A/N: I have this chapter written since last week or so, but my life's been so hectic that's been nearly impossible to sit at the computer and type it down. So I'm sorry, guys. Anyways, you're not here to read my excuses, so on with the story…

Chapter 23

Rikku and Gippal have their happy ending

"Here's your song." I smiled at Lenne, handing her the recently printed page with the poem I had written the night before. She held out her hand and grabbed the page in her long fingers, with a mysterious smile playing on her lips. "I hope you'll like it."

"I'm sure I will." She said before starting to read the lyrics. From time to time I could see her glancing at me from the corner of her eye, as if she was trying to relate the poem itself with me, with my life… She finally placed the paper on the table in front of her and sighed.

"So… What do you think?" I asked, feeling a bit anxious. After all, it wasn't everyday I showed my work to someone else than Lulu or Tidus, not to mention the fact that Lenne was thinking of transforming my poem into a song that would be heard by hundreds, thousands of people from all across Spira. That was definitely something that made me nervous.

"You know, Yuna," she slowly began, taking another look at the poem. "When I first asked you to write me a song, I wasn't expecting something so… deep. So heartfelt. These words are powerful, Yuna." Her big brown eyes gazed into mine and she let out a small smile. "It'll be an honor to sing them."

"Does that mean you like it?" I couldn't help the huge grin that had formed on my lips. "Really?"

"Yes, really. I love it, it's great! I'm sure it'll be a big hit! This was exactly what I needed…" She held my hands over the table. "Thank you, Yuna."

I blushed slightly. "Thank you, Lenne, for giving me this chance. I would never come out of the closet if it wasn't for you. Even now, I'm a bit scared… I mean, I love to write, but… will others like my work? I… I'm not sure… I feel a little insecure."

Lenne smiled understandingly. "Well, when I first started to sing I wasn't very confident either. I was afraid that I would fail… just like you are now. But let me tell you something, Yuna. The words on this poem are not the words of an insecure woman. They contain a lot of strength and courage… and love. Just like the person who wrote them. You just have to believe in yourself."

"Yeah, well, last night I was inspired." I joked. But then I added. "But I guess you're right. Thanks. It's good to hear something nice once in a while."

"Tell me about it." We both giggled. Then Lenne became serious again. "Now… let's talk about business. I'm glad you called me today, 'cause tonight I'm gonna have dinner with my producer and I'll show him your poem then. If he likes it — and I'm sure he will — we'll start working on it a.s.a.p."

"That's good… I think."

"Yeah, it's good. You'll have to sign a contract, allowing us to use your work for the song, and also to help us in case the lyrics don't fit the music, ya know… to change the rhythm and stuff. But you don't have to worry 'bout anything else."

I nodded, trying to assimilate everything. I was so focused on Lenne's words that I didn't notice the boy who had just entered the coffee house until he stopped a few feet away from our table. Only then did I see his blonde locks falling to his intense blue eyes and his expression lost somewhere between surprised and sad. Only then did I realize that the boy was Shuyin.

Lenne hadn't seen him, because she had her back turned to him, but I knew he had seen her. That was why he had stopped instead of coming to meet me; that was why he was looking so sad and cheerless. Catching my fixed stare, Lenne slowly turned in the chair, gazing at the lone figure standing there. It was an extremely awkward moment, one of those moments when everything goes soundless and time seems to slow down, when all you truly want is for it to go faster. Then, as if in slow motion, Shuyin turned on his heels and walked out of the coffee house.

In an instant, everything was back to normal. The sound came again, the movements returned to their normal speed… My eyes were still gazing at the closed door when I heard Lenne's deep sigh. I looked at her, she was clearly strained from the encounter.

"Are you okay?" I asked, continuing to glance at the door. All I wanted to do was go after Shuyin, to make sure he didn't do anything silly or stupid. I knew that, even though he was trying to get over Lenne, she was still a big issue in his life and his heart was still broken and I was worried about my friend.

Lenne seemed to notice my distress, even bigger than hers, for she calmly said, "I'm fine, Yuna. If you wanna go after him… go."

I gazed at her again. "I'm sorry, Lenne. You're my friend, but…"

"You're his. And your loyalty lies with him." She paused. "Go! I'll call you later… because of the song." She added.

I gave her a small smile, then grabbed my purse and darted off, running after Shuyin. I found him about five minutes later, walking down the street, his hands in his pockets and his eyes to the floor.

"Shuyin!" He didn't turn so I called again. "Shuyin! Wait!"

