A/N: Hello!!! Wow, can you believe that it's the eleventh chapter, already? Whoot!!! Well, anyways, I'm going to start writing. I promise, it's going to be long because a couple of things happen.
p.s. aren't you happy that Kairi and Sora are together? Well, some other couples are going to get together. Lol.
Have you ever wondered how secretary as a word, is broken up? My personal opinion it's "secret" and "ary". They keep the secrets from everyone, including the boss. Man, secretaries should have their own awards for what they do for their bosses. Now, that's just my opinion, so don't hold it against me. Sorry for the randomness. Time to get back to the story.
Chapter Ten
Aceline groaned as she looked at her agenda. Everything was meetings. There was nothing more than meetings. Her life had transformed into a big board meeting, all day, everyday.
"Come in here, please," she called to her secretary. Her secretary came in and sat files on her desk. She pushed back her long hair and smiled. She took her pen out and waited to take notes. Aceline looked at her.
"Rinoa, when was the last time we took the day off?" she asked. Rinoa stopped in mid-sentence. She just looked at her boss.
"Three years, two months and twenty-one days, ma'am," she said. Aceline chuckled. She swerved her chair to look out her windows. Her office was huge. She had two long couches, the far wall was all windows, and she even had her own bathroom. Rinoa had a smaller office, just adjacent to hers. Behind her desk were filing cabinets that took up a whole wall. It had one couch and chair in it. Most days, Rinoa stayed later to get all of the work done. She was pulling twenty hour days many times a week. She stored clothes and showering supplies behind her desk just in case.
"My father is having a benefit tonight," Aceline said. She grinned at Rinoa. "We are going to take the rest of the day off to get ready. We have to run over to my son's home and get him."
"It's been a week since you have seen him, hasn't it?" Rinoa asked. She mentally prayed that Leon wouldn't be there. They hadn't parted on good terms, and she had no desire to stir up past emotions. She was involved with someone now. She didn't need Leon back in her life. He was her past, not her future or her destiny. He was over with her. Rinoa mentally sighed as she didn't listen to her boss's monologue about her son.
"Ma'am, may I get ready by myself?" Rinoa asked. Aceline nodded.
Rinoa's point of view…
Rinoa rushed down a side street to her apartment. She didn't have any dress, and she needed to get her hair and nails done. She didn't worry about her shoes. She had tons of shoes. As she was about to get into her building her cell phone rang. She looked at the number. It was withheld. Closing her eyes, she opened the phone and answered.
"Hello," she said.
"Hey, babe," a masculine voice called out. Rinoa sighed in relief.
"What are you doing?" she asked. The man laughed.
"Getting ready for this benefit, of course. You coming?" he asked.
"Yes, I'm coming," she said. He laughed again.
"Then I'll see your beautiful self there," he said. She laughed and he hung up. She smiled to herself and went into her apartment building.
Leon's point of view…
He had been going down one of the streets in the upper town. He had turned his head in boredom and froze at what he saw on the other side of the street.
Rinoa. She had come home after all. The rumors he had heard were true. He couldn't believe his eyes. He could say something though, his heart started beating again.
She had been on a cell phone, smiling with joy and love. He couldn't believe that it was her. Just as he started realizing where he was, his phone started ringing. He answered it without even looking at the number.
"Do you have a tux?" Aceline's voice asked. Leon shook his head.
"Why?" he asked.
"Because my father is having this benefit and my son and his girlfriend need protection," she said. "His girlfriend's ex is very crazy. You know her… it's kairi."
"They finally got together?" he asked. Aceline laughed.
"Oh, and my secretary will call you with the rest of the details," she said.
"I didn't know that she was in town," Leon said. Aceline laughed again.
"Well, we can't control love or fate, now can we?" she said and hung up. Leon sighed. It was going to be a long night.
Now, to the normal points of view: Sora and Kairi. You had to see the other sides first, and you can stew over who you think Rinoa's boyfriend is…
Kairi rushed into the bathroom and locked the door.
"Kairi! That's not fair!" Sora shouted. She giggled and started turning on the shower. "We can share the shower!"
"NOT IN THIS HOUSE!" Axel's voice rang from downstairs. Kairi laughed again. She got in her shower and quickly cleaned herself. She got out and unlocked the door. Sora barged in.
