NS: XD More angst sounding fun!
Ashe: Must you put so much angst in everything?
NS: Meh, why not? Oh, and FYI, I don't own anything. Set during Crisis Core but slightly AU. Spoilers if you didn't know that Zack died... Which is kinda sad all on it's own.
~*~
/Sometimes late at night
I lie awake and
watch her sleeping
She's lost in peaceful dreams
So I
turn out the lights and lay there in the dark/
A slow smile upturns Zack's lips as he stretches on the bed. He sits up slightly and his smile widens when he sees the brunette beauty asleep next to him. Her hair was fanned out against the pillow. It was the middle of the night but he couldn't help but watching her sleep. She just looks so beautiful, her soft green eyes closed in sleep. The sheets cover most of her body but he doesn't mind. What he can see is enough for him.
He gently, as not to wake her, he ghosts his knuckles over her cheek. His lips twitch up in a smile when she leans into the touch, rolling onto her back towards him. He leans down so his lips are next to ear. "I love you, Aeris." He whispers. She smiles in her sleep and curls into him. Zack reaches back and blows the candle out before laying back beside her, drawing her close.
/And the thought crosses my mind
If I never wake up in the morning
Would she ever doubt the way I feel
About her in my heart?/
He's almost asleep when a disturbing thought crosses his mind. He looks down at Aeris' sleeping form, drawing protectively into his. She knows I love her... But does she know how much? What.... What if I wake up and she never knows the truth? He shakes his head lightly, knowing that the thought is foolish... But what if?
"Aeris...?" He says softly into her ear. He gets a mumble as his answer before her gorgeous green eyes look into his gray ones. He smiles at her sleepy look of confusion.
"What is it, Zack?" She asks through a yawn, absently placing a kiss on his chest.
/If tomorrow never comes
Will she know how much I loved her?
Did I try in every way to show her every day
That she's my only one?/
He smiles softly and kisses her forehead. "You know I love you, right?" He asks. She manages a smile and nods her head, looking close to falling asleep again. "Do you know how much?"
At this question she opens her eyes again, a little more alert. "Zack, where are these questions coming from?" She asks worriedly.
He shakes his head and smiles at her, kissing her nose. "No need to be concerned. I just wasn't sure you knew how much."
She visibly relaxes and shakes her head. "No, I don't..." She says, though it's obvious that she's curious about the answer.
He smiles wider and pulls her closer to him, his fingers dancing along her spine. "I love you more than there are stars in the night sky..." He starts, kissing her forehead. "More than there is water in the sea," A kiss to her nose. "And more than there are words possible to describe the feeling of you against me." He whispered, kissing her lips.
By the end of his little speech, there were tears rolling down her cheeks. He smiles at her and kisses away every single one. Slowly he lulls her to sleep with his promises to protect her and never leave her.
/And if my time on earth were through
And she must face the world without me:
Is the love I gave her in the past
Gonna be enough to last
If tomorrow never comes?/
)(The next day)(
Aeris slowly wakes and reaches a hand out to Zack's side of the bed. Finding nothing there, she sits up and looks around almost frantically. Finding a piece of paper beside her, she lifts it, unfolds it, and nearly cries.Written in Zack's scrawl-like handwriting is a poem.
I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
Or the arrow of carnations the sire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are meant to be loved:
In secret, between the shadow and the soul.
I love you as the plant that never blooms
But carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
Thanks to your love a certain, solid fragrance,
Risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.
I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
So I love you because I know no other way than this:
Where I do not exist, nor you,
So close that your hand on my chest in my hand,
So close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.
I love you, Aeris.
-Zack
Aeris wipes the tears from her eyes and smiles before sliding out of the bed and getting dressed in a pale pink summer dress. "Zack?" She calls down the hallway.
"In here, honey!" He answers from the kitchen. She walks quickly into the room and smiles when she sees him leaning against the counter, dressed in only his sweatpants, before walking over and throwing her arms around his neck and presses a deep kiss to his lips. He chuckles and pulls away, smiling down at her. "Did you like the poem?"
/'Cause I've lost loved ones in my life
Who never knew how much I loved them.
Now I live with the regret
That my true feelings for them never were revealed.
So I made a promise to myself:
To say each day how much she means to me
And avoid that circumstance
Where there's no second chance to tell her how I feel./
"Like it? Zackary Fair, I loved it!" She exclaims, pressing another eager kiss to his lips. He only smiles and indulges in her, kissing her back earnestly.
