Chapter FIVE
A/n: I'm starting a new story... it's PROBABLY going to be called 'This is Garden'. I've just decided right now that I'm gonna start a whole line of Squinoa's with the title of 'Garden' in it... hmmm... I think I drank a bit to much coffee from Starbucks...
'This is so awkward....' Rinoa thought as she rubbed the tip of her skirt gently. It was lunch time and Squall and Rinoa were sitting across from each other. They were both purposely avoiding eye contact with one another. 'The whole damn day was awkward... in math he wouldn't say hi to me... well, neither would I but that's beside the point. Then now... I wish it was cool between us...'
Squall gulped lightly as the others chatted amongst themselves. The only people who weren't talking were Squall and Rinoa. It seemed like the noise outside of them was cut off. The only noise: Their tiny breaths and their soft shuffling. 'Do something... Do something... you messed things up, now you must be the one to mend.' He concluded.
"I'm so stupid!" Squall cried. Rinoa looked up to him in surprise, along with everyone else. They had stopped their conversation to listen to him. He looked to all of them and blushed. "Sorry." He apologized to everyone, and they went back to talking. Rinoa didn't though. She stared right at him. She knew the random remark was for her. He bent forward towards so he could whisper but he came a little to close for comfort and Rinoa backed off. He sighed, as it only reminded him of the things he had damaged. "I'm really sorry Rin. I don't know what came over me." He confessed. "It was so stupid of me..." He apologized. He waited for her to say something, anything. "Please forgive me. I'll never do it again!" He begged. She still didn't say anything. "Please say something." He begged, becoming worried that he had only made things worse.
"I have to go." Rinoa mumbled as she picked up her bag, grabbed her lunch and walked away as fast as she could.
"Ahhh..." Squall mumbled as anger and frustration built themselves up inside of him. "Fuck!" He screamed and slammed his fist down intot he grass....
Chapter FIVE: The Untouchable Pear
"Oh? What's this?" Fujin questioned as she peered out the window of her 'fortress of doom' (also known as room 105). Her little eye was peaking out the little slit in the blinds, her finger propping up a blind. The room was completely dark and three shadowy figures stood behind her.
"What's happening?" A female voice asked.
"Rinoa seems to be leaving in a mad speed walk... she was just talking to Squall... who just swore..." Fujin reiterated. "NYHAHA!" Fujin laughed wickedly as evil flames shot up around her. "They're in a fight. I can see it. Now's my time to strike!" She said wickedly. "FIRST!!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, causing the three figures to jump considerably. "I shall comfort Squall and I'll be all like 'I'm so sorry! It wouldn't have worked out.' SECOND!! I shall become Squall's girlfriend. THIRD!! We shall go to Rinoa and we'll be like 'We're a couple a now!' and then Rinoa will be miserable! FOURTH!! I shall find Rinoa alone, desperate and depressed out on the streets and when I go to her I'll be like 'Gosh, I'm so sorry!' and give her a pat on the head. THEN MY VICTORY SHALL BE COMPLETE!!" She screamed with malevolence.
"I think you're reading a bit to much into this, Fuji." A sweet voice commented.
"Don't call me that nickname when we're in our fortress of DOOM!" Fujin demanded.
"Sorry, Fujin. But, really, the chance of Rinoa or you getting Squall is pretty slim." The voice reminded.
"What!? Yuki! Flip the lights on. I have to get up all in Xu's face and possibly say some 'Yo Momma' jokes... stand back." Yuki flipped the lights on. Revealing the tall, but short haired Xu, Seifer and Yuki. "I WILL get Squall!" Fujin said like a demon spawn.
"Fuji, lets think about this logically. You've never gotten Squall to look at you like that, ever. You've known him since fourth grade. I doubt that you being more touchy feely is going to have Squall clambering all over you." Xu said.
"Then what do you suppose I do?" She asked.
"Nothing! Give up. It's over! Squall's a lone wolf." Xu said majestically as she saluted to his pride.
"There called hormones. He wants me... I see it in his eyes." Fujin reminded her as she pointed to her own two eyes to back her point.
"I don't trust your 'eye reading' skills." Yuki said with a frown.
"Yeah... like when you thought that a baby was a vampire." Seifer reminded her with a shake of his head.
"It was! It had fangs!" Fujin backed.
"No! It didn't! And Squall doesn't want you!" Xu told her sternly. Fujin just glared at her malevolently as a fire burned in her eyes.
