A/N: Yay another update! I've really gotten into this y'know? Maybe I can get back to doing my one chapter a day. Since I now realize it takes me three days to write one non-stop. We'll just have to see now won't we? Anyway, onto the story!
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.
Chapter Thirty-Seven: Dates&Messages
Sora had finished his dinner, but was too lazy to take his plate downstairs. He was staring up at the ceiling thinking over all the things Kairi had told him. He just felt like he was missing something. There was something she must've left out. He just kept thinking there was some kind of link that was right in front of him, but he just couldn't seem to figure out what that was. He sighed. 'I think I finally get her now. All of those things she has said and done, I think I finally see her reasoning. Like why she can't adjust to the fact that I love her. I guess going through something like that really changes a person. I suppose I wouldn't know, my parents never told me any of that. From what I can remember they loved me, a lot…' he thought with a sad smile.
A young couple walked down the street holding hands with their dear son. He was merely a toddler, but they loved him regardless. The young woman on the left was quite the beauty. She had short, light brown hair that fell a little past her ears. Her eyes were a stunning shade of gray and she was just a tad tanned. She wore a yellow sundress, which was common since they lived on an island. The dashing, young gentleman on the far right was nothing more than handsome. He had dreamy, cerulean eyes and perfect brown locks to boot. He wore a cheesy grin and of course, the usual jeans and a button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up.
The woman smiled. "Sora, Sora dear," she cooed to her son. The little boy looked up giving her a confused look. His mouth was formed into a little circle and his cerulean eyes were wide. "Aww look at him, isn't he just the cutest Hideki?" she asked turning her gaze to her husband.
"Yes, of course, he gets his looks and sense of humor from me," Hideki joked as he lifted the boy into his arms. "See, look." Both males faced her. He gave her his goofy smile and Sora imitated it perfectly. She laughed.
"I see your point," she replied with a smile.
Just as they were about to turn the corner and approach the beach a man dressed in black jumped out. He pointed the loaded gun at the couple, his finger on the trigger. "Ayako, get behind me," Hideki ordered. In an instant, she took Sora away from him and did as she was instructed. Hideki put his hands up trying his best not to set the man off.
"Give me all your money!" the man demanded still threatening to shoot.
Hideki nodded and pulled out his wallet from his back pocket. "Here take it, just please don't hurt us," he obeyed. The man didn't answer; he only greedily stuffed the wallet into his own pocket.
"What about her?" Now he pointed the gun behind him. On Ayako's shoulder was a brown purse. She quickly handed her purse over shifting Sora to her other hip. The man smirked and stuffed the purse under his arm. "I like those pearls," he added shamelessly. Ayako quickly took them off and handing them to the man. She was now to the point of tears. Sora could sense the tension and began to cry. He cried a wail so loud that anyone could hear. "Shut the baby up or I will!" the man threatened. Ayako stifled a scream and tried to calm her child. "Turn around!" he ordered.
"Ayako, put Sora in that bush over there," he said. She, once again did as she was told. She kissed Sora on his forehead and whispered 'I love you' before joining her husband. The couple turned away from the mugger with their hands up. They were completely frozen in fear, but not for themselves for their beloved toddler.
The man started to back away planning on running away, but Sora's sudden cry startled him and he accidentally pulled the trigger. Hideki fell to the ground, his shirt quickly soaking in blood. "Hideki!" Ayako screamed bending down to try and nurse her husband, but he was gone. Sora continued to cry. The man pointed the gun to Ayako.
"Shut him up!" he ordered again. But the woman was in hysterics she didn't know up from down. She screamed out, but was quickly silenced...
Sora awoke in a cold sweat. "I must've dozed off," he mumbled to himself as he sat up. He looked around and guessed it was some time after midnight. He let out a quiet sigh. "That was a weird dream. I can now see why Kairi wakes up in the middle of the night screaming," he muttered quietly. He stared back up at the ceiling. "Kairi..." he mumbled dreamily.
