It was a chilly autumn afternoon in Radiant Garden, Riku stood idly on the station platform, tugging down the sleeves of his sweater and watching the sun slowly set over the nearby mountain range.
Every weekday he took the train from his hometown to the city and then back, just so he could study at the local high school. It was a long and lonely trip, up to 2 hours and without many others on the same line, but there were few other ways to make it- the only alternative being a long car trip through the mountain range.
Riku's classes didn't finish until 4 in the afternoon, and the next train was at 5. At first it had annoyed him, the inconvenience of getting back home late meant less time to do anything really - read, study, watch TV. Not to mention he had no friends in the area to wait with; it was a lonely experience. Or it was, until the beginning of the second term, he'd started to noticed he had a fellow late night commuter.
Red hair, a bright yellow scarf, freckles that stood out against his pale skin; and the blue and white uniform of Riku's school.
Riku didn't know his name, he was too shy to ask, but he did notice little things about him. Like his habit of whistling to himself, or the fact he'd always be chewing on what looked like a finished ice cream stick. Something about the boy's carefree mannerisms would cheer Riku up.
From day one, when they got on the train, Riku would sit at one end and the redhead on the other; perhaps not deliberately but more out of courtesy, when you have the whole carriage to yourself you don't annoy other people.
That of course didn't stop Riku from peering at him every now and then. The redhead would play with the ends of his hair, sometimes looking out the window and other times simply shutting his eyes, always with headphones in. One night Riku had been reading a book when he'd notice him start to sing under his breath, likely without noticing. It was nice; Riku finally knew what his voice sounded like.
He had wondered what grade the redhead was in; it was hard to tell if he was older, but the fact he hadn't seen him in his classes was a good hint. The upper classes went to a separate campus, and he wouldn't be moving there until the next year.
Still. Sometimes he couldn't help but think he noticed a spot of red across the oval from his view in the classroom. Maybe the redhead had sports at that time. Riku guessed he was good, he was tall and looked fit. He smiled, imagining him with his poofy red hair in a ponytail.
A few weeks into the second term, not long after the redhead started taking the train too, Riku got into a fight. The other boys in his class had taken it upon themselves to write "fag" on his locker. His reserved nature and long hair tended to make him a target; and while he could easily defend himself - the words still stung - and it wasn't like they were wrong, either.
It was days like this he wished he could just study back on the islands. Of course it was really his own fault for insisting to go to the city, wanting the freedom away from the confines of
the islands; but he regretted it more every day.
By the time he got to the station, he felt like crying. Pulling his sweater around him tighter, he tried not to glance at the redhead, who was bent down near the vending machine.
"Come- oooon!" He heard him groan, the sound of a well-placed kick on metal echoing around the station. Maybe it was Riku's down mood or loneliness that made him feel more confident than usual; but he decided to try and help.
"Try pressing the item number again"
The redhead glanced up; Riku could see the freckles on his cheeks in the yellow light of the platform. With a quick smile, the boy took the suggestion, tapping the machine impatiently.
With a whir and a clang, three chocolate bars dropped into the compartment below. The redhead let out an excited noise, quickly collecting his food.
"Thanks heaps!" He exclaimed, standing quickly and turning to Riku.
"It's- it's not a problem" Riku replied nervously. For the first time, he got to see him up close. Bright green eyes with a thick layer of mascara and eyeliner around them, his face heart shaped from a prominent widow's peak. Riku could feel his heart beat a little faster, the boy was incredibly pretty.
"It's Lea, get it memorized!" The redhead exclaimed, holding out his hand, Riku shook it idly, trying not to meet those green eyes again.
"Riku" He replied, he wouldn't be forgetting Lea's name anytime soon. "Um, better go wait for the train" He added awkwardly, not wanting to embarrass himself anymore today.
"Wait, wait!" Lea called as Riku retreated, "Have one!" He held out a chocolate bar. Not sure what else to do, Riku took it, smiling.
"Thanks"
From then on the boy with the freckles had begun sitting closer to him. He started from the far corner seats near the doors next to the carriage, to the middle section diagonal from Riku's own corner spot. The two of them could have easily talked they'd wanted too.
Riku found himself forcing his nose as far into his book as he could, trying to stop himself from glancing up. It wasn't that he didn't like Lea; in fact, it was quite the opposite. Somehow he'd developed a crush on the boisterous redhead.
