Note: Woah! Where have all my fans gone? :( Sorry for making you guys wait...AGAIN! ^^; Heres the third weekend part...this is Sunday and this is with everyone! Yeay!
Chapter 12 - The Weekend part three
~Sunday~
She never expected a different kind of approach from a church. The blond thought she was facing the routine of a catholic church, instead she was confronted by a baptist community, quite different from the usual cathedral facing a wide opened altar and a priest. Where an organ was suppose to be, was replaced by a grand piano and two guitars. Quistis was even more surprised that there were drums with the guitars, creating a live band. Along with Selphie, they sat in the very front row, where Quistis felt more overwhelmed. Figuring it's where Selphie always sat, the blond decided not to complain.
It was ten minutes to noon when people started filing in. They quietly found their own seats and began to pray silently for themselves. Quistis glanced at Selphie, who gave her an encouraging smile, before closing her eyes to pray. The blond had no idea what to do next, so she followed Selphie's lead and closed her eyes. From aroud her, she could hear faint whispers escaping from those praying. Among them, she recognized Selphie's to be quiet, yet had a longer prayer than everyone else.
When a few second past at the time the clock struck noon, Quistis heard the gentle voice of Pastor Archer. He made some announcements, spoke some encouraging words before summoning the youth band to start worship. Immediately, two guitarists, the drummer, pianist and the worship leader positioned themselves on the stage. The worship leader was a young girl about her age with a very pretty face. In fact, all of the band members acquired pretty faces.
"Her name's Alice Archer, the Preacher's daughter," Selphie whisperes beside her.
Quistis nodded and watched the scene unfold before her. Alice had long dark hair, which reminded her vaguely of Rinoa's and bright green eyes. The girl smiled around her and as the lead guitarist began playing, Alice finally spoke. "Good afternoon everyone! Let's all praise the Lord today and thank Him for the wonderful day we're having!"
"Amen!" someone yelled. Quistis glanced beside her at Selphie, who turned to wink at her, but suddenly froze when she glanced over the blond's shoulder. Quistis turned, following the younger girl's gaze and noticed, just across the rows where they sat, was Zell. He smiled at them, though at first he was surprised when he saw Quistis and waved. Selphie waved back, pretending everything was all right, but Quistis knew it wasn't. The taller blond thrust hre hand around Selphie's and squeezed it lightly. The younger girl seemed to have understood, because she squeezed her hand back as a response.
After the service ended, Quistis joined Selphie as they walked towards Zell. "Hey, Selph! Quistis! I'm surprised you're here! I'm glad you are!" The blond male patted Quistis on the back. He glanced at his best friend, who seemed quiet today. "Selphie?"
Selphie sighed quietly, careful not to make him hear how nervous she was. She wondered if he still remembers what happened to him last night. The girl's thoughts were interrupted when someone nudged her in the arm. "Oh, um, yeah, sorry!" she smiled. "I was just thinking about something."
"Thinking?" Zell laughed. "About what?" He never knew Selphie to be preoccupied with her thoughts other than the service at church today.
"Well, actually..." she paused, glancing at Quistis who gave her an encouraging nod.
Zell glanced from one girl to the other. "What's going on?"
Was today the right time to be talking about Zell's new habit? Here? At church? Selphie felt her fingers clasp together and for a few moments, she stupidly stood there, playing with her thumb and pinky. "Well.. you see-"
"There you are!" came a very kind voice. All three looked up. A woman with short brown hair walked up to them, followed by a tall man with short dark hair and glasses. Selphie quickly whispered to Quistis on who they were. The couple approaching them was Zell's aunt and uncle who adopted him when his parents died in the car accident. Quistis absorbed this information in her head swiftly and watched as Selphie was being smothered with hugs and kisses from the woman.
"Hello, Aunt Vanessa!" Selphie greeted. "This is my friend, Quistis Trepe," she added, nodding her head at the silent blond beside her.
The woman, around her mid thirties glanced at Quistis and smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Quistis! My name is Vanessa and this is my husband, Charlie."
"Nice to meet you both," Quistis replied, shaking both their hands.
Vanessa turned back to Selphie. "Selphie, I have been trying to reach you this whole weekend, where have you been? I wanted to invite you to dinner tonight and of course..." She looked at Quistis and smiled. "You are invite too dear!"
"What's the occassion, Auntie?" Zell asked suddenly, obviously unaware of the dinner plan tonight.
Vanessa turned to Zell. "There is no occassion. I just want to invite them both to dinner tonight!" She slowly turned her head back around at the two girls. "So, how about it? Is tonight at six okay with you?"
Selphie nodded. "That's fine by me. Quistis?"
Quistis thought for a minute. Having dinner with total strangers was unnerving, but then again, she wasn't with strangers. Selphie and Zell were going to be there. "Sure! I would be honored to come!"
"Great! See you tonight at six!" She wrapped an arm around Zell's shoulders. "Zell dear, we should get going. Your Grandfather isn't feeling well and we have to go visit him right away."
Zell's eyes widened. "What? Oh...okay..." He nodded curtly at both girls, then turned and left, following suit behind his Aunt and Uncle.
When they were finally alone, Quistis turned to Selphie and frowned. "What happened Selphie? I thought you were finally going to ask him about it?"
Selphie sighed, letting her shoulders sag to indicate her awareness of the situation. "I know, Quistis, I know! But I...I just..."
"Chickened out?" Quistis said, finishing the sentence for her.
The younger girl nodded. "Well I would put it in other terms, but chickened out is fine by me."
