Series: Final Fantasy VIII (8)
Pairing: Zell Dincht & Squall Leonhart
Theme: 30 Kisses #12 - In a good mood
Status: one-shot, finished
Rating: G
Warnings: none
Notes: My boys have gone missing so all I can do is 3rd person view of the boys. ::sighs::

---

What a rare day it was. Everyone in Balamb stopped immediately in their tracks when a certain person waltzed by. Exactly what the devil had gotten into their new headmaster? Nobody could figure it out, not until later anyway.

"Hey what's the big fuss about?" Selphie inquired, jumping up and down on her toes, trying to get a better view of what the mass of students were gathering around the central elevator.

"I don't know," said Quistis, a look of suspicion written across her face.

"You *do* know something! Tell me too, tell me too!" the bouncy brunette turned to her superior and friend, a huge smile on her face.

"Did you see Squall earlier?" she simply asked.

"Nuh uh, why? Does he have a big surprise for us or something?"

"Well, I don't know, but I think this," Quistis gestured towards the overwhelming crowd now that they stood off to the side. "This, might be Squall's doing, since I don't hear him over the intercom despite this uproar."

"Hm! I wonder what it is! I want to see!!"

And with that, Selphie rejoined the crowd, jumping up and down again, trying to weave through the bodies.

When she managed to squeeze into the inner circle of people some minutes later, she could hear cheering. Hm, this must be good...

"What's going on?" Selphie asked

"DID YOU SEE THAT!!" the guy next to him shouted at her, as if the noise level was too high.

"NO I DIDN'T, what did you see?"

"Headmaster Squall kissed Zell again!"

For a moment, Selphie had to manually register what she just heard, and then another uproar of cheers washed over her. Oh no, did Rinoa know about this?

Just then, a familiar voice rung out ahead of her.

"YEAH!!! LET'S GIVE IT UP FOR SQUALL AND ZELL!!!"

This time, Selphie joined in on the cheering.

Please R&R?
Rady finished a drabble Final Fantasy @ 11:59:56 am

Series: Final Fantasy VIII (8)
Pairing: Zell Dincht & Squall Leonhart
Theme: 30 Kisses #8 - Our own world
Status: one-shot, finished
Rating: G
Warnings: Just hinting of slash
Notes: Random la la la...

---

It was on those particular days, when exploring Winhill, that Squall and Zell would vanish off by themselves. The usual three-person grouping approach didn't seem to matter to them, and they would be missing in action for an entire day. It was a pretty quiet town, at least, and everyone knew they would come back in tip-top shape. Never stopped the girls from asking about them, though, but he knew better. Those two were the team's top fighters, obviously, the leader and his second-in-command. Besides, what would a guy like him like better than to have three pretty girls all to himself in a quiet little inn?

"Irvy~!" whined a familiar voice from down the hall, and perhaps the only one he didn't care to hear as often as he did.

"Yes, Rinoa?" he responded, turning his head towards the approaching girl.

"Did Squall come back yet?" she asked, stopping square in front of him. My my, what a confrontational girl.

"No, he didn't come back to the room last night." Irvine jabbed a thumb towards the door he just closed behind him. He couldn't help but notice that she didn't even bother to ask about Zell.

"Argh! Where could he have gone? This dinky little town isn't even that big, how hard can it be to find him." Her gaze hardened on the tall man, as if suggesting that he should go look for Squall, er, them.

"Well I don't know, you know, boys and their things..." he smirked, but Rinoa didn't seem to be charmed by it at all. Too bad.

"Well YOU better find him back for me, we're all worried sick!"

The cowboy would've rolled his eyes if only it were gentlemanly, and so he didn't. It was obvious that she was the only one who wanted him back and under her watchful gaze. Sure they were all starting to wonder where Squall and Zell went, but they always came back as if nothing had happened.

