Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII and the Korean drama Sassy Girl Choon-Hyang. ;)

Golden Sonnet

Chapter Ten

"So, Cloud. No date?"

Cloud rolled his eyes, "Of course not. I'm still the big, scary boy from Midgar, remember? No one wants to be near me."

Yuffie grinned and said slyly, "Oh, I wouldn't be so sure of that." For answer she glanced at a cluster of girls standing nearby, all rather giggly and sneaking looks at him. Cloud choked on his drink and turned away at once.

"See?" Yuffie said deviously. "You should've brought yourself a partner; now they'll be hounding you all night."

Cloud groaned, trying to hide his face. "What's wrong with his place?" he hissed as Vincent snickered. "Isn't Tifa my partner by default?"

Yuffie flashed her pearly whites at him, "I was under the impression that Tifa was dancing with somebody else tonight."

She looked pointedly to the middle of the dance floor where the two class presidents had already taken their position, ready for their opening dance. Cloud scowled and forced himself to look elsewhere; his gaze glided over the long refreshment table to the orchestra and band sitting on the stage, over the balloons and streamers that decorated the hall, to rest upon the guests' seating area. He spotted his parents there, talking with Mr Lockhart and Aunt Rina, joined also by Aeris; Cloud had invited her to come along.

The night of the dance had finally arrived - not that Cloud was particularly thrilled about it. He thought dully of how he had spent most of his early evening today, struggling with the new tie his mother had bought while Tifa jabbered on impatiently outside his door about how she never knew men could take longer than women to get ready.

She looked nice tonight, Cloud had to admit, and he was only too aware of the way many guys - not just this problematic Seth Lee - were staring at her. It made him feel exasperated and strangely protective, like he wanted to step in to shield her from their not-so-innocent ogling.

But that was all weird and nonsensical, so he contented himself by sitting alone at the refreshment table and staring beadily as other couples joined the dance floor after Seth and Tifa's opening number. Cloud was also only too aware of the giggling girls still glancing at him hopefully.

Stupid dance. I knew I wouldn't like this.

"Cloud, you wallflower! Why aren't you dancing?"

Tifa was moving to him with a rapt expression, flushed from all the dancing - with Seth Lee, he added instinctively - and glowing with excitement. He nodded at her and said blandly, "I see you're enjoying yourself. Just one dance with Seth Lee, eh?"

She blushed as she took the seat beside him, "Well, it was meant to be! But... well... he did... kinda say that... that..."

"That what?" he pressed on, watching her closely.

She was now crimson-faced and blurted out quickly, "He said he has a crush on me! But I'm not sure if he was joking or not, he probably was, now that I think about it - "

"He what?" Cloud yelped, interrupting her babbling, "Tifa - you can't dance with this guy."

"Why not?" Tifa frowned, still pink in the face. "He was probably just teasing me - "

"Oh, listen to the ignorant girl," the blonde muttered to no one in particular before turning back to her, "Fine, fine, go and keep dancing with him. I actually feel sorry for the guy, having to put up with the clumsiest thing in the world."

"Huh," she said haughtily, flaring up. "Fine then, I will."

"You can't be serious," Cloud burst out, frowning most severely. "Don't you have any regard for yourself? What about my parents - your family? They'll be wondering why you're always in the arms of another man!"

The words were ridiculous and sounded oh-so out of place, but he was too indignant to care.

Tifa quirked an eyebrow and said coolly, "You know, you're taking this 'overprotective and overbearing husband' thing a little far."

He shrugged, indifferent, "Try and stop me."

"Try and stop me from dancing, then," she retorted with a triumphant little smile, and with a flounce she was off, floating back over the dance floor. Cloud grit his teeth, unable to believe how stubborn she could be sometimes.

Stupid, stupid, stupid dance, he thought savagely, just as one of the girls from the giggly bunch appeared in front of him. He blinked, taken-aback.

The girl was bold and confident; fluttering her eyelashes, she asked sweetly, "Would you dance with me?"

Cloud stared at her one moment, on the point of refusing, when he saw Tifa and Seth again from the corner of his eye. An idea sprung in his mind and he smiled grimly before nodding at her request. "Sure," his words came out a little muffled since his teeth were still clenched.

The girl looked smug as she led the way onto the dance floor; Cloud followed, a little disconcerted. Then they started to dance, following the beat and the notes of the music. He kept a beady eye out for his target; Seth and Tifa were dancing not too far away.

As Cloud and his partner waltzed closer to the dancing couple, Tifa shot him a funny look; he returned a grim smirk before accidentally-on-purposely tapping her ankle with his foot, causing her to stumble with a gasp.

"Are you alright?" asked Seth in concern as Tifa steadied herself and glared at the blonde, who had moved away quickly with the soberest expression in the world.

She turned back to Seth and half-smiled, nodding quickly.

The students continued to dance in time with the music, sweeping over the floor gracefully and weaving in and out of other couples. When Seth and Tifa moved closer a second time, Cloud took the opportunity to trip her up again before waltzing off with his partner. He suppressed a grin; she tutted peevishly and scowled.

He wants to play games, does he? Fine.

