37: Anniversary

There was a simple note on her bedside table when she woke up that morning, and it read:

Good morning baby. Happy anniversary! I love you. –Cloud

She could hear him in the kitchen, whipping up breakfast. One of the many things that she liked about him was that he was a pretty decent cook. Tifa wasted no more time in getting out of the bed and went to join him downstairs. Sure enough, Cloud was preparing breakfast for the both of them. His back was turned, and his shirt failed to cover up his physique. His hair was already gravity-defying—she always wondered how he did that so fast. Wrapping her arms around his tapered waist, she whispered, "Good morning."

Cloud stopped scraping the pancake for a moment and turned his head to plant a kiss on her forehead. "Good morning. I was hoping that you'd still be asleep so I can serve this to you later," there was a chuckle in his voice. Tifa only smiled as she leaned on his shoulder. "I'm sorry if I ruined your breakfast in bed plan. Shall I go back to bed then?"

"Nah," he told her, flipping the pancake into a plate while in the process. "I'm almost done anyway. Why don't you take a seat?"

She was reluctant to let go of him, since she was sort of comfortable in her position already. For a person who hasn't showered yet, he smelled great. Did he spray some cologne or was it just his deodorant? Oh gosh, Tifa, stop thinking like that. "Okay." Tifa finally said.

From the dining table, Tifa watched Cloud move about in the kitchen. Cloud would make a great dad, she thought, as she lazily stared at her boyfriend. He looked up at her and flashed his schoolboy smile. It was funny how she has names for his smiles. Ah, the crazy things people in love do.

"Okay, breakfast!" Cloud announced as he headed towards her holding a tray.

He had even bothered to arrange the food. "Aww, the pancake's so cute, Cloud." Tifa whispered, grinning. The pancake was surrounded by finely sliced strawberries, chocolate chips served at its smile and blueberries served as its eyes. A child would have refused to eat it altogether.

"Thanks," he said, mercilessly taking a bite off his own. After a while, Tifa looked up at him again and found him looking at her. "What?" she asked with a laugh. Cloud shook his head and said, "Nothing. You just looked so pretty eating. Then again, you're always beautiful."

A blush crept into her cheeks as she smiled. She's been told that she's beautiful a thousand times, but why was she so flattered when it comes from him?

They were quiet for a while, until Cloud said, "Get dressed, we're going out in a while."

He planned things for today? Tifa thought. The only thing she planned to do with him was snuggle with him as they watched some chick flick on TV, with an open box of pizza in front of them. Jeez. "Where are we going?"

"That's for me to know and for you to find out." He answered.

"Oh, so now you're being cheeky?" Tifa laughed.

He shrugged and proceeded to clear the dishes. Breakfast had been a quick affair.

Tifa turned on the shower and let its tiny beads of water soak her, as thought about how she would give Cloud his gift later that day. She'd gotten him a new toy—a tablet computer. She hoped that he would like it. After all, he did seem to be a budding techno geek. Fifteen minutes later, she was out of the bathroom and standing infront of her gargantuan walk-in closet, wondering what to wear.

"Hmm should I wear a dress or should I wear jeans?" she wondered aloud. There were so many possibilities.

Deciding not to take any more time, Tifa decided to grab her trusty white scoop neck tee, black skinny jeans and red pumps. Cloud knocked on the door. "Tifa?" he called out gently.

"In a minute, babe!" she told, almost yelled, at him. She hurried to the hair blower.

"Okay." Cloud said and went downstairs.

Sparing one last look at herself, she left her room. "Cloud?" she called out once she reached the living room. He wasn't in the living room or in the kitchen. She got a hunch that he was hiding from her and walked out to find him on the phone, near his motorcycle forever, the Fenrir. Cloud looked up at her and gave her a wave. A moment later, he told her that it was only Rufus.

"Hop on," he said as the motorcycle purred.

"I missed this too, you know." Tifa whispered as he placed a helmet on her head. Cloud smiled and gave her a peck on the lips. Yeah, it's been ages since the last time she'd gotten a ride on his Fenrir. They've been sitting in cars lately. "Yeah, I missed this too." Cloud said, then made the motorcycle roar.

"Hey! Most of my neighbors are still asleep!" she scolded playfully.

"Oops, sorry."

And… they were off.

Once they were out of the subdivision's gates, she asked him where they were going again. He still told her the same thing, and it frustrated Tifa. "Oh come on, tell me already," she said loudly as she clung to him. Cloud shook his head and sped up. The traffic was perfect at that time, not much people were heading out yet. Tifa pouted and buried her face on his the crook of his neck.

Boys and their secrets!

They didn't go to the city proper. Instead, Cloud took a familiar route. Tifa relieved his shoulder from the weight of her head and looked around. "We're going to Kalm?" she asked. "Are we going to visit Marlene?"

Without a warning, Cloud slowed down, and then stopped. He took off his helmet and looked at her. "Yeah, we're going back to the place where we first traveled to together. The most beautiful place I've ever been in, remember?" There was that schoolboy smile again. Tifa couldn't help but kiss him.

"Yeah, I remember, you said that when I took around on a quick tour," she whispered.