"You are banished from the Fortress of Doom!" Fujin screamed and pointed to the door with a strict finger. Xu walked out, not caring much. Xu was about to walk down the hall as the door slammed shut behind her. She walked for a bit, stopped and waited. She heard the door crash open and the pitter-patter of Fujin's feet came racing for her. She dove for Xu's back, but miscalculated the launch time. Fujin missed her initial target and skidded along the floor with a horrible squeaking noise. Once she recovered, she pulled herself with her arms across the floor until she was at Xu's ankles. Fujin wrapped her arms around Xu's ankles. "I'm so sorry! Will you ever forgive me!" She cried, hopeless as tears streamed down her face. Seifer and Yuki poked their heads out the door to catch a glimpse of the happenings.
"Of course I will!" Xu said with a tender smile. It was a smile you gave to a toddler. Xu bent down and picked Fujin up in her arms like a teddy bear. "OH!" Xu squealed with delight. "You're so cute!!" She cried as her voice increased in pitch. She hugged Fujin to her face and nuzzled. Fujin only frowned. The nuzzling continued. Fujin became mad. The nuzzling only persisted. Fujin became pissed. The nuzzling continued. Fujin bit Xu in the arm. "OUCH!" Xu screamed in pain as she dropped Fujin to the floor. Fujin fell like a rag doll, looking satisfied with her accomplishment. "Dang..." She continued as she rubbed the mark. There was no blood but it still hurt like a bitch. "Every rose has its thorn I guess." She reminded herself as she watched Fujin stand.
"Yes. And that thorn just bit you in the wrist." Fujin commented. "Now come. We plot more." She demanded as she took Xu's hand in hers and led her back to the 'Fortress of Doom'. The two others quickly pulled themselves back into the Fortress.
Squall stepped into the hallway of school. No one was there at the moment as it was lunch. He stepped in a bit further, the sounds of his boots clicking against the linoleum floor. The echo which reverberated from them echoed emptily throughout the silent hall. He stepped into the very middle of the hallway and looked down both ways once more. Still there was no sign of Rinoa.
"Where did you go?" He mumbled as he rubbed his chin as if it was provoking his thoughts. He got no ideas and sighed heavily. He was on a mission, he was going to find her. However, as he began to walk for the Gym he remembered that some of the girls lockers were upstairs. He smirked, thinking he was so crafty. He turned around and headed for the stair case.
Rinoa sighed heavily as she placed her bag lunch into her locker. She had barely eaten any of it. She was feeling to sick to even look at it with the smallest amount of appetite. She was sitting cross-legged on the floor, her hands pulling down her short skirt as to not show her panties to some perverse boy. She was hunched over a little and her face was melancholy.
'What am I going to do?' She asked herself as her face sunk even more than it had. 'Just keep running away from him? Why am I running? It was so harmless... he even apologized. What more am I looking for? Am I looking for anything? What's wrong with me? So many questions and no answers...' She thought depressingly. She knew she was only making herself feel like this, but she couldn't help it.
"Rinoa!?" A strong voice called from the stair well.
"Squall..." She whispered under her breath, she immediately stood and looked to the stairs. She saw his brunette hair bounce lightly as he took each step up. 'Panic mode engaged!' Rinoa's mind screamed to her. She wished to high heaven that she didn't think that. When 'Panic mode' engaged she usually found herself in an embarrassing situation.
She threw herself into her locker and closed it as lightly as she could, not wanting Squall to hear. Her breathing was heavy as she saw Squall's figure walk by through the four little slits on the top of her locker.
She sighed with relief, but that didn't last long as she realized she had trapped herself inside her own locker. She pushed on the door, hoping it would give but it didn't.
"Oh shit." Rinoa exclaimed, her wide with pure horror as she began to rattle on the locker. "SQUALL!!!" She screamed, pressing her mouth to the little slits. "Squall! Help!" She cried again.
"Rinoa!?" Squall called back. He turned around and looked down to where the sounds origin was. There was no one. "Rinoa?" He asked to the air, checking to make sure he had heard it and wasn't crazy.
"I'm in my locker!" She cried back as she banged on it a few times.
"What the... your locker!" He exclaimed as he ran to the banging noises. He peered inside the little slits and found that Rinoa was staring back at him, worried and scared. "I'll get you out..." He said as he looked down towards the dial. "What's your combination?" He asked, ready to turn the knob to the appropriate numbers.
