Boom.

I saw fragments of the dying embers from the firework scattering down across the sky behind Riku, lighting his silhouette, but none of that mattered right now. He leaned closer to me, taking my chin into his hand. His touch sent a cold shiver up my spine and my feet were absolutely rooted to the ground, the stone even chillier against my bare skin.

"Kairi, I like you. But tonight is about moving on from the past. Either accept me now, or let me know, with finality, that it's not meant to be."

"I..." His eyes were staring so sharply at me I couldn't look away from him. I felt panic rushing through my body. This really isn't a joke, is it?

I reached up and clutched at his shirt, hoping I could just have a moment to think about what was happening here. All this time he...what do I do? He likes me? But he...but I…

All things considered, it's a little exciting, in a way, but...do I feel that way about him? My heart beat faster in my chest.

"Maybe this will help you decide."

He pushed forwards, lifting my chin and lowering his face down towards mine. His breath was warm, comforting on my face, calming my racing heart. I could smell him so clearly, a deep earthy pine. It was one of the most relaxing scents, so familiar. I almost wanted to just fall into it all, let him kiss me. After all, why not? I did care for him. I maybe even did like him in that way. He really wasn't bad an option for a first kiss—I knew so many other girls who would have done anything to be in the space that I occupied right now. But I really don't know. My mind raced. His green eyes were shining so clearly, so sincerely in the light.

What was I feeling? Fear? Excitement? I don't understand my heart at all right now. It was just racing in my chest with such fluttering confusion like a trapped butterfly. I felt Riku's nose brush against mine and he paused, hovering just above me, waiting for my answer. I...I suppose I…

I let my eyes slowly close.

Deep inside, I felt something stirring, snapping awake. That small voice, that soft, yet insistent and demanding voice came back to me, but now it was doing more than whispering suggestions in my ear. It was a panicked cry, yelling and begging me 'no'—and...I saw his smile, I saw him.

This wasn't what I wanted at all.

Filled with alarm I gasped, eyes snapping open, and I thrust my arm forward, shoving it against Riku's chest, keeping him from drawing that last little bit forward into me.

He immediately froze, his lips only a few centimeters away from mine. We both remained, still, for what felt like forever.

My arm, bracing against him started to shake and he finally pulled away, dropping my chin.

"I see."

I stuttered stumbling phrases of nonsense as I continued shaking against the stone. He turned away, eyes focused again off somewhere out over the ocean.

"I'm sorry. I lost myself for a moment. I shouldn't have done that to you."

Everything still felt all mixed up inside, but I rejected his apology with the shake of my head. "N-no, you shouldn't apologize for this, it's...maybe I should have just realized sooner and..."

Because while I can't ignore that frustrated feeling inside that wanted to give him a little smack on the back of the head for startling me so much, I knew it would be wrong to entirely chastise him for finally opening up about something.

He held up his hand. And he was...smiling?

"You gave me the answer I expected. And I'm mostly relieved to finally have an answer." His voice halted for a moment, as he focused his eyes back onto my face. "It felt wrong to you, didn't it?"

I slowly nodded, feeling tears well up in my eyes. "I'm so sorry but I couldn't, I just felt...I thought about..."

"I don't need you to apologize, Kairi. I told you before not to let yourself get pressured into anything so it obviously felt wrong and that's fine. I only need you to be fully honest with me. What did you think about."

"S-so many things! I..."

He pressed his hand back behind my shoulder, trapping me against the wall again. "Kairi, you stopped me because you thought about someone else, didn't you?"

I felt icy chills everywhere, even colder than the stone. My knees wobbled and I almost crashed down to the grass but he caught me, helping me to the closest bench by the fence. I choked, feeling a few of my tears leak out. I tried to push them away from my makeup and my dress but it was probably a futile effort. It's true, I did see him...but what would that even mean?

"Who did you see, Kairi?" He gripped my shoulders tightly with both hands, staring down at me with far more intensity than before. "By now, can't you understand why?"

