Disclaimer: Yep. I don't own Final Fantasy 7. Hooray for the owners, SquareEnix and Tetsuya Nomura! We bow to you!
I feel bad for not having updated my Dirty Dishes story. So, here is the intermission, kind of. It is not part of the DD story, but, well, it is a CloTi. This is dedicated to all the people who have added Dirty Dishes to their Favorite's List. Yep, yep! It's your early Christmas present!
REVIEW! Ha! You didn't expect that did you…'cause you know, that's usually at the end... Okay then. (Clears throat) On with the story!
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GREEN BEANS
I don't know why it is but Tifa always makes me eat my vegetables. I really don't mind, well, most of the time. She does cook very well, and who could complain really…Except maybe Yuffie. She would complain. But then who knows what Tifa could do. She'd most likely not let her have any dessert. And well, I like my dessert too much to risk anything. I really don't understand why she always seems to make green beans for lunch anytime school is cut short without notice. Maybe it is a plan the school has to make kids like me eat 'healthy.'
I exercise enough. Cloud said so. And I eat well enough. He said so too. But I'm still stuck here in the table with my side dish of green beans untouched. I poke at them with my fork and they don't move. That's a good sign. Maybe if I add a little salt they will taste even better. I reach out for the salt shaker, but get pepper instead. Pepper would work, right? But, just in case, I'll add some salt.
So now I'm sitting at the table with my green beans topped with salt and pepper. I'm still not too sure about it…Maybe cheese would do it…I mean, everyone loves cheese. I'm about to grab some but Tifa comes out from the kitchen and sees I haven't finished eating yet.
"Denzel, they really aren't all that bad. Are they?"
"No. They're not." I say because she cooks too well and I want my dessert. I sit back down and hear Cloud's boots in the hall. I tried to get up again to go meet him but Tifa doesn't let me.
"He's going to eat too. Just sit and Cloud'll be here in a second." Then she goes back to the kitchen.
I feel Cloud ruffle my hair as he comes into the room. I look up at him smiling; maybe he can get me out of eating green beans. And I realize that maybe I'm just being difficult, but just look at them. They look like frozen caterpillars, except that they're not frozen they're actually warm, all covered in salt and pepper.
Tifa brings a plate of food out of the kitchen and I smile wider noticing how many green beans there are on his plate. And now, I'm really hoping he'll find a way to convince Tifa that I don't need to eat what's left on my plate. But he's not paying attention to his food. And I can't help but sigh a little. To me, he looks like he's about to tell Tifa how much he really cares about her any minute now. But, hey, I'm just a kid, or so they say, so I don't have a word on grown-up matters. He looks at her so differently than anyone else. I can't help but be reminded of glazed donuts when I look at his eyes, and hers too. So, now I feel like glazed donuts but I can't have any until I finish my green beans.
She sat the plate down on the table and asked if Cloud had washed his hands. He shakes his head and walks to the bathroom. Tifa leaves to the bar again reminding me that there is no dessert until I finish. So now I'm about to bite into the caterpillars ready for my dessert when Cloud comes and sits by me. I can't help but realize the funny face he makes when he sees his plate. Then, he starts eating, but he avoids the caterpillars. After a while, Tifa came back in, probably to make sure I was finished, but I was not, neither was Cloud.
"Aren't the green beans good today?" She said. And Cloud grabs a big mouthful of them just in time for her to see it. I stifled a laugh for a second then hid my smile with my hand. I wonder how Cloud always manages to look composed around her; really I can tell he's not. He fidgets a lot. I can feel the table shaking as we eat; it's so subtle no one would really notice it, but I do.
Tifa is walking back to the kitchen now. After a while she tells Cloud that when he is finished she needs his help. Just as she leaves, Cloud practically scoops up what's rest of the green beans on his plate into his mouth and goes to her. Later, I hear as if something was crashing and I guess that Cloud wasn't of much help.
I sit there for a few minutes and look at my plate and the caterpillars are getting colder. Then I hear Tifa from the kitchen saying that Marlene was coming and that if I wasn't finished she wouldn't let me play with her. I look at the caterpillars again and they don't move. I stick my fork through several of them and put them in my mouth. I start to chew and try really hard not to imagine I'm actually eating caterpillars and that their insides are all falling out inside my mouth. Then, I hear Marlene's voice. I didn't expect her to be back so soon, and I feel just like Cloud eating the little caterpillars so fast. But I'm finished and I see Tifa coming with the dessert, and Marlene takes Cloud's spot and we both sit down and eat the dessert.
I see Cloud from the corner of my eye. He's leaning against the door frame of the kitchen smiling at us sitting on the table. Tifa wanted dessert too, so she was sitting besides us now. And I think he was looking more at her than us. But I know he loves her, so that was fine. He comes to the table with his plate of dessert and I realize that he has a look more dreamy than usual in his eyes and that his face is a bit red. I look at Tifa and her face is a bit blushed too. Cloud starts eating his dessert besides Tifa and I can't help but wonder that maybe Cloud finally told her. And I wonder why they took so long in the kitchen? But then they look at each other and they have that look. I see Marlene noticed too. They look just like the ending of those movies Marlene likes to watch with the princesses and princes. And if I didn't know any better, I'd say he finally kissed her. But hey, I'm just a kid, so they say…I'm really happy now, and I can't help but be smiling. And I can't help but wonder that maybe it was all the green beans Cloud ate that gave him that final push.
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Yay! There it is. Hooray for random time I found in school to type this and a computer too. And of course, that means no time to proofread.
Okie dokie, the dedications are for Alyde, Cloud and Tifa forever, PoutingCutie, RikkuMcClowFox, drag0nsoldier, freygrll , and lenh. Thanks for your support! I hope you like your present.
And finally, don't forget to review (yes, I know, I'm repeating myself). I've seen authors offer cookies for reviews. So, how about it? Review and I'll give you a cookie. So please, click the little GO! Button! Thanks for reading!