"You done already?" he asked. She laughed and nodded. He grinned and gave her a quick kiss. He kicked her out of the bathroom. Kairi blushed and went down to her room. Ever since they had revealed their feelings for each other, she couldn't stop thinking about him. They talked and shared things with each other that no one else knew. She hadn't shared one of her bigger secrets yet, but she was about ready to.
She smiled and closed her door. She got dressed in a long black evening dress that went down past her ankles. It was sleek.
She came out and found both Axel and Riku in tuxes. She immediately saw that their bowties weren't on correctly. She went over and corrected them. They both blushed when she came up and tidied them up.
"I thought you two would know how to ties those things by now," Tifa commented from behind Kairi. Kairi turned and gasped.
Tifa had her hair up in curls. She had a knee length black dress. It was strapless. There was beadwork on her waist line and other than that, the dress was normal.
"You look beautiful," Kairi said. Tifa smiled.
"You do too," she said. Kairi blushed and thanked her. Sora came out in a tux and Kairi thought that she was going to faint. He came up and took her back.
"Are you ready?" he asked her. She nodded, unable to speak. Tifa looked at Sora.
"She and Axel have never been to events like these," she said. Sora shrugged.
"It's not like the grandparents are going to care. Just behave and they'll be fine with anything," he said. Tifa nodded and sighed. They all went downstairs through the bar and went out to the limousine that was waiting in front of the buildings.
Leon stood at the door looking surly. He opened the door and handed both Kairi and Tifa in. He let the guys get in themselves. Then, he went and got into the front with the driver. He gave directions and they were off to a mansion in the rich part of town.
Kairi gasped when she saw the three story mansion. It was made of brick and had a Victorian style entrance way. It looked like the old mansions in England.
"This is amazing," she said. Sora chuckled softly.
"Wait till you see the ballroom," he said. She smiled. They all went in and the butler escorted them to the ballroom. It looked exactly like the one out of Beauty and the Beast. Kairi gasped and Sora started swirling her around the dance floor. She smiled up at him.
"This is exactly like a fairy tale," she said. He smiled and twirled her. They came close and he hugged for one moment too long. He laughed and made her twirl again. They kept dancing, just the two of them.
Aceline's point of view
Aceline came in a long white gown. She smiled at all the people that nodded to her. She went into her father's ballroom and stopped. She smiled at the sight of Sora and Kairi dancing on the dance floor. All the other couples had moved out of the way to watch them.
"They suit each other," her father said. Aceline smiled and turned to her father. He was developing gray hair, but his blue eyes were vibrant. He looked like a sixty-five year old version of Sora. Sora didn't get his looks from his father, but from his grandfather. Everyone told him that he looked like his father, but in truth, it was exactly like his mother's father.
"Good evening, Father," she said. He hugged her lightly. She hugged him back.
"Are they all here?" he asked. She nodded. She saw Rinoa going over to confront Leon.
"They haven't figured out that you held this benefit just for drama," she said lightly. Her father laughed.
"I'm an old man. I need entertainment somewhere," he said. Aceline just shook her head.
"Father, you are an instigator," she said. He smiled.
"So, who's first on the agenda?" he asked. Aceline nodded toward Kairi and Sora.
"They look lovely together," she said.
"Yes, they do," her father said. He looked at his grandson with pride. There was his heir finding love and having a ball. The old man grinned and looked at his daughter. She had been through a lot, this fiery woman beside him. She had gone through a terrible marriage and divorce and had to climb the ladder of success. She did it all with just a blink of the eye and a grin.
"I invited Arthur," he said to her. She nodded, watching her son and Kairi. They matched each other, she decided.
"I'll deal with him in a moment," she said. She shifted her gaze to where Leon and Rinoa were standing. They were getting heated up over something, but she couldn't tell what it was.
Rinoa's point of view….
She stormed over to where Leon was standing. He heard her stop in front of him and stood there rigidly. He smiled at her tersely.
"Don't give me that look," she whispered. He forced his smile even more. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm working," he said. She rolled her eyes and looked at him again.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed at him. He looked at her, and his silver eyes flared.
"Just to annoy you," he said sarcastically. She glared at him even harder. He started to smile, but held back. It was just like when they were going out in high school. She would argue with him until kingdom come because she would be relieving stress. He smiled at her and she glared harder.
"What are you smiling about?" she demanded. He looked at her and just shrugged. She hated it when he shrugged.
"BE THAT WAY THEN!" she yelled. "YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN LIKE THIS! YOU NEVER TAKE ANYTHING SERIOUSLY!"
