Ok. To start with, the characters and places in this fanfic aren't mine. They belong to Squaresoft. I'm using them in this fanfic because I like Final Fantasy 8. Secondly, A couple of friends of mine by the name of Dreamweaver and Nightmare, helped me work on this story. Any way, I hope you like the story. Email any and all comments (even burns) to
Now on with the story.
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Squall Lionheart sighed as he picked up his duffle bag. He had been told by Cid to go take a vacation. Might as well get started on doing nothing, he thought as he began walking away from the train station in Timber. Now, if I remember correctly. The hotel is south of the pet store.
He hadn't gone far when he heard someone call his name. That sounds like Rinoa, he thought as he turned to his right. "Hey Squall. What are you doing here?" she asked as he turned to face her. "I got told to take a vacation," he said. "In that case, here's a piece of advise. Don't go to the hotel, it's booked solid." she said.
"Why?" he asked with a skeptical look. "The Triple Triad tournaments this week," she said. "That's nice, considering it was last week at Balamb Garden," he said calmly. Might as well tell him the truth, she thought. Squall smiled and said, "Let me guess, you got a call from Selphie and she wanted you to make sure I got back on the returning train to Balamb because the surprise party that's for me at Garden is ready."
"How did you find out about it?" she asked surprised. He sighed and said, "You just told me." Rinoa crossed her arms and smiled. "Actually, I over heard Matron telling Cid about the party before I left," Squall said. "That's what I thought," she said as she gave him a gentle hug. He returned the hug and sighed.
They stood there silently in the others embrace for what seemed like hours. "I missed you," Squall whispered in her ear. She sighed and said, "I missed you too." After a few minutes, Squall cleared his throat and said, "If the hotel is booked, I might as well head back to Balamb and finish my vacation there." Rinoa took a few steps back and smiled.
He reached into his right jacket pocket then looked at her. "Give it back," Squall said as he extended his hand. Rinoa placed her hands in her pockets and said, "I don't know what you're talking about." He took a step forward and said, "I'm talking about the ticket that was in my jacket pocket." She held the ticket up in her right hand and said, "Oh, you mean this ticket."
"Yes, now give it back or else," he demanded. She crossed her arms over her chest and said, "Or else what?" She smiled elfishly. "Or else I will tickle you until you give it back," he said as his lips twitched in an effort to surpress a grin. Rinoa's eyes widened and the grin slipped away. "You wouldn't," she forced out.
Squall took a threatening step towards her. Rinoa hastily retreated. She was only steps away from the front door to her house when Squall's arms came around her waist. Rinoa squealed in protest as he got her down on the ground. Angelo barked as Squall pinned her hands above her head, straddling her hips.
He reached towards the his ticket, only to have Angelo beat him to it. The four legged thief quickly ran inside. Squall moved to run after Angelo. Rinoa quickly grabbed his legs and rolled him over. She pinned his shoulders to the floor and straddled his hips.
"I don't think you're going to make your train, so I have already had a room made up for you." Rinoa leaned down and kissed him long and hard before jumping up and running after Angelo. "She's going to be the death of me yet," Squall muttered as he leapt to his feet. "Rinoa, come back here!" he called, running after her.
Rinoa quickly ducked into the hall closet and closed the door. She leaned her forehead against the door and sighed. "Thanks Angelo," she said quietly. A small amount of light could be seen under the door, as she watched it she became aware of the fact she wasn't alone. Someone was in the closet with her.
"Fancy meeting you here," Squall said softly as he lightly touched her shoulder. She quickly grabbed the door knob to pull open the door, only to have the knob come off in her hand. "So, what do we do now?" she asked, holding up the knob. Squall gave her a wicked grin then laughed as her eyes went wide. "Relax," he told her as he pulled out his pocket knife, while Rinoa watched in total surprise.
"What are you doing?" she asked. "Getting out of here," he quipped with a grin as he started to remove the slats from the door. When the last slat was removed, Squall turned to Rinoa. Giving her a quick kiss the shocked her. he quickly snatched the ticket from under her arm band. With a another wicked grin he told her "Thanks sweetheart" and ducked out the opening in the door.
