Chapter 10
Sora wasn't dumb.
At least, that was what he liked to think. He figured that if he didn't notice the sudden change in Kairi's behavior, then he would be dumb. And boy did he notice. It's kind of hard to miss the way a girl retreats back into her room after making eye contact. It's also hard to ignore when this person is one of your best friends, and she makes every effort to avoid contact and interaction.
But what had Sora doubting his intelligence revolved around the very same thing. Sure, he noticed Kairi was avoiding him; the problem was that he didn't understand why. Ever since she helped him with dinner that day— and looked at him weirdly— he really hadn't found much time to talk to her in the past three weeks.
So today, Sora decided he was going to get to the bottom of it all.
The young cook exited his bedroom, striding resolutely into the living room. He sat on the couch, waiting for his chance.
Today, Kairi had left early in the morning for a job interview. Given that she wasn't going to do anything else, she should be arriving soon enough. Sora hoped to speak to Kairi as soon as she came in. She wouldn't ignore him if he forced her to talk to him. At least, that was what he thought. He wouldn't block her path to her room, but if she chose to walk right by him, then he'd know for sure that he did something wrong.
So he waited.
And waited.
And waited.
"Hey. Hey Sora!"
"Wh… what?" Sora felt himself shaking. He opened his eyes, finding his best friend standing over him. "What are you doing here?"
"I kinda live here," Riku said smartly before walking to the kitchen. "Why are you sleeping on the couch? Your room is down the hall. Nap there."
"I was waiting for Kairi to get home. Did she come in already?" Sora wiped the sleep from his eyes, stretching himself on the couch.
"Beats me. What time did she leave?"
"Around nine this morning."
"Well it's four now."
"What?" Sora shot up, looking for a clock to confirm. "No way, she only had a job interview…"
"Maybe she had something else." Riku placed his food in the microwave before turning to Sora. "Hey, are you okay? Why are you so intent on talking to Kairi?"
"Because she's been avoiding me for the past two weeks and I want to know why." The young man sighed as he dropped into the chair across from Riku.
"That seems pretty juvenile. I didn't know we were still in high school."
"Riku, don't be mean. I probably did something to make her want to dodge me. And if I did, I would totally respect her wishes and stay away, but I have to be sure."
"Do what you need to do to get your stuff straight." Riku shrugged. The medical school student opened his microwaved Tupperware, fanning away the steam that rose from his heated food.
I can't believe she hasn't come home yet. Her interview was at ten…" Sora placed his elbow on the table and propped his head on his hand. "Job interviews aren't that long, are they?"
"Maybe she had multiple."
"She doesn't."
Riku gave Sora a hard stare as he chewed his food. After swallowing, he pointed his fork at the young man and asked, "I'm sorry, but something's not adding up here. You say Kairi has been avoiding you for three weeks now. Three weeks. That's a long time." Riku lowered his fork and poked at his food once again. "What I don't understand is how you know Kairi's schedule today with such detail. For someone who hasn't spoken with Kairi extensively, you sure know a lot of her errands today."
"I heard her on the phone last week. She was excited and was talking pretty loudly, so I heard every word."
"Pfft. What'd you do, press your ear to her door and listen in?" Riku raised a brow, but the smile on his face soon dissipated. "Oh wow. You actually did that."
"I just wanted to see what she was excited about!" Sora defended.
"So you eavesdrop? Damn Sora. You got it bad."
"What the heck are you talking about? What's this 'it' that I have so bad... ly?" Sora shifted his head to the right in an effort to correct himself.
"How long?"
"How long what?" Sora asked impatiently. "How long have I wanted to talk to her? How long the longest spike on my head is? How long my—"
"How long have you wanted to get kinky with our roommate, Sora?" Riku bit his lip to keep from laughing at Sora's reddening face. "How long since you've fallen for that girl across the hallway?"
"Riku, stop jumping to conclusions!" Sora pressed his palms flat on the table, trying to remain calm. He failed miserably. "It's not like that at all."
"Really?" Riku ate nonchalantly, "Because it looks to me like you're making an effort to put yourself in her life. And why is that?"
"She's my best friend, Riku. I'm being serious." Sora was so sure of himself, and it showed. "Why do you have to automatically think that I like her romantically if I just want to talk to her again?"
"Jeez, my bad. You're right. I just assumed you liked her back."
"Well you're—" Sora stopped himself as he allowed himself time to comprehend what Riku said. "Wait, what?"
"I thought you liked her."
"No, that's not what you said!" Sora leaned forward. "You said something about—"
His words were interrupted when both young men turned around to see the door to their apartment fly open. Surprise was etched into both of their faces as Kairi practically bounced inside, a huge grin on her face. She closed the door, turning around to face her roommates. She grinned even wider before running over to them.
Sora quickly stood from the table. "Kairi, I—" he couldn't finish his sentence since Kairi threw her arms around him at the moment, squeezing the air out of him.
"I got a job! I got a job!" Kairi screamed excitedly in Sora's right ear. The poor boy flinched away, sure that it'd contribute to future deafness. "Sora, Riku, I got a freaking job!"
