Red roses mean love
By Kimetara
Multi-part
Disclaimer: FFVII mine? Nope, I wish I was capable of such a creation, but sadly, I find my talents lacking. *melodramatic sigh*
AN: Sorry it's late! School's started up again, and there's a ton of homework to do... -_____-;;
Chapter Four
Vincent stood slowly. *Fool. Why are you flinching at her touch?* he berated, feeling slightly disgusted at himself.
But he knew why.
He had always loved her from afar – and from there, it was safe. He couldn't be hurt by rejection.
With Cloud gone though, there was a chance...a chance that Vincent both welcomed and feared. Unfortunately, fear tended to be the stronger of the two emotions.
He was afraid of Tifa getting any closer to him than she already was.
He desperately wanted her to be.
Chaos shifted restlessly within the recesses of Vincent's mind, his confusion stimulating the creature. Vincent immediately proceeded to sternly reprimand the monster within. Chaos was silent, but Vincent knew he wouldn't stay that way.
Vincent needed an answer.
Tifa appeared at the doorway of the conservatory, beaming. "Cid and Shera say they'll help, Vincent! We'll all go together on the Highwind!" She walked forward happily, maneuvering gracefully around the treasure chest. She paused for a moment, her fingers lightly tracing writing on the lid. "This was one of the numbers to that combination lock that held the basement key." Tifa flashed a smile at the dark man. "I'm so glad we decided to find you..." she spoke softly, not removing her gaze from the lid.
"Are you?" Argh. That slipped. He always ended up blurting things out when it came to Tifa.
"Of course!" Tifa gave Vincent a surprised look. "You're one of my best friends, Vincent. Oh!" Tifa slapped her forehead. "That reminds me, I completely forgot to call Reeve. Be back in a minute!" The brunette rushed out to make her phone call.
Vincent shook his head. *Well now, that was unhelpful...* Still, something within him warmed at Tifa's assertion. At the very least, she considered him a good friend...
He caressed the velvet petals of the rosebush, mindful of its thorns. Unwittingly, his mind wandered back to the rose he'd given Tifa. Perhaps he shouldn't have done that. There were certainly mentions of such a gesture in the older books; what if Tifa discovered its meaning? Vincent closed his eyes, his uncertainty building.
At this, Chaos rose, more insistent than before. Again, Vincent reprimanded the monster. This time though, it took longer, and more effort to force the demon back into its hiding place. A miniscule amount more, but Vincent knew how quickly those amounts added up.
*If he becomes stronger simply through my confusion, what will occur if Tifa rejects me?* Vincent shuddered. The thought of another rejection was horrible enough, but with this new...creature living within him... He bowed his head, Chaos forcing him to make his decision.
In a way, he half-hoped Tifa would find the rose's meaning...it would be her only hint to his feelings for her.
Slipping into a more depressed state, Vincent morosely stepped out of the conservatory, when a flash of white bolting up the stairs caught his eye.
*Tifa...?*
*Silly!* Tifa chided herself. *Now you have to go all the way back upstairs!* Still, Tifa was too enthused with her idea to be very annoyed at going up and down a simple flight of stairs. It was nothing compared to that long stairway she, Barret, and Cloud had been forced to climb in the Shinra headquarters...
Tifa tipped her head backward, closing her eyes to keep the tears from falling. *Stop it! You have things to do. You need to call Reeve, figure out when Cid should bring the Highwind, pack, gather seeds...* Still, the tears trickled past her eyelids, making a glimmering path down her cheeks. Tifa bit her lip, trying to keep her crying at bay as she ran up the stairs.
After what seemed like ages, she finally reached her room, where she flung herself on the bed and sobbed into her pillow.
Eventually, she heard a soft knock. Tifa peeked back around, and caught sight of Vincent standing in the doorway.
"Oh...Vincent..." For a moment, Tifa attempted to sit up and rub her tears away, but she soon gave up. This was Vincent, after all. He'd understand.
"I will assume you weren't startled this time."
Tifa smiled, but it soon faded away. "No." She turned back around to face the wall, still hugging her pillow. "It's not fair, Vincent..." she whispered.
No response.
Tifa turned back around, expecting to see the doorway empty, but to her surprise, he was still standing there. Tifa couldn't tell much from his expression, as his mouth was always hidden by the neck of his cape, but he seemed...indecisive?
Surprising her even further, Vincent strode gracefully into the room, seating himself on the edge of her bed.
At any other time, Tifa would have probably sat there imitating a goldfish from shock, but at the moment...she just didn't feel like it.
*Guess I'll be having that pity party a bit early...* Tifa faced back to the wall. "I mean, I was the one that brought him into AVALANCHE. I trusted him when everybody else thought he was going crazy. I nursed him in Mideel, I pieced back his messed up past in the Lifestream, I stayed with him before we fought Sephiroth, and what does he do? Stick around for three months, just long enough for me to believe he won't leave, then he goes and ditches me for a...a dead girl! Not even a good-bye!"
"Who you love is a heart's decision, not the mind's," Vincent answered, allowing his usually emotionless tone to gain a slightly softer edge.
"Maybe. But you know what's the worst thing?" Tifa sat up, still hugging her pillow. "Maybe Cloud could have loved me. Maybe if I had told him the truth about his past sooner, he would have. Maybe if I had told him I loved him...before he met Aeris...he would have. " Tifa shook her head violently. "Maybe maybe maybe! It's driving me crazy, Vincent!" She dropped her pillow, hiding her face with her hands. "What else could I have done? What could I have changed? I have so many regrets, Vincent, but I don't know what I'm regretting!" For a second, Tifa's fingers clutched at her deep chocolate hair, before abruptly going lax.
"...I feel like I'm back in the Lifestream," she whispered. "Surrounded by darkness, voices screaming at me from nowhere. Completely lost, completely alone, searching for something I've let slip through my fingers..."
Vincent sat there quietly, watching Tifa cry. Words were not his forte, and he sensed they weren't wanted at the time anyway.
So he simply sat, silently offering whatever comfort his presence could bring. And he knew, from his own past, that it was all truly needed.
AN: I've never personally experienced a break-up, so I'm not sure whether I did a good job with Tifa's emotions or not... ^^;; Sorry.
And I realize I may have made Tifa appear as a wimp, but I think that after Cloud's...abrupt leave-taking, she'd deserve a good cry. At any rate, please review!