Disclaimer: do not own Final Fantasy 8, or any other obvious thing I might mention in the story.
Now the summary is bad so I am going to just explain a little more before I start the story. First Rinoa gets along with her father. She moves Balamb where she meets Squall. He is a bad ass and yet he has friends who are kind. The kids in the school don't like him and yet they sometime turn to him for help. He always gets in fights with his rival Seifer, yet they understand each other more then anybody else. Rinoa tries to discover why he is mean and why people hate him and why some like him. All while she is just trying to get by with a normal life, but the more and more she is with squall and co. The more hetic her life gets, it only gets worse when she starts to fall for him. Well that still was almost as bad as the first summary but try reading it and I think you'll like it. This story is going to have language but if you are actually like 16 then it isn't a big deal.
Rinoa was on the bus coming back from school. The bus was fairly loud with kids shouting and yelling, who were just excited to be going home for the weekend. Rinoa sat there playing with her hands; she didn't have anyone to talk to. Not anymore. Ever since her mother died she stopped hanging out with her friends. In fact she became one of the least popular kids in school.
Rinoa looked over to see two girls talking quietly and laughing. They kept glancing over at Rinoa, and when they saw her looking back at them. They just gave a friendly smile and waved by just bending the fingers on their hands. Rinoa grabbed her mother's wedding ring around her neck.
Please mom, just help me to get through this, she thought.
She just played with her hands the rest of the ride home. Not looking up anymore, she just wanted to go home. The bus finally pulled up to her mansion. Rinoa quickly grabbed her things and dashed off the bus. The guards opened the gates and she continued to run.
Rinoa stopped at the front door and fixed herself. She didn't want to make her dad worry. She always acted as though nothing was wrong.
She stepped inside the house, "Dad I'm home!"
"Oh, honey I'm in the kitchen," a voice call back.
As Rinoa walked to the kitchen she noticed that many things of their house was missing. In fact it was almost empty except some furniture. She entered the kitchen and set her bag down on the counter. Her dad was sitting reading the paper, when she walked in he stood up and gave her a hug and a kiss on the forehead.
"Welcome home angel, how was your day," Caraway asked while brushing some hair out of Rinoa's eyes.
"Oh, just wonderful dad," she lied, "but were we robbed or something?"
"No we weren't robbed but I have to tell you something," Caraway said sounding slightly worried.
"What is it?"
"Well I'm not sure how you're going to react but please don't get to mad with me."
"Dad what's wrong," Rinoa asked starting to get worried.
Caraway turned around and walked back to the table. He put his hands on the back of a chair, "You might want to sit down Rinoa," he said holding his hand out beckoning for her to sit.
Rinoa obeyed, now really worried at what was going on. He never acted like this, the only other time was when he came out of the hospital room, with the news that changed her life forever.
"Rinoa, I'm sorry but we have to move," Caraway said with reassuring hands on her shoulders.
All the worries left Rinoa. Moving, she thought. She couldn't help it but burst out laughing. She grabbed her stomach and started stamping her feet.
"Not quite what I was expecting," Caraway said to himself.
"Dad, I'm sorry, but you just made it seem like someone just died," Rinoa laughed out.
"Well, I feel bad because you are going to have to leave all your friends behind. I know how much you love them all and your school too."
At this Rinoa stopped laughing, she never did tell him how after her mother died her social life went down the drain.
Now or never, she figured
"Dad, to be completely honest, I hated this school and I don't have any friends anymore."
"What, but honey all your stories of school," Caraway enquired sounding surprised.
"Dad I did have friends, but after mother died I stopped hanging out with them. I didn't talk to any of them for months, then one day I tried to say I was sorry, but they wouldn't hear of it. They said that I couldn't just drop them and pick them back up."
"Oh honey you could have told me," Caraway said sounding sad and decided to give her a huge.
Rinoa loved how her dad was so worried about her. "Don't worry about it, but please tell me where our we moving."
"Well were moving to Balamb, since I retired from being the General of Galbadian I wished to move. The new general of Galbadia, Rodgers, said that it would be good for the two countries if I went and lived there. You know kind of like marrying a daughter off to another kingdom type thing. If we live there it might help Balamb and Galbadian get along."
