Disclaimer: The Final Fantasy VII compilation does not belong to me. I do not own the characters, story, places etc. They are all the property, copyright and trademark of Square-Enix. I place no ownership/claim on them by using them in this work of fan fiction.

Warning: Explicit Content

Chapter Fifteen: Behind the Curtain

Yuffie felt groggy when she awoke, having not managed to fall asleep until the early hours of the morning and of course, today of all days, she had to have a press conference first thing. She hoped a shower would help bring her out of her daze and makeup would have to do it's bit to make her appear at least somewhat put together. Dragging herself out of bed and into the bathroom and as she stood under the warm water she already started to feel some of last nights weight being washed away from her. She felt so drained. What a strange thing it was, to have such a mix of emotions towards a person. It was starting to make her feel a little crazy.

She assumed he was sat somewhere in the living room, probably smoking and looking like nothing could bother him. That thought frustrated her immensely. She should have known better than to let this thing between them start in the first place, let alone carry on as it had. It was a recipe for disaster, but only for her. He must have known what would happen, that she'd get attached, but that wasn't his problem was it? He probably thought it was funny or perhaps it was some kind of ego trip for him, but if he thought she was about to pine over him like a schoolgirl he was sadly mistaken.

She shut off the water and stepped out, grabbing a towel and wrapping in around herself before going to brush her teeth. Of course she told herself she wasn't going to let herself be made a fool of, but there was a part of her that doubted it. He was so good at snaking his way in and making her feel important. He had become such a source of comfort for her now it was almost worrying. How could a Turk make her feel so safe and yet so uncertain at the same time.

Throwing the toothbrush back on the side, she went back to her room and started rummaging through the pile of clothes that lay in a heap on top of her suitcases. The only things that weren't creased to hell were a knee-length floaty skirt and a button up cardigan. She wrinkled her nose a little. They weren't her style at all, not really knowing why she'd brought them in the first place, but then they would probably work perfectly for a press conference, so she decided she'd just have to deal with it.

After dressing and taking far too long applying her makeup, having had to spend more time than usual to cover the extra redness still present around her eyes, the young woman stepped out into the living room.

It didn't take her long to find the Turk, who was sat in his usual spot against the window, a cigarette hanging from his fingers and looking as care-free as always. Gawd it was annoying.

"Morning." An easy smirk pulled at his lips, smoke escaping from between them as he spoke.

"Good Morning." She gave him what she hoped was a very manufactured smile, before heading over to grab her boots. She looked at them for a second and then down at her outfit; this wasn't going to work. She could feel his eyes on her as she returned to her room to grab something a bit more suitable. Deciding on a pair of court shoes with a little t-bar, she carried them back into the living room in silence, making a point of sitting on a chair that provided a good view of her legs as she slipped them on.

Yuffie could see him move out of the corner of her eye, but kept her attention decidedly on doing up the buckle on her shoes. As he got closer, she got up and walked over to the kitchenette, making to grab some food bars before returning to put them in her bag. When she looked up at him she had to try her best not to react as he watched her with thinly veiled interest.

She made her voice as detached as possible, pulling on her jacket as she walked past him to the door, "Shall we go? I don't want to be late."

Reno's brow arched for a moment, before his expression became blank, but when he spoke his voice was still edged with suspicion, "Sure."

As he reached out to open the door, she gave him another smile that she knew looked fake as hell, before she walked out into the hallway and headed towards the stairs.

She wasn't sure if Reno had picked up on what she was doing, or if he was now just genuinely annoyed, but he had remained thoroughly professional throughout the drive to the press conference. The strange air between them had been even more noticeable when they had arrived and he had all but remained silent the whole time he had walked her over to the President's side, with not one snide remark or teasing comment. Luckily it wasn't something that anyone else seemed to pick up on, as Rufus greeted her with his usual smile, offering his arm to her before they walked over to the large lecture hall where the press were already waiting.

The whole thing had lasted for a couple of hours, but thankfully the questions had only go on for about thirty minutes, with the remaining time being spent waiting around for photos. It was almost funny, the overly restrained and distant act she was putting on for the Turk had worked wonders with the journalists, as she found herself answering questions and smiling with ease, though of course anyone who really knew her could tell how insipid of a display it was.

As it finally finished and the participants started exiting the building, she felt Rufus put his hand on her shoulder as he lent down to speak softly into her ear.

