Chapter 4

Squall

If he had been surprised to see Cloud to emerge from the darkness behind him that covered the stage, it sure came as a shocking realization to him that Cloud was leaning into his embrace and not trying to pull him free or accuse Squall being weird and disgusting for daring to do this kind of thing.

Squall couldn't help himself for leaning even closer, when the pale neck was so near to his face he could smell Cloud's skin. The man was made purely out of things that made Squall's mind spin, the closer they were. Under his hesitating fingertips he could feel the flat stomach of the other, the lines of abs and hipbones jutting beneath the fabric of the shirt. He could not resist the temptation; the skin looked so delicious, so very soft and so freely exposed to him. Squall found himself pressing his lips against Cloud's neck, ever so softly, just wanting to know how the skin felt under his lips.

It was a sensation to touch the other, but when those blond spikes fell backwards, the head soon resting on Squall's shoulder, he could only inhale deeply that spicy fragrance that was filling his nose so sweetly and fall into blissful state of mind. He forgot he was suppose to work at the same time, he forgot the people below on the floor, he forgot the twins seeing him and Cloud swaying slowly from side to side, he forgot that he was not suppose to do things like these to someone who was not his to touch. A gentle smile reached his lips that were still lingering over Clouds neck. He could get used to this nervous happiness that tickled the bottom of his stomach like there were butterflies fluttering their wings.

All good things come and end and so did the magical moment of theirs as Squall finally snapped back to present time and noticed that he should change the song again. Untangling his fingers and releasing Cloud's waist he did another transition, noticing quite a few of the people dancing looking straight at them. Oh damn.. There would be no end to the gossips after this. He had to check his laptop for the song that would come up next and to do that, he had to turn more and thus, relieve Cloud from his warm prison against Squall's chest.

Cloud took a polite step to the side, to be out of the way and looked stubbornly at the turntables, like there were little green men dancing on them. Had he gone too far already and made Cloud freak out? But Cloud seemed to reach for the forgotten water bottles and taking a long drink from one of them. Squall could just stare and feel jealous for the bottle that was able to touch those lips, now realizing how he yearned to lavish kisses on the soft skin. He bit his bottom lip and turned grumpily to his machines to prevent himself from making a bigger ass out of himself.

The rest of the set Squall managed to play thru without any more incidents or any more touches from either of them. Cloud stood next to him, so maybe he didn't freak him out completely, the whole time, his face back to being unreadable and beautiful as carved marble statues were, those blue eyes scanning the crowd, observing everything. Nothing was suggesting that Cloud was bored or annoyed, but neither did the man seem to enjoy the evening, he just stood there. Like a gorgeous statue, indeed.

Eventually Squall played the last song, the much sweatier mass of people cheering for a minute in appreciation for him giving out a good set of songs. Squall closed his laptop and gathered the CD's with him. Someone had put on music from somewhere else, so there was no absolute silence at any time. Before either of them was able to say anything, Squall just handed Cloud his CD case and took the laptop himself, motioning them to leave back to the room they were before.

The twins were nowhere to be seen when they reached the quieter space and Squall slumped on the couch, tired and sighed. His eyes followed Cloud who entered the room more slowly and placed the case next to Squall. Only Clouds eyes revealed some emotion, pale lashes blinking as if to say; I don't know what to do.

"Wanna go somewhere?" There was no point at staying here anyway. Squall never had felt compelled to stay to see the twins or anyone else, to perform and was ready to leave if the other wanted to. To where, that he didn't know. He only knew he wanted to continue seeing Cloud. To see him breath, to see him flutter those eyelashes, to see him blush for whatever reason.. Squall coughed, trying his best to hide his embarrassment.

"Yeah." Cloud's eyes, they were darker in this bright yellowish light and had a tired depth in them, like frozen pools of water. Squall wanted nothing more than to just melt the tiredness and awaken Cloud into such passion it would make those beautiful eyes shine like no tomorrow. They both startled out of their intense staring, as they heard an amused cough from the one doorway that led not into the stage nor back to the club, but even deeper into the backroom area. Sora and Roxas were standing there and were watching the older men with their eyes shining brightly.

