cloud grinned at Leon, earning a twitch of the lips in return before flipping the bacon.

"Is that what you think of us?" Zell asked, renewing his pout and slumping his shoulders.

Irvine shot Zell a playful glare before smiling up at the two boys at the stove. "A half an hour old – wow."

Cloud grinned then smiled at Irvine as Leon took the eggs from him and piled them on the plates.

"Was that before or after you boinked?" Zell asked with a proud smirk.

Irvine kicked him in the shin once again as Cloud's head whipped around to stare dumbly at the other blond.

"It's not like that." he said a little too defensively than he had intended.

"Don't explain yourself to him, Cloud." Irvine said, shaking his head. "It'll only encourage him."

Leon took the plates to the two free chairs at the table. Cloud followed, still watching the evil grin play across Zell's lips.

"If we 'boinked', as you so charmingly put it, then you would have heard it." Leon said coolly drawing a rich laugh from both Zell and Irvine. Cloud was just stunned.

"I suppose we would have." Zell laughed, rubbing his eyes before dropping his hand to the table. "So this relationship isn't built on sex. Hmm… you must really love each other, then."

Cloud flinched at the 'L' word and again tried not to look over at Leon. Irvine looked over at Zell with a grin before shaking his head. "Cloud is never going to want to come back here after this morning because of you, you know. Think of poor Leon and shut your mouth, dipshit."

Cloud managed to look over at Leon with bewildered eyes just as Leon looked back at him. Cloud tried to grin to assure Leon that what Irvine had said wasn't the truth but he wasn't sure if Leon caught on. Those eyes held stony indifference as the brunet mouthed the words 'I'm sorry'.

Cloud's grin turned into a smile before he shook his head. "You know as well as I do that I can handle stupid people." Leon's eyes softened before the blond continued. "I'm not running out the door just yet."

Cloud thought he saw a smile threatening to escape Leon but the brunet had a lot of practice hiding it so it never broke the surface. This caused his smile to widen before he looked back at the other two. "There's nothing you can say that will offend me to the point where I won't come back to see Leon, so do your worst."

Two things happened at this point: one – both Zell and Irvine smirked evilly as if they were just given permission to unleash hell, and two – Leon's ran a hand down his face and mumbled something along the lines of 'you don't realize the can of worms you've just opened'. Each alone would have been enough to make Cloud slightly uncomfortable; together, the blond wondered what he had just done. The blond grinned at Zell and shrugged his shoulders. "I've seen worse. No contest."

In all honestly, Cloud was almost welcoming the teasing that seemed to have been expected by Leon. Getting teased about his new boyfriend by said boyfriend's roommate and friend was a thousand times better than what he put up with at home..

"Oh, Cloud, my new friend…" Zell chuckled. "You have spunk. I like that!"

Irvine grinned and nodded his head. "We kid because we love – just keep that in mind over the next little while and all should be fine."

Cloud smiled then looked back at Leon who seemed to be trying to focus on his food without comment. Blue-gray rose from the plate and met baby blue. "You're taking responsibility for anything that happens from these two." he said with an indifferent tone. "Don't say you weren't warned."

"You'll come to my rescue." Cloud responded, eyes roaming over the brunet's gorgeous features with adoration. "You always do."

Leon's eyes searched Cloud's before he gave a short nod, the corner of his mouth twitching. "Yeah, I will."

Cloud smiled as Zell and Irvine began cooing and dramatically pretending to sob over the beauty of a new-found relationship. Cloud ignored them as he held Leon's eyes. Nothing could bother him when he knew he had Leon.

-.-.-.-

Leon found some fresh clothes for Cloud to change into as Cloud showered. After Cloud walked out of the bathroom wrapped only in a towel, Leon took his shower leaving Cloud to dress and wait for him to finish so they could go on their walk.

Once dressed, Cloud hugged himself as he glanced around the bedroom. Leon's pleasant scent surrounded him but that didn't stop him from taking in the aroma in from the shirt he was wearing. He couldn't get enough of it.

