Title: A Knight, a Lion, and a Little Messenger Girl
Chapter 3: Strange New Feelings
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I still don't own any of the FFVIII Characters, etc.
Enjoy the third installment of this story!
"Do you think she's okay?" asked Zell as he and Squall walked back to the Garden. They had finished their rounds in Timber and were coming back to report what they had done.
Squall looked at Zell for a very brief moment, and then looked in front of him as they entered the Garden. "...Who?" he asked.
"Selphie, man. I mean, she's stuck in Winhill with Seifer. That must be horrible."
Squall shrugged his shoulders slightly, "...She can handle herself." He then thought, 'She's strong, but is she strong enough to spend a day or two with Seifer alone?' He sighed, 'I hope so...'
The two then walked to the elevator. Squall pressed the button for the third floor and the two rode up to tell Quistis their report.
*~*
"Dammit, Selphie...you can't do this. Not now..." Seifer looked towards the tank and saw that his spell was wearing off, "Shit, I need to get her out of here." He put his right hand underneath her knees and his left around her back. He lifted her up quickly and ran as fast as he could out of the small town. He made his way to the train station just outside the town and set Selphie gently down onto the bench. He picked up the phone that was attached to a pole and dialed the number for the headmaster's office. The phone rang, "Pick up, dammit!" he yelled, impatiently.
"This is Ms. Trepe, how can I help you?" Quistis turned away from Squall and Zell as she answered the phone.
"Quistis! I need you to get a room in the infirmary free. I don't care who the hell's in it or what's wrong with them, but kick them out!" Seifer yelled into the phone, looking at Selphie for a moment, who was still unconscious.
"Oh, hello to you, too, Mr. Almasy," she said, but she could tell he wasn't joking and furrowed her eyebrows, "Wait, what exactly is wrong?"
"Just do it! I'll explain when I get there," he yelled louder as the train stopped at the station, "I'll be there in a little while."
He picked Selphie up again and stepped onto the train. He managed to open the door to the SeeD room and entered it, laying Selphie gently onto the bed. He sat down on the couch and sighed, watching her. "Selphie...you know, you're a lot cuter when you're aggravated at me..." He sighed again. He didn't want this to happen to her... It wasn't her fault; it was his. He wasn't looking out for her enough...
*~*
Quistis hung up the phone and looked to Squall and Zell worriedly, "I think you guys are going to have to give me your report later."
"Who was that?" asked Zell curiously.
"That was Seifer. He told me to save a room in the Infirmary..."
Squall and Zell both looked at each other, then back to Quistis, "What do you mean...?" Squall asked, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion.
"I honestly do not know, Squall. But, Seifer sounded pretty worried. I think something happened..."
"No...not to Selphie!" Zell yelled.
Squall crossed his arms and looked at the ground. Quistis sighed softly, "I... hope not, but we will find out when he gets here. Until then, just make sure one of the beds in the Infirmary is not occupied." Zell nodded and quickly ran out of the room to the Infirmary. Squall sighed and followed him out, hoping deep inside that the worst hadn't happened.
*~*
About a couple hours later, Seifer came running into the Garden towards the Infirmary, Selphie unconscious in his arms. Squall, Zell, and Quistis were waiting outside and all of their faces fell. The worst had happened.
Seifer walked passed them quickly, not even noticing that they were there. He nodded to Dr. Kadowaki as he went into the first room, setting Selphie gently down onto the bed. He looked down at her. Still, there was no change. She lay there, almost lifeless. The only thing that showed she was alive was the slow rise and fall of her chest. Seifer sat on the stool next to her bed as Dr. Kadowaki, Squall, Zell, and Quistis packed into the small room.
"What the hell did you do to her!?" Zell asked angrily.
Seifer looked up at him, glaring at him. He was not in the mood to deal with the chicken-wuss' anger management problem. "I didn't do anything to her," he said, rather calmly, although his heart was beating rapidly with worry.
"Then, what happened?" asked Quistis softly.
