"Oh my god!"

Yuffie could hardly believe what she just heard from her best friend. They were in Merlin's new house. Aerith was sitting on the bed while Yuffie stood in front of her.

"Oh my god!" she said again. "He proposed to you?" Aerith nodded proudly.

Yuffie put her hands on her hips, looking annoyed at herself. "And to think I missed out because I fell asleep!" She leapt onto the spot next to Aerith and threw her arms around her, grinning widely. "Congrats, Aerith!"

She pulled away and took Aerith's left hand. Yuffie frowned at it.

"Where's your ring?" She looked back at Aerith, confused. "Didn't he give you a ring?" Aerith shook her head.

"Cloud says we should have it at the engagement ceremony," she told Yuffie. "He says he wants it to be special for me." Aerith smiled a little to herself. How unexpected was that?

Yuffie rested her chin on two fists.

Where are you to have it?" she asked. "The town's a wretch." Aerith shrugged.

"Actually, everything's in perfect condition," she said mater-of-factly. "Just the problem of the Heartless, and ... it isn't exactly glamorous to look at."

That was an understatement. Yuffie was more than right about the town being a wretch, but then again, after the Restoration Committee was put forward and everyone pitched in to help rebuild Hollow Bastion, Aerith could see more than just a little improvement. They had built new houses and fixed up the old ones. Rebuilding the entire town would take time, but it would definitely happen.

"Planned a date?" Yuffie asked as she sat back up.

"Well… not yet," Aerith told her. "But the old church downtown would be really nice. We're think of first renovating it before we set a date."

She covered her mouth and coughed. Yuffie frowned.

"Have you seen a doctor about that cough yet?" she asked. Aerith shook her head.

"It's nothing," she said.

"I doesn't sound like nothing, I've noticed. You've been like this all week," Yuffie said frankly. "It might get worse and I'm sure you don't want to be sick when you're planning this wedding." Aerith just chuckled dismissively and took out a pile of pink envelopes from her shoulder bag. She handed one to Yuffie.

"Here's the official invitation," she said. "Cloud hates it, but I managed to convince him to let me make them." Yuffie quickly opened it. She sniffed the pink letter fondly.

"Hmmm… rose-scented," she muttered. Aerith grinned sheepishly. "Wow, you really do want this one to be special."

"What's special?"

A voice came from behind them. Yuffie spun around to see Leon entering. She quickly hid the letter behind her back and Aerith stood up to cover the pile of envelopes. Leon frowned at their strange behavior. He glanced between them.

"What's special?" he repeated. Yuffie and Aerith exchanged worried looks. Yuffie sighed and took the letter out again. She handed it to him. Aerith did not hesitate about it.

"I'm engaged," she said to him as he read the letter. She tried to speak softly, hoping not to trigger anything, but she knew those simple words were enough to bring down his entire world.

Leon read and reread the letter over and over again, hoping it to be a huge mistake or practical joke of some kind. His hands began to tremble, he could hardly breathe as his heart exploded into a thousand pieces over and over again. He stumbled back slightly.

"R-really?" he said, struggling to keep his tone indifferent. "Congratulations." Aerith smiled feebly. "When's the engagement ceremony?"

"In two weeks," she said gently. She reached for a fresh envelop and held it up to him. She tried to act normal.

"Maybe… if it's okay with you, maybe you'll come as well?"

She knew she was taking an enormous risk in asking him this.

"You don't have to if you don't want," she added quickly. "But… it would be great if you came."

Leon continued to stare at the letter in his hand. At that very moment, he felt completely broken, completely devastated. He lifted his gaze back to Aerith. He didn't want her to see him like this. He smiled.

"Yeah," he said, nodding. "I mean, the past is behind us, right?" Even Yuffie could feel his pain radiating off him. Leon's hurting was obvious to Aerith too.

"You don't have to come, Leon," she said softly. "I don't want you to feel like you have to…" Leon shook his head.

"I'm happy for you," he told her. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll be there." He smiled and stared at her for a moment, but then hesitated, taking a step back. He gave Yuffie a nod, slipped the envelope into his pocket and walked quickly outside.

As soon as the door shut behind him, Leon slammed his back into the wall. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to numb his thoughts. His hands automatically found the ring hanging from his neck.

Aerith's ring.

Leon exhaled deeply and without another glance, he ran.

Aerith collapsed back onto the bed, drained of emotion form the last 30 seconds. Yuffie walked over, watching her concernedly.

"Do you really think he might come?" she asked, sitting down beside her. Aerith sighed.

"I…" She coughed again. "I don't know." She closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead, exhaling wearily. "I'm such an idiot. I shouldn't have done that…" Yuffie shook her head.

"He would have found out for himself sooner or later," she said grimly. "You did him a favor." Aerith nodded, her gaze on the ground.

"It would be nice if he came," she said, her smile appearing and disappearing. "But it would hurt him too much…" Yuffie wrapped her arms around her.

"He said he's let go now," she remarked, but she was uncertain as well about it. "He's happy for you. I mean, there's still a good chance he'll really come… right?"

Aerith stayed silent.