The skating oval was bustling with people. The sounds of chatter and skates scraping over fresh ice filled the air as snow fell softly from the violet sky. Tidus and Cloud were among the happy couples that had decided to take advantage of the chilly, but beautiful day. It had been a long time since either of them had skated, but Tidus had suggested it might be fun to try it again. And so, he and Cloud had gone together to a second-hand shop, bought a couple of pairs of skates, and headed to the oval.
They spent the first little while trying to remember how to skate, each of them falling a good few times before they started to get the hang of it, but those falls were followed by bursts of laughter and a gentle hand to help each other up. It didn't take long for Tidus to relearn the basics. Before Cloud could believe it, Tidus was skating backwards, and doing circles around him. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised. Tidus was certainly the more athletic of the two of them.
"Want a hand?" Tidus asked, holding out a mitten-clad hand to his partner. Cloud glanced around them for a moment, a little shy to be showing their affection in public, but Tidus' gentle smile was enough to make Cloud accept that hand. Cloud smiled as Tidus moved to skate beside him, holding his hand tightly within his own.
"I think I'm getting better at this," Cloud said, skating slowly alongside his partner.
"What can I say? I'm an excellent helper," Tidus said, casting a wild grin at Cloud. Cloud gave him a nudge with his elbow, making Tidus lose his balance and let go of Cloud's hand. Cloud chuckled, and took that chance to skate a couple of strides ahead, showing off as much as he could. He felt like a speed skater for a moment, bent over, hands behind his back, scarf blowing in the wind as he glided briskly along. He was shocked when out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tidus catch up with him. He stood up straight up again, and turned his head to look at his partner.
"Nice try," Tidus smirked. "But you'll never escape me!" Cloud released a soft chuckle, and came to a halt.
"Good thing I don't want to," he said, softly. Tidus stared at him a moment, surprised, yet pleased, that Cloud's embarrassment was wearing off. He smiled, and took a few seconds to really take in Cloud's beauty. His rosy pink cheeks, his snow-dusted hair, his enticing little smile—Tidus was so proud to call him his partner.
Tidus closed his eyes when he felt Cloud leaning toward him, and he accepted a kiss from Cloud's warm lips. It was a welcome change from the cold that had been biting at them all day. Cloud smiled as he pulled away, and watched as Tidus' eyes drifted slowly open, almost as if the kiss had pulled him into a dream. Cloud loved having such an effect on Tidus. He loved the way he could take away Tidus' high energy in an instant, and leave him dazed and speechless for a moment. He loved the way he could make Tidus melt for him.
"Get a room, you two!" Zidane teased, skating quickly by, and bringing Tidus out of his Cloud-stricken state. His eyes snapped open, and his head spun to stare after Zidane.
"Brat!" he called out. Zidane glanced back, a devilish grin on his face, and Tidus and Cloud could do nothing but break down into laughter.
"Come on," Cloud laughed, slipping his gloved hand into Tidus' once more, and dragging him away from the ice.
Their skates were tied together and slung over their shoulders now as they made their way through the snow. A girl was working a drink stand a few feet away, and Cloud led the way to her, looking forward to consuming a hot beverage. He and Tidus gazed at the green menu board above the girl's head; on it were several drinks written in chalk. Tidus made sure to consider each option carefully before making a final decision; after all, there were a lot of delicious-sounding drinks. Once they'd both made their selection, Cloud took his gloves off, and stuffed them into his coat pockets, then shoved a hand into his pants pocket in search of some change.
"I'll get this," Tidus said, gently, reaching into his own pocket.
"You sure?" Cloud asked, a small look of guilt on his face.
"Yeah," Tidus smiled. "What would you like?"
