"Cloud?" Tifa repeats in a questioning tone as she stands up from her chair. Cloud is the man that left her so many years ago without a word or warning. She waited on him for months but he never showed up. Hostility, rage, and sadness brims her eyes but she doesn't dare give the blond the satisfaction. To her, there's no such thing as a perfect relationship. There are good ones and there are bad ones. She would have liked to think theirs was a good one, and if it wasn't, why didn't Cloud come to her to at least try to change it?

Placing her right hand on her hip, trying not to display any venom or sass in her tone and body movements, Tifa spoke. "What are you doing here?"

She has grown to be a fine woman. Cloud takes a quick look at the woman in front of him. The last time he saw her, she was just a mere teenager who was finishing up high school. She always talked about her passion for psychology. Looks like she made it, and that makes him happy, but the happiness is short lived. He had scorned this woman before, and hoped to have never seen her again. He is a coward for hurting her and a bigger coward for avoiding her.

"I'm a homicide detective for the Midgar Police Department." He pulls his shield from his pocket, never taking his eyes off of Tifa; she too had kept her gaze on him, even when he pulled out his shield. "I want your professional opinion about a case."

Surprisingly to the blond, she smiles and nods. "Sure. What can I help you with?"

He's a bit taken back. He expected her to scream or at the very least throw something at him. She was impaled by the knife he placed inside her heart so many years ago yet she said nothing about it. He couldn't help but to frown and question her actions. Slowly stepping towards the chairs that are in front of her desk, he let his thoughts consume his mind. He couldn't comprehend the scene. Sure, they are at her work, and could understand somewhat as to why she doesn't want to talk about the past here, but completely ignoring the situation is something Cloud didn't anticipate from her.

"Tif, I-

"My name is Tifa Lockhart and I like to keep things professional." Her tone is firm but not forced. Deep inside her, way deep inside of her heart, she feels that pain he left years ago. That pain she got rid of long ago when he abandoned her. This man was her everything and would have placed her life before his. Unfortunately for her, the feeling wasn't mutual and that taught her a valuable lesson in life: never make anyone a priority if you're nothing more than an option to them.

Seeing Tifa's almond eyes is beginning to make Cloud uneasy and the tension isn't in his favor either. He sits down in one of the chairs and grabs a small notepad from his pocket and grabs a black pen from the cup on Tifa's desk.

"I'm investigating an attempted rape. One of my good friends was attacked a few nights ago, and recently there have been a lot of attacks going on in Midgar."

"I've heard." Tifa recalled hearing about a murder recently happening in Midgar when she was dropping her Papa off to work. "I've heard they're happening too common."

"Yes, they are. But the weird thing is that each victim had a jaded past. This friend of mind may have been a victim of one of the murderers in Midgar."

Tifa is genuinely interested. She quirks her eyebrow and intertwines her fingers, her interest in Cloud's case never leaving her. "You think there's more than one killer?"

Cloud nods and explains how some of the victims were left. Tifa nods in agreement and understands why Cloud would come to such a conclusion.

"So you're saying that the murders in Midgar are possibly linked to the recent attack of your friend?" Tifa sums up and Cloud nods "How did you come up with such a conclusion? You don't have concrete evidence, not to mention we're talking about two places; one place has a lot of crime while the other have moderate. And not to mention, your friends seems like a law abiding citizen who doesn't seems to have so much as a traffic ticket in her name, which completely contradicts the having a jaded past angle. I'm sorry but if you want more of an opinion about your friend being attacked, I'm gonna need more evidence, however, that's a good hunch about multiple killers in Midgar."

Cloud nodded in respect as he folds the notebook back to the front and places it back inside his pocket. Tifa quickly turns towards the window, peering at nothing in particular. She just wants the blond to leave. She hears Cloud shuffling about before the noise ceased. She could feel his cerulean gaze upon her. Swallowing away a lump in her throat, she refuses to turn his way. Getting the hint, Cloud quietly turns and leaves the office. The click from the door is proof that Cloud is now gone, and when Tifa turns around, she is relived he didn't pretend to leave. She glances at her desk and notices a white card that wasn't there before.

