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The evening at Cosmo Canyon was peaceful. The night sky was painted dark blue and thousands of little white dots shined everywhere describing beautiful constellations, while crickets’ chirp echoed around. The moon was high and its pale white light illuminated the rocky canyon. A fresh breeze occasionally blew, rising up little clouds of dirt from the dusty ground. Cloud was standing outside the little hut Bugenhagenprovided them. His recent lecture on the origin of the universe was fascinating. Apparently everything began and ended in the lifestream. Humans, animals, and souls of all kinds came from it and got back to it, in a never ending cycle of life and death. That same vital energy was being extracted by Shinra and sold as a power source, hurting the planet, bringing it closer to death.
Their accommodation was located on the eastern side of the canyon not far from Bugenhagen’s house, but not as high. It consisted of a small room with five beds and a small bathroom with everything you might need.
Bugenhagen’s whole planetology lecture obviously caught Barret’s attention, and even long after he finished educating them Barret couldn’t stop talking about it. To make things worse, the others engaged with him in the conversation, especially Aerith and Yuffie. Even the newest addition to the party - that weird Caith Sith - was hooked up.
The rambling was out of control.
After what felt like an eternity, Cloud managed to sneak out tolet his ears rest. He went outside and laid his back against the stone wall of one of the nearby habitations. His eyes wandered around examining the beautiful landscape before him.A small balustrade limited the rocky platform on which houseswere built. A flight of stairs carved out of the rock led to Bugenhagen’s house, and another one on the western side of the platform led to the lower level where other accommodations and some shops were located. Little oil lamps lit the street before him, and other barracks and dry-stone houses crowded the canyon.
Since he left Nibelheim he managed to visit a few places – due to his trainee and Soldier days – but never got the chance to visit Cosmo Canyon.
Cosmo Canyon. his mind got back for a moment to the cocktail Tifa prepared him, named after that same place.
That girl sure knew how to mix drinks.
The taste of that red liquid was seared in his mind. It was dry and bitter at first, then the sparkles of the prosecco came out leaving a fuzzy sensation on his tongue. Lastly the sweet note of orange took over leaving its unique aroma in his mouth, fulfilling his taste buds. The perfect blend of spirits and bitters. It was an incredibly pleasant and seductive drink.
Just like the bartender... the sudden thought popped into his mind, making him blush.
His relationship with Tifa was… hard to describe. He couldn’t understand clearly how he felt towards her. He surely liked her, but was that that kind of like?
Well, sometimes he would linger his sight on her just a little too much. He would look at her sweet face, with those red lips often so often curved into a smile. Her big red ruby eyes, so precious to him. Her long legs, her full hips and chest, her intoxicating scent. The sensation of her touch on his skin, that sent shivers down his spine.Thank god he got to experience such things during their journey. Like that time in sector five when they jumped off that train.
Their bodies intertwined, as they crushed on the cold concrete floor of Midgar’s subway. Her body pressed hard on his, while he tried his best to protect her during the fall. Or that time they hugged in Aerith’s house garden. Her face buried in his chest, her hands grabbing the fabric of his sweater. And how could he forget about the warm tears she cried, breaking his heart into a million little pieces. He wondered if she felt the same way too.
We’re just friends. He thought, trying to suppress his feelings.
As much as he tried to deny it, he did like her. A lot.
He even tried to flirt with her. Like that time Seventh Heaven. “Beautiful” he had said looking at her, holding up the cocktail she prepared for him. Tifa looked flattered. She quickly greeted him then turned away smiling, reaching the others in Avalanche’s hideout.
Her reaction had sent him through the roof.
Oh god, that lip bite. He thought. That was smooth.
A sudden sound of footsteps brought him back to reality. Instinctively he turned around to check who was approaching him.
“Ehy.” a familiar melodic voice spoke to him.
“Mind if I join you?” Tifa asked, walking towards him, her lips curved into a little smile.
