Stained Souls

Chapter 15: Leaving

There wasn't a place nor address that Cloud didn't know where to run to other then Tifa's. And ironically it was the only place he wanted to get away from. Now where does one retreat when his refuge isn't where he wants to retreat? All Cloud could do was continue walking. Left. Up the inclining sidewalk and to that same rusted building when hell's deals were made.

It was Tuesday and Reno arrived to the vast room not a second later then expected. However, it was hard to leave the hotel when he knew Rude's eyes were on him stronger then before. Guilt was only a few steps behind him and still Reno tired to outrun it with an excuse of the past.

He entered the room, always the first of the two to arrive first, but a surprise cowered in the corner. Reno's brilliant green eyes were unmasked and saw it was Cloud squatting in the corner.

"Cloud?" He asked. The blonde raised his face from the cushioning of his crossed arms. "What the hell are you doing here?" Reno walked quickly over and lowered himself to Cloud's level. "How long have you been here!"

Cloud didn't answer while wearing a dazed and weary look, but instead quickly unfold himself to lung at Reno's lips. No matter how much Reno enjoyed such passionate kisses from Cloud, a disturbance hung in the air that worried him. He pushed Cloud off.

"Cloud! What the hell's gotten into you?" Cloud moved closer to Reno with a fire in his eyes and began kissing along the Turk's neck. "No, wait!" The redhead again pushed him off.

"What!" Cloud finally said.

"What the hell has gotten into you?" Reno hissed.

"Nothing!"

"Really?" Reno backed and Cloud looked away in silence. "What happened to you? You came in yesterday scaring the hell out of me and warning me of staying low and shit! What the fuck is going on!"

"I read the note." Cloud said after a moments pause. "A group of three is slaughtering all who were connected with Shinra, mostly scientists. But who knows when they might come after you."

"But I'm not working for them anymore!"

"Are you!" Reno closed his mouth in silence. "I have no where to go." Cloud said simply.

"I can't bring you with me." Reno shook his head. "Rude knows of us already."

"So does Vincent!" Cloud gasped. Reno looked at him shocked and stayed silent for the longest time. Not a word spoken between them until Reno questioned aloud.

"So what do we do now?" Cloud stayed silent again and Reno searched for an answer in his azure eyes. A hand entwined his fingers with another hand, knotting them together.

"I must go." Cloud got up but didn't release Reno's hand.

"But why? Now!" Reno tugged Cloud to stop. The Turk hated change especially when it was so good. "Wait! I can leave Rude and get another place in the city for the both of us." Reno ranted a list of possibilities to keep Cloud because he knew that by the blonde's words that he meant to leave for good.

"And what are you going to say to him? That you're sleeping with a Soldier and running off with him! He'd kill me if he heard that! Tifa would track the entire city for me, along with Vincent's help. And they did in the past and found me. My only mistake was that I didn't go out far enough." He took another look at Reno and turned toward the door.

"Then we won't tell anyone of where you are. I'll just say to Rude that I need distance and he'll understand."

"How will he understand?" Cloud asked annoyed.

"Trust me; I can get him to see things my way…But don't go, don't leave me. Cloud!"

"Goodbye Reno." Cloud closed the door behind him and dashed down the stairs and out the building. Reno stayed alone in the room with silence of his loss. The fax machine began starting up and in anger the redhead threw the device to the wall, bursting it into a thousand pieces of micro-chips.

Cloud had to get out of this city, a city of sleeping zombies that were unaware of his tainted soul. The air it seems caved into his lungs, polluting it with guilt and memories. Memoirs he wished would never come back to him again.

The ex-Soldier went to the first automobile sales place he could afford and purchased a black motorcycle. The sales man tried to impress Cloud that it belonged to a famous Shinra hero before the fall of the company. But the blonde was unmoved by his pride of the bike. It was in good shape and cheap, just what Cloud needed. Once paid, he jumped on his bike and drove as fast as he could out of Midgar and disappeared into the west.

Don't be sad! Cloud will come back to Reno after he has a first encounter with someone he didn't expect. REVIEW PLEASE!