A/N: I… really have nothing to say. Lol. This chapter kind of wrote itself, and I really liked it came out. More SephxCloud bonding! And Yuffie!Plotting! And… Aerith!Plotting… dear sweet Jesus, all the women in this story are so devious! XD
Oh, and I forgot to mention Plot… Points…?
Wow, I just remembered this story has one of those. Lol. The joys of character-driven stories. ^.^
Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer from the last chapter still applies; also, I don't own "Misery Loves Its Company" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. That's… a really funny name for a band now that I think about it. Wow. O.o;
"You're persecuting me, showing hypocrisy-
I have a remedy for your insecurity.
It's all the same, sadly, nobody works for free…
Am I the only one who realizes it's true?
Beat but I'm not broken;
Guide me through with your hand!
Lead with your words spoken;
Show me how to listen.
Let your light shine through me-
Take this hate I can't release!
Help me make the blind see
Misery loves its company."
-"Misery Loves Its Company" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
Title: When You Walk Away
Chapter Three: Misery Loves Its Company
Yuffie hummed as she stared at the two disappearing figures waltzing out of the school's gates, plucking out her cell-phone from her backpack.
"Hey, Aerith… guess who got a certain someone's little brother to go to my party, just as planned!" The small short-haired girl bounced as she giggled, the voice on the other end of the line sounding just as ecstatic as she had anticipated. "Yeah, it took a little bit of, ahem, persuasion on my part, but he accepted! And you should have seen his face when Sephiroth of all people came by to pick him u-"
Yuffie frowned as the voice on the other line began to ramble, interrupting her mid-sentence.
"You didn't know about Sephiroth coming to pick him up Aer?" Biting her lip speculatively, the schoolgirl tugged on her skirt, now becoming concerned. "He's not going to do anything stupid to our little Cloudy, is he?"
Sighing in relief as her friend slowly comforted her, Yuffie grinned at the sudden speck of information now given to her.
"So Sephy's interested in him, eh…?"
Nearly laughing maniacally at the onslaught of new and all-sorts-of-awkward situations now open for her to manipulate, Yuffie skipped out of the courtyard, giggling as Aerith began to moon over the opportunities now available to them.
Oh, would Cloud love her by the time they were finished with him…
Both man and boy discretely stared at the other out of the corner of their eyes, the awkward hanging between them both stifling and uncomfortable.
'I wonder what he's thinking about…' Cloud thought to himself as he fiddled with his backpack strap settled over his shoulder, trying to appear as relaxed as possible (and quite possibly failing to the nth degree). 'Why would he wait for me? Unless Professor Gast asked him to pick me up for whatever reason…'
"Um…" Sephiroth, who was wondering how to best approach conversation with the usually-shy blond, immediately perked up when the other's soft tenor floated to his ears. "Is there… anything wrong?"
"Why would you think that, Cloud?"
"… … It's not every day I get picked up from school by you, Sephiroth. Did Prof-I mean, ahem, father ask you to pick me up today?" Sephiroth had to stifle a smile at the adorable blink of confusion and innocent tilt of the head Cloud sent his way, blond spikes bouncing at the staccato beat of the tiny student's footsteps. "Did something happen to Aerith or Zack that I should know about? Or-"
"None of the above, Cloud." Patting the boy on the head (and smiling at the sudden frown painting the grumpy blond as he did so), Sephiroth shrugged in what he hoped was a nonchalant way. "I simply wished to see you and speak with you. Is that… bad?"
"I… guess not." Shying a bit away from the large man slowing his long strides to keep in step with the high-school student next to him, Cloud placed both hands over his right shoulder, now grasping the tough strap with a two-handed grip. "I just don't see what we have to talk about. We don't really have all that much in common, you know."
Sephiroth nearly gave a hysterical giggle, the words just about echoing his own from a day before, when he had been speaking to Zack in the wooded area Cloud loved to visit so much.
"I'm sure there are a lot of other people who have more in common with you and hold much more interesting things to say than me, Sephiroth." And there went the timid Strife-Self-Deprecation, blaring out at the older college student at full force. "I'm not really all that talkative, if you haven't guessed by now."
