Chapter 8: Looking at an Angel

"Yeah?"

Bee's phone had rang in her pocket, catching her off-guard. It seemed she was getting more phone calls recently, and she didn't really like it. She was sitting on the top of the large beam that over-looked the 7th Heaven, the angel statue a little further down from her. Her ponytail whipped on her back as it flailed in the the wind, and she tugged her jacket further over shoulders as she placed her sandwich on the surface of the beam next to her. It took her a little to find the phone at the bottom of her pants' pocket, and she had flipped it open without looking at the ID, figuring that it was just Tifa asking when she would be coming to play with Marlene, or if she would be watching over the shop again tomorrow as she had done for two days straight after Reno had.

However, the voice on the other end was not Tifa's.

"Where are you?"

"Reno?" The voice was definitely the Turk's. There was no way Bee wouldn't recognize it by now. "How did you get my number?" Overhead, a flock of birds flew by, squawking loudly. Bee looked up at them and watched as they disappeared over a tall building.

"Reeve," Reno answered quickly, "Are you outside? I hear birds."

"I just finished my patient visits," Bee affirmed, "I'm eating right now."

"Ah, okay good," Reno answered, happy with the girl's answer, "Come back to your place."

"What? Why? My sandwich is really good," Bee surprised herself by whining into the phone. She didn't whine very often. However, she was telling the truth, her sandwich was really good.

"Where did you go today?" Reno asked with interest, "You go to a different place every day, right?"

"Yeah," she answered, unable to leave the surprise from her voice.

"Hey!" he defended, "Don't sound so surprised, you insect! I do listen to what you tell me, ya know. So, where did you go?"

She picked up her sandwich and read off of the wrapper. "Grand Stand Slammers," she read slowly, "Stupid name, but they had some pretty good stuff. I'll have to remember it." She took another bite of her sandwich and chewed slowly, listening for Reno to continue.

"Well now I'm just jealous," he teased her, "I haven't eaten dinner yet."

"You want food?" she offered, taking another bite of her sandwich. When she had chewed enough to talk she continued, "I can go back and get you a burger if you want. You're at my house aren't you?"

"Sure am!" he admitted happily, "I've still got your key. But anyway, if you want to be the angel that you are and go and get me a hamburger, I will definitely not argue. A drink might be nice too."

"There's water in my fridge," Bee told him, "Don't push your luck on my generosity. What are you doing in my house?"

"It's a surprise!" he announced excitedly, listening to her chewing again on the other line, "So hurry and get me a burger, with cheese, while you're at it. And pickles and ketchup. And then bring your angelic little ass back home, got it?"

Bee was already standing at that point and she took a last bite of her sandwich, bunched the wrapper up in her fist, and secured her backpack tighter on her back as she prepared to make her way down from the steel beam. "Sure, I can do that," she said, knowing she was going to regret her decision. She looked up at the angel statue as she passed by, grabbing on to it to support her as she climbed past it, and searching for guidance from the very figure Reno often compared her to. It stared down at her, its stony gaze giving nothing away, and she climbed the rest of the way down the beam with its image burned in the back of her mind.

It took only a half hour to get back to her place, a cheeseburger with ketchup and pickles still warm in a paper bag clutched in one of Bee's hands. She unlocked the front door, glad that Reno had actually thought to lock it behind him. She locked it herself once she had entered into the shop, then looked around the store, expecting Reno to be leaning on the counter. He wasn't there, however, and it didn't look like he was anywhere in the store at all.

"Reno?!" Bee yelled into the store. She walked slowly to the stair case, looking underneath it to see if he was sleeping on her cot.

"Up here!" came his voice from her flat above the store.

Bee followed the voice up the stairs and into her living room, the room that was directly next to the hallway at the top of the stairs. Reno was there, sitting on her couch, grinning at her like a mad fool, and Bee instantly wished she hadn't gotten him the cheeseburger.

"Hey!" he greeted her cheerfully. He stood and walked over to her, motioning to the bag in her hand. "That my burger?"

She nodded her head and held the bag out to him. "I took a bite," she admitted sheepishly before he could open it. He looked up from the bag to her, an eyebrow quirked. She gave a guilty smile and explained, "I didn't get a burger for dinner, I got a grilled turkey club. I wanted to taste the burger, see if I liked that as much as my sandwich. It was really good too."

Reno laughed, telling her that was fine, and took out the burger from the bag. He took a bite out of it, just next to where hers had been, and nodded at her. "You're right, this is really good. Thanks. I would say I owe you but..." He trailed off and motioned over his shoulder, at the far wall of the room. Bee looked over, curious as to what he could mean, and gasped at what was in her living room.

A TV, placed carefully on a small wooden table, was placed neatly against the wall. How Bee had not noticed before was beyond her. Perhaps it was the fact that the TV was underneath the window. The light could have distracted her. Either way, she looked back to Reno who watched her with a grin as he ate his burger.

