Adult-FanFiction.org : Final Fantasy

Into the Abyss	By : blackharu2 Category: Final Fantasy VII > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 1050 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy, nor any characters owned by Square Enix. I do not make any money from the writing of this story, though I wish I did.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
Chapter Two: Living the Story
Cloud awoke the next morning feeling groggy and annoyed, his sleep very broken from the night before, a hand running through his bed-head hair at an attempt to straighten it as he sat up, looking down at the clock… only to groan in displeasure. "Seven AM…?" He asked himself, falling back onto the covers before heaving a sigh. Was his internal clock really so strong…? He had to go with a 'yes' in answer to that one as he lifted himself up from the covers, knowing already that he was too awake to sleep, head starting to throb a little at his own retarded sleeping pattern.
Normally, he would get up at seven, fill the kettle, get dressed and ready as it boiled, return to make the coffee and put it in a canister, before going off to work upon his motorcycle. But, as he got up today, his routine was absolutely shot… He had called the office to say he would be gone for a week due to family matters, so it wasn't like he had to be so efficient, choosing to just sit and wait for the water to boil, opening and closing his dreary eyes in attempt to wake up.
But when the kettle finally did shut itself off… he realized the smaller differences in his routine that his sleepy mind had yet to realize… the minor details making his heart droop a little. One of them being that his clothes wouldn't be neatly set out for him, even though he always asked her not to, she would… And the fact that there was no ornate painted mug with an herbal tea bag placed inside to sit next to his coffee cup… Or that there were no flowers growing near the window over the sink, no scent of a woman's presence or touch-ups to the house like paintings on the walls or photos of families on the fridge… None of that was here…
And suddenly… Cloud wanted to get out. He needed to leave. He had to.
He hurriedly stirred together the instant coffee and some milk, no sugar, before going to the guest room where he had slept the night before, finding himself an outfit for the day and throwing it on, only half-hazardly brushing his hair into the correct general shape before grabbing his coffee and downing it in a few gulps. He had to get out. He had to leave this place, if only for a while… If only to forget her face… To not think about the pain in his heart.
Cloud moved quick to the door, grabbing up his keys and a jacket before briskly getting the hell out of there, the door almost slamming behind him as he walked down the path leading to the sidewalk, looking around at the still seemingly life-less houses surrounding him, the early morning light making the hill and forest seem to glow.
Then he stopped, closing his eyes and taking in a long breath of the cold Spring air, before letting it out just as slowly, eyes opening to pin upon the town below. "…Right." He said to himself, going back into a walk, deciding today that he'd actually have a decent meal for breakfast instead of a quick coffee, his hands slipping into his jacket pockets, the air nipping his fingertips… frost still lingering upon the rooftops… and a small collection of clouds rolling in…

A bell tinkled prettily as he swung open the door to the diner, the place only about a third full with early-risers. But the smells that hit Cloud's nose nearly made him fall over.
In truth, Cloud wasn't much for eating breakfast, so he had never really been to a breakfast diner before, but at this point in time, the blonde couldn't muster up the excuse as to why not. Everything around him, pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, waffles, everything smelled absolutely delicious, and he could actually feel himself begin to salivate. But his attention was taken off the food's scent for a moment when a waitress's voice broke his hypnotized state.
"Smells good, huh?" She asked cheerfully, Cloud blinking before facing her, smiling a little bashfully, realizing only now that he was just standing in the doorway, sniffing at things.
"Yeah, it really does." He remarked, finally closing the door behind him and stepping up to the front counter.
She smiled before asking with a smile, "Just one today sir?" Cloud nodded and she picked up a menu, leading the blonde towards a place in the corner. "Is a booth alright?" She asked, Cloud nodding again before sitting down… He always felt a bit awkward around waiters and waitresses… it was like he was some kind of prince being served by slaves, which – without a doubt – was always a bit of a strange feeling to have, but a true one. "Anything to drink…? We've got some great coffee here." She said, Cloud pausing for a moment.
