A/N: 'Ello everyone… Sorry for the delayed update, but as I've pointed out in another Author's note, I was unable to upload any documents due to… technical reasons… Anyway, back to the story…
I'm not really happy about this chapter. I swear, I took my time to write it, I edited it again and again and again, but I just didn't seem to get it exactly the way I wanted to… Of course, the final judges are always the readers, so I'll shut up and let you see for yourselves whether you like it or not…
Everyone keeps telling me how much this story reminds them of 'Family man'. When I first heard this, I wondered what the hell 'Family man' was anyway… My guess was a TV show at first, 'cause I'm not American and I wouldn't happen to know it. Then a friend pointed out that it was a movie. So I went and rented it to see the similarity everyone was talking about. And I was surprised to see that you were indeed right. At least partly; the concept is the same, but the rest of the plot has nothing to do with it. Oh well… Here goes my excitement about thinking I'd come up with something original… ^_^
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Samsung
Last chapter summary: It was the beginning of Quistis' first day in her new life in the last chapter… Can things get any worse –or better- for her? Read to find out.
~*A second chance*~
By: Sickness in Salvation
Chapter 2: Realizations
'Come on… It's gotta be in here somewhere…' thought Quistis, going through an agenda she'd found in her dorm 'Damn it…' The number she was looking for obviously wasn't in there 'Alright… Think, think!' she said to herself, touching her temples 'Of course! My cell-phone!' she thought, starting to look around the entire room 'That is, if I actually DO have one in this… life…' she thought. She went through the drawers of the desk. Not there. She then walked over to the nightstand and opened the first drawer. She began going through the stuff in there, when a small blue box caught her attention. She took it out and looked at it closely 'Condoms…' she thought, staring at it terrified 'OK, so MAYBE I could get used to this incessant kissing, but… Damn! How will I…?' she thought, throwing the box back inside 'Argh! What if he tries anything TONIGHT?!' she thought, panicking 'I need a damn excuse!' She paced back and forth the room, arms crossed behind her back 'Hmm… I'll just probably tell him I've got my period…' she thought 'That gives me a week, ten days tops, of time… Until I figure out something else…' she thought, and went back to searching the drawers for her cell-phone, if she actually owned one…
'Damn it… Nothing in the drawers…' she thought, running a hand through her blonde hair. She looked around the room, thinking where it could possibly be. Her eyes caught a small black purse, resting on the chair, where her clothes from last night hung 'Could be in there…' she thought and walked towards the chair. She grabbed the bag and zipped it open, going through the contents 'Lipstick, mascara, mirror, money, wha- ? Cigarettes?!' she thought, looking at the small red pack in bag 'Don't take this personally Hyne, but you're REALLY starting to piss me off!' thought Quistis, going on searching 'Aha! There it is!' she said to herself excitedly, pulling the small silver Samsung out of the bag 'Just like my old one…' she thought. She quickly opened it and began searching through the name catalogue 'A… B… C… D… E, there we are… Edith… Elaine… Eleanor… Found it!' she thought excitedly.
She closed the lid of the silver cell-phone and put it back in the purse, making a mental note to herself to make that call later. She checked her watch and saw it was 11:30. She still had half an hour before going to pick Seifer up. She walked over to her closet –more like, their closet- and went through it, looking for something to wear. She picked out a black maxi skirt, a black sleeveless turtleneck sweater and a pair of high-heeled boots 'At least I've still got SOME sense of taste…' she though, while undressing. When she had worn her clothes, she walked inside the bathroom and took a look at herself in the mirror. She looked inside a few cabinets until she found her make-up kits. She applied some make-up base first and then went on putting some rouge on her cheeks. Suddenly, she stopped and stared at her reflection for a bit 'Who am I getting all dolled up for, Almasy?' she asked herself. She gave it some thought and then shrugged 'I still need to take care of myself. I AM a woman…' she thought, using some black mascara on her eyelashes 'Since when were you 'taking care of yourself' before?' said a nagging little voice in the back of her head. Quistis rose an eyebrow 'Shut up conscience…' she thought and went back to applying her make-up…
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
- "Hey Leonhart…" said Seifer, looking up from the papers on his desk.