This time he heard me for he looked back and slowed down, coming to a halt. I finally reached him, slightly panting from the run.

"You came running after me?" He asked, arching his eyebrows.

"Don't look so surprised, Shu. What were you expecting me to do, abandon you?" I took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "Never again, big bro. Never again."

He gave me a small smile and I threw my arms around him, giving him a big hug.

-----XX-----

"This isn't the first time I see her after the break-up." Shuyin confessed me later that day. We had gone back to his apartment and we had had lunch there. It was just the two of us, for Tidus had gone to a meeting with Auron.

"You've seen her before?" I asked, taking the plates into the kitchen and putting them in the sink.

"We live in the same town, Yuna." He responded, placing the glasses near the plates. "It would be really strange if we stopped seeing each other all of a sudden. But I've only seen her a couple of times, and it's always been from a certain distance…"

"You still like her very much, don't you?" I asked hesitantly. I didn't want to hurt him even more.

He ran a hand through his blonde locks and sighed. "I don't know… I don't know how I feel anymore. I don't know if I feel at all… Since my father died… If it wasn't for Tidus, I…" He shook his head. "Things haven't been easy."

I didn't know what to say, so I kept my silence. After a few moments he spoke again.

"Maybe I need to get away… Get away from here and… start my life from the scratch somewhere else."

"Maybe…" I began tentatively, "Maybe you could go with Tidus when he returns to Zanarkand."

Shuyin looked at me. "So he told you?"

I blinked, surprised at the sudden change of subject. "Told me? Told me what?"

"Nothing." Shuyin replied quickly. Too quickly.

"What was he supposed to tell me, Shuyin?" I asked, frowning. "It has something to do with Tidus and his return to Zanarkand, hasn't it? Please, tell me."

"I can't, Yuna. Tidus asked me to keep it a secret; I can't tell you. Ask him, I'm sure he'll tell you everything then." He replied. His eyes were resolute — he wouldn't tell me his brother's secret.

I looked away, feeling my eyes watering. If Tidus was keeping a secret from me it had to be his decision to go back to Zanarkand. Maybe he didn't want to tell me so things wouldn't get awkward between us, so I wouldn't distance myself from him…

"I'm sorry, Yuna. I should've kept my mouth shut." I heard Shuyin say from behind me.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, recovering my composure. Then I turned to him with a smile that I hoped was somewhat reassuring and said, "It's okay, Shu, I'll ask Tidus. No big deal."

In that instant, we heard the front door opening and Tidus voice calling out for his brother. Shuyin stepped out of the kitchen and I followed him, leaning against the doorframe and folding my arms across my chest. Tidus didn't see me though, for he was talking to Auron, who had come with him. In fact, Auron was the first one to notice my presence in the room.

"Lady Yuna, it's a pleasure to see you again." He said calmly, with a nod in my direction.

"The pleasure is mine I'm sure." I replied in the same tone.

Tidus looked at me and smiled broadly. "Yuna, you're here! I was gonna call you later."

"Well, Shuyin invited me to lunch and I couldn't say no, so…"

"Talking 'bout food," Tidus said suddenly, turning to Auron again. "Wanna eat something, Auron? We haven't lunched yet." He explained. Auron refused politely, saying he wasn't hungry, and Tidus continued "Well, in that case, maybe we should go straight to the point…"

"I guess it would be better." Auron agreed.

"Get to the point?" Shuyin asked, sitting on a chair. "What are ya talking about, Tidus?"

Tidus scratched the back of his head, smiling sheepishly. "Well, remember that conversation we had a couple of days ago? I talked to Auron about it."

Auron nodded, taking a seat too. "Yes, and I may say that I find the idea quite interesting. I would need to see your abilities, of course, but being the son of Jecht, I don't doubt you're very good with a blitzball in your hands."

Shuyin's eyes lightened up a little. "Are you serious?"

I wasn't really following the conversation, but it didn't matter for they seemed to have forgotten me. They were too focused on their little chat. It seemed like they were deciding Shuyin's future — maybe he had already had the idea of going to Zanarkand with Tidus long before I had suggested it to him; maybe Auron was offering him a chance to go back to Blitzball, he had mentioned something about Blitzball after all…

"Yes, I'm serious, Shuyin. I never play when it comes to business." Auron replied calmly. "Besides, I'm not saying I'll represent you. There are some things we must take care of first. It's not going to be easy, and your record isn't the best, but… despite everything else, I think you're a good kid and I know your father would've wanted to see you shine."

