…does that mean I have to meet your father? {Verse 2, Simple and Clean}

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"You're home."

Kairi was held in a mutual hug with her father. "I am, aren't I? So, what's cooking? I'm quite famished from the trip."

Friday afternoon was showing its best sunset. School had finished only a mere few hours ago, and Kairi was already in her dress. She could only wait for the other guests to come. "You'll see. Mom wants to wait for Riku's family to come over."

"Riku?" Her father was a hard worker and had good relations to Riku, who'd always been a family friend. At times, though, she couldn't help but feel that something was going on that she didn't know of.

"How is he? I haven't seen him in three months."

"The usual. Excelling in class, looking the same, and still the same personality." She giggled, knowing Riku to be like another child to her father.

"…good. Good. So, he hasn't made any 'vacations' or 'trips' lately?"

Kairi furrowed her brows, slightly confused by the question and a little left out. "Not that I know of. He would have told me or Mom."

Her father nodded. "How's my little girl been doing lately? Still smart and sharp?"

"As ever." She piped up cheerily as her mother poked her head out from the kitchen door.

"You're here!" The middle aged woman twirled to her husband eagerly and kissed him. "We're also having another guest, dear. He's been walking home with Kairi since he moved here."

"A boy?"

The doorbell wrung loud and Kairi sighed in relief from the certain awkward situation to come soon. Happily opening the door without excusing herself formally from the conversation, she realized suddenly, that it was most likely not the best decision.

"…hi." Sora waved a little awkwardly, dressed in semi-formal clothes. The atmosphere was already somewhat tense from the previous conversing.

"Er…hi. Come on in." She laughed nervously and scratched the back of her head. It almost felt as if she was introducing a boyfriend, but she disregarded the thought entirely, blushing slightly. "You already met my mom, didn't you?"

Sora focused mainly on her father, but absentmindedly replied, "…Yes." Similarly, her father focused solely on him, not exactly evaluating him or being critical. More of slight surprise. The opposite of how he reacted when he first met Riku.

"Dad, this is Sora Hikari, from my school. Mom was the one who invited him over." Kairi stressed, discreetly sticking her tongue out at her mother who rolled her eyes.

The two males shook hands. "Sora. It's…good to meet you."

Sora smiled his supposed trademark smile, "Likewise."

"Kairi, let's go to the kitchen, I need help with some of the food." Her mother sang, taking her away as a means to let Sora get acquainted with her father.

XXXXXX

"I want to thank you."

"For what, sir?" Sora stood in the Kuremoto home, seemingly innocent.

"For many things. It's been a long time since we last met." Kairi's father patted his shoulder, looking at the younger boy tiredly.

"I know. But, my father had also called me to take on the role. Even if everything was alright back then, I would've still had to do this." He shrugged. It wasn't too much of a big deal to make.

"You're a good man, and thank you for what you've done. You and Riku. By the way…you aren't in any relationship with my daughter, are you?" Kairi's father's eyes narrowed dangerously.

A small gulp, "N…no."

"Good." The doorbell wrung. "Oh, the Miyanos are here. Why don't we take it to the dinner table?"

XXXXXX

Kairi never liked cursing. But, in all honesty…

Boys are so fucking childish.

Every time the adults weren't watching, they would flick peas at each other and have shin kicking fights. Riku, even RIKU, was trying use a carrot as a dagger. Sora was on the other hand was trying to fling mashed potatoes into the small space left open at Riku's shirt collar.

When he landed the food in, Riku announced very loudly, "OH MY GOD." This caused a withering look from his mother (whom he lived with) and uncertain looks from her parents. After he got revenge on Sora was landing a haphazard carrot in his hair, which stood out awkwardly without his notice, Kairi's father struck up discussion on the two.

"So, boys- -Sora, is that a carrot in your hair?" Sora plucked it out good naturedly, throwing a half-hearted glare at Riku who was still trying to get potatoes out of his shirt.

"Ahem. Knowing you two are here, I wanted to ask you two altogether, how things are going at KH."

Sora started choking on the carrot that he pulled out of his hair. On the other hand, Riku was making wild gestures for Mr. Kuremoto not to continue.

"What's 'KH'?" Kairi asked innocently, feeling immediately left out. Her mother obviously didn't know what it was, seeing the interested look on her face. Ms. Miyano looked at her son earnestly.

Mr. Kuremoto furrowed his brows in confusion, but sensed the tenseness. "They don't know…?"

Riku dragged a hand slightly over his face. "Well, it's not like we had any reason to tell anyone…And we still don't. But, it explains a lot if we do, but it's somewhat unsaid to keep it a secret. So…erm, secret. Sora?"

"Go ahead and tell them." He sighed, almost a little peeved.

"'KH' is the organization we work for. It deals with every province and works to keep peace. We're ambassadors for KH, so we have reason to travel often. Recently, from the last trip, most of what I heard," He threw a curious glance at a barely alert Sora, "Was that our biggest threats are mafia based organizations."