As Rinoa started to yell after him, Angelo stopped in front of the closet. He looked at her, then at Squall as he ducked into the bathroom, then back Rinoa. "What?" she asked as Angelo just shook his head and walked away. "Rotten dog," Rinoa muttered as she left the closet. Turning toward the bathroom, she hollered, "I hope you know that you have to fix that door Squall!"
Muttering to herself, she turned and started down the stairs. Half way down she stopped and yelled back up the stairs, "Lunch in 15 minutes Rat!" Smiling, she went to finish fixing lunch and plot revenge.
Laughing. Squall leaned against the closed bathroom door. As he heard Rinoa head down stairs, he quickly slipped the ticket out of his pocket and looked around the room. Hmmm...Now where to put this? he wondered. Someplace where she won't look. He stepped out of the bathroom thinking to himself, She'll never find it there.
After a few minutes, Squall walked into the kitchen and smiled. "Don't even think about it," Rinoa said as she took two glasses out of a cabinet. "I wasn't going to do anything," he said as he leaned against the wall. Man, she is so beautiful, he thought as he watched her. "But I'm always open to suggestions. Especially from certain beautiful women," he said with a grin.
Rinoa just laughed and told him, "Just sit down, pipe down, and eat, you nut." "Your wish is my command beautiful lady," Squall told her softly as he sat at the table. "Yeah right," she laughed. He must be kidding, she thought to herself, he doesn't really think I'm beautiful...Does he?
After lunch, they went into the living room to watch a movie on T.V. Rinoa kept glancing at Squall. What is he up to? He NEVER acts like this, she thought. Squall was watching her out of the corner of his eyes. CHuckling to himself, he turned and smiled sweetly at Rinoa and asked, "And what would the beautiful princess like to do for the rest of the day? Your wish is my command."
Shocked to the core, Rinoa suddenly bolted from her chair and yelled "Who are you?!? What have you done with Squall?!?" Squall busted out laughing and said, "GOTCHA!" Rinoa just stared at the laughing Squall. "Gotcha, Gotcha! You rotten...No good...RAT?" she yelled as she tossed pillows at Squall. As the pillows started flying at him, he was laughing so hard he fell out of his chair trying to get out of range.
After he hit the floor, Rinoa started pounding on him. "Ok! Ok! I give!" he started yelling. She punched him in the arm once more, then sat down next to him. "You mean to tell me that was just an act?" she asked calmly. "Not all of it," he said as he sat up.
"Which part wasn't?"
"What part do you think?"
"I asked you first Squall."
"Well...Let me ask you this then. What part do you WANT real?"
"What?"
"You heard me, what part do you WANT real? When you can answer
that TRUTHFULLY, then and only then will I tell you which was which."
Rinoa looked at Squall and said, "Truthfully, I want...all of it... to be real." Squall looked at her and smiled. "Good, because I meant every word," he said as he slowly leaned towards her. As Squall held Rinoa in his arms and kissed her, he told her again how beautiful she was. I must be dreaming, Rinoa thought dazedly. I can't believe this is really happening.
"Hey," Squall said in a low tone. Rinoa slowly opened her eyes as he said, "In case you're wondering, this isn't a dream." "Oh my...Is it hot in here?" she asked breathlessly. Chuckling softly, he said, "Oh yeah. Maybe we should go for a walk." "Yeah," she agreed.
"You actually got told to take a vacation?" Rinoa asked Squall. He nodded and said, "I believe Cid's actual words were, 'Until further notice, you are on psychiatric leave do to stress caused by Zell's desire for hot dogs.'" "Are you serious? Did he really tell you that?" Smiling, Squall tried to make her believe it. "Honest." "Yeah right. The psychiatric part I believe, but because of Zell and hot dogs?---Puh-lease!"
Squall roared with laughter and spun Rinoa in a big circle, hugging her close. "I can't fool you can I my princess? No, he said it was stress due to the last mission," he said. "That's what I thought," Rinoa laughed as they started walking again.
"So, how long is your vacation?" she asked after a few minutes of silence. Squall sighed and said, "Until September First. That means I have eight days left to goof off, not including today." She stopped in mid stride and said, "That means your birthday's tomorrow." He gave her a puzzled look as he asked, "Who told?"
