Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ My Happy Ending ❯ Sunday ( Chapter 32 )

Chapter 32: Sunday

 

“I wanna love, I wanna give

I want to find another way to live

Another shout, another cry

And the walls come tumbling down…

And I'm calling you.”

-Yes “Walls”

 

Brad and Shera sat at the kitchen table of her small apartment drinking coffee on Sunday morning. Brad had been frequenting Shera's house nearly every weekend, though occasionally, she would come to visit in Edge. However, time off for Shera was often difficult to obtain with keeping up with business, tailoring clothing for her shop, and working down at the marina on top of that.

“Really, Shera, I wish you'd slow it down,” Brad remarked. “I think you're overworking yourself.”

“Bradley, you worry too much about me,” she responded, sitting down across from him. “I'm fine, and besides, I have so much to do with my business since it's beginning to grow.”

“You know, it's really refreshing to see people starting their lives anew and picking themselves up from the current state of the world,” Brad remarked.

“I think a lot of people are beginning to do that.” She paused. “I hope this doesn't sound like I'm dwelling on the past, but…I hope Cid is, too.”

“No, it doesn't sound like that. I mean, he was an ass for treating you like that all those years, but I'm glad that he at least apologized about it. Raye never even got that.”

Shera nodded. “She told me about what that Alan did to her.”

“Yeah, it was a mess,” Brad said. “But I think Cid's going to be alright. Raye's helping him now, and you want know something funny?”

“Hnn?”

“I think something happened between Cid and Raye in Cosmo Canyon. They've gotten along a lot better than usual.”

“Is that so?” Shera responded, raising her eyebrows. “That's splendid to hear. He needs a friend to keep him company. They seem so alike in personality that I can see them being friends…if she's forgiven him.”

“Just out of curiosity, Shera…have you really gotten over him? I mean…you said you really had feelings for the man and…”

Shera cut him off. “Well I'll never stop caring about him, if that's what you want to know, but yes, I strongly believe I'm over him. There was just too much damage done between us, and honestly, I think seeing him again at Christmas was the confirmation I needed to move on.”

“I believe you, Shera. In fact, I kind of feel like an ass for even asking.”

“It doesn't bother me that you did, Brad. I feel that we should have an open relationship and be honest with one another.”

“I agree completely, but I can't help wondering about what happened between Cid and my sister. I mean, she didn't yell at me like she always does when I gave her a hard time about going and staying over with Cid to help him with his airplane. It's kind of…well, it's not fun anymore!”

Shera's jaw dropped, and she almost choked on her coffee. “She went to stay with Cid?! In Rocket Town?!”

“Yeah…she said something about they would get done with a lot more if she didn't have to drive out on Sunday mornings, so she went out there Saturday afternoon so they could work on it Saturday night and all day Sunday.”

“And how does Rick feel about that?”

“He doesn't mind if it's Cid. He trusts him.”

Shera smiled. “Really? My not many fathers would let their daughter stay with a man no matter how good of friends they are. My father blew a fit when I was living with Cid, and I think he barely tolerates you.” She took the last sip of her coffee. “Honestly, though, Cid is very trustworthy. He would never take advantage of your sister in an unwanted manner.”

Brad snorted. “Of course not. Raye would cut off his testicles and feed them to stray dogs if he ever did anything to her.”

“Well I wouldn't put it past her,” Shera laughed. Her giggles died down to a pleasant smile. “Say, Brad?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think your sister would mind trying on some dresses and other things I made?”

Brad arched an eyebrow. “Dresses? Gee, I don't know, Shera. I mean, I've never seen Raye in a dress myself.”

“Well…I always thought your sister was really very pretty, and she has a great figure. I think she would look really nice in a dress. She's so used to dressing like a boy and being around boys that she's just like one of them. I wanted to put out some ads and have her model in them since I don't have a lot of money to work with. Do you think she will help me out?”

Brad shrugged. “The only thing I can tell you is to ask her. I hate to say that she would only to have her wind up turning you down. You know how she is.” He grinned, entertaining the idea. “However…I'd love to see what you've made…”

 

 

Back in Rocket Town, Raye woke up and poked her head out of the back room in which she slept to look for Cid. She noticed his bedroom door was still closed, indicating that he was probably still asleep. She closed her own door and began to change out of her pajamas and into her work clothes, having brought something that was suitable for working in colder weather. She figured the hangar would be good and cold until the heaters he had up there got warmed up enough to generate comfortable heat.

Raye came out of the room fully dressed, shoes on, and combing her long red hair. She glanced around at the kitchen in which she stood and decided that if she were going to wake Cid up, perhaps the best thing to do was simply put on some tea and cook something - if there was anything to cook. She tied up her hair, and looked around for the tea kettle; it was nowhere to be found. Raye moved aside the dishes that were once more piled up across the countertops and in the sink before finally finding it among the dirty pots and pans stacked on the stove.

