Author's Notes: Hello reader! Welcome to my first fanfiction based on the world of Final Fantasy VII. I am by no means an expert on the Final Fantasy VII universe, but I hold a special place in my heart for Cloud, Tifa, and their family. This is not planned; there will be little connection between the following one-shots aside from characters. I am basing each chapter (and its title) after words found in a random word generator, my inspiration for each and every chapter. Please read, review, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy or its characters. They belong solely to Square Enix.

.Differ.

I can't really say the exact moment I realized I loved her. I think, in truth, it was always there, stowed away in the deepest, darkest, quietest recesses of my heart, forced into silence by my utter lack of confidence as a child. She had been the pretty girl next door. And I was...not good enough for her.

I turn my head to looked at her, sleeping soundlessly beside me, her head resting on my outstretched arm. I admire her face for a few moments, commemorating every detail to memory. It has become a habit of some sort, studying her while she sleeps, curled up beside me, peacefully unaware. I have come to cherish these moments, where I am alone to think, but not really alone. She is still there, right beside me, like she has always been.

When we were children, she had been kind and patient and finally a friendship had formed between us. I remember so well that night our promise was made, quiet, bashful words uttered between two youths with so little knowledge of the real world, of the future that lay ahead of us. We had no way of knowing the turn our lives would take.

I had left to join SOLDIER, determined to become a man worthy of Tifa's affection. I had left to become stronger, so that my promise would not be as empty as it had sounded in my own ears. I had not meant it to sound so empty, but that lack of confidences I had in myself made it impossible. I knew I couldn't protect her, not for real. I had to become something first.

I guess, that's where we differ. Tifa had believed in me, from the very beginning, when I had thought of myself as worthless. To me, SOLDIER was the only option I had to be good enough. But, apparently, I had been good enough all along. Would things be different if I hadn't left?

I suck in my breath as Tifa stirs beside me, scooting closer and draping an arm over my bare chest. I hold my breath, wondering if she will wake, but she remains sleeping. I fold my extended arm upward, wrapping it around her shoulder. My hand finds a lock of her hair and I twirl it lightly in my fingers. She smells of lavender and soap and I inhale deeply the unmistakable scent of Tifa.

And suddenly, I am overwhelmed by the love I feel, by the admiration and dedication I feel for the woman wrapped in my arms. I can hardly believe, after all we've been through, that she is mine.

Again, that is where we differ. When I had told her the very thoughts I am thinking now, some time again, she had only laughed graciously and shook her head.

"I knew it all along," she had said, "that we would be together."

"But how?" I asked, desperate to know, to understand the internal workings of her mind.

She tapped her temple and grinned. "I just did. I clung to that promise that we made. The one on the well. You remember it, right?"

I nodded. "How could I...forget. It made me who I -- we -- are today."

"Then you should understand."

I wanted so much to tell her that I didn't understand, that maybe I couldn't understand. But deep down, I knew that I had kept a hold on to the promise, if only to fulfill it one day.

And when I had been overcome, by grief, sorrow, hopelessness, she had been the one to rescue me. It is ironic, how different we are. And yet, it is those differences that forged the attraction, that forged the bond. That forged our lives and our destinies.

I allow my eyes to close, content in my contempations, content that all was right in the world, if only for a little while. I am lulled to sleep by the gentle, shallowing breathing of my sleeping wife.

Further notes: Well, what did you think? I know, it was mostly contemplation, but I needed something good to start with. Please let me know. If people like this idea, then I'll keep going. I've already got a few things in mind. Until next time!

- San Hayashi