A/N: hello again! I was hoping to make another KH story. This is going to be a one-shot, but if I feel like it, or I get enough reviews requesting it, I'll make more. I hope you like it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the songs Things Happen and Golden Heart, both by Kirsty MacColl (you'll see what the songs is for in a bit)
A Little Bit of Talent
Namine sighed looking at the mess she made just trying to pick out an outfit. She chose a light pink blouse, a pair of jean capris, and her favorite white flip-flops. It wasn't that she was going anywhere special; she was just going to go ride around town on her bike. It was a habit, going out every Friday to explore the town. She just moved in last month, and Friday and Saturday were the only days she had off from the job she got.
She kicked up the bike's stand and walked it out to the end of her driveway. She hopped on and peddled out of her quiet neighborhood, her dirty blonde hair flailing behind her. She began humming a tune she had made up, and smiled seeing that she was almost at one streets she hadn't explored yet. She was just about there when a flyer caught her eye.
Namine stopped so suddenly that the momentum she had picked up on her bike sent her over the handles of her bike. She landed in a heap on the concrete. Since she was busy checking herself for injuries, she didn't notice a boy running up behind her.
"Are you okay, miss?" asked a voice behind her. Namine turned around to see a boy about her age, maybe a year older, with silver hair offering her a hand to help her up. She took his hand and pulled herself up.
"Y-yes I-I'm okay," she stuttered, brushing off her pants. The boy took a closer look at her, and as if trying to remember something.
"Are you new here, because I don't think I've seen you before. You sure you're alright?" he asked.
She nodded. "Yeah, I'm new. Just moved here three weeks ago. I'm sorry for worrying you; I'm clumsy like that sometimes. Well, I better get going; I just wanted to see what that flyer said," she said, quickly grabbing the flyer off of the lamp post, and hopping back on her bike. "Bye," she said with a last glance.
Riku raised an eyebrow. 'She seems nice, but kind of shy. I didn't even get her name,' he thought to himself. He walked back over to his friends Sora and Kairi, who were making out.
"Guys, could you do that somewhere else, and another time when I'm not here?" he said, interrupting his friends' romantic moment.
"Aw, Riku, why did you interrupt us? You need to get yourself a girl," Kairi suggested.
"I don't need a girlfriend Kairi," he replied uninterested.
"You know she's right Riku. You just don't want to admit it because your big ego is getting in the way," Sora said.
Riku rolled his eyes, and turned around. "What ever, I'm going home," he said waving his hand over his head.
"If he was going home, why did he interrupt us?" Kairi asked Sora, who just shrugged his shoulders, and then continued kissing Kairi.
(With Namine)
Namine got off her bike and walked it back in her garage, panting. She had just biked back at top speed. She walked in the kitchen, got a glass of water, and sat down at the table to look at the flyer she took with her. Taking a sip, she read it. 'Hmm…a singing competition… it could be fun. And the prize money would be more than enough for school,' she thought.
She swallowed the rest of her drink, welcoming the cool liquid feeling in her mouth. "Now, what can I sing?" she asked herself. She thought for a moment, and then it hit her. "I've got it!" she said excitedly, and ran up into her room to look through all the lyrics she ever wrote.
"No……no…….ummmm, nah……no……nope……..that's not it………no……..uh-uh……..ACK! NO WAY! WHY DID I EVER WRITE THIS! …….no…………………..AH-HA! HERE IT IS!" Namine yelled in triumph holding up a piece of paper. Just then, the doorbell rang.
"Hmm, I wonder who that could be?" she asked nobody in particular. She got up and went to the door. She looked in through the window to see a girl with auburn hair waving at her while holding a covered pan. Namine waved back and moved to open the door.
"Hey Namine, can I come in?" the girl asked. Namine nodded and moved aside to let Kairi in. "My mom made extra casserole, and asked me to take it over. She knows you always have to cook for yourself, so go ahead and take it," she said handing Namine the pan.
"Thanks again. Your mom cooks really good compared to me," Namine said placing the casserole on the table. "So how are things with you and Sora going?"
Kairi shrugged, "Pretty good. How's your job?"
"They just gave me a raise. Come visit sometime. I'll give you a free scoop," Namine offered. (She works at an ice cream store)
"Heh, thanks. So, have you heard about the singing competition?" Kairi asked.
"Yeah, I fell over my bike when I stopped, then I grabbed the flyer off the post and biked back home at top speed when some guy came over."
"Huh? You actually talked to someone you didn't know the name of?"
"Yeah, so. It wasn't like I told him my name, address and phone number. Anyway, I'm going to enter the talent show. I'm going to be singing a song I made up," Namine said holding up the lyrics she wrote. Kairi reached over and grabbed it. She read it, and returned it to Namine.
