Silmeria - Happy reading.
Disclaimer - I claim no rights to Final Fantasy VII
Chapter Nine - Interrupted by Fireworks
"No." Cloud looked at the expensive gauntlets with a tight frown before turning back to a smiling Zack and shaking his head in vehemence. "You're not paying for them and that's final, Zack."
"It's Tifa." Zack stated, as if that was all that needed to be said and truthfully, it was, but Cloud wasn't going to admit it. "Besides, didn't you say that you wanted the best for her? We still have a couple of monsters down in the slums and I don't want Tifa to get hurt, do you?"
"No." Cloud cheeks burned at the shame he felt. He didn't want Tifa to get hurt, but he didn't want Zack to pay for the gauntlets. "I just don't want you to pay for it. I'm not exactly comfortable with it."
Zack's eyes softened at the confession and he wrapped an arm around Cloud's slimmer shoulders. "I want to pay for them." Zack leaned down, his violet meeting Cloud's sad blue. "I'm not trying to earn brownie points with this, honest. I want Tifa to have the best and so do you, right? To me, she gets the best and it's a win-win situation."
Cloud bit his bottom lip, lowering head and looking at the weapon's through his bangs. The gauntlets were five-thousand gil and Cloud had nowhere near that amount of money yet despite the massive tips he was getting every night and honestly, anything lower than five-thousand was probably crap and had a chance cracking or breaking under Tifa's strength.
"Okay." Cloud conceded, ignoring Zack's massive grin at his surrender. "Just this once, Zack. No more after this, okay? And, I'm going to pay you back-"
"What." Zack's grin faded from his lips and his expression grew blank and Cloud knew then and there that he had offended the Alpha Sentinel. "You don't need to pay me back, Cloud."
Cloud clenched his jaw and took a deep, shuddering breath. "I would feel comfortable if-"
"If you could pay me back, but this isn't a situation where you can nor do I want you to do so." Zack removed his arm from his shoulder and Cloud felt cold from the sudden departure of warmth Zack's body offered. He folded his arms to avoid shivering in front on the older man. The last thing Zack needed was the ego boost.
"Okay." Zack conceded, that fond grin back on his lips as his eyes sparkled. "Just think of this as a gift."
"A Gift?"
"Right." Zack slammed his fist into his other palm at the genius of the idea. "It's like you said before, you were giving the gauntlets to Tifa as a gift, right? Well, think of this as gift from me to you and then Tifa."
Cloud raised an eyebrow at the explanation before a small chuckle escaped his lips at the absurdity of it. "Fine." Cloud conceded with another twitch of his lips. "You win, I'll think of it as a gift."
"See?" Zack drawled, the playful around him returning quicker than Cloud could spin. "I knew that you'd see it my way." Zack turned to the merchant who was trying his damned hardest not to stare at the scene before him and Zack wasn't stupid enough to not realize that their little argument was going to be around Minerva Town before nightfall. He loved his city, but they weren't above gossip, especially when it concerned their Alpha Sentinel.
The gauntlets were wrapped up tightly and they were once again back on the crowded roads of Minerva Town, but one thing Cloud noticed was the numerous stares and the hushed whispers that forced him to draw his gaze back to Zack, who, much to his surprise was wearing a small smirk at the snatches of conversation he managed to catch with his enhanced hearing. Seeing the look only made Cloud curious and wary as to what was being said, but being in Midgar these last few weeks made him a little bolder than what would be considered normal in Nibelheim so he decided to dive and ask.
It was a mistake.
"What are they talking about?" Cloud pressed the gauntlets against his chest, his cheeks flushing when Zack only shot him an amused look for the question. "Well?"
Zack's lips twitched at the question, but indulged Cloud-as he always did, of course. "Whose that guy the Alpha's walking with? Is he a friend? You know what? I've heard he's been at Tifa's Seventh Heaven a lot, maybe that's the guy he's been hanging with? Could it be his Guide? I've heard rumors. Oh, if it is then he's really beautiful. He's a little bit on the pale side, but still beautiful."
Oh.
Oh Minerva.
Cloud's cheeks, which had been a little bit flushed, were now a full, passionate red that would put any rouge to shame. He lowered his head, speeding up his stride to the point where Zack had to lightly jog to keep up. He knew it was a bad idea. He knew it was a mistake to hang out with Zack with so many people. He was such an idiot.
"Don't let what they're saying get to you, Cloud." Zack caught up to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and ruffled his hair lightly. "Besides, isn't what they're saying true? You're my friend, right? You're beautiful and hopefully, you'll become my Guide, that is, if you accept."
"I'll take two out of three of those options." Cloud ducked his head, smiling when Zack spluttered at the response, running and stopping in front of him, halting Cloud's progress once again.
"Wait-wait-wait." Zack jogged in place, his lips stretched in a wide smile. "So, that means yes, right? I have permission to court you?"
Cloud's own lips stretched into a small, shy smile and he hid it in the wrapped gauntlets. "I'll give you your answer after dinner. You owe me one right? I want to see the man behind the mask of Alpha Sentinel. I want to see Zachary Caelum Fair II or, better yet, I want to see Zack."
After his response was such a long pause that Cloud forced himself to look up and found Zack staring at him, enraptured, and with a little shock. Embarrassed, Cloud lowered his head only for Zack's fingers to catch his chin and lift his face again and he shuddered as Zack's soft lips pressed a kiss against his forehead before pulling away and burying his face into his hair.
