Her Sweetest Revenge
=Sixth=
Rufus was just standing by the window, looking at the whole of Midgar with jaded blue eyes. His hands were inside his trouser pockets as he thought about several things… especially what happened that afternoon.
It was already sunset and he was glad that he was able to ward off Scarlet from following him to his office, otherwise, he'd really fire her… and firing employees at that moment wherein ShinRa is still trying to rise up again more and more isn't really his cup of tea. Besides, if the Weapons Department would be boss-less, he wouldn't know who to put in it. "As long as it's not another person like Scarlet… but where do you find that?" he thought silently.
He thought of the reason why he had to suspend Scarlet. And he blushed at the thought of it. He felt himself shrinking all of a sudden, wanting to hide inside an isolated room away from everyone else. And hell, even Sephiroth witnessed it. He felt so embarrassed… he knew he had looked so vulnerable and so gullible that afternoon in front of Sephiroth and Scarlet… and in the hands of Tifa.
"Well, who could blame me? I mean, I haven't been kissed by anyone before… and Tifa's the first one. Today," he thought silently, making a face as his frown deepened. He removed his hands from his pockets and clenched his fists. "No… my first kiss was last night after our date. This is the second one… but this second one seems… a little overboard…" he thought silently, biting his lower lip and looking at the orangey skies quite hesitantly. He had to admit, he felt a little weird when Tifa kissed her just moments ago. He shuddered.
"Why'd she have to do that?" he thought silently.
He was interrupted when he heard some footsteps approaching him. He turned around with a serious look on his face, but the seriousness was replaced by surprise when he saw who it was. "…T….Tifa…" he said rather weakly.
She smiled sweetly at him, "Hello, Rufus," she said before she sat down on one of the chairs.
He stared at her for a long time, not knowing what to say. He had to admit, he was really attracted to her… and he couldn't help it any longer.
"Now," he thought silently to himself as a signal before speaking up, "Why did you do that?" he asked.
Tifa's smile faded away as she looked up at him. He approached her slowly. "Why did you do that?" he asked.
She raised an eyebrow at him. "Do what?" she asked, trying to act innocent.
He stopped when he reached her. "Why did you kiss me like that?" he asked, blushing a little bit upon mentioning the word kiss. The scene and the feeling kept on playing in his mind even as he spoke at that moment.
She fell silent, not knowing how to answer. "Because I'm supposed to seduce you and use it to blackmail Scarlet too," was the thought in her head, but of course, she wouldn't say that to Rufus. So she just replied with a sad and embarrassed look on her face (she's already acting), "Because… because… I… I like, you Rufus… No… I don't like you…I… I know this is a strong word but… I think I love you…"
Rufus's eyes widened slightly upon hearing that. He felt his heart pounding hard against his chest. "Shit! How do I…" he thought silently in confusion.
She got up from the couch and faced him. "I… I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… but I can't help it… there's just something about you that… that is so irresistible…" she blushed. "How come this feels like I really mean what I'm saying right now?" she thought silently as she took a step backward. "I'll… just leave now. I'm sorry. I know that it sounds so unprofessional, so I think I'll just leave…" she turned away from him.
"No," he told her.
She stopped.
"Damn it!" he scolded himself silently. He was beginning to get nervous and uncomfortable with what was going on. "I should've consulted with Sephiroth first…" he thought silently before smiling weakly at Tifa. "You can't leave." He said flatly. "Damn, I sound pathetic," he thought silently, mentally kicking himself.
She fought the urge to smile as she thought silently, "Yes! I knew I had him wrapped around my little finger even from the start! Heeehee! He can't live without me now!" and she spoke up with a hesitant tone, "And… why not?" she asked.
"Because… you're… important to this company. I know you have potential; you can't just leave! We need you here in ShinRa because you're the best Vice President and Marketing Manager it has ever had!" he told her with a stiff look on his face.
Tifa felt her heart sink. "Damn… and I thought he's in-love with me?" she thought silently.
Rufus congratulated himself silently, "Good work, Rufus."
