Guest who wants to hug Eden: Thank you for reviewing again! And such a nice review too! If you don't mind, I'd like to give you a hug as well haha. (Digital hug) I'm so flattered by your words of praise! Fleshing out characters can be a real challenge, so I'm really happy whenever someone tells me I've done well. Gah, that moment between Eden and Reno in the chopper... It was definitely time for it to happen, he couldn't keep on lying to her, and most importantly, to himself. I figure by now he realises how much it hurts her, and if he didn't before, her words and actions during their interaction in the chopper made it all too clear for him. He's finally accepting the truth! Yay to decking Rufus in the nose! Let's do it together! (I have a hate/love thing for that man though) Hope you're excited to meet Jack! (We'll get back to that after this next chapter, I'm sure XD) haha, I laughed so hard at that micellair comment lol. You've got it right though! That's exactly the case! Jack's the kind of girl who tries too hard, know what I mean? Eden's never given a rat's ass about looking cute as a doll (though she can if she wants to, like on that shinra party) but I suppose that's part of her natural charm. Of course, it's all down to taste in the end! haha, I had to have Charly be awesome again, I couldn't help myself. He just knows her so well, he doesn't even need words. He just needs to take one look at her face and he knows exactly what's on her mind. Bless him. Needless to say, there's a big adventure waiting around the corner!
Chapter 235
I wanted to get the news across to the Turks right away, hoping they'd jump into action. As soon as we'd left town and were airborne, I gave Tseng a call.
"Guess what," I told him when he answered my call. I imagined him frowning, probably wondering if he had missed something. "I found out where Corneo's Lair is."
"Eden," was his instant reply. "This is no joking matter. Are you absolutely certain?"
Again with the doubts. I may not be a Turk, but a certain someone was convinced I'd make a good one. Was it too much to ask to have a little faith in me?
"Fine," I breathed airily, feigning indifference. "I just missed your voice so much I needed an excuse to call." This time he remained silent, and I just knew that frown was there this time. Ollie was snickering beside me. "Of course I'm goddamn sure!" I firmly added. "I'll give you the details once you promise to let me in on it." There was more silence, and I wondered if there were others in the room with whom he was having a silent conversation. It wasn't like Tseng to ask permission from his subordinates, but he didn't make decisions like this without their approval either. It was a trust thing, something that was very important among the Turk ranks. Trust, respect and loyalty. I trusted them in my own way, though not enough to simply hand him the info and risk getting left out on this. For now, he needed me.
"You must understand," he finally began. "That this will take time to prepare. We're not SOLDIER, we don't burst in blindly. We plan and wait for the right moment to strike. If you can accept that, then we have a deal."
I hadn't expected any different from them. He was right after all, SOLDIER and the Turks may have many similarities, but they were two different branches entirely. "Aye, Sir." I smirked into the phone, already impatient to get started.
Ollie offered to come with me, but I assured him I'd give him a call as soon as anything concrete had been discussed. Besides, he shouldn't be pushing his luck with Eva by staying away days on end. He needed to go home and spend time with her. In the end, he accepted reluctantly, knowing that I was right for once. It didn't happen often that I valued a relationship over a job. The truth was, I valued him more than anything, and I wanted him to be happy.
So after saying goodbye, I made my way back over to the Shinra building in Edge to discuss business with Tseng. It was late in the morning and I considered paying Tifa and Cloud a visit after I was done with Tseng. It had been quite a while since I'd seen Tifa and I missed her talks. The last time had been when Reno had lost his marbles, but we hadn't really talked then, she'd been too busy and too worried. Maybe she would like to go shopping with me.
Yes, things were really looking up for me from now on, I could feel it.
Tseng wasn't in his office, so I strolled further down the hall to look for him. The archives were located one floor down, and since the Turks spent a fair amount of time on administrations, it might be a good place to look. However when I walked in, the only two people there were Rude and Jack. There was no sign of Tseng, or Reno, or even anyone else.
"Hey, Rude, Jack," I acknowledged them as they went through a few files together. Rude nodded at me, while Jack just shot me a look, one I couldn't quite place. It was almost a look of satisfaction.