He got out of his bed and left his room walking across the hallway. Sora quietly creaked open Kairi's door to see her sound asleep. 'This won't be my best decision,' he thought as he stepped into her room closing the door behind him. Silently, he made his way over to her bed. He kneeled down beside her. She was flawless, besides the drool starting to sneak its way out of her mouth. He smiled and ran his fingers through her hair. "I guess I've been kind of greedy, huh? You're not ready to love yet and probably won't be for a while. But that's okay Kairi, when you're ready my door is open," he whispered. He leaned in and gently kissed her lips. "I love you," he whispered.
Sora quickly, but silently retreated from her room being sure not to leave any trace of him ever being there. He shut his own door after he slid inside leaning back on it for support. A few tears were slowly making their way down his face. He sniffled and wiped them off with his arm. "It'll be better for her if I back off for a while, I don't want to rush her into something she can't handle," he silently agreed.
Namine groaned rolling over in her bed. The sunlight was deadly in the morning. She yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Good morning, room," she said tiredly. She opened her eyes and sat up, stretching a bit. Her sleeping clothes last night had consisted of a white tank that showed a little mid-drift and some baggy, silky pajama pants. Namine continued to stretch as she walked to her door planning on visiting the bathroom, the filthy bathroom. When she pulled the door open she was surprised to see Roxas standing on the other side, his arm raised showing that he was about to knock. "Oh, Roxas!" she exclaimed as her cheeks slowly turned red. He was dressed in a pair of light blue boxers and a white muscle shirt. A pang went through her though, seeing as she had still not been asked to be his...girl? He just automatically seemed to assume that had already been clarified. "Good morning," she added in a duller tone.
Roxas was a little surprised, she didn't sound too happy this morning. Maybe she was a still a little groggy from just waking up? "Namine, I wanted to ask you something...I just couldn't wait so I'm going to just ask you now, is that okay?" Roxas asked nervously. She nodded hopefully. "I wanted to know if you'd like to go out today...rather than clean the bathrooms," he offered.
A smile found its way on her face. "Like...on a date? An actual date?" she inquired eagerly. Roxas shyly nodded. She squealed in response, "Yes! I'd love too!"
"Okay, well you get dressed...and I will too. Then we'll head out," Roxas instructed with a grin. She closed the door on him so she could pick out her outfit and do a bunch of other girly things. He smiled. He could still hear her squealing from behind the wooden door. She was so cute when she was extremely happy. Roxas scratched his head. "Guess I better take the bathroom before she beats me too it." He remembered the last time she took the bathroom before him. She spent two hours in there, and what was she doing? Cleaning the tub.
Inside Naminé's room she was busily trying to decide on the best outfit. She was tearing things out of her closet left and right. The adrenaline rush was taking her over. This was the day she had been waiting for. An actual date with Roxas! Not just the usual 'Hey, let's go to the dance together', a real date! She let out another excited squeal. She turned around and looked at all the clothes she had thrown out. There seemed to be three complete outfits hanging on her bed. The first was a combination between white and blue. It was a light blue, short-sleeve blouse with leggings and a stainless, white pleated skirt. The second was a green sundress. 'I didn't know I had something green?' she thought quite confused. The third was a pale pink and white polka dotted tank, a white jean jacket, and a pair of light blue jeans.
She tapped her chin. Roxas had already seen the first outfit and she never really liked the color green, so the third must be the winner. "Great!" she exclaimed before neatly putting the rejected outfits back into her closet. She grabbed her chosen outfit and ran out of room and into the bathroom that Roxas had just come out of. She didn't even notice he was only in a towel. It was a big relief to him. He quickly scurried into his room and slammed the door shut. He breathed in deeply.
He smiled to himself. He was so happy she had chosen him over cleaning. Now maybe he could gather up the courage to actually ask her to be his girl. There had been many unsuccessful attempts, counting last night when Sora had gone up to have dinner with Kairi.
Namine and Roxas sat at the table in silence. He glanced at her admiring her petite figure. She had the glow of an angel. She noticed his staring and looked back. "Yes?" she questioned unaware of what he was thinking.
"Umm, I've been thinking..." he began as his cheeks began to redden.