Shuyin's smile faded immediately. "Yeah, maybe… I guess we'll never know, huh?"

At that moment, Tidus, who was still standing behind the couch, looked in my direction and smiled mischievously, saying casually "Listen, guys, you can take care of things… I'm gonna help Yuna with the dishes, 'kay?"

I arched my eyebrows, fully understanding his intentions, but he didn't give me time to say anything — he was already pulling me with him into the kitchen, closing the door behind us.

"You know," I said playfully, "you really gotta stop this obsession with kitchens… It's not healthy."

He laughed. "Yeah, well, I thought ya liked it… But we can always do the dishes." He added, walking towards the sink.

"Nah, I'm not in the mood." I responded, following him.

He grinned and put an arm around my waist, pulling me towards him and planting a kiss on my neck. "You're in the mood for what, then?" He softly whispered in my ear. I held his face in my hands and kissed him, gently pressing my lips against his. He kissed me back and then took a step back, his arms still around me and an impish smile on his lips. "So… you're in the mood for this, huh?"

I rolled my eyes, smiling. Then I turned serious again, remembering what Shuyin had told me… or what he hadn't told me. "Actually, there's something I want to ask you…" I said softly, looking down. "But I'm not sure if I want to know the answer…"

I knew he was frowning, despite his gentle tone. "What is it?"

I looked at him and ran my fingers through his hair with a small smile. Then, sighing, I asked blatantly, "When are you going back to Zanarkand?"

Tidus remained silent. I couldn't really tell if he was surprised by my deliberate question or if he just didn't know how to tell me what I already knew… It was a little bit of both, I guess. Finally, after a few seconds, he asked, "How do you know I'm returning to Zanarkand?"

"'Cause you're my man and I know you… and because today I learned you're keeping a secret from me." He was going to say something, but I placed two fingers on his lips, hushing him. "Let me finish, please. Shuyin said you had something to tell me, but he didn't say what it was. I figured it had something to do with your return…"

"Yuna…"

I gave him a small smile. "Don't worry. I knew it had to happen someday. When is it?"

He bit his lower lip, clearly reluctant in telling me. His embrace tightened around me, crushing me against his chest, and he bent his head to kiss me. "In two weeks." He murmured against my lips.

I opened my eyes and they locked with his, which were already open and looking at me. Our noses were touching, our lips brushing, our bodies pressing against each other… But even though I could feel his warmth, I felt cold… lost without him. He was right there next to me and I was already missing him — how silly was that? I couldn't help one tear from falling…

"Hey, I'm still here…" He said tenderly, caressing my face with his warm fingers. "And I'm all yours, come what may…"

"Tidus!" Shuyin opened the door all of a sudden and Tidus and I let go of each other. "Sorry, guys, I didn't want to interrupt."

"It's okay, Shuyin. What's up?" Tidus asked, one of his arms still around my waist.

Shuyin gazed at me for an instant and then turned to Tidus again. "Auron's leaving. He wanted to have a word with you first."

"Oh, okay." Tidus said. He took my hand in his and we followed Shuyin out of the kitchen. Auron was putting his long coat on. "Auron, Shuyin said you wanted to talk to me…"

"Actually, I just wanted to remind you that I reserved a table for tonight at the hotel's restaurant. I am expecting you and Shuyin to show up." It was not a question or an invitation. Auron was simply telling them what he wanted them to do… and they would oblige.

"Sure." Tidus agreed. "Is it a business dinner or…?"

"Dona will be there too." Auron responded, understanding Tidus' unfinished question. Then he looked at me. "Would you like to join us for dinner, Yuna?"

"Me?" I asked, surprised. I didn't even want to imagine what a dinner with me, Dona and Tidus would be like. "Thank you very much, Sir Auron, but I must decline your invitation. I already have other plans for tonight. Though I must admit they're not as interesting as a dinner with you…"

Auron smiled. "Very well, then. I'll see you two tonight." He added, looking at Tidus and Shuyin, before he opened the front door to leave.

I turned to Tidus, placing a hand on his forearm. "I guess I'm going too. I need some time to… think. Can I call you later?"

He nodded, looking a little sad. "Sure, I'll be waiting."

"Okay, then." I said, kissing him goodbye. I waved at Shuyin, and then I left after Auron, who was still on the hallway waiting for the elevator.

"Ladies first." He said when the cabin finally reached our floor. I thanked him and entered the compartment. We were on our way down when he spoke again. "You know, it truly is a shame that you won't have dinner with us."

