DISCLAIMER: I do not own any Final fantasy 8 characters.
A vacation to remember
Sweat dripped off of Squall's face as he trained in the training center. He really didn't need to waist his time with weak animals, but there was really nothing else to do around Balamb. He just wanted to keep his mind active before he started thinking to much. Squall hated being
bored. He slashed his tenth T- Rex. It was too easy for him. "Well, I think that's enough for today." Squall said to himself, wiping the sweat of his face with his fore arm. He put his gunblade back in its sheath. He walked out of the training center. Squall decided to go to his dorm, since there really wasn't anything else for him to do. Once he arrived to his dorm, he walked in and sat down on his bed. He let himself fall asleep.
"Squall! Squall! Wake up! The headmaster wants us to come and meet him right away! Hurry!" Quistis yelled through Squall's door. Squall got up from his bed and opened the door. Quistis was already heading to Cid's office. He caught up to Quistis, who was already walking in the elevator. "So, what does he want?
Is it another mission?" Squall asked curiously.
"No actually, he said it didn't have anything to do with that." Quistis folded her arms to her chest and pushed her back against the elevator wall. The elevator door opened and they walked out. There they saw Selphie, Irvine, Zell, and Rinoa, standing near the door to Cid's office. "Hey you guys, why aren't you in Cid's office?" Quistis asked, walking up to them.
"He has some business in his office." Zell said, standing with his back brushed up against Cid's office door.
"Hey Zell, you shouldn't stand right there ya' know." Quistis told Zell.
"Tch. Its cool." Zell said, throwing his hand back and forth. Just then the door opened and down went Zell, flat on his butt.
"Oh dear son, are you okay?" Cid asked with concern. Cid bent down and helped him up.
"Peachy." Zell said firmly and sarcastically, rubbing his butt.
"I told you." Quistis said, shaking her head. Two students walked out of Cid's office with sad looks on there faces.
"Come on in and take a seat, everyone." Cid extended his hand inside his office, telling them to come in. Everyone came in and sat down in the chairs that where placed in a row in front of Cid's desk. "I'm sure your wondering what your doing here, so lets get to the point." Cid said with a slight smile on his face. He sat down on the edge of his desk with his feet crossed and his arms folded. "Since you guys had a very hard battle with ultremecia, I am giving you a chance to relax. I booked you a flight to topsity island for 2 weeks.
There you will be accompanied by a tour guide. You will live in a beach house. It has 6 rooms and three bathrooms. You will have a swimming pool, a personal eating place, a spa, and you will be doing lot's of sight seeing. Have fun!" Cid now had a full smile on his face. He knew they all needed a vacation.
"We're actually gonna' go on a vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Selphie exclaimed, jumping up and down, knocking over her chair. Everyone one was surprised, including Squall.
"Easy Selphie." Irvine said, trying to control her.
"You guys leave tomorrow. Now go and pack your stuff." Cid said, walking to the door. He handed each of them a flight ticket. Everyone took one and showed there appreciation. Everyone walked out of his office and left for there dorms.
"Squall, we're goin' on a vacation, It's gonna' be great!" Rinoa said, as she walked through the hall, holding on Squall's arm with both her hands.
"Don't forget, we finally get to be alone." Squall reminded Rinoa, looking at her with his
beautiful blue eyes.
"Ooooooooooh! Yeahhhhhhhhhhh! Baby! we're goin' ta'..." Zell said, forgetting where he was going. He looked on his ticket. "Oh yeah, Topsity!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yeahhhhh!!!!!!" Zell ran down the hall with his hands in his back pockets.
*
"I'm gonna' take my swim suit! My favorite outfits! My good luck charms! This is gonna' be a blast!" Selphie yelled, throwing clothes from her closet and into Irvine arms. Selphie turned around to find Irvine standing there with her clothes all piled up in his hands. "Oh, thanks Irvine. ....Hey how did you get in here? I thought I locked the door?" Selphie asked, with her bright green eyes looking at him. Those same bright eyes was what made Irvine fall for Selphie.
".....Oh- ah- well....The door wasn't locked... I-it was already opened." Irvine said, nervously, hiding the stretched out paper clip he used to pick her lock.
"Oh, I could of sworn I locked it. Oh well, so what are you doing here?" Selphie asked, putting her clothes in her bags of 3.
"Oh, I was wonderin' if you could help me pack." Irvine asked with puppy dog eyes.
"Sure!" Selphie said, giving in to his puppy dog eyes.
"Score one for Irvine." Irvine said, quietly under his breathe.
*
"Oh man, I didn't know packin' took that much work." Zell said, talking to no one. He laid down on the bed, looking at the ceiling. "Well at least I only have to carry one bag." Just then, there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" Zell yelled to who ever it was. Quistis came in. "Hey! I just wanted to see how many bags you have. I checked with Squall but he has 2 bags.
Irvine's not finished yet. So, how many bags do you have?" Quistis asked, looking around and finding her answer.
"I only have one bag." Zell informed, patting his bag. "It can fit almost anything in it."
"That's good because you can carry my bag!" Quistis said, bringing in her bags that were out in the hallway.
"I am not carrying your stuff." Zell said, looking at her bag, then looking at her.
"Oh, be a gentlemen." Quistis gave Zell a death glare.
"Alright, alright, I'll carry it, but I ain't carrin' them back, now get out of my room, I need sleep!" Zell said, irritated. Quistis walked out of his room, carrying one bag and leaving the other in Zell's room.
"Bye!" Quistis said, shutting the door.
*
There was a knock on Squall's door. He went over to open it. "Hey squall!" Rinoa exclaimed, poking her head in Squall's room. "Have you packed yet?"
"Yeah, there over there." Squall pointed to his bags, on the floor, near the bed.
"Can I come in?" Rinoa asked.
"Sure." Squall said firmly. He sat down on his mini couch and turned on the TV.
"Hey Squall? Can I tell you something?"
"Sure, what is it?" Squall asked, interested. Rinoa sat beside Squall, with her hands in her lap.
"I've never told anyone this but, .... I'm afraid of flights." Rinoa looked down at her feet.
"Really? Just sit by me, AWAY from the window when we get on the plane, okay?" Squall put an arm around Rinoa. She was comforted by his warmth and leaned in.
"Alright, but don't say anything if I start hyper ventilating." She said with a laugh.
