A/N: I don't know if it's too late to apologize for making a mistake on Cloud's age in chapter one. I've learned that he was actually twenty-three years old during the events of Advent Children. So, don't pay any attention to that mistake. Since, this story runs right after the events of the movie, Cloud is twenty-three, NOT twenty-one. I hope I didn't confuse you guys. I thought it was important to bring this up.

*I like to give thanks to my newest reviewer, goatgod.*

P.S. How could I forget? I'm pretty sure you guys have already noticed that I changed my name. So, don't worry. I'm the same person. :D

WARNING: This chapter contains some fluff and a little bit of angst. So, if you don't like either of these things, don't read this chapter.

A Walk Down Memory Lane

Cloud woke up to the sound of his alarm clock. He reached his hand out from under the covers and pushed the snooze button. His eyes were partly closed as he tried to see what time it was. The clock said 7:05. He usually got up around that time, but this morning, he wanted to stay in bed because he barely had any sleep last night. The swordsman rolled on to his back with his hands tucked underneath his head, staring up at the ceiling. He thought about that very special bond he and Tifa created just recently.

It was still hard to believe that he actually stood up and told Tifa how he really felt about her. There was still warmth inside his body and heart. He now realized why he kept getting those sensations every time he thought about the bartender or whenever he was around her. He was in love, and he liked the sound of that. He just hoped he wasn't rushing things.

Cloud decided to get out of bed and he was about to go downstairs when he heard Tifa call his name from her room. He walked in, but she was nowhere in sight.

"Where are you?" Cloud said.

"I'm in the bathroom," the blonde heard Tifa's voice.

The swordsman approached the door and slowly pushed it open. He nearly jumped backwards when he noticed the bartender was wearing nothing but a towel that was wrapped around her body, standing on the lid of the toilet.

"There's a spider in here," she told him.

A gentle smile tugged the corners of Cloud's mouth.

"You're afraid of a spider?" he chuckled quietly.

"Unfortunately, I am," Tifa smiled weakly.

"Where is it?"

The bartender pointed her finger at the floor, and Cloud grabbed some tissue and got on his knees.

"I saw it heading towards the back of the toilet," Tifa added.

And there it was. The black creature was sitting still in the corner. The swordsman stretched his arm out and smashed the small spider with the tissue.

"Did you get it?" Tifa asked, holding onto her towel.

"Yeah, I got it," Cloud stood up. "You want to see it?"

"No!" the brunette jumped off the toilet.

"But it's dead," Cloud tried not to laugh.

He lifted the lid up and dropped the tissue into the toilet bowl and flushed it.

"Thanks," Tifa said, embarrassed. "I know it was kind of awkward for you to see me like this."

"Oh…well, uh," the blonde rubbed the back of his neck. "I wasn't really paying any attention to that."

"Come on, Cloud. I saw the way you looked when you opened the door."

The swordsman was speechless. He just stood there, his cheeks slowly turning red. His eyes were locked on Tifa's damp hair hanging over her bare shoulders, and the way she had the towel hugging her body. Cloud felt a sweat or two running down his temple.

I have to get out of here. He thought.

"Um…I'm going to go downstairs," he later said.

"Okay. I'll be out in a few minutes and make you some breakfast," Tifa told him.

Cloud sat at the kitchen table, while Tifa was getting out of the shower. But why? Why was it impossible for him to stop himself from having these images of the bartender wearing a towel? That was his first time seeing her like that. Cloud was pretty sure that Tifa now knew how he felt when she nearly saw him in the nude while standing behind the door and asking her for some shampoo.

Awkward.

Surely, the blonde thought it was sort of funny. It was like déjà vu, in a way. Was this suppose to happen? He couldn't help but to wonder.

Tifa later came downstairs, wearing a small, white T-shirt with a pair of denim shorts. Even though her hair was still a little wet, she decided to wear it down as usual. Cloud wanted to give her a complement, but instead, he kept his mouth shut.

"I have some waffles if you want some," Tifa said.

"Aren't the waffles for the kids?" the swordsman asked.