"I don't really want to give the numbers to you... but given the circumstances..." She mumbled.
"Do you want to be stuck in there all day?" Squall asked, looking up to her with an irritated look on his face.
"No! 23, 7, 9." She called out quickly. He undid the lock and the locker door opened and Rinoa fell out. It all happened in sloooow motion. Rinoa's arms reached forward, bracing for impact with Squall. Squall stepped back an inch or two, afraid of the collision. Realizing he couldn't avoid it he brought up his hands up, to catch her. She fell into his awaiting arms and her hands pressed against his chest. Her head softly landed against his uniform, below his neck. His hands didn't do things so gracefully. While his left arm caught her around the back, his right caught her breast.
Rinoa became a dear in headlights as she felt the pressure against her breast. She looked up to Squall, to see if he had any explanation. He only stared back with the same look. They were both totally bewildered. They stayed like that, in the same position for minutes. Questions racing through their minds. What do I say when I let go? Is this going to be the friendship killer?
Squall was the first to move. He stepped back a bit, releasing Rinoa's breast from his hand's touch. Rinoa pulled her hands from his chest awkwardly and they both stepped back. Rinoa immediately shot her look to the floor while Squall's eyes were on her.
"We just totally screwed everything over, didn't we?" Rinoa joked uncomfortably with a fake smile.
"Almost." Squall said, going along with her bizarre humor. "We can still apologize." He said, wanting that more than anything else.
"Sorry... times three." She said with a smile.
"Times three?" Squall questioned, wanting her to elaborate.
"Yeah. One for now, one for leaving when you were trying to apologize and the third for... last night." Rinoa told him with a smile.
"Sorry. About everything." Squall apologized with a sheepish smile. "I think I need some explaining to do." He said with a laugh.
"Lets take a seat... I have food left over from lunch. Do you want any?" Rinoa asked as she took a seat in front of her locker and Squall across from her. She pulled her lunch bag out from behind her and fished through it, pulling a pear out. She held it delicately, afraid it would bruise.
"I'm fine." He insisted. She nodded and placed the bag aside, placing the pear carefully inside. "I... I want explain my actions for last night... I really do want to." Squall began as his gaze diverted from Rinoa to the floor. "... but I can't. I... just umm..." He stuttered as his face turned red with embarrassment. "Dammit... it's so hard to explain." He wheezed, like he was about to cry from frustration.
"Squall. I have a question." Rinoa began as she stood up. His gaze followed her. She looked down at him with a serious face. "If you had kissed me then... would that have satisfied you?" She asked. The question came off odd to Squall and he stood up with a push.
"What are you saying?" He asked.
"If... if you kissed me right now. Could we put this all behind us? It was an attempted kiss that caused this... a real kiss could end this." She thought wisely. His heart began to race as did hers. Was she really asking him to kiss her?
"Do you want me to kiss you?" Squall asked, flabbergasted.
"I'm doing this for the sake of friendship. I don't want to lose a friend to a kiss that could have happened." She told him. "And... I just realized something. This wouldn't have happened if it weren't for me. If I had just accepted the kiss and not came back into reality." She said, feeling guilty.
"If you did accept the kiss... then things would be a lot different. They could be worse, or better. Don't feel guilty. You're choice was right, all choices in life are right." Squall assured as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She giggled a bit from his comment and he smiled, seeing her true humor shine through.
"That line's so clichéd." She said, looking to his eyes.
"Everything we do seems to be clichéd." Squall observed. She smiled at his comment but it fell when she knew the time had come to embrace what had to be done. Their hearts raced once more as Squall's hand slid down her arm and to his side.
"Do you really want me to kiss you?" He asked, his voice not shocked or scared.
"Yes. I know you want to to." She said observantly. He stepped closer to her and he seemingly towered over her. Their heart beats only grew in speed.
"Ready?" He asked with a gulp.
"Yeah. Are you?" She asked, noticing his tiny trembling. "You're trembling." She said.
"So are you." He pointed out as his faces came closer to hers. As they look into each others eyes they realized that this was their first kiss. They were afraid and excited. Their trembling hands brushed each other delicately as Squall bent in, his eyes closed. Rinoa finally let logic rest and emotions run. She let his lips press against hers tenderly...
"Would you relax, Fujin?" Xu asked as she opened the door of their fortress of doom. "I'm just going to talk to Mr. Foster about an extra credit assignment." Xu reassured the worried Fujin.
