-------------Last Night On Planet-------------

-------------Written By: Reality Obscured-------------

Rude's POV

Rude wasn't much of a thinker. That wasn't his priority unless there was not any way around it. So, even on the last 24-hour period of his life, he refused to think, letting old habits best decide what he should do. Of course, habits of curing depression came into play, and Rude found himself at his favorite bar in Junon. The red-headed ex-Turk beside him, always faithful to the drink, had already shown everyone how faithful he really was. Elena was in here somewhere. He hadn't looked up in a while, so he didn't know exactly where. He hadn't seen her drink much the entire time he had known her. Rude's gaze was firmly fixed on the brown glass bottle clutched in his grip. Barely an inch of the drink rmained in the bottom and this was only his first one! Tseng was gone, Shinra was gone.

He kicked one eye over to the unconscious, drooling man next to him. Wouldn't be a big loss when Reno was gone. Sometimes he felt the only reason he hung around with the little weasel was that he didn't like to drink alone. Plus, Reno had a reasonable head on his shoulders and a good bluff when he was sober, leaving the muscle to Rude. Rude had heard from executives high up in Shinra Inc. that he and Reno made a great team. Something about that must be true.

But now, he felt a headache coming on. There was no way he was going to let his final day be like this! Angry at himself, Rude knocked the beer away, standing up and leaving the bar. Very few people knew he had an apartment in Junon. He liked to keep it that way. Tseng and Reno knew, but as for anyone else? Right now he was thinking about going there and drinking his life away. Suicide by over indulgence didn't seem that bad. Not at that moment, anyway.

Someone jogging behind him caught his attention.

Turning around to look, he saw who was there. Elena. She was probably coming to give some sort of pep talk, or some cheerful words to try and get him out of his mood. Tough luck on that one. She did catch up with him, however.

"You ok?" She asked.

His answer, "..."

"The end of the Planet, and you still won't say hardly anything to me"

Wouldn't she just go away? "..."

She wasn't looking at him anymore, just silently walking by his side. It was then an idea came to mind. Elena had always liked Tseng, but he had always liked Elena. There had been many times when fantasies about what he could do to her had run through his mind. If he could have her, just one night, he could die a happy man. At least, a man without certain curiosities running amok.

"I've got some beer up at my place." He said. "Want some?"

It didn't quite come out sounding like he wanted it to, but it was too late to redo anything. Eena lookd like she was giving it some thought.

"Sure, ok." She finally said. "I didn't know you lived in Junon."

He just shrugged.

------------- ------------- -------------

Elena didn't take her beer well for someone who grew up in the slums. Almost four bottles later she had become an emotional wreck, and about the most undressed he had gotten her over the past few hours was a sloppier version of her usual self. He was sitting on the opposite end of the couch, she on the other end, and he had drained a few bottles himself.

"I didn't think it would end like this." Elena said, slumped over with her elbows on her knees. "Shot, sure, I expected that. Stabbed? That, too! But this?"

Such a great outlook on life she had. Rude had gone over the information in her file when she was being recruited for the Turks. Born in the slums of Midgar, she showed outstanding promise when she joined the military. She had almost been a candidate for SOLDIER. A hot blond that knew how to fight. That's what had first attracted him to her. He still didn't see what she had hated about her life. She could've left any time she wanted. Being in the Turks didn't make it any harder than being in the actual military.

He, on the other hand, had been stuck from day one. A SOLDIER candidate, he was ripped from the military and thrown into the special forces. He caught Mako poisoning, which ended his career when he nearly died, and was decommissioned. Since he had already been infused with Mako, Shinra couldn't let him go, and the Turks intigrated him into their workings. Half a year later, Reno appeared. Besides, if she wanted bad, she wouldn't like how it felt to have a beautiful woman inside an apartment and not able to do anything to her. That was the entire reason she had been brought here, after all. As for telling her that, he wasn't about to. That was just asking for trouble!

"It isn't that bad." He said. "Maybe, if we're lucky, we won't see it coming."

"Trying to cheer me up, Rude?"