Taking the lead, Tifa started pulling Seth in time with the exuberant music. She waited until Cloud and his partner were right beside them - then with a wicked grin, she veered over forcefully so that he was knocked off course.

"Whoa - !"

"Oops! Sorry," she said innocently as they straightened themselves.

Cloud's jaw was set rigidly, "You should watch out next time," he told her.

"You should watch out from now on," countered Tifa dangerously. Their partners glanced apprehensively at the pair before pulling them away.

The dance continued - and so did the games. When Seth and Tifa broke apart for a moment, Cloud deliberately cut between them while twirling his dance partner; Tifa paid back the gesture by elbowing him hard in the back so that he yelped and spun around. Cloud clenched his teeth and went after her, still under the pretence of dancing, to hit her behind the knees with his own; she crumpled and almost lost balance. By the time she had steadied herself, Cloud was already on the other side of the dance floor, his taunting grin barely concealed. Tifa chewed on her lip, irate beyond all measure. Oh, that does it!

"You're not going after him again, are you?" Seth asked warily as Tifa led him quickly across the floor, weaving between the other couples.

She gave him an apologetic smile, "Sorry, Seth."

Her burgundy eyes flashed maliciously as they zeroed in on Cloud, just a few feet away with his back turned to her. Holding her breath, Tifa glided closer and then hooked her foot around one of his, trying to trip him over.

But somewhere along the way she lost her balance herself and shrieked, falling backwards. Cloud twisted around and abruptly caught her in his arms. But that wasn't the last of the catastrophes, because he was still falling towards her, jerked down by her sudden weight.

His bright blue eyes, round with shock, coming closer and closer were the last things she saw before their lips crushed together.

"You're crazy," she said sourly.

"You're crazy!" he shot back. "Who told you to come outta nowhere and try to trip me over? Word of advice: never do that again! You're too clumsy to own any limbs."

Tifa opened her mouth to retaliate but Aunt Rina dove in and forced the two apart, putting an arm around them as they glared daggers at each other. "Hey, hey, there's no need to fight," she said soothingly. "It was just an accident - what's the big deal?"

"The big deal, auntie," Tifa said viciously, eyes still blazing fixedly at Cloud, "Is that he bruised my lips with his insanely leaden mouth - "

Cloud's expression was one of fury but his father intervened, saying swiftly, "Now, now, let's not ruin the evening with pointless bickering. How about we all go out for a midnight snack? Ice cream?" Mr Strife glanced brightly around their small crowd, "Aeris, you'll join us too?"

At once Cloud's head snapped up. Aeris! He'd forgotten about her amidst the hubbub; his heart stopped in a panicked frenzy as he realised that she'd seen everything; the dance, the pranks, the kiss...

Groaning internally, he sheepishly met her eyes and she looked back, her gaze guarded and uncertain. He tried to crack a smile.

"Come on, darling." Aunt Rina put a placating arm around Tifa and half-pushed her out of the school hall; the brunette was flushed with indignation and her hair was coming out of its elaborate curls. Similarly, Cloud's top two buttons were undone and his tie was loose. It had been an eventful evening.

"Hey, Aeris..." he said hesitantly as he fell in step beside her. She glanced at him and flashed a small smile.

"Hey, yourself. Are you alright?"

Cloud nodded guiltily, "Yeah. Don't worry about me." Then he sighed, touching his lips and frowning, "Geez, that dragon sure has a hard mouth though."

Aeris' smile tightened a little, but he didn't notice, "You always get worked up over her, huh?"

He chuckled once, "Yeah, I guess."

She looked sullen as they reached the car park where the rest of the family stood, chatting in the cold night. Tifa was wedged between her aunt and her father, still looking fierce as she glanced up. Aeris noticed her attention and she quickly turned to Cloud, reaching out to touch his lips with her fingers. Tifa stared.

"So it really hurts?" asked Aeris in concern as Cloud started at her touch, "Do you want some lip balm or something?"

The blonde boy looked rather alarmed and shook his head hastily, "Oh! N-no. I'm fine."

Aunt Rina also noticed this gesture and pulled her niece closer to her, whispering, "They seem close."

Tifa forced a smile, still watching. "Yeah, they are," she conceded ruefully. "Like real brother and sister."

An irritable and huffy silence manifested itself between Cloud and Tifa that night and the next morning at breakfast, broken only when Cloud couldn't take it any longer and said this was childish. Another squabble was the end result, in which he accused her of being clumsy and foolish, and she retorted that he should have just let her fall to the ground ("That would have been better than your lips of iron!").

After breakfast, Tifa went back to her bedroom to tidy it; her eyes lingered on her mother's dress for a moment and she grimaced, thinking back to the dance. She was just making a mental note to take it to the dry cleaners when she stopped short and glanced at her calendar, realising the date with a small jolt.

Tomorrow is the anniversary of Mum's death! How could I forget?

She bit her lip, wishing fervently that she and Cloud just hadn't fought. Every year, they went up to the mountains to visit her mother's grave, and she knew her dad and her aunt would want Cloud to come along; he was part of the family now, after all.

"Stupid, stupid boy. Stupid, stupid dance," she mumbled disconsolately, staring up at the ceiling. "Why do we always have to get so annoyed at each other?"

