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Published:
2025-05-14
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2025-06-22
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2/2
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The city of love

Summary:

To help Cloud get over his breakup with his cheating ex Roche, a well-meaning Aerith and Tifa sent him on a holiday to get his mind off things. The only problem is that they send him to Paris, the "city of love" where countless couples go to be cute together so everywhere Cloud looks, he's reminded that his partner was nit as faithful as he was.

Fortunately for the poor guy, he soon meets a very handsome red-haired man on his first day in the city who will completely change his vacation and perhaps even make him forget the reason why he's in Paris in the first place

Notes:

Chapter 1: Paris

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

 Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

"Why am I doing this?"

Cloud rubbed his face as he walked through the city and looked around the sights as he did try to enjoy himself as much as possible. He was in Paris after his friends Tifa and Aerith had bought him tickets to try and help him get over the rather nasty breakup he had gone through when he had found his ex Roche making out with another guy when he came back from a business trip. It was nice of them, but he wasn't sure if it would work.

He was sure that they meant well with the situation and it was really nice to be away from his hometown as everything reminded him of his ex, but he wasn't sure that a trip to Paris, which was called "The city of love" really helped. He sighed once more as he was determined to make the most of the vacation even if it was only for the sake of Tifa and Aerith who had paid for this out of their own pockets and all that, albeit with a bit of help from Aerith's fiancé. 

He also would not be very surprised if Roche was currently getting a very nasty visit from the two women while he was gone as especially Tifa had been absolutely pissed off when he had arrived at her home with tears in his eyes and had explained everything of what he had seen. She had wanted to give Roche a piece of her mind that moment, but had instead stayed to comfort him. It would be just like Tifa to be like that to still do it now. He chuckled at the thought as he arrived at the Eiffel Tower. Craning his head to look at it, he had to admit it was fascinating to see it in person.

Looking over, he saw a couple give each other a kiss and stand up from a nearby bench. Quickly going to sit down on it despite the slight punch to the gut he had gotten at seeing the cut sight, he quickly made a picture of the tower for his friends and they quickly gushed about it over text, making him smile. He was planning to visit the Louvre after this and catch a glimpse of the Mona Lisa, before he heard footsteps approaching.

"Excuse me? Could I sit here?" A very soft voice asked from in front of him and he looked up to see one of the most handsome men that he had ever seen in his entire life with short red hair, blue eyes and pink lips currently curled into a polite smile as he waited for an answer. He quickly nodded and the man thanked him as he sat down with a groan. "Oof. I really needed that break. My feet are still sore from yesterday." He muttered with a sigh.

Cloud replied he hoped he wouldn't be like that in a few days as he had only been here for a day. "You know you should take breaks, but you want to see all the sights so you keep pushing yourself until your body starts screaming." He said, before introducing himself as Genesis and Cloud introduced himself as well, hoping his cheeks weren't as red as he felt as he asked if he lived in Paris. "No, my friends Sephiroth and Angeal sent me here because I was overworked as a commander and get some peace but me being myself, I still fail to listen to that. What about you?" Genesis asked curiously. Cloud looked down.

"My friends sent me here too, but then to try and let me get my mind off my cheating ex." He huffed and Genesis winced as he apologised. "Hey, it's not your fault that my ex didn't have the same idea of faithfulness that I had. I had been looking forward to spending time with him after my business trip too. I had lied about the date I'd return to surprise him, only to see his tongue down another man's throat." Cloud muttered and Genesis shook his head.

"Little bastard. He should be thanking his lucky stars that I wasn't around when he did it as if there is one thing that I can't stand, it's any kind of betrayal especially one of such a close bond." He said and Cloud gave him a grateful smile at hearing this. Genesis smiled back before asking what his plans were that day and Cloud mentioned wanting to go to the museum. "Would you mind if I tagged along? My ticket is for today as well." He said.

Cloud happily agreed with that as he honestly didn't want to already say goodbye to Genesis just yet, even if he didn't say it out loud. Going to the incredibly famous museum after that, it turned out that Genesis was very knowledgeable about art and was more than happy to tell Cloud some facts about the paintings and statues they saw, including the legendary Mona Lisa. This included the fact that until about a century ago, it really wasn't that liked by the public until it was stolen and said theft was highly publicised. Cloud honestly thought his voice was incredibly soothing to listen to.

The sun was going down by the time they left and both men shared looks as neither really knew if the other wanted to still spend time with each other or go their separate ways. "If I may give you one piece of advice, all these restaurants around here are far more expensive than some of the other places I've been to." Genesis advised and Cloud asked if he could lead them to said places. "It would be my pleasure." The redhead replied as he offered his arm.

