Chapter 2

Squall

Squall stared at the roof of his room, lying on his bed, waking up slowly. Last night had been somewhat interesting. He had received a phone call from Reno in the afternoon to meet the redhead at some club on the other side of the town.

"Hey Leon! Get your arse over here and help me to move this bloody thing!" The brunet had just stepped into the brightly lit club, still not open for customers and saw Reno trying to move one of the biggest amplifiers alone.

"You shouldn't try to lift anything this heavy since you're such a girl." Reno shot a murderous glare at his friend.

"Oh shut the f-! Goddamn this is heavy!" The redhead tried to balance the huge block of machinery with a little success. Squall took pity on him finally and easily lifted the amp from the floor and Reno's trembling hands. The exhausted man shot yet another killer-glare at the others effortless lifting. "Show-off..."

"Yeah yeah, shut up. Where do you want this?"

"Over there, near the stand at the edge of the dance floor." Reno pointed at the DJ's booth where he made his way too, climbing on the stand to fiddle with all the wires and machines. Squall moved the amp to its place and glanced at his friend. The smaller man had that enthusiastic look his pretty, cat-like features again. It was no miracle no one could take Reno seriously with his face as smooth as it was.

"You still look like you are not more than 15 years old." Reno looked up, down at his stoic-faced companion.

"And you still look like you could use a good fuck, you stiff old prick." Reno blew an air-kiss at Squall who just raised his brow. "Oh yeah, I'm going to have a friend of mine here tonight. He just had a big, fat fight with his girl and I suppose he needs some cheering up. So, I was wondering would you like to get out with us?" Reno glanced at his friend with a slightly calculating look on his face.

"Why would I want to?"

"Well.. I just have a hunch you too are going to get along really well." Reno smirked and looked around the club, obviously trying to see if there was anything else for him to do. Squall observed his friend, not sure what the redhead's motives were.

"And why would I want to befriend obviously bad mannered loner who fights with his girlfriend? I see no happiness in it for me."

"Hell, I just know, you know?" Reno winked. "Cloud's such a handsome guy too. I think he just needs a little punch to the right direction. And I think you are the right one to do that." Squall sighed. Reno was impossible when he got into this mood. It would be very hard to get rid of him and Squall didn't really have the energy to fight with the redhead now.

"Fine. I'll come. Stop pestering me." And he almost smiled at Reno's sunny smile directed at him.

Squall stretched and yawned widely in his solitude. He was in a surprisingly good mood; despite the bruises and swollen lip and that he had been thrown unceremoniously out of a bar. It all could've ended so much worse.

It had been unexpected to find someone who seemed so similar to himself. Funny, how life went on sometimes and threw brilliant people into your vicinity. It was quite rare for Squall to actually take interest in someone as much as he had done on Cloud in those few moments yesterday. A faint smile appeared on his lips.

He really wanted to meet with Cloud again. Sure, the guy seemed perfectly straight and would probably hit him again if he tried to pull a stunt like the night before. But there was something he just couldn't let go. Squall didn't even remember the last time he had had his pulse rising just from thinking about someone. He would have to make sure he and Cloud would at least get on friendly terms before he could decide should he stamp on his flickering feelings of affection or act on them. Squall picked up his phone and started to write a message. Heart slightly pounding with excitement he sent the message and closed his eyes for a moment. Glancing at his clock he remembered with a jolt that he was running late and sat up. He would sustain even more serious injuries if he didn't get his ass out of the flat right now.

A quick flash of silver cut the air, followed by cursing and a wooden thud against the ground. Again the silver went up, something cutting its way in the middle, a loud clank when the two heavily swung objects met in the air.

"Com'one boy, hit me with ya best shot!" The wooden end of the spear was lifted from the ground as its owner spun it around in the air, the heavier, metal covered end glistening in the morning sunlight. There was a grunt from the other side of the field they were doing this little dance of theirs and the silvery gleam appeared again, making the blond man curse under his breath and jump out of the way. There was a snarl heard as he jumped to his side and swung the spear towards his opponent.

Squall's counter was impeccable as usual, the metal of their weapons ringing with that clanking noise when they hit together, the two fighting men grinning as they jumped backwards, before attacking relentlessly over and over again, both of their skin covered with beads of sweat, strands of hair stuck on Squall's cheeks, Cid's cigarettes tossed somewhere off.

The brunet circled his mentor -his friend- in slow motion, calculating the possibility of Cid trying this one particular attack on him. The older man made a sudden move to his right and made Squall grin in triumph. Cid jumped in the air, using his spear to give him more leverage and thus sending him towards the younger man, spear raised now high before him, the metal end pointing directly at the brunet's heart.