He did still feel a bit heavy-eyed so, "Why not?" He said, smiling a little and opening the menu, the girl smiling back.
"I'll send someone over right away." She said before walking away, Cloud saying a quick 'thanks' before returning to his menu… and there was his mouth, back to watering again.
The blonde's stomach grumbled and he swallowed, gaze drinking in images of pancakes drizzled with syrup, bacon cooked into perfection, fluffy yellow eggs and golden brown toast. Jesus Christ was he hungry.
Only a few minutes passed before the woman with the coffee came around, asking sweetly, "Regular or decaf…?" Cloud requesting regular, the woman – who was a bit rounder than the girl from before and had a bit of a southern accent, but not too strong – trying to make some polite chatter with the blonde. "So, how's your day treatin' ya so far?" She asked, smiling and asking as she poured him a cup.
Cloud motioned for her to stop pouring at the correct place as he replied, "Well, it's really only just started." The woman gave a big laugh at that, pulling back the coffee, Cloud wondering why his comment was so hysterical, a bit taken-a-back.
"Yeah," She commented, placing the coffee on the table and her hands on her hips. "I can tell ya just woke up 'bout an hour ago. Half your hair is still bed-head."
Cloud's eyes widened slightly at the comment and the woman just bust out laughing again, the blonde raking his fingers through his hair. "Is it really that bad…?" He asked, a little ashamed of not looking in the mirror before leaving… He was just in such a rush to escape…
"Nah, nah. Not at all really." She said again, beaming. "But why're you up so early if you don't wanna be…? Or did you have a bad night's sleep or somethin?"
Cloud could feel his heart slump a little and his eyes fell from her gaze. "Yeah…" He said, the woman blinking at his tone. "Something like that."
A brief moment of silence went on between them before the woman swiftly broke it. "Well!" She said, Cloud's eyes following the coffee as it was lifted from the table and back into her hands. "This coffee ain't gonna serve itself…!" She stated before heaving a sigh and looking over to the next table she was going to hit. "Gimme a holler if you need some more caffeine, alright sweetie?" She said with a wink, Cloud blinking at the motion, a bit surprised, the woman just laughing again as she walked away.
Then a separate round of giggling came from the opposing side of the booth, the waitress back with a pad and pencil in hand. "Sorry about her, she likes to be friendly with our customers, whether they're ready for it or not."
Cloud smiled slightly at that, "This early in the morning, I don't think anyone's ready to be that friendly."
The girl blinked, before giggling to herself. "You are a funny one." She said sweetly, shaking her head a little, Cloud only laughing softly in reply before she asked, "Are you ready to order…?"

Cloud… was stuffed.

There was no other explanation besides that. He was just absolutely, and totally, STUFFED.
Sure, he was stuffed with delicious breakfast foods that he could still semi-taste upon his tongue, but really, he had never eaten so much so early before in his life…! Or at least not since he was about twelve, perhaps. Right now, he only really felt up to going back home and maybe checking his email on his laptop for a few minutes, but in reality he didn'tfeel up to climbing back up that stupid hill. So instead, he was stuck meandering the town, aimlessly looking into windows and thinking of what he would do the whole week he was here. The Farmer's Market was ending today, so it wasn't like that could really be kept on his list of things to see or do. And other than quaint shops and cute restaurants, the blonde didn't really have anywhere to go to have fun… not that he knew of anyways.
Cloud sighed, slipping back his coat sleeve to look at his wrist, only then remembering that he had forgotten to grab his watch off the coffee table that morning in his rush, swearing a little under his breath. But when he looked back up, he realized where he was, recognizing the street as the one he had taken to get to the town square that – if memory served him correctly – had a clock nearby.
The blonde made his way over towards the square again, only a little surprised to see the stage still set up, figuring that the lady would do another story-telling tonight to give the final scare on the market's end. But his attention was quickly taken by the large clock sitting atop an old English style of pole, only to be surprised by the time. Had it really beenthree hours since he had gotten up?
