~ A Heart Left Whole~
A/N: Ok. I know, I really shouldn't be starting another project, but....at least this lets you know I'm alive....^_^U. And this is my laptop, unfortunately, my actual computer is having some difficulties, so....yeah, all my stories, updates, and chapters in progress are currently beyond my reach. I hope everyone had a happy Christmas, and a Happy New Year, mine wasn't so great. Anyway, here's my newest Cloti, A Heart Left Whole. A story about a divorced couple who only continue to fall right back into eachothers arms....ALSO!!! This isn't your usual love story. Though my parents are still together, my aunt and uncle are going through a divorce, and through my P.O.V if I were the boys, this is what I would do, think, and say. Got a problem? Then don't read.
" So it is agreed. Cloud Strife will get visitation rights every weekend. Tifa Strife will have custody of both boys until the two of you work out your own agreements" the judge banged his gaffle three times. He wiped the sweat off this brow with a hankerchief before standing and leaving the two to bicker. Tifa brushed her hair from her face, her crimson eyes unamused as she looked at the man who was once her husband. She couldn't say she was anxious for women to notice the famous Cloud Strife was once again single, but, that was something that was not to be concerned with. His blue eyes closed as a sigh escaped his lips. Cloud turned to his ex-wife before putting on a solemn smile. Tifa matched his smile as she walked the short distance to his table. The two had decided on no lawyers, no arguing, no exchange of large sums of money, leaving the other bankrupt. Cloud stacked the papers together before putting them in a brief case. He was wearing a fine black suit with a wolf symbol over his heart. Tifa was dressed in a black mini dress, just to remind him what he was losing. She slipped off her wedding ring, and diamond engagement ring, before handing them palm up to the blue eyed beauty. Cloud looked from her hand, to her face, before his eyes grew dark with sadness.
" Keep them......they were a gift after all " he shook his head, and didn't dare motion towards his own wedding band. Tifa blinked as she slipped the rings back onto her finger. This divorce seemed to hurt him, more than it was hurting her. She decided she'd put the rings on different fingers, but out of his sight.
Two bright blue eyed little boys played joyously with two toy firetrucks. The little sirens and blinking lights filled up their bedroom. They giggled as the two vehicles collided into eachother before bouncing back. They were only four, nearing five, but already they took on a likeness of their father.
" Sora!Roxas! " the baby-sitter yelled from down stairs. Both boys looked up from their play, before running to the door. Roxas gave Sora a boost so the boy could reach the handle, before they bounded down the small flight of stairs. The thin ninja like woman had her hands on her hips as they reached the bottom. Yuffie was smiling as she stared at the two.
" Hey guys....are ya hungry yet?" she stuck her tongue out at them. The boys corresponded by sticking out their own.
" Yeesth" they said in unison, tongues still held by their teeth. Yuffie turned around before running to the kitchen, boys in hot pursuit. She did aerial flips over furniture to gain the lead, before sliding into home on the tile. Regaining her footing, she opened the fridge before taking out a jug of already opened apple juice, some carrot sticks with ranch dressing, and the makings for sandwiches. She poured the juice into two nonspillable cups, placed carrots and ranch on two small plates before constructing sandwiches.
" What do you two want on your sandwiches?"
" I want peanut butter and banana, and marshmellows" Sora exclaimed excitedly.
" I want ham and cheese and bacon with ketchup" Roxas smiled.
" Ummm.......ok.....well......I'll make your sandwiches, you two, take your carrots and ranch, go to the living room and put on a movie." Both boys grabbed the small plates and cups, before running to the nearby living room and popping into the dvd player Nightmare Before Christmas. The familar melody filled the room as Yuffie brought the boys their sandwiches, before cutting them in half as she slid them onto their plates.
The familar rumbling of Cloud's fenrir echoed off the driveway. He parked his bike before sliding off his helmet and goggles. Pocketing his keys, he turned around as Tifa pulled her blue mustang along side him. She slipped out, heels making contact with the pavement. The wind had bungled her hair, giving her an erotic dangerous look. Cloud swallowed hard as he walked up the pathway, unlocking the door before stepping through. He waited until Tifa had cleared the walkway, before shutting the door behind her. The familar orchestra of N.B.C.'s ending tune played softly in the living room. Yuffie came around the corner to the two, her bright eyes, no longer so bright. Cloud ignored her disappointment before putting on a noticably fake smile.
" Boys?"
" Oh......their asleep on seperate ends of the couch. I gave them lunch already."
" Thank you Yuffie" Tifa smiled meekly as she withdrew cash from her small black purse. Yuffie put her hand up, palm facing Tifa.
