NOTICE TO READERS: I'm very sorry that this fic hasn't been updated in a VERY VERY long time, but I still haven't gotten my A:/ drive fixed so I couldn't transfer my fic to a disk to a computer that has internet so I could update. What I finally did was print every page of my new chapters that I needed to update (which took an hour and a half to print 25 pages thanks to my stupid, slow old printer) and retype it on a computer that has the internet. It was a big pain in the ass, but it was all for you guys. I hope you enjoy these chapters since my printer is now also out of ink. :P

Author: Blah, blah, blah etc. lol. Sorry everyone, but I've got a deadline to meet and I'm trying to re-type out four bloody chapters in two nights (Not that I mind because it's all worth it for you guys :D) so I'll just get on with the reader responses now, okay? Okay!

Dragon Girl323 - Surprise? What surprise? ;) Who said that Tifa's pants were tight because of an important reason? Maybe she's just getting fat. :P Wow! Your review made me feel all warm and glowy and loved. Thankies! ::superhuggles:: I'm glad that you liked it so much and I hope you can find it in your wonderful heart to forgive me for not updating for so long. I really enjoyed writing the part where Tifa told off Josef, so I'm glad that you enjoyed reading it! :P Thanks again and I hope you love this chapter just as much. ::huggles::

Ezri-Candy - ::laughs:: I'm just glad you had such a "good time" with Sephiroth. :P I felt horrible writing the part where Vincent hit Tifa, but it needed to be done to show the control that Chaos had over him (and maybe still does! Duh duh duh! ::evil theme music::) Anyway, thanks for the review and I hope you enjoy my long awaited chapter.

Emri – Okay. First of all, CALM DOWN! Lol. I like that everything you said was in partial sentences. It made me laugh. I loved your review and I hope I can answer all your questions. Kaite is fine, Josef is a jerk, Chaos is a butt, Vincent and Tifa love each other, Cid might come and save Shera, or her baby might die, the game they were playing was an actual game (I own it) and yes, Vincent lives. Lol. There. I hope that answered all those questions in one shot. ;) ::huggles:: Thankies for the kind review and for reading my fic! Hope to see more reviews from you soon.

Fantasy-dreamz – Yay! Finally, someone appreciates the insanity of my author's notes! Wheee! Except that there aren't going to be many for this chapter cause I'm having a stressful enough time just getting it typed out. I promise that the insanity will return next chapter so I hope you continue reading and reviewing! ::huggles:: Enjoy the chapter. :)

Mr. Flames – Awww. ::blushes:: Thank you for actually saying nice things about me thing time. :P I think in a fight that Vincent would kick Josef's ass and I'm not just saying that because of my Vincent fetish…..I mean….u.m…..::ahem::….. Yes, anyway, hopefully the baby will be all right. I don't want him to die! ::cries:: You better hurry and read the chapter so you can find out what happens. Try not to fall off your chair this time. :P Enjoy the chappie.

Neko-Yuff16 – Heehee! Hello Amanda. :P My names Natalee and I thought it was pretty funny because a reviewer from one of my other fics has the same name as me. Anyway, Amanda is a wonderful name! I love my Amanda and I guess I'll have to refer to her as Amanda #1 and you as Amanda #2, just so we don't get confused. ;) lol. Vinny is such a cutie with Tifa and I'm glad they are working out their relationship problems. Hopefully Josef won't interfere anymore……::eyes shift back and forth suspiciously:: Don't worry, Chaos won't be hitting Tifa anymore. Vincent will just have to kiss her lots to make up for it. :P Thanks for the fantabulous review and I hope to see another one soon! ::huggles::

Chaos Redeemer - ::looks up with her cheeks stuffed full of cookies and crumbs falling out of her mouth when she speaks:: Mmph…..shank oo fur ta yummy cookis! ::swallows:: ! Thank you so much. I really needed that. Your review actually made me blush. No one has ever said such amazing things about my writing. It's so nice to see that someone truly enjoys my fic. I herby dedicate next chapter to you! (Someone has already been selected for this one.) Congrats! ::hands you a shiny metal plaque:: You can comment in your review if there are any specific things you would like to see in the next chapter and I'll do my best to make them happen.

Sephiroth: ::pouts:: Don't give them shiny stuff. They said I should do something about you liking Kuja and I don't know what to do! Geez, not even a single suggestion! ::grumbles under his breath::

Moogle: (that's me :P) Aww poor whiny Sephy. I think he's mad at you.