"Come back quickly!" Fujin called hopelessly.
"Back in a few!" Xu said with a wink. She closed the door and left, walking for the stairwell. "She's like another mother." Xu complained as she hopped up the stairs with a nice little run. She reached the second floor and looked up from her view of the steps and down the hall. Her mouth gaped open as she found Squall and Rinoa together, their lips locked, their eyes closed. She looked on with sad eyes. Not at the fact that they were kissing, no. It was about Fujin.
'Her little heart would be torn to pieces...' She said as she bit her lip as she turned from the scene and sat on the staircase, pondering her next move. She wanted, and needed, to pass them to get to her destination. She didn't know how to get there though. She turned around to see if they were done, but they weren't.
Squall's lips tingled with pure ecstasy. He wanted more, so much more. He didn't push though. It would be an idiotic move to. This kiss wasn't even formal... it was an apology kiss. But still, his lips and heart earned for more of her. He didn't dare move the slightest inch, afraid Rinoa would come back to reality and run away. She didn't and they remained still.
Rinoa wasn't sure what to do. She could tell Squall hungered for more... but things would just end up being all the more uncomfortable. Maybe the kiss was a bad idea? She tried to push all thoughts from her mind and let her emotions take the reins. They were doing a pretty good job, as it was the first time in her life she was letting this happen.
Feeling brave, Rinoa gently placed her hands against Squall's waist. The soft touch made Rinoa only long for his touch. She wanted to remove her hands from him, but she found she just couldn't. She wanted the feel of his t-shirt against her finger tips... she wanted to touch him.
"This is going to be perfect for the manga." A boy with short brunette hair whispered as he continued to draw the two kissing strangers down the hall from him. He was sitting on the stair case, hunched over his doodling pad. He was sketching vigorously, hoping to capture them perfectly. He finished and signed it, Nida Okiwura. "Thanks strangers." He said with a playful smile as he stood and saluted them with a limp hand. He left up the stair case to the third floor...
Xu still sat there on the stairs, pondering what to do. Her thoughts were to continue until a face appeared in front of her view. It was Seifer's. She cursed silently as this was the last person she'd want to see this scene.
"Fujin's been wondering-oh my god." Seifer said abruptly as he saw the two. He covered his mouth in total shock, then began to stifle a laugh.
"Shut up!" Xu cried as she jumped to him. She collided with him, but a bit to hard. Seifer toppled over and down the stair, Xu rolling with him the whole way.
"Ow!" Seifer cried. Xu smashed another hand over his mouth.
"Just shut up!" She commanded. "I don't want anyone to know about this except the two of us, got it?" She said venomously as her hand began to press down harder on his mouth. He nodded vigorously, for afraid of getting his mouth shoved into the back of his neck. She let go of his mouth and stared at him with irritated eyes.
"So this is what you two do when you leave..." Fujin's voice said. They both looked up and found Fujin... then they realized what position they were in. Xu was on top of Seifer...
Author's Break/MASTER PLAN: Does anyone know what doujinshi is? If you do, then listen up! There is a SERIOUS lack of of non-yaoi/yuri FF8 doujinshi out there on the net.... and I'm getting pissed. That's all... If you know of any good web doujinshi then give me a holler! I'm gonna start a new story. I'll be continuing this while writing the other... I'm taking a break from When the Sky is High. Mainly to get my happier side out of me... that story is kind of dark and dreary. Here's the summary for my new story, This is Garden...
Summary: AU! Balamb Garden is in its final stages of construction and students are already taking classes. Squall, a loner 17 year old with immaculate grades, is asked to show 15 year old, Rinoa Heartily, around... SQUINOA
Please tell me if it sounds the least bit intriguing. I need a good summary to hook the readers in!
Now... Go Get Something to Eat/Drink and Come Right Back! The Second Part Is Just Ahead (Surprise, surprise!)
Chapter FIVE, part TWO: March Towards Victory//The Hybrid Rainbow
Squall sat in front of his computer, trying to concentrate on Zell's mindless internet gabber. All day, Squall was in a fluster after his first kiss. He knew it meant nothing and felt childish and immature for feeling like this. He knew Rinoa was being mature about the subject and treating like a simple apology.
