Final Fantasy 8 Reunion

by Willow Tilmitt

A story where we see the Final Fantasy 8 characters at a reunion ten years later. Rated R for some words.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, or Square soft or anything to do with the Final Fantasy Games. This is just my interpretation of the characters so I am taking no credit for it whatsoever. So please don't sue me!

The Reunion

Chapter 1: Love Bites

Selphie looked around, her emerald green eyes sad as they watched the happy couples waltz past. She should have been up there dancing. She had helped decorate the hall and had spent money she couldn't afford on a new dress. As the music stopped, Selphie's green eyes lit up in the hopes that her date Irvine would finally get round to dancing with her.

Rather than asking her to dance though, Irvine walked in the opposite direction - to the punch bowl, where he started talking to Zell.

He is so dreamy... Selphie thought, watching him laughing and joking with Zell, then she shook herself mentally. No, he's not dreamy, he's being a prick! I deserve something more than this. I'm gonna go over there and tell him I've had enough.

Clenching her jaw, in determination, Selphie stood up, holding her black satin handbag in one hand and lifting the bottom of her dark purple dress slightly with the other hand so that she wouldn't trip over.

Why do they always make dresses so damn long?

She thought as she did her best to smile cheerfully at Rinoa and Squall who waved to her as she walked precariously - due to her new heels - over to Irvine. As she walked across the dance floor, her heels clicked on the newly polished floor, drawing unwanted attention to herself. All she wanted was to fit in and look stunning, or at least manage to attract some male attention. Rinoa and Quistis always seemed to manage it, yet she could never get herself to look quite right and would end up looking like a little girl playing "dress-up", which was how she felt now.

As she reached Zell and Irvine, one of her feet slipped and nearly sent her toppling over, but Zell quickly grabbed her elbow so that she wouldn't fall. Irvine just rolled his eyes and looked away.

"You ok there Elfy?" Zell said brightly before munching on a hotdog.

Selphie gritted her teeth as she hated being called Elfy. It made her feel so childish.

"Yes Zell." She shook his grip off. "I'm fine".

"I'll say". Zell smiled shyly.

Selphie rolled her green eyes in irritation, wishing it was the handsome Irvine that had said that, not goofy Zell. Turning to face Irvine, Selphie rested a small hand firmly on his arm, but faltered, forgetting all the things she had wanted to say to him, as Irvine looked down at her hand on his arm, a glint of sardonic humour in his blue eyes.

"Irvine?" she said, cursing herself for the tremble in her voice.

"What?" Irvine muttered.

"Um" Selphie stammered, removing her hand from his arm and running it through her red hair instead. "I was wondering if you are avoiding me".

Irvine sighed and put his glass down on the table. Turning to look at her, he gasped at the anguish on her pretty face. She looked like a confused child, but that was the problem. She still looked so innocent and Irvine knew that he could never have any romantic feelings for her, especially when he was already in a relationship with Quistis. Irvine had only asked Selphie as a friend, to go to the Ball with him, because Quistis had turned him down yet again, but the week before the Ball, Quistis had turned up at his room and one thing had led to another. Irvine and Quistis had still not worked up the courage to tell Selphie though. They didn't want to hurt her as they adored her, everyone did, but only as a friend, or as a little sister in Rinoa, Quistis, Irvine and Squalls case. The only people that didn't think of Selphie as just a friend were Zell and Seifer. Seifer had detested Selphie as soon as he met her, the way she bounced around just irritated him and his irritation only increased as she didn't fawn around him like most of the girls in the Garden did. Zell on the other hand, worshipped the ground Selphie walked on, thinking she was pretty, which was unusual in itself as Zell never showed interest in girls before he met her, and he had even been known to say in his diary "Selphie Tilmitt rocks my world!"

This was why Zell was getting so angry as he watched Selphie gaze up at Irvine. All the girls in Garden seemed to have a thing for Squall, Seifer and especially Irvine. He had watched Irvine break so many hearts over the last few years and it hurt him immensely that Irvine was about to do the same thing to the one girl Zell was interested in. Zell knew that Irvine and Quistis had a ' thing going on', which didn't bother him, but the fact that they hadn't told Selphie was cruel in Zells opinion. In his eyes, Irvine had just let Selphie think that she was being invited to the Ball as his date because he loved her, when in fact he had only gone with her to the Ball because he didn't have the guts to back out!

Irvine smiled sadly at Selphie and rested a hand on either side of her soft, unblemished face and leant down to kiss the corner of her ruby red lips. Selphie sighed, closing her eyes, thinking that all was going to be well between them until Zell coughed loudly, threw his glass of punch down on the table and ran out of the hall.

Selphie opened her eyes and looked to where Zell had stood, then back up at Irvine, but Irvine was looking across the dancefloor at someone else.

"Whats wrong?" Raising an eyebrow in confusion, Selphie followed his gaze to a tall, slim woman with long blonde hair, wearing a red velvet dress.

The woman smiled guiltily at Selphie, but Selphie just glared before turning back to Irvine and shoving him as hard as she could, which didn't move him very far because she was so small and he was so strong.

"You jerk!!!" she cried, her green eyes filling with tears that she refused to let fall.

"Selphie it's not-" Irvine reached a hand out to her but she slapped it away.

"You invited me to the Graduation Ball! Why didn't you just tell me? I wouldn't have come!"

"Thats why we didn't tell you Selphie. That and the fact that we love you." Quistis said quietly as she stood beside Irvine.

Selphie looked from Irvine to Quistis, wishing that it was all a bad dream and that she would wake up any minute.

"Quistis is right Selph, we love you....like a little sister", Irvine said, resting a hand on Quistis' hip while reaching another hand to Selphie in an attempt to bring her into a hug.

As Selphie just stared blankly at his hand Irvine looked worriedly at Quistis, not knowing how to handle this, then looked back to the small, redhaired girl stood before him.

"Please believe us Selphie. We never meant to hurt you." Quistis said nervously, knowing that they had hurt her and wishing that they could erase it. She had never seen Selphie look this upset, and she was worried as to what Selphie would do next.

Selphie looked up at Quistis angrily "Well you've got a funny way of showing it." Reaching into her handbag she brought out a train ticket to Dollet. Looking up at Irvine she said shakily "I'm leaving for Dollet tomorrow. I was going to ask you to come with me, but you obviously have other plans. I hope you're very happy together!" She ripped the ticket up before their eyes and dropped the pieces on the floor before turning and running out of the hall.

As Selphie left the hall, Zell, Squall and Rinoa walked over to Irvine and Quistis who were stood, shakily leaning against each other.

"How did she take it?" Rinoa asked with a concerned look on her pretty face.

Quistis and Irvine sighed and looked at each other before Quistis said "Not too well Rinoa. She was really hurt."

"She'll be ok. Just give her a few days then you can try talking to her again when she's calmed down a bit. She'll understand, I'm sure of it." Rinoa said firmly, while nodding her head as if to make her point clearer.

"We can't see her in a few days", Irvine said sadly.

"Why?" Zell asked, between mouthfulls of his hotdog. He had cooled off a bit and believed that with Irvine off the market, Selphie would surely come to him.

"She's leaving tomorrow for Dollet. She was going to ask me to go with her." Irvine said, staring at the floor.

Squall, Rinoa and Zell looked at Irvine sharply.

"What?!" Squall asked incredulously. "She can't leave!"

"She can and she is." Quistis said, avoiding eye contact with anyone because she felt so guilty.

Zell, Squall and Rinoa looked at each other sadly, wondering what life would be like without Selphie, but knowing that things would definitely never be the same again.

Chapter 2: A Few Home Truths

Selphie walked along the corridor sadly, her heels catching on the hem of her expensive dress as she walked, but she didn't care. Reaching the cloakroom found her umbrella and walked to the exit. As she reached the doors, tears ran down her face but she didn't care. It was raining so she would be getting wet and no one would notice her tears or the pain that was coursing through her small body. When she got outside she stood on the steps and put her umbrella up. Looking around she realised that this would be the last time she would see the Garden at night time. This brought fresh tears to her eyes and lost in her thoughts she didn't her a voice calling her name.

"Messenger girl!"

"Argh!" Selphie squealed, losing her balance on the slippery steps.

"Woah!" the voice shouted as Selphie grabbed the closest thing to her, him, before tumbling down the stairs.

When they reached the bottom, the figure has landed on top of Selphie, making her soaking wet as they had landed in a puddle.

