Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII

Warnings: Short, Sap

Mindless Babble: I know this chapter is short and could have been added to the last one but it was too tempting of a cliffie sooo…
Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to LionessGoddess. Thank you!!
Since this is the last chapter, please R&R Thank you.

-o-

“RENO!!” Rude bellowed as his body slammed against the door, Tseng’s body slamming into it a second later. “Damn it, answer!!”

Fear strengthened him and the next time he connected with the door, it broke open. Rude stumbled into the room, followed by Tseng and Rufus. All three stopped in their tracks in shock at the sight before them.

Three minutes ago

-Click-

Reno blinked in surprise and pulled the gun away from his mouth. He opened the chamber and found that the bullet had jammed. Reno blinked again, this time in shock. He always kept his weapons in pristine condition to prevent instances like this. He pulled the bullet from the gun, dropping it to the floor. He was pulling back the slider to chamber another round when a translucent hand covered his own. He looked up to be met with a green-eyed glare.

“Elena!”

“This isn’t the answer, Reno and you know it!” The shade of the young female Turk stared angrily at her husband. “I wasn’t the one you should have asked for forgiveness. You have three brothers that would have died because of you!”

“They can survive without me. All I ever did was screw up anyway.”

Elena’s spectral gaze softened. “You’re more important to them then just a few messed up missions. Tseng is already wrapped up in guilt over what he did to you. Your death, especially at your own hand, would kill him. And with his family all but gone, Rude would simply die of a broken heart. Then who would protect Rufus?”

“Rufus…” Reno dropped the gun. What had started out as just a job had blossomed into a love that he barely understood. Reno would have gladly given up his life to protect the young president and almost had that time Kadaj had attacked them at the lodge. Rufus had given him a reason to continue to exist after Sector Seven. Rufus, Tseng , Rude…

“Oh Gaia… Rude…” Reno fell to his knees. Rude had more or less adopted the younger Turk that first day they had been assigned together. Since that day they had been almost inseparable. Rude was his best friend and the first family Reno had ever really loved. And that love had been returned whole-heartedly, Rude being an only child.

“Do you now see why I didn’t want you to come with me? You have so much to live for, my Love.”

“So did you,” Reno replied, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“RENO!!” The two lovers looked over as the door shuddered under the impact of the large man followed by the smaller one. “Damn it, answer!”

“So live enough for both of us.” Elena smile and lifted the chin of the one she loved, her ethereal lips brushing over his trembling ones.

The door finally broke open, a pair of Turk spilling in, followed by their boss. What they found was a sobbing Turk, on his knees holding the barrel of his weapon, offering it to them. Tseng, recovering first, took the gun away from his distraught friends and switched the safety on. By then Rude had recovered as well and dropped to Reno’s side gathering his partner up.

“Oh gods, Ren! I thought we were going to loose you when we got that message…”

Reno looked up to see the tears falling from chocolate brown eye and immediately felt guilty. It took a moment to realize that Rude didn’t have his shades on. And it took him another moment to process what he said.

“W... what message?” he choked out.

“This one,” Rufus said, finally approaching. He showed Reno his PHS.

‘He has a gun' That was all the screen said.

“The message originates from Elena’s office….”

Reno buried his head into his partner’s chest. “I’m sorry.”

Rude gently pushed the smaller man back. “We already told you, you have nothing to be sorry about.”

“Yeah, I do. I wasn’t thinking of you guys when I put that pistol in my mouth. All I could think of was how much I missed Elena. I didn’t stop to think about the consequences. You always yell at me for that, Tseng.”

“Well, I am glad that you finally listened,” Tseng replied, the emotions he was feeling making his voice sound gruff.

“But I didn’t,” Reno said so softly, Tseng and Rufus had to kneel down next to the pair. “I pulled the trigger, but it jammed.”

Rude raised an eyebrow. “But that’s impossible. You take better care of your weapons then you do of yourself!”

Reno chuckled. “Yeah, but she stopped it. She was angry with me for trying to leave you guys. She made me promise to live for the both of us.”

“Elena?” Rude asked as his hold on his partner tightened.

Reno nodded sluggishly. The emotional turmoil he had been going through had drained him. “She said she would wait for me. She’s waiting for all of us…”

Rude looked down and grinned to see the small smile on his sleeping partner’s lips. “Do you think he’ll be alright now?”

Rufus nodded. “He promised Elena.”

“We’ll just need to remind him of that every once in a while,” Tseng added, as he helped Rude to carry Reno to the couch that sat next to the broken door. Then, for the first time since Reno had been returned to them, they left him to sleep on his own, safe in the knowledge that Elena would still be protecting him.

-fin-