He looked down at her, seeing her smile. "..."

She chuckled. "Well, it worked."

There was something to this conversation thing. It was nice to see her smile, especially when the smile had been directed at him. The chance he could get in another comment without he remembering it was relatively good. A few more good words and Elena would be in his pocket...which was hard because he refused to say something without meaning it.

"Elena..." He started. "You do know I like you, right?"

He kind of didn't expect what happened next. Elena looked stunned. "You've...never said anything..." Maybe she still had a little sense left in her after all.

He took another drink. "..."

In a sudden outburst, Elena slammed her fist down on the couch as she jumped up. Definitely angry, she almost shouted, "I'm such a fuck up!"

Elena moved over to the window, and Rude stood up, putting his beer down. Elena had never shown any violent tendencies before, and he was really hoping it wasn't because of what he had said. That could end a lot of things. Unsure of what could happen, he stood by. She leaned on the window, looking out, her breath fogging on the glass.

"I'm glad Meteor's coming!" Her voice was still a near shout, but it almost sounded like she was crying as well. "With everything right in front of me, I might as well be dead!"

It looked like the weight of the world had hit her all at once. Rude watched as her body visibly shook, and he glanced at the tears running down her cheeks. This wasn't right. He didn't want to see her like this. He wanted to think of Elena as strong, the one he usually knew. Striding over, he started to reach out to her, but stopped when he began to speak again. This time, her voice was low, so close to a whisper that Rude had a hard time hearing it.

"We're all dead." She said. "We just don't know it yet."

Rude put his arm around her, drawing her into his arms. She buried her face into his chest, a sob every now and then able to be heard. Reaching up, he lightly stroked her hair, listening to her steady breaths as she calmed down. She was falling asleep now. The strange part was...he liked the way this felt. This changed everything. He wanted something more... He'd never thought of something more than just trying to lay her. In fact, the thought of him almost doing that to her now disgusted him. Elena deserved more than that. When he was sure she was asleep, he picked her up gently, laying her down on the couch. He grabbed a pillow and a blanket from a cabinet and made her more comfortable, or, at least, warmer.

------------- ------------- -------------
12:00 PM The Next Day

Rude shoved Reno off of the wooden, beer stained table. Reno fell to the floor, groaning as he picked himself up. Like always, Reno lowered his goggles over his eyes as he stood. It could be an overcast day and that moron would have a hard time with the light. Rude reached out and held Reno's right arm, steadying the groggy man as he led him out of the bar. Reno eventually got his own feet and could stand on his own, and Rude let go.

"That didn't last long." Reno griped, then put one hand on his head. "Oh, shit! My head... "

Rude looked at his watch. "It's noon. You've been out since nine last night."

"Yeah, you're really better off." Very bitter were his words. "Where's your headache? You didn't touch one bottle by my second! That isn't normal."

Rude put his hands in his pockets. "..."

"Don't try that on me." Reno said. "Owww... Fuckin' head..." He looked up at him. "You know that doesn't work on me."

"..." Not like Reno needed to know, anyway. "I was with Elena."

"Elena?" A smirk slowly formed across his face. "So, how was she? Was she what you thought she'd be like?"

"Nothing happened."

"Nothing?" Reno definitely sounded confused. "You're pulling my leg."

"No, I'm not." Rude replied. "She got herself drunk and fell asleep on the couch."

"Rude," Reno stopped and shook his head. "that's when you should have gone for it. She was vulnerable!"

Rude stopped now, looking back at the ex-Turk, a sneer on his face. "You disgusting-" He stopped himself, knowing he couldn't call Reno anything the shorter man hadn't heard before. "I'm not doing that. Not to Elena."

"Getting soft." Reno shook his head. "You'd have a lot more fun if you did."

"..." Rude turned back around and continued walking. "Don't follow me, Reno."

------------- ------------- -------------
5:00 PM

Self pity was only fun the first few hours of it. In the beginning of today, he had been soley content staying in his apartment for the rest of the day. A cold beer in hand, kicked back on the couch, he wasn't doing any reflecting. Elena had been gone when he arrived, leaving him nothing to reflect upon. Once again, only one beer. One damn beer! He set that ber down on the table nearby, standing up and grabbing his coat. Maybe if he went for a walk he would get shot or something. Plenty of people hated the Turks, and it would be a quick way out.

