Curve Ball - Chapter Two
They couldn't have asked for a lovelier evening. The sultry heat of the day had been whisked away by a soft summer breeze, and the indigo sky was brimming with glittering stars. Radiant Garden was in full bloom again, and Leon couldn't help but feel a deep sense of satisfaction as he looked around the town, knowing that he and his companions had played a large part in making that happen. Of course, they weren't needed now as much as they had been back in the beginning when it was just them and a handful of others.
As more and more refugees found their way back to the Garden, there were a lot more hands to help with the work of restoring it, and a lot of them had their own visions of what that restoration should look like. They were also quite capable of turning those visions into reality, even when they were visions that Leon didn't necessarily share, such as the very nightclub they were currently standing in front of – standing in line in front of. And in Yuffie's case, standing very impatiently in line in front of.
It was hard to believe how many people there were now, Leon mused, looking at the long line ahead of them – hard to believe there were even this many people in all of Radiant Garden, much less this many people just in this line alone.
Actually, it was hard to believe that there this many people in all the worlds combined who were willing to stand in line just to get into a place that was going to be obnoxiously noisy and packed with people who were going to be drunk and obnoxious and noisy. It was giving him a headache just thinking about it.
Well, that was the point of it all, he supposed, pinching the bridge of his nose – all these people. There wasn't much point in going to all the trouble of rebuilding the world just to have it all to yourself. That was kind of like wanting to compress time because you would be the only one capable of existing in that world, and that was kind of crazy.
Wasn't it?
Leon never really got Ultimecia. Yeah, yeah, he got the whole world domination thing, even though he couldn't, for the life of him, understand why anybody would want to dominate the whole world, but it didn't make any sense whatsoever for someone to want to dominate a whole world with nobody in it to dominate. That was just crazy.
Unless of course, it didn't have anything to do with world domination at all. Maybe Ultimecia just didn't like other people and wanted the whole world all to herself – a world without any stupid noisy nightclubs full of stupid, noisy people, and Leon could certainly understand that. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.
You couldn't have paid him to go in this place, not for all the munny in the world, not even if he could have just waltzed right in without even having to wait in this stupid line; couldn't have forced him at gunblade point even, because, really, death didn't look all that bad in comparison. But here he was anyway, waiting in line along with everyone else in Radiant Garden, including a very impatient Yuffie who kept bouncing around and stepping on his toes. At least they were covered in steel-toed boots, although that did nothing to help with the annoyance factor.
So why was he standing here in this stupid line with the entire population of Radiant Garden when nobody was even paying him, and there certainly weren't any gunblades pointed at his head because the only other person in the entire universe that used a gunblade was Seifer, who lived in Twilight Town now and was like fifteen years old and wore a stupid little beanie and used a big blue bat instead of a gunblade – which made even less sense to Leon than Ultimecia wanting to compress time, but then Leon supposed he'd seen a lot of strange things in his lifetime that didn't make much sense; things like dogs digging for hungry cookpots in the middle of battle, and little blue aliens named PuPu who came all that way just to steal a stupid cow, and ... oh yeah, he was supposed to be thinking about why he was here.
Right. So it was back to that again, was it? – that same old stupid question that he had already asked himself a half a dozen times today, and every single time he asked it, he kept coming up with the same old stupid answer: Cloud. Cloud was the reason he was here. Cloud, who was standing right beside him looking luscious as a peach, and somebody had to be here to keep all the hungry wolves from gobbling him up.
Well, maybe not wolves, Leon sighed, because he was pretty sure that wolves didn't eat peaches, but he was pretty damn certain that every single person inside that club, as well as every single person waiting outside in the stupid line to get into the stupid club, both male and female alike, were just champing at the bit to sink their teeth into the delicious, delectable morsel standing beside him, and somebody, somebody, mind you, had to be here to protect him. Especially since the delectable morsel didn't even have a clue.
The line surged forward an entire three spaces, and the person behind him, in his haste to make sure that Leon closed the tiny little gap lest the line-cutters swarm in to fill it up – despite the fact that 4000 of the 4010 people in line were already in front of him – bumped into him, and then Yuffie glared at him as if to say it was all his stupid fault that they were stuck in this stupid line and stepped on his toes yet again to make sure he got the point. Leon opened his mouth to suggest they just go home, but the voice that came out was not his own.
