What I Wouldn't Do For You
Chapter Four: The Words I Couldn't Say
Well, it's been a month since Rikku has stayed here. And I guess you can call today an...eccentric way to celebrate it.
Y'know how when your day starts out normal, but you know something is bound to happen because it's a little TOO normal? Yeah, it started out as one of those days. Everything went like it was supposed to: Rikku screeched at me to wake up, shower, breakfast, and then work with machina. And that's where the chaos ensued.
Rikku was flitting around as usual, helping one person after another. I was pretending not to notice her, but I was watching her from the corner of my eye.
"Rikku's pretty cute, huh?" I heard one of the Al Bhed guys whisper to another one.
The other guy nodded his head. "Yeah, she's something else. But I think she's taken."
"What? Does she have a boyfriend?"
"Not really. But word around here is that our leader has a soft spot for her."
"Gippal? That's impossible! They've got nothing in common!"
"Ahem!" I stepped in the conversation, my fists unable to tighten any further. "Hate to interrupt fellas, but don't you have work to do?"
I didn't need to address them in Al Bhed to show them that I was pissed. They instantly saw the look that was on my face and they went right back to work, not taking another glance at Rikku. And that was exactly what I wanted them to do.
I've always known that Rikku was a beautiful girl, and on top of that, she had the ability to make people laugh and smile despite how horrible their day has been. That's why I hate it when other guys stare at her or when she smiles at them. I don't show it, but it gets on my nerves. Even if they say she's beautiful, I know that no other guy could see Rikku the way I see her. And that's why I think she shouldn't be wasting her time with them.
Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, I was discussing what to do with some of the parts that were salvaged in the desert with one of the members, when this gigantic machina bursts through the Cloister of Trial's doors. We were all caught off guard, even I have to admit I was a bit more than surprised. The whole temple was shaking as this thing started a rampage and was slamming against anything and everything that was in the way of its huge mechanical body.
After recovering from the shock, I had realized something. Even though I didn't know what exactly was going on, I didn't need to. This machina was dangerous enough to wreak havoc on the bystanders outside. And it wasn't gonna be pretty if it was able to make its way to the Moonflow or Mushroom Rock Road.
"Don't let it get outside!" I yelled at the Al Bhed near the front door. "We can't let it escape!"
They heard me and grabbed their weapons, aiming their guns at the machina and firing away. But it was too strong; its armor completely deflecting the bullets. It just charged for the front doors, and the members of the Faction that tried to stop it dodged out of the way in fear of being crushed.
The machina rammed through the doors, demolishing the front of the temple. Splintered wood and stone were flying everywhere after it had created a new "entrance" for itself.
If I wasn't so worried about the safety of the members and myself, I would have been pretty impressed by the sheer strength of that machina.
A bunch of the other members were scrambling around to gather weapons. I held the trigger of my gun tensely, ready to pull it when it was necessary. I ran behind the machina, prepared to fire it from behind, but I froze when I heard her voice...
"Hey, you stupid machina! Come and get me!!!"
"Oh no..." I said out loud to myself. "She wouldn't..."
Oh, but of course she did. Rikku's the only person I know who'd try and fight a rampaging machina alone and not give it a second thought.
She obviously caught its attention, because the machina was practically flying from the entrance and headed straight into her direction.
Some of the members had followed me out of the temple, and that was when the sky seemed to get darker. I looked up, and saw that the sun was nowhere to be found. The air was kind of colder, like there was a storm coming or something.
"WATCH OUT!!!"
A stream of yellow lightning came out of nowhere and nearly struck us. We all ducked out of instinct and pure fear, and the lightning bolt hit the temple with an ear-splitting crash of thunder. When we were able to stand again, we all saw that one of the large pillars that managed to stay intact after the machina destroyed the doors was lying in a great smoking heap of rubble.