"We won't wait you to turn up this night!" Sora grinned widely and got a slap to the back of his head from his brother -they seemed to enjoy this punching quite a lot-. " Uh, I mean.. We ain't gonna be home before 5am anyway so.. you know. The flat is unoccupied. Leave the CD's and laptop and we'll take.. good care of them. Yeeeaaaahh... we're gonna like.. go now. To do.. stuff. Have fun!" Sora's brown spikes were the last thing the older pair saw as Roxas had pulled his twin back to where they had emerged from.

Both looked after the boys for a while, a slightly stunned impression on their faces, then looked at each other and grinned. Squall stood up and just shrugged, walking into the corridor that led to the door into club, Cloud following him quickly. As they walked to the door that opened behind the amplifiers near the stage, Squall felt again Cloud's hand catching his own.

"I don't like big crowds." It was the only explanation Squall could hear. He smiled to himself and squeezed gently the hand in his, leading them into the damp, stuffy and heavy air of the actual club, pushing thru the drunken goths and generally weird people. Since the place was rather full now, it took a while for them to get to the wooden doors that lead to the stairs up and towards the fresh air. Squall noticed his head to ache a little. The pain was throbbing behind his eyes, trying to form into a headache.

Finally he pushed the iron door open and stepped on the sidewalk, letting go of Cloud's hand and stretched his arms up in the air and yawned blissfully. The club was nice and all, but it damn well made him feel sleepy, especially after having a show to do. He eyed the dark street and its yellow lamps, trying to figure what to do next when his eyes spotted something black. Something definitely awesome on the other side of the street.

"Please don't tell me that there is your bike?" Squall asked and Cloud managed a sly smile and nodding, walked towards it.

"Yeah, that's my Fenrir." Cloud sounded like he was talking about someone living, not just a machine. Ok, a seriously cool piece of machinery, but still. Seeing the other walking ahead of him, reaching the black bike and touching it gently, it looked like Cloud was greeting the bike, his stomach clenched unpleasantly as he remembered what he had been up to just mere minutes ago down there. It was a small wonder Cloud hadn't gone running already from him. Squall was sure someone had spiced his morning cereals with aphrodisiacs since he never was this open with his feelings. He hid his uneasiness under appreciative nodding about the bike.

"Suits you." Squall murmured and Cloud had a smile lingering on his lips at the comment and leaned down to pull his pants' hem up and revealed not only a nice and simple pair of black boots but also Squall saw the pale skin to flash from under the fabric. He was about to avert his eyes but when Cloud rose up he saw what the blond had took out from the shank of his boots; a pair of rather big knives. "Should I be worried now?" He cocked his eyebrow at Cloud, who blinked innocently and then glared at the pair of sharp objects in his hand.

"No, unless you plan to drug me and rape me after I'm unconscious." A sheepish grin found its way to Cloud's lips and he opened the stable to put the knives into safety there. Squall kept staring at the blond, not knowing should he be amused for the sarcastic comment, it was no joking matter after all, or was Cloud about to castrate him for stepping over the line earlier. Squall decided to let it go and put some trust on Cloud to forget the little mishap without a comment about it.

Cloud was staring at him, sitting now over the bike, ready to drive off and was observing Squall's mild confusion, one eyebrow high. Squall coughed, his cheeks burning faintly. The last thing he had thought was about how rough the blond would be in right circumstances. Hence the blush on his cheeks this time. He swallowed hard, pushing the tormenting thoughts away.

"Not going to." Squall managed to say before stepping closer to the man and his bike. He wondered was he supposed to climb behind the other and hold on tight. Heh, ride together into the sunset. Too bad it was already dark and stars shone somewhere above them, though they never saw them here, in the middle of the city there were too many artificial lights, otherwise it would have been like in the old western movies. The idea amused him to no end.

"Yeah, you are probably as dangerous as a kitten, aren't you." Cloud grinned, patted the free space behind him and pulled his helmet over his head so Squall couldn't see his face anymore. "Come, let's drive." Squall managed to glare angrily for a moment before melting into a smile and climbed behind Cloud. The black monster under them let out a soft roar as Cloud turned the ignition. "Hold on tight."

Squall had only few seconds time to wrap his arms around Cloud's waist as they already were speeding down the street. He pressed close to the blonds' back, seeking warmth as he felt the cool night air send chills down his spine. He had been stupid enough to forget his jacket at home when he had left for work. Cloud drove fast and steady ahead the quiet streets, his whole body felt relaxed under Squall's arms, like he was one with the machine. Another new side of Cloud that made him admire the blond even more.

