Marluxia's Surprise and Riku's Dilemma

"Sora. Sora Tenshi. Wake up." Riku said, lightly shaking the sleeping brunette. Sora rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and tried to focus on Riku. Silver locks danced in front of his eyes, framing a face that was becoming rapidly familiar.

"What time is it?" he asked, yawning and stretching like a cat.

"It's almost eight. I would let you sleep in but we have to go to the mall to get your school clothes." Riku informed him.

"S-school clothes." Sora stuttered.

"Yeah it shouldn't be too bad; we have to wear uniforms so it shouldn't be that hard to find that stuff. Then we can get you some other clothes and stuff." Riku said slipping a shirt over his head. "Come on Sora, hurry up and shower so we can go. We don't have much time, you start school tomorrow."

"Riku…do I , do I have to go to school?"

"What? What kind of question is that, of course you have to go to school." Riku answered, regarding Sora as if he were a toddler.

"But I've…never been to school." Sora told him.

Riku walked over to Sora and put a towel down beside him. "Sora, it'll be fine, remember I'm there. I told my father to make sure you got the exact same schedule as me, so you'll be fine okay?" Sora nodded. "Good, now go get ready while I finish getting ready and dressed myself."

Sora bounced off to go take a shower and Riku went to his dresser to continue getting ready. He was wearing only his blue boxers and a black beater at the moment. He pulled open his drawer and took out a pair of dark, almost black, pants and a tight blue vest that he didn't bother zipping up.

He sat down on the edge of his bed and pulled out his wallet, looking at the platinum credit card and his driver's license. He had some 20's because it was always good to have cash on you, but other than that his wallet was empty. 'Buy him everything he needs. Obviously money isn't a problem' his father had said.

He sighed and took out his license, setting it beside him on the bed. He slid out a small worn picture from behind it. A woman with unruly blonde hair and bright green eyes stared back at him, smiling widely and holding a peace sign up with her fingers. She wore a blue headband and loose pieces of hair hung out from all directions while neat orderly braids decorated with colorful beads fell around her face and down her back.

"Mother," he whispered as the door to the bathroom swung open and a much more awake Sora stepped out. Riku hastily returned the picture and his license to their previous positions.

Sora was wearing dark blue pants and a white short sleeve jacket with sleeves that matched his pants; his was zipped up. All the way.

Riku laughed inwardly. "You look like a little kid Sora, why did you zip it up all the way like that?" Riku asked standing and stretching.

Sora pouted, "It might be cold outside. At least mine isn't open like yours. You look like a…"

Sora never finished his sentence. Riku's tight sleeveless jacket wasn't zipped up at all and his tight black beater sat just above his blue boxers. He watched Riku's sinewy muscles move as he walked toward him. Wait…what…Sora backed up against the wall as Riku's hands came up to the zipper on his jacket. He closed his eyes and heard a faint 'ziiip' and then nothing.

"There that's better." Riku announced, stepping back and eyeing Sora. Sora looked down; his jacket was now zipped up only halfway, revealing a dark blue tank top underneath it. Heheh it does look better this way.

"Thanks Riku. "

"Yeah yeah I know, I look like a man whore, you can say it, but come on lets go." Riku said, grabbing his keys and heading out the door. Sora quickly grabbed his shoes and chased after Riku, mumbling under his breath.

"That's not what I was going to say."

-------------------------------

Riku stepped out of the house and into the bright sunlight.

"Your right Sora. Sure is cold." He pretended to shiver and rubbed his arms.

Sora half pouted and punched Riku lightly in the arm.

"Ow, watch out tiger, you wouldn't want to bruise these sexy arms.

"Yeah right, your arms aren't that sexy." Sora said, not looking. Liar.

"Your right. So why don't you hit me as hard as you can." Riku said, seemingly serious.

"What? No."

"Come on."

"No Riku."

"Fine no ice cream for you and we definitely will not go to the pet store either." Riku said walking off. He had a feeling those two things would sound very appealing to the small brunette boy.

"Ice cream! Pet store! No, wait Riku!" Sora ran after Riku and tackled him to the ground.

Of all the reactions Sora could have had, this was one that Riku was not expecting. He fell to the ground below Sora in a huff and turned underneath him so that he could look up at his face. Unfortunately that also put them in a very suggestive position, the way Riku saw it anyways.

"I'll give you a black eye if you take me to the pet store!" Sora said, oblivious to, or too innocent to understand, the position they were in and the problem he was causing Riku.

Riku looked up at Sora's very serious but bursting with excitement face and did something he had never thought he would do again; he laughed. He sat up, Sora still on top of him and leaned back on his elbows, head thrown back in laughter, as Sora sat cross-legged in his lap, obviously clueless as to why Riku was laughing.

