-8-

Victims

Squall stared at the ceiling, his mind in turmoil. They had both gone to bed hours ago, but the brunet was still lying awake… he closed his eyes, sinking into his own memories of a past…one full of nothing but betrayal and strife…of scorn and regrets…of bitter nights and painful days…of dreams crushed and hopes lost…of abandoned desires and vain confidence…Ellone…once a happy young healthy cherub now nothing but a frail little girl, incapable of laughing…what was there to laugh about anyway? Even the funniest of jokes wouldn't cheer them up. There was no one to love her by day and hold her by night. No one she can depend on…no one to call parents and guardians… 'That's not true…I'm here…' Squall gasped and bolted as a hand touched his shoulder.

"Hey…don't look so sad, pretty boy."

"What are you doing here?" Squall glared at the blonde who had snuck in into his room.

"It hurts when you look like you've been asked to stop the plagues of the world."

"Haven't you ever heard of knocking?"

"Why the hell do you always look so damn troubled?"

"Where the hell is your mum to teach you some manners!"

Seifer glared at Squall, "She's dead."

Squall looked instantly contrite, "I'm sorry."

"Ha…when I told you that you said it wasn't my fault so why the hell am I sorry…same goes for you."

"What are you doing here?" Squall asked again.

"Thought a great guy like you could use some company."

"Great? Ha! You need to open a dictionary and learn to describe people right."

Seifer chuckled and sat on the bad beside Squall, "Fine…maybe I will…but between us friends, I'm worried I might learn the exact descriptions of myself."

Squall smiled slightly, "Yeah, that explains it."

Seifer ruffled the brunet's hair, "Hey, you were supposed to say 'No, I'm sure your personality"

"Is like shit and would be under the worst of names? Yeah I know."

Seifer pouted, "No way…that's not what I was going to say!"

Squall chuckled, "What? There's worse?"

"That's it. Now you've done it." Seifer stood and turned to leave.

"Hey, I was just kidding, are you really mad?"

Seifer's shoulders shook, his back to the brunet. Squall frowned, coming up behind him, "You're not really crying…comon it was a stupid joke."

Seifer laughed out loud and turned, pulling the brunet into his arms, "I knew that."

Squall glared, "Hey, let go of me."

The blonde laughed, "You actually looked sorry too. My, am I lucky or what."

"You're dead!" Squall tackled him to the ground, but Seifer easily gained the upper hand. After all Squall's leg was throbbing and the blonde had the advantage of weight and bulk on his side.

"Hey, get off me." Seifer laughed, holding Squall's wrists above his head, "You started it. It's only right that you pay fro it."

The brunet bit on his bottom lip, trying not to laugh, "This is not funny." Seifer laughed, but his eyes soon shone and he bent to nibble on Squall's neck.

The brunet yelped, "No way. Get off me." Seifer blew into Squall's ear, "Giving up already? Don't think so, after all I am to decide how long I can torture you." Squall squirmed beneath the blonde, gasping as Seifer sucked on his earlobe, "It's so soft."

Squall moaned, "No…stop it." There wasn't much conviction or anger in the musical voice and Seifer thought it safe to continue.

"Ever been kissed before, hot stuff?"

"Don't you dare." Squall sputtered before the blonde bent and dared. Squall's first impulse was to bite the blonde's imploring lips but that thought along with any other turned to mush as Seifer's tongue explored the inside of his mouth and dueled with his tongue.

Minutes later, Seifer pulled away, "You have no idea how long I wanted to do that."

"Liar. We've only been together for three days…barely."

"Yeah, but if you count the hours… minutes… seconds… they really do make a number."

The brunet blushed, "Why the hell would you want to kiss me?"

Seifer shrugged and stood, reaching to help his protector up. Squall wasn't really frowning anymore, rather he looked dazed and confused. Seifer grinned and tucked the brunet in, "Sleep tight, princess."

And for once, Squall didn't have an angry retort, rather he just nodded and closed his eyes, listening to Seifer leave the room and gently shut the door behind him.