Zack?

Tifa quickly got to her feet and ran to the door, hugging Zack without hesitation. Zack has spiky black hair, wearing black shorts and a red t-shirt. He is very energetic and seems to have the personality that the general population likes. His body structure tells that the gym is part of his lifestyle.

"You're back! You know how long I was waiting for you?" She put her hands on her waist and pouted. "You're in big trouble!"

"Wai- huh? What are you talking about? I'm on time, see!" Zack pointed at his watch and showed it to her.

"I tol-" Before Zack was able to finish, Tifa gave him a hug, burying her face into his chest. This surprised him, but soon smiled and hugged her back. Cloud was at the back, still on the couch, thinking how cute they look. But he also feels a hint of jealousy and snapped back to reality that he was just a stranger in their apartment.

Cloud slowly pushed the pillows that were around his legs away and carefully tried to stand up.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" Zack dropped his gym bag near the door and proceeded to the living room.

Smiling, he reached out his hand and offered a handshake. "Hey, how are you bro?"

"I'm' doing much better, thanks for everything" Cloud gave a firm handshake and apologized.

"I told you a MILLIION times, stop apologizing!" Tifa shouted from the door.

"Well, I'm just glad you are doing fine. If you need to stay one more night, please do. It's not a problem. By the way, I'm Zack Fair."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Cloud Strife."

After their initial greeting, the three of them settled down in the kitchen. Tifa prepared curry which was her specialty. Rice, fish, and miso soup were also cooked and served. They stayed at the dinner table hours at end, exchanging stories and getting to know each other.

Zack met Tifa at the beginning of the semester in high school. They eventually became a couple and decided to live together a couple years back. Zack decided not to go to college and instead chase his dreams to be a trainer.

"A trainer?" Cloud asked out of curiosity.

"Yeah, I train fighters to in SWF or Shinra World Fighting. Have you ever heard of that?"

"I see it on TV sometimes but I don't know exactly how it works. Is it like boxing?"

"Now you're done it Cloud." Tifa said putting her head down. "Zack here LOVES talking about SWF. Now that he found someone that knows almost nothing about SWF, he's going to take over the whole conversation."

"I love what I do, I can't do anything about it" Zack shrugged. "But since Tifa here is being a party pooper, I'll tell you the simple things about it. You are right about it being like boxing, except rules are different. There are 10 rounds in total. In boxing, rounds have a set time till the bell rings. In SWF, the round ends when your opponent is knocked down two times. The match ends when your opponent can't get up after ten seconds. It's a sport that tests strength, speed, skill, endurance and is more brutal."

"What about the principle of just using fists?" Cloud asked with interest.

"It's the same principle with a twist. Elbows are allowed in the fight. Also, clinching is not allowed." Zack explained.

"Okay, okay. You can stop now Zack." Tifa stood up and started to clean up the table. "It's getting late and Cloud needs to get some rest."

Cloud wanted to hear more about SWF. The sport sounds exhilarating and exciting. Although he saw it on TV a few times, he didn't take much interest of it. After realizing how easy it was for him to get beaten up, this appealed to him to become stronger.

"Actually, I think I can carry myself back home. My apartment is not that far." Cloud explained. He felt like he was a bother and wanted to leave them alone.

"Come on, we told you, you can stay for a night" Zack offered.

Cloud continued to deny and soon, Tifa and Zack agreed to let him go on one condition. They were going to accompany him to his apartment. They felt like they had to because they assume it's their fault. It was Tifa's purse so they felt guilty.

After 30 minutes of cleaning up, Zack, Tifa, and Cloud headed out. Cloud couldn't walk on his own so he had to put his arm over Zack's shoulder. The three of them continued to share stories and enjoy each other's company.

"Yeah! I remember that time! How did that go again Zack?" Tifa raised her hands out of excitement.

"Yeah, my buddy who was working at a company and got cau-" Zack stopped in his tracks and saw two hooded figures, hanging out at a light post. One was playing with a rod, twirling it around with his fingers. Cloud noticed Zack's peculiar look and was shocked to see who he was looking at.

"That's them…" Cloud whispered.

"It is?…HEY!" Zack screamed.

The two hooded figures looked at their direction and walked towards them. As they got closer, they took down their hood. It was Rude and Reno.

"What the fuck do you want huuh?" Reno pointing his rod at Zack. "Hey Rude, check this out! It's the punk that we fucked up! Hahaha. I guess this guy wants the same thing!"

"Tifa, here, take care of Cloud and step back." Zack puts on his black gloves from his back pocket. His black gloves contained silver lettering that read PAIN on the palm. He got into a fighting stance, putting both his fists up and clenching his fists.

"Cloud…" Zack turned around. "I'll show you what SWF can do to you."

"Alright, enough blabbering! Rude, I'll handle this punk!" Reno stopped twirling the steel rod and held it firmly. He charged at Zack and tried to bash his head. Zack weaved back and efficiently placed two jabs at Reno's face. It was quick, light, and strong. Surprised, Reno held his nose which started bleeding.

"Rude, looks like I'm going to need help on this punk."

Zack smiled.