Yay! Thanks for the reviews and messages. I am glad there are people who actually are reading my story! Okay , just to let you know this is a mixture of FF7 world and our world. So I don't want you have a mindset that is a real time story. Of course we won't have chocobos and gil here! =P Also, I am not familiar with Japan at all so I had to do some researching. I may get the University style wrong or maybe even location details. Just have fun reading with an open mind!

I will try to update every Friday so please be patient! Warm reviews and constructive criticism is welcomed!

Xoxoxo - iheartkiwi

Chapter 2: Mysterious Encounter

Tifa carefully applied thick charcoal eyeliner to her upper eye lids and attempt to wing the liner at the end. She curled her lashes and applied several coats of black mascara to her upper and lower lashes. She dusted a small amount of blush onto the apple of her cheeks and finished with a clear gloss on her lips. She is not the one to wear a ton of make-up but her dad finally let her worked the bar and mix the drinks that night. I have to look somewhat decent she thought as she gathered her hair into a high pony and secured with a tie.

"You should wear make up more often because it will help hide the ugly on you," her dad snorted behind her.

Tifa looked up at the mirror and saw her dad grinning at his own comment.

"Well I do get most my looks from you so of course I should Papa!" Tifa snapped back and laughed at her dad's dropped face. Her dad picked up the comb laughing and started to brush her pony tail. Tifa loved when her dad combed her long hair, it was a special time they had together when she would wake up every morning since as a small child.

"You are going to be alright at the bar tonight?" Her father asked concerned.

"Well," Tifa thought for a moment, "You have been training me all week…I think I can handle it, making drinks isn't that difficult.. just the crowd might be."

"Well if you get overwhelmed just let me know, you will have Yuffie there tonight to help you out as well if needed. Saturdays are our busiest time and you have not seen it yet...," her dad said with worried eyes, "By the way, if any guy come close to you or harass you I will pound him in the face!" Tifa's father said while punching the air.

"Dad, you taught me how to fight so I could handle myself. I think I will be alright," Tifa laughed and went slightly embarrassed staring in the mirror as she watched her dad flex in different poses.

"I'll see you down at the bar T," he gave a quick kiss on the top of her head.

"Okay, catch you in a bit Papa." Tifa went to her closet to change her outfit. The workers can wear whatever they wanted as long as they are not naked. She chose her favorite black leather shorts with a white cropped top. Her dad wasn't fond of her wearing any revealing outfits but he gave in when she turned of age…which to him was last year. She finished her outfit with a pair of black converse and was satisfied with the way she looked in the mirror. Oh I can't forget this! She grabbed the moogle necklace and clipped the necklace around her neck. Putting her phone in her back pocket she grabbed her small black apron and ran downstairs to the bar. She saw her dad finished putting the chairs down from the table and went into the open back patio to finish setting it up and to light the bonfire. Tifa saw her new friend Yuffie wiping down the bar.

The short brown hair girl grinned widely at the sight of Tifa. "Wow Teef! You are looking HOT tonight!" Yuffie exclaimed while examining Tifa. She has not seen Tifa wear an ounce of make up since she first met her a week ago.

"Shhhh Yuf or my dad will make me change!" Tifa giggled, "It's just my usual summer clothes anyways. It's so hot out," Tifa said while fanning her face.

"At night it gets pretty cold at the beach but check out those ab muscles! The crop top is so flattering especially with the HUGE bust of yours. I wish mine were as big as yours Teef!" Yuffie pouted, while sadly looking down at her own breast and examining Tifa's.

Yuffie is so adorable and funny. I am so glad I have her here with me tonight Tifa thought smiling at Yuffie. Yuffie was little smaller than Tifa but was extremely cute with short brown shorts and a green tank. The green tank makes Yuffie green eyes so fierce! Yuffie lived right down the street with her parents and went to the same University as Tifa, in fact it was her last year as well. Tifa mentioned the beach prior event to Yuffie on how she got hit with a ball and that gorgeous blue eye guy she met.

"WHAT! Who is this smoking hottie you are talking about Teef?" Yuffie asked with wide eyes. "Does he have a good looking friend for me?"

"Yuf, I hardly talked to him and he was only talking to me because his dumb friend hit me with the volley ball. He is lucky it didn't leave a mark!"

"What is his name?" asked Yuffie.

"Cloud Strife," Tifa said blushing just thinking about his glistening abs again.

"CLOUD STRIFE?! He is one of the hottest guys if not THE hottest guy at Chiba University! Oh my gosh you talked with him? Be careful, he has so many fan clubs! Wait did his friend Vincent hit you? Gosh Vincent is sooooo dreamy..," Yuffie said talking a mile a minute.