Sephiroth: Oh yah! I'll show you! ::grabs author and kisses her deeply::

Moogle: ::staggers:: WOW! Cookies and Sephiroth! I think I'm in heaven! ::ahem:: Comes back down to earth with stars in her eyes. I think you need to reprimand Sephiroth more often! Thank you for the wonderful review and for encouraging my Sephy to be brave! ::superhuggles:: See you next chapter.

The Frogness – Yay! Another super-dee-duper wonderful review from you! It's so long! ::falls over in shock:: I thought I was the only one who reviewed peoples' stories with insanely long reviews! At last, a nemesis with a talent worthy to defeat my own! Lol. Yes, Max and Gary are in love…….or are they?! Maybe Max is just leading him on so she can squelch his poor little heart and laugh in his face. Hey, you never know. By, the way, this chapter is dedicated to you for your wonderfully long review and kind words! I feel so loved! I'm sorry, but I don't think that Shera and Cid want to name their baby Frogness ;) even if it did live, it would probably be male. (I'll name their gerbil Frogness okay? Lol) Awww, poor Josef. You're going to hate him even more after this chapter. I mean, um, ahem. Crap! I've said to much already! ;) ::pouts:: You can't steal my Sephiroth and Kuja from me! NOOO! Just because I won't make Tifa pregnant?! Aww, no fair. How do you know that her pants weren't getting tight cause she's been eating too much chocolate lately? Huh? HUH?! Beat that! Oh, burn! :P I tried to make Tifa more comfortable with Vincent in this chapter and hopefully they'll stay that way in chapters to come. I'll make sure that the next chapter is dedicated to a little bit more of Vincent's perspective and his thoughts on hitting Tifa and many others such things that need to be cleared up. Hopefully Vincent will never hit Tifa again and then you'll never have to go through that kind of trauma or have to minimize the fic to recover! ::huggles:: Sorry if I scared you. :( yay! I get huggles! You know, I think you're the first person to huggle me back! Oh the wonderfulness of it all! And no, I'm insane…….much. Thanks for helping me towards my goal of 100 reviews and search no further for chocolate. ::hands you a lifetime supply of thousands of kinds of chocolate:: Hope you enjoy the chapter! This one's for you. :D

Raven Cactuar - ::catches confetti and spins around in circles laughing insanely:: I love confetti! It's so much fun! Even if it does make a big mess in the fic. I'll just get Sephiroth to clean it up. :P It's nice to hear that you seem to think my writing is improving as it goes on. That actually is my goal. The more I write the better it should get. Your fantastical compliments revealed to me that, that's actually happening. Why does everyone think Tifa is pregnant?! I can't reveal things like that until much later anyway! Lol. Tifa may or may not be pregnant and I'll say what I said to the press this morning. No comment. ;) You may think I am an awesome author, but I think you're an awesome reviewer! You've been by my side since the very beginning and I love you for it! Thanks for the continued support and for your wonderful reviews! ::superhuggles:: Here's hoping for another just as wonderful one, once you finish reading this chappie. See you then! ::hands you more candy::

Author: I have nothing more to say for now, so on with the fic! :D

THISISTHESTUPIDLINEDIVIDINGTHEFICANDTHEAUTHORSNOTES

Shera gulped in shallow breaths of air as she struggled to reach the phone they kept on the bedside table. Finally reaching it, she hit the floor with her fist in anger, remembering that she had left the cordless phone downstairs on the kitchen table so it wouldn't ring and wake her up while she was trying to sleep. More sweat ran down her face as the contractions got worse and worse. She realized that blood had added to the liquid beneath her.

"Help!" she squeaked out, barely above a whisper. There had to be some way to make noise. Someone had to hear her. A thought struck her and Shera began to hit her fists on the floor, as hard as her remaining strength would allow. Tears added to the sweat as waves of pain washed over her. Please God, let someone hear.

Josef paused in the kitchen, looking back towards the stairs with a frown. He thought he had heard something. Another thump sounded and he winced in disgust. Hopefully Tifa and Vincent hadn't taken him seriously and really started doing.....that.....in Shera's guest room. Louder bangs sounded and he shook his head. Why would it be so loud? It sounded more like it was coming from Cid and Shera's room anyway. Maybe Shera needed something. The sounds abruptly stopped and Josef started back up the stairs with a worried expression. He hoped nothing was wrong.

