A/N: Sorry it took so long to get another chapter out, but my father was in the hospital. He's just fine now, but it takes a little while to clear all the cobwebs out from several over-night stays in his room. Thought processes seem to clog right up in such an atmosphere, and my muses aren't very fond of white walls, hospital beds or doctors in white lab coats...

Chapter summary: Arriving home nearly dead on his feet -again- Cloud is thankful for the family he can now call his. Taking care of his needs is something Tifa does without thought - so he is more than willing to take care of her needs as well...

Jealousy, Take 14

By Ivy Elise Tanté

As the purring throb of Fenrir faded, Cloud Strife continued to lean into the body of the bike, eyes closed in exhaustion. His enhanced hearing -thanks to the Mako injected into him by that insane scientist Hojo- easily picked up the semi-argument going on between Denzel and Marlene right at that moment. The term semi-argument applied because Denzel never seemed to lose his calm enough to raise his voice, while Marlene would keep piping away in rapidly increasing volume until the two of them ended up laughing over the situation. It was just one of life's little mysteries that he could never quite understand.

Since he was in danger of actually falling asleep on the bike -an occurrence Tifa had threatened would happen one of these days, as hard as he pushed himself- Cloud forced himself upright and engaged the kickstand. Swinging a leg over, he wavered enough that he stumbled a couple of steps before regaining his balance. Light-headed and feeling vaguely nauseated, he listened in amusement to the loud complaints from his empty stomach and snorted. It had only been... and he had to close his eyes and concentrate on when he ate the last of the food he normally stored in one of Fenrir's compartments.

Hm, he thought after a moment, maybe my stomach does have the right to fuss, since I can't remember when I had that soggy sandwich... It was telling that he could recall what but not when.

Irritably waving the thought away, he unlocked the compartment on the side of Fenrir and pulled out his messenger bag. Taking just a moment to listen, Cloud realized the 'argument' must be over, for he couldn't hear the kid's voices anymore. Grateful to dodge that bullet, he inserted his key into the doorknob and entered the cool darkness of the garage. Shutting the door behind him, he leaned against it for long moments before whimpering softly as he hit the release for the garage door. Leaning down, he grasped the cord and pulled it up, letting in the sunshine and heat of the outdoors. Wheeling Fenrir in, he closed the garage door and fastened it securely.

And seriously considered just laying down beside the bike.

But if Tifa came in and found him asleep in here she would be so anxious. Goddess knew the woman worried about him too much as it was for him to pull something as incredibly insensitive as to sleep on a dirty concrete floor when their bed -probably made with fresh clean sheets that very morning- was only two flights of stairs away.

Slinging the strap for the satchel over his shoulder, he braced himself before pushing into the kitchen that lay between the bar and the garage. And there was his Tifa, hair pulled back into a loose ponytail and hands busy preparing dinner. Several different kinds of vegetables graced the chopping block, one or two of which he actually recognized.

Both kids were sitting at the table, supposedly doing homework. They took in the sight of him and abandoned the papers without a backwards glance. And some of the almost numbing exhaustion left him as the two twined arms around his waist and just a little higher, speaking over each other eagerly in the desire to have his attention. But he was so tired little penetrated the haze over his brain as he leaned over their heads, pressing a kiss to each. He smelled soap and shampoo, and Marlene's hair was still just a bit damp. Regret tugged at him; it was late enough both had already taken their baths.

It always tickled him that Denzel would demand a little splash of his aftershave once he had bathed.

Then Tifa was there to pull the children off him, and he experienced the sensation he treasured most in his life - she slid into his arms and snuggled close, leaning her head against his shoulder. For long moments he lost himself in her embrace, breathing in the scent of her skin and hair, soaking up the warmth of her body and her love. It relaxed his overly-tense frame to the point he was nearly asleep in her arms.

Her laugh brought him fully awake, and he shuffled back a bit, rubbing at the nape of his neck with one hand while the other knuckled an eye as he yawned. "Sorry," he muttered. "Just a little tired." There was a loud rumbling sound, and he was fatigued enough to think a storm was moving in over the city. But the smile on her face made him realize it was his traitorous stomach once more, demanding sustenance.

"Sit!" she commanded, much as one would a dog... or chocobo, for that matter. "The veggies aren't ready yet, but you can at least have the main course before your shower and bed." Glancing at him fondly over her shoulder, she admitted, "I know you don't really like most of them, but at least you will eat them to make me happy."