Cloud took it with a blush on his face and Genesis silently thought he looked incredibly adorable as he led him to a small side alley after a few more minutes of walking where a cute restaurant was nestled between two homes. It was clear that Genesis had been there before as the staff immediately greeted him and led them to an empty table. As their waitress talked to his new acquaintance in French and the redhead talked back, Cloud checked out the menu.

It really was cheaper than some of the prizes he had seen in the centre of the city where most of the tourists were. Ordering food, he raised an eyebrow when their waitress put down a small candle on their table while giving them their drinks and quietly said something to Genesis in French that made him turn become as red as his hair. He asked what she said once she was gone and Genesis bit his lip. "She thinks that you're my date and said the candle would be very helpful with the romantic mood. I'm so sorry." He apologised and Cloud blushed as well even as he said it was fine.

Once their food had arrived and despite having spent hours together already at the time, Genesis and Cloud still found things to talk about while eating their food as they told funny stories about things they had gone through and despite his previous doubts about this vacation, the blond actually forgot about his ex and what he had done as he focused on the handsome man in front of him and Genesis gave him his undivided attention.

Genesis eventually paid the bill at seeing Cloud starting to look tired, rubbing his eyes and trying to suppress his yawns. "I had a great day thanks to you, Cloud and I hope you did as well." He said with a smile on his face and Cloud immediately nodded, much to his relief as the blond then decided to be bold and say that he wouldn't mind seeing the other man again. "I was thinking the exact same thing." Genesis said as he kissed Cloud's knuckles.

Blushing like crazy, Cloud gave Genesis his number, before hailing a cab to his hotel and saying goodbye to the redhead who would walk to his hotel nearby, silently cheering to himself once the car was driving and Genesis couldn't see him anymore. "Oh, man. Tifa and Aerith are going to love this when they hear about it." He muttered once he arrived at the hotel and sent the women a text message to tell them about his day, leaving Genesis out of it for now as they'd make a big fuss about it and he'd rather tell them in person. After a bit of texting, he went to bed as it had been a long day.

Genesis and Cloud spent the next few days together and had a lot of fun as they did something different every day while not quite sure what exactly they were. Acquaintances? Friends? Not quite lovers? They didn't know and they didn't really want to find out while on vacation. Unfortunately, all good things come to an end and Genesis had to go home at the end of the week as he had already been in Paris for a few days when Cloud arrived.

"We'll stay in contact, Cloud. I promise." Genesis whispered the evening before he left as he would fly early in the morning and Cloud told him to better keep that promise. Genesis chuckled in response, before kissing Cloud's knuckles once more while looking him straighy in his eyes to make sure he knew he was serious. "I swear." He whispered and the blond believed him before they had to separate again and Cloud took a deep breath and said one thing

"Man, I've got it bad." 

Notes:

Read and review. See you next time

Chapter 2: After the trip

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognise 

It had been a few months since Paris.

Cloud and Genesis had constantly been in touch since their trip through several texts and calls, but hadn't seen each other in person anymore as they were busy with their own lives and work. Cloud did have to admit that his crush on the other man had not diminished in the slightest as every time they hung up after a call, he had to rub his red cheeks before going on with his day. 

"You've got it bad, don't you?" Tifa teased him one day at seeing his red cheeks after one such call and he smiled bashfully as he looked down, but didn't deny it as he looked back at his childhood best friend and Tifa beamed back at him. He did say he still needed time after his breakup and she thought it was no more than fair. "Take all the time you need to feel comfortable again." She told him. 

Today was a very special occasion indeed as Aerith was finally getting married to her long-term boyfriend and fiancé and Cloud was going there as one of Aerith's friends with Tifa while Zack had invited some friends from the army. Many people in the city they lived in were actually in the army in one way or another, including Cloud's ex. He had originally been invited as well, until he had cheated on Cloud and both Aerith and Zack had removed him from the guest list as they had no interest in having a cheater among their guests. 

Patting down his suit for any wrinkles, Cloud checked himself in the mirror one last time before he heard a honking sound from outside as Tifa and their friends Jessie, Biggs and Wedge were picking him up to bring him to the wedding venue and they had arrived. Going outside once he was absolutely sure he looked okay and getting into the car, Tifa immediately beamed at seeing him. 

"You look so good, Cloud. You'll be turning heads at the ceremony." She teased him and he rolled his eyes, not noticing the knowing looks his friends shared as they had seen the guest list after Aerith had shared it with them, but hadn't shown it to Cloud. Turned out that Zack's former mentor Angeal was childhood best friends with a very particular person and they couldn't wait to see his reaction. 

