The person who designed the furniture in that room obviously had some kind of death wish. No matter what he did, Gippal could not get comfortable on the sofas in the sitting area. Well, obviously the space was not made for people to actually sleep like they were.

There were a total of two couches there. One was a regular sized on, and the other was a love seat. Too bad the normal one was way too narrow, and the other was way too short. He settled down for the regular couch, seeing as that his feet were at an odd angle the other way. The only thing wrong was that he could only sleep in one way, and when he turned ever so slightly, he fell on the floor.

With a thud he landed on the carpet, and sat up directly. Not only was he tired, but also he had to work tomorrow. He had to get some sleep. With a heavy sigh, he settled on the floor, with his cover and pillow that he borrowed from the bed, and went to lay down, but then his head dully plopped on the hardwood. He growled and clenched the floor beneath him. Why did this have to happen to him?

Standing, he picked up his pillow and blanket and made his way to the bedroom. When inside, he came over to the darker part of the room, seeing as it was where the bed happened to be. "Rikku!" he whispered.

When he opened the door, moonlight from the other room came in, only a little so he could see her. It showed the petite blonde only sleeping on the one side of the bed, on her side and holding the pillow within her grasp. She didn't even flinch when he said her name.

"Cid's girl," he said smugly.

She moaned and moved ever so slightly. "Don't call me that," she mumbled, her head turning into the pillow.

"Wake up," he said, coming over to her more closely.

She groaned again and made a noise. "No…"

"Please?"

Slowly, the Al Bhed princess looked up. Her eyes were squinted very slightly as she looked at him with a tired gaze. "Gippal?" she asked. She looked around. "What are you doing in here?"

"Can I sleep with you?" he asked. Instantly he regretted saying that.

It seemed that the cobwebs from sleep were still in her head. "You mean, in here?" she asked, pushing off her arms. With a yawn, she sat up. "If it means I can go back to sleep, yeah."

He blinked. "You're okay with that?"

She shrugged and flopped back onto the bed. "I've done it before."

For a moment he thought about it, and then he recalled that they had done this before.

"Cid's girl?" An eight-year-old Gippal asked the figure that had crawled into his bed. "Is that you?"

The form under the covers moved, and finally a head of blond hair poked out. Rikku looked to him, then around, especially to the windows. Her braids were jumbled and she wore a pair of pajamas. She held her doll in her hands. "It's storming outside," she said quietly.

Gippal sat up and rubbed his eyes, yawning. He looked out the window, and saw the sand hitting the windows. He got up and went over to see the full extent of it, and couldn't even see the horizon. Not only that, he heard a blast of thunder from the sky. And with thunder, came lightning.

He looked over to Rikku, shivering under the covers, her eyes closed tightly. "You can stay," he said. "Just, try not to scream all the time."

She nodded. When he came over, he got back into bed and under the covers with her. Instantly, she latched to his arm. He gave her a look, but then sighed. "You really don't like it do you?"

He couldn't see her face, but the head of braids shook. Gippal sighed and lifted her up to his front, giving her a hug. With his chin on her head, he held her shaking form. "Try to sleep, okay?"

Rikku nodded slowly, but then sighed with contentment. It wasn't long before he heard her deep breaths. He shook his head, and settled down as well. It wasn't as bad as it could have been.

When Gippal woke the next morning, it was because the sun had come up. Even though he wasn't facing the windows, he felt it on his back and opened his eyes slowly, to adjust to the light. He was just about to stretch, one of his regular morning procedures. But when he was about to move, he felt an odd weight on him.

He had been sleeping on his back, arms next to his head. But there, with her head on his chest and arm around his middle, was Rikku. She was sleeping of course, for her eyes were closed and she breathed lightly.

She never was a loud sleeper, very quiet. Her curls had been brushed out the previous night, and her hair now laid like it normally did, fanned out around her. It was just the sight of her that made it beautiful to watch.

For a moment he just stayed there to look at her. He waited, looking at the way she stayed when she was completely calm, and at ease. Her eyes, even though closed were beautifully shaped, accented with lashes that matched her hair. Usually when she was seen, they were a black. The natural look suited her more, he thought.

