Chapter 11

The lazy patter of the raindrops outside stirred her awake. The cool, after-rain breeze blew in lightly from the ajar sliding glass door. Tifa slowly opened her brown eyes to take in her surroundings.

'Where am I?'

Her hands groped around for a feel of her surrounding when she touched upon something that didn't quite felt like the couch fabric. Instead it was soft and was actually moving in a slow upward-downward motion. With eyebrows knitted together in confusion, she slowly pulled herself up from her very much comfortable lying position, only to look into the face of the person that she had least expected she would ever fall asleep on.

His arms were lightly wrapped around her waist to which she regretfully pulled herself away from to get a better look at him.

He looked peaceful when he was asleep. His eyes closed with the crimson hair falling over in such a way that made him looked charming of some sort. A small smile played on his lips, no doubt he was having a good sleep. He didn't snore, to which she was thankful for.

The brown eyes continued to linger on his face a little longer as a smile tugged on her own lips.

'He doesn't really look too bad when he wants to be.' She mused.

"You know, I'm not exactly complaining, but it's kinda creepy to know someone's watching you while you sleep."

Reno's voice was so sudden and unexpected that it surprised her and caused her to lose balance, falling off the couch with a loud thud.

"Ouch!"

Reno opened his eyes and laughed as he pushed himself up on one elbow. He stared down at her, his blue eyes sparkling with amusement.

"Quit laughing." Tifa retorted as she examined herself from the fall.

"Well sorry, Miss-I'm-so-clumsy-in-the-mornings."

He laughed again as she shot him a glare. Still laughing, he sat up from the couch and pulled her up clumsily, making her tumble over and fall onto him.

"I knew you like me, but I didn't know that you liked me that much to fall over me." He joked as he tried to wrap his arms around her once more.

She swatted his arms away from her huffily and turned the other way so he couldn't see the smile that was actually forming on her face.

"This is the treatment I get after keeping you safe from a crazy stalker, a thunderstorm, a broken glass shard and not to forget, allowing you to make a bed out of me by sleeping on me for the whole night, causing me a bad backache and…"

He didn't get to continue however, as a pillow smacked him right across the face followed by the sound of her laughter.

"You really gotta stop whining Reno."

A wolfish grin grew on his face.

"Is it just me, or it seems like someone's asking for a pillow fight?"

Eyes widened, Tifa slowly began to back away from him as she realized what he was about to do. Reno quickly grabbed hold of a pillow before aiming it at her. It hit her squarely on the face to which gave him the satisfaction and revenge he needed. Before he could say anything however, he was attacked with two pillows and a third one rapidly bonking him on the head.

"Wha…wait…aargh…"

His voice was drowned by the sound of her laughter and the whomping sounds of the pillow. Defenseless, Reno quickly groped around for something to retaliate. His hand reached hold of a pillow that earlier thrown on him and immediately began to defend himself by holding it over his head as a shield.

"That's not going to stop me." Tifa said over her laughter.

"Oh yeah? Well, maybe this will." With that said, he started his offense on her by rapidly hitting Tifa on the sides causing her to lose her balance and fall back onto the couch. He grinned as he quickly advanced on her and attacked her with his pillow.

"Aargh…stop…"

"Now who's pleading for mercy?" He grinned.

Tifa thrashed around the couch trying to defend herself at the same time, hoping to escape from his pillow. It wasn't an easy task however, with all the laughing, keeping her near breathless.

An idea suddenly occurred in her mind.

"Stop! Stop…my foot, it hurts…"

Almost immediately, the pillow stopped short from hitting her on the head for probably the 8th time in a row.

The aqua blue eyes quickly glanced down her legs to her bandaged foot. With the attention diverted, she quickly smacked him on the head with the pillow in her hands, causing him to fall back.

"Hey! That's not fair!" He protested.

"Too bad."

"That was a dirty trick to use." He pointed out with an unsatisfied look on his face.

"Live with it."

"Who'd ever guess Tifa Lockheart actually plays cheat." He said with a smirk.

"That was not cheating. It was a use of good tactic and the brains." She replied with a grin.

He snorted and turned his attention back to her bandaged foot. An awkward moment filled the room.

"Does it still hurt?"

His voice sounded concerned.

"A little."

Reno reached over to gently take hold of her foot and carefully examined it.

"Looks like you need a change of bandages."

She said nothing but only nodded. His displays of concern never failed to amaze her, due to fact that in the past it was severely lacking.

