Dedicated to my Shield.
A/N: IMPORTANT. PLEASE READ.
This is not Chapter Four.
I haven't been able to write very much lately. My city was hit by a tornado and there's a lot of damage around here. Nobody was killed where I live, thank God. Leave it to say, I've been a bit distracted. Housing dormless University friends and the like.
I wanted to do something special for Valentine's Day. It's a good thing I'm stuck in bed. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to type these one-shots. YAY!
Enjoy, everyone. Happy Valentine's Day!
Mayhem
Riku walked toward his locker, Nevaeh in tow. He passed hordes of seemingly okay-with-their-new-memories students. Sure, they cast him glances more so then usual, but, aside from that, normalcy reigned. No one treated him any different.
Which, Riku suddenly realized, might be a problem.
A group of girls awaited his arrival. They huddled in front of his locker like a pack of wolves. (That's how Riku saw them. The way they stood, ready to spring? The way their eyes glinted? To him, it was all animal.) Riku hadn't taken his fanbase into account. What was once a handful of raging hormones was now more than he could count on two hands.
"Riku!" one girl cried. Hence followed a chorus of 'Riku'. Enough to where Riku started disliking the sound of his own name.
One girl glomped him. "I'm so glad you're back!"
Riku didn't have a clue as to who she was. "Hn," he agreed. "Me, too…" Riku bristled for the girl's sake. There was no telling Nevaeh's reaction. A part of Riku dreaded it. Yet, another part of him longed to see exactly what she was going to do. It was a small part, yes, but it was there.
Was Nevaeh in the midst of an attack? Was she plowing through the crowd as he thought? Was she-
Nevaeh stood on the outskirts of Riku's mob. She pulled on the end of her uniform. "Blasted skirt," she hissed.
Riku felt gypped.
Nevaeh intercepted his blasé glare. She returned the sentiment. "Stop ogling!" Nevaeh turned her back to him. "Lecher!"
All the commotion came to a stand-still. Every Riku fan-girl in the vicinity turned red in the face. Some muttered under their breath, but the most boisterous of them all demanded to know: "Why would Riku ogle someone like you?"
In truth, Riku pitied whoever-she-was.
Nevaeh spun on her heel. She faced the girl, nose to nose. Whereas her opponent shook in her shoes, Nevaeh possessed the rigidity of a stone statue. "Oh," Nevaeh purred. "We have a heckler." She smirked.
"I-I-" the unnamed unfortunate tried to rebuttal.
"Op-op-op, sputter," Nevaeh teased. "Next time, if you're going to taunt me, plan a couple steps ahead." She sauntered forward. The fem-Nazis standing in her way parted like the Red Sea. Nevaeh cuddled next to Riku, hands poised on his shoulder. "Hello, lover."
Riku was powerless not to smile. It was just like Nevaeh to crush the dreams of two-dozen hopefuls with only two words.
Mayhem ensued.
(A/N:1)
Not So Happy Valentine's Day
Sora was determined. This was going to be the best Valentine's Day ever.
He tugged at the collar of his white buttondown. His poor shirt was starched to the point where it was hard to move without crink-crinkling. Sora kept adjusting his tie. He almost choked himself he was so nervous.
Not to mention: his hair wasn't cooperating. Any attempt to soothe his mane of brown ended in failure.
Sora braced himself against his bathroom sink. He stared at his defeated reflection. "I don't know about this."
Nevaeh scowled at Sora's head. "I'll make your hair lay flat." She popped her knuckles. "Even if it kills you." Nevaeh pulled Sora into a headlock. Snatching a bottle of who-knows-what and emptying it and its entirety was only one service she offered. Armed with a brush and a heavy hand, Nevaeh attacked Sora's noggin like it was an antag due for a beating.
"I think you mean: even if it kills me." (Or perhaps not…) Sora squirmed away, but he was intercepted by Selphie.
She sprayed cologne in his face.
Sora coughed. He fanned at the fragrance. It smelt terrible.
Maybe taking advice from the only girls he knew wasn't so smart, after all. Nevaeh was too brutal. Selphie was too meticulous.
Sora would've asked Kairi for help, but that would completely defeat the purpose. Riku? Laughable.
"Should I go with a red tie or a black tie?"
"Hn."
"Do you think Kairi would like chocolates?"
"Hn."
Laughable was putting it lightly.
Sora coughed again. "I think I'm good."
"You look so cute!" Selphie squealed.
Nevaeh pinched Sora's cheek. "Dashing, sir."
Sora made a face. "Can I leave?" he asked. "We've been here for two hours." Despite Nevaeh and Selphie's 'well' and 'but's, Sora made his exit. He fled the bathroom in a plume of heady scent. He hurried out the front door, ignoring his mom and her wanting-to-take-a-picture, about as timorous as all-get-out.
