Note: Hiyah! Welcome back to the 8th chapter of this wonderful story......*ahem* anyway, we last left off with our main couple of the game with many problems: Rinoa with a child at sixteen, without telling her boyfriend about it...PLUS! She meets the father of her child unexpectedly at the store where she works; Squall with a father he and his younger brother needs the most, but is far too 'busy' for them AND, Rinoa rejects his promise ring and runs off without telling him why.... Where will their relationship go from here? @_@
Chapter 9 - Upside Down
The summer heat was definitely catching up to them this month. Outside, people were lounging around their front yard, drinking lemonade while watching people go by in their cars... cars with their windows open and their air conditioner at full blast. Squall has never seen this much heat in Seattle since they moved from California. He parked the car near a 2002 midnight green Toyota Camry and got out, making his way into the field.
"Squall!!!!" a young voice yelled in the distance.
The brunette shaded his eyes from the sun with his hand and looked over at the field. His younger brother was running towards him, ball in his arms, waving at him excitedly. He sighed, forcing his face into a smile. Today was no easy day for him, especially when his girlfriend kept avoiding him during school. Something was definitely going on with Rinoa. She was hiding something and she wouldn't tell him anything.
"Hey, squirt!" Squall greeted back, ruffling his dark, dark hair.
Cloud pouted, straightening his hair into its sides. "What'd you do that for?"
His older brother grinned, then looked over at the field. Just across the fifty yard gravel, a team, which Squall figured was the team his little brother and the rest of the Balamb Lions were playing, were already practicing their moves. Their coach, a muscular bald man with strong legs, were shouting out 'encouraging' words at the young soccer players. He glanced at his brother's teammates and couldn't believe how opposite they were in comparison to the other team who were working really hard to win this game. Twelve, figures sat on the bench, some, watching eagerly at their opponent, while others watched in fear of them. There was no sign of their tall, red haired and rather young coach who usually came at least an hour early to set up the equipment.
"Where's your coach?" he asked, looking towards the parking lot to see whether Coach Kleever has arrived.
Cloud just shrugged, his eyes searching to the other side of the field for someone. Squall watched as his dark green pupils turned into slits when the young boy saw the person he was looking for. Another boy, who seemed taller than Cloud, was smirking at him, folding his arms across his chest and playing with the soccer ball around his feet to show himself off. From where he stood, Squall could see the foot work and the stamina the sandy haired boy had. Frowning, he could also see the boy's arrogant attitude. He glanced back at his little brother, who was clenching and unclenching his fists in irritation.
"Someone you know?" the big brother asked.
The dark haired boy nodded, keeping his eyes trained on the other boy. "Yeah..." he hissed. "His name is Dominic Seawell. He's the team coach's son.. go figure!" He gritted his teeth in disgust and began playing with the ball with his own feet, trying to show off as well.
Squall chuckled, reaching down to ruffle his brother's hair once more. "You are so adorable when you're in your competitive mood." He laughed even harder when Cloud slapped his hand away from his head and once again, fixed his hair.
"Stop it!" he whined, moving away from him.
"Sorry, I'm late, kids! I got caught up in traffic!" came a voice from behind them.
Squall, Cloud and the rest of the team turned around. Coach Kleever's face was redder than his hair, which was a sure sign that he probably ran from his car to the field, or was just angry at the traffic. Squall can imagine him slamming his hand against the horn of his car, shouting out thousands of profanities he can possibly muster at the cars in front of him, who were driving a bit too slow. With that thought, he almost chuckled, but stopped himself before he embarrassed the coach any further.
"Hey, Kleever! What took you so long? I thought you chickened out or something!" All heads turned to the direction of Coach Seawell, who was smirking at his own joke. The twelve kids running around, all stopped to listen. Dominic, his son, obviously found it funny as well.
"Never in a million years, Seawell!" Kleever yelled back. He grinned at the other man and when he turned away from him, he mumbled some cursed words, then checked himself twice, knowing he had twelve year old kids watching him carefully. He looked up at Squall, who was nodding, glad that the older man didn't shout out anything that could offend the parents watching. "Hello, Squall! How's your father today?"
The mentioning of his father stopped Squall short. He stared at the man for a moment, then nodded slowly. "He's....fine..." he mumbled, turning away to avoid anymore conversations about his Mayor father, who owned the Balamb soccer team AND the Balamb high school football team.
