"Girls aren't supposed to be out this late on a rainy night," Zack said, climbing over a mound of old, rusty metal scraps which must have been parts of an old vehicle some years ago. When he was on top, he turned around and held out his hand to help Aerith up. The girl took it, allowing herself to be hefted up by him.
They had been walking for about ten minutes now, along the narrow alleyway which connected this part of Sector 4 to the exit in Sector 5. And those ten minutes passed with Zack talking and Aerith following silently behind. Not that the dark-haired man seemed to notice. He seemed to be a naturally talkative guy.
"I mean, back when I was here two years ago, the only girls out at a time like this were whores and call-girls," Zack continued. He jumped down and turned to look up at Aerith. "You're not one of them, are you?"
Aerith blanched at the suggestion and reddened, either by embarrassment at having been asked that question, or as one who was slightly insulted. She shook her head vehemently.
"I wouldn't think so," Zack grinned. Then, without asking for her permission, he reached out and grabbed her by the waist and sat her down.
"I appreciate the thought, but I would think that I could've helped myself down, thank you very much," Aerith said, for the first time in minutes.
"Ooops, sorry," Zack grinned. His face, however, showed that he didn't mean his apology. "But you were so silent there that I thought you needed help getting over that pile of junk. Well, where are we?"
Aerith looked around. "Just beyond that point, we should be outside the little alleyway beside the Church. In Sector 5."
"Cool," Zack said. "Well, shall we?"
They started their walk in silence. After a while, Aerith looked up at his profile and asked. "You're a soldier, aren't you?"
"How'd you know?" Zack asked. "I'm not in uniform."
"When you spend some time selling flowers and dealing with people, you get to know things about them," Aerith said. "From how they act, or walk. I just think you have a soldier air in you."
Zack laughed heartily at this, obviously amused. "You're right. I'm a soldier. Or, more precisely, I'm in SOLDIER. I'm a SOLDIER first-class." He grinned at her, as if expecting her to be impressed at this revelation.
She, however, disappointed him. She just nodded, confirming her suspicions. "I don't see very many first-class SOLDIERS in Midgar."
"That's because we aren't exactly that many," Zack said. "Only a few makes it into SOLDIER first-class. You might consider us elites. Top of the line."
"Modesty isn't your strongest point, is it?" Aerith asked. And then, as if afraid that she might have offended her savior, she immediately added, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean--"
Zack laughed out again. "I like you. You're funny and yet, you seem innocent. Childlike, even. And don't worry. No offense taken. And yeah, I do sometimes have the tendency to brag."
Aerith blushed at the compliment. She looked down.
Presently, they came outside the alleyway. By now, the rain had stopped. From around, crickets were chirping, reminding them that night had very much deepened. They walked towards the small archway which led to Sector 5 slums. There weren't that many people around, now. Only the occasional slum-dwellers who were getting their last sniff of the night air before going to bed. Aerith led the way to the north-eastern part of the area, towards the road which led to her house. Zack followed her and he presently found himself in a small, private section of the slums where Aerith lived. In the night air, the smell of fresh flowers recently bathed by the rain wiped away the stench of the slums. Small wooden steps led up towards a small path which led to a quaint little two-story house. Behind the house, a waterfall was silently cascading. In front of the house was a beautiful garden with many flowers of different kinds. On the eastern side of the garden, a single tree was flourishing. In the deep of the night, dozens, perhaps hundreds, of little fireflies flitted from flower to flower, bathing the area in a calm, green glow.
"Wow," Zack said, almost in a whisper. "I never knew such a garden could flourish in Midgar."
"This is where I live," Aerith said, climbing up on the small wooden steps leading to the path.
"Well," Zack said, giving her that grin again. "I guess this is where my bodyguarding stint ends. It's been my pleasure meeting you, Aerith."
Aerith looked down, and Zack took this as his cue to leave. He turned around and started walking.
"Uhm, I would be glad..." Aerith started, holding her basket in front of her with both hands, fidgeting.
Zack stopped and turned around to face her.
"I mean, i-it would be my honor if...if you'd come inside my house," Aerith stammered, embarrassed. "I would...uhm...like for you to meet my mom. And maybe have tea...I mean, that is...if you'd like..."
Zack cocked his head to one side, smiling. And then he said, "I would love that. Very much."
An obviously very worried Elmyra opened the door the moment a knock was heard. She gasped when she saw her daughter standing there, drenched and disheveled, and clasping her now empty flower basket. The dirt and grime and the large rip on Aerith's partially open pink dress told her that something very bad had happened.
"Good evening mom," Aerith said.
"What happened to you?!" Elmyra asked, frantically touching her daughter's face and fussing like any concerned mother would. "Do you have any idea what time it is?! Are you okay?!"
"Mom, I'm okay," Aerith said, hugging Elmyra. "Thanks to Zack here."
For the first time, Elmyra noticed the black-haired young man standing just behind Aerith. Zack bowed his head a bit in courtesy and gave Elmyra a sheepish smile. "Uhm, your daughter was in some trouble and I just happened to be in the area and helped her out."
Elmyra turned to Aerith again. "What happened? Tell me."
