Chapter Seven

I've somehow fallen back into my routine. It's been few days since I met Cid, and a few days since I've seen Cloud.

I feel kind of empty.

There for a while I was getting used to running into random people.

Marlene grips my hand tightly as the train squeals to a stop.

One random person I've managed to keep seeing is Marlene's teacher, Aeris. I baked her a pie as thanks for her flower. She looks like one of those people who probably bake pies for competitions and wins every year. She's probably got a secret recipe too.

Marlene tugs on my hand; we're running a little late. As we hurry down the street, I can't help but let my mind wander again. I have to ask.

"Hey, Marlene..."

"Yea? Keep it quick." She's the most adult child I've ever met.

"You know that boy in your school...Denzel?"

"What about him?"

"Does he have a brother?"

Marlene shakes her head. "Nope... he's an only child. He said his dad is usually out of town traveling, and his mom gets pretty lonely."

"He's not really so mean, is he?"

Marlene shrugs. "I don't think so... He just tries to be. I think he's sad sometimes... but he's been in a really good mood for a couple days. He keeps doing nice things without realizing it. I like him better than I did yesterday."

A few days...since Cloud got home. I wonder what Cloud is to him, then? A babysitter? I find that hard to imagine.

We reach the school just before the bell rings. Aeris is outside, gathering the children so they'll start to go inside. She sees us and grins, waving.

"Thought you weren't going to make it... hello Marlene."

"Hey, Ms. Gainsborough." Marlene smiles, then heads for the door.

Aeris smiles at her, and then turns to me. "That pie was delicious. You're a really good cook."

"Thanks, it was nothing."

"Marlene drew a garden the other day... it looked strangely familiar."

"How so? We pass one on the way from the train."

"Ah, that explains it then. You see, that's my garden."

I tilt my head. "Really? I should've figured. We usually look at it on our way to and from school... we were too rushed this morning. She loves it, though she swears she's going to have a better one when she's older."

Aeris giggles. "Sounds like her."

I grin. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Hey, Ms. Gainsborough!" I look over Aeris's shoulder, spotting two familiar figures.

What the heck!

It's Zack, and he's towing a rather rushed looking Denzel towards the school.

Zack grins at Denzel. "See, little buddy? I told you we wouldn't be late."

What is this? Maybe I read something wrong about Zack and Cloud. Maybe they're really lovers and life partners, and Denzel is their adopted son. ...but I guess that wouldn't fit Marlene's story. It's a cover up!

"Whatever..." Denzel rolls his eyes. "I'm never late when Cloud takes me."

"Well, you know what? I took you and we weren't late."

Denzel grumbles something and heads for the door.

WEIRD.

Aeris and I smile at Zack.

"Hey, Tifa! So you got a mini-you running around here, too?" He grins cheekily.

"Not quite," I reply.

Aeris gives him a serious look, and that makes this morning even more weird, cause in the short time I've known Aeris, she's never given a serious look.

Oh my God she's glaring.

Zack sort of blushes (WEIRD) and rubs the back his head. "Heh, probably shouldn't have said that. Anyways, good to see you again. You to Aeris."

First name basis, huh?

Course, Aeris is just like that, though.

"I didn't know you knew Zack, Aeris." I try to save Zack. He really isn't that bad of a guy.

"Yes, him and Cloud--

I knew it! They're life partners!

"–and Angeal."

Angeal? Is it a threesome? Is that possible?

Can you have more than one husband, even when you yourself already are a husband?

My brain is spinning.

"How did you two meet?"

"Oh, well," I sway on my feet. "Him and Cloud stumbled upon the bar I work at when they got in a few weeks ago. They haven't left me alone since."

Aeris giggles. "Zack is pretty persistent. Doesn't sound like Cloud, though."

"Hey. Cloud met her first. Not me."

"Really?" Aeris raises an eyebrow.

And I see it then. These two...are exactly a like. I already see the wheels turning in her head. Tifa and Cloud. Cloud and Tifa.

FOR EVAH.

No.

I laugh nervously, under both of their scrutiny. "Listen, I got...um, to get going."

The bell rings.

"Me too." Aeris smiles.

"Crap! Me three! I'm gonna kill Cloud! I gotta report to the Tower."

"Where is Cloud?" Aeris asks.

"Probably slept in... I think he had to work late last night...or early...or something. Whatever, sorry I'm rude, but I've got to go!" Zack turns and bolts, running full speed down the sidewalk. People scatter around him, yelling obscenities.

Aeris laughs, staring after him wistfully.

I almost say it out loud, but I catch myself in time.

I want to say it... You're in love with him.

Aeris turns, giving me one last wave, and heads towards the building.

No... no no no no no!

How come every person I've met recently has been completely twisted together? How come all of their fates depend on one another!

Still...I've only seen Aeris's future as the lifestream, which is weird...and I guess Cid doesn't count...

But this hurts... it hurts so bad. I want to cry, and I don't do that. I'm stronger than that. I know I am. After everything I've been through and seen, this shouldn't make me cry.