The blond sighed, curling her arms through the other girl's as they walked out of the building. "Selphie, tonight is the night you should tell him."
"That's why I'm SO glad you're coming too! I can't do this alone..."
"Well I can't be with you when you face him..."
Selphie sighed. "I know..."
**********************************
The whole weekend wasn't as disastrous as he thought it would be. Eventhough he felt rather awkward around his stepmother, he felt quite at home, but sometimes, he found himself reminiscing those times when he was just a boy, watching his mother and father playing in the sand instead of him. Seifer would always sit and watch, and sometimes, people would find him reading books instead of joining his parents in the water. It was hard to believe that a young man like Seifer would read books, because now...Seifer Almasy was known as a rebel in high school. It was his way of expressing how he felt...
Angry...
He felt angry for two years. He sometimes blamed himself for their divorce and sometimes felt angry towards both his parents for making him miserable. He would still be making the highest grade, but it was their fault that they had fallen from A to C-. Math used to be his favorite subject, but it was no longer the case. If only his parents stayed together, then things wouldn't have been this hard to get used to. The blond was ready to fall asleep, tired of thinking, when he heard little Dominique giggle loudly. Seifer titled his head up at the sound and noticed her being carried unto the shoulders of her father. She looked very happy, but Seifer didn't feel like smiling for her. He could see the happiness in his father's own face, like he has never felt that happy before all his life. As if Seifer never really made his father happy. Maybe it was my fault... he thought. Maybe his father never loved him enough to be laughing so happily like he was now.
"Seifer, what are you doing here? Don't you want to swim in the lake?" The blond looked up at the sound of a woman's voice. He noticed Haley walking upto him, smiling, but Seifer didn't feel like smiling back. He just shook his head, turning away from her and stood up, then said, "No, I'm not really in the mood. I think I'm going to go inside and rest up a bit or something. Maybe study..." Without giving Haley a chance to answer, he turned and walked away towards the lodge.
Inside was quite different. It did not reflect the childhood he had with his father, but the memories kept flooding back into his mind. Seifer looked down at his backpack he chose to take with him during the weekend and suddenly felt the urge to look inside and grab the cue cards Quistis had given him. He picked up his backpack and opened the smaller zipper. He fished inside and took out the cue cards, then began to look over it. Suddenly, they were the only ones interesting during the weekend. Eventhough it was the last day of the weekend and they were leaving tonight, he felt miserable. The cue cards seemed to be the only thing that kept him sane. Seifer put his backpack down on the ground, then sat down on his bed, shuffling through the cue cards with sudden interest. He started to smirk (his way of laughing) when he saw the same drawing his saw Friday while he was looking over it. "Seriously, Quistis you don't know how to draw either...." he said to no one in particular. Just thinking of his tutorial and about the attractive blond who acted so much like a teacher than a student, made him forget of the horrible things he felt during the weekend with his 'new' family.
"What's this about you not swimming in the lake?" The voice of his father, forced Seifer from his reverie and up at him. His father was just entering the lodge when he looked up. Bryan was wet from head to toe, but he had a towel around his neck. He only had shorts on and his hair was tousled everywhere from the wayer. He approached his son and sat down on the nearest chair, letting the water drip on the floor.
Seifer looked at his father from the corner of his eye and noticed him waiting for his son's answer. Sighing, he continued to look at the cue cards and after a while, he finally answered. "I just don't feel like it."
Bryan took a deep breath and glanced at the cue cards his son was looking at. "Are you studying?"
The blond shrugged. "I guess..." he answered curtly.
"I heard about your grades in your classes," Bryan announced.
Seifer looked up, surprised, then turned away, frowning. "Mom..." he mumbled.
"No, it wasn't your mom. Your teachers were the ones who called me. I told them to keep me informed on what was going on with you."
"So you hired spies to watch over me?" Seifer felt heat rising up his face. He was tired of the interrogation from people, ESPECIALLY from his father.
Bryan rolled his eyes, standing up. "Seifer, I didn't hire 'spies.' I only wanted to see how you were doing with your grades because I AM your father and I have the right to make sure you were doing fine. But apparently, it doesn't seem that way..." He walked up to his son and looked down at the cue cards over Seifer's shoulder. "Your math teacher was telling me how you were struggling in math mostly." He looked at his son. "So she gave you a tutor...."
Seifer shrugged. "I guess..." He did not look at his father, whatsoever.
The older man went to sit back down on the chair he was on before and looked down on the floor as if it was more interesting now. "Seifer, you used to like Math but ever since your mother and I-" He was interrupted when Seifer slammed the cue cards on the table in front of him. Bryan looked up at Seifer who was now walking to the small kitchen to look for food. "You know, failing math and other subjects won't help your mother and I get back together."
The blond stopped whatever he was doing, then looked over his shoulder to glance at his father finally. "What do you know about how I feel? You were the one who left mom and me. You were the one who married to someone else after just two years! Did you really think I had it easier than you did!?" He was starting to feel his anger rising again. "YOU DIDN'T EVEN GIVE ME A CHANCE TO EXPRESS ABOUT HOW I FELT ABOUT YOUR DIVORCE! YOU LEFT! I DIDN'T! I HAD TO PUT UP WITH MOM AND HER DRINKING AND HER THREE MEN!" His breathing was ragged and it was the only sound he could hear during the silence that happened after that. He lowered his voice, then sat down on the chair in the dining room table. "You didn't even care to listen two years ago about how I was feeling. I don't even know why I even came this weekend with you and YOUR family. I guess I thought that if I could talk to you, I could make you see how I wanted you and mom back together, but I didn't get a chance to, because you were too eager to put me part of YOUR family!" He fell silent after that.
