Chapter 3 Dinner Date Interrupted
Cloud and Sephiroth had been seated at a round wooden table at the fancy Italian restaurant near Cloud's new house. Cloud was wearing a sky-blue silk suit and dark blue leather dress shoes, while Sephiroth wore a black silk suit and black dress shoes.
Cloud found himself staring at Sephiroth across their table, admiring his gorgeous, high cheekbones and beautiful eyes, as well as his long silver hair where it was pulled back at the nape of his slender neck with a black silk ribbon. The glimmering length of hair was hanging forward in a shimmering curtain over his right shoulder and down along his strong torso.
Sephiroth felt Cloud's eyes on him, looking up from the menu he'd been studying to give him a questioning look from those intense eyes. "What is it, Cloud? Are you alright?"
"I'm more than alright, Sephiroth," Cloud assured him, his lips curving into a bigger smile. "You are so beautiful.. I have always felt that way about you, but I was never free to express it. I hope you do not mind hearing it often during our future together."
Sephiroth looked back at him, his high cheekbones turning a light shade of pink as he looked up at Cloud through his thick silver lashes in an unexpected and endearing shy manner. "I do not mind at all, Cloud. If that is how you see me, I am very flattered. I am not the best judge of human beauty, but you are.. stunning. But that is not all I see when I look at you, as I hope it is not all you see when you look at me. You are beautiful beyond description or compare, yes, but also vastly intelligent, kind, and loving. You are perfect in every way, Cloud. Perfect for me."
"..Sephiroth," Cloud breathed, his expression softening further still. "Of course you are more to me than your looks. Much more. You are also intelligent. Stronger than anyone I have ever known. The things you did to protect me. To protect all of us. Not many people would be able to do those things. Not against the odds you were facing. You are just so.. I can not think of strong enough words. I love you, Sephiroth. And I look forward to telling you so often and forever."
"I love you, too, Cloud. As I always have in every life of mine so far, and always will."
"Good. But no more dying and returning. I will not allow it, Sephiroth. This time you are staying with me. Is that understood? And when we do leave this world, we do it together."
"Yes. Together."
"Swear it."
"I swear it, Cloud."
"As do I."
Their waiter approached the table, so the heavy discussion was finished and set aside as they ordered their meals. "Good evening, sirs. My name is William, and I'll be your waiter. What may I arrange for you both?"
"I will have the spaghetti and meatballs meal," Cloud requested politely. "With a side salad and Italian dressing. Unsweetened iced tea as the drink with two lemon slices on the rim of the cup, please."
"Yes, sir," he replied with a smile, writing down the information on his fancy notepad with a quill. "You will also receive a piece of garlic bread with your chosen meal. And for your companion, sir?"
Cloud smiled at him, then at Sephiroth. "I like that. My companion. What would you like, Sephiroth?"
"I like that also. I will have your largest available steak, well done, with sides of mashed potatoes and freshly picked green beans. Water as the drink, thank you."
"Very good choices, sirs," William replied after writing it down, bowing at his slender waist politely to them both. "I will put your order in right away, and if you need anything I will be nearby all evening."
"Thank you, William," Cloud replied, smiling at him as he left to put in their order before inquiring of Sephiroth, "Water? You have always struck me as a wine man. At least when I had time to think about what you would be like outside of our battles."
"No, Cloud. I do not drink alcohol. Or use anything which will take away any of my control. Not after Jenova. Never after Jenova."
"Oh. Of course. That makes sense." Cloud's cell phone chimed just then, alerting him of a text from Denzel when he pulled it out of the holder at his belt and glanced at the screen. "Sorry. It's Denzel. I just need a moment to confirm he and Marlene can come over tomorrow. It's Saturday, so no school."
"Of course. No problem."
Cloud sent off a quick text to Denzel before putting his phone away again, reaching across the table with his right hand to touch Sephiroth's left, clear pleasure in his now sparkling blue eyes when the other man twined their fingers together.
"Okay. No more really heavy stuff for tonight. So, what do you do to earn gil?" Cloud asked, curiosity in his eyes as he smiled at Sephiroth. "I mean, you must do something since you were able to buy us these clothes and shoes and get us a table on a Saturday night."
"Yes, Cloud, I have gil," Sephiroth replied with clear amusement, his lips curving into a smile as he looked back at him. "More than enough to provide for you the way you deserve if you will let me. I assist people with finding things they have lost."
