The doctors' ran tests on him for about a week before finally releasing him. Apparently memory loss was not listed as a side effect to a heartless attack. Needless to say, it's now listed.
Aerith visited him every day with a photo album every time. She told him she was trying to catch him up so that he wouldn't be confused when he returned home but he suspected she wanted something to jog his memory. Nothing worked. He so badly wanted it to so that he could see her smile but instead all he saw was utter disappointment and grief. She tried to hide it from him but it was plain as day on her face.
Yuffie never returned after he woke up. Aerith told him that she had to go back to work in Radiant Garden but Sora knew that it was because she couldn't bare the thought of him not knowing her. He felt grateful for her disappearance. It was hard enough to not let Aerith's grief get to him.
When it came time to return home to Destiny Islands, Sora felt uneasy. Aerith was excited about his return but Sora wanted nothing more than to run in the other direction. He knew that Aerith was hoping that once he was home, he would start to remember but at this point, Sora gave up hope. He wasn't going to remember. So he wasn't looking forward to the day that Aerith would come to this realization. Not to mention a whole bloody island filled with people.
He was told that he was once popular. So popular that he was friends with everyone. He was not looking forward to all those disappointed faces. Then there came problem number two, Riku. His boyfriend. Aerith said that she talked to him and explained everything about Sora's condition but who knows, Riku could try to kiss him expecting the memories to resurface like magic only to get memoryless him. That was a conversation he didn't want to have. Oh why couldn't he have been a loser? At least then no one would have known him and he wouldn't have to worry so much.
The gentle knock on his door broke his thoughts. He turned to see Aerith waiting for him by his now open door. "You ready?" she asked with a bright smile filled with hope.
Sora let out a big breath before giving her a forced smile. After she had told him that he was once cheerful and loud, he had tried his best to be just like that but it was a hard face to put on. Well, he can't hide at the hospital forever. He might as well get this over with.
As Sora walked down the street towards the train station, his mother put a gentle arm around his shoulders to reassure him. He gave a small smile but the butterflies in his stomach still made him feel uneasy.
It took a month for Aerith to come to grips on the fact that Sora's memories just might not ever come back. She had spent the whole day crying in her room and refused to talk to anyone. Sora was deeply concerned that this was going to be his new reality but that concern was annihilated when Aerith returned to normal the next day as if nothing had happened in the previous. He was relieved to see that the disappointed look he frequently saw in her eyes were now gone.
If only everyone else could reach the same conclusion as Aerith did. It was hard enough to walk down the street without running into someone who he had known before. Worst cases were when they had not gotten the memo of his condition and fully expected him to know who they were. Some would even get so angry that they would yell at him until some passerby would see and explain the situation. It was frustrating as hell. So in the end Sora just stopped leaving his house all together. It was easier this way, he had reasoned.
He spent most of his days reading, playing video games, or simply browsing the internet. Aerith once laughed at him when she noticed his change in activity. She said that she once had a hard time keeping him indoors even if he was bed ridden sick. It was different for her see. He had expected to see sadness at her statement but was heavily surprised to see acceptance. He was lucky to have such a kind and understanding woman for a mother.
Out of everyone when it came to the acceptance of the new Sora, Riku was the worst of them all. He truly believed that his memories would return. While that was indeed romantic, it was fairly annoying to Sora. Riku would constantly stop by every day to hang out with Sora and each and every time, he would not shut up about their past together. He starting to sound like a broken record at this point. He tried to have patience and give the guy the benefit of the doubt and at least give them a shot of being the amazing couple he was told that they were but Sora wanted nothing more than to strangle the guy. He was annoying as hell. At this rate, Sora was going to snap and he had a feeling that when he did, it was going to be huge.
"Then there was that one time you thought there was monster who lived in the cave at the base of the tree. Remember that?" Riku asked as he watched Sora who was deeply engrossed into his game.
"Nope" Sora popped his lips at the p. He had heard this story before but he wasn't going to tell him that in case Riku confused it for actual memories.
Riku's eye twitch in annoyance. "It was actually wind echoing inside"
"Huh, that so." Sora leaned back a little with his controller when the boss he was fighting got a little too close for comfort. He had been battling this particular boss for a week now and he had never gotten this close to defeating him as he was now. He only needed to give a few more hits for him to go down.
