Disclaimer: I do not own FFX-2!

"…" character's speech

'…' character's thoughts

(…) my rambling

Note: Hello everyone! I wanna send special thanks to the following people: green-eyed-blonde, oOoDancingQueenoOo, Jen, Jezzi, Back of Beyond, neko56, and rikku-is-da-best! Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews you left me! Sorry for not writing individual messages for each one of you! So here is the new chapter with lots of fluff, so be warned! I hope you enjoy the fic and please leave me a review in the end :) Thank you once again!

Chapter 8

Putting her boots onto her feet and adjusting her skirt, Rikku slowly made her way out of the bedroom for another long day of work. On her way out, she quickly gazed at her reflection in a nearby mirror and smiled to know that she looked fine. Even though it really wasn't necessary, since she would be working with machinas all day, Rikku still liked to look presentable in any occasion.

With a wink to herself, she headed forward.

"SURPRISE!"

Rikku startled stopped dead on her tracks. Her emerald eyes opened wide to see everyone gathered together in the middle of the temple, cheering and clapping for her. The whole place was decorated with balloons and colorful laces that hung around the old temple, making it cheerful and lively. Everyone wore a party hat on their heads, including the machinas. Rikkusmiled warmly, they were all here, even Yuna and Paine joined the crowd cheering. In the middle of the room stood Gippal, who held a strawberry cake, her favorite, with candles lit on top of it.

Smiling she quickly made her way toward the crowd, who now hugged her or patted her back.

"Congratulation Rikku." They spoke out cheerfully.

"I hope you liked the surprise." Yuna spoke as she gave her dear cousin a tight hug.

"Finally you're not a kid anymore." Spoke Paine as she gave Rikku a hug as well.

"So what do you think?" Gippal asked as he approached her. "Didn't think we would surprise you, did ya?"

Rikku laughed and shock her head, making Gippal smirk in satisfaction. "You all caught me off guard." She admitted with a smile. "But tell me, what's the special occasion."

They all stared at her incredulously, wondering if Rikku was only joking, but she only smiled back with a questioning look upon her face.

"What do you mean Cid's girl. It's your birthday today, right?" Gippal asked a bit concerned.

Rikku began to laugh as she shock her head. "Of course not! Who told you that?"

Everyone quickly turned their gaze accusingly at Gippal as they all frowned. He gulped before sheepishly smiling and shrugging. "I might have made a small mistake. Come on, I'm only human!"

Yuna sighed before shaking her head in disbelief. "Why did I even trust you in the first place. I knew there was something wrong with the date."

Paine crossed her arm upon her chest and smirked. "All this for nothing."

Everyone only grumbled a bit more before turning away and started peeling the decorations down. Rikku kept on laughing. Even though it was considerate of their part to make her a surprise party, she couldn't help but to laugh. So this was Gippal's mistake huh? Well at least he tried.

"What are you laughing at Cid's girl." Gippal spoke, as he settled the strawberry cake upon a table.

Her laughs died down before she answered. "At least I have to give you some credit Gippal. You did get the day right, but the month was way far off!"

"Hey, what really counts is the intention." Gippal spoke with a grin, making Rikku giggle.

Yuna and Paine then approached her, talking to Rikku about life and anything else that interested them, such as gossip. They caught up with what they missed, exchanging information until they left, since there wasn't any celebration. By the time the three of them ended their conversation, D'jose Temple was back to its original look, and the crowd went back to their usual routine.

Rikku searched for Gippal until she spotted him working on another machina. "Hey Gippal." She called.

He turned away from the machina to greet her with a smile. "You called Cid's girl?"

Rikku smiled back before stopping in front of him. "Thank you Gippal. That was nice of you to make me a surprise party, even though it really wasn't my birthday."

Gippal softly blushed before shrugging. "It was nothing really, besides the party was canceled, all you really got was some cheers."

"And a strawberry cake!" Rikku reminded him.

He laughed. "Right, the cake." Gippal then sighed a bit disappointed. "Too bad that I couldn't give you your birthday present."

Rikku looked up in excitement. "Oh don't worry, I'll accept early birthday gifts!"

He chuckled. "Well, it's suppose to be a surprise for your real birthday."

Rikku pouted. "Come on Gippal, please!"

"Well, I don't know." Gippal spoke thoughtfully.

"Please Gippal." Rikku insisted.

He sighed in defeat as he heard her pleading. Who could deny the pretty lady of her request. "Alright then, but it'll have to be tonight. Besides it's too big to hand it over to you." He grinned.

Rikku smiled in glee. What could it be? The last birthday present she had received from Gippal was a doll, and she was 15 years old. Well, all she could do now was wait for the night to come. Until then she would distract herself with her delicious strawberry cake that awaited for her in the kitchen to be devoured.

...o...