I closed my eyes slowly, remembering his smile again. I felt that same sudden chill up my back, in my stomach. That same bubbly fluttery burning shiver of a feeling. When Riku came so close to kissing me I felt so unsure but with him...all of me was totally, positively...

Bang.

A revelation, searing through me like the hot embers of the firework. I spun around to stare at it, transfixed by the light. I felt so insignificantly tiny under that fanning ray of color.

Bang.

All my inhibitions and doubt. The wall I'd foolishly erected around myself shattered in front of me, the pieces raining down like the streaks of glowing dust falling through the sky before my eyes.

Because the color in the sky was so brilliant, clear, and now...so, so obvious.

"Sora..." I breathed out his name slowly, staring up at the expanse stretching out in front of me, the stars temporarily subdued by the lingering smoke. I couldn't see it now, but I knew that calming horizon was out there. "It's...Sora..."

One single tear tracked its way down my cheek and I trembled, gathering up fistfuls of my dress. "Riku, I...I like him. I like him a lot."

"Finally took you long enough..." Riku clutched me close to him, giving me the most genuine hug I've ever had from him and I felt the tears pour out unrestrained. All the twisting emotions that I had bottled up these last two weeks just spilled out, all over his shirt. I tried stifling it back, wiping it away, but he pulled my hand away from my eyes.

"Don't worry about that right now, just let it out."

I don't know why I never put the pieces together. Everything about Sora was always so...right. So genuine. My memories of him are my most vivid and precious. Like all those sticky hugs he'd give me on my bad days, and that one year he actually dressed up in flimsy wings and a tiara when I wanted everything at my birthday to be fairy themed.

Even in the depths of nothingness, he was the one I trusted with my lost heart because as silly as he is sometimes, there's an unrelenting compassion inside of him and a selfless desire to help others that I so admire. But it goes so far beyond that.

If he was scouring the depths of the ocean for treasure but found nothing but shells, I know rather than be disappointed he would be making sure to share the beauty of each one with such vigor you'd think that was why he went down there in the first place. For the sake of everyone, he does his best to find the brightness of the sun hiding behind the clouds.

I've never met another like him. Him and his cheerful, slightly naive but determined heart. A heart so giving that it takes in everyone elses' pain and shelters them from the storm. I knew for the longest time I had admired that heart of his. But I hadn't realized where the division lay between admiration, and pure unrestrained love. Just judging by this glowing, yearning feeling I have now, I must have left that line of division far behind, long ago.

"Wh-what do I do now?" I prayed that Riku had answers for me, because I had never felt so lost in my life.

"Tell him."

I know he was right, and that was exactly what I needed to do. But the thought of telling him something like this...I mean, I didn't even realize what this feeling was until right now! How can I really put such a feeling into words in so short a time? I suppose all I can really do is try. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down as he continued patiently holding me until I felt ready to let go.

After a few more steadying gulps of air, I gave him the tiniest of nods and he pulled away, sitting quietly next to me.

"I'm sorry...about your shirt..." I choked, noticing that he had a few obvious wet spots along the front.

"I already told you not to worry about that. It's a tiny price to pay for you finally being able to be honest with me, and with yourself."

There he went again, using the word 'finally' like he was expecting all of this already.

"You...knew?"

"I was fairly sure. Most of me hoped so, anyway."

"...most of you?"

He crossed his arms, turning his eyes upward. "Yeah. A part still wanted you to say yes to me."

I bit my lip. He had such a pained look on his face. "Riku...you've been struggling with this for a while, haven't you?"

"Yeah." He closed his eyes for a moment, almost like he was relishing the slight breeze before he slumped forward. "But it's over now. I knew if I didn't get an answer soon, it would be too late and the not knowing might just fester inside of me forever. And I couldn't let that eat away at me."

Despite what he'd just done, I knew at the end of it all he really was just trying to be a good friend. I sighed heavily and gave him a little bit of a teasing glare. "Of all the ways to tell me-why did you have to chose to do it like that!?"

"It just...happened. I didn't set out to try and kiss you, I..."

I pursed my lips together and he hung his head again.

"I'm sorry. I'm frustrated at myself, too. I'll take your anger if you have any. I deserve it."

