For Honor or Glory

Wrong Office

Chapter 11

Despite being hot and sweaty, it did not take Alex a whole hour to clean up and redress. That was done in a little more than thirty minutes. The rest of the time was her being holed up in the bathroom, going over every possible scenario she could think of. Since Genesis had been so adamant about talking things out, she had no doubt he was going to try and convince her to give him a chance.

She was torn about the idea. She would be lying to herself if she said she didn't want that to be the outcome. However, she also didn't want to be a notch on his bedpost before he moved on again. The Genesis she used to know would never do that to her, but this Genesis was different. Just like she was. The whole thing was giving her a headache, and she did consider calling him and telling him she couldn't come. Still, she knew he had been right in that they needed to get closure if nothing else.

It was five minutes before the hour was up when she finally stood from where she was seated on the edge of the tub. She checked her reflection once more to make sure her fretting hadn't messed up her makeup. When she was sure it was fine, she sighed and then walked out.

She had halfway been expecting Angeal to be waiting for her. She was thankful that he wasn't there. She knew that if he had been, he probably would have told her not to go. Genesis might be his friend, but she was his sister, and he didn't want her hurt. She knew he would have been able to convince her not to go. She ignored those thoughts as she walked out and let the door close behind her as she headed to the offices.

She already knew which office was Angeal's, and he had told her both Sephiroth and Genesis were on each side of his. She went to the office on the right, as that was the one he had pointed to when he was giving her directions the day before.

She took one deep breath to steel her nerves. She didn't bother to knock, as she wanted to get this over with. Instead, she opened the door and was speaking as soon as it was cracked. "Hey, it's me. Let's get this over with, Ge-"

She froze with her hand on the knob and stared at the man behind the desk. It was not Genesis. Instead, Sephiroth had gotten to his feet as soon as he saw her. "Miss Hewley, I believe you may have the wrong office."

Alex felt her cheeks flood with embarrassed heat. She couldn't move at first, but she finally closed the door behind her. She didn't want anyone to see her making a fool of herself. "I apologize. Angeal told me your office was on one side, and Genesis was on the other. I must have gotten them switched."

He gave her a confused look when she closed the door, but instead of sitting back down and dismissing her, he came around the desk. He didn't want to spook her, so he kept his distance, but he tried to emulate one of the others as he worked to put her at ease. "I understand. You are still new to the building, so it must be easy to get turned around."

She felt her cheeks heat further at his statement, as normally that would not be the case. She was great with directions, but she had been more than a little distracted the day before. In an effort to steer away from the embarrassment of having walked in on her brother's boss, she brought up something she had thought of while she had been stressing.

"General, I would like to apologize for earlier. I know that had to be odd to see since you don't know me. I am also aware of how difficult things could get if both Geal and Genesis end up at odds because of me. I don't want that any more than you do, I'm sure. All I can offer is my insistence that they both act like adults, no matter what happens. Work should be separate from their personal lives, even if it might be tricky at first."

Sephiroth once again found himself at a loss for words. This woman had surprised him. Plus, she impressed him. It took a lot for a person to admit to their problems, even more so to a stranger. That she was already taking responsibility was unexpected. Though, when he considered that she was Angeal's twin, it made much more sense.

He gave her a small smile and was getting ready to thank her for her conscientiousness, but the door opened once again to reveal a glaring Genesis. The man shot a heated scowl toward Sephiroth, but it quickly turned to Alex. "May I ask why you are in this office when we were supposed to be going to lunch?"

Despite what Alex had just said to Sephiroth, she was already glaring right back at Genesis. "Don't give me that look. If you had bothered to ask like the gentleman you claim to be, then you would have found out that I came in here by accident when I was looking for your office. I was just apologizing for the scene you caused earlier and was about to head over."

"That I caused?" Genesis was giving her an incredulous look.

Before either of them could say anything else, Sephiroth spoke up. He was frowning at Genesis, but Alex felt shame fill her again as he spoke. "May I remind you that you are still a representative of Soldier, no matter your personal issues. I have asked you to keep that in mind many times. It would be especially prudent to remember while you are standing in my office."

Alex could tell that Genesis was about to say something scathing, which wouldn't help anything. Before he could, she stepped in front of him and gave the General an apologetic look. "This is as much my fault as his. Please forgive my tongue once more. We will leave you in peace. And I won't forget what I said earlier."

Genesis huffed at her preempting him, but Sephiroth had to swallow a sigh. From what he had seen so far, he wasn't sure she could keep her word, but at least she seemed able to rein herself in better than his second in command. Perhaps, she could teach him that trick. He finally gave her a nod as he responded. "It would be appreciated." He then turned to Genesis. "I hope you enjoy your lunch, but please remember that you still have things that need to be finished."

Genesis scoffed but didn't say anything. Alex had walked to the door by then, and he put his hand on the small of her back to guide her out before he shut the door. Once they were alone in the hall, he looked over after taking a deep breath. "I should apologize. I know I have no right to get jealous, but I would appreciate it if you tried to stay away from him."

As soon as those words left his mouth, a memory of one of the visions lanced through Alex. She couldn't suppress a groan as she grabbed her head. It wasn't exactly painful, but it was overwhelming. When she finally looked up again, Genesis had her by the arms and was giving her a worried look. "What happened? Are you hurt?"

She shook her head as she extricated herself from his grip. She didn't speak right away as she was still trying to deal with the images of a jealous Genesis and a smirking General. Even without those, it didn't shock her that her childhood friend was always at odds with his commanding officer. Genesis never had liked being second best in anything.

When she was able to focus again, she saw that Genesis had moved to block her, and still looked concerned. His voice showed it as well. "Do not try to tell me that was nothing. What happened?"

Alex sighed as she tried to answer. "It was nothing. Just a sharp pain, but it's gone already. Don't worry about it. Don't we have better things to discuss?"

Genesis did not look convinced, so she kept going before he could speak again. "Where are we having lunch? Hopefully, somewhere better than your office."

He sighed at her stubbornness but realized it would be pointless to argue. Especially since the entire reason for this meeting was to get past the arguments and find common ground once more. Instead of trying to force the issue, he took her arm gently and led her two doors down. He glanced over as he opened it. "Wait here while I retrieve our food. I do have someplace in mind that I believe you will enjoy."

Alex gave him a skeptical look but didn't move. Instead, she crossed her arms over her chest and raised a brow. He rolled his eyes at the familiar expression before he ducked into his office to retrieve a basket. Despite the circumstances, he wore a small smile when he returned. No matter how many years had passed, he still adored how expressive she had always been with him. It was especially pleasant after having so many treat him with deference and isolation once he became famous.