A/N: Hi, everybody! Here's the next chapter… finally. ^.^ Yeah. I don't know why but this chapter was really tough for me to write… I think the fact that I'm hinting at so much at once is really eating at my brain! Lol. Next chapter we finally get some answers and I finally get to stop hinting at crap. *Le sigh* Did I mention finally? XD
Btw, I haven't gotten anyone who opposes to Leon's arrival, so I suppose we'll add him to the bunch. Just fyi though I appreciate CxLxC just as much as SxC (in fact I support all variations of thus; yes, I totally think CxLxS is hot! Woo!) so… this may change things a bit. Luckily this plot isn't dead solid so I like the way things may be going… :-D Hopefully this doesn't turn off any readers. Hahahaha.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Final Fantasy series nor do I own the song "Somebody's Watching Me". This should effing be obvious, my friend. In fact, why are you even reading this? O.o;
"When I come home at night
I bolt the door real tight-
People call me on the phone
I'm trying to avoid;
But can the people on TV see me?
Can they?!
Or am I just paranoid...?
When I am in the shower
I'm afraid to wash my hair
'Cause I might open my eyes
And find someone standing there.
People say I'm crazy;
Just a little touched
But showers remind of "Psycho" too much!
I always feel like somebody's watching me
And I have no privacy!
I always feel like somebody's watching me...
Tell me,
Is it just a dream?"
-"Somebody's Watching Me" Originally performed by Rockwell ft. Michael Jackson, Covered by The Cover Corp.
Title: When You Walk Away
Chapter Seven: Somebody's Watching Me
"You gonna check in on Cloud, Aer?" Zack scratched the back of his head as his girlfriend fiddled with the doorknob in front of her, violet eyes screwed up in worry. "I, uh, don't know what Seph might've said to him when he dropped him off, so…"
"Zack, don't you trust Sephiroth?" Aerith quietly asked, turning over her shoulder so as to gauge her boyfriend's response. "If you didn't trust him, why did you even give him the go ahead to pursue Cloud?"
"That's not it, babe!" Flailing his arms, the dark-haired student worked to save himself from single-dom. "I trust Sephy-poo's intentions! I just… don't trust his mouth?"
"… … He's not that bad, Zack. I mean really, isn't he your best friend?!"
"Of course he's my best friend! But you only think that way because you haven't heard his pick-up lines yet…" Zack murmured under his breath, thinking back to the day after Sephiroth's 'epiphany' (so to speak) and what Zack liked to call 'the day Sephiroth actually revealed he had an actual libido in those tight-ass pants'.
"Sephiroth, listen; if you want to really impress the boy, you have to present your affections in an orderly way. Pick-up lines are essential in making sure that a woman (or in this case, womanly-man) knows that we are interested in dating/boning them in the near (hopefully very near) future."
"Boning…?"
"… … Please don't tell me you have been hanging around me for this long and honestly don't know what the hell that means?"
"…"
Zack sighed as he ran a hand through his spiky dark locks, ignoring the sudden urge to go back into the kitchen and make himself a sandwich in pure defeat.
"You know what? Just pretend I'm Cloud and do what I just told you."
"Present my… want for his company?"
"YES."
"Well… alright."
"Finally…" The younger of the two nearly beamed as Sephiroth leaned forward and cleared his throat, sharp green eyes narrowing slightly with a look of determination lingering over his visage to accompany them.
"No one in Midgar could possibly measure up to my strength and prowess; be with me Cloud and I shall ensure that these same attributes shall never be used against you by anyone."
"Eh, heh, heh… Seph, that's a, uh, good attempt, but I don't think that one's quite right. Why don't you try again, ok?"
"… Fine." Tilting his head to the side, Zack almost laughed as he practically watched the cogs in Sephiroth's head turn. "Because I have found myself becoming severely attracted to your presence as of late, I think it would be in both of our best interests if we copulated with each other and formed a contract which would ensure both of our needs would be satisfied, exclusively with one another. Saying no in this situation, of course, is not an option."
Zack blinked, wondering if Sephiroth was joking with him.