"That's really good," she asked.
"Thanks. Do you want anything to eat or drink?" she asked moving to the drawers getting out a fork for herself.
"No thanks, I have to go now anyway," Kairi said getting up and walking over to the door. "Hey Namine, you should come with us to the beach tomorrow. Okay?" she said over her shoulder.
"Okay. Bye Kairi," Namine said, and then returned to eating the casserole.
"I'll tell the guys, bye!" Kairi said before closing the door behind her.
Namine dropped her fork, and froze. She realized that if she went to the beach with Kairi, she would have to go with people she didn't know. 'Kairi knows I'm really shy around new people, so why did she ask me to go?' Namine thought. She sighed and pick up her fork again and continued eating. 'She'll force me to go anyway, so I might as well,' she thought. She sighed and put the rest of her food away, and went to practice her song.
(With Riku)
"Hello?" he said answering the phone.
"Hey Riku, I have something to tell you about the beach tomorrow," said the voice on the other side.
"Hey Kairi, are you calling to cancel so you can spend time alone with Sora again?" he asked, slightly amused.
"No, I called to tell you Namine is coming with us, and wanted to make sure you were okay with that," she said.
"Namine? You mean that new girl who moved here?" he asked.
"Uh-huh," she said simply.
"Yeah sure, that's okay with me," he replied. "Anything else you wanted to tell me?"
"No, that's all…bye," Kairi said, quickly hanging up.
"Bye," Riku said putting the phone back on the receiver. "What was that all about? Well, might as well start on dinner." He walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out the milk. Then he opened the cabinet, and grabbed a box of cereal and a bowl. Then he got his spoon and went to sit down. 'I think I've met Namine before, but I wonder where,' he thought while absentmindedly chewing his cereal.
(The next day; with Namine)
"What am I going to wear! I only have one bathing suit and it doesn't fit me anymore… I know, I'll go ask Kairi if I can borrow one of hers," she said getting up to go over to Kairi's house like she said.
She rang the doorbell twice and waited for someone to answer. Eventually the door opened, revealing the auburn haired girl. "Hey Namine. I wasn't expecting you until 11. What happened, did something come up?" she asked concerned.
Namine blushed. "Something like that. My bathing suit doesn't fit me anymore, and I was wondering if I could borrow one of yours. So…can I?" she asked with a hopeful smile. Kairi grinned and led Namine up to her room.
"Sure you can. Do you want to wear a one piece, or bikini?" she asked over her shoulder while shifting through the piles of clothes she had on her floor. Namine plopped down on Kairi's bed.
"A bikini would be nice," she replied. Kairi shifted through the clothes for a few more minutes, and then finally found some of her swimsuits.
"Okay, we've got this brown one with a blue flower on this side, and a blue belt on the bottom. Then we've got one with a mix of different shades of orange, pink, and white. And finally we have this black one with a pattern of white roses on the top and back of the bottom. So… which one'll it be?" Kairi asked laying down the three choices in front of Namine.
"Hmmm, I think I'll go with the black one," Namine said pointing to the one she chose.
"Okay, here you go," Kairi said handing it to Namine. "You can have it, if you want. I barely ever wear it anyway."
"Oh no, I couldn't," Namine said, shaking her head.
"Think of it as a belated birthday present. Now go change in the bathroom over there. The guys'll be here in a couple of minutes," Kairi said pointing to the door opposite to her.
"Thanks again Kairi," Namine said disappearing into the bathroom. She began to change, and she was almost done when she heard the doorbell ring.
"We'll be in the living room okay Namine?" Kairi said through the door before going to get the door. She finished changing, grabbed her bag, and went down to the living room. The room was silent when she entered, and she got nervous.
"Um, hi guys. I hope you don't mind me going with you," she said sitting down quietly next to Kairi. She looked over and saw a boy with silver hair, and then realized he was the guy from yesterday who helped her. He met her eyes.
"Hey, don't I know you from somewhere?" Riku said pointing at Namine. She just nodded her head silently; too shocked that he was one of Kairi's friends. Kairi looked shocked too.
"Woah, really? When did you meet her?" she asked.
"Yesterday, when she flipped off her bike, then took off with a poster without telling me her name," he said. Namine blushed furiously.
"Oh! So you're the guy she was talking about yesterday. How come you got her to talk to you when it took me a whole week to get her to talk to me?" Kairi asked.
"It did not take that long!" Namine said, embarrassed.
