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Personal
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"You know, I think I missed our bonding over donuts thing."
Cloud looked up at his brother and offered him a smile. "You're the one who has been busy these days. What's the deal with this girl—Cissnei?"
"We're kinda going steady, though she travels a lot on assignments for the paper," Zack explained.
"And you're honestly managing to keep celibate?"
"Well, we're not exactly exclusive, and we've talked about that," Zack said, shrugging and forgetting to wink at the girl at the register the way he normally would.
Interesting, Cloud thought, amused. "And?"
"I've kept my pants on," he said with a chuckle.
"You can't know how proud—and creeped out—that makes me," Cloud said with a grimace. It was nice to be on good speaking terms with his brother again. He really had missed his morning episodes with him too, but Cloud knew that it had been necessary to establish the fact that he didn't need any protecting from anyone.
"How's Tifa?" Zack asked tentatively.
Cloud looked at him, trying to gauge whether he really wanted to know or if he was just asking to be polite. "She's great. You heard that she adopted a little girl?"
Zack nodded. "The magazines and the paper ran stories on that. Why do you think she did it?"
"Well, aside from being a kind hearted person?" Cloud asked him snappily. Zack just rolled his eyes. "I don't know. I mean, I warned her that this wouldn't be easy and that a kid wasn't like a pet, but she was adamant about taking her in. I get the feeling that Marlene is supposed to compensate for something."
Zack looked thoughtful as they walked towards the parking lot, where his car was parked next to Fenrir. "Are you sure you want to get into something serious with her when her attention will be diverted elsewhere?" he asked seriously.
Cloud shrugged. "I'm not going to leave her because she decided to give a kid a home, Zack. What kind of person would that make me?"
"You wouldn't be the Cloud I grew up with," Zack said with a nod and a smile. "How serious are you two?"
The blond shrugged. "I gave her a ring."
"No shit!"
"Not an engagement ring," Cloud said, smirking. "But—I gave her the ring of Fenrir that you gave me a long time ago," he said slowly, bracing himself for the explosion.
None came. Zack's blue eyes were guarded as he leaned back against his car. "Hey man, I gave the ring to you as a gift. Whatever you decide to do with it is your decision. Besides, I've known it hasn't fit you in years," he said, giving Cloud a wide grin.
Cloud didn't know whether or not that smile was real, but he left things the way they were. The last thing he wanted was another argument between them. "You really don't have to fake feeling happy for me," he said sullenly; apparently his mouth was working without permission from his brain.
"Cloud, I've never faked feeling happy for you. Ever since what happened in high school—"
"Don't talk about that," Cloud growled.
"Fine," Zack said with a frown. He hadn't known Cloud was still so touchy about the subject. "Have you talked about that with Tifa?"
Cloud shook his head, lowering his gaze to the ground so that his hair would shield him from his brother. "She doesn't need to know that yet."
"But you'll tell her eventually?"
"Maybe."
"Look, you may not believe me when I say that I want you to be happy with her. But you know Cloud, as much as I do, that secrets only kill a relationship. This thing that happened may not seem relevant in your relationship with her, but she'll be able to understand a few things about you if you just tell her everything," Zack said gently.
Cloud nodded. He did understand what his brother was saying, but it wasn't something he easily talked about. Still, he would tell Tifa in time because Zack was right, and all secrets managed to do was cause problems. But he knew that Tifa still held her own mysteries close to her heart and unless she shared her past with him, he wasn't ready to confide his own to her just yet.
"Would you marry her?" Zack asked him softly.
Cloud looked up at his brother finally and nodded. "I think I would. Not at this moment though," he said with a small grin. "There's still a lot we need to get to know about each other."
"I don't know if mom will like her," Zack said.
"Why?" Cloud asked, perplexed.
"Don't you remember that she wanted you to marry that girl that lived next door to us?" Zack asked in a teasing tone.
Cloud rolled his eyes. "You mean the girl that literally stalked me?"
Zack let out a guffaw in remembrance. "I still can't believe that she would wait for you to wake up, go to school, and return. I think she had your schedule completely memorized and she watched the house religiously for when you went out randomly."
"She must've seen the papers by now," said Cloud in slight irritation.
