Forgot to mention that the prologue and chapter 11 is what happened AFTER Squall did whatever he did -. The stuff in-between is the events are everything leading up to Squall getting in jail. Sorry I didn't say that before. The game they play came from a book I read.

Julia made a cake for Julie's birthday. Friends and family met at Rinoa and Squall's home. Julie stared curiously at all the strange people. Various presents were piled up in the corner. "Thanks for the cake, mom," Rinoa said. "You know I suck at baking. Should we light the candles now?"

"Not yet, dear. Give everyone a chance to visit. Why don't you take a break and talk to your friends?" Julia said.

"Okay mom." She walked to the living room where everyone else was gathered. Squall was sitting on the couch with Julie lying against his chest. He had a hold of her so she wouldn't fall. Rinoa sat on the floor in front of him. Fujin thought the little family looked cute together. Quistis and Selphie were playing hangman on a piece of notebook paper.

"What's the question?" Squall asked.

Selphie said, "She's trying to figure out who likes her."

"I know what the answer is."

"Why are there so many letters?"

"I put it into sentence form so it wouldn't be too easy." Quistis began guessing letters and Rinoa watched.

Fujin said, "I saw Seifer a few days ago."

"Really?" Squall said.

"Yeah. He's got a job now I guess. He's got a girlfriend now too. No one we know though. He asked me how you were doing. I told him you guys were getting along pretty well. He said to say 'hi' to you for him."

Squall said, "Well tell him I said 'hi'."

"I will next time I see him."

"She'll probably see him tomorrow, you know?" Rajin said. "She sees him a lot, you know?"

"Not that much, jeeze. You make it sound like I sleep over at his house every night or something. Mainly we just talk on the phone." Squall smiled. "What? You don't believe me?"

"I didn't say anything, not a word," Squall said.

"You don't have to. I can tell that you don't."

"Might have a crush on him, you know," Rajin threw in. Fujin growled and Squall laughed.

"He's my friend, okay? Can we drop the subject?"

"Yeah, yeah," Squall said. "I should meet with him sometime. It'd actually be nice to talk to him."

"Well, he even admits he's calmed down a great deal. Although he does have his moments… Hey, Squall, are your parents coming over."

"I invited them. Mom said she'd bring Ellone too. She'll be starting school this year. She's excited mom said. She's also excited to see the baby too. Mom let her talk to me on the phone and she kept asking questions about Julie."

"Aw, that's cute. She sounds like a sweet girl."

"Yeah."

"Aha," Selphie suddenly said. "You lose, can't tell you!"

"That's no fair! Do over," Quistis said.

"Nope. That's how the game is played."

"Oh fine! I don't care anyway."

"Yes you do."

"Stop saying that!"

Someone knocked on the door so Rinoa got up to see whom it was. Edea and an older man who was apparently her husband stood there. "Hello," Edea said. "Are we intruding?"

"No, no, come in," Rinoa insisted. They stepped inside and she shut the door. Fujin dragged a few more chairs in for them. "Have a seat, please."

"Thank you for inviting us."

"We thought it'd be a nice time for everyone to get together. We're expecting a few more still. Squall's family is coming and my dad will be a little late. Squall, this is my friend Edea and her husband-"

"Cid."

"Cid."

Squall shook Edea's hand as she said, "Ah, so this is the infamous Squall. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you from various people."

"Is that so?" he asked. 'What kinds of things has she heard,' he wondered. 'And from whom?' He shook hands and exchanged a greeting with Cid as well.

"And where is the little one?"

"Right here," Selphie chimed in. Julie was cradled in her arms.

"May I?"

"Of course," Rinoa said.

Edea carefully took Julie in her arms. Julie gazed up at her with a curious expression. "Is she not one of the most beautiful babies you've ever seen?" Edea asked her husband.

Julie turned her head toward the man with the wrinkled but pleasant face as he spoke, "She is." The baby reached her hand toward his small, shiny glasses that rested on the bridge of his nose. "Careful." He put the baby back in Rinoa's arms.

Selphie said, "So, Edea, what have you been up to? How have you been?"

"Things have been pretty good," she answered. "I've been up to the same old things, nothing new, actually. What about all of you? I haven't seem some of you in a long time."

