A Love on the Sidelines
By: 4quintessence
Disclaimer: The characters belong to Square Enix, the fanfiction to me.
Pairing: CliffxFayt + another secret one
Rating: PG-13
Summary: It's time to tell the rest of the crew that CliffxFayt is for real! How are they going to take it? Mirage at first thinks their confession is probably something silly. Later she reveals how she knew Cliff was into men. Maria is another story... But the chapter starts after all this happens, Fayt and Cliff are chillin at their secret meadow.
Shout Outs - Zelavril: Ya school's getting in the way of my writing! But i manage to make time. Less time to daydream about FaytxCliff is terrible! OMG i love the popsicle part. i laugh so much when i read it over. Btw, he totally has a MOM tattoo. It would be so 'Cliff' to have that :p Chaotic Distortion: Ya its so fun laughing at Cliff's expense! And weenie is a good word to describe Fayt :D SpectralWings: I hope you enjoyed the latest chapters! Oh and i love it when you girls tell me what ur fav. part of the chapter was.
Note: Ok so for the first part ive decided to shake it up a bit. I'm going back to my more descriptive writing from earlier chapters. Its all about the imagination! Pretend you're there! Oh and its cold and wet here so thats why im dreaming of summer. And i have this weird thing for meadows. Its like a longing, I imagine being there and all is well. And for the sunset i'm describing one i actually saw here a few weeks ago. it was insane.
Chapter 7:
You know that feeling. That fabulous feeling of pure bliss. We've all experienced it at one point or another in our lives, perhaps while relaxing somewhere ethereal or with that special someone. Well at this moment, that very emotion was pulsing through every fiber of Fayt's being. He was basking in the gentle warmth of the late afternoon sun as it drenched and nuzzled his skin like the touch of a mother on her newborn baby. He could feel the wondrous humidity pressing against him and squeezing the sweat from his pores. Intertwined in the heat, a breathtaking scent swirled around him and into his nose — a medley of flowers one thousand times better than the most expensive perfume. And on his tongue was the taste of that potpourri of breath exhaled by the magical landscape around him.
A loud sigh came from the man he was resting his head on, who was also lying on the ground.
Bit by bit, Fayt opened his eyes from his soothing daytime snooze and studied his surroundings. They were dozing in a flowering meadow outside of Aquios, taking advantage of the clear skies after a brisk summer rain. Blinking lazily, Fayt glanced through the slender wildgrasses that surrounded his resting place and watched as they swayed to and fro in a breeze that pleasantly brushed his skin and spilled through his sapphire locks.
Sitting up suddenly, Fayt rested a hand on Cliff's chest — the latter still sound asleep. Nothing out of place.
Dandelion seeds were sailing around in the wind, like fairies searching for a new home, and they undulated across rising layers of air, dancing in circles in the balmy heat of day. His abrupt movement had sprung several pink petals up off the ground and they spun above his head, surfing the airy waves of a whirlwind. The light of an early moon reflected off a single drop of water on a petal in front of the bluenette's face, giving the illusion an ivory eye was watching him as it descended into his lap. Yes, the moon sat high in the sky, pushing and pulling the ocean nearby with invisible hands and guiding it up and down the beach.
A meadow of dreams…
…perched on the edge of the ocean's grasp. The water this evening was as smooth as glass, sparkling and refracting the setting sun and wispy clouds overhead, creating what looked like a whole other world in a simple reflection. Looking off in the distance ahead of him, Fayt saw towering firs waving in the wind with their branches enveloping the outer rim of the meadow and further behind them still stood the grand snow-capped Mountains of Barr.
Our secret little meadow, off the beaten path, a place only he and Cliff knew.
Fayt was actually sitting on a round patch of earth stuffed to the brim with grasses, yellow daisies, lilac forget-me-nots, and ruby snapdragons. There were several of these tiny islands scattered across the small pond that surrounded them, beyond which the meadow continued on unimpeded (to the sea on one side and the forest on another). At one end of the pool stood an aged, stone cabin complete with a door dangling off its hook and a waterwheel turning a babbling brook that ebbed peacefully towards the pond. After surveying the scenery around him, Fayt felt refreshed and gave his head a waggle.
