Things You'll Never Be My Darling

Squall Leonhart stood alone against a marble pillar near the entrance of the ballroom. His strategy was to stay long enough to say he was in attendance of the mandetory celebration but close to an exit to make a hasty getaway if necessary. The newly graduated SeeD almost left once already, to avoid a persistant classmate who kept trying to get him to join her festival committee. The messy haired brunette scoffed to himself and took a sip of his drink while looking to the ceiling of the ballroom. The ceiling was made up of several panes of glass, crafted into a dome giving an incredible view of the night sky. A flash of light caught his eye and as Squall looked up he caught the tail end of a shooting star burning against the darkness. His stormy blue eyes trailed to the middle of the dance floor and landed on a young woman, watching the same shooting star he had just witnessed, though her eyes lingered up there a bit longer. She was stunning, with pale skin that seemed to glow under the lights. She wore a short cream colored dress with a sheer overlay that hugged her every curve perfectly. Her eyes mirrored the pattern his took and they both stood frozen in time staring at one another. She gave him a smile, her dark eyes glittering mischeviously as she pointed up at the sky. Squall's breath caught in his throat, he tilted his head to the side, inquisitively at her. Then the beautiful stranger began walking towards him, a small smile playing upon her lips.

'They said he looks so handsome,
Stood not dancing,
Drawing you in like it's boring to him,'

The dark haired girl stopped right in front of him, leaning forward ever so slightly as if to tell him a secret, and said, "You're the best looking guy here." Her pale cheeks were slightly tinged with pink, whether from excitement or alcohol Squall did not know. She then placed her hands on her hips and tilted her head asking him in a breathy voice, "Dance with me?"

'It's a war you can't win and the first and the last are two things you'll never be my darling,'

Unsure of what to say or do, he fell back on indifference and turned away from the beauty before him, sipping his drink. She straightened up slightly at his lack of response and said, "Let me guess...You'll only dance with someone you like." He was already bracing himself for the oncoming barrage of insults from her. She was too attractive to be used to rejection. She would probably call him an asshole, maybe even throw a drink on him.

Crossing her arms, she eyed him up and down, "Ok then..." And then as if suddenly coming up with a brilliant idea, she clapped her hands together and gave him a silly grin. She leaned forward once more, this time with one hand in front of his face. Her expression was serious, he was about to grab her wrist in fear that she was going to physically assault him when what she did next stopped him. She began to chant, "You're-going-to-like-me...You're-going-to-like-me..."

She was drunk. She had to be. Slowly, she let her hand fall to her side. She slightly tilted her head up to him again, looking at him almost shyly and asking, "Did it work?"

Jesus, she was also cute. Really cute. Squall didn't know what to do at this point. He felt his voice slightly crack at the lie he told her, "...I can't dance."

The girl before him rolled her eyes as if to say, that's what you were really afraid of? "You'll be fine. Come on." She began to say and grabbed his free hand, tugging him towards the crowd. "I'm looking for someone. I can't be on the dance floor alone."

Squall let himself be pulled along by this beautiful, weird, girl handing his drink off to one of the Garden staff holding a tray. They stopped abruptly when she found an open spot and he stumbled into her but the girl didn't seem to mind. She was too focused on 'teaching' him to dance. Placing his hands where they needed to be and taking the lead. It was terribly awkward. He tried to leave once but she pulled him right back to her. They even bumped into another couple to which she stuck her tongue out at as if they were in the wrong. The young woman grinned playfully at him again. Maybe, he wondered, he should stop pretending for once.

Two things, you will never be my darling...

The music's tempo changed and he took the lead this time. If the dark haired woman was surprised by his sudden change in demeanor, she didn't show it. Instead, all the while she was smiling that sweet smile of hers for him. Squall twirled her out and brought her back in close, just as the fireworks went off. He admired the sky for a second time that night and looked back to his dance partner, noticing that something in the distance had caught her eye. The mysterious stranger brought her hands together and gave him a sly wink. And then as quickly as she had come into his life, she turned around and walked right out.

Things you'll never be. My darling.

A/N: I've been listening to a lot of Arctic Monkeys lately and every time I hear this part of the song I think of Squall and Rinoa. The name of the song is 'Da Frame 2R'. Thanks for reading. :)