"Tseng?" a sweet, feminine voice said. No, definitely not his.
"How lovely to see you, Miss Aerith," Tseng replied. "Miss Yuffie, Miss ... Cloud," he added with a deferential nod, barely missing a beat; if he was surprised to see their world's savior in drag, he certainly didn't show it. But then, it wasn't really that much of a surprise; they had all heard that story, of course – many, many times; it was one of Reno's personal favorites. And besides, he was Tseng, epitome of propriety: polished, polite, and professional.
"And Mayor Leonhart, I presume?" he continued, turning to Leon with an outstretched hand.
"It's just Leon," Leon answered, eyeing Tseng warily as he reluctantly shook the proffered appendage. "And I'm not the mayor."
"I see," Tseng said, though he didn't look convinced. "Please pardon ..."
"Squall is so the mayor," Yuffie butted in.
"It's Leon," Leon repeated, a little more vehemently. "And I'm not the mayor."
"That's okay, Leon," Cloud added helpfully. "Nobody can force you to admit you're the mayor."
"I am not the mayor," Leon growled.
"Well, you pretty much are, Leon. In every way except officially," Aerith chipped in. "I mean, everybody knows–"
"Please," Tseng intervened, silencing everyone with one softly spoken word. "Pardon my misinformation ... Leon. Still, it is an honor to meet the man responsible for so much of Radiant Garden's success."
"I had a lot of help," Leon grumbled, glaring at Cloud – his friend: the traitor.
"Had we known you were coming," Tseng continued, "this," and he indicated the line with a small sweep of his hand, "could easily have been avoided." He pulled a business card from his breast pocket and handed it to Leon, "Next time, please phone me personally."
"Well, we didn't know ..." Aerith trailed off as she suddenly noticed, along with Cloud, Leon and Yuffie, the small 'Shin-Ra's' tucked right in between the dancing couple and the little flashing martini that framed the left-hand corner of the large neon letters proclaiming 'Electric Underground'. How had they missed it?
"Rufus," Cloud growled under his breath.
"Fortunately," Tseng said, nodding towards the door where Rude was busy checking IDs, "your presence was noticed and promptly brought to my attention. Now, if you would all please come with me ..." Then he graciously offered Aerith his arm, which Aerith graciously accepted, and Yuffie pranced along beside them, grinning smugly at all the poor sods still stuck in line, while Cloud and Leon followed a few private paces behind.
"Rufus Shinra?" Leon questioned quietly so only Cloud could hear. "What's he doing here?"
"How should I know? Aren't you the one who approves all the permits?" Cloud whispered back crossly, eyes never leaving Tseng's back.
"Well, yeah," Leon answered defensively, "but the application was filed under the name Tuesti. Does that mean anything to you?"
Cloud paused for a moment and then shook his head, the brief look of surprise that flashed across his face quickly replaced by disappointment. "Yeah, Reeve was Shinra's Head of Urban Development back in Midgar," he sighed, "but he was also our teammate and ... friend. I can't believe he would betray us like this," he said and then muttered, more or less to himself, "again."
Having, only moments before, experienced the bitterness of a supposed friend's betrayal himself, Leon made an awkward attempt at consolation, though he wasn't sure why. It certainly served the blond right – payback and all – and he deserved whatever he got. Still, the discomfort Leon felt at the disappointment in Cloud's eyes was stronger than any satisfaction he might have gotten from revenge, and he quietly suggested, "Well, all of the paperwork was handled through Gummi Delivery Service. Maybe he didn't realize you guys were here?"
"Right. Out of all the worlds, he just happened to pick this one by coincidence." Cloud shrugged. "You haven't seen any talking, mechanical cats or giant, stuffed moogles wandering around lately, have you?"
"No. But I'm certain there was no mention of the name Shinra anywhere on the application. We can shut them down on a technicality if they cause any trouble."
Before they could discuss it further, they arrived at the entrance, pausing for a moment so Aerith could thank Rude for their rescue, to which Rude merely grunted in response, making Leon wonder (and isn't that just the pot calling the kettle black) if that was how the man had come by his name. Under normal circumstances, Leon might have appreciated the other man's terse reply, might even have considered it a mark of affinity, but these circumstances were anything but normal, and Leon's suspicion that the bald-headed man behind the dark glasses was simply too busy checking out Cloud to bother with forming a more polite answer didn't mark him with anything other than animosity.
