No, your eyes have not deceived you, this is a real update.
Good heavens, and I was talking about Squall…but where have I been? Have I abandoned you guys for four years, too! I'm living my own story! Sad…
Disclaimer: NO! I don't want to own Final Fantasy 8 or affiliates. …Right, this IS a disclaimer, is it not? And while I'm disclaiming, I just want to say that I'm still rusty, so give me a break.
Chapter 12: Reflections of a Soul
"I never stopped loving you…" He repeated, only this time his words were lighter, his voice softly caressing her ears with its masculinity. Rinoa closed her eyes and replayed his words again in her mind as Squall feathered her cheek with the tips of his fingers. She then brought her hand to cover his hand and worked her fingers between each of his. When his hand neared her mouth, she pressed a tender kiss on its surface.
A kiss would speak for all her inner sorrow. She had misjudged Squall all along, blaming him for an act he carried out one night and four years ago. He had kept to himself secrets so deep, so hurtful; wrongdoings that her father purposely committed just to get between their marriage. Yes, they were both hurt by her father's acts, and now Rinoa would no longer allow Squall to carry their burden. She would no longer allow him to take theblame for both of their faults. She felt just as guilty and sad as he had in all those four years, years that they would never get back. No matter how much they reminisced or complained, that time was no longer. It was no more. But his words—those simple words from his precious mouth, how they had provided a sense of comfort and security to her soul.
To think that he endured all the hurt and shame her father had wrought to their relationship; she was amazed at how long he had taken it all inside and hadn't once complained aloud.
Thinking back at every time her mind went idle, she would find herself wondering about Squall during those years. Rinoa knew she could no longer pretend to have so much pride pretending that she didn't need him. She could no longer hide behind Rori either, since the little girl was her only excuse for sanity in their world.
Rinoa clung to the back of Squall's hand, opening her eyes to see his face. When she remembered those lonely years, steaming tears built up in her eyes. "…I," She murmured into his palm, "…I've missed you…"
The glimmer from the streetlights outside painted the walls of the room with patches of marble and clay, and had aligned with Squall's eyes, giving Rinoa a perfect view of his face. She saw that his eyes were opened; wide and focused--almost daring her to speak. She missed the intrigue of his eyes and the way they had made her feel so important, so needed. Now they were here, giving her their full attention. She couldn't begin to imagine how long she had waited for him to speak the truth, how long she waited for his complete openness; however, now that he had finally revealed the cause of his negligence, she felt clueless as to what she could possibly say to him next. As much as Rinoa wanted to share with him the words on her heart, she couldn't bear another word; her throat wouldn't allow any more. Alas, her eyes carried out where her mouth failed, and delivered a single tear that slid down her right cheek.
When Squall saw this, he moved his thumb over her jaw, wiping away the tear just as quickly as it had slipped down. "I…I'm sorry." He whispered, "…I never meant to hurt you…"
Rinoa quickly but gently placed her hands over his lips, smoothing them over with the tips of her fingers before he could say anymore. "…Stop apologizing about the past. I understand how you felt now, and because of that, it's me who should be apologizing."
She continued, removing her hand from his face, "…I thought for so long you were being selfish—that you grew bored of me and just decided to go elsewhere. …Squall, how could you…how could you go on to let me believe those bitter thoughts? I had truly started to hate you too. Why were you so afraid to speak? I thought we could talk about anything?"
"…I didn't want to get in between your relationship with your father. He was always there showering you with gifts; gifts he knew I couldn't compete with…especially at that time." He moved his hand away from her face and balled it into a fist. "I was so mad. I thought he was doing it all on purpose, that he wanted to make me look like I couldn't provide for you. I mean, it was obvious that he had disliked me from the very beginning." He sighed, "But I…I should've said something sooner. I just didn't know what to say to a man of his stature."
"…Squall, we could've said no."
"…But—"
"No…just because he gave us gifts doesn't mean we had to accept them. I love my dad with all of my heart, but my heart belongs to you. We could've said no to him just as easily as we said yes and accepted those gifts."
