Disclaimer- I do not own Final Fantasy VII or any of its characters.

Last Christmas

Chapter 1

"I love him," Aerith stated, staring dreamily at his picture. "I love Zack Fair."

She rolled over on her bed, turning to lie on her back. She giggled furiously, holding the picture to her heart. She took a deep breath and looked back at the framed photograph of a teenaged boy with black spiky hair, deep azure eyes, and a cute grin on his face.

Aerith Gainsborough was in love with Zack Fair, the most popular boy in her high school. He was a junior while she was a sophomore, but it was not as if this was just a silly, baseless crush. No, she was actually on friendly terms with the older boy. Zack, though he had a reputation as a ladies man, was actually a kind person. The two became friends when Zack had defended her from bullies while she was working out in the garden in middle school. The two chatted and soon enjoyed each other's company and began to see each other more and more. Soon enough the two became close friends.

At first, Aerith never would have believed that the two would become more than just friends, but after the beginning of last year, Zack started dating a girl from his class. Aerith was happy for him on the outside but on the inside, she felt jealous. She did not mean to be jealous, and she could not bring herself to hate his girlfriend, who was beautiful inside and out. Zack introduced them and while Aerith acted happy, inside, all she really wanted to do was burst out crying.

Cissnei was her name. She was beautiful, with an athletic built. She had wavy brown hair and eyes, and a sweet smile to match. She was simply gorgeous. Aerith could see why Zack was attracted to her. But despite being upset, Aerith was happy that Zack was happy, and for that reason, she kept her feelings from him, silently watching and wishing that it were she who was with the raven-haired teenager, wishing that it were her hand he was holding, her lips he pressed his to.

The girl tried her best to remain indifferent; yet, her two best friends easily spotted the subtle changes in her. Tifa and Yuffie both noted how Aerith smile did not reach her eyes when she spoke to Zack during school hours, nor did she look his way or say hello as often as she did . They also noticed that she was quieter than usual and was always focusing on something else. The two cornered her after school and they wormed out Aerith's secret confession from her.

Yuffie called for Aerith to tell Zack her feelings. Yuffie being a year younger (and a tad naive) was sure that her best friend could win Zack's heart. Tifa, on the other hand, suggested that Aerith date someone else. It would not be fair for her to be hung up a Zack and be miserable when she could find happiness with another. Aerith discouraged either idea, Yuffie's for not wanting to make an awkwardness befall on her and Zack's friendship, and Tifa's because she did not want to go into a relationship halfheartedly. After all, Zack and Cissnei were considered the perfect couple. How could she compete with that?

Yet, two months ago, Aerith was walking home from school when she saw Zack sitting on a bench. It was pouring rain and he was soaked to the bone when she found him. His spiky hair clung to his head and neck, and he looked as if the life had been sucked out of him.

"Zack," Aerith said in shock, walking over to him. "What are you doing out in this weather? You could get sick!"

She held her pink umbrella over them, although it proved pointless since he was already drenched. Yet, it did not snap him away from his daze, which only broke when she shook him by the shoulders. His azure orbs looked up at her with an expression of such sadness, that Aerith felt her own heart ache with his.

"Zack what's wrong? Why are you out in the rain? What happened?" She fired each question in rapid succession, and watched him worriedly. Zack shook his head.

"Cissnei…" he whispered at last. "She broke up with me. She said she was moving away to another city. She didn't want a long distance relationship… and wanted to break up…"

Zack fell forward into Aerith, catching her by surprise. She caught him in her arms while attempting to keep her umbrella over their heads. She sat down next to him, not caring that the bench was wet, and let the raven-haired teenager have her shoulder. Aerith felt droplets fall down her arm but whether it was from the rain or Zack's eyes, she did not know. She could not bring herself to look at him.

Though Aerith was angry with Cissnei for breaking Zack's heart, she couldn't help but secretly rejoiced that he was free. Conflicted, Aerith could not bring herself to tell him her feelings, after that day. Tifa and Yuffie urged her to tell him before another girl snatched him up: Zack was a fine catch and any girl would be thankful to have him.

But two months had passed and Aerith simply remained at Zack's side as his good friend. Many girls tried to become Zack's girlfriend, but he refused by simply stating he was not ready to date. However, as Zack turned down girls left and right, he remained close to Aerith and their friendship grew. Aerith's feelings also grew, and she knew that she was falling in love with Zack Fair.

