Rinoa ran up the steps to the apartment building's front door, trying to be on time. As she climbed upwards, one of the stone steps wobbled. It lifted out of the cracked mortar and she started to fall. Her heart raced for a moment before she caught herself from toppling over into the bushes near the door.
Phew.
Falling down stone steps face first would have been bad. She could just imagine showing up at a party being thrown in her honor and breaking something the very second she arrived.
But she was okay now. All she had to do was figure out which apartment was Selphie's.
She turned to her right and looked at a metal panel covered in buttons with faded names and apartment numbers. It was a multistoried apartment building, so there were a lot of buttons. Which one was Selphie's? It was hard to read any of the buttons, but a yellow smiley face sticker was stuck on one. That seemed like a Selphie thing to do. And the blurred name next to it could have said, 'Tilmitt.'
Rinoa decided to give it a try, so she pressed the button. The speaker buzzed to life so loudly she jumped as if she'd been electrocuted. A crackle and something inaudible blared out before the door was automatically unlocked.
She entered the door and climbed the stairs, readying herself for the party amongst the near strangers who were her co-workers. It would be fine, she assured herself as she neared her destination. She needed friends in Balamb. She wanted friends in Balamb. She assumed she'd found the right place when she saw a colorful sign that said, 'Party Time,' taped to the door. The door was ajar, so she gently pushed it open.
"Welcome to my apartment!" Selphie said as Rinoa opened the door. Her voice sounded like it had been somewhat breathless in anticipation. She quickly ran over to Rinoa to steer her further into the apartment, not allowing Rinoa a moment to take in her surroundings first.
Rinoa looked around quickly as Selphie continued her greeting. It was a simple two bedroom apartment decorated in warm and bright colors and light wood. Pretty, but generic wall hangings and prints decorated the walls, giving a cheerful atmosphere despite the mass produced nature of the decorations. Everything went well together. Rinoa figured that Selphie must have picked out all her furniture and furnishing during the same shopping trip. A hint of vanilla hung in the air. Rinoa couldn't tell if it was something edible or just a room fragrance.
"Here's the guest of honor," Selphie said while grabbing Rinoa by the shoulders and turning her towards Quistis.
Quistis gave Rinoa a warm smile while giving her a quick greeting.
"Uh, hi," Rinoa responded.
Rinoa noted that Quistis was the only other person at this party, at least so far. Three people didn't feel like a party. Rinoa had always heard that three was a crowd. It didn't feel crowded in there, at least not with people. It was certainly crowded enough with decorations and balloons. Bundles of balloons were bunched up in the corners of the room and there was a card table full of party snacks and drinks. Streamers hung in every door frame.
"Is this everybody?" Rinoa asked. The balloons and streamers felt like overkill for just the three of them. Was it a ladies only party?
"Oh, I invited everybody from our section of the office," Selphie said. "Most people will come." She took a pause. "Except for Squall. He never comes to anything unless he has to."
Quistis shook her head. "Why did you even invite him to a party outside of work?" She asked this as if Squall would even attend a break room party AT work. He hadn't ever done that before. She wasn't even sure if he'd ever snuck in there later to get a piece of leftover cake. Quistis felt that Selphie's invitation to Squall was a waste of time. Squall Leonhart was a lost cause to the realm of social interaction. He was a fine worker and completely reliable, so she didn't complain about his lack of team spirit.
"I know he won't come," Selphie said while pointing to herself. "YOU know he won't come," she said while pointing towards Quistis. "WE all know that," she said while twirling her pointer finger in the air. "But everybody likes to be included, even shy and weird people. And I want him to know that he's welcome." Selphie nodded her head strongly. "So he's invited even if he's a perpetual party pooper and there is absolutely no way he's going to show up tonight." She laughed while walking over the card table and started straightening things that were already straight.
"I'm going to get a glass of water," Quistis said while leaving the room, in search of the kitchen.
"But there's some punch and soda over here," Selphie called after her. "And the punch is super dee-licious!" she said while straining her neck towards where Quistis had walked. "It's a Selphie special recipe!"
While Selphie busied herself with making sure all the decorations were still neat, Rinoa walked over to look at one of the framed photos on Selphie's wall. It looked like a close-up of several sunflowers in full sunlight. It was one of the few decorations that didn't look generic and store-bought. Rinoa wondered if Selphie took it herself. Was she interested in photography?
Fully saturated yellows, oranges, and browns reflected off one another harmoniously. Rinoa could practically feel the warmth of the summer day while looking at it.
Selphie walked up behind Rinoa as she studied the photo. "Hey Rinoa, I'm looking for a roommate if you need one," she said while tapping her on the shoulder. Rinoa turned around to face her. She didn't even know if she wanted to stay in Balamb for longer than a short while. She tried to think of something polite yet noncommittal. But she didn't get the chance because Selphie spoke again quickly. She was clearly enthused at the idea of Rinoa being a roommate. "Why don't you go in and check out my bedrooms," Selphie said while motioning towards the back of her apartment. "Lots of room here. Spacious and bright."
Selphie's intercom buzzed again. Angry crackling sounds invaded the apartment.