"Sora, are you listening to me?" Riku asked even though he knew the answer. It was the same thing every day. Really, Sora could at least try to get his memories back. It was like he didn't even care. Well Riku cared. He wanted his Sora back. As much of a pain in ass goof he was, he was also always kind and sincere in everything he did. All Riku wanted was his Sora to come back so that he can hold him in his arms once more.
"Yep, of course I am." Sora told him automatically. He was so close now. All he needed was one more good hit.
Sadly, Sora never got to beat that boss. Riku had leaned forward and turned off his gaming system before he even got to save.
Sora stood in outrage. "What the hell, Riku!?" he shouted as he threw his controller down. As any other gamer out there would know, you never messed with them in the middle of a boss fight.
"You're not even trying to get your memories back! Don't you care!?" Riku shouted back as he stood up, facing the equally enraged Sora.
"Of course I care but it's been months and there has been no sign what so ever of them coming back! They are never coming back! " Sora's face flared up in anger. It was a fight that had been bubbling up for a while now. It was bound to happen at some point. In the corner of his eye, Sora saw his mother run around the corner to see what the commotion was about. He could see the worry across her face yet he didn't stop there for her sake. He was too far gone in anger at this point. "Why can't you just accept that, Riku!? Accept who I am now!"
"Because you're not Sora anymore!" Riku screamed before punching Sora straight to the face.
The surprise of the hit alone caused Sora to fall to the floor. Riku didn't stick around. He ran right out of the house with Aerith hot on his trail, screaming at Riku.
'Well, that could've gone better.' Sora briefly thought as he stared at his ceiling.
Aerith returned shortly after to help tend to his split lip. They were silent throughout the whole process, neither asking the other any questions. Sora was grateful for that. He was too ashamed of himself to look at her in the eye. He should have stopped the fight when he saw his mother enter the room but he didn't. He only made it worse by pushing Riku too far.
It was while Aerith was putting everything away when she finally spoke. "I've been thinking" she started. "There's a special school for people who face similar problems to your own."
Sora scrunch his eyebrows together in confusion. "I thought the doctors said that I was the only one who faced amnesia from a heartless attack."
Aerith gave him a sad smile. "It a school for those who have been in some way traumatized from a heartless attack. I feel that you should go Sora. The school has proven to help millions of people and by staying here, you are only becoming more depressed every day." Aerith took a deep breath before cupping Sora's cheek. "I want you to be happy"
Sora leaned into her hand as he smiled towards her. "I am happy Mom. With you"
She gently shook her head as if Sora was being hopeless at the moment. "But not with yourself. You are tearing yourself apart trying to find the balance from the old you to the new you. "
Sora didn't know what to say to that. His mother had a point. It was getting ridiculous. He had even barricaded himself in his own home. Perhaps he should go. But he didn't want to leave his mother all alone in this empty house.
Aerith leaned forward to give Sora a gentle kiss on his forehead. "Don't worry about me." She whispered as if she could read his mind. "Do what you need to do to be happy. Because when you are happy, I'm happy."
Tears welled up in Sora's eyes. "I love you mom." He told her as he gave his mom a sudden hug. She laughed off her surprise and hugged him back. "I love you too, Sora"
That week Aerith had Sora enrolled into Castle Oblivion Boarding school for the troubled. All that was left to do was for Sora to go see the principle and sign a few paperwork there. They packed away all of the things that he wished to keep and shipped them off to his new room. Sora found himself excited to the prospect of seeing people who had never met the old him. It was going to be a fresh start with a clean slate.
"Here's some money for anything that you might need. I'll send you some every month so that I won't have to worry about you." Aerith explained as she handed a few bills to which Sora immediately put into his checkered wallet. "Now I want you to be safe and call me if you need anything and I mean anything at all."
Sora laughed at his mother. She was a worry wart sometimes. He could see that she was trying to hold back her tears. "I'll be fine, mom. Thank you"
"All boarding for train 13 to Radiant Garden. All boarding for train 13 to Radiant Garden." The speakers from the train station shouted out alerting Sora that his time was up.
"I have to go mom." He told her quickly as he grabbed the few bags that they hadn't shipped off.
"Your sister will be waiting for you at the station, she will direct you to the school. And Sora." Aerith suddenly pulled him for a hug and a kiss to the cheek. "Good luck" she whispered into his ear before letting go.
Sora held a grin as he started walking to his train. "I love you mom!" he shouted not caring about the stares he got. Things only looked brighter from here on.
