A/N: Thank you for your reviews ... I know I am a little later to update than usual, but it's been really chaotic lately ... thank you for your support, I really appreciate. I'm pretty sure the story is going to go to forty chapters ... is that too long? If it is, just say so and I will try to end it nicely in a short manner... To whomever was wondering - I'm glad you mentioned Rinoa's being a sorceress, because it is in fact coming up in the next chapter ... or something to do with it, anyway. And to those who are getting sick of plot twists - I am so sorry, I didn't notice it was getting annoying ... the rollercoaster will go down soon... In the mean time, enjoy this chapter...

Lost Memories of my Love

Chapter 32 – The Promise

Quistis sat in her office, typing up a report for Squall. But she had trouble thinking - what Squall said at the party really distracted her. She and Irvine were now on the same boat, worrying about Squall's wellbeing, because the Squall they thought they knew was somebody completely new.

There was a knock at Quistis' door that snapped Quistis out of her thinking.

"Come in," she called.

The door swung open and Ashleigh walked in. "Quisty, have you seen Squall?"

Quistis looked up at Ashleigh in amazement. After the events of last night … she can still look for Squall in such a happy mood?

"Uh … no, I haven't," said Quistis, shaking her head.

Ashleigh frowned. "I've been looking all over for him since this morning…"

"Oh, sorry … I haven't seen him," said Quistis. She bit her bottom lip nervously and took off her glasses. "Hey Ashleigh, why don't you have a seat?"

Ashleigh was about to leave, but turned around when Quistis requested her to stay. "Oh … uh, but I've got more important things to do…"

Quistis decided to ignore the last comment. "I just want to talk to you. You know, out of work talk. Girl stuff…"

Ashleigh stared at Quistis, basically because she always thought Quistis to be the serious type. But her shock disappeared as she sat down in glee. Any chance to gossip was a good one … everyone at the office was so damn serious about their work that they had no time to have a normal conversation.

"So, what's new, Quisty?" asked Ashleigh.

Quistis closed her laptop and leaned back in her chair. "Same old. That was a great party you threw last night."

Ashleigh smiled sweetly. "Well, naturally … but some things didn't go as expected…"

That's for sure… "Yeah … Squall can be really unpredictable sometimes…"

Ashleigh threw her hands in the air in frustration. "Tell me about it! I can't believe he asked Rin – I mean, Sierra … to marry him."

Quistis nodded. "Yeah … well I'm not surprised."

"Oh?" said Ashleigh, raising an eyebrow. "Are you meaning to say that you expected Squall to do that?"

Quistis shrugged. "She does look a lot like Rinoa…"

"But that's just in looks," said Ashleigh edgily, "I bet she's nothing like Rinoa."

Quistis was well aware that Rinoa disliked Ashleigh very much, judging from her letters. She still hadn't told the truth to Squall. Somehow, she felt that she should have … that Squall deserved a right to know how Rinoa was feeling. But then again, she vowed to Rinoa that she would never tell him. But then again, Rinoa vowed that she would tell Squall herself … and that never happened. But Quistis still felt in her heart that it was right to keep her friend's secret, even if she was dead…

"Actually, she's a lot like Rinoa," said Quistis shortly.

"Oh?" What's she trying to imply? "Well, she can't be Rinoa. Rinoa's dead."

Quistis looked a little taken aback, but shook it aside. "Hmm. I suppose so."

There was an awkward silence as Ashleigh had butterflies in her stomach. Quistis simply looked at Ashleigh with a hint of suspicion.

"May I ask you a personal question, Ashleigh?" asked Quistis.

What the…? Where'd this come from? "Um … sure, I guess…"

Quistis put her elbows on the desk and leaned forward in interest. "You saw what happened last night, right? You know, Squall's … unexpected behaviour, and whatnot."

"Yes," said Ashleigh slowly.

"My question is," said Quistis, "Why, Ashleigh? After something so clear as day … you can still marry him?"