"Even that time we snuck out of your mother's house to go down to the park?" he asked. She blushed. "This is a first. Having nothing come out of your mouth is a relief. You should shut up more often." She turned red.
"What the hell does that mean?" she demanded. He smiled at her tenderly.
"You never look around at what's the obvious," he said. He took her hand and laid it on his heart. Her eyes looked into his and they softened.
"Why are you doing this to me?" she asked.
"I let you go, four years ago," he said. "You took my heart with you. It was always with you." She started crying.
"You think that I could just get on with my life?" he asked. She just looked at him, all of her anger escaping her. She looked at him and didn't say anything.
"It can't work," she said. He looked at her incredulously.
"I don't want it to work between us," he said. "You're obstinate, stubborn and a pain-in the ass. I don't need that in my life." With that, he walked away from her. His back was to her, so she didn't see him smiling as he walked away. She was looking at him as though he was crazy. But that had always been Leon. He knew that she would be coming after him shortly.
Aceline's point of view…
"Well, here comes another confrontation," she said in an amused undertone. She turned her back to her father and started talking with a random business associate. She smiled to herself as she heard her ex-husband come up to her father.
"What is the meaning of having my son here?" Arthur demanded. Her father simply crossed his arms and smiled coldly.
"I thought that you did not care about my grandson," he said frigidly. Aceline laughed at something that the business associate said, but kept listening to her father.
"My son is not your grandson," Arthur stated clearly.
"Young man, you come into my home and start insulting me. What is the purpose of that?" her father asked.
"As you know, Jacob, my son has been disinherited from my estate. He is no longer the heir to my fortune," Arthur said. Jacob straightened his posture to the point where he was towering over Arthur. Aceline had married a short man compared to her father, and that was one fact that her father never let her forget.
"Sora is my grandson, young man," he said. "That boy is the one reason why I am still talking to you. If you want your company to survive, you will back off. Now, if you excuse me, I have to make a couple of announcements."
Jacob walked into the ballroom and cleared his throat. Aceline stayed behind Arthur, who didn't even know that she was behind him. When Jacob cleared his throat, everyone silenced.
"I would like to take this time to thank all of you that attended. The donations are going to saving our precious natural resources," he said. Everyone clapped. He smiled and nodded to Sora. "I would also like to take the time to thank my grandson for coming to my benefit. There were many other things he could be doing with his Friday night." Everyone applauded again. "But, most importantly, I would like to share some news with everyone…" he looked at Aceline.
"As you all have probably heard, a long time ago my daughter walked out on everything. She actually exiled herself to see what she was worth. She left all of her money in my hands. She left her son's welfare in my hands, so to speak. She even left me his trust fund," he smiled ruefully. "When she left town, she broke my heart. How could a woman who had everything just get up and walk away? But, she finally proved herself. She came up in the business industry that she was trained for. She quickly climbed the ladder of success and came back as one of the most powerful people in the advertising world. I can safely say that she is the new Director of Advertisement and Public Relations at my company. Aceline, come here please."
She smiled and made her way to her father. Arthur stood frozen as he saw his ex-wife go to her father. She smiled and took his hand.
"Thank you, Daddy," she said. He smiled proudly. She looked at her ex-husband. "But the person that I have to thank the most is my ex-husband, Arthur." Everyone gasped and looked at him. "Without you pushing me to become something that I didn't want to become, I was able to become something that I was capable of. Thank you for all the arguments that we had. Thank you for all the times that I almost walked out on you. Most of all, thank you for the opportunity to say that I earn more than you in a year." All of the women clapped madly. She smiled at her ex-husband evilly.
A/N: Whew! Long chapter. Took longer than I expected. There will be more Sora and Kairi stuff next chapter, as well as some memories that they share together. I just have to figure out how to write it out. I just wanted to cover the Leon and Rinoa base this chapter, and to have a confrontation between Sora's parents. That's not over, but it won't be mentioned for a while. Well, that was a good chapter, I think.
By the way, there's this awesome story you should read, if you like this one!!!
The Game of Love by BallroomBlitz is one of the best stories I have ever read on this site. Awesome pairing of Sora and Kairi. It will leave you wanting to read more!!!
Until next time!! By the way, if you see any mistakes in the story, tell me so that I can fix them!!! Thank you!!!
-DarkBelieverAnge