He's nervous. Has been, in fact, since he ordered the ring. He knows that Tifa has wanted this forever, but now that he's finding the courage to spend the rest of his life with her, Cloud Strife is getting nervous.
What if she says no? his treacherous mind wants to know.
She isn't going to say no, he tries to convince himself. After all, you're still living together and taking care of Marlene and Denzel.You're already a family. This is just going to make it permanent.
But still, what if she says no?
"Gah. Worrying about it isn't going to help. I've just got to ask."
"Ask what?" Yuffie says, popping her head into the room.
"Nothing," Cloud answers quickly.
"Ri-ight." The ninja's tone is disbelieving. "Whatever you say. Hey, while we're at the Gold Saucer, can I take the kids around for awhile tonight? You know, give you and Tifa some time off?"
Could her timing have been better? "Sure. That sounds great."
"Cool." She turned to leave.
"Thanks, Yuffie!" Cloud calls after her.
"Anytime!" is the girl's distracted reply.
This might be easier than I thought.
When he's sure Yuffie is gone, he takes the ring from its hiding place in his pocket and examines the jewelry, wondering how he is going to propose to her.
"What's that, Cloud?" Denzel asks, startling the swordsman. He hadn't even heard the boy come in.
"A ring," Cloud replies. "But don't tell Tifa about it."
"Why not?" Denzel comes up next to him, examining the ring. "Is it a surprise for her?"
"Sort of."
The boy's eyes light up knowingly, now. "Are you going to ask her to marry you?"
Cloud nods, still too nervous to say it out loud.
"Woo hoo!"
For a moment, Cloud is afraid Denzel's shout will attract Tifa's attention. "Hey, keep it down!"
Denzel grins at him, eyes full of glee at the news. "When are you going to ask her?"
"Tonight, while we're at the Gold Saucer."
"This is great! Now we can have a real family!"
Cloud feels like he's been punched in the stomach when Denzel says this. Without even trying, the boy is echoing Tifa's words to him from months before.
"I didn't know you felt that way," the blond says.
"Huh?" Denzel is confused. "What do you mean?"
"I didn't know you felt like we weren't a family."
"That's not what I meant! We've always been a family." The boy looks down. "But if you guys get married, then maybe other people will know, and stop trying to take me away."
Cloud thinks about the horde of social workers who have descended on the bar over the last few weeks, demanding custody of the kids he and Tifa have cared for. Of them all, only Denzel is left; the others have left in hopes of finding their own new families.
He doesn't have an immediate answer for the boy, but he puts an arm around him and hugs him close. For once, Denzel returns the hug without complaining about the zippers or sculpted leather of Cloud's clothes. They sit together like that until Tifa calls for them to get ready to leave.
Cloud is surprised at Denzel's enthausium on their way to the Gold Saucer, but that could be attributed to Marlene and Yuffie. This is the first vacation the girl and the ninja have ever had. It could also be that Denzel is still exicted that he's planning to propose to Tifa.
"Cloud, hurry up!" the boy calls as he rushes off the cable car and toward the entrance of the amusement park.
Cloud's stomach lurches as the boy disappears behind several taller people, and he calls back, "Slow down, Denzel! The park's not going anywhere."
Denzel stops so that everyone can catch up with him, but Cloud can tell he doesn't want to. "But the lines will be long if we don't hurry."
Thinking of Kadaj and what happened to Denzel the last time he was away from them, Cloud replies. "A minute or two won't make that much difference. It isn't worth something else happening to you."
The boy looks down, slightly abashed. "I guess so."
"Hey, cheer up," Yuffie says, putting an arm around him. "Nobody's mad. We just want you to be safe. The vacation'll be pretty much over if something happens to you or Marlene."
"Yeah!" Marlene adds. "And there's still lots to do! Yuffie-chan said we get to go out with her tonight!"
Denzel perks up a bit at that. Tifa shoots Cloud a slightly disapproving look. "She did, did she? And did Yuffie make sure this was okay first?"
Cloud gives her a sheepish smile. "I thought it would be nice. We could use the down time."
Tifa smiles back. "You're right. We could use a little down time. I just hope you can handle them, Yuffs."
"Please." The ninja rolls her eyes. "These two are so well behaved that Chekov wouldn't know what to do with them."
