Sorry for taking so long..
It was so cold tonight, but he couldn't care. He needed this. The still air alone had to be below freezing, but that couldn't stop him. He needed to run.
The harsh wind his speed created stung his skin wherever it was exposed. It seeped through his thermal as he pushed through the darkness.
His surroundings glowed velvety sonorous shades in the moonlight. Balamb Garden illuminated the entire environment just as well with its cerulean auroras of light that blazed from it. But Squall was oblivious to the brilliance. His thoughts were caught in an unstoppable frenzy.
Rinoa hadn't smiled at him in the slightest since before her last late night visit. It had been days now. Squall couldn't understand it, and her icy demeanor was beginning to gnaw a deep wound into him.
He couldn't stop thinking about that day. The day after the event, the day he found… her.
When he arrived back to his apartment Rinoa was still there. He heard no greeting when he got through the door. She was still upset about his rejection the night before, more like earlier that morning actually. Despite his exhaustion, he wanted to make it up to her immediately. Especially considering the fact that she was sober.
"Hey baby," he made sure his voice sounded sweet as possible, for his standards.
"Hey," hers was as cold and flat as a plate of steel, coming from the bedroom. The guilt was instantaneous. Shoulders slumping, he walked through the opened door to find her in front of the mirror. She was already dressed and pulling her hair into a loose updo.
"How you feeling?" he asked as he kissed her cheek. She stayed focused on her reflection.
"Fine." A joyless reply. Wrapped his arms around her waist, a plea for attention.
"So… when did you get up?"
She shrugged. Never before had Rinoa personified apathy with such defiance as she did now. Of course, she had her over-dramatic tendencies but… this was different.
"Well… anyways, I was wondering, if you were hungry, would you like some breakfast?" But the small smile on his face went unnoticed.
"Can't." There was a dull stab within Squall's chest and the smile vanished as he winced. Pale pink gloss slid across her lips in its application, "Lorenn and I are leaving for Timber in a few minutes."
She's trying to avoid me… The stab sharpened at this thought, this blatant realization.
"Oh… cool," was all he could respond with. Moved to his side of the bed to unlace his boots, desperate to act normal. From the corner of his eye, Squall watched her fidget through her bag as if no one else were in the apartment.
Would things have been better if he had just fucked her like she had wanted, treat his girlfriend like she were a one-night stand?
Rinoa grabbed the bag, turned and bent. Her lips touched his cheek for the briefest moment. By the time his gaze lifted in search of hers, she was out the door.
"Aahh…!" his lungs pulled him back to the present with a biting sensation. He slowed and stopped, doubling over with an arm clutching his torso. Panting so brutally, Squall became conscious of how hard he had been running. His mind was stuck in the replay of that day; it was maddening.
His heart was thudding with a violence through his body.
It was too quiet, too tranquil out here.
…There was a moment from that morning, one that refused to leave his memory. It happened after Rinoa left. Left him alone, desolate in his own place. Heavy with guilt and longing to apologize, his face fell into his palms. It happened then.
His hands, his skin had a scent embedded within them. Squall stared at his hands.
They smelled of sea salt.
And the vision of that face saturated every corner of his thinking. That beautiful angelic face so deep in slumber.
It had been quiet for too long.
Everything good was happening somewhere else.
Jesus Christ by Brand New