Kleever didn't seem to mind that Squall was avoiding him, instead, he turned to face his team. Cloud left his older brother's side to be with the others and listened as their coach spoke encouraging words to them. Unlike Seawell, Kleever did not push his team too hard, like they were some kind of army. Despite Kleever's language, he was kind to his players and never fretted if they lost a game. Squall has seen him do this a couple of times, but Kleever congratulated his players with a pat on the back every time the game ended, whether they won or lost. That was the one thing the sixteen year old boy always admired about Varsity's number one soccer player.
After Kleever's long speech, all boys joined their hands together and yelled, "Go Lions, go!" before letting go. Just as they were about to reassemble, the referee blew his whistle to start the game. All players from each side made their way to the field. Cloud, the fastest runner, was one of the four forwards in the team, who, ironically, was standing on the opposite side of his rival, Dominic.
Squall shook his head. "Of all the..."
"Sorry?" Coach Kleever, who was standing beside him, glanced at Squall.
The younger boy shook his head the second time. "Nothing. Just talking to myself."
When all the teams were in position, the referee held the ball into the air and the moment he blew the whistle, the ball fell from his hands. Immediately, all players advanced forward to their opposite side. Squall watched intently as one of Cloud's teammates passed the ball to him. The dark haired boy eased his way in between the opposing team and ran like no tomorrow. Squall was amazed at how fast his younger brother was in the field. The opposing team were trying to catch up to number 08, but couldn't. The sixteen year old smiled approvingly.
If only his father was watching right now....
**************************************
A knock on the door interrupted him from his concentration.
"What is it?" Slightly annoyed, he looked up to see his wife standing there, hurt. His face softened and apologized at her, then turned back to his papers.
"You know, your son is playing right now." Raine approached her husband cautiously. She walked behind him and placed her hands on his tense shoulders. "I think he would be happy if he saw you. I'm going over there right now. Would you like to come?"
"What?" It seems Laguna didn't hear a word his wife said.
She sighed. Suddenly, she placed a hand on her husband's papers, blocking Laguna's pen from the forms and the many papers present on his table.
Laguna frowned, looking up. "What do you want, Raine? I don't have time for this."
"Why are you angry all of a sudden? I'm only trying to let you see that your sons need you for this. Cloud has been looking forward for this for a long time and I think it's time you spend time with him." She leaned down closer and wrapped her arms around her husband's neck. "Can't you at least stop this and come with me to watch the game? I think after, Squall's taking his little brother down at the carnival."
Laguna removed his wife's hand gently from around him. "I will, but right now, I need to finish this form and send it out to my secretary. When I'm done here, I'll go and see the game okay?"
Raine smiled. "You promise?"
Laguna looked up and smiled back. "I promise."
*************************************
Night soon came to pass. She was very tired. Last night, she couldn't sleep, because her head was too busy to sleep, with all the thoughts running in her head about Ian, then Squall, then her child, then back again. If she wasn't closing up until nine o'clock, then she wouldn't have to worry about sleeping at all.
Rinoa was just closing up the cash register, when she heard the door opening. Without looking up, she placed the keys through the key hole of the old register and looked up, saying "Sorry, we're-" she suddenly stopped.
A familiar man stood there, his hand stuffed in his hands nervously. Rinoa felt her face frowning. What was HE doing here? The long haired girl quickly went to the back counter, trying to find things to make herself look busy.
"Rinoa, I need to talk to you," said the voice in the front counter. Rinoa sighed. She had no choice. She had nothing to look busy at. The dark haired girl went back near the cash register and looked up, frowning.
"What did I just say, Ian? Didn't I tell you not to talk to me again or beg me to see your daughter? You were the one who left, not me. I can't let you see her." She folded her arms across her chest and sighed, pursing her lips shut. Those were her final words. After that, nothing he says, will change her mind.
"Then, I guess I have no choice, but..." Ian said, taking out a piece of paper. He put it on the counter so Rinoa could see.
As if a part of her broke apart, Rinoa's eyes widened in shock. In fine print, the paper in front of her said: The Seattle State Court House. What happened to 'nothing he says will change her mind?' she thought. She couldn't move. "What does this mean? Are you telling me you want to share custody with our daughter, when YOU were the one who didn't want her in the first place?"
Ian nodded, staring at her coldly. "Yes, that's EXACTLY what I'm saying, Rin."
"Why change your mind now? What the HELL kind of idea is this!?" Rinoa slammed a hand on top of the paper. "I am NOT signing this!" She was turning red in the face with anger. She couldn't believe this asshole wants to take their daughter away from her. "I am not letting you or any of the social workers take her away from me! You have no right!"
"I may not have the right, Rin, but our daughter has the right to live in a family that can feed her and make her healthy. You can't be the one raising her!"