Arriving at the venue, Cloud looked around the very beautiful surroundings that Aerith had chosen as they were surrounded by flowers only to see a very familiar mob of red hair as its owner was busy talking to a man who cloud vaguely recognised from pictures as Zack's former mentor Angeal. "Genesis? Did you know this?" He asked Tifa who grinned as she admitted she and her friends did know, before gently pushing him towards the redhead and encouraging him to talk to him. Gulping as he suddenly felt a lot more nervous, Cloud took a deep breath. 

Walking over to him after manning himself, he gently tapped Genesis on the shoulder and the redhead immediately turned around, only this stare at seeing him standing there. "Cloud?! What are you doing here?" He asked in utter surprise and Cloud explained Aerith was his friend as he noticed Genesis looking him up-and-down. "Small world then, I guess." He said, before gently lifting Cloud's chin.

"I have to say that you look very handsome. Even more than you did back in Paris." He commented and Cloud immediately felt his face become as red as a tomato as Genesis and Angeal chuckled, before the former properly introduced him to the latter and Angeal smiled as he shook Cloud's hand and said it was nice to meet him. Genesis had talked about a charming young man he had met in Paris.

Genesis had also told him all about how the young man had tried to get over his broken heart by going to Paris on his own after his ex had cheated on him and how he had tried his best to cheer him up and had been rather charmed by him. Meeting Cloud properly in person, Angeal could definitely see why he had immediately charmed Genesis so much as they then had to take their places. Quickly hurrying over back to Tifa and the others as they were waiting for him, Cloud gave them all a very unamused look as they immediately sat down.

They had to wait for Aerith and her mother to arrive at the venue and they grinned in response at seeing it, not feeling sorry at all about having kept this a secret. Cloud deserved happiness after what Roche had done and they all felt Genesis could give him that happiness. Especially Aerith and Tifa had seen him practically glowing when he came back from Paris and told them all about him.

During the ceremony as Aerith and Zack finally got married to each other, the former looking utterly radiant and the latter happier than he ever had before, Cloud tried to focus on the couple as this was their day, but Genesis found himself looking over at him more than at the actual ceremony until Angeal gently grabbed his head and turned it back to the couple getting married.

"You can talk to your new crush for as long as you like during the feast once this ceremony is over, but please focus yourself on what is happening in front of you for now. It's Zack's and Aerith's day" He whispered after giving his friend a very stern look and Genesis sighed deeply as he conceded and looked at the couple and applauded them as they were pronounced man and wife and shared their first kiss, a genuine smile on his face as while Zack did often drive him crazy, he was happy for the younger man that he had found a partner to share his life with. 

After they congratulated the couple and watched their first dance after dinner as well as the mother-daughter dance as Aerith's father had unfortunately passed away when she was a child and her mother Ifalna had raised her on her own ever since then, Genesis went over to Cloud. "May I have this dance?" He asked with a small bow as he held out his hand to the young man who had stolen his heart.

With a supportive nudge from Tifa, a bright red Cloud took his hand and let him be pulled from his chair and to the dance floor. "It is good to see you again, Cloud. I did not expect to see you so soon or for you to look so handsome." Genesis said and Cloud blushed once more as the first song out the evening started and at hearing the lyrics, Genesis instinctively pulled him closer to him.

When I look into your eyes

It's like watching the night sky

Or a beautiful sunrise

Well there's so much they hold

And just like them old stars

I see that you've come so far

To be right where you are

How old is your soul?

 

Well, I won't give up on us

Even if the skies get rough

I'm giving you all my love

I'm still looking up

 

And when you're needing your space

To do some navigating

I'll be here patiently waiting

To see what you find

 

'Cause even the stars they burn

Some even fall to the earth

We've got a lot to learn

God knows we're worth it

No, I won't give up

 

I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily

I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make

Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use the tools and gifts

We got yeah we got a lot at stake

And in the end you're still my friend at least we did intend

For us to work we didn't break, we didn't burn

We had to learn, how to bend without the world caving in

I had to learn what I got, and what I'm not

And who I am

 

I won't give up on us

Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love

I'm still looking up

I'm still looking up

 

Well, I won't give up on us (no I'm not giving up)

God knows I'm tough (I am tough) he knows (I am loved)

We got a lot to learn (we're alive, we are loved)

God knows we're worth it (and we're worth it)

 

I won't give up on us

Even if the skies get rough

I'm giving you all my love

I'm still looking up

At the end of the song, Genesis gently lifted Cloud's chin up to make them look at each other. "I know that you have been hurt before and that it may be a bit soon for this, but would you give me a chance to prove I am not like your ex? Would you give me the opportunity to show you how you should be treated?" He asked and after a few seconds of thinking, the blond nodded in answer.

