A/N: Hah... to all the people who reviewed - thank you! I didn't mean for it to sound like you have to review or something though... don't worry about it. I'm horrible at reviewing too (like Startdust Ray and Lil Doro know... they're on my favorites list, but I like never review... xD but they know I love their stories), so I don't really mind when I don't get many reviews. I totally understand. It was just disappointing at first, to follow 10 reviews with 4. That was all the note meant.

Hmm... I'm thinking I may need to change the categories of this story. Specifically for this chapter and others that follow. And the drama begins...

Rainy Days - Chapter 10 - Beyond Square One

I was bombarded by them as soon as I reached the door of my bedroom, even though they were distracted with the millions of pictures still sitting there anyway.

"So..." Quistis started teasing, "What'd he say?"

"Was there love in the air?" Selphie continued, wagging her eyebrows and drawing out the word 'love' like we did in elementary school.

"No," I said firmly. They continued talking and teasing me though, not hearing me the first time. "No - no - no!"

They quieted down as I said it louder and louder. I grabbed a photo book and jumped on the bed, trying to see if it'd help me get over the anger that had just built up. I sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose, trying to calm myself. "Sorry..." I shook my head. "I ju-"

"Don't worry about it," Quistis cut me off quickly. I looked up and they were both smiling back at me. "We don't need to know."

Selphie nodded with a wide smile on her face. "It's girls' night in, remember? Fun stuff only!"

We laughed together as the mood of the room suddenly changed. I sat up and moved all the hair out of my face. "What would I do without you, Selph?"

"You'd be extremely depressing, that's what!"

"Yeah well... if it wasn't for a certain someone neither of you would be here," Quistis said with a wave of her hand. "Who helped you pass your classes so you could get here?"

"Helped? You helped cram our brains about biochemical molecular blah-blah-blah. That's not helping, that's just sticking knowledge we don't need in our head," Selphie pointed out to her.

"You need to know that stuff!" she defended herself.

"No you don't..." Selphie continued, folding up her legs on to the chair she was sitting on. "Only to get through high school. We don't really need to know it in the real world. I mean, do I really need to understand that there are approximately blah-blah-blah molecules in my burger? No..."

I saw Quistis open her mouth to shoot back a whole bunch of other facts (as well as correct everything that Selphie said), but stopped her before the argument got out of hand. When you put two people who are complete opposites like them in the same room, it was bound to happen eventually. I put up my hand between them. "Ah! Okay, we get it Quistis. I don't know what I'd do without you helping me through Chemistry. And Calculus. And English sometimes now that I think about it..."

I was going to go on, but this time, she stopped me. "I got it Rin. Just needed you to include my name."

Selphie and I giggled together, hugging Quistis as we fell over. I was the first to get up.

"So... what about that fun thing we were talking about?" I asked. Selphie nodded excitedly and tore through my room, looking for make up, clothes, and whatever else she could find. I suddenly missed high school very, very much.

I didn't see Squall at all for almost a full month. The first couple of days, I tried to come up with as many excuses as I could to not go back to the cafe. An essay due the next day, a huge exam to study for, I direly needed to clean up my apartment because of... whatever the reason was. Whatever I could come up with, I told Selphie. Some days, I simply didn't go. Then, finally, I got over myself and went back to our routine.

Unfortunately, as I started coming back, he too disappeared.

"He stopped coming not long after you did," Irvine told me one day. "He came for about a week, I think. He didn't really give a reason, but I think after he noticed you didn't come anymore, he just kind of stopped coming. Sorry Rin..."

I sighed and pressed my lips together. "Thanks anyway, Irvine." I put on a smile.

"No problem."

I continued to meet them after my classes everyday, hoping to see him start coming again too. But he never showed. Most of the time I just sat in a daze anyway, wondering where he was, what he was doing - how did I fit into his life? - it always took a couple of snaps or an extremely pestering Seifer to get me out of it.