"Okay, okay, I'll go look for them," he put his hands up in defeat and sighed, to which Rinoa responded by spinning him around by the shoulders and pushing him foward.

"Hurry!! I wanted to check out the flower field with him before lunchtime!"

"Hai hai," Irvine sighed, and then a rough hand gave him a push that nearly sent him tumbling down the stairs if he hadn't been bracing himself against the handrail already. He mumbled to himself for having to be at the whim of females. Then again, it wasn't like he didn't enjoy it.

One minute later, he ducked past the doors and breathed in the fresh air. Ah, it smelled like quiet town, brimming with flowers, seeing that it was late spring. The temperature had gone up slightly, but only slightly, and it was refreshing to be outdoors. He would've been happier if Selphie had accompanied him, but seeing Rinoa's determination, he didn't dare go disturb the girls' room.

The cowboy, seemingly fitting in the location, took a long glance about his surroundings. Sure enough, he could see half of Winhill from where he was standing, the town was that small. Yet, there were the outskirts of the town to explore, other places where Squall and Zell could have disappeared to. He shook his head silently, because he knew where they were. Maybe not exactly, but he knew better than to disturb them. They were off in a world of their own, perhaps under the pier, hidden from view, or hiding in the flower field. A frown creased the handsome Galbadian soldier's forehead, and he thought again.

Rinoa said she wanted to go to the flower field with Squall. Better make sure Squall wasn't there already, with, well, you know who.

Starting at a brisk pace and eventually tucking his head in for quicker strides, Irvine headed down the winding path towards the flower fields. He sneaked quick glances behind him to make sure he wasn't being followed, and when he was out of sight from the townsquare, he made off into a dash, bracing the bouncing Exeter on his right shoulder.

When approaching the field, he slowed his pace and made a careful survey of the area. When seeing that there was no noticeably broken patches among the blooming flowers, Irvine began talking to himself.

"Nice day for a stroll, isn't it? I think Rinoa would love it, a day out in the fields alone with Squall," he mused loudly. When there was no response, he walked a few paces before speaking again.

"Whew, these flowers are all in bloom, thank Hyne I don't have allergies to pollen!"

No response, not even a stir.

He continued walking, then noticed an irregular patch of flowers. It seemed as if someone had walked through it but made care to arrange them back, a little too carefully. Those were some neatly lined flowers. Nature couldn't have done that, could it?

"AHEM," Irvine cleared his throat loudly, then continued. "It's nearly lunchtime and Rinoa would be devastated if I didn't find Squall soon! I wish Zell would stop hogging him all to himself, not that I'm the one complaining. I can just imagine what things they're doing, and where they're doing it."

He glanced around him to make sure nobody had appeared while he was rambling to himself. Nothing but silence greeted him.

Or maybe not?

--------------------

"That bastard..." muttered Squall.

"Just chill, at least we had a good time yesterday," the blond martial artist whispered and followed with a quick peck on the cheek when nobody was looking.

Please R&R?
Rady finished a drabble Final Fantasy @ 08:36:11 am

FOREWORD: This is an ongoing fanfic. To start reading from the beginning, click here.
Series: Final Fantasy VIII (8)
Pairing: Zell Dincht & Squall Leonhart
Status: part 14 and ongoing
Rating: PG
Warnings: shounen-ai, light Rinoa bashing
Search keyword: ff8_floating
Notes: I apologize for the LONG hiatus I've taken to write this next part. The cast seems to have left me for a very long time, and I'm desperately trying to find them again. Please be patient with me! Thank you, and my apologies once again.

---

"Honestly, Squall. What were you thinking?" Selphie questioned the scarred brunette sitting across from her after he had muttered incoherently to her about injuring Zell. She leaned forward, with her arms propped outwardly on the padded bench in the infirmary's waiting area, and kept trying to catch a glimpse of Dr. Kadowski and the medical team at work through the drawn curtains. She was a little down earlier, but now she was so worried she could be doing jumping jacks. Yet, she tried her best to sit still since Squall looked like he would explode if she moved too much.

