Disclaimer: Final Fantasy VII with the characters, items, places, etc. are the property of Square Enix, Inc. No infringement is intended.
Author's Note: This is a Cloud and Tifa story, just with a dramatic twist due to his absence. They will be happy later. My beta reader Denebola Leo has been a tremendous help to bringing this story to you readers.
Updated Chapter Changes: 7/26/20
-. Don't Think Twice .-
Chapter IX
September 18th, εγλ 0009, 7:39 a.m.
"I don't like him," Marlene looked up at Cloud as she held his hand tightly. He was dropping the kids off at school again as he was home for another day before his final business trip.
"Who?" The little girl had caught him off guard with her words, but he pretended to not know who she was referring to.
"You know who!" Marlene shouted while tugging on his arm. "Tifa's boyfriend."
"Is he mean to you?" Cloud asked with concern. If he was, he was as good as dead.
"No, he just tries too hard to impress us when he does talk to us. He's kinda lame," Denzel chimed in.
"He's not right for Tifa! He's up to no good and only after a man's needs," Marlene said with a little bit of Barret's force of voice. "Papa don't trust him at all. Jace is thinking with the wrong head. Hmm. Cloud, what does Papa mean by 'the wrong head'?"
Cloud groaned. Barret really needed to watch his mouth around Marlene, he thought. "If he is nice to you, then you need to be nice to him. And don't repeat what your dad said about him to Tifa."
"That he's nothing but a manwhore?" The little girl inquired. "I don't know what that is, but Papa said that's what Jace is."
Cloud grimaced; he didn't want to explain any of these words or phrases to the children. Ever. "Just...don't repeat anything at all, okay?"
"Okay, I'll see you after school Cloud!" Marlene waved as she ran ahead through the gate. She stopped at the door to wait for Denzel, who lingered behind with the blonde man.
"Denzel?"
"Are you really going to be around more with your new job?" Denzel asked, looking up to his hero.
"Yes. I'll be gone a week to wrap up the delivery service but after that, I'll be home almost every day," Cloud explained as he gave Denzel a squeeze on the shoulder to reassure him. "I promise."
April 8th, εγλ 0009, 6:11 p.m.
— Five months before Bahamut SIN —
It was on the third visit of his that she learned his name. The first night the copper-haired stranger ordered a few bottles of Port Junon Ale for his friends. The following night on the same weekend he came in with a larger party for shots of Rocket Town Fire Whiskey. He seemed to be celebrating the race training for the chocobos, which didn't surprise her as that same night the manager and fashionista from the Gold Saucer accompanied him. When the perky blonde woman entered the tavern Tifa recognized her upon sight. Not many people dressed like Ester, or have a gold chocobo feather pinned into their hair.
Time to time acquaintances from their travels would pay a visit to Seventh Heaven, and she enjoyed the feeling of nostalgia and catching up with old friends. Since there wasn't enough energy to power the Gold Saucer at its full potential anymore, Ester had relocated to the outskirts of North Corel. The old coal town was being reinvented as a new tourist location, now with homes. Tifa found comfort knowing another town was saved from what was previously destroyed.
He had ordered a glass of Corel Wine on a Monday evening when he finally gave his name.
"Jace Villiers. Now, tell me how someone like you outside of chocobo racing knows Ester."
Tifa coyly relayed the story of her and her friend's false imprisonment, and how with Ester's assistance Cloud had won their freedom in a chocobo race. Ester had been kind enough to loan a bird to the ragtag group, and Tifa never forgot that kindness.
"Hmm…it's always chocobos. Can't say I blame her."
April 17th, εγλ 0009, 6:53 p.m.
"Care to do a shot with me Tifa?" Jace challenged her on the eighth visit. He was always there early in the week before he returned for chocobo racing on the weekends. Jace was Ester's top talent manager and chocobo trainer who traveled between the two continents for his job.
"Pick your poison," Tifa replied cheerfully while flipping two shot glasses onto the bar top between them.
"Something light. You're still working," Jace said while tapping his fingers next to his glass.
"Hmmm…that Rocket Town Fire Whiskey will do," she mused while turning to grab the bottle.
"What? I said something light!" Jace retorted as she proceeded to pour out the liquor.
"This is light. Or, is this too much for you?" Tifa teased while holding up her glass, giving him a tiny smirk.
"No…so let's do two shots." Jace lifted his and clinked the small glass against hers, then threw it back. Tifa downed her shot quickly as Jace pulled out his wallet.
"These shots are on me tonight," Tifa said while pouring their second round.
"Thanks, Tifa."
April 23rd, εγλ 0009, 10:38 p.m.
"Not interested." Tifa promptly turned down the drunkard while grabbing his glass. She had never seen this man with scarlet hair in Seventh Heaven before, and hoped she wouldn't again anytime soon. She took note of the tattoo on his left arm for future recognition; an emerald cactuar with a golden crown. After his fourth drink, he asked her for a night… upstairs. "And you've had enough."
"What did I miss?" her new regular asked while he strolled into Seventh Heaven. Jace took a seat near the end of the counter which he had claimed in the last few weeks.
