Ummm... This fic is something small that I wrote up one day. I wasn't planning to write it or anything. It was just something spontaneous. A crazy idea that popped into my head. I just wrote it cause I simply had the urge to want to write something.
It's continuation of what happened *directly* after the ending of Final Fantasy VIII. Y'know how Rinoa and Squall kissed at the end of the game at Balamb Garden? This is what happens to them and some of the other characters for the rest of that night directly after that bit.
By the way... The title came from the song 'Love Takes Time' by Mariah Carey. I thought that it kind of went with the way the Quistis was feeling.
Anyway... Enough of my blabber... Onto the story already! ^_~
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[ Love Takes Time... ]
Rinoa and Squall held onto each other tightly after they had just kissed for the first time that night. Squall was speechless. Never before had he ever experienced anything like that in his whole entire life. This new feeling. This new sensation... Ever since he was a little child, he had been void of most feelings that people would normally take for granted. He had spent most of his life shutting people out. But this night, he had reclaimed one of the most precious feelings he had lost...
What is this I'm feeling?...
It's strange...
Yet...
... I like it...
It must be what everyone calls... Love...
I think...
I'm in love...
Rinoa leaned closer to Squall and whispered something in his ear. In turn, Squall whispered it back to her. They once again locked into a deep, passionate kiss. Once their kiss was over, they held each other close again, looking up at the stars and admiring their beauty.
"Squall..." Rinoa whispered quietly.
"Yes?" Squall whispered back, not wanting to ruin the moment.
"I was really scared today... When I couldn't find you in the flower field where we were supposed to meet."
"I was scared too..."
... Scared that I'd never see you again...
... I don't want to lose you...
Squall held onto Rinoa even tighter. He never wanted to let her go. He was perfectly aware that he could have lost her that day, but he wanted to put that thought behind him as fast as he possibly could. Thinking about it was too painful for him, as he had already shown before in the form of a single teardrop.
Not long afterwards, Quistis slowly approached, totally forgetting that the couple was spending time together. She stood at the open doorway and looked at Rinoa and Squall with a thousand different emotions running through her head at once. She was about to speak, but she held back. Knowing that she was intruding, she turned around and began to walk away.
"Quistis..." Squall called out, ruining the fine moment that he and Rinoa were just sharing.
Quistis turned around. She was surprised. She didn't know that anyone had noticed her standing there. Let alone Squall... He had actually noticed her and called her back... A man of little words... Squall Leonhart... This had really shocked Quistis.
"Yes, Squall?" Quistis finally managed to choke out.
"What did you want to say?"
"... H-How did you know I was here?"
"..."
"... I... Nothing. It wasn't really that important anyway. I'll just let you two get back to whatever you were doing..."
Quistis bolted immediately, avoiding any other follow-ups from Squall. Squall wondered why Quistis would react this way. She usually wouldn't do anything irrational like that. She's a respectable person. An ex-teacher. She once had authority over him. She even tried to be Ellone's replacement at one stage. She could've been like a big sister to him... Now that he was in charge of Garden, he had authority over her. And now that he had Rinoa, he didn't feel alone. He didn't really need a big sis anymore. But he'll always and forever remember Ellone as one... But Quistis... Quistis was unsure about how and what Squall would remember her as. She didn't want to know. In her mind, she had always imagined this to be bad. She didn't want to be hurt anymore.
Rinoa held onto both of Squall's hands.
"I think we better call it a night..."
Squall nodded. He gave Rinoa one last embrace and proceeded to walk her to her newly acquired dorm room at Balamb Garden. Headmaster Cid had given her a place to stay because someone had informed him about the mishaps with the Forest Owl's base and the fact that Rinoa didn't really get along well with her father. No one was really sure if things were fixed up Rinoa and her father, but Cid just wanted to make sure she wasn't going to sleep out in the cold.
Rinoa and Squall walked hand in hand towards Rinoa's dorm room. As they approached it, Rinoa stopped and turned to face Squall. She gently caressed his cheek with her hand.
"...Goodnight Squall..."
"Goodnight Rinoa..."
They kissed one last time then Rinoa entered her dorm room, gently shutting the door behind her. Squall walked back to his own dorm room thinking about the words that Rinoa had whispered to him earlier on. The same three words that he had whispered back to her that night. Those three words that he meant with all his heart...
... I love you...
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Selphie jumped around happily during the party, still wearing Irvine's hat. She was having the time of her life. She got what she wanted. Peace and love for the time being. Things won't always stay perfect, but that didn't matter. Even though thinking about the future may be wise, focusing on the present is more important. Never let a good time pass you by or you'll regret it when you think back on it later in life. You'll ask yourself why you didn't make the most of things when you could have...
"Sefie... Baby... I'm sorry I was waving to those girls before. You know me! It's in my nature to do something like that," Irvine whispered softly near Selphie's ear.
Selphie turned around and faced Irvine. At first she looked mad and disappointed, but that shortly faded away. She was angry that he had waved at the girls, but happy at the same time because he had the decency to apologize for his mistake. He wasn't really a bad guy. Actually, he wasn't a bad guy at all. Selphie adored him. She was new to this feeling too. It seemed as if love was weaving it's way around...
"It's ok Irvy... Just don't do it again!" Selphie bellowed childishly.