I've never seen him laugh before. Sora found himself smiling while watching the beautiful silver haired teen whose lap he currently occupied laugh for the first time since he'd met him, not knowing this was actually the first time he'd laughed in years. He's so perfect when he laughs. His lips…and his deep voice… Sora cut his thoughts short; frightened by the direction they were heading in. Why is he laughing anyways…I hope he wasn't joking about the pet store.

"Riku?" Sora asked as he slowly stopped laughing. Riku looked down at Sora and flashed him a huge smile.

"Sora, you have no idea how cute you can be." He scooped him up in his arms and squeezed him, still chuckling. Sora wrapped his arms around Riku, returning the hug just as tightly. He was getting used to these hugs. He was getting used to Riku's touch. He blushed, but smiled nonetheless, glad to see Riku so happy and even more elated to know he was the cause.

"I like it when you laugh Riku." Sora said, smiling brightly at Riku.

"I like it too." Riku answered, still smiling. He got up, Sora scuttling off his lap, and unlocked his dark blue jaguar. He walked over to the passenger side and opened up the door, motioning for Sora to get in. He did so, and when he was completely in, Riku closed the door. He got into the drivers seat, put the key in the ignition, turning it until the motor roared, and backed out of the driveway.

"So Riku, when are we going to go to the pet store?" Sora asked.

Riku smiled and shook his head. "You have a one track mind huh."

Sora blushed. "No, we could get ice cream first." Riku laughed a little again.

"Well, we can get ice cream whenever we find a place in the mall. But we're not going to the pet store until we finish all you're shopping." He answered, semi-sternly.

Sora pouted and looked out his window. Every lawn in the subdivision seemed the same deep forest-green color and exact same height. He shook his head, not believing how uniform it was. Then, ahead of him, he saw a house with dried, yellow grass. It was course and uninviting. The house itself squatted on the road like a demon.

"Who lives there?" he asked.

Riku knew the answer without looking. Axel's father didn't even take proper care of his son, let alone his house or lawn. The only thing he ever kept up was his political image and his late night visits with his own father.

"Senator Ansem Wildfire." Riku said, passing the house, seeing a flash of red hair go by one of the windows. "And my best friend, his son, Axel Wildfire." He finished, sighing.

He had been really mean to Axel the other night, but he had been too worried about Sora at the time to care. He knew Axel had some problems with his home life, not anywhere close to what extent, but he was always, always, nice to Axel. They were the same. Only sons of twisted fathers they couldn't get along with, unbelievably emo and hot, and had everyone chasing after them and running from them at the same time.

"Maybe we should see if he wants to come?" Sora suggested, sensing there was something bothering Riku.

Maybe he and Axel are more than friends. It's not like I'm his real boyfriend anyways. Sora felt his heart sink lower in his chest and was struggling to figure out why that thought had bothered him so much when he heard Riku speak once more.

"You're very nice Sora. I wouldn't have expected you to like him. Especially after last night. But, he wouldn't be able to go. His father is a bastard." Riku said through gritted teeth, his knuckles turning white with the force with which he was gripping the steering wheel. He relaxed a little and added, "Besides, I can't imagine he would want to see me with you anyways."

"What do you mean?" Sora questioned.

"Well, I thought it was obvious Axel liked me. And he knows I like you. It would be awkward." Riku told him. He does like me…not Axel. Sora silently scolded himself for enjoying that small piece of knowledge.

"Oh, does that mean I am still pretending to be your boyfriend then?" Sora asked.

"I guess you don't have to. My attack on Reno should have been enough warning to people. Then again, everyone already thinks we're together, so if we stop acting like we're together, people will think your single and fair game. I dunno. It's up to you." Riku said, a bit sadly.

"Well, all your friends already think we're together. We can pretend. I don't want everyone to come after me." Sora said, a little bit more enthusiastically than he'd intended. Riku looked over at Sora. The young brunette was staring detachedly out his window.

"Sora, you only have to pretend in public I'm sorry if it bothers you. I'll try to come up with a better idea…" Riku said quietly.

"No Riku it's not that. This is fine. It's just now that we're doing all this pretending, I'm not sure whats pretend and whats- A deer!" Sora suddenly shouted, ending his previous train of thought.

Riku slammed on the brakes, alarmed by Sora's sudden outburst. Once he got his bearings, he looked at Sora confusedly. "You don't know what a deer is Sora?"

"No, look Riku. There's a deer over there." Sora said pointing.

Riku followed Sora's finger over to where a small stream ran through the middle of their sub. Sure enough, there among the tall grass and bubbling spring, a young doe was grazing.

"Riku let me out, I want to go pet it."

"No Sora, are you crazy? It's a wild animal."

"Riku, unlock the door."

"No, we have to go shopping."

"Hmmph." Sora huffed and let himself out of the car, producing an apple from his pocket.

"I'm not even going to ask why you have that." Riku said. Does he usually carry treats around for wild animals?