"Don't worry," Tifa said. "Marlene and Denzel said we could eat them. I have to go to the store to buy more, anyway."

Cloud decided to take a quick shower while the bartender was making breakfast. He later changed clothes and went back downstairs. Tifa was just now finished with cooking the food when he sat down at the table.

"So," the bartender began, sitting down with the food. "Where do you have to go to make your deliveries for today?"

"First, I have to go to Kalm," Cloud explained. "Then, I have to go to Nibelheim."

"Nibelheim?" Tifa asked before taking a sip of her coffee. "It's been a long time since we've been there."

"I know," Cloud said quietly.

They both became quiet. The brunette looked down at her coffee, watching the creamy swirls slowly swimming around in the mug.

Memories of their hometown started to play in both of the adults' minds, from the day they became friends, all the way up to the time when the small town was engulfed by flames, which were caused by Sephiroth. Cloud always had clear visions of him. Even if the visions lasted for one second made the ex-Soldier tick with anger. No matter how hard he tried, he could not stop thinking about all of those times when his silver haired enemy made his life a living hell. Because of Sephiroth, Cloud's mother, Aerith, and Zack were no longer in his life.

The swordsman remembered the time when Tifa was on the verge of dying, due to Sephiroth's brutal attacks. If Cloud wasn't there to save her, there was no doubt that he would blame himself for the rest of his life. He kind of wished he didn't have any deliveries to make in Nibelheim. It would bring too many memories.

As for the martial artist, memories of her father played a big role in her life as well. She thought she could never forgive Sephiroth for taking her father away, and how he tried to destroy anything and anyone that stood in his way.

Tifa shook those thoughts away and slowly looked up at Cloud, who was sitting on the opposite side of the table. She could see anger in his piercing blue eyes as he stared off into space. She also realized his left hand was clenched into a fist, while holding a fork with his right one.

"Cloud?" Tifa spoke, her voice nearly shaking.

Apparently, he didn't respond. So, she reached out her hand and placed it on Cloud's and stroked it gently with her thumb.

"Cloud, are you okay?"

The spiky-blonde blinked a couple of times, and his eyes laid upon Tifa's hand on his. Her skin felt so soft against his. He looked up at the bartender and smiled.

"I'll be fine," he assured her.

After breakfast, Cloud brought his empty plate to the sink and headed upstairs. He brushed his teeth and put on his boots. Dozens of thoughts swirled around in his head like a whirlwind. He thought he would never have to go back to Nibelheim. It wasn't bad, it was just so many things happened while he was there. People treated him like he was an outsider, including Tifa's so-called friends. The swordsman mumbled to himself, thinking about how cruel they treated him and they knew he didn't do a damn thing to deserve any of it.

"Cloud?" the angel-like voice startled him.

He quickly turned around and saw Tifa standing in the doorway.

"Yeah?" he said, his face lighten up.

"You're okay?"

The blonde nodded.

"I feel like I should apologize," Tifa approached him.

"Why?" the swordsman slightly frowned.

"You know, for bringing up Nibelheim. I should've known it was going to cause you to have endless memories. The bad ones, I mean."

"It's not your fault," Cloud spoke softly.

Tifa smiled and giggled quietly. "You know what's funny?"

"What?"

The bartender hesitated for a moment. Her mahogany eyes locked onto his blue ones.

"Never mind," she shook her head.

Cloud immediately knew something was bothering her. He could tell by the expression on her face.

"What is it?" he asked.

Tifa looked away for a second and sighed. "I just wish…I wish you didn't have to leave today." She became really quiet when she reached the end of her statement. She hoped Cloud didn't understand what she said.

"You know something, Tifa?" he said. "So do I."

The bartender's eyes slowly drifted up to Cloud's. Her eyes widened and lit up. If she really wanted Cloud to stay, all Tifa had to do was ask him to, but she figured that was going to be impossible. She approached him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Her heart was crying out to his. The brunette cursed the fact that it felt so bad to let go of the person she loved, especially since Cloud told her his feelings. Tifa lifted her head up so she could see the blonde's handsome face. She reached her hand up towards his face, her palm resting on his left cheek. Her fingers gently pushed one of his spikes out of the way and saw a scar that was right above his eyebrow.

