Hiya! Miss me? I've been studying for my exams and SOLs, so I haven't actually gotten much done on anything except for maybe this story. What I need to do is get working on The Last Reality and Book 2, but I think I'll wait. I like this one.
Okay, before I let you guys start, I need to tell you something. This chapter is one of the few crazya ones, and I mean crazy. When I wrote this chapter I was in one funky mood, and the two characters involved in this "battle" reminded me of my Uncle and sister who used to do this all the time. I have a very crazy family, so you will either be rolling with laughter or staring at the screen with a What the… look on your face. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Final Fantasy characters, places, or ideas. They are all property of Square.
Life Less Ordinary"The 1st Battle Begins"
Rinoa did not sleep at all that night. She laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling for hours, crying for most of the night. Her old memories were un-surfacing themselves and filling her mind. True, there were some good ones but on the majority side, they were all bad. Her childhood had not been a happy one. Her "father" was never home, and when he was, he never spoke to her, never looked at her. He denied that she was even his daughter. He loved and bragged to anyone who would listen about her older brother, Tony. Tony had been General Caraway's favorite. Rinoa was just shoved aside like trash, and maybe to him, she was. Rinoa had never been allowed to do anything. She had a private tutor who schooled her at her home, the Caraway Mansion. She never left that big house except during the summer months. She studied endlessly on a large range of subjects, and had read every book in the Mansion's library. She was the "unseen" Caraway daughter. She never did anything outside the iron gates that surrounded the house.
Summer was the only time when Rinoa could be herself and be free from her Deling City prison. She used to spend her summers in Winhill where her mother went to spend time with her best friend, Raine. It was there that Rinoa met Squall. She was Raine's oldest son (second oldest of all her children) and at first, she was scared of him, but there weren't many other children in Winhill, and so, after a while, Rinoa and Squall became best friends, but she still only saw him during the summer.
But everything changed the summer when Rinoa turned twelve. Her parents divorced, and she and her mother moved to Timber for two years. She never returned to Winhill and didn't see Squall again until she was sixteen.
She moved to Balamb when she was fourteen and she'd been there ever since. She loved everything about Balamb. The people here were wonderful and were all so nice. She was finally accepted and able to be herself like she never could be. She hadn't seen her biologically father since she was thirteen and was glad. She hated that man with a burning passion for everything that he did to her. Because of him, she had spent 13 years in complete misery.
When the morning came, Rinoa was not too happy to see it. She wanted the morning to never some. She was afraid of what the day would bring. She still couldn't hide forever from him, but she was sure going to try. She was afraid of him and afraid of what he might do or act around her now.
"I'll just have to stay away from him." She finally concluded after a long thought, sighing aloud.
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Rinoa met up with Selphie and Quistis at Quistis' house after her mother kicked her out of her own house. She had made it very clear that she couldn't mope around all day, cooped up in the house.
"Some fresh air will do you some good, Rinny. You can't stay locked up in this house all day, even though past habits may want you to do so. Go out and have some fun with your friends. The social interaction will be good for you, too." And with that having been said, Rinoa's mother shooed her daughter out of the house for the day.
"Do you think Zell and Zion are actually going to do that challenge?" Selphie asked as the three girls sat in Quistis' bedroom.
At the moment, Quistis was sitting on her bed, filing her nails to perfection. "Oh, probably. You know Zell. He never backs down from anything, especially a challenge that involves food."
"When are they going to do it?" Selphie asked, watching Quistis carefully round the edges of her nails.
"Oh, I don't know. They're probably doing it right now for all we know." The blonde sighed with a hint of agitation.
The two carried on their conversation on various subjects while Rinoa sat on a beanbag chair lost in her thoughts. All she could think about was her past life in Deling City and Timber. She couldn't remember any of the happy times, only the sad and depression ones. She wanted nothing more than for those memories to leave her be. She wanted them to stop terrorizing her. But how do you stop something that won't listen?
"Rinny!" Selphie was waving a hand in front of her face.
"What?" It shocked her and she jumped, rolling out of the beanbag chair.
Quistis laughed at her, "Are you coming?" She had grabbed her purse and was waiting by the bedroom door.
"Where are we going?" Rinoa stood and followed them down the stairs and out the front door.