"What are you implying?" asked Ashleigh sharply.

"Well, he said it … in front of hundreds of people … that he loved Sierra. Obviously that means something, doesn't it? How can you marry him, knowing that?"

Ashleigh simply stared at Quistis in bewilderment. Then she smiled slyly. "He was just having a mood swing. You said so yourself, Squall is so unpredictable. I mean, I can understand that he can 'love' Sierra, but I can't blame him … she looks so much like Rinoa. But that's just a phase. He said so himself that he loved me after that, that he was being stupid. So obviously … he was just unsure about himself, and did something stupid in front of a lot of people…"

Quistis found Ashleigh's answer to be a very bad one. "Ashleigh, I don't mean to interfere … but I think you're blindly accepting his proposal. He loves another woman … can't you see that? If you really loved him, you would—"

"Tsk, Quistis," said Ashleigh, "Please don't tell me what I would do if I loved him. Because I do love him. And maybe sometimes it's hard for Squall to express his love for me, but he told me he loved me last night … and that's enough for me."

"But—"

"Surely, you know how it feels, Quistis?" said Ashleigh, shaking her head, "You, out of all people."

Quistis's mouth hung open, but she quickly collected herself. "I … I don't know what you mean."

"Oh please," said Ashleigh, "You were once deeply in love with Squall, no?"

Quistis flushed a bright red colour, not knowing how Ashleigh knew that. "That … that was a very long time ago."

"But still, you did love him," said Ashleigh, "And even if he acted as if he didn't love you, even if he was so cold to you and acted distant from you … if out of the blue, he told you he loved you … wouldn't you believe him?"

"N-No, I wouldn't," said Quistis. "Because … if he loved me then he would show it…"

"All right," said Ashleigh, "So you don't believe him. I doubt you wouldn't but I bet you would still take it to heart. If he asked you to marry him, would you do it? Keeping in mind that you are in love with him…"

I guess I would marry him if he asked me. But I'd be just as bad as Ashleigh, accepting a proposal blindly. But love makes you blind … but Ashleigh seems to know that she's doing something like this. She's not accepting it blindly, she knows it's wrong but she's still accepting anyway…

"I rest my case," said Ashleigh when she was met with silence. She got up and walked out of Quistis' office, leaving Quistis staring at her closed door in shock.


Rinoa got home from work that afternoon and was greeted with a huge hug from Seifer's great muscular arms. Baffled, she laughed and put her arms back around Seifer, smiling into his shoulder.

"Oh, that's nice," said Rinoa, letting go of Seifer. "Why do you look so sad?"

Seifer smiled weakly at her. "Hey Sierra. Well, the reason why I look so sad is ... I have to go."

Seifer's reply threw Rinoa completely off guard."What?" exclaimed Rinoa in shock, "Why? Y-You can't…!"

"I'm sorry," said Seifer, "But I have to. Obviously these Esthar folks don't like me much." That, and Ashleigh is getting on my nerves, he thought.

"So what? There was a misunderstanding," said Rinoa, "It's nothing, I'm sure."

Oh it's a lot more than nothing. "I don't want to have to get your friend to bust me out of there all the time."

"All the time?" cried Rinoa, panic rising in her voice. It was only once! And I didn't even invite him!"

Seifer shook his head. "I can't, Sierra. And I have to sort things out with my sister … I don't know what got us into this mess. And I think they're expecting me back at work soon…"

"Marcel! What about the grand opening…?" Rinoa narrowed her eyes at him. "You can't just abandon that!"

"Those guys are way outta my league," said Seifer, "I'm never gonna fit in with them. They'd probably laugh. I mean, look at me … and then look at you."

"That's the lamest excuse ever."

Seifer laughed weakly, agreeing silently. "Well … it's how I feel."

"But what about how I feel? What about … us? We're … engaged. We haven't even planned out the wedding and our future and … we haven't even had time to think about us…"

"Don't worry ... I love ... you," said Seifer, "But nothing is going to come between us. You know what? Why don't you quit this job and come back to Trabia with me…?"

