[[ A/N: So this is a ficlet that uses circumstances and the character, Stella, from my other fic "Chin Up Buttercup", which is in progress currently. There is context to be found in the main fic, but you do not have to read it to understand this blurb. I just wanted to explore Reno and Stella because I thought the dynamic would be cute. ]]
"I'm trash too. You can take me out."
His voice rang out in the dingy alley behind the 7th heaven bar and it was enough to make her groan in disgust. She couldn't count how many times this had happened and she would never have thought that the sight of a Turk would bring her anything other than fear. It wasn't fear, respect, or anything remotely close to that which she felt.
Groaning out loud, she dropped the trash bag into the rusty bin and cut her eyes to the man, whose wide, cheeky grin lit up the dark alley. She crossed her arms and gave him a pitying look, ready to see how he planned to get her contact information this time. It could be as simple as shooting him a glare and leaving him in the alley by himself, but she still stood there ready to shoot him down once more. She had gotten incredibly comfortable with the strange encounters that she found herself in with the red-head and maybe that was for the worst.
"Give it a rest, man. Don't you have a job?" She said with an eye roll. Shrugging, he approached her, holding his usual weapon across the back of his shoulders with both hands. He was maybe a few inches taller than her, his build lean and lanky. His suit was crisp and his shirt barely had a purpose with the amount that it was unbuttoned in the front.
"You wouldn't believe it, I'm on break right now." He replied smoothly, stopping a foot away from her. She shouldn't indulge him, not even for a second. Yet, she still remained stuck in place, finding herself talking before she could rethink her decision.
"Okay, so you've got one cheesy line out of the way. Let's get this over with." Her sarcasm dripped and she motioned with her hand for him to go on. He let the rod roll from his shoulder into his left hand and propped it against the brick of the narrow alley.
"Oh, you're giving me a chance this time? Gotta make this good." He laughed, a smirk punctuated his sentence as he reached for something to say. She deadpanned and watched as he leaned forward, leaning against the brick wall. He cleared his throat when his blue eyes lit up.
"Okay, miss programmer. Are you a keyboard, because you're my type." He gave, cocky grin making her cringe. She shook her head and gave him a look of disbelief.
"That's terrible. Can't you come up with anything better than that? After all this time and you're still terrible." she groaned, trying not to let any tiny hint of a smile surface on her face. She couldn't let him know that she was amused or else he'd never quit. She was beginning to wonder if he ever would.
"You didn't like that? Not even a bit? Okay, you'll love this one." He promised and shut his eyes for a moment to think. Yet again, she could almost see the spark in his eyes when he found his next line.
"Are your pants a compressed file? Because I'd like to unzip them." his confidence was astonishing to her and she had to try really hard to keep it together. Hoping to hide any smile or amusement on her face, she placed her hands over her eyes and shook her head. Once she felt composed enough, she pulled her hands away.
"Nope, that's the last one. No more." her words came out quick and she tried to sound annoyed. Realizing that she needed to go inside and laugh to herself, she turned on her heel and reached for the backdoor of the bar, determined to get away before she had the chance to think over the ridiculous lines again.
Her escape was halted when his hand closed around her wrist. Like the times before, he had an iron grip and there was no way she was going anywhere. She still shot him a look and tugged her arm, even if it was useless.
"Come on, so soon? You didn't gimme the chance to ask for your number yet." he almost pleaded, yet his cocky facade remained intact.
"You know what I'm going to say. Why do you keep trying?" She breathed out, ignoring the focused look in his eyes.
"I'm gonna keep trying until ya give it to me." he responded in an almost sing-song way, tilting his head. They held eye contact and his cocky smile faded after a moment. She couldn't do it. She knew that it was impossible and she couldn't think of trying. Besides, he was most likely toying with her for his own entertainment. Once she caved in, he'd forget her.
"Give up." Her words were harsh and quiet, yet she still watched the red-head. He looked down and then back to her. His grip loosened a bit.
"Not today. Not yet."
She didn't have time to react. No time to yank her hand from his grip or laugh in his face or anything. A voice called from the opening of the alley, another man in a suit.
"Reno! You've got her? Great, let's go!" His voice rang and the red-head snapped his attention to his partner. His grip tightened around her wrist and she once again tried to yank herself free, this time with real determination.
"Fuck…" Reno growled under his breath. He looked up at her and gave her an apologetic look. "Break's over, I'm sorry." His words chilled her and she froze in place. All this time hating that he was on break to come to annoy her and now she's caught in the moment that he has to do his job. She had almost forgotten that she was his target. That she was his job.
In an instant, he pulled her close and slapped his hand over her mouth, holding her in place against his chest. Regaining control of her limbs, she began to thrash and squirm in his grip, but the only thing she succeeded in doing was to make him hold her tighter. With a few burdened steps, he drug her to the brick wall, her wriggling and muffled growls against his palm doing nothing for her but make her more disoriented.
