Hey, y'all! I'm glad you guys took the Bryce thing well. I was afraid that I would get seriously flamed for that. It just fitted well, and I thought it would be funny. This story is supposed to be laid-back and amusing. I know. Everyone is out of character, I know. And that's one of the things that annoy me the most because I hadn't really wanted it to turn out like that. So I'm working on repairing that issue. The thing that bugs me the most is Seifer's personality. I really need to fix that…
Here it is, Beccy! You're favorite chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Final Fantasy VIII. Sorry.
Life Less OrdinaryChapter Ten
"Revenge/ Suspicious"
The rest of the week was finished out without too much drama. Quistis and her team of devious Matchmakers continued with their plan to hook up Squall and Rinoa permanently; Drag and Zion had somehow managed to talk Bryce into helping try and crash Quistis' plan; and Squall either made no notice of what they were doing or didn't care because he stayed in his own little world and had begun to distance himself from the group.
Rinoa, on the other hand, found herself watching closely what all their friends did. On several occasions, she noticed them huddled up at the lunch table when she came over, and each time, Squall was not present, so Rinoa began to put two and two together.
It was Friday night, and Joe's was half deserted. Seifer was on his date with Quistis, Selphie was giving Bryce a tour of Balamb, and Irvine, Drag, Zion, and Zell were nowhere to be found. Squall had been there for a while now, peacefully keeping himself company. He had been seriously withdrawn and everyone noticed. Bryce said nothing on the subject, and Drag just insisted it was normal.
"Hi," Rinoa said quietly walking up to him and joining him on the couch.
He just looked at her and nodded, acknowledging that she was there and saying nothing more. He hadn't really planned on anyone bothering him, and her sudden presence shocked him. His initial plan was to be left alone, but even that didn't look like it was going to happen. Nothing was going right for him anymore. It was a curse.
"I guess everyone has other plans tonight, huh?" Rinoa whispered. Squall nodded, but he still remained silent, making Rinoa feel seriously uncomfortable.
Squall suddenly got enough of the silence and the boredom and stood, deciding to leave this boring place. He then looked to Rinoa and tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She looked up to him curiously and titled her head, inquiring as to what he wanted.
"Do you have anything planned tonight?" He asked. She shook her head. "Then, do you want to do something? It seems like a waste to just sit here." Why did he feel so nervous? It was just Rinoa.
"Sure." She stood and followed him outside. He stopped in the parking lot and turned to her.
"Did you drive?"
"No," She shook her head. "Mom brought me." He nodded again and made his way to his car, beckoning for her to follow.
"So, what do you want to do?" He opened the car door for her, noticing her cheeks flush as he did so.
"I don't care."
"How about dinner and a movie then?" He suggested.
"I don't care!" She laughed.
"Dinner and a movie it is then." He glanced at her in time to see her smile and roll her eyes at him.
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The two of them went back to Squall's house, which was empty, and settled downstairs with plans for a movie and snacks. For whatever reason, it just felt right between the two of them. They sat together on the floor in front of the TV, debating over which movie to watch.
"How about something scary?" Squall suggested, holding up The Mummy, Eaten Alive, and Hannibal.
"How about no? The Mummy isn't scary, just stupid." She reached out and took the movie from him and set it beside her. "Eaten Alive is just plain gross." And she took that movie from him as well. "And Hannibal is just something someone pulled out of the bowels of Hell." She reached out for that one too but he pulled it away from her.
"Then what do you suggest?" He asked her, trying not to peer at anything below her neck. Her lips formed a small smile of mischievousness. "Uh-oh."
"I should make you watch a chick flick." She grinned at the face of disgust he was making at her while trying to hold back his smirk. "But I'm not that mean. Instead, I think we should watch something funny. After all, laughter is the best medicine."
"So we should watch Hannibal. It's funny!" He pointed to the movie still in his hand.
"No, it's not! Unless, of course, you think brutally murdering people and serving their brains and insides to your guests are funny!" Rinoa shuddered at the thought, feeling the chills run up and down her spine, driving her crazy.
"Are you implying that I'm morbid?" Squall asked, trying to act serious but failing miserably. A grin remained plastered onto his face and the look he was trying to give her clashed with the smirk making him look slightly demented.
"Judging by the evil face you're making, I'd say yes." She feigned fear and began to crawl away from him, but he reached out and grabbed her wrists still sporting his demented facial expression and pulled her back to him. She let out a quiet fake scream as he growled and pinned her against him with her arms behind her back.