"More guests!" she exclaimed while running to her door. She rang to buzz them in. They couldn't tell who it was because the intercom was just as inaudible in Selphie's apartment as it was downstairs.
"Seriously, Rinoa, go check out my bedrooms," Selphie said while shooing her with her hands. "Get a feel for the place. We could totally be roommates if you want. It'll save us some money on rent, and it'd be so much fun too. Just give it some thought." Selphie turned towards her door while adding, "I doubt you're making that much as a receptionist."
Rinoa shoulders tensed as she bristled at the last comment, but she just nodded her head and started wandering around Selphie's apartment to appease her quest for a new roommate. It wouldn't hurt to look at the bedrooms, and she honestly didn't know what to do with herself at this party. Hiding in a bedroom for a few minutes seemed like a good idea.
Rinoa walked into a bedroom and let the door swing halfway shut behind her. It was quiet and dark, but she didn't bother to flip on the lights. She wished she could be the life of the party and make any little gathering fun naturally, but she was lacking in socializing skills. It wasn't that she wasn't fun or friendly, because she was, but a lifetime of rigid rules living under her father had made it so she'd rarely socialized with people her own age. And now here she was at a party with peers, and she was hiding in a bedroom because she didn't know what to do. She couldn't even blame Caraway for this one. She just had to get out there and practice her friend making skills, even if she wished she could just curl up in the dark bedroom and take a nap. She was good a napping. She had lots of practice with those.
As Rinoa hid in the spare bedroom, Selphie continued to walk to the front of her apartment to open the door for her new guest. When she pulled the door open she hopped backwards from shock. This was the last person she expected to see.
It was Squall.
And it wasn't business-Squall. Selphie was used to that Squall and his crisp button-up white shirts and nicely pressed black pants. It wasn't business-casual-Squall either in his nicely pressed khaki work pants that he wore on Fridays. This was weekend-Squall, and apparently weekend-Squall wore dark jeans and a somewhat clingy long sleeve white v-neck t-shirt. She could even make out some muscle definition on him. Interesting.
Weekend-Squall. How strange. She'd never thought about that sort of Squall before, but now here he was. In her apartment. At her party.
Selphie stared at him some more, unable to stop drinking in the details. She thought he looked younger somehow too. She knew he was about the same age as her, but it hadn't completely registered until now. He'd always had a maturity about him that the others didn't possess. Or maybe it was just the nicely pressed pants that broadcast grown-up adulthood. Now that he was here in jeans and a t-shirt, he had a vulnerability and youthfulness that surprised her. Or maybe it was just that puppy dog expression on his face.
When the heck did Squall ever have a puppy dog expression before? His eyes looked so big and lost.
WAIT! Maybe he was lost! That would explain why he was here. Why else would he be here? Selphie wondered.
Why isn't she saying anything? Squall thought to himself. Selphie always had something to say before. It seemed the sight of him had rendered her speechless. Maybe this was a mistake.
While Squall stood there feeling even more awkward than he imagined, he leaned around Selphie to see who else was already at the party. He figured Rinoa had to be there, the party was for her. If he showed up at this party and Rinoa didn't even come, he'd kick his own ass.
"Can I come in?" Squall asked under his breath. He'd leaned forward and towered over Selphie while asking the question. When she didn't immediately respond he flicked out his fingers and flashed her the glittery invitation she'd given him.
Selphie's eyes focused on the invitation. She was slowly regaining her composure from her earlier shock. "Oh yea, right. Welcome," she said while waving him in. She gave him a smile. "Anybody with an invitation is always welcome." She slammed the door behind him with an acceptance and finality.
Squall's shoulders tensed at the sound of the door slam. That was it. He was here. The door was closed. This was really happening.
Now he felt trapped.
He quickly walked towards the corner of her apartment while surveying his surroundings. He was mentally trying to decide where would be the best place to hide or blend in. And that was hard because it didn't seem that people were at the party yet and his somber colored clothes stood out starkly against Selphie's warm and bright color scheme.
He devoted his interest towards a bundle of balloons while turning his back to everyone. Everyone? Actually the only person he'd seen so far was just Selphie.
Squall wished he hadn't been so punctual for once. Being punctual for work was a requirement, but maybe it wasn't the best idea for a party when you didn't know the hostess very well.
Quistis walked back into the room with her glass of water. She saw Squall studying Selphie's balloon bundle and nearly dropped her glass of water onto the carpet. A few drops of water splashed the top of her tightly clenched hand.
"Hello?" she asked towards him. He just turned and nodded his head at her before getting back to standing there, doing nothing other than scrutinizing party decorations. Some balloons had smiley faces on them she could see him noting mentally.
Rinoa exited Selphie's back bedroom. "Nice bedroom Selphie," she said. She noticed another person had arrived at the party. She could see the back of a man. It was no longer a girls only party. Maybe this was going to get interesting.
Squall heard Rinoa's voice and suppressed a smile. He turned and glanced at her briefly before turning towards the wall again. He hoped it looked natural, but his heart was hammering in his chest. He hoped nobody could hear it. Was that possible? He could still feel her eyes on him. Thump. Thump. Thump.