Haggard and still sporting burns from the funguars at the training center, Squall sat mutely with elbows propped on his knees and his face buried in his hands. His anger had melted away and all that was on his mind now was if Zell would be all right. His friend had tried so hard to cheer him up, to help him out, and he ends up hurting him horribly instead. It wasn't on purpose, but perhaps it was because he was careless from being so absorbed in himself while he should have been concentrating on fighting.

As agitated as she was, Selphie could tell that Squall did not want to be questioned any further, and so she kept quiet for the remainder of the time. It seemed like hours before Dr. Kadowski and her team pulled back the curtains and came out. They all looked worn out, but they also wore relieved expressions on their faces. Almost instantly, Selphie shot out of her chair and pounced on Dr. Kadowski.

"How is he? Is he going to make it? Is there anything I can do?" she tried her best to whisper but it came out rather loudly anyway.

"Keep your voice down, Selphie," the doctor scolded then breathed a long sigh. "Yes, Zell will be fine, thanks to Squall's quick reactions." She turned over the boy who was still sitting with his face down in his palms. "It was a good thing you brought him in so quickly."

Squall finally looked up and saw that Dr. Kadowski was smiling down at him reassuredly. His constricted lungs seemed to loosen, and he breathed like it was the first time he inhaled in a few hours. His face was streaked with dry tears, and he looked like a charred mess. It was late now, as a matter of fact, it was 2307. He and Selphie had been sitting up in the infirmary for over four hours.

"Can I go in to see him, please doctor?" Selphie rocked back and forth on her heels, looking nervous.

"Sure, but don't disturb him, and that means no talking or touching him. He needs rest, so don't bother him please," she answered her although she was still looking at Squall, who stood up although he hung his head, and Selphie tiptoed into the sick room alone.

"Dr. Kadowski," he spoke at last and found his voice rasply, so he cleared his throat before continuing. "Th..thank you."

"Let me take a look at you now, Squall. You have some nasty burns there."

"I'm fine," he answered rougher than he had intended at first. "I mean, I just need to get cleaned up, it's all right. You should get some rest, too. I apologize for the trouble." He bowed low with clenched fists at his sides.

"I insist, my child, let me look you over. It won't take long," she pressed, and Squall gave in. She led him over to the the examination room by the entrance and ushered him into a seat. Silent as always, the brunette discarded his jacket and allowed the woman to examine the burns on his face and arms.

Selphie popped her head in a minute later to announce that she was going back to her dormitory now, and Squall nodded weakly at her. Dr. Kadowsky frowned at Squall then quickly gathered her burn and bandages kit to apply on him.

"Do you care to tell me what happened, Squall? I'm also the resident counselor here, you know," she began as she swabbed the wounds on his face with cottons soaked in alcohol.

He winced at the initial stinging sensation, but he quickly got used to it. "We were just fighting at the training center."

"Fighting the monsters or each other?" she said, concentrating on cleaning up his face before applying ointment on the burns.

"The monsters, but... I was in a confused state, and I accidentally hit him with my gunblade," he grunted and swallowed hard, trying to fight off the tears that were welling in his eyes.

"It's going to be all right, I understand. You know you will have to report this to Cid, though, right? But it's not your fault. Don't you think that for one second. Zell will make a full recovery after a few days under my care."

"But that's not it!" he snapped, then recoiled. "I... I..." he started but couldn't explain the turmoil inside him. He dropped his gaze and wrung his hands in his lap, feeling some of his anger return, although it wasn't at Zell anymore. He was angry at himself for getting carried away.

"If you don't want to tell me what it is, it's okay. Whatever it is you're dealing with, take some time to think it through. You need to rest up too, I'll write you a note excusing you from the remainder of your detention."

Squall was grateful for her concern, but he couldn't find it in himself to express it properly. He remained silent until Dr. Kadowski finished patching him up.

