Riku stood at the door to Jasmine's apartment, trying his best to not look as anxious as he felt.

But ever since the night he'd gotten that call from Jasmine, his mind was ill at ease.

Something was off about Jasmine…indefinitely.

From the phone call alone, he could tell that she wasn't her usual self. Her voice was raspy, she was slower to respond, and the energy wasn't what it used to be. He already knew that she'd come out of the hospital and was recovering from…whatever it was that happened to her, but Riku had a sneaky suspicion that she was in worse shape than she was letting on.

"I'd like to see you," she told him. "I just really want to talk to you about some stuff."

Riku ran a hand through his freshly cut silver hair.

Though he was happy that they were finally able to meet up, Riku was certain that whatever it was that Jasmine wanted to speak with him, it wasn't going to be good news.

Riku put his apprehension aside when the door swung open as he found himself standing before Tifa, Jasmine's godmother.

"Riku! It's so good to see you," she said cheerfully as she ushered him inside. Once the door was locked tightly behind them, Tifa gave Riku a hug, which he returned graciously.

"Hi, Tifa," he said with a warm smile. "It's good to see you too."

Tifa stepped back and gave Riku a once over. "You get more handsome every time I see you. Come this way," she said as she led him through the apartment. "How are your parents?"

"They're good," Riku replied casually. "My mom says she'll call you this week. I'm sure she wants to get dinner or something like that."

"I'd like that," Tifa beamed as they entered the kitchen. She motioned for Riku to take a seat at the bar, which he did. "Can I get you something to drink? Water? Tea?"

Riku stuffed his hands in his jean pockets. "Water would be great actually."

Tifa stood on her toes and reached into the cabinet to pull out a glass. She went over to the refrigerator and filled the glass to the top before handing it off to Riku. "Don't worry," she said knowingly in a hushed tone. "I'll make myself scarce so you guys can talk."

Riku smiled ruefully. Tifa was somehow always in the middle of his…interactions with Jasmine whether they were good or bad.

"Thank you," he said softly, watching Tifa step back and close the cabinet doors. "If you don't mind me asking, do you know what's going on?"

"With what, dear?" Tifa asked sweetly.

Riku paused, not a hundred percent sure of where to start. "Jasmine. I'm kind of surprised she wanted to see me…we haven't really had a chance to talk like this since…high school honestly."

Tifa understood what he meant now. "To be honest I have no idea," she said. "She's on vacation for the next three weeks and is on medical leave. I told her it would be good to see her friends, so I imagine that's what this is regarding."

Riku accepted the answer.

It seemed plausible enough.

But as it sunk in, Tifa took note of the puzzled look on Riku's face.

While she wasn't aware of what exactly transpired on the call between Jasmine and Riku, she was confident that it wouldn't be a totally, drama-free conversation between old friends.

So, she took it upon herself to give him a heads up.

"She hasn't been doing so well," Tifa warned quietly. "I think you being here will cheer her up a bit."

Before Riku could press on, a knock interrupted him and Tifa. They turned around and saw Jasmine standing at the other end of the kitchen. Unlike Riku, who was dressed up a bit more, Jasmine was more laid back in her sweatpants and oversized hoodie with her hair in a messy bun.

"Hi Riku," she said hoarsely. "It's good to see you."

Riku rose from his seat and walked over to Jasmine, putting about five feet of distance between the two of them. "Good to see you too, Faye."

Tifa took this as her cue to leave and decided to head out. "Alright you guys," she said after she cleared her throat. She grabbed her purse that was sitting nearby and made her way towards the door. "I'll be back in a little while. Let me know if you need anything."

"We will," Jasmine called out. "See you, Tifa."

Tifa gave the pair a smile before she headed out and only once they heard a door close in the distance, did either one of them speak.

Jasmine stared at Riku curiously. "I'm surprised you still call me by my first name."

Riku picked up on the energy shift between him and Jasmine, noticing that the air was a lot heavier now that Tifa was gone.

"You want me to go back to calling you "Jasmine"?" Riku asked curiously, taking in Jasmine's appearance more. Even though she was fully covered, he could make out a few cuts and scrapes on her neck and hands, as if she'd been in a fight. On top of that, her skin seemed to be a bit paler with her eyes having heavy dark circles underneath.

