Alright, here we are, another sort of filler chapter! Sorry it's a few days late and that it's a little bland, but it's here nonetheless and I hope you enjoy it!

CHAPTER 14 - Fulfilling Duty

I took my time waking up, knowing I didn't have anything terribly exciting planned for me that day. Only the thought of seeing Sapphire and Seifer aided in me dragging my sorry ass out of bed and into a steaming hot shower. To my credit, it was before noon! I just wanted to get this cleaning business out of the way as soon as possible.

Thank god Seifer was tidier than me, because if his house's mess was the equivalent of mine, I would've voluntarily taken a bullet to the head to avoid the hellish task. Although I suppose my house wasn't all that bad... At least no rotten food was left around, and in my books, that made my house rather clean.

I was out of my apartment by one in the afternoon, and for the fifth time since I left the building, I checked my pockets for my keys, cell phone and wallet. Again reassuring myself that I wouldn't be locked out of my house or Seifer's, I allowed myself to relax and enjoy the sound of my skateboard rolling over the concrete. It was like a second nature to me— I didn't have to think as I leaned to the left, my feet manipulating the board to a sideways tilt to bring me into a wide turn.

I paused at the mouth of the alley, kicking my board up and bringing a hand to my forehead, sheltering my eyes from the surprisingly harsh sun above me. It was very hot today... Maybe if I cleaned up Seifer's place fast enough, I could snag a train to the beach. I smiled to myself at the thought and scanned the curvy alley for any sign of life, seeing only a stray cat on a garbage dispenser, then let my board fall back to the ground, my feet slapping against it. I crouched low over the skateboard, the wood creaking slightly as I urged it to go faster, my feet tilting now and again to weave through the alley I had boarded down countless of times before.

I didn't spare the Usual Spot a single glance as I flew by, knowing all too well the hollow feeling it would create in the pit of my stomach. Instead I allowed myself to let out a loud whoop as my shirt whipped against my lean torso and my hair danced about my skull, my eyes squinting as they watered slightly against the velocity of the wind being thrown against my face. Only when I saw the opening to Market Place did I straighten up, slowing down only enough so I could pull off a manual on my board without bailing. The tail of the skateboard dragged against the red brick of the alleyway and when I was finally going a safe speed I rolled my weight back to the front, continuing my leisurely coast down to Seifer's townhouse as if I hadn't just hit forty going down an alley.

It usually only took about twenty minutes to get from my house to Seifer's by skateboard, but the heat beating against my back the entire way and the crowded streets made the commute feel twice as long. At several points I had to get off my board to walk through crowds of people and I sent my kudos out to all those working at the delivery headquarters today. At least I would be inside for a chunk of the day, and if I were lucky, I could enjoy the heat where it should be— the beach.

I finally made it to Seifer's complex and wiped my arm across my forehead before taking my keys from my pocket, fumbling with them as I tried to balance my skateboard under my arm. As I came to house number 23 I bounded up the three steps to the blonde supervisor's front door and unlocked it, shoving it open and stepping gratefully into the air conditioned haven.

I propped my board against the closet and slipped off my shoes as I pulled my wallet and phone from my pockets, throwing them and the keys on the counter as my eyes swept over the kitchen.

There were a few beer bottles sitting by the sink as well as a few bowls and cups, and on top of the stove were two or three dirty pots and pans. Not bad... I'd be able to clean the kitchen in ten minutes, no problem. Planning on assessing the rest of the house and get a general idea of how long this job would take me, I walked into the living room and stooped down to pick up Sapphire as she came running.

"Hey girl," I cooed, lifting her onto my shoulder. My eyes surveyed the living room, only finding a blanket crumpled on the couch and an empty coffee cup on the table. I should probably vacuum the carpet as well. The living room would only take me about... seven or eight minutes.

Walking into the hallway, I could smell the faintest hint of the cat's litter box and pushed open the laundry room door, finding the source of the smell in the far corner. A half smile tugged at one side of my lips as I saw a scratching post placed near the kitten's food and water. Not spending a penny on the cat, my ass. I knew Sapphire would grow on the scarred man.

"The old grouch hasn't been spoiling you, has he Sapphire?" I asked, squinting my nose and ruffling the soft fur ball balanced on my shoulder as I assessed the room.

Other than sweeping up some spilled cat food and cleaning the litter box, the laundry room was pretty clean. I peeked in the washing machine and dryer, finding them both empty. Maybe I could do a load of Seifer's clothes? I wonder if he would mind...

Laundry room: Five minutes.

The bathroom had a few dirty towels in the hamper and the counter was a bit messy, and I was sure the floor was in need of a good sweeping.

"Hmm... Five minutes."