"I'm surprised she hasn't gotten your address and turned up at your doorstep," said Zack. He looked at his watch and sighed. "I have to go. Why don't you come over for dinner when Cissnei returns? You can bring Tifa, so that you can see that I have no objections anymore."
He looked sincere enough and Cloud nodded. "I'd like that. Just let me know when," he said, mounting his bike and saluting his brother as Zack revved the engine of his car and began to pull away.
"You should wear a helmet," Zack called with a grin.
Cloud chuckled as he gave the dark haired man a rude gesture. "Take care," he called. Zack nodded before driving away, leaving Cloud with his thoughts as Fenrir's engine rumbled to life. He and Zack were finally back to normal, and all Cloud saw as a potential road block in his relationship with Tifa was his mother. Though she had always been careful to give him his space, she had never made him feel as if he was a charity case. She had treated him and Zack equally and had been the mother Cloud had lost. That didn't mean that she wasn't protective of him and any woman that he got close to usually got the third degree.
He felt like an idiot for just now realizing it, but he now understood Tifa's reasons behind adopting Marlene a little better. Tifa was doing exactly what Zack's mother had done for him. Where would he be now if Zack's mother hadn't had the heart to take him in?
There was still a niggling feeling in his chest that made Cloud feel as if he were missing something. He shrugged to himself; he'd find out what it was eventually.
………
Early in the morning, as she perused the society pages of The Midgar Times, Tifa found an article on Rufus' brother, Lazard and his family. She only wondered vaguely why it had taken them so long to publish a story on the return of a man that had made himself a name as the head of one of the leading agricultural companies exporting to many places from Mideel. She was sure that Rufus must've known that it would only serve to exalt the Shinra name even more. What caught Tifa's attention however, was the name of the woman that Lazard had married.
"Scarlet Shinra," Tifa said the name aloud. With perfectly styled blonde hair, a pretty face—not too beautiful, but enough to be acceptable to Shinra standards—and piercing blue eyes shades different from both Lazard and Rufus, Tifa had to wonder if it was a requirement for the Shinra women to be blonde.
Setting her coffee down on the table, she looked at Marlene, already dressed in her uniform—gray with white, complete with a little hat—and eating her flavored oatmeal with her good hand. "Ready for today, sweetie?"
Marlene nodded. "I'm a little scared," she admitted.
"That's okay. Everyone is scared on their first day of school, but I'm sure you're going to make a lot of friends and that your teacher will be a really nice person," Tifa said, taking in a spoonful of her own oatmeal. "Now, I'm going to drop you off every morning, but there will be times when I won't be able to pick you up."
"But why?" Marlene asked in a semi-frantic voice.
"Because I may have a meeting to attend, but I promise that I will try to be there to pick you up every day, okay?" Tifa asked her seriously. Marlene nodded, reluctant. "Now, the days that I don't make it, either Cloud or Yuffie will get you, sound good?"
At the mention of the other two people, Marlene nodded excitedly. She had developed a quick bond with Yuffie, and found that the other woman was always trying to make her laugh. As for Cloud, well, he drove a motorcycle and he cared a lot for Tifa. He had also said some really nice things to her while she had been sad over her father going back to the Lifestream. "Okay," she said when Tifa questioned her once more.
Tifa looked at her watch and stood to set her plate in the sink, pouring her coffee into a stainless steel cup to go. "Ready?"
Marlene took a sip of her juice before standing and setting her own plate and cup in the sink. She grabbed her backpack and then followed Tifa towards the door as the woman grabbed a portfolio, her keys, and her purse. They arrived with enough time for Tifa to walk Marlene to her classroom, where she stopped to meet the teacher. "Good morning, Mrs. Ifalna."
"It's nice to see you again Miss Valentine," she said before turning to Marlene. "Good morning, and welcome to your first day of school, Marlene."
"Thank you," Marlene said after looking up at Tifa.
"How about I show you were you can store your backpack and your coat?" Ifalna asked, trying to begin with the whole process of trust she always enjoyed having with her students.
"You'll do great, remember that," Tifa assured Marlene when the girl turned big eyes to her. "I promise that I'll be here when school is out, and then you'll go and spend some time with me at the office. Sound good?"
