Author's Notes:
Happy early Christmas and New Year (since it's unlikely I'll update this fic again any time before then)! Thanks so much for all the reviews! I was really tickled by some of the ones I got for the last chapter.
Chapter Four: Rehearsal for Molestation
-o-o-
"Nn... Mommy, I wanna keep him!" Sora protested in a soft mumble, twisting sharply in his bed and jumbling the covers over to one side. Caught in such a light, innocent dream, he did not hear his bedroom door open, or see the intruder appear at his bedside and smile down at him.
"Sora."
But the intruder's call fell upon deaf ears. Sora merely kicked a foot out in his sleep and rolled onto his back, blanket draped over one leg and nothing else. His boxers were the only thing he wore, and from Sora's regular erratic sleeping behavior, they had shifted so far down his hips that it they exposed a nice length of the smooth, tan skin of Sora's abdomen and the curve downward towards his pelvis. Sora might have even seemed risqué in his sleep if it weren't for his babbling.
But right now, by pretend-boyfriend standards, he was just bordering on molestable.
"I'll feed 'im and ev'rything... Please?" came another of Sora's murmurs, his mouth forming a soft pout.
What the heck was he dreaming about?
Riku suddenly reached out and grabbed hold of the boy's shoulders and shook him, and he groaned, batting the intruder away with his hands. Riku had to quickly back up before he received a guaranteed bruise from Sora's unconscious attack.
"Sora, wake up!" the older boy said, biting back a laugh as the younger boy curled away from him and stuck his bum in the air.
"Lemme keep him...!" Sora whined, hugging his pillow to himself and forming a frustrated face.
Obviously he was still stuck in his dream.
Letting out a soft sigh, Riku dug his fingers into Sora's sides and began tickling him, confident that it would wake Sora. "Hey, Sora," he tried again, "get up, you goof!"
"Mm... Riku."
Riku froze, both eyebrows raising in alarm. What was Sora dreaming about? Deciding that waking him up could be even more amusing, Riku did the last thing he could think of that did not require water or ice cream: he pounced.
"Lazy ass, get up for your first day as Riku's boyfriend!" he laughed, throwing himself onto the slumbering Sora and beating him with a pillow.
It worked like magic. Or, it would have, had the pillow not suddenly tear at the seams and spew white feathers into the air. Either way, Sora did wake up, limbs flailing as Riku continued to beat him with the loose sack that was once a pillow.
"Aa-ah! R-Riku?!" the boy cried, his very awake blue eyes barely visible under the cloud of feathers. "Why is it snowing?!"
Snowing?
Maybe Sora wasn't that awake after all.
Riku twisted a little so that he was leaning over Sora and not sitting completely on top of him, allowing the sleepy boy to turn and lay on his back. As the air began to clear and the feathers littered the bed and floor of Sora's room, Riku noticed that Sora's soft brown hair was now speckled with some of the tiny white feathers. One was stuck to the tip of his nose.
"Why are you in my room and sitting on me?" Sora wondered, eyeing the mutilated pillow in Riku's hands.
Oh yeah.
"Ohh... I was sent to wake you up," Riku replied casually, putting on his most charming grin as Sora finally raised his gaze to look at him. A soft blush immediately crawled across the boy's cheeks, spurring Riku on. He leaned farther down to pluck the tiny feather from Sora's face.
"W-Why are you sitting on me?" Sora asked again, eyes wide and embarrassed.
Riku laughed, rolling off the other boy and to his feet, flicking his hair over a shoulder. "Because you're so easy to fluster," he replied, smirking. "Ready to get up and spend the entire day mingling with the city folk? Or do I have to dress you too?"
Face forming a stubborn pout, Sora glared at Riku. He didn't look too threatening in his half-naked state and all those feathers sticking out of his spiky hair.
Quirking an eyebrow, Riku let his eyes travel downward. "Of course, there's not much undressing to do."
Sora blinked, following Riku's gaze. Cheeks suddenly an interesting shade of red, Sora threw a sheet over himself before grabbing his remaining pillow and chunking it at Riku.
"Pervert!"
Riku broke into laughter again, catching the pillow as he cried, "Stop acting like such a girl—it's not anything I haven't seen before! We're both guys!"
The pillow shot back through the air and smacked into Sora's face. As much as Sora really wanted to give a mean comeback, something else came up. Something Riku had said. Hugging the pillow to himself, Sora asked, "Mingling with the city folk?"
"Yeah," Riku replied, gesturing with one hand for Sora to glance out his window, which overlooked the street and Riku's house, which was strangely bustling with people. "The house is being wired with up-to-date electricity and air conditioning and heating and gas and cable and wireless internet and all that good stuff. Not to mention there's people redoing the insulation and plumbing, and checking for rodents and unsanitary stuff. There's a long list."
"I can tell," Sora commented, his eyes scanning the street full of automobiles and people in work uniforms. There were also more than just several nosy islanders out there already, watching the commotion.
Already Sora knew this was going to be a very long day.
He turned back to Riku with curious eyes. "And I'm guessing you want me to help with stuff?"
"No, no," Riku laughed, holding up two hands. "We've got plenty of people today. You might get run over or lost in the chaos if you do try to help. Instead, you and I are going to go over other stuff today. Less concrete things like this pretend boyfriend business."
Sora slowly nodded in agreement, the words pretend boyfriend giving him a little funny feeling in his stomach as he said, "Okay."
"But unfortunately," Riku continued, "you're going to be spending the whole day with me... over there—" Riku paused to glance out the window, "—at my house because they need me over there to oversee some stuff," he explained, now gesturing with his hands to indicate chaos. "It's a total hurricane. We'll probably spend most of the day upstairs to escape it. Squall and Cid can pretty much handle almost everyone. They know what I want from this project."
Nodding again, Sora managed a small smile. "Sounds fine. Gotten any company from the locals yet?" he asked. He wasn't looking forward to a few visits that were inevitably going to come, but he'd rather be there when they happened so he could back Riku up.
"Oh... There was a boy over earlier today. Tidus?" Riku began, smiling a little. "He said he'd be back later to help, and he seemed genuine about it. Nice guy. And then there were a few adults just snooping around for information, but the few people who weren't scare off by Irvine or Tifa were escorted away by your mom."
Sora was about to laugh at the image when those last two words registered in his mind.
"Wait. My mom?" he repeated. "She's over there?"
