Blood: 8
Ice cream?
A break-up? That thought still felt alien to Evan as he climbed the stairs to the Company cafeteria. Rose and Leroy had never been Midgar's sweethearts, but something had to be said for the five years they had been together. That was a long time for a rebound relationship. Everybody knew where Rose's heart lay. Shaking his head, Evan found an unintentional smile settling on his face and refusing to be wiped away. After all these years that idiot still had her love, and he had wasted his opportunity. Tseng has been injured some days ago, during an expedition to the temple of the Ancients. Funnily enough he had shared the same fate as many of his people; skewered on the end of Sephiroth's Masamune. There was little to be said about that incident to Rose. She was a Turk, and a Senior Turk at that. Rules must be obeyed, and a strict code of conduct adherred to. Her feelings in the privacy of her own home had remained private.She was a Turk, and a Senior Turk at that. Rules must be obeyed, and a strict code of conduct adhered to. Her feelings in the privacy of her own home had remained private.
It was true that she hadn't been the same since, her demeanour very much that of someone who had suffered a loss, but of a colleague, and not a dear lover.
As always, the cafeteria was at its busiest around 1pm, the managers congregating in several small herds at the corner tables, away from the windows and the possibility of catching air, clean, dity or otherwise. They shied away from nature in any shape or form during their time in the building. Evan found himself thinking on this, the idea bringing a smile to his face. The outside world was far removed from the cosy environment created specially for them within the warm walls of Shinra HQ, Midgar. Why go outside when you were made to feel indispensible inside? Unfortunately for them, feeling and being were two very different things. Managers came and went like yesterday's news - unbelievably important at the time, but easily forgotten by the next day. There had been quite a few redundancies recently, the current herds made up of mostly new faces, none of which had yet learnt that challenging Tessi McCarnon to a game of cards was a bad idea with a capital B. Until you understood the full extent of that boy's cheating, you would never win against him. Experience taught well.
Finding a small grin at the idea of hard learned lessons, Evan turned his attentions on the other employees dotted about the room. Most of the window tables were empty, the small number reserved for adventurous executives almost devoid of life. Reeve sat alone, the only one lacking the pride to eat lunch alone in his office, happy to exchange pleasantries with more friendly members of President Shinra's corporate family. Feeling Reeve's eyes on him, Evan gave a polite nod, thinking better of such a sterile acknowledgement and flashing a breif, yet warm smile. He had always liked Reeve, and the man deserved credit for all the time he spent in close quarters with Scarlet and that boob Heidegger. Backstabbius muchious and pompousity dimwhitticun. The thought of them slapped a distasteful frown squarely on Evan's face, leaving Reeve with a puzzled, almost hurt look. A quick apologetic smile, and wrongs were righted, leaving the urban development head piece of mind enough to finish his salad sandwich.
Members of the typing pool occupied many of the centre tables, staying away from the two standing side by side in the middle of the room under the biggest of the four strip lights. Though there was no official rule, it was Company lore that only Turks sat at these tables. Any lesser employee would find themselves roughly ejected by the first Turk to see them, and at worst find themselves missing a few days. It was difficult to believe people could take such offense to something so small, but many of his colleagues would not stand for a breach of this unwritten rule. Though they surrounded these sacred tables, the various secretaries, copy room girls and typists seemed happy enough gossiping and chattering about people and things unknown. The copy room girls were a strange breed. None of them feared the Turks. Ninety per cent of the copy room employees being women of a variety of different ages meant that they were unlikely to fear Reno. There were very few women in the building that feared Reno, the reasons well known as they were. Each and every Turk had been given a nickname that circulated within the typing pool. Reno had been christened Casanova, for want of a better name. He himself had been given the name Teddy boy. Why, Evan was unsure. He did find possibility in his being the only Turk old enough to remember the Teddy boy period, in which terrible suit jackets and awful bouffant hairstyles were in fashion. Luckily, he had only succumbed to peer given madness for a few short years, before learning the error of his ways and receiving a letter from Shinra Works informing him of his success as an applicant for the Turks. My that had been some years ago now.