"Can we have cheeseburgers and fries?" Marlene asked hopefully.
Tifa grinned and nodded. "With the things we eat, it's a wonder I haven't gone up three clothing sizes," she said with a laugh, earning a giggle from Marlene.
The girl wrapped her arms around Tifa's middle and gave her a tight hug. "Bye, Tifa."
"Goodbye, sweetie," Tifa said, waving her and the teacher away. Her heart was aching a bit in her chest as she watched Marlene begin to acclimatize to her new environment, and she wondered if it was even remotely close to what mothers felt when they had to leave their children in their preschools the first day. Marlene hadn't been born from her, but that didn't mean that she didn't love her already.
The feelings in her chest faded only a little by the time she arrived at her office and then proceeded to inform Jessie that she needed her schedule clear every afternoon from two to three o'clock if it was possible. As she returned from visiting her writers, Tifa saw that the social worker in charge of overseeing Marlene's adoption was sitting on a chair outside of her office. "Miss Rui, I didn't think I'd see you so soon," Tifa said with a polite smile.
"Please, call me Shalua," the tall woman said, standing. "I have a few papers I need you to sign and a few things on Marlene that we need to discuss."
Tifa nodded and turned to Jessie. "Please hold all my calls unless it's an emergency," she said, holding the door for Shalua.
"Yes, Tifa," Jessie said, biting her lip in worry and hoping that Tifa didn't encounter any problems with the adoption process.
"Please have a seat. Would you like anything to drink?" Tifa asked, motioning towards a chair before she walked around her desk and took a seat herself. Shalua thanked her and shook her head. "What are these papers that I'm signing."
"We need to conduct a background check and we need to have you take some drug tests. These are routine and everyone aspiring to adopt need to have these taken," Shalua said seriously.
Tifa nodded and accepted the papers in order to read them before signing. After looking everything through and finding nothing out of the ordinary, she signed. "What did you need to tell me about Marlene?"
"Well, I'm not entirely sure if Mr. Wallace knew, but he was the second person to adopt her," said the red haired woman.
Tifa's eyes widened. "You mean—the parents that Marlene remembers were not her own either?"
Shalua nodded her affirmation. "Mr. Dyne and his wife were not her parents."
"Do you have any information on her real parents at all? Is there any chance that they will look for her and try to take her back?" Tifa asked in slight panic.
"No, Tifa. The orphanage she was left in had no information on the mother. Marlene was abandoned at the door and the people handling the center didn't see anyone the night it happened. No one came back for her either," Shalua said in a sad tone.
Tifa felt tears burn her eyes. How could someone have so little love for a child? How could her mother have been capable of just abandoning her so coldly? "I'm sorry," Tifa said, exhaling a shaky breath and pushing down her tears of anger and frustration. "I just—I can't imagine someone giving her up willingly. She's an amazing little girl."
Shalua let a small smile come over her face. She had seen many adoption cases before, but no one had ever made her feel as much sympathy as Tifa and Marlene. She really did hope that Marlene's custody was granted to Tifa. "Once I turn these papers in and we receive the results of your lab tests, the process should be about three to four weeks. Then you'll get word of whether the adoption was accepted or not. Until then, I will keep visiting you and Marlene twice a week and I will also speak to her teacher at school regularly."
Tifa nodded in understanding. "Thank you very much, Shalua," she said, standing and shaking the woman's hand.
"Have a good day, Tifa. And good luck," Shalua said before waving her back to her seat and walking away alone.
Tifa sat down heavily in her chair and couldn't bother to stop the single tears that trailed down her cheeks. She let out a long breath and attempted to shake the thoughts of sadness from her mind. Marlene had come to her for a reason, and if her mother had been enough of a cold hearted bitch to give her up, well Tifa would fill in her spot and would love Marlene for all she was worth.
Brushing away the wet tracks down her face, Tifa composed herself and went to work. A fashion empire didn't run itself, and besides, she was going to make sure that she was there to see Marlene's smile when she picked her up from school from now on.
