Disclaimer: Same as always!

"Oh, Cloud! I didn't know you knew that young man."

Mrs. Kang seemed to be pleasantly surprised as she started setting down appetizers for he and Aeris.

"Yeah, he's a friend of mine."

"Good. He and his lady-friend hardly ate a thing! They were out the door before I could think well enough to box up their leftovers for them. Could you please run this out to them for me?"

"Sure."

Cloud took the package of food from Mrs. Kang, slightly confused. He hadn't seen anyone walk out with Zack. Who could it have been?

It wasn't until he saw the dark-haired man climb into an all-too familiar truck that Cloud had realized who he had been with. Hesitating for only a second, the blonde dashed over to the truck just as Tifa had started it up. He knocked on the side of the bed to grab her attention. She, in turn, stuck her head out of the window, annoyed that someone had the nerve to rap so obnoxiously on her vehicle, then paled at the sight of Cloud.

Coming up to the window, Cloud shot the two a tentative smile.

"Hey Teef, Mrs. Kang sent me out to give this you guys. It's your leftovers. I guess she didn't want them to go to waste."

Tifa tried her best to steady her trembling hand as she accepted the plastic bag. Unable to even force a smile at Cloud she muttered a hushed "Thank you."

"Oh, and Zack! Thanks for helping Tifa out with the deliveries. I was worried how she was going to manage all of that by herself."

Zack shot Cloud a look that seethed with annoyance and confusion. He prayed to Shiva that Cloud was genuinely oblivious and not purposely acting like an idiot. Even under the current circumstances there was no way that the older man could comprehend why his best friend was behaving so foolishly.

Tifa busied herself by getting out of the truck and walking away for a second, calling the next client on the list to let them know that their delivery was on its way. Zack followed suit and counted on the low growl of the idling engine to muffle his voice so that Tifa wouldn't hear. Walking around the front of the truck he leveled Cloud with a look that was undeniably intimidating, even for a guy as tough as the blonde.

"Is something wrong?"

"What do you mean 'is something wrong'?! Are you crazy?!"

"I don't understand."

"I can't believe you, man! What were you thinking?"

"What...?"

"You sent Tifa to do your deliveries today so you could go off on a date with Aeris? Did you tell her that specifically?"

".......Yes."

"You know how she feels about you!"

"......I know."

"And then you have the nerve to bring Aeris here to have lunch? Even though you knew Tifa had to deliver stuff here too?"

"I thought she would be making them a little later. She told me that Barret took the kids out today so I assumed she wouldn't get here til much later."

"Maaaan..." Catching sight of Tifa walking back, Zack made an effort to wrap things up. "Look, I understand that you're happy about everything that's happened in the past couple of months. Believe me, I am too. But there are other things you gotta consider, alright? We'll talk more about this later."

Cloud looked a bit crestfallen at the unusual scolding from his friend.

"I'll call you later."

The younger man nodded his assent, not knowing what else to do. He certainly couldn't avoid Zack's wrath forever.

Zack opted to climb into the driver's seat, not knowing if Tifa was in any condition to drive. Sure it seemed like a minor thing, but she was really hurting, and if Cloud was too blind to see it then someone surely needed to point that out to him. Tifa climbed into the passenger's side, her face pointed in the opposite direction of where Cloud stood.

"I guess I'll see you guys later."

"Later."

With that, Zack sped off, leaving Cloud to look a bit dejected in the parking lot. He could clearly see the blonde in the rearview mirror, dumbstruck and still from the reprimand; but it wasn't long before the spiky-headed figure moseyed back into the restaurant and out of sight. Zack rested his elbow in the frame of the rolled-down window, hoping the wind whipping into the car would cool his boiling temper. Normally he was a pretty rational guy – very passionate, but not one to anger very easily. Unfortunately for his pal, he hated to see girls cry, and when he noticed his companion's shaking shoulders, he couldn't help but get more and more upset.

Pulling off to the side of the road, Zack reached over and turned Tifa's face towards him. There were tears gathering in her eyes and shining tracks where the ones before them had fallen. He wiped at the spot right below her shimmering eyes gently with his thumb.

"It's alright..."

"No it's not! Why would he do that to me? To us? Don't you see what I mean now, Zack? Do you get what I was trying to tell you last night, now?"

"Maybe he wasn't thinking."

"I heard you two, Zack. He was full of excuses. How can you make more for him?"

"I don't mean to. I just...don't know what to say."

Tifa buried her face in Zack's shoulder and sobbed. Putting an arm around her he rubbed her back soothingly, trying to pacify the cries that wracked her body.

When she finally regained her composure, she couldn't look Zack in the eye. Pulling away from him she felt embarrassed and foolish. They had just started to become better friends and here she was, turning into a train wreck right before his eyes. She couldn't believe herself – her weakness.

He read her like a book.

"Right now I know you're hurting. You probably even think I'm judging you for breaking down. I know that we've had some pretty bad differences in the past, but you have to trust me when I say I'm here for you and I won't let you down. You forgave me for what's in the past, and I've done the same. I don't know why Cloud is acting the way he is but I do know that it's eating at you. You can count on me though, because you're my friend. And that's what friends are for. To be there for each other."

Tifa looked up at him with fresh tears streaming down her face. Before she knew what she was doing she felt the sensation of another pair of lips against hers...

What am I thinking...?