Chapter 14
Squall spills the truth
Rinoa wandered along the garden path, it had been a while now since she had walked in the palace gardens, and she was enjoying for once the peace it held. Laguna had again gone on a business trip, and although she was very welcome to join him this time, she thought it better to decline.
Her book had been sent back to her office this morning, it had taken a first class ticket in the hands of Zell, who wouldn't let it travel any other way.
The sun shone down bright in the early mid day hours, and Rinoa found after a time it was best to remove her jacket. Her tiny top stopped just above her middle, and she looked around self consciously. But there was no one in the gardens except the gardener and the 'odd job man'. They both greeted her with a nod and a friendly 'hello', but Rinoa's mind was on something else.
It was the day of the arranged interview with Squall, and Ellone had said she would contribute too if Rinoa wanted her help. Rinoa had agreed in gratitude, these interviews were something she wasn't very confident with, and if she was alone interviewing Squall, she couldn't be sure that he would co operate fully.
Squall stretched back on his cushioned garden chair, and reached for his exotic looking drink, resting on the table beside of him. He had his sunglasses on today and a light material suit with pinstripes. In fact Rinoa couldn't remember him wearing anything other than suits, even when they had gone camping he had been in a shirt and trousers at least.
Squall watched Rinoa round the corner in front of him and smiled.
"Ready for that interview?" Squall asked, holding his drink out to her in a toasting sign. Rinoa rolled her eyes.
"Oh yes your majesty. Right away!" Rinoa said, pretending that she about to jump for anything he asked.
"Don't be sarcastic Rinoa, no one likes a smart ass." Squall said, flashing her one of his best grins.
"You'd be the one to know!" Rinoa retorted walking past him. Squall laughed.
"Well I suppose I might, but no seriously. I wanna get this interview over with, I've places to go, and important people to see." Squall mused, enjoying the honest disappointed look on Rinoa's face.
"What kind of people?" Rinoa asked. Squall raised his eyebrows.
"It's rude to ask that sort of thing Rinoa." Squall replied, his eyes gleaming in laughter at her face.
"Sorry." She mumbled. Squall laughed again, and Rinoa felt herself blush, she'd let him win!
"Just a few old friends." Squall said. This caught Rinoa's attention, there was something hidden in his voice, as if he wasn't telling the entire truth and wanted her to guess his secrets.
"Old friends?" Rinoa required. "I didn't think you had any friends." She added spitefully.
"Alright then, just some female acquaintances. Is that alright?" Squall asked. Rinoa felt her heart drop and she was lost for words, why was she feeling so jealous? It was over between them wasn't it? Squall was a jackass, and she didn't need him.
"Why would I care?" Rinoa asked, trying to stop the tears that were prickling against her eyes. Squall stopped his gloating immediately, he wasn't uncaring enough not to see the change in Rinoa since his last statement.
"You can come if you like." He offered, his tone slipping back into the caring voice she had heard from him before. Rinoa shook her head.
"No thankyou. I think I'll just stay here." She said before walking away, leaving Squall to feel guilty about his actions.
The Day came and went and Rinoa sat in Laguna's office waiting. The first to join her was Ellone, and she started to ask her questions without Squall. Rinoa's hand flashed over her note pad, scribbling down everything it could.
"How do you feel about living in this house where you are out numbered by men?" Rinoa asked. Ellone contemplated this.
"Well…I guess when I was younger I got the better deal. My brother, Squall, was in the SeeD training program in Balamb, so I never really saw him that often. I suppose within that time I was spoiled. When Squall came home, which was when he was 15, we started to learn to live together once more. I noticed the change in Squall right away, although father didn't. He was colder, and he wouldn't talk to me unless I asked him questions. He's gotten better over the years, but the SeeD training made him distant, and I'm not sure whether he'll ever get over that. I asked him once what it was like at the Garden, but he wouldn't tell me. I fact he always avoids every question on the subject."
"And you think something happened to him there?" Rinoa asked concerned. She was glad there was nobody filming this one; it was becoming much too personal.
"I don't know, I think so, but he'll never talk about it. Well at least not to me." Ellone said. "He might tell you if you ask him Rin." She added after a pause.
"Me? Why would he tell me if he won't even tell his own sister?" Rinoa asked surprised.
"Because you're closer to him than I am." Ellone answered simply. Rinoa shook her head. "He cares about you Rin."
"Maybe he did, but he doesn't anymore." Rinoa said matter of factly. But Ellone wouldn't listen.
"You should hear the way he talks about you, constantly talking about you. In fact yesterday he cancelled all his meetings to drive your book to the train station." Ellone said. Rinoa smiled.