After a while of stalling and thinking and ranting and mulling, Tifa went out and spent the day at the main street. She dropped her dress off at the dry cleaners and paid a visit to the cake store, bumping into Rufus Shinra there. They had randomly met and talked a few times since the restaurant incident and Rufus was as cordial as usual, despite her initial fears - or even more so, since Tifa was one of the few people he warmed to.

"Sampling the cakes?" she asked with a smile, standing in line to pay.

Rufus looked mildly intrigued all of a sudden, "Actually, no. I just came here to get coffee. It didn't occur to me that this was a cake store." He shrugged, "They're all the same in the end."

Tifa pretended to be scandalised, "Absolutely not! This place is famous for its cakes. You have to try some."

Rufus smiled slightly at her earnestness and he glanced down into the box she was holding, "Why don't you recommend something, then? Is that... blueberry cheesecake?"

"Oh," Tifa smiled ruefully, also glancing into the box. "I'm not really a fan of cheesecake, actually."

"Then why are you buying it?" he asked, nonplussed, and Tifa hid a grin; as clever and intelligent as Rufus Shinra was, he was definitely simple-minded about some things.

"Because it's not for me," she said slowly and clearly.

"Oh," Rufus still seemed perplexed.

It was early evening by the time Tifa got home, merry and spirited once more as she climbed upstairs. She found Cloud half-dozing at his desk, but he jerked up and cleared his throat loudly when he saw her coming in, pretending to be immersed in his studies.

Tifa grinned, walking across the room and holding out the box of cakes, done up with a ribbon like a gift. "Here you are."

He looked up, frowning, "What?"

"Your favourite cakes, of course!" she said affably, opening the box up for him. "Blueberry cheesecake, right?"

Cloud stared down at them for a second before raising his head sceptically, "Is this a peace offering?"

"Err... kind of?"

He chuckled in a scoffing manner, passing the box back. "Forget it," he said emphatically. "There's nothing to pacify because I'm not mad, or annoyed, or emotionally unbalanced in any way. I am perfectly neutral."

She stared at him for a moment. "Fine then, it's not a peace offering," Tifa said yieldingly. "It's a gift."

"Oh really?" Cloud raised an eyebrow, a tiny glint of humour in his eyes. "Thanks, but no thanks."

"Why are you being so difficult?" she exclaimed, frustrated. "Just eat them!"

"Well, you see," he said in a sober voice. "It's almost dinner time. I don't want to ruin my appetite."

Tifa rolled her eyes, "Save it for dessert then," she said stoutly, dropping the box and fully intending to leave the room. Cloud, however, chortled and called her back, "Wait."

"What?"

His expression was mirthful as he said, "Just spit it out, Tifa. You came in here to tell me something, right?"

"What?" she said again, this time sounding surprised.

"I know you better than you think," the blonde said emphatically, swinging around in his chair and chewing on his cheesecake. "You obviously want to say something to me. Well, I'm listening."

Tifa was speechless as he looked at her intently. Was she that obvious?

"Well," she finally said, "My family and I are going to visit my mother's grave tomorrow; it's a yearly thing we do, and I know they'd want you there too, so..."

Cloud's mirthful expression disappeared in as he took in her words; he frowned and sat up straighter. "You bought a box of cakes to tell me this?" he asked incredulously.

"Well... sort of..."

He shook his head, though she didn't know why he was so agitated. "Of course I'll go," Cloud said heavily. "I'm not disrespectful. Besides, I have to meet my mother-in-law someday, right?"

She brightened a little, "Really? We'll have to make an early start."

"Ah, that's nothing," he waved an airy hand, using his other one to pick up another cake.

And indeed Cloud wasn't as grumpy as he usually was in the morning the next day; in fact, he was positively cheerful and alert as they boarded the coach that would take them up the Nibel mountains. Aunt Rina kept them all talking by happily detailing her plans for Cloud and Tifa's official wedding ceremony (she was very much into it now, given how opposed she was to the marriage in the first place); Mr Lockhart was amused and offered his own input every now and then; and Cloud and Tifa, though embarrassed, also raised their own objections and suggestions.

At last they reached the mountain cemetery and found Tifa's mother's tombstone. Tifa put fresh flowers in the vases and her father laid a large bouquet on the grave. For a quiet moment, father and daughter stood hand-in-hand and looked at the picture of the woman with the pretty face and kind brown eyes.

Cloud had his turn, too; he went up to the grave and bowed, sympathy weighing at his heart when he saw Mr Lockhart's sad face. Tifa caught his eye and gave him a small smile.

They went for a walk afterwards, down the sloping, grassy hillside, leaving Aunt Rina and Mr Lockhart at the cemetery. Cloud breathed in the fresh mountain air, enjoying the feel of the sun on his face. It was surprisingly warm up here, and pretty, too. The sky was a clear blue with only a few wisps of white clouds lingering by. In the long, airy grass dotted here and there with dandelions, they both sat down and gazed out toward the peaceful scenery.

"Daddy always spends some time by Mum's grave, just sitting and looking and thinking. He remembers everything about her," Tifa smiled nostalgically. "He really lets himself mourn and grieve for her, just this one time of the year. I used to stay with him and cry, but I stopped when I was old enough to realise that watching me do so hurt him a lot. And I knew Mum wouldn't want me to be sad, either."

