4| Pajamas & Women
Shelly stepped out from the cab sighing wearily. She had gotten off work really late tonight. She hoped that the nanny had already bathed and tucked in Calvin, so she could go to sleep immediately.
There were five figures standing at the garden.
Teenagers, Shelly snarled mentally as she meandered towards the small group. "Excuse me?" she called out to them, "may I ask why you are in my property?" Against the porch light, Shelly saw that the five were not teenagers, but women.
Women approximately her age.
"May I help you?" she asked.
One of them turned to face her. The woman was quite beautiful. "You," she said sharply—her voice had a rough quality. "What is your relationship with SOLDIER First Class Genesis?"
Oh no. A chill ran up Shelly's back. It was Genesis' admirers.
She had, of course, heard stories about his admirers being viciously devoted to him, but never thought for a second that she would ever get so close to one. Personally, she thought were a little too overdramatic, too attached to someone who didn't want to be in their company. Now, studying the small group, she noticed that they were wearing red jackets with RL embroidered at the chest.
"We saw you together with him with a baby the other day!" another piped, pointing at Shelly. "Do not deny!" The other girls nodded.
Shelly tried to calm down.
What did you do when you were cornered by fans? She didn't know. She didn't have an idea at all. She began to take cautious steps away from them. "Ah," she tried to say, "I'm only the Director's secretary. He only asked me to accompany him yesterday…"
"You haven't answered our question!" they snapped.
"We are not friends or anything," she answered, trying to level out her voice, "really!" She held up her hands. Come on, I don't have time for this! I just wanna get out of my stiff work clothes already, jeez! The group converged on her. All five women looked absolutely threatening. "He only asked me to accompany him for his daughter's—" Don't hurt me.
They all gasped then gaped.
"Our Genesis does have a baby girl!" one squealed. The women looked delighted, and almost forgot about Shelly. One appeared to have launched into an episode of hysterics.
Shelly stared at the Red Leather members, feeling an inkling of relief that she now had a chance to slowly back away from them and escape. Inching away slowly, the secretary couldn't help but feel a little sorry for them.
"Where do you think you're going?" said one, who finally noticed the fair gap between them. "We've got a lot of questions to ask you!"
Shelly groaned and told them, "If you don't get off my property now, ladies, I will call the police. This is a private area, and I am very, very exhausted. Plus, I do not think that Commander Rhapsodos would like it if I talked about his life, which I barely know anything about."
The women stared at her. They clearly did not have plans to leave soon.
"I can't help you girls," the secretary said, "I only work for Shin-Ra. I need to support my kid. Now can you please go? It's really getting quite late." Shelly yawned, despite herself. Well, so much for that bubble bath.
One of them made a move to grab her.
To her relief, the front door opened and her husband walked out; he was already in his pajamas. "Shelly, baby? Who are these women with you, your officemates?" he inquired, making a beeline for her. Luke stood wrapped an arm around her waist.
The members of Red Leather looked startled. "No, we're not her officemates. We're sorry to have kept her. We're leaving now," said one. Bowing hurriedly, the group scuttled out of the couple's yard.
"Who were they?" Luke asked, looking down at his wife.
Shelly smiled weakly. "Oh, just strangers asking for…" she looked at her husband's chest, "directions."
"Directions?" her husband repeated, "Really? Sheillary, you are not a very good liar." Luke chuckled and kissed her forehead. "Come inside. It's cold."
"Oh alright, fine, mister lawyer, those women were from one of the SOLDIER fan clubs. Apparently they saw me while I was accompanying Commander Rhapsodos a few days ago."
"Accompanying? Where did you accompany Rhapsodos?" Luke sounded a little alarmed as he locked the door.
Shelly threw her bag on the couch and sighed. "Apparently, he's got a child to care for and he doesn't have an idea how to, at all. Don't worry yourself, Luke." She smiled at him. "Is Calvin asleep yet?"
Before her husband could answer however, something thundered down the stairs. "Mommy!"
Oh dear Minerva, why… Shelly thought as she welcomed her rambunctious little boy in her arms. "Hi sweetie, why aren't you asleep yet? It's way past your bedtime." Calvin buried his face in her chest.
"I was waiting for you!"
Shelly patted down her son's unruly hair and sighed. "Oh that's right, I forgot that it's my turn to you read you a bedtime story."
"Uh-huh!" His eyes were big and bright.
"Then come on. Did you brush your teeth already?"
"Yes, with Daddy." Calvin giggled as his father lifted him off his feet.
