Well, there are a lot of reviews this time, so I'll just get right to it!
To PublicPandorum: Shhh! Don't say it, it'll give everything away! =O XD But thanks for the suggestion!
To Scarletnight13: The new fanfic is coming along just great, a few tweaks here and there and a few adjustments should do, because I'm having trouble making Sora the 'bad boy' type XD
To Kirei Ryuusei: I think I'll actually use that Riku in a skirt idea XD Only he'd be wearing it as a dare... hmm... *Cue evil laugh*
To Poseidon's-Princess: I know, right? =.= Homophobes are really annoying =( (My dad is one, which sucks royally, since just because of that he doesn't like my friend who's gay D= )
To wow: Sorry that I didn't do my research before, but I thank you for taking the time to comment and tell me the right term. Can I give you a suggestion? If you would write something like that telling someone a term or w/e, try doing it a little nicer. Some people can really get offended by the way you phrase a comment, and it can really hurt others. Though I guess making it hurt gets the comment to stick. Thanks...
To the Poet's Raven: Mex-san? XD Nice name! I usually call him Mansex though... I'm not sure whether I'm going to put much blood/gore in here. WOO GO AUSTRIA-HUNGARY XD
To Kingdom hearts birth by sleep: Sorry I didn't update fast, my heart almost stopped two days ago and I was kinda stressed out by that fact. Plus one particullar coment struck home for some reason and made me feel a tad bit... I don't know... like if I was a three-year old. But I'm glad I finished this =3
Tell me if you have an idea you would like to see show up in here! I'll make it work! Or hit me with a snowball (seriously, there is enough snow here to do that) if you want a story/one-shot about a certain subject.
Enjoy Paper Moon!
Paper Moon
Chapter Twenty
Changing A Life
Sora
He holds it gently on his lap, looking to the cover page and smoothing his fingers over the cover, seemingly deep in thought when I step out of the bathroom, drying my hair with a towel. He looks up at me as I sit down beside him in front of the fireplace, the reddish glow of the fire alighting his features.
"You alright?" I ask him. He nods with a smile on his lips, cerulean eyes shining with the firelight. He places the leatherbound book in my lap, and I tilt my head at it, examining the cover with my fingers. Knowing what he wants me to do just by looking at his eyes, I open the cover and the first thing I see are graceful yet deliberate ink strokes, disguised in the form of bold black letters, curving gently to the side slightly, his handwriting clear and readable, even in cursive. It's almost as if he put much thought into each stroke, every word a piece of his soul.
"They say that writing a novel is like cutting your wrist and bleeding onto the pages, for everyone to see your soul." He says gently as I turn the page. I smile to myself at his words, placing myself in a more comfortable position, lying down on my stomach. He does the same, watching me as I turn each page carefully, as if they'd crumble into dust.
It takes me a while to read it all, but he doesn't seem to mind. He lies beside me, watching me as the fire slowly dies down, the slight chill of the night creeping onto us. He gets up eventually to stoke the fire, but he lays back down beside me afterwards. I smile as I get to the last entry, which was not too long ago.
Everyday is always so different now. I'm not really afraid anymore. I'll never get tired of what we do together, nor will I hate it if anyone is disgusted by what we do. I wonder sometimes if this is how my parents lived before I came; happy, not caring for anyone's thoughts, free.
In love.
I sure as hell am glad that most of our problems are over, but I know they will never cease. There will always be one lurking in the shadows, waiting for the time when we're at our weakest, at our most vulnerable. But I think that that's okay.
I've been thinking a lot lately, and I think I will go with my thought. I want to re-write my old, depressing journal, word for word. Just to show the world that there are people out there that are willing to harm someone else. And I will ask him if he wants me to go with that thought.
But no matter what he says about it, I will stick by his descision. That's for certain.
I close the back cover now, sliding my fingers across the smooth black leather. I look at him, and smile. He raises a thin, pale blonde eyebrow, and I wrap my arms around his shoulders, hugging him. He returns my embrace.
"You can write it." I tell him softly. "I know you're more than okay to do so."
"Thanks."
~~(^w^)~~
"Come on!" I pull him through the large archway, the entire park bustling with activity, families walking around, couples on dates, or just a group of friends on a group outing. Roxas yelps as I tug him into the line, it being rather short, but that's no surprise since it's only ten in the morning and most people just ate breakfast, so they're taking it slowly. It moves rapidly enough as the ride before empties of passengers, loading up with the next fifteen or so. No one goes in the front, so I tug Roxas into the seat.
"You know, I've always wondered how an Amusement Park looks like up close." He chuckles softly, slightly agitated as the bar lowers. He grips it tightly. "And your idea of coming here was rather sudden."
"Well, Olette asked us to come here around five and meet her by the Maze. So I figured we should come early and enjoy all the other rides." I smile at him as the car jerks forward, earning cheers from the nervous teenagers, families and adults behind us. The sky looms closer and closer as we slowly ascent the high angle, this roller coaster being the tallest, fastest and longest of all the park. And this is our first ride, too.
