And I wonder, when I sing along with you

If everything could ever be this real forever

If anything could ever be this good again

The only thing I'll ever ask of you:

You gotta promise not to stop when I say when.

I wish everyone didn't hate me so much; especially for things that aren't my fault in the first place. It gets so hard to suppress these thoughts sometimes.

If we were our bodies, If we were our futures, If we were our defenses, I'd be joining you.

+++

Riku breathed deeply, taking in the clean scent of the sea mingled with the musty odor his and Sora's bodies which were so closely bound together. He ran his fingers through the sleeping boy's hair, smiling at the look of peace on his face. 'So childlike, but when he opens those eyes...'

The older boy hoped that Sora's eyes were no longer tearstained, but now rested. He looked out to the ocean and noticed that it was nearly sunset. 'Wow, have we really been asleep that long?' He gently rolled the younger boy off of himself and dressed. Sora moaned in his sleep and turned over, the setting sun's light illuminating every curve and muscle with a soft glow.

Riku smiled at the sight and leaned in to kiss his love. Sora reflexively reached up and wrapped his arms around Riku's shoulders, pulling him closer. "Want another go?" He teased.

"Maybe later." Riku smiled and kissed him lightly. "Right now, you should probably get dressed." Sora looked at the older boy's clothed form and then down at his naked body.

"Yeah, probably should." He grinned and put his clothes back on. When he was dressed, he slipped his arms around Riku's waist. "Your hair looks rather rumpled." He smiled, kissing his lover's neck softly.

"Hm. Not the first time." He replied. They both laughed lightly. "Well, should we go?"

"Go where?"

"I don't know. I don't really want to sleep in that treehouse again. It's been so long since I've lain in a real bed." He sighed. The mere thought of a soft mattress and pillows made him feel fuzzy.

"We could stay at Kairi's, I guess." Sora suggested.

"No, she doesn't have an extra room... Hey, why don't we stay at my place? My folks will be glad to see us back." Though he had no brothers or sisters, Riku was careful not to say 'parents'.

"That sounds good. We could sleep in your room." He put on a sly smile. "But, uh, won't your parents, um, /hate/ you if you tell them we're in love?"

"Yep." He replied casually. "But they don't have to know that yet, do they?" He kissed Sora quickly on the cheek.

"Hey, weren't you the one who wanted to tell the whole world about us?" Sora questioned indignantly.

"Yeah, but not at the cost of free room and board." He laughed heartily, releasing Sora and running down the boardwalk. Sora chased him, laughing as well.

They eventually found Kairi again. She was sitting on a post at the shore- end of a pier, smiling at them. "So, did you work everything out?" She winked at Riku.

"Huh?" Sora blinked. What was /that/ all about?

"Yep, everything's fine now." He winked back at her and nudged Sora with his elbow, whom laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head.

"Um, if you don't mind me asking, what are you talking about?" Sora cocked an eyebrow and smiled uncertainly at them.

"Oh, yeah. Should probably tell you. Kairi knows." Riku grinned at him.

"WHAT?! You /told/? Riku, I thought-"

"He didn't /tell/ me," Kairi interrupted, "I figured it out on my own. I guess I knew for a while, but now it was just so /obvious/." She smiled at him.

"So you're ok with it?" He looked at her hesitantly.

"Oh, yeah! I got over you a /long/ time ago, Sora." She laughed and pushed him playfully. He laughed too, and they moved off the subject. "So, what're your plans for tonight?" She asked coyly.

"Well, we were thinking about going to my parent's house tonight." Riku answered.

Kairi's reaction was the same as Sora's. "Yo-You're not going to... To /tell/ them, are you?" She looked at him wide-eyed.

"Of course not!" He replied defensively. "Not yet, anyway."

"Ok." She calmed down. "Just be careful, you two. I don't want to see anything bad happen to you; not when you've waited so long to be together."

"Thanks, Kairi." Riku smiled warmly at her. She was a true-blue friend.