As his eyes wandered, he began to get the urge to look through Leon's stuff. He wasn't sure what he wanted to look for but he wanted to see what Leon had. The blond wondered whether this was a really bad thing to do; what would Leon think if he caught the blond shuffling through his desk and nightstand? Cloud grinned as he took a seat on the edge of the bed. H felt better from the previous night's drinking and with everything that had happened since then, he felt on top of the world.

The most private stuff is usually kept in the nightstand… he told himself as his eyes drifted towards that piece of furniture. It was tempting… but if Leon caught him… I'd hear the shower stop before he came out of the bathroom… Cloud told himself, eyes trying to peer through the wooden nightstand.

The blond slowly lifted himself from the bed and wandered over innocently to Leon's nightstand and tried to determine how bad of a new boyfriend he would be if he were to rummage just a little. He glanced back towards the bathroom before making up his mind. Just a small peek couldn't hurt and Leon wouldn't even know about it.

Cloud sat on the bed again and slowly opened the drawer to the nightstand. He tried to stop himself from smiling but couldn't stop his guilty smirk. There wasn't a whole lot inside the small drawer and he was thankful it wasn't filled with things that would make him blush. Inside there was only a small notebook. The blond looked down at the notebook and wondered if it would be so horrible if he were to flip through a few of the pages. He gently picked up the notebook and examined the blank cover as if it would offer some sort of hint of its contents.

Upon finding nothing useful form the blank cover, as expected, Cloud glanced up at the bathroom door before flipping through a few pages. Leon's neat handwriting filled pages upon pages and Cloud stopped at one entry dated eight months ago and began reading.

'No known end of time, but that's to be expected.

What else are we to know but time and more time?

I'll wait, but for how long?

I'll endure, but to what extent?

No known end to my patience, but I will fight.

Someday, but not today

I need a cause, but not for myself.

Am I worth it? Is he worth it?

No known answer, but that's to be expected

As well.'

Cloud frowned as he read over the entry again and shook his head. He wasn't sure what exactly the brunet was writing about but he had an idea. The blond let out a sigh before flipping through the pages to a newer entry dated a few months back.

'Paul Weller said it best…

"We'll smile, but only for seconds

for to be caught smiling is to acknowledge life.

A brave but useless show of compassion

and that is forbidden in this drab and colourless world."

- Wasteland lyrics.'

This next entry caused the blond to frown further just as he heard the shower being turned off. His heart skipped a beat as he closed the notebook and placed it back into the drawer, closing it quietly, and stood up from the bed. He did not expect to find something so depressing when he decided to rummage through Leon's drawer and he began to feel a little guilty about his curiosity.

To come off as innocent as possible, Cloud began making the bed before laying down on the tidy comforter. Leon's written words echoed in his thoughts and the blond wondered what had caused these thoughts to come from Leon's mind.

Am I worth it? Is he worth it?

'He', meaning Seifer? Leon's former lover? That thought caused a pang of jealously to jolt through the blond's chest. You're worth it, Leon… he said in his own mind, scowling at the thought of Seifer immediately after. He's not worth it; an idiot who would pass up on such a perfect boyfriend…

Drab and colourless world… Cloud ran through this line a few times before he heard the bathroom door open. He turned his head and happiness replaced his former dark mood.

"Hey…" the blond said, smiling as Leon towel-dried his hair.

Leon was dressing in his jeans with his shirt hanging over his shoulder. "You made the bed." the brunet commented, watching the blond sit up and swing his feet to the ground.

"I did." Cloud said a little uneasily. "When do you want to take off?"

Leon tossed his towel into the laundry basket then pulled on his shirt, completely oblivious to the gawking stare he was receiving from a very impressed Cloud. "Whenever you want to go, I guess."

"Is everything all right?" Cloud asked next, trying to recover from his infatuation with the brunet's body. He realized after he had asked that it was a misplaced question. Leon was being himself this morning and the cause for Cloud's concern was based on what he had just read. Of course, Leon had no idea what Cloud did when he was in the shower and the blond decided to drop this subject if Leon didn't press the issue.