I looked away from the demolished pillar to see Rikku, yet again in a strange get-up. She wore a huge hat with a wide brim and a pointed top, and the rest of her outfit was a short purple dress with flared black sleeves and green and purple stockings that went to her mid-thigh. She was holding a green and blue staff, which for some inexplicable reason was glowing, in one hand, while she covered her mouth with the other like she was shocked or something.
"Cunno!!!" She shouted.
I glared at her, completely aggravated by the fact that she nearly zapped us. "Fryd dra ramm yna oui tuehk?!"
She couldn't answer because the machina was heading straight for her. I watched as Rikku shut her eyes tightly and was frantically muttering something under her breath, and before I knew it, there were more lightning bolts popping up. And it just so happened that another stray one nearly hit us, destroying the OTHER pillar that was in front of the temple.
"What are you trying to kill? Us or the machina?!" I yelled at her, rubbing the spot on my cheek were the lightning bolt had grazed as it shot past me.
"Sorry, sorry!!!" she kept apologizing, the unharmed machina charging at her with a sharp sword that was built into its right arm.
I aimed my gun at it, trying to hold my hand steady. I fired a few rounds into its back, and luckily the machina had slowed down, giving Rikku a chance to escape.
But she didn't. She was still a few feet away from it, holding her glowing staff up high and muttering some nonsense again. I could see that the sky was darkening even more now, and thunder was rumbling loudly while the air grew colder.
"Get away from it!" I shouted, but she didn't listen. She still stood there completely unguarded. The machina would murder her if she was just standing like that with her eyes closed. She had 'kill me' written all over her.
I ran right at the machina, firing as many bullets that my gun had into it. I knew I was destroying someone's hard work, but it could replaced. Rikku couldn't.
Before I had another chance to fire what little ammo I had left, a huge surge of lightning appeared from the sky and struck dead-on the machina. There was a great explosion of light and thunder and I was thrown off of my feet from the impact. I closed my eye as I felt dirt and pebbles raining on me, the light slowly fading. When I was able to see again, all that was left of the machina was its disassembled bolts and parts, which were lying in a giant mound. There were small circuits of electricity that sparked around the charred remains, but I couldn't care less about the machina. I didn't care about how badly the temple was damaged. I just wanted to make sure that Rikku was all right.
"Rikku!" I shouted her name, but the hissing of the obliterated machina was my only answer. I got back onto my feet, looking past the haze of black smoke that formed after the attack. When I saw her, I felt my heart stop. She was lying motionlessly on the ground, her hair spilling over her small shoulders and around her face. Her staff was in her hands, still and unmoving, and her hat had fallen off of her head and was a few inches away from her.
I didn't move for a while, ignoring the shouts of the Machine Faction members behind me. I didn't hear them running after me, I didn't hear them yelling my name. All I knew right then and there was that Rikku wasn't smiling. She wasn't laughing or yelling at me. She was doing nothing. And that scared me...
I ran to her side and kneeled and moved her. I carried her onto my lap and let her head rest against my arm, while my free hand was brushing aside her bangs and long braids from her face. "Rikku? Rikku!" I shouted at her. "Open your eyes, damn it!"
I was angry and sad at the same time. I didn't want to lose her. I couldn't lose her. So I sure as hell wasn't going to let her leave me again.
Her eyes opened to a crease, the emerald pools staring at me with the shimmer of life I was so used to seeing. "...did I miss?" She asked me, her voice weak and shaking. I had to grin at her question as I shook my head.
"No, you got it this time," I told her, and she managed a small laugh.
"Yay...guess Yunie and Paine were wrong...I don't need to work on my spells..."
She trailed off and her eyes slowly closed again, and I grew scared. My heart was pounding and I felt a cold sweat on my forehead. It can't be like this, was all that ran in my mind. She can't die.
I didn't notice the Al Bhed that gathered around her and me, asking if I was all right and what had happened to Rikku. I just held her in my arms tightly, and for once in my life I felt like I didn't know what to do. I was usually so calm and collected, but I felt that confidence slipping away from me. I only had it when Rikku was there with me, smiling and always jumping around.
