If someone ever went up to you and asked, "what is the true meaning of life?" nobody could really answer that question. Life is something that needs to be discovered by each individual person; debate whether or not you're going on the right path or not. Choosing between different people to date, what sexuality is yours, and the major you get into when you go to college. Everything about life is made up of various choices depending on your person.

There are criminals out there.

There are amazing people too.

But how you decide your path is up to you…

His thoughts began racing yet again, the rain rapidly hitting against the window as each thought started to enter his mind, but each thump made Riku lose concentration and he couldn't handle it. He wasn't really sure why, but for some reason, things were just that way.

His mind for now was just trapped in this pattern. Baseball wasn't for another four months, since he was already getting close to the midpoint of the first semester. It couldn't come any sooner, because until then he was stuck in his room, eavesdropping on the rain while he sat alone, finishing whatever Chemistry homework he had to complete. That crazy teacher, always seemed like he knew everything. Vexen was nothing to fool around on. If you got him for a teacher, you might as well praise him, kneeling to his feet and planting kisses on them. To him, he was the god of Chemistry; he had memorized the periodic table, from Hydrogen all the way over to Ununoctium. He knew everything about ionic, covalent, and metallic bonds.

Yep, he was the Chemistry genius all right.

It'd only be better if he actually CREATED all of the Chemistry shit that most every student didn't seem to care for in the slightest.

Riku sighed, running his fingers through his hair once; tossing the blue pen into the sheets, slightly messy from where he was sitting, but overall looked decently made. His room didn't exactly qualify for "normal sixteen year old" boy's room. It was really clean. Spotless clean actually. The sheets were a soft navy blue, freshly washed maybe two days ago. Above the sheets was a black comfiture, folded neatly underneath the navy blue pillows. His walls were dark, shadowed with a hint of a blue hue against the white while the end of twilight began to breach. Lights off, but Riku was debating whether or not to actually turn them on, however it wasn't going to help him with his Chemistry homework. It was difficult with or without the lights on.

Riku glanced over, checking at the table beside the bed. 8:05. Goddamnit.

He stood up, tossing the Chemistry book onto the bed and he walked downstairs. Everything was dark as he walked down, and it was hard for his eyes to adjust, not understanding why since he was sitting in nearing darkness just a few seconds ago. He reached the kitchen, searching through the fridge for something, anything to keep his mind awake so that he could actually concentrate on his work. Coca Cola and a pack of string cheese seemed like the best way to go.

A clap of thunder erupted into the house causing various flashes of lightning to light up Riku's pale face. It transformed his aqua-marine eyes to an almost white color. He immediately glanced outside, noticing the rain picking up and thudding hard against the window. The cars weren't in his driveway, so he was home alone.

He led himself up the stairs again, flipping the hallway light on so that he wouldn't trip on his own feet. A clash of thunder erupted again with the lightning flashes, causing Riku to flinch at the sound. To add to the misery, a light bulb busted and he dropped his drink. It exploded all over the white carpet.

"Shit… Dad's going to kill me," he whispered out, even though no one was there. He still felt really strange in the eerie atmosphere, and he couldn't decide if he should go back upstairs or retreat and stay down.

His mind, or rather his legs of their own accord, retreated downstairs. The first thing he thought to grab in that instant was the battery-powered radio just to see how bad it actually was going to get tonight.

That was when he realized that it was outside and in the garage; much farther than he wanted to venture.

"Damn…" he hissed.

With the coke on the floor, and no lights expect for a few seconds of lightning, he didn't want to risk even a mere attempt to reach his room. His coat was up there, so he'd had to suffer without it. Hopefully, he wouldn't have to be out for too long. The only downside was that the garage was down a slight hill. That worried Riku. He fretted over whether or not it'd slightly flooded in there.

He reached his hands out in front of him as his guide, hoping a chair wasn't - for whatever reason - on the ground, placed just so that he'd trip and fall. Flashes of lightning illuminated the way every so often. His mind raced, and he hoped to God that no creepy woman was hanging by her neck with a thick piece of rope, blood all over her and the area below her dangling form.

He shivered slightly. The crazy things the brain could do to a person to drive them insane.

He felt wood, but was careful and didn't let his hands explore too soon. He waited a few seconds for a flash of lightning to assure him that it was his door and that it was safe to roam the wood without getting a splinter.

He dropped his hand down the wood frame, caressing until he felt round metal. It was the doorknob. He turned it slightly, hearing the wind and rain grow louder than before. The raindrops started to fiercely strike his face, and another clash of lightning erupted and startled Riku so much that he grew almost too fearful to try and get the radio. It probably wasn't a good idea, but he had no clue if there was a flash flood warning or if he was going to need to go to the basement.

Steeling himself, he left the house and shut the door behind him. Riku took a quick breath, looking out and feeling the cold rain against his sharp features as he stood on the porch. The anger of the storm turned violent again, and the chill of the air brushed along Riku's skin. Goosebumps formed while he shivered slightly. 'It's now or never,' he thought, and his footsteps began quickly. His body moved fast so that he could just get that damn radio and retreat back into warmth and safety.