"I'm sure it will be a very good dinner nevertheless." I answered politely. I had no idea why he was insisting so much on the issue.

"Maybe…" We fell silent once again. Then he suddenly said, "You know, Yuna, you are very much like your father."

"What?"

The elevator had stopped and the doors opened; Auron stepped out and then turned his head to face me. A gentle smile graced his features, softening them. "You remind me a lot of Braska." He repeated.

"You knew my father?" I asked, surprised, following him outside the building. It was a sunny day, but it was colder than usual.

He nodded. "He was one of my best friends… along with Jecht. The three of us were inseparable."

I took a moment to assimilate what he had told me and then I questioned hesitantly, "You're telling me that… my father… knew Tidus' father?"

"Ironic, isn't it?" Auron asked.

I didn't know what to say. "Why are you telling me this now?"

He gazed me in the eye. "Because I hadn't had the chance before. The only other time we met was when Jecht was dying and I didn't think it was the right time. You were needed for other tasks back then."

I blinked. "Tasks? What tasks?"

"To keep Shuyin and Tidus together, so they could face their father's death." Auron said simply. "Those two boys love you, Yuna, I can see it in their eyes. I'm not surprised though. Jecht also loved Braska like he was his own blood…"

I looked down. I couldn't imagine my father ― the mighty Lord Braska, who was so powerful in Bevelle ― being the best friend of a man like Jecht ― drunk and poor and… But Jecht hadn't always been like that, I reminded myself, thinking of how Shuyin used to adore and look up to his father. Maybe he was a great man before he was broken down by the drink, I thought sadly.

"When Jecht began having serious problems with the drink," Auron said, as if reading my mind, "your father and I tried to help him, before he fell apart… but he didn't listen to us. It was a rough time for all of us, especially because your mother died shortly after." He paused. "We grew distant after that. Despite everything, when your father discovered he was ill, he asked me to take care of you if anything happened to him."

"He did? But then, why didn't I…? I mean, shouldn't I have gone to Zanarkand with you? How come did I end up in Besaid?" I was confused. It was not that I wished I had gone to Zanarkand with Auron; no, I loved Besaid, I loved my friends and family and I was so happy I had gone to live there a few years ago. It was just that I was trying to understand what Auron was telling me.

"Well, I tried to keep your guard, but the Bevellian court didn't allow me to. According to the laws, you should live with your nearest familiar, who happened to be Cid. After that, I lost track of you for I didn't know where Cid was currently living. One year later, though," he continued, "Tidus came to live with me and he told me about you and I knew you were doing fine."

"Yes, I love to live with my Uncle and my cousins… And I love Besaid, I made a lot of friends here." I told him quietly.

"I can see that. You even found love." I didn't reply and he continued, "Nonetheless, what I wanted to tell you is that you can always come to Zanarkand if you want; and if you need anything, you can just call me ― it would be a pleasure to fulfill your father's last wish."

"Thank you so much, Auron." I said, touched by his words. "My father truly was a lucky man to have you as his friend. But I must say that I'm happy here. I love this city and I love my life."

"Even a life without Tidus?" He asked, arching an eyebrow.

I closed my eyes, sighing. "I survived once, I'll survive twice. Besides, things might be different this time…"

"Just like Braska would say." Auron smiled. "And as I always told your father, Yuna, every story must have an ending. Even a beautiful story like yours."

-----XX-----

Later that day, Lenne called me to say her producer had loved the lyrics and he was willing to use them as her first single. They were going to start working on the music the next day and she hoped it would be ready within a month. Strangely, it didn't make any difference to me, my only thought was: Within a month Tidus won't be here to listen to it.

"Then you'll have to sign a contract to make sure we can use your poem to make a song. It's no big deal, but it's something we need to do to avoid legal problems, okay?" She continued.

"Sure, it's okay." I answered, playing with a strand of hair, while lying on my couch in the living-room. I was tired and sleepy, for I hadn't had much sleep the night before and I had got up really early that morning. "Is that all?"

"Yes, I think it's everything for now. I'm sorry I'm bothering you with these subjects but it's something important and—"

"You're not bothering me, Lenne! I'm glad you liked my poem and you're going to go for it… It's just that… Well, today was a tough day."

She stayed silent for a few seconds, before asking shyly. "How's Shuyin doing?"

I sighed. "Well, he's not doing great, as you can imagine, but he could be worse. I think he's going to be alright. He's got Tidus and you know those two are very strong when they're together."

"Yeah, I know… I'm happy they sort their problems out, at least Shuyin's not alone." Lenne said with the hint of a smile in her voice.

