Sequel to 'Inebriated'. Probably best to read that before this, ALTHOUGH, this can be seen as a stand-alone fic. Great for all you people who CBF.
This is entirely dedicated to three people.
Brunette S Angel: Because I love her forever. xD Isn't it awesome how fanfic makes you meet people that turn out to be really awesome friends/writing pals? :3
The Well Loved Stray: Who begged and pleaded for this to be done and Stray's cousin who wanted this story done prob more than others xD
*less than threes to all of you*
Warnings: Repeated coarse language. It IS Reno we're talking about. Oh, and the smut, yes. Boy/boy. Re-ow for me, not so much for others.
--
It was a pretty dark night out, as far as I could tell, which is just perfect for me really. Not only that, but I could see jack shit from the position I was in, apart from a few of the locals hovering around and waiting with me.
"Don't fuck up..." My partner murmured from the side, handing me my gun and silencer, before I slipped it into the back of my pants.
"You have such little faith in me, yo..." I sulked, as he clipped me over the back of the head.
"Come back alive so I can kick your ass."
"Done deal."
This was pretty much how it always was, with a reassurance that neither of us really said, just understood. This time was a little different though, as he looked at me and effectively saw a stranger looking back. I hadn't been undercover since my rookie days, but I'd be fucked if I wasn't still confident as hell with it. I moved casually from the alleyway into the main street, just as they decided to flick all the lights on.
"Hello and welcome to the first annual Junon night fair!" a familiar voice chirped over the speakers, "Be sure to sample the city's fine arts and crafts for the next three hours, and why not enjoy some of the local cuisine whilst taking a carousel or Ferris wheel ride? Get your fortune read by the amazing Cait Sith, or have your picture taken with the last known remaining Cosmonian, Nanaki! Both are by the ticket booth beside the entrance to the item shop. Tonight only, half price sales on everything! Enjoy your night!"
Fuck! If Reeve was announcing, and Nanaki was putting in the effort to help with activities...
"That's a kick ass sword mister!" I heard a kid exclaim.
"Watch your language kid, or I'll show you how kick ass it is..."
Cloud. Shit. Shit, shit, shit!
"Hey, aren't you the guy that whooped Sephiroth's lanky white ass?" The kid pressed.
"And you think a prawn like you is gonna be a hassle? Watch the tongue," Cloud warned again, and I held back a smile as I spotted him by a cake stall. I'd missed the bastard more than I could really explain, and I'd felt like a royal fuck for what I did. Oh, so about a month ago we'd had a little encounter and all, where I'd finally lured Mister Untouchable to realise that I had it for him bad and we'd ended up tumbling into bed in what would become the recurring wet dream of my life thus far. The next day, Tseng had called up on the God damned phone and thrown this piece of shit mission my way. I'd been carted off to Mideel in isolation for a week while some hot shot plastic surgery team gave me an entirely revamped appearance, then sent off gallivanting across various other locations across the world as part of some fucked up drug ring. These guys were the real deal, you know, and I'd done some shit that even I wasn't all that happy with in order to make my way up the chain as quickly as possible. Cloud had called about a million times, left a million voicemails, but because of the integrity of the mission and all that bullshit, I'd left him pretty fucked over.
Come to think of it though, maybe it was a good thing he was here tonight. Tonight was when it was all really happening, which explained the large amount of Turks slinking through the crowd without drawing as much attention as any other happy camper there. Tonight, it was time to take the boss man in, or take him out... After all that shit was dealt with, I could grovel like a bitch and hope to shit that Cloud and me could have a decent shot. I mean hell, I couldn't believe it myself, but I wanted something a little more than the one night stands I was getting offers for, you know? Maybe he'd even like something like that too, 'cause it sure as hell didn't seem like he was the one night stand kind of gu- Shit, he's looking right at me. Surely he wouldn't recognise me. Those Mideel whack jobs did such a shit hot job that I shit myself when they first handed me a mirror. Thank fuck it's reversible, but still... His eyebrows were kind of furrowed like he was trying to figure something out, and that was not a good thing.