She grinned and said, "Like you said, Selphie called a couple of days ago and reminded me." "Hmmm" was all he answered. Do I thank her or murder her? He thought, sighing to himself, I'll figure that out later. Turning to Rinoa, he asked if she was getting hungry. "Oh, I don't know," she answered, "Are you?" Grinning wickedly, he told her softly, "Yeah and not just for food either." Dodging her punch as she gasped, he laughingly told her, "But since you fixed lunch, I'll buy you dinner. What would you like? And be nice."
She smiled and said, "Pizza sounds good." "All right. Where's the nearest place?" he said in agreement. "Right around the corner," she said. "Excellent!" Squall told her with a smile. Grabbing her hand, they started walking to the restaurant. "They do have eat-in, right?" he asked off handily.
"Yeah, why?" she answered puzzled. "Whew! That's good. I'm not sure I'd be safe being alone with you." Sighing, he tried to look embarrassed by hanging his head and glancing shyly at her as he said, "You might take advantage of me and ravage me." Rinoa stopped dead and stared at Squall. Trying not to laugh, she patted him on the shoulder and said, "Oh. That's ok. I would never take advantage of some one as innocent as you. Trust me, your perfectly safe with me. But Angelo, now there's another story."
"Angelo huh?" Squall looked at her skeptically. "Then maybe I better lock and bar my door tonight. The door does have a lock, doesn't it?" She sighed and said, "I'm afraid not. Only the front and back door lock." he snapped his fingers and sighed.
"I guess you'll have to protect me then," he said. Sighing heavily, Rinoa rolled her eyes towards the heavens. "Well, seeing as your my guest, I'll do my best." "Oh thank you. I feel safer already." Squall said, trying to sound relieved and keep a straight face at the same time. As Squall held the door to the restaurant open, their eyes meet and they both roared with laughter at how silly it all was.
Rinoa unlocked the front door to her house and smiled. Squall had been a perfect gentlemen through out the entire meal, which had been surprising to say the least. He up to something. I know it, she thought. "Rinoa, Princess, what's wrong?" Squall asked concerned. "Did I do or say something to upset you? If I did, I'm sorry. That's the last thing I want to do. I've had just a great day. Just being with you was wonderful. Please Princess, tell me what's troubling you?" he asked as they sat side by side on the couch, her hands in his.
He's actually telling me the truth! she thought happily. "I guess I'm just a little nervous and kinda scared is all. I've had a wonderful time today too," she quietly told him. Squall smiled softly at Rinoa. "I know how you feel.
"I kinda feel the same way. But, there isn't any reason for you to be scared of me. I'll never do anything to hurt you. You know that don't you?" he asked her. He sincerely hoped that she knew that. "Oh Squall," she sighed, "I do know that. It's just that...Well...I'm not sure if I'm afraid of you...or me," she told him, gently smiling a little self-concously and blushed a bright red.
"Oh, Ok. I see," Squall said, turning red also. Clearing his throat, he beamed a smile at Rinoa and giving her a quick kiss, he told her, "On that note, I'm heading to bed. I'll see you in the morning. Sleep sweet my beautiful princess. Dream of me." Then with a wink, he got to his feet and headed off to bed.
Squall sighed as he pushed the closet door closed. Putting the slats back was a breeze. As he walked into the kitchen, he noticed a tray was already placed on the table set for one. Hmmm. I see we think alike Princess. But, I'm one step ahead of you. This time anyway. After Squall finished making breakfast, he took the tray up to Rinoa. With luck, the princess hasn't waken yet.
He carefully opened the door to Rinoa's room and smiled. Good, she's still asleep, he thought as he entered her room and placed the tray on the night stand. As he stood there watching her sleep, he suddenly realized how much he loved her. She's so beautiful. If I could ever be so lucky---Who am I kidding? She would never love me back. Sighing deeply he called, "Rinoa, Princess, time to wake up. Rise and shine beautiful."
"Why do you keep calling me a princess?" she asked as she rolled onto her back and looked at him. "Because to me, you are a princess," he said and kissed her forehead. If I didn't know better I'd say that loves me as much as I...No, he's probably doing this because I'm letting him stay here for the rest of his vacation, she thought as she sat up in her bed.
A tear trickled down her cheek as she realized that in a few days, Squall would go back to Balamb Garden for who knows how long. "Is something wrong, Princess?" he asked with a concerned looks in his eyes. He's concerned about me? He sat down on the edge of her bed as she said, "N-Nothing. I was thinking about a movie I once saw."