- "Hmm?" said Squall, not raising his head from his work.
- "Up for a 'friendly' gunblade session this afternoon? My muscles are dying for some action…" said Seifer, rubbing his sore neck with his hand.
- "Someone has to stay at the office…" said Squall, going on signing forms.
- "Xu owes me one… She could stay…" said Seifer with a mischievous grin on his face.
- "Do I want to know?" asked Squall, raising his head up for the first time.
- "No…" said Seifer smirking, shaking his head.
- "Alright then… I'm sure as hell bored… I could give you some ass-whooping…" said Squall grinning, going back to his work.
- "Keep saying that to yourself. You might actually believe it…" said Seifer in response, although he couldn't help but grin.
- "Thought it up all by yourself?" asked Squall smirking.
- "Just 'cause you need help coming up with lines, doesn't mean all of us do…" replied Seifer.
- "Fuck off Almasy…" said Squall chuckling.
- "You know you love me 'Pubes'…" said Seifer smirking.
The two Commanders laughed –in Squall's case, just grinned- and went back to their boring paperwork. They remained silent, until the door opened and a cheerful looking Rinoa walked inside. She was wearing a pair of jeans, a white sweater and had her hair up in a ponytail. She gave Seifer a nod which he returned and walked over to Squall's desk, hopping up on it.
- "Hey you…" she said sweetly, leaning down and giving him a peck.
- "Hey yourself…" said Squall smiling.
- "Ready to go?" asked Rinoa.
- "Already noon?" asked Squall.
- "Yep. Exactly 12:04." said Rinoa checking her watch.
- "OK… Just gimme a few minutes to clear out my stuff…" said Squall getting up, gathering all the scattered papers on his desk.
- "Any plans for lunch Seifer?" Rinoa asked the blond-haired Commander.
- "Waiting for Quis. Probably going to Balamb…" said Seifer, stretching.
- "Oh yeah, I saw her talking with Xu downstairs. She should be up any minute…" said Rinoa "You guys care to join us?"
- "Sure…" said Seifer shrugging "I don't think Quistis will mind…"
- "She doesn't, I asked her before I got up here. She said the same thing you did." said Rinoa.
- "OK then… Better get ready…" said Seifer getting up, clearing off his desk.
Squall and Rinoa waited for him, as he finished up and grabbed his leather jacket from the hanger, walking outside the office with them. The moment he stepped outside though, Quistis happened to be coming inside and she stumbled, falling right into his arms.
- "A gift from the Gods…" said Seifer grinning, helping Quistis up to her feet.
- "Thanks…" she said blushing.
- "Mmm…" said Seifer admiring her "I love the all-black look… It's damn sexy…" he said, biting his lower lip.
- "Will you move it already? We don't have all day…" mumbled Squall, who was standing right behind the door with Rinoa, waiting for him to budge.
- "Leave it to Leonhart to ruin a moment…" said Seifer scoffing and grabbed Quistis from the waist, pulling her aside.
- "We're all going for lunch together, right?" asked Rinoa.
- "Sure." said Quistis.
- "My car or yours?" Seifer asked Squall.
- "Promise you won't drive like a maniac?" asked Squall crossing his arms.
- "My car…" said Seifer smirking.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Quistis walked around the corridors of Garden being held tightly by Seifer, while Squall and Rinoa followed suit right behind them. Everyone they met gave them smiles, waved at them and many saluted their two Commanders. Quistis looked up at him as they strode down the hallways together. It made her feel good being held by someone, actually being with someone for the first time in her life. Even if that someone was him. Besides, he wasn't so bad after all… He was quite… attractive actually. She caught many female students eyeing her poisonously, while swooning on him as they passed through them. She could also recall many a time when she spotted a girl or more eyeing him during the lessons in the past. Seifer really was a man, she'd give him that. And definitely handsome. And really smart. If only he had a different character, maybe even she could have fallen for him instead of Squall 'What am I talking about?' she thought 'I HAVE fallen for him… At least in this… life…' Seifer caught her eye and smiled warmly at her. He leaned down and gave her a swift kiss, making her earn even more angry glares from candidates eager to fill in her position… 'He can be really charming if he wants to…' Quistis thought when they broke apart 'Why couldn't he have been so nice to me and everyone the first time around?' she thought.