…
After getting off of the phone with the PR in charge of their sister magazine in Wutai, Yuffie sat back to bask a little in her success. She was at the top of her game, and various sources—including famous actors, and musicians—wanted to steal her away to work with them. Though her primary work was done with Tifa's magazine, she usually had time to work one or two other clients.
Setting down a few papers, Yuffie leaned back in her chair and sighed in annoyance. She had resolved to leave Vincent alone, but he had been invading her mind to the point of her considering seeing a shrink. "Stupid Vincent," Yuffie mumbled to herself.
There was a knock at her door and she called the person in and wondered where her assistant had gone. Reeve stepped in with a handsome smile on his face and Yuffie stood, pressing a friendly kiss to his cheek. "Hey, Reeve. Come to take me away to lunch?" she asked.
"Only if you're in the mood for something fast. I have a lot of work to do and very little time for lunch," Reeve said with a heavy sigh.
"I can have take out here in less than twenty minutes," Yuffie offered.
Reeve looked at his watch and then nodded. "I think I can do that. And while we wait, you can talk to me about what's been going on," he said, taking a seat as Yuffie dialed the restaurant that served Wutain food a block away.
When she sat down, Yuffie was uncomfortably aware of Reeve's penetrating stare. "What?" she asked with a nervous laugh.
"Have you been staying out of trouble?"
"I've tried," Yuffie said evasively. Reeve watched her a moment longer until she cracked. "Fine. Reno told me that Vincent and Lucrecia are on some type of break from each other. But I don't know what to think because he was supposedly pretty much in love with her and he's not acting as if they're broken up," she said rapidly, barely taking breaths.
Reeve looked thoughtful. "And?"
"And what?"
"Has he pursued you or have you pursued him?"
Yuffie cleared her throat. "He's been coming onto me and I—well, I've tried to be good, but it's not working," she said in a whiny tone.
"Well, will you at least find out if he really is broken up with Lucrecia?" Reeve asked her.
"Why are you so worried about me?" Yuffie asked, puzzled. Reeve offered her his handsome smile, but she didn't think it was because he was trying to win her over romantically.
"I like you, Yuffie. I'm not entirely convinced that we would be good as a couple, but I think we would be wonderfully compatible friends," Reeve said simply.
Yuffie giggled at his words and nodded. "I think having you as a friend would make me a better person," she said lightly, still smiling.
Reeve shook his head. "You have a good heart. All you need is a little push—or shove—from time to time to remind you of it."
Yuffie felt her heart warm for the man in front of her and sat back in her chair, listening to him as he ranted about an annoying woman that lived in his apartment building and always managed to catch the elevator before he did, resulting in him having to take the stairs—from the tenth floor. She wondered if he had a crush on said woman, and this prompted more giggles. Men—who were still little confused boys underneath—never knew how to tell the difference between love and hate.
Their food was delivered in record time, and they both sat on the floor of the sitting space she had in her office, their food resting on the low Wutain table. They continued to talk about funny moments in their lives—and did Reeve have plenty, despite being a serious man. Their laughing-fest ended when he announced that he needed to get back to his office as soon as possible. "As much as I enjoy having a cute woman laughing at my misfortunes, I have a long day ahead of me," Reeve said, standing and then offering Yuffie a hand up.
She took it and nearly bounced to her feet, a bright smile on her face. "You've just provided me with perfect blackmail material if I ever need a favor," she said cheekily, earning a deep chuckle from Reeve.
Yuffie was in the process of leaning up to kiss his cheek in goodbye when the door to her office swung open, freezing the both of them in surprise. She looked towards the source of the interruption and her eyes widened when she caught sight of Vincent. Yuffie was also aware that her hands were still in Reeve's, and that they looked like two lovers having and intimate moment. "Did you need something, Vincent?" she asked him, slowly letting go of Reeve's hands.
"I need to see you in private," he said, voice a monotone.
Reeve was the one to lean down and kiss her cheek in farewell. "Thank you for the lovely lunch, but I really must go. Take care of yourself and be nice," he whispered before walking towards the door.
Vincent watched him coolly, and shook his hand when Reeve offered. Claret eyes then watched impassively as the man walked out and closed the door after him. His gaze slid back to Yuffie and he observed her as she cleaned the remains of their lunch and placed everything in the wastebasket.