"You'll be the death of me yet, Cloud Strife." Zack murmured, pulling him closer and breathing in the scent of winter and pine that Cloud seem to exclude. He supposed that being from Nibelheim helped matters, after all.
"That's a bad thing, isn't it?" Cloud muttered into his chest, amusement coloring his tone. "I don't want to be known as the Guide who killed Alpha Sentinel Fair."
"Well, you'd go down in the history books for the first Guide to assassinate a Sentinel successfully." Zack pulled away, wrapping an arm around Cloud's shoulders as they continued back to Ifrit Town where an irritable Tifa waited. She wasn't going to be happy at their lateness, but as they traveled down the winding roads and well-lit alleyway shortcuts, Cloud couldn't find it in himself to care about Tifa's anger. He felt content at Zack's side and he didn't want the man to leave. His lips trembled at the thought, wanting to tell Zack that he would be more than happy to let the man court him, but the thought of his mother held him back.
She would want him to wait. Be patient.
Cloud wanted to heed her words, truly, but once he locked eyes with Zack, returning his smile, Cloud couldn't help but wonder if he would be able to wait at all.
"You're late." was the first words out of Tifa's mouth as Cloud snuck into the apartment that was situated above Seventh Heaven. Tifa crossed her arms, her reddish-brown eyes assessing Cloud, looking for any damage, and when she found nothing, she nodded her head, returning to the couch and propping her feet on the coffee table. "Well? Did you go pay the bill like I asked?"
"Yes." Cloud removed his shoes, joining Tifa on the couch and leaning his head against her shoulder, secretly hoping that it would cool her off. It was no such luck when she nudged him off her shoulder and gave him a critical look. A look that he hadn't see since he was a child.
"I was with Zack." Cloud confessed, watching with wonder as Tifa's shoulders all but collapsed with relief. "I am sorry that I worried you, Tifa."
"This is not okay, Cloud." Tifa uttered, still bitter about his tardiness. "Midgar isn't as safe as it's proposed in the papers. There are people that still linger here, remnants of Xavier's Days. I just don't want you to get hurt."
"We were in Minerva Town." Cloud couldn't help but protest. "We were as safe as we could get and Zack wouldn't let anything happen to me, Tifa."
"Regardless." Tifa continued as if she hadn't heard his explanation. "I just want you safe, alright? Even Minerva Town can get rowdy once the lights turn out. I've seen it happen once and it can happen again." Tifa shook her head, her face morphing into a solemn expression before returning to her scolding nature, her eyes softening. "Don't let it happen again, alright? I just want to know where you are and if you're safe." Tifa held up a hand when Cloud opened his mouth to protest. "I realize you're grown and more than capable of taking care of yourself, but-"
"I have a date with Zack." Cloud murmured, his cheeks heating when Tifa's jaw dropped at the confession. "Help?"
"Is-is that why you were late?"
"Yes."
"A date?"
Cloud nodded, watching with amusement as Tifa blinked rapidly. "Yes, a date."
"With Zack?"
"With Zack."
"Well!" Tifa clapped her hands and stood from the couch and slamming her feet into her sneakers and grabbing her coat and keys. "Let's go."
"Go? Go where?"
"We are going out shopping." Tifa turned back to him, approaching him and pulling him off the couch with a small grunt-he was heavier than he looked- "We have to go and get you an outfit, practice what you're going to say, and make sure you know what the etiquette is towards a situation like this."
"Etiquette? Advice? I mean, isn't this just a normal date?" Cloud looked and sounded confused enough for Tifa to groan and bury her face into her hand. "Tifa? Um, Tifa?"
"This isn't a normal date, Cloud. This is a man-a very powerful man-who is looking to court you and if we're lucky, willing to get an heir out of that cute, little belly. Not that you're a breeding cow or something, but you know how it goes for Guides and Sentinels." Tifa waved off Cloud's amused, yet, offended expression and continued to urge him to put on his shoes and coat. "The sooner we beat some lessons into you, the better off you'll be in Zack's world."
"Zack's world?" Cloud prodded, tying his laces before reaching for his coat that was lying on the couch. As he was putting his arms through the holes, he looked up to see Tifa with a thoughtful expression. "Tifa? What did you mean by Zack's world?"
"Politics, harassment, dealing with international matters." Tifa rattled off quietly. She stood by the door as if she suddenly regretted her earlier eagerness towards the situation. "Maybe-"
"No." Cloud rattled easily with a smile. "I know what you're going to say, Tifa. That I can't handle it. That maybe I shouldn't get involved, but Tifa? I do believe Zack is worth it, you know? He's such a wonderful man that dealing with all the bullshit he does on a daily business won't matter."
Despite his courageous words, Tifa shook his head, giving him an unsure look. "Are you sure you want to do this, Cloud? It won't be easy, being courted by Zack. Not with the titles and prestige that he has under his belt."
"I'm positive." Cloud responded, his heart racing against chest. He was positive that he was ready for Zack and his world. He was ready for the trials. He survived his father and mother's death and living as an unmated Omega. What's one more trial?
"Alright." Tifa still looked unsure, but she gave him a light smile and guided him out the door. "Let's get started turning you into the perfect Guide."