"Dammit!" the figure said, standing up and brushing himself down.

Selphie sat up in the puddle with a dazed expression on her face as she looked up at the handsome man stood before her. The rain had soaked his white shirt so it was now sticking to his toned chest like a new skin and Selphie gasped quietly as she admired his strong, slightly unshaven jaw, his blue eyes that seemed to glow in the dark and his short blonde hair. It was too dark to see his facial features clearly though, so she didn't know who it was. Then she shook herself.

Dammit Selphie, dont be attracted to him. Get angry, youre less likely to get hurt when youre angry.

Selphie stood up warily and glared up at the figure. "Who the hell are you?!"

The figure brought out a lighter as he realised that Selphie couldn't see who he was in the dark. He flicked the flame on and chuckled as Selphie gasped and took a step back.

"Seifer!" she gasped, stunned that he could look that good in a suit,but knowing that he hated her, she decided to verbally attack him before he could do the same to her. "You creep! Look what you've done to my dress!"

Seifer looked down at the now soaked dress that had a long tear in the torso area, showing Selphie's slightly curved stomach. She wasn't exactly over weight, she was what he would call womanly and seeing her creamy flesh, stark against the dark purple of her dress made the breath catch in his throat.

"Uh", he cleared his throat then shook his head, reminding himself that she was just a messenger girl, although she had definitely proved her worth when it came to fighting. "Hey! That wasn't my fault. You shouldn't have slipped. I called your name a few times but you weren't responding!"

Selphie shook her head and rolled her green eyes, brushing a strand of wet red hair behind her ear, not realising that Seifer was watching her movements carefully, his blue eyes narrowed as if he was seeing her for the first time. "Messenger Girl hardly counts as my name Seifer does it?" she said sarcastically.

Seifer snapped out of the spell he had been in,and chuckled, knowing how much it infuriated her that he would never use her name. "Well it's what you are isn't it?" His blue eyes stared into her green ones, challenging her.

Selphie glared at him, her jaw clenching in frustration. "No, not anymore." She bent down to pick up the black satin purse and her umbrella that she had dropped.

Seifer barely managed to hide the shock from his voice as he bent down with her and rested a hand on her elbow, taking the umbrella from her with the other hand so he could hold it above their heads. "You're not staying on at the Garden?"

"No. I never had any intentions of staying here Seifer. I've got nothing to stay here for" She shrugged and stood up, letting Seifers hand fall to the wet ground.

Seifer raised an eyebrow in confusion as he stood up still holding the umbrella above them. It was then that he noticed the tear marks on her face and it looked like she was in the mood to shed plenty more. "Will Skinny-ass be leaving with you then?" he asked carefully.

"No. Irvine won't be coming with me. I guess that will provide you with some amusement." Selphie looked down, trying desperately to fight the tears that were struggling to spill down her cheeks.

Seifer saw that she was trying not to cry in front of him and rested a hand on her shoulder. Noticing that she was extremely cold and was starting to shiver, Seifer pulled off his jacket that was relatively dry and draped it over her small shoulders.

Selphie looked up at him, her lower lip trembling. "I'm ok, Seifer. Really. I don't care about Irvine and Quistis. Im happy for them really I am." It was at this last part that the tears ran free down her cheeks.

Seifer shook his head and put his arm round her shoulders, pulling her to gently lean against him.He wasn't used to showing this kind of affection, but it was obvious that Selphie was extremely upset and as Seifer had known her since she was eight, he felt he owed it to her to at least show a little bit of compassion. Selphie, too emotionally weak to do anything else, let him guide her to the old gymnasium. She had time to think that Irvine had never had this much contact with her since she started seeing him. This embarassingly made her cry even more.

"Hey, shush, it's ok. Come on." Seifer soothed as he led her to a pile of sports mats in the gym.

Selphie gasped as Seifer rested his hands on her hips and lifted her up onto the mats. After Seifer had leapt up easily onto the mats next to her he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a clean, hankie. On the corner of the hankie "Mommy's little boy" was embroidered in pale blue stitching. Selphie raised an eyebrow as he handed it to her and Seifer blushed red in embarassment, snatching it back.

"Look, if you're gonna mock me for having a hankie from my mom-" Seifer growled angrily jumping off the mats.

Selphie reached down quickly, resting a hand on his shoulder before he could walk away. "No Seifer" She whispered croakily. "I wouldn't laugh at you, I was just a bit suprised."

Seifer turned to face Selphie, leaning slightly against her legs. "What? What are you suprised about?"

Selphie shrugged, chewing her lower lip. "Uh, I guess Im suprised that you have feelings other than anger."

Seifer clenched his fists and punched the mat on either side of Selphie, causing her to quickly shrink back to the wall, her green eyes wide.

"GODDAMMIT!!!" he boomed, then seeing the frightened expression on her face, he took a deep breath and rested his hands on the mat, closing his eyes for a few seconds.

"See what I mean" she murmured, hugging her knees to her chest. "You're scary."

Seifer lifted his head and looked directly into her eyes before tilting his head back and laughing loudly.

Selphie rolled her eyes and wiped some of the tears away with the back of her hand. "I'd better get going anyway." She shuffled to the end of the mat by where Seifer was stood and went to jump off, but Seifer rested his hands on her hips, causing her to stop.

"Please, Im sorry. Tell me whats bothering you. Although I can probably guess what it is."

Selphie looked into his eyes and he smiled slightly, nodding in encouragement. Taking a deep breath she explained everything from when she had been asked to the ball by Irvine, to falling down the steps with Seifer. When she had finished talking Seifer looked down at the floor, then back up at her face which was now awash with fresh tears.

"Im sorry. I really am. There is no excuse for what Quistis and Irvine did, they should have told you what was going on straight away. I never liked Irvine anyway."

Selphie smiled a bit, tilting her head slightly to one side. "You don't like me either, so I guess that makes me the same as him."

Seifer shook his head "How can you say that?! What put that into your head?"

"Well, you always made nasty comments about the way I dressed-"

"Yeah, because that yellow dress you always used to wear, clashed with the red in your hair-"

"See, comments like that hurt me Seifer."

"Really? I never meant to hurt you. You just infuriated me a bit, looking so happy all the time-"

"Happy! Is that how I looked?" Selphie laughed, her green eyes sparkling. Then she rested her hands on her knees and looked seriously at Seifer. "I'm a ball of insecurity Seifer. Just leaving my room to face the world everyday, to face YOU everyday was extremely difficult."

Seifer shook his head and rested his hands on Selphies. "You shouldn't feel insecure about yourself." He looked into her eyes and leaned so close to her that Selphie thought for a second that he was going to kiss her. After a few seconds of silence he shook himself and took a step back. Running his hands through his hair, he paced up and down a bit. "Anyway it doesn't matter does it messenger girl. You're leaving tomorrow aren't you?"

Selphie felt like she had been stung as it seemed like Seifer was distancing himself from her again. Sighing, she picked up her purse and her umbrella, then jumped down from the mats. Walking over to the door she chewed her lower lip and turned to look at Seifer who was rubbing the back of his neck as if he was fighting some kind of argument in his head.

"Yes Seifer, I am going tomorrow. It would have been nice for me to have heard you call me by my real name though. Just once." She looked up at him pleadingly as he stood before her.

Reaching a hand to Selphie's face, he brushed a strand of red hair behind her ear and slid his other arm round her waist. As if in slow motion he pulled her against him and leant down to whisper against her ear "I'll miss you Selphie, don't be gone too long. I will be here when you return. Is that what you wanted to hear?" Then laid his lips on hers.

Selphie nodded and kissed back gently, leaning against him as all strength seemed to have drained from her as soon as his lips touched hers. After a few seconds Seifer broke the kiss off and hugged her gently. Selphie smiled, leaning her head against his broad chest as she breathed in his scent. Then, standing back from him she smiled shyly and squeezed his hand gently before saying with a slight tremble in her voice "I won't be gone long."

Chapter 3: The Fight

Seifer nodded and watched her walk out of the gymnasium, then rested his head against the wall wishing she was not going, then cursing himself for allowing himself to get so involved with her. After a few minutes, Seifer calmed himself down, deciding that he was falling in love with Selphie and there was no amount of arguing that would make that feeling go away, Seifer walked outside in the rain and looked around.

"Have fun with her did'ya?" a voice drawled.

Seifer turned and glared as a figure came forward "Kinneas."