"Been there since dawn," Riku said. "Cooked us all breakfast and forced us to work." Riku paused, lightly grinning as he rubbed the back of his head in a cute way. "She's great. Very productive."
Before those words had even finished forming, Sora had already sprung out of bed and begun digging through his neatly organized dresser—neat thanks to his mother, who had cleaned up yesterday after Sora's hectic morning and would probably clean up again when she saw all the feathers.
"She may be great," Sora began to say as he grabbed a baggy t-shirt and shoved it over his head, "but she's a lunatic about work! You shouldn't leave her alone there, Riku! She'll get ideas!"
"Nah. She's fine. She's holed up in the kitchen listing what utensils and appliances she needs for her job, and what needs to be renovated in there. She told me that she might even need an assistant."
Sora was now throwing a pair of wrinkled shorts over his boxers, not caring or particularly noticing that Riku was watching him with a small smirk. As he fastened the shorts closed, he turned to Riku and said very pointedly, "You're nuts for letting her do whatever she wants in your house."
Riku managed a short shrug. "She's like a kid at a toy store. And besides, she's already starting to prepare for tonight."
"Tonight?" Sora asked, freezing in the middle of pulling a sandal on.
"Yeah. A big dinner for all of us and anyone you wanted to invite," Riku explained, and then watched as Sora suddenly began undressing again. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"Shower!" Sora said, back in his boxers and rummaging through his drawer again for clean clothes. "Mom would kill me if I showed up today smelling like the beach when she's trying so hard to impress all your friends!" A pair of green cargo pants and a black hoodie now in hand, Sora sprinted toward the bathroom, yelling, "I'll be out in a few minutes!"
As the door slammed shut behind Sora, Riku let out a small chuckle, rubbing a hand over his forehead and through his hair.
Today was going to be a very interesting day.
-o-o-
The first thing Sora heard when stepping into Riku's busy house was the gruff voice of Cid cursing. He was having an argument with an air conditioning worker, who was looking quite off-put and nervous about something.
"Cid has been yelling at that poor guy all day," Riku muttered to Sora as they passed by. "It's a matter of time before Cid takes over the kid's job. Cid used to be an engineer, so he knows a lot of technical information like that."
Sure enough, as soon as they left the entry hall, they heard a metal tool drop and the stamping of feet before, "That's right, you fuckin' prat! Get the hell out! I'll fuckin' do it myself! And let that be a lesson to all of you! Get back to work!"
Sora gave Riku a concerned look. "Is he always like that?" he asked, frowning a little as they entered the living area where Leon was scribbling stuff down onto a pad of paper.
"Cid? No, he's only like that when something upsets him, or when he's trying to show off," Riku replied, laughing.
Leon looked up from writing to regard Riku and Sora, his face expressionless. He was wearing a pair of spectacles, and for some reason Sora thought they made him look sort of... cute. It was odd for a serious, seemingly rough kind of guy like Leon to be wearing something so sophisticated. But he didn't say that out loud.
"Cid has a large heart," Leon said disinterestedly. "But only when he wants to." He flipped the pad of paper closed and clicked his pen shut, turning to leave the room. "Nice to see you again, Sora. Now if you'll excuse me..."
As he brushed past them, Sora had a good look at the man's attire, which consisted of a lot of expensive-looking leather. He couldn't help wondering if all these city folk were as high-class and different as Leon. Cid was a little more down and dirty, but he was just as interesting.
All his life Sora had dealt with the people on his island and had only had a few brief encounters with tourists. No one he had ever met before yesterday came close to the oddities that were Riku's city friends. Well, except perhaps his own mother and Selphie.
Sora idly wondered how long Leon was going to last in his leather pants under the hot island summer sun.
"So Leon is going to be your bookkeeper?" Sora asked, glancing up at Riku, who had turned towards the other exit in the room.
"Yeah. I just need a clerk and housekeeper now," Riku replied.
"No butler?" Sora asked, blinking in surprise.
"I decided I didn't need one," Riku said, entering the next room.
Sora trailed behind him and discovered that they were back in another hallway, and this time they had run into the other two city people, Irvine and Tifa, who seemed to be moving a large couch somewhere.
"To the left, moron!" Tifa was laughing. "There's a wall there!"
"Wall, doorframe, person, it's all the same," Irvine complained. "Why did I have to get stuck moving furniture? It's bad for my back."
"Stop whining, Cowboy, and start pushing!"
"You say that so degradingly. It stings."
"Prefer Cowgirl?"
"Hey, heeeey now, shouldn't the one with more brute strength be doing the man's job?"
"Trying to tell me something, Irvy?"
"Yeah, you're a bull!"
"Don't make me climb over this couch and throttle you!"
"Go ahead, Gorgeous. I'll meet you halfway and use your hair as a noose!"
"That's it! Come here!"
"Holy shit!"
Irvine suddenly stumbled backwards to get away from Tifa as she began to traverse the couch to get to him. He ended up falling over Riku and Sora, who had been standing there for only a minute to witness their argument. Somehow Sora ended up on the floor, and Irvine had managed to grab hold of Riku to keep himself standing.
Cowboy hat slightly askew, Irvine grinned sheepishly down at Sora. "Sorry, kid! Didn't see you there!" he said, but then he turned to Riku and clung to him. "Riku! She's going to kill me!!"
"That's right, I am!" Tifa called, sliding off the armrest and to her feet.
Today she was wearing something much more conventional, rather than her miniskirt and suspenders from yesterday—just simple blue jeans and a tank top, but they still highlighted her very curvy figure as well as any skimpy dress could.
She was cracking her knuckles at Irvine when she finally spotted Sora on the floor. Her eyes suddenly lit up and she smiled.
"Sora! Great to see you again!" she said, hurrying up to him. She pulled him to his feet, but this time he managed to avoid her chest when he righted himself. She slung an arm around him and glared at Riku. "You didn't tell me he was coming today." But then she fell into a kind smile and patted Sora's back. "That's okay though. More fun for me at dinner!"
Sora didn't like the sound of that.
"So I guess this hallway is blocked for now?" Riku asked with a subtle smirk.
"Well, it won't be now that I'm doing the pushing," Tifa laughed. "Irvy, get your ass on the other side and start pulling!"
It seemed that since Tifa was no longer trying to kill him, Irvine was back in great spirits. He took a great, deep bow and replied, "Of course, my fair lady."
Riku took hold of Sora's arm and pulled the younger boy from Tifa. "We'll be in the dining area if you need me any time soon," he said, indicating with his head towards the kitchen. "But after that we'll be upstairs."
