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Storms battering their little farm house certainly took some getting used to.
High winds would tear tiles and felt from the roof which Rude would spend the next day repairing. Reno checked the interior for leaks and held the ladder tight. The thunder scared their birds, and lightning came dangerously close to their boundary more than once. To top it all off, sometimes a particularly bad storm would knock out their power (which was temperamental to begin with), leaving Reno's signature pies half baked and their light bulbs frazzled.
Fortunately, Reno had actually checked the forecast for once and had baked his pies early. It was Thursday night, clouds had been building in the North all day, and they had followed the radio's instructions to batten down the hatches. With fresh piles of tasy ghishal greens and sparkly new toys to keep their birds occupied, Rude hoped that they wouldn't scare too much.
He hoped in vain that Reno wouldn't be too scared either.
"Nonono don't like this, Rude," Reno whined when a particularly loud crash of thunder shook the house.
"You're okay," Rude assured him softly, "you wanna come over here?" He gestured to the empty seat on the couch. Reno shook his head, nodding at the hoop in Rude's broad hands.
"I'll ruin whatever that is...what are you doing, anyway?" He cocked his head to the side as Horatio, their ginger Tom, stretched in his lap, apparently totally unbothered by the storm outside.
"Embroidery," Rude answered.
"No, seriously."
"Seriously," Rude tilted the hoop of stretched fabric towards his partner, and Reno eyed it curiously. He'd seen the older man sewing before, but had always assumed that it was a repair or something less...delicate.
The pattern on the hoop was exquisite.
The outline of a bright red rose was starting to take shape amongst an intricately chalked pattern of swirling vines and twinkling starlight. It would be gorgeous when it was finished.
"I had no idea that you could...uh...what's it called?"
"Embroidery," Rude offered, refocusing on the piece.
"I had no idea that you could embroidery!" Reno smiled, genuinely impressed.
"Embroider," Rude corrected him gently with a smile, "my grandmother used to teach me, when was a kid. I'm a little rusty, though."
Reno wouldn't have thought so, looking at the neat crimson stitches and striking pattern.
"When did you start again?" He asked.
"About a month ago," Rude admitted, slightly embarrassed. Its not as though he was trying to hide his hobby from Reno, he just didn't know how he would react, so he didn't bring it up.
"You're really good at it!" Reno beamed. Rude visibly blushed, "wait, did you think I would mock you, baby?"
"A little..." he admitted, "it's...girly..."
"Rude, I bake pies every week and sell them at a farmer's market wearing a frilly apron. I think we passed the outdated gender stereotypes long ago."
Rude laughed at that, the warm mood interrupted by another deafening roar of thunder. Reno eyed the ceiling cautiously, eyes wide and scared as though he was silently willing the storm to pass.
"Come here," Rude set down the hoop on the coffee table, carefully packing away his materials. Reno shook his head.
"Seriously it's okay, you're busy, I'm fine, it's just a little th--"
With a pop, the lights in the farm house went out. The wind howled, long and angry, through the building. It suddenly felt very cold, very quiet, and very, very dark.
Horatio chose that moment to jump off Reno's lap and scurry off somewhere.
"Traitor!" The redhead yelled, "bastard cat! Rude?"
"I'm here, come over here," Rude stretched his arms out in the dark, listening for Reno as he tentatively moved across their sitting room. It wasn't big by any means, but the uneven floors and low coffee table made it disorienting in the dark.
Reno audibly sighed when he reached Rude's arms, cold hands sliding over warm skin as the older man pulled him onto the couch. The redhead curled up against him like a child, and Rude noticed that he trembled slightly when another bright flash of lightning illuminated the room.
"Shh, we're okay," he cradled him gently in his arms, "it's just...the sky arguing with itself."
Reno snorted, "that's what they tell little kids," he tried to make light of how scared he was, but Rude couldn't miss the fear in his voice.
Reno was terrified of the dark, and of storms. Despite his brash, confident nature, he had fears just like anyone else. Hell, he'd even fought using lightning for years, electricity stinging his hands and powering his stance, but he was absolutely petrified of the real thing.
"Rude?"
Another flash of light and a crash of thunder erupted overhead, the storm right on top of them now. Reno flinched, and Rude held him tight.
"Yes, Reno?"
"Don't go anywhere."
"I'm not going anywhere, okay?" He rubbed soothing circles into his flank, the two of them just sitting silently at the storm raged outside.