Silence also filled the room after Seifer's words.
Silence was even worse that same night when they were packing. Bryan and Seifer did not speak to each other, neither did Haley, because she was afraid to produce more problems for them. The only sound that was making, was Dominique's constant talking. They went out to dinner to a small restaurant, but neither son, nor father even saw eye to eye. Haley kept silent, keeping herself occupied with her daughter.
Around five o'clock in the evening, they were now driving in the highway. Seifer sat silently beside his new sister, giving small glances at her and smiling at her so Dominique didn't feel like she wasn't wanted. Bryan saw this through his rearview mirror, but did not talk. Once in a while, Haley would look behind her at Dominique, to see how she was doing and would sometimes catch Seifer playing with her.
They arrived at around nine o'clock in the evening. Seifer took out his luggage and his backpack from the trunk of the van. He kissed his little sister in the forehead, giving her a slight hug and nodded at his stepmother as he stepped out. It was at that one momen did he see his father eye to eye. He stood there, staring at his father, Bryan's hands suddenly gripping around the steering wheel. Both of them dared not to break off the eye contact from each other. They were trying to figure out what to do next, but before they had a chance to decide, Seifer was the first one to break contact. "Bye..." he mumbled. He turned, without even looking back, then made his way into the house. He could hear the van driving off and Dominique's little voice saying good bye as they fade off into the distance.
Seifer unlocked the door to his house and stepped inside, dragging his luggage behind him. Inside, it was dark. The blond glanced at his watch. It was only half past nine, and it was far too early to be sleeping, especially for his mother. She usually slept later than that. Where was she?
As if answering his question, a light suddenly flickered on in the kitchen. Startled, the blond looked up at the sound of footsteps coming towards him. A shadowed figure appeared from behind the kitchen. "What took you so long?" the figure spoke.
The blond knew who it was now. "There was traffic," he simply said, making his way up the stairs. He didn't wait for his mother's reply, instead, he went to his room, pulling the luggage behind him, then closed the door. Seifer plopped on his bed, thinking about what had happened between him and his father. He hated his father now...He hated his mother even more. But deep down in his heart... He knew he loved them.
*******************************
Dinner was quite a story to forget. She felt relieved when she was finally able to leave that night. Quistis wanted to stay longer of course, because the thought of coming home to see her father drunk once again, was quite unnerving. Her Aunt wouldn't be coming home again because the people who hired her to decorate the house was out on vacation and they had asked her to watch over the house for a couple of days. Travis was always away and she had no idea where he was now.
As she walked down the street in the darkness, she thought about where Selphie and Zell's relationship would go from here after Selphie told her that she had asked Zell about the little 'accident' she stumbled into from his jacket pocket. They excused themselves after dinner, because Selphie asked him to and they made their way into the living room where no one could hear them from the dining room. Quistis could hear murmurs though, but only murmurs and she couldn't understand what they were saying. Zell's Aunt and Uncle were curious. They were even asking Quistis what was going on, but Quistis just shrugged, pretending she didn't know.
After a few minutes, Zell came out looking upset, while Selphie was nowhere to be seen. Quistis could hear the front door closing. The blond young man looked at her and frowned, then he glanced at his Aunt and Uncle. "Selphie had to go," he told them. Quistis knew he was lying and she was eager to go after Selphie, but she would feel rude if she did that. He sat back down beside Quistis and continued to eat. His Aunt and Uncle looked at each other, then said nothing. Instead, they continued to eat, just silently. Quistis did the same thing.
The blond jumped back to the present. Quistis decided to call Selphie when she got home, but her destination was interrupted when her father came bursting out of the door. His face looked red as usual, a sure sign that he was once again drinking. "Come here!" he hissed, grabbing her arm and dragging her back inside. Quistis winced, questions running in her head. What did she do?
Sean pulled his daughter with him, then pushed her hard into the kitchen, forcing Quistis to fall flat on her butt on the floor once again. "WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU!?" He leaned down and slapped his daughter across the cheek. "I've been waiting for two and a half hours for you to make me dinner, but you never came!!!" The smell of alcohol from her father's breath made her wince. He struck her again, but this time, with his fist. Quistis could feel the bones crack in her jaw, but she did not move.
"I...I left you a message that I was going to dinner with Selphie at Zell's house..." she replied meekly.
Sean kicked the cabinet beside her. "I DON'T CARE WHERE YOU WERE! YOU WERE SUPPOSE TO MAKE ME DINNER EVERYTIME I CAME HOME!"
"I'm sorry..." Quistis said quietly. Why does she let him do this to her? She placed a single hand over her bruised cheek, then she felt stinging tears streaming down on them. "I'll...I'll go make one now..."
"FORGET IT! I'm going to the bar..." With that said, he turned and left, leaving Quistis bruised and scarred on the floor. Shaking, she stood up and waited until she heard her father's truck drive off. Slowly, she made her way up the stairs and into the living room, where she decided to sleep until Monday came. She thought about Selphie and made a decision to talk to her at school instead of calling her on the phone. She was too shaky to speak with anyone at the moment.
*****************************
"Zell, there's something I would like to know..." She fidgeted with her fingers, looking down nervously on the ground.
"Sure thing, Selph, what is it?" Zell looked at her, smiling.