Turning away from them before a chuckle could break his sombre expression, he found himself meeting a familiar pair of brown eyes. Though they hid behind opaque shades, Evan knew that Rude had met his gaze. There was something in the way the bald Turk stood that gave him the feeling of curious eyes staring straight back into his own. If not meeting his gaze, Rude was certainly looking at him, clicking his heels together and saluting as he did indication enough of that fact. Mouthing the words 'at ease', Evan switched his gaze to Rude's companion, a gangly creature sprawled untidily against the wall.
Nobody knew quite what to do with Reno anymore. His superiors had tried everything; disciplinary action, threats, removing cafeteria priviliges. Even redundancy. Reno would not smarten up. He had been given the boot as a means of whipping him into shape, Heidegger's intention to reinstate him after several weeks, give him some thinking time. Unfortunately, Reno had been too persistent, coming into work every day as though everything was normal, sitting in the Turk's office waiting for an assignment. In the end Heidegger had just given him his job back on the President's order. Clearly the red head would not stay away, the only sure method of keeping him from returning to work to kill him, but why lose a good Turk unnecessarily? Now his slobbiness was thought of as individuality. It had become a fact of life that Reno was too valuable to lose.
So Evan found himself frowning, watching in resignation his old trainee leaning against the wall, one spindly leg straight, the other bent at the knee, foot flat against the wall behind, a cigarette between his unhealthily yellow lips, the 'NO SMOKING' sign bolted above his head of no consequence. What was the point in trying? Sighing in defeat, the old Turk turned away, intent on settling at his own table.
Despite the notion that he was 'getting on a bit' flashing around the building like lightning, Evan was as sharp as the day he had joined the Turks. Perhaps even more so, years of experience fuelling his soft eye. He caught things other people would miss; noticed the most minute detail that would escape others. One of these happened to be Rose, sitting silently at the right hand centre table, the froth on her cappucino melting away with every passing minute she ignored it. Halting in his tracks, Evan found himself watching her, safe in the knowledge that she had not yet noticed him, else she would be watching him like a hawk. It was clear that something was on her mind, though he doubted it was Leroy Jenkins. The man was a pig, she knew that, just as she knew that he had been finding service elsewhere in regards to his sex life. 'Playing away' was wrong. The term itself grated on Evan's mind. Playing was such a harmless term. Applying it to something so dishonourable felt so wrong.
For a moment he hesitated, unsure whether or not he should intrude on her solitude. Rose often sat alone when troubled, and did not take kindly to interruption. Shaking that thought away, Evan took a step forward, jumping back suddenly as he almost collided with Elena. "Sorry Mr. Reilly, Sir." She apologised, not even stopping to speak to him face to face. She was in a state, her little and ring fingers bandaged together on her right hand, her bright blue right eye sporting a black shiner. According to two MPs, she had tried to avenge Tseng's 'death' when she met Cloud up at Icicle Inn. Unfortunately the story made her a figure of fun with her unintentional 'trip' down the hill into a snowcobo. Reno had chosen to keep Tseng's survival quiet in regards to her, convinced it would make her a better Turk. Well, if anything could...
To his surprise and horror, she slammed a plastic tub down on the table in front of Rose, startling the poor woman out of her private thoughts and back into reality. Elena hastily took a seat, leaning on the tub and lowering her voice to what she believed to be a demure mutter, "I heard about your break-up." She informed Rose matter of factly, "I thought you might need some cheering up, so I came armed." Not waiting for a reply, or at least to see Rose's expression, she fished in her pocket and produced two silver spoons, slapping them down on the table.
Rose stared, no words coming to her that could possibly express her feelings. What could she say? Elena had said her piece obviously, ripping the lid off the tub and delving her spoon into the soft caramel choc chip ice cream inside, relishing the taste with a sigh. What did Elena want her to do? Drown her non-existent sorrows in a two litre tub of frozen milk? Bemused as she was, and trasnfixed on Elena's speedy demolishing of the ice cream she was oblivious to the looks of horror shot back and forth across the room.