Cloud swung a leg over and was on his feet. He offered her a hand and she took it. "Why are we stopping here?" she asked, knitting her brows together in confusion. A smile was his only answer. They had stopped in the middle of nowhere. She gave him a curious look and he told her that he needed to stretch his legs for a bit.

"Oh," Tifa said then bit her lip. "You know…" she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck, looking straight into his eyes.

His eyes met hers and he snaked his arms around her waist. "What?" he asked quietly, a smile crawling into his lips.

She didn't say another word. She just let her lips do the talking. It was almost as sweet as their first kiss, in his room, when she told him that their agreement was off, because she couldn't help herself from loving him. With her heart beating loudly in her ears, Tifa couldn't believe that it's been a year since then. Suddenly, Cloud bit on her bottom lip playfully. Two can play in this game, she thought.

A few moments later, the couple stood side by side, panting, underneath a tree. Cloud was leaning on the tree's trunk, head thrown back, trying to catch his breath and Tifa was watching the rise and fall of his chest. "I think… we better get going," he finally said, reaching for her hand.

"What are we going to do in Kalm anyway?" she asked.

"It's a surprise, okay? Don't spoil it, baby."

"Fine."

They didn't go to Kalm directly and puzzled Tifa more. Where the heck was he going to take her? They zipped past the meadows and fields, the houses and village plaza. "Cloud?" she asked with a raised voice.

"Almost there," he reassured her.

Sure enough, when Cloud stopped the bike, they were at the gate of a house—whose house? It couldn't be Barret's. It looked more well-kept than Barret Wallace's home. An elderly couple greeted them a moment later, and after the brief exchange of pleasantries, they were invited inside. Tifa still didn't understand. The couple gave them a tour of the bare house.

"We will give you two a moment alone to talk," the couple said. The old lady looked at Tifa with shining eyes.

Cloud looked around and placed his hands on his hips. "Well… what do you think?" he asked her after a moment.

Tifa looked at him. "What… are you buying this place?"

"Yes." Cloud told her as he walked towards her. "I will, if you want it." There was a flash of anxiety in his clear blue eyes –why is he nervous? The dust motes floating around them were suddenly visible because of the dazzling sun light. His hair looked like a halo under the light.

"If I want it?" she repeated. "Why are you buying this house? Oh Cloud…this is too extravagant for an anniversary gift!"

He gave her half a smile and Tifa wondered if she'd wounded his ego. "Actually… I want to buy this house and the surrounding land," Cloud said, getting down on one knee without warning, "for our future family." And just like magic, there was suddenly a little red box in his palm, open and housing a beautiful ring. "Tifa Lockhart, I know that we have only been together for a year, but I want you to know that I am so madly in love with you. Will you marry me?"

She could only gape at him and watch the motes dance above his hair. It was almost like a dream… He looked expectantly at her. How many times have I dreamed of this? Cloud… he wants to marry me… Mom, what should I do? I love him very much too. But… "Oh hell, of course I'll marry you Cloud! Yes!" she finally answered.

Cloud's face split into a wide smile that reached both his ears. He took the ring out of its box and slipped it onto her finger. He took a moment to stare at her ring finger, "Thank goodness it fit perfectly," he said quietly. Tifa laughed as she helped him back to his feet. "I love you." Cloud told her as he took her into his arms.

"I do too." Tifa whispered, burying her face on his chest. There was again—destroying his shirt with her tears.

"So…" Cloud said a minute later. "Should I take the house?"

She looked up at him, eyes shiny with tears. "The house? Uh… why did you want to buy it, aside from the future family?" Seriously, Cloud, don't throw everything at me all at once! I'm still not over the ring, you know!

"It's peaceful. I know how much you love peace and this place… it might take a little time for the improvements, but it's going to be our very own castle." he told her, planting a kiss on the tip of her nose. "Just you, me and our future baby…" he whispered. Tifa blushed. A baby…a family…

Tifa smiled at him and said, "I love you."

He nodded said, "I'll marry you in every cathedral, church, beach there is."

She laughed and hit his chest, "One wedding is enough for me!"

"Okay," he agreed and placed a hand on the small of her back. "Well… why don't we go tell them that we're taking the place?"

Cloud drove slowly away from their future sanctuary. Tifa held on to him and studied the ring's brilliant sparkle underneath the sun. There was a warm feeling pooling in from her heart to her belly. Yes, you're a very lucky girl, aren't you Tifa? she thought.

"Hey Cloud?" she asked as they zipped past Kalm's boundary.

"Yes?"

"Let's keep this our secret for now," Tifa said, gazing up at the brilliant azure sky. She was sure that she was being selfish, but she wanted to bask in their private bubble a little bit longer. She wanted to be the only person, besides Cloud, to know about this happy event for now. Let his fan girls fantasize of them breaking up for a little longer—now, she was just being considerate. Ha.

"When do you plan to tell them, then?" Cloud asked, still focused on the road ahead.

"After your movie's premier…maybe." She answered.

A moment of silence lingered between before Cloud nodded. "Let's hope nobody rats us out, though." Cloud said a minute later. Tifa rested her head on his shoulder and muttered, "I hope so too."

Author's Note:

Happy 2nd birthday, The Celebrity and Pizza Delivery Boy!

Thank you to all the kind hearted readers out there who have supported TCPDB from the start!

Victoria Chrystallis