A/n: This chapter is quite long, so . . . sit down with a cup o' tea or something Happy reading . . .
"Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does. Love is a battle, love is a war; love is a growing up."
Selphie shielded her eyes against the bright morning sun, which was currently shining its happy rays through the festival hall's windows and onto her hair.
Today was a busy day for all the members on the garden festival committee, for tomorrow night, all their hard work would pay off in a much awaited, over-the-top event.
A young girl around fourteen year's old, with bright red hair and blue eyes glistening with excitement ran up to Selphie and tugged on her sleeve.
"Hey! Where should I put these?"
However, Selphies mind was as far away from the preparations as you could imagine, her thoughts occupying other areas of her life that greatly needed attention. Such as her and Irvine . . .
Another soft yank on her uniform sleeve reminded her of the younger teen to her right, who had asked a question and waited patiently, despite eager to run off and skip around. She looked towards the red haired girl in front of her; her eyes sparkling with fun, impatience showing through to want to get on with the decorating, bouncing on the balls of her feet. This girl reminded Selphie of herself at that young age, and this thought saddened her.
"Well? Where should I hang them?"
"Huh? Oh, the banners. Put them above the windows and entrances."
"Okay!"
Watching the redhead run off and do as she was told, Selphie relaxed again, even though she should've been helping as well. Looking around at the hall, she figured that everything that could've been done had been. There were no more preparations to do. Even the catering list had been taken care of. Despite being one of the older students in charge, Selphie decided to leave for her first lesson in ages since her . . . "accident". Upon remembering, she looked down to her wrist. Today, she hadn't put on any bracelets to cover the all too recent reminder of her problematic life. A pang of sickness tugged at her stomach as she traced the line of the scar, feeling the way it bumped up and stood out boldly against her stark white skin, which only enhanced the redness of the wound.
Selphie shook her head, in an attempt to physically shake out all the bad thoughts in her mind, the action sending her tan hair flying and bouncing in all directions. She stood at the hall entrance, and looked around the impressively huge room. She had to admit, it looked like something straight out of a fairytale, a magical land somewhere far away.
Selphie began to smile and let out a laugh of happiness, surprising herself. Her surroundings were beautiful and let her forget the troubles in her life, if only for a few moments. She turned on her heel and, with a bounce in her step, walked out.
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Irvine sat slouched at his study panel, eyes glued to the automatic door at the front of the classroom, waiting for a certain brunette to walk through.
"Hey man," Irvine nudged Zell, who was sitting next to him, and whispered, "You did say she was comin' to this lesson, didn't you?"
The blonde next to him adjusted his seated position, crossing one leg over the other casually, before looking towards his friend, taking his time to answer.
"Yeah, but that was before you messed up big time last night . . ."
Irvine looked at Zell blankly, his head cocked slightly to one side.
". . . Before your serenadin'. Or do I need to remind you of your drunken lip lock with the schools biggest, easiest slut?"
The auburn haired teenager shot his friend a withering look.
"NO, you didn't have to remind me. Thank fuckin' God she isn't in this lesson."
"One of them is . . ."
"Huh?"
"Seifer . . ."
Irvine let out a short chuckle and glanced behind his shoulder at the tall blonde who was sitting at the back, giving anyone evil stares who dared to lay their eyes upon him.
"He's hardly one of them."
"Yeah he is. He's blonde, thick and a whore."
The sharpshooter looked at Zell, a smile on his lips.
"But . . . you just described yourself."
Zell didn't hesitate to thump his friend in the upper arm. Not quite full force, but he didn't hold back on his strength either. Irvine clutched the place where pain had quite recently exploded through, yet he still had an amused look upon his features.
"Man! That hurt!"
"Well, you insulted me! I'm none of those comments."
"Um, Zell, you're blonde . . ."
"Oh yeah!"
"And, as you just gave a prime example of; thick."
Just as the fighter was about to send another punch flying into Irvine's arm, the automatic door at the front of the room slid open, creating a slight buzzing noise.
Selphie stepped into the classroom, glancing first in the direction of the front desk, to see if the instructor for that lesson had turned up yet. The seat was empty.
Letting out a small puff of breath, she walked slowly over to where she usually sat, which, surprise surprise, was where Irvine was now currently seated. Without letting panic overcome her, she stepped forward, not breaking eye contact with him once along the way.
"Urm . . . Irvine?"