Things didn't get any better once they got inside. Tseng turned to Leon and indicated a small alcove off to one side. "I'm afraid we require that all weapons be checked at the door," he said politely, but leaving no room for contest. "I'm sure you understand."
Although decidedly displeased by the prospect of walking into Shinra's den unarmed, Leon nodded his reluctant consent and walked over to the attractive blue-eyed blonde behind the counter. Unfairly venting some of his residual resentment of Rude, he handed her his gunblade with a glare which stated in no uncertain terms that she had better guard it with her life if she wished to continue living it.
Impressively holding her own beneath a look which would have withered most men, she gave him an appreciative once-over and smiled seductively, letting her fingers brush his suggestively as she handed him his ticket. The small group of her admirers hanging out nearby bristled with jealousy, but Leon only redoubled his glare.
Tucking the ticket safely into his pocket, Leon followed along with the others as Tseng ushered them to a small table just off the dance floor, casing the joint for escape routes as he went. The place was everything he had dreaded and so much more...
The music was deafening, the strobe lights seizure-inducing, and the smell utterly awful: sweat and perfume mingled with alcohol and smoke and something else which Leon's nose couldn't quite place, but some small, atrophied part of his brain helpfully identified as raw sex. The place was literally oozing with pheromones.
And Leon was fairly certain that ninety-nine point nine percent of them were coming from the blond right in front of him. It was the only logical explanation for why he was here, still tailing the other man like some lovesick little puppy (or horny hound dog in heat) but it didn't make him feel any better to know that his pathetic libido was being lead along by the nose, no better than some mindless invertebrate.
Once they arrived at their destination, Tseng made his departure, snapping his fingers at some unseen party and pointing to their table as he walked away. A waitress appeared a few moments later, breaking into a huge grin when she saw who was seated there.
"Lena!" Yuffie squealed, jumping up to give the petite Turk a big hug.
"Yufs!" Elena replied, hugging the equally diminutive ninja back while Cloud and Aerith watched with mouths agape; evidently, hanging off the face of Da Chao together had been a very bonding experience. "Gosh it's good to see you guys."
"I'm guessing this must mean Reno's around too," Cloud muttered, somewhat less excited than Yuffie by their unexpected reunion.
Elena nodded enthusiastically and pointed towards the bar. "Yup, Reno's the barkeep."
"So what brings Rufus to Radiant Garden?" Cloud asked, knowing he was a lot more likely to get an honest answer (and so much more) from Elena than he could ever have gotten out of Tseng.
"Well, you know, we just missed you guys so much," she laughed. "Midgar just isn't the same without you. Course, these days, it wouldn't really be the same with you, either," she added, "what with all the destruction and all – but anyways, Rufus figured that maybe it would be best if we all just got a fresh start somewhere else, so when we heard that you guys–" She was interrupted at that point by a rowdy group a few tables over clamoring for another round of drinks. "So um, what can I get you guys, anyway?" she asked, distractedly waving off the other table. "On the house, of course."
They gave her their orders, and in no time at all she was back with their drinks: a Strawberry Daiquiri for Aerith (even the flower girl's drink was pink, Leon noted with an amused snort); something called a Moonlight Margarita for Cloud (almost as electric a blue as his eyes, Leon also couldn't help but notice); and he didn't know what Yuffie had ordered, but it was bright orange with a slice of lemon and a slice of lime, as well as a maraschino cherry and one of those brightly colored little umbrellas that tilted jauntily off to one side. Then he looked down at his own drink – a plain scotch and water – and wondered what that said about him.
He hadn't planned on drinking at all, but realized as soon as he entered the place that it would probably be a necessity if he wanted to get through the night without killing someone, and he had to admit it was probably a good thing that Tseng had made him check his gunblade at the door. He picked up his glass, taking a good, long drink, and a good, long look around.
Their table was far too close to the action for Leon's comfort, but Tseng had probably had to pull strings to procure what others likely considered such a choice location. Leon would have preferred one of the tables nicely tucked away in a dark, private corner, but all of those, as he had unfortunately noticed on the way in, were already occupied with people doing ... things ... that Leon didn't even want to think about – especially not with Blondie sitting directly across from him sipping on his Margarita, the little pink tip of his tongue darting out now and then to lick the salt from his luscious lips. Leon took another good, long drink and kept his eyes on the dance floor.