"Reno wants to see you in the office when you're done here." Her eyes sparkled as her pink lips stretched into a smile. "See you in a few minutes?" She left without waiting for an answer.
Reno wanted to see me? How did he even know I was here? Maybe Tseng had asked him to join us, since he was second in command. It made sense that he would be there, but why would he summon me to his office? I looked at Rude and cocked an eyebrow at him.
"Don't ask me," Rude replied in his calm voice. "He didn't mention anything."
Meaning he hadn't called in a meeting, and neither had Tseng. Then where was Jack going?
"You're going to stay here?" I asked him.
"Yeah, I need to go through some files. Something's come up. Going to take me a while. What are you doing here anyway?"
"I was looking for Tseng," I explained to him while moving back to the door. "I need to discuss something with him, but I couldn't find him in his office. Saw you guys as I passed by, thought I'd say hi."
"Hi," Rude replied, while burying himself in another file, making me chuckle.
I wondered if I should tell him about my findings. Out of all the Turks, Rude had been the one I'd never had any hard feelings for. He was kind in his own way, never cocky or brutal. Even when I'd still been on the run from them, he'd struck me as a man with a conscience, a certain sense of honor. Not the cold blooded killers I took the others for. I'd been wrong about them too, in hindsight. None of them were as bad as I had imagined them to be. I decided telling him would be a show of goodwill, and I wanted us to be friends, especially if we were to work together more often. "Charly sent me on a mission yesterday, I found out where Corneo's at."
"I know," Rude simply said, surprising me. "That what you're going to talk to the Chief about?"
So Charly had beat me to it. "You know, for a spy, Charly sucks at keeping his mouth shut." I grumbled.
"We're all on the same team here. As long as it remains in this building, everything is all right."
"Suppose you're right," I sighed. "Guess I should go see what Reno wants to see me about. Maybe he wants to talk about Corneo too. See you later, Rude."
Without looking up, he lifted a gloved finger at me in good-bye. I left the archives and made my way up the stairs, to the offices.
The door was closed, but I thought nothing of it and just walked in. I wish I hadn't. She was straddling him, skirt ridden high up her thighs, her hands in his hair and her tongue in his mouth. The door had been silent, had made no sound and I was shocked into numbness by what I saw. I had lost, to a fucking blow-up doll.
"She's taking real good care of you, all right," I spoke. I didn't remember giving my vocal cords the order to form words, but they did. Reno spasmed, trying to push her off of him unceremoniously. To my dismay, she didn't tumble to the floor, but latched onto him like the parasite she was. "Sorry to interrupt." I didn't wait for either of them to say anything, I slammed the door behind me on the way out and made my way back down the stairs.
I was on my bike in what felt like less than a minute, even though that would be physically impossible, even for me. Less than ten seconds later, I felt my phone vibrate and there was no doubt as to who it was. Tears burned my eyes, falling freely when the wind whipped around me. I didn't mind my speed, I didn't care if I crashed and died right then. I couldn't believe that he would let her do that, because I knew, this hadn't been his move, but hers. But he let her, and if I hadn't walked in, who knew what- No, I didn't want to even think about it. All I knew, was that she had tricked me into seeing just that, that she had tricked me into coming into his office, and had seduced him so that I could see what a failure I was. That I couldn't get him in my bed and she could, with her cheap face and her -no doubt- fake boobs. She would just sweep in and take him for herself.
The phone kept buzzing in my pocket, messages, calls, I didn't care. Maybe I should hurl my phone out of a chopper too, and then just disappear. Would serve him right.
When I got home, I realized I had completely neglected to visit Tseng. I took my phone out of my pocket, deciding to give him a call instead and see if he had anything for me to take my mind off things. Preferably on the other side of the world. There were no less than twelve missed calls from Reno, and at least twenty messages. Was he feeling that guilty about it? The truth was, he had every right to kiss whoever he wanted, but it hurt none the less. I wanted to call Tseng, but couldn't help but opening the messages instead, even though I tried hard not to. The first messages were to be expected, things like;
Can you pick up? And Babe, just call me, okay?
But I wouldn't 'just call him', and it seemed he realized this too, because the messages became more erratic and desperate after another five missed calls. Somewhere in the back of my mind was a little voice asking why he even bothered.