"He was driving Zell to the train station, not my book." Rinoa said smiling. Ellone sighed.
"And he cancelled all his meetings for Zell? Not likely, besides Zell's got a car. Squall said that he wanted to make sure he saw it get onto the train at least. I'm sure he would have taken it himself if you had asked him." Ellone informed her. Rinoa laughed to relive the tension that was mounting in her. Did Squall still care for her? Was it possible? "Rin, you should believe me!"
"Thanks Ellone, but Squall's not interested in me. Especially after I threw his necklace on the floor." Rinoa mumbled.
"Necklace?" Ellone asked raising her eyebrow.
"He gave me a necklace, I threw it on the floor." Rinoa said quietly. Ellone nodded.
"I hope there was a time span in between what you just told me." Ellone said smiling. Rinoa just stared blankly almost in a daze.
"I shouldn't have left him to go home." Rinoa continued without regard to Ellone's question. "He'll never love me now."
Before Ellone could answer what Rinoa had so honestly admitted to, the door swung open and Squall walked into the room. Both pairs of eyes stared at him and flickered away again.
"Sorry, did I just…" He started. Rinoa wasn't sure what he was about to ask, but decided to change to subject quickly.
"It's ok, just sit down." She said hastily. Ellone gave Squall a warning with her eyes, stopping him from saying anything back to Rinoa's unrealised command. Squall sat down quickly, and stared at Rinoa.
"Well, I'm just going to start straight off with the questions here." Rinoa said looking down at her sheets to avoid Squall's burning eyes. "Erm Squall…" Rinoa began.
The door to the side of them was suddenly thrown open causing them all to jump involuntary and then curse.
"What the hell are you doing back?" Rinoa asked as her tiny camera crew stumbled into the room.
"We over heard that you were doing the famous 'Squall interview' today, so we hurried back." Rinoa looked shocked. Not another filmed interview, she could barely recover from the last one.
"How did you know?" Rinoa asked suspiciously. Fendz looked to Mitch to explain, but he looked blank.
"Err….well…um" Mitch said darting his eyes all over the room.
"Zell must have told them. He loves to meddle in everything he can." Squall said into the silent room. Ellone nodded.
"You remember when…?" Elone asked giving Squall a prompting look.
"Not now Ellone….heh." He said blushing slightly. Rinoa looked interested.
"What was that?" Rinoa asked.
"Nothing. Let's just get on with the interview." Squall said shifting in his chair.
"This is the interview, tell me what…." Rinoa said grabbing the microphone and holding it to Ellone. Fendz signalled to Mitch to switch on the camera and film another unconventional interview.
"Well, back when we about, oh, 12 guess and Squall was home on leave from the Garden, we tried to throw this massive party when father was out. Well obviously Zell was part of the planning team which was a big mistake." Ellone started.
"He let it slip to Laguna two days before he was scheduled to leave." Squall continued.
"So you can see how well that went down." Ellone resumed.
"We had made a huge bowl of vodka jelly, and Zell told him about that too." Squall said taking over the story once more. "When Laguna found it, he went mad and made us eat it all until we were sick. It was along time before any of us touched alcohol again." Squall finished. Their expression showed that the memory was probably still fresh in their minds. "I've never been so ill." Squall added.
Rinoa laughed.
"Laguna made you eat it all? Well that's a new alternative to grounding." Rinoa said still laughing.
"Then the next day I had to go out to a presentation about something." Ellone said. "I still haven't forgiven him for that. Squall got to stay in bed" She added spitefully. Rinoa laughed again.
"Squall, for the earlier years of your life you were enrolled in the SeeD training program, what was that like?" Rinoa asked. Squall remained silent for awhile before answering.
"Well it was tough." Squall answered
"Can you tell us about it?" Rinoa asked softly.
"Well, at an early age it was discovered that I had a talent for using a gunblade." Squall began into the enrapture room; this was a new story even to Ellone, nothing had even been talked of like this before.
"Gunblade?" Rinoa asked.
"A type of weapon, um a really heavy sword with the handle containing a gun." Squall explained. Rinoa nodded to show her new understanding. "In the Gardens each student is teamed up with their weapon at an early stage, you have to take a number of tests to find out which one would be suitable. Gunblader's are rare, and this was the first thing to, unwillingly single me out."
"You were in the spotlight because you had a gunblade?" Rinoa asked to make sure she had her facts correct for the camera.
"At first yes, then it was discovered that I could actually use it better than they had expected." Squall answered.
