Hi! This is honestly my favorite chapter so far (I'm currently just starting Chapter V-staying ahead of the game for once!). This chapter actually shares the least amount of similarities with Gatsby of any of my chapters that I've written so far, but maybe that's what I like about it. And while the chapter is titled "Gippal," the chapter is definitely more about Yuna. I'm trying to give her a little more background than we ever got about Daisy. :)

I hope you all enjoy!

II. Gippal

Yuna carried a sense of excitement with her. I almost felt as though everything had some sort of novelty to it when I was around her. We were drinking tea out on the verandah and laughing about memories of our childhood, back when I would visit her in Bevelle during the summers and winter vacations from school. In fact, it was because of my trips to visit her in Bevelle that I had determined I wanted to go to Bevelle for school.

"So," Yuna said, leaning towards me with a sly smile on her lips, "I could see in your eyes last night that you find Gippal to be mighty attractive."

"I don't know if 'mighty' is the proper adverb, but yes, I do find him attractive," I said. "Actually, he looks familiar. Is he from Bikanel?"

"He's from Bevelle, actually," Yuna said, giving me a small shrug. "I knew him when I was younger, being that he grew up just down the street from me. He introduced me to Baralai, actually."

I had always wondered how Yuna and Baralai had somehow met and had determined that money must simply lead to more money and introduce itself to money. But it made sense that a mutual friend would introduce them. That was, after all, the more typical way that people seemed to meet their future husbands.

I felt myself chewing thoughtfully on my bottom lip. Could Gippal be my future husband introduced to me by mutual friends?

My blazing cheeks must have confirmed that I was thinking about Gippal, for Yuna suddenly smiled widely at me and clapped her hands together.

"I will make you two fall in love with each other," she said, taking a sip of her tea. "I'm a fantastic matchmaker."

"I hope he'll have someone like me," I murmured. "I'm just an administrative assistant at a law firm."

Yuna gave me a very strange look, followed by an awkward sort of laugh.

"Gippal does have a tendency to only date rich girls…" she said. When her eyes met mine, there seemed to be an apologetic glimmer in them. She quickly hid it, though, and said, "But maybe we can convince him to make an exception!"

I smiled at her, but that heavy, thick air was suddenly around us again. I looked off into the ocean, wondering if the air was heavy with the ocean water and that was the reason why being at Yuna and Baralai's kept making me feel as though I was about to suffocate.

"So, where's Baralai?" I asked casually as I took my own sip of tea.

Yuna tensed across the table from me and then let out a nervous sounding laugh.

"Who knows where he is," she said, rolling her eyes. "I can't keep him on a leash—and trust me, I've tried. But you must know him."

I did know him. It was my turn to offer an apologetic glance.

My thoughts suddenly went back to Gippal though, and I made a realization.

"Wait, I know why Gippal looks so familiar!" I said, setting my tea cup down so quickly that it clamored loudly on the silver plate I set it on. "He's the famous blitzball player!"

"Oh, yes, of course!" Yuna said, laughing. "I've known him so long that I forget about his blitzball playing."

Yuna's face suddenly lightened then, and she said, "Speaking of Gippal and blitzball, he actually has a game later this evening. Baralai and I usually go, but who knows if Baralai will be back for the game. Would you like to go with me instead?"

I nodded quickly. I had never been to a professional blitzball game! And the Luca Goers were the best team in all of Spira! And Gippal…

I felt dizzy. Gippal was the best blitzball player in all of Spira.

I had dinner just the night before with the most famous blitzer in Spira and hadn't even noticed!

Yuna scrunched her nose playfully at me, and said, "Come on, I have some jerseys we can wear. Baralai always says it's foolish to wear jerseys to games, but since he won't be there, we can do whatever we want." She suddenly had a haughty look to her as she marched off, leaving her tea unfinished, and obviously expecting me to follow.

I followed her into the large mansion and she led me up the staircase, which was lined with what I assumed to be the finest rugs, usually coming all the way from Macalania. Soon we were in Yuna's bedroom, and she led me to the largest walk-in closet I had ever been in. It was almost like a library for clothes.

"Hm, they must be back here somewhere," Yuna said, walking to the far-most corner of the closet. "Here, I think my Goer jerseys are…" A jersey suddenly fell off from the hanger and right into Yuna's arms. It wasn't a jersey that I recognized, and from where I was standing, it looked a bit tattered and worn.

A weird expression was suddenly on Yuna's face as she looked at the jersey that was cradled in her arms. But she swallowed loudly, bundled the jersey up into a ball, and threw it aside, into a basket that I wasn't entirely sure if it was a laundry basket or a garbage basket.

