cloud 9
It's weird, being someone else; even after months of practice and learning how to be Cloud Strife for this game, he still thinks of himself as Vanitas. He's never been very good at getting into the mindset of another person, so when someone says "Cloud!" sharply in his ear, it still takes a moment for him to realize that 'Tifa's speaking to him. (She isn't really Tifa though, is she? They're all just players in this game, virtual reality of an old as dinosaurs game that's been brought back just for use in some high profile game show. Hop in a virtual reality sleep pod, play a modified Final Fantasy 7 on 'live' TV with a pair of handlers 'controlling' the characters in game and whoever's standing when the game ends gets the cash.)
He flicks his gaze down, and then pastes a smirk over his (Cloud's, not his) mouth as he locks gazes with Tifa. She's got no idea he's Cloud--They've all been kept separated, supposedly to keep their "reactions" to each other as pure as possible, unrehearsed.
She has no idea who's behind Cloud's face, and the anonymity is the only reason he leans down to breathe in her ear, "Need something Tifa?" before he straightens up to peer around the Seventh Heaven.
'Barret's off in the corner ignoring them, which means he has absolutely no reason not to run a hand down Tifa's spine before reaching around her for a glass to pour himself a drink. (They only started a couple hours ago, it's not even time for the main plot of the game yet, but since it's TV and they need the game to be exciting enough for viewers, actors get a rather lot of leeway in how they progress through the plot. That also means any scenes before they really start playing get to go however they want, and he likes to take advantage to get Tifa riled up. It's something he's missed about her.)