"C'mon, I'll take you there. It'll be better if I tell them first, or else they're liable to freak out thinking you're ghosts if you just appear on their doorstep in the middle of the night."

The pair followed her to the door of Riku's home. It was a modest, two- story beach house, with many large windows and a wooden front door. The sun was still setting when Kairi knocked cautiously.

"Kairi! What are you doing here so late?" Riku's mother answered the door, her black hair done up in a loose bun, seagreen eyes showing concern for the girl.

"I have something to tell you... Well, show you, actually. Please promise you won't freak out." Kairi bit her lip.

"'Freak out'? Why would I do that? I'll be fine, dear." She smiled warmly.

"Ok. Um, guys? You can come out now." She called around the door. Riku and Sora stepped out slowly, careful not to make close contact with each other in a time of extreme nervousness.

"R.. R-Riku? Is that my Riku? And Sora! My God! How did you...? Oh God!" She rushed out of the door, hugging both of them tightly, showering Riku with motherly kisses. "I've missed you so much! Oh, my son! You've returned at last!"

She pulled them all inside and sat them at the kitchen table, putting a kettle on the stove to make tea. "What's all this noise about?" Riku's father came pounding down the stairs, cleaning off his glasses. His blue eyes squinted in the general direction of the kitchen as he ran a hand through his short, silver-white hair. "Do we have company at this late hour? I thought I said no more-"

"Look who's here, dear!" His mother stood and gestured at their son and his companions. Riku stood out of respect.

"Hello, Father." He bowed, waiting for a reply.

"Riku." His father replaced his glasses and looked at the tall boy, no, man, standing in his kitchen. "Is that really you?" He scrutinized the other with his eyes, surveying every aspect of him, as if people came in every day pretending to be his lost son. "Hm. Untidy as ever. That's my son." He placed a large hand on Riku's shoulder. "Good to see you again." He smiled, but there was no warmth in those pale, blue eyes.

"Thank you, sir." Riku replied automatically and sat down. His mother noticed the tension in the air and quickly spoke up.

"Well, would you like some tea or would you rather go to bed?" She smiled at them.

"I'm kinda tired." Sora yawned. "Where can I sleep?"

"Oh, why, Riku's room, of course. You don't mind, do you dear?" She placed a gentle hand on Riku's back.

"Not at all."

"Good! Well, if you're sleepy, then I guess you should go. We can talk in the morning." They said their goodnights and bid Kairi farewell. Riku's parents went to their bedroom as the boys proceeded down the hall to theirs.

Riku cautiously pushed open the door to reveal his room exactly the way he had left it. Well, a bit cleaner, of course, but still in essence exactly the same. "Leave it to mom." He smiled. "Well, I guess they forgot that there's only one bed in here." He smirked at his companion.

"I can always sleep on the floor." Sora joked, finding a nice spot to lay down.

"Hey, I don't want you messing up my clean floor!" He picked up the younger boy a dropped him on the bed. Riku shut the door and climbed on top of Sora. "I'd rather have you mess up my bed sheets." He kissed Sora deeply, pulling his body close.

"Whatever you say." He breathed into his lover's neck. They turned on their sides and Sora lay cradling Riku to his chest. Not soon after, they had both fallen asleep.

+++

Don't you just love those 'aww' moments?

"...The next scene, 'The Lovers are Discovered!'" Ok, the next chapter won't really be sappy or fluffy, but more angsty and dark. I'm going to use some slurs. Please don't take offense if you're homosexual. I'm bi too, don't forget. I, uh, yeah. Riku's dad is an ass. If you haven't figured it out yet, believe me, you will soon. Stupid closed-minded bastard. Why do you think Riku wanted to leave that damn island so badly? More reasons to 'hate this place', with all his heart. Oh well.

This one's for my lover

The one who had to suffer

Well here I am

Don't even bother.

Well you can freak out about me.