"Cliff," Fayt said softly, shaking his love with his hand. "Cliff, wake up."
"Uhhhh."
The bluenette leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on the nose, hoping that might end his slumber. Instead the blond grunted again, moving an arm as if to push something away from him, and started talking in his sleep.
"No…get away…not all at once!", he mumbled. "...he would be mad if ya did that…STOP IT!"
Taken aback, Fayt covered his mouth to suppress his giggling. I know...
"CLIFF! Albel's trying to attack me! He says he wants to sex me up!" the young man finally yelled, shattering the silence like a random battle in Final Fantasy X.
Cliff's eyes sprung open as speedily as a mousetrap. "Huh? What? Where is he? I'm gonna lay the smackdown…"
Seeing that he was being duped again, the blond shoved Fayt over into the grass. The latter was incessantly laughing while rolling around on the ground. After he was finished, he looked up at Cliff who was folding his arms and staring at him with an annoyed look.
"Sorry, I didn't know how else to wake you up sleepyhead. Did you know you were just talking in your sleep?"
"What?! I was?" the blond said, squinting his eyes in thought and shaking his head. "Must have been just hilarious from the look of it."
"Oh no, I was laughing about what I said."
"Oh, I see. Well...I was dreaming that we had gone to visit Earth and these four girls recognized me as the leader of Quark and they ran over and were tryin' to kiss me! At the same time! And you were just over the way and about to turn around when I woke up."
"Wow, quite the popular one. Even in your dreams."
"Ya, its weird. It was so clear too. I can even remember they were telling me their names...I'm pretty sure they were...Zelavril, Choatic, Spectral, and Yuuwaku! One had a popsicle, the other chocolate spread, another was holding a Spanish Lolita dress, and the last was holding a wiener. They had a strange look in their eyes, I'm not sure what they had planned. Weird…"
"Well, they better back off cause I'm your biggest fan," Fayt declared, poking Cliff in the chest.
"No doubt."
They both fell silent, ready to enjoy the scene unfolding in front of them. The sun was beginning its descent behind the far-off mountains. Fayt edged towards the pond and dipped his toes in, swishing them back and forth with not a care in the world. The water was one step down from lukewarm and it sent icy shivers into his feet and up his legs, but his fire within pushed back this unwanted intrusion. Cliff moved forward as well and pulled Fayt close and they watched the sunset together, the blond's arm wrapped snugly around the other's back.
It began high above them in the sky — a blue canvas for Nature, the preeminent artist. Delicate, wispy clouds were painted with carefree strokes from one horizon to the other. They floated as if they were giant feathers curled at the edges, lost from the plumage of a mythical phoenix soaring through the heavens. The colours of the setting sun spurt across the clouds, slowly spreading like spilled ink through an absorbent paper towel. There was haze hanging in the woods nearby and as the sun dipped down further its intense colours began to stream through the trees. Brilliant light filtered through each branch and broke into countless sunbeams that shone down across the meadow below and bounced off the water in the pond. The mélange of colour in the fog fooled the spectators' eyes and made it seem as if each tree had split into two — like when one's eyes go out of focus.
Fayt was now dipping his feet into the wonder of the setting sun itself, swishing and swirling its radiance as he pleased.
Without notice, a huge parrot-like bird burst over their heads and flew across the meadow heading from the ocean to the trees. Its red, orange, and yellow feathers blurred together so it looked as if a lone streak of fire was blazing across the sky. With the colours of passion streaming behind it in the light mist, the bird swooped straight upwards as it reached the forest's edge into the direct path of the sun. With wings and sunset like a single torch, it flew off into the coming night.
