A pair of mischievous dark green eyes opened to the bright unfiltered sun of a brand new day streaming in through an open window. Their owner grinned and playfully tugged the blanket over his red messy hair. He stretched and rolled over, taking the bottom layer of blanket with him as he burrowed down into the warmth of his soft motel bed. It was another welcoming morning in Junon Harbor... He could hear the seagulls crying as they drifted upon the ocean breeze, the waves lapping against the shore, the chill of the late October air drafting through the open window... The perfect morning to stay in bed.
Though he wished to linger as long as he could in the loving embrace of his bed, the craving of nicotine eventually overpowered his stay and he swung his legs over the side of the bed, firmly wrapping a blanket around himself. He ventured to the living quarters that connected his room to his co.-workers and was less than amazed to find his room mate already up.
A pair of light brown eyes met his green ones, and the owner gave a small, knowing grin.
"Oh man, I'm sorry," Reno chuckled. "I didn't know you were naked!" Rude stared,
unamused at the joke, and threw a half-empty pack of Strikes at him. "There's coffee on
the table," Tseng offered as Reno prepared to stalk back to his room in search for his
lighter. "Yeah yeah," Reno mumbled. He hadn't seen Rude without his glasses in what
seemed like forever, so in his mind he might as well have been naked. So what if they
didn't think so.
Reno grabbed his lighter from the corner table and sat down on the end of his bed. He fumbled with it a few times before getting it to light, but it was well worth the wait. He stared out the bay window, over the ocean, and wondered if today really would be the day, and if so, why it had to come so soon.
Outside, the leaves on the trees had already turned brilliant shades of oranges and yellows
with the coming of Fall, and the distinct scent of pumpkin spice lattes from somewhere
down the beach was a hard reminder that the past never leaves you. "Seventeen years"
Reno thought to himself, silent wonder as he watched the smoke dissipate through the
open window. "Has it really been that long?"
He knew better than to let himself become depressed before a job, it was going to be just a normal job after all, but it was always just a bit harder for him to cope with so many reminders abound. It had been eleven years now, since his father had left, and for him that was the easiest part to accept. That chapter of his life closed that day, never to be continued. It was the cold autumn day, years before, that had such a hold over him, one he knew he would never be able to shake off...
There was a gentle knock at the door and Reno jumped, dropping his recently burnt out
cig to the olive colored carpet. "Yeah," he replied trying not to sound too surprised. A far
too chipper blonde opened the door and stood just inside with her hands on her hips.
"You're not even dressed," Elena asked questionably. Reno stood and dropped his hold on
the blanket and revealed his three day worn suit with slight pride. "Guess again," he said
with a lopsided grin, and could have laughed as she turned and stalked out of the room,
mumbling to herself about finding a new job.
A few minutes later there was another knock at the door but to Reno's dismay it was not
Elena again, but Tseng. "We're waiting on you Reno," Tseng stated impatiently. Reno
hung his head and numbly ran his fingers through his untamed hair. He was nowhere
ready to do this, but he knew all roads eventually lead to the same point. "But why now"
he asked himself, "And why with them? I mean, everyone here hates me and thinks I'm
weird anyway, but..." Tseng grabbed Reno's still unpacked suitcase and walked out of the
room, leaving the redhead to prepare himself for the day he had been avoiding for his
whole life.
He was going home. And he was going to face the truth.
A/N - Sorry I haven't updated in forever, I had some computer problems and most of my work got erased. Luckily a few things are still around (that I was smart enough to print out) and this is one of them. I will hopefully have the next chapter re-typed and up soon, but I can't promise anything or now. I am halfway done with the next chapter of "searching for my past" on paper and now hope to have that up before the year is over, along with what I had for "more than friends." Thank you all for being so patient with me. .