Swallowing hard for a bit, Aerith haltingly recounted to Elmyra the incident, taking care not to make it sound as awful as it really was. She also made an emphasis on Zack's rescue, giving him a subtle glance as she told the story. Elmyra turned towards Zack, enormous relief and gratitude in her face. Eyes brimming with tears, she let go of Aerith and hugged Zack gratefully, making the latter give out an uncomfortable, almost meek, expression.
"Oh my God, thank you, thank you!" Elmyra sobbed.
"I-it was nothing ma'am," Zack stammered, reddening. "I-I was just doing what any man would do...eheh..."
"Oh bless you, bless you!" Elmyra said. It was then that she felt that Zack was also drenched, reminding her that all this time, they had been outside. "Oh my...where are my manners! Please, do come in. I'll prepare tea. Heavens, you both are a mess!"
Aerith led the way inside while Zack followed. Elmyra immediately went to the kitchen and soon, sounds of pots and clankings were heard.
"Please, sit down," Aerith said. "I'll...just go up my room and change." She climbed up the stairs that led to the second floor of their house, discreetly giving Zack a glance before disappearing.
Zack propped his sword on the wall just beside the door and he sat down on the chair, looking around uneasily, visibly uncomfortable with all the attention he had been getting.
A few minutes later, Elmyra came out of the kitchen carrying a tray with three cups of steaming coffee. "I'm so very sorry but we're out of tea. I should've asked Aerith to buy one this morning but I forgot."
"Oh no, coffee's fine ma'am," Zack smiled. "In fact, it should have been I who should apologize. You took all the trouble to make coffee..."
Elmyra smiled and shook her head. "It's the least I could do. After what you did..."
"I just happened to be at the right place at the right time," Zack said. Then, he looked up to where Aerith disappeared. "She sells flowers...?"
Elmyra nodded. "Aerith...she had always been a responsible child. She said she wanted to help with the money. That's why she made the garden you saw outside. For the flowers. So she could sell them."
"That's nice of her," Zack commented. "You both must be very proud of her. I mean, you and your husband. Not anyone in Midgar can say that their daughters are as responsible as her. And at such a very young age..."
"She...never met her father," Elmyra said, looking away for a moment. Then, as if in afterthought, she added, "My husband died in the war. He never saw Aerith. It's just I who raised her all this time."
"I-I'm sorry," Zack said, putting his cup down. "I-I didn't know...."
"It's alright," Elmyra said. She smiled at Zack. "We've grieved then, a long time. I think we've grieved enough."
There was an uncomfortable silence after that, broken only by the sippings of hot coffee. Then, Elmyra asked. "What's your line of work?"
Zack took a sip before answering. "I'm in SOLDIER. First class."
At this, Elmyra's jaw stiffened a bit. She gripped her cup harder. "Shinra?"
Zack nodded, looking at his cup, not noticing the change in the old woman's expression. "Yeah. I was on assignment at Junon when they sent for me here. They said they got a mission for me. It's been two years since I was last here, in Midgar."
"Not many people here has a love for Shinra," Elmyra said. "Most people here blamed Shinra for how their lives have gone to hell. As for us, personally, Shinra has tried--" Elmyra stopped.
Zack looked at the old woman, expecting her to finish what she was about to say. But she didn't continue. Instead, she merely looked at her cup of coffee, lost in thoughts.
"Uhrm, well," Zack said, starting to get up. "I really should be going, Mrs. Gainsborough. Thanks for the coffee."
"You're leaving?" Aerith's voice suddenly wafted through the still night air. Zack and Elmyra turned around and looked up the stairs. Aerith was standing there, leaning against the banister. She had already changed her clothes to milk-white pajamas. She was looking at Zack.
"Y-yeah," Zack said. "I really should be going. I mean, I really was supposed to be at the Shinra Building three hours ago."
"B-but it's nearly midnight," Aerith said, stepping down. "And...and it's dark outside, and..."
"I'm going to be okay, Aerith," Zack said. Then he grinned. "I thought I already proved it there in that alley."
"But...but..." Aerith stammered.
"Aerith, dear..." Elmyra started, starting to walk towards her daughter.
"Please stay for the night," Aerith finally asked. Zack looked at her, and for one brief moment, he thought she saw pleading in her eyes. And something else. "It's the least we can do. After everything. R-right mom...?"
"Well, I..." Elmyra started.
"We have a spare room upstairs," Aerith said. "It's for guests. Not that we always have them. You can have that. Stay, please?"
Zack looked at Aerith for a while. And then he turned at Elmyra, as if asking for permission.
Elmyra, for her part, was looking at Aerith. She was thinking of something, as if seeing a part of Aerith she hadn't seen before but, as a woman, understood. As if expecting for something she knew would happen sooner or later. She turned to Zack, then. And she smiled. "Please stay for the night. It would be our honor to have you as our guest."
Zack smiled, defeated. "The honor would be mine, Mrs. Gainsborough. I accept your invitation."