"Cloud?"
He turned to the speaker then, and I let out the breath I'd sucked in. Thank Gaia for that nagging bitch Tifa, as he turned to help her frost some kind of sponge cake. I took that little window of opportunity and started scoping for one of my little drug 'buddies'. It was then that I felt another pair of eyes on me. I looked around but didn't see a soul who stood out in the slightest, so instead I headed for one of the stalls and had a half assed look at some porcelain kittens.
"Cameron," A voice said to the left of me, and I grinned casually.
"Present, yo."
Cameron. Of all the Gaia damned names they could have given me... Made me wanna puke every time I heard it.
"Diablo's in the residence two streets down from here. He wants to meet with you in twenty minutes, do not be late."
The rather shady looking stranger then handed me an envelope and left as quickly as he came. It had been like that time and time again, rendezvous after rendezvous with a variety of characters, each as shady as the last. This Diablo asshole was a hard one to find, but I'd gained enough of that superficial trust for him to agree to meet with me. That's when I'd find out whether to take him in or out.
Tseng didn't like this guy, he'd made that much painfully obvious at the last briefing.
"The more reason you can find to shoot the fucker, the better... In fact, look for it. Set him up, I don't give a shit."
"What's wrong Tseng? You sound like this guy kicked your ass a few times in second grade or something."
"Filth like that piece of shit isn't worth the money we spend on incarceration."
Yeah, none of us really questioned beyond that... Maybe we would have if we'd had the balls or lack of insanity to question anything that crazy son of a bitch had to say, but it was a hard task to commit to.
"Reno..." Another soft voice in my ear, and I seized up like a bitch. No one here was meant to know who I was, and if it was a Turk, I was strictly Cameron. That piercing gaze was the same as before though.
"Relax, you'll give yourself away. Does Reeve know you're here?" the voice continued, a sense of familiarity licking at me.
I eased myself into picking up one of the God damned cats and toyed with it idly, still not facing my potential enemy.
"How'd you know?" I asked smoothly, and a soft laugh exited the speaker's lips.
"I can spot an undercover Turk from a mile away. There's a swarm of you here," the stranger said airily, "You seem to forget it was my job to make sure you all did it right."
Job? Wait...
"Vincent..."
"They've done a good job in Mideel," He remarked, "Admittedly I wasn't overly certain it was you for a moment..."
"What gave me away?"
"Think about it, yo."
Naw fuck. Always the lingo. It couldn't have been the voice, 'cause I had that stupid alteration device making sure I sounded more like a slick Junon rebel, rather than a cocky assed Midgarian Turk.
"I'll keep it in mind, I guess..." I shrugged, and he almost chuckled.
"What are you doing here anyway? Your little exchange before did not go un-noticed," Vincent stated, looking entirely uncomfortable as he too picked up one of the kittens awkwardly, "Tired of destroying Neo-Midgar? Extending the reach elsewhere?"
"Ha freaking ha..."
"Diablo then?"
"How the fu-"
"I have my contacts. You must be the operant they sent in."
"Spot on Sherlock," I said dryly, "But keep it on the down low yeah?"
"I intend to. Make sure you work on the walk a little more too," He added, "It's meant to be a fair, not a catwalk."
"Gaia, ease up Valentine. I dunno what's sharper, your claw or your fucken tongue," I snapped, and he snorted this time. He sure had lightened up since all that shit with Sephiroth had been taken care of. Maybe he felt a little bit better about being an ex-Turk now that we were on the same team. I went to ask him on that, but the slinky bastard had disappeared.