Cloud looked at her, a faint frown in place. "Was it... hard?"

Tifa sat meditatively as the breeze floated through her hair and played pleasantly across her face. She nodded slowly, the sad and pain-filled memories creeping back upon her. She put on a brave smile, looking back at him, "But we all pull through in the end, don't we? I still really miss her, of course, and I know Dad feels lonely at times, but we've got each other... and then there's Aunt Rina, of course, whose personality is twice that of an average person's."

Cloud chuckled, inwardly admiring her strength.

The idle warmth of the sun was pleasant and relaxing as they sat on the grassy hillside, occasionally talking and pointing things out in the sky. They both fell asleep after a moment's drowsy but peaceful silence, lying down in the long grass, and the sun looked as though it was about to set by the time they woke up.

"Where are they?"

They had trekked back to Tifa's mother's grave, but her father and aunt were nowhere to be seen. Cloud peered around, "It has been an hour," he pointed out. "Maybe they left already."

"Hmph." The brunette pulled out her phone and dialled; Aunt Rina picked up on the third ring, answering with a, "Tifa? Where are you?"

"I'm at Mum's grave," Tifa said warily, sure that this question was an ominous sign. "What about you?"

"You're back at the cemetery!" exclaimed Aunt Rina, shock and amusement present in her voice. "Sweetie - your father and I are on the bus right now. It's the last bus for the day."

"What?"

"You're with Cloud, aren't you? When you two didn't turn up after an hour, we thought you'd already left. And I couldn't call you, either, the reception up there is really dodge - I have no idea how you're calling me right now, your network must have really good coverage - so we caught the bus. Like I said, it's the last bus, so we were sure you'd already caught an earlier one..."

Tifa groaned, "So are you saying we're stuck up here?"

"Wait, your dad's going to talk to you." Tifa waited impatiently as the phone was passed over, and her father said, "Tifa? Why don't you go to Grandmother's place to spend the night? You know the way there and she'd be delighted to see you. Then you can catch the first bus in the morning. Don't worry; I'll tell Mr and Mrs Strife where you two are."

"Alright, Dad," she sighed, while Cloud looked frantically at her for an explanation; she waved her hand at him impatiently.

"And I'm sorry, angel," her father added, a touch of amusement in his voice. "Have fun and stay warm tonight. Pass that on to Cloud."

Tifa hung up, exhaled very slowly and then turned back to Cloud. He prompted urgently, "Well? What's happening?"

She tried to grin as she said, "We're staying here for the night."

He stared at her, "You're kidding me."

It took twenty minutes to walk to the grandmother's house near the tiny mountain village. A spire of smoke rose from the chimney as Tifa hurried across the yard of chickens, calling out, "Grandmother! Grandmother!" An apprehensive Cloud struggled to keep up with her.

An elderly woman came out of the house with surprising speed; her wrinkly, benevolent face was uplifted as she went out to meet them, "Tifa! Tifa, is that you?" The brunette beamed as she held the old woman's hands in her own, and Grandmother peered short-sightedly into her face, "Oh, my darling, you're as beautiful as ever. I haven't seen you in years."

Tifa nodded happily, "How are you, Grandmother? Are you well?"

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," replied Grandmother, just as Cloud came up sheepishly beside Tifa; the old woman looked over at him and said, "Ah, this must be your husband. Your father told me about him," she glanced at Tifa and stage-whispered, "What a handsome boy he is."

An embarrassed Cloud smiled and bowed. "How are you, Grandmother?" he greeted.

Grandmother smiled, still holding Tifa's hands. "Come in, come in," she said fussily, leading the way into her low-ceilinged house. "You children must be hungry."

After a hearty meal of stew and homemade bread, they kept Grandmother company and played card games with her, all the while talking about everything; about Cloud, about what Tifa had been up to in the last few years, about her father; and then it was their turn to ask Grandmother questions. She had lived up in the mountain village all her life and couldn't imagine living anywhere else. Although she was a widow and lived alone, she said she hardly ever felt lonely since the other elderly folk in the village visited her often.

"But it was nice to be married and have company," Grandmother said rather mischievously; she nudged Cloud and said secretively, "Listen to me, dear, you're lucky to have snatched Tifa up as your wife before any other boy could get their hands on her."

Tifa froze in the act of putting down her cards and wore a look of mortification, "Gr - Grandmother!" she exclaimed.

But Cloud grinned at Grandmother and then glanced at Tifa with equal mischief in his eyes. "Yeah, I know I'm very lucky to have someone like her," he said earnestly.

Tifa blushed crimson as the elderly lady laughed, "Just as well that you know it. Such a pretty, well-behaved and clever girl, isn't she?"

"Oh, I agree," he nodded as Tifa blushed still more furiously and sent him a brief "What do you think you're doing?" look. Cloud flashed her a grin and then laughed together with Grandmother at Tifa's expression.

