That fringe of blond is perfectly safe because there's no way Tifa's going to manage the courage to raise her head to even try to look anywhere near Clyde's face. It's one thing to know this is the sensible solution but it's another thing entirely to snuggle up with a total stranger - a boy! no less. Not that she thinks anyone will judge her for this - because no one's ever going to know and if Clyde tells she'll pop him in the nose so hard he'll never be able to text a message around the swelling - but even if they did find out she's just being practical. But - he's still a boy and a stranger and if he's awkward and jerky about holding her she's no less stiff and awkward about being held.
Except then she shivers because the fabric of his shirt drags over her bare skin and reminds her body how cold it is. It's the drag of that fabric and the weight of his arms around her though that sets off more than just shivers. In that split second it doesn't matter that he's a stranger, just that he's solid and she all but thumps forward into his chest, frozen hands tucked up between them, barely remembering to worry about his wounds and the bandages at the last second.
She's not alone. She doesn't have to do this alone. At least, just for a minute, it's okay if they're in this together and she's not the one in charge and responsible for everything. She presses her froze nose into the fabric of his shirt near his shoulder and shuts her eyes. It's okay, it's okay, it's okay.
She has taken people up and down the mountain before and she is the best guide in the town. She's had to deal with monsters and snow and blocked paths before. She's just never had to deal with anything this serious before and she's never been so cut off from a safe retreat back home if she decided to take it. She's never had so much depending on whether she makes the right choices or not. She can do this. She knows she can. She can keep them safe until she can lead them back down the mountain. It just - doesn't seem as overwhelming if it kind of feels like maybe possibly a little they're doing it together even if it really is all her responsibility and Clyde might not even have ever even seen snow before today.
"Thank you." She can pretend she's saying it because he's sharing his warmth and she is grateful for that. Really though, she's chickening out, because it's easier to do that than trying to find a way to tell him it's really for simply being there for her. That would be too awkward to try to explain.
it's the point of her existence
Except then she shivers because the fabric of his shirt drags over her bare skin and reminds her body how cold it is. It's the drag of that fabric and the weight of his arms around her though that sets off more than just shivers. In that split second it doesn't matter that he's a stranger, just that he's solid and she all but thumps forward into his chest, frozen hands tucked up between them, barely remembering to worry about his wounds and the bandages at the last second.
She's not alone. She doesn't have to do this alone. At least, just for a minute, it's okay if they're in this together and she's not the one in charge and responsible for everything. She presses her froze nose into the fabric of his shirt near his shoulder and shuts her eyes. It's okay, it's okay, it's okay.
She has taken people up and down the mountain before and she is the best guide in the town. She's had to deal with monsters and snow and blocked paths before. She's just never had to deal with anything this serious before and she's never been so cut off from a safe retreat back home if she decided to take it. She's never had so much depending on whether she makes the right choices or not. She can do this. She knows she can. She can keep them safe until she can lead them back down the mountain. It just - doesn't seem as overwhelming if it kind of feels like maybe possibly a little they're doing it together even if it really is all her responsibility and Clyde might not even have ever even seen snow before today.
"Thank you." She can pretend she's saying it because he's sharing his warmth and she is grateful for that. Really though, she's chickening out, because it's easier to do that than trying to find a way to tell him it's really for simply being there for her. That would be too awkward to try to explain.