Squall felt himself relaxing and letting his thoughts to drift, trusting Cloud to know their destination. The air was pushing on his face and the sweet smell of the night air filled his mind. He had always liked the nighttime. It gave him time to be alone, to feel more intensively about his surroundings. It was more unreal and that was something Squall had figured he needed in his life; the moments of disappearance from reality and duties. To feel so alive was just one of the little things that made him go on in life.

He had never really thought of himself to be a guy to wonder about little things in other people. Now he found himself thinking how much he wanted to know more about Cloud; what he liked best, what kind of things he hated and what made him happy or angry. Squall had maybe once in his life been with a person he had wanted to know thru and thru. It was starting to dawn on him that despite how strong the physical pull of Clouds was, he was slowly feeling the mental pull too.

Cloud finally slowed down and rolled the bike carefully across the piles of rubble and pieces of fallen buildings around them everywhere. Squall had to blink twice as he saw the destruction so close. He had been away from the town so many years; he had missed the obvious disaster that had struck this side of the town. The bike stopped and Cloud put his feet down pulling the helmet off and looked up at the one building that was still half standing, its figure recognizable. A church?

"Come, let's go in." Cloud pulled the leg of the bike out and waited for Squall to stand up first, then following him. Cloud walked silently towards the old building. Squall simply followed the man ahead of him, wondering what connection Cloud had to this particular spot in the first place. Their steps echoed in the deserted area. It stuck him odd that there were no signs of anyone trying to clear the shit out. It would have been the first thing the city council to do, wasn't it? Instead the buildings stood untouched, crumbling, the lonely ghosts of once flourishing neighborhood.

There were no doors left to open, it seemed they were shattered about in small pieces leaving the place open for anyone to step in. The insides of the church seemed to be in same kind desolate state than the outsides were, but in the middle of the ruins there was something glistening in the pale light that poured up from the open roof, or the lack of roof would be better. Squall marveled the serenity of the place, his headache tuning itself down, his senses relaxing, it was like something was soothing his very soul and smiling gently at him.

"What is this place?" Squall managed only to whisper, a louder voice felt like a crime to make, so peaceful the room felt. Cloud had knelt down on the edge of the water that was the source of the shine, the faint glow of it illuminating the pale features. Squall saw the far away city lights reflecting on the surface, forming the soft glow.

"This is where I come when I'm troubled. Not that the church itself represents anything to me, but the place holds fond memories from my past when I was even more confused about who or what I was. Here, I was able to pour some of my troubles to Aerith. It feels.." Cloud inhaled deeply and closed his eyes for a moment. "It feels like she's still around here. I know it's bordering mental to think so because.." Cloud's voice died suddenly and there was a pained emotion raw on his face. His eyelids half closed, watching the surface of the water move slowly in the breeze that blew gently thru the church.

"What happened?" Squalls mind went blank for a split second when he thought this was the proof of Cloud being nothing but a straight guy. Then he realized the past tense Cloud was talking and relaxed slightly.

"Aerith was a close friend and a good person who believed everything could be overcome with just a little bit of patience and caring. But she died." Cloud looked up at Squall who was standing near him. "She died in the hands of a lunatic who found it funny to stick a dirty great sword thru her body and then dispose of the body by sending it down the river that runs outside the city." Cloud had end up talking so openly Squall was left feeling nothing but shocked. "Me and a couple of my friends assisted in the capturing of that person and he is locked away. She didn't deserve that kind of an end.." Cloud sighed and trailed the glistening surface with his fingers. "Sometimes, when I feel really bad, I come here and decorate the place with white lilies. It's like she's still here, somewhere. But I'm not mad or anything." Cloud finished with defense in his voice and looked up.

Squall saw the brilliant blue eyes looking at him like they were the depths of the sea itself, glimmering, and gathering tears to be shed down the smooth cheeks. It was too much for Squall to bear and he knelt beside Cloud and, after short moment of hesitation, reached his fingers to touch gently the cheek, caressing the skin carefully.

"Hey.. I don't think you're mad. Anyone would be upset to lose someone close like that. But you know, I think she'd be pleased with your bringing her flowers here." Without even knowing how close he had hit with that comment, Squall only saw Cloud's eyes to widen and blink few times, erasing the moistness that had warned about the tears. Cloud seemed to lean in a little to Squall's touch and sighed.