I know it's corn, but it's not what it looked like, okay?
I snorted out loud at that one. Not was it looked like? That was the strangest dental check I had ever seen, in that case.
Babe, come on...
It was only like a second, she took me by surprise.
Just call me so I can explain, I tried to push her off.
Ugh, these messages ain't helping, pick up the phone!
Dammit, Foxy!
I stared at my phone, wondering what he would say should I actually call him. Then a memory crept into my mind, the memory of unwanted lips on mine, though at the time, so sudden and warm I had welcomed them. Genesis. Hadn't I given in at first when he had kissed me, all those years ago, in the underwater reactor? And then again that time at the WRO? I'd have even given myself to him if he hadn't stopped me. Hadn't it been just like that for Reno? What would I have done, had some hot guy I met kissed me suddenly? I knew the answer, I knew how my mind and body worked. I would be surprised first and then my body would react and enjoy, before my mind would finally comprehend what my body was doing and decide on whether or not this was a go. Often, it had not been a go. Did the mind and body of a man work the same way? There was no one to answer that question, but Reno. But I was too angry to call him. Maybe not even so much at him, but at Jack, for having started this game. She was going to steal him from me, and for what? She wanted nothing more than his body, he was nothing more than pure lust to her, I felt sure of that. Plus, she was still a child for Gods' sake. The phone started ringing in my hand, showing, as expected, Reno calling.
I sighed and picked up. "Leave me alone, I'll call you tonight," I said before he could even say anything.
"Babe, listen –"
"I don't want to talk!" I snapped. "I said I'll call you tonight." I hung up on him and threw the phone down on the sofa, again completely forgetting to give Tseng a call.
I took an angry workout, and only thought about it four hours later, while I took the remainder of my anger out on the house, cleaning it thoroughly. I threw down the vacuum cleaner and kicked it to the side.
"Dammit," I grumbled before picking my phone off the sofa.
Three missed calls from Charly and another message from Reno.
I'll be waiting
I smiled to myself, thinking it was sweet of him to at least give me the space I needed. My fingers ran over the buttons as I redialed Charly's number.
"Hiya, lass." He picked up on the second ring. "Finally decided ta pick up da phone?"
"I'm sorry, Charles...I was a little busy today and... preoccupied." I didn't feel the need to explain it to him, it was simply too embarrassing. Besides, knowing Charly, he'd laugh at me.
"I be hearin' ya was here'n da buildin'. Why ya ain't comin' ta sees me?"
I pinched the bridge of my nose, wondering how to get out of this one. Charly always knew everything, had a way of finding out about everything, and I simply wasn't up for t right now. Evading questions had always been a talent of mine, so I decided to do just that. "I ran into something and forgot. You got something for me?"
Charly grunted, clearly knowing I was hiding something, but for once he chose not to press it. "Tseng be on sumtin' 'bou' Corneo... Juss be waitin' fo' the official word. Ya probs gon' be hearin' bou' it tomorrows."
Tseng had been forced to get started on planning without any information from my end, and I felt more than a little stupid for not keeping the promise I'd made. I'd been dying to get started on the mission, but instead I let myself get carried away by emotions. I'd possibly ruined everything with my dramatic behavior. I could only hope he'd forget about my failure to show up and give it another chance. Considering the fact he'd gotten started without me, it could go either way. "We're going after him?"
"Dunno, Tseng be needin' ta see ya in da mornin', got tha'?"
A sense of relief came over me. He'd summoned me, although he still needed me to tell him where Corneo was. Without that bit of information, he had nothing. "Yeah, sure, got it."
"Can I sends him da info? He be sayin' ya never gots 'roun' ta deliver him da details."
Right now, I had a choice to make. Did I trust Tseng enough to give him the information without being given the guarantee that I could take part in the operation, or should I wait until morning to present it to him. In the end, it all came down to trust. We'd all come a long way from being enemies, and I would even consider him a friend by now. We'd worked together, fought together. I'd helped them get Rude back safely, and I knew that kind of thing didn't go unnoticed by someone as honorable as Tseng. With a little hesitation, I consented, hoping that Tseng would still see me in the morning.
