Disc : Mine !! All mine !!  Whahahahaha....this is usually the moment were I wake up..... Not mine....



Squall woke up feeling sick. He tried to remember what had happened the previous night, and the reason for the soreness he felt. He pushed himself to the side of the bed and placed his feet on the cold floor. He shivered, and tried to lift himself from the bed.

A searing pain shot through his hand, and he pulled it away from the bed quickly. He looked at it and pulled it against himself when he saw the dark blue purple bruises. He looked around, afraid.

He didn't know where he was or what had happened, but he knew he was alone, which comforted him. He started to search for his clothes and found them on the ground, near the bed. He knelt slowly, trying not to worsen his pain, and picked up his shirt. Seeing it was shredded beyond repair, he tossed it against the wall. He watched while it fell on the ground in a small puddle.

He got up and brushed some hair from his eyes, then wrapped his arms around himself. Although he was alone in the room, he felt exposed and afraid. If only he could remember what had happened the night before, maybe then he would understand why he was here. Suddenly he saw a flash of a man, and slowly the events of the night before came back to him. His stomach wrenched itself, and he felt as though he would vomit. 

He sank down on the ground and sobbed quietly to himself. Now he knew what had happened. Perhaps it would have been better to forget completely. He hugged himself and rocked back and forth slowly. He realized that should leave, fearing that the man might return. His face turned pale. His only thought was now to leave this horrible place.

He got up quickly, not caring about the searing pain he felt. He looked around, trying to find something he could wear. He made his way to a closet in the corner of the room. He opened the white-painted doors and heard a small creaking sound. He peered inside, seeing only one ragged coat. Deciding that it was better than nothing, he pulled it out of the closet. He looked at his own clothes while he pulled the large black coat around him. They were useless, so he decided to leave them in the room. Finally, he pulled on his shoes, and left.

When he opened the door of the room and walked inside the hall, he guessed he was in a hotel -- a very expensive hotel. He wondered why he had gone through with it yesterday. He sold his body all the time… hating himself each time he did it. A girl in the hall greeted him. He smiled back at her and felt his bottom lip split. He made a little sound before he placed his trembling fingers on his lip. When he looked at them, he saw blood. He shrugged. A little blood wasn't that bad. At least he was leaving that horrible place. He continued walking down the hallway until he saw the elevator. He went inside and pushed a button. The doors closed slowly and he was alone. He sighed, letting his mind get a little peace.

He started to think about good things, trying to forget what had happened. When he felt his eyes stinging with tears, he tried to think about good things even harder. His head began to hurt from the flood of conflicting emotions. He hugged himself and leaned against the wall. When he heard the door open, he opened his eyes and went outside. He looked around in the big hall. As he had thought, this was a very expensive hotel. He looked at the people that were passing by, some of them bumping into him. Of course, they wouldn't notice him. He probably looked like shit.

When he went outside, he felt the cold winter air hit him. He shivered, but greeted it with delight. It meant he was free, and safe from the man. He closed his eyes and smiled, enjoying the light touches of wind. When he opened his eyes, he realized he had wandered into an unfamiliar part of the city. It was so…rich. He shivered again, this time not because of the cold, but because he felt lost. He didn't know where to go, or who to turn to for help. He decided to just start walking and see where he would end up. He looked at all the people who were passing him. They didn't notice him and if they did they made a disapproving sound. He felt alone. The tattered coat provided little defence against the cold, and even less against the isolation he felt.

He had been walking for some time; he didn't know how long exactly, but it felt like hours. He was hungry and his feet were tired. He still felt cold, but it was becoming bearable. It started snowing and soon he was the only one walking down the street. He looked around, recognising his surroundings. He whimpered and started to run. He was terrified. In his mind, he heard the sounds of someone chasing him. He felt the impending threat coming closer and closer. He pushed himself harder, trying to get away from whatever was chasing him. In his haste, he lost his left shoe. His feet, exposed to the cold hard pavement, were bleeding now. He started crying. He was afraid to look back, knowing that his pursuer would be only inches away now. When he finally gathered the courage to look . . . he saw that no one was there.