"Everything's…" Leon started, thinking for a moment before making his way to stand in front of Cloud. "Everything's good. I'm happy."

Cloud couldn't stop his smile from spreading widely across his face as he stood up close to Leon. "I'm happy too. You have no idea."

Leon's lips twitched before he gently pulled Cloud into a warm hug; his arms wrapping around the blond affectionately before resting his head against the Cloud's. "I have an idea. I'm just… happy."

Cloud snuggled closer to the brunet and inhaled his scent deeply. His body tingled with anticipation as he wrapped his arms around Leon's body and squeezed. "I'll get you to smile one of these days…" the blond murmured as he tilted his head against the brunet's. "I bet you have a really pretty smile."

"Smile?" Leon asked, pulling his head back to look into Cloud's eyes while keeping his body close. "I can be happy without smiling, can't I?"

Cloud smiled back up at Leon. "I'm sure you can but I want to see it eventually."

"You can show happiness without smiling." Leon countered, his voice holding a tint of playfulness.

"Show me." Cloud re-countered, his smile turning into a grin.

Leon's eyes narrowed before shaking his head. "Can I get back to you on that?"

Cloud giggled and rested his head against Leon's shoulder. "Sure…" As much as he wanted to see his boyfriend smile, he wasn't going to push the issue. He just wanted to soak up as much of this feeling he was feeling right now as possible.

They stood that way, holding one another, for another minute before Leon tilted his head and kissed Cloud's temple. "Where do you want to walk?"

"Nowhere in particular. I just wanted to do something with you." the blond answered, sighing happily at Leon's affections.

Leon planted another kiss on Cloud's temple before pulling back a step and looked into the blond's eyes. "We'll find our way."

Cloud's eyes held Leon's for a moment before he nodded.

Although the sun was shining in what seemed to be full force, a cool breeze stuck in the air making the day a perfect temperature. Cloud couldn't be happier with the weather and an added perk was that the wind carried Leon's scent around him from the clothes he was wearing, constantly reminding him of just how lucky he was.

At first, Leon and Cloud walked in almost silence, a comfortable silence with a few comments here and there about things they passed on the street. They made their way to the park they were at the night before and headed down a bike trail that connected to a network of others. Cloud was more than happy to try and get lost with Leon in the web of trails leading all over town.

Before too long Leon stopped and looked into the sky; his eyes focusing on something Cloud couldn't see.

"Cloud, come here." Leon said, eyes remaining upwards as Cloud moved to stand closer to him. The blond looked up but was unsure of what he was looking for.

Leon reached over and pulled the blond a little closer before pointing up into a tree above their heads.

"What am I looking for?" Cloud asked, his eyes following where Leon was pointing, roaming the branches.

"Genus Agapornis." Leon said, leaning his head closer to Cloud's in attempt to redirect the blond's line of site. "Up there, second branch up."

"Genus-what?" Cloud asked before a flicker of colour caught his eye. "Oh my goodness…" Two colourful birds sat on a branch huddled against one another. The birds looked like parrots and seemed so perfectly happy to just chill in the sun with one another. "Are they parrots?" the blond asked, watching one of the birds nuzzle its head against the other.

"Genus Agapornis. 'Love birds'." Leon answered, lowering his hand taking Cloud's hand in his own. "They're African birds. They must have been owned as pets at one time…"

"What are they doing out here?" Cloud asked, watching the birds while marveling in delight as Leon's hand closed around his.

"They eat small fruits and insects so they must have found somewhere close-by that's a good food source." Leon answered.

"They're a long ways away from Africa." Cloud said, looking back at Leon before his eyes drifted back up to the love birds in the tree.

"At least they're happy." Leon responded. "Doesn't matter where they are as long as they're with each other."

Cloud looked over to Leon with a soft smile. The brunet was still looking up at the birds as Cloud squeezed his hand lightly, drawing the brunet's attention back down to him. "I know the feeling."

