(A/N): Hello everyone. I'm a bit new to this side of the fanfiction universe but I can assure you that I've been a fan of Kingdom Hearts since its conception. I own all of the games and played every single one of them to completion so I've definitely done my research and have had time to get invested in the characters. As you can probably tell if you've clicked on this story, I'm a huge fan of Sora and Kairi (SoKai) as a pairing.
I've always wanted to write one of these for the pairing but I've never thought my writing to be worthy of doing so until now. After hearing that Ray Of Hope remix for Simple And Clean, inspiration slapped me in the face and now, I present to you a SoKai oneshot!
Do let me know what you guys think and thanks for reading!
EDIT: I made some changes to this chapter. If you have read this story already, please go ahead and note the changes!
Likewise
"True Love doesn't mean being inseparable, it's being separated and nothing changes."
...
"Oh man...what a long day,"
Sora let out a lazy yawn before taking a bite of the apple in his hand. After making himself comfortable on the tree he always sat at, he looked up at the reddening sky.
"Can't believe this place hasn't changed at all since I've been gone...it's got the same homely feel,"
Even though he had been back a few weeks now, the young Keyblade master couldn't help but be relived that he finally made it back. After enduring grueling tests, defeating countless enemies and having a hand in stopping Organization XIII from achieving their goals, it felt good to finally sit back and relax. He had to admit that even going to school was something he somewhat missed, though the work was still something he found himself dreading...at least slightly. He knew that he couldn't get too comfortable however; the time would come where the King would need his help in halting the coming storm at the hands of Master Xehanort. Until then...it was time to take a needed rest.
However, the longer he stayed, the more he wanted the world to go back to being peaceful...so that happiness could reign supreme.
"Someone looks deep in thought,"
Sora smiled upon hearing the sound of a familiar voice.
"Guessing you're done with training for the day huh?" he replied.
"I've been done for a couple hours now, I was waiting for you to come back,"
He sat up before scooting over to make room for another. He was however met with a light poke to the forehead, causing him to make a silly face. The sweet sound of laughter filled the air.
"I knew I'd find you here,"
"There aren't that many places that I go to relax Kairi," he replied with a chuckle.
The Princess Of Heart took her seat next to him before letting out a deep breath.
"The days...are going by so quickly," she said.
Sora noticed how much her tone shifted from being joyous to almost melancholy.
"Something on your mind?" he asked.
She bit her lower lip and nodded slowly.
"...I'm afraid that if we leave again, we won't come back," she replied.
Her right hand instinctively hovered her left shoulder before coming to rest as her eyes narrowed.
"...I just got you and Riku back but now we have to leave again when we're needed to fight the darkness," she said.
"It's our duty as wielders of the Keyblade," replied Sora.
Kairi looked at him, somewhat in disbelief that the lazy bum she's known her entire life was the one being serious.
"It's something I've thought about non-stop since I got back too...and I'd be lying if I didn't say that I wasn't scared myself," he said.
His tone was reassuring for her, but she knew that Sora wasn't an easy person to discourage and for him to admit fear, it was for something far more than just the stakes.
"What're you afraid of Sora?" she asked.
His sapphire orbs met hers and much to her surprise he shook his head.
"It's...something I have a hard time putting into words," he replied.
For a brief moment, she saw a passionate glint in his eyes but she couldn't tell exactly what it was for. He turned back to the sunset, his face now softening and his body relaxing down to his usual self.
"This sunset...is just as it was when we were kids," he said.
His tone sounded almost absent-minded but Kairi nodded in agreement; it was one of the things that she spent a lot of her time admiring while both her friends were gone. In fact, the sunset was what kept her company for just about all of the time and she began to remember how much she wanted to see her friends come back.
"Yeah...it's beautiful," she mused.