"Ah! Let me go!" She tried to sound scared but it came out with more laughter and enjoyment than she had wanted to release.
"Never! You're my prisoner!" He laughed wickedly and held her tighter.
Memories began to flood her mind of the summers when they played without a care in the world and just as happy as could be. She missed the laughter they shared and the mischief they made. They were the summer terrors of Winhill. The Troublesome Two. The Two Musketeers. They were best friends.
Squall looked down at her to see her relaxed with a small smile on her face, staring forward. He saw that she was probably thinking about the past, and he released his hold on her, leaning back on his elbows just to watch her. "What are you thinking about?" He asked, being so bold as to move a stray piece of hair from her face.
"Do you remember those summers in Winhill when we terrorized the village, playing out in the fields and being the Troublesome Two?" She asked, feeling her own smile widen as she turned around to face him.
"Yeah, I remember. Mrs. Potson used to yell at us because we were getting too close to her flower garden." Squall knew he was smiling now too.
"And yet we were always nowhere near it!" She laughed, the noise echoing in his ears.
"Remember the creek where we used to catch frogs and take them back to the house?" He asked.
"And your mom would freak out every time and tell us if we didn't get those things out of the house, she'd lock us out for the rest of the summer!"
They laughed together just like old times. These memories were brining them closer together again.
"I miss those days." Rinoa said quietly.
"Yeah, so do I. That was the best fun of my life." Squall agreed watching her closely as she still sat in front of him. He wanted to so badly reach his arms around her and hold her. His hormones had never been this whacked before and it was nerve-racking.
"Are we going to watch a movie or not?" Rinoa asked him, sliding away from him. He was a little disappointed when she moved and he was no longer bathed in her warmth.
"If we can decide on what to watch." He shrugged and got to his feet. Rinoa looked up at him thoughtfully.
"I don't care. It doesn't matter." She whispered. If he wanted to watch Hannibal, then they'd watch Hannibal. She didn't have to keep her eyes open.
"Hannibal?" he asked, picking up the movie up. "It's really not that bad."
"I don't care." She repeated.
He said nothing but popped the movie into the player and turned on the TV. He saw Rinoa shudder briefly, and he extended a hand to her and pulled her to her feet then to the couch where they sat and the movie began.
It was about twenty minutes into the movie when Rinoa decided that she really didn't want to watch this movie. She kept her eyes shut and face buried in her arms. Squall, who sat about arm's length away from her, noticed and smiled to himself. It was amusing to watch her, but she was truly scared. He slid down and reached across her for the remote, putting the TV on mute. She looked up and blushed sheepishly, mouthing an apology. He shook his head, telling her not to worry about it, and they did nothing else.
It was silent for a while, making things difficult for both of them. The tension just increased to points of sheer aggravation.
"Where is everyone?" Rinoa suddenly asked out of the blue.
"I don't know." He whispered.
"Oh," She sighed and stared forward at the screen. The vivid images were starting to make her sick. She turned to look at Squall. "Have you noticed that everyone's been acting really strange, though?" She asked.
"Yeah, now that you mention it, it's like they're all plotting something, doing weird things." He replied.
"That's what I thought too." She whispered.
Like what seemed to always happen when they were alone, an eerie silence filled the air around them, annoying them both. It was suddenly very uncomfortable between them and they felt the need to each fill the gapping space.
"What do you think they're plotting?" Rinoa asked quietly, staring down at the floor, finally pulling her eyes from him.
"Who knows? But it seems that they all know but us." Squall replied. He looked over at her to see her just as uncomfortable as he was. The past things that have been happening between the two of them were making future situations even worse.
"You don't think they're plotting against us, do you?" Rinoa asked. She felt so nervous, and she knew he saw it in her, too.
"I was thinking maybe something like that, but I ruled out that possibility, thinking that I was just paranoid." He answered, standing. "But I am bored out of my mind."
"Yeah." She whispered. There was silence again, and she kept her eyes glued to the floor determined not to look at him. She felt his hand on her arm a few minutes later. He opened his mouth to say something, but he shook his head and grabbed the remote to turn the TV off completely.
"I told you we should have watched something funny." Rinoa gave him her best all-knowing; I'm, right as usual look.
"Yeah, well, things don't always go as planned, do they?" He retaliated, returning to his seat beside her.
"I suppose." She frowned.