Selphie looked up and noticed him grin. She wished he wouldn't grin like that, but she needed to tell him now. "Are you smoking pot?" she asked, more direct than she anticipated, but she didn't care. She HAD to know.
"What?" Zell stopped breathing, shocked by her question. "Where did you get that idea...?"
"Just tell me the truth, Zell..." Selphie took a deep breath.
The blond man looked at her strangely, then finally shook his head. "No."
"What?" She was surprised. Was he lying to her?
"I said, no, I don't smoke pot. Wherever you got the idea, you misunderstood." He looked at her straight in the eyes, telling her he wasn't lying, even though he was. "So, you should stop yourself from worrying about it too much. You know me better than that, Selph!" He laughed. "You silly girl!"
Selphie didn't buy it. He was a bigger actor than a liar. She frowned, tears now flooding her eyes. Without thinking, she nodded. "I guess I am a silly girl. And I guess I don't know you that well anymore." She turned around, facing the front door.
"Where are you going?" Zell asked. "We still have dinner to finish."
"No...we don't..." With that said, she left, without even giving Zell a chance to reply back. However, Selphie paused by the door and when she looked over her shoulder, Zell was already gone. A single tear fell from her eyes and on the floor. She could hear him enter the kitchen again and by this time, Selphie was out the door.
***************************************
He kicked the stone out of his way and growled under his breath. He didn't feel like going to dinner, because he didn't feel like looking at his father for abandoning his youngest son ONCE AGAIN for a stupid meeting. He didn't want to stay home either, to hear the phone ring and then expect Rinoa to call, when he knew she wouldn't. He knew their relationship was done for, but at the same time, he was eager to know, why. Squall walked over to the bench in the nearest park from his school and sat down. He glanced at his watch and read that it was now, quarter to ten. Tomorrow, he had school. Tomorrow, he might see Rinoa in the hallway. But right now, he could care less. The only thing in his mind now was what to do when he got home from wandering aimlessly in the dark. He would expect to see his mother angry with him for not calling and telling her where he was. His father would probably be angry as well, but his lectures would soon be interrupted by a phone call from one of his 'men from work.' Cloud would be asleep by now, but still wondering where his older brother was.
Sighing, he decided to go back. It was getting boring in the park anyway. Squall also thought he should walk by the store where Rinoa works, hoping he could talk to her before school tomorrow and ask why she broke up with him. As he reached the main road where the city was more sleepless, all the shops were getting ready to close. The only thing that had its lights on, was the convenient store where Rinoa worked. He took a deep breath and walked inside, hoping to see her behind the counter of the cash register, but instead, he could hear talking in the very back of the room, with Rinoa's voice included in the conversation. Squall crept closer. He figured she was probably talking to a customer, but as he neared, he noticed Rinoa's face from behind one of the shelves to be upset. A man was standing in front of her, his hands rested on one of the fridges beside her. He was showing her a piece of paper.
"Rinoa, please sign this. It's better for her."
"What do you know what's better for her?" Rinoa asked, pushing the paper away from her. She didn't move, instead she turned away, folding her arms across her chest. "I suggest you cut the threats and leave me alone, or I will have to call the police!"
The man sighed, backing away. He showed her the paper again. "I already told her about us. Diana would be better off in a nice house with me, than in a dump that you call a house!"
"I will NOT give my daughter up, you hear me, Ian!?" Rinoa blurted out.
At the news, Squall's eyes widened in shock. His elbow slid from the shelf that he was resting on as he listened and at the impact, all the stuff on the shelf fell on the floor. The two voice stopped talking. Squall closed his eyes, swearing under his breath and looked up. Rinoa and the man were looking at him, speechless. "Squall..." Rinoa managed to blurt out. "What...what are you doing here?"
Squall stuffed his hands in his pockets, then looked away. "Um...I was just coming over to talk to you, but you're busy, so I'll leave you alone..." He pivoted around and walked out. A daughter!? Rinoa had a daughter with THAT man!? How could she lie to him? After all these months! Is that why she broke up with him because of a child?
"Squall...please stop!" He could hear Rinoa pleading behind him, but he didn't want to stop. He was starting to hate the world he was living in. Squall felt Rinoa's hand on his shoulder, stopping him on his tracks. For a short girl, she was able to catch up to him and he was even more surprised when she did. The young man pushed his hand away and turned around to face her.
"What now, Rinoa!? Are you going to tell me now that you will be married to that guy!? Or are you going to tell me that you have another kid with him!?"
"Squall, please listen! I-"
"I don't want to hear it, all right? I've had enough news for one day!" Coldly, he stared at her. "I had no idea you were such a whore when you were such a kid!" He knew he had said the wrong thing, he knew that he had hit the most sensitive spot when he said those words, but he didn't care. He didn't care what she was feeling now. She didn't even consider his feelings, so why should he for hers. He turned and left.
Rinoa stood there, speechless. She felt her heart literally break into small pieces. "That's not fair, Squall....That's not fair..." she whispered to herself as he disappeared from her sight.
GoodGurl: *Sniff* awwwwww man! I hated the last part, but I just HAD to add more drama for both of them! 'Now what?' you ask? Find out on the next chapters! Sorry it took me soo long to write out, but I needed a break.
Summary for the next chapter: Monday finally approaches and Seifer once again comes back for tutorial, adding more tension between himself and Quistis. How will this affect their lives when Quistis suspiciously wears large sunglasses to cover her eyes? And when Seifer finds out about the bruises she had after school, something in Seifer starts to boil. What does this mean? And Zell and Selphie... Their relationship continues to fry, but will Selphie give up? Will Zell keep lying? And what will Squall do, now that he knows Rinoa has a daughter?