"Did you pack yet?" Squall asked, changing the subject.
"Yep, I have to carry 4 bags." Rinoa said, as if she wanted him to carry her bags.
"Nope, I'm not carrying your bags." Squall said, looking away.
"I wasn't gonna ask you, ya know."
"Right."
*
"Okay, and your all set!" Selphie said, relieved she finished packing Irvine clothes. "Thanks, you were a real help." Irvine said, rubbing his head.
"Aw, it was nothin'."
"Well, sure it is, I mean lovely ladies like yourself shouldn't be doing work like this." Irvine said, as if he were innocent.
"Well, I'm gonna take a shower, bye!"
"Wait, I'll walk you."
"Okay." They both walked out of Irvine's room.
"Thanks Irvine. You're a real friend." Selphie said, clinging on his arm with her arms. They walked all the way to her dorm, which was across from Quistis's room. "Well, we're here." Selphie said turning around to face Irvine.
"Oh, yeah....Right." He started to turn around to leave.
"Irvine." Selphie called after him. She ran up to him and gave him a peck on the cheek. She ran back in her room, hiding her blush.
*
It was now the next day. Everyone got up early to take a shower. Selphie being the most excited was the first one ready to go. Everyone had to be at the Airport by 8:00. The airplanes where going to lift off at 8:30. So everyone woke up an hour earlier.
"I hope I got everything." Selphie said, holding her bags, walking towards Irvine's dorm. She had on blue, short shorts with a yellow shirt with short sleeves. Selphie put her heavy bags down on the ground, in front of Irvine's dorm. "Irvine! Irvine are you up yet?!" Selphie yelled through the door.
"Yeah, I'm comin'." Irvine made a struggle to get to the door. "Oh, hey Selphie." Irvine had on his favorite cowboy pants with a white t-shirt. He had his favorite hat on his head.
"What took you so long?"
"I tripped over my bag." Irvine said, rubbing his hurting leg.
"Come on Irvine, let's go to the cafeteria." Selphie pointed in the direction of the cafeteria.
"Why did you bring your bags?"
"I was hoping you could keep it in here, since your dorm is closest to the front gate."
"Oh sure" Irvine said, picking up her bags and putting it near his. "All right, let's go." Irvine said, holding his arm out for Selphie to cling on to. Selphie clung to Irvine and
they headed for the cafeteria. When they got there, everyone was already there talking at there favorite table.
"So then, after I punched the living daylights out of him, he did a sneak
attack on me. Now, do you think that's fair?!" Zell said, sitting in his chair backwards. He had on white baggy shirts that came past his knees and a red, short sleeve, buttoned up shirt. He kept the first few buttons loose. He had sneakers that matched his shirt.
"Hey guys." Selphie and Irvine said in unison.
"Why if it isn't the married couple." Quistis said, with a smile on her face. Quistis had on a jean skirt that came to her upper thighs and a tight, pink, V-neck tee. Quistis had ankle length, leather boots on. Irvine went in line at the cafeteria to get breakfast for himself and Selphie. Selphie sat down, next to Quistis.
"You still didn't answer my question." Zell said.
"First of all, it's all apart of winning against your opponent and second of all we don't care, its like the 30th time you told us that story." Squall said, sitting with his left leg crossed on top of his right leg. Squall had on black jeans and a white, long sleeve shirt that zipped up.
"I guess your right." Zell said, stuffing his face with hotdogs. Everyone just watched while he stuffed his face with hotdogs, like he never had anything to eat in 2 years.
"So like, what time are we supposed to leave?" Irvine asked, walking back to the table. He gave Selphie her food and sat next to her with his food.
"In a half an hour." Rinoa said, looking at her watch. She had on a blue cotton dress that came to her knees and a blue tank top that came to the bottom of her stomach. "We should get ready to go because its almost 8:00 now."
"Well, let's go everyone." Squall said. Everyone got from the table and grabbed their bags from there dorms and headed to the parking lot. Quistis handed Zell one of her bags and walked ahead. Everyone put their bags in A big, red jeep.
"Let's have some fun!!!!!!!!!" Zell said, behind the wheel, speeding off.
"Slow down Zelllll!!!!" All the girls said in unison.
"Don't worry ladies, I'll keep you safe."
"No thanksssss!!!!!" Rinoa said, holding on to Squall.
*
"Everyone, please put all your seat belts on. We are about to lift off." The announcer said over the loud speaker.
"We're about to go!!!!!!!!" Rinoa yelled in panic.
"Calm down, it'll be alright." Squall said, hiding his laugh from Rinoa. Rinoa could see him laugh anyway and hit him on the leg. "Owwww. Sorry, but this is gonna' be a funny ride."
"Hey Rinoa, you should be used to it." Selphie said, across from Squall's seat.
"No, I'm nottttttt!!!!"
"We are lifting off." The announcer said.
"GET ME OFF THIS STINKIN' FLIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Rinoa yelled.
*
Everyone arrived at Topsity beach Airport. "So, wheres' the tour guide?" Selphie asked impatiently. Zell started throwing up from stuffing his face with hotdogs before he left.
"I am right here. Hello, I shall be your tour guide." A deep voice said, shaking everyone's hand. "My name is Samuel. I shall take you to your beach house." Samuel was a tall, and skinny man. He had short black hair that came to the bottom of his neck. They followed the tour guide to the beach house. It was really huge. It was made out of wood, but it was painted white. Everyone's mouth dropped.
"Wow man! We're gonna live in here?!" Zell asked, dropping his bag and recuperating from his aching stomach.
"Yes, why is it so shocking to you?" Samuel asked, using the house key to open the front door.
"Talk about rude." Zell whispered to Squall. Once he got the door opened, everyone came in and sat there bags down.
"This house is pretty huge." Selphie said, holding her hands to her mouth.
"Well, everyone get's to have a room to themselves." Samuel said. "Let me give you a tour of this place. First you have the kitchen that leads to the basement, which leads to the attic."
"Question." Zell interrupted from behind Samuel.
"Yes, what is it?"
"How can the basement lead to the attic?"
"I don't know, that's how the house was built!" Samuel yelled angrily. "Anyway, let's go to the pool area."
"Man, this guy's got a real attitude problem and at that, he's creepy lookin'." Zell said to Quistis, who really didn't hear a word he said.
