14. Just Desserts
As soon as she and Shalua returned from their weekend visit to the mall, Cissnei made her excuses and slipped away. It was too cold to stay outside, though. In a quiet corner at the library, she took out her camera from her bag and placed it on the table, along with a couple of envelopes of processed film. She opened one of them and began flipping through the first of the two rolls she'd had developed in town.
Moments later she nearly scattered the photos on the floor when someone dropped a chair down beside her.
"Hiya, lil' girl. Whatcha got there?"
Reno straddled the chair and leaned over the back of it to pick up the second envelope.
"What I got is a heart attack," she hissed. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"
"Sorry," he said with an unrepentant grin, then slouched over the back of the chair as he removed the photos from the envelope. "Huh, these are all black and white."
"Monochrome, remember?"
"Heh, yeah. Monochrome."
"I like using it for certain kinds of pictures," Cissnei explained as she tapped her scrambled pile of photos against the table for a neater stack. "Colors only get in the way when I'm looking for shapes and patterns."
"Huh, okay. So where'd ya take these?"
She glanced at the photos he was leafing through. The edge of a stone bench, cutting a straight line deep into the image. The smooth crescent of a concrete wall, with pebbles on one side and pathway tiles on the other. Scenes captured behind the school building, near the–
Oh. Oh, no.
"You shouldn't be looking at those."
She reached for them, but he snatched them aside, continuing his browsing.
"C'mon, just a quick peek, yeah? These are really cool."
"They're not–"
Cissnei cut herself off as the smile on Reno's face vanished in an instant. Too late.
She watched as he lifted the photo that had stolen his cheer, then the one below it. Fanned out in his hand, she could see all three images. Reno and the Bro Squad. Troy reaching for Reno. Reno shoving back.
"Are there more?" His voice held no emotion, but she didn't miss the slight tremble of the photos in his hands.
"I... I don't think so."
Reno lifted the third photo, and let out the breath he'd been holding. Underneath was another architectural shot. He flipped back.
"Titan's ass, look at me," he scoffed as he looked at the action photos again. "What a bony fucker. No wonder I was so fuckin' useless in that fight."
Cissnei swallowed at the venom in his voice.
"I'm sorry," she said. "When I took those I didn't know how bad it would get. I thought it'd just be a few guys showing off."
He huffed and slowly shook his head.
"At least you didn't take one where I'm gettin' my ass handed to me by those assholes."
"I can get rid of them, if you want. The negatives, too."
"Nah, it's fine," he sighed. "This one's actually pretty neat, y'know." He held up the one of him shoving Troy in the chest. Reno's face was a twisted mask of fury, while Troy's was almost comical in its wide-eyed surprise.
"Yeah," she said, giving him a shy smile. "It is."
"Got any others in here?"
"No. There's a couple of seniors making out behind the library in this lot though." Cissnei's smile turned crooked as she raised the stack of color photos she'd been looking through. "Caught King Bro and Eelface smoking, too."
"Artsy fartsy shots and tabloid dirt, huh?" he asked, grinning. "Nice. Show me the juicy stuff, yo."
With muffled giggles and hushed commentary, they looked through the photos together.
"Don't see any pics of you in here," Reno said once they had checked out both sets.
"Of course not," she said with a wry smile. "I'm behind the camera."
"You never take pics of yourself? Or have someone else take 'em?"
Her smile waned. She turned away and placed the photos back in their envelopes.
"What?" he wondered.
"I don't like pictures of myself."
"Why not? You're pretty. I proved that to ya already, didn't I?"
Out of the corner of her eye she saw him grin, but she couldn't muster up one of her own.
"I don't like my eyes," she muttered.
"Really? What's wrong with 'em?"
"They look like shark eyes."
Reno snorted.
"Get outta here. Shark eyes are all black and weird-lookin'. Yours are nice."
"No, they're lifeless. There's nothing there."
He was silent a while.
"Got film in that camera?" he asked when she leaned down to put away the envelopes.
"Yeah, I got a new roll when– Hey! What are you doing?"
Reno had snatched up her camera, and hopped out of her reach when she tried to take it back.
"I think you need another point of view, yo."
"Give that back!"
"Just a sec. Just gotta... Ah fuck, how d'ya make the pics sharp with this thing?"
"I'm not going to tell you," she huffed and held out her hand. "Hand it over."