Rikku stepped out of the bathroom refreshed, to find Gippal waiting outside for her by the door. He slowly approached her as he held a scarf on his hand. Slowly he placed the scarf on top of her emerald eyes, and tied it around her head tightly so it wouldn't loosen down.

"Come Cid's girl. It's time for your present." Gippal whispered into her ear.

Rikku shivered to feel his warm breath caress her ear, before he slowly pulled away and held her hand. They walked for a long time, as Gippal led her carefully along the path, while holding her hand tightly in his own warm hand. He guided her out of the temple and into the night, walking slowly toward their destination. Soon Rikku could hear the sound of the ocean and smell the salty air. She smiled, they were near the beach which wasn't far from D'jose Temple.

"Be careful Cid's girl." Gippal instructed, as he held her waste so that she wouldn't fall. Rikku blushed again to feel his soft hold upon her, trying to prevent her from getting injured.

Now Rikku could hear the ocean much clearly and that was when they stopped. Slowly the scarf around her eyes were taken away, and Rikku gasped to see the amazing view in front of her. There was the beautiful ocean underneath that midnight sky, which was decorated by the little silver stars accompanied by the big full moon. Everything was breath taking.

"This is amazing." Rikku breathed in awe.

Gippal smiled before pointing toward the far left. "Look over there Cid's girl." He instructed.

Rikku took her gaze away from the ocean to follow Gippal's finger. Her smile grew. There in the far left was a fireplace burning brightly with two large logs placed around it so that people could sit. Beside the fireplace was a tent, big enough for two people to sleep in. Not holding her excitement any longer, Rikku quickly turned around and gave Gippal a tight hug.

"You're wonderful!" She exclaimed.

Gippal chuckled but felt his heart give a leap to feel her warm body glued to his. She then slowly pushed away and began to take her boots off before running toward the fireplace. Gippal followed her example, and took his boots away as he followed her behind. Rikku carefully sat herself onto the log, as she watched Gippal open the tent to take from inside a guitar. He then sat before her in the opposite log, while he gently placed the guitar in position.

"And now, a little music for the pretty lady."

With a smile, he began to sing while playing the guitar along. Rikku impressed by his ability and alto voice, sat there softly smiling, while she watched him attentively. His soft voice, fit for a singer, soothed her profoundly as she noticed how handsome Gippal looked tonight. Every word reached her ears like a gentle breeze, making Rikku shiver in delight to hear that melody.

As he played, Gippal watched Rikku's soft lips curve up into a smile. Her eyes slowly closed as she savored his singing. Her arms then circled her legs closely. Gippal smiled throughout the whole song to the angel in front of him. He also noticed how genuine Rikku's smile was, that meant that Rikku really loved music, no wonder she encouraged Yuna to be a singer during her journey with the Gullwings.

When he finished the song, Rikku opened her eyes in disappointment, which made Gippal feel somehow guilty.

"Would you sing again?" She asked, more like a pleading.

Gippal only smiled and started another song gladly, he would do anything to make her smile the way she did.

...o...

Rikku couldn't sleep. It was impossible to close your eyes when you had had the most wonderful time in your life. She didn't want this day to end, and besides, the excitement still rushed inside of her. Rikku would have gladly gone out of the tent to the ocean once again, but the cold outside only discouraged her, and the fire had died down hours ago. Besides she wanted Gippal's company.

Rikku couldn't stop smiling. Tonight was just amazing. After several songs sung by Gippal, and a couple of them she had joined in singing, they left the fireplace to walk along the shores. They felt the water rush through their feet, while they talked and laughed about anything. Soon they swam into the ocean, even though the water was cold, they managed to have a great deal of fun.

They dried themselves near the fireplace, while sitting close together to keep their bodies warm. Gippal had even offered her his large pullover, which she gladly took and still wore them now even though they reached her thighs. Both of them had laid upon a blanket upon the sand, which Gippal brought along, to stargaze. She was impressed when Gippal pointed out some of the constellations in the midnight sky.

In the end, when they had entered the tent and each one got comfortable into their individual sleeping bag, Gippal presented her with a final gift. Even though she protested saying he had done enough for her, Gippal just brushed her protest aside, telling Rikku that this was the final touch. Inside the box was a small chocobo plushie. She named the plushie at first as Gip, just as a joke, but Gippal only smirked and told her that it was a perfect name.

"This way you will always remember me." He had told her as she had softly blushed.

Now, Rikku hugged her plushie close to her body, while smiling and giving it a small kiss. This was indeed the best day of her life. She then turned around to see the Al Bhed man who laid beside her in his own sleeping bag. There he was sleeping peacefully with a smile upon his lips. Rikku softly brushed his blond hair back from his eye before leaning forward to plant a soft kiss upon his cheek.

"Thank you Gippal for everything, even though it's not my birthday." She whispered tenderly.

She softly gazed at him in admiration. Gippal was perfect. Her eyes then slowly closed as Rikku felt sleep coming, and a final thought briefly passed her mind.

'Am I falling in love?'