The old woman at the stall was smiling expectantly, and I dunno what it was about the old folks, but it caved me in to buying a fucking kitten. I stuffed it into my pocket as she thanked me about a hundred times, and slipped back into the crowd. I guess if I'm being casual and all, I may as well have a look around. Just about all of Strife's hero patrol was there. Yuffie was operating some dodgy card game, Cid was perched in the dunking tank, egging Barrett on as the gunman threw ball after ball at the target, a small group of gathered people groaning slightly with every miss.
"Get some arm into it, you piss weak girl!" Cid snorted, before Barrett finally hit the mark, the pilot dunking into the water rather abruptly, as the crowd let out a cheer. I was tempted to try that later actually... Nanaki looked about as thrilled as Cid actually, as several kids clambered on him to have their photos taken by eager parents. That was until Tifa came to the rescue, offering free cookies, whilst the dog slipped into the shadows, tail glowing between his sorry ass. Then, I spotted him again, the blonde beauty in all his sexed up glory surrounded by a group of stunning looking girls. He looked akin to a cornered animal, and I snorted at the knowledge of why he was so uncomfortable, not to mention the large amount of time those girls were wasting with each bat of an eyelid. He was like a female-phobe.
"...Sephirothof all people. That's amazing."
"I had a lot of help from friends..." Cloud deflected.
"But your physique says otherwise," fembot number one replied with a little giggle, playfully patting his arms as if to highlight the beefed up muscle you'd find there. Fuck, he really was gorgeous... He hadn't changed in a month, which was more than I could say about me. His eyes were still like daggers, piercing like a bitch, with blonde spikes continuing to defy gravity, and skin as flawless and touchable as ever.
"Isn't he something?" A girl beside me, lovingly dubbed fembot number two, remarked, her eyes obviously catching me staring.
"Fuck yes..." I said under my breath, as she eyed me off curiously.
"You think that brunette girl is his girlfriend?"
"Tifa?" I snorted, "Ah babes you're up the wrong tree twice there..."
"Hey you..." Cloud himself said, and I kicked myself when I looked up to find his gaze settled firmly on me, "You look familiar somehow."
Well shit, Mideel must have done a pretty alright job. Cloud's wits were sharp and all, but even he was a little hesitant, like he wasn't really sure it was me. Thank Gaia for the voice alteration shit too, cause if anyone could pick up my voice, it would be Cloud. All I had to do was make sure I didn't end up swallowing the fucking thing.
"Me? Dunno why..." I shrugged, and I felt his eyes drag along my body. Ah fuck, even that still did it to me, knowing that it was Cloud giving me a look over, and I felt the blood stir a little. I couldn't let him look too hard, and it was for one main reason. Sure, the hair had been restyled and dyed brown into a style resembling Rufus', I'd lost the ponytail, had a bunch of little alterations to my skin and the temporary remoulding of my face, but... The one thing Cloud had told me stood out and even unsettled him on occasion, were the eyes. They might be brown now to match the 'do and all, but when I looked in a mirror, they were the only thing that made me remember it was me looking back, you know? Who knows, Cloud might just be sentimental enough to see through it all.
"I'll see you around I guess," I shrugged casually once more, signaling the fact that I was leaving, "Enjoy the girls, yo."
His eyes widened on that last little word, showing me he flat out knew, but I high tailed it the fuck out of there before he could say anything. It was always the God damned lingo...
--
He had taste. I guess he could afford it as a dealer and all. The thing was though, that I was just about as set in my mind as Tseng was that this guy was a real dark kind, you know? Besides, half the shit I did myself had nothing to do with drugs, and I was thinking it was more like a mafia sector. These guys just got to me. I guess it was the upbringing on the street that did it, after copping beatings and God knows what else from their kinds. It's what you got for standing out, and so I'd learnt to slip into the crowds and be non-existent. Funnily enough, that's exactly how I got noticed, as Tseng had caught me by the wrist trying to snatch the bag of some airheaded bimbo on her cell phone. He'd given me a quick look over, ratty clothes, shit-eating smirk, grubby little face and all.
