Stuck In the Past

This is mainly a review chapter, so it's short. It's an idea I've had in my head for the longest time. I would love reviews! :) It's (in a way) a reflection on the relationship between Cloud, Aerith, and Tifa from Final Fantasy 7 only with Leon, Claire, and Ada. This story is also alternate universe.

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If you couldn't save one life, you couldn't save any...right? Leon was in the wrong business then. He had prided his job on being a fighter, a hero. He went to great extents to do what he thought was right and though it never seemed good enough, he knew what he was doing was for the best. He's lost good people but never blamed himself for their deaths as he knew they wouldn't want him to. He never knew them long enough either for it to emotionally bother him besides the simple fact they were an innocent life. Yes, he would carry their death with him for the rest of his life but none of them would ever amount to one particular life that saw everything with him from the beginning. Nothing would ever be the same.



Leon's fingers wrapped around the thin glass of whiskey and brought the brim to his lips, downing the amber liquid. He wasn't much of a whiskey drinker but as certain nights plagued him with nightmares more horrendous than the things he's experienced, he needed something a little stronger than beer. Sometimes, whiskey was never strong enough and he would eventually discover he was an angry drunk. It was a side he was never proud to let go but he could never help it as long as he drank.



"Would you like another one?" the bartender asked Leon while cleaning out a beer mug. The blonde looked up at the balding male and gave a gentle nod. The bartender nodded in response, acknowledging the younger male as he walked away. Leon lost count of how many shots he consumed but his body was definitely feeling the effects of sluggishness and slightly impaired speech. His eyelids were heavy and he was lethargic. His surrounding would dance before his eyes if he moved his head too fast and he would feel dizzy with the drunken feeling of dancing, while holding completely still. It was a feeling Leon was never happy about.



"Here you are. Want me to call you a cab?" the bartender asked as he placed another shot in front of Leon. In order for the bartender to ask if he wanted Leon to call a cab only gave the agent an idea how much he had drank already. Leon shook his head slowly and downed the remaining remnants of the previous shot before throwing back the entire glass the bartender just handed him. He stood from the stool and walked, or what he thought was walking, out of the bar.



It was late at night. Hardly a soul walked the streets except an occasional a few. He slowly walked over to his Jeep, keeping his eyes on the ground. His fingers fumbled for the keys in his pocket until he managed to get them out without falling over. He released a sigh and pressed his forehead against the driver side window. When he had closed his eyes, he could see her smiling back at him and nodding in his direction. She would randomly laugh and when she would, Leon would force himself to open his eyes.



Leon inserted the door key into his Jeep and unlocked it. When he had it slightly opened, a hand came behind him and closed it. What he thought was his usual instinctive reaction was something slower and more sluggish, the world dancing too fast before his eyes as he couldn't see the female's face in front of him. She had a familiar scent before Leon became aware that he drank too much and lost consciousness. How much did he actually drink?



When he woke up, he was laying on the bed in his apartment. It was still dark outside and the bedroom was lit up by the dim lamp of his room that was on the lowest setting of three. His head sang different tunes and pounded to different drums. He expelled a grunt from his lips and rubbed his eyes, sitting up in his bed. Amidst the hangover, he was still weak and dizzy. Just when he thought he wouldn't have one, he would have to take an aspirin when he woke up. Which, the bathroom was where he went but the closer he came to the bathroom - he heard the shower running.



He was compelled to open the door quietly and step inside. The room was filtered in a heated mist from the shower. The only scenario he imagined first was he had brought someone home with him in the middle of his drunken haze but then he remembered there was a female that stopped him from getting into his Jeep. Had she drove him home because he was too intoxicated? He couldn't remember if he got into bed himself or if the female had to help him. Whoever it was, she was using his shampoo and the smell drifted throughout the bathroom the closer he got to the shower curtain. He stopped in mid motion of pulling the curtain to the side when he realized the short, red dress dropped to the tiled floor with the stilettos.



Just as he bent down to pick the dress up, the shower was turned off. He quickly straightened just as the female pulled the towel from the shower curtain and there was a pause. Before he could step away or react, the curtain was pulled to the side and he was face to face with the female in his shower, wrapped in nothing but his towel which left little to the imagination.



"Ada..." Leon heard himself mutter her name.