raspberryturk | Room 429, Sunday Night

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Room 429, Sunday Night

Okay. So the fight against the centaur yesterday had been fun.

The fight against Hades today had been... less fun.

But they'd pulled people out of Hell-Or-Whatever-It-Was, and the day was saved. Or something of the sort.

Clearly, the best way for Reno to celebrate this was to bang his forehead against the door, down one ponytail and up one Rikku.

He'd get around to actually opening his door eventually. Just as soon as he felt up to pretending that his hands weren't too charred to dig the key from his pocket.

[For the modded-with-permission girlfriend!]

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"I dunno," she said, slumping back. "Pops thought I was a tramp, that's always fun to hear, and this was right after we ... l-lost everyone, so I got lectured and I was still trying not to puke and now he just acts like a jerk whenever I see him. He saunters right on up to me and messes my hair up and he gets all 'awwwwwww, Cid's girl, look how big you're getting.' What's with that. I used to think he liked me, but if he did he wouldn't be such a ... loser about it."

Rikku: using logic on matters of boys. Mistake number 1.

Reno raised an eyebrow at that.

Rikku logic was ... Rikku logic. But it was not boy logic.

"So kick him in the balls," Reno decided. "That'll fix your problem real quick."

...

Well, it would.

Rikku couldn't help it; she cracked up, snuggling back against him and letting the gigglefit spill out.

"Then you kick his ass?"

"That's right," Reno agreed, grinning broadly as a side-effect of the rather contagious gigglefit. "While he's still reelin' and tryin' to get the stars outta his vision, that's when I bust in and smash in his face while his hands are clutchin' to his nuts, yo."

They really, really did make the perfect team, didn't they?

They seriously, seriously did.

"Honestly," she said, looking over at him. "Did you ever ... uh. Do all guys brag like that? About the whole ..."

Reno gave his shoulder a shrug.

"I dunno. At least when I bragged about shit I did, it was always actually somethin' I did. Makin' up crap about a girl's just stupid."

Seriously, if you had to lie to make people think you were awesome? You really weren't awesome.

"Either way, that's kind of ..." She made another face. "Like the girl's just some trophy. 'Hey, guess what I got from her.' And the guys all assume you're Mr. Hot-shot, and they all assume she's a slut for the same thing. It's crap, and guys being cocky and stupid about it just makes it worse. Awesome, now you look great and all her friends are gonna snicker about her behind her back."

"For what it's worth, I didn't go around braggin' about you, yoto."

Another shrug.

"You ain't no trophy. I mean, I said a lotta shit about the plate girls back when, but that never came with names, or anything like that. Was just, 'hey, totally got me some plate ass the other night."

Yes, Reno. This clearly makes you into Mr. Sensitive.

"It's different when there's a face and a name to go with the bragging, yoto."

"It really meant nothing to you, did it?" she said, shaking her head. Still trying to wrap her head around it. "'Hey, felt good, I'd hit that again. I give it an eight.' Seriously?"

She was pulling away from the snuggling now. "I don't understand guys. I just ... don't."

Oh. Okay. That clearly hadn't been the right thing to say, there.

"You know," he ventured, "I think you maybe don't... get the difference between how shit worked in the slums and... stuff."

Stuff? Stuff.

"It was each person for themselves, and if you got somethin' that felt good one night, then, shit, that's better'n how you been livin' otherwise, yo. Hell, yeah, I would'a hit it again, and those girls did come down, lookin' to get it hit."

"So you might as well brag about it," she said coolly. "Let all your boys know you're The Man. It's not like it matters, right? It's just sex. Like taking me into the back room at work, or hooking up with Jenny which you still say you didn't, or any of the rest of it."

Reno sighed and shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose- ow, hands- and shook his head.

"There's a difference between casual fucking and sleeping with your girlfriend. One of 'em means something. And I'm gonna keep saying I didn't because I didn't, and I wasn't gonna brag about it even if you did come with me to the back room. Different place, rules are different, I respect you too damn much."

"No?" she said, raising an eyebrow at him. "'Hey Rude: got this cheerleader at work.' Why would you respect me any more than the rest of them? I mean, if I had, it would've been ..."

Couldn't bring herself to say 'casual fucking,' no.