With all that regret and heartbreak hanging over him, all I could think to do was leap up and cradle his head up in my arms.

"Hey...don't beat yourself up about this, okay? You do deserve love and all of that." He tried to pull away from me, but I really didn't want to let him go. "Just a minute! I'm so sorry I caused all of those conflicting feelings in you and I'm sorry that I can't really be the one to help you resolve them, but...I never want you to feel bad for having felt them in the first place."

He stopped fighting and I let him relax into my arms. He lingered there for a moment, peacefully. "Now that I know, I can accept it. Honestly everything you did is for the best." He pulled away and seemed much more at ease than before.

"Are you sure?"

"Kairi, you'll always be important to me. Deep down I knew it probably wouldn't work between us that way. I'd have way too much guilt all the time about it even if you had said yes."

"Well, in that case..." I smacked him hard against the back.

He winced, clearly surprised. I continued whacking him with my sleeves a few times. "Never. Do that. Again!"

He just took it, nodding without resistance. The cloth wouldn't have hurt much, but hopefully it makes a bit of a point. I let him have one last smack and then dropped back down to the bench with a huff. "Seriously. I can't believe you."

"Sorry..."

"But...you mentioned something about guilt. Is that because you knew how I felt about Sora?" I tried to read his face, but he was doing his best to turn away from me.

"Not...exactly."

What else could he be feeling guilty for? Unless..."Is it because of Sora? Do you know something about his feelings that I don't?"

Riku said nothing. And that told me everything.

I felt hot embarrassment rush to my face and I had to take a few stabilizing breaths. "B-but, that's..." Somehow the idea of Sora possibly feeling the same way filled me with bubbling excitement. But I was still reluctant to accept something like that so easily. "Riku, I know he cares about me but he's been alone with me all the time and he never said..."

"It's not an easy thing to say."

"Oh, I'm that intimidating, am I?" I huffed. He is definitely dodging saying anything directly. I just kept my eyes focused on him until he couldn't avoid me any longer.

"You know how he is."

"Exactly! He's so earnest! If he really liked me there is no way he would be able to hide it that well at all."

Riku just spluttered and laughed. My face was definitely starting to redden again.

"What's so funny!? You big meanie, you'd better tell me!"

He crossed his arms. "I'm just going to leave this for you two to sort out with each other. But did you really never consider that a possibility before?"

I reflected back on things carefully. "I don't know...every time I felt that he was affectionate towards me I just assumed it was because he is an affectionate person in general..." I pulled my legs up to the bench and clutched around them. "Everything is all jumbled up right now. But I really should have understood my own feelings sooner. I guess...that explains why I was so anxious about Ophelia."

"Oh, the flower girl? Yeah, it was a little amusing seeing you get so worked up." He snorted and I raised my long sleeve up at him again threateningly. "But really, I wouldn't worry about that. You said yourself that you had more sense than to just jump at the first person to ask you out and I'm sure he's the same. Both of you are pretty good at understanding people at the end of the day. You seek out the good in everyone and he can break down their self-imposed barriers to reach it."

I knew he was right, but that didn't mean I felt like I could completely relax about it.

"I guess he has at least two secret admirers now..." I tried to joke about it, but it came out a little hollow.

He gave me a gentle pat on the shoulder. "Listen, I'll make sure you two have some time alone, okay? There's no reason for you to be nervous."

I felt a little guilty but he gave me another reassuring nudge. "Hey, I'll be fine if I know you two will be happy."

"Thank you..." I stayed huddled on the bench. It was still a little cold and I really wanted to see his smile again. It always made me feel so warm. He was so precious to me. I wanted to cherish that heart of his and pour all my love back into it, to only try and make up for the pain he's had to endure. I repeated his name over and over in my head, the thought of him driving the cold away.

Riku glanced back at the path that lead down to the festival, still bustling below. "You said you had to leave after the seventh firework? That was three already..." He frowned. "Where is he?"

I stared back at the path as well, almost hoping that I would see him just then, charging towards us with that smile on his face.

But the path remained empty, quiet and still.