Unlike last night, she was completely natural, without lipstick or mascara or anything to hide her face. Why she needed it was beyond him. But it wasn't exactly his right to say anything about her appearance.

Naturally, her lips were a pink delicate and soft. Her skin was tan, darkened with the sun and her genes. There was still an original glimmer there, one that could only be seen at some angles. He grinned. Even her nose looked better without anything on her face. It really would be nice to see this every morning.

She sighed in her sleep and it made him realize that if she woke to this, she'd blame him for trying something. Knowing that would result in some painful bruises and or headaches, he decided to get up.

Carefully, he lifted her arm up by her wrist and managed to sneak out from underneath. Knowing that if he put her arm down, she'd feel it and wake up. So, he grabbed a pillow and put it in his place. Then, she snuggled to it with another sigh and didn't make another peep.

He shook his head at her form. She was wearing less than he was, and that wasn't much as things considering. His nightly wardrobe was a tank and boxers, like usual. But the princess was wearing some kind of silk or satin nightdress that had almost no back. Her legs were curled under her and seeing the Goosebumps on her skin, concluded that she was cold.

It was chilly in the room. Hotels liked to keep the temperature almost completely different than what it was outside. So, he went over and gathered the covers tangled at the foot of the bed and covered her up to her shoulders with them. Then he leaned over, and brushed the hair from her eyes. She really was pretty.

Finally, he reached down and kissed her temple lightly before he stood and went into the bathroom.

When Rikku opened her eyes, she heard the sound of running water. She sat up and stretched her arms behind her head with a yawn, but then shook her head. She looked over to the clock. It wasn't that late, all things considering. She got up, and went out to the foyer, trying to see if she could find a way to call for room service, and found a tray of things.

It was just ordinary things you'd find in the lobby. There were some toothbrushes, toothpaste, a brush and even razors. There were also other things that someone may need after spending the night. What she found amusing were the little bottles of shampoo and conditioner.

She went back through the rooms until she came to the door, and put her ear to it. Every so often the droplets of water became heavier, an indication that someone was washing. So, she knocked.

"Gippal!" she yelled. "Can I come in!"

For a moment she didn't hear anything. "Go ahead."

She opened the door, automatically hit by the humidity the water gave off. She went over and put the tray down between the two sinks, then turned to see where he was. Instantly, she became somewhat flustered.

There were two ways to wash. One was to use the Jacuzzi and she didn't see Gippal doing that willingly, and they didn't have much time either. The other was to use the shower stall. Now normally, it would have been fine for her, but this one wasn't a normal shower. The walls around it were in a hexagon, and were solid, but they only came up to around mid waist.

On her, it would have been right below the chest. On Gippal, since he was taller…well. She looked away, seeing as that she completely saw the upper half of him and from his knees down. It wasn't something she was used to in the morning.

Come on, it was Gippal. This guy was a rock since they were kids. He wasn't exactly a kid anymore. Did she have to discribe what he looked like now? And now he was soaking wet, something most girls would have died to see. There she was, not even ten feet away.

To not look too flustered, she started to brush her hair. But she nearly dropped it when he spoke. "Did they send up those things I called for?" he asked.

She looked over to him, putting down the brush so she wouldn't drop it again. He was looking at her now.He just looked at her with those deep, green eyes. "Yeah," she said, voice a little shaky. She cleared her throat. "They did. You want something?"

"Soap would be nice," he said, leaning against the walls of the shower with his arms while the water hit him in the back.

Her hands were clumsy as she went through the things, looking for a bar of soap. She finally found it and took it out of the little container, and threw it to him. Getting too close would mean she would get a show she didn't pay for.

Though almost dropping it with his hands wet, Gippal caught it, but gave her a look. "You all right?" he asked with concern. "You're acting weird."

"I'm fine," she replied. He raised an eyebrow and she came on defensively. "I really am, I'm serious. I'm just a little hungry." She brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "I'm just gonna go get some breakfast."

Quickly she left the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She slumped back against the door, taking in a deep breath. Her head spun, her heart was pounding and her face was red hot. There was a lump in her throat that wouldn't swallow. She took another deep breath, closing her eyes.

But then they snapped open and she looked around. Oh no, she was attracted to Gippal.