A/N: Thank you Lumina and ATK1734 for your lovely reviews. I am glad we all cried (or almost cried) together XD Today's chapter is a bit longer than the last update. Going to hint very briefly at Aerith's beef with Lightning, but they'll definitely become friends later on. Sorry for the spoiler but Aerith's like an angel I doubt she can actually hate anyone. Hope you like it! :)

CHAPTER XIV.

New Beginnings

Lightning

Two weeks ago, Cloud and I had held onto Zack as his cries had broken our hearts, and we - unable to hold back our own pain - had cried with him.

Now, things were more or less back to 'normal', though we knew that they would never be the same. Zack had been brave and told everyone that there was nothing physically wrong with him, but he had struggled with depression. This was news to everyone who knew Zack to be the most cheerful and fun loving guy in the world.

Our friends were supportive and thanked him for letting them in. We pulled Zack into a group hug and everyone shared one thing they loved about him. Cloud and I started sharing our 'Zack watch' tasks with others, though we never explicitly called it that, or told anyone what had happened at the train station.

Serah and Vanille volunteered to walk Zack to independent and guided study groups. Cloud, Hope and I were exempted, but they were mandatory for the others in our group. Cloud spent the mornings with Zack so I could go for my run and catch up on studying. I took over during the afternoons so Cloud could physically train, study and eat. Fang, Vincent, Tifa, Noel, Yuel and even Snow took turns accompanying Zack in the evenings.

Every Tuesday, Cloud and I alternated to accompany Zack to therapy. We stayed until Zack finished his session, always stopping by Cocoon on our way back, where our friends had decided on a weekly Thursday evening gathering. Even though I was not big on hanging out in groups, I decided it was best for us to meet regularly. It kept Zack on a schedule.

And schedules were good.

The last week of November approached and so did the dreaded blizzard. Taking Tseng into confidence, I told him what had actually happened with Zack. My shifts were cut short into two hour shifts, scattered throughout the day to make them more manageable. I was the only person Tseng took off blizzard duty, and while this intrigued the other Turks, nobody asked me anything about it. They all placed a great deal of trust in Tseng, and if Tseng had excused me then that was that.

I was tutoring Serah and Vanille in a morning study group. Zack was napping next to me, his head resting on the table. Tifa and Cloud joined us, taking the only two remaining seats.

"Wow, look at you guys working hard at it since the early hours…" Tifa praised the two girls whose eyes sparkled.

"Captain!" They cried out emotionally. Vanille pouted, shooting a look of complaint towards me. "Lightning the meanie never praises us."

"I'll praise you when you get this right," I said, smacking Vanille's head lightly with the book.

"Ow! Okaaaayy!" She mumbled some more before returning her attention to the open page in front of her.

"Sorry… she's kind of a Spartan when it comes to tutoring…" Serah apologized and I sighed, passing the mock tests I had prepared for them.

"Okay, if you guys get a 60% on this you'll pass. Go!" I nudged and they began scribbling furiously on the paper. "Tifa, I made one for you too. Not that you need it, but just for practice, if you like." I added and my roommate flashed what Cloud called her 'Tifa smile.' It was one of the warmest things in the world.

"You're the best!" She looked over the pages for a while, before taking out a pencil as she started working through them.

Cloud sat opposite me and our eyes met. I could see he had been smiling softly at me.

My eyes withdrew from his gaze, quickly burning into the book that was presently open in my hand. We had officially started dating, but had been too busy with Zack for the past two weeks to even tell our friends. We automatically rushed to Zack in our free time and hadn't even spent any time alone since that day. To make matters worse, our schedules were all over the place these days.

My phone vibrated and I was surprised to see a text from Cloud.

"Come to the library."

As he started getting up, Tifa grabbed onto his arm. "Hey! Where are you going mister? I thought you were tutoring me today!"

"I'll get some fun reading from the library. I'll be back before you finish that mock test," he said gently and Tifa nodded with a pout, before returning to her own work.

"Fun reading… some people don't even pretend to study for the finals…" she mumbled and I chuckled out loud. Cloud did the same as he pushed his chair in, meeting my eyes one more time quickly before hurrying out of the cafe.

How do I move…. Strategy. I need a strategy. It'll be too obvious if I suddenly decide to leave.

