Author's Note: A nice chapter this should turn out to be. I'm going to keep pushing for reviews for this story and Victim, I just don't see how someone can read a story, enjoy it, but not review. Victim has had over 300 hits since it first aired. 300 hits SHOULD, in my opinion equal out to 300 reviews, but I guess I'll just stick with the fact that it has more hits than any of my other stories.

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There was a ringing in her ears that just would not stop. She wasn't sure if it was the after-effects of the drug she had been given the night before, or something else. She focused her eyes to look at the room around her. She knew this place, she hadn't been raped, and she was safe. She was in Cloud's room; he had come to rescue her just as she had hoped he would.

But her memory started regaining little bits of knowledge about the party up until the point where she blacked out. Cloud was…running towards her…he wasn't wearing a shirt and his pants were unbuttoned. "That's right," Tifa thought to herself, "he was with Aeris."

She could almost feel tears in her eyes as she thought about the chance she had lost. She had finally met a guy she could connect with, a guy that was different from any that she had ever met, and she lost him to her best friend. It wasn't like she could be angry with Aeris; she had told her that she wasn't with Cloud, which to Aeris was an open invitation.

The ringing continued and she finally answered her phone. The voice on the other end was that of her best friend, but she was in distress. Her breathing was erratic and she was crying heavily. Tifa tried to calm her down as best she could, knowing that something must have happened to her at the party as well.

"Aeris just calm down, tell me what happened." She cooed, fearing what her friend might say.

"Where are you?" Aeris managed to huff, hanging on Tifa's every word like it was her last chance at life.

"I'm at Cloud's house; he rescued me last night, why?" Tifa asked, a twist forming in the pit of her stomach, as Aeris burst into a louder set of tears. Tifa waited for her friend to calm down and answer her.

"He…he…" Aeris trailed, more upset than she had ever been in her entire life.

"He what? Who?" Tifa prodded, hoping that Cloud hadn't done anything to hurt her friend.

"He used me!" Aeris shouted, screeching as she did so.

Tifa couldn't believe what she had just heard. Aeris couldn't possibly be telling the truth, Tifa had seen her drag Cloud away from the party. Cloud would never have done anything with Aeris if he hadn't done so when he had the chance with her, right? Did Aeris have something that she didn't?

She couldn't believe she was jealous of Cloud taking advantage of Aeris and not her. It was a terrible thing for him to do, and not something she should wish upon herself. But she still didn't quite believe that Aeris was being truthful, not after the way she dragged Cloud away.

"What do you mean? Aeris?" Tifa questioned.

"Tifa…I have to tell you something. Remember that notebook I keep to see which one of us gets more guys?" Aeris asked between whimpers.

"Yeah, you're winning." Tifa stated with less than enthusiasm in her voice.

"No, I'm not!" Aeris cried, breaking into another onset of tears. "I was never winning, I lied! And I just wanted so badly to get Cloud; I just wanted to win one guy over you…for once." She sobbed, taking Tifa's breath away. "I dragged him away so that he couldn't be around you, and I took him into a bedroom to get away from everyone. I didn't want to sleep with him, I just wanted to try and talk to him…to convince him that I'm just as good as you. I told him I liked him and…he jumped on me!"

Tifa's heart sunk. Cloud wasn't the man she thought he was. If Aeris had admitted about the notebook, she couldn't be lying about Cloud, why else what she tell Tifa she was winning?

"Aeris…are you…sure?" Tifa asked, feeling tears in her eyes. She just didn't want to believe that Cloud was not everything she had imagined him to be.

"Why would I lie about this?" Aeris screamed, more upset than ever. "He tried to seduce me and when I heard you call his name I pushed him off and told him to go to you!"

Tears streamed down Tifa's face as she tried to comprehend what she had just heard. Cloud had used her best friend, but if that was the truth, why did he rush to save her? But then again, why would Aeris lie about the notebook? Tifa was confused, but she had to admit that Aeris' story did sound plausible.

"I mean…if you still like Cloud that's okay…I just…thought you should know…"Aeris whimpered, now holding back her tears.

"No of course not!" Tifa exclaimed, "Not after what he did to you!" Her words seemed to sooth Aeris, who sniffled.

"Okay, well I just had to call you, but I have to go…"She spoke more easily now, the fear and pain in her voice no longer audible.

"Okay, are you gonna be all right?" Tifa asked, concerned.

