Welcome to my new fanfiction, titled STAY. It originally had More Amor songs in it, but then I realized that song-fics actually aren't my cup of tea to read or write, so I ditched it. This was originally going to be a long one-shot, but then I realized it would be a very long one-shot, and then I was having trouble deciding on a title, and it was a mess, so finally, I decided a story would be so much easier. Enjoy! :D

"Bored, bored, bored, bored…" Rikku repeated over and over again in a sing-song voice.

"Bored, bored, bored, bored, bored," Brother answered from the kitchen, dumping the plastic carton of strawberries into the blender. Rikku pushed her head back far enough so that she could see Brother upside down from her spot on the floor. It was an uncomfortable position, but she figured it was working her neck muscles. Or something…

"Is blitzball on TV or something?" she groaned. Brother uncapped the milk with his thumb, letting the cap roll around on the floor, and poured all the milk into the blender. Then, he went and got chocolate ice cream from the freezer.

"Rikku, I've told you this ten times already today. It is not blitzball season," he said. He smiled mischievously as he set the ice cream on the counter to soften up and went to go find more things to add to his concoction. Rikku relaxed her neck took a lock of her golden hair and inspected it for split ends. Not that she would ever have a split end. She finished with that and dug her hand into the chip bag, but then realized that through the course of the morning, she had eaten all the chips. She sighed and flopped her arms out so that she made a T on the floor.

"Why isn't blitzball in the summer time when people can actually go to Luca for games?" she asked peevishly.

"People do go to games during the fall," Brother grumbled to her, taking peanut butter and scooping a heap of it into the blender. The blender was starting to get very full. He started scooping the ice cream into it with his tongue plastered over his upper lip, concentrating on getting the ratio of ice cream to peanut butter just right. He finished and added a few dashes of cinnamon, then a few shakes of salt and pepper. Rikku curled her lip as she watched him from her spot on the carpet floor.

She remembered that a few years ago, when Mom was still around, the carpet was plushy and you could just fall on it like it was a cloud. Ten years of heavy boots and angry stomps out of the apartment had worn the carpet down thin, so it was hardly even comfortable anymore.

"That looks disgusting…" Rikku stated.

"You're disgusting!" Brother shouted back before she had even finished, his eyes wide. Rikku raised an eyebrow at him. They had a stare off until Brother shuffled away, returning the ice cream to the freezer and grabbing some grated cheese from the refrigerator, along with a lemon. He threw the grated cheese in and cut the lemon in half, then squeezed the juice from the lemon into the blender. "And now… the moment… of destiny," Brother said dramatically. Rikku flipped over onto her stomach to watch, laying her forearms flat on the floor to prop herself up. Brother stuck the lid on snugly and turned the blender on. All went as planned for about three seconds, and then, the lid sprang off when a particularly powerful glob of peanut butter and chocolate ice cream hit it from within. Rikku covered her mouth in shock. Brother ran for the escaped lid.

"Turn it off!" Rikku yelled at him. He was hastily looking for the 'off' button on the blender while nodding in agreement.

Meanwhile, his disgusting idea of a summer snack was flying all over the kitchen, sticking to the ceiling and walls. Chocolate ice cream went straight for the refrigerator, splattering over family pictures that were held there by magnets. Finally, Brother simply jerked the cord from the wall, and the blender died down. He stood there, staring in shock at the now menacing blender. Rikku laced her fingers together and slid them down to the floor, resting her chin on them with a thrilled smile. She kicked her legs up and swung them back and forth. "Pops is gonna 'tan yer hide'," she said, imitating her dad. Brother looked to her, still panting. He didn't disagree. He just dreaded.

"Quick! Help me clean this up!" he said, letting go of the cord grabbing a paper towel, tugging it so that a long ribbon of paper towels came sailing out. He ripped them all off and went for the counter, which had lemony grated cheese strawberry gunk all over it.

"No way, mister! You're on your own!" she yelped. She sprang from the floor and ran to the door. "Bye bye!" she called, waving to Brother as she left the house. She was going to leave soon anyway. Pops had told her to stay inside, but… whatever. She couldn't just sit in there for another minute, or her legs might have gone crazy. She trumped happily down the hallway, relishing the feeling of motion.

