Disclaimer: I don't claim to own FFVII, nor do I.

Synopsis: I don't know that many people remember Johnny or Johnny's Heaven from On the Way to a Smile: Case of Denzel, but he is there. Something that always perked my interest was the fact that Johnny has had a crush on Tifa for the longest time, but everyone seems to pair poor Tifa with Cloud without considering her other options. I thought I'd try giving Johnny the courage to ask Tifa out and see how it all plays out.

If you haven't read/listened-to On the Way to a Smile, I recommend it. The stories lend insight into the characters during their everyday lives, so this is where I'm drawing my facts from. Oh, and all this is taking place about a year after Deep Ground. Cheers!

Tifa smiled faintly across the counter.

He had been sitting there almost since she had opened that night. Round after round of coffee he'd order, never taking anything else. After the first hour Tifa had Marlene wait on tables at the other side of the bar to keep away from him – that is, until things got too rowdy and she had sent the girl upstairs to prepare for bed. That left Tifa to do all the waiting, cooking, ushering (if someone had a bit too much to drink), and at the end of it all, the clean-up.

Never had she wanted so badly for the night to be over.

Glancing to the table again, Tifa tried to shove the thoughts of the mysterious stranger from her head. It was Saturday and the construction workers of Edge were looking for something to pick them up before Monday and another five days of lousy labor. She didn't have time for dallying.

Pouring a shot, Tifa slid it to the first man sitting up to the counter. "And what'll you have?" she questioned in general.

"Same," the next few ordered.

"Right up," she pulled out a few more short-glasses and distributed them before stepping out to take the orders from the family that had just walked in.

"How's everyone tonight?" Tifa forced a bright smile past her weary countenance. The children beamed at her, but it didn't fool their parents.

"Busy night?" the mother queried with a quiet gentleness in her tone.

Tifa smiled more naturally before shrugging nonchalantly. "Always is."

Tifa felt the time pass as her feet got sore from rushing about trying to please everyone. Shelke had come down to offer assistance, and with gratitude in her eyes, Tifa assigned her to dish washing and to help keep the coffee going to that reticent loner in the corner.

He was still there. Every time she got the chance, she stole a discreet glance in his direction. He was always ready to meet her eyes. She knew she should feel uncomfortable, maybe even creeped out, but it didn't bother her so much, at least with the increasingly loud and lewd comments spilling from the worker's mouths. She had noticed that by nine most of the family customers had receded into the growing night leaving behind a crowd of descent men turned rouge.

It made her sad knowing that most of these men were normally wonderful people, the kind that might even go out of their way to help strangers in the street. But after a good dosing of alcohol each, they became vulgar, rude, and in some cases, formidable. She normally had Barret or Cloud to help her with the drunkards – not that she couldn't handle it, but more that she didn't want to – but Cloud wouldn't be back from his deliveries till late in the night and Barret also wasn't due back for another hour or so.

Meekly, Tifa sent Shelke to put Denzel and Marlene to bed while she managed crowd control. Glancing at the man in the corner she decided his quiet demeanor was more inviting than those seated in front of her. Taking up the pot of coffee, she skirted around the bar and worked her way to the table.

"More?" she asked simply.

"Sure," the man held his cup toward her and offered a sincere, bright smile.

Instantly Tifa was taken aback. At first he had reminded her of Cloud – quiet, yet peaceful and giving her a sense of security – but what she saw before her reminded her of a boyish man playing at being an adult but pulling it off with the grace of Reno after a couple rounds of those aforementioned drinks.

Her observation made her pause with her hand still wavering over his proffered cup.

"Something the matter, miss?" his smile dimmed faintly, but still held that boyish charm.

"No," Tifa shook her head and smiled. "No," she repeated. "Just a bit tired I guess."

"Need any help?" he offered quite unexpectedly.

"I, um– uh," she stuttered.

He explained hastily. "I may not know bar tending, but I own a café a little way from here so I wouldn't be totally useless." He gave her a bright grin of confidence.

From behind her the group of workers had started a quibble that ended swiftly once Shelke had rushed back downstairs from putting the kids to bed and logically found a solution to solve their differences. At least the men weren't past reason yet. That was when Tifa would have to get rid of them. If she didn't, cleaning up tonight would take much longer than she wanted.

"Thanks for the offer," she stole a glance at the clock by the bar, "but I have 'reinforcements' coming soon." Internally she begged that either Barret or Cloud would be home before things got out of hand.

His disappointment was deeper than she would have expected, but he seemed to shove it aside and gave her another blinding grin. "Alright, but if you need any help before your…'reinforcements' arrive, you give me a holler. The name's Johnny."

"Nice to meet you, Johnny." Tifa smiled and retreated behind the counter once more.

The minutes dragged by as though to increase her torture. Even on busy nights Tifa was quiet the gadabout, but tonight all she wanted was to collapse on her bed in her room – her quiet room. Even Shelke was starting to look more dead than alive on her feet, and she joined Tifa's ritual in glancing at the clock every three minutes. Where was Barret? He was supposed to be home by now.

"Heeeeyyy, lady," one of the men slurred. There were only about a dozen people left in the bar, but barring Johnny, none seemed sober enough to stand on their feet. It was time for them to go home.