"We're making a pit-stop at Seifer's. Maybe he knows what's going on. This has been the most boring weekend ever!" Quistis exclaimed, emphasizing the last few words.
"So, we're going to torture Seifer for a few hours?" Rinoa asked, opening the passenger side to Quistis' car.
"Yep!" Selphie exclaimed from the back seat. "That and we're going to find out when Zell and Zion are holding their challenge."
"I could really care less about that. I just want another chance to win over Seifer. I need my daily dose, that's all." Quistis flashed them a grin, starting up her light blue convertible.
"You mean you want your daily dose of rejection?" Rinoa asked, smiling wickedly.
"Oh, shut up or you're walking!" Quistis mumbled bitterly. To tell the truth, Rinoa had a point. Seifer just didn't seem interested.
"Wow. It's Friday all over again!" Selphie giggled. "Poor Quisty! Always getting picked on" She mocked sympathy.
"I know. Why must everyone be so mean? I'm sweet and innocent. I wouldn't hurt a fly." She batted her eyes sweetly, making Rinoa roll her eyes.
"Yeah, a fly guy maybe." She muttered coughing.
"Strike two!" Quistis said dangerously.
"Oh, Quistis! You know I'm just playing with you!" Rinoa laughed at her friend.
"Yes, I know." Quistis sighed. "Oh! Speaking of guys. What do you two think of Drag?"
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"Okay! Ladies and Gentlemen! Friends and Family! Welcome to the one and only Esthar vs. Balamb Eat-Off! It's an exciting day as we'll find out who will be the King of the Hogs!" Seifer exclaimed, using his best announcer's voice. Seifer, Squall, Irvine, Zell, Zion, and Drag were currently in Seifer's kitchen, surrounded by massive amounts of food. "So, let's meet the contestants on today's Eat-Off!"
'Well, in this corner," Drag pointed to the left. " We have the defending champion, Zion Grant from Esthar! And in the other corner, we have the challenger, Zell Dincht!"
"And, as you all at home can see, this is going to be an interesting fight to the full stomach! But let's see the weapons! Squall, why don't we throw it at you?" Seifer pointed to Squall standing at the front of the table.
"Thanks, Seifer! As you can see, folks, our menu for the battle consists of both Estharian and Balamb style dishes. Our contestants will have to eat their way through this mountain of food. Whoever can eat the most and get the cheery on top of the whip cream chocolate cake, is the winner!" Squall exclaimed. "Back to you, Seifer!"
"Thank you, Squall! This will be an exciting battle indeed!" Seifer announced. He was using a carrot as a microphone. "Alright, gentlemen. Are you ready?"
"Booyah!" Zell flexed his muscles.
"Bring it on!" Zion cracked his knuckles and smiled.
"Then let the fight be-." But the doorbell suddenly interrupted them. At first, they all just looked at each other.
"Who's that?" Zion asked. He wanted to eat! He was so hungry it was unbelievable.
"I don't know." Seifer shrugged. "Let me check." He headed to the front door.
The other guys waited in the kitchen and heard voices from the hallway as Seifer came back into the kitchen.
"Look who I found!" Seifer exclaimed as Quistis, Selphie, and Rinoa entered the kitchen.
"What in the hell are you guys doing?" Quistis asked, surveying the area.
"Um. We're having an Eat-Off." Drag scratched at the back of his neck.
"So, that's the reason for all the food. That explains a lot." Rinoa whispered, avoiding Squall, but he wasn't even paying attention to her.
"Who's winning?" Selphie asked.
"We haven't started yet. We were just about to when you guys rang the doorbell." Seifer answered her. He felt kind of awkward standing there, doing nothing.
"Well, by all means, carry on. Don't stop because of us." Quistis told them. She was against this, really, but (as stated before) boys will be boys.
"Real quick before you start!" Rinoa interrupted just as Seifer was about to tell them to go. He gave her this "what" look. "What are the rules?"
"They have to eat as much as they can, and get to the cherry on top of the cake." Seifer answered. He was tempted to use his announcer's voice, but thought against it. He wasn't sure how they would act.
"You should have them tie their hands behind their backs and eat only with their faces. Now that would be entertainment!" Rinoa pointed out. She laughed as little at Zell and Zion's surprised looks.
