Riku stared down at the Paopu fruit he was fiddling with indecisively as he mulled over his thoughts. But no matter what order he sorted them into, they seemed to make no logical sense. A light-hearted outburst of giggles drew his attention, and he looked over to see Kairi and Sora strolling along the beach, carefree, hands linked. Riku sighed and forced himself to stand up before brushing the sand off the back of his jeans. Pulling his sleek silver hair behind one ear, he felt his gaze drawn back to Sora and Kairi. They spent every waking minute together these days; ever since Riku and Sora had come back from The World That Never Was, they had been inseparable.
As Riku watched unwittingly, Sora pulled gently on Kairi's hand to make her stop before whispering something in her ear. Riku's stomach dropped uncomfortably as Sora leaned in and pressed his lips to Kairi's softly, and he wrenched his eyes away as they started to prickle uncomfortably. The Paopu fruit weighed him down considerably, and he glared at it as though the whole situation was the fault of the fruit. Resisting the urge to shout, Riku pitched the fruit into the ocean, watching it angrily as it hit the water with a splash. He watched as it was submerged below the clear, turquoise waves that chased the beach, lapping at his bare feet.
It had been about three weeks since Riku had returned to Destiny Islands with Sora, and he had been alone for most of that time. He had heard nothing from King Mickey, and met up with none of his old friends…and yet he was certain that he had heard Selphie's giggle and Wakka's grunts coming from the hut when Sora and Kairi were in there. Riku clenched his fists and shook his head, trying to disperse the cloud of gloom and paranoia that had settled heavily. He stalked through the silky, golden sands, muttering to himself to "Pull it together, stop being ridiculous." But, unsurprisingly, it didn't work.
Sora glanced over at Riku sitting alone and noticed that his gaze was fixed securely on Kairi's familiar, sparkling smile. Sora tightened his grip on Kairi's hand a little and kept walking as Riku stood up. Sora found himself wishing furiously that Riku would walk away so that Sora could sit on the beach with Kairi, just the two of them. Riku had been skulking around ever since they had come back to the island and Sora wanted him to lighten up a bit. Besides, it was more fun to spend time with Kairi…he pulled her back a little so that he could whisper in her ear.
"Hey…how about we go get some lunch somewhere, just the two of us?" he breathed gently. Kairi looked a little uncomfortable as she mumbled something about Riku, but Sora cut her off with a strategic kiss. He wound his hands into her hair to hold her closer, tighter, but she didn't reciprocate as she usually did. Feeling a little confused, Sora released Kairi and carried on walking, her hand gripped tightly in his, his eyes fixed on the ground until a splashing caught his curiosity. Riku was shaking his head and talking to himself; weird. Finally, he walked away and Sora relaxed his unknowingly tense muscles.
Sora padded over to where Riku had been sitting, Kairi still in tow, and plopped down onto the sand. "Come on, sit down," he grunted, lying back and closing his eyes. But Kairi had made no move to join him, so he squinted up into the blue sky. "What's the matter?" he sighed, not really caring. She shook her head, her mouth forming unspoken thoughts. Finally she choked out an apology, "I…want to go…" He watched her go before shrugging and settling back down. She would come back, eventually.
Kairi ran off, brushing tears from her eyes with disgust. Sora had been acting so…possessive since he had come back. Not that she had minded – at first. But now it had been three weeks, and he still wasn't calming down. She hadn't been able to properly speak to Riku, either; he had been monopolizing her time so completely. Kairi sprinted down the beach dejectedly until Sora was out of sight and she was certain that she was alone, before collapsing into a heap on the ground, closing her eyes and locking her hands around her knees securely.
"Problem?" a soft, friendly enquired, and Kairi looked up, relief flooding her. She jumped to her feet and embraced Riku tightly, her arms fastened tightly around his neck, crying quietly into his shoulder. Kairi couldn't help but feel safe, and enjoyed the warmth of his body; the rhythmic beating of his heart; the soft tickle of his platinum hair where it brushed her skin. After the sobs subsided, Riku took Kairi's hands gently in his (more gently than Sora, she noted) and stepped back. Kairi couldn't help but get stuck in his sparkling, emerald eyes. She moved closer to him again, staring up at him almost reverentially.
Kairi couldn't hold herself back anymore; she stretched up to her tiptoes so that she could reach Riku and pushed her mouth against his. Her thoughts were screaming guiltily at her, but her heart was glowing warmly and she didn't break the kiss as she would have done before their adventures. Riku was unresponsive at first, but Kairi kept trying and eventually he returned her passion. While Kairi's hands moved up to the base of his neck, Riku's hovered unsurely on the small of her back. She pressed her body closer to his, making the most of the moment whilst knowing that it could not last.
Riku let his fingers play up Kairi's back, tracing along her spine. His mind was fighting against his body with arguments of Sora, but Riku couldn't bring himself to stop. He felt Kairi tighten her grip and mirrored the movement, pulling her nearer. Her breath was light and flowery, and she smelled of everything that encompassed home; coconuts and the sand and the sea and the sun. It felt comfortable as they stood together – like it was something that should have happened a long time ago.
An angry yell from behind him made Riku let go of Kairi unwillingly. "Riku! What the hell do you think you're doing to my girlfriend? In fact, don't answer me, it doesn't matter, I don't care anymore! She's just…just a slut and you deserve her, and worse!" Riku agonized over going after Sora, but Kairi held him back. She looked concerned – but in comparison with Riku's torturing feelings, it didn't seem like much. "He won't want you to follow him…" she whispered guiltily, but as she wound her fingers into Riku's more securely, Riku thought that she seemed less than affected.
Riku felt Kairi tug him away and stumbled after her unsurely. Only moments ago, he had wanted something like this…and yet this wasn't how he pictured it. He had imagined the three of them sitting and laughing around a small fire, his hand gently around Kairi's while he joked with Sora. A goodnight kiss, a small spark…taking things slowly. Would this work? Could it work? His thoughts were dizzying him as he was dragged off by Kairi, his head spinning uncomfortably as he tried to comprehend the situation he was in…