I grinned to myself as I walked down the hall to what I assumed was a closet, actually finding enjoyment in my competitive version of cleaning. Setting a time and a goal usually made things go by much quicker, and the challenge helped me forget that I was doing an actual chore.

I hummed in interest and placed Sapphire down on the floor as I pulled open the door, finding a staircase instead of a closet. I pushed the kitten back with my foot as I stepped onto the first step and pulled the door closed behind me. I had never really thought that Seifer's house had two floors, even though most townhouses did. I walked quietly up the carpeted stairs, curiosity burning in my stomach.

I couldn't think of anything Seifer could have hiding up here... He had never once mentioned stairs or a second floor, I thought, trying to recall the conversations we've had in the past few days. I paused as I reached the landing, my mouth curving into a frown. What if the second floor was off limits?

After a mere second of hesitation, I smirked.

Well, now was my time to explore... And in my defense, he DID say to clean his house top to bottom.

The only light source was the natural light filtering in through the windows of empty rooms. Well... mostly empty. One room had a bed and a dresser, and the other room only had a twin-sized mattress on the floor in a corner. Both rooms were immaculate. Although I did spy some cobwebs hanging loosely from the ceiling...

Pouting inwardly at the lack of suspiciousness, I moved to the end of the hall, where an opening led to what looked like a den. A single couch occupied the middle of the room, and an old but large TV sat upon a too-small cabinet against the wall. My feet led me across the otherwise bare room and to a sliding glass door, my hand finding the lock and sliding it open. It led to a patio, not small, yet not very big either. A rather bland looking plastic table and a few plain old plastic lawn chairs were scattered about, a few of them upturned. Probably from the previous storm...

After picking them up and arranging them around the table, I moved to the concrete wall that acted like a fence around the balcony and leaned over it, seeing a rather plain looking tiny back yard that blended into an alley, no fence separating the two. The grass of the small lawn was over grown and dead-looking, showing just how much Seifer cared for it, although I couldn't blame him— It was a pretty pathetic looking backyard...

I sighed and made my way back into the cool home, making sure to lock the glass door behind me and shuffling back to the stairs, pausing along the way to peek my head into a very tidy looking bathroom.

Wonder when the last time Seifer's been up here, I wondered dully, disappointed in the second floor's boringness. I pushed the door shut behind me after plunking down the steps, glancing at Seifer's bedroom.

Did he want me to clean his room? I highly doubted it. Bedrooms were typically off limits. Yet why was I finding myself edging closer and closer to that forbidden door...?

It's not like I've never been in his room before, I told myself. In fact, I've slept in it! More than once! My shoulders slumped slightly and I pursed my lips. Just because I've been in his room before doesn't make it any less private.

I let out a sharp breath and told myself firmly, "You will go in, grab an armful of laundry, and get out. No snooping."

I heard a tiny meow at my feet and I looked down. "No snooping, right Sapphire?"

Meow.

"Right."

I opened the door slowly, blinking as the door stopped about half-way. I poked my head in and my brows furrowed as I found the mattresses still separated on the floor, both beds unmade and messy. I contemplated arranging the blankets neatly on the beds, or even to stack the mattresses together again, but thought against it, knowing it would only make it more obvious that I was in Seifer's room.

I shouldn't even be in here, I scolded myself, frowning as I walked over the beds. I paused, finding Seifer's laundry basket to be empty save for one or two shirts and a pair of jeans. Not even enough for a load of laundry.

I sighed and turned to leave, my eyes sweeping over the tidy blonde's desk briefly. Something caught my eye and I pressed my lips together, looking down at the kitten that followed me into the room.

"I know I said no snooping..."

Meow.

"Oh, alright, if you insist!"

I quickly moved over to the desk and reached for what looked like a corner of a photo hidden underneath a rather thick book, pulling the faded picture from its place. I stared at it for a long time, my breath catching in my throat.

—

"Hayner! Your mom said I was the boss!"

"No way I'm listening to you!"

I made a face at the other blonde, my small hands continuing to push the wet sand to one side as I made a small make-shift river. Every thirty seconds, however, a wave would wash over my creation and I would shout in frustration.

"Your mom said!" he insisted in his squeaky seven-year-old voice as he stomped toward me, a scowl on his unscarred face. "So you gotta listen when I say go away from the edge of the water! You don't even got your water wings on!"

"You're not the boss of me, even if my mom said!" I declared, looking away from him and sticking out my tongue slightly in concentration as I scooped a rather large handful of mud from the wet sandy ground.

"The waves are getting bigger, and you're gonna get water up your nose and I will laugh!" Seifer warned, now standing directly over me, blocking the sun. "What if the waves take you away?!"