"Whoa Yuf, he goes to our school? " Tifa didn't think he would see him again. Most people in the area are usually touring but he lived here as well? Tifa was embarrassed to even see him again knowing he will think of her as the girl that ate it with the volley ball. "I thought he was visiting the area but he goes to our school too!?"

"Yup, he is an engineer major. He is actually a really intellectual guy from what I hear."

The two girls continued to gossip as the sun was setting, which gave the bar a beautiful orange glow. Tifa's dad turned on the stringing white lights that decorated the bar and turned on the music.

"Now we are open for business guys!" Tifa's dad said to the work crew, "Have a good work night and earn that gil!" It didn't take long for the bar to become lively and filled with people. Her father was right; the bar was tremendously busy on a Saturday. She noticed the majority of the people were ordering bar snacks and drinking beer, they were there just to hang out. The back patio which was on the beach filled up fairly fast as people lounge on the chairs around a bon fire. Tifa glanced around and was surprised to see a lot of young adults around her age there since all week were older crowds, mainly the regulars that knew her father.

"Teef! I am going to work on the drink orders from tables while you take care of the ones sitting at the bar okay?" Yuffie shouted to her over the loud talking and music. Tifa nodded and glanced at the pile of ticket orders that were coming in from the table. A beautiful girl approached the bar with a kind smile on her face.

"Hi, welcome to Midgar Bar! What can I make for ya?" Tifa asked a woman with emerald green eyes. The woman had long curled brown hair pushed to the side and tied with a pink ribbon. She wore a tight short pink skirt and a black cropped top with laced half sleeves. Her pink acrylic nails tapped her jaw as she was thinking hard for what she wanted to drink.

"Ummmmm…I want a sex on the beach," the girl said.

Tifa smirked, so typical for a girl like that to ask for a fruity drink. Tifa started to pour the vodka into the silver mixing cup when the woman suddenly stopped her.

"What is that look on your face for?" Tifa looked up from the cup and saw the girl glaring at her. "Do you think it's funny that I ordered a sex on the beach?" she asked.

Tifa nearly kicked herself, "I am just grinning because I just thought of something funny that happened early, that's all" Tifa innocently said. Ugh, I should really hide my thoughts am I that obvious? Tifa felt bad at the thought she made prior and gave the drink an extra shot of vodka finished with 2 cherries.

"Do you want to start a tab?" Tifa asked giving a friendly smile.

"You can close out the tab since I won't be buying my other drinks" the woman remarked while waving her credit card in hand, "Hey I am sorry if I come off as a bitch… I am not good at reading people!" The woman gave her a genuine smile and they both laughed.

"No worries; I have a problem showing my emotions on my face which can be miss-read like what happened earlier." They smiled at each other and Tifa really like the woman she had just met. She only had Yuffie there and it wouldn't hurt to have more friends.

"Don't worry about it, I will pay for her drink," said a voice behind the woman. He stepped forward with his arm wrapping around the woman shoulder while grabbing her card and instantly Tifa recognized him from the beach earlier.

"Zack! Aww thanks!" the woman exclaimed smiling at Zack but brushed his arm off of her.

"Just put it on my tab," Zack winked at Tifa and turned back to the girl. "How are you doing Aeris? You look quite sexy tonight," Zack said as he checked Aeris out top to bottom.

"Oh stop, Zack what are you up to? I am just here with some friends and talking to a new friend I just met actually," Aeris said nodding towards Tifa.

"Me too, I am here with friends but I rather be here with you now," Zack grinned at Aeris not even noticing Tifa. Tifa rolled her eyes, could he be more obvious that he is so into her, why is he trying so hard?

"Are you here with Cloud?" Aeris eye grew wide questioning Zack.

Tifa held her breath at the mentioned of his name. No… it can't be. "Um excuse me? I am sorry to ask but can you guys step aside so I can help the people behind you?" Tifa motioned to the group of people waiting.

Aeris looked at Tifa apologetically for holding up the line, "Thanks for the drink, it tasted really good! Come on Zack, let's go grab a table I think there is one opening up in the back corner," Aeris said while grabbing Zack's arm. Zack turned to glance at Tifa, he had a feeling he met the smoking hot bartender before. He couldn't exactly pinpoint it but his mind shifted when he saw Aeris's ass right in front of him, guiding him to a table that just opened.

"Where the hell is Zack with our beers?" Vincent asked Cloud as he threw a rock out into the fire pit. They were sitting outside on the patio near the bonfire. Zack told them to grab seats outside since the inside will be completely packed and he would go grab them beers.