Later that evening, after Grandmother had gone to bed, the two moved outside and sat around a crackling fireplace, trying to keep themselves warm in the chilly night. They had been gathering firewood for Grandmother, but now they were too tired and cold to move and instead were toasting themselves marshmallows, enjoying the way the fire spat out bright sparks into the air. Even toasting marshmallows ensued some playful bickering; Cloud always left his ones too long over the fire so that they either burnt to a crisp or burst into flames. To stop Tifa complaining about this, he usually threw the burning ones in her direction.

"So it's off to uni next year, huh?" he asked after awhile of cooking and eating the confectionary.

Tifa smiled tentatively, "Yup. Next year's going to have a lot of changes for me. Daddy's going to Icicle Inn, I'll be moving to Midgar..." She let out a deep breath, gazing up into the endless expanse of the sky, "It's going to be hard work."

Cloud nodded slowly, twirling his stick in his hand, "What about Aunt Rina?"

"Oh, she said she wants to live in Nibelheim for awhile. Like, for a few years," Tifa looked over the fire towards him seriously, "That's a huge thing for her. She says she wants to settle down for a bit, see if it suits her... well, that made Dad happy." She chuckled and stuck the cooled marshmallow into her mouth, "What about you?"

"No idea," Cloud exhaled; it was his turn to look up into the sky now. "That's why I kind of envy you sometimes," he half-smiled at her. "It must be nice to have goals and direction, somewhere to run to."

She gazed at him intently, "Then set goals for yourself."

"You say it so easily," he said reproachfully. "I have no idea what I want to do. School's been a safety net for me all these years."

"There must be something you want to do," she insisted, still watching him attentively.

"Nope."

"You say it so easily," she scoffed, and Cloud laughed. The way he laughed was quite endearing; it was childish and enhanced his handsome features even more, so that Tifa found herself staring at him with an unconscious smile forming on her lips.

Then, catching herself in a fluster, she quickly made to take her marshmallow off the stick, forgetting that she hadn't cooled it yet. "Ouch!" she cried, dropping it at once.

Cloud immediately grabbed her hand, concern in his eyes as he examined it, "Are you okay? Are you burnt?"

Tifa was even more taken-aback by this than by the burn and she stared at him; their eyes met for a second and then they dropped the gaze. She cleared her throat bashfully and stood up.

"I'm - ah - going to bed now. Remember to put out the fire."

"Oh," he sounded oddly blank. "Yeah."

Her heart was still pounding when she went into the little spare room she and Cloud would have to share for the night. Grandmother had set two sleeping mats on the ground with a quilt folded neatly at the end of each. A third blanket lay in between, for either one of them, but Tifa picked it up and placed it on top of the other mat. She switched off the lights and settled under her quilt, trying very hard not to think about Cloud and the closeness of his blue eyes in that one moment...

A bit later on, when Tifa was just on the verge of slipping into unconsciousness, she thought she heard him come inside. No lights were switched on, but after a moment of shuffling and moving, she felt something heavy and warm fall on her as if another blanket had been draped over her.

"So let me get this straight," Yuffie sniggered quietly. "You guys spent another night together? In the same room?" Her eyebrows almost disappeared behind her spiky fringe.

"Yes," whispered Tifa tartly, "But it's not nearly as scandalous as you make it sound."

The girls were staying quiet because they were in the school library, undertaking some independent study before the final bell rung. Yuffie had been very good lately in her studies, with the examinations creeping ever so near, but today she was back to her easily-distracted-and-distracting mood.

"Hmmm," she mused. "Did anything... happen?"

Tifa hurled her a severe look, "Of course not."

"Kidding, kidding," Yuffie muffled her giggles as the bell rung and students packed away their things, the noise level ascending as chatter and the pushing in of chairs against desks filled the room. The two girls swung their bags on and followed the crowd of students out of the school. Yuffie raised her eyebrow, spotting something in the distance.

"Oh, look who it is," she said smugly, nudging Tifa.

Tifa looked up accordingly and her mouth fell open at the sight of Rufus Shinra standing on the road, next to a sleek black car. He smiled and beckoned for her to come over.

Yuffie grinned, "I see Vinnie and Cloud back there - I'll talk to you later, Teef!" And with a bound she was gone, leaving Tifa to walk over to Rufus, wondering what he wanted.

"Hey, mister," she greeted, happily but curiously. "This is... different."

Rufus' smile became more pronounced, "Just so you know, I'm not stalking you," he said lightly. "The amount of times I saw you in your uniform informed me well of which school you must attend."

Tifa chortled and he requested, "You're not busy, are you? Come take a walk with me."

Past being surprised at strange requests, Tifa obliged and had an enjoyable stroll with Rufus around the neighbourhood while they talked.

"Can I ask you a question, mister?" she asked, her curiosity burning within her.

"Go ahead."

"How old are you?"

Rufus laughed, "I thought this question would surface much earlier, to be honest. I'm twenty-four."

"Ah," Tifa tried to arrange her face so that she didn't look too astounded. "But... but how can you be the president of a company already?"

Rufus paused to think, before answering, "My father was the president, but he died unexpectedly a few years ago when I was still studying. People, especially my mother, wanted some of the other executives to take over, but I wouldn't have that. So here I am. I'm still learning, I guess, but people recognise my position now."

"Oooh," she mulled over this for a second and then laughed as she repeated, "But you "wouldn't have that."" She grinned up at him, "It sounds like you knew what you wanted, even before you became president."