Using his own weight to pin her against the brick, he continued to press his hand over her mouth as he used his free hand to dig a long piece of cloth. She knew what it was and she jerked her head to the side but it was no use. In swift, practiced movements he replaced his hand with the cloth, quickly tying it behind her head. She was growling every curse she could at him through the cloth, glaring at him. He leaned in and whispered something to her.
"I hate to do this, but it's my job ya know. Don't struggle so much and it'll be easier. Trust me" His voice low and absent of anything other than an apologetic tone.
She couldn't say she didn't expect this. It was bound to happen eventually but she was mortified that she had been this careless. Still, his cocky playfulness was gone from his expression and his face was now solemn. She wondered if all of this flirting was an expert way to lower her guard, but it didn't make sense. She didn't need her guard lowered. He could have abducted her any time and she wouldn't have been strong enough to fight back.
His partner had trotted up, holding out a black bag with a pull string. Reno pulled her from the wall and spun her around, taking hold of her from under her arms. Heading no advice from him, she struggled and kicked out at his bald coworker, trying to head-butt him. She knew she succeeded when her head came in contact with his, a pained grunt fell from him. The other Turk stepped out of kicking range and to the side where she couldn't reach him.
Her vision was snatched from her as the bag was pulled over her head and the string was pulled taut under her chin. With her heavy breathing and strained growls, the bag heated up quickly and she knew she had to calm down or else she would have a hard time breathing. She stopped kicking, stopped thrashing and fell silent.
"See? That's not so bad." Reno coaxed from behind her. "Rude, do you have the sedative?" he asked and she listened, the man hesitating to speak. All she could do was listen.
"We don't need to waste that on her. There's a better way."
"Rude, I don't think that's-"
And before she could hear the rest, a hard, numbing blow knocked her head to the side and she fell from the world, sinking into total darkness.
The first thing she noticed when she came to was the ache in her head and how stiff her neck felt. The second thing she noticed was the cold sensation that numbed her nape. She attempted to reach up to feel whatever it was at the base of her neck that was so frigid, but her hand was snagged. She let her eyes peek open to take a better look at what was keeping her from moving. She was in a dim room, her arms tied behind her back. She moved her shoulders but it was no use. Whatever held her there was strong and only dug into her wrists. There was no black bag over her head now and no gag. She let her head fall to the side, the movement knocked whatever was cold away and the sound of it hitting the floor was barely registered by her.
However, it was heard by someone else in the room.
"Oh, look who's awake!" a familiar voice called. She didn't bother opening her eyes, she knew who it was.
"Reno…" She groaned, still having trouble holding her head up. Her eyes were shut, but she could almost imagine his face. She heard a few footsteps approach her but it wasn't the red-head who made their way over to her.
A hand grabbed the back of the chair and titled it backward, almost to the point of her back being parallel to the floor. Her eyes shot open and she jumped in her unstable seat. She might have even gasped, she didn't know. The person tilting her chair back was Rude, his hardened expression mostly obscured by his shades.
"What are you developing for AVALANCHE? Is it a weapon against the Shinra?" He began and her words caught in her throat. She couldn't do anything but stare. "Are you aware that your acts of terrorism will be punished much harsher if you don't volunteer information?"
There was a drawn out silence and Stella felt her throat tighten by the second. The man looked over his shoulder and Stella followed his eyes to find the red-head sprawled on a sofa. His eyes avoided hers and he looked at the ceiling instead. Rude gave her another pointed look and shook the chair, earning a yelp from her. It really felt like the chair was going to tip over.
"You're not getting anywhere with that." Reno spoke up, sitting up on the sofa. "I'm the more convincing one out of both of us and shaking her ain't helping." his coworker tilted the chair back into it's upright form, folding his arms over his chest.
"Are you saying you wanna take this one? I thought you wanted the evening off." Rude questioned, giving Stella another stony glance.
"The sooner we get this over with the better." Reno yawned, pulling himself off the sofa. "Be a pal and go make a pot of coffee. I'll take it from here." He smirked, pulling his arms over his head in a stretch. Rude looked from her to the red-head and sighed.
"Yeah, coffee wouldn't hurt. It would be great to have the evening off for once if we get this in the bag quickly." He admitted, rubbing his eyes from under his shades. With a wave of his hand, he headed behind her and she heard a door shut.
With the door shut and Rude gone, the red-head took a deep breath and came to lean over her, propping his arm on the top of the chair. She closed her eyes and tilted her head away, praying that he didn't tilt the chair back. Instead, his fingers found their way to her cheek and he pulled her gaze towards him.
"How's your head? Didn't mean for it to get nasty like that." he asked, his light eyes skimmed over her face. She didn't believe it.
"Oh, don't pretend that you care. I know your little game." she managed, "I don't know why you'd bother with it. Not when being knocked on the head takes me down. You're just mean." with that, she jerked her face from his hand, trying not to let the dizzyness get to her.