"Right, right," Tifa said, waving him away. "Have fun, kiddies."
Sora breathed a sigh of relief when they were alone again and heading down the previous hallway. Unfortunately Riku caught the sigh and gave him a concerned look.
"What's wrong?"
Lightly blushing, Sora waved a hand in dismissal. "Nothing really. Tifa is just a little... intimidating."
Riku gave a soft laugh, nodding. "Yeah, but she's only like that when she's happy. She a lot more quiet and sullen back in the city and on the job."
"Modeling, right?" Sora asked, recalling the conversation from yesterday. "She doesn't strike me as the model type. Irvine and Leon I can see, but not her. Or Cid."
"Cid wasn't a model. I know him from school. He knows a lot about everything, and he's the one who suggested the modeling job for me. As for Tifa..." Riku paused, scratching his head. "Well, her specialty is more... lewd, " he explained, his voice a little more quiet. "Pornographic."
Sora's eyes widened. "Really?"
Nodding, Riku ran a hand through his silver hair and slightly turned his head away. "Yeah..."
"I thought you two worked together?" Sora asked, frowning. Was he imagining things, or was there a faint blush on Riku's turned face?
"We did... Well, for the same person," Riku admitted, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Hah... This is so embarrassing all of a sudden." He turned back to face Sora, a shy smile on his face. "I did model for pornography, but mine weren't explicit. And I wasn't with anyone. For those magazines, at least," he explained.
"And for the others?" Sora asked.
But they had already arrived at the kitchen, and Sora's mother had suddenly spotted them.
"Sora, there you are!" she called, bustling through the large space full of people to reach him. "I was wondering when you were going to get up. Hey again, Riku," she said, nodding to him. "So what are you two going to do today?"
Face suddenly serious and businesslike, the previous embarrassment no longer evident in his features, Riku replied with a smile, "I was hoping Sora could help me look for a housekeeper. I might have someone coming down to live with me who can take the clerk job, but the other position still needs to be filled."
That was what they were going to do all day? Or was Riku lying? Sora did remember Riku mentioning something about the pretend boyfriend business and discussing that. He guessed maybe Riku didn't want to mention that in front of Seiya. Maybe Riku did have a good handle on her after all.
Sora was just finally getting relaxed about the idea of his mother working for Riku when she totally broke that trust with one innocent suggestion.
"I know this darling little girl who would love to help you with that, Riku," she said.
Sora had a sudden sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. There was only one little girl who his mother thought was 'darling.'
But Riku was taking the bait. With raised eyebrows, he asked, "Really?"
Sora stepped in, not wanting Riku's dreams to crumble should he listen to Seiya. "Mom, you can't mean Selphie!" he cried, eyes wide. His mother only continued to smile, confirming his suspicions. Sora spun on Riku and grabbed his shoulders, forcing Riku to take him seriously. "Riku, you do not want my mother and Selphie under the same roof. I'm telling you, it's a death wish!"
This time Riku only laughed. "Oh please. If your mother thinks this girl named Selphie is a good candidate, then I should give her a chance, right?" he said pointedly, smirking at Sora's distressed behavior.
"Your funeral..." the boy grumbled.
Just then, the lights flickered and a long string of curses could be heard from the other side of the house. Cid.
"I guess he's not being too successful at that," Riku commented. "But I bet he'll have the air up and running by this afternoon."
"Anything I can do to help?" Sora asked.
"No," Riku answered. "Like I said earlier, there's plenty of help now. We have business upstairs."
Seiya's eyebrows raised at that comment. "Business upstairs? Already?"
Riku laughed again, pulling Sora by the arm as he turned to leave the kitchen. "Less physical, Seiya," he said. "Tell Squall where I am if he asks."
About ten suspicious stares from the house's occupants and twenty creaky steps on the staircase later, Riku and Sora were shut away in Riku's large bedroom, which had sometime in the past sixteen hours gotten more furniture. It seemed that, even though Riku was going for a clean theme for the rest of the house to make it look warm and professional, he wasn't trying to match his room to that theme. No, his furniture was mismatched, posters were now thrown spontaneously on the wall, the floor was pretty much bare... Nothing matched. It was an interior designer's worst nightmare, minus the clutter. There was no clutter. Yet.
"Take a seat," Riku said, sitting on his bed and folding his legs in. "This might be a while, depending on what we get to."
Sora hesitated at the statement before deciding to settle down on a papasan chair not too far away. "Alright. I'm listening."
Riku went straight to the point. "How much do you want to be paid for this job?"
It took Sora a moment to remember that Riku wanted to pay him to be his pretend boyfriend and that he hadn't liked the idea yesterday. Being paid to be someone's friend? That just wasn't right. It was almost like a form of prostitution.
"I'm doing it for free."
If Riku was surprised, he didn't show it. "May I ask why?" he asked, studying Sora's serious face.
"Because you're my friend," Sora replied simply. "I don't need to be paid. Who knows about this arrangement anyway?"
Flopping down to lay on his bed, Riku stretched out, sighing. He seemed to be relieved because of Sora's answer. "The pretend boyfriends? Only Squall, I think. He's not the type to spread information, so I don't think the others know."
"How long do we have to pretend?" Sora asked, turning slightly to get a good look at Riku.
The older boy had his arms stretched over his head and tucked beneath his pillow, causing his shirt to ride up and show a bit of skin. Really nice skin...
"As long as we need to, to convince my aunt," was Riku's response. "But she'll be back in a week."
Sora pulled his gaze away from Riku's stomach and resorted to staring at the floor. "I don't think this is going to work..." he admitted quietly, a faint hint of red spreading over his cheeks. "I don't know anything about... y'know..."
That soft 'y'know' didn't need an explanation. Riku knew what he was talking about immediately.
"It's alright that you've never dated before," Riku said, sitting up again with a sigh. "That's why I brought you up here... to discuss that..."
Sora glanced up again to meet Riku's eyes as though to ask, Discuss what?
A reassuring smile pulled at Riku's lips. "We need to make our relationship seem as believable as possible so everyone is convinced," he explained, "so that no one can tell my aunt that we aren't lovers."
Wait a minute.
Wait. A. Minute
"Lovers?" Sora squeaked, blushing even further when Riku's smile spread into a grin.
"Well, my aunt won't leave me alone if she thinks it's just an infatuation," he said, waving a hand to emphasize his point. "We have to convince them our love is real, so she'll think I'm really gay."