"About?" Naminé asked.
"...us," Roxas mumbled. She fell silent. His heart was pounding. "We should do the dishes now!" he exclaimed as he grabbed their plates and practically ran to the sink.
Roxas sighed. "That isn't going to happen this time! I've got all day after all, I can't possibly chicken out!" he exclaimed proudly. He pulled open his closet and discovered he had no idea what to wear. He felt like a girl. If it had been any other situation he wouldn't have cared as much, but he just had to impress Namine. It was all part of his master plan. After a few minutes of thought he finally decided on a pair of faded jeans, his skater shoes, and a cool, maroon button down shirt.
The couple dressed and met in the hallway. "Ready to go Namine?" he asked offering his arm, which she gladly accepted. She nodded eagerly still trying to contain her squeals of happiness. Together they walked down the stairs getting an amused look from Riku who was in the kitchen drinking coffee. "We're leaving to go on a date so don't wait up!" he shouted as they passed the kitchen. So what if Roxas was a bit of a bragger. Riku only rolled his eyes and watched them pass.
Kairi awoke in silence. She found it strange. There was no Sora at her side pleading with her to get up. It was completely quiet and it worried her. She slowly got out of bed and made her way to the door. She opened it expecting to see Sora standing on the other side, but he was nowhere to be seen. 'Well his door is open so maybe he's in there,' she thought walking over to his doorway. Kairi peered in and saw nobody inside. She began to chew on her bottom lip. Where could that boy possibly be? She knew he wasn't cooking breakfast, because she would be able to smell it from up here. She sighed, deciding to give up her search for now and visit the bathroom.
When she pulled the door open Olette was standing there frozen in her action of opening the door. "Hey Kairi," she said nervously.
"Have you seen Sora this morning?" Kairi asked sounding almost too concerned.
Olette paused. "I think he left early in the morning. He woke me up and told me he was going to see the sunrise in the park, I think. It was really early for me so I don't remember much. I hope that helped you," she said still trying to leave. Whenever she was around Kairi she felt like such a backstabber. How could she allow herself to leak information about the girl's life to Yuna so she could take it and use it for her evil? "Well I've got stuff to do, bye!" Olette cried. With that she ran down the hallway and into her room.
'Since when was Sora interested in sunrises?' she thought blankly. "Guess I'll take a shower and go see if he's still at the park," she mumbled to herself. She walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.
Traverse Town. Its beauty was indescribable. Tidus breathed in deeply. The air was different here than in Twilight Town. His return would've been much better if Yuna hadn't been attached to his arm. How he wished she were Selphie. 'Just four more days Tidus. Think of it this way, at least you aren't still tied to that chair,' he thought; so there was a positive side to everything. Yuna giggled. "What're you thinking about, sugar?" she asked as she ran her fingers down his arm.
He twitched. "Just glad to be back in this town and not held prisoner in Twilight Town," he answered frankly.
Yuna glared at him. "You brought that upon yourself you know," she hissed, "Come on, my mansion is this way!" Before Tidus could retort he was being dragged down Oater Street toward Yuna's rather extravagant home. He just hoped Garnet had kept her promise and went to tell Selphie what was really going on. He wanted his girlfriend to know how much he cared, and how sorry he was that he couldn't be with her this season.
'There's always next year,' Tidus sighed. How he longed to see the perky brunette. The one dragging him by his arm was not exactly the best sight to wake up to. Paine came up behind him and began pushing him. "Hurry up! We don't have all day!" she snapped. It was as if she was some kind of slave driver, and he was her victim.
"Here we are!" Yuna exclaimed happily. She released his arm and opened the gate "Make yourself at home dear, after all, we do have four whole days together," she giggled. He twitched again. The song she sung at the Halloween Costume Dance began running through his head. She wouldn't rape him, would she? If she even came close to touching him in that way he wouldn't hesitate to hit her. He gulped. He wasn't emotionally ready to be touched that way, nor would he ever be if she were the girl that was touching him.
