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: ongoing
Rating: PG
Warnings: shounen-ai, light Rinoa bashing
Search keyword: ff8_floating
Notes: Zell and Squall ficcie!! My favorite and only yaoi couple @.@ I love them so okay, off to writing now.
It was a cold, windy afternoon at Balamb Garden. Zell stared up at the ceiling crack from his bunk bed.
"Cracks. That's what they always are, one crack blending into another. A trail of cracks." His eyes traced the crack straight above him that led to the top of the door. He sighed and closed his eyes, not bearing to stare at the closed door.
Ever since he had become a SeeD, and even before that, the girls around him were always the same. Rinoa was a good friend, Selphie was annoying but still a friend, and Quistis was a friend even though she remained to be the teacher figure to him. That was the problem - they were all just friends - there was no way any of them would like him as more than just a friend. The library girl had left when her father decided to take her back. The only possible girl gone. All were left were friends.
"Squall.." he whispered. Even in the confinement of his own room, he still wasn't too sure of his surroundings. He would rather be home. He was alone though, rather lonely, too. He had developed a slight crush on their leader a few years back, what now? He heaved silently and opened his eyes again.
However, this time the continuous cracks on the ceiling weren't there any more, but instead, it was a large representation of Squall's face. .. but that was a mighty long crack. It was almost like the face was proportional to the scar. It hovered above him and almost scared the shit out of the blond boy.
Zell squinted and blinked, and the image disappeared. "Fuck I can't take this any more!" He rolled off his back and leaped off the top bunk, landing in a crouch. (His loose-fitting shorts had always enabled him to move freely.) It was Saturday and he didn't feel like wearing the SeeD uniform today, he wasn't planning to go any where. Until now.
He ran up to the door and stopped. He noticed his arms were bare because he was wearing solely the tanktop, so he turned back to get his jacket, only to find Squall siting on the bottom bunk.
"Squall! What the.. how did you get in here?" Squall looked at him as he usually did- calm, even kind of dead looking, but there was a smile in his eyes. Zell blinked and Squall vanished. "What the... I'm seeing things.. I'm seeing Squall, it can't be this bad."
He blinked a couple more times before snatching his jacket and walking back towards the door. Nostalgic, he glanced at the bunkbed. Nobody there. He turned and gripped the doorknob, hesitating.
"Where am I going man... This is insane." He held onto the doorknob but his hand refused to turn it. He sighed inwardly and his lips trembled. He was always over-emotional, they had told him that since he was a child. He wanted to be like his grandfather, a proud and strong SeeD, but at moments like these he wasn't sure. He was a great martial artist, he knew that, he was strong, but he wasn't so sure if he was always proud.
Starring at the door, he imagined Squall's face instead, staring steadily into his eyes and not saying a word. He would expect that of Squall and no more. He knew something most people would never face. Defeat.
Squall was taken. His heart was captured by the healing and gentle angel Rinoa. Not that Zell had anything against her, but he envied her greatly. She had the beauty and charm that captured even Squall's heart. She was swift and carried about a cherry blossom-filled air. Anybody could tell that Squall was silently entranced in her cheerfulness. Zell could never compete. Not with a girl.
"Damn, Squall will never like me. I'm a guy, for hyne sakes! He would never fall for a guy like I did.." His unusually soft voice trailed off to a whisper. He really cared about Squall. He would throw himself into the line of fire, fight up-close and personal if anything would protect Squall. He cared about his mother too, but not in the same way. Squall was too cold most of the time to call a friend, and yet he was his "best" friend. Maybe because Squall had nobody else to really open up to - he liked Rinoa but he wasn't about to tell her all of his deep, dark secrets. Ever since he had started to open up, Zell was the one he would turn to for anything. Zell. Zell would always be there for him.
He loosened his grip on the knob and leaned his forehead into the door. He wasn't going anywhere, facing Squall with his feelings wasn't going to happen. He may care for Squall more than any person in the world, he may think the best and admire him, he may love him to his heart's content, but he was not going to face him. How? It wouldn't work. He had Rinoa.. or something along those lines.
Zell threw down his jacket on the bottom bunk and sauntered over to the window. He twisted his palms around and supported himself on the window sill, sighing and looking down. His sneakers tweaked beneath him, but he didn't hear it. Enveloped in his thoughts, he fancied himself walking up to Squall and just taking the initiative of kissing him, not caring whether Seifer or Rinoa or anybody else would see. Squall would probably react by harshly shoving him away as fast as possible, but maybe that little physical contact would relieve him of some tension. But then he would need more relief later on; that was a useless idea.
The wind blew roughly outside and rattled the window. Zell reached up to touched the frigid trembling glass with his right hand. His eyes first focused on his own reflection, then turned away, not baring to look into his own eyes. Slowly, he brought his eyes back and settled them on the courtyard outside. There, he saw Rinoa in her fluttering delicate blue dress, looking gorgeous as ever. "Isn't she cold?" he wondered, at least until he saw Seifer wrap his trenchcoat around her.
"Where did he come from.." Zell whispered. It seemed all too sudden when he saw Seifer bend down to the lady (an entire foot shorter than him) to kiss her. Zell's knees gave way like jelly.
"I thought she was over with him! Isn't she with Squall now?" He trailed off into a mass of thoughts: Perhaps she got back with Seifer. Wait, she was with him before, she's with Squall now... Did she go back to ugly gorilla man? He ruffled his hair, a tad bit confused. Last I remembered, Squall really liked her and she seemed like she was really into him, too. What's going on...
He didn't know what to think, so without another thought, he dashed out with his jacket.