Meet me at the coffee shop on 17th Street this Friday at 11 a.m.

She sighs heavily and plops into her chair. She was able to keep up her tough girl act for this encounter but next time, she isn't so sure if she could manage her emotions, if there will ever be a next time, that is.

A few days have gone by since Tifa had appeared on the deadly duo's doorstep. Since then, Yuffie was surprised she haven't seen the young brunette since that night but it was probably for the best. After all, they were killers, and no matter how much she, Vincent, and the rest of their small organization would defend their point-of-view, society wouldn't accept them. It's the harsh reality that each member accepted as time went on with the killings. Yuffie was tapping away on her tablet, looking for Genesis's background information. The taps on the screen were harsher than the previous one as time went on; she was having a rather difficult time finding any information on Genesis. This didn't sit well with her at all. She slammed the tablet down, crossed her arms, and pouted defiantly at the tablet while shoving her tongue out at the inanimate object. Vincent walked in and noticed her mood. Without saying a word to her, he grabbed the tablet and observed what she was looking for.

"It's best that we learn as much as we can about Genesis as possible." She uncrossed her arms but kept her frown on the tablet. "Unfortunately, I'm having a hard time finding him in the Nibelheim database."

"Maybe he doesn't have a record." Vincent noticed that Yuffie somehow hacked into the Nibelheim police records. He could never understand how she was so good at hacking things, but she could never understand why he was so good with guns. Both of their talents worked hand-in-hand so neither one of them complained about their 'mysterious' talents. "Perhaps he changed his name to something else."

"If he went through changing his name legally, then the process should be somewhere in the files that I've managed to get from the courthouse." Yuffie pointed to the yellow folder on the table. It was filled with court cases involving name changes.

"You've said the key word: 'legally'. If a person wanted to desperately change their name, all is needed is a lie and a pitiful-looking face." Yuffie frowned at Vincent. "Simply put, you can lie and say you lost your social security card or birth certificate to officials and they will change it for you."

"That seems reasonable. People lie about anything these days." Yuffie drummed her fingers on the table. Even if Vincent's theory was correct, there should be something somewhere that has the process on file. She grabbed the tablet from Vincent's hands and began to search for the record.

"Check the Hall of Records for this town." Vincent got up from the chair and went into the kitchen. "The file should be there somewhere. In the meantime, I'll check in with Reno about Elena's whereabouts."

Yuffie waved her hand as a response saying she heard him. Deep inside Vincent's gut he felt like Genesis knew he was being watched so catching him would be hard. As long as Genesis didn't hurt anyone while Vincent and Yuffie planned his murder and actually execute it, Vincent didn't mind the length.

"How long must you keep me waiting?!" Elena tried her best to disguise the venom in her voice. She is growing tired of Genesis putting her on the back burner for no reason. When they were first involved with each other, he promised her she would always be her top priority, even when she knew about his wife. Genesis's goody-too-shoes of a wife didn't fulfill his needs sexually. When Elena met Genesis at a bar one night, he shared a vision with her, and she made it come true later on that night. Since then, she has been his permanent side chick for quite some time. It angers her that she is now being put off to the side; she's too spoiled and now sexually starved.

She allows Genesis to respond to her but her frown is still plastered on her face. Without saying a word, she hit the red icon on her phone and slams it inside her purse. She waves towards the bartender to get another drink. She understands that the thunderstorm hit Nibelheim pretty hard but that was earlier in the week. It is now Thursday night, and she demands time and attention from him. The waiter came back with the drink. She rudely throws some money on the counter, and put the glass to her lips, not even saying thank you to the confused waiter. He looks at the money and notices the several hundred-dollar bills Elena threw. Her drink is expensive but not that expensive. Without a word, he takes the money and tends to another customer. Normally, the bartender would give customers a hard time when being treated, but the money told him mentally to take the money and run like hell.