"The one and only. So, Selphie came out of there with a smile on her face so I wanted to ask you what had caused that smile." Irvine stepped menacingly forward and pushed his cowboy hat down, which infuriated Seifer further as he couldn't see his eyes.

Seifer rolled his blue eyes and flicked the cowboy hat off Irvines head as he walked past. "Nothing that would concern you Kinneas". He smiled to himself until Irvine stopped him in his tracks by saying

"Oh, thats funny, Selphie said exactly the same when I questionned her about it."

Seifer spun round angrily "If you've hurt her!"

Irvine laughed, approaching Seifer then poked Seifer hard in the chest. "Ooooh, so the traitor does have feelings then! I'm just confused as to why it took a GIRL like Selphie to bring them out of you.I didnt hurt her anyway. She ran away before I could catch her." He giggled and swayed a bit, showing Seifer that he was drunk. Seifer was trying very hard to keep his temper in line though with the comments that Irvine was making.

"Its got nothing to do with you Kinneas. Just keep away from her. Alright?!" Seifer shoved Irvine away from him.

"Its got everything to do with me Almassy. I dumped her an hour ago and she's already shacking up with you!" Irvine glared, clenching his fists at his sides.

"She's not shacking up with anybody. She hasn't done anything and you have no claims over her anyway, you gave that up when you chose Quitis Tramp." Seifer growled.

Irvine shook his head laughing "Oh Seifer, don't you realise that she's using you? What would she want with a miscreant like you? Although she's not much better, she was just a messenger g-" Irvine stopped talking and fell back, holding his nose as Seifer had punched him.

"Insult me all you like but say nothing about Selphie. she has done nothing to you! You'll keep away from her if you know whats good for you." shaking his head, Seifer walked away.

Suddenly he was tackled from behind by Irvine and punched in the face.

"I'll teach you to hit me you insolent fool. You're lucky I haven't got my gun with me!" Irvine shouted, rolling on the wet ground with Seifer.

Seifer matched each punch of Irvines with one of his own until Irvine was suddenly pulled off him. Scrambling to his feet, Seifer lunged for Irvine again but someone grabbed him from behind.

"Seifer! Mate stop it! Let it go, he ain't worth it!"

Seifer growled but calmed down and turned to face Squall. "He...insulted...Selphie" he said between sharp breaths.

Squall raised an eyebrow in confusion then turned to Zell who was holding Irvine back. "You ok getting Irvine to his dorm room Zell?"

"Yea, I'll sort it out. See you guys in the morning"

Seifer turned back to Zell "In the morning?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yea, dude, when we all say bye to Selphie. DUH!"

Seifer nodded "Oh, right", then carried on walking with Squall. When they reached their dorm room, they sat down at the table to talk.

Chapter 4: You're not the only one whose kissed Selphie.

"So..." Squall said, not knowing how to broach the subject of Selphie. "Uh...whats going on?"

"Well, Selphie fell down the steps and I took her to the gymnasium and she was really upset and I talked to her and she got upset because I said she has bad dress sense and stuff and i got annoyed cos she's leaving and she said I never call her Selphie and I did and I kissed her and she kissed me back and she went away and I left the gym and Irvine was there and he started making suggestions about me and Selphie and he insulted her and I hit him and we had a fight and you came and it's all a big mess!"

Squall tried not to laugh as Seifer ran out of steam and banged his head down on the table as if his world was ending. "So... you like Selphie."

"Yeah.." Seifer spoke without lifting his head.

"And she likes you..."

"Yeah..."

"And you only kissed her in the gym?" Squall raised an eyebrow sceptically and Seifer lifted his head to look at him.

"Yeah I only kissed her. Why?" Seifer growled dangerously.

"Easy mate, it's just that thats not like you. Usually if you like a girl you go for it with her straight away-"

"SCREW YOU SQUALL!" Seifer glared angrily at Squall.

"Hey, easy mate, you've gotta admit it though, you've never been serious about any girl before..."

"Well it's different with Selphie"

Squall studied Seifers face and nodded. "Ohhhh, ok.So that explains why you lost it with Irvine then."

Seifer nodded, his face serious for a second before breaking into a grin. "Yeah, that and the fact that the guy is a total prick!"

The two of them burst into laughter. After a few minutes, they grew silent and Squall cleared his throat nervously.

"Uh, you do realise that you're not the only guy who has kissed Selphie right?"

Seifer looked at Squall and raised his eyebrow "Why? Who else has kissed her?"

Squall blushed and looked around shiftily. "Well, erm... she gave me my first kiss. It was a long time ago and we were all at the orphanage and I was upset because Matron had told me off for sitting on Selphie and making her cry when she was poorly and I went to Selphie to say sorry and I started crying cos she looked so poorly and I sat on her bed and she wrapped her arms round me and kissed me." Squall sighed, breathing heavily as he tried to get his breath back. He chewed his lower lip as he waited to hear Seifers reaction.

After a few seconds Seifer chuckled. "Thats cool Squall. No worries. How old were you?"

Squall tilted his head to one side thinking, then said "I was fifteen."

Seifer nodded. "So she was thirteen. Thats ok. I'm not bothered about it and-"

"And Zell had his first kiss from her." Squall interrupted. "He was playing football with Selphie and he was in goal and she kicked the ball in his face and he started crying and she kissed him to take his mind off of it."

"Hmm, so how old was he then?" Seifer asked, leaning back in his chair with his arms folded.

"He was erm.... fifteen at the time. Same as me. Hmmm, thats weird." Squall rubbed the back of his neck with a confused expression on his face. "Actually, Zells kiss was about a week after mine."

"Were these kisses after Selphies thirteenth birthday party by any chance?" Seifer asked, his face twisted into a sardonic grin.

Squall thought for a moment then nodded. "Yea, they were! How did you know?"

Seifer burst out laughing "Well, Selphie had received her first kiss at her birthday party and wanted to experiment by seeing if you or Zell kissed the same. I'm not bothered about it." Seifer stood up and yawned, walking over to his bedroom door. As he opened it, Squall spoke.

"So, how do you know this and why aren't you bothered?" Squall asked.

"Well, I know about this because Selphie told me when we were at the orphanage, and I'm not bothered because I was the one that gave her the first kiss.I told her that a kiss is like a gift and that she should give it to as many members of the opposite sex as possible."

"Oh my God. Is that why she always kisses me to say hello? That really bugs Rinny!"

"Yep. I created a monster." Seifer said proudly and walked into his bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

A few minutes later, Seifer was in bed and Squall burst into the room. "So, Selphie was comparing me, you and Zell then?"

Seifer nodded. "Yea."

"So who did she say was the best?" Squall asked, shuffling his feet.

Seifer rolled his pale blue eyes "Who do you think Squall?"

Squall nodded dejectedly. "I should have known it would be you."

Seifer laughed. "Yea, you should. Now get out of my room. I want to get some sleep before saying bye to Selph."

"Okay. Goodnight Lapdog."

"'Night Puberty boy."

Chapter 5: Get out Clause.

The next morning, Seifer was woken up by Squall throwing a bucket of ice cold water over him in bed. Seifer jumped up quickly and shook himself.

"you're an evil guy Squall Lionheart!"

Squall shook his head laughing "If I was an evil guy I would have let you sleep until Selphie is safe in Dollet."

"Oh." Seifer looked saddened for a moment. "She's going today isn't she."

Squall nodded, "Well actually, she is setting off for the train station in half an hour so I would suggest getting dressed."

The door knocked.

"And there she is. She said she was gonna come and say bye to you before she goes." Squall grinned and opened the door. "Hiya Selphie!" As Selphie hugged Squall and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, Seifer and Squall shared a secret look and tried not to laugh as they remembered what they had discussed the night before. "Well, I've gotta go. Headmaster Cid wanted to see me in his office. Just make sure you phone me when you get settled in Dollet." Squall walked back to the door.

Selphie entered the room fully and smiled at Squall, knowing that this was his way of telling her that he was gonna go before he got too emotional. "Ok, Squall. Take care ok and thankyou for everything."

Squall chewed his lower lip shuffling his feet as he wanted to hug her but was not used to shows of affection. "I'll be fine. Just dont stay away too long ok? youre like a little sister to me now. Alright?"

Selphie grinned and threw her arms around Squalls neck, hugging him tight. "I love you big brother. Now get out of here before you make me cry."

Squall laughed and walked out,shutting the door behind him.