Sephiroth gave the boy a speculative glance, wondering if he realized just who it was he was talking to.
"Well, you seem to be doing a good job of being so now." Sephiroth commented in return, not realizing how curt his response was to a one Cloud Strife.
Hanging his head in slight shame, the boy quickly shut his mouth, turning his head to the side so as to stare at the various buildings they were passing by on their way to his home.
"So… how was your day at school?" The tall college student questioned as neutrally as possible, hiding his nervous demeanor behind his usual placid façade.
"… … … Fine."
Cloud didn't notice as Sephiroth sweat-dropped, mouth twitching at the now all too familiar word within his companion's vocabulary.
'Somehow, I feel as if the Gods are mocking me, and yet I don't know why…'
"I will see you later, Cloud." Sephiroth barely denounced his presence as they reached the Gast's home, the balcony bare for all but the small swinging chair on the farthest left side of the porch. After a good fifteen minutes of little to no conversation, Sephiroth had had all he could stand, his companion's stiff attitude giving him cause for retreat.
"Eh?" The oblivious blue-eyed teen pulled out his keys, twisting them in the doorknob before turning back around, still mid-sentence. "Aren't you staying for din-"
Cloud blinked at the now empty space next to him, hand stilling as he nestled over the doorknob.
"-ner."
Feeling a bit edgy about Sephiroth's strange behavior, Cloud quickly threw himself inside his home and locked the door behind him. After nearly five months of being ignored by the beautiful man, the sudden turnabout in personality was both startling and frightening and Cloud hoped to God that things would be going back to normal as soon as his 'friend' (he hesitated in thinking of the word in association to Sephiroth, knowing he wasn't particularly close to the man Zack called his best friend) got over whatever it was that had bitten him in the ass.
'This is just temporary… don't get used to it, because it's only temporary…'
Words that were supposed to comfort made the boy feel cold and empty; reminding him of the aching hole still festering within his chest.
'This is only temporary…'
Sliding down the door frame, Cloud laid his head against his raised knees, eyes blurring over with familiar tears.
'But what I wouldn't give for it not to be.'
Sephiroth stared at the now locked door from behind the bush he was allocated, green eyes bright with determination.
"Is this becoming some sort of new strange hobby that I should know about, Sephiroth?"
The 21-year-old stalker-in-training internally flinched as he turned his head and was met with an all-too-amused Zackary Fair. Flicking the end of his nose, the dark-haired man nearly burst out laughing at the unfamiliar shocked expression gracing Sephiroth's face as his jaw dropped open, eyes wide and cheeks painted a very light pink from embarrassment.
"Hello Zackary." Sephiroth attempted to save face as he quickly stood up, brushing out any miscellaneous leaves from his long silver locks in an attempt to appear a bit more presentable than he already did. "How are you today?"
"Cut the crap, Seph, what the hell are you doing?"
Contemplating on whether or not it was in his best interest to let his friend in on his (hopeless) plans, Sephiroth gave the man a withering glare before finally giving in. "… … … Stake-out."
"Stake… out… and just what the hell are you staking out?!"
"I am waiting to see if Cloud shall be making his venture out into the woods today; I have a hypothesis in play, but first I am biding my time, watching my prey from afar." Nodding diligently, the out-of-touch hometown hero kept his gaze on the open-shade windows left open for his observation. "If my calculations are correct, by 5:15 he shall be moving about the house getting ready for his daily brooding session in the woods, out and about the house by 5:30; if that's the case, I think I have a plan ready at my disposal, but it is always better to veer on the side of caution…"
For a moment, Zack honestly stood behind the man speechless, not quite sure what to say.
"… … You do realize you're moving into unhealthy stalker territory, right Seph?"
Giving the younger man another dirty (if quick) glare out of the corner of his eyes, Sephiroth tossed his long hair over his shoulder and sniffed indignantly. "Do be quiet, Zack."