The roar of the storm eventually forced Riku into a light run. He still was careful about how he clambered down the slight hill. Finally, reaching the garage after a few seconds of being in the storm, he swiftly kicked it open, ignoring the knob since it was broken, and rushed inside.

There was only a little bit of water on the ground, and the highest it came up was only to Riku's soles. Other than that, nothing was going to get damaged tonight if the rain stayed just like as it was or got better. His eyes wandered, but everything was so dark he couldn't see a damn thing. He had to rely on the raging storm, so Riku did the dangerous thing and opened the door wide open.

His arms were again out, but he was mainly hunched over, figuring that he was going to find it on top of a small box and hopefully not on the floor. The lightning would flash occasionally, giving him some light to where he could proceed with his footsteps and continue the dangers of trying not to fall or get lost in the garage.

The flashes of lightning became longer and Riku was able to make better progress as he continued onward. His eyes had to shift fast if he wanted to see where he was going, and eventually the flashes of lightning became a pattern. He almost thought he saw exactly what he was looking for so with each flash, he walked on towards it. The shape of the object was correct, but he still couldn't tell since his eyes couldn't adjust as rapidly as he needed them to, and he couldn't be sure if it was the radio or just another box.

The flash of lightning came about again, lighting up the object, and Riku was correct. It was the radio. He smiled, picking it up, and started the dangerous journey to return to the house.

He again took cautious steps as he went through the same path, trying to reach the door safely. The wind speed started to pick up, and it was so gusty that the door was yanked shut in a matter of seconds. It scared Riku. He wasn't sure if he could open the door from inside the garage. His heartbeat began to pump hard against his chest, vibrating into his eardrums. With the roaring winds and clash of thunder, it intensified the vibrations in his ears and the pounding of his heart.

His footsteps felt quicker though he was slower due to the caution he was taking. The water level rose a little, and it began to soak into his black converse and wet his socks a little. He hurried himself up, feeling his hand press against the door.

At this point, he just searched, knowing he might end up with a splinter or two. He moved his hands around, hoping it didn't slam all the way. He felt the metal of the doorknob and pulled. Nothing. Riku's hand gripped around the knob fully, his whole arm shaking from both the coldness of the night and from fear. Terror began to course through his veins, and his face began to lose colour in it. He shook the door, pulling at the knob roughly, hoping that a miracle would happen and for some reason the door would be fixed so he could get out.

He began raising his voice, screaming for help, begging, and just HOPING someone could hear his cries as he strained for someone to come to his rescue. His fist pounded on the door, banging hard.

Riku didn't realize it until he stopped. He had broken part of the door and a large piece of wood had pierced his fist as he beat it repeatedly against it. He stopped because the door was still stuck, he was bleeding, and he was truly screaming. He screamed bloody murder from the sheer pain racing up and down his arm. His fingers began twitching with a quickening speed, his arm going out into a spasm attack. The metallic tang of blood permeated his senses.

'T-This cannot force me to give up. I… I need to get out of here,' he thought desperately.

Riku's words echoed about in his head. He looked up when lightning began to flash brightly in his face. Luckily, in that brief moment, he saw an opening. He whimpered softly at the thought, knowing full well what he had to do, but he needed to get out so he could find the phone and try to call an ambulance.

He took a long breath and counted out loud "One… two… three…" On three, he yanked his hand, somewhat breaking the wood free. A sudden, awful pain exploded in his hand, and he screamed again. Tears were streaking down his cheeks, staining them. Some of his tears fell onto his lips and a salty taste invaded his mouth. The wood was still attached to the door so Riku was still stuck to the door.

He attempted to calm himself after the excruciating pain outburst. Looking down at his trapped hand, he waited for lightning.

It came, and the wood went through his whole hand, most likely breaking the bone inside.

Riku started flinching when he saw the blood, gasping and his pain increased when he saw the wound. Soft sobs escaped his vocals, and he looked up again at the wound. I can't stay stuck… T-this… is nothing.

He counted again, feeling scared as he went down the numbers, doing the same as before expect preparing to pull as hard as he could. He broke free, but the wood pulled out a little bit, scraping against bones and a little against the muscles inside and his vocals cracked from the bloody screams. He took a few moments, nothing but the sounds of winds laughing at his torment as he kneeled, screaming at the ground. He dared not grab the wound, fearing that he'd just move the wood and hit a nerve inside.

A crash of lightning broke him from the screams, and it slowly died down as he looked up, seeing a large hole in the door he had created. He just had to kick it hard enough to make the hole big enough for his body to fit through, which wasn't difficult to do since he was slim and only 14 years old.

He brought his foot up and slammed it hard into the door; over and over again he continued to do it. The wood slowly broke, and it took about 10 or so kicks to make a hole that he could squirm through, careful not to hit his hand or get stabbed by the points along the hole. Leg first, okay… now twist and get your back out. Come on, Riku. Yes, that's right. Get the other leg out now. Okay, you're good, just don't look at your hand… get out now. Yes!

He reached his good hand through the hole, grabbing onto the strap of the radio and pulled it out. It was almost out of reach, but he managed. He wasn't going to risk getting trapped again.