"You don't seem yourself, Miss Kisaragi…"

She gave a little shrug, making sure to keep her tone a mixture of upbeat yet standoffish, "I'm just… doing the job Rufus. Isn't that what I'm here for? To give you some good press?"

His brow arched at her response. Even though he was clearly unconvinced by her explanation, he seemed to decide to drop the subject for now, walking along side her until they reached the front of the building. As they approached the cars, she automatically went to go over to the Turk's, only stopping when Rufus stepped in front of her, motioning towards his own car with his arm.

"Shall we?"

She looked back at him in confusion, "I thought we didn't have another assignment today?"

A small, almost excited smile formed on the young man's lips as he spoke, "We don't, but I thought we could spend the afternoon doing something else."

She looked at him questioningly, waiting for him to elaborate. For a moment he seemed to succumb to a shyness she wasn't sure he possessed, as his voice seemed to hesitate over every few words.

"The Charity Ball is coming up and…Edge has a lot of up and coming designers…I thought it might be an idea to get you something special, to wear that is. As a token of Shinra's appreciation for your work."

Her brow arched as the realisation of what he was suggesting fully dawned on her, "You want to take me…dress shopping?"

The smile returned to his face as he responded, "Yes."

Well that was certainly unexpected. Yuffie hesitated for a moment. She really didn't know how comfortable she felt letting him spend money on her. Then again, wasn't that what she was here for? She was basically just a showpiece for them after all. She turned to him and shrugged her shoulders with a nonchalance she didn't really feel.

"Okay."

As they headed towards the President's car, her eyes darted over to find her usual car had already gone and she felt a sigh of relief escape her lips. Perhaps he had gone off on a mission again. It was for the best anyway; dealing with the two of them together was not something she was keen to do. Especially today.

She turned to the young man, keeping her voice as nonplussed as possible, "Will it just be the two of us then?"

The young man shook his head, "There will be my bodyguards of course, and then Reno will also be joining us."

Her heart sank as his answer resonated in her ears, "Reno…he's coming too?"

Rufus nodded, "Yes. He's gone on ahead. I'm expecting a phone call so may have to step out at some point and I'll need my bodyguards with me, so I'll need someone else to watch you."

Yuffie forced another smile as she muttered to herself through gritted teeth, "Oh…great."

Well this wasn't awkward at all. She knew she was trying to get a rise out of the red head, but this was a little much. Here she was, trying on dresses picked out by his boss, whilst he had to stand to the side, watching. She would have said for all intents and purposes he was hiding his annoyance, but she could tell every time their eyes crossed paths that he was not happy. If that wasn't bad enough, she could also tell that Rufus was starting to get suspicious of her overly submissive attitude and with the way he kept looking at her she was starting to think all of this had been a terrible idea.

She stood in her changing room and looked at herself in the mirror with a sigh. The dress did fit nicely and certainly felt expensively soft against her skin, but she was sure it did nothing for her figure, making her look like a child going to prom rather than a fully grown woman. She turned to the side and sighed again. Yeah, this really wasn't doing it for her and it was far too short. With a huff sounding from her lips, Yuffie reached around to grasp at the clasps that held it together, having unhooked it all the way down to where it stopped at the base of her spine and just starting to slide her arms from the sleeves when a sudden movement in the mirror caught her eye.

She locked eyes with the President's in the reflective surface, with him giving his usual small nod as if this was just a matter of course.

"Miss Kisaragi."

Yuffie held on to the dress for dear life, pulling it tightly to her chest as she turned towards him, "W-What are you doing! Why didn't you knock?!"

He looked at her with a surprising lack of apology, "I did. You must not have heard me."

Not willing to debate the matter, she just shook her head, brow furrowing in genuine confusion as to why he was standing there, "What do you want?"

The young man seemed agitated, his eyes narrowing slightly as his form appeared to tense as he looked at her, "There is clearly something bothering you and I want to know what it is."

"There's nothing bothering me." Yuffie's eyes darted around the changing room as she struggled to play off the strange feeling that was descending around them.

Her changing room companion didn't seem convinced as his eyes continued to stare at her intensely, a constrained sigh leaving his throat as he spoke, "Is it because of what happened the other night?"

"No." She had answered a little too quickly, but she made a point to hold his gaze this time. It was true after all, it wasn't the kiss that was the problem, not really. Not in the way he was thinking.

His brow furrowed, "Then what is the matter?"

She turned away in spite of herself, her fingers going to play with the beading on the front of the dress as she fidgeted on the spot. "Nothing really, It's just… I'm trying to get used to all this… all this pretending."

