Feisty
There's plenty of fish in the sea…
"…and then he started talking about how this was all his fault and he was sooooo stupid for letting me go and he wanted things to go back to the way they were cause we were totally meant to be and I was like—"
"Please don't tell me you went running back to him like the love-struck fool I know you are."
"Hey! Give me some credit, girl! …well, I didn't sleep with him that night."
"But?"
"C'mon, he was pretty sincere! And he apologized!"
"You see? This is why you keep screwing up all your relationships. Because when they're not looking so good and the signs are there, you choose to ignore them and insist your relationship can persist. But it can't. Those signs are there for a reason! So all of your relationships end horribly."
"Hey, hey! I'm still friends with Hayner!"
"It's quite obvious he's afraid of pissing off Axel again. While we're on the subject of your brother, can you ask him to ask how Roxas is doing? Xion gives her best."
"Ha, so your sister is still after him? They're adorable. It's like falling-for-your-best-friend-except-now-it's-your-best-friend's-sister's-best-friend's-sister. Wow. Best friend's sister squared."
"So it's not quite best friend now, is it?"
"Cut me some slack, Naminé. I live and breathe romance clichés. Your sister and Roxas are a living one that I have to ship."
"You and your matchmaking tendencies. I wonder why you haven't started a Kairi's Cupid Services yet."
The two best friends laughed as they exchanged the usual gossip over coffee break. They both fortunately had an empty time slot on Monday afternoons when they hung out and chilled. Amidst the schoolwork and other obligations they had as busy college students, these moments of relaxing were rare and cherished.
"So, now that I'm done lamenting over my sad love life, it's your turn. Spill, girl. How's things with you and Sora?"
Naminé smiled, a pretty blush flooding her cheeks. Just the mention of her boyfriend (for five months and counting!) still made her stomach do backflips. It was a reflex from her days as shy awkward Naminé who didn't have the guts to talk to any guy besides her younger brother and Demyx, a nice gay boy in her business administration class. Back then, she'd had the biggest crush on Sora, the epitome of every girl's dream. His chocolate brown locks of hair that shot out in every direction. Those adorable baby blue eyes. The lithe build and tanned skin. The charming smile and smooth words. Of course, he was just a distant dream for the quiet and reserved Naminé back then. Under Kairi's insistence and matchmaking (seriously, Naminé swore the girl should charge for her cupid services), she and Sora slowly became friends and finally got together. It was still a miracle that Naminé pinched her cheeks over at times. It was unbelievable. Even her old friends at home had left awestruck comments on her Facebook wall when she had changed her relationship status.
Naminé chuckled and noted how she sounded like a silly schoolgirl. "We're good. Everything's been fine."
"Oh, come on, that's all you have to share?" Kairi almost complained. "I was hoping for some drama or complaints at least. You can't be all that satisfied with the boy. How is he in bed?"
"Kairi!" Naminé exclaimed. How scandalous!
Kairi grinned. "Awh, c'mon, you were asking for it." The redhead paused and looked at Naminé intently. "Wait, have you two slept together yet?"
Naminé bit the bottom of her lip and turned away awkwardly. "Umm…no," she finally confessed.
"What?" Kairi all but shrieked (though it was pretty close, Naminé considered). "Are you serious? You've been dating for five months! There are people who have one-night stands but you guys haven't done it yet?"
Naminé felt a bit uncomfortable discussing the subject but she knew that Kairi was just forthright and direct. It was, Naminé supposed, a part of her charm. "Well, it just never seemed to come up in our discussions…I mean, does Sora want to have sex?"
Kairi groaned. "Naminé, he's a guy. You're his girlfriend…the love of his life, or whatever cheesy lines he's sprouting now. Henceforth, he wants to have sex. He wants to bang you, believe me."
"Do you have to be so…" Naminé trailed off.
"Crude?" Kairi volunteered.
"I was gonna say uncouth but that probably means the same thing." Naminé sighed.
"Naminé," Kairi said, her face now serious, "you have to show that you're willing. You should know better than I do just how much of a gentleman Sora is. Remember how long it took to wean him of his momma's boy's ways?" Naminé chuckled, fondly recalling those times. Briefly at the beginning of their relationship, Kairi had declared that Sora was spending way too much time with his mother and neglecting Naminé in the process. Naminé insisted it was understandable since his mother didn't always have the chance to come stay with Sora in Twilight Town. The entire thing had gotten to the point that Sora's mother had to intervene. Naminé was humiliated that she was having a sort of 'he's-my-son-and-you're-his-girlfriend-so-we-have-equal-claim-over-him' conversation with his mother. Plus, she was just his girlfriend, not his wife. Talk about embarrassing. Naminé had a serious discussion with Kairi after she got home from that conversation but somehow after that, Sora began to make more time for her, despite his mother still being in town. And when his mother finally left, Naminé was on pretty good terms with the woman. Maybe Naminé had Kairi to thank for some things. But anyways…
"Wait, so it's a bad thing that Sora's a gentleman now?" Naminé asked.