I head dejectedly back towards the train station, ignoring Aeris's blossoming garden.

I keep my eyes glued the sidewalk, and stand at the train station, waiting patiently. My mind is racing; I'm completely oblivious to the world around me.

I hadn't been able to understand the name Zack had whispered...in all honesty it had just sounded like a whisper... like a pointless mumble in his last moments...but I had just known it was a name, the name that he loves most to hear and say.

Aeris.

God I can't believe this. I place my face in my hands to compose myself as the train comes to a stop before me.

I take a deep breath, and then look up, heading into the open doors of the train. I scan my card, and enter the car. It's empty, golden with the morning's rays. I take a seat against the window and put my forehead against the glass, closing my eyes gratefully. The long ride will allow me to rest. The train has to circle around the city; there is a shorter one, but I didn't feel like waiting for it.

That was when I felt the seat shift as someone sat beside of me.

You've got to be FREAKING kidding me. Honestly? This car is dead. Why me? I don't feel like talking to anyone.

I turn my head, cracking my eyes open.

Oh.

He doesn't look at me, just sits there, his shoulders tense; he probably doesn't do this on a normal basis.

The sun coming in behind his head makes him look ethereal. He doesn't look real, and I stop the gasp in my throat.

Somehow, he just knows he doesn't need to say anything, that someone just needs to be there. I mean, to anyone I probably look like hell.

So Cloud sits beside of me in silence for the first few minutes of the ride.

It takes me a moment to find my voice, but I'm glad I do.

"Are you...and Zack life partners?" I know it isn't true now, but I swear I'm going to get a freaking reaction out of him or I give up on life.

I see his face twist as he processes this question, and then he turns to look at me, honest to God freak out on his face. He's horrified.

I can read his eyes right now. 'What?! Do we come off that way! I know I ignore everyone but that doesn't mean I'm gay!'

I could see Vincent thinking the same thing.

But I can't hold a straight face, and I snort, and start laughing. I needed to laugh.

At first I think he's going to be furious, but then his face breaks, and changes into something I've never seen on him. He gives the smallest smile, the tiniest twist up of his lips possible.

And then he chuckles. All low, and deep...and well, frankly, sexy.

It makes me laugh harder.

"I take it Zack brought Denzel to school."

I nod my head.

"No, we're not." He sighs. "Denzel is the son of Zack's mentor, Angeal." Ah. That explains things. "I knew I was running late...but not that late." He checks his watch, looking almost surprised at the time on it. "Angeal is top brass, so to speak. He's always traveling... so Zack took Denzel under his wing."

"I think Denzel likes you more."

Cloud smirks. "Me too... but don't tell Zack."

I smile. "I won't. So...you don't live above the plate?"

"No. I live beneath it, Zack lives on top, though. He always has duty at the Tower, so he has to be there early, and it's hard for him to take Denzel. I work nights at a armory under the plate... security."

"I didn't know SOLDIERs worked when they weren't on a tour."

Cloud shrugs, indifferent. "More money. We're ShinRa's lap dogs, really. Too much of an investment to let us rest."

"And yet you guys party like there's no tomorrow."

"I suppose. I go to bed around four, and I try to get up early enough to take Denzel to school. His mother works at the Tower, so she always has to be there earlier than Denzel has to be at school. She doesn't like him walking there alone. "

I nod my head understandingly. "Neither does Barret, Marlene's father. I do the same...work all night, and get up. I usually take a nap before I pick her up from school, or after."

He looks at me, and I look at him. He does the same thing, he doesn't even have to say it.

He's about to pass out...now that I'm really focused on the present, and not on my recent discovery, I can see the exhaustion beneath his eyes.

"How late did you work?"

The question looks like it physically hurts him. He rubs his eyes. "Six."

Ah, no wonder. Even I'm not that crazy.

And he's not really that heartless. He must really like Denzel to do that.

"I take it that's why you were late."

He shrugs. "Happens... comes with the territory."

I frown, slowly processing information. The fast train arrives about five minutes after the slow one. The slow one, you see, circles the entire city, upper plate, before descending down under the plate, about an hour or so. The fast one goes the other direction, straight down the plate, getting there in about fifteen minutes. If I were him, I would've just waited for the fast one, considering how tired he is.

"Why did you take this train, then?"

He sees his mistake, and I do too, in that same moment.

He took it because I was about to fall to pieces. Zack was right... he really is a good guy.

My heart stings, as I think of Zack again.

We sit in silence for a few more minutes. He seems grateful that I don't push the question.

But he pushes one on me.

"What happened?"

Just the crappiest day of my life.

I sigh. I can't say that his best friend is in love with Aeris, and Zack is going to die trying to get to her...that he's going to be betrayed by ShinRa. That Aeris will be left alone and that I can't determine when she's going to die or how and that scares me.

He lowers his head thoughtfully. "I understand."

