Hitomi: Oh dear… I seriously think writer's block has kept me back for so long that I'm writing a lot now. For some reason, I've had this idea pop into mind. Maybe because it's a turning point in Crisis Core and I don't know… Maybe it's me wanting to practice again on keeping canon characters in characters.

I already know what happened to Zack after the demise with Angeal but this story takes an angle on what happened after Aerith comforts Zack in the church about that incident. So, this is when Alice plays a role in this. How? Read to find out!

And I just want to experiment something, so…

Here goes! (And oh, there's a good reason why the title is like that. You'll see when you read the caption underneath it as well as the end of the chapter.) Warning for those who haven't played Crisis Core or hasn't even gone far yet, there's a little mention of spoilers here.

Disclaimer: I don't own FF7, Squaresoft/Square-Enix does. Alice belongs to me.

I'll Be Your Last

「I always want to be by your side

Through your happy and sad days

Because we've always been there for each other since childhood.

But… There's something I want to say.」

It took him a long time to compose himself back to normal before returning back to Shinra. Even as he made his way back, he still felt the warmth of the brunette's body pressed against his back and her arms looped around his broad shoulders when he sobbed out his grief for his mentor's death. And he had let her because he knew she wasn't one to press into matters like this and she knew how to comfort him.

But even though he knew that, he felt his heart was still weighed down heavily with an unending emptiness. Well, he had expected much since he was the one who caused his mentor's death, what with being forced to fight against him and all. And since death was an inevitable part of life, the deaths of the ones closest to you are the hardest ones to overcome.

Then again, he thought Aerith would be able to obliterate it with just her presence, so why?

With a small sigh, Zack slicked his hair back and made his way into the large building of Shinra, his quiet footsteps making his way to his room. Once he went up a couple of floors and made his way around the last corner he needed to turn, his eyes lit up with curiosity when he found a huddled figure positioned next to the door. But, almost immediately, they widened as he knew who it was.

The person's body was already small but this position made them even smaller, the body clad in black from head to toe. Waves of black hair surrounded her body, knees hugged close to the torso and head tucked into the fold of her arms. She appeared to be asleep, most likely because she waited for him for a long time.

This surprised and perplexed Zack, countless questions running through his head. How long did she wait? Why did she wait? Could it be she sensed something happened as he didn't return immediately or had Tseng told her because, aside from being a Turk, he knew she was Zack's close, childhood friend?

Whatever it was, he still wasn't expecting her to do this. Then again, one part of him wasn't all that surprised since she worried easily.

Silently approaching the petite figure, Zack sat down next to her, giving a watchful gaze from the corner of his eye. He watched as he saw her shoulders rising and falling with each breath she took as she slept away peacefully. Apparently, she was now so deep in sleep that she hadn't stirred from his presence at all.

Feeling that he should wake her up for fear that she might get sick staying out here any longer, he extended his arm to grab one of her hands that clasped with the other, giving it a gentle squeeze.

Unconsciously, whether from the instincts of slumbering dreams or getting his silent message, she squeezed his hand back. She lifted her head slightly, using her free hand to rub the sleepiness out of her eyes as she yawned softly. Letting her legs fully rest out on the floor, she yawned again, blinking her amber eyes to focus her vision. Feeling comfortable warmth on her other hand, she turned her head a fraction, meeting the familiar blue eyes of her best friend.

Zack only gave her a slight, soft smile in greeting. However, at this, Alice was frowning in confusion. He felt confused now, seeing her glowering at him. Could it be that she was angry at him for taking so long to come back?

No, it couldn't be she was mad at him. Sure, she had her temper but she wouldn't be mad at him for no reason at all. Then, what was it?

He saw that her eyes were focusing on something else, first focusing on the bandage that covered the cut that would become a scar in the future – the cut he received from Angeal. Then, he observed as her eyes flicked their gaze elsewhere as if seeing past him. Her eyes widened and he realized why as he was now reminded that he was carrying his sword on his back and she saw its hilt.

The Buster Sword, the last memento Angeal gave him before disappearing into the Lifestream.

Before Alice could make any more reaction to this revelation, she had been pulled in by Zack's strong arms, her forehead meeting the solidity of his shoulder. She felt him squeezing her waist tightly, his warm breath tickling her own shoulder and her neck. She couldn't move and she had no idea what to say to him either, already having put two and two together.

She already had the feeling that he was hurting so painfully but he wasn't showing it. Was he trying to be strong right now? Just for her sake?

She felt them welling up in her eyes and she was trying not to do this. She shook her head, frustrated at herself, knowing Zack needed her and the last thing she needed to do was…

Then, it came. Out of impulse, Alice burst into tears, her arms around his neck as she buried her face into his shoulder. She felt an overwhelming sense of sorrow swelled up inside her, her body shaking uncontrollably.

For Zack because he had lost his mentor and older brother figure.

For Angeal's unfortunate fate.

And self-loathing towards herself because she felt she couldn't rescue Zack from his pain for she hadn't experienced death with a close person. She felt that she couldn't relate to him about this, feeling useless. But wasn't she somewhat close to Angeal too? If so, why wasn't that making this any better?

And now that she thought about it, wasn't it selfish to cry when it should be Zack doing it? Zack shouldn't just bottle his feelings up—

"It's all right…"

Alice heard Zack's hoarse voice in her ear, one of his gloved hands reached up to petting her head. Her tears ceased as she hanged onto his every word, knowing he needed someone to listen to him.

"It's all right if you're crying and I'm not. It's not selfish if you do it… You feel useless just now because you felt you don't know how to comfort me, right?" Although she stiffened at his accurate observation, he continued on softly, "You're wrong… Alice. Being right by my side and knowing that there was something wrong with me without saying anything and/or without me expressing it openly… Is something only you could do. Nobody else, okay?"

Although she had an idea that she found him in his vulnerable state, those doubts disappeared once Alice heard those words. New tears streamed down her face when he said this as she clutched him tighter, not intending to let go.

Hidden from her eyes, Zack had a bittersweet smile forming on his lips, pressing the female closer to his body. If he was going to be her pillar of strength, she would be the one who would cry for him when he couldn't do it himself.

I already know that Aerith is your first love. And because she is, I accept it. Alice thought seriously, letting his warmth soothe her. But I want you to know that I never wanted to be your first.

I want to be the only one by your side just like this, even if it means you'll never love me in return.

If she is your first love… Then, I want to be your last one.

Zack… I'll always stay by your side, no matter what happens. Always.

Because you're someone really important to me. Even if I'm not the one for you…

I always want you to be happy.

Hitomi: … *headdesks* Whether to call this lame or clichéd or even melodramatic, I have no idea… The ending, I mean. And I'm not sure if I've written this the way I wanted to because I feel that my writing's gotten choppy…

But, anyway! From now on, I won't really talk about my stories at the end of the chapter anymore. From now on, you can find comments about my stuff in the homepage section of my ff profile. Because that link is a blog that is for my artistic stuff (and other stuff unrelated to my work in order to find an escape from the real world).

I'll explain more on why I've only put one genre here instead of two! I hope you enjoyed this!