After a few minutes, Fang and Vincent joined us with two large mugs of steaming black coffee. Fang occupied the now empty seat next to Tifa. Vincent just stood there, eyes sweeping the place for an empty chair. I jumped up from mine, taking this golden chance. "You know what, I think I'm gonna quickly stop by the office, so." I got up, offering my seat to Vincent who took it with a nod of gratitude.

"See ya sis!" Serah called out as the others waved me off. I glanced towards Zack, but Serah caught me, smiling as if to say 'I got him.'

It was nice to have sister telepathy at times like this.

I jogged towards the library, spotting Cloud's spiky hair waiting at the main entrance for me. I approached him awkwardly, thinking… Now what?

Cloud took my hand in his, leading me inside.

Even though we had been holding hands or hugging through tears the past couple of weeks, this was different. Cloud and I finally had a moment alone and there were so many things I wanted to talk about. But his touch sent a spark of electricity through me and soon everything I wanted to say eluded me.

Cloud led me to a quiet section of the library. He checked to see if no one was around before gently pulling me into his arms. My arms wrapped around him tightly as I took a deep breath of relief.

"Hi stranger," he chuckled as we broke the hug. I leaned against one of the bookshelves, cheeks slightly flushed. I tried to mask it with my usual smirk.

"Hi stranger," I repeated and Cloud picked up a strand of my hair, playing with it between his fingers.

"I feel like we never see each other," he said and I raised an eyebrow.

"We see each other all the time, Strife," I retorted and he only shrugged his shoulders.

"Not alone, not like this." Ah, a man of few words. But everytime he said something, it just sent my thoughts spiraling out of control. Did that mean we were lacking something as a couple? Was alone time normal, or even preferred? Should I schedule this more often? What was this anyway?

I glanced at him and he was looking at me thoughtfully.

"You said I am easy to understand, but you're quite difficult to read, Farron."

"Ha," I chuckled as I stared at the blonde male in front of me. "Why do you say that?"

He took a step towards me, his hand moving down to hold one of mine. "You always have this poker face, but your eyes make strange...strides."

"Strides?" I snorted and Cloud smiled a little in response.

"It's interesting to look at. Feels like you're analyzing something very deeply, running towards a hundred possibilities. I almost feel bad bothering you." He said as I enjoyed the warmth of his hand.

He had figured that out huh? I needed to stop over analyzing everything and enjoy the moment.

Enjoy the moment, Lightning.

My hand moved unconsciously over to his shirt and I tugged on it. Cloud raised both eyebrows in surprise, before releasing a happy sigh and closing the gap between our bodies.

"This is nice," he whispered as I kept both my hands on his torso.

"Really nice. I think I like the library," I joked and he showed me a full smile.

"I think you liked the library long before this, you nerd."

"Well I am sorry that normal people actually have to study to keep up," I teased again and Cloud pulled slightly on my loose bun, which came undone easily, releasing my hair.

"I like your hair," He ran his fingers through my hair. Cloud really seemed to like doing that.

"I like yours," I reached out to touch his spikes, but he intercepted my wrist half way, gently pushing it against the bookshelf. He leaned closer to me, a light blush spreading over his own face as our eyes locked.

God damn it, those hypnotic eyes.

I stared into his eyes for the longest time, feeling myself shamelessly tug on his shirt some more, encouraging him to continue.

What am I exactly asking for here?!

My heart started racing as he tilted his head sideways, long bangs falling on the side of his face. Cloud drew me in, and I tilted my face slightly upwards, eager. Our lips finally met and Cloud immediately released my wrist, wrapping both his arms around my waist as he pushed me further into the shelf behind me.

I gasped as I collided softly against the shelf. We parted for a few seconds, but I took this chance to wrap my arms around his neck. I wanted more. Cloud claimed my lips again, biting slightly on my lower lip. Releasing another sharp breath as he deepened the kiss, I found one of my hands grabbing his hair. One of his hands resting on the side of my waist, Cloud moved the other hand slowly up my spine.

My brain blanked out and I lost all touch with my surroundings. We heard footsteps and he released me. I looked away, taking a deep breath to calm down.

A few girls in lab coats passed by us. I looked up to see where we were.

Ah, the good old pre-med section.