"I-I can't do that," said Rinoa, shaking her head, "I haven't been paid yet…" Disappointment pulled at Rinoa's mixed emotions as she began to lay out the pieces of the situation.

Damn, this is gonna be harder than I thought. Stupid me, why did I even let her come here? Things would've been much easier…

"Then … we'll just have to separate for now," said Seifer, "Come back to Trabia when you're ready, all right? Whenever … you're ready … I'll be there." He picked up his bag and swung his gunblade over his shoulder.

Rinoa stared at him in complete shock. This was completely uncalled for, she hadn't even dreamt that Seifer would just leave her without any real explanation. "N-No, you can't go! Marcel…! Please, don't go!"

"I'll see you soon, Sierra," said Seifer. He kissed Rinoa on the cheek and walked out the door, ignoring Rinoa's cries for him. Now that he thought about it, her cries were like arrows through his heart. But the real reason he was leaving was because things were too much for him. With Ashleigh around, he wasn't safe. If she ever did expose him, then at least he would be away from Rinoa's hatred … at least he wouldn't have to deal with the guilt. If she ever found out the truth, then she would probably never want to speak to him again. He even admitted it himself - this was the coward's way out, running from his problems. Usually he was not one to back out of a fight, but when it came to Rinoa, he had a completely different view on life. Losing his life, losing money, losing his reputation - as much as he despised losing, he couldn't stand losing something like Rinoa.

If he went back to Trabia and she found out, then she would never speak to him again… but if she came looking for him, then maybe….

Rinoa watched Seifer disappear as her eyes filled with tears. What about us? What happened to what we had...? She wanted to run after the blonde gunbladist, but her feet would not move. She tried calling for him again, but she found no voice. What was happening to her...?


For the rest of the week, Rinoa didn't bother going to work. She stayed at home and lounged about in bed, not caring anymore. She was still upset with Seifer's surprise departure that she just couldn't be bothered with anything. All she wanted was to be happy again. Somehow, she felt happy with Seifer around. But now he was gone, and all she could do was sulk.

Min would enter her room and ask her friend what was wrong, but there was never a response from Rinoa. So Min would slip out of the room quietly and head for work by herself. At work, she told everyone that Rinoa was feeling ill and couldn't come. Squall didn't even ask why, nor was he curious. In fact, he suddenly had the urge to have as little to do with Rinoa as possible since the night of the engagement party.

At last, it was the night of the Grand Garden Opening and Rinoa still wouldn't get out of bed. Min entered her room and made an attempt for her to get out of the house, or at least the room. It was not like Rinoa to be depressed and mope around at all.

"Sierra…?" Min sat on Rinoa's bed. She was also meaning to talk to her about the whole deal with Squall declaring his love for her, but realised that this wasn't the time. She realised that Seifer had left and was positive that his departure was part of the reason why she was so depressed.

Rinoa groaned. "What, Min…?"

Well, that's a start … I finally got a response, thought Min. "It's the Grand Opening tonight."

"So…?"

"So, aren't you going?" asked Min gently.

Rinoa turned around, looking at her friend. Her eyes were half-closed, bloodshot red, and she looked like a dying cat. Her skin was paler than usual and she felt cold. It was obvious that she hadn't been eating, either. "Why should I go…?"

"Because everyone misses you," said Min quietly.

"Humph … screw everyone," muttered Rinoa. "I don't want to go. I have no one to go with."

"You can go with me," offered Min.

"I'll be the third wheel …everyone has someone to go with," groaned Rinoa, "And I don't know many people. You have Zell, Leonheart has Ashleigh…" At the thought of Ashleigh, Rinoa groaned some more and buried her face under the bedsheets again.

Min looked at Rinoa in shock. Obviously she had forgotten about the other night at the party. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"…What?" came Rinoa's muffled response.

"President Leonheart … he said he loved you the other night. Remember?"

