(A/N) I wrote another Cloud/Tifa oneshot…what a surprise. XD This one is a bit longer than my other oneshots though, which I suppose is a good thing. :3
Fanfiction seriously needs to make the amount of characters allowed in the story summaries longer, because I can never fit everything in. DX Anyway, this one is in Cloud's point of view, and it's rated for mild sexual themes and some alcohol reference. Oh, and there's a tiny bit of implied Reno/Yuffie in this, but not much, so if you don't like the couple you don't have to worry. ;P
Seven Minutes in Heaven
"Why do we have to go to this stupid party?" I ask, sarcasm lacing my tone.
"It's not stupid," Tifa says defensively, turning to glare at me with her hands on her hips. "And we're going because it means a lot to Yuffie," she finishes.
I sigh, deciding to give up on trying to avoid this, because there seems to be no way out. You see, Yuffie decided that she was going to throw a party at her house tonight, though there's no real occasion or reason behind it, and Tifa insists that we both have to show up to make her happy. I've been trying to get out of having to go all day, and I can tell that Tifa's getting tired of my complaining.
It's early in the evening now, and the party is only about a half an hour away from starting, so Tifa drug me into the bathroom with her to get ready. She's already dressed, barely covered in a delicious little wine-red colored dress, and she's looking into the mirror now, trying to smooth out her hair. Thankfully I don't own any clothes that could pass for 'party attire', so I was able to avoid dressing up.
I took Denzel and Marlene over to their friends house earlier, where they'll be staying the night, because I'm pretty sure that this party isn't something I'd want to take them to. I'm not quite sure to expect, seeing as how I've never been to a house party of any kind, but I suppose the worse that could happen would be Yuffie and all of her friends getting drunk and acting ridiculous. As long as Tifa is there, I guess it won't be so bad, but it still doesn't sound like fun to me.
Tifa notices me frowning and turns away from her reflection in the mirror. "It will be fine, Cloud," she tries to reassure me.
I grunt in protest, leaning over the sink to spit after I'm done brushing my teeth. "I seriously doubt it," I mumble under my breath.
Tifa seems to hear me, because she rolls her eyes in my direction before turning to walk out of the bathroom and head down the hall, the sound of the heels on her shoes echoing off the floorboards. I follow after her a moment later, going downstairs and into the bar area in the front of our house. After I pull on my jacket I stand by the front door to wait for her, and she comes to join me after she has her own jacket on and her purse is slung over her shoulder.
Winter is just starting to creep up on us, and it's beginning to get pretty cold outside in Edge, which I'm reminded of when I pull open the front door and the bitter wind gets blown into my face. I walk towards Fenrir and let Tifa lock the door behind us, smiling smugly to myself when I notice her beginning to shiver slightly, because when I warned her earlier this afternoon that she would be cold in that dress she was too stubborn to change.
She gives me a stern look when she notices my smirk; clearly recognizing the 'I told you so' that's hidden in my expression. I turn away from her, swinging my leg over the back of my bike and kicking it to a start quickly, listening to the engine hum beneath me. Tifa hesitates behind me in the street for a moment, seeming to be trying to figure out how she's going to be able to get on without her dress hiking up.
She eventually gives up, slipping in behind me anyway, hooking her arms around my waist and leaning against my back. If I asked her about it she'd probably claim that she's just hanging on to me so she won't fall off while we're driving, because she's much to obstinate to admit that she's really using me to get warm. Not that I mind either way really; as long as she's sitting close to me like this the reason for it doesn't matter much to me.
We ride through town for a few minutes, and when we pull up in front of Yuffie's house I can tell immediately that the party must already be in full swing, because I can hear the music from out here on the street and can see the swarm of people inside through the windows. Yuffie lives in a pretty moderately sized house, even if it doesn't have a second story, but the whole place appears to be packed with people.
"Wow," Tifa breathes as she takes in the scene. "I didn't think it was going to be this big of a deal."
"It's Yuffie, of course it's a big deal," I say with an exasperated sigh.
I turn off Fenrir's engine and slide off of it, holding my hand out to Tifa to help her off too. She takes it gladly, straightening the hem of her dress when she's standing beside me on the sidewalk. We start heading up the walkway to the house then, although the door is already open from the flow of people that seems to be constantly moving in and out, so we don't have to knock.
