The warmth from the shower soaked into Cloud's body. His wounds stopped weeping and Tifa had washed the dried blood from his chest and back before he bathed. Silently she had wiped the blood away, rinsing the rag periodically. No questions were raised, no answers were given. He could only imagine what thoughts might be going through her head. He never intended to show her any weakness, but passing out earlier in the afternoon had decided that for him. Never knowing when he might loose consciousness, he had to be able to count on someone when the inevitable occurs. The words were not coming to him, but something needed to be said, the situation had to be explained.
A squeak came from the knob as he turned the water off. Cloud stood, letting it drip from his body while he tried to collect his thoughts. Toweling off the last vestiges, he stepped from the bathroom, looking for clean clothes as his old attire was thoroughly soaked with blood. Tifa was nowhere to be seen, knowledge that both comforted and disillusioned him. Looking at the bureau mirror, shame filled his mind as scars, swollen red, filled his vision.
With a clean shirt and pants on, Cloud entered the living room to find Tifa as she had been when he first returned, blood stained clothing still adorning her body. She turned her face to look at him. Expectant, she did not move from her seat. Motionless, he tempered his resolve to confide in his lover.
"I don't have any answers. I don't know what is causing the scars to appear. I don't know what any of it means. No doctor has answers, only more questions and tests." Pausing his monologue, Cloud walked toward Tifa, stopping to sit on the armrest of the sofa. "Aside from the scars, I pass out every now and then, which is what happened today out on the plains. I don't know what will happen, but it is getting worse and I thought showing you was the only way for you to understand."
Silence echoed in the room, neither body moving. Time stretched once more that evening as seconds became minutes. There was nothing that she could do for him, she was no doctor, no healer. He could think of nothing that she would benefit from in finding out the reality of his situation. The only conclusion he arrived at was it would strain the already fragile relationship between them.
"Is there anything I can do for you?" Her strained voice broke the silence. Cloud closed his eyes, regretting the pain he was causing her, wishing he could experience it all in her stead. Tifa watched him shake his head, remaining motionless herself. The night closed in around them, swallowing the last remnants of happiness he felt. Nothing was left to shield her from the reality that was his unknown ailment, his confession had seen to that. Cloud was being consumed by the cold loneliness that had followed him in his days after Zack had died helping him escape.
Warmth thawed his frozen shell. Tifa's arms wrapped around his tired body, their gentle touch soothing. "Then let me do this," was all she said. Standing there, holding him, the harsh reality melted away into a blissful ignorance. Just as her touch had saved him years ago, it was saving him again.