A/N: It's been a couple months, but I'm back with another chapter. Enjoy. See IRL notes at the end.
Cloud slowly made his way out of bed and got himself ready for the day, his body punishing him every step of the way. The group met up for a late breakfast at the Leaf House, a spot Wedge had picked for both its stunning pool view and well-regarded Eggs Benedict.
"We're glad you're feeling better," Biggs said, taking a sip of his Bloody Mary overflowing with an overload of unnecessary edible adornments . Everyone had ordered an alcoholic drink of some sort, except for Cloud. He figured it best to abstain entirely after last night's debacle, since alcohol wasn't really his friend right now. Cloud sipped on the coffee he opted for instead, hoping it would help ease his headache still left over from the previous night.
Wedge spooned some hashbrowns onto his fork. "You were really cutting a rug last night. And here I thought you didn't dance."
"I usually don't." Cloud poked at his half-eaten eggs.
"I'm glad you did," Aerith said sweetly and took a sip of her mimosa, the bubbles percolating around the glass. Cloud saw some subtle encouraging face gestures from Wedge and Biggs at her comment, but luckily Aerith didn't seem to notice.
Cloud was desperate to change the topic. He glanced out the window and caught a glimpse of the hotel pool. The blue water glowed in the sun and people in colorful swimwear lined the outside. Cloud turned back to his friends. "So… you were planning on the pool today?"
"Yeah," Wedge piped up. "I thought it would be something chill to do after last night. Get some sun, have some more drinks." He paused, taking notice of Cloud's coffee cup and lack of an alcoholic beverage. "Well, some of us anyway."
Biggs agreed. "The weather is amazing today and after yesterday's marathon of epic walking, I could use a break."
"And luckily I brought my swimsuit," Aerith chimed in.
Wedge chuckled. "I should hope with the size of that suitcase, there was at least one article of clothing appropriate for the pool."
The group laughed, along with Aerith, and she looked down at her plate sheepishly and resumed eating her food.
The group went to the hotel rooms to change into their swimsuits and then started their way towards the hotel pool. They made their way through the pathway, and Cloud couldn't help but take notice of Aerith's attire—she had chosen a pink one-piece covered-up with a pool dress, also a shade of pink. Cloud caught occasional glimpses of her smooth bare legs as they briefly appeared out from her dress.
The group entered the pool gates, showing their keycards, and made their way to four empty chairs off to the side to place down their day's belongings. The sun shone brightly overhead, its warmth almost too intense for Cloud. To distract himself, he took the opportunity to get a better look at the crowd that a couple hours ago he could only see from his far away breakfast spot. In one corner of the pool, a group of twenty-somethings huddled together both in and out of the water; they chattered away, each with a plastic cup in one of their hands. On another side of the pool, two young children gleefully splashed their father.
Once the group had settled in, Cloud took a seat on his lounge chair and laid his head back. He turned his attention toward Aerith who was writhing out of her cover-up, her pink one-piece suit slowly emerging. She draped her pool dress over the side of her chair, and Cloud tried his best not to stare at her newly exposed skin.
"I don't know about you," she said, "But I'm ready to jump in the pool."
Wedge took off his shirt. "Sounds like a plan!"
"Me too," Biggs agreed. He turned his attention towards Cloud. "You coming?"
Cloud paused for a moment and took a look at his friends, struggling to temporarily bring himself upright. He did want to go swimming—he had gone through all the trouble of putting on his swimsuit—but at this moment his head was still pounding, and continuing to lay there sounded like the best course of action right now. It also seemed like a good opportunity to put Aerith at a distance for a little while, so he could relax his nerves and get a chance to collect his thoughts.
Cloud flopped back, his head hitting the lounge chair once more. "Thanks, but I'm good."
"Hope you feel better," Aerith said. She gave him one final smile before she turned to Biggs and Wedge and followed them to the pool stairs. Their bodies descended into the water step-by-step. Maybe when Cloud was feeling better, he could join them.
The three friends chatted away as they waded around the pool, Cloud keeping the majority of his attention on Aerith. Thankfully, she was too focused on the riveting conservation with the two other guys to notice Cloud's stares. He imagined the two of them walking into the pool together, their arms intertwined. Once their feet touched the bottom, he would wrap his hands around her shoulders, their bodies pressing in a warm embrace. He'd tilt his head down for a moment and put his lips on hers, the water engulfing them as the pool patrons enjoyed their afternoon.
Cloud returned back to reality, and saw Aerith's eyes locked on his. He quickly looked away in embarrassment. His moment of fun was over. He turned his attention toward the pool grounds instead. In the distance he could see the entrance to other pools that peppered the area. Rows of flowers in a rainbow of colors lined the stone walls all around. No wonder Aerith wanted to come here.
He turned his head back towards the sun and closed his eyes. The sun beat down and the warmth washed over him where he lay in his lounge chair. He breathed in deeply, letting his body fall into a much needed rest for a quick nap.