"Hey, sexy!" someone called. She turned her eyes. Ugh, Gippal. She scoffed in disgust at him and kept walking. "Catch ya later," he said, his wolf pack laughing at his obvious hilarity.

"Mm, I don't think sooo," Rikku sang, making sure to swing her hips a bit more as she walked away. The wide hallways of Home were especially crowded today, full of people going down to the oasis maybe, or basically anywhere to have fun on this summer day. Funny thing is though that it's hard to enjoy a nice warm day when you have to worry about being baked to a crisp while you're out there frolicking. Not that the Al Bhed hadn't grown accustomed to the heat.

She walked down to the junkyard and sauntered over to Mr. Lohor, the old man who was self-employed at the junkyard. "Whatcha got today?" she asked, peering at the short machine that was being worked on. It had a cute little face made of buttons. Al Bhed found their machina far more personable when they had a face.

"Nothing interesting," he said, pushing his metal mask off of his face. That only makes her want to know what it does more. "What're you doin' all the way down here?"

"Brother made a mess, so I thought I should get out before I got into big trouble with him. Pops should be back soon," Rikku explained. "He deserves it," she continued, not giving Mr. Lohor the chance to speak. "He tries to make all this gross food, but then, they all turn out dis-gusting, and he tries to feed it to the fiends! And people wonder why we have some of the only species of things on Bikanel, it's because they're mutated!" Mr. Lohor laughed and pushed his mask down again, working his boot into the sand for a good footing and taking his wrench, turning a screw round and round in the core of the machina. Rikku put her hands on her lower back and bent over. "Can I help with anything?" It was a nice day outside, although on Bikanel, every day was nice. There were a few fluffy white clouds flying overhead, which made it all the more quaint. The junkyard where Mr. Lohor put together some machina and sold it around was covered by a shade, so he didn't have to worry about the heat from the sun. She watched as the screw tightened on the machina. Rikku could work on machina all day, if she was allowed. Her hands were calloused from the work in general. But, she prided herself in them. Who cares if all the other girls think that it's gross to work on machina all day? All they care about is their hair and their clothes. Where's the fun in that?

"Nah, I'm actually just finishing up, Rik," Mr. Lohor said, sliding the mask off again and putting the wrench into his tool box. Rikku wilted.

"There's nothing going on even in here?" she asked miserably. She came down here when she was super bored and desperately looking for something to do. Mr. Lohor was nice and everything, but the work was slow. No heavy duty machina. Basically, appliances, or clean up stuff.

"Well, I'm making dinner for my wife tonight, so I gotta get home early," he said, wiping some grime from his hands with a white towel. Rikku smiled halfheartedly, swinging her body back and forth.

"That's nice of you…" she said quietly. She can only imagine Mr. Lohor's cooking…

"Yeah. Hey, how's your daddy doin'?" he asked, closing up his toolkit.

"Ugh, same as ever," she answered. Mr. Lohor was always wondering if Pops was dating again. And the answer was always no. And the answer will always be no. Rikku just stared at a pile of bolts, twisting her foot around in the sand until her boots were covered by it. Mr. Lohor nodded. When he saw that she wasn't willing to pursue the topic any further, he cleared his throat.

"Well, Rik, I have to lock this place up and get goin'," he said awkwardly. He obviously felt bad about shooing her away when she just got there.

"Oh, I can do it!" Rikku said. He twisted up his face.

"Uh… Rikku…" he said.

"I won't cause any trouble! Please, please, pretty please! I'm so bored!" she said. He allowed a smile to play up on his old, wrinkled face. He sighed in resignation.

"Awright, just make sure you lock it up good, all right? Kids try to up and steal m' stuff all the time," he said. He tossed the key to her. She caught it with one hand and gave him a bright smile.

"You got it, boss!" she said, running off into the maze of junk. She heard the door creak closed and went to explore in the junk yard. It was full of things that she could just imagine becoming a machine to do useful things. She could see heating up one sheet of metal, forging it together with another to make a dome, putting something inside, throwing on some paints to make it more resistant to electricity... Eventually, she went over to the machina that Mr. Lohor was making. It looked like it would be able to function by now. There was a glowing, orange sphere stuck into the side of it. She saw the bright blue switch to turn it on. Better not though. She went behind another pile of junk. One man's trash is another girl's treasure.