"Uh?" Selphie said as she felt a weird tension in the air. She walked over to her music player to put something on. "What sort of music do you guys like?" she asked.
"Doesn't matter to me," Quistis said while sipping her water.
"Squall, do you have any suggestions?" Selphie turned her head to ask.
"Whatever," Squall rasped out quietly with a tense shrug. He needed to loosen up. Always and forever. Did she have any alcohol at this party? All he saw was soda and some pink colored punch.
Selphie kept smiling, but she had to work to hide her irritation. Did she have to do this whole party for them? Why wasn't anybody helping her?
"Come on guys, help me out a little," Selphie said. Nobody said anything. "If nobody helps me, I'm gonna choose my boy band playlist."
Quistis flinched and Rinoa quickly walked over to where Selphie was sorting through songs.
"I'll help," Rinoa said.
"Ha!" Selphie laughed. "You guys pretend to not like boy bands, but I bet you put on your makeup in the morning while lip synching along with them. Nothing makes a girl feel cuter and more ready to face the day than a bunch of pretty boys singing to her while she's applying eyeliner."
"I'm not that into makeup," Quistis responded.
"I don't believe that," Selphie scoffed. "Your lashline didn't get that dark and luscious on its own. Especially since you're blonde. Or is the blonde hair not natural?"
"I didn't say that I didn't wear makeup, I'm just not very focused on it," Quistis said, ignoring the questioning of her natural hair color.
"Oh, I thought you meant you didn't wear makeup. And that doesn't seem possible. Your skin is too flawless and your eyelashes are too full. We girls can't all be as blessed as Squall over here."
Uh-oh, Squall did not want people focusing on him. Why did Selphie have opinions about his skin and eyelashes anyway? When did this happen? He thought he blended into the background. Did she stare at him when he wasn't aware of it?
Squall felt tense at the attention as he felt 3 sets of smoky kohl lined eyes on him. He suddenly realized he was the only man at this party. Selphie better not suggest putting makeup on him. This wasn't some girly slumber party.
"Why do boys always have the prettiest eyelashes?" Selphie asked while tapping her foot on the carpet. "And they don't even have to do anything to get them to look that way." She took a step towards Squall and she looked up into his face. "It's SO not fair!" She crossed her arms. "Hey Rinoa, come over here. Don't ya think Squall has the best lashline? Seriously, check this out. I don't think I noticed this before. So full and fluffy. I kinda want to touch them." Her fingertips wiggled in the air at her sides.
Was Selphie going to poke him in the eyes? Squall wondered. Is this what people did at parties? Luckily Squall didn't find out because the door buzzed again. More people were arriving.
Saved by the buzz.
Selphie ran to buzz in the new people who were arriving. "And speaking of pretty boys..." she started to say, figuring it must be Zell and Irvine.
Within a minute Zell and Irvine walked into Selphie's apartment, halfway through a fight.
"That was a horrible parking job Irvine!" Zell complained.
"I was in the lines," Irvine said.
"Yea, but you didn't leave room for the guy next to you to get out," Zell said while walking straight to the snack table and ignoring everybody else. He started grabbing food and popping it in his mouth. He was making himself right at home.
"It's not like I parked sideways across multiple handicapped spaces Zell," Irvine said as he tipped his head towards the ladies in the room. His eyes widened when he saw Squall, but he said nothing.
"Well, aim better next time," Zell said to Irvine, starting to chew.
Rinoa had finally picked something to her taste, and piano music started playing in the background. Squall looked over at her and noticed her smiling at her choice. He wouldn't have figured she would like quiet music like that.
"Huh?" Selphie said. "I forgot I even owned instrumental piano music. Nice, but not really a party vibe Rinoa."
Rinoa shrugged at Selphie and dug the tip of her toe into the carpet. "I like piano music. My mom used to play."
"Was she a piano teacher?" Quistis asked with interest, taking another sip of water.
"No," Rinoa said, becoming self conscious about her mom. She reached out and switched the song to some pop music with a faster beat. "But Selphie's right, this isn't exactly party music."
The bass started to reverberate throughout the apartment. Selphie started dancing around while nibbling on a cookie. "Now it's party time!" she called while bopping up and down, her hair bouncing around her face. She shoved the last bit of cookie in her mouth and grabbed Irvine's arms and tried to get him to join her in her aimless but enthusiastic dancing. He shrugged his shoulders and joined in. Even Zell started nodding his head to the beat, all while continuing to eat.
Selphie smiled to herself, seeing that her party for Rinoa was in full swing. People were mingling. Sipping drinks, and straining to hear conversation over pop music that was too loud. Several of her favorite songs got played. Nice. Nothing could ruin the good feeling that was warming her heart.
Plink. Plink. Plink.
"What's that sound?" Selphie asked.
Quistis moved towards the balcony door to investigate. There was another plinking sound. She saw tiny pebbles raining down onto the balcony. Quistis opened up the sliding door and stepped through while the chilly night air wrapped around her. She squinted down to see who was throwing pebbles. "Stop that!" she yelled to the darkness.
