Chapter two is up. I took down the personalized review responses to adhere to site rules, but I do want to thank everyone that reviewed me. Thank you! XD

"Turn that down, it's distracting." Leon said as he irraitatedly flipped the page of his report and entered the first few lines into the computer. He had been working on his report all week with little to no cooperation to his unwanted roommate. Slowly, he turned around in his swivel chair.

"Did you hear me?"

Cloud's head bobbed up and down rhythmically as he looked up from his lax position on the bed, then he pulled his head phones off.

"Whassat?"

Leon frowned and turned back around. "Turn down your music. It's distracting."

Cloud snorted. "Shows how much you know. Headphones are made for private listening, it's impossible for you to be disturbed."

Leon groaned and pressed his head into the keyboard, hitting several keys that he would later have to delete. "If you turn them up so loud as to where I can be, then that changes matters, doesn't it?"

"If I remember correctly," Cloud said as he sat up, "these were your suggestion after you reprimanded me for having my stereo up too loud. For someone so perfect, you certainly are wishy washy."

Leon swung back around in the chair clenching his teeth. "Cloud–!"

There was a sudden knock at the door interrupting Leon and saving Cloud from another unwanted debate.

"Hold that thought, Leon." Cloud said slipping off the bed to unlock the door. "Oh, Hey!"

"Hey Cloud." Seifer surveyed the room, and noticed the displeased expression on Leon's face. "Looks like I've interrupted another one of your lovers' tiffs." He said with a chuckle that made Leon want to kick the both of them out.

"Far from it. You know how Leon is; there's always something wrong," he leaned back to make sure Leon caught every word, but Leon seemed to pay him no attention.

"For cryin' out loud Leon, you gotta lighten up a little, or you won't get invited to the house party coming up...not that anyone would want you there anyway..." Seifer chided smartly.

Leon chose to ignore that last comment and replied simply. "Hardly anything to ignore common decency over." He didn't look up. "If you have something to talk to Cloud about, then do it in the hall."

"Ouch!" Cloud and Seifer said in unison as they both stepped out the door.

As if pre-programmed, Cloud chewed the inside of his cheek while he closed the door, and stepped onto the red and orange diamond patterned carpeting of the long hallway. Leon looked a little angry... typical, but it still bothered him...

"Hey, Cloud, somethin' wrong?"

"Eh? No! Er... what did you come all the way over here for must have been important if you willingly entered 'ground zero.'"

"Well, actually, I came over to see if you wanted to snag something in the cafeteria with me, but after having that little encounter, I've lost my appetite."

"Oh...um...well..."

Seifer looked skyward. "I mean seriously, have you ever met such a prick anywhere before? Just thinking about him makes me want to–"

"--Er, why don't we go shoot pool or something."

"Pool!" Seifer grinned, easily forgetting the previous topic. "Cloud, prepare to buy me dinner!"

"No way." Cloud sighed inwardly. As impossible as it was, Seifer and Leon got along worse than he and Leon did, and Cloud couldn't easily pick the obvious side for unexplainable reasons.

Leon grinded his teeth as he turned off the computer and got up. As irritating as Cloud was, there was not a single living thing (bacteria included) in the entire housing complex quite as irritating as Cloud's bosom buddy Seifer. This man he vaguely remembered being one of Cloud's parasitical posse members from grade school; undoubtedly one of the droning morons he chose to forget for personal reasons.

As expected, neither Cloud nor Leon had gotten along since the day Leon arrived, and neither made any attempt to try and fix it either. That suited Leon just fine, in fact, he preferred it that way. Who knows how he would have turned out if he had befriended that pilot-less aircraft, Cloud? (Actually, upon arriving, Cloud had been a little forgiving in the teasing department, but was no less irresponsible...or irritating...) At any rate, he more than likely would have ended up... in a very bad situation!...And then there was that 'Seifer' matter...

