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Premonitions: Uncut	By : Hippo_and_Friends_with_Benefits Category: Final Fantasy VII > General Views: 3901 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, and I am not making any money of of this writing.

Chapter List
- 77
- 78
- 79
Chapter 78: The Talk
Cloud awoke on the bean bags the next morning to find the fire extinguished and Aerith nowhere to be seen. He felt a pounding in his head, and his eyes remained heavy. The pouncing grew worse as he rose to his feet and hobbled into the kitchen. Opening the refrigerator, he found himself a glass of ice water. He quickly grabbed it and drank it down, hoping it would ease the sensation.
"Now you're up!" announced a familiar soprano.
Cloud jumped in surprise. Hearing a giggle, he turned around.
Aerith was standing there, smiling at him. She was completely dressed. She had obviously showered; she smelled much more pleasant than he certainly did.
"Don't do that," he groggily reprimanded. "I've got this pounding in my head and this pukish feeling."
"It's called a hangover," she replied. "You had one champagne two many. You're not used to drinking, are you?"
"I only turned twenty-one last August," he replied. "Did I fall asleep there?"
"We both did," Aerith verified. "That's why I woke up feeling better." She kissed him gently. She then looked down. "And you're still naked."
"Dammit," Cloud muttered. "I'll jump in the shower."
"Who said you could put your clothes on?" she playfully snapped. "You've had way too much to drink; you need some food in you!"
"Now?" he asked.
"Right now!" she replied. "You've never had breakfast naked?"
Cloud shook his head.
"That's going to change today," she announced. "Now sit!"
He duly sat at the table.
"You know," she continued as she walked toward the counter, "I kind of like these cfnm moments!"
Cloud was silent.
"Consider yourself lucky," she said. "Do you have any idea how uncomfortable these jeans are?"
He was still silent; he slowly remembered what he was going to do that day; he was going to tell her the truth about his past. And she was going to leave him.
"All girls' jeans are uncomfortable," she continued.
"Why do you wear them, then?" he asked.
"Because we look good in them!" she replied with a smile as she shook her backside in his direction.
Just then, Aerith's cell phone began to ring. She picked it up, and realized that it was Elmyra calling. She put the phone down, looked at it silently, and did not put her finger anywhere near it until the ringing stopped.
THAT EVENING...
The day dragged slowly on. Cloud showered around noon, and put clothes on, much to Aerith's disappointment. Every time she did something like that, she reminded him of the false love she had for him. He realized that, by telling her the truth, he was doing her a big favor. It would no doubt hurt at first, but it would be a favor nonetheless.
He spent the afternoon thinking about the things that he would never do again. It was his last breakfast at the house. It was his last shower there. He had awoken in the parlor for the first and only time. It turned out to be a sad, slow afternoon.
Finally, around six in the evening, he could no longer wait. It was time to get it taken care of. Tifa was waiting for him.
"How about a walk on the beach?" he suggested.
"I'd like that," Aerith replied. "It would detoxify the place from last night."
Cloud lowered his head. It would instead be toxified in another way.
"I just need a minute," she said before disappearing into the bedroom.
Two minutes later, she returned, having changed into a black tank top and a tan skirt.
"That's a new look for you," Cloud observed, trying not to seem too depressing.
"I just wanted to look a little girly this evening," she said with a smile.
Cloud silently admitted that she looked cute dressed like that. What a shame it was that she was about to dump him.
As they were now both ready, Cloud silently led her outside, making sure to lock the door behind him. He would never set foot in that house again; he would give her the key when she dumped him to let her know that the place was hers.
They stopped at the ice cream stand, where Cloud got them ice cream again. He did not bother to fantasize about reuniting with Tifa again; that would soon happen for real, possibly even that night.
They quietly finished their ice cream before Aerith began to notice the vibe again.
"What's up?" she asked.
"It's time went on the beach," he replied solemnly.
"Okay," she agreed, oblivious to what he was planning.
Cloud silently led her down the steps until their feet touched the sand. He led her straight to the same spot as the previous night, taking extra care to make sure that nobody was coming this time.
Aerith gave a seductive smirk.
"Time for take two?" she asked as she put her index finger on her bright red lips.
Cloud shook his head.
"No, Aerith," he dismissed. "There's something important we need to talk about. And it's not good."
The smile faded from her face as she placed her hands on her lower back.
"What's wrong?" she asked, as she became concerned.
Cloud opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He figured it was because he could not think of how to word it.
"Cloud?" she continued, in a more concerned tone of voice. She was visibly getting upset.
He opened his mouth again, and still no words came out. He then realized it was because he was nervous.
