Reno was standing next to Rude, the both of them leaning on a railing of a balcony on the fifth floor. It was their lunch break and, per usual, they had both eaten sandwiches from the nearby deli and were now simply looking out at the city, cigarettes in hand.

"Yo, Partner," Reno said softly, his eyes watching the people below, "you ever been in love before?"

Confused, Rude turned to look at him. "Love?"

Reno took a long drag on his cigarette, blowing out the smoke in a sigh before he answered. "Yeah. Ya know, caring a lot about another person and loving them." He turned to look at his partner, curious. "Have you ever had someone like that?"

Rude focused back on the city. "No."

He frowned, following his gaze. "Why not?"

"Being a relationship in this sort of work is a bad idea."

"Why d'you say that…?"

"Think about it."

Reno glanced over at him, knocking a bit of ash off of the balcony's railing. "I ain't followin', yo."

He sighed. "If you have feelings for someone else and make it known, what if something happened to them? Kidnapping, for example. You know as well as I do that emotions are a bad thing in this line of work."

Reno huffed out a sigh, dramatically mimicking Rude's, and looked back at the city, taking another drag. "So that's why office relationships are prohibited…"

Rude hummed an affirmative and smashed his cigarette against the rail to put it out, flicking it into the trashcan behind them.

He frowned. "Tseng and Elena are a thing, aren't they?"

Rude shook his head.

His eyes narrowed. "O' course they are."

"Maybe, but they can both handle it. If, for example, Tseng got captured tomorrow, I feel that Elena would be indifferent. Both of them are careful with emotion."

Reno frowned. "Laney's not. You saw how torn up she was after what happened to Rufus. She still is."

"She's sympathetic."

He sighed. "Whatever…" He noticed his cigarette had gone out and tossed into the trash, going back in after he noticed their break was nearly over. He put his hands in his pockets when Rude started following him. "The reason I even asked earlier was… Well, I think I'm in love, yo. I'm not sure though."

Rude raised an eyebrow slightly. The expression was hardly noticeable, but Reno had picked up on it. "If you have to ask, maybe you're not really in love."

He frowned and went into the Turks' office, holding the door for him. "I dunno… I care about 'em a lot."

Rude simply shook his head and went over to his desk.

Reno trotted after him, feeling like he needed some sort of advice. "I'll still be stayin' with Rufus, just so you know."

He looked up at Reno in interest. "You talked to him?"

"Yeah."

"What did you say?"

Reno shrugged a bit, leaning on the desk. "Not much. I just told him that it's my job to take care of him and I ain't retiring yet."

Rude gave him a small nod, silently praising him before he went back to work, filling out paperwork. Reno groaned at how boring it was and decided to go to his own desk for a nice little nap.

Silence. That was what they had to work with. There was the soft sound of chewing and the ear-piercing scraping of forks against plates, but there was silence behind that. Neither of them knew what to say, leaving them to eat the vegetable stir fry that Tseng had made and sent home with them. He and Elena often made dishes to send, knowing that Reno wasn't that good of a cook and Rufus was unable to fend for himself with food. Reno ate faster, putting his plate in the sink and beginning to count out Rufus's pills after he was done.

"I don't want them."

Reno looked over at the blonde, confused. "What?"

Rufus pushed a slice of pepper around his plate, nudging against a potato. "I don't want my medicine. I don't like what it does to me. I don't like feeling so helpless and weak. Besides, it messes with my memory. I've been taking two or three baths a day and keep forgetting if I've eaten or not."

Reno reluctantly began to put the bottles back. "But, Sir, aren't you in pain?" he asked softly, not wanting to force the pills but not letting this go without a fight.

"Just pour me some scotch," he muttered before popping the last bit of his vegetables into his mouth.

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "I don't think that would help, Sir. A hangover would only add to-"

"Just pour me some damn alcohol," he snapped. He was in a bad mood almost all the time now, thanks to his constant discomfort and depression. He knew he shouldn't be taking it out on other people, but he didn't give a damn. He was Rufus Shinra, for fuck's sake. He deserved some respect and obedience. He could do whatever the hell he wanted.

Sighing as he gave in, Reno opened a cupboard and pulled out a bottle of vodka. He kept looking, but that was all he could find. "How's this?"

"Fine."

Reno began pouring it into a shot glass, but Rufus's electric wheelchair moved faster than what he thought. The man grabbed the bottle from him and shot back over to the table, giving an innocent smile before tipping the bottle back. Reno just stared, the cork still in his hand.

"Hey!" he finally shouted, trying to grab it back from him.

Rufus turned and swallowed, holding the alcohol out of reach. "You're stealing from your boss?" he asked after he was finished with shuddering at the strength of the alcohol.

His eyes narrowed. "I'm trying to keep my boss healthy, but he's being a selfish prick and doesn't give a shit if he dies from some reaction with drugs and alcohol."