"What did you need to see me about?" Yuffie questioned, turning to look at him.
"Why are you still seeing him?" Vincent asked her instead, walking across her office until he was close enough to take in the scent of Wutai lilies in her hair.
"Uh—well, he's a friend of mine, and I really like seeing him," Yuffie said, frowning. She stared up at Vincent as he stood in front of her, nearly towering over her and then his hand moved cup and smooth over her cheek. Just that simple touch sent her heart racing in her chest, but she felt something was bothering him. "What's going on—?"
She had barely finished her question when Vincent's lips were covering hers. Yuffie would've fallen into the kiss if it hadn't been for his breath. She shoved back and made a face. "Have you been drinking?" Yuffie inquired forcefully, eyes narrowed.
"Is that a problem?" Vincent asked darkly.
"It is when it isn't even two in the afternoon!" Yuffie exclaimed. "What the hell? That's not the taste of wine either!"
Vincent rolled his eyes at her and leaned back against her desk. "We weren't talking about me," he snapped.
"Look—the last thing I need is to have you around here while you're drunk."
"I'm not drunk," he said, tone sullen.
"Well, you've been drinking, so your actions and reactions are impaired. Why don't you just go back to your office and ask your assistant to bring you a coffee? Or maybe just water. I've heard that coffee does nothing to help when you're drunk except make you a little more high strung—"
He was kissing her again, maybe just to shut her up, maybe because he just needed to. "You talk to much," Vincent breathed against her lips.
Yuffie moved past the taste of liquor in his mouth and allowed him to kiss her senseless, using his tongue to coax hers into his mouth. "What's going on, Vincent?"
Vincent finally pulled back from the kiss, but did not remove his hands from her waist. His forehead came to rest against hers heavily, and his eye lashes brushed against her cheeks. "I'm just… handling a few things," he said vaguely.
"When were you going to tell me about Lucrecia? Is she the reason why you're drinking?" Yuffie asked softly, brushing the back of her fingers against his cheekbone, attempting to comfort him.
Vincent let out a bitter laugh that hurt to hear. "She said that she needed a break from us."
Ah, so Reno was right, Yuffie thought silently. "And I take it that you didn't want to?"
"I love Lucrecia," Vincent said.
"Then what are you doing with me?" she asked, sounding tired.
"I—don't want you to see Reeve."
Yuffie scoffed and shook her head, but she didn't push away from him. "That's kind of selfish. Don't you think?"
His eyes were like molten lava as he looked at her. "Sometimes I'm a selfish man."
"And you think that's a good thing?" Yuffie asked him derisively, stepping away from his close proximity and motioning towards the couch by the low table.
"It's not," he conceded. "But it's what has kept me strong through the years. It's what will stop me from feeling Lucrecia's betrayal."
"Betrayal because she needs space?" Yuffie asked, rolling her eyes.
"We have been together for many months. I thought all was well between us," Vincent said, sitting down heavily and letting his head fall back as he slouched into the couch.
Yuffie had never seen him so out of sorts before, and it made something twitch in her heart to see him that way. She pushed the silky strands of raven from his eyes and moved his chin so that she could look into his eyes. "Is that why you're actively pursuing me now?" she asked softly, disappointment filling her gentle lilt.
Vincent stared at her for a long moment and then shook his head once. "I was—troubled. Especially because you began to worm your way into my head while I was still with Lucrecia."
Yuffie flushed in shame. "Do you think that maybe she felt that? That it could be a reason why she asked for a break?"
"No," he said, shaking his head. "Lucrecia wants freedom to do as she wishes while on tour with the designers. She imagines that I am so in love with her that I will sit here, twiddling my thumbs while I wait for her to return to me so that she can take me back," he bit out.
Yuffie sighed quietly and leaned back, mirroring his posture. They both stared at the ceiling in silence until Vincent finally sat up and rubbed a hand over his face. "Will you wait for her?" she asked. "I won't be your rebound."
Vincent let out a soft chuckle. "You were not meant to be a rebound girl. You're too…"
"…stubborn and selfish?" Yuffie finished with a grin.