He stopped running, out of breath. He coughed and fell down on his knees. He coughed again, falling forward into the snow. He shivered, feeling the cold against his body. He tried to push himself up, but he couldn't. He started to cry but no tears came -- he was too exhausted. He closed his eyes and felt darkness overcoming him. He fainted.

~*~

Zell was walking down the street. He had just bought Christmas presents for most of his family. As soon as it started snowing, he decided to quit for the day. As he walked home, Zell wondered why he was even bothering with Christmas this year. He was rather uninterested in the idea of celebrating the holiday. The prospect of receiving nothing but a hand-knitted sweater from his mother did not help the situation. Usually, such gifts ended up in the trashcan. He shivered, wishing he had the foresight to wear such a sweater today. It was much too cold to walk around like this.

"Well, if it isn't Zell Dincht. How is your father?"

Zell stopped walking and looked at the man who was speaking to him. He was wearing a large black coat and had a pipe in his mouth. He was a "friend of the family," as his mother put it. He really couldn't stand the man. "He is on a business trip, so I wouldn't know"

"Ah that old devil always running from here to there. . ." The man laughed a little, smiling and placing a hand on Zell's shoulder. Zell wanted to vomit. "And how is your mother"

Except for the drinking problem, persecution mania and mental illness: "Fine." He left the first part out of it. It wouldn't be good for his father's reputation if they knew his mother was a lunatic.

The man patted his shoulder and then he nodded. "Good to hear that" The man said, with a smile. "Well I have to go home, wife's waiting"

Zell looked at the man and nodded his goodbye. The man left and Zell continued on his way home. "Friends of the family" never asked about him, it seemed. They were only concerned with his parents. He shrugged. "Oh well." He looked at his watch and cursed softly. His sister called everyday around 7 o'clock.  She, her husband, and her children had moved away almost four years ago. Zell only saw her at Christmas-time.

Zell stumbled all of a sudden and fell forwards in the snow. After cursing loudly, he got up and brushed the snow off his coat. He cursed a little more and picked up his bags. Then he turned around to see what he'd fallen over. He gasped when he saw it was a person. He let his bags fall on the ground and knelt down beside the person. He turned him around and noticed it was a boy. His lips were blue and he was shaking all over. His eyes were closed and he looked so pale that if he were not shivering constantly, he could've been mistaken for dead. Zell pulled him in his arms and shook him a little. The boy's head was hanging and his whole body was slack. Zell placed the boy back on the ground and gave him his coat. The wind made him shiver but he didn't care about that right now. He wrapped the coat around the boy and picked him up, leaving the bags on the ground. He walked home as quickly as he could, only letting the boy go when he had to reach inside his pockets to take out his keys and open the door.

When they were inside, Zell walked upstairs and placed the boy in his bed. He walked over to his closet to look for an extra blanket. He took one out of the closet, walked back to the bed, and placed it over the boy. He frowned. Should he take the boys coat off? It was wet and cold because of the snow, but he didn't want to expose the boy. He bit on his lip, crossing his arms, considering what course of action to take. When the boy shivered violently, he made up his mind and got the boy out of bed. He looked past the boy when he took both the boy's and his coats off and let them drop on the floor. He placed the boy back under the blankets and looked at him. The boy was still shivering slightly. Zell pushed some stray strands of hair out of the boys face and frowned. He couldn't be older than 15 or 16 years. Why was a boy like that on the streets? Shouldn't he be at home? Then again, the boy was only wearing a coat. Maybe he was one of those beggars that lived on the street. Zell made a face but when the boy whimpered it quickly faded and his concern took precedence again.

Zell got up and left his bedroom. He walked down the wooden stairs, which creaked, showing their age. When he was downstairs, he decided to leave his presents and buy new ones tomorrow. While he would be searching for them, the boy might wake up. Rather than risk the confusion that would ensue from such circumstances, Zell elected to simply stay with the boy. He sighed and sat down on the sofa. He picked up the phone and dialled his sister's number. He didn't know how she would react, but he thought it best to tell her before she arrived.

First thing I want to do is thank my Beta-Reader Moroboshi. At least now there is hope for my dumb story ^_^ *Victory dance* Tell me what you think.

~//Lady Noire\\~

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