"You may want to slow down, ma'am. Drinking like that is hazardous to your health."

Elena gulps down the remains of her alcoholic beverage and turns her attention to a red-haired man who invites himself next to her. He waves the bartender down and orders himself and Elena a drink, despite giving her lip about her drinking habits. All a part of his tactics.

"You don't even know my drink." She rolls her eyes at the man's feeble attempt in trying to impress her.

The red-haired man chuckles. She just don't know she's making it easy for me. "Three shots of vodka, with a splash of lemon and cranberry juice with salt around the rim." He smirks at her surprised expression.

"I'm sorry. I didn't catch your name."

"That's because you are too busy being angry over nothing." He couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped his lips when he saw Elena's blush. "I'm Tavern." He extends his hand.

"Elena." She takes his hand. The bartender comes back with their drinks. Tavern thanks him and gives him a hefty tip. The bartender walks away with a grin on his face. Tonight is his lucky night.

"Why are you so mad over nothing? If someone doesn't want you, drop them."

Elena raises her eyebrows. "Is this the part where you tell me how beautiful I am and how I can do better?"

"What's the point in telling you something you already know?"

The way he spoke his words turned Elena on. She blushes again and took a sip of her drink, her eyes never leaving Tavern.

"Costa del Sol is such a beautiful place." Tavern notes. "Don't waste your energy on something so small in a place like this. I know a nice spot to gaze at the stars. Wanna join me?"

Maybe she could use this red-haired man as a stress reliever. She smiles and nods happily. Tavern finishes the rest of his drink and excuses himself to the men's bathroom. Before entering, he shoots a glance at Elena, who is looking into a compact mirror. Shaking his head, the red-haired man walks inside, grabs his phone out of his pocket and dials a number. As the phone is ringing, he looks below into every stall to ensure he is the only one in the restroom.

"This woman puts the capital W in the word whore." He spoke in a low voice in case someone comes into the restroom. "I have her practically drooling into my pants."

"Whatever you do, wrap it up, Reno." The woman on the other end spoke. "And don't kill her. We need her alive to get all the information we can out of her."

"Speaking of information, how's the background check coming for Genesis?"

Yuffie let out a huge sigh. "Not good. Vincent and Sephiroth suspects that Genesis may have lied to get his name changed. I may have to go to the Hall of Records in Nibelheim but the problem with that is that I have to have the proper credentials in order to access private files."

"You can't hack into the system?" The young woman can hack into the highest paid company computer system in Gaia if she wanted to. It's a surprise to Reno that she couldn't get into the system.

"Trust me, I'm very unhappy about that." Yuffie mopes. "Even Sephiroth tried on his end, and he can't get through."

"Don't stress about it too much. Genesis is giving Elena the cold shoulder so I don't think they'll be doing anything anytime soon. Just keep an eye out on Genesis."

"Will do. Reno, be careful. I talk a lot of shit about you, but what you're doing is messing with a crazy, sex-crazed bitch. Despite you being an asshole, I care about you, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

Reno is touched by her words. "That really means a lot, Yuffie. I will, trust me. You'll be the first person I'll call if anything goes sour."

He ends the call, and looks into the mirror before heading out. Elena had just put her mirror inside her purse and smiles when she sees Reno appear from the restroom.

"Ready to see the most beautiful night sky you have ever seen?"

"Lead the way." Elena smiles as she hooks her arm with Reno's. Getting the blonde to spill her guts to him will be an easy task. Who knew him being a player would actually come in handy?

There was a cool breeze coming and going every so often. It's actually a good thing that he picked a coffee shop. The blond slightly shivered as the wind blew through his gravity-defying spiked hair. He looks at his watch and notices it is 11:15. He hopes she read his message. He owes her an explanation, and it took every ounce out of him not to say anything when he saw her a few days ago. He sees her walking towards the table seconds later. She has on a beautiful red dress with a black leather jacket and black ankle boots. Her hair is done in small curls and it appears she has a bit of lips gloss on.