An older member that had used to practice medicine back at Home put a hand on my shoulder and I faced him. He asked if he could see Rikku, and I hesitantly nodded. He lowered himself onto the ground and took her frail arm in his hands. He put two fingers on her wrist, trying to feel her pulse. After a few minutes, he tried to find a pulse on the side of her neck. He stood up and asked one of the members to get his tools from inside the temple.
"Gippal," he addressed me, "could you bring Rikku to her room?"
I didn't say anything and stood up, Rikku lying unconscious in my arms. Now that I think about it, the old man probably knew that it would've been pointless to ask anyone else to carry her to her bedroom. He knew that I wouldn't let them.
I walked into the temple, not bothering to examine the damage that was caused by the machina. I nudged the door to Rikku's room open with my boot and laid her down onto her bed. The old man came into the room shortly with a small bag of medicine and tools. He went to Rikku's side and pulled out a stethoscope, putting the cold end of the instrument over her heart. A few minutes went by, and he removed the stethoscope and stowed it away into his bag.
"Well?" I asked anxiously, my heart refusing to stop pounding.
"Relax Gippal, she is okay," He consoled me, but I still wasn't satisfied.
"If she's okay, then why is she unconscious?" I snapped as he calmly reached into his bag and pulled out a small bottle filled with a strange blue liquid. "What the hell is that?"
"It's ether," He answered. "And she is unconscious because of that one powerful spell that she conjured. Magic takes a lot of energy and mental strength. If someone that isn't experienced in the dark arts tries to cast an advanced spell such as the one that destroyed that machina, then that person would be drained of their senses for a little while."
"...so she'll be all right?"
He nodded, and motioned to Rikku. "Yes, this ether will help her recover quicker. Hold her head up."
I did as he said, propping up the back of her head with my arms. The old man put the bottle to her lips and the liquid slid down her throat. After it was empty, he gathered his things and prepared to leave.
"She isn't harmed physically, Gippal. When she comes to, Rikku will be back on her feet in no time."
He left, leaving me alone with Rikku. I pulled up a chair and sat facing her, even though she couldn't see me. I put a blanket over her body and made sure that she was comfortable. Even when she did wake up, I wasn't going to let her out of her room right away. If what the old man said was true, then Rikku might still feel a bit weak mentally after summoning that huge-ass lightning storm and nearly devastated not only the machina, but also everything around it in a five-mile radius.
I sat there just staring at her, brushing away the blonde bangs that occasionally drifted over her face. Looking at her sleeping so peacefully kinda made her look like a princess out of a fairytale that the adults would always tell us when we were little. I remembered that I couldn't sit still during story time because I always thought that those fairytales were a bunch of bull. But Rikku was always paying attention to them with that dreamy look in her eyes, always crying at the parts where the princess was kidnapped or something and smiling when there was a happy ending. After one particular story, she asked Brother if there was a handsome prince waiting for her.
"Yeah right!" I told her. "Like any guy would be able to stand Cid's girl. You're so annoying that you would chase them all away!"
She would get really angry and yell at me, tears forming in her eyes. "Shut up, Gippal! What would you know?"
"Enough to know that there aren't any princes who'd waste their time with you!"
When I said that, she looked away from me and ran so that no one would see her crying. I felt horrible afterwards, but at the same time I was angry and insecure. Why would Rikku want a prince to save her and take care of her when I was standing right in front of her? Why couldn't she just see that I could've been the one that could protect her?
I guess that I know my answer after spending such a long time away from her. She probably didn't know how I felt about her because I never actually TOLD her. I've missed so many chances to get her back, but I was too proud to take up on them. Teasing her is the only way I know to show that I really cared about her. It's not like I could just tell her that I love her...
