| When Sunshine Meets the Rain Chapter One Authoress: Keishi BIG FAT WARNING: Contains m/m relationships ONLY read if you are of age and open-minded!!! Disclaimer |
| The soft, persistent sound of an alarm pierced the air, announcing the beginning of a new day. It was quickly silenced. Irvine woke slowly, relishing the feel of a soft, comfortable mattress beneath him and a warm body next to him. If only he had a ready-made cup of steaming mocha latte, he'd say the day was starting out perfectly. Then he heard the raindrops. Groaning, Irvine popped one eye open as he began his morning full-body stretch. "I hate the rain," he murmured, smiling over at the other person in bed with him. Squall smiled faintly at Irvine in answer, though his brow was furrowed. He was propped up on one side; he had been up for a while and was content to listen to the rain coming down and gaze at Irvine as he slept. Reaching over and kissing Squall wetly on the mouth, Irvine said, "Morning," as he pulled back the covers and rose out of bed, stretching further. He was naked, and Squall had no qualms watching his lover as he unkinked his naturally long limbs. Though the pout between his eyebrows remained, like a bad aftertaste. As Irvine was rummaging through a drawer looking for underwear, Squall cleared his sleep-swollen throat and asked, "Why?" "Why what, darlin'?" Irvine said over his shoulder. "Why do you hate the rain?" Irvine's mouth formed a small scowl. "Well... there's nothing to do while it rains. You can't swim, you can't go outdoors, you're stuck inside all day, and... it just makes ya feel all gloomy inside. That's no fun." Squall regarded Irvine silently for a moment before getting up and heading for the shower. He had laid out his clothes the night before, and neatly scooped up his underwear from the pile next to the door wordlessly. He had a dark look on his face. Irvine watched Squall go in, thoughtful. Something was awry, and he had a feeling it was about Squall's question, like it was a trick question he'd failed to answer correctly. He bit his lip, but nevertheless followed Squall into the bathroom. They cleaned themselves and got dressed in record time, not sharing a word. Squall went to work that morning in less than chipper spirits, as evidenced by the clipped and cool way he greeted his staff, as if their mere presence annoyed him a great deal. He ordered that no one was to disturb him as he sat down heavily in his desk chair. Sighing, he put his head in his hands. Quistis, always one to consider herself above Squall's orders when it came to the well being of her friends, knocked brusquely on the office door and entered before Squall could give an answer. "Squall, are you alright this morning?" Not looking up, Squall said a terse, "I'm fine." Sighing inaudibly and crossing her arms in front of her, Quistis hiked an eyebrow at Squall. "I thought you quit doing this." Squall rolled his eyes, but remained stationary. "Quit doing what?" Quistis pursed her lips, then took a deep breath. "When you left last night, you smiled. You laughed at one of Zell's jokes. You actually let Selphie nearly hug you to death. And," Quistis stressed when she heard a snort come from Squall, "when you were leaving, Irvine put his arm around you and you didn't try to shrug it off or glare at him at all." "So now I'm not allowed to do those things?" Squall asked, looking up at his second, exasperated. Quistis held up a hand. "Let me finish." She paused, waited until Squall nodded. "What I meant was, lately you've been opening up to us-- all of us. I don't know if this has anything to do with your newfound relationship with Irvine, but its nice, and we'd like to see you open up even more. "However, this morning you walked in like nothing had changed." The blonde perched herself on the edge of Squall's desk; Squall just gave her a glare, which she promptly ignored. "It was like you had reverted back to the indifferent loner prior to the war. Something had to have happened since you left last night that caused this, Squall." Quistis held Squall's gaze until he broke away to stare out the window, silent. "Squall, I'm your friend," Quistis said softly. "I'd like to help if I can." "There's nothing for you to help with, Quistis. I'm fine," he reiterated, voice dull. Quistis frowned, a sad look in her eyes. "Is it Irvine? Are you two not getting along?" Squall turned sharply on Quistis. "Don't you have work to do, Instructor Trepe?" Taken aback, Quistis blinked. Apparently she'd hit a nerve. "Yes, Commander," she said stiffly, though she reached out a hand and squeezed Squall's arm in a gesture of comfort before leaving. When the door clicked shut, Squall activated the lock and walked over to the foggy windows of his office. He let his forehead rest against the cool, misted glass as he watched the rain fall, turning the world grey. He had always loved the rain. In the past, it had given him a sense of peace when nothing, or no one, could. After Ellone had left he'd spent hours watching the rain fall, crying softly and trying to be strong. The raindrops made him think that someone, somewhere, was as sad as he was, and their combined tears were causing the rain to come down. It gave him comfort. He didn't know why it mattered what Irvine had said. He didn't expect the Galbadian to like all the same things he did. In fact, he found much of Irvine's hobbies to be inane and a waste of time. He was never one for outdoor sports, and he hated chocobos with every breath in his body. The fact that Irvine did like these things never bothered him. Not like this. Moving away to look out the window, Squall felt in the pocket of his jacket for the small box. Inside was a necklace, leather woven into sinew, with three small yellow feathers hanging off the end. He had been carrying it around with him since the morning after he had first given himself to Irvine, but had never coughed up the courage to actually give it to his lover. He clutched the box tightly, shutting his eyes for a second, then opened it. It was just as he had left it, nestled in the tissue like a sleeping infant. Zell had really outdone himself this time; the beads woven into it gleamed softly in the pale, grey light. He had wanted to give it to Irvine as a symbol of his devotion to the taller man, but he had always chickened out at the last moment, the words dying in his throat. If Seifer had still been around, he would've teased Squall mercilessly about it. Snapping the box shut, Squall squared his jaw in determination. He sat back down in his chair and pressed the intercom button. "Irvine Kinneas to the commander's office." --TBC. |