"I don't know why it scares me so much," Reno whispered after a while, uncharacteristically quiet, "it's like...I can deal with the idea of it but never the storm itself, you know?"
"You don't have to justify it," Rude assured him, squeezing his shoulders, "it's like me, I'm scared of owls."
It was true. The first time they had opened the barn doors, an owl had swooped right over Rude's head and he had let out a screech that Reno had never heard before and, honestly, never wanted to hear again.
"Owls are cute," Reno nudged him playfully, trying to distract himself, "big baby."
"Their eyes are too big, and their little beaks..." Rude shuddered, "don't. If an owl flew in here right now, I'm pretty sure I would run through the door on my way out."
Reno laughed, shoulders still shaking as the storm continued to make itself known. He snuggled into Rude's side, pulling his knees up onto the couch and peering up at his partner's face as his eyes adjusted to the dark.
After a while, the storm calmed, its thunderous rage drifting further and further away and leaving only heavy, sheeting rain and the distant squawk of the chocobos in the barn. They sounded fine, most of them lovers of the rain, thank goodness.
An hour passed, and the power didn't come back.
"Rude?"
Reno's voice startled him slightly as his breathing had been steady and deep.
"Did you fall asleep?"
"I think so...what time is it?"
"I think..." Rude squinted at the clock above the mantle but couldn't make out the time, "sometime after midnight, maybe?"
"Power still out?"
"Yeah."
Reno huffed. They didn't have a TV, and only the slowest internet for their shared laptop and ancient phones, but he craved the company of the radio. They had an emergency battery powered one tucked away in the basement but, well...it was in the basement.
"Hey, baby?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think you could...teach me to...embroider like that?"
Rude's eyebrows raised, though Reno couldn't see it in the dark. He didn't ever imagine that the redhead would have any interest, never mind the patience required for embroidery.
"Uh...sure, if you really want me to. I'm not great, though."
"I think you're pretty great," Rude could hear him smiling, "can you come with me to the kitchen?"
"Sure, what for?" He waited for Reno to slide off the couch before standing up behind him, keeping a hand firmly on his shoulder so that he'd know he was there.
"Candles. I don't think I can do it in the dark," Reno chuckled.
"Wait, you want me to teach you now?" Rude smiled, "are you that interested?"
"Yeah! I mean...the power's out, the storm has quieted down. If you don't want to, that's fine! But I just...thought it would be fun."
"No, of course I'll teach you if that's what you want," he slid his hand gently down Reno's arm, taking his hand and squeezing it tight. He was flattered that Reno was showing an interest in the first place, and especially flattered that he thought that Rude was good enough to teach him.
They walked slowly to the kitchen, Rude keeping his head down to not bump into any of the low beams, and retrieved the emergency candles and matches from their place underneath the sink.
Thankfully, the stovetop ran on gas (only the oven was electric) so they were able to boil some water for hot drinks. Coffee with cinnamon for Rude. Cocoa malt for Reno. Rude busied himself by lighting candles and placing them in the holders and lamps dotted about the farmhouse. When they had first moved in they had been curious about the wax-stained metal hoops in the walls, but after their seventh power out in two weeks, they had realized their purpose, and were ever grateful for them. They each had a spike for holding the candle, and a little tray beneath to catch the wax.
Reno brought the drinks to the living room, visibly calmer now that the storm had settled to rain and low wind, and warm candlelight filled the farmhouse. Rude had even lit the fire again, amber flames licking at a fresh log.
"Thank you," Rude said, taking his coffee, the warm cinnamon scent music to his nose. Reno leaned down to kiss him softly on the forehead before settling down on the couch beside him.
"What was that for?" Rude smiled.
"Staying with me," Reno replied. He put his cocoa on the coffee table before leaning back up to kiss Rude's mouth gently, "and that was because I love you."
Rude pulled him close and kissed him properly, feeling the redhead melt into him and a soft hum escape his throat. Reno looked up at him with half-lidded eyes when he pulled away, noses bumping softly together.
"What was that for?" he murmured with a smirk.
"Because I love you too," Rude replied, "and because you're sweet to ask me to teach you to sew."
"Yes!" Reno sat upright, suddenly excited. He always did like learning new things.
Lucky for Rude, he really enjoyed teaching him.
"Alright, first you'll need a hoop," Rude retrieved the piece he was working on earlier from the table and handed it to Reno, "but I only have one, so we'll have to use this. Do you wanna try picking up where I left off?"
