I do not own Final Fantasy VIII or the characters!
My True Feelings
Chapter 2
"Ok, we gotta get a whole bunch of candy. Since I'm not having the Halloween Ball on the same day as Halloween, I figured that the junior classmen could go trick or treating in Garden. Plus, we need a lot for the party," said Selphie. It wouldn't be the first year for Trick or Treating, but it wasn't something that went on every year. It depended on the school's budget, and those of SeeD. They would take a vote. Selphie had bought enough to give out at the ball, but she also bought some to give out to the children. This year, most SeeD had voted to do the trick or treating for the kids. Selphie was happy with that outcome. It's something fun for both junior classmen and SeeD to do together. Even the older cadets get into it for the kids.
Selphie and Squall were in Balamb shopping for candy. Squall was already pushing a cart filled with just candy. It was probably at least 100 gil worth. And Selphie was planning to get more. A lot more. He thought they had enough at first, but then again, he didn't know. He wasn't a big candy eater, so he thought what they had now would be plenty. But if she were planning on saving some for the junior classmen, then he supposed it was enough.
"Don't you think we have enough? You're going to spend more than 100 gil on candy," said Squall, gesturing to the candy that was in the cart.
"So? You can never have too much candy," Selphie replied, giving him a wink.
"You can if it's just for you."
"Well its not just for me, now is it Mr. Leonhart?"
"Whatever."
Selphie pick out another 100 gil worth of candy before going to the casher and paid for the candy. With all the candy they had got, Squall was a gentleman and carried most of the bags to the truck, putting them in the back. He knew this wasn't going to the only stop they were going to make. If he knew Selphie, and he was sure he knew his friend pretty well, she was going to have plenty of other stops she was going to want to make. It didn't bother him, though. Normally something like that would just annoy him to no end. Maybe because it was usually with Rinoa that he was shopping with. She was the kind of girl that would drag him into every store, trying on everything that they had. She'd even find clothes for him to try on, stuff that he knew he would never wear. Selphie, on the other hand, wasn't like that. Well, she can be. But today was all about the ball and the kids. Nothing was really for her. And she didn't have clothes for him to try on. So he was actually enjoying himself. Like he said, it was a chance for him to get out of the office. Away from Rinoa. Away from the office. Just…everything.
Next stop was a party supplies store. Selphie wanted to get more decorations. She felt they needed more spider webs and spiders to go along with it. She did find a pretty nifty looking punch bowl. Well, it was more of a dispenser. Squall that that was a better idea. He was gong to have to find a way to put a lock on the top so the kids couldn't spike it. Honestly, he didn't care what they did. But as commander, he had to make sure they weren't getting into trouble. So he had to prevent something such as spiking the punch.
In cart along with the drink dispenser was the spider webs and spiders. Selphie had also decided that she was going to put her baking skills to the test and bought A LOT of cupcake cups. She bought a grim reaper that stood about six feet tall. It said many different phrases and moved its head back and forth. His eyes glowed a bright red when he talked. They both decided he would be best to put at the doors of the Quad as it was motion censored. She was very happy with her purchases.
Just as they were going to Squall's truck, they passed an animal shelter. Selphie saw the kittens in the window and gasped. Her eyes were wide with excitement, and she couldn't help but give out a little squeal. Squall winced at the sound and turned to look at her. He hadn't noticed that she stopped, so he was a few feet away from her. How did that happen? He must have been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he hadn't even noticed.
"Awwwwww, Squall! They're so cute!" said Selphie as she hopped with even more excitement. Squall sighed slightly and went over to see what she was looking at.
"I like that one," she said once he got there.
He followed her gazed. It was a little black kitten she was looking at. It had beautiful blue eyes and basically was just a little ball of fur. Very fluffy. It seemed to be the smallest in the litter. Poor little guy was trying to play with the other kittens, but just kept getting pushed over. Selphie giggled at that and looked up at Squall. "Cute, right?" She's never had a pet before, and if she were to have one, she'd love to get a cat. Not that she didn't like dogs, but with her line of work, she figured a cat would be easier to take care of.
'It does look kind of cute,' Squall thought.
"Its eyes look familiar," said Selphie. "They're so blue… So pretty." She looked up at Squall. He was still looking at the cat. She nudged him to get his attention. Once he looked at her, Selphie's eyes widen. 'His eyes! The kitten's eyes looks like Squall's.' thought Selphie.
"The kitten's eyes are like yours, Squall," Selphie told him.