Cloud shook his head, calculating in his mind for a moment… thirty minutes getting ready, an hour to walk down the hill and find the diner, thirty minutes to eat, which left an hour of aimless wandering about windows… "Huh." He said softly to himself, shrugging a little. It actually didn't sound too unreasonable. But upon hearing the clock strike ten, he knew… it was time to head home.
So he did just that and roughly forty minutes later he found himself back at Zack's house, opening the door to a silent building, kicking off his shoes and putting down his keys, slipping away his coat…. sighing at such a regular and boring routine.
"Maybe I shouldn't have left…" He mumbled to himself, hand stopping in the motion of hanging up his coat… body frozen at his own words.
His head lowered, hair moving to cover his eyes as he stood there silently, his hand falling to his side, coat still hanging loose upon his pointer and middle finger, everything around him silent and… and cold… lonely… sad.
Why had he come here? He asked himself, swallowing and finally finishing the motion of hanging his coat back up, rubbing his forehead with a hand, the ache in his mind and heart coming back to him. Did he really think this would help him get over it…? Did he really think this would make him feel less guilty? Less… alone…?
His foot suddenly collided harshly with the leg of the table, jumping at his own motion and the loud cracking sound it made, breaking the blonde away from his thoughts, Cloud blinking… Before the anger kicked in. "Fuck!" He yelled at himself. "What the hell are you doing Cloud!" Why was he acting like this? What the hell was so wrong with him? "What the hell-!" But he cut himself off, catching his own image in the mirror… And suddenly… everything was calm again as he stared into his own eyes, heart racing in his ears. He stared for a moment before sighing, placing his palms on the table top, shoulders slumping. "What the hell is wrong with me…?"
But his own lingering question was displaced from his mind by a strange sound coming from beside him, his brows drawing together at the slow creaking noise… He looked down to his right just in time for the groaning of wood to end in a harsh SNAP and a swear word of shock, the table collapsing sideways, the leg Cloud had kicked splitting in two in an instant.
For a moment, he just stared at the table, his keys sliding off of its surface to plunk upon the floor… the air around him absolutely silent after the crash… Before he found his lips spreading in a smile, breaking out in a series of laughs, the reality of what just happened somehow hysterically funny to him.
But as his laughs died, all he could do was shake his head. "Great…" He said to himself, still laughing a little under his breath. "Now I have to go out and buy Zack a friggin' table." He finished in a mumble, leaning over to lift it back up and look over the extent of the damage, the place where the two broken ends met splintered completely. But even so, he could still stand the table upright, placing the broken off piece of the leg back under the other half that was still attached to the tabletop, standing it upright and testing it's stability, judging it was safe to leave it standing but just not to lean on it again.
He then picked up his keys off the floor and plopped them back on top of the table before kicking the splinters of wood underneath the rug at the entrance of the door, making at least the floor presentable again. After he stood back up and looked over the area, giving one last snort of amusement towards the broken table leg and shaking his head, he turned to go into the guest bedroom.
There he found his laptop, charging by the wall where he had left it overnight, unplugging it and hearing it beep before tucking it under his arm and walking back out towards the living room to plop down on the couch and open it up, taking it out of sleep mode. After that he opened up a browser and went to his email account, logging in and deleting all the spam before heading to his Inbox… where he smiled to himself as he double clicked the message called "How You Doing? From Zackary Fair", his inbox switching over to the newly opened message.
Hey man, it's me Zack.

You know I'm not really the kind to write some long, sappy message, so I'll get right down to the point. Basically, I'm sending this to check up on you, to ask how you're doing. I'm hoping you're doing alright and adjusting to the surroundings and crap like that. I know my house isn't much, but it's good enough for you, right? Of course, if it isn't, feel free to blow it up or something. Not like I ever use the damn place, hahaha.
That part made Cloud snort softly, his assumption about Zack's own personal visits to his house proving to be true.
Of course, that is a joke. If you really blew it up, I'd have so much damn paperwork to deal with, I wouldn't know what the hell to do with it all! But really, I hope you're doing alright and that you haven't broken anything, hahaha, like you would.