" On the house. I love those boys, so I never mind watching them" Yuffie slipped on her shoes near the door before opening the door.
" How are you getting home Yuf?" Cloud asked.
" Reno....we have a date tonight."
" I hope you two have fun" Tifa waved. Yuffie waved back before giving both Strifes a hug goodbye, then quietly closed the door behind her. Cloud glanced at his watch. The numbers six thirty seven glowed back at him.
" N.B.C. was at least an hour and a half, so, the boys won't be ready for dinner quite yet..." he said as he looked back to Tifa. She nodded and headed towards the kitchen table before sitting down. Cloud followed and sat across from her.
" Then I guess we should decide how this is going to work..."
Roxas slowly opened his eyes, his bladder full, nature's call screaming at him. He waddled to the restroom, his hands holding his lower abdomen. After relieving himself, he felt thirsty from the liquid he lost. Roxas slowly trudged towards the kitchen, the voices of his parents reaching his ears, causing him to stop. Clinging to the wall, he sidled sideways until he could see the two sitting across from eachother.
" So....Roxas will live with me, Sora will stay with you. Christmas is a family get together, I will be down to visit Sora every other weekend, Roxas will be down every other, other weekend.... and when they reach their teen years, we'll have to......re-arrange things" Cloud rubbed his temples. Tifa placed a glass of water in front of him.
" And I will put together a number of dates where the boys will be together and some family outings......just so they don't feel that they have a disfunctional family" she drank her own water before sighing.
" Tifa..............are you sure you want to do this?"
" We already signed the papers Cloud, plus, we've gone through the court procedures."
" Fuck the papers, and fuck the court. Is this really where we want to be?" he stood suddenly, his hand clasping hers. She blinked at him before slowly pulling her hand out of his grasp.
" We....have already decided that......"
" Things can change Tifa.........I can change......please........I know I'm not a role model husband....but....is it really to late to change?"
" Cloud.......please don't make this any harder than it has to be. We've tried changing, but we can't. We are who we are, and I can't be with you if thats who you are. We never see you because of your job. Gone for months at a time, without really calling, I mean........how can I know that you don't have a family else where?" Tifa said angrily. Cloud retracted his hand, his eyes dark with fury.
" Part of marriage is trust. I trust you enough to run that damn bar. With drunks coming in and out through the hours of the night, which you take our sons to, that has to be one of the most irresponsible things for a parent to do. I don't take them on my bike and ride deathdefying speeds do I? We called it Strife DELIVERY service for a reason. This is my job Tifa, this is how I keep putting food on the table, money into the college fund for them. You think I'd ride for thousands of miles for any other woman except you? I thought I proved that when I chose you for marriage, when I proved that I loved you in every way shape and form" Cloud angrily slammed his fist onto the table. Breathing in deeply he looked to the side, where the clock stood. Rolling his eyes he caught sight of a small peeking blue eye. The eye blinked quickly before disappearing.
"Are you finished?" Tifa crossed her arms. Cloud sniffed and coughed before he slid off this jacket and unbuttoned his shirt to breathe better. Tifa followed his motions with her eyes, her blood beginning to churn with want and lust. Clearing her throat she stood and brushed her hair from her face.
" Lets not make a scene......for the kids' sake." Cloud nodded meekly as he draped the jacket over the chair before reaching into the fridge for a beer. He motioned one to her and she gladly accepted. He popped the top of both before taking a long swig.
+ Fifteen Years Later+
The tall slim figure of a man leaned against the wall. He had firey red hair, and dark markings under brilliant green eyes. He wore dark baggy jeans and a dark red shirt, along with a spiked eyebrow ring. He casually lit a cigerette before bringing it to his lips and taking in a long puff. He looked up and smiled before waving vigorously. A slightly shorter blonde haired man with bright blue eyes took the cigerette offered to him. He lit it himself with a small lighter before taking in his own puff.
" Roxas my man, whatcha up to this weekend?" the red head asked.
" Eh, I'm visiting my mom this weekend. You know, gonna spend some time with mom and Sora. What about you Axel?" Axel took another long puff before spewing the smoke from his mouth like a dragon.
" I was just gonna see if you and Namine wanted to come on a double date with me and Larxene. But ugh, do tell Sora we all said hi."
" Thanks anyway man. Sora is supposed to be coming up here next weekend. Maybe I'll bug him to bring Kairi and we can all do something fun together" Roxas smiled as he took another puff. The two were skipping school, hanging out in an abandon lot across from the actual facility. The bell in the distance rang softly as teens began to pour out of classrooms.
