Final Fantasy Short Stories | (2016-2017)

Story thirty nine: Chaotic Feelings (2019)

A/N: Yes, another story from 2019 I decided to add. I was unsure about doing so, but I recall my friend Ciara saying she'd liked it. So here it is. <3

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"Signal. Left. Right. Left. Go."

Noel did as the older man instructed; putting on his turn signal, looking left, looking right, left again, then stepping on the gas pedal. Only it was a rather abrupt take off, considering the slight jerk the two men grunted at before Noel attempted a turn.

"Your actions are too tense," barked Caius from the passenger seat. "You need to remain calm."

"How can I when you're giving me instructions like we're about to go into war?" Noel complained, approaching a stop sign.

"I am merely giving you a test, which you're failing so far."

"What test could you possibly give me?" the teen sassed, then looked at Caius once the car came to a complete stop. "Last time I checked, you weren't a professional driving teacher."

Caius' purple orbs shot a glare. "I know enough to point out key essentials on the matter."

Noel just rolled his eyes. Preparing to turn again, he looked both ways, surprised to hear no teeth-gritting instructions from the man beside him this time. He took a content breath as the car slowly eased around the corner and into the next street. Finally he was able to manage a turn without—

"Stop turning the wheel like a sissy. Drive like a man—hand over hand."

And there it went.

It took everything in Noel not to slam his head onto the steering wheel and scream. When Caius offered to take him out practice driving he had no idea it'd be this irritating. But then again this was Caius: he should've expected a one-way ticket to a migraine.

"I was testing you on your composure," the purple haired man stated while his arms stayed firmly crossed over his chest. "If you cannot handle me verbally reminding you what to do, then you're nowhere near getting that license."

Not a word came from Noel until he reached the next stop sign. There was hardly any traffic in the neighborhood today, so he figured it wouldn't hurt to pause and get snippy with Caius while he was still in the mood. "Like you'd know anything about composure," he finally murmured.

"What was that, Kreiss?"

Noel scoffed at his own last name the second it slid off Caius' tongue. He knew this older man nearly his entire life . . . While Caius may have seemed like a calm person in general, he could also easily let his emotions get the best of him. You name the emotion and he'll surely follow it with some . . . interesting actions, to say the least. And while Noel desperately wished he suspected any other emotion from the man, it was unfortunately the most complicated of them all: love. "Are you forgetting what happened the other morning? You basically blurted out a confession that you're knee-deep in love with Lightning."

Caius didn't say anything. Obviously he wasn't proud of what he said that morning, but he didn't deny it either. This wasn't good: if his feelings for Lightning were truly that strong, there would be no way he'd ever be able to leave and resume his duties in the Unseen Realm. He had to go back at some point. If Caius wasn't there to guide the souls of the dead . . . to help contain balance . . . Noel couldn't dare finish the thought. Everyone suspected the realm would be okay for a little while, but Caius had been gone for months now. Was he really willing to take a chance on a doomed relationship when there was a place that needed him more?

"C'mon, Caius, we gotta figure out what you're gonna do."

"Just drive."

Noel's hand reached for the gear lever. "No. I swear—I will shift this thing into park and we're not going anywhere until we work something out." He did just that, and Caius never looked so exasperated. The two must've sat there in silence for nearly ten minutes. They did nothing but exchange nasty glances until a car eventually pulled up behind them, needing to get by the stop sign the men were currently blocking. The car gave a little honk, prompting Caius to cut through the quiet air.

"Noel."

"They can go around us."

"Then at least pull over some."

"No. Tell me what you're gonna do about your chaotic feelings first."

Muttering words inaudible to Noel's ears, Caius swiftly unbuckled his seatbelt and barged out the car. Through the side mirrors the teen could see him storming around the parked vehicle, and in a flash, the older man reached Noel's car door and flung it wide open. Wait—was my door really unlocked just now? he questioned in his head, but had no time to think on it for long. Caius had stretched himself over Noel to unbuckle him, then yanked on his arm until the frazzled boy couldn't help but stumble out the driver's seat. "Hey!" Noel cried, then fell hard against the pavement.

Caius took residence behind the wheel. "With an attitude like that, you can walk yourself home." After slamming the door shut, he surely enough drove away and left Noel no choice but to indeed walk home.

The person that was waiting behind them seemed utterly stunned at what just unfolded, for the car didn't move an inch for at least thirty seconds. That gave Noel just enough time to pick himself up off the hot street and to the sidewalk.

"Dammit, Caius," he cursed, inspecting a scrape on his forearm that obviously wasn't there before. "What's it gonna take to help you?" ❦

 End of story thirty nine