They walked from the attic, down to the basement to the kitchen and out in the pool area. "As you can see, right now, the pool is covered. Press this button, and the cover comes off." Samuel pushed a green button that was placed near the pool.
"Oh, man, is that cool or what?!" Zell yelled.
"Yes, but don't break it." Samuel said.
"Tch, he's a party pooper." Zell said to himself, under his breath.
"Let's go to the living room." They walked from the pool area, out of the kitchen and to the dinning room. "As you can see, the living room is quiet big. You have a big screen TV for your enjoyment." Samuel said.
"This must of caused a fortune." Selphie said, quietly under her breathe to Irvine. After
Samuel gave them a tour of the upstairs, then he showed them the private restaurant. He left after that.
*
It was now 9:30 at night. Everyone was finished unpacking there things. Quistis was in the shower and the rest were sitting down on a long couch, that could fit everyone on it, watching a horror movie. "Hey, you guys, pass the popcorn down." Selphie said, looking down at Irvine who had the popcorn. He passed it down to Rinoa, who was next Selphie. "Thanks!" Selphie took a handful of popcorn and passed it to Squall who was next to her. Squall took a handful of popcorn and passed it to Zell.
"Ahhhh!" The television yelled. Selphie and Rinoa jumped in their seats at the same time.
"Man, you guys get scared over nothing." Zell said, looking at Rinoa and Selphie. Irvine got up from his seat and went behind Zell.
"Wahhhhh!" Irvine yelled, startling everyone in the process. "See, you jumped when I yelled at in your ear." Irvine returned back to the couch.
"That's because you came in from the back of me." Zell said, standing up for himself.
"Irvine, don't scare us like that again, you almost gave me a heart attack." Rinoa yelled at him.
"Girls." Squall said, still looking at TV.
"And, what's that suppose to mean?!" Rinoa said, getting up in front of the TV, blocking everyone view.
"Ohhhhh, come on man, get out of the way!" Zell said, trying to look at the TV.
"It doesn't mean anything." Squall said, trying to get Rinoa out of the way.
"Keep it to yourself, I don't wanna' know." Rinoa turned back around to her spot on the couch.
"Thank you, you almost made me miss the killin' part." Zell said, passing the popcorn down.
"You guys are horrible. You enjoy killing?" Rinoa said, with popcorn in her mouth.
"What do expect from SeeDs?" Zell asked.
"Hey you guys, watcha' watchin'?" Quistis asked, with green creme on her face and a pink robe on.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" All the boys said, jumping back.
"SHUT UP!" Quistis yelled, hitting everyone.
"Hey, quit with the hitting, you look like a monster, take that stuff off." Zell said, putting his hands in front of his eyes.
"Yeah, Quistis, Zell does have a point." Squall said, laughing hard.
"Leave her alone!" Rinoa yelled. "If you want clear skin you have to pay the price with hideous facial creme."
"Rinoa, it's bad enough of them, making fun of me." Quistis said, putting her hands on her hips.
"Sorry Quistis." Rinoa said, sitting down.
"Ahhhhahahaha!" Selphie said, crying.
"What is it Selphie?" Irvine asked, looking at her.
"It ended sadly." Selphie said, holding a box of tissues up to her eyes.
"Awww, come here." Irvine said, holding his arms out to her.
"I'm not that sad. Thanks for tryin' to cheer me up."
"Ohh, she'll never get the clue." Irvine said, holding his head down.
"Well you guys, once I take this stuff of my face, let's hit the town." Quistis said, heading upstairs to the bathroom.
"Yeah you guys, let's not let our brains melt by watchin' TV all the time." Rinoa said, getting up, reaching for Squall to get up as well.
"Oooh Rinoa, I don't really feel like going anywhere." Squall said, slouching down in the couch.
"Yeah, and Irvine we're goin' with Quistis whether you like it or not." Selphie said, throwing him near the door.
"Okay, Selphie. Quistis isn't even down here yet." Irvine sat back down on the couch.
"You guys are laaaaaaazy!" Zell said, standing up.
"What about you Zell, you coming?" Selphie and Rinoa asked in unison.
"Oh, me?..... Naw, I-I'm not finished packing." Zell said, nervously.
"Hey Rinoa, you thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"
"100 percent." Rinoa brought up one of her hands. They both started running towards all the boys and tickled them.
"HAHAHAHA! ST-HAHAHAH-STOP! Okay, we're goin', just-hahahahaha! Just stop!" Squall said running away from Rinoa.
"HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-ALRIGHT!" Zell and Irvine said in unison. Just then, Quistis came down in a pair of pink jeans and a pink tank top.
"WHOOOOOOO-WHOOOOO!" Zell and Irvine said together.
"Lookin' good." Irvine said, putting his arm around her.
"Get away from me, you belong to Selphie." Quistis said, giggling.
"Alright then." Irvine walked over to Selphie, who was laughing.
"Alright everyone, let's hit the town!" Rinoa said, grabbing Squall and forcing him out the door.
"Whooooo!" Was all Squall could say. Everyone else followed them. They walked down the street, to their private restaurant.
"Ummmm, somethin' smells good." Rinoa said, sitting down at the eating table. Everyone sat down as well. "They even have a private waiter." The waiter came up to their table.
"Hellooooooo, Welcome to Cafe'-a la ritz-a." The Italian waiter greeted them. "What-a would you-a like-a?"
"Hotdogs man!" Zell said, throwing his fists in the air.
"No, hotdogs!" Everyone said in unison.
"We'll have the special." Quistis said, looking at her menu.
"Yeah, that sounds good." Selphie said, looking at her menu as well. Everyone agreed on it but Zell. He knew he was going to eat the food anyway, with him being a pig and all.
"Here you-a are-a!" The waiter said, bringing everyone a big plate with lobster on it and all sorts of meats, including hotdogs.
"Thanks..Um.." Selphie said, waiting for him to give his name.
"The name is Mario." The Italian man said firmly.
"Wow, this meal was sure made quickly." Quistis said, digging in.
"See Zell, you got what you want." Squall said, taking a piece of meat from the big platter.
"Ummmm.....Uhhhhhh.....Ohhhhhhh...Yeah." Zell spoke with food coming out of his mouth.
