Disclaimer: Final Fantasy does not belong to me...however much I may like it to. I own no characters, places etc. etc. so please don't sue me! I'm a nice person :)

Author's Note: Chapter Twenty-One...PLEASE review as I really enjoy reading your views and they inspire me to get better! It would make me very very happy! Anyway stop reading this and get on with reading the fic! Hope you enjoy! :)

Chapter Twenty-One: Meals of Glue and Moments of Warmth

The door came to a close with a gentle 'click', as the young female lowered herself onto the rather uncomfortable chair beside the red head.

"Hey..."

Reno's lips twitched slightly in response, though he seemed unable to utter a greeting.

It was the third morning now. The third morning in a row that she'd come to visit him. She didn't like to admit it but she had practically begun living in the hospital; only going home to shower and check on the bar, which she had left in Yuffie's questionable care, since Cloud was nowhere to be found.

The room was as drab and as silent as before, as although Reno was now awake most of the time, he wasn't so talkative; not only was he highly medicated, but it still appeared that his condition, whatever that may be, was having a draining effect on his physical abilities.

The more she watched him, the more it looked as if he had caught something; perhaps remaining dormant while he was comatose.

His skin glistened with a sheen of cold sweat and he looked a great deal thinner; like something was eating him away from the inside.

They had never really explained to her what had happened. Well she had tried to find out, but there had been certain 'obstacles'; mostly a blonde, suited male.

She had tried to ask one of the nurses about his condition, but she'd only been fobbed off with some excuse about patient-doctor confidentiality; Shin-Ra sure knew about it.

Although they seemed intent to keep any information from her, for the most part, she was left to her own devices, but then being alone in a room with a semi-concious male wasn't exactly riveting. In fact, it was rather frustrating.

Part of her had wondered whether her presence there was really necessary; was it bringing comfort to Reno? Was she desperate to be by his side? If so, why did she feel like she was using it as something to occupy herself with?

She'd felt such despair at his absence, and when she'd heard he was concious again, she had felt such relief, such excitement at the thought of being able to talk to him again; she had so much to tell him, so much to ask him.

But he wasn't up to that. The most she got out of him was the odd movement; sometimes when she was ranting about the bar and Yuffie, he'd smile and rub her hand lightly with the tips of his fingers, or when she was asking small questions like 'how are you feeling today?' he'd make an attempt at a shrug.

Her fingers twiddled anxiously. She had considered telling him what had happened between her and Rufus whilst he'd been stuck in bed, but he'd seemed concerned enough when she merely mentioned his name, that she didn't want to imagine what kind of response she'd get if revealed she'd in fact stayed at his boss's house and basically made out with the young male.

She'd nearly let the details slip the previous afternoon, though the moment she begun, her voice trailed to a mumble as she played the possible reaction she might receive in her head.

* * * "Well whilst you're lying down...I kinda stayed at Rufus's house, and then I tried to attack him, and then we started getting it on in his office, and if you hadn't woken up we'd have probably gone all the way...Oh and then I kicked him in the-"

The machine beside the red head began beeping erratically and suddenly a nurse burst through the cubicle door and rushed over to the bedside.

"What did you do?"

Tifa looked at the convulsing Turk with wide eyes.

"Nothing, nothing!"

The young nurse let out a dramatic gasp.

"Oh God he's having a heart attack!"

"What?"

Reno's form became still, as the nurse stopped her desperate workings with a unsettled sigh.

"He's dead..." * * *

The image had convinced her rather thoroughly to keep her silence on this issue; at least until he was fit enough to withhold from having a cardiac arrest.

She exhaled deeply.

Why is it all so complicated? Why does everything have to be so hard?

Her whole life had been plagued by misery. So many assurances had been made to her, by those she cared for the most, and yet each time the dream that had promised to her had faded away and she was left feeling bitter.

Her Father had been brutally slaughtered and her village had been utterly destroyed; both by someone she had believed in, someone she had thought was a hero. Her best friend had abandoned her on more than one occasion and had rejected her at her most vulnerable. Now she was trying to rebuild something which had rather shaky foundations to begin with.

She'd had so many expectations of life and yet the only glimpses of true happiness were rooted deep within her childhood...when she didn't have to worry, when she'd had everything. She missed feeling like that. Cared for. Wanted. Protected. But now, all she seemed to feel was anger.

So was she really angry at Rufus, or was it just her way of channelling all her hatred and resentment? He did deserve to be hated, but did she really want to hate him? He hadn't set out to hurt her solely, she had just been 'in his way'.