He gave a roll of his eyes. "I'll be fine, Reno. Go watch TV or something. I'll be fine."

They had a brief stare down, neither one willing to back off. The two of them were at their wits' end, as they had been together twenty-four seven for the past nine days. It was exhausting, as they seemed to have at least one argument a day. These arguments always happened near the end of the day, as Rufus's body was exhausted and burned-out from the day's activities of just sitting in his office. It was surprisingly draining, just tilting that little joystick to direct his wheelchair. And, with every bathroom break or even eating a meal, he just got even more tired.

Rufus's mood was pretty much at rock bottom by now. In the past couple days, the Shinra Company had received so many death threats that security had nearly been tripled. Tseng would occasionally stop by Rufus's home to run a quick check, but the place had a great security system already. Besides, Dark Nation was still on edge. She had reluctantly accepted Reno's addition, but not without staring him down during meals or when he spent prolonged periods of time in Rufus's company. She loved her master and Reno was still seen as a threat, no matter how many times Rufus scolded her for growling.

Reno gave up eventually, letting Rufus do what he wanted. He went into the living room and sat on the couch with a sigh, flipping on the large TV and surfing through channels. He finally settled for another sporting event, thankful for the season starting. Without it, he wasn't sure what he would even do.

He wasn't paying much attention to it, using it simply as background noise as Rufus got himself drunk in the kitchen. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and stared at it for a while, realizing that he hadn't talked to his mother in over a week. That was extremely unusual for him, as he had never even left home for this long before without a text or call. He sighed, feeling guilty, and began to dial her number. He had it memorized so much, he could recite it backwards even when he was drunk. He held the phone to his ear and leaned back in the couch, smiling.

"Hello?"

Clearly, she hadn't looked at her caller ID. But, after answering as quickly as she had, she probably didn't get a chance to look. Usually, she greeted him by cooing at him and gushing over how much she loved him. Hearing her so serious was actually a bit of a surprise.

"Hey Ma," he greeted, his smile obvious in his voice. "Sorry I haven't kept in contact much… How've ya been holding up?"

As soon as she was aware that it was her son, her Overprotective Mother switch flipped. "Reno! Oh, baby! How are you? Are you okay? How's Rufus? You're taking care of him, aren't you? But don't forget to take care of yourself! Oh, honey, I miss you!"

His smile only grew at her tone. There was something he found comforting in it, even though a lot of people laughed at him over how his mother treated him like such a kid, when he was really only a few years from thirty. "Yeah, Ma. I'm doin' good." He frowned a little, his eyes flickering to the kitchen, where he heard Rufus speaking lowly to Dark Nation. He didn't know what he was saying, but he had the feeling Rufus was crying. "I dunno about Rufus though… He's doin' pretty bad." He sighed, rolling his lip between his teeth. "I hate seein' him like this, Ma. It's heartbreaking. I've never seen him so weak and sad…" He was sure to keep his voice low, not wanting Rufus to overhear.

He could practically see her frown. "Oh, honey… Want me to bake him some cookies?"

"No… He never ate the last batch. He doesn't eat much other than dinner and a little lunch. He's gettin' really thin already and it's only been a couple weeks since he got home. I dunno what to do… He's drinking himself silly right now because he doesn't want his pills. I tried to stop him, but… I had to let him."

She sighed softly. "Reno, baby, I'm sure you're doing the best you can. If you want, I can come over there and see what I can do. Maybe he just needs a mama."

He let out a soft laugh. "I don't think that's what he needs… He's said it before and he's acting on it now… He says he just wants to die. He broke down yesterday and told me that over and over…"

"Dear…"

He straightened up a bit. "But he'll be okay, Ma. I know he will. He's strong."

"You're right, honey. And with you there, he'll get better faster! Just keep him happy, okay?"

"Okay, Ma." Reno heard glass shatter in the kitchen and bolted up. "I gotta go, Ma. Love ya." He hung up before she could respond, tossing his phone onto the couch and jogging to the kitchen. He froze at the sight, letting a choice profanity slip through his lips.

Rufus had moved to the middle of the kitchen, Dark Nation previously perched on his lap. The guard hound was now licking Rufus's bleeding hand, which was the results of a shattered bottle. Vodka was spilled all over Rufus's clothes and the floor and he was shaking, staring at his hand in pain as blood snaked down his arm and dripped onto his white pants and the floor. He didn't even know Reno was there, too fixated on what he had done.

"Sir," Reno blurted, stepping forward.

He was careful of the glass and shoved Dark Nation off, ignoring her furious growls at the action. Rufus said nothing, just staring at his hand with tears leaking from his eyes. Being incredibly careful about the glass, he heaved Rufus into his arms and began carrying him upstairs to wash up. He placed the trembling man on the toilet after knocking down the lid, beginning to get the wet clothing off of him. He was able to keep himself from blushing, as he had grown accustomed to undressing and redressing Rufus twice a day. He put the wet clothes to the side and grabbed a towel, placing it across his lap. He opened the cupboard under the sink and grabbed gauze, grabbing a wet washcloth as well. He began to clean the wound, picking out a few bits of glass from time to time.