"Riku..." Sora began, his voice uneasy.
But Riku quickly reassured him. "We won't do anything you're not comfortable with," he said, shaking his head. "At first, at least."
That didn't sound good...!
Sora was about to complain when Riku cut him off.
"We can't just act something out on a whim and make it believable to witnesses," he said, giving Sora a solemn look. "It's like a play, Sora. We have to practice, rehearse..."
"Practice...?" Sora asked. Was Riku suggesting? Well, it made sense, but then that meant... That meant they had to practice kissing?
"Yeah," Riku said, managing a small nod. "And since my aunt will be back in exactly a week, we have to start practicing now. I want her out of my life as soon as possible."
"But... if we move too fast, it won't seem real," Sora tried to suggest, but it was a weak excuse to postpone the inevitable.
"I know," Riku assured, suddenly smiling again. It was a warm smile, a smile to ease Sora's nerves. "We'll start off small, like a real relationship."
Small... Start off small. That didn't sound too bad. But... How did Riku know what to do?
"So do you know anything about relationships?" Sora asked, eyes filled with curiosity. It was true that Riku hadn't said much about what had happened those eleven years in Atropos. This seemed to be a good opportunity to open him up.
But Riku was suddenly looking a little uneasy. "Um..."
"Riku?" Sora said, forehead furrowing with concern.
"...yeah... I sort of... dated..." Riku said slowly.
It was like he was almost afraid of admitting it. Or was it something else? Wait, Riku had dated? That didn't make much sense, after what he had said.
"I thought you didn't like girls?" Sora asked, raising both eyebrows. He probably shouldn't have been as surprised by the answer as he was.
"I dated guys," Riku clarified, rubbing the back of his head and looking away.
"Oh!" was Sora's startled reply. He didn't really know what to say. Well, other than the question he had been wondering for a while. "Um. So... Are you really...?"
"Gay?" Riku asked, the word rolling off his tongue easily. "Yeah. I am."
There was no shame. Just apprehension, like he was afraid of Sora's reaction. Like Sora would hate him for telling him the truth.
So Riku was gay and Sora's suspicions had been right after all. The confession didn't change much, however... Riku was still Riku, and Riku was still Sora's friend. This confession, now that it was out in the open, could only bring them closer. Right? Riku was gay. Riku wanted Sora to be his pretend boyfriend. Riku wanted to prove to his aunt that he was gay by having Sora be his boyfriend. But...
Sora felt as though something was missing from that, like Riku wasn't telling Sora the whole truth...
But that was a problem for later. Right now Riku was quietly worrying about Sora's response when Riku had no reason to worry. Riku would be Riku, male or female, gay or straight.
"Then that's good," Sora said, a genuine smile on his face. He did have one question burning at the tip of his tongue, but he felt that it was too personal to ask right out. "At least one of us knows what we're doing."
Riku took in Sora's smile and returned it with a relieved one of his own. Then Riku seemed to hesitate, as though realizing something that had not been spoken aloud. He leaned forward and shifted forward on his belly to get closer to Sora, his silver hair dangling over the edge of the bed as he peered over at the younger boy, who was no more than two feet away.
"You can ask if you want to, Sora. I won't lie to you."
Sora stared at him, bewildered. How was Riku so perceptive? Or was it a bluff?
"...how did you know I was...?" he began to ask, but let the sentence finish itself.
Riku got the point. "You have curiosity written all over your face," he softly laughed. "Go ahead. Ask."
"Um... 'kay..." Sora slowly frowned, trying to think of an easy way to word his question. He decided to go the subtle way. "Like, have you... Er... are you still a, er, you know? "
Again, Riku seemed to know what he was asking. "A virgin? No," he said, smiling at Sora's embarrassment. "But I never broke our promise, you know."
"What?" Sora asked. What promise?
"I've never kissed another boy," Riku clarified, smirking over at Sora, who was suddenly blushing again.
Riku had remembered Sora's request after eleven years and he hadn't broken it? Even though he was gay and probably had many, many opportunities to kiss other boys?
"Oh," Sora muttered softly, managing a tiny smile as he lowered his face.
"I have dated, though," Riku said, rolling over onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. "In fact, I've sorta been with both Squall and Irvine... and a few others in Atropos." His voice suddenly dropped, taking on a sort of remorseful tone. "But it never worked out."
Sora lifted his eyes to stare at Riku, who was watching the ceiling as though he could see something that was not there. He was reliving something. Sora was almost inclined to ask why... but he decided to let Riku tell him.
And he did.
"They'd kiss me," Riku continued quietly. He had a soft frown on his face. "But I never initiated it. Sometimes they would ask why, and I would remember our promise. My heart was never really there, with them... It was always here."
"Oh..." Sora said, that hint of pink never leaving his face. He'd had no idea Riku had remembered that promise and had actually kept it all these years. Sora hadn't really thought about it since he had learned Riku was actually a guy. Did it still count now?
...yes... It did, didn't it? A promise was a promise.
Sora had almost broke his side of the promise by trying to date girls. Maybe it was fate that he had never been successful, like maybe Destiny herself had intervened and had kept him girlfriendless until Riku's return.
That was corny. But it seemed true.
The problem was that... Riku was a guy. Sora didn't have an interest in guys. At least, he never had... before Riku had come back. He'd already caught himself staring at Riku a few times, but Riku was as pretty as—no, prettier than—any girl, so it was alright, right?
"You seem stunned," Riku commented, tilting his head back to stare at Sora from upside down.
"Well... I... I dunno," Sora admitted, laughing lightly at his own confusion. "It's just..."
"You weren't expecting that?" Riku suggested.
"Sorta," Sora admitted. "I mean, here I am, only a year younger than you, graduated from high school, and I've never even been on a date... And you've already had so many boyfriends. " He paused here, shaking his head a little to clear his thoughts. "It's just that gay people have never really been a part of my life, so I'm surprised so many people are, y'know... gay..."
"Not all of them are," Riku said. "Irvine is bisexual, for instance." But then he noticed the pouty look on Sora's face. "You still look confused."
"Well, I am, a little," Sora said, frowning. "About you."
"Me?"
"Why did you come back here, where you're risking everything for a slim chance at happiness?" Sora asked quietly, more to himself than to Riku. "Why not stay in Atropos, if that's where you could safely be yourself? Here people won't accept you as easily... So why come here, especially if you have so much waiting for you back in Atropos?"