Riku broke out into a run, careful not to move his injury too much, though about halfway up the hill, his foot landed into a mud puddle, causing him to trip and fall, pressing right onto his hand.

The winds picked up just then, muffling his screams, cries, and the trashing of his body as it erupted into constant spasms from the pain. Mud got all over his pants leg, and with the twitching from his leg, the mud splashed up and marred his silky silver hair.

He looked behind him, and saw that he hand dropped the radio, and it was lying on the grass, until…

Crash!

A strike of lightning came down; hitting the radio right there, right where it laid and it was broken into pieces. The storm was rolling close, and Riku realized that if he didn't get up now, it was possibly that he was going to get struck by lightning tonight and he would either live from the pain and die later or die right on the spot.

He took his wounded hand from the ground, having to force it up because the wood had pierced into the dirt. He bit his lip, trying to prevent from straining his voice so badly. His good hand pushed him up, and he was careful now as he walked up, but still with speed. He limped a little, but continued on with speed. I will not die…

He finally reached the house, seeing that he had left the door open. He pushed it open, and slipped inside, slamming the door shut and locking the door. He took a small breath, and his aquamarine eyes opened, seeing the lights trying to flicker themselves on. With the small light he had, he looked down at the weak leg, seeing that the force of the lightning bolt caused a piece of the radio to stab into his leg. He winced as he tried to get himself completely inside, guiding himself along the wall with his hand, drips of blood staining the pure white carpet.

He got halfway to the phone, and even though he heard the terrifying sound, he continued.

The tornado sirens began blaring.

His heart started to pound, and the sounds of the wind made his body go limp, and he fell over, screaming as his body weight hit his injured hand. He screamed into the ground, shouting cuss words, feeling the eroding pain coursing through him, but he still fought against the pain… and he breeched onward to try and get to the phone.

He forced himself to army crawl across the floor (well, baseball conditioning actually pays off). The pain started to decrease when Riku thought about something different, like his parents or that damn Chemistry homework he was going to have to finish no matter what.

Surely enough, his thoughts caused him to reach the computer desk, and he stood, looking around for the phone until he smacked it off the receiver. He felt around more, dipping his hand down, until he felt his finger press a button, the phone lighting up and he could see again. He grabbed it, pressed the talk button and dialed 911.

"Please please please…." He begged.

"911, what is your emergency?" Thank FUCKING God!

"Please help me!" he screamed.

"Sir, please calm down, what is your name?" the woman answered.

"My name is Riku Hikaru. I-I live at 186 West End Avenue in the city. Please you have to help me!" He screamed, breaking out into soft sobs.

"Are you a minor?" she asked.

"I'm 14… yes… please… c-can you send me help…?" Riku begged.

"What's happening?" she didn't sound very reassuring.

"I-It's the storm. I had to go get our radio and… o-on the way, I got very badly injured. I got wood stuck in my hand and the lightning broke my radio when I dropped it down the hill, and a shard of it is in my leg. Please… please! Send me someone!"

"Don't worry; we'll be there as soon as possible. Just stay calm sweetheart."

"D-Don't leave me ma 'me… please…" Riku begged.

"Are you alone…?" she asked.

"My mom and dad went out for their anniversary, and my brother is away at college. I don't have any other family…" he whispered into the phone.

"Oh my… I'm so sorry, Riku." She whispered.

"Can you tell me your name, Miss…?" Riku asked, his voice growing distant.

"My name is Tifa Lockheart." She said. "Riku? Are you falling asleep?" she sounded worried now.

"My hand is bleeding a lot… Tifa, I'm scared… w-what if I fall asleep and don't wake up, cause I'm sleepy… I've been pushing myself a lot tonight, and it's getting difficult... I-I can't…"

"Riku, wait, you can't fall asleep, honey. The paramedics just left. They're on their way baby." She said into the phone.

"I can't… I can't wait Tifa… I need to rest…" Riku said.

"Riku, you can't sleep. C'mon, talk to me, please? What's your favourite thing to do?" Tifa asked.

"I play baseball, but if I don't keep my grades up, then I can't play."

"How are your grades?" she asked.

"Straight A's, school's never been a problem for me… except for my current teacher." Riku whispered. "I'm getting sleepy Tifa…" he collapsed onto the ground, this time missing his hand, but he could suddenly hear the sound of a harsh lightning bolt, followed by a siren.

"Riku? Is that an ambulance?" Tifa asked.

"I think… yes."

"Okay, I'm going to have to hang up, but if you've collapsed, my guys are coming in. You'll be safe, Riku."

"Wait, Tifa!"

Click.

A/N: Woot! I thought this was never going to get done! Man, I am so proud of this right now c:

I really need to thank my friend, werewolf29 from deviantart. He helped me a lot with some things that's going to happen in this. But, you'll have to wait and see what those are ;) Also, he came up with the title :D I'm very proud of this and I couldn't have asked for anything more 3

So, please enjoy Dark Hearts Fall! And there should be another chapter coming out next weekend! Bye bye :)