"I've been pretty good. Still dating Irvine too. He'll be coming by after work, by the way."

Quistis said, "I don't believe we've met, Edea."

"Not formally," Edea said. "But I have hear of you. I believe your friends have dropped your name a few times."

"I hope it wasn't anything bad…"

"Oh no, nothing bad at all. No need to worry. But how has life been treating you?"

"Okay but I'm frustrated with Selphie. She won't tell me who supposedly likes me."

"Maybe she doesn't want to embarrass this person. He should speak up himself. He won't be disappointed." Squall could see Zell tense up a little. "Just be patient, Mrs. Trepe. You'll find out sometime soon."

"Okay."

"Well," Rinoa said, "I don't think you've met many of the people here and they haven't met you." As she said each name, she pointed each person out, "This is Zell, Fujin, Rajin, and my mom is back there. Until Irvine, my dad, and Squall's parents show up, that's everyone."

"Nice to meet you all," Edea said. They all carried on a conversation and soon were joined by Julia. Less than fifteen minutes later, the doorbell rang again. Rinoa opened it up. Laguna brushed past her and Raine came in with Ellone following her. Fujin grabbed some more chairs. Ellone hid behind her mother.

"Do you want to see the baby?" Rinoa asked the little girl gently. She nodded with shy enthusiasm. Rinoa took Julie and held her so Ellone could see her. Both of them looked at each other curiously. Ellone carefully patted the baby's head. "If you sit on the couch you can hold her." Fujin willingly gave her seat up to the six year old. "There we go," Rinoa said as she carefully set Julie in the child's arms. Ellone kept saying, "Pretty baby" softly over and over again. Squall pulled Rinoa down onto his lap. Her face turned slight shade of pink and then became even darker when he kissed her on the cheek.

"Aww," Selphie laughed. "How cute."

Julia said, "Well, is everybody ready? Let's see the birthday girl!" Rinoa set Julie down in her highchair at the end of the table. Julia put the cake with one bright candle down on the table. "Wait a minute, Rinoa. I want to get my camera." She dug through her purse as everyone else gathered around. Julie seemed to be entranced by the flame of the lonely candle. Julia quickly snapped a picture then said, "Okay." Starting with Ellone they all sang 'Happy Birthday' to the now one-year-old baby. When the song was over they clapped.

"Can you blow out the candle, sweetheart?" Rinoa asked, but the baby wasn't looking at her. "Ellone, would you like to do it for her?" Raine put Ellone down so she could go over by Rinoa. Rinoa lifted her up to the cake. When the flame disappeared, Julie's curious expression changed. Her bottom lip curled out, her eyes turned sad, and she began to cry. The girls made a sympathetic sound. Squall took the upset baby in his arms and tried to calm her down. Julia started cutting the cake. "Is she okay?" Rinoa asked Squall.

"She's fine," he said. "She'll probably be even better when she eats the frosting." Rinoa giggled which made him smile. Raine gave Ellone a piece of the cake then came over to Squall.

"She looks like you," she said to Rinoa.

Julia called back, "You should compare baby pictures. The resemblance is unbelievable. Rinoa, dear, could you get the door for your father, I think I heard his car pull up." Rinoa did as she was told. Her father hugged her when he came in. That surprised her because he hardly ever did that. He then joined his wife in the kitchen. Rinoa noticed that Laguna was still sitting on the couch and walked over to him.

"Are okay?" she asked him. He mumbled something she couldn't hear. "What? I- I didn't hear you."

He grabbed her wrist and repeated himself, "I said, 'leave me the fuck alone'."

She swallowed her fear but her voice was shaking. He still had a hold of her wrist. "You've been drinking before you came here, haven't you? I think that maybe- … maybe you should leave." Squall looked over in their direction. He handed Julie over to Fujin. Laguna pushed Rinoa away from him.

"Dad," Squall barked, "I think you should leave."

"I'm not going anywhere," he mumbled.

"Get out! Now! I'm sick of you fucking everything up! Get out!"

"Fine. Don't know why I'd come to a… fucking worthless son's house anyway. Stupid, fucking useless," he kept repeating as he left. The house was silent now. Both Raine and Squall were embarrassed.

"I'm sorry," Raine said. "I'm really, very sorry."