"I'll go get the bandage." He said as he stood up and made his way towards the kitchen.

Tifa fell back onto the couch and stared out onto the misty morning.

'This feels a little weird. Being here, with him…caring for me, getting in a pillow-fight. If someone were to tell me a year ago, that this would happen, I'd probably be off thinking the person should be admitted to a mental asylum.'

Her thoughts were interrupted with the sound of his footsteps coming back towards the couch. Without a word, he sat on the carpeted floor and took hold of her foot as he began to take off the bandages.

She watched him with a smile on her face. There was a look on concentration his face as he slowly unwrapped the bandage and examined the wound. With a swipe at the wound with a slightly moistened cotton for traces of dry blood, he grabbed the fresh bandages from his side and proceeded to wrap them around the wound.

"We should go see a doctor so he can check it or something." He said without looking up.

"Right."

Reno finished up with a snip of the cloth and clumsily tied the bandage together in a knot to hold it together.

"Well, I'll go change and then maybe we could grab a light bite before we head to the doctor's." He said as he stood up.

"Reno?"

His blue eyes met her brown ones.

She smiled. She didn't have to say anything, no words were needed. He smiled back and made his way to his room.

………………………………………………………

"So how am I supposed to walk again?"

Barely a few steps away to the door, Reno stopped and looked over his shoulder. She looked at him expectantly with her index finger pointed to her foot.

'Right.'

With a sigh, he made his way back to her. His glance shifted from her face to her foot and then back again. He sighed again.

"If you're making it sound like it's the most horrible thing in the world, then I could just call Tristan to come get me. Less the hassle for you." She stated simply with a shrug.

He looked at her with eyebrows raised.

"What?"

"Never mind. Don't bother Tristy boy, I'll take you to the doctor myself and drop you off at your apartment."

"It's Tristan."

"Whatever." He replied.

Reno crouched down in front of her and tapped on his shoulder, signaling her to get on his back.

"You know, it's really…"

"Really Lockheart. I've carried you once before, you'd think you'd get use to it by now."

Face flushed, Tifa pulled herself onto his back.

They made their way out of his apartment, into the lift and out, reached the outside, all with a just a solitary accidental bump of her head on the lift's door frame as they got out, earning him an earful of her grumbling.

"That was accidental."

"No, it wasn't and you know it."

"If I recall correctly, your neck isn't the one injured, you could have easily ducked as we walked out of the lift. But no, you had to have your head held up, all high and mighty." He retorted.

With narrowed eyes at his statement, Tifa quickly gave her comeback.

"If you had actually carried me carefully at a lower level then I wouldn't have to duck, thus avoiding hitting my head."

"Well, if you hadn't been the clumsy person that you are then you wouldn't break the glass in the first place, cause your foot to be injured and me having to carry you and you bonking your head."

"Well, if you were to remember where you placed the candles in the first place then I wouldn't break the glass in the dark kitchen, injuring myself, leading you to carry me and hit my head back there.

"If you didn't have the insistence to search for candles in the dark in the first place then I wouldn't have to think about where the candles in my apartment were."

There was a brief moment of silence.

"That didn't really make sense." She spoke up.

"Yeah." He replied feebly.

"But it still isn't my fault that I bumped my head back there."

"Will you drop it Lockheart? It was your fault back there. Plain and simple. The end. Case closed. I win." He stated.

"No you didn't."

"Yes I did."

"You didn't."

"I did."

"No." Tifa replied testily.

"Yes." He answered lazily.

"No."

"No."

"Yes."

"Got you. You said 'Yes'." Reno grinned.

"That…that wasn't…"

"Give it up Tifa. I was right and you were wrong."

She huffed in response as he grinned in delight at beating her in her own verbal war.

………………………………………………………

Reno breathed in deeply and quickly released it as he felt the weight on his back again. He grimaced. This was becoming almost like a familiar routine for him, he could just imagine the horrible backache when he gets home later that night.

The rest of the trip to the doctor's had been less eventful than earlier. With a couple of stitches and new neater bandage, compared to his messy one, that was all she needed.

"What?" Tifa questioned innocently, as she noticed the grimace upon his face.

"Nothing." He quickly replied.

He wasn't complaining, not that he had anything to complaint about. In a strange way, he was more than glad to carry her around, it made him felt needed. She needed him. Whoever would've seen that day coming? A light chuckle escaped his lips at the thought.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing."

Tifa glanced down at him with an inquisitive look. He said nothing but proceeded to walk, so she decided to let the matter drop, at least for now.