Those mere words almost made Rinoa have a heart attack. She was suddenly wide-awake, and even though she was under the covers, she heard Min's voice loud and clear. She felt very strange. What was this feeling? No … it couldn't have been a real feeling. There was just no sense to it. But Min's statement left Rinoa tingling on the inside.

The brunette sat up and stared at her friend. Min was already dressed to go to the party. She glanced at the clock on her wall and noticed that the opening started an hour ago. "You're such a liar," hissed Rinoa.

Min shook her head. "I swear he did! If you don't believe me, why don't you come to the opening tonight and ask him yourself?"

Her friend's last statement killed her ploy. "…Nice try, Min." Rinoa fell back on her pillow and faced the wall. "I'm not going. You go without me. You're already an hour late."

"I don't mind," said Min, "C'mon Sierra, it won't be any fun without you. And President Leonheart really did say he loved you…"

"Just go, Min." Rinoa's tone was petty and sharper than she had intended. But it was expected ... Rinoa's temper was easily tested, and something as serious as accusing Squall of such a thing was not something she wanted to take lightly.

Min sighed in exasperation. "All right. Have fun wasting yourself here." She got up and left the room, shutting the door and switcing off the ceiling light, leaving Rinoa to think.

Leonheart said he loved me. That's really funny. I mean, this is Leonheart … he's going to marry that wench Ashleigh. I don't even know what he sees in her. He couldn't have said he loved me … because he doesn't. And how would Min know that he said something like that? How can she know and I not know? That's just stupid. She's making it up. And what about Marcel? Leonheart knows I'm with him … as if he's dumb enough to say he loves me when I'm engaged to Marcel. Oh, but he doesn't know that I'm engaged…

Soon after her little musings, Rinoa's eyes fell and darkness overcame her...

'Rinoa. Hey ... Rinoa.'

Rinoa looked up and saw Squall. They were in a field of brightly coloured flowers, outside the orphanage. It was exceptionally breezy out there; she felt a shiver crawl up her spine. She looked around and found that she and Squall were the only people in the garden. Squall was standing rather close to her, his hand on the back of his neck in a rather uncomfortable position, his piercing eyes wandering around.

'I'm not Rinoa.'

Squall ignored her. 'I don't know … by saying this, do you think I'm weak?'

'Hey, Leonheart. I'm Sierra! Remember?'

'…Maybe I'm not at that age to know it yet … but I've never felt this way about anyone before…'

'What are you talking about!' Rinoa suddenly felt frightened. Her heart was racing. What was happening? Squall's choice of words made her nervous, and the way he was standing was no help either. The feeling felt so real … and somehow it felt so familiar…

'I don't know what it is … is it love?'

'What are you saying…' sobbed Rinoa, shaking her head. She didn't want him to love her. She was in love with ... with... Her mind drifted. Who was she in love with again? She felt the urge to throw her arms around him and just cry, but instead she lunged at the man and grabbed him by the shoulders through stifled cries, shaking him, as if trying to shake a stirring demon inside of him out.

Squall seemed to be taking no notice of her as she continued to shake him. He continued on normally as if nothing was happening. 'If it is … I just want you to know that … I love you…'

Suddenly, the field of flowers disappeared and the scene of the engagement party took place. Rinoa was bolted in her chair, staring up at Squall in tears. She shook her head violently at what she saw … his hand was held out to her with a tiny gold ring…

'Marry me … Sierra…?'

She screamed through sobs, her voice echoing in her mind. It wasn't a scream of terror; it was a scream of anguish and sadness…

Rinoa woke up with a start, her breathing shallow and uneven. She suddenly had a headache. She rubbed her temples with her hands and scrunched her nose. "What the hell was that…?" she muttered under breath. It's just a dream, she told herself. He never asked you to marry him at the engagement party. He didn't. It's just a stupid dream. She got out of bed and walked to her dressing table, staring at herself in the mirror. But I was too distracted … when me made his speech. And then Marcel came…

A strange feeling suddenly overcame her again. It was an emotion mixed with fear, panic, and maybe even excitement, she wasn't too sure. But words couldn't explain what she felt. But there was a heavy feeling on her shoulders. She wanted to find out … did that dream mean anything? Did he really ask her to marry him? Did he really love her? She had to sort things out with him. She didn't want to marry him, because she was marrying Seifer.

