A/n: Holy crap. I'm back. Honestly… after how many years now? All it took was reading some good ole' Rufus and Tifa fics… And I've been drawn back in! I work a full time job now, for any of you interested, but I am home in the evenings and my creative juices are flowing. I'm going to try to get back into the swing of things. We'll see how this goes. Just so I know that I'm not rusty as hell, please review, I need to know what sucks and what doesn't. Cheers!
Perhaps it was the not so smooth ride that jolted him awake. He attempted to sit up but smacked his head on the low ceiling of wherever he was. That was when he realized how much his head already hurt. His eyes were open, but he could see nothing. He wasn't sure if it was because of how much his head was throbbing, he very briefly considered that he might possibly be blind. His eyes slowly adjusted to the dim light, his vision throbbing with each pang. Rufus Shinra realized now that there was a very lightweight cloth bag over his face, and that his wrists and ankles were bound with thick zip ties. It was becoming fairly apparent that he had been kidnapped and was now currently in transit via a cramped trunk. "I am going to have to remember to have a very serious conversation with my Turks." He thought to himself before weighing out his threadbare options.
Firstly, he didn't know who had taken him. Secondly, he didn't know what the terms of his kidnapping would mean. In any case, he barely remembered what had happened before he found himself in his current predicament.
He'd been out too long to note all the turns the vehicle made. Straining, he listened for the type of terrain they were currently traveling over. Seemed like smooth highway. Probably on their way out of Midgar now. "Shit."
What had he been doing before this? Let's see. I was … at a public event. I had Reno and Rude with me. Damn, I knew I should have brought Tseng. At least he would have been paying attention to my safety instead of the open bar.
All too suddenly, his mind flashed back to the event, jarring his headache further.
Rufus had attended this city function to show ShinRa face. He wasn't completely sure what the function's purpose was, but he knew he had to attend because his father had other business in Midgar, and someone of 'importance' needed to be there. Truthfully, Mayor Domino had begged him to at least stop by.
He stood outside the doors with Reno and Rude, trying to get into the correct mindset for something he truly wasn't interested in doing. Sighing rather harshly, and rolling his eyes behind his closed lids, Rufus gathered the remains of his patience and plastered on a false smile and began the greeting process with the attending socialites.
"Oh, welcome young Master Shinra, it is so good to see you. I'm glad to see your interest in the city of Midgar!" An ancient looking woman dripping with costume jewelry descended upon him, placing her wrinkled, clawed hand on his shoulder.
"Charm. As soon as you're president, you can be the anti-social hermit you want to be, but until I kick the bucket, you need to show how charming you can be so that people trust you." Rufus' father's words echoed in his head. Ugh.
"Ah, Madam Boticella, very nice to see you this evening, you're looking… radiant as ever."
The old crone cackled and winked at him. "You flatterer! Come, come, you should meet my daughter!"
With a silent groan, Rufus slowly followed. It was going to be a long night.
Reno and Rude had circled the crowd a couple of times before Reno slowly ended his perimeter check at the bar. With his back to the bartender, he ordered a double scotch on the rocks, thinking Rufus hadn't caught on to his intentions.
Which of course, was very incorrect. He quietly strode over to his red headed Turk.
"Yo, boss, is this a nice party or what?" Reno ignored the drink that had only just now been placed at his elbow by the bartender.
"Or what. I have no reason to be here other than as the poster boy for the company. My father is much more suited to these … social trappings. And by the way, don't think for a moment that I am unaware of the scotch you ordered. Just realize that every drink you take comes out of your paycheck."
"Guess I'd better quit orderin' the top shelf stuff then, huh boss." Reno said sheepishly, finally grabbing his drink.
Rufus smirked. Of all the Turks, Reno was the only one that actually made him chuckle. A little.
A female voice cut through the din of the crowd. "Can I get you anything to drink, Master Rufus?"