Minutes of silence passed between them. The silence, added with amused and curious glances from passer-bys, were more than enough to make Tifa squirmed uncomfortably.

Sensing her discomfort, he finally spoke up.

"Will you quit moving around? You're not exactly the lightest person around."

He was answered with a light slap on the shoulder.

"What was that for?" He exclaimed.

"For discreetly saying that I'm fat."

"Oh right, I forgot, no girls like being called fat. Be it discreetly or not." He muttered with sarcasm.

"Well, how would you like me to hear me say, 'You're not really that bad to look at, but still, I've seen better,'"

"Alright, that hurt."

"Figures. The one thing to bruise your ego is commenting you on your looks." She snorted.

"Well, look who's talking. With just a slight, discreet, comment on your weight and you go all girly on me."

"What was that supposed to mean?" Tifa replied indignantly.

"What was what supposed to mean?"

"Forget it." Under her breath she muttered, "Male chauvinist."

"Where to?"

"What?"

Reno smirked and turned sideways to look at her.

"I said, where to? Back to your apartment or the bar? Or do you want me to just drop you here and call Trissy to come get you?"

"It's Tristan." She reminded him in exasperation. It amazes her how he could never seem to get Tristan's name right.

"Whatever."

"Why don't you take into learning to call him by the right name?"

"Don't see the need to." He answered humorlessly.

"Just drop me off at the bar. Tristan," she emphasized on the name, "would be able to take me home later."

………………………………………………………

"What happened to you?" Mae exclaimed at the sight of Reno walking into the bar with Tifa on his back. Tifa shot a sheepish smile as she pointed to her foot. Mae's immediate reaction was to glare at Reno. If looks could kill, Reno would probably be six feet under the ground at that very moment.

"Don't give me that look. I didn't do anything to her." Reno defended himself as she shot him a disbelief look.

He gently eased Tifa down on a chair before stretching his back and arms.

"Are you alright?" Mae asked as she went over to Tifa.

Tifa nodded. Reno snorted.

"How come no one would ask me if I'm alright? I did carry a whiny brat all the way to the doctor's and back after all."

Both Mae and Tifa rolled their eyes at his dramatics.

"Are you alright Reno? Do you need an ice pack? Shall I get a nice fluffy cushion for you to lean on?" Mae asked sarcastically.

"That would be nice." He said with a grin.

"Dream on." She said.

Peeved, he waved his hand dismissively and sat down on the chair next to Tifa.

The two girls exchanged smiles before Mae headed to the back of the bar to continue her clean up.

"I never knew you could throw such tantrums." Tifa teased as she nudged him in the shoulder.

He shrugged and stared at the ground. At his lack of response, Tifa focused her attention to a spot on the wall, looking somewhat interested in it. Reno's gazed was fixed to the ground for the next few minutes before he finally spoke up.

"Where are we?" He asked.

"What do you mean? We're in…"

"I know where we are. I don't mean it literally." He interjected as he turned to look at her in the eye.

"Oh." Realization set upon her as she understood what he was referring to.

'Why is he so unpredictable at times? One minute he's being the joker that he is and in another, he's all serious. And why do we keep coming back to this conversation?' She sighed inwardly.

Her brown eyes diverted themselves from his blue ones and roamed the room, unsure of what to say. He bit his pale lip in slight frustration but said nothing.

Silence once again dawned on them.

"What if…" He paused midway, wondering how he should phrase his next words, "What if he comes back. Then what?" He asked slowly.

His heart was twisting as the words came out from his mouth, he awaited her answer with bated breath.

She shrugged.

'Great. Just the answer I needed.' He thought. He sighed and looked down at his fingers. There wasn't really anything he could do, the decision was hers to make. He was a like yo-yo, hanging on the edge of the cord, feeling high one moment and down the next and it was all down to her to swing him the way she wants. Keep him or drop him. He hated feeling this way, but that was how it is. It's not her fault, it isn't his either, the feelings came knocking and he was the one who let it in, knowing the other possibilities that could happen.

"Reno?"

"If you'd like me to leave, I'm happy to oblige. No big deal."

The answer he got was a slap across the face. He faced her with a mixed look of anger and shock.

"What…"

"That's the reason why I didn't want to fall for you. Leave, no big deal!" She burst out. "That's it, that solves everything doesn't it? Don't you care enough to stay? You want to know what I'd like? I'd like you to stay and fight for me, despite the fact that I'm lost and unsure. If you leave, then I will forever be in the dark. Don't you get it?" She looked at him with glassy eyes, as the tears threatened to fall.