The lip gloss made her lips look fuller and he found himself starring at them a little longer than he should have. In fact, he is practically undressing her with his eyes, and that thought made him tear his eyes away from her walking figure. He felt that same sensation he felt in his heart a few days ago when he had first seen her. She is such a beautiful woman; a beautiful woman that he had scorned. She finally makes it to the table and sits across from him. He hands her the cappuccino. She thanks him and took a sip and sighs happily as she withdrew the cup from her lips.

"You remembered."

"Of course I did." He slowly looks up to her face.

"Cloud, are we here to go down memory lane?" Tifa questions.

"…..Somewhat. I…was surprised to see you earlier this week."

Tifa nods. "Same here. As you can see, I've made it successfully in my field, but I'm still climbing the ladder."

"I'm proud of you." Cloud chuckles a little. He is relieved that Tifa did the same. "But….I owe you an explanation."

"That you do." Tifa relaxes her shoulders and gives Cloud her undivided attention as she sips her cappuccino.

Cloud practically ripped the white envelope open to see his results. He planned on joining the war against Wutai and with his service, he hoped to get a fully paid education and major in criminal justice. He leaped for joy like a ten year old boy on Christmas Day. He had gotten the news he had wanted, but it was short lived once he read the details as to when he would be leaving. In the letter, he was to pack up and leave on the first train leaving to Junon next week to board the submarine heading to Corel Prison. He longed for this his entire life, and he failed to share this information with his sweetheart. He figured there was no point in telling her his decision of wanting to fight in the war because he wasn't too sure if he met the proper criteria. The news would hurt her, but it's better to tell her now. He grabbed his phone and dialed his sweetheart's number. He hated to do this; he didn't want to hear her pained voice when he tell her the news, but he had to.

"Hi Cloud." Her cheery voice always made him happy. "What's up?"

"Hey Tif. I need to talk to you."

"Oh…okay." Tifa hesitated. "About what?"

"It's nothing too bad. Can you come over to my house?"

"Sure. I'm on my way."

Ten minutes later, Tifa was in front of his house. He opened the door and stepped aside to let her come him, stealing a glance at her face. It was saddened, and he knew she probably thought he brought her over there to end their relationship. They went into the living room and sat down on the couch.

"So….what's this about?" Tifa asked, wanting the strange feeling away from her stomach before she threw up her dinner.

Cloud inhaled deeply. "I've joined the war to fight Wutai. I received the paperwork today and it said that I have to leave next week."

"Really?" Tifa was relieved she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. He didn't understand her excitement. This reaction was the complete opposite of what he thought her reaction would be. "That's good but take care of yourself."

"You're not angry or sad that I've kept my interest from you?"

"Actually, I had a hunch that you were interested in joining the war. I saw history books and maps on several buildings in Wutai in your room poorly hidden. I knew you weren't studying for fun."

Cloud smiled nervously. "Sorry for keeping it from you. I thought you would overreact."

"It's not a problem but please, come back safe."

He nodded and pressed his lips against hers. When she didn't pull away, he deepened the kiss and guided her onto her back. Her moan sent a sensation in his cock, causing him to rub himself and moan slightly. She broke away for a moment and looked into his cerulean eyes. They've promised each other they would engage in sex when they've both felt like they were ready. Before the question escape his lips, Tifa began kissing him again, guiding his hands onto her breasts. It was their first time, and it was painful for Tifa at first, but her moans and low whispers of Cloud's name being said over and over masked that fact. He promised her he would return, but he never did, not to her.

After eight weeks of enduring drills and random wake up calls from the sergeants, Cloud and his crew was finally able to relax. They were given the chance to go out and have fun for once. It had been a while since the blond was able to have fun. He put the finishing touches on his letter that he was going to mail to Tifa, telling her all the hell he went through. His body was sore, and he honestly didn't want to go out; he was only going because Barret, his war buddy, was making him go out.

He gathered the money on his desk along with his letter and walked out of his bunker with Barret in front of him.

