A/N: Finally something more recent! I have been out of touch with my writer side for quite awhile, but I'm working on it. I miss it, but I'm a little rusty. Hopefully, you'll enjoy it anyway!

This is written to a song by Skillet of the same name. It's not necessary, but I encourage readers to go listen to this song before, during, or after reading. For some reason, it really stood out to me as a Zack x Aerith song. :)

AWAKE AND ALIVE

~I'm at war with the world

And they try to pull me into the dark

I struggle to find my faith

As I'm slipping from your arms.~

Just another day on the run.

It was all starting to blur together, he thought, slouching in the mud and pouring rain. His thick uniform had soaked through early on, and it was impossible not to shiver as he hunkered down in a small grove of trees a fair distance from the road. Glossy black hair plastered to his face, rain water trickling steadily down his cheeks and dripping from his nose and eyelashes. The insides of his boots were soggy, and he was sure that beneath his saturated gloves, his fingers resembled prunes—although he'd lost feeling in them some time ago.

Slumping against a nearby tree, he gave a heavy sigh.

His emotions were at war, his thoughts in turmoil. All this time spent running, and he still had no more clarity than when he and Cloud had escaped the horrors of ShinRa Mansion—what particular horrors he could not remember, but he knew just as he knew his own name. All he could recall vividly was Nibelheim burning...

Sephiroth.

He let out a slow, steady breath, casting a glance at his blonde companion. Cloud wasn't faring well, suffering from prolonged exposure to toxic amounts of Mako. He worried for him, but tried desperately to keep his spirits up.

If they could get to Midgar, everything would be okay.

Zack closed his eyes, wearily.

If only they could get to Midgar...

~It's getting harder to stay awake

And my strength is fading fast

You breathe into me at last.~

She lay alone in her bed, listening to the pattering of rain on the roof. She was tired, but sleep eluded her like it had most nights he had been gone, and she rolled to her side, pulling the blanket tighter around her and thinking of him.

What was he doing right now? Was he safe? How much longer before he could come home again?

Four years was a long time, but he had made her a promise, and she would continue to wait for him, as always.

She worried while he was away, despite knowing he was a season SOLDIER and had been for years now. If he didn't come back...

Immediately, she halted those thoughts, turning to her back once more. He would come back...he always came back.

She closed her eyes, imagining him as he was the day he'd come to tell her he'd been assigned and would be leaving early the next morning. She didn't let him know she was disappointed, giving him a bright smile instead and wishing him a safe trip. He'd been adorable, blushing in embarrassment at having to postpone their date yet again. She laughed at his discomfort and hugged him, all the while committing the feel and scent of him to memory.

She sighed, exhaustion overpowering him. "Oh, Zack..."

~I'm at war with the world

'Cause I ain't never gonna sell my soul

I've already made up my mind

No matter what I can't be bough or sold.~

The aroma of flowers wafted around as he warily pushed open the heavy wooden doors and stepped inside the dimly lit church. He paused to inhale deeply the familiar, comforting scent, his mako-blue eyes sweeping over the worn, broken pews, dusty floor boards, and slowly coming to rest on the meticulously-kept flowerbeds near the altar and the dainty woman purposely moving through them.

Beautiful as always, she knelt in the freshly turned earth, preening the delicate blossoms and crooning soft words he could not hear. She stopped now and again to brush a stray strand of chestnut hair behind her ear, smudging dirt on her cheek.

As if sensing eyes on her, she glanced up and, catching sight of him in the doorway, offered a genuine smile of pleasure that lit the room and warmed him thoroughly.

He had to be the luckiest guy on earth.

~When my faith is getting weak

And I feel like giving in

You breathe into me again.~

She wrapped slender arms around his waist, holding him close. It had been far too long and there were no words to express how they'd missed one another.

He smelled of smoke and sweat, and his uniform was damp and muddy as if he'd been working in the rain. His charcoal hair was disheveled and there were dark circles beneath his otherwise bright turquoise eyes that said he hadn't slept in days. She knew he had come to see her the moment he returned, and the thought made her heart sing. She buried her nose in his uniform, breathing him in.

"I knew you'd come back," she murmured against his chest.

She felt him smile. "Don't I always?"

~I can feel you in my sleep

In you arms I feel you breathe into me

Forever hold this heart that I will give to you

Forever I will live for you.~

They sat on the rooftop together, their hands tightly twined, and she combed her fingers through his thick, black mane as he rested his head in her lap, eyes closed. He sighed contently while she hummed quietly.

This is where he always wanted to be. He could grow old and die happily in this peaceful place they'd created together amid the chaos that was his life. Maybe...once his duty with SOLDIER came to an end...

"Zack." Her sweet voice interrupted his blissful thoughts. "You have to leave soon."

He groaned in disagreement, wrinkling his nose and making a face.

"Zack," she said gently, prodding his shoulder. "You know you have to."

He lazily opened his eyes to gaze at their entangled fingers. Stroking her knuckles with his thumb, he studied them for a long time, thinking.

His were calloused, scarred, and darkly tanned from years of hard training and being in the sun away from Midgar. The skin was dry and occasionally cracked and bled.

Hers, in comparison, were beautiful—the hands of an artist. Her fingers were long and slender, and she always seemed to have dirt beneath her nails from nursing the flowers she loved so much. Her skin was creamy and sharply contrasted with his own, and her touch was always tender. He could feel her heart and soul from the smallest caress.

"No," he replied, finally coming to a decision and rolling onto his back with a grin. "I'm going to stay awhile longer." When she started to point out the trouble he would get in with his superiors, he silenced her words with a hand on her cheek, face suddenly serious. His gaze spoke volumes, more than he could ever voice out loud. His sadness. His regret. His good-bye. "Just let me have this moment..."

Soon, he would wake up to the driving rain once again, to the reality that he was a fugitive; that his former colleagues were hunting him down like a rabid animal for reasons he couldn't comprehend. But, for now, he could continue to dream of her.

And that would see him through to the end.

~I'm awake, I'm alive

Now I know what I believe inside

Now it's my time

I'll do what I want 'cause this is my life.

Right here, right now

Stand my ground and never back down

I know what I believe inside

I'm awake and I'm alive.~

*End*

A/N: Yes, the repetition between Zack/Aerith and Cloud/Tifa in the game was intentional. Mainly because Cloud meets Aerith almost the exact same way.