Why keep that silly promise, knowing I said it because I thought you were a girl? Sora silently wondered. Why keep it for eleven years, not knowing if I still even remembered you...?
"...Because I wasn't happy there," Riku admitted solemnly, turning onto his stomach again to meet Sora's gaze. "Modeling was interesting, and that's where I met most of my few guy friends. They gave me some comfort, but I wasn't living the type of life that would make me happy."
"I don't see how anyone could be happy here," Sora muttered, thinking about his own uneventful life.
But Riku suddenly sat up, forming an angry frown as he glared at the younger boy. "You really are clueless, Sora. Why do you think I came back here?" he asked. "It wasn't because of the scenery, or even because of your mother's cooking, you dork."
"What do you mean?" Sora asked, a little taken aback that Riku had turned so cold all of a sudden.
Riku didn't have a chance to answer, for there came a very subtle knock on the door that Riku immediately got up to answer. Sora hadn't even heard it. It was Leon. He had removed his glasses and was looking a little more quietly dangerous than usual.
"You have a guest, Riku," Leon said, his voice deep with something that sounded oddly like amusement. "She claimed to be a friend of Sora's. Seiya called her over."
Sora suddenly scrambled to his feet, eyes very wide. "She didn't...!"
But she had.
A very high, bubbly voice came floating down the hallway. "Soooooora!"
Sora groaned, burying his face in his hands, unaware of the confused looks that Riku and Leon were giving him. "She's here...!" he cried in a distraught whisper. "Why did mom have to invite her...?"
"Who?" Riku asked, thoroughly interested.
"Selphie!" Sora cried, just as a yellow mass crashed into the room and latched onto Leon's waist.
"So good to see you again Mr. Leon! Very nice kitty, yes, yes, mm-hm... Pretty."
"That's Selphie?" Riku asked, this time raising both eyebrows and looking very interested at the strange girl petting Leon's leather pants. Leon wasn't looking too happy, but he didn't seem to be complaining either. He seemed like he'd put up with almost anything for Riku.
"That's Selphie," Sora confirmed, grimacing down at the girl.
She grinned up at both of them as she climbed to her feet, releasing poor Leon to straighten out her sundress. Then, after making sure her hair was fine, she extended a hand and grabbed Riku's, animatedly shaking it.
"Nice to meet ya, Sir Riku!" she beamed. "Sora never told me he knew someone so hot!"
Riku merely returned the smile, unfazed by her enthusiasm. "Sora hadn't seen me in eleven years. I'm sure he had no idea."
"Well, all's in the past!" she giggled, stepping back from Riku to take a cutesy bow. "Name's Selphie! I cook, clean, and entertain. Happy with whatever I do, that's me. I can withstand dust and critters."
Riku gave her a quick once-over and made an amused face. "So I take it you're here for the housekeeping job?"
"Yup!"
Riku patted Selphie on the head and laughed. "I like your spunk. You're hired."
Sora gaped. "You're kidding!"
But Selphie was already pulling him by the arm out of the room and down the hall, squealing, "Booyaka! Sora, let's go celebrate with Tidus!"
"Celebrate what with me?" came a curious voice from the foot of the stairs. Sora glanced down to see Tidus already there, a sympathetic look on his face as he saw Sora being dragged by Selphie. "She got you, Sora?"
"Yeah," Sora managed, grinning sheepishly. "Hey Tidus."
A tinge of pink appeared on the younger boy's cheeks as he grinned back. "Hey."
"Tidus, I met Sir Riku!" Selphie cried, starting to bound down the stairs with Sora still in her grasp, who was staring at Tidus's blush with interest.
"I'm not sure what I did that warranted the 'sir' part, though," Riku said, coming up from behind Leon, who had just appeared at the top of the stairs. Riku paused before descending, taking a moment to study Tidus from afar. No one else may have noticed, but Sora saw a strange smile cross Riku's face as he gazed down at the blonde boy. "Hello, Tidus."
Tidus raised his eyes to meet Riku's, hesitating at the smile on the silver-haired boy's face. "Nice to meet you," he said, offering a cautious smile in return.
That was weird. Sora remembered from yesterday that, according to Selphie, Tidus had had the hots for Riku. Tidus wasn't acting like there was attraction there, though. Maybe Tidus was normal after all?
As soon as the whole group had made it downstairs, the doorbell rang.
"Oh, it's working," was all Riku said before Selphie suddenly shot for the door.
"I'll get it!" she called, spinning around some of the workers to get to the entryway.
"I wonder who it is this time," Sora said with a sigh as he raked a hand through his hair. He had been right about this being a long day. Already he was eagerly awaiting some alone time at home.
And then Selphie pulled open the door.
"Hi, welcome to Sir Riku's house!" Selphie began in her most cute voice. "Sorry for the mess, we're just movin—"
But she was cut off by a very familiar voice.
"Um... Selphie? Why are you here?"
It was Kairi! Sora didn't want to deal with her now, especially after what he had said yesterday about him and Riku. Sora turned to Riku and gave him a slightly apprehensive look, but Riku merely smiled and mussed the other boy's hair.
"Don't worry. I'll handle it, Sora."
Meanwhile, back at the door, Selphie still had on her smile. "Sir Riku hired me as his housekeeper!"
"Sir Riku?" Kairi asked, her pretty face twisting with confusion.
Riku decided to approach the door just then, dramatically wrapping an arm around Selphie and pulling her aside, smirking as he leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Thanks for getting the door."
"No prob!" Selphie grinned, blushing a little.
She twirled away on her toes, giggling, leaving Riku to contend with the newcomer alone. He turned to Kairi with a wide smile, but even from a distance, Sora could see there was no emotion behind it. Riku was acting again.
"And what do we owe to have the pleasure of your company, Miss...?" he asked.
"Kairi," she replied with a lovely smile, her earlier confusion gone with Selphie's departure. Now that she thought she and Riku were alone, since she couldn't see Sora and Tidus just beyond the entryway watching them, she put on a cute girlish act. "And I'm here to see you, actually. Ri-ku."
She said the syllables of his name with a certain delight that a person might use to describe their favorite dessert. It irritated Sora to hear Riku's name pronounced like that in her sweet voice, and he had a feeling it wasn't because she had never said Sora's name that way. Sora was feeling possessive of Riku again.