Today was, December 25; Christmas. She had spent the entire month of December contemplating the idea of telling Zack how she felt. Unsure of how to express her feelings, she decided to write a letter to him:

Dear Zack,

Merry Christmas! I know that these last few months have been hard, but I will always be there for you. Yet, I have to tell you that I have feelings for you Zack. I can't hide them anymore. I love you, Zack, and I always will.

Love, Aerith

She wrapped the letter in a gift box with a hand knit scarf she had made for him. It took her the whole month to make it perfect, as she never done it before. She put her whole heart into it. She chose a dark blue color that reminded her of his eyes, believing that it suited him perfectly. She showed Tifa and Yuffie the finished product and the two girls said they would cheer for her.

Aerith placed the picture of Zack on her nightstand. She got up from her bed and looked through her closet, searching for something nice to wear. She wanted to look her best when she gave her gift to him. After looking through her closet and drawers, she selected a pink blouse, blue denims, and a pair of boots. Over that, she wrapped around a scarf and shrugged on her favorite red jacket. After quickly checking herself in the mirror, making sure she looked perfect, she grabbed the neatly wrapped gift and skipped out the door.

In the frosty December air, Aerith watched as the snow fell around her in idle detachment: her mind was elsewhere. It was thinking about her master plan about how to handle the gift situation. In her head, she rehearsed the scene repeatedly.

Step 1: Go to Zack's house. Simple enough: she knew where he lived, and she knew he would be home today. She would knock on the door ,and he would answer. Well, she hoped that he would answer; she did not want to get nervous waiting for him if his parents answered the door.

Step 2: Hand him the gift. At first, she thought she would hand the gift over to him and wait for a response but her nerves got the better of her. She did not want to rush him with his answer to her confession. After all, it had only been two months since his break-up.

Step 3: Invite Zack out for hot chocolate for tomorrow. Aerith wanted to ask him to go to the park in the city. There the two could chat and have fun, and possibly go ice-skating. Yet, Aerith hoped that when they would meet he would give her his answer.

Step 4: If all went according to plan AND Zack said yes, she wanted to kiss him. For the longest time, Aerith wanted to be his girl. She wanted to kiss him without delay. That idea was actually put into her head by Yuffie and Tifa, and she was going to go along with it!

Aerith soon found herself at his doorstep. Her heart was slamming into her chest, beating wildly in her ears. It took her a minute and several long deep breaths to regain her composure, for the most part, but still, she remained nervous. This confession was from her heart. Yuffie and Tifa believed very much that Zack would say yes. Their friend's confession was honest and pure. They also shared such closeness that Zack would be stupid not to accept.

Realizing she had been staring at the door longer than she anticipated, Aerith took in another long breath. Her nerves were getting the best of her and she needed to remain calm or else she would make a fool of herself. Gaining all her courage, Aerith rang the doorbell.

Aerith looked down at the gift as she waited. She grimaced at her wrapping, noticing that it was not as neat as she thought it was. She noticed a small corner sticking up and that some of the tape was not pressed completely flat to the paper. Now she wished she had her mother wrap the gift. Yet, her thoughts on her (in her head) bad wrapping dissolved when the door opened.

To her pleasure, Zack was the one who opened the door. He stood on the other side of the mesh screen, and looked slightly shocked to see Aerith at his doorstep. He was dressed in a white muscle tank top with jeans. The top made his defined body look that much better. Aerith felt her cheeks burn, but she hoped that the cold made her cheeks already red so he would not notice.

"Hey, Aerith," he greeted.

"Merry Christmas Zack!" she said, holding up the gift.

Zack opened the screen door and offered to allow Aerith to come inside out of the cold. She shook her head and handed him the gift. Zack frowned slightly.

"I didn't get you anything." He replied. "Actually, I wasn't really in the mood for Christmas with…"

He trailed off. Aerith shook her head, not wanting to upset Zack. She wanted to stay on track with the plan.

"It's alright," she said quickly. "I hope it will cheer you up."

"Do you want to come inside?" he asked.

Aerith shook her head again and took a step away from his doorstep. Zack closed the screen door.

"No, I have to get home and help my mom." She replied, turning to leave.

"Oh, well then, Merry Christmas Aerith. Thanks for the gift. It was nice of you."

Aerith stopped, remembering the next step. "Zack, would you like to get hot chocolate with me tomorrow? The ice rink in the park is said to have this really good hot chocolate."

Zack shrugged his broad shoulders. "Sure, I have nothing planned. I'll meet you there at… three?"

Aerith smiled brightly. "I'll see you there!"