"Hey Sef . . ."
"You're in my seat."
Irvine knew full well whose seat he was in. He had planned to sit there, because, if he did, he knew that Selphie would have to speak to him or go and sit somewhere else.
"This desk station holds three, Sef."
The brunette looked down at him, fully getting the hint, but not too sure if she wanted to act upon it. However the only other free seat was at the back, near Seifer, and she certainly didn't want to go anywhere near him. Defeated, she flopped herself down in the place next to Irvine, much to his delight.
For the moment, Selphie ignored him and leaned forward, speaking past him.
"Zell, do you know what we're supposed to be studying? Where's Instructor Aki?"
Zell leaned forward too, matching his friends pose.
"We're lookin' on the computers for info on rare G.Fs. Apart from no-ones really doin' the work 'coz Aki's gone off somewhere."
Selphie leaned back into her seat, her leg accidentally brushing against Irvine's under the table. She prayed silently that he wouldn't take that as a hint. It seemed her prayers were answered, as no crude comment came out of his mouth, but then again, he probably learnt his lesson in overstepping the mark last night.
Last night . . . Was it really last night?
In her mind, Selphie found herself back in that nightclub, inhaling the stale air which consisted of mingled smells; cigarette smoke, alcohol and sweaty bodies, none at all pleasant. Once again, she heard those three special words that Irvine had spoken; but before her, she saw him latched onto another. Her world was in slow motion as it had been that night, and horror crashed through her mind as she felt the need to seek the solace of that cold, hard blade.
Her head was spinning as she came back to the present. Unexpectedly, it all became too much; the noise of the classroom amplified ten times, all her senses were heightened and she suddenly became very aware of Irvine next to her, his fresh scent congesting her nostrils.
Selphie clutched a hand onto her forehead and lowered it slowly to the desk, feeling as if she was about to reel over. Trying to inhale deeply made no difference, she still felt as though she'd just gotten of a merry-go-round that was going at 80MPH.
"Selphie? Selphie, are you okay?"
Irvine's voice echoed in Selphies brain, but she wasn't fully aware he was posing a question to her.
She was confused as to what put her in this state, but she knew it had something to do with last nights remembering.
"I . . . I need air," she said quietly, but Irvine heard all the same, always one with keen sense of sound.
"Okay, we'll go outside."
Selphie felt Irvine wrap his strong arm around her waist gently, sparking off emotions inside her that began to mix in with all the others, creating one big mass of bewilderment. In her state, she heard Zell voice his concern.
"Shit, she looks like she's gonna faint. Hurry up, I'll tell Aki a lie if he comes back."
Although Selphie could stand and walk on her own two feet, even if somewhat decidedly wobbly, Irvine kept his arm clamped firmly about her small body. He led her out of the second floor classroom and up some more stairs to the fire exit (which wasn't supposed to be used unless in emergencies) which brought them out onto a small balcony near the top of the Garden.
It was very breezy, but there was fresh air aplenty, which, after-all was what Selphie ordered. She leaned her hands on the edge of the grey barrier-wall, not bothered that the wind was whipping her soft, brown hair into her face, and was doing much the same with her yellow uniform tie. Selphie looked into the distance, and concentrated on getting her head back to normal, along with getting some clean air into her starved lungs.
She wasn't aware that the man next to her still had his arm wrapped tightly around her until he asked if she was okay.
"I'm fine . . ."
Selphie turned to face Irvine, and was caught in a very loving, concerned gaze which she had never seen in him before. That look in his purple, blue hazed eyes was so intense that she couldn't find the power to turn away, nor did she want to.
"You didn't look fine. Are you sure you're okay? You can tell me, y'know."
Don't just stare, answer him, doofus!
"Um . . . I guess I just had a kind of . . . panic attack."
Irvine looked down to the floor, breaking his gaze on her.
"Oh. Did I cause it?"
Selphie didn't answer him, but turned to look out at the surrounding landscape. She could see the small town of Balamb down below, along with the harbour, a forest and the fire cavern, but what really interested her was the ocean. She watched how the waves formed and swirled in the middle of the sea, then eventually came down to shore, leaving a burst of white foam in their wake.
"Sefie . . ." Irvine placed one of his hands on top of hers, which were still resting atop the safety barrier.
"We didn't get a chance to talk . . . about what happened last night."