The street was more crowded than he remembered it. People of all ages were running around making fools of themselves. A doomsday tradition, he figured. Whenever people thought it was the end of the world they went wild. He'd seen it before. Gluttony, sexual lust, burglary... Every sin known to man, and not all of it bad to the eye. Bad to morality, yes, but to the eye? Then again, he could hardly blame. He had tried to get a woman drunk last night to have sex with her. He probably would've, too, if it hadn't backfired. He was going to Hell for that.

Nearby, he could see Reno leaning up against a building, talking in hushed tones to a girl easily not more than 17 years of age. Rude humerously noted a difference in Reno's features. A bruise about the size of a woman's fist rested on his left jaw. Raising an eyebrow in curiosity, he made his way over, not caring if Reno was attempting to score or not. The red-head could keep himself corralled for a moment longer.

Reno saw him and immediately grinned. "Rude! I know why you didn't get any last night. Elena's such a bitch."

"She punched you?" He asked. Reno visibly took offense.

"A lucky shot. Now Stacy here, she'd got a friend. I can hook you up-"

"Which way did Elena go?" Rude cut him off. Reno rolled his eyes and pointed in the direction of the base, afterward returning to his business.

The girl, Stacy, giggled at something he said. Rude knew it had probably been a comment about him, but he didn't care. He was enjoying the thought of Elena finally decking Reno. He was sorry that he hadn't been there to see it.

------------- ------------- -------------

5:30 - 5:45

Rude found Elena standing alone on the long air strip at the top of the base, and as far as he could tell she was watching the sun set. Taking the stiarway up, he avoided making too much noticeable noise as he made his way up to where she was. Once on top, he strode his way over to the platform, just ten feet behind her. He was careful not to get too close to the sensor. The sensor had been known to lower the platform when a mouse got in its way. He did notice the way Elena lookd just then, the sun as her outline... The woman looked deep in thought, and he wondered what was going through her head. He knew what he thought. This was a bad idea. Ready to leave, he took a step back, and his earlier cautions of not getting in the way of the cargo platform's sensor was smashed into the dirt. The heel of his right shoe caught the invisible laser beam. Startled, he could only imagine how he looked to Elena when she turned around and saw him standing there.

"Here to enjoy the sunset?" She sounded like herself again, at least. "How many sunsets have you enjoyed in your lifetime, Rude?"

"I always had better things to do." He replied. He straightened his jacket before taking a few steps forward. The truth about sunsets with him was that he hadn't really cared for them. Ever. But seeing Elena in one like he had earlier... "I saw Reno. You decked him good."

She sounded unsure. "I guess..."

"It's about time."

She picked up on his tone of voice, obviously, because she smiled. There was some glimmer in her eyes that Rude hadn't seen there before. She turned around and gazed once again upon the horizon. The sun was almost completely down now. When just an inch of the sun remained in sight, the silence was broken, this time by Elena.

"Let's say Cloud and the others are successful and Meteor doesn't destroy the Planet. The Turks are dead. What are you going to do?"

"..."

"Come on." She goaded. "What have you got to lose from telling me?"

"..." Nothing to lose, but that was because he had nothing to begin with. The Turks had been his life. It wasn't like he had ever thought of what would happen if they were to ever go out of business. That just wasn't on the idea pool.

Elena looked liked she gave up, putting her hands in her pockets and shrugging the conversation off. Rude gave a mental sigh. Women. She wanted to talk, and he didn't. That meant that he would have to come up with something to talk about.

"The Turks are dead, but our reputation isn't." He picked the conversation back up again. "It'll be easy to find mercenary work. And you?"

That seemed to be exactly what she wanted, because she started talking again like there wasn't a pause at all. "I've got some Materia I can sell, then find a job as a waitress or something." She replied. "Blonds in mini-skirts seem to be getting popular."

