Knowing You
Chapter 14
Notes: I will replace chapter 13 soon when I can be bothered but as I had already written this I'll change it without affecting this chapter.
The dark man walked across the room completely naked having just got out of bed. The lump in the sheets stirred moving into the empty space with an arm stretched out. Squall opened one eye. "Kiros?"
"Morning."
The brunette groaned. "Too early." He pulled the pillow over his head then peeped out from under it.
"What are you doing up? You don't have any work to go to."
"I told Laguna I'd pick up some things for him as he was busy this morning."
"But why?"
"I'm not busy."
"But you could have stayed here with me."
His lover smiled. "It'll take five minutes." He held up five fingers as he walked up and perched on the bed so he could reach his young lover to kiss him.
"Stay here I'll be five minutes tops, you don't have to get up."
Squall fell back against the pillows. "You know at garden I would have been up for hours."
"Enjoy the time off." His ruffled Squall's hair and stroked a hand down the length of his body stopping where the sheets met his left hip.
The dark man rose walking to the drawers he picked out a pair of boxers and threw them onto the bed.
A pale hand sleepy reached out and tossed them onto the floor while his lover wasn't looking.
Kiros threw some socks onto the bed, still looking at the cabinet. These too were thrown on the floor, Squall's arm then returning to lie over his head with his eyes shut pretending to sleep.
Kiros turned around and frowned at the lack of clothes on the bed, walking round it he stared at the items on the floor then shot a suspicious look at Squall. He picked them up and put them back on the bed, he turned his back watching out of the corner of his eye as a leg swept out and knocked them to the carpet again.
Squall hadn't moved apart from now his shoulders was shaking slightly.
"Are you laughing at me?"
An eye opened and looked at him innocently. "Hmm?"
His lover hit him round the head with the pair of socks.
"Ow." Squall said playfully.
"What do you have to say for yourself about these?"
"They're socks?" He asked innocently.
Kiros gave him a look but Squall just blinked at him.
"Fine if that's the way you want to play it." He grabbed the blankets and started to pull them off the startled brunette.
"Waah! What are you doing?!" Squall franticly grabbed at the covers as they disappeared leaving him naked and exposed in the cold morning air.
His lover climbed up onto the mattress and over his squirming lover. The dark man chuckled. "So you still claim you know nothing?"
"What are going to do interrogate me?"
He grinned and Squall made a very un commander like squeak as fingers jabbed him in the ribs, tickling him.
"No fair! I can't fight back!" He squirmed hard under the older man.
"That's why it's so fun."
Kiros finally stopped the assault laughing. "Do your cadets know what a nice squeal their commander has?"
Squall tried to glare at him, a frown even he tried, he tried hard but he smile kept winning. "Aren't you supposed to be leaving?"
"Huh? Oh yes shopping, I forgot. Stop distracting me!"
"Me? Who sat on who here?" He watched Kiros hop around the room with one sock on trying to get the other on then hopping into some trousers, he grabbed a shirt and disappeared into the bathroom. Squall pulled the covers back onto the bed and over his head.
Breakfast was an event. Kiros had brought food home for breakfast as Laguna wanted everyone to get together as some sort of family gathering. Some weird complicated family group when the only two that were actually blood related were Squall and Laguna. Kiros had gone to tell Ward and Ellone had knocked three times on Squall's door with no answer.
"Maybe he was tired and he slept in."
"I don't know I knocked pretty hard and I called his name."
"Maybe he woke up early and he's up already."
"Out where? And without one of us?"
"Out monsters killing?" Olivia suggested.
"I hope not you should have seen the state he got into last time."
Kiros walked in. "What's going on?"
"We lost Squall."
"Again?" He smiled. "Where did you put him last?" He teased.
"This isn't funny."
"He'll come back on his own, you don't have to baby-sit him."
Laguna pouted. "But I wanted everyone here for breakfast as a group for once that we're all together and-"
"Alright I'll go look for him."
Ellone scoffed. "I'll go, I think I know where he would go better than you." She stuck her tongue out at him.
"We'll both go and split up."
"Bet I find him first."
Kiros smiled back at the challenge. "Bet you don't."
Laguna shook his head at the pair as they disappeared.
"I'll help you set the table." Edea offered.
"Thank you." Laguna put his hands on his hips. "And where is Ward?"
The large man had just looked into the room and snuck up behind Laguna tapping him on the shoulder.
He turned and jumped. "Aah!" He smacked his smirking friend on the chest. "Don't do that!"
Ward held up a hand in greeting.
"And where's Jenny?"
He shrugged.
"What'd you mean you don't know? She's your fiancée."
His friend just looked sheepish.
"Why do we keep losing people?"
"Who else have you lost?" Ward asked in sign language.