"No, Naminé. I mean you have to show him you want it or else he'll never initiate it."
Naminé groaned. Were they seriously having this talk now, of all times, in a public location? "Kairi…we're fine. We don't need…sex in our relationship."
"This isn't just about you, Naminé," Kairi said. "Think about Sora. He's a man with needs, you know." She paused for a moment, her face blanching. "Okay, now's probably not the best time to talk about this but—oh wait, never mind, whatever, maybe it's just me…"
"Kairi?" Naminé asked, as she watched her friend spiral into one of her little rambles.
"…hearing too many things, it's really troublesome when all that gossip passes through you, and—"
"Kairi!" Naminé exclaimed, gaining the redhead's attention. "Kairi, talk to me. What?" Naminé said.
Kairi seemed hesitant to speak. "Well, let me just first say that this is just rumors I've heard. So there's no basis and absolutely no reason to believe it because it's just—" Kairi scoffed, "ridiculous, even for me, and I've heard some pretty ridiculous things—"
"KAIRI!" Naminé hollered. Kairi stopped talking and turned towards her blonde friend. "Kairi, just get to the point." Naminé knew her friend couldn't hide anything anyways.
Kairi drew a deep breath. "I heard from my brother who heard from Roxas who heard from his girlfriend—actually his ex now, but anyways—who heard from a teammate on the cheerleading squad that…" Kairi rushed something at the end of her sentence but she spoke too fast for Naminé to discern any of her words.
"Wait, what? Can you say that again? Slower, maybe?" Naminé said mockingly.
Kairi rolled her eyes at Naminé's tone. "I said, that I heard Selphie Tilmitt was flirting with Sora at a frat party two days ago."
The thought chilled Naminé to the bone. Her initial reaction was to calm herself down and remind herself that it was just a rumor. Then, to her horror, she realized that two days ago, Sora had canceled on a date with her. So did he really go to the party? Anxieties piled upon anxieties as her mind was left to imagine. This was definitely not a good sign.
Kairi was rambling about the absurdity of the rumor but she noted Naminé's silence and stopped, looking at her seriously. "Naminé? Are you really considering it's the truth?"
Naminé looked up at Kairi from her coffee. "Well, it's…possible. I mean, just something to take note of…"
"Please, this is Sora we're talking about. He'd probably break up with you, wait for a respectable amount of time after you start dating someone else, and then ask you if he can date someone else. He's just so whipped like that."
"I—I know, I mean…" Naminé decided to share her worries, "he canceled a date on me two days ago, and this coincidence just isn't resting well with me, and my insecurities are all acting up…"
"It means you care, Naminé," Kairi said with a smile. "And I'm glad you do. Well, since there seems to be something suspicious going on…" Kairi said, rising from her seat, "how about we do some stalking?"
"Stalking?" Naminé repeated. "Who?"
"We don't just stalk who," Kairi said with a feral grin, "we stalk for information. C'mon, let's trace this rumor back to its source first," Kairi said. She flipped out her phone. "Operation Find-Out-Why-Sora's-Acting-Weird is a go!"
"Operation FOWSAW?" Naminé repeated, shortening the words to an acronym.
"Yeah, good naming Naminé. Let's go!" Kairi exclaimed, putting down her empty coffee cup and dragging Naminé out of the café.
"Wait, Kairi, I have class in thirty minutes!" Naminé exclaimed, following after her crazy best friend.
"Love conquers all, even the jaded hearts of sixty-some-year-old professors!" Kairi exclaimed, and somehow she convinced Naminé to skip her mass communications class.
Kairi should consider espionage as a potential future career. With her stealth and connections, she'd be a stellar agent, Naminé thought. The two of them had run around campus for the entire afternoon, questioning people and taking phone calls as they traced Sora's activities two days ago. According to sources, he had woken up five minutes later than usual (don't ask how they got that information), skipped his shower (from a dorm mate who was willing to share that information after Kairi had promised a date), went to all of his classes, had lunch in the cafeteria with Riku (heard from Riku himself), worked out in the gym, and then took a shower (heard from the same aforementioned dorm mate). Then, Naminé relayed her account: they were supposed to have dinner at the Italian restaurant that had opened near Sunset Terrace but he had called at around 5:30, an hour before their date, and said he couldn't make it. He didn't give a reason but Naminé didn't ask and that was the last Naminé heard of him that night.
