I swear, right then and there I almost fainted. The blood rushed to my head and my sight got foggy. Now I know how those families felt, oblivious to the other deaths and bullets flying around them, the large booms from the cannons...

The only person I cared about was the one laying on the ground.

"GIPPAL!" Rikku screamed, falling to the ground. She quickly, well, as fast as she could force herself to move, crawled over to his limp body.

The girl, much too young to be experiencing something like this, ignored the blood that sunk into her clothes, stained her flesh. The only thing she noticed was Gippal; dying.

"Gippal..." She sobbed quietly, lifting up his pale head to rest in her lap. "This can't be happening..." She moaned, tears flowing constantly out of her eyes.

"GIPPAL!" She shrieked to the sky, afraid to look at the mangled face of her best friend.

'Perhaps more'. A voice called in her head. A little too late.

The first thing she did was grab for his wrists, feeling for a pulse. A flit, a thud, ANYTHING.

She waited.

And waited.

And waited.

It was hopeless-wait!

There it was! A small thud-just barely audible, but it was there!

"Help!" She screamed, looking around. "I need this man to be healed immediately!"

But no answer came.

"AUGH!" She yelled, deciding she'd have to drag him to the nearest Emergency Healing Facility.

That process took a while. For a 15 year old, Gippal was like a rock. But then again, Rikku had just been fighting in a war.

But she needed to hurry up, he was losing blood-and fast.

"Oh Gippal..." She sobbed. "It's all my fault—if I hadn't been so stupid and come and talk to you..."

While going on and on, telling the near death Gippal her useless apology, she bumped into the door of the hidden emergency.

"Thank Yevon!" She cried, a smile overcoming her pained face.

She quickly entered in the Al Bhed code, hearing a click and a hiss as the door slowly opened. She pushed and shoved Gippal down the hole, hearing his body whoosh down the tube. She then closed the door and fell down with him, much to her dismay.

No one really likes going on a slide when the blood from the person in front if you is flying all over your face.

"HELP!" She yelled. "He needs HELP!"

Immediately a group of Al Bhed came gibbering in the language, motioning to Rikku and grabbing a stretcher, quickly carrying him off.

Then, there was silence.

And that's when Rikku gave in. She had been trying so hard; so long to stay strong. But now all her thoughts came flooding into her.

"It's my fault." She moaned again. "If I hadn't been stupid and come up to talk to him, which was SO idiotic, I mean what would it have achieved? I practically killed him with my act!"

She kicked a nearby wall, screaming out in some not-so-nice Al Bhed words.

The hiss of an opening door caught her attention. A nurse came out.


"You might want to go wash up." She noted in thick Al Bhed. Rikku snorted.

"Why bother?" She sat glumly down in a chair, totally ignoring the disgusted look of the nurse.

"What are YOU doing?" She snapped at the woman. She looked at her, disgruntled, and walked away.

Another hiss. God, when would it end? But this time it was a doctor.

"Miss?" He asked. She looked up, her eyes wide and fearful.

"Y-Yes?" She asked, rubbing her eyes.

"He might not make it."

Another silence.

"NO! HE WILL!" She screamed, standing up, feeling her face wet with tears. "HE HAS TO! I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT HIM! IT'S MY FAULT IF HE DIES! HE CAN'T—LEAVE ME!"

Once again she burst into sobs so hard she started to hiccup. The doctor patted her awkwardly.

"Shove off!" She growled, turning away.

Gippal was going to die because of her and her insolence.

"I'm-I'm sorry."

With that the doctor walked briskly away.

"Off to wash his hands, no doubt." She snarled. "Ooh, I'm a doctor and can wash my HANDS! Ee!" Rikku mimicked angrily.

As he walked back out from the back, the door hissed open again. Rikku was about to turn and yell, when the person interrupted.

"Doctor! We have life!"

Wow. Pretty intense, isn't it? I felt terrible there. Absolutely. And, truthfully, it was my fault. I thought Gippal would die because of me. And it was there, then, I realized I loved him.

But of course, I didn't realize it.

Yet.