Right then, they reached the Parking Lot, where Seifer took out his keys from his jacket pocket. He pressed a small button on the keychain and set the alarm off. Quistis noticed that the flicker of light came from a very fancy looking car. It was a black convertible one, with an adjustable roof and four seats 'Commander job pays well I see…' she thought, raising an eyebrow. Seifer opened the door for her, helping her inside 'Smooth…' she thought, feeling surprised. Seifer walked around the car to the driver's seat and closed the door. Squall and Rinoa walked over to the back of the car and sat in the back seats. When everyone had fastened their seatbelts, Seifer turned the key in the ignition, put an arm around Quistis' shoulder and drove off.
- "Where are we going, Balamb?" asked Quistis.
- "Yeah. Had something else in mind?" asked Seifer.
- "It's not like we have many choices…" said Quistis grinning.
- "Are you kidding me? I can say one word, we're borrowing the Ragnarok and we're off to Esthar for lunch!" said Seifer, making Quistis laugh and Squall scoff "What, not in the mood to see daddy?" Seifer asked Squall.
- "Bite me…" said Squall giving Seifer the finger, although he couldn't help but grin.
- "Let's just settle with Balamb, shall we?" Quistis asked.
- "OK…" Seifer said shrugging.
The car had just reached the Front Gates of Garden and Seifer slowed down a bit, looking for something in the cabinet. He took out a pair of shades and wore them. Although it was December, it was a really sunny day. Seifer took a look in the mirror above him, adjusted his glasses and ran a hand through his hair, earning grunts from everyone.
- "What?" he asked innocently.
- "Your damn hair looks fine! Just drive off already!" said Rinoa exasperated.
- "Your call…" said Seifer smirking.
He put his hand on the speed box stick and stepped hard onto the gas. The car wheels screeched and the black convertible sped off, reaching 100 m/h in a matter of seconds. Rinoa let out a small squeal and grasped Squall's thigh with one hand, squeezing it tightly. Squall fell back on his seat, eyes wide open –thanking Hyne that it was his thigh Rinoa had grasped-, while Quistis screamed to Seifer to slow down.
- "Hey, it was her who told me to drive off!" said Seifer chuckling, slightly reducing the speed to 90 m/h.
- "Damn you Almasy, you promised you'd drive sensibly!" yelled Squall.
- "I only said we should get my car… Never said anything about driving like a grandma…" replied Seifer shrugging.
- "Seifer, please slow down…" said Quistis faintly, holding her head.
Seifer shot her a sideways glance and immediately reduced speed to 60 m/h.
- "Quistis are you OK?" asked Seifer, lowering his glasses.
- "I'm fine…" she replied taking a deep breath.
- "Quisty, you don't look well… Maybe we should get back to Balamb…" said Rinoa.
- "It's nothing, really! Probably because I haven't eaten anything all day…" said Quistis.
- "You positive?" asked Seifer.
- "Yes." she replied firmly.
- "Alright… So, where are we goin'?" asked Seifer "Rin, Squall, Quis, any ideas?"
- "We could go over at the Italian place. I'd die for some spaghetti right now!" said Rinoa.
- "Sounds good…" said Squall.
- "Babe?" asked Seifer looking at Quistis.
- "Sure, I'd like some pasta…" she said shrugging.
- "Good…" said Seifer, pulling her close to him, so that her head rested on his shoulder "Promise me you'll go see Dr. Kadowaki when we get back… You're getting me worried…" said Seifer with a tone of genuine concern in his voice.
- "You're worried about me?" Quistis asked in disbelief.
- "What kind of a question is that?" asked Seifer exasperated "You know I am!"
- "Why?"