Every manager worth his salt and weight in Company experience stared at Elena, none of them daring to speak. Evan could not close his mouth, his jaw agape as he looked round at Rude and Reno, the former covering his eyes (though his shades were still on), the latter wide-eyed and obviously fearful of Rose's pending reaction. Though she had trained her, Rose had never considered Elena to be her friend. She remained detatched from her trainees, not wasting her faith on their prolonged survival. What was the dizzy blonde thinking? Evan, Reno and Rude had known Rose longer than anyone else in the Company, so were all waiting on her explosive outburst. Her actions shocked them all.
Taking a deep and calming breath, Rose clasped her hands, knitting her fingers together and pressing her palms flat on the tabletop in front of her, leaning just enough weight on them to cause an aching pain in her knuckles, partly occupying her mind as she began to speak, "Thank you for your concern, Elena, but I assure you that I-"
"Was he a rat? I'm guessing he was a rat, wasn't he?" Elena cut her off, digging into her ice cream, coming up with a heaped spoonful, "Men are all rats, except for Tseng, but you know that anyway."
Rose clenched her teeth, keeping her annoyance hidden behind tightly drawn lips. Elena continued, unaware of her superior's feelings, "I don't know what us we girls see in men. You can't live with them, you can't live without them. We're nothing but trophies to them. Take Reno," She guestured towards him with her chocoloatey spoon, "he does nothing but talk about women as lays. What does he know about women? I heard the other day, that his father runs the HoneyBee Inn." Her eyebrows shot up in surprise as a loud snort escaped Rose, the dark-haired woman grimacing in pain as her top teeth dented her lower lip.
Reno and Rude looked at each other, neither one daring to say anything as Rose's explosive outburst finally burst out. She screeched, creasing up as a howl of laughter escaped her, followed by another, and another, and another. Rose slammed her fist down on the table, Elena jumping in surprise. She had never seen Rose laugh before, the closest thing being a soft chuckle. Now she sprawled across the table top, shuddering with ill stifled laughter. Had she said something so funny?
Evan glanced over at Reno, slightly amused to see him gob smacked, stuttering nonsense, "Buuuu...buuuu...buuuu...bu..." before rolling his head to look round at Rude, "Buut that's not supposed to happen." He managed at last, milking this unusual occurence for all it was worth, "She's supposed to get her pistols out and gun Elena or at least brain her with them."
Rude said nothing, chosing a light shrug as the best form of reply. Elena continued on with her mono conversation, "I had this boyfriend once. He was a real pain, always ordering me around, treating me like a housewife-" Rose's continued laughter threw her, forcing her to ask that question burning in her mind, "Did I say something funny?"
At last, Rose calmed herself, shaking her head as she searched for a tactful answer. There was none. "Elena, I'm sorry to tell you, but everyone knows Trey Henson works at the HoneyBee Inn. It's common knowledge. He used to be a Turk before that." The look on Elena's face was priceless, Evan concluding that it was lost somewhere between utter surprise at this new information and abject humiliation as every manager in the room began to laugh, Reeve looking up from his Financial times to find something funny had gone on without his noticing. Evan found a frown, seeing that Rose was trying to stop herself from laughing also, swallowing her mirth and pulling a straight face. She had two names down at the copy room. The second, a variation on the first - mini vindictive - apt.
Rose drew another calming breath, knitting her fingers once again before beginning her comfort speech, "Trey is one of those people we try to forget-" the unmistakable 'HEY!' from Reno's general vicinity was no surprise, Rose feeling a little like a traitor towards Mr. Henson Snr as she spoke, "-he is a deviant, no mistaking that." She was relieved to see Elena's enthusiasm return,
"Believe it. I've heard things about him that would make your toes curl. "
'There is one thing he does a lot of that makes my toes curl.' Rose found herself thinking with an inward smirk, 'Not that I would ever "do it" with Trey. That would be weirdness absolut.'
Elena continued, unaware of Rose's private thoughts, "How can anybody be so disgusting and disrespectful of their own body let alone anybody else's! I'll bet that's what your ex was like."
Surprising not only herself, but everybody else watching this bizarre exchange, Rose picked up Elena's spare spoon and dug into the ice cream, resting her head idly on one hand, "You have no idea."
(NOTE: Elena's great. I bet she has a freezer full of emergency tubs at home. No, Rose hasn't slept with Trey, don't worry. And Cyn, I'll keep the badly translated creepy Spanish to a bare minimum :P)