Best not tempt fate and ride along the safer route…
"Sephy-dear, that's… not quite what I meant by pick-up lines either…"
"Or this; Cloud, I like you. Now relinquish yourself to me or you shall face the painful, torturous consequences."
"Uh, Seph-"
"No? How about this; Cloud, if you do not go out with me, I will terrorize your family and send my legion of fangirls after you until you are nothing but a bloody composition of dismembered limbs and broken dreams."
"Ok, now you're just straight out threatening the poor bo-"
"I have never met anyone like you in my life… be mine or I shall destroy everyone who attempts to claim you for their own and take you by force."
"Seph!"
"What?"
"Those are not pick-up lines! You're just trying to intimidate the poor kid into going out with you instead of wooing him like I told you to!"
"… … And?"
"DO YOU NOT SEE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT?!"
"If it ensures me his company I do not see the difference between your way and my way."
"You're using fear instead of love to get him to be with you; do you want him to actually like you back or do you just want him to tag along after you like some kind of mindless puppet?!"
"… Can we explore the puppet option and what that would entail?"
"Oh my God, LET'S JUST GET BACK TO SQUARE ONE, OK?!"
Sephiroth nonchalantly shrugged as he leaned back against the couch, Zack's red face more than just a little mortified.
"Now, the art of romance; lesson one, revisited."
Zack almost smacked himself in the face as he bit his bottom lip and shakily smiled at his confused girlfriend, already planning on whipping out his cell-phone and making sure his best friend hadn't done anything too damaging to his almost-little brother.
"Yeah… I'm sure Cloud's just fine." Was what Zack decided to say just before he kissed Aerith on the cheek before her body disappeared behind the door, her lips tilted up into a small sweet smile that would melt even the iciest of hearts. "Just… fine…"
Practically jumping off the porch in front of him, Zack rushed inside his car and pulled his cell-phone out of his pocket along with his car keys.
Better safe than sorry, after all…
"Cloud?"
The thought-hazy blond leaning against the kitchen table blinked as curious green eyes met emphatically-confused blue. Nursing the cup of hot chocolate he held between his hands carefully against his chest, Cloud nodded at his older sister as she hesitantly entered the room and tiredly smiled.
"So… are you alright?" Aerith quietly asked him as he took a sip of the warm liquid cupped against his palms and let his mind trail back to the reality around him not self-deluded by his morose thoughts.
"I…" How did he answer that question without sounding like a complete moron again? "Yeah?"
Aerith gave the boy a skeptical look as she pried the cup from his slap-happy hands and pushed him into a chair, knowing her little brother had once again fallen into his world of self-inflicted depression. "Cloudy, what's the matter?"
"Nothing!" The pretty blond squeaked out. "Nothing at all! It's… uh… nothing?"
Green eyes rolled as the placidity within the brunette's expression did nothing to make the poor boy feel better about his current situation.
"Cloud…"
"Huh?"
"You can snap out of it at any time, you know." Aerith replied as kindly as could be, green eyes glittering with amusement.
Rubbing the back of his neck with a sense of embarrassment only Cloud could make seem absolutely adorable, the younger teenager slowly shrugged, finally breaking out of his mask of quiet shame as the woman before him giggled at his poor attempt to hide his own ridiculous sense of self-pity. "Sorry. I just blanked out for a second… or a thousand."
"I noticed." Patting the blond on his head, Aerith lowered herself to his level. "He must have really done a number to have you so into your own world, Cloudy. Now, won't you feel better if you just tell me what it is that Sephiroth did to have marked you so darn bad?"
The blush on Cloud's face deepened even further as he thought back on the end of the night and just how confused Midgar's hero had managed to make him with one small gesture. Carefully wringing his hands together, Cloud lowered his head as Aerith moved even closer to his person.
"He… well, he…"
"It's ok, Cloud. You know you can tell me!"
"Um… uh… he, uh…"
"Cloud, just spit it out!"