She jogged away, hearing Zack close the door behind him. Once she was a good distance away. Aerith jumped for joy and let out a screamed, "YES!" Three out of the four steps were done and successful. Aerith ran the rest of the way home wanting to tell her friends the good news!

The next day, Aerith selected (with the help of Tifa and Yuffie) a cute red and white top and light blue denim pants. She wore a matching belt and red flats. Tifa and Yuffie watched excitedly as they got their red-haired friend ready for her big date. The two girls recommended that Aerith let her hair flow loose from its usual braid. Aerith was apprehensive about this, since her hair was long and fell in curls outside of her braid. Yuffie however, tackled Aerith and undid the older girl's braid.

"See," Yuffie said, pointing to the mirror. "You look so pretty with your hair down!"

Yuffie sighed as she touched Aerith's silky brown locks. "I wish my hair would look pretty so long, but it just gets crazy!"

Yuffie pointed to her cropped black hair, but Aerith thought that it suited the young girl since she was energetic and always up to some mischief. She was opposite of Aerith in everything, even in clothing style. She wore more tomboyish outfits while Aerith was very feminine. Tifa was a mixture of femininity and tomboy, and many men thought Tifa was gorgeous.

"Tifa has nice hair too," Yuffie pointed out, not wanting to make her feel left out.

"But not as long as Aerith's," Tifa replied. "Oh, Zack's jaw is so going to drop when he sees you! Too bad it's winter and you have to wear that jacket. You should wear a skirt! I swear Zack would drool if you were in that cute skirt we found hiding in your closet"

"If I wore that I think I would freeze." Aerith laughed.

Aerith did a twirl for her friends. She stopped, facing them with a smile on her face.

"How do I look?" she asked.

Yuffie gave a wolf whistle as a compliment. Aerith blushed, hiding her face in her hands.

"Zack would be stupid to pass up on a girl like you!" Yuffie said, patting her shoulder.

"Aerith he's going to take one look at you and forget all about Cissnei! You look ten times better than her" Tifa added confidently.

Aerith's blush deepened. "Thanks for the compliments."

Aerith wanted so much to be the girl that Zack would come to love. Cissnei broke his heart and she wanted to be the one to repair it. She looked in the mirror and noticed how her hair (although longer) resembled Cissnei's hair. The ends curled in such a way that it looked unnatural and nearly the same shade of brown. Aerith had a soft feminine built to her that suited her frame, while Cissnei had a more athletic but sexy build. Both their eyes were big and beautiful, but each a different color. Cissnei's were chocolate brown while hers were emerald green. Suddenly, Aerith felt herself panic.

"What if Zack thinks I look like Cissnei with my hair like this?" she freaked. "What if he falls in love with me because he thinks I'm her?"

Tifa held her by the shoulders. "Aerith, you can't compare yourself to her. You are you, and not some imitation. You are NOTHING like Cissnei."

Aerith looked at the clock and noticed it was after 2:30, and asked Tifa and Yuffie to walk with her until they reached the park. She was afraid her nerves would get the better of her yet again, and she would run away. Yuffie and Tifa confirmed they would make her stay at the park until Zack showed up. Yuffie added that if Aerith even tried to run away she would drag her back and tie her up until Zack came, a comment that brought forth many giggles.

The girls reached the park and discovered that it was bustling with activity. Many young couples, friends, adults, and children were out and about. Most of the people were at the skating rink, while others were enjoying hot chocolate at the stand outside.

"Do you guys see Zack?" Aerith asked, searching the crowd for the familiar raven-haired man.

"I don't see anyone!" Yuffie whined. "Why are there so many people here?"

"We're a bit early, so he might not be here." Tifa said, hoping it would keep Aerith from becoming frantic. "I know! let's split up! Yuffie, you look by the ice rink, Aerith, you go to the hot chocolate stand since you invited him to get some, and I'll search the crowd for him."

The girls broke apart, each heading in a different direction. Aerith dodged the people walking blindly as she headed for the stand. There was already a long line of people waiting, but Aerith could not find Zack among them. She looked around, wondering if he was sitting, but did not see his signature black spiky hair.

She turned around to see if maybe Yuffie or Tifa had any luck when she caught something out of the corner of her eye. Turning, she saw Zack standing a good distance away from her. Smiling, she took a step over to him waving. Yet, he did not notice her. He was looking at something else. Aerith opened her mouth to call his name when she felt her blood run cold.

Tifa and Yuffie joined Aerith a moment later, discouraged because they could not find Zack.

"Sorry Aerith I didn't see him," Tifa said.