"I thought you said being selfish was a bad thing," Vincent said, looking at her in amusement.
Yuffie stood and shrugged one shoulder, grabbing a glass of water before handing it to Vincent. "Hydrate and get to work, Vincent, or if you can, take the day off to sleep. Maybe you should stop by the grocery store for a gallon of cookie dough ice cream." She walked back towards her desk when her cell phone beeped.
Again he was behind her, and before she could even register it, he had turned her around and his lips were seeking hers with the kind of desperation that took her breath away. He still tasted of alcohol, and betrayal, and those two things stopped Yuffie from allowing him to go further—especially with the way his hands were taking certain liberties. Tifa and Reeve would be proud to know that she did have self-control. Drawing back, Yuffie looked up at him—all thoughts of games, and a challenge fleeing from her mind—and braced her hands on his chest. "Slow down."
"Why?"
"Because you're hurting, and you may think you want me, but you don't. Not yet. All you really want is to get back at Lucrecia. Go home, sleep this off and hopefully with time you'll get over her. And I'll be here, waiting for it to happen," Yuffie said, all seriousness.
Vincent rubbed his knuckles across her cheek, mimicking his earlier caress and nodded. "You are one of a kind."
Yuffie grinned. "I know."
Vincent chuckled and dropped his hand. "Thank you, Yuffie," he said before turning and walking towards the door. At the doorway, he turned to look at her. "Stay away from Reeve," he said, smirking.
The door closed, leaving Yuffie there to scoff to herself. He would come back to her, she realized. She had already planted herself in his head, and even though they had talked about her not being the rebound girl, Yuffie would find a way to keep worming herself into his life until he would be the one unable to let her go. Lucrecia was a fool for letting him go, and Yuffie had to thank her for it.
………
After a few days of falling into the new schedule of dropping Marlene up at school early, and working as much as she could before it was time to pick her up, Tifa found that it wasn't so bad. She was aware of her time with Marlene being cut short, but they usually stayed together for two hours after school at the office before it was time to go home. This also meant more work at home, after Marlene had gone to sleep, but it was something Tifa was more than willing to do.
Jessie stepping into her office shattered her thoughts and Tifa looked up in question. "You have appointments for today," she said, checking Tifa's schedule.
"With who?" Tifa asked. She was aware that Jessie made the majority of her appointments, but Tifa hadn't remembered telling anyone to talk to her assistant in the last few days.
"First, you have an interview with a new reporter. If you remember, you had to fire our traveling correspondent because he was harassing the models."
Tifa nodded. "But didn't we have two people to write our articles?"
"We still need another. One person can't handle two important shows at once," Jessie said calmly.
"Fine. Name?"
"Yazoo."
This stopped Tifa and she gave Jessie a thoughtful frown. "As in Loz's brother… Sephiroth's cousin?" Jessie nodded. "Why?"
Jessie shrugged. "I think you'll have to ask him," she said cheekily.
"You're looking for a pay cut, aren't you smarty-pants?" Tifa asked her with a smile. "You said appointments. How many others do I have?"
"Just one. A Mr. Rufus Shinra."
"What," Tifa said flatly. "You actually gave him an appointment to see me?"
"Well," said Jessie, looking a little shifty. "You didn't expressly forbid me from giving him an appointment."
Tifa just shook her head. "Okay, Jessie, thank you. Next time, just ask me before making any type of appointment with him? Even if he calls, run it by me first?"
Jessie nodded and walked out, sending Yazoo in.
Tifa set her papers aside and smiled. She had always liked Yazoo, mostly because he was a sweet guy, but she had also liked his honesty. All she hoped was that Loz didn't use his brother as an excuse to harass her at work. Come to think of it, she really hadn't seen Loz in a while, and she had wondered if he had left things alone. She smiled at the slim man in front of her and motioned for the chair on the other side of her desk, greeting him professionally, and shaking his hand.
Aside from having Rufus breathing down her neck, the last thing she needed was to have Loz adding to her stress. She just couldn't wait to see Marlene after school, and Cloud later that night. Letting out a deep breath, Tifa fell easily into the role of Editor-in-Chief, and pushed from her mind the fact that she would be seeing Rufus in a matter of hours.