"Right-o. Just make sure not to get yourself caught in the process. Damn, we need to find you a hobby, Sephy-dear." Eye twitching at the derogatory nickname, Sephiroth stayed where he was, eyes still trained on the view leading inside his father's co-worker's home. "I, on the other hand, have an actual date planned. You know, those things that couples do to spend time with each other… that don't actually involve stalking them to try to get their attention."
"What is it you are trying to say, Zack?"
Zack was silent for a moment, wondering if his best friend was really as naïve as he portrayed himself to be at times or if this was another of Sephiroth's sarcastic inquiries meshed into a future snark that would sure to be headed his way.
After a series of oblivious blinks and furrowed glares aimed in his general direction, Zack decided that yes, Sephiroth was indeed that naïve.
"Nothing, Sephiroth; I am and have said nothing."
Without another word, the dark-haired 19-year-old left the older man to his thoughts, nearly giving into the urge of laughing out loud as he rang the doorbell set next to the door and waited patiently for his wonderful girlfriend to make her appearance.
Honestly, if the people of Midgar truly knew how clueless Sephiroth was in the ways of romance, Zack was pretty sure he would have been fan-raped by now. Luckily for the silver-haired behemoth, he was scary and carried through on his threats of violence and torture-
And even fan-girls held the most basic of survival instincts when it came down to it.
"Zack, what are you talking about?" Aerith quietly questioned as they both entered the quiet restaurant and were immediately seated at their table, the waitress smiling as she left them with their menus so that they could browse through the pages on their own accord. "Sephiroth and Cloud get along just fine-"
"Yeah, yeah, when whatever it is they're doing doesn't require talking or, you know, interacting with each other! I swear, I have never met two people who are as impossible to deal with as our little dream-team!" Quickly scanning through his menu, Zack immediately began to drool at the sight of all the glorious food staring up at him from its pages. "Cloud's too shy to take the initiative and Seph's so socially-retarded that he doesn't even realize that half of the stuff he says is either offensive or just plain creepy; honestly, I'm pretty sure if I locked them up in the same room together all they would do is stare at each other the whole time and blink."
Aerith giggled as turned the page of her menu, already having made up her mind about what she wanted. "Why don't you do that then? Make it an experiment of sorts to see if that's what would actually happen? For all we know, they might actually get along better than either of us would think."
"… And everyone thinks you're nice?" Zack shook his head, slapping the menu down on the table. "You are truly the epitome of Evil, Aerith."
"Why thank you, Zack." Aerith simply smiled as she handed her menu back to the waitress who had reappeared to take their orders, grass-green eyes twinkling with amusement. "I hope you remember all this the next time you go out with the boys…"
Gulping at the non-threatening-but-still-very-viable warning sitting between the lines of his girlfriend's joke, Zack guffawed loudly, hoping to mask his nervousness with a brash laugh.
Who would have thought Aerith, the neighborhood sweetheart, was so frightening underneath that warm exterior. Sipping on his water, Zack made sure to cancel his next guy's night out.
He'd rather not even take the chance.
Sephiroth quickly stood up as he saw the young man shuffle around the living room through the window, having changed his clothes earlier into a rather relaxed band tee-shirt and a stone-washed pair of holey jeans. Pushing back his unruly blond bangs away from his face, the older man felt his lips jerk upward at the adorable sight.
'Stare at later, must run now!'
With one last glance at the 16-year-old getting ready to head out, Sephiroth hurried past the front gate and practically sprinted down the street, not noticing as the door to the house swung open and revealed one suspicious Cloud Strife.
'Did I just…?'
Shaking his head, the young Strife shoved his hands in his pockets as he squirmed underneath his bomber jacket, feeling just a bit off-kilter.
'I must be going out of my mind.'
Quickly plopping down in the blonds' usual seat on top of the large plateau, Sephiroth nearly keeled over in exhaustion. Straightening his clothes whilst trying to get his breathing under control, the silver-haired deviant waited for his prey to wander into the clearing as he usually did, green eyes trained ahead of him as his ears prickled for any sounds that seemed out of the ordinary.