"LET. ME. IN." Seifer's voice boomed back.
"Seifer?" Quistis asked.
"Can't anybody hear me ringing the doorbell?" he complained.
"I didn't hear anything," Quistis responded.
"I don't care. Let me in!" he repeated.
"Fine!" she yelled back.
Within a minute Seifer had hurried up to Selphie's apartment to address his complaints directly to the hostess.
"Your door buzzer is broken Tilmitt," Seifer yelled. "Might want to fix that BEFORE your guests arrive."
Selphie didn't like somebody critiquing her party throwing capabilities. She marched up to Seifer, her face right in his chest. He was one of the tallest people she knew.
"It was working before," she protested as he loomed over her. "Maybe YOU broke it!"
Zell grabbed a handful of cocktail wienies and started popping them in his mouth. "I thought you said you were going to have hot dogs at this party." As long as Seifer was addressing his complaints to the hostess, he figured he could too.
"You're eating them right now!" Selphie said while marching over to Zell.
"These aren't hot dogs. Look how tiny they are!" Zell said while holding up a toothpick with a weenie speared on the end. He personally felt the minuscule sausages were a mockery of his beloved, and obviously superior, Balamb-style hot dogs. Actually any hot dog would be superior to these.
"They're CUTE!" Selphie said. "And when you throw a party for us all, you can serve whatever type of hot dog you like!" Her fists balled up at her sides. How dare he show up in her home and criticize her party efforts. Didn't he realize how much time she'd put into making a fun time for her co-workers? And that wasn't taking into account the money she spent for the party. Customer service wasn't the highest paying job in town, and balloons, food, and drinks weren't free. She felt like everybody took her for granted.
"I just said that these AREN'T hot dogs Selphie!" Zell said, his voice raising. "Were you even listening?!"
Her mouth dropped open. "Well, that's not stopping you from eating them," she replied with her nose wrinkling. "Maybe somebody else here would enjoy them." She waved her arm behind her to indicate the other guests.
Zell reached out and started grabbing the remaining cocktail weenies and stuffing them in his mouth. "They make me so angry to look at. I HAVE to destroy the evidence of this travesty." He looked over at her. "And who could enjoy these?"
Selphie's mouth compressed into a thin line and her face turned red and then white. She let out a strangled scream that sounded like it died in her throat. She turned and stormed out of her apartment leaving her guests alone in her home. Rinoa looked after her with concern. Squall stood in the corner of the living room, ignoring the hot dog based fight that had just taken place.
"Uh, do you think she's okay?" Rinoa said while turning to Quistis. Rinoa imagined that Selphie might be crying out in the hallway at that very moment. She didn't know her very well, but maybe she should go out there and say something encouraging. Why wasn't anybody doing anything? Weren't these people her friends?
"Selphie is like that sometimes," Quistis said to the air. "She'll be fine."
Two songs played through and Selphie still hadn't returned. How long was she going to be gone? Was she ever going to come back? Rinoa felt strange to be at a party in somebody else's house when that person had left.
Rinoa was considering going out into the hallway to talk with Selphie when the front door banged open with such force that she jumped. Selphie blew back in through the door and marched in right up to Zell. "Here you go Zell!" she said with a strained voice. Zell spun around and put his arms up to protect his face. He felt certain that she was going to take a swing at him. But she didn't. She quickly stepped to the side and pointed back towards the doorway.
A young woman with a dark braid trailing down her back was standing there sheepishly. She held a paper plate with a plain hot dog on a white bun on it. "Hello?" she said, half greeting, half question. She didn't know what she'd gotten dragged into.
Zell looked up, his eyes widening at the woman. He didn't mean to make Selphie actually get him different food. Selphie's party food was okay. He was just making conversation, didn't she know that? Wasn't that what people did at parties? They made conversation. Chatted. Playful banter.
Had Selphie actually gone out and gotten him a hot dog?
Selphie waved her hand in front of Zell's face to get his attention. "Zell, this is Ami, one of my neighbors. I had to go knocking on several people's doors before I found somebody who was willing to donate a spare hot dog for you... and she was the only person who opened up the door for me."
Ami took a tentative step into Selphie's apartment. A blank expression hung on her face. She looked lost, and she was clearly rethinking the wisdom of coming over to Selphie's party. When Selphie had knocked on her door and asked for a hot dog, she thought she'd meant she needed an entire package of them, not just one single hot dog on a plate. It seemed like a weird request from a neighbor, but she'd heard from her grandma that back when people were more neighborly, it wouldn't be strange to ask to borrow a cup of sugar. She figured there wasn't too much of a difference between a cup of sugar and a hot dog.
It was a good thing for her that she didn't say that out loud to Zell. He might get into another heated hot dog debate tonight, and he had already had one too many of those.
Zell stepped towards Ami, his earlier argumentative feelings melting away. How could he resist a cute girl holding a delicious hot dog just for him?
"Is this for you?" Ami asked with her voice going up a register with the last word.