"Let Mommy change first," Luke said, smiling.
Shelly followed after them, smiling too. Their son began to talk so fast that it was impossible for her to understand anything. Maybe it was something that he had done together with the nanny. Happy To finally get out of the stiff corporate clothes, Shelly slipped into a loose shirt and pajamas then headed to the adjacent bedroom, where her son's laughs emanated.
From: Red Leather
Contents:
The rumors about our beloved Genesis having a child is true, dear members!
We have just confirmed it from a legitimate source (we will not disclose her identity here, however).
However, the identity of the child's mother is still a mystery.
Oh such happy news!
4.1| Sleepless
Selene was tottering about in the nursery while Genesis followed behind her anxiously. The girl's walk was unstable and he did not want her to accidentally hit her head on the floor. It was almost midnight and yet Selene was not showing any signs of exhaustion. The redhead sighed, and Selene finally stumbled onto her stuffed-toy-littered floor.
Instead of bursting into tears, the baby simply giggled as she grabbed a random toy and held it to her chest. Genesis crouched down to pick her up. "You should be sleeping now, shouldn't you Selene?" he asked the amused little girl in his arms.
He sat down on the nursery rocking chair—which, he hadn't really thought he'd like at first but now he was really enjoying using it; less awkward cradling dances—and hummed a lullaby, to which he had no words for.
She let go of the toy and decided to grab his hair instead. "Da," she giggled.
Da was becoming Selene's expression. She had started saying it just yesterday, and it pleased Genesis. He had a feeling about what the word was, and it was highly endearing and adorable. His effort in repeating 'say Daddy' was paying off quickly. The idea of him telling a kid to call him Daddy was absurd and still so foreign to him, but he had the feeling he was already getting attached to her. Something about her innocence drew him closer.
The girl's pull on his hair was getting stronger. "Do you really want to pull out my hair?" he asked the child sadly. Selene smiled brightly up at him. He planted a soft peck on her forehead.
Tomorrow was going to be the last day of the trial period.
He'd spent the entire week deeply engrossed with infant-care manuals and the infant herself. If Angeal didn't drop by his apartment from time to time, Genesis doubted if he would ever find time to breathe and work on the steadily rising pile of paperwork on his desk downstairs.
Somewhere in the middle of the race of the moon and sun, the redhead finally realized how difficult being a parent was. There were so many things he had to sacrifice for the child's welfare. He caught himself wondering, a number of times, if his adoptive parents had done all these things for him—if they hadn't hired maids.
Genesis had managed to slip into a pediatrician's office by the fourth day, when he had finished reading about the illnesses and conditions babies were susceptible of. He had gotten paranoid about the things he read. It turned out that he had nothing to worry about in the end; he also found out that Selene was a type O and was a year old. The pediatrician was a member of his fan club too, and that was just great. He made her swear to not to tell a soul about the child.
Genesis resumed with the lullaby. Once Selene was finally sleeping, the doting SOLDIER tucked her in and turned off the lights.
"The wind sails over the water's surface; quietly, but surely… sleep well, little one."
He woke up at three-thirty from her cry.
Flicking the light on, Genesis lifted Selene from the crib and gave her a bottle of ready-made milk. Sitting in the rocker, Genesis flitted to sleep and back a few times. Yes, child-rearing was an arduous task. It required so much time, so much sacrifice. It was a tad bit more difficult than planning combat strategies. But Miss Cole had been correct, it was enjoyable.
He placed the empty bottle on the adjacent table and patted Selene's back, to make her burp. Genesis was careful not to thump the tiny girl's back too hard.
When Selene fell back to sleep, Genesis found himself unable to return to his. He stood there, in the dim room, scowling. Well, now what? he thought, sighing. Selene was fast asleep. Angeal was, for the third time, right. Ugh, Genesis added.
Preempting himself from a bad mood, the redhead sat back down on the rocker, turned on the table lamp and pulled out a storybook. Naturally, the story he'd picked out was far too childish for his tastes, but they entertained him enough to stop his inevitable moodiness.
"Let's see what we have here," Genesis murmured as he opened the thin, illustration-filled book.
He replaced the book a short while later, feeling quite amused. Soon, he'd be reading them aloud to Selene. Genesis traipsed out of the room feeling wide awake. His eyes landed on the piano.
Did he dare play to rouse Selene and Angeal? Of course not—it was not worth hearing the baby scream and Angeal's scolding.
"I might as well go downstairs and go over those documents." Genesis said absently and headed out, not caring that he was just wearing his pajamas.
