Okay kiddos. Chapter 7.
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"The first cut is the deepest…"
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"Yunie?"
Yuna dropped the leather shoe she was holding and turned around. "Yes?"
Her cousin frowned, then peered at her through slitted eyes. "I said, why are you glowing like that?" she repeated, leaning back and crossing her arms in exasperation.
Yuna's gaze fell back down to the shoe rack as she tried casually readjusting her purse, shifting its strap higher on her shoulder. Could they tell? "What do you mean?" she asked innocently.
Paine reached over Yuna's shoulder from behind and grabbed her chin to turn her face toward her. Yuna was beginning to get embarrassed. Not that there was anything to be embarrassed about. But well…they were, they were just in the middle of the market and she was blushing, and now Paine was studying her with that look of hers…. people were starting to stare… Why hadn't she just gone with Lulu and Tidus and Wakka? Yuna decided she needed to work on her decision-making.
Paine released her chin and grabbed her elbow to lead her away from the tent they were standing in. Once they were out of earshot of the store full of people, Rikku and Paine stood in front of Yuna. "Spill." Folded arms accompanied Paine's command.
Yuna shifted from foot to foot. Was her face really glowing? It had to be if they both noticed and even Paine was hassling her about it. Paine was weird like that. One second, she was being inaccessible and seemingly uncaring, and then the next; she was trying to indulge in girl talk. Why didn't she just…
"Spira to Yunie…Hellloooo…" Rikku was waving a hand in her face. "What is up with you? You've been acting weird since we got here."
Yuna shrugged, raising her palms up. "I'm sorry," she said, "I'm just a little tired, I guess." She really was tired. Kind of. That was legitimate-sounding, right?
Obviously not, by the way Paine rolled her eyes and Rikku began impatiently tapping her booted foot in the patch of dirt next to the grass they were standing in.
Yuna sighed, resigned to her fate. She would tell them, but they had better not make of fun of her. It was a big deal. She doubted they would make a joke of out of something so meaningful to her. "Okay, okay, I'll tell you." she sighed, shaking her head.
Rikku looked absolutely giddy. Paine was looking expectant. Why did she feel like she was about to reveal Spira's secret of origin? Oh well. She sighed again. Here goes. Glancing from side to side, she surreptitiously checked to make sure there weren't any eavesdroppers or anything. None. Good.
Paine and Rikku huddled closer to her, and the three stood only about half an arm's length apart. "Something…something happened on the ship," She whispered.
"What?" Rikku whispered loudly. Yuna loved her cousin, but did she know how to whisper?
Paine jabbed her in the ribs with an elbow. "Quiet!" she hissed, shooting daggers with her eyes.
"Why are you so violent?" Rikku grumbled, rubbing her side.
Yuna reached up and laid her hands on the soft crowns of Rikku and Paine's heads. "Would you two listen, please?" She turned their faces toward her. Goodness, those two acted like they were married sometimes.
Paine flourished her hand, waving her storyteller on. "Well," Yuna continued, "Tidus, he…kissed me."
"That's it?" Rikku cried, throwing her arms in the air. "You guys kiss all the time! Duh!"
Yuna reached out and clapped her hand over Rikku's mouth. A few women in the booth across from them turned to look. "Hush, Rikku!" she implored, whispering. Her cheeks were burning again…could she elaborate something like this? "No, he…he kissed me somewhere…else."
At the widening of Paine's eyes, and the way Rikku's mouth dropped, Yuna knew that they knew exactly what she was talking about. If they were surprised, then they should've seen her reaction. Tidus had knelt on the floor in front of her, and just..well, went to town. Yuna had never felt anything like it. Come to think of it, she was surprised that her cries hadn't alarmed anyone on the ship.
Finally, Rikku giggled. The shock was gone. "Yunie, you are soooo bad." She laughed.
"I wasn't expecting that, Yuna." Paine snorted.
Their laughter was contagious. It was a little funny, wasn't it? But when Rikku wrapped her arms around her middle and burst into a full guffaw, Yuna decided it wasn't that funny. "Maybe…maybe…" Rikku gasped, "You can go to the Priests manor and talk to them now."
Oh, not with the priest thing again. Yuna slapped Rikku's arm. "Stop it, or someone is going to hear you!"
Rikku ignored her request, and kept laughing. She looked to Paine for help, but found none. Instead, Paine was covering her mouth and trying not to laugh. "Yuna," Paine said shakily, "I do think you should pay them a visit. Maybe there's something you could help them with…" she barely finished the sentence before trailing off in that odd, hitching laugh of hers.
"Yeah, maybe you can…you can summon their aeons for them," Rikku panted, "Out of the Chamber of the Crotch."