"Do you want the cat?" He asked. He was commander after all. He had the authority to make that kind of decision. Pets weren't normally allowed in the dorms. But even if Selphie was still technically a student, he knew that she would be there longer. He had a feeling that she'd probably end up becoming an instructor, and she's been talking about wanting to get a pet for some time… Only Garden doesn't allow pets unless the animal was a 'weapon' like Rinoa used Angelo sometimes. Still, Selphie was going to be living in Garden. Squall felt that some of the rules needed to be changed anyway.
"Yeah, but I don't have enough money. I spent it all on candy and- hey! Where are you going?"
Squall didn't answer her question. He simply went in the shelter, told the employee which cat he wanted then, motioned Selphie to come in. She did as she was told. She stopped right in front of Squall, blushing slightly.
"Here, take this to my truck and stay there. I'll be there in a few minutes," he said giving her the keys and the bags of decorations. Selphie almost fell over as he kind of pushed the bags in her arms, but she managed to keep her balance.
"Squall, you don't have to buy me the cat. I won't have enough my to pay you back for the cat stuff plus the cat for a long time," said Selphie, giving him a pout. "And there's the 'no pet' rule at Garden. Cid would be mad if he found out."
"Who says you have to pay me back? You deserve it. Besides, some of the rules need to be changed anyway. I'll deal with Cid. Now go by the truck," Squall said giving her a little push toward the door.
Selphie nodded, blushing a little more as she picked up the bags she dropped. Squall grabbed a cart and helped her put the bags into it before letting her take control of it. She took one last look at him. He pointed his finger toward the door. Selphie smiled a bit and push the cart to the truck, starting to put the bags in the back.
'Wow!' Selphie thought happily. 'Squall's getting me a cat? That's weird. He doesn't even want me to pay him back. I guess he is nicer than I thought. Even willing to bend the rules for me. I've always had a little crush on Squall, now, I think its changed from little to big!' She waited for Squall in his truck for about ten minutes. 'Maybe he needs help'. She got out of the truck and started walking toward the little store, but she saw Squall coming. She smiled at him. He smiled back.
"Squall, I just wanted to say-"
"You don't have to thank me, Selph," he said as he put the stuff for the kitten in the truck. He was sure that he got everything that was needed. Litter, litter box, food, and some toys. Of course a couple of bowls for the food and water to go into. He knew almost nothing about cats, but the sales lady was very helpful. He may even think about getting a pet for himself. Maybe.
"But I want to. You're a good friend. At first, I thought that maybe you would roll you eyes and say you were busy when I asked for help. And when I asked who wanted to come with me, I thought that maybe Irvine-"
"Do you really think that little of me?" Squall asked a little hurt. He had no idea his friends thought of him like that.
"No! I just thought that you thought that I was annoying and you don't want to be around me or help me."
"Well you thought wrong. I adopted the cat for you as a gift from a friend and as commander. Mostly as a friend. Selph, you helped so much to make our garden better. You're always planning parties or balls. You make garden fun. It was boring before you came here. We need more students like you in Garden." Well, there were probably quite a few, but he hasn't met them all. A lot of the students always at on edge with him like he was going to yell at them for every little thing they did. He wished they wouldn't. He was strict, yes, but he knew how to have fun. Maybe he wasn't like that before, but… things change.
"Really?" she asked, blushing again for the hundredth time.
"Really."
"Cool! I rock!"
"You want to know what I think you should go as?"
"What?"
"A Greek Goddess."
She blushed and looked up at him. "But I'm nothing like a goddess."
"Even if that were true, that's the point of Halloween, Selphie," he said to her, giving her a small smile.
"You're right! I guess I'll just have to go as that, then."
"And I'll go as a Greek God."
"Uh…won't Rinoa be jealous? I mean, I think she's expecting you to do the whole couple's costume thing with her."
"She can't get what she wants all the time. I'm not dressing up as a damn prince."
Selphie giggled and shook her head. Rinoa would make him dress up as a prince. Or maybe a king. She smiled at him. He smiled back, ruffling her hair. He then carefully passed the carrier which contained the kitten over to Selphie. She thanked him again as she took it and went to the passengers side of the truck and got in. Selphie had to bring the little kitten out. With a smile, she cuddled with her, petted her, and named her Kali. She was just so happy. She liked seeing this side of Squall. Spending one on one time with him. It was nice. Selphie and Squall actually had a conversation on the way home. That was something Selphie had wished for the longest time. To have a actual conversation with Squall. They talked about numerous things. Squall was talking to her like, well, a best friend. The best thing was, he didn't use the word whatever…ok, so he did. But at least he was talking to her. That was the good thing. Selphie could now see that her relationship with Squall was finally starting to get better. She was glad that he didn't ignore her this morning. She was also glad that he wanted to come with her. She wanted the relationship to go further, but she didn't want to hurt Rinoa. Rinoa was one of her best friends. If Squall dumped her and got together with Selphie, would Rinoa still want to be her friend? All this was starting to scare Selphie. She shrugged if off for now and started to pay attention to what Squall was saying to her.