"Cloud," Tifa said slowly. "How did you get this scar?"

The swordsman nearly forgot that he had that scar, which happened during the Geostigma Crisis.

"I was shot by one of Sephiroth's remnants," he replied.

"No…" the martial artist traced the scar with her fingertips. She then rested her head on the warrior's shoulder.

"I want to go to Nibelheim," she later said. "If that's okay."

Cloud hesitated and then said, "Okay. We'll go Saturday."

Something deep down told him that he should stay with Tifa, but he couldn't. He had very important deliveries to make, and he had to do this so he could support not only himself, but Tifa and the kids, too.

"I think it's time for me to go," Cloud spoke quietly.

Tifa closed her eyes. "Okay."

She hated to see him go, and Cloud hated to leave her behind with those good-for-nothing men she always served, but that was just part of her job, and he knew that she could take care of herself.

"Be careful, okay?" Tifa tilted her head up.

"I will," Cloud nodded.

XOXOXOXOX

Saturday arrived sooner than expected. The day started off with strong thunderstorms. But later that afternoon, the sunlight made its way through the dark clouds as the storm slowly came to a stop. Tifa stood by the window in the living room when Cloud walked in.

"Looks like the storm has calm down a bit," she told him, looking over her shoulder. "There won't be another storm until later tonight."

"Let's go to Nibelheim now," said Cloud.

It was quite a long ride as they traveled through the city. Cloud began to pick up speed on the Fenrir once they left Edge. Tifa realized they were getting closer to the town after she saw a couple of mountains and a few houses that were rebuilt just recently.

When they finally arrived in Nibelheim, Cloud decided to drive his way to the neighborhood where he and Tifa once grew up. They both climbed off of the motorcycle and started strolling around.

The first thing the ex-Soldier saw was a small house that was quite familiar to him. It was slightly different from the way it used to look when he was younger. Right next to it was Tifa's. The people who were working on the houses weren't quite finished with them, but Cloud was certain that this was the exact spot where he and Tifa used to live.

Tifa looked over to her right and saw the swordsman staring at the ground with his hands in his pockets. The expression he had on his face placed a burden in her heart. Cloud always had that same blank expression on his face, but this time, Tifa could see that it was beginning to make her heart sink to the bottom of her stomach.

"Cloud, what is going through your mind right now?" she slowly approached the warrior.

"My mother…"He later answered after a short pause.

"You miss her, don't you?"

"Yeah…"

The bartender smiled gently as she looked up at the clear, blue sky. "I miss my mother, too."

Cloud exhaled softly. "I wonder if my mother ever misses me."

Tifa quickly took her gaze from the sky and looked at the swordsman.

"Of course she misses you, Cloud. She loved you and she still does."

Cloud nibbled on his bottom lip. He felt stupid for thinking his mother didn't miss him. He had clear visions of her. He thought about her sweet smile, and the way she used to sing him lullabies whenever he had trouble sleeping when he was just a small child. The best memory he had ever had was when he was only five years old.

XOXOXOXOX

Frequent flashes of lightning struck across the dark sky, accompanied by a huge rumble of thunder. The rain fell down like a waterfall. It was easy for some townspeople to sleep through the storm, but as for Cloud, it was like living in a nightmare.

He shivered uncontrollably beneath the covers. Cloud never really liked thunderstorms, but he loved to stand outside in the rain, only if it was just sprinkling. His mother always told him that he could get sick from doing that.

The blonde moved the covers just two inches below his big, blue eyes to get a peek at his window. A flash of lightning lit up his bedroom just then, causing the little boy to quickly pull the covers back up. Later, thunder crashed and Cloud jumped out of bed and dashed right out of his room, heading for his mother's room.

He stood by the doorway to see if his mother was sleeping. The covers were perfectly still, but he had to wake her up. Cloud tip-toed his way towards the bed. Mrs. Strife's back was facing him. So he tapped her on the shoulder with his small finger.

"Mom?" he said in a somewhat whisper. Mrs. Strife turned over onto her other side to face her son and her lips curved into a smile when she saw him.