"Oh. Do you mean like their keys? Or a missing pet?"
"Sometimes, yes. But more often it is a missing child or a lost love. I wish I could say the results were always good, but I always find who, or what, my clients ask me to."
"I see," Cloud stated quietly. "I could see where it could be an interesting line of work, but disturbing as well."
"Yes. Disturbing. I will admit some of my jobs are.. upsetting, to describe it mildly. I would prefer to speak of something more pleasant."
Cloud nodded in agreement, watching Sephiroth take a long sip of his ice water from the fancy crystal glass just as William returned with a male server, the two of them laying it all out before them both before withdrawing with smiles and polite bows.
Sephiroth lifted his pure silver knife and fork, beginning to cut up his steak as he spoke again, asking, "So where do you work, Cloud? You must have a job as well since you were able to move into your own place. I would also like to know why you moved out of your apartment above Tifa's bar, if you will tell me. You have always been close. At least judging by what I could see from within my prison during my past incarnations."
"I make important deliveries for rich clients," Cloud answered him before picking up his fork and spinning some of the spaghetti on his plate around it. "People with enough gil they could swim in it. But not Shinra Corperation. Never. I want nothing to do with them. I am sure you feel the same."
"I do."
"Right. I have been saving most of my money for a while now. Other than what I need to eat, keep Fenrir running, maintain my weapons and buy the things Denzel and Marlene need."
"The children you love," Sephiroth stated, the two of them beginning to eat and drink as they spoke with each other.
"Yes," Cloud agreed simply. "I have also been a bouncer for Tifa occasionally when I am in town. But I have made it clear to her I will only do it in an emergency. If she can not get any of the people she has on her payroll to do it."
"I see."
"As for why I chose to move. Tifa has always wanted more from me than I am able to give to her. It was time. I could not have tolerated her uninformed expectations of me for much longer. So I told her the truth, and I left the next day. That was when you came to me in our home."
"By more, I assume you mean sex?"
"I.." Cloud replied, his cheeks turning slightly pink in reaction to his question. "That and my heart. She wanted us to be a family with us as parents and Marlene and Denzel as our children. She likely still does. But she knows the truth now. That it will never happen."
"I see," Sephiroth repeated, though his previously level tone was clearly displeased at the thought.
"Yes. I care about the kids, of course. I love them. But I am a homosexual. I have never been with any man, though. And my heart has always belonged to you, Sephiroth. I could never have been with anyone else. I know that now. I have always known it unconsciously. I love you."
"I love you, too, Cloud," Sephiroth replied, smiling at him. His eyes softened once more, his voice deepening as he spoke. "I am not certain I have a true orientation, no longer being human. But I have never wanted anyone but you, I swear it."
Cloud smiled back at him, squeezing Sephiroth's hand with his. He had just opened his mouth to reply when a familiar voice spoke up a few feet away from their table.
"Cloud?!" Tika spoke softly, her voice clearly shocked. "What in Midgar are you doing here?!"
"Tifa! I- I am on a date. Why are you here?"
"I'm on a break from the bar to have the spaghetti meal and a tall glass of strong red wine. I needed the comfort." Her dark eyes then moved to Sephiroth where he sat across the table from Cloud still holding his hand. "You!"
"Judging by the look in your eyes, I am glad this place requires all weapons to be checked at the door," Sephiroth replied, uncertain what else to say in reaction to her strong anger.
"What the hell, Cloud?!" she growled, ignoring Sephiroth's words as she stared at their clasped hands as though trying to mentally get them to let go of each other. She looked up into Cloud's face then, continuing with, "You're on a date, with him?!"
"Yes, Tifa. I am."
"How the hell can you say that so calmly?"
"Because I know the truth now."
"What truth?"
Cloud looked over at Sephiroth then, silently leaving the choice up to him.
"If I am going to tell this story again, perhaps you should order your dinner and wine," Sephiroth suggested. He stood up and moved to an empty table nearby, bringing a chair back for her. He also beckoned to William, who followed them back to their table.
"What can I do for you, sir?" he inquired politely with a smile.
"The lady would like your spaghetti meal and a bottle of your strongest red wine, please, William," Sephiroth replied just as kindly. "Would you add it to my bill?"