"I'm glad, Aeris." He answers, chuckling softly when she pulls away. She smiles and lays her head on his chest, letting his arms circle her, his fingers running through her hair softly, reveling in the silken strands.
She lets out a soft sigh and closes her eyes but pulls away. "What's wrong?" She asks.
He lets out a sigh and looks away. "Angeal called and wants me to report to the building today." He answers. He can't stand to see the look of hurt on her face or the tears in her eyes. "Says he has a mission for me to complete."
Aeris sighs and turns his head so that he's looking at her. "Promise me you'll be okay." She whispers. He presses his lips to hers desperately.
"I promise."
)(Later that day)(
Aeris is sitting in her garden, absentmindedly brushing her fingers over the soft petals of the white flowers. She looks up at the hole in the ceiling and can't help but giggle, remembering the day they had met.
Feeling her pocket buzz, she pulls her phone out to see she got a text. She smiles and opens it.
I read once that the Ancient Egyptians had fifty words for sand, and that Eskimos had a hundred words for know. I wish I had a thousand words for love, but all that comes to mind is they way you move against me while you sleep, and there are no words for that.
I love you, baby!
-Zack
Aeris smiles and presses the phone to her heart, humming softly to herself. She replied with an 'I love you too!' before putting the phone back into her pocket.
)(With Zack)(
Zack grins to himself when he gets her response and looks up at the pale blue sky, wishing he could show it to his girlfriend.
But he would never get the chance.
/If tomorrow never comes
Will she know how much I loved her?
Did I try in every way to show her every day
That she's my only one?
And if my time on earth were through
And she must face the world without me
Is the love I gave her in the past
Gonna be enough to last
If tomorrow never comes?/
)(A few weeks later)(
Aeris looks expectantly out the window of the apartment she had Zack had been sharing for the past few years. She jumps each time her phone rings but only gets a little more disappointed each time when she doesn't hear his voice. She hums softly and rubs her slightly swollen belly with a soft smile. She was waiting for him to come back before she told him the good news.
Hearing a knock on the door, she walks over to it and opens it to see the Director of SOLDIER standing before her with a grim look on his face. "Ms. Gainsborough. It's... It's hard for me to tell you but Zack has been lost in battle."
Her green eyes widen before she shakes her head. "Y-You've got to be joking! H-He's coming home to me... Right?" She asks frantically. When she sees him shake his head, she collapses to the ground and buries her face into her hands as her body shakes with sobs.
Behind her, Zack's ghostly image smiles sadly and leans down. "Aeris, baby, I love you..." He whispers into her ear before he fades.
)(After the baby's born)(
Aeris sighs sadly, looking down at the baby asleep in his crib. He's sucking on his thumb softly as he sleeps. He's the spitting image of his father. She thinks, giving a watery smile as she brushes her fingers over his cheek.
She nearly jumps when her phone vibrates. With a tired sigh, she pulls the phone out and opens the message. Her eyes open wide with surprise. Sent exactly four days ago was a text from Zack.
Aeris, I'm coming home. I love you
-Zack
Hearing a knock at the door, she walks to it swiftly and opens it.
Standing there in battered clothes and scratched up, was Zack. He gives her a smile before she throws herself at him, sobbing openly into his chest. He drops his sword and wraps his arms around her.
"Damnit, Zack, how could you let me think you died?!" She shouted, beating on his chest lightly. He only took the half-hearted beating before pushing her back and looking into her watery gaze.
"I love you." He says so calmly before kissing her lips softly. "And I can't stand being another day without you. Marry me?" He asks.
She nods and kisses him back, still sobbing. "I love you too, Zack." She whispers. "I love you too."
He smiles and pulls away, slipping a simple ring onto her finger. Hearing a baby cry, his eyes light up. Aeris only smiles and takes his hand, pulling him to the nursery. She walks over to the crib and lifts the squirming baby into her arms before handing him to Zack.
Zack's eyes widen as he looks down at the baby boy who instantly stops crying. Gray eyes meet gray and Zack feels tears enter his eyes before he cradles the bundle close and kisses his forehead.
After putting the baby back to bed, he and Aeris walk to their own bedroom. Getting comfortable in the bed, he pulls her close, laying his head on her chest as her fingers move through his spikes, listening intently to her heart.
/So tell that someone that you love
Just what you're thinking of
If tomorrow never comes./