Exchanging a smile with her, he obediently took a seat at the table as the kids cleared off all the papers, books and pencils. Thinking ahead, Marlene grabbed a plate and glass while Denzel fished in a drawer for silverware. By the time Tifa was bringing over the pot, Cloud was prepared to give his system what it was furiously yelling for - food. It was all he could do not to bolt the big glass of milk Marlene poured for him.

"You didn't bother to stop last night, did you?" Tifa asked almost conversationally as she switched to a pan and ladled brined shrimp over the rice she had already put on his plate. "You drove straight through the night again." Putting the pan back on the counter, she reached over to rap the top of his head, displacing a blonde spike or two. "Idiot. Why do you do that to yourself?"

Instead of eating, Cloud captured one of her hands in his and brought it to his lips. Thankful the children were out of the kitchen -they were putting their work in their room and getting hands washed- he whispered softly, "I don't like sleeping away from you. Being next to you, waking with you, it..." Words were never easy for him, and he stumbled a little over how to tell the woman beside him how much she meant. "It makes me complete, Tifa. And when I'm away on deliveries, I'm never whole until I get back home, to you and the kids."

Tifa slid into his lap and kissed him, making it deep and stirring to show him -without having to use those pesky words- that she felt the same. When footsteps on the stairs warned of the children's return, she gave him a soft smile and rose, motioning for him to start eating. "You're running on fumes, Cloud Strife. Now eat before you fall asleep and end up face-first in the plate!"

The interlude with Tifa had given him strength, and he used it to good effect by cleaning his plate twice, even though the second go around included some of those vegetables; in this case, broccoli and cauliflower with water chestnuts. He was too hungry to grouse over the addition and chomped them right down.

Rising to take his dishes to the sink so he could rinse them, however, let him know he didn't have long before the exhaustion overwhelmed him completely. The entire room spun as his body flashed from hot to cold in milliseconds. He realized he must have gone pale since all three in the room dived for him at the same time.

"I'm all right," he tried to tell them, but it was hard to get a word in edgewise with all the chatter they were making. Pushing gently, he got clear of all the anxious arms and reached the sink. Never before had he realized how much coordination was needed to control the sprayer. But he didn't soak himself entirely, and he considered it a job well done when the dishes rested safely in the dishwasher.

Fighting to keep her face straight, Tifa turned to Denzel and Marlene and suggested quietly, "Why don't you go ahead and fix your plates? I'll get Cloud upstairs so he can shower, okay?" As they started clattering around setting the rest of the table, she steered the only semi-conscious man up the backstairs and onto the second floor. "Here, Cloud," she murmured softly as they entered the bathroom.

He had enough steam of his own to get undressed while she prepped the water to the nearly scalding temperature both of them preferred. It was when her own clothes started to hit the floor that his eyebrows rose. Her Cheshire cat grin and twinkling dark red eyes had more than just his curiosity rising. "And just what do you think you're doing?" he queried in amusement, even as an inkling began to penetrate the fog that lay over his thoughts.

Wrinkling her nose, she offered a hand and said, "There is no way you can get through a shower without drowning, so I'm going to help you." Standing there naked in all her beautiful perfection, dark hair curling around her shoulders with the developing mist forming on the mirror, Tifa was his wildest desire, his darkest dream. That she could be his -and he could be hers- was nearly unthinkable.

But it was true, nonetheless. And he was incapable of denying her anything she wanted.

"Help?" Cloud asked mildly as he allowed her to draw him to his feet and into the roomy shower stall. "I think you have ulterior motives than merely assisting me." The hot water sluicing over his body felt like heaven, but even that couldn't compare to the sensation of wet curves pressed close. As the water, heat and steam enveloped him, Cloud slid his hands into the dark strands of her hair and relished the feel of pure spun silk streaming down his arms.

Her soft, sultry laugh echoed around the stall as she used a bath puff to lather his body with one hand as the other wandered over velvety skin stretched tautly over hard, firmly toned muscles. "I am washing you; that's help." It was when the sponge dipped lower that he gave a hiss and backed her up against the tiled wall.

"That," he said emphatically, "is more hindrance than help. Just what are you trying to accomplish here, my beloved?" Taking hold of the bath puff, he tossed it over his shoulder and put both hands right where she most wanted them.

Tifa's laughing eyes were explanation enough and had him grinning. Good thing the bathroom was far enough away from the kitchen that any ruckus wouldn't upset the kids, even if they were probably wondering what was taking Tifa so long.

Looks like sleep will just have to wait, he thought hazily when Tifa's long, beautifully toned legs wrapped tightly around his waist...