Riku woke up shortly before dawn. He hadn't slept well the night before and the dredges of a nightmare still tugged at the edges of his mind. He sat up in the bed, glancing down at his brunette boyfriend. A smile wormed it's way onto his face. He still couldn't believe his grand luck. Three years ago a car accident almost took Sora's life but he managed to survive and pull through. Because of the accident Sora had a come to Jesus moment that made him realize he couldn't live his life without Riku.
He slid out of bed and padded quietly to the bathroom. He brushed his teeth vigorously and washed his face. He made a mental note to thank Kairi for introducing him to skin care. It definitely helped to start his day with a fresh clean face in a way that only compared to coffee. Speaking of, he headed to the kitchen and got started making a pot. Riku scrolled through Facebook while he waited for the coffee to brew. Once the coffee was done brewing he poured himself a cup spooning a couple tablespoons of sugar and a dollop of cream into his coffee. Everyone pegged him for the black coffee type but despite his aversion to desserts he didn't like the bitterness of black coffee.
He carried his coffee out to the back patio and sat to watch the sunrise. While he went in to refill his coffee there was a knock at the door. He went to the door and peered out the peephole and saw Sora's older sister Sara standing there. Confusion furrowing his brow he opened the door. Sara pushed her way inside without so much as a hello before blurting out "Riku, we have a problem!" Panic immediately set in, thinking the worst.
"What happened, is Ma okay?" He asked referring to Sara and Sora's mother, Tsuzumi.
"What? No, mom's fine! I'm talking about Sora's birthday!" She said obviously, though confusingly, distraught.
"O…kaaay? What about Sora's birthday?" Riku asked in furthering confusion.
"His birthday is tomorrow, and I don't know what to get him! Mom got him that new video game he was wanting, Kairi got him a new briefcase for school, and I have no idea what lascivious things YOU have planned for him." She rambled.
"Okay, first of all I have nothing 'lascivious' planned," he accented lascivious with air quotes before crossing his arms over his shirtless chest.
"Second of all, why don't you just take him out to brunch and spoil him with bottomless mimosas? That's what my plan was but I can always just surprise him with a Tart-aux-frut from that bakery he likes. It's expensive but SO worth it." He rolled his eyes remembering the one time Sora splurged to get one for their anniversary last year. Sara groaned in frustration.
"No, that's not the issue. The issue is I've known him for almost five years and I have no idea what to get him!" She sank to the couch burying her face in her hands.
"Oh thank god because I was kind of banking on getting Sora mimosa drunk. MUCH cheaper than that tart-aux-frut." He sat gently next to Sara and patted her back.
"Besides, you know Sora, he's gonna love what you get him no matter what. You could make the dope macaroni art and he'd cherish it knowing you made it with love." Riku tried to reassure his sister in law.
"I know, but I want to get him something really special. Something that I think is really…HIM." She sputtered out.
"And you're struggling to come up with something that competes with a BRIEFCASE. Oh honey, we've got some work to do. Okay, first of all I'm going to need more coffee if we're going to brainstorm. Second, do you want some? And third, remember, you're up against a briefcase. The bar isn't that high." He wandered into the kitchen with Sara trailing behind him.
"Har har har. Thank you SO much, you've been a BIG help." She said sarcastically, rolling her eyes as she accepted the cup of steaming coffee from Riku. After a few quiet sips from his coffee Riku finally spoke.
"Okay, walk me through what you've thought of so far." He said with a sigh.
"I thought about jewelry, but he only ever wears that crown necklace. Then I thought about a book but I don't know what kind of books he likes, and besides he seems to be more into video games. Then I thought maybe a figurine from his favorite game but then I realized he goes through games so fast he doesn't have a favorite. And everything else just seems so impersonal." She took a long sip of her coffee before setting it down and letting out a defeated sigh. Riku thought for a long moment before an idea struck him.
"What about a tattoo? He's mentioned a couple times that he's been considering getting one. You could get him a gift certificate for a tattoo!" Sara practically spit out her coffee.
"A tattoo? Since when has Sora been into tattoos?" She gaped in shock and awe.
"Eh, a few months. Tidus and Wakka have them. Him and Kairi have been talking about the three of us getting matching tattoos and he think he's really considering going through with it. Worst that happens is Sora never gets one and you're out a couple hundred bucks and you try again next year." Riku shrugged.
"That's…that's actually brilliant Riku, THANK YOU." She lunged over the counter and gave him a tight hug.
"Okay, I have to get to work. Thank you for the coffee," she slammed the rest of her cup and grabbed a bagel out of the basket on the counter.
"And I'll see you tomorrow evening at dinner!" She gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek and rushed out the door. Riku was on his third cup of coffee before Sora finally roused out of bed.
"Good morning sleepyhead." Riku said over his cup of coffee.
"G'mornin." Sora mumbled as he shuffled to the bathroom. He was a morning person, after a few minutes, of course. Once Sora had brushed his teeth and gotten through a shower he bounced out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel.
"Ah, that feels much better! How did you sleep?" Sora asked cheerfully as he kissed his boyfriend on the corner of the mouth and reached around him into the cabinet for a mug. Riku grabbed the creamer out of the fridge and handed it to Sora.
"How you drink that flavored stuff I'll never know. It's not even real cream. It's just shortening with sugar." Riku chuckled as Sora poured himself half a glass of creamer before topping it with coffee.
"Says the man that uses both half and half AND sugar." Sora planted a gentle kiss on the older man's shoulder.
"Hey, I use REAL cream."
"I'll show you some real cream later, hot stuff." Sora smirked and gave Riku a light pat on the butt. Riku laughed and pulled his lover in for a kiss. Slipping his tongue between the smaller mans lips he teased the tip of Sora's tongue. Sora moaned and leaned into the kiss. Riku wrapped his arms around Sora's waist and pulled the towel off letting it drop to the floor.
"Who says we have to wait until later?" Riku smirked back and waggled his eyebrows. Sora glanced at the clock and smiled.
"Well, you're almost late for work for one." Riku spun around and looked at the clock.
"SHIT!" He downed the rest of his coffee, gave Sora a rushed kiss and hurried to the bedroom. Hastily throwing on his work clothes.
"So, who was here this morning? I heard you talking to someone." Sora came in and headed to the dresser, pulling on a pair of boxer briefs.
"Oh, Sara needed some advice, so she came by. Why it couldn't have been a phone call at 6 o'clock in the morning I will never know." Riku pulled on some clean socks and his shoes.
"Oh? What about? Is everything okay?" Sora asked pulling on a clean shirt.
"Yeah, just a personal quandary." Riku looked Sora up and down, noticing that he was still flying at half-mast. Damn how he wished he didn't work today. And with that thought he gave Sora a tight kiss and rushed off to work.
"I love you!" He yelled across the apartment before closing the door behind him.
Sora was left standing in the bedroom, frozen. He reached into the bottom of his closet for a shoebox full of old photos. He shuffled over the old photos before his hand closed around a small velvet covered box. Inside sat a simple silver band with a small diamond set into it. He sat on the edge of his and Riku's bed and turning the box over and over in his hand. He couldn't wait for his birthday tomorrow.