When I walk though the doorway it's like stepping into a scene from some wild movie, the likes of which I didn't think existed in real life. It's dark in the main room, all except for the different colored strobe lights that are bouncing off the walls, and I can feel the pulse of the enormous stereo's base thumping beneath my feet. Just about everyone in the house is dancing to the music blaring from the sound system, and the whole place smells like the alcoholic drinks that are being passed around.
Tifa leans over to try and say something to me, but her voice is lost in all of the other deafening sounds here. I start to ask her to repeat what she said, but just then Yuffie steps out of the crowd and notices us. An excited smile spreads across her face and she starts walking towards us, though not very quickly to avoid spilling the drink in her hand. Her outfit is even more skimpy than Tifa's is, with her midriff exposed; women are crazy, it's cold outside.
It is actually pretty warm inside the house though; probably because of all the people in here creating body heat. I pull off my jacket in response to the change in temperature, suddenly wishing that I hadn't chosen to wear a shirt with long sleeves underneath, and Tifa does the same. I hold my arm out to her, silently offering to hold her jacket, and she smiles in thanks as she hands it over.
"Hey guys!" Yuffie says when she reaches us, though she has to shout just to make herself heard.
"Hi Yuffie," Tifa yells back, though I choose to save my vocal cords and not say anything, instead giving her a silent nod.
Yuffie downs the last of her drink and sets the empty glass on a nearby table. "Come on Tifa, lets go dance!" she says enthusiastically, grabbing Tifa by her elbow and tugging her towards the mass of dancing people before she has a chance to protest.
Tifa glances back at me sympathetically, looking like she feels bad for leaving me alone, but I shoot a small grin at her to let her know that it's alright. I see her returning smile for only a second before she disappears into the crowd, and I decide that while she's gone I might as well wander around to try and find a halfway quiet place to stay, where I can be away from most of the people.
I eventually find a spot over behind the stereo, where the music isn't so loud, and I lean my back against the wall. I'm not sure where they're all coming from, but there are all sorts of mixed drinks being passed around, and just about everyone here seems to be a bit buzzed. I could probably have a few without it impairing me too much, but I know if I do Tifa will smell it on my breath and throw a fit about me driving home, so I choose to grab a glass of soda instead.
As I'm watching the people moving through the house I begin to recognize some faces, and I realize that Tifa and I aren't the only old members of avalanche that Yuffie guilted into showing up to this party. I catch a glimpse of Reeve talking to Vincent across the room, and I even seen Barret and Cid pass by once, though I'm sure Cid is only here because his wife, Shera, forced him to come.
The crowd seems to shift while I'm staring out into it, though I'm not really focused on anyone in particular at the moment, at least until I notice that I can see Tifa through the newly formed gap. I've never seen her dance before, and thankfully she's not actually dancing with anyone, but I'm suddenly mesmerized by the sight; my eyes automatically following the sensual way her hips are swaying to the beat of the music.
"Hey buddy!" a loud voice calls, suddenly breaking me out of my trance.
I look to my side, realizing that the voice belongs to Reno, the redheaded member of the Turks who inexplicably seems to think that we're friends. He slaps me on the back in greeting, appearing to already be starting to get a bit tipsy; a theory that is confirmed when I notice the glass of liquor in his hand. I stare at him for a moment, irritated that he had to interrupt my gawking.
"Where's your partner?" I ask when I realize that he's alone. I don't think I've ever seen them apart, and I was starting to assume that they might have been attached at the hip.
"Who, Rude?" he asks, as if it isn't obvious. "He's around her somewhere," he says with a shrug, glancing around as if to look for him.
I don't say anything else, because I'm not really sure if it would be possible for me to have an actual conversation with Reno. His eyes drift away from me, taking a sip from his drink as he looks out into the crowd. We stand there together for a few minutes; not in silence, because it's much too loud here to call it that, but without speaking. Then his eyebrows shoot up underneath his hair suddenly, and a suggestive smirk appears on his face.
"Whoa, Tifa's looking hot tonight!" he exclaims, staring over at her with his mouth hanging open slightly.
I turn back to him then, glaring at him fiercely; not needing words to communicate my distaste for his comment. Not that I disagree with him, obviously, but I just don't want to hear a guy like him saying something like that about her.