“No, not at all.” he answered, his voice warm and gentle.
“I’ve had enough planetology for today…”
“Barret’s still talking?”
“Yeah.” she said, a tired look on her face. Then, she took place next to him, her right arm just a few inches away from his. He could feel the heat radiating off her. He turned his head a bit to look at her. She was resting her head on the wall looking at the starry sky above them. The reflections of the shining night sky lit up her red irises while the moon’s pale light enhanced her features.
“Beautiful.” she said in awe.
“Yeah, beautiful.” he said, his sight locked on her.
“You think the stars can hear us?”
“Dunno.”
“I wonder if what Bugenhagen said is true. If so, maybe they can.”
“What would you tell them?” he asked.
She looked down for a brief moment, then nervously started toying with her hands.
“To have faith.” she finally answered.
“Faith?” he asked, surprised. “Faith, in what?”
“In the future.” she spoke quietly, closing her eyes and once again resting her head on the cold wall behind them.
“Do you ever wish all the bad things went away?” Tifa asked.
He looked at her intrigued.
“Things like pain, sadness... You know, that kind of stuff.”
“Uhmm, yes.” he admitted. “But, you know, it’s also thanks to those things that we become who we are.” he answered, closing his fingers into a first.
She was caught off-guard by his answer and observed him, her gentle eyes on his face.
“Mhmm… ‘Guess you’re right.” she said, then laid her head on his shoulder. His muscles instinctively tensed at the contect, but soon he became acquainted with the feeling of her.
“Still…” she continued “I can’t help but wish all of the pain just went away, like... It never existed.” she spoke with a melancholic look in her eyes.
“It’s hard, I know.” he said, his mouth so close to the tip of her head that his lips brushed against her hair strands.
“Mh-hmm.” she nodded in response. Then tentatively touched his hand with hers, causing his brain to short circuit. Cloud welcomed her gesture. He slowly started to touch her fingers, one by one trying to comfort her. Then he used his thumb to squeeze her delicate hands. He performed his gesture slowly. Fearful to go too far, hoping that nothing could break that beautiful contact.
To his surprise she didn’t hold back. On the contrary she too started interlacing her fingers with his. Everything about that moment delighted his senses: the night breeze that made her hair brush against his skin, her sweet scent, the warmth of her touch on him.
Just the two of them together under the night sky, he didn’t want this to end.
I hope nobody comes out now. He thought.
How many times did he think about her after he left the village to join Soldier? He couldn’t count them. He felt bad for not writing to her, not even once.
Did she think about me too? He wondered, but the only answer he could find to that question was a firm no. After all, why would she lose time with someone like him?
Yet, here they were. After all those years destiny had brought them together once more. He wanted to stay in Midgar, at least as long as he got the chance to spend time with her. He wanted to help her. But life never goes according to plan and soon even this tiny bit of peace he worked so hard to build, crumbled: sector seven’s plate crushing on the slums, causing mass destruction. They tried to stop it but failed. People lost homes, loved ones, lives… Once the dust had settled down the damage was clear. He couldn’t forget the look in Tifa’s eyes when she found her bar destroyed, buried under the steel of the upper plate. Those surely were the kind of things she wished she could erase.
As if already having lost your hometown wasn’t enough.
Not bad for an average life. He thought.
Tifa’s head was still resting in the dip of his neck as their hands were now fully intertwined. He kept holding her palm, squeezing it tightly with his thumb, trying to comfort her. He could feel her relaxed breathing through the fabric of his sweater.
At least now they were at peace.
“Hey Cloud?” she asked.
“Mhm..?”
“Thank you.” said the brunette, putting her right hand on his bicep.
“For what?”
“For being by my side.” Tifa answered.
“I promised, remember?” Cloud said in a sweet tone.
