Tifa was staring out the the window with a bored expression. Cloud and Raine were sitting on the opposite side of the café, chattering quietly while sharing a slice of cheesecake and drinking warm tea. Tifa pouted as she stirred her cup of tea; she wished she hadn't agreed to join Cloud and Raine on their little outing.

"Hey, beautiful, you look lonely."

"Yeah, whatever."

Tifa didn't bother to glance at the man who sat across from her. To her disappointment, it wasn't Reno. The man was skinny with dirty brown hair and large eyes; he was dressed casually but his smile was creepy. Tifa wasn't too concerned; if this guy tried anything, she could handle him. Glancing towards Cloud and Raine, she felt a slight feeling of panic wash over her when she saw they were gone.

Shivers crawled over Tifa when she felt the man's stare turning into a perverted leer. Her skin turned cold when the man reached over and took her hand; his hand was wet with sweat and Tifa wanted to vomit.

"So tell me, beautiful, did it hurt when you fell from heaven?"

Tifa frowned; she hated cheesy pick up lines.

"No, it didn't."

"That's too bad because I scraped my knee when I fell for you."

Tifa fought the urge to grimace and she wished that Cloud and Raine were still there.

Tifa wasn't about to let this man continue making her sick. She abruptly stood from her seat.

"Hey, wait, where are you going? I'm not done with my pickup lines!"

The man grabbed Tifa's wrist and she squirmed uncomfortably at his touch.

"Seriously? Let me go, you creep!"

Tifa was trying her hardest to avoid getting physical; she was in public and to the public eye, she was a lady.

"Fine. I guess we can continue these cheesy pick up lines at my place."

The man proceeded to walk out the door while towing Tifa behind him.

"Whoa, where do you think you're going?" (1)

Reno was standing in the doorway and Tifa shifted uncomfortably. The customers in the café were staring at them and the owner was glaring at them from behind the counter.

"I'm taking this pretty lady home with me and it's none of your damn business. Move!"

Reno noted Tifa's wrist in the man's hand and he didn't like it. Reno forcefully removed Tifa from the man's grasp and he pulled him out the door.

Reno dragged the man into an alleyway and pushed him up against the wall.

"Don't bother her ever again!" He shouted loudly.

Reno waited a few moments before he leaned in,

"Thanks, man. I owe ya."

Reno took out a roll of money from his coat pocket and placed it in the man's hand.

"Ya think? She's hot, though." The man said, patting Reno's shoulder.

"Right? But seriously, she's my woman. Keep your eyes and hands to yourself, yo."

The man held his hands up in surrender.

"Reno? Are you okay?"

Reno panicked at the sound of Tifa's voice.

"Shit! Hurry up!"

Reno and the man hurriedly reached into their pockets and pulled out two tubes of lipstick. They smeared the red lipstick on their noses and mouths and Reno even added purple shading to his left eye. He ruffled his hair and clothes.

"That's right! You better run away!" He shouted.

"Damn bastard!" The man replied.

Tifa peered around the corner just in time to see the man landing a punch on Reno's jaw before he turned on his heel and ran away. Reno was leaning against the wall and he cursed as he wiped the blood away from his mouth. Tifa couldn't help but feel a bit touched; no one had ever defended her before. Not even Cloud; he usually wasn't paying attention or he let her handle the situation herself.

"Are you alright, Reno?"

Reno blushed when Tifa touched his face and the purple shading under his left eye.

"Yeah, I'm perfectly fine. I'm a man so I'm fine."

Tifa glanced down at her fingers and wondered why Reno's blood and bruise felt strange. Tifa smirked and Reno swore it was the sexiest thing he'd ever seen in his entire life.

"So I guess this eyeshadow and lipstick are indications of battle injuries?"

Reno smiled sheepishly,

"They're Elena's..."

Reno wondered what was going through Tifa's mind right now. She wasn't smiling and her eyes were dark and calculating. Reno's plan had worked but it backfired in the end. What was he going to do if Tifa turned him away again? Reno's shoulders slumped; he decided that he needed to explain.

"I'm sorry, Tifa, but I really like you. I didn't know what else to do so..."

Tifa took Reno's hand and gently squeezed it as she thought about Raine's words to her,

"You need a guy who can handle your crazy strength and demanding personality."

Reno had stuck around for a few months now and even when Tifa got mad at him, he came back to her. Inhaling deeply, Tifa decided to take a chance.

"How about you come to my place and get cleaned up? We can...talk it over...dinner."

Reno pinched himself. Was he hearing correctly? Tifa was inviting him to her place? Reno did his best to contain himself but he couldn't help fist pumping victoriously into air as he followed Tifa out of the alleyway.

Stealing Elena's precious makeup was totally worth it.

(1) thanks for the inspiration, Turk 4 Life :)