"Why? Because I'm too stupid for her!? Because I'm just a 'kid?' What, Ian? Go on, tell me!"
Ian took a deep breath. "Look, I didn't mean it like that. I didn't say you were stupid! All I'm saying is..."
"Well, whatever you think of me, Ian, it's not going to change my mind about my daughter. I am NOT giving her up whatsoever. She and I are doing fine where we are. Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to lock up now, so will you please leave?" She pointed her finger out the door, tears almost falling out of her eyes.
Ian stared at her. He couldn't believe this! What was she thinking? Is this what she wants for her daughter? How can she support both of them while she works in a dump like this? Sighing, but not giving up, the older man picked up the form from the counter and began walking away, but stopped just near the door to look back at the girl. "Rinoa, I'm giving you two weeks chance to change your mind, if not, then I have no choice, but to call the social worker and ask them to take her." With those words, he turned and left.
Rinoa stood there for a moment and when she was sure he was gone, she quickly locked the door, went to the back room and buried her face in her hands. "Why are you doing this, Ian!? Why are you suddenly punishing me for the mistakes YOU made?" she said to herself, weeping.
Did she really have two weeks left?
**********************************
"Hi! You're home!" An elderly woman, in her mid forties wrapped her arms around to what looked like a distraught young woman. Patti usually greeted the girl with a hug and Rinoa would usually hug her back, but something was different. The woman pulled back to look into Rinoa's eyes. "What's wrong?"
Rinoa looked up, her eyes red and puffy. She had been crying. "Where's- where's Diana?"
Patti tilted her head up the stairs. "She's in her cradle, sleeping. Why?"
The dark haired girl said nothing. The older woman watched as Rinoa crept up the stairs, her eyes seem to be too entranced in going up to her daughter than putting her back pack down. Patti followed her up the stairs and into her small bedroom, where a small cradle stood beside a small bed. Inside, was a little baby girl sleeping with her back towards them. Rinoa, as if still in a trance, slowly made her way to the crib and stopped just inches away form it. Patti continued to watch. The dark haired girl leaned down, caressed her daughter's face, then turned away. For a moment, Rinoa just stared at the wall and before Patti could catch her in her arms, Rinoa suddenly dropped on her knees and wept quietly on the sheets of her bed.
Patti quickly ran to her side, wrapping her motherly arms around the girl and rubbed her back. "Shhh, it's okay now Rinoa."
"No, it's not okay," she spoke, during her muffled sobs. She looked up, her eyes red in sadness. "He's going to take here away, Patti!" she whispered, making sure she wouldn't scream too much to wake Diana up. She buried her head back on her arms and wept some more.
"Who?"
"Diana's father... He's planning on sharing custody and... and I don't want to let go of my daughter! I love her! I don't want her to grow up with him and call someone else, 'mom'" she choked and rubbed her tears away with her arms.
"Why do you think that? He said he wants to share custody," Patti whispered in her ear. "It doesn't really mean he's taking her away from you. I mean, he can't take her away from you! You're her mother."
Rinoa sniffed, wiping more tears from her eyes. "But I don't want- I don't want her to know him."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want her to know that her father had another child while he cheated on me."
Patti stopped. She's never really told her about this before. This was all new to her. "Are you telling me, your baby's father already HAD a wife and a child while he was with you?"
Rinoa nodded.
The older woman's eyes turned into thing slits. How can this man do this to her? And not just to Rinoa, but to his own wife and child? Patti said nothing. She didn't want to make Rinoa worry than she already was. She wrapped her arms around her 'daughter' and put her head on her shoulders. "Hush now, my child. You have to stop crying or Diana will wake up. Besides, all will be good. I'll be with you when you talk to Ian about this."
Rinoa looked up, surprised. "You will?"
Patti smiled sympathetically. "Of course!"
The dark haired girl smiled back at her 'mother' and hugged her. "Thank you," she whispered, burying her face in her chest. Before she could stop herself, she wept once more.
Patti grinned and embraced her tighter. "All will be well, Rinoa. You just wait and see."
******************************
School day was once again here. Squall made his way to the building, smiling at the thought of Coach Seawell's face when the Lions won against them. It seems that the man was confident that his team could win, with all the hours they put up to 'shape' his players. Unfortunately, brutal scrunches and sprints did not help him win yesterday's game while kind encouragement and tolerance that Coach Kleever made....did. Cloud was even more enthusiastic when he was able to show off to Dominic Seawell that he could run faster than him, especially when his mother was watching, cheering him on. Squall was quite angry when his mother told him that their father was going to show up after he finished work, but never really did. His mother was also very angry, but it later faded when they went to the carnival afterwards. Just seeing Cloud happy was good enough for both Squall and Raine.