"Strife, why are we sneaking around-" I was cut off as Cloud's lips were on mine again. I blushed harder, pushing back into his kiss. He kissed me for a few minutes, before releasing me, panting and looking away.

It felt like a mountain of awkwardness and crashed on top of us, crushing us both.

Please say something! I secretly wished, covering my lips with the back of my hand as I looked away. Cloud also looked the other way, one of his hands still gripping the column next to my waist.

"We should just tell everyone," He finally said and I nodded in agreement quickly. Yes, that would be the best.

"Should we invite them out tonight?" I asked as Cloud gave it some thought. He faced me and nodded, his eyes moving down to my lips again.

"Mmhm," he replied as my lips parted in wanting. Cloud indulged me, kissing me again, more aggressively than before. My hand gripped his arm as we both closed our eyes. I shuddered in pleasure, feeling lightheaded. If he didn't stop soon, my knees would definitely collapse.

"Oh…. wow. Awkward…" A familiar voice jerked us both out of the moment. I was horrified to find Hope standing there with a pile of books in his hands. Right… Hope was also pre-med. "Please c-continue!" He said - well, sort of shouted - as he turned to leave.

"Eshteim, hang on. I want to talk." I called out and he faced me hesitantly, his own face as red as a tomato.

I think the three of us were competing to see who could be the most awkward.

"Let's have lunch later. I'll wait for you near the east gate." He told me, grabbing a book hurriedly from the nearest shelf and placing it on top of his pile.

"Right, sure." I nodded and Hope hurried off. I sighed, unable to face Cloud who was also deliberately looking in the other direction.

"Okay, um, I'll see you tonight," I managed to say, only staying long enough to see him face me and nod. "I'll head back first. Just… come ten minutes later."

Wow, we really were just sneaking around.

I went to the restroom, splashing my face with cold water. The hot feeling inside me didn't go away, but at least it killed the color in my cheeks. I shivered, drying my face and fixing my hair in a bun again.

I counted to ten, taking deep breaths as I walked back to the cafe. Fang waved as I walked in, Vincent grabbing an extra chair for me. I nodded in thanks and tiredly sank into it. Zack was now awake and was working on some problems for one of his exams.

I silently placed my head against his shoulder. Zack made everything feel right again.

"Welcome back," he said as I nodded, eyes closed.

"We're going for lunch at noon. Light, wanna come?" Tifa asked after some time had passed. Cloud finally joined us, taking his place next to my roommate. Both of us shied away from each other's eyes, trying to remain cool.

"Not today, I have plans with Estheim." I replied honestly. Vanille and Serah handed me their papers for grading. "Hang on, I'll do this quick." I went through them, counting the mistakes off and writing the final score. I passed the papers back to them with a small smile.

"75. Good job."

"Lightning! Our savior!" They both squealed as they jumped in to hug me together. My chair almost tumbled back, but Zack steadied it with one hand as he laughed.

It was so good to see Zack laugh again.

"Your fun reading is... Molecular Biology?" Tifa raised an eyebrow as Cloud's face turned pink again.

He just nodded, opened it and started reading quietly. At least he had remembered the excuse he used to get out.

Just before leaving the cafe, Vanille handed me a pair of gloves. "Light… give these to Hope. That idiot always has cold hands." It was obvious that Vanille cared a lot for Hope.

"Sure," I replied as I hopped on the shuttle bus for the east gate. It took about ten minutes to arrive. Jumping off the platform, I looked around and spotted Hope near the gate entrance.

"Hey Light…" he said awkwardly, cheeks heating up at the sight of me.

Oh no…. He's probably recalling… that.

"So… what do you feel like eating?" He asked in his usual gentlemanly voice, sliding his hands into the pockets of his white lab coat.

"Something heavy. Like a cheese burger and chili fries." Hope couldn't contain his surprise.

"I thought you ate healthy all the time."

"For the most part, I do," I confirmed with a nod. "Just feel like cheating today."

"Alright," Hope smiled as we walked out of the gate and into the city. We didn't want to wander too far off, so we chose a quiet burger bar near the gate. Settling on high stools, placed against the retro counter with neon lights, we skimmed the menus and ordered.

"So…. I am sorry about, you know what." I offered as I cleared my throat awkwardly.

