Something to Live For

Chapter Two: Mistaken Questions

Disclaimer: Lo and behold! I do not own Final Fantasy!

Here is the ..err.. second chapter. Please review :D Oh and also, Cloud will not be paired up with anyone, and if he will be, it will only be temporary. Otherwise this would be a romance fic.

"Cloud...words aren't the only thing that tell people what you're thinking..." – Tifa, FF7

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A velvet blanket covered the vast and endless expanse of heaven. Beneath this sky was the bustling city of Midgar. The lampposts were still giving off some light, and people were scurrying back to their homes from a long day of work.

The jingling of keys was heard outside of the local bar, Seventh Heaven. A gloved hand turned the knob quietly and quickly, making sure to not disturb anyone that would be sleeping. Surprisingly, a light was still on, coming from one of the rooms upstairs. It was so late at night; Cloud thought that everyone would be sleeping.

He crept up the stairs and peeked into the lit room, which happened to be Tifa's. She appeared to be looking at something, that or spacing out. Who knows, she could even be reminiscing. A lot has happened these past few years.

Tifa, getting the feeling she was being watched, looked up but found no one there.

"Cloud…" The uttered, "I thought you'd be gone until tomorrow." She wasn't exactly talking to him, but more to herself, actually. Shrugging the situation off, she crept under the covers and turned off the light.

Cloud was standing outside, next to the doorway, looking at his feet. There was a lot to think about, right now, so much he didn't hear anyone coming near him.

"Cloud?" Cloud jumped at his name and whirled around to meet a confused Denzel. "Is that you?"

"Denzel," The blonde took in a deep breath and continued, "What are you doing? You should be in bed."

"I wanted to get a glass of water." Cloud nodded and smiled a bit.

"Okay. I'll go with you." Denzel grinned and ran to the stairs. "Whoa! Shh! Quiet!" Cloud half hushed as he walked after the excited boy.

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"Cloud?" Denzel asked from his bed, as Cloud started to walk away.

"Hm?"

"Could you tell me the story on how you saved the world?" Cloud gave out a barely audible chuckle.

"Again?" The boy nodded vigorously. "Well," Cloud ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "Maybe tomorrow, Marlene is sleeping; we wouldn't want to wake her." Denzel nodded, but before Cloud could reach the door, he was interrupted.

"Will you be here tomorrow?" Cloud sighed, and nodded. "Are you sure? You won't leave us again?"

'Leave them? Again? Did I hurt them that much?' Cloud turned around and gave him an assuring smile.

"I'll be here. I promise."

..:--

"Do I have something to live for?" Cloud asked himself, as he lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. He narrowed his eyes, and his bottom lip moved forward a bit in a pout. This usually meant he was frustrated or confused. "I don't know, Zack, you tell me."

The reason he could defeat Sephiroth was because he knew what was important to him, his friends, family, and basically all the love he got from others. But for some odd reason, he didn't know what to say to this.

No. He didn't have something to live for that he knew of. But yes, there was definitely something that kept him to go on. To push himself beyond his limits. Aeris helped, Tifa helped, Denzel, Marlene. Everyone, every one of his comrades had helped him. Even Sephiroth helped him in some ways. Sure, he would get annoyed at them from time to time, but he wouldn't trade anything in the world for them. Or that's what he thought.

Questions. All these questions buzzing through his head. Guess it would be because he saved the world. Was this his punishment? Was karma coming to get him? He did the right thing, didn't he? …Didn't he?

The walls, they seemed to laugh at him. Laugh at his confusion. Cloud glared at them, they weren't in this situation. They were just walls.

"Shut up." With that, he rolled over to his side and drifted off to sleep.

..:--

Cloud woke up the next morning, and groggily got up from the bed. Stretching, he stumbled over to the bathroom and washed up. While doing so, a delightful aroma rose from the floor. Tifa was cooking.

The blonde walked downstairs to where Tifa was and looked over her shoulder. She laughed a bit.

"Hungry?" She asked, quite amused by the expression on his face. Amused, but still there was sadness held in her eyes. Cloud gawked at the food in the pan, trying so hard to close his mouth before the saliva would find a way to escape. He nodded quickly, looking like a child as he did so. That's what was special about Cloud; he could act so childish at times.

Tifa placed the eggs and sausage on a plate and handed it to him, which he gratefully took and devoured.

"Whoa, what's the rush?" Tifa asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you haven't eaten anything yesterday." Cloud mumbled something, and all Tifa could make out was 'delivery' and 'breakfast.' She rolled her eyes and grabbed a plate of food herself. "Two people need you to deliver some things to them." She said, as she cautiously placed a piece of paper next to his plate, hoping that he wouldn't bite her hand off.

Cloud drove the fork the last morsel of food, shoved it in his mouth, and picked up the piece of paper, scanning it.

Shoving it in his pocket, he grabbed the plate, rinsed it, and grabbed his keys.

"Be back later." Was all he said as he faced Tifa. It was odd. The feelings he felt inside. A kiss on the cheek would've made this scene complete.

Yes, there was that odd scene playing. Tifa wishing Cloud good luck and him giving her a light kiss on the cheek. But no, this wasn't a soap opera.

"Good luck, and take care." Cloud nodded and forced a small smile. He walked over to Fenrir and sped off towards his destination.

"Tifa?" Tifa turned around to find Denzel standing there and gave him a smile.

"Yes, Denzel?"

"Where's Cloud?"

..:--

A/N: There was chapter one. I know Cloud seems a bit 'OOC' but hey, he was hungry and he changed a bit. He felt better after really knowing that he was never alone.

You would know, I guess, if you watched Advent Children. But until next time. Ja ne!