"Oh, hey Squall!" The tall young man, too enthralled about what he witnessed at yesterday's game, looked up, startled by Rinoa's presence in front of him.
"Hi, Rin..." Immediately, he felt his hand moving to his side, fidgetting nervously. "What's up?"
Rinoa smiled. "Oh nothing... I was just uh... going to class. Want to walk down with me? I mean, if you don't want to, I can understand."
Squall shook his head. "No, it's okay, since my class is down that way anyway."
The dark haired girl was relieved. She thought he was angry at her for what she did the day before. She turned and began walking, with Squall close beside her. Rinoa glanced at his hands, swaying side to side as he walked. She wanted so much to grab his hand and take it into her own and tell him EVERYTHING about her life... even the ones most dreadful.
"Squall I..." she stopped, swallowing. Hard.
The tall boy looked at her. "Hm?"
Rinoa looked away and stared ahead of her. Where does she start from here?
"What is it, Rin?"
The dark haired girl flinched. How is she supposed to start this conversation? She has to say something before they go their separate ways. "Nothing... Thanks for walking me home!" She paced faster on her feet and walked away ahead of him. Squall watched her go, his eyes furrowing curiously and, disappointingly. He wished she would say something, instead of turning away from him. Sighing, he stuffed his hands in his pant pockets and thought about what was bothering Rinoa so much all the way to his class.
*******************************
This was getting really tiresome. She HAS to say something or else she will lose Squall for good! Rinoa tapped her fingers nervously on the table. Lunch time was too noisy for anyone heat her beat, but the people around her table were staring to get irritated with her agitation.
"What are you so nervous about, Rinoa? And where is Squall these days? I haven't seen him without you! Did you have a fight?" Zell said through the noise, glancing at his friend.
"What?" Rinoa looked up. Zell, Selphie and Quistis were all looking at her, worriedly. "Oh nothing, I'm just excited!" She forced a smile on her face, but none of her three friends were fooled.
"I was also asking where Squall was. Where is he?" Zell looked around at the crowd, hoping to spot Squall amongst the people lining up for food. "Oh, there he is."
Rinoa's head popped up and her eyes saw him standing there, with a tray in hand. He was reaching for a sandwich and a drink, before the line moved once again. Quickly, Squall paid for it and went to join his friends at the table.
"Hey, Squall!" Zell greeted over a full mouth.
"Zell, don't talk with your mouth full!" Quistis said.
"So-mry!" Zell said.
Squall sat down on the usual seat beside the dark haired girl. Rinoa looked up and smiled awkwardly. For a moment, their eyes met, but Rinoa was the first one to break contact first and no one saw that coming. Zell was too busy choking on his food to notice, while Selphie was helping him cough it out. Quistis was mumbling how immature the blond was, irritably rubbing the top of her nose with her hand, then suddenly commenting how ALL boys were immature. "Especially the one named, Seifer," Quistis added, talking to herself.
Rinoa looked down at her food and picked up the sandwich she bought, then began eating it slowly. When she had enough for just this moment, she put her sandwich back down and sighed, placing her hands on her lap.
"Rin," someone whispered. The dark haired girl turned to see who it was, then realized it was Squall, whose hands suddenly reached for her hand on her lap. He squeezed it lovingly and looked into her eyes.
She felt her eyes suddenly begin to water, but choked it back. "I'm sorry," she whispered back. "I'll tell you everything, I promise. I'm just not ready right now..."
Squall nodded. "That's good enough for me. I can wait." He smiled again, reassuringly.
Rinoa smiled. She couldn't help but cry. Squall was as sweet as ever. No wonder she fell in love with him. Her three friends STILL didn't notice as Squall reached over with his other hand and wiped her tears away.
Zell, coughing horribly this time, accidentally kicked his shins against the table, in an attempt to get up so he could get something to drink. Squall and Rinoa broke free from each other and flinched, when Zell suddenly jumped up from his seat and had coughing fits while he ran to the counter to get a drink of water. Selphie ran after him, eyes all turning to her, as she yelled, "I TOLD you not to eat too fast, Zell! Geez! How many times have I told you about that!?"
Both Squall and Rinoa glanced at Quistis, who just shrugged and continued eating her sandwich as if nothing happened.
GoodGurl: Okay, that last part was weird, but I also wanted to add a little funny scene about Zell and his hot dog! Tee hee! ^_^. Well there you have it folks! As you can see, Squall and Rinoa have resolved their problems, but there's STILL the matter of Squall finding out about Rinoa's baby and the fact that his father broke his promise yet again to watch the soccer game. And Rinoa too... she might lose her baby forever if the social services aren't sympathetic enough to let her keep the baby. Ian's so mean! How dare he! you say? Well, we'll see! ;) Stay tuned!
