Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy 8 but I've played it all the way through. That should count for something, right?

1: Garden

My white dressed swirled around me as I gracefully danced on the ballroom floor. Guy after guy would ask me for a dance and I would humbly accept. Throughout the whole party I was waiting for a certain guy to ask me. He stood shyly on the sidelines, watching me pass from one hand to another. I was allowed a break and that's when I noticed him leave the wall and walk over to me. My heart began to beat faster.

"May I have the pleasure of this dance?" he asked. I gave him my hand and he swept me onto the floor. I rested my head on his chest; his heartbeat was in sync with my own. It was warm in his arms and I never wanted the moment to end. I glanced up at his handsome face. The music died away and a new song was put in.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

I cringed at the noise. What in the world?

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Dang! It's my alarm! I groggily reached over and turned it off. How rude to wake me up right in the middle of a nice dream! Hopefully I can get back to sleep…

I smiled at my dance partner and we continued the dance. My feet never got tired and after three or four dances with this handsome man I was still active. He and I parted ways, however, and I visited with some of my friends. One man in particular had decided to be a wallflower. He hadn't even asked me to dance. I stood before him and glared at him with my hands on my hips.

"Are you just going to stand there all day?" I demanded.

"I don't wanna dance," he grunted, tightening his crossed arms.

"Sure you do!" I insisted. "Come on!" I grabbed his arm and dragged him onto the dance floor. I found a nice girl and forced him onto her. "And you'd better have a good time, or else!" He meekly obeyed me and danced with the girl I had paired him up with. Satisfied, I returned to my date and we danced more. It was a magical night that…

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Crud! Not again! I better see what time it is.

10: 30 AM

"Oh NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I slept in again!"

I quickly hopped out of bed and forced on my uniform. I grabbed my materials off my table and raced out of the dorm. The center of my school is like a gigantic wheel with different spokes branching out to other areas of the school. The dormitories are located in one of those spokes, classes are found in another. I skidded into the spoke that led to my classroom and race-walked the rest of the way. There was no need to draw attention to myself.

I stopped a few inches away from the door to catch my breath. Once I got myself composed, I quietly crept to the doorway. My instructor was preoccupied with his lecture, thankfully. The other students in my class were scribbling down notes. My eyes lighted on my empty desk. A friend of mine was sitting at the next to it. I mouthed his name, not wanting the instructor to notice me. He continued to scribble. I waved my arms but to no avail. He put down his pencil and stretched his arms over his head. He idly turned his head towards the door; his eyes widened when he saw me. His arms returned to the desk and he flashed a wide grin. I smiled back at him. He pointed to my desk and winked at me; I nodded in understanding. He brought out a straw, then put something from his mouth into the straw. He put the straw in his mouth and blew. The projectile flew all the way across the room and hit another student on the temple. That student shot his hand up.

"Instructor!" The instructor glanced over at him. Being thus occupied, I tiptoed over to my desk and took a seat. My friend and I shook hands.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Someone hit me with a spitball!" The class chuckled quietly. The instructor sighed irritably and eyed my friend.

"Zell!" His head jerked up.

"What?"

"How old are you?"

"Oh, come on! You don't think that I did that, do you?" The instructor walked our way, shaking his head slowly.

"I know you are a SeeD, but that is no excuse to act like a child."

"I'm sorry."

"If you're going to say that, at least act like you're really sorry." Zell grinned and thought it best to keep his mouth shut. He's so funny; I'm glad he's my friend. The instructor turned his attention towards me. "Have you been here this whole time?" I cringed.

"Uh… yes?" He raised his eyebrow doubtfully. I hung my head. "No, Instructor."

"I didn't think so." Zell and I exchanged worried glances. "I want both of you to stay after class." It wasn't a request. It was an order.

"But we'll miss lunch!" complained Zell.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Dincht, but it's for your own good." Zell groaned and rested his head on his desk. I attempted to pay attention for the rest of the class but it just wasn't any use. Instead I took to studying Zell. I was in an art class and that had helped me notice little things that other people might miss. Zell had blonde hair that stuck straight up in little spikes. There was a black tattoo-- I think it's a tattoo-- on the left side of his face. It was like a curved lightning bolt. His eyes were currently hidden, but I knew them well: they were dark but cheerful and full of mischief. He usually wore a smile and would've looked strange without one. Instead of notes on the lecture, his paper was covered in literal scribbles. He was the only one in the room that wasn't wearing a uniform. Then again, he was never one to blend in.

The outfit Zell was wearing could've been classified as his uniform, since he wore it all the time. He wore a white shirt with a black short jacket over it. His legs were covered by blue jeans that weren't quite long enough to pass his ankles. His red socks stuck out from his black boots. On his hands were a pair of fighting gloves. These were the ones that exacted the least amount of damage; they were made of cloth and didn't have anything extra to make his punch stronger. Seeing those gloves made me realize he would be in the training center after lunch.

Finally the hour was over and Zell and I were called to the front. Our instructor gave us a long lecture about the importance of being on time and paying attention in class. I've had this exact same lecture preached to me dozens of times before. It was like all the instructors were given a speech to memorize in case one of their students was late or wasn't paying attention. I poked Zell and opened my mouth as if to yawn. I patted my open mouth with my hand. He grinned and nodded in agreement. I would've fallen asleep right there if our instructor hadn't finished his lecture when he did. He warned us "never to do it again", which we promised we wouldn't. We exited the room, grinning happily.

"FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Zell shouted, stretching his arms over his head. Many students on their way to lunch gave him strange looks. He didn't care. "It's about time we got outta there!" His stomach growled, demanding food. "Man, I'm hungry! You wanna get something to eat?"

"Well, actually, I'm meeting someone else for lunch," I said. I didn't bother telling him who that someone was, because he would be able to figure it out. His smile wavered for a moment but stayed where it was.

"Oh, that's okay. I'll see you there anyway!" He waved and eagerly raced towards the cafeteria. I knew the reason for his speed: hotdogs. The guy is addicted to those things, and they go fast at our school. I shook my head, smiling fondly, and made my way to my friend's classroom. He wasn't a SeeD when he first came to our Garden but will become one when he takes the exam in the winter. I came to the door of his class and waited, rocking myself back and forth on the balls of my feet.

The class let out. Many of students I knew, and I greeted them with a wave. He was one of the last to exit the room. My eyes rested on him and I could feel my insides churning. His brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail as always, his lips in that smug grin of his. His black fedora was cradled in his hands. When he was out of the classroom, he flipped it back on his head with a flick of his wrist. His eyes held the power of a storm and the gentleness of a spring day. He wore a tan overcoat on top of a black shirt. He also wore tan pants with a lighter shade of tan on each of his knees. He wore knee-high brown boots that were slightly covered by his pants.

"Howdy!" I greeted, using a term he enjoyed a lot. His handsome face broke out into a grin. It was an honest sort of smile, not boyish like Zell's.

"Well, fancy meetin' you here!" he exclaimed. I giggled, blushing furiously. Other girlish giggles joined my own. I turned and saw about ten or so girls clumped together. They waved furiously at my friend and he tipped his hat at them. I wanted to take out my nun chucks and beat them all across the head. He signed and waved to me. "See ya later, I guess." My heart sank as I watched him join the gaggle of females.

"See ya later," I echoed blankly. A lump formed in my throat and my vision was blurred by tears. I took several deep breaths to calm myself and wiped the tears away. My stomach reminded me of my need for food. I would have to worry about my boy problems later. I straightened my uniform and walked to the cafeteria. I can be dignified if I want to! Really! I just… usually don't want to.

The cafeteria was already filled with chattering students. I spotted Zell at a table by himself. This wasn't because he wasn't popular; it was because he crammed food into his mouth at a fast speed. My other male friend was far from being alone. I glared at the girls that surrounded him irritably. My attention was caught by a girl my age waving to me. I brightened up when I saw that it was my roommate. She had kindly saved a seat for me and had even ordered my food. She's so sweet to me. She used to like Zell, but she lost interest in him or something. I never figured out all the details.

"Hi, Oonagh," I greeted, sitting down across from her.

"Glad to see you, Miss Petite. How was your class today?" Her pet name for me is Miss Petite. It's because I'm so small and thin. She's thin too but I don't have a pet name for her. Her name is Oonagh Reigmar and we've been roommates since I came to Balamb. She wears her brown hair in pigtails and she has beautiful gray eyes. She always looked proper in her school uniform and even when she sat down it hardly ever wrinkled. I wish I could be like her.

"Boring, as usual. You?"

"I learned a lot, but I'm sure you don't want to hear about that."

"You're right." She laughed, politely covering her mouth with her hand. She had ordered me a salad, knowing that I was a vegetarian. I took up my fork and dug into it. It was a delicious salad. I just can't understand why some people would want to eat hotdogs when they could have a salad like this.

"Miss Petite, you'll never guess what happened to me in the library this morning."

"I wasn't up this morning, so you're right." Her hand went to her mouth again as she erupted in giggles. Her laugh sounds like rain pattering on a roof. She calmed down quickly, another thing I envy her of.

"That's why I'm going to tell you. I was in the library reading when Instructor Oren walked in." My lips quivered into a mischievous grin. I could tell where this was going. "He came right up to me and said 'I read that book. It's very good.' Then he smiled at me!" Her face broke into a grin of her own. She had a huge crush on her instructor, a guy named Walter Oren. I once had to clean out the desks in his classroom for detention. He's a pretty nice guy, and smart too.

"Did he really?"

"Yes!"

"Oh, my god! That's wonderful!" She and I squealed simultaneously. Others that were sitting close by gave us strange looks. "Good for you!" She collected herself and returned to her dignified state.

"What about you?" she questioned. She raised her eyebrows significantly.

"See for yourself," I sighed, jerking my thumb over my shoulder. It only took her a glance to see what I was talking about.

"Oh, Miss Petite. We all know he's a big flirt, but he doesn't mean anything by it." I nodded and stuck some salad into my mouth. I chewed in thought and swallowed.

"I don't mind that. It's the ignoring me part I don't like."

"Just give him more time," she advised. "He may be shy of you."

"Shy? A guy doesn't go around flirting like he does being shy!" I exclaimed. I meekly ducked my head, realizing I might have been a bit too loud. Luckily I wasn't the only big mouth in the cafeteria, and my outburst went unnoticed.

"You're not like all the other girls, Miss Petite," Oonagh reminded me, pointing her finger at me. "That's what makes you special." I smiled and thanked her for her kind words. She was right, of course.

"I hope he gets over his shyness soon. You know how impatient I am!" This time we both laughed… LOUD.