The Heart of One

by: Wishes of an Angel

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Kingdom Hearts.

Hey, everyone! I finally have time to post up a story. Remember when I said that I'd write a comedy story? Well, this story isn't exactly funny. It's a story that I wrote for my history class, which has absolutely no history in it. It was a wierd assignment. We just finished watching Tales of Two Cities in class, which had the French Revolution happening in the background. Themes came across thoughout the movie, and our teacher wanted us to take themes from the movie and write a modern day story showing those themes. This was to show us that the themes back then are still the same right now. Ah, it was wierd, but who cares, right? If you want to know what themes I used and want to look for them in the story, they are: Love, Loyalty, Hope, Sacrifice, and Forgiveness. Of course, what I really want you to do is to sit back, relax, and enjoy this short story called The Heart of One.

"Are you sure you've forgiven me?" the bride asked. We were at the reception party.

"Yes, I have, Kairi," I answered. "In fact, I want to thank you for it. What you did has made me a better person."

Kairi smiled. "I'm glad, Sora."

It was time for her to go, and as the music started for the bride and groom to dance, I began to recall the event that had made me who I am today.

- - - -

I was a senior in high school and my very first girlfriend just dumped me.

"I'm so sorry, Sora," Kairi apologized. We were standing in an empty hallway at school after most of the students have left. Kairi looked up at me, but I could tell that she was avoiding my eyes.

With a soft voice, she said, "I know you really like me, but I don't think this relationship will work out." Kairi looked to her left and held her left arm with her other hand. "I just don't feel very strongly toward you as you are to me." She exhaled and closed her eyes. "I'm so sorry."

I couldn't believe my ears. Ever since I first laid eyes on her, I instantly knew that she was the one for me. It took me three whole years to gain enough courage to ask her out. When she finally said yes, I almost burst into tears. Kairi was everything to me, and I never wanted to lose her. But now, she wanted to leave me? After all we've been through? I wanted to tell her that I didn't want this. I didn't want this break up to happen. As I began to open my mouth to tell her, my eyes fell upon the side of her unhappy face and stopped, sighing.

"I understand," I replied.

She quickly looked up at me, her face almost in shock. "Are you sure it's okay?"

"Yes, it's all right."

"You know we can still be friends, right, Sora?"

I forced a smile, holding back the pain that I had in my chest. "Sure. Friends, and if you ever need anything at all, just know that I'm always here for you."

Out of nowhere, Kairi jumped up and gave me a warm embrace. "Thank you," she whispered. And with that, we parted. It was for the best, right?

A month went by since my break up with Kairi, and like we promised, we remained friends. Of course, I still hoped that one day, Kairi would come back to me. I knew it was highly unlikely. Still, I hoped.

Then one day, in just one lunch period, my hope went spiraling down.

"Hey, Sora," greeted my best buddy as he walked in my direction.

"Hi, Riku." Riku was the greatest guy in the world. He always looked after me, and I did the same for him. We were like brothers and did everything for each other.

Right now, I could tell that he had something on his mind. "What is it?"

Riku sat down next to me on the bench. He stared straight in front of him for a while, trying to find the right words. Finally, he spoke.

"I know this might be a shock to you and all, and that she's your ex-girlfriend, but I really like Kairi. Can you, you know, maybe hook us up?"

I turned to face him in disbelief, but he continued to look ahead of him. "What?" I asked.

He turned to face me and said, "I know this might be a little crazy to you, but I really like her. The problem is that I don't have the courage to talk to her. You've been with her before, so you can talk to her more easily than I can. Would you, Sora?"

I couldn't believe it. How could this happen to me? I still liked Kairi, and if I get them together, it'll be almost impossible for me to get Kairi back. Riku was a lady's man. Wait. Then how come Riku's nervous around Kairi? Well, Kairi is something else, and sometimes just looking at her makes even me lose my nerve.

"I'll be right back," I quickly said, and headed toward the water fountain. I needed time to think. As I took a sip of water, someone tapped me on my shoulder. I jumped and turned around. It was Kairi.

"Oh, hey, Kairi. You scared me."

"I'm sorry," she said in her angelic voice. It was like heaven when I was with her. I took a closer look at her, and immediately knew that she was troubled. "What's wrong, Kairi?"

"Oh. Well, I have a favor to ask of you."

"What is it?" I instantly said. It was the first time she had asked for something from me since our break up. I wanted to help her in anyway that I can.

"I, well." She let out a soft laugh and said, "I know this might sound strange, and that I'm asking too much of you, but I really like Riku. The problem is that he always avoids me when I want to talk to him. So, I was wondering. Since you're Riku's closest friend and that he can trust you, can you tell him that I like him and maybe get us together?"

What! What is this? Kairi likes Riku, too? I felt pained by her words, just like how I felt when she broke up with me. How could this happen to me? What was I to do? I loved Kairi. I didn't want her to leave me, but Riku was my best friend. I'd always help him out.

In the distance, I saw Riku look in my direction and then turned away as if he had given up hope. I looked back at Kairi, who had a wishful look in her eyes. Then, I realized that I had been selfish. I was keeping Kairi all to myself. They wanted each other, and I had my chance with Kairi. Now, someone else needs a chance, and I wouldn't want it any other way than to have Riku be with Kairi. He was a great guy, after all.

"Okay, Kairi," I said, grabbing her by the hand and pulling her toward the bench. "Let's go. I'll introduce you to Riku."

"What?" she said, with more surprised than I would expect from her.

Riku saw us walking toward his direction and stood up, shocked. When we got to our destination, I began to introduce Riku and Kairi to each other.

Without even thinking, I said, "Riku, this is Kairi, and Kairi, this is Riku. You two like each other and didn't even know it. I think you two would make a great couple, so go for it."

Riku and Kairi shared glances with each other and stared at me. "What?" I asked, bewildered. You're supposed to be smiling with each other now.

Kairi then gave me a tight hug. My spine tickled up my back, and I felt my hair stand on end. "What are you doing, Kairi?" I turned to Riku. Uh-oh. "I'm sorry, Riku. This wasn't supposed to happen."

"No, it went perfect," Riku said.

- - - -

Kairi had her hand out to me. "Why are you just sitting there, Sora?" she whispered. "We're supposed to get down on the dance floor now." She placed her hand back down to her side. "Oh, I knew it. You are still sore about me breaking up with you in high school and that Riku and I played that dirty trick to see how much you cared about us. I knew you didn't forgive us."

"Of course I have forgiven you two," I answered. "Besides, that happened a long time ago." I smiled. "I don't even remember what happened."

"Well, then," my best man said. "Hurry up. Everyone is waiting for the bride and groom to dance now."

"Well," I said as I stood up next to Kairi. "Whatever you say, Riku. After all, you are my best man."

THE END

Yup, there you have it. My very first short story. It doesn't have much description, because my teacher didn't want the story to be longer than three pages. I did make minor changes from the original story, but only to make the story flow more better. The characters' names were different. Sora was Max, Kairi was Clarissa, and Riku was Ryan. Other than that, the story is pretty much the same from the original.

Well, I hope that you enjoyed reading this story and that you'll come back to actually read that comedy story that I'm still planning. Wishes of an Angel signing off. Bye for now!