The door groaned open.

"Helloooo?" Rikku pursed her lips as she sat up straighter. Intruder… "Mr. Lohor?" She stood up and hid behind the large pile of whatsits, waiting for her moment to strike. She tapped her finger against her thigh a few times in anticipation, then leaped out.

"Gippal!" she yelled as Gippal jumped in alarm. "Come to steal some of Mr. Lohor's junk, huh?" she snapped, pointing a finger at him in an accusing way. Gippal straightened up and looked around him.

"Why would I steal junk?" he asked her. Rikku just continued to glare at him. He grinned and shook his head. "Nice to see you, too, kid," he said, walking past her and rustling her hair. She arranged it back to the way she had it and turned.

"What are you doing here, then?" she asked, following him closely. It was her job to protect Mr. Lohors junk- er, stuff, and she was going to take it seriously. And she would definitely not let Gippal wander around here like he owned the place. He's a delinquent. He's a bad kid. Every one knows that. Even Pops, who can hardly see past his own nose. He tells her, 'I don't like that Gippal boy, you stay away from him, y'hear?' Don't have to tell me twice.

"I was just going to ask Mr. Lohor if there were some things he was willing to give away," he answered absentmindedly, winding around the tall piles of metal and other things, occasionally picking at a piece of scrap metal. Rikku followed, nearly on his heels. She didn't trust him one bit. "Where is he anyway, kid?" he asked.

"First of all!" Rikku started, putting a finger in his face. "My name's not kid! Get it right!" Gippal just stared blandly at her, obviously not going to change his name for her. Or he actually forgot her name. "Second, he went home to make dinner for his loving wife, and third, he will not be giving freebies away to you anytime soon," Rikku said, crossing her arms and walking away from him, making a point to toss her ponytail in his direction for more emphasis.

"Oh, really? Because he does every other day. At least, the days when you're not here," Gippal says. Rikku made a face at him. What was he getting at? Does he torture the poor old man into giving him things? What if he hurts Mr. Lohor? Rikku heard that Gippal threw a little dog into the oasis once. You can't get more heartless than that.

"He told me to lock this place up, so, out you go," she said, pushing him sideways by his shoulder towards the door. He put his hands in his pockets.

"You're so powerful," Gippal said sarcastically.

"Just get out, Gippal!" she said angrily. She couldn't help it if her skinny frame didn't leave much muscle to work with.

"I'll just come back later, anyway," Gippal said as he allowed himself to be shoved over to the door.

"So you're the one that steals his stuff!" Rikku said accusingly, throwing in an extra burst of power. It didn't do much. Gippal grabbed onto the doorframe and faced her, and she was unable to move him anymore.

"No, I leave proper compensation for him," he said with a glint in his eye as she backed up and put her hands on her hips.

"Where, buried in the sand so you can come back for it?" Rikku asked.

"No." Rikku waited for him to tell her where he left it, as proof that he didn't, on top of drowning puppies, steal from old men. "Oh, please, like I would tell you where I leave money for poor, defenseless Mr. Lohor, with your sticky fingers!" Gippal said. Me?

"I do not have sticky fingers," Rikku answered. Brother chatters way too much about the things Rikku takes from him. "Besides, I wouldn't steal from old men!"

"Oh, who are you now, Robin Hood?"

"Ugh, whatever, the point is, I don't steal things!"

"Oh, right, you just get the five finger discount," Gippal said, holding his hand up and spreading his fingers apart, waggling them at her. It was his downfall. She shoved his chest with all her might, and he fell out of the doorframe. She slammed the door behind him and turned around. The heavy iron door creaked open again. "By the way—"

"Get out!" Rikku yelled, spinning around. Gippal pushed the door open more just to annoy her. He leaned against the door frame, and she pursed her lips at him.