Tifa frowned slightly. "But… I…" she does not really know what to say. She thought silently, "If I leave right now, Barret will get mad at me. I must make ShinRa fall… then in the process, I'll also do a little investigation on why Aerith is here…" She smiled weakly at Rufus. "Well… okay… if you say so…" she told him with a sheepish look on her face. "Onward to seducing this blonde guy, Teef!" she urged herself silently before running to Rufus with a cheerful smile on her face while giggling happily. She jumped onto him and embraced him tightly; causing him to fall back onto the floor with her.
He was a little hurt from the fall but he didn't really mind… the girl was embracing him.
"Oh, Rufus, thank you very much! I really love working here!" she said happily.
"But… but why did you think of leaving?!" he asked unbelievably.
"It's just acting, dumb-ass." Tifa thought silently with a fake sad smile on her face. "I just want to know how much you care about me, Rufus," she said.
He blinked and was surprised. "Wh…what?" he asked in awe, not expecting that answer.
Unknown to him, Sephiroth was just standing by the stairs, listening to them.
"I… I want to confess something to you, Rufus," she said rather seductively.
He swallowed hard. "Y…yes, what is it?" he asked nervously.
Sephiroth covered his mouth to stop himself from laughing. For him, the situation just sounded so funny. "Man, is Rufus stupid or what? Don't tell me he's giving in to this girl?! Can't he tell that she's just acting?!" he thought silently.
Tifa was about to say the words to Rufus, but Sephiroth had to interrupt by climbing up the stairs completely, making noise with his feet.
"Hey, Rufus," he began and stopped upon seeing them, acting surprised as he gasped.
Rufus pushed Tifa off of himself and got up immediately, dusting himself. His face was really red as he stiffened his facial expression and eyed Sephiroth. "What is it?" he asked casually with a professional tone.
Tifa blushed, got up immediately and dusted herself before placing her hands behind her back.
Sephiroth smiled slyly at her before turning back to Rufus, "What are you two doing on the floor?" he asked with a teasing tone.
"Checking on dust mites." Tifa was thinking, but before she could reply to Sephiroth, Rufus spoke up, "And what are you doing here?"
Sephiroth just shrugged, knowing that Rufus meant to change the subject because it was really too embarrassing and confusing for him. "I came up here to ask you if you would like to attend Mayor Domino's birthday party in Sector 2?" he asked.
"Birthday party?" Rufus asked.
"Why in Sector 2?" Tifa asked with a curious look on her face, acting like nothing happened.
"Because he wanted everyone to come. There's a newly-built multi-purpose hall in Sector 2 and it's big enough to accommodate more than half of the population of Midgar." Sephiroth explained before turning back to Rufus, "So, are you coming or not?" he asked.
Rufus thought for a while. "It's not in my schedule…" he began, but Sephiroth widened his eyes on him like he was signaling him or something. He just turned to Tifa. "Shall you accompany me to the party?" he asked with a calm smile on his face.
Tifa blinked curiously and smiled sweetly. "Oh, I'd love to!" she said cheerfully.
"Good." Sephiroth thought silently.
"Well then, better prepare… I'll meet you in the lobby at 6:30." Rufus told her.
She nodded before deciding to give him a hug and a quick kiss on the lips. "Yes, Rufus," she said softly before she went off.
Rufus sighed heavily like he had held his breath for more than a minute in that moment when she hugged and kissed him before leaving.
"Whoa… is she already your girlfriend?" Sephiroth asked.
Rufus did not really know how to answer. "I need to talk with you, Aerith and Lucrecia," he just said with a disturbed look on his face.
"Aerith is asleep. Mom's in the lab and she'll be taking care of Aerith later on after we leave for the party. We'll be taking the Turks with us." Sephiroth explained.
Rufus nodded. "You know, I can't do this alone any longer," he admitted.
"What?" Sephiroth asked.
Rufus went over to his desk and sat down on his chair. "Oh, never mind…" he muttered miserably before he got up. "I'd better get ready for the party." He said casually before walking out of the office, leaving Sephiroth there.
Sephiroth just watched him silently as he descended the stairs, and then shrugged before deciding to just leave the office too.