"Pretending?"

Yuffie could hear the confusion etched on his face without having to see it, as she continued to avoid his gaze. "Well, this is what it's going to be like right? Pretending to like each other?"

His brow arched, his voice sounding strangely hurt, "Who says we have to pretend?"

She glanced up at him with a sad sort of chuckle sounding from her lips, "We're hardly each other's type, Rufus."

There was a slight pause before the young man responded, his tone wavering slightly, "What makes you think you're not my type?"

"Come on, be honest for once, what is it that you actually like about me?"

The President was silent again for a moment as he seemed to consider his answer. When he did speak, his voice seemed unsteady again, "There are many things I like about you…You have many interesting qualities-"

She laughed despondently, "Interesting qualities? Gawd, that sounds so romantic."

He arched his brow again, this time with a hint of interest, "So you would prefer me to be romantic?"

"No, that's not what I mean! Or maybe it is, I don't know!" She instinctively went to throw her hands down as she got more and more worked up, though soon stopped midway when she realised they were still preoccupied with holding onto her dress. She took a steadying breath, her shoulders slumping as her voice sounded softly.

"It's not that I don't find you attractive Rufus, and I know you're far from the worse choice I have but…" Her eyes flickered up to his with a sigh, "Surely, there should be more than that?"

Yuffie observed him for a moment as he seemed to consider her words carefully but choose to remain silent. Eventually she shrugged, her voice sounding hollow and hopeless.

"Shouldn't there be a spark?"

"You don't think there is?" He had responded almost instantly, his eyes watching her closely as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I thought there was when you kissed me but…" Yuffie gave him a small smile before her gaze fell to rest somewhere on the floor.

He'd drawn closer to her without her noticing, as his hand reached out and tipped her chin up towards him, "But what?"

"How can I be sure how I feel? I want to want you and I want you to want me, I do, but…how do I know you're not just like the others…" She sighed with frustration, "…good at manipulating me."

Taking another deep breath, the young woman shook her head, her voice quieter than before as she started to speak almost to herself.

"I don't want to have some guy forcing himself to be with me, Rufus. I know it's stupid and overly naive-"

"What makes you think I'd debase myself like that?" His voice was unusually loud as the look on his face was close to outraged, "I'm not someone who would touch anyone I didn't want to. Regardless of obligation."

His eyes narrowed a fraction as something seemed to click inside him, his voice taking on a darker edge than she'd ever heard from him before.

"Maybe I've been too much of a gentleman."

Without so much as a moments pause, he drew up close behind her, his hand sliding round her waist and pulling her back into his chest, all the time keeping his eyes locked on hers in the mirror. She couldn't describe it, not really, but with the way he was looking at her it was taking all she had to just keep breathing; speaking was completely out of the question.

He brought his lips down to her ear as his voice resonated softly against her, "I'm not my father, Miss Kisaragi."

His other hand reached up and began to slowly trail down the bare skin of her back, stopping as it reached where the fabric still covered her bottom, before ever so softly tracing it's way down her leg and starting to use his fingers to pull it up her thigh, inch by inch.

The young man continued to watch her reflection as he brushed his mouth against her neck, whispering into her skin, "But that doesn't mean I'm not a man."

As his fingers reached the skin of her thigh, she felt her breath hitch in her throat and the barest hint of a smirk started to form on the President's lips.

"I didn't want to come on too strong, but…perhaps you are right."

His hand slipped under the fabric of the dress and made it's way ever so delicately to brush against the skin of her navel, slowly stroking along the hem of her pants.

"Perhaps we should test out our…compatibility."

His finger had just hooked itself under the edge of the fabric when a familiar beeping sounded from his jacket pocket. The look in his eyes was unreadable as he slowly withdrew his hand and reached into his pocket to take out the mobile device. He looked at it with a hint of a grimace.

"I have to take this." He glanced at her as his hand started to pulled the curtain aside, "You should try the next dress. This one's a little short."

With a flick of the curtain, he was gone and Yuffie was left alone to truly succumb to her bewilderment. Her legs felt like jelly. If it wasn't for the shock keeping her upright, she was certain she'd collapse to the floor. What on Gaia had just happened? More importantly, what would have happened if he hadn't gotten that phone call? She didn't really want to know, right?

Her skin tingled as the memory of the way his fingers had felt as they brushed against her lingered in her mind. She quickly shook her head. No, she couldn't actually be attracted to him not like that. How could she be so easy? He couldn't want her, no, he had to be playing her. Gawd this wasn't fair.