"You... You got me a TV," Bee said in astonishment, moving towards it. She walked slowly, as if she was afraid the TV was just a mirage and would vanish if she got too close to it. She turned back when she heard Reno's grunt of assent, too busy eating to open his mouth. "Why?"

He swallowed and shrugged. "You didn't have one. As a fellow human being I couldn't let you go on any longer without one," he answered dismissively, trying to downplay his kind gesture. He took a bite and watched in satisfaction as Bee moved towards the TV again, stopping just before it and kneeling down in order to get a closer look at it.

She knelt there for a few moments, taking in the buttons that lined the bottom and then turned back to Reno again. "How do I work it?" she asked innocently.

Reno stopped his chewing and stared at Bee for a second before remembering that as someone who had never had a TV before in her life, she probably had no idea how to work one either. He brought his burger down from his face and started to walk to her, noting that she also needed a coffee table in the room, because he had no place to put his burger and was forced to place it back in the bag and then on the ground next to him as he sat down beside her in front of the TV.

"You only have a couch and an armchair in this room, do you realize that?" he asked her dubiously. He motioned in the general direction of the living room behind him. "You don't even have a bookshelf like a normal goody-two-shoes would."

"I have a plant," she pointed out, only a bit defensively. She looked over at the small ficus that was in the corner of the living room, between the couch and the armchair.

"Whoa! A plant!" Reno exclaimed, throwing his arms up in the air and going up on his knees, "Ya hear that people?! Miss daring and danger has a ficus in her living room! Watch out for this girl!"

"Hey!" Bee chastised, pushing Reno over, causing him to fall backwards onto her beige carpet. He raised his head from his position and wiggled his eyebrows at her. She laughed at him despite herself and looked around her living room again. "Okay, so maybe the room is a little boring."

"A little?" Reno sat himself upright, stretching his legs out in front of him, knocking his feet against the table the TV was on. "You don't even have any paintings on the wall. The most exciting thing you have in here are the curtains on your window." He jerked his head at the window in front of him, taking in the blue flowing curtains that graced each side of the window.

"I'm never in this room," Bee argued back, pouting now.

"Even your bedroom was more exciting than this," Reno said thoughtfully, "You had the blue curtains in there too, but your bed spread was blue and green stripes, right? And you had pictures in there. Of Aerith, and your friends. And flowers on the window sill. And two decorative lamps. And the carpet was also blue. You gotta thing for blue, don't you?"

Bee stared at him then shook her head. "How did you remember all that? You were only in there once."

"Twice, actually," he corrected her, "You sent me up to get your bracelet." He moved a hand to finger the materia bracelet on her wrist.

"Even still," she pushed, "You remember what my room looks like so well after just two visits?"

"Well sure," he told her with another shrug. He brought his legs back in, sitting pretzel style beside her, still in front of the TV. "Maybe it's a Turk thing, but I always remember what a place looks like after I've been in it one time. You always insult my intelligence, but I wouldn't be a Turk if I was stupid, yo."

Bee's face softened and she looked at Reno apologetically. She had already assumed that he didn't listen to her that day, and now she was just adding insult to injury. She nodded, and tried to make peace by saying, "You're right. I'm sorry. You did a really good job at the shop the other day. So why don't you help me with the TV now, okay?"

He accepted the apology with a grin and a nod then moved forward to point at the TV. "I brought Materia Rush so I'll show you how to work a movie, and we can watch it together. Sound like a plan?"

"Oh," she responded, blushing a bit at how stupid she sounded. She hadn't expected Reno to actually offer to watch something with her. "If you want to."

"I can't just give you a TV and not make you watch something too," he told her as if it was obvious. He pressed a button, telling her it was the power button. He went on to explain how to put a movie in, how to play it, stop it, rewind, and fast forward, pointing to each button on the remote control as he went along. Bee listened closely, not wanting to look stupid in front of him yet again. When he was satisfied with his lesson, he stood up, his burger in hand, and motioned for Bee to follow him to the couch. He dropped himself onto a cushion lazily, and pulled his burger from the bag, finally able to finish it.

"Thanks, by the way," Bee said softly as she sat down on the couch, a good distance between the two, "For the TV. You didn't have to get me it."

"I told you that as a fellow human being, I had to," he said through a mouthful of burger. He swallowed and took the last part of his food into his mouth and gestured to the remote control in Bee's hand. She pressed play and turned to the TV again. "Besides," he continued after he had finished his burger completely, "I got it real cheap from a supplier for Reeve. Turk discount and all."

"Did you hurt someone?" Bee questioned, alarmed at his casual tone.

