You lie in bed, mind reeling from the eventful day. You insisted on going home and so Rufus drove you himself in one of his sports cars. You thank him for the dinner and for the lift back as you begin to get out of the car. Rufus stops you as you reach for the door handle.
"Did you mean it? That you'll give me a chance?"
You blush and nod, gazing at him shyly through your lashes. He looks pleased and relieved as he leans over to the passenger side of the car. You think he was aiming for a kiss on the lips but you subtly turn and offer him your cheek instead which he graciously accepts.
Saying goodnight, he bids you farewell and drives away into the night as you stand on your own doorstep watching his car get smaller and smaller. Once inside, you change, wash up as quickly as you can and fall into bed. Your mind and body spent after the day you have had. You are not sure if you did the right thing by not closing off Rufus' hopes completely. You tried to let him down gently but you seem to be harbouring feelings for him you did not know existed, let alone understand. The kiss took you by surprise too, the thought of getting so carried away makes you cringe and pull the covers above your head as if that can help eradicate the embarrassment of your perceived actions earlier.
Coming up for air, you realise the reason for being so mentally drained is due to the fact that every waking minute has been spent keeping Cloud out from your thoughts. Now that you are in the privacy of your own home and drifting off into the land of sleep, your mind wanders past the mental barriers you had consciously built around the Ex-SOLIDER.
You wonder how Cloud is doing, whether your leaving is hurting him as much as it is hurting you. Whether he has this persistent overwhelming dull pain in his stomach which makes him want to curl up in a ball and scream into a pillow. Whether his thoughts play on repeat over times spent together. And finally whether he is able to process the confusing myriad of emotions and missing simpler times gone by.
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The days turn into a week and the weeks turn into a month since you bid farewell to Cloud and your new friends. You had never noticed the monotony of your days before your adventure in the undercity. You returned to work at your executive managerial position in Shinra Urban Development, directly working under the Director. Reeve was happy to have you back but you noticed he was having more and more meetings with the President and the board. Also that whenever he returned from those meetings he would be in a brooding, quiet mood.
Scarlet was furious at you for turning down Rufus' marriage proposal. It was probably the most she had ever spoken to you in one go when she gave you an animated lecture about being ungrateful and that you had better make it up to him soon. The rants she subjected you to were getting so out of hand, you suspect Rufus had a word with her to say that there is still hope in your nuptials as after a while, your aunt simmered back down to having minimal contact with you again.
Rufus is keen to spend as much time with you as possible. When you are not working, you would be hanging out with him. There is a slight feeling of guilt as you now know without a doubt what his feelings towards you are. However, you remind yourself that the two of you are foremost friends above anything else and you have always found understanding in each other; being in similar circumstances with detached and heartless bordering on callous treatment from both your respective relatives - you with your aunt and Rufus with his estranged father. Since childhood the two of you had found something in each other to hold onto. You are each other's only physical and mental support in the whole of Gia, while navigating the unknown road of the responsibilities you were both born into.
Your free time is spent talking to Rufus about nothing in particular; him taking you to visit the newest Midgar hang outs and restaurants and; lazy evenings walking Darkstar as the sun sets. However, even though you slip back into your old routine, Rufus can tell something is off. He appreciates your company but even though you are there in person, he can tell your mind is far away with the new foreign look that now often resides in your eyes.
"Huh? Yeah okay." You reply absentmindedly as Rufus suggests a day trip this weekend.
You continue to stare blankly at the large vase of fresh mandragora flowers placed on the coffee table beside you. They are very impressive in full bloom, no wonder they were Rufus' mother's favourite flower before she passed away. You tear your gaze away as you come back to your present surroundings. You are in Rufus' office as you lounge in a leather bound loveseat with an open book on your lap and Darkstar curled up at your feet. You did not catch whether or not he said where the trip will be but at your reply, Rufus smiles, nods and goes back to whatever paperwork is stacked on his desk. You feel bad you had not been listening and so decide to leave it and ask another time.
The sky outside is painted in dusk as the day draws to a close. You spent your day off alternating between reading, playing with Darkstar and daydreaming. Rufus would look up and exchange a few words with you from time to time but you find your mind up in the clouds whenever you have an idle moment to spare.
Rufus notices too as he comes to sit beside you.
"Have you finished with work?" You ask distractedly.
"Hmm. Work never ends but I think that's enough for one day." He replies decisively.
You nod and continue to play with Darkstar who had rolled onto his back with his belly up waiting for scratches. You giggle and proceed to give the hound what he is asking for.
"You know what that reminds me of?" Rufus says watching you and Darkstar, a touch of amusement in his voice.
"Hmm?" You again struggle to give him your full attention.
"It reminds me of when we were kids and would wrestle to settle our disagreements."
You give him a hollow laugh as you replay those childhood memories. You fondly cast your mind back to those carefree days where you and Rufus would play. He always kept his hard exterior whenever anyone else was around but when it was just the two of you, he did not feel the need to hide his secret, compassionate and caring side. You know Rufus is naturally a warm-hearted person and is instinctively caring towards those he cares about. It is just unfortunate that he lost his mother at such a young age and the only resemblance to family is through President Shinra who had difficulty in showing the parental love Rufus needed in those critical early years. You wonder sometimes whether Rufus' personality would be different if his father was not so hard on him and often mocked a young and impressionable Rufus in never showing any form of weakness if he was ever going to live up to the Shinra name. Such a burden on anyone would be difficult to comprehend.