"You had one before, Kairi," Riku teased. Sora felt Kairi's warmth leaving him, a hint of emptiness left in the wake. Riku reciprocated the bone crushing hug. "But congratulations anyway."
"Thanks! And I'm talking about a job that actually has something to do with my degree, Riku!" Kairi released him and looked back and forth between the two males. "You guys have no idea how excited I am. This is my first journalism-related job that I'm getting paid for! I'll actually be writing stories again!"
"That's great, Kairi!" A huge smile spread across Sora's face.
She smiled back at him before her eyes widened. "Oh my gosh! I need to call my parents! My phone, where's my phone?" The redhead briskly walked from the kitchen and disappeared into the hallway that led to her bedroom. Riku and Sora shared a look between them.
"I thought she was avoiding you." Riku raised a skeptical brow.
"She was. Trust me, I'm more confused than you are." Sora scratched the back of his head. "I swear she was avoiding me for three weeks. That's the first hug I've received in a really long time."
"Aww, has poor Sora been— ow!" Riku rubbed the spot where Sora punched him. "Huh. Sexual frustration in the form of physical violence. You know, the classmates specializing in psychiatry—ha!"
The punch Sora threw was easily captured and reversed by his bigger— and probably stronger— best friend. Riku twisted Sora's arm behind his back and pinned him to the fridge.
"Ow! Let me go!"
"No thanks. Now I can tease you without you lashing out. Plus, this reminds me of old times." Despite his words, Riku released Sora anyway. "I'm just messing with you, Sora. There's no need to get violent."
"Well it's not funny! If anything you made me more confused than I already was!" Sora stomped off to his room without another word.
Why did Riku have to say it like that? Did he say "liked her back" on purpose? If that were true, then…
Then…
Sora took a deep breath in an effort to calm himself. According to Riku, Kairi liked him, more than a best friend typically did. But did he feel the same way?
As far as he thought, he didn't. Kairi was just a best friend to him, right? Besides, he couldn't start a relationship right now. He always told himself that he wouldn't date a potential wife until he felt confident that his career was in order.
Not saying that Kairi was a potential wife! She was his best friend. Yeah. His best friend. His reason for not dating Kairi was… because she was his best friend! If things didn't work out, then he'd definitely lose her.
"Get yourself together, Sora!" He slapped his own cheeks as he paced his room. Stupid Riku and his stupid confusing statements made Sora feel stupid.
And Sora wasn't stupid!
Sora confidently exited his room and knocked on Kairi's door.
All confidence— and air— left his system as soon as she opened the door.
"Sora!" Kairi opened the door a little more and leaned against the edge of it. "What's up?"
Sora froze. He didn't exactly plan this out. Should he ask Kairi why she avoided him for the past three weeks, or should he let that go and cut his losses? Should he ask about her parents' reaction? Should he ask her if she really liked him the way Riku said she did?
"Sora?" Kairi's voice commanded his attention away from his own thoughts.
"Would you like to celebrate your hiring with me? My treat. Either cooking for you or taking you out to eat, doesn't really matter to me." Sora scratched the back of his head nervously. Why was his first reaction to ask her out?
Kairi smiled, tilting her head. "That's really nice of you, Sora. But I kinda have to go to the bar."
Sora's nose scrunched in puzzlement. "The bar?"
"Yeah. To get my hours lessened and adjusted."
"O-Oh…" Sora nodded slowly. "Yeah, I forgot about that… so you're gonna continue working there?"
"Definitely. My new position won't keep me busy all day every day. Plus, I'd like to start saving money."
"Yeah, of course!" Sora pressed his lips together. "So then maybe after you're done at the bar? I can prepare anything you want for when you get home, or I can wait for you to get back and stuff."
This time, Sora noticed the small twitch that almost stole Kairi's smile. She recovered quickly, shaking her head. "I'm uh… I'm actually going out with another friend. My new co-worker, actually. I'll be working closely with him for a while. We got along really well when we first met, and he suggested that we should talk a bit more so it's not totally awkward on my first day."
Sora felt his heart sink in his chest. Why did that disappoint him so much? "Oh!" He plastered a fake smile on his face. "That's cool too, I guess."
"Yeah…" Kairi tucked her hair behind her ears. "I have to get ready now. Thanks so much for offering though!"
"Yeah… congratulations!" Sora gave her one last smile before turning away. He walked back into his room, feeling immense disappointment.
Sora wasn't dumb, nor was he stupid.
But he couldn't help but feel that he had missed something entirely.
Redeeming Endeavor:I can't forget my special thanks to my reviewers! These people would be Handwritten, ShadowSpooky, gamemaster001, Revenge of the Red Pen, DestinyKeyblader28, elspoek1, CapriciousXXIISerenader, 0Wishful-Thoughts0, 003keyblader, Nikolas Sur, BlackButterfly9, GrimJr.34, Spellbound a.k.a soragirl4ever, beckster411, Aaralynne, KeybladeMaster97 and Naivette!
Take care, and I'll see you around!