Standing up for FF8

[maybee]

Stubborn to the point that literally every time she sees him she tries to force him to open up to her. That sounds a bit obsessed to me.

I feel like you are not really even reading what I'm saying anymore. Or even at all.

She's not flirting with him, the only time she teases him was during the dance when they didn't even know each other. Seifer was her big crush at the time. She starts flirting with him till about CD2- after the parade where Squall says those " stay close to me " words to her, and Seifer is shown to have faked his death and is working with Edea.

She says he's the best looking guy here and pretends to cast a spell on him saying "You're-going-to-like-me" how is that not flirting?

See ? You are not even reading to what I'm saying. What's the point in even having this chat ? This could of been fun, but, k.

Let's not forget her first reaction to seeing him on the train mission is to run up and hug him.

She was happy that SeeD is here to help out to free Timber. She wanted/ hoped for Seifer.

Squall :No, he's not a SeeD.
Rinoa ...Oh.

Wouldn't that just make him even more afraid of getting close to someone?

It's possible.

Especially how Quistis and (to a lesser extent) Selphie both tried to get close to him before he met Rinoa, and he brushed them off like nothing. And he shows no signs of being infatuated with Rinoa when he next saw her, not even in his inner thoughts.

Squall was a bit disturbed by Quistis because she's his teacher. Selphie ? He tries to cheer her up a bit when it looks like her Garden Festival got destroyed when the Garden starts moving.
Because they don't really start to "bond " till during/ after the parade, as said before.

Their relationship before the parade :









Their relationship after the parade :













And during the parade :

Squall : Just stay close to me

Rinoa : Oh ! Those words !

The dance is just a cute symbolic metaphor of their relationship. Squall tries to push her away > Rinoa refuses to give up on him > Squall falls for her warmness and the fact that she refuses to give up on him > they bond and dance together perfectly as Squall opens up.

Squall/ Rinoa is the most underrated FF ship ever.