Please don't love me, Leonheart ... I don't want you to love me ... I don't want yo to get hurt ... you've been hurt so much already... It was just getting too complicated for her.

Min sure did convince me to come tonight, thought Rinoa sardonically.Rinoa got dressed into her royal blue formal dress but didn't bother taking her time to look all spruced up. The only thing on her mind was getting things straightened out with Squall. She kept wondering how to approach him. She couldn't just go up to him and say 'Hey Leonheart, did you ask me to marry me the other night? Because I don't want to marry you because I'm marrying someone else, and I don't love you, so goodbye.' She knew Squall's feelings were more delicate than that, and he was a good friend of hers...

As Rinoa left the apartment, she snuggled up closer to her coat, as the night air was colder than she expected. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was already four hours into the party. She ran across the street in a hurry, not knowing whether the opening had finished or not. But she ran across the street in such a hurry that she didn't notice the car that came speeding towards her.

As the car was about to hit her, Rinoa stopped and jumped back in fright, more powerfully than intended, only to be met with the cold, hard concrete as she hit the ground. She laid there, her heart pounding like a jackhammer. Suddenly, her mind blanked out and a flashing thought bolted through her head.

A car came speeding towards her and knocked her far across the road. There was blood all over the windscreen and she was lying in a pool of crimson blood.

The image jolted through her mind like an electric shock. She stared at the car before her, because this car was the exact same car as the one that just came to her mind. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she was too stunned to move or speak.

The front door of the car opened, and Ashleigh came out and rushed towards Rinoa.

"S-Sierra!" she said in panic, fear almost, "Are … are you okay?"

Rinoa slowly came to her senses and stood up, her elbows slightly grazed. She moved off the road and stared at Ashleigh, speechless. What just happened? She wasn't hurt, but a very disturbing thing came to her mind when that car came speeding towards her. What was it? A hallucination?

"Sierra…?" Ashleigh said quietly. She backed away slowly, wondering what was going through Rinoa's head. "The … the party ended half an hour ago…"

Rinoa simply stared at Ashleigh. She tried to speak, but she couldn't find her voice. Ashleigh, not knowing what else to do, got back into her car and drove away in fear.

What the heck was that? Rinoa took a deep breath. A … memory…? From my life before the fire?

Confused, Rinoa didn't know what to do. She pushed aside her plans to go see Squall, and wanted to know what this strange new feeling she felt was. A memory… She tried to remember the last thing she had, the only thing from her past. The rings on the chain. She couldn't remember what they looked like. She had told herself to let go of the past that night, and was trying to tell herself again then and there. But the past was coming back to her. She needed that key to her past. But she threw those rings away … she had to find them…

Rinoa ran back to the park that she and Seifer went to after the dinner with Ashleigh and Squall. As she ran, more images flooded into her mind.

She was running as she could. She was happy. There were people on the bridge waiting for her. They waved and smiled at her. Squall turned around. He smiled at her. When the people turned around, she ran across the road. CRASH. A car sped towards her and ran her down…

Rinoa held her head and blinked long and hard. Hallucinations … were they hallucinations? She didn't know. The image of Squall turning around, smiling and waving at her kept replaying itself. She couldn't push it out of her mind.

She finally reached the park. It was a dark night, but the brightness of the full moon was her light. The park was huge and ever-going. Where could the chain have gone? Was it still there? Did someone pick it up and keep it for themselves? Rinoa ignored the constant questions buzzing inside her ear and fell to the ground, feeling around the thick grass and dirt for the pieces of metal. She crawled around, almost covering the whole park. But she couldn't find it. She couldn't find the silver chain and rings that she blindly threw away.