STAY TUNED! ^^
Chapter 12 - The Weekend part three
~Sunday~
She never expected a different kind of approach from a church. The blond thought she was facing the routine of a catholic church, instead she was confronted by a baptist community, quite different from the usual cathedral facing a wide opened altar and a priest. Where an organ was suppose to be, was replaced by a grand piano and two guitars. Quistis was even more surprised that there were drums with the guitars, creating a live band. Along with Selphie, they sat in the very front row, where Quistis felt more overwhelmed. Figuring it's where Selphie always sat, the blond decided not to complain.
It was ten minutes to noon when people started filing in. They quietly found their own seats and began to pray silently for themselves. Quistis glanced at Selphie, who gave her an encouraging smile, before closing her eyes to pray. The blond had no idea what to do next, so she followed Selphie's lead and closed her eyes. From aroud her, she could hear faint whispers escaping from those praying. Among them, she recognized Selphie's to be quiet, yet had a longer prayer than everyone else.
When a few second past at the time the clock struck noon, Quistis heard the gentle voice of Pastor Archer. He made some announcements, spoke some encouraging words before summoning the youth band to start worship. Immediately, two guitarists, the drummer, pianist and the worship leader positioned themselves on the stage. The worship leader was a young girl about her age with a very pretty face. In fact, all of the band members acquired pretty faces.
"Her name's Alice Archer, the Preacher's daughter," Selphie whisperes beside her.
Quistis nodded and watched the scene unfold before her. Alice had long dark hair, which reminded her vaguely of Rinoa's and bright green eyes. The girl smiled around her and as the lead guitarist began playing, Alice finally spoke. "Good afternoon everyone! Let's all praise the Lord today and thank Him for the wonderful day we're having!"
"Amen!" someone yelled. Quistis glanced beside her at Selphie, who turned to wink at her, but suddenly froze when she glanced over the blond's shoulder. Quistis turned, following the younger girl's gaze and noticed, just across the rows where they sat, was Zell. He smiled at them, though at first he was surprised when he saw Quistis and waved. Selphie waved back, pretending everything was all right, but Quistis knew it wasn't. The taller blond thrust hre hand around Selphie's and squeezed it lightly. The younger girl seemed to have understood, because she squeezed her hand back as a response.
After the service ended, Quistis joined Selphie as they walked towards Zell. "Hey, Selph! Quistis! I'm surprised you're here! I'm glad you are!" The blond male patted Quistis on the back. He glanced at his best friend, who seemed quiet today. "Selphie?"
Selphie sighed quietly, careful not to make him hear how nervous she was. She wondered if he still remembers what happened to him last night. The girl's thoughts were interrupted when someone nudged her in the arm. "Oh, um, yeah, sorry!" she smiled. "I was just thinking about something."
"Thinking?" Zell laughed. "About what?" He never knew Selphie to be preoccupied with her thoughts other than the service at church today.
"Well, actually..." she paused, glancing at Quistis who gave her an encouraging nod.
Zell glanced from one girl to the other. "What's going on?"
Was today the right time to be talking about Zell's new habit? Here? At church? Selphie felt her fingers clasp together and for a few moments, she stupidly stood there, playing with her thumb and pinky. "Well.. you see-"
"There you are!" came a very kind voice. All three looked up. A woman with short brown hair walked up to them, followed by a tall man with short dark hair and glasses. Selphie quickly whispered to Quistis on who they were. The couple approaching them was Zell's aunt and uncle who adopted him when his parents died in the car accident. Quistis absorbed this information in her head swiftly and watched as Selphie was being smothered with hugs and kisses from the woman.
"Hello, Aunt Vanessa!" Selphie greeted. "This is my friend, Quistis Trepe," she added, nodding her head at the silent blond beside her.
The woman, around her mid thirties glanced at Quistis and smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Quistis! My name is Vanessa and this is my husband, Charlie."
"Nice to meet you both," Quistis replied, shaking both their hands.
Vanessa turned back to Selphie. "Selphie, I have been trying to reach you this whole weekend, where have you been? I wanted to invite you to dinner tonight and of course..." She looked at Quistis and smiled. "You are invite too dear!"
"What's the occassion, Auntie?" Zell asked suddenly, obviously unaware of the dinner plan tonight.
Vanessa turned to Zell. "There is no occassion. I just want to invite them both to dinner tonight!" She slowly turned her head back around at the two girls. "So, how about it? Is tonight at six okay with you?"
Selphie nodded. "That's fine by me. Quistis?"
Quistis thought for a minute. Having dinner with total strangers was unnerving, but then again, she wasn't with strangers. Selphie and Zell were going to be there. "Sure! I would be honored to come!"
"Great! See you tonight at six!" She wrapped an arm around Zell's shoulders. "Zell dear, we should get going. Your Grandfather isn't feeling well and we have to go visit him right away."
Zell's eyes widened. "What? Oh...okay..." He nodded curtly at both girls, then turned and left, following suit behind his Aunt and Uncle.
When they were finally alone, Quistis turned to Selphie and frowned. "What happened Selphie? I thought you were finally going to ask him about it?"
Selphie sighed, letting her shoulders sag to indicate her awareness of the situation. "I know, Quistis, I know! But I...I just..."
"Chickened out?" Quistis said, finishing the sentence for her.
The younger girl nodded. "Well I would put it in other terms, but chickened out is fine by me."
The blond sighed, curling her arms through the other girl's as they walked out of the building. "Selphie, tonight is the night you should tell him."
