They totally got him.
Once out of the cafeteria, the pair could not stop laughing. "I can not believe we just did that! Squall is going to be so mad at us, Seifer. You do realize that, don't you?" Through her semi-serious talk, Quistis still could not stop smiling. It was obvious that she was trying to care about what Squall thought, but at heart, she really could care less.
Seifer shook his head, a smile plastered to his face as well. "Oh come on Quisty, you don't really care if he's mad at us. I mean come on, he totally deserved that!" He gestured back towards the cafeteria.
She smirked, crossing her arms as she walked. "Well... yes, I do suppose he did. He was, after all, being a total ass."
The ex-Knight simply shrugged. "Nothing unusual for Commander Puberty."
She rolled her eyes. "I suppose." As they walked, she looked around, then back to the tall blonde beside her. "So where exactly are we off to, Mr. Almasy?"
"You'll just have to wait and see now, won't you Miss Trepe?"
She couldn't help but giggle at the way he'd said her name. "Well, I guess I will then."
A few moments later, they arrived at the entrance to the Training Center, and Quistis turned to her partner. "The Training Center? Really Almasy, are you trying to tell me I need help with my battle skills?" Quistis asked sarcastically.
He shrugged. "Well that may or may not be so, but I didn't bring you here to train, Quisty." She could hint a gleam of mischief in his eyes, and she knew exactly where they were headed.
After fighting off a few grats, they made it to the Secret Area of the Training Center. To both of their disbelief, they were the only ones there.
"Heh. Wonder where everyone is."
"Maybe they have better things to do, Seifer," Quistis commented, crossing her arms and smirking. She remembered the last time they'd been here together, and couldn't help but grin to herself. "So why'd you bring me here, Seifer?"
He smirked as he stood over her. "So I could do this in private." He inclined his head slightly as he took her into his arms. Hesitantly, he leaned down to finish what he'd started in the cafeteria only moments earlier.
Quistis blushed, and nervously wrapped her arms around Seifer's neck, kissing him back.
Seifer pulled her closer as the kiss deepened, and turned slightly to lean his back against the railing to support them both.
A few minutes later, the pair heard muffled giggling coming from the doorway, and they broke their kiss to turn and look towards the source of the sound. There by the door stood two pre-teen girls in SeeD uniforms, gawking at them.
When the girls saw Seifer and Quistis look in their direction, they both blushed, still giggling, and turned on their heels towards the exit.
Quistis looked up to Seifer, biting her lip and blushing profusely.
Seifer couldn't help but blush as well. "Ah... well that was... rude of them..."
She nodded. "Heh... yeah." Looking down at her watch, she cursed herself for letting it get this late. "Oh no. Seifer, I have to go. I've got a class to cover for in twenty minutes and I haven't even begun to prepare for it." She hated the fact that she had to leave, but she knew she couldn't just not go.
He nodded in understanding. "It's okay." He let her go, and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. He tried to hide his nervousness by leaning against the railing with his arms crossed. "So Quisty, ya' wanna go into Balamb or something with me tomorrow?"
Quistis frowned and averted her eyes towards the ground. "Oh Seifer, I can't. I promised Dr. Kadowaki I'd help her out in the Infirmary tomorrow..." She looked back up to him and smiled brightly. "But maybe the day after? If you're not busy, I mean..."
He smirked, shrugging as he put his hands into his pockets. "Works for me." He headed for the exit, but stopped and turned back to her, pulling her in for another kiss, then strolled out coolly. "Later, Trepe."
Seifer Almasy sat in his room, lying on his bed, thinking; something he rarely had the time to do. And frankly... he was bored. He hated having extra time; it made him feel like it was just a waste. He needed to actually do something. He would've loved to be able to spend some time with Quistis, but then he remembered that she'd volunteered to help out Dr. Kadowaki today, so that was out. And then, an idea hit him of just how to put his time to good use.
Rolling off of his bed, he kneeled down beside it, and reached under, pulling out his Hyperion case. Normally, Hyperion was always at his side, but today was a lax day, so he'd decided to let it rest in its case. He undid the clasps and propped the case open. In it sat his gunblade; his pride and joy; and his best friend. He grinned, and picked it up, giving it a twirl in the air and catching it once more, before smirking and standing up, heading for the door.
The ex-Knight waltzed through the dorm halls, through the main lobby, and straight to the Training Center. He figured taking care of a few grats here and there, and maybe even a T-Rexaur or two, would make him feel like his day had at least some sort of purpose.
As soon as he passed through the doors, he was faced with two grats, which he took down instantly. "Tch... too easy." He walked through the training center, cockily taking on up to five or six grats at a time.
When a T-Rexaur finally appeared, Seifer simply smirked. "Alright big fella', let's go." The T-Rexaur immediately tried a tail-sweep, but its attack was easily evaded by the gunblade specialist. Deciding to take the easy way out, Seifer cast Aura on himself and used his Limit Break, Fire Cross. Of course, his opponent instantly fell, and of course, Seifer smirked. "Heh... if only Leonhart could be here to see me now."
"You rang?"