Leon's eyes narrowed slightly before he pulled Cloud closer to him and captured the blond's lips with his own in a gentle, light kiss. Such a simple gesture has astronomical effects on the blond. He couldn't help himself from leaning into the kiss and deepening it almost immediately; pressing his body against Leon's and wrapping his arms around the brunet's neck.

Leon didn't seem to mind the blond's loss of control as he responded to the intensified kiss without delay and pulled the blond, if at possible, closer to his own body.

To say the kiss didn't have a profound effect on Cloud would be a lie. He recognized certain signs of his growing loss of control instantaneously but lacked the self discipline to put an end to the passionate kiss that was growing more heated by the second. Like the need for air, the kiss they shared was instinctual and neither one was willing to fight the pull they felt towards one another at that moment.

It wasn't until a bell from a couple of bypassing bikers cut through the air before both boys broke the kiss and stepped out of the way to clear a path. Cloud lowered his head and rested it against Leon's chest. Leon kept his arms around the blond as the cyclists passed with friendly smiles.

Cloud drew a deep breath before looking back up at the love birds sitting in the tree above their heads. They looked as happy and content as he felt right now, maybe minus the excitement he was recovering from due to their passionate kiss.

The blond was so perfectly content watching the birds nuzzle against one another above while he stood in Leon's arms. He left the brunet shift slightly before a gust of warm air brushed against his neck. Cloud's features slackened from the exhilaration as he felt Leon's lips caress his neck gently before planting a couple of long kisses against his now overly heated skin.

"Leon…" Cloud almost moaned as the brunet trailed kisses over his skin, making their way towards his earlobe.

Leon made a quiet humming noise as he continued to kiss a trail that ignited Cloud's body on fire. Cloud was panting at this point as his eyes fluttered shut, his head still tilted upwards, as Leon sent wave after wave of pleasure through his body.

Cloud moaned again involuntarily as he felt a gust of warm air over his ear before Leon stopped his ministrations.

"Cloud…" he whispered lowly, lips brushing against Cloud's earlobe delicately before pulling back to look into the blond's face.

Cloud lowered his head from the trees and opened his eyes to meet gray-blue watching him intently.

"Cloud, I'm sorry…" the brunet said lowly.

Cloud narrowed his eyes and watched the blue-gray storm in Leon's eyes swirl. "Sorry for what?"

Leon shook his head a took a step back from the blond causing said blond to reach for his hand to ensure he didn't make it too far. "I shouldn't have just done that." The brunet answered, looking down at his hand in Cloud's. He began rubbing circles across the back of Cloud's hand with his thumb.

Cloud smiled then gave Leon's hand a firm squeeze. He tilted his head and watched as Leon tried to focus on anything else but him. "Why would you be apologizing for that? I liked it."

Leon's eyes remained down on Cloud's hand in his own. "I said I wanted to take it slow then I do something like that…" the brunet said lowly. "I don't want to lose control then do things that make it impossible not to. I'm sorry."

Cloud's smile widened. He lifted his hand, bringing Leon's up with it and kissed the back of Leon's hand, gray-blue eyes shifting up to meet crystal blue. "Stop apologizing…"

Leon watched Cloud's eyes on him before letting out a soft sigh. "You're so tantalizing… Either you're naturally this enticing or you're a very good actor."

Cloud chuckled then started walking again, hand still in Leon's. "I generally try to be somewhat modest, but I've never been one for theatrics."

Leon let out a puff of air, probably in amusement before he met Cloud's pace. "I believe that."

Idle chitchat filled the space between them as they continued their walk through the web of bike trails throughout the town. Cloud was simply glowing as Leon periodically gave his hand a gentle squeeze now and again and Cloud would return them affectionately. It all seemed too good to be true.

"What do you think Tony is going to say when he finds out about us?" Leon asked randomly after a brief pause in conversation.

Cloud looked down at the pavement before biting his lower lip. "Doesn't matter. I don't care what he will think or say."

"You don't think things will get worse between you two?" Leon asked, looking over at the slightly frowning blond.

"Maybe," the blond responded. "But after your attack on Friday he might back off."