...love...something that I thought I'd never feel in a thousand years. But Rikku does that to me. She changes me, whether or not I like it. There's just something about the way she smiles and talks to me that comforts me...that makes me forget about everything else except her.
"Sudran..." she whispered in her sleep, rolling onto her side restlessly. I pulled the sheets closer to her chin, worrying that she was cold.
If I couldn't tell her my feelings when she's conscious, I figured that it would have been a whole lot easier if she couldn't hear me.
"Rikku...you were always such an independent person. You never wanted to stay in one place or let someone else look out for you, even when we were dating. But...I want to do that. For once, I want you to let me protect you. You're always defending everyone else, but you need someone to defend you."
I lowered my head down to Rikku's face, my lips drawing closer to hers. Closing my eye, I kissed her, feeling the softness of her rosy lips against my own. Even though I felt a little guilty because I knew that if she was awake, she would pound the daylights out of me, I was happy. I haven't experienced that feeling for a long time since the first kiss I shared with Rikku. The world kinda melted away and all I knew or cared about was that she was there with me. And that was exactly how I felt during this kiss.
I pulled away, Rikku still sleeping as if nothing had happened. I figured that the kiss I stole from her would be the last thing to tell her when she wakes up. I didn't want to be the next one examined for a pulse.
"E muja oui," I whispered into her ear, and I felt like a heavy weight had been lifted off of my chest. I knew that I would have to eventually tell her about my feelings in the future, but one step at a time, right? This was a start.
I sat back in my chair and watched her for the rest of the day, falling soundly asleep several hours later.
***AUTHOR'S NOTE***
There, for all of you who wanted some fluff. I know it's not much, but Gippal doesn't strike me as the person who'd tell a girl exactly how he feels right off the bat. Thank you a thousand times for the wonderful reviews, btw! I'm glad that I'm keeping the characters...well, in character! Hope everyone had a great holiday! I'll try and update soon.
Translations:
Sudran: Mother
E muja oui: I love you
Cunno: Sorry
Fryd dra ramm yna oui tuehk: What the hell are you doing
Chapter Four: The Words I Couldn't Say
Well, it's been a month since Rikku has stayed here. And I guess you can call today an...eccentric way to celebrate it.
Y'know how when your day starts out normal, but you know something is bound to happen because it's a little TOO normal? Yeah, it started out as one of those days. Everything went like it was supposed to: Rikku screeched at me to wake up, shower, breakfast, and then work with machina. And that's where the chaos ensued.
Rikku was flitting around as usual, helping one person after another. I was pretending not to notice her, but I was watching her from the corner of my eye.
"Rikku's pretty cute, huh?" I heard one of the Al Bhed guys whisper to another one.
The other guy nodded his head. "Yeah, she's something else. But I think she's taken."
"What? Does she have a boyfriend?"
"Not really. But word around here is that our leader has a soft spot for her."
"Gippal? That's impossible! They've got nothing in common!"
"Ahem!" I stepped in the conversation, my fists unable to tighten any further. "Hate to interrupt fellas, but don't you have work to do?"
I didn't need to address them in Al Bhed to show them that I was pissed. They instantly saw the look that was on my face and they went right back to work, not taking another glance at Rikku. And that was exactly what I wanted them to do.
I've always known that Rikku was a beautiful girl, and on top of that, she had the ability to make people laugh and smile despite how horrible their day has been. That's why I hate it when other guys stare at her or when she smiles at them. I don't show it, but it gets on my nerves. Even if they say she's beautiful, I know that no other guy could see Rikku the way I see her. And that's why I think she shouldn't be wasting her time with them.
Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah, I was discussing what to do with some of the parts that were salvaged in the desert with one of the members, when this gigantic machina bursts through the Cloister of Trial's doors. We were all caught off guard, even I have to admit I was a bit more than surprised. The whole temple was shaking as this thing started a rampage and was slamming against anything and everything that was in the way of its huge mechanical body.
