Disclaimer: I do not now or before and most likely not in the future, own Final Fantasy, Square Enix or any of the characters.

A/N: I have a song in here, kind of song chapter(ish). I said it before in UB, sometimes a song just 'sings' to me and if I can fit it in with the regular narrative, I will. The song is "What's Left of Me" by Nick Lachey.

I do not have a beta, so forgive any mistakes and just enjoy them, I do!


"Try not to become a man of success, but a man of value." –Albert Einstein

To You I Give My Heart

Chapter 6

~Good Men, All in Good Time~

The ex-SOLDIER shoved clothes and a small amount of supplies into a bag that he took. Zack took a pair of sweats and a T-shirt that he got from Jacob and put them on Cloud. Apparently Harding had grabbed several of her shirts and shorts and already had them in the bag. Glimpsing her face, she slept peacefully; seemingly unaware of what was occurring around her. He could remember the first time he ever saw her. Standing in the lobby of the main tower, she was a radiant beauty among the sterile environment of the Shinra Empire.

Following Cloud's ex, he followed Harding out the side door of the mansion closest to the woods. It was also closest to the employee parking lot.

As Zack got Cloud comfortable in the small two door car, Harding nudged the keys into the taller man's hand. Zack gently laid his sword that Jacob had gotten out of the locked storage room in the backseat.

The begging in Harding's eyes said to Zack that he wanted to say something, but he wasn't sure he wanted to hear it. Over the time they were here, Harding had only showed up during the very last few months. However, he was still a part of the pain that they both had endured, so Zack had a few things to say to him.

"Jacob," There was resentment at the taste of his name in his mouth that rose like the bitter bite of vinegar. Zack had to think about how he wanted to say this, did he want to spare the lab assistant's feelings, or did he want to tell Harding the truth?

He chose the latter, "I hate you. I hate you for what you stand for. I hate you for being a part of that crazy bastard's freak show, but most of all I hate you for what you did to Cloud," Zack exhaled and redirected his anger to the animal that claimed that he was a scientist and said in a calm way, "However, thank you for helping us."

The fidgeting that Harding displayed said he was still terrified of the threat from earlier. Shutting the trunk of the car quietly, "I can tell that you want to say something, so make it quick."

Relaxing his shoulders a tiny amount, he looked up from the ground into Zack's angry and waiting eyes, "I am glad that she has you to take care of her now," Harding sighed, then continued, "I was in love with her at one time, hell I'm still in love with her, but when she disappeared and they claimed that all of you were dead, I mourned her," He shifted his weight.

Gritting his teeth, Zack held his anger, "Get to the point Harding."

Flinching from his tone, Harding continued, "When I came here and she was here… with you… All I can say is that she is a lovely and beautiful spirit and she deserves the way you treat her," Harding paused and then added, "I could tell in the videos that she's in love with you," His breath hitched and he quickly retreated a couple of steps.

Trying to forget that their private moments together were made public, he regained his moral compass, "What are you going to say to explain our escape?" Figuring that he had scared the assistant enough, after all, he was helping them so he changed the subject in the discussion.

"Oh I don't know, just that I was asleep, it is the middle of the night after all," Sticking his hands in his pockets to warm them, the lab assistant raised his eyebrows, "You have a good five hours before they know that you're gone, so get going." When Zack turned to get in the car, Harding grabbed his arm, "Here, I almost forgot. I saved this up for a new car, but I want you to have it. This is all I can offer. Now hurry and get her out of here."

Taking the dark grey bank bag, he stood there and stared at the shorter man, completely unsure of what he should do. Should he hug him, shake his hand or perhaps punch him in the face. Not waiting around for anymore awkwardness, Zack got in the car and started it up, "Thanks Jacob," As Zack drove off, he could see him start to wave at them and run a few steps as he yelled something that sounded like 'wait'. Choosing to ignore him, he continued to drive. Now he just had to figure out where to go to keep his sleeping dream-girl safe.

Driving just out of sight of the mansion, aqua colored eyes widened, "I don't believe this," Zack stopped the car and peered out the windshield in utter disbelief, "I know for a fact the Seph burned this town to the ground." Zack got out and rounded the car and studied the town as it set, full and unscathed.

"Well Chocobo, it looks as if Shinra is back to its old tricks. We better get out of here quick," Jumping back into the car; he drove off and out of the small, quaint town of Nibelheim, headed for parts unknown.

Getting away from Nibelheim was the main priority, the farther the better. The night seemed to drag on as he drove farther away from the nightmare that they had endured together. Now they were free, or felt as though they were anyway.

"How about listening to a little travel music? I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind hearing a song or two," Flipping on the radio, the last of a song played, "Oh, man, I would have liked to hear that one." Missing any kind of music, he just tried to enjoy the rhythm of the tires on the road with the added bonus of tunes from the radio. Constantly dreaming of Cloud, to him, everything about her was a harmony just waiting for a chorus of words to flow with her.