"HE KISSED ME." Slapping his hands over his mouth, a rapid blush set itself over Cloud's cheeks as Aerith's jaw dropped and her eyes widened inexplicably. Both brother and sister stayed poised in their positions for nearly a minute of doing nothing but breathe as they stared at each other in speechless shock.
"He… kissed you? Already?!" Aerith was the first one to break out of the astonished silence, the smile from earlier stretching across her face once again; this time, increasing its mirth by ten-fold. "He sure works fast doesn't he?"
"You're not funny Aeri!" Cloud blurted out. "I… I don't know what to do, how to act around him now, what to say to him the next time I talk to him… he's made everything so confusing so fast. How am I supposed to keep with him like this?"
"You know… I'm not really surprised. He has always treated you differently you know."
"What?"
"Well, Cloud, I know you're not the most observant of the bunch, but you know he's never really taken to other people like he's taken to you. Not even Zack. Maybe this isn't all happening as fast as you think it is; maybe you're just finally getting the memo." Aerith slowly stood up, enjoying the ruminating expression set over her younger brother's face as he finally nit-picked at everything he knew. "Besides, he might come off as kind of cold but I don't think he would ever do anything cruel like play with your emotions or lie to you-"
"Play with my emotions? Lie?" Suddenly a dark raincloud appeared over Cloud's head as he whipped his head up and stared up at the young woman now inadvertently wishing she had bitten her tongue. "What do you mean lie? He might be lying to me and playing with my emotions? What the hell, Aerith?!"
"Uh…" Aerith literally had nothing this time. "Keep up your faith and hope for the best?"
Cloud gulped as he slumped within his chair.
This… was not how he had expected his conversation with his big sister to end.
'I really do have the worst luck ever…'
"… … Zackary?"
Zack said nothing as the phone fell from his hand and dropped onto the car floor, his small sedan parked in front of the apartment complex he shared with his supposed-guardians. The echo of Sephiroth's voice did little to actually comfort him as he banged his head against the steering-wheel, wondering where exactly he went wrong with the older man.
After a minute of complete mind-numbing (and for some odd reason, highly relieving) head-bashing, Zack picked up the phone, rubbing against the bright pink spot now settled against his forehead as he took a deep breath and let it out in a smooth breeze from his lips.
"Please tell me you didn't actually do that, Sephiroth."
"Did I break one of your ridiculous rules again, Zack?"
"Ridi-ridiculous?! Seph, you just mind-fucked the shit out of the poor kid! Don't you feel any sort of compassion for him at this point?!"
"Well, shouldn't he get used to it now as opposed to later?"
"…"
"…"
"… You have serious issues, bestest-best-friend-forever."
"If you are just figuring this out now, Zack, I feel there is just no hope for us as friends."
"Ha mother-fucking ha." Zack once again wondered just why he put up with the gargantuan bag of hot-mess that was Sephiroth on a daily basis. "I'm just saying, this kid barely knows anything about you except for what he's heard from Aerith and me. You can't go dropping bombs on the kid and then walking away like you would if he was one of your stupid fan-girls, expecting him to be a-ok with the fact. He's probably shitting in his pants trying to figure out the why's and the how's-Seph, this kid isn't just a walk in the park type of guy, he's just as much of a head case as you are!"
"I suppose that just simply makes us compatible."
"DID YOU HEAR ANYTHING I JUST SAID?!"
"… … I heard it. That doesn't mean I was listening to it."
"You are… oh my God, why am I helping you again?"
"Because poor Cloud would probably be lost without it."
"You mean even more lost."
"Indeed."
"God, if you are as half as twisted mentally as Cloud is physically, you are both screwed." Zack nearly guffawed out loud at the thought, even as he felt slightly sick at the tasteless joke. Cloud's own scars (physical scars) were a touchy subject and he knew Sephiroth knew almost nothing about them. But the older silver-haired man was just as messed up; even with that remark, Zack knew his best friend's brain was churning, trying to make sense of the riddle that was Cloud Strife.
"About that… I believe it would be in Cloud's best interest to let you know that you were right for once. Cloud does in fact seem to be a bully magnet."
