The night was long and sleepless for the red headed Turk as he lay wide awake. Unable to sleep, Reno had been counting down the minutes until seven A.M. It seems as thought a life time had passed before morning arrived. That was when Rude would usually wake him up. The thought of it made him smile inwardly, though he cussed under his breath that it would be needless this morning. As he laid in the silence with his eyes closed, he heard his partner stirring from the other bed. In a frenzy, Reno pretended to be asleep; pulling the covers passed his head.
The room was silent again before he heard Rude let out a tired groan. Silence again, then footsteps. They were crossing the room to get to him; Reno could tell. His heart began to panic, its rhythm growing increasingly rapid within his chest. He was so nervous and scared that he could hear his heart in his own neck. Reno did not know why, but he suddenly found himself afraid of being touched by Rude. He did not want his partner to pull the snug cocoon away from him, only to reveal his mutilated body in all its sorry glory. That was the last thing he wanted---for Rude to worry about him.
Reno braced himself, as if suspecting to be punched. As the blanket around him slowly got tugged off, he could feel himself quaking from anxiety. Unconsciously, he began to tug back in a useless attempt at recovering the blanket. As usual, Rude won their minor game of tug-o-war, leaving his half naked body out on open display. Reno's green eyes slowly fluttered open, knowing that all of his safety had just been removed. A deep sinking feeling struck his heart, and he desperately wanted his cocoon back.
"Did you get into a fight again? You got busted up pretty bad…." Rude inquired softly, reaching out to touch his partner's shoulder, only to have his hand smacked away.
Reno remained wordless for a moment, trying to lock away his fears. Taking a deep breath, he decided to put on a face. "Yeah, so what? What are ya now? My mother?" Inwardly, he apologized to his partner. He did not mean to be such a jerk, but he did not know of any other method to conceal his pain. As he contemplated his previously spoken words, he grew angry at himself. A sudden feeling of despair crossed him, and his face contorted into an angry sneer to lock the tears away.
Noticing the transition of his partner's face, the bald Turk furrowed his brows. Getting onto one knee before the bed, Rude gazed solidly into Reno's eyes. "I don't know what happened in that office last night, but if you can't handle it, don't go back."
The irony in Rude's words invoked an abrupt laughter from the red haired Turk's throat. Can't handle? Don't go back? Easier said than done, Rude, he thought to himself. Letting out a sigh, he turned to face the wall, his bare back to Rude. "I have to go back. It's not that simple…" Reno muttered, half hoping that Rude could not hear him. "What happened in there--- that's none of your business!" Reno shouted defensively before he caught himself and tried to calm down. With the best imitation of his usually self, he added, "Stop freakin' out about everything. I got this shit down, man. I've worked here for just as long as you have. I know my way around the job." Yeah, I really know my way around the job, Reno thought grudgingly to himself.
Perhaps the red haired Turk's words somehow managed to hurt him, but without further words, Rude got up and walked back to his side of the room. Opening the door by his bed, he got into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. Removing his pants and briefs, his stepped into the shower and turned on the water. As the warm water pelted against his muscular body, the scent of Reno's cigarettes drifted into the steam that rose in the glass chamber, a makeshift death trap. Rude closed his hazel eyes and savoured the familiar scent. Although he had stopped smoking for the most part, his delinquent partner still retains the ever famous title of Human Chimney among the Turks. The thought summoned an uncontrollable smile to his lips, though it quickly vanished.
"What did happen in there?" Rude absentmindedly asked to himself as he lifted his head. Though the water washed his face clean, his thoughts were cloudier than ever.
Try as he might, but when he put together all the things he had gathered since his accidental encounter with Reno last night, it did not make any sense. Nothing added up. There was blood all over the carpet in the office. Reno was covered in blood; probably not his own. He looked as if someone had just taken his soul from him. He returns to the room late, claiming that it was overtime. He is obsessively defensive when the subject of last night is even mentioned, not to mention his body was covered in cuts and bruises. Where did Rufus fall into all of this? Rude asked himself. What did Rufus do to take the life out of Reno's prideful green eyes?
Nothing came to mind as he kept pondering the subject over and over again. The duration of his shower was longer than usual; given that most of that time was spent spacing off and staring at white bathroom tiles. When he emerged from the steamy bathroom, Reno was gone. A little annoyed now, Rude hurriedly dressed and headed out. They usually waited for each other, so why did Reno take off on his own today? It is almost as if he deliberately waited for Rude to take a shower to make his escape. Unknowingly, Rude was angry at his partner for leaving without notice. But it is not like Reno was obligated to notify him… Still, reason suddenly left him as the bald Turk marched down the hall to the elevator.
As the elevator arrived and the door opened, a blonde female Turk emerged, eating a strawberry crème cheese bagel. Looking up from her breakfast, the blonde noticed Rude and dodged out of the elevator. Taken aback by the oncoming blonde, Rude stumbled backwards, only to fall prey to her. Pressing the bald Turk against the wall, the blonde's blue eyes were tinted with concern.
"Reno…What happened to him?" She questioned, holding her bagel at stomach level with both hands.
Not expecting the question, Rude stared blankly for a moment. He was slightly ashamed that he could not tell her; he did not know. With a resigned sigh, Rude shrugged. "Hell if I know…" He answered under his breath before gazing down at her. "I was hoping you'd know, Elena."
Letting out a defeated sigh, Elena shook her head. "No…but I'm really worried. Something about him is not right," she noted quietly, eyes shifting about as if searching for dangerous, stray ears. Attention falling back on Rude, Elena whispered in a low voice, "Have you seen his eyes? I caught him on his way back to your room last night. They looked so…empty…like one of those Soldiers who rejected the mako injection."