Groaning in pain, Shera had to stop. Her stamina was completely gone and she felt as though she might pass out. I don't want my baby to die, she thought desperately, choking back tears. Slumping onto her side, Shera focused on breathing and tried to ignore the pain. Footsteps made their way to her door and she could hear a light knock.

"Shera? Are you all right in there?"

Josef! It was Josef! Shera tried to tell him to hurry up, but found her voice completely gone.

"I'm coming in to check on you, okay? Tell me to stop if you're indecent or something. Okay? Shera?" Josef slowly pushed open the door and peered into the room. At first glance it looked empty and he was about to leave when he noticed Shera's blonde hair poking up over the side of the bed. "Shera, what are you doing on the floor?" he asked with a shake of his head. He walked around the bed quickly and recoiled in horror at the site of the mess on the floor. There was blood surrounding the nearly dead looking woman and her breathing was forced and painful sounding. He ran forward to Shera's side and was extremely relieved to see she was hanging in there. "Shera? I'm going to go get Cid now. All right? I'll be right back, I promise." It was hard to keep the panicked edge out of his voice.

Shera's hand shot up and gripped his arm tightly. Her wide panicked eyes locked with his and he bit his lip, hating to see his friend in pain. "Okay. I won't leave you. I'll carry you downstairs. Just give me a sec." Taking a deep breath, Josef slipped his arms under Shera and lifted her, cradling her tense body against his chest. "You'll be all right. I promise," he whispered, kissing her forehead. Shera's eyes closed from the extreme pain that ravaged her body and Josef quickly headed for the stairs, thankful he hadn't ignored the sounds, dismissing them as something he'd rather not investigate.

By the time he made it to the kitchen, he was breathing pretty hard himself. He had to get to Cid first of all, then Cid could get them to a doctor. The nearest one was near the outskirts of town. "Cid!" he yelled, adjusting his grip on Shera, "get in here now!"

"What the hell are you yelling for?" Cid's annoyed reply came from the backyard.

"Cid!" Josef yelled again, "Shera's bleeding badly! We have to get her help!" Cid came crashing through the back door and ran to his wife, staring in shock at her bloodied state.

"What happened?!" he demanded, gently brushing back damp hair from Shera's forehead.

Josef shrugged as best he could. "I just heard banging, like she was trying to get our attention for help and when I went to check on her, she was lying on the floor like this."

"The baby," Cid choked, realizing why this was happening, "the baby's coming. We have to get to Dr. Frensin's NOW." Cid took a deep breath to calm himself and looked into Josef's nervous face. "Take her to my car and try to make her comfortable in the back seat. I'll phone to make sure the doctor's ready for us. It shouldn't take more then five minutes to drive there."

"Cid? What's going on?" a groggy Tifa asked, from the kitchen doorway.

"Don't got any damn time to explain. Wake up Tifa, we gotta go," Cid growled, grabbing the phone and dialing quickly. Josef went out to the car with Sera in his arms and slid her into the back seat as gently as he could. Tifa came out a few seconds behind him and cried out when she saw Shera.

"W-What happened?!" she gasped, grabbing onto Josef's arm fearfully. He pulled her shaking form into a hug.

"It's okay, Tifa. Cid thinks the baby is being born. We're taking her to the doctor right now."

Tifa pulled back and looked up at Josef's serious expression. "I'm coming too," she said firmly. She was angry that her body wouldn't stop shaking. Why was she so afraid? It wasn't like Shera was going to die or anything. "She'll be okay, right?" she asked Josef shakily. Josef sighed and gave her a gentle squeeze.

"I don't know."

Before Tifa could pull back again, he leaned down, giving her a soft, comforting kiss. She tensed slightly, wishing he wasn't so gentle and caring with her. After Josef pulled away, he guided her to the car and opened the door for her.

Climbing in and cradling Shera's head in her lap, Tifa looked up at Josef with confusion. Why had he kissed her? Did she not make herself clear that she had chosen Vincent? Josef had just shut the door and climbed into the front passenger seat when Cid came running out of the house and yelling for everyone to get the hell into the damn ca.

"Hold on Shera," Tifa whispered, running a gentle hand over Shera's hair as Cid pulled out and sped towards the outskirts of town. The small hospital wasn't often used, but it was well kept and the doctor was an old friend of Cid and Shera. Tifa's heart almost stopped at a few narrow misses with other vehicles as Cid sped on. They arrived at the hospital and screeched to a stop. Cid leapt out of the front door and opened the back one to scoop Shera into his arms. Tifa helped pass her out and watched as Cid practically flew into the building.