Tifa examined herself in front of the mirror with a sad look on her face. For some reason, she does not feel so beautiful, even with the dress she was wearing at that moment. It was a silk black cocktail dress with a black shawl.
She sighed heavily as she put on the heeled strappy sandals before checking the clock. "How am I going to ask Rufus about Aerith…" she thought silently.
With that, she proceeded to the lobby.
The Turks were already there and they were having a conversation about anything under the sun… until they saw Tifa. They all shut up to stare at her.
Rude's mouth dropped open; Elena's eyes widened and she smiled; while Reno whistled while looking unbelievably at Tifa. "Well… that dress looks better on her than the corporate attire." He muttered to his friends.
"Oh my goodness! Miss Lockheart! You look so beautiful!" Elena cheered happily as she ran to Tifa, taking her hand and then jumping up and down excitedly.
"You too, Elena," Tifa said, admiring Elena's blue tube dress. She then turned to Rude who was wearing his usual Turk uniform, and then to Reno was dressed in a black long-sleeved polo shirt and black slacks. His hair still looked messy, as usual.
She turned back to Elena, trying to act naturally. "So, where'd you buy that lovely dress?" she asked.
"It's just something I had but this is the first time I wore it." Elena explained. "And yours?" she asked.
"I… just had it stocked in my clothes somewhere at home and took it with me here just in case there's a party or something." Tifa explained sheepishly, though the truth is, she just had Yuffie sneak it inside ShinRa some minutes ago.
They were interrupted when they saw Sephiroth walking to them. He was wearing a black suit and he looked very elegant with it. Rufus was following from behind him, wearing a white suit.
"Is the limousine ready?" Sephiroth asked Reno.
"Yes, sir!" Reno replied.
"Well then, let's go." Sephiroth commanded as he led the way outside.
Tifa waited for Rufus to approach her after the Turks had gone outside with Sephiroth.
He smiled at her. "Lovely," he remarked.
She smiled sweetly. "Thank you. You look… wonderful." She complimented.
His smile slowly faded away as he led the way to the door. Tifa felt a little bad because she had expected him to escort her outside and he didn't. He even left her behind!
She clenched her fists before bowing down her head in disappointment and her face turned solemn. "Oh well… can't expect him to really fall in-love with me… he's simply so stiff…" she thought silently before following after him. She was the last one who boarded the limousine and once she got inside, she realized that she had to sit beside Sephiroth.
"Damn! Of all?!" she thought miserably.
Rufus was sitting in between Reno and Rude, as if the two were protecting him.
Tifa had to sit in between Sephiroth and Elena, like those two are her bodyguards.
During the trip, Sephiroth kept on talking to Rufus about various things that does not even interest the others…
Rufus would respond once in a while with a snide comment or a yes or a no.
When they reached the venue for the party, Tifa already looked so bored that she could just drop down dead because of it. Everyone got down from the limo ahead of her, and she wondered if anyone of them would help her out, but no one did.
"Shit… I should be acting like a total flirt to Rufus, but how come I'm suddenly afraid of him?" she thought silently.
And just when she thought that Rufus was going inside already with the Turks and Sephiroth, she was surprised when he told his bodyguards to wait.
Rufus turned back to Tifa and offered his hand to her, "Shall we?" he asked.
She smiled happily, her troubles fading away. "Yes, Rufus," she said softly before placing her hand on his. He clutched her hand gently and they walked hand-in-hand together going inside.
"Gee… don't mind me asking, Sir Sephiroth, but… is there anything going on between the two of them?" Reno whispered.
"Stop being a tattletale and just walk." Sephiroth muttered with a sly smile on his face.
Reno stiffened and just proceeded to walk.
Elena and Reno walked behind the couple, while Sephiroth went ahead to clear the way in front of the President and his Vice President.
The music stopped playing when the emcee announced their arrival. All eyes turned to them and they were welcomed with applause and music. The music was the one played during Rufus's welcoming ceremony in Junon some years ago.
"Oh no… it's that damn music again…" Rufus muttered under his breath while he still kept a proud smile plastered onto his face as he waved to the crowd.