Rufus nodded, "Of course. I've always known what I wanted... and I always get what I want."

"Huh," she scoffed. "I think you'll learn the converse of that the hard way, mister."

He chortled again and they drew to a stop at the corner of the street. Rufus looked down at her seriously, "I came to find you today because I realised I never thanked you properly for helping me find those robes that day. And since filming is finally finished, this is my last chance to express my gratitude before I leave tomorrow."

"You're leaving tomorrow?" Tifa felt a small sense of loss that always accompanied a farewell to a new friend. She wished there was a way of keeping close to everyone she had ever met.

Rufus nodded and looked around appreciatively, "I won't deny that I quite like it here, in Nibelheim... it's very different to Midgar. But anyway," he held out the bag in his hands and said smoothly, "Thank you for your help, Miss Tifa. You have been an invaluable help to the production of this new film." His lips twitched as he spoke.

Grinning at his mocking tone, Tifa took the bag and peeked into it, giving a little gasp when she saw what was inside. It was a book filled with glossy pictures, teaching different techniques in beading and creating new, and artful designs. She looked up at Rufus, her eyes shining, "Wow... thank you!"

"I heard you liked doing this type of thing, so this should help you," he shrugged, but he seemed pleased that she liked his gift. Rufus looked at her solemnly, "We'll meet next time on a professional level. You won't be a kid anymore."

His eyes glimmered humorously as she pretended to be offended, but then Tifa grinned, "Of course. It was really nice meeting you, Mister Rufus, even if our encounters were somewhat..."

"Eventful?" Rufus also smiled. "It was nice to meet you, too. Contact me anytime you're in Midgar."

She beamed up at him and nodded.

Meanwhile, a little further away at the playground in the Nibelheim gardens, Cloud and Aeris sat talking on the swings. Cloud felt a twinge of sadness about this meeting; it would be the last time he would see Aeris for a long while; she was going home tomorrow, back to Midgar. Midgar, he thought. It was funny how little he seemed to miss about the city, even with all his complaints about the small-town-ness of Nibelheim.

Neither of them were talking much as they swung gently on the swing set. Aeris seemed to be in a thoughtful, reflective mood, and Cloud glumly didn't have much to say either.

"It's funny," Aeris mused, still gazing at the patch of grass in front of her. "When we were both growing up, I was always the first one to do something." She looked up at him, reminiscent, "The first to go on a swing, the first to ride a bike, the first to go to school... I thought I'd be the first to get married, too."

Cloud had to grin at the affronted expression that had appeared on her face. "Do you feel cheated?" he asked.

Aeris laughed and nodded, "Yeah. Just a little."

They lapsed into quiet again; it was awhile before Aeris spoke, sounding as though she was steeling herself to make a decision.

"Once I'm back in Midgar, Cloud, I'm not going to try and contact you anymore," she said, childishly determined. "I'm not going to call you, or message you, or leave messages for you, or email you. I won't come visit anymore."

Cloud had no idea where all this had come from. "What? Why?" he asked warily, stopping at once.

There was a moment's pause in which he stared at her with a painful kind of intensity and she didn't look at him, placid and delicate.

"Because when I look at you," Aeris said quietly, her green eyes fixed out towards the trees. "I start feeling annoyed. Annoyed at myself for not realising what I had until it was too late." She looked at him tranquilly, "And then greed comes up on me, and I can't repress it, but I know I can't do anything either..." She sighed and pushed her legs off the ground so that her swing gained momentum. Cloud watched her, frowning, and Aeris slowed herself down and smiled a small smile.

"When I see you and Tifa, Cloud," she said. "It makes me feel angry and greedy because it keeps reminding me on what I missed out."

The look in her eyes and the bitter tone of her voice struck Cloud as something significant, but he found her words inscrutable, and perhaps he was unable to see the truth behind it because it seemed unbelievable.

Over the next few days, Rufus, Aeris and the rest of the Shinra Productions crew left Nibelheim, leaving the town wallowing in the aftermath of the film's excitement, and leaving Cloud unable to think of anything else except Aeris' parting words. He pondered over them restlessly, still trying to figure out her meaning. It was on his mind during school, when he was eating, when he was studying, when he was riding his bike back home and even while he showered, and yet he couldn't work it out. Tifa noticed his absent behaviour over the week, but chose not to comment on it, thinking he must just be preoccupied with Aeris leaving and the increasing strain of their workload at school. It wasn't until one night after dinner, when Tifa had gone to sit in the backyard to read a book and Cloud joined her, that she learnt what was really eating him up.

"She said... she said she feels annoyed at herself... and angry when she sees me," Cloud said slowly, still tossing the words over in his head as he neared the end of his explanation. Tifa had put her book down and was listening attentively.

"But why?" she asked, puzzled.

He hesitated. "This is the part I don't get," he said perplexedly, "She says looking at me hurts because... because it keeps reminding her of what she missed out."

Tifa fell silent as it was obvious to her what Aeris meant. What wasn't so obvious was why she suddenly felt tense and a little... hurt. Pushing those feelings aside, she said yieldingly, "Cloud, you airhead. It means she likes you. She's angry at herself because she let you go without realising how much you mean to her. And that's why she can't look at you anymore, because it hurts her to be reminded of what she can't have. That's also why she says she feels greedy. Aeris... likes you. She really likes you..."