The only time he let himself look was when they reached Lea's stop, he got off about an hour and a bit into the trip, slipping out at Twilight Town. Lea would casually throw his messenger bag over one shoulder and jump out, sometimes turning and saying goodbye. Riku smiling halfheartedly back.
He kind of wished Lea would stay; the rest of the trip took the train behind the mountain range and out along the coast, by the time they left the suburbs the night would come completely, and the stars would cover the sky over the horizon of the ocean.
It was beautiful. Riku wished he could show someone else.
It was nearly the beginning of winter before Riku spoke to Lea again. He was even later for the train than usual; the sun was already almost completely gone as he made his way up the station steps.
He'd had lost his favorite book somewhere at school, the one he'd been slowly making his way through. A part of him wondered if one of the class bullies had stolen it - Demyx or Larxene - but he had no way of knowing. Without it he'd have nothing to read on the train but his school books. He sighed heavily as he thought about what he'd do over the next few hours' home.
Trudging up to the platform, he watched his breath fade into the air with another sigh, listening to the wind whistle through the station. The next train was at least twenty minutes away.
"Hey!" Riku blinked at the voice, he had thought he was alone. Turning to find its source, he felt his breath catch in his chest. Lea. He'd been trying to avoid him over the past few weeks, and as such avoid embarrassment.
"H-hey" Riku responded.
"You left your book on the train this morning" He said, pulling Riku's book out of his saddle bag and handing it to him slowly. Riku's eyes locked with green, he looked away quickly, heat rising in his cheeks.
"I - thanks, I" He took the book back, pulling down his backpack and doing his best to put it away without making eye contact with the other boy again.
"Riku, right? I like your book, it seems really interesting." He paused. "Uh - I hope you didn't mind me reading it" He nervously ruffled the back of his hair. Standing this close to him made it apparent how much taller he was, Riku barely reached his shoulders.
"It's ok, thanks, for hanging onto it for me." Riku glanced up at Lea, despite his height; he didn't seem much older than him, maybe 15 or 16. "Why'd you wait for me? You could've given it to the lost and found" Riku wondered aloud. Lea pouted slightly, scratching the back of his hair nonchalantly.
"Yea, but this way you're not worrying all night over it. I noticed you're always reading it, so yea." He smiled, and Riku tried his best to breathe, his heart was racing well above its normal rate.
"I was wondering, you go to the school, what grade?" Riku figured he may as well ask.
"Yea! Year 9. I tried looking for you around campus but couldn't see you."
Riku was beginning to wonder if Lea was aware of what he was saying. With the last comment he was sure he'd gone a shade of red close to the color of Lea's hair.
"I- um. Yea, I'm in year 8"
"Cool! I just started here so I've been trying to make friends. But everyone's in the city and I live too far to visit after school"
"I know how that feels" Riku replied with a sigh.
"So um, I could use a train buddy. It's really boring not talking to anyone for so long"
"I'm not really that talkative" Riku admitted.
"I've noticed! I didn't wanna annoy you. But like, even if I could just sit next to you it'd be better than awkwardly trying to get your attention" Lea met his eye with a grin.
"Ok" Riku nodded nervously, trying not to show that he was blushing.
As he replied the sound of the train whistle echoed through the station, the two boys glancing up and throwing their bags over their shoulders.
From that day on, Riku started to sit next to Lea.
He quickly noticed morning Lea was different to night Lea, usually too tired to talk; he'd put in his headphones and shut his eyes as Riku read his book, sometimes humming along to his music. More than once Riku caught himself looking at his friend, taking in little things about him; like the way his red hair turned a pinkish hue in the yellow of the sun rise, and how he left his top un-tucked, and always wore thick eyeliner.
Over the next few weeks he got to know Lea, they'd ask each other random things on their commute. His favorite ice cream was sea salt, he liked watching the sunset from his window, he had an older brother, his favorite color was red, he wanted to be a scientist, and he really liked horror movies.
Riku wished he could spend more time with him, their short 3 hours together each day never seemed like enough. During classes he'd find himself looking out for Lea across the grounds in the senior's buildings, wondering if Lea had many other friends aside from him. Probably. Riku was really just some kid he took the train with.
At least that was what he'd thought. It was half way through the term when Larxene decided she hadn't picked on Riku enough. He tended to stick to the library at lunch, sometimes the grassy area near the science portable if it was sunny. Today was one of those days. He was trying to finish his math homework, ever since the train started leaving later he'd had a lot less time to study at home.