"I wouldn't try it slick..." He'd murmured, "I have a better idea for you."
And so, I was a Turk. Tseng had swept me under his wing and steered me to the spot I was in today. I wasn't turning back for all the money in the world. That was the other thing. This new world, you know, where everyone got along ok and I was fighting alongside the hero patrol, not against them? It was growing on me, and this guy was plain fucking it up.
"Cameron, so nice to meet you!" A voice said as the big ass wooden door before me swung open. So this was Diablo eh? Weedy little shit. Thinning hair, glasses, ribs poking through his shirt. I guess I was expecting something a little more Don Corneo, you know, someone as fat as their wallet that looked born into the mob.
"Diablo hey?"
"Yes. Do you have that envelope?"
I nodded and handed it over. Standard way of showing the prick that I was who I said I was, handing over the envelope that one of his own men had given me. His flunkies looked me up and down, before Diablo shook his head.
"We're trusting here, no need to be so suspicious."
Perfect.
"Come in!" Diablo beamed, stepping aside as he gestured me to enter, "Would you like a drink?"
"I don't really drink actually."
Pffsh, yeah right. More like 'I don't wanna get smashed off my face and spill my guts, but thanks'. I had a loose tongue the more alcohol that was pumped into me. Cloud had found that out first hand...
"Very well, sit down then," He continued to smile, as he gestured at two sofas opposite each other. I sat down and inwardly sighed with relief as he ordered his men away. This was an acting stage though, and I had a lead role, so I had to play it up for all it was worth. I stretched languidly across the couch, allowing one of my arms to drape over the side, the other pulling my cigarettes out of my breast pocket.
"D'ya mind if I smoke?" I asked, and he shook his head, a small smile along his lips as I put my death stick between my own and lit it. He picked up the alcohol he had poured himself and swirled the glass lightly.
"I'm told you want to work for me on a more permanent basis?" He said casually, taking small sips from the beverage perched precariously in his hands.
"Sure I do. I just want a little more info on what exactly it is we're doing here, you know?" I shrugged, "I wanna be sure I'm not liable to fuck up too much."
He laughed at this and clapped his hands together.
"I like you kid, you've got flair. I'll tell you what though, I reckon you could do just about anything I put you up to," He shrugged, "But if you're still eager to hear it..."
"I like to know what shit I'm getting into. Sure, the pay's the important part, but background knowledge never hurts, you know?"
He nodded, smirking slightly.
"I suppose you watch the movies, see the guys on there shooting rounds off in big stand offs against the cops. Gangsters, yeah?"
"Yeah."
"I guess we're a little like they are really. We're on the wrong side of the law boy, and if Strife or Shinra found out about it, they'd be dealing with us swift like..." He laughed lightly, "But so far we've kept under the radar."
"Perfect Cameron, perfect," A little voice buzzed in my ear, and I damn near shit myself. I forgot I was wired to the teeth. It was quite literally too, a thin piece of transmitting wire and a small mic was sending out the signal from my god damn teeth to Tseng, undoubtedly somewhere a few blocks from here. With that came the tiny little device that they'd jabbed into the back of my ear, letting me hear whatever Tseng had to say about it also.
"Kept it under the radar? What kinda shit you dealing with then?"
"We're the biggest drug transportation company across the planet. Everything you can get your hands on has touched mine first. We dominate the fucking planet, Cam, can you imagine that bullshit?!" he laughed, "And it ain't even stopping there."
I waited for him to continue, as he placed his glass on the table and leant forward.
"Prostitution too, kid. Top of the line shit. You don't wanna know what we do to get the beauty and brawn, but we got top of the range. As well as that, gambling rings, hands dipped into every business across Midgar and Junon, and the only ones who think that this is a bad thing is Shinra and Strife," Diablo sighed, "Add that shithead Reeve into the mixture, you know, Mister popularity of the world, and we've got some fucking huge ass problems extending horizons, you know?"