"I took it as a snack. Now stay in the car, you'll scare her."

Riku stared as Sora's retreating figure as if he was a walking toaster. First he is running off to pet deer, now he's giving me orders. How does he expect to pet the damn deer anyways? But Riku's jaw dropped when he saw Sora approaching the deer without it running away. He must have some kind of innocent aura. Too kind or pure to harm anything. Riku's first image was that of a princess, but that didn't seem to fit Sora (no matter how girly he was) but his second thought fit him perfectly. The pure child taming the unicorn.

Riku watched as Sora walked up to the deer and stopped about 20 ft away from and off to the side of it. He plopped down cross-legged in the tall grass and took a small bite of his apple, chewing loudly. He ignored the deer entirely, paying a ridiculous amount of attention to his smooth, crunchy, red-green treasure. He made a very loud 'mmmmm' sound and stopped to look up at the deer, who, Riku saw, was watching Sora as intently as he was. What the hell is he doing?

Sora stuck his tongue out at the deer and turned his attention back to his apple. The deer stamped her hooves and switched her tail in disdain. Her ears perked forward, listening as well as watching and smelling for any sudden movements, she tentively took a step toward Sora, stamping her hooves a few more times in annoyance.

Sora took another bite out of his apple, repeating his act while keeping one eye on the approaching deer. When he saw that she was close enough to lunge at, her head down, sniffing the scent of Sora and his apple, he shoved the apple out at her, holding it in his hand. She shot her head up with a grunt and Sora shrugged, bringing the apple back to himself.

Finally, the deer's curiosity and hunger got the best of her and she came to a stop right in front of Sora who, this time, slowly stretched out his arm and offered it to her. She sniffed it a few times and took a hold of it, attempting to take it and run. But Sora held on to it. While she was busy eating Sora carefully brought a hand up where she could see it and placed it on her neck, lightly stroking it. She flinched and blinked a few times, but continued eating; now feeling safe in his presence. She finished the apple, core and all, and began nuzzling Sora's face and hair, searching for more.

Riku could hear Sora's laughter and heard him call back between gasps, "Look Riku!" giggling fiercely as the deer's long ears tickled his face while nudging his arms and pockets.

"Well I'll be damned." He has a way with animals.

Sora continued to rub the now playful deer but stopped, bringing his hands to his face, trying very hard not to sneeze. He couldn't hold it in and he sneezed, scaring the deer and sending her bounding away from him.

"Bye Miss!" Sora called after her. He stood and dusted himself off; running back to the car and plopping himself back down in the passenger seat. Riku looked at the now shining boy amazed, and laughed. Again.

"Riku, I didn't know you guys had deer here." Sora chirped happily.

This made Riku laugh even harder and he pulled the car up to the exit of the sub.

"Sora," Riku pointed to the large sign at the front of the sub. "It is called 'Deercreek'"

And at this, they both laughed.

------------------------------------

Sora was bouncing in his seat, eyes large with excitement. He had never been to a mall before and he stared in amazement as they pulled into Masonaria's (major city) major mall.

"This isn't downtown, but I'll sow you that another day," Riku said, shifting the car into park.

They stepped out of the car and Sora ran to the doors, squashing his face against the glass like a little kid. Riku shook his head and grabbed Sora's hand, leading him through the doors and into the huge mall.

"Where are we going to get uniforms Riku?" Sora asked, looking at all the shops around them.

"Our school has its own store. You know, where it sells only school stuff." He answered, quickly pulling Sora down a flight of stairs and into a store that Sora missed the name of. He saw many maroon blazers, button down shirts, ties, and backpacks. I'm guessing our school colors are maroon.

"Hi, can I help you? Oh Riku!" a familiar looking girl with light brown hair said very enthusiastically. That's that girl from the party…whats her name again…

"Selphie" Riku answered her squeal very nonchalantly.

"And…Sora right?" she said, turning to Sora. He smiled

"Nice to meet you, again." He said, smiling largely at her.

"Oh Riku, you guys are absolutely perfect together!" she squealed once more. Sora blushed, and Riku opened his mouth to reply when a voice cut him off.

"Riku, is that you?" a tall, thin, raven haired woman asked.

"Tifa!" Riku yelled, giving the woman a crushing hug. "I thought you were on vacation."

"Yeah, well, guess not."

"What are you doing here?" he asked her. Tifa held up a very small plaid skirt done in the same maroon school colors.

"Kairi got in trouble for her skirt being too short again so I have to buy a longer one. And she needs more socks." She told them.

"Uhm, is this your mom?" Sora murmured behind Riku.

"Oh, I almost forgot. This is my new friend Sora, he, er, lives with us now." Riku said, producing an embarrassed Sora from behind his back and introducing him to Tifa.

"Ah, your birthday gift huh." She said understandingly. "Nice to meet you Sora," she said, pulling him into a warm, gentle hug. "I'm pleased to have you living with us."