Finally, Zell got annoyed of how quiet Squall was being by not answering his messages. He sent him a long complaint list with caps lock on. Squall didn't pay much attention, just caught a few words which said 'Pay attention' and 'Dick head'. Squall didn't care much and sent back 'Whatever' and signed off. Just as Squall turned away from the computer, a telephone call came. He answered, he knew who it was.
"You don't just SIGN OFF!" Zell's angry voice came through.
"Hi Zell." Squall greeted politely as he threw himself onto his bed.
"Why did you sign off?" Zell demanded, like an offended wife.
"'Cause you don't shut up... plus I was just thinking." He replied.
"Thinking? About what?" Zell asked, hanging his sentence as he pondered. "About condoms?" He asked. Squall mumbled incoherently, but ignored it.
"Just thinking." Squall answered lamely.
"That's all?"
"Yeah."
"Really?"
"Yes!"
"When?"
"Now."
"Why?"
"'Cause." Squall's answers weren't coming out as fast he'd like. He knew Zell was getting all the more suspicious with every answer.
"Rinoa?" Zell asked totally abruptly.
"Yeah." Squall answered, not even realizing he had blurted that out. There was silence over the phone and Squall finally understood what he had said.
"MWHAHA!! My voodoo powers!" Zell laughed wickedly.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Squall asked, trying to act like nothing happened.
"You two are dating, yes yes?" Zell asked excitedly, his words stringing together.
"No!" Squall cried confidently.
"... you were just thinking about her?" He asked, afraid that would be the answer.
"Yeah." It was lie, but Squall didn't care... as long as Zell bought it.
"Lame!" Zell cried, agitated.
"Sorry my life isn't a soap opera." Squall apologized sarcastically. However, the more he thought about it his life was like a teenage version of 'Days of Our Lives'.
"You should be. Anyways!" Zell began. "We should do something this weekend, like a party with the girls or somethin'." Zell suggested. Squall paused to think but the 'flash' button began to blink and beep.
"Hold on Zell, I have another call." Squall apologized. He flashed to the other line. "Hello?" He began.
"Dude! I've got awesome news!" The hyper active voice cried, it was Selphie's....
Chapter FIVE part TWO: March Towards Victory
"Just tell us Squall!" Quistis and Rinoa begged to Squall during lunch. The three were the first ones to arrive.
"What did she say?" Rinoa asked pleading.
"Why do you care so much?" Squall asked, amused.
"'Cause." She answered lamely.
"Hmm... fine. She called me... she called me... dude!" He said with fake melodrama. Quistis smacked him on the back of the head.
"Tell us Squall!" She demanded with an angry scowl.
"It wasn't all that interesting..." He mumbled. He really didn't want to tell them.
"You're impossible." Rinoa mumbled as she turned away from him.
"The more we grovel, the tighter his resolve to not tell us is." Quistis noted.
"Exactly." Squall smirked.
"Whatever." Rinoa said and sat down and pulled out her lunch.
"That weird reverse psychology won't work on me!" Squall warned as he tapped his head, pushing the point home.
"I really just don't care anymore. We've been groveling for-what?-like... 10 minutes already! Whatever you have to tell us can't be that important." Rinoa noted.
"True." Squall mumbled. Rinoa flashed a secret smirk to Quistis who winked back. "Yeah, so... Selphie called last night and she told me that there were prizes being offered for the Summer Festival." Squall told them, sounding not very enthused on the subject he once was.
"Really!?" Rinoa exclaimed, spitting her drink all over the lawn in sheer shock. She mentally pummeled herself for not joining earlier.
"Like what kinds of prizes?" Quistis asked, very intrigued.
"So NOW you're all interested!" Squall said with a cocky laugh. Quistis grabbed his collar and brought him close to her face.
"If you don't tell us I will crush your dick into a pancake and feed it to coyotes! I've been begging to long for crap!" She warned with a venomous tone. She threw him off and he bounced a bit against the grass. Rinoa just stared on at Quistis, her mouth hanging open in pure shock.
"Holy crap." Squall mumbled. Quistis just stared Squall down with a piercing gaze that could cause a rose to wilt and then explode. "Well uhh... she said that for the winners they'd get the chance to choose the class trip, which is just after summer break. The group also gets the chance to put their uniforms away for a week and wear whatever they want." He finished. The girl's mouths dropped.
"Where's Zell!?" Rinoa yelled determined.
