Chapter 84, εуλ0014 (continued)

Ever since they'd added Denzel's room, Tifa had realized how easy it would be to add on more rooms; even one directly above, an easy connect of the two passages. A room that maybe, one day, would be for a baby of their own.

The only problem was… she wasn't pregnant yet.

It had been months. Considering they still maintained a full, active, healthy sex life – roughly every other day, sometimes more, sometimes less – there had been plenty of opportunities for it to happen. But every month her heart sunk a little more, deprived of the chance to bring the joy to Cloud's life she so desperately wanted to give him.

Cid and Shera had just had a third. Three boys in a row, like stairsteps. She and Cloud had gone to visit, charmed by the sight of guff Cid reduced to a teddy bear as his boys tumbled all over him.

So she was particularly angry when Cid showed up in the bar one evening after his latest WRO flight with a woman Tifa had never seen before.

Shining red curls; a low-cut aqua top. The nerve of him! He's not only cheating on his wife, but has the audacity to bring her here, into my home and establishment… She marched over, fully planning to give him a piece of her mind, and a bit on Cloud's behalf as well…

"Shera?!" she suddenly gasped.

The candlelight of the booth had hidden her face at first; but close up, it was far more clear. Cid's wife blinked owlishly, squinting. "Oh, hi, Tifa," she said. "It's just so hard to see without my glasses."

"You… changed your hair," Tifa said faintly.

"Oh, this?" Shera nervously tugged at reddened curls. "I was just thinking one day maybe it would be something I might like to try, and I asked Cid what he thought about it – "

"And now doesn't she look gorgeous?" Cid interrupted proudly, throwing an arm around the small woman and planting a slopy kiss on her cheek. "Not that she wasn't before, you understand."

"– and then Cid he wanted to take me for a night out – and the salesgirl suggested this shirt – and well – "

"You look beautiful, Shera," Tifa hastily assured her, grabbing a chair to sit next to them, mortified at what she had almost burst out saying.

The talk happily turned to the latest news from the Highwind family – not that they didn't talk on the phone, but it just wasn't the same as a visit in person. Tifa tried to cover up the hurt as Cid proudly displayed photo after photo of his growing, rambunctious family. The third baby apparently was much more easygoing than the prior two ("Takes after Shera, obviously," Cid joked), but still, they were willing to go for one or two more.

And here I don't even have one yet, Tifa silently bemoaned. Not that she didn't love Marlene and Denzel, but – she wanted it all, the full experience, her own family growing larger as well.

The evening grew on; Tifa was content to sit at the table, saying hi to her regulars as they trickled in but content to leave the running of the bar to her staff. After a time, Tifa had granted that Kyrie had proved herself honest and promoted her to manager; the grateful younger woman had been working out well. Tongue rather sharper than Tifa's, but her customers embraced it in good stride. Sometimes she'd bring Vits with her to visit, and if Mina happened to be over as well they'd have children aged eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen in a row, all in the house at once, giving Tifa for a few minutes the semblance of the full house she craved.

Cloud rambled in eventually, home from his day at the WRO. Grabbing a beer and greeting the Highwinds, he sat down with them for a time, offering up his short contributions to the conversation. Tifa only felt a little left out when the three others began to compare notes of their work at the WRO; so far, she had been resisting taking on a role as Cloud had, wanting to remain close to home, hesitant to take on a distant responsibility.

The thought of a baby was never far from her.

Besides, there was plenty happening in Edge. Schooling for older children had begun at the most natural places, the group homes that already housed a large part of the population of children in question; Marlene and Denzel simply went to the Leaf House for theirs. Three days a week at the moment, to be increased as staffing allowed. As part of their education, the older children took on the role of teaching younger ones to fill in some of the gaps.

Cid and Shera had both conducted several lectures as guests as well. Cloud had flatly refused to do so.

"You could do it easily as well, Tifa," urged Shera. "Talk to the kids about running a business. Businesses. I can't believe you're opening a fourth."

"I can't believe it either. But I'm glad to be giving Foursquare a homier feel, after going upscale." Truthfully, she wasn't entirely sure how she felt about Seventh Heaven becoming a known "brand" in Edge. As much as she loved bringing her own touch to each new menu, new design, she couldn't be involved with each the same way she had been with Seventh Heaven at the start.