"How be Reno?" Charly then asked, trying to catch me off guard. I knew he had to ask sometime during the conversation, he always did. He wouldn't let it go until he managed to finally hook us up, something he had been hoping for since I had shot Reno three years ago.
"He's good, I guess. He's been busy." Charly probably knew that better than I did, since he saw him every day, but he couldn't resist anyway.
"Tha' be no good! I be tellin' him ta givs ya a call. Laters!"
"Charly, n – Dammit," I scolded when he just hung up on me. I threw the phone back down, on the table this time, and finished cleaning the house.
By the time I was done, it was nearing 7pm and I was getting hungry. Thinking I didn't want to be alone right now, I decided to ask Ollie out for a meal. A voice in the back of my mind told me he'd probably be busy with Eva, especially since he'd just got back from a trip with me, but part of me just needed someone to talk to. I never claimed to be selfless. I picked my phone off the table and dialed Ollie's number, dropping down on the sofa with a sigh and a bounce. It always felt so good when the house was clean again.
"Heeeeeeeey giiiiiiirl!" he yelled happily when he picked up. "What's up?"
"Have you eaten yet?"
"Yup, we're just cleaning the table, why?" That was to be expected, but I still felt a little disappointed. Not long ago, we shared our meals at my kitchen table, laughing and joking. Of course, Eva had gone through the same process, having had to eat alone every night, knowing he was with me. It must have been horrible for her, all that time alone. The disappointment faded and my mood picked up. Just a talk then.
"Nothing," I said. "Just thought we could grab some KFC, but I'll fix something for myself then. Hey, can I ask you something?"
"Sure,"
I fell silent for a moment, wondering whether and how to ask. "Do guys like... you know, respond to certain things the same as girls?" He was a guy, if anyone would know, he might. The image of Reno and Jack together was still gnawing at me, the way he'd reciprocated her move.
"Uhhh... what are we talking about here?"
Suddenly, I felt too embarrassed to talk about it. Saying it would only make it more real. "...Never mind, forget I asked."
"You know you can tell me anything, right?" I could just imagine his response if I were to tell him what I had walked in on. He'd punched Reno in the face before for having pulled something off. Ollie would pop a vein. "Eden, right?" he persisted.
I sighed, before deciding it didn't matter either way. "I walked in on Reno and this new babe recruit."
"Walked in on what?" I closed my eyes, not believing how ignorant he could sometimes be. It seemed my silence told him enough, though. "No way! What the – no frigging way! He was like, doing her?!"
"No!" I snapped, burying my face in my hand. "No, not that, ugh..." I might have died, had I witnessed that. "They were, you know... making out. He texted me afterwards and said she was the one who kissed him and he tried pushing her away, but all I got is this image of them painted on my retinas. I got so angry! She's just so hot and she has the perfect body and I'm fairly certain her boobs are fake! And I just know she's doing it on purpose, throwing me smirks and looks, and inviting me into the office so she can just ride in his lap for me to see. I'm going to shoot the bitch!"
"Yeah, you do that! Kill the bitch!"
"I will! Wait, Ollie, you're supposed to tell me to calm down!"
"Why, I'm your best friend, so why would I? Also, she's hot, so what? So are you!"
His words were much appreciated, and they surely caressed my ego, but he hadn't seen her with his own eye. "I'm talking sex-bomb hot here, Ollie. You know, petite, blond, long legs, big blue eyes. Big rack. Hot."
"Aight listen to me here, girl."
I rolled my eyes in amusement, feeling lucky to have a friend like Ollie. Good thing I didn't call Tifa, she would have come over here and kicked Reno's ass for me. "I'm listening."
"First of all, consider the amount of men that have had the hots for you in your life and tell me again you're not hot. Second, and this is really the most important part in my opinion. Reno doesn't want a sex-bomb! He likes girls who pack a punch. He likes you. Your attitude, your sense of humor and your bod', trust me on that. Petite? Screw that, you have the perfect shape, your waist is tiny and you've got all the curves. Plus, your boobs are real. Dudes dig that. You really shouldn't worry too much, maybe he really was overwhelmed. Besides, he's a dude, and strictly speaking, single. Can you blame him?"