*
After everyone finished eating dinner, they went out to town. Everyone spotted the very famous Topsity Amusement park. "Look at all the lights. I didn't think the island would be that lively at night." Quistis said, walking down the street with everyone.
"Come on Squall let's get on the roller coaster!" Rinoa said, pulling Squall towards the ticket line.
"Well you guys, let's split up and return in two hours. Okay?" Said Quistis, walking in the same line as Rinoa. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Ooooooooooh! Look Irvine! Get me that teddy bear!" Selphie cried, pointing at a prize you had to win.
"Aren't you too big for teddy bears?" Irvine questioned.
"Please Irvy?" Selphie said, showing her sparkly eyes.
"Sure Selph. You don't have to ask." Irvine said, kissing Selphie on the forehead. Selphie felt somewhat comfortable every time she was around him. She always felt safe near him. She never gathered the courage to tell him how she really feels. On Irvine's part, he really never told Selphie how he felt. He figured it was that ladies' man part of him that kept his feelings bottled up.
"Wheeeeeeeeeee!" Rinoa yelled in Squall ears.
"THIS.....IS.....MORE SCARY THEN RIDING AN AIRPLANE!!!!!!"Squall yelled back to Rinoa. After they got off of the ride, they headed down to the snack place, where they met up with Zell, eating hotdogs and talking to one of the owners. "Now do you think that's fair?" Zell was talking away about his same old, familiar story.
"I guess that's not fair. Well I gotta' get to work." The owner went back to doing his job, while Zell walked away, bumping into Squall and falling onto the ground. Squall helped Zell up.
"Be more careful Zell." Squall said, letting him go.
"Man you really should watch where ya' goin'."Zell said, not paying attention to what Squall just said. He focused all his attention on a girl in the crowd an headed towards her.
"Zell is really weird." Rinoa said, watching Zell get hit in the face by the girl.
"Tell me about it. Let's go." Squall and Rinoa headed towards the game stand.
"Come on Irvine!!!!! You have to get me that bear!!!!!!" Selphie said, jumping in his face.
"I'm tryin'!" Irvine said, trying to shoot the target with a water gun.
"I thought you were a sharp shooter?!"
"I am, but your distracting me!" Irvine said, still missing his moving target.
"Here let me try." Selphie took the water gun from Irvine and started shooting the target. She shot the target with ease. "See Irvy, that's all you had to do." Selphie said, giving back the gun.
"What prize would you like girly?" The clerk said, peering out from the counter.
"That teddy bear!!!!!!" Selphie said, pointing to the big, pink, cute bear.
"Here you are." The clerk gave her the teddy bear. The bear was practically bigger than her.
"Come on Selphie, it's almost time to meet with others."
*
"Well, that was fun." Quistis said, getting off of a roller coaster. Quistis looked at her watch. It was almost time to go. She was having a lot of. The last time Quistis remembered having fun was when, everyone became a SeeD. She walked up to the place where she was supposed to meet everyone up.
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! SOMEONE, PLEASE HELP!" A voice said in the crowd. Quistis was the first to react and ran to where the sound was.
"Clear the path! Let me threw!" Quistis yelled, trying to get to the chaos. She saw, a young man lying on the ground with blood everywhere. Quistis ran up to the young man. He was around 20 years of age. The guys girlfriend kept yelling and yelling. "Excuse me Ms., what happened?" Quistis asked, looking at the sobbing woman.
"Someone shot him! He's dying, help him!!!!!!" Just then, Squall, Rinoa, Selphie, Irvine, and Zell ran up. The police barged through the crowd.
"What happened here!" The police, already knowing the answer.
"He's been shot." Quistis informed, while holding the mother.
"Clean this up men." The policeman put on two gloves and knelt down.
"But, aren't you supposed to wait for the ambulance?!" Quistis asked, helping the devastated women up.
"I think I know how to run my job. Now, why don't you get out of here and let me do my job!!" The policemen yelled. There was nothing else Quistis could do but go.
"Yo man, what happened?!" Zell yelled, holding hotdogs in each hand.
"Hey you guys, look up there!" Selphie yelled, pointing the top of the tree.
"I'm on it!" Zell yelled, throwing the hot dogs on the ground.
"Zell wait!" Squall yelled. "I'm goin' after him, who every we're dealing with might be dangerous!" Yelled Squall, running after Zell.
"Let's go you guys! Split up. Irvine with Selphie. Rinoa, come with me." Quistis had her instructor tone again. Everyone split up, leaving the police and the sobbing woman there, near her dead son.
*
"Zell! What are doing?! Don't do that again, you don't know who this sicko is!"
"Yeah I guess your right."
"Where are we?" Squall asked, looking around. The place was dark, but it was enough light to see tree around them. "It looks like we're in woods."
"Come, let's get outta' here." Zell said, getting scared.
"Your not going anywhere!" A mysteries voice said.
"Who's there?!" Squall yelled, looking around. "Are you the bastard who killed that kid?!"
"That pathetic boy was in the wrong place at the wrong time!" The voice said.
"What are ya' talkin' about!?" Zell yelled, bumping into Squall with his back.
"I was aiming for one of you Seeds. But the boy walked in front of you as I shot the bullet." The mysteries voice said.
"What do you want from us?!" Squall asked.
"Zell?! Squall?!" Selphie yelled.
"Yo! Over here!" Zell yelled, relieved to hear her voice. There was a flash of light. It was a flashlight.
"Squall!" Rinoa yelled, nearly dropping the flashlight. She ran up to hug him.
"Where'd he go?" Squall mumbled. Squall gave Rinoa a tight hug.
"Where'd he go?" Zell asked, scratching his head. "He didn't want none of this, I would of killed him!" Zell lied.
"Right Zell." Irvine said, disbelievingly. "Looks like we're not dealing with anything, it seems.
"Right. He said, he was aiming for us Seeds." Squall said, stilling holding Rinoa in his arms.
"I think that policeman back there has something to do with it." Quistis said, folding her arms together. Everyone started heading back to the beach house, they could see, now that Rinoa
brought a flashlight.
"What do you mean Quisty?" Selphie asked, walking along side with Irvine to her right, and Quistis to her left. Everyone else were in the front, while Zell was in the back of everyone.
"Well, he acted like he wanted to hurry and dispose of the boy's body before anyone more people got involved, we'd better watch our back." Quistis started picking up her pace.
"So much for our vacation." Zell said under his breathe.