"Hey, that's an idea!" Seifer looked to the other guys. They all nodded in agreement expect for Zell and Zion. They weren't too keen to get all kinds of food all over their faces, even though it would probably be fun. Messy, but fun.
"Alright, Ladies and Gentlemen! There has been a change in the rules! The contestants now must tie their hands behind their backs and eat their way to the cherry on top!" Seifer stopped suddenly in realizing how he had just said that and laughed. Drag and Squall caught the humor in that and laughed with him, but the others just stood there dumb-founded.
"Ah, nothing. It's nothing." Seifer wiped the tears out of his eyes.
"Anyway! I actually want to see this battle. Can we start already?" Rinoa asked, trying not to sound impatient or rude.
"Well, well, well. Somebody seems anxious." Drag smiled at the girl and crossed his arms over his chest. "But I'm with her on this one. Why don't we get started? I just want to see who's going to get sick first! Ha ha ha!" He laughed at seeing Quistis' expression. She was making this god-awful, disgusted look like she was going to hurl.
"Okay, but if we're going to tie our hands behind our backs, then we're going to need ropes or something." Zell pointed out.
"You know, we could just hold our hands behind our backs." Zion mumbled, not too keen on the idea of actually having his hands tied behind his back.
"Nah." Squall and Drag both said at the same time. They grinned evilly and disappeared out of the kitchen.
"I do not, in any way, trust what those two are up to." Quistis said, watching the door that they had just exited very closely, listening for them to return.
"You don't trust them? How do you think we feel? At least you're not the one who's going to have your hands tied behind your back!" Zion exclaimed.
"You've got a point." Quistis smiled. "But you know, you have Rinoa to thank for that." She nudged her head in Rinoa's direction.
"Sorry, guys. I didn't know you wouldn't like it." Rinoa blushed and looked away. Zion just laughed at her.
There was this chorus of evil laughs and Squall and Drag returned to the kitchen with rope in their hands.
"Look what we found! Ha ha ha!" Drag smiled and held up his rope.
"Do we have to use rope?" Zell asked, whining. He rubbed his wrists nervously.
"Yes, we do." Squall said curtly and walked over to Zion, rope out-stretched and this menacing, evil look on his face.
"Dude, you look possessed." Zion gulped and backed away from his advancing cousin.
"That's nice. Now turn around." Her ordered.
Zion obeyed and turned around, putting his hands behind his back like he was being arrested. He winced as Squall tied the ropes tight around his wrists.
"Ouch! Be gentle, darn it!" Zion muttered several times.
"Well, I can't allow you to get out of these, now can I?" Squall asked. He looked up and smiled at the others.
Rinoa smiled and shook her head. There were these moments now when she saw those little pieces of him that she remembered too fondly. He was carefree now, mischievous like he used to be, and playful. After thinking about that, she realized she had juts almost described him as a dog. She started to laugh, and everyone just looked at her.
"What is so funny?" Quistis demanded hands on hips with her sassy attitude. Drag looked at Quistis, standing there like that and chuckled. He suddenly had another idea for this rope.
"It's nothing. I was just thinking about something, and it was just the way I thought about it that made it funny. It was a comparison thing." She waved it off and blushed fiercely.
Squall caught her eye and smiled while raising an eyebrow. She continued to blush and returned the smile quickly before looking away. He focused back on Zion and tied the ropes completely and backed away from his cousin.
"Am I going to be able to get out of these?" Zion demanded. He could not move his hands at all. "Great Hyne above, Squall! Do you want me to be stuck like this forever? Are you trying to punish me or something?" Zion exclaimed.
Zell was laughing hysterically at Zion by now.
"Oh, it's your turn now." Drag snapped the rope and walked over to Zell. The blond gulped and backed away, determined not to get the same treatment as Zion.
"I think I'll pass." Zell walked around the kitchen island away from Drag.
"Oh, no, no, no! If I'm going down, you're going down with me!" Zion exclaimed. He looked so funny with his hands tied behind his back.
"But I don't want to get tied up! I didn't do anything wrong!" Zell narrowly avoided Drag by ducking under the table will all the food and crawling out the other side.
"Zell, just think of it as having a girlfriend." Drag began, following Zell around the table.
"Exactly. It's necessary to have one, but it can also be something as a punishment from the Almighty Hyne." Squall finished for him, coming up behind Zell and allowing Drag to corner him.