"What is the Maze, actually? And why at five?" He asks, looking around him in awe. Everyone looks small from here.
"The Maze is actually the name they gave the Haunted House, because it's big, with plenty of passageways, traps, and other spooky surprises. And the sun will have set at five. She wants us to go through it when it's dark. I figure Zexion, Saix and her other friend will be there." He lets out a squeak when he see's the entire path of the roller coaster, which actually goes through half of the park. He shuts his eyes tightly as the car tips at the edge, and I bet he's asking himself why we're in the front car.
"Holy shit!" He grabs onto the first living thing beside him, wrapping his arms around my shoulders and screaming. I laugh, holding onto the metal bar while he continues to give me a death grip. The speed easily reaches 200/mph, and I laugh joyfully, Roxas risking a peek through a slightly opened eye.
"Come on, Rox!" I laugh. "Open your eyes! If you leave them closed, it gets harder to get accustomed to." He does so without hesitation.
But once we're off the ride, he leans back against the bench, having pressed the fact that he wants to sit down and let the world stop tilting in front of him. I scratch the back of my head.
"Are you sure you're alright?" I ask, slightly turned to the right to look at him. He nods, removing his hand from over his eyes. "You look pale."
"I'll live." He says shakily. "But hell, that was fucking awesome!" He laughs, making me think he's delirious. I notice his hands are shaking, and we've been sitting on the bench for the most of about an hour, letting him rest. I notice the time, which reads about eleven twenty.
"You want to go eat something?" He looks at me, nodding. "You seem a bit hungry."
"I am." He admits, stretching his arms over his head.
"Oh! I know!" I pull him to his feet, making sure he won't trip in the process as I lead him to a small stand big enough for an oven, a frier, a fridge, a drink fountain, and a grill. He sniffs suspisciously as I pause in front, the man behind the counter turning around.
"What would you like?" He asks, an eyebrow raised. I smile.
"A large serving of french fries and two Sea Salt Ice Cream." He nods, going off to fill the order. Roxas looks at me.
"Sea Salt Ice Cream?" He asks, his brows furrowed in confusion. I shake my head, thanking the man as he gives me my order, I handing him the money in return. We walk to one of the tables nearby and sit down.
"You'll see; they're great." I say with a grin, munching on the fried potatoes. He laughs to himself for some reason, mimicking my eating style. We soon finish those, and I give him one of the sky blue ice cream bars. He takes a tentative lick as I bite a small piece off.
"Tastes better than I thought it would." He says in surprise, taking another lick. I laugh.
"Don't knock it 'till you try it." he sticks out his tongue at me at that.
~~(o.o)~~
We meet up with Olette around five thirty, having lost track of time for a while. Roxas is swaying a little, dizzy from the ride we just went on, laughing hysterically. I laugh with him, stopping just shy of the four standing there.
"There you are!" She huffs, hands on her hips. I smile at her.
"Sorry." Roxas holds onto my shoulder to steady himself. "It's his first time at an Amusement Park, and we kinda got carried away with that last one."
"Forget it. Sora, you remember Riku, right?" She points behind her to a silver-haired teen talking to Saix and Zexion. I nod.
"Yeah, though it's been a long time. Hey, Riku!" I shout. He turns around, and I wave over my head. He comes over to stand beside Olette. "I want you to meet Roxas."
"Mm, Saix was telling me about him." He grins evilly, and my smile melts. Roxas shaking his head, still trying to see the world straight. "Your little toy."
"My what?" I glare at Saix, and he raises his hands up in defeat. Roxas, at that, seems to finally have been able to set the world onto its right axis. He stares at Riku, blinking.
"He told me about that mark~" He teases. Roxas makes a sort of meep sound, jumping in place. "Naughty, naughty Sora." He tsk's. (A.N.: Oh Riku, you sadist.)
"Stop that!" I yell, face flushed. Olette's laughing really hard, bent in two.
"Does that mean you two did the nasty?" He presses. Now I can clearly see Roxas from the corner of my eye, red as a beet - probably like me, too - and we're both shaking our heads back and forth, denials falling from our lips.
"O... okay, Riku. Lay off." Olette sighs, wiping tears from her eyes. He grins victoriously, tip of his tongue sticking out between his teeth. "Let's get going." She turns around, leading the way into the creepy doorway. I glare at Riku.
"I will get you for that." I hiss at him. He smiles sweetly, running to catch up with Olette. Saix and Zexion follow after them, leaving Roxas and I in the rear.
"Interesting... friends you got there." He tells me softly as we enter the creepy doorway.
"You weren't going to call them friends, were you?" I ask, an eyebrow raised. He laughs.
"I was thinking 'perverts' would suffice better, but to be polite..." He shrugs, leaving it at that as we join the others in front of a witch. She cackles as the door closes.