- "Because I love you silly…" he said giving her a peck on the forehead "*Scoff* 'Why'…" said Seifer shaking his head in disbelief and went on driving.
Quistis froze. He loved her? She'd never heard those words spoken from anyone before… Having had no parents and no close friends until recently, she was truly shocked to hear them, let alone from someone like Seifer Almasy. She tried to convince herself they were only three plain words, but no matter how hard she tried, she failed to disregard the power those words held within. Things were beginning to get out of control; the awkwardness of the situation might have even passed as funny -in some sort of twisted way-, but it had now gotten out of hand. She couldn't even say for certain that she remotely liked Seifer, let alone love him… How worse could this day get?
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
One meal and two pointless inter-Commander arguments later…
The two couples made their way back to Garden in Seifer's car. Once arriving at their quarters, everyone retired to their rooms, much to Quistis' dislike. She'd have to be alone with Seifer now… 'Let's just hope he doesn't try… anything…' she thought, as Seifer unlocked their dorm room and walked inside.
- "Hwaah!" he yawned, flinging his jacket off, hanging in on a chair.
He took off his shoes and fell heavy on the bed, lying on his stomach.
- "Tired?" asked Quistis eagerly.
- "Yeah…" he mumbled, turning over so that he lay on his back "Wanna get some sleep?" he asked.
- "Come to think of it…" said Quistis stretching.
- "Good…" said Seifer removing his T-shirt and jeans, throwing them on the floor.
- "Hyne, could you be more of a pig?" asked Quistis jokingly.
- "I'll pick them up later…" whined Seifer, crossing his arms behind his head.
Quistis shook her head in disbelief and walked over to the closet. She looked around a bit, until she found a pair of pajama pants and a flannel T-shirt to wear. It then hit her that she had to get undressed in front of Seifer. She thought of going to the bathroom at first, but it would look suspicious… She took a deep breath and, facing the open closet, she began taking off her sweater. Behind her, Seifer rested his chin on his balled fist as he sat and watched her. Quistis could feel his eyes piercing her skin, as she let her skirt slip down. She folded her clothes and put them back in place. She hesitantly, moved her hands to her bra and undid it. She heard some noise and then footsteps, as she hurriedly put the flannel T-shirt on. She felt Seifer's hand touching her waist, while the other pulled her loose hair aside. Seifer leaned down and kissed the curve of her neck softly.
- "Hurry up…" he whispered to her ear and walked back to the bed, giving her a mischievous grin.
Quistis wore the pajama pants and slowly turned around. She found Seifer lying on the bed, looking at her dreamily. He was wearing the pair of black boxers she saw him put on this morning and was patting the outer side of the bed, showing her he wanted her to come over. She forced a smile and walked over to the bed. She sat down and carefully lied next to him. Seifer pulled her close from the waist and gave her a peck on the nose, grinning.
- "You're not gonna like this…" she said quietly, trying to sound convincing "… but I got my period this morning…"
- "Darn…" he said sighing, kissing her neck "That's OK… I can still hug you…" he said smiling.
Quistis sighed in relief inwardly; she'd gotten away with it… Seifer removed his hands from her waist and pulled the blanket underneath them. He covered themselves up, making sure Quistis wasn't feeling any cold. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and lied down next to her, sliding his hands back to her waist.
- "Sleep tight baby…" said Seifer, giving her a peck and closing his eyes.
- "You too…" mumbled Quistis.
'He really seems to care…' she thought, feeling utterly surprised 'I guess he wasn't joking around when he said he loved me…' She took a moment to look at him. He seemed so innocent right now; his fair spikes of hair were messed up against the pillow, while his facial features looked so mild… His face was more manly now, but he still carried that sort of 'baby-face' style. He really was handsome… 'I wonder how come I never noticed that before…'
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Quistis woke up sometime in the afternoon. She rubbed her eyes open and came face to face with Seifer, who was still sleeping. She carefully slid out of his grasp, trying not to wake him up. Seifer squirmed around a bit and turned over, continuing his sleep. Quistis got up from bed and walked over to the desk, grabbing her purse. She walked to the door and quietly got out of the room. The door closed behind her and she rested her back against it, zipping the purse open. She took out her cell-phone and opened the lid, searching in her catalogue again to find the number she wanted. She pressed the button with the green phone on it, calling that certain number. Anxiety overtook her and she began pacing back and forth in the hallway in front of the door, waiting for someone to pick up.
