He Was Nothing Special

It just had to be her…

God really has a sick sense of humor…

Lily sighed. She resumed cleaning Cloud's room, picking up errant papers and dusting the bookshelf.

It figures. Cloud finally makes a friend and it turns out to be his daughter. And she sounded so sweet the way he talked about her.

After making sure her son's room was spotless, she headed off to the master bedroom to clean the last room of the house before Cloud came home. She began dusting the armoire when her attention turned to the face-down picture frame on the night table. Setting her duster down, she walked over to the night table and flipped the picture up, revealing an aged photo of two people who looked very much in love. Lily sat down on the bed, absorbed in the photo. Her eyes focused on the photo, trying to remember that time so long ago. It was a picture of a well-built young man with broad shoulders and a face that smiles were made for. Next to him, held tightly at his side was a petite woman, looking up at him, eyes shining and face beaming. Taking her time, she got lost in the sights, sounds, and smells of nostalgia.

The Harvest Festival where they met…their first kiss…his proposal…

Lily shook her head. Gale, you were always a charmer, even when you did something stupid, you always got me to forgive you. But I wonder if you even considered what Cloud would have to go through? What he would have to deal with? Or were you too lost in your dreams to even care?

Putting the picture down, she resumed cleaning the room. As she was about to leave she looked at the picture once more. She walked over and placed it face down again.

It's so hard to hate a dead man.

Glancing at the clock on the way down the stairs, Lily knew she had to start dinner. Cleaning the house had taken longer than she thought, and she knew if she didn't start dinner before Cloud came home, he would have a fit.

As she started to set up the ingredients, the familiar creak of the door opening reached her ears. The blond-headed boy walked into the room and sat at the dinner table.

A smile graced Lily's face as she saw him walk in. Taking her place across from her son, she asked, "How was today dear?"

"Um, it was okay I guess." Cloud replied.

His mother looked at him pointedly, waiting for more.

"Tifa wasn't there today, so I wasn't able to invite her over." He said, rolling his eyes.

Lily's face fell at the news. "Oh, and I so wanted to meet this girl. Make sure you invite her the next time you get a chance."

Cloud nodded absently.

"Also Cloud, stop leaving things under your bed. I'm tired of having to check under there for your books and toys."

Another nod.

"And could you actually put the towel back in the bathroom when you're done showering? It makes your room wet and mold could grow. I don't want you getting sick."

Nod.

She sighed. His vacant eyes were a pretty sure indicator of where his mind was, or wasn't as the case may be. "Cloud, we're not eating dinner tonight, is that ok?"

Once again, the nod was the only answer. However after registering what she said, his eyes widened and he looked to his mother helplessly.

"Yeah, you pay attention to me when it's about food. But everything else you just write off Mom as annoying. One day I might actually be serious about dinner."

Cloud kept looking at her, wondering whether she might actually do that. Lily grinned. Works like a charm.

Assessing her ingredients, Lily came to a conclusion.

"Looks like we're out of food." She voiced.

"What!?" Cloud said, clearly shaken. "No! I'm sorry, I really am!"

The boy ran over to his mother, hugging her. "Please don't starve me! I'll do anything! I'll even watch those stupid soap operas with you! Just let me eat! I wanna eat!"

Lily laughed. "Cloud, I'm not starving you, I'm actually out of food to cook with."

Cloud regained composure. "Oh."

Now it was her turn to roll her eyes. "Let's go to the store. We'll get something easy to cook over there. I actually don't feel like doing too much today."

"Okay. Should I get my jacket?"

"Yes. It's pretty chilly. I don't want you getting sick."

Cloud made a face at that, but ran upstairs and soon appeared wearing a light blue jacket that was a little too big for him.

"Are you ready?" His mother asked sweetly.

The boy nodded somewhat glumly.

They left and the cool evening air greeted them. Although Cloud was thankful for the jacket, he kept fidgeting with it, trying to make it comfortable.

"Don't worry sweetie. You'll grow into it eventually." Lily assuaged.

Cloud gave up, letting the too-long sleeves dangle from his arms. Looking up at the houses nearby, he wondered if maybe Tifa lived in one of those houses. Maybe she could see him right now, looking outside her window.

He snorted. I wonder how cool I look right now, walking with my mom to the store with a jacket way too big for me. I probably look like a little kid, weak and small.

The boy was lost in his thoughts until he ran right into his mother. "Cloud! You've got to be more careful!" she admonished.

"Why'd you stop?" He asked, though not really caring about the answer.

"Well I stopped because we arrived at the store." She pointed up at the sign that displayed the name quite prominently: BOB'S GOOD OL' GENERAL STORE

"You know, I wonder how they stay in business. I mean, who'd want a general? They're always cranky and all they want to do is fight." Lily chuckled at her little joke. Her son however, looked at her with an expression of shame and horror, completely aghast at her poor attempt at comedy. He headed inside without another word.

"Tough crowd," She said to no one in particular and headed in after him.

Lily quickly made her way to the vegetable section. She was used to the whispers and the looks she received when she went anywhere. She didn't like them one bit, but it was something she had to deal with every now and then.

Lily hated shopping at this hour. At least in the morning Cloud was at school and there weren't many people so she could get her things and leave quickly, but it was at this our that the gossips loved to gather and dish about things from the newest couple in town to whether or not Mr. Wheatley was going to finish fixing that truck parked near the entrance of the village.

But today was different for some reason. They were talking louder than usual. Enough so that Lily heard snippets of the conversation without meaning to…

"…a coma you say?"

"…I hear she's got a 50-50 chance…"

"…her poor daughter. Tifa was her name right?"

At the mention of the girl's name, Lily perked up. Trying to appear inconspicuous, she tried to listen to rest of the conversation.

"…Yes, Tifa Lockhart. That poor family. I can't imagine how that poor girl feels right now, being told your mother might never wake up."

"Yeah, and that poor husband. I heard he was considering a run for mayor, but now with her condition…just makes your heart ache to hear all this…So…Have you heard the rumor about Dr. Flanagan and Ms. Peterson?

"Ooh, are they an item now?"

"Well, I heard from sister's good friend Janice that…."

And Lily soon lost interest in their talk after that. She stared at the cabbage, contemplating what to do with the information she had just learned. She put the cabbage in her basket and was about to rush off until she came face to face with her son.

His face looked completely drained of color, his eyes were frantic and he was panting heavily. Their eyes met, and instantly, she knew that he had heard. She could tell from the way his eyes looked at her. His eyes spoke of desperation, of wanting to escape and not having to hear the horrible truth. And she knew that her eyes probably said the same thing.

So they stood, like unmoving sentinels, trying to get lost in each others eyes, rejecting the world around them.

A/N: Hi everybody! Well, summer's almost over and although I'm not one to look forward to school, I'm actually glad I'll be doing something everyday. Vacation is great and all, but I think my mind is starting to rot with all this free time. Chalk it up to video games and the internet.

I don't think I've plugged this before, so I'll do it now. There is a fanfiction contest called the Genesis Awards. They judge the best of FFVII fanfiction around and they need some help. So if you want to nominate your favorite fic, be a judge, or simply shoot the breeze with fellow FF fans then come on by. The address is on my profile but if it doesn't work, just PM and I'll send you a link.

Thanks to my reviewers: Riku and Zack's Kitty, Lady Valtaya, and Following Padfoot's Pawprints