Hey everyone! Here's a two-part story about Cloud and Tifa. Very CloTi and cute, so I hope you guys like it. FFVII and its characters aren't owned by me. SAD, but oh well! Anyways, happy belated Valentine's Day and review if you like :)

THE PERFECT GIFT

Part I

It was that time of year again where an assortment of red flowers was in abundance, kisses were lovingly tossed around, and the usually cheap boxes of chocolate skyrocketed to a possession of luxury at the local candy store. Couples snuggled closer together, hoping to fend off the February weather and also seeing the extra opportunity to touch and caress one another. It was the ample time for love to seed itself and blossom into the hearts of people young and old.

A year ago, Cloud wouldn't have fallen in that category. On the spectrum, he was more towards the side where he drank sullenly in the corner of the bar, trying to avoid the slew of customers that wanted to spend their Valentine's Day at the Seventh Heaven; either to drink their loneliness away or celebrate love with the person beside them. Cloud never sneered at giddy couples or judged them like the single customers did. In fact, Cloud would rather observe them and simply wonder how some people were able to make a relationship like that work. He didn't have a single clue, but he never felt pressured to know since he was not nearly in the position to consider the effort of being with someone.

Now however, was the sole reason why he was panicking.

Because he was in a relationship with the owner of Seventh Heaven: Tifa Lockart. And she was more than just a girlfriend to him. She was…

He sighed. He couldn't even formulate the words to completely describe how much she meant to him. In fact, she had been quite merciful with him when he stuttered out the question that finally made them official four months ago. Instead of standing there waiting for stilted words to come out, Tifa had understood his intentions and gifted him with a confirmed kiss on the lips. He had dodged a bullet then and continued to do so, but the first milestone in their relationship had made him re-confront his feelings for her and how to show them. If he couldn't be articulate with his words, what chance did he have to make her Valentine's Day gift a wonderful success?

The subject of a Valentine's Day gift wouldn't have occurred to him, if it weren't for Denzel and Marlene. It was about two and a half weeks before the holiday, and Cloud entered the bar to see his kids and girlfriend crowd around the counter. Intrigued, he loomed over them to see what they were talking about. Before Denzel was a list of things that didn't exactly make sense to Cloud: chocolate-covered strawberries, a fluffy teddy bear, a dozen red roses, and… a diamond necklace? Now, the strawberries Cloud understood because Denzel's favorite fruit was strawberries and who didn't like chocolate? The teddy bear… well, Denzel was slowly but surely growing up and was therefore outgrowing his fondness for stuffed animals. And the last two on the list, why in the name of Gaia would Denzel be interested in those? It was a very peculiar list that Cloud couldn't make any connections out of.

"Denzel, a diamond necklace is not necessary! And not very realistic for a young person like yourself…" Tifa said.

But Denzel just groaned and dropped his head to the table. "But it has to be the PERFECT present or else she won't like me," he muffled, the table cutting off most of his words' clarity.

"She won't like you either way," Marlene snickered, receiving a heated eye from their maternal guardian. "You know I'm kidding!" Marlene backtracked. "But you should make her a really pretty card. Oh, and you can get that bear that was on sale at the store!"

"That's a great idea Marlene," Tifa shone back with pride.

"What's going on?" Cloud asked, finally getting acknowledgement from his three family members. So he got the gist that Denzel was infatuated with a girl. His lack of experience and constant worrying about the other gender was something Cloud was all too familiar with. But the gift-giving was something that confused him. What was the problem? Simple flowers from Aerith's church would have been enough to suffice, right?

"He's in love with a girl," Marlene gushed.

"I got that part but… why is there a fuss?"

Denzel looked up to purposefully roll his eyes at him. "It's a fuss Cloud because I don't know how to show her how I feel."

"Just give her flowers from the church. Why make it more complicated?" the Mako-eyed man said, offering what he thought was a genius (and practical) idea.

Unsurprisingly, his two foster children just sighed, while Tifa tried to stifle a smile. Cloud never was one for these type of things. "Of course he needs to get her a com-pli-cat-ed present. How is he going to tell her how he feels without a gift that would absolutely make her heart burst with LOVE? On Valentine's Day, Cloud! That's a big no-no for people our age," Marlene told him, trying to remind him of just how relationships worked for yet-to-be-mature 8-year-olds.