"No, don't apologize. I am sorry for walking in…." Hope tried but I waved my hand before picking up a glass of water and drinking some of the liquid.

"You were doing what you were actually supposed to in the library. It's my fault. I am sorry," I answered, trying to stay collected. My choice of words just reminded us both of what had happened and I tried to calm myself down again.

Hope nodded, looking around the quiet place. "I bet the west gate is packed to the brim right now," he commented.

"Overflowing," I chuckled. Since this part of town was mostly for working adults, it wasn't that crowded during this time.

"Estheim, listen... I am dating Strife."

He nodded quietly. He ordered a beer and I ordered one to accompany him.

"I know you guys got off on the wrong foot, but thanks for looking out for me-" Hope's eyes narrowed down at me and I was caught off guard.

"That's what you think happened?"

I couldn't think of anything else. "Yes?" I repeated but Hope's hand moved over to hold mine.

"I like you. I have liked you since I first saw you. I liked you before him," he added the last part begrudgingly.

First Reno, then Cloud, then Hope. I didn't know what to say.

"Um… Estheim…" I started, taking a deep breath. "Hope," I said clearly and Hope's eyes quickly met mine. "You're a good friend, but you've always been like a little brother to me. Even if I wasn't dating Cloud… I don't think you and I could be together." No vague messages. Hope didn't need that from me. I needed to be crystal clear and give him a proper answer, like he deserved. "Strife also said a few weeks back that he was just worked up over other things when you and him had that disagreement-"

"I know," Hope interrupted, smiling. "He came over and apologized to me for that day. But even if he didn't, I couldn't blame him. I would be crazy protective of you too. You're one of a kind."

Hope held my hand, leaning his face into my shoulder.

"Hope…" I sighed as I tensed slightly at the sudden intimacy.

"I am sorry, just… let me stay like this."

After a few minutes our food arrived. We ate quickly and quietly. The dishes were cleared and we ordered another beer. Taking a swig from my bottle, I set it down and faced Hope. "I am really honored that you feel that way about me. Honestly, I don't deserve it. But thank you."

Hope shook his head, emerald orbs staring into my eyes. "You deserve a lot more. I guess you and Strife are kind of perfect together."

"I didn't know he had your approval." I confessed as Hope blushed, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"He's a really cool guy. I look up to him a lot. But don't tell him." I chuckled at the last part, promising him with a nod. "You're really cool too, Light. You've taught me a lot, you know." He looked down at the smooth counter. "Will you give me some final parting wisdom?" He requested in a sad voice.

I furrowed my eyebrows together as I tensed. This wasn't some big goodbye. I was always going to be Hope's friend. But I decided to meet his request.

"Don't take anything for granted and give thanks where it is due," I smirked as Hope looked at me confused, pulling the gloves Vanille had given me from my bag. I opened his hand and placed the gloves there.

"Vanille sent these for your cold hands," I hinted, showing him a small smile.

Hope blushed as he cleared his throat too, shying away from my face. "She's so annoying," he said, unable to stop the smile spreading on his own face. His words didn't meet his actions at all.

These two were going to be a pain in the ass.

I got back to the dorms, stopping by Serah's room first. "Serah will be back soon," Vanille informed me at the door as she rubbed her sleepy eyes. I felt bad waking her from her afternoon nap.

"I can come back later-" I started but Vanille smiled happily.

"No no, come in. I was gonna wake up anyway." She plopped down on her bed, grabbing her pillow and squeezing it, happily burying her chin in it as she looked at me. "So, did he confess?"

Surprised, I stared at her.

"You know, Hope. Come on, he's been pestering me for weeks now.

"I turned him down. I am dating Strife." Somehow I had ended up telling people one by one, unlike the way Cloud and I had decided earlier. But the circumstances were strange. "So you should tell him too."

Vanille was about to congratulate me but she broke into a full fledged blush. "T-t-t-tell him what?"

I smirked, preferring to remain silent. I fell back on Serah's bed, arms extended both ways. Maybe I should take an afternoon nap too. Some time passed. I lay very still, watching the curtains dance gracefully in front of the open window. The air was cool.

"Hiya Light!" Serah skipped in, tackling me in a hug as I sat up on her bed.

"Hi," I replied, watching her glow. "Did something good happen?" She just blushed, looking away as she pulled back from the hug.