"Hey snow whiiite" Riku cringed. He didn't need to look up to know who the voice belonged to. Vile, nasty Larxene was the blonde queen bee in his class; along with her twin brother Demyx and best friend Marluxia. The three of them didn't like Riku, and he didn't like them.
"Larxene" Riku sighed, glancing up at the three trouble makers with what he was sure was his best look of disapproval.
"Rumor has it you've got yourself a boyfriend" She smirked, walking up and kicking casually at the grass near him, causing dirt to fly onto his work.
"Jealous? I suppose you must be seeing as it's more than you could ever manage" Riku replied, smiling as sweetly as he could and slowly shutting his school books. If they wanted trouble, he didn't want his work being on the receiving end.
Larxene's smile widened. "Look here everyone, snow white really is a fag! Don't suppose you're pregnant?" She giggled wildly, Marluxia following suit behind her and Demyx shuffling awkwardly. He was never cut out for the bullying.
Riku shrugged "What does it matter? Besides, I still don't know what boyfriend you're going on about"
"The tall, redhaired hottie from 9-b of course! Demmy saw you two hanging out at the train station"
Riku felt himself blink. He didn't usually like to give them a reaction, but the fact they knew Lea by name. And his class number. He felt himself bite his lip.
"Sure, we take the train together. He just a friend"
"Ooooh just a friend, huh? Don't suppose you'll mind if we tell him what a fag you are, huh?" Marluxia nodded as Larxene giggled.
"Hmm, Snow is in his class. I go by there every day." He added.
Riku could feel his face growing red. Fuck them. If he refuted it, it'd make it obvious he liked Lea. If he didn't then… then.
"Fine by me" He heard himself say through gritted teeth, gathering his books and standing to face the three idiots "Lea won't care"
He could hear them laughing as he paced away, his feet hitting the concrete hard as he started to run to his locker. Fuck. What the hell was he doing?
Riku spent the rest of his classes in a state of anxiety, unable to concentrate on anything but the dull panic that was building in his chest. Lea was going to know he liked him, and then he'd stop talking to him, and maybe even stop taking the train.
Riku almost didn't walk to the station that night, but forced himself up the hill and up the station steps. To his surprise, Lea wasn't there. Even after he checked behind the vending machines and the toilets.
Feeling like an idiot, Riku bundled himself up on the bench. Lea wasn't going to come, Marluxia must've shouted something horrible at him on his way to see his brother. Now Riku was alone again. He was upset, but he refused to let it show, instead he pulled out his book and tried his best to read a few more pages before the train arrived.
He'd only made it through half a page when he heard the echo of footsteps coming up the station. Feeling his catch in his throat, he looked up to see Lea jogging over to him. He had been hurt, there was what looked like a bruise on the upper left of his forehead. Throwing his book aside and jumping up to greet him, Riku was frantic.
"Lea! I - you're hurt" Riku watched as Lea pulled up, panting from running. Now he was closer Riku could see that his eyeliner was smudged from sweat.
"Hey" Lea waved with a half-smile, coming right up to Riku and throwing an arm around him without warning "Sorry, I just think I might collapse if I don't sit down" he smiled again, face flushed and hair tangled. Riku could feel his panic die down and be replaced by embarrassment as he realized Lea was holding him.
"Here" Riku said, glancing at Lea cautiously and leading him to the bench. The two of them sat, Lea sighing and massaging his head where the bruise was.
"Don't suppose you know some rat named Marluxia?"
Riku noted the use of the word rat and nodded, not quite meeting his eye. So he had said something to Lea.
"He came into my class tonight, even though his bro is away sick, went right up to me and started telling me all this stuff about you as loud as he could" Riku could hear the annoyance in Lea's voice, but he couldn't bring himself to look him in the eye.
"What kind of stuff?" Riku asked quietly.
"Nothin' I hadn't already figured out for myself" Lea responded, ruffling Riku's hair and sighing. "Not that that stopped me"
"Stopped you from what?" Riku asked, glancing up to see a smirk cross Lea's face.
"Leave him with a broken nose! Trust me, if I ever look hurt the other guy is twice as worse off"
Riku stared at Lea, mouth agape. "But why? You - you didn't need to do that. Now everyone will think your-"
"Gay?" Lea laughed, cutting him off, genuine mirth taking him as he giggled, Riku could see what was left of his makeup smudging around his eyes, "You think I just wear eyeliner because I'm a proud fan of punk rock?"
Riku shrugged, unable to respond from the shock.