"I think he'll never be alone again…" I said back.

When we both hung up, I decided to call Tidus. After all, I had said I'd call him and I still hadn't done it. And if I knew him — and I did — he would be getting worried by now…

The phone rang twice before he picked it up. "Yuna. I was starting to think something had happened to you."

I giggled. "Don't worry, silly, I'm perfectly fine. It's just that I was on the phone with Lenne and I—"

"Lenne?" He interrupted me, surprised.

"Yes, Lenne. We have… business together. And don't worry, it has nothing to do with Shuyin." I explained, leaning back on the pillows. "Anyways, that's not important now… I was thinking, do you wanna go out tomorrow? I know it's Monday, but we could—"

"Definitely!" He quickly answered, cutting me off. Then he chuckled and continued in a more relaxed tone, "I mean, yeah, I wanna go out with you."

"Okay then." I laughed. "You know, this conversation reminded me of the ones we used to have before we started dating."

"I know. It was very… childish." We shared a laugh and then Tidus added, more seriously, "But I must say that I was kinda nervous… I felt just like seventeen again."

"Is that right? Well, sorry to disappoint you, sweetheart, but you're almost twenty."

"Don't say that! It makes me feel old!"

I giggled again. "You are getting old." At that moment the doorbell rang and I looked over the couch's arm. "Listen, can I call you in a second? Someone's at the door."

"Sure. Talk to ya later."

"Love ya." I put the phone down and stood up, walking to the door and opening it. "Gippal! Baralai! What are you doing here?"

"Hey, Yuna." Baralai greeted with a smile.

"Is Rikku home?" Gippal asked, looking over my shoulder to try and see a glimpse of Rikku. He wasn't smiling — actually he looked very nervous.

"Yes, she's in her room." I responded, stepping aside to let them in. "Do you want me to go and call her?"

"No, it's okay, I'll go there myself." Without waiting for my permission, he climbed the stairs and before I could say anything else he had already disappeared from my sight.

I looked at Baralai, stunned. "What's wrong with him?"

"He decided he needs to talk to your cousin and he couldn't wait any longer." Baralai explained. "He's been completely down since they broke up. Today I managed to convince him to talk to her and he decided it couldn't until tomorrow."

I smiled. "Yeah… Rikku had the same reaction yesterday. But I told her he could wait and apparently she lost the nerve to go talk to him in the meanwhile."

"I just hope they can sort it out this time."

"Me too." I closed the door, and looked at Baralai. "Do you think we should go check on them?"

"No, I don't think so. Let them be for awhile. If they start screaming and throwing things at each other, then we need to go check on them." I giggled and Baralai proceeded, "But I admit I'm not here just because I'm noble and a good friend…"

"What do you mean?" I asked, frowning.

He smiled sheepishly. "I was actually wondering if you could lend your Alchemy notes. I know you took that class last year and you did pretty well, so…"

"Yeah, actually I liked that class very much. And I think I still have the notes somewhere. But I don't know where… Can I give them to you tomorrow or something?"

"Sure, I appreciate that a lot, really. It's going to be my salvation!"

"You're so exaggerated…" I waved my hand in dismissal as we went to the living room and sat on the couch.

"No, I'm not!" Baralai exclaimed with a serious expression, but he ended up laughing.

We stayed there for awhile, and as there were no blasts coming from the upper floor, we remained calmly chatting — we talked about school, Gippal and Rikku, relationships in general and I finally found the courage to tell Baralai that I knew about his past relationship with Paine. He looked a little bit surprised, as if he wasn't expecting Paine to expose something so personal.

"Paine and I are very good friends, Baralai. Sometimes, sharing a secret relieves us from its weight." I said quietly.

"I know, I know. It's just that Paine… I never know what she's going to do next. I mean… She keeps surprising me, sometimes hurting me…" He trailed off, looking down.

"She told me you two liked each other, but she didn't tell me why it didn't work out. I guess it is not my place to ask you… After all, it must be a very private subject."

"Yeah, well… I think it's like if you don't talk about it, you can pretend it didn't happen." Baralai bent his head. "The problem is that it did happen… And I don't know how to deal with it."

"Why?"

He lifted his gaze and looked at me. "'Cause I still have feelings for her. I know I made a huge mistake in the past, when I decided to be a Preator instead of fighting for her… and she left, disappointed. But I never stopped liking her. And I came after her! She's the only reason I'm here, Yuna!"

"Have you told her that?" I inquired, placing my hand on his shoulder.

