He's Going To Be Mine
Yes! I've finally gotten what I need; inspiration and motivation; by who or what I have no idea. Yeah. . . . I was kind of on a writer's block for a while because I randomly pull this plot from out of my head and I needed time to . . . um- what word am I looking for? Re-energize? Something like that. Well, I hope this chapter has fewer errors thanks to the fact that I now have a Beta Reader. Now! On with the show!
A bunch, of bunches, of bunches of thanks goes out to my Beta Reader Heartless Cloud
Chapter 16: The breakup
"Aeris, I have something to tell you." Cloud spoke up after dodging yet another one of her sloppy kisses. Each person in the room had instantly looked up, brimming with anticipation, anticipation thick enough to cut with a knife. It seemed like the only one whom did not know about Leon and Cloud was Aeris.
"What is it Cloud?" she asked the blonde with true concern.
Cloud looked back to Leon, trying to get a little support; instead, however, being greeted by a stone-cold stoic expression. A once over around the room proved only that everybody was staring back at him expectantly and showing little sign of salvation from the situation. With a silent sigh, he turned back towards Aeris, this time only to be greeted by anxious emerald eyes.
"Cloud what is it you wanted to say?" Aeris inquired again.
"Aeris... I know how much I mean to you... But, I don't think I share some of the same feelings that you have for me." he said pointedly, with just slight hesitation.
Aforementioned Aeris looked at him; a look of confusion passed in her eyes for a second but was then wiped away suddenly as her face lit up, remembering something vitally important.
"Oh! Cloud, I forgot for a while, but I need to talk to you. It's really important!" She announced, halfway between beaming and a sulk.
Stunned for a moment, Cloud stared at the woman in pink. He recovered a moment later when he realized what he had to say was a bit more important.
"Look Aeris, what I have to say is really importa—" he started.
"I know, dear, but can it please wait?" she asked anxiously, giving him a beseeching look.
"But—" Cloud tried again.
"Cloud! Please!" Aeris pleaded with him, cutting him short again.
The blonde groaned; scowling slightly, he decided since the persistent Aeris was not planning on letting him say it properly, blurting it out inelegantly was the next best thing.
"Aeris, I don't think I lo—"
"Cloud, I can't love you anymore." She stated before Cloud was able to finish.
Everyone in the room whom had been glued to the two's conversation like a family to the television at dinner, gasped unabashedly in sheer astonishment of the moment.
"W-What?" Cloud asked shakily, being very unsure if he had heard her correctly or not. "Um, Aeris? I... don't think I heard you right..." He attempted before Aeris continued.
"Cloud, what I'm saying is, I think we should see other people."
'She seriously used that line?' thought Rikku cynically. 'That's so lame'
"Are you saying that you're dumping me!?" Cloud exclaimed defensively at Aeris whom was now ruffling more than a few feathers.
"Oh, I knew you would be heartbroken seeing you came all this way looking for me and hoping to resume our relationship, but I don't think it's going to work out."
"What do you mean it's not going to work!?" for lack of better coherent words.
The rest of the small white room's inhabitants inched closer and closer, all attention upon the blonde and brunette, for once ignoring Leon whom was stuck in the stiff bed.
"Cloud. The passion's just not there anymore."
"Passion!?"
"Yes, passion."
"...We never had 'passion', Aeris. When we met we were near fourteen. What kind of passion was that?" he questioned flatly, shifting his weight from his left to the right foot.
'Oooooh.' Interjected an onlooker from the back; adding their own unneeded and unwanted sound effects to the scene unfolding before their eyes.
"Cloud, the night before last when we kissed... something was missing. I could tell you were distracted. You were focusing on something else..." she explained.
"I guess you could say that—"Cloud affirmed quickly, thinking instantly about Leon. Though his thoughts were soon disrupted when Aeris continued on what she was saying previously.
"And I was too." Aeris finished with a small blush forming on her cheeks.
'What?'
"You were?"
"Yeah, I've kind of found somebody else."
He was silent for a moment, processing this new tidbit of information before it finally clicked.
"Who!? Who could possibly be better than me?!" Cloud half growled, bristling at her statement. He didn't mean to sound vein but seriously, who was better than him?
"Well........." She dragged out, her blush escalating to a nice cherry red.
"Who?!" the blonde asked yet again. Seems like he's had to repeat himself quite a lot lately...
"Radam Sahhain." She purred, savoring the name on her lips like it was the best thing since honey on the face of this god given planet.
