Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, I do not own the places. I don't own anything related to FFVIII, all I own is the plot.
- Chapter ten: Love in the Dark -
"What's the time?"
"It's nearly half past five."
"...Then I have to go."
Irvine looked at her. "Why?"
"Well...Squall was feeling so bad about today that he said he'd take me to a restaurant."
"What happened?"
Rinoa shrugged. "He and I went to visit Timber, but halfway to Balamb his phone rang. It was Quistis who had found another one of those posters and she needed Squall's help so he went back and I did too. That's when I read the posters and called you."
Irvine looked away. He had called Quistis, so he himself was the reason why Rinoa's day at Timber had been ruined. She got up and tied her shoelaces. Suddely he chuckled.
"What?" she asked.
"Oh, it's just that I promised to take Selphie out to dinner as well. Because of last night."
"...Oh." Rinoa ran a hand through her hair and walked towards the door. ""Well...I guess I'll see you tomorrow. We're still...us, aren't we? We're okay, right?"
He nodded. "We're still us. We will always be what we can't avoid being. Us."
Selphie smiled at her boyfriend from behind the candle. The light danced and made strange shadows on his face. She thought he looked tired, the dark rings under his eyes stressed by the flame and its shadows.
She put her hand on his on the table. "This really is a lovely place. How did you find it?"
"Oh...a friend told me about it."
"Well, it's lovely." She assured him.
He looked around and waved at one of the waiters. "Could we get a bottle of red wine, please?"
The waiter nodded politely. Irvine turned back to Selphie.
"So, did you see anything you liked?"
Selphie bent her head over the menu again and let out a ponderous mumble. "Hmm...I can't decide...it all looks so nice. What are you having?"
Irvine reached for a piece of bread and bit off a bit of the crust while looking at the menu.
"I thought the veal looked okay...with a red wine sauce and steamed potato chips."
"Hmm...I think...I'll got for the chicken wraps. Sounds exciting." She said beaming.
She closed her menu and leaned back in her chair. Irvine wanted to say something to her, about how beautiful she looked or about how happy she looked. But two voices at the door made them both look up before he had the chance to.
"...I ordered a table for two."
"Yes sir, under what name?"
"Leonheart."
Irvine closed his eyes and moaned inwardly. He tried to hide behind his menu, slipping down on his chair so he'd sit a little lower, but Selphie waved at them excitedly.
"Squall! Rinoa!" she called merrily.
Squall looked up and waved back at them.
"Hi Selphie. I see we both had the same idea." He joked.
Rinoa smiled at them shyly.
"Come on, Squall. The guy found us a table." She urged softly.
"Hey!" Selphie said suddenly. "Why don't we eat together!"
Squall seemed to ponder this for a moment. This wasn't his idea of a romantic evening, but perhaps it was a good idea anyway.
"Sure. I'm sure they'll be able to put up a table next to yours."
"Irvine, why don't you help him?" Selphie said, poking him in the ribs.
Hastily he stood up and started to pull up another table. Squall sat down across from Selphie and patted the chair next to him for Rinoa to sit down on. Irvine sat down next to Selphie and took her hand under the table.
She gave him a smile and then handed Squall her menu. "We already decided."
Squall opened it after he had taken off his jacket. Irvine silently handed his menu to Rinoa and kept his eyes on her as she accepted it. She looked back at him and their eyes locked for a moment. Then she looked away and leaned her head against Squall's shoulder.
The waiter came back and brought them their bottle of wine and another basket of bread.
"So Selphie...about your Festival Surprise..." Squall said, taking a sip from his wine. "Is it going to happen soon? I must admit that I'm really curious."
She giggled. "Yeah, real soon. We're going to have a last rehearsal in a few days and then the big day will arrive. Posters will be up tomorrow afternoon. I've instructed a few young people to do that and don't worry," she added. " I've checked it all with Cid."
She winked. Squall laughed and Irvine forced a laugh from his throat too. He kept glancing at Rinoa every now and then as they waited for their meals to arrive. When the waiter finally brought them their dishes, he grabbed Selphie's hand and squeezed it tightly, trying to get his mind to stay on her, not on Rinoa.
He was quiet as he started to eat and ignored the conversation that had started between Selphie and Squall. He didn't look up but he knew Rinoa was eating quietly too. Suddenly he felt something tough his lower leg. He looked up and down again quickly as he felt Rinoa's eyes burning.
Slowly he put down his knife and raised his head to meet her gaze. He could feel her foot rubbing against his leg, slowly down to where his foot was. Then she put her foot down and nudged her knee against his. He frantically forced back a cough and dropped his napkin by accident.
He muttered an excuse while diving down to retrieve it. He saw Rinoa get up from her chair from underneath the tablecloth and when he had seated himself in his chair again, she had disappeared out of sight.
Selphie noticed how he looked around confusedly. "She went to see if Angelo was alright."
"Angelo?" he asked, now even more confused.
"Yeah." Squall muttered. "She insisted on taking him with us. But he wasn't allowed inside and so she had to tie him up at the door."
Irvine let out a soft 'oh' and bent his head over his plate again. Selphie placed her hand on his knee.
"Are you alright? You're so quiet."
"It's nothing. I just...have...a little problem with my, er, stomach." He lied quickly. "It started this afternoon. I'd better go to the toilet, excuse me for a moment. I'll be right back."
He got up and made his way to the toilets. There was only one and it was occupied so he had to wait. He leaned back against the wall, trying to catch a glimpse of Rinoa at the door. But he could only see the doorman and Angelo.