Cloud's eyes widened a bit and his smile drooped, eyes turning slightly to look in the direction of the table in the hallway, gulping.
Anyways, take care of the place and yourself while I'm gone, and reply soon damn it! I'm worried sick about you here.
The blonde found himself smiling again a little at the ending sentences, clicking the Reply button before setting his fingers down on the keyboard.
Hey Zack, this fast enough of a reply for you?

Don't worry about me too much and just focus on your work, you actually get PAID to worry over that. Haha. Also, don't worry about me blowing up your house. I wasn't the one who had the pancakes incident, now was I? Though, I do owe you a new table. I'll explain that later over the phone, if you call me like you said you would.

Now get back to doing your job, I checked the time on your message and know your sending it from your cubicle.

But in the end, I still have to say thanks for worrying about me and sorry about your furniture.

I'll talk to you later.

Cloud
The blonde paused for a moment, re-reading his message to make sure all the spelling errors were gone and that it was neatly presented before his mouse hovered over the Send button… only hesitating for a moment as he eyed the parts about the table. But in the end he just shrugged it off, knowing his friend well enough to know he wouldn't be killed over such a trivial accident as that, clicking on Send.
Slowly, he made his way through his other messages, some of it about his newspaper articles being postponed, but the rest were basically just sappy 'hope you're feeling better' letters from other friends and family members. And he deleted them all before even reading them, hating the words "I'm so sorry for your loss" more than any other phrase in the universe at that moment.
But after completely clearing out his entire Inbox of messages and shutting down his computer, Cloud sighed, leaning back on the couch and closing his eyes. It was all so irritating… having people he didn't even really know telling him to get better, comparing his loss with a time when their dog got hit by a car, or when they had to flush a goldfish, never really understanding what he was going through even though they said they did.
"Uuugh…" Cloud voiced, really just kind of sick of the world around him, boring and quiet, filled with billions of people and not a single one lighting his life like she did, making it interesting again… but… There still hung that guilt… that pang in his chest as he thought about all their years together…
The blonde rubbed his eyes briefly, biting his own lip, shoving those thoughts aside, not wanting to go there again within his own head… not believing it. Not… wanting to.
But he suddenly found himself getting up off the couch, looking around, searching for something to distract him, something to make him forget that thought that lingered in his mind every night and day ever since first proposing to the girl… ever since first making that step… He needed to not think about it for a while. He needed to just… not.
So, he decided to go into the kitchen and make himself some lunch. No, he wasn't hungry, but it was all he could think of… the blonde starting by pulling out the ingredients he had bought the day before, down in the market. Some lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, dressing… along with a loaf of bread he had gotten, its crust a perfect brown, some butter and garlic, setting them all out on the marble island in the center of the kitchen. Why Zack had bothered getting such a luxurious item in his kitchen was beside Cloud. Zack never cooked, he just ate, and it wasn't like he was home to enjoy its presence or something.
He started by searching out a garlic press, bidding it a miracle he found one at all, pressing the little cloves into oblivion and back as the butter melted in the microwave, taking out the bowl, juggling it slightly between his hands because of its heat. Then he scraped off the leftovers of the garlic bits, stirring it briefly in the butter and tasting it. "Mmm…" He hummed, loving that flavor. Then he went to the toaster oven, the little contraption really a blessing among cooks, Cloud soon realized as he slipped in the two slices of bread to toast them a little, the small oven working perfectly for his needs.
Then the blonde moved to the lettuce, locating a knife suitable for cutting such vegetation, his flow around the food only interrupted by the ringing of the phone, Cloud looking at it for a moment as it rung… But he looked back down, letting it ring. It wasn't his house after all, why should he have to answer the phone?
He listened to the four rings as he finished cutting the lettuce, placing it aside and moving on to the carrots, smiling slightly to himself as the phone's message played aloud, Zack's voice filling the room. "I'm either not home at the moment or simply ignoring you because I don't care about whatever it is your selling, oh person who is "Out of Area", so go away. Unless of course your one of my friends, then go ahead and talk all you like, or call me on my cell. Either way, we'll speak to each-other at some point. Have fun speaking to yourself through my machine!"