"I hope she's going to be okay," Tifa said quietly, climbing out of the back seat and glancing at Josef, who was still in the process of exiting the car.

Josef nodded and grabbed her hand, making her feel slightly uncomfortable and at the same time, safe. "We'd better get in there," he spoke in a worried tone, tugging at Tifa's arm. The two quickly followed where Cid had gone and saw a stretcher carrying Shera just going through a set of double doors. Cid's loud swearing could be heard all the way down the hall. Clearly the people weren't working fast enough for him.

"Come on," Josef urged, pulling her after them. Her arm felt like it would soon tear off if this kept up. The doctor barked out orders to the people around her as Tifa and Josef caught up with the group. Tifa suddenly found a green gown and face mask shoved into her hand.

"Put 'em on," Cid ordered in a desperate sounding voice, "and get in here." Josef gave her a small smile and entered the room that Shera had disappeared into. Shera was just regaining consciousness and looking around at all the faces with a scared expression. Cid pushed his way to the front of everyone and held Shera's hand tightly, bring it to his lips in a kiss. "I'm here Shera. The doctor's gonna take good care of you and make sure the baby's okay. You just have to be in a little bit of pain for a while." Shera squeezed his hand in acknowledgement and Tifa felt tears well up in her eyes. Shera had to be okay.

Josef stood up near Shera's head as the grim faced doctor positioned Shera's legs up on props and spoke in soothing words to the woman. Dr. Frensin handed Shera a glass of water with medication in it to dull the pain, leaning closer over Shera so that the bleeding woman could hear what she was saying. "Shera, this is Lynn. I know that you're in a lot of pain right now, so don't try speaking or doing anything except for listen to what I'm about to say, okay?" she said, with a hint of worry in her voice, "I'm going to get you and the baby through this. I just need you to drink that water I gave you and push as best you can when I ask you to." Shera nodded faintly and Cid helped her drink the drugged water, kissing her forehead when she was done. Hopefully the drugs would lessen the pain.

Tifa stood on Shera's other side, replacing the cold cloth on her forehead as it warmed. Shera's labored breathing was the only sound in the room for quite some time as she struggled to comply with the doctor's orders to keep pushing. Cid looked ready to kill something and continued whispering encouragements in Shera's ear. Josef saw Tifa's frightened expression and came around the bed to put a comforting arm around her waist. She leaned into his embrace and prayed that Shera and her child would make it through this.

Hours passed by and everyone was exhausted, even though they were trying not to show it to Shera. The insistent beeping of the heart monitor had settled down after her blood pressure drooping dangerously low earlier, and becoming fairly stabilized again. The doctor swept a hand across her forehead, wiping away some of her own sweat. It was still an unsure outcome of whether or not the baby would make it. Cid clung nervously to Shera's hand as she squeezed the living daylights out of his. The room was tense with worry and anticipation.

A strangled gasp came from Shera suddenly and Cid inspected her frantically as Dr. Frensin moved back in front of her legs. "The baby's coming!" she announced, positioning herself so she could help the baby ease its way out, "everyone give Shera some room to breathe." She glanced over at her gasping friend with a reassuring smile. "I just need a few more good pushes. Come on. I'm right here with you Shera. It's almost over. Feel free to crush Cid's hand if the pain gets to be too much."

Cid held up his already mangled hand with a smile. "She's got it covered." Taking a deep breath, Shera began pushing as hard as she could and followed the doctor's instructions to elevate her legs a little more. After another half hour or so, Shera was finally able to slump back against the pillows in relief when one last push caused the baby to be born at last. Tifa hugged the exhausted woman excitedly and Cid followed the doctor as she whisked the crying infant to the nearby incubator and gently set it inside.

Closing her eyes, Shera held tightly to Tifa, praying that her new child would be developed enough to live. It still needed at least another month to grow before it was supposed to have been born. Dr. Frensin carefully inspected and weighed the newborn and wrote a few things down on her pad of paper, glancing at the clock to note the time of birth.

After cleaning the small child, she turned, smiling, to Cid. "Congratulations, daddy! You have a new baby boy!" Cid grinned in delight and crushed the doctor in a relieved hug.

