Work Text:
He didn’t want to burden you with his feelings. The odds that he was going to die soon was exceedingly high. Telling you that he loved you would be selfish on his part. So he kept silent. Though, he never did stop looking after you, even when the pain was so great, he had to get around in a wheelchair.
Just as he was about to maneuver out of his room, he heard your voice. You were speaking with who he assumed to be Tseng. The tone was hushed and just above a whisper.
“Did you find a cure?” you asked with desperation.
Tseng was silent for a moment. “No, I’m sorry.”
A muffled sob sounded. Rufus finally decided he heard enough and wheeled into the room. You glanced over and quickly turned away from him. Your hands shot up to your eyes as you furiously rubbed them.
“What’s going on?” Rufus questioned, leaving no room for either of you to argue out not answering him.
“I’ve just returned from the latest search, sir,” Tseng replied. “We’ve narrowed down the location of Jenova’s remaining cells. The rest of the Turks and I will be leaving soon. Unfortunately, we haven’t come close to coming up with a cure.”
Rufus nodded and glanced towards where you were still facing away from him. Though, your hands left your eyes. They were still covering your mouth. Your shoulders were visibly shaking. Small sniffs sounded from your direction.
“[Y/N], what’s wrong?” You remained silent and shook your head. Rufus narrowed his eyes as he tried to examine your body for any indication that you were sick. Though, most of your body was covered with your clothes. He inhaled sharply. “Are you sick?” You shook your head again. “Then, why are you crying?”
Tseng glanced between the two of you before leaving the room quietly. The pair of you sat there in silence while you tried to gather your words. Every time you tried to say something, the knot in your throat became more and more painful.
Rufus took a deep breath before he pushed himself from his wheelchair. He inwardly winced at the amount of pain that was screaming at him. His legs shook and he questioned whether or not he’d be able to walk the short distance to you.
Hearing his slow footsteps, you turned around in shock. Tears were freely falling from your eyes, but your sobs were silenced. Quickly, you met up with him and tried to usher him to sit back down. Though his body was incredibly weak, he stood like an unwavering wall.
“Tell me why you’re crying,” Rufus spoke again, though his voice was quieter and his breathing was coming out in shaky gasps.
Instead of trying to push him back, your hands rested on his white jacket. You looked away from his eyes and rested your vision on your hands that clutched desperately onto him. “I don’t want to lose you,” you whispered. If you spoke any louder, you’d burst into another fit of sobs. “I hate that you’re sick. I hate seeing you in pain. I wish there was something I could do to help you.”
Rufus wrapped his arms around you and brought you closer to his chest. “You are helping me by just being here.” He winced as a flare-up started. He felt his knees buckle.
Looking up, you moved your arms to support him. The pair of you moved back towards his wheelchair. You guided him down so he was sitting. His eyes were shut tight. His jaw was clenched. His breaths came out in short, quick ones. If he breathed any deeper it would only increase the pain that was plaguing him.
Just as you were going to run and grab his medication, his hand gripped onto your wrist. You glanced back over your shoulder. His eyes were staring at yours with a desperate plea for you to stay. Nodding, you knelt down in front of him and held onto his hands, allowing him to squeeze onto you when the pain got worse.
“Try to keep breathing,” you encouraged, though you knew he knew that. If he didn’t breathe enough, he’d pass out and it’d go back to normal. It’s happened a couple of times before. Luckily, each time he was already sitting.
Minutes ticked by, though it seemed like an eternity. Rufus could feel a seizure threatening to overtake him. But the episode passed before the seizure happened. He took several gasps of air to try and get his oxygen levels back up. Sweat ran down the back of his neck. His eyes grew heavy from the amount of exertion his body was put through.
“Are you okay?” you asked hesitantly. Rufus nodded his head, not trusting his voice to work just yet. “Can I get you anything?” Rufus gripped onto your hand tighter. Nodding in understanding, you stayed put.
“I’ll,” Rufus paused and cleared his throat. “I’ll stay here for as long as I can. Please, just stay with me.”
“Of course.”
--
You were slammed into the wall. The floor met your body next. You tried to get up, but your body wasn’t responding. Reno and Rude were the next ones to fall. You wanted to scream, wanted to protest, but Kadaj walked over your bodies and towards Rufus. Just as Kadaj knelt before Rufus, you passed out.
--
“I told him I would stay with him,” you cried as Rude tended to your wounds. “Now, what if I don’t get to see him again? I broke my promise.” Your anxiety was flaring up, more so than it has in the past.