"Can I take a look at Zell?" he asked quietly.

"Yes you may, but as I said to Selphie, don't disturb him. Please don't take too long, I want to close up soon," she answered before heading towards her office.

He nodded once, then quickly ran off to Zell's sick room. He tread a little slower when he approached his bedside, but his heart clenched horribly. It was weird, because he could clearly recall the last time he was this worried. Back when Rinoa was in a coma, he had felt the same way, the same guilt, the same anger. Or perhaps, not the same guilt and anger, but nonetheless, he was filled with those emotions. He stood by the bed and stared at Zell's unmoving figure. It almost seemed normal, the way he laid there peacefully like he had just gone to sleep on one of their missions somewhere, except for the hospital gown he was wearing and the sterile surroundings of the infirmary. Zell looked so helpless laying there, and he felt useless standing there. Squall thought about all that happened in the last twelve hours, and there was no possible way he could blame Zell for anything at all now. Rinoa was leaving, and Zell had nothing to do with that. Rinoa had fallen in love with Seifer, Zell couldn't help that. And neither could he. There was nothing he could do now, and he had to face the facts. There was no more useless accusations, maybe except for the way he reacted that had gotten Zell so dangerously injured. He wanted to reach out and touch Zell's cheek, to make sure that he was still warm so that he would feel better, but his fingers fell short of touching him when he remembered Dr. Kadowski's words.

There was a chair in the corner of the room, so the brunette pulled it over to the bedside and sat down. He knew he should be out of the infirmary soon, but something in him didn't want to leave yet. Guilt, perhaps, but it was also something else. He didn't want to abandon his friend, not now, not ever. Cautiously, he touched Zell's hand that rested on top of the covers, and he looked up at his face to see if it would rouse him. When the blonde showed no signs of consciousness, Squall rested his other hand on top of Zell's hand as well, making sure he wasn't touching the IV wire that went into the underside of his wrist. At the very least, his hand was warm, and Squall leaned his forehead into the hospital sheets, deep in thought.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

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Rady finished a drabble Final Fantasy @ 06:09:00 am

Series: Final Fantasy VIII (8)
Pairing: Zell Dincht & Squall Leonhart
Theme: 30 Kisses #23 - Candy
Status: completed one-shot
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Notes: I don't like red licorice, but Zell does!

---

"Hey Squall, look what I can do," Zell's proud voice taunted him from behind. Squall hated how Zell sounded like that sometimes, because it meant that he would stop at nothing until Squall complimented him or gave him a cookie.

"What," Squall muttered without bothering to turn around. He was already up to his neck with paperwork when Zell decided to drop by with a large container full of red licorice twists.

"I can tie this red licorice in a knot with my tongue!"

"That's impressive," Squall replied quickly, but realized too late that he said it most unenthusiastically.

"You don't believe me, you HAVE to see this, c'mon man!!!"

Squall finally turned around from the work on his desk to face Zell, who was sprawled across Squall's bed like it was his own. To his horror, there were pieces of red licorice all over his bedsheets, and Zell was in the middle of the mess entertaining a particularly interesting bit of candy in his mouth.

"Wh... clean up that mess!" Squall almost shouted.

"Look first," Zell smirked after swallowing the candy left in his mouth. He picked up another piece from the bed and waved it at Squall's face before opening his mouth and placing the tip of it on his tongue. Squall watched as Zell clamped his lips down on the candy tube and move his mouth side to side. Once in a while, his tongue would slip past his closed lips, and although Squall was frowning at the blonde earlier, he began to find himself a little hypnotized by the way Zell's mouth moved.

Then Zell knelt on the bed and leaned towards Squall, sliding a few licorice strands off the bed and onto the floor. But Squall didn't see that happen because his gaze was fixed on Zell's lips.