Cloud has lived with these children for the last few years; he knows what they're capable of. He shakes his head at his young friend. "You may have bitten off more than you can chew."
They've been fond of the chocobo races ever since Cloud had used them to free everyone from the prison. So, when Yuffie took the kids and told them to go have fun, that was the first place they went. The two of them still own some of the birds, and one of those was racing today.
"Darla to win," Cloud says, grinning at the odds sheet and placing a five hundred gil bet.
The girl who is attending the counter raises an eyebrow. "The odds are pretty far against her, sir. Do you know something we don't?"
"Yep." The swordsman is still grinning. He knows that he has raised this chocobo to be able to outlast all his other S-class racers. She might not be as fast, but her stamina has always won out in the end.
The attendant still looks skeptical after his reply—after all, he's told her nothing—but she places his bet on the board. "Good luck, sir."
Cloud takes his voucher, and he and Tifa take seats in the stands. She's as excited as ever at the races; he's still too nervous to really concentrate properly. All through the race, he finds himself hoping for an opportunity to propose, hoping he won't have to make one himself.
Neither of them is surprised when Darla takes first; they raised the bird, after all. Most of the onlookers—and the betting attendant—are more than a little surprised however. Cloud realizes that they have won quite a bit of GP off this race.
"You want to get some dinner?" he asks, as he's collecting the winnings. "You know, someplace that isn't centered around kids for a change?"
The expression on Tifa's face says that she, like him, has forgotten what a place like that is like. "That sounds great. I don't remember the last time we went someplace Marlene and Denzel didn't pick. Sometimes, I feel like one of those families with stair step kids who have exactly the same interests."
"Do you want to be?" Cloud is surprised to hear the words coming out of his mouth, but this really is the opportunity he was wishing for.
"What?" Tifa blinks, a confused expression on her face.
Cloud takes a deep breath, nervousness holding on for all its worth, especially with all the people in the room suddenly watching him. "I know I haven't been the most reliable guy over the last few years, especially when I was sick. But everything with Kadaj, and Aeris and Zack made me realize that the most important things in my life were right in front of me."
He pulls the ring box out of his pocket and opens it, presenting the engagement band to her. "I was going to wait until dinner, but this seemed like a better time. If you'll have me, I want you to be my wife, Tifa."
Tifa takes the ring box in trembling fingers, smiling brilliantly. "How could you doubt that I'd have you? I've wanted this for so long. Of course I'll marry you, Cloud Strife."
Cloud smiles in return, all nervousness erased. Then he takes his fiancée in his arms and kisses her, to the cheering of the chocobo race spectators.
It is late when Cloud and Tifa get back to the hotel, but Yuffie and the kids are still up. Neither of them can find it in them to scold them for being up too late. It is a vacation, after all.
Denzel runs to Cloud as soon as the couple comes inside. "Cloud, did you ask?"
The swordsman smiles and puts an arm around the boy. "Yeah."
"And?" It's obvious that Denzel can barely hide his excitement.
"We're getting married."
"All right!" Denzel cheers.
"Really?" Marlene asks.
Yuffie sits on the couch with her mouth hanging open.
"Yes, really," Tifa says, holding her hand out to show her ring to the girl.
Giggling, Marlene takes Tifa's hand to look at the ring. "Papa's going to cry when he finds out. He always cries when good things happen."
Cloud smiles again, knowing that the girl is probably right. Barret is really just a big marshmallow under his tough guy exterior.
"This is so great," Denzel says, hugging Cloud, then Tifa.
You'll think it's a lot greater in a little while.
Cloud is waiting on Denzel's bed when the boy comes back to his room from brushing his teeth.
"What's up, Cloud?"
"I wanted to talk to you about something."
Denzel looks confused. "Okay."
"I've been thinking about what you said earlier. About us being a family. And Tifa and I talked about it some, too. I've decided that when we get back to Midgar, I want to formally adopt you. So we can be a real family."
Denzel's expression is torn between disbelief and joy. After a moment, he flings himself into Cloud's arms with a sob. "This is the best news ever! Thank you so much. I love you, Cloud."
Cloud holds the boy tightly, suddenly understanding exactly what Zack meant about living.
"I love you too, Denzel."