"Besides" Lea continued, smiling softly at Riku, "You're my best friend out here, I wasn't going to let that jerk talk about you behind your back"
Riku continued to stare at Lea, still unable to comprehend the fact that not only was Lea like him, but he considered him his best friend. Riku gulped, brushing his hair from his face. Before he could say what he was thinking, the whistle of the train echoed through the station, so he and Lea gathered their things in silence. It wasn't until they sat down the Riku found his voice again.
"I was wondering, um, I know you finish classes earlier, but would you like to start meeting me at the front gate instead? Then we could walk from school t-"
Lea threw an arm around Riku once again, almost knocking him over "For sure! Maybe we can bait that idiot into saying something again - I wouldn't mind knocking some of his teeth out next time!" He grinned, before seeing Riku's quiet frown of disapproval "Of course I'm not gonna do anything unless they do! But I mean people like that totally deserve it. No?"
"I try not to respond" Riku replied, shrugging. Lea raised an eyebrow in response.
"You look tough enough to fight back"
"I am, I have in the past, did the day I first talked to you, but. They're not worth it."
Lea pouted a bit, although something else came over his face that made Riku wonder what he was thinking. He smiled before shrugging and changing the topic to how annoying his teacher, Vexen, was. As usual the ride went far too quickly.
"So after school at the gate then? Guess it's a date!" Lea shouted over his shoulder as he strutted off the train.
After that, they were both running from their last classes to meet, once almost colliding with each other at the front gate. Riku wasn't bullied again after that, Marluxia not coming to school for several days due to a healing bruise.
Some days the two of them made it a competition to race each other to the station, both of them being too competitive for their own good. No matter who won, Lea would always buy ice cream, eating it as they walked back to the station and teasing each other over who lost. It was usually Riku, not that he minded, Lea was humbler than he looked.
"I'm lucky you're so short, I'd lose for sure if my legs weren't longer" He smiled, handing Riku an ice cream.
"I'm not short, you're just way above average" replied Riku, rolling his eyes with a laugh.
"Yea, all this ice cream- the calcium gives me the edge I need!" Lea laughed back, casually throwing his arm around Riku's shoulder.
It was a sign of affection Riku was starting to get used to, although he wished he could tell if Lea liked him back. It was hard to distinguish the redhead's carefree mannerisms as platonic or deliberately flirty.
As the holidays were looming closer, Riku had been trying to work up the courage to invite Lea to his house. His mum had already said yes, but every time he tried to ask Lea he'd lose confidence.
Then, not three days before the end of term, as they waited for the train sharing headphones and listening to music to pass the time, Lea turned to him.
"What're you doing for the break?"
"Um, not sure, I think probably just staying inside. The Islands aren't great during winter." Riku replied, nervously biting his lip.
"Hmm" Lea wondered. Riku saw him glance at him, rocking back and forth slightly on his heels. Summoning all his courage, Riku asked quickly,
"I was wondering, um, did you wanna come over?"
Lea nearly bowled him over in response, grabbing onto his shoulders in a semi-hug that had Riku going red faced. "Hell yea! I'm free from Friday so whenever you want!"
"Sure, um, I'll check with Mum but that's cool"
"Do you want me to bring my games and movies and stuff?" Riku didn't have many games, while from Lea's admittance he had too many to count. He wondered if they'd even have time to get through them.
"Planning on staying all week?" Riku teased, raising an eyebrow to his friend, who quickly released him and ruffled his red hair nervously.
"I - uh. Well, maybe three days?" He chuckled softly.
Riku laughed with him, but silently felt butterflies fill his stomach. Lea was going to visit his house. Lea was going to spend more than a few hours with him. They spent their ride home figuring out what they could do, Lea insisting he sleepover and they stay up late watching horror movies.
Because it was the last day of school, the students got to dress casually for the day, Riku pulling on a sweater and jeans. He wasn't the sort of person to worry about how he looked, but at the same time he did care what Lea thought. He wondered what his mascara-wearing, bright haired friend would put on for the day.
When he hopped on the train, Riku couldn't help but smile. He was in a pale blue top, with a brown leather jacket pulled over and his yellow scarf layered around his neck as usual. His jeans were fashionably tight, unlike Riku's own loose fitting pair.
"Never thought I'd see you without your saddle bag" Riku quipped, noticing Lea drop a backpack next to him on the seat.
"I have packed, like, half of my games in the-re-e" He replied with a yawn, stretching and pulling out his headphones. "Music or book today?"