"You know, I thought you and Irvine would be going out," Squall said, glancing over at her before looking back at the road in front of him.
"No. We're not. I have no interest in going out with Irvine. I don't want to be dating a guy who I'm sure will be cheating on me. You know how he is. He flirts with girls all the time," Selphie told him. They both knew that Irvine had wandering eyes. Selphie sure didn't want to take the chance of dating a guy that would flirt with other girls. She could give him the benefit of the doubt, but she wasn't sure if she was ready for that. Being that she was seventeen now, only having dated just a couple of boys, none of them were very serious. She was ready for something serious.
"Yeah. I guess you're right. He does seem to have those eyes that wander. Then I don't want you going out with him. You're my best friend. If he hurts you, then I would have to hurt him." Not that Squall would have a problem with it. He really didn't like the other male to begin with. Sure, he's come to like him, but he was still a new friend to Squall.
"You sound like my protective brother," Selphie said, giggling.
"Whatever."
"How'd I know you were going to say that? Is that your favorite word or something? You're always saying it."
"I really don't know why I say it. It just comes out. I think I mostly say it when I don't have an answer or comment."
"I've noticed that. Its either 'whatever' or nothing at all."
"I guess."
"No, it definitely is. But that's okay. I suppose saying 'whatever' is better than nothing."
"I suppose. But I'll try to say more than just whatever."
"Good!"
Selphie gave him an evil grin. Even though he didn't see it because his eyes were on the road. With a playful smirk, she poked him on his side. He jumped a little before looking over at her. He gave her a little glare, one that he meant business. He hated that she found out where his ticklish spots where. And it was all because he had to share a room with her on a mission. She had to have her fun while he was reading. It annoyed the hell out of him. But he didn't do anything about it either.
"Don't poke me there," he said.
"But its funny. Who would have known you're ticklish on your side."
"Don't you dare tell Rinoa."
"Ok, ok. I promise I won't tell her. If I haven't told her yet, what make you think I'll tell her now?" Selphie asked, giving him a innocent smile.
"Good. Because if you do, then I will have to resort to violence."
"You wouldn't hurt little ol' me, would you?"
"Depending."
"Depending?"
"On how I'm feeling that day."
"I see. Well… How do you feel now?"
"Calm."
Squall smiled at her as he pulled into the parking lot of Balamb Garden and helped Selphie out. He took as many of the bags as he could and let Selphie carry the carrier with a few bags in her other hand. He knew he'd have to come back for the rest, so after all doors were closed, he locked it up and helped Selphie carry the things back to her room. Once the door was shut, Selphie let the kitten out. She had to giggle as Kali roamed around the room, exploring everything. She knew she was going to have trouble with the little kitten. She had a feeling that she was going to be waking up to whines and something playing with her hair. It would be annoying, but also something special.
After setting up the kitten's things, Selphie put the bags of candy away in her dresser. She just couldn't wait until they were done renovating. Instructors and high rank SeeD were getting bigger rooms with a kitchenette in it. She was definitely looking foreword to that. Bigger space. Meant more stuff! And she could buy her food and store it in that nice spacious cabinets she was going to get. Oh, she just couldn't wait. She wished they could go faster, but there was just so much those awesome technicians from Esthar could to. But, she just couldn't wait. Everything was going to look good, either way.
She looked up at Squall and smiled happily. "Thanks again for everything, Squall. You're a great friend! I liked hanging out with you today. It was really fun," she said to him, her smile getting a little bigger.
"No problem. It was fun. I really needed a day like this. To spend a day with a friend and… away from Rinoa," he said to her, giving her a small smile.
Selphie blushed lightly and looked down at the floor. "Well, anytime you wanna hang out, I'm up for it," she said. "Um, lets go check on the Quad!" She wanted to see how much her friends got down and what she could do to finish it off. She knew there were still some things that needed to be done. She still had to hang up the rest of the decorations and put up that cool looking grim reaper.
Squall nodded and picked up that bags that went to the Quad, deciding that he'd just get the rest of the bags of candy later. He followed Selphie to the Quad and helped her put up the decorations they just bought. Once they were done, Selphie stood back to admire their work. What their friends did was great, but adding the rest of the decorations made it better. This was going to be one of the best Halloween Balls ever! She just couldn't wait!
"Okay, let's go look for the gang and thank them," she said with a smile. "But first! I need to stop by the dorms and get Kali! I wanna show her cute furry face off!" And with that, she skipped ahead toward he dorms.
Sorry it took forever to update! I hope it won't take as long for chapter 3! Please review and tell me what you think!