Upstairs, they heard the front door slam, and the voices of Drag and Zion were faintly heard. An idea floated through Squall's mind, and he grabbed Rinoa by the arm, turning out the light. The two of them hid in the darkness, pressed against the wall under the stairs as the door opened, and Drag and Zion descended down the stairs.
"Well, that was a waste of time." Drag stated, hitting the light and jumping onto the couch.
"Yeah, you'd think Quistis would have had a better plan. That is never going to work." Zion complained. They watched him turn on the TV and tremble as he saw what was playing. Zion cut the player off and picked up the remote.
"Hey! What'd you turn it off for? I like that movie!" Drag exclaimed.
"Well, I don't." Zion replied. "Where's Squall?"
"I think he's with Raine. His car is here but I don't think he's here." Drag answered offhandedly, looking through a drum magazine that sat on the coffee table. "Why?"
"I don't want him to hear us. Quistis would be pissed if she found out that Squall knew what we were plotting."
"Oh, come on. He won't know. He and Rinoa will get together and never even know that they were set up. They'll fall madly in love, have hot steamy sex, and be happy for the rest of their lives all because of us." Drag sounded like he really didn't care.
Rinoa's jaw dropped, and she turned to Squall who was staring wide-eyed at Drag and Zion. He looked at her and mouthed, "What the hell?" She shrugged and shook her head in utter confusion.
"You know, I can actually picture that happening." Zion found himself laughing at Drag's last comment.
"I know, right? Too bad it's not me, though. I mean, you have to admit, she is one hot babe. I would not mind hooking up with her. Wow!" Drag let out a low whistle that made Rinoa roll her eyes.
"Hey, we're hooking up Squall and Rinoa, not you and Rinoa. Plus, I thought you were going for Quistis?" Zion asked.
"Nah, I think Seifer's involved with her, but hey, I wouldn't mind just one night." He sighed, contently.
"Geez! You're such a player." Zion exclaimed, smacking his brother on the back.
"I know it, man. All the ladies just can't get enough of the Dragster."
"Yeah, right. Whatever. Keep telling yourself that." Zion rolled his eyes and reached for a bag of chips that sat on the coffee table.
Just as Drag was about to say something, the door opened and the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs filled the room. Bryce appeared and jumped onto one of the couches.
"Whew! What a day!" He sighed and put his arms behind his head comfortably.
"So, what do you think/" Zion asked.
"It's okay. I think the people and the places are okay, too." Bryce answered.
"And the girls?" Drag grinned, raising an eyebrow at his younger cousin.
"Totally hot!" Bryce exclaimed.
"See? I'm not the only one." Drag still wore his grin.
"Yeah, yeah. I see." Zion rolled his eyes again.
"And that Rinoa chick! Wow! Holy crap! I wish there were more girls like her in Esthar! Dang!"
"Hey! What is it with you two? We're trying to hook Squall and Rinoa up. Back off! They're the ones meant to be together!" Zion jumped to his feet in hysteria.
"Wait! I thought you wanted me to help sabotage this relationship?" Bryce looked confused, even more than normal.
Rinoa heard Squall's teeth grinding in her ear, and she began to feel a little anger, too. If she wanted to sabotage something that had to do with her, then she'd do it herself. She certainly didn't need anyone to help her do that.
"Yeah, yeah. We have to wait for the perfect opportunity, though." Drag answered him, yawning. "Man, I'm starving. I'm going upstairs and see if there's anything here to eat. You guys want anything?" He stood and stretched. Bryce shook his head and pointed to the several bags of chips, but Drag took no notice of him.
"I'll come with you, but I'm not in the mood to let anyone fix my food." Zion stated almost snobbishly. Drag and Bryce had put in a bad mood.
"Sheesh! Who bit you in the ass this morning?" Drag asked, but Zion didn't answer. Instead, he headed upstairs without a word.
"Did you piss him off?" Bryce asked his cousin. The older guy shrugged and moved to the stairs.
"You coming, too?" Drag asked. He stood on the bottom stair.
"Yeah. I'm a little hungry." Bryce nodded and followed the other guy up the stairs. His stomach growled, and the two heard him laugh.
The door closed and Rinoa let out a deep breath. She was shocked, appalled, and more than anything else, pissed off to the point that she wanted to scream bloody murder.
"I'm going to kill them." Squall growled. "I'm going to fucking kill them." He stood out from the shadows and was heading straight up to the stairs when Rinoa grabbed his arm.