"No! Geez, I actually get a discount from this guy, yo. I just lied and said it was for headquarters, is all," he told her, frowning at the TV. His face lightened when he heard her laugh at his confession and he turned his head to see her watching him, the glow of the TV soft on her creamy skin. She was smiling, her watermelon and fall afternoon lips teasing him, beckoning him. She had her legs curled up beneath her, her shoes lying on the ground below the couch, and Reno was overwhelmed with how innocent she really was.

Her hands were clean and pure, and gave life to others in a way he could never hope to. A ray of sunshine on an otherwise bleak day. His hands were stained red from all the lives he had taken, his soul blacker than the oil that Edge was using as a power source now. A cloud of gray that came just before the rainfall. He had convinced himself that he had agreed to become her friend in order to have sex with her again, but n the deepest recesses of his mind, he knew that he kept coming around because he hoped that maybe, she would heal him as she had so many others. Maybe her purity would rub off on him. Maybe, she would take away the screams that he heard during his dreams, and wipe away the faces of all his victims from his memories. But in the foreground of his mind, he knew that really all he was doing was tainting her, bringing her closer and closer to a life of regrets. He was already doing it, he knew. And yet, he couldn't, wouldn't, didn't want to, leave her alone. He was going to hold on to her ray of sunshine as long as he could because she was the brightest damn thing he had ever seen.

"Reno?"

Reno realized he had been drifting off in his thoughts, staring at Bee intently without actually seeing her. He watched now as her eyes flashed with concern, and she moved closer to him, waving a hand in front of his face. He caught it, using it to move her closer to his side, situating her so that they were touching. They weren't nuns after all, he thought to himself; they didn't have to sit so damn far away from each other. He draped an arm over her shoulder and turned to the TV screen.

"The movie's on," he pointed out, his voice light and almost airy as he tried to draw her attention away from him. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her frown, but turn to watch as the opening title came on, and music began to play in the background. He smirked when she laid her head on his chest, and again when he literally felt her heartbeat quicken in her chest as he absent-mindedly rubbed her arm with his hand.

As they watched the movie together, sitting with Bee's head on Reno's shoulder, his hand still rubbing her arm, a single question echoed throughout Reno's head.

Even someone like me deserves a ray of light in my life, don't I?

The question bothered him so much that he asked Tseng about it later on that week. He was reporting in on Bee's progress and delivering her latest batch of antidotes. She had reached a little over a hundred antidotes in just a few days time, and it looked like she would make her deadline after all. Tseng was pleased, knowing that Rufus and Reeve would be pleased even more. Reno was just about to leave Tseng's office when the question burst from his mouth, unbidden and unwanted. He froze in the doorway, shocked at his own loss of control, but turned back to his boss when he heard the man give a dark chuckle.

"You're referring to the alchemist girl, I presume?" Tseng questioned Reno calmly, looking at his subordinate with piercing eyes. He ignored the papers on his desk for the first time that day, devoting his full attention to Reno.

"Bee," Reno corrected him, noting the irony of the fact that Reno himself rarely even called her by that name.

"Bee, yes," Tseng repeated with a nod. He motioned for his subordinate to sit in the chair before his desk and waited patiently while Reno had a silent argument in his head over whether to run out of the office and forget he had ever said anything, or to sit and get advice from the one person who could probably give it to him willingly and truthfully. The latter won out and Reno took the seat, avoiding looking Tseng in the eyes.

"Yeah, her," he affirmed with a nod.

Tseng didn't answer at first and instead took in the way Reno sat in the chair. He was surprised to find his fellow Turk, who normally sat in chairs as if he owned the place, was sitting there looking worried and sullen. His eyes were downcast, his hands clasped tightly together in between his legs. He was even hunched over a bit, and Tseng had the sudden urge to yell at him to sit straight and act like a Turk. But he had known Reno longer than anyone, and knew that the man had a will of steel and that if he was sitting like this in front of his own boss, he really was confused, even upset about this girl.

"What exactly is it about her that you are asking me?" Tseng decided to ask, trying to narrow down what was bothering Reno. He already had a guess from Reno's earlier question, but he wanted to be perfectly clear before giving advice.

"I just... Is it wrong that I like being around her?" Reno asked, trying to come up with the proper question.

"No," Tseng told him, "It is your prerogative who you spend your off time with."

"That's not what I meant," Reno retorted.

"You are asking if it is wrong that you, a killer, like being around her, a healer," Tseng clarified. Reno looked up at him and noticed that Tseng was giving him the barest of smirks. "She is well aware of your occupation, isn't she?"