Kairi threw her gaze towards Sora.

She felt…betrayed. All along, Riku had been keeping this from her, she could understand Sora because they weren't close enough… Riku had always been there, as for Sora, something dug hard into the back of her mind, almost starting a migraine. They weren't exactly lying, but how long had they known this? How much did Sora know about life here or what did Riku have to go through? In the end, it felt as though she wasn't important enough to know anything as big as this. Like she was made to be left behind.

"I…I'm going to go to the b-bathroom." She mumbled and stumbled away from the room. Sora looked at her genuinely as she left the room, sincerity and regret clouding his eyes.

She skipped out on the bathroom and headed for the back porch, trying to clear her thoughts. Did Riku not trust her enough to want to talk about the 'other side' of his life? Sora was always so secretive, but learning about him in the past days, it almost stung as much as it did with Riku. An organization like that couldn't have been the safest work; and thinking over it, how many times had Riku or anyone else gotten hurt and she went on without knowing?

It made her feel like a naïve and uncertain little girl all over again. Left behind; abandoned. Weak and vulnerable. She thought she'd already grown out of that, but apparently not.

"Kairi?" That voice always popped out at her. She turned around and faced Riku who stood by the doorway. She flushed slightly; heartbeat slowly becoming faster.

"…hi, Riku."

"We're just about to leave. I wanted to say I was sorry, Sora too, but he had a phone call- -,"

"KH?" She replied weakly.

Riku smiled gingerly. The other friend had finally got a phone on his behalf. "Yeah. We aren't really allowed to tell anyone because of the dangers it brings. I didn't want to tell you specifically because of that."

Kairi smiled weakly, the feeling of overprotectiveness suffocating to her in her mind. "…I see. Your mother…?"

"She works as an at-home secretary for KH at times."

"Oh."

They stood there for what seemed like an hour, looking off into space due to the tenseness. "Kairi, I know that you're probably mad about it, and I'm sorry."

"It…would have been nice to have known…at least, what you were going through. I mean…we've known each other since childhood, Riku, and it frustrates me that you don't trust me enough to let me know. You were my first friend after all."

"First…?" He trailed off, but shook his head; something flickering in his eyes. Confusion?

"I know, and I should have realized that."

"I-it's okay, I guess…After all, it was dangerous…"

"No, it's not fine. I'll make it up to you."

"You don't have to- -." But, he looked at her with such a determined face; making it hard to deny him. He was often such a passionate character underneath; a trait that always made her flush.

"I haven't been a good friend lately, so let's spend Sunday together and I'll take you out as my treat." Then, he drew back, second thinking. "If it's alright with you."

"N-no! It's fine; o-of course!"

XXXXXX

Sora ended the call irritably, grimacing in the process. As he walked down the porch steps of Kairi's home, Riku joined him in the process, grinning slightly.

"Reason for a smile?"

"Nah, just in a better mood." Riku glanced over at Sora, noticing his brooding look. "You look darker than I usually do. Elaborate."

Sora sighed, dragging a hand over his disarming features. "Apparently, Twilight Town isn't cleared up just yet."

"They want you to come back?"

"I don't want to; I'm out of commission until I turn eighteen; or at least until graduation; since, you know, I've been on this for a little less than a decade. I was hoping to get a long break."

"If you do go, how long?"

"Don't know. Tough stuff. This might even be the last chance to visit Destiny."

"Sounds like shit." Riku carded a hand through his hair and threw another glance at Sora, knitting his brows together. The other boy had never seemed so old and shadowy than he did before. "When you said, before, 'you fell in love', what did you mean?"

Sora kicked a stone out his way, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I got caught up in things. And you know, KH really, really didn't like that. It put out a bad message. Recreational drug use…starting fights…I met some people back in Twilight, and they weren't horrible people. Just regular teens."

Riku pondered over it. While he had obtained regular trips back and forth to Destiny and elsewhere, Sora never had that chance. That was part of the deal he made, after all. But, he was virtually stripped of a regular childhood and missing the years he could have spent being a normal teenager. He was probably up to the waist in missed opportunities; and the temptation had most likely reached him in Twilight Town.

"…it included meeting and getting to know other people. It was on accident; but when I think on it again, it isn't, really." Sora says wistfully.

"…who?"

"Someone. I-It's just shit, Riku. I shouldn't really be telling you this anyways."

"Did they remind you of something?"

Sora stayed quiet for a long time. "…yes."

XXXXXX

She gently placed down the lid of the book over the picture and looked up at her current company.

"The papers still have to be signed, and there's still the mess left by mafia XIII."

"I know. When do I get to leave?"

"I'm not entirely sure. It doesn't seem like Sora is very willing; so probably soon."

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A/N:

Thank you for your support. Things heighten next chapter. This is interesting.