"She did love flowers so much. And this was her favorite place, before it got smashed. I… I just miss her so m…" A finger cut his sentence as Squall had pressed it against the lips and was shaking his head. He knelt next to Cloud and kept his eyes locked with him.

"Don't dwell in it too much, okay? It's ok to be sad but this happened years ago, yes?" A small nod. "You'll heal eventually, trust me." His voice was barely audible, so lost he was in the blue abysses of the other that Squall didn't even notice he had leaned closer, their faces now only an inch away. Removing his finger from the partly open lips he now felt Clouds warm breath and not being able to resist himself as he reached even further, the dry surface of their lips not quite touching, but being so close they both were nearly tasting each.

Lost in the moment, Squall could only sense something telling him that he should act on his instincts, not to care about rights or wrongs. The only thing that mattered was how his breath was mixed with Cloud's, who had not moved, but had closed his eyes, the air that touched Squall's lips felt like it trembled, how the soft lips were almost touching, in his chest his heartbeat increasing its speed rapidly.

Squall caressed the soft cheek slowly with his fingertips, marveling how velvety it felt, tilted his head to right only a little and pressed his lips carefully forward, gently and so terrified that it would ruin everything about this moment. But there was no protesting, no pulling away, no curses voiced. Cloud seemed to freeze for a moment before a small accepting noise rose from the blonds throat and Squall felt the shy response to his kiss as the lips moved for a better touch.

The mere feel of Cloud was enough to send Squall into heavens of ecstasy, to take the man before him roughly, but he didn't. It would have been close to a blasphemy if he had been harsh now. The blond man screamed with his entire being for soft touches and the sweetest kisses there could ever be. Squall took his time to linger on the soft surface without really moving, examining the sensation it had caused inside him and drinking in the faint brush of air that came from Cloud into his own mouth. He pulled back only for a moment to take a look into Clouds face and trying to see some possible dislike. But he found none. Nothing more than a faint blush over the cheeks and closed eyelids hiding the eyes that would have told him the truth easily. It was Clouds own movement towards Squall that spoke volumes about him having no doubts he wanted to continue a bit more. Squall licked his dry lips and pressed himself back onto Cloud's lips with a content sight escaping from both his and Clouds throats.

Squall felt his whole body going all warm and fuzzy for this small kiss. It was like his mouth was a piece meant to be right here. He dared to open his lips just enough to have a slow lick of Clouds bottom lip. Clouds breath hitched at this and his lips opened just a little bit as he was accepting the next move. Squalls stomach seemed inhabit fluttering butterflies when he slid his tongue inside Clouds mouth and gently explored to find its counterpart. It felt like someone had lifted him from the floor, so light was his mind now. What sent an electric shiver down Squalls spine was when Cloud responded shyly to his questioning tongue by touching it with his.

Their tongues swirled slowly together, merely exploring the sensations for the first time, deepening slowly to the level where they both raised their arms to take a better hold of each other. Squall sneaked his other hand to Clouds hair, into the midst of the golden spikes and the other behind Clouds back. Cloud had, hesitant at first, took a hold of Squalls shirt with one hand while the other went for his waist. The feel of Clouds hands and fingers on him made Squall moan slightly and to pull their faces closer. Nothing else mattered but the two of them existing in this moment together and breathing the shared air.

Cloud

For some reason this journey had turned out like this. Cloud had instinctively driven to this place; he almost always paid the place a short visit when he was feeling even slightly confused. He had wanted to talk about something else but instead had spilled one his deepest secrets; him still missing someone so much it made him miserable and weepy.

But now his miseries were being kissed away so gently, him being held ever so tenderly it would have made his knees soft and give out. Luckily he was half-sitting already. Cloud thought that Squall really was like an ecstasy, wrapped into that warm, inviting form and leaving his skin tingling on his neck where the long fingers were touching his hair.

Not even in his wildest dreams had Cloud imagined a kiss to ever be anything like this. Sure, he had kissed before but never like this. It had taken him by surprise, at first yes, but he had been in such state he had completely forgotten he had sworn never to be kissed by Squall again. Of course this kiss was nothing like that brush of lips earlier. Squalls lips definitely sent his defenses crumbling down. Cloud had found his way into the mass of brown hair, caressing the long, silky strands without even realizing doing so, marveling the texture. He fell from his knelt down-position back on his ass to sit legs now straight before him. The kiss broke because of this, only to be continued as Squall crawled on Cloud's lap and with a smooth move brought their lips back together.