Elena in a mini-skirt... All train of thought ceased for the moment as he thought of her in one. He had only seen her in pants. The majority of her leg and thigh showing, the fair skin there just within reach and waiting to be touched... Blonds in mini-skirts didn't seem to be getting popular. They had always been popular! He forced himself back on subject.

Elena was a woman, and, after all, women always wanted to hear, "You can do better."

"Work was hard to find before. It's not going to be easy now, Rude." She said. "Moving up to the Icicle Inn area sounds nice. I've only been there once, but I really liked it."

Big difference between the two of them there. She liked the cold, he did not. Something came to mind, and he mulled over the idea for a moment before throwing it out in the open. "Elena... Will you do me a favor?"

"Sure, ok. What is it?" She agreed, and he really needed this right now.

He put his hand on her arm, pulled her into his arms, and kissed her. It only lasted a couple of seconds, and Elena didn't fight it. She didn't exactly kiss back, but that was ok. Her lips were so soft that he didn't want to leave them. But, when he did release her, he watched her for only a second before turning around and heading to the cargo platform, taking it down to the ground below. It was better than answering any of her questions, questions that she undoubtedly had now. But it was he who was surprised when, a minute later as he neared the door to enter the base, Elena ran up to him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him back. He joined her in the moment, embracing her as tightly to him as he dared.

------------- ------------- -------------

Rude pulled Elena into his apartment, shutting and locking the door behind them. He didn't want anyone to intrude upon them tonight. He could feel it in the way she had kissed him and looked at him. They both needed this tonight more than anything. He pulled off her jacket, shrugging off his own, and immediately set to work unbuttoning her shirt. She was unbuttoning his shirt as well, but he had her's done long before she had finished his. That just came with practice. He'd have plenty of time to get his own shirt off. He wanted to taste her right now. He went down her neck with his mouth, kissing and prodding with his tongue to her shoulder. He moved his hands up to her breasts, but the bra was in his way. Irritated slightly, he moved his hands around to her back, unclasping the contraption, letting it fall to the floor. His hands went to her breast again, and she moved against him as he kneaded them, caressing the tips lightly with his thumbs.

A couple of seconds later, he pulled off her shirt, as well as removing his own. He pulled her close, moving his mouth to her breast, listening to her gasp as he suckled the tip of one. When he removed his mouth from her, she put her own to him. She moved her tongue along his chest, and there was a certain tightening around his groin area, especially when she moved her tongue around one of his own nipples. If he didn't have his mind on something else at that time he would have guessed that she had nipped him! He picked her up and carried her to his bed, lying her down in the middle of it. He deliberately moved slow as he removed her pants, kissing every few inches that he uncovered of her inner thigh. He had seen women with large bushes of hair around their womanhoods and women with hardly any at all. Elena had a moderate amount of golden blond curls. If he'd ever had the doubt that Elena was a true blond, he settled that doubt now.

Dropping her pants to the floor, he stood up, looking down at her for a moment before removing his own belt and pants. Elena was watching him, he knew, but he had nothing to be ashamed of. 8 1/2 inches of hard manhood wasn't anything to be embarrassed about in his book. He actually found himself smiling. He hadn't smiled in a while.

------------- ------------- -------------

The two of them lay in the bed, the blanket pulled up over the both of them. Rude was on his back, his right arm around the petite form sleeping against him. Elena's head rested on his chest, her right arm around his middle. She had drifted off a couple of minutes ago, considering the five hours of exertion they had just spent. He had been with six or seven women before in the past, all of them who were actually supposed to be at the top of their game. Here, Elena had worn him out, something that none of the others had ever been able to do. There were things that she had done to him that he hadn't ever seen done before, and he had done things to her that he had never done before.

Now, it was about 11:00. The last hour before the end. Sounded good. He was too tired to stay up for it, anyway. Elena mumbled something in her sleep, catching his attention, but all she did was cuddle in closer. He smiled, pulling a stray strand of hair out of her face with his free hand. He kissed her once on the forehead before settling down to fall asleep himself.

-------------FIN-------------