A/N: This is where things finally start to pick up in the story. The inevitable 7th Heaven scene. There you go, guys.
Edited on 7/6/2013. Note: Ah, so this one, I feel, is considerably improved. Actually put in a little more description to make the chapter feel slightly less talk-y.
Chapter 3: Quite a Character
The following Saturday night, Sera was back on her motorcycle, speeding under a starry sky. She absolutely loved driving at night. Reckless, devil-may-care abandon seized her, because she knew that the dark possessed a certain danger. It made her feel fearless that she could go through it alone without being the least bit nervous. After all, she wasn't too particularly scared of anything these days. With life experience, she'd learned to rein in her fears, which she could virtually ignore. Fear was a waste of time.
It could prevent you from fighting back.
Regardless of the serious, in-depth reason as to why she valued being in control of any apprehension, Sera was en route to 7th Heaven once again. This time, though, she knew more people would be there.
Around three times a month, all the members of AVALANCHE would collectively get together at Tifa's bar to socialize. These outings were how she'd gotten to know these people, in whom she found kindred spirits. Like her, AVALANCHE had been unfairly blamed at first for something that wasn't their fault, mainly the destruction of the Midgar pillar and the near-destruction of the city itself. Also, they'd all been outcasts at some point or another, feeling like they were alone in the world. Sera could relate to that, so it had been so easy to befriend all of them. Even practically silent Vincent Valentine.
It also helped that Tifa had been eager to introduce her to everybody, because that was the kind of warm, genuine person she was. Always looking out for people. No wonder that once you were friends with her, you were friends for life. Sera was aware of it firsthand.
"It feels like everybody knows my name there…well, in a way," she thoughtfully mused to herself as she saw the cheap neon lights of that familiar bar flash ahead. Her sentiment would certainly be true tonight. She parked next to Cloud's motorcycle, for she figured that as long as it was near his, no one would mess with it.
For the occasion (it being a grand ole Saturday night and all), she had dressed in a pair of black jeans, a silky red tank top, and a silver chocobo pendant necklace that her mother had given her and that she wore all the time. In her opinion, this outfit was dressier than usual for her. Just because she lived in the slums didn't mean she was totally poor. She'd stumbled across a windfall in her time.
When she walked across the threshold, she saw the nine o'clock crowd gathered round, ready for those alcoholic beverages. She spotted her group of friends by the counter, conversing with Tifa. Well, most of them were; Vincent and Cloud weren't speaking that much.
"Hey, guys," Sera greeted, tossing her ponytail over her shoulder.
Yuffie was the first to notice her and waved her over. "Sera, hey, what's up? I feel like I haven't seen you in forever."
"Yeah, two weeks is a real long time, Yuff. I know," she joked sarcastically with a clever wink to go with it.
"How's your grandma?" Barret asked from three stools down.
"Hi, Barret. She's good, yeah. I make sure of it."
Of course, she constantly made sure to care for Grandma, the woman who took her in and kept her safe. She was a strong believer in family, in keeping them together as closely as possible. No matter how shaky and interrupted her life could become, Sera was adamant about never losing her values.
"So, Sera, Tifa mentioned that you got trouble with Reno. Well, you did the other day, apparently," Yuffie brought up.
Sera deeply inhaled and slowly exhaled to keep her emotions balanced. "Don't remind me. He is such an idiot."
"Yeah, but he was willing to help me and Elena get out of a jam that one time. I told ya the story about that fat perv Don Corneo, right?"
She'd been familiar with it. "Yes, Yuffie. That guy had some issues, didn't he?"
"No kidding. Wonder if the wife ever know about his...ergh, hobby."
Sera shook her head. "Doubt he even had a wife, if he was as ugly as you said he was."
"True, true." Yuffie waved a dismissive hand. "Anyway, Ser, Reno's not that bad a guy. Most of the time."
"He probably saved you two because he wanted some for himself. Maybe he wanted to preserve you?"
That sounded awful, even for such a self-proclaimed ladies' man as he was. Even then, his bragging could have been for show. Taking his job into account, he wasn't exactly the hottest commodity to women, as much as he would have argued to the contrary.
The ninja girl didn't respond with disgust, as Sera had figured she would with such a bizarre theory, but she did call her out on it. "Are you kidding? I was a kid back then. And Elena's not his type anyway. Actually, she complained to me about what a slacker he was in his job. She didn't find that particularly attractive, I'm assuming."
"Interesting. Look, Yuff, all I'm saying is that Reno is...He's impossible. He says the wrong things at the wrong time."
Tifa finished up concocting a Bloody Mary for a customer before she stepped somewhat closer to the other two girls. "Hey, you two. What're you talking about?"
"I won't say." Sera firmly shook her head, pretending to zip up her lips with a smile. "If you speak of the devil, he will appear."
"Yeah," Cloud spoke up from her other side. "Don't you hate it when that happens? It's happened to me too many times."
"Que sera, sera, I guess." Tifa shrugged.
Yuffie appeared taken aback. "Eh...What?"
"Whatever will be, will be," Vincent quietly spoke to her, telling her this as though she was a small child.
