Gummybears
By: Southwest Eggroll
1. Chapter Ten: A Night Like This
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You give me the most gorgeous sleep,
That I've ever had.
And when it's really bad,
I guess it's not that bad.
--- 'Underneath It All' No Doubt
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The weather had suddenly turned sour. It seemed that the never ending clouds that had loomed over Balamb for so long were moving to Garden along with Seifer. The sound of thunder and lightning was loud and frequent.
He flipped on the radio, and was surprised to hear the DJ say, "And here's the new hit song by Ruby Dragon. They've been thrust to forefront of punk rock today, and this song has taken the country by storm. Here it goes!" Seifer listened to the song intently, and he found that he rather liked the beat and lyrics.
When Garden came into view, he saw a tiny figure bouncing up and down. He turned down the radio and sped up the car. Who would be outside on a night like this? A sudden bolt of lightning nearby punctuated his thought. As the car got closer, he began to realize that the girl was screaming-- it was Selphie. Bringing the car to full speed, he was to Selphie in a minute.
She was soaked to the bone, but that didn't seem to daunt her. Instead, she continued screaming.
"Stop! Stop it, I tell you!" she screamed at the sky. Seifer got out of the car and ran to her. He put his hands on her shoulders and shook her, not failing to notice the tears mingled with rainwater on her face.
"Selphie, what the hell are you doing?" he asked.
"It will never work out," she said. "Garden Festival is just not going to happen."
"What happened?" Seifer demanded.
"The lightning, Seifer. A bolt must've hit the circuit breaker, and it caused this big- big electrical surge in the Quad. The wires in the lights b-busted, and a now th-there's this big mess on the st-stage and there's no way I can clean it up, and where's P-Pilot when you actually need him and it's all b-been ruined!" she exclaimed angrily.
"Selphie, it's okay," Seifer said soothingly. He put his hand on her face. "It's okay."
Selphie's lip was quivering. "You know how bad I wanted this to happen..."
"Yeah, I know. But come on, you're not going to give up just like that, are you? You saved the world from the most terrible sorceress, but you'll let lightning bring you down? Come on Selphie, you're stronger than that."
"There's nothing...the stage is one big mess of fried metal. The lights are just...gone. Obliterated. Not there," she said.
"We can get them back. There's still time," he said.
Finally, with one last sigh, Selphie agreed, "You're right. You're always right. I'm just so frustrated."
"I know you are, but let's get out of this rain," Seifer said. The transport car was forgotten, and they walked into Balamb Garden together. On the way, Seifer slipped his trench coat over Selphie. The wind was harsh, and he didn't know how long she'd been screaming at the elements.
The trench coat was incredibly thick, and for the most part the inside was dry and warm, even though the outside was wet. Selphie wrapped it tigther around her, making an effort not to trip over it. She was engulfed by Seifer's scent, and she was suddenly moved. The perfect guy should smell wonderful. Seifer's coat did, which meant Seifer did, too. It was manly, musky, sexy and passion rolled into one, and though she wasn't sure, there was the smallest trace of...gummybears? Selphie felt around in his pockets. She was surprised to find a bag of gummybears there.
"Ooooh!" she said.
Seifer smirked at her. "You found my gummybears."
"Yep. Can I have one- five- ten? Can I have ten?" She was already opening the package and withdrawing her favorite candy.
"I guess I don't have much of a choice," he chuckled. Selphie devoured the treat as they walked into garden. "Let's go the the Quad. I want to see the damage."
Selphie led him to the Quad. She let him in first, and he walked in calmly. The damage wasn't as bad as Selphie had made it seem. A part of the lighting structure was hanging down lower than it was supposed to be, and a beam that held up the roof had broken.
"This is it?" Seifer said. "I can handle this."
"It will take weeks."
"Hours, if that," he said. Seifer was suddenly overwhelmed with a strong desire to help Selphie. He wanted to take back those tears he'd seen her shed earlier, and make everything work for her.
/...you really have lost it, seifer.../
"There's no way..." Selphie whimpered. She looked at him sadly.
Seifer put his hand to her chin. "Look at me and you. If you would've told me about I'd feel this way about anyone- you- I would've said the same thing. There's no way." He smirked at her, and his eyes grew dark. He brought his lips over hers so they brushed together as he added, "And here we are, about to engage in something wonderful..."
Selphie was completely willing when Seifer closed the space between them and rained soft kisses all over her face. Her eyes, her nose, her cheeks- every part of her perfection. He realized how much he adored Selphie, and he kissed her lips with a passion he hoped conveyed the depth of his feeling. Selphie didn't fail to amaze him. She let out waves of pent up frustration on his mouth, and it was more satisfying than anything she'd ever felt. Hurt oozed out of her and vanished into nothing. She stopped the kiss only so she could lay her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her.
"Sefie..."