"I can't sleep," Cloud said. "Can…Can I sleep with you?"

His mother chuckled softly and said, "Of course you can."

The blue eyed child smiled brightly. Mrs. Strife moved over to let Cloud climb into the bed. Thunder started to rumble again, and immediately, Cloud wrapped his arms around his mother.

"I don't like the thunder," he said.

"It's okay, sweetie," Mrs. Strife told him. "Thunder can't hurt you."

The boy snuggled closer to his mom, and she gave him enough covers so he could be comfortable. They both listened to the rain as it pounded hard against the roof.

"Mom?" the child spoke again.

"Hm?"

"Are you afraid of thunder?"

"I used to be when I was your age," Mrs. Strife explained. "My mother always told me to think about things that make me happy, and sometimes listening to the rain helped me fall asleep."

"What makes you happy, Mom?"

"Hm…There are a lot of things that make me happy. Like, seeing you smile, your laugh and knowing that you will always be my sweetheart." Mrs. Strife tapped Cloud on the nose.

"I love you, Mom," Cloud said after he chuckled.

"I love you, too, Cloud." She placed a kiss on her son's forehead.

XOXOXOXO

"I wish I was there to save her," the adult Cloud later said as he watched the clouds rolling by.

"It's not your fault that she died," Tifa, said, pushing her bangs out of the way as the wind blew.

"Then how come I feel like it is?"

Tifa noticed that there was something different about his voice. There was a little bit of anger in it. He looked as though he wanted to release it. He clenched his hands into fists. The brunette tried to figure out what she could say or do to make the ex-Soldier feel better.

"I used to think that it was my fault that my father was killed," she said, looking back on that dreadful day. "But we both know that it was Sephiroth's fault."

Cloud's heart nearly stopped after Tifa mentioned the one winged angel. She stepped in front of him and took a hold of his hands.

"Cloud," she said. "Look at me."

His eyes slowly shifted from the ground to hers. He could almost see his own reflection in them.

"You did nothing wrong," Tifa said very clearly. "Sephiroth paid the price when you defeated him. And I'm sure your mother is proud of you for that. I'm proud of you."

"Thanks," Cloud mumbled.

Tifa smiled at him and then something caught her eye. She looked over to her left and noticed a huge tree stump. "Hey, Cloud. Do you see that tree stump?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"It looks familiar." The bartender let go of the swordsman's hands and walked towards the stump.

The stump was pretty old and rotten. The martial artist looked at the house that the stump was sitting right in front of.

"Cloud," she said excitedly. "This was the tree that had a tire swing. Look."

Cloud approached her and the old stump. "Are you sure?"

"Yes! I'm positive. This was the only tree that was on this side of the neighborhood."

The blonde looked at the stump carefully and then at the house. "You're right."

"We used to swing on the tire swing all the time!" Tifa beamed.

"That's when we became friends, right?"

"Yeah."

The couple smiled with gleam in their eyes. Cloud didn't understand why, but something made him want to hold Tifa's hand as they cherish the day their friendship started to grow. But something else started to grow, somewhere in his heart. Maybe it was love or happiness. Or even both.

"I should thank you for taking up your time so we could be here, even if it was hard for you to bear the hurtful memories," Tifa said.

"It's no problem. I should be the one to thank you."

"Why?"

Cloud held both of the bartender's hands. "You took the time to show me that I am a better person. I wish there was a way I can repay you."

"I'm pretty sure there is a way," Tifa smiled.

Cloud felt her hands squeezing his just a little bit. His pulse began to race, as Tifa looked deeper into his eyes. She tilted her head towards his face. Cloud's heart went crazy right after he felt her warm breath brushing across his lips. Tifa closed her eyes and then----

They nearly jumped when the swordsman's cell phone started ringing. He reached his hand into his pocket and pulled out his phone. It was Shera.

"Hello?" Cloud answered. "Okay. Alright, we're coming."

"Who was it?" Tifa asked.

"That was Shera," Cloud replied. "She didn't say what was going on, but she wants us to meet her at the hospital.

To Be Continued…