Cloud laughed at the message, shaking his head and smiling. "Crazy bastard…" He mumbled to himself, finishing with the carrots and now on to the tomatoes, the damn things always giving him a hard time. Why he even bought them in the first place was a mystery to him. But his knife's strokes were cut short at the voice of the other on the line, after the beep.
"Wow, is that seriously what I sound like? I seem like such a dick!"
Cloud snorted aloud at that comment, Zack probably somehow telepathically knowing he was there, the pause making it evident as Cloud wiped his hands off on a paper towel before picking up the phone. "I told you the last time you asked that you sounded like an asshole on your message machine." Cloud continued, propping the phone between his ear and shoulder, using one hand to take the bread out of the toaster oven, another to grab the bowl of butter and garlic.
"Well now I actually believe you…!" Zack said, Cloud laughing softly at his friend. "But now I'm wondering…" He continued, the blonde using a spoon to spread the mixture of butter and garlic over the bread, not able to find the right sort of tool in Zack's kitchen. "What the hell have you done to my table?" He asked, the other having a feeling that would be the question.
"What…?" Cloud asked with a small smirk, using a hand to hold the phone as the other placed the bread back inside the toaster oven. "Not worried about me anymore now that you know a bit of furniture's been broken?"
"Hell yeah!" Zack replied, Cloud laughing immediately at the quick response. "Knowing you and your way of penting shit up, I'm afraid for my furniture's LIFE at this point…!" Zack continued, the blonde returning the phone to rest between an ear and his shoulder, just on the other side this time, going back to chopping tomatoes as best he could. "You've probably taken an axe to it or something, haven't you?"
Cloud couldn't help but snort at that. "Zack… Do you even have an axe…?" He asked, smirking slyly to himself, Zack probably able to hear it in his tone. The dumb sound of an 'uuuhm~' made the blonde snort again before finishing with a, "Thought so."
"Well…!" The other started, trying to muster up a good come-back, but failing miserably. "I could have one somewhere, you don't know…!" Cloud just shook his head, a real feat when trying to balance a phone between your ear and a shoulder.
"This is a pathetic defense of your intelligence, you know that right…?" The blonde asked, smirking again, before he swore slightly to himself under his breath, too quietly for the other to hear, tomato juice going all over the place with the first slice into the second red fruit.
"Yeah yeah, I know…" Zack grumbled, hearing it all before. "Of course, you know that as well, which is the only reason your drawing this out as much as you possibly can… evil prick." He mumbled the ending, Cloud hearing the joking smile in his words.
"Damn straight." He replied, smirking a little, tearing another towel from the roll to wipe up the mess, checking on his garlic bread before doing so. "Now, what is it you're really calling for…?" Cloud asked, managing to open the door to the cupboard beneath the sink with his toes, tossing the dirty paper towels inside the bin.
He heard the brief sound of cloth moving on the other end, assuming Zack had shrugged as he answered, "Checking up on you, I guess."
Cloud sighed, knowing all along that that would be it. "Zack-" He started, but the other cut him off.
"Yeah yeah, I know. You told me not to worry, but really… What kind of friend would I be if I didn't worry even a little…?"
"A good one…?" Cloud grumbled, hearing Zack chuckle at the answer, the blonde moving to take the bread out of the oven, closing the door and again juggling the hot food back and forth between hands.
"Get more of those 'pointless messages', as you so called them?" Zack asked, the smile in his voice.
"Yeah…" Cloud said, switching the side on which the phone rested again, his neck starting to ache. "They're getting to be increasingly annoying." He commented, scooping up the chopped bits of vegetables and placing them in a bowl, along with the lettuce, before grabbing a plate for his garlic bread.
"Well, they just care about you Cloud… They're worried." Zack said, concern now in his tone. "You know, like I am… I mean, it's not like I can tell you I can relate, 'cause you know I can't, but really… They're your friends."