He sighed and tapped the door impatiently. The toilet was being flushed and the door opened with a strong jerk. Rinoa tumbled out, falling against his chest. She was about to say something cranky when she noticed it was him.
"Oh..." she said. "Sorry. I thought it was someone else."
"...I thought you were with Angelo."
She shook her head. "...No..."
She disentangled herself from him and looked up at him.
"I don't know if I can keep this up." She whispered. "I see you and I want to kiss you. But when Squall touches me...I just...I just don't know what to do anymore."
"Shh...I know. I feel the same. But you still love him and I still love her."
"Do you? Do you really?" she cradeled his face in her hands and brought it close to hers. "You smile at her, you take her hand. Yet you avoid us both as soon as we're in one room. You don't want to hurt her and you can't get yourself to hurt her. But you don't love her."
"Rinoa, please..." he whispered. "Not here..."
But she had already pressed her mouth to his. He grabbed her tightly and kissed her back forcefully. His hands roamed over her shoulders and her back, pressing her tightly to his chest. Rinoa crawled her hand around his neck, making sure he couldn't pull back.
Suddenly they both let go, jumping back as if someone had sounded an alarm. They smiled at each other guiltily.
"Irvine? Rinoa? Where are you?" Selphie's voice sounded.
Their smiles disappeared. Rinoa popped her head around the corner. "Yes?"
"Oh there you are!" Selphie said merrily. "Squall's paid the check so we can go home now."
Irvine took a deep breath and walked around the corner too. "Hey there, babe."
Rinoa laughed, covering her nerves. "Irvine and I bumped into each other. I was just washing my hands after handling Angelo."
Irvine brushed past her, offering Selphie his arm. Rinoa waited for Squall and the four of them walked the road back to Balamb Garden.
"I hope you didn't mind that we ate with Selphie and Irvine tonight. I know I had promised you a romantic evening for the two of us." Squall whispered into her ear.
Rinoa shook her head with a smile and kissed his cheek. "I had a lovely time. And when we get back we might have an even better time, really just the two of us."
He had a smile on his face she couldn't quite recognise. "I think I like the sound of that."
She realised his smile was a smirk.
He pulled her closer to him as they entered Garden. Selphie and Irvine said goodnight to them and went the other way. Rinoa checked her watch.
"Why don't I run up to our dorm and get ready while you take Angelo out for a one minute stroll in the garden. He didn't do his business yet." She said, a soft yet cheeky smile.
Squall took the leash from her hand and watched her skip away. She felt happy. Irvine and she were okay and apart from that, Squall and she were okay too. Knowing that he wanted to spend this much romantic time with her made her heart flutter.
She entered the room and reached for a box of matches. She placed a few candles around the room and lit them. Then she took off her blue vest and her black boots and turned back the covers of their bed to wait for Squall.
But as she wanted to crawl into bed, a little sharp thing pricked her side. She reached out for it and found it was a piece of paper. Curious, she turned it around.
'Why can't you stop lying? You're a mean and conscienceless doublecrosser, an adultress, and you don't care. You're hurting those around you, those who love you. You must stop it or I will stop you. Stop it or I will hurt you back to show you just what kind of pain you cause.'
She dropped it and a small gasp escaped her lips. With trembling fingers did she pick it up again. How had it gotten there? Someone had been in their room!
She wanted to tear it up, but she heard Squall's footsteps outside the door. Quickly she stuffed it under her pillow and pulled the sheets up to her chin. Squall entered with Angelo, who he led to his own basket.
He took off his jacket and leaned agains the door, watching Rinoa as she was lying in bed. She looked back at him uncomfortably.
"What's wrong?" she asked nervously.
"Nothing. I was just looking at you. You really are beautiful, you know that, don't you?"
He untied his boots and took off his shirt as he made his way over to the bed. Rinoa pulled the covers back to let him under and he leaned in to kiss her. His hands lifted her top above her head and she closed her eyes as she felt the fabric slither onto the floor.
She placed her arms around him and waited for him until he was ready. He looked into her eyes.
"I love you, Rinoa." He said with nothing but sincerity in his eyes.
She kissed his lips softly. "I know. And I love you too."
"I just wanted you to know."
He put out the light and kissed her again. She closed her eyes once more and let herself be lost in the feelings that surrounded them both in this darkness.
She opened her eyes and looked at the ceiling. The room was still dark and it was still night. She felt Squall turn over next to her in bed. His breathing had quieted down as he was sleeping calmly. She turned on her side and watched his chest rise and fall with every breath.
She caressed a strand of hair away from her own eyes and fell on her back again. She suddenly noticed the was wearing her black top. This surprised her, because she couldn't recall putting it back on after what she and Squall had been enjoying.
She shrugged and wondered what time it was. She could hear all sorts of noises coming from the corridors. This also surprised her, because they were usually very quiet at night. She looked at the alarm clock on Squall's bedside table.
It was only half past two in the morning.
'That's odd.' She thought.
She turned on her side again and tried to fall asleep but the noise outside just got louder. Suddenly she recognised the noise as screams and people running. She sat up straight, causing Squall to wake up.
"Wasse matte?" he muttered groggily.
"I don't know." She whispered hauntedly.
She got out of bed and moved towards the door. The moment she opened it, Quistis came tumbling in.
"Squall, quick! Wake up!"
"Why, wat's wrong?"
"Fire! The Quad's on fire!"