"What was it about?" he asked as he picked up the tray and placed it on her lap. "What's this?" she asked. "Your breakfast," he replied. "Squall! I was going to make you breakfast in bed. It is your birthday, after all," she said. Squall smiled at her as he stretched to pick up a second tray and said, "That's ok. I brought mine up too. That way we can eat together."
As he started to sit back down on the edge of the bed, Rinoa moved. Lightly punching him in the arm, she told him, "Happy birthday Squall." The punch and movement of the mattress caused Squall to misjudge his seat and he slid off the bed and hit the floor. The tray landed on his chest. Squall sat on the floor looking totally surprised with his breakfast running down his chest.
Rinoa tried not to laugh at the picture he made. "Uh, Squall," she snickered, "Asmossus doesn't work." As he sat there in stunned silence, Rinoa busted out laughing. "Serves you right for ruining a perfectly good surprise," she said, trying to surpress a laugh. He looked at her and smiled.
"If the princess doesn't like her surprise, I guess I better get rid of it," he said as he started to pick up the spilled plates. "Squall, what are you doing?" she asked warily. "Oh, just cleaning up this mess," he smiled sweetly, thou with a very wicked gleam in his eye. "What are you up to?" she asked cautiously. Grinning innocently he told her, "6'2"." "Squall," she commented warningly. "Would you believe six foot?" he asked. "Yeah right," she said with a slight laugh. He sighed and said, "Oh, all right! I'm five foot eight."
He carefully got back to his feet and looked at her. "Would you like anything else, Princess?" he asked as she tried her breakfast. She swallowed and said, "You need to learn how to cook." "If that is what the princess wants, then the princess shall have it." In one smooth motion, Squall picked up her tray with his free hand and walked out of her room.
Rinoa eyes widen as she watched him walk down the Hall. Where's my camera when I need it? She blinked then yelled, "Wait a minute! You took mine too!" She jumped out of bed and rushed out of the room, heading for the kitchen. "Squall!"
He turned from setting both trays on the counter. "Yes Princess?" he asked. Then as he slowly looked her over from head to toe and back, he began to smile. "What are you smiling at?" she asked with a slight edge in her voice. "Nothing. I was just wondering when you where going to sit and eat some breakfast." She looked at the kitchen table and froze.
He did all this? the thought raced through her mind. A breakfast for two had been placed on the table. "If this is breakfast, then what did I eat?" she asked. He started to laugh as he said, "Don't worry. It was just burnt toast." She looked as him and said, "Is there anything else you want to tell me, Squall?"
"Oh yeah. Nice legs," he said with a slight smile. Rinoa stopped short. Her mouth fell open as she slowly looked down, her eyes growing wide. Screaming, she ran out of the kitchen. Laughing, Squall thought to himself, Lord, I love her. She's just so darn cute. "Hurry back, breakfast will get cold." Squall just chuckled as he heard Rinoa scream again then slammed her door.
"I'm going to kill him!" she muttered as she stormed into her room and slammed her door. "I wonder if he's the rotten back Garden," she fumed, "He is so gonna pay for this." She quickly got dressed and went down stairs. "There is no way he can be that annoying and handsome at the same time," she grumbled.
As she walked into the kitchen, Squall was standing next to the sink. He looked at her and said, "So what do you want to do today, Princess?" She sat down at the table and said, "Today's your birthday. I thought we would do what you want to do." he sat down at the table and smiled. "How about we figure it out after breakfast?" he asked. She nodded in agreement and begun to eat breakfast.
"You're impossible!" she stormed, glaring at Squall. Don't smile. Don't smile. She will kill you if you smile, he thought as he watched her. They had been going over this same argument sense before lunch. He wants to do what she wants, but she wants to do want he wants. "It's your birthday. We do what you want to do," she said.
"Ok."
"Finally! What shall we do?"
"I want to do whatever you want to do Princess."
"ARRGHH!" she screamed, falling in the nearest chair. After a few minutes, Rinoa looked at Squall and said, "Why do you keep saying that? It's your birthday. We should do what makes you happy." He smiled as he slowly got out of his chair. "You really want to know what makes me happy?" he asked as he walked over over to her. Crouching down beside her chair, he took her hand in his.