Cloud shrugged and looked around and saw how popular this bar was. It was even hard to snag seats outside because there were so many people outside as well. He glanced at the people around him and saw a group of girls looking at Vincent and himself. Cloud glanced over at Vincent to mention it but saw that Vincent has noticed as well. They grinned at each other and Vincent tilted his head questioning to see if Cloud would be interested. Cloud smirked and shrugged it off because he wasn't interested; he knew those were the same group of girls that always hung around the places he was usually at.

"Hey, I am going to find Zack. You stay here and save our seats," Cloud told Vincent. Vincent gave a small nod and Cloud went into the bustling bar to search for Zack. He looked and saw Zack at the bar with a girl in pink. Cloud immediately knew it was Aeris he was with. Who else would keep Zack away for so long? He saw Aeris grab Zacks arm and led him to a table at the other corner of the bar from where he was at. Cloud brought his palm to his face and shook his head. That piece of shit, he would have made us sit outside all night waiting for him as long as he had her around. Cloud sighed and was about to make his way to the bar but a beautiful woman working it stopped him.

"Tifa….," Cloud whispered to himself. She was helping the guests that were behind Zack and Aeris when they were at the bar. Her eyes sparkled as she was laughing with the short brown hair girl working the bar with her. Seeing Tifa smile so genuinely made Cloud's heart skip a beat. She is so damn beautiful… He started to head to the bar towards her when warm slender fingers grabbed his hand. He looked to the left and saw Aeris staring at him with a wide smile.

"Hey Cloud" Aeris purr giving him a seductive look, "Zack remembered that he was supposed to buy Vincent and you beers so we were heading to the bar just now but I saw you," Aeris said pulling him closer to her, "I haven't seen you since school got out, you look so handsome. Let's get you a drink." She pulled him towards the bar basically dragging him…towards Tifa.

Cloud glared back at Zack who gave him a sigh as if saying this always happens when Cloud was around. Cloud turned back to see wide ruby eyes staring into his. Tifa didn't look surprised seeing him there at the bar but glanced down at Aeris holding Cloud's hand. Cloud instantly pulled his hand out of Aeris grab. Shit, why do I have to end up meeting Tifa again like this?

"Hi… Can I get you something?" Tifa asked Cloud, staring hard at him. Cloud knew she remembered him from the beach prior.

"Uh…. 3 Stellas please." Cloud said, looking to his right at Zack hand to see if he had a beer or not.

"I want another sex on the beach, the one you made was so delicious and strong," Aeris smiled while now gripping Cloud's arm. Tifa finally understood that the ones who were going to buy Aeris drinks all night was Cloud. Is he…dating her? Tifa asked herself, the way Aeris talked with Cloud and looked at him was different from Zack. Tifa noticed from her peripheral Cloud's blue eyes were staring at her which caused her to bite her lip. She saw his jaw tightened and swallowed as he stared intensely at her lips. She turned around and bent to grab the Stellas from the cooler below.

Cloud watched Tifa, especially at her bare midriff and saw her delicate curves, the tone abs and those strong legs. …Her skin looks so soft; I wonder how strong those legs will be around me… Aeris saw Cloud staring at Tifa basically drinking her in, almost as if he was admiring her. Aeris wrapped her arms around Cloud and looked up at him with a seductive stare. Aeris could feel Cloud's body tense up at her touch as if she interrupted his thoughts. She coincidentally hugged Cloud at the same moment Tifa turned to place the three Stellas in front of him.

"You smell so nice Cloud," her face snuggled into his hard chest as she peaked over at Tifa, giving her a small smile and a wink. Out of all the girls she meets, she just had to let them know Cloud is hers regardless who they are.

With red cheeks, Tifa rolled her eyes which Aeris didn't catch and turned to Zack, "It's on your tab since you said you will pay for the drinks right?" and quickly walked away.

"Hey wait! I didn't get my drink yet," Aeris called out after her.

"I need to go on break," Tifa called back without turning back, "Yuf I am stepping out for a bit."

"Gotcha Teef, don't worry I can handle it!" Yuffie called out as Tifa disappeared through the door towards the kitchen. Yuffie glanced over at Cloud wondering what happened and saw him push Aeris off of him.

Aeris looked up at Cloud, "I wonder if she is okay… she left suddenly…"

Cloud glared at Aeris and turned to Zack, "I am going to bring Vincent his beer. Aeris, don't follow me." Cloud headed back out to the back patio, his words stinging Aeris. Aeris was confused on what she has done.

...

Tifa sighed as she walked along the beach away from the bar, towards the ocean. The moonlight radiated the ocean, producing sparkles like diamonds. She played with the moogle around her neck as she found a flat rock taking in the view. She shivered from the ocean breeze, I should have brought a hoody out here… I didn't realize how cold it has gotten… maybe I should head back now… but Papa said he will help cover the bar while I am out if needed… Tifa frowned at the endless thoughts and wondered why she was so bothered by seeing Aeris put her arm around Cloud, snuggling close to his chest. I don't even know a single thing about him, he could be a crazy jerk for all I know! Tifa tried to convince herself but she knew the way he looked at her when they were on the beach or even now says otherwise. Tifa shivered again from the ocean's breeze and was about to head back to the bar until she felt a warm black leather jacket draped over her shoulders. She jumped and turned to see who it belonged to.