"It's not your fault. Would you like a ride home tonight?" Julia said.

"I don't want to trouble anyone."

"It's no problem, really."

"That'd be nice."

Squall followed Rinoa up to their room. She had a red ring on her skin from Laguna gripping her wrist. She sat on the bed and let out a sigh. Squall sat next to her. "You going to be okay?" he asked her. She just nodded. He kissed her forehead to comfort her. "I love you."

"Love you too," she said as she put her arms around his neck.

"Do you want to stay up here for a while?"

"Sure. I'll come down in a little bit. I'm sorry, Squall."

"Don't be sorry. It's not your fault. It'd my fucking dad's fault. It's my fault. I know I shouldn't have invited him. Bastard. He's never coming here again… Well, anyway, you stay here and when you feel better you can come back down." She didn't go back downstairs though. She just didn't feel up to it.

The next time they will saw each other was at Fujin's Christmas party. Technically it was Quistis's party because it was at her house. Rinoa left Julie with her mom for the day. Squall was happy to have a break from the kid. She was spending the night at Rinoa's parents house until tomorrow in the afternoon. Rinoa and Squall were the first ones there. Quistis hugged them both in a friendly manner. "Sorry we didn't bring anything," Rinoa said.

Quistis said, "No, no. It's okay. You weren't supposed to bring anything. How are you doing?"

"Good. How about you?"

"Good, really good. Except Selphie still wont tell me who likes me. I know Edea said to be patient but I can't honestly say I'm a patient person."

"I'm sure you'll find out soon."

"I hope so. I mean, I want to find out who it is but at the same time, I don't. You know what I mean?" Rinoa nodded. "I'm kind of afraid it'll turn out to be some retard that I hate. Anyway, I'll quit complaining now."

"When is everyone else coming?" Squall asked.

"Whenever they get here. I didn't set a specific time but my guess is that they will be coming soon. Shouldn't take too long for Zell and Selphie to get here." It only took them a half hour to arrive. Selphie showed up first with Irvine.

"Sorry," Selphie said. "Mom made me eat something before I left. Then I waited for one of my mom's friends to come over and stay with her. She's still kind of afraid that Rick will come back. I don't blame her. I get scared sometimes too."

"If you ever need anything, let me know," Rinoa said.

"No, no, we're fine but thank you."

"Well keep that in mind. Just incase." Zell came only a few minutes after Selphie arrived. He greeted Squall with a handshake and Quistis with a hug. For the other two he simply said, "Hello." While they waited for Fujin and Rajin to show up, Quistis asked them if they wanted to play a game.

"What kind of game?" Selphie asked.

Quistis shrugged and said, "What kind of game do you want to play? It doesn't matter to me."

"Do you have anything to drink?" Squall asked. "Sorry but I'm really thirsty."

"No it's okay. Help yourself." Zell followed him to the kitchen.

Zell said, "You see anything good? Wait. How 'bout this?" He grabbed a bottle from the back of the fridge. "Hm, white wine. This stuff is good. I wonder if it's okay to have some."

Squall said, "Oh, well I don't-"

"Hey Quistis? Can we have a little bit of the white wine that's in here?"

"Sure," she said. "Not too much. I bought it so everyone could have a little. Make sure there's enough for later."

"We wont have that much." Zell took down two cups from the cupboard.

"Only a tiny bit for me please," Squall said. Zell only poured enough in to cover the bottom of the glass. "Thank you." He drank it quickly so the taste wouldn't linger in his mouth. If it did, he was afraid he might want more of it. He set the glass down and went back to the living room where the others were. He walked up behind Rinoa and put his arms around her. She leaned her head back against his neck. Selphie and Quistis were discussing an incident that occurred in gym class.

Irvine said, "So, Squall have you heard from either of your parents since Julie's birthday party?"

"My mom calls once a month but other than that no. I prefer not to see my dad anyway. He's a selfish bastard among other things. How are things going for you?"

"Good." His voice got lower and Squall had to lean in to hear. "I have a surprise planned for Selphie. Getting it all together was tough. Cost me quite a bit of money. Don't mention any of that to her."

Squall nodded then said, "Do you know about the situation with her mom?"

