I stumbled out into the night, pushing my bike along the carpet of pine needles and crunching leaves of the forest floor. I could barely see anything in front of me, even though the moon was full and shining that night. The tall tree branches were a thick ceiling of darkness over me, with occasional little holes of light from the moon.

I let out a sigh. You very rarely find me doing "crazy" things like this, but Xion got the best of me. She wanted me to sneak out to see her, and I reluctantly went along with it. You see, I'm in love with her. Never have I ached for something, someone, so strongly. I'm only sixteen, I know, but I'm SURE this is love. If I felt any more intensely for Xion I think I'd explode.

Finally I reached the main road. Only about ten more minutes until I'd be arriving at our Special Place. My heart flipped, remembering the first time we'd met...

I filled my lungs with air before plunging into the dark waters of the lake. This was my only place to practice for the swim team. Axel, my best friend ever since he moved to Twilight Town, was always better than me at everything. I was determined to be superior to him at SOMETHING. He wouldn't beat me at this, I couldn't allow it!

Time went by, and I carefully counted the seconds, timing myself. 107...108...109... I needed to improve how long I could last underwater. That was my lowest ability when it came to swimming.

I felt my lungs start to hurt, they screamed for air. I started to become lightheaded. Finally, I broke the surface of the water and breathed the cold night air in deeply and quickly. I could feel the blood rush back into my head, I was gaining a little more consciousness. I was freezing. I'm done for the day, I thought. It's late anyway.

I swam back to shore in the pale moonlight, and I sat on the grass, reaching for my towel. I dried my spiky blond hair, and then the rest of me. I sat there, taking a moment to appreciate how beautiful it was that night. You could see the stars crystal clear, shining brightly, and the moon illuminated all of my surroundings. I liked taking moments for myself like this. It was the only time I ever found some peace. It was like nothing existed but me, that night sky, and the crickets chirping around me. The whole world was waiting patiently for me to say I was ready for it to continue spinning.

I heard the snap of a twig behind me. I froze, but then quickly turned and stood up to face whatever it was that was there. Tense, I called out, "Hello..? Someone there?"

No answer. My vision never fails me, even in the darkest of nights. So why did I see nothing before me? I became paranoid, but relaxed only slightly because the shock was going away.

"Uhm, I'm sorry for scaring you. I really didn't mean for you to hear me..." My blue eyes widened. It was the voice of a girl, but where was she?! I responded, "I can't see you.. You don't have to hide from me. Come on out, you're okay."

A few moments of nothing but the crickets. Suddenly, I heard a rather loud THUMP! My head snapped to the left where the sound came from. A dark figure hid in the shadow of the only tree close to the lake. She must've been up there! My shirt hung on the lowest branch.

The shadow stepped forward, revealing a beautiful girl about my age. Black hair that shined a blueish in the moonlight, and piercing blue eyes. I still remember what she was wearing. An oversized dark grey sweater and khaki short shorts. Not the most appealing outfit, but all the same, she was the most gorgeous person I've ever laid eyes on.

I felt so embarrassed that I only had my wet basketball shorts on, so my chest was completely revealed. Don't get me wrong, I was in great shape, but I used to always get so insecure about everything. Especially my appearance. My stomach flipped, and I felt myself blush crimson.

"H-Hi, I'm Roxas. Who are y-you?" I stuttered, partially from the cold. I was never very good with girls. It's a curse, really.

She smiled sweetly and looked me up and down, making me blush even redder. Thank god it was dark out so she couldn't see how red my face was. She cocked her head and quietly giggled.

And with a voice so clear, like a silver bell, she uttered,

"My name's Xion."