"Well, yeah," Reno agreed with a nod, "But, ya know, she's never actually witnessed it first hand. What if she sees me with blood all over me? What if I'm trying to get home after a job and she's off being all saint-like curing all those people that she loves so damn much, and we just happen to run into each other, and she sees the blood and freaks, and never wants to talk to me ever again because she realizes just how much of a monster I really am?" The words were rushed, a bit jumbled, and full of pain. Reno stood, pacing the room and swinging his arms dramatically as he continued, "Boss, is it wrong to want something that is better than me to actually like me? Is it wrong to want her in my life because I feel like when I'm with her I'm not a killer, I'm just me? I'm just Reno. And I haven't been just Reno in... almost fifteen years now. I've been Reno the Turk. Reno second in command. Reno the womanizer. Reno the drunk. But I don't feel like any of those things with her. She looks at me, and I feel like I really am looking at an angel. Which is so stupid because everyone knows angels don't exist. I would know, I've killed enough people, I woulda seen one come take someone by now. But she makes me feel... light, and stupid, and happy all at the same time! How can it be wrong to want that in my life?"

"It's not wrong."

Reno stopped his little tirade and turned to look at his boss. Tseng was watching him with amused eyes and a knowing smile. He placed his hands gently on his desk before him and motioned with his head for Reno to sit again.

"Then why do I feel like every time I go to see her, I'm bringing more and more blood in her house?" Reno asked quietly, situating himself in the chair once more.

"Because, like you said, she's a better human being than you are," Tseng said simply. When Reno looked at him in annoyance, Tseng raised a hand. "Let me explain. It is something that every Turk must face at one point or another in their lifetime. You just... took a little longer than others to find someone who made you feel this way. For some, it is a relative, for others a significant other, and for most, it is a very special friend that they have found throughout their lives. You have just found that friend, Reno, and there is nothing wrong with wanting to be with her. However, as always, you must take caution. Especially in this case. Bee is something you have never experienced before, she is pure, a rarity in this dark time. And while she is not perfect, as demonstrated with her little outburst at the conference, she is the closest you have ever experienced."

"You sound like you're speaking from experience," Reno pointed out, "Still missing Aerith?"

"Reno."

"Sorry, boss."

Tseng's eyes flashed dangerously at Reno only once before he continued.

"Turks are not encouraged to have personal relationships, especially after what happened with Veld. But that does not mean they are forbidden. Even less so now, seeing as how much our jobs have changed. Times for the Turks have changed, Reno. We are bringers of peace, although our mission stays the same; protect Shinra. Rufus's goals have changed. We do not kill as often and when we do it is to restore peace, to protect the WRO. We are trying to atone for our sins. This has been coming for a long time, since Zack." Tseng paused and both he and Reno made involuntary faces of grief. "We owe him and Cloud. You should not be so afraid to become close to someone like Bee in times like this. You should be proud that she took notice of you and was willing to become friends with you. It is an honor that you should not throw away."

Reno looked at his boss in silence. It figured that Tseng would know exactly what to tell Reno; he always did.

"I won't throw it away," Reno promised, standing from the chair, "I still gotta take her mountain climbing, don't I? And redecorate her living room. And get her to get some fucking excitement in her boring life."

"And not get her to sleep with you again, Reno," Tseng reprimanded from his desk. Reno looked back at him in surprise.

"How'd you know about that?" he asked his boss suspiciously, narrowing his eyes.

"How else do you know random girls?" Tseng asked as if it were obvious. Reno scowled but before he could give a come back, Tseng cut him off, "Protect and cherish her for as long as you can, Reno. She is the best thing in your life now. Do not let something like that go."

"Ah." Reno stood up straighter at that, his retort for the earlier comment forgotten. "Right." He nodded and waved at his boss, leaving his office with his usual strut, feeling better about his word vomit earlier.

Tseng watched him leave with a chuckle and a shake of his head. In the silence of the room in Reno's absence, Tseng wondered if he should have told Reno that it was obvious that he was going to, if he wasn't already, fall in love with the girl. Deciding it was better that he hadn't, Tseng turned back to his paper work, going over the number of antidotes Bee had made so far and thinking about how pleased Rufus would be. Anything to distract him from the distant memory of green eyes and a pink bow.

A/N: I had an extremely hard time writing this chapter. I feel as though everyone sees the Turks in different ways, and one way I see Reno is that he can do nice things for people that he likes and not understand what he is doing is actually really nice and meaningful. He doesn't see that as a big deal. So when he buys Bee the TV it really is because he feels she needs one, and he doesn't realize how big of a deal that present is to her. He also doesn't find sitting next to her as a big deal, obviously he had sex with her and it was nothing.

Also, my vision of Tseng after AC, is that he lives with Aerith's death in the background of his mind. Obviously he and Aerith are not Bee and Reno, but when he sees those two, he is reminded of his own past situation. I don't think he would wish for Reno to miss out. This is obviously my own thought, and I had a very hard time with Tseng in this story. Hopefully, even if you don't see Tseng in this way, you can see where I got my theory on his character (though obviously there is a lot more too him, he just isn't a major character in my story).

Finally, I lied, this is the shortest chapter I have. So sorry, I tried making it longer, but couldn't find anything else to add!

Please review and let me know what you think!