"Aah," Zell finally opened his mouth to reveal the knotted tip of the red licorice inside his mouth, and Squall stared at the shiny red candy inside his mouth. And the incredibly luscious red inside Zell's mouth that probably tasted like licorice if he could only kiss him.

The blonde pressed the licorice against his upper lip with the tip of his tongue and licked the underside back and forth until Squall felt a huge need to swallow. Then suddenly, Zell pulled the candy out and waved the shiny, knotted licorice back and forth like a wand.

"What do you think?" he asked, beaming with pride.

"That's... impressive."

"Thought so."

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Rady finished a drabble Final Fantasy @ 06:20:09 am

Series: Final Fantasy VIII (8)
Pairing: Zell Dincht & Squall Leonhart
Theme: 30 Kisses #19 - Red
Status: completed one-shot
Rating: PG
Warnings: none
Notes: The drabble is a bit OC, but the plot was difficult for me! Sorry! I also took some liberties in making up the cityscape in Galbadia.

---

That day was rapidly approaching. The commander polished his gunblade faster and faster, fuming silently ever since he noticed the girls were giggling at the opposite corner of the room, eyeing him every so often. What was up with girls and that day? What was so special about the death date of a few men anyway? If anything, it should be a morbid day, not a day filled with pinks, reds, and fawning girls. Nothing about that day appealed to him.

Sitting next to him was his impatient teammate, arms crossed and tapping his foot at a rapid pace. Zell had his eyes glued on the giggling girls and his lips pursed in a frustrated frown. His thoughts echoed Squall's, as if they were thinking the same things. Why were those girls so happy anyway?

Irvine laid back languidly across five chairs he had lined up in a row so that his long body would be completely suspended off the floor, and he hummed a tune quietly with his cowboy hat covering half his face. Peeking from the side of his hat, his gaze shifted back and forth from the three girls and the two guys sitting in opposite corners. He smirked at what the girls might have been talking about and thought about how lucky he was to be "stuck" in a team with three girls. Well, two other guys too, but they didn't matter.

It was just his luck that they had only enough money to rent one room at the Galbadia hotel, so everyone was stuck in the same room for the night. Usually, he took for granted having two rooms, one for the girls and one for the guys, but tonight in particular, he wished long and hard for someone to miraculously produce enough money to get another room. There were enough sleeping spaces for everyone, two beds and plenty of floor space. It was already decided that the girls would take the beds, however they would arrange it wasn't his concern, and the guys were to sleep on the carpetted floor.

"Would you guys give us just five minutes or silence??? You've been talking ever since we got the room!" Zell shouted louder than he needed to, which startled the girls.

"Girls! We're girls, Zell, and we're keeping our voices down. Why don't you go out if you want peace and quiet, I'm sure that parade out there is quieter than us," Selphie retorted, then turned right back to their hushed conversation.

Zell threw his arms in exasperation and shot a look at the girls, who paid no further attention to him. "Oh fine! You better be quiet by 22:00, because that's when I want to sleep!"

The brunette pushed his bangs away from his face and pocketed his polishing cloth. "Let's check out the city, we could see if our contact is available to meet us tonight," Squall said to Zell, whose eyes widened with gratitude. Squall turned to Irvine to extend his request, but before he could say anything, Irvine raised his arm in the air and waved.

"Tell me how the parade is too, I'm going to stay here with the girls," he said with a grin hidden under his hat.

"Fine, we'll be back before 22:00 for sure," Squall said curtly at the girls before exiting after Zell, who wasted no time in holding the door outside for the other man.