Hearing those words, Squall could have laughed on the spot, but he bit back his tongue, "…You're saying that now." He muttered, his fist losing its aggressive form. "Back then, we were both naïve…I don't think we had what we have now."
Rinoa smirked, "Oh yeah? And what's that?"
"…Backbone." He answered, catching her eyes once again in the dimness of the room. Her smile had illuminated his eyes more than the lights outside could ever light up in the natural.
"Squall..." She grinned; glad that they could both find humor in the situation. He was glad to see that her sadness had subsided in the meantime.
"Well it's true." He smiled. "…My first day back here, you were ready to bite my head off." He quietly chuckled, consciously aware that Rori was still asleep in the room.
"I was not. You're lying."
"Come on, your first words to me were, 'I hate you!'"
She laughed, "I didn't say that!"
"But you were thinking it."
"Oh, whatever!" She folded her arms and turned her face away from his. "Look, I know what happened that day, so I don't have to take this from you."
"And I know you like a book. All I had to do was read what your body was saying…since you actually took off running away from me." He inched closer to her, taking up what little space remained between them in the chair. It was uncomfortable. Rinoa, wondering what his schemes were this time, faced him—ready to tell him to back away, but he whispered, "I bet you're just burning up with anger right now, right?" She immediately slapped his arm. "Ouch!"
"Shh, you're going to wake Rori."
"What nerve. You slap me and expect me to be quiet. Anyway…I doubt that Rori would wake up now, it seems like she can sleep through anything." He said as he rubbed his arm in hopes of soothing away the pain that Rinoa had inflicted to it.
"And you know this how?" She asked, lifting a curious eyebrow.
"…When I came in earlier, I realized you were slightly awake, but Rori didn't even budge."
Rinoa smiled and placed her hands onto his arm, focusing on where she had slapped him and gave it a little rub herself, "Well you know…she gets it from you." With her words, he immediately felt his cheeks filling up with heat. Rinoa had then whispered, "…Stop blushing, Squall."
He gasped, realizing that Rinoa was just as good at reading him as he was at reading her. They were one in the same. As nature would have him, manly as males come, he had to defend himself and quickly, "I'm not blush—"
"Save it, will you? I'm tired of hearing your excuses." She said playfully, pulling her hands away from his arm and smiling. He let out a soft sigh, and nodded his head once. At that moment, he realized the peace they had both hoped for was once again restored between them. Almost restored to the way things used to be. Rinoa would no longer look to him as a deserter, and he could live on knowing that the past was behind them, that she might very well still love him the same as well.
Eventually, the two had eased back into the chair; Rinoa resting her top half into his chest and Squall sitting with one arm around her, his other hand's fingers stroked through her hair. His eyes searched the ceiling of the small room, its walls in a blur of pearly cream, as hazy as his thoughts of the night were so far.
Was he really there or had he been dreaming, asleep on the bus ride there? Was this night truly happening?
Squall sighed, not sadly, but peacefully because inside everything felt as true as Rinoa sitting there with him, her fingers dancing on his chest projecting every weighting beat his heart would give. He had missed having her so close, holding on to her…
…He missed her terribly.
"…Squall…?" Her voice broke through the silence of the room.
"…Yeah?" He answered, wondering what would follow his name at such a peaceful time this night. There was a sense of dread grueling in the pit of his stomach, igniting a fear that she would speak of something that could ruin this moment forever.
"...When you left…back then…" She had almost stuttered. By then, he knew the question would be the beginning of the end. This night is just too good to be true, please…God, don't let it end horribly like always…Please let me say the right thing. "…Where…where…?"
She tried to continue, but he had already heard the question before she speak the rest, and opted to finish it for her instead, "Where did I go to?"
"Yes…" She said, her fingers ending their routines across his shirt.
"Well…" Does she really want to know? …That's right. Four years…it's such a long time to not say anything at all. If I were in her place, I'd want to know too, right? "…Let's see…" Inside, he was begging that God would give him the right words to say.