"Well, we did our rounds in the town, a-and I thought we were done when I heard this loud noise. It was a goddamn Galbadian tank. Naturally, she wanted to fight it..." He looked at Selphie sadly, "So, we went out and fought it. She was kicking its ass pretty well with her thunder magic, but then...it caught on, I guess, so it fired a bomb at her..." He sighed, "I didn't realize what was happening, so I-I couldn't stop it. She flew back really far and when I went to her, she was unconscious."
Squall looked at Seifer hard. He had never seen him so upset about something. He crossed his arms and looked at Selphie as Dr. Kadowaki went to her side to check her heart beat. "She's still alive, but her pulse is weak..." the doctor announced.
Seifer looked at her, "What does that mean? She's going to be okay, right?"
Dr. Kadowaki looked down at Selphie, "At this point, I don't know, Mr. Almasy." She looked at Selphie's stomach, noticing the bad burn from the bomb, "I should get this cleaned up, though." She left the room for a moment, coming back in and began to clean and dress the wound.
Quistis frowned, "I hope she will be alright."
Squall sighed sadly, "...Me, too."
Seifer watched the doctor clean Selphie's wound up as he tapped his foot a little impatiently. He wanted the doctor to tell something more than 'I don't know' because that just wasn't good enough for him.
After a little while of awkward silence, Dr. Kadowaki finished bandaging Selphie's wound and stood up. Everyone looked at her anxiously. "I'm sorry to say to you all that I don't think Selphie will wake up easily. I just don't know when she will awaken...but, the longer it lasts, the less likely it is."
Seifer put his hands on his face, rubbing it for a moment before looking at the unconscious girl. Zell stomped angrily out of the room, while Quistis sighed softly, saying, "Oh dear..."
Squall clenched his fist and hit the wall hard. Everyone gasped, looking over at him, except Seifer who didn't take his eyes off of Selphie. Squall looked at everyone and sighed, looking to the floor.
Dr. Kadowaki sighed as well, looking to everyone, "You can all leave now. There's nothing more you can do." Quistis nodded to her and left the room quietly.
Squall took a few steps closer to Seifer, looking at Selphie with sadness in her eyes. "I can't believe this..." he said softly, mostly to himself.
"Me either," Seifer replied.
"...I can't believe you let this happen to her," said Squall, anger now resonating in his voice.
Seifer slowly turned his head to look at him, anger beginning to surge through him, "I didn't 'let' anything happen to her... We were fighting a battle...you can't always predict—"
"That doesn't matter. You were supposed to protect her," Squall interrupted.
"Why don't you worry less about Selphie and more about that helpless bitch of yours," Seifer narrowed his eyes, knowing he had struck a nerve.
Squall clenched his fists again and fired a punch to Seifer's jaw, then stormed out of the Infirmary to his dorm. He didn't want to leave Selphie alone with Seifer, but he had to get out of there. He couldn't be in the same room with him any longer.
Seifer put a hand to his jaw, which was now throbbing, and slightly smirked, "His punching has improved...that's for sure." If these would have been different circumstances, he would have gladly hunted Squall down and taught him a lesson, but he had more important things to worry about than the pain in his jaw.
He looked back to Selphie and tilted his head. She looked like she was in a deep sleep. She looked so innocent, and she even looked a little cold. He looked around the room and saw a blanket draped over a chair. He stood up and picked it up, then gently placed it over her. He sat back down on the stool and continued to watch her. He sighed, mentally scolding himself again. He can't believe that he didn't see the blow coming...how could he not have been able to protect her? He hated to admit it, but Squall was right. He was supposed to protect her. He looked at her small hand and gently took it into his own. He gently squeezed hers and furrowed his eyebrows, "I'm so sorry, Selphie. You didn't deserve this...I'm sorry..." His laid his head down on the softness of the bed beside Selphie and drifted off to a restless sleep, her hand still seemingly lifeless in his.
*~*
Several hours later, Selphie's hand slightly moved within Seifer's. He gasped slightly from the movement that had taken him out of his sleep abruptly. He opened his eyes and lifted his head to look at Selphie. She gently moved her fingers around his hand ever so slightly and began to shift a little in her bed. Seifer's face lit up as he watched her, "Selphie...?" he asked, his stomach tightening from nervousness. Her eyes opened barely halfway before she made a soft moaning sound. "Selphie?" he repeated.