They both let out a soft satisfied breath of pleasure when their lips connected again. Cloud felt his head swimming in a foggy place, trying to get a hold of the current things and put a stop to it, but ended up only to feel so cherished and wanted, that he gave up and went with the flow. Squall's weight was pressing against his lap and he was rather thankful that the kiss had stayed enough chaste to keep them from arousing too much. Not that it was far.. Squall had his left hand behind Cloud's back to support him, the right was still massaging his scalp, a gesture that made the blond want to purr in delight, and that intoxicating fragrance of the other filled his nose, going up from there to his head, making him even dizzier.

Cloud had eventually wrapped his arms around Squall's shoulders, taking in the safe feeling he was feeling when embraced like this. Squall felt like one those nights when you wake up from bad dreams and the other is there to soothe your horror and to wrap you into love and tender kisses. Cloud let out a small whine; his heart swell like a balloon with longing and desperate yearning to possess this kind of person for his nights. Cloud felt himself clinging almost desperately to the strong body wanting the ache in his soul to ease.

They merged into one slowly moving mass of hands and sighs of pleasure, fingers lost into the locks of hair, lips whispering muted words of affection and eyes closed to keep the real world at bay even for one long moment.

Slowly the kiss turned to its end, they both taking the last nipping at the opponents swollen flesh, then resting their foreheads together, eyes closed and breathing uneven and heavy. Cloud was lost in his delirium, not wanting the warmth ever to end, but hesitantly opened his eyes and gazed up to see Squall, who was bathing in the pale light thru the roof, eyes like dark portals to oblivion looking straight down at him.

"…." Squall opened his mouth to say something, but didn't say anything. He only leaned down to kiss once more Cloud's lips, then smiling tenderly. Cloud felt himself melting into a soft smile, something fuzzy making a permanent residence inside him, heartbeats calming down.

"Mm…" If his cheeks were not red from before they sure were now as he was blushing. Cloud leaned forward and hid his face to Squalls shoulder. He felt shy, even after that kiss they had shared, confused too. Could this really be happening? Could he be so easy to get attracted to this person, no matter the sex? Was this just moment of pity on him where Squall had seen his misery as he had been thinking about the lost friend and acted on pity..? So many vain questions, he didn't want to think of them now. He didn't want to think with his sane part right now, not yet. His yearning for Squalls warmth was slowly fading into an ache in his heart.

"Better?" Squalls warm breath was on Cloud's ear, the air tickled the skin and made him weak, so sensitive his whole body felt right now. He was being held in a tight embrace, sheltered from the world and responsibilities, and he let out a relieved sigh.

"Yeah." Squall was stroking his back, the fingers drawing the lines of Cloud's muscles. He felt so faint with delight his head was slow to catch up with the reality. Unfortunately the fear in him suddenly lifted its ugly head and made Clouds heart thump few beats so painfully he didn't know where to look. Questions started to pop up in his mind and made him cringe. His happiness was fading quickly and Cloud felt his body stiffening.

Squall tilted his head back and found Cloud's eyes, loosening his hold. There was something in that look that Cloud had not seen before and he didn't recognize it. He bit his lip confused, trying to find words for this situation they were in. What was this situation anyway? Where did it put them? What did it make him? Was he turning gay? Cloud was suddenly filled with extreme anxiety and yet he felt attraction and want for Squall the way he had not even felt for Tifa before. It made him scared that this was just his own body reacting to friendly touch. Cloud hated feeling scared. He had never gotten so hot by some other guy and it was confusing him badly.

"Hey, are you still with me here?" Squall poked the tip of Cloud's nose with his own. Cloud swallowed hard, snapping back to present and felt a rush of relief and joy when he looked into the eyes before him again. That look wiped all his doubts and panic away in a matter of seconds and he found himself smiling against all odds and nodding in response.

Squall backed up from the Clouds lap finally and sat on the wooden floor before him, the heart shaped face serious and eyes still locked onto the blue ones. It looked like he wanted to say something, but had lost his voice. Cloud marveled the handsome features, eyes fixing upon the scar crossing bridge of the nose.

