Tasha was tired. The meeting had been long and, of course, hilarious, but still...it was tiring.
She had known that Reno liked to party, but she had no clue that he had a problem. Reno Akai was the last person on the face of the Planet she'd expected to show up at her father's AA meetings.
Her father was a long-time alcoholic, and he'd been sober for a year and a half or a little more. He ran the Joker's Wild meeting, which was the best meeting to run, in her opinion. It was an open meeting, meaning a non-alcoholic like her could attend.
She yawned, and plunked herself down before her computer. She spent so much time on the thing that she was amazed that there wasn't an outline of her head on the wall behind her.
Just before she began typing, the phone rang. It was ten at night, and sane people didn't call this late. Suspiciously, she picked it up.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Tash. It's Zack." The football player's strong tenor voice filled the receiver. "I need to tell you something."
"What's that?" That Zack would need to tell her something was amazing, and that he would call her this late even more so.
"It's about Aeris."

"I swear, Dad, I just went to the store! We were out of food!" To prove herself, she held out the milk and macaroni and cheese as a peace offering.
Angrily, the drunk man slapped the milk out of Aeris's hands. "I told you not to leave the fucking house!" He screamed at her. A slap resounded across her skull, painfully. With a small cry, she dropped to the floor. Her dress, already torn, was ripped to shreds.
For at least a half an hour he kept up at it, beating her, tearing her hair out, yelling at her how she was the most horrible daughter in the world, and she made him drink. If only she could be a good girl, he wouldn't drink. No, Aeris drove him to drink!
Finally, after about thirty minutes or so, he passed out. Aeris got up and ran up to her room, breathing heavily.
No one understands...
She changed into slightly more presentable clothes and walked downstairs to clean up her mess.

Cid heaved. His arms felt weak, his gut about to explode.
Finally, he got the stupid couch onto the damned truck.
His buddy, Barret, grinned at him. "Didn't think ya had it in ya, Highwind. Proved me wrong." And with the strength that usually comes with Varsity football players, he clouted Cid across the shoulder.
Ignoring the pain that shot up his arm, he grinned back, pulling out a cigarette out of his pocket and lighting it with the lighter that Tasha had given him for his 17th birthday. He had a collection of lighters, but this one was his favorite. She also had one just like it.
Barret grimaced. "Man, ain't you ever gonna quit that shit?"
Cid grinned. "Man, aren't you ever going to grasp English?"
The two unlikely friends smiled and rolled their eyes at each other, and walked back to the house. The football victory party had long since begun, and Barret had wanted to move the couch onto the truck before he got wasted. His dad wanted it done tonight.
Cid walked into the house and was immediately showered in a torrent of whisky or vodka. He couldn't tell which; he wasn't much of a drinker. He frowned and walked past the drunken partygoers.
To his surprise, the first person he ran into was Tifa Lockhart. She was a little drunk.
That was being nice.
Her stout boyfriend, Rude, was sober, next to her, watching as she flirted in the most obvious manner with Cloud Strife, who was just as drunk as she was. Rude only smiled, detachedly. Cid had the feeling that this was a relationship doomed to die.
It was no big surprise that Tifa soon after lost her top, to the delightment of many a young libido. Cid wasn't impressed; Tifa had good breasts, but no brain.
Pretty soon it became one of those parties that Jeff Foxworthy talks about; the one where you sleep where you fall. Cid watched with obvious amusement while all of his drunk companions dropped like leaves. Rude and he were the only two who stayed sober.
At about one, when everyone but the two had passed out, Cid turned to Rude. "Did you bring your car?"
"...Yeah."
"She come with you?" Cid pointed at the now nude Tifa slung across the back of the couch.
"Yeah."
Cid grinned. "Let's blow this joint."
Rude considered it, and then nodded.
Just before he left the room, he picked up the scanty clothing that Tifa had worn to the party and balled it up in his hands, taking it with him. Cid stared at him, astonished.
"Ah, I just want something to remember her by." Rude said, with a sardonic grin that startled Cid.
Cid grinned back and they went to Denney's.

He was at it again.
How a human being could consume so much alcohol in one night and live was a mystery to Aeris. Her father must have drunk at least three gallons of the stuff.
And of course, he was hitting her. Again.
He passed out right as he'd been aiming for her throat. She said a small prayer and slid out from his unconscious grasp.
She slunk to the corner and cried. She couldn't help it.
No one cares...
She let the tears fall down her face, uncaring tears, tears that she shed with shame. She ground her fists into her emerald green eyes, trying to stifle them.
What would Seph think now, the tough Aeris crying because of a few punches?
Sephiroth would understand that it wasn't the punches that hurt. That it was the source of the punches that hurt so bad. Her own father hated her. How could anyone ever love her?
She heard the door creak open, and she sat up, quickly, thinking her father had maybe awakened and decided to kill her, once and for all.
No...it was just Tasha.
"Aeris?" She whispered, not knowing where to look. Aeris slunk back into her corner, even further, a movement which made Tasha notice her.
Tasha's eyes widened as she crept over to Aeris's hiding spot. Aeris hid her face as Tasha tried to help her up. "No...Aeris, please, cooperate. Come with me." Tasha whispered, loud enough for Aeris to hear but soundless to anyone outside of their twelve inch separation.
Aeris followed Tasha the way a beaten puppy follows it's mother...begging for something.
They arrived at Tasha's house, and as soon as Tasha closed the door behind her, Aeris broke down crying once more. She tried to hide it from Tasha, but it was no use. Tasha embraced her, as her mother used to.
Finally, her hiccups ceased and her tears dried up. She stared at the wall, blankly, unsure of what to do.
"...How long?" Tasha asked, softly. Aeris shook her head no. "Okay, fine. If you don't want to tell me that's okay, too."
For some reason that simple acceptance of her decision touched Aeris, and she let loose. "About since my mom died." She shook her head, tying not to let out the torrent of tears that threatened just beneath her eyes. "She died in a car accident." She turned her head, slightly. "That was four years ago."
"...My dad drank, too." Tasha said, placing her hand on Aeris's arm. Aeris looked at Tasha, startled. "He did. He used to call me the most horrible things, and hit me. We used to get into really bad fistfights." Tasha grinned. "We both have scars."
"What happened?"
"Well, about a year ago my dad got sober through AA. I've been going to Alateen for a long time..."
"Alateen?"
Tasha smiled. "I can take you there on Wednesday, if you'd like. It's fun."
"...Maybe." Aeris blinked. "I need to go home and make my dad his dinner. He'll be so mad at me.." She stood up and got ready to leave.
Tasha blocked the door. "Aeris, if you really, truely want to go back, I won't stop you...but.." She frowned. "I got you out of there so you wouldn't have to go back there...at least for a while. You can stay here....if you can deal with wearing my clothes, which are not black."
Aeris laughed, and it was like a dam breaking. She giggled for five minutes, trying so hard to stop and failing miserably. Finally, she lay in the middle of the living room, a gasping pile of flesh.
Tasha was smiling. "So...is that a yes?"
Aeris grinned at her new friend, her first friend in a long time. "That's a hell yes."