Author's Note: Inspired by watching Advent Children. It seems like Zack and Aeris are together in the afterlife. This is just Cissnei's take on it. When she sees Zack on the other side, what will she do?

Another Chance

She gets another chance. So what? She didn't do anything to deserve it. She threw life away, stepping in front of a bullet. She still feels the shock of being hit. She remembers the coughing, blood gurgling in her throat. Falling, oh yes, falling. She couldn't breathe. Wetness soaked her shirt, blossoming like a dying flower. Flower? She hates flowers. They remind her of the flower girl in the slums. The flower girl died too, smile on her face they say. Cissnei thinks good riddance, but she can't say it aloud. Zack wouldn't like that. So she schools her face.

She walks the tightrope of unrequited love, swaying in a never-ending storm. Is it really any consolation that Zack is learning how it feels? Does it make it better that Aeris's waking and sleeping thoughts linger on a stranger with blonde hair and blue eyes? Does it matter that Zack loves Aeris and Aeris loves Cloud? Because in the end, Cissnei still loves Zack. And Cloud probably doesn't love Aeris.

Will the chain never end? Possibly? Maybe if she didn't love Zack, she'd have feelings for Tseng. He's her backup, the one that makes her heart skip whenever she sees him. She took a bullet for him. That counts for something. But, of course, Tseng's got it bad for Aeris. Aeris still loves Cloud.

Does anyone else love Cloud? That girl from the bar, the rumors say. Tifa. Rude likes Tifa. Tifa likes Cloud.

If only Cloud loved someone, if only the wanderlust didn't touch his soul, then the chain could end. Someone could be happy.

But who is Cissnei kidding? Turks don't get to have that. So when she sees Zack, she turns and fades.