I looked up at Seifer and grinned. "I'll beat up a mermaid and bring it back to show you that they are real! Truly!"

"Boys! Look this way and smile!"

Both me and Seifer looked towards my mom, squinting unintelligibly as she said, "Cheese!"

—

I smiled slightly and ran my thumb along the whiteedge of the old water damaged Polaroid photo of two blonde boys, age six and seven, clad in swim trunks and squinting against the summer sun with the ocean spreading to infinity behind them.

I quickly tucked the photo back under the book and left the room, closing the door behind me after making sure Sapphire had followed me out. So I guess Seifer had missed our old childhood friendship as much as I had, even if we did still argue a lot back then... Knowing that made me feel warm, and I set off to clean the house without a complaint in my mind.

As I thought, cleaning went by in no time at all, and I was able to match all my goal times, give or take a few minutes. Every time I beat the limit I had set myself, I'd cheer and let myself sit and play with Sapphire for a few minutes.

All I had left to do was take out the garbage and recycling, and judging by the clock, I still had plenty of time to go to the beach. In fact... Seifer would be home in about half an hour. Maybe he'd want to go with me?

I made my way into the now tidy kitchen and grabbed my cell phone, flipping it open and scanning through my contacts until I came to the supervisor's number. I leaned against the counter and chewed on my bottom lip before pressing 'Talk' and holding the phone to my ear.

Ring... Wait, why was I doing this again?

Ring... Surely he wouldn't want to go with me—

Ring... I should just hang up right now, he's gonna get weirded out...

Click.

"Chicken wuss?"

"Hey Seifer," I said, forcing my voice to be steady and easy as I wiped my free hand on the fabric of my shorts.

"Is everything okay? The house clean?"

"Everything's done," I replied, rolling my eyes at his worried tone. I guess it was weird for him that I was calling... The only other time I did was when I was calling in sick. I sucked in a breath and said in one quick go, "I was just wondering if you wanted to go to the beach after."

"What?" His reply seemed slightly surprised. "Oh... Uh..."

"Ask Axel and Locke if they want to go, too. And Zidane. And Demyx, maybe..." I added quickly, embarrassed by his pause on the other end.

"I guess I'm down for a visit to the beach... I haven't gone yet this summer. I'll ask Red and the guys if they want to go to. I'm off in ten, see you in twenty." Click.

I snapped my phone shut and let out a breath, running my hand through gel-hardened hair. Well, that wasn't all that hard... Although I didn't have my swim trunks with me, nor did I bring a towel. We'd have to stop at my house on the way to Central Station.

I made a face and rubbed the back of my head, suddenly a bit nervous— Maybe I could get Seifer to wait outside while I ran into my apartment... I did NOT want him seeing my house in its current state. He'd probably have an aneurism, or blow up or something.

.x.x.x.

"I-it doesn't matter why! I just want you guys to wait out here, okay?"

Seifer, Axel, Locke and I were standing outside my apartment, the three older coworkers now looking at me with suspicion.

"Oh come on, Hayn," Axel whined, putting a hand on his hip. "I've never been inside your house, I want to see—"

I was understandably surprised when Seifer cut in, folding his arms over his well built chest and putting on an indifferent frown as he said, "C'mon Red, just drop it and let the chick go and get his swim trunks..."

I had pulled open the doors to my apartment when I heard him mutter, "Probably has porn lying all over the place..."

I scowled at him over my shoulder, but I was thankful nonetheless as I ran up the stairs to my floor, taking the steps two at a time. It only took me a few minutes to change into my swimming trunks, throw on a baggy t-shirt, and grab a towel, and in no time I was back outside with Seifer, Axel, and Locke and we were on our way to Central Station. Thankfully I lived right near the top of Station Heights, so within five minutes, Seifer was pulling open the glass doors to the train station.

Apparently it was a very good idea to bring Axel along, because he somehow knew the girl working at the ticket booth and with a few well spoken words, we were all holding a free train ticket to the beach.

"Man, Axel, you really have a way with the ladies," Locke mused, swinging his towel over his shoulder. "Makes a guy jealous, ya know?"

"Well, you just gotta know what to say, and you have to be confident," Axel replied with a smirk, tucking a thumb into the pocket of his swim trunks. "Girls dig confidence."

"Careful treading in the zone between confidence and arrogance, Red," Seifer added, looking lazily down the tracks for any sign of the train. "Because girls hate arrogance. Or at least the ones who aren't sluts hate it..."

"Hey, hey, a girl is a girl, right?" Axel said, one of his finely groomed eyebrows raising. "Some guys just gotta take what they can get."