Fuu pushed through the front door and turned on the lights. "It's good to be back in Traverse. I thought I was going to get fat from all those Sea-Salt Ice Creams," she announced tossing her things in Yuna's living room.
"Maybe if you had some self restraint you wouldn't have to worry about getting fat," Paine snickered as she leaned back on the wall.
Yuna sighed. "Don't even start bickering, I'm going to take Tidus upstairs and show him his room. You better not break anything while I'm gone!" she shouted as she was walking up the stairs dragging Tidus along with her. "You'll get used to their petty arguments eventually. But anyway, this room, right here, is mine." She pushed open the door to reveal a mainly aqua colored room. She had an under the sea theme. "And this one at the end of the hall is yours," she added. He would be staying in an equally as sea-themed room. "Fuu and Paine sleep on the third floor where the entertainment mostly is."
"Entertainment?" Tidus asked.
"You know, video games and such. But you won't be doing any of that will you? No, you'll be paying attention to me and all my beauty," she sighed happily. She really did have a big ego.
Ding Dong
'I'll get it!'
Garnet stood at the Tillmit's doorstep. She was practically quivering in fear. She had never really gotten to know Selphie, but with all the horrible things Yuna had done to her it was clear that she must not like Garnet very much. She ran her fingers nervously through her ebony hair as she awaited her doom. 'Please don't slam the door in my face,' she pleaded as she stared into the sky. The girl was dressed in an orange shirt, white blazer, and the usual pair of jeans. Her shoes were just normal burgundy boots. She had on the usual jewelry, but no makeup.
Finally Selphie pulled open the door shocked to see Garnet standing on the other side. She swallowed nervously. "Before you kick me off of your property hear me out," she pleaded giving Selphie the sincerest look she could conjure. Selphie bit down on her bottom lip looking downward. Garnet couldn't blame her for not trusting her right off the bat. Her association with Yuna had killed her, or at least Selphie's impression of her.
"Fine, I'll listen to you," Selphie answered after a long pause. She stepped outside, still in her pajamas and closed the door behind her. "What is it that you wanted to talk to me about? And if it's about Yuna wanting something else I have, tell her she can have the rest of me. There isn't much left once you take my reputation, dignity, both of my boyfriends, and my life," Selphie grumbled.
Garnet smiled grimly. "I haven't come with a message from Yuna, it's actually Tidus who asked me to come here," she replied as she looked down at her shoes. It's amazing how much Selphie intimidated her.
Selphie stared at her in disbelief. "What?" she inquired before grabbing Garnet by her shoulders. "You have a message from Tidus for me? Come in! We can talk about this in my room!" She grabbed her hand and quickly pulled her inside. "Leave your shoes there please," Selphie instructed. Garnet stared around Selphie's house. It actually looked like a normal home, just the average home. She liked it. It wasn't too lavish and it wasn't too plain. "My room's this way."
"Okay," she mumbled as she followed Selphie. She followed her through a bright yellow door decorated with daisies. She couldn't expect anything less from the brunette. Seeing her room decorated with all kinds of bright yellow things made sense. After all, when they weren't in school all she seemed to wear was yellow. Selphie plopped down in a beanbag offering the one beside her to Garnet. She sat down and took in a deep breath.
"So what's the message?" Selphie asked eagerly.
Garnet smiled nervously. "Tidus wanted me to tell you he's back in town. But before you celebrate, he also wanted me to tell you the bad news," she said. Selphie's smile dropped. Her eyes said 'What bad news?' Garnet felt so guilty. She hated being the bearer of bad news. "He has to stay with Yuna for Christmas so she will drop her charges. B-But he says don't worry its only five days counting the actual day. Then he'll be back," Garnet explained tenderly.
Selphie was stunned. "What?" she blurted.
A/N: Oooh, Tidus is back! Everyone celebrate lol. Well you don't have to really. Seeing as the best part hasn't happened just yet. And let's see, Namine and Roxas are going on a date I wonder how that will turn out. The next chapter will mostly be centered on them since I want to capture that fully. As for Sora and Kairi you'll see, and Selphie and Tidus will have their moment soon enough. So please review and thanks for reading!