As Cid tried to finish him off with this good and usually effective attack, there was something the older man had not anticipated this time; Squall was fully prepared and had enough energy to develop new moves to surprise his sparring companion. The young man rushed forward, keeping his gunblade high to protect his head if Cid tried to change the course of his jump suddenly. The blade blocked the spear in mid air, Squall turning a bit to his left and kicked his right leg high in the air, the boot meeting the jumping man's stomach with force, sending the man backwards.

Cid landed on the ground, the impact emptying his lungs and his stomach feeling like it wanted to hurl itself out thru his mouth. He coughed, tried to curse and found the tip of Squall's gunblade pressed to his cheek.

"Yield."

Cid coughed angrily and glared at his younger companion, fury visible in his blue eyes. As the silvery, stoic blue eyes just kept on staring down, the metal pressed against his cheek and the tip of it piercing the skin a little, he had no other option but to swallow his pride and shove the gunblade off his face with one pouting move.

"Fine! Ya dumb bastard, when I told ya hit me with ya best shot I meant to leave me in one piece!" Giving out his arm to the standing man to help him up, Cid kept mumbling curses under his breath as the pain slowly turned into a pleasant throb to remind him to be a little more careful next time. The boy was progressing, definitely. Cid eyed Squall's face as the brunet yanked him up to his feet and frowned. "Ye ain't yer best today. Half expected to have more wounds but ye seem to have yer mind in summin else. An' where d'ya get that fat lip, huh?"

Squall was wiping the sweat from his forehead when he stopped to think of the question. "Just got my ass whooped yesterday." Cid looked confused for a moment, then just scratching his neck and smiled widely.

"Must be heck of a fella to be able to kick your ass." Cid shrugged. "Hope he's gonna kick sum sense in ye head finally!" He picked up his spear, swirling it in the air with ease before pointing its blunt head to the brunet's chest. "Now, let's run back!" Smirking that annoyingly knowing smile, Cid had set an unspoken challenge between them. Squall nodded, attaching his gunblade to his back and sprinted towards the city, leaving Cid standing there stupefied, but only for a second.

Cid stared after Squall for a while, scratching his chin. He wondered what it was that seemed so different about the boy today. He had known Squall a long time but this was probably the second time he saw something different in him. Time would tell. He took a deep breath and sprang after Squall.

Cloud

Light poured over his face, his mind still swimming in the dream lands. Slowly the reality pushed its way to his consciousness, making him stir from the warm nest he had managed to form while turning in his sleep. Where was he..? Cloud blinked and made a soft noise of pain as the light seemed to cause electric shock. Not good. Not good at all. He remained still, trying to figure the source of his pain and why the hell had anyone left the curtains open.

Defying the piercing light and pain, he peeked under his lids to do a quick search, falling back to comforting darkness of his closed eyelids. He sneezed and cursed immediately after doing so; he had located the source. Also, the memory of him getting punched in the face came back to him and with that, came the memory of the puncher. Cloud almost smiled when he recalled the excellent chase he made after Squall. He had ran after the man and when had reached him they had wrestled half heartedly for a while and then burst out laughing together. They had exchanged numbers and… Cloud's musings were interrupted as he heard familiar footsteps outside his room.

"Hey there stupid. I see you had fun with Reno last night." Cloud coughed a little. "Oh, here.. " Cloud felt something cold being pressed in his hand. "I got a message from Reno in the middle of the night and he told me to wake you up with a block of ice. I understand what he meant now." Tifa usually wasn't one to get mad at Cloud's antics but after yesterday's fight he wasn't sure the kitten had only hid its paws for now.. Cloud took the ice wrapped in a towel and lifted himself a little to a sitting position.

"Tifa, I'm sorry I have been an idiot towards you. You don't deserve it." He heard Tifa sighing and shifting on the bed.

"And I'm sorry for yelling at you so much. Cloud, I do love you and cherish you but I can't be with you like that anymore. I'm sure you understand this is worse than it looks on the outside. You and I were never meant to be together after all." Tifa glanced at Cloud who was looking at his blanket with a tinge of pink on his cheeks. "No need to be embarrassed, I'm ok with this. And you should be too." She stood up, reached to ruffle gently Cloud's hair and then patted away, leaving the blond to process the information.

Cloud pressed the towel over his gently throbbing nose and winced. He was an ass and he knew it. Tifa had always been too good to him and he had just tagged along, not really agreeing to anything but never denying anything either. It was time to move on. Tifa and he would remain as friends and that was a relief; she was the only family he had left and that was enough for Cloud to love her until he died. Like a sister.