But why had he kissed her? Why had he taken so much time to make sure she was in his way now? Was he just bored? Or did he want her in his life? Did it even matter?

He was arrogant, rude, conceited; everything she despised in a person. He drove her completely insane and the mere thought of him made her skin burn, and yet there were moments when he seemed so...human.

Everybody has flaws right? Maybe she was just damning his because of their history; because he was easy to hate.

All the men in her life were idiots in their own way; Cloud was emotionally stunted, Cid smoked too much, swore too much, and was way too uncomfortable with female 'things', Vincent brooded to the point of the ridiculous, and Barret had a rather erratic temper. The only person who was remotely enjoyable to spend time with nowadays was Reno.

He was precious to her now because he seemed to be the only one in her life who cared, without asking anything in return; other than the odd free drink at her bar. She had thought at one point that there could be something between them, but the truth was she would never want to lose him as a friend. He was too important to lose.

And now he wasn't there for her.

Maybe that was what was making her so angry at Rufus; he had taken that comfort away, even if it hadn't been intentional.

But Reno choose this job...so was it his fault instead? He put himself in danger. He put himself at risk. She couldn't blame him though; she didn't exactly avoid danger, even when she had other, more important responsibilities.

Why can't it just be simple?

She needed to sort out the mess that was her life. For the the first time in years there was no disaster, no impending doom, no evil maniac trying to destroy the planet, and yet she was just as unhappy, just as troubled. She needed to start enjoying herself.

She'd spend more time with Yuffe; the young ninja had to bugging her to take a trip to Wutai with her for months now and a holiday might just be good for her. And maybe she could try dating again; someone nice and normal, without a dark, unstable past, or any emotional issues.

Her mind immediately flickered to the blonde; he was definitely a bad choice.

A small smirk appeared on her lips as she combed her hand through the Turk's limp hair; it was duller than usual, and rather matted, but the act brought some comfort to her.

After a moment Tifa's mind began to wander again; what would it feel like to have Rufus's silver-blonde locks between her fingers? She couldn't help but wonder what might have happened if Reno hadn't woken up when he did, or if the President hadn't said what he had.

Would they really have gone through with it? Would she be in his arms right now? Would her fingers be entwined in his hair, as his hands locked around her waist-

Ok, that's enough of that!

Her fingers stopped mid-stroke and drew back swiftly. She was meant to be caring for Reno, not thinking about his boss; the man who couldn't care less for him. How could she let herself be taken in by him? Wouldn't it be some sort of betrayal? To the Turk, to her friends, to herself?

She tilted her head backwards and allowed her body to slide further into the chair; she needed to stop thinking about this.

The small, clunky heel on Tifa's boots thudded lightly on the lino as she pushed through the door and entered the cafeteria.

It wasn't the worst she'd ever been in; the food was edible enough, and the décor wasn't nearly as mind-numbing as it was in the red head's cubicle.

She'd sat beside him for over three hours before her butt finally succumbed to the hard, plastic seat and fell asleep, upon which she had decided to go for a walk and get some food; hoping the break would not only stretch her limbs, but help clear her mind from the unwanted thoughts that continued to plague her, despite her inner protests and although the hospital was hardly interesting, it was large enough to get some light exercise and luckily the cafeteria was quite a way from the ward Reno was situated on.

The place was noticeably vacant; probably due to the fact that the lunchtime rush hour had just passed, so there was very little food left, and most of the workers were back attending to their duties. The only people left were a few stragglers, and some of the more mobile patients who were either conversing in slow conversation with there visitors, or sitting alone in a rather dreamy state.

Tifa quickly made her way through the serving line; collecting an apple and some juice, along with something that mildly resembled pasta, before coming to a halt at the paying booth.

The young female who was currently working there looked bored out of her mind and she couldn't help but sympathise; no one deserved to be stuck serving stuck up doctors and drugged up patients all day.

After handing over some gil, Tifa flashed the girl a small, appreciative smile and walked over to the seating area; soon choosing a table in the far right corner of the room, preferring to be able to survey what was going on, rather than having her back to any future customers.

Once settled, she started on the pasta and although it wasn't exactly the right texture, it was tasteless enough to force down without feeling the need to gag; though she couldn't as of yet decipher exactly what the pasty sauce was meant to taste like.

As she chewed her way through the meal, her crimson-tinted gaze found itself straying to the window.

The sky had darkened dramatically, leaving a grey sort of mist in place of the once pale clouds, and the rain was just beginning to fall; the droplets now sliding rapidly down the glass with a calming simplicity.