"I was just with Snow a little while ago."

I rolled my eyes. Serah was a poor judge of character. Snow acted like a buffoon sometimes, but I wasn't sure if he was putting on an act and was actually very cunning. I worried about Serah, but she was hopelessly in love with that guy.

"Come on Light…" Serah pouted as I narrowed my eyebrows, trying to avoid her annoyed gaze.

"Look Serah…" I had to give up. I couldn't do a 'Serah watch' with a 'Zack watch' simultaneously, and Zack needed me a lot more. It was going to happen sooner or later. And while it disgusted me to even imagine it, I needed to be an adult if Serah was going to be a lovestruck fool.

"When we're old, we sort of… um, discover desires and want to… satisfy those with the opposite (or same) gen-"

Vanille covered her ears as Serah let out a loud "Eww!" interrupting me. "Are you trying to have the talk with me?" She shrieked and I cleared my throat, wincing at her volume.

"Trust me, this isn't any easier for me-" I tried but Serah inched away from me, leaning back.

"Light, it's definitely more embarrassing for me!" She complained but I didn't relent.

"You think I want to have this conversation with my little sister?" I fumed as Vanille gulped, hiding behind her pillow. Our 'talk' was escalating, but Serah was also showing me a new… stubborn expression that I hadn't seen before.

"Okay Light, seriously. Mom already had the talk with me ages ago, so spare yourself the trouble." She spat bitterly as I looked at her unbelievingly.

"What? She never had the talk with me!" I complained and Serah rolled her eyes.

"She thought you wouldn't really need it. I mean, you have always been into guns more than boys."

Wow. Great parenting… I thought scathingly. "So you've….?" I couldn't even bring myself to finish the question.

"EWW!" Serah shrieked again and I scooted away this time. I realized I was causing her some distress. "Yes, of course I have. Do you think I am a robot?! And we're always careful by the way!" Serah blushed and looked away angrily, hands balled into fists. I sighed, trying to calm myself down. "Snow's not even my first-"

"PLEASE don't tell me any more." I put my hand up like a stop sign, growling deeply. Serah pouted, releasing a 'humph' as she fell silent.

"Light...I am sorry but...um, have you ever?" Vanille looked over at me carefully in the aftermath of the Farron sisters' drama. I shook my head. Even Serah looked horrified, but Vanille spoke almost immediately.

"But you were in the army..!" She said in an accusatory tone.

"What does that mean?" I crossed my arms across my chest. "I was actually working, not sleeping around!" I said in a somewhat loud voice.

Vanille tapped her chin thoughtfully. "You know I thought you'd have… like that sexy soldier-commander scenario going on-"

"What have you been watching?" Serah echoed my thoughts as it was my turn to roll my eyes.

"My commander was over 70." I replied, just to put an end to whatever was going on in Vanille's mind. "Anyway, I need to go check in on Zack. This conversation is over." I slammed the door shut behind me as I left, anger bubbling inside me. I just wanted to break Snow's hands for touching my sister, but… maybe that's what people in relationships did and I was the one who was overreacting.

Zack and I were playing a new fighting RPG that was just released. I slashed through the enemies, poking at their dead bodies even when their HP bar was zero.

"Wow, someone's in a mood…" Zack flinched as I continued to stab the dead NPCs. "Dude, talk to me."

I sighed defeatedly. "Zack, this is going to be weird but the girls will make a huge deal if I talk to them about this."

The taller male nodded, listening intently as he glanced between me and the screen. I continued to play the game too. It would be too much to pause and then talk about this.

"I just found out my sister is not a virgin." I said in an annoyed tone. "And then we had a fight."

Zack dodged some enemies in the game, coming to my aid as we fought a monster together, eyes on the screen.

"Light… that's totally normal. I'm sure if I had a little sister I wouldn't want to know too, but I don't think you should fight lil' Farron over it."

I kind of understood where he was coming from. There was something oddly calming about confiding in Zack. It was like he was family, a long lost older brother we had always had.

"Have you and Aerith..?" I asked carefully and Zack snorted loudly.

"Dude, all the time. Several times a day, sometimes."

"EW Zack!" I threw the controller at him, which he had surprisingly caught. I didn't know his reflexes were this fast. He returned it to my hand, his thundering laugh overtaking the silence of the room.