After the refreshing shower, Cloud felt like new person. He stared gingerly his reflection in the mirror and touched his nose carefully. It was definitely sore and lightly purple as he had expected it to be; you didn't get off from a punch in the face with no visible bruising. It would vanish in a week or so anyway so Cloud wasn't that fussed with it. He dried his skin and pulled on the bottom of his PJ's shaking his head and causing droplets of water splay over the walls. He smiled in defeat as his futile attempt to flatten the gravity defying hair failed, once again. Searching thru the clothes from yesterday he found what he was looking for; he dropped the phone into the robes pocket and made his way downstairs. Irresistible smell of fresh coffee greeted him when he entered the kitchen. Tifa was already making preparations for dinner and smiled at him.

"Heard you taking a shower and figured you'd want your coffee." She knew him so well. Yawning a little he pulled a chair and sat on it, waiting the sweet treat to get ready. "Reno said something about wanting to know what happened after you two parted last night." Oh right, the phone. Cloud picked the phone out the pocket and opened it.

2 new messages

Reno:

Hey stupid, hope your nose is bloody and your face half black! Nah, just kidding mate! What an opening for your single life, eh eh? Let's get wasted next time! HAHAHHAHA!

Cloud grimaced. He was definitely not going out with Reno again. Ever. He clicked the second message on view and his eyebrows went high in surprise.

Hey Cloud, how's the nose doing? My jaw is so fucking sore and bruised, thanks again you evil git. I have free day today and I was wondering if you'd be interested in a proper fist fight. If your face isn't all purple and black it would be my pleasure to make it so. The address is Alice Street 4. With hate and love; Squall

He stared at the little screen, reading the message again. A fist fight? What the hell, man? Who woke up in the morning to send an invitation to fight with a person they'd just met? Squall, it seemed. Cloud stifled a snort and read the message again. As he knew nothing about Squall except he was good at punching, running fast and had seriously odd sense of humour, he was left with the only clue he had; the address. Of course Cloud was curious since the guy had seemed more interesting than many other people Cloud had encountered in his entire life.

Also, Squall was so good looking it was honestly illegal. Cloud recalled the brown hair framing the handsome face and the blue eyes. For some reason he could remember small details about Squalls features even though he was sure he had not watched the man long enough to remember anything in particular. Like the little wrinkles on the edges of Squalls eyes when he smiled… Cloud coughed as he felt heat rise up to his cheeks and he remembered how Squall had actually kissed him. Cloud groaned out loud. He had been kissed by a dude!

"Cloud..?" Tifa was staring at him with a frying pan in her other hand. Cloud cocked one eyebrow and wished she wasn't about to whack him with the pan in the head.

"Just remembered something I wish hadn't happened…" Cloud breathed deeply and decided to let his curiosity either kill him or to make him have fun for a change. Maybe it was time to move on in life and Squall seemed to be a perfect catalyst for it. "I'm going to need you to cover my shift today. Have any idea what's on Alice Street 4?"

Tifa was standing in the garage before Cloud while he was checking his bike and making sure all the necessary parts to be in their own places.

"Cloud. Seriously.. Are you sure you want to meet someone who made you a fool? I don't want you to end up raped or in the hospital or morgue.." She was growling like an angry bear and her eyes sent daggers at Cloud who felt, as he always did when this sort of thing was happening, utterly defeated.

"But… Tifa. Be sensible now, okay? You know I'm not a helpless girl who can't take care of themselves." Cloud tried to sound reassuring but only managed to sound irritated. "What do you want me to do then? You say I need to meet new people and now you are against it when I have decided to do so." Tifa's glare drilled thru his head. "I'm running late. Honestly!" Her eyes were narrow as she measured Cloud from head to toe.

"Fine, just don't get in trouble and don't expect me to cover your shift again!" She examined him few more seconds, tilting her head to the side. "Or else..." Slamming her fist against her other palm, it left very little to guess what she meant by that. Cloud could only blink few times after her as she swooped out of the room.

"It's only a gym.. What the hell was she making a fuss about anyway?" Cloud rolled his eyes and mounted his bike. After finding out what was on the address Alice Street 4 Cloud had just burst out laughing and made up his mind to go and meet his new friend. Squall definitely had interesting way to suggest a match at a boxing studio. Cloud felt exited for the first time in ages and sped up the street hoping the day would continue as great as it had started.

Few hours later

Cloud held the door open for Squall who was walking behind him. They stood on the street for a while silent and breathed the fresh air. It was rather heavenly after the sweaty air on the inside of the boxing studio they had been in.

"So, where you head now?" Cloud asked glancing at his companion. He caught the man ruffling his moist hair and felt something tighten in his throat.

"Home. I've got to clean up there. The place is a pigsty.." Squall sighed and yawned. "Have some stuff to prepare for work on Saturday so I guess my day is full. Why? Had something more interesting in mind?" The brunet turned to look at Cloud with a grin and the blond felt his ears burn. Why did he imagine there was something else hidden between the lines? He cleared his throat.

