Hey, again. Sorry it took so long to get this next chapter up, I've just been kinda preoccupied. Grr...Stupid Math homework... Anyway, hope you like it!
Chapter Five
Hold You Tight
I lay awake in bed, staring up at the cracks in the ceiling. This is rediculous, I thought. I can't sleep just because of a girl. 'She's not just a girl,' whispered a tiny voice in my head. 'She's so much more than that...' I covered my face with my pillow; don't tell me that I'm hearing voices because of her...?
I sighed and got out of bed. I crossed the floor and looked out onto the balcony; it overlooked the entire valley, everything was basked in starlight. This was such a peaceful place, I thought. To think, we all thought that technology was the key to happiness, but it was really technology that is the least necessary thing of all. Look at these people; they were honest, generous, prosperous, and some of the best people I had ever met. I felt at home here, though I didn't quite know why.
I looked up to the sky; millions of stars shined on the sky like diamonds on black-blue velvet. Clusters of stars formed pictures and constellations; how long have I been here, I wondered. Two, perhaps three days? ...I wonder if I'll ever get back to Garden...? ...I wonder if I should go back to Garden. This place was so peaceful; I hated Garden compared to Madao Valley.
I remembered my SeeD feild exam; the headmaster asked me what I thought of it. I hated it. All you did was kill innocent people for no reason, and you didn't even believe in what you were fighting for. I never minded, mostly because I knew that SeeDs weren't meant to question why; but somehow, that just wasn't good enough anymore.
There was something about this place, Madao Valley... They seemed so in-tune with everything around them. Monsters were freindly, they aided us and we aided them. No useless battles, no uneccessary bloodshed; Nariko was the most action I had seen around here. These people believed in peace, fighting only when necessary, training to defend those you loved... I hated to admit it, but I secretly envied these people.
I looked over the village and wondered where Nariko was now; he just disappeared after he stabbed Rinoa... I gripped the balcony railing in anger--he will pay for harming Rinoa. He will pay dearly for it. I've never felt anything like that in my life when I saw Rinoa, half dead, lying in a puddle of her own blood... He will pay for making me feel that pain. I can never forgive him for that, just as I can never forgive that madman, Seifer, for pushing me off that cliff. I put my hand on my forehead, feeling the soft cotton of a bandage; it's time to take it off and see what damage he had done...
I stared at the mirror in horror--a dark red scar ran from the top of my forehead and slanted down right between my eyes. This won't heal, I thought. I was stuck with this scar forever. I would forever be reminded of Seifer and his cruelty. "I'll get you for this, Seifer," I whispered to no one. "I'll make you pay..."
I thought about Seifer and Rinoa together; did she still love him? If she did, then that was probably why she went to Garden that night, to see him. I suddenly remembered something about the night we had met. Seifer was there, I saw him hiding in the shadows of the hall with a young woman, on my way to the Inaguration Ball...
~*Flashback*~
"I'm really glad you're coming, Squall!" Selphie chirped in my ear. We walked around the Garden from the dorms, seeing very few people as we went along; they must all be at the party, I thought. "You know," she said. "I was in the Cafeteria earlier today, and I heard all about you! Eh, Mr. 'Lone Wolf Leonhart?'" I looked down at her with a raised eyebrow; she smiled cheerfully.
"Whatever," I said. I just wanted to get this whole damn thing over with. I could be doing something so much more constructive right now, like polishing my Gunblade or training in the Training Center. I had no desire to come to this stupid social event; like I would even do anything anyway.
I heard a soft sound, like the coo of a dove. I looked over in the entrance to the Quad; a couple was standing in the shadows of the entrance. I recognized the man for the cross on his long silver coat; it was Seifer. What girl would want him? I thought. He said something to make her laugh. I caught a glimpse of her smile right before they melted into a passionate kiss. She was so small compared to him, I thought. She had to stand on her toes to kiss him. He wrapped his arms around her waist while she wrapped hers around his neck. Disgusting womanizer...
"Whatcha lookin' at?" Selphie peered around me to see what I was staring at. "Oh, I see... Hey, he's the guy who applauded for us, right?" she asked. I rolled my eyes; I didn't know what Seifer was trying to prove when he did that, but he wasn't fooling me. He was still an asshole; probably just trying to score some popularity points by being a 'gracious loser.' The two parted and leaned their forheads against each other; I caught a glimmer of her chocolate brown eyes, seemingly glowing with happiness.
"She looks like a cute girl," Selphie said, continuing on with the conversation. We continued walking to the elevator. "Too bad, I kinda liked him. He's pretty cute, ya know? Ah, well, she seems nice enough, I guess."
I stared at her in disbelief; did Selphie actually have a crush on Seifer? What the hell? Not that I was jealous, mind you, I just couldn't believe a snake-in-the-grass like him could ever attract women. I guess they liked men to be assholes nowadays. I heard the girl Seifer was with giggle softly again. I rolled my eyes; honestly, I thought. Couldn't people just get a room?
~*End Flashback*~
I knew it. I thought that she looked familiar when I saw her at the party... She was the one making out with Seifer in the corner. I sighed in frustration; dammit, why did he have to get her? He probably doesn't even respect her like I do. He probably just wants her in his bed and that's all. I'll bet that he just wanted her for; her pretty face...
It angered me to know that Rinoa would actually go for a guy like him. He totally and completely wouldn't fit in with their ideals of peace. Did he even know about Rinoa and where she came from? He must have if he knew where to find her; they must have met when he was vacationing or exploring or whatever he does on weekends.
I let my mind wander back to Garden. Were they thinking about me? Were they searching for me? I wonder what Seifer told them...? I wonder if they'd believe him. ...Ah, who cares now? If someone disappeared in Garden, someone that acted like I act, no one would probably know that they were gone. I liked laying low... I wonder if anyone would even miss me...