Instead of processing his foster daughter's advice, Cloud zeroed in on two specific words: Valentine's Day. Holy shit, he had forgotten about that. Reflexively he looked to Tifa and saw that she was now looking at him inquisitively. Double shit. What did that look mean? Cloud hoped to all things holy that his face wasn't blatantly flushed from his lack of romanticism. Was she looking at him in disappointment? Did she think he was sick? Is she already planning on a way to dump him because he was the worst boyfriend for forgetting about the most romantic day of the year? In reality, she either didn't know he forgot or didn't care, but he couldn't help but worry anyways. This was their first Valentine's Day and he was already on the path for a break-up. It wasn't his fault that he didn't have too much experience in the past when it came to relationships. Hell, he was busy getting revenge and saving the world.

But this was Tifa. And she deserved the best.

So a week after that little episode, Cloud found himself at his desk struggling to find the perfect gift for Tifa while the said girlfriend was out to lunch with a visiting Yuffie. Valentine's Day was nine days away, but that only meant that each day was more of an anxious build-up for him. He had a piece of paper in front of him to jot down possible ideas, but an hour later only resulted in him being of a similar mood to a brooding Denzel. So much for following his own "genius" and "practical" plan.

"Cloud?" a light voice called from his doorway.

"You can come in Marlene," Cloud answered her. Her tiny footsteps led the small girl deeper into his room, standing in front of him to fully analyze her guardian's disposition.

She had noticed that he seemed off the last week, and she was determined to figure out what was wrong with him. "Why have you been sad this week?" She asked, not bothering to sugar-coat what they both know has been happening.

It took him a few minutes to answer, never being great with words much less admitting them to someone. In the same point-blank manner, he said, "I don't know what to get Tifa."

Marlene nodded her head in understanding and sympathy. To say that Marlene was happy about Tifa and Cloud getting together, was an understatement. Denzel and she had been infinitely thrilled. Not only because it was obvious that they had feelings for each other and they'd do anything to make each other happy if they were together, it was also agonizing for the kids to watch their guardians skirt around each other in awkward shyness. On a more personal level, it made Marlene feel more… well, feeling more normal in a typical household setting. While she loved her papa with ALL of her heart, she still missed his company and preferred him to stay with her versus rebuilding Corel. And before the whole saving-the-world thing, her papa had also been very busy during his AVALANCHE days and rarely had time to fully commit to her as a dad that would normally stay at home after an average day-job. Through it all, it was for the greater good and she was lucky to now live with Denzel and her two guardians. She would never trade these times for anything else. But instead of having two 20-something-year-old guardians that still hadn't gotten past their phase of being awkward childhood crushes, it was nice for Marlene and Denzel to have a mother figure and a father figure who consistently stayed at home during the night and were working as one loving unit.

With those thoughts in mind, Marlene decided to take it upon herself to help Cloud search for the perfect gift, hoping that it would only strengthen their relationship together. She patted his back in an attempt to alleviate some stress. "It's okay Cloud. I'll help you figure something out. What kinds of things does Tifa like?"

"… She likes walking around the town, especially the park because of all the greenery. But we already do that every week so it doesn't feel as special if I took her on a stroll for Valentine's Day when she's going to do it again the next day. I also thought about getting her something for the bar or kitchen because she's always busy and I figured she could get something to make her job easier. But… that doesn't seem right to me. I want the present to be for her, not for something that would make her job easier… when she sees her job as taking care of us. And there are flowers, bears, and candy… but it's generic and Tifa doesn't… ahem, I want to get her something other than what any guy could give her…"

Marlene was surprised that Cloud had said so much. She almost thought Cloud wasn't capable of stringing more than ten words together for conversation. This only proved to her just how much thought he put into this, and she felt for him more.

"Okay, there must be other things Cloud. What kind of food does she like? Are there hobbies of hers that she hasn't done in a while? Maybe painting? What about songs and music?"

"Actually, Tifa used to play the piano. I could get her a really nice piano," Cloud said, smiling a little for once this past week.

"That's a good idea!" Marlene said, excited to hear how well Tifa could play.

The moment was short-lived though as Cloud's face became gloomy again. "It is a good idea, but grand pianos are expensive. It's not that I mind spending the money to get her that, but I don't have enough gil right now to get it within the next week. I'd have to save at least two weeks to get it and by then it'll already be too late."

Marlene pursed her lips, "Yeah, you're right."