"Are the two countries mad at each other," Rinoa asked innocently, even though her dad was the general of Galbadian and she met the president a few times. She still was not one for politics; she hardly ever knew what was going on.
"Well no, but nether less it still would be good," he stopped and got on his knees looking into her eyes, "but you are really fine with moving."
"Yeah," Rinoa jumped out of the chair and hugged her dad; "I'm going to go pack now."
She ran out of the room and headed up stairs. Caraway followed her to the bottom of the stairs and called up, "Were leaving tomorrow at 10 a.m. sharp."
"Alrighty," Rinoa called from her room. She was excited there was so much to do. She quickly went throughout her room to find what she should bring.
Pictures of friends no, she only had those up to make her dad feel better. Jjewelry yes, school books hell no, the thoughts were racing through her head.
She leaped onto her bed and lay there spread-eagle staring at the ceiling. "Finally I can get out of her," she said to herself. "I wonder what Balamb is like, what the kids are like."
She laughed to herself a little, "I haven't been this happy in a long time." She rolled off her bed onto the ground and started searching underneath it. "I have another chance to make friends, another chance to have a normal life."
She found what she was looking for a picture of her mother and father with her standing between them. Rinoa didn't remember being in this picture and she looked relatively young. She always figured she was about nine or ten when they took it so she didn't quite remember. She loved this picture, they all looked so happy, as if nothing could go wrong.
Standing back up she put it on her dresser and ran out of the room to go find a box to start putting her things in it. She had to go into her addict to find a box and while she was up there she grabbed a few larger ones for her clothes. When she returned to her room she dusted the boxes off before putting her various items in them.
After Rinoa finished packing, which took about two hours since she had so many things. She went down and made herself a sandwich before plopping down the couch. She didn't really have anything to watch, it was just something to do to kill time until tomorrow.
She channeled surfed for a while until her dad came in and sat in an armchair next to the couch.
"You all pack darling?"
Rinoa flipped onto her stomach and looked at her dad, "yup all done,"
"That's my girl now we will take a train to Dollet and then we will switch trains. That one will take us to Balamb."
"Alright dad."
They both sat there and just watched as the channels kept changing. All sorts of thoughts about their new home filled both their heads. They just had to wait.
Rinoa woke at the sound of her alarm going off. She jumped out of bed and quickly got dressed into some faded jeans and a blue t-shirt that showed her mid drift. She brushed her hair and let it hang over her shoulders. She ran down stairs and excitedly jumped the bottom three steps.
She bursted into the kitchen and went to grab a bowl for some cereal, only to find that all the bowls were packed. She saw her dad sitting at the table drinking some coffee and reading the paper.
"Dad, are the bowls packed?"
"Yes darling," he answered without looking away from newspaper.
"But how am I suppose to have breakfast, "she whined.
"Oh, I'm sorry darling," he put down the paper, "how about I buy you a bagel on the train."
"Really that'd be great," she ran over and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Thanks again dad for moving."
"Oh honey," Caraway laughed a little, "And to think that I was worrying all yesterday about telling you we were moving."
Rinoa giggled and covered her mouth with a hand, "Sorry dad, should have told you I hate my life here."
"Anyway we should be leaving in about half an hour make sure your ready to leave."
"Yes dad," she replied and turned to leave the room.
"Wait Rinoa."
Ah oh, he used my name, she thought to herself.
"Yes father," she said in a cute way to try and help her with what ever she might be in trouble with.
"You know I hate it when you wear shirts like that."
Rinoa looked down and saw her stomach showing, she looked back at her dad and smiled. "Dad it's just my stomach it really isn't anything bad."
"But all the boys will be looking at you," complained the retired general.
"I know I want to make a good impression on them when we first get there," she joked.
"That's not funny Rinoa, we don't know what they're like yet. For all we know they could all be perverts and rapists," he said being completely serious.
Rinoa frowned, "Dad come on now I'm sure there not like that. If anything there are more of those people in Deling."
"But.."
"Don't worry it will be fine, I'm a tough girl," she said making a fist and punching her other hand.
Caraway laughed, "Alright alright, fine now hurry and get ready." He figured he should give in now because he knew that he would never win that fight. It was almost impossible against a teenage girl.