"Me either," Yuffie concluded.

Aerith remained silent. The two best friends looked at each other. Tifa placed her hand on Aerith's shoulder and found the girl looking down. Her shoulders were trembling.

"Aerith!" Tifa gasped, "What's wrong?"

Suddenly, a loud giggle alerted the two friends. The looked up and saw Zack. However, he was not alone. In his arms, was the beautiful brown-haired teenaged girl Cissnei, her lips pressed to his and an all too familiar blue scarf around her neck.

It took Tifa and Yuffie seconds to realize exactly when Aerith had seen. She had seen Zack and Cissnei reconcile and at some point, the hand knit scarf had made its way around the girl's neck.

"Aerith, I am so sorry!" Tifa whispered.

Aerith fell to her knees shaking, her legs collapsing beneath her. She looked up at Zack and saw Cissnei and him holding hands, holding hands as if they were still dating before their break up. The two looked like the perfect couple.

Aerith stared at Zack's retreating figure. She felt her heart ache, as if a hand was squeezing it tightly. Her body trembled uncontrollably. Beautiful, Cissnei looked stunning with her hair loose and in curls, her big brown eyes shining brightly, and in a form fitting pair of dark blue jeans and a white blouse.

She looked up once again, wanting desperately for Zack to look at her the same way he looked at Cissnei. She wanted him to see her and not Cissnei. Aerith wanted Zack to see her as the girl who was there for him, who never wanted to leave him.

To her surprise, Zack did turn his head back. Aerith looked up at him, her green eyes a mix of emotion. It was as if time stopped. Zack stared at her. Their eyes locked, with Aerith was searching for his answer. Zack's icy eyes said nothing to her, and after a brief moment, he turned his head back. He left the park with Cissnei next to him, and not her. Aerith looked at herself, her long hair hanging over her. She would never have Zack, because she was not Cissnei.

"THAT JERK," Yuffie said, her hands becoming tight fists. "I'm going to give him a piece of my mind!"

Yuffie made a start to go after Zack and punch him in the nose, when Tifa stopped her, thrusting her arm in front of the younger girl. Yuffie looked back, angry and confused, when Tifa motioned to Aerith. Their friend was still on the cold ground with her head bent. The two girls approached their friend, realizing that now would not be the best time to deal with Zack.

"Aerith," Tifa called gently. She blinked her ruby red eyes filled with worry. She turned to Yuffie who had an equal worried expression. Turning back, she touched her friend's shoulder.

"Silly of me," Aerith said softly, "Kneeling in the snow like this; I'll get all wet and sick."

Aerith picked herself up, brushing the snow from her knees. Tifa and Yuffie looked again at each other picking up the shakiness in Aerith voice. She turned to face her friends smiling, a smile that was very strenuous.

"Did you guys see that?" she asked. "Cissnei is back and she and Zack are back together. Isn't that great that they're a couple again? Zack got the best Christmas present; not like my stupid scarf. Cissnei looks better in blue than Zack, what do you think? I feel so silly, giving Zack a present like that…"

She turned around and stretched her arms. Her voice was on the verge of cracking.

"Well, I should be heading home. Mom wanted me to help her and stuff if I had time… and I guess… now I do…"

Tifa placed her hand again on Aerith's shoulder; a second later, she found Aerith sobbing on hers. Yuffie and Tifa held her friend in their warm embrace, hiding her from the public's eye.

"What was I thinking?" she cried. "I am such an idiot!"

Aerith cried for what seemed like forever. Tifa and Yuffie managed to walk her away to somewhere more private to let her cry, and tried her best to cheer her up, but neither of them could snap her out of her heartbreaking tears. Both dark-haired girls wanted to track down Zack and pummel him to a bloody pulp in revenge for breaking Aerith's heart, but they could not leave their friend alone in such a state.

Aerith sobbed freely, feeling her heart break inside her chest. Zack did not love her. He was and now again in love with Cissnei. It was clear to Aerith now that she was just fooling herself into thinking someone as perfect as him could ever love someone like her. She felt stupid for thinking she could take Cissnei's place, for thinking Zack would find her beautiful, for thinking of something more than just a friendship with him, and now she did not even have that. It was over before it had even begun! And now, her heart was paying for it.

X, X, X,

Author Note- Just for the record, this story is going to be short possibly four or five chapters. That's right it does not end here. The inspiration for the story and the title was the song, "Last Christmas" which was done by various artists (my favorite being Wham! and Savage Garden). Well, hope you all enjoyed and I hope to finish this by Christmas.