Clenching the phone between angry fingers, Zack almost snapped as his renewed suspicions were verified. "I knew those bruises on his cheek the other day wasn't just a work of klutziness in the making! That kid can't lie worth shit!"
"Well, something must be done about this, and immediately."
Shifting within the driver's seat of his car, Zack grinned as an idea quickly formulated within his head. "You do realize that you can totally spin this to your advantage, don't you?"
"What?"
"You know, set yourself up as the hero! Come in, save the day, do all that heroic bullshit all those fan-girls are always spewing at you! I bet Cloud'll be falling all over you at the first sign of distress!"
"I… don't think Cloud works that way, Zackary."
"Ok, who knows the kid better, you or me?"
"… … you."
"Then do as you're told for once and buck up! You've already scared the shit out of him, confused him and toyed with his emotions all without realizing it, do something positive for him for once and stop second-guessing my awesome advice!" Zack grinned as he listened to the older man sigh on the other line, his exasperation pouring over in waves.
"If you say so, Zack."
"Good job! Now get yourself some sleep; you sound like crap." Before the older man could snap out a rude remark in his direction, Zack snapped his phone shut and chuckled.
He'd be getting both of his friends both content and laidin no time.
'And Genesis said it couldn't be done… RUBBISH I SAY; RUBBISH!'
Cloud yawned as he finally settled within his sheets, drooping eyes emphasized by the dark semi-circles painted underneath them. After Aerith had tried to dissuade his pessimistic thoughts (yet again) and failed miserably (yet a-double-gain), Cloud had jumped into the bathroom connected to his room and holed himself inside for nearly two hours, thinking and re-thinking and pruning away at his mountain of problems that had seemed to developed over night.
After thinking back on his sister's insightful observations regarding Sephiroth's own intentions, Cloud had found himself noticing little things that had made the man's… attraction apparent. At least, to Sephiroth's standards they would be. Little things that would hardly be noticeable to others were cherished by the older man with glowing green eyes and long shiny hair; tiny conversations about one's health, always sitting close by if not next to him, ignoring others in favor of listening in what Cloud had always had to say, even if it wasn't very much…
Was that what Aerith meant, Cloud had timidly wondered while laying within the bathtub, body slowly wrinkling as the cooling water gently splashed against his skin.
It must've been…
But how was he supposed to know?
Hell, how was he supposed to take it?
Sephiroth had never shown anyone else any kind of interest. If Cloud reciprocated, even a little, he would probably be mauled alive by the man's fan-girls. If he didn't, he'd probably be mauled alive by Sephiroth.
And his fan-girls.
There were at Sephiroth's beck and call, after all…
This was clearly a lose-lose situation in Cloud's book.
'Or is it…'
Sighing heavily, Cloud cleared those kinds of thoughts from his head, smashing the pillow next to him against his chest. He knew that he was dangerously attracted to Sephiroth as well. He just had never expected that attraction to be reciprocated; unrequited love was alright because there was no chance of ever having to hope for something more. It was one-sided; the type of pain he could hold close to his chest and learn to live with, even if gradually.
The possibility that lay open to him now, however, was frightening. Most people would see it as a chance to be happy.
Cloud saw it as another chance to lose everything he held dear.
Loneliness, he knew, had to be better than this…
Cloud was suddenly startled out of his thoughts as his cell-phone, which had been charging beside him on his night-table, began to ring incessantly. Quickly picking it up, Cloud snapped it open and huffed out a greeting without even checking who it could have been.
"H-hello?"
"Cloud? Hello."
Jaw dropping at the impeccable timing, Cloud carefully lay back on his bed.
This was just too much at this point.
"Se-Sephiroth? Are you ok? What's up?"
"I apologize for calling at such an hour but I felt that our time together was insufficient. I only ask for a small space in time in which to speak to you once more before we both slumber."
"Uh… wah?"
"I simply wished to tell you goodnight."
"…"
"…"
"Um… thank… you?"
"That is not necessary; it was for my own convenience that I called after all. Nonetheless, I shall see you tomorrow morning Cloud. Pleasant dreams."