This left Selphie and Seifer stood together, neither sure what to say. Seifer looked Selphie up and down, smiling as she looked incredibly cute in her denim clamdiggers and purple FCUK t.shirt. It wasn't a fancy outfit but it suited her.

"Uh. I like your outfit." Seifer said, chewing his lower lip.

Selphie grinned and took a few steps closer, touching the wet fabric that was now like an extra skin on Seifers chest. "I was about to say the same to you."

Seifer blushed and opened his mouth to explain how Squall has soaked him but Selphie shook her head. "It's ok. Its kind of cute."

After a few seconds of silence Selphie took a deep breath and said "Well I was just coming to say bye. At least you have an easy get out clause for last night." Smiling slightly she stretched up on tiptoe and kissed Seifer on the cheek before nodding a farewell and walking out of his room.

Seifer stood for a few minutes, cursing himself for not being able to explain how he felt, then finally worked out what to say and ran to the door, throwing it open. The corridor was empty and Seifer cursed under his breath before running down the corridor and to the lift. After pressing the button to get to Selphies dorm floor he tapped his foot impatiently and looked in the mirror, realising that he was still wearing the soaking wet clothes. As the lift reached its destination, Seifer sighed and ran to Selphies dorm room, trying to avoid a group of girls that were trying to chat him up due to the sight of his pyjama top being plastered to his toned chest.For once though, he was not interest, there was only one girl on his mind: Selphie. When he reached Selphies door he didnt bother to knock but threw the door open, shouting "Selphie! Selphie!" After a few seconds Seifer looked down at the floor in defeat. it was too late, Selphie was gone.

Chapter 6: Seeing Everyone Again

10 years later.

Seifer pulled up outside the Garden on his motorbike and climbed off. Removing his helmet he looked around, his pale blue eyes scanning for any visible changes to his old school. He hadn't left Galbadia since the graduation but he had never returned to the school until now.

"Woah! Watch out! This things alive!"

Seifer looked over to where the noise was coming from and saw Zell approaching on a motor scooter. Two people dodged Zell's swerving scooter and shook their heads as they walked towards Seifer.

"Hey there Almassy!" Rinoa threw her arms round Seifer and hugged him,before sliding her hand back into Squalls.

Seifer smiled at his friends. He had never lost touch with Squall and Rinoa, they were very good to him when he had been waiting hopelessly for Selphie to return. But she never did.

"How you guys doin'?" Seifer asked, nodding to Zell as he reached them, looking very out of breath considerring he hadn't been walking.

"Oh, we're good, except for having a near-death experience with Zell and his stupid scooter!" Squall laughed.

"Yea, you big dope! Learn to drive properly!" Rinoa reached up and slapped the back of Zells head, causing him to drop his helmet, which made Seifer, Squall and Rinoa laugh even more.

"Hey!" Zell chuckled and bent down to pick up his helmet, before grinning at them. "So, you all ready for the huge reunion bash? I hope they make hot dogs like they used to!" Zell closed his eyes, moaning appreciatively as he rubbed his stomach.

Rinoa rolled her brown eyes. "Yea, it should be fun. I wonder whether Irvine, Quistis and Selphie will be here."

"Irvine you arrogant git! You can't expect me to carry all this stuff and sort out- NO IRTIS! DON'T STICK THAT UP YOUR NOSE SWEETIE! GODDAMIT IRVINE HELP ME!"

"Well it looks like Irvine and Quistis are here." Zell chuckled as Irvine swaggered up to them in a posh suit, with his auburn hair tied back into a sleek ponytail. Quistis waddled up behind Irvine, looking heavily pregnant and not impressed in the slightest.

As Irvine reached the group he turned to Quistis "Come on big momma. Speed up!"

Quistis shot Irvine a deadly glare then smiled sweetly to Squall, Rinoa, Seifer and Zell. "Hi guys! Hows it going? Rinoa darling, you look fabulous!"

Rinoa visibly cringed at the falseness of Quistis' greeting. "Uh. Hi Quistis. You look....pretty good too."

It was obvious that Irvine and Quistis were very rich by the way they were dressed but it didn't help to disguise the fact that Quistis was having extreme difficulty seeing over her bump, and her swollen feet looked red raw as they were squeezed into a pair of tiny stilettos.

"So, you two have been busy have you?" Squall asked, keeping an eye on Seifer who looked as if he might say something insulting to Irvine or Quistis at any minute.

Irvine laughed loudly, nudging Squall in the ribs. "You could say that. Don't you think pregnancy is a good look for Quistis?"

Squall hesitated for a second and Irvine jumped in "Neither do I mate, neither do I."

Squall smiled apologetically at Quistis whose eyes had filled with tears and shuffled his feet nervously.

"Well!" Quistis said brightly, dropping her luggage on Irvines foot causing him to yelp in pain. Linking an arm through Rinoas she giggled "You havent met our little pudding have you?"

Zell looked up sharply from where he had been eating a double chocolate muffin. "You've got a little pudding?" he asked, his eyes wide in wonder.

Seifer, Squall and Rinoa looked at each other trying not to laugh.

"Yes Zell, but not the edible kind. Honestly Zell, you really should lose some weight, youre starting to look quite chubby!" Quistis said irritably.

Zell opened his mouth to say something in retort but Seifer nudged him, warning him not to say anything. Sighing in frustration he threw the remains of his muffin in the bin and squeezed his stomach to see if he could find any fat. When he was satisfied there was none he grinned and nodded to himself.

"Anyway, like I was saying. Everyone, this is Irtis." Quistis cried, thrusting forward a little girl who was wearing a little pink and white dress, and pink shoes. Her long blonde hair was pulled into two plaits and the group found themselves thinking that the child was very pretty, until they saw her face. She really was what you might call an 'ugly spud'.

After a few seconds of dumbfounded silence, Rinoa cleared her throat "Mmmm, she's very....unique. And Irtis, thats a very...unusual name. What made you think of it?"

Irvine smiled proudly, pulling Irtis and Quistis against him as Quistis said "Well, when we saw our baby girl we were at a loss for words..."

"I can see why." Zell muttered to Seifer.

"And the first name that we thought of was Irtis, because it's a mixture of our names" Quistis said, grinning as she waited for a response.

Squall, Rinoa, Zell and Seifer stared at Irvine and Quistis as if they were mad.

Irvine sighed in exasperation. "You know. Ir from Irvine and Tis from Quistis?"

Squall, Rinoa, Zell and Seifer continued to stare at them until Squall said "Mmm, right. ok. Well lets go inside and find a dorm room each shall we?"

Rinoa, Zell and Seifer nodded quickly in agreement and walked ahead of Irvine and Quistis before they could say anything. As they walked, Rinoa held hands with Squall and linked one arm through Seifers. "Um, are you disappointed that Selphie hasn't come Seifer?" she asked with a concerned look on her face.

Seifer smiled bravely down at Rinoa "No, its ok Rinoa. Whatever feelings I had for Selphie have-"

"Hey! What took you guys so long?!" Selphie bounded down the front steps of the building, her now waist length red hair bouncing and shining in the sunlight. She ran over to Rinoa and hugged her tight while Squall, Seifer, Zell, Irvine and Quistis looked on in wonder. Selphie had really grown up in the past ten years. Her red hair had grown down to her waist, and her body had matured, but she was still the same Selphie, just maturer somehow.

Squall looked at Seifer and knew from the look on his face that whatever feelings Seifer used to have for Selphie had definitely not gone away.

As Selphie showed everyone to their old dorm rooms, they were all very happy as nothing had changed in them, although Squall and Seifer were none to impressed that their Linkin Park poster had been replaced by (dum dum dum!) Busted! At least they had their old dorm room back though. Unlike Zell. When Zell asked why he couldn't get into his old room, Selphie nervously explained that his room had been turned into a caretakers cupboard. Zell, in turn, lost it. He threw the door of the cupboard open and rugby tackled a mop. Everyone raised an eyebrow, half in shock, half in amusement as he practically bounced around the cupboard. After a few minutes Zell stopped and everyone thought he had calmed down.

"Uh, Zell. Are you ok?" Selphie asked nervously, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Suddenly Zell let out a wail,causing Selphie to squeal in fright and fall back against Squall,who in turn fell against Seifer, who fell against Rinoa etc and they tumbled down the stairs. Then he grabbed the mop, bucket, broom, dustpan and other contents of the cupboard, walked to the stairs and threw them down. unfortunately, Headmaster Cid was walking up the stairs at that time and ended up with the bucket over his face.