"Uh yeah," Zell said while taking the paper plate from her. He looked down at what was on the plate and saw that it was just a plain hot dog with a white bun that had been squished in the package. There wasn't even mustard on it or poppy seeds on the bun. It was as plain as it could be. He grabbed the hot dog and took a big bite and started chewing. It was cold. "This is gwreat, thanksh," he said with a smile.
Zell didn't feel bad that he'd riled up Selphie's feelings, she could handle it. But this girl seemed different. He should go over and make her feel welcome.
"So do you like this party?" Zell asked.
"Uh, this is a party?" Ami asked.
"Yea, it's for Rinoa's first anniversary of working at our office," Zell explained. "One whole month baby!" He pumped his fist in the air.
"Happy one month anniversary of being the office receptionist Rinoa!" Selphie yelled. She mimicked Zell's fist pump with one of her own.
Ami tucked some stray strands of dark hair behind her ear. "Uh, okay?" She wondered why that was a party worthy event.
"I propose a toast," Selphie said after swallowing a big gulp of pink punch.. "Let's all go around and say something nice about the best receptionist we've ever had." She quickly turned off the music.
Silence.
Rinoa's face reddened. This was so awkward. Nobody said anything. The only sound was Selphie's foot impatiently tapping on the floor.
"Should I go first?" Rinoa asked.
"NO!" Selphie said. She glared at everybody, willing them to start showering niceties on Rinoa.
"She's lasted a month," Zell said, still chewing his hot dog. "Wow! Good job!"
"Hey, I was gonna say that," Irvine said while sipping some pink punch. "You took my idea. That counts as mine too."
"No it doesn't Irvine," Selphie responded. "You have to come up with a new idea." She turned towards Zell and said, "And we all know she lasted a month. That was in the invitation. You have to come up with something else too." More glaring.
Quistis sighed and decided to take the lead with this weird party game. "Rinoa displays a good attitude and fully meets all the requirements of being a receptionist."
That sounded very managerial. Quistis couldn't get out of work mode, even at a weekend party.
"Rinoa is honest and cheerful, and she has totally cute clothes," Selphie said while pointing at Rinoa's outfit of a light blue sweater, a denim mini skirt, and black tights.
"I don't know if she does her job well, but her legs look good in a skirt," Seifer added with disinterest, wanting the game to be over. "And that's a plus."
"Seifer!" Quistis said loudly, appalled but not surprised.
"Hey, what are you yelling at me for? Tilmitt commented on her appearance too," Seifer defended.
"Rinoa is cheerful with a big beautiful bright smile that lights up the room," Selphie said, trying to keep the game going.
"Maybe let's not focus on anything looks related," Quistis said.
More silence as people continued to think.
Squall licked his lips and decided to get his turn over with before Selphie put him on the spot. He tried to think about Rinoa's duties as answering phones at the receptionist desk. He opened up his mouth and took a pause before speaking. "Rinoa's phone voice is smooth and soothing," Squall said. Quistis side-eyed him and he felt his chest constrict. That didn't count as sexual harassment again, did it? "In a professional way," he added. He took a sip of soda and wished it were a beer. "It's nice for... the customers." He felt sweat prickling on his forehead. He felt like everybody was staring at him. "She has professional customer focused communication skills." He felt like he couldn't get enough air. "She's able to work independently and utilize available resources well."
Quistis' eyelids lowered to a normal level and she looked appeased. Squall started to relax. He avoided looking over in Rinoa's direction. He didn't want to know how she'd reacted to that one.
"Well, that was weird," Selphie said with a shrug. "Irvine you're next."
"Uh, she's punctual?" he added with a click of his tongue, not knowing if that was true or not.
"Good. Good. Zell your turn," Selphie said while she pointed finger guns at him.
"She was concerned when I was choking... so I guess... she's courteous of her co-workers..." Zell trailed off.
Selphie pointed at her neighbor Ami, who didn't even know Rinoa.
"I just met her, but Lenora seems nice?" Ami said with a small shrug.
"Her name is Rinoa, but good try," Selphie said. "Okay, and to end this. I'll go again," Selphie took a deep breath. "Rinoa is an enthusiastic team player," she smiled at her, "because she showed up to my party." She gave a double thumbs up.
More silence.
"Haha," Rinoa laughed while her arms were crossed over herself. "This was really nice, but I should be going."
Selphie jumped back slightly, completely surprised. Terror reflected in her eyes. It felt like Rinoa had just arrived.
"Oh, don't go. It feels like you just got here! Why don't you sleep over here tonight? I'll make you a bed. It'll give you a real good feel for being a roommate."
"Hey, you can't leave first," Seifer complained towards Rinoa. "This party was for you." He crossed his arms over his chest. "And I was planning on leaving the party first. I was only planning on staying for 45 minutes, tops. This was just a warm up to my real evening."
Selphie threw Seifer a dirty look.
"Yea Rinoa, don't leave just yet. I mean, Seifer can leave, but you can't," Selphie said. "Please, just make yourself comfortable and have a seat. Just try my couch, it's really soft."
Squall also didn't want Rinoa to leave yet. How could he get her to stay? He'd better say something.