Zack bounced on the bed twice, feeling the soft, feathered mattress. Then, he lay down, arms clasped behind his head. He stared at the cream-washed ceiling, thoughts drifting into random places. He could scarcely remember when he last slept on a real, homey bed. Must have been since I left Gongaga, he thought. Ever since applying for troop training in Junon when he was still fifteen, four years ago, until achieving his lifelong dream of becoming a first-class SOLDIER elite, the only beds he have had the pleasure of sleeping in were the hard bunk beds in soldier quarters and the soft but unsettling brothel beds during those times when he gave in to his carnal pleasures. He almost forgot what it felt like to sleep in actual beds meant for sleeping and not just for fucking. Beds which reminded him of home.
Home. He wondered how his parents were doing now. The monthly allotments he sent them from his pay assured him that they won't have to work hard now. And the life insurance he set up in case something untoward happened to him would practically assure them that they'll be set for the rest of their lives. Zack smiled. He had done his duty as the only son. He had assured his parent's future.
Not that he wasn't thinking of his own future too, though. He was nineteen now, high time to be looking for a proper mate for life. But so far, the only women he had met were whores or those high-class socialites who flaunt their bodies as much as their jewelries and money. Zack wasn't picky, but he knew what he wanted. He wanted a shy, silent girl who has an inner strength deep inside, very much unlike the women he was used to bedding and sleeping with. He wanted a pretty, simple girl who was responsible enough to take care of him and of their future children. Someone who would instill values like how his parents did. Someone he could go home to at the end of the day.
Someone like...he drifted and brushed away the thought, comforting as it may be. And he slept.
By now, the moon had peeked past the dark clouds, which had slowly started to drift away. The silver light streamed through the glass window, breaking the darkness inside the room, and casting some light on the prone figure lying on the bed. It was deep night, but Aerith wasn't sleeping. She was unable to.
She was lying on her side on the bed, clutching the yellow chocobo plushie close to her chest. Her eyes were staring blankly towards the wall on the other side of her room, falling on the various posters and dolls she placed neatly there, but never really paying any attention to them. Her mind was somewhere. More specifically, on the room just next to her, where the young SOLDIER was probably sleeping.
She couldn't understand what she was feeling right now. When she saw him fighting those thugs that night, her thoughts raced to how beautiful he looked, as though dancing instead of fighting. That he was graceful was an understatement. And when he looked at her for the first time with those strange blue eyes, she thought her heart skipped a beat.
Zack, she thought. Even the name flowed smoothly against her tongue, rolling there as though it was a sweet, round candy. She imagined his face; how that mane of shockingly black hair fell so wonderfully roguishly against his face, how that grin gave him an air of arrogance and haughtiness. It was surprising, Aerith thought. Normally, she would be turned off by any display of arrogance. Many were the times when men in Sector 4 would try pick-up lines with her, utilizing that same grin Zack used, and she would just stare at them coldly and walk away. But not with Zack. Somehow, she found that grin...charming!
She sighed, closing her eyes, hugging the chocobo plushie tighter. She imagined his strong arms wrapping around him. She imagined how safe it must feel to be within those arms. She remembered the musky, manly smell of him. She imagined what happened to her that evening, and in her mind it wasn't that gang leader who was feeling her legs, or caressing her thighs. She imagined it was Zack whose face was so close to hers she could feel his hot breath against her cheek, slowly running down to her neck. His hands slowly climbing upwards...
My God Aerith! She suddenly chided herself. What has happened to you?!
I don't know Aerith, she answered herself. God help me, but I just don't know...
And she slowly started to fall towards the uneasiest sleep she felt in all her life.
It was the mockingbird that woke her up. She sat up sleepily on her bed, facing the rising sun. She smiled happily. For some reason, she was feeling giddy this morning.
"Good morning Mr. Sun," she greeted. "Hello Mr. Mockingbird. How are you this morning?"
The mockingbird just tilted its head this way and that, as if wondering whether this human had gone crazy overnight. Then it flew away, chirping shrilly.
Aerith laughed gaily as she got up and made her bed. Then, she put on her light jacket, feeling that it was going to be a cold morning. Humming a little song, she walked down the stairs and into the living room below, where she found her mother preparing breakfast.
"Good morning mom," Aerith smiled. She skipped lightly to the bottom stairs and smelled the fresh bacon and eggs. "Hmmm...smells good! Should I go wake Zack now?"
"Zack already left an hour ago, Aerith," Elmyra said, looking at her young girl. "He said he still had things to do, and that he wanted to thank you for everything."
Hearing this, Aerith's cheerful expression left her face as quickly as a shadow hit by light. "H-he left...?" Without telling me?
Elmyra, seeing the expression on her daughter's face, walked towards the young girl and gave her a hug. "I'm sorry dear, but he said he didn't want to disturb you." And then, she added, as if in afterthought. "Aerith...he's in Shinra."
"But...he's not like those other men from Shinra," Aerith said softly. "Mom...he's different. I..."
"I know," Elmyra interrupted, hugging Aerith closer. "I know how you feel, dear. But...I think its better this way, before everything gets more complicated."
Aerith did not reply. But she knew deep inside that it was already too late for that. Things had already become complicated.
Zack had already disassembled her.