The cold weather stayed in town the entire time. It was obvious we were moving quickly through autumn and into winter faster than usual. It didn't seem to rain for what seemed like forever - though it was always windy and cold. It was halfway through October before the rain finally came down on us. On the first day, I stopped by the cafe, but didn't say very long after a couple of 'hi's and Quistis helping me out with some of my math problems.

"Don't worry about me Selph," I said, wrapping a scarf around my neck. "I promise, I won't get sick." I waved, giving her a little peace sign and backed out the door of the cafe. I walked down the street putting a hat on and my hands in my pocket. The rain felt more like ice pellets because the outside temperatures were so cold. Nonetheless, I headed towards the nearby park that stood in the center of the city. My bag filled with spiral notebooks and huge school text books bounced along beside me as I walked down the streets and hills.

As usual, I danced through the park, jumping and twirling along hte path that cut through it. I stopped halfway through the park though. The rain felt sharper than usual. My bag hit the bench with a clunk as I sat down. There were few other people in the park - a little girl and her mother cutting through the park to get home, a few guys daring to play soccer in the rain (no doubt training for an important game coming up soon) - also saw an older girl way at the end of the park at a bus stop, balancing her umbrella on her shoulder with hot cocoa in one hand and a book in the other. The wasn't really anyone else.

I leaned against the back of the bench and turned to the side, putting my feet up on it. My pants - actually, everything I wore - were soaked with cold rain water. Hugging my knees, I leaned against them. My eyes lost focus. Squall...

What was he avoiding me? I didn't remember saying anything that would've offended him greatly. The only thing that really hanged between us was that phone call - which still, in my mind, made absolutely no sense. He broke up with me, so I should've been the one crying my eyes out. Not to mention it was not a year since we broke up - it was two. He said he had a hard time moving on while I looked like I was fine. What? My eyebrows burrowed together. Did he not notice how long it took me to even look him in the face when he came back. Everything he said on the phone where the things that I should've said, not him. What did he not understand about that? Was he saying it to rub it in? Or maybe it was because he know our past was my weak point? Nothing seemed right anymore...

I heard a chuckle from next to me as someone sat down. I looked up surprised that anyone would be in the rain - and even more surprised at who it was.

"Seifer and Irvine told me that I'd fine you here if it ever rained," Zell said, leaning forward on his knees. "I guess they were right. They know you too well..." He laughed and shook his head. "It's crazy how close all you guys are sometimes."

I sat up and shifted, still not feeling completely comfortable with him for some reason. "What're you doing here?"

He shrugged. "I haven't seen you in a while. I've been meaning to talk to you again for months."

"Why?" I asked before he could even finish his sentence fully. He shrugged again.

"I wanted to apologize for that time when we went on a date..." he started. "I didn't mean to act so weird around you with the sudden kiss and everything..."

We both shifted this time, both still uncomfortable about it. I didn't like him bringing that up. But somehow I knew he felt guilty about it... and I didn't want him to feel bad about himself.

"It's okay," I said softly, pulling my coat tighter around me. The rain wasn't pouring down hard on us anymore, but it was still sprinkling and it was cold. "I've gotten over it. Really. ... mostly anyway."

He laughed at my attempted joke and shook his head. "I wouldn't blame you at all if you feel like-"

"Zell," I said sternly. "I told you: don't worry about it. We aren't 10 anymore; it takes way more than a kiss to get me angry - even if it was gross. No offense!"

"Hey, it didn't mean anything to me," he held his hands up. I smiled.

"Good. I'm glad that's behind us now."

"Friends then?" He held his hand out. "Only friends and nothing else or anything even close to it - my girlfriend would kill me," he quickly added.

I laughed and shook his hand. "Friends then. Make sure your girlfriend helps you keep that promise. I don't trust you fully yet," I joked.

He nodded and stood up. "Thanks Rinoa." He began to walk away when something occurred to me.

"Hey Zell!" I called to him, and stood up to walk over to him. He stopped and turned around to face me. "You haven't lent your phone to any of your friends or anything lately, have you?"

"Yeah, I let me my friends use it all the time," he said confused. My face dropped. He must've noticed something on my facial expression though, because he continued. "Usually only for a few minutes though, not much more. It's not like they keep it over night."

