DISCLAIMER: Only the plot of the fic is mine, everything is belongs to Square. Goes for the whole thing.

---

It would have been a lie to say that she walked into it with her eyes closed; she knew what would happen. She knew that one day Seifer would dump her onto the hard, unfeeling ground and break her heart. She knew that as surely as she knew her own name. Quistis had always been pragmatic, and she could see quite clearly what a relationship with him would be; passionate, incredibly intense, and short. But it didn't stop her from falling in love with him anyway.

It started simply enough: with Seifer trying to prove that he could make any woman he wanted fall into bed with him within an hour of kissing her. Raijin and Fujin had no trouble believing him; at least thirty girls in Garden had fallen for those green eyes and the easy arrogance that helped fuel the sexiness that he exuded. That and the promises that he'd be there when they woke up in the morning. He always found it funny when they caught up with him in the hallway the next day with their whiny voices. Raijin and Fujin were tired of handing over a thousand Gil a girl, so they set a challenge that was little more complex. The one woman in Balamb Garden who was certain not to sleep with him. Instructor Quistis Trepe.

Seifer didn't blink when they announced his next target. "Fine. How much time do I have?"

"One night."

He raised his eyebrows. "Even I'm not going to get the ice queen to defrost that quickly. I want two months."

"Two months?!"

"ONE," Fujin said.

"I want more money this time. She's a big prize, let's not pretend she's only worth a thousand Gil."

Raijin and Fujin both snickered at each other, both knowing in a million years he'd never pull this one off. "FINE."

"Ten thousand."

"Done."

"You ain't gonna do this," Raijin said, grinning at Fujin.

Seifer said nothing, simply smirked and put his feet up on the desk as his new future-conquest walked into the room.

He cornered her after class that afternoon.

---

Quistis sighed, removed her glasses closing her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose. Her thoughts lingered on the last cadet to have walked out of that door. Squall Leonheart. She pictured herself waking up with him by her side in the mornings, being the one woman able to bring out a smile in him. Then her icy common sense cut in and reminded her that it was unethical and would cost her her job if anything did happen. But, Hyne, she wanted it so badly. "Damn it, get out of there!" she whispered out loud.

"Didn't think you the type to talk to yourself, Instructor." A deep, drawling voice, perpetually amused and arrogant. The one person that frustrated her more than anyone else. Seifer.

Her eyes snapped open. "Seifer. What is it?" she asked, standing up and walking around her desk.

"Oh, nothing really. Just wondering what my favourite instructor is up to."

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you want?"

"I can't come by just to say hi?"

"Considering it's you, no."

"Alright, I may have an ulterior motive."

She raised an eyebrow. "And that would be…"

"To tell you that your ass looks good in that skirt," he smirked.

She slapped him with a crack that echoed around the room. It left a livid red mark on his face that showed a very defined handprint once she took her hand down. "Don't ever speak to me like that again," she said, venom in her tone. But they both knew there was nothing she could do now. Her SeeD uniform was regulation, and even if she used the issue trousers instead, then Seifer would know he'd won. If she kept it, she'd know that he was watching her all the time. If she changed, she'd be handing him his victory on a plate.

The smirk had gone, but now it flickered back again. "Didn't know that I got to you that much, Trepe."

"Why the hell are you still here, Seifer?" she spat.

"I really get under your skin, don't I?" he said.

She took her glasses off and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Yes. Yes you do," she sighed. "Are you happy now?"

"No." His answer surprised them both. "Do you really think I do it just to piss you off?"

"Then why do you do it?" she demanded, somehow managing to look intimidating despite being several inches shorter than him.

He shrugged. "Be nice to get your attention off Puberty Boy for a while. I can't exactly run up to you, hit you and run away again, can I?"

She stared at him. "Are you-" She frowned, then closed her eyes and ran her tongue over her lips in a gesture that Seifer found indescribably tempting. Had she always been a beautiful woman? The sapphire eyes opened again. "I really don't want to know what you're implying, Seifer. It smacks of inappropriateness."

"Sure you want to know," he said firmly. He took one step closer. "I'm not implying anything. I'm stating it. I. Like-"

"Seifer-"

"You. And you like me too, whether you want to admit it or not."

"I'm not attracted to you," she said defiantly. "I have a little more control over my hormones than that, thank you very much." Blatant lie. She may have been a cool, calm and collected Instructor, but under the surface she was what any eighteen year old woman was; a raging fireworks display of chemicals. Most of which were urging her to lean forward and close the gap between their lips.

"Oh yeah? Then why are you about to kiss me?" Seifer asked, the smirk more pronounced now.

"I'm not," she whispered, heart hammering as another wave of his scent washed over her. She could feel the heat radiating from his body, so close was he.

Seifer grinned briefly, then bent and pressed his lips to hers. It was swift and soft and, for Seifer, chaste. Ish. She didn't pull away. When he did, he had to grin at her expression; caught between outrage that he'd done it and surprise that she'd enjoyed it so much. Then it cleared, and her fist curled, and suddenly his face was being forced backward as she punched his nose. "Ow! Fuck it, Trep-"

She grabbed his collar, pulled him down and kissed the hell out of him. He actually froze for a second, used to being the one to deliver that kind of – Holy Hyne the woman can kiss – scorching, nuclear-fire kiss, but then got over it and kissed back. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer as she moaned a little and opened her mouth slightly. Her tongue slid into his mouth, and within seconds they were warring for dominance of the kiss. Then –Shit, is that me he thought in horror. Seifer didn'tmoan during kisses. Except apparently when the girl tasted as good as Quistis did.

After about two solid minutes of them kissing the shit out of each other, they broke apart, breathing heavily. "Mmm. That wasn't bad, you know," she commented. "Goodnight, Seifer."

She walked away, switching the light off and leaving him standing in the dark not quite knowing what had just happened. Then, once his kiss-addled brain had worked it out, he let out a small, outraged noise. "She just…used me!" Then he burst out laughing. "I've got to hand it to you, Trepe," he said, looking at the door, "this is going to be a challenge."

---

A/N: Please, please, please, PLEASE review. It's my first fic & if I'm crappy I wanna kno. Cheers, Isis x x x