A vacation to remember
Sweat dripped off of Squall's face as he trained in the training center. He really didn't need to waist his time with weak animals, but there was really nothing else to do around Balamb. He just wanted to keep his mind active before he started thinking to much. Squall hated being
bored. He slashed his tenth T- Rex. It was too easy for him. "Well, I think that's enough for today." Squall said to himself, wiping the sweat of his face with his fore arm. He put his gunblade back in its sheath. He walked out of the training center. Squall decided to go to his dorm, since there really wasn't anything else for him to do. Once he arrived to his dorm, he walked in and sat down on his bed. He let himself fall asleep.
"Squall! Squall! Wake up! The headmaster wants us to come and meet him right away! Hurry!" Quistis yelled through Squall's door. Squall got up from his bed and opened the door. Quistis was already heading to Cid's office. He caught up to Quistis, who was already walking in the elevator. "So, what does he want?
Is it another mission?" Squall asked curiously.
"No actually, he said it didn't have anything to do with that." Quistis folded her arms to her chest and pushed her back against the elevator wall. The elevator door opened and they walked out. There they saw Selphie, Irvine, Zell, and Rinoa, standing near the door to Cid's office. "Hey you guys, why aren't you in Cid's office?" Quistis asked, walking up to them.
"He has some business in his office." Zell said, standing with his back brushed up against Cid's office door.
"Hey Zell, you shouldn't stand right there ya' know." Quistis told Zell.
"Tch. Its cool." Zell said, throwing his hand back and forth. Just then the door opened and down went Zell, flat on his butt.
"Oh dear son, are you okay?" Cid asked with concern. Cid bent down and helped him up.
"Peachy." Zell said firmly and sarcastically, rubbing his butt.
"I told you." Quistis said, shaking her head. Two students walked out of Cid's office with sad looks on there faces.
"Come on in and take a seat, everyone." Cid extended his hand inside his office, telling them to come in. Everyone came in and sat down in the chairs that where placed in a row in front of Cid's desk. "I'm sure your wondering what your doing here, so lets get to the point." Cid said with a slight smile on his face. He sat down on the edge of his desk with his feet crossed and his arms folded. "Since you guys had a very hard battle with ultremecia, I am giving you a chance to relax. I booked you a flight to topsity island for 2 weeks.
There you will be accompanied by a tour guide. You will live in a beach house. It has 6 rooms and three bathrooms. You will have a swimming pool, a personal eating place, a spa, and you will be doing lot's of sight seeing. Have fun!" Cid now had a full smile on his face. He knew they all needed a vacation.
"We're actually gonna' go on a vacation!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Selphie exclaimed, jumping up and down, knocking over her chair. Everyone one was surprised, including Squall.
"Easy Selphie." Irvine said, trying to control her.
"You guys leave tomorrow. Now go and pack your stuff." Cid said, walking to the door. He handed each of them a flight ticket. Everyone took one and showed there appreciation. Everyone walked out of his office and left for there dorms.
"Squall, we're goin' on a vacation, It's gonna' be great!" Rinoa said, as she walked through the hall, holding on Squall's arm with both her hands.
"Don't forget, we finally get to be alone." Squall reminded Rinoa, looking at her with his
beautiful blue eyes.
"Ooooooooooh! Yeahhhhhhhhhhh! Baby! we're goin' ta'..." Zell said, forgetting where he was going. He looked on his ticket. "Oh yeah, Topsity!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yeahhhhh!!!!!!" Zell ran down the hall with his hands in his back pockets.
*
"I'm gonna' take my swim suit! My favorite outfits! My good luck charms! This is gonna' be a blast!" Selphie yelled, throwing clothes from her closet and into Irvine arms. Selphie turned around to find Irvine standing there with her clothes all piled up in his hands. "Oh, thanks Irvine. ....Hey how did you get in here? I thought I locked the door?" Selphie asked, with her bright green eyes looking at him. Those same bright eyes was what made Irvine fall for Selphie.
".....Oh- ah- well....The door wasn't locked... I-it was already opened." Irvine said, nervously, hiding the stretched out paper clip he used to pick her lock.
"Oh, I could of sworn I locked it. Oh well, so what are you doing here?" Selphie asked, putting her clothes in her bags of 3.
"Oh, I was wonderin' if you could help me pack." Irvine asked with puppy dog eyes.
"Sure!" Selphie said, giving in to his puppy dog eyes.
"Score one for Irvine." Irvine said, quietly under his breathe.
*
"Oh man, I didn't know packin' took that much work." Zell said, talking to no one. He laid down on the bed, looking at the ceiling. "Well at least I only have to carry one bag." Just then, there was a knock on the door. "Come in!" Zell yelled to who ever it was. Quistis came in. "Hey! I just wanted to see how many bags you have. I checked with Squall but he has 2 bags.
Irvine's not finished yet. So, how many bags do you have?" Quistis asked, looking around and finding her answer.
"I only have one bag." Zell informed, patting his bag. "It can fit almost anything in it."
"That's good because you can carry my bag!" Quistis said, bringing in her bags that were out in the hallway.
"I am not carrying your stuff." Zell said, looking at her bag, then looking at her.
"Oh, be a gentlemen." Quistis gave Zell a death glare.
"Alright, alright, I'll carry it, but I ain't carrin' them back, now get out of my room, I need sleep!" Zell said, irritated. Quistis walked out of his room, carrying one bag and leaving the other in Zell's room.
"Bye!" Quistis said, shutting the door.
*
There was a knock on Squall's door. He went over to open it. "Hey squall!" Rinoa exclaimed, poking her head in Squall's room. "Have you packed yet?"
"Yeah, there over there." Squall pointed to his bags, on the floor, near the bed.
"Can I come in?" Rinoa asked.
"Sure." Squall said firmly. He sat down on his mini couch and turned on the TV.
"Hey Squall? Can I tell you something?"
"Sure, what is it?" Squall asked, interested. Rinoa sat beside Squall, with her hands in her lap.
"I've never told anyone this but, .... I'm afraid of flights." Rinoa looked down at her feet.
"Really? Just sit by me, AWAY from the window when we get on the plane, okay?" Squall put an arm around Rinoa. She was comforted by his warmth and leaned in.
"Alright, but don't say anything if I start hyper ventilating." She said with a laugh.
