a. In the game, Aerith clearly states that her relationship with Zack was in the past and that they were NOT serious. From FFVII (at the
playground):
Cloud: âYou wereâŠserious?â
Aerith: âNo. But I liked him for awhile.â
Cloud: âI probably knew him. What was his name?â
Aerith: âIt doesnât really matter.â
Thatâs a pretty strange attitude for someone who is still supposedly so hung up over her ex-boyfriend, isnât it? She clearly states that they werenât serious and
then follows up by saying she doesnât really care if Cloud knows him.
If Aerith were still hung up over Zack at this point, wouldnât she be dying to know some news about him? But, from this conversation alone, we learn that,
not only are Aerithâs feelings for Zack all in the past, she obviously considers her first love to have been a mere fleeting fancy and nothing more. This is
confirmed in Maiden of the Planet when Zack is referred to as Aerithâs âlight taste of first loveâ and is also confirmed to be ânow a very dear friendâ and
nothing more.
This becomes even more apparent in the FFVII prequel, Crisis Core, where the affection level between Aerith and Zack is completely optional, Zack has
multiple girlfriends, and Aerith has moved on without him by the end of the game. Â
    b. Aerith did not act all that concerned when she found out that Zack had been missing for 5 years and was possibly dead. From FFVII
(Gongaga):
Aerith: âWhat a shockâŠ. I didnât know Zack was from this town.â
Cloud: âYou know him?â
Aerith: âDidnât I tell you? He was my first love.â
Cloud: ââŠâŠâ
Aerith: âZackâŠ. SOLDIER First Class. Same as Cloud.â
Cloud: âStrange, there arenât that many who make First Class, but Iâve never heard of him.â
Aerith: âThatâs all right. Itâs all in the past now. I was just worried because I heard heâs been missing.â
Cloud: âMissing?â
Aerith: âI think it was 5 years ago. He went out on a job, and never came back.â âHe loved women, a real ladyâs man. He probably found someone else.â
For someone who is supposedly still pining over her ex-boyfriend, Aerith sure took that news well. All she did was shrug it off, say that their relationship
was all in the past, and assume that he had probably run off with another woman. Aerith later follows up this conversation by saying that she doesnât mind
that she hasnât heard from him.
Iâm sorry, but I donât see any indication here of Aerith still being in love with Zack. Honestly, if she were, wouldnât she be going insane over the news that he
has been missing for the past 5 years and no one has heard a peep from him? Instead, she acted as though it really didnât matter and you even have the in-
game option of making Aerith tease Cloud for being jealous over Zack.
    c. Aerith states, more than once, that she understands that Cloud and Zack are different and she loves Cloud more anyways.
         1. From FFVII (the date scene):
Aerith: âFirst off, it bothered me how you looked exactly alike. Two completely different people, but look exactly the same. The way you walk, gesture⊠I
think I must have seen him again, in you⊠But youâre different. Things are differentâŠâ
First of all, please note that Aerith states that it bothered her that Cloud looked like Zack. She didnât say she was happy about it or even excited. Bothered.
Some definitions of bother:
âto give trouble to; annoy; pester; worryâ
âto bewilder; confuseâ
So, Aerith was either worried about Cloudâs resemblance to Zack or confused by it. Neither of these suggest that she was particularly happy about it. I am
sure the âZack-nessâ of Cloud was what initially drew Aerith to him. However, Aerith learned very quickly that Cloud was nothing like Zack, hence her
words âBut youâre different.â
       2. From Final Fantasy VII Dismantled, an official book which has sections that focus on the thoughts of the FFVII characters, there is a
section that speaks of Aerithâs feelings for Cloud. She states that she realizes that Cloud is nothing like Zack and that she loves Cloud more than Zack
anyways:
âAt first when I met Cloud, I believed he was similar to Zack. Little actions, the way he spoke⊠his kindness. But Cloud is Cloud. I, now undoubtedly,
love Cloud much more than Zack. But Cloud is clueless.â (FFVII Dismantled, Aerithâs monologue in Gongaga, p. 159)
This statement alone is enough to completely trump Zack x Aerith. I mean, Aerith blatantly states that she loves Cloud more than she ever loved Zack,
which means she is over Zack and has moved on with Cloud. And this is from an official source, people, not some made up delusion that CloTis like to
pawn off as truth.
       3. From the official novella Maiden of the Planet, Aerith tells Zack that his âbad pointâ was that he was nice to everyone (in other words, heâs a
flirt). That and the fact that he wasnât âsimplistic and awkward like Cloudâ. And so Aerith is stating she prefers Cloudâs simplistic, awkward behavior to
Zackâs flirty, womanizing behavior. Aerith obviously prefers Cloud over Zack, and says so quite clearly.
And⊠the ultimate nail in the coffin of this absurd theory: âShe loved him [Cloud] much more than her first love.â  You canât get much clearer than that! This
is the second time that Aerith has confirmed in an official source that she loves Cloud far more than she ever loved Zack! RIP ZerithâŠ. XD
  d. Aerith completely rejects Zack in the Lifestream (Maiden of the Planet):
Zack: âMan, you know Aerith. Out of all the girls Iâve gotten along with, you truly are the best. After that mission, we couldâve stayed the way we were and
might have been able to continue to go out with each other after I returned home. I hate Sephiroth. And I hate Shinra whoâs been hiding all the stuff theyâve
been doing.â
Aerith: âSomeone whoâs gotten along with so many girls can never become a lover.â
Zack: âHow mean. Iâm nice to everyone.â
Aerith: âAnd thatâs your bad point. Youâre not simplistic and awkward like Cloud.â
AndâŠ
Zack: âBut whenever you feel lonely, call me Aerith.â
Aerith: âOnly if I get really lonely. Goodnight, Zack.â
So, how anyone can believe that Aerith still harbors feelings for Zack is beyond me. She states multiple times that she loves Cloud more than Zack and that
she completely understands he is different from Zack. Actually, Aerith seems to prefer Cloudâs type now that she is a mature woman, only being attracted to
Zack when she was much younger and inexperienced. Throw in the fact that Aerith rejects Zackâs advances in the Lifestream, and the evidence becomes so
rock-solid, I really donât see why people continue to live in denial of the facts.
And, as usual, I saved the best for lastâŠ.
   e. In Case of Lifestream: White, it is stated that Cloud is Aerithâs koibito. Case of Lifestream: White is a novella written by Kazushige Nojima. It
takes place directly before and during AC/ACC and allows one to view the events taking place within the Lifestream. Case of Lifestream: White focuses on
Aerith, while Case of Lifestream: Black focuses on Sephiroth.
During the novella, Aerith is referred to as âthe womanâ. Below is the excerpt of interest:
âCloud was her friend, her beloved â a symbol of what was important to her, and someone to be protected.â
Please note that the word translated as âbelovedâ is koibito in Japanese. Besides âbelovedâ, it can also be translated as âsweetheartâ, âloverâ, or
âboyfriend/girlfriendâ. There are no official translations for this novella as of yet.
The important thing to note is that Cloud is, at the very least, considered Aerithâs âbelovedâ. Clearly, if Aerith considers Cloud her beloved, then she no longer
harbors any feelings of a romantic nature for Zack. Zack, BTW, was glaringly absent in Aerithâs novella.