It was nearly three in the morning when Tifa heard the door to Seventh Heaven creak open downstairs. She held her breath and listened, waiting for the familiar sound of Cloud making his way into the house. She bit her lip and clasped her hands in her lap, sitting up on the bed and trying to calm her racing heart. Tifa hadn't slept well in days – not since she had found out something that she was sure Cloud wasn't going to take well. She had left Denzel and Marlene with Barret just in case the discussion got ugly – she didn't want them around to hear that if it did.

Even though the two of them had only been in an "official" relationship for a few months, it was already becoming strained. When he had finally agreed to become her boyfriend, she had thought he might start staying around more, or at least answer his phone for her once in a while. But of course he had done none of those things. He was still the same old Cloud, and nothing about their relationship seemed to have changed at all other than the times he slept with her when he was around. Tifa had recently begun to doubt whether he really cared about her and the children at all. Was she nothing to him but a babysitter and a bedmate? She honestly hoped not, but it was really beginning to seem that way.

What worried her more was how distant he was becoming from the children. While Cloud had never been especially warm and nurturing, he had always at least spent time with Marlene and Denzel when he was home. Now, though, he was becoming more withdrawn than he had been during the Stigma outbreak two years ago. She had no idea what was bothering him, but even the children had noticed his decreased interest in them, and that was something Tifa wouldn't stand for. It wasn't fair for him to make them suffer for his problems. It was obvious they missed him and needed a father figure in their lives, but they definitely weren't getting one in Cloud. More often than not, it would fall to Barret or sometimes even Vincent to step in when Cloud would not, and Tifa was getting tired of it. Well, tonight would decide whether she was right in thinking he didn't feel responsible for them anymore.

A few tense seconds of silence passed before she heard his heavy combat boots clomping up the stairs toward the bedroom she shared with him – when he was around to share it with, that is. A moment later the door swung open and he stepped inside, his mako-infused eyes glowing softly in the dim light. He looked exhausted and worried, and his bloodshot eyes had large gray circles under them that made him look almost ill.

"Cloud, what's wr–"

"Tifa, we need to talk."

Tifa's eyes widened slightly, and she felt her heart begin to race with fear. She steeled her gaze and looked Cloud in the eyes, standing from the bed and approaching him slowly. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed his cheek, but he turned his head and pulled away. She released him immediately, her face impassive.

"Cloud?"

"Tifa," he began hesitantly. "I know I haven't been around much lately, but I just got another big list of deliveries I need to take care of. I hate doing this to you, but this is too good an opportunity to pass up." Tifa's heart dropped into her stomach, and she sighed softly before speaking to him again.

"Cloud, I need you to be honest with me right now," she said quietly. His full attention was on her now.

"What do you mean? Aren't I always –"

"Do you like being away from me for so long all the time?"

"That's… It's something I have to do. You know that." Cloud's mouth was pulled into a taught line now, and his eyes were wide with something akin to fear.

"Why? Why is it something you have to do?"

"I need to provide for you and the kids."

"There are plenty of other jobs available closer to home that pay better. You could help out at the bar any time you want, too."

"Tifa, you don't unders–"

"What?! What don't I understand?!" Tifa shouted, feeling tears beginning to prick at her eyes. "What makes you stay away for weeks at a time without answering a single phone call or letting me know you're okay? What kept you from coming to Denzel when one of his friends got hurt and I couldn't comfort him because I was working two shifts at the bar? What made you forget about Marlene's birthday party and leave me to explain why you couldn't be there? Why don't you ever want to spend time with us when we need you? What about all of that that don't I understand?!"

"Tifa…" Cloud said softly, his eyes full of hurt as he reached for her hand. She jerked it away, pulling it tight against her body. "Why are you so angry all of a sudden? What did I say?"

"I'm pregnant, Cloud."

"Wh… You're…?" He looked at her for a few moments with wide eyes, seeming to try to decide whether she was lying or not. Then, just as suddenly, he stepped back from her, crossing his arms in front of his chest and staring blankly at her. "Is it mine?"

He was sprawled on the floor in an instant, a red impression of a handprint marring the pale skin on his cheek. He stared blankly up at Tifa, watching as she shook with anger and fought to keep the tears from spilling over her eyes.

"How can you even ask me that?" she whispered furiously, her hands balled into shaking fists at her sides. "Of course it's yours. I'm not involved with anyone else and you know it."

"It wouldn't surprise me if you were with how often I'm gone."

"Well whose fault is that?! It's not as if I'm asking you to go on month-long delivery chains and leave me here alone to hold everything together! You always decide that on your own!"

"I just… I need time to think…"

"Well you need to think about your family, Cloud! I can't keep doing this alone; it's just too much. I know you hate being alone, so why do you keep pushing us away? What's so wrong with us that you can't stand to stay around?"

"I don't know. It's not that I don't love you, I just…"

"You just don't care enough to prove it to me."

"Tifa, that's not fair –"

"No, what's not fair is the way you go driving off around the continent alone and leave me with two children and a bar to take care of. I'm just one person, Cloud!"

"Tifa, I… Are you sure you're pregnant?"

"One hundred percent sure."

Cloud seemed to forget how to breathe for a second, his eyes widening to an enormous size as he stared up at the ceiling and ran his hands through his hair.

"I can't… I can't do this… Not now, I just can't…"

"Cloud, pull yourself together!" Tifa snapped, putting her hands on his shoulders. "You had a part in this as much as I did, and whether you like it or not, there's another one on the way that is one hundred percent yours. I told you hoping you'd be a mature adult and realize that you have responsibilities to your family, but obviously that was too much to expect."

"Tifa, I didn't ask for this."

"And you think I did?!" she screamed, the tears finally running down her face in earnest. "You insensitive jerk! What makes you think I wanted this to happen any more than you did? But it doesn't matter what I wanted or didn't want, because I'm the one stuck with the results no matter what! But you go ahead and leave and forget all of this ever happened, and drop in on me once in a while to make sure I haven't died of exhaustion. I'll manage without you, just like I always do. And like I always have." Cloud glared daggers at her and tightened the straps of his scabbard, stepping toward the door as he did so. "Where are you going?"

"I need time to think."

"No, Cloud, don't leave again already. You need to face this like a man. Quit running away every time things get tough!" Cloud shook his head, striding out of the room and down the stairs with Tifa hot on his heels. Before long, he reached the front door and began turning the handle. "Cloud, you'd better rethink this before you walk out of that door. I'm really starting to lose my patience with you."

"I have to go, Tifa."

With that, he stepped out of the door, leaving Tifa standing alone in the dark interior of the bar while she watched him walk toward Fenrir.

"Cloud Strife, if you don't come back this instant then don't bother coming back at all!"

Cloud looked back at her a moment, his face betraying conflicted emotions, before turning the key in Fenrir and speeding away from Seventh Heaven. Tifa suddenly felt her knees weaken and slid to the floor, using the doorframe to prop herself up.

"So that's your decision," she murmured through her quiet sobs. "Goodbye, Cloud…"

Author's Note: This story is going to be a lot moodier than my usual fare, so get your tissues ready. Also, please drop a review and let me know what you think of this so far. Angst is sort of a new genre for me, so I'd love to know if it's any good or not. Thanks for reading, and I'll try to update soon!