"Yeah, I think so." Aeris mustered.

"All right then, take care sweetie." Tifa said before hanging up.

Again she felt like she was in a stranger's home. Cloud now seemed like a totally different person to her, someone she didn't know, and it frightened her. Was he planning something with her? And even if he wasn't, how could he be so cruel to Aeris?

She got out of bed and silently walked over to the closet and grabbed the same boot she had taken with her the first time she woke up in his apartment. She inched her way out of the bedroom, checking down the hallway before moving out to the living room, where Cloud was asleep.

He was still so gorgeous to her, and she couldn't believe that he could actually do something so vindictive. And to her friend nonetheless, a girl he had just met. She looked down at his sleeping form and raised the boot above her head, poised to strike. She waited until he rolled over onto his back, then fired the shoe at his chest, striking his heart and immediately waking him.

Cloud jolted at the sudden object flying at him. He shot up as if the sky was falling and saw Tifa standing behind the couch looking as though she could kill him. There was fire in her beautiful eyes, and he had no idea why. She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"What did you do to her, you sick fuck!" She screamed, while Cloud's eyes widened as they never had before.

He suddenly knew what had happened, it was exactly what he feared would. Aeris had lied, and worse yet, Tifa believed her. He quickly stood up and reached his arms out to her, just as had the first time she threatened him with the shoe. He didn't know how to explain what happened, how he could convince her otherwise; after all, she had known Aeris longer.

"Nothing, I didn't do anything to her! She pulled me into that room and jumped on me!" He exclaimed, desperately hoping that she would believe him. Instead she remained still, shaking her head.

"No…you used her. You broke her heart! How could you do that?" She cried, rolling her fingers into a fist and squeezing them tightly against her legs. She didn't want Cloud to see how badly this was hurting her; she couldn't let him know that she was devastated to have to stand up for Aeris.

"I didn't! You saw her pull me away! How can you not believe me?" Cloud begged, trying to get her to focus on his eyes so that she could see that he was being sincere.

"How can you lie? I thought you were different than other guys!" Tifa screeched, and then lowered her shoulders and her head as the tears began to form in the corner of her eyes. "But I guess you're not…" She trailed off, wishing that none of this had ever happened.

"I'm not lying, Tifa. She jumped on me, I…I didn't want to hurt her by pushing her away, so I told her to stop, but she kept after me, but when I heard you screaming I finally pushed her." Cloud said, lowering his voice, hoping that Tifa would understand.

"I can't believe you!" Tifa started screaming again, "I saw you run up to me with your shirt off and your pants unbuttoned!" Cloud shook his head, his eyebrows angling across his eyes as if her were about to cry.

"She did that!" He yelled, angry with Aeris for doing this to him, he saw it coming, but hoped that he could have told Tifa the truth first, before she heard the lie.

"How could she get your shirt off unless you went along with it? Or if you took it off yourself?" She continued to wail, waving her arms wildly as she spoke.

"I told you, I didn't want to hurt her, if I didn't let her take my shirt off, she would have ripped it off!" Cloud was getting so upset as he spoke; he too made a fist, and prepared to smash a wall if he couldn't convince her soon.

"Right, so you just let her take your shirt off?" Tifa asked, cynically. Cloud nodded.

"Look, I promise you on my mother's grave, that nothing happened and that I didn't abuse her. Please, you have to believe me…" He pleaded, looking up at the ceiling for a moment.

"I don't believe you." Tifa stated, turning her back on him so that he could not see her tears. He was making this much more difficult than she had expected. She just couldn't accept his story, not after what Aeris had told her. "Why should I believe you?" She questioned, without looking at him.

"Because I'm in love with you!" Cloud confessed, raising his voice once again. Tifa didn't turn to face him, and he couldn't see the small smile that broke across her lips, but quickly faded. After her smile withered, she turned around.

"What?" She asked, knowing full well what he had said.

He loved her. And even if he had just met her, it still felt good to hear someone say that and perhaps actually mean it. She wanted to believe him, she wanted to so badly, but she just couldn't accept the fact that Aeris' story did sound more believable, if nothing else because of the fact that Cloud's shirt had been taken off. If he didn't want her to advance on him, there would have been no way for her to get his shirt off. Tifa wished that there was some other explanation, but she just couldn't find one.

"I'm in love with you. God, I have been since I first saw you. I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since I met you, couldn't you see that?" His tone was harsh, but his words were comforting. He sighed gruffly and turned his head to the side, flaring his nostrils in defeat.