I nodded and smiled gratefully. It didn't really help answer any questions really, but it did feel better to let it out. "Thanks, Zell."

"I changed my number though," he added.

"Really?" I straightened. Now we were getting somewhere.

"Yeah, you can get it from Irvine. Can't really write in this weather," he laughed, holding out his hand as if to show off the rain. I laughed along with him.

"Right. I'll be sure to do that."

"Funny story... one of my old buddies ended up with the number," he said, his eyes wandering as if pondering on it. He then shrugged and shook water from his hair, laughing. "I think I'm turning into a poor wet puppy now." He waved and turned, walking towards one of the ends of the park, where the parking lots were.

While he was walking, my mind was running at 60 miles an hour at all of the new information and questions. If Zell's number was different, who had his number? And who was this person calling me?

"Squall and I go way back," he had said once. Way back - could it have been possible then that Squall got that number? After all, he did move into town recently - compared to everyone else anyway. And if he and Zell went way back, then they'd be considered old buddies. But then what logical reason would come to answer why? It'd still make no sense. But then again, he was often good at fooling people. Even if it didn't make sense, Squall would've been the only other person to have my number to. I didn't like strange people calling me, so only my closest friends and family knew the number to my room. It seemed to make sense, but didn't at the same time.

The rain began to fall harder once again and it seemed to get colder and darker. Picking up my bag, I pulled my jacket tightly around me again and headed home.

The phone was ringing as I was unlocking the door. I undid it was quickly as possible and scampered into the room kicking off my shoes, slamming the door with my hips, throwing off my jacket and bag, climbing over the couch and diving for the phone.

"Hello?" I answered, breathing hard. I fell back against the couch that I had originally been standing on.

"Rinny!" Selphie cried. "What took you so long! Squall just came. He was looking for you. I'm glad I caught you just in time; we just sent him over."

"What?" I exclaimed, fumbling on the couch and falling over. My heart was still pumping heart and beating fast, and I was still trying to catch my breath. "But Selphie-"

"He should be there soon, Rin. He looked like he had something important to tell you," Selphie said quickly, but seriously. She apologized for not giving me a warning as well, but had to hang up. "I'll talk to you later, okay? Irvy and I have reservations we have to get to - I'm so sorry Rin! Bye!"

And she hung up. I sighed and pushed the end button, dropping the phone on the couch. I leaned back taking a deep breath, rubbing my face and moaning. Why now? Why now?

Uh-oh. I sat up. Selphie's words hit me suddenly like a rock. "He should be there soon."

"Shit," I mumbled to myself. "Oh crap..."

My hands flew to my hair. My hair was all tangly and in knots. My pants were still fairly wet - though mostly dry compared to my hair - and were cold. I had a scarf on, but wore only a blue tube top with that as I originally walked around with my jacket on the entire time. That was now thoroughly soaked as well. I ran to the bedroom, searching for a hair dryer.

Hair dryer... hair dryer... YES! I jumped as I found it. Hair dryer! I blow dried my hair quickly and slapped on a touch of make up that had begun to run before deciding to go back to the main room. If I just kept the door shut, he would never notice the giant mess.

I ran around the room picking up everything I had knocked over and thrown on the ground. There were still dirty dishes and cups sitting out as well that I had to hide and the couches were all wrinkled from me stomping all over them as I came in.

A knock came on the door just as I was mid-way through cleaning. I had my jacket in one and and bag in the other. I panicked for a second, but then throw open the door of my room and tossed everything into it. I slammed it shut and ran to the front door. I paused before opening it, smoothing out my hair and taking a deep breath, smiling as I opened it.

"Hi," I breathed out. My heart was still pumping hard from my speed cleaning. Talk about last minute!

"Hey," he said, raising an eyebrow.

"Sorry, I was cleaning," I explained, opening the door, wider. "Come on in."

"Thanks," he said with a small smile. "Do you normally wear that to clean? I can come over and help you more often if you need it then."

I looked down at myself and let out a soft squeal. My eyes narrowed. "Pervert."

