Strawberry Wine
by: Pollensalta

Chapter One

The silver spoon stirred the coffee within the porcelain cup, reverberating with a musical tingle. She smiled at the scent of hazelnut it emitted and the fulfilling warmth a mere sip of it provided. She stole a quick glance out of the café's window, noticing the white snow blanketing the evening streets of Kalm. Several pedestrians passed by, clutching their winter coats closer to their shivering bodies, small clouds of frosty breath eschewing from their mouths.

Looks like I'm going to need this warmth more so than usual, she thought with an amused grin playing about her face.

When she brought the rim of the white coffee mug to her lips for another hearty sip, one of the café's waitresses came by her booth; she was a young woman about nineteen years of age with bouncy red hair and such a petite body that she could probably fit into a size 0. Hey Tifa. You came to escape the cold too, huh?

The brunette seated comfortably on the booth's plush seats glanced up to the waitress with a warm smile. That and a whole lot of other things, Soleil, she said with a bit of a laugh.

Ah, lonely bachelorette scene again?

You betcha.

Soleil giggled, then stood poised and ready to scribble something down on the notepad she carried with her. So, can I getcha anything else?

No thanks, Tifa politely declined.

I'll see if I can get you a man, then. How about that? the redhead teased. There are lots of single and cold men here tonight too. You just might get lucky tonight!

Laughing softly, Tifa shook her head. Sometimes Soleil's straightforwardness and teasing was too amusing for her to even bear; but she had to admit, it was that amusement, as well as the cozy and pleasant atmosphere, that made Tifa come to the Kalm Kup nearly every night. It helped ease her soul and took her mind off her lonesomeness.

Well, I got a job to do. And let me know when something interesting happens, Soleil began to step away from the booth, but Tifa could still see the mischievous smirk she possessed, you getting the stick out of your butt and gracing us with another song on the piano or the mic.

After Soleil departed, Tifa Lockheart giggled and continued staring out of the café's windows at the city life. Through the inclement weather, she could still espy several people hurrying to the comforts of the indoors. Some were in pairs, walking hand-in-hand or clutching each other's arms for warmth and above all, love.

She couldn't help but sigh, feeling a tad envious. Many times she had wished for the company of a man, and she had her pick from a myriad suitors But they all played second fiddle to a certain childhood friend of hers. Cloud Strife.

There you go again, Lockheart. Stop thinking about him, she told herself, in her thoughts. You were the one who agreed to move on with your life because you realized whom he truly loved; stop trying to find him in everyone you try to meet

Tifa groaned and abruptly stood up after finishing her hazelnut coffee. She calmly stepped over to an area of the small café specifically designed for those with musical talent; the owner of the Kalm Kup had arranged open mic nights, karaoke nights, piano nights so that any patrons with poetry or a song were free to express themselves. Tifa sought to do just that.

While she didn't have an exceptionally beautiful singing voice, she did have some talent. Her mother had introduced her to playing the piano and arranged for her to have voice lessons—the latter of which ended at the age of eight when her mother died. Though her inspiration and love for music had somewhat faded, Tifa knew that if she didn't beg her father to let her become a student of the infamous traveling martial artist Zangan, she'd become a musician of sorts.

Hi there, Brennan, Tifa greeted one of the café's regular musicians.

The raven-haired young man glanced up from tightening the strings to his adored guitar and smiled widely at the beauteous brunette standing before him. Hey, Tifa!

How's it going tonight?

Same ol', same ol', Brennan replied while casually stroking the cleanly cut goatee at his chin. Half the band's not here and the weather's screwed up our audience. No one can get into the café and no one can leave, either.

Tifa took a quick glance at the makeshift stage, which was really a corner surrounded by chairs and small tables, decorated with a piano. The band Brennan played with brought a drum set with them into the café when they began frequenting the place, too.

Open mic night then, huh? she commented.

Yeah. And no one's got the bal—er, he cleared his throat, stopping himself from swearing in front of Tifa, guts to come up and sing or talk or tell jokes.

Mind if I give it a shot?

Brennan grinned. Of course. Whatcha gonna play? Strawberry Wine again?

One of Tifa's eyebrows raised in thought. True, she loved that song, but that was a horse beaten to death one too many times. It was time for something new. she said while shaking her head. How about that tune Vanilla sang for us last week?