Reno nodded and leaned down to pick up what had fallen from her head. A small ice-pack, perhaps a little too defrosted now. He pressed it to the back of her neck, which is where she assumed she had been struck. She didn't want to think of it as a caring gesture.
"You think it was all a game? That I didn't mean it this whole time?" He asked, his face neutral. "You're right. Why would I bother when all I would hafta do was get nasty and beat you to a pulp. That doesn't make sense, does it?"
She stayed silent, not knowing what to say. It didn't make sense but part of her still felt betrayed. He had let her get away so many times, ignored his orders for her. She almost wanted to believe she had been special, even if she never wanted to admit it. It was intriguing and dangerous. Like looking at an explosion. Maybe she had gone blind.
"You think I wanted to let you get dragged into this? You're not like those guys in AVALANCHE. I felt bad for you at first think you were gonna get killed. When I realized that you hung around, I really wanted your phone number." he said, giving her a half-hearted smile.
"You're still on that again? Even now? You're either serious or really trying to make me mad." she huffed, giving him a warning look. Still, even in the situation, she felt that twinge of hope that she wanted to bury.
"I told you that I'm not giving up." He gave and she rolled her eyes and felt herself smile. Even in this situation, as he was supposed to be drilling her for info, he was trying to get her number again. It was concerning how quickly she had let her guard down again.
"What's it going to take to get you to stop asking for that?" she sighed, trying to look anywhere but his face. He gave her a mischevious grin and leaned down, his useless flirting was back again.
"I can't talk if my mouth is occupied." he gave with a smirk. She hated that her face felt hot after absorbing his words. If anyone else was this arrogant, this confident she'd smack them. Maybe she still would if her hands weren't tied.
"Come on, seriously. When are you going to cut it out?" her question sounded more impatient than she meant it to. He looked from her lips to her eyes and gave her another cocky smile.
"I am being serious. Indulge me this once and I won't ever bring up phones, numbers, or calls again." He promised with a wink. She couldn't believe it, but she so absolutely could,
"You're a pervert and you're nuts." She concluded before taking a deep breath and saying what she hoped she was too scared to say. "Okay, fine. Go ahead." she said and mentally scolded herself. Who would know anyway? She might as well get it out of her of her system and let him do the same. She couldn't lie to herself any longer. She was intrigued.
"Really? And here I was thinking you hated me now." he began, his voice giddy. It was annoying but also… charming?
"Just shut up and do it. I mean it, no more trying to get my number." She tried to scold, but her words lacked any tact. Before she could change her mind, he placed his hands on the chair, on either side of her thighs, boxing her in. She couldn't go anywhere if she wanted but she could still knee him hard if she needed to.
As he leaned in, she was surprised by how her heart clenched, that butterfly feeling surfacing. She was surprised at how her breath hitched and she mentally had to count down. He took his sweet time, almost as if teasing her, his blue eyes held that mischievous light. As she opened her mouth to rush him, his mouth covered hers, silencing any scolding she could come up with.
His mouth was hot and like his personality, overbearing. He wasn't soft, he wasn't subtle. His lips pressed into hers with a type of hungry desperation that she had come to expect from him. He paused for a moment to bring his hand up to her chin, letting his thumb roll over her bottom lip. He gave her a knowing smirk, proud of the blush that he had littered her cheeks with. This time, he pressed not only his lips into hers, but his smile too. He knew what he was doing when he hummed into her mouth, the sound making her heart do a flip. He tilted her head back and she relished the warmth of his lips as he moved them over hers. As soon as he had started, he was already gone.
Pulling back, she tried to follow him. He gave her a taunting whistle, accompanied by a wink. It was a lot. Maybe bordering on too much. He gave her one last, quick kiss to the tip of her nose before he pulled back and stood up, leaving her side. She wanted to ask for him to come back, to give her more, but she was speechless. He leaned down and picked up something familiar from the sofa.
Her cellphone.
"Hey… what are-" she began but rolled her eyes when she realized what he was doing. He bit his lip and typed his phone number into her contacts, giving himself a phone call. His phone buzzed as he pulled it from his pocket, he held it up like a trophy, his eyebrows raised. He gave her a cheeky smile as he dropped her phone into her lap, doing all he could to lean over her as he untied her hands.
He was such a tease.
She pulled her hands free and rubbed at her wrists, as she stood. She still felt a little dizzy but she wasn't sure from what. Grabbing her phone, she looked over at him. He placed his finger over his lips and pointed at the door. She got it.
She didn't have to be told twice. She snuck over to the door and watched as Reno paused in front of the door at the opposite end of the room, the room Rude was in. He pointed at his phone and mock held it up to his ear in a final message to her.
He gave her a smile and as he walked into the other room, she left out the front door. She pulled her phone out as she ran down a few winding alleys, looking to call someone from her team to come to her. It was a few contacts down that she saw the red-heads name.
She just might call him after all.