"Is it possible that you could forget over time? I mean, I'm not expecting you to remember everything."
"…The first year's a little fuzzy, but to tell you the truth, all that time—it went by so fast. I'm not even sure how I got around." He paused, "…I was feeling so guilty about everything that I…I didn't get to enjoy all my so called freedom. My mind constantly replayed what had happened, again and again… There was no escape."
Rinoa raised her head to meet his eyes as he looked downward to her, looking up to him from her place on his chest, "…You were living in the past, too?"
"Too…? What do you mean?" He frowned, his eyes questioning her tone.
"…Don't look at me like that. You don't think I had a hard time…?" She turned her eyes to the floor, "…I was scared, thinking that something had happened to you. I called the police the next day, explained what happened, when and how you left. I was so nervous for you and stressed, that my body weakened…" She sighed, "When the policeman I had spoken to came back to me and told me they hadn't found you, or learned of your whereabouts, I lost it. It was when that they told me you had most likely taken off on your own. That's when I…I collapsed."
Rinoa clenched her hands together, pressing her fingernails deep into the backs of them both, "…I woke up in the hospital soon after, not even certain what was going on. I just remember lying in bed thinking about all the terrible things I said or did to you while we were still together. Eventually, I came to the conclusion that it was my fault to blame, that I drove you away. I had suffered fatigue, and was so stressed out that the doctors ran all kinds of tests on me trying to figure out what was wrong. Later on, they told me about a certain activity happening inside me…"
"…That you were pregnant…?"
"Yeah…but it wasn't exactly good news at that moment. I was sad that I risked putting Rori's life in danger." She finally collected her eyes' attention from the floor and brought them back to Squall, "...I was so miserable…" She confessed, "…especially during the months of my pregnancy…I didn't know if I could make without you Squall." She sniffled. "…If it hadn't have been for the others…I don't know what would've happened to me. …Everything would've been fine if you—"
"Don't say it… I don't even want to think about life had I stayed. I understand I put you through the worst circumstances imaginable with my disappearance, but that doesn't mean everything would've been fine had I stayed around. …Listen to me, Rin, I was going insane. I was a prisoner to my own thoughts. A person like that could never help to raise a kid. Sure, I would've been there in the flesh, but my mind would be elsewhere. I could've definitely become the negligent father we both fear." He grabbed her hands and pulled them to his face, "I know it sounds wrong, and it's going to hurt to hear it as much as it hurts for me to say it, but…I needed to get away."
She glared at him, "You sure don't sound hurt."
"Please," He pleaded, "just let me admit it now. If I don't explain, I may never get to tell you again. I don't want to look back and think about what should have been done or what could have been… I just want to get it out of the way. I want to start over from scratch, if you would let me…?" She hadn't answered, she was still sitting there with the same hardened eyes she had given him moments before. Realizing the only way to break the glare was by clarifying his actions, he chose to follow through, "…When I was out there, on my own, I had the chance to find myself again. I left Balamb and took the train to Timber. My dad has old friends there and I stayed with them for awhile. One day, they were talking about visiting him because it had been so long since they all went out together, but the last person I wanted to see was my father. I felt that if I saw him, it would be like looking into a mirror. I knew he wouldn't scold me, but rather commend me for my decision. He probably would laud me for what I did to you."
As he talked, Squall noticed Rinoa's eyes had gradually softened up more and more. He decided to relax his shoulders into the chair. As long as Rinoa saw him sitting completely up and tensed, she would not settle down either. So as he rested his back against the cushion of the chair, he pulled her whole being onto his body once again. Rinoa hadn't put up a fight; instead, she allowed her head to rest on him once more, marveling at the sound of his heart beating inside of his chest. She was silent, but nervous, nervous for his words, fearing that he might say something that would haunt her mind later on. Nevertheless, she continued to listen. She trusted him, right?
