The room reddened from the morning sun just peaking up over the horizon and stirred Rufus awake. He was lying stretched out on his stomach how he usually did in the morning, but as he blinked open his eyes, he realized something wasn't right. Rather, something... Someone was missing from his bed.

Rufus pushed himself up on his elbows with a suddenness that had his head swimming, but he still nonetheless did his best to search for the Turk who was supposed to be in his bed. His room was empty. The bathroom was empty with the light turned off. He was alone.

Blinking, Rufus tried to figure out if he'd gone crazy from one day to the next, if perhaps Sephiroth's cells invading his body had made him see things, glorious things that should haven't been possible.

Tseng in his bed? Why would Tseng ever willingly lie with him in his bed?

His mind scoured everything he could remember about the moments before he'd gone to sleep.

He'd cried. Like a fucking blubbering baby. God, he didn't want to remember that.

And, well, he'd also been kissed so softly it bordered on painful.

Rufus rolled onto his back and touched his lips, trying to find some evidence of Tseng on his mouth. But, of course, hours after the fact, there'd have been no evidence there whether it'd happened.

Had he imagined Tseng holding him, kissing him? If he had, then hopefully he'd imagined the crying as well.

Wait. The soup. Tseng had been feeding him soup.

Rufus lifted his head again and looked to the side table. And there is was: A bowl with a straw hanging over the edge. Tseng had said it'd been a compromise, presumably between forcibly spoon-feeding him and letting him have some dignity. Although where could there possibly be any dignity in getting force-fed at twenty-six years old?

And for that matter, where was the dignity in an employee professing to his employer that he'd wanted him for a long, long time? Rufus' groin had no choice but to heat at the thought and the confession he'd coerced out of Tseng.

His eyes searched the room again, almost frantic in his upheaval of emotions, but, as before, the room was barren of all life except for his pounding heartbeat and heavy breaths.

So alone, for the first time in a week, he wanted to leave his room and with a desperation that sent his legs swinging over the edge of the bed. When he stood up on wobbly legs much too quickly, dizziness again overtook him and he was forced to sit back down or fall on his face. What a time to regret everything he'd willingly done to himself in the past week.

"Rose!" the former president blurted out into the empty room. "ROSE!"

The door burst open, and the housekeeper came rushing in, reaching out to turn on a switch she knew the location of. Rufus cringed his eyes shut at the sudden light that was much brighter than the barely risen sun. Someone followed behind her slippered feet with heavy footsteps.

After a moment, when his eyes adjusted, Rufus glared at the stranger, but ignored him otherwise for the moment in favor of growling, "Get Tseng in here right now."

The two people had stopped a few feet from the bed before Rose said, "I'm sorry, sir, he's not here today. He's on an assignment on the other side of Edge. He most likely won't be back until tonight, maybe tomorrow."

Rufus hoped his shock didn't show on his face. If it did, he hoped it looked like sincere hostility instead. "He left?"

"Yes, sir. But last night, after you were asleep, he made some calls and found a nurse who was more than happy to come this morning." She lightly touched the arm attached to a man who was looking over Rufus like he had every intention of coming right over to former president to give him a complete and thorough physical right at that moment. And that wouldn't have been difficult since Rufus was still quite naked, not to mention too weak to fight.

Rufus grabbed an edge of the comforter and jerked it over his lap. "I've said quite clearly that I do not need a nurse, or caregiver, or anything similar, which would be a waste of my money. Now get Tseng in here. Now!" When the woman merely stood there, her jaw working up and down, Rufus instead ordered, "Forget it! Just get me my fucking phone!" He jerked a trembling hand up to point. "It's over there charging on the table."

Rose rushed her slender frame over to it, unplugged it, and brought it to her employer. The moment he had it, he speed-dialed Tseng's number. After a couple of rings, the thing went straight to voicemail. He tried again. This time, it just went straight to voicemail.

Rufus slammed the phone on the side table next to the dresser, blurting out, "That fucking bastard." Then he realized the two people were still in his room. "Nurse whatever-your-name-is, you're fired. Get out of my house." When the man gawked at him, Rufus turned his murderous glare onto Rose. "Get him out of here now. Pay him whatever he wants, but get him out of my house, Rose."

When the woman finally obediently rushed the nurse towards the door, Rufus raked a hand through his hair. He couldn't remember a single moment in time in his whole life he'd ever been so pissed off.

Tseng had not only left his bed, but found a replacement all in the same night?! A short, humorless laugh burst out of him at the idea.

He tried to stand again, more than ready to track down Tseng himself if he had to. He wasn't about to let Tseng think he could have his way in this matter. But when he tried to stand, again, dizziness took hold. He collapsed back onto his backside, a sob bursting out of him.

"ROSE!"

He heard her running footsteps coming down the hallway seconds later.

When she reached the doorway, she panted out, "Yes, sir?"

"Get me some food." When she didn't move the moment he finished the words, he added, "Like right now, damn it!"

The look of surprise on her face succumbed to a slight smile before she took off back the way she'd come. Rufus continued to glare at the open doorway.

Did the woman have to look so damned pleased about it?!

Rufus gritted his teeth and tried to not think about the whole household celebrating downstairs while he was upstairs suffering utter humiliation. He tried to not think about Tseng finally getting his way.

Yes, he'd eat. He'd eat just so he could beat the shit out of Tseng, at least verbally if not physically, before he died from this parasitic disease that Sephiroth had apparently cursed him with.

Around twenty minutes later, he had a steaming breakfast that still mostly consisted of soup, but also had a couple chucks of thick warm bread and some freshly sliced peaches in a bowl on the tray. He glared at Rose until she left the room and then clutched the throw on his bed around himself and made his way to the table with careful footsteps.

Slowly, but surely, he forced down the broth, a piece of bread, and most of the fruit before he felt too full to continue, his stomach probably only a portion of the size it'd been a week before.

Then he sat back in the chair, closed his eyes, and let the morning sun attempt to warm his chilled flesh. The soup helped a bit with that too.

Another twenty minutes later, while he still felt weak, his blood sugar rising, he wasn't borderline unconscious anymore. He made his way back to the bed, collapsed chest down on it, telling himself he'd only close his eyes for a minute before he got dressed, and then managed to fall right back asleep.

It wasn't until the day had warmed considerably and the sun was somewhere overhead that he woke up again. Rufus growled at the effort it took to get back into a seated position, but he still had to admit he felt better at that moment than he had in days. A few minutes later, he made his way back over to the table, finished up the bread and fruit, and then made his way to the dresser.

He picked out a pair of briefs, pants, and a shirt alone, abandoning any idea of trying to get a full ensemble onto his trembling body. Then, combing his hands through his hair, he made his way to the doorway, down the hallways, and down the stairs, carefully hanging onto the railing.

Rose came rushing around the corner, wiping her hands on her apron. "Sir?"

"Get Richard. I'm going out."

She stared at him wide-eyed for a moment but then nodded, turned around, and hurried to the far end of the house. Rufus made his way to the front door, opened the locks, opened the door itself, and then leaned against the doorframe, trying to catch his breath and steady his swimming head.

It wasn't until quiet footsteps were on him that he saw Rose handing him a bottle of water with a small smile. "Sir, do take care of yourself."

Rufus stared at her a moment and then looked at the offering before he managed a small smile himself. "Thank you, Rose."

Her smile grew. She nodded and walked back the way she'd come.

When Rufus heard the car come around, he pushed himself away from the door frame, walked with as much dignity as he could muster, and slipped into the car as his chauffeur held the door open for him. He cracked open the bottle of water and took a sip before his driver was seated. "Take me to Tseng."

Richard nodded. "Yes, sir."