She blinked her eyes slowly a few times as she tried to bring things back into focus. The first thing coming into focus was Seifer's worried face hovering over hers. An exhausted smile slowly formed on her lips and she tiredly asked, "Did...did we win?"
Seifer's face lit up even more and he smiled down at her as she asked her question. "Kind of..." he replied.
"Okay," she closed her eyes again, wincing a little as she began to feel the pain throughout her body, mostly on her stomach and her head was pounding. "W-what happened?"
Seifer looked at her sadly as he noticed her discomfort, "You got hit pretty hard with a bomb from the tank and it knocked you out. I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up..." he swallowed hard, "I-I was really worried."
She smiled up at him, opening her eyes again, "Oh, well, you should've known that something like that couldn't keep me down forever."
He put his other hand over the top of hers, smiling down at the girl, "You're right. I really should have known that. I'm just glad you're okay, though. You gave us all a big scare."
"Really?" Selphie asked, rather innocently, then furrowed her eyebrows as she noticed the large red mark on his cheek. "What's that from?"
Seifer looked at her confused for a moment, then remembered his little spat with Squall. "That's from Squ—you know, never mind, actually. It's not important," he said to her, hoping she was still too out of it to realize his slip up.
"Oh, okay," she said and yawned, then blushed slightly as she finally realized Seifer was holding onto her hand.
He smirked to himself, almost in disbelief that the girl was still able to get nervous and blush around him after she had been unconscious for many hours. "Do you want me to leave you alone so you can get some sleep?"
She looked thoughtful for a moment, then replied, "Actually...do you think you could take me to my room? I-I think I would sleep a lot better in there." He nodded and let go of her hand, then proceeded to pick her up gently. She leaned her head against his chest, holding onto his shoulder as he began to carry her out of the Infirmary.
"Whoa, whoa, where are you going with her?" Dr. Kadowaki stopped them.
"She's awake and she said she wanted to rest in her room," Seifer told her.
"Oh, alright, well make sure she comes back tomorrow so I can check her wounds and make sure she did not suffer any head trauma." He nodded, then continued to walk out of the Infirmary.
As he carried her down the halls, Selphie had already fallen back asleep. He glanced down at her momentarily, smiling to himself as people around him stared. He gave them death glares as he made his way to Selphie's room, passing Squall on the way, who actually looked up from something that was particularly interesting on the floor to stop him. "What the hell are you doing with her now?" Squall asked in a threatening tone.
"Don't be so loud. She's asleep and I'm taking her to her room because she wants to rest in there instead of the Infirmary," Seifer replied calmly.
"...So, she's awake then. Or was."
Seifer said, "Yeah, she is. She's just resting right now." He pushed past Squall and continued on to Selphie's room, managing to open the door with the small woman in his arms. Squall watched them walk and sighed, walking into his dorm, slamming the door. Seifer shook his head and entered Selphie's room. He gently laid her down on her bed, and covered her up with her blanket. He looked at her for a moment, a small smile on his face, "I'll be a couple doors down the hall in my room. Yell if you need something, okay?"
She mumbled something about skinning a moomba in her sleep and he assumed that meant 'okay'.
Seifer went to her door, taking one last look at her, then exited her room, going back to his own to lie down for a while.
*~*
She awoke a couple hours later to the sound of her stomach growling. She hadn't eaten since the previous day and for Selphie, that was a record. She sat up, vaguely remembering something about Seifer telling her to yell for him if she needed anything. But, she didn't want to cause a ruckus. She also didn't want to wake Seifer up since he had been up with her most of the night to make sure she was all right. A small smile formed on her face at the thought, then she quickly shook it away, slowly getting out of her bed. She crossed over her room to the door and left her room. She slowly made her way down the hall and spotted Squall who was casually leaning against the rail near the entrance to the dorm area. She cautiously approached him and smiled to him, "Hey, Squall," she said, her voice cheery, yet still full of sleepiness.
He looked over at her, his eyes wide from being startled for a moment. He hadn't expected to hear her voice. "...Hey."