"Did you pack yet?" Squall asked, changing the subject.
"Yep, I have to carry 4 bags." Rinoa said, as if she wanted him to carry her bags.
"Nope, I'm not carrying your bags." Squall said, looking away.
"I wasn't gonna ask you, ya know."
"Right."
*
"Okay, and your all set!" Selphie said, relieved she finished packing Irvine clothes. "Thanks, you were a real help." Irvine said, rubbing his head.
"Aw, it was nothin'."
"Well, sure it is, I mean lovely ladies like yourself shouldn't be doing work like this." Irvine said, as if he were innocent.
"Well, I'm gonna take a shower, bye!"
"Wait, I'll walk you."
"Okay." They both walked out of Irvine's room.
"Thanks Irvine. You're a real friend." Selphie said, clinging on his arm with her arms. They walked all the way to her dorm, which was across from Quistis's room. "Well, we're here." Selphie said turning around to face Irvine.
"Oh, yeah....Right." He started to turn around to leave.
"Irvine." Selphie called after him. She ran up to him and gave him a peck on the cheek. She ran back in her room, hiding her blush.
*
It was now the next day. Everyone got up early to take a shower. Selphie being the most excited was the first one ready to go. Everyone had to be at the Airport by 8:00. The airplanes where going to lift off at 8:30. So everyone woke up an hour earlier.
"I hope I got everything." Selphie said, holding her bags, walking towards Irvine's dorm. She had on blue, short shorts with a yellow shirt with short sleeves. Selphie put her heavy bags down on the ground, in front of Irvine's dorm. "Irvine! Irvine are you up yet?!" Selphie yelled through the door.
"Yeah, I'm comin'." Irvine made a struggle to get to the door. "Oh, hey Selphie." Irvine had on his favorite cowboy pants with a white t-shirt. He had his favorite hat on his head.
"What took you so long?"
"I tripped over my bag." Irvine said, rubbing his hurting leg.
"Come on Irvine, let's go to the cafeteria." Selphie pointed in the direction of the cafeteria.
"Why did you bring your bags?"
"I was hoping you could keep it in here, since your dorm is closest to the front gate."
"Oh sure" Irvine said, picking up her bags and putting it near his. "All right, let's go." Irvine said, holding his arm out for Selphie to cling on to. Selphie clung to Irvine and
they headed for the cafeteria. When they got there, everyone was already there talking at there favorite table.
"So then, after I punched the living daylights out of him, he did a sneak
attack on me. Now, do you think that's fair?!" Zell said, sitting in his chair backwards. He had on white baggy shirts that came past his knees and a red, short sleeve, buttoned up shirt. He kept the first few buttons loose. He had sneakers that matched his shirt.
"Hey guys." Selphie and Irvine said in unison.
"Why if it isn't the married couple." Quistis said, with a smile on her face. Quistis had on a jean skirt that came to her upper thighs and a tight, pink, V-neck tee. Quistis had ankle length, leather boots on. Irvine went in line at the cafeteria to get breakfast for himself and Selphie. Selphie sat down, next to Quistis.
"You still didn't answer my question." Zell said.
"First of all, it's all apart of winning against your opponent and second of all we don't care, its like the 30th time you told us that story." Squall said, sitting with his left leg crossed on top of his right leg. Squall had on black jeans and a white, long sleeve shirt that zipped up.
"I guess your right." Zell said, stuffing his face with hotdogs. Everyone just watched while he stuffed his face with hotdogs, like he never had anything to eat in 2 years.
"So like, what time are we supposed to leave?" Irvine asked, walking back to the table. He gave Selphie her food and sat next to her with his food.
"In a half an hour." Rinoa said, looking at her watch. She had on a blue cotton dress that came to her knees and a blue tank top that came to the bottom of her stomach. "We should get ready to go because its almost 8:00 now."
"Well, let's go everyone." Squall said. Everyone got from the table and grabbed their bags from there dorms and headed to the parking lot. Quistis handed Zell one of her bags and walked ahead. Everyone put their bags in A big, red jeep.
"Let's have some fun!!!!!!!!!" Zell said, behind the wheel, speeding off.
"Slow down Zelllll!!!!" All the girls said in unison.
"Don't worry ladies, I'll keep you safe."
"No thanksssss!!!!!" Rinoa said, holding on to Squall.
*
"Everyone, please put all your seat belts on. We are about to lift off." The announcer said over the loud speaker.
"We're about to go!!!!!!!!" Rinoa yelled in panic.
"Calm down, it'll be alright." Squall said, hiding his laugh from Rinoa. Rinoa could see him laugh anyway and hit him on the leg. "Owwww. Sorry, but this is gonna' be a funny ride."
"Hey Rinoa, you should be used to it." Selphie said, across from Squall's seat.
"No, I'm nottttttt!!!!"
"We are lifting off." The announcer said.
"GET ME OFF THIS STINKIN' FLIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Rinoa yelled.
*
Everyone arrived at Topsity beach Airport. "So, wheres' the tour guide?" Selphie asked impatiently. Zell started throwing up from stuffing his face with hotdogs before he left.
"I am right here. Hello, I shall be your tour guide." A deep voice said, shaking everyone's hand. "My name is Samuel. I shall take you to your beach house." Samuel was a tall, and skinny man. He had short black hair that came to the bottom of his neck. They followed the tour guide to the beach house. It was really huge. It was made out of wood, but it was painted white. Everyone's mouth dropped.
"Wow man! We're gonna live in here?!" Zell asked, dropping his bag and recuperating from his aching stomach.
"Yes, why is it so shocking to you?" Samuel asked, using the house key to open the front door.
"Talk about rude." Zell whispered to Squall. Once he got the door opened, everyone came in and sat there bags down.
"This house is pretty huge." Selphie said, holding her hands to her mouth.
"Well, everyone get's to have a room to themselves." Samuel said. "Let me give you a tour of this place. First you have the kitchen that leads to the basement, which leads to the attic."
"Question." Zell interrupted from behind Samuel.
"Yes, what is it?"
"How can the basement lead to the attic?"
"I don't know, that's how the house was built!" Samuel yelled angrily. "Anyway, let's go to the pool area."
"Man, this guy's got a real attitude problem and at that, he's creepy lookin'." Zell said to Quistis, who really didn't hear a word he said.