His blue eyes widened at her words, surprised and taken aback.

'I forgot how scary she can get when she gets all worked up.'

"I get it." He whispered softly as his fingers reached up to her cheek.

A solitary tear fell from her eyes and onto his fingertip. "Hey, don't cry." He pulled her into his arms and wrapped his in his embrace. "I'm not going to leave." He murmured into her hair.

She pulled herself away from his arms.

A dumbfounded look crossed his features at her sudden action.

"Why do you do this?" She asked.

"Do what?"

"Why do you bring this up at times when everything seems normal and fine? Weren't we getting along well earlier? But then suddenly, out of nowhere, you just bring this up and…"

"Why are you getting upset over it?"

"Because it's unpredictable of you. It brings me off balance and then I get all mixed up and frustrated…"

"Look. I needed to know. That's why."

She shot him a frustrated look. He sighed.

"You know, I don't think that's what bothering you. There's something else to it. And I want to know, what is it?"

Reno looked at her intently, his eyes reflecting an inquisitive stare.

She found it hard to find her voice, much less look at him in the eye.

"I'm…a wimp when it comes to matters of the heart. Scared. That's it. You know that." She said, feeling stupid.

"I thought we solved that." He stated calmly.

"We didn't."

His stare diverted from her face and to the ground before looking back up at her again. With a determined look, he moved closer to her, their faces barely inches away from each other. Tifa was about to pull back but his hands made a quick grab onto hers to prevent her from doing so.

"What…"

"Shh."

She stared as he daringly inched closer, tilting his head slightly. Her senses immediately picked up a combination smell of fresh soap with hints of citrus blend. 'Must be the shower gel he uses.' Tifa thought as she recalled seeing a silver-orange bottle sitting on the top rack in his bathroom the previous night.

His breath lightly tickled her nose as he took another inch forward. She could feel her heart beating furiously as her hands tried to gently pry themselves away from his. Reno's hands however, were adamant in keeping them where they were. She watched as his lips came closer to her own.

The blue eyes of his closed as he leaned in and covered the last inch between them.

Though startled, her eyes voluntarily fell shut as she felt his lips gently brushed against hers.

Unhurried, soft and sweet. Those were the words that Tifa could use to describe what was happening. There was no hurry, no force, but with emotion, an emotion that made his feelings for her clear.

Reno slowly pulled his lips away from hers.

"Trust." He whispered softly. "Just trust me."

A confused look appeared before the understanding of his words dawned on her.

"You're scared, because you fell out of trust for anyone but yourself. But you can't hide and run away forever. If you don't want to be left in the darkness, then you have to trust me. Trust me when I say I'm not going to leave and…that I like you."

He gave a small smile before letting go of her hands, leaving her free to leave if she wanted to, or if she really desired, to slap him.

She did nothing of the sort but kept her gaze on him.

Reno smiled and leaned closer once more. His lips captured her in another soft kiss before pulling away again.

"You didn't run away. You didn't pull back. That, was trust." He said

A/N: Alright, what can I say about the short drabble/filler that I posted up a week ago...well, it was a little killer to me actually, cause I somehow felt a little pressured to write something good to top that. I really liked that short piece actually. That was actually my first time writing something along those lines,a difference from my usual style of writing. Anyway, I'm glad no one decided to kill me or anything for that, and no one hated Cloud either, like I said, he's a nice guy after all. Hehe.

Well, do appreciate this chapter and I demand to know what you think about this chapter cause I got really stressed while writing it and it would definitely be comforting to know if my stress was worth it. The last scene was the biggest headache for me cause I just could not think of an ending and kept rewriting over and over again. So, as aforementioned, leave me your comment and thoughts. I demand you to! Lol, I'm just kidding. It's alright with me if you don't want to.

Out of curiosity though, I noticed that Ch6 received the most reviews out of all chapters so far. To refresh the memory, it's the chapter with the piano scene and where Reno first asks Tifa about her feelings. And I'm really curious to know why so many of you enjoyed that chapter the best, cause this would definitely help me gain insight on my writing and readers' preferences. So, thoughts? Thanks for reading my ramblings, and of course the fic, have a good day. Oh yeah, last ramble, I noticed I have never really given an intro of myself, resulting nicknames such as 'blu' and 'mav' to turn up (lol), so feel free to call me Jess alright? Cheers!