Sora was confused. Who was this lady?

"Oh yeah." Riku said, seeing Sora's confused look. "This is Tifa. I guess you could say she is our mom. She lives with us, cooks for us, takes care of us, since I was 6 by the way, and she has sex with our father; so I think that makes her honorary mom." Riku announced.

"Riku!" Tifa said.

Sora laughed, and Riku laughed along with him. Selphie and Tifa both stared, amazed.

"Riku…y-you're…" Tifa stuttered out.

"I know, isn't it great?" Riku said smiling.

"Oh my god…Sora, you must be REALLY good in bed if you can make Riku laugh." Selphie said, to Sora's displeasure, rather loudly.

"What!?!" Tifa demanded, her maternal instincts coming out.

"You didn't know? Sora is Riku's boyfriend." Selphie explained, bringing a blush to Sora's cheeks and washing away Riku's smirk. Great, now Tifa is going to think we're really together. Damn that girl. But before he could do anything he felt a small hand latch onto his and Sora's voice in his ear.

"Uhm, Riku, could we start looking for clothes so we can go to the pet store?" Sora asked very innocently.

This action seemed to cool Tifa off a little, seeing that Sora didn't act like the type that gave it up to Riku all the time. Riku looked down at Sora and was about to reply when two very enthusiastic voices beat him to it.

"We'll help!" Tifa and Selphie shouted simultaneously.

Riku rolled his eyes and pulled Sora towards the boys clothes, Selphie and Tifa trailing them. This is going to be a very long shopping session…

----------------------------

Three hours and one ice cream break later, Riku, Sora, and Tifa waved goodbye to Selphie, all three laden with bags of clothing. Riku and Sora also carried various bags of clothes, shoes, and accessories Sora had also purchased.

"Well guys, I'm gonna go home, I'm guessing you drove Riku." She asked, pulling her own keys out of her purse.

"Yeah, we have one more place to go and then we'll be back." Riku told her. She nodded and walked off towards the exit.

Riku turned towards Sora. "So, are you ready to go to the pet store?" he asked.

Sora nodded and smiled very widely. "I was ready when we got here."

Riku laughed and grabbed Sora's hand once more, leading him towards the other side of the mall where the pet store was. As soon as they were close enough to spot the store, Sora let go of Riku's hand and ran off towards it. He disappeared through the doors and Riku quickly followed him in.

He found Sora at the dog kennels, playing with a very small female golden lab. He had his finger in between the bars and was teasing her by moving it around.

"Riku, look at how cute she is." He said, tearing his gaze away from the lab to look at Riku. He knew what was coming next and he answered it before the question was voiced.

"No." he said, crossing his arms.

"But Riku…haven't you ever wanted a puppy."

"I have had puppies, and puppies turn into dogs one day. They won't be puppies forever Sora." He said.

"Riku…please! I have never had a puppy." He said looking at Riku teary eyed.

Riku looked at Sora. Why do we need a damn dog? I have one right here…complete with puppy eyes and all. But he couldn't refuse the look on Sora's face.

"Fine we'll get the dog. But she can't come with us yet. They'll get her shots all done and then we'll come pick her up in a few days." He said looking away, ashamed that he had given in so easily.

"Thank you so much Riku!" Sora said, running over and wrapping his arms around Riku's chest, hugging him tightly. Riku returned the hug happily and grabbed Sora's hand to lead him towards the register. They paid for the dog and gave the store their information so they could call when the dog was ready to be picked up.

"It'll be about 3-5 days." The cheery woman behind the counter told them.

"Thanks." Riku said, in a slightly better mood compliments Sora's hand in his. They left the store, Riku mumbling, "I can't believe I just bought a pet for my pet."

They went back to Riku's car and got in, pulling out of the parking spot and onto the freeway. It was dark outside, and neither boy had realized how late it was

"Thanks so much for my puppy Riku; I've never had a pet before." Sora said yawning.

Riku smiled, "your welcome."

But Sora was already asleep, drool flowing form one side of his mouth. He's so adorable sometimes…

After about ten minutes Riku pulled into the driveway, looking at the still sleeping brunette in his passenger seat.

"Sora…" he said, nudging Sora with his arm. He stirred but didn't wake up.

Riku didn't have the heart to wake him up and instead carried him into their room, laying him down on his own bed. He reached to take off his clothes but didn't know if he could trust himself with a naked sleeping Sora. Instead he pulled the covers over Sora and got in bed himself, turning off the lights.

Guess I'll just leave him a note in the morning.

----------------------------

Sora woke up the next morning to find he couldn't move his legs. He jumped up in bed, coming face to face with bright pink hair. Marluxia was perching on his legs, smiling brightly.

"Good morning sunshine!" he chirped happily.