"Ah, Kairi," Riku said as leaned against the doorframe, pretending to be interested. But, again, that smirk that was crossing his face wasn't one of interest. It was almost mocking her, and Kairi was too lost in her own innocent act that she did not notice. She was also discreetly checking him out, shyly lowering her eyes and raising them again to briefly meet his gaze, pretending to be shy. Or maybe the shyness was real? It was hard to tell.
From Kairi's angle, no doubt Riku would be looking very open and charming, not to mention damn sexy leaning that way in the doorway, with a handsome smirk and his silver hair falling over part of his face, and wearing his slightly rumpled city clothes, which today consisted of a deep blue button-down and flowy, silky black pants. In her shoes, Sora would be ogling too.
Reaching up to tuck a small tuft of hair behind her ears, Kairi brought her eyes up to meet Riku's, a coy smile crossing her face. "So, Riku... I thought that since you were new here, maybe I could give you a tour. My father is the mayor and I could get us into a lot places for free," she said with a soft, convincing voice. That smile of hers didn't falter as she leaned towards him, one of her hands sliding up the doorframe to gently brush against his arm. "It could be like a little lunch together?"
She was good. No wonder so many boys liked her. Sora might have if she had given him a chance. And for a moment as he thought about that, he feared that Riku would give in to Kairi's suggestion, and she would win the afternoon with him. Free lunch and a tour of his new unfamiliar home? It was tempting, especially with a girl as pretty and influential as her.
But thankfully Riku seemed to have something else in mind. "Ohh... I'm sorry—Kairi, was your name?" he asked, putting on a sympathetic smile that had a fake edge to it. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm sorry. I was already planning to spend the whole day here. With Sora."
At the mention of Sora, Kairi's gaze slightly widened before she looked past Riku and finally spotted Sora standing there. Eyes narrowing, she looked away, her smile replaced with an embarrassed expression. "Um... that's okay." She returned her gaze to Riku, her cute act dropped, replaced by nervousness. "Don't be sorry. But keep my offer in mind, okay?" she said with a smile. "It'll be open as long as you need it to be. You might change your mind."
Not likely, Sora thought, glad this went well. .
But as Kairi turned to leave, she suddenly paused, glancing from Sora to Riku, and seemed to come to a decision. She turned back towards them, looking confused. "Oh. One more thing, Riku..." she began.
He raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"
"Sora made the funniest joke yesterday," she said in a casual way, almost like she was trying to convince herself it was a joke, and Sora knew what she was going to bring up next.
"Did he?" Riku asked, feigning interest.
"Yeah," she said, shooting Sora an uncertain look. "He called you his boyfriend."
Sora felt Tidus shift uncomfortably beside him at the sudden news, and Selphie even stopped her dancing to watch the scenario. Sick dread suddenly filled Sora, and he really did not want to be there for whatever happened next...
But yet again, Riku did not even forget to smile.
"I am his boyfriend."
All eyes focused on Riku in shock.
Even Sora was surprised. He knew he shouldn't have been, considering Riku hadn't screwed up yet, and that there was no way Riku would ever let Sora get hurt again, but... That had been a very bold statement.
I am his boyfriend.
Announcing it so calmly, proudly...
It made Sora happy.
Kairi was balking. "It... It has to be a joke. Sora isn't like that. He just asked me out the other day," she pointed out, cheeks a little pink from her embarrassment.
"And you turned him down, right?" Riku asked, a very wide, handsome smile on his face. He had her in his net. "I should thank you for doing so, by the way."
"E-Ew! It can't be true!" Kairi cried, stepping back, her hands going to her mouth. "Two boys—that's—!" She didn't finish her statement because she then focused on someone else behind Riku, and Sora turned to find his mother standing there, spatula in hand. Seiya usually didn't have a problem with Kairi, but she did not look pleased to see Kairi today. But Kairi was staring straight at her, oblivious of the unwanted stares she was getting. "You don't approve of this, do you?" she asked, gesturing with her hand to indicate Sora and Riku's 'relationship.'
"Hmph, I would rather have Sora date boys and be happy," Seiya said, "than be around girls who don't approve of who or what he is. Maybe you should rethink what exactly is more disturbing about this situation. The fact two boys are dating, or the fact you find their happiness something disgusting."
Kairi's face continued to redden to her ears, and she gave a nervous laugh as she turned on her heel, shaking her head. She curled her arms around herself and started to leave, looking humiliated and confused. Sora kind of felt sorry for her. It wasn't her fault that she'd grown up with everyone telling her that gay relationships were wrong.
Riku closed the door behind her, a satisfied smile on his face as he turned to face everyone else. He was probably used to doing this. Sora wondered just how long Riku had known he was gay.
"That went well," he commented.
Selphie was the first to speak up after him. "Is it true, Sora? About you and Sir Riku?"
All eyes turned to Sora, who couldn't hide his sudden blush. This was it. He couldn't back down now. As soon as he said it, things would be official, and he'd really be Riku's pretend boyfriend. With a short nod, more nervous than he could ever remember being, Sora managed a smile. "Yeah, Riku's my boyfriend..."
There came a loud squeal and Selphie suddenly threw herself onto Sora. "Really? That is so cute!"
Sora laughed, trying to keep himself upright, and as he glanced around the room to see everyone else's reactions, he was a little confused to see the disappointed look on Tidus's face.
"Tidus?"
Tidus glanced up, his blush suddenly matching Sora's. "I didn't know you liked guys," he said with a small, half-hearted grin. "And... you already have a boyfriend. It was just really sudden. I'm okay."
Selphie pulled Tidus into a group hug and giggled, "I think Tidus is just jeeeeaalous because Riku's so hot!"
She started dancing around, chanting about boys, leaving Tidus and Sora there. Riku stepped up to them, laughing with Seiya as they watched her, but the fun was cut short by Cid, who came trudging through the hall carrying a large box of tools.
"Why the fuck is it so noisy in here? Get the hell back to work!"
"Mr. Grouch!" Selphie squealed, trailing after Cid into the next room.
Sora was suddenly fearful for Cid's sanity, but he didn't have time to express his concern because his mother was now pulling at his arm.
"Sora, come help me cook!"
Sora shot a fearful glance back at Tidus and Riku and whined, "But Mom, Riku and I were discussing some—"
"Oh, phooey. You two have all night!" she laughed.
Giving Riku a helpless look, Sora let himself get dragged off by his mother. Riku merely waved in response, offering a wink.
