She loved him for him.

She'd begun to realize it slowly, but growing more and more sure. Of course, it was Zack that drew her to him first. He looked like Zack, acted like Zack, even met her in the exact same way Zack had. In almost all respects, he was Zack, and in wanting to be with Zack, she wanted to be with him.

But then there were the subtle differences. The way he looked when he smiled at her. The way he laughed at her comments but didn't say anything; she knew he listened and appreciated her all the same. The way he led them all through safety, one victory after another.

And when she thought of Cloud, she didn't consider him as a blonde-haired version of Zack. She didn't think of Zack falling through the church roof, or Zack's eyes, the exact same mako color, or even Zack's gestures.

Instead she thought of Cloud. The way he was. He made her smile, and he made her laugh, for all the things that he was, not all the ways he reminded her of Zack.

She only wished she could see more of Cloud. So often, he'd gain a new expression, a new emotion, a funny light she'd never seen before in his eyes. She'd have to step back then and watch him carefully, delighting in how perfectly Cloud it was. But then, another minute would pass, and he'd be Zack again, scratching his spiky hair with mako eyes shining.

The sad thing was that he didn't even realize it. To some extent, perhaps, he did. She could see he was searching, trying to make his way through muddled memories to find himself, but it wasn't easy. She wanted to help him.

“I want to meet you, Cloud,” she said, turning slowly away from the bright and blazing fireworks, beautiful out the window, to look him in the eye.

He looked confused.

She laughed. It was one of the expressions she loved most: his bemused smile, like he couldn't decide whether to laugh at her antics or simply proclaim her as crazy.

Sometimes it made her heart feel like it was going to explode. Because she was so close to him, to finding him, and when she did, she knew he'd have her whole heart. Or maybe he already did, and maybe she was only afraid of finding it again, when she found him. But it excited her, too, made her smile and feel all fluttery inside, like she'd burst of happiness at any moment.

“I want to meet you, Cloud,” she said again. “The real you.”

The gondola was coming to a stop, and they both got out together. Cloud was looking at her, with that confused half-smile, and it only made her own smile wider. Because she knew it was Cloud, and she was coming closer and closer to the real him.