A curious smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

I wonder if they'll be a storm...

She was forced to revert her gaze though, when another form sat down opposite her.

"Hey there."

It was a male; she wasn't sure whether he was one of the canteen worker, a patient, doctor, or a nurse, but he was cocky enough for her to believe he had to be in some position worth gloating about.

She studied him through narrowed eyes before muttering uncertainly.

"Hello..."

He looked at her expectantly; as if he was waiting for her to declare how amazingly pretty he was or suddenly start giggling like a little girl and ask him to tell her all about his life.

A few seconds past before she began tapping her fork on the side of her plate.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"Not yet."

He smirked, in a supposedly charming way, though in retrospect it made him appear more like some ageing drunk trying to come on to his daughter's best friend.

Although all he was met with was a wave of silent repulsion, it didn't seem to faze him in the slightest; instead he leaned in ever closer and displayed another toothy smile.

"So, what's your name sweetie?"

Sweetie?

This guy was already getting on her nerves.

"Tifa Lockhart."

His grin widened slightly at her contribution.

"I'm Derek; I'm actually a Doctor here..."

He smirked again, as he waited for the 'awe' to soak in.

Great...a pretentious,arrogant know-it-all...

This was not the kind of guy she wanted eyeing her up.

"So, you visiting someone Tifa?"

She took a large gulp of her juice.

"Hm."

"Dare I ask who the lucky patient is?"

Tifa's brow furrowed. How could any patient be considered 'lucky'?

"Reno."

She'd never heard his last name, but she figured she didn't need to give it anyway; he was Turk after all.

Sure enough, Derek's eyes widened slightly upon hearing the young male's name.

"Reno? You mean the Turk? Ah yes, he's a very interesting case..."

It was Tifa's turn now to look surprised. She tried to keep her

"Interesting case? Are...are you treating him then?"

Tifa's brow raised at this new piece of information.

Maybe this guy is good for something after all...

"Well not directly, but I know I've read through the notes. It's really quite rare. What these Turk's must get up to eh?"

"Hm."

She smiled softly; her mind working overtime as she realised what she might have stumbled upon.

"So...I'd love for you to tell me a bit more about situation; I'm sure I'll understand it if you explain it to me..."

She flickered her eyelashes at him flirtatiously and it seemed to have the required effect, as the male leant forward; smiling widely.

"Well, it seems that he had a pretty small scuffle with someone, but the small cuts he received got infected with something."

Tifa's gaze narrowed slightly in thought.

"Poison?"

"Well, not exactly, it seems to be something 'natural'; I suppose you could liken it to Mako."

Mako...

Reno had once mentioned something about having Mako injections, after she'd commented on how his eyes reminded her of Sephiroth's, so surely something similar wouldn't effect him so disastrously?

"Is there a cure?"

He chuckled lightly; her words seemingly coming across as an adorable naivety.

"Well that's the problem you see; because we don't know what it is exactly, we can't treat it effectively. Kind of like when a new strain of flu arises; it's not on our database so we just have to keep trying things until we find something that works."

Great...

Seemingly having used up all his information on the subject, Derek decided on a new path of conversation.

"So then, how do you know the Turk?"

Tifa shrugged; her interest in the Doctor fading rather abruptly.

"Oh, he's just a friend."

"I thought Turks didn't have friends."

He chuckled again, as if his comment was somehow amusing. Tifa just lifted an eyebrow in a withheld annoyance.

"Why wouldn't they?"

"Because they're killers."

The male shrugged lightly as if the answer was obvious; and in some respect it was, but that didn't mean she had to agree with it. Instead Tifa made to huff defensively.

"Well I find his company to be rather pleasant."

"Hm."

The Doctor didn't seem to be listening, but that didn't really bother her; the sooner he left her alone the better.

Unfortunately for them both he didn't seem to be making a move to leave.

"Tifa Lockhart... why do I know that name..."

A wide smile began emerging upon his face.

"Hang on, wasn't there someone with that name working for those AVALANCHE weirdos?"

Her eyes narrowed instantly; though obviously not sensing the female's discomfort, Derek carried on unaware.

"They were a bunch of frreeeaaaaakkkks right-"

The toothy, white grin that had been plastered across his face disappeared as his face landed onto the table below with a thud; he was knocked out cold.

Her pace quickened upon the immaculate flooring; squeaks sounding highly with every step.

She didn't know why she was running; true, for a moment she'd been surprised by the fact that no one had called her up on the clear assault of a Doctor, but then the cafeteria was virtually empty, and they girl on the till probably couldn't be bothered.