Never again.
Selphie and Nevaeh watched him make his hasty get-away. They didn't match his hurry with wanting to get away from them. Fortunately. "Good luck, Sora," Nevaeh and Selphie said as one, waving in time.
Sora shuddered. He picked up his pace. For the first time in a long time, he felt sorry for Riku.
On the way to Kairi's house, Sora picked some flowers. Mostly to override his cologne, but he figured girls liked flowers. He hoped. They looked nice, anyway. "See, Sora?" he told himself. (So he was primped by a couple of enthusiast. So he smelt like an old man. So he didn't have the munny to buy Kairi anything.) "Things are looking up."
The sky rumbled with thunder. Lighting flickered and rain fell.
Sora stood frozen. "Well…" he tried. "It can't get any worse, can it?"
The wind picked up. The flowers he held lost their petals.
Sora sighed. He trudged on, cold and wet. It wasn't long before he reached the mayor's house. Sodden through and through. Caked with mud. Runny nose. Messy hair. He was a sight to see. Sora tried to shake the water out of his shoes. He'd wanted to impress Kairi. Not scare her.
Sora hovered outside. He contemplated going back home, but the thought of Selphie and Nevaeh made his stomach churn. "I'd rather face Keura." Sora knocked on Kairi's front door. He smiled the best he could when it opened to receive him. "Happy Valentine's Day." Sora flourished his flowers-with-no-petals.
Kairi stared.
(A/N:2)
Aww
Sora decided to escort Kairi home. (If that wasn't gentlemanly, then nothing was.) Destiny Islands tropical weather was on a tear. One moment, it was blue skies. The next, a typhoon. Sora had a good reason to protect his Princess. The darkening clouds were enough to instigate Riku into overprotective mode. And that was really saying something.
When the rain began to pour by the bucket-loads, Sora removed his jacket. He slung it over Kairi's head and shoulders. "You'll catch a cold if you get wet."
(A/N:3)
Nevaeh's Secret
Nevaeh eyed the shoddy, hand-made flyer tapped to the front of her locker. Granted, a good deal of it had been ripped to shreds when she'd failed to remove the advertisement before putting her books away. No matter. The scribbles were easy to read: Sadie Hawkins Dance.
Neveah tuned in to her surroundings. She caught pieces of the students' conversations, seeming to ignore the giggles and whispers.
"I know exactly what I'm going to wear."
"Do you think he'll say yes?"
"I'm so nervous. I can't dance."
Nevaeh examined the flyer a little more closely. Upon her inspection, she discovered a crumpled, thumbnail sketch. There, in pencil, was a girl dancing. "Hm," Nevaeh pondered out loud. She cocked a fine eyebrow. "How intriguing." Without a second thought, she began her search for Riku.
Nevaeh navigated her way down the crowded halls of Destiny High until she found an unmarked exit. There was little else in her mindset besides discovering the truth. It fascinated her so. As a result of her careless, one-sided ifs and whys, Nevaeh didn't bother apologizing to the classmates she happened to shoulder on her way to the Blitz Ball field.
"Blast." Nevaeh scanned the empty arena with jaded eyes. "Where have you gone?" she asked herself. Even before the full sentence parted from her lips, her sensitive ears caught wind of several male voices drifting down the way. Nevaeh followed the deep lilts in pitch. And when she found herself face to face with a door labeled Locker Room, she gave herself permission to enter.
Nevaeh didn't spot anything out of the ordinary. She was too busy flushing out silver hair. Nothing but. She didn't understand the balks of every boy. Or their fleeing. It wasn't like she was going to kill them or anything. Today...
All of a sudden, a pair of minty eyes found hers. And they weren't very happy.
"There you are," Nevaeh huffed. "I've been looking everywhere-"
Riku hoisted her over his shoulder. Without explanation and without any hint as to why he wanted to relocate. This didn't bother Nevaeh. Riku rarely did anything unless it was for her benefit. Most of the time.
Nevaeh started over: "I've been looking everywhere for you." She planted her elbows into his back and dropped her chin on top of her entwined, lilied fingers. "I wanted to ask-" Riku made his way outside and set her down. The jar was more than she expected. "-ask who in the Worlds this Sadie Hawkins is." Nevaeh waved her flyer in front of Riku's disgruntled face.
He ripped the paper aside. "Sadie Hawkins is a dance. Not a person." Riku threw a thumb over his shoulder. "And you aren't allowed in there."
Nevaeh tapped her chin, looking ever so curious. "Why not?"
Riku ignored the question. He unclenched his fist to reveal the remains of the dance flyer. "Is that all you wanted to know? About Sadie Hawkins?"