"We're gonna nab this fucker, keep it up..." Tseng murmured, and I couldn't help but feel a little unsettled at the tone of my commander's voice. He was colder than I'd heard him before.
"Sounds like you've got a good system going on here, Diablo," I shrugged, "But what's in it for me?"
"Depends on the things you're gonna be doing for me, slick. You do well, I'll give you wealth and power. You do great, I'll give you shares and anything money can buy. You really impress the shit out of me, I'll give you a whole fucking continent."
"Continent?"
"Wutai. We've been working on suppressing and killing off any rebellion, and as far as the rest of the world knows, the sons of bitches are as happy as they always were," He snickered coldly then, "Besides, what do I need with a floating cesspool of their kind eh? But, do you know what kind of wealth comes from Wutai? Tourism from that place is fucking huge. Build a couple of high rise hotels and shit on there, and it'll triple."
It all made sense now. Tseng had never been a fan of the exploitation of his nation, despite leaving there when he was young. It was the only place I knew of that brought a smile to the old guy's face without fail.
"Wutai is a place of great beauty, and for a nation to have such a rich history and culture, yet still be able to retain it? It's a rarity, Reno..."
Heck, even I loved Wutai, all thanks to Tseng. Who the fuck did this guy think he was, trying to take that away?
"We operate in every continent and country, whatever point's closest to a shipping dock. I leave a shitload of false paper trails and set up the docking stations so that I have other people working for me even within the government. Tuetsi would have a fit," He remarked airily, "I don't usually tell that to people Cameron, you know, but on the rarest of occassions I tend to brag a little for my own self gratitude."
"I'm honoured then that you think that much of me, yo."
"Oh that isn't it," He smirked, finishing the last of his glass, "As I said, Only very select times I allow people to hear of our dealings, Cameron."
"Shit..." Tseng muttered, as Diablo sat up straight.
"The truth is, Reno," He smirked, "Is that I never intended on you leaving."
"Get the fuck out of there!" Tseng hissed, but I was already a step ahead, off the couch and pulling my gun from my pants, just as Diablo drew his. It all kind of slowed down then, as the realisation hit that one of us bastards was gonna die. The adrenaline kicked in though, and I was fucked if it was going to be me, as I began firing shots.
I felt it then, a bullet rip through my shoulder, but a bitter satisfaction crept along my conscious as I realised that Diablo's gun was hitting the ground, his blood spilling from his chest. Got the fucker. Didn't have all that much time to celebrate however, as there were a few very frenzied bangs on the door. The cavalry was coming.
"Reno, get the fuck out!" Tseng urged, "We're heading in. Get away from here till the heat dies down."
"Will do," I replied, making a bee line for the window. I clambered out and straightened my suit, taking out the voice alteration thing and tossing it in my pocket. Naw fuck, that wound was really starting to sting like a bitch. I hated being shot. I didn't have much time to dwell on what I was meant to do now, before I was grabbed by the collar and thrown against the wall, letting out a cuss as my shoulder burnt.
"I knew it, you little fuck..." Cloud hissed, as I spotted his very distinct mako eyes through the darkness. In hindsight, lucky I took out the speaker box, or the force from his blow would probably have had me choking on it.
"Blondie!" I took a chance at grinning, before he dealt me a nice hit to the stomach. I spluttered a little, before he shook me roughly.
"You said Turks didn't do this shit anymore. I heard shots; You just killed someone, didn't you?" He spat.
"My gun was silenced, yo. The gun you heard was the fucker that shot me first," I replied firmly in my defense, as he took a look at my bleeding shoulder for the first time. That was before the sound of the door inside being broken in drew me back to the current situation.
"He must have gone out the window!" I heard a voice call, as Cloud's face reflected my panic.
"Ya, ok, we need to talk, but we better get the fuck outta here, yo," I said quickly, snatching his hand with my own and taking off, dragging him with me.