Zell laughed and did a jig "That will teach you to turn my room into a cupboard! Oh, erm, headmaster Cid. Sorry dude, uh, that bucket really suits you."

"You've been here for five minutes Zell Dincht and already you are destroying my school! Goddamit! Pick up this stuff and put it back in the cupboard. Then you can share a room with Edea."

"Aw, no Edeas here?" Zell kicked a wall in frustration.

"Yes, edea is here. Now this is not open for discussion. If you want to attend the reunion you must share a room with Edea."

"Will there be hotdogs?" Zell asked sulkily.

"Yes, Zell there will be hotdogs." Cid rolled his eyes.

"Ok, if theres hotdogs I will do it." he said firmly, folding his arms across his chest and nodding.

Everyone started to stand up and laughed as they were all tangled up with each other. Seifer had landed with his head on Selphies butt, Selphie had landed with her head on Squalls thighs, Squall had landed on top of Rinoa, Rinoa had somehow managed to get her legs tangled with Irvine and the only people that had escaped falling down the stairs were Quistis and Irtis, who were giggling uncontrollably at the sight of everyone such a mess.

"Right, lets start with Irvine, you get your legs untangled from Rinoas and we'll work backwards from there." Squall explained, trying to keep a straight face as Selphie looked really embarassed to have her head on his thighs. "You ok there Selph?" he ruffled her long hair, laughing as she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Oh yea Squally, never been better. Although I'm not sure who has their head resting on my-ARGH!"

Squall had suddenly moved from beneath her and stood up with Rinoa and Irvine, causing, Selphie and Seifer to hit the floor together.

"oof!" Selphie gasped as Seifer landed on top of her knocking all the wind out of her. "So it was you who had your head resting on my butt?"

Seifer shrugged and stood up quickly, leaving Selphie lied on the floor with a confused expression on her face.

Everyone walked away then, to their dorm rooms except for Squall. He reached a hand down to Selphie and pulled her up. "You alright?"

Selphie nodded, folding her arms across her chest as she walked beside him. In the next few minutes of silence, Squall secretly looked Selphie up and down, liking her new look. She was wearing a pair of figure hugging pale denim hipsters and a long black knitted cardigan with a hood, over a black bustier. On her feet she wore a pair of black boots with 4 inch heels, to give her some extra height. Squall smiled to himself as he thought, any single man who passed up the chance of getting together with the hottie that Selphie had become would be crazy. Selphie brushed a strand of long red hair behind her ear as she rested a hand on Squalls arm, causing him to stop.

"Squall? Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" she asked, her voice shaking.

Squall nodded, "Sure." he turned to where Rinoa, Irvine, Quistis, Irtis and Seifer stood waiting for them. "Uh, we'll be along in a minute. Selphie just wants to show me something."

"Ooh, I bet she does." Irvine laughed, winking at Squall. "You wanna keep an eye on them Rinoa, you wouldnt want little Selphie taking your man would you."

Seifer turned round and shoved Irvine, causing him to drop the luggage he had picked up. "Just shut your mouth."

Rinoa nodded in understanding and waved to Selphie and Squall then turned to Irvine "I can't remember the last time something nice came out of your mouth regarding Selphie. Just leave her alone and get a life, or you might find that Seifer and Squall will take you outside for a beating." she said darkly, prodding him in the chest with each syllable.

Irvine opened his mouth to say something but Quistis saw the look in Rinoas eyes and knew she wasn't joking and rested a hand on his arm. "No. Leave it Irvine. Lets go to our room."

Rinoa shook her head and waved to Squall and Selphie. "See you guys later. Squall, I'm gonna go back to your room with Seifer for a cup of coffee. I'll be coming back to our room when it's time to get ready Selphie, ok?"

Selphie nodded. "Ok, see you later. Bye Seifer"

Seifer just stared at her for a few seconds before turning and walking away with Rinoa.

Chapter 7: Bringing Up The Past

Selphie sighed and pulled her hood up as her and Squall walked to a bench. As they sat down, Selphie hugged her knees to her chest beneath her cardigan and Squall knew that although Selphie looked grown up, she was still a lost child, who was trying very hard to come to grips with the world around her.

"So... how was it in Dollet?" Squall asked, resting an arm across the back of the bench.

Selphie stared down at her knees, her long red hair spilling across her face beneath the hood. "Oh...it was fine."

"Did you see your family?" Squall decided to keep on safe ground as he knew that it was Seifers reception of her that was making her so unhappy. Who could blame him though, he thought. Selphie had promised to come back but she never did until now and Seifer had felt abandoned by her.

"Yea. I saw them. For a little while." she said sadly, refusing to make eye contact with Squall.

Squall looked confused. "Only a little while? But I thought you said they had moved to Dollet and that you were going there to spend some time with them and clear your head and-"

"Squall? Why is Seifer acting so funny towards me?" Selphie interrupted as the part of her life that Squall referred to was still hurting her.

Squall, not knowing that Selphie was hurting, sighed in frustration. "Selphie. You left him saying that you wouldn't be gone long. He told you he would wait, and wait he did, but you never came back. We all waited for you. We needed you-"

Selphie looked up sharply, her green eyes full of tears as she glared angrily at him. "You needed me? Well I'm sorry Squall but after five years of attending this school where you all thought of me as imature and stupid I felt that my families needs were a bit more important!"

Squall saw the anguish in Selphies face and knew that something serious had happened while she was in Dollet. He turned to face her and gripped her shoulders gently in his hands. "Selphie? What happened when you were in Dollet?"

"Rinoa didn't tell you?" Selphie asked, wiping some tears away with the back of a small hand.

Squall shook his head. "No. Rinoa never told me what you had said in your letters. She said that it was between you and her."

Selphie nodded closing her eyes "Good old Rinoa."

Squall shook Selphie gently. "Please Selphie, tell me what happened? What happened to me and you being like brother and sister?"

Squall looked so upset that she rested a hand on either side of his face and kissed him on the cheek before hugging him, her head leaning on his chest. "I still love you like a brother. I just had to deal with it on my own."

"But if you wanted to deal with it on your own why did you tell Rinoa what had happened and not me?" he put his arms round Selphie, rubbing her back gently.

"Because I knew that if you found out then you would try to help me, and I didnt want to mess up your life as well."

Squall nodded. "Ok, tell me now then, what happened?"

"Well, I did get to spend some time with my family. It was great, I hadn't seen them for such a long time. But, did you hear about the bomb that went off in Dollet shopping centre?"

Squall thought for a moment then nodded. "Yeah, I remember, we had a ten minute silence in respect for the people that died. Why?"

"My family died in that bomb blast squall. They were going to get my birthday presents." Tears streamed down Selphies face.

"Oh my God. Selphie I'm so sorry. You should have come back. We would have looked after you, or I would have come to Dollet to help you." Squall held her tight.

"I couldnt have let you come and help me. You have a life with Rinoa so I couldnt let you mess that up. Then I couldnt come back straight away because there were so many people that needed help. I still have nightmares about the bodies that I helped to move, they were so bloody and....it was awful...just horrible." She trembled in his arms as he cried with her.

"Shush, its ok Selphie, its over now."

"I wanted to come back, I really wanted to, but Im still not healed mentally. Seifer doesnt deserve a girlfriend that cant go through one night without waking up screaming."

"Oh Selphie. He would have wanted to help you. He loved you. I think you should tell him."

Selphie broke away from Squall sharply, her green eyes wide. "No, I couldnt. He would think he has to be with me out of pity and thats not fair on either of us.I just wish I had told them I love them more. I mean, they took me out of the orphanage and showed me what it is like to have a mother and a father. I should have stayed with them instead of living my stupid dream as a seeD."

"Don't you dare blame that on yourself Selphie. They loved you and they knew that you loved them. They were proud of you for joining seeD and so were Seifer, Zell, Quistis and I when we saw you. You don't have to be alone Selph. We are your family too and we love you. Please stay in Galbadia with us. We don't want to lose you again."He stood up and reached a hand to her.

Selphie nodded and grasped Squalls hand standing up next to him. "Ok Squall. I'll stay."

Squall grinned and hugged her tight "Good girl. now go get ready for the paaaaartaaaay!"

"OK. I'll see ya in the ballroom." Selphie patted Squalls back before he released her from the hug. She then saluted him, turned and walked to her dorm room.