"Nothing suspicious," Kairi said, looking through her notes. "Riku said he seemed fine during lunch so if something happened, it most likely happened during his afternoon class, History of America in the 20th Century, or during his work out. Now, if I can find out if anyone saw Sora at the gym in the afternoon…"
"Kairi…I feel kinda bad. I'm going behind Sora's back doing all this…" Naminé admitted. The gut-wrenching feeling had been in her stomach since they found out Sora had skipped his morning shower (she didn't even know he usually took showers in the morning…till now). It was like she was invading his privacy. "Why can't we just ask him what he did last Saturday evening?"
"Because, if he was at the party without telling you, he probably doesn't want you to know and won't tell you if you ask. Geez, Naminé, use your brain a little. I know it helps you score full marks on Professor Xigbar's pop quizzes but it doesn't really turn at times like this, does it?" Kairi teased, tapping Naminé's head. The blonde knew her friend was just joking and grinned in return.
"But still…it's like I don't trust him. And I do. I mean, maybe he just went to go pick up someone who was drunk. If it was something serious, I'm sure he would've told me."
Kairi sighed exasperatedly. "Naminé, you are way too trusting. If he cheated on you, he wouldn't tell you. So we have to do all this digging. And if he was just picking up someone drunk like what you said, then that's what we'll discover in the end. No one's hurt. You'll be assured of his saintliness and your relationship will remain intact. Win-win situation."
Naminé mulled Kairi's words over in her head, thinking the redhead made sense. "I suppose…" Naminé slowly said. She was still a bit reserved about doing all this but Kairi seemed too into it to stop.
"Alright, let's go ask the janitor at the gym. We all know she has a soft spot for Sora."
"Wait, what? The janitor has her eyes on Sora?"
"Well, Sora plus a lot of other guys. She goes after the ones with nice tans." Naminé gaped at the newly discovered information. Wait, so she not only had competition from Selphie and Sora's little soccer fan club, but also the gym janitor?
"C'mon, let's go already!" Kairi exclaimed, beckoning her. Naminé groaned, wondering what she'd gotten herself into.
The blonde watched as Kairi interrogated the elderly janitor who seemed to be having way too much fun watching Naminé squirm at every compliment she gave a boy. Because it was disturbing! She knew half the boys the janitor was talking about and—eww! This was TMI!
"Alright, I got it," Kairi said, returning with information in hand as they walked away.
"Remind me to come to the gym with Sora next time," Naminé grumbled.
"Awh, jealous?" Kairi cooed, ruffling Naminé's hair. "C'mon, Sora's hot property. Lots of girls have their eyes on him. If we're just looking at his soccer fan club, there are at least 30."
"I know, and they're troublesome enough," Naminé muttered. There were times that girls walked up to Sora and confessed to him—all right in front of Naminé. Alright, so she was a bit invisible back in her days. But still—confessing to her boyfriend right in front of her? Needless to say, Naminé had chased them off with a saccharine smile dipped in poison. In other words: scared the hell outta them. Even Sora was mildly impressed.
"So, where are we going?" Naminé asked. Recalling the highly desired status of her boyfriend, she decided this investigation was very much needed.
"Tidus. Apparently, the two were chatting most of the time while they lifted weights. Man, Tidus has nice abs. Did you see them last time we went to the bonfire party—"
"I was sketching."
"Oh right, you little loner." Kairi made a face. "Come swim a little next time. It was getting boring without you there."
"You were flirting with Riku the entire time."
"Ah yes…he was looking nice in those black shorts…anyways, you need to be more social! Sora's not gonna like it if you're boring!"
"I don't need you to direct my social life, Kairi," Naminé said exasperatedly. Kairi was a bit straightforward to the point of being too blunt at times, so Naminé found the need to return her words with equal candor.
"Alright, got it," Kairi said, making a mental note. "So, I tried calling Tidus but he's not responding. I texted Yuna and she said he has class right now. Biology, yuck."
"But it's a lecture-styled class so the teacher won't notice if we slip in, right? Plus, it's Tidus so I'm pretty sure he'll be sleeping in the back."
Kairi grinned. "I should recruit you as my sidekick."
Naminé shared the smile. "I think we'd be the most badass duo in history."
By the time they got there, they realized Tidus' class had already ended. Fortunately, they caught the exiting wave of students and located Tidus' mass of blond hair amongst the crowd. Kairi made her way through and Naminé followed behind as they came to a stop in front of him.
"Oh, hey Kairi. And Naminé," Tidus greeted. Kairi and Tidus knew each other from high school, and Naminé had met Tidus through Kairi. He was a pretty chill guy, kind of similar to Sora, but with blond hair and was slightly more impulsive.