"But they picked that weapon for you; they must have known that you would be able to use it well." Rinoa said rationally.
"I'm not sure, I think it was just expected that because of whom I was, that I wouldn't have any great skill." Squall said.
"How do you mean?" Rinoa asked.
"People are prejudiced. 'Oh it's the president's son', they make a judgement before they know me. Nobody expected me to be any good."
"But you were! You did it you made it into the Garden and you made it out again." Rinoa said impressed.
"Yes, but not without difficulty."
"Can you tell me?" Rinoa asked. Squall nodded.
"If you like. When I was in the Garden I ran into a self-assured young man named Seifer Almasy." Squall began. Rinoa froze, how was it possible that he knew Seifer? Surely it couldn't be the same Seifer! "He was a Gunblader as well, and was my sparing partner from day one. We didn't exactly become friends as many had expected, although were a team. Two days before I left, I took part in my final spar with Seifer, unfortunately it was the very one that would give us both the scars between our eyes."
Rinoa sat stunned in front of him; she never would have expected this. It had been so much of a shock in fact, that she was unable to continue the interview.
"I thank you for your time this evening." She said quietly. Ellone smiled and made a move towards the door.
"Is that it Rin?" Asked Mitch, Rinoa nodded before standing up.
"Yes, please excuse me." Rinoa said walking towards the door.
"Rin, we are going to stay in Esthar for a few days back, we'll send the tape back with Zell again if he will take it." Fendz informed her before she left.
Rinoa wandered into her room and sat down on a chair next the entrance to the balcony.
"Rinoa? You alright?" Asked a voice through the door. "Can I come in?"
"If you must." Rinoa said without much effort.
The door opened slowly and Squall walked into the room, at once he observed Rinoa at the far side of the room.
Walking up to stand next to her, he looked at her intently before sitting in an opposite chair.
"I thought you were upset over something." Squall said. Rinoa blew the air out of her cheeks in a frustrated and worried way.
"I am not upset." Rinoa answered. Squall smiled.
"Then why did you run away just now?"
"I did not run away. The interview was over." Rinoa defended curling her legs up under her and resting her head on her bent knees.
"Oh come on Rinny what's wrong?" Squall asked. The use of the babyish name softened her and she looked at him trustingly.
"I can't tell you."
Rinoa looked away from him instantly; she couldn't stand to gaze at him any longer knowing that she could never be his. If she told him that she had had a past with Seifer he would never look at her the same again.
"Rin, I know there is something wrong." Squall said still trying to let her open up. Rinoa began to get annoyed, he was innocent this time, but because of her reluctance to tell the truth, she was resenting the way he was pushing her.
"Just shut up Squall, please. I just..." Rinoa said resting her head back onto her knees.
"Shut up Squall...you say that a lot." Squall said moving forwards towards her. "Well I'll see you around!" He said taking his hands and kissing them before walking out.
Rinoa stared after him, why was he such a freak? Rinoa sat confused before looking over the balcony wall. Squall was getting into his car and being fussed with. Rinoa rolled her eyes before she remembered who he was going to meet.
Rinoa sighed and decided to run a bath to distract her from her engaging thoughts. The warm water did the desired effect and it wasn't long before she forgot all about Squall.
The phone buzzed loudly beside her and she flipped it open with sluggish movements.
"Hello?" She said expecting to hear Selphie on the other side.
"Rinoa, how about that night out?" Asked a cocky voice.
"Seifer, I said no." Rinoa said about to hang up.
"No wait Rin, how about just one drink? I'll buy you dinner, just a dinner no strings attached." Seifer pleaded. Rinoa considered it. There was no harm in a dinner, if that was all that Seifer had planned as he claimed he did.
"If I say yes, it's only dinner. It does not mean we are back together." Rinoa warned.
"I promise only dinner. I want to say sorry for the way I've treated you in the past." Seifer said.
"Fine, I'll go with you." Rinoa answered much to Seifer's satisfaction.
"Great, well meet me at 8 in the 'Restaurant X'. You know where that is?" Seifer asked.
"Yeah, I'll be there." Rinoa said hanging up the phone.
A/N: Well I hope I didn't disappoint anyone with this chapter, thankyou all for reading!
Thankyou to: The Angel of the Lion, AngelWingedPrincess, Lady Yevon, The Notorious Naurwen, omnitoad, Archangel_666, RPG Hui, Lionheart, Sammy-Chan.
Note to Archangel_666: You left some ideas in your review. As you can see I touched on them in this chapter. Thankyou for them and I hope that it is still ok that I have used them.