"Huh? On this one?" Reno studied the design in awe. It was truly beautiful, depicting a sparkling rose against a backdrop that resembled a starlit stained glass window. "I'm really pleased you trust me and all but...I'm scared I'll spoil it."
"You won't," Rude assured him, "we can take it steady."
"But...this is so beautiful, Rude...are you sure?"
"It'll be even more beautiful if we finish it together," Rude said, Reno's heart soaring at his words, "besides, if it does go wrong I can always unpick it."
Reno hesitated for a second and then nodded.
"If you're sure," he agreed.
"Okay, you're left handed so you can hold the hoop in your right hand and stitch with your left. I didn't finish this thread off before but there's enough left to fill this part in," he pointed to a petal.
"I didn't understand any of that except which hand to hold what in," Reno said. Rude chuckled.
"Don't worry about it. I'll show you. Now, see where I finished this last thread? Start from there so you can fill this part in..."
---
A few hours of Reno carefully placing stitches with Rude's gentle guidance passed by. He only went wrong a couple of times, and Rude showed him how to unpick the stitches carefully so that they didn't ruin the fabric. He was a natural, and Rude was impressed that he was so patient and careful with the piece. He had shown Reno how to finish off the thread twice, and by the third time he was doing it just fine by himself.
"You're a natural," Rude told him when he held the hoop at arm's length to inspect his work. Reno beamed.
"This is so cool," he grinned, "I did it!"
"You did," Rude pressed a kiss to his temple, one arm snaking around his waist to pull him close, "I'm really proud of you."
"You should be proud of yourself," Reno leaned into him, "you're a good teacher."
"You're a surprisingly good student," he gave him a squeeze, "you wanna carry on?"
"I think I'll stop there for now. I'm sleepy," Reno glanced at the clock on the mantle, "and it's past 2am."
It was, and the power had still not come back on. Rude wondered if a line had fallen down the road or something...he would have to go and investigate in the morning. Hopefully the rain would be enough to prevent any fires from starting. Hopefully the power company would be able to come and fix it fast. What if it was a problem in the house? Did they have enough set aside for that? Would he have to find someone to do the repairs? He was no electrician...what if the repair guys were unavailable? What if--
"Rude?"
"Hm?"
"Stop fretting."
"Is it that obvious?" Rude said with a guilty smile, hand settling on Reno's hip as he snuggled close, the embroidery hoop forgotten for now.
"I can hear the cogs whirring in your head," he murmured, "it'll be fine. We'll manage, no matter what."
Rude pressed a kiss to the top of his head. Reno always knew what to say. He might be brash and silly and cocky and he might drive Rude absolutely nuts sometimes with his antics...
But he loved him.
"You're right," Rude agreed, "you wanna get some sleep?"
"Absolutely. I'm bushed! All this learning has made me tired."
"C'mon then," Rude plucked the hoop out of Reno's hands, took one last appreciative look at his handiwork, and set it and the sewing supplies down on the coffee table for later.
"Mnngghhh," Reno whined, "carry meeee."
Rude rolled his eyes in mock frustration and scooped the redhead up into his arms. Reno instinctively looped sleepy limbs around his neck as he was carried towards the stairs, fingertips brushing the nape of Rude's neck. The taller man stopped to blow out one or two candles that had not burned down before heading up the stairs. He banged his head as always on the low beam, eliciting a laugh from Reno before he reached up to rub it better.
"I'm gonna pad that with foam," he promised for the millionth time since they moved in.
"Uh-huh," Rude said, as noncommittal as always. They reached the bedroom, and Rude nudged the door open with his hip. Reno clambered down.
"Teeth," Rude reminded him. Reno groaned but slumped off to the adjacent bathroom, grabbing a faded old T-Shirt as he went to brush his teeth. Rude quickly followed, their bedtime routine regular and uneventful, and before long he was cradling the redhead in his arms as he curled up next to him in bed.
"Rude?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks," Reno cuddled in closer, Rude's hands rubbing soothingly up and down his back as he rested his head on the older man's chest. Rude looked down at him; his eyes were closed, lashes long, copper hair soft and disheveled, love-bitten shoulders peeking out from beneath his threadbare shirt...
"No, thank you," Rude replied, and Reno looked up at him, eyes sliding open to reveal stunning aquamarine, curiosity piqued.
"What for?"
Rude smiled, and held him closer.
"Loving me."