Her voice tailed away as the words really sunk in. A sick feeling settled in her stomach.

During Tifa's explanation a sunrise had been taking place on Cloud's face. His eyes brightened and a grin dawned on his lips as he rose to his feet, exuberant and positively glowing.

Tifa glanced up at him, wearing a look that she often gave him when he made a stupid mistake doing a maths formula. "Where are you going?" she asked blandly. "Are you going to run after her?"

Cloud looked at her, still glowing, "Yeah. Can't I?"

"No you can't," she said, so bluntly she even surprised herself. "Can't you see me sitting here beside you?"

"...You?" He looked as though he didn't know what she meant.

"Yes, me," Tifa asserted, still in that blunt tone. "The girl you married, remember? And right now, I can't move away from you. Not yet."

"Oh... yeah." The sudden excitement that had hung around Cloud toned down a bit as he sat back down beside her. They were silent for a moment, the only sounds being the rustling of the trees in the cool night breeze.

"You can't run to Aeris, but you can run somewhere else," Tifa continued, slightly unsure of why she was saying this. She looked at him intently as he glanced at her, confused. "Run to the university she goes to. Make sure you're in a position to find her next year when you can run to her."

Cloud's eyes stretched out wide, "Midgar University? You've got to be kidding me."

"You said you wanted a goal. There you go."

"Yeah, but once again, something attainable," he said emphatically.

Tifa wasn't perturbed, "I think you can make it to Midgar. Of course, you'll have to put in some good hard work." She looked at him seriously and he looked back warily, "There's only two months until our exams. You'll have to work really hard. Are you up for it?"

Cloud didn't know what to think; things had happened so quickly, just one week ago he had no goals, no ambition, nowhere to run to... and now... This is crazy, he thought feverishly, Midgar University... me... that just doesn't mix. And yet...

He thought about his parents; how proud and happy would they be if he actually did get in? And then of course he thought about Aeris. The admiration and surprise glowing on her face made his heart pound a little faster. And then he turned and looked at Tifa, and a part of him realised he wanted to achieve this for her too, after everything she'd ever done for him.

He looked up, a determined spark in his azure eyes.

"Okay," said Cloud, "Let's do it." He grinned at Tifa and held up his palm for a high-five, "Midgar University!"

Tifa smiled back and slapped her hand into his.

And so the rigorous studying began. With only two months to go before the final exams, the senior grade were working more tirelessly than ever. The school semester finished early for them so that they could devote entire days to revision. Teachers gave their heartfelt good luck and farewell speeches, handing out emails and even telephone numbers so that students could contact them if they needed help.

Cloud and Tifa were constantly shut up in their rooms, with Mrs Strife sending up drinks and plates of healthy snacks to keep them going. Often, the two went into each other's domain to work together. Their rooms could not have been more of a contrast; Tifa couldn't stand working in a messy place and so was perfectly neat and ordered, all her books and notes organized by subject and colour-coded. Cloud's walls, on the other hand, were covered in dozens of notes, carrying random economical facts to maths formulas to quotes from his English texts. His books were spewed across the floor so that Tifa had trouble navigating her way around, and only his desk was clear so that they could both sit there and compare their notes. The only thing they had in common was their calendar, crossing off the days to the exams.

The weather was growing warmer too, so that instead of always being hunched over desks indoors, Cloud, Tifa, Vincent and Yuffie took their books to the gardens and sat in the pleasant shade of cherry trees to test each other and write up their essays. These were their more relaxed study sessions and kept them human during the otherwise gruelling period.

Then the exams came, and frayed nerves were steadily repaired as the period slipped by, almost sneakily and quickly, given the level of anticipation and preparation for it. The relief that followed the completion of each exam was quickly strangled by the panic of the following one - until, suddenly, they were over, and nothing awaited the hard-working students except for a gloriously long holiday. And of course, the results.

On the final day of their exams, Cloud and Tifa were completely, mentally exhausted, as if their exhaustion during the last few months had held back all this time to crash down upon them at this moment. Their parents threw them a celebratory dinner and the six of them sat in the Strifes' dining room enjoying a sumptuous meal.

Cloud and Tifa enjoyed the next few weeks of their golden holiday to the fullest extent. It was a treat to simply walk through the gardens without the weight of exams on their shoulders. Yuffie dragged them out to exciting places to do exciting things, and Tifa made a special visit back to her mother's grave to place fresh flowers on it and say a little prayer of her own.

Then, on one exceptionally warm day, the results came out in the mail. The tension in the Strife household was so thick a knife could have cut through it, but it was dispersed in just one tearing open of the letter; Tifa had got into her course straight away; Cloud was on the waiting list.

The next few days were sombre but at the same time, restless. Though Cloud said he was glad to have a chance at all at getting in, Tifa knew he was still disappointed and anxious. Mr Strife was plainly also anxious and kept pacing about when he was home, a tense look on his face, and Mrs Strife, after seeing how hard Cloud had worked these months, honestly did not think there was any justice in the world if her son didn't get in.