"Yeah. She asked me to stay with them a while. My parents are trying to think of another way to deal with it. I'm more than willing to go but my parents…"

"I get what they're doing though. They're just worried about your safety is all."

"Yeah I know." Fujin and Rajin arrived a little later.

Quistis said, "Is everybody here now? Good. Well, should we sit around and talk for a while then play a game? Or play a game first then talk?"

"Game," Fujin sang humorously.

"I have the perfect game. It's just for fun and we're not going to play it for too long so no one freak out." She walked into the kitchen and came back with enough shot glasses for everyone.

"Holy shit. Drink much?"

"They're not mine! They belong to my parents." She went back again coming back this time with the wine bottle from the fridge. "We're going to play the drinking game." Rinoa bit her lip when this was said. "And this is how you play," Quistis continued, "one person will tell us two different stories. One will be a lie and one will be the truth. Everyone has to guess which one is the lie. Anyone who gets it wrong will have to take a shot. We'll probably just go around the circle once then stop so don't expect to get wasted. No one's going to be puking on my carpet." Rinoa and Squall were the only ones that didn't even crack a smile. "Who'd like to go first or should I?"

"I'll do it," Selphie volunteered.

"Okay. Do you need a moment?"

"Nah I think I got it. First one, my mom is thinking about going to college to get a better job. Second thing, I'll be going to college after I graduate."

"I'm going to guess the first one is false."

Zell, who was sitting next to Quistis, said, "The first one."

"First one," Rinoa and Squall both agreed.

"I'll go with the second statement," Irvine said.

"Whatever Rajin says is my answer too," Fujin said.

Rajin waited a moment before answering, "I'm guessing the second one too, you know?"

"Second one's fake," Selphie finally told everyone. "Quistis, Zell, Squall, and Rinoa have to take a shot."

"That was fake?" Rinoa asked as Quistis poured the drinks.

"Yeah. I'm not going right away. I'm going to wait a few years, save up some money. Mom's thinking about going though. She hasn't made a decision yet."

"I don't want to take a shot."

Quistis handed the tiny glass to Rinoa as she said, "It isn't that bad. A little bit won't kill you." Rinoa sighed and took the glass. After she gulped the liquid down, her tongue came out in disgust of its taste. No one else seemed bothered by it (with the exception of those that didn't have any). "My turn," Quistis said. "Okay, number one: I'm still a virgin. And my dad is going to take my family on a trip to Europe."

Fujin said, "Okay before I guess, I have to ask a question. What do you mean by 'my family' exactly?"

"My family meaning the people that live in our house. No tricks here, I promise."

Squall went ahead and said, "I'm going to say the first one is false."

Rajin answered next, "The second one, you know?"

"I'm going with his answer," Fujin responded.

"First one," Irvine said.

"Second one," Zell said.

Selphie sighed, "First one."

Rinoa threw in, "Second one's false."

"Glad so many of you have faith in me," Quistis said sarcastically. "Squall, Irvine, and Selphie take a drink."

"Hmm," Zell though out loud as the three downed their drinks. By the time everyone was ready, so was he. "I have good ones. Here we go. My real mom died from cancer or I was contacted by a sibling from that family."

"That is tough. I don't know much about you," Selphie admitted.

"I'll take a guess," Squall volunteered. "I'm guessing the second one is false."

"I'll go with that too."

Rajin said, "The second one, you know?"

Fujin agreed, "I'll go with his answer."

"Okay, you have to choose some answers for yourself," Quistis told her. "Anyway, I pick umm… The… first one's false… Yeah."

"I'm picking the… first one," Irvine said.

"Same here," Rinoa added.

"Okay," Zell said. "The first one's false. Rinoa, Quistis, and Irvine don't have to take a shot." While the drinks were being poured he told them, "I don't know if my mom's alive or not but apparently I have an older sister. She called me last week. She's going to call me again to set up a day we can get together."

"That's nice. I'm happy for you, Zell."

"Thanks."

Quistis said, "It's your turn, Rinoa."

"Oh no. I think I'll pass," she answered automatically.

"Nope you have to do something. Everyone gets a turn."

"Well don't force her," Fujin said. "It's no fun when you make people play. Maybe she can't think of a good one."