"That's why I'm SO glad you're coming too! I can't do this alone..."
"Well I can't be with you when you face him..."
Selphie sighed. "I know..."
**********************************
The whole weekend wasn't as disastrous as he thought it would be. Eventhough he felt rather awkward around his stepmother, he felt quite at home, but sometimes, he found himself reminiscing those times when he was just a boy, watching his mother and father playing in the sand instead of him. Seifer would always sit and watch, and sometimes, people would find him reading books instead of joining his parents in the water. It was hard to believe that a young man like Seifer would read books, because now...Seifer Almasy was known as a rebel in high school. It was his way of expressing how he felt...
Angry...
He felt angry for two years. He sometimes blamed himself for their divorce and sometimes felt angry towards both his parents for making him miserable. He would still be making the highest grade, but it was their fault that they had fallen from A to C-. Math used to be his favorite subject, but it was no longer the case. If only his parents stayed together, then things wouldn't have been this hard to get used to. The blond was ready to fall asleep, tired of thinking, when he heard little Dominique giggle loudly. Seifer titled his head up at the sound and noticed her being carried unto the shoulders of her father. She looked very happy, but Seifer didn't feel like smiling for her. He could see the happiness in his father's own face, like he has never felt that happy before all his life. As if Seifer never really made his father happy. Maybe it was my fault... he thought. Maybe his father never loved him enough to be laughing so happily like he was now.
"Seifer, what are you doing here? Don't you want to swim in the lake?" The blond looked up at the sound of a woman's voice. He noticed Haley walking upto him, smiling, but Seifer didn't feel like smiling back. He just shook his head, turning away from her and stood up, then said, "No, I'm not really in the mood. I think I'm going to go inside and rest up a bit or something. Maybe study..." Without giving Haley a chance to answer, he turned and walked away towards the lodge.
Inside was quite different. It did not reflect the childhood he had with his father, but the memories kept flooding back into his mind. Seifer looked down at his backpack he chose to take with him during the weekend and suddenly felt the urge to look inside and grab the cue cards Quistis had given him. He picked up his backpack and opened the smaller zipper. He fished inside and took out the cue cards, then began to look over it. Suddenly, they were the only ones interesting during the weekend. Eventhough it was the last day of the weekend and they were leaving tonight, he felt miserable. The cue cards seemed to be the only thing that kept him sane. Seifer put his backpack down on the ground, then sat down on his bed, shuffling through the cue cards with sudden interest. He started to smirk (his way of laughing) when he saw the same drawing his saw Friday while he was looking over it. "Seriously, Quistis you don't know how to draw either...." he said to no one in particular. Just thinking of his tutorial and about the attractive blond who acted so much like a teacher than a student, made him forget of the horrible things he felt during the weekend with his 'new' family.
"What's this about you not swimming in the lake?" The voice of his father, forced Seifer from his reverie and up at him. His father was just entering the lodge when he looked up. Bryan was wet from head to toe, but he had a towel around his neck. He only had shorts on and his hair was tousled everywhere from the wayer. He approached his son and sat down on the nearest chair, letting the water drip on the floor.
Seifer looked at his father from the corner of his eye and noticed him waiting for his son's answer. Sighing, he continued to look at the cue cards and after a while, he finally answered. "I just don't feel like it."
Bryan took a deep breath and glanced at the cue cards his son was looking at. "Are you studying?"
The blond shrugged. "I guess..." he answered curtly.
"I heard about your grades in your classes," Bryan announced.
Seifer looked up, surprised, then turned away, frowning. "Mom..." he mumbled.
"No, it wasn't your mom. Your teachers were the ones who called me. I told them to keep me informed on what was going on with you."
"So you hired spies to watch over me?" Seifer felt heat rising up his face. He was tired of the interrogation from people, ESPECIALLY from his father.
Bryan rolled his eyes, standing up. "Seifer, I didn't hire 'spies.' I only wanted to see how you were doing with your grades because I AM your father and I have the right to make sure you were doing fine. But apparently, it doesn't seem that way..." He walked up to his son and looked down at the cue cards over Seifer's shoulder. "Your math teacher was telling me how you were struggling in math mostly." He looked at his son. "So she gave you a tutor...."
Seifer shrugged. "I guess..." He did not look at his father, whatsoever.
The older man went to sit back down on the chair he was on before and looked down on the floor as if it was more interesting now. "Seifer, you used to like Math but ever since your mother and I-" He was interrupted when Seifer slammed the cue cards on the table in front of him. Bryan looked up at Seifer who was now walking to the small kitchen to look for food. "You know, failing math and other subjects won't help your mother and I get back together."
The blond stopped whatever he was doing, then looked over his shoulder to glance at his father finally. "What do you know about how I feel? You were the one who left mom and me. You were the one who married to someone else after just two years! Did you really think I had it easier than you did!?" He was starting to feel his anger rising again. "YOU DIDN'T EVEN GIVE ME A CHANCE TO EXPRESS ABOUT HOW I FELT ABOUT YOUR DIVORCE! YOU LEFT! I DIDN'T! I HAD TO PUT UP WITH MOM AND HER DRINKING AND HER THREE MEN!" His breathing was ragged and it was the only sound he could hear during the silence that happened after that. He lowered his voice, then sat down on the chair in the dining room table. "You didn't even care to listen two years ago about how I was feeling. I don't even know why I even came this weekend with you and YOUR family. I guess I thought that if I could talk to you, I could make you see how I wanted you and mom back together, but I didn't get a chance to, because you were too eager to put me part of YOUR family!" He fell silent after that.
