41: Confrontation

"Cloud, we need to talk..." - Saya said as she frowned and took the hand of the boy she liked.

The young blond raised an eyebrow, though he did nothing to stop Saya from dragging him out of the place.

"Does anyone know what's going on?" - Rei asked with a frown.

"I haven't the slightest idea" - Shizuka replied as she shook her head.

Saeko remained silent as she sensed that things were about to change.

Miku simply shrugged her shoulders as Ryoko decided to stay out of the way, after all, she could feel what a huge pain in the ass the whole situation was in general.

* * * * *

"Ok, I think this is a place far enough away that we can talk calmly without anyone interrupting us" - Cloud said as he folded his arms.

"Are you sleeping with my mother?" - Saya asked with a frown as she went straight to the point.

Cloud's expression changed to one of surprise - "Why such random question?"

"Yes or no?" - Saya asked with a frown.

"No" - Cloud replied with a relaxed expression - "Why would I sleep with your mother, more so when she just recently lost her husband?"

Saya looked at the blond boy with a cold expression on her face - "Are you going to keep lying to me?"

"I'm not lying" - Cloud replied as he shook his head - "That would be tasteless"

"Ok, we'll do it in the old-fashioned way" - Saya said as she shook her head - "Tell me where you were during the last few days from 12 am to 2 pm..."

"Working in the warehouse, checking supplies for the next mission" - Cloud answered honestly.

"False, you were never in that place, I know because I was there" - Saya replied neutrally - "Anything else to say?"

Cloud was silent before letting out a sigh - "Ok, you got me, I wasn't in that place, though that doesn't mean I slept with your mother."

"You're right, but I've noticed a lot of changes in my mother, changes that only a woman who has had sex shows" - Saya replied neutrally - "Changes that Shizuka sensei, Saeko senpai, and Ryoko sensei have shown."

"And it has to be me?" - Cloud asked as he gave her a blank look.

"You're the one my father would trust with my mother" - Saya replied as she folded her arms.

"Excuse me?" - Cloud was confused at these words.

"Listen, I know my mother is keeping something from me about my father, something extremely important, possibly the real cause of his death" - Saya said seriously - "I'm sure she has nothing to do with this, so this leaves me with only one conclusion, and that is that my father was sick, which would explain a lot of situations during the last few years."

Cloud's expression froze when he heard this because Saya had hit the nail on the head, although this change only lasted a few seconds, so Saya didn't manage to notice it.

"Seeing my mother's attitude against you, and some interactions I've seen, it's obvious that your relationship with her is strained, which could mean a feeling of guilt" - Saya said as she narrowed her eyes - "Infidelity"

Cloud kept his silence, though this was like accepting his guilt, which made Saya feel a huge rage inside her, not only for the blond, but also for her mother, and finally for herself. She hated these two cheaters, although not as much as she thought at first, maybe because she didn't know the whole truth, on the other hand, she hated herself for not noticing it before, and for feeling helpless knowing that her mother had achieved what she had dreamed for years, yes, it was stupid, but a part of her couldn't accept that the blond was with a woman who could be his mother, instead of someone like her, a young, beautiful and intelligent girl.

Yes, Saya was proud of her looks and qualities, that's why this was a hard hit for her.

More than annoyed, she felt jealous.

Cloud let out a sigh before shaking his head - "You're smart"

"Of course, I'm a genius" - Saya replied as she let out a snort of disdain - "I guess this means you've given up and accepted your guilt?"

"You shouldn't be telling this to me, but your mother" - Cloud replied as he shrugged his shoulders, though his expression changed when he felt something hitting his cheek, though to his surprise, this wasn't with that much force.

"You're an asshole, a son of a bitch" - Saya said as she gave the blond a cold look, though at the same time she felt he could sense something else in her eyes.

"Jealous?" - Cloud asked as he grabbed the girl's hand, who simply tried to struggle to try to get rid of the boy's grip.

"L-Let go of me!" - Saya exclaimed in annoyance.

"No, now it's my turn for you to listen to me" - Cloud said as he grabbed the girl and looked her straight in the eyes - "Tell me... Do I have to tell you who I'm sleeping with?"

"Yes, if it's my mother!" - Saya exclaimed angrily.

"Why? She's a grown woman who can make her own decisions, not to mention that you don't know about the general context of our relationship" - Cloud replied while narrowing his eyes - "Or are you just jealous that I slept with your mother, and didn't choose you?"

Saya blushed, though it was obvious he had hit the nail on the head. From a very young age, she had been considered a miniature Yuriko, everyone said how much she looked like her mother, which had caused this to turn into a bit of a trauma.

She wished to get out of her mother's shadow, that's why she hated that the boy she liked, went for her mother, instead of going for her.

"I see..." - Cloud muttered as he let go of the girl - "Ok, this is easily solved."

"What are you talking about?" - Saya asked, though her face changed to one full of embarrassment when she saw how the blond took her by the hand and guided her in the direction of Yuriko's room - "W-Wait!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not willing to put up with so much crap, so let's get this over with quickly" - Cloud said as he shook his head.

* * * * *

"This is a... surprise..." - Yuriko said with a frown as she saw how Cloud had dragged her daughter into her office, more when she noticed the strange expression on the pink-haired young woman - "What's going on?"

"She knows" - Cloud said as he closed the door before making sure no one was around.

"Huh?" - Yuriko's expression distorted before shooting a look full of fury at the blond boy.

"Don't look at me, I wasn't the one who said anything about it, she figured it all out" - Cloud replied with a frown - "I simply confirmed it because there was no way to fool her now that she had come to a conclusion..."

Yuriko looked at her daughter before letting out a sigh - "I see... I guess it's time to talk..."

"I want the whole truth, especially about daddy" - Saya said as she looked at her mother with eyes filled with a feeling of betrayal.

"I understand, I guess I owe you..." - Yuriko said as she told her everything that had happened during all this time, until the moment her father died.

Saya was perplexed, though she quickly understood everything, however, that didn't mean she wasn't furious with her mother and the boy she liked, however, she decided to refrain from exploding, and decided to understand them, not because their actions were right, but because she understood what was happening to them.

Her mother was a woman with needs, she understood that.

Her father had a terminal illness and could not take care of her, so her mother had to look for a solution elsewhere... she understood that too, what annoyed her about this, is that Yuriko had to find relief in the boy she had loved since all these years ago.

She also understood what was going through Cloud's mind, I mean, she wouldn't deny it, her mother was beautiful, there were even times when she had all kinds of dreams of her joining in. [1]

"Father accepted you?" - Saya asked with a frown.

"Yes, it was the last thing he did before he died" - Yuriko answered as she let out a sigh.

Saya nodded at these words because it was obvious that her mother wasn't lying, not when she spoke so happily when Soichiro was mentioned.

"I understand, I'm not going to say anything else, though I want you to know one thing, mother..." - Saya said as she looked at Yuriko with a new fire in her eyes - "I'm not going to lose, I'm not a second you, I'm going to surpass you, and I'm going to enjoy it."

Yuriko looked at her daughter with surprise because her words hinted at something she had been ignoring all these years - "I..."

"I don't need your apology, after all, you weren't the one directly responsible" - Saya replied as she narrowed her eyes - "I just wanted to say my declaration of war."

That said, Saya looked at Cloud, slowly approached him, and kissed him on the lips before giving him a second slap - "I said it, I won't lose, neither to my mother nor the others."

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[1] This is Canon, you can see it in the OVA.