CHAPTER FIVE

Making Plans

"Is it time for wok already?" Lightning asked, her voice heavy with fatigue.

"No," Cloud whispered. "I just wanted to talk to you-I mean-" Crap, he thought. Why did it come out like that?

Lightning raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

Cloud didn't want to waste too much of her time. She'd want to get back to sleep pretty soon. "I mean, I had this idea… Mind if I come in?"

Without a word, Lightning opened the door wider for him. Once he had stepped inside, she closed the door. "Couldn't you have brought this up a little earlier in the evening?" she asked.

"No," he replied. "Tifa takes stock of our inventory, and she pulls all-nighters pretty much every night until two in the morning. And she's a light sleeper, so I had to be real quiet while I was walking down the hall."

Lightning was confused. "Then how were you able to sneak out of bed without waking her?" Normally, she kept her opinions to herself. But this question came out without much thought to the consequences.

"We don't share a bed," Cloud admitted. "I have a room of my own."

"Oh…" Whatever makes you happy, I guess. "So, what's your idea?"

"Well, now that we've hired you, the business isn't gonna bring in as much money like before. And there's gonna be a lot of assignments where we'll have to spend the night abroad… I was thinking that, since we seemed to get along well enough the other night in Kalm, that it might be cheaper if…" He swallowed hard. "… if we shared a hotel room while we're on assignments."

Lightning inhaled silently, but she was quick to compose herself again. "What does Tifa think of this idea?"

"She doesn't know about it," he said. "Actually, she'd hate it. We've been friends ever since we were kids, so I'm al too familiar with her jealous side. But I've gotta do what's best for Marlene and Denzel, and that includes saving as much money as possible."

It was as if Lightning had developed some kind of bitter taste in her mouth. As much as she hated what she was about to do, she had to help Cloud out in any way that she could-Not just for him, but for the kids. "I'll accept a pay cut, if need be."

"No," he insisted. "We promised you fifteen Gil an hour, and that's what you'll get."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

Lightning wasn't about to argue any further. "Okay. Then, I'm up for your arrangement."

He sighed with relief. "Thanks… And I'll maintain all of your 'rules,' too."

She chuckled. "You better. In return, I won't let Tifa know we had this conversation."

This made Cloud smile.

Lightning tucked herself back into bed and listened as Cloud walked back down the hall to his room. I was wrong, she thought to herself. He's nothing like Snow…And he's got a better smile, too.

Her smile quickly fell from her face. Snow… This constant feeling of unrequited love couldn't possibly be healthy. She would have force herself to accept the facts: She and Snow would never be together. But how was she going to get over this depression?

She fell back against her pillow, pondering these thoughts. Then, and idea came to her. The concept made her stomach jump with nerves, but she would have to do it. It was something she had never really done before in all her life.

She'd have to start dating.

For years, Lightning had kept herself busy taking care of Serah, and falling for Snow on top of it, so much so that she never bothered to think about dating until now. But in her mind, it was the only possible solution to her problem. If her heart was ever going to heal, she'd have to prove to herself that she could fall in love again.

oOo

Lightning awoke to the sight of a young girl with black hair looming right above her. "Uh, morning," she said.

Lighting took a deep breath and sat up. "Morning," she replied, smiling. "Are you Marlene?"

"Yeah. And you're Lightning, right?"

"Mm-hmm. But you can call me Light." This kid was adorable. No wonder Cloud and Tifa adopted her. Lightning wondered if the boy named Denzel looked just as cute, too.

"Tifa wanted me to come get you," Marlene said. "She wants you to join us for breakfast before you start working."

"Okay, tell her I'll be down in a bit."

Marlene smiled wide and nodded before skipping out of the room.

Lightning chuckled. Marlene reminded her of Serah when she was that age.

The breakfast party consisted of Cloud, Marlene, Denzel and Tifa. The table was loaded with plates of French toast, fried eggs and two large pitchers of orange juice. Everyone ate in silence, and after the kids had left for school, Tifa gave Lightning and Cloud their latest assignment sheets. "Big delivery in Wutai, guys," she explained. "The armory shop wants three Midgar Broadswords!"

Cloud's face was completely white. "I can't carry all that!"

"I know," Tifa replied. "That's why it's a good thing Lightning has a car. She can carry the merchandise in the backseat while you ride alongside her on your bike, in case there are any monsters around during the trip."

Lightning couldn't help but grin. "In other words, he guards me?" she asked.

Tifa repressed the urge to laugh. "Precisely."

Cloud glanced at both of them, confused. "Did I miss something, here?"

Lightning leaned back in her chair and shook her head. "Not a thing," she replied with a sly smile.

"Nope. Nothing," Tifa added.

Then Lightning pushed herself up from the table. "Just let me pack a bag, and I'll be all set." She headed out of the kitchen and scuttled back upstairs to her apartment.