Chapter 8: Explaining To Seifer

When Squall got into his dorm room, Seifer and Rinoa were sat at the table drinking coffee.

"Hiya babe! Selphie ok?" Rinoa asked brightly, pouring a cup of coffee for Squall while he removed his jacket and draped it over the back of a spare chair.

"Yea, she's alright now. She just needed to talk to me. She's gone to get ready for the ball now." Squall sat down and stared at the table.

Seifer tutted. "I dont know why you talked to her anyway. She was the one that abandoned us when she went to Dollet and never came back. It serves her right if she's upset."

Rinoa and Squall looked sharply at Seifer as they both knew why Selphie had never returned. "You can be a cold hearted nob head sometimes you know Almassy." Rinoa said angrily.

Seifer froze as he had been about to shove a jaffa cake into his mouth. "What do you mean? She abandoned me when I loved her. She practically ripped my heart out and threw it in my face and-"

Rinoa jumped up, sending her chair flying backwards with the force. "Honestly Seifer! Can you hear yourself? Its always about you and how hard done by you are! Have you even stopped to think about what might have stopped Selphie from coming back here to ALL OF US?"

Seifer looked helplessly at Squall, then seeing that he was getting the same angry glare from Squall he jumped to his feet too. "Well I expect she found some other gullible fool to give up his friendships and pour his heart out to her!"

Squall slammed his fist down on the table,stood up, then quickly reached across the table to grab Seifer by the collar, pulling Seifers face close to his. "Now listen to me Seifer and I suggest you listen good. For one thing you never liked Irvine or Quistis anyway so it wasnt any skin off your nose when you had an excuse not to talk to them anymore."

Seifer tried to remove Squalls hands from his collar, then stopped and glared at him icily with his blue eyes when he found that he could not budge Squalls hands.

"And, Selphie had no choice but not to return!"

Seifer laughed harshly. "What do you mean? She knew I loved her, what could have possibly have stopped her from coming back. I needed her."

"Her family died Seifer." Squall stated simply.

Seifer gasped and looked from Squall who nodded in confirmation to Rinoa who hung her head sadly, then back to Squall. "Her whole family?The ones that adopted her?" he whispered.

"Yes" Rinoa said, resting her hands on Squalls forearms so that he would release Seifer. "Her whole family. She has no one. She had to stay in Dollet because she felt she had a responsibility to help clear all the bodies-"

"Oh my god. Her family died in that bomb blast two weeks after Selphie had left?" Seifer gasped as realisation dawned on his face.

"Got it in one" Squall said sadly. "She stayed to clear all the bodies. Do you have any idea what those dead bodies would have looked like after a bomb blast Seifer? She was seventeen years old and she witnessed what most people will never have to witness in the whole of their lifetime."

Seifer looked at his feet, full of remorse. "Im so sorry. I shouldnt have been so cold towards her. Why didnt she tell me, I would have gone to her and helped her through it. I could have taken care of her."

Rinoa and Squall shook their heads.

"She wanted to deal with it on her own. Then she started having nightmares. She still has them. She didnt want you to know because she didnt want your pity and she didnt think it would be fair on you to have to deal with a girlfriend who wakes up every night screaming." Squall said calmly.

Seifer looked up and looked Squall in the eye. " I love her Squall."

"Well tell her tonight then. Show her that you understand why she didnt come back and that you will love her till your dying day. She needs you Seifer and to be honest I think you need her." Rinoa explained, resting a hand on Seifers back.

Seifer nodded. "Thankyou both. I've been such a fool."

Squall chuckled "Well you've always been a fool so its not as if we're not used to it!"

Rinoa and Seifer laughed and Seifer pulled them both into a group hug with him. After a few minutes Rinoa broke off with a grin on her face.

"Well, now that we got all that off our chests I'm gonna go to mine and Selphies dorm rooms and get changed. See you fellas at the ballroom." She stretched up on tiptoe to kiss Seifer on the cheek then kissed Squall gently on the lips before waving and walking out of their room.

Chapter 9: The Reunion Ball

3 hours later, the reunion ball was in full swing. The alcohol was flowing freely, the dance floor was packed and everyone seemed to be in good spirits.

"Wow Zell! I didn't realise you were so good at dancing!" Rinoa shouted over the loud music. Senorita was playing and Zell was pulling off some dance moves that would have put Justin Timberlake to shame!

Zell blushed and shrugged, an old habit from his teenage years. "Thanks Rin. I guess you could say I had a lot of free time on my hands when I graduated. The uniform may have worked wonders for people like Irvine, Squall and Seifer but girls still didn't want me when they knew I was a graduated seeD member."

"Awww Zelly! I'm sorry" Rinoa touched his arm gently, feeling sorry for him and the fact that life was so lonely for Zell.

"It's cool. Don't sweat it." He shrugged again then grinned as the music changed into Uptown Girl by Billy Joel. "Well, I'd better get you back to your fella. I think I've earned myself another hotdog."

Rinoa laughed softly as Zell lead her over to Squall and Seifer who were stood talking at the top of one of the sets of stairs leading to the dance floor. As soon as she stood by Seifer and Squall, Zell nodded to them and walked over to the buffet tables in search of his hotdogs.

"Where is she Rinoa?" Seifer asked looking around agitatedly as he shuffled from foot to foot, his ice blue eyes searching for a woman with long red hair.

Rinoa looked up at Squall and rolled her eyes, then turned to look up at Seifer. "Look. I don't know. I'm sure she will be here any minute. Theres nothing else I can say." She shrugged helplessly and took her glass of champagne that Squall had been holding for her.

Seifer sighed and folded his arms across his chest as he checked the other stairs to see if Selphie was entered. He then turned and walked over to the buffet table, leaving Squall and Rinoa talking quietly together.

"Heya Seifer my man!You enjoying the party?" Zell swayed towards Seifer, resting a hand on the shoulder of Seifers suit.

Seifer rolled his eyes in disgust. It was obvious that Zell had been drinking as much Jack Daniels as he had been eating hotdogs. "I aint your man chicken wuss." Seifer removed Zells hand from his shoulder. "No I aint enjoying the party and dude you reek of booze and hotdogs!"

Zell, in his drunken state didn't realise that he was actually being insulted and slapped Seifer playfully on the back. "Aww. Thanks man, so do you!"

Seifer raised an eyebrow and without saying anything in reply to Zell he walked back over to the stairs, he had been stood at with Rinoa and Squall and leant against the wooden railing, watching the people dance below. He looked around once more and was just about to give up waiting for Selphie and get himself inebriated with alcohol, some people started clapping. The clapping spread throughout the ballroom and Seifer looked confused for a moment before he noticed a small red haired woman stood at the top of the stairs with an older looking man. The older man was headmaster Cid, but Seifer didnt care who it was, his gaze refused to be torn from the beautiful woman stood next to him, Selphie. Her long red hair that he had seen that morning had been chopped off to the length it had been when she had first cut her hair at the orphanage.She had been sick of not being able to play fight because Matron had told her that it would mess up her beautiful long hair, so Selphie had got a pair of scissors and cut her hair to just above shoulder length. One would have thought that having the same hairstyle thirteen years later would make her appear silly and childish but in fact it made her look even more attractive. She was wearing a long dark purple strappy dress with a slit going up to her thigh and under the dress a pair of knee length black boots could be seen, the ultimate Selphie touch to an outfit. It was a simple outfit but it suited Selphies shape perfectly and it was then that everyone realised, especially the men that Selphie really had grown up.

"Wow!" a voice whispered in Seifers ear.

Seifer turned round to face Squall, managing to drag his gaze away from Selphie for a moment, not listening to a word of the speech that Headmaster Cid was giving. "She looks great doesnt she."

"Too right she does. Now go talk to her man!" Squall shoved Seifer gently and Rinoa nodded to Seifer encouragingly as he looked hesitantly back before walking down the steps and squeezing through the people on the dance floor to reach the bottom of the stairs that Selphie was stood on.

"Now, everyone enjoy the party!" Cid shouted, causing everyone to applaud once more.

After a few seconds, the clapping stopped and Turn Me On by Kevin Lyttle came on. Seifer watched Selphie as she walked down the stairs leading to the dance floor, not worried at this ball as to whether she would trip on her dress or not. He watched, rubbing a hand across the back of his neck nervously as he watched her stand still at the bottom of the stairs, looking around to see if she knew anyone, her hips swaying slightly, in rhythm with the music without her realising. Taking a deep breath, Seifer snuck round behind Selphie and whispered softly against her ear. "How about the dance we never got to have at the last ball?"