"Seeing you happy and doing things that make you happy, make me happy," he told her, "Even if it means my leaving you alone." Rinoa sat there in silence as she looked into his eyes. He's serious? I don't believe this. Why would he want to concern himself with my happiness? Unless....No. Don't even go there. That's just wishful thinking...isn't it? "Why?" Rinoa asked quietly. "Because," was all he would tell her, for now.
Rinoa sat down on the couch and sighed. So far, they had done everything the she liked doing. "Is there anything I can get you, Princess?" Squall asked as he sat next to her on the couch. She closed her eyes as she said, "Nothing. I'm fine." He moved to the other end of the couch and said, "Rinoa, earlier today you asked me why I wanted to do what you wanted to do today. o you still want to know why?"
I'm not sure I want to know now, she thought, he has constantly surprised me ever sense he arrived yesterday. Yet, it couldn't hurt to find out why he wanted to do this. Could it? No, it would hurt. I'm mean, what's the worst thing he could tell me?
She opened her eyes and said, "Why?" Squall sat there and looked at her for a minute without saying a word. Then he softly began to speak. "You are so beautiful. In all my life, I have never known anyone like you. Rinoa...I love you."
Rinoa slowly got to her feet and walked over to the window. I wasn't expecting that, she thought. He sighed and said, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier. I was afraid of how you would react it I told you." As she stood there silently in front of the window, she softly said, "I...love...you too, Squall." He slowly got to his feet as he asked, "W-What did you say?"
"I said I love you!" she yelled. He stood there in silence and looked at her. "The reason I was crying this morning wasn't because of a movie. It was because your leaving in a few days. I guess I just---don't want you to leave," she said as she started to cry.
She wiped away a tear and looked at him. Instead of finding a look of rejection on Squall's face, she found a look of understanding and love. Without saying a word, Squall quickly walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled. "There is something I want to do," he said softly.
"What's stopping you?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his neck. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss. Her entire body relaxed as she sighed, slowly deepening the kiss.
The next morning, Rinoa was awakened by the ringing of the phone. Fuzzily, she wondered to herself who would be calling at that time in the morning. As she tried to come fully awake, there was a knock on her door. "Rinoa, sweetheart? Are you awake?" Squall asked as he eased open the bedroom door. "I am now," she quipped with a smile. He walked into her room and said, "In case you're wondering, it was a wrong number."
"Thanks for answering the phone," she said. he sat down on the edge of her bed and smiled. "So, what's on today's schedule?" she asked as she yawned. He kissed her nose and said, "I thought a train ride would be nice." She smiled and said, "As long as it's not Deling City, I don't care where we go."
"How about Balamb Garden?" he asked calmly. "You're kidding?" she asked. "I'm afraid not. I have to go back sooner then expected," he told her with a sigh. "Now," he said smiling, "get dressed and come eat some breakfast. We'll talk then." Kissing her one more time, he stood. As he walked towards the door he said, "Or, if you'd rather, I could help you get dressed."
Rinoa tossed a pillow at his head and laughingly told him, "Out!" Squall dodged out the door before he got hit and headed back to the kitchen, chuckling to himself. Lord but I love that woman, he thought.
They walked up to the train and stopped. "Are you sure you have to go?" Rinoa asked. Squall sighed and looked at his ticket. "The next train for Balamb is in two weeks. If I don't go now, I'll be in major trouble," he said. I wish I didn't have to go, but I have no choice, he thought. The sound of the train whistle alerted them to their surroundings.
"You better go or you'll miss your train," she said as she slowly backed up. "Rinoa?" he asked. "Say hi to Zell and the others for me," she said as she turned and walked away. A tear ran down his cheek as he watched her walk back to her house. "Rinoa," he whispered. Have I lost my mind? I almost lost her once and bloody near killed myself trying to get her back. I'm NOT letting it happen again! NEVER again!
Shaking his head, he blinked away the tears and started to run. I've got to reach her! he thought frantically. It was only three blocks to Rinoa's house from the station. Squall cut through the alley ways trying to get there as fast as possible. He reached her place three minutes before she arrived.
Squall was sitting on the front step when Rinoa turned the corner. "What the---Squall?" she said totally surprised. Squall stood up and met her half way. As he took her into his arms, part of him registered the fact she had been crying and the rest of him thought, I'm home!
