Chapter Text
Cloud was sure the sketchy warehouse was not the best place to shield himself from the rain. He had heard lots of rumors about it, and even though he knew how to defend himself properly, (hell, he was coming back from the army) he was unsure to enter it. Cloud stood there, some meters away from it, when a sneeze made him realize: the rain is going to make him sick if he doesn’t find a shelter now.
“Just my luck…” He sighed, as he approached one of the doors of the warehouse.
Before opening the door, he heard people inside. They were singing, laughing, chatting, he even heard some fighting. He was confused, sure, but was even more worried of who was in there, and what could happen to him. Searching for things that could be a potential danger, he noticed some cars, motorcycles, and even bikes parked around the place.
There was no sign of danger around him, though, so he relaxed a little. As Cloud placed his hand on the door’s handle, and leaned closer to the door before entering, he noticed loud hip-hop music, and a group of people chanting a familiar name to him.
“Tifa, Tifa, Tifa,” he heard through the rusty metal door. Wait, Tifa?
That could be a coincidence, he thought. Still, no one else except from her had that name. The reason he joined the army, the reason he left his comfortable house, and did something for himself. He had no time to lose, though. He could stop questioning himself and enter the place to find out the identity of whoever the crowd was praising, or stand there, and probably catch a cold because of the rain.
“Screw it,” he muttered to himself, as he opened the door.
Cloud was greeted with bright neon lights everywhere, and loud hip-hop music blasting on expensive looking speakers. Thankfully, no one was paying attention to the door he went through, and the place was pretty dark, so he had the opportunity to sit in the corner of the place, and start heating himself up, waiting for the rain to end. He tried closing his eyes once or twice, seeing the only noise present was light chatter and moderate volume music.
“Alright, everyone, we’re hoping you’re having a blast here! ‘Cuz we sure are!” A voice Cloud knew too well spoke. “Anyway, let’s get y’all ready for the next battle. Come close, you don’t wanna miss this one!” The voice announced, the music staring to lower until it’s barely audible.
“On the blue corner, the newcomer, the talented, Aerith Gainsborough!” The announcer, who Cloud actually recognized as his friend, Zack Fair, from the army, said, followed by a short pop jingle.
Cloud didn’t pay much attention to that name; he wasn’t quite familiar with it. However, he had heard Zack mention an Aerith before. Still, Cloud didn’t really pay attention to whatever his friend had to say, he was always yapping and saying dumb stuff.
“And on the red corner, a beauty, a total jaw drop, Tifa Lockhart!” A short, hip-hop/rap melody plays after the announcement, and the crowd cheers.
“Contestants, get ready…” Zack’s voice lowered as some sort of old-school hip hop began playing. Without second thought, Cloud got up, squeezing himself in the crowd full of teenagers and young adults. As he got to the front row of the public, his thoughts began drifting, making him notice how uncomfortable he was around all those people. He looked to his sides, and when he looked towards the space chosen as their combat area…
He saw her. He finally saw her.
Cloud saw a beautiful woman, her crimson eyes focused on her opponent. He drank her in, her beautiful shape, her small, pink lips curving into a smile. He watched her, jumping back and forth, a fighting stance mixed with a type of dance making her dark hair sway. She was there, after five long years, he was finally seeing her.
He saw the concentration in her expression, and the grace she moved with. Although Cloud didn’t quite get what was going on, or why they were fighting and dancing at the same time, he enjoyed seeing the girl he used to have a crush on there, enjoying whatever she was doing, as if it was the only thing keeping her going.
Hypnotized by her graceful, yet cheerful movements and her endearing smile, Cloud didn’t notice the match finished, with Tifa as the winner.
“And here you have it fellas! Tifa Lockhart, tonight’s winner! Don’t forget to join us next weekend, folks!” Zack said, as he raised Tifa’s fist up high, she laughed.
