I watched Cloud from afar, unsure what exactly he had in store when it came to communication with the woman he was about to speak to. He walked with confidence, and I suppose that in itself was somewhat of an accomplishment. The girl he was about to speak to was dressed in complete gothic clothing and seemed to have no interest in Cloud as he walked up to her.
I watched as he met her eye to eye and began to speak. Surprised by his quick progress, I thought perhaps things would only get better from this point on. That however, was the wrong idea to have. Suddenly before I knew it Cloud was weeping uncontrollably, grabbing onto the shocked girl with all his might. She immediately began to scream for security, and I knew that was my cue to get Cloud out of the situation. I quickly walked over to the two of them and grabbed onto Cloud's shoulder.
"And then… I let her die! I let her die!" He screamed as he removed his clutch from the girl and grabbed a hold of me.
"Security!" The woman screamed in a frantic state.
"No! this man doesn't mean any harm, I promise! Cloud get a hold of yourself!" I shook Cloud frantically.
He looked up at me with tear filled eyes, his lower lips was trembling uncontrollably. He was a pathetic sight, I will be the first to admit that.
"I let her die…" He whispered into my ear.
I nodded slowly and began to lead him out of the mall, "I know." I replied.
Cloud looked at me somewhat surprised, "Wait, you do?"
"Yeah, anyone who's played final fantasy seven knows that Cloud."
"They made it into a game?"
I cleared my throat uncomfortably, "You didn't know?"
Cloud shook his head, "Who would ever want to play that game… wait, then everybody knows I'm not really a machina soldier?"
"Come on Cloud, let's just get out of here." I replied, trying to change the subject as quickly as I could.
"My pride is gone." Cloud looked over at the screaming girl, she looked at him in terror. "I would be afraid of me to…" He mumbled weakly.
I rolled my eyes and dragged him out of the mall, once cleared from the multitude of guards I sat him down on some benches. I recall it being a warmer day, because I do remember asking Cloud if it was too hot outside for him. He never answered my question, instead he looked at me with red eyes and asked,
"How did I do?"
I looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "You mean…with that girl?"
Cloud nodded slowly. I let out an uncomfortable sigh and scratched the back of my head, "Well, to be perfectly honest, not all that great."
He nodded in return, "I thought as much."
We sat in silence, never making eye contact with one another. Cloud kicked the trash resting beneath us and looked out into the decaying parking lot.
"So, what did I do wrong?"
I remember hesitating before I answered, even though I knew Cloud had done everything wrong, I had to try and think positive. "Well, I think maybe your clinging a little bit too much on your faults Cloud."
"My… my faults?" He asked.
"Yeah, your faults." I replied standing up.
"I have faults?" He shrieked standing up next to me.
I stared at him for a moment, surprised by his question. "Cloud, everyone has faults. It's nothing to freak out over."
Cloud's face became more content, "Oh, ok. Well, what should I do about them?"
"Well the first thing we probably want to do is…"
"Answer my question!" Cloud demanded grabbing onto my collar.
Quickly understanding that I had no natural talent towards teaching people, I spoke quickly, "Cloud… how about you and I run through some warm up drills alright? I think that would help tremendously."
Cloud nodded eagerly, "Ok, sounds good to me." His eyes began to water once again, I didn't blame him however. That Cloud fellow was far too emotional. It seemed he cried about everything.
He released his grip on me, and I took several steps away from him. With a deep breath, I began our "Warm ups"
"Ok, so first thing we need to do is just get a little loose." I started to jump up and down slightly while shaking my arms, "Just get the blood flowing."
Cloud started to mimic me, once he seemed to have a good pace he grew very excited. "Now what?" He asked me eagerly.
"Uh… ok… let's see… yeah! Ok so let's start saying some words of encouragement alright? Let's say some stuff that'll get you pumped!"
Cloud nodded eagerly, "I am famous!" He shouted.
"That's the spirit!" I shouted back, "You're a super hero!"
Cloud let out a shrieking laugh, "I beat Sephiroth twice!"
"Yeah! That's it! Keep going!" I will admit, the people who stopped to stare at us did make me slightly uncomfortable. But now wasn't the time to be self-conscious, now was the time to help Cloud.
"I can fly!" He said in an unstable voice, sounding more like a raving lunatic than someone being encouraged.
"Uh Cloud… I don't think you can actually fly… your getting a little…"
"I let my best friend die!" Cloud let out a shrilling laugh, and that is when I knew I had failed my task completely. His flaring eyes turned to group of onlookers, and like a leopard he pounced at them. The first to feel his wrath was an old man, which he slapped hard in the face before pushing him to the ground.
"Cloud! Get a hold of yourself man!" I shouted running after him.
But my words were no longer reaching him, somewhere in that depraved and recluse mind of his Cloud had lost it. He had gone from trying to find a date to attacking everything in his path.
"Level up!" He kept shouting, "I have to level up!" he sucker punched I child in the face, who collapsed to the floor instantly "Twenty two experience points!"
"Cloud, that's not how things work here!" I shouted after him. He moved far too quick for me to keep up. Before I knew it, the man had attached himself to his bike. With diabolical laughter his started its engine and took off, zooming off into the distance, hitting several by passers with one of his swords while doing so.
The last thing I remember him saying did make me feel slightly better though.
As he speed off into the distance I heard his voice call out, "Thank you Adam!"
To this day, I'm not quite sure how to take his compliment. Honestly, I don't know if he helped him, or just made him into a lunatic. Either way, it was most indeed an interesting story to tell.
FIN