- "Hello?" said a female voice eventually.
- "Ellone?" said Quistis.
- "Oh, hi Quisty!" came the girl's cheerful response "How are you?"
- "Fine, just fine…" lied Quistis "How about you?"
- "Peachy… I just came back to Esthar with Ethan." she said.
Quistis decided not to ask who Ethan was, but she assumed he was either a friend or her boyfriend.
- "Oh really? How's Ethan?" she asked.
- "He's doing good. Oh, he says 'hi', he's right here with me." said Ellone.
- "Tell him I said 'hi' too." said Quistis.
- "Quistis says 'hi'…" said Ellone to someone, that Ethan guy obviously "How's everyone else doing? How's Seifer?"
- "Everyone's doing great… Seifer's sleeping right now…"
- "Good, good…"
- "Listen, I needed to talk to you about something…" said Quistis.
- "OK, shoot."
- "It's not something I can say through the phone… Is there any possibility you could come over for a few days? I need your help…"
- "Quisty, is something wrong?" asked Ellone worriedly.
- "It's not serious… But I'm in need of your… powers…" said Quistis.
- "Why?" asked Ellone.
- "I really can't say through the phone… But don't worry, nothing's wrong." said Quistis "Is there any way you could come over at Balamb?"
- "Come over?" asked Ellone surprised "Like… these days?"
- "Yes…" said Quistis, in a manner coming close to pleading.
- "I dunno… Hold on a sec…" said Ellone "Ethan, what do you say we go over to Balamb for a few days? Quistis says she needs to see me…"
Quistis waited patiently for a few seconds, biting her fingernails anxiously.
- "Quistis? Still there?" asked Ellone.
- "Yes, I'm here…"
- "I just had this wonderful idea! What if we come over for Christmas and New Year's? I can ask Uncle Laguna to come over too." said Ellone.
- "Oh, that would be great!" said Quistis "When can you come?"
- "Probably tomorrow morning." replied Ellone.
- "Thank you so much!" said Quistis "I can't tell you how much this means to me!"
- "Don't mention it…" said Ellone smiling.
- "Oh and… Could you please not tell anyone about my call? It's kinda secret…" said Quistis.
- "OK… I'll tell everyone it was my idea. Just tell them I called you to inform you." Ellone replied.
- "Great! See you tomorrow Sis!" said Quistis excitedly "Thank you loads!"
- "Bye Quisty!"
- "Bye!"
Quistis terminated the call and sighed in relief 'Ellone will help me remember everything now…' she thought and turned around to get back inside. She found Seifer awake, sitting up on the bed, smoking.
- "Hey…" she said.
- "Hey…" said Seifer stretching "Where were you?"
- "Ellone called me. Guess what?! Ethan, her and Laguna are coming over tomorrow for the holiday!" said Quistis delighted.
- "Oh yippee!" said Seifer mockingly, grinning.
- "What?" asked Quistis "Don't you wanna see Ellone?" she said, sitting down next to him.
- "It's not that…" said Seifer "Ellone and Ethan are cool with me, I like them, but you're forgetting about 'Puberty-Boy' and daddy…"
- "Jealous?" asked Quistis crossing her arms.
- "Pu-lease!" said Seifer exasperated "I just can't stand to hear Leonhart bitching about his dad…"
- "Laguna is a great man…" said Quistis.
- "I know that… He's a bit goofy for my taste, but still… he's OK. Tell that to 'Pubes'…" said Seifer taking a long drag from his cigarette "Anyway… It couldn't be any worse than last year…" said Seifer chuckling. Quistis obviously couldn't remember what had happened last year, but she laughed along "Hey…" said Seifer giving her his most charming smile "Can you make some coffee?"