Reno's eyes? Still shut. Take another deep breath. Today kept getting better and better, really.

"You weren't some holier-than-thou plate bitch lookin' to have somethin' to take up topside so she could brag about the desperate'n'dangerous slum fuck she picked up while she was livin' life all dangerous-like, gettin' all dirty in some scuzzy fuckin' warehouse on a mattress left behind by some homeless dead guy or somethin'. You had a name and a face and I fucking knew you and actually liked you."

"Just ... not enough to date me, zoto," she said, smiling a little wryly. "Never mind. It's ... you're right. I don't know what it was like. It was different, for us, we all ... I mean. You all live in the same Home, you're gonna hear what everyone else is up to. And ... somehow it's different for the guys than the girls. I .... it's wrong, that's all."

"It... shouldn't be different. I mean, girls, guys, whatever. Kinda stupid that's how people look at it, when there ain't really a difference... S'all... people. Or whatever."

Reno had a healthy respect for women. He'd met enough of them out there who didn't have many problems kicking his ass.

...

"You know... if I wasn't so damn scared I'd find a way to fuck everything up, I probably wouldn't've been so reluctant to date you."

"It's different for guys," she said again, shrugging. "And you didn't want to date. That's all you kept saying, at the beginning. 'I like you, this is nice, but ... I don't date.' It's ..."

A long exhale while she sorted things out. "You were honest. That's all I asked from you, you know? I knew what the deal was. I shouldn't have said that, a second ago. That was ... a cheap shot, I guess."

Reno shrugged and settled back against the headboard, taking in a slow breath and letting all the aches of the day settle in so he could feel them.

Yeah. It had been one hell of a day, was right.

"I didn't know how to date, Rikku. I mean... Bein' a Turk means... It's not."

Ugh.

"I wanted to have somethin' with you that meant somethin' right from the freakin' get-go, but I was too damn scared I was gonna get you killed or I was gonna be some stupid fuckin' slum idiot and I was gonna fuck it up, and I ain't never had nothin' that meant anything to me before and tellin' you I didn't date was me going, look, I'm not gonna live long and I'm a fucker and a moron and I don't even know how to go out with someone and wouldn't know what to do on a date if someone handed me a freakin' manual. Okay?"

She turned around to watch him, face carefully neutral.

"I thought that was ... a warning, or something," she said, lifting a shoulder. "Like, hey, we can do this, but ... you don't date, so I shouldn't expect anything. It'll be ... whatever happens, happens, but you're not gonna get attached, and you don't want me thinking that ..."

Well.

"That it meant anything," she finished, not really able to meet his eyes. The wall was interesting, wasn't it?

...

"I already was attached," he replied, shaking his head slightly. "Meant something. Meant everything. Was the first time anything ever meant anything like that. I just... I mean. Never dated anyone before. Ever."

He couldn't stress that "ever" enough.

"I was ... trying not to be," she said, flushing at that. "I thought ... you were being up-front, you were being honest, so if I got attached, that was my problem and I'd ... keep it to myself, you know? Not cling or pester you or ... you know. Stay too long, afterwards."

Like borrowing his boxers and skipping back to her room like nothing had happened. That sort of thing.

He opened his eyes and looked at her for a long moment, the corners of his mouth twitching a little like he was deciding if he wanted to laugh or cry or scowl, at this point.

...

"I wanted you to stay."

"I wanted to stay, too," she said, smiling a little wistfully and leaning back against him again. "You were ... all cozy and warm and Reno-scented. I hadn't even meant to stay the night, I mean, I wasn't going to, I just kinda ..."

There had been awesome sex, and then she'd called him a dork, and then thud, she'd been out like a light.

Take a stud point, Reno!

Stud point: Taken. And framed and hung on the wall. The wall in Reno's head. Good enough.

"You're the first girl I ever spent the night with, you know."

He figured this was worth sharing.

Aw, what the heck. Rikku could totally earn herself a ... female-stud point, for that one, herself.

"Are you serious?" Rikku wriggled a little to look up at him. "You ... never did the snuggling thing? Dude."

How could anyone miss such a vital part of the whole thing? Waking up wrapped in someone's arms and watching the sun stream through the window, deciding maybe you should stay in bed and kiss and play a little longer ... seriously!?

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