When he takes in my reaction he holds his hands up defensively, trying to backtrack. "Hey, don't get me wrong, I'm technically here as Yuffie's date," he explains hurriedly, jerking his thumb towards where Yuffie is dancing with everyone else.
I scoff at Reno, moving away from him when I notice Tifa break out of the crowd on the other side of the room. She seems startled when she turns around and sees me standing in front of her, but she smiles at me in thanks when I hand her the extra glass of soda that I grabbed earlier. She looks like she could use it, as there are tiny beads of glistening sweat clinging to her forehead and around her collarbone; maybe it was actually smart of her to dress lightly.
She takes a gulp out of her glass and wipes away the sweat with the sleeve of her jacket when I hand it back to her. "Having fun?" she asks.
"It's not completely horrible," I allow, thinking about when I caught a glimpse of her dancing.
"Come dance with me," Tifa says, looking at me hopefully.
I cock an eyebrow at her, surprised that she would even suggest something so ridiculous. "I can't dance," I say, stating what should be obvious.
"Please? It will be fun," she pleads, ignoring my claim.
I open my mouth, intending on protesting again, but the music suddenly cuts off and the normal lights come back on; drawing my attention over in the direction of the stereo. I see Yuffie climbing up on top of one of the tall speakers, looking like she must have something important to say. She waits until everyone is looking towards her, and after clearing her throat she addresses the confused crowd.
"Okay everybody," she says, speaking loud enough for the whole house to hear; finally that shrill voice of hers comes in handy. "We're going to be playing Seven Minutes in Heaven, so if you want to join in follow me!"
She hops back down onto the floor when she's done, and after she's melted back into the crowd the lights dim once again and the music resumes playing just as loudly as before. I can barely see the top of her head as she moves through throng of people, but I notice that quite a few of the guests abandon dancing and begin to follow her into the other part of the house.
I look towards Tifa, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "What's 'Seventh Heaven'?" I ask her.
She stares back at me in disbelief, giving me a look that seems to say that the answer should be obvious. I think sometimes Tifa forgets that I missed out on five years of my life, so there are a lot of things, especially social kinds of things, that I've never been exposed to. I left to join ShinRa right after I turned fifteen, and I spent the years of my life from age sixteen to twenty-one in a test tube, so I didn't get to experience all of those things most people learn as teenagers.
Tifa seems to remember this suddenly, and she tries to explain it to me. "It's a game that people play at parties…" she begins hesitantly, looking almost awkward about this, though I can't imagine why.
"I figured out that much on my own," I say mockingly, smirking at her.
She rolls her eyes at me before she continues, glancing away from me and towards the other guests that are still dancing. "I think there are several different ways that people choose the names, but the end result is that two people end up in a closet together for seven minutes," she finishes.
It takes me a minute to process what she means, but when I do I understand why she was acting awkward about explaining it to me before
"Oh," I say softly, praying that she won't decide that she wants to play for some reason.
"Are you going to sit out with me or do you want to try getting lucky with some girl?" she asks, winking at me suggestively.
I smile, because I know she's just teasing me; she knows me better than that. "I think I'll pass," I say, and she laughs lightly in response.
xXxXx
Tifa and I decide to go sit in the other room where Yuffie has gathered all the people that are playing the game, and before long she gets everything in order and begins drawing names, which someone has written on slips of paper, out of a glass vase. I understand how the game works now, but I still don't know why people would subject themselves to something like this; getting thrown into a closet with a stranger and being expected to fool around with them.
We find a couch to relax on off to one side of the room, holding a light conversation in between watching the couples emerging from the closet, always looking flushed and disheveled. Yuffie ends up in the closet with a guy that I don't recognize, much to Reno's dismay, although he changes his attitude when his name gets called along with a petite, blonde girl.
I try to tune them out for the most part so I can focus on talking to Tifa, though it's a bit hard for us to hear each other with the music still playing in the other room. I'm snapped back into focusing on Yuffie's little game though, when I hear her call my name. I look over at her, puzzled as to why she's talking about me, and then come to the realization with horror when I see her waving a little strip of paper over her head.