The resplendence of the early evening faded as the last drops of light were disappearing behind the mountains. The darker colours still remained, those purples and blues hanging off the clouds in a blackening sky. Fayt turned to Cliff and mouthed 'I love you' before pressing his lips against the blond's own and feeling Cliff's tongue in return. The final ray of daylight glimmered through the small space between their faces before vanishing as quickly as someone being transported to the Diplo.
"No need to leave yet, right?" Cliff asked dreamily, after finishing the kiss.
"Nope. Let's lie down some more and watch the stars come out, one by one."
Pushing Fayt down onto his back beneath the tall grasses, Cliff followed him down and continued the kiss from before. Peaceful ocean waves crashed onto the beach nearby and drowned out the alluring sound of their lips locking together.
-------------------------------------------
The day before…
Having made a rather uneventful trek from Airyglyph to the Sacred City of Aquios, the group was enjoying a leisurely picnic at one of the majestic viewpoints that overlooked the canyons and the ocean below. Fayt's mind was off somewhere else as he munched on his food. Even Cliff was deep in thought. They had decided they were going to tell the others they were in love, but were unsure of the reaction they would receive and whether it would strain the relative harmony of the party. Their relationship would be easily accepted in the year SD 772 — especially on the more progressive developed planets. On Elicoor II, such a coupling was common, but not flaunted.
It's now or never…. Fayt decided to get the ball rolling.
"Okay listen up guys, me and Cliff have something we want to tell you." Eyebrows rose up in curiosity all around the picnic blanket. Maria was the only one who completely froze as her mouth stopped in mid-chew.
"What? You and Cliff want to start up a cross dressing troupe like Peppita and travel the galaxy, me as your manager?" Mirage joked, grinning warmly.
"No! You're the lead. 'That's Mr. Mirage Koas to you, punk.' I can see it now…" Cliff responded, enjoying where this was going.
"I can do a mean dance, as I think I've proven to you when we used to go clubbing on Klaus. Speaking of which...I think...yes, I remember now the night you must've gotten that tattoo!" she said as her eyes widened.
"OKAY NOW. Let's move on to the real thing we wanna tell ya," the blond ordered firmly, hoping to god that Mirage would give it up. Luckily, she just smiled at his scorching glare.
An impatient Albel interjected before Fayt could even open his mouth. "Don't leave me hanging, maggot. Lets hear what this is all about. You and Fittir haven't become buttbuddies have you?"
Cliff started hesitantly nodding his head until Fayt elbowed him hard in the side. Mouths began to drop in succession.
"NO! Why would you think such a thing Albel?" the bluenette yelled as Cliff switched from nodding to shaking his head.
"Perhaps because you two spend far too much time together. I can't imagine for the life of me why you would enjoy the continuous company of that fool anyhow…" Albel sneered, pointing at Cliff. What was that? Did the blond sense a hint of jealousy in that remark?
"Stuff it 'Bel. By the way, you might want to reposition that skirt you're wearing cause there's a little something hanging out there..."
Albel immediately shifted his cape(?), the slit having moved dangerously close to his groin.
Sophia had caught a glance and looked like she was going to be sick. Trying to poke the image out of her mind she managed to offer feebly: "I have a theory about what they might be wanting to tell us…"
"NO! ENOUGH!" Maria and Nel shouted in unison. "Let Fayt speak!" the latter continued.
Poor Fayt was starting to tear up as this certainly wasn't the way he had imagined this friends acting when he was about to tell them something so important...so meaningful to him. Seeing his sweetheart losing his composure, Cliff reached an arm around him and gave him a reassuring side hug. Someone in the group said 'We're sorry, we get out of hand easily, we thought it was just something trivial' (he couldn't tell who through his blurry vision), which made him feel better. Wiping his eyes, Fayt could see everyone was now looking at him sympathetically.
"Ummm...well…we just wanted everyone to know that me and Cliff are going out together...and we're in love…" Fayt finally announced, his mood brightening as the words escaped his mouth, especially on the last one.