"He's all right isn't he? I mean, nothings going to happen to him because he was born so pre-mature is it?" Cid asked worriedly.

"He's surprisingly healthy," Dr. Frensin grinned, pulling away from Cid to look over the tiny boy once more, "the birthing process may have been triggered by a stressful situation or something as such. The little guy was ready enough to come out though, that he won't suffer from lack of growth. All five pounds, six ounces of him is cute as a button and just fine." She watched Cid stare at his son with longing as she peeled off her bloodied gloves and dropped them in the trash.

Josef and Tifa ran over to the incubator and smiled at the cute little face looking back up at them. "He's so little!" Tifa exclaimed, giggling with delight.

"Hey there little guy," Josef grinned, waving a finger at the glass covering the incubator.

Cid looked at the doctor with pleading eyes. "Can I hold him?"

Dr. Frensin frowned and considered it. The baby boy began wailing again and she nodded, clicking open the incubator. "It should be fine if you hold him. Just mind his neck and head because those parts will take a bit longer to develop then normal babies, since he was born so early." Putting a diaper on and tucking a soft yellow blanket around the crying baby, she handed him to Cid, who held his son like he was made from glass and might shatter at any moment.

Shera let out a soft groan from across the room, where a few nurses were tending to her needs. They had cleaned her up a bit and helped her sit up with a pillow propped behind her back. "C-Cid?" she groaned again, looking over to her husband. Cid hurried to her side as fast as he dared and sat down on the bed beside her.

"Look Shera. Look at our beautiful son. He has your eyes and nose. He's so cute!" Shera smiled weakly and gazed at her new bundle of joy that was still wailing softly in Cid's arms. Cid couldn't help but grin as he leaned over and kissed her forehead, extremely proud of what she had just accomplished. A yawn escaped Shera's lips and Cid stood up, cradling the baby gently. "I want to let Shera and the baby rest now. Would everyone mind leaving them alone for a while?"

"Sure," Tifa and Josef piped up together. They shared a smile and Josef led her out of the room. "We'll check in on you later, Shera," Tifa called out as they left, "congrats! He's gorgeous!"

Dr. Frensin shooed her nurses out of the room and waited until Tifa and Josef had left to turn to Cid. "Here. I'll put the little guy into a portable crib next to the bed so you and Shera can get some rest."

"Thanks, Lynn," Cid smiled gratefully, giving her another hug, "we really appreciate all the help you've given us while Shera was going through her pregnancy."

Dr. Frensin shrugged and blushed. "You guys are good friends, why shouldn't I give you class A treatment?"

"I just really appreciate it and I wanted you to know that."

"No problem," Dr. Frensin smiled, finally releasing Cid, "I'll let you guys rest now. Just push the buzzer on the bed if you need anything. There's always someone nearby who can help."

"Thanks," Cid nodded. Dr. Frensin made the baby comfortable in its crib before leaving the couple and their new baby boy to rest. Cid stood over his son and frowned at the crying infant. "Hey now little guy. Mommy needs some rest. You gotta be a little quieter okay?" The baby continued to wail and Cid tickled his feet, getting no results. Shaking Shera's arm gently, he smiled when her eyes opened slowly.

"Sorry, honey, but Cid jr. needs to be fed. Can I pass him to you for a few minutes?" Shera yawned and nodded, kissing Cid's cheek before he turned to grab their child. Cid smiled adoringly at the boy as he handed him carefully to Shera. She opened the front of her gown and sighed happily as her son began to eat, one of his tiny hands resting on her upper chest. Everything was going to be okay now. Her eyes closed when Cid began to rub her back in a slow circular motion.

As soon as the baby was done feeding, Shera handed him back to Cid and laid down flat again to try and get some sleep. Cid patted the infant's back and rocked him, making sure to burp him before placing him in the crib. "What should we name him, Shera?" Cid asked quietly, laying down next to his curled up wife and climbing under the blankets, "I don't think we can keep calling him 'baby' forever."

Shera pulled Cid's arm over her waist and shrugged thoughtfully. "I haven't really thought about it. We can decide once I've slept for a good forty-eight hours." Cid chuckled and ran a loving hand through Shera's hair until they were both asleep.

