- Chapter 2 : Vacation -

"That asshole…" I grumbled.

Tifa poked my shoulder. Hard. "Cid needs a break, too. He's been flying the Highwind all day every day for a week!"

We zoomed through the mountainous roads along the coast. The bike we'd bought was more than good, it was a damn dream to drive. On top of that it was a sunny, clear day and for the first time since Meteor fell, there were no signs of any weirdness. No noises, no smoke. Nothing. It was just a normal day.

But…

"What's another hour to fly down to Costa? Now we've gotta ride for ten hours because he couldn't be bothered with a detour. We've already been going for three."

"Come on, Cloud," she admonished as I felt her lean back. "You need to look on the bright side! It's a beautiful day for a drive. We have clear skies, empty, open roads and a wonderful view."

I glanced to my left over the cliff and took in the sight of the sparkling ocean. It disappeared over the horizon, but not too far away I spotted a pod of dolphins leaping and splashing through the calm waters.

"Hey, look," I said as I pointed at them.

"Hmm?" Tifa leaned forwards, grasping my shoulders as she followed my finger. "At what?"

"Dolphins. Right there."

She leaned to her left and I could see her squinting in my peripheral vision. "I can't see anything." After trying again for a few more moments she settled back behind me, slipping her arms around my waist. "Unfortunately, I don't have your incredible eyesight," she teased.

I rolled my eyes as we took a long sweeping turn over the crest of the tallest cliff. As the road began a massive but smooth transition down from the high cliffs to sea level I released the throttle, letting the bike cruise as we could just begin to make out the beginnings of civilization far, far in the distance.

"I don't remember seeing that town before," Tifa said.

"We didn't come this way last time," I replied. "We went south from Costa. We're coming in north from Rocket Town."

"They really need to rename that place," Tifa said with a little giggle, one that died out as quickly as it started. I felt her sigh against me. "If only that rocket had worked…"

"It doesn't matter. It's done with now," I said as reassuringly as possible, though I think we'd all wondered what might've been avoided if that plan had worked. "We're supposed to be on vacation. Let's just try and relax, yeah?"

A few moments passed. "You're right," Tifa answered in that trademark, bright tone before resting her chin on my shoulder. "Is there anything in particular you'd like to do when we arrive?"

I shrugged, bouncing her head up and down. "Sleep?"

"Well, of course," she said with a laugh. "I meant after that."

"I haven't really thought about it."

As the road straightened out as far as I could see ahead I turned to meet her eyes.

"We have a whole day's worth of time to kill on this drive." She shrugged and shot me her disarming smile. "Talk to me," she suggested in a tone that matched the smile. "Maybe you'll come up with something."

It was a fair point. "Hmm. I guess… I'd like to try surfing? I've never done it before."

Tifa blinked as her eyes widened. "R-really?"

"Why is that surprising?" I mumbled, tightening my lips as she began to grin up at me.

"It isn't, really. I just didn't have you down as the fun-loving, surfing type."

Now I was frowning. "What's that supposed to mean?" I complained. "I know how to have fun."

Her head tilted ever so slightly as she laughed. "Now that's something I want to see."

I rolled my eyes and turned my attention back to the road. "You're really enjoying making fun of me today, aren't you?"

Her fingers pinched at my sweater, lifting and dropping it against me over and over again. "Weeell… You are easy to make fun of."

That stung a little. My lips twisted on their own into a sardonic smirk. "Yeah, yeah… I get it. Let's make fun of weirdo Cloud…" I complained with a shake of my head. "I thought that was Barret's shtick."

"Hey," Tifa whispered.

I didn't answer, instead focusing my attention on the road.

I knew deep down that she hadn't meant it in the way I was taking it, but there were a lot of things about myself that I was still learning to piece together. Conflicting thoughts and confused reactions happened everyday as I learned what it meant to be, well… me. That was without trying to deal with emotions. Thankfully, Tifa had been there with me every step of the way to help me through it.

"Cloud?"

Maybe that's why I was feeling hurt. I probably shouldn't be, right? Hell, maybe to an outsider looking in it could be pretty funny to watch. It didn't feel that way to me, though… Was I being unreasonable?

"Cloud, can you pull over, please?"