They didn't see each other again until dinner. When Sora had asked why he couldn't go talk to Riku when he wasn't busy in the kitchen, his mother had simply replied, "Because the farther and longer you are apart, the more passionate the reunion is!"
Sora swore that sometimes his mother was stuck in one of her cheesy romance novels, not in the real world.
Even when dinner came around and everyone, meaning Sora, Seiya, Riku, the city people, and Tidus and Selphie, was seated at the large dining table, Seiya hadn't snapped out of her little daze. She was absolutely fixated on the supposed romance between Riku and Sora.
"Sora has liked Riku ever since they were little kids," Seiya was saying, and people were actually listening, "but now that Riku's back, they just sort of hit it off really well!" She paused to pinch Sora's cheek as he was swallowing a bite of food. He nearly choked. "Really, aren't they just darling together?"
"Yes!" Selphie chirped with a giggle, nudging Tidus, who also almost choked.
But Seiya didn't stop there. "Really, Sora is the perfect shortness. too, for when they have—"
Sora broke out into a full blush, crying, "Mom, please stop!"
But it seemed the whole table was going to get in on the conversation. Irvine, who had not taken off his cowboy hat even for dinner, took this chance to speak up, a mischievous smile on his face. "You know, Sora, I have experience with Riku, so maybe I should give you a few tips."
Riku suddenly looked fearful. He shot Irvine a very pointed glare and growled, "Don't—!"
"Tell tell tell!" Selphie was chanting.
Sora had to admit that it was really entertaining to see Riku so embarrassed, now that he wasn't the one being teased. Riku had a really adorable blushing face.
Even Tifa had a grin on. "Go on, I'm sure Sora could use the advice."
Riku promptly buried his face in his hands and groaned, but Irvine ignored the sound of distress and carried on. "Well, Riku has a really sensitive stomach," he said, giving Sora a long wink. "And he loves it when you're all dominant unexpectedly; he practically turns into a rag doll and lets you do whatever you want with him."
"Irvine!" Riku cried.
"And his neck," Leon suddenly spoke up, pausing to stab his fork into a piece of steak. "It's a key point of attack when seducing him."
Silence filled the room then, everyone giving Leon surprised looks, but it was quickly broken by Seiya's voice again.
"Well, you know, Sora's extremely ticklish around his..."
"MOM!"
As the table dissolved into laughter, Cid finally decided to cut in. "I've had enough of listening to this bullshit," he said with a faint growl. "I'm tryin' to eat."
Dinner continued uneventfully after that, but as Seiya and Selphie began to clear the table of dishes, and people were getting up to get back to work for a final shift, Riku pulled Sora aside.
"Let's go upstairs."
Sora nodded, glad to escape the crowd, and he followed the older boy up the stairs. Riku's room was eerily quiet now that it was evening and there were no workers bustling around downstairs or people out on the street chatting about renovations. Even the many portable fans in the room had been shut down because sometime during the day Cid had gotten the air conditioning working.
The room was a little intimidating like this. So quiet. Just him and Riku and a single lamp on so they could see each other through the shadows.
"What's wrong?" Riku asked, crossing the room to settle on the couch.
What's wrong? There was something wrong? Sora must have had a concerned expression if Riku thought something was wrong. Or maybe he had had on his thinking face. His mother sometimes teased him about his thinking face, claiming she could see the smoke coming out of his ears because he was thinking so hard and looked so serious about it.
Well, Sora did have a concern.
"Kairi's parents have a lot of influence on the island and she was probably not a good person to embarrass like that," he said softly, standing beside the couch and unsure of whether he should sit next to Riku again like yesterday.
"Maybe," Riku admitted. He wasn't smiling. "But that's something we'll just have to deal with. I'm sure you realized the risks of pretending to be my boyfriend, right?"
"Yeah," Sora said. He decided to just go with it and sit next to Riku. There was nothing to be weird about. "People aren't going to like it," Sora continued. "They'll feel threatened by us, like we'll magically make their kids become gay, too..."
"Is Tidus gay?" Riku suddenly asked.
Sora did a double take, not sure he had heard right. "What?"
"His reaction was weird," Riku explained. "It wasn't like he was uncomfortable with our relationship... It was like he was disappointed that we were together. Like he was jealous."
Now that Sora thought about it, it was true. Tidus hadn't really joined in on the conversation and had been blushing almost as much as Sora.
"I really don't know," Sora admitted. "He might be. I mean, he's never really been that interested in girls; he only looks, really, but maybe that's just for show, to blend in." He paused, thinking back on earlier and how Tidus had reacted around Riku. It didn't seem like he had liked Riku that much. "But in a community like this," Sora continued, "no doubt he wouldn't want to tell anyone if he was gay, if he is, for fear that it would get out and his reputation would be shot down." Sora glanced up at Riku, a little concerned. "He's the island's image of perfection. Everyone loves him."
But Riku was smiling again, this time knowingly. "I wonder if he might have had a crush on you, Sora."
"N-No way, Riku!" Sora cried, feeling his cheeks warm.
"Well, I can see why he'd have a crush on you," Riku smirked as he leaned close, cupping one of Sora's pink cheeks, "since you're so cute and all."
Sora knew he was bright red now, but he still managed to pout. "Don't call me that."
"What, cute?" Riku asked. His grin fell when he saw Sora's sadly reminiscent face. "What's wrong?"
"I used to call you cute," Sora said, giving a dry laugh. "And anyway, if I was so cute, how come no one wants to date me?"
Sighing, Riku reached over and playfully shoved Sora, lightly glaring at him. "Why do you still feel so put down because of those stupid girls?" he asked. "The only opinions that should matter to you are from people you trust. They weren't your friends. You didn't trust them." But then Riku paused, narrowing his eyes. "Did you?"
"No," Sora said, realizing that Riku had a point. A soft smile stretched across his lips. "You're right."
"Of course I am," Riku declared, pulling Sora closer to him.
The two boys exchanged grins before Sora lowered his head, resting it on the older boy's shoulder. "You've changed so much. But... I can't decide which Riku I like more," he admitted, giving a small laugh.
"Then like us both," Riku replied, as though it was the most simple problem in the world, "but don't think about little girly Riku when you're making out with me."
Sora shot up into a sitting position, eyes wide at Riku's statement. "W-What?"
Riku was as untroubled as usual, that light smirk on his face. "What did you think couples did?" he asked, reaching a finger out to prod Sora's cute nose. "Fake or not, we have to keep appearances up, which is why I mentioned earlier that we needed to start rehearsing, practicing..."