"Never mind about the jerseys," she said, and again, the air around us was suddenly entirely different than the light, airy mood I had felt just seconds earlier. She looked at me and let out a small sigh. A smile was on her face.

"I'm so glad you're here, Rikku," she said. It felt as though it was at least the tenth time she had said those words to me in fewer than twenty-four hours. "I really need a friend right now."

I managed a smile, and I said, "Hey, I need one too. After all, I don't know anyone here but you and Baralai!"

Yuna's smile faltered a bit when I said Baralai's name. But she regained herself.

"I'm sorry we didn't see more of each other after my father's death," Yuna said, turning again to her closet, but away from the corner that she had been in earlier. "As I'm sure you've heard, I wasn't exactly acting the wisest."

She gave me a look as though to gauge how much my family had gossiped about her actions once her father died. I tried to keep my face blank, as though I would while playing a poker game, but Yuna must have managed to see through it.

"I made some terrible, terrible mistakes," Yuna said, and she now ran her hands down her numerous clothing items. "It's just that, one minute, I had my entire life figured out, and the next… well, the next, everything was so undecided."

I offered her a meek smile. The last time I had seen Yuna before moving to Luca was at her father's funeral. I was not related to her father by blood, but I had always respected him. And, because back then Yuna and I were much closer, I felt as though I needed to be there for her. As her friend.

"Not a day goes by that I don't think of your father and what a great man he was," I said, mostly because I knew it was what I was expected to say. Again, I offered Yuna a meek smile.

"He was, I suppose," Yuna said, shrugging slightly. "I had always been so upset at him for making my decisions for me, but when he died, and I no longer had someone to decide for me, I just found myself making poor decisions over and over and over again." She laughed and looked at me. I knew she was trying to keep the conversation as light and happy as the yellow blouse she was pulling from its spot on the hanger, but her eyes told a different story. They were filled with sadness.

"Hey, it's never too late to fix mistakes," I said, almost eagerly. Even though I had already decided that I wanted to get to know Yuna again and that I wanted to be her friend, this serious conversation was making me feel a bit awkward.

"You think so?" she asked me. She pulled out a pair of pleated navy blue shorts.

"Sure," I said.

"Well," Yuna said, spinning so that she was facing me. She was now carrying an entire outfit in her arms, including a brown belt and a pair of sandals. I couldn't help but wonder how much money was cradled in her arms as she stood there. "It's probably a little too late for me to go back to school."

I couldn't help but smile a bit when she said this. Yuna had been accepted to Besaid University, a small but incredibly prestigious school located on the small island that Yuna's family had vacationed in. But she had surprised all of us by turning down her admission and instead flitting from societal party to societal party, attached almost by the hip to her best friend, a girl a year older than Yuna named Dona, whose father was a Maester alongside Yuna's.

Dona was a tabloid superstar—always getting herself into trouble here and there and always seeking attention. I still remembered how shocked I was to be at the grocery store, picking up some items for my dad when I'd seen Yuna's face on a tabloid.

"Daughter of the Late Maester Braska Goes Wild!" the headline had read. I had actually been too shocked to read the article, but that hadn't meant other articles hadn't surfaced that I had been unable to ignore.

"We all do silly things when we're younger," I just said, smiling.

Yuna's eyes suddenly went to the blitzball jersey she had thrown aside.

"Yes, we do," she said, and with that, she left the closet, and I wasn't entirely sure whether she was expecting me to follow or if she had already grown bored with me.

Luca Stadium was even more impressive than I could have imagined it to be. It was made completely out of some sort of stone and the sphere pool, Yuna explained to me, was filled with the best technology available. She also pointed out all of the championship banners that hung around the stadium, telling me that Luca had the second-most amount of championships in Spira, trailing Zanarkand.

"But only by one," she said quickly, almost as though she was somehow offended that Zanarkand had more championships than Luca.

"I never took you to be such a blitzball fan," I said, as Yuna led the way to a private suite.

Yuna shrugged and said, "My father hated blitzball. But my friend Dona loved it."

I wanted to ask Yuna more about Dona. Was Yuna aware of what the tabloids said about Dona? Was Yuna aware of what the tabloids had said about herself?

Yuna had put on the yellow blouse with the navy-blue shorts and expensive sandals. She was also wearing a stylish, beach-y fedora with a navy blue ribbon around it. She was wearing horn-rimmed sunglasses with the brand symbol on the corner. I didn't even recognize what brand it was, and that fact alone was enough to embarrass me.