The giggles instantly got louder when they shut the door, and both Squall and Zell winced. Gunblade in hand, Squall headed down the stairs with Zell at his heels and out of the hotel. The sidewalks were filled with stationary pedestrians who were watching the bright lights of the parade rolling down the street. The night air was crisp and cool, but there was also a certain warmth because of all the people there. Squall motioned towards the pub and started weaving through the crowd, and Zell followed wordlessly. There was no way they could talk out here, since their voices would be drowned out by the blaring music of the parade floats anyway. Along the way, Zell admired the colourful costumes of the dancers who twirled this way and that on the moving platforms and wondered if they were hot or cold, since they were wearing skimpy layers but dancing so actively that they probably weren't cold. The gleeful shouts of children and adults alike filled the air and rang like bells along with the happy instrumentals that were playing on a sound system that was installed on the lampposts all along the street. Squall wasn't paying so much attention to the parade as the gaping people that filled the sidewalks. He was having difficulty getting through the swarm of people and hoped that Zell wasn't too distracted and still behind him.

After a good five minutes of navigating the crowd, they finally reached the pub at the end of the block. Once they stepped inside, the aroma of alcohol assaulted their senses, but the few people inside were all sober. Squall scanned the faces of the entire room's occupants in less than ten seconds, but their contact wasn't there. If she was here at all, she was probably outside watching the parade, and searching for a stranger in the masses on the streets was the last thing he wanted to do.

"Well she's not here," Zell said a little downcastedly. "Since we're here anyway, why don't we chill until the parade's over? It's quieter here than in our room anyway." He shrugged but looked to the brunette for a response.

Instead of saying anything, Squall walked over to the bar and took a seat on one of the swivel stools. The blonde followed suit and took a seat next to him. A slender, middle-aged man wearing a plaintiff waiter outfit walked over to them from the inside the counter, drying his hands on his white apron.

"What can I get you gentlemen, hm?" said the barkeep. Down at the other end of the black bartop was a couple chatting away animatedly. Squall wondered if they were excited about that day too, and the thought made him shudder.

"A mixed fruit cooler," piped Zell.

"Soda water," muttered Squall without the slightest change in his facial expression.

"Coming right up," said the barkeep, who did a quarter turn and walked off towards the fountains and bottles of liquor.

He couldn't help but bounce a bit in his seat. It had been a while since he had any alcohol, since it was strictly forbidden while they were on the job. But since they couldn't find their contact tonight anyway, now didn't count, and a cooler was very low in alcohol content anyway.

"Here you are, a mixed fruit cooler for you, and a soda water with a cherry for you," the barkeep said cheerfully when he brought the drinks over. "It will be 20 gil, and I'll keep a running tab for you until you leave. That sound good?"

Squall nodded, but Zell was already sipping on his cooler bottle like a kid sampling candy.

"Say, fellas, why aren't you watching the parade? Heck, I would be if I weren't on duty tonight. Saw the entire run last night and I wanna see it again! It's the best parade in Galbadia yet!" the barkeep said to Squall, who looked at him as though he weren't listening at all. "Oh, and I forgot to say this. I'm Letty and I'll be your barkeep for tonight. Whatever you fancy, I've got it right here!"

"I'm good with the soda water," Squall said in a flat voice.

"So I see," Letty replied then cast a scrutinizing look at Zell, who finally stopped admiring his drink. "I've never seen your faces around here before, are you new or just passing through?"

"We're just passing through. Hey man, I watched the parade for a few minutes before we came in, it's pretty awesome! The dancers are crazy, dancing out there in the cold like that!" Zell said in awe while Squall started on his soda water.

"Yeah they are, all Galbadian dancers too, they are. So what business do you have here if you're not here to see the parade?" Letty asked Zell and motioned at Squall.

"Ehh, our business is our own, sorry pal. Nice place you got here though," Zell said.

"Thanks! Well, it's not really my place. I usually work the day shifts, but since the parade is going on at night, the owner wanted to see it so she's letting me run this joint alone tonight."

Squall was listening to their conversation and sighed when Letty told them that the owner of the pub, who was their contact, was definitely out for the night. Maybe he should have gotten alcohol instead.

"So what are you guys doing alone in here at this time of night? No lady friends?" Letty winked.