………
Tifa didn't know whether to be angry or bewildered at the fact that Rufus had had his own assistant call Jessie and tell her that he needed to see Tifa at the restaurant across the street. Her restaurant. Well, to be fair, she didn't actually own it, but still… Rufus knew that it was her favorite place. After all, she had been photographed having lunch there many times before. Damn it, that meant that there was a big chance that she would actually be photographed with Rufus too, and she wouldn't be able to get away with being snide and rude with him in public.
"Your party is already waiting," said the maître d' with a smile.
"At my table," Tifa grumbled as she was led towards her favorite table. Rufus stood as soon as he spotted her and waited until she sat down before doing the same. The maître d' called a waiter over to their table before leaving them. "Nothing to drink for me, thank you; I will be leaving soon," she said, voice on edge.
Rufus was already on a glass of white wine, watching her with shrewd eyes as the waiter left them alone. "You seem tense. Maybe some alcohol will manage to relax you," he taunted.
Tifa had to refrain from sighing tiredly. "Whatever it is that you need to say to me, say it quickly. I need to be on my way before two o'clock," she said, leaning back in her chair and meeting his cool gaze.
"Ah, yes. You've recently taken in a child into your life. Why?"
"Did you honestly make an appointment with my assistant so that we could discuss my personal life? This is a waste of my time," Tifa said, making to stand.
Rufus stood as well and motioned to the chair. "Please sit," he said in a low tone.
Tifa paused at his 'please.' Rufus wasn't usually one to be so polite. He took what he wanted and with his position of power came the belief that he deserved everything. "You and I are not friends," she said seriously. "With our history, we never will be either. Stop invading my privacy and my life, Rufus."
He gave her a cold look. "Many people say that one never forgets their first love."
"I did," Tifa countered.
Rufus was the first to look away from her and he grit his teeth in anger, trying to keep calm. "I asked you here for professional reasons."
Tifa didn't believe him for a second. "And?"
"I recently bought shares from your company myself. I expect to be a part of your executive meetings," he said simply.
She hadn't even been aware that anyone had been selling them. She'd have to ask Vincent about it, since her brother usually monitored the shares in order for them to buy them themselves. "I don't know why you're telling me this. I don't attend the meetings. Vincent is my father's and my representative, so you will never see me at these meetings."
His plan to invade more of her life thwarted, Rufus swallowed a little more wine. "If I asked Elena for the divorce, would you leave your messenger boy?"
Tifa was sure that if she would've been eating or drinking something, she would've choked. Her eyes flew wide in incredulity as she stared at Rufus. "You did not just ask me that," she said in a low, angry voice, keeping her expression calm.
"Elena and I both married each other out of convenience, but I know very well that if I asked her for the divorce, she would gladly sign it," Rufus said, unfazed. "She—her heart belongs to someone else, I know."
Tifa was still looking at him as if he had suddenly sprouted a third eye in the middle of his forehead. "What—after the way we parted years ago—gave you the indication that something could be salvaged between us?" she asked in disbelief.
Rufus remained silent, watching her eyes, the set of her lips, the cold anger she was holding in check for the moment. "I would forsake everything for you," he said in a low tone.
Tifa let out a bitter laugh. "Then why didn't you when we were together and we had the chance?"
"My father would've torn us apart either way. You clearly have no idea of how far his power extended, do you? You didn't then, and you don't now," Rufus replied.
"It's too late for us, Rufus."
"Why? I would be willing to forgive everything between us. Why can't you?"
"Because you and your father took everything from me," Tifa hissed, getting to her feet again.
"My father forced me," Rufus growled, standing and facing her, aware that they were making a scene. This would not bode either of them well if there was a photographer within the vicinity. "I never wanted to—"
"For once in your life take responsibility for your own actions," Tifa whispered, her eyes burning with angry, painful tears. In that one moment, she didn't care if Rufus saw her break down and cry, she was just that angry, but she also didn't want the people in the restaurant to be privy to her moment of weakness. "It really is the least you can do after you shattered my life." With that, she turned and strode purposely away, leaving him standing there.