Selphie gasped and turned. She parted her rosy lips ready to say something, but Seifer shook his head, putting a finger on her lips to silence her. A slight smile crept across Selphies face as Seifer took her hand and led her to a space on the dance floor for them to dance in. As soon as they started dancing, they fitted, both having a natural sense for rhythm and a few good dance moves to their name. Within seconds, Selphie relaxed, dancing with Seifer as if she had danced with him dozens of times before, allowing him to rest his hands on her hips as they moved as one.

Zell drunkenly watched the people around him from his position by the buffet table. Most people seemed to be heading to the dance floor but he had no one to dance with, Rinoa and Squall were dancing together by Seifer and Selphie and Quistis was chasing her daughter around the tables pleading with her to "Be a good girl or Mommy will smack! she will smack!" while Irvine stood at the bar chatting up some simpering, giggling brunette who Zell vaguely remembered as being one of Irvines many groupies. Sighing, Zell turned back to the buffet table just as a voice whispered in his ear.

"I love this song, don't you?"

Zell turned in confusion and came face to face with a beautiful woman. She had waist length jet black hair and dark brown eyes that looked like they could see deep down into your soul. She was wearing a long dark red dress, with red velvet shoes and holding a small red velvet handbag.

"E- E- Edea!" Zell stammered stepping back and crashing into the table.

"Woah, easy Zell!" Edea reached a hand out in concern but Zell flinched, causing her to back away holding her palms up to face him to show she meant no harm. "Im not going to hurt you."

Zell stared at Edea, his eyes wide with fear, his face starting to turn a funny purple colour. "Uh, Zell...breathe." She raised an eyebrow, then sighed in relief as Zell let out all his breath in a big whoosh.

"Uh, sorry... you scared me." Zell started to relax. Really Edea did look beautiful and she didnt seem to pose a threat to anybody so he felt he should talk to her.

Edea smiled "You look very handsome tonight Zell."

Zell blushed and looked at his feet before smiling shyly at Edea. "Thankyou. Uh..." he searched for a compliment because to be truthful, for him to list possible compliments for the way Edea looked at the moment, it would take him all night. "...You're...not wearing black." He mentally smacked himself in the head, wishing he wasnt such a dick when it came to women.

Edea laughed softly, tilting her head back.

Zell shrugged nervously. "Sorry. Im crap with compliments."

Edea smiled and slipped her hand in his. "It's ok. I'll let you off cos youre absolutely rat assed." she chuckled softly "And you can make it up to me by dancing with me."

Zell grinned from ear to ear as Edea pulled him by the hand to the dance floor where they then proceeded to dance so close they were practically melting into each other. As the song finished, Zell looked sad as he knew that Edea only wanted him for that dance, but to his suprise and delight Edea had other plans.

"Hey, where do you think youre going stud? I aint finished with you yet." Edea, reached an arm up round Zells neck, pulling him down gently, into a kiss, while dancing to the new song: Baby Boy by Beyonce Knowles and Sean Paul.

When Zell and Edea finally came up for air from their kiss, they smiled at each other and walked over to Selphie, Seifer, Rinoa and Squall.

"Hi guys, you all know Edea right?" Zell grinned while Edea smiled shyly at the people in the group.

Everyone looked from Zell to Edea and back to Zell before shrugging and grinning at Edea.

"Hiya Edea. How you been?" Selphie asked cheerfully, always willing to make a new friend.

Edea relaxed visibly "I've been very well thanks Selphie. Its great to finally see everyone again."

Rinoa, deciding to give Edea's friendliness the benefit of the doubt handed a glass of champagne to Edea and complimented her choice of dress.

Zell sighed silently in relief and turned to Squall and Seifer, letting Edea have her conversation with the girls.

"So Seifer, you getting back with Selphie then?" Zell asked innocently, still quite drunk.

Seifer looked to Zell and shrugged "I hope so, chicken wuss, I really hope so." he chuckled to himself.

"Take it easy with her though Seifer, alright?" Squall asked, watching the girls talking amongst themselves, his gaze focusing on Selphie. He was pleased that Selphie was so confident in her new image, but he also hoped that this new image wouldn't bring her any trouble.

Seifer raised an eyebrow. "I'm not stupid Squall. You know I love her and judging by that dance, I'm guessing that she still loves me."

Squall opened his mouth to protest but Quistis suddenly barged through them,Irtis being dragged right behind her, her mouth spouting off all kinds of obscenities about her husband. He rolled his eyes and turned to face Quistis. "Whats wrong Quistis?"

"It's Irvy! He's pissed as a newt! What am I going to do? He's over at the bar chatting up all kinds of slappers. He's supposed to be married to me dammit!" Quistis stomped her foot, her face creased into a sulky pout.

"I tell you what Quistis, it's one in the morning anyway. How about you go to your room and take Irtis to bed, she looks really tired." Rinoa said calmly, pulling Quistis to her.

Quistis opened her mouth to protest but Rinoa continued to speak "Come on Quistis, I'll walk you to your room." Not wanting Quistis to cause herself anymore embarassment, she mouthed 'see ya later' to Squall and dragged Quistis and Irtis out of the ballroom.

Once Quistis was out of the ballroom, Squall, Selphie, Seifer, Zell and Edea started laughing.

"That was so dramatic!" Selphie squealed in laughter, holding her slender stomach as if she was afraid it would rip open with the force of her laughter.

Seifer gazed at the glee on her face and reached an arm round her waist to rest a hand on her hip but Squall noticed and grabbed Selphies hand, pulling her gently up against him. Ignoring Seifers look of confusion Squall rested his hands on Selphies hips causing her to giggle and put her hands on his chest. "Lets dance little lady..." Squall said and held one of Selphies hands, leading her down to the dance floor.

Zell noticed the look of confusion on Seifers face and said "You ok there Seifer? They're only dancing."

Seifer nodded. "Yea, I know."

Edea raised an eyebrow watching Seifer as she had never seen him this hung up over a girl when she knew him ten years ago. Shrugging to herself she slid her hand into Zells and said "We gonna go dance Zell?"

Zell blushed and nodded "Ok, we'll see you in a minute Seifer. Why dont you come down to the dance floor so youre ready to grab Selphie for the next dance?"

Seifer hesitated for a second then said "You know what chicken wuss? Thats not such a bad idea!" he smiled and followed them to the dance floor nodding his head to the rhythm of Scandalous by Misteeq. The smile soon faded from his face as he saw how close Squall and Selphie were dancing. The way Squalls hands were moving across Selphies hips made Seifers blood boil and it took all of his self control not to throw Squall across the room. As soon as the song finished, Seifer grabbed Squall and dragged him to one side.

"Whats wrong with you Seifer?" Squall asked in confusion, trying his best not to get angry.

"I was about to ask you the same question Squall. What are you doing with Selphie?" Seifer glared at Squall, his blue eyes looking like ice in his rage.

"It was a dance Seifer. We're allowed to dance." Squall said calmly, but with an undertone of threat added to his voice.

"Well, why did you drag her out my arms?"

"She wasnt in your arms Seifer and I didnt drag her. She came willingly. I just wanted to dance with her. Youre not the only one who hasnt seen her in ten years you know." Squall cried, glad that the music was loud enough on the dance floor that no one could hear what he and Seifer were saying, especially Selphie.

Seifer sighed and looked down at his feet before looking at Squall again. "I know Squall. I'm sorry mate. I'm just a bit protective over her I guess."

Squall nodded patting Seifer on the back. "I know what you mean Seifer, Im protective-" Suddenly Squall froze mid-speech.

Seifer waved a hand in front of Squalls face and clicked his fingers "Woah, Squall buddy. Whats up?"

Chapter 10: A New Reason To Be Over Protective

Squall shook himself and said dully "We've got a new reason to be protective."

Seifer raised an eyebrow and Squall pointed to the dancefloor. Seifer followed his finger and saw Selphie dancing with Irvine. "Oh my God." he muttered.

Meanwhile, Selphie was desperately trying to stop Irvines hands from wandering to places she didnt want them to go. "Irvine, please. I only said I would dance with you if you kept your hands to yourself." She squirmed uncomfortably, slapping Irvines hands away.