Silence also filled the room after Seifer's words.
Silence was even worse that same night when they were packing. Bryan and Seifer did not speak to each other, neither did Haley, because she was afraid to produce more problems for them. The only sound that was making, was Dominique's constant talking. They went out to dinner to a small restaurant, but neither son, nor father even saw eye to eye. Haley kept silent, keeping herself occupied with her daughter.
Around five o'clock in the evening, they were now driving in the highway. Seifer sat silently beside his new sister, giving small glances at her and smiling at her so Dominique didn't feel like she wasn't wanted. Bryan saw this through his rearview mirror, but did not talk. Once in a while, Haley would look behind her at Dominique, to see how she was doing and would sometimes catch Seifer playing with her.
They arrived at around nine o'clock in the evening. Seifer took out his luggage and his backpack from the trunk of the van. He kissed his little sister in the forehead, giving her a slight hug and nodded at his stepmother as he stepped out. It was at that one momen did he see his father eye to eye. He stood there, staring at his father, Bryan's hands suddenly gripping around the steering wheel. Both of them dared not to break off the eye contact from each other. They were trying to figure out what to do next, but before they had a chance to decide, Seifer was the first one to break contact. "Bye..." he mumbled. He turned, without even looking back, then made his way into the house. He could hear the van driving off and Dominique's little voice saying good bye as they fade off into the distance.
Seifer unlocked the door to his house and stepped inside, dragging his luggage behind him. Inside, it was dark. The blond glanced at his watch. It was only half past nine, and it was far too early to be sleeping, especially for his mother. She usually slept later than that. Where was she?
As if answering his question, a light suddenly flickered on in the kitchen. Startled, the blond looked up at the sound of footsteps coming towards him. A shadowed figure appeared from behind the kitchen. "What took you so long?" the figure spoke.
The blond knew who it was now. "There was traffic," he simply said, making his way up the stairs. He didn't wait for his mother's reply, instead, he went to his room, pulling the luggage behind him, then closed the door. Seifer plopped on his bed, thinking about what had happened between him and his father. He hated his father now...He hated his mother even more. But deep down in his heart... He knew he loved them.
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Dinner was quite a story to forget. She felt relieved when she was finally able to leave that night. Quistis wanted to stay longer of course, because the thought of coming home to see her father drunk once again, was quite unnerving. Her Aunt wouldn't be coming home again because the people who hired her to decorate the house was out on vacation and they had asked her to watch over the house for a couple of days. Travis was always away and she had no idea where he was now.
As she walked down the street in the darkness, she thought about where Selphie and Zell's relationship would go from here after Selphie told her that she had asked Zell about the little 'accident' she stumbled into from his jacket pocket. They excused themselves after dinner, because Selphie asked him to and they made their way into the living room where no one could hear them from the dining room. Quistis could hear murmurs though, but only murmurs and she couldn't understand what they were saying. Zell's Aunt and Uncle were curious. They were even asking Quistis what was going on, but Quistis just shrugged, pretending she didn't know.
After a few minutes, Zell came out looking upset, while Selphie was nowhere to be seen. Quistis could hear the front door closing. The blond young man looked at her and frowned, then he glanced at his Aunt and Uncle. "Selphie had to go," he told them. Quistis knew he was lying and she was eager to go after Selphie, but she would feel rude if she did that. He sat back down beside Quistis and continued to eat. His Aunt and Uncle looked at each other, then said nothing. Instead, they continued to eat, just silently. Quistis did the same thing.
The blond jumped back to the present. Quistis decided to call Selphie when she got home, but her destination was interrupted when her father came bursting out of the door. His face looked red as usual, a sure sign that he was once again drinking. "Come here!" he hissed, grabbing her arm and dragging her back inside. Quistis winced, questions running in her head. What did she do?
Sean pulled his daughter with him, then pushed her hard into the kitchen, forcing Quistis to fall flat on her butt on the floor once again. "WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU!?" He leaned down and slapped his daughter across the cheek. "I've been waiting for two and a half hours for you to make me dinner, but you never came!!!" The smell of alcohol from her father's breath made her wince. He struck her again, but this time, with his fist. Quistis could feel the bones crack in her jaw, but she did not move.
"I...I left you a message that I was going to dinner with Selphie at Zell's house..." she replied meekly.
Sean kicked the cabinet beside her. "I DON'T CARE WHERE YOU WERE! YOU WERE SUPPOSE TO MAKE ME DINNER EVERYTIME I CAME HOME!"
"I'm sorry..." Quistis said quietly. Why does she let him do this to her? She placed a single hand over her bruised cheek, then she felt stinging tears streaming down on them. "I'll...I'll go make one now..."
"FORGET IT! I'm going to the bar..." With that said, he turned and left, leaving Quistis bruised and scarred on the floor. Shaking, she stood up and waited until she heard her father's truck drive off. Slowly, she made her way up the stairs and into the living room, where she decided to sleep until Monday came. She thought about Selphie and made a decision to talk to her at school instead of calling her on the phone. She was too shaky to speak with anyone at the moment.
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"Zell, there's something I would like to know..." She fidgeted with her fingers, looking down nervously on the ground.
"Sure thing, Selph, what is it?" Zell looked at her, smiling.
Selphie looked up and noticed him grin. She wished he wouldn't grin like that, but she needed to tell him now. "Are you smoking pot?" she asked, more direct than she anticipated, but she didn't care. She HAD to know.
