Disclaimer:- I do not own any of the characters as they belong to Squaresoft
Chapter Two - Lost in Time
How far had he walked already? Although the scenery had changed slightly to include a few rock formations, Squall seemed to be getting nowhere. There was still the dusty dry soil below his feet and the torturing heat beating down from the sun. He lifted his arm to look at his watch once again to see that the time was now 4:03pm. He had been walking constantly for three hours and he could feel the ache rising from his feet to his thighs. An as for his throat, well that felt like the desolate wasteland he had walked through. 'So thirsty' he thought 'I must get to water...otherwise I will be..no I don't want to think like that...must keep going'.
He was trying to calculate how far he had walked, anything to take his mind off his situation.
" Right, if I've been walking for three hours...that means I must have gone at least twenty miles. Why haven't I come across a town, village, forrest or sea?" 'Oh great now I'm talking to myself ...if anyone sees me they will think I am nuts!' He tried to shout "Is anyone here....?" but it just came out as a crackled noise that hurt his throat. If there had been shelter, any form of shelter whatsoever, he would have stopped to rest, but he was denied this. Whatever, this place was he was determined that he would keep going until he got home.
He started to wonder about his friends, had they made it back already, or were they lost like him in the middle of this place. Perhaps they could even be walking up ahead and it was him lagging behind. He raised his hand up to shelter his eyes, looking like a man surveying the sea for a ship ahead. Squinting, he tried to see ahead, hoping that he would glimpse another living soul that he could then try to catch up with and make contact with. But... no there was no-one that he could see. "Great...Just Great!" He said. "I bet Zell is in the cafeteria eating all those damn hotdogs, Selphie is probably organising a party while singing that train song of hers, Irvine is probably chatting up every woman in sight, Quistis is probably organising those Treppie groupies of hers and Rinoa..Oh Hyne....I wonder if she is waiting for me?"
Squall looked up at the sky, if only it was nightime he could walk further and use the stars as a guide. It was the thought of a star that made him think back to the night of the graduation ball. That was the night he first met Rinoa...He closed his eyes taking him back in time...
There he stood leaning against one of the marble pillars in the ballroom. He felt happy that he had passed the final SeeD exam, but he hated to mix with people as it just wasn't his way. He liked the solitude ..no one to rely on...no one to let down...no disappointment...and no hurt. He thought that if he just kept away from everyone he could avoid the mixing, in fact if he had his way he would have stayed in his room all night. But no it was compulsory...it didn't mean that he had to interact though did it. He had been approached once or twice, but the get lost look he gave them made them leave as fast as they had arrived. Selphie had managed to get him to agree to joining the 'Garden Festival Party' anything to get her to leave him alone. Zell had tried to get him to enjoy the hotdogs....and he said ok later to him just to get him to go. The drinks tray had gone pass him and he had managed to swipe another glass of champagne. There he stood sipping his drink as he looked around the ballroom, catching sight of a shooting star going across the sky of the glass ceiling. As he tracked it in the sky until it went out of sight it was then that he saw her. She too was following the star. She looked at him and raise her right hand pointing upwards with her index finger. He was thinking she must mean the star, he looked back at her slightly confused as she then started to walk towards him.
She was beautiful, truly beautiful..wearing a 3/4 length cream dress, high heel shoes to match, long dark raven hair and dark brown eyes. "Your the best looking guy here ...dance with me?" she had asked the question, but I was just amazed that she had come up to me that I just couldn't answer for fear of sounding like an idiot. She then said "Oh I get it ...you only dance with people you like......Look into my eyes" She started to wave her hand in a circular motion near to his left ear and said "Your going to like me...your going to like me......Did that help?" He just replied "I can't dance." She just said "That's Ok" as she grabbed hold of my arm and led me to the dance floor.
"I'll teach you" she said as she placed one of my arms round her waist the other she took hold off and before anyone could ask 'Is that Squall on the dance floor' she was showing him the steps to take. They had crashed into another couple and he had nearly left her there and then, not wanting to make a spectacle of himself. But she had got him back and he started to get the steps right...in fact he was starting to enjoy it. It was only after he had brought her back towards his body in one smooth movement that their eyes had locked. If it hadn't been for the fireworks that exploded and distracted both of them to look up and admire them. Who knows what could have happened next..instead she had looked back at him...smiled and then walked off. 'WOW ..who was she?' he thought.
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"Rinoa ...wait...what do you mean he promised?" Selphie was trying to get an answer as she ran after Rinoa. "Where are you going?" Selphie asked. They had both reached the front of the orphanage when Rinoa had slowed down to catch a breath. Selphie finally managed to touch her friends arm asking "Rin what do you mean by he promised?" Rinoa looked at Selphie and replied "Remember when we all came here before the final battle?" Selphie nodded and waited for Rinoa to continue. "Well I had gone to the flower field it was wonderful there. It made me feel better. But I was so worried about how things would turn out and that I wouldn't be able to get back.... and when Squall had joined me in the field...I just poured out all my worries and fears to him. He said to me 'don't worry if we all get seperated...I'll be waiting here, so if you come here you'll find me...I Promise'....It filled my heart with such joy, I just went up to him and hugged him and said Thank You."
"Oh Rin...that's so romantic." said Selphie followed by "Come on then...let's get you to that field"
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It was the thought of her that kept him going, forcing his already tired body on towards the East. Wanting....no needing to get home. The sun had now at least started to disappear, but instead of leaving the sky with a glorious red sunset. Dark swirling clouds had formed which threatened a storm of great magnitude. 'Great ' thought Squall 'first I get blazing heat ...what next downpour?' He needed to rest....he knew that he couldn't go any further. He had already started to stumble and his whole body ached. He was sure that he was hallucinating as he took a few more steps forward...there was a sheer drop in front of him. It was the end of his way forward. He turned to look behind him, thinking that he had taken a wrong direction...maybe one wrong .."What the?" Everything behind him had vanished and he was standing on a small platform with an abyss in every direction. He droped to the ground and in that instant, that was the moment that he felt lost forever.
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