A/N: On to Chapter 4! And I know this isn't a Kingdom Hearts fic, but…HAPPY AKUROKU DAY! Enjoy~
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story, Night, & Cookie.
Different Pasts, Common Presents
Chapter 4
"Neku, honey, don't you love us?" a familiar voice asked, and I looked about, spotting my parents.
"Mom? Dad?" I uttered, and ran to them happily. "What do you mean, 'don't I love you?' Of course I do!"
"Then why haven't you told Joshua the truth about us yet?" Dad demanded, his eyes narrowing.
"B-because I didn't want to be seen a-as the kid to be p-pitied," I stuttered. "I also d-didn't want to w-worry him."
"Neku, you need to tell him what really happened," Mom urged.
"You can't live a lie forever, especially in a relationship," Dad agreed.
"I'll tell him the truth, I promise," I swore. "I miss you guys so much…" I added, tears forming in my eyes.
"We know, sweetie, but we're always with you in your heart, you know that," Mom assured me, and hugged me.
"All right, now go. Tell him when you wake up," Dad ordered, and I nodded as he placed his hand on my shoulder.
"We love you, Neku," they said.
"Love you, too," I whispered as I started to cry.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X
I woke up to Joshua shaking me gently, his expression panicked.
"Neku! Oh thank god you're awake," he sighed in relief.
"Why? What happened?" I asked, and my boyfriend stared at me.
"You started whimpering in your sleep, and then you were crying," he murmured, and I could see how worried he was. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, but I have something to confess," I mumbled, looking away.
"What would that be?" he asked.
"You know how I said my parents are out on business?" I reminded him. He nodded, furrowing his brows as though he was wondering where I was going with this. "I…wasn't telling the truth… They're dead…" My voice cracked at the last word, and tears formed in my eyes. Joshua gasped quietly, and then wrapped his arms around me in a comforting embrace as I began to cry.
"Shhh," he soothed, rubbing my back in small circles to calm me down. When I relaxed, he said, "Neku…I'm so sorry…Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
"I didn't want to be pitied," I murmured when I calmed down. "I'm sorry…"
"It's okay, I understand," the silverette promised. "I don't pity you; in fact, I can sympathize about having no parents." I gazed at him, confused.
"What do you mean?"
"I was given up for adoption by my mother when I was born, and my adoptive parents kicked me out when they found out I was gay," Josh explained.
"Oh god, I'm sorry, Josh," I said, and hugged him.
"It's okay; I didn't really like my adoptive parents anyway. They were assholes," he shrugged.
"But, then, how were you able to afford this place? And all of your stuff?" I wondered.
"When my biological father found out about me when I was eight, he put me down on his will that I would inherit everything he owned, including his money. About four years ago, though, he was found stabbed to death by my mother, and she was sentenced to death while I was informed of his murder. Once my adoptive parents kicked me out, though, I got all of his money and possessions, even his house. I decided to sell his house and some of the furniture, and put what I didn't sell or keep here in a storage facility. I used some of his money to buy my car, rent this apartment, and buy a few things I needed."
"Wow…And you have a job, why?" I questioned.
"Because I thought I could use the work experience, but I have enough money from my father's life insurance policy and inheritance money that I could probably quit my job," Joshua shrugged. "How did you afford your house?"
"Same deal. Life insurance policy money and inheritance," I replied, lowering my gaze. "I'm actually living in the same house, seeing as I'm an only child, but I don't mind it. I ended up selling most of my parents' things when they died, except for things I know I'll use in the future and the sentimental value items."
"Ah, gotcha," he nodded in understanding. He hugged me once more before looking at the time on his alarm clock. "Well, it's five in the morning. Want to get some more sleep or just get up for the day?"
"I don't think I'll be getting any more sleep until later tonight," I mumbled, starting to climb out of bed.
"Neku, wait," Joshua grabbed my hand as I was about to go shower and get dressed. I glanced at him, and he asked, "What was that dream about? You never told me." Sighing, I sat back down on the bed.