"How are you?" she asked, as though it was a normal day.
"I think I should be asking you the same thing..."
"Oh, right," she giggled softly, then winced from the pain in her stomach, "I'm okay. Not totally great cause my stomach still kind of hurts and my head feels like it's really big."
He furrowed his eyebrows, "Shouldn't you be resting, then? Or having your little knight out getting you stuff you need?" Annoyance was clear on his voice.
She raised an eyebrow at him, "You mean Seifer?" Squall nodded. "Oh, well, he went back to his room 'cause he was tired. I don't blame him...he was up with me almost the whole time I was out," she couldn't help but smile again at the thought.
Squall looked at the floor, "I see..."
Selphie tilted her head, looking at him, "What's wrong?"
He glanced at her, "...Nothing. It just seems as though your attitude toward Seifer has changed since you left..."
"Oh," she said, "Well, it kind of has." She hadn't even realized her attitude towards him had changed. It just sort of happened.
"......"
Selphie sighed softly, "I just mean... he took care of me when I was hurt. He just seemed to change...a-and he was nicer and caring towards me."
Squall looked hard at her, "I see. So...you like him now," he said.
Her eyes grew wide, a blush coming into her cheeks, "W-what? I-I never said that!"
He looked away from her, "...Whatever. You're a horrible liar, Selphie."
"What? Y-you actually think I like him like that?"
"It's written all over your face," Squall said, a hint of irritation in his voice.
"Well...s-so what if I do like him!? I...I don't see why you care, anyway!" she said, defensively.
"I don't...I just don't want to see you get hurt," he replied, calmly.
Her brows knitted together, "Why would I get hurt?"
"Forget it. Do what you want. I don't care," he waved his hand dismissively at her and walked past her into his room.
Selphie watched him leave and frowned. She shrugged her shoulders and walked leisurely to the cafeteria, still holding her stomach and seeing that Zell was already there. His eyes widened and he rushed up to her. "Selph! You're awake!"
She smiled sleepily to him, "Hey, Zell."
"Feeling better?"
"Yeah, a little bit. I'm awake, so that's the best part!"
He nodded, "Yeah, I'm glad. We were all really worried."
"So, I've heard," she said to him.
Zell looked around the room, "Where's Seifer? I would think he would be following you around after what happened..."
"Oh, no. He's asleep in his room, I think. I didn't want to bother him," she said, feeling defensive again.
"I really don't think he would mind if you went to wake him up."
She put her hands on her hips, almost forgetting about the pain in her stomach, "What do you mean by that?"
"What I mean is, he likes you, Selphie. Everyone can see it now, especially after whatever happened to you two on your little mission," he stated.
"But...nothing happened between us."
"I don't mean that. I mean when he came back and you were unconscious, he was seriously worried. I had never seen him like that before...it was damn weird."
Selphie looked at Zell thoughtfully, "Oh...I didn't know that."
"Something changed in him when he saw you like that. I think you should talk to him about it."
"There's nothing to talk about, though," she said, narrowing her eyes at him.
Zell laughed slightly, "The fact you're getting all defensive about it just proves my point. You like Seifer! Selphie likes Seifer!"
"Zell! Be quiet! I so don't have the strength to beat you up right now."
He slumped his shoulders slightly, "Alright, fine. But, I'll only stop if you promise me to go talk to Seifer about it."
"But..."
"Selphie likes Seifer! Selphie likes Seifer!" Zell shouted, now drawing a few people to stare at them and laugh.
"Why do you want me to talk to him so badly?" she interrupted.
"Because...I think you might actually be able to change Seifer's assholish ways. Plus, I don't think you're ever going to have a chance with Squall, so I think being with Seifer would be good for you...no matter how much I hate him. Now, go!"
"Okay, fine!" Selphie said, turning to leave. She walked to the exit, glancing back at Zell, sticking her tongue out at him. He pointed to the exit and she sighed, nodding as she left. She made her way back to the dorms and down the hall to Seifer's room.
Selphie raised her fist, taking a deep breath, then knocked softly on the door.
~To be continued...