Selphie smiled, recalling his song to her, but then realised what it was he meant and shyed away from his touch a little. Noticing her change in movement, Irvine entwined his long, tanned fingers with her small, pale ones.
"Please, we have to talk . . . I need you near me, with me. Please Sef?"
You know you want him too . . . Maybe just one more chance . . .
". . . Okay. Let's go to Balamb Diner."
For a moment, the cowboy in front of her looked perplexed.
"But . . . shouldn't we be gettin' back to our lesson?"
Selphie looked down at their hands intertwined and gave a small hardly noticeable squeeze, before feeling a slight hint of mischief rise up in her stomach.
"Screw the lesson. This is more important."
Irvine smiled broadly, showing off rows of perfectly straight, white teeth, the corners of his eyes creasing up, in which showed a glimmer of hope.
My old Sefie's comin' back home . . .
------------------------------------------
Zell ambled down the long corridor, one of the many just off from the waterfall, towards the direction that lead to the cafeteria. The hallway was filled with a small amount of students; juniors and seniors alike, due to the fact that it was most peoples lunch break.
Pushing open the wooden, double swing doors, Zell looked around for any sight of Irvine and Selphie.
Where the hell did they go?
In the end, he settled to sit down next to Rinoa and Squall, but not before he'd pushed through the food queue, grabbed and paid for three hotdogs.
"Heya Zelly! Where's Selph?"
"S'up . . .Dunno where she is."
Zell cringed inwardly at his 'adorable' nickname and flung himself down into the standard metal chair next to the chirpy-voiced Rinoa. Squall didn't say hello, but the blonde put this down to him working something out on a piece of paper, pen going at rapid speed, looking like he was about to discover one of the worlds most amazing secrets. That was until his ebony haired girlfriend poked him none too softly in the upper arm and frowned at him.
"Squall! Say hello to Zelly!"
Looking a little miffed to say the least, the leather clad male uttered a 'hello' almost immediately, giving in to Rinoa and not once snapping at her for disturbing his train of thoughts.
Zell felt slightly sorry for him and had a fleeting thought.
If Rinoa's demanding now, what the hell is she like in bed?! They probably haven't even done anything, anyway. . . Actually, I don't wanna know.
Suddenly interested in what Squall was scribbling down furiously, he looked over at the piece of paper. It had on it scribbled drawings of some sort of weapon, similar to a gunblade, with a lot of annotation along the edges of the page.
"Whatcha doin' there, Squall?"
The furrow in Squalls brow lifted slightly, making him appear all together less menacing. Running his gloved hand through soft chocolate locks, he opened his mouth to speak.
"This? Oh, it's-,"
"He doesn't want to hear about that right now, do you Zelly?" Rinoa cut her boyfriend off, leaving him again with a somewhat frustrated stare.
I asked him, you dumb bitch.
Given, Rinoa annoyed Zell at the best of times, but he could never say anything like that to her face. Though she appeared air-headed sometimes, she had a kind heart, took care of all of her friends and was very sensitive. She also harboured the brain cells to be very intelligent when she had to be.
"Zelly, are you excited about tomorrow?"
"Huh?"
As soon as that singular word left his lips, the petite girl next to him gave him a disbelieving glare, her pink heart shape mouth hanging open a little bit.
"The Ball, silly! You know, the one Selphies been slaving over? It's tomorrow night! Do you have a date?"
"Nah. Don't really wanna go, but-,"
"You have too!!!"
"I was gonna say, before you assaulted my eardrums . . . I will go, because I know how much work Sef's put into it. Plus, nothin' like watching a bunch of jerks tryin' to dance."
Squall let out a breath of air, similar to that of a small laugh, along with a smile.
"You have to have a date too," Rinoa beamed, lips turning up in a mischievous smile before adding, ". . . and I know someone who's been dying for you to ask her."
Zells ears perked up at this. "Huh? Me?"
"Duh, yes you!"
"Well, who?"
"Pigtails."
"Who?"
Rinoa rolled her big brown eyes around before resting them upon Zells figure again.
"I don't know what her name is. But I know you like her."
"Oh . . . Anna."
"Who?"
This time, Zell rolled his eyes.
"Pigtails."
"OH!! Well, go ask her, before she gives up hope on you, like every other girl."
"Huh? Theres been other girls?"
"Zell! Just go ask her, she's on the third table to the left, trying not to drool over you."
"She's lookin' at me?"
"Zell! GO!"
