Awaking bud
Chapter 15
Opening: >Awaking bud< (by Kirito)
Vincent had been sitting in his room for about three hours when someone knocked on his door. Unwillingly, he pulled himself out of his reverie, but knowing that his thoughts would lead him nowhere. He stood up and went to answer the door.
Tifa smiled shyly at him. She knew that he liked to be alone, but she had been worried. She hadn't seen him since the evening before. "Are you okay?" she asked him.
The enigmatic gunman was surprised. He considered her for a few seconds before he nodded. Then he stepped aside, indicating that she may come in. "Did you just want to ask me if I was alright? Or is there something else?" he wanted to know.
"Actually…" Tifa began as she entered the room, "I needed someone to talk to."
Vincent blinked. Someone to talk to…? So, why on Earth did she choose him?
The brunette stopped in the middle of the room and turned to face him. "I know what you are thinking… you want to know why I wanted to talk to you of all people. Am I right?" she said, smiling slightly. But this wasn't a happy smile, but a sad one.
He just looked at her for a short time, then nodded. "I won't deny that…" he replied. "Please, sit down."
Tifa looked around before she sat on a chair that stood in front of a small table near the door. Since there was just one, Vincent leant against the wall, silently watching her. He was not the kind of person to talk much, and he usually avoided to address people himself, if he could help it. So he just waited for the young woman to start.
For some minutes, there was just silence. Tifa knew, Vincent wasn't the talkative type and not sociable. But she had not known to whom she could have talked otherwise. Who else, if not Vincent, would understand her?
The seconds slowly ticked by with both of them remaining silent. The brunette didn't know where to start. And she knew Vincent wouldn't do it.
"So…" the gunman finally said. "What is it you wanted to talk about?"
"Well…" Tifa was surprised. She'd never expected him to address her. "It's just…"
"Is it about Cloud?" he asked.
She blushed a little, then nodded. "Yes… it's…"
"Don't," was all he replied.
"Huh?" Tifa was perplexed. "What do you mean?"
Vincent put some strands of his raven black hair back before he turned his blood red eyes on her. "Don't rely on him too much…" he muttered. "It only causes you trouble."
She blinked in surprise. "I don't mean to…" she whispered. "I just don't know what to do."
"I cannot tell you," he replied. "But it would be better for you if you got over him soon. Otherwise, you will reach the point where you cannot recover. Do you want that?"
"No…" Tifa bowed her head. "Of course not."
"Then don't." He narrowed his eyes a little. "You will find someone who is worth your attention. But it's not him."
"And what about you?" she wanted to know. "Did you…"
Vincent shook his head so that his long black hair fell over his shoulders. "It took me a long time to get over Lucrecia. Until recently. It almost destroyed me. That's why I can tell you this."
"Hm." For some time she thought about what he had said. "I know… I shouldn't… but…"
"I know it's not easy. This kind of stuff is always hard. But you will be okay, I'm sure."
"Do you really think so?"
Vincent nodded. "I do."
Tifa wanted to reply, but then there was a loud call downstairs, addressing her. Elena seemed to need her help. She sighed. What was it this time?
"I think it would be better to go," Vincent stated with a hint of amusement in his voice. "I don't want to know what she would think about you being here with me…"
The brunette couldn't help but grin. "Yeah… she might think there's something going on…" she giggled. "Well… thank you for your time and your advice…" she finally said. She stood up. "See you around." With that, she left the room, smiling at him.
As soon as the door shut close behind her, the enigmatic gunman went back to his original spot at the window and continued looking out. Seemingly, he had finally begun to recover a little bit. Though he was a little surprised at that. There had been a time when he'd thought that he would never get over losing Lucrecia to Hojo.
He knew it was ridiculous, there had never been anything he could have done about it when she had agreed to be experimented on by the madman. And slowly, bit by bit, he managed to accept it.
He just hoped Tifa wouldn't make the same mistake. She was way too kind to crack under Cloud's ignorance of her feelings.