"I think you'd better, unless ya want me to accidentally fuck up your nice lil' camera," he sang, giving the dial around the shutter a tentative poke.
"Shit, don't–" She sighed when he glanced up at her with that wicked grin. "The lens. Rotate the lens."
"The what now?"
"The round thing at the front."
He turned the camera over for a look, then gave it a go.
"A-ha! There we go. Now all we need is a smile."
Cissnei gave him a withering stare.
"Oh, c'mon. You ain't even tryin'!" He fumbled his way closer, peeking through the viewfinder. "C'mon, Ciss," he cooed. "I know ya can do better than that. Who's a pretty girl, eh?"
"I'm not a dog," she said, keeping her face serious.
"Shame, that," he chuckled. "A dog might do as she's told. Now I gotta put some work into it."
"That's... I don't even know what that is, but I'm pretty sure I should be offended."
"Y'know, you're prob'ly right. Lemme make it up to ya, yeah? I'll take a real nice picture of ya. All you gotta do is show a smile for ol' Reno. Just a teeny tiny one will do. C'mon, Ciss, don't make me bring out the really bad jokes. 'Cause I will, and then we'll both be sorry."
Closer and closer he scooted, cajoling in a singsong voice that got more and more ridiculous with each step. When the lens almost touched her nose, she gave up and leaned back, giggling. That same second, she heard the snap of the shutter.
"There," Reno said, handing her the camera with a smug smile on his face. "Take a look at that one. Ya might see somethin' new."
"You're such a jerk," she groaned as she snatched it from him, but couldn't keep the laughter from her voice.
"Yeah, yeah, that's what everyone keeps tellin' me," he drawled with a dismissive wave, sitting down next to her again.
As Cissnei stowed away her camera in her bag, she caught a glimpse of the quarterly report card she'd received the day before.
"Hey, you got your grades too, right?"
"Ehh, I got some envelope, but didn't bother lookin' at it."
"Aren't you curious?"
"Pfft, what's the point," he scoffed. "Ain't like any of it matters."
"Well, I'm curious. Take a look for me? Pretty please?"
Cissnei pouted and batted her eyelashes. Reno gave her a dirty look.
"What's with the damn puppy eyes? That ain't fair, y'know."
"Blame yourself," she cooed. "You started it when you kidnapped my camera and held it hostage."
"Oh, fine."
Reno pulled out a crumpled envelope from his trouser pocket. So indifferent about his grades, yet he carried them around? Cissnei refrained from commenting, and just watched as he ripped it open and pulled out a sheet of paper. He paused, swallowed, unfolded it. Then his mouth fell open.
"Well?" she prompted.
Still he just stared. Cissnei gave him a careful nudge with her elbow.
"What is it?"
"It's a B." His laughter was shrill with incredulity. "It's a goddamn B!"
He showed her his report card: two passed courses. D in Algebra, and B in Biology.
"Holy shit," he mumbled. "I got a B."
The dazed grin on his face made Cissnei smile, too.
"I knew you could do it. How about we celebrate with some cake? My treat."
"Seriously?"
He was staring at her now, and breathed the word in slow-motion. Cissnei pushed herself to her feet, chuckling at his expression.
"Come on, Mister B. Let's get you that cake."
"This is amazin'," Reno said through a mouthful of red velvet cake. "This is the best cake ever, yo."
They sat perched at a tiny round table in the very middle of the school café. Reno had never been inside before. The cakes and cookies weren't free, and while it would have been easy enough to loot a few lockers, he'd known that eyebrows would be raised if someone like him showed up waving gil around. He was beginning to regret not coming in sooner.
"Do you know where the color comes from?" Cissnei asked, and he shook his head. "Beetroots."
"Seriously? You can make cake with those things?" He lopped off another chunk that was too large for his dainty pie fork and shoved it into his mouth, and tried to pick up on the beetroot flavor as he chewed. "Huh, can't tell at all."
"I've got to pop into the little girls' room. Be right back."
"Better hurry, or I might finish yours," he warned, grinning.
"Don't you dare."
She shot him a glare as she got up to leave, though its menace was undercut by her having to hop down from the café's tall chairs.
Reno eyed the cake on her plate as he munched on another piece of his own. It was a sponge cake with two layers of pink mousse and white icing. He wondered if she'd notice a piece missing as he sliced off more of his red velvet cake and lifted it to his mouth.
Someone smashed into his elbow, knocking the cake off his fork. Reno whipped his head up and glared.