The sudden mentioning of mako drew Rude's immediate attention. "Mako injection?" He repeated, quirking an eyebrow at the blonde.
Nodding, Elena continued, "That's right. Some Soldiers' bodies reject the mako they are injected with. As some sort of a side effect, their eyes turn dull, as if empty."
As if dead, Rude thought to himself, the image of Reno in the office last night flashing in the back of his mind. Snapping back into reality, Rude shook the thought from his head. The possibility of Reno being injected with Mako was zero. "No. That's not it. Shinra would not waste mako needlessly. It's for the Soldiers only. We're Turks, Elena. We don't count." We don't count…those words resonated in his ears as Rude grew silent. If it was true and they really did not count, what kind of horrible things would they do to Reno? His heart sank.
Noticing the change in her comrade's visage, Elena frowned. "You know…There's this other rumor that Rufus has him employed on some top secret errand…" the blonde whispered, glancing around nervously.
Something about Elena was not right this morning either, thought Rude. She seemed incredibly jittery today, and she is talking far more than usual, far more than necessary. Rude's eyes narrowed dubiously as he asked, "Is there something you know that I don't, Elena?"
The blonde frantically shook her head. She feared that she had accidentally said too much. "No---no! I don't know anything. I'm sorry Rude…" Her blue eyes looked up at the bald Turk with sincere sympathy before she turned and walked away.
Watching as Elena left, Rude noticed that there was a slight limp to her movement. "So it seems quite the contrary…" Rude muttered to himself as he entered the elevator and headed up towards Rufus's office. Once he arrived at the top floor, Rude got off and almost immediately, his angry scowl returned. Swiping his card to gain entrance to the office, the bald Turk watched as the heavy metal door dragged itself open.
There at the desk, Rufus Shinra was sitting, his delicate fingers laced on top of the cherry surface. A smirk was suppressed on the young Shinra's lips as he gazed challengingly at Rude who nonchalantly entered the room. "What's wrong, Rude? Did you miss me so much that you found the need to see me first thing in the morning?" he asked, voice half amused.
His leather cladded fists clenching silently, Rude stopped in front of the desk. Something about Rufus this morning suggested guiltiness. Something about him told Rude that he was indeed the culprit behind Reno's injuries. Taking a deep breath, Rude kept his cool as he looked into the eyes of the beautiful blonde demon before him. "Sir, do you happen to know where Reno is?" He asked, suspecting that he would.
All traces of amusement immediately drained from Rufus's face as he heard the name. "Reno? Aren't you his partner, Rude? Shouldn't you be more aware of his whereabouts than me?" His visage was soft, but the graveness in his voice along with his emphasis on the word you made even Rude shudder inwardly. There seem to have been an underlying meaning to Rufus's suggestion, and he made it more obvious when he leaned back in his chair and smirked. "My…I wonder where he could have gone…"
Rude's hazel eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses. At the moment, he wanted to punch Rufus Shinra in the face, and he was surprised that he was able to resist. "Well then, I'll go look for him," was Rude's only reply to Rufus's provocation. Leaving it at that and cutting the conversation short, Rude turned to walk out the door. To his surprise, he ran into his wounded red head friend, who was on his way in.
Startled by their collision, Reno's eyes widened as they met Rude's through his shades. His heart pounded rapidly, and he abruptly turned and made a run for it. Confused, Rude ran after his partner. As the echoes of their footsteps composed a haphazard melody in the empty hall way, all reason seem to have left both men's head.
Reno was intent of not confronting Rude---ever. Rude on the other hand desperately wanted to know what was going on between Reno and Rufus. He was angry that even Elena knew more than he did pertaining to his own partner. Anger fueling his speed, Rude's footsteps grew loud and more frequent as he caught up to Reno. Catching the red head by the arm, he pulled him back. Much to his shock, Reno only collapsed to his knees and begged to be released. The pain in his eyes was so real as they gazed up helplessly at Rude; he was taken aback. Staring in dismay, Rude watched as his comrade seemed ready to cry, his head hanging limply on his shoulders. Unknowingly, Rude knelt down and gathered Reno into his arms.
"What the hell, yo?" The red head fought violently to be freed, but his bodily pain along with the hysteria only drained him, and he quickly gave up, falling softly against his partner's strong chest.
"Where did you go this morning? What happened to you?" Rude asked softly.
"Breakfast…" Reno answered bitterly. "I never did like bagels…" he added with a forced grin.
"Is that so…?" Rude muttered dubiously, quirking a brow.
"Yup. Chill out, Rude. You must be working too hard or somethin'. You've been freaking out about me. It's cool, yo. I can take care of myself," Reno said in an unconvincing attempt at reassuring his partner. Though he was grinning idiotically and his voice recovered its usual laid back tone, his eyes gave him away. Even he thought his façade to be obvious. Being as intelligent as Rude is, he would never fall for that.
"Guess so," Rude replied, suddenly losing the will to argue with his partner. He realized that no matter what he said, Reno would just invite a new way of digressing. "Did the boss call you in today?" the bald Turk asked, recalling that Reno was on his way into the office when their meeting turned into a game of tag.
"Yeah," Reno replied curtly, "he wanted to…discuss something with me."
"I see. Guess I'll see you later," Rude said with a nod before pulling away from Reno and standing up.
Getting to his feet as well, Reno nodded. "Yeah, see ya."
The two parted ways; Reno going to report to Rufus and Rude to wander the building otherwise instructed. As he returned to Rufus's office, Reno's heart sunk. He felt so guilty that he blatantly lied to Rude, and the worst part of it was that it was so obvious that Rude knew he was lying. After all, it was not hard to figure out at all. With a sigh, he approached Rufus' desk and the black leather chair spun around.
"I'm back," Reno announced half-heartedly.
"Good…"