"Of course, sir. I will put the order in right away."
"Thank you."
"You are welcome, sir."
Sephiroth set the chair down behind Tifa, pushing it in for her when she sat down with a frown before returning to his seat. "I put in your order with William and told him to put it on my bill."
"You did not have to do that," Tifa said, her animosity toward him very clear.
"I did, actually," Sephiroth replied, his tone of voice just as polite as when he had spoken to William. "The past wrongs and pain which you, and many others have suffered, I may not have been truly responsible for. But I feel I should assist in any way I can. A fine meal is, as you said, comforting, and not too much of a difficulty to give."
"Oh, yes? And if you are not responsible, who would you say is?"
"Jenova. I was her puppet. Nothing she used my body to do involved my will, or my consent. She invaded me completely. Every action my body committed, whether against another person, or against myself, was her will, her actions."
"What do you mean, against yourself?" Tifa questioned him.
Cloud watched them in silence, eating his meal, knowing to interfere and defend Sephiroth would only make this necessary conversation more antagonistic.
Sephiroth set down his fork with a quiet clink onto his fine white china plate before beginning to carefully unbutton the buttons on his suit cuffs in order to roll back the sleeves as well as the sleeves of his white dress shirt beneath. He then held out his forearms over the table, revealing scars that had clearly once been deep wounds extending from just above the palms of his hands, over his wrists, and all the way up to his elbows in horrible raised configurations.
Tifa gasped softly, her eyes widening with shock and horror, and Cloud shuddered hard at the sight of the scars on Sephiroth's arms. "Oh, gods! What- What happened?" Tifa asked softly.
"I tried to fight her control," Sephiroth stated, pulling his sleeves back down and rebuttoning his cuffs before looking at them both across the table. "It had never done any good before, but this fight was for Cloud, the only person I had ever truly cared about. It was not long enough to make a difference, but for just a moment, her control over me slipped. She punished me most grievously for this rebellion."
"Sephiroth.." Cloud whispered, not simply pain, but agony in his blue eyes.
Sephiroth reached for Cloud's hand again, twining their fingers together and squeezing gently to comfort him. "It is alright now, Cloud. It is in the past. I will not let memories and echoes of her hate poison our future now that we are free of her."
Cloud smiled at him again, his blue eyes lighting up from within, and to Sephiroth it was like the warm golden rays of the sun coming out from behind the clouds on a gray and cold day.
William approached their table once more with Tifa's meal and her wine, her expression surprised as he poured her a glass and left the bottle beside her place. "Thank you." She then looked to Sephiroth with raised eyebrows. "The whole bottle?"
"Just enjoy it, please. ..Tifa."
She blinked at his use of her name, but she did not say anything about it while beginning to eat and drink. "So, how do you earn your gil? You must have a way, as you're clearly paying for all of this food."
"I am a private investigator. I help people find things they have lost. Keys, gil, debit chips. I also find missing pets."
"Really? That sounds very.. normal. Considering who you are, I mean."
"After everything I have been through, I prefer the mundane. I also take missing person cases when requested, though I enjoy them far less. Particularly if the case ends tragically."
"I can imagine," Tifa stated with a visible shudder before taking a long sip of her wine. "The evil in this world is.. I would like to change the subject."
"Please do," Sephiroth replied softly.
"What do you plan to do this weekend?" Tifa asked, shifting slightly in her seat to look toward Cloud now.
"Well.. Denzel and Marlene agreed to come to visit tomorrow."
"At your house?"
"Yes. I would also like to do some shopping for things for my- uh, Sephiroth and I's house, and some new clothes for my walk-in closet. And some flowers. For the window boxes and the flower beds lining the path up to the house. Morning glories, calla lilies, chrysanthemums, roses, babies breath and forget me knots. Also birdfeeders, seeds, houses, and a birdbath."
"Wow. That's a lot of stuff, Cloud. Would- Would you let me help? Please?"
"I.. suppose you could get the flowers and bird things," Cloud agreed with obvious hesitation. "I will give you the necessary gil. But I do want to set it all up and plant the flowers myself."
"Of course. I understand. You want to make it your own."
"Yes, exactly."
After the three of them finished their meal, Tifa taking the nearly empty wine bottle with her, they exited the restaurant together.
"Thank you, Sephiroth," Tifa said to him, understandable awkwardness in her words.