Selphie ran upto Irvine and gave him a big. Irvine smiled. He had feelings for Selphie, but hadn't actually admitted them to her yet. He was waiting... Hoping to find out if she felt the same way...
"Irvy... D'you... Wanna... Y'know!? Dance?!" Selphie asked, while slowly letting go of Irvine.
"Sure Sefie! I'd love to!" Irvine replied enthusiastically.
I'd do anything for you...
Selphie dragged Irvine to the middle of the dance floor. She clumsily tried to position them both into a dancing position. In the end, Irvine took her hand and put his free hand on her waist. Selphie did the same. A familiar song played in the background. It reminded them of what had just happened earlier. The sorceresses. The battles. All of it. Something that they'll never forget. It would remain engraved in their minds for the rest of their lives. Those events had changed their lives...
"Whenever sang my songs... On the stage... On my own..." Irvine sung along to the song.
"Whenever said my words... Wishing they would be heard..." Selphie continued on.
Selphie and Irvine continued to dance to the song. Near the end of the song, Selphie rest her head against Irvine's chest, as people would do when they're dancing with someone they have feelings for. Irvine smiled again. He looked around and noticed that there were still girls staring at him. He would have waved at them, being the ladies man he is, but having Selphie in his arms restrained him from doing anything stupid. He possessed strong feelings for her and didn't want to do anything to hurt her.
Shall I be the one for you...
Who pinches you softly, but sure...
If frown is shown then...
I will know that you are no dreamer...
As the song finished, Selphie and Irvine slowly separated from their dancing position. Selphie yawned as she put Irvine's hat back on his head. Irvine could tell she was tired from all her jumping around.
"Sefie... If you're tired... You should get some rest," Irvine said to her, sounding concerned.
"Ok Irvy..." She said, following his advice.
Being fairly tired out, Selphie began to walk away from Irvine and the dance floor without thinking. Irvine quickly grabbed Selphie's hand just before she left.
"Good night Sefie..." Irvine said to her, tipping his hat as a cowboy would do and kissing her hand.
"G'nite Irvie!" Selphie replied enthusiastically with what energy she still had left.
Selphie stumbled towards her dorm room, which was quite close to Quistis and Rinoa's rooms. As she approached her door, she noticed something on the floor. A red rose. Selphie picked up the rose and smiled, knowing that it could've only come from one person... Irvine...
Selphie entered her dorm room and lay the rose on her desk, telling herself to find a vase for it first thing tomorrow morning. She then fell asleep peacefully with one thing on her mind...
Irvine...
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The party was finally over. Everyone was already asleep. Well, according to Quistis, everyone was asleep... But that wasn't necessarily the case...
Quistis slowly walked upto the same balcony that Squall and Rinoa had been earlier, only they weren't on it this time. She walked over to the railing and rest her elbows on it.
I'm never going to find true love...
I know it...
But why...?
Why did it have to be this way?
Is it me?
Is it the way I act?
What have I done...?
What have I done to deserve this...
This loneliness...
A tear trickled down her pale face. The wind blew through her bangs and made them sway along with the breeze. Quistis felt miserable. She felt as if something had been taken away from her. She felt as if she had lost something.
Squall...
Why didn't work out?!
It's ok... That you picked Rinoa...
But why does it still hurt me?
Quistis buried her face in her hands. She began to cry even louder, thinking that no one would be there to hear her.
"Yo Quisty?!" Zell half yelled.
"Please Zell... Just go away... I want to be alone right now..."
"'Zup?! Are you ok?"
"Does it look like I'm ok?"
"Well... I guess not... But... D'you feel like talking about it?"
"No..."
"C'mon Quisty! Gimme a chance!"
"No!"
"Pretty please with sugar on top?!"
"NO!"
"Ok ok! I'll just leave ya alone then! Sheesh...! If this is the kinda thanks a guy gets for offering to help someone, I'm not gonna try to help anyone for the rest of my life!"
Zell started to walk away, half slouching, like what he usually does when he just discovers that the Cafeteria had just run out of hotdogs.
"Zell... Wait..." Quistis called back.
Zell turned around and walked back towards Quistis. He walked to the rail where she was and leaned over it.
"Are you going to talk to me now?" He asked.
"... Yes... Sorry about that scene back there. I guess it was unfair of me to not give you a chance..."
"It's ok... Lemme guess... Something to do with Squall right?!"
"..."
"Thought so... You really liked him, didn't you?"
Quistis nodded. There was no point in denying it. She had strong feelings for him. She was confused.
"Quisty... You have to learn to forget about him! Things change! He's moved on... So you should too!"
"... It's not that easy..."
It's not that easy letting go of someone you loved...
"Quisty... Think of it this way... By letting him move on, you just made him happy."
He does have a point...
But is it the solution I'm looking for?
No...
That's not it...
... I don't even know why I'm so sad over this...
I'm not sad because I lost Squall...
It's because...
... Because... I'm lonely...
Maybe Zell is right...
I should just try to move on...
I should get up and take action...
... Instead of just sitting here and letting time pass by...
"Quisty?" Zell asked, waving his hand in front of her face. It had disturbed and broken her chain of thought.
"Thank you Zell..." Quistis replied...
"You're welcome, Quisty! Glad to know that I talked SOME sense into ya! Errr... Didn't I?!"
Quistis laughed.
"Yes Zell... Your consolation is greatly appreciated."
Quistis smiled and walked away...