On the plus side, with she and Cloud generating so much income passively from their respective businesses, they never wanted for anything. Never had to worry about paying for the next round of supplies. Maybe that's the key, Tifa suddenly realized. Maybe it's time to pay it forward. Do something charitable next.

The more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea.

The night grew long; Cid and Shera still planned to return home that night. After her third glass of wine, Shera grew slightly maudlin about missing her babies, and Cid leapt to close the bill, get his wife back home, get back to see his sons himself.

The hours had passed while they talked; this early in the week, the bar had emptied out itself, and Tifa was surprised to realize that Kyrie was closing out the register. Tifa gave a perfunctory check over the receipts, before wishing her manager good night, and locking the door behind her.

Cloud was already upstairs, his warm arms were waiting. To hold her close, to make love, whatever she wished. He would be there.

She cast one last, long look towards Denzel's room before she turned out the lights.

Cloud poked his head into Denzel's room. "Denzel, are you available?"

Denzel looked up from his latest round of homework. History. Not his favorite, though Marlene loved it. He was more into science, technology, that kind of stuff. He loved nothing more than when Cid would walk him through the Shera, or a representative from the WRO would come to discuss the latest inventions.

"What's up?" Denzel asked.

"Someone here to see you," Cloud told him. Denzel shrugged, wondering who it could be. He closed his notebook, and followed Cloud out into the bar.

To his surprise, it was Reeve Tuesti. He actually hadn't seen that much of the man since his ill-advised request to join the WRO – what a kid I was! – three years before. Reeve had stopped by from time to time, once to proudly explain to Cloud and Tifa how Denzel had been there for his mother – a fact that had shocked both his parents – but he wondered, why had Reeve come today?

"Greetings, Denzel," Reeve replied, his voice smooth with the polished elegance that was his trademark. "I trust you've been well?"

"Yes, sir," Denzel meekly replied.

Reeve laughed. "No sir needed, young man. I'm a family friend, after all." He looked at Denzel appraisingly. "You've certainly grown."

"He sure eats enough," Tifa laughed. It was a familiar joke.

Truthfully, Denzel was starting to hope he would stop growing soon. He'd soon begin to peek over the top of Cloud's head; it was an uncomfortable feeling to think of towering over his hero. Nor did he want to diminish Mina, who seemed to have stopped herself just a hair short of Tifa's height, even as she continued to develop in other uhhh… interesting ways.

"Although, I must admit, I'm here on a sort of business matter," Reeve continued. "How's your schooling going, Denzel?"

"Good. A least I think. I don't exactly have much to compare it to," Denzel apologized. I would have been in a Shinra academy right now, probably preparing for a career with the company… He'd heard the rumors that Rufus Shinra ultimately funded the WRO, but for the moment, it seemed the former President was content to relinquish control. "Mina studies harder than me, though, we both like science."

"That's a good base to have," Reeve conceded. "But Cloud and Tifa wanted me to come here today to talk to you about your future a little bit."

"You know, the stuff we talked to you about some time ago," Cloud added.

"I remember," Denzel replied.

"Well, the WRO is working on education at your level, but what you may not know is, we're also readying education for afterward as well," Reeve told him. "I'm willing to take on as many promising students as I can. We'll need them in the years to come. Have you devoted some thought to what you'd like to do yet, Denzel?"

Denzel thought for a moment. Machinery. Medicine, like Marlene seemed to be leaning towards; or chemistry, which Mina preferred. But for himself… "Computers," he suddenly burst out. "I like computers."

Reeve openly smiled at that. "We'll need a lot of that for sure."

Tifa spoke up. "Denzel, in a few years, Reeve is prepared to give you an education at the WRO. Full room and board."

"Mina too, if she likes," offered Reeve; and Denzel wondered if he was that transparent.

"But… does that mean I'd have to leave home?" Denzel asked, suddenly anxious.

Cloud and Tifa exchanged a regretful glance. "More or less," Cloud reluctantly admitted.

"At least during the week," Tifa added faintly. "You know, you could come back on weekends…"

"But the WRO city is coming up pretty fast," Cloud continued, equally reluctant. "You never know, by that time it might be a more interesting place for young people to be in…"

Denzel's eyes flickered to each of the three in turn. He was terrified of the idea of leaving Seventh Heaven; it had become the only home he'd truly known, his birth family just a scattered series of faded images. The thought of leaving again…

"You'll always have this as your home," Tifa added softly, as if reading his thoughts.