Chapter 9 - Upside Down
The summer heat was definitely catching up to them this month. Outside, people were lounging around their front yard, drinking lemonade while watching people go by in their cars... cars with their windows open and their air conditioner at full blast. Squall has never seen this much heat in Seattle since they moved from California. He parked the car near a 2002 midnight green Toyota Camry and got out, making his way into the field.
"Squall!!!!" a young voice yelled in the distance.
The brunette shaded his eyes from the sun with his hand and looked over at the field. His younger brother was running towards him, ball in his arms, waving at him excitedly. He sighed, forcing his face into a smile. Today was no easy day for him, especially when his girlfriend kept avoiding him during school. Something was definitely going on with Rinoa. She was hiding something and she wouldn't tell him anything.
"Hey, squirt!" Squall greeted back, ruffling his dark, dark hair.
Cloud pouted, straightening his hair into its sides. "What'd you do that for?"
His older brother grinned, then looked over at the field. Just across the fifty yard gravel, a team, which Squall figured was the team his little brother and the rest of the Balamb Lions were playing, were already practicing their moves. Their coach, a muscular bald man with strong legs, were shouting out 'encouraging' words at the young soccer players. He glanced at his brother's teammates and couldn't believe how opposite they were in comparison to the other team who were working really hard to win this game. Twelve, figures sat on the bench, some, watching eagerly at their opponent, while others watched in fear of them. There was no sign of their tall, red haired and rather young coach who usually came at least an hour early to set up the equipment.
"Where's your coach?" he asked, looking towards the parking lot to see whether Coach Kleever has arrived.
Cloud just shrugged, his eyes searching to the other side of the field for someone. Squall watched as his dark green pupils turned into slits when the young boy saw the person he was looking for. Another boy, who seemed taller than Cloud, was smirking at him, folding his arms across his chest and playing with the soccer ball around his feet to show himself off. From where he stood, Squall could see the foot work and the stamina the sandy haired boy had. Frowning, he could also see the boy's arrogant attitude. He glanced back at his little brother, who was clenching and unclenching his fists in irritation.
"Someone you know?" the big brother asked.
The dark haired boy nodded, keeping his eyes trained on the other boy. "Yeah..." he hissed. "His name is Dominic Seawell. He's the team coach's son.. go figure!" He gritted his teeth in disgust and began playing with the ball with his own feet, trying to show off as well.
Squall chuckled, reaching down to ruffle his brother's hair once more. "You are so adorable when you're in your competitive mood." He laughed even harder when Cloud slapped his hand away from his head and once again, fixed his hair.
"Stop it!" he whined, moving away from him.
"Sorry, I'm late, kids! I got caught up in traffic!" came a voice from behind them.
Squall, Cloud and the rest of the team turned around. Coach Kleever's face was redder than his hair, which was a sure sign that he probably ran from his car to the field, or was just angry at the traffic. Squall can imagine him slamming his hand against the horn of his car, shouting out thousands of profanities he can possibly muster at the cars in front of him, who were driving a bit too slow. With that thought, he almost chuckled, but stopped himself before he embarrassed the coach any further.
"Hey, Kleever! What took you so long? I thought you chickened out or something!" All heads turned to the direction of Coach Seawell, who was smirking at his own joke. The twelve kids running around, all stopped to listen. Dominic, his son, obviously found it funny as well.
"Never in a million years, Seawell!" Kleever yelled back. He grinned at the other man and when he turned away from him, he mumbled some cursed words, then checked himself twice, knowing he had twelve year old kids watching him carefully. He looked up at Squall, who was nodding, glad that the older man didn't shout out anything that could offend the parents watching. "Hello, Squall! How's your father today?"
The mentioning of his father stopped Squall short. He stared at the man for a moment, then nodded slowly. "He's....fine..." he mumbled, turning away to avoid anymore conversations about his Mayor father, who owned the Balamb soccer team AND the Balamb high school football team.
Kleever didn't seem to mind that Squall was avoiding him, instead, he turned to face his team. Cloud left his older brother's side to be with the others and listened as their coach spoke encouraging words to them. Unlike Seawell, Kleever did not push his team too hard, like they were some kind of army. Despite Kleever's language, he was kind to his players and never fretted if they lost a game. Squall has seen him do this a couple of times, but Kleever congratulated his players with a pat on the back every time the game ended, whether they won or lost. That was the one thing the sixteen year old boy always admired about Varsity's number one soccer player.