"You saying you're desperate, Ax?" I asked with a grin, snickering as the redhead pushed at my head with a scowl.

"Hah! Now that I think of it, all the girls Red has been with DID put themselves out there—"

"Oh, come on guys! I can score with any chick I want!"

"Sure, sure, Axel, I can think of a ton of girls who wouldn't sleep with you—"

"Name THREE."

"Guys, the train's here..."

Locke shook his head in exasperation and stepped into the train, Axel scowling at Seifer and I as we exchanged grins and followed after the silver-haired supervisor.

"I know Olette would never," I said confidently, taking a seat beside Locke.

"Nor Fuu—" Seifer added, plopping down onto the seat across from me. "And if you so much as lay a finger on her, Red, I'd skin you alive— If Rai didn't beat me to it."

"Selphie would also definitely say no," Locke contributed with a small smile.

Axel slid down in his seat and folded his arms over his lean chest, pursing his lips and looking off to the side. "You guys suck."

"You brought it upon yourself, Ax," I said, leaning back against the hard plastic bench.

The train ride was less than eventful, each of us falling into our own different train of thought. I had opened a window again to tilt my head back into the blasting warm late summer air, my eyes closing in bliss as I allowed myself to think about casual things. Yet no matter how hard I tried to think of the next day at work, or how Rai's birthday party was going to be, or whether or not I should stop by the dollar store to pick up some cat toys for Sapphire, my mind always shot back to the beautiful picture I had witnessed last night.

I pulled the memory of the expression on Seifer's face from the reservoir in my head and turned it over, studying it from all sides. The slight crease in his brow, the way his eyes tightened slightly, the one corner of his lips pulled up in a self reassuring way... It was so familiar, yet why couldn't I place what expression it was? I had been much too distracted by his god-like appearance to really grasp the emotion he was displaying so clearly on his face... Idiot! I'm a bloody idiot.

I glanced over at the blond man through the corner of my eyes, my lips pressing together tightly. It seemed he had opened the window as well and was enjoying the summer air pouring into the train as well, the white wife-beater he wore flapping ever so slightly as the frisky wind danced about his skin, teasing me. His elbows were propped up on the back of the bench, one hand clenching and unclenching, his eyes closed... The scar running across the bridge of his nose was crinkled, his brows furrowed.

"Seifer," I piped up, my head tilted to one side, my voice breaking the silence and stirring all three of the older men from their lala-lands. Axel blinked once, having had zoned out, and Locke sat up a bit straighter, seeming to have dozed slightly. And Seifer simply grunted, his eyes remaining closed, his lips tightening.

"Seifer?"

"Chicken wuss," he snapped, eyes still remaining closed.

"You don't look so well..." I said quietly, dipping my head a little.

Finally he opened one of those impossibly blue eyes and narrowed it at me, his scowl shrinking ever so slightly. "I'm concentrating," he said, closing his eye again.

"On...?" I asked, rolling my eyes to myself. Axel was looking at Seifer as well, one of his slick eyebrows raised, and Locke went back to snoozing.

"... Not throwing up."

"... Ohhh..." I made a slight face and scratched absently at my cheek, leaning backwards out my window just enough to see the on coming landscape, and the ocean that stretched to infinity. "Don't worry, Seifer, we're almost there." I would've never guessed Seifer would get motion-sickness... I only received another grunt in reply.

As the train lurched to a halt, I couldn't help but smile to myself as Seifer let out a low groan and leaned forward, his face buried in his hands. A flaw that proved he wasn't some sort of god after all... And even though he looked as though he was going to throw up everything in existence, I couldn't help but laugh as I helped him straighten up, allowing him to rest his elbow on my shoulder as we hobbled off the train and stepped into the thick hot air.

"Are you feeling alright, Seifer?" I asked lightly as the train sped off behind us, taking a large majority of the beach participants with it. The sea-sick supervisor let out a puff of breath and nodded, straightening up and squinting up into the sunlight.

Axel let out a whoop and stretched, a large grin plastered on his face as he all but ripped his clashing blue t-shirt off his body and ran to the concession stand, moving awkwardly to keep his sandals from falling off. Locke shook his head with a smile and followed after him, leaving his shirt on and pulling the towel off his shoulder. "Come on, you two, let's get a sno-cone before we swim," he suggested without turning to look at us.

I looked up at Seifer with a questioning grin, like a child waiting for permission from his parent to go off to play. The former bully pushed at my head and chuckled. "Come on, lamer. I know how much you like your sweets."

I didn't hesitate on running after Axel and Locke with a small 'Woo-hoo!', stumbling a little bit when I tried to pull off my white baggy shirt in a hurry, Seifer following behind at a leisurely pace.