"Maybe…" Leon replied before pausing for a brief second. "I think he might still have feelings for you."

Cloud looked over to his boyfriend with a look of disgust. "Why, for the love of everything that is Holy, would you think that? You remember that he kicks the shit out of me, right?"

"To prove that he's not gay to his friends, sure, but he also has latched onto the idea trying to ensure I join his group of friends and not yours."

"Maybe he has feelings for you, then." Cloud responded without missing a beat.

"He doesn't know me." Leon retorted just as quickly.

"Then maybe he finds you utterly irresistible and drop-dead gorgeous." Cloud fired back, smiling when Leon's eyes narrowed at him playfully.

"Probably not…" the brunet answered, giving Cloud's hand a gentle squeeze.

"Why not?" Cloud asked. "I felt that way from the moment I laid eyes on you."

Leon's eyes softened before he looked back ahead. "Generally homophobes are good at hiding those feelings, even from themselves."

"He's an acting homophobe. In denial. He's probably more aware of his feelings than most." Cloud explained, suddenly feeling bad about talking about Tony like he knew him inside and out. Well, they had been friends for most of their lives, so it probably wasn't too far off base.

"Doesn't matter what he thinks about me." Leon said, glancing back over to the blond. "I have a boyfriend already."

Cloud's smile widened to the point it was about to split his face in two before he looked down in attempts to hide his forming blush. Leon must have seen it since he tugged on Cloud's hand to draw him closer to his side before dropping his hand and wrapped it around Cloud's hips.

"He was an idiot for giving you up." Leon said, placing a kiss on the side of Cloud's head. "His loss - my astronomical gain."

Cloud bit his lower lip again in attempts to control his growing smile. His heart fluttered uncontrollably in his chest. Somehow Leon's reserved mushiness was having more of an effect on him then he would have imagined. He chanced a look up at his boyfriend, who was watching the path ahead of them. He had an urge to say something to the brunet that he knew would be a dire mistake so he ran it through his head a few times before taking a deep breath.

"The gain is all mine…"

Leon looked over at Cloud and shook his head. "So modest… It's a mutual gain; how about that?"

Cloud grinned and nodded.

Leon and Cloud continued their walk and enjoyed the warmth of the sunshine on their skin. Cloud didn't know whether it was because of their new relationship, but the sun never felt so good before. His thoughts wandered over to what Brad had said during History class on Friday and that made him smile. Brad had called this one, betting that Leon and Cloud would be a couple within a week and here he was, Leon's arm circling his body which was still sparking with excitement from their 'close encounters'. Maybe his school friends were more than just mere acquaintances. Maybe they knew him a little better than he gave them credit for.

"Monday's going to be interesting." Cloud commented, looking down to the ground with a small smile.

"Because we're open?" Leon asked glancing over at the blond, eyes roaming over Cloud's features.

Cloud looked up at Leon and smiled warmly. "Yeah, sort of…" he answered but quickly corrected himself. "I mean, it's not a bad thing, but you know how people get when there's a new couple in the school, right? Especially since there's not too many open gay couples."

"I know." was all Leon said as he looked on ahead once again. "Your friends are going to have a field day with this, ya?"

Cloud chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, but all in good fun like Zell and Irvine." Cloud thought for a moment before continuing. "Brad said he knew this was going to happen."

"Us?" Leon asked for clarification.

Cloud nodded once more and felt a faint blush warm his cheeks. "He said he'd bet we'd be together within a week."

There was silence for a brief moment before Leon responded. "How would he know?"

"I guess he just saw right through me." Cloud explained. "I tried to hide what I felt for you but I guess I didn't do as good of a job as I had thought."

"You definitely didn't." Leon said, pinching Cloud lightly with the hand resting upon his side. "But how did he know I was the same way? I didn't think I was that transparent."

Cloud shook his head, feeling his blush darken for a reason he couldn't even guess at. "I didn't think you were transparent. I had no idea. Brad's just… well, Brad."

"He's a good guy." Leon said then quickly shook his head. "They all are, really."