After Kleever's long speech, all boys joined their hands together and yelled, "Go Lions, go!" before letting go. Just as they were about to reassemble, the referee blew his whistle to start the game. All players from each side made their way to the field. Cloud, the fastest runner, was one of the four forwards in the team, who, ironically, was standing on the opposite side of his rival, Dominic.
Squall shook his head. "Of all the..."
"Sorry?" Coach Kleever, who was standing beside him, glanced at Squall.
The younger boy shook his head the second time. "Nothing. Just talking to myself."
When all the teams were in position, the referee held the ball into the air and the moment he blew the whistle, the ball fell from his hands. Immediately, all players advanced forward to their opposite side. Squall watched intently as one of Cloud's teammates passed the ball to him. The dark haired boy eased his way in between the opposing team and ran like no tomorrow. Squall was amazed at how fast his younger brother was in the field. The opposing team were trying to catch up to number 08, but couldn't. The sixteen year old smiled approvingly.
If only his father was watching right now....
**************************************
A knock on the door interrupted him from his concentration.
"What is it?" Slightly annoyed, he looked up to see his wife standing there, hurt. His face softened and apologized at her, then turned back to his papers.
"You know, your son is playing right now." Raine approached her husband cautiously. She walked behind him and placed her hands on his tense shoulders. "I think he would be happy if he saw you. I'm going over there right now. Would you like to come?"
"What?" It seems Laguna didn't hear a word his wife said.
She sighed. Suddenly, she placed a hand on her husband's papers, blocking Laguna's pen from the forms and the many papers present on his table.
Laguna frowned, looking up. "What do you want, Raine? I don't have time for this."
"Why are you angry all of a sudden? I'm only trying to let you see that your sons need you for this. Cloud has been looking forward for this for a long time and I think it's time you spend time with him." She leaned down closer and wrapped her arms around her husband's neck. "Can't you at least stop this and come with me to watch the game? I think after, Squall's taking his little brother down at the carnival."
Laguna removed his wife's hand gently from around him. "I will, but right now, I need to finish this form and send it out to my secretary. When I'm done here, I'll go and see the game okay?"
Raine smiled. "You promise?"
Laguna looked up and smiled back. "I promise."
*************************************
Night soon came to pass. She was very tired. Last night, she couldn't sleep, because her head was too busy to sleep, with all the thoughts running in her head about Ian, then Squall, then her child, then back again. If she wasn't closing up until nine o'clock, then she wouldn't have to worry about sleeping at all.
Rinoa was just closing up the cash register, when she heard the door opening. Without looking up, she placed the keys through the key hole of the old register and looked up, saying "Sorry, we're-" she suddenly stopped.
A familiar man stood there, his hand stuffed in his hands nervously. Rinoa felt her face frowning. What was HE doing here? The long haired girl quickly went to the back counter, trying to find things to make herself look busy.
"Rinoa, I need to talk to you," said the voice in the front counter. Rinoa sighed. She had no choice. She had nothing to look busy at. The dark haired girl went back near the cash register and looked up, frowning.
"What did I just say, Ian? Didn't I tell you not to talk to me again or beg me to see your daughter? You were the one who left, not me. I can't let you see her." She folded her arms across her chest and sighed, pursing her lips shut. Those were her final words. After that, nothing he says, will change her mind.
"Then, I guess I have no choice, but..." Ian said, taking out a piece of paper. He put it on the counter so Rinoa could see.
As if a part of her broke apart, Rinoa's eyes widened in shock. In fine print, the paper in front of her said: The Seattle State Court House. What happened to 'nothing he says will change her mind?' she thought. She couldn't move. "What does this mean? Are you telling me you want to share custody with our daughter, when YOU were the one who didn't want her in the first place?"
Ian nodded, staring at her coldly. "Yes, that's EXACTLY what I'm saying, Rin."
"Why change your mind now? What the HELL kind of idea is this!?" Rinoa slammed a hand on top of the paper. "I am NOT signing this!" She was turning red in the face with anger. She couldn't believe this asshole wants to take their daughter away from her. "I am not letting you or any of the social workers take her away from me! You have no right!"
"I may not have the right, Rin, but our daughter has the right to live in a family that can feed her and make her healthy. You can't be the one raising her!"
"Why? Because I'm too stupid for her!? Because I'm just a 'kid?' What, Ian? Go on, tell me!"
Ian took a deep breath. "Look, I didn't mean it like that. I didn't say you were stupid! All I'm saying is..."