"Hello children." She says in a creepy tone, voice raspy. "Welcome to the haunted house. Legends tell of a family being slaughtered here by a mad killer with a chainsaw. Infortunately for him, he died moments later. Some say that to this day, their ghosts haunt these grounds, cursing and murdering whoever dares to enter their home, seeking revenge.
"You will each form groups of two, and you will be sent down seperate corridors. The goal is to find your group and escape. Alive... if possible." She cackles again, dissapearing in a puff of black smoke. Roxas gulps loudly, already holding onto my left arm tightly.
"Let's find the damned exit." Saix mutters, taking Zexion by the hand and going down a very brightly-lit hallway. It shuts behind them.
Go figure he'd choose the brightest. Olette wastes no time, taking Riku by the hand and going down the slightly-creepy one, it shutting behind them. We both look to the remaining one, it being creepy, dark, with barely any lights. I sigh.
"It's just an attraction." I mutter, either trying to convince Roxas, or myself. I tug a very hesitant Roxas down it, jumping when the way out closes behind us. He lets out a sort of whimper, as white as a sheet.
"You're scared of creepy stuff, aren't you?" I ask. He nods mechanically. I walk to the first doorway, opening it hesitantly with Roxas in tow. It's pitch black, and a funny smell invades my nose. I grope along the wall for the lightswitch, sighing in relief when I find it, flicking it open.
And screaming at the top of my lungs when I see a mutilated body on a chair, covered in blood. Roxas seems to go paler, and I slam the door shut before it can come to life or anything. We stand there, panting and gasping, as if we'd just ran a thousand mile marathon. Hesitantly I open the door in front of that one, it being actually well lit inside. Torches burn gently, hanging on the walls and burning with a blue fire. It's a library with a few shelves filled with books. We walk in cautiously, the door slamming shut behind us.
"Would it had done that if we'd gone in the other room?" He asks shakily. I nod.
"I... I think so." We walk to the shelves. "I bet it's locked now. We probably have to find an alternative." I pull on a dusty book on the shelf, a gear clicking as I do. "Ah..."
"Fuck." He finishes as the bookcase turns, like one of those traps. We turn through the wall into a very dark room, filled with weird clicking noises. I take a step forward, and the room bursts with green light, a door at the end of the small room. Hesitantly I walk to it, Roxas following me just as hesitantly. I turn the rusted doorknob, it slick with a liquid. I dare not look, but I open the door instead, and sigh at the darkness inside it.
"Well, this is getting repetitive." I fumble on the wall for a switch, flicking it on once my fingers find it. I turn around, and to our great relief, we find an exit clearly marked with red, leaking letters. We let out a sigh, pushing the creaky door open to the welcoming night air. Grass is the first thing we see, and it is the first thing we collapse onto, our hearts racing in our ears. He lets out a shaky laugh, and I mimick that, the sky twinkling with stars. "I think we were in there for nearly two hours... felt shorter than that." A firework bursts in the sky.
"What was that?" He asks. I sit up, stretching my arms over my head.
"A firework. It makes an array of colors when it explodes in the sky. See?" I add, as a flaming green one ignites the night sky. I help him to his feet, knowing full well that Olette, Saix, Riku and Zexion are already out. I lead him down a small path, stopping by a smaller field of grass and flowers, where the fireworks can be seen, and yet no one is around. He watches the sky with awe in his eyes, sitting down beside me on the grass.
"All I know is that I never want to go into a haunted house again." He says shakily, leaning his head on my shoulder. I laugh.
"That's for sure." I hold his hands in mine, watching the sky explode with all those colors.
~~(=w=)~~
He pets Luna gently, sitting up on the mattress. Sombra is lying beside him, sleeping softly. I sit down beside him, stroking the dark fur of the pup.
"They're growing fast." Roxas says with a smile, Fluff licking himself clean at the edge of the bed. I nod.
"They'll be much bigger in half a year, too." I add. He looks at me.
"And despite the Maze, I had a great time, Sora." I return the smile he gives me. Letting Luna down so she can curl up beside Sombra, he puts a hand to my jaw, kissing me gently and sweetly. My hands are halfway to his face when we pull back and open our eyes slightly, glancing at each other, mere inches apart.
He pulls back in for another kiss, my hands finding his cheeks and holding them gently, he mimicking my actions, the touch lasting almost a lifetime as he leans back and lets his back hit the mattress. Again, we pull back, but we keep mere inches away as he speaks gently.
"Sora... I-" I silence him by kissing his lower lip.
"Figured you'd ask sooner or later." I say, pulling back a little with a smile. "But... are you sure?" I look at him, and he stares back, landing a small, gentle peck on my lips.
"I always am." Is his answer, but I can't really say no to him. He brings me back for another kiss, this one longer, lingering, slowly going from sweet to rough.
Ahaha I am SO CRUEL! First torturing Sora & co., and now a nice cliffhanger which suggests...
I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I'll write the next one soon =3