↳ ffvii (final fantasy seven) one shots || vol. 1

his girl || scenario - rufus shinra and reno love triangle

anonymous asked: fic/imagine where rufus gets set up in an arranged marriage by his dad so he and his fiancée start off indifferent/resentful towards each other but slowly fall in love? 🥺she can be a shinra scientist or smthn! it would be nice if we could see it in different stages of their relationship like the one you did for reno and an enemy s/o 💕love you 💕

omg an addition to my rufus fiancée request! a fic with the situation from reno's point of view where he's really close friends w this fiancée and unrequitedly in love with her and watching her slowly falling in love with rufus and even being the one to comfort her and give her advice as she deals with the engagement? i love angst and torturing reno... 🥺

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I

Reno's there for you the day you find out about your arranged marriage, the marriage you've had no say in, no choice to disagree with, a marriage arranged for you mere hours after you were born. The wedding has already been organised, was done so years in advance, the dress that had been preemptively made now in the process of receiving alterations. But you can't find it in yourself to be happy, to rejoice at the idea that you're going to have one of the best weddings there ever was, because you don't know the man you're going to marry, and you certainly don't love him.

All Reno can do is hold you, run his fingers absentmindedly through your hair as you sob into his chest. His heart breaks as the sound of your sobs, but shatters into a million pieces at the thought of you marrying anyone else. He should have known he'd never be able to have you as his own, and now any hope of perhaps tugging the red string of fate was now gone - no one fought with the top dogs of Shinra, and there was no way they'd let someone as valuable as you slip through their fingers. You'd be groomed into this perfect woman by them, it was no wonder he had fallen for you, but you hadn't been raised this way for him.

No. It was for Rufus.

A man he worked with so closely, a man he had considered his friend, now a bitter enemy, the one who stole you from him. The thought of Rufus leaves a bitter taste in his mouth, a million angry thoughts about the man in question spinning around his mind. He has to hold his tongue, because slagging the man you're about to marry certainly won't help you.

Your sobs are slowly lessening, and for a moment he wonders if you've passed out from the effort of crying, but then you speak, the words muffled against his skin. "Huh?"

His heart clenches at the sight of your blood shot eyes, tear stained, blotchy cheeks. He wants to reach out and wipe the tears away, but he knows if he does he'll just fall more in love with you.

"He's horrible."

He wants to agree with you, he really does, but the truth is, Rufus is far from that. Reno knows he's a good man at heart, has just been raised badly by a horrible man, and as much as he hates to admit it, he knows you'll change Rufus for the better. He can't summon up much encouragement, but he knows he needs to try his best to encourage you. He's wallowing in his self pity, but knows out of the two of you, you have it the worst.

"You'll grow to love him, babe."

II

But he seriously questions his words when the ceremony finally happens. Despite spending as much time around one another as you and Rufus have, you're both stiff at the alter. You recite the words coldly, not a hint of excitement or emotion in your voice or on your face. Rufus is the face of indifference too, barely spared a glance to you when your father handed you away.

Reno would have reacted differently. When he saw you his jaw had almost dropped open, and if he had been the lucky man standing at the alter, he'd have let it fall. And when your hand was put in his, he'd thank your father earnestly, beaming down at you with a mega-watt grin, thrilled at the prospect of marrying you, of spending his life with you.

This fairytale in his head is not reality though. Rufus is the man who presses a short, stiff kiss to your lips, who walks you back down the isle, now your husband, who barely spares a glance at you during the celebrations, too busy talking to Shinra senior officials than check in on his bride. Aside from the customary first dance, Rufus doesn't approach you for the rest of the night, and Reno takes it upon himself to cheer you up before the two of you leave for your month long honeymoon.

He swipes your tears away when he pulls you to the side, pinches your cheeks until you smile, and dances the night away with you, involving the few members of your family and friends that had been invited to your wedding, maybe ten guests in total. Reno knows, had you had the option, you would have invited so many more people - your childhood friend from Wutai, the trio you had met at the Golden Saucer when celebrating your eighteenth birthday, your cousin who was currently working diligently for the other side. But he tries to get you to make the most of it, because you'll only get married once, as a marriage to Rufus Shinra is undoubtedly a marriage for life.

III

You're at the forefront of his mind for the next month, and Reno almost forgets about Rufus when he sees him one day, absolutely glowing, an unusual sight. He's back from his honeymoon, chatting happily about what the two of you did during your time away to his personal assistant. And you're back too.

When Reno finally gets the opportunity to meet up with you, it's nearly a week after your honeymoon, and you, like Rufus, are glowing. You excitedly relay to him all the adventures you have, all the funny stories he struggles to muster a smile at, praising Rufus with every word you speak, and it makes his heart shatter. He listens silently, until you eventually catch yourself wittering away, laughing in embarrassment and quickly changing the subject, asking after him.

He answers, but all he can think about his how totally smitten you seem with Rufus. When he presses further, you sheepishly admit to your flourishing feelings, alongside admitting the two of you haven't really talked about where your relationship stands. You may be husband and wife, but it didn't mean you were truly fulfilling those roles. Reno's glad the two of you haven't reached that stage yet, but he wonders briefly if that would make it less painful for him.

"Are you alright?"

He's been caught drifting off, too swept up in his own hatred for Rufus and disdain at slowly losing you.

"Yeah, babe, just happy for you."

IV

When he sees you next, you're all over Rufus, and he all over you. You're wiping at his face with a napkin, removing some sort of sauce from the corner of his lip, his arm wrapped securely around you as he stares down at you in bemusement, diving in for a kiss when you finally pull the napkin away. The kiss is deep, lasts for a long time, and it's clear that in the two weeks since Reno saw you last, you've fallen deeply in love with Rufus, and he you.

When Rufus pulls away, you slap his arm fondly, and he laughs deeply, leaning in to whisper something into your ear, a secret that shall stay strictly between the two of you. You giggle at whatever he says, shaking your head at him, and it's at that point when Reno clears his throat, moving over to Rufus' desk and dropping the papers loudly on it.

Your heads snap towards Reno, your eyes brightening up at the sight of him, Rufus' brow arching curiously at his forcefulness. You jump up from where you sit on Rufus' lap, stepping around the desk to embrace Reno tightly, babbling about how you miss him, and Reno makes sure to keep eye contact with Rufus as he hugs you tighter. Reno responds to your questions, smiling fondly down at you and casting the odd look at Rufus, searching for a reaction. But Rufus doesn't react, he watches calmly, smiling in your direction, ignoring Reno's glances.

"Shoot! I need to go!" You pull away from Reno, winding your way back around the desk to grab your handbag, kissing Rufus firmly, giving Reno another hug. "Bye Rufus, I'll see you at home. I'll arrange meeting with you soon, Reno! Love you!"

He and Rufus watch you go, both undoubtedly questioning who your last two words were meant for, both hoping it was them. Reno turns to Rufus, nods, then leaves, and a small part of him can't help but remind him that Rufus has the upper-hand in almost everything, that the "love you" was obviously for Shinra's next leader.

But Reno doesn't care about those two words, because he knows you love him, and even if that love is just as a friend, he can take it. As long as you're happy, he can love his girl from afar. But you will always be his girl.