Aerith and Yuffie didn't seem the least bit fazed by being sober in a place where nobody else was and slowly sipped on their cocktails while animatedly chattering away, but Leon polished his drink off as if his very sanity depended upon it – which, quite likely, it did. Cloud finished one swallow behind him, and when Blondie got up to go to the bar for another round rather than wait for Elena to return, Leon got up to go with him. He wasn't about to let Goldilocks go wandering all alone into the forest of Big Bad Wolves.
Uh, Big Bad Bears ... or Three Little Bears ... um, Three Little Pigs ... uh, Little Red Riding Hood ... Whatever.
As it turned out, it was a damn good thing he did, too, because the biggest, baddest wolf of them all happened to be the redhead behind the bar; the long, low wolf whistle he let out as soon as he laid his beady little eyes on Cloud confirmed it.
"Yo, Cloud Babe. Lookin' mighty fine there, Foxy. Mighty fine. Good enough to eat," Red slobbered salaciously. Like a wolf. Damn, sometimes Leon hated being right.
"So what'll you have?" Reno purred, leaning over the counter and running a lecherous hand up and down Cloud's arm. "Beer or wine? Or something hard?"
Leon clenched his teeth and fisted his hand to keep it from slapping Red's away. Thank goodness, just as he was about to lose the battle, Cloud swatted it away for him. "Behave yourself, Reno," he warned.
Yeah. Leon was going over that permit tomorrow with a fine-tooth comb and sending this bozo packing.
"Aw, come on Cloudy Boy. Didn't you miss me?" Reno pouted. "You know you want me."
"He wants you to leave him the hell alone," Leon growled, attempting to incinerate Red with his eyeballs.
Unfortunately, Red seemed to be fireproof. "Well, Helloooo Handsome," he crooned, noticing Leon for the first time. "Sorry, I didn't know Blondie here belonged to you."
"I don't belong to anybody," Cloud snapped – totally incongruous with his angelic appearance. "Reno, would you please just get our drinks."
"Why, sure thing, Babe. You just stand there lookin' pretty, and I'll be back in a blink. Coming right up with some hootch for the cootch. I'll bring the cock if you bring the tail. Quick as a dick with ..."
"Our drinks," Leon snarled, growl intensifying to a rumbling roar. Maybe he was a lion. A lion could take a wolf, right?
"Whoa. Hold on to your humpin' horses there, Handsome." Reno held up his hands in mock surrender. "I'm just messin' with ya, yo?" And with a wink almost as raunchy as his jokes, he spun around and started pulling bottles off the shelf.
As soon as Reno was out of earshot, Cloud shook his head and chuckled softly. "Don't let him get to you, Leon. He's really not as bad as he seems." Leon didn't look convinced, but let it slide nonetheless. "The Turks might even be considered ... well, not exactly friends," Cloud continued, "but not quite enemies either."
Reno returned soon after and set their drinks on the counter. "Well, there you go," he said with a smug grin. "Three super-duper-deluxe concoctions à la Reno for the lovely ladies, and one boring old scotch and water for Mr. Sure-could-use-some-lovin'."
Yeah, first thing tomorrow, Leon grunted.
Cloud just chuckled and handed Red some munny – which Red refused to take, further pissing Leon off – then picked up two of the glasses and set off on his merry way. Giving the obnoxious, redheaded bimbo one last dirty look, Leon made a point of slamming enough munny down on the counter to cover their drinks and then picked up the other two glasses, warily eyeing the long, treacherous trek back to their table.
The path had been difficult enough to maneuver without the added challenge of carrying glasses filled to the brim with brain-cell-obliterating liquids, but Cloud didn't seem to be daunted in the least. With drinks held high on finely muscled arms and sexy hips swaying, he gracefully navigated his way through the crowd, sidestepping all the wildly gyrating bodies with flourish and finesse while Leon watched with an admiration that bordered on awe and followed more cautiously.