"Brad's always been sort of the voice of reason and big brother of the group." Cloud explained. "Xander's like the younger brother and Brantley's sort of like… the annoying cousin."

Leon let a puff of air out and shook his head. "But they care about you."

Cloud paused for a moment before nodding his head. "Yeah, I guess so."

"I think maybe we should make more of an effort to spend time with them outside of school; I'd hate to see you lose touch with them after graduation." Leon added, his voice sounding far off.

"I guess." was all Cloud responded with before silence once more surrounded them.

The day passed by better than Cloud could have hoped. Openly talking about their feelings for one another was a wonderful change of pace for the blond and he still felt overly giddy when Leon would say something relating to their relationship. Monday would be a little weird, in a way, but Cloud wasn't the least bit reluctant to tell the world that he know had the world's most gorgeous man at his side.

The two boys stopped to eat at a restaurant they passed by and filled their meal with more talk about Monday and what they guessed was going to happen. Curious stares, gossip, hushed conversations as they passed by; all of that didn't matter.

As the afternoon went by, Cloud realized that he still had homework to complete, as did Leon, and Cloud decided it was sadly time to go back home. Leon insisted that he walk Cloud home as the two left the restaurant hand in hand.

"Is everything going to be alright?" Leon asked as the boys approached Cloud's house.

"Yeah, everything's going to be fine." Cloud assured, smiling at his boyfriend as he turned to stand in front of him.

Leon glanced up at the house before looking back down into Cloud's eyes. "You'll call me if anything happens?"

Cloud's smile didn't falter as he nodded happily. Talking about a potential bad situation wasn't enough to throw a wet blanket over his good mood today.

"Maybe you can call me later even if nothing bad is happening?" Leon requested in the form of a question, looking down at Cloud's hand in his own.

Cloud's smile widened as he gave Leon's hand a gentle squeeze. "That can be arranged."

Leon sighed before looking back up at Cloud. His eyes were immediately drawn to baby blue which seemed to light up the entire street. "Meet me at our lockers tomorrow morning?" Leon once again requested in a form of a question.

Cloud nodded before his smile grew wider. "It might seem stupid, but I'm still in disbelief that this is all happening."

"It's happening." Leon responded, his jaded expression not showing too much more than indifference. That was to be expected from the brunet, though.

"It just feels too good to be real. Everything's going my way." Cloud continued, searching nonchalant eyes for something to grasp at. If Leon wasn't holding his hand he might have been paranoid concerned.

There was silence for a moment before Leon took a small step closer to Cloud and cradled his cheek in his palm. Cloud's eyes glossed over with anticipation as his lips formed a quiet, small grin. "Isn't it about time you started getting your way?" Leon asked quietly.

Cloud wasn't able to respond being that he was completely entranced by the brunet before him. Leon didn't seem to require a response as he leaned in a little closer and barely touched his lips against Cloud's. Cloud went to kiss him back before he realized that Leon wasn't exactly kissing him at the moment but was brushing his lips over his own. His heart thudded in his chest as he felt soft, pink lips gently glide over his own and almost immediately his body began to respond from the intimate gesture.

Leon paused in his motion, keeping his lips barely pressed up against Cloud's. Cloud's head was positively reeling from this all and he couldn't help but let out a soft whimper as his body begged him to take control and pull Leon flush up against him. He didn't need to, though, since as soon as Cloud let out that soft whimper Leon's lips pressed forward and captured Cloud's in a searing, heated kiss; his tongue immediately seeking entrance into the blond's mouth and stroking Cloud's as soon as that permission was granted.

Cloud let out a moan as Leon took control of the kiss and let his body be drawn closer to the brunet. He wrapped his arms around Leon's neck as Leon wrapped his arms around Cloud's body and he was sure that it wouldn't be long before Leon felt what exactly he was doing to the blond's body.

There was no space between their bodies as their kiss turned more passionate, causing the blond to moan once more. Leon had total control of him and Cloud was all too happy to let himself fall victim to the passion that was building between them. He was sure by now Leon could feel him hard against him and to his utter fascination, he could feel Leon too. This caused yet another throaty moan to escape the blond into Leon's mouth before something mind-blowing completely caught Cloud off guard.