Tifa looked around the room, amazed so many people were there to watch her fight, but happy, nonetheless. Just then, when she was about to finish scanning the crowd, he saw him. Cloud Strife.
Tifa smiled sweetly, as her arm was put back down. She never expected someone as reserved and quiet as Cloud in a place with everything being so intense. She also wondered when he’d returned from the army, and what was he even doing in a city like Midgar. Before looking away, she noticed his gaze moving to her.
They both stood still as they made eye contact, none of them being able to talk to each other, just their eyes. Even if they were silent, their eyes said everything they needed to say. But this created even more doubts about the other, questions that might disappear if any of the two were actually able to approach the other and make a small conversation.
However, none of them had changed in those five years. There was no way in hell they’d say a word. Knowing this, the first one to look away was Cloud, taking a defeated sigh, his expression showing some kind of unwanted bitterness and mixed feelings. Tifa, noticing his shift in mood, looked away as well, a small disappointed smile formed for some seconds on her face, then disappeared.
“Well, that was…” Tifa muttered to herself. She grabbed her bottle of water, and the towel next to it in one motion, wiping the sweat off her face, followed by her chugging the entire bottle.
“Hey, Teef!” A lively, energetic voice spoke. “Nice match! I have so much to learn from you, master…” Her friend teased, leaning on her shoulder.
“Ah, well, apprentice, you know this level of skill requires lots of time to perfect,” Tifa giggled, as she followed her friend’s game. “But hey, you’ve gotten better at this, Aerith,” She offered the other fighter, her friend, a gentle, loving smile.
“You still beat my ass though,” Aerith mentioned in a sad tone.
“Aerith, trust me, one day, you’ll be the one beating asses,” the crimson eyed fighter smiled reassuringly at her friend. Her friend, on the other hand, smiled back at her, in a caring way.
“You’re so sweet, Teef!” Aerith exclaimed without a warning, embracing her friend in a tight hug. “Aerith, wait! I’m all sweaty!” Tifa tried pushing her away but was amazed at her friend’s new found strength and tight grip on her. Giving up, she hugged her back, and smiled sweetly.
“Alright, let’s get home. We have stuff to do tomorrow, don’t we?” Tifa asked, lightly pushing her friend away. “Right, right… I’m also a little tired…” Aerith yawned, as she stretched herself.
“Well, let’s not waste any time. We can clean up the place during the week, and ask Zack for help too,” Tifa offered, extending a hand towards her sleepy friend. “Okay,” Aerith yawned again. It was amazing how this girl could be so energetic and switch to tired in seconds.
After some minutes of Zack helping Tifa and Aerith organize a little, pile up some trash, and leave the warehouse a little more decent than how it was, the three rode of to Aerith and Tifa’s shared apartment. When Tifa was searching for the apartment’s keys on her bag, she heard Zack and Aerith talk, and there was a comment that stood out for her.
“Hey, I’ll tell my buddy about a shared apartment. It’s cheaper, and we’ll be together,” Zack mentioned, looking around the place. “Your buddy? Oh, your friend Cloud from the army?” Aerith said, tiredness on her voice. “Yup, that friend,” Zack smiled at her, noticing her already hooded eyes.
“Thanks for bringing us, Zack,” Tifa smiled at him. “No problem, call me whenever you need a ride.” He offered to the black haired woman in front of him. “Bye, Zack!” Aerith said, with a carefree smile on her face, giving Zack a small hug.
“Night, beautiful,” Zack said softly as he kissed the top of her head, wrapping his arms around her as a last goodbye. Tifa looked at them with a sad smile, their actions making her wonder what happened back at the warehouse, and why did Cloud act like that.
Pushing those thoughts aside, she watched as Zack left, silently closed the door, and carefully guided Aerith to her room.
In her dimly lit room, brushing her long hair before sleeping, she sat there deep in thought. “I hope I get to see you again, Cloud. I really, really hope I do.”
She let out a sigh, and with that, fell asleep.