"Yea. Sit down," Squall said, echoing Selphie's sentiment. "Can I get you a drink?" he asked in his most courteous tone.
"Um, sure," Rinoa answered.
Rinoa walked over to the couch and felt awkward as the center of attention and sat down. She stared at the blank TV before her. The black screen reflected her coworkers milling about. Selphie had gone back to the music player and started the music again. This time she put on soft piano music to entice Rinoa to stay longer. Within a minute Squall walked over to her and handed her a cup full of pink punch.
Squall thought that this would have been a great time to start a light conversation with her. He just had to pick an easygoing topic. Or any topic. Or open his mouth and say anything audible. His brain continued to betray him as he drew a complete blank.
"Thanks," Rinoa said to Squall. She sipped at the punch politely.
Squall mumbled something that Rinoa assumed meant, 'you're welcome,' but she wasn't sure. He hadn't really opened his mouth when he was making the sounds.
Squall stood before her and wondered if he could sit on the couch with her. Would that be too forward? Where else could he sit? He looked around. There weren't that many options. Maybe it'd be okay if he sat far enough away that he wasn't crowding her personal space.
Squall sat down at the far end of the couch. He looked down at his knees and tapped his fingers on the armrest.
"Nice punch," Squall finally said as his hair fell into his eyes.
Rinoa looked at him and noticed he wasn't drinking anything. "Did you already try it?" she asked with her eyebrows raised.
"No."
"But you said it was nice."
"Oh, I didn't mean 'nice punch' with a period after it. I meant 'nice punch' with a question mark after it," he said while drawing a question mark in the air with his finger. He then started tapping his fingers on the armrest.
"So you were asking me a question?" she tried to clarify while pointing at her own chest.
"Uh, sure."
Rinoa gave him a hard look and tried to not laugh at him. She wasn't sure if he was trying to be funny or not.
"Well, in answer to your question, it's nice," she said. "If you really like sweet things." She took a deep breath. "Do you like sweet things?" she asked Squall in a sugary sweet voice. "Question mark," she added with a bat of her eyelashes as she leaned towards him on the couch.
Was she making fun of him? And what the hell was she doing with her voice? It sounded equal parts cutesy annoying and weirdly hot. What was wrong with him? Squall felt his ears getting warm. He bet they were red. He hoped his hair was covering them. He gave her a light nod of the head, then half of a head shake. Then a shrug. This conversation was killing him. She probably thought he was the world's biggest moron.
"Hey, do you guys want to play a fun party game?" Selphie asked loudly as she pranced to the middle of the room, ending the awkward conversation between Squall and Rinoa. "I've got all kinds of board games, but I feel that the best party games, are the ones you make up right on the spot. So how about we all..."
They didn't learn what brand new party game she was about to invent because the door started to creak. Then it swung open. A large figure emerged through the doorway. Everybody froze at the intrusion. One of the biggest and burliest men they'd ever seen had entered Selphie's apartment. He was even taller than Seifer. And he certainly didn't work at Phoenix Industries.
Was this a burglary? Didn't those usually happen when the occupants were either asleep or not at home?
"Hey, how's it going?" Gladio asked. "Is this the sort of party anyone can join?"
Okay, so maybe he was a party crashing guy and not a burglar. He wasn't going to commit a felony. Maybe.
"WHO the FUDGE are you?!" Selphie asked angrily. "And what are you doing in my apartment?" She stuck her pointer finger out at him accusatorially while slowing advancing on him like he was a large dangerous animal.
"I heard a party going on and the door was unlocked, so..." Gladio trailed off. Actually he'd followed Rinoa here and it was just his luck that the front door had been propped open with a rock. And Selphie's door was unlocked too and had a party sign on it. Was everybody in Balamb this trusting and lo-fi? He would have a talk with Rinoa to make sure she knew to lock her doors. Basic safety protocol.
Selphie stared at the intruder. She couldn't believe this guy. How dare he?! This was Selphie's party. Selphie's very well planned and well decorated party that was for Rinoa, her new best friend and possible future roommate. This wasn't a backyard kegger with red solo cups that was attended by dudes wearing backward baseball hats who took seven years to attain a four year degree. Nor was this some dude-bro tailgating party where everybody drank cheap canned beers out of a Coleman cooler full of half melted ice.
Selphie had been to some bad parties.
She pursed her lips and exhaled loudly through her flared nostrils. Her teeth ground together. She was going to explode.
"This isn't some drunk frat boy party that anybody can come to. This is an INVITATION only party because we're civilized people here," Selphie fumed. "If you didn't get handed a little invitation with your name written on it in calligraphy, you're not invited and therefore not welcome."
Gladio raised his thick eyebrows at her. He did not expect such a little stick figure of a girl to be so fiery and full of angry energy. She looked like she might climb him like a tree and start clawing his face off. She reminded him of a hot and crazy girlfriend he'd had once. Except this little stick figure girl wasn't bleach blonde, she was much shorter, and he personally didn't think she was that hot.
"I didn't get an invitation," Ami said quietly, feeling guilty.