She looked down at the overflowing trash can and heaved a sigh before turning her attention to the rest of the house. The place was trashed for sure, but really, it was understandable in this case. She figured that he hadn't been able to do much in his sorry state, and it seemed like Cid didn't have enough company to merit keeping the place clean. She shook her head as she washed out the kettle, working around the piles of soiled dishes in the sink.

Raye put water into the kettle, moved aside the disgustingly grimy pots and pans, and put it on the burner. First things first: this house needed a little TLC. Raye pulled on her heavy coat and sneaked out the back door, going up toward the hangar. She figured that if she turned on the heaters in the hangar, by the time she was done cleaning up the house and feeding Cid, it would be nice and toasty by the time they got up there to work.

When she got back, she found that Cid was still asleep, and apparently, Captain slept with him as the small dog was nowhere to be found elsewhere in the house. Raye began to run some hot water into the sink, clearing out the soiled ones from what looked to be weeks old stagnant dishwater from an earlier attempt at cleaning. Raye wrinkled up her nose when she reached her hand into the ice cold, greasy water to pull the plug.

“Fucking hell, that's gross,” she groused, drying her hands off with a semi-clean towel. “How in the hell can one fucking person generate this much shit?”

In his bedroom, Cid began to stir as he pulled the blankets around his body tighter and flipped over onto his side. He could hear noises coming from the kitchen, and he foggily knew that Raye was already up. Captain suddenly hopped off the end of the bed and went to the bedroom door, wagging his tail. He scratched at it with his small, grey paw and turned to look at his owner expectantly. He turned a circle and scratched again, looking once more at Cid with urgency in his brown eyes.

“Ah, fuck, you gotta go out, don't you?” Cid complained. After laying there for a moment, Cid stood up. “Damn it, Dog. I ought ta train you to use the toilet…if somethin' like that's possible.”

Cid opened his door and glanced up, and Captain ran to the back door, scratching madly at it with his two front paws. He scratched his bed head and let the dog out before returning back to the kitchen. He sat down at the table, yawned and then stretched before settling his eyes on Raye's backside.

“Morning,” she said. “`Bout time you dragged your ass out of bed.”

“Fuck you,” he responded, lighting a cigarette. “It's my house. I'll get up as late as I damn well please.”

“Your house is also going to be cleaned today, so you better be nice to me, Flyboy,” Raye told him, glancing over her shoulder as the spark of mischief gleamed in her eyes. She turned back to the sink. “If you're really good, I might even feed you.”

He snorted. “I think I could stand for a hot meal for a change.” He took a drag off his cigarette before reaching for some kind of bent coat hanger. Cid pushed it down into the cast to scratch a very irritating itch. “Ahh…that's better…”

Raye glanced over her shoulder. “Hey, knock it off!”

“But it itches like a motherfucker!” Cid protested ramming the wire in and out of his cast.

“I know it does, Cid, but you're just going to wind up breaking off the damned wire and getting what's left stuck in there until the cast is removed knowing your luck,” Raye nagged. “And then you'll really be pissed off.”

Cid stopped and contemplated this for a moment. He hadn't had the best luck lately, and he decided that maybe he'd better heed Raye's advice for a change. He removed the wire hanger and put it on the table as the itching of his cast continued to pester him.

“You're probably right,” he sheepishly admitted. “But it fucking itches and it's goddamn annoying!”

“I know it is, but the doctor said you'll have that thing off in a week, right? You lived with it this long, so a little longer won't hurt.” She held up a pan. “And it looks like you destroyed whatever this was supposed to be.”

Raye snorted and laughed a little, and Cid joined in. “Yeah…nearly burned the whole fucking house down.”

“Apparently. This is going to have to soak for a good long while before I can touch it.”

“You sure you even want to?”

“I've already touched worse in this house and didn't die, which is a fucking miracle.” She glanced back at Cid. “Sometimes I wonder how you don't die.”

“Ha! I wonder that, too.”

Raye handed Cid a cup of tea and then finished the rest of the dishes. As her back was turned to him, the pilot couldn't help but study his companion's figure. She was somewhat tall and quite slender with beautifully curved hips that tantalized him whenever she moved. That waist of hers felt perfect in his arm the evening that he kissed her in Cosmo Canyon, and it was all Cid could think of since. And he didn't want to think of it.

He didn't want to think about how warm she'd felt in the cool desert evening. He didn't want to think about how soft her skin felt and how good her hair smelled when he'd pulled her so close to him. But most of all, he wished he could take back the kiss he'd given her. It had kept him up many nights since then, and last night was no different.

And here she was in his house, back turned in front of him with her long red hair down and her waist swaying as she walked. Was this what was called the `rebound' crush that would result in a passing phase? Or was he really feeling things he shouldn't be feeling?

Cid finished his tea and stood up quickly, before his thoughts ran out of control. “I'm, uh…I'm gunna go get dressed, Raye.”

“Okay, Cid,” she responded absently, running a dish towel over a wet plate. “I'll put these away and make some breakfast, and then we'll go get some work done.”