"Oh they're back at the hotel. They were too noisy so we came out for, uh, a walk," Zell responded, grumbling a little when he thought about the three girls giggling away.

The barkeep narrowed his green eyes at Zell, then glanced back and forth between him and Squall. "Uh, you mean you two are a couple then?" he asked cautiously.

Although he wasn't listening very attentively, Squall suddenly choked on his soda water.

"What? This guy?" Zell sputtered with the most ludicrous look on his face.

"No," Squall quickly added after Zell spoke.

Letty laughed. "Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to startle you there, I was just wondering what you two fine young men were doing alone since all I've seen lately are couples in here. My apologies."

"It's okay," croaked Squall, who stole a sideway glance at Zell. The blonde was doing exactly the same thing, actually, and they both started when they made eye contact.

"Oh look, more customers, if you'll excuse me. If there's anything else you gentlemen want, just give me a holler," Letty said quickly before walking off to attend a couple that sat down in a far corner.

Chuckling weakly, Zell fiddled with his cooler bottle but didn't drink it. "Haha, that was weird," he said.

"I hate Valentine's Day," Squall muttered and downed the rest of his soda water in one gulp, then slammed the mug into the counter.

"Whoa there, he didn't mean anything by that," Zell reassured Squall, but Squall seemed absolutely ruffled at that moment.

"This whole day revolves around girls. If there's no girls around, people automatically start giving you looks," he grumbled as he fished for his wallet and produced twenty gil.

"Yeah, well, it's only normal, I think. Hey, you want to leave already?"

"Let's go," and with that, Squall placed the gil on the counter and whirled off his seat.

"Um, okay," Zell said and followed Squall. Letty waved at them and Zell waved back, but Squall headed straight out the door.

"Hey what's up with you, chill will ya?" Zell caught up to Squall and placed a hand on his commander to keep him from leaving him behind.

Instead of resisting, Squall immediately stopped and turned towards the parade. "Let's watch the parade."

"Sure...?" Zell said confusedly but let go of Squall and watched him for a moment. Squall seemed entirely sincere in his words too and was indeed watching the parade, so the blonde shrugged and turned to watch the parade as well.

The colours rolled by them in slow motion, pinks and reds littered every float as the dominant colours although there was an assortment of many others. Amongst the blaring music on the street's sound system and the clamour of the crowd, Squall and Zell stood in silence, just watching the parade. Every so often, Zell would take sip from his cooler, which he took with him. What he did not know was that Squall was watching him out of the corner of his eye.

"Zell?"

"Huh, did you say something?" Zell turned to face the other man.

"Will you be my valentine?"

Zell's mouth dropped open, and Squall held his breath.

"W...what?"

Squall exhaled and turned back to watch the parade. "Nevermind."

"No wait! I mean, yes! Oh Hyne did I just say that, YES!" His eyes lit up like the lights on the parade floats, and Squall turned back to him. There was no smile on his lips, but yet, there was a smile in his eyes. The street's commotion seemed to stop, and Zell could hear his heartbeat pounding in his skull. Nothing in his training could have prepared him for that moment.

Right before the world resumed its tempo, Squall leaned in and kissed Zell on the lips.

"Am I... dreaming?" Zell stammered when he was suddenly aware of how hot his cheeks were. Was it the alcohol?

Squall took the cooler from Zell's hands and took a sip before returning it to him. "This is good, I think I'll get it next time," he said, a quiet laughter in his voice. Not only had his anger completely left him, but the world suddenly seemed so perfect.

Zell was a bit shaken, but when Squall reached out and took his free hand, everything seemed normal again, except not.

"This parade is awesome," Zell said when he calmed down and returned to watching the parade. He felt Squall squeeze his hand when a float with a giant heart saying "BEE MINE" in bold red letters and bumblebees rolled on by.

"Yeah, and Valentine's Day's not that bad afterall."

Please R&R?
Rady finished a drabble Final Fantasy @ 05:12:20 am