"Well, whatever you think of me, Ian, it's not going to change my mind about my daughter. I am NOT giving her up whatsoever. She and I are doing fine where we are. Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to lock up now, so will you please leave?" She pointed her finger out the door, tears almost falling out of her eyes.
Ian stared at her. He couldn't believe this! What was she thinking? Is this what she wants for her daughter? How can she support both of them while she works in a dump like this? Sighing, but not giving up, the older man picked up the form from the counter and began walking away, but stopped just near the door to look back at the girl. "Rinoa, I'm giving you two weeks chance to change your mind, if not, then I have no choice, but to call the social worker and ask them to take her." With those words, he turned and left.
Rinoa stood there for a moment and when she was sure he was gone, she quickly locked the door, went to the back room and buried her face in her hands. "Why are you doing this, Ian!? Why are you suddenly punishing me for the mistakes YOU made?" she said to herself, weeping.
Did she really have two weeks left?
**********************************
"Hi! You're home!" An elderly woman, in her mid forties wrapped her arms around to what looked like a distraught young woman. Patti usually greeted the girl with a hug and Rinoa would usually hug her back, but something was different. The woman pulled back to look into Rinoa's eyes. "What's wrong?"
Rinoa looked up, her eyes red and puffy. She had been crying. "Where's- where's Diana?"
Patti tilted her head up the stairs. "She's in her cradle, sleeping. Why?"
The dark haired girl said nothing. The older woman watched as Rinoa crept up the stairs, her eyes seem to be too entranced in going up to her daughter than putting her back pack down. Patti followed her up the stairs and into her small bedroom, where a small cradle stood beside a small bed. Inside, was a little baby girl sleeping with her back towards them. Rinoa, as if still in a trance, slowly made her way to the crib and stopped just inches away form it. Patti continued to watch. The dark haired girl leaned down, caressed her daughter's face, then turned away. For a moment, Rinoa just stared at the wall and before Patti could catch her in her arms, Rinoa suddenly dropped on her knees and wept quietly on the sheets of her bed.
Patti quickly ran to her side, wrapping her motherly arms around the girl and rubbed her back. "Shhh, it's okay now Rinoa."
"No, it's not okay," she spoke, during her muffled sobs. She looked up, her eyes red in sadness. "He's going to take here away, Patti!" she whispered, making sure she wouldn't scream too much to wake Diana up. She buried her head back on her arms and wept some more.
"Who?"
"Diana's father... He's planning on sharing custody and... and I don't want to let go of my daughter! I love her! I don't want her to grow up with him and call someone else, 'mom'" she choked and rubbed her tears away with her arms.
"Why do you think that? He said he wants to share custody," Patti whispered in her ear. "It doesn't really mean he's taking her away from you. I mean, he can't take her away from you! You're her mother."
Rinoa sniffed, wiping more tears from her eyes. "But I don't want- I don't want her to know him."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want her to know that her father had another child while he cheated on me."
Patti stopped. She's never really told her about this before. This was all new to her. "Are you telling me, your baby's father already HAD a wife and a child while he was with you?"
Rinoa nodded.
The older woman's eyes turned into thing slits. How can this man do this to her? And not just to Rinoa, but to his own wife and child? Patti said nothing. She didn't want to make Rinoa worry than she already was. She wrapped her arms around her 'daughter' and put her head on her shoulders. "Hush now, my child. You have to stop crying or Diana will wake up. Besides, all will be good. I'll be with you when you talk to Ian about this."
Rinoa looked up, surprised. "You will?"
Patti smiled sympathetically. "Of course!"
The dark haired girl smiled back at her 'mother' and hugged her. "Thank you," she whispered, burying her face in her chest. Before she could stop herself, she wept once more.
Patti grinned and embraced her tighter. "All will be well, Rinoa. You just wait and see."
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School day was once again here. Squall made his way to the building, smiling at the thought of Coach Seawell's face when the Lions won against them. It seems that the man was confident that his team could win, with all the hours they put up to 'shape' his players. Unfortunately, brutal scrunches and sprints did not help him win yesterday's game while kind encouragement and tolerance that Coach Kleever made....did. Cloud was even more enthusiastic when he was able to show off to Dominic Seawell that he could run faster than him, especially when his mother was watching, cheering him on. Squall was quite angry when his mother told him that their father was going to show up after he finished work, but never really did. His mother was also very angry, but it later faded when they went to the carnival afterwards. Just seeing Cloud happy was good enough for both Squall and Raine.
"Oh, hey Squall!" The tall young man, too enthralled about what he witnessed at yesterday's game, looked up, startled by Rinoa's presence in front of him.
