Sanctuary: Another Side, Another Story
Chapter 1: The Meeting
Tidus paced the shores of Destiny Islands. Normally, Tidus would be up on the wooden platform that overlooked the rest of the Islands, practicing how he swung his wooden stick to near perfection. However, this was entirely out of the question today. Tidus had plenty to occupy his mind without a stick he had learned to master. He decided to rest from that today.
Tidus was sixteen years old. He had blonde hair, natural, not dyed, that he always wore down. It almost looked like an emo haircut, but it looked far better, especially with his bangs swept out of his face. He had deep, crystal blue eyes that sparkled in the sun. He had a tan, firm body that he flaunted, since he always wore a shirt that had no middle part, exposing his torso. To put it simply, he was cute.
However, today, he was too stressed to be concerned with how he looked. No, he was stressing over the thing occupying most teenagers' minds: love. Finding it, holding it, and what happens when it fades. For today, Tidus was worried about the first-finding it. Or rather, letting someone know he loves them.
That someone was a girl. She was fifteen years old. She had ruby red hair she wore down to her shoulder blades. She had blue eyes that gleamed with an innocence Tidus could not describe. She wore a cute pink top and mini-skirt combination. She was adorable, to say the least.
Her name was Kairi.
Tidus had been planning to ask her to the Moonlit Destiny Dance, a dance run by Destiny High School. It was used to welcome in the new school year. Tidus still couldn't believe he had let summer slip away so easily. Oh well. At least he had a fun dance to look forward to.
Ah, if only it were that simple.
See, Tidus had a slight problem. He wasn't sure if he was ready to love again. Tidus wasn't a native to the Destiny Islands. No, he had moved, or rather, been forced to live, there one year to this date. He was really from a world named Spira. It was a vast world, and it was his home. He had originally lived in Zanarkand, the city of lights, the city that never sleeps. However, one fateful night, Zanarkand was destroyed by an entity Auron called "Sin." He was hurled 1000 years into the future, where he eventually helped a girl named Yuna save the world from this same Sin that destroyed his home. She was a summoner, a righteous martyr with the power to summon aeons, which were fantastic creatures.
Tidus quickly fell in love with her. She was so beautiful. She had brown hair falling to her shoulders. She dressed in a long, white dress. She was frail and delicate, yet she had an undertone of rebellion, a wild side shadowed by the good girl image. She had a beautiful smile that could always cheer Tidus up when he was down. Tidus loved this, and he wished he could stay with her forever.
But, something happened. As they went into the final battle with Sin…well, his memory was fuzzy, but it ended in Tidus, Wakka, and Auron on Destiny Islands. He was heartbroken that he had been forcefully split from Yuna. Was he ready for that kind of commitment again? Would he ever be ready for that kind of commitment again?
At that moment, Selphie ran up to him. "Tidus!" she called. Selphie was a spunky girl. She was either shy and reserved or, once you got her to trust you, painfully talkative. She was nice, though. She was short and skinny. She had brown hair that curled at the ends. Her large green eyes now surveyed Tidus with excitement.
"What's up?"
"Oh, not much. Only…" Selphie began casually, but then it quickly morphed into enthusiasm. "ONLY A REALLY HOT GUY MOVING IN NEXT DOOR!"
Tidus rolled his eyes and sighed in his head. Selphie…your typical teenage girl. Still, he thanked God. The house separating Tidus' and Selphie's house had been vacant for months. Now, when Tidus was having his emo moment of the day, and when he wanted to be alone, she would have someone else to go bother.
"Come on!" she exclaimed, grabbing Tidus' hand and practically yanking it out of its socket. "Let's go meet him."
They both sprinted back home. At this point, Tidus had a rather resigned demeanor. Oh well, he thought, it's good to meet the new kids.
The two ran to the house in-between their own. The house, once dusty and gray, now sparkled with vibrant shades of green, tan, and white. The windows, previously boarded up, now showed a beautiful world with two rocking chairs surrounding a fireplace and a plasma screen TV. Boxes were piled randomly yet neatly around the room. Tidus surveyed all of this with such admiration he didn't notice the boy in the doorway.
"Hi," the boy in the doorway said, catching both of their attentions. The boy was about Tidus' height. He had blond hair (probably natural, same as Tidus) put up in spikes, but only at the front. It didn't look punk as much as rather cute. He had blue eyes, blue like the sea's, a shade of blue that was oddly reminiscent of Sora. He wore a matching white shirt-and-pants combination with black shoes. He wore the most innocent smile Tidus had ever seen.
Selphie gave a quiet, yet extremely joyful squeal as the boy stepped off the porch. He strode over to Tidus, passing up Selphie without so much as a glance. While Selphie glared, the boy stuck his had out to Tidus. "I'm Roxas," he said gaily.
"T-tidus." They shook hands.
"Tidus…" he said the name with an unidentifiable charm that made Tidus less tense. Roxas' voice worked like a back massage. "Tidus…that's such a pretty name…"
Tidus smiled like a boost of self-confidence. Roxas was a wonderful guy. Tidus felt a foreign connection with this new kid. The Destiny Islands had hosted many new people, but Tidus wanted to get to know this one in particular.