You veer out of your reverie.
"Yeah I was always such a hot head when I was little... Do not say I still am now!" You catch Rufus' eye and you both chuckle. "You always cheated though cause you would just start tickling me and you know how I can't stand tickling..."
You trail off and glance sideways at Rufus, who you see is sporting a mischievous glint in his eye.
"No. Rufus. Don't you dare." You narrow your eyes suspiciously but you cannot keep the smile off your face.
In a flash, you jump up to escape but Darkstar is still unfurled on the carpet at your feet so you hesitate before you can make your next move. However, this second is all Rufus needs to lean up and wrap his arm around your waist to pull you back down heavily onto the sofa. The book in your lap falls to the floor and Darkstar is alarmed but when he sees it is his master, he relaxes back down on the carpet.
"Rufus!" You call out desperately as he pins you down and gently digs his fingers into your ribs making you cry out in laughter.
"Ruu-fuss! Sstop!" Your eyes scrunch up as you continue to laugh out loud at this sudden tickling onslaught. You buck this way and that as you try to escape but Rufus shifts on top of you making it impossible for you to move with his weight pinning you down on the soft sofa. You can hear his rare carefree laughter in between your wild cackles as he continues to tickle you.
"Still works like a charm!" Rufus chortles.
Your hands flail about desperately trying to get a hold of his in an effort to stop his tickling. He counters effectively by grabbing both your hands and holding them up above your head. With one hand he easily captures both your wrists and the other free hand continues his ruthless tickling of your ribs and back. You see between your fits of laughter Rufus' amused face and the endearing crinkles at the corners of his eyes as he laughs along with you. In this moment, the two of you return to your childlike selves, a mirror to your friendship all those years ago.
You continue to howl with laughter but you feel Rufus suddenly ease off. You open your laughing tear stained eyes and realise that with your uncontrollable twitching under the torture of Rufus' tickling, your shirt had risen up exposing your midriff. You stop breathing as you watch Rufus skim a long finger every so lightly over your exposed skin. He delicately traces your belly button and looks up at you through a few strands of his hair which had been messily tousled from his usual slicked back style. You see the amusement in his eyes turn into something darker. You shy away under his molten blue gaze as you feel the heat between the two of you rise and something forbidden unfurl itself in the pit of your stomach.
Rufus hovers his lips less than an inch above yours and you feel his hot breath quicken as he shifts slightly caging you beneath him with his chest while his grip on your wrists above your head tighten. The two of you cannot break out of this hypnotic trance as his breathing falls in sync with yours. Your eyes are wide as you stare up into his hooded ones and you notice a passionate yearning flash in his dilated blue eyes. Rufus manoeuvres one of his thighs between yours and you feel the excited swell of his member between your legs. This realisation is fuel to the already simmering of your blood beneath your flushed skin.
He understands your still conflicted feelings and so he does not kiss you but keeps his lips tauntingly close to yours as he slowly rolls his hips up once, effectively rubbing your clothed sex with his eager bulge. This causes you to gasp out loud and your cheeks redden further at the undeniable warmth pooling in your panties. The corner of Rufus' lips turn upwards in that seductively crooked way causing you to use all your self-control to not close the tiny gap between your lips in a heated kiss. However strong your mind is, your body has its own agenda as your hips slowly undulate, almost desperately grinding against his constrained erection for some sense of relief.
Rufus is more surprised than you are at your body's response and he quickly falls in rhythm with restrained thrusts of his own. A whimper escapes from your lips as the pressure builds and you press your thighs around him to try and ease the rising tension. Rufus' breath is hot and heavy on your face as your vision blurs with his proximity and the mounting friction from your grinding fogs your mind. You subconsciously wish you do not have these cumbersome layers of clothes between the two of you as the material starts to chafe uncomfortably with your increasingly frenzied movements against each other. You hear Rufus' breath start to hitch and he moves his free hand down to your waist and round to your behind to help maintain the rhythm of your hips against his.
You lick your lips to wet them and you see Rufus' hungry gaze fall to them. Your subconscious secretly wants him to finally give in and kiss you but he does not and merely closes his eyes to continue the grinding against your sex. The two of you can easily read each other's impending orgasms as you pant into each other, struggling to catch your breaths. Rufus has a frown on his face as he continues to keep up the grinding to which you are meeting each thrust. A sudden small but intense ripple of orgasm tremors and echoes through your body causing you to mewl out loud. As you shudder beneath him, he lets go himself and through a quiet moan you feel his climax soaking through. He drops his head so that your foreheads touch as you both catch your breath.
You open your eyes and stare at each other this way, only inches apart for a minute or two. The effort it takes Rufus to release you and sit up is almost tangible. You quickly rise too, intensely smoothing out your clothes while shuffling uncomfortably in your now damp underwear. Shame and embarrassment seep in and you feel contrite that if Rufus had not been strong enough to pull away, you would have given in to these unexpected illicit feelings you find yourself harbouring to take things even further.
Rufus rakes one and then another hand through his hair as he regains his composure.
"I guess we are a little too old to be tickling anymore..." You say awkwardly to break the tension but you are still not brave enough to look at him.
"Hmm. But we are old enough to do something else."
You clear your throat to try but fail to rid your mind of these very tempting lewd thoughts as his words hang full of expectation in the air between you.
Rufus turns to you and regards you with smouldering eyes.
"What do you do to me?"