They walked from the attic, down to the basement to the kitchen and out in the pool area. "As you can see, right now, the pool is covered. Press this button, and the cover comes off." Samuel pushed a green button that was placed near the pool.
"Oh, man, is that cool or what?!" Zell yelled.
"Yes, but don't break it." Samuel said.
"Tch, he's a party pooper." Zell said to himself, under his breath.
"Let's go to the living room." They walked from the pool area, out of the kitchen and to the dinning room. "As you can see, the living room is quiet big. You have a big screen TV for your enjoyment." Samuel said.
"This must of caused a fortune." Selphie said, quietly under her breathe to Irvine. After
Samuel gave them a tour of the upstairs, then he showed them the private restaurant. He left after that.
*
It was now 9:30 at night. Everyone was finished unpacking there things. Quistis was in the shower and the rest were sitting down on a long couch, that could fit everyone on it, watching a horror movie. "Hey, you guys, pass the popcorn down." Selphie said, looking down at Irvine who had the popcorn. He passed it down to Rinoa, who was next Selphie. "Thanks!" Selphie took a handful of popcorn and passed it to Squall who was next to her. Squall took a handful of popcorn and passed it to Zell.
"Ahhhh!" The television yelled. Selphie and Rinoa jumped in their seats at the same time.
"Man, you guys get scared over nothing." Zell said, looking at Rinoa and Selphie. Irvine got up from his seat and went behind Zell.
"Wahhhhh!" Irvine yelled, startling everyone in the process. "See, you jumped when I yelled at in your ear." Irvine returned back to the couch.
"That's because you came in from the back of me." Zell said, standing up for himself.
"Irvine, don't scare us like that again, you almost gave me a heart attack." Rinoa yelled at him.
"Girls." Squall said, still looking at TV.
"And, what's that suppose to mean?!" Rinoa said, getting up in front of the TV, blocking everyone view.
"Ohhhhh, come on man, get out of the way!" Zell said, trying to look at the TV.
"It doesn't mean anything." Squall said, trying to get Rinoa out of the way.
"Keep it to yourself, I don't wanna' know." Rinoa turned back around to her spot on the couch.
"Thank you, you almost made me miss the killin' part." Zell said, passing the popcorn down.
"You guys are horrible. You enjoy killing?" Rinoa said, with popcorn in her mouth.
"What do expect from SeeDs?" Zell asked.
"Hey you guys, watcha' watchin'?" Quistis asked, with green creme on her face and a pink robe on.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" All the boys said, jumping back.
"SHUT UP!" Quistis yelled, hitting everyone.
"Hey, quit with the hitting, you look like a monster, take that stuff off." Zell said, putting his hands in front of his eyes.
"Yeah, Quistis, Zell does have a point." Squall said, laughing hard.
"Leave her alone!" Rinoa yelled. "If you want clear skin you have to pay the price with hideous facial creme."
"Rinoa, it's bad enough of them, making fun of me." Quistis said, putting her hands on her hips.
"Sorry Quistis." Rinoa said, sitting down.
"Ahhhhahahaha!" Selphie said, crying.
"What is it Selphie?" Irvine asked, looking at her.
"It ended sadly." Selphie said, holding a box of tissues up to her eyes.
"Awww, come here." Irvine said, holding his arms out to her.
"I'm not that sad. Thanks for tryin' to cheer me up."
"Ohh, she'll never get the clue." Irvine said, holding his head down.
"Well you guys, once I take this stuff of my face, let's hit the town." Quistis said, heading upstairs to the bathroom.
"Yeah you guys, let's not let our brains melt by watchin' TV all the time." Rinoa said, getting up, reaching for Squall to get up as well.
"Oooh Rinoa, I don't really feel like going anywhere." Squall said, slouching down in the couch.
"Yeah, and Irvine we're goin' with Quistis whether you like it or not." Selphie said, throwing him near the door.
"Okay, Selphie. Quistis isn't even down here yet." Irvine sat back down on the couch.
"You guys are laaaaaaazy!" Zell said, standing up.
"What about you Zell, you coming?" Selphie and Rinoa asked in unison.
"Oh, me?..... Naw, I-I'm not finished packing." Zell said, nervously.
"Hey Rinoa, you thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"
"100 percent." Rinoa brought up one of her hands. They both started running towards all the boys and tickled them.
"HAHAHAHA! ST-HAHAHAH-STOP! Okay, we're goin', just-hahahahaha! Just stop!" Squall said running away from Rinoa.
"HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-ALRIGHT!" Zell and Irvine said in unison. Just then, Quistis came down in a pair of pink jeans and a pink tank top.
"WHOOOOOOO-WHOOOOO!" Zell and Irvine said together.
"Lookin' good." Irvine said, putting his arm around her.
"Get away from me, you belong to Selphie." Quistis said, giggling.
"Alright then." Irvine walked over to Selphie, who was laughing.
"Alright everyone, let's hit the town!" Rinoa said, grabbing Squall and forcing him out the door.
"Whooooo!" Was all Squall could say. Everyone else followed them. They walked down the street, to their private restaurant.
"Ummmm, somethin' smells good." Rinoa said, sitting down at the eating table. Everyone sat down as well. "They even have a private waiter." The waiter came up to their table.
"Hellooooooo, Welcome to Cafe'-a la ritz-a." The Italian waiter greeted them. "What-a would you-a like-a?"
"Hotdogs man!" Zell said, throwing his fists in the air.
"No, hotdogs!" Everyone said in unison.
"We'll have the special." Quistis said, looking at her menu.
"Yeah, that sounds good." Selphie said, looking at her menu as well. Everyone agreed on it but Zell. He knew he was going to eat the food anyway, with him being a pig and all.
"Here you-a are-a!" The waiter said, bringing everyone a big plate with lobster on it and all sorts of meats, including hotdogs.
"Thanks..Um.." Selphie said, waiting for him to give his name.
"The name is Mario." The Italian man said firmly.
"Wow, this meal was sure made quickly." Quistis said, digging in.
"See Zell, you got what you want." Squall said, taking a piece of meat from the big platter.
"Ummmm.....Uhhhhhh.....Ohhhhhhh...Yeah." Zell spoke with food coming out of his mouth.
*
After everyone finished eating dinner, they went out to town. Everyone spotted the very famous Topsity Amusement park. "Look at all the lights. I didn't think the island would be that lively at night." Quistis said, walking down the street with everyone.