"Don't! Don't do that." She pulled him back to her level.
"I'm going to kill them. Especially Bryce." He continued to grind his teeth.
"No! No." She lowered her voice and pulled him closer. "I have a better idea. A much better idea." She grinned.
"…Which is?" He raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Let's give them a taste of their won medicine. We now know what seem to be two different plans. Let's foil them both." She held back a laugh.
"You know, that sounds like a great idea." He returned the smile with a smirk. And then we can give the hot, steamy sex a try. He kept that thought to himself. She might not like that very much. Well, maybe not.
She saw that look in his eyes that told her he was thinking about something. What was he plotting? She was curious now. But she had another question to ask first.
"How are we going to get out of here without the others noticing?" She asked.
Squall thought for a second then looked behind Rinoa at the basement door. A smile crept to his face. "We sneak out." He pointed to the door.
"Whatever works." She shrugged as he pulled her to the door.
They crept up to the front of the house to his car, and Squall waited to turn on the lights until he was pulled out onto the road.
"I'm still pissed as hell at them." Squall muttered. He had to resist the urge to go 80 down the road. He had all this uncontrollable energy and nowhere to put it.
"Well, don't take it out on anyone." Rinoa turned to him and found her eyes looking down his face, neck, shoulders, chest, and arms, noticing how tense he was. She wanted to make him relax. She knew that she wouldn't be able to hide her feelings from him for too long. As much as she didn't want to admit, he was everything she wanted. He was protective, sweet (when he wanted to be), and hot. Did she mention hot? It was easy to get lost in his eyes, his arms, and just his entire body. It was just becoming over-whelming for her to just watch him and know that she couldn't do anything because she was too afraid.
"Hey, are you okay?" Squall glanced over at Rinoa to see her staring at him in a dazed way. She didn't look too happy.
She forced a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking."
He pulled into her driveway, and they both got out of the car and Squall walked her to the door. "So when are we going to get our own little plan rolling?" He asked, stuffing his hands into his jean pockets.
"When they try to get rid of us. Have you noticed that they've been doing that?"
"Yeah. I noticed. Let's give them a good opportunity to get their plan rolling." He shrugged.
"Good idea." She smiled at him and then looked at her house as the smile faded. "I'd better get inside."
"Okay. Let's give 'em, Hell, okay?" He smirked wickedly and she nodded.
"Sure." She walked up to the door as he returned to his car, but stopped to watch him pull out. She waved, but he didn't see her and drove off back to his house. She stood out there for a few minutes before turning the doorknob and going inside.
"Oh, boy." She whispered.
"What?" Her mother came into the hallway where Rinoa stood.
"Nothing." She sighed.
Julia walked up and wrapped her arms around her daughter's shoulders. "Aw! Is my little girl in love?" She hugged her tightly.
"I hope not, but I don't think I'm going to be that lucky." Rinoa sighed again.
"With whom, may I ask?" Julia pulled her away from the door and into the kitchen.
"I don't want to be in love. It causes too much trouble." Not answering her mother's question.
Julia watched her daughter fight a losing battle with herself, and she suddenly knew who the young man in question was, or at least she had a pretty good idea. She was excited, too. They would make the cutest little couple, and she knew that Raine would agree, too.
Julia hugged her daughter one last time before heading back into the kitchen. "Dinner will be ready soon, sweetie." She called.
"Okay." Rinoa said moments later coming into the doorway. "I'm going upstairs. Will you come get me when it's ready?" She asked.
"Of course." Julia smiled and Rinoa tried to return the warm gesture. She felt a little stressed and so lost interest. Instead, she went up to her room. She flopped down onto her bed and sighed again. This was definitely not how she planned for things to happen. She had thought she would never see him again, and yet… here he was. It was almost depressing.
Something cold and wet on her arm brought her back to earth. Rinoa turned to see Angelo's big eyes staring into her own.
"Hey, boy." She whispered, rubbing the dog's head gently. "What do you think I should do?"
But Angelo just titled his head and stuck out his pink tongue happily. Rinoa tried to smile as she scratched behind Angelo's ears.
"Should I follow my heart?" Rinoa asked. She didn't know why she was asking a dog for help, but it wasn't as if she had anyone else to help her or even talk to. No one would really understand her situation, and she needed someone who would.
Angelo barked happily and the action made Rinoa laugh. The dog had always been her best companion. Always.
"What would I do without you?" She asked, smiling truly this time.
