To Trust A Cop

Beta: working on it
Notes: I should probably put a warning or something, but seriously. Anyone so young that they need warnings for this chapter shouldn’t be reading the story in the first place.


35

The elderly lady smiled gently at him as he gave her the papers. The test room was huge with rows and rows of tables and chairs placed two feet apart. Four teachers walked among the people writing the test and silently observed. The elderly lady was seated by the exit with huge stacks of papers, tests, pencils, measurers, calculators and whatnot.

“Did it go well, dear?” she asked in a whisper.

Squall could only nod, no smile even capable of forming. He felt sick and weak and very much wanted out of there. Maybe she saw his distress because she gave a gaze of sympathetic understanding.

“When will I know the results?” he managed to ask.

“In a week or two, they will be sent home to you,” she smiled and blinked over a encouraging smile.

Squall gave another nod before leaving the test room. Out in the hall he had to rest against a wall and take deep breaths. He had done it. He had taken the test and it… had felt good. He had answered just about every question and he thought it was correct. It felt good at least. There had only been a couple math problems he hadn’t been able to answer and some sentences and words in language he was unsure of. Over all it had felt good.

He didn’t know why he felt so weak legged and slightly nauseous, could be relief. Or it could be sleep deprivation. Or hunger. Outside he looked up at the milky sky and took deep breaths of the cool air. It felt much better than this morning. It didn’t feel so depressing anymore. As Squall walked over to the parking lot not far from the school, he even started to feel giddy. He had made it. He had taken the test and it had probably gone well.

Squall had been picked up by Teo this morning to be driven to the school. The teacher had assured him that Teo would be waiting where he left Squall and that he had no problem waiting so Squall shouldn’t feel stressed about it. The huge parking lot was almost empty except for a few scattered cars. He narrowed his eyes as he saw Teo far away, not alone.

The cop was also standing against the car, smoking if Squall was correct. Squall clenched and unclenched his jaws feeling torn. He had said Seifer wasn’t needed, still he dared say he was happy to see the man. What disturbed him, if it was the man not following directions or Squall being happy seeing him, Squall didn’t know.

Squall dragged his feet somewhat, unbidden memories of certain events threatening to make him blush. He should probably not read anything into it. It wasn’t like he would get kidnapped to some murky club and put through an exhausting threesome again. Seifer’s presence still managed to rile him. The blond seldom had any other intention so it was hard not to start imagining a threesome or a twosome or a something.

Squall forced himself to not think about it and focus on here and now. He was close enough to make out the smile on Teo’s face and the half lidded studying gaze on the blond. And the bruises. He almost blinked in shock at seeing the cop sporting a black eye and a reddening jaw line and the teacher having a split lip and a definitely swollen cheekbone.

He was most sure it hadn’t been there before. Now had it only been Seifer sporting bruises, he wouldn’t be confused; but seeing both men having evidences from a fight made him suspicious. He also couldn’t remember ever seeing Seifer colour from a fight, which left him with disturbing conclusions. Should he ask about it? He wanted to, but it wasn’t his place, not his business.

“Did it go well?” Teo asked all smiling sunshine.

Squall looked between the two men who both looked like they didn’t notice their own conditions.

“Yeah.”

“Didn’t expect anything less, you really worry too much,” the teacher smiled and straightened from his car.

“The way you’ve been drilling him...” Seifer muttered and threw the cigarette to the ground before stomping on it.

Tornquist gave the blond a narrowed stare and the smile strained around the edges. Then he turned to Squall again.

“Want to go eat something? There’s a café not far from here, my treat,” he suggested.

“Coffee sounds good,” Seifer agreed and stretched with a wince.

“I’m not treating you,” Teo said sharply and gave the cop a venomous stare.

“That’s very favouring of you, how mean,” the cop answered with a smile that wasn’t a smile.

The stare the two of them exchanged made Squall take a step back to truly study them. They had been fighting, why else the ominous atmosphere?

“No it’s okay, I got stuff home,” Squall said carefully.

He wasn’t too sure he wanted to get mixed up in whatever was going on.

“Don’t be ridicules; you didn’t have any breakfast right? Just let me treat you,” Teo argued and opened the car door.

“You wrote a test on an empty stomach?” Almasy asked incredulously.

The brunet was to defend himself as Teo intervened.

“Of course, how would you feel the day on a big test like this?” the teacher snapped.

Green eyes glimmered dangerously before both men looked away. The blond shrugged and went to his own car a few parking lots away. Squall looked after him while worrying at his bottom lip. He hated people arguing around him. He had no problem with it if he was one of the combatants, but he hated others doing it around him.

“Are you coming?” Teo asked and gave a reassuring smile.