"You looked cold." His long silver hair flowed beautifully with the wind. The moon shined on his pale skin and he turned to stare right at her. His eyes replicate his hair with a hint of warmth. His long slender face broke into a smile at her. He looked strikingly handsome in his black V-neck t-shirt with dog tag hanging around his neck. He turned back to view the ocean as he casually put his hands in the pocket of his slender gray jeans.

Tifa looked puzzled at who the mysterious man was. The beach has been deserted since night fall and she didn't even notice him as she was walking out to the ocean shore prior.

"Ummm…are you sure you aren't cold? Thank you for your jacket but you must be cold wearing just a t-shirt. It's alright, I was about to head back to Midgar Bar anyways." Tifa said taking off the jacket to give to him.

He shook his head and continued looking forward out into the ocean, "You looked like something is bothering you and went out here to think… don't worry. I am just admiring the beauty and I am not cold doing it." He turned to gaze at her when he said 'beauty'.

Tifa blushed and didn't know what to say. Get it together T, it's not like he means you! "..Thanks…" Tifa sat back down onto the rock now wearing the jacket and grasped her bent legs towards her. What a strange guy... why is he out here alone, I didn't see him at the bar earlier. They were silent for quite some time in each other presence. Tifa gave him quick glimpses and was wondering if she should start some conversation to fill the silence, instead she just remained silent.

I should head back in… Tifa glanced at her watch and stood up to stretched her legs and arms out from sitting in the same position for a while. She took off the black leather jacket and gave it to the stranger. "Thanks again… your jacket is very warm, I really liked it."

He turned to her with his hands in his pockets in a nonchalant stance, as he smiled which made Tifa cheeks scorched. Thank God it's dark out so he doesn't see me blush… Geez what is with this place and gorgeous men? Tifa was pissed at herself again because she couldn't control her emotions from showing on her face. He brought his hand out from his pocket and grabbed his jacket, their hands touched for a brief moment which caused Tifa to almost drop the jacket. Tifa gave a small smile and couldn't help notice his slender arm when we went for the jacket that it had goosebumps all over it.

"Thank you again for the jacket, I hope you didn't get cold," Tifa said wishing she had not seen his arms.

He laughed and smiled heartily at her, "You are a very thankful woman aren't you? Don't worry about it, and whatever is bothering you, let it go. You are beyond beautiful to be looking so distraught."

Tifa reddened once more and waved goodbye, she ran back to the bar. She couldn't help but feel calm and relax with him the entire time he was there. She looked back and she saw him staring back into the ocean. That was strange…

...

"What a night! This is definitely one of the busiest nights, maybe because school is about to start soon so everyone wants to get f'ed up!" Yuffie yawned stretching out her back. It was 3am and the last drunk guest finally left the bar. Tifa and Yuffie were busy cleaning up the bar really quick while Tifa's dad finished putting the chairs on the table and going to work on the back patio.

"So what happened earlier? You left in a hurry after you helped Cloud," Yuf inquired with tired eyes.

"Nothing," Tifa lied while washing the dirty rag, "… I just wanted a fresh breath of air that is all." When she returned to Midgar Bar after being on the beach for a while, she was caught up making drinks for guests that she had forgotten Cloud up until now. She didn't even see them for the remainder of the night. "That girl… with the pink ribbon next to Cloud… do you know anything about her? Like is she with Cloud?" Tifa asked hesitantly.

"You mean Aeris? As far as I know Cloud and her go way back but I don't think they are dating. I don't know much about it but I do know I see her around him pretty often."

"Oh…," Tifa replied. She didn't know how to take what Yuffie said. She got frustrated just even letting the small situation bother her. Damn it, this is stupid. I only just met the guy and it's not like I am anything to him. Why the hell am I so bothered by something that isn't even there?

"So something odd happened earlier on the beach," Tifa recollected, "I met someone but yet don't know anything about him… we didn't even talk."

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WHO?" Yuf asked suddenly awake, waiting for the juicy story. Yuffie was always all about the latest gossip. Tifa threw the dirty rag into the bar sink and talked to Yuffie about the mysterious man. Later while rubbing her eyes, she said bye to Yuffie before starting to head upstairs to shower and to go to sleep.

"When school starts I will be too busy to even think about boys," Tifa yawned crawling into bed. So at least she thought.

To be continued...