"Why do you think I'm single? Yay!" he looked around and saw Squall standing there. He gulped and tried to get away, but they both had him cornered. Squall held him down while Drag tied his hands, but that wasn't really necessary. He gave up after they had him cornered.
"It's not very much fun, is it?" Zion demanded. The two guys let Zell up and he attempted to wiggle his way to a more comfortable position, but the ropes were too tight.
"No, it's not." Zell muttered bitterly. He looked at Rinoa, growling, "Just wait until these ropes come off, Rinoa. This is your fault!"
He was only picking with her, but she got the message.
"I'm sorry. But you know, I bet you're going to have a blast. I guarantee it!" Rinoa pointed out. She felt a movement beside her and saw Squall lean against the wall just inches from her. For the time being, he posed no threat, so she just went back to watching Zell and Zion get ready for the challenge.
They readied themselves on either end of the table. The huge whipped cram chocolate cake stood in the center and the cherry gleamed brightly from its white throne on top.
"Okay! Are you ready? Contestants?" Seifer had his carrot back and stuck it towards Zell and Zion.
"Ready!" They both answered, glaring each other down.
"Are the judges ready?" Seifer motioned his "microphone" towards Squall, Drag, and Irvine.
"Let's get it started." Drag answered as the other two nodded.
"And is our lovely female audience ready?" He finally motioned the carrot to Selphie, Rinoa, and Quistis.
"Ready!" They answered.
"Okay then. On my mark." The two guys poised for the kill, or fill. "Get set! GO!" And they dove in.
Food began flying everywhere, landing all over the floor, and even targeting the audience and judges. Zion got off to a faster start than Zell and devoured the first three dishes that stood before him, which consisted of Marbolo casserole, pure chocolate fudge squares, and salmon. There was a plate of a dozen hotdogs closets to him of everything, but he deliberately skipped over them. He'd never had a hotdog before.
Zell, on the other hand, took things at a slightly slower pace for one sole reason: He had a majority of the Estharian dishes on his side. He'd never had any of these dishes before.
"Ugh! What IS some of this stuff?" Zell asked through a mouthful of white chunky gruel.
"Um, that would be something you don't want to know." Seifer advised.
The challenge lasted for about 20 minutes. Zell and Zion ate to their absolute fullest, but there was not a winner. They ate so much, and made this huge mess and by the time they had made it through all the food, they didn't have the energy or room to reach up and eat the cherry. Therefore, there was no winner. It was a complete tie.
"Ugh!" Zell groaned. "I fell like I'm going to barf." He clutched his stomach in pain. They had cut the ropes after the two guys collapsed on the kitchen floor.
"You can say that again. Oh!" Zion rested his head against the front of the fridge. It felt cooling and a whole lot better than his stomach.
"Are you guys okay?" Selphie asked, making her way through the mess to the two guys.
"No." They both answered through several moans and groans. Both of their faces were covered in food along with the front of their shirts and pants. The floor looked like a tornado had hit it. There were pots, pans, food, and a thousand other things on the floor. The only thing that remained untouched was the whipped cream chocolate cake. The cherry still stood on top, like a beacon shining brightly.
"You guys look so pathetic!" Rinoa laughed at them. She began helping Seifer clean up the mess that had been made. It was going to take a lot to clean up this massive mess.
"Seifer, where are your parents? I sincerely doubt if they would approve of this." Quistis had dropped down beside Rinoa and was helping her grab dishes and whatnot. Squall and Drag were working on the table, and Irvine was getting some rags and a mop.
"Uh, my dad's in Centra. He won't be back for another month or so, and my mom is over at Squall's helping Raine set up the house and unpack. Your mom is there too, right Rinoa?" Seifer asked.
"She should be, yeah." Rinoa answered, taking a few bowls that were licked almost completely clean to the sink.
"And, no, my mother would not approve of this. That's why I've got to get it cleaned up as fast as I can." Seifer dropped a series of bowls and pans into the sink, as well.
"Well, you know that we're going to help you, Seif." Squall told him, grabbing a rag from Irvine and cleaning the table top around the cake.
"Yeah, we can't let you clean up this mess all by yourself when it was our idea to have it here in the first place." Drag agreed. He and Irvine began cleaning up the food-covered floor.