Squall slowly did. In the car he kept arguing with himself to ask or not to ask. He usually didn’t care about other people’s business. But he guessed this was different. They were both two people he had a connection to. His stomach interrupted his thinking by quite suddenly growling loud and clear. It made Teo chuckle.

“At least someone is cranky at the no breakfast thing,” he smiled.

Squall gave a soft smile in answer. Maybe he shouldn’t worry so much, after all the two men had business together and they seemed inclined to rein themselves for now. Teo parked the car once they had reached a more populated area. Squall didn’t see any café though and he gave the black haired man a questioning look.

“Sorry, the café is a ways that way, there’s no parking any closing,” he apologised.

Squall only shrugged and looked around for the blond. The cop had found a parking lot on the other side. Teo started walking and when the brunet didn’t follow quickly enough, he looked back with a beckoning look.

“I see he’s still stalking you,” Teo smirked but something in his tone made Squall look twice to assure himself it wasn’t seriously meant.

“Sort off,” he admitted.

“Why don’t you come over for dinner this Friday?” the teacher suggested.

The brunet strangely enough felt flattered to the point of embarrassed. What wouldn’t a thing like that lead to? And why did the thought make him feel guilty?

“I don’t know,” he admitted.

“Come on ladies, all the good tables will be taken.”

The blond was suddenly beside him and Squall hadn’t even seen him coming.

“Don’t you have stuff to do today?” Teo asked sourly.

“No, I have a free day,” Almasy answered lightly.

A hand travelled down Squall’s back and rested at the small of his back in a way too comfortable a manner. The brunet shrugged it off and glared at the blond. What was he thinking doing stuff in public? Almasy only leered amusedly. He looked strange with a black eye. Why hadn’t Squall ever gotten in a good enough shot to colour the man when he had damn well deserved it at times? It wasn’t fair.

They entered a walking street lined with boutiques, coffee shops, cafés and other shops. Fortunately it wasn’t thick with people like it could be on a weekend.

“You’ll get more free time now, won’t you?” Seifer asked suddenly.

“That was just a first step, it’ll get harder from now on,” Teo cut in and Squall frowned at being spoken for.

“Didn’t talk to you now, did I?” Seifer said with the kind of dark dangerous tone that made you start tipping around on your toes.

Teo didn’t seem impressed. He gave the cop a haughty look and matched the dark stare.

“Would you have listened?” he retorted.

“Is that the café?” Squall interrupted when sensing a storm clouding his immediate area.

Hyne, he hadn’t been acting mediator for years and years. Why did he now? Why not tell them to fuck off and leave him be until they had solved whatever issues they had?

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Teo muttered.

It was a nice, comfortable café with wooden panels and red sofas and small round tables. The air was thick of the coffee aroma and the bakery just behind the business room. Squall’s stomach growled furiously and was likely to make a knot of itself. The brunet put a hand to the anxious area and scanned the menus for different sandwiches.

“Go take a table, I’ll get you something,” Teo assured and went over to the lady by the counter.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you get chocolate and not coffee,” Seifer smirked.

Squall wasn’t so sure he was assured by that. He still found a table beside a hard studying student who seemed frozen in-between reading something and taking a bite of the bun in his hand.

The smells in the café seemed to infuriate his stomach that complained by knotting and hurting. How by Hyne had he managed to not eat any breakfast? Then again, he had been nauseous this morning. Squall hid a yawn behind his hand while waiting for the men to come over. It was no surprise he didn’t have any energy. He hadn’t been sleeping this night. Worrying about the test and standing Nida’s soft snoring was more than he managed.

The brunet frowned and rubbed his forehead. Nida. The man had hardly been in the apartment part for a lunch and a dinner and sleeping. How come Squall still worried about him? Still felt responsible and not able to be just furious at him as Squall should? It was weird, maybe even sick. Seifer came back quickly followed by Teo holding a tray.

“What’re you doing the rest of the day? Want me to drive you home?” the blond asked after sipping the hot coffee.

Squall made a humming noise, not sure he was up for it.

“You really up for that stuff after what little sleep you got this night?” Teo asked with a not quite innocent look.

Squall shivered as he practically felt the heated energy oozing of the blond. He didn’t look that way.

“I’m sure he would say that otherwise,” Seifer said sweetly.

That was just an unhealthy venomous tone of voice. Teo looked away from Squall to bravely meet the assuredly deadly glare.

“And you always listens to others wishes?” the teacher answered just as venomously sweetly.

“Of course, you say I don’t?”

“You have a history of not doing so.”

“I get the test results in one or two weeks,” Squall interrupted as it looked as if the two men would jump across the table to throttle each other.

They looked away from each other, as if sensing it was the only way to keep in line.