After recovering from the shock, I had realized something. Even though I didn't know what exactly was going on, I didn't need to. This machina was dangerous enough to wreak havoc on the bystanders outside. And it wasn't gonna be pretty if it was able to make its way to the Moonflow or Mushroom Rock Road.
"Don't let it get outside!" I yelled at the Al Bhed near the front door. "We can't let it escape!"
They heard me and grabbed their weapons, aiming their guns at the machina and firing away. But it was too strong; its armor completely deflecting the bullets. It just charged for the front doors, and the members of the Faction that tried to stop it dodged out of the way in fear of being crushed.
The machina rammed through the doors, demolishing the front of the temple. Splintered wood and stone were flying everywhere after it had created a new "entrance" for itself.
If I wasn't so worried about the safety of the members and myself, I would have been pretty impressed by the sheer strength of that machina.
A bunch of the other members were scrambling around to gather weapons. I held the trigger of my gun tensely, ready to pull it when it was necessary. I ran behind the machina, prepared to fire it from behind, but I froze when I heard her voice...
"Hey, you stupid machina! Come and get me!!!"
"Oh no..." I said out loud to myself. "She wouldn't..."
Oh, but of course she did. Rikku's the only person I know who'd try and fight a rampaging machina alone and not give it a second thought.
She obviously caught its attention, because the machina was practically flying from the entrance and headed straight into her direction.
Some of the members had followed me out of the temple, and that was when the sky seemed to get darker. I looked up, and saw that the sun was nowhere to be found. The air was kind of colder, like there was a storm coming or something.
"WATCH OUT!!!"
A stream of yellow lightning came out of nowhere and nearly struck us. We all ducked out of instinct and pure fear, and the lightning bolt hit the temple with an ear-splitting crash of thunder. When we were able to stand again, we all saw that one of the large pillars that managed to stay intact after the machina destroyed the doors was lying in a great smoking heap of rubble.
I looked away from the demolished pillar to see Rikku, yet again in a strange get-up. She wore a huge hat with a wide brim and a pointed top, and the rest of her outfit was a short purple dress with flared black sleeves and green and purple stockings that went to her mid-thigh. She was holding a green and blue staff, which for some inexplicable reason was glowing, in one hand, while she covered her mouth with the other like she was shocked or something.
"Cunno!!!" She shouted.
I glared at her, completely aggravated by the fact that she nearly zapped us. "Fryd dra ramm yna oui tuehk?!"
She couldn't answer because the machina was heading straight for her. I watched as Rikku shut her eyes tightly and was frantically muttering something under her breath, and before I knew it, there were more lightning bolts popping up. And it just so happened that another stray one nearly hit us, destroying the OTHER pillar that was in front of the temple.
"What are you trying to kill? Us or the machina?!" I yelled at her, rubbing the spot on my cheek were the lightning bolt had grazed as it shot past me.
"Sorry, sorry!!!" she kept apologizing, the unharmed machina charging at her with a sharp sword that was built into its right arm.
I aimed my gun at it, trying to hold my hand steady. I fired a few rounds into its back, and luckily the machina had slowed down, giving Rikku a chance to escape.
But she didn't. She was still a few feet away from it, holding her glowing staff up high and muttering some nonsense again. I could see that the sky was darkening even more now, and thunder was rumbling loudly while the air grew colder.
"Get away from it!" I shouted, but she didn't listen. She still stood there completely unguarded. The machina would murder her if she was just standing like that with her eyes closed. She had 'kill me' written all over her.
I ran right at the machina, firing as many bullets that my gun had into it. I knew I was destroying someone's hard work, but it could replaced. Rikku couldn't.
Before I had another chance to fire what little ammo I had left, a huge surge of lightning appeared from the sky and struck dead-on the machina. There was a great explosion of light and thunder and I was thrown off of my feet from the impact. I closed my eye as I felt dirt and pebbles raining on me, the light slowly fading. When I was able to see again, all that was left of the machina was its disassembled bolts and parts, which were lying in a giant mound. There were small circuits of electricity that sparked around the charred remains, but I couldn't care less about the machina. I didn't care about how badly the temple was damaged. I just wanted to make sure that Rikku was all right.