"Oh yes it did! I had to come over everyday, and whenever I tried to talk to you, it ended up like a one-sided conversation. You never said anything more than hello, good-bye, and thank you," Kairi said poking Namine in the arm.
"I-I'm not like that!" Namine said, flustered.
"Oh yeah, you haven't met the guys yet have you? Well I'll introduce you to them. Okay, this guy with the spiky brown hair is Sora. And this one with the silver hair is Riku. Both of you already know that this is Namine right? Right. Okay, now that introductions are over, let's go to the beach!" Kairi said standing up. Everyone else stood, and began walking towards the door. It was quiet most of the way there, and Namine lagged a bit behind everyone else.
"So, you guys are neighbors right?" Sora asked, breaking the silence.
"Yeah," Kairi said. Namine nodded shyly.
"Well you're pretty talkative," Riku said sarcastically. Kairi punched his arm playfully.
"Riku! Be nice, she's just shy around new people, right Namine?" Kairi asked.
Namine opened her mouth to say something, but Riku cut her off. "Yes, but we aren't new people," he said.
"Well technically you are, because you haven't talked to her for five days straight, now have you? So she know almost nothing about you except your name which makes you a new person," Kairi said.
"I bet the only reason she said something else was because you were being annoying," Sora put in.
"Actually, that's true. Kairi was annoying me so much by talking all the time, that I had to do something to shut her up," Namine plainly. Kairi gasped.
"So, you think I'm annoying do you? Well see how annoying this is. That this!" Kairi said, and she began to poke Namine's arm the rest of the way there. Namine had a big sweat drop on her head (you know, like in anime), Riku was shaking his head, and Sora was laughing hysterically. He finally stopped when he noticed they were at the beach.
"We're here," Sora pointed out.
"Yay!" Kairi and Namine squealed, running to the ocean while stripping down to their swimsuits. The boys gathered all the things the girls had left into a pile next to where they would be sitting.
"I guess she isn't shy anymore. I'm going to get in too," Sora said running into the water.
"I think I'll sit out for now. I'll be over by the paopu tree if you need me," Riku yelled to them while walking over to the paopu tree like he said. The girls were dunking Sora now, and Riku chuckled. He turned to look out across the ocean. Soon he became lost in his thoughts.
"Hey, c-can I sit there?" asked a voice behind him. Startled, he fell back, off the tree. He heard someone running up to him. "Oh my god, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to make you fall off. Are you okay?" said the voice from earlier. He recognized it as female now, it sounded kind of like Namine. He opened his eyes to see those big blue eyes staring into his.
"Yeah, I'm okay. Why are you here?" he asked getting up and back onto the tree.
"I felt like getting out, and I came over here, so I wouldn't be lonely," she replied. Riku looked down to see a pencil and a sketchpad in her hands.
"You gonna draw something?" he asked. She smiled. "Maybe. Want me to draw you?" she said.
He shrugged his shoulders. "Sure why not?"
"Okay, now look out over the water like you were before. Perfect. Now hold that position," she said as she franticly began sketching him. It took her a good ten to fifteen minutes to finish. She handed it over to him when she finished, and he steadied it.
"Wow, you're really good," he said handing it back to her.
"Thanks, my dream is to become an artist. But first I have to raise enough money to pay to get into the school. My mom died, and my dad is almost never home because, well…nevermind. Anyway, I don't want to bore you with my problems," she said, looking out across the sky. Riku was at a loss for words. He wouldn't ask if she didn't want to tell. He decided to change the subject.
"Are you going to enter the singing contest?" he asked. She smiled still looking out at the sky.
"Yeah, I'm going to sing I song I wrote. Are you going to sing?" she replied.
"Nah, I'm best at playing instruments," he said. Then Sora and Kairi walked over sharing a towel.
"Comfy?" Riku asked them.
"Yeah, what's it to you?" Sora retorted. Kairi and Namine laughed.
"Come on guys, let's go back home," Kairi said. And so they left to go home.
A week had passed and both Kairi and Namine practiced had been practicing their songs, and correcting each other's mistakes. It was the day of the contest, so they were getting ready.
"Oh! How about…this one!" Kairi said holding up a t-shirt colored with camouflage, and a smiley face on it.
"No, that's not nice enough," Namine said shaking her head.
"But it's got a smiley face on it," Kairi pouted.
"So. I think I'll wear this," Namine said holding up a long, white tube top and a pair of nice jeans.
"Oh, and that's nice? Well then I'm wearing the smiley shirt and jeans whether you like it or not. It's not like we're doing an act together," Kairi said sticking out her tongue. Namine rolled her eyes and went into the bathroom to change. When she came out, Kairi was also changed.
"Hey, can I wear your fingerless gloves," Kairi asked.