Sora got to his feet and leaned against the tree and after a few seconds, she noticed that something caught his eye. He looked away, laughing very softly to himself before turning to her.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing at all...say Kairi, I was hoping we could talk about something,"
She was taken aback at his sudden request, though she didn't understand why he would ask such a question; he knew that he could talk to her about anything.
"What is it Sora?" she asked.
"I don't wanna talk about it here...I was hoping we could meet up tonight?" he replied.
For some reason, Kairi felt her cheeks heat up and she was thankful that Sora had turned to stretch his arms else he may have noticed the shade of pink that suddenly enveloped her face.
"Where?" she asked.
He looked towards the shore and then back towards the buildings before raising a finger and pointing to a familiar layer of vegetation. She nodded and smiled.
"I'll finish all my chores and meet you there then?" asked Sora.
"Alright, I'll be waiting for you,"
"Sora?"
Kairi entered the cave to see that her friend had not arrived yet. She let out a soft laugh; typical Sora to always be late. After taking a look at her watch, Kairi shrugged before beginning to examine the cave. Immediately, she felt a wave of nostalgia go through her body. Memories of all the drawings the trio made came rushing back to her. She absent-mindedly began to run her hands across the old markings, each holding a fond memory of one or both of her friends. Upon reaching drawings that she drew alone with Sora, she laughed softly at seeing the difference between their skills.
Sora was a terrible artist, but he nevertheless came with her here and spent the time. She was always grateful for the attention he gave her, even when it was an inconvenience to him. Then again, does inconvenience even exist for a person as easygoing as Sora. She continued along her path until she happened upon one of the later drawings they did. Upon crouching down and examining it more closely, she recognized it as the second to last drawing she did with him. The memories of that night came rushing back and just as she felt as if she were reliving the moment...
"Kairi?"
She turned around almost instantly to see him getting up from the crawl space. He comically sneezed from the dust, causing her to giggle softly. Sora looked at her and smiled brightly.
"Took you long enough you lazy bum," she teased.
"Sorry about that, doing all that stuff took longer than I thought," he said.
Then, as if his eyes just caught onto where he was, he smiled.
"Sure brings back memories doesn't it?" he asked.
She smiled at him and giggled softly.
"Sure does!" she replied joyfully.
Sora crouched down and began to run his hands along the drawings, laughing softly to himself. She joined him as they started to comment on each of their respective doodles. They continued to eye just about ever square inch of the walls, commenting on each of the drawings for several minutes. Though she knew that Sora called her here for a purpose, she didn't mind just having fun with him; it wasn't often that she got the chance to do so. Upon reaching a particular drawing however, Kairi couldn't help but pause and blush. She was thankful that Sora was giving the wall all of his attention, else he may have noticed her face. Much to her surprise, Sora sat against the wall, next to the drawing before looking up at her. He seemed almost...nervous?
"What's wrong Sora?" she asked.
He looked to the ground next to him and patted it. She joined him, though her eyes didn't leave his for even a moment.
"It's...really hard to put it into words," he said.
He broke eye contact with her for a brief moment to catch his breath.
"I've been doing a lot of thinking lately...about this coming war and everything that happened in the last year," he began.
She had never seen him look so concerned; he was a difficult person to get down due to his very optimistic nature.
"The one thing I keep coming back to...is you Kairi," he said.
Once again, she felt immense heat build up in her cheeks. Sora then placed his hand on the drawing, particularly over the special part that he knew she filled in.
"I didn't tell you...but the first place I went when we got back was here," he said.
Kairi felt her heart begin to soften greatly and even though she was nervous, she could sense the happiness in his words.
"...I couldn't believe that you came back here and filled it in," he said with a soft laugh.
He turned back to face her with a grateful smile.
"You're the only reason I was able to get this far...whenever I felt that all hope was lost, your voice kept me going," he said.
Much to her surprise, Sora reached for one of her hands and held it lovingly.
"I was horrified when I saw you that day in Hollow Bastion...and when I had the choice of giving up everything to save your life, I did it without a second thought...because you mean the world to me Kairi," he said.