And Squall had continued with a smile, glad to see she hadn't rejected his mannerism. He continued, "I decided to leave Timber after that. I told them to make no mention of me to my father because I would see him on my own time. After they agreed, I wondered about where I could go next… I knew Deling was the place to be for a man who wanted the world, but then I knew I would undoubtedly run into your parents… So I changed my mind. That's when I read an ad in the paper stating that there were all sorts of jobs and opportunities in Fisherman's Horizon."
Rinoa almost laughed, "Don't tell me you became a fisherman…"
"No, not really…but I learned a lot about the boats that were made there." He smirked, knowing she probably still found humor in his situation. Maybe it was to defend himself or maybe he wanted to make her smile again? Either way, he wanted to impress her with the skills he had picked up over time, including some useless knowledge about the lives of those who were permanent residents at FH. "I stayed in FH for a long time, working on boats and fixing engines. I even got to meet this old man there; he was supposedly the greatest fishermen at FH. …I really looked up to that guy." He said, his voice fading off as he made mention of the old man. "Anyway, he basically taught me everything I know about engines, whether it's a boat's or car's engine, no matter…I learned about it all from him. He sure loved to talk a lot, too." Squall added, making Rinoa giggle. He felt her rubbing her face into his chest like she would do before when they'd watch television together on slow nights.
He sighed blissfully to himself before continuing, "Yeah…he loved to talk. You know, it's funny. Somehow…it was like he could see right through my charade. I was always quiet around everyone, just putting my job before anything and everything else. One day he marched right up to me and said, 'there's no way a good-looking kid like you can go through life alone.' I pretended to be uninterested so he would leave me alone, but afterwards, I would go home and look at the ring you gave to me." He lifted his hand slightly so she could see the wedding band. "It reminded me of who I had left back at home…every single day."
He studied the ring again and muttered, "I just…I wanted to come back…but I just didn't know what to say to you, and by this time, two years had passed. …I was trying to think of what to say, how I could possibly restore the damage that I did to you."
"…How about 'I'm Sorry'?" Rinoa said, clasping her hand with his and fingering the wedding band.
"It's easier said than done. What would you have said if I were gone for just a year or two? You already said it yourself: Sorry can't take away any pain."
"…I know I was wrong too…but…" She fell silent.
"Rinoa…we can't change the past. We can't even place what we might've wanted to say in place of what was already said."
"…You're right." She then snuggled closely onto him, urging him to continue. "So how was it?"
"FH? ...FH is a pretty big place, but the population is so small that everyone knows each other there. They'll throw parties if the fishermen met their quota before the deadline, and celebrate anniversaries and events of things that aren't even known nationally. The people there, it's their own little world, and they were like…well almost like family, a large family that I never got to have when growing up. It was really…it was really something." Now his eyes had wandered off, dancing with the figures of his past perhaps?
"The people of Fisherman's Horizon…? Parties…?" Rinoa sighed, knowing that her next question would indeed stir their mood. "…You didn't meet anyone there, did you?"
She was surprised to find how silent he had become in just the short time of her asking. "Squall…? Did you?"
"…I was forced to go to one of the parties. They wanted to recognize me for pulling off an act…"
"…An act?"
"There was a bad storm out at sea. Things weren't looking too good, so I helped out, and that's all."
"…C'mon Squall, you don't have to beat around the bush. Just tell me."
"…It's nothing, really." He lied again. She pinched his arm, exacting damage to the same place she had slapped him earlier, "Oww…okay…The crewmen's engine blew out, so a few other guys and I took a smaller boat to get everybody to safety."
"So you saved someone's life?"
"…It doesn't need to be exaggerated, but yeah…I saved their lives."
"Squall, that's wonderful…why wouldn't you want to be recognized for that accomplishment?" She proclaimed, but Squall desperately avoided her eyes.
"…It's not the rescue that troubles me, it's what happened at the party that makes me sick." He brought his hand to his hair, rubbing the strands back from his forehead; wearing his nervousness like a glove. "You're right, I did meet someone. This woman and I…we, well, we got a little too close to one another and before I knew it, we were at her place."