Cloud blinked sleepily as the phone on the other line clicked before a dial tone bounced against his eardrum, clearly missing the last words spoken as his drowsy subconscious gently blurred them out. The neat little conundrum that had bounced within his sleepy mind quickly exploded into a full-fledged mystery now nestled deeply within the back of his thoughts.
All the answers he wished to have, however, were tucked inside the one man whom seemed to refuse to give them.
Hopefully, Cloud thought to himself as he fully tucked himself into the cozy covers and closed his eyes one final time for the night, tomorrow would bring a better ending than today did.
For some reason, Cloud had awoken with a bad feeling curbing within the depths of stomach, quietly churning over as the boy rubbed at his midsection in silent worry. He didn't know what it was or why it was there, but it was, and it was driving him mad.
Brushing his teeth, combing his permanent-bed-head hair, putting on his uniform-
It was all done with a heavy pit within his lower torso, a burning taste of dissatisfaction lingering on the tip of his tongue, refusing to wash away along with the toothpaste that had scrubbed his mouth clean of any residue.
Making his way down the stairs, the pit became heavier and heavier, and once he made it to the kitchen, where Aerith greeted him as cheerfully as always, he finally knew why.
"Good morning Cloud!" Aerith pleasantly chirped in front of the stove, waving at the younger man stuck stock-still in front of her.
However, Aerith was not the reason Cloud had been so displeasingly dropped out of his semi-dreamy state. In fact, it was safe to say that Cloud had not even noticed the chirpy brunette pacing about the kitchen in a fashion only a mother would be proud of.
"Good morning Cloud." Sephiroth called out from his spot within the kitchen, Zack grinning wildly beside him whilst waving at the still-exhausted blond. "How did you sleep last night?"
Perhaps it was the sudden shock of seeing the two men in his home during a time when usually it was only Cloud himself and Aerith, or maybe it was the continual dose of Sephiroth who had refused to leave him in peace for days at a time, but the question that popped out of his mouth nearly chocked both Zack and Aerith into an early grave thanks to the laughter that got stuck bubbling within their throats.
"What are you doing here?!"
"… … I told you yesterday when I called you that you would be seeing me tomorrow morning. Do you not remember Cloud?"
At the blank stare directed at his face, Sephiroth would have to hazard at guessing that no, he did not remember at all. Though in Cloud's defense he had sounded as if he had dropped off before Sephiroth had even called him, so perhaps the boy's memory could not be blamed entirely in this situation.
"Regardless of the fact I am here to see you off to school. And no, it is no problem for me; I do not have class until the mid-afternoon." Turning to his best friend (who looked like the cat who ate the proverbial canary) Sephiroth gave the dark-haired soldier in training a threatening glare. "You shall be staying here and keeping Aerith company, correct Zack?"
"Why not?" Zack shrugged. "I love spending time with my sugar-pie."
Zack ignored the simultaneous gag heaved within the room as he sent his girlfriend a large air-kiss. Aerith giggled in response.
"Uh… I… uh… gottagobye!" Rushing out of the room as if the hounds of hell were licking at his heels, Cloud rushed out the door as he grabbed his book-bag, which had been laid next to said entrance. Instead of staying where he was and wondering just what had come over the blond schoolboy like Aerith and Zack, Sephiroth quickly took off after the 16-year-old, his blood thrilling at the sudden chase.
Zack snorted as he laughed, the only things left in both Cloud and Sephiroth's wake being an up-turned chair, a blaze of syrup and a wide-open door now swinging happily against the cooling breeze. "You think those two will ever get it?"
Aerith sighed as she grabbed the mop beside her and shook her head.
"What do you think?"
"Cloud!"
"STOP FOLLOWING ME!"
"No!"
"Why not?!"
"Because I do not want to!"
Cloud grunted as he finally skidded to a halt, his breath coming out in large pants as the 21-year-old man behind him nearly hit his back as a result. Spinning around and tilting his head up so that he could get a clear view of his 'stalker', Cloud nearly stomped his feet in frustration. "Why are you doing this?!"