I shook my head of these thoughts. Why am I thinking like this? What do I care? I'm here now, and I have to figure out what to do next. I can't just stay in Madao Valley for the rest of my life. I have to get back to Garden... I have to have my revenge on Seifer for giving me this lovely scar. I have to... I have to... ... ...I have to sleep on it...
I opened my eyes, rubbing my forehead from the migraine the dream had left. I went back to thinking about what had happened in my latest dream world experience. So, Rinoa is Laguna's daughter? How could this be possible... If that means that Laguna is her father, does that mean that Julia is her mother...? She actually got married to that guy??? Hmm...
I hadn't slept much that night. After I took Eiri home, I came straight back here, to Kiros's hut. I don't know why; I still felt guilty about hurting Rinoa like that... Korekanda was furious at me. I went to feed him when we got back, he thrashed out and roared at me. I hadn't felt guiltier until that moment.
"Ugh..." Rinoa let out a slight moan, she was...? Don't tell me that that prayer actually worked!
"Rinoa???" I jumped out of my chair and knelt down beside her. "Rinoa? Can you hear me???" I asked hopefully.
Rinoa weakly brought a pale hand to her face and groaned once more. "... ... ...Squall...?"
Yes! I took her hand, "Rinoa, I'm right here. It's okay."
Her eyes began fluttering open; let me see those beautiful brown eyes of yours again... I gasped at what I saw. Her eyes... They're... They've changed. "Squall?" She weakly stared up at me with her new, strange eyes. "Squall... What happened? ...Is Korekanda alright???" She tried to get up, but she was still far too weak.
"Korekanda's fine. Don't worry." I can hear her voice again, but I couldn't look into her eyes anymore... Not the eyes she had when I first met her. They were no longer the deep and rich chololate brown, but now... Now they were a beautiful, sea-foam green. Just like Laguna's... I couldn't help but stare...
"Squall, what's wrong?" She asked, leaning on her elbows for support.
I paused. "... ... ...Your eyes..." That was all I could say. They were still beautiful, but... I was just so used to her brown ones...
Instead of asking 'what about them,' she simply stared at me, and finally said, "Let me see a mirror." I nodded and found a black one next to her bed. She gazed into the glass, "... ... ... I... I have my father's eyes..." She smiled, but I saw tears in her eyes.
"Rinoa? ...What's wrong?" I asked, concerned.
She looked at me with her new, cat-like green eyes, tears running down her soft cheeks, tearing me apart. No, please don't cry... I found myself feeling horrible, she was sad... It was tearing me in half.
"Squall..." she whimpered softly, and fell into my arms, crying. I wrapped my arms around her in comfort and embraced her. Please, don't cry... Strangely, I found myself liking this position. In a way, it meant that she would come to me for comfort. I smiled warmly at that thought and closed my eyes. I just wish I knew why she was crying.
I let my fingers rest on the inky blackness of her hair, "Rinoa, what's wrong?" I asked.
She said nothing. It must be something bad. Is this eye color changing thing a bad omen in this tribe? Must be... Suddenly, I knew that she wasn't crying because she was sad. I couldn't understand for the life of me how,though... Is this how Rinoa could tell exactly what I was feeling? Is this what it's like?
But what is she feeling? I tried to 'sense' it as Rinoa so easily could for me. But it was no use. I could never be as good as she is at sensing emotions. She always seemed to know exactly what I was thinking. That was one of the reasons I... loved her so much. I always have, I realized in that moment. But does she feel the same way?
It doesn't matter... I have to let her know. I have to tell her. I have to just come out and say, "...I love you..." ...!!! ... ... ...Oh shit... Did I actually say that out LOUD???
Her shoulders stopped shaking, and she sniffed back one more tear that threatened to spill. She looked at me, her new eyes shocked. She smiled weakly, "Come on, I wanna show you something." Oh god... What does this mean?
She stood up weakly and started walking, I followed wondering what this was leading to. Just hope that she won't do anything crazy... I sighed, does this mean she doesn't love me back?
We arrived on a high cliff that overlooked the entire valley. It was a beautiful view. Rinoa turned to me, her eyes still glassy. "Uh... Squall, when a someone in this tribe meets someone...well, special... Sometimes, in really...really rare cases... Their eyes will change color." What is she getting at?
She cleared her throat and continued, her sweet voice cracking slightly, "And-um- When this happens... It means that..." She sniffed back another tear and wiped her eyes. "Squall..." She gripped both of my hands in hers, "... ... ...When the color of their eyes change... They've... It means that they've fallen in love," she said with a teary, yet loving smile. "Not just high school, 'I love you,' 'I love you, too' love. When your eyes change, it means that you're taken."
This means... You've fallen in love? ...With me??? "Rinoa..." I trailed off as I found myself moving in closer to her. I placed my hand on her cheek as she placed her other on my shoulder... From that moment, everything seemed to go in slow motion. Closer and closer... She placed her other hand on the wrist of the hand that was on her cheek...
I closed my eyes the very second our lips met. I wrapped my other hand around her waist, feeling as if I hadn't that her knees would fall. I felt the exact opposite; I felt like I was flying. It was completely unlike what I had imagined it to be, it was so much more. I loved her... I truly did.
I found my mind looking over every single moment we had spent together. Everything from our first meeting, to this moment of bliss, long and gentle. My heart swelled with happiness, as well as love. I never even thought about thinking that I would fall in love in under two weeks. Well, the future holds so many possibilities, whether for the good or the bad...
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Phew! That's all done. I love this chapter...! Guess it's just because I'm a hopeless romantic. I thinkthat chapter six will be up in a few days. Hope you enjoyed it! See ya!
Kayli