Cloud cleared his throat. "Denzel, I know you wanted to… follow after me," he told the young man. "But you have to understand… Tifa and I fought so you don't have to. We don't want to leave you a legacy of fighting. We wanted to leave you a better world."

Denzel thought. "I want you to be proud of me," he finally admitted.

Cloud smiled, the tiny, warm, genuine smile that so rarely showed – but when it did, it was true. "You will. Whatever you do."

Denzel sat there for long moments, considering. I'm not leaving the family. I can always come back. It's just growing up…

Mina can come with me.

"Reeve," he said cautiously, "I'd… really like that. Thank you."

Reeve smiled and rose, offering out his hand. Was it his imagination, or was there shades of tears in Tifa's eyes? "You've got time still, Denzel," he concluded. "Make the most of it."

He stuck around for a few minutes more, finally politely departing, but Denzel's mind was still reeling. And after Reeve was out the door, he suddenly realized something that was so obvious, he was amazed he hadn't realized it before.

I have a future.

Once, he had thought he didn't. No more.

Men.

The men at Seventh Heaven had always been Cloud's bane. They came from far and wide to ogle Tifa, and though Cloud took some jealous pleasure in knowing they couldn't touch what he had, he still felt his skin prickle when their eyes traveled over her, crawling over her.

Fortunately, through the years it had become less of a problem. The early, troublesome crowds had faded away, leaving well-behaved regulars who knew perfectly well her commitment to Cloud. Most saw her as more of a little sister now, the same as Barret had, and she laughing and joking with them, her eyes lighting up whenever Cloud chose to come down to the bar and join them.

So who was the man at the door today?

Tifa had greeted him with a cry, throwing her arms around him; he returned the favor in a tight bear hug. And older man – sixties, perhaps? – but fit and strong, weathered lines of his face belying a solid form. A tingling in the back of his head – was this someone he had met before?

Cloud came up behind Tifa, wrapping his arms around her chest and pulling her to him. Protectively. Possessively. He'd thought Tifa might be upset, but she neatly relaxed into his embrace as if she'd been expecting it.

"This is Cloud," she told the stranger. "My husband." Tifa twisted in his grasp. "Cloud, did you ever meet Zangan? My master?"

Zangan…

Nibelheim…

It all came rushing back.

He'd met the man, tagging along with Zack, face obscured by that stupid helmet. But he'd never officially met the man. Did Zangan know him?

"I remember you," Zangan answered the question for him. "The reactor…"

The word hung in the air, both men unsure what to say next. It took Tifa to finally break the silence. "Let's just sit down," she suggested. "I'll get us some drinks. We've got plenty to catch up on."

She left them at one of the booths, hustling through the kitchen for whatever snacks she could rustle up, leaving the men facing each other awkwardly, unsure where to begin. Finally, Zangan was the one to clear his throat and begin.

"You were there," Zangan started. "You and that other young man. Zack. The SOLDIER. I left you with that Turk, the little redhead…"

"Cissnei," Cloud filled in. It was all uncomfortably returning, memories he'd avoided for so long. "She was there. I remember." I wonder what happened to her… A vague glimpse of her on a beach, in some trees. Part of his journey with Zack…

How he wished Zack was here so he could ask him now.

Zangan hung his head. "I told her to get you guys out… but with Shinra, I don't know if she had much of a choice," he told Cloud. "I'm not sure if I should ask what happened after…"

Cloud blanched. "Another day. Sorry," he hastily excused himself.

Zangan only looked sympathetic.

"Zangan… was the one who got me out," he heard Tifa's voice softly say. He looked up to see her face twisted in consternation as she placed drinks, food on the table before them. "He's the reason… I survived."

He was?

"Well," Cloud began awkwardly, "I owe you a debt of gratitude." As Tifa sat, he took his wife's hands in his. To think that this man had rescued his treasure…

"I wanted to get you boys out too," Zangan said apologetically. "It was impossible… Shinra came crawling all over the place… and Tifa was so gravely injured we had to hurry…"

"There's no need to apologize," Cloud assured him. "She made it out… that's all that mattered. He looked at her long and deep; her eyes melted in return. "Thank you for saving her," he said quietly.

Zangan only remained silent, and seemed to be considering.

