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For years, she had watched him dangle her in front of her. For years, she had made a wish ever night on the first star she saw. Every time, it was the same wishs: to be with him. And each morning she woke only to find disappointment. The stars were taking her wish and letting it float away with the clouds. The stars were cheating her.

By now, she was quite the actor. Rikku was able to climb out of bed each morning, put on a happy expression, and act like her normal, hyper self. But it wasn't real. She was living a lie, and she hated it. She hated every single moment of it.

And it just got worse as time went by ...

At a gathering back at the Djose Temple, Yuna and Tidus decided to make an announcement to the group.

"Well.." Yuna started, smiling. "We'd just like to inform you that Tidus and I have decided to get married. And you're all invited." She finished, the smile never leaving her face.

Numerous replies of congratulations were the only words being thrown around at the moment. Tidus took a step closer to Yuna, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind. And as she relaxed into his body, he felt himself love her even more. Nothing could ruin this moment. Nothing until he saw Rikku walking away with a look of disconsolation painted on her face, that is.

Rikku blinkedb ack tears, continuing to walk away. She didn't have the heart to congratulate her cousin, not when she was so very upset. Everything she had ever held in from the years before was released now, tears pouring down her face. She raced past people on the bridge, accidentally bumping into Gippal.

"G-gomen," [sorry] Rikku stammered inbetween a sob and a gasp of air. The Al-Bhed thief lowered her head to avoid Gippal's eyes, walking away. She didn't want to be with anyone at the moment. She just wanted to be alone.

And Gippal, at this point, wanted to stop the interviews he was currently holding. He wanted to chase after Rikku and find out what- or who- was making her cry. Of course, he couldn't do that, no matter how badly he wanted to.

Rikku's legs gave out then, as she fell to the ground, tears still rolling down her cheeks. She stayed where she was on the ground, not bothering to move.

Back with the group, the congratulations were far over with.

"Where did Rikku run off to?" LuLu spoke up then, calmly.

"I'll go findher." Tidus announced.

"Not alone. You might go the wrong way, y'know? We'll split up." Wakka told him with a nod.

With that, the two went in different directions, leaving the remainder of the group behind. However, Wakka went the wrong way. Tidus, after a while, found Rikku.

"Rikku?" Tidus asked, almost hesitantly. He held out a hand to help the girl up.

Green eyes shifted to Tidus' outstretched hand. She knew he was trying to be a friend, but that didn't change the fact that he was one of the last people she wanted to see.

"Please, just go away." Rikku requested quietly, one hand rising to wipe a tear off her cheek.

"What's wrong?"

Oh, Rikku was ready to kill him now. He let Yuna announce that they were going to be married, which made her run off in tears. Now he had the nerve to ask what was wrong. Was it that hard to put two and two together?

"Just..go away, please." Rikku begged, something she rarely did.

"But-" Tidus was cut off.

"I believe she asked you to leave."

Rikku looked up then, to see Gippal standing behind Tidus. She bit her bottom lip gently, sniffing once.

Tidus turned, looking at Gippal. "Fine," he muttered, walking away. He figured there was nothing he could do anyway.

Gippal watched him leave before sitting down next to Rikku. He looked over at her, a hand raising. He wiped away a lone tear on Rikku's cheek with his thumb, then allowed his hand to fall to his side. "He made you cry?"

As she felt Gippal wipe away the tear from her face, she felt heat rush to her cheeks- a rosy pink coloration forcing it's way onto her face. Rikku turned her head, attempting to hide the blush. "Um, yeah."

"Then he's obviously not good enough for you." Gippal told her without a second's hesitation.

Not good enough for her? Rikku shook her head, dirty blonde locks bouncing, even once the movement ceased. She had always thought she wasn't good enough for Tidus, thus he picked Yuna. "Then whose good enough for me? Because if you know, then tell me." Rikku demanded, blinking back another set of tears.

Gippal just sat there with a small smile decorating his features. "Me." He told her a few moments later, the smile melting away from his lips.

All Rikku did was sit there, staring at Gippal with widened green eyes. And what he did next caught her even more off-guard.

Gippal smiled at Rikku's response. Then, he pulled her into his lap. His arms wrapped around the Al-Bhed protectively, before placing a gentle kiss on the girl's lips. He was the one caught off-guard when Rikku kissed him back and whispered into his ear, "I guess I was wrong about who I loved."