Rinoa skipped away back upstairs to gather all her belongings.
Later that day on the second train
Rinoa was bored out of her mind. There was nothing to do, and being in a dark tunnel for an hour is not make it any better. They were under the ocean heading towards Balamb and the tunnel was pitch black. The train was lit up, but still artificial light was not the greatest thing. She wished that instead of walls they could just have strong glass that way people could watch all the sea life. Then people would take this train for fun, not just traveling. But it wasn't and she had nothing to watch except older people either doing work, or sleeping.
Her dad being one of the older people sleeping left her with no one to talk to. She just sat there not being able to fall asleep because of how excited she was.
After another hour or so they finally arrived and the announcement saying Balamb next stop was enough to wake her father.
As they were leaving the train Rinoa was trying to get her dad to reveal what their house was like. He wouldn't answer; he wouldn't say anything about their house. Where it was, or what it was like. They carried their bags or in Rinoa's case dragged them, to outside of the station.
"Wait here darling and watch the bags, I'll be right back," Caraway told Rinoa.
Rinoa watched him walk towards a counter and start a discussion with the lady behind it. After a few minutes and what Rinoa guess as signing a paper or two. Caraway started to walk towards Rinoa.
"I got them," he said excitedly holding up keys and jingling them in front of Rinoa.
"Key's to what," enquired Rinoa.
"This one is to our new car," he told her holding up a key with a round base and a small black controller hanging off it. "And this one is the key to our new house," this key had a square base. "Now I will make duplicates eventually but for now these are our only keys."
"All right dad, but what kind of car do we have," Rinoa once again trying to get information out of her dad. He only smiled, picked his bags back up and continued to walk out of the station.
Rinoa let out a sigh and then ran after her father. When they got out side he went over to the parking lot and repeatedly pressed the button on the key. After a minute or two a car's lights flashed and Rinoa finally saw what kind of car they had. A brand new red convertible.
"Dad, is this really your car," asked Rinoa surprised at her dad actually getting a sporty car.
"It gets better, I will need a second car for some work related things." He paused and watched as Rinoa's eyes widened and a wide smile grew on her face. "So this car will probably end up yours."
"Oh my god dad I love you," Screamed Rinoa and gave him a huge hug. She ran over to the car and peered through the windows. "Quickly open it dad."
"It's already open," he called back.
"Oh, my bad."
Rinoa threw her luggage in the trunk and quickly hoped in the passenger seat. She was looking over the car, and she loved it. Black leather interior, CD player, power windows, and power top. The car was almost perfect. Rinoa felt between the seats and saw a stick shift. She didn't know how to drive a stick.
Oh well, I'll just have to learn, she told herself.
Caraway shut the trunk and walked slowly around the car. He knew his daughter was excited and he loved to mess with her.
"Dad hurry up," Rinoa called from the car.
Caraway stopped for a second and looked at the car. He licked his thumb and started rubbing a spot, acting like there was a scratch.
"Dad the car is brand new, come on."
He opened the driver side door and pulled the keys out. He dropped them on purpose and bent down and started fumbling around.
"Dad that's enough," Rinoa said starting to get impatient.
Caraway chuckled to himself before picking the keys up and sitting in the car. He put the keys in the ignition and started the car. After a second of hearing the car's engine he looked over at Rinoa, "Pretty nice huh."
"You are really going to give this to me," she asked still not believing that this was going to be her car.
"Of course, it's too sporty for me."
Caraway pulled the car out and started towards their new house. Rinoa was looking out the window the entire time. She saw kids just hanging out in front of stores or sitting at tables eating. They drove past a beach with many teens running and playing. Caraway kept glancing at Rinoa; he loved to see her with a smile on her face.
Almost an hour later they turned down a road that lead to a little development. Caraway pulled into a driveway next to a house and shut the car off.
He turned to Rinoa, "Well this is it."
Rinoa quickly jumped out of the car and stared at her new house. It wasn't a mansion like her old one, but she liked it better that way. It was simply painted white with a few large windows in the front of the house. The door was on the side of it connected to the driveway.