"You asked!" He continued to laugh as I punched him in the arm lightly, returning to the game where we had advanced to the next level. "I am telling you though, from what I've heard Cloud made his exes do all the work so I'm guessing he's hopeless. Want me to give him some pro tips?"

Blood rushed to my face, even my ears felt hot. I coughed loudly. "I don't think we're quite there yet, but thanks for the thought."

Just then Cloud entered, taking off his jacket and throwing it on his bed. "What are you guys talking about?"

Zack and I both tried to hold back our laughter, but couldn't. We held our sides as we laughed and Cloud stood there smiling. I knew the face he was making and the exact sentiment in his eyes. I felt it, too.

It was so good to have Zack back.

Cloud

Zack and Lightning were on their fifth boss fight when I told them to wrap it up so we could have dinner with everyone.

Zack walked with his arm around Lightning, chatting about something animatedly. Lightning had grown so attached to Zack, it was almost like she had no defenses at all around him. I admired them both as I walked a few paces behind. Zack, with his incredible kindness and strength of character that could save anyone. Lightning with her fierce loyalty, who would never leave a friend behind. What a duo.

And I was glad to have them both in my life.

Cocoon was at max capacity, so we had to go to another bar. This one was called Sin Club, so we initially assumed it to be a strip club at first. Vanille was dying of curiosity, so we decided to pop our heads in for a quick look. But when we stepped inside, it just seemed like a dimly lit, sort of normal place. The crowd was a little older and I recognized some seniors from our university.

"Well…?" I asked as the others agreed to settle around one of the tables.

"I prefer Cocoon but… we'll take what we can get." Tifa took her usual seat next to me. I was going to ask Lightning to sit close to me but Vincent had popped in, sitting on my other side.

Oh well.

Lightning took a seat opposite me with Zack and Hope on both sides. Serah sat sort of far from Lightning, which was unusual. I swear I saw the sisters shoot invisible lasers at each other. Did they have a fight…?

We ordered the first round of drinks, opting for cocktails instead of beer. I cleared my throat, trying to gain everyone's attention since Lightning was currently occupied in some sort of deep conversation with Hope.

"I uh… just wanted to let you guys know that…" I hesitated. Lightning gave me a 'want-me-to-do-it?' look and I quickly shook my head. "Farron and I started dating around two weeks ago."

"TWO WEEKS?!" Serah let out a girlish scream, the slight animosity I had sensed from her had disappeared. She was beaming at her older sister. "Light! Congrats!"

Lightning nodded as everyone raised their drinks towards her, starting to smile a little.

"To Cloud and Lightning!" Hope surprised me by leading the toast, smiling at me as he raised the glass.

I nodded back gratefully at him as we all took a sip of our drinks.

"Cloud and Lightning…" Zack pretended to be in deep thought. "You can name your kids Sky and Thunder."

Lighting rolled her eyes as her shoulder bumped Zack's, who called for another round of drinks. "I am gonna get drunk tonight, like a father who has to give his daughter away… to his brother?" He finished in a confused way and Tifa let out an 'ew'.

"Zack, that's, no… that's wrong on so many levels." She broke into a laugh and I relaxed, a huge burden lifted off of my shoulders.

My phone vibrated and I saw Lightning's smirk. I glanced quickly at the text which I could only assume was from here. And there it was.

"Good job."

I smirked back at her, sliding my phone back into my pocket.

"To our friends, champions of grumpiness!" Fang proposed the second toast. Zack threw in, "May you brood together for a long time!" Lightning and I both smiled as we drank from our glasses, the others roaring into laughter as they downed their drinks.

"You know, I was thinking, why don't we take a trip?" I heard Vanille suggest. "I mean the blizzard's gonna hit and we'll all be snowed in. I'd rather we get snowed in somewhere nice at least. Not campus."

"Oooh!" Serah nodded in passionate agreement. "I actually saw this really nice cottage in the mountains that was up for overnight rentals. Should we check it out?"

"I think I know which one you're talking about," Tifa nodded, whipping out her phone as she began searching for it. "Oh but Lightning, you have work right?"

"I am off," I heard her say. Surprisingly Lightning was not as opposed to this as I thought she would be.

