Storm Clouds

Chapter 8: Who's Gabriel?

Reno was coming back from work on a late afternoon, driving down Port Avenue where he remembered Cloud lived on. Where specifically? That remains to be seen. Yet that didn't phase the red head. Where he slept when being totally wasted on vodka was very easily remembered for Reno. It's just that who he slept with always seems to escape his mind. But this isn't the case, now Reno's concern was where, on Midgar's longest street, did Cloud reside in.

After driving down hills and up he spotted the shabby apartment building that Cloud lived in. Finding a parking space was impossible so he used an illegal space to park without forgetting to flash out his Detective's Parking Warrant on his dashboard.

He gypped it from a real detective back when he was a kid and it always made it easier for him. It was a pass for ticket holders to indicate that a detective needed it in urgent cases for a short amount of time.

Hope Cloud will be walking out when I arrive because I have not fucking clue what his room number was again.

Reno was hoping for a long shot and as reality worked; he was wrong. However, the receptionist was actually present today. The ex-Turk walked up to the counter.

"Hey, how you doing. Um…listen I was here two nights ago and I forgot my friend's room number. Mind if you tell me?"

The decaying slum stared at him with bulging yellow eyes which matched perfectly with his grotesque crackled skin.

"Name." He stated bluntly while shuffling for the papers of the residents.

"Cloud Strife." Reno jumped to see over the counter. I hate being small. Wish Rude was here to spy on the paper for me. The man scanned for the name.

"Sorry, no Cloud Strife living here." He answered in his raspy voice.

"What! No, I can't have gotten the building wrong. I know I was here because that guy was sleeping over there." Reno pointed to the small sitting area near the entrance door. On one of the weathered maroon arm chairs was a homeless man sleeping with his paper-bagged vodka. His Swede hat tipped to the side.

"Still, no legal name no number." The receptionist twisted in his seat.

"Well then have you seen a young man, my age, blonde spiky hair and blue eyes? Solider from the look of his eyes." The man thought for a second then his eyes lit up.

"Yah, I do know him! But his name isn't Cloud Strife, his name is Gabriel Peeress."

Reno's mouth dropped in shock.

"Don't know any Cloud Strife. You got the wrong friend boy."

"Who the hell is Gabriel Peeress?"

"Mr. Peeress?" The secretary called.

"Yes?" Cloud stood up from his seat.

"Mr. Watishu will see you now." She went back to filing her nails.

Thanks. Cloud snapped to her in his mind. Secretaries. They're all the same in the Drug Lord's offices. Pretty and bitchy. Enough to just think about fucking them but that's it.

Cloud walked in the quant office, with a middle aged man behind a desk seeing through a bundle of papers. He didn't bother to look up at Cloud or invite him to sit down. The blonde watched him fumbled through the papers while the silence grew between them larger and larger.

"What do you want?" He finally asked while organizing his desk and sitting back.

"Mr. Watishu, I'm Gabriel Peeress and I'm here for any work." Watishu looked him up and down.

"And what work can you do?"

"I'm an assassin. Just came back from a job with a friend of yours, Mr. Defell?" Watishu smacked his lips.

"And you worked for him, not killed him? Correct?"

"It wasn't my job to kill him sir."

"Just making sure." He stood up and walked around his desk with his hands in his pockets.

"Well, this is not really the good time to kill anyone. With the new recruit of police, it's very risky."

"I understand sir, but I'm trained well." Cloud tired desperately to reassure him.

"Oh, I know. I can tell that you were a SOILDER during Shinra's reign. Your eyes give it away. But honestly, I really don't have anyone on my Death List. Everyone's been good to me so far." He crossed his arms and sat on his desk before Cloud. With his black eyes he watched Cloud think for another reason to hire him.

"Is there anyone you know that has a problem that I can fix?" Cloud asked sincerely. Mr. Watishu shook his head 'no'. "Well then, thank you for you time." Cloud turned to leave through the door.

"Wait," Cloud stopped. "I do have a need for you though." Mr. Watishu sauntered his way behind Cloud.

"How about I pay you 700 grand for a few nights of your company?" Without hesitation, he stretched his fingers across Cloud's ass and gripped. "What do you say?"

Surprisingly Cloud thought about it. His options are coming to an end. No! I'm above that.

"Sorry, Mr. Watishu. But I don't work that way." Cloud pushed the man's hands away and walked out off the office.

Cloud opened the door and walked past the familiar sitting area with the drunken bum sleeping in the chair. Yet he also noticed Reno sitting across from him.

"Reno what are you doing here?"

Reno woke up and tilted his face to see above his sunglasses.

"Oh! Hi Gabriel! Just here waiting for Cloud, tell him that I dropped by." He walked swiftly past Cloud in an angry manner.

"Shit," Cloud said to himself before following after him. "Reno! Reno, stop!"

"Gabriel? Peeress? Couldn't you have picked a cooler name then that!"

"He was another recruit in SOLIDER with me."

"Oh, that's great! No wonder it took forever to find you. Cloud Strife doesn't even exist."

"Shut your mouth! I have my reasons—''

"She doesn't know about you does she?"

"What do you mean?" Cloud asked.

"Tifa? All of them think you're dead! I thought so too because a guy back in Hsilgen said that the famous Cloud Strife was dead. Didn't think he'd be right." Reno began to unlock his car.

"Why the fuck are you so pissed off about. Okay, so I changed my name to a lame one, so what!"

"You ran away!" Reno bellowed. "You ran away from them! You were their leader and something got to you, which told you to ditch them when they needed you! Worst thing for a man to do is run away." Reno opened his car to the convertible.

"Why then are you so good at it!" Reno paused and looked at Cloud with a threatening look.

"Shut your fucking mouth! I had my reasons. What you did was cowardice! From what I don't know."

"And you'll never know! I had my reasons for leaving too you fucking son of a bitch!" Reno was taken aback. Cloud huffed to catch his racing breath and felt the cold nipped at his cheeks. "You'll never understand…Go off and fuck someone else tonight!" Cloud left Reno.

"Trust me I will! A girl name Tina is meeting me at Hounds and at least she doesn't cry at night!"

Cloud turned around but lost the words to say. Nothing he knew was harsher then what Reno barked at him. The blonde just dashed flicking Reno off.

Please Review for this chapter! I'm begging you. So Reno and Cloud are splitsville! And trust me, that job thing is only growing to get bigger. Will Cloud and Reno ever get back together? Is Reno going to tell Tifa and the Gang the truth? Will Vincent return and learn of the secret as well? Find out next chapter and REVIEW in the meanwhile.

This is going to be a Cold Winter.