Okay, hope you liked the 3rd installment of my story! I will get to writing the 4th chapter ASAP! ^_^
Chapter 3: Strange New Feelings
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I still don't own any of the FFVIII Characters, etc.
Enjoy the third installment of this story!
"Do you think she's okay?" asked Zell as he and Squall walked back to the Garden. They had finished their rounds in Timber and were coming back to report what they had done.
Squall looked at Zell for a very brief moment, and then looked in front of him as they entered the Garden. "...Who?" he asked.
"Selphie, man. I mean, she's stuck in Winhill with Seifer. That must be horrible."
Squall shrugged his shoulders slightly, "...She can handle herself." He then thought, 'She's strong, but is she strong enough to spend a day or two with Seifer alone?' He sighed, 'I hope so...'
The two then walked to the elevator. Squall pressed the button for the third floor and the two rode up to tell Quistis their report.
*~*
"Dammit, Selphie...you can't do this. Not now..." Seifer looked towards the tank and saw that his spell was wearing off, "Shit, I need to get her out of here." He put his right hand underneath her knees and his left around her back. He lifted her up quickly and ran as fast as he could out of the small town. He made his way to the train station just outside the town and set Selphie gently down onto the bench. He picked up the phone that was attached to a pole and dialed the number for the headmaster's office. The phone rang, "Pick up, dammit!" he yelled, impatiently.
"This is Ms. Trepe, how can I help you?" Quistis turned away from Squall and Zell as she answered the phone.
"Quistis! I need you to get a room in the infirmary free. I don't care who the hell's in it or what's wrong with them, but kick them out!" Seifer yelled into the phone, looking at Selphie for a moment, who was still unconscious.
"Oh, hello to you, too, Mr. Almasy," she said, but she could tell he wasn't joking and furrowed her eyebrows, "Wait, what exactly is wrong?"
"Just do it! I'll explain when I get there," he yelled louder as the train stopped at the station, "I'll be there in a little while."
He picked Selphie up again and stepped onto the train. He managed to open the door to the SeeD room and entered it, laying Selphie gently onto the bed. He sat down on the couch and sighed, watching her. "Selphie...you know, you're a lot cuter when you're aggravated at me..." He sighed again. He didn't want this to happen to her... It wasn't her fault; it was his. He wasn't looking out for her enough...
*~*
Quistis hung up the phone and looked to Squall and Zell worriedly, "I think you guys are going to have to give me your report later."
"Who was that?" asked Zell curiously.
"That was Seifer. He told me to save a room in the Infirmary..."
Squall and Zell both looked at each other, then back to Quistis, "What do you mean...?" Squall asked, his eyebrows knitting together in confusion.
"I honestly do not know, Squall. But, Seifer sounded pretty worried. I think something happened..."
"No...not to Selphie!" Zell yelled.
Squall crossed his arms and looked at the ground. Quistis sighed softly, "I... hope not, but we will find out when he gets here. Until then, just make sure one of the beds in the Infirmary is not occupied." Zell nodded and quickly ran out of the room to the Infirmary. Squall sighed and followed him out, hoping deep inside that the worst hadn't happened.
*~*
About a couple hours later, Seifer came running into the Garden towards the Infirmary, Selphie unconscious in his arms. Squall, Zell, and Quistis were waiting outside and all of their faces fell. The worst had happened.
Seifer walked passed them quickly, not even noticing that they were there. He nodded to Dr. Kadowaki as he went into the first room, setting Selphie gently down onto the bed. He looked down at her. Still, there was no change. She lay there, almost lifeless. The only thing that showed she was alive was the slow rise and fall of her chest. Seifer sat on the stool next to her bed as Dr. Kadowaki, Squall, Zell, and Quistis packed into the small room.
"What the hell did you do to her!?" Zell asked angrily.
Seifer looked up at him, glaring at him. He was not in the mood to deal with the chicken-wuss' anger management problem. "I didn't do anything to her," he said, rather calmly, although his heart was beating rapidly with worry.
"Then, what happened?" asked Quistis softly.