Tifa finally relaxed now that the two men had been properly introduced. She didn't want Cloud to be jealous… but in a way, Zangan was just as important as Cloud had been in making her who she was. He taught me to believe in myself. To become the woman who could stand proudly by Cloud's side. He and Cloud bookended her own life, the same as she and Zack bookended Cloud's – when one wasn't a part of her life, the other was.

Zangan was a part of her life totally her own. She hoped Cloud realized how much that meant to her.

"Maybe it's not time yet to talk about… that," Zangan politely suggested. "Tifa, I would rather hear about you. What has happened since Meteorfall?" He looked around. "It looks like you are doing pretty well for yourself."

Tifa happily burbled all over herself, skimming over their adventures pursuing Sephiroth – "Another story for another day," she told him, "but Master, I DID find your note, I'll have to tell you about that – " and Zangan smiled. She went into more detail as she covered the years post Meteorfall, building the bar, making it through Geostigma, the years together since. "And well, we made it official – " she blushed.

"He better be treating you properly," Zangan joshed.

"Every day of my life." Cloud half preened, half fumed.

"– and there's our kids. Marlene just turned eleven, Denzel is thirteen – "

"Tifa, you couldn't possibly – " Zangan interrupted.

Tifa laughed. "Adopted, Master," she assured him. "You didn't miss anything."

But inside, Zangan had hit a nerve. Tifa had stopped her Materia months ago… but had nothing to show for it. As time dragged on, she began more and more worried, and questioned her decision. What if I can't…?

"I'd like to meet them," Zangan said. "I love children."

"I didn't know that about you," Tifa said.

Zangan chuckled. "I guess there's a few things I never got around to telling you."

"Well, we can make up for that. Now that you've come back," Tifa assured him, reaching across the table to take his hand. "Are you going to stay? Or are you still wandering like you used to?"

"Wanderlust still has me," Zangan replied, "but I don't have the energy I used to. I'll probably be here for a few days at least."

"Your students?" Tifa asked.

"Grown up. Leading their own lives. I hope they remember my lessons," Zangan said. "Besides, after you, Tifa… you were a hard act to follow. I actually didn't take on any others. I kind of felt I'd achieved a zenith with you, Tifa."

Tifa only blushed at the compliment.

"You did great," Cloud stepped in for her. "She's… an amazing fighter."

"She has an amazing heart," was Zangan's response.

"I know," Cloud said softly. "That's why I fell in love with her." He reached to gently brush her hair back from her face.

Tifa felt flush with both embarrassment and pleasure. Before she could decide how to respond, she was saved by the return of Marlene and Denzel, barreling noisily through the front door.

They came to a screeching halt. Side by side, twin pairs of eyes settled on the newcomer in their midst. "Who's that?" Denzel asked.

Introductions were made; hasty explanations were given. The children joined them at the table; Denzel unconsciously reached for the plate of fried chicken before him. That boy is just always hungry, Tifa thought. Marlene, naturally, warmed toZangan first. "So, uh, you were kinda like a second father to Tifa?" she asked.

Zangan brushed his beard thoughtfully. "Something like that, I guess," he finally said.

"Well in that case… can we call you grandfather?" Marlene's eyes brightly pleaded. "Since Tifa's dad is gone… well… we don't have any real grandparents." She paused. "We have Elmyra… who is kinda of our grandmother… she was the mother of one of our friends," she explained.

"She's really nice," Denzel replied. "I, uh, didn't have any grandparents in the first place…" He stopped there, suddenly hesitant to explain his role in this family, unsure what Tifa and Cloud had already told this man.

"Well," Zangan pondered. "You certainly can. I like that, actually." He smiled. "I'm looking forward to getting to know these new grandchildren."

Tifa smiled; her heart felt ready to burst.

Another part of my life I thought lost… now come back to me.

The turning point had been reached. Cloud was beginning to understand.

Darkness would always follow him. Sephiroth's words haunted him.

I will never be a memory.

Stay where you belong… in my memories.

He couldn't take those memories away… but he could make NEW memories.

He'd thought he'd had to work so hard for Tifa. Now he understood – she was proud of him simply for the man he'd become, same as his mother had been.

(Though he couldn't deny how badly he needed to hear the word "hero" from her… just as he'd begun learning how much she needed to hear "I love you," words he was making a point to say more often.)

His mother. It had been so long since he'd thought about her. She'd only wanted him to be his best. Why hadn't he put that together before?

