"Cloud's such a pain in the ass." It was Yuffie's favorite way to describe their comrade and neither Vincent nor Cid paid the comment any mind. But when she added, "And Tifa's an idiot." Barret snapped his head up and glowered.

"Whatdya mean by that?"

She rolled her eyes and waved one hand dramatically, as if the answer itself was hovering in their faces. "I meeeean the way she keeps waiting for Cloud."

The grooves beside Barret's mouth deepened. "Waiting for Cloud to what?"

"To tell her he loves her. I mean if he hasn't already...then duh, he isn't going to."

"Whaddya mean he hasn't told her?" Cid this time. He swung his arm off the back of his chair to lean across the table. "He tells her all the time."

She gaped. "Wait, what? You've heard him?"

"We all have." Cid gestured to Barret and Vincent, who both nodded in the vaguest sense of the word.

Yuffie blinked. "How come I've never heard him?"

Barret shifted in his seat. "Well, maybe if your head wasn't up your--"

"Hey!"

"You're just not listening right. Look. He's telling her right now," Cid pointed.

Yuffie swung around in her seat, eyes wide in expectation. Behind the bar Cloud approached Tifa, who was on her tip-toes reaching for a glass. He reached around her and snagged it down. Tifa smiled gratefully and went about pouring a drink as Cloud unloaded the box he'd brought in.

"There." Cid was smug.

"What?" Yuffie prodded with a pout. "He didn't say anything!"

"Fine. Look, he's telling her again."

Yuffie once more did a one-eighty.

Still back behind the bar, Cloud now stood holding curtains up as Tifa debated the placement of the rod.

"He's just standing there."

"Yup."

"Holding curtains."

"Yup."

Yuffie glanced at Vincent. "Is this some kind of joke?"

Red eyes glinted in the dull light. "No joke."

She gave a snort. "You guys are being jerks is all."

"Look, you little nit-wit," Cid snapped. "Love ain't about the words. It's about the actions. No self-respecting man is gonna hang curtains for a woman unless he's seriously gah-gah for the gal."

"That's stupid." Yuffie's lower lip stuck out in her trademark pout. "That's not an 'I love you', that's 'I don't want Tifa to bludgeon me.'"

"Barret, help me out," Cid sighed, exasperated.

The bigger man shrugged. "Ain't no help for her."

Cid rolled his eyes. "Vincent?"

"I refuse to try and quantify love for her."

Yuffie stuck her tongue out at him. He was unmoved.

A small shriek from across the room drew all eight eyes.

Tifa, perched on the counter, slipped sending curtains flying as she tumbled into Cloud's suddenly available arms.

Yuffie watched with interest as Cloud slowly—as in extremely slowly—lowered Tifa back onto her feet. His arms, however, remained locked behind her back and his gaze was quizzical. Tifa flushed, embarrassed, and Cloud shrugged, but their gazes never wavered from one another. Then, as if remembering they had an audience, they darted looks towards the others, and parted.

Yuffie peered more intensely at Cloud as he turned away. Was that...a smile? Holy, Leviathon! He loved her!