Of Destiny and Fate
Chapter 2
"What the hell were you doing with him?" Seifer snarled, pacing back and forth in the corridor.
"It was just a dance, you're overreacting," Rinoa protested as she tried to calm Seifer down. She knew very well what he could be like when he lost his temper. She had seen it far too often, and this time she was afraid that it would be her who ended up on the receiving end.
"Just a dance? Just a dance? Listen to yourself, Rinoa. How would you like it if I danced with someone else?"
"It wouldn't bother me, you're free to dance with anyone you want," she answered truthfully.
"Oh really? Well, maybe I'll just go and do that then," he replied, storming off.
"Wait, Seifer," she called after him. He paused for a moment before turning around and facing her. "I'm sorry. I didn't know it would make you angry," she said, softening her voice.
"Yeah, well you had to go and choose Leonhart, didn't you?" The look of anger on his face changed to one of utter disappointment. He shook his head at her, before turning away again.
"Seifer."
"Just forget it," he shouted back, moodily. "It's not as if we're serious anyway."
With that, he exited the room, leaving Rinoa in a state of shock, a single tear falling gently down her cheek.
"It's not as if we're serious? How dare he say that? He was the one being jealous and overprotective. He lost his temper with me for dancing with someone else. And now he says that we're not serious." Rinoa didn't seem to care that she was receiving very odd from passers-by as she continued to talk to herself, pacing from one side of the corridor to the other as she did so. "I will never understand that man…no…I will never understand that, that…boy," she spat venomously. "Well, if he can go and have a good time after this, well, so can I. I'll be damned if I'm going to cry one more tear over Seifer Almasy."
With those words, she stormed back into the ballroom, determined to have as much fun as she could possibly have. However, the site that greeted her eyes, was not the one that she wanted to see. Seifer, it seemed, had forgotten all about their argument, and was now enjoying a dance with possibly the most beautiful woman that Rinoa had ever seen. She almost matched Seifer himself in height, had long, flowing blond hair that cascaded almost to her waist, and was wearing an impossibly short skirt. Every other man in the room was eying Seifer with envy, and he knew it.
"I'm sure she's much more his type than I am," Rinoa muttered under her breath as her resolve wavered. She was no longer sure that trying to have as much fun as possible was the best plan. In fact, she was not even sure that she would be able to have fun tonight. Deciding that taking in some fresh Balamb air and staying away from Seifer would probably be the best way to spend the evening, she headed out onto the balcony and proceeded in taking deep breaths to calm herself down, letting the cool, crisp sea breeze penetrate her lungs.
It was then that she noticed the lone figure stood beside her.
This evening was great. No, in fact, it was better than great. I mean, how am I going to top this one?
The one person I decide to talk to all night, the one person I choose to show a little attention to, the one person that I choose to dance with, is Seifer's girlfriend. And to make things even worse, he just had to be there, didn't he? Not to mention the fact that half of the students at Garden saw it. By tomorrow, everyone will have heard about it and this whole rivalry with Seifer will be taken even further out of context.
Contrary to popular belief, we don't actually hate each other. Sure, we don't exactly get along either, but it's not as if we're enemies. People just happen to take any opportunity they can find to try and stir things up between us, and I'm sure that they're not going to pass this one up. Pretty soon, word will be around that I'm trying to steal Seifer's girl, and, well…he doesn't always react too well to rumours, being as impulsive as he is.
Well, on the plus side, life around here could start getting a lot more interesting. I sighed. My first day as a SeeD couldn't really have gone any worse.
It was then that I heard the footsteps on the balcony behind me.
Or maybe it could get much worse.
I expected to hear some smart comment from Seifer, and at least a little bit of abuse, but, no…nothing. It was then that I realised that those footsteps couldn't belong to Seifer. They were far too light, and since when does Seifer wear heels?
No, it was her, and she seemed upset about something. She was so preoccupied that she didn't even notice me. If she had, I'm sure she would have left rather than risk facing Seifer's wrath again.
I couldn't say anything to her. Truth be told, I don't think there was anything I could say to her. She seemed pretty upset, and I'm not the best person to deal with that kind of thing. In fact, I'm probably the person least suited to deal with that kind of thing. I prayed silently that she wouldn't notice me, and that she's just leave without saying a word.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
No such luck.
"I said, I'm sorry," she repeated.
She's sorry? What for? From the look on her face, it was she had faced the brunt of Seifer's wrath, not me.
"You don't owe me an apology," I replied, as coldly as possible, trying to disguise the fact that, despite myself, I still felt sorry for her.
"I didn't know there was any kind of history between you and Seifer or whatever it is. To tell you the truth, I didn't think that he would be at the dance. I hadn't expected him to pass the exam," she admitted.
"If you never expected him to pass, what were you doing at the graduation ball?"
Surely she had been there because of Seifer.
"Nothing," she sighed.
She's lying.
We just stood there, side-by-side, saying nothing. For some reason, though, it didn't feel awkward to me, just…peaceful, I guess. I'm not sure how long we stood there for, but eventually, she broke the silence as the moon crept out from behind the clouds, bathing the balcony in a soft glow. It was then, when I looked at her, that I saw how hard she had been trying not to cry. When she noticed me staring at her, she forced a smile, not wanting me to know how she felt.
"Do you ever just sit and stare at the moon?" she asked, gazing up into the sky.
He must have hurt her pretty badly for her to be talking like this? I wanted to leave, I really did. I know that it would be better for us both if one of us just walked away and we never spoke again, but for some reason, I couldn't leave. I felt an overwhelming amount of pity for her. I know Seifer, and I'm willing to bet that he's back there now in the arms of another woman. He really doesn't deserve one who'll spill any tears over him. Then again, she should have been smart enough to realise what he's like, but I guess someone can't be blamed for being naïve.
"Well, do you?"
"No."
"I suppose that was a stupid question for your type," she lamented.
"My type?"
"You know, SeeDs, mercenaries, whatever you want to be called. Your not the kind of people to sit back, look at nature and reflect on there own lives. If they did, they're just see the heartache and the misery that they caused by fighting just for fighting's sake."
This took me aback. I know that she's hurt and I know that she's upset, but this? Does she really have to retaliate towards me? I didn't ask her to dance. I said no, but she wouldn't accept that. She brought this upon herself, and now she's trying to drag me down in the mire with her. After today, I really don't need anything more troubles to worry about this. I don't have to listen to this.
"Do yourself a favour, stop talking about things you know nothing about. You don't know me, and you don't know my reasons for doing what I do."
A/N Sorry it took so long for an update. Just to clear something up, the only first-person viewpoint that will be in this fic will be Squall's. Any parts of the story that Squall's not involved in will be in the third-person.
Thanks to:
Keiry
Angelprinczess29
KinOfDragons
Baby Rose
Rinoa Heartilly-Leonhart
Lady Aliena
Hiasha