Silence overtakes us, but it's a nice one. I pull my knees up to my chest, and wrap myself up. It's something I do subconsciously; in martial arts, in order to protect yourself, you make yourself as small as possible... a harder target to hit.

I want to protect myself from these feelings.

I try not to get close to people... Barret, he was just too kind. Aeris too...and I can't see her death, so it makes it easier.

I just can't resist Zack's personality, either. If he was a bland personality, I could run from him every time I saw him. But that first time I truly met him, in the bar... I wanted to know him, and not just because of the circumstances of his death.

And here I am, sitting beside another man who is going to die, and kill. I wonder what he would say if I told him he would kill Rufus.

I wonder if he would believe me.

He stands before I do when we reach my stop, and we both exit the train.

He's going to walk me home. He doesn't say that he is, and I don't ask him to, but I just know he is. He's going to take me home.

So we walk back to the bar, and I pause outside the door in the back alley...the first place we ever really talked. It feels like ages ago, even though it's only been a week or so.

"You live at the bar?"

"An apartment, above it." I tug at a strand of hair. "You didn't have to...well, I hope you didn't go too far out of your way. You need sleep."

He sways on his feet, but shakes his head no. "Apartment's only a few more blocks down, really. It was just luck." He shrugs.

"Thanks," I breathe.

He studies me a moment, then nods his head once. He moves slowly away from me, and I watch him as he turns out the alley.

I swallow, unlocking the door, and shutting it behind me.

When I walk out around two fifteen he's waiting beside the door. At first he doesn't notice me... he's leaned up against the wall with his eyes closed, one foot against the wall, and his arms crossed.

I can't believe he's here.

I can't believe he's seeking out company. My company.

Maybe he's afraid I'm suicidal or something because of this morning.

He cracks an eye when I shut the door and lock it. Cloud falls into step beside of me as we head out the alley.

"Did you get a good nap in?"

"Yeah."

"Me too." I smile.

It is more pleasant, though, making this trip with someone rather than alone.

We take the short train up, because we can't afford to be late picking up the kids from school. I know Marlene would freak out, and probably Aeris too.

I stop Cloud outside of Aeris's house to show him her garden. I don't know if he is interested in that, but since he lives beneath the plate, I think he'll appreciate it.

"Better not tell Zack Aeris lives here."

I laugh, though I feel my heart tug violently at the thought of the two.

The walk to the school feels too fast, though it's mostly quiet. I like that though...that I don't always have to say something. Maybe he likes that too.

We sit on my bench to wait for the bell to ring. I glance at his watch; it'll only be a few more minutes.

I glance at him. "Is it worth it?"

"What?"

"Being in the military...in exchange for being able to escape the city, and see real places."

This isn't a real place. No trees, no sky, nothing. Not to me, anyways. And it's so expensive to travel in and out of the city.

"Life threatening situations versus no real outdoors..."

I'm glad he knew what I was talking about.

He nods his head, and looks at me, seriously. "Yeah. It is."

I stare at his eyes. Their affect on me isn't any less...I just think I'm able to handle it now. I'm just glad I'm not turning into a blithering mess every time I look at him.

He probably enjoyed that, too.

The bell rings then, and I look towards the doors.

Marlene is among the first few out. She rushes at the bench, and pulls on my hand, exclaiming about a fight on the playground. Denzel shuffles out slower than the others, a black eye forming and some dirt on the knees of his jeans.

Cloud sits up straight, more attentive. I glance at him worriedly.

I can't help it.

"Denzel...what happened?"

"Denzel saved me!" Marlene proudly states. A little smile threatens my lips.

Cloud looks at Denzel seriously. He puts his large hand to the boy's tiny head, turning it so he can look at the black eye.

"Your mom isn't going to like this."

"You should see the other guy... mom would really hate it if I looked like him." He grins, and his lip splits.

Cloud nods his head, and stands. I do to. I should get Marlene home.

"Come on." Cloud puts a hand on Denzel's back, pushing him away from us, away from the train station.

He looks over his shoulder. "Tomorrow?"

I nod my head tersely, taking Marlene's hand and turning away.

Marlene looks up at me. "What was that about?"

I reply honestly. "I have no freaking clue."

And this is how Cloud and I became friends...real friends and not the strange acquaintances we had been. I didn't see him on the train up, because he had to take the earlier one to get to Denzel's house.

But we would take the long train home, and the short train back.

Somehow, though, along the way my days got shorter.

Even though we had to leave earlier, we started taking the long train back.

A/N: I love this chapter :D it makes me happeh.

Thanks to Valentine'sNinja, purple parasol, zenbon zakura, h.luna, ChieriAn9el, butterflybookmark (I'm bad about updating some of my stories too XD) Kotono116, Szahara again (I guess it is a bit like Twilight! what really inspired the way Tifa thinks was Diana Wynne Jones book 'Deep Secrets' I read that right before I wrote this) IWOBYD, FF009 (Are you where Ike hit?! I hope you, and your house and family are ok!) Palo112