"Okay, okay, I'm goin'."
--------------------------------
Selphie took hold of the crystal, sundae glass containing her order of strawberry ice cream (which looked very tantalizing) and walked away from the bar top. She headed over towards one of the red two-seater sectioned off tables of her regular Fifties style diner and slid into the padded seat with ease. Irvine followed her, carrying a cream soda in one hand and a plate of French fries in the other. He smiled at Selphie as he took a seat opposite her. She didn't return his smile, but neither did she take her eyes off him and simply sat, watching him like a hawk, her spoon wavering in front of her face.
"So, Sef, are you feelin' alright now?"
Selphie spooned a heap of the cold, pink ice cream into her mouth, and retorted sarcastically, "Well, I wouldn't be eating this if I felt like throwing up."
Irvine laughed, but she still kept a sullen look upon her features, making him feel a fool.
After a few moments of the two eating in silence, the cowboy offered the petite girl one of his fries.
She looked at his plate, then back up to his face.
"Because fries and ice cream really go together."
"Selphie, can you please stop with the sarcasm? I thought we came hear to talk."
"We did . . . but."
"But what?"
Selphie sighed and placed her spoon back into the sundae glass in front of her with a clatter. Suddenly, all the braveness she had felt around him earlier drained out of her, starting from her brain and leaving through her feet. She didn't look at him when she spoke, but looked down at her hands on the table in front of her, unable to bring her gaze up to his piercing indigo eyes.
"I . . . don't know."
"You don't know what?"
"I . . ." In fear of sounding like an idiot by repeating what she had just said, she merely shrugged her small shoulders. Unexpectedly, she saw and felt two large hands reach out and hold her smaller ones, lifting them up a little ways in their grip. Selphie followed the length of the arms that belonged to the hands, skimming her eyes up a broad clothed chest, until she rested them upon the sun-kissed face of Irvine.
"Selphie, I know we've tried so many times to sort this mess out and that it just ends up gettin' worse, which is probably why you're so reluctant to talk to me . . . right?"
Again, Selphie just used a shrugging motion to answer his question, whilst the sharpshooter carried on speaking, which was fine for her, because she couldn't seem to find her voice at the moment. Even if she could, she wouldn't trust herself to speak a whole sentence without faltering on the words.
"I know last night didn't turn out well at all and if I could turn back the clock, I would. But there's one thing I wouldn't take back, and that's what I said to you . . ."
The brunette girl swallowed a growing lump in her throat and remembered those three special words he had uttered to her, drunk or not at the time.
"I meant every single word. I love you, Sefie. You're the most beautiful girl I've ever laid my goddamn eyes on and everythin' about you captivates me."
Irvine seemed to be staring into her very soul through her eyes as he spoke, touching every nerve capable of human emotion. A part of her knew that this wasn't just 'Irvine Kinneas; ladies man' charming her socks off. This was for real. He was speaking from the very bottom of his heart, which was something she hadn't ever experienced, even in all the time that they were in their 'best-friends-flirting' stage quite a while back.
Selphie felt the corners of her mouth turning up in an unstoppable smile. A real, true-to-herself, authentic smile. Not one that had been painted on for the masses. She actually felt like smiling.
"Haven't seen that in a while. Is it gonna stay there?"
Feeling conscious that Irvine had noticed that she hadn't shown happiness in a long time, she toned her expression down a bit.
"Your fries are getting cold."
"Your Ice creams gettin' warm . . ."
His comeback made the smile re-appear on her face, turning up the corners of her forest green eyes, and making her cheeks flush.
What if he's just messing you around? I bet he thinks you're a right sucker.
As much as Selphie wanted to ignore the small nagging tone at the back of her mind, she couldn't just flick it away, as it voiced her most hidden doubts about the man sitting in front of her, holding her hands tenderly.
Look in his eyes; he's not going to do that again. He's genuine . . . isn't he?
Irvine must've felt the change in her posture, along with seeing it in her eyes when she looked up at him, for he asked her what was wrong.
"Just . . . don't leave. Don't break my heart again. It's still broken . . . but . . . you can fix it . . . Will you?"
"I know I've been the biggest wanker in the world to you, but believe me, I'm not goin' anywhere, anytime soon. Even if you want me to sod off, I'll cling to you like Rinoa to Squall."
After a few moments more of sitting at the table, finishing off their food, Irvine spoke up again, just as he was paying the bill.