Cloud awoke with a startle and saw all three of his friends back at their lounge chairs, drying off from the pool. Scattered around them were several empty drink cups; the same ones he had noticed his twenty-somethings carrying earlier. So much for a quick nap. Exactly, how long had Cloud been out?
"He's awake!" Wedge proclaimed with a smile.
"I guess you just needed to sleep more," Aerith said, handing him a bottle of water with the familiar B logo from the night before. "You should probably drink some more. I don't want you to get dehydrated from the sun."
Cloud sat up in his lounge chair and grabbed the bottle from Aerith, taking a sip. The water felt so refreshing and it cooled his body that had gotten unbelievably warm in the sun. Aerith was right again.
"Thanks," he said to her in between sips. She flashed him a smile and he slowly rose out of his sleepy trance.
"I think we're almost ready to go," Aerith said, slipping her pink coverup back on and reducing the amount of skin she had exposed. "You can stay here if you want. We don't want to pressure you."
Like Cloud was going to even consider letting her out of his sight if he even had the option. "No, I'm okay leaving. So, what's next?" He did briefly consider the futility of wearing his swimsuit today when he never even got in the pool, but he let the moment pass. Wherever Aerith was going, he'd follow.
"We thought we might play some Craps," Wedge said. He threw his towel to the side and put his shirt back on.
"Maybe you could even teach us how to play," Aerith cooed. "That is, if you're feeling up for it. I understand if you're not."
Cloud tensed up and considered the options. He wasn't sure how well his teaching skills were going to be tonight, but he knew he couldn't tell her no. He was still having trouble forming words, but he was starting to feel a little bit better. Maybe if he had the support of a game he knew quite well, the words might come easier. Probably not, but Cloud liked to hope against the impossible.
"Sounds like a plan," Cloud said, getting up from his chair. Aerith let out a small cheer.
The group returned to their rooms, showered off, and then met up again for a quick bite to eat before hitting the tables. Biggs and Wedge pressed Cloud for information about Craps and Aerith sat in and listened attentively.
"I know that Craps is the game with the dice, and not the cards." Biggs beamed proudly.
"And people stand around this oval table and place all kinds of bets on different numbers." Wedge added before turning his attention back to his food.
"That's a good start," Cloud said with a chuckle. "Remember that everyone at the table gets an opportunity to throw dice, if they want. There's lots of things you can bet on, too, but we can just start simple."
Wedge asked, putting down his half-eaten burger. "So, are sevens good or bad in Craps?"
"It depends," Cloud said and started to explain all the different possible bets you could make, and why seven wasn't always bad. He could see the confused looks on everyone's faces, including Aerith's, and decided maybe a simpler approach was best. "Just whatever you do, don't say that number at the table. Some people think it's bad luck."
Wedge nodded and gave Cloud a thumbs up. "Roger that, Captain Cloud."
The group finished their meal and then made their way to the casino in search of an empty (or emptier) Craps table to saddle up at.
They eventually found a table and gathered around one of the edges. There were a handful of players at the opposite side of the table, and it was hard to tell if they were having good luck or not. Cloud, Biggs, and Wedge took out a few $20 bills and sat them on the table.
"That's the boxperson," Cloud explained to his group, directing their attention to one of the employees at the table. He took their money from the table, stuffed it inside a tiny dropbox, and in exchange handed them a small stack of chips.
Once they had their corresponding amounts, each of the guys grabbed their individual stacks and set up their chips. The multi-colored disks fit perfectly into their convenient holders built into the table.
Aerith stood next to Cloud, observing all the action, and standing closer than she had been in the previous days. She wasn't quite touching him, but Cloud could feel her warmth and the fact that they were merely inches apart. His heart was beating faster, but he tried to keep his focus on the game.
Cloud reached for a $5 chip and held it up a moment for his friends to see. "Time to play. First, let's bet the pass line." He placed the chip on the corresponding spot on the outer edge, and Wedge and Biggs did the same with their chips.
The stickman pushed the dice towards Wedge, indicating it was his turn to shoot. Wedge grabbed the dice and threw it towards the other side of the table. The red dice jiggled around before landing on their final number.
"Three!" the stickman called out, as the dealers took all the chips away from both sides of the table.
"Wait," Wedge paused, "That was bad? Did we just lose? But it wasn't… you know, that number."
"Yeah," Cloud said with a sigh. "That was the come out roll. We didn't want to roll that just yet since we didn't make our point."
Wedge furrowed his brow. "I think I'm still confused."
Biggs kept his attention focused on the empty spot on the table, where his chip once was. "My $5 went pretty quickly."
Cloud smirked. "It can in this game, but all we can do is bet again and hope for the best."
He guided his friends in future bets and the game continued. They didn't have a whole lot of luck and their chip stack slowly dwindled. On a positive note, Cloud was relaxing a little more, happy to be in the element of his favorite game.