Sephiroth let out a loose breath, not having even broken a sweat much to Cloud's increasing rancor. "I told you, Cloud. I feel an attraction towards you-"
"You could have anyone that you want. Anyone! Even the people who would deny you at first; they would all eventually break. Why do you need me? I am and have always been nothing and that won't ever change." Having never heard the young boy speak of himself in such a way, Sephiroth almost lost his footing as Cloud turned around and sprinted off to school, leaving the silver-haired man to stew in his own thoughts and just how much they actually compared to the blond's own way of thinking when it came to himself.
'What the… hell…'
Cloud kept grimaced as he continually glanced over his shoulder, the large crowd surrounding him much more suffocating than usual. After a morning filled with drama, self-loathing and robotic teachers who did nothing more but stare at you and expected you to read their minds, Cloud had just about had enough. But if all that wasn't enough, the turbid sensation of being followed continued to haunt the boy even as he knew that Sephiroth was, for once, not the cause of such pestering.
Carefully weaving himself through the crowd, Cloud hung his head and made his way to his locker. Not noticing the pale hand that hovered over his shoulder, the small blond almost jumped through his skin as the appendage gripped onto his shoulder.
"Yuffie!" Cloud cried out as the small girl nearly cackled into the hallway. "That wasn't funny."
"Ah, Sorry Cloudy! You were just so in the zone… I couldn't resist." Shrugging in a menial sort of way, the young girl rounded her large brown eyes and stared up at the boy (who really was a softie at heart) with a smile even the devil couldn't say no to. "Just checking up to make sure you haven't forgotten about tomorrooowww…"
"I haven't, and yes, I'm still going before you decide to heckle me. I don't know why you need me to go, but I won't let you down." Opening his locker with a shaky hand, Cloud attempted to ignore the feeling of being sized up; Yuffie didn't seem to notice, but the moment she had tapped his shoulder the feeling of being watched had increased tremendously and it only served to make Cloud feel all the more nervous. "Just… please don't try to make this more difficult than it needs to be, Yuf."
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Cloud." Yuffie seemed to shine as she shrugged, giving a small little wave before flouncing off to her next class. Cloud fidgeted silently as he glanced over his shoulder once again. The eyes of the crowd surrounding him didn't even flinch as he tepidly disappeared into the mass of students once more.
Sephiroth sighed as he ran a hand through his long silver locks, for once feeling nothing but frustration clinging to his psyche. After a morning of headaches and dulled-down fits of anger, he conceded that to himself that perhaps Zack knew what he was talking about when he had been stating that it would be best to slow the hell down.
'What would Zackary say in this type of situation…'
"GOD DAMN IT SEPH, LOOK AT WHAT YOU DID?! CAN'T YOU JUST MAN THE HELL UP AND GIVE THE KID A BREAK?!"
'On second thought, let's not think about that.' Sephiroth almost sweat-dropped as toyed with a single strand of silver hair, green eyes blurred with disenchantment. 'Perhaps Zack's idea about playing the hero really would work to my advantage…?'
Before his train of thought could be continued, the sound of jingling keys and woosh of fresh air broke Sephiroth out of his concentration, an eyebrow quirked up in question as the 21-year-old wondered why his guardian was home so early.
The silver-haired man didn't even flinch as the front door slammed shut, the heavy steps of his 'father' making their way into the kitchen he now inhabited. Closing his grasp around the glass of water settled within his hands, Sephiroth had to wonder what had crawled up his guardian's behind and festered there this time.
"So," Hojo began with a sinister eye as he stood before his adopted son and folded his arms over his chest in anger, "would you like to tell me what Gast was talking about when he just so happened to mention you going on a date with that Strife fellow?"
Sephiroth felt the glass that had been held tightly within his hand shatter against the maddening grip of his fingers, tiny bits of glass now hanging off of his flesh as fresh drops of blood slid down his palm and stained the egg-white tablecloth laid out beneath it.
Hojo didn't even flinch at the sudden break, dark eyes narrowing even further.
It seemed his son had a lot of explaining to do…