"You're going out with Saddam Hussein?! Isn't that, the guy that's at war with America or some shi-- "
"Radam Sahhain!" snapped the girl in pink viciously, getting defensive at the mispronunciation of his name. Despite her naturally calm and peaceful demeanor, Aeris was just plain vicious when time came to call. "And he is the best guy in the world; he came all the way from the Middle East!" she added happily, a smile curling on her lips while her eyes sparkled.
Behind the two currently at each other's throats, the lot of the onlookers, minus Rikku and Irvine, began snickering in the background in vain attempts at trying to hide their laughter.
"So like, where'd you meet him?" Cloud boredly asked.
"Where do I work?" she asked like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"You met some doofus that delivers Pizza for a living and left me for him!? Aw that really de-butters my biscuit!"
More snickering, several giggles, a few snorts.
"Whatever. I knew you would act like this. So what was it you were going to tell me?" she rolled her eyes.
That was Leon's line. However normally he would shut the hell up afterwards. Speaking of Leon... he looked back to the man in the hospital gown, forming the very faintest of a grin on the blonde's part at the though of Leon in a gown with nothing underneath. Leon in turn gave him a nonchalant shrug. Cloud sighed and turned back to face her.
"Well it doesn't seem like it matters now."
"Whatever." She mumbled and found great interest in the wall.
Walking over to Leon, Aeris slightly bent over him.
"I hope you get better, no more stealing city buses," she chided. "And if I weren't already taken, I would most definitely give you a call; you sure are a cute one."
Leon just directed a trademarked cold glare at her.
"A little mean looking but I could manage."
"I don't think so." Leon snarled at her.
"Aw, why not?"
Leon continued to glare.
"Aeris!" Cloud shouted standing up in fury; because of both Aeris' antics and the fact he was being ignored.
"What is it now Cloud?"
"Get away from Leon." He near shouted.
She looked confused and a bit like a hurt puppy yet again. Smirking, Cloud walked over to the bed and stood beside Leon.
"I'm sorry to say but Leon's already taken. You weren't the only one who decided to move on."
"What are you talking about?" She demanded.
Leaning down over Leon, Cloud took his lips and instantly they began to engage in a hot, steamy, 'passionate' kiss. Aeris, on the other hand, just looked utterly mortified; like the living dead had arisen from the hospital toilet or something to that effect.
"What— this can't—I refuse to believe it!" She stomped on the floor.
Cloud and Leon broke their kiss both smirking over at Aeris.
"Damn that scene made me horny!" Irvine shouted aloud. Looking over to Seifer, the cowboy grasped his arm, grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Seifer instantly tried to pull it back knowing what the stupid, horny ape of a cowboy had in mind. But nonetheless, Irvine was able to pull Seifer out of the crowded room to a place more secluded.
"What is it that you to refuse to believe?" Cloud asked slyly, chuckling slightly.
"But! Cloud!" She wined "I didn't think you were... well... you know..."
"What?"
"I didn't think you were that way."
"What way Aeris? Are you afraid to say it?" He asked her getting a little peeved. Cloud began to speak again when he realized she didn't intend on saying anything.
"Are you trying to say you didn't know I was gay?"
"Yes!" she blurted out instantly.
That was when Cloud began to laugh. "Me neither!"
"What!? How can you not know and then just jump into a relationship with another man?!" Aeris exclaimed in disbelief.
"I dunno, I guess you could say I just followed my heart." He smiled over at Leon who just looked back up at him with an expression that more or less conveyed- 'I love you too', 'Wow', and 'Damn you look sexy!' all in one.
"I see." She said dejectedly, looking at the floor. "So this is what you were going to tell me?"
"Yeah."
"Cloud, you still never cease to amaze me. Sora and Riku: ok. But you?" She chuckled to herself. "Well, Cloud, it was nice being your girl when you were straight and maybe sometime in the far future if you decide to leave your gayness you could give me a call. You too Leon." She winked at him and turned on her heel to leave.
As if everyone had the same though they all said, "Bitch" in unison; a nice echoing effect taking place in the tiled white room.
"Wow, Aeris sure has changed." Sora remarked with a sullen look on his face.
"Don't worry about her, love." Riku said while snaking an arm around Sora's waist. In turn Sora rested his head on the other's shoulder.
After a long chilling silence, Quistis finally spoke up.
"So Leonhart, how long do you think you'll be in here?"
"I'm not sure." The lion responded.
"Yo, you should have seen yourself on the news!" Riku suddenly exclaimed, very excitedly. Amazing was his ability to change moods so fast.
"What?" Leon asked with a quizzical glare.
