a/n; rushing, so not my best!~
EDIT: Whoops! i screwed something up, but it's fixed now. (:
:x: whip
Tifa stared into the bowl with distaste.
Of all the days for her cooking abilities to fail her, it had to be today – Marlene's seventh birthday. She had wanted a type of cake named Baked Alaska, and Tifa knew better than to ask the little girl where she had heard about such a far-fetched, strange desert.
But as outlandish as the name made it sound, the real treat was nothing of the sort. It was a very basic recipe, and while she had successfully created the sponge cake to make up the structure, all that she needed to complete was the meringue.
Reaching over for the beater and switching it on only resulted in a spasm of sparks, smoke, and an electronic death. Resorting huffily to the whisk had only resulted in wimpy, very rarely used arm muscles. Tifa just knew she should have still been training through those lazy days.
And now, the creation coating the metal bowl was, in fact, not fluffy, uppity, or pristine white. In its place was a milky glop, weighed down by a cup of too much sugar.
She could have called Cloud – he was still out on those deliveries, and it wouldn't be much trouble for him to find an appliance store on all his various routes.
But by the time she would have arrived near the phone, if she would have gone up to retrieve the phone – since she was still, a bit angrily, spinning the whisk as fast as her arm would allow – the door to the bar opened, and in walked Cloud.
Which, of course, only created a huffier Tifa. Because, in all honesty, he wasn't supposed to get back so soon.
He made his way to the counter, a curious look on his face, letting his arm rest heavily on the countertop. He opened his mouth, then realized that he shouldn't say a word, and closed it instead.
Tifa concentrated on her bowl and whisk, and she didn't give him a glance.
Cloud slowly peered over, trying to put two and two together, from Tifa's facial features to the glinting, shining bowl. And, in retaliation, Tifa pulled back, cradling it and walking with deliberate pacing to the other side of the bar. In a hum, she finally broke the silence with casual restraint.
"You're back early, Cloud."
He watched her with caution. "Short trip to Reeve. Just needed to schedule some things."
She hummed one more time, whisking and whisking and whisking…
Cloud glanced at the clock above the mantle, and decided, right then, that maybe he needed a shower. Or just a short escape.
"Gonna take a shower," he said, gesturing while he walked.
She finally glanced up, her face in a little twist. "Alright. I might be gone when you're done. I have to pick Marlene and Denzel up today." She paused. "Because, you know, it's her birthday."
At that, Cloud gave a quiet grin. "Yeah. I've got the presents ready upstairs." A second more, and his footsteps vanished up the staircase. Tifa watched him, sighed in a forlorn way, and placed the bowl in the fridge.
She came to the mild conclusion that she would just bake Marlene cookies after dinner.
"Cloud!" Marlene squealed. Her and Denzel had taken up residence at the barstools, waiting for the inevitable (as many of their birthdays went like this), and looked up to see colorful boxes toppling over each other, stumbling on a pair of legs walking down the stairs.
They both rushed to take the presents from him, greedy hands clutched for grabbing, but Tifa, turning around to quell the hungry fingers, noticed the recipe list was missing. She remembered leaving it, perched up on the counter, staring at her with a certain mock.
She peered around suspiciously, until a gleam…a shine…
She opened the refrigerator.
And she smiled.