"Music" Riku replied, taking the ear bud and shutting his eyes as Lea turned on his playlist. Moments like this he was so close to Lea their shoulders touched, sometimes he even leant slightly against his friend, watching the houses flit past in the windows.
They walked to school together, Lea's arm hanging off his shoulder the whole way. Ruffling Riku's hair, he spun on the spot with a grin.
"See you after school!"
"Yea" Riku smiled as they parted at the gate.
Classes seemed to drag on that day, and the teacher decided they needed to stay an extra 20 minutes to go over holiday homework. Impatient and hating to leave Lea hanging, Riku ran to meet him at the front gate.
He was waiting, leaning against his usual spot against the brick wall. When he saw Riku, his face broke into a smile and he strode over to him, his messy red hair blowing around his face in the wind.
"Let's go!"
The two of them didn't run to the train that day, instead walked together, jokingly running into each other. Something felt different, like they didn't have to rush now that they had more time together.
Riku noticed Lea seemed to be yawning more than usual that day.
"Long last day?"
Lea looked at him sheepishly. "It'll sound so dumb, but I was so excited about today I stayed up late picking out games and stuff. Now I'll probably be too tired to stay up" He bit into his chocolate sadly "Sorry... I really wanted to watch horror movies with you until, like, 4am." He laughed to himself. Riku couldn't help but smile at the thought of Lea studying each game to figure out which one he'd like to play.
"Why not sleep on the train? It's a good two hours, maybe you'll feel more awake then"
"Yea? Maybe that's not a bad idea." He smiled at him thankfully, and handed him a chocolate bar.
By the time the train arrived Lea had rubbed his eyes so much his mascara was smudged like a raccoon. He sat next to Riku as usual, resting his head back against the seat and shutting his eyes. About thirty minutes into their trip, and two chapters into Riku's book, he felt Lea's shoulder fall against his. He was asleep, his breathing slow and even. Riku didn't know what to do, he could feel himself blushing as he glanced at his friend.
Figuring it was best to let him rest, he sat silently for the next hour, occasionally glancing at Lea, who had slid a bit further down his seat.
He really was tired, the dark circles under his eyes being due to more than just smudged makeup. Suddenly, Riku realized they were passing Lea's usual stop, the Twilight Town sign flashing past as they continued on.
They'd reach his stop soon, Riku wondered if he should wake up is friend. He didn't want to annoy him, not when he looked so peaceful leaning against his shoulder. Sighing, Riku put his book in his bag and looked out across the carriage, watching the scenery flash past the window.
They rounded a corner of the mountain range, bringing the ocean and stars into full view. Riku breathed out, taking it in. There were no clouds that day, just the starry expanse of the night sky. It glowed purple, pink and blue against the horizon.
Riku glanced down at Lea, feeling himself blush. With a sigh he tapped his friend on the nose, and then gently rocked his arm. Lea whimpered in response, his eyes opening slowly.
"Huh?"
"You fell asleep... I thought I'd show you the stars. See?" Riku motioned to the windows. The view was still there, the ocean reflecting the light from the sky, Riku heard Lea breathe out.
"Wow. It's beautiful"
"Yea" Riku responded quietly, glancing back at Lea. "It is".
He was still leaning against him, his eyes bright with the light from the sky. Before he could look away, Lea glanced back at him, the two of them locking eyes. Riku's breath caught in his chest as he searched Lea's face.
They seemed to be stuck in slow motion, both of them too scared to move. But then, Lea's hand found Riku's shoulder, and slowly, like they were afraid the other would refuse, they kissed; the two of them holding it for as long as they dared.
Riku could hear his heart beating in his ears as he pulled Lea into an embrace. He could feel the warmth of Lea's lips and the smell of the gel he put in his hair, the taste of his chocolate bar. With a slight wetness they withdrew, Riku doing his best to breathe evenly despite his nerves.
He looked back up at Lea, not sure what to say but at the same time wanting to say a hundred things. Lea was scratched the back of his head shyly, looking Riku up and down hesitantly.
"I'm definitely awake... right?"
"Right" Riku laughed nervously, and Lea joined him, before the two of them were giggling together. Unable to resist any longer, Riku pulled Lea back into the hug, burying his face into his shoulder; he could hear the sound of the ocean as the train rushed along the coast, and feel Lea's hands pull themselves around his waist.
"Best friends, right?" Lea whispered cautiously. Riku could feel his hands shaking slightly as he held him.
"Maybe more?"
"Yea"
Maybe more.