Genesis sighed in relief as he pulled Cloud even closer to him and smiled. "Thank you." He whispered as Cloud's friends and that included the bride as well as the groom and Angeal silently cheered to themselves while watching this from a distance as they simply knew a new relationship had just begun. Closing his eyes, Cloud instinctively felt more comfortable than he had in a very long time. 

Not even when he had been with Roche had he felt this calm and relaxed as a part of him simply knew that Genesis really would treat him well and simply wait when he was away on trips instead of looking for another partner to "race around with." Now that he looked back, Cloud hit himself for not realising that Roche looked more for thrill than stability. Opening his eyes again, he looked up, smiled in a very mischievous way and pulled the redhead back onto the dancefloor as another more energetic song started to play with Genesis laughing as he happily went along.

From that day on, Genesis and Cloud quickly grew closer to each other as they got to know each other even better than before with support from their friends and family as even Cloud's mother confessed she had never really liked Roche and thay she could see her son was much happier and relaxed with Genesis than he was before and she was feeling more assured that he'd be okay.

One summer day, Cloud was sitting underneath a tree in the park reading a book while Genesis was getting them both a drink at a nearby vendor when he heard his name being called. Looking up, he tried not to sigh at seeing Roche approaching him with another man almost plastered at his side. "Hey Cloud. How've you been. I haven't seen you in ages." Roche commented as if they were old friends.

"Wonder why." Cloud snarked with a glare before focusing on his book again and Roche chuckled nervously for a second, before he manned himself and introduced the man next to him as Kotch and Cloud shook his hand as his ex tried to brag about how much fun they had together. "Good for you." Cloud said as he briefly looked up, before continuing to read again. It was clear that Roche was trying to make him jealous as Kotch did seem handsome, but also not exactly the brightest unlike Genesis who loved to use big words and actually knew the meaning of them

Kotch then asked how Roche had let a handsome young man like him go. "By chasing someone else behind my back." Cloud stated bluntly and he honestly loved the way his ex paled while Kotch immediately looked back at him in shock. Clearly, he had not been told about that and the blonde would not be surprised if Roche put all the blame of their breakup on him instead of himself.

Seeing movement behind him, Cloud tried to hide a smirk as he looked back at Roche. "Thanks for doing that, by the way Roche. If you hadn't done so, I'd never have met my new partner." He said as he gestured to Genesis behind them and when both men turned around, they both immediately stared at seeing the very handsome, but currently unamused redhead standing there with drinks in hand.

"Can my partner and I help you?" Genesis asked them both coolly, his tone indicating that the men better left now and thankfully for them, both Roche and Kotch quickly listened as they shook their heads and scampered. "Was that your dreadful ex, precious? How did you manage with that face of his?" He asked as he gave Cloud his drink and sat down next to him. Cloud chuckled as he replied he had no idea either, especially when compared to what our rather who he had now and Genesis smiled at him as he rested his forehead against his 

Looking at where Roche was retreating in the distance, Cloud was honestly surprised at realising he felt pretty good despite having seen his ex again. He had expected it to hurt, but it didn't as he now had Genesis at his side and off not for Roche being a unfaithful bastard, he never would have met him, except for perhaps at Aerith's wedding, but they would have remained strangers then. 

He was honestly doing pretty good despite the heartbreak from months ago and if Roche trying to make him jealous about his new boyfriend was any indication, he actually felt worse without him in his life and the blond thought that was hilarious. The man hadn't realised what he had until it was gone and now, he had wasted his chance and Cloud was with someone who genuinely cared for him.

Once their drinks were completely finished, Cloud carefully laid down with his head in Genesis's lap and immediately had a very fond smile aimed at him, one hand coming to gently stroke his hair. "I won't give up on us even if the skies get rough. I'm giving you all my love. I'm still holding out." Genesis sang as Cloud closed his eyes at hearing it. The younger man had often joked his partner should just become a singer with his voice and the redhead had chuckled, but had said he was happy enough with his job as a stage actor and Cloud had conceded at that.

Looking down at Cloud, Genesis thanked his lucky stars that he'd decided to stop being stubborn about being tired back in Paris and had asked a random person if he could sit with him to rest as it had eventually resulted in him having an amazing partner in his life who shared many of his passions. He went from stroking Cloud's hair to cupping his face and caressing his cheek instead.  Cloud looked up at feeling the change and Genesis smiled at him

He leaned down and kissed him with Cloud happily kissing him back. Enjoying the rest out the afternoon and going home, they soon heard that Kotch had broken up with Roche, apparently being smart enough Tia realise this was not going to end well for him and Cloud chuckled at hearing the news, before leaning against Genesis and got a kiss on his head in response. He didn't care what Roche did anymore as he now had a much better partner.

One who would take care of his heart 

Notes:

Read and review. See you next time