Disclaimer: I don't own FF8...
Author's Note: Hey everybody! Thank you all so much for your reviews! They really mean a lot to me. I just thought that I'd tell you that I've been updating my ff.net profile pretty regularly. I'll be sure to update at least once a week, so if you want to know about what's going on with my life, or with my writing, than take a peek at it!
Never Free
Chapter 14- Love Is In the Air
Rays of sunlight poured into the room, flickering across Rinoa's face. She opened her eyes and was startled to find her surroundings unfamiliar. She turned to her left and realized that she wasn't alone. She smiled happily as she saw Squall sleeping peacefully, his head resting against her shoulder. The events of the previous day came back to her. She had had a breakdown, and Squall had been there for her. She smiled again and played with a piece of his hair. He's so cute when he sleeps!
As if sensing Rinoa's thoughts, Squall's eyes opened slowly and stared into the brown depth of Rinoa's. "Hey, you're awake." He whispered, and couldn't stop the smile that lit up his face.
"I could say the same for you. You know, you're adorable when you're asleep." Rinoa told him.
Squall smirked. "Nothing can compare to how beautiful you are."
She grinned. "Is this your house, Squall?"
"Yes. You asked me to take you here, remember?"
She blushed. "Umm...sorry about that. I wasn't thinking clearly."
"It's alright. You had to go through a lot yesterday."
"Thanks for being there."
"It's okay, Rinoa. I wanted to be there."
"Which brings me to my next question. How did you know about Zell?"
"Cid was informed about it through the police. He suggested that I stay in my room at Balamb Garden, and not set foot near the hospital. Of course I didn't listen to him."
"Thank you for not listening to him. I don't know what I would have done without you yesterday." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him softly. "I love you."
Squall grinned. "I love you, too, Rinoa."
She smiled and kissed him again, with a passion that she didn't know existed. Squall kissed her back, matching her passion.
At that moment, the phone chose to ring. Rinoa groaned. "Don't answer it."
Squall smiled apologetically. "I have to. It could be important." He got up from the couch and answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Squall, it's Seifer."
"Oh, hey. What's up?"
"Squall, who is it?" Rinoa asked from behind him.
"It's Seifer." He replied.
"Um, Squall? Is someone there with you?" Seifer asked suspiciously.
"Uh...no."
"Rinoa's with you, isn't she?"
"Well..."
"Isn't she?"
"Yes..."
"What the hell is wrong with you, man! She's at your house! What are you thinking?!" Seifer was outraged.
"Listen, Seifer," Squall snapped, "What I'm doing is none of your business. Now, are you going to tell me why you called, or are you going to lecture me?"
Seifer sighed. "The reason why I called was to tell you that Rinoa's friend, Zell, has made it through the night. The doctor says that he's going to make it."
"Why did you call me to tell me about it?"
"Because I already called Rinoa's house and her roommate told me that she was with you."
"Listen Seifer, I'm sorry if you don't approve of our relationship, but it's not going to change anything."
"It's not that I don't approve. I'm worried about you, man. Do you realize the risks that you're taking?"
"Yes, and I accept them."
"I hope you're right, Squall. For your sake and Rinoa's."
"Don't worry about it, Seifer. Thanks for calling."
"Yeah, well, I'll talk to you soon. Bye."
Squall hung up the phone and turned to Rinoa. "Zell made it through the night."
Rinoa let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I was so worried that he wasn't going to make it."
"I'm glad that he's okay." He paused. "Rinoa, can I ask you something?"
"Of course. Ask away."
"Did you and Zell...you know...ever have a...a romantic relationship?"
Rinoa burst out laughing. "Me and Zell? Of course not, Squall! Zell is like a brother to me."
Squall looked immensely relieved. "Well, I was just curious."
"Squall, are you jealous? Of Zell?" She started laughing again.
"No, I..." He trailed off.
"I think it's cute." She smiled.
"Do you want me to drive you to the hospital? I'm sure that you want to see Zell."
"Later. Right now...I think that it's time that we picked up from where we left off before that phone rang..."
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"Excuse me, Miss, but is this the residence of Ms. Rinoa Heartilly?"
"Yes, it is. Who would you be?" Selphie asked the man at the door.
"My name is Irvine Kinneas. I'm a friend of Rinoa's. I've been away for a while and I was wondering what she's been up to. Is she home?"
"Actually, no. I'm not sure when she'll be home. Would you like to come in? My name's Selphie...Selphie Tilmitt." She smiled. "I'm Rinoa's roommate."
"Pleased to meet you, Ms. Tilmitt. As much as I'd love to stay, I'm afraid that I really have to go." He paused. "Would you like to go out with me for dinner sometime?"
"Sure!" Selphie exclaimed. "Here's my number."
"Great! Well, I guess I'll see you soon Ms. Selphie. Bye!" He waved.
Selphie closed the door once he was out of sight and sighed dreamily. What a hunk...
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"I have a major announcement to make." Cid announced.
Everyone had assembled in Cid's office. Rinoa and Squall were sitting beside each other on the right side of the room. Seifer and Quistis sat adjacent to them on the left side, and Caraway was seated in the middle of all of them.
"First of all, you all know that Rinoa's friend, Zell Dincht, was brutally attacked yesterday. Thankfully, he is okay and is expected to make a full recovery. However, we believe that Rodney Billows is the one that ordered Zell to be attacked, meaning that he is on to Rinoa." He paused and cleared his throat. "We need to make a move against him as soon as possible. Irvine has discovered some very valuable information. Irvine Kinneas, would you come in here, please?" Irvine walked into the room and took a seat next to Cid's desk. "Irvine, would you like to inform the others of what you have discovered?"
"Certainly, Sir. I happened to get some of Galbadia Garden's files in my possession." He smiled. "Turns out that these files are pretty damn important!"
"Thanks to everyone in this room, we have managed to get a hold of many valuable files and much needed data. Thanks to Irvine here," Cid gestured to where Irvine was seated, "We have been able to get the final piece of the puzzle, so to speak."
Rinoa's eyes widened. "Do you mean...?"
Cid beamed. "Yes, I do. Tomorrow, we will be taking down Galbadia Garden..."
Author's Note: The end is near! Hee hee, seriously though, the final chapters are approaching. Please review!