"Thanks, guys. I really appreciate it." Seifer grinned.
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It took them all just about an hour to clean up that mess. They weren't sure what to do with the cake and eventually decided to leave it there for the time being.
After the dirty work was down, they all congregated out on the back deck. Zell and Zion were still moaning and groaning from the pains in their stomachs.
Somehow or another they got on the subject of Esthar, and Squall and Drag told everyone stories about their school, the people there, and even some of the things they had done.
They spent the afternoon like that until about three o'clock. Rinoa was ready to leave, but Quistis was just yappin' away with Drag and Seifer. After a few moments, Squall spoke.
"Hey, guys? I'm heading out. Later." He got up and caught Rinoa's eye. Now, he had a pretty good guess that Rinoa had ridden with someone. Do you want a ride home? He mouthed to her.
She looked at Quistis and figured by the way she was engrossed in the conversation with the two guys that it would be quite a while before she was ready to go. She looked back t Squall and nodded. A look of worry found its way to her face. He waved goodbye to everyone and motioned for her to follow.
She managed to slip away without being seen and followed Squall out front. He led her to his black Mustang without a word. It wasn't until he had actually pulled out of the driveway that he finally spoke.
"I wanted to talk to you, anyway, if that was okay." He kept his eyes on the road determined not to lose control. He wouldn't let himself scare her away. He'd lost her once and wouldn't do it again.
"Yeah." She whispered, staring forward like he was doing. She felt so strange being there with him. After what had happened, the argument between them the day before, she had been sure that they wouldn't speak to each other for some time. Apparently, she had been wrong.
"I'm sorry about yesterday, first. I shouldn't have been so hard on you. It's just that I was so mad that you denied even knowing me. I still have yet to know why, but I guess I'll know in due time." He shrugged, still refusing to look at her. He found it strange that after all this time; he still had feelings for her. Of course, back then, it had been more of puppy love, but now, it was getting stronger every time he laid eyes on her.
If you haven't gotten it by now, you'll never know. Are you in denial or do you truly not know what you did to me? I'll take the former. You must know your own actions. Even if your memory is clouded, you must know.
Rinoa said nothing, so he continued. "I would like to be friends again, if you will permit it. If I have to start from scratch again, then I have no problem with that. I earned your trust before. I'm pretty sure I can do it again."
Rinoa couldn't decide if he was being cocky in that last bit or not. She swore she heard it in there, but she could have been imagining things. At any rate, she remained quiet. Only a few minutes longer and she'd be home.
Just keep telling yourself that, Rinoa. Just keep repeating those words. They're all you have right now.
"But I think the question is, do you want to be friends again?" He finally looked over at her and was startled by what he saw. She was biting her lower lip nervously, trying so hard to focus on anything but him. He had the look about her as if she were going to cry. He reached out as if he were going to touch her but brought his hand back. He couldn't allow himself to do anything just yet.
"Are you…?" he started but never finished.
"I'm fine." Rinoa lied to both of them. She didn't believe herself and frankly, didn't expect him to either.
He didn't press her and turned into her driveway. Seifer had been right. Her house was huge.
Rinoa didn't move for a few minutes. She was completely afraid. She was afraid of him, afraid of herself, afraid of everything.
"Are you sure?" he watched her closely.
This time, she just shook her head. No, she wasn't all right. She was far from "all right." Her hands began to shake and she was sweating.
He touched her shoulder and she recoiled away from him.
"What's wrong?" He asked. He had been surprised that she didn't bolt out of the car the moment he pulled in. "Rin?"
"Nothing. It's nothing. Thanks for the ride." She tried so hard to regain her composure. She tried to unbuckle her seat belt but her hands were just shaking like crazy. He thought she was going to cry at any moment. He finally reached over and pushed the button that freed her from the seat belt. She looked at him, and just for that split second when their eyes met, things were almost how they used to be.
"Thanks," She whispered and opened the car door.
"No problem." He watched her close the door and walk up to her front door. He wasn't sure of what to do. Should he pull out and just leave her or follow her and actually try to talk to her. He eventually decided.
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Rinoa closed the door and leaned against it. She felt like she was in a Hell on Earth. She was still shaking and finally let the tears fall. Why was she crying? She had no idea.