“Usually it doesn’t take more than a week so you should have it next Monday, possible Tuesday,” Teo nodded and gave a shaky smile.

By some grace of Hyne they managed to finish off the sandwiches and drinks without further acidly exchanges between the two men. Granted the subjects of conversation was strained and there seemed to be a lot of inflamed grounds that both of them avoided. Squall found himself for once being the one steering the conversations.

It wasn’t a position he was used to and not very comfortable with either. So he choose what he liked. Bikes and art and Teo gladly told him about the wonderful art from Esthar, the country of artists. It was worldly known that Esthar was a leading star not only in technology but also in art of any kind. Quistis had connections from over there and she had apparently had an Estharian teacher.

“Which is bloody amazing considered them being the tight-asses of the world,” Seifer muttered.

Teo gave him a sour look and Squall looked questioningly at the teacher.

“It’s good that Esthar has such strictly guarded boards. Do you know how high general social standards they have? There’s no slum like here, no children living on the streets and the lowest crime rate in the world,” Teo said haughtily.

“Of course I know. Every fucking cop knows. I had a commander that was high over heels with the Estharian police force. It was Esthar that and Esthar this, I got sick of it,” Seifer growled.

Teo only sniffed but thankfully they didn’t start bantering about it. To Squall this was entirely new. He knew that Esthar was a high tech country, his bike came from over there after all, he just hadn’t ever heard those things. About no slum and low crime rate. How was that possible?

“How can it be so? Aren’t they human over there?” he had to ask.

Teo stared at him and then chuckled, Seifer too smiled amusedly.

“Of course they are,” Teo said.

“They have walls reaching the sky, that’s why, and a competent regime. They have a sort of dictatorship,” Seifer hummed.

“They do not. It’s a Presidency with a chamber of advisors,” Teo argued.

Seifer shrugged and finished his coffee.

“A bunch of haughty goofballs, it’s still the President that has last word.”

“In any case, they are doing something right,” Tornquist muttered.

Squall was intrigued and thought he very much had to see it to believe it. Were there no areas where the windows were barred and where a girl couldn’t go safe at night? Truly? How was it possible? They finished up and left, Squall still lost in mulling over this fantasy country. Maybe it was the lack of sleep making him so muddle brained, but he couldn’t let it go.

“So, your place or should we go somewhere else?” Seifer leered and yanked Squall from his musings.

It took some time for him to orientate himself and he frowned, not up for anything right now or having time for it.

“What in sleepless night don’t you get?” Teo sneered and glared at the blond over Squall’s head.

They where flanking him again and he felt slightly irritated over their bantering around him. If they had a problem, fucking deal with it elsewhere. Don’t drag Squall into it.

“Aren’t you gone yet? Haven’t you fulfilled your teacher duty?” Seifer growled.

“Heard about friendship? You know the non-taking-advantage relationship people actually have?” Tornquist said icily.

“Friendship duty fulfilled, go away,” Almasy smirked tightly.

Squall inched a couple steppes ahead of them. Hyne, what was wrong with them? It was embarrassing to be the centre of their bantering. And infuriating. They had no right to involve him like this. They had almost reached the cars and the two of them was still going on though Squall had managed to block out most of it. However, when his name was mentioned in the same sentence as objectification he snapped.

“Shut up, both of you!”

They blinked at him as if realising he was there hearing them go on.

“If you got a problem with each other, then go battle it out elsewhere and leave me the fuck out of it!” he growled and gave them each a suiting glare.

To his frustration Seifer just gave Teo a smug smile.

“See? Go bother someone else,” he suggested and Teo grinded his teeth together.

“How can you stand him? He’s a good for nothing bastard who treats people like objects!” Tornquist hissed.

“Hey! Who’s a good for nothing bastard?” Seifer growled and he seemed too grow in an alarmingly dangerously way.

Teo just gave Squall a meaningful stare. Hyne, he wanted to hit them.

“This is still not my concern. If you two doesn’t shut up I’ll seriously hurt you,” he muttered and massaged his temple.

“Are you so oblivious?” Teo asked incredulously.

Squall glared, silently asking what the hell he was going on about and just daring him to attack Squall right now.

“Teo...” Seifer said warning.

“He sets you up in a situation you obviously wasn’t prepared for and goes away scoot free? It means one of two things, either you’re to suppressed to dare to say anything or you’ve shut him off. Since he’s here option two is obviously not the case,” Teo ranted angrily.

Seifer cursed under his breath and pinched the bridge between his eyes. Squall only stared, for a moment feeling absolutely nothing. Then the anger came.

“That’s why you hit Seifer? Because of the night in Red Satin?” the youth asked lowly.