The look of shock on my face disappears quickly, followed by an intense glare that I send Yuffie's way. She ignores me after shooting me a cheeky grin, and reaches back into the vase for another name, although I already know what she's going to say. She's well aware that I had no intention of playing this game, so this is another one of her blatant attempts to try and turn Tifa and I into a couple. She's been at since we met, and it's really starting to get old.
Sure enough, a few seconds later when the piece of paper is in her hand, she announces proudly that it has Tifa's name on it. I'm pretty sure that she's just lying though, because I don't think she'd actually go to the trouble to set up the game so that both of our names would get called. Yuffie holds her arm out in our direction, waving us forward with a triumphant smirk on her face.
I glance back at Tifa, finding that she's taking this a bit better than I am, because there's a slightly amused, but frustrated looking smile on her lips. I sigh, pushing myself up off the couch and begin walking through the crowd to where Yuffie is standing in front of the closet, with Tifa trailing behind me. I stare Yuffie down the whole way there, but she seems unaffected, and her smile never wavers.
"Yuffie..." I practically growl at her when I'm close enough for her to hear me.
I meant to chew her out for pulling this stunt, but I don't have any time to even open my mouth, because she somehow manages to slip between Tifa and I all of a sudden and shove both of us into the closet in one swift motion. I turn around as fast as I can, but it's only in time to see the door getting slammed in my face, and all of the light suddenly disappears as the sound of it closing echoes in my ears.
"Have fun," Yuffie says from the other side of the door, laughing at her own joke.
Reaching down for the doorknob automatically, I'm disappointed, but not surprised, to find it already locked. "Damn it," I curse under my breath.
I hear Tifa sigh next to me, though my eyes haven't adjusted enough for me to be able to see her yet.
"She must have been planning this one," she says, sounding a lot less irritated than I am.
"I'm going to kill her when we get out of here," I say seriously, though Tifa laughs because she knows I don't really mean it.
Giving up on trying to open the door, I trail my hand along the wall, searching for a button to turn on the light, which I'm hoping will be on the inside of the closet and not on the wall outside My fingers run into something protruding from the flat surface a moment later, which luckily turns out to be the power switch. I flick it on, causing Tifa and I to squint in the bright light.
"Thanks," she says softly, apparently glad that she at least doesn't have to be in the dark while we're locked in here.
I give her a nod in response, and then glance around the room. It's a good thing that I'm not claustrophobic, because this closet really isn't meant to be a walk-in one, let alone fit two people. There are only a few coats hanging in the corner, but Tifa and I still barely have enough room to stand without our arms touching. Maybe that's why Yuffie chose this place for the game though.
We stand in silence for awhile, and I almost laugh at how ridiculous Yuffie is; I can't believe she actually thinks that Tifa and I would start making out just because she shoves us into a closet together. Of course, I do really care about Tifa, and over the years that I've known her I've grown out of the childish crush that I used to have on her when we were growing up, and it's turned into something more.
She's my best friend now, the only person that has ever really seemed to understand what I'm thinking just by looking into my eyes, and she means everything to me. I really want to be more to her than just a friend, but I've always been terrified that telling her how I really feel could scare her away, so I choose to keep those dangerous feelings to myself. It's alright this way though, as long as I get to be with her in some way.
I exhale deeply, closing my eyes as I lean my head back against the door and resigning myself to waiting out whatever is left of our seven minutes. Tifa suddenly giggles though, and my eyes snap open to look at her. She has a devilish smirk on her face, like she's hiding some mischievous secret. She steps closer to me, reaching up towards my head and then running her fingers through my hair, seeming to be intent on making it even messier than it already is.
"What are you doing?" I ask her, though I don't try to move away from her hands, because what she's doing actually feels really good.
"I'm giving Yuffie something to talk about," she says with another small, breathy laugh.
I smile wickedly with understanding, following Tifa's example by reaching up and tangling my hands in her dark hair, ruining it's once smooth style. She moves on to my shirt next, undoing the few buttons at the top near the collar, and I pull one of the thin straps of her dress down over her shoulder. We laugh together, getting caught up in our game, and I amuse myself further by imagining what Yuffie's face is going to look like when she opens the door and sees us both looking like we've just been in a make out frenzy.