Angelo barked again and laid his head in Rinoa's lap.
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Squall had a really hard time keeping his anger at a safe level as he walked back into his house. Luckily, he came in the same time as his mom, so there weren't any suspicions, but he was so close to killing Drag, Zion, and Bryce that controlling his anger was not fun. They had pissed him off, really pissed him off.
"Hey, man! Where've you been?" Drag asked, stuffing a sandwich into his face.
"Out." Squall answered tersely. He went to the fridge and grabbed a soda. He said nothing else but opened the basement door and slammed it behind him.
"What's wrong with him?" Bryce asked his mom as she set some groceries on the counter.
"I don't know, honey." Raine answered, walking back out to the car to get the rest of the groceries since no one else was going to help. "He and I came in at the same time."
Drag nearly choked on his soda. "Was he here the whole time?"
"No! Mom said he just got here." Bryce replied. "He must have been out with Seifer or someone else." He shrugged.
"He couldn't have been with Seifer! Seifer was with Quistis and then he was with us!" Zion exclaimed, putting down Bryce's theory.
"I said or someone else!" Bryce yelled back.
"Well, who then? Everyone was with us, you idiot!" Drag raised his voice, glaring at Bryce.
"I don't know! I don't know anything!" Bryce threw his hands up in defeat.
"Well, that's for sure." Drag spat back.
"Why is everyone so mean to me all the time?" Bryce demanded.
"I don't know. Maybe it's because you ask stupid questions like that." Drag replied.
"Hey!" Raine yelled as Bryce jumped at his cousin. "If you're not going to help me do anything, then get out of my kitchen! I don't want World War III erupting while I'm trying to fix dinner. Now get OUT!" She exploded, sending all three guys out. "And Bryce, learn some table manners." She groaned, cleaning up the mess made by her youngest son. Sometimes she thought he was worse than Laguna.
"Is it just me, or is everyone in a bad mood?" Bryce asked, heading upstairs to his room.
"I wonder why? You're here." Drag glared at him, going up the stairs faster to his own room.
"Is it completely necessary for everyone to always be so mean to me?" Bryce wondered aloud, but no one answered him. He groaned and walked into his room.
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Squall slammed his bedroom door and locked it. He punched the wall in anger and then sat on the bed. He did not need anyone to try and help him get together with Rinoa. He had his own way of doing things, and he didn't need anyone interfering. All they would do would get in his way.
"Stay out of my life!" He growled to no one in particular. He didn't receive an answer and didn't expect one. "I can do this all on my own!" His hand stung from where he had punched the wall. He had never been very good at holding back his anger. That was essentially one of his flaws. He lost his temper too much, but it wasn't his fault he had a short fuse. It was something he inherited from his mother. Sometimes he was glad he was more like his mother than his father. His dad could be such an idiot sometimes.
He lay down and stared up at the ceiling, counting the lines. He was surprised at his own behavior. He was in such a bad mood that it wasn't funny. He just wanted to beat the crap out of something, anything. He had to have some way to release his anger before he did something incredibly stupid.
It wasn't that he was totally pissed at Drag and Zion (he was) but he was even madder at himself for the way he'd been acting. Instead of bringing Rinoa closer to him, he was pushing her even farther away. He wanted her so badly that it was slowly killing him. It was like she was just out of reach. Every time he got close to touching her, something would happen to increase the distance between them again. Did things always have to be difficult? And now with the rest of his friends butting in, that would push her almost completely away from where he wanted her. They weren't making this any better; they were making it even worse! Why couldn't anyone understand that he didn't need their help? He was strong; he was determined and able to handle it all on his own. He didn't need someone there to hold his hand for him. That had never happened in the past, so why should it start now? What was the point?
"Arggh!" he yelled and threw his pillow across the room. He felt a little better but no much. He still had a lot of anger to release. He rolled over and rested his chin on his hands, now staring at his headboard. There was nothing particularly interesting about the headboard, but at any rate, he continued to stare at it.
He was frustrated, too. Frustrated by the fact that there was something out there that he really wanted, and yet, he wasn't making a single move to go get it. Since when had he waited on the sidelines and watched the other team win the game? Never. He always went after what he wanted. And he usually always got it, too.
So why should he be denied this time? He knew what he wanted, but he wasn't sure how to get it. That's one reason why he wanted everyone to butt out so he could figure out a way to reach his goal.