But they soon made it back without mishap, and Leon let out a sigh of relief, relaxing a little once he and Cloud were both back in the relative safety of their own little table – an island of asylum in the surrounding sea of insanity. His false sense of security, however, was short-lived because, before Cloud could even sit down, Aerith jumped up and dragged him out on the dance floor, leaving Leon alone with Yuffie. He quickly gave her one of his very deadliest glares lest she get any similar ideas.
"Gawd, Squall," she pouted, "you are such a party poophead."
Yeah, well, better a poophead than a moron, he grimaced – he hadn't danced since Rinoa – and he felt sort of sorry for Cloud; this was certainly not going to be pretty. Well, pretty maybe, but not good; not in those heels.
Leon took another swallow of scotch and tried to ignore Yuffie drumming her fingers on the table, which wasn't all that difficult to do since he couldn't hear a thing over the blasted music, but he probably wouldn't have noticed her anyway, even had she burst into flames sitting right there beside him, because the blond out on the dance floor was even hotter. Much, much hotter. As in burning up.
And what's more, he was good – damn good, actually – and he sure as hell must have gotten used to those heels awful damn fast because they weren't slowing him down the least little bit, and that sexy little move he kept doing with his – yeah, that one, Leon whimpered – was really fucking hot, and Leon picked up his glass to take another drink, but damn if it wasn't already empty.
The song finally ended, allowing Leon to catch a much-needed breath, but then another one started up, and so did Cloud and Aerith, so Leon got up and went back to the bar for another drink, because even having to face Red again wasn't as terrifying as having to sit there watching Cloud. By the time he got back to the table two songs later, Cloud and Aerith were just returning as well, all breathless and beautiful, and Leon almost downed his new drink in one gulp.
Cloud plopped down in his chair with an exaggerated exhalation, feigning exhaustion, but Aerith immediately latched on to Yuffie and yanked her out of her seat. She started pulling the younger girl towards the dance floor, but suddenly stopped short and looked back over her shoulder at Leon with a sparkle in her emerald eyes and a toss of auburn curls. "Why don't you dance with Cloud?" she suggested and then skipped away with Yuffie, leaving a trail of laughter behind her.
Leon promptly choked on the swallow of scotch in his mouth, though he did somehow manage not to spew it all over the table, and the look of panic in his eyes evoked Cloud's pity. "That's okay, Leon" he said softly, shrugging it off with a smile. "I could use a breather anyway."
Leon was grateful, but he didn't miss the disappointment in Cloud's eyes nor the sadness in his smile, and once again, he didn't like it. Still, he wasn't sure how to fix it, so they sat there in silence; a silence which quickly became awkward, like all of their silences of late. They nursed their drinks and pretended to be engrossed in watching the couples out on the dance floor rather than acutely aware of each other, and just when Leon thought he wouldn't be able to stand it another second, the girls returned, and then Elena showed up, and Leon ordered another round.
"Hey, Buster, aren't you supposed to be our designated driver?" Yuffie scolded, shaking her finger at Leon.
To which Leon replied, "We walked, Yuffie," and then everybody laughed, and the dark cloud which had been hanging over their table suddenly broke up and blew away. Softly shimmering disco stars came out and danced around the room like diamonds, and the conversation flowed along like a cheerfully babbling brook. Even the music wasn't so bad any more, and for one brief, shining moment, all was right with Leon's world.
Unfortunately, that dark cloud came barreling back like an afternoon thunderstorm – out of the blue and with a vengeance – in the form of a handsome, dark-haired man with sky-blue eyes and a blinding smile, and rained all over poor Leon's parade. "Would you like to dance?" the man asked, holding out his hand to Cloud, and all the little stars blinked out, the music hit a sour note, and the lively conversation drowned in the downpour like a dead rat.
Cloud looked at Leon with undisguised hope in his eyes, but Leon just sat there staring at the empty glass in his hand and didn't say a word, not even when Aerith prodded him with a soft, "Leon?" Then the hope in Cloud's eyes slowly went the way of the stars, each little pinpoint of light pricking the back of his eyes as they blinked out one by one, leaving a hard lump in his throat, a bitter taste in his mouth, and his heart in a billion shattered pieces on the floor.
He sat there for a moment, staring down at the mess at his feet that had once been his heart, and then – just like he had so many times before in his short, but not so sweet, little life – he scooped up the pieces and carried on. "Sure. I'd like that," he said with a bittersweet smile, and with head held high, he walked away with the handsome stranger.
