Quistis and Selphie giggled as they exited the train onto the platform in Deling City.
"So" said Selphie as they ran up the escalators "Have you decided who you are taking to the ball?"
"Do you have to ask?" asked Quistis. Selphie jumped and punched the air
"You're going to ask Yazoo, aren't you?" said Selphie eccentrically.
"Of course" said Quistis nodding "Hopefully he will ask me though"
"Of course he will" said Selphie "Now with Kadaj out of the picture you can have a relationship with the tall, dark and handsome Yazoo!"
"Let's get the dresses over with" said Quistis who was dragged towards the stores by Selphie.
As far as Quistis and Selphie could remember there was only a single store in Deling City which sold dresses.
"I wonder where Rinoa is?" said Selphie looking around. Rinoa had gone on ahead so that she could speak to her father. When they walked through the large double glass doors into the store Rinoa was already there being measured up.
"Hey!" said Selphie waving "You picked a dress yet?"
"Not yet" said Rinoa "Just getting the measurements first"
"Any colour preference?" asked the shop assistant who had written down all Rinoa's measurements onto a clipboard.
"No" said Rinoa "Can I wait for you to measure them before I go look at the dresses?"
"Of course" said the shop assistant who gestured for Selphie to step onto the podium to be measured.
After twenty minutes of measuring Quistis and Selphie the assistant lead them into a back room. The ladies gasped as the lights were turned on in the backroom. Rows and rows of dresses which were hung in plastic covers covered the massive floor space. Selphie and Rinoa instantly ran into the rows of dresses and began to flick through the hanging dresses.
"How about you miss?" asked the assistant "Would you like help in finding a suitable dress?" Quistis turned to the young assistant who was around Selphie's age.
"Please" said Quistis. They young assistant and Quistis went through the subtly coloured dresses.
"How about this one?" asked the assistant
"No" said Quistis "It is nice but it just isn't me"
"I think I have just the dress" said the assistant who had remembered a dress that had been a one-off creation. When the cupboard was opened and the assistant withdrew the dress Quistis heard a gasp from behind her. Selphie and Rinoa were at her shoulders looking at the dress
"It's gorgeous" said Selphie
"Truly" said Rinoa.
"It's quite a step up in design and material but unfortunately it's quite a step up in price as well" said the assistant "But if it's what you want"
"I will take it" said Quistis.
The three ladies took the train back to Balamb Garden; their dresses were now in blacked out plastic covers.
"Yazoo will love you in that" said Selphie pointing to the dress which hung on the rack.
"I hope so" said Quistis.
"He will" said Rinoa smiling at Quistis "He certainly will" Quistis was looking out of the window and did not notice Rinoa's smile, if she had then she would have asked what Rinoa was smiling about. Like the rest of her friends Rinoa was glad to see that Quistis was finally going to have someone to connect with. For a while now Quistis had been unhappy. None of the others had noticed except for Rinoa who had natural, unspoken empathy with her friends. Rinoa turned and looked out of the window wondering what Yazoo would say when he saw Quistis.