4.2| Ap!
Director Lazard Deusericus found SOLDIER First Class Genesis Rhapsodos asleep in his office, with a fountain pen still bleeding ink on a document. The blonde shook his head, debating on whether or not the auburn haired man had fire material on him.
"Commander Rhapsodos!" Lazard finally snapped.
True to his profession, Genesis woke up. The SOLDIER looked ready to tackle whoever just screamed at him, but the ferocity backed down once he saw the intruder. "Director," he breathed, "good morning." He let a corner of his mouth rise.
Lazard shook his head and told the First, "I went to your apartment, but it appeared that you were not there. Why are you in your office, and on top of that, why are you in your pajamas, Commander?"
Genesis took a deep breath then opened his eyes again. "Selene woke up at three something because she was hungry. When she fell asleep again, I couldn't fall asleep anymore so I decided to get some work done instead."
"I see," the Director said gravely, taking a seat, "I had Commander Hewley open the door for me while I was in your floor. Your ward was crying, you see."
The SOLDIER's eyes widened.
"Do not fret, I had Shelly take care of her." Lazard told the panicking Genesis. He laced his hands together and looked the redhead in the eye. "We have to talk—we've been waiting for this moment, haven't we?"
Genesis did not feel like talking yet. Really. He wasn't ready to be nice and Genesis. He glared at his boss. "Director, I would appreciate it if you at least allowed me to have coffee and change into my uniform first."
The older man chuckled. "Do as you must. Shall I follow you to your apartment or shall I wait here?"
Not wanting to be rude to his superior, Genesis told him to come along.
Early underclassmen were surprised to see the redheaded First emerging from his office wearing his pajamas. They all gawked at Genesis, who in turn, did not appear to care the least. He still swaggered.
"What are you looking at?" the Commander barked at a poor shaking cadet.
Shelly and Angeal were sitting on the floor watching Selene play with her toys when the two men arrived in the apartment. Laughter filled the vast room.
"Why, good morning to you, miss Cole." Genesis said smoothly, looking down at the secretary. He nodded to his best friend.
"Da!" Selene said happily, raising her arms to him. The child's eyes were bright and conveyed honest adoring recognition.
Genesis collected Selene in his arms and kissed the child's cheek. The toddler smelled of her bath soap and powder. Oh dear, he thought, I owe her again. "Good morning, love," he murmured.
"Ga," Selene giggled.
The Director sat down on the couch and the SOLDIER ambled off to the bedroom, baby still in his arms. Lazard looked at his secretary.
"He seems quite attached," he commented.
Shelly smiled at her boss. "Commander Rhapsodos seems dedicated." She hadn't mentioned anything about her encounter with the Commander's fan club.
"You may go to office now, Shelly. Thank you very much. I'll make sure to pay for this little inconvenience." Lazard said kindly. Nodding, the secretary left the apartment.
The man of the hour returned almost immediately. Selene had her tiny arms around his neck. Genesis did not seem bothered by it at all. He set her down beside Angeal.
"Commander," Lazard said, looking straight at the First. "How did your week go?"
Heaving a dramatic sigh, Genesis answered, "Of course… I found it extremely maddening at first since I did not know a thing regarding infants." He left out the part where he had felt hopeless and almost considered giving in. No, Genesis Rhapsodos had too much pride to admit those. "But when I learned what to do, thanks to Miss Cole, I found the task rather enjoyable."
Lazard arched a brow. "What did my ever-so-reliable secretary teach you?"
A faint color rose from Genesis' neck to his face. It took him a moment to speak. "Well… she taught me how to… feed the child and make her burp… how to make her stop crying… basically all the things I'd never ever thought I'd do in my whole life." He cleared his throat even though there was nothing to clear.
The blonde man concealed a smile, to save the SOLDIER's dignity. "I see." He looked at Hewley. "Commander, I know that you spend a lot of time with Genesis so I'll go ahead and ask you. Is Genesis suitable to father the girl?"
Angeal looked mildly surprised; he held the stuffed unicorn in midair, Selene strained to reach for it. When he finally recovered his composure, the burly Commander said, "In the past week, I saw a different Gen. I never thought that I would see him play with stuffed chocobos or unicorns and speak in a hilarious voice, but I did. I see that he can raise Selene. Genesis… he's the kind of guy that does what he says he'll do." He left out the fact that he often came over to check if Genesis hadn't roasted the child for being too noisy. One could never be too complacent with Genesis. But of course, Angeal stopped thinking this in the middle of the week.