"Anyway, before you so rudely interrupted me, I heard you got nominated to go on that trip thing off the coast," Gippal said. Rikku straightened up. Finally. Some recognition. Gippal may be the cool guy around, but he was also a big machina nerd. She knew that he would be super jealous of her.

"Yes. I did," she answered. If she had feathers, she would most definitely be preening them right about now.

"There's only one spot for a minor, right?" Gippal asked, lounging on the door frame. The iron door creaked as it was blown all the way open from the wind. Rikku looked to the horizon before she answered. A sandstorm was on its way.

"Yeah," she said absentmindedly as she ran over and pulled the iron curtain down to block the sand from the junk. She did that to the three walls. Gippal waited patiently for her to return to their conversation.

"Right. And it's all mine," he answered. Rikku's mouth dropped open. This was only the biggest thing that could happen to the machina enthusiasts. A chance to go out on a trip with the big leagues and learn the ropes, hunt for old machina, all kinds of things. When you go on this yearly trip, you're set for life.

"You were nominated too?" she shouted, her voice sounding extra loud now that it was in the closed space. She could hear the wind howling around the relatively small area.

"Yeah. What, did you think I wouldn't be?" Now, if he were a bird, he would be preening too.

"I hoped you wouldn't," Rikku grumbled. It's true – Gippal was real competition. The others had been nominated to make it seem fair, but none of them were up to par with Rikku. Except Gippal. Everyone knew he just had a way with machina.

"Yeah, and I'm guessing they'll have to pick me, because if they chose you… well, you know," Gippal said with a grin on his face, jerking his head to the side in a sort of shrug. Rikku tilted her head, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. If he was finding a way to pay off the voters, two can play at that game. But would he admit to something like that?

"What?" she asked quietly.

"Well… You're Cid's girl." Rikku felt steam coming out of her head. It was the monkey on her back since she was a kid. She was always left out of maybe doing fun stuff, or getting in trouble, because since she was Cid's daughter, she would inevitably get them all in trouble some way or another. She marched over to him.

"Listen, Gippal! I am going to get that spot, and it will be because of what I can do, not because of Pops," she said angrily. Like he would vouch for me to go on something like this, anyway…

"And you're sure about that?" Gippal asked in a hushed voice, tilting his face down so that he could look right into her eyes. Height was not a gene in her family. Still, she mustered up all five foot one inches that she had.

"Yes," she shouted. "Now, seriously. Get-out." She pushed him out again with her hip, and he willingly went. She closed the door and locked it with the key.

"Well, whoever wins, we'll still be pals, right?" Gippal asked behind her. She looked over her shoulder at him with her eyes narrowed.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot. Were we pals?" Gippal just smiled at her, narrowing his eye right back at her. She gave him the sweetest smile she could rally and turned on her heel back down the hallway. She went up to Mr. Lohor's apartment and stuck the key into his mailbox, hoping nothing would happen to it. She glanced around herself then, suspicious that Gippal might be waiting around the corner to take the key and go steal whatever he wanted. And definitely not leave Mr. Lohor any 'compensation'. She took it out again after a second thought. He probably had a second set of keys… she would just bring it back to him tomorrow.

She walked back to her apartment and went inside. The place was nearly spotless. She walked into the kitchen to see Brother scrubbing the floor with all his might.

"Rikku!" he screeched.

"Yeeees?" she sang, putting her finger on her chin in a thoughtful manner.

"When I finish this, I'm going to toss you out the window!" Brother said, but in such a Brother-ish way that it could hardly be considered a threat.

"Uh-huh. I'll be in my room," Rikku answered.

"At least help me get the-."

"Nope."

"Rikku…" Brother whined helplessly. She walked back over to him and patted him on the head like he was a good little Al Bhed.

"Maybe you'll stop making gross things in the blender now," Rikku said. He still glared at her, then turned back to the icky stuff on the floor and continued to clean it up. "By the way, Pops should be home in about a half hour." Rikku could almost see the sweat rise out from his pores as he started to scrub the floor faster. She giggled a bit, then went to her room. She finally cracked the spine of her machina book. She was determined to go on that trip.

Don't get confused, but next chapter is going to be a tad different. I'm sure you'll catch on very quickly though! :)