Cloud invited Seifer over every once in a while with little regard whatsoever as to how Leon felt about it, and a good portion of the evening was spent pointing out things they didn't particularly like about him. Most of this conversation was easily ignored, but sometimes Leon listened in and couldn't help but get the slightest bit irritated at the things they had the nerve to say while he was still present. Once in a while if he strained his ears he could make out a barely audible "Don't say that...he can hear you..." from Cloud, but it did little, and it was probably too quiet for Seifer to even hear anyway.

Leon snorted in confirmation and shut off the CD player that Cloud had forgotten to turn off.

"I believe it will be you who buys me dinner." Cloud said as he chalked the tip of his pool stick.

"Not so, the game is still young," Seifer pulled the cue ball from the pocket. "I can still win!"

"Ah, denial, it's cheaper than therapy."

Seifer laughed, but in the end he lost. Somehow, he still managed to get out of buying dinner. He chose a booth in the back corner of the bar that was cast in the dim red light provided by a hanging lamp.

"So, anyway, about this party," Cloud began, sitting down opposite Seifer. "Who's hosting it anyway?"

"Some guy... I'm not sure who he is, but that usually doesn't matter much anyway."

"I guess... but you know, shouldn't you know who it is before you...go?"

"Why? Don't tell me you have to know who's hosting it before Leon allows you to go! Does he keep you on a leash on you or something? Can't go anywhere without a curfew?"

Cloud blushed and took a long sip of his drink. "No!" However he did remember Leon yelling at him one night after partying too late and coming home, unintentionally waking Leon up in the process. This instance just happened to resurface in his memory. There was nothing directly mentioned about knowing the host, but he was sure that Leon had a lecture on that as well.

Seifer leaned back into the booth seat, positioning his elbows above his head. "Ah, well anyway, just make sure that you come I'm gonna need a designated chaperone to carry me home. I plan to get good n' drunk!"

"Two beers and that's it." Cloud showed with his hands. He realized neither of them really had any business consuming any, but he knew that expecting them to just ignore copious amounts of alcohol was ridiculous. "Two, and that's it."

"What? Aw, come on, who drinks only two–"

"People who remember the last time a certain buddy of theirs drank more than two and performed an exotic table dance before jumping off and clocking someone in the chin, that's who." Cloud smirked. "But of course, you might not remember anything like that, would you?"

Seifer closed one eye and waved him away. "As a matter of fact I don't."

"Well I do."

"Fine whatever. Two...but only because I know if I don't agree—like a good little boy—you won't go. Cloud, you're such a prude."

Cloud smiled in satisfaction and took another long sip of his drink.

It was quite a while later before Cloud escaped the ever-begging-for-another-game Seifer, and could get back to his dorm. He could already predict what would happen the minute he opened the door; better to take the offence, he guessed. With a groan, he inserted the key into the hole and gave it a slow turn.

Leon was lying on his bed, his back against the head board. Beside him, the reading lamp sitting on the night stand was on, and in his hands rested a copy of one of those thick novels he liked to read so much. As the door clicked open, he did little more than raise an eyebrow.

Cloud closed the door and sat down on his bed, not noticing that his CD player had been put on the desk.

"You know Leon, you could be a little nicer to Seifer." Cloud decided that was a good way to begin things. "I'm always nice to your...um...well, I would always be nice to your company...if you had any that is."

"I resent that. Anyway, if you wouldn't invite him over every hour of every day, then I might be more inclined to...get along with him; briefly of course."

"Well, I say you're just jealous. I have friends and you don't. How else does that explain your supreme disapproval of such a likable guy?"

Leon bit his lip. "Fine then. Why don't you move in with him if you like him so much?"

"Hey wait a minute!" Cloud said getting the idea he had royally offended Leon. "I...um...I can't move...I...I was here first!"

Leon closed his book and set it on the night stand. "Two days isn't much of a first, especially when you—to my understanding—took the majority of those two days to retrieve your forgotten clothing."

"...I get the feeling you're mad..."

Leon gave him a look and flipped off the light. "Good night Cloud."