"There!" the same voice called, just as we rounded the corner, yet another stray bullet clipping my side.
"Fucking hell man! How many bullets you bastards think I can handle?!" I hissed through my teeth, and all of a sudden, Cloud was dragging my ass along and hoisting me onto his huge ass motorbike behind him. I grabbed onto his back as best as I could with a dicked up shoulder, and we were off in a flash, voices and gunfire coming from behind us.
Cloud Strife: hero to the world, saviour of my ass.
--
I could feel the tension bundled up right across his chest and stomach, and even as I clutched onto him and feared for my life with his road skills, another part of me was fiercely enjoying it.
"What the fuck's going on Reno?!" I heard him snap into the wind, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Ooh yeah, we really needed to talk this shit out... but did he really think that going 150 km/h down a dirt road, whilst fleeing from a bunch of severely pissed mafia style crackpots, was the right time or place to do it?
"Ya wanna talk when we stop, Strife?" I replied dryly, and he increased the speed and leant forward on the bike.
"FUCK!" I hissed, "You trying to get us killed?!"
"Only you," He replied bitterly, easing up on the accelerator, and I cringed a little. At first, I was thinking it was just cause his words really hit a nerve there, but then it kind of hit me that it wasn't just the chest that caught a bit of a sharp blow. My shoulder was burning furiously, and as I shakily took a hand off of Cloud's waist to touch my own, I realised that I was losing a shit load of blood from my side wound as well. A Turk's tolerance to pain usually caused him more of a hassle than it was worth. You felt pain, usually, you'd go to a doctor, and he'd fix you up in a flash, ya know? With a Turk, you didn't feel much else except a dull throbbing kind of feeling, before you were crawling into your own grave with blood loss. Whoaaa... there it was... wooziness... My mouth was becoming dry, and my head was anywhere but on this planet, as I subconsciously felt myself fall against Cloud's back.
"..Reno?" He called, as I struggled to hold my eyes open. This shit was heavy...
"...Reno!" I heard him call out again, as I felt a dull panic through my body, as it started to lean to the side...
--
My eyes snapped open with the first realisation that I was on fire, as I stared at the wall directly in front of me. Fuck! Fire?! I hissed through my teeth, as I tried to roll onto my back, and I heard movement from the other side of the room. Room? Was it a room? The wall looked like it was made out of dirt or something. What the fuck?!
"Relax Reno, stay still..." I heard a familiar voice murmur, and as the logic seeped back into me, I realised that fire hadn't been the right guess after all... I was just severely hurting...
"F-fuck me... what happened?" I choked, as I struggled to move. Cloud's face appeared over me however, his eyebrows creased into an impatient frown as he slowly rolled me over and held me down.
"I told you to stay still," he snapped.
Ya, alright, alright... Fair call...
"'Kay..." I grumbled, "But what happened? I feel worse than when I got shot, yo."
"That's probably because you are worse than when you got shot..."
"Then what happened?!" I snapped, and he pressed against my side. I howled and bit back on the string of expletives, as his scowl became venemous. Ok, yeah, time to behave. Angry, murderous Cloud? Not good. I let out a soft sigh and lay as perfectly still as I could. I was in some kind of bed, and admittedly, it was comfortable as all hell. My first guess about the dirt walls seemed to be right, as I noticed the roof was made of the same stuff. Maybe clay, even?
"You fell," Cloud explained, once satisfied that I wasn't going to lash out again, "And I had to keep your ass here whilst you're healing, because I didn't have any other place to put you."
"What?"
"No way in hell are you coming back to my place..."
"I meant what do you mean, Blondie?" I frowned, "Fell?"
There was a little flicker of guilt across his face then, and he sat down in a seat by my bed.
"You fell off the bike..." Cloud shrugged lightly, "You probably wouldn't have come off so bad if I wasn't going quite so fast."
Mother fu-
"As soon as Tseng calls, 'cause I know he plans to, you can make your way back to Junon."