"What the hell am I supposed to do with everyone getting in the way?" He asked aloud. Of course, no one answered him. And yet, this time, part of him had expected one. Why? He was unsure.
At the current moment he was pretty much unsure of just about everything.
Then it hit him.
"Remove them!" He smirked wickedly.
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The next morning at school, Squall and Rinoa met at his locker.
"You know, this looks even more suspicious than everyone else huddling together." Rinoa muttered quietly, hugging her books to her chest and feeling her cheeks redden as people walked by, glancing at them both.
"And does it look like I care? As far as I'm concerned, they can all kiss my ass." Squall replied, slamming his locker shut with more force than was needed. He leaned against the locker and looked down at Rinoa, scowling. "This will give Quistis and the rest of her little demonian a little hope that they're doing something right, which means they'll continue with their little plan, so we can figure it out. And once we have that figured out, we can foil it." He pushed himself off the locker and started walking to her second block, motioning his head for her to follow, which Rinoa did, reluctantly.
"Um, not to put a flaw in your brilliant plan, but if we give them hope, then won't they stop, thinking that they've succeeded? Shouldn't we just act like we still hate each other?" Rinoa walked to his side, getting into the same pace with him, trying to match his strides.
"No and no." He glanced at her briefly before heading up the stairs to the second floor. "If we act like we hate each other, then they might give up, but if we give them a false hope, then they'll keep going."
"Are you sure that logic isn't a little backwards?" Rinoa shivered and felt she move a few steps closer to him. He looked at her again, almost as if he were agitated.
"Positive. My logic is never backwards." Squall stated in his all-knowing way.
"Uh-huh. Sure. Well, let me inform you a little something. Quistis is obviously the mastermind in this operation, and if you know Quistis as well as I do, then you'll know that she doesn't give up on anything. She keeps going until she's satisfied. If we act like we're starting to like each other, then we'll just be giving her the satisfaction that she wants. Which means, she'll stop, thinking she's succeeded." Rinoa told him. She watched as a frown crept to his lips. She had to fight with herself to resist the urge to exclaim that she's right and he's wrong and that he should just listen to her.
"You really think so?" He asked seriously stopping in front of Professor Mimid's classroom, which just happened to be Rinoa's second block.
"Sorry." She blushed.
"Okay, then." And he shoved her into the classroom.
"Hey!" Rinoa yelled, falling into someone. She heard him laugh, and after apologizing to the person he pushed her into, she looked out the door to find him gone. "Asshole." She muttered quietly and decided that she would get him back later.
Instead, she walked to her desk in the back and found Quistis, Selphie, and Seifer staring at her questionably. She blushed again and set her stuff down. "What?" She asked, not making eye contact with any of them.
"What was that all about?" Quistis demanded. Her eyes darted to the door and then back to Rinoa.
"Nothing. I just forgot how to walk this morning." Rinoa spat bitterly. She grabbed her homework out of her binder and took it to the instructor's desk. She tried to ignore their questioning glances. She made a mental note to try and control her temper before she lashed out.
Quistis narrowed her eyes at Rinoa and searched her face, knowing that she was lying. Rinoa, who was little Miss-Perfect-of-Balamb, would not wake up and forget how to walk. In fact, unless they had a severe case of short-term memory loss worse than Dory the fish, no one could just wake up one morning and forget how to walk! She looked at Seifer and whispered, "She's hiding something."
"No dip, Sherlock. Did you come up with that conclusion on your own or did little Watson help you?" Seifer snapped, going back to his desk. She glared at him and followed him.
"I'm serious! She's hiding something!" Quistis struggled to keep her voice down.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. For five minutes, can you shut up with this stupid idea to put them together? For five minutes maybe!" Seifer demanded. "And shouldn't you be getting to class anyway?"
She rolled her eyes and headed out the door. Seifer sighed once and she was gone. Sometimes she drove him crazy. Maybe he should get her to date Drag. That would definitely keep her off him, even though there were times when he didn't mind. He had no idea what he wanted. Surprise, surprise. At least he wasn't the only one. Squall seemed to be having problems of his own.
Professor Mimid walked in, and the class began, giving Seifer no time to think about his problems, Squall's problems, or anybody's problems for that matter. That was the good thing about wrinkly, old Professor Mimid. He could brainwash you so much for 90 minutes that you forgot about everything except how much you didn't want to be in that room.
Today, however, wasn't all that bad. It was actually amusing. Professor Mimid had a very bad head cold and his voice squeaked and cracked, he coughed every five minutes and sneezed 50 times every second. And the students in the front got a first-hand view of it all. Ugh!