Not knowing when he would return and wanting to get something on before he did, she quickly pulled the rest of the dress off, returning it to it's hanger in a rather less orderly form than it had arrived in and grabbing the next dress from the pile hanging from the hooks by the mirror. She had only half undone the elaborate set of buttons that held it closed at the back when the curtain was pushed aside again, but this time it was followed by the familiar form of the red head.

"Reno!"

She didn't bother to cover herself with the dress this time, instead using it to bat at the Turk with part of the skirt. Huffing as she turned her back to him, she made a point to scowl at his reflection in the mirror, "Gawd what is it with you men and just walking in?!"

His brow arched, as he stared back at her, though he didn't make to comment. Shaking her head, she returned her attention back to the buttons with a sigh.

"What do you want anyway? And should you really be here? What if Rufus catches you?"

He responded with an almost bored tone, "He's busy at the moment." Taking a few steps round to lean against the mirror, he looked at her with a sneer that reached his eyes, "What the fuck is wrong with you today?"

His tone had been harsh enough for her to feel in her heart, but she couldn't bring herself to look up at him, "There's nothing wrong with me."

Reno's sneer turned into something more akin to a smirk, though his voice was no less hostile, "Oh really? Because last night you were all over me and today you're acting like I might as well be a stranger and then there's what's going on between you and the Boss."

She furrowed her brow in what she hoped was a convincing display of confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"I saw him leave here a second ago." He looked her up and down, with an almost bitter chuckle, "Didn't realise you two were that close already."

"We're not that close!" This time she had looked up at him, though she immediately regretted it as she knew the blush that flared on her cheeks was all too betraying.

The red head looked down at her, his eyes narrowing with distaste, "Have you finally decided you're going to let the President into your pants too?"

Yuffie looked back at him, shaking her head in disbelief, "You're an idiot, you know that?" Turning away from him and trying to busy herself once more with the dress, she muttered over her shoulder, "Anyway, why should it matter to you what I do? We're casual, remember? Or perhaps you're jealous?"

For a few moments all she got was silence and she thought perhaps he'd left, but then he spoke, his voice devoid of the nastiness than had filled it before, instead sounding quiet and troubled.

"And what if I am."

Her head whipped round and they looked into each others eyes for a moment before he closed the distance between them, grabbing the dress in her hands and throwing it to the side before pushing her back up against the mirror. He seemed to hesitate before crashing his lips to her own, his kiss painful and demanding. His hands were already going to the clasp of her bra, unhooking it with a flick before his fingers came round to squeeze against her breast, pinching her nipple far too hard and eliciting a gasp from her lips.

"Reno!"

He didn't speak, instead loosening his grasp only slightly as he silenced her with another kiss, his other hand pushing her pants aside as his fingers began to move against her in fervent strokes. She felt like she could hardly breath as his tongue refused to release her, smothering every sound she made. She put her hands up to grasp against his shirt as she tried to loosen his hold further, if only to gain a moment to catch her breath, but he just pushed even harder into her. What had come over him? Why was he doing this, here of all places? What was he trying to prove?

His fingers slipped into her and his lips finally releasing her mouth to brush against her ear, his voice heavy as it sounded with a mocking chuckle.

"As sensitive as always."

He returned his mouth to hover over hers for a moment, before suddenly turning her in his arms, eyes trailing up and down her figure in the reflection before locking with hers. There was now smirk on his face as his voice sounded hushed and desperate against her ear.

"I don't want anyone else…especially the Pres, seeing you like this. It should only ever be me…"

Yuffie's eyes flickered to her own reflection and her cheeks flared pink. She looked embarrassingly obscene, her hair was clinging to her neck as beads of sweat had begun to form on her skin, which looked flushed and red compared to it's usual rosy porcelain. Her bra hung loosely against her chest, her breasts rising and falling rapidly with her breath and then there was Reno's hand that was still inside her pants, slowly moving against her.

She felt her heart painfully clench in her chest as she returned her gaze to his in the reflection. Her voice was breathy and shaky as she tried to choke out a sound, "…Why?"

"Because." He didn't bother to elaborate as his eyes broke away from hers and he begun to kiss along her neck.

Why was he like this? This isn't what she wanted. He was dodging her again and expecting her to just go along with it. She was being pulled along at his pace once again. This was just what she didn't want. No, this wasn't happening again.

