[ it's strange, how things have changed -- cloud, for all of his fragility and in spite of it, wants to do this for him. but in the end, it only makes sense: this pain they carried was a tether. whatever happened in those 5 years, that haze of torment and loss that so often confounded him, was reserved for the two of them.

cloud stays as he is. his embrace is rigid, as if he's certain that this is he wants, even if there's so much he doesn't know, so much he's entirely unaware of. the palm of his hand is anchored against zack's back as if that'll ground him in what's real. ]

All of it's...still messed up, really. [ he swallows. ] My head... my memories of whatever happened back then... But I heard your voice, even after you were gone. Sometimes... it was the only thing that kept me going.

You were my first friend. My... only friend. And-- my best one, too.

[ his voice softens, on the cusp of a whisper. he has to actively push every single syllable out, as if he's on the verge of lapsing into something he shouldn't. but he tries no less, finding the strength in the depths of his chest, a flickering warmth that he latches onto with all of his might. ]

You... don't know how much my world changed when you left it. And now you're here and-- you could be... I don't know. Happy this time. Like you should've been. You deserved that. You... always did.