He'd thought about his father too – he'd always wanted to know, but it had always been "when you are older." He'd realized something now. He'd known his mother had traveled the world; it was entirely possible she didn't know who his father was. A great unknown, now never to be resolved.

But Claudia had been a wonderful mother. He wished so dearly she could see him now. Would she approve of Tifa? Of his family? For that matter, in the end, would Brian Lockhart have approved of him?

He still saw Tifa in so many ways as the pretty little girl he'd known then.

I want to make her smile like she did then.

She should always be smiling, echoed his little-boy inside.

Meteorfall… a tragic holiday that was now filled with joy. Our anniversary. One of them, the beginning of the beginning, eight days before their marriage date. Meteorfalls past had been hard on them both, Tifa in particular; nightmares of that day, nightmares of the plate fall. But this last had been an occasion for celebration, as they entered their second full year of a very happy marriage.

But the darkness still taunted him; Zangan's visit had only brought it to light. And with that, he'd come to an uncomfortable conclusion.

It was time to tell the kids.

She had known this would be a difficult conversation.

What Tifa hadn't expected was Cloud wouldn't be better at the end of it.

They'd sat together, she holding his hand in hers, gripping it white-knuckled as he began to tell the story. And she was forced to watch the twin looks of horror cross her children's faces as they learned what Cloud had really gone through.

Years missing, imprisoned in a tube. A thankful amnesia that he didn't know what had or hadn't happened to him – if he had just been soaked in mako, or if there had been more he couldn't remember.

The pinprick of his skin, where the Geostigma had begun; the spot where he'd likely been injected with Jenova cells, the taint that would be with his body forever. "It hasn't hurt in a while," Cloud had said, unconsciously brushing the spot on his arm where once he'd worn Aerith's ribbon; "but I know it's there."

The journey with Zack; the death he could now remember all too well. The beginning of his awakening, a slow, burdensome return to himself.

The ways he still searched, and healed.

He heals and loves a little more every day.

The horrifying narrative over, two speechless children went to bed; Marlene up the stairs, Denzel to the back. But Cloud remained, anxiously pacing their living area. Attempting to settle him down, Tifa brought some drinks from the bar; predictably, he went straight for the whiskey. Always a sign that he was stressed, and after a couple shots, though he didn't look happier, at least he slowed and sat on the couch beside her.

She pulled him into an embrace against her, soothing touches on his hair, his neck. She let him rest his head on her chest, until she realized his shoulders had started to shake against her. She murmured intimacies into his ear, lover sweetheart darling, hoping to pull him out of the darkness he'd fallen into.

He moaned softly; she realized he was crying. Not sobbing rivulets but forced-up tears he could no longer contain.

"They took my body," he muffled into her shirt. "They took my mind…"

She knew all too well.

She wouldn't tell him it was okay; it wasn't and it never would be. Even after six, nearly seven years, he still suffered deep below the surface; the pain, the humiliation of what Shinra had done to him; the only saving grace being that he could remember none of it.

So she waited out the flood, brushing only excess water away with her thumb, letting it all seep out. Slowly, it leached away, leaving him clinging to her like a child.

That was when she raised his face to hers. "Hey," she told him gently. "You're my hero. And my husband. Nothing about that will ever change."

Those words were all that she could give him… but they seemed to be enough. Slowly, ever so slowly, she saw his eyelids droop, even as he struggled to keep them open. Soon enough he was drifting off to sleep, and she right along with him.

Denzel watched from behind the door; one of many times he'd sneaked peeks on the nights Cloud and Tifa never made it upstairs. It had been just over five years he'd been with this family; he had some memories of his original parents, yes, but they were becoming harder and harder to find, buried as they were under the flood of memories he'd gained in the years with Cloud and Tifa.

Happy memories.

The memories that were becoming his life.

Cloud was his hero. And heroes never cried, or so he had thought. He'd also never realized that heroes loved, not in the quiet soft way that Cloud loved Tifa, no worlds to save or monsters to slay; just gentle words and touch, a willingness to do and be what was needed, and a small smile that could light up both their eyes.

Heroes were something different than he had thought.

He'd learned today that heroes cried. And hurt and suffered and didn't hide that pain completely, but kept it close for those they loved and trusted, with who for a time they could let it out.

He let the door shut with the quietest of clicks, thinking it was time to let his heroes sleep.