She marched over to the table, trying to look authoritative, but feeling half that. "Time to go."

"You," the man pointed at her and laughed silently, his mouth gaping but no sound pervading the air. In a smarmy voice he spoke. "Shiva, you're hot enough to be a centerfold model."

Her face reddened, and the sudden urge to snap back rose in her chest. She took in a sharp breath, ready to rebuke and then literally throw him out the front door, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"The lady said it's time to go."

She looked back, shrugging off the hand. "Johnny," she said simply. Her brain was working mighty slowly that night. In the time it took her to process that Johnny had come to rescue her, Johnny and the drunken worker were brawling on the floor.

"No, not tonight," she begged aloud, but it was already too late.

A gunshot fired through the air, diffusing the situation instantly and balkanizing the men.

"You guys havin' problems?" A gruff baritone voice cut through the tense atmosphere. Johnny wiped at his split lip, and the other man rolled his shoulders, seemingly untouched.

Heavy footsteps crossed the wooden floor until they were right next to Tifa.

Barret, Tifa sighed. Thank you.

"Well?" Barret questioned, though it came out demanding. "You got problems, settle 'em outside! The bar is closed! Now get out!"

With mumbled grumbling, everyone left, staggering through the doorway and leaving Tifa flinching as one threw up his supper onto her formerly clean floor. Johnny turned to go, albeit reluctantly, but Tifa laid a gentle hand on his arm. "Wait, Johnny."

He turned back.

Barret interrupted. "You got this, Tifa?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"I'm goin' to check on Marlene," he stated and walked toward the back. Upon passing Shelke he added, "Ya might want to look in to getting some sleep."

She nodded listlessly.

Alerted to Shelke's presence once more, Tifa gave her a small, tired smile. "Barret's right. Why don't you get to bed? I'll take care of things here."

She barely nodded, too tired to argue about staying to help, and tromped up the stairs.

"Who's…?" Johnny's question trailed after her.

"That's Shelke," Tifa said simply.

"And the other one?"

"Barret."

"A…friend?"

Even ridden with exhaustion, Tifa had to laugh. "Yes, but only that. His daughter Marlene lives here under my care while he's away."

"Ah, I see," he finally gave her another winning smile, although this time it was hampered by the blood filling the cut on his lip.

"Well, Prince Charming," Tifa teased, "that was some rescue." He blushed, but she knew he had tried, so she went on. "I know who has my back now. I appreciate it." That earned her an upward tug of the lips. "Can I repay you by helping you fix that up?"

"Oh, yes ma'am," he replied cheerfully, then a bit modestly, he added, "if it's not too much trouble."

It had been a long day for Cloud. One monster after another kept appearing till the three day trip from Junon to Edge turned into a weeklong affair. He had even been forced to call Tifa in the middle somewhere so she wouldn't worry when he didn't come home on time.

Running on next to no sleep, both his arms sore from fighting every ten minutes all week long, and something similar to a common cold trying to worm into his system, Cloud was not in the best of moods. For the past three hours he had managed to ride through the darkness in relatively uninterrupted silence. It would have been perfect except he had inexplicably dozed off and rolled Fenrir. Again: Cloud was not in the best mood.

So when he walked in the back door of the bar and heard laughter in the main room, he just closed his eyes and leaned back against the door as it closed. Sinking down, he sighed deeply, not wanting to move even with his bed upstairs and him down there.

A muffled voice echoed to him from the bar. A few moments later, Tifa was shaking his shoulder softly and calling his name.

"Cloud. Come on, Cloud, wake up." She coaxed his heavy eyelids open before chiding. "You can't sleep here."

"Try and stop me," Cloud mumbled. He let his head hit the door behind him with a soft thump before closing his eyes again.

"Everything alright in there?" An unfamiliar voice checked in from the other room.

"Yes," Tifa answered. "Cloud's home."

"Who's in there?" Cloud drew her attention back to him without opening his eyes.

"A friend," she responded simply. "He helped me a bit with the bar tonight and now he's helping me clean up since everyone else went to bed."

Cloud's eyes opened again, revealing a twinge of guilt. "Do you need any more help?"

"No," she responded without thinking, then elaborated. "We're almost done…and you look absolutely filthy. You'd only get everything dirty again."

"Hmph."

Mixing a light tease with concern, Tifa questioned, "What have you been doing? Making mud-pies?"

Cloud almost let a wry smirk pass onto his lips. "Something like that."

Johnny called out again, "Tifa?"

"Coming!" she shouted back, remembering seconds later how many people were trying to sleep.

"A friend?" Cloud repeated from earlier, looking past her as though he could see through walls.

"Yes," she tilted her head. "Jealous?"

Cloud's eyes snapped back to her.

She giggled softly before getting up. Cloud followed suit and slumped tiredly toward the stairs.

"Cloud?" Tifa paused him.

He looked back.

"You might want to check on Denzel. Shelke mentioned he wanted to stay up until you got back. I don't know that he did, but…just in case."

This time Cloud did smile, and proceeded up the murderous stairs. Somewhere in the back of his mind he remembered the endless staircase he, Tifa, and Barret ran up when breaking into Shinra years ago. Suddenly he was glad there were only a few more steps to go.

Every chapter has its own shine, but this one was the intro to the romance. Next time…more on Cloud!

-Dante