"Hey Tidus," Kairi greeted. "So, last Saturday afternoon were you at the gym with Sora?"
Tidus chuckled. "Whoa, that sounded just a little stalkerish." He turned towards Naminé. "Is she dragging you around on one of her matchmaking operations again?"
"She did that in high school?" Naminé asked, surprised.
"Yeah. She always dragged Yuna back then. They were unstoppable."
"Tidus!" Kairi exclaimed, regaining his attention. "Were you or were you not at the gym with Sora?"
Tidus turned back to Kairi. "Impatient as ever. Anyways…" he paused for a moment, thinking, "yeah, I remember that. We were lifting weights."
"What did you talk about?" Kairi pressed.
Tidus furrowed his brows. "I don't really remember. I mean, we were just chatting, probably about something stupid…"
"Sora's not stupid!" Naminé exclaimed in defense. Kairi and Tidus turned towards her incredulously. She coughed awkwardly. "I mean, it's not stupid to me. Do you really not remember?"
Tidus chuckled nervously. "Well, there's the girlfriend for you. Lemme see…he mentioned stress from his classes, prospects of graduate school, and—oh, right, he asked if I knew any well-paying part-time jobs. We also talked about Yuna, and Roxas who doesn't seem to realize he likes Xion—"
"Oh-em-gee, you guys think so too?" Kairi squealed, ecstatic. "I'm not the only one who ships them, Naminé!"
"Ship them? What are you talking about?" Naminé said, but the redhead ignored her, signaling for Tidus to continue talking.
"Yeah, so after Roxas and Xion, there was something about rent, and Selphie, and—"
"Selphie?" Kairi interrupted. "What about Selphie?"
Tidus paused for a moment and then groaned. "I really don't remember, sorry."
"You need to remember!" Kairi exclaimed. "It's important!"
"I can obviously tell!" Tidus returned. "But I really can't remember!"
"Argh!" Kairi exclaimed. "This is so frustrating!"
"Why are you stalking Sora, anyways? Isn't he with," Tidus tilted his head towards the blonde, "her?"
"Yes, he is, but he's acting suspicious. He canceled on a date with Naminé but then rumors came up saying he was spotted at a frat party with Selphie Tilmitt."
Tidus raised a brow. "Really? Sora? We're talking about the guy who didn't want to talk to any other girls when he first started dating."
"And we all know how that went," Kairi said sarcastically. Naminé had heard the story. The girl had thought Sora was way too clingy and she had broken up with him. Too whipped in a way. "But anyways, the coincidences just all line up. And too many coincidences starts getting freaky."
"Mhmm, I see your point," Tidus said, mulling over the information. "Well, I can ask him about it if you want…"
"No, it's okay," Naminé hurriedly cut in. She did not want to confront Sora about this. "I'm probably just overthinking all of this. Thanks though, Tidus," Naminé said with a small grin. Tidus nodded and said goodbye to the two girls, leaving them strolling in the quad of the college.
"Okay…is it just me or are things getting just a bit too suspicious? I mean, it started from a rumor that may or may not have no basis but then Tidus confirmed that Sora was talking about Selphie…something fishy going on here."
Naminé sighed. She was curious to know what was the relationship between Sora and Selphie but she didn't want to bother probing so deep into Sora's life without him knowing. It aroused conflicting feelings in her—should she continue with this investigation?
"Well, there are still many routes for us to take. If Sora was talking about Selphie during his workout, then maybe something happened in History of America in the 20th Century. Or if you want, we can instead try to trace the source of the rumor. Both seem like viable options to me," Kairi said.
"I think we should stop," Naminé said. Kairi turned towards her incredulously. "I mean, this is pretty interesting and all but I just don't feel like it's the right thing to do, snooping about Sora behind his back. If there's anything important, I'm sure he'll just tell me."
Kairi looked like someone was clawing a blackboard. Misery seized her countenance. "Naminé…you're just too nice. Promise me you won't let anyone take advantage of you in the future."
"Umm…I promise?" Naminé volunteered weakly. She checked the clock—there were two hours until her next class. She should probably go find someone in her mass communications class and get the notes from the lecture. "Well, I need to go make up for my mass comm class. Where do you want to eat for dinner? …Kairi?"
Kairi seemed to be deep in thought, her eyes glazed over and her lips slightly parted. Naminé finally knocked her out of her reverie. "Oh! Yeah, Naminé, see you!" Kairi exclaimed, rushing off before Naminé could get in another word. The blonde watched her friend leave, staring awkwardly at Kairi's retreating figure. Well, maybe it was the stress from whatever she was thinking about. Naminé shrugged. She turned on her heel and set out to the library, knowing the brunette who sat on the first row in her mass communications class always went there after class to review her notes.