“We’ll find the boss,” Reno said and rubbed the back of his neck. “We’ll find him alive and you two lovebirds can be together again.”
You sniffled. “Lovebirds?”
“Come on, it’s so obvious you’re both in love with each other!” Reno yelled and threw his hands up into the air. Rude sighed at Reno’s exclamation and shook his head.
“He is?” you asked quietly. Taking a deep breath, you stood up. “I’m going to look for him.”
“You’re in no condition to fight,” Rude warned.
“I don’t care.” Your hands formed into tight fists. “He shouldn’t be alone, especially with one of Sephiroth’s remnants. Call me if you find anything.”
--
Rufus had jumped from the building. He turned and aimed his gun. Bullets flew and the wind shot through his hair. In a matter of seconds, he was caught in a net and Kadaj fell to the ground. In his arms was Jenova’s last cells. Though the box was damaged, and the cells were leaking out.
You started sprinting towards the building. Bits of debris threatened to crush you as the Bahamut summon ravaged chaos throughout Edge. Your eyes landed on the silver-haired teen. With a yell, you spun around with a kick. Kadaj dodged your attack and ran to a nearby motorcycle before speeding off.
Standing back off of the ground, you looked up towards Rufus. Reno ran past you and started attempting to climb up the side of the building to get to the boss. Looking around, you noticed a ladder at a nearby shop and ran to grab it. Within moments, you were carrying it back and set it up. Your hand and feet climbed up each step of the latter until you were close to the president.
“Glad to see you,” Rufus commented while waiting patiently.
“Glad you’re okay,” you replied with a small smile. You pulled out a knife and started to saw away at the net. “I was worried. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise.”
“You’re here now, that’s all that matters.”
You nodded your head, not agreeing, but not wanting to argue. Finally, the net was cut enough to where Rufus could climb out and down the ladder. You went down and stepped away, but was fully prepared to catch him if he had a flare-up. Luckily, he was secured on the ground.
The rest of the Turks showed up. Rufus nodded towards the direction that Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz had escaped to. You watched as the Turks left, but stayed put. Rufus looked at you with a raised eyebrow.
“I’m staying with you.” You stepped up the president and wrapped an arm around his waist to help guide him back towards his wheelchair. “How is it?”
“I’m hanging in there,” he replied but didn’t give too much information. You held back a sigh of disappointment, knowing that meant it was progressing. He took a seat down and let out a breath of relief to not having to push his body by just standing.
There was still a great amount of chaos in the streets, so you pushed him towards a side alley and sent your location to the rest of the Turks. Looking around, you stepped away from the back of his wheelchair to stand in front of him.
You looked down at him. His eyes were closed as he took in deep breaths. A slight blush took a hold of your face as you replayed what Reno told you. You weren’t sure if you wanted to burden your feelings on him while he was so sick. But you figured that if he did return your feelings, he’d like to hear. Especially if he was going to pass soon.
“Sir,” you started. He opened his eyes and looked at you to continue. “I…” You hesitated, getting lost in his cool gaze. “I wanted to tell you that I love you.”
Rufus’s eyes widened ever so slightly before a kind smile, not his typical smirk, formed. “And I love you.”
You grinned through tears and took a light hold of his hand. The two of you remained in silence, waiting for the world to either tip in the favor of Sephiroth or for the remnants to be destroyed. Either way, you would cherish this time you had with him. Because it was apparent to you both, that time was not on your side.
--
Rain started to fall from the heavens. It started light before it was pouring. You went to move Rufus out of the rain, fearful that it could lead him to get cold or weaken his immune system. But you froze in place.
Shimmers of light emitted from where the stigma littered his body. Bit by bit, the stigma was fading away. You felt your heart skip a beat. Thoughts racing, you questioned if he was cured.
“R-Rufus?” you stammered and knelt down in front of him. “How are you feeling?”
Rufus removed the sheet from his form and moved his hand around. He stared at his now cleared skin. He motioned for you to move. Then, he stood from his wheelchair. There was no pain, or dizziness, or weakness. He felt normal. Normal for the first time in a long time.
“It’s gone.” He turned towards you. Quickly, he grabbed you and pulled you close to him. His hands gripped onto your jacket and he squeezed you, not wanting to let you go. Not wanting to have something come that close to tearing the two of you apart again. “It’s gone. I’m here. I’ll be here. We’ll be here together.”