"What?" Zell stopped breathing, shocked by her question. "Where did you get that idea...?"
"Just tell me the truth, Zell..." Selphie took a deep breath.
The blond man looked at her strangely, then finally shook his head. "No."
"What?" She was surprised. Was he lying to her?
"I said, no, I don't smoke pot. Wherever you got the idea, you misunderstood." He looked at her straight in the eyes, telling her he wasn't lying, even though he was. "So, you should stop yourself from worrying about it too much. You know me better than that, Selph!" He laughed. "You silly girl!"
Selphie didn't buy it. He was a bigger actor than a liar. She frowned, tears now flooding her eyes. Without thinking, she nodded. "I guess I am a silly girl. And I guess I don't know you that well anymore." She turned around, facing the front door.
"Where are you going?" Zell asked. "We still have dinner to finish."
"No...we don't..." With that said, she left, without even giving Zell a chance to reply back. However, Selphie paused by the door and when she looked over her shoulder, Zell was already gone. A single tear fell from her eyes and on the floor. She could hear him enter the kitchen again and by this time, Selphie was out the door.
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He kicked the stone out of his way and growled under his breath. He didn't feel like going to dinner, because he didn't feel like looking at his father for abandoning his youngest son ONCE AGAIN for a stupid meeting. He didn't want to stay home either, to hear the phone ring and then expect Rinoa to call, when he knew she wouldn't. He knew their relationship was done for, but at the same time, he was eager to know, why. Squall walked over to the bench in the nearest park from his school and sat down. He glanced at his watch and read that it was now, quarter to ten. Tomorrow, he had school. Tomorrow, he might see Rinoa in the hallway. But right now, he could care less. The only thing in his mind now was what to do when he got home from wandering aimlessly in the dark. He would expect to see his mother angry with him for not calling and telling her where he was. His father would probably be angry as well, but his lectures would soon be interrupted by a phone call from one of his 'men from work.' Cloud would be asleep by now, but still wondering where his older brother was.
Sighing, he decided to go back. It was getting boring in the park anyway. Squall also thought he should walk by the store where Rinoa works, hoping he could talk to her before school tomorrow and ask why she broke up with him. As he reached the main road where the city was more sleepless, all the shops were getting ready to close. The only thing that had its lights on, was the convenient store where Rinoa worked. He took a deep breath and walked inside, hoping to see her behind the counter of the cash register, but instead, he could hear talking in the very back of the room, with Rinoa's voice included in the conversation. Squall crept closer. He figured she was probably talking to a customer, but as he neared, he noticed Rinoa's face from behind one of the shelves to be upset. A man was standing in front of her, his hands rested on one of the fridges beside her. He was showing her a piece of paper.
"Rinoa, please sign this. It's better for her."
"What do you know what's better for her?" Rinoa asked, pushing the paper away from her. She didn't move, instead she turned away, folding her arms across her chest. "I suggest you cut the threats and leave me alone, or I will have to call the police!"
The man sighed, backing away. He showed her the paper again. "I already told her about us. Diana would be better off in a nice house with me, than in a dump that you call a house!"
"I will NOT give my daughter up, you hear me, Ian!?" Rinoa blurted out.
At the news, Squall's eyes widened in shock. His elbow slid from the shelf that he was resting on as he listened and at the impact, all the stuff on the shelf fell on the floor. The two voice stopped talking. Squall closed his eyes, swearing under his breath and looked up. Rinoa and the man were looking at him, speechless. "Squall..." Rinoa managed to blurt out. "What...what are you doing here?"
Squall stuffed his hands in his pockets, then looked away. "Um...I was just coming over to talk to you, but you're busy, so I'll leave you alone..." He pivoted around and walked out. A daughter!? Rinoa had a daughter with THAT man!? How could she lie to him? After all these months! Is that why she broke up with him because of a child?
"Squall...please stop!" He could hear Rinoa pleading behind him, but he didn't want to stop. He was starting to hate the world he was living in. Squall felt Rinoa's hand on his shoulder, stopping him on his tracks. For a short girl, she was able to catch up to him and he was even more surprised when she did. The young man pushed his hand away and turned around to face her.
"What now, Rinoa!? Are you going to tell me now that you will be married to that guy!? Or are you going to tell me that you have another kid with him!?"
"Squall, please listen! I-"
"I don't want to hear it, all right? I've had enough news for one day!" Coldly, he stared at her. "I had no idea you were such a whore when you were such a kid!" He knew he had said the wrong thing, he knew that he had hit the most sensitive spot when he said those words, but he didn't care. He didn't care what she was feeling now. She didn't even consider his feelings, so why should he for hers. He turned and left.
Rinoa stood there, speechless. She felt her heart literally break into small pieces. "That's not fair, Squall....That's not fair..." she whispered to herself as he disappeared from her sight.
GoodGurl: *Sniff* awwwwww man! I hated the last part, but I just HAD to add more drama for both of them! 'Now what?' you ask? Find out on the next chapters! Sorry it took me soo long to write out, but I needed a break.
Summary for the next chapter: Monday finally approaches and Seifer once again comes back for tutorial, adding more tension between himself and Quistis. How will this affect their lives when Quistis suspiciously wears large sunglasses to cover her eyes? And when Seifer finds out about the bruises she had after school, something in Seifer starts to boil. What does this mean? And Zell and Selphie... Their relationship continues to fry, but will Selphie give up? Will Zell keep lying? And what will Squall do, now that he knows Rinoa has a daughter?
STAY TUNED! ^^