~Gifts~
~~~ooooo~~~
6:25 AM.
The clock on the stove glowed red. Bright, unforgiving.
Taunting Aeris.
6:25 AM, December 24.
Her troubled thoughts made the eggs on her plate unappetizing but with the way things were, it was hardly the time to let any food go to waste. She forced herself to finish her breakfast and cleared the table. After washing and putting away the dishes, she refilled her cup with some freshly brewed tea and sat back down at the table across from her husband's chair that he had vacated a short while ago.
$43.16.
The final tally.
"Forty-three dollars and sixteen cents," she murmured, watching steam rise from the cup.
All the scrimping and saving of the past six months and that was all she had to show for it.
Not that it was surprising, considering their nonexistent budget meant the only money she had been able to stash was from the meager tips she earned selling the flowers she grew on the roof of their apartment. To say the economy was in a slump was putting it mildly. Contrary to the belief that almost everyone had held in the early days, business had not picked up again, not for her, not for Cloud, not for most people. Indeed, it was looking less and less likely that it would pick up anytime soon.
The world was a vastly different place from the one it had been not even a year ago. Almost overnight, the stock market had crashed, setting into motion a global crisis still trying to rebound. With everyone suffering, life had grounded to a halt for all intents and purposes.
But the holidays had come upon them, unsympathetic to the fact that some omnipotent power had hit the pause button on the world. Their first Christmas as a married couple and their finances were in shambles.
With her tiny eggnest, Aeris had scoured every store in the city and searched every online store and marketplace, but had come up empty-handed. Even in these rough times, $43 didn't go far. And while she'd accepted that it wouldn't buy anything worthy of the man she loved, she had hoped to find a gift with sentimental value at least.
Her eyes fell on the empty seat across from her, instant tenderness filling her heart.
The bags under his eyes had grown increasingly heavy lately, the dark circles under his eyes more pronounced, but he had given her a half smile that morning as if everything was normal and they didn't have a care in the world. Freshly showered and fully dressed, he'd looked good enough to eat, certainly far more tempting than the concoction of leftover potatoes and the last eggs in the fridge she'd cobbled together for breakfast.
"Good morning," he'd said, his voice husky in her ear as he stole a kiss from her in the kitchen where she was cooking in her robe. It was followed soon after with another quick kiss before he rushed out the door, leaving his coffee mug half full.
He had been putting in more hours, leaving earlier and coming home later, traveling longer distances but bringing home less pay as the recession wore on. He never complained and seldom let on about his feelings concerning their finances. But Aeris saw the disappointment that darkened his blue eyes whenever he checked the deposits in their bank account, recognized the worry in the small frown that knitted his brows when he went through the bills, felt his anxiety in the brush of his lips on her forehead late at night when he thought she was sleeping.
Lost in thought, she absentmindedly lifted her cup to her lips and blew her breath over it before taking a sip. The hot liquid burned her tongue a little but it was a minor discomfort, barely a distraction from the weight on her mind.
A sudden buzzing by her elbow broke into her thoughts, quickly drowned out by Pachelbel's Canon in D on violin. Her mother's favorite.
She picked up the call, smiling as her mother's familiar worried face appeared on her phone screen. "Good morning, Mom."
"Honey!" Elmyra's own smile was unsteady and her voice cracked with emotion. "Your present came in the mail yesterday. You...you shouldn't have!"
"Merry Christmas, Mom," she said warmly. "We love you, too."
"You can't be sending money at a time like this. I know it's Christmas but you need to be counting your pennies and—"
"Don't worry about us," Aeris interrupted her mother's guilt-ridden tirade. She had the upper hand, having already had the same argument the previous night with Cloud's mother and winning it like a champ. Her mother would be even easier. She knew all her weak spots. "We had some money set aside when things first went bad, just in case we needed it for something like this. Specifically for you and Claudia. We know you can use it."
"But—"
"No buts, Mom. It was Cloud's idea," she said. "He didn't think things were going to improve as quickly as everyone was saying." As she had also been saying if she was being completely honest. Without a shred of remorse, she went straight for the kill. "You know you'll hurt his feelings if you turn down our gift. Do you really want to do that?" She counted silently...One, two, th—
Her mother let out a tearful laugh. "Fine," she said, sounding defeated as Aeris giggled and pumped her fist under the table. "Please tell Cloud his generosity and thoughtfulness is greatly appreciated, and give him my love."
"I'll be happy to do that."
"Speaking of Cloud, how is my favorite son-in-law?"
She chuckled. "He's your only son-in-law."
"If I had a dozen, he'd still be my favorite." Elmyra's voice was tart. "The poor boy's not overworking himself, is he?"
"He..." Her mood immediately turned somber. "He's doing well."
"You're up rather early this morning," her mother said shrewdly. "What time did he leave?"
Aeris closed her eyes. "A little before 6 o'clock," she whispered, opening them again and forcing a smile.
There was a brief pause. "I'm sorry, dear. I wish... Is there anything I can do to help?"
"No, please don't feel bad, Mom. We're doing much better than a lot of people." It was true. They were scraping by with their respective "jobs" while many others had found themselves unemployed and forced to seek out other means of bringing home a check, be it new jobs, government aid, or get creative. "We're still working. And we have each other. We're lucky. So very lucky."
They didn't have much but it didn't matter. They were rich beyond their wildest dreams.
Elmyra's smile was one of understanding. "What are you getting him for Christmas?" she asked. "Did you ever decide on a gift?"
"I...I actually haven't gotten him anything yet."