Josef and Tifa both sat in chairs in the waiting room, Josef reading a women's digest magazine and Tifa dozing in her seat. The dark-haired man glanced up from the cooking tips page when a shadow fell across his reading. The doctor that had delivered Shera's baby was standing in front on him. "Um…..Josef, was it?" the attractive red-haired woman asked, "Cid and Shera are going to be resting for a while and I was wondering if you and your friend would like a lift back home."

"That would be great," Josef smiled, quickly dropping the magazine back onto the pile and hoping the doctor wouldn't see which one he had been reading.

"I'm Lynn," she smiled, offering him a hand.

"Josef," he grinned, shaking her hand, "but you already knew that." She laughed pleasantly, a soft tinkling sound, and gave him a wink as she turned to lead her passengers out to her car. "Tifa," Josef whispered, shaking her gently, "we're going home now. Time to wake up sleepyhead." Tifa's head jerked up and she looked around, disoriented.

"Wha?"

"Dr. Frensin's giving us a ride home," Josef explained, "come on." Hopping to her feet, Tifa followed Josef and Dr. Frensin outside to the car and got into the back seat when Josef claimed the front. She stared out the window silently the whole way home as the doctor chatted with Josef like they'd known each other for years. Josef seemed a little uncomfortable with all the attention, but didn't make any effort to include Tifa in their conversation. If wasn't like she felt jealous or anything, it just would've been nice to be acknowledged.

When they at last pulled up to Cid's house, Tifa climbed out and glanced at Josef, who didn't seem to be leaving anytime soon. "Thank you for the ride," she smiled at the doctor.

"It was my pleasure," Dr. Frensin nodded, "I'll come and get you again if Shera wakes up and feels a bit better." Watching as the car drove the short distance over to Josef's house, Tifa decided to go inside and get some sleep. She needed to cuddle with Vincent for a while and tell him about Shera's baby.

Josef slid out of the passenger door once Lynn had stopped by his house. He paused, halfway out the door, and looked back at her. "I, uh, really enjoyed talking with you," he smiled, "would you want to hang out some time, outside of seeing Cid and Shera I mean? Don't feel obligated or anything just cause-"

"I think I would," Dr. Frensin interrupted him with a thoughtful smile, "you can check in with me at the hospital later if you want. Here's my number." She passed Josef a business card with her home and work number on it and blushed shyly. "I hope to hear from you soon."

"You will," Josef promised, sliding the rest of the way out of the car, "thanks for the lift." Smiling brightly, the doctor nodded and waved goodbye, heading back to the hospital. Going into the house, Josef found that he was actually truly smiling for the first time since Tifa had rejected him. Thinking of Tifa made him realize that he'd ignored her the whole way back. "Crap," he muttered, collapsing onto the living room couch. He'd have to go and apologize later.

As she stepped into the front door, Tifa jumped in surprise as a shadow swept down upon her. Vincent wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace and sighed in relief. Confused, Tifa pulled away a little and brushed some hair out of Vincent's face so she could see him better. She was about to speak when Vincent abruptly began talking instead.

"Where have you been?!" he demanded, hugging her tighter, "I woke up and the house was just…..empty." Tifa nuzzled into Vincent's neck and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I'm sorry. We had to go to the hospital immediately. Shera went into labor. The baby almost didn't make it."

Vincent pulled back and stared at her in slight shock. "Her baby? It's still quite early though, isn't it? Was it all right?"

"He was fine," Tifa smiled, gazing up at Vincent, "they have a gorgeous little boy."

"Wow," Vincent said, sitting on a kitchen chair shakily. Tifa watched him with a frown and walked over to him, putting a hand to his forehead.

"Are you okay?" she asked with concern. He shrugged in reply and refused to meet her gaze. "Back in bed," Tifa ordered, "you're probably undoing all the healing that your body was working on." Making a face, Vincent never-the-less got up and trudged along in front of Tifa back upstairs to the bathroom. Tifa lifted up a corner of the blanket and pointed to it. "Under. Come on."

He hated to admit it, but the cool sheets felt wonderful against his sore body. Why did Tifa always have to be right? He sat up a little against the pillows and watched Tifa rummage around for clean clothes, her outfit having been soiled with blood and who knows what else. Finding what she was looking for, Tifa came back to the bed and sat on the edge, pulling off her pants and throwing them over to the laundry basket. Vincent's eyes traveled along her curves as she pulled the blouse over her head and fell back against him accidentally, hitting his bandaged chest.

"Sorry!" she apologized, jumping back up, "I didn't hurt you did I?" She didn't realize that Vincent was too busy looking to answer.