Even with all the excitement, Rinoa didn't pay any attention to Professor Mimid. She was lost in her thoughts, trapped by her problem that she had created. All she could think about was Squall. He filled her mind, and she didn't understand why. Was this a sign that she did like him more than she was willing to admit? Or was she just paranoid like every other time when this subject came up? That was probably it, she finally concluded. She had always had a habit of drawing things out more than they needed to be. Old habits die-hard.
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Ah, lunchtime! The favorite part of the school day (besides the dismissal bell) when students can get together with their friends and talk about what has happened during the day.
Rinoa, Selphie, and Quistis walked to the lunchroom together for the first time in several days. Pre-Cal had been hell and that had left all three girls in terrible moods thanks to Professor Fitzgerald. It wasn't even the middle of November yet and the old cow was already giving them Winter Break assignments! And they had 5 thousand parts to them! Wasn't life juts so much fun when you were stuck with Professor Fitzgerald.
The guys had already gotten to the lunch table with their trays when the three of them got there. Zell and Zion were once again trying to eat each other out, and each time it always ended in a tie. No matter how many times they did it, it was always a tie. Irvine and Drag were having a very strong conversation, probably about girls, as that was the main topic between the two studs. And then Squall and Seifer were also engaged in a conversation, and judging by the look on Seifer's face, it seemed to be more series than the other two conversations.
Rinoa broke away from the group and snuck up behind Squall as he was standing. As revenge from earlier that morning, she shoved him. He fell forward, completely losing his balance and had to catch himself before he fell into his food. And he most definitely wouldn't wear teriyaki bites very well. Seifer saw a smirk creep up to his face as he turned to Rinoa, who stood behind him confidently.
"Can I help you?" He demanded.
She smiled, dropping her stuff in a chair and then heading to the lunch line. As she walked past him, he heard her say, "That was payback." And he had to laugh, having forgotten about earlier that morning. He applauded her for her bravery. She had more of a backbone than he gave her credit for.
"That was nice, Heartilly!" he called after her, drawing in more attention than he actually cared for. "That was real nice!"
"What did she do that for?" Selphie asked, sitting down across from him with her lunch.
"I shoved her this morning, and I suppose that was revenge." He replied.
"So that's what that was all about. She said she had forgotten how to walk." Seifer grinned at Squall's face.
"Yeah, it was pretty funny because she ran right into Deryl. You know him, right? He's the jock." Selphie pointed to Deryl Johns at the jock table. Squall nodded. "She was so embarrassed! Her cheeks were so red!"
Squall smirked again and looked at Rinoa as she came back with her food.
"Hey, Heartilly, walk much?" Squall asked as she took her seat.
"Yeah, why?" Rinoa looked at him questionably.
"Just wondering. I was told that this morning you forgot how to walk." He sneered.
Rinoa's cheeks flushed and she glared at. "Well, that's only because someone had been rude this morning and shoved me into my classroom after I was just trying to help!" Rinoa exclaimed hotly, declaring him the bad guy in this one.
"You were not trying to help!" he fired back, fighting the grin he now wore. "You kept shooting down my ideas!"
"What ideas! You had one! And it was doomed to failure from the start! So don't even go there!" She retorted, determined to win this little spat.
The rest of their friends just sat there and watched as the two went at it, finding the whole situation rather interesting, not to mention comical.
"What do you mean it was doomed to failure from the start? My plans are never doomed to failure! You just didn't understand!" he threw back at her.
"Oh, I understood perfectly! I understood how it was never going to work!" Rinoa retaliated.
"And here we are, ladies and gentlemen, at the final match of the season! It's mono versus womono! And the score right now is womono 3, mono 2! Can our defending champion take the title or will he lose to a girl?" Seifer grabbed his fork and began talking in his "famous" announcer's voice.
"Shut up!" Rinoa and Squall exclaimed together.
"Ouch!" Drag, Zion, and Zell yelled.
"And I don't know what dream world you're living in, but you're plans are not perfect! In fact, non of them are!" Rinoa went back to putting down Squall.
"Double point for Heartilly!" Seifer exclaimed.
"Oh? And what about yours? They never seem to work either! I seem to remember one of your little 'plans' that ended up with us having flower duty for an entire summer!" Squall used in defense. He crossed his arms over his chest, wearing his best cocky, "beat that" smirk.