"Come on Squall let's get on the roller coaster!" Rinoa said, pulling Squall towards the ticket line.
"Well you guys, let's split up and return in two hours. Okay?" Said Quistis, walking in the same line as Rinoa. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Ooooooooooh! Look Irvine! Get me that teddy bear!" Selphie cried, pointing at a prize you had to win.
"Aren't you too big for teddy bears?" Irvine questioned.
"Please Irvy?" Selphie said, showing her sparkly eyes.
"Sure Selph. You don't have to ask." Irvine said, kissing Selphie on the forehead. Selphie felt somewhat comfortable every time she was around him. She always felt safe near him. She never gathered the courage to tell him how she really feels. On Irvine's part, he really never told Selphie how he felt. He figured it was that ladies' man part of him that kept his feelings bottled up.
"Wheeeeeeeeeee!" Rinoa yelled in Squall ears.
"THIS.....IS.....MORE SCARY THEN RIDING AN AIRPLANE!!!!!!"Squall yelled back to Rinoa. After they got off of the ride, they headed down to the snack place, where they met up with Zell, eating hotdogs and talking to one of the owners. "Now do you think that's fair?" Zell was talking away about his same old, familiar story.
"I guess that's not fair. Well I gotta' get to work." The owner went back to doing his job, while Zell walked away, bumping into Squall and falling onto the ground. Squall helped Zell up.
"Be more careful Zell." Squall said, letting him go.
"Man you really should watch where ya' goin'."Zell said, not paying attention to what Squall just said. He focused all his attention on a girl in the crowd an headed towards her.
"Zell is really weird." Rinoa said, watching Zell get hit in the face by the girl.
"Tell me about it. Let's go." Squall and Rinoa headed towards the game stand.
"Come on Irvine!!!!! You have to get me that bear!!!!!!" Selphie said, jumping in his face.
"I'm tryin'!" Irvine said, trying to shoot the target with a water gun.
"I thought you were a sharp shooter?!"
"I am, but your distracting me!" Irvine said, still missing his moving target.
"Here let me try." Selphie took the water gun from Irvine and started shooting the target. She shot the target with ease. "See Irvy, that's all you had to do." Selphie said, giving back the gun.
"What prize would you like girly?" The clerk said, peering out from the counter.
"That teddy bear!!!!!!" Selphie said, pointing to the big, pink, cute bear.
"Here you are." The clerk gave her the teddy bear. The bear was practically bigger than her.
"Come on Selphie, it's almost time to meet with others."
*
"Well, that was fun." Quistis said, getting off of a roller coaster. Quistis looked at her watch. It was almost time to go. She was having a lot of. The last time Quistis remembered having fun was when, everyone became a SeeD. She walked up to the place where she was supposed to meet everyone up.
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! SOMEONE, PLEASE HELP!" A voice said in the crowd. Quistis was the first to react and ran to where the sound was.
"Clear the path! Let me threw!" Quistis yelled, trying to get to the chaos. She saw, a young man lying on the ground with blood everywhere. Quistis ran up to the young man. He was around 20 years of age. The guys girlfriend kept yelling and yelling. "Excuse me Ms., what happened?" Quistis asked, looking at the sobbing woman.
"Someone shot him! He's dying, help him!!!!!!" Just then, Squall, Rinoa, Selphie, Irvine, and Zell ran up. The police barged through the crowd.
"What happened here!" The police, already knowing the answer.
"He's been shot." Quistis informed, while holding the mother.
"Clean this up men." The policeman put on two gloves and knelt down.
"But, aren't you supposed to wait for the ambulance?!" Quistis asked, helping the devastated women up.
"I think I know how to run my job. Now, why don't you get out of here and let me do my job!!" The policemen yelled. There was nothing else Quistis could do but go.
"Yo man, what happened?!" Zell yelled, holding hotdogs in each hand.
"Hey you guys, look up there!" Selphie yelled, pointing the top of the tree.
"I'm on it!" Zell yelled, throwing the hot dogs on the ground.
"Zell wait!" Squall yelled. "I'm goin' after him, who every we're dealing with might be dangerous!" Yelled Squall, running after Zell.
"Let's go you guys! Split up. Irvine with Selphie. Rinoa, come with me." Quistis had her instructor tone again. Everyone split up, leaving the police and the sobbing woman there, near her dead son.
*
"Zell! What are doing?! Don't do that again, you don't know who this sicko is!"
"Yeah I guess your right."
"Where are we?" Squall asked, looking around. The place was dark, but it was enough light to see tree around them. "It looks like we're in woods."
"Come, let's get outta' here." Zell said, getting scared.
"Your not going anywhere!" A mysteries voice said.
"Who's there?!" Squall yelled, looking around. "Are you the bastard who killed that kid?!"
"That pathetic boy was in the wrong place at the wrong time!" The voice said.
"What are ya' talkin' about!?" Zell yelled, bumping into Squall with his back.
"I was aiming for one of you Seeds. But the boy walked in front of you as I shot the bullet." The mysteries voice said.
"What do you want from us?!" Squall asked.
"Zell?! Squall?!" Selphie yelled.
"Yo! Over here!" Zell yelled, relieved to hear her voice. There was a flash of light. It was a flashlight.
"Squall!" Rinoa yelled, nearly dropping the flashlight. She ran up to hug him.
"Where'd he go?" Squall mumbled. Squall gave Rinoa a tight hug.
"Where'd he go?" Zell asked, scratching his head. "He didn't want none of this, I would of killed him!" Zell lied.
"Right Zell." Irvine said, disbelievingly. "Looks like we're not dealing with anything, it seems.
"Right. He said, he was aiming for us Seeds." Squall said, stilling holding Rinoa in his arms.
"I think that policeman back there has something to do with it." Quistis said, folding her arms together. Everyone started heading back to the beach house, they could see, now that Rinoa
brought a flashlight.
"What do you mean Quisty?" Selphie asked, walking along side with Irvine to her right, and Quistis to her left. Everyone else were in the front, while Zell was in the back of everyone.
"Well, he acted like he wanted to hurry and dispose of the boy's body before anyone more people got involved, we'd better watch our back." Quistis started picking up her pace.
"So much for our vacation." Zell said under his breathe.