"I, uh, have one but I'm afraid to say it," Rinoa told her.

"Okay. Let's move onto Squall then." Concerned brown eyes scan Rinoa's face to see what's wrong. An unconvincing smile spreads across her face to tell Selphie that everything is okay. Selphie's head cocks to the side in question. A sigh escapes Rinoa's lips because she knows she can't fool her friend.

"Here we go," Squall said, interrupting their silent communication as he rubbed his hands together. "First one, I was thinking about having another kid or my dad put me in the trunk of his car once."

"First one," Zell and Rinoa said simultaneously.

"Second's the lie," Quistis said. "I don't buy that." Fujin agreed with her.

Selphie said, "I'm following Rinoa on this one."

"First one," Rajin said, "Can't imagine you wanting another kid, you know?"

Irvine said, "First one."

"Quistis and Fujin take a shot," Squall told them. "I thought that one would be easy…"

"It's my turn now isn't it? Give me a minute to think. Shouldn't be too hard to fool you guys since you don't know me very well." After a moment of thinking Irvine continued, "Number one, my parents have been divorced and remarried to each other more than twice… Number two, their first divorce was because the second child they were expecting was stillborn."

"This one's hard," Quistis said.

"No kidding," Fujin agreed. "Good job stumping us. Hmm…"

Rinoa said, "I'm going to guess that number… one is false."

"I'll go with that."

"Me too," Quistis said.

Zell replied, "Not me, I'm guessing the second one. Doesn't seem like something you'd get divorced over."

"I can think of a few people who'd do that, you know?" Rajin said. "First one's false, you know?"

"I'll go with his answer," Squall said automatically.

Selphie said, "The second is false."

"Everyone but Selphie and Zell take a shot," Irvine told them. "Made that one hard didn't I? Number two is false because that was why they got their second divorce, not their first."

"How many times have they been divorced?"

"Three or four."

"That has to suck," Rinoa commented.

"Got used to it and started expecting it after a while actually."

"Ugh, this stuff is gross. Are we almost done with this game?"

"Yeah," Fujin said. "It's my turn now." She rubbed her hands together before getting started. "Number one, my dad has been trying to contact me. Number two, my mom is going to get remarried."

"Hmm… Second one's false," Quistis guessed.

"Second," Squall said.

Rajin said, "Number two, you know?" Zell went along with that answer too.

"I'm going to be different and say number one is false," Selphie said.

"I'll follow Selphie," Irvine said.

"Not me," Rinoa said. "I'm going to go with Rajin on this. Number two is false."

Fujin said, "Selphie and Irvine, you know what to do. It's Rajin's turn now."

"I want to pass, you know? Can't think of a good one, you know?" Rajin said.

Quistis gave in, "Okay fine. We can split the rest of the bottle. Who wants some?" Rinoa and Selphie were the only ones who didn't want any. They strayed off into another room.

"So," Selphie started in a low voice, "What's wrong?"

"I don't know exactly. Things just feel like they're going to get bad," Rinoa told her friend.

"What'd you do for your birthday?"

"Nothing yet. He was going to take me somewhere after Christmas. We've been low on money. He wants to pay for it himself instead of taking money from my parents. I'm proud of him for that though." A slight smile crawled across Rinoa's face. It disappeared as quickly as it came however.

"If you ever need anything, tell me. Okay? I'd be more than happy to help you out." The two girls embraced one another before rejoining the others. No one but Selphie seemed to notice the lack of participation from Rinoa with everyone else. She had her gaze focused on Squall. He seemed more bubbly than usual. Selphie assumed that was from all the alcohol he had (although she didn't really know how much he had). Rinoa turned the wedding ring around her finger as she watched everyone.

Quistis said after a while, "We have something for you, Rinoa. Here. Hope you like it." A small box was put in Rinoa's hands. It was tied up with a red ribbon, which made it look sort of fancy. In the box, neatly laid out, was a silver locket. The design inscribed on it was of an angel. "Open it up." Carefully as not to break it, Rinoa opened it up to see two pictures already inside: one of her friends and the other of Squall holding Julie.

"Thanks," Rinoa said. "It's beautiful. You guys didn't have to get me anything."

"We wanted to," Quistis told her. Rinoa made sure to hug everyone before they left.