"Lets hunt him down!" Quistis proclaimed. Squall stood as well, to help them in their quest. They sprinted for the door as the 'Mission Impossible' theme played. They were about to bust through the door to the school, when it came flying at them. It was Selphie and Zell. The door smashed Rinoa in the face and Quistis on the forehead.
They flew back, past Squall (who was unscathed) and onto the grass.
"OW! Dammit! Not again!" Rinoa cried in annoyance and pain as she held her bleeding nose.
"Where am I?" Quistis asked, looking around, perplexed.
"You told them, didn't you?" Zell asked, looking to Squall.
"Yeah. Sorry." He apologized.
"Who cares? More people? All the better!" Selphie cheered. She walked up to her friends and kneeled down next to them.
"Do you want to join?" She asked, looking between the two. They nodded vigorously. "Excellent." She said with a smile as she offered a hand to them. They took it and they stood.
"Lets go to the 'Fortress of Hybrid Rainbows'!" Zell proclaimed dramatically. Selphie cheered and danced about, working her way towards him.
"What?" Squall questioned.
"It's actually room 106. It's where we organize ideas for the Summer Festival." Zell whispered.
"Rainbows!!" Selphie cheered as she skipped inside the building, making her way to 'The Fortress of Hybrid Rainbows'.
"That's a dumb name." Quistis mumbled as she and Rinoa entered after Selphie.
"Shut up!" Zell commanded. "Hybrid is my favorite word and Rainbows are Selphie favorite things." Zell mumbled as they followed the girls.
"How big is your group so far?" Squall asked as Zell held the door open for him to enter.
"Just you guys." Zell said with a smile. They entered the room. It was pitch black.
"What's going on?" Rinoa asked from the black silence. Suddenly a flash light flicked on. It was at the head of the class. It was Zell's face, looking quite creepy due to the light's odd angle.
"Mwhahaha..." He laughed evilly, yet quietly. "Welcome to Hybrid Rainbow. The group dedicated to win the Summer Festival." He said. "Welcome Rinoa-chan. Welcome Quistis-chan. Welcome Squallu-kun." Zell welcomed. "I am Zellu-sama... and this is my lovely assistant, Selphie-sama." 'Zellu-sama' stated. Suddenly, the lights began to flicker. Selphie was flicking the switch.
"Good day everyone!" She cried with joy as she stopped the flickering and turned it on. "Let's begin our meeting." She proclaimed as she clapped her hands together. Zell flicked off his flashlight and tossed it on the table next to him. The two pushed 5 desks in a circle and everyone took a seat.
"Neat." Rinoa said with a smile as she smoothed out her skirt.
"Thanks." Zell said with a pleased smile. "Now. What shall we do for the Summer Festival?" Zell asked, looking to them all. He got right to the point, not wasting time.
"You haven't even decided that!?" Squall exclaimed in shock at how unorganized they were.
"Well... no." Selphie mumbled as she looked to the floor.
"Lets figure something out." Rinoa suggested, trying to pull the pressure from Zell and Selphie.
"Hmmm" Quistis mumbled in thought. She rubbed her chin as her eyes narrowed trying to decide.
"How about a dinner show?" Squall suggested.
"Like... where people eat while we perform?" Rinoa asked.
"We don't have that kind of funding. The food would be expensive." Selphie reminded him.
"How about play!" Quistis exclaimed. They all gave her odd looks, except Zell who accepted the idea whole heartedly.
"Perfect!" He exclaimed. Everyone looked to him. "We've got pretty girls..." He looked to Selphie and Rinoa. Selphie blushed and giggled but Rinoa was confused.
"Me!?" She exclaimed questionably. Zell ignored her and continued.
"People who can write..." He looked to Quistis. She smiled.
"And two male heartthrobs!" Selphie exclaimed with a smile. Squall rolled his eyes and Zell blew a kiss to her.
"That's great and all, but what about costume and set designer?" Rinoa asked, spoiling everyone's fun by accident.
"Dammit. Forgot about that." Zell cursed as he snapped his fingers. "Crap. We're on a tight schedule so if we don't find anyone who can do those things, we're going to have abort the project." Zell warned. Everyone nodded. The mission was now to find someone who could draw.
"I don't know know anyone who can draw/design though. Do you guys know anyone?" Selphie asked, looking to each of them.
"There must be someone in our school who can do that kind of stuff. Even if it sucks." Squall reminded.
"Well, if we were going for 'sucky' stuff then we can just let Rinoa handle it." Zell told him with a sneer.