She smiled at him and delicately squeezed his arm. He rested his chin on the tip of her head, brushing his lips against her dark silky hair. After a long moment he gently pulled her into his arms. She welcomed his gesture, allowing him to bring her close to him and soon she was surrounded by his muscular arms. She placed her hands on his flat chest and once again laid her head in the dip of his neck. He could feel her breathing against his jawline, her body pressed on his. All of her curves and crevices fitted him perfectly. Like they were made for each other, like they belonged together.
“I know it’s hard… Dealing with the past.” he spoke quietly.
She lifted her head and locked eyes with him, getting lost in that bright blue gaze that she came to enjoy.
“You’ve been through a lot.” Cloud added, brushing his gloved hand against her left cheek. She closed her ruby eyes and leaned her head against his palm, making his heart melt. In that moment the world around them disappeared, it was just them comforting each other, giving each other strength.
“We have been through a lot.” Tifa corrected him, her eyes now open again and looking into his soul. They were so close, their faces only inches apart. He could feel her warm breath on his skin, her sweet inebriating scent filled his lungs. Her rosy lips were slightly parted inviting him to close that distance, that little boundary between friends to lovers.
“Tifa…” he spoke with the softest voice, his words caressing the sensitive skin of her lips.
She started to lean in, slowly closing her crimson eyes as she crossed that prohibited line. After what felt like an eternity their lips finally touched, the taste of her making him weak in the legs. It was sweet and gentle. They carefully approached each other, adjusting their movements according to the other’s reaction. His heart pounded so hard in his chest. As time went by, the kiss deepened. Their lips were engaged in a passionate dance. Cloud’s hands travelled from her back to the dip of her neck keeping her close, scared she could go away. After a while they came up for air and then kissed again.
I might get used to this, he thought. The feeling of her fingertips, the feeling of her kiss.
A sudden noise broke their bubble. They quickly pulled away and turned around. A huge wooden box flew over, hitting the ground breaking into pieces soon after Barret’s loud voice echoed all over the canyon.
“Listen’ asshole!”
Caith Sith appeared, running away from the huge man that kept yelling at him.
“Whad’ya mean I’m outta luck?!” he was chasing him, aiming at him with his machine gun.
“It’s just a game! Don’t shoot!”
“Barret calm down!” Aerith ran after the man trying to cool things down.
“Ya’ can be sure I won’t waste a single bullet on an asshole like ya’!” answered Barret.
Meanwhile Caith Sith had hidden behind a short dry-stone wall and called for help.
“It’s just a game.” he kept saying.
“Hey! What the hell are you doing?!” Cloud intervened, grabbing the man by his machine gun. His lips still sore from all the kissing.
“Mind ya’ own business soldier!” Barret answered angrily.
“Why the hell are you making such a mess?” Cloud asked as angry as him.
“Barret please, calm down.” Tifa said. “What happened?”
“We were playing a game. Caith Sith was telling our fortune, we all got a good prediction except…” Aerith explained.
“You’re doing all this mess for a stupid prediction?” Cloud was furious, his moment with Tifa was ruined by that stupid argument.
“C’mon calm down. It’s just a game. It doesn’t mean anything.” Aerith added.
“Take ya’ hands off me.” Barret scolded Cloud and walked away huffing.
“Tch.” said Cloud.
“Caith Sith you can come out.” Tifa reached his hideout.
“Ughhh, I’m never doing this again!” said the odd creature.
“It’s OK.” Aerith reassured him. “Barret easily loses his temper but he’s a good guy.” She took him by the hands.
“We should get inside.” Said Yuffie.
“Yeah.” answered the flower lady. Then the three of them walked back inside.
Tifa and Cloud remained behind. After exchanging an ankward look with each other Tifa quickly greeted him and ran after her friends. He silently watched her escorting Caith Sith with Aerith and Yuffie.
His mind was still dizzy due the latest development in his relationship with Tifa.
He let out a sigh. Sooner or later they might have to talk about what just happened between them.
“Geez. How the heck am I going to sleep tonight?” he scratched the back of his head.
This was going to be a long night.