"Man, that must be hard," even Yuffie was sympathetic to Cloud's plight. "Don't worry, me and Vinnie will be crossing our fingers for him." Vincent had also made it into the university, while Yuffie had no plans to attend at all although she, too, was going to Midgar.

Tifa sat on the bench by the basketball courts; it was late at night, after dinner, and she had followed Cloud out here to watch him shoot some hoops.

"You know, we should really head back now," she said timidly. "It's getting late."

"Nah," he said, jumping and throwing the ball into the hoop; it bounced off the backboard. "I've got too much energy in me. I can't get to sleep." He caught the rebound and then turned to her apologetically, "You can go back first, Tifa. You're tired."

"Oh... okay..." The brunette got up uncertainly and then she glanced at him, "You're okay, right?"

"Yeah," he grinned half-heartedly at her, bouncing the ball. "Just... a little restless, I guess. But don't worry about me. Go back home and sleep."

Tifa nodded and went home dolefully, worried about him and inwardly praying that he would make it in. Please, let not the cut-off line be right before him...

When she got home, she found both his parents still sitting in the living room, the cordless phone placed precariously at the centre of the coffee table. She looked at them sympathetically. They had been doing this for a few nights now, hoping and waiting with all their might for that one phone call. Tifa hitched on a smile as she brought out two cups of tea for them.

"Oh, thank you, darling," Mrs Strife said absently. "Where's Cloud, dear?"

"He's still at the courts. He'll come home later; don't worry," she smiled at her in-laws and Mr Strife nodded warmly at her.

"You should go to bed, Tifa. You look tired."

Tifa nodded and was about to leave the room when the phone rang.

Silence filled the room so quickly and abruptly it was almost tangible; Tifa spun around, her eyes wide with apprehension as she stared at the ringing device. Mrs Strife's hands flew up to her mouth as she gazed at it almost fearfully, and Mr Strife froze at the sound. The three of them stared at each other, half-afraid to speak, half-afraid to even hope for whatever news the unknown caller might bring.

All that happened in about a second, and then Mr Strife grabbed the phone and picked up, his voice trembling.

"H - hello?"

Hope.

Cloud thought about that word, holding the basketball in his hands. He looked up at the ring above him.

"If this gets in, then I'm going to Midgar University," he said to himself, and threw the ball with a small jump. It flew through the air and hit the hoop, circling around it for a second before bouncing off the side. Cloud smiled hollowly to himself as the ball rolled away from him; it was stupid of him to bargain and gamble like this. Childish.

There was a soft chuckle behind him and he whirled around, unable to believe his eyes. Aeris stood there on the court, holding the basketball in her hands. She looked different from the last time he had seen her a few months ago; she had done something to her hair so that it was no longer in curls but hung straight around her face, but the new look suited her as much as ever.

"Aeris!" Cloud was so mesmerised and surprised that he couldn't form a proper sentence; he just stared at her, taking in her appearance and savouring the happiness it brought him to see her again.

Aeris grinned, her green eyes dancing with merriment as she walked closer, stopping just beside him. "How about I try?" she said playfully, holding up the ball. "If this gets in, then you're going to Midgar."

Cloud smiled in spite of himself and watched as she threw the ball gracefully; it cut through the air and hit the backboard, falling straight through the hoop. Aeris cheered and turned on him at once, "Did you see that? Cloud, you got in!"

"Yeah, I got in," he agreed, still smiling.

"No, I'm being serious now," his eyes locked to her face as Aeris said slowly and deliberately, "Cloud, you got into Midgar University. I double-checked the lists before I came down here." She beamed as he gradually took in the news, "Congratulations, Cloud Strife. You're officially my fellow student."

He stared at her, unable to believe it, unable to even dare to believe it. But even as his mind worked frantically to fully absorb the news, the rest of his body was already awakening to rejoice and scream and celebrate, and he began to understand that all this pent-up energy over the last week was prepared for this moment. He had got in. He had made it into the most prestigious university in Midgar. He felt as though he was about to be lifted off the ground, so uplifted and aerial was his heart...

That was how Tifa felt as she ran, her heels flying against the pavement beneath her. A huge grin was stretched on her face as she flew, running as fast as she could to tell him the news. Her heart was bursting with pride and joy; Cloud did it! I knew he could!

Out of breath but still grinning, she rounded the corner and reached the basketball courts, just in time to see Cloud throw his arms around Aeris and hug her.

A/N: I love you all, and I'm SORRY it took so long to update! I was on camp for a week and then I was just pre-occupied with other stuff, like enrolling for uni myself. :D For which I am both excited and afraid! But special thanks to you, my dear reader and reviewer ann, for leaving numerous pleas for me to hurry up and update! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter; I found it difficult to write. In my own mindset I thought it would be short and simple - it clearly wasn't! Too much happened in it and a lot of time also went by, so it got really long and complicated. Your feedback is MUCH appreciated, because I think this chapter isn't quite so good and is pretty rushed and messy. But I'm too tired and lazy to edit it with more effort. :D So here you all, the next installment to the Golden Sonnet story, and also a pivotal point, too, since they've left school now. WHAT SHALL HAPPEN NEXT? Hehe, drop your comments and thanks so much for reading. :) - msq.