The doorbell rang behind her and she jumped. She didn't care that she was still crying and opened the door. Well, she didn't care until she saw who was on the other side of that door.
"Hey." He said tenderly, trying to smile at her. Rinoa furiously wiped at the tears and hid her face. She mumbled a "come in" and backed away.
He closed the door behind him, and they stood there in the hall nervously, unsure of what to do or say.
"I just wanted to, uh, make sure that you were okay." He whispered.
"Oh," she wiped her eyes again. "Yeah. I'm fine."
"Are you sure? I didn't mean to upset you." He touched her cheek gently, wiping away her tears with his thumb. He wished that there were something he could do for her. He hated to see her like this, and he was pretty convinced that he had caused most of this.
"Don't worry about it. It's nothing." She pushed his hand away gently. "I think I just need to be alone for awhile."
"Are you sure?" He asked again. His hand found its way back to her cheek again and he moved closer to her. "Can I help?"
"More than you know." She whispered. This time she didn't push him away but allowed him to come closer. His other arm snaked around her shoulders and he cupped her cheek in his hand.
"I want us to be friends again." He whispered to her, holding her. She said nothing but wrapped her arms around his waist, and he gently guided her head onto his shoulder. It was there that she let it go and cried. He held onto her and let her cry there, in his arms until she finally stopped and pulled away.
"I'm sorry. I-I…" She looked away from him, cheeks burning crimson.
"Rin, don't worry about it!" he laughed at her embarrassment and stepped closer to her again. "It's okay." He touched her cheek again softly and she closed her eyes at the feeling. "Is there any way that we can be friends again?"
"I don't know. I want to, but I don't know if I can trust you anymore. I thought I could once, but…" She took his hand in hers and held it for a few seconds before letting it drop back down to his side.
"You can trust me! I don't even see why you lost trust in me to begin with. I never did anything wrong!" He shook his head, chuckling to himself, but the look on Rinoa's face showed no amusement.
"You never did anything wrong!" She exclaimed startling him. She was beyond furious at this moment in time. No, she was livid. "Are you stuck in a world of denial or do you truly not know what you did to me?" She was one volume short of yelling.
"I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about. I never did anything to you except be your friend. Or wait! Was that my crime? Befriending you? Well, now I know better. Now, I'm beginning to see the truth. If you want me to leave you alone, then I will. Good-bye, Rinoa." He said harshly as he turned away from her to the door.
"Don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out!" she screamed. The door slammed, letting her know that he was gone. "And don't come near me again, you low bastard." She whispered, dropping to her knees.
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Monday morning came with no event. Rinoa spent half the night tossing and turning, thinking about Squall and some of the things that had happened to her in the past. Needless to say, she didn't sleep too much.
Rinoa met Selphie and Quistis in the Cafeteria at school around 7:30. She felt simply awful, living off of maybe an hour of sleep and nothing in her stomach. The other two girls didn't look too happy either. Selphie and Irvine had had a row after Rinoa left with Squall, and Quistis was just upset that she still couldn't land Seifer.
"Oh, Rinny! After you left, it was horrible!" Selphie exclaimed. The three girls sat at a table in the Cafeteria, waiting for 8 o'clock to come so they could head up to first block.
"Actually, at first, we weren't even aware that you had left, and Selphie turned around like she was going to say something to you, and you were gone! When we observed that Squall was absent as well, we made the assumption that you were with him." Quistis explained. She winked at Rinoa, smiling.
"He just gave me a ride home. You two didn't look like you were going to leave anytime soon, so I let him take me home." Rinoa assured the two girls. They made it very clear that she wasn't believed.
"Anyway, Irvy and I got into this horrible fight and Zion and Seifer had to break us apart. He was so mean to me, and I didn't even do anything to him!" Selphie exclaimed.
"And I truly don't think Seifer is interested. I played every single move in the book on him, and still, there was no reaction. Either he just doesn't care, or he's playing hard to get! I just can't figure it out!" The blonde sighed and rested her chin on her hands. She just didn't know what to do.
"Well, maybe, Seifer isn't the right guy." Rinoa suggested kindly.
"Oh, no! He's the one. I know that for a fact! It's got to be him! I can feel it! I'm so in love with him, and I've never even been with him! He just drives me so crazy that I want to scream! But it's a good scream, mind you." Quistis told them. She was totally crazy about this guy.