That was it. Rikku collapsed to her knees in the grass, keening with laughter. Paine stumbled away to lean against a tree, resting her forehead on her arm. They were laughing at her expense, but it was funny. They weren't really making fun of her, just having fun with her.
"If you two are done being jealous," Yuna laughed, "I'll be over at the dress shop." With all the laughing, she doubted they heard her but she left anyway.
She made her way through the people, only stopping to take three pictures with a few little girls and one man, and giving about a dozen hugs. It had been a year since the Eternal Calm had begun, and while Yuna didn't expect people to forget what she had done, she did expect her popularity to level out a bit. Although, being an item with Tidus didn't help matters. Everyone loved him because he was the best blitzballer Spira had ever seen and he was so handsome. So put them together, and there was a crowd to follow. Yuna sighed. The idea of walking around, holding hands with him and stealing kisses every now and then was very appealing, but they had split up because the idea of holding hands with him and kissing him on the news tonight was not so much appealing.
Yuna began scanning over the dresses hung on the wooden racks outside the tent. There were all kinds, from cute to sexy to the kind of bizarre stuff that Rikku wore. Reacing out, she rubbed the material of a white skirt between her fingertips. She liked this one. It was long, but made of a soft, gauzy material that was see-through. Maybe she could wear it over her bathing suit when they went swimming. The dress was flung over her arm, and Yuna began walking toward the merchant when Paine and Rikku showed back up.
She turned and faced her two best friends, a hand on her hip. "Are you two done now?" she asked.
Paine just smiled and began walking around the store. Rikku launched herself into Yuna's arms. "I'm sorry Yunie," she offered, squeezing her tight. "It was just funny, that's all."
Yuna released her, then caught her skirt before it hit the ground. "What was so funny?" she asked, straightening.
Rikku shrugged. "I dunno, it's just weird knowing you do that stuff, ya know?"
Yuna was struck with a sudden thought. Was she bad for it? She voiced her question to Rikku.
"Noooo," her cousin sang, grabbing her hand and leading her toward a rack of skimpy tops. "Not bad, you're just growing up, ya know? And you're in love and you're supposed to do that stuff with your man." She paused, scratching her chin. "Well, that's what I think."
Yuna was a little relieved. She never gave that aspect of her and Tidus' relationship much thought, but it was good to know that no one thought she was bad or anything. And her cousin's opinion mattered to her a great deal. "Me too," she agreed.
"Buuut," Rikku drawled, "You never said what it was like."
Yuna shrugged, as an involuntary smile lit up her face.. "It was nice." She was dimly surprised at how easily her response came . "I really didn't expect it and for the longest, he wouldn't even let me do certain things with him, and then all of a sudden we were doing this, and it was so wonderful Rikku, and he is just incredible and I love him so very much…" she gushed, wringing her hands together in front of her.
The brightest smile lit up Rikku's face. She reached out and grabbed Yuna's hands. "When are you guys gonna get married?" she grinned, searching her face.
Another shrug. "I don't know, but he wants to take me on a trip next week and I think he's going to ask me then." She giggled. Yuna couldn't remember being this giddy in her young life.
Rikku began jumping up and down and squealing, causing a scene. What the heck, Yuna joined her, even though they looked silly. She was just so happy. All that worrying for nothing. Tidus loved her, and he had only been waiting for her to make the first move. Now she knew for sure, and she felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
Suddenly, Paine materialized and grabbed both of them by the hair. "Pay for your skirt and we're leaving," she said in a cool voice, over the painful cries of both Yuna and Rikku. Why was she so violent?
Paine released the two, and Yuna rubbed her head where her hair had been pulled. "Ow," she grumbled, glaring over her shoulder at her friend as she walked toward the counter. Rikku stuck her tongue out at Paine and stalked out of the tent.
Yuna laid the skirt on the counter and greeted the cashier. "25 gil?" the portly woman smiled, "For you Lady Yuna, only 5 gil."
Yuna beamed. "Thank you so much," she gushed appreciatively. This was another benefit to being so popular. Discounts.
As she reached to her side to get her purse, she noticed Tidus about four tents down, giving someone a hug. Well, speak of Sin... Yuna raised her fingers to whistle for him, but suddenly, his head tilted and it almost looked like…oh he really was kissing the person. She just stood, frozen for a second. What in Spira…
"Lady Yuna..."
Yuna's head snapped back around so fast it was almost painful. The cashier was still offering her gentle smile. "Are you okay Lady Yuna?"
She nodded, even though she couldn't see the woman through the blur of her sudden tears. "I'm just gonna…go." She said in a voice that was barely there.
As she began to run, she could hear Rikku yelling for her to stop. She didn't know where she was going, or how long it would take, but she did know that her legs couldn't carry her there fast enough.
To be continued….