Rinoa rose from his chest and asked what little her voice could support, "Did you…?" She tried to squeeze out the words for herself, but Squall knew exactly what she was aiming to say.
"…No…we didn't." He had answered, shaking his head slowly from side to side.
"…Well then… why…why say something like that…? I thought for sure--"
"…She had long black hair and was about your size. Rin…right before anything happened…I called her by your name." He had gently eased from her grip and stood on his feet away from the chair. He couldn't bear to face her. Admitting what actually happened that night was harder than he had previously assumed. "…She was so upset… She shoved me out screaming and swearing at me, but who could really blame her? Then I thought about you. I thought if I gone home then, how would you react to me? Would you be the same as her?"
He sighed, "…The next day, the old man came and had a long talk with me. I didn't tell him about us, about what I had done…but it was like he already knew. He told me that I shouldn't run away from my past. That whatever it was that happened, I should go back and face it." Squall scratched the back of his head, his eyes falling upon Rori's little figure on the bed, and he smiled. "…Not a day went by that I didn't think about what he had said to me that night. Before I knew it…I was back on a train…coming home."
Rori's little body stirred for a second, probably sensing that someone was nearby. It was then that Squall silenced himself, where she relaxed back into her sleeplike state. He then wondered how everything could have turned out had he stayed behind as Rinoa suggested before. He knew he shouldn't have thought about the outcome, but for Rori's sake, it was worth the wondering effort. Would he really have turned out to be the negligent father that he and Rinoa both feared above everything else? Just one look at Rori and there was a slight possibility that things may have been alright by him. Who could ever turn away from a face so adorable?
But then…what would happen if he ever did anything to hurt that face, make her cry?
Suddenly, he felt a pair of warm hands slide over his back and onto his stomach. Rinoa had joined him, watching Rori sleeping peacefully on the white hospital bed. He would turn to meet Rinoa's eyes, but he was caught up in the sight of Rori. He smiled, knowing he could never tire of watching his daughter take her tiny breaths in the huge world around her.
"…Rinoa….does she really sleep soundly like me?" He whispered, resting his palm over her hand. She smiled; her eyes like his, never leaving the sight of Rori and returned his whisper. She softly answered his question with another, "…Why don't you find out for yourself?"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Just as the sunlight peaked into the room, Rori woke up, rubbing her eyes with her right hand and scanning the room for Rinoa. She stopped instantly, coming across two bodies in the big chair: One belonged to her mother, and the other to her…well…Squall. They were asleep; Rinoa lying on his chest and Squall with his face against the chair's side. They seemed to be watching the same star.
Rori smiled, because it looked like there were grins on both their faces. She had never seen her mother happier than in that time in her sleep. Rori looked once more, and then lied back into her place in bed. The image of the happy pair had gracefully eased to a peaceful slumber.
--------
"Yes m'am, little Miss Rori can be released today." A lively little nurse with a button nose told Rinoa has she read from a long checklist of sicknesses that Rori hadn't become victim to.
Morning had finally come, and Squall quickly discovered how Rinoa kept herself so fresh each time he had come to visit: the secret to her freshness was the supply of kiddy goodies, a well thought of supply basket filled with everything appropriate for keeping the body healthy. Of course, it wasn't much, but there were at least 5 spare packaged toothbrushes clipped together, along with a small tube of peppermint toothpaste that Squall was superbly thankful for.
He stayed inside the bathroom for awhile as Rinoa had talked with the nurse, feeling unwelcome when it came to the news of Rori's status in the hospital. It was one thing learning that the girl would be fine, but when he couldn't pitch in and compare how she might have looked or felt before the accident, he felt useless.
"Thank you!" He could hear Rori exclaim in the next room.
"Now I'll be right back, so sit tight and we'll have you signed out in just a minute, doesn't that sound good?"