Rufus was quiet the entire time, swaying slightly. His eyes were swimming in tears of vodka, his entire body feeling awful after his drinking binge. He felt the urge to vomit, but his body was too physically beaten to even try. He flinched as Reno began to tightly wrap his hand, bringing drunken blue eyes to watch his Turk's concentrated face. He felt a certain level of respect, amazed that Reno could care for him despite their many fights and disagreements. Not to mention that Rufus fully knew he was being a stubborn, spoiled, pissed-off brat lately. He was glad that Reno wasn't angry with him. He wasn't sure if he could keep his sanity if he was alone.

His feelings felt like they were choking him, his alcohol only making them stronger. Reno cut the gauze and tied it off, putting the excess away before grabbing some tape to make it a bit more secure. He bit off a piece of the tape, having put down the scissors and not wanting to get them again. He taped it up and smiled when he finished.

"There. Feeling better, Sir?"

Rufus was still staring at him, his lips slightly parted. He lowered his hands to the towel on his lap, just staring as Reno began to wash the red washcloth back to its original white.

Reno's smile turned back into a frown. "You're drunk already, aren't you?" He sighed at Rufus's lack of a response. "You drank more than half of it. I saw. Be glad you're not dead." He finished washing the blood down the sink and hung the cloth up on the towel rack to dry. He washed his own hands after, staring right back at Rufus. "Hey… Are you even okay?"

Rufus reached forward and grabbed Reno's wrist in a surprisingly tight grip with his good hand, his eyes fighting against the drunkenness that would give him one hell of a hangover in the morning.

Reno winced in surprise. "S-Sir…?"

Rufus pulled him closer, looking up at the redhead that now stood in front of him. He let himself smile drunkenly up at him, letting go of Reno's wrist. "I wanna return th' favor," he slurred.

Before Reno could react, there was a thin hand at the back of his neck and he was being pulled down. His hands flew out in a panic, grabbing the wall to keep himself balanced as his eyes widened in shock. He could taste vodka and, half a moment later, he realized that Rufus was kissing him. He groaned and pulled his mouth free, staying in his leaning position.

"Sir…?"

Rufus put his hand over Reno's mouth. "Rufus," he corrected.

Reno looked perplexed. What the hell was going on…?

"I wanna go to bed." He let his hand drop and he slumped against the back of the toilet. "I'm tired."

Reno gave him a nod, picking him up and carrying him to his room, He checked his bandages other than his hand, glad that they didn't appear to need changing until morning. The only wound that even needed to be covered now was his back, and even that was healing up nicely. Rufus was lucky, considering the circumstances.

Rufus was laid down on his bed and Reno moved to get him pajamas, but Rufus grabbed his wrist again. "Lay with me," he commanded, surprisingly strict in his drunken state.

Reno took a moment to think, but realized he didn't have a choice in the matter. He gave a small nod and slipped into the bed next to him after closing the door, knowing Dark Nation would be even more angry if she saw Reno this close to him.

Rufus immediately turned, managing to roll himself over. He wrapped his arm around Reno's waist, hooking his bandaged hand around his hip. He used his other hand to pull Reno's goggles off, frowning a little. "These're so stupid," he muttered before dropping them on the floor. He missed Reno's glare at the insult, closing his eyes and kissing him again.

Reno broke free faster this time, expecting it. "Sir, you're drunk," he said lowly, almost scolding him. "Stop this, or I'm going back to my own room. Okay?"

Rufus pouted, big eyes and all, and Reno glared harsher at him. The face was so cute… Reno hadn't even known Rufus could pull off something like that.

"I mean it."

His pout only grew. It eventually turned into a glare fit to kill and dug his fingers into Reno's hip, making him bite his lip. Little did Rufus know, that was one of Reno's weak spots. He loved his hips being touched, rubbed, or even pinched. It was stupid, but it was true.

"You're arguing against your boss?"

Reno kept his stance on the issue firm. "I'll go back to my room," he threatened again.

"No you won't." His fingers dug in even harder to Reno's hips, having a feeling that Reno had a weakness there.

His grip on his lip failed and a moan ghosted out of his mouth. He immediately shut his mouth tight, feeling himself blush in embarrassment. Shit.

Smirking, Rufus's fingers began to roughly massage the redhead's hips. He was pleased when Reno blushed to his ears, biting his lip as hard as he could just to keep himself from moaning. He found himself shifting his hips into the touch, his hands clenching slightly on the sheets.

"Stop…"

Rufus laughed. "I'm the only one giving orders here, Sinclair," he growled, kissing him again to silence him for good.

That time, Reno didn't break away.