"Oh...Well, jeez, if someone had told me that sooner—"
"Ah, here're all my friends!"
Simultaneously, Cloud and Sera groaned, with the latter making the louder sound. In contrast, the blond man was usually more discreet about his displeasure whenever Reno walked into a room...at least in public. However, he made it known that he would never truly welcome the redhead to the bar, not to mention the group as a whole. The others ignored him for the most part with Vincent staring contemplatively out the window, Barret talking to Cid Highwind, and Cloud pointedly looking away.
While Reno proudly strode toward the counter, his friend and partner Rude caught up more gradually. It never ceased to amaze Sera how the abnormally tall, more reserved man differed so drastically from the rambunctious one who insisted on intruding on her life. Rude she could actually tolerate in larger doses than Reno.
Maybe because he knew how to shut up.
"Sera." He inclined his head politely, stern in his uniform and sunglasses, never smiling. Even if he was, she could never detect it.
She lifted a greeting hand. "Rude. Pleasure seeing you here."
In the meantime, Cloud got up to relocate to another stool, which gave Reno the opportunity to slide right into that vacated spot. "Isn't it a pleasure seeing me, Serafin?"
His nearly flirtatious smirk was close to making her laugh at the ridiculousness of this situation. However, Sera refrained from humoring him by not even letting out a giggle. "No, Reno. It's never a pleasure seeing you. And I could ask Cloud to take you outside."
"I'd do it, too. Believe me," Cloud stated evenly, his mako blue eyes boring into Reno's.
"Eh, well, I'm not here to get in a bar fight. I'm here to have fun. Yo, Tifa," Reno called her over. "Get a whole round of free drinks for all these fine people"—he gestured to all the AVALANCHE group and Rude—"And the tab's on me."
"I'm not taking any charity from you," Cloud muttered.
"Except for that gentleman, apparently. He does not like me. Obviously."
Sera burst out laughing this time. "Yeah, especially since he won't even take a free drink you would pay for!"
She found this so unbelievably hilarious that she slammed her hand on the counter while the laughing fit continued. Initially, Reno grinned back to humor her, but it ended up fading the longer she kept it up.
"Really that funny, huh?"
"Hahahaha! Oh—ow!" Sera leaned back too far, causing her to fall on the unforgiving wooden floor. Checking for injury, she noted that there was likely going to be a nice bruise on her right arm in the morning.
Reno smirked. "Who's laughing now?"
With an irritated click of the tongue, she regained her composure as she settled herself back into her stool. "Oh, shut up. I do have a sense of humor anyway, even if it is warped."
"Warped, yeah, I can understand that," Rude spoke up quietly behind them. "And Sera...Reno's humor is more warped than yours. He just doesn't like to be laughed at."
"Do not, and this is why you shouldn't talk," Reno joked, pointing an accusing finger at his friend. "A magician never reveals his secrets."
Sera rolled her eyes. "If you're talking about yourself, yeah right. You're an open book now. Everyone knows what your personality is like."
He acted as though he was prepared to say something to refute her statement but soon gave up. "That's true. But, I'm just that type of guy. I can't be shut in, you know."
If she hadn't known any better, Sera would have assumed that he was insinuating that she was "shut in", meaning closed-off. What was more embarrassing was that he was (maybe?) telling her that she shouldn't be that way. She hoped she wasn't right about either of those surmises at all. Who was he to tell her how to live her life?
Scratching the back of her neck, she murmured, "Good for you. That just means you're one great big ball of energy, aren't you? Like...Like some nova. Well, guess what happens to novas?"
The most shocking part to her was that Reno caught on. "I'm not that reckless."
Too many metaphors in this conversation. Like a real supernova, Sera felt that her head would explode. Luckily, Tifa, after jotting down nearly everyone else's orders in their close-knit group, turned toward them.
In her heart of hearts, Sera was overwhelmingly relieved that she could return to their banter. "So, what are you ordering, Reno? You look like an appletini man to me."
Yuffie must have taken some interest because she asked, "Ser, are you saying that he's metrosexual?"
She suppressed a snort. "That's exactly what I'm saying. And that earring of yours"—she poked at his small hoop earring—"Very, very metrosexual."
Reno shook his head. "I'm not into those fruity drinks. I like whiskey, vodka occasionally when I'm feeling festive. So, whiskey for me, Teef."
"I'll have Burgundy," Sera put in her order.
"Wine, Serafin? Really?"
Hmph, and he acted so surprised. Then again, she was a woman with dignity and class, as she liked to call herself. She never wanted to stumble from obscene amounts of liquor. A situation that Reno probably found himself in more times than he could count, she could only imagine. She'd seen firsthand just how plastered he could get.
She wryly smirked. "Don't call me Serafin. Really. Anyway, I'm not much of a drinker. No point in overdoing it."
The bewildered look never quite left Reno's face. "I get that—hmph, I guess, not really. But...Not even to get buzzed?"
"Nope. But, with you, it's probably slightly more than buzzed. In fact—thanks"—Sera received her glass of red wine—"With you, you probably stagger out of the bar every night."
"When have you ever seen me do that?" he asked, scoffing.