"I dreamt of my parents, and they wanted me to tell you the truth about them," I muttered. "They said I can't live a lie with someone I love."
"Neku…I'm so sorry, I really am," he murmured. "I can sympathize, I honestly can."
"Sorry, Josh, I know," I sighed. "I'm gonna go take a shower…" Standing once more, I made my way to the bathroom with a clean set of clothes. While in the shower, I thought about how well Joshua had taken my story. He had accepted me as someone not to be pitied, and understood, even being able to sympathize. I pushed him away just now, though…Fuck, I need to apologize. I hurriedly finished my shower and hopped out, dried myself off, and then got dressed. Once I was all done, even with my hair, I left the bathroom to find said silverette sitting on the couch, looking upset.
"Josh?" I called softly, and he looked up. "I'm sorry about earlier…"
"It's okay, Neku," he assured me with a smile. I sat down next to him, and he pulled me close to him.
"What're you—" I started to say, but he kissed me softly on the lips. When he pulled away, he was smirking. "What was that for?"
"Because I'm glad you told me the truth," he answered. "I know it hurts to talk about it, but it's best to be honest about that kind of thing."
"Thank you," I told him, and snuggled into his side. We remained there, cuddling for a few hours…until my stomach growled.
"Hungry?" Joshua laughed lightly. I blushed and shoved him.
"Yes, but that's to be expected. I haven't eaten since last night, and it's already almost nine in the morning," I muttered.
"True. What would you like for breakfast?" the silverette offered with a smile.
"I'll cook this time," I grinned, hauling myself off the couch. There was a sudden pattering, and Night and Cookie dashed out of the laundry room.
"They must have heard you," Joshua giggled.
"Yup, and they love my cooking," I chuckled as the silverette pouted.
"What, they don't like mine?"
"We'll find out tonight if you want. You can cook, and then they can have a taste," I suggested.
"Fine," he grumbled, but perked up when I kissed his cheek as I went to the kitchenette. "There better be more where that came from!"
"Oh, there will be," I smirked as I purposely bent over to pull out a frying pan.
"Dammit, Neku, don't tease me!" he shouted, and I laughed.
"I'll do what I want, because I know no matter what, you love me," I pointed out. Joshua grumbled as he sank into the couch cushions, making me chuckle. I set to work making two scrambled eggs for Night and Cookie, and when I finished that, I made pancakes from scratch. I added cinnamon and honey to the mix, and once I finished the entire batch, I piled them onto a couple of plates and carried them out to Joshua. Right when I set down the plates, I went back to the fridge and pulled out the butter, and then fished out the syrup, forks, and knives before returning to my boyfriend.
"Holy shit, Neku, they smell amazing!" the silverette praised.
"Try eating them, they're even better," I smiled. He obeyed, taking a bite of them. His eyes lit up with delight, and he hummed in approval.
"Oh. My. God. This is heaven!" Joshua grinned, and began to wolf down his pancakes. I ate mine neatly, and when we were both finished, the silverette pulled me close to him, kissing the top of my head lovingly. "Those were delicious, Neku. You need to cook more often."
"You just want me to be a housewife," I muttered, glaring playfully up at him.
"So you're admitting to being the girl, huh?" he giggled, and I blushed. "Not that I'm saying you're a girl. Just saying that you're the bottom in this relationship, Nekky~"
"Dammit, I thought we went over this!" I protested, scowling. "You couldn't top a girl, let alone me!"
"But Nekky, you just admitted to being a housewife," he pointed out, smirking.
"Fuuuuck…" I grumbled, pouting when I knew he was right. Joshua chuckled as he kissed my temple.
"Don't worry, I still love you," he mumbled against my skin.
"You'd better," I laughed lightly.
"Oh, hey, wanna play a video game?" my boyfriend suggested eagerly, and I grinned at him.