Seifer turned around quickly, to see none other than the Commander himself, standing directly behind him, his arms crossed. Seifer tried to play it off cool, acting as if he wasn't completely surprised to see him there. "Heeey Puberty Boy. Ya' stay long enough to catch that one? One hit. Not bad, eh?"
Squall frowned, arching an eyebrow. "I don't think it really counts as one hit when you're using your Limit Break, Almasy."
"Yeah, well what's it to you, Puberty Boy?"
"Not a thing, Almasy. Just don't get so full of yourself with something like that."
"Well how 'bout I test something like that on you, Puberty Boy?"
"Fine with me, Almasy. Fine with me." Squall drew his gunblade as his last comment was made.
Seifer's Hyperion had been at the ready, and he pointed it at Squall. "I hope you're ready for this, Leonhart."
Squall just shook his head. "Bring it on, Seifer," he spat.
The ex-Knight charged at his longtime nemesis, only one thought crossing his mind; ...to make Squall Leonhart bleed.
Squall put up his Lion Heart and easily blocked Seifer's attack.
Seifer swung around, going for a lower hit, but was again blocked by Squall's Lion Heart. "You're getting pretty good at this, Leonhart. Been practicing?" The brutal clashing of gunblades was still raging as they conversed.
"Well, I could say the same about you, Almasy. Your tactics have improved somewhat since the last time we exchanged blows."
"Yeah, yeah, well--" Seifer was cut short when he felt cold metal meet the flesh on his chest, and he instantly fell to his knees. "FUCK, Leonhart!!" Blood had already seeped through his shirt, which he ripped off to get a look at the gash across his chest. It stretched diagonally across to almost the entire width of his chest. He held his ripped shirt to the wound and winced.
Squall kneeled down beside him. "Shit Seifer, I didn't mean to do that much damage." He stood up, and pulled Seifer up with him, putting Seifer's arm around his shoulders to help support him. "Come on, I'll help you get to the Infirmary."
Limping along with his enemy through the halls, Seifer made a face. "If anyone sees us like this... you are so dead."
"Sure. Save it Almasy, you're losing blood fast." And he was. The shirt he'd been holding to his chest was already soaked with blood, and his face was growing paler by the minute.
When they finally made it to the Infirmary, Dr. Kadowaki had already been with a patient, though Seifer's case was an emergency, so Squall called to her, "Dr. Kadowaki! Seifer was injured when we were dueling in the Training Center, and he's losing blood fast!"
Quistis, who had been helping out Dr. Kadowaki, immediately jumped from her chair in the first patient room, and ran out to meet them. As soon as she spotted Seifer, she gasped. "Oh goodness Squall, what happened? Seifer, are you okay?!"
Seifer just nodded. He was able to make snide comments on the way, but now he was beginning to feel a bit woozy.
"We were dueling in the Training Center, and, well, I managed to get him good across the chest. I didn't mean to hurt him that badly, it just... sort of happened."
It took a few moments for things to get put together inside her head. "So wait a minute... Squall, you injured Seifer, and you brought him here? You didn't just... leave him to die? He is, after all, your arch rival..."
The Commander rolled his eyes. "That may be so, but I couldn't just leave him there to die. I'm not a total asshole."
Dr. Kadowaki then emerged from the first patient room. "Oh my, Seifer! Quick Squall, help me get him in here and onto the bed." She motioned towards the second patient room, and Squall quickly obeyed.
Quistis was panicking. He was losing so much blood, and he was so pale... She shook her head. Like Seifer Almasy would die from something like a mere scratch to the chest. He wouldn't give Squall that sort of satisfaction.
A few hours later, Seifer opened his eyes slowly. He was lying in a bed in the Infirmary; a place he had visited on many occasions before. Immediately, he looked down to his chest, and realized that he was all bandaged up. Looking up at the clock across from his bed, he noticed that it was the early morning. It wasn't until then that he became aware of the fact that his hand felt rather sweaty.
Looking down beside him, he saw none other than Quistis Trepe, sitting in a chair beside his bed, and holding his hand. Instantly, he smiled. She had stayed with him through the night, holding his hand. Though... he wasn't sure if it was for his own comfort, or hers. He gave her hand a slight squeeze, holding onto it just a little bit tighter.
He took this time, since she was sleeping, to simply stare at her, and take in her natural beauty. Her golden hair, which, when down, cascaded down her back; her soft, pale skin, which looked even more beautiful when hit with the sun's morning rays, her gorgeous cerulean eyes. Wait—her eyes? Wasn't she—?
Quistis had apparently awoken while he was taking his time to stare at her, and when he caught her eyes, she blushed. "Glad to see you're awake."
His face instantly went scarlet. "I was just uh... I was uh..." He scratched the back of his head nervously with his free hand. "Yeah, I'm awake!"
She smiled. "Are you feeling better, then?"
He smiled back genuinely and squeezed her hand. "Much better."
[Author's Notes]: I know, it took me forever to put up this chapter. I had it posted the other day, but then it was brought to my attention by one of my faithful readers that the chapter seemed out of place. After reading it over, I realized just how right she was, so here's the revised version of Chapter 8. Thanks so much for reading guys, and a very special thanks to Diamond Dust. Read and review!