"What he said," Cliff added, beaming.
There was a short pause as everybody digested the information. Mirage broke the silence.
"Wow! That's wonderful! You picked good, Cliff."
"Ya, I'm so happy for you two," Sophia exclaimed, jumping up and giving Fayt a bear hug.
"Me too. It's not easy declaring something like that," Nel replied. "I know, as some of my friends have gone through it."
"...Guess she's got a point," Albel admitted, his demeanor softening. "You guys got courage, something I appreciate in men. I don't see enough of that around anymore."
Mirage added her further support: "We're totally behind you. And don't think this will change how we think about you one bit. Remember, you're one step ahead of all of us when it comes to love." The crew nodded in agreement.
"Congratulations," Maria said flatly. She got up and gave both Fayt and Cliff brief, formal hugs. Then she sauntered off in the direction of the inn.
A superb idea had just popped into Sophia's head and replaced the icky image of Albel's privates. "Well, then? What do you all say? Drinks all around tonight in celebration?"
"This may in fact be the first time I've ever agreed with something that came out of that pretty mouth," Albel snickered.
"Geez...thanks guys. I don't think we could be happier."
"Okay then, I'll go see where Maria has gone off too and then we'll meet up at the pub," Fayt decided, gazing up at his boyfriend.
"Sounds like a plan!"
The others hung around to clean up the picnic while Fayt headed over to the inn. After tidying up, Cliff and Mirage led the way to the pub, chatting about what had just happened.
"You know, I think I always knew Cliff..." Mirage confessed, "...that you were really into men, more than any woman you ever went out with."
"Oh ya smarty-pants? What exactly was it that gave me away?"
"Well for one thing...there's the way you dress…" she said, looking him up and down.
"Whaddaya mean the way I dress!? What about it?" Cliff responded, his voice heading upwards.
Mirage shook her big, braided hair about. "Come on Cliff, you're always wearing that skin-tight leather suit, making it look like your chest and abs are gonna burst out at any moment. And what about the pants? What's going on with that weird crotch opening?"
"Well, ummm….I guess you kinda have a point," he replied, grinning. "It focuses Fayt in on the fine family jewels…"
"See? I know you too well. Looks like you could work in some gay leather nightclub or something…"
"HEY NOW! Come on that's pushin' it." They both laughed.
"But anyways, more seriously...what's it been like for you all these years then? You must have been quite confused," Mirage asked, ready for some explanation from her long-time friend.
"Ya, I guess I've known for a quite a while, but never realized it…"
The two continued the conversation, delving into Cliff's past and what it was like for him to be someone he wasn't.
-------------------------------------------
Over at the inn, Fayt hadn't found Maria as he'd hoped. I was sure she went in that direction. Feeling tired, he collapsed on his bed and looked out the window. Dark storm clouds were seeping towards the grand city from off in the distance and the light was turning a strange yellowish tinge.
Thank god that's done with, he thought. Finally he and Cliff could act naturally around the others, and show how much they were in love.
He got up again and decided to change his clothes before heading back out to search for Maria. What's her problem anyway? That was very uncharacteristic of her…
Pulling off his shirt, he rummaged around his pack looking for another, when suddenly he heard the floorboards creaking outside his door. For reasons unknown, he got a cold shiver up his spine. Expecting a knock, what Fayt got instead was the door being flung open and a dark figure standing in the hallway shadows. She stepped forward into the pale light — it was Maria — but there was something strange about her aura. Her long azure hair was split into several thick strands that flew around her from the door's gust and in her eyes was the determination of a ferocious lion.
"Haven't you ever heard of knocking first Mar…"
"Shhh!" she ordered. "(Muttering under her breath)...if it's the last thing I do!" (Unfortunately, Fayt couldn't make out the first part of what she said).
She flew forwards and shoved a shocked Fayt onto the bed, holding him down as she moved her face ever closer to his exposed chest…
OMG! TO BE CONTINUED!