Selphie turned towards her with a smile. "Your invitation was a verbal agreement, therefore you're welcome here." She turned back towards Gladio. "But you're NOT!"
Gladio was sensing a lot of hostility from the hostess. Maybe he was going to have to cut this visit short. But first he had to look around the party to see if there was anything uncouth to report back to Caraway. He saw colored streamers, balloons, a giant decorative bowl filled with bright pink punch and a bunch of socially awkward nerds standing around. There was absolutely nothing of interest to report to Caraway about. He was actually disappointed. When he found out Rinoa was going out to a party this weekend, he envisioned freely flowing alcohol and girls gone wild. This was a tame party, he didn't need to stay here and babysit Rinoa. She couldn't get in trouble here if she tried.
Maybe he should leave before he was forced to play some kind of shouting word game. He hated those. Not that the hostess seemed willing to let him stay.
But quite honestly he was also somewhat hurt by her attitude towards him. Most other people welcomed him into their midst. He was a fun guy. Who wouldn't want to hang out with him? And not to sound egotistical, but he thought he was very good looking too. He was certainly taller and more muscular than most. He felt that he was eye catching and he'd imagined himself to be a ladies' man. Well, this lady sure didn't like him. Actually Rinoa didn't like him much either, but she was his blood relative, so he didn't care.
Actually he didn't know why he cared at all. These people weren't his people. He was going to go back to Galbadia eventually when he'd fully proven to Caraway that Rinoa was safe. All he had to do was wait this mission out until Caraway was satisfied. Then he could leave this tiny island full of boring people. Until then, he was just doing his job, and he did it for tonight. He could leave now. And maybe if he left right now he could find bar in Balamb to suit his need for alcohol fueled mayhem, or at least something with a better vibe than an eight year old girl's birthday party.
With that in mind, Gladio decided to leave. He pushed some of his thick dark hair out of his eyes while he started to turn. But then his shoulders tensed for a moment. He stopped. Something didn't feel right. He looked up and searched the room for danger. His eyes fell on a tall blond standing at the back who'd been quietly appraising his party crashing. Gladio hadn't seen him at first because the blond was lingering in the darkened door frame of a bedroom. Now that the blond had taken a curious step forward into the light, Gladio saw his glinting green eyes narrowing at him like a predator readying to strike.
Gladio stopped in his tracks. He did not like the look of that guy. He didn't look like a nonthreatening nerd. He was tall and fit with piercing eyes and an arrogant smirk. The smirk alone made Gladio want to punch him in his chiseled pretty boy jaw. And if Gladio already couldn't stand him, Caraway would hate him worse. And for good reason. Women liked guys like that, and guys like that could do some damage. Gladio sensed a top quality trouble maker. Maybe Rinoa wasn't so safe after all.
He still had a job to do. He wouldn't fail General Caraway.
"I'm staying," Gladio announced. He walked over to the couch where Rinoa was seated and plopped down, immune to Selphie's death stare. He turned to Rinoa. "Is that okay with you?" he challenged. Rinoa's eyes narrowed at him. He fought the urge to put his big arm over his little cousin's shoulders and give her a noogie. He then halfway gave into that urge and slung his arm over the back of the couch behind Rinoa's head.
Selphie's eyebrows rose in alarm and her nostrils flared. She did not like this turn of events. She'd never had a party crasher before, and she'd never had somebody burst into her apartment unannounced before either. And she certainly didn't like how close Mr. Party Crasher was sitting to Rinoa.
Selphie's leg shook with nervous energy that wanted to be released. What should she do? She tried to think.
Rinoa. Rinoa. Rinoa. Poor Rinoa. Selphie had thrown this party to welcome her to both her new workplace and her new town. And this guy was going to mess that up. A sense of determination came over Selphie. Rinoa was her guest of honor and she was the hostess. She felt duty bound to protect her. She had to get him to leave before this guy messed up the party. And Selphie feared he was going to get his creepy dude-bro man germs all over her. She noticed that Rinoa's head was nearly right in his giant armpit. It was probably an old spice swamp over there. Gross.
Selphie marched over to the front of the couch and nearly knocked the coffee table aside. She stuck her finger towards Gladio. "Don't you mess with her!" She pointed to indicate Rinoa. "She's my guest of honor and... and... and..." she trailed off not knowing what she'd say. Her eyes frantically searched the room for inspiration. All she saw were colorful balloons and the horrified faces of her coworkers. Then her eyes settled on Squall who was quietly seated on the other end of the couch, right next to Gladio.
Sometimes the answer was right in front of you.
"I wouldn't sit there like that if I were you. You're going to tick off her boyfriend over there," she said while pointing directly at Squall. As she said it, she felt a certain sense of rightness. This was a brilliant idea she told herself. She didn't know why she hadn't thought of it immediately. This guy would be embarrassed that the girl he was paying attention to already had a boyfriend. Maybe he'd just leave them all alone then. But maybe she should make him leave even faster. Really give him some incentive. Maybe she could make Squall sound dangerous and super scary. "Don't make him angry or he'll kick your butt," she said threateningly.