"Hey, watch it!"
"Would you look at this?" King Bro sneered, glancing at the blonde girl under his arm. "He's trying to use a fork like a real person."
"Doesn't seem to be going so well, though," Eelface added. He seemed to be alone, but a brunette was hanging off the arm of Mama's Boy.
They had him surrounded. The exit was blocked. Reno felt the adrenaline shoot through his veins, but knew he had to rein it in. This was a public place. Too many witnesses.
"Haha, very funny," he scoffed. "Now fuck off."
King Bro was about to answer, when something behind Reno caught his eye.
"Whoa, is this some kind of date? What, you're pretending to be straight, too?"
Cissnei appeared next to Reno, her chin low and her face set in a scowl.
"Gods, I don't know which to feel more sorry for," Eelface said. "Her for ending up with this loser, or him for being stuck with the psycho bitch."
That settled it. Reno could mouth off to these shitheads all day, but he'd be damned if he let them sneer at her. He slid off his chair, determined to plow through these bastards if he had to.
"C'mon, Ciss. I ain't hungry no more."
He made his way around the table, but King Bro took his arm off his girl and stepped into his path. Reno didn't stop.
"Hey, now, we weren't–"
King Bro grabbed his shoulder. Before Reno could process what was happening, he had smacked the guy's hand off and jumped back.
"Keep your fuckin' hands off me!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I touch you?"
Reno blinked away the memory. It was fleeting, but it was enough to set off a swell of nausea and tighten his chest to the point of physical pain.
"You know, normal people don't freak out about something like this." King Bro jabbed his index finger toward Reno's shoulder, who flinched back. "Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. I mean, how are you ever going to get laid?"
Reno bared his teeth in a rictus grin. He had to play it cool. He couldn't lose his head, not in here.
"That's what you're all worked up about? Didn't know you swung that way, Domino."
This time, he managed to duck past the guy, but he only made two steps before he heard Cissnei cry out. Reno spun around and saw that Eelface had grabbed hold of her bag.
"Let me go!" she spat and shoved him back hard enough to make him lose his grip.
"Heyyy, just wanted to ask if you'd like better company." As she scowled and stalked over to Reno's side, he laughed. "Hey, Rat, you'd better put this wildcat on a leash. Would hate to have something happen if she strays."
Reno had turned toward the door with Cissnei, but that made him freeze to the spot. The pressure was rising up to his head, swelling into a dull ache in his skull. Take deep breaths and leave the situation, the shrink had said. Avoid confrontation. Only, Reno didn't want to leave the situation anymore. He was itching to have a good old "confrontation" with this little shit.
"We can take them."
He stared Cissnei in surprise. She'd muttered it so quietly no one else had picked up on it, but Reno knew what he'd heard. She looked calm, but her chest was heaving.
"We've done it before," she added, and a faint smile appeared on her lips.
She was right about that. He'd hadn't had a physical fight with these assholes since; they always came at him in public these days. Goading him in classrooms and hallways, around other students who would point fingers at Reno the second he used anything more than foul language. The fucking cowards wouldn't give him the chance to–
Cowards.
That was it. That's what they were. Always taunting him in public, where others would intervene. Never when he was alone, and free to throw the first punch. Free to kick their goddamned asses again.
Fucking cowards.
Would hate to have something happen...
Take a deep breath, Reno. Use your words.
We can take them.
The thoughts frothed in Reno's head, smashing against his skull until it was hard to tell where one of them ended and another began. He knew it would stop if he'd just shove his fist into King Bro's smarmy smile, and it was tempting, so fucking tempting, but starting a fight in front of witnesses would get him expelled, cost him what little freedom he had left. Tseng had made it clear he wouldn't bend the rules for Reno again.
Hang on.
Bend the rules. Play with the rules. Use their own rules against them. That's how Turks worked.
An idea shone bright through the buzzing cloud in Reno's head. He latched onto it, began to shape it. Maybe there was a way he could have his cake and eat it, too.
He even had the pie fork still in his hand.
"What's the problem, Rat? Can't you find the fucking door?"
Reno took a deep breath. Thanks for the tip, Mister Shrink, he thought, shifting the fork around to hide it from view. He'd use his words, all right.
"Get ready, Ciss," he mumbled under his breath. "Showtime."
She said nothing, but when they both turned around, he took note of the way she planted her feet and angled her body. She was ready.
They were both ready.