"No, I don't blame him. She's just the devil in the flesh, I swear to you. She will do anything to take him from me, and for what? All she wants is his –"
"Yeah, I get it!" Ollie laughed. "Enough girl-talk. You really need to call Tifa for this stuff..."
"You're right," I concluded, talking over him. "She has the body of a child! And, she's eighteen. Eighteen!"
"That's just wrong. She's really after him, you think? Daddy issues?"
"Yeah, yesterday I went over there to take him out for lunch and she tried real hard to prevent that. And succeeded, I might add," I said with a grumble. "She's just all over him, it makes me sick."
"What's her name?"
"Jack."
Ollie shot into a laughing fit I knew would take a while to pass."Haaaaaaaa..." He finally ended it with a big sigh. I imagined tears leaking down his cheeks. "Kind of name is that for a chick. You sure she's a girl?"
"Haven't checked between her legs," I said, before adding an afterthought. "Would be a very pretty boy in that case." Then we both laughed. "Anyway," I finally said. "I promised Reno I would call him tonight and I still have to find something to eat before I do, so I'm gonna hang up now. Thanks for the talk. I feel a lot better now." And I did.
"No problem, that's what girlfriends are for, right? Don't worry too much. You talk to him and please, for fuck's sake, finally tell him how you feel. This has been going on waaaaay too long. You guys should have been married by now. Do you have any idea what you've been missing out on all this time? On top of that, you can both just keep doing your jobs without having to worry what the other thinks, not all of us are that lucky. Get over yourselves already."
That had been exactly what I had been planning on doing before little miss cleavage came along and ruined it for me, but his words made me all the more determined to get it done. Obstacle or no obstacle. "I'm on it, Ollie."
"Good. Lots of love, kisses, bye-bye." He hung up, making me chuckle at his words.
He was such a goofy guy. Ollie usually got along really well with Reno. I knew that, if some miracle happened and we ended up together, they would become good friends. They had matching personalities, both outgoing and a little crazy. They loved goofing around. I could just picture them outside on the porch together on a warm summer night, having a beer. I smiled at the sentiment. Ollie was like a younger brother to me and would always be. They would be like family. My growling stomach ended the moment. First, something to eat.
Ollie's words had struck home. While I stood preparing a meal for myself, I couldn't help but contemplate what it would be like to have Reno with me on a day to day basis. The things we had missed doing together. Like the opening of Tifa's bar. Had he been there then, I'm sure it would have been a night for us to remember, something we would still be talking about when we ourselves were sitting outside on the porch on warm summer nights. We'd sit in the swing seat, close together, drinking a cold one, maybe grab a blanket when we started getting chilly. He would have been at Cid and Shera's wedding. He would have been here with me, now, having a meal with me at the table, instead of being alone. The both of us wouldn't have been alone anymore. We'd still be able to be ourselves. He would still be a Turk and I would still be a gun for hire, and we would be happy. We would've had each other. Did he ever think that way? Did he even care about being alone?
How many girls had he picked up over the years, while waiting for me to finally get my act together? How many since he had given up on me? Eventually, he would meet someone good enough to maybe settle down with, or at least go steady, and I knew it would destroy me. It would truly, utterly and completely destroy me.
Here I was, going on thirty, still alone. In love, deeply, truly and desperately, and yet all this time I had been too stubborn to admit it to him. Part of me was aware that he knew damn well, but I'd never actually told him, had I? What was I doing with my life? Why was I such a failure? I know he said that we shouldn't be together and that our night together didn't mean or change anything, and Rufus's interference hadn't helped, but should I really have just given up fighting? With result that some cheap skank is worming her way into his arms and I'm just too tame to do anything about it? Are you kidding me? Tame? Hell no! I would call him, and we would finally talk and then, tomorrow, when I went to see Tseng, I would tell that little bitch who exactly it was she was pissing off.
I thought all these things as I shoveled my meal into my mouth, eager to get Reno on the phone. Why hadn't I just called him earlier, asked him out for a meal together? It would have been the perfect opportunity. Maybe I could ask him out for tomorrow? I threw my dishes into the washer, kicked it closed with my foot and sat down on the sofa to make the most loaded phone call of my life.
He picked up before it even rang once, like he had been holding it in his hand, waiting for me to call. "Hey," he said right away. "Don't hang up."