"Well, we did our rounds in the town, a-and I thought we were done when I heard this loud noise. It was a goddamn Galbadian tank. Naturally, she wanted to fight it..." He looked at Selphie sadly, "So, we went out and fought it. She was kicking its ass pretty well with her thunder magic, but then...it caught on, I guess, so it fired a bomb at her..." He sighed, "I didn't realize what was happening, so I-I couldn't stop it. She flew back really far and when I went to her, she was unconscious."
Squall looked at Seifer hard. He had never seen him so upset about something. He crossed his arms and looked at Selphie as Dr. Kadowaki went to her side to check her heart beat. "She's still alive, but her pulse is weak..." the doctor announced.
Seifer looked at her, "What does that mean? She's going to be okay, right?"
Dr. Kadowaki looked down at Selphie, "At this point, I don't know, Mr. Almasy." She looked at Selphie's stomach, noticing the bad burn from the bomb, "I should get this cleaned up, though." She left the room for a moment, coming back in and began to clean and dress the wound.
Quistis frowned, "I hope she will be alright."
Squall sighed sadly, "...Me, too."
Seifer watched the doctor clean Selphie's wound up as he tapped his foot a little impatiently. He wanted the doctor to tell something more than 'I don't know' because that just wasn't good enough for him.
After a little while of awkward silence, Dr. Kadowaki finished bandaging Selphie's wound and stood up. Everyone looked at her anxiously. "I'm sorry to say to you all that I don't think Selphie will wake up easily. I just don't know when she will awaken...but, the longer it lasts, the less likely it is."
Seifer put his hands on his face, rubbing it for a moment before looking at the unconscious girl. Zell stomped angrily out of the room, while Quistis sighed softly, saying, "Oh dear..."
Squall clenched his fist and hit the wall hard. Everyone gasped, looking over at him, except Seifer who didn't take his eyes off of Selphie. Squall looked at everyone and sighed, looking to the floor.
Dr. Kadowaki sighed as well, looking to everyone, "You can all leave now. There's nothing more you can do." Quistis nodded to her and left the room quietly.
Squall took a few steps closer to Seifer, looking at Selphie with sadness in her eyes. "I can't believe this..." he said softly, mostly to himself.
"Me either," Seifer replied.
"...I can't believe you let this happen to her," said Squall, anger now resonating in his voice.
Seifer slowly turned his head to look at him, anger beginning to surge through him, "I didn't 'let' anything happen to her... We were fighting a battle...you can't always predict—"
"That doesn't matter. You were supposed to protect her," Squall interrupted.
"Why don't you worry less about Selphie and more about that helpless bitch of yours," Seifer narrowed his eyes, knowing he had struck a nerve.
Squall clenched his fists again and fired a punch to Seifer's jaw, then stormed out of the Infirmary to his dorm. He didn't want to leave Selphie alone with Seifer, but he had to get out of there. He couldn't be in the same room with him any longer.
Seifer put a hand to his jaw, which was now throbbing, and slightly smirked, "His punching has improved...that's for sure." If these would have been different circumstances, he would have gladly hunted Squall down and taught him a lesson, but he had more important things to worry about than the pain in his jaw.
He looked back to Selphie and tilted his head. She looked like she was in a deep sleep. She looked so innocent, and she even looked a little cold. He looked around the room and saw a blanket draped over a chair. He stood up and picked it up, then gently placed it over her. He sat back down on the stool and continued to watch her. He sighed, mentally scolding himself again. He can't believe that he didn't see the blow coming...how could he not have been able to protect her? He hated to admit it, but Squall was right. He was supposed to protect her. He looked at her small hand and gently took it into his own. He gently squeezed hers and furrowed his eyebrows, "I'm so sorry, Selphie. You didn't deserve this...I'm sorry..." His laid his head down on the softness of the bed beside Selphie and drifted off to a restless sleep, her hand still seemingly lifeless in his.
*~*
Several hours later, Selphie's hand slightly moved within Seifer's. He gasped slightly from the movement that had taken him out of his sleep abruptly. He opened his eyes and lifted his head to look at Selphie. She gently moved her fingers around his hand ever so slightly and began to shift a little in her bed. Seifer's face lit up as he watched her, "Selphie...?" he asked, his stomach tightening from nervousness. Her eyes opened barely halfway before she made a soft moaning sound. "Selphie?" he repeated.