"What! I get to go home now?" The little girl asked, barely able to remain calm.
"That's right, but let me bring this back to the other room first, okay Cutie Pie?"
He heard Rori's giggling before a forced, "O-kay!"
"She's so adorable." The nurse said, and then he heard door to Rori's room opening.
"Thank you." Rinoa's muffled reply signaled that the nurse had finally stepped outside of the room.
After rinsing his mouth, Squall peaked out of the bathroom and looked at Rinoa, "Good news?"
"Yeah, we're about to be set free." Rinoa laughed, picking up Rori from the bed. Squall watched as the little girl's feet wrapped around her mother's waist. "We can't wait to go home, right Rori?"
"Right!" Rori agreed, squeezing her arms around her mother's shoulders.
"Well, that's good to hear. You have been trapped inside this place for about a week, eh?" He said as he emerged fully from the bathroom, wiping his face and hands on a napkin.
"Pretty much, and I just can't wait to sleep in my own bed for a change."
"Me too!" Rori shouted, but she continued in a not-so-amused way from her pouted cheeks, "The walls are starting to look funny." Squall laughed.
His laughter was soon interrupted by the door opening when an older woman entered the room. She was wearing a navy blue pant suit, and her dark hair was slicked back into a donut shape knot that sloped just above her shoulders. If her appearance hadn't been intimidating enough, her great glower at the couple would more than make up for the job. She then turned her eyes to Rori, where a slight frown emerged for the child's sake.
The little nurse returned to the room, with a forced smile and signaled for Rinoa, who had faced Squall the second the older woman had stepped into their room, to move toward her at that time. Squall saw Rinoa's mental question but he could only shrug his shoulders.
"Mrs. Leonhart?" The mean looking woman asked as her smoldering eyes turned into gentle smiles.
"…Yes?"
"My name is Dr. Kadowaki, and I'm here to ask Rori a few questions if you don't mind."
"…What kind of questions?—"
"Mrs. Leonhart, would you please follow me? I'll tell you everything outside." The nurse spoke, urging Rinoa to follow her with a tug on her sleeve.
"I'm sorry. I really don't understand what's going on." Rinoa held on to Rori, pushing the girl's face into the cushion of her upper arm. She faced the nurse, who was staring at her with a frown.
"Please listen to me, ma'am, this will only take a second. Sir, would you—"
Squall nodded to the nurse, understanding that she couldn't help the situation any more than he could, so he paced toward Rinoa and placed his hand on her shoulder trying to cooperate with the nurse, "I understand. Rin…let's…"
Seeing that Squall had trusted the nurse and the older woman, Rinoa reluctantly joined him. "….Fine…" She sighed; unwrapping Rori's legs and placing the girl back onto the bed. Rori's smile had faded away, disappointed that her mother and dear friend were being asked to leave the room; nevertheless, Rinoa gave her a bright smile, "Wait here sweetie; mommy will be right back, okay?"
"…Okay." Rori responded unsurely. The girl had no idea if she should be happy or scared for her mother.
Rori grabbed her legs and pulled them to her chest as she watched all of the adults leave the room. Inside, she knew something was not right, but she also knew that her mother would be back briefly. As long as her mom would come back for her, Rori knew that everything would be all right.
Outside, the older woman gave full and appropriate title, "…I am Dr. Kadowaki, and I am working with the hospital about special cases."
"Special cases? What do you mean?" Rinoa asked, folding her arms.
"Mrs. Leonhart…it's about the accident that landed your daughter here… The fact that she was struck by a car during a thunderstorm—"
"Excuse me?"
"—Strikes not only me but a few others as irresponsible parenting, so I would like to question your daughter about what happened that night. It seems that we have a possible case of child abuse."
"How dare you! You have no right to come here and accuse me of abusing MY daughter! Who do you think you are!" Rinoa yelled, moving into the woman's personal space.
The doctor hadn't moved. She stayed in her place and warned Rinoa quietly. "Calm down, ma'am."