"Dad hurry and open it," she yelled back to him, he only raised his hand to acknowledge her and then went to open the trunk. She decided that she would be able to check out the back yard before her dad managed to unlock the front door.
Rinoa dashed back there and saw just a plain twenty by twenty feet back yard surrounded by a tall brown fence. There was a little patio in the back and a grill was built into the patio. There was a sliding glass door, with a screen door on the inside of that.
Whatever, I can deal with this, she thought.
She ran back to the front to see that her dad had opened the house. She quickly ran in and looked around, getting slightly disappointed. She underestimated the size of the house, it was fairly small. There was a living room as you enter with the stairs directly across from the door. A kitchen to the right, and then another room past the living room towards the front of the house.
Still she figured she would manage and dashed upstairs, skipping a step at a time. There were four doors upstairs each leading to a room. Towards the back of the house, in the room at the end of the hallway her father was already putting his things on a bed. When Rinoa entered he sat down on his bed.
"Well what you think, I like it," Caraway seemed to be extremely happy with the house.
"It's nice but where is my room," she asked. Rinoa being a teenage girl she needed a nice big room.
He smiled before answering, "any other room you want dear."
Rinoa clapped her hands together and took off opening each door and looking around the room. She didn't like the first two. They were a little too small; she then went to the front of the house. There was another door at that end. She opened it and this room was larger then the rest. It also had more windows; she went right over and opened them up. She smelled the fresh air as it rushed into the room. She looked at the street and saw two men walking across it towards their house.
"Dad I think we have company," Rinoa called over her shoulder.
Caraway stopped unpacking and walked into her room. Moved a curtain to look out of the window.
"Hey let's go meet them, and that boy looks pretty handsome, aye Rinoa, and look he's holding hands with his dad when he crosses the street."
Rinoa rolled her eyes, "come on dad let's see what there like." She grabbed his hand and led him down the stairs.
A few minutes ago
Laguna watched as a car pulled into the house across the street. A wide smile grew across his face as he turned to his son lying on the couch watching TV.
"Hey Squall check out our new neighbors."
"I don't care," Squall being completely unenthusiastic about new neighbors.
"But hey this girl is a cutie, you might end up entangled in her beauty."
Squall rolled his eyes, "Laguna, shut up."
"Hey I got an idea I just made some brownies for desert tonight. I'll go grab them and then we'll go meet them."
"Alright have fun," Squall said waving his hand.
"Oh, you're coming too." Laguna walked over and grabbed his hand and pulled him off the couch. "Come on it'll be fun, just give me a second to grab the brownies."
"Wait, you're serious about bringing brownies." Laguna wasn't listening he ran into the Kitchen, "You know there isn't a women in this house. They'll think were gay or something."
"No they wont son, a lot of men bake brownies," Laguna said while putting on an oven mitt.
Squall slapped his forehead with his hand, "You're wearing an oven mitt too."
"Well how else am I going to carry this over, they're hot you know."
Why does he always do this shit, Squall thought?
"Come on Squall." Laguna dragged him by the hand and in his other he held the brownies. Squall also noticed that his oven mitt was sky blue. He didn't complain about it because he knew that sky blue was Raine's favorite color. He never made fun of his dad if it had to do with Raine.
They were half way across the street until Squall shook his hand free from Laguna.
"I can walk on my own you know."
"Awe but it was like when you were little and you had to hold my hand when we crossed the street," Laguna teased.
"Laguna shut up," Squall said sounding annoyed.
"You're still calling me Laguna in public?"
"I call you it all the time, how do you not notice these things," he shouted now aggravated and annoyed. Laguna just shrugged and continued walking. Rinoa and Caraway stepped out of the house and met the two near the car.
"Well hello," Laguna said cheerfully, "I made you some brownies."
Rinoa started laughing, she tried to hide it but with no success. They bake, she thoughtto herself what men bake.
Caraway gave her a stern before turning back to the two men. "That's very nice of you I am—"
"Caraway I know," Laguna cut in, "You're are, or rather, were the general of Galbadia."
"Well you don't have to call me that," he said scratching the back of his head.
"Oh I would feel better, beside," he had a huge smile on his face, "it makes us seem like old friends."
Rinoa started laughing harder, she couldn't stop, this man was just so funny.