"Sure, whatever. Knock yourself out," Namine replied. "Can we go now? I want to see how they set up the stage."
"Fine, since you're in such a hurry," Kairi said, heading towards the door. Namine grabbed her house key, and followed her out of the house. They headed in the direction of the beach.
"You guys still haven't gone to Flava Ice like you said," Namine said. (Sorry, I couldn't think of a better name)
"We were planning on going there after the show tonight," Kairi replied.
"Oh. Well, I'll pay for you all you guys," Namine said.
"You don't have to pay for us Namine," Kairi said putting a reassuring hand on Namine's shoulder. "Hey, did you know that there's going to be a talent scout there? I just heard about it today!"
"Really? Oh man, now I'm going to be twice as nervous. Why would they send talent scouts all the way out here?" Namine asked.
"I don't know, but don't worry. You're going to do great. Come on, we're here," Kairi said. "Follow me." Namine nodded and did as she was told. They gave their CDs with the music to the guy backstage, and went to find Sora and Riku.
"Hey guys!" Kairi yelled running over to them, Namine right behind her. "Do you have a program? I forgot to get one."
"Yeah. Here," Sora said handing it to Kairi. She looked it over, and saw she and Namine were last. There were five other people before them. Then the announcer spoke up.
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I hope you will enjoy our show tonight. First up is Selphie," he said, and then walked off the stage as Selphie walked on and began singing. Her song ended and the other four contestants sang their songs. Halfway through the fifth singer, Kairi and Namine got up to go backstage. Kairi leaned down to kiss Sora on the cheek, and Namine just stood off to the side waiting for her.
"Good luck you guys," Riku and Sora said. The girls said thank you, and left to go to the stage. A few minutes later, Kairi walked on stage, the music started, and she started singing.
(Golden Heart)
And so I know now
Turn to stone now
Won't someone me free
Love me or leave me
Surrounded by lovers I stand apart
Won't someone hold me, when I am lonely
Let the sun shine on my golden heart
Music's playing
I'm still praying
Venus made me
Eros betrayed me
Instead of love's arrow, he used a poison dart
So if you could love me
Take good care of me
You'd take the spell off my golden heart
I used to dance
And I knew romance
Until a dagger of glass tore my world apart
But if you could hold me
When I am lonely
I'd love you back with a golden heart
The crowd applauded, and Kairi walked off stage. Namine took her place, and as they passed Kairi said, "Good luck." Namine smiled; she had more confidence now. The music began, and she began singing.
(Things Happen)
Every Friday night she rides the whole way over town
Just to see some stupid boy who never turns around
He never sees the girl whose dreams have told her he's the one
Still she gets excited whenever Friday comes
There is no reason in love, sweet love
It's deeper than the sea
Things happen, we fall in love
It just comes naturally
Anyone who saw her in the street would never one
The passion of the feeling she never puts on show
We cannot choose the ones we love; we think that we belong
Just when you're not looking someone comes along
There is no reason in love, sweet love
It's deeper than the sea
Things happen, we fall in love
It just comes naturally
There she stands, clothes around her feet
Choosing what to wear so she can just stand in his street
Please, oh please this time I'll make him mine
She begs of her reflection in her dressing table shrine
Oh, there is no reason in love, sweet love
It's deeper than the sea
Things happen, we fall in love
It just comes naturally
The music faded and she walked off the stage while the audience applauded. The announcer came back on stage. "We hope you all enjoyed the show! We will contact the winner sometime tomorrow. Good night everyone, and get home safely!" he said.
Kairi and Namine found their way back to the boys, and they all headed over to the Ice Cream Shop. "Okay, guys. I don't care what you say, I'm buying you all ice cream okay?" Namine insisted. "So, what do you all want?"
"Chocolate," Sora said.
"Vanilla," said Kairi.
"I'll have chocolate too," Riku added.
"Okay," Namine said walking up to the counter. "Hey Fred. I'll have two vanilla and two chocolate cones."
"Here you go," Fred said passing her the ice cream. "That'll be $6.53."
"Thanks Fred," Namine said giving him the money. They all walked home eating their ice cream.
"So, is that where you work?" Sora asked.
"Yep," Namine said.
"I'm paying you back Namine," Kairi said firmly.
"But-"
"No. I said I wouldn't let you buy me ice cream so I'll pay you back," Kairi said cutting Namine off. Namine smiled. Soon they all split to go to their houses after saying their goodbyes.
A/N: I hope you liked it. wow, I typed a lot…yeah. I am confident now that this will be more than a one-shot. I will only continue if you review, so R&R please! Me no care if you flame…