Denzel leaned his skateboard against the wall, tugging his Tiny Bronco hoodie back into place. He blew wavy hair out of his eyes; he'd recently dyed it a dark red that he kinda liked. It was getting unwieldy again; but when Tifa had suggested he cut it, he had turned to Cloud, who had just gestured to his own unruly threads and just shrugged.

Tifa didn't ask him about it again.

"The new skate park was a great idea. I wonder who thought of it," Mina told him.

"WRO, probably," Denzel replied. "But, yeah, Getting too old for swings and slides."

"I still like the moogle slide," protested Mina.

"It's still there," Denzel shrugged. "We'll go whenever you want."

In the distance, the church beckoned. Sector Five was slowly being absorbed into the city limits, including where eMina lived, the same as Sectors Four and Three had. It was an easy, paved walk now to the front door; Denzel and Mina leapt onto the boards, and skated towards it.

He gazed up at the plate, shattered remnants still above; one occasionally crumbled to the ground below. The plate under which Cloud and Tifa had told him they sheltered when they first came to Edge, before building their home with Marlene. Before they'd found Denzel.

He snuck a look at Mina. They'd both know their own suffering; he'd told her about those homeless years, a kid going from plate to slums without a clue. He'd told her about that, and she'd told him about losing her own parents to Geostigma, trying to protect her doomed brother in the unwelcoming streets.

Even as she still mourned her brother, he was grateful they'd both been able to find home in the end.

Edge had continued to grow, and was now a full-fledged city., even if somewhat haphazardly designed – the infrastructure had solidified, the power didn't go on and off the way it had at first. But the old church still attracted them, the place where they both had been saved, on that day years ago.

The day that tied them both together for good.

Mina sat down beside him on a leftover beam, one of the few scraps still lying around the area; nearly everything had been used, or if unusable, carted away in the name of development. She pulled the ponytails from her hair; Denzel marveled at the golden-almond hair streaming down her back; he fought down a near-overwhelming urge to touch it, run his hands through it.

He thought about a lot more things than that, things that made him embarrassed to even be thinking. Could he help it if she had become so pretty?

He'd just turned fourteen. She was fifteen and a half, and had fortunately stopped growing, giving him a chance to catch up; he could peep over the top of her head. Tifa's, too, and though he was of a height with Cloud, he was still growing, and had no idea how tall he might be in the end.

She's my best friend. A refrain he repeated to himself that was becoming increasingly unconvincing. More potent was the unbreakable bonds they shred; between the children who'd had Geostigma, and the legacy they'd left behind.

It was a legacy they were still figuring out, with no precedents to guide them – only the mutually reflected soft glow in their eyes letting them know it was there. They went often to the church, finding comfort in that sanctuary, peace among the flowers, leaving them hopeful there might be some kind of an answer there.

He'd thought about asking Cloud and Tifa - but something stopped him. Maybe a desire not to intrude on their hard-earned happiness together, not to trouble them with more problems when they'd finally found some peace.

They were all he knew of love. He'd sneak glances at them sometimes, even after all this time still touching each other; he'd embrace her, caressing her back and nuzzling her neck, and she'd just smile and turn to kiss him.

Sometimes, on lazy mornings, they'd get nonchalantly casual, and Denzel would catch a glimpse of them through their partly-opened door to see a fortunately-clothed Tifa held against Cloud's bare chest.

"Are Cloud and Tifa ever going to have children?" Mina asked idly.

Denzel had wondered the same thing himself, many times. Mina did not know as much as he did – just that "something" had happened to Cloud. It was hard to hide Cloud's strength and skill – the traits that had given him a large part of his reputation, first in the neighborhood and now at the WRO. And with the revelations of what Cloud had really gone through… Denzel wasn't ready to share them, not even to his best friend.

Some secrets still had to stay within the family.

"I don't know," Denzel asked truthfully.

Mina didn't continue. Instead, she looked around, kicking her legs idly. "The city is growing up," she noted. "Kinda like us."

Like us…

Denzel didn't know what came over him. Carefully, he slid an arm around her, gliding across her back and around her waist. She didn't pull away, leaning her head on his shoulder. Denzel was frozen for a long moment, not sure what he should do next. He didn't want to push his luck, but…

In the end, she did it for him. "Aren't you going to kiss me now?" she shyly asked; and he could only nod and lean in.

And as her lips sweetly met his, and he pulled her into an embrace as he'd seen Cloud do so many times… and is they kept going for a long time, and the sun set over the church before them, all he could think was, this feels so right.