Squall slapped himself in the forehead again; Laguna full well knowing Rinoa was laughing at him didn't care. He put an arm around Squall, "This here is Squall, my boy."
Squall pushed Laguna's arm off him and held out a hand to Caraway. "Nice to meet you sir."
"Oh, such respect you needed be like that with me," Caraway put his arm around his giggling daughter, "This is Rinoa, umm sorry I wish she had your respect."
"I-I re-really amm sssorrry," she tried to say between laughs. She just found this funny, an overly friendly dad, with a straight-laced boy. The two men began discussing something that she didn't pay attention to and then they started heading for the door.
"Hey Squall," Laguna called over his shoulder, "Why don't you help Rinoa with her bags."
"Fine," sighed Squall.
Rinoa finally managing to calm down told him that the rest of the luggage in the trunk was hers. He put a suitcase between his arm and body and then carried the other two in his hands. She led him up to her room.
Squall set the bags on her bed and then brushed his hand through his hair. He turned around and looked at Rinoa. He liked what he saw; she was fairly attractive, not to tall and yet not to sort. She wasn't to wide and yet not to skinny She had nice long black hair. Best of all she had a pretty face. If it was only thing Squall didn't like was a buther face. Were she had everything 'but her face.' But Rinoa seemed like a perfect girl, she didn't even seemed like she worried about her beauty.
Rinoa for the first time actually got a good look at Squall. He wore dark blue jeans with rips in the knees. There were chains hanging from his pockets which Rinoa thought just added perfectly to his look. . He had a black T-shirt on that had red letters saying something Rinoa couldn't make out. He had a black leather jacket over that. He had brown hair that some banks fell over his light blue eyes.
Very nice, He is pretty hot, she thought. She brought up a hand to her chin and made it a bit more obvious that she was judging him. She started to walk around him a little, when she reached her bed she hoped on it and sat cross-legged. Her eyes still scaling up and down Squall. Squall brushed another hand through his hair before turning around.
Is this chick judging me, he thought?
"Hey cut that shit out."
Rinoa was taken back a little; she thought he was a nice straight-laced boy. Maybe I was worng about him, she thought. After the initial shock of the outburst wore off she was going to apologize. Then she saw that his eyes were moving.
"Cut what out," she asked innocently.
"Judging me," he responded sounding angry.
"You're judging me."
"No I'm not."
"Well then my face is up here," Rinoa said pointing to fingers at her face.
"Shit," Squall said under his breath.
Rinoa laughed to herself again, she could already see that she was going to enjoy this place a lot more then Deling.
"Squall, my boy, let's go home and leave these two to unpack," a voice rang out from down stairs.
Squall turned to leave when he heard Rinoa say something, "You're not even gonna say goodbye."
He just shook her head and continued walking.
"Um Squall wait"
What now, he thought.
"Well since I don't know anyone, I was wondering if I could hang out with you at school on Monday," she asked playing with her hair, being slightly embarrassed for asking something like that.
He looked over his shoulder and smiled, "If you really want you can hang out with me but I suggest you make other friends. Because it is only fair warning, that a princess like you would do better not to hang out with someone like me." He then walked out of the room with a confused Rinoa still sitting on the bed.
She watched through her window as the two men walked back across the street. Laguna telling Squall a story but was circling Squall, waving his arms and dancing around trying to make the story more vivid. It only caused Laguna to look as though he praised Squall. Which Rinoa thought that he pretty much did.
"That must be some story," she laughed to herself.
Squall then bursted into a sprint covering his ears, only for his father to chase after him yelling even louder. Rinoa laughed to herself. She couldn't wait for school, if this was one kid; she wondered what the other kids would be like.
"Hey Rinoa, come have some of these brownies, they're delicious," Caraway shouted from the kitchen.
Rinoa laughed again finding it very amusing still that Laguna made brownies and made them so well. "Alright, one sec," she called back before jumping out of bed and heading downstairs to have some of Laguna's home made delicious brownies.
Ok so I didn't really think that this chapter was so good but then again most first chapters aren't that good. I promise that the next two chapters will be much better. I can also say that the rest of the gang will make their appearance in the next chapter. So please review and read my next chapters because they will be better then this one.