Her voice jolted me out of my thoughts as I gently applied the brakes. My gaze didn't leave the asphalt as we began to slow down. Tifa's arms tightened around my waist as she pressed herself against me.

The bike finally rolled to a stop at the side of the road. Soft grass and the precarious edge of the cliff side greeted us as I toed out the kickstand and turned off the engine. The bike hissed and sizzled from its intense workload. Giving it a break was probably a good idea anyway.

Tifa pulled away from me and hopped off, then immediately reached out with an open hand while wearing an expectant but nervous look on her face. I glanced at her bare hand before meeting her eyes again and reached out to her. Her lithe fingers wrapped around my much larger ones, goading and tugging me.

I threw my leg over the bike and let her lead me a few steps into the pillow-soft grass. I felt a bit confused as she sat on the grass and tugged again, but followed her down anyhow.

She wasn't saying anything. Then again, neither was I.

As I leaned back on a hand to support myself, Tifa scooted over to sit beside me. She lifted our joined hands and brought them up to her cheek. I sighed as her eyes fell shut when she nuzzled the back of my hand.

Turning a little, she released my hand and guided me to the back of her head, weaving my fingers through her thick hair. I had to wet my lips with my tongue as she twisted and leaned over me. Just like in bed that morning she pressed forward, sending me back into the grass with a grunt as she slid further up and leaned in to hold her eyes level with mine. The sweet smell of her breath along with her weight and warmth over me made my throat close up so much that I had to gulp to clear it.

Instinct made me cup her a little tighter, holding her close as her soft eyes bored into my own. I tried to read what was going on in her head but it was hopeless.

"I'm sorry," she whispered before closing her eyes and shaking her head. "It wasn't fair of me to say something like that… I should've known better after everything you've… we've been through."

"Tifa, I-" I started to argue, but she stopped me with a finger over my lips.

"Please… let me finish?"

I looked into those pleading eyes of hers and knew I couldn't argue with her.

"You've worked so hard, Cloud. After everything you've been through, you fought to find yourself despite all of the pain and suffering. I'm so grateful that I could be there with you every step of the way as we found you, piece by piece. That will always be incredibly special to me."

I swallowed the lump in my throat as words failed me. Instead, I focused entirely on the beautiful woman in front of me.

"I'm sorry," she repeated as the nimble fingers on my chest bunched up my sweater.

I couldn't let her carry on apologizing, so I reached up to take hold of the hand that silenced me.

"Tifa," I whispered, dipping my head a little to catch her down-turned gaze. "Don't beat yourself up over a joke. I'm sorry I overreacted and I know you didn't mean anything by it, okay?"

Her gaze lifted, sparkling crimson orbs cut right through me as I dared to carefully clasp her hair and roll us over. Tifa let out a loud gasp. I damn near did too when I leaned in and sighed in satisfaction as our lips met.

"Mmm," Tifa hummed in appreciation which only made my heart thud harder and faster. Her hands began to wander, not that I could ever complain. She worked her way from stroking loose strands of hair out of my eyes down to brushing my cheeks, finally resting her palms against my chest. "This feels wonderful," she whispered.

I nodded and released her to support myself on a fist. Daring to press further, I smoothed my free hand down her white camisole and into the dip of her waist. The tight jeans she wore left nothing to my imagination as I traced her deep curves.

If you'd asked me why I was feeling so adventurous, I wouldn't have been able to answer. Maybe I was trying to reassure her? Was I trying to reassure myself? There were too many options and as her tongue poked at my lower lip, I realized I didn't really care why.

Her hands suddenly grasped my shoulders and she pulled me down on top of her. We both let out long hums as I crashed into her, our kiss matching our motions as desire began to take hold.

But, as usual, reality dawned on me.

"We can't. Not here," I managed to grate out as her full lips continued to peck and pinch at mine.

Her eyes finally opened, though she didn't stop her little movements and kisses for a single moment. "Why not?" she murmured in such a tempting tone I nearly forgot my reasoning.

"We're on the side of a road," I answered, gazing from her clouded eyes to pouting, wet lips. "It's not right."

For a moment I thought she was going to argue with me. Hell, part of me hoped she would, so I was almost disappointed when she nibbled at her lower lip and nodded. "You're right. We still have a long way to go," she trailed off as she pulled me harder against her.