Tifa couldn't let her emotions get the best of her. She couldn't forgive him for what he had done, no matter how sincere he sounded. He was a jerk, a lowlife, and could never forget that. She swallowed her heart and glared at him once again, breathing heavily in anger.

"You just met me you creep! And if that were true, why the hell were you with Aeris?" She began screaming again.

"I wasn't with her!" Cloud roared, more forceful than he had ever been in his life. He pulled back his fist and slammed it into the nearest wall, opening up the plaster to the hollow inside. Tifa stepped back in horror.

"That's it, I'm done with this. Have a nice life!" She shrieked before rushing out of the apartment.

Cloud froze for a moment. What had just happened hadn't even registered in his mind yet and she was gone. He looked at the ground, searching it for some kind of answer. He had just confessed to one of the most dangerously guarded women on earth that he loved her. He had never said that to anyone in his entire life, especially not to someone he hadn't even known for more than a week.

A moment later he heard the loudest cry he could have ever imagined. He covered his ears and closed his eyes tightly until it stopped, then looked around his apartment to check if anything was broken. He quickly ran to the parking lot, knowing what had caused the sudden outcry.

Tifa stood frozen and shaking on the sidewalk, staring at her smashed up car. There was a large dent in the roof, and the rear and driver's side windows were shattered and there was a bullet hole in the front window, causing the glass to crack around it, like a spider's web. She felt as though she would pass out, and Cloud caught her just before her legs gave out beneath her. She quickly regained her balance and shoved him away as hard as she could. He flew backwards and landed hard on the pavement on his backside.

"Don't touch me!" She growled, watching him as he fell. "What…what did you do to my car?" She screeched, walking around the broken vehicle trying to assess the damage.

"That guy…the one who drugged you…there was a fight. He shot your car." Cloud informed her. She pivoted on her heel and turned an accusing finger at him.

"This is all your fault! Don't you ever come near me again!" She cried, before getting into her car and slamming the door, knocking the few remaining pieces of glass that were hanging on the edges to the ground. She groaned venomously and started the car, backing out quickly and peeling out of the parking lot, leaving Cloud in a puff of smoke.

He coughed and waved his hand in front of his face to clear the smoke. He watched as her car rapidly dissipated from his sight. He couldn't even begin to remember what had led him to that point. Everything seemed as though it were a blur, and all he knew was that she had just driven out of his life.

- - - - -

As hard as it was, he prepared to go to work as if nothing had happened. He knew that he would have to answer a million questions from Barret and the others, but he was ready to shrug them off and do his job. As soon as he walked through the door however, he was confronted by his large boss.

"So how was your weekend?" He asked sardonically.

"Interesting." Cloud answered, moving past Barret to his station, avoiding eye contact with all the other employees.

"So what happened?" Randy inquired eagerly. Cloud gave him a glance to let him know that he should just drop the subject, but he continued to stare at the blonde man. At last Cloud sighed, showing his disdain.

"Nothing. It was a party. That's all." He groaned. Randy leaned toward the others who were crowded around him and put a hand in front of his face to block Cloud from the conversation.

"Looks like someone got dismissed." He jibed. Cloud had to hold back the desire to punch him in the face.

The rest of the night seemed to carry on that way. There was a lot of silence when Cloud would turn his back towards his co-workers and ignore their questions or taunts. He watched the front door until the sun began to rise above the horizon, casting its orange hue across the tile floor in the lobby.

He waited for her. He was hoping that she would show up before he had to leave. He didn't even watch any other people wander into work, and didn't check a single person's I.D. He didn't even realize that he had been recognized by the redheaded Turk as he checked into the building on his way to work with his father.

The gears turned in Reno's head as he plotted his revenge against they spiky haired blonde that had ruined his party the night before. For him it was just part of desensitizing himself in order to become a Turk. He also couldn't wait to see the look on the blonde's face when his world came crashing down around him. No one shows up Reno and gets away with it. No one.

Cloud glanced at his watch for the millionth time. Twenty minutes until his shift ended. Even if Tifa never came in, at least he could escape the torrent of quips being made about him behind his back, or the stares he was getting from his co-workers as they watched him suffer.

When it was finally time to go, Cloud gathered up his things and punched out. He wanted to just race out of the door and lock himself in his apartment and never come out. For what he had lost in the past day he felt that he just wouldn't be able to move on. As he was heading for the door a group of men stepped out of the elevator.