Lazard took the third-in-command's answer into consideration and pushed his glasses up. "Seeing that you are well-prepared for the duties of raising the girl, we come to another question, Commander."
Genesis' eyes were narrowed.
"The question is this," the blonde said evenly. "Don't you think that raising a child, more importantly a girl, in this area would be a little inconvenient? I already asked you this the day you came back from your mission but you didn't answer this clearly."
Well, this is a tough cookie, Genesis mused. Selene finally managed to snatch the unicorn away from Angeal. He bit the inside of his cheek. Did his boss moonlight as a social worker? The redhead took another deep breath. "Of course it would be inconvenient for the child to grow up here, but what other choice do we have? Growing up in an orphanage is much, much more scarring than living here. The only danger that poses a threat to her is the damned Science department."
Angeal inclined his head. Yes, the Science department posed great danger to anyone.
"A young girl living with SOLDIER…" Lazard mumbled. "Are you not afraid that you might suddenly lash out on her later on? Are you not aware that you will be exposing her to a world where innocence is not welcome? She is young, Commander. She will be curious. She will get herself hurt."
Genesis was beginning to get riled up. "I will do everything in my power to protect her from harm," he answered coolly, despite himself.
"What kind of protection are you thinking of, Commander? Do you wish to have the standard-issue swords to be blunted and the artillery hidden?"
"Of course not," the redhead spat, "I will not allow her down to the SOLDIER floor."
Lazard nodded. "Oh. I see. Commander, have you informed your family about her?"
"No." Genesis replied.
Their Director rose from the couch and said, "Then that's it. I will have the adoption papers prepared. Oh, does my secretary know about this whole business or would this be one of those don't-ask-don't-tell situations?"
"She doesn't know," Genesis said.
Lazard kneeled down to pat Selene, who beamed up at the man. "Shin-Ra offers apartments outside of the headquarters. I believe that the penthouse in Sector 8 is still unoccupied. Think about it."
Once Genesis heard the elevator doors slide close, he threw himself on the couch with a relieved sigh. "Penthouse, huh?" The redhead rolled his eyes at Angeal. "What do you think, 'Geal?"
The burly man shrugged and sat down. "I don't know… don't you think it's more dangerous for you and Selene? Your admirers are quite the stalkers."
"You're right." Genesis grinned. Selene toddled over to where they were, pink unicorn and yellow chocobo in her hands. The redhead picked her up and placed her on his lap.
"But are you serious about not telling your parents?" his friend inquired.
Staring up the ceiling, Genesis muttered, "They'll know, even if I do not tell them." His PHS vibrated on the tabletop. After a minute, the auburn haired man laughed. "See?"
From: Charlotte R.
Contents:
When were you planning to tell us about our granddaughter, Genesis?
We've only just gotten the news!
Honestly! You did not even introduce our daughter-in-law yet!
Your father and I are so thrilled, son!
Do come home when you can, we would really love to meet your wife and daughter.
The older man was groaning. "They already know what her gender is!"
Angeal only laughed. "Well, they do finance your fan club, after all."
Genesis looked down at Selene, whose eyes twinkled as she giggled. He smiled idly.
"Ap," she laughed.
"Up?" Genesis repeated, furrowing his brows. "Where'd you learn that?"
"Ap, ap, ap, ap!" Selene began to shriek, kicking him in the gut.
Angeal watched the exchange. "You haven't been mentioning 'apple' to her now have you?"
The redhead stopped for moment and said that he had.
"Oh, then she must be trying to say apple," the black haired man said, rising from the couch. He took an apple from the kitchen and gave it to Genesis. "Sephiroth's back."
Genesis glanced away from Selene, who was tapping and hitting the dumbapple with her tiny hands with so much enthusiasm. "Really? That's great!"
Angeal nodded. "He'll be waiting for us tonight at 61."
"I can't wait." Genesis smiled; he stood up and set the baby on Angeal's lap. "I've got a good idea myself."
He pureed the dumbapple.
4.3| the Great General
Eleven o'clock found the two SOLDIER Firsts ambling in the deserted hallway of the SOLDIER floor. The floor was dim and very cold. It still reeked of sweat to them, despite the fact that it had been cleaned an hour ago.
Sephiroth was leaning on Level 61's door, the Masamune beside him. The general could have been mistaken for a statue masterfully done, except, his eyes were watching the two approaching men. A small smile crept in and spread in his mouth.
It was Genesis who said hello first.
"It has been a while," Sephiroth said quietly, opening the training room.