"Squall?" Rinoa asked, "What are you doing here? Aren't you going to miss your train?" He shrugged and said, "Rinoa, I don't care about the train, I care about you." "I-I don't understand," she managed to say, "What about the new mission?" Hugging her close he told her, "I'm not going on any more missions. I'm going to be an instructor from now on." "An instructor?" she asked puzzled.
"Yeah. I don't think married men should be going on dangerous missions, do you?" he asked her. "WHAT?!?" she exclaimed. He placed two fingers on her lips and said, "Rinoa, I love you. I almost lost you once, and it almost killed me. Darling, I don't ever want to lose you again. Please Princess, say you'll marry me. Please?"
Rinoa stood there in silence as she looked at him. H-He just asked me to marry him, she thought as she looked into his eyes. "If you're not sure, I'll give you all the time you need," he said, "But know this Princess, I love you and I always will. No matter what."
As she stood there in the circle of his arms, a tear started to run down her cheek and she started to smile. "Oh Squall," she sighed, raising her head. As she looked into his eyes, she knew what her answer would be. Holding his face between her hands, she said, "My prince, my heart, I love you more than you'll ever know. I thought that you were lost to me forever. That being a SeeD was the only thing that was important to you. But these last two days, I've seen a different side of you. One you don't show anyone. Oh my dearest love. Yes, I'll marry you." "Yes?" Squall whispered. "Yes," she answered and then kissed him with all the love in her heart and soul.
After a split second of surprise, he kissed her back the same way. "Rinoa, sweetheart, if we are going back to Balamb we have to get going," he said in-between kisses. "Balamb---Oh! Balamb, ok. But I need some clothes," she babbled, looking a little frazzled. "Then hurry. We only have 15 minutes before the trains leaves," Squall told her with a hug, a push, and a laugh.
They walked down the hall of Balamb Garden smiling. "So, how are we going to tell them we're engaged?" Rinoa whispered. Squall slipped an arm around her waist as he whispered, "I'll think of something." "Why is there a dog in Garden?" asked a familiar voice. Squall and Rinoa stopped and slowly turned to see Matron and Cid standing behind them. "Good question, my dear. I should hope that there is an equally good answer. Squall?" Cid commented smiling.
"Good afternoon Sir, Matron. You remember Rinoa?" Squall said holding Rinoa's hand. "Good afternoon Cid, Matron," Rinoa said quietly. "Yes, of course we remember her. How are you Rinoa, and your father? Well, I hope," Matron asked. "We're both doing fine, Matron. Thank you," Rinoa answered with a smile.
Squall cleared his throat and giving her hand a gentle squeeze, he said, "Sir, Matron. Rinoa and I want you to be the first to know, we're getting married." "Married!?! Oh Squall! Rinoa! Congratulations!" Matron said. "Married," Cid laughed, "Well, that explains why you wanted to be an instructor instead of working in the field. Congratulations. We're happy for both of you."
"Thank you," Squall and Rinoa said at the same time laughing. "Now come the hard part," Squall said, "Telling the rest of our friends." Rinoa just groaned as she laid her head against Squall's shoulder and said, "Ain't that the truth!" They all started to laugh as the walked towards Cid's office.
Squall walked into the cafeteria and sighed. Three days as an instructor and I feel so tired. I'll have to ask Quistis how she puts up with this stuff on a daily bases. He eased himself into a chair at one of the empty tables and closed his eyes. A gentle kiss on his forehead slowly brought his attention back to his surroundings.
"Hey Princess," he said as he opened his eyes. Rinoa smiled and said, "Hey, I thought you might like to know that Selphie just got back from a mission and found out about you taking an instructors position." She pulled a chair up to the table as Squall said, "Speaking of Selphie, here she comes now." She looked over at the entrance and saw Selphie walking towards them with Irvine trying to keep up. "Don't worry. I'll handle this," Squall said as Rinoa sat down in her chair.
Selphie sat down at the table and sighed. "Are you ok, Selphie?" Squall asked. She nodded as Irvine walked up. "In case your wondering, Selphie's got a soar throat and was supposed to go straight to the doctor's office before coming here," Irvine said as he sat down in a chair. "How'd that happen?" Squall said as Selphie stuck her tongue out as Irvine.
