I don't want to give up on him, but I'm not sure if I have or haven't. After all of the things he said to me that night, I shouldn't forgive him. But, I don't want to let go. I'm trying to move on. After all, I have gotten married...just not to the man of my dreams. I still own my bar/ club, and on occasions, I still keep Marlene. The whole group of us have found a niche for ourselves in this little city of Kalm. Though it's a booming metropolis, we've all settled down to live semi-normal lives, with the exception of Cloud. He's been gone two years now, but it doesn't matter, right? Right, Tifa?

Three years ago, AVALANCHE stopped Meteor from crashing into the Planet. Three years ago, I was quiet and tried to be optimistic to make everyone else happy, but now I'm quiet and don't even open my mouth to attempt to be optimistic. I just open my mouth, to not take anything from anyone.

Three years ago, the whole gang had a party at Cid's house, and I was determined to tell Cloud my feelings towards him. He was sort of sitting around with a brooding look on his face the whole time, so I decided that I should just go and sit beside him on the leather sofa and attempt to cheer him up. Good 'ole Tifa will never let you down. Big mistake, Lockheart. But still, I was determined to tell him how I felt.

I strutted over to the sofa, where he was propped up with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. I stopped right in front of him, and I was surprised by the way he just looked up and stared at me. His gaze was so...cold.

I smiled, "Hey there. You ok?"

No answer.

Concerned, I lost the smile, and plopped down beside him. "Cloud? Is there somethin' the matter? You wanna talk about it?"

"No, Tifa. I'm fine." He said coldly.

"You sure?"

"Yes, damnit! I'm fine! Just go the hell away, Tifa!" He yelled, while jumping off of the couch. I was trying to be a good friend. I wanted to tell him how I felt, but his next words just blew me away.

"But I-" I began to say something weakly, but was soon interrupted.

"But you what, Tif? You wanted to make sure I was ok? Yeah, you always do that. Just stop mommying me and go away for once in your damn life."

At that point, I just lost it. "I was only tryin' to help! Opening up to someone every once in a while wouldn't kill you!" I yelled back, the Nibelheim accent becoming ever present then.

"Is that so? The last time I opened up to a person that I loved... they died, but I'm being open to you now, Tif! You probably came over here to declare your love for me, huh?" He spat.

I was in shock. I couldn't speak, and my eyes got wide.

"I'm not blind, Tifa," He said my name like it burned his tongue."I see how you look at me. I see how you try too hard. But guess what! I can never love you! You don't compare to her. You're not graceful, you're not kind, you're not selfless, you're not her. You're crude, and selfish. You fight, act, and even think like a man at times...why would I want that? Just go the hell away, Tifa. Make yourself, and everyone else happy, and just go away."

I was speechless but, I was not going to cry. 'Be strong, Lockheart. Don't cry. Don't let him get to you...'

"Is that what you think, Cloud?" I managed to choke out. "Is that what you think about me? Well, ya know what? Since we're talkin' about one another lets start on you-"

"Shut up." he said.

Oh no. I don't think so. "Oh no. I'm not shutting up. You can kiss my ass! I'm sick and damn tired of you sittin' around moping and hoping for people to feel sorry for you. 'Oh the Hero of the Planet' is sad because he's lost the flowergirl. Newsflash! Nobody cares! I'm tired of feelin' sorry for you because Aeris is DEAD! You might not can move on, but you have no right to stand there and talk about me. No, I might not be perfect like Aeris, but damnit I've been through more hell than you have and I'm not putting up with you anymore!" I screamed. I was so mad that I was shaking, but thankfully, I turned and ran out of the room before I started to cry.

Trust me, we had a lot of stares and open mouths, directed at us. Cloud had a lot of people mad at him, and we've never

really spoken much since. Other than my wedding day, I have not see nor heard from Cloud Strife. It's easy to say that we are no

longer friends and are hardly acquaintances. I'm trying really hard to forget and at this point, he's at the back of my mind.