"Once," she stated with a perfect poker face. "We were all here, like now, and you were nursing a broken heart…or your version of one anyway. Some girl named...Hell, I don't remember her name. Rachel? Whatever, you kept going on and on about her."
Reno propped his elbow up on the counter. "I was a little bummed out that time, yeah. And I didn't stagger. I remember. I tripped, but that was it. I was just buzzed."
Sera fixed him with a deadpan stare.
He shrugged. "A little more than buzzed."
"I call BS." She gazed at him intently to guilt trip him to the point of letting his not-so-secret out.
Raising his hands in surrender, he confessed, "OK, OK, I was pissed drunk. Would you say that, Rude?"
Rude nodded. "I had to carry you all the way back to your apartment."
Sera laughed. "Wow, that's not good. But, I guess you are usually good about holding your liquor, Reno."
Reno pretended to be shocked. "Well, well, well, I get a compliment out of you for once."
"I'm not all ice, let's just say that." She took a few sips from her glass, allowing herself to close her eyes. Though she really wasn't that much of a drinker, she loved wine. In a time that seemed far away from her now, she had tasted a little of it at a cousin's wedding when she was twelve. She guessed that wine made her feel connected with family memories, from a psychological standpoint.
Bringing her out of her reverie, Yuffie remarked to her, "You really like that stuff, don't you? Though, personally, I think you should be more adventurous."
Sera opened her eyes and nearly went into another giggle fit. She didn't know exactly what drink Yuffie had ordered, but she could recognize a sake bomb when she saw one. Yuffie's drink fizzed, almost bubbling over.
"Eighteen and you're already doing that." Sera shook her head in disbelief. "Jeez...But, forget it, Yuff. Reno probably experimented with sake bombs when he was thirteen. Just kids' stuff for him."
Tifa finished up talking to Cloud for now, as she turned her head their way again. After all, she was one busy bartender, constantly dividing her time between socializing and getting orders made for customers.
"Reno's never gonna hear the end of it from you, is he?"
Sera shrugged. "Eh, he can take it. Right, Re—? Oh."
With many conversations pervading the room, there was no possible way she could have heard his cellphone go off or paid attention to that fact. Currently, she noted that he was on it with presumably Rufus, judging how solemn his face looked.
"Uh-huh. Yeah. All right, all right, if you really want us to. K, later." Reno hung up, mentioning to Rude, "The boss assigned us a night job. God, I hate those. Interferes with my fun."
Almost distractedly, he laid around 200 gil on the counter to pay for the round of drinks. Then, he glanced over at Sera.
"I gotta go. Business stuff and all that. I'll see you around. See you, guys."
And just like that, Reno left. For once, in a disconcerting way, Sera was not happy with his departure, especially with his reason why. What pained her most was that she'd almost really become closer with him tonight yet in a manner that was nearly unsettling to her.
They'd laughed, bantered, and overall managed to have a non-hostile conversation for a change. At least on her part, she'd been a little less guarded around him because he hadn't discussed his job in great detail. He'd joked and smiled, his jovial self, the side that she liked most. The side that she dared to be attracted to…He had been carefree and laid-back without being an ass about it. And that was rare for Reno.
Tugging on her arm, Yuffie asked, "Hey, Sera, you OK?"
"I…" Sera gulped uncomfortably.
Were the emotions that obvious on her face? Why would she care so much, be so anxious over a Turk who could more than easily look after himself? Besides, her initial idea in coming to 7th Heaven was to have a good time and have some company in the form of her AVALANCHE friends. She hadn't predicted that he would make an appearance and somehow disrupt her whole night as well as her peace of mind.
No, she wouldn't lie and say she was fine. Lying was the one vice she'd hate to rely on, even if her present mindset was a direct result of Reno leaving for another assignment that would most likely, essentially involve crushing skulls.
At length, she responded, "I think I might want to go home."
"Awww, don't be like that!" Yuffie urged. "You just got here. And anyway"—she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper—"You're not going to let some Turkey ruin your whole night, are you?"
Sera laughed, the worry lines fleeing from her face. "Hell no. Cheers."
The two young women clinked glasses and drank to being single women, not weighed down by the duplicity and idiocy of men. Why not? She would stay here for a couple more hours, as Yuffie had suggested.
In the meantime, Tifa sent her a knowing look across the counter nearby. It was the kind of look that hinted that she speculated that her friend was ever so slowly falling for Reno. Sera half-smiled at Tifa in the knowledge that that stare signified just that: speculation. She was well-aware that the bartender only looked out for her and protected her in a sisterly way. Sera had been hurt in her life, broken down, and experienced the most devastating blows of anyone she ever knew with very few exceptions. She'd learned to be tough the hard way.
Thus, she would continue on that path, keeping on this armor. And Reno would not in any way puncture it. She would make sure of that.
A/N: I made an inevitably cheesy Cheers reference but whatever. Don't judge me and my love for older sitcoms. XD As for sake bombs, the only reason I knew the existence of those was through a movie. I thought they looked cool, so I wanted to put that there.
OK, so I'll be updating next Friday. See you then, everyone.