- "Say the magic word…" said Quistis.
- "Please?" asked Seifer lowering his bottom lip. Quistis grinned.
- "Alright… how do you drink it?" she asked, but realized as soon as she did that it was a stupid question.
- "Black, with just a hint of milk…" said Seifer raising an eyebrow "Don't you know?"
- "Of course I do silly!" said Quistis grinning "Just messin' with ya…"
Fortunately, Seifer bought it and smiled. Quistis got up and walked over to the coffee machine. She poured some water inside, put coffee inside the filter and switched the machine on 'Dammit, dammit, dammit! How could I've let this slip? A few more of those mistakes and he'll be on to me.' she thought, while waiting for the coffee to get ready. After a couple of minutes, she poured the steaming liquid into two big mugs, putting some milk in Seifer's, milk and sugar in hers and walked over to the bed.
- "Here you go…" she said handing him one mug.
- "Thank you…" he said giving her a peck.
Quistis found herself flinching only a bit to that kiss 'I guess I'm starting to get the hang of this…' she thought.
- "Slept well?" asked Seifer, taking a sip of coffee.
- "Yeah, I needed it…" said Quistis.
- "Still felling dizzy?" asked Seifer.
- "Nah, it went away right after lunch." replied Quistis.
- "When are you gonna go see Dr. Kadowaki?" he asked.
- "Tomorrow. It's probably just bad diet." replied Quistis.
- "You'd better pray it's not, or else I'll be feeding you vegetables with a ladle till you choke!" he said seriously, making Quistis laugh again.
- "You make me laugh…" she said, touching his cheek tenderly.
- "Yes…" said Seifer resting his mug on the nightstand "It's one of my innumerable traits…" Quistis grinned. Seifer looked at the clock on his nightstand and spoke "I have to get back to the office… again, in an hour or so. I'll go grab a shower and go, OK? Sorry I can't stay more…" he said, looking kind of glum.
- "It's alright. I understand…" said Quistis.
Seifer smiled at her, gave her a kiss on the forehead and walked over to the bathroom, closing the door behind him. 'I need some fresh air…' Quistis thought and got up. She wore a pair of jeans she found inside the closet and wore a coat on top. She walked over to the bathroom door and knocked.
- "I'm going out for a walk." she said.
- "K…" she heard Seifer say from inside the bathroom.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Quistis walked around the cement porch behind the Front Gate of Balamb Garden. Only a few hours ago, she felt depressed because nothing exciting ever happened in her life. And now, the little time she had spent with Seifer brought her enough excitement to last a lifetime… She suddenly felt jealous of the 'Quistis' who lived that life. She had obviously found someone she loved in her life and he loved her back, had the job she always wanted and in general, things for her were just too damn rosy… 'It's not fair…' she thought 'Just because of a different choice in life, I get all the misery and 'she' gets all that? What games are you playing with me Hyne?' Quistis rested her arms on the railing and looked at the view before her. The Garden was mobile for the meantime and stationed at its original location near Balamb, so that all the students could go visit their families for Christmas break. (A/N: Which is kind of irrational if you think that they don't worship Christ… ^_^ Either way, just pretend that this holiday exists in the FF8 world too, OK?)
Quistis closed her eyes as she felt the cool breeze blow on her face. Her long blond locks of hair floated in the wind, as she closed her eyes and breathed in the fresh air. When she decided she'd gotten enough air for the night, she walked back inside the Garden halls 'I wonder…' she thought as she walked back to her and Seifer's dorm 'Will I wake up tomorrow to find I was just dreaming? And more importantly… Will I feel disappointed if I was?'
A/N: So… Quisty decided to call Ellone. What for? You figure it out on your own! (I already said it; it's not that hard…)
ON THE NEXT CHAPTER OF 'A SECOND CHANCE':
Ellone, Ethan and Laguna all arrive in Garden.
Quistis seizes the opportunity and secretly talks to Ellone about what's happening to her. How will Ellone react to Quistis' story?