I'm sitting in the exact same place I was three hours ago, when I got the news. I know I should be happy for the two of them. He'll be happy, God knows she'll be happy, but the only thing I can't understand is why she couldn't have been happy with me. Have I confused you? Here, I'll take you back to the conversation.

*FLASHBACK*

The phone rings. "Hello?" I say. I just woke up.

"Reno, hi, it's Elena." I perk up instantly.

"Heya Elena. How are you? Haven't seen you in a week or so."

"I'm okay. How are you?"

"I just woke up."

"Then are you sitting down?" That stops me. Apparently she's got some Planet-shattering news because she knows very little shocks me anymore.

"Yeah…what's up?" I say, sitting down.

"I'm getting married." My heart starts a decline. With Tseng just out of the hospital, our off-and-on dating had become more off than on, but I still really…liked her, I suppose. I never really was sure what I felt for her.

"Oh? To who, Tseng?" She laughs.

"No. I just accepted the proposal – Rude asked me." My heart stopped. When I could feel it again, it was somewhere in the vicinity of my shoes. Rude was my – our – fellow ex-Turk! Rude was the tall, silent, bald guy with the sunglasses! Rude was a Neo-Midgar cop!

"How long have you been seeing Rude for?"

"Oh, we were like you and I – seeing each other off and on." Someone her femininity stopped her from seeing the breaking of the top guy rule: don't date your partner's friends. Especially don't date them at the same time.

"That's…that's great, Elena." I could hear her smiling.

"Isn't it just? Rude's already said, he wants you to be his best man. We're thinking about having it in a month." I think about it. Do I want to be there?

"I'll think about it. I don't know if I can come."

"Oh…" She sounds heartbroken. Good, now she can be just like me. "Okay. Well, I'll tell him you probably can't make it. He'll be disappointed." Good.

"I know. Tell him I'm sorry." You can lie through your teeth for me.

"I will. Do you want to talk to him?" No, he's a bastard that stole my girlfriend.

"No, not right now. I might call again later…I'm kind of busy." Busy dealing with the loss of the one woman I truly thought I might love at the moment. Sure, I'll call. When hell freezes over.

"Okay. It's good talking to you, Reno. Love you." No you don't.

"Love you too." More than you'll ever know.

*END FLASHBACK*

The pieces of the puzzle all come together, and my life falls apart. I want to be happy for them, but when your heart is lying on the floor shattered into pieces, it's hard to be happy. A feeling I haven't felt before in a long time is washing over me. It's not sadness, though God knows I ain't happy. I'm far from fucking happy. It's not anger, though I'm not pleased with Rude. He knew! He knew I was dating Elena – he knew I thought I loved her! Okay, maybe there's a little anger, but that's not it.

It's rejection.

It's abandonment.

It's the feeling that all I've ever had in the world is gone and there's not a damn thing I can do about it.

I shrug and stand up. My legs feel like rubber; they can't possibly support me, but I'm standing. Suddenly a wave of anger and resentment hits me and I run to my dresser. There's a picture of the two of us, just Elena and I, at the Gold Saucer. She's got her arms wrapped around me and a huge grin on her face. I'm smiling…well, no, I don't really smile – so I'm smirking with my hand on her shoulder. We were so happy. I scream in pain, in agonizing pain, and throw the picture across the room. The frame shatters. I run out of the room, grab my jacket, and run out of the apartment. It's raining. I've always found that when I need it to, the weather describes my feelings…

As I pass by the houses with all the happy people in them I realize that there's only one thing I can do to help ease my pain…

And it's one of the last things I really want to do.

You want a second chapter? Like what Reno's gonna do? Review…I'm willing to write it! Pleeeease read and review, it's all the love I get…

-Skie