"Riku!" Sora yelled, pulling his legs out from under Marluxia and curling up.

"Riku is at school already, he had drawing lessons early this morning. He wanted us to come make sure you got to school. He is really sorry that he wouldn't be there to drive you to school on your first day, but he will be waiting for you at the front doors and he will drive you home." Tidus said in a monotone voice from a corner, sitting in a chair Sora had never seen before. Since when was there a chair there.

"Yeah, so go get ready sleepyhead." Marluxia said, shoving Sora into the bathroom.

Sora grabbed a towel; luckily he had left his school clothes in the bathroom the night before, and got in the shower. He washed his hair and body and brushed his teeth (yes in the shower…saves time) and quickly got dressed, not looking in the mirror to do his hair or fix his clothes. He simply didn't care what he looked like.

He stepped out of the bathroom and saw Tidus right where he had left him and Marluxia not where he had left him.

"Sora…are you planning on going to school like that?" Marluxia said, looking at Sora like he was disgusted.

Sora walked back into the bathroom and looked at his khaki pants. They were kinda baggy, but he had only bought one baggy pair, thanks to Selphie and Tifa, and he liked them. A plain dark brown belt was looped around his waist. He also had a white button up shirt on, his maroon tie tied securely around his neck in a tight double knot. He had a maroon hoodie jacket loosely hanging from his shoulders and his shirt was tucked neatly into his pants. He had maroon dress shoes and maroon socks to top it all off. I think I look fine…

He walked back out of the bathroom and compared himself to Marluxia. Where Sora had a loose maroon hoodie, Marluxia wore a bright pink blazer. His shirt was a lighter shade pink than his blazer and a white tie hung loosely from his neck. He had on white pants and pink glittery shoes that matched a pink glittery belt around his waist. His hair was pulled back with a loose pink clip, strands of hair falling out and pink bangs framing his pale face.

"Uhm, Marluxia, you do know what are school colors are don't you?" Sora asked. I've never seen so much pink at once.

"Oh he knows. He just doesn't care. He purposefully accidentally bleached and bled his colors in the wash. And of course we all know he has no money to go buy new clothes right." Tidus said facetiously. Marluxia shot a hurtful look at Tidus that seemed to go a little deeper than his fashion sense. Tidus stopped smirking and looked away. Marluxia huffed and turned his attention back towards the task at hand.

"I know you have some sexy clothes around here somewhere." Marluxia said, searching through Sora's clothes and throwing them everywhere. He pulled a pair of deep maroon boxers out of Sora's top drawer, "oooh wear these!" he said.

Sora barely had time to catch his own boxers before they hit his face, followed by a pair of the tight pants Selphie and Tifa had forced him to buy. A too small button up shirt followed and a too small deep maroon beater after that. A silver studded maroon belt and small studded bracelet landed neatly on top and Marluxia pushed him into the bathroom. He dropped the clothes and turned to see that not only had Marluxia shoved him off to the bathroom to change, but had followed him in there.

"Ohhh no. no no no." Sora said, his hands in front of him making a 'nuh uh' kind of motion.

"Oh come on, we're both boys." Marluxia said, striding over to him and giggling. He grabbed Sora's shirt and unbuttoned it, pulling it out of his pants. "Did you buy this three sizes too big or something?" he asked, unbuttoning Sora's pants.

"What are you doing?" Sora yelled, jumping back.

"Come on." Marluxia huffed. "We're going to be late if you don't hurry up."

"fine." Sora said, giving in, he could tell this was a losing battle.

"Good now come and put this eye liner on." Marluxia said, advancing on Sora.

"Tidus!" Sora yelled, clawing the opposite wall. "Your boyfriend is crazy!"

--------------------------------

Tidus sat in his chair in the corner of the room, head back and eyes closed, listening to the sounds coming out of the bathroom.

"Marluxia, don't watch me pull off my pants." He heard Sora yell.

"Sora, put these ones on, their much tighter, they will make your ass look better." He also heard the familiar sing-song voice of his boyfriend.

He laughed to himself, imagining the terror stricken look on Sora's face. True, his boyfriend was overzealous and could be a little scary, but, he was HIS boyfriend. He had spent every ounce of his patience defending his relationship with the pink haired fairy, but it was worth it. He had never felt nor cared so deeply about someone before.

All his life, he had gotten up, gone to school, came home and did his homework, occasionally gone out with his friends, (never enjoying himself) and gone to sleep. That was before he met Marluxia. It had been all downhill from there. He never knew what he was doing anymore, his life was spontaneous and random and dangerous with Marluxia in it everyday, but he had no wish to change it at all.

But their relationship was currently faltering. The last time they made love Marluxia had half screamed half moaned three words into his chest that scared him…

"Unhhhh…Ti-Tidus….ahh…I LOVE YOU!"