After a good five minutes of waiting, the 21-year-old's patience was finally rewarded as a murmur of half-hearted words were heard from behind him, slowly turning his head until a tuft of blond hair and a pair of sky-blue eyes were presented to him. Relishing in the stupefied expression now lingering over Cloud's face, Sephiroth held back the smirk of accomplishment ready to bloom over his lips-
He could always gloat in the privacy of his own home, after all.
"Oh!" Cloud blushed as he stared at the large silhouette inhabiting his usual spot within his beloved woods. "Sephiroth! I… um…"
"I apologize." Sephiroth stood up, ready to make his way out of the clearing as Cloud began to inch away from him. "I did not know that you would be coming here. I'll leave if you would be more comfortable by yourse-"
"No!" Quickly shaking his head in opposition to the other man's suggestion, Cloud gulped feeling embarrassed beyond belief and not quite knowing why. "You were here first, after all! It would be rude of me to just kick you out…"
"Then we can both share the spot," grabbing the boy's hand before he could run back to his house (as Cloud's body-language clearly suggested he was going to do), Sephiroth practically pulled the boy down onto the grassy knoll, narrowed stare once again intense and probing "if there is no problem, of course."
"Ok." Was the squeaked-out response Cloud had to offer, blue eyes flinching before shifting over towards the expanding landscape in front of them. The silence that filled the air was tense between them, eluding to the obvious frustration both men held for the other at that moment (if for entirely different reasons).
"Could you…" The blond sighed as he turned to his forced-upon companion, his bomber jacket becoming stifling and way-too-hot. "Could you let go of my hand now?"
"Ah." Not even noticing the appendage still caught within his grasp, Sephiroth quickly let go of the smooth hand. "Once again, I apologize."
Cloud shrugged before the silence once again caught them both in its safety net, both men not used to having to carry any type of conversation whatsoever.
"Do you come out here often?" Sephiroth bit the bullet and let the question fall from his lips, leaning back on one arm as he stared at Cloud from the corner of his eye, taking in every uncomfortable fidget and shift.
"I… I guess. It's kind of my go-to spot when I just want to be away from everybody." The fidgeting only increased as the sentence continued.
"I suppose I am intruding, then…" Casually brushing off an imaginary piece of lint off of his leather jacket, long pale digits began fiddling with the zipper hanging mid-chest.
"No, it's, it's ok! I just… I wasn't expecting anybody to ever find out about this place. I've never seen anybody hang around here in the six months I've been here so I figured that nobody ever inhabited it." Blinking at the boy's automatic refusal, Sephiroth almost let the smirk that was just waiting to be unleashed finally slip out.
"May I ask you something, Cloud?"
"Um…" Green eyes followed small pale hands now pulling on blond locks of hair, long spikes of golden-yellow almost reaching the boy's clothed shoulders. "If you want to, I guess I can't stop you, right?"
"Why do you always wish to be alone?" The question bled with curiosity; if Cloud wasn't so sure that Sephiroth honestly did not realize just how rude the blunt inquisition fell from his lips, he would have thought the 21-year-old was mocking him. Hands fell from the boy's hair down to the blonds' lap as he turned to stare at the silver-haired student now unsure and restless, his own large blue eyes guarded.
"I apologize." Sephiroth breathed out, knowing he was on thin ice without having to be told for once. "I did not mean to pry."
"Yes, you did," Cloud smiled sadly as he stood up, brushing off his jeans as he did so. "Or else you wouldn't have asked it to begin with."
Sephiroth blinked as the boy stared down at him with exhausted eyes; eyes that held much more suffering and cynical knowledge than a teenager of only 16 years of age should have.
"I like to be alone because it's not complicated. There's no need to uphold any conversation or false concern; no hopes of saying the right thing at the right time. You don't even have to worry about your facial expressions or whether or not you need to be yourself of not." Wondering why he was being so honest to someone who had barely paid him attention save for these last couple of days, Cloud let his mouth go on auto-pilot instead of silencing himself as he usually did. "I like to be alone because I don't have to pretend to be interested in what other people are saying or feel as if I'm being stared at for being different."