“Of course! You can’t honestly say you’ve done anything on your own and I for one can’t allow such a thing to go unpunished! Do you even know this bastard?” Teo answered ignorant of the dangerous blond behind him.

Squall couldn’t believe his ears. He was dumbstruck. Teo had struck the cop on Squall’s behalf? What did he think Squall was? Some weak-willed, half-witted antsy girl? He was angry and befuddled at the same time and didn’t know what to answer. He wanted to laugh at the ridicules situation and he wanted to punch the man. Both of them.

“Just fuck off Teo,” Seifer growled and sidled up to him like some dangerous predator out for a kill.

It actually made the black haired man back a step, but more into a fighting stance than a retreat. Put two alpha males together...

“Why don’t you take a hike? Compared to some I’m not someone you can push around,” Teo growled and he for some reason got more of an accent.

Anger maybe.

“What do you take me for?” Squall asked.

The black haired man looked at him and Squall imagined him only seeing the brunet’s size. He suddenly didn’t want to know.

“Never mind, just...” Squall couldn’t finish that sentence,” leave me alone.”

The brunet swirled around and stormed off. What was this? He suddenly felt sad and angry. Why? Because Teo thought him weak like every other fucking person?

“Squall, wait, don’t run away,” Teo pleaded.

His shoulder was gripped and Squall turned around and used the momentum to have his fist flying. Red anger, it was edging in on his vision. He caught the man across the mouth and he felt knuckles split on teeth. The black haired man staggered backwards with a hand across his mouth, blood was seeping forth between his fingers.

“Don’t,” the youth hissed and stormed off again.

Hyne, what was wrong with him? Why was his chest and throat contracting like this? He had gotten a good block away until he was caught again. He shrugged of the hand and continued walking.

“Squall, stop,” Seifer demanded and gripped his upper arm.

Squall hissed and struggled to get free. Seifer blocked his hits and took a few to the chest. The youth shouted angrily as he was hefted around the midsection and bodily moved into a narrow alley with only one way out and that the cop blocked.

“Fuck off Seifer! You’re no better!” Squall shouted and started pacing back and forth.

He couldn’t deal with this. What the fuck was wrong with him? Why did he react like this? Just because Teo thought he needed to somehow protect Squall?

“Just listen to me,” the blond said patiently.

“No! Go away.”

Of course the blond didn’t obey. Squall moved further into the alley, away from curious strangers. Seifer followed so they didn’t really have to shout at each other to be heard.

“You’re disappointed but you shouldn’t be. Not when Teo is being Teo and he doesn’t know you,” Seifer explained and Squall just made a frustrated noise.

Disappointed? He wasn’t disappointed. Why would he be? And why was Seifer psychoanalysing him?

“You thought he saw you as an equal? Well, he’s not that kind of guy,” Almasy shrugged.

“Don’t slander him behind his back,” Squall growled.

“I’m not. He hasn’t seen you beat up a guy twice your size and he hasn’t had the unpleasant experience of getting pummelled by you. He’s the kind of guy who gets overprotective about seemingly fragile people,” Seifer explained grimly.

Squall didn’t want to listen and he didn’t know why. Still the anger was seeping away and left a bitter taste in his mouth. He was tired. He felt bad for hitting the man, but he had been so angry and... He just wasn’t used to people defending him he guessed. Squall didn’t like it.

Seifer had stepped close enough to touch, Squall didn’t look up. He felt embarrassed. He shoved his hands in his pockets and kicked a small stone that littered the alley.

“He’ll get over it and...”

Squall looked up at the faltering tone. Green eyes weren’t looking at him for a long while. When they did look at him he thought he’d lose himself. It was hypnotizing looking into so green eyes.

“I’m sorry for acting like I have right to you,” Seifer apologised.

Squall blinked, and blinked again. Not quite believing his ears for a second time that day. He was getting an apology for something he hadn’t even found irritating? Or maybe he just hadn’t had time going over it in his head.

“So, can we fuck?” Seifer leered and Squall rolled his eyes.

“No, we can’t,” he muttered and moved towards the exit of the alley.

“Why not, you’re free, I’m free the day’s young.”

“I and Nida have things to do,” Squall muttered.

He got weary just thinking about it, but he had told the ex-boyfriend to be home today after work so they could make some plan for this debt thing.

“Nida, huh? When’s that rat ass leaving anyway?” Seifer asked with ill hidden contempt.

“When I say he does.”

“Would that be this centaury or the next because I’m starting to get tired of him.”

Squall glanced at the blond and snorted.

“Who said he didn’t have any rights to me moments ago?”

“What in Hyne are you talking about?” Seifer leered.

Squall just rolled his eyes.


Author’s Note:
Yes, I know. These boys are as oblivious as greystone. Maybe. Or what do you say? :p