He distinctly felt Leon thrust up against him. The pleasure that was radiating off the blond's body spiked at this motion causing him to pull away from the kiss in desperate need of air. His head spun and he couldn't help but pant heavily as he attempted to regain control of his breathing.

Leon rested his forehead against Cloud's, keeping his eyes closed. Their bodies were still pinned against one another's by the grip each held and they stayed that way as they both fought to steady their breathing.

"There I go again…" Leon said lowly, keeping his eyes closed still.

"'S not a bad thing…" Cloud responded, sighing deeply as his heart threatened to jump out of his chest.

Leon opened his eyes and looked directly into the blond's, the blue-gray storm brewing something fierce with excitement. "Probably not the best thing to be doing in front of your house."

Cloud closed his eyes then moved his head so it was resting in the crook of Leon's neck. "I don't care…"

Leon ran a hand through silky, blond hair and leaned his head against Cloud's. "You make me lose all sense of control…"

Cloud moved his head once more so he could look into Leon's eyes. "'S not a bad thing…" he repeated, expression completely serious.

"Cloud…" Leon murmured, eyes focused on Cloud's and his hand stroked the blond's back lightly. "If I lose control-"

"Then we take it from there." Cloud interrupted. He smiled a sweet, playful smile before continuing. "For someone who refuses to believe in love because all of the rules associated with it, you sure do have a few dos and don'ts regarding relationships."

"I don't want to rush you." Leon responded quietly, eyes dropping to the blond's lips.

"I'll tell you when you're rushing me." Cloud responded back.

Leon sighed before pulling Cloud into a firm embrace. "I'm afraid you won't tell me in fear that you'll disappoint me."

Cloud thought this over a moment before squeezing the brunet tightly. "I can only promise you that I won't lie about it, if you'll trust me."

Leon pulled back slightly and looked down at the blond with seemingly expressionless eyes. "Promise me."

"I promise." Cloud responded sincerely with a smile.

"Then take off your pants. I'm taking you on your lawn." Leon said bluntly, catching the blond completely off guard.

Cloud chuckled after a moment of recovery and punched Leon lightly in the stomach. "Too fast…"

Leon's eyes lightened and Cloud could have sworn he saw Leon's lips twitch a few times before his impassive expression returned. "Do you believe that I'm happy, Cloud?"

"Yes," Cloud answered, nodding his head. "Why do you ask?"

"You said earlier that you wanted to see me smile." Leon explained. "I'm not really one for smiling, but I must have gotten through to you somehow today that I really am happy."

Cloud smiled widely before biting his lower lip. "You got through to me."

Leon nodded. "I told you I'd get back to you on that. Satisfied?"

Cloud narrowed his eyes and tilted his head. "I still want to see you smile one of these days."

Leon rolled his eyes and took Cloud's hand in his own. "Why?"

"Because, like I said earlier, I bet you have a really pretty smile." He pinched Leon's hand with his own. "Is it so wrong to want to see your boyfriend smile?"

Leon pretended to think about this for a moment before shrugging. "Maybe you'll get lucky one of these days."

A light popped on inside of Cloud's house drawing Leon's attention to the building. "I should let you go before she comes at me with a rake."

Cloud looked over his shoulder before looking back at Leon. "See you tomorrow morning?"

Leon leaned in and kissed Cloud chastely on the lips. "Call me later to say hi."

"I will."

-o-o-o-

Thanks for sticking with me this long! Love you all for your patience and support throughout. I'm sorry I can't say when you can expect the next chapter but know that I'm working on it. If this story has taught me one thing, it's this:

Do not post a chapter without the story being finished!

Geez, this story was my first 'publish chapter when finished' and I've felt nothing but horrible for the waits. If you can bear with me to the end of this story, I promise I'll go back to updates days apart from here on out.

Thanks guys!

Shout out to KlikStar! Thanks for everything, Lovey! Just thinking about you makes me smile. :o)