He shook his head. "She doesn't let me. She doesn't even let me get close enough to apologize for what I did."

"What you did… You mean, dumping her?" I didn't want to push my luck, but I confess I was curious.

"Yes, kind of. You know, when I realized that Paine liked me too, I promised her everything. I made her promises that I didn't keep. In her mind, she believes I betrayed her, and that's the worst thing you can do to Paine."

"I know." I paused and then continued, "I don't mean to judge you, Baralai, but maybe Paine's right at some level…"

"She is, that is why I need to apologize, to make her realize how much I care for her. If only I could…"

I didn't know what to say, so we remained in silence until Rikku and Gippal came down the stairs. They were both smiling, so I assumed they had made up.

"We're okay now." Rikku voiced my conclusions.

"Yeah, we talked about everything. We decided to take it easy and to have a non-serious relationship. It seems that it has always worked better for both of us." Strangely, even though Gippal was smiling, he didn't seem pretty happy with that decision of theirs.

"Well, I'm glad you two made up." Baralai said. "I was getting tired of hearing Gippal whining all the time."

"Hey! I didn't whine!" Gippal protested.

He and Rikku sat with us, really close to each other, their fingers entangled. It seemed everything was alright now, it seemed as nothing could spoil their present happiness. Well, that is until Uncle Cid arrived, a couple of minutes later, and found his daughter sitting on the lap of none other than Gippal, under his very own roof!

"What's this!" He roared, making us jump in surprise, because none of us was expecting him to show up so soon.

Rikku fell from Gippal's lap and ended up on her butt on the floor. I got up quickly, in an attempt to calm down Cid. But he didn't want to be calmed down. He wanted explanations, he wanted respect! He kept shouting at Gippal and nothing that Rikku did was enough to make him stop. In fact, it seemed to anger him even more, for he yelled even louder. Suddenly, amongst the confusion, Gippal stood up and said quietly "I'm in love with your daughter."

It was barely audible and yet it was enough to put an end to the turmoil. Cid stopped almost instantly and took a step in Gippal's direction, a threatening expression on his face. "You what?"

Gippal remained where he was and repeated firmly, "I'm in love with Rikku. I want to date her, I want to be with her. And I'm asking your permission to do it."

Cid's expression softened a bit, upon listening to these words. I believe it was because Rikku had always been too independent and she had never asked her father's opinion for anything. And now, all of a sudden, there was this boy who was asking Cid to date his daughter, something she would have never asked him herself. Nevertheless he wasn't ready to give up just yet. "What are your intentions towards her?"

"Only the best." Gippal said quickly. Then, maybe realizing that Cid knew him since he was a little kid and that he also knew his reputation, which wasn't working in his favor in this particular case, he added honestly, "I won't do anything she doesn't want to do. I don't want to hurt her in any way."

My uncle didn't reply; he just looked Gippal up and down, from head to toes, as if evaluating him. Then he turned around and walked to the stairs. "Come by and have dinner with us tomorrow. We'll see it then." As an after thought he looked over his shoulder and added, "And for goodness' sake, go home, it's late and I want to sleep!"

"Yes, sir!"

When Cid disappeared, Rikku, who had remained silent since Gippal had begun to speak, turned to him abruptly. "What did just happen in here?"

"Well… I believe I just asked your father permission to date you." Gippal responded. He wasn't looking so calm anymore, which made me believe it had all been an act to convince my uncle.

Rikku walked towards Gippal. "But why did you do it, Gippal? I mean, now my father is going to—"

"Precisely." He interrupted her. "I know your father, Riks, and so do you. You know he wouldn't let me near you if he thought I was just fooling around with you. You're Cid's girl. He wants the best for you. And so do I..."

"But I thought we'd agreed we'd have a non-serious relationship…" Rikku complained.

Gippal's smile faded a little. "Listen, I like you so very much. And I know you like me too. Do we really have to give a name to this thing we've got? To your father it's a serious thing, to you it's just fun. What difference does it make?"

She looked shyly at him. "And what is it to you?"

He swallowed hard before answering quietly. "It's the best thing that's ever happened to me…"

Rikku grinned broadly, her eyes glistening with joy. She got closer to Gippal and hugged him. When she let go of him she said softly, "I think I'm falling in love with you too."

A/N: Well, Rikku and Gippal are finally together and happy for good. This makes me think that the story is actually coming to an end :( Maybe three more chapters or so… But don't worry, until then many things are going to happen :)

See ya soon. Alexx