Story Title: After the Rain
Rating: K
Genre: Romance and Drama
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters appearing in this fanfiction.
A/N: Awesome reviews, everyone! Speaking of which, many of you seemed to like scarf idea. I'm glad you did! Onto the chapter, can anyone guess what the first song Tifa plays is?

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Chapter 3
That withered away at some point in time

Cloud rang the doorbell to Tifa's house. He shifted his weight nervously, waiting. Before he was standing in front of her house now, he had paced back and forth in his room wondering if he should return the scarf now or wait until school starts and return it to her then.

But she lives right across the street! Cloud had thought. I should just go right now.

Carefully holding the scarf in his hands, afraid he might tear it up at any moment; Cloud walked quickly to the front door of Tifa's house and pressed the doorbell without thinking. And so here he was, waiting. The door opened and he came face to face with—"Mr. Lockheart!" Cloud bowed, reacting before thinking. He heard Tifa's father laugh, his voice deep but friendly. "Hello there, Cloud." Her father said. Cloud looked up. "I-I'm sorry for coming without notice." Cloud said.

"Not at all, please, come in." Tifa's father stepped out of the way and allowed Cloud inside. Once Cloud walked in, Mr.Lockheart suddenly shouted, "Tifa! You have a visitor!" It left a ringing in Cloud's ear. Not a moment later did Tifa appear at the foot of the stairs, she stared at Cloud, surprised.

"C-Cloud?" Tifa stammered.

"Um, hi." Cloud said, rubbing the back of his neck out of habit in such a situation.

Tifa's father laughed heartily. "Have fun kids!" And with that he left them alone. Cloud and Tifa stared at one another before Tifa finally asked, "Uh, um, hi, Cloud. Did you still need help with something?"

It took a moment for Cloud to say, "Uh, no. It's just… I thought I should give this back." He handed her the black scarf and she took it. "Is that all?" she asked, staring at him still looking a bit confused. He nodded and said, "Yeah. I-I guess that's all." He turned to leave but Tifa stopped him.

"Wait," she called. Cloud turned back around. "Since you're here, why not stay a while?"

He hesitated. "Can you do that?" Tifa asked. Cloud thought for a moment, then smiled and answered, "I can do that." Once Tifa told her father (who was working in the garage at the time) that Cloud was staying for a while, she returned to him and they headed to the living room. The furnishing was quite comfortable and the colors were warm and welcoming. What stood out the most was a deep black piano that was in the corner of the room. It looked brand new, but Tifa and her father had, had it for a long time. Also, it belonged to Tifa's mother who had passed away when Tifa was a child. No doubt was this piece of art cherished in this household.

"Do you play?" Cloud asked Tifa.

"Some." She took a seat on the piano chair and pressed some keys. Once she became comfortable with her position, she began playing a song. The slow melody was so soothing and nostalgic, like a warm embrace. Tifa's skilled hands moved gracefully across the piano, pressing each key gently without flaw. Cloud listened intently, caught in the song's spell. Before he knew it, the song was over.

"That was beautiful." He commented, the song's melody repeating itself in his head.

"My mother taught me that song." Tifa eyes traced a long lost memory. She looked so far away to Cloud as she spoke. "I may have lost the music sheet to this song, but I still remember every key of it by heart."

Cloud looked at her sadly. Then asked, "…Will you teach me a song?" Tifa looked at him, smiled, and invited him to sit down next to her. It wasn't the first time Cloud had touched a piano, he knew a bit how to play it, though his finger movements were a bit awkward or otherwise completely wrong. But Tifa was patient and showed him how to press a certain number of keys at once or continuously. During that time, Cloud's heart beat faster than ever. He wondered why it was that now, of all the chances they both had, that they were both here together. It was as if everything he could've done but didn't came back and kicked him in the butt.

He hoped… that it wouldn't be something they'd regret.

"Ah, so that's where you two disappeared off to." Tifa's father appeared from the hallway. "Gee, Tifa, I'm awfully hungry. Why not cook me up a meal?"

"Of course." Tifa got up along with Cloud, taking it as his cue to leave.

"Don't go anywhere." The man said, stopping Cloud in his tracks. "I thought you should join us for dinner."

"Is that all right?" Cloud asked.

"Bah! You don't see any crossed fingers do you?" The man slapped Cloud's back, laughing heartily again. Tifa chuckled, but she looked a little embarrassed. Afterwards, she disappeared into the kitchen. Cloud talked a bit with her father, but soon escaped into the kitchen with Tifa.

"Sorry." Tifa said, still a bit embarrassed. "Father always scares people like that. But he's really a good man."

"Yeah, I can see that." Cloud looked around the cozy little kitchen. A clock in the shape of a chicken ticked in the corner, it read 6 o'clock. He looked around and saw various food ingredients everywhere. Preparing dinner may take about an hour at the most. And he honestly didn't want to be stuck with Tifa's father—not that there was anything wrong with the man. "Anything I can help with?"

"Oh, no! I can't let you do that." Tifa said. "It's not right of me."

"But I want to help."

"What can you do?"

"Well, I can… help."

Tifa laughed, her ponytail bobbing along with each movement. "All right. You can start 'helping' by peeling the cabbages there."

Cloud often had to cook for himself and his mother, so of course he knew how to do something as simple as peeling cabbages. Tifa must have had to cook for herself and her father as well. Funny how their similarities were never clear until now. When they finally finished the meal, Tifa's father had fallen asleep out of boredom on the couch. Cloud sat at the dinner table as Tifa went to wake him. After a couple of minutes, a very tired looking Mr.Lockheart and a giggling Tifa appeared. Tifa sat down across from Cloud, her father sitting next to her. He yawned loudly. "I'm so tired!"

"You don't have to eat now." Tifa said.

"But you put your heart and soul into making this! I can't just eat it later!"

"I didn't do it alone." Tifa looked at Cloud, who was sitting uncomfortably. "Cloud helped me."

"So I see!" said her father, staring at the strangely shaped cabbage.

During their dinner, Tifa's father asked Cloud many questions. It had been a while since they both had seen each other, so he was quite curious on what events had occurred in Cloud's life.

"I hear you're leaving town once the school year end." Said Mr.Lockheart, looking concerned. "Can you handle it?"

"I have to. If not, it would've been no point in leaving." Replied Cloud.

"Hmm, I guess you are right. Still, you will be missed, boy."

After dinner, Cloud helped Tifa clean the table and set away the plates and food, but she insisted on washing the dishes alone. Seeing I was useless to argue any further, Cloud returned to the living room. He stared at the piano, wanting to play some more but decided to wait for Tifa. Instead he looked around at the photos hung around the wall. They all seemed to have an image of Tifa in them through the years. From when she was an adorable baby to a grown woman. Her mother looked much like her as well from the pictures Cloud saw.

"Lots of pictures, eh?" Interrupted Mr.Lockheart. He walked in the living room, staring at the pictures. "I remember when we took these photos as if they were yesterday." He stooped walking and faced a certain photo on the wall. Cloud walked over to him, wondering what he was looking at. It was an image of Mr.Lockheart's wedding day, his wife smiling happily beside him.

"A beauty, ain't she?" he said. "I'll never forget that light in her eyes when she smiled, Tifa's mother. Broke my heart when she died, it did. That Tifa, she's a good girl. Took over her mother's work at home ever since. She's been taking care of everything and I don't even ask her to. Bless her heart." The man sniffed, becoming emotional of the memories. But when he looked at Cloud, his eyes were perfectly clear and they resonated a father's strength. "Your leave is going to wound her forever. I don't ask you to stay, but I hope you reconsider. It's your life after all."

"…I'll keep that in mind."