She'd forget about this thing with Sora…for now. There were more important things in her life than snooping around about her boyfriend's life.
"Naminé!"
The blonde's head shot up in response to hearing her name. She looked around and noticed a familiar redhead leaping in her direction. It wasn't Kairi, but it was a well-known individual: Kairi's brother, Axel.
"Axel?" Naminé asked, a questioning lilt in her tone. They were friends but usually they didn't talk. That was more because Axel worked at a bank (no one knew how he ended up working there) and they didn't have the chance to meet up. She and Axel got along pretty well, but they rarely purposely sought each other out…
Unless there was something important.
"Yes?" Naminé asked, her instincts immediately alert. The expression on Axel's face worried her—he was sweating and seemed alarmed. "Yes, Axel? What?"
"G—gimme a moment," Axel said, bending over and heaving deep breaths. Naminé waited rather impatiently as the red-haired man caught his breath. Finally, he straightened his back and drew a deep breath. He looked down, his piercing green eyes locking with Naminé's.
"Kairi needs you. She said it's urgent."
"Why didn't she call?" Naminé asked, immediately checking her phone—oh. She was in the library, so she had set her cell phone on vibrate. Unfortunately, she left her phone in her bag, so it must've vibrated but she didn't hear. "Oh, my bad. Let me get my stuff," Naminé said, gathering her belongings.
Axel waited patiently on the side, arms crossed and foot tapping on the ground. Naminé packed her books in her bag and turned towards him. "Alright, I'm ready. Let's go. …wait, where are we going?"
"Mills Dining Hall." Axel ran a hand through his unruly red hair. "Argh, I don't even know why I'm the messenger boy. She just called me and it sounded super urgent so I told my boss that I was going to deal with a client…great, I'm going to get fired."
"You sound responsible!" Naminé quipped with a smile. All her friends knew that Axel was the last person they'd expect with a stable job—and so they had expected correctly. In the past three years, he had changed his job at least seven times. He called himself a wanderer; others knew he just couldn't stick to one thing.
"Thanks, Naminé," Axel remarked sarcastically. "I swear, if it's not anything urgent, I'm gonna kill Kairi…"
The two hustled through the campus grounds to Mills Dining Hall. They entered through the front door and surveyed the place, searching for Kairi's mass of red hair. Finally, they located her indiscreetly in a corner sipping on a drink. Naminé caught her eye and Kairi shot her a look that read something along the lines of 'get-over-here-right-now!'
Following the redhead's nonverbal commands, she tugged on Axel's sleeve and they shuffled over. Kairi gestured for them to sit and offered them sunglasses and a hat. Naminé stared at them questioningly but Axel just put them on. Following the older man, Naminé slowly slid them on as well.
"What…are we doing?" Naminé hissed, as Kairi inconspicuously sipped on her drink.
Axel sighed. "Please don't tell me I skipped work just to play along with one of your spying missions," Axel muttered.
"Wait, what?" Naminé asked, befuddled. Her head turned between Kairi and Axel. "Kairi, are you spying on someone?"
"Shh!" Kairi exclaimed. She lowered her head and pointed towards a duo behind her. Naminé followed her finger and found herself staring at…
Sora and Selphie?
Naminé immediately ducked her head, aligning herself so that Kairi's body blocked Sora from her eyesight. "What the hell is going on, Kairi?" Naminé hissed.
Kairi looked around and then turned back to Naminé. "Overhearing useful conversation," she whispered conspiratorially.
"You mean eavesdropping?" Naminé exclaimed. She reached to rip off the sunglasses perched on her nose but Kairi's hand stopped her.
"Shh! You're attracting attention!" Kairi exclaimed. The redhead dragged Naminé's hand away from the sunglasses and held them down on the table. Naminé grumbled silently. She had nothing better to do so her eyes flickered towards Sora and Selphie, her ears straining to pick up on their conversation.
"…impossible to do."
"Nothing is impossible. You just need to find the way."
"What would you suggest then?"
"There are many ways. It just depends on which one you want to take."
Naminé narrowed her eyes at the back of Selphie's head. If looks could kill, she was sure Selphie's hair would be spontaneously catching fire now. It was more than obvious to her that Selphie was trying to flirt with Sora. To Sora's credit, he wasn't an active participant in the flirtatious activity, but he wasn't backing out either. He had to at least realize Selphie was flirting with him.
"Alright?" Kairi said, dragging Naminé's attention back to her. Naminé blinked, having not registered Kairi's words. The redhead sighed heavily. "Permission to engage suspect?"
"Would Sora be the aforementioned suspect?" Axel asked. "What are his known crimes?"
"Omission of the truth and fraternization with the enemy."
