Awkward Moment

Written by Strifegirl

Pair: Cloud/Tifa

Type: One-Shot

Status: Complete

Summary: Tifa and Cloud had been left alone at the bar and both were intoxicated with the new Corel wine that Barret had bought. Because of this, their emotions flowed spontaneously, driven in part by the drink, and partly by their own hidden desires.

Timeline: One year after Advent Children.

Disclaimer: Final Fantasy VII and its characters are owned by Square Enix. No copyright infringement.

"Awkward Moment"

Tifa walked the last customer out of the bar and then closes the door. Exhausted, she leans against the door and sighs deeply as she supports herself in her arms to catch her breath. It was the longest day she ever had and all she wanted was to have a little peace and quiet to rest her mind. It's been so hard for her to keep everything in place since she was still trying to recover from last night's drunkenness.

If only she could remember what happened last night...

After a while, she goes to the counter and continues to clean the tables. While she's doing that, a familiar figure emerges from one of the bar tables and approaches her.

"...Tifa?"

Tifa almost drops the bottle that she was carrying upon hearing the husky voice. "C-Cloud?" she said startled. "I didn't see you there..." she sighed.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you." he slowly approaches the counter.

"That's okay." she said relieved. "You just caught me off guard, that's all." she smiles back at him.

Cloud gives her a half smirk and then looks down sadly. Tifa notices this and tries to break the awkward silence.

"Is something wrong?" She asked puzzled. Cloud let out a soft chuckle after hearing her question.

"I was about to ask the same thing." He replied.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, you tell me..." Cloud's eyes focused on her and Tifa begins to feel nervous. "Is everything... alright?" he asked concerned.

"Uh... yeah!" she said nervously. "Why do you ask?" she turned around and headed for the dishes in order to avoid his gaze.

"Well, you've been avoiding me all day and acting very strange around me... and I'm under the impression that you don't want to speak to me or something."

"Uh... well... is just that... I uh..." her face was burning.

"What is it Tifa?" Cloud approaches her slowly. "Why are you acting like this?"

"I uh..." she walked a few steps backwards until her back hit the wall. Cloud then corners her between him and the wall and he stares into her eyes.

"Is this because of what happened last night?" He asked with concern in his eyes. Tifa opened her eyes greatly to hear him say that and turned her head to look away.

"I don't know what you're talking about." she said blushing. She tries to remember last night's event but everything was so blurry.

                                               ***

Tifa and Cloud had been left alone in the bar and both were intoxicated with the new Corel wine that Barret had bought. Because of this, their emotions flowed spontaneously, driven in part by the drink, and partly by their own hidden desires.

Tifa was drunk as hell and she got carried away by the heat of the moment and tried to kiss Cloud; which she succeeded. Cloud on the other hand wasn't complaining but he knew she wasn't herself so he tried to control his emotions and not take advantage of her.

After the long and sloppy kiss, Tifa fell asleep in his arms and Cloud took her and carried her bride style to her room. Once there, he placed her in her bed and tuck her in the sheets. Tifa moaned in her sleep and grabbed him from his shirt and pulled him into the bed with her. She was obviously very drunk to realize what she was doing, so Cloud made no protest and wrapped his arms around her and later after that, they fell asleep holding to each other.

The next morning, Tifa woke up first and saw Cloud in her bed. At first she wasn't sure if she was still dreaming but then she felt his grasp around her and that's when she realized that she spent the whole night in his arms. She shouted and pushed Cloud out of the bed as if he was some kind of pervert and Cloud tried to explain everything but she threw him out of her room before he could even say something.

She was so embarrassed because she couldn't remember anything, and to think that something more could have happened besides the kiss was even more embarrassing. She didn't know how to react to that situation.

                                            ***

After several minutes of silence and not seeing a reaction from her, Cloud trailed off his gaze and looked down sadly.

"I knew it. I guess it was too fast..."

"No!!" She claimed. Cloud gets surprised by her sudden reaction and stares at her with a puzzled look on his face. "No... That's not it." She said, blushing. "...that's not it, at all." she lowered her head.

"So then what is it?" He stretched his arms to place his hands on the wall again. "Please, tell me... I don't want this to become a problem between us."

"I uh..." Tifa starts to blush again and could feel her heart racing. She tries to remain calm while she looks for the right words to say.

"I'm sorry." she finally said. "I didn't mean to worry you... it's just that... I don't know, I think I'm scared."

"Of what?" he asked worried.

"Of... what it could mean what happened last night."
Cloud looks at her as she explains herself.

"Last night was crazy... and I'm afraid I've got too carried away by my emotions and I end up doing things without thinking. I'm not used to this kind of situations and I'm afraid to become someone I'm not, just to get your attention." she lowered her head.
Cloud narrowed his eyes and smiles tenderly.

"Teef, you don't have to change anything to get my attention." he responded.
Tifa looked at him in the eye and Cloud gets closer to whisper in her ear. "I like you, the way you are." he said softly.

Tifa blushed even more after listening to his words and Cloud chuckled to see her reaction.

"You're so cute when you are embarrassed," he said with a slight smile on his face.  
Tifa bit her buttom lip and lowers her head. Cloud grabs her chin in order to gain her attention and once again, she gets lost in his blue eyes.

"Can I kiss you now?" He asked tenderly. Tifa relaxed her face and smiles shyly.

"Are you drunk now?" She teased and Cloud shook his head. "Then what are you waiting for?" she smiled at him.

Cloud shortens the distance between them and presses a soft kiss on her lips. The contact with his lips made her shiver and she responded with the same tenderness. Cloud places one of his hands to cupped her cheek and she grabs his hand in hers to rub her cheek. He takes his time to taste her soft and sweet lips and forgets his surroundings just to concentrate on her.

After several minutes, both break from the kiss to catch some breath.

"I've been dying to do this all day..." he said panting. They stared into each others eyes for a while and Cloud begins to press soft kisses on her forehead and in her cheek. Tifa closed her eyes as she gets carried away by his tender touch. She was so thrilled that she wasn't drunk this time so she was able to enjoy this moment. After sharing some caresses, they both joined their lips together again and stayed that way for several more minutes, until the night wrapped them in its cloak in a sea of stars.  

The end.