Jasmine scoffed before offering him an apologetic smile. "No," she replied. "I'm glad you do."

Because she turned her back on him and headed towards the living room, she hadn't had a chance to see Riku's smile. He grabbed his glass of water, following Jasmine into her lavish living room. She took a seat on one of the plush sofas while Riku took a seat opposite of her, still maintaining some distance between them.

He took a moment and stared at the spacious, elegantly decorated living room. Even though he grew up in an affluent household, even he had to admit that Jasmine's penthouse apartment was impressive. He would even probably go as far as to say that it was one of the nicest places he'd ever been in – and he'd seen a lot of beautiful homes in his time.

"This place is so big," he remarked, his eyes falling on a giant vase of lilies sitting atop the piano near the window. "It's definitely the nicest apartment I've ever been in."

"Thank you," she replied. "It's a bit much," she admitted. "But hey, I have to live somewhere."

Riku could just look at the size of the apartment alone (all the amenities and décor aside being a whole different beast) and figured that Jasmine and the prince were paying a hefty price tag to live here. "I'd say you're doing alright though if you're in a place like this."

Jasmine sighed and crossed her legs. "I guess. It's the least SOLDIER could do for me considering I'm sticking my neck out for them all the time."

Riku took noted of the pointed comment, pinning that for later. "I heard you were on vacation. Needed a break?"

Jasmine shut her eyes, the events of Traverse Town beginning to play over again in her mind. She didn't want to have an episode right now in front of Riku.

"Something like that," she commented, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. Jasmine licked her lips and turned away from Riku, hesitating before she spoke. "I got hurt on my last mission. This week it's all doctor's visits, and then I get a break. It was the worst assignment I've ever been on."

Riku leaned forward, curious about this assignment she went on. "Can you tell me about it?" Riku asked cautiously.

Jasmine sighed and folded her hands in her lap. "No," she replied. "I wish I could though."

Riku's heart sank. He knew that Jasmine couldn't say too much about her job. After all, she technically worked in espionage which meant that most of what she did was top secret and confidential. In the back of his mind, he was used to them having open conversations like they did in the past. But now that she was in SOLDIER, things were different.

So, Riku approached it from a different angle.

"What can you tell me?"

Jasmine adjusted the sleeve on her hoodie and avoided eye contact with Riku.

There was a heavy silence that followed, lasting much longer than Riku would've liked. He knew she wasn't supposed to give actual details for what happened, but it seemed like there was more than just the mission on her mind. He'd known her for years and despite the amount of time that passed, and the strain previously put on their relationship, he knew her behaviors better than anyone else.

"All I can say," she said slowly and carefully, "is that I've never seen such a disregard for the lives of other people and that I hope I don't have to deal with that again. Ever. I've never seen anything more horrifying in my life – and that includes me seeing my parents dead."

Riku could feel the venom dripping from each word. Whatever happened was serious. And even though she didn't give specific details, he knew that there was death somewhere in the mix.

"Are you sick?" He asked, hoping to change the subject slightly. "Your voice is a little raspy."

Jasmine appeared bothered by the question and started fiddling with her sleeve. "I got caught in a fire and inhaled a lot of smoke. But it's getting better. It'll just take some time."

The more and more Riku was hearing, the more worried he became. "Was this the same mission?"

"Yeah."

Another thought crossed his mind. One that he almost didn't want to even touch.

"Wasn't your partner there? Where is he?"

Jasmine pulled her bangs off her face and tilted her head back. "No. We don't always take the same jobs. It's rare, but it happens. I was with Ven and his team."

Riku noticed that Jasmine didn't answer the second question. So, he asked again.

"Where's the prince?"

"On another mission. He should be back in a couple of days."

Riku laughed, immediately catching Jasmine off guard. "I figured as much. I don't think he likes me. I'm not sure he'd want me hanging out here."

"That's on you," she deadpanned, pointing a finger at him. "You guys got into it, remember? Tifa told me what happened."

Riku rubbed his temples, his mind taking him back to the day when he and the prince got into that argument. As a matter of fact, ever since Riku saw Jasmine at Naminé's event with Noctis, he'd always been jealous of the prince. In truth, that was what fueled his drunken fight with Jasmine that night.