"Sefie, will you come to the ball with me tomorrow night?"
A bitter thought raced across her mind before she gave her answer to the anxious man.
Didn't you promise you'd take Celia? Does she still think you're going with her?
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That night, Selphie found herself unable to sleep. She wasn't sure if it was because of the Ball that would be taking place the day after, or if it was because of the time she had spent with Irvine earlier on. Sitting up to fluff her soft, yellow pillow, she began to wonder about him . . . and the three girls he also recently had acquaintances with. Selphie knew that Celia, Amber and Nichi still despised her and knew that they would go ballistic when they found out that she and Irvine were back on talking terms again.
Finally, the haziness of her mind and the cool night merged into one, leaving her finally able to get some rest . . .
Walking up to his dorm room with a long lost bounce in her step for the first time in a while, she brought up her delicate hand and knocked on the door, awaiting an answer from within.
"Go away!"
"Irvy, it's me."
"Wait a sec."
Selphie combed her fingers through her silken hair and looked down at her sunshine coloured dress, giving herself the once over, making sure she looked immaculate. When she heard a loud thump come from inside Irvine's room, she looked towards the door, expecting it to open. It didn't.
"Irvine? Are you okay?"
There was a slight delay before the man inside gave his muffled answer.
"Uh . . . yeah! Never better! Hang on!"
A few seconds after she heard his voice, a latch clicked on the wooden door in front of her and it opened up slowly, just enough for a head to poke in or out. Selphie noticed that Irvine was topless; his bronzed, toned chest on show, his hair was loose and untidy, spilling down his shoulders.
Blushing, she averted her eyes and said, "Oh, sorry. Did I wake you up?"
She heard the voice before she saw who it was. But, of course, Selphie didn't need a reminder as to whom that shrill, bitchy tone belonged to.
"No, you didn't wake us, but why don't you just run along like a good little girl now"
Celia came into view with a white bed sheet wrapped around her seemingly naked figure, and linked her arm through Irvine's, which was resting on the door frame.
Selphie felt her heart burst into a million pieces in her chest, constricting her breathing. Her lungs felt sore as she gasped for air that she couldn't quite get. In slow motion, she collapsed down onto the floor, sub-consciously looking towards her scarred wrist. However, something was wrong. It was re-opening with a sickening wet sound of flesh being torn apart, as if her very eyes served as the razor blade which had become her friend. Crimson blood poured from the wound, pumping out almost unnaturally and in great amounts, spilling out onto her yellow dress, staining it with hatred. Selphie looked up at Irvine, pleading for help. The last thing she witnessed was his stone cold expression before it vanished behind a closed door.
Shooting up in bed, in a cold sweat, strands of chesnut hair sticking to her forehead, Selphie awoke with a very unpleasant start indeed. She was breathing in short gasps, much as she had done in her dream.
That's all it was . . . a dream. Dreams can't hurt you.
As if to prove it to herself, she brought her hand up from under the cover and held it in front of her face, using the pale moonlight leaking in through a slit in the curtains to view her wrist by.
It wasn't open. It wasn't raw and it certainly wasn't pumping out blood.
See?
Selphie lowered it back to the bed and took a deep, much needed intake of air, feeling better as she felt it enter her lungs. Looking towards the clock above her head, twisting into a rather difficult position, she saw that it had just gone 3:00 am. Kicking the bed covers off violently, Selphie decided that if she was to fall asleep successfully, she would have to have company; in the form of another sleeping friend beside her.
Placing her bare feet on the floor gingerly, Selphie walked over to the door, grabbing her access card before yanking it open. Garish yellow light flooded into her room and onto her face, making her squint up her jade green eyes, lines creasing her face in a disapproving expression.
With a certain blonde fighter's room in mind, Selphie tip-toed gently on the freezing, tiled floor beneath her, her feet doing all the work to get to the destination ahead.
But she found herself outside a completely different door in no time at all. A door with the initials I.K engraved onto it. Resisting the urge to flee, she bit down on the inside of her mouth and knocked.
From inside she heard a bump and a clutter, followed by some cursing. Selphies stomach lurched and her heart began pounding a crescendo inside her chest at the familiarity of the situation compared to her nightmare.
Just walk away now, before you get disappointed.
About the same time she was about to take her minds advice, the door in front of her opened slowly, but she didn't look and had already turned to walk away.
"Sefie? Whatcha doin'?"