"If I'm truly honest, I barely remember what it's like to be around people and have to play that game…" Letting his eyes drop to the grass beneath his feet, Cloud let out a small sigh. "Loneliness… loneliness just seems so much easier to deal with than… all this…"
"Wait!" Childishly-large blue eyes watered as the boy chased after the adults rushing through the gates set in front of him, the wailing cries of another smaller figure disappearing within the black compact car just out of his reach. "Please, wait…"
A bulky dark hand appeared behind the tiny child, pulling him back inside the building. Damp blond hair hung over the boy's gaze in clumps, large raindrops falling from the tips of the wet tendrils and rolling onto the ground alongside the small tears running down the cherubic 8-year-old's cheeks.
"I didn't… even get to say goodbye…"
'When you're alone, you can't feel that pain of having someone you care about yanked away from you.' The 16-year-old blond thought to himself, trying to will away the old memories that still burned within the back of his head. 'I refuse… to go through that again.'
"I know what you mean." Sephiroth finally spoke, snapping Cloud out of his reverie. "When you only have yourself for company, there's no danger in being hurt unless you yourself are the one doing the hurting. But that kind of pain is easier to deal with than the type of hurt another person can inflict on you…"
Cloud blinked, tilting his head to the side as he stared at the silver-haired stranger set in Sephiroth's place; holding in his breath as if this were the first time both man and teenager were actually acquainted with each other. He remembered his conversation with Zack, the day after he had actually met the undeclared hero of Midgar.
"Ah, you want to know more about dear old Sephy-poo." Zack chuckled as Cloud blushed, cheeks as red as the apple situated in his hands. "It's alright; noobs coming to this big ol' city, 'specially as young as you, always want to know more about Seph once they find out how popular and oh-so-smexy he is."
"That's not-"
"I don't mind tellin' ya, Cloud, I'm just teasing!" Ruffling his companion's feathered locks, Zack almost cooed at the indignant look on his young companion's face. "I could say that everything you've heard about the guy is absolutely true; that he's as fast and strong as you've heard and as gifted mentally as he is physically, but that's all superficial stuff, ya know? He's… he's not the social-butterfly type. Hell, if he shows interest in me, it's cuz I pushed him to notice me! Took years for him to consider me the bust bud he does now!"
"All the attention he gets, it's not by his own choice. He does what he thinks is the right thing to do in the situation at hand and it earns him more admiration than he thinks he needs. Truth is…" Zack sighed sadly as he turned his own apple within his hands, the bright red sheen of the fruit hypnotic and never-ending. "Truth is, Sephiroth is a pretty lonely guy underneath all that stoic armor. You only have to get to know him to realize it. He isn't the prince-charming type that all those fan-girls think he is; he's just trying to get by, just like everybody else in this god-forsaken city."
Cloud held in his questions at the wistful tone in his newfound friend's voice as he gently bit into the piece of fruit he was still grasping, eyes full of curiosity.
"You actually remind me a lot of him, but at the same time, don't."
"Eh?!" The blond teen almost chocked on his apple, blue eyes now wide with shock.
"Weird, huh? When you get to know him, you'll see what I mean, Cloudy!" Patting the younger boy on the shoulder, Zack marched into the house, grinning as he called out to Aerith.
Cloud simply stared at the empty space beside him, confused beyond belief.
It was only when the apple that had been tightly held within his hands fell onto the ground with a large splatter did he break out of the hypnotic trance set upon him, blushing even further in embarrassed disbelief.
One man shouldn't have so much power over him…
But Sephiroth was obviously no ordinary man.
"Yeah." Cloud turned back around, sitting back down next to the now-surprised man dressed entirely in black. "But being around people, at least sometimes, is not so bad."
Sephiroth held back a whoop of victory as Cloud settled into his space overlooking the large forest in front of them, letting the comfortable silence cloak over them like a blanket.
Maybe this mission wasn't as impossible as Zack first thought…
Knowing that if he didn't let it out he would quite possibly go insane, Sephiroth finally felt his lips tilt upwards, if only slightly.
Cloud felt his eyebrow rise as he stared at the older man now smirking beside him.
'Why do I feel as if I should still be worried…?'