Family
by Sterlingwriter

For Lily

The Turk never talked about his family. Cloud was beginning to wonder if Reno even had any. He wondered a lot of other things, too, but rarely ever mustered up the nerve to bring them up.

"You're quiet today," Reno said, in between bites of pasta.

"Just thinking," Cloud said.

"About what?"

"You," Cloud said. "You have too much sauce on your spaghetti."

"You're thinking about my spaghetti?"

The momentary pause allowed Reno a chance to laugh, and Cloud shook his head with a coy smile. "No, that's not it."

They continued to eat the rest of their meal in silence, Reno occasionally making slurping sounds, very obviously trying to make Cloud laugh. It really was too much sauce for the meager amount of noodles on his plate, but there was no denying that Reno was more interested in the tastier parts of dinner, and sauce certainly fit the bill. Cloud wasn't sure what was worse, the over-abundance of sauce, or the mountain of parmesan cheese, which Reno sometimes just ate plain, right out of the plastic container.

He wasn't perfect; neither of them were. The sauce, nor the cheese really bothered Cloud anyway. They were just distractions that kept him from dealing with the things he really wanted to focus on. He decided to take a chance, and just ask what he wanted to know.

"How come you don't see your family for the holidays?"

Reno stopped chewing and looked up from his plate. The mild surprise in his eyes was quickly masked, replaced with a more thoughtful expression.

"The same reason you don't, I imagine."

Cloud's cheeks reddened, just enough that he could feel the heat radiating from his skin. He purposely avoided eye contact, suddenly starting to regret bringing the subject up at all. It really wasn't any of his business, was it?

"Cloud," Reno slid his chair closer. He deftly balanced his fork, as his fingertips brushed along the bottom of Cloud's chin. "You're my family."

For once, Cloud didn't look away. He wanted to remember the gentle tone in Reno's voice, the compassionate smile on his lips, and the sincere expression in his eyes. His bright blue eyes drank each little detail in, as the seconds ticked by slowly. It felt like someone had pushed the pause button on his life, at one of the best moments possible. Reno was constantly surprising him, and he felt his earlier regret melting away. Each time Cloud dared to take a chance, Reno had yet to disappoint him. He'd have to remember to do this more often.

"Yeah," he said, his voice a hushed whisper. "You're my family, too." Then he leaned forward and buried his face in Reno's shoulder, where they sat unmoving for a long time.

"Hey," the silence was broken as Reno cleared his throat, and gestured at Cloud's uneaten spaghetti. "You gonna eat the rest of that? If so, you're gonna need more sauce."

Cloud sat up, breaking their embrace. That was Reno's subtle way of asking if he could have the rest of his food. Giving Reno's arm a little shove, he slid his plate in Reno's direction, unable to hide his amused smile.

"You mean, you will."