Selphie half expected to hear a shrill female voice start up, but when that never came, she turned to face the man at the door. He wore only his boxer shorts, his top half uncovered and his auburn hair loose and flowing over his shoulders, like in the dream she had woken up from so afraid only moments before. Standing in her over-sized, white nightshirt, her hair messy and her mouth slightly agape, Selphie suddenly felt foolish for becoming so gullible over something her mind had conjured up whilst she was sleeping.
Consciously aware that Irvine was subtly roaming his eyes over her, she spoke up.
"I . . . I had a nightmare. Um . . ."
The half dressed cowboy in front of her gave a small chuckle and ran one of his large hands through his toffee coloured hair, before gently reaching out to take hold of Selphie and pull her into his room, shutting the door behind her. Though she had seen his dorm room before, she examined her surroundings carefully in the dim light given off by a bedside lamp. A single bed was over in the corner, pushed up against the wall, and covers thrown every which way, much like her own. A chest of wooden drawers stood nearby, along with an open rack wardrobe containing some of Irvine's clothes (the rest were scattered about the floor, making it look like a bomb had just hit). Then there was the usual walk-in kitchenette and bathroom that every dorm came with. Selphies eyes settled upon a cork pin board over to the right of the bed. Stuck up upon it, slap-bang in the middle, was an enlarged photograph of him and her. Selphie remembered the exact time that it had been taken.
All of the gang had been down at the local park on a stifling hot summer's day and lazing around on the grass. Rinoa had been going around with her new digital camera, taking snapshots of anything and everything, when Irvine suggested she take pictures of him and Selphie. Without warning, he had pulled her onto his lap and winded his arms around her slight waist, tickling her and making her giggle, almost dropping her ice cream cone down herself.
"Do you wanna coffee or somethin'?" Irvine's voice brought Selphie back to the present.
". . . Uh, No, I just want to sleep with you."
Irvine hoisted an eyebrow and gave her a sultry look. Upon realising what she said, Selphie blushed and quickly corrected herself.
"I mean . . . next to you . . . like . . . not like that!"
"Yeah I know, beautiful. Come on then, you're gonna get cold if you keep standin' over there lookin' sexy."
The small brunette, although still embarrassed, felt another smile creeping its way onto her lips. She watched Irvine clamber back into his bed, rather ungracefully for someone who was so good with a gun. He turned back to look at her, cocking his head to the side, his hair tumbling with the movement. Selphie, who was still smiling, followed his lead and climbed in next to him. His mattress was much softer that hers, or even Zells, and also seemed a little wider than the standard Garden issue singles. Snuggling down into the covers and laying her head upon the pillow, she felt Irvine's arms snake around her waist, pulling her tight against his firm body. Her face was only inches from his and she began to feel anxious and self conscious about their bodies being so close, fully aware that he only had on a small pair of boxer shorts and she only her nightshirt and smalls.
Oh shut-up. He's not going to do anything. Calm down, stupid.
All thoughts aside, she tucked her head into the space under his chin and mimicked his movements by placing her arms loosely around his upper body. Only when she let herself relax did she realise how good it felt to be in this position with him. Irvine's body warmth was radiating into her bones as she cherished the feel of him hugging her tightly. Selphie moved around under the bedcovers, placing her cold feet upon the sharpshooters, like she used to do to Zell. However, she never hugged this close with the blonde; neither did she feel so giddy whilst in the same bed as him.
"Whatcha doin' down there, fidget bum?"
Selphie brought her head out from its snug place and looked up at Irvine from her laying position. He smiled down at her and moved one of his warm hands from her back up to stroke some hair out of her eyes. As he did this, she shut them and giggled quietly, moving around under the sheets once again.
"You're adorable, Sef."
Irvine lowered his head and caught her smiling lips in a soft kiss. Only when the small girl in his arms responded did he see it fit to carry on. Selphie felt his smooth tongue enter her mouth and dance with hers in a slow, sensuous movement. Somehow, this kiss was different than usual. To her, it felt much more genuine and full of love . . . like the kind you might come across in a romantic film.
When they finally pulled apart, Irvine gave Selphie another small peck on her kiss-bruised lips, before placing one on her nose and the top of her head.
"Sweet dreams, beautiful."
And sweet dreams she did have, for not another nightmare graced her mind whilst she was held in strong, protective arms through-out the entirety of the night.