Cloud just sighed and dropped his head to the table in depression, reminding Marlene about Denzel. Thinking about her roommate, Marlene quickly ran out to find him, thinking that reinforcement for this situation was of upmost importance. After briefing him of what was going on and dragging Denzel into Cloud's room, he had to stop himself from laughing—feeling bad about seeing his guardian in an unusually vulnerable position all because of Tifa. It was obviously something that he could relate to.

"Hey Cloud, what's the matter?" Denzel asked.

Cloud just merely eyed him, knowing already that Marlene would have supplied him with all the details he needed. Denzel just smiled innocently back.

"So what do you think Denzel? What should he get her?"

"How should I know? I barely even knew what to get Theresa."

"Hmph," Marlene grumbled, already regretting bringing her ridiculous foster brother into the equation. "Come on Denz, we need to help Cloud figure something out other than the usual things like flowers and candy! It needs to be special for Tifa!"

"I know that! Okay… hmm… oh I know! Why don't you take her somewhere out of town? You know like a vacation," Denzel suggested.

"Good plan, but who's going to watch you guys, the house, and the bar?" Cloud said.

"Don't worry, we don't need anyone to watch us. And we can take care of the house," Denzel recommended with a grin. Cloud just looked at him blankly. "Fine."

"Oh! We can ask Papa to watch us! I'm sure if I ask REALLY nicely, he'll visit us for the weekend! Then you and Tifa can go ahead and take a vacation! You guys need it anyways, you're always taking care of us so you need a break," Marlene said with Denzel nodding in fervent agreement.

"Hmm…" Cloud mulled it over. It was an impressive suggestion, and he appreciated his kids' help in finding Tifa a great present. But he still felt a nagging sensation that he could just do better. That there was still something out there that would've been more special for his lady.

"Come on, just do it!" Marlene said, breaking him out of his thoughts. "It's the best choice so far. And I doubt we can think about anything else that's better. So, all you need to do now is figure out where to go!" Knowing they were right and Cloud himself having a very limited amount of options (or creativity), he succumbed to this idea.

Denzel suggested going to Kalm since it was right out of Edge, but Marlene insisted that the town was boring and filled with retired elderly people that barely went out. Surely that would not be the most ideal place for a young, lively couple. She instead suggested the Gold Saucer, but Cloud shot it down saying that would have been just as expensive as the piano gift, especially since they only had a week or so to make hotel reservations (which was probably already 100% booked). Visiting the small town of Icicle Inn in the snowy mountain was also haphazardly thrown into the conversation, but thinking about temperatures that were more frigid than the current 30 degrees in Edge made him feel stricken.

"What about Costa del Sol?"

Cloud thought a minute about Denzel's choice, liking the idea of relaxing under the hot sun and diving into the warm, emerald-colored sea.

"Yeah that's a good one. And you already have a place there, so it's not like you need to worry about a place to stay," Marlene added on.

Good point, Cloud thought since he knew it was usually the hotel expenses that took up a bulk of the vacation budget. That only left having money for places to eat, the boat ride to get there, and recreational activities that he was sure Tifa would participate in. It wouldn't be too bad with how many delivery jobs he was currently lined up for. He was also lucky enough to have saved a bit of money in the past for "emergencies" like these. He figured if he took on a few more requests, he'd probably have enough money to splurge on Tifa. Cloud smiled at the two kids, who gave big grins back. "All right, it's settled then. Vacation to Costa del Sol it is."

The kids rejoiced, elated that both their guardians would have a wonderful time for Valentine's Day. Costa del Sol was the perfect getaway, and it was well deserving for both Cloud and Tifa.

Just then, they heard the front door open, and Cloud whispered for them to keep quiet about the vacation plans before he told Tifa tonight. He wanted it to be a surprise after all, and Marlene and Denzel crossed their hearts to not say a word. The three of them went downstairs and found Tifa and Yuffie getting settled in the bar. Tifa was already pouring a glass of wine for herself and Yuffie, before looking to the stairs and smiling at her family.

"Hey guys," Tifa said happily. Her family said their greetings in return.

"How was your day Tifa?" Cloud asked, moving to sit two stools beside Yuffie at the bar while the kids scampered off to the corner tables to be by themselves.

"It was great, except for a… minor mishap. Thanks anyways for asking," Tifa smiled at him.