"Thanks," Tidus responded politely, "I like your name, too.
Tidus could swear the lightest shade of pink came to Roxas' soft cheeks. "Thanks" he grinned blissfully. "Want to come inside for a cup of tea?"
Tidus didn't really like tea, but he figured he would go anyways. "Sure!" With Selphie glowering at their backs, they entered Roxas' house.
The house was even more beautiful from the inside. It was freshly painted green and white on the inside. Roxas took his hand and led him to the kitchen area. There was a benevolent-looking woman in the kitchen. She appeared to be middle-aged. She had blonde hair streaked with gray, and put up in a ponytail. Her blue eyes surveyed Tidus and Roxas with interest.
"Hello, honey. And who is this? Oh, is this one of the locals?" she asked. She smiled at Tidus sweetly. Tidus returned it.
Roxas beamed at his mother, then gave what appeared to be a wink, and then he said, "Mom, this is Tidus. Our neighbor, remember?"
The woman gave her son a knowing smile. "Nice to meet you, Tidus. I'm Roxas' mom, Gwen!"
"Nice to meet you," Tidus said, grinning warmly.
Tidus glanced at Roxas. He was looking at him kind of funny, he had that look you get when you get lost in someone's eyes. Although he didn't really consciously think about this, deep down, Tidus wished that Roxas was really lost in his eyes. Roxas, quickly realizing how awkward this might seem on the outside, quickly snapped out of it. "Um…could you make us a pot of tea, mom?"
His mother scoffed. "Say the magic word…"
"MOM!" Roxas roared.
"Say it…"
"…Please…" Roxas surrendered.
"Thank you. In that case, I would love to. But to make your favorite, Fiery Passion Tea, it will take about thirty minutes. If you want, you can go up to your room, Roxas, and do something, but hanging around here won't make it get done faster.
"Thanks, mom!" Roxas grinned gratefully. "Tidus, want to come up to see my room?"
"Sure…" Tidus said innocently.
Roxas smiled. Such a cute smile…wait…what? Tidus thought.
With that, Roxas grasped his hand and, in a frenzy, led Tidus up the stairs to Roxas' room.
The boy's room, wasn't very neatly decorated yet. It was blank and vacant except for the neatly organized desk in one corner, and the bed lying right next to the window in another. On the wall opposing both of these sat an extremely big closet. He must be very fashion conscious… Tidus thought.
"Sorry about the mess, or lack thereof." Roxas said.
Tidus laughed. "Beats the crap out of my room. In my room, you'd think an atomic bomb went off!"
Roxas laughed. "Have a seat!" He motioned towards the bed. Tidus obeyed, and the two bounded over to the bed and sat down side by side. For a while, they just sat there, enjoying each other's company. Then, Roxas turned to Tidus, a grin that could melt ice curling his lips.
"So…tell me about yourself, Tidus." Roxas coaxed.
And as Tidus heard himself spilling his guts about everything from his past to what he felt now, and as he watched Roxas listening intently, hanging on every word that he said, Tidus felt a growing connection with the boy. He knew that Roxas really cared. A lot of the people on this island would pretend to listen, but then start talking about the trials and tribulations of their own damn lives, as if they had forgotten what Tidus had just told them. Tidus could tell Roxas was different, Roxas sincerely heeded his words.
They talked for hours. One of them would tell a tale from their lives, the other would reflect on it, both would say something like "yeah…", rinse, repeat. They must have done this fifteen or so times, yet it never really got old.
Roxas had an interesting past. He once lived in a place called Twilight Town. It was a cozy little city, much like the islands here, where everyone knew everyone else. There were very few youth, namely, eight. Roxas had to admit he was a little overwhelmed by all of this town with it's massive population, but he still liked it. He and his mom had met a man dressed entirely in red bandages, which Roxas had assumed meant he was just crippled or something, and a man in a black hood, who had taken them from their former home. Something about it not being safe there. That's how Roxas ended up on the islands.
Four hours and five cups of tea later, they were both lying down on Roxas' bed, curled up next to each other. The last cup Roxas' mom had made had been Blue Innocence Tea, a drink whose only purpose in life was to lull its consumers to sleep. It worked like a charm with the two boys, as Tidus and Roxas lay there, wrapped in each other's arms, fading into the silent oblivion entitled "dreamy rest." As they fell asleep, Roxas whispered, "Tidus?"
"Hm?"
"Do you want to go to the Dance with me?"
He was referring to the upcoming Moonlit Destiny Dance. Eyelids drooping, Tidus was faced with a dilemma. Go with Roxas, or follow through on his original plans and ask Kairi. Tidus decided to see if there was a compromise.
"Mmm…can I bring Kairi?" he slurred.
Roxas giggled. "All right."
And with that, the two fell asleep to the soft, melodious sounds of their rhythmic breathing. Roxas' arm comfortably curling around Tidus' shoulders, he knew that he had finally found someone he could really trust.