Nevaeh picked the flyer from Riku's palm and straightened out the creases. She hugged it to her chest. "But look, sir. There's dancing." Her orange eyes grew soft and vacant. She caressed the pitiful remains of what was once a form of public notice. "I want to dance. Very badly. I haven't had a go in ages." She smiled. "Where may I find this Hawkins?"
Riku drug his hand down his face. "Dance, Heaven. It's a dance. There's no Hawkins involved. Sadie Hawkins means the girls ask the guys. Usually it's the other way around."
"Ask?" Nevaeh made a face. "This dance involves more than one person?"
Riku stepped out of the doorway. A few grumbling, teenage boys passed them by. They shot Nevaeh irate looks and resituated the lapels of their white shirts. "Listen..." Riku pulled Nevaeh out of their beeline. "I'll…uh…" He rubbed the back of his neck and cleared his throat.
Nevaeh quirked an eyebrow. "I thought I was supposed to do the asking." On the outside, she knew she appeared cool, calm, collected, and self-assured. The inside was a different matter. When a frog landed itself in her stomach, Nevaeh had yet to determine. Either way, it wasn't lacking in skill. The little guy did acrobatics in plenty. "Will you, Mr. Riku, take me as your dance partner?" There was no better way to counter personal feelings of anxiety than sicing her counterpart with gobs and gobs of torture.
Nevaeh loved it. Riku didn't.
"Hn."
"I'm glad." Nevaeh sighed, all whimsical and such. "My old school never had functions like these. I would've invited my significant other, otherwise."
Riku did a double take. He couldn't have looked more surprised even if he'd wanted to. "You have a…" He ran his fingers through his hair. "…a boyfriend? Meaning…" Riku choked on his words. He was shocked. "…besides the Lameck thing?"
Eyebrows knitted, Nevaeh scrutinized Riku like he was out of his mind. "Yes," she chuckled at long last. "My knight in shining armor."
Riku opened and closed his mouth at least two or three times. "What?" He flushed something awful. "You never said anything about-" He stopped. Riku coughed into his fist. "You never said anything about anyone else."
"It's a secret," Nevaeh whispered. "Come closer and I'll tell you." When Riku bent down, she kissed him on his cheek. "You're so nonsensical. I was talking about you."
Riku's eyes flickered from Nevaeh's face to over her shoulder. Unbeknownst to the both of them (being in their own, little world), a horde of highschool ladies were granted their deepest, fangirl desires: Riku's hiding place. "Did you have to find me so easily?" he grumbled.
In less than a minute, Riku was decked in fans. Instead of rushing in all-haste to aid her lifelong partner, Nevaeh ambled away. The calamity died down the longer she kept her pace.
(A/N:4)
Hug
Sora tried to look appealing, but Kairi wasn't buying it. "Riku and I will be right back. Promise." He hovered outside her window. Bypassing the front door and the mayor and his wife was the blessing of flight. The only obstacle left: persuading Kairi to stay home. "It's only a teeny-weeny mission." Sora measured its size with his thumb and pointer finger.
Kairi snubbed him. She knelt on the edge of her bed, donned in a (duh) pink nightgown. She looked skeptical. "What about Nevaeh? Is she going?"
Sora shook his head. "Nope."
Riku wasn't even going to fill Nevaeh in – he wasn't even going to tell her good-bye. Sora thought about saying so. It would definitely make him out to be the better beau. At the same time, Sora felt that, if he did tattle something, he'd be slighting his best friend. (Riku was going to get an ear-full anyhow…)
"We'll be back by morning."
Kairi reluctantly gave in. "Alright." She reached out to give Sora a hug.
He was more than happy to oblige. But it wasn't a sideways hug. It wasn't a fist-to-fist, chest-to-chest, pat-pat on the back hug. It wasn't a crooked, right-arm-over-left-arm, left-arm-over-right-arm hug. It was a bear hug. One in which Kairi's arms were immobile against her sides because Sora held her so tightly. One that lasted for several minutes, chest-to-chest, cheek-to-cheek.
A Sora-hug.
(A/N:5)
ooo
A/N:1: You'll be seeing this again.
A/N:2: Lol. Poor Sora.
A/N:3: So! Sweet! Inspired by a picture I saw on the internet the other day. Zee and Pon, I think it was?
A/N:4: I kinda got the idea from one of Ted Dekker's books. Thr3e. This one-shot is also on my DA.
A/N:5: The HUG poem.
ooo
A/N: I know this isn't much, but it's better than nothing.
The poll results: Fifty percent of you want my ANs at the end of my chapters. Twenty-five percent of you want my ANs in the middle of my chapters. Twenty-five percent of you want pudding. Lol. So I guess ANs at the end of my chapters it is.
I'll post the real chapter four as soon as I can. It might be a while, considering. I just wanted everyone to know.
Thanks for reading! God bless!