The Scientist
by October Breeze

The silence had been tearing him apart for so long. The expansive, deafening silence, the kind that made the air roar in his ears like it was storming, the buzzing that never seemed to leave unless it was filled by music or the background noise of the television. And for once in his life, he hated the silence.

There was no talking between them anymore, only short, choppy sentences, ones that would put even Leon to shame. Yuffie had always been the talkative one, and now it seemed like her role was slowly changing and fading into the darkness while he stayed the same, always the same.

With a sigh, Leon rested his head on his palms, hunched over the desk, papers scattered everywhere amongst the clutter of pens and empty coffee cups. He never kept things clean anymore. Their apartment was a reflection of the mess of thoughts in his head, unfinished and unwanted. Did she want him anymore? Did she care? Had he said anything? Was there…someone else?

Leon stood up and opened one of the small windows in the room, looking down onto the city streets below. He could already see her coming.

He crossed the room and leaned besides the door, his whole back pressed against the cool stucco wall, his fingers spread across as if he was trying to hold on to the wall. In less than two minutes, he could hear her footsteps in the hallway: light and tapping, even against the carpeting.

The door opened and Yuffie stepped in, the dim hall light spreading a glow into the darkened entry room. She looked at Leon for a moment, pausing by the doorway, then walked forward, dropping her scarf on the coffee table.

"Yuffie," Leon started, his voice quiet and strained. She turned slowly towards him, in the process of taking off her coat.

"Close the window, Leon," she said idly, her eyes unblinking. "It's cold outside."

He shook his head.

"What's the matter with you?" he asked, his voice intonation slightly lowering.

"Nothing," she replied without any inflection, pulling off her gloves and perching against the edge of the couch, looking towards the other wall, away from Leon.

He straightened up from the wall, his hand clenching and unclenching loosely. They remained like that for a few moments until, to Leon's surprise, Yuffie opened her mouth. She rarely ever donated to the conversation, lately.

"Did you want me to make dinner?" she asked dully, already starting to stand up. He flinched. As she brushed past him, Leon grabbed her wrist. For the first time in what seemed like forever, she appeared startled.

He pulled her closer, but not close enough to cause discomfort if they had been strangers. But, we are strangers now, Leon thought to himself, and his voice reflected his bitter thoughts. "Don't you care anymore?"

Yuffie stared at him, her face slowly growing bewildered. He grimaced, still holding onto her wrist. She made a small effort to pull away, but he didn't waver, and she slackened.

"Nobody said it was easy," Yuffie whispered. Leon let go of her wrist, pulling his hand away.

He looked away, the hurt spreading across his chest like it hadn't for ages. Since when had it gotten this deep? When had they drifted the way they had?

"Nobody said it was easy, Leon," Yuffie repeated, slightly choked, taking a step away from him.

"Don't go away," Leon said, struggling with the words. He had to let her know. He couldn't stand on the sidelines anymore, keeping his heart bound away. Love wasn't cold. Love wasn't science and it wasn't a math problem. She looked at him sadly, struggling, her eyes blinking rapidly. "Yuffie…"

She paused, looking at him, her face filled with turmoil. He hated seeing her like this…seeing her like she was a shell when she hadn't been before.

"I love you," he choked, stepping forward, wanting her. She looked down, her bottom lip trembling. "Yuffie, tell me…"

"I…do," she said, her voice wavering. "I do love you, Leon, damn it, but…I need…"

He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into him and held her like he should have before. Something had to change. And that something had to be him.

I'm so freaking rusty. But I was overcome with the Squffie bug and I actually wrote something. Holy crap, right? I am still in shock. But I miss my reviewers. I hope you all like this. This story is also dedicated to Annjirika for her birthday! Happy birthday, chickie!

Note: This is kind of sort of based on "The Scientist" by Coldplay, as you can see from the title. Hopefully it can give some more insight into the story.

Please, please, please review!