Rufus watched her go, feeling helplessness crawl in and settle in his chest for the second time in his life. He couldn't admit defeat with this. His father had stolen his chance at happiness from underneath him when he had been sixteen, all because the young girl from Nibelheim had been too below his station. Well, old man Shinra didn't rule him anymore, and he couldn't threaten with cutting him off because Rufus had made his own fortune in the last few years; he was his own source of power now.
Tifa was a well respected woman now too, and he had a feeling that she wouldn't cower before his father either. This was their chance, but Tifa would not easily forget the past, a past that Rufus was trying to leave behind as well. It was hard not to remember so many painful things, and it was even more difficult to admit that Tifa had hurt him just as equally. Despite that, he still wanted her more than he had ever wanted anything or anyone else. How would he be able to get through to her?
Paying for the glass of wine that was still half-full in its glass, Rufus walked out of the restaurant. Staring up at the building that belonged to Tifa and her family, he frowned thoughtfully. Lazard had said something about Denzel being in the same class as the girl that Tifa was in the process of adopting.
There. There was his opening.
……
Stepping out of the elevator with a tired sigh, Cloud approached Jessie's desk after giving Vincent's assistant a short wave. He set a few envelopes on the tray that the mail sorter would pick up and then deliver to the addressees in the building later on. He grunted a greeting and pulled off his riding gloves, stuffing them into his messenger bag. "Is Tifa in?" he asked Jessie.
"No. She had an appointment with someone who changed the location at the last minute," Jessie said, organizing the articles that had just come in for Tifa to revise. "She didn't say if she'd stop by before leaving to pick up Marlene, sorry."
"No problem," Cloud said with a shrug. "I haven't been able to reach her through messages though. Who was she going to see?" He usually wouldn't have asked, but it must've been someone important if she wasn't answering messages or calls.
"Well…" Jessie trailed off, uncertain.
Attention piqued, Cloud focused his sky blue eyes completely on the woman in front of him. Usually, he didn't take advantage of his looks the way Zack did, but he couldn't deny that it was amusing when women became flustered and gave him their undivided attention. He raised an eyebrow slowly and Jessie caved.
"Rufus Shinra made an appointment to see her, but at the last minute his assistant called and changed the location from here to the restaurant across the street," Jessie said, nearly in one jumbled sentence.
Cloud looked away before he managed to scare Jessie with the anger gathering in his eyes. He had promised himself that he wouldn't overreact when it came to Shinra, especially when Tifa had been honest with him about her encounters with Rufus. But that didn't mean that it didn't bother him that she fell so easily into Shinra's game. She kept giving the other man openings to keep interfering in her life and it had to stop. "I'm going to lunch," Cloud said in a low tone, not turning back to look at the young woman as he turned to go.
"What should I do if Tifa comes back and asks for you?"
"Nothing," Cloud said flatly. He stepped onto the elevator and waited until it stopped in the garage. He settled onto Fenrir and revved the engine, pulling on his gloves and his riding goggles. Just as he kicked up the stand, his phone began to shake in his pocket. Reaching for it, Cloud saw Tifa's number, along with a picture of her smiling and winking on the small screen.
Letting out a heavy sigh, he ignored the call. They'd have enough to talk about when night came around.
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Well, this chapter didn't end well, did it? I kinda had a moment of writer's block (that's why I took so long to update), so hopefully I didn't just rewrite stuff from past chapters. Though I do think that even though Rufus seems like an A-hole for going after Tifa even when she doesn't want him, he's at least showing that he's not pursuing her just to get one over Cloud, or to make Tifa miserable. Rufus Shinra can love people!
So next chapter Cloud and Tifa have their first real argument, Tifa and Lazard talk, and we'll see more of Denzel and Marlene. I know you'll probably want to strangle me because of the lack of CloudTifa love, but don't worry, I can't keep you and myself from the fluff for too long, so some patience would be nice! A big thanks to those of you who reviewed(new readers too) and I'm sorry it's taking me so long to reply. School starts next Tuesday for me, so my time will be severely cut. Still, I'll attempt to update before the weekend is over and then I think I'll have to cut down to one update per week, depending on how much homework I get. Again, thanks for reading and have an awesome weekend peeps!
Joey