"Hey!" Rinoa cried with a scowl.
"Lets get searching' right now." Selphie proclaimed as she stood from her desk triumphantly.
"Right!" They all cried, determined.
"Squallu-kun, you go with Rinoa-chan and Quistis-chan!" Zell declared. "Selphie-sama, come with me!" He demanded and they bolted out the door. The three shrugged but walked out of the classroom and stood out in the hall to ponder.
"Rinoa, if you were a really good drawer person, where would you be?" Squall asked, looking to her.
"Hmmm... if I liked it? I'd be on the roof because it has the prettiest view and-" She couldn't finish her sentence as the two grabbed her hands and dragged her off to the roof.
They reached reached the roof and looked about. The sun bright and felt like it was pounding down on them like a ton of bricks.
"Okay. Maybe an idiot's out here, but not an artist. This heat is unbearable!" Quistis cried as she wiped a bit of sweat from her forehead.
"Maybe there's shade somewhere here." Rinoa suggested as she moved further out onto the roof. They could see the heat rise from the tiles on the roof, it was crazy.
"Shade!" Squall cried. "Person!" He cried once more. "Drawing!" He screamed with excitement. They all looked to where he was pointing. He was right, a man drawing under the shade. He looked to them out of the corner of his eyes with an indifferent expression. They all ran to him, mainly for the shade. They tossed themselves under the shade and sighed with relief.
"Who are you people?" The man asked, irritated they had invaded. He had short brunette hair and perfectly tanned skin. "Oh! Wait!" He cried with excitement, a smile replacing his once cold features. "You're those two who were kissing in the hall the other day! I drew a picture of you two, I hope you don't mind." He said with joy as he began to flip through his art book for the picture.
Squall and Rinoa just stared on with stunned and horrified looks. They thought no one had been watching, and now Quistis knew. They looked back to Quistis, afraid to see her expression. She just stared on at nothing with a blank expression and emotionless eyes. Squall and Rinoa shared glances of insecurity.
"See? Here it is!" The man exclaimed with pride as he pointed to the picture. They looked at it, afraid. It was really good actually. They looked like a real couple, kissing serenely without a care in the world. It softened Rinoa's heart to see them looking like that. His arm above her head and against the locker and their eyes closed and lips locked. She smiled as she felt her heart beat and breathing quicken.
Squall bit his lip tenderly trying to feel the kiss once more. Seeing the picture made him want to do it all over again with her. He hadn't realized what they had looked like when they did it, he was to caught up with the fact that he shouldn't move an inch. They looked looked perfect for each other. Squall knew it, but he just couldn't believe it.
"That picture is awfully good. May I see it?" Quistis asked robotically, devoid of emotion. She looked at it for a few moments, then gave it back to him. "Would you like to join our Summer Festival group? You'd be perfect." She said, still devoid of emotion. The three were starting to get freaked out.
"Sure! I have nothing better to do." He said with a smile.
"Except spy on people kissing." Rinoa noted venomously, coming back to the reality.
"I only do that when the two look like a real couple." He said with a wink and smile to Rinoa. She and Squall blushed and diverted their gaze away.
"What is your name?" Quistis asked, STILL void of emotions.
"Nida Okiwura." Nida greeted as he extended a hand to Quistis who shook limply.
"We're glad to have you as part of our team." Rinoa said with a smile, temporarily forgetting about what had just happened to welcome her team mate.
"Yes. It'll be fun." Squall said as he extended a hand to shake. He shook it and smiled.
"I bet." Nida said sincerely as he looked to the three of them.
"Hey..." Irvine said as he looked about the empty field. He was sitting where they usually ate lunch. "Where IS everyone!?" He exclaimed.
********************
Preview of Next Chapter: Plans are underway for the 'Hybrid Rainbow' team! Things are going well, even though it's just the planning stages. Squall and Rinoa finally corner Quistis, who has been trying to avoid them and she tells them why. Things are going seemingly perfect for Fujin's posse as they decide to join the Summer Festival in hopes to beat out 'Hybrid Rainbow'. And Raijin's unexplained dissapearence is finally explained! *gasp*
In the Next Chapter: The Hybrid Rainbows part 2 and To Tell My Secret Crush
Refer to my bio for ANOTHER story summary that I'm writing. It's gonna be MUCH darker.
WARNING!! The next chapter will contain implied yaoi... but nothing will happen. Trust me! SERIOUSLY!!