 

 

Later that evening…

 

Raye came into Shera's shop later that evening and glanced around for her brother. They'd made arrangements together that as a means of conserving fuel, they would simply ride together, and Raye would drop Brad off in Costa del Sol before continuing on to Rocket Town. This way, Brad could spend more time with Shera, and Raye could make good on her promise to Cid. The deal worked out perfectly so far, and Raye had more opportunity to grow closer to Shera as well.

Raye wasn't one to befriend other women that easily because of her aggressive nature, but she found that this wasn't the case with Shera. In fact, Raye rather considered Shera her closest girlfriend, and almost a sister. She smiled when she saw Shera appear from the back of her shop.

“I thought I heard someone come in,” Shera said pleasantly. “I'm glad you're here.”

“Yeah? How come?” Raye asked.

“Well, I have a favor to ask of you.”

Raye looked perplexed. “A favor? What kind of favor?”

“Well…I have some ads I want to design, but I need a model.”

The other woman arched an eyebrow. “And…what do you want me to model?”

Shera grinned. “Come back here and I'll show you.” She adjusted her glasses and led Raye to the tailoring room where she held up a lovely black sheath dress. “This is one of them.”

“That's a dress,” Raye flatly stated. “I don't wear dresses.”

“There's a first time for everything, Sis,” Brad's voice piped in. He smiled. “Shera thinks you'll look really pretty in it.”

Raye blanched. “I don't know why the hell you'd think that, Shera!”

“Well, you're really very lovely, Raye, and honestly, I don't have the money to hire a model.”

“Why don't you model them? You're not so bad yourself.”

Shera shook her head. “Because I need to be taking the pictures, and honestly, I…well I made the clothes I want you to model for you.”

“Oh,” was the only response Raye could get out. “You made outfits for me? Well…um, thanks. I guess I better have a look at everything you worked on for me.”

Shera opened a small closet and began to show Raye the outfits she'd made. Raye had to admit that her taste wasn't half bad - most of them were pants outfits she could live with, and the colors of fabric Shera had chosen went well with Raye's red hair and her green eyes. But the dress…Raye wasn't too sure about the dress.

After some coaxing from her brother and Shera, Raye finally conceded to try the thing on. When she emerged from the dressing room, Shera's eyes lit up happily. She clasped her hands at her chest and walked circles around Raye to get a good look at her.

“Oh, you look amazing, Raye!” Shera breathed. “I always knew you'd look great in a dress. You have a nice figure.”

“Me?” Raye asked, blushing.

Shera turned the redhead around and faced her toward the full length mirror on the wall. “Have a look at yourself.”

Raye could barely recognize her own reflection. She'd never thought she'd ever see herself in a dress, and while Brad and Shera thought that she looked great, Raye could only wonder what others would think.

“Here,” Brad said, pulling down a pair of black heels that was just Raye's size. “These would look good on you, too.”

Shera smiled. “Oh, those are my favorite item.” She pulled the purple elastic band that held Raye's hair back in its ponytail and let her tresses fall around her shoulders. Shera smoothed out the red strands and arranged them around her face. “And you could leave your hair down. Maybe I could send you up to the salon and have your hair styled. You'd look great with blonde highlights.”

Raye blushed. Then she frowned suspiciously. “Is there an ulterior motive to this?”

“What?” Brad asked. “Well, no…of course not.”

Raye glared at her brother. “Are you sure? I swear if I find out that you two are in cahoots to hook me up on a date with Cid, I'll kill both of you!”

“No, no! It's not like that at all!” Shera reassured her, though now, the idea was forming in the back of her mind. “I just wanted to see you in something like this. So what do you say? Will you help me?”

Raye heaved a sigh and looked at her reflection once more. “I suppose…”

 

 

Back in Rocket Town…

 

The phone rang from the other room, and Cid ran over from his meal at the kitchen table to pick it up, hoping that it was Raye who was calling.

“Yeah?”

“Highwind?” a man's voice said.

Cid frowned. “Who the hell is this?”

The voice on the other end laughed. “You haven't changed a bit, have you?”

“Who is this?” Cid demanded.

“It's me, Reeve. Reeve Tuesti.”

Cid's face lightened a little. “Well I'll be damned! Reeve! How the hell are ya?!”

“I'm great, Cid, just great,” Reeve responded cheerfully.

“You're the last person I'd expect to contact me. What's up?”

“Well,” Reeve began. “I've established a new organization called the World Restoration Order. It's designed to help get the Planet back on her feet and stop people from further trying to harm it. I was calling because there is a position that I'd like to offer you.”

“Yeah? And what is that?”

Reeve grinned on his end. “Well I was thinking that we could meet to discuss that over in Junon. I've set up a temporary operation there until the new headquarters are complete. When can you meet me?”

Cid shrugged. “Any time I s'pose.” He glanced at his arm. “How about middle of next week?”

“Sounds great. I'll be in contact with more information soon.”

“Alright, I'll see you then, Reeve.”