My whole body freezes suddenly though, when I feel a strange sensation that I'm not used to. I quickly realize that what I'm feeling is Tifa's mouth, because she's leaned even closer to me than she already was, and her lips are brushing across my neck. I shiver involuntarily and feel my cheeks heat up in response, because although I'm not sure what she could possibly be doing, I do know that it feels extremely pleasant.
"Tifa?" I manage to ask, though my voice comes out in a husky whisper.
She leans away from me, instantly understanding the confused look in my eyes.
"I have lipstick on," she explains seriously, though she begins blushing as she says it. "I thought it would make it look more realistic if…" she trails off, glancing away from me, looking like she's starting to regret her decision now.
I understand her idea when I reach up to touch my neck, where her lips had been just a few seconds ago, and see a rosy color on the tips of my fingers when I pull them back. I have to admit that would be a nice touch to our charade, but I didn't think it would fluster me so much.
"Sorry," she adds quietly, peeking up at me sheepishly.
I try to clear my throat, hoping that my voice will come out normally this time. "No, it's fine," I assure her, offering her a small smile in encouragement.
Tifa gives me a nod and leans towards me again, though this time it's much less boldly than before, and she plants a kiss on my cheek, near the corner of my mouth. I know that she's only doing this for the sake of our joke, but even that knowledge doesn't stop my stomach from quivering from the touch of her soft, warm lips against my skin. My eyes slide closed slowly, and I realize all too late that I've gotten completely caught up in the moment.
She's still close enough to me, so all I have to do is bring my hand up and grab her cheek to pull her mouth against mine. The contact sets fireworks off in my head, and although Tifa seems to be frozen with shock for a short moment, soon enough she begins to respond to me, and her lips start moving eagerly with mine. The rest of my thoughts go out the window then, and I back her up against the closet's wall; one of my hands planted above her and the other resting on the small of her back.
Her hands slide up my chest and behind my neck, knotting in my hair and only serving to drive me even wilder. Though I know there can't possibly be that much space between our bodies, I can't seem to get close enough to her, and I use my hand on her back to pull her nearer to me. I run my fingertips up her spine, making her shudder against me, and I find that the little, needy noises that she keeps making are almost as wonderful to listen to as it feels to be kissing her.
It's been a long time since I kissed her last, over two years to be more precise; since that night we spent together under Cid's airship, The Highwind. I had almost forgotten about the amazing way she tastes, but it all comes rushing back to me now, and I just can't get enough of the intoxicating feelings. It's only when I absolutely need to take a full breath that I pull away from her, leaving us both panting and flushed.
I don't lean away from her much, because my legs feel unsteady, and I keep my hand on the wall over her shoulder to use for support. Tifa doesn't say anything, but as my eyelids lift open slowly I can see her staring back at me. Her eyes are wide, her pupils are dilated, a delicate blush is on her cheeks and her lips are still slightly parted as she breathes heavily; as a whole looking so erotic that I have look away to stop myself from attacking her mouth again.
Swallowing thickly, I grasp for something to say to her. "I'm…sorry Tifa, I…shouldn't have…"
I'm finding it hard to pull a coherent sentence together, but to my surprise Tifa's face breaks into a bright smile as she looks up at me.
"It's okay," she says, beaming at me, though she's biting her lower lip to try and hide it.
Taking that as encouragement, I grin back at her before leaning towards her again, and recapture her lips with mine. This time feels just as good as before, and I get so caught up in her that I hardly even notice when the door to the closet is pulled open, and I don't pay the shocked gasps or whistles of enthusiasm any mind. Tifa doesn't react to them either, although I do feel her smile against my mouth, but she doesn't try to pull away from me.
I've changed my mind now; I do like this game.
The End
(A/N) I've never actually played Seven Minutes in Heaven, so I apologize if I got any of the rules for it wrong. O.o
Along with updates on my Cloud/Tifa AU story, To Have Loved and Lost, I'm also going to be posting the first chapter of yet another Cloud/Tifa story soon, so go give it some love too! :D Don't forget to go check out my Cloud/Tifa C2 community either. ;P You know you can check my profile for info about all the updates and what I'll be writing next…blah, blah, blah. I'll shut up now. XD
I seem to be running out of clever ways to ask people to review… Ah just do it. ;P
-punkiemonkie