He smirked back and turned, walking to the couch. I grabbed an old sweater that was laying nearby and threw it over my head before sitting down opposite of him.

"Um, do you want anything?" I asked, fumbling with my sleeves. "Coffee? Tea? Water?"

He shook his head sighing. I also took a deep breath, and folded my legs, sitting on them. We both opened our mouths and spoke at the same time.

"Look--"

"Listen--"

I chuckled and pointed to him. "You first. I was just telling you to start."

He nodded and spoke softly. "The last time we talked... it was... awkward. And on the phone, where I - for once - did most of the talking."

I shifted my legs. I knew he'd bring it up. I admitted it to myself already that it was one thing that we needed to mention. But why was it so hard for me?

"I don't want you to be uncomfortable around me Rin."

"I'm not," I said firmly.

"Yes you are," he countered. "You're really uncomfortable around me, Rin. I can just tell. You aren't acting like you usually do."

"Well, your last phone call didn't really help."

He leaned back and took a deep breath. "I didn't mean to sound so... so obsessed about you or anything like that."

"You didn't," I verified for him. "Maybe I overreacted and-"

"Overreacted?" He laughed, the deep sound filled with sarcasm. "Rin, you didn't react at all when I told you all that stuff. You just sat in silence. I wasn't even sure you were listening! Do you have any idea what was running through my mind? I thought..." he paused and took a deep breath again. "You know what? Never mind. I don't even know why I'm here." He rose and walked to the door. "Maybe I just expect too much from people..."

I stared at him with disbelief. Ice seemed to fill the air as he spoke, his temper and the tension around us rising for no apparent reason. I got up as he did and grabbed his arm to stop him from leaving.

"Don't go yet," I whispered out to him, still unable to look him in the eye. His coat was slightly wet from the rain outside. I could feel his arm muscles tighten as he tried to walk away while I held him back.

"Why?" I let go. His arm fell limp against his side. Why had I stopped him? I wasn't sure myself.

"I..." I couldn't come up with anything. "On the phone..." I started, spitting out whatever I could think of. "You said it was only a year ago-"

"It was a year ago you left me," he said, walking towards the door again. I held him back again.

"It was two years ago you-"

"It was two years ago we agreed that we would go to different places," he said "We agreed to meet new people. It was a year ago I came back and expected you to still stay by me."

He turned and looked straight in my eyes as he said this, voicing confidence and what seemed like pain. He pulled harder on his arm, finally getting out my grip. I was frozen in my spot for a second before I sprinted and squished in between him and the door, leaning against it to keep him from leaving.

"Squall, don't!" I breathed out. My heart began pumping again. We were much closer than we had been in well over 2 years. Luckily, he backed up and leaned against the wall instead with a frown on his face. He waited for me to continue. "You... you said I was okay," I said, lowering down to a half whisper. "That I was able to move on. That I didn't care." Tears began to rim my eyes and my hands balled into fists. My voice suddenly had an edge to it, almost in a hiss. "I cared more than anything. I didn't move on at all. I couldn't move on! I blame you for everything!"

My balled fists raised and shot towards him. "Rinoa, what's wrong with you?" he asked while trying to dodge my attacking claws. His hands finally grabbed a hold of my wrists, and he held on tight.

I fought for a bit before giving up and dropping my hands. I wiped my eyes, trying to rub away any signs of tears that happened to come out. I shook my head, taking a deep breath. "I told you... you were wrong," I said softly. I leaned against the door, sliding down it and using it to support me. My hands covered my mouth as I admitted it to both him and myself. "I couldn't get over you..."

He knelt down beside me. "Rin... Rinoa..." He sighed and wiped away a tear that was coming down my cheek. I could see in his eyes he was trying to say sorry without being so blunt. He opened his mouth to speak, but the phone cut him off. I jumped at the sudden ringing and let my head fall against the door.

"Machine will get it," I said softly, pushing myself off the floor.

"Rin..." Squall continued. "Rin, what about Zell?"