"Rikku!" I shouted her name, but the hissing of the obliterated machina was my only answer. I got back onto my feet, looking past the haze of black smoke that formed after the attack. When I saw her, I felt my heart stop. She was lying motionlessly on the ground, her hair spilling over her small shoulders and around her face. Her staff was in her hands, still and unmoving, and her hat had fallen off of her head and was a few inches away from her.
I didn't move for a while, ignoring the shouts of the Machine Faction members behind me. I didn't hear them running after me, I didn't hear them yelling my name. All I knew right then and there was that Rikku wasn't smiling. She wasn't laughing or yelling at me. She was doing nothing. And that scared me...
I ran to her side and kneeled and moved her. I carried her onto my lap and let her head rest against my arm, while my free hand was brushing aside her bangs and long braids from her face. "Rikku? Rikku!" I shouted at her. "Open your eyes, damn it!"
I was angry and sad at the same time. I didn't want to lose her. I couldn't lose her. So I sure as hell wasn't going to let her leave me again.
Her eyes opened to a crease, the emerald pools staring at me with the shimmer of life I was so used to seeing. "...did I miss?" She asked me, her voice weak and shaking. I had to grin at her question as I shook my head.
"No, you got it this time," I told her, and she managed a small laugh.
"Yay...guess Yunie and Paine were wrong...I don't need to work on my spells..."
She trailed off and her eyes slowly closed again, and I grew scared. My heart was pounding and I felt a cold sweat on my forehead. It can't be like this, was all that ran in my mind. She can't die.
I didn't notice the Al Bhed that gathered around her and me, asking if I was all right and what had happened to Rikku. I just held her in my arms tightly, and for once in my life I felt like I didn't know what to do. I was usually so calm and collected, but I felt that confidence slipping away from me. I only had it when Rikku was there with me, smiling and always jumping around.
An older member that had used to practice medicine back at Home put a hand on my shoulder and I faced him. He asked if he could see Rikku, and I hesitantly nodded. He lowered himself onto the ground and took her frail arm in his hands. He put two fingers on her wrist, trying to feel her pulse. After a few minutes, he tried to find a pulse on the side of her neck. He stood up and asked one of the members to get his tools from inside the temple.
"Gippal," he addressed me, "could you bring Rikku to her room?"
I didn't say anything and stood up, Rikku lying unconscious in my arms. Now that I think about it, the old man probably knew that it would've been pointless to ask anyone else to carry her to her bedroom. He knew that I wouldn't let them.
I walked into the temple, not bothering to examine the damage that was caused by the machina. I nudged the door to Rikku's room open with my boot and laid her down onto her bed. The old man came into the room shortly with a small bag of medicine and tools. He went to Rikku's side and pulled out a stethoscope, putting the cold end of the instrument over her heart. A few minutes went by, and he removed the stethoscope and stowed it away into his bag.
"Well?" I asked anxiously, my heart refusing to stop pounding.
"Relax Gippal, she is okay," He consoled me, but I still wasn't satisfied.
"If she's okay, then why is she unconscious?" I snapped as he calmly reached into his bag and pulled out a small bottle filled with a strange blue liquid. "What the hell is that?"
"It's ether," He answered. "And she is unconscious because of that one powerful spell that she conjured. Magic takes a lot of energy and mental strength. If someone that isn't experienced in the dark arts tries to cast an advanced spell such as the one that destroyed that machina, then that person would be drained of their senses for a little while."
"...so she'll be all right?"
He nodded, and motioned to Rikku. "Yes, this ether will help her recover quicker. Hold her head up."
I did as he said, propping up the back of her head with my arms. The old man put the bottle to her lips and the liquid slid down her throat. After it was empty, he gathered his things and prepared to leave.