"………"

"Vincent?" she repeated worriedly, climbing onto the bed next to him, "you're okay, right?"

"Never been better," he smiled, regaining his voice. Tifa pulled on pajama bottoms and closed her eyes at Vincent's soft touch on her back. His hands moved down her smooth arms and used her waist to pull her closer.

"Vincent," she protested, pulling a little against his grip, "I need to put on a top. What will Cid and Shera think if they come home and see us like this?"

"That I'm a lucky guy?" Vincent asked in a tone so serious she had to turn and look at him. The smile spreading across his lips made her shiver. Careful of his injuries, Tifa leaned over and kissed him gently, shifting away after a moment to pull her long t-shirt over her head. It was almost creepy how comfortable she was getting with Vincent. The had been pretty……"intimate" with each other though. Cuddling against his warm body, Tifa laid her head on his chest and closed her eyes, letting herself be lulled to sleep by the sound of Vincent's heartbeat.

"I miss the bar," she said suddenly, barely above a whisper.

Vincent adjusted his clawed arm so it wouldn't touch Tifa while they slept and tried to think of a reply to her sudden comment. "We'll be heading back soon, won't we? Gary and Max are probably expecting us by now." He used his other arm to pull the blanket up around them and then wrapped it over Tifa, noticing her flesh was quite cold. She pressed closer against him with a cold shiver and sighed.

"I guess we should wait for Shera to get better before we just take off." Her hand fiddled with his bandages while she paused, sighing again.

"Vincent?"

"Hmm?" he asked sleepily.

Tifa's hand caressed his cheek softly. "Have you ever wanted a family? Or kids? Or just a different life then the one you had?"

The question brought a lot of painful memories and images to mind. What kind of question was that? His whole life had revolved around torturing innocent victims to death and being betrayed by the people he trusted most. Of course he'd thought of living a different life. He'd thought of having normal things like a wife and children too. It had just never been possible.

"Yes," he said softly, voice full of emotions long forgotten.

Tifa didn't say anything more and he glanced down at her face without moving. She was fast asleep and had apparently missed his answer. No matter. This was all he wanted. To sleep forever, holding Tifa, and not having to care anymore. His mind was so silent it was deafening. Tifa's presence always chased away whatever it was that dwelled in his mind, lurking and waiting. Sighing deeply, Vincent closed his eyes and prayed that this would last until morning.

Gary scribbled down another order on his pad of paper, noting the table number and the special way the picky bitch wanted her salad made. "Don't forget that I want the salad dressing on the side, young man," the woman demanded, speaking slowly as though he wouldn't understand her otherwise.

"Yes, Ma'am," he said through gritted teeth, "I'll make sure to let the cook know." How Max and Tifa stood these impertinent people all night he would never know. He finished taking orders from the new couple and family that had just sat down and hurried to the kitchen to make the meals. "Max! Drink orders!" he yelled as he entered the kitchen. The blonde still wasn't speaking to him after an unfortunate comment that had slipped about her outfit being a little slutty. He felt it was necessary to point out that her skirt was a little shorter then it needed to be and she could at least do up one more button of her black blouse. Needless to say, Max had not been impressed. She had insisted that it was what she usually wore for work and that the men at the bar didn't complain.

Max walked in and grabbed the drink order Gary held out for her, exiting without a word. Gary just shook his head and continued chopping lettuce and tomatoes for the salad he was making.

Frowning at the drink she was mixing, Max sighed and glanced at the list to see what she had to make next. She quickly took three waters with lemon and two soft drinks to the family at table six and headed back to grab the two drinks for an impatient couple in the corner near the window. Her smile was more pasted on then genuine. Gary didn't realize how much his comment had stung her. It wasn't like she wanted to dress sleazy, Tifa and her just figured that showing off enough to be teasing would keep the men at the bar coming back. She wore an apron over her blouse and skirt until later in the night anyway, once all the families were gone. She knew that he probably thought she was taking the comment too seriously, but one of her past boyfriends had enjoyed degrading her self-confidence to point where she wore a turtle neck sweater and horrible baggy pants everywhere and he still told her to stop flaunting her body at every guy that walked by them. It had taken a lot of therapy and crying to get rid of all the damage that ass had done. She always seemed to get the jerks when it came to dating.

Dropping off the last two drink orders, Max lifted the wooden flap beside the bar and grinned at one of the regulars that had just sat down. "The usual Jack?" she asked with a coy smile.