"Sorry mate, can't be of help there. I've skipped one day of duties now and will get mauled if I dare to skip the rest of the work waiting for me." He sighed. It wasn't often he asked Tifa to cover for him but he was sure she would kick his ass if he didn't show up to clear the paperwork at least.

"What do you do exactly? Didn't get the chance to ask before." Squall grinned. Cloud found himself grinning back as the memory of the few past hours came rushing back. He felt slightly embarrassed since there had been a moment when Squall managed to coax the frustration of the whole situation with Tifa out of him. Cloud had kicked and punched and pretty much had gone all berserk with the punching bag Squall had been holding in place for him. Poor man, he had got more than one kick to his sides and knuckles as Cloud had vented his feelings.

"I.." Cloud coughed. "I co-own a delivery firm. With Tifa." He added when Squall shot him a questioning look. "I know it's quite weird considering the situation but Tifa is good at these things." I know I'm not, Cloud thought.

"Weird is an understatement."

"So, what do you do for living?" Cloud changed the subject on purpose and ignored the raised eyebrow from Squall. "You know, besides from picking up fights from random people by kissing them." Cloud had no idea why had he said that. He really shouldn't have said it. Now it made his chest feel heavy and something flipped down in his stomach. Squall seemed not to notice his discomfort.

"Oh, I do a bit of this and that.." Squall shrugged. "I'm a part-timer at a café and a part-time DJ most of my time. I do some odd-jobs for friends and their friends if they have problems with technical things." He sighed and a troubled look passed over his features. "I get by. And I don't go around picking up fights like that. Only with the good looking ones." Squall winked at Cloud who froze and felt his heart make a loud thump in his chest.

"Ha ha. Very funny. I'll have to kick your ass for that."

"Be my guest. Oh, but before you do there's something I think you might like to attend to. Here." Squall rummaged a while his bag before extracting a piece of paper and handed it to Cloud. "Think you could be free on Saturday to visit me?"

Cloud examined Squall in silence, wondering about the reasons for the worried expression but didn't want to ask and his feeling of uneasiness eased. As the brunet looked as normal as you could Cloud dropped his eyes at the paper. He raised one eyebrow amused.

"Uh, a club? You know, I might have had enough of places full of unfamiliar people." Like being thrown out for one. Squall shrugged and zipped his sweater halfway up to his chest. "I'll think on it. Can't promise anything though." As if he'd have anything to do.

"Well, it'll be a treat for me if you do come." A smile crept up to Squalls lips and Cloud felt the need to run away. Right now preferably.

Saturday night

Cloud sighed and let his fingers trace his jaw line for a moment, lost in thought. He wasn't so sure it was a good idea after all to go out this evening. He'd been unfocused all week and had felt confused about why his pulse seemed to go high whenever he thought about Squall. He had never felt so torn and confused. It was the first time he'd felt like he was actually drawn to the other man. A MAN! Of all the things to happen in his miserable life… to find out he might fancy guys after all.

Not that there was anything wrong with that. He knew gay people and it was perfectly normal to him. Let people love whom they want, it had very little to do with him in the end. But now when it was a possibility for him to fall into that small group Cloud felt slightly uneasy. He had tried to imagine the same feeling with some other guy. Like Reno for example. No fucking way. Reno was attractive, sure, but not in that way.

Cloud ruffled his hair for the umpteenth time, unable to decide should he go. His mixed up feelings were not a good base for meeting someone in an environment unfamiliar to him. Also, there was the case of all his black shirts missing… Cloud had a wild theory where Tifa knew about his confusion and knew he had been asked to meet with Squall tonight and she had laughed devilishly and shown the poor shirts the might of a pair of scissors.

He coughed. Well, maybe a bit too farfetched.

After an hour of indecision and having gotten fed up with himself, Cloud decided to find out what his heart -and head- would make of this evening. He felt under his jacket the only white shirt he wasn't too awkward to wear. It felt weird against his skin, like it was made of some other material than the ones he was used to wear. What a load of nonsense really. Who honestly could determine what colour they were wearing? With these determined thoughts Cloud sat on Fenrir pressing the helmet on his head with a small grimace on his lips. He feared going and somehow he was exited and felt a sort of giddiness growing in his stomach.

First things first. Cloud always found a way to make some time to drive his bike with no destination. It was like a drug to him, to ride alone and feel the power under him, controlled. The answers would have to wait until his soul had been satisfied. Cloud ran his fingertips lovingly over Fenrirs shiny black surface and wondered vaguely what would happen if he would actually get into an accident. There was no one whom he had placed as his security person to tell the doctors what to do if he was unable to. If he was to survive from an accident and Fenrir not.. Cloud shuddered at the thought but banished the idea quickly. He had more pleasurable things to attend first. Grinning in his solitude Cloud started the engine with one soft roar and drove out.

It never occurred to him that he forgot to inform Squall about his showing up.