rating; PG-13
fandom; final fantasy vii
genre; it's a wee bit angsty! & het.
pairing; reno/elena
warnings; language
disclaimer; square-enix owns characters&universe. no copyright infringement is intended. story be mine.
notes; A new version of "Sapphire Lust" (see my author page). Unbeta'ed as no one was interested, so might include some errors. Dedicated to purplette (on LJ), because she was wanting some Reno/Elena angst at some point & because she originally introduced me to this lovely pairing. Includes lyrics from Kent's "Protection", title from Descendents' "Dog and Pony Show".
I 'and silence suits us fine'
Reno shows up at my apartment, he is drunk and there's nothing new about it.
Oh, is he a sight. His clothes are stained and crumpled, his flaming red hair tangled and he stinks of shitty bars and cheap alcohol.
And there's nothing extraordinary about that, because Reno often lost his keys and had to crash somewhere after a long night in the bar. Rude's place was never an option, Reno could always ask, but Rude would say 'no', and that's that.
Rude always goes home when it's so late he doesn't even have to sleep, he's strange like that and nobody minds. Reno on the other hand never stays late, because Reno is a baby, a crooked motherfucking bastard, but a baby all the same.
So Reno shows up on my door step and I let him in. He sleeps on my sofa and he drools on my pillows in his sleep. Weeks later I sit on the sofa and smell his saliva, bitter and nasty.
Reno never undresses himself during these nights. In the mornings he just gets up and leaves without taking a shower, without looking back.
And the next day is just like any other day on the job and Rude doesn't ask why Reno slept at my place, because everyone knows why.
I see dreams, continuing dreams of walking out of a darkblue forest into my apartment. I see wolves on the way, but I don't pay attention as they don't matter. The doorbell rings and it's Reno.
He's strangely calm (because even the cool, smooth, sexy Reno fidgets sometimes) and his eyes are misty with Mako glow.
He kisses me and it's cool like the touch of metal on my lips, but it still takes me away.
We're in my apartment and he's whispering promises and beautiful words along with dirty words. Soon I'm pinned under his skinny body, all those bones and he's still saying words with a low thick voice, like gasoline in my ears; flammable.
I tell him to shut up, but he doesn't hear me.
III 'i found a way to make you smile pretending i am someone else'
Somebody knocked on my door. I idly imagined Reno's thin skin with a yellow shade (from the tobacco he always smokes, always too much), wrapped around bony knuckles, rapping against my door.
The door was old and wooden and I secretly hoped Reno'd get tiny splinters piercing his skin and he would curse.
When I opened the door, Reno wasn't cursing in a drunk manner. In fact he didn't appear to be intoxicated at all. Reno was pale and scrawny and his hair was red and flaming and everywhere, but still it didn't seem like Reno, feel like Reno.
This Reno was awfully quiet and serious, his eyes following mine. He didn't move an inch until I asked him to come in.
Reno continued his silence even though I asked him things, something to drink, maybe? and he wouldn't let me go to the kitchen. Reno held me still and pulled me close, just like in her dream, but in the dream Reno was dirty and toxic. Here, now, Reno was clean and smelled of soap.
I pushed him away.
He started yelling because was this the kind of thing everyone had to put up with to be with me, I thought this is what you fucking wanted of me, is it still not enough, how much do you need me to change?
He cursed and his eyes burning he left, the wooden door slammed and splinters falling off it, onto the carpet.
I curled up in my bed afraid to fall asleep (not crying, no), telling myself I never knew, never could've guessed.
Next day would be inane bickering in the office and Rude wouldn't ask anything about last night. He would just look at me and I would look away and that's how he'd know.