I shrugged. "Selphie and Irvine set me up. It didn't work out anyway," I put my hand up. "Don't say sorry. Neither of us were happy together anyway. He's got a really sweet new girlfriend, you should meet her one day." I leaned against the cabinet that the phone sat on and smiled at him, trying to change the mood. He smiled back.

The machine beeped. "Oh angel..." a sickeningly sweet and mocking voice rang through the speaker. I jumped when I heard this, turning my full body around to face the phone. "I can see you all the time. Don't think I don't know about Prince Charming in your room right now. Tell him..."

I turned down the volume on it quickly and backed away from the phone, turning my head to look at Squall. Concerned eyes stared back at me.

"Wha-"

"I don't know," I told him simply, wanting to cry. I put my hands on my hips. "Selphie and Quistis call him a stalker. He's been following me or something... I don't know. He keeps calling me Squall! He won't leave me alone! The messages... it first started..."

To put it simply, I was in a panic. My voice was a bit higher than usual, and I was rambling, muttering things about the crazy man to Squall while he had no idea what the hell I was talking about. He didn't know how else to calm me though, and did so in the only way he ever knew.

He pulled me close to his body. His arms closed in around me and our heads were next to each other. He whispered into my ear little things that helped soothe me. "Rin," he'd say. "Rin, it's me. I'm right here." I threw my arms over his shoulders, gripping on to his shirt and crying into his shoulder. "I'm not going anywhere. Shhh... don't worry about it, okay? I won't let anything happen, I promise."

And my grip loosened. I stopped crying and leaned my head on his shoulder instead. He walked me over to the couch where we sat, his arm still around me to ensure that I was okay. I wiped my cheeks and stood up, sniffing.

I apologized to him quickly. "I didn't mean to turn the waterworks on you and everything..."

"It's okay..." he nodded. There was an awkward silence between us. I scratched at the bottom of my hairline, trying to figure out what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it. Squall beat me though, in a way, by standing and moving towards the door once again.

"Squall," I called. He stopped just at the door knob. "You aren't walking out of my life again, are you?"

"I'm not walking out of your life," he laughed. "I'm walking home."

"But... about us..."

"... we'll start over," he said. "As friends again." He walked over and held out his hand.

I shook my head. I didn't know what to do. I don't think I can do just friends...

He saw this and dropped his hand. Instead, he walked over and wrapped his arms around me in a hug again. "Fine then," he whispered. His chin rested up the top of my head. I breathed in deeply, taking in his scent. "We'll start over... together. We'll explain everything. What went wrong... why we had to turn back and start at the beginning again."

I nodded, even though I was pressed up against his chest. I could feel him smiling through my hair. I reached up to find his hand and held it, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Thank you..."

I let him go. He brushed his lips against my cheek before leaving.

"It feels good to be able to do that again..." he whispered to me. I smiled softly and nodded, feeling a blush creeping its way into my cheeks.

"You better get going, it's getting dark." I waved to him as he left, walking down the empty hallway. It wasn't until he turned the corner that I shut the door.

I leaned my head against the door and smiled, letting out a breath that I didn't realize I was holding. It felt so much better to be relieved of whatever worries and tensions were between me and Squall. It felt so right when I was back in his arms - I missed it for two years. I missed him for two years. All the anger and jealousy and whatever other emotions I was able to conjure up against him were now gone. Whatever unanswered question was left, he promised he'd tell me soon. He promised.

And although I knew we weren't starting where we left off, it was a relief to know that we were still starting somewhere. Somewhere just beyond square one.

A/N: Oh the drama! I hope what you wanted to happen for a while has happened now. Sorry if this seems like it's moving along too quickly or something... especially this chapter. It may seem kind of sudden and stuff, but... there's really nothing I could do about it. I wanted to get at least something done before school started up again. I didn't want to leave you hanging with a crappy chapter. I know once I'm back in school I won't update as soon as I do now.

Eww... for some reason I wanted to look through the work that I've done so far and I looked through the first few chapters of this story. Arghhh... they're so horrible. One of these days I'll have to revise those too... they were extremely short compared to these later chapters too. Anyway, please review! Thank you!