I'm trying so hard to get back into writing stuff, so here's my first fic in sooo long. Actually, I even went through the entire process of changing my pen name and removing dead stories OO;
Anyways, it's completely AU and the such, so don't come attacking me for it, alright? Enjoy!
Seeing how happy that boy made him overjoyed and destroyed me, all at once. I loved him more than I even thought possible, as is usually the case with first loves. Well, as is the case with any true love from what I've gathered over the years. It was this love that planted those love/hate seeds in my heart.
In the person I wish I was, I wanted no more than to see Cloud happy. And how happy he was when Zack was there. Yet, in my true self, I wanted so much more. I wanted him to look at me with those beautiful blue eyes just the way he looked at Zack. I dreamt of hearing him tell me how I was the one he loved rather than Zack... that I was the one he would turn to and be with no matter what.
However, this was not the case, and when you're as stubborn a child as I was, it takes quite a while to figure out as much. Don't get me wrong. I knew my place with him. Affectionately, both he and Zack referred to me as 'sis'. As I said before, however, I was an extremely stubborn kid, and I refused to accept the fact that I would never have a chance at Cloud's heart.
My dreams and hopes would ammount to little more than self-hatred and anguish as the years went on, but that's not to say that nothing good ever came out of it.
I want to tell my story. The one of the boy I loved and the man he became, of the boy I hated who would later become someone I would love more even than the first. More than anything, I want to get this all off of my chest before it's too late to do so. I want to tell the truth to all involved, and that is exactally what I plan to do.
As is customary, I will start at the beginning. From what I've learned, it's the best place to start. I can't promise that you'll agree with me or any of my choices, just as I can't promise that everything is one hundred percent accurate, as I am neither Cloud nor Zack nor anyone else involved and cannot fully emulate their feelings on any of it.
I woke up around nine that morning, still groggy and half-asleep. It was summer, so nine in the morning was as good as a winter day's six. I never woke before noon unless I had a specific place to be. This particular morning was the exception, however, as I'd made no plans.
"GET THE HELL OUT HERE, TEEF!" My window was open so Zack's cries from outside awoke me. I let out a groan and forced myself over to the window, rubbing my eyes as I did. It was already glaringly bright outside and I cringed a little.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING WAKING ME UP SO EARLY?" I shouted back, finally looking down at him, "DON'T YOU KNOW A GIRL NEEDS HER BEAUTY SLEEP?" I would wager it was the dishevelled morning appearance that meritted a laugh now.
"WORRY ABOUT THAT LATER, THEY'RE GONNA DO IT! RENO'S GONNA KICK CLOUD'S ASS!" For being so close to him, Zack sure didn't have a lot of faith in his love. I stood up straight with a slight gasp. Reno and Cloud never got along, for whatever reason. They were both kings of their own castle's; Reno's was that of the popular older kid with girls swooning at his feet. Cloud's was that of the outcasts and misfits, forming their own mismatched group. I found myself caught somewhere in the middle, though I never was a fan of Reno.
"I'LL BE OUT IN A SEC! DON'T LET 'EM START WITHOUT ME!" I was scrambling to dress now, pulling on the first articles I could find. This meant the wardrobe for the day would be a pair of cutoff jean shorts I'd worn the night before and a white tank top from earlier in the week. I brushed my hair and pulled it into messy pony tail, spritzing on some sort of melon scented spray form my dresser before slipping on some flip flops and racing outside.
"Took ya long enough." Zack complained, grabbing my arm and leading me out of the town's front entrance. Nibelheim was a tiny village and there were only two ways in or out. The path in the front led to a nice little beach and some fields whereas the roads leading out past the Shinra mansion curved through the mountains and to Rocket Town as well as the newly built mako reactor.
"Where are they gonna do it?" I asked, pulling away from him and jogging a little to keep up.
"Up at the docks. Apparently they really got into it and Reno named the spot yesterday." he explained, pressing on faster. He was quick, and I never understood why he was so unwilling to participate in any sports. I, on the the other hand, was an avid runner and already well into my training for the upcoming indoor track season. It wasn't long before we reached the aforementioned spot. Cloud was already there, standing at the edge of the largest pier.
The docks area consisted of a few small, clustered docks with tiny 2-man motorboats lined up a few hundred yards down the coast. Further down was a small port where the larger vessels were docked. The dock was also used occasionally by Shinra employees traveling from Junon to check on the reactor.
Right in the middle of the two sections were a pair of long stone piers. The old men from the village would situate themselves on the piers when boating conditions weren't right. The pier closer to the larger port was where Cloud stood, shifting nervously from side to side. Reno had yet to arrive, but there was already a small crowd of young children and teenagers from the village coming to spur them on.
Zack and I trotted over to the pier and up to Cloud. He appeared to be even more nervous as we neared him. In addition to the nervous shifting and fidgeting, he was sweating quite a bit. Nibelheim had the tendency to become incredibly hot in the summers, but today was a relatively mild day, so there was no better excuse for it.
