Reno: Where the hell have you been yo?

Naril: ehe....uhm.... work?

Kadaj: You don't have a job, you're a student.

Naril:... oh fine! I kinda had an issue with this chapter...you know... new computer without spellcheck...but now it's here...finally! Enjoy:

She did not know what exactly woke her up, but she clearly felt dampness on her back and heard uneven breathing. Quickly sitting up, her gaze fell on the Turk who once more had started trembling and shaking.

"Turkey?" The ninja put a hand on his arm. When there was not response apart from a little whimper, she shook him.

Where was Tifa when you needed her? Slightly panicked, she forced the resisting redhead onto his back, so she could see his almost white face. His eyes were closed tightly, hands cramping into the sheets underneath him.

Feeling rather lost, Yuffie brushed a few sticky red strands from a burning forehead. Now her own hands were shaking.

"Reno!" She whispered around the lump in her throat. When he turned his head away, she grabbed his chin, forcing him to face her.

"Reno, look at me!"

Too slowly for her liking, emerald eyes fluttered open. Yuffie's violet ones widened when she saw the red tinge to them.

"Damn, why didn't you tell me it has gotten worse?" She asked in a quiet voice that surprised her as much as him.

"Wha' you gonna do 'bout it?" He croaked weakly. She ignored him, taking a moment to think.

Deciding to check for the obvious, she determined he probably had a fever, although her knowledge was not enough to be sure.

"Does it hurt?"

Another nod. After clearing his throat, the Turk tried to speak. "Like... when chocobo-head... stabbed me." He managed to choke out. His attempt to smirk failed miserably.

"Where?"

Cold finger touched her hand, still on his chin and weakly guided it to the left side of his chest. Yuffie just stared at his pale face a little longer. She had a bad feeling, a really bad feeling.

Reno wathed her out of dull eyes, until they fell shut. He was simply too burnt out to care for anything but the pain lulling him into blackness. He only realised that she had opened his shirt when her cool hand touched his burning skin.

Yuffie felt her face turn a suspicous red, but tried to ignore it. She had a hunch that she was not looking for an old scar. It did not take her long to realise that his heart was pounding inside his chest. She stayed like this a little longer and gasped at finding ist beat to be unsteady.

"Turkey!"

She lightly slapped his tatooed cheek.

"Do me a faour and don't fall asleep, ok?" She told him when she finally got him to open his eyes once more.

Now she really was panicking with not a clue about what to do. She had promised not to tell anyone, which robbed her of the possibility of calling a hospital. Calling Tifa would just result in ending up in said building and why would her father be prepared to help an employee of Shinra?

That left either Reeve, Cid, Nanaki, Barrett or Vincent. Reeve fell out for obvious reasons. So did Barrett and Cid. They would probably be happy if the Turk checked out permanently for all he had done in the past.

She had no idea of getting a hold of Red and so her best bet was Vincent. This suited her fine because he would definitely keep his mouth shut. She would not even have to ask. Hastily she jumped up in order to find her PHS. A quivering hand found her fingers.

"Where're you goin'?" A soar whisper reached her ear.

"I'm right here, Turkey! Don't worry."

The ninja reached for her bag and rummaged through it for the phone. Quickly dialling the number, she waited. "You better pick up!"

-"Is there any particular reason why you're calling me in the middle of the night, Yuffie?"

"Vinny...erm.... I need your help." The silence from his end told her he was listening.

"See... there's this... friend of mine... he ...is trying to get rid of ....an addiction and ... he's kinda ...going through really... bad withdrawals..." She stopped her stuttering when there was a sigh on the other end.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Vinny! What am I gonna do?" She spared a glance at the Turk behind her who had curled into a ball. Then she dashed off into the bathroom, closing the door so he would not hear her next words.

"I'm scared he's gonna die!" She whispered into the phone.

-"Even you should be smart enough to call..." –"I promised not to." She successfully ignored that she sounded like a whiney kid.

"You know what to do, Vinny! You're smart! Help me!" She could almost see him scowl at the phone. "Please, Vincent!" She begged again for good measure.

"A small dosage of the drug will probably allow the body to readjust." Without another word he hung up.

Yuffie's eyes fell on the pile of shards she had left in the corner. "Thanks, Vinny." She mumbled to herself, reaching wearily for the syinge in between them.

"Right..." She looked around the room, trying to find a disinfectant or anything she could use to do that. Surprisingly, she managed to find a first aid kit. Thinking about it, with a job like his, the redhead probably needed it.

She grabbed the whole thing and ran back to the room outside.

Reno was still in a heap on the bed, limp hand hanging off the edge. Deciding that he needed to wake up, she shook him a little to get his attention.

"Turkey! I need a little help here!"

But the Turk did not budge.

The ninja groaned inwardly. "You owe me big time after this!" She took off the ribbon she was wearing, tying it tightly around the Turk's upper arm, after she rolled up the dirty sleeves. She had seen people do it before. It could not bet hat difficult.

Grabbing the slack limb, she proceeded to frantically search for a vein in the crook of his elbow. Suceeding, she swallowed hard, trying to concentrate on what she had to do and not think about it.

Before she could hesitate, she adjusted the device in her grip and drove it into his skin. She injected half of the liquid although her stomach revolted.

"You better not die on me, Turkey!" She murmured whilst trying to find a way of getting rid of the device. That was when she noticed all the little half-healed entry-scars.

"Damn, you look like you fell on a hedgehog." The ninja whispered quietly.

"I've looked a helluva lot worse."

The hoarse voice startled her and she looked up into the Turks face. Half-lidded aqua-marine eyes watched the rapid change of emotion on her face. Shock was quickly followed by relief and then anger.

"Don't scare me like that, moron." She bristled and turned away, but did not move from her spot on the bed. She fiddled with her phone for a while just in case.

Fortunately Vincent appeared to have been right. The redhead's breathing evened out and his body relaxed visibly ono the matress. She decided to get uo and find something to eat at hearing the growling of her stomach.

As soon as she moved, a cold hand grabbed hers.

"Where're you goin'?" Reno mumbled.

"I'm hungry!" The ninja answered, her voice having something of a whiney quality. This managed to produce a half-smile on the Turk's face. "I'm not."

He received a glare in return.

"I damn well know you're not! But just cause you wanna starve yourself doesn't mean I have to do that, too." She told him, shaking off his hand before she turned to take her bag from where she had dumped it.

Reno just watched her as she put on the backpack.

"I'll be back soon, Turkey. Don't get any stupid ideas." With that she went out the door.

Sighing quietly, the redhead decided to close his eyes and attempt to sleep. He was grateful that the pain was numbed, but had to admit that it worried him all the same.

One pale hand reached over to the left side of his chest. Listening to the steady beat, he found that whenever he tried to close his eyes, something held him back.

He had never really been scared of dying. Not until now. Somehow it just did not seem all that appealing anymore.

With his hand still pressed to his ribcage, he rolled onto his side, afraid it could stop suddenly if he was not careful. "Bloody drugs!" He mumbled, curling up further facing the wall. He was shivering again.

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