"Cloud, this isn't funny," Aerith snapped, with a look on her beautiful face suggesting that she almost wanted to cry. "What do you have to tell me?"
Here it came.
"I'm not who you think I am," Cloud finally said.
She looked him in the eyes.
"What do you mean?" the perplexed girl asked.
"I lied to you about something when we first met," he began. "It was only one thing, but it's a big thing. It's why you fell in love with me, Aerith, and I'm not expecting you to want to stay with me once I tell you the truth. But I can't live this lie any longer."
Aerith gazed at him with a lump in her throat.
"I never got into SOLDIER," he continued. "I just didn't have what it takes. And as a result, you fell in love with someone I'm not."
Aerith turned her head and looked away from Cloud.
She's beyond pissed, he thought.
"I never made it," he continued. "I'd spent the longest time lying to myself about it. I'm not the person you thought it was. That person doesn't exist, and never did. And I'm very, very, sorry."
She then turned to face him, and began to open her mouth.
And now she's going to break up with me, he thought to himself. Here it comes.
He reached into his pocket, preparing to give her the house key.
She then placed her hand on his cheek. But it was not in an angry manner; it was in a gentle, loving one.
"That's it?" she asked.
Cloud nearly jumped in surprise. All he could do was nod.
"I knew that already," she said.
Now, he did slightly jump in surprise.
"You what?!"
"All I had to do was go online and search, silly," she continued before smiling. "I did that on the barge when we crossed the ocean. Didn't you notice me fiddling with my phone?"
Cloud was astounded. She had known the truth even before he did.
"So you're not mad?" he asked.
Aerith placed both her arms on his shoulders.
"Of course not," she replied as she kissed him. "You did remind me of him at first. I might have liked you because of that. But I fell in love with you because you're you."
"You knew the real me this whole time?" he asked.
"There's only one you, Cloud," Aerith replied. "You protected me in the slums; that hasn't changed. You rescued me from the Shinra building; that didn't change. You listened to me the whole time; that certainly hasn't changed." She paused. "You broke down and cried when you thought I was dead; that really shows you care, babe. And then you searched for me when you thought I might be alive." She paused again. "And you're here for me now, in the current situation."
Cloud sighed. It was obvious that Barret was wrong. But now...
"You feed me, you clothe me, you unclothe me, you do everything," she continued. "I don't care that you were never in SOLDIER. I wouldn't define you by your job." She sniffled. "I wouldn't even care if you were a stripper."
"Really?" asked the perplexed Cloud.
"Actually, scratch that," she said. "I would care. I wouldn't want other women seeing your junk."
Cloud laughed. He could not believe that she already knew.
"Give me a hug," she commanded.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in.
"You're nobody but you," Aerith continued as she reached behind herself for one of his hands. "It's all why I want to spend the rest of my life with you."
He then realized that his hand was resting on her butt through her skirt; she had pushed it downward.
"Well," she began, "are we or aren't we?"
"What?"
"Under the boardwalk," she clarified. "You kind of owe me for scaring me like that."
Before he could respond, she began to kiss him hungrily.
"You don't think we'll get caught, do you?" he asked out of concern, once he could catch his breath.
"Will you just shut up and take my skirt off?" Aerith demanded as she continued to kiss him.
Cloud did as he was told and noticed that she was not wearing panties.
"You planned this?" he asked.
"Just get it away from me!" she practically shouted before kissing him again.
SOMEWHERE ELSE...
Bella cried hysterically as the gurney, carrying Aly's body, was rolled away. She was sobbing in the dining-room, still unable to grasp what had happened over the last few hours. "Seth," as Sephiroth had been known to them, had been gone when everyone awoke, leaving all three of them, especially Aly, heartbroken. But the last two hours would never be forgotten.
Meanwhile, Eddie was able to keep his composure as the coroner gently interrogated him in the kitchen.
"And you're sure she never went to see a doctor about her pregnancy?"
"I didn't even know she was having a baby," he tearfully replied.
The coroner was perplexed.
"Wasn't her belly big?" he asked. "That's a sure way to tell."
"Not until the end," he sobbed.
"You mean like the last few weeks?"
"No," Eddie replied. "She wasn't even big this morning."
The coroner stood up and turned to Detective Flemington, who had also arrived at the scene. A third person, a counselor, arrived at that moment, and took the children to another room in the house.
"What we just got involved in was, up until now, unheard of," the coroner said. "A single mom dies in childbirth."
"That's not unheard of," the detective said.
"I'm not finished. I know this is probably the weirdest thing you've ever heard, but her son said she wasn't pregnant two days ago."
"That's not possible," dismissed Detective Flemington. "He's a kid. Kids are full of shit all the time."