He didn't even realize for doing so, but found himself soon touching that part of Squall's face, with one finger trailing along with the mutilated surface. Squall had simply closed his eyes, letting Cloud to explore. Wondering how it had gotten there in the first place, he let his fingertips trail down the smooth cheek and brush gently over the lips he had only minutes ago felt almost swallowing him completely. This caused Squall to snap his eyes open and to stare at him with a questioning look. Cloud dropped his hand quickly.

"An old battle scar. I got careless when I was younger." Squall said calmly, offering an explanation without him having to voice the question. Cloud nodded, he knew how easy that could be. He had been bitten by the blade numerous times.

"So, you want to meet me someday? You know, for that ass kicking you promised?" Cloud averted his eyes slowly from Squall and took a deep breath. What he had wanted to ask was if there could be date in a different kind of setting, but dared not to go there, still having a hard time to believe it had not been girl he felt infatuated but a boy. A man. Squall blinked and cocked one finely shaped eyebrow.

"Uh.. yeah. Sure." Did Cloud hear disappointment in the others voice? No, he must have imagined it in his own hopeful mind.

"Yeah. Um, great. I have to work on weekdays but we can settle the day on the phone too.. or.. something." Cloud lost his voice in the end of his sentence, not knowing where to put his hands and what to do with himself. Squall offered a half a smile and nodded.

"Sounds good. So.. what kind of weapon do you wield?"

This was a subject that was safe enough for them to go on about while neither of them really knew how to go back to the terribly tempting kiss-subject. So they discarded the whole matter and got lost into talking about their weapons, techniques and forgetting completely that it was very late and had already been late when they got there.

Eventually they stood up, after having talked enough, falling into comfortable silence. Squall looked around him, scanning the shattered pillars, fallen roof, exploded benches and inhaled deeply. Cloud examined him, wanting to caress that long mane so badly but was hesitant to make a move.

"I'll drive you home if you want to." And since he was curious to know where Squall lived it most certainly would not be a problem to him. But Squall shook his head, smiling wryly.

"Just drop me somewhere near the club. I need to pick up my laptop from there."

"Oh, right. But didn't the twins say they'd take care of it?"

"I forgot that you don't know them.." Squall smirked. "There is absolutely not one chance they would have actually taken it with them. Seriously, those two can't remember a blasted thing. Sometimes I wonder how they manage to remember they need to breathe. Especially Sora." Cloud hid his smile behind his hand. The mental images of the twins doing CPR on each other was rather disturbing and hilarious.

They walked out of the church and Cloud saw Squall taking a final glance at the place, then turning to face him with a small smile on his lips. Oh fuck, why is it so hard to admit that I just want to take him into my arms and kiss him senseless? I liked it, didn't I? So what the fuck happened after that? Frustrated with himself, Cloud mounted the bike, crammed the helmet on and turned the ignition on. The purr the machine let out soothed his nerves somehow enough to look up at Squall again.

"This place really is something. I almost understand why you say that your friend is still around." Squall climbed behind him and took a firm hold of Cloud again, the contact of their bodies sending a thrilling jolt thru his body. "Thank you for bringing me over." Squall's voice was so low and cool, so near again it made him want to push the bike from his hands and tackle the other onto the ground. Cloud sighed, defeated and angry at his own cowardice and drove them out towards the city.

Finally they stood again on the street that they had left, hours ago. It was still crowded with people who were leaving from the club, wandering in their drunken states around the street. Squall stood next to Cloud who sat over the bike, intending to drive home. Squall stood there shuffling on his feet, eyes darting from Cloud to the asphalt.

"So.. Thanks. For coming." Squall finally said.

"I had fun. Really." Cloud smiled, feeling a little tired now, his thoughts running on their pessimistic roads, making him believe there was no way he could be interested in this man and the earlier feeling had been just a moment of confused bliss. But just as he was about to say his farewells Squall stepped closer, took a hold of Cloud's chin and lifted his face up. For a moment he was baffled, but soon felt the soft lips gently sweeping over his own. The touch lingered, like Squall did not want to let him go, a thought that Cloud found he still really liked, but eventually leaned back up and smiled down at Cloud.

"Good night." And with that, the other walked away, leaving Cloud on his bike and his head spinning like he had been consuming alcohol all night long.