As he listened to the next song, his eyes began to well up in a sorrow as he started to think. Perhaps he just needed to get out of his head, but that was damn near impossible.

Watch my life pass me by in the rear view mirror. Pictures frozen in time are becoming clearer. I don't wanna waste another day, stuck in the shadows of my mistakes.

Looking at her now, thoughts of regret muffled his heart. She should have never had to make the choice. Whether he knowingly or unknowingly shoved Sephiroth and his madness on her slim shoulders was beyond debate. She was just a month away from testing for entry into the SOLDIER program when she got deployed with him to that mission. Sephiroth had burned down her hometown, killed her mother and her only childhood friend, Tifa, along with every other citizen that crossed the insane man's path. She had no one now. Now what kind of man was he? He was nothing; he couldn't even get them out of that hell hole without help.

Cause I want you, and I feel you crawling underneath my skin. Like a hunger, like a burning to find a place I've never been. Now I'm broken, and I'm fading. I'm half the man I thought I would be, but you can have what's left of me.

All the mistakes he made, letting Cloud go to another when he should have just told her how he felt from the start. Instead, he let his pride get in the way and wouldn't even admit to himself his true feelings. The fact was, she completed him and he wanted her to know that.

I've been dying inside little by little. Nowhere to go but going out of my mind in endless circles. Running myself until you gave me a reason for standing still.

All the other women he had gone out with, he had compared them to her. Secretly, he hated that she had seen him with others. With the comparison game, no one ever lived up to his expectations of what he had always wanted in her and her alone. Feeling awful that he had used those women and fantasized that they were Cloud, his heart sank a little.

Falling faster, barely breathing, give me something to believe in. Tell me it's not all in my head. Take what's left of this man. Make me whole once again.

Her smile, her laugh and the way she looked away as she blushed was the woman he wanted back. She was perfection to him, everything about her. He had only lived at life before, never lived it in the moment. An empty blackness, dark and scary to feel on a daily basis was what he had become. Now, just the thought of her, made him full, his chest swell with the pride that he would gladly give himself fully to her for all eternity.

Watching as the sun rose, he had been so into his own thoughts, he forgot to look around. The feel of the cool breeze through the rolled down windows and the new feel of the warmth of the sun were all things that he had taken for granted before. As the light got brighter, the green on the leaves and the smell of flowers in bloom signaled spring. It had always been his favorite time of year.

He remembered the way it would heat up in his home town and the smell of flowers and the sounds of the birds. It also meant that school would soon be letting out for the summer and he could run and play. Never really one for sitting still, his priorities were different then.

When he looked over at Cloud, she was being held up by the seat belt. Her chin sat loosely on her chest and her tiny hands lay limply by her thighs. A few wisps of her hair had fallen forward blocking part of his view of her face. A simple movement of his hand had her hair behind her ear, now there was nothing obstructing his view.

Just as before, she just looked as though she were sleeping. Her eyes jerked behind her eyelids as though a dream was coming true. Starting with a small whimper, she unleashed screams that shook the calm out of Zack in an instant. Flailing her arms, she hit Zack on the side of his head and shoulder. Swerving to the side of the road, she kicked hard enough to crack the floor board beneath her, "Cloud!"

Once the car was out of sight of the road, he grabbed a hold of her wrists and struggled to hold her from hurting herself, "Hojo just had to mako enhance you didn't he?" Zack asked her, not expecting an answer, but one came anyway. With one quick movement, her back arched and her head whipped back, smacking into the headrest, bending it backwards. With her elbow that was closest to the passenger door, she busted out the side window.

Trying to calm her, Zack took her by the sides of her head and willed his voice to her, "Cloud, please stop this." Slowly she calmed and went limp in his arms. So wanting to help her, he just held her while she sobbed in her slumber. Gently, he moved the stray strands of hair that covered her face after her nightmare.

When she finally quieted, she appeared to yet again be sleeping. On so many levels, the display that she had let out disturbed him. Having never seen anything of the like before, he fought tears at what she might be dreaming about that would cause such a reaction. Hoping that the frightening fit was a one-time thing, he remembered Harding saying something about her screaming sometimes, as if trapped in her nightmare. Shaking his foreboding feelings on the subject, he had to get moving soon.

By then, the sun was just above the horizon and illuminated a path to anywhere. It was just a matter of time that they would be looking for this car, so he was going to have to abandon it. That was fine because Harding obviously hadn't really thought ahead, the gas tank was now on empty.

"Well Chocobo, it looks like we will be walking for now. At least until we get new wheels," Heaving the bag from the trunk over his shoulder, fixing his sword on the magnetic harness, then picking her up in a bridal carry, he began his walk to the south toward Cosmo Canyon and hopefully on to Gongaga.


A/N: Thanks to everyone who reads, favorites, subscribes and/or reviews, I appreciate your time and I dedicate all of this to you. To quote another author, "Getting reviews makes me feel all warm and squishy."

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