Cannonball

Author's Note:

Ha! Return of the infamous song fics. Mwahahahaha! Ahem… A sweet Leon/Cloud fic featuring the song Cannonball. (I'm not sure who it's by. I'm sure someone will tell me :P)

Warning:

In case you haven't noticed, this is a shounen-ai/yaoi pairing. Those are nice Japanese words used to describe homosexual relationships, which are male/male.

Disclaimer:

I don't own Kingdom Hearts, nor do I own very much.

Leon sighed, rubbing his temples. He'd been living with Cloud for the past nine months, but still… The blonde was so infuriating. He would always jabber on and on, as though silence wasn't good enough…

And then he'd be so absolutely adorable the next minute…

"What am I thinking?" Leon demanded of himself. From across the room, Cloud looked away from the TV (currently on Toonami. Cloud had been hooked on 'Big O' and insisted on watching it EVERY night…)

"I don't know, you never tell me," The blonde replied. Leon sighed.

"If I told you I'd only scare you," He retorted. Cloud folded his arms, but Leon could see that the blonde's eyes were deeply troubled. It was this, more than anything that made Leon do what he did.

He stood with grace he didn't know he had. He walked over to the couch where Cloud was sat, placing his hands on the blonde's knees and gently pressing his mouth against Cloud's own.

There's still a little bit of your taste in my mouth

There's still a little bit of you laced with my doubt

It's still a little hard to say what's going on

"What the hell?" Cloud pulled back, his blue eyes wide. Leon sighed, running his fingers through his hair. It had been too far fetched. Too forward for the blonde… It was all his fault that Cloud looked so distressed now…

"I shouldn't have done that," Leon said, standing up, turning his back on the younger man. 'I just wanted to know what it felt like. Just once.'

Feeling guilty at doing that to the poor blonde, Leon decided not to push the issue, making a desperate attempt to get up the stairs of their little house before Cloud noticed the tears burning in his eyes.

He felt an emptiness fill him when he realised that Cloud wasn't following him…

There's still a little bit of your ghost your witness

There's still a little bit of your face I haven't kissed

You step a little closer each day

That I can't say what's going on

Cloud sat, suddenly losing his interest in 'Big O' and concentrating on the more complex puzzle of his emotions…

Had he liked it when Leon had kissed him? It had certainly made him feel a little weird… But in a nice way, not in a freaked out way…

Standing up, Cloud walked up the stairs silently, knowing that Leon would already be in his room. Sure enough a song was playing, a beautiful acoustic number that Cloud was sure Leon had borrowed from him once, but never had returned to him. Well, if the brunet liked it…

Opening the door without knocking, Cloud stood frozen in the threshold, staring at Leon, who was on his knees on the floor, his hands covering his face, his shoulder's shaking with soundless sobs.

"Leon…" Cloud said, before biting on his tongue. The brunet looked up, eyes red from crying, but still distinctly cold and distant. Feeling the weight bear down on his shoulders, Cloud waited for Leon to say something.

"What do you want Strife?" He demanded. Cloud looked down at him, noting that a perfectly shaped tear was still falling down his cheek. Feeling foolish and awkward, Cloud knelt down, brushing away the tear with his thumb.

Leon was beautiful when he was crying, but it wasn't a sight that Cloud ever wanted to see again. He wrapped his arms around the brunet securely, so that Leon couldn't squirm out of his grasp quite so easily.

"Stay still," Cloud found himself whispering. Leon fell limply into his arms, his dead weight making Cloud sway on his knees slightly. The blonde then did only what seemed natural, he kissed Leon on the cheek, shyly.

Stones taught me to fly

Love, it taught me to lie

Life, it taught me to die

So it's not hard to fall

When you float like a cannonball

"What are you doing?" Leon hissed, pulling away. Cloud sighed, reaching out to the elder's face, watching those storm eyes involuntarily close at the contact. Here was someone who could love him, someone who would always treat him right…

"I've got a crush on you, what do you think I plan on doing?" Cloud replied, as though it were the most simple thing in the world.

"You can't force yourself to like someone, Strife," Leon growled. The blonde chuckled, reassuring himself by the fact that Leon's eyes were still closed, and he was leaning into the touch ever so slightly.

"I know I'm always telling you to talk to me. But for once just shut up and enjoy yourself, okay?" Cloud demanded. Leon's eyes flew open at that, his stormy eyes shining with emotion. A mixture of tears and happiness, confusion included, that made Cloud's heart flutter.

"But… Why?" Leon asked. Cloud frowned. Why what?

"Why what? Why you? Why should you shut up? Why am I here? Why am I missing my beloved Big O to sit here with a blubbering twenty-six year old anti-social arrogant fag? Take your pick," Cloud said playfully. Leon's eyes had narrowed at the 'fag' part, but his voice was still that dangerous monotone as he replied.

"All of them," He said. Cloud sighed.