Tifa bit her lower lip to control herself from laughing. She did not expect that Rufus would really hate that music. "So, is it just like your presidential march or something?" she murmured.
"I hope not…" Rufus told her.
As Tifa was also looking around, her smile faded away and her eyes widened in surprise upon seeing Cloud, Barret, Vincent, Yuffie and Marlene standing in one corner of the big hall.
Yuffie and Marlene excitedly waved at her, while Barret just slightly raised his hand as a greeting. Cloud raised his wine goblet as a sign of greeting, while Vincent just smiled slightly at her.
Tifa smiled slightly, hoping that Sephiroth wasn't looking, and then turned away from them, looking up at Rufus. She could tell that he was already annoyed but he still kept on smiling and waving at everyone who greeted him. "This must be the damn part in politics…" she thought silently.
Finally, they reached the VIP table where they were supposed to sit down with the Mayor.
Mayor Domino got up and shook hands with them proudly before announcing to everyone in the whole place, "Everyone! Let us welcome our dear President Rufus ShinRa and his very lovely Vice President Tiffayne Lockheart!"
Everyone applauded and cheered.
"Thank you very much for coming here, President Rufus. I'm really obliged to have you join me here in this wonderful party with the people of Midgar," Mayor Domino told Rufus.
"It's my pleasure to be here. Happy birthday." Rufus said with a slight smile on his face.
During the whole dinner, almost everyone was talking about the two of them: Tifa and Rufus.
Rufus knew, because he could catch several glances from envious women. Tifa couldn't even notice because she was too busy talking to Reeve, Elena and Reno.
Then something just caught his attention… on the table just some three tables away from the VIP table: the people seated there. His eyes narrowed carefully at the blonde man with spiky hair and blue mako eyes, who was talking to Vincent Valentine.
Rufus turned to the person seated beside him to his right. "They're here," he muttered.
Sephiroth nodded. "I know…" he responded, keeping his eye on Cloud and his gang.
Rufus turned to Tifa, "You know those people?" he asked, referring to Cloud and his gang.
Tifa felt herself getting nervous. "Uhm… no," she lied. "Why?" she asked.
"Well… they were once known as AVALANCHE. They were once a rebel group against my company. I do hope they're not into one of their schemes again just like before." He told her.
She smiled weakly. "I don't think so, Rufus." She told him, hoping that he wouldn't notice anything unusual about her whenever the topic regarding AVALANCHE is brought up. She just watched quietly as many of the people got up from their seats and started to dance to the waltz being played by the live band.
"Why don't you dance for a while, Tifa?" Rufus told her.
"I… I don't have a partner…" she hinted with a weak smile on her face.
Rufus turned to Rude, "Hey Rude, will you dance with Tifa? She looks bored already." He said.
"Wh…what?" Rude asked, suddenly blushing. "Did you just call her Tifa?" Reno asked in disbelief.
"Shit… now they might start suspecting something! They'll know that Tiffayne isn't really my real name but just a made-up name and that Tifa is not just my nickname but also my real name!" she thought silently.
"Yeah. That's her nickname." Rufus replied before turning back to Sephiroth and began to converse with him as if caring about nothing else but the profit that his company would gain for the next six months.
Tifa frowned slightly before getting up and pushed Rude aside. "Out of the way," she muttered before she headed for the dance floor.
Rufus also turned to Reeve, telling him to dance with Scarlet; and then telling Reno to dance with Elena too. He needed to get everyone out of the table so that no one else would listen to his conversation with Sephiroth.
"Kyah! What's wrong with him?! He's asking everyone else to dance but he doesn't want to!" Scarlet muttered miserably.
Cloud watched quietly as Tifa walked over to the punch bowl and started to drink. It was obvious that she left Rude someplace else because she doesn't really want to dance with him.
"What is she doing?" he whispered to Barret.
"Dunno… maybe she's trying to get herself drunk. She looks frustrated," Barret explaied.
Vincent watched the couples dancing in the dance floor, secretly admiring them and wishing that he also had someone to dance with.
Rufus was watching them from the corner of his eye before Sephiroth finally said, "Now."