"The next time I see him I'll apologize. I know that's your partner and I don't want to add to your stress."

Jasmine was genuinely shocked….but in a good way. It wasn't like Riku to go out of his way to apologize to someone. What changed to make him want to do this?

Seemingly reading her mind, Riku went on to explain himself. "I want us to keep working on our friendship and go back to being close," he started. "And if the prince is your partner, I don't want it to make it weird for you. Besides, I was wrong. It's only right that I fix it."

Jasmine didn't know what to say. It was really thoughtful of Riku to take her situation into consideration. It seemed like Riku had been changing in their time apart. She had to admit – she liked what she was seeing.

"It's weird," she trailed off, finally looking Riku directly in his beautiful blue/green eyes.

"What's weird?" He asked, meeting her gaze.

"It feels like some things are the same with us, but a lot changed too – especially with you."

Riku chuckled and reached for his water. "I'm not acting like a jealous asshole anymore so I'm sure that helps."

Jasmine's cheeks began to heat up and so she rolled her eyes to offset it. "A lot was going on there. You were a jackass but I get where you were coming from. We had a nasty breakup and you didn't know what was going on. I get how seeing me with Noctis might've triggered you."

Riku was shocked. Was she actually talking about their past?

"I don't know if I actually thought you both were together," Riku admitted, trying to think about where he was mentally back then. "But I really didn't have a leg to stand on. I was in a relationship with Aria. Even if you were with him, I was with someone else. In hindsight, it really wasn't fair to her. I don't know what made me do that honestly."

Jasmine's chest tightened. She called Riku over to talk, but she hadn't expected things to get this deep between them. All this talk of old relationships and exes? They hadn't been this open with each other since everything went down with Vanitas.

"I can't say I've always made the best decisions either," Jasmine admitted honestly. "If we're on this path when you guys came to Radiant Garden, I leaned too heavily on Roxas for a while."

Riku's ears perked up. He hadn't heard this story before. He knew that Roxas and Jasmine were communicating with each other last year, but he didn't know to what extent.

"What do you mean?"

"Roxas and I started running into each other and kinda hung out a little. But I knew I could never really be with him in the way that he needed or wanted. If I'm being honest with you? I hated how things ended with him and I've held onto that for a long time."

Riku clung to Jasmine's every word. While he had a slight idea of what had gone on between Jasmine and Roxas, this was the first time she'd ever been open about what happened. Riku knew for a while that Roxas still had feelings for Jasmine and remembered when Roxas started being more withdrawn.

"Did you ever actually love him? I know he loved you."

Seeing as this was a question Jasmine had gotten often, she already knew exactly how to respond. "Part of me did but it just never worked out. In high school, I was too immature and last year I wasn't emotionally or even logistically capable of being with anyone. I was toxic and I knew Roxas deserved better. I'm just glad he landed with Olette and doesn't completely hate me."

"Roxas could never hate you," Riku explained. "And I think he understood better than anyone else what you were going through. I think he hated me a bit when he found out we were dating back then. Not like it lasted that long…"

Jasmine stared at Riku for a good while.

Perhaps it was because she was exhausted or maybe it was because she was still having a hard time emoting, but she found it strangely easy to talk to him about their past.

Comforting even.

But then Jasmine remembered that above all else, she and Riku had been great friends years ago. They talked every day, they spent time together outside of school, and they leaned on each other for support when things were tough. Even though they fought on a regular basis and got on each other's nerves, they did love each other: romantically and platonically.

"Faye…"

Riku's voice pierced through the silence, snapping Jasmine back to the present.

"Yes?"

Riku gave Jasmine an all-knowing stare. "What's wrong? I know you can't tell me everything, but I can tell that you're not completely here if that makes sense. You don't seem to be yourself."

Jasmine's heart began to race.

"Why do you say that?"

Riku lifted an eyebrow, surprised that Jasmine would part her lips to say such a thing. "Really? We've always known when something was wrong with each other. Just because we've had our issues doesn't mean I don't notice little things."

Jasmine tore her eyes away from Riku.

How could she tell him what was wrong with her when she wasn't even fully sure of what it was she was going through herself?