"Aw come on Selphie. You danced with Seifer and Squall like this, why not me?" Irvine slurred drunkenly, his hand trying to grab Selphies butt.

"I danced with Seifer and Squall because they are my friends and we didnt dance quite like this." Selphie said, trying not to lose her temper.

Seifer and Squall sneaked a little bit closer to try and hear what Selphie and Irvine were saying to each other.

Irvine grabbed Selphie and pulled her against him making it look like it was part of their dance, which made Seifer clench his jaw in anger. Selphie gasped at Irvines strength and glared up at him but Irvine just smiled and leaned down to kiss her jawline before whispering "Well maybe they should try dancing like this with you sometime. I must say little Miss Tilmitt, you are certainly a delight!" He let his eyes roam insolently up and down her body.

Selphie widened her green eyes in astonishment before saying menacingly "No because Seifer and Squall are twice the gentlemens you will ever be and you can keep your advances because I dont want them" She smiled sweetly and tugged herself free from her embrace before walking quickly out of the ballroom.

Seifer and Squall stared at each other in shock as they had only heard Selphie say "I don't want them".

"She doesn't want me then!" Seifer said angrily, clenching his fists, trying to keep the hurt from his voice.

"Wait Seifer. Maybe we got the wrong end of the stick" Squall said logically, not believing that Selphie would really snub him and Seifer.

Seifer looked at Squall then watched as Irvine took a swig from a bottle of Jack Daniels and ran after Selphie.

"See, now Irvine is going to have his way with my Selphie." Seifer glared at Squall, even though it wasn't him that he was angry with.

Squall thought for a second then shook his head "Nah, somethings not right." He looked at Seifer before turning and running in the direction Selphie and Irvine had gone.

Seifer raised an eyebrow then ran after Squall, closely followed by Edea and Zell who had overheard the conversation that had taken place between Squall and Seifer. It didnt take long for them all to catch up with Irvine who they saw run into a lift with an uncomfortable looking Selphie. With her green eyes wide she looked like a doe caught in the headlights of an oncoming truck. Speeding up, everyone managed to get inside the lift before the doors could shut, nearly squishing Zell in the process.

Selphie smiled and stepped forward to stand beside Squall, dodging one of Irvines drunken lunges. Slipping her arm through his she smiled up at him, behaving like the little sister he had always known her to be.

"It's great to see that you and Rinoa are still together Squall."

Squall smiled and nodded, his brown eyes glazing over slightly at the thought of his girlfriend. "I know, it doesn't seem possible that i haven't seen you for ten years though."

"I know what you mean..." Selphie said, looking around the lift at Zell and Edea who were now whispering to each other, Irvine who was looking seriously miffed at not getting to be alone in the lift with Selphie and Seifer who was staring at the floor petulantly.

Suddenly the lift stopped and Zell grinned at them "Well, this is mine and Edeas stop so we'll see you guys tomorrow. See ya!"

Edea repeated "See ya!" and walked out of the lift holding Zells hand.

As the lift door closed Selphie and Squall continued chatting, Squall attempting to bring Seifer into the conversation now and again but never really managing it. It wasn't long before the lift stopped again. This time it was Seifer and Squalls turn to get out.

"Goodnight Selphie. I'll see you tomorrow" Squall said, leaning down to kiss Selphie on the cheek. As he stepped out of the lift he turned to Seifer. "You coming mate?"

Seifer shook his head "I'll be there soon, I've gotta get something from Headmaster Cid's office."

Selphie raised an eyebrow slightly in confusion as she looked at Seifer out of the corner of her eye.

Squall nodded, knowing that Seifer was lying and that he was only really staying in the lift so that he could talk to Selphie. "Ok, sweet dreams people."

"Goodnight Squall" Selphie called as the doors to the lift shut then she leaned against one of the mirrored panels of the lift, looking at the floor as if there was some secret hidden in it.

Seifer looked from Selphie to Irvine and silently sighed in relief as it seemed that Irvine had decided to leave Selphie alone. Leaning his head back against one of the wall panels he closed his eyes.

Suddenly there was a cracking sound. Seifer opened his eyes and stared in disbelief as Irvine was standing with one hand to his right cheek where a flaming red hand print could be seen.

"Goddamit Selphie what did you have to go and do that for? Quistis is gonna wanna know why I've got a red face now!" Irvine pouted.

Selphie's eyes widened in incredulation. "Do you really think I care Irvine?!"

Irvine smiled drunkenly "Yea I do think you care Elfy and I think you still want me!"

Seifer who had been watching with amusement on his face lost his temper completely as Irvine lunged for Selphie, squishing her up against the mirror as he kissed her. Seifer growled and grabbed Irvine by the collar, pulling him away from Selphie. As luck would have it the lift stopped and the doors open so Seifer threw a cursing Irvine out of the lift. Irvine stood up dazed, glaring angrily at Seifer and Selphie, but Seifer just shook his head "Go back to your wife Kinneas. Oh and by the way her name is Selphie not Elfy!"

Selphie squealed as Irvine charged at the lift, but Seifer pressed a button causing the doors to shut quickly, preventing a crazed Irvine from entering the lift. Sighing in relief Selphie leaned back against the mirror of the lift and slid down to the floor hugging her knees to her chest.

Chapter 11: Love in an Elevator

Seifer chewed his lower lip as he pressed a button causing the lift to stop on the floor that Selphies dorm room was on but keeping the doors locked, then sat down on the floor next to Selphie. After a few seconds of silence, Seifer said "You ok Selphie?"

Selphie shrugged "Apart from being mauled by that cretin I think Im doing pretty well. Uh, you didn't really have to get anything from Headmaster Cids office did you?" She looked up at Seifer, smiling slightly.

The corner of Seifers lips lifted into a smile as he said "Nah, I dont need anything from Headmaster Cids office, I just wanted to make sure you got to your dorm room safely."

Selphie rested a hand on his forearm. "Thanks, thats really gentlemanly of you Seifer."

"Well..." Seifer looked down guiltily. "It was that and I was wanting to see if you really liked Kinneas like that."

Selphie jumped to her feet and rested her hands on her hips, glaring down at Seifer angrily. "WHAT?! Of course I dont like Irvine you moron!!!"

Seifer jumped to his feet and rested a hand on the mirror above Selphies head, causing her to back up against the wall. He ran his free hand agitatedly through his blonde hair. "Well why were you dancing with him like that then?!"

Selphie raised her hands in frustration "I wasn't dancing with him like anything! I was trying to stop him from dancing like that!"

"Yea well- Hang on, you really weren't wanting to- No! Wait a minute why did you say 'I dont want them'? That had to have been about me and squall." Seifer nodded to add emphasis to his point.

Selphie stared at him blankly for a second then said "Of course that wasn't about you and Squall! I was saying that I dont want Irvines advances! I can't believe you thought that. I love you and Squall to bits you big dope!"

Seifer looked down blushing then looked Selphie in the eye. "i'm sorry Selphie." he said, moving a hand to her cheek, resting there gently. "uh, you really love us to bits?"

Selphie rolled her eyes then nodded. "Yea, I do. I missed you both."

Seifer chewed his lower lip nervously then said "But in what way do you love us?"

Selphie smiled "Well, I love Squall as a brother. But...i guess... I love you romantically. I have done for the last ten years. I would have come back Seifer, I just had to-"

Seifer silenced her words by resting a finger on her lips. "It's ok, I know what happened. I just wish I could have been there to help you."

Selphie closed her eyes and smiled knowing that Squall and Rinoa had explained everything to Seifer, then opened her eyes and rested her hands on Seifers forearms. "Well, youre here now. I have a lot of bad dreams though Seifer. I wake up screaming sometimes." She looked embarassed.

Seifer shook his head " I dont care. You love me and I love you, thats all that matters. And anyway, i might be able to chase those bad dreams away" he grinned lopsidedly.

Selphie grinned "Ok, lets give it a shot big guy".

Seifer laughed, wrapping his arms round Selphies waist "Oooh, if youre calling me big guy does that mean that Im not a dope anymore?"

Selphie nodded stretching up to kiss him gently on the corner of his lips. "Thats right..."

Seifer smiled and kissed her on the lips gently, his lips folding around hers. After a few seconds Selphie broke the kiss of and whispered "But youre still a moron".

Seifer's eyes widened and he went to say something, but Selphie wrapped her arms round his neck, pulling him down for a more passionate kiss.

THE END!