"You are welcome, Tifa."
"Would you like us to walk you home, Tifa?" Cloud offered while reaching out for Sephiroth's hand and twining their fingers together.
Tifa sighed, her expression amused and sad at the same time as she looked at them both. "I would like it, yes, Cloud. But I think I have taken up enough of your date night. Besides, I'll be fine on my way home. People know not to mess with me by now, regardless of whether I've been drinking."
"Alright. We will see you and the kids in the morning then, Tifa."
"Yes. Goodnight, Cloud. Sephiroth."
"Goodnight," they said together, watching in silence as she headed off down the lantern-lit street with her bottle of wine.
Cloud sighed softly, then looked up at Sephiroth's profile with a smile. He squeezed his fingers gently with his when Sephiroth turned his head and angled it slightly down to look at him in return. "Let's go home."
"Yes," Sephiroth agreed, squeezing Cloud's fingers in return as they began walking. "Let us go home."
"Oh!" Cloud exclaimed, just now thinking of it. "Where do you live? You will have to move your stuff in."
"Yes, beautiful Cloud," he replied with clear amusement in his dark eyes. "I shall. But it can wait a day or two while you make the changes you wish to. Are there guest rooms for the children if you ever wish them to stay overnight?"
"Yes. But I would like to repaint them as well as the bedroom we will share with each other."
"That sounds good. What color were you thinking for our room?"
"Cerulean blue."
"That sounds beautiful. Like you, Cloud."
Cloud blushed pink across his creamy cheeks in response to the compliment. He didn't speak but Sephiroth could tell his comment had pleased Cloud.
They reached Cloud's house then, heading up the white flagstoned walk and stopping at the front door. Sephiroth looked down at Cloud with a smile. "I shall see you in the morning, my beautiful soul."
Cloud blinked, looking up at him with a suddenly crestfallen expression at his statement. "Oh. Are you sure you do not wish to come inside?"
"Nothing would give me greater pleasure than lying down in your bed and holding you through the night, sweet Cloud."
"Truly?" Cloud inquired, his expression brightening again with joy.
"Truly. This, us, is moving very quickly, however. I thought perhaps you might desire some breathing space."
"If I do, I will inform you," he replied firmly, his blue eyes serious and slightly narrowed. "We have both been longing for each other for years, Sephiroth. To waste any time we can share together is foolish. We are not a normal couple, and we never shall be."
"You are right, of course. I apologize."
"Nevermind. Just please go inside. Make yourself comfortable. Take a shower if you wish. I am just going to walk down to the shop on the corner and buy us some ice cream. Do you have a favorite flavor?"
"Very well. Be careful, please. No, Cloud. I have never had ice cream."
"Are- Are you serious, Sephiroth?"
"Yes. The couple who created this body-"
"You mean your parents?"
"I suppose. But without Jenova, I had to find my own way back into the world to be with you. I have no real emotional connection to them, only to you. They were all about healthy foods. No sweets or candies. I simply saw no reason to bother with any of it after I became an adult once more. I have not spoken to them for years. Not since I revealed my feelings for you to them. There is no room in my life for any people who will not support my love for you. You are my world, Cloud. You always have been."
"Sephiroth.." Cloud breathed, his expression turning soft once more as he smiled up at him. "I.. I feel the same about you."
Sephiroth reached out to him, drawing him in close against his chest and into his arms. He looked down into Cloud's eyes in clearly serious silence, then slowly lowered his head down to press his lips to Cloud's in a tender kiss.
Cloud softly sighed into his mouth in response, his beautiful blue eyes fluttering closed as he melted against Sephiroth's body. Cloud then twined his arms around his neck, pressing close against him while returning the kiss with his whole body. They reluctantly ended the passionate kiss after a few moments, both of them needing to breathe.
"Mmm.." Cloud hummed quietly while opening his eyes again to look up into Sephiroth's intense gaze. "That was lovely, Sephiroth."
"Yes, Cloud. It was."
"Go on inside and relax. I will return with the ice cream soon. I will just get all of my favorite flavors."
"Yes."
Cloud kissed him again, keeping it reluctantly brief, then lightly caressed his face with the slender fingers of his left hand before releasing him from his embrace to head down to the small corner store for their frozen treats.
Sephiroth watched him until he was out of sight before entering the house for the night.