She blinked her eyes slowly a few times as she tried to bring things back into focus. The first thing coming into focus was Seifer's worried face hovering over hers. An exhausted smile slowly formed on her lips and she tiredly asked, "Did...did we win?"
Seifer's face lit up even more and he smiled down at her as she asked her question. "Kind of..." he replied.
"Okay," she closed her eyes again, wincing a little as she began to feel the pain throughout her body, mostly on her stomach and her head was pounding. "W-what happened?"
Seifer looked at her sadly as he noticed her discomfort, "You got hit pretty hard with a bomb from the tank and it knocked you out. I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up..." he swallowed hard, "I-I was really worried."
She smiled up at him, opening her eyes again, "Oh, well, you should've known that something like that couldn't keep me down forever."
He put his other hand over the top of hers, smiling down at the girl, "You're right. I really should have known that. I'm just glad you're okay, though. You gave us all a big scare."
"Really?" Selphie asked, rather innocently, then furrowed her eyebrows as she noticed the large red mark on his cheek. "What's that from?"
Seifer looked at her confused for a moment, then remembered his little spat with Squall. "That's from Squ—you know, never mind, actually. It's not important," he said to her, hoping she was still too out of it to realize his slip up.
"Oh, okay," she said and yawned, then blushed slightly as she finally realized Seifer was holding onto her hand.
He smirked to himself, almost in disbelief that the girl was still able to get nervous and blush around him after she had been unconscious for many hours. "Do you want me to leave you alone so you can get some sleep?"
She looked thoughtful for a moment, then replied, "Actually...do you think you could take me to my room? I-I think I would sleep a lot better in there." He nodded and let go of her hand, then proceeded to pick her up gently. She leaned her head against his chest, holding onto his shoulder as he began to carry her out of the Infirmary.
"Whoa, whoa, where are you going with her?" Dr. Kadowaki stopped them.
"She's awake and she said she wanted to rest in her room," Seifer told her.
"Oh, alright, well make sure she comes back tomorrow so I can check her wounds and make sure she did not suffer any head trauma." He nodded, then continued to walk out of the Infirmary.
As he carried her down the halls, Selphie had already fallen back asleep. He glanced down at her momentarily, smiling to himself as people around him stared. He gave them death glares as he made his way to Selphie's room, passing Squall on the way, who actually looked up from something that was particularly interesting on the floor to stop him. "What the hell are you doing with her now?" Squall asked in a threatening tone.
"Don't be so loud. She's asleep and I'm taking her to her room because she wants to rest in there instead of the Infirmary," Seifer replied calmly.
"...So, she's awake then. Or was."
Seifer said, "Yeah, she is. She's just resting right now." He pushed past Squall and continued on to Selphie's room, managing to open the door with the small woman in his arms. Squall watched them walk and sighed, walking into his dorm, slamming the door. Seifer shook his head and entered Selphie's room. He gently laid her down on her bed, and covered her up with her blanket. He looked at her for a moment, a small smile on his face, "I'll be a couple doors down the hall in my room. Yell if you need something, okay?"
She mumbled something about skinning a moomba in her sleep and he assumed that meant 'okay'.
Seifer went to her door, taking one last look at her, then exited her room, going back to his own to lie down for a while.
*~*
She awoke a couple hours later to the sound of her stomach growling. She hadn't eaten since the previous day and for Selphie, that was a record. She sat up, vaguely remembering something about Seifer telling her to yell for him if she needed anything. But, she didn't want to cause a ruckus. She also didn't want to wake Seifer up since he had been up with her most of the night to make sure she was all right. A small smile formed on her face at the thought, then she quickly shook it away, slowly getting out of her bed. She crossed over her room to the door and left her room. She slowly made her way down the hall and spotted Squall who was casually leaning against the rail near the entrance to the dorm area. She cautiously approached him and smiled to him, "Hey, Squall," she said, her voice cheery, yet still full of sleepiness.
He looked over at her, his eyes wide from being startled for a moment. He hadn't expected to hear her voice. "...Hey."
"How are you?" she asked, as though it was a normal day.