"Can I get your number before I go baby doll? I'll make it worth your while..." The problem drinker slid her a big wad of extra gil while wagging his eyebrows. Tifa rolled her eyes while roughly scrubbing off a beer glass she was circling in her hand.
"It's near closing time and I'm cutting you off. Leave or I'll make you leave," She warned while pushing part of the gil back. She had been catcalled and persistently asked out throughout her career as a bartender, but it had escalated lately with Cloud's absence. Her eyes narrowed at that last thought, another reason she was miffed that he left. She could handle bumbling idiots herself, but it was nice to not deal with it often when her patrons knew there was a man around. The man stumbled out of the tavern while grumbling about being denied.
"So you turned down another winner?" Jace asked in jest.
Tifa handed him his ice-cold bottle of Port Junon Ale, which was his usual first choice every night he had been there. "Total winner," Tifa laughed.
"It must happen a lot," he observed.
"Yeah, nothing new. To these drunks, I'm just a hot specimen who is nice and pours their beer. Nothing more," she answered while wiping up the mess the drunkard had left.
"Well, you're more than that. And I had a question to ask you tonight…but I think its bad timing."
"Oh?" Tifa said, her curiosity captured by that last statement.
"I'd like to have dinner with you," Jace stated.
"Jace, I actually appreciate the offer but…" she began.
"Not interested?" He asked, mimicking her with a chuckle.
"I have my two kids and not much time elsewhere. I don't do well on first dates," she explained, but that last part wasn't really true. She never dated outside of Cloud. In fact, she didn't really go on dates with her husband either.
"I highly doubt that you're bad at dating. You've just never had a really good date before," he replied. "I bet if you had a first date with me, you'd change your mind. I can be fun."
"You are fun. I don't need a date to know that," she countered while putting away the clean glasses into the lower cabinet.
"You'll say yes, eventually," he teased, and she couldn't help the small smile that spread on her face.
September 18th, εγλ 0009, 11:13 a.m.
Tifa knocked on the hotel room door gently to let Jace know of her arrival. Last night was problematic between them with Cloud's unexpected return and rather contentious attitude towards him. She waited patiently as she heard him shuffle behind the closed door before he opened to welcome her in.
"Hey, are you alright?" He asked when he saw her face.
She pinched the corners of her apron a little, nervous about the news she was going to reveal to him about Cloud. After her breakdown last night, her husband eased up on his hostility to accept what their situation now was along with announcing his new job. It would get in the way of Jace visiting her at the bar, and Cloud would be around far more often. Would he be upset? Angry? Studying her uneasiness, Jace held the door open more and motioned her to come inside his room.
"I wanted to apologize for last night," she began when she walked passed him. Sighing, she sat down on the bed while peering up at her boyfriend.
"Tifa, it's not your fault," he tried reassuring her as he kneeled before her, running his hands through her chocolate hair. "I'll avoid the bar when he is in town just like we planned before."
"About that…Cloud will actually be home on a regular basis from now on. He is closing the delivery service and will be working for the WRO." She bit her lip as she looked at him apprehensively.
"Wait, so when am I going to get to see you?" Jace asked as he sprang up away from her, sounding annoyed. This was the reaction she feared.
"He will be out of town from time to time…I can come here instead," she suggested to him.
"Besides the one night a week, when are you going to get away from work? Tifa, I'm only here a few days a week and now your husband is going to be living with you again every day. He is going to see you more than me now," Jace pointed out with a little venom.
"But I'm with you, not him," she countered.
"Technically, you're not." He clenched his fists at those words as he retreated away to lean on the window, staring out into the city. Even though his arms were now crossed to block her off, Tifa could still see the white of his knuckles.
Tifa gently tugged on his arm when she approached him to lower his defenses. "I am with you. I will make it work with an extra night off too," she encircled her arms around his neck.
"So no more Seventh Heaven for me?" He asked.
"Hmmm, not the first few weeks? Just like we planned?" She repeated his words from earlier, brushing his hair out of his hazel eyes. Her touch softened the tension in his expression earning a smile from him.
"You're lucky you're really hot," Jace whispered against her lips before kissing her.
May 7th, εγλ 0009, 1:21 p.m.
"Ooooo! Who got you these flowers? Is it that hot guy?" Yuffie poked the air in the direction of the vase at the end of the bar top.
"His name is Jace. And yes, he got me flowers to ask me out again," Tifa explained while handing her the card, then went back to wiping down the tables to prepare another night of service.
"Do you want to go out with him?" Yuffie asked before she sipped her lemon water.
"Kinda. But I have the kids and...well...then there is Cloud," she explained solemnly.
"No word from him at all?" Yuffie said putting down her glass, more of a statement than a question.
"I just leave messages for his deliveries now. Nothing more," Tifa said and momentarily stopped her cleaning. Her face scrunched up at the state of her marriage, or if she ever really had one, to begin with. It had troubled her she hadn't heard from her husband in months.
"I leave him a voicemail once in a while myself, but I thought he would at least reply to you," Yuffie trailed off quietly.
"Hmm…I guess not." Tifa shrugged trying to concentrate on her workload. Friday nights were always busy, and she hoped she could distract herself from thinking of her estranged husband.