"It would be so perfect," she whispered. "We could just stop time, and be frozen in this instant forever. Just you and me, and no one else..." She kissed Seifer on the cheek, having to hop up to do so. "Seifer?"
"Sefie."
"Keep me safe, okay?" she whispered.
"Always," he replied. And he meant it. "Let's go to your room."
"Seifer, I--"
"I just want to walk you there. I've got stuff to finish up tonight, anyway," he responded quickly.
She smiled at him. "Of course," she said. She looped her arm into his, and they walked out of the Quad together. They were silent the whole walk, yet the silence was comfortable. It amazed Seifer that Selphie stayed quiet, but then again, she was feeling incredilbly off. When they reached her room, he stood in front of her. He lifted a hand and put it on her chin. With his thumb, he gently stroked her lower lip.
"Good night, Seifer," she said. Selphie unlocked the door and stepped inside. She gave Seifer a small wave and shut the door softly.
She collapsed on the other side, sliding down with her back against the door.
"Oh, Selphie...what are you doing?" she asked herself. "If you fall in love...then what? Then he'll get bored, and he'll eventually go after another girl." Just then, she realized he hadn't taken back his trench coat. Selphie settled into it, and let herself drift off, Seifer's masculine scent filling her dreams with wonderful, wonderful things...
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AT THE SAME MOMENT, SEIFER allowed himself to slump to the floor against Selphie's dorm. He sighed deeply, propped his knees up and dropped his head so his chin was touching his chest.
"Seifer, what the hell are you getting yourself into?" he asked quietly. "Selphie isn't...she won't give it up easily. That's reason enough to quit."
He knew he was lying to himself. He stopped wanting to get into Selphie's pants a long time ago; it had evolved into something much greater quickly. As a matter of fact, Seifer couldn't remember ever really declaring that screwing Selphie was his intention. Rather, he used it as an excuse when he felt he was getting to deep in it. Well, now he was so far in it he couldn't even use that anymore. It was too painfully obvious that he was very much in...No, Seifer wouldn't admit to anything just yet, he was too proud of his rogue-bachelor status.
Seifer got up, and with his chin in the air, he made his way to the Quad. He had work to do.
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THE NEXT MORNING, SELPHIE AWOKE with a smile on her lips. She didn't want to wake up just yet, she was too content at the moment. Her body was a little hot because she'd spent the whole night wrapped in Seifer's trench coat, but it was certainly worth it. Selphie yawned and rolled over onto her stomach. She inhaled and exhaled slowly. Seifer's trench smelled too good. Selphie felt she could spend her life in it...maybe even with him. Little butterflies fluttered in her heart, and she hopped of her bed, deciding that daydreams could wait until later.
Of course, as she skipped down the hall to the Quad twenty minutes later, she couldn't help but imagine...Seifer likes me. I like Seifer. It makes sense that we should be together. But how come we're not? That Hyne-forsaken intercom. Seifer tried to ask me out...oh gummybears, it's not like this is a big deal anyway. I'm not...I'm not in love with him. That would be...strange. I'm a strange person, but not that strange. Her heart thudded in her chest. Or am I? I'm just thinking about him, and there goes that blasted heart of me. I see your point, my heart! So maybe...maybe, maybe, just maybe I might, sort of, kind of in an off-the-wall, barely there, sort of way love Seifer. Her eyes got big.
"Ohmigosh," Selphie gasped. Her own thoughts astonished her. "I can't believe I just thought that. I can't believe I just--" She stopped, suddenly realizing that she had arrived in the Quad. She couldn't stop the blush that rose to her cheeks. "Oh. Hello, Seifer." He was standing in front of a repaired stage, looking absolutely triumphant with his hands on his hips.
It was fixed- everything, the lights, the stage, the roof, was good as new. There was a smudge on his face, and his hair was mussed up. He obviously hadn't slept. Selphie's eyes, filled with utter gratitude, met his. He smirked at her, like it had all been nothing.
Hyne, save me. I've just fallen in love, she thought.
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Fluff-o-mania, huh? Hopefully this chapter made up for the previous one. I hope you guys liked this, that it wasn't too out of character or anything. I thought Seifer was acting a little too...soft...but I think it's fairly accurate, considering he's just about fallen in love with Selphie.
Anyway, in chapter eight, I promised that there would never be another big gap, and well, there was a huge one, so I'm not promising anything this time. I can hardly believe it, but Gummybears was started sometimes in June or July of 2002, nearly a year ago! It's really sad. But like I've said, I won't ever stop updating. I'll complete this story if it kills me, or if it takes me twenty years. In case you're wondering, I'm updating because it's Spring Break. I've actually had the time and will to write. I'm sorry about the spelling errors, I know there are some in there but I'm too groggy to fix. Please point out in reviews if ya find one, thanks.
This chapter is dedicated to all those people who read this story a year ago, and are still taking the time to read the rest.
Also, you guys should thank my buddy Nicole, who sort of "reminded" me of this story.