" Aww, is it time to go home already?" Axel smirked as he took a final puff, before dropping the remains on the ground and crushing the ember with his shoe. Two blonde women walked side by side as they slowly crossed the street toward them. One wore a delicate white cotton shirt and blue jeans, while the other wore black slim pants and an emerald tank top.
" Well, well..........I see you two are hard at work" the blonde wearing the green laughed. She hugged Axel tightly before roughly grabbing his shoulders and planting a kiss on his lips.
" Hey baby. Roxas is going to see his brother this weekend, so he can't come with us."
"Aww..........poo.......oh well. Well to be fair, Axel, you should stay home tonight and spend some time with your parents, and Namine and I will have a girls night. Namine, we can watch movies, paint our nails, and have some good old girl talk."
" Sounds fun. I'll bring some movies with lots of half naked buff hot guys."
" Sorry ladies, but I haven't been in any movies yet" Axel smirked.
" Actually I was thinking 300."
" Are they hotter than me?" Roxas asked Namine with his boyish charm.
" Of course not, they just subsitute for eye candy when your not around" Namine kissed his lips softly. Roxas reached up and caressed her cheek with his thumb before pulling away slowly.
" Alright well, I have to head home. Come on Namine" Roxas grabbed the girl's hand before leading her to a blue and silver fenrir, a gift from his father, and mounted the bike before giving her the helmet, and peeling out unto the streets.
" Hey Sora! What you doing this weekend?" A silver haired boy slung his school bag over his shoulder before closing his locker. Sora had grown, and looked still much like his father and twin, but with dark hair. He mimicked his friend's motions before answering.
" My brother is visiting this weekend. I'm not quite sure what mom has planned but, hey......it'll be just nice to see my original partner in crime again. No offense to you Rikku."
" Eh. None taken. I haven't seen Roxas in a while.....what about your dad?"
" He's not home. Like usual....I still kinda wish my parents would get back together. They used to be so happy......but dad's job.....its hard......... I'm supposed to see him next weekend though, he's gonna be home. How's Uncle Sephiroth ( Yes.... I like making them siblings....hey, you guys love that I do it ^_^ ) ?" Sora walked side by side with his cousin as they met up with Sora's dark haired vixen, Kairi. She pecked him on the cheek while taking hold of his hand. The walked to their student parking lot, towards a red and silver fenrir, a gift from his father, before mounting his bike, Kairi clinging to his back before riding off.
Roxas rode his fenrir up the driveway to his first family home. Dismounting and pulling off his helmet, he grabbed a duffle bag from a side compartment before walking towards the door and unlocking it with his key.
" Guess whose here?!" he called out, letting his voice echoe through the rooms. A bedroom door upstairs opened before out climbed a familar face.
" What is up bro?" Sora asked, mocking the slang of today. Roxas laughed before letting his bag drop on the floor, and meeting Sora half way upstairs for a brotherly hug.
" Where's mom?"
" She's at the grocery store. She planned on making chicken casserole tonight, since your home and....it is still your favorite, isn't it?"
" Yeah, it is."
" How's dad?"
" He's ugh.........he's alright. Works alot, y'know?"
" Is he dating anyone?"
" Did mom ask you to ask me that?" Sora said nothing. Roxas sighed.
" No.......dad's never been quite the same since .......you know....."
" Yeah.......mom still single......I don't think anyone could make her as happy as dad did."
" Well.........on the brighter side.......its great to see you man" Roxas gave him another hug before reaching into his jean pocket before pulling out a cigerette. He put it in his mouth before walking towards the back door.
" You smoke?"
" Yeah, and then some."
" Since when and why?"
" Uhhh........sixteen. And because I'm eighteen years old living with a father who's barely home and can barely have the confidence to speak to speak to his own son because of the misery he feels for losing mom. Plus......it just......it relaxes me is all......Sora, I did see their arguement as a child. I saw dad get violent, I saw mom get hostile.....I didn't think they could act like that to eachother, so, this is how I let it out" Roxas took out his small lighter before lighting the cigerette and taking a puff.
" Want one?" he offered to his brother.
" No.......thanks......and you might want to dispose of those before mom comes home. She'll give you a whipping you'll never forget."
" So then I guess I shouldn't offer you a joint then should I?"
A/N: Alright, some ground rules. Read before Review please. First of all, I do not want your criticism. I know I mis-spelled words, and what not. But, I'm not going back to fix my whole damn chapter just for you. I'm a busy college student who's planning her siblings bachlorette party, and is trying to work for money to move out. So......either you like, or you don't. If you find this chapter offensive, get over it. How would you handle a divorce and family problems? I tried to make this as plausiable as possible. So, now that I'm done bitching about not being someone's bitch, tell me, in positive form, what you think. Is it realilistic?
~Alchemypoetry