"What? No welcome kiss on the cheek? God, you're lame Cloud," Yuffie sniggered. She only got a slap on the back of the head from her victim of insult. "Hey! Stupid jerk!"

"Brat."

"Asshat."

"Yuffie, language!" Tifa scolded, motioning towards the kids who were now giggling from the fight between Cloud and their Aunt Yuffie.

"Psh… Sorry," Yuffie gulped down her glass of wine to avoid the angry gaze of her best friend. "Cloud's still lame," she said quickly afterwards to get one final jab.

Tifa just shook her head, giving up. "Don't listen to her Cloud."

"Do I ever?"

"Why you—"

"Besides, I have a surprise for Tifa on Valentine's Day."

Tifa's head jerked to him, her eyes widening. "What?"

Cloud gave a rare smirk, secretly liking how he sometimes caught Tifa off guard. It made him feel better, knowing that she would be ecstatic that they were going to the sandy shores of Costa del Sol. "Yeah, just got to work out a few details first before I tell you."

He could tell she wanted to press him, but Tifa clamped her lips together. She still had on a barely-contained smile, and Cloud tried not to chuckle at her feeble attempt to be patient. Yuffie on the other hand, started bugging him with details.

"Oooh, tell me, Cloud. I can keep a secret. Tell me. Come on, tell me. Tell me. Tellme, tellme, tellme. Tell me, Cloud. Tell me. TELL ME—"

"How are you still here Tifa? I would've killed myself if I spent more than ten minutes with her," Cloud grumbled. Yuffie just stuck out her tongue in offense, while Tifa giggled at his humor.

"And I'll be glad to annoy you to death, jack-off. Unless… you tell me the surprise."

Cloud just glared at her. Yuffie grinned and made a show of taking a deep breath, obviously intending on starting another string of "tell me's" that would most certainly make Cloud pull out his Buster Sword and stab himself to escape the torture that was Yuffie. He began to rub his temples when she started, finding it near impossible to ignore her constant chattering. "I need to figure out details first Yuffie. I need to find a babysitter."

"A babysitter?" Tifa asked, cocking her head in confusion.

"Yeah. For four days," Cloud responded.

"FOUR DAYS?" Both Tifa and Yuffie shouted at the same time. While Tifa's eyes grew bigger as her brain began to process what they were possibly going to do for four days, Yuffie began to speculate as well, but with different purposes.

"I need someone to watch the kids. And watch the house and the bar. It's hard though, because it'll be Valentine's Day next weekend and most people will probably decline to do such a favor," Cloud said to Tifa, who nodded her head in understanding.

This made Yuffie smirk evilly. "Why Cloud. I can be of service."

Both Cloud and Tifa knew what she was up to, so the mischievous ninja put her hands up in defense. "Hear me out! I'm already visiting until next Sunday, so dear old Aunt Yuffie can totally take care of the kids and spend quality time with them."

"Don't even think about it. I'd rather pay extra to a Turk than have you here," Cloud said, making Yuffie say a slur of profanities (and getting another slap to the head from Tifa).

"Cuh-loud, I'm hurt. Here I am, offering my services FOR FREE, and you're saying you can't trust me? What happened to all the adventures we had together! I had your back when we kicked the crap out of Sephiroth! Where's the loyalty now!"

Cloud said nothing in response, and Yuffie continued her banter. "Now, you can totally trust me to protect your kids, and take care of your house, AND run the bar! I promise to be here and be SUPER attentive. Ask Tifa, she knows I make a mean Molotov cocktail."

"That's an explosive, idiot," Cloud rolled his eyes.

"I stand by what I said. I could serve drinks too, y'know. And I PROMISE not to drink an ounce of any liquor!" Yuffie said, holding up her hands to show that she wasn't crossing her fingers.

Cloud was about to say something, but Yuffie scooted closer to him before he was inches away from his face. "And I know you're hurting on time. You don't want to tell poor Tifa that you couldn't find anyone and ruin her Valentine's Day."

"It wouldn't be a big deal if it's skipped. That's not what Valentine's Day is about. It's about spending the day with someone you care about, so as long as I have Cloud, I think I'll be fine," Tifa said with a mild tint in her cheeks. Yuffie just mock gagged before she smirked at the person who would make the ultimate decision.

Cloud put his face in his hands. "Fine."

"What did you say?" Yuffie said, pretending to press her ear closer to him.