On the other hand, it was highly possible that they didn't want to get involved directly, and had chosen to report it later; or leave Derek the job once he came to.

She steered around another corner, and upon spotting a set of bathrooms, she chose quickly to enter; a sigh of relief echoing around the walls as she relaxed against a mirror.

After a moment, her fingers reached out and turned the cold tap full blast; the water flowing freely, and flooding the bottom of the sink as the plug devoured at a slower rate.

The sound was comforting, and as she gently rounded to face it, her gaze was drawn towards the mirror before her.

She didn't look like herself; she didn't feel like herself.

The small glimpse of information at the cafeteria had been something, but in the grand scheme of things, it wasn't nearly enough to calm her; there were more pressing matters at hand, like the kiss.

Why hadn't she pushed away? She should have. It was pure craziness to believe that they could actually do anything like that.

But that kiss had been something else. She'd never felt anything quite like it. Sure she'd had experiences before, but this was truly unique. Though she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

It hadn't filled her with comfort, or love, or any of those fluffy feelings that she'd always expected, but rather something both primitive and exquisite.

The breath on her skin had been warm; he had been warm. She had always thought he would feel like ice, like something sharp and uncomfortable and it was disturbing to her; just how different he felt.

She couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if she had allowed it to continue. What might happen the next time.

Next time?

She cupped her hands under the chilled water and brought it up swiftly; the contents splashing effectively over the fine contours of her face.

What was she thinking?

She wanted that contact again, that warmth, that demand she had felt from him.

And that was the problem.

She wanted him.

Another fifteen minutes passed by, before Tifa finally left the toilet block, wrapping her arms around herself defensively; some of her dark strands sticking to her the sides of her cheeks, the moisture chilling against the air.

Her brow furrowed subconsciously as she drifted down the corridor. She was tired. Not especially physically, but the mental stress she was being forced to support was definitely taking its toll.

It didn't help of course that she now had another inner debate raging within her; primarily concerning the blonde. She knew what she wanted to do, but what she should do was another matter.

She was nearer to the red head's cubicle than she realised, as when she turned another corner, the young female walked straight into the ward where he was situated.

Tifa took a deep breath; preparing for the following endurance required, before approaching his cubicle.

Her mind was elsewhere when she pushed the door open, so she almost didn't notice the young male sitting beside the Turk; the patient appearing a little shaken by this new presence.

A second glance though confirmed it was Rufus; sitting calmly and talking to the red head, quietly enough so that she couldn't pick up a word.

It took her a few moments to find her voice; though when it came, it was noticeably shaky.

"What...what are you doing here?"

A unsettlingly smirk played across Rufus's lips as he slowly turned to face her.

"Do I need an excuse to visit my favourite Turk?"

A/N= So here it is! I tried my best to get this chapter out quickly...well quicker than my last update XD

This time we had a lovely Tifa-centred chapter! I thought it would mirror the previous update nicely, so you could see both sides etc but not to worry, Rufus will be back in the next chappie (as you can probably see from the end of this one) XD

I mentioned Cloud for the first time in a looong time, but he's not gunna suddenly come in to become a large character in this, but he will be involved in a future section of this story. The only reason she hasn't mentioned him much thoughtout this is because I'd have thought Tifa would probably be used to him disappearing for long periods nowadays; with deliveries, with visiting Marlene and Denzel while they are with Barret, and with him just being...him XD

I know I mentioned a little RenoxTifa, but it's not what you think, I'm not having her fall in love with him suddenly, but I imagine once in a while, girls consider what they feel towards their male friends. And I am still considering exploring the possibility of one-sided RenoxTifa from Reno's POV; it wouldn't be incredibly strong and angsty, but it may be interesting to explore, especially with Rufus in the mix :D

And just to clear up some things on the annoying doctor etc; I didn't describe him in detail because I don't think Tifa would pay much attention to the way he looked after she noticed how annoying he was XD and the information about Reno's condition isn't overly important, but it is a kind of side-story for the over all plot so I thought I should mention a little bit about it.

The next update should be up soon...ish XD I've got a few other projects I've been meaning to start, but hopefully I should get a chapter up in a few weeks! Though depending on whether I manage to write a certain something into the next chapter or not there may be a delay, but there will be a little surprise if I get to work it into the next update...but don't worry if I can't, it'll just be in the one after that XD I don't want to say exactly what it is though because I don't want to ruin it, but hopefully it'll good!