"I will not calm down! I can't believe this!"
"Rinoa." Squall grabbed Rinoa's arms and pulled her back so that he was right behind her.
"Children are special…and if I find that you did one thing to hurt that child. I'll have her taken away from you by the end of this very day." Kadowaki spat, and walked around them to enter Rori's room.
Rinoa tried desperately to break free from Squall, but he held his grip on her shoulders and forced her to stay put. "Squall! Squall, let me go! She's trying to take Rori away!"
He hadn't said anything, only held her there until she calmed down. "How can you just stand here and do nothing! God!" She broke free from his grasp and marched up the hallway.
"Rinoa, Rin wait!"
"No!" She stopped her mad run and faced him, anger still gushing from her jaws, "Why should I wait for you!" She paced toward him, pointing her index finger directly at his soul, "You have no right to just stand there and let them do this to us! She's as much as yours just as she is mine; the least you could do is admit it!"
Rinoa turned away from him, lowering her voice, "…I'm sorry, Squall, but if you're not going to stand up for us, for your family, then I don't see why you should be here either."
She flung dagger through his heart, but he steadied himself by swallowing his breath slowly. Rinoa was angry, angry at Dr. Kadowaki, at the world, and at him. Whatever he said now would only make him the enemy further, so for Rori's sake, he decided to keep quiet.
Yes, she was still there glaring at him with vein red eyes, her body in a stance that claimed dominance over everything, but Squall hadn't shown fear. He simply bit his bottom lip and walked around her. He didn't even give her eye contact.
"I see you're off again." She stated, folding her arms. "And where are you going this time?"
He held his breath, focusing on passing her. He wanted to say that she was overreacting, but that would not sit still with Rinoa. To say anything to a woman about the way she 'acted' is never a good idea. Rinoa, for instance, would drag the situation to a new dimension. So when asked where he was going, Squall replied peacefully, "…Getting coffee."
"…Coffee? You want coffee, now!" She turned to him in disgust, "How can you want something to drink at a time like this? I can't believe you!"
He smiled calmly, saying coolly, "…You want some?"
"…You're serious?"
"All she'll do is ask Rori a few questions about you and that'll be that."
"But what about the car…?"
"…Rinoa, you're a great mom, and Rori's an honest kid. Don't let that Kado-whatever get to you. You'll just have to trust Rori."
When she took time to realize Squall was right, her temper had subsided. She marveled at how easily his words could melt away her anxieties. "…I guess you're right then." She mumbled followed by a quiet sigh. Rinoa wondered if she should apologize? But there was no way sorry could take back the entire stunt she pulled. "Squall, I'm…"
Even in a forced effort, the words just wouldn't come.
Finally, turning her attention to the coffee cart a ways down the hall, she smiled, "...Coffee?"
And he returned her gesture, a relaxed smile across his own mouth. "…After you."
Mumbo Jumbo from the Author's Grumble:
Thanks everyone for taking the time! If I screwed up big time, let me know! I am open to all feedback, so let me have it. It'll just go through one ear and out of the other, lol, I'm just kidding around. Tell me what you think!
And thanks to everyone left a review over that long time period. I'll reply to your reviews in my next update, okay? I haven't forgotten anyone or left anyone out, you see?
I'm not one for complaining anymore…although; it took a lot out of me to get this chapter up. (I have the right to admit that statement, right? I hope so!)
I feel bad about abandoning this story after all that mess happened, but I feel like I should at least try and finish what I've started for you guys, and kinda for the sake of my motto.
I'm sure I had review replies ready, but it's been so long since I've tackled this story, whereas…I just sort of…forgot. No, I didn't forget about you guys, but I forgot what I wanted to say, as per usual. So forgive me!
The End is Nigh! Yay! I'll finally have finished the story and then I can go on a serious vacation! Woo!
What do you say? No more Drama!
StardustRay- I'll probably go through each of my stories and expose worthless typos and bad grammar, so in the meantime, work with me, lol! Sorry!