May 12th, εγλ 0009, 9:14 p.m.
— Four months before Bahamut SIN —
"Well Tifa, I gotta get going. I'll be busy tomorrow so this is my last beer til next week," Jace explained when he pulled out his wallet to pay his tab.
"Is Ester asking you back early?" Tifa asked while taking his payment into the cash register.
"Actually…I have a big date tomorrow night," he admitted.
"What? A date?" She turned to him surprised at his revelation. She eyed the flowers he had delivered last week that were not too far from him.
"Yeah. You're not jealous, are you?" At that question, he perked an eyebrow at her.
"No...have a good night." Maybe she didn't mean anything to him at all either.
May 13th, εγλ 0009, 5:26 p.m.
Monday nights were a little too slow to her liking lately as Tifa always liked to keep herself engrossed in her work to distract her from her thoughts. The past few months her mind was worrying about Cloud leaving without a word and the children being affected by his absence. Now her thoughts wandered to another man she might have lost a chance with. She continued to wipe down the surface from one end of the bartop to the other until she stopped at the flowers that she received. Her forehead crinkled while she debated if they meant anything at all.
The door to the tavern opened with her first customer of the evening, however, she wasn't expecting to see him there tonight.
"Jace? What are you doing here?" She asked while slightly turning to him, placing her hand on her hip.
"I'm here for my big date," he replied with a big grin on his face. She noticed he carried a plastic bag in one hand as he walked over to the bar.
"Oh…so you're meeting her here?" Tifa questioned a little uncomfortable with that thought, slipping her brown strands behind her ear before rearranging glasses.
"Well she is already here," Jace commented while winking at Tifa as he made his way behind the counter.
As he approached her he reached out for her hand while slightly tugging her out and over to a stool. "Jace…what are you doing?"
'You're my date Tifa, and any lady on a date with me is going to have a good time," he explained while patting the cushion for her to take a seat. He began to take out the contents of the bag which appeared to be takeout boxes from a local restaurant. "I hope you like spaghetti with meatballs."
She sat down where her meal was and a small curve to her lips appeared. She was definitely impressed but wanted to take it slow. "This is lovely. Thank you."
"Ok, you relax, look gorgeous and enjoy, I'm going to work the bar," he ordered while flipping a towel on his shoulder. "Now tell me, would you like red or white wine?"
"White wine please."
September 18th, εγλ 0009, 6:16 p.m.
Cloud had a map spread out on the dining table while he had Marlene and Denzel sort through the delivery slips. This was going to be a long week, not only transporting packages but informing his customers his business was being converted. Denzel talked excitedly as a slip from Cosmo Canyon was discovered in his pile, mentioning about the giant observatory in Nanaki's town. The young boy's spirits were soaring with the topic of astronomy, one of his favorite subjects since he started school. In the middle of Denzel explaining a few constellations, Marlene sprang from the table to meet Tifa at the bottom of the stairs. The brunette descended slowly into the room, greeting the little girl.
"Cloud, doesn't Tifa look pretty?" Marlene turned to Cloud and asked.
He looked up to see his wife dressed in a tight yellow dress that shimmered under the light, the square neckline that wasn't too low but still showed off her curves. He hadn't seen her in too many dresses as he recalled correctly, one being at Don Corneo's mansion and the other was her wedding dress. He didn't even know his wife even had dresses in her wardrobe, come to think of it. She was still clasping on one of her earrings as she walked over to the table, giving the kids a small smile. When she came closer Cloud could see she had put on some makeup, even though Tifa didn't need it. She wore it naturally, to enhance her beauty, using a pale lipstick to highlight how inviting her lips were.
She was stunning.
"Cloud?" Tifa asked, snapping him out of his reverie.
He had been staring at her. Blushing slightly, he cleared his throat before he spoke. "Are you going out tonight?"
"Yes, and I'll be back a little late. Make sure they get into bed on time, and you can order out for dinner tonight," she explained while pulling out a takeout menu from the kitchen drawer and handing it to Marlene.
She didn't need to explain where she was going, as the way she was dressed, it pointed to a date with Jace. Something he never really was able to take Tifa on but a handful of times. He went back to his maps with Denzel, jotting down a few customer names for Nibelheim.
"Cloud, you never answered. Doesn't Tifa look pretty?" Marlene repeated her question as she brought over the menu and took her seat.
Cloud looked at Tifa once again before he gave his answer. "No."
Tifa blinked in confusion.
"She looks beautiful," he stated, and smiled to himself when he noticed that his wife's cheeks were turning a slight hue of red.
"T-thank you, Cloud," she smiled shyly in her reply. Tifa hugged the kids to bid them farewell. It was awkward, his wife going on a date with another man, but he conceded to stay out of the way. The boy toy wasn't going to make an appearance at the bar, upon their agreement. Denzel shifted the slips across the table for Rocket Town, and Cloud continued to write down names as the barmaid overlooked her family.
"Goodnight Cloud." Tifa finally said before slipping out of the kitchen to the front door.
Author's Note Continued: We finally got to see how Jace asked out Tifa! Chapter updated on 7/26/20; date/time stamp changes applied.