The lead man wore an exceptionally expensive gray three-piece suit with white pinstripes. His dress shoes were immaculate and made of the finest leather money could by. He had a perfectly pressed and folded red pocket square inside his lapel and a matching red silk tie. His black hair was styled back with nary a hair out of place and only the sides showing the gray of his age. He looked to be in his early fifties, the wrinkles on his face the only telltale signs. He marched toward the young blonde with clenched fists and vehemence in his eyes.

The men behind him were all dressed alike. Each wore a steel blue suit with a white dress shirt and black tie. They were each well groomed and important looking. The other employees knew what their presence meant and quickly leapt out of their way for fear of receiving their repercussions. Reno was right on the leaders heels, wearing his suit unbuttoned just as he had at the party. To his left was his bald friend who had helped him hold Cloud down during the fight. Behind him were several of the senior Turks, including his father.

"That's him, right there!" Reno called, pointing at Cloud.

Cloud turned around at the sound of the commotion, recognizing Reno's voice. He saw the group of Turks heading straight for him, along with an incredibly important looking individual.

"Mr. President!" Barret shouted, standing at attention and saluting his boss.

Cloud wished that someone would just shoot him right then and there. The man coming at him was the President of Shinra, and Tifa's father. With Reno behind him Cloud knew that this meeting would not turn out favorably. He couldn't run, running would have only made things worse. The man in front of him was the most powerful person on earth, he could have Cloud obliterated at the drop of a hat. His eyes widened in horror as the President drew back his fist and drove it straight into Cloud's already sore nose.

"You dirty son of a bitch!" The President roared as he kicked Cloud in the chest as he bent over in pain, holding his nose.

"Mr. President…" Cloud wanted to ask what Reno had said, but was dealt another blow to the gut by Reno's mag rod, which was the same instrument Cloud had thought to be a stun gun the night prior.

"You worthless, two-bit, drugging piece of shit!" The President barked, watching as the other Turks began to beat Cloud into submission. "You're fired!" He added, yelling at the top of his lungs. He had never been so full of anger as he had at that moment. If he could have he would have had Cloud killed, but since he had been so taken over by his anger that he let it out in his office, he couldn't have the boy killed, it would be too obvious. "Get him out of my sight!" And with that, he returned to the elevator and back up to his office.

After a few more devastating blows from the Turks, Rude and Reno's father each grabbed one of Cloud's arms while the others follow, and dragged him through one of the pairs of double doors and out into the street, where they threw him to the pavement and returned to the building. About a moment later, Tifa walked up the front doors, not even noticing Cloud's badly beaten form lying in the gutter, and entered Shinra Inc.

She couldn't ignore the pool of blood that was standing in the middle of the front lobby, or the look of shock on the employee's faces as she walked in. She watched as a janitor rushed out of nowhere toward the puddle and eagerly mopped it up, trying to make it appear as though it had never existed.

She looked at all the late night security guards for answers. Cloud wasn't there, and she couldn't help but feel a sinking sensation in her gut. She sought out Barret and stood beside him as she watched the other workers slowly get back to work as usual.

"What happened?" She asked the black man that towered beside her. He looked down at her over his broad shoulder and sighed.

"They took care of him. I'm so sorry he tried to hurt you." He said.

Barret couldn't believe what he had just witnessed, nor could any of the other staff. He couldn't believe that Cloud, his own employee had tried to drug the heiress to the Shinra fortune. But one can't judge a book by its cover, Cloud appeared to be a genuine guy, but everyone was so wrong.

"What do you mean?" Tifa questioned, looking up at Barret, confused.

"Didn't he try to drug you?" It was Barret's turn to be confused. Tifa shook her head.

"No, that was Reno. Is that what this is all about?" Tifa couldn't help but feel guilty. She had just ripped at Cloud's throat the day before, and now her father wanted him dead, what a rough time he was having. But she tried not to feel sorry for him, after all, he got what he deserved for what he did to Aeris.

"I knew Cloud couldn't have done something so stupid. He's a good kid, huh?"

"I guess…" Tifa lied, covering up her own emotions. Without another word she turned towards the elevator and was gone. As much as it killed her inside, she didn't ask if Cloud was alright, or look to see where he was, or even talk to her father. She was just too hurt by what he had done.