"Then it's settled, we should go!" Fang gave a thumbs up to Tifa who looked over at Vincent and I.

"You guys wanna go?" She asked timidly.

"I don't get a choice," Vincent pointed at Fang casually with his thumb. I just nodded in response.

"Alright, I'll book us all in." Tifa smiled and began typing before pausing quickly to check, "Noel and Yeul…?"

"Nope, Yeul is banned from overnight trips." Serah reminded Tifa sadly.

"Poor Noel…" Tifa said as Lightning gave her a confused look. I guess she missed out on Tifa's subtle joke.

"Another round! On me!" Serah's hand shot up and the waiter brought us a new set of drinks.

"To Cloud," she smiled and raised it towards me, "Who better treat my sister well!" She said threateningly and I found it very cute. "And my sister, my best friend," her eyes met matching pale aqua ones. "Who deserves everything in the world and more!"

"Cloud and Lightning!" Snow's voice was followed by the clinking of glasses.

We drank for sometime, with our friends pestering us for details. Sadly, we had gotten together in the strangest possible way, so we couldn't really tell him how, why or where. Lightning and I were both not big talkers anyway, so they realized that it was a struggle to get anything out of us and gave up quickly.

When we finally decided to get back, I walked behind the rest of the group. A familiar voice was was next to me which I recognized as Aerith's as spoke out of nowhere.

"Tifa texted me, congratulations Cloud," she smiled as she joined in, walking next to me. Aerith looked ahead, watching how Zack was walking by Lightning's side, bursting into laughter in response to something she said with a deadpan face.

"I don't like her but… she really saved Zack this time, huh?" Aerith was smiling at the pink haired girl's back. I nodded.

"Couldn't have done it without her." I replied, slipping my hands in my pockets.

"I bet I am still the best girlfriend you had." She flirted casually and I smirked.

"Humph. You're pretty hard to beat but…" my eyes traveled to the amazing girl walking ahead of me.

"Yeah, she's kinda perfect, isn't she? Aaah~ It's no fun if they're so perfect." Aerith's voice had no hostility towards Lightning. I shrugged in response.

"You can always try to get to know her. You made the effort with me." I reminded her.

"Yep, I feel like it'll be an effort with her too. I mean, you guys are scarily alike. You even have the same spiky hair…" Aerith replied and I chuckled. I hadn't thought about it that way, but it did make sense now that she pointed it out.

"Come with us. We're planning on going to on a trip. Zack will want you there." I offered and she smiled up at me.

"What about you?" She joked and I smirked at her.

"Lightning knows how to use a gun, you know." I teased back and she let out a 'ha-ha' as she crossed her arms.

"She's tiny next to Zack!" She boasted and I just looked away, trying not to laugh.

"She's much taller than you," I defended.

"Wow, Cloud Strife is smitten." Aerith rolled her eyes and I smiled triumphantly.

"I don't trust the military… ex-military too," she added just when I was about to protest, "...Especially after what they did to me. They're all the same for me, really. But now that you've decided to date her, I guess I can try a little bit."

"Thanks," I said appreciatively.

"Zack!" Aerith called, startling the male who stopped moving. She ran towards him, straight into his arms. She gave Lightning a small nod of acknowledgement, which Lightning returned before I caught up with them.

My hand automatically reached for the pink haired girl's, our fingers intertwining like it was natural. It was as if they were simply returning to where they were supposed to be. I slowed down intentionally so we were a little behind the rest of the group. We were both blushing as we looked away awkwardly, unable to face each other.

Words were scarce between us, but we understood each other well without them. Even our steps felt like they were in sync.

I had met the best girl.

And I didn't want to let her go.

A/N: Okay I am sorry for the return of Fifty Shades of Lightning XD But I wanted to try writing a detailed kiss from Lightning's perspective. That awkward walk in with Hope though. I am going to ship Hope x Vanille in this story (I know she's older in the game, but she's really young in here so I am gonna leave out the Vanille x Sazh pairing). The next chapter will be about camping out in the cottage. Stuck inside in a wonderful cabin, all these young couples. *types away thirsty chapter-* (Okay no, I am just kidding). Should I take our main protagonists to the next level? Keep them stuck at kissing once every two weeks and then being awkward for the whole day around each other? XD Let me know!

And happy Friyay everyone! ^^