"What, you're sending me off on my own?"
"You seemed to have no problem with it last time..." Cloud said bitterly, and my stomach tightened with guilt of my own.
"Wanna talk about that shit yo?" I asked, and he shook his head.
"I gave you that chance five days ago, Red," Cloud paused, "And you pretty much blew me off-"
"Five days ago?!"
"You've been out that long..." Cloud shrugged, "Lucky you've got mako in your system or I figure you would have died by now."
His tone was cold, but being a Turk had its good moments for me; like me being able to see that flicker of concerned relief flick through his eyes.
"Lucky for both of us?" I suggested, and he stood up and headed for the door, "Cloud, come on man!"
"There's no 'us' slick, you made that clear, 'yo'. Stop being a spoilt little shit and shut up for once," Cloud snapped, before heading out and slamming the door behind him. Cloud = +1. Reno = -5.
--
Turns out Cloud had made friends with some old miner guy that lived just on the other side of the Midgar ranges, and when he'd returned to the planet, he'd left his little hideout cave to none other than Blondie himself. So, that's pretty much where I was, some shonky little cave out in the middle of nowhere, finding out this information from some will on the top of a desk. Yeah, Cloud hadn't really spoken to me all that much since our last little falling out, even though he popped in every couple of hours or so to 'make sure I hadn't died'. The hours in between his visits were hell. Do you have any idea how hard it is for someone like me to entertain myself? I'd considered over-riding the system lock on the phone Cloud had kept here, so that I could actually make outgoing calls, but I really didn't want him any more pissed than he already was. Most of the day had been spent lying in bed trying to supposedly heal, staring blankly at the ceiling. I startled slightly though, Turk mode kicking in automatically as I heard the door click open, before Cloud stepped inside. I offered a smile when he looked my way, but Mr. Doom and Gloom kept that sullen little frown plastered on his face, as I'd kinda expected he would. This was bullshit.
"Cloud man, talk to me," I urged, but he shook his head, heading over to the dresser and pulling off a new stack of bandages. That's it, I'd get him now…
He brought over the box of dressings etc. and sat on the bed beside me, gesturing for me to sit up. I did so carefully, making sure to hold his eye contact as I did so. As expected, he turned away, focusing his attention on the box of medical shit.
"How are you feeling today?" He asked, peeling off the dressing on my abdomen.
"Shit," I said simply, and he frowned, his eyes still turned away from mine as he reached for a fresh dressing.
"I thought you were feeling a little better yesterday," He remarked, reaching to place a new dressing against my skin, "What's change-"
He stopped as I caught his wrist and focused all my energy on making sure the bastard knew how serious I was.
"Nothing's changed, and that's the problem, yo."
He yanked his wrist from my hand and roughly stuck a new dressing on, before standing again. Son of a bitch!
"Cloud, I know you still got something there yo, or knowing our pretty detailed past you would have left me in Junon to die."
"Fuck up, Reno, I'm sick of hearing your shit," Cloud spat, finally rounding his fiery gaze onto me. I cringed a little at first, but being a Turk and all, you get to see past what looks to be hatred and latch on to what he was trying to hide in there. And fuck me, he was hurting…
"Naw hell…" I muttered under my breath, and his fiery gaze flickered slightly in confusion.
"I didn't want for you to get hurt, yo," I said kinda softer than even I'd meant to, "But you, being the stubborn son of a bitch you are, ain't willing to let me explain myself."
"You don't listen, yo," Cloud said bitterly, "I don't want to hear your shit."
There's only so much a Turk can take…
"For the sake of all that is holy, shut the fuck up and listen," I snapped, "Because I sure as hell can't deal with this tiptoe round the tulips shit. You wanna hear the truth? Then listen. You wanna believe whatever you want and not even give me the time of the day to talk to you, then whatever, fuck off."