Moments later, they found themselves walking away from the stand, drinks in hand. They headed for the snow-covered bench a few feet away. When they reached it, Tidus brushed away some of the snow, then dug a blanket out of his backpack, and lay it down over the bench. Cloud gave him a grateful nod, impressed that his partner had actually thought to bring along something so handy; Tidus could be a little absent-minded sometimes, but it was one of those little features that made Cloud adore him just that little bit more. Cloud took a seat, first, and Tidus smiled as he sat down beside him. That smile spread to Cloud's face as he felt Tidus scoot in a little closer to him, warming him even through his winter coat.
"Cheers," Tidus grinned, holding his cup up. Cloud gently bumped his own cup against Tidus'.
"Cheers," Cloud smiled, before taking his first sip of his cappuccino. It was tasty, but hot against his tongue, hot enough to make the rest of his body shiver.
Cloud moved in a little closer still to his partner. He buried his head in against Tidus' shoulder, and breathed in. He could smell Tidus' hot chocolate from where he sat, the sweet scent reminding him of the Christmas before, their first Christmas together. It was back before Tifa had really known Tidus that well, and she had remembered Tidus telling her how much he loved hot chocolate. After that, she, Denzel, and Marlene had ended up giving him a huge basket of various kinds of hot chocolate for Christmas. It had taken Tidus weeks to come down from his sugar high after that; Cloud remembered how Tidus had been even more cheerful than usual, and how one day, Tidus had made him laugh so hard milk came out his nose. Cloud didn't know if he'd ever laughed so hard in his life.
Ever since Tidus had come into Cloud's life, a weight had been lifted from Cloud's heavy heart. He could smile, even laugh, without feeling pain or guilt. Tidus just had that way about him, a contagious, cheery attitude, yet a soft, comforting side to him that could make all of Cloud's fears and worries back off while they were together. Cloud felt at ease when he was with Tidus, something he hadn't felt in a long time, and for that, Cloud would be forever grateful.
Snow began to fall heavier now, and the boys were getting cold now that their warm drinks had been fully consumed. Cloud was the first to stand up from the bench, and he stuffed his hands into his pockets in search of his gloves. To his dismay, he could only find one of them.
"Um, Tidus, did you see my other...?" Cloud trailed off, glancing around at the surrounding snow in hopes of spotting the missing article.
"Oh, no, I didn't," Tidus admitted, tucking the blanket back into his bag, and taking a good look around, too. He even ducked down to check under the bench, but Cloud's missing grey glove was nowhere in sight.
They hunted for several minutes, but finally gave up searching after retracing their steps twice over. Tidus eyed Cloud's disgruntled expression, and his frozen hand, then he slipped his left mitten off his hand, and looked up at his partner.
"Here, you can wear one of mine," he smiled. Cloud stared at he red mitten that Tidus was offering him. For the first time, he noticed something funny; from the mitten ran a matching red string that led to the other mitten, the one that remained on Tidus' own hand. Cloud bit his lips to prevent laughter.
"Aren't those meant for children? So they won't lose a mitten?"
"Cloud, look at who you're talking to," Tidus laughed. "I'm the kind of adult that needs a string to connect his mittens. And from the look of things..." Tidus paused to smirk. "You are too."
Cloud saw Tidus eyeing his frozen, bare hand, and with a sigh, Cloud spoke again.
"Point taken," he said, a small smile on his face.
"On the upside," Tidus said, taking Cloud's hand into his own, and gently slipping his mitten onto it. "Now you won't lose me."
Cloud stared at Tidus' contagious smile, and let his own face be overtaken by the same joy. Tidus stuffed his own bare hand into his pocket to keep it warm, and they walked hand-in-hand, their red mittens keeping them warm as they strolled through the snow-blanketed park. Cloud smiled. Keeping Tidus close to him was exactly what he wanted, and he swore he would keep it that way. Always.
A/N: Hey, everyone! I'm back with a new, sugary overdose of Clidus fluff for you all. I've stopped trying to understand why I find these two so sweet together, and just accepted it. haha. Hope you all enjoyed this wintry ficlet.