"You're so pathetic!" Rinoa laughed, rolling her eyes at Quistis' lovesick behavior.
"Hey, now! You can't tell me that you have never felt this way before, Rinoa!" Quistis exclaimed, defending herself.
Rinoa opened her mouth to say something but stopped. She was going to say that she had never felt that way before, but that would be lying. She had felt that way about a guy before. It was once that she had experienced those feelings. They didn't last very long. She ended up having her heart broken into a thousand pieces. That was the main reason why she wanted to be left alone. She was afraid of getting her heart broken again, even though she knew nobody could cause her as much pain as he did. She was determined to keep her heart protected anyway.
"See! You have felt like this before, so you cannot say that I am pathetic because I am not! I am completely sane and in love!" She sighed heavily and produced a goofy smile.
"I may have felt that way at one moment in time, but I do not have that feeling any longer." Rinoa stated firmly.
"What about Squall? You guys seem to be getting it on." Selphie asked innocently. She didn't mean any harm by the comment, but Rinoa couldn't help but get angry.
"No! There is nothing going on between us at all! I hate that bastard! If he were here, I'd knock him out!" she growled she was still livid about what had happened the day before. She figured that the two of them didn't need to know about that little incident. It was between her and Squall, and no one else. But he's probably end up telling the whole world anyway. It didn't matter anymore. There was almost nothing more for him to do to hurt her anymore. So why was she making such a big deal out of this?
"Okay! Okay! My goodness! I didn't mean to offend you!" Selphie threw her hands up. "I just, you know, figured that since you guys knew each other so well that you had something going on." Selphie looked away from Rinoa, fishing for words. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay, Selphie. But there's really nothing going on between us. I promise. I can't be around him. It's just… too emotional." She shrugged.
"I wonder why he doesn't want a girlfriend." Quistis spoke just out of the blue. The other two girls just looked at her questionably.
"Quistis, what on earth are you talking about?" Selphie asked, laughing and shaking her head.
"Seifer!" The blonde answered, still wearing that daydreamer's look. "I was just wondering why he doesn't want a girlfriend right now. He said that yesterday. 'I don't want a girlfriend right now.' And I want to know why. Is he picky? Does he just want to play it single for a while?" She was going on and on about this while Selphie and Rinoa just looked at each other.
"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say she was in love with him." Selphie exclaimed, holding back the desperate urge to laugh uncontrollably.
"Ya think? She's obsessed!" Rinoa was the one who actually laughed. Quistis didn't even notice. She just sighed and went on and on.
"I'm really into this guy, and I realized that I rarely talk to him. He's just perfect for me. He's sporty, funny, and hot! I feel just so myself when I think about him. He has a wonderful personality, a sense of humor. I just can't get explain this in words. It's phenomenal! Oh, I'm in love! I know I'm in love, but I think he just doesn't see me. It just doesn't seem to be fair." She sighed again, and continue to ramble on and on about this guy and how much she loved him, how much she would give for him…yadda, yadda, yadda. Rinoa just pretended not to notice her friend's lovesick behavior.
"My gosh, Quisty! Why don't you just ask him out? Take a chance, already!" Selphie smacked the blonde on the back of the head.
"He says he doesn't want a girlfriend right now. It's so awful. I can't explain how I feel." She put her head down on the table, sighing again.
"Quistis, you had better grab paradise while you can still see it, because it won't be there forever. You can't just sit back and hope that things will turn your way. You have to do it yourself. No one else is going to do it for you." Rinoa said quietly. Quistis lifted her head and just started at her.
"Do you really think I should?" She asked nervously.
"How else are you going to get what you want?" She asked back.
All of s sudden, Quistis jumped up. "I'm going to do it! I'm going to make him mine!" She exclaimed. The blonde grabbed her books and almost ran out of the Cafeteria.
"Well, that was out of character." Selphie observed, watching Quistis leave.
"Love makes you do crazy things." Rinoa told her, smiling. She enjoyed her private little joke.
A/N: Yes, I know. That was one long, crazy chapter. How do you think I feel? I was the one who had to type it up! And do you want to know something funny? I've got another chapter that's almost twice as long. Ha! I'm leaving now. Later Days!