Rufus turned back to him with a serious look on his face. He nodded before taking a quick glance at his watch. It had been already an hour after he had sent off his executives and his Turks to dance.
With that, he got up and went over to Mayor Domino with an arrogant smile on his face. He knew that Cloud and the others were watching him.
Mayor Domino stopped conversing with some invited guests to look up at Rufus, "Yes, President Rufus?" he asked.
Rufus's smile widened before he began to explain something.
Sephiroth turned away from them and got up from his seat, proceeding to the buffet table to get some canapés for himself since he still felt so hungry.
Tifa finished her fifth drink but she still felt like drinking more; however, before she could get more punch, she stopped herself when the Mayor started clearing his voice on the microphone. "Ahem, ahem, ahem… may I have your attention please?" the mayor said.
Tifa turned to the Mayor with a curious look on her face. The music stopped playing and everyone stopped dancing.
When Mayor Domino knew that he had caught everyone's attention, he smiled warmly at everyone and spoke up again, "The President wishes to speak… this is something important. And since this is not just a special night for me, I would like to also make this night special for him. So… here now is his Excellency, President Rufus." He stepped aside to give the floor to Rufus. Everyone applauded and cheered for Rufus.
He had this arrogant smile on his face as he raised his hands to them so that they would stop.
They did.
With that, he spoke up, "I don't know if you have noticed… that this is such a cool evening. The stars are all out… the moon is full… the atmosphere isn't humid. And all the beautiful people are here," he began.
Everyone felt flattered by what he said.
With that, he proceeded, "I was watching people dancing a while ago and I could not help but notice the lovers too. The look in their eyes… the way they look at each other. I could say that this is also a very romantic evening."
And blah blah blah.
"What's wrong with him? Is that another one of his speeches?" Scarlet asked Reeve.
"I dunno. It sounds… unlikely of him," Reeve stated flatly.
Tifa took a seat casually beside Vincent, who was attentively listening to Rufus. "He doesn't sound like himself. What did you do to him?" he asked her in a whispery tone.
"The old plan, remember? Seduce and then make him fall in-love and then leave him to die." Tifa told him.
Vincent felt his heart somewhat sinking. "I… I don't know about you, Tifa, but I'm sure you do know the feeling of rejection, right?" he asked her.
"Yes, but…" she trailed off when Vincent turned to look at her. "How would you feel if you also fell in-love with him and he leaves you?" he asked her with a solemn look on his face.
She stiffened and just turned her attention back to Rufus. "Between you and me, Vincent, I think I'm ready to quit this job any time soon." She muttered under her breath.
He stared at her. "And why?" he asked.
She just sighed heavily as she bowed down her head, but before she could reply, her attention was caught by Rufus's statement, "and for this very wonderful evening, I would like to dedicate everything to very beautiful Vice President… who also happens to be my girlfriend,"
Her eyes widened.
Barret, Yuffie, Cloud and Vincent stared unbelievably at Tifa.
All eyes turned to Tifa; almost all the single ladies felt so envious.
Tifa could feel the room spinning around her.
Rufus stared back at her with a sly smile on his face, "I would like to announce my engagement to Miss Tifa Lockheart." He finally said.
Tifa gasped as she covered her mouth in awe.
"Oh my gawd!!! She really did it! Tifa's able to win his heart!" Yuffie said in disbelief.
"Tha' darn foo'! What did Tifa do?! Can't believe she was able to really do it all by herself… and in less than a year! I thought it would take forever!" Barret said in awe, talking while the whole room went in frenzy, applauding happily.
Sephiroth watched quietly with a sly smile on his face as he watched Rufus summon Tifa up the stage.
She slowly got up with a nervous smile on her face before she went to Rufus, joining him up on the stage. He turned to face her and brought out a silver ring with a heart-shaped diamond on it. "For you, Tifa. Do you accept?" he asked softly away from the microphone.
She looked at the engagement ring hesitantly before turning her gaze secretly to Barret and the others. Barret and Cloud urged her to take it.
She turned back to Rufus, smiling sweetly at him. "Yes."
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to be continued….. please review…