Tidus had stopped and gotten out of bed. He had walked off on Marluxia and went into his bathroom to cry. He hadn't said it. Not that he didn't love Marluxia back. Damn he loved him. More than anything. And that's why he hadn't said it. He was scared of his own feelings.

And his fear had put them at this. This fighting and silence, awkwardness about them, he had brought it on with his own silence and awkwardness when it had mattered. And he hated it. He hated himself for it.

"Whats the point of even wearing a tie or a shirt. Hell why should I even wear any clothes at all. I might as well go naked!" Sora said loudly still.

"Okay! I like your idea!" Marluxia said cheerfully.

"No. No, but do I really need the belt. I don't think these pants are going to fall off." He heard Sora say through the door like a little kid getting dressed.

"But Sora…it matches. I think it will look great. Who cares if it holds your pants up or not?" Marluxia replied.

Hell, I agree with Sora. Tidus thought to himself. The only thing those belts are good at is preventing me from getting Marluxia out of his clothes faster.

Suddenly the door flew open and a very accomplished looking Marluxia stepped out. He stood by the door and waited for his masterpiece to come out.

Sora stepped out looking as if he had just lost an epic battle, except he had looked REALLY good doing it.

His normally unruly cinnamon spikes was combed through to give it more bounce and sat neatly on his head. Some kind of product that Marluxia had used made it look slightly wet, giving the illusion he hadn't tried to make his hair look good.

His sapphire blue eyes were outlined in dark navy blue eyeliner, accentuating them and giving his face a paler gleam. His small lips sat in a pout on his face, the kiwi strawberry lip gloss Marluxia had put on them making them shine. He neck was bare and exposed, seeing as his white shirt was only buttoned three quarters of the way up, revealing a low cut maroon beater and much of his chest and neck.

His shirt was messy and wrinkly, and most importantly small. It wasn't tight but was hardly long enough to cover his belt, slight movements showing off the studded maroon leather. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and it wasn't tucked in. His tie wasn't tied in a knot but was wrapped around and under his collar and hung loosely from each side of his neck.

When he moved at all, his belt and maroon boxers would show. They were hanging dangerously low on his hips, meaning his hipbones showed just as well when he moved enough. His pants clung to his waist just below the waistband of his boxers, tight in all the right places, and baggy everywhere else. Maroon shoes and maroon studded bracelets that matched his belt pulled it all together.

Sora now looked not like an innocent little schoolboy but like a hard ass troublemaker who gave it to his boyfriend (Riku) whichever which way he liked. At least that's what the people in school who knew nothing other than he was Riku's boyfriend would think.

Wow. Marluxia is good.

And sure enough Marluxia was by the doorway, looking at his work with pride.

"Come on, time to go or we'll be late for school." Tidus said getting up from his seat. Marluxia trotted behind Tidus and Sora grudgingly followed the two.

Amazing…he thought to himself…my first day is going to be even better now. I wish Riku were here…

------------------------------------

Riku sat in class sketching a picture of a young buck at a stream, standing majestically in the tall grass, covered to his shoulders in the thick green mass. His head was up and alert, watching protectively over something as if it were its soul. His head was turned towards the far side of the field where shadowy figures of wolves were making their way through the cover of the tall grass over to the deer and his fragile package. Bloody horns gleamed in the setting sun, warning the wolves he would fight and give his life for what he shielded from their attacks.

A young boy sat with one hand on the deer's shoulder, eating an apple and completely oblivious to the oncoming attack. He leaned lazily against the deer's front quarters and looked out at the scenery in front of him instead of behind him. There was a longing in his eye to have somewhere like this peaceful place to call his own.

"That is very good Mr. Lockheart." The art teacher said, coming to inspect his work. "It is very symbolic." She noted. "I am guessing the deer is a much higher being than all of us and its child is not a deer because it has to symbolize men. It is lazy and laid back and uncaring because it is man and we are not perfect. It is also young and longing to show how very naïve man is and how man longs to be as great as the immortal gods. The deer's bloody horns symbolize his struggle to keep man on the right path and the wolves are the tempests…" she said, rambling into some pagan episode of man's flaws and the god's responsibility to watch over us.

No, that's not it at all…he ran his hand over the small figure of the boy, what a likeness the boy had to Sora. And the buck, his blood engrained horns a parallel to Riku's bloodstained hands, head alert, poised, and ready to attack again if it meant protecting the boy, Sora, from the wolves. The wolves… those who would take Sora from him, harm him, and tear him apart like the young innocent fawn he was.

And the longing. He supposed it could be both Sora's and his. He knew his, it was for Sora's heart, and he longed for Sora's affection in return for his. While Sora longed for, for…something. Riku didn't know what it was, but it was there. He could see it in those big beautiful eyes.

"Is that right Mr. Lockheart?" The teacher asked impatiently. Riku hadn't noticed she had stopped talking.