She knew her cheeks were bright red but at this point, she didn't care. She found herself inching closer to him, though he didn't seem to notice. Every word that came out of his mouth caused her to grow increasingly happy.
"Nothing compared to the happiness I felt on the day I saw you again in The World That Never Was...that you were alright and more importantly, that nothing changed between us; we were still friends,"
He looked away for a brief moment, as if to try and calm his clearly racing heart.
"Ever since Riku and I got back, I've wanted to spend more time with you because I missed you so much...it was the hardest year I've ever had to endure but then all of this started happening," he said gesturing towards the air.
She continued to listen to him, though she continued to inch closer without him noticing.
"And now that we could be called at any time...I felt terrified that I'd never get the chance to say what I've always wanted to say to you Kairi," he said.
His eyes broke away, looking towards the ground.
"What's that Sora?" she asked.
Her tone was gentle and her other hand enveloped his.
"That I love you,"
There was no pause, there was no struggle or hesitation. He managed to speak the words to her, though he shut his eyes tightly during it.
"I was always watching you since we were kids...I wanted to make you smile and I didn't ever want to see you frown," he continued.
Kairi gasped softly once she started to see tears start to stream out of his closed eyes.
"And after all this time, now I'm sure...I really do love you Kairi; you're everything to me...and I would do anything to protect you,"
Sora took a breath and tried to speak again but he was silenced by a finger. His blue eyes flew open to reveal that they were slightly red and puffy. He was astonished to see the most genuine smile he had ever seen grace her face.
"You don't have to say anymore...because when I finished that drawing...I knew my feelings too,"
He hesitantly backed up until he reached the wall, now realizing just how close she was to him. Once he saw her lean towards him, he finally managed to grab hold of his frantic heart and face her. Her eyes began to narrow.
"I never stopped thinking about you...even when I thought I had forgotten you, you found yourself right back where you belong...in my heart,"
She took one of his hands and placed it over her chest.
"...You feel that?"
Sora nodded.
"Every day you were gone...it felt like it wasn't beating," she said.
He narrowed his eyes, feeling guilt begin to swell within his heart.
"But when I saw you again that day...when I hugged you and said that it was real...that was the moment I truly knew that I wanted to be with you,"
She moved nearer to him and gave him a smile.
"You didn't break your promise to me...you came home just as you said you would and for that...you've made me the happiest girl in the world,"
She gently wiped the remnants of his tears from his cheeks.
"I love you too Sora,"
His eyes widened even more once her lips touched his, but within seconds, he felt himself ease into the contact. His hands released hers as one went to her cheek and the other gently grasped her arm. She responded leaning a little closer, ensuring that their bodies were connected, just as their hearts have been for all this time. After several seconds, Sora broke away from her, smiling and blushing brightly. He then reached into his pocket, before pulling out a Paopu Fruit. Kairi blushed but didn't shy away from the gesture.
"...Share this with me?" he asked.
"Of course I will,"
He broke the fruit in half before handing her a piece. Once he did however, she didn't place it in her mouth, instead, she brought it towards his. Sora caught onto the idea before bringing the piece in his hand to her mouth. On a non-verbal count of 3, they gently placed each piece of the fruit into their respective mouths. The smiles on their faces indicated that the fruit was quite pleasant, likely made more so by the fact that they were sharing it together. After several more pieces, the fruit was finished.
"...I guess we're intertwined forever," he said.
He barely had time to catch a breath before she kissed him again. After several more seconds of pure warmth, the couple separated once more as Kairi gave him a smile.
"Even if we didn't share it...you already know that I'm always with you," she said.
He noticed that her face had shifted to a passionate one, her eyes further cementing the fact that she meant every single word. Kairi smiled and nodded before leaning her forehead against his. He responded by gently cupping her cheek and nodding.
"Likewise," was his solemn response.