He stood rigidly still for a few moments, eyes blazing furiously as he gaped slightly. Then, he fucked off. As the door slammed behind him, I can only figure he didn't wanna give me the time of day after all. With that thought, I couldn't help but think maybe he should have left me in Junon after all.
--
I dozed off some time after Blondie left, and woke to the sound of that God forsaken phone. I dragged my sorry ass out of bed and snatched it up, pressing the talk button.
"Yo."
"Reno?"
"Tseng. Yo bossman, how's things looking on your end?"
"Better. We're just about ready to come for you. Strife has told us where you are. Just as a precaution, we'll be heading there by car, so you'll have to stay put for another day or so."
"I can live with that…"
"…How about you Reno?" Tseng paused, "I hear you've taken quite a lot of damage."
"I'm all good," I shrugged, ignoring the slight pang of pain I felt in my shoulders as I did so, "I'm ready to come back, yo."
"I don't think you are, Red," Tseng said softly, "Strife still seems to be under the impression that what happened was your own fault. He left before I could argue otherwise."
"So? His fault, not mine," I shrugged again and was reward with another pang of pain. God damn it, why'd I bother? It's not like the ass can see me faking casual anyway.
"Have it your own way, you cocky little bastard," Tseng replied airily, "But I can only feel as if you don't want to leave with things how they are."
There was nothing I hated more in my life than the moments when Tseng was right. Asshole.
I hung up the phone and flung it across the room, falling back into bed and letting out a disgruntled sigh. Gaia, what had happened to me? I was a Turk, a hardass fighting machine, a legend on the streets… and I was on breaking point over something as trivial as some guy…Who the fuck was I kidding though, trying to refer to Cloud as 'some guy'? He was… urgh… He was different. Special, you know? I'd had my eye on him since his cadet days, when he used to be around Zack and General Psychoroth, that smile lighting up his face as his determination kept pushing him and pushing him to be the absolute best he could be…He was so alive, so vibrant, so.. sexy… I'd been hooked since day one. It was an endless string of sexual encounters and casual romances since then, but in the end, it was still him I'd wake up with on my mind, and inevitably he was the only one who was forever out of reach. He danced around me like the puppet he so despised being, and then he left Shinra to become the enemy. No wonder why, I'd intended on leaving myself after finding out what Hojo had done to him. But I couldn't. I'd have been killed. It seemed no matter what shit I pulled, he was always one step ahead, one step away, untouchable…I'd had him once though, I'd gotten him to
"Reno…" A soft voice said, as my eyes snapped to the door. Fuck, he'd gotten me so zoned out in just the thought of him that I'd missed the real thing coming in. Play it cool, play it cool…
"Yo."
Cool, not cliché, you idiot…
"How you feeling?" I asked, watching his eyebrows furrow slightly.
"Me? Not so great."
"Why's that?"
"Because nothing's changed…" He said softly, seemingly resigning as he sat down in the chair by my bed.
I know what he just said, but I also knew he hadn't meant it the way I had when I said it. I meant to make it out that it was the talking thing that hadn't changed, but I'd kinda meant matters of the heart. Cloud though… Ya couldn't read him…
"Nothing's changed, eh?" I prompted, and he did that evasive little turn of the head where his eyes slipped away from mine.
"Talk Reno, tell me everything."
I watched him for a few moments, trying to determine what it was exactly that he wanted.
"Where did you go, Reno?" He prompted me this time, "What happened?"
Where could I start? Not really finding an answer to that, I figured to do the only thing I'd been trained not to. I told him everything. I told him about Diablo, about the ring, about the mission, the makeover… everything. By the end of the night, I wholly intended on having Cloud back on my side, and I wouldn't stop until he was.
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A/N: ^^ One more chapter, relax, I'm not ending it there. xD I'm a bit hooked on getting some story in before the smut, so that's why this chapter was a lot of action rather then… you know… 'action'. Lol. Read and review please. ^^