"Oh yes, of course Mrs. Trush." He murmured quickly.

"Well, classes will be starting in about twenty minutes. You have done very well today. We'll meet again next week." She said, dismissing him.

Riku quickly grabbed his materials and left the classroom. He had to go to the front of the school to meet Tidus and Marluxia. He felt so bad for leaving Sora with them, although he couldn't help but find it funny. He made his way through the hallways and to the front doors in time to see Tidus' car pull into the parking lot. Tidus stepped out, followed by Marluxia, and they both walked towards him.

"Hey Riku." Tidus said.

"Hey, uhm, where's Sora?" he asked.

"Marluxia gave him a makeover and he won't get out of the car."

"I wouldn't either!" Riku said convincingly.

"I dunno Riku, Marluxia is pretty good. You're going to have your work cut out for you today." Tidus said quite seriously. Riku looked at him questioningly before loud wolf whistles and "hey baby's" rang in his ears. He whipped around to see what was going on, and he almost died on the spot.

Sora had stepped out of the car and, due to his pissed off mood, was not blushing at all at the other people's comments, making him look even hotter. He looked messy, like he had just finished some…exhilarating activities, and it was very, very attractive.

Riku was finding he was having a hard time keeping his tongue in his mouth and not panting like a dog. Sora finally made it to him and grabbed his hand pulling him, this time, inside the school doors. There was an audible groan heard all around when everyone saw him take Riku's hand. It gave Riku a sense of satisfaction.

"Riku, can you take me to my locker. Please." Sora asked, now blushing. Riku didn't answer at first but shook himself out of his daze when Sora stopped and looked up at him.

"Riku, why didn't you stay home and take me to school? You said not to worry because you would be there and you weren't. And now look at me!" Sora said, tossing his hands out at either side of his body for emphasis. This action made Sora's small shirt go up, showing off his belt, maroon boxers, and small hipbones.

"Unhh…I uh, had art lessons." Riku said, not once taking his eyes off of Sora's lower body.

"Why couldn't you go tomorrow?" Sora asked.

"I have to go every Monday Sora. I'm sorry. I waited for you here, and man, if I knew Marluxia was going to send you to me like this…" Riku trailed off, leaving Sora to turn an even deeper shade of pink.

"Come on, I'll show you to your locker and then our homeroom, that's where we go in the beginning of the day and the end of the day." Riku told him.

They walked to Sora's locker, which was located conveniently across from Riku's,(thanks to Sephiroth) and after Sora was sure he had memorized his combination, writing it down for good measure, they went to walk around campus so Riku could show him everything. They went past the cafeteria Riku said they would eat in with everyone else, all of their classes, the gym, and the student lounges. The school seemed huge and confusing to Sora.

"Sora, relax, its fine. I promise." Riku said, a bell ringing immediately after. "That's the warning bell, it means we should start heading to our class now." He explained, grabbing Sora's hand and leading him off to their class. Sora immediately felt better.

Their teacher was a young man with a blonde Mohawk. He was sitting at his desk with his feet up and was playing an odd, oversized guitar.

"Morning Demyx." Riku said, walking into the classroom.

"Morning Riku. That the new student? I expect you to show him the ropes, although it seems you've showed him enough already." He said, eyeing their clasped hands. Sora suddenly felt self conscious. He had forgotten they were pretending to be together in school so people would leave him alone.

"Come on, you can sit next to me." Riku said, leading Sora towards the back of the room to two empty desks. "You can pretty much do anything you want in this class, it's like a study hall." He told Sora.

Sora looked around, he didn't recognize anybody. Then Kairi walked in, pulling her too short skirt down and fixing her tussled hair.

"Oh! Sora, you're in this homeroom!" she squealed, running over to Sora and bending towards him over the back of a chair. Sora was sure all those behind her were seeing a really nice view.

"Obviously he is Kairi if he is sitting here, now please return to your normal seat and pull your god damn skirt down. Or at least wear some underwear." The teacher everyone just called 'Demyx' said evenly, winking at Sora.

"Yeah he knows how Kairi is. And he's gay, so he doesn't put up with her constant flirting and crap. His boyfriend is really sweet. He's emo, but he has an awesome sword collection." Riku said dreamily, causing Sora to laugh. Riku smiled and pulled out his notebook, working on some calculus homework while Sora organized all his stuff for his classes.

When the class was over, they all shuffled out of the room, Sora and Riku's hand finding each others and they walked towards their next class. The rest of the day went relatively the same, besides the awkward times Sora was hit on in front of Riku by those who didn't know he was Riku's boyfriend.

Riku was finding it very hard to concentrate in class, with Sora sitting next to him dressed the way he was. He was absolutely sexy, from head to toe, and he cursed and praised Marluxia at the same time for what he had done.

At lunch the two boys sat with Tidus, Marluxia, Hayner and a few other boys Sora had never met.