"She isn't harmed physically, Gippal. When she comes to, Rikku will be back on her feet in no time."
He left, leaving me alone with Rikku. I pulled up a chair and sat facing her, even though she couldn't see me. I put a blanket over her body and made sure that she was comfortable. Even when she did wake up, I wasn't going to let her out of her room right away. If what the old man said was true, then Rikku might still feel a bit weak mentally after summoning that huge-ass lightning storm and nearly devastated not only the machina, but also everything around it in a five-mile radius.
I sat there just staring at her, brushing away the blonde bangs that occasionally drifted over her face. Looking at her sleeping so peacefully kinda made her look like a princess out of a fairytale that the adults would always tell us when we were little. I remembered that I couldn't sit still during story time because I always thought that those fairytales were a bunch of bull. But Rikku was always paying attention to them with that dreamy look in her eyes, always crying at the parts where the princess was kidnapped or something and smiling when there was a happy ending. After one particular story, she asked Brother if there was a handsome prince waiting for her.
"Yeah right!" I told her. "Like any guy would be able to stand Cid's girl. You're so annoying that you would chase them all away!"
She would get really angry and yell at me, tears forming in her eyes. "Shut up, Gippal! What would you know?"
"Enough to know that there aren't any princes who'd waste their time with you!"
When I said that, she looked away from me and ran so that no one would see her crying. I felt horrible afterwards, but at the same time I was angry and insecure. Why would Rikku want a prince to save her and take care of her when I was standing right in front of her? Why couldn't she just see that I could've been the one that could protect her?
I guess that I know my answer after spending such a long time away from her. She probably didn't know how I felt about her because I never actually TOLD her. I've missed so many chances to get her back, but I was too proud to take up on them. Teasing her is the only way I know to show that I really cared about her. It's not like I could just tell her that I love her...
...love...something that I thought I'd never feel in a thousand years. But Rikku does that to me. She changes me, whether or not I like it. There's just something about the way she smiles and talks to me that comforts me...that makes me forget about everything else except her.
"Sudran..." she whispered in her sleep, rolling onto her side restlessly. I pulled the sheets closer to her chin, worrying that she was cold.
If I couldn't tell her my feelings when she's conscious, I figured that it would have been a whole lot easier if she couldn't hear me.
"Rikku...you were always such an independent person. You never wanted to stay in one place or let someone else look out for you, even when we were dating. But...I want to do that. For once, I want you to let me protect you. You're always defending everyone else, but you need someone to defend you."
I lowered my head down to Rikku's face, my lips drawing closer to hers. Closing my eye, I kissed her, feeling the softness of her rosy lips against my own. Even though I felt a little guilty because I knew that if she was awake, she would pound the daylights out of me, I was happy. I haven't experienced that feeling for a long time since the first kiss I shared with Rikku. The world kinda melted away and all I knew or cared about was that she was there with me. And that was exactly how I felt during this kiss.
I pulled away, Rikku still sleeping as if nothing had happened. I figured that the kiss I stole from her would be the last thing to tell her when she wakes up. I didn't want to be the next one examined for a pulse.
"E muja oui," I whispered into her ear, and I felt like a heavy weight had been lifted off of my chest. I knew that I would have to eventually tell her about my feelings in the future, but one step at a time, right? This was a start.
I sat back in my chair and watched her for the rest of the day, falling soundly asleep several hours later.
***AUTHOR'S NOTE***
There, for all of you who wanted some fluff. I know it's not much, but Gippal doesn't strike me as the person who'd tell a girl exactly how he feels right off the bat. Thank you a thousand times for the wonderful reviews, btw! I'm glad that I'm keeping the characters...well, in character! Hope everyone had a great holiday! I'll try and update soon.
Translations:
Sudran: Mother
E muja oui: I love you
Cunno: Sorry
Fryd dra ramm yna oui tuehk: What the hell are you doing