"Why are we speaking like CIA agents?" Axel asked.
"I don't know. You started it."
"No you did. I just followed."
"Why did you follow? That'll be the answer to your question."
"Fine." Axel stood up. "I'm off. Kairi, if I'm fired and Dad asks why, I'm blaming you."
"Go ahead, brother. We all know Daddy has a soft spot for me," Kairi said with a smile. Axel scoffed and laid the hat down on the table before leaving.
Kairi turned back to Naminé. "So? Now do you want to confront him?"
Naminé bit the bottom of her lip. Kairi was right on many levels. The rumors were starting to pile up and this was too many coincidences to be called a coincidence. It had to be purposeful on some level. Naminé was confused as to why all this was happening. Sora had told her nothing. It hurt her that there was this wall of secrecy between them. She hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded.
"I'll talk to him tomorrow."
"Hi, Naminé," Sora greeted her with a swooping hug and kiss on her cheek. Naminé giggled in response and let Sora's hands rest on her waist. They were in a nice diner just a few miles outside of their college. Naminé had found the place and both of them were slightly dressed up: her in an evening dress with heels and him in a dress shirt and slacks. They seated themselves on opposite sides of the booth table and picked up the menu.
After ordering, Naminé took a sip of the complimentary water and broke the ice. "So, Sora, how are you? You seem busy these days."
Sora sighed heavily. "Yeah. There've been some complications with my studies and it turns out I'm missing a foreign language credit for graduation. So I need to stuff in a Spanish class somewhere if I want to graduate on time."
"Oh, I hate those core curriculum requirements. I thought I could leave math and science behind in high school."
Sora laughed. "You're good at stats and bio though. You don't have to worry. On the other hand, languages are the bane of my life. Seriously. I can never memorize so many foreign words. And the grammar! High school Spanish has left me with traumatic experiences."
Naminé chuckled. Sora was the funny guy. He was slick and smooth and could always elicit a laugh from her. But her joy was short-lived. She had come on this date with a goal in her mind and she'd be damn sure she accomplished it.
Never a better time than the present. "Sora, I want to ask you something."
"Go ahead," he said, opening his hands up with his palms facing the ceiling, gesturing for her to speak her mind.
Naminé gulped. She tried to figure out how to phrase her words so as to not come off as clingy or accusatory. But no matter how she thought about it, she couldn't conjure up a discreet way of broaching the topic. She sighed. She'd already told him she was just gonna go ahead and ask. She looked him in the eye and spoke.
"What's up with you and Selphie?"
Sora blinked. He paused for a moment, a moment too long for him to just be surprised. It was a moment spent conjuring lies. "What do you mean me and Selphie?" Sora asked, turning the tables back on her.
Naminé wouldn't be swayed however. "What I said – you and Selphie. There's some rumors going around and I figured I'd go to the source itself to confirm whether or not it's true."
Sora's wide baby blue eyes were narrowing down as well. "What rumors?"
His constant deflecting of the subject by responding to questions with questions was not helping the situation. Naminé drew a deep breath. They'd get to the bottom of this tonight eventually. She'd yield now.
"Rumors. You and Selphie were seen at a frat party three few days ago."
"Oh." Sora blinked. He chuckled lightly. "Yeah, we were just chatting. I mean, people see what they wanna see. And everyone wants to see drama. Someone probably started that rumor just for the sake of it."
He seemed relaxed now but Naminé still hadn't pulled out the big guns. "Sora, do you remember what happened the day you went to that frat party?"
Sora's confusion was written on his face. "What?"
"You canceled on a date with me." Naminé's direction was clear now. "You cancel on a date, and then I hear people say you were with Selphie at a frat party." Her distress was getting the better of her. "What am I supposed to think?"
"Whoa, Naminé, please, don't cry," Sora said. "I'm sorry. But I swear that I can explain. Please, just give me a chance to explain."
"Give you the chance to spin more lies?" Naminé spat. She could feel her eyes tearing up but did not want to cry out here in public.
"Please, Naminé. Just hear me out."
She bit hard on the bottom of her lip, almost hard enough to draw blood. The pain helped clear the tears accumulating in her eyes and helped her concentrate on the situation at hand. Sora seemed very sincere, his wide blue eyes apprehensively watching her. The corners of his mouth curled down in a small frown and he was as visibly upset as Naminé.
"Fine," she whispered, and Sora launched into his explanation.
"Alright, I admit I was with Selphie at the frat party the day I canceled on the date. But I wasn't there completely willingly." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Okay, here's the situation. I've always wanted to work with Port Royal Banks after graduating. Selphie's dad is the executive manager of the local branch. I approached Selphie to ask about my chances of getting a job with PRB after graduation and she said it's pretty competitive."