Meanwhile, I was wearing a plain t-short and shorts that were slightly too large for me. I couldn't help but shift uncomfortably as I realized that everyone in the suite was dressed so well.

"Oh, there's Gippal," Yuna said then, pointing towards the players who had just swam into the sphere. "Doesn't he look so cool?" She nudged me and laughed.

I watched as Gippal swam deftly around the pool. Then, I looked around the other inhabitants in the suite again. Surely Gippal would rather date one of the other girls. I swallowed hard, ignoring the fact that it hurt to swallow the lump that had so quickly formed in my throat.

The players lined up to take the draw and Yuna suddenly sat by with a sly look on her face.

"Watch Gippal," she said, leaning close to me and whispering. "What him as they take the face-off."

I trained my eyes on Gippal, who was playing left wing, furthest away from us. Still, there was no denying that just before the ball was released for the centers to grab, Gippal pressed his way forward. When his teammate caught the ball, Gippal was already in perfect position for the pass.

"Is he supposed to start off early like that?" I questioned, turning to Yuna, feeling a little stupid at my lack of blitzball knowledge.

Yuna grinned at me and said, "Gippal's a notorious cheater."

For some reason, this shocked me. If he was so notorious at cheating, why didn't anyone stop him?

I decided to voice this out loud.

"Oh, Rikku," Yuna said, patting my arm as though she sympathized with me over something, "the refs are paid off. Don't you know anything about sports?"

I watched as Gippal swam toward the net. He received a pass and just like that, he scored.

Yuna leaned back with a satisfied look on her face and said, "It won't be long now before Luca has just as many championships as Zanarkand, if not more."

It didn't seem right. I looked at the referees as they swam around, wondering what their point was if they already knew who was going to win the game.

"Yuna—Yunie, doesn't it upset you that the refs are paid off?"

"Sh," Yuna said, shushing me slightly. "Not everyone in Spira needs to know, Rikku. And sure, it's sad. But, come on, that's how the world works anyway."

I was about to ask her what she meant by that, but I realized before I opened my mouth that I already knew the answer to my own question—if someone could pay off the refs, then they would. Money could solve everything, and sitting by Yuna was enough proof of that.

I took a deep breath and attempted to enjoy the game and try to ignore the fact that it was now so clear that Gippal was breaking the rules every chance he got.

When the game ended (Luca won 2-0), Yuna turned to me and said, "Do you want to go see Gippal?"

At this point, I wasn't really sure I ever wanted to see Gippal again, but I nodded slowly and said 'sure.'

Yuna stood up quickly and led me back to the lobby and then over to an elevator. She walked in and smiled at the attendant in the elevator and said, "Event Floor, please."

Before long, I was standing outside of the locker room. Well, I wasn't standing—I was actually sitting in a sort of lounge area. Other girls were around us, as were a few families. Yuna explained that they were the families or wives or girlfriends of the players. Some of them greeted Yuna.

"I can't believe you can just come down here…" I mumbled. "You guys must be really close with Gippal."

Yuna gave one of her famous slight shrugs and said, "Gippal's been a very good friend of mine for a long time. And he's been Baralai's friend for even longer—"

Just then, Gippal exited the locker room, so Yuna interrupted herself and said, "Gippal! Hey!"

He turned towards her voice and put on a smile. His hair was still damp. Even though I'd found myself a bit disgusted with him as I watched him constantly cheat in the sphere pool, my heart still skipped a beat when his eyes met mine.

"Hey, Yuna," he said, bending down to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. "And… Rikku. How are ya?"

My heart also skipped a beat when he remembered my name.

"I'm alright," I answered.

"Let's get some supper and talk," Yuna said, linking her arm in Gippal's with her left and then taking my arm in her right.

"Talk about what?" Gippal asked, nodding to some of his teammates that we were passing as Yuna led us out.

"Life—your blitzball game, whatever you want," Yuna said. She smiled at him and then smiled at me.

"Where's 'Lai?" Gippal asked, almost hesitantly, as we reached the city street and began walking across to a rather fancy looking restaurant.

"Who knows," Yuna answered. "Why does everyone always expect me to spend every waking moment with him?"

"I just asked a question," Gippal said calmly. I noticed Gippal tightened his arm around Yuna's. "You know how important it is to keep up appearances, Yuna."

I let my eyebrows push forward, wondering what Gippal meant by that. But Yuna was looking at Gippal and Gippal was looking at Yuna, and the only reason I was still connected to the two was because my arm was still linked in Yuna's.