"We do," I hissed as her thigh pressed against me.

Her cheeks flushed a deeper pink. "And we'll have all the time and privacy in the world when we arrive."

She may have just said that, but it didn't stop her from sliding her thigh up and down. "Tifa," I complained.

"I'm sorry," she said -or rather, lied- with a tiny little giggle. "I'll behave."

"Yeah, yeah," I replied along with a raised eyebrow before leaning back. "C'mon, let's get going." She nodded and let me help her up. We brushed ourselves off and hopped back on the bike to continue our journey.

Even being frustrated felt good. It wasn't something I'd ever felt before, so I had to smile at the playfulness she'd shown me. It was as though I was seeing a whole different side of her. Then again, she was bringing out a whole different side of me as well, a part of me I'd never expected to have. One that was happy. I was happy here with her. I was happier in myself.

The rest of the drive had been pretty uneventful. No, sorry. It was boring as hell.

Tifa fell asleep shortly after we'd gotten back on the road, so I'd kept a hand on her while making sure to drive as carefully as possible. Even when asleep she brought me this sense of… I wasn't sure exactly how to phrase it, but it made me feel like I belonged. That wasn't something I'd felt in who knows how many years. I honestly couldn't remember the last time.

We'd set off shortly before dawn and now the bright sky began to transition into dusk. My back ached and my hands were sore but at long last I could just make out the buildings of the Costa Del Sol in the distance.

"Tifa!" I called out over the engine's roaring while giving her a gentle shake. "Tifa! We're almost there!"

She stirred, lifting her head from my upper back to rest on my shoulder. "I'm-" she interrupted herself with a loud yawn then smacked her lips. "I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"It's fine. Look at that," I said as I pointed ahead at the warm lights and pastel colors of the beach town as they became clearer and clearer in the waning light.

"Wow. It's incredibly beautiful at night," Tifa exclaimed. "It's just a shame that we didn't arrive during the day. If we did, we could've gone shopping for clothes and essentials."

As we pulled into the outer suburbs I slowed us down to keep the noise at a minimum. Fantastic bike; noisy engine.

I smirked to myself then grimaced as I straightened my aching back. "No thanks. I'd still hit the hay as soon as possible."

Tifa's chest shook with a laugh against me. "What happened to your incredible stamina, hm?"

"Did you forget? I didn't exactly become a SOLDIER," I said while turning to glance at her for a moment, shooting her an awkward wink just so that she could see I was joking.

Her arms tightened around my waist as I turned back to the road. A moment or two later I felt her breath on my neck as she murmured, "well… you'll always be a hero to me."

My face heated in response.

Tifa settled back against me and perched her chin on my shoulder, peering ahead as we wound our way through the town.

"It's eerily quiet," she noted.

I hummed in agreement. It was a Friday night in the world's most well known vacation spot and while the center of town wasn't empty, clearly the fall of Meteor had affected a much bigger area than just Midgar. A few bars, restaurants and stores were open, but people either didn't want to or need to visit them. Hell, most of them were probably terrified.

"If that weird dude is still in the basement I'm kicking him straight out," I half-joked as I considered the possibility.

"I'm sure he'll run away the moment you pull out your sword," Tifa answered with a shake of her head.

As we hit the other end of the main street I began to recognize the stores and buildings.

"It feels like it's been years since we were here," I murmured.

"Not to mention how different it feels at night," Tifa added. As I slowed us down to a stop outside of the villa, she jumped as though she'd been shocked. "Cloud… you do have the keys, right?"

Ah, shit.

"No, but it's fine. I'll go in through a window."

Just as I was starting up the steps Tifa grabbed my arm. "Wait, look," she instructed under her breath.

I followed her gaze and realized that the lights were on. After grabbing my sword I made my way up the steps with Tifa close behind me. The nearer we got the more we could make out voices inside. Lots of voices. Too many voices.

"How many people are in there?" Tifa murmured.

Glancing back at her, I shrugged and stepped up to the door while giving it a harsh couple of thumps with my fist.

"Come in!"

Tifa and I looked at one another, both frowning with confusion as I opened the door. What greeted us was… well, all I could say was, "what the hell?"