"I caught a cold and he's making to big of a deal about it," Selphie said in a harsh voice. Irvine rolled his eyes as if to say "See?" Rinoa cleared her throat and Squall coughed trying to cover up their laughter. "Selphie you sound terrible," Rinoa said concerned, "You really should see the doctor." "That's what I've been telling her," Irvine complained, "But will she listen? No."
Selphie gave him a nasty look and croaked, "I'm all right!" Squall, trying to hide a smile, closed his eyes and said, "Princess, wake me when the war is over. Ok?" Selphie glared at Irvine then Squall. Rinoa just put her hand over her mouth so she wouldn't laugh.
Selphie sneezed, coughed, then sniffed as the three broke out laughing. "We're sorry Selphie. It's just that, here you are trying to tell us you're all right and you obviously feel terrible," Rinoa told her, "Why don't you do as Irvine suggested and go see the doctor?" Sniffing, Selphie shook her head and insisted she would be fine, then sneezed again. "That does it!" Irvine said, "Squall, Rinoa, good to see you. She is going to the doctor whether she likes it or not!"
Irvine picked Selphie up and carried her out of the cafeteria. "Put me down right NOW!" Selphie tried to yell. It came out as a squeak and then she started coughing. Irvine carried her as gently as he would a small child. "Let us know how she's doing, ok?" Rinoa called after them.
Chuckling, Squall told Rinoa, "He really does love her you know?" Rinoa nodded and said, "Yeah he does. I just hope Selphie realizes she loves him before it's to late."
Quistis walked into Squall's classroom the next day. She waited until he dismissed his class then walked over to his desk. "Did you hear about Selphie?" she asked. He shook his head and said, "I've heard about as much about her as she's heard about me and Rinoa." "Speaking of which, what's going on between you two?" Quistis asked as Rinoa walked in the room.
Squall smiled as Rinoa cleared her throat and said, "We might as well tell her because everyone's going to find out sooner or later." Quistis looked at each of them and said, "Tell me what?" Rinoa walked over to Squall as he said, "Well, to make a long story short, we are--we're getting married." Quistis stood there in a stunned silence. "Who asked who?" she asked finally.
Squall slowly raised his hand and said, "I asked her." A smile crossed Quistis's face as she said, "I see. Well I guess the only thing to say is....it's about time." They started to laugh as she said, "Seriously you two, congratulations. When is it going to be?" Rinoa and Squall looked at each other and smiled. "We'll get back to you on that," he said as he wrapped his arms around Rinoa's waist.
Rinoa smiled and asked, "Why did you pick today to get married?" Squall looked at her and smiled. "Why did I pick May 5th as the day we get married? I thought you knew," he said as he kissed her cheek. Her eyes widened as she slowly realized the importance of the day. "My mom's birthday," she whispered as a tear rolled down her cheek.
He wiped the tear away and said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry." She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled. "Congratulations on getting married you two," Matron said as she walked up to them. "Thanks Matron," Squall and Rinoa said together. "Did Squall tell you about my pet project, Rinoa?" Matron asked.
"Squall hasn't said anything about any type of project," Rinoa said. "Good, because I wanted to tell you about it before he did," Matron said. Squall smiled as she took a deep breath then said, "The way you and Angelo work together inspired the project. We, as in Cid and I, want to create a K-9 team. The only problem is no one here has that type of training."
Rinoa smiled and said, "If you're offering my an instructors job. I'll take it." Matron smiled and said, "Thanks Rinoa. We'll figure out the details after you get back from your honeymoon." She walked away as Rinoa asked, "Speaking of which, where do you want to go for our honeymoon, Squall?" He smiled as he gave her rear a gentle squeeze and said, "Before or after we leave Balmab?" Squall ducked as Rinoa playfully took a swing at him laughing.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about you brat. Now get your mind out of the gutter and answer me," she laughed. Squall hugged her close and kissed her nose then said, "And you know exactly what I was talking about. But ok, I really don't know. Is there someplace special that you would like go or see?"
Rinoa smiled and said, "I was thinking of somewhere
quiet, peaceful, and the last place anyone will think of looking for us."
Squall smiled and said, "I know the perfect place, but we're going to need
the Ragnarok." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply
as she realized the honeymoon was going to be out of this world. Literally.
Snickering, she whispered, "Far out." Squall blinked then busted out laughing
as he hugged her. "Yeah, real far."