"Practicing..." Sora said slowly. "Like.. Kissing?"
Nonchalantly waving a hand, the older boy chuckled and said, "Kissing, touching, maybe more..." He paused there, raising his brows at Sora. "Whatever it takes."
But the other boy had on his angry pout. "You make it seem so casual, like it won't mean anything to me!"
"Like I said, I won't pressure you into anything you're not comfortable with," Riku said, "but the sooner we start, the faster you'll become comfortable with it, and the faster we can convince my aunt to leave me alone." He reached out and once again pulled Sora close to him, tucking the boy's head against his chest. "So I won't wait forever for you, Sora. I do want to have a life of my own soon."
Sora shivered, unused to such close contact, trying to calm the trembling of his heart, which seemed to like being so close to Riku like this. Closing his eyes, Sora quietly asked, "What if I never get comfortable with... doing those things?"
"You have to learn somewhere, Sora," was Riku's quiet response. "Might as well do it with someone you know."
Sora slowly shook his head, frowning. "I mean with you."
"Because I'm a guy and you're a guy?" Riku asked. "There's nothing wrong with that. I thought we already went through this?"
Sora shook his head again, not sure what he himself was trying to say. "N-No, I mean... I don't know if I can be comfortable with you..."
There was a very still silence after that, and it was only broken when Riku let out a deep sigh and slipped a hand into Sora's hair. "Well, not much of a choice, is there?" he said, and Sora knew without looking that Riku was frowning. "I'll take it really easy and slow with you, Sora," he assured softly.
His voice was deep, calm, relaxing. Its effects felt like a sedative almost, and Sora was beginning to think that Riku's chest made a very nice pillow. If it weren't for the gentle vibrations of Riku's body, Sora might have found himself drifting.
It just felt right. Maybe a little too right.
Sora had always tried to imagine what snuggling with a girl's soft body would be like. Now he had to get used to the idea of a firm, muscular body instead... A very nice one at that.
"I'm not worried about you not getting over your first time jitters. You'll get used to it," Riku was still saying, as though Sora was still listening to his calming words, as though Sora needed to be calmed. "And I won't pressure you to like it, just as long as you look like you like it. To make it believable."
"So when do we start...?" Sora wondered absently.
He froze. They both did. That question had come out of no where.
Slowly the pink on Sora's cheeks deepened to red, and Riku didn't miss the younger boy's embarrassment.
With a sly smile pulling at his lips, Riku leaned down to Sora's ear and whispered, "I'd like to start now, if it's okay with you."
W-Whoa, now?
This was a little soon, wasn't it? There'd hardly been any time for mental preparation! Sora had to practice kissing and stuff with Riku? A guy? Right now? It wouldn't have been a problem if Riku had been a girl. Or.. would it have been? Did it really make a difference that Riku was a guy? There were friends.
GAH! Not this mental argument again!
No, Sora, he reminded himself, you've already been through this. Riku may be a guy, but he's your only friend and you did promise him you'd do this, no matter how embarrassing it'll be!
And besides, you know a part of you really likes the idea of making out with him. Riku. Riku
Pushing aside his strange hormones, Sora lowered his eyes and asked, "Will there be any... weirdness between us when we're not pretending to be a couple?"
"Sora, there's already weirdness," Riku pointed out through a soft chuckle, and the other boy managed a smile in return. Riku was right, after all. They did already act weird around each other. But then Riku asked, "Hey, can I kiss you now?"
Sora's breath caught in his throat.
His eyes immediately flickered up and focused on Riku's face, Sora's tongue unconsciously darting out to moisten his lips as he stared at Riku's own mouth. Those gorgeous lips...
Sora must have seemed so childlike compared to someone as experienced as Riku. Sora could barely even compare their past relationship with this current relationship of theirs, when back then Sora had been more boyish than girly Riku. It was opposite now.
This Riku... This gorgeous Riku wanted to kiss him of all people? Why would he want to do that?
That was when Sora again remembered it.
The dock. The salty breeze, their fishing gear. And little girly Riku asking Sora permission to kiss him. And how Sora had let the strangely brave 'girl' kiss him.
Sora's first kiss had never been normal, but he had always known that. Before he had known Riku was actually a boy, he had always been embarrassed that a girl had kissed him, not the other way around like it was 'supposed' to be. But then Riku's sudden gender-bending revelation had changed that perspective again. He'd kissed a boy! His first kiss had gone to a boy!
However, there was one last revelation.
Riku, knowing he was a boy, had asked to kiss Sora. That was even more profound. If it had been clueless Sora asking to kiss 'girl' Riku, it wouldn't have been as strange. But it had been Riku who had initiated the exchange.
Back then, had Riku known he had liked boys? Had Sora just been an experiment? Or did Sora mean something more to Riku that transcended gender norms and sexual preferences?
Sora liked to think it was the latter, that Riku actually did care for him. Riku could have easily skipped off with pretty Kairi, or he could have stayed in Atropos... But no, he had asked Sora.
Something warm, fulfilling—good—filled Sora then, and he suddenly knew he would be okay with Riku like this. Riku really cared about him. Riku would never let him get hurt. Even if Sora felt weird about it in the beginning, it wouldn't last long. Not with Riku.
So what if their roles from the past were now reversed?
Sora could be the follower. He could be the learner. He could grow, just like Riku had wanted to grow stronger and learn from Sora back then. And if this was to help Riku, to help build his new life, Sora would gladly do it.
Wetting his lips again, Sora managed a sheepish grin at the expectant Riku.
"Yeah. Let's start now."
-o-o-
That was just a little transition chapter to get to the good stuff. I hope you liked it, even though once again I think it's a bad example of my writing ability... But anyway, review? Please?
A NOTE ON Kairi: I like Kairi. She's not a bad character in KH, just not as developed as Riku or Sora. I think if I DO make her a bitch in my fanfics or if I bash her, I'd be going against her true character. Actually, I feel sorry for her nowadays because people are so heartlessly corrupting her character as they see fit, not caring how untrue they're being to her character. In this fanfic, I'm trying to stay close to her character while also showing how she's been corrupted by her surroundings. She seems close-minded because that's how she was raised and taught. In this chapter, her reaction was "a typical normal reaction to something she doesn't understand," according to my beta. And I think, even nowadays, many conservative people still react this way, or worse, when facing homosexuality.