Rufus looked past Reno to see the bartender smiling at him. She was young, in her twenties. Her long brown hair was pulled back, a few tendrils teased about her face. Her bright red wine colored eyes sparkled with her question, her full pink lips drawing into a flirtatious smirk. She was wearing standard party bartender dress, a white button down shirt, a tad unbuttoned to show just the slightest hint of her ample cleavage. A black vest drew in at the curve of her small waist, polishing the look with a professional, yet scintillating look.
Completely ignoring Reno at this point, who took this convenient distraction to turn tail, Rufus made his way closer to the bar. Interested in a drink, he grinned as he said, "Now that seems hardly fair. You know my name, but I don't know yours."
The brunette's smirk broke into a wide smile, and she leaned over the bar on her elbows. "I tell you what. I'll tell you my name if you let me make you a special drink. I've been experimenting and I think you might like it. I call it 'El Presidente'. I might even tell you what's in it."
Intrigued by the open, yet innocent flirting, he thought for a moment before saying, "Fair enough. I suppose I'm game for a little experiment."
Still smiling, she winked at him as she turned to make his 'special drink'. She looked over her shoulder. "So, what are you doing here, isn't your father more the social butterfly? I mean, no offense, but I hardly ever see your name on the social page in the paper."
Quirking an eyebrow, Rufus leaned an elbow on the bar. "Well, my father is a bit indisposed at the moment. He had a last minute meeting, but told me to come here in his stead. Not that it is any of your business." He said with a smirk.
Her shoulders jerked ever so slightly, but she turned around with the same pouted smile. "It's not my business, yet still, it's just a conversational question." Her wine eyes stared deep into his as she set a highball glass with ice and amber liquid in front of him. "I hope you like your drinks strong, Mr. Shinra." She said with another wink. "My name is Tifa, and I'll be your bartender. Enjoy your night; if you get bored or thirsty, come back and see me… if you feel your sobriety is any of my business." The end of her sentence hissed through her teeth, a grin curling the corners of her mouth.
"I'll come back to let you know if this 'El Presidente' drink is a hit or not." He said with a smirk, bringing the glass to his lips. The tart taste mixed with sweet in his mouth, but the burn of alcohol was still there. It was a rather tempting drink, but one he could only have one of. He turned to greet more of the socialites at the soiree.
Rufus managed to finally find Mayor Domino, who introduced him to a large group of people, but he grew bored with them quickly. None of the conversation sparked his interest. But that bartender on the other hand…
After finishing 2/3s of the drink in about twenty minutes, he found himself back at the bar. He looked for the brunette bartender again. What was her name…? "Tiffany- what's in this drink?"
She emerged from the back room with wide eyes. "I beg your pardon?"
"You told me you'd tell me what was .. what was in this drink. It's gooooood." He held the word a bit too long for his liking. Something was off. There was no way one drink had him intoxicated.
"It's just 'Tifa' by the way, but yes, I guess I did tell you that. Well, a bit of this, a bit of that." She tucked a tendril of loose hair behind her ear and looked into his eyes. "It's my own special recipe. I have a very special bottle of bourbon, aged to perfection…" She looked around. "Your Turks won't mind if I take you to my back room to show you? It's quieter back there." The playful grin splayed across her face.
Against a very strong, sober urge to deny the request, something about her intrigued his senses, though those were fairly dulled by whatever was making him feel drunk. "Lead the way."
She took his hand and led him behind the bar, into the back room, and started down a corridor.
Rufus stopped. "Wait. You made this drink at the bar. Why would the bottle be back here?" At least some of his sense was working.
Tifa halted when he pulled on the hand she was leading him with. She turned with a grin on her face. "Because I wanted to get you someplace a little more private…"
Rufus' knee faulted, but he caught himself. "I'm not one to have a tryst in a dusty backroom on top of old cardboard boxes."
She giggled, her merlot pools glittering in the dim light. "That's really not what I had in mind." She grabbed his jacket lapel and pulled him closer to her, though it really felt more for stability than an embrace. "I was thinking more of a road trip."
And that was the last thing Rufus remembered before waking up with a blinding headache in the trunk of a car.
