It was Kairi's birthday, and Sora was panicking like a loon.
He'd marked the day on his calendar weeks in advance, and every time he had looked at it he had thought to himself, I need to get her a birthday present. However, that constant reminder had not resulted in any action, and now, the day of, he was left without a present to give her.
It wasn't his fault, though of course it was. Sora was just too indecisive in choosing what to possibly get Kairi for her sweet sixteenth.
He agonized over it all day, so much so that he was almost completely incapable of getting dressed properly in his school uniform (requiring his mother's help in straightening him out more than once), and he had no idea after the fact how he even got through school that day. Everything his teachers said went in one ear and out the other, and the smile he gave Kairi when he saw her that morning and wished her a happy birthday was something he just painted on his face to hide his terror of her learning that he hadn't gotten her something yet.
Riku gave him odd looks too, but he couldn't let Riku know. He absolutely couldn't let Riku know that he hadn't gotten his significant other a birthday gift yet. Even more than that, he couldn't let Selphie find out, or she'd tear both his arms off.
Selphie was scary when she was mad.
Once the final bell rang, Sora was out the door like a supersonic bullet. He didn't even stop to confirm the time and place for Kairi's party; he'd had that info memorized over a week ago. Everyone was going to be there, from friends on the Islands to all the other Guardians of Light. As stated, he couldn't trust Riku with the secret that he was still presentless, so Sora did the only thing he could think of, and called up his other best friends on the Gummiphone.
"Hello?"
"Donald!" Sora screamed. "What am I supposed to do? I have no idea what I'm going to give her!"
"Sora, calm down," the court wizard instructed him, and Sora took a deep breath as Donald gave him a sympathetic look. "You still haven't gotten her a gift?"
"No," Sora muttered in reply. "I just… I have no idea what to give her. Do I get Kairi something she can use everyday? Do I get her jewelry or something decorative? A funny shirt? Food? What do I do, Donald? What do I do?"
His duck friend of many adventures and life-or-death battles shook his head and sighed. "Sora, this is Kairi we're talking about. Kairi. It's not the gift, it's what's in your heart," he proclaimed, and not for the first time.
"My heart…?" Sora asked. He looked down, feeling it thump in his chest and a lump rise in his throat. It was definitely telling him something, and Sora smiled and swallowed the lump down. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks Donald."
"No problem. See you later."
Sora hung up, still smiling at the Gummiphone. "Thanks again, Donald. I know what to do."
When Sora arrived at the party he was the last guest to show up. Everyone else was already present at the beach cookout. Lea, Terra, and Hayner were all playing with a frisbee; Naminé was chatting with Kairi's dad as he grilled the skewers; Xion, Kairi, and Olette were playing in the shallows; Aqua and Donald were having a silly contest over who could make better magic fireworks, judged by Ven, Chirithy, and Goofy; and all the rest were engaged in conversation.
Riku was the first to spot Sora, and he loudly called his name, attracting everyone's attention. For just a moment, Sora stiffened, but then he continued forward, raising a hand and giving a cheery wave with the bouquet of flowers he held in one hand, and the helium-filled red balloon in the other. Kairi splashed out of the water and strode up the beach towards him, and it felt like every pair of eyes was tracking their progress.
"You're late, you lazy bum," Kairi teased. "Are these for me?"
"Well you know me, I like to sleep a lot," Sora answered cheekily. "I was having trouble getting you a gift."
"So you decided on flowers and balloons?" Kairi asked with a giggle. "You shouldn't have. I love them."
"I didn't," he answered with a grin. "These are for Naminé."
Kairi blinked a few times while Naminé placed a hand to her mouth to cover her dropped jaw. "I'm sorry, but pardon?"
"Well, they're part of the official thank you I still needed to give her," Sora replied. Kairi sighed and scratched her head.
"That's sweet, I guess," she said, still confused that Sora would bring gifts for another girl to her birthday. "It still would have been nice if you'd gotten me a gift, though."
Sora chuckled and put the flowers and balloon weight down. "Oh, I do still have a gift for you," he replied. Before anyone could react to that statement, or tell him that he didn't have anything else on him, Sora grasped Kairi by the shoulders and kissed her lips.
No one said a word, though they did watch with beaming smiles as the seconds passed. Sora even dipped Kairi a little, and her hands weakly grasped his shoulders. Their tongues slipped away from each other as their lips parted, and Sora was blushing as he asked her, "Do you like your present? My heart?"
"It's the best present I could ask for," Kairi answered softly. "But maybe next time, don't give me a heart attack by buying flowers for Naminé." Sora chuckled in his throat, grinned, and started a second round of kissing.