"Hi, Rin..." Immediately, he felt his hand moving to his side, fidgetting nervously. "What's up?"
Rinoa smiled. "Oh nothing... I was just uh... going to class. Want to walk down with me? I mean, if you don't want to, I can understand."
Squall shook his head. "No, it's okay, since my class is down that way anyway."
The dark haired girl was relieved. She thought he was angry at her for what she did the day before. She turned and began walking, with Squall close beside her. Rinoa glanced at his hands, swaying side to side as he walked. She wanted so much to grab his hand and take it into her own and tell him EVERYTHING about her life... even the ones most dreadful.
"Squall I..." she stopped, swallowing. Hard.
The tall boy looked at her. "Hm?"
Rinoa looked away and stared ahead of her. Where does she start from here?
"What is it, Rin?"
The dark haired girl flinched. How is she supposed to start this conversation? She has to say something before they go their separate ways. "Nothing... Thanks for walking me home!" She paced faster on her feet and walked away ahead of him. Squall watched her go, his eyes furrowing curiously and, disappointingly. He wished she would say something, instead of turning away from him. Sighing, he stuffed his hands in his pant pockets and thought about what was bothering Rinoa so much all the way to his class.
*******************************
This was getting really tiresome. She HAS to say something or else she will lose Squall for good! Rinoa tapped her fingers nervously on the table. Lunch time was too noisy for anyone heat her beat, but the people around her table were staring to get irritated with her agitation.
"What are you so nervous about, Rinoa? And where is Squall these days? I haven't seen him without you! Did you have a fight?" Zell said through the noise, glancing at his friend.
"What?" Rinoa looked up. Zell, Selphie and Quistis were all looking at her, worriedly. "Oh nothing, I'm just excited!" She forced a smile on her face, but none of her three friends were fooled.
"I was also asking where Squall was. Where is he?" Zell looked around at the crowd, hoping to spot Squall amongst the people lining up for food. "Oh, there he is."
Rinoa's head popped up and her eyes saw him standing there, with a tray in hand. He was reaching for a sandwich and a drink, before the line moved once again. Quickly, Squall paid for it and went to join his friends at the table.
"Hey, Squall!" Zell greeted over a full mouth.
"Zell, don't talk with your mouth full!" Quistis said.
"So-mry!" Zell said.
Squall sat down on the usual seat beside the dark haired girl. Rinoa looked up and smiled awkwardly. For a moment, their eyes met, but Rinoa was the first one to break contact first and no one saw that coming. Zell was too busy choking on his food to notice, while Selphie was helping him cough it out. Quistis was mumbling how immature the blond was, irritably rubbing the top of her nose with her hand, then suddenly commenting how ALL boys were immature. "Especially the one named, Seifer," Quistis added, talking to herself.
Rinoa looked down at her food and picked up the sandwich she bought, then began eating it slowly. When she had enough for just this moment, she put her sandwich back down and sighed, placing her hands on her lap.
"Rin," someone whispered. The dark haired girl turned to see who it was, then realized it was Squall, whose hands suddenly reached for her hand on her lap. He squeezed it lovingly and looked into her eyes.
She felt her eyes suddenly begin to water, but choked it back. "I'm sorry," she whispered back. "I'll tell you everything, I promise. I'm just not ready right now..."
Squall nodded. "That's good enough for me. I can wait." He smiled again, reassuringly.
Rinoa smiled. She couldn't help but cry. Squall was as sweet as ever. No wonder she fell in love with him. Her three friends STILL didn't notice as Squall reached over with his other hand and wiped her tears away.
Zell, coughing horribly this time, accidentally kicked his shins against the table, in an attempt to get up so he could get something to drink. Squall and Rinoa broke free from each other and flinched, when Zell suddenly jumped up from his seat and had coughing fits while he ran to the counter to get a drink of water. Selphie ran after him, eyes all turning to her, as she yelled, "I TOLD you not to eat too fast, Zell! Geez! How many times have I told you about that!?"
Both Squall and Rinoa glanced at Quistis, who just shrugged and continued eating her sandwich as if nothing happened.
GoodGurl: Okay, that last part was weird, but I also wanted to add a little funny scene about Zell and his hot dog! Tee hee! ^_^. Well there you have it folks! As you can see, Squall and Rinoa have resolved their problems, but there's STILL the matter of Squall finding out about Rinoa's baby and the fact that his father broke his promise yet again to watch the soccer game. And Rinoa too... she might lose her baby forever if the social services aren't sympathetic enough to let her keep the baby. Ian's so mean! How dare he! you say? Well, we'll see! ;) Stay tuned!