"Oh, no! Don't even blame that on me because you were the one who didn't listen to me and went after that frog in Mrs. Potson's garden!" Rinoa kindly reminded him.
"Yeah, after you had chased in there! I had told you not to let it get out of the creek, and someone had to go in there and get it!"
"And Leonhart takes the lead!" Seifer put in quickly, avoiding Rinoa's sudden death glare.
"But you were the one who pushed me into the creek, scaring it out! I am not the one at fault here!"
"Think again, Heartilly! You were the one who always got us in trouble! You and your brilliant plans!" He exclaimed.
"Yes, my plans were brilliant until you got a hold of them and changed everything!" Rinoa pointed her fork at him menacingly.
"I did nothing to change them except maybe to make them better!"
"NO! You always made them worse! You always had to have things your way! You seemed to think that with you in charge, everything went perfectly! Well, I've got a news flash for ya buddy: they all crashed and burned!"
"And that was the final point! Heartilly- 9 million, Leonhart- 7!" Seifer said sadly.
"You were the one who made a lousy partner in crime." Squall was not going to let her win.
"Only because I was stuck with you! You're no mastermind yourself!" Rinoa glared at him. They weren't really fighting, but they were enjoying watching how their friends reacted.
"What are you talking about? I AM the mastermind! And you were talking about my dream world?" Squall laughed at Rinoa, who wasn't quite as amused.
"Yes, you do live in a dream world!" Rinoa sneered. "Tell me, have you ever met reality?"
"And now we're at Round 2!" Seifer exclaimed. Squall glared at him this time.
"Yes, I have! And it's boring because you're there!" He flung a piece of roll at her. "Have you ever not taken anything seriously? Tell me, if someone asked you to jump off a bridge, would you?"
"And Leonhart takes an early lead!" Seifer smiled. He and Squall exchanged a high-five.
"There is a difference between taking something seriously and taking something logically. Jumping off a bridge would not be logical!" Rinoa flung the piece back.
"Oh, what a shame. I was hoping you would actually do it."
"Another point for Leonhart!" Seifer and Drag both exclaimed.
"That's not a point! That should be a technical foul for being mean!" Rinoa declared, sending Squall a nasty look.
"Hey, anything goes, sweet cheeks." Drag shrugged, smiling at her.
"Ugh! Guys are pigs! Especially ones from Esthar!" Rinoa narrowed her eyes at Squall in particular.
"Now that is a technical foul!" Seifer shook his head, disappointed.
"No, no, no! You said anything goes!" Rinoa countered.
"Yes. Anything but that." Squall pointed out.
"You stay out of this!" Rinoa snapped at him. He jumped back in shock.
"What'd I do?" Squall asked his buddies who shrugged. " I was just kindly informing her that she can't insult a man's hometown."
"Esther's not even your hometown!" Rinoa exclaimed. Selphie giggled at her side uncontrollably.
"That, my dear, is beside the point." He raised his eyebrows several times.
"You," she said standing "are a dog." She left the table to throw away her trash.
"Ruff-ruff!" Squall called after her. "Throw me a bone!"
You have to beg for it first. Rinoa thought with an evil smile. As she same back to the table, the bell rang. For the first time in a long while, lunch went better and wasn't an all out war. Yes, that was considered better.
"So where's my bone?" Squall whispered in her ear as they were leaving the Cafeteria for their final block.
"You have to earn it." She smiled, heading into AP Art.
"And how much work will that take?" He asked, grabbing her arm and pulling her back to him.
"Let's just see how well you handle sabotaging their plans, okay?" Rinoa tried to pull away, but it was easier said than done.
"And you know I love to destroy things." He whispered.
"Why am I scared?" She finally managed to get away and took a step back.
"You should be." He moved away but stopped. "Hey, meet me outside Joe's when you get there, okay?"
"Okay." She shoved him again and then walked into the room, throwing him a smile over her shoulder.
"Hey! I only pushed you once!" He called but she made no notice of hearing him. "What are doing to me?" He sighed. It sounded like he was already regretting his feelings and her reactions, but there was more than meets the eye.
A/N: There ya go! Another long one. I love this chapter just for the soul reason that the argument is so funny. My friend Beccy told me she read it during reading block and was laughing more than she should have. I think it's her favorite, too. I love it! Um, I tried to work on their personalities, but I needed them out of character for the lunch scene. Sorry! R&R. I need to know what you think! Thanks and Later Days!