"Squall, we lost Squall."
"Ah he'll turn up."
"Why does everyone keep saying that?"
Kiros let himself back into his apartment. "Squall?"
He could hear the shower running from the bathroom. "Squall?" He yelled through the wood.
No answer.
He frowned and tried the handle, the door wasn't locked and opened under his hand. He smiled. "Squall?"
A head appeared round the curtain hair flat and slicked to his head, the water made his hair appear darker than his usual chocolate brown. He rubbed water from his eyes.
"You took longer than I expected."
"Yeah sorry about that Laguna caught me, he wants the whole group of us to have breakfast together, you, me, Ellone, Edea, everyone."
Squall groaned. "When?"
"Now."
Squall groaned louder.
"I offered to fetch you." He smirked. "Ellone bet she could find you first and I would like to prove her wrong."
"That's cheating."
"Yeah I'm a bad boy." He grinned. "So hurry up, get dressed and come to breakfast with me." He leaned over and gave the brunette a teasing slap on one wet hip.
Squall gave him a mock salute. "Yes sir." He smiled leaning in to quickly kiss his lover, leaning back out when he felt damp.
The wet brunette had gripped the front of his shirt making dark wet patches on the material.
"Oops." Squall said, not sounding all that sorry.
Kiros studied the damage and sighed. "You'll pay for that later."
Squall laughed. "Really? What are you going to do? Spank me?"
His lover chuckled. "Don't put the idea into my head."
He walked out of the bathroom leaving the door open and still talking to Squall as he headed out.
"I'll go ahead and tell Laguna you're on the way."
"Okay."
"Hurry up though."
"Yes mother."
"Did you find him?"
Kiros nodded.
"Where is he then?" Ellone asked suspiciously.
"He had to get dr- err- ready... for breakfast."
"So he'll be here?" Laguna asked.
"Yes soon."
"Good, good now we just need- You shirt is wet."
Kiros looked down. "Err- Yes.... So it is."
"I hope its not raining out I was going to-"
"It's not." Ellone said. "I was out there early looking for Squall."
Kiros pulled the front of his shirt out as he tried to think of an excuse. "No-err- it happened when I was looking for Squall and-"
Ellone and Laguna looked at him expectantly. "And?"
"Umm- I- err- found him in the- umm- g-g-garden and-umm- near-umm- near the fountain."
"And you got in the fountain?"
"He splashed me... with water."
"Squall?"
"Yeah."
"Why?"
"Just playing I guess."
Ellone frowned. "Squall? Playing?" She shrugged. "He must be in a good mood."
"Who must?" Squall asked from the doorway wearing his white tee and leather pants.
"You."
"Me?" He shot a nervous glance at Kiros who stood beside him and returned the look. "Why?" He watched Kiros leave his side to go sit around the table like most of the others were doing too.
"You shouldn't have let Kiros find you, I lost a bet."
He smiled. "Yeah well I've been here a while and well you know Laguna gave me a ship to work on and I spend lots of time there that only Laguna and Kiros really know about and-What?" He asked at the confused look she shot him.
"He said you were in the garden."
Squall's mouth and eyes widened as he wanted to say something in his defence but he didn't know what to say. "Yeah, err- yeah I err was in the garden but-but before-umm- before that I was in the ship yard." He explained.
She nodded slowly in confusion.
"Come and sit down you two you can catch up later."
They joined the others, Squall relieved to have got out of explaining anything more.
"Are you enjoying your stay here Squall?" Edea asked halfway through breakfast.
He didn't answer straight away as everyone else had been involved in their own little conversations and he hadn't too closely but when he didn't answer everyone turned to stare at him as if he was under some sort of surveillance.
He looked up glanced at each of them. "Umm- Yeah it's bit... Okay."
"You look good too, doesn't he Ellone?" Edea said.
Ellone nodded. "You must be happy... you almost seem to glow."
Kiros would have smirked or smiled or something if he hadn't been drinking at the time and instead swallowed the wrong way and started coughing.
Squall smiled tightly. Yeah, morning after glow.
He chuckled as Laguna hit Kiros on the back. "Alright?"
"Yeah just- err- went down the wrong way."
Ellone elbowed Squall gently. "Hurry up and finish you're coming shopping with me."
"I am?"
She nodded. "You need to get gifts for your friends, don't tell me Selphie doesn't expect presents?"
He thought about it and sighed. "Okay, fine I'll come with you." He said like she had just asked him to go to on a suicide mission with her.
"Great, let's go now."
"Now? But I haven't finished my toast."
"Bring it with you."
He sighed heavily again. It was like being back at Balamb with Selphie. He gave a half hearted waved to the rest of the table before he was dragged out of the dining room. And out of the palace.
tbc