"I said, 'fine' damn it," he cringed from Yuffie's whoops and happy gestures. "BUT remember no alcohol Yuffie. You promised," Cloud said.

Yuffie just cackled in evil delight. "Oh Cloud, don't you know? I CROSSED MY TOES."

"What?"

"I crossed my toes! Don't believe me? I can prove it." Yuffie made a move to take off her shoe and sock, but was immediately rejected by Cloud and Tifa who asserted that she kept her smelly feet to herself. The double-crossing Wutai heiress just shrugged her shoulders, knowing that she got them where she wanted. "Playground rules, Cloud. You know that. Don't worry, I'll take REAL good care of your booze," she chuckled deliciously.

The chocobo-haired man just smiled back. "I'm sure you will. Along with Barret. By the way kids, don't forget to open the door for him when he comes next weekend," Cloud called to the eavesdropping children, who began to laugh out loud.

"Of course Cloud! I would never leave Papa outside in the freezing cold," Marlene said through her giggles, withholding the fact that she hadn't even asked her dad's approval yet to come over for Valentine's Day weekend. Though she knew that he would definitely not pass up an opportunity to torment their poor auntie. "And don't worry, we'll have tons of fun with Aunt Yuffie!" Denzel quipped in from his spot in at the table.

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Yuffie yelled irritably. Tifa also looked puzzled, though she had no trace of anger in her expression like her companion.

"Sorry, I should've explained more carefully. I meant to say that I needed one MORE babysitter, because you know the kids, the house, and running the bar all night long on the busiest weekend of February would probably be a handful. And I know Barret would just drive himself mad if he was here by himself. So I needed someone else to help him. Right Teef?" Cloud looked to the barmaid for back-up.

Tifa, realizing how he just two-timed Yuffie, just laughed. "I absolutely agree."

"Screw that! I am SO not coming here!" Yuffie said, adamant that she'd break her promise.

"Playground rules. You promised to be here," Cloud smirked.

"Hmph. Like I would ACTUALLY listen to my own advice," Yuffie argued.

There was a twinkle in Tifa's eyes. "You will be here Yuffie as promised, helping Barret around the house and running the bar WITHOUT drinking this place dry. You owe me from earlier today since we had to do dishes because of your stupid dine-and-dashing. And if you still don't…" Tifa leaned in and whispered in Yuffie's ear. Within a second, the ninja's face blanched and she cowered away from Tifa once she was done talking to her. Cloud raised an eyebrow, wondering what in the world his girlfriend said to make the stubborn girl keel over.

"Ugh… fine, I'll be here. You guys play dirty," Yuffie complained, accepting a poured shot from the slightly-guilty bartender.

"Thanks Yuffie," Tifa beamed back.

A half hour later, Yuffie had left to visit other bars and the kids went upstairs, preferring to spend their last hours before bedtime in their own room.

A couple more glasses of wine were consumed before Tifa cleaned up the bar and joined Cloud, who had brought his work downstairs to keep his girlfriend company. He had been taking a few more calls, calculating how much he'd make to cover any anticipated expenses and planning the fastest routes between deliveries. She put her arms around Cloud, who just finished mapping out his last route from Nibelheim back to Edge. "So you never told me where we're going."

Cloud's heart melted under her wine-tinted gaze. "Costa del Sol."

She took a step back in surprise. "What!?"

"Yeah. You deserve it," he said with honesty, wrapping his own arms around her. "I want it to be special," he admitted with a bright red blush on his cheeks.

Her smile showed him how much she appreciated it. "Costa del Sol! Cloud! I don't think it could be any more special than this," she told him with confidence. "Thank you so much. I…" she started to say, but as usual, she herself found it hard to speak what was on her mind.

Cloud mirrored her own inability to do so, as he silently cursed himself for not having the courage to tell her exactly how he felt even though it had been a few months now. He wished that he still wasn't so insecure with himself, constantly doubting whether or not he was the right one for her. He was supremely lucky that she wanted to be with him after all he put her through, and Cloud was disappointed that he couldn't tell her more since she should be told the things he wanted to say. In hopes of conveying how much he cared for her, he swooped down in for a kiss and he felt Tifa's smile against his own. "Happy early Valentine's Day," he whispered before planting another swift kiss on her lips.

But even after all this time, even after she promised him that she'd be fine with any gift he'd give her next weekend, Cloud still had this feeling deep down that told him there was something more special for her out there. He just needed to find it.