As he went to turn her back around, she resisted, wiggling in his grasp and putting all her strength into the tone of her voice.

"Reno, stop."

He chuckled against her neck and continued as if she was just teasing him. She pushed harder, this time raising her voice loud enough for him to take notice, but making sure it wasn't so loud as to attract anyone else's attention.

"I said stop!"

This time he did, releasing his grip and withdrawing his hand. As he locked his eyes to hers there was a moment where she could have sworn he seemed genuinely afraid, but it quickly dissipated as his expression returned to being unreadable.

She swallowed as she stared at his face, the frustration and heighten emotions pushing her voice to sound strained as she all but managed to force it to a whisper, "I don't want whatever this is Reno. This isn't fun anymore."

The red head looked at her for a moment before taking in a slow breath, "You're right." He let his eyes drop down her body as he took a few steps back, an unpleasant smirk once again tugging at his lips, "It was starting to get a little boring anyway…"

As he turned to leave, his hand curled around the edge of the curtain and as he looked at her over his shoulder, she felt her insides lurch. As their eyes met each other's once more, he seemed to falter for a moment, before that cruel smirk returned to mar his beautiful features.

"The boss can have you… you're just not worth it."

The Turk huffed as he disappeared through the curtain and as it fell back down, Yuffie couldn't seem to pull her eyes away from it.

So she had been right. He really didn't care at all did he. He was just using her. Gawd she felt so stupid. Hot, angry tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. She was such an idiot. Why had she given her virginity to a guy like that. He couldn't care less about her. She should have known better, she knew damn well what he was like, but she'd let her guard down. Why did she even feel this way? She wasn't meant to feel like this, not for him.

Wiping the tears from her eyes, Yuffie bent down to grab the dress that he'd thrown in the corner, stepping into it rather ungracefully before reaching round to do up the buttons, her frustration making the task completely hopeless. She just wanted to forget, but her chest felt like it would explode at any minute, she was in so much pain. As a button slipped out of her grasp, her mind seemed to break and she bit down hard into her hand in an attempt to suppress the scream that threatened to sound from her throat.

Just as she was about to draw blood, another familiar voice came from behind the curtain, causing her to almost trip and fall backwards into the mirror with a jump.

The President's voice sounded steady and calm as always as he spoke through the heavy fabric, "Sorry about that, it was unavoidable."

She shook her head, trying to rid herself of the emotions that were overtaking her and praying he wasn't about to come in again. Her voice came out shaky as she struggled to get it under control.

"It-it's fine. D-Don't worry about it."

There was a pause before he spoke again, his tone noticeably softer than before, "Miss Kisaragi? Is something the matter?"

Yuffie forced a smile onto her face and called back, using all her strength to even out the emotion in her voice, "N- no, I'm fine. This dress is just too tight, is all. Could you pick out something a bit less elaborate or something?"

There was another moment of silence before he hummed in agreement, the sound of his footsteps becoming fainter and fainter as he walked further away and she all but collapsed against the mirror with a sigh of relief.

It was early evening by the time they reached the temporary Shinra Headquarters. Rufus closed the door to his office as she walked over to her usual seat. She had picked the best dress from the second batch, not wanting to stay in that changing room any longer as she felt more and more uncomfortable in the small space. She had made a point to stick close to the President when they had left and was eager to jump at the chance to come back to the office when he requested it. Anything to keep her away from Reno for as long as possible. During the car ride over, she had been even more relieved when the President suggested one of his own bodyguards take her home, as he sent the Turk back with the dress.

She had only just sat down when he passed by her, walking around to his side of the desk and slowly pulling out his chair, his expression distant as he lowered himself down. Yuffie suddenly felt herself grow nervous under his gaze and clasped her hands together in an attempt to keep them still as she tried her best to show a genuine smile.

"Thank you…for the dress. It's was very nice of you. It's probably a little too glamorous for me, but maybe it'll distract everyone from my terrible dancing-"

"Miss Kisaragi…" His voice sounded with a decisively commanding tone, her mouth closing in an instant as her eyes slowly rose to meet with his. He looked like he was holding back something dangerous, as he stared at her with unwavering intensity. After a moments silence, he lent forward, his voice steady and quiet.

"Is there something going on between you and the Turk, Reno Sinclair?"

Author's Note: Everything's kicking off isn't it...And if you're thinking how can Reno be such a massive dick, don't worry, this will be addressed and that ego of his will get a beating...