The restaurant we had walked into was quite crowded, but Gippal simply released Yuna's arm from his and walked up to the maître d'. He said something to the tall man wearing a tuxedo, and with that, we were led to the back room, where there were few people around. I knew without asking that we had just been taken to the V.I.P. room. I took a deep breath. I hadn't even been to Luca for an entire day and already I was feeling completely spoiled.

And a little bit in over my head.

We were all seated, me next to Gippal and Yuna across from us. She gave me a look, though, and then smiled.

"I have to use the ladies' room. I'll be back shortly!" She smiled a knowing smile at me and walked away quickly, pausing to say hello to a young woman she had passed.

It was obvious to me that she had left on purpose in an attempt to give me "alone time" with Gippal. I wasn't sure if I should feel grateful or not.

Gippal rolled his head to look at me, and said, "So, where do you live?"

"Um…" I tried to think how I could make my little cottage in West Luca seem appealing. "I'm just renting a place along the bay," I said. I wasn't really sure if it was actually referred to as "the bay" or not.

"East or west?" Gippal asked.

I took a deep breath and said, "West."

"Oh, hey, do you know a guy named Tidus?" Gippal asked, looking up from the drink menu, which he had been pouring over as though it was a novel he couldn't stand to put down.

"Tidus? No," I answered, shaking my head.

"Oh, he lives out there. He throws these outrageous parties every now and then. I've been to a few. His place is huge. The biggest mansion in West Luca for sure."

"Oh, I wonder if that's my neighbor…" I said, my eyes scanning the prices on the menu for the cheapest meal. "I live next door to a huge mansion. But so far it's been completely quiet."

"That's probably him," Gippal said. "We should check out one of his parties together sometime."

I was uncertain whether to feel flattered that Gippal had just asked me to go to a party with him or to feel awkward knowing that my neighbor would probably never send me an invitation to one of his parties.

"Well, what's this Tidus guy like?" I asked.

"Hm? Oh, I've never actually met him," Gippal said, closing his menu. "No one has."

I thought this odd, but at that moment, Yuna returned and gave me a smile as if to ask whether I had made any headway with Gippal.

"Gippal, you'll never guess who I met on the way to the restroom," Yuna said, though, her attention turned to Gippal. And with that, she started talking about some guy who had apparently made a move on her years and years ago.

"Can you imagine?" Yuna said, laughing at the end of her story. "The idea of him with me!"

After eating far too much and spending far too much, Yuna drove me back to her house. Night was falling and as we pulled into the driveway (where I noticed a servant was waiting to park Yuna's car in the garage for her), Yuna turned to me and asked if I'd like to stay longer.

"Baralai should be home now," she added with a sense of annoyance.

"I would love to," I said, stepping out of her brand new car (I wasn't even sure what kind of car it was—all I knew was that it must be expensive; of course, I could figure that out without even seeing the car). "But I start my job tomorrow. So I should probably head home and get ready."

Yuna gave me a look as though she didn't understand. I felt a twinge of jealousy as I realized she had probably never worked a day in her life. How odd it was that we came from such different backgrounds. But, in all honesty, I had been jealous of her since childhood.

"Well, it was great hanging out with you today," she said, hugging me. "I would have sat at home all day and just driven myself nuts with…thoughts."

I tried to smile understandingly at her, but it was my turn to look as though I wasn't on the same page as her. But, I managed a smile and said, "Goodbye, Yuna!"

"Are you sure you don't want to come in and see Baralai?" she asked. She laughed, though, immediately after asking, as though it was all some sort of joke.

"I'm sure I'll see him soon," I answered quickly. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight!"

I climbed into my car (which a servant had fetched for me—it was especially embarrassing to have a servant look at me with disdain) and made my way back to my side of Luca.

As I turned onto the road to the forest, though, I instantly felt a difference in the air. Not to mention the fact that the forest seemed to be glowing.

There was a distant hum of something, and I turned my radio dial down to hear music in the distance. Then, there was a large Bang! that caused me to jump and almost swerve my car off the road. I hit the breaks and leaned over the passenger side to see out the window. There were fireworks going off in the sky.

Feeling confused, I continued on, but tonight, my neighbor's gate was wide open. I peered through and saw cars parked along the drive, in the yard, and even outside of the gate. More fireworks went off. The music was getting louder.

I felt my mouth drop open as I reached my cottage.

Gippal was right—my neighbor was having the biggest party I had ever seen.

I climbed out of my car, my mouth open. I felt almost enchanted by the party, as though it was dragging me in—like a moth to light. I stood outside my car for some time, watching more fireworks, listening to the music, and hearing distant shrieks and screams of laughter.

Finally, blinking and shaking my head in disbelief, I made my way inside, hoping the party wouldn't keep me up.