"Definitely gettin' laid tonight! Damn it's been so long!"

"Calm down, Barret." Cloud rolled his eyes. "It's just a night out."

"Yeah, well, whatever. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of beatin' the meat myself."

Cloud frowned. "What the hell Barret! Now I'm gonna have a mental image."

"Sorry Spikey, but I'm just sayin'-

"And I'm just saying! Too much information about your personal life."

Barret made a funny noise with his lips and waved at Cloud.

After the night out, the men went into their bunkers and called it a night. Everyone was sound asleep except for one occupant. Cloud had his cerulean eyes fixed on the darkness on the ceiling above. He went out with his war buddies to see a movie. Afterwards, they went to a local arcade, which the management paid for all expenses in honor of them being in SOLDIER and fighting against Wutai. There were a lot of beautiful women and that made Cloud guilty. Tifa was the woman he was with yet he craved for the women that he saw.

They were more than willing to do anything with him, and he would've if his other half didn't kick in. Tifa was the woman for him, or so he thought and tried to convince himself. She was there for every fall in his life, yet he betrayed her. He clutched the letter in his hand and starred at it, knowing he couldn't really see it in the dark. He aimlessly threw it on the floor. He didn't deserve her. His hormones got the best of him, and even though he didn't do anything with the women he saw that night, he still betrayed her because he wanted to do more. It hit him that he's still a young man who is just now seeing the world; a world that's contained with a lot of beautiful women and endless possibilities. The more he thought about it, the more he realized he wasn't ready to establish such a committed relationship to Tifa. If he was ready, why is he having second thoughts about their relationship? Did he really love Tifa like he said he did? If he didn't send the letter, maybe she would think that he's dead. He felt terrible for being a coward and so weak, practically giving into the temptations like his war buddies did. He spent the remainder of the evening convincing himself that Tifa was who he wanted; he didn't want to explore his options, nor have a few flings here and there. The more he tried to tell himself otherwise, the sadder he got. The constant lying didn't mask the truth. Swallowing hard, Cloud rolled to his side and decided it was best to leave Tifa alone. Even though she's been there for him, he just couldn't find it in himself to commit to her.

"I'm sorry." Cloud says after minutes of his explanation went by. "After seeing those women, the urge of wanting to have them filled me, and then I realized I couldn't be committed to you any longer."

"It's a tough pill to swallow." Tifa admits. "But it's the truth. I really wished you didn't abandon me. It hurt me deeply that you just ran off like that."

"I'm sorry. I was a coward then, and even though the truth is out, I still am."

No words are exchanged between the two for a couple minutes. Tifa finishes her cappuccino and throws the container in the trash. She gets up from her chair and Cloud did the same.

"I have something I need to take care of so I'm gonna go."

Cloud nods. "I understand. I was wondering….if you're available, can you help me with the case? Once I find some concrete evidence, of course."

Tifa nods and smiles. "Sure."

Another awkward silence is exchanged between the two until Tifa turns and walks away. Cloud looks at her as she walks away. He sighs heavily when the feelings starts rushing back to him. He pushes away any past thoughts of Tifa aside, throws away his container, and heads to his car. Tifa is walking back to her car, and she feels the tears welling up in her eyes. She sniffs them away and continues her stride to her car. Cloud's apology is commendable, though she feels it is a weak reason.

People are entitled to an opinion, she understands that. What she doesn't understand is how Cloud was able to walk away from her after everything they have been through? He wasn't some average joe she met in high school, and dated for three months before the relationship ended. They had known each other since they were mere children. Always carried a torch for one another. Cloud was the first boy she kissed, loved, and made love to. From sneaking out at night to hang out and gaze at the stars to spending two days completely mad at each over something silly, they've endured it all, yet he walked away as if it meant nothing to him. She heard him out, and got his side of the story, yet she's still hurt. She wouldn't dare shed a tear over a man who didn't have the decency to tell her the truth as to whether or not he wanted to be with her. That man simply wasn't worth it.