"So…?" Naminé prompted.
Sora drew a deep breath and sighed. "I'm sure you know what networking is, Naminé. I'll admit, I've been trying to get on Selphie's good side these days. You don't know how much of an impact she can have if she puts in a good word for me. And…I really want the job. I'm sorry for canceling on you that day, Naminé, but Selphie said she had some important information. We were just supposed to meet in front of the frat and then go talk somewhere else but we were kinda roped in and then…"
"…I see," Naminé said. Sora sounded very genuine while trying to defend his fidelity.
"I don't…okay, I won't deny that I'm aware that she's borderline flirting with me sometimes. But I can't really call her out on it. I'm trying to get to closer to her and – it's all just a mess. That's why I didn't want to tell you, cause it's like I can't even get ahold of my own life. I swear, I'll sort this all out. I promise."
"Well…I can see it's a complicated situation." Naminé frowned. "Sorry that I doubted you – I was just being insecure again. Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Nothing I can think of," Sora said. "I just really want that job. And having Selphie on my side would help so much."
"Okay…" Naminé said. She smiled and linked Sora's hand with hers. "I trust you. Do what you need to do." She paused. "Um, within reasonable boundaries that is."
Sora grinned. "Of course. You know how much I adore you."
Naminé giggled. She loved how Sora always used words besides 'love' to describe their relationship. He 'adored' her, 'cherished' her, 'valued' her, 'respected' her. It made her feel so much more special.
"But can you do me a favor?" Naminé asked.
"Anything," Sora promised with a sincere grin.
"Let me know when you get this job, okay?"
"Of course."
Thankfully, the rest of the meal went by without much of a hitch. Conversation flowed more naturally between the couple after that awkward topic was water under the bridge. Naminé smiled. Of course, this was Sora. That was just her insecurities acting up again. She enjoyed their dinner, shared a dessert with Sora (which Sora ended up eating all but one bite of), and took a stroll around a nearby park. When it was near ten o'clock, Sora walked her back to her dorm and gave her a good night kiss on the lips. It was the picture perfect romance.
"Um," Naminé began as Sora was turning around to leave. He paused in his steps and turned back around, smiling at what his girlfriend had to say.
"Yes?" he prompted with a teasing drawl.
Naminé's cheeks darkened upon thinking of what she was about to say. "Um, do you want to come in?" she asked.
Sora blinked. "Well, it's kinda late. Aren't you gonna go to bed – "
"My roommate's not gonna be back tonight."
"Then you'll be able to have the living room all to your – oh. Oh. Wait, are you saying – ?"
Naminé found it impossible to look at Sora now. What would he think of her, suggesting something so…so…she couldn't find the right words to describe it. But she thought about what Kairi had told her, what soul-searching she'd done these few days, and, most importantly, she thought about Sora. Mustering her guts, she raised her head to look him in the eye. Wide blue eyes that were sincere and open to read like a book, as she'd always remembered.
"Sora…do you wanna spend the night?"
Sora blinked. And blinked. And blinked again. Naminé felt herself growing more and more self-conscious by the second. What did silence mean? Was he thinking it over? Didn't Kairi say of course he'd want to…advance their physical relationship? Was he appalled by how she could suggest such a thing? Did he think poorly of her now? Did he think she was some sex-crazed nymphomaniac? Was she just over-thinking everything at this point? What was she supposed to think? Goddammit, Sora, now wasn't the time to be tongue-twisted! Naminé wanted to stomp on her foot frustratedly.
Slowly, a smile stretched across his face. "Can I? I mean – just spending the night. We – uh, won't do anything we – you – that we aren't comfortable with. Sexually." He cringed upon saying that word. "That came out of nowhere. What I mean is – "
Naminé huffed. She was getting impatient with Sora's reluctance to take action. Kairi was right. She'd have to show him she meant business.
Cutting Sora off midsentence, she walked towards him, grabbed him by the collar, and pulled him down to kiss him on the lips. Hard. She poured her soul into the kiss and hoped that somehow, she could get her message across. She wanted this. She wasn't exactly sure what this was, but she wanted to be with Sora and explore this aspect of their relationship together.
Finally, when she felt herself running low on oxygen, she finally let go. Dazed, Sora stumbled backwards. Naminé was breathing heavily, both angry at Sora's passivity throughout this entire thing and breathless from that quite long kiss. She was looking anywhere but Sora. Again, she found it impossible to meet his gaze. What would be his reaction to that? She was curious, but her self-consciousness won out in the end and kept her staring at the ground.
Silence.
This was ridiculous, Naminé thought. Maybe she was wrong in thinking to do this. She'd even gone to stock up on candles. If Sora couldn't say anything, she would.