"Who would have thought that Wutai would keep you for so long?" Genesis smirked. Sephiroth merely cracked a grin and Angeal chuckled. Looking over his shoulder, Angeal asked where they wanted to play.
"Banora, definitely," the redhead said, "Unless you want to go back to Wutai, Seph."
"I think I've had enough of that place for a while," the youngest (but didn't appear to be) said. "Do you miss home, Genesis?"
"No. Never," the red leather clad man replied.
The dull room was replaced with the Banoran countryside. All three men held their swords at the ready. Angeal spoke, "Try not to get yourselves too hurt," he glanced at Genesis.
"Why don't you want to go home?" Sephiroth asked genuinely.
Genesis smiled menacingly. "Because I no longer belong there, my destiny is here. Why do wish me to go home, Sephiroth? Threatened?"
"Ha," Sephiroth huffed. "You wish."
Virtual fireflies flitted between the trio, once the fireflies had vanished, the three men began to play. The reverberating sound of cold metal against metal filled the countryside. Genesis and Angeal strained against the Masamune; Sephiroth merely smiled at them.
With a smooth and planned movement, the other two men were thrown back a few meters. Angeal hit a young Banora White tree. The thin trunk gave way to him. Genesis eyed his best friend with little interest.
"My friend, do you fly away now?
To a world that abhors you and I?"
Angeal was back on his feet. He dusted off his clothes and returned to his fighting stance. The redhead did not hesitate for a moment and attacked Sephiroth again. The redhead's attempt was blocked yet again, but wasn't thrown off.
"I missed this," Genesis breathed as he forced the Masamune away from him. He leapt away from Sephiroth, grinning. He ran his hand over his Rapier, his lips moving together in silent prayer. The Rapier glowed.
Sephiroth looked on, his eyes egging the irascible Genesis.
Angeal sighed. They were at it again. "Genesis," he warned.
Genesis looked at Angeal with excited eyes.
It was always Genesis who gets carried away. Sephiroth would follow, and Angeal would have to stop them, before they blow up the simulation. It was very tedious to stop the pair.
Before the most mature of the three could tell Genesis to simmer down, they were off, leaving a trail of burning dumbapple trees on the ground. Angeal sprinted after them, feeling annoyed. He found the duo dueling in front of the simulation-Rhapsodos manor. The garden was in flames.
"This, Sephiroth, is my house," Genesis told the younger man, their swords still driving against each other. "You'll be welcome here anytime." They parted.
Sephiroth looked at the simulation. "Oh is that so? I thank you."
He found an opening.
The second-in-command's breath hitched as the cold steel of the Masamune stroked the exposed flesh of his neck. Shit, he swore.
"It looks like I win again," Sephiroth said evenly. He put down the sword.
Genesis scowled. "Yes, it does seem so." He ran his hand over the Rapier and repeated the silent prayer. "My soul, corrupted by vengeance…"
The trio walked out of the training room with a merry mood. It was Genesis who laughed hardest. "You didn't even try, Angeal!"
Angeal merely smiled. "Well, you didn't seem like you were going to let me join the game, so I let the both of you be." The tallest of them made no comment.
After their chortles died down, Genesis turned to look at his comrades. "Come to my apartment in the morning," he said with a friendly smile. "I want you to meet somebody, Sephiroth." He bid them a good rest.
Sephiroth looked at Angeal. "Who does he want me to meet?" he asked. Angeal did not answer for a while; his thick arms were folded across his chest. The black haired man finally replied, "His girl. Well, I'll see you later." He left a bewildered Sephiroth.
One thought ran through the great Sephiroth's mind—were SOLDIER allowed to have civilian women in the premises?
He woke up at dawn because of somebody wailing downstairs. Sephiroth sat bolt straight in his bed, wondering and feeling annoyed. Gene's girl?
What was he doing to her, at such an ungodly hour?
'Waah—'
He had imagined that women cried more gracefully. But who was he to talk? He had never been in the company of a civilian lady.
The wailing stopped.
Glad that he did not have to intervene with his friend's early morning affair, for the sake of the lady, Sephiroth went back to sleep.
Angeal and Sephiroth could already smell what Genesis was cooking from the door. Neither men were wearing their uniforms. Sephiroth was wearing a gray sweater with the SOLDIER insignia emblazoned across his chest.
The front door was unlocked.
Laughter trickled into Sephiroth's ears.
There was no woman in the apartment and it smelled drastically different. The dumbapple scent was overpowered by something else Sephiroth could not name. Has Genesis been experimenting with Materia again?