"What game?"
"Super Smash Bros. Brawl," he smirked.
"Sure, that should be good," I chuckled. "Got any GameCube controllers?"
"Yeah, I always play using them. Let me go grab my Wii and the controllers." And with that, Joshua went to his bedroom, retrieving the game, system, and controllers, and then setting it up. Once he had it plugged in and started the game up, I grabbed the Player 1 controller.
"Hey!" Joshua protested.
"I'm the guest, so I'm Player 1," I smirked, and he sighed.
"Fine, choose your character," he muttered, but I instead went to the settings, choosing the items that we could use and how often they appeared, as well as who chooses the stage for each round. Once I finished, I picked Lucario.
"Lucario, huh? Well, I pick Kirby," he giggled, and then I clicked on start, still smirking.
As soon as the match began in the Pokémon Stadium 2, I waited until Kirby was close enough, and then grabbed him using the Z-button, catching him in a choke-hold. I used Lucario to deliver a quick series of punches, and then slammed Kirby into the ground with a strong kick. I heard Josh's noise of protest as I ran off, and then charged up an Aura Sphere attack. Once charged, I shot it at him, earning a direct hit. Suddenly, Kirby sucked Lucario up and copied his Aura Sphere power, and I growled under my breath. But when the Final Smash Sphere showed up, I grinned evilly.
"Oh, you're gonna get it now, Josh!" I cackled, and swiftly attacked it with an Aura Sphere, gaining its power. I smirked at him before activating Aura Storm. Lucario hovered into the air, and then released a huge beam of aura energy at the ground. I used the analog stick on my controller to aim it at Kirby, and laughed loudly when the pink guy was sent flying, even smashing into the screen.
"What the hell!" Joshua yelped, and glared playfully at me. "It's on now, Neku!"
With that, he had Kirby smash Lucario with his hammer, but I snagged a Pokéball as I dodged, throwing it down onto the ground and summoning Latios.
"Yes!" I crowed, and watched gleefully as Latias and Latios darted around the battlefield, slamming into Kirby repeatedly. As soon as they were gone, though, Kirby charged at Lucario and performed a flying kick, hitting him. That's when the Final Smash Sphere appeared again. This time, Joshua was able to get Kirby to it faster, and he activated Cook Kirby. I made Lucario leap away, performing Extremespeed to be able to avoid getting boiled alive. Once the attack ended, Lucario raced in, performing a C-stick smash to the little pink guy. When the timer began to count down from five, though, Joshua and I grinned at each other and had our characters pose before the timer hit zero.
"And the winner is…Lucario!" the game announced, and I laughed as Joshua facepalmed.
"So not fair…" the silverette grumbled.
"Yes it is," I grinned. "You're just being a sore loser."
"Well, I won't lose at another game," he giggled.
"What game?" I asked, completely oblivious.
"How about I show you?" he replied, his voice low and husky. I gulped as he approached me, and then he kissed me deeply. I kissed back, trying to lean forward, but he was so intent on kissing me I fell back until I was leaning back on my elbows. I gasped into his mouth, and the silverette's tongue slid into my mouth, tasting me. Eventually, we broke apart for air.
"You…want me…that bad…don't you?" I panted as I slowly sat up again.
"Of course I do," he breathed, sitting back and crossing his legs. "I want you so bad, but I won't push you. We've only been together a day, after all." I could see he was hard, even though he was trying to cover it.
"Josh, I know you're hard," I told him, and he turned bright red. "And besides, what if I said I want to be yours?"
"Wait, are you serious?" my boyfriend gaped at me. "Neku, I don't want to push you—"
"Joshua," I interrupted, and blushed as I next spoke, my words soft. "I actually do want you to take me. Make me yours."
"Only if you're sure that's what you want," he murmured, grasping my hand.
"It is."
A/N: Sorry about the cliffy, but I'm gonna write the lemon in the next chapter! R&R, peeps!