"I think I should be asking you the same thing..."
"Oh, right," she giggled softly, then winced from the pain in her stomach, "I'm okay. Not totally great cause my stomach still kind of hurts and my head feels like it's really big."
He furrowed his eyebrows, "Shouldn't you be resting, then? Or having your little knight out getting you stuff you need?" Annoyance was clear on his voice.
She raised an eyebrow at him, "You mean Seifer?" Squall nodded. "Oh, well, he went back to his room 'cause he was tired. I don't blame him...he was up with me almost the whole time I was out," she couldn't help but smile again at the thought.
Squall looked at the floor, "I see..."
Selphie tilted her head, looking at him, "What's wrong?"
He glanced at her, "...Nothing. It just seems as though your attitude toward Seifer has changed since you left..."
"Oh," she said, "Well, it kind of has." She hadn't even realized her attitude towards him had changed. It just sort of happened.
"......"
Selphie sighed softly, "I just mean... he took care of me when I was hurt. He just seemed to change...a-and he was nicer and caring towards me."
Squall looked hard at her, "I see. So...you like him now," he said.
Her eyes grew wide, a blush coming into her cheeks, "W-what? I-I never said that!"
He looked away from her, "...Whatever. You're a horrible liar, Selphie."
"What? Y-you actually think I like him like that?"
"It's written all over your face," Squall said, a hint of irritation in his voice.
"Well...s-so what if I do like him!? I...I don't see why you care, anyway!" she said, defensively.
"I don't...I just don't want to see you get hurt," he replied, calmly.
Her brows knitted together, "Why would I get hurt?"
"Forget it. Do what you want. I don't care," he waved his hand dismissively at her and walked past her into his room.
Selphie watched him leave and frowned. She shrugged her shoulders and walked leisurely to the cafeteria, still holding her stomach and seeing that Zell was already there. His eyes widened and he rushed up to her. "Selph! You're awake!"
She smiled sleepily to him, "Hey, Zell."
"Feeling better?"
"Yeah, a little bit. I'm awake, so that's the best part!"
He nodded, "Yeah, I'm glad. We were all really worried."
"So, I've heard," she said to him.
Zell looked around the room, "Where's Seifer? I would think he would be following you around after what happened..."
"Oh, no. He's asleep in his room, I think. I didn't want to bother him," she said, feeling defensive again.
"I really don't think he would mind if you went to wake him up."
She put her hands on her hips, almost forgetting about the pain in her stomach, "What do you mean by that?"
"What I mean is, he likes you, Selphie. Everyone can see it now, especially after whatever happened to you two on your little mission," he stated.
"But...nothing happened between us."
"I don't mean that. I mean when he came back and you were unconscious, he was seriously worried. I had never seen him like that before...it was damn weird."
Selphie looked at Zell thoughtfully, "Oh...I didn't know that."
"Something changed in him when he saw you like that. I think you should talk to him about it."
"There's nothing to talk about, though," she said, narrowing her eyes at him.
Zell laughed slightly, "The fact you're getting all defensive about it just proves my point. You like Seifer! Selphie likes Seifer!"
"Zell! Be quiet! I so don't have the strength to beat you up right now."
He slumped his shoulders slightly, "Alright, fine. But, I'll only stop if you promise me to go talk to Seifer about it."
"But..."
"Selphie likes Seifer! Selphie likes Seifer!" Zell shouted, now drawing a few people to stare at them and laugh.
"Why do you want me to talk to him so badly?" she interrupted.
"Because...I think you might actually be able to change Seifer's assholish ways. Plus, I don't think you're ever going to have a chance with Squall, so I think being with Seifer would be good for you...no matter how much I hate him. Now, go!"
"Okay, fine!" Selphie said, turning to leave. She walked to the exit, glancing back at Zell, sticking her tongue out at him. He pointed to the exit and she sighed, nodding as she left. She made her way back to the dorms and down the hall to Seifer's room.
Selphie raised her fist, taking a deep breath, then knocked softly on the door.
~To be continued...
Okay, hope you liked the 3rd installment of my story! I will get to writing the 4th chapter ASAP! ^_^