"Hey lovebirds!" Hayner greeted them when they sat down next to each other across from the other three.

"Is Axel at school?" Riku asked, pretending to not really care.

"I saw him in my first class." Marluxia said around a pink fluffy cupcake he was eating. Sora noticed that his hand was on Tidus' leg and people around were shooting death glares towards the couple.

"Oh, here he comes now." Sora said, nodding towards the entrance to the cafeteria.

And of course, the red head was walking through the doors rather sullenly. He looked up at Riku and came to sit by him, on the other side that Sora was on, sandwiching Riku in the middle.

"So, I've heard you have a boyfriend now." Axel said rather coolly.

"Axel, can we talk about this somewhere else?" Riku asked, weary that this conversation would give away more than he was willing anyone to know.

"Yeah sure."

"Excuse me Sora…" Riku said, squeezing Sora's hand before releasing it. Sora nodded and smiled.

All the boys watched Riku and Axel walk out of the lunchroom. Sora turned back to his food, not wanting to talk about anything to anyone. He just wanted Riku to come back and sit by him.

--------------------------

"What's wrong with me protecting Sora Axel?!?" Riku shot at his red headed friend. They were in an empty, locked bathroom, shouting back and forth

"There is nothing wrong with it, but why do you have to pretend to be his boyfriend?" Axel shot back just as venomously.

"Because it is the easiest way. Look you know it's not for real, you know he's not gay." Riku said, anger boiling inside of his chest.

"I know he told you that, but I also know how you look at him; how he makes you smile, laugh. I never once made you laugh Riku. And I know how he looks at you. You are more than just friends with him!" Axel yelled.

"Axel, it's not like that. How can I prove it to you and still keep Sora safe?" Riku said, rubbing his temples to cool down.

"Find someone else to be his guardian. Why does it have to be you? If all your worried about is his safety, then it shouldn't matter if you are the one protecting him, or if any other guy is." Axel said as if he had been thinking it the entire time.

"I-I…" Riku said. He had never thought of that, but he didn't want anyone else to have Sora, he had already been over that in his head.

"Ahh, I knew it. You do like him." Axel growled, walking out on Riku.

-----------------------------

Riku reentered the cafeteria alone and took his seat beside Sora once more. He looked very unhappy and wasn't talking.

"Hey Riku, Do you want to go get something to drink with me?" Sora asked.

"Sure…" Riku mumbled. He got up and started walking towards the line to get food when he heard a boom and then a whimper.

Sora had gotten caught up in his backpack and had tripped, slicing his leg open on the table. He was lightly crying, trying to hold it in (probably so as to not smear his eyeliner) and was holding his leg.

"Oh Sora…you sure are clumsy aren't you." Riku said, picking him up in his arms bridal style. Sora wrapped his arms around Riku's neck and cried into his chest.

Riku carried him to the nurse's office and waited patiently while she cleaned out his cut and bandaged it. It wasn't too deep and he would be just fine, although she didn't want him on it much more today. She wrote a pass for Riku and Sora to leave school so that Riku could take him home early.

Riku took the pass and carried Sora out to his car, setting him in the passenger seat and getting in himself.

"Sorry Riku." Sora apologized.

"For what, it's not your fault you're clumsy." Riku said chuckling. "Anyways you did me a favor; I didn't want to stay at school any longer.

They arrived at home very quickly and Riku once more carried Sora into the house. He set him down on the bed and sat down next to him, propping his leg up on a pillow.

"It's not broken Riku." Sora said giggling.

"Yeah I know, but I just don't want it to get infected so that we have to amputate it. I don't want to push you around in a wheel chair everywhere." Riku joked.

Sora's eyeliner was running down his face, following the trails his tears had made. Riku wiped away the dark blue liquid with his hand and stared at Sora's quivering lips. He leaned down towards Sora's face and looked him directly in the eyes, his beautiful eyes. Gods he wanted to kiss him. But he wasn't gay, and he wouldn't push Sora into anything. He quickly got up and pulled out his homework.

"You should get some rest. You still have to go to school tomorrow." Riku said, providing no explanation for his abrupt change of mentality.

Sora just stared at him for a while, watching his pencil scribble across the paper until his eyelids became to heavy to keep open. He fell asleep with one final thought…one that sent shivers of fear and exhilaration down his spine: I wish he would have kissed me…


okay i am VERY VERY sorry for the looong wait. but the lenght kind of makes up for it right? right? i hope it is good.

Review and tell me whether you liked it at all or if it sucked! virtual c00kies for all those who review.

Please keep reading too guys..don't give up on me!

Demyx: thanks alot for making Kairi moon me.

SxB: Your Welcome! XP

Roxas: who cares...when do i get to come back to the story? i feel so neglected.

SxB: Soon roxy...i'm sorry, i haven't forgotten about you! 8-(