"Yeah, you were in the bus zooming down the highway and they got a close up on your face, and you looked all dead and zombie-ish, and there was and guy huddled up on the floor looking scared as mess, and—"
Leon groaned and put a hand up to his head.
"Riku shut up!"
"What you don't have to be so mean about it!"
"I'd have to admit you did look pretty cool." Quistis said, shoving her hands in her pockets.
"But you do realized everyone whom owns a TV saw that. And they more than likely saw it again on the 6:00 news. Once more at the 11:00 news. And just maybe again the one this morning at 6:00."
"Yeah so." Riku continued, rather curious to where Leon was headed with this.
"Riku, who do we know that always watches the news in the morning come hell or high water."
"I dunno." He said instinctively, without thinking. However, the thought struck him like a steel beam and he stood in a daze like one had. "No. No! You can't be serious."
"You know she saw it." Leon mumbled.
"No!!!!! Please God no! If you love me one bit, please make it so she didn't watch the news this morning!" Riku pleaded to the ceiling.
"What's the use, we both know she did."
"No!!!!"
"Um do one of you mind filling us in on what you two are talking about?" Quistis asked, breaking their growing chain of 'Oh-no's'
Both now went utterly silent; their breathing hardly even heard. They didn't want to gain bad Karma by speaking her name or even mentioning her. (Like He Who Must Not Be Named)
Rikku sighed and waved her hand above her head.
"Well since no one is willing to speak, I guess I'll be going to find Irvine and his new fuck-buddy, Seifer, before they get caught in the bathroom or a closet or something."
"But Rikku, how are you going to look in the bathroom?" Sora asked in his adorably clueless puppy-dog way.
"That's why you're coming with me." She beamed brightly.
"Really?"
"Yes!" She said grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and pulling him out of the room.
About five minutes later another doctor came stumbling through the door, shocked at what lie before her.
"Oh! No! What is going on here!" She yelled tripping and stumbling all over the place with a clipboard in one hand and the other one busy fixing the glasses that were falling off of her face. And thy name was grace...
"There are too many of you in he—"She choked out and stumbled over a body sprawled out across the clean floor.
"Ohmigosh! What have you done to Dr. Reany?!" She screamed horrified at the stiff body she now sat on.
"Yeah." Quistis rolled her eyes. "Well, he fell down."
"Is he dead?!" The nurse continued to yell kicking against the floor and backing up from the body of the doctor, only to bump into another one; falling into them. She turned around cautiously and looked up at Riku. "My, aren't you a handsome boy?"
Without waiting a moment more, she stood tall and straightened herself out, trying to look as professional as possible given the current state of the situation.
"Ok, we specifically said no more than three people visiting at once. I count four?" She took a deep breath and pointed in turn around the room. "Weren't there about nine or ten of you?"
"Yeah but they left." Cloud said dully.
"Well, anyway, we can't have too many people in here. Besides, Leon is a special patient. Seeing that he could possibly go to jail once he's out of the hospital for hijacking a bus."
"What?! Leon's going to jail?!" Cloud exclaimed dumbfounded.
"We don't know anything for sure but there is a possibility. Therefore, the rest of his visiting hours are now over! Get out!"
"You can't do that?!" Several protested at once.
"On the contrary I can do whatever I want, I am the doctor." She said triumphantly, sticking her nose up in the air. "Well, now I'll be on my way and you four need to get out. Pronto!"
She took one step and fell flat on her face. She stood up quickly and tried to play it off like no one saw her. Once she was gone Riku stuck his tongue out at her. "What make's her think, we'll listen to a clumsy chick like that?"
"Really, though, I think I need some time to myself." Leon said in his usual monotone-ness, looking Cloud straight in the eye.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
All stood around but reluctantly, they all eventually had to leave. Cloud was the last to go.
"Bye, love." Cloud said giving Leon another kiss on the lips. Just before had made it out of the now silent room, Leon spoke. Barley above a whisper, but nonetheless, Cloud heard it.
"Ai shiteru."
Cloud smile to himself.
"I love you too Leon." And with that he left.
Disappointed, I know. I knew this chapter was short and I know that everyone is going to want to brutally murder me. But if you do that, I can't continue R&R.Revisions 11/12/04
I had to fix a killer mistake that some of you had pointed out about Aeris and Cloud's break-up. I tried to make Aeris seem like a homophobic bitch but I had forgotten that she actually helped Riku and Sora get together. So . . . I had to change some dialogue. It wasn't a big problem but it did need to be fixed. Only one more chapter to revise and then guess what! I can actually update this story after a brutal five months!