At that, the blonde swallowed… before sighing, turning himself to rest a hip against the counter, crossing one arm over his chest as the other hand held up the phone to his ear. "They're not really my friends Zack… They're just people passing by who happened to say hello one day. That's all." He explained, starting up again before Zack could get in a word. "I mean, do you really think Tifa's my friend? She's just my fucking editor, for Christ's sake…! She only showed at the funeral out of pity for her underling." He spoke bitterly, a sudden urge to yell building up within him.
He heard Zack sigh before a brief pause… "Cloud, you know just as well as me that she likes you… You can't just brush her off like that."
But Cloud could just feel himself fume at the words, not really knowing why his buttons were being so easily pushed. "Even people who like me aren't necessarily my friendsZack…!" He snapped, his control on his emotions slipping a little more… Why did this always happen when talking about these types of relationships?
"Oh come on man, you know what type of 'like' I mean here!" The other snapped right back, Cloud a little surprised, but still mysteriously angry. "So don't just go labeling her as someone who doesn't really care…! Maybe she'd be good for you at a time like this."
"A time like this?" Cloud questioned, feeling fully irritated again. "What the hell Zack, you think I'm gonna start dating right after my wife's died!"
"No! I mean-! . . . ugh." There was a pause, Cloud swallowing, knowing fully that wasn't what Zack had meant… Why was he acting like this? "I just mean that maybe… Maybe you need to get out of your shell a little bit to help yourself with this. Maybe you just need to go do something… I don't know… something a little unlike yourself to help you through this. Maybe not now, but… but eventually, I think it would help." He said, the blonde somehow calming down at his words… feeling better… like he always did after talking with the other… that guilt settling back in his head.
"Yeah…" Cloud finally breathed, his shoulders relaxing, other hand lifting to rub his forehead and eyes for a second, before going back to crossing his chest. "Yeah, maybe you're right… Thanks." He said, turning back to look at his food, bread having gone cold while they were talking, Cloud sighing and putting it back into the toaster oven, setting it for a couple of minutes.
"Anytime man… You know I'm here for you." Zack said, Cloud drizzling some of the dressing over his half-assed salad, before going back to staring at his bread cook. "Now, I'm sorry to leave you in such an emotional state like this, but… I know you've been cooking the entire time in the background, and you can probably guess I'm hiding in the copy room at the moment to phone you…" Zack remarked truthfully, Cloud snorting at that last part, a smile returning briefly to his lips. "Sooo~ I kind of have to get off and return to my job. That alright?"
The blonde could practically hear the apologetic smile in the other's tone, laughing a little to himself at the image of Zack huddled in a copy room at work, peering about to make sure no one saw him as he called up his friend. "Yeah, that's fine. I was just starting to wonder if you had been yelling me back into sense while sitting in your cubicle the whole time."
Cloud's smile widened a little at the sound of his friend's laughter on the other end, Zack replying with, "No way! If I did that, I'd get in trouble for sure." The little oven dinged, Cloud peering in through the glass door to check on the state of his bread before opening it, almost dying at the scent that leapt forth from the appliance, stomach grumbling. "But anyways, be good while I'm gone, and don't break anymore tables! I can't have you buying out all of Ikea or something." They both chuckled at that one, Cloud pulling out the re-heated and perfectly browned garlic bread from the oven before placing it on the plate, his lunch ready to be happily devoured.
"Yeah yeah, I'll be more careful with the furniture this time, alright?" Cloud said, phone back between ear and shoulder as he lifted up the bowl and plate, along with a fork for the salad. He then made his way into the living room, switching on the television before sitting down and readjusting his hold on the phone again.
"You promise?" Zack asked, Cloud channel flipping, smiling at the question.
"Good bye Zackary." He said jokingly, the other laughing.
"Ok ok! I'll stop mothering you…" Cloud laughed a little at that. "I'll just talk to you again later when I check in tomorrow, alright?"
The blonde smiled, loving the feeling of having him there. "Sure." But-
"Good bye~"
"Bye."