Angeal made a beeline for the floor, cooing. "Good morning, little one!"
Sephiroth trained his eyes on where his friend was kneeling. The burly man had a child in his arms. A child in a flower printed frog suit.
"I see you're finally here," Genesis said as he appeared from the kitchen. He was toweling his hands dry.
Reluctantly, Sephiroth greeted the man. His eyes were still on the beaming little thing.
She squealed at the sight of Genesis. "Da!"
The redhead collected her in his arms and let her rest on his hip. He smiled down at the child.
"…Is she your child, Genesis?" the general inquired. The girl had the same copper hair.
"No," the second-in-command answered. "She's adopted. Sephiroth, this is Selene can call her Selene."
"Adopted?" Sephiroth looked over to Angeal.
"Genesis took her back with him from his last mission, Seph."
The silver-haired man stared at Genesis. "You stole the girl from her parents?"
The short-tempered First frowned. "I did not! It was just that her family got in ShinRa's way and I thought that it would be so unfair to take away her life when she hasn't done anything wrong." Genesis' face softened a bit. "It's odd for me too, to suddenly think like that."
"Yes, it is," the youngest man agreed.
Selene finally saw him. Her eyes were big and clear—untouched, unclouded by Mako. It mesmerized Sephiroth. Genesis huffed and marched to the dining room. "Come, the food's waiting."
She was sitting on a high chair beside Genesis.
The general found eating difficult, since his attention was zeroed in on the child.
Genesis talked in an unfamiliar tone—and Genesis already had a strange accent—as he tried to persuade Selene to let the 'airplane' in.
"What is that?" he finally asked.
"Oh, this? Mashed bananas," the redhead answered. "It's time for her to be acquainted with solid food, the manual said."
"Manual?" Sephiroth's face was wrinkled—so rare!—with confusion.
Genesis rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Sephiroth, did you expect me to know what to do without a manual?"
"…No."
Selene let the yellow goop cascade out of her tiny mouth.
"No, baby, it's not nice to do that!" Genesis scolded as he cleaned Selene's mouth with a face towel (which came from nowhere.)
Watching Genesis now was extremely disturbing for Sephiroth.
What had hit the redhead in the skull?
4.4| Gossip
The secretaries were all huddled in a corner at the employee's lounge. Shelly ambled to the farthest table with a cup of water.
"Shelly!" one of them called. "Come and join us!"
She groaned. The secretary had planned to nap for at least 20 minutes.
"So nice for you to drop by," Kim from the Human Resources department said, smiling toothily at Shelly. "Oh girls, make room for Shelly!" The other secretaries scooted over in the bench to make a tiny space.
Dorian, from the Counseling department looked up at her expectantly.
Inwardly annoyed, Shelly sat down gingerly beside her.
She didn't hang out with the other secretaries much—sure, she talked to them about the weather and other trivialities, but that was about it.
"Hey, we heard news about SOLDIER Genesis having a kid," one of them began. They all leaned in towards her, waiting.
Why was she being followed by hoards of women because of Rhapsodos? Shelly scowled momentarily.
"Is it true?"
Looking down at her untouched cup of water, Shelly nodded. "I don't know anything beyond that." They'd kebab her if she told them that she was helping him take care of the girl.
One of them shook their head. "Dear, dear… such an unfortunate soul!"
Puzzled, the SOLDIER secretary looked at the throng of women around her. They didn't seem all that thrilled, unlike the Red Leather girls.
"Don't get us wrong Shelly—Commander Rhapsodos is absolutely handsome and talented, but let's face it, he's got a very short fuse… I wonder how many times he's shouted at the poor baby already… Oh… I'd save her from growing up under such a man's temper." Kim said.
She didn't know what to say.
"He's so scary! He's always so… irritated about something."
"I always thought it was going to be SOLDIER Hewley who would settle down…"
And with that, the secretaries launched into a torrent of gossip regarding the red haired SOLDIER. Shelly sat there, feeling more and more out of place as they dove deeper with the rumors.
Dear Minerva why do you keep interfering with my much needed nap?
She coughed to recapture their attention. Pretending to casually glance at her wristwatch, Shelly said that she had to leave. They nodded and resumed the intense blather session.
Author's Note:
Ah! It's been so long since I updated—I apologize! School just started again here, in my side of the world… I hope this update appeases you!
Also, I'd like to make a tiny correction regarding darling Selene's name—she is named after the Titan goddess of the Moon. Thank you, shadowrunner!
Victoria Chrystallis
