Despina - Squall Hires the Boys
Characters: Goku and Gojyo from Saiyuki, and Squall from Final Fantasy 8.
It was possibly one of the calmest days in the year. Which, on their island, did not mean there were no waves, simply that every wave was pathetically small. Gojyo and Goku had been hoping to hit a few good waves before work, but that wasn’t happening.
So they sat on their boards, floating idly in the surf, arguing over nothing important, instead.
“I didn’t know monkeys could swim.”
“Yeah? And how’d you get out here, Roach? Somebody flush you?”
“Still more dignified than what you were doing this morning. I’m gonna be traumatized for years.”
“Shut up, Kappa! Or I’m gonna come over there and beat you with your own board!”
“Hey!”
The new voice shocked the pair of surfers out of their insult-fest and got them to turn their heads toward shore. A lone individual stood there, dressed poorly for the beach in a matching leather pant and jacket set, with thick, worn boots , decorative belts, and some really nice hair, if Gojyo’s opinion on hair could be trusted.
Goku eventually replied, “Yeah?”
“Do you teach?”
The surfers glanced at each other, before Gojyo turned halfway around and shot his mouth off, “Sure! I’m Gojyo, straight eye for the queer guy. I hold classes every Monday and Thursday for putting appropriate outfits together and how to use effective pick-up lines, which I see you could use some help with. If you’re interested, I put an ad in the paper every week and you can find my number there.”
There was silence, long and heavy. Goku almost thought the guy was going to leave when he finally said, “Surfing, asshole.”
The monkey smiled. It was always a good sign when someone made it through Gojyo’s snark without walking away, “We haven’t, but we could. Why?”
The man tilted his head back, gesturing across the walkway that bordered the beach to all the little buildings there, “I own that surf shop up the way, and I keep getting requests for lessons, so I’m looking for someone to teach.”
Goku nodded in understanding, but Gojyo saw what he felt was a flaw in the information presented, “Why don’t you do it?” If they’d been floating closer to each other, Goku might have elbowed him in the ribs.
The shop owner was unfazed, “I don’t teach.”
That was good enough for the monkey, so he moved on to an important question, “Will you pay?”
“Yes.”
That had him paddling toward shore, “Okay, I’m in. I like money.”
“Wait!” Of course the Kappa had to interrupt again, “How much money?”
Goku didn’t wait, “I don’t fucking care, Kappa. It’s more than the no money I’m makin’ right now.”
“God, you’re such a sellout,” That didn’t seem to stop Gojyo from following him to shore, though, “You’re supposed to have respect for yourself.”
Goku shrugged as he climbed off his board and began carrying it in, “I have respect for the bills I gotta pay.”
Gojyo scowled, but turned his attention back on their new employer, “I, at least, will insist on being paid above minimum wage.”
The man nodded and held his hand out to shake each of theirs, “Done. The name’s Squall. Yours?” His eyes focused on the shortest of them, the only one who hadn’t said his name aloud.
“Goku,” He smiled bright enough to challenge the sun floating low in the red sky, “When do you want us to start?”
“I already have your first customer.” Squall gestured over his shoulder at a woman loitering by the entrance to his shop, with dark hair, a nice figure, and a blue duster over a patterned black and white bikini. Gojyo was going to like this. “She’s been coming back nearly daily, begging me to teach her to surf.”
Red eyebrows lifted curiously at this new information, and he leaned forward to speak low, as if discussing some clandestine secret, “Something tells me she’s more interested in you than the surfing.”
Squall leaned back from him, an irritated look clear as the cloudless sky in his eyes, “I don’t fucking care. She’s your problem, now.”
Goku laughed, even as Gojyo swore to get her off Squall’s back by getting her onto his, and he’d repeat with the next girl, and the next girl, laying all his charms on any lady who dared show interest in the surf shop owner, and despite Squall’s fierce scowl, they had the job.
It was possibly one of the calmest days in the year. Which, on their island, did not mean there were no waves, simply that every wave was pathetically small. Gojyo and Goku had been hoping to hit a few good waves before work, but that wasn’t happening.
So they sat on their boards, floating idly in the surf, arguing over nothing important, instead.
“I didn’t know monkeys could swim.”
“Yeah? And how’d you get out here, Roach? Somebody flush you?”
“Still more dignified than what you were doing this morning. I’m gonna be traumatized for years.”
“Shut up, Kappa! Or I’m gonna come over there and beat you with your own board!”
“Hey!”
The new voice shocked the pair of surfers out of their insult-fest and got them to turn their heads toward shore. A lone individual stood there, dressed poorly for the beach in a matching leather pant and jacket set, with thick, worn boots , decorative belts, and some really nice hair, if Gojyo’s opinion on hair could be trusted.
Goku eventually replied, “Yeah?”
“Do you teach?”
The surfers glanced at each other, before Gojyo turned halfway around and shot his mouth off, “Sure! I’m Gojyo, straight eye for the queer guy. I hold classes every Monday and Thursday for putting appropriate outfits together and how to use effective pick-up lines, which I see you could use some help with. If you’re interested, I put an ad in the paper every week and you can find my number there.”
There was silence, long and heavy. Goku almost thought the guy was going to leave when he finally said, “Surfing, asshole.”
The monkey smiled. It was always a good sign when someone made it through Gojyo’s snark without walking away, “We haven’t, but we could. Why?”
The man tilted his head back, gesturing across the walkway that bordered the beach to all the little buildings there, “I own that surf shop up the way, and I keep getting requests for lessons, so I’m looking for someone to teach.”
Goku nodded in understanding, but Gojyo saw what he felt was a flaw in the information presented, “Why don’t you do it?” If they’d been floating closer to each other, Goku might have elbowed him in the ribs.
The shop owner was unfazed, “I don’t teach.”
That was good enough for the monkey, so he moved on to an important question, “Will you pay?”
“Yes.”
That had him paddling toward shore, “Okay, I’m in. I like money.”
“Wait!” Of course the Kappa had to interrupt again, “How much money?”
Goku didn’t wait, “I don’t fucking care, Kappa. It’s more than the no money I’m makin’ right now.”
“God, you’re such a sellout,” That didn’t seem to stop Gojyo from following him to shore, though, “You’re supposed to have respect for yourself.”
Goku shrugged as he climbed off his board and began carrying it in, “I have respect for the bills I gotta pay.”
Gojyo scowled, but turned his attention back on their new employer, “I, at least, will insist on being paid above minimum wage.”
The man nodded and held his hand out to shake each of theirs, “Done. The name’s Squall. Yours?” His eyes focused on the shortest of them, the only one who hadn’t said his name aloud.
“Goku,” He smiled bright enough to challenge the sun floating low in the red sky, “When do you want us to start?”
“I already have your first customer.” Squall gestured over his shoulder at a woman loitering by the entrance to his shop, with dark hair, a nice figure, and a blue duster over a patterned black and white bikini. Gojyo was going to like this. “She’s been coming back nearly daily, begging me to teach her to surf.”
Red eyebrows lifted curiously at this new information, and he leaned forward to speak low, as if discussing some clandestine secret, “Something tells me she’s more interested in you than the surfing.”
Squall leaned back from him, an irritated look clear as the cloudless sky in his eyes, “I don’t fucking care. She’s your problem, now.”
Goku laughed, even as Gojyo swore to get her off Squall’s back by getting her onto his, and he’d repeat with the next girl, and the next girl, laying all his charms on any lady who dared show interest in the surf shop owner, and despite Squall’s fierce scowl, they had the job.