Brennan nodded and gave his band mates the signal for the song. They nodded to him in return and began preparing their instruments to play while Tifa moved to the center of the stage'.

She thanked her lucky stars for the snow. Otherwise, the very small crowd of people within the café that actually paid attention to the provided entertainment would have been twice their amount that eve. And Tifa had always suffered from a slight case of stage fright. However, it only took her one note to get her going.

Tifa, with the microphone in hand, looked to the ensemble, signaling her readiness. Soft and calming music, a medley of a ballad and blues, resounded in response. Brennan was exceptional with his guitar skills as was the drummer, and their respective instruments were prevailing—second only to Tifa's vocals.

I'm not looking for someone to talk to
I've got my friends; I'm more than OK.
I've got more than a girl could wish for
I live my dreams but it's not all they say.
Still I believe I'm missing something real.
I need someone who really sees me

Don't wanna wake up alone anymore
Still believing you'll walk through my door.
All I need is to know it's for sure
Then I'll give all the love in the world

I've often wondered if love's an illusion
Just to get you through the loneliest days.
I can't criticize it---I have no hesitation.
My imagination just stole me away.
Still I believe I'm missing something real.
I need someone who really sees me.

Don't wanna wake up alone anymore
Still believing you'll walk through my door.
All I need is to know it's for sure
Then I'll give all the love in the world

Love's for a lifetime, not for a moment.
So how could I throw it away?
Yeah, I'm only human
And nights grow colder
With no one to love me that way.
Yeah, I need someone who really sees me.

And I won't wake up alone anymore.
Still believing you'll walk through my door.
You'll reach for me and I'll know it's for sure
Then I'll give all the love in the world

* * * *

After her near flawless performance (it would have been perfect, but one of the band members ended up blubbering), Tifa received a decent round of applause—actually, it sounded more like a jazz club applause, identical to the sounds of a small group of people snapping their fingers instead of clapping their hands. Then she allowed other amateurs to take their chances at the microphone and prepared to go back to her booth.

Soleil stalled her, however. Hey, nice performance there, she commented and handed Tifa a small bottle. The glass was translucent and gold foiled was wrapped over a cork that kept its visible soft pink from spilling. A beautiful silk white ribbon was tied about its neck.

Strawberry wine?

Thanks Soleil Tifa eyed the classy bottle. She could only begin to imagine how much gil it was worth.

Don't thank me, Teef, Soleil put on another one of her infamous smirks. Thank the guy who bought it for you.

To that, Tifa arched an eyebrow.

I don't know. He told me to give it to you. Soleil shrugged, still smirking. But he's hot.

Tifa nearly lost her grip on the bottle. Be still my heart.

Was this guyCloud, by any chance? she asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

Soleil's pert nose scrunched up. Cloud? Is he that guy with the spiky blonde hair that came in here with you the first time?

Tifa quietly nodded her reply. Then Soleil shook her head, much to the brunette's dismay. was all Tifa could say.

Noticing the look of chagrin on her friend's face, Soleil gesticulated to some place in the café over her shoulder with her thumb. He's over there, though, she added.

Once again, Tifa could not contain herself (though she was not as excited as she was prior to knowing that the generous person was _not_ Cloud). She glanced in the indicated direction. The shadows of the mystery man's cornered booth combined with the already dim lights of the café concealed him rather well. And for a while there, Tifa couldn't identify him.

With more careful observation, however, she was able to see that this person did not have that spiked mane of golden hair she opted for him to have. But she _did_ recognize his face.

~ Fin? ~

Disclaimer: Blah blah, yackety schmakety, all characters property of their respective owners. The song Tifa sang is All the Love in the World, by The Corrs, from their album, In Blue.

Author's Notes: Silly me, leaving you hanging like that. I was considering leaving it as is but then I felt the need to continue this. So, who should the fan be? I'm trying to be original here and am not going to make it Cloud (but don't get me wrong, I totally support Tifa and Cloud pairings!)----However, I am open to all suggestions within reason! Vincent? Reno? Han Daehan (from Ehrgeiz)? Original character? Anyone else? PLEASE let me know in either a review or an e-mail (no preference). And, uh, the one with the most votes will win?