"I'm not hanging up," I said, trying hard to keep my emotions from dripping into my voice. "You home yet?"
"Yeah." He cleared his throat. "Hold on." I heard him moving on the other end, his shoes on wood as he walked through his apartment. "Wegotta talk about this, Foxy. I get what it looked like, but I swear I –"
"I know, it's okay." The fact that he was trying to apologize and make it right was touching, but I also knew that none of this was his fault. He was the victim here too, even if he was too naive to see it. It was my job to make him understand that. It was my job to assure him that there was no need for him to try so hard to pacify me. He was only human, and there was only so much I could expect from him. All I wanted was for him to be himself. His sassy, smart-mouthed, funny, dorky self.
"I wasn't – Wait, what?" He sounded shocked at my lack of anger. "It's okay? You sure? What are you on?"
"I have no right to be angry with you, do I? You're a free guy."
There was short silence before he spoke again. "I know that, but that ain't the point. She –"
"Who's that?"
My blood instantly heated to boiling point when I heard her voice.
"No one, go wait on the couch," he ordered her.
"She's there with you right now? At your place?" I asked incredulously.
"It's not what you think, she just showed up at –"
Jack seemed to ignore his words completely. "Is it her, Reno? Why can't she just leave us alone?"
"Get out, Jack!" he snapped impatiently, something I had rarely heard him do. "I told you to wait for me. I'm on the phone."
"You look tense..." she purred, very close by, making my stomach drop a foot or two. "I think you need to release some of that... built up tension."
I heard something thud to the floor.
"What are you doin'?!" His demand came out all shocked.
"Reno?" I asked, alarmed by the tone of his voice. "What's going on?"
"Hey!" he yelled. "Stop that –!" That last word came out on a gasp, and I nearly dropped the phone in shock. Was she really –? Did she just –? "Get off!" I heard another thump, something bigger hitting the floor this time. "Are you crazy?!" he growled before putting the phone back to his ear. "Babe? Talk to me, you there? Eden?"
I hastily hung up and dropped the phone to the floor with a clatter. My hands flew to cover my mouth in shock as I stared at it. A small scream left my throat when it started ringing, showing Reno's name. He must have pushed her away again, maybe I'd heard her fall down, onto the floor. He hadn't sounded very happy with her. Still, I felt my meal rise up in my throat and I had to work hard to keep it down. Now I had another image painted on my retinas and I hadn't even seen it. This girl...this child, she had just attempted to claim my man. It was war.
Yes, Eden Fox was going to war.
Reno called about a dozen more times, before I turned my phone off and went to bed. I didn't want to talk to him right now. I would see him tomorrow and I would put an end to this. And then, once Jack was taken care of, we would talk. A vision of her on her knees in front of him kept popping up in my mind, making it hard for me to fall asleep. I got angrier by the second. I was convinced she knew damn well what she was doing. She had jumped into action right after she'd found out I was on the phone. She wanted to drive a wedge between us. She wanted him between her thighs. She could get a bullet between her eyes. He hadn't acted on it, but what if I hadn't been on the phone? Would he have let her?
I groaned at myself, wondering why I had to drive myself crazy like this. So, instead of sleeping, I checked my phone. A few more calls from Reno, and a few messages, which I chose to ignore this time. A message from Tseng, asking me to be there first thing in the morning and a message from Ollie, asking me how the talk with Reno went. I snorted at the thought. Yeah, it went really well. I wrote a reply back to him, knowing it was too late at night to give him a call. Eva would freak.
Didn't go well. Jack was there. She pulled off another one.
What'd she do? Came back the immediate reply.
I was on the phone with him – I started typing, but stopped. Could I send him this? Wouldn't that be too personal to Reno? Screw that, he let her into his apartment, he didn't deserve sympathy. – she knew it was me and I think she went down on him.
A series of messages arrived, one after the other.
Excuse me?
Say what?
While you two were on the phone?
No way
NO WAY!
AND HE JUST LET HER?!
Apparently, he wasn't aware all those things could be sent in one text, but I appreciated the gesture. I don't think so, he got really angry...anyway, it's on. She wants war, she's getting it. Going to sleep now. Good night.
You go girl! Geez... Good luck and good night.