She sighed. Oh cruel fate… Another image jolted into her mind suddenly.

She crawled around the garden, looking for something. Finally it caught her eye. A piece of paper. She went over to it and grabbed it, but behind it, under the bushes, was a cream white envelope. She picked it up and it read 'To Rinoa Heartilly'.

Rinoa shook the thoughts out of her head, but for some reason decided to follow what that flashing image told her. She looked under the closest bush, and to her shear amazement, silver glimmered up at her in the moonlight. Heart racing, she grabbed the chain. The cold metal against her skin sent shivers throughout her body. The rings dangled on the chain, dancing with the wind.

She looked at the wedding ring.

'I'm going to give this to you, okay Rinoa honey? Keep it safe for me…'

"M-Mom…" Julia's face flashed through her mind. It made Rinoa's heart melt. Her smile, her voice … it was her mother

She looked at Griever. More images and voices began to run through her mind.

'I've always wanted a ring like this!'

'I have something for you.'

Somebody opened the catch on her chain and slid the ring on it. They looked back at her. Squall's electric blue eyes stared right into hers.

'You won't forget about me, right?'

She held a tape recorder to her mouth and whispered, 'I love you, Squall…'

'I'll be waiting for you…'

'Love will always return.'

'Rinoa…' Caraway's voice…

'Rinoa…?' Quistis' voice…

'Rinoa!' Sera's voice…

'I love you … Rinoa.' Squall's voice.

Rinoa fell to her knees and cried. Her tears were loud and piercing through the forlorn shadows of the night. She hadn't cried for so long. She forgot what it was like to cry, to have real emotion flowing out of her eyes. She forgot what it was like to feel so much emotion boiling within her. Countless thoughts ran through her head. She thought she had forgotten them all. But now she remembered.

She remembered...



Squall stood in the field of flowers outside the orphanage. He hadn't stood there in what seemed like an eternity. He stood there, letting the wind wisp past him. He was a lone figure in the night, very much like he usually was. The garden was dull; it was too dark to see the colours of the beautiful flowers that were there all year round.

He remembered after Rinoa's supposed death, he waited in this garden. Everyday.He waited here on end, waiting for Rinoa to come. But she never did. He would wait some more ... but she never came. Eventually he stopped coming. Eventually he stopped believing. He stopped believing that she would come back, until he was sure she would never come back.

Then why was he waiting there then? He didn't know what it was, but he had the urge to feel that feeling once again. That feeling of sorrow, but of hope as well. That feeling of hope that he felt so much when he waited here for his love to return. Love will always return. But he stopped believing his own words as well. He just stopped believing in anything altogether.

But that night, when he came there … he didn't feel any hope. All he felt was sorrow. Sadness. He wanted to scream out across the fields in pain, to let the whole world hear all the anguish he kept bottled up inside of himself for so long. He wanted to just collapse and die, like when he got lost in time. But Rinoa saved him that time. Rinoa wasn't there to save him this time. He was alone. There was no hope for him.

"S-Squall…?"

Squall shrugged the voice off. He thought it was his mind playing tricks on him. For that sweet voice, that sweet angelic voice that called his name was Rinoa's very voice. That couldn't have been possible. He thought he was going crazy. But then he heard it again.

"Squall…"

He turned around, and to his surprise, he actually found someone standing there. It was Rinoa, and he was surprised even more. Since their meeting up again, she never once called him Squall - she always called him 'Leonheart', and the calling of his first name from her was quite new to him.

"Sierra … how did you get here…?" asked Squall quietly.

"I walked here…" Rinoa stared at Squall. She felt like falling apart inside. His face was so heavenly. Despite the night's darkness, his face shone like a radiance that she had never seen before. She felt like crying to him, falling on him. An hour ago, she felt so much differently. She didn't want Squall to love her, but a new feeling was emerging -- she wanted so much for him to love her. All she wanted was his love...

