365 Hours with Rufus Shinra (FFVII: Rufus x OC)

ch12.1 dear self, can you please stop f*cking falling?

IT WAS THE MORNING OF THE 12TH DAY when she realised, he was there. The days passed faster than she expected. Rufus had been going on meetings every day. He had stuff to take care of, and she too kept working online. The sixth day of their stay finally dawned. The cool morning breeze brushed gently on her exposed shoulder and the sunlight gently penetrated her eyelids. Hannah stirred, expecting to wake up on their double bed all on her own. But then she realised, she wasn't alone.

Rufus wasn't up and missing for work. He was there, still in deep sleep. Soft, quiet snores escaped his nose. His hair -for once- it wasn't perfectly set, it was a mess and she preferred it that way. A hand was tucked beneath his pillow to keep his head stable. His body was turned at her. His lips looked so soft. His face, peaceful whilst he slept, as if all thoughts that usually seemed to bother him -and she would always bite back her curiosity to ask him about them- now they just seemed to be far, far away.

He was wearing grey pants and a light grey comfortable t-shirt that clung on the muscles of his chest. She found that she liked watching him like this. Peaceful and quiet -not that he wasn't always quiet. She found that she had been staring at him and she immediately shut her eyes, making sure she scolded herself for these thoughts. She couldn't allow herself to fall. Not for this man.

Tomorrow they would leave Costa del Sol, and after that, it was only three days left of their deal. She couldn't let herself fall now. Now that it was almost over. She just had to keep it together for a few more days. But she certainly did not want to think of life after this. Life without him.

No. It shouldn't be saddening her. She wasn't some helpless woman that needed to cling onto a man for comfort and support. She had been standing on her own for so, so long. The story she had given him the other day wasn't even half of what she'd been through. She sighed. She couldn't understand.

She couldn't understand how and why -of all people- Rufus Shinra acted humanely. The son of the most inhumane person on Gaia and he was so, so different. Holding her to sleep? Helping her deal with her panic attacks? No one had helped her like that before. No one had shown such tenderness to her. Was this why she was falling? Probably. This was going to turn to a disaster, wasn't it? Things were going to go wrong because every time something good happened, something would go wrong and then she would have to start over.

"Come closer,"

She heard his voice and she snapped her eyes back open. He had probably noticed her being awake. She wasn't putting any effort into faking it, since she thought that he was asleep. But he wasn't. His eyes met hers and she drowned in them for a short moment, trying to read his intentions.

But she did as she was asked. She shifted closer to him, allowing his hand to slip beneath her as she rested her head on his shoulder. Her nose found his chin and both his hands slipped around her, sneaking beneath her shirt to touch her skin. Warm fingers traced her back tenderly and her hands found his chest, pressing flat against it. She found herself dumbfounded once more. Confused as to why he was being so good to her. Confused as to why she enjoyed it that much. She never cuddled with clients. It was never part of the job.

She didn't want to ponder on any of these now. She allowed herself to bury her face in his neck and close her eyes. She sighed. The warmth, the consolation. It felt so nice to be held. She could never get used to it. She didn't know what she was doing and what she was thinking. Rufus probably didn't know either. He just knew he wanted to hold her a little bit more because the days were ending, and he'd have to allow her to leave.