Cloud lifted the phone away from his ear to find the End button, pressing it to hear the beep signaling it was off, before laying it down on the table in front of him, beside his watch. Then he sighed and sat back, letting his spine mold to cushions, sinking into the soft fabric as he closed his eyes… letting himself relax completely for a few moments… Before he opened his eyes again and sat up. "Right." He said to himself, deciding that now he was fully prepared to begin digging into his food, dying once again at not only the scent of the garlic bread, but the texture and taste as well, all of them practically sending him to heaven. God was garlic bread delicious…!
Then he sat back, holding the plate closer to his mouth with each bite to make sure no crumbs escaped onto the couch as he watched an action film on the television, not really paying attention to the plot, but more-so letting the explosions blow away his thoughts and concerns, it's effects working perfectly. And soon, the blonde was finishing his last bite of the garlic bread, licking free his fingers of the butter and a drip of the dressing used on his salad that had leaked free accidentally, fully enwrapped in the movie before him, it's final scenes especially intense, filled with guns and bullets… Just the sort of thing to keep Cloud's mind from being wrapped too tightly around his own problems.
But at the end of the film, the blonde found himself yawning, food settled happily down in his stomach, which – if it had a mouth of its own – would be grinning. But that tug of fatigue at the back of his mind still bothered him. So, he heaved a sigh and leaned forward to pick up the remote, turning off the television, before standing completely and grabbing his dishes. He walked over to the sink before rinsing them and placing them inside to soak in some bubbles, helping to get the oil off… Then he found himself yawning again, shaking his head slightly and blinking a couple of times afterwards.
"Jeeze…" He spoke to himself. "I must've really slept badly for me to be tired this early." His eyes moving to look up at the clock, seeing that it was only one thirty in the afternoon, scratching at the back of his neck briefly and looking around at the kitchen. There wasn't really anything else for him to do, and going into town would be pointless, seeing as how he'd only really have the market to be entertained by again. But without needs for food, it was a bit dumb of him to go.
"Well…" He sighed, turning to walk down the hall towards the guest room. "I guess all I've got left is to sleep, or watch another movie or something…" He said to himself, his mind prickling in the background to go and have a good rest, the tug reminding him that his sleep last night was indeed a horrible one compared to usual. But before falling into slumber while watching TV or something, Cloud knew he wanted to get the taste of garlic out of his mouth.
Sure, garlic and butter smeared across toasted bread was a blessing among men when first enjoyed, but after a while… he simply couldn't stand it. It was like it was a horrible flavored gum just sticking to his teeth, driving him crazy in all the hours it stayed there, so he walked straight into the bathroom… and brushed his teeth. But he couldn't help but think of how odd he was to be doing this "getting ready for bed" thing at one thirty in the afternoon… Of course, no one was around to see, so it was fine. But still… as he finished up by using some mouthwash, he just felt a tad stupid.
Though, after he was done, he was quite happy with his decision, the lingering taste completely demolished from his mouth by the power of chemicals. He looked at himself in the mirror for a moment and fixed his left-over bed-head, before finding it just a step too far and going back out to the couch and turning the television on, flipping through channels until he hit a mildly tolerable black and white film that made him chuckle every few moments. Cloud was relaxed completely only a couple of minutes longer, his face turned towards the screen, one hand below his head, the other curled comfortably around the remote that lay on his stomach, his legs crossed and outstretched in the perfect position for a good rest.
And slowly, he began to yawn more than laugh, the blonde finding himself sinking further into the couch… blinks lasting longer and longer with each one… eyes shutting slowly and sound from the television beginning to be drowned out by his sleep deprivation… And then Cloud's hand holding the remote slipped off his torso, fingers and tiny plastic-covered machine clunking down upon the carpet softly, the blonde completely and utterly lost within rest as he breathed soft… nothing in his thoughts but the soothing darkness of sleep… Of course, how long that would last, only time in rest could tell.
But for now, not even thoughts of the legend from the day before invaded his mind, television having blocked out the soft drumming of water upon the roof… only the beginnings of that night's oncoming… and absolute… downpour.
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Into the Abyss