"He said she swelled suddenly, gave birth, and died within twenty-four hours," the coroner continued. "And this might not be as unbelieveable as it seems. The boy also said a man spent the night with the family. Guess who matches his description?"
"Santa Claus?" Flemington guessed sarcastically.
"You got the first letter right," replied the coroner. "It matches Sephiroth."
"It can't be him," Flemington dismissed. "At least I don't think so. But who knows? I've heard something weirder happened up north. They found a five-year-old roaming naked outside Icicle Inn. They captured him, clothed him, but, since he was non-verbal, they didn't know what to do with him. The next day, not only was he verbal, but he looked at least three years older."
"Could Sephiroth be responsible for both?" suggested the coroner. "But he's supposedly in the planet's core right now. He can't be in two places at once."
"I don't know," replied Flemington. "I just don't know."
LATER...
Once again, Cloud and Aerith sat naked in the parlor, by the fire and each with a champagne glass in hand. This time, thought, it was different. Cloud no longer had the burden of telling Aerith the truth about his life; she had known the entire time. He was now able to enjoy the moment...mostly.
"So nice we had to do this twice," she giggled. "But now you're feeling better."
Cloud smiled. They were sitting pretzel-style, facing each other.
"You really knew this whole time," he observed.
"I did," she confirmed. "In fact, I had a date planned for us that we never went on."
"You did?"
Aerith nodded. "It was when we were at Gold Saucer, the second time. I was going to take you on the Gondola."
"We can still do that sometime," Cloud assured her.
She shook her head. "That won't be necessary. But I guess I can say what I was going to say."
"Go ahead," he offered.
She squeezed both his hands with both of hers.
"What I was going to tell you was that it kind of bothered me how you two looked exactly alike, but I soon realized that you were two different people. I thought I saw him in you, but you're different. I could tell that since Wall Market. And from then on, I was searching for you."
"Searching for me?"
"I guess I meant that I wanted to meet you," continued Aerith.
"But I was right there," Cloud pointed out.
"I wanted to meet the real you," she clarified. "And since I've returned, I've been starting to do that. But there's so much more."
"What else do you want to know?" he asked.
"I know you grew up with Tifa in Nibelheim," she replied. "But that's really all I have. Tell me, how did you remember the incident in Nibelheim if you weren't there?"
"I was there," Cloud replied. "But I was just a regular soldier."
"I see," said Aerith. "That would make sense."
"There has to be more that you want to know," Cloud suggested.
"I suppose there's a lot," she said.
"Just ask the first thing that comes to mind," he commanded.
"Who did you take to your high school prom?" she asked. "On a more pleasant note."
"I didn't go," he replied.
"To the prom?" she asked.
"To high school," he clarified.
"What did you do all that time?" she inquired.
"I really can't tell you anything interesting that happened between the time I was sixteen and the time I met you."
"You weren't under a rock that whole time, were you?"
"I was in a giant test tube," Cloud replied. "In the basement of the Shinra Mansion."
"For five years?!" Aerith exclaimed. She had not seen that coming.
"For five years," he confirmed. "I turned twenty-one in a test tube. I don't even remember exactly when."
In response, she pulled Cloud to her chest and held him close, gently stroking his hair. "You've been through a lot," she said as she kissed his head.
"My companion and I got out and he got killed shortly afterward," he said.
"After your friend got killed," Aerith asked, "what happened?"
"A few days later," Cloud continued as he sat up, "Tifa found me at the train station. A week after that, we raided Reactor Number One, and then I met you, selling flowers in the street."
Aerith placed her hand on her heart; she seemed touched.
"Or maybe you were the slum drunk, I don't know."
"Stop it!" she laughed.
"I'm just kidding," he assured her.
She then rose to her feet. She turned her back towards him, and placed her hands on her hips.
Cloud wanted to enjoy the view, but it was obvious she had something important to say.
"I've been known as a lot of things," Aerith began. "But I don't want to be known as any of them. I don't want to be known as the last Cetra. I don't want to be known as the 0002 cheer captain. I don't even want to be known as 'the flower girl.'"
"What do you want to be known as?" Cloud asked.
"I want to be known as Mrs. Strife," she answered.
Cloud was silent. This beautiful, naked woman wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. There was no concern anymore; that evening confirmed that she really did love him, the real Cloud.
And yet, there was still Tifa. If he indeed married Aerith, it would strangle any hope that he and Tifa would end up together, after they were given a second chance like no other.
But it was now certain Aerith truly loved him. There was no way she would end their relationship.
Unless...
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- 78
- 79
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Premonitions: Uncut