The dice made their way around to each person at the table, when finally Cloud's turn to shoot had arrived. The stickman pushed the dice towards him, and Cloud paused. He turned to Aerith, who had been very quiet up until now studying everyone's moves.
"Do you want to shoot?" Cloud asked. He directed his attention toward Aerith, and felt his body tensing up again.
Aerith's face had a mixture of happiness and confusion. "Don't I have to be betting to shoot?"
"Not necessarily," he reassured her. "You can shoot for me."
"I-I don't really know what I'm doing." Aerith appeared to be a little nervous, which actually helped to relax Cloud a tiny bit.
"You don't have to. Just throw the dice and make sure they hit the back wall so it counts."
"New shooters are known to be lucky," the stickman piped in, breaking their conversation. He tapped his stick on the table once more, indicating to Aerith that she had to make her final choice.
"Okay," Aerith said with some obvious hesitation. She leaned over the table and reached for the dice. "Here goes."
She picked up the dice, mixing them up, and then with all her might shot them at the edge of the table. One of the dice ricocheted off the sides and out of view.
"Oops," she said, her face contorting.
"It's okay," Cloud assured her. "They'll get you a new pair of dice and you can just throw again."
Without missing a beat, the stickman pushed a new pair of dice towards her, as a staff member rushed to retrieve the other lost pair. She paused for a second, studying the dice a little closer, before putting them back in her hand. She jiggled the dice, and this time, carefully let them go with less force than last time. The dice made a satisfying bump against the back wall and ended their journey.
"Four!" the stickman called out.
"Is that good?" Aerith asked with a worrying look.
"Not bad," Cloud responded. "Just try and roll that again."
Aerith reached for the dice that had magically appeared in front of her with the help of the table staff. "I'll do my best."
She rolled them in her hands again and shot them at the back wall, waiting patiently as the sharp cubes decided on their final number—seven.
"Seven out," the stickman said, this time with less enthusiasm in his voice. The group watched in horror as the dealers removed all the bets from the table, leaving it blank once more.
"That wasn't good, was it?" Aerith asked with obvious defeat in her voice.
"Not really," Cloud admitted, but he tried to change course when he saw the resignation in her face. "But, there's always a next time."
Aerith watched the dice move onto the next shooter and out of her grasp. "So much for beginner's luck."
"There's still time," Cloud said, prompting a small smile from Aerith. His heart skipped a beat and he tensed up once more. "Table is just cold. It might come around."
"I don't know," Wedge began, looking sadly at his chips. "I think I might be done for right now. I don't know how much more money I want to lose."
"Yeah," Biggs agreed. "I think I might want to play something easier, like Roulette."
Cloud was expecting Aerith to agree too, but he was pleasantly surprised when she voiced a different opinion. "You guys can go ahead. I think I wanna throw the dice one more time. Are you okay staying, Cloud?" She turned to face him and shot him a sly grin. How was he going to say no to that?
"S-sure," Cloud stammered. Wedge and Biggs both gave Cloud subtle but suggestive nods. They reached for their chips and started to walk away from the table.
"Don't lose too much money," Wedge called out. "Let's catch up tomorrow if we don't see you later tonight."
Aerith let out a quick laugh, and Cloud reminded himself that Aerith was still up on the trip, considering she hadn't bet any of her own money tonight.
The dice continued around the table and none of the shooters had much luck. The crowd slowly thinned from the table, and eventually the dice landed back for Cloud to take. He was about to pass the opportunity to Aerith, when he turned in her direction and saw her frantically fishing out a large bill from her purse.
"Are you betting?" Cloud asked with amazement.
"Yeah," Aerith said with a smile. "Maybe we will have more luck if I actually put bets on the table. I figure I gotta try something to bring this table around. "
"I just don't want you to lose too much money," he started.
Aerith placed down her large bill on the table. "You worry too much. I'm not some princess who needs to be coddled. Besides, it's Vegas. Gotta live a little, right?"
Cloud looked at his dwindling chip stack and shrugged, figuring he would entertain any idea she wanted to try at this point. She grabbed her stack of chips, and put them neatly on the rack in front of her. She took a single $5 chip and placed it on the pass line. She then reached for the dice once more with a newfound sense of confidence.
"Okay, Cloud. Let's make some magic happen!"
Cloud was a mixture of excitement, worry, and anticipation as he watched her throw her first new roll of the round and waited to see what new numbers the dice would land on.
A/N: This chapter was a doozy for me to write. I know a lot about Craps, but I wanted to make it so someone who has never played the game before would understand what's going on. So, let me know if it made sense to you.
The Leaf House is based on the Bellagio restaurant Sadelle's, which actually has a view of the conservatory. It has a faint view of the pool, so it worked for our friends. Also, the Bellagio has a huuuuge pool area with lots of pools and zones. Lots of choices for our friends. No water slides though - this is a refined establishment! Our friends COULD have gotten a pool cabana at one of the other zones, but those aren't cheap. Maybe next time.