"Oh, Aeris." And just like that, the guilt was back on her mother's face. "I—"
"I know I can just make him something," she shook her head at her mother, "but we do that all the time already. And it's not even about the money," she added hastily. "I just...I don't know what to get him."
"What about your friends? Don't they have any ideas?"
"Sure." Aeris made a face. "A watch, a nurse's costume or lingerie, a year's supply of hair gel..."
"Oh dear." Elmyra tried to cover her laughter with a cough. "Let me guess: Tifa, Zack and Yuffie."
"In that order," she grinned.
"That Zack," her mother muttered. "I'll just be glad he didn't suggest the costume for Cloud."
"Well, now that you mention it, Cloud could probably pull it off. He has the face for a dress and—"
"Stop right there!" Elmyra interrupted. "I do not want to hear about the things you two get up to behind closed doors. My daughter's sex life is off limits in any conversation that I'm a part of!"
Aeris laughed. "Sex? What's that?" she asked innocently.
"That's more like it," Elmyra chuckled. "What about the other men? They're married. Any sage advice from any of them?"
She had struck out there, too. "Vincent had nothing to offer."
"Cid probably suggested a box of fine cigars."
"And Cloud doesn't even smoke," she said with a mix of indignation and disgust.
"And Barrett?"
"A romantic weekend getaway."
"That's not a bad idea." Her mother nodded her approval. "But a little costly at this time."
"Right." Even if she could afford a trip, it wasn't... "And it's not special enough. I want a gift that's meaningful. It's our first Christmas as husband and wife."
"Honey, if you wait too long, you might end up with no present at all."
"I know."
"Don't overthink it. If it's from you, he'll think it's special, whatever it is."
They chatted for a while longer before ending the call. Aeris hung up the phone, still none the wiser about what to get Cloud for Christmas.
Heaving a deep sigh, she drained the rest of her lukewarm tea and set her cup down on the saucer, ignoring the slight wobbling of the table on its uneven legs.
A bright glare out of the corner of her eye drew her to the window. The sun had risen over the rooftops of the city, a small, dull orange disc in the gray, wintry sky. She had no orders for bouquets to arrange but she still had a garden to water and flowers to cut and peddle on the streets. It was Christmas Eve. Surely there would be people looking for last minute flowers to buy for their loved ones.
Without conscious thought, her feet carried her over to the fireplace mantel built into the adjacent wall where a few carefully selected objects were displayed. Among them was a framed photograph that Yuffie had snapped of her and Cloud on their wedding day. It was one of the rare pictures where he was not frowning or looking down at the ground in an attempt to hide his face. But he was not looking at the camera although the flashes going off all around them were almost impossible to ignore. And neither was the bride. They were staring into each other's eyes and even though their profiles were turned to the camera, the love they felt for one another was obvious on their faces.
As disheartening as everything was, just looking at his face in the photo made her smile.
"Love." The endearment was a soft murmur, a prayer, as only befitting the man who was her beloved. A smile curved her lips as her eyes traced his handsome features in the picture, caressing them gently. He deserved so much more.
He deserved the world.
What was she going to do?
Her eyes fell on the medallion he wore strung from a leather cord around his neck in the photo. She squinted at the pendant but was unable to make out the letter "S" that was engraved on it, the first initial of his father's name, who had passed away when Cloud was five. As far as Aeris knew, he never took it off.
"Forty-three dollars and sixteen cents," she said with a heavy sigh.
The only thing she knew for certain was the gift had to be something quiet and understated, without sacrificing quality. Something that still made a statement without being an attention seeker. Like the man himself. He was not a showboat by any means and, in fact, was more than happy to let her have all the attention whenever the occasion warranted it. It was unfortunate for him that his looks, from his masculine, but pretty and fine features to his wild blond spikes, tended to draw unwanted eyes to him.
Aeris grinned. It was that ridiculous hair that had caught her eyes and drawn her to him initially. And those eyes. Bluer than the deepest ocean on some days, as light as the cerulean sea on others, ever changing, endlessly fascinating. They enchanted her as nothing else on earth did. Well, except for all his other attributes, she thought, chuckling to herself. Or just him really.
Shaking her head at her hopeless infatuation with her husband, she returned her gaze to the view of the cityscape through the window, but was quickly distracted by sunlight glancing off the mirror on the opposite wall. She turned from the mantel to cross over to the full-length mirror mounted on a narrow partition that sectioned off the kitchen and dining area from the living room.
She studied her reflection in the mirror, her eyes moving critically over her figure and clothes, up to her face and hair. One by one, Aeris pulled out the hairpins that kept her braid coiled neatly on top of her head and her hair came tumbling down her back. She unraveled the thick plait, combed her fingers through the chestnut waves streaked with red highlights, burning brighter than any fire in the morning sun.
"Like flames in the firelight," Cloud liked to tell her, his eyes riveted on the silky strands spilling from between his fingers as they lay in a tangle of sweaty, exhausted limbs on the floor in the glow of the electric fireplace and the candles flickering around them.
The wheels in her head turned, slowly at first, the beginnings of an idea materializing from the shroud of mist in her head, taking root in a matter of seconds.
"Cloud," she breathed, wonder and happiness bubbling inside of her so quickly, she feared she would burst. Aeris laughed with delight. "I have it!"
Not bothering to put her hair back up, she dashed to the coat rack, threw on her jacket and grabbed her purse, and hurried out the door.
She had a mission to accomplish before the day was over.
This was going to be the best Christmas ever.