"Does it come with a free prize yet?" he winked. She pretended to think got a moment, while mixing his drink, and shook her head as she shoved it across the counter to him.

"Nope. Sorry. You weren't the one hundredth customer. Try again tomorrow." Jack sighed in mock disappointment and downed half his drink.

"Good drinks tonight," he commented, "you must be in a bad mood." Max grimaced and ignored him. He knew that she paid more attention to her job when she was trying not to think about other things. "Cheer up darling, "he said, patting her arm when she leaned against the counter, "you're beautiful and talented and have no right to be sad. It's an old un-attractive codger like me who should be depressed."

"You aren't any older then I am," Max laughed, coming around the bar to sit with him. He sipped his drink, watching her out of the corner of his eye.

"Who's ass do I need to kick?" he teased, leaning on her shoulder.

"I'll be fine," she sighed, standing again, "but I really shouldn't be sitting around when there's so much work to be done." Jack nodded and saluted her with a wink.

"Just let know if you need any company later."

"Will do," Max smiled, going to grab food from the delivery window. A few hours later, the bar had finally emptied out and Max refused to break the awkward silence between her and Gary as she swept and wiped down tables.

"Max," Gary started, trying to organize his thoughts before he spoke, "I-"

"Don't," she sighed, "just don't bother." Gary gaped at her for a moment, surprised at her blatant cut off. She must be really angry.

"Max, come on," he growled, grabbing her arm as she turned away from him, "don't be like this." He realized as he pulled her towards him that her eyes held an expression that looked trapped and frightened. Releasing his iron grip on her arm, he took a step back and frowned. "Max……are you afraid of me?" She angrily stepped towards him and smacked him across the face.

"What do you mean afraid?!" she spat, "you think I can't protect myself from a pathetic man?! You don't have any idea of all the things I've been through so just stay away from me!" her voice quivered with tears. "Just……..stay away……."

Holding his cheek in surprise, Gary stared as the retreating woman grabbed her coat and ran out of the bar door. "Maxine! Wait!" he yelled after her, following her out to the car. He caught her just as she was about to climb into her car and pulled her out, hugging her gently. "Just tell me what I did that's so horrible, Max. I'm not those others guys that hurt you. If telling you my honest opinion is really so bad, then what should I do? Lie?"

"It's just that……," Max shook her head against Gary's chest and searched for words. "You just hit a sensitive subject with me. I'm too messed up to be with you. I respond defensively to a lot of things and…….you just remind me of bad stuff sometimes." Gary frowned and pulled back slightly.

"You know I don't mean to. I would never intentionally hurt you. In truth, I don't deserve you t all, but I keep on trying to win you over anyway. I know I'm not doing too great right now, but you have to remember that I've never really been able to keep anyone in my life that actually mattered to me. Work with me here!" Max struggled to keep the smile off her face, but it fought its way on anyway. "Give me another chance, or two, or even three. Just don't give up on me yet. Please."

Considering his speech, Max bit her lip and hesitated between Gary's arms and the safe sanctuary of her car. "I'm not sure I can," she admitted. "I'm just meant to be alone."

"Want to know what I think of that?" Gary snorted in contempt.

"What?" Max challenged. Gary pulled her against him and pressed his lips to hers in a passionate kiss. Once released from the kiss Max stared at him, half shocked, half smiling. "Translation?" she asked carefully.

"Bullshit," Gary grinned, "no one should be alone."

"Get in the car, "Max sighed, "and I'll see if I feel like forgiving you or not."

THISISTHESTUPIDLINEDIVIDINGTHEFICANDTHEAUTHORSNOTES

Author: YES!!!! ::spins around in an excited victory dance:: IT'S DONE!!!! NOW ONLY ONE MORE CHAPTER TO TYPE AND I'M DONE!!!!!!!!!! YEE-HA!!!

Sephiroth: O.o My god! It's finally happened! She's gone insane! Someone call the asylum!

Author: Ahhh, the completed typingness of it all!!! It's so beautiful!

Sephiroth: ::backs away slowly:: Um….I gotta…….go…somewhere……that's not…..here….bye! ::runs away::

Author: DONE! DONE! DONE! DONE! DONE! ::spins around until she falls down:: Thanks for reading everyone and I'll see you next chapter! ::throws out free starburst for all the readers:: Bai bai! :D