"It's really late, you know…"

Rinoa didn't say anything. The look on her face was as clear as day. She was close to tears, her bottom lip trembling.

"Is there something wrong, Sierra…?"

Rinoa couldn't take it anymore. The name Sierra was too foreign to her now. It meant nothing to her. "I'm not Sierra."

"What? Are you okay? How you're here?"

Rinoa let out a loud sob. "B-Because … we promised, Squall! We promised we would meet here … we promised we would see shooting stars together, and be together ... right here..."

Squall stared at her. What's she talking about? These words ... they were Rinoa's words. Is she messing with my head…? "Sierra…"

"I'm not Sierra!" she cried. "I'm … I'm R-Rinoa…" At her words, she fell onto Squall and began to cry hysterically. She buried her face deep within his chest, letting the hot tears stream down her face, dampening his jacket. She suddenly remembered what it was like to hold him … to hold Squall … his warmth, the gentleness that lay so deep inside of him, the beating of his heart, the feel of his voice…

Squall, not knowing what to do, was flabbergasted. His posture stayed rigid - he did not hold her back, because it was like he was paralysed. Her very words made his emotions stir, made him freeze. But he was in so much shock. He wasn't sure if this was a dream or not. Because he's had this dream before … he's always dreamt that he and Rinoa would meet in the flower field, and they would hold each other forever.

"You … you can't be Rinoa," hissed Squall, "Rinoa's … Rinoa's dead…"

Rinoa continued to cry, holding onto Squall as if holding onto dear life. She couldn't find her voice to speak.

"And … and besides … you can't … because … I've already fallen in love … with you…" Squall squeezed his eyes shut, not believing the words he had just uttered. He felt tears well up in his eyes, but did not open them, for a stream of hurrying emotions would flood out if he did… "With … Sierra Hearten…" His voice was croaky and he wavering.

Rinoa let go of Squall and looked up at him, his eyes still shut. He clenched his fists, trying to keep the boiling emotion inside of him from leaking out. Rinoa bit her trembling bottom lip. She lifted her hand, the chain with Griever and Julia's ring hanging from it, her arm shaking.

Squall opened his eyes as he felt Rinoa's warmth leave him. Tears did not come to his eyes, but his vision was hazy. When he could finally focus, to his shock, Rinoa's chain with his Griever and Julia's wedding ring was right in front of him. And it was then that memories came back to him. His heart felt light and from the chain, he looked at Rinoa, tears hiding in her eyes. She was already staring at him with the saddest look.

Squall couldn't find his voice. The sensation inside of him was simply beyond words. "Rin … Rinoa?" His words were filled with emotion and realisation. That was the first time he dared utter her name to her face in so long, with all seriousness.

"Y-Yes, Squall. It's me. It's Rinoa." She actually believed the words coming out of her mouth … all this time, she kept denying that she was Rinoa Heartilly. But all the memories, all the feelings stirring inside her … they made her believe who she was. She stared into Squall's electric blue eyes, and beyond them, she could finally see something besides pits of blackness. She could see a helpless little boy without anybody to love.

"R-Rin…" Squall couldn't even finish his sentence. He couldn't control himself. He finally believed it. His hope, his words, everything he ever told himself. Everyone thought he was crazy, but he was right. Rinoa did come back to him in the garden. Love did return. And he was happy. At long last, he let emotion get the best of him. He gave into it. But this time it was a feeling of joyful emotion. This was the first time in six years where he was truly happy.

He threw his arms around her and held her tightly. Rinoa held him back, just as tightly. She started laughing weakly, a stifled kind of laugh as tears of joy ran out of her eyes. Squall let his short and small tears of joy out as well. Because they were reunited. They were finally together again. They were finally happy.

And the two of them held each other, shedding tears of joy in the silence, in the darkness of the night in a dull and lifeless garden. But it looked full of colour and radiance at that very second and onwards. In the monotonousness of the open garden, two lone lovers stood out, embracing each other as they cried together.

Their love kept them alive … because they promised.