Gladio's eyebrows raised as he turned to look at Squall. He'd previously not even noticed his presence. He was so quiet and was blending in with the background
"He's consumed with jealousy all the time," Selphie elaborated while clenching her fists. "You'll make him nuts if you don't leave." She took a pause. "Immediately!" she added for good measure. "Don't say I didn't warn you!" She clapped her hands together trying to frighten him away like a stray cat.
Selphie then turned towards Quistis and mouthed, 'get ready to call the police.'
Squall sat there wondering why Selphie just pitted him against 'Angelo,' a muscular monster of a man. Was she trying to get him killed?
Gladio turned to look over at Squall when Selphie mentioned the word 'boyfriend.' Now that was something Caraway would want to know about. He was relieved that the tall blond was not the one being labeled as her boyfriend. The blond looked like trouble with a capital T. This other guy seemed bland in comparison. He had average brown hair, an average height, and seemed very quiet. And he'd done nothing at Gladio's intrusion in this party. He didn't look very reactive. Gladio tried to take a quick glance into his eyes, but he couldn't read anything. They were cool and oddly detached, but he felt for a second that there was something being hidden behind them. Overall he didn't look threatening, but Gladio knew looks could be deceiving. He'd file this 'boyfriend' information away for later, even if it sounded suspiciously made up by little-miss-party-pixie.
Irvine felt that somebody needed to step up and smooth over this mess. What was everybody so worked up about? It was just one more person at a party. Maybe the guy was just lonely. He couldn't help it that he looked so scary. Well, the tattoos were a definite life decision, but he couldn't help being that tall. Irvine knew that from his own experience as a tall and gangly teenager.
"What she's trying to say is that maybe you'd feel more comfortable somewhere else," Irvine said while stepping forward with what he hoped was a friendly and disarming smile. "I'm sure you could find someplace more exciting than this little shindig."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Selphie asked turning her explosive rage towards Irvine.
"He's clearly not in his element here. This is just a little friendly party between coworkers," Irvine said.
Squall stood up quickly as he sensed Rinoa's agitation building. Her back had gone rigid when 'Angelo' had plopped down next to her. She was digging her nails into the tops of her thighs and her nostrils were flared. She was in distress. He'd spent a lot of time imagining what he'd do in a situation like this, and now he wasn't reacting at all. He should do something. Irvine's distraction seemed a good time to make his move.
"I'll drive you home if you want," Squall offered quickly to Rinoa.
Rinoa slapped the top of her thighs while she jumped up off the couch. "Fine." She couldn't wait to get out of there since the second she'd seen Gladio.
Squall had not expected her to go along with him so quickly.
She glared down at Gladio. "My boyfriend is going to escort me home." She gave him a fake smile that bared her teeth.
"Oh, please don't go Rinoa. I'm sorry this weirdo upset you. I'll make sure to lock my doors next time. We'll get him to leave. Don't let this make you think my building isn't a safe place to live! It's normally a great place for two single girls to live as roommates."
"Thanks Selphie. This party was really sweet, but I'm not feeling so great. I'm going to get going. See you at work."
Selphie sadly felt Rinoa's resolution. She gave up on making her stay, so she ran and grabbed a balloon bundle and shoved it towards Rinoa. "This is for you."
"But?" Rinoa started.
"It's a present. One month anniversary present."
Rinoa relented and accepted the bundle of bouncing balloons. She grabbed Squall by the arm and left without a backwards glance at anybody else. The door slammed shut after them.
"Maybe I'll get going too," Quistis offered.
"Yea, I was going to say that," Seifer said while glancing down at Gladio sitting alone on Selphie's couch. He didn't want to come that much anyways, and now was a good time to leave. He had other friends to meet up with tonight. He'd promised to see them later.
Seifer and Quistis started moving towards the door with Irvine right behind. Ami decided to go with the flow and go back to her apartment now that everybody else was leaving.
Selphie's party was swirling down the drain. All because of this party crasher. It was over before it really had started to get good. She was filled with rage at him, but also a small amount of fear. He was a muscular behemoth of a man. Maybe she was going to have to call the police herself.
As her remaining party guests started shuffling towards the door with mumbled words of thanks she turned towards Zell. "Please don't leave me alone with him," Selphie pleaded.
Zell looked over at Gladio not knowing what to do. Then his face lit up. "Hey man, where do you work out? You've got killer muscle tone. I'm jealous." Zell smiled up at him in awe. He was everything Zell wanted to be. Tall, muscular, and tattooed.
Gladio gave him a broad smile. Now that was a topic he loved talking about. Maybe the short blond nerd had some potential in him. "No need to be jealous. If you're willing to put in the work, you can get results like this too," Gladio started. "Physical fitness isn't just about exercise, it's a total mindset. It's a total commitment. I have some pamphlets in my car for a gym by me where innovation and camaraderie combine in order to..."
Selphie grabbed at the ends of her hair and pulled. She tuned out their conversation as her lively spirit deflated. Now she was never going to get either of them to leave.
End of Chapter
Author's notes: This chapter was getting so long. I had to break it up into another part. Squall and Rinoa coming up next. Please read and review.