"Now look..." Zack said, placing a hand on Cloud's shoulder and gesturing back towards the ocean a little, "...if you feel like you're gonna fall, try to go backwards into the ocean. If you go to the side, you'll crack yer skull..." he paused a moment, looking around again, "Of course, if yo think you might pass out, it may be safter to just stick to the land, that way you don't drown." I giggled a little. Zack's advice was, in some way, good natured. Cloud's nerves were obviously spiking though, so I grinned and reassured him as well.
"Don't worry 'bout drownin'." I giggled stepping out of my flipflops, "If ya go under, I'll save ya!" I saluted him before Zack and I both broke down into laughter. Cloud, of course, was completely unamused. Actually, he seemed to be getting pretty mad about this time.
"You guys really think I don't stand a chance." he growled, obviously annoyed with our lack of faith. Don't get me wrong... I loved Cloud, but I knew better than to put money on him in a fight. He was scrawny as hell, not exactally the strongest looking kid. Reno wasn't incredibly built either, but he had something Cloud didn't- a reputation. Reno came from Midgar, a huge city practically a world away from our small town. True or not, he entertained his friends with stories of how he'd been kicked out of school there for his fighting. He talked of growing up on the streets of sector five, the worst of the worst, having to fight to stay alive almost every day.
Looking back, it was obvious that the stories were mainly lies and overexaggerations, but back then, Reno was all but a thug. Someone so powerful and worldly, however, gained quite a bit of popularity with such tales in a place like Nibelheim. I'm not sure that he would have been any less powerful had he not told the stories, but he certainlyh would've been less intimidating.
"Well look at the little faggots." I didn't have to turn around to know that Reno was standing just a few feet behind us now, "A little goodbye kiss before I kick your faggot ass?" He laughed harshly and I felt my blood begin to boil. Nothing angered me more than the people who treated Cloud and Zack this way. It seemed to be the case, though, that I took more offense to it than they did.
"You got us there, Reno." Zack laughed, giving Cloud a good kiss on the lips and exagerated slap on the ass before backing off, "You show 'im who's boss." Zack winked and blew a kiss as he stood next to me. I giggled a little, feeling a bit more at ease. Zack's act had just the affect he was looking for, upsetting Reno even more.
"You fucking disgust me, you know that?" he growled, glaring at Zack as he pushed through us. The crowd was closing in as well. Zack and I stayed close, right up in the front. I'd pulled my sandals back with me, but didn't put them back on. I wasn't entirely joking when I said I'd be jumping in after him.
"Glad to be of service." Cloud laughed now. He seemed almost transformed as the fight was about to begin. Something inside him seemed to burn, and I wasn't quite as afraid for his safety any more.
Reno, of course, threw the first punch. Surprisingly enough, Cloud was able to dodge it with ease, Reno stumbling forward a bit towards the water. Cloud took advantage of this and kicked him sharply behind the knees. Now, seeing as he was able to attack so easily, I was sure he could've ended the fight right then and there. What fun, though, would that be for the audience? Cloud knew this fact quite well and jumped back a little, letting Reno get back to his feet.
"You're dead." Reno growled now, charging toward Cloud once more. He sidestepped the attack easily and this time nailed Reno in the face with a punch. Gasps and cries came from the still-growing audience and I heard Zack let out a loud cheer.
The fight continued in the same manner for what seemed like quite a long time. Cloud took quite a few hits as well, and his nose was bleading badly at his point. Reno was at the edge of the pier, doubled over slightly. Something seemed strange about his stance, though. Cloud was wiping a bit of the blood from his face and it was at this point that I noticed what Reno had been doing.
"A KNIFE!" I screamed, "HE HAS A KNIFE!" Of course, as I yelled it, Cloud looked sharply over at me. This gave Reno the perfect opportunity and he dashed forward, plunging the short blade into Cloud's abdomen. Cloud let out the most painful, blood curdling scream I, to that point, had ever heard before he stumbled backwards over the edge and into the water with mighty splash.
I cried out again, running forward and diving instantly after him. I felt my heart pounding hard and the only sound I could really hear was that of the blood rushing in my head. I opened my eyes immediately after I made contact with the murky water. The dirt floating through it stung my eyes and it took what seemed like a small eternity for me to finally locate Cloud's body and pull it up to the surface.
Even as I made it to the surface, however, there was still the task of making it back to a dock low enough to get his body up. The stone piers were a good ten feet above the water, and even the faulty wooden ones were at least three. That left me swimming as best I could with Cloud's lanky body in my arms, trying to make it to an area of beach as quickly as I could. In my haste I forgot anything I should have known in such a situation. I doubt that his head remained above the water for more than a second or two in the entire five or so minutes it took me to finally reach the sandy shores.
It should've come as no surprise when I collapsed near him and someone screamed, "Jesus, he isn't breathing!"