Aerith and Yuffie just sat there for several stunned moments before Aerith finally asked, "Are you really just going to sit there and let him walk away?" When Leon still didn't answer, Yuffie snorted in disbelief, and Aerith clicked her tongue in disappointment. "You're a fool, Leon," she said quietly, "a sad and stubborn fool who's going to end up a bitter and lonely old fool." Then she grabbed Yuffie by the hand and followed Cloud out to the dance floor where there were real, live people, leaving Leon all alone to stew in his own sour juices.
He sat there for all of five seconds before jumping up and storming out the door. The line outside was gone, and as soon as the solid steel door closed behind him, the pounding music faded to a distant rumble, leaving him with only his thoughts, which didn't make for very good company, and Rude, who didn't make for very good company either.
He turned and stalked off down the street, but hadn't made it more than a block away before realizing he had walked right out without Lionheart, and he glanced down fearfully to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything else. Relieved to find himself still in possession of the family jewels, his trepidation then turned to chagrin, and with a growl of frustration, he plopped down on a nearby bench and buried his head in his hands.
Unfortunately, the back of his eyelids were still playing the same old boring B-Movie reruns they had been playing for the last twenty seven years and failed to hold his attention, so he lifted his head to study the stars instead. But that turned out to be an even bigger mistake, for they appeared to be blinking in celestial Morse code, and the message they were spelling out was loud and clear:
You, Squall Leonhart, they wholeheartedly agreed with Aerith, are a fool.
-xXx-
Humbled by the harsh but honest judgment of the stars, Leon returned to the nightclub much more meekly than he had left it and faced Rude with as much dignity as he could muster. But Rude was every bit as good at hiding his emotions as Leon, and if there was a smirk behind those dark glasses, he didn't allow it to reach the rest of his face. He merely held the door open and waited for Leon to enter.
Leon slunk back to their table to find it still empty and looked around the club for his companions. Yuffie was hard to miss, exuberantly bouncing around on the dance floor with some blond-headed kid with a tail and just as much energy as Yuffie, and he spotted Aerith standing at the far end of the bar talking to Tseng, but Cloud was nowhere to be seen.
Leon's heart began to race, and his stomach churned as he frantically searched the room for the familiar, flaxen head of hair, feeling sicker and sicker with every passing moment that he failed to find it. Had he left? With that guy? Then the throng of writhing bodies suddenly parted, and there he was, shining like an angel in the disco's heavenly lights.
After swallowing the lump that was stuck in his throat, Leon realized that his mouth was dry and his glass was empty, so he made his way back to the bar. Reno must have seen him coming, for he had a scotch and water waiting, as well as some advice.
"No, seriously man; this one's on me," he said with an actual modicum of decorum, pushing Leon's hand away when he attempted to pay. "You look like you just lost your best friend." He looked pointedly in the direction of the dance floor.
Leon followed Reno's gaze out to where his angelic blond was still dancing with that black-haired devil and then sat down on the barstool with a defeated sigh.
"You know," Reno continued, letting out a melodramatic sigh of his own, "They say life's too short for regrets, and though the kicked-puppy look is really sexy on you, I get the feeling you're gonna kick yourself all the way to the grave if you let him slip away."
When Leon still didn't respond, Reno leaned in closer and lowered his voice. "Look, I know it's none of my business, but why don't you just go out there and ask him to dance? Man, if Cloud ever looked at me the way I saw him looking at you, I'd be on him faster than Yuffie on a fully mastered Knights of the Round Materia."
Leon finally looked at the other man, really looked at him then, and the sincerity he found in the redhead's pretty, teal eyes surprised him. With a determined nod, he threw back the last of his scotch, set the glass on the bar, and stood up. "Thanks," he said. "For the drink, and the advice."
"No problemo; just part of the job description. Now go get him, Tiger. Just remember that if you ever hurt that man, you'll have to answer to the Turks."
"Got it," Leon acknowledged with another nod, then turned and walked out on the dance floor. Taking a deep breath, he gave Cloud's partner a firm tap on the back of his shoulder, probably a bit harder than was necessary.
"Huh?" the man answered, looking over his shoulder with a dazed and dreamy expression on his handsome face. Recognizing the grumpy guy from Cloud's table, his blissful look quickly turned to a frown.