But she called him over to talk, and so she had to be honest…to the best of her abilities anyway.

"It's…ever since that last mission," she said, still keeping her gaze away from Riku, "I haven't been…able to really feel…"

Riku was confused. "You can't feel? Feel what?"

"I don't really feel anything…emotionally," she explained. "It's like there's a block and I can't figure out what's wrong or why. I know I have PTSD, but it doesn't make sense."

Riku was at a loss. When he initially got the call to come by and visit Jasmine, he honestly thought the conversation would go a different direction. Maybe they'd talk about life, catch up, the usual. But Jasmine was in worse shape than he thought and he truly didn't know how to help her.

Just then…

Riku's eyes lit up.

"Huh? What's wrong?" Jasmine asked, staring at Riku with a puzzled expression on her face.

The silver-haired young man jumped to his feet and hurried over to Jasmine, taking a seat right next to her on the couch.

Her eyes widened when he leaned close to her, surprised at how quickly he had gone from silent and analytical to excited and confident.

"You said you're on vacation, right?" He asked curiously.

Jasmine straightened her back and scooted a few inches away from Riku. He was so close that she could practically feel his cool breath on her face. And while years ago it wouldn't have bothered her, with everything going on the short distance between them was a bit much.

"Yeah…why?" She eyed him carefully, wondering what he had up his sleeve.

Riku, who took no offense to Jasmine putting some space between them, grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I think you've been caught up with SOLDIER for too long," he stated, "you haven't had a lot of freedom to just relax and do things you used to enjoy doing."

Jasmine, who tried her best to not focus on Riku's touch, was still a bit lost. "Go on…" she trailed off.

"Take a break from your team and spend some time with us," he proposed. "You might need a change of scenery. Halloween is coming up, a few parties here and there and, if you want, you can hang out with us on campus. If you're comfortable with it, you and I can hang out too. How does that sound?"

Jasmine didn't know what to say.

All these years she'd done her best to put distance between herself and her old life.

Well, run far, far, away was more like it…

Now, here was Riku, the same person she'd had the most chaotic, turbulent relationship with since the beginning of her new life on the Destiny Islands, who was trying to pull her back in.

The same person who had hurt, healed, and hurt and healed her time and time again, the person she had loved so fiercely it pained her, who had (rightfully) cut her out of his life, was welcoming her back with open arms and then some.

Just then, Jasmine's heart began to race and something very familiar but still distant to her began to overwhelm her. She just couldn't place what it was.

"It's not just me," he continued, seeing the hesitation in her eyes. "You've got Sora, Kairi, Naminé, Roxas, and everyone else here for you. Just so you know, you're not as alone as you think. We're here to take care of you just as you've taken care of us all this time. What do you say?"

Jasmine opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she realized she was holding Riku's hand. That same sensation she'd felt before started to swell within her and intensified. It threw her off, and she didn't know what to make of it, but there was something incredibly comforting about Riku's plea and his touch.

"Okay," she said finally, after what felt like hours.

"Really?"

Jasmine nodded her head and pulled her hand from Riku's just so that she could adjust her glasses. "Let's do it. It might be good for me to get out of here a bit more."

Relieved that Jasmine agreed, he let out a sigh. "I'm glad," he said, smiling sweetly at her.

The raven-haired girl's heart skipped a beat. It had been a long time since she and Riku were able to speak like this. They'd been running away from each other for so long that it didn't seem real they were having this moment.

But what was even more shocking was the way Riku looked at Jasmine.

The last time he'd looked at her like this was when they were together and thoroughly in love with each other.

Still, Jasmine shook the thought from her mind before it went too far.

She couldn't risk entertaining such a thought.

Especially after everything that happened between her and Riku, her and Ventus, and, most currently, with her and Noctis.

But still, it was good to feel supported and cared for by the people she cared for most. And who was she to turn down their kindness again?

So, she dug deep within herself and offered Riku a small smile.

"Me too," she whispered. "Thank you, Riku."

Author's Note: As I said, I'm trying to get better with these updates haha. I still wanna hear what you guys think of both chapters. I hope you guys are doing okay and I'll see you next time! Hopefully next week, so look out for that! Take care!