Just as she was raising her head and opening her mouth to tell Sora good night, Sora suddenly grabbed her face with his two hands and gave her a deep, long kiss. She was a bit startled by the abruptness but felt her lips slowly molding against Sora's. Sora was usually gentle and soft with her but the passion he was pouring into this kiss was…so addicting. It made her heart race and blood curdle. It made her want more.
The door was already half open, so while keeping his lips locked on hers, Sora led her into her very empty house and kicked the door shut with his foot.
"Hey Naminé!" Kairi greeted her friend at their usual Monday afternoon hangouts. She paused for a second as she zeroed in on the already seated Naminé. "Wait a sec…did you put on blush this morning?"
Naminé blinked. "No."
"Then why are your cheeks absolutely red right now?"
"Huh?" Naminé said, a hand self-consciously rising to her cheek. She glanced at a reflection of herself in her phone. "Oh. Um, must be the heat."
"It's late autumn, Naminé. If anything, it's getting colder." Kairi studied her a little harder. "What's up, girl? Spill."
Just like Kairi to get to the point. Naminé chuckled, passing her phone. "Sora texted me," she said simply as Kairi took the phone in her hands.
"Oh my god, this isn't sexting or anything, is it?" Kairi said, thinking twice about reading the text. "Not judging if you and Sora do that, but that's a boundary we don't need to cross, girl."
Naminé rolled her eyes. "No, Kairi. Just read it. It's sweet."
Kairi shrugged, trusting her best friend's judgment (and sense of propriety). She glimpsed at Sora's most recent text.
can I call you namnam? namnam sounds like nomnom which reminds me of food.
"Uh, am I just gonna read about you two flirting?" Kairi asked, looking up from the phone.
Naminé blinked and grabbed the phone back. "Oh, whoops, sorry, I was going through old texts," she said. She quickly scrolled to the bottom and handed the phone back to Kairi.
you're the best girlfriend in the entire world!
aw sora you're the best boyfriend too
no but seriously thanks for everything this past week. you're so understanding and I'm so thankful that you were with me and stood by me through everything. dinner tomorrow?
are you paying? :)
cheapstake. haha jk. yeah, I still owe you for ice cream three days ago.
ok, it's a date then!
hey, that's my line!
"Aw, you two are you so cute," Kairi said as she handed Naminé back her cellphone. "Wait, did something happen? What's Sora talking about when he says 'you're so understanding'?"
Naminé quickly explained Sora's side of the story to Kairi. Kairi, who is easily impressed by anything, oohed and aahed at the right places and followed every detail. Finally, when Naminé finished her tale, Kairi spoke.
"Oh. That makes so much sense now. I mean – duh," Kairi said, smacking her forehead. "Can't believe we forgot this is Sora. He's got a noble reason behind everything he does, I'm sure." Kairi frowned. "Man, that Selphie. Need me to talk to her about keeping to boundaries?"
If possible, Naminé's grin grew wider. So wide that, to be honest, Kairi was a bit frightened. Naminé never grinned so widely without showing her teeth.
"I've spoken with her," Naminé said.
Kairi blinked. "Oh. You have? When?"
"Yesterday."
"Huh. What'd you say?"
Naminé grinned – a grin that said nothing yet everything at the same time.
"Selphie, could I talk to you."
"You're Naminé, right? I actually didn't expect you to come up and talk to me. Everyone says you're like super shy and quiet. Alright, I'm listening. What's up?"
"You do know Sora's my boyfriend, right?"
"Yeah, duh, the whole world knows. It's on Facebook. And whoever doesn't have Facebook…Sora's always flaunting you to the world."
"And you're aware of your…behavior in the past few weeks?"
"What? Oh, come on, we were just talking. He was asking me about a job."
"You do know you were basically flirting with him."
"Harmless flirting, okay? It's just how I interact with guys. Again, harmless. Don't worry. As the saying goes, there's plenty of fish out there in the sea for me."
"Yeah, Selphie, there's plenty of fish in the sea…
...so stay the fuck away from my fish.
Ba dum tshh (like the drumset?)
Too much dialogue? Thought Naminé and other characters were acting OOC? Selphie too bitchy? Kairi too bossy? Sora too hesitant? Naminé too insecure? Too harsh? Riku too nonexistent? (Seriously, didn't mean to neglect him. Only realized after the story that he never made an official appearance.) Leave a review or comment about what you thought about this story.
Note: Sora and Naminé do not have sex. In my mind, that is. Sora's way too cautious and Naminé's way too unsure about the physical aspect of their relationship. But you're free to interpret things as you wish.
Disclaimer: Anything that the characters say in this story do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the author.
This was actually quite fun to write. You go, badass!Naminé.