"Get lost," Leon growled, low and menacing.
But the dark-haired man wasn't that easily intimidated, nor was he willing to give up his pretty new partner without so much as a protest. "Hey, we're in the middle of a dance here if you don't mind."
"Actually, I do mind," Leon answered, returning the man's frown with his patented scowl. "So shove off; he's not available."
Confused by the out-of-the-blue possessiveness of Cloud's heretofore indifferent friend, and uncertain as to how he should handle it, he turned back to Cloud for guidance, but one glance was all it took to know that he had lost not only the battle, but most likely the war as well. For in spite of what some people seemed to think, Zachary Fair was no foolish young pup; he had been around enough to recognize a love-struck look when he saw one, and 'absolutely smitten' was written all over Cloud's face. He looked back at Leon again and found the same look there too, indiscernible on the man's emotionless face, but shining bright and unmistakable in the eyes locked on Cloud.
Still, it was Cloud's decision to make, so Zack turned once more to the blond and waited for some indication as to what he should do. When he realized that Cloud had apparently forgotten he was even there, Zack quietly called his name.
"Uh ... sorry," Cloud answered softly, dropping Zack's hand and taking a small step back.
"Well ... all right then," Zack reluctantly agreed, scratching the back of his neck with a sheepish grin. "But if you change your mind, just give me a shout."
"I'll do that," Cloud promised. "And Zack ... thanks."
"Hey, the pleasure was all mine," Zack answered easily with a carefree shrug, and just like that, his dazzling smile was back in place. Whistling along with the music, he sauntered off towards the bar, already scoping out the crowd for a new dance partner.
Leon watched him walk away, feeling a rather vindictive sense of satisfaction when he was accosted by a certain redhead at the bar, not realizing that Zack would not only enjoy Reno's juvenile jokes, but would likely return them twofold; when it came to sophomoric sexual innuendos and cheesy pick-up lines, they were cut from the same carnal cloth: two puerile peas in a prurient pod.
Nor did Leon particularly care that Zack hadn't really done anything to warrant revenge; indeed, if anyone were to blame for the situation, it would have to be Leon himself, but that didn't stop him from wishing slow death by Reno on the other man for daring to touch his Cloud. The fact that nobody knew Cloud was his because Leon had neglected to tell anyone – including, evidently, himself – was a mere, easily overlooked technicality.
Leon's gloating came to an abrupt end when the lights suddenly dimmed and a slow, romantic song began to play, almost as if by magic. Well, maybe not magic, but something close to it, he smiled to himself, watching Aerith walk away from the DJ's booth to join Reno and Zack at the bar. She flashed him an encouraging smile, and Reno gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up. Even Zack gave him a nod, and Yuffie stopped bouncing around long enough to give him a great big goofy grin.
Resolutely squaring his shoulders and taking another deep breath, Leon turned to find Cloud watching him quietly, his head slightly cocked to one side and a soft look of puzzlement painting his beautiful face. Then suddenly the rest of the world was forgotten, and with a small, insecure smile that he knew couldn't hold a candle to Zack's, Leon offered him his hand.
-xXx-
Leon had no idea how long they'd been dancing; he had long since lost track. That first, slow dance might as well have been a lifetime ago and was little more than a distant blur – a warm, fuzzy blur with his mind oblivious to everything other than the feeling of Cloud in his arms.
A faster song followed, with his mind more focused but his movements still stilted as he tried to find his courage and his feet, stumbling over half-remembered ballroom steps out of sync with hard rock music. Then another fast one which went more smoothly once he finally stopped thinking about it all and just allowed his natural rhythm and grace to take over.
After that, another slow song or two, followed by a few more fast songs, he thought, but it was there that he had begun to lose count, because by then he had loosened up considerably, getting more and more creative as the evening wore on. Hesitant, faltering steps turned to confident twists and complex turns with Cloud swinging into and out of his arms, leading to some rather suggestive bumping and grinding which soon deteriorated into full-out down and dirty out on the dance floor.
But eventually, the dirty dancing slowed into something even more intimate, something which Leon wasn't sure could even still be truly classified as dancing; it was more like clinging and swaying. And that was exactly how closing time found them – after the last call had been called and the last dance danced, the houselights turned up bright and the music down low – still clinging tightly, and swaying to their own enduring beat.