"Because it's you, you dumb ass. Because if it weren't for your little stunt down there I would never have realised that you cared. Because I don't mind being here with you, even if there are a million other things that need to be done. Just being here, that's enough, right?" The blonde asked. Leon frowned.

"But you missed the most important reason…" He murmured, pulling Cloud into his arms, hands snaking beneath clothing to caress soft skin. Cloud moaned softly.

"What?" He asked. Leon brushed his lips up Cloud's neck, up to his ear.

"Because you love me."

There's still a little bit of your song in my ear

There's still a little bit of your words I long to hear

You step a little closer to me

So close that I can't see what's going on

"Huh?" That had been a little bit of a shock. Falling backwards onto the floor, Cloud felt the sharp pain of his head connecting with the floor. 'Ouch…'

"What's the matter, Cloud? Don't you?" Leon asked, straddling the fallen blonde's hips. Blinking up at his 'assailant' Cloud wasn't sure what to reply. He hadn't expected Leon to be a romantic. He would have thought that the brunet was after physical reassurance but…

"I never said that," Cloud quickly covered. Leon leaned forwards, his face inches above Cloud's. The younger was sure he could count the brunet's eyelashes.

"Then why can't you say it?" Leon… purred? Cloud felt his throat tighten, anxiously pushing his lips against Leon's, trying to push the brunet into a deep, passionate kiss. Leon, however, had different ideas, pulling away and pushing Cloud's wrists up above his head.

"If you can't say it, why should I let you kiss me? Why should I let you abuse my body if you have no interest in my heart?" Leon asked. Cloud met the storm grey eyes, his cerulean ones wide and frightened.

How was he supposed to know what love was? He was only twenty himself… Love was what old couples have. Love was what teenagers call their first real crush. Love wasn't a reality. It was something created to write stories about, so the cruel realities of life could be smoothed over with the flickering light of hope.

"I c-can't!" Cloud stammered. He looked away from those startled and hurt eyes and started at the ground to his side.

"What?" Leon obviously had trouble hearing.

"Love doesn't exist. Sephiroth said he loved me, it didn't stop him from abusing me. He said it was because he loved me that he did that to me, but it was his own little power trip. Love doesn't exist, it's just a crazy illusion people create to make life more bearable…" Cloud said. Leon rolled off him, sitting against the wall.

"Get out," He spat. Surprised, Cloud looked at Leon to see he was seething with rage. The usually guarded expression contorted in anger.

"Leon-"

"No! Don't you fucking dare bullshit me! You're telling me that what I feel isn't love. That I'm just thinking that to get into your pants! You compared me to that-that-that MONSTER! You expect me to be okay with that? The fact that you can't face me loving you. FUCK THAT!" Leon clenched his fist, angrily hitting it against the wall beside him. A bang echoed through the room.

"So get the hell out," The brunet's venom burnt through Cloud and he scrambled to his feet. He shot Leon one last frightened look before bolting for his own room.

Stones taught me to fly

Love, it taught me to lie

Life taught me to die

So it's not hard to fall

When you float like a cannon…

"Damn you Strife…" Leon hissed, curling into a ball on his bed. It was midday, but Leon didn't feel like facing the blonde. He decided that it would be much easier to sleep the day away, maybe it would hurt less if he just dreamed.

But his dreams were tormenting. Cloud would always be in them, whispering reassuring words, giving gentle caresses that made Leon wake up frustrated and even angrier.

Finally, when he was just dozing, he felt a pair of arms wrapping around him.

"Just another dream…" He mumbled. The grip loosened, one hand stroking his hair now, one snaking around his waist.

"I'm not a dream Squall… I'm damn real…" The whispered voice replied. Leon smirked.

"Yeah, sure you are…"

"I realised something last night, when I was trying to get to sleep…"

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

"That you're the closest to falling in love I've ever been… And if you'd give me the chance… I'd fall for you… It's not hard to fall, when you float like a cannonball."

Stones taught me to fly

Love taught me to cry

So come on courage

Teach me to be shy

'Cause it's not hard to fall

"You're really here aren't you?" Leon asked. Cloud chuckled softly, pinching his ass.

"Did you feel pain?" He asked. The brunet pushed back into the warm embrace.

"No, that pinch was too wimpy," He replied. Smiling, Cloud turned Leon to face him, blue meeting grey, locked with so much passion that neither could say or do anything that would make it any different.

"So we're agreeing to fall in love, huh?" Cloud asked, pushing himself against Leon.

"I think that's what you're saying," He replied. The blonde chuckled.

And I don't wanna scare (him)

It's not hard to fall

And I don't wanna lose

It's not hard to grow

When you know that you just don't know

"Yes… That's what I'm saying…"

Ending Notes:

See, short and sweet!!! I liked the bit that explained Cloud's attitude to love. I think I'll use this in a longer fanfic. Hm… In fact, this fanfic is definitely the starting stone to something much greater… I'll mull this over…