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Riku walked steadily towards the small island, the bridge creaking beneath his weight. The Paopu fruit he was holding left his fingers, landed on the make-shift wood, and bounced onto the sand. As he watched, the fruit was dragged away by the stormy ocean current.

Riku let his body relax as he sat on the strangely shaped Paopu tree. His silver hair, which normally flowed with beauty, was a Smokey gray, soaked with teardrops from the sky.

'This is what happens Riku,' a defensive voice in his head whispered 'this is what happens when you lay your emotions on the line, feel this searing pain? Thi8s is rejection, you've felt this, don't you understand? You were never meant to feel.'

Tears streamed down his unmarred face. And he began to believe it.

The memory flashed through Riku's head again. He sighed as he placed his hand on the lone window in his room, watching the raindrops fall almost like they had on that day. It was true. He didn't feel anymore, nothing but emptiness.

If only he could go back, back to when he was a happy, boundless child. He turned away from the window, his handprint sliding down the cold. What was happiness?

He sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the mess of papers, photos and collected items he had sorted through and dumped out. He picked up a frame containing a photo of him and his family, and stared at the smiling boy beneath his father's arm he used to be.

Happiness must be having a family. His father had left when he was seven, his mother was distant and he knew she didn't really care about what he did. It took all the common sense he had to not kill himself or get hooked on drugs.

Oh, but what a sweet rapture it would be! To not feel, care, desire, or need. But he knew he never would be able to bring himself to do it, which only succeeded in making him feel worse.

He began to dig through the memories again. This time he pulled out a note. A note that Sora had written to him.

'Hey, Riku,

Wanna play some blitzball after class?

Sora'

Sora. Another piece of him he could never have. Although his daydreams provided him solitude, Sora was never far from his mind.

And with that, Riku stepped into the rain. It quickly soaked him, and he stared at the drowning world around him. He spent a few minutes pondering why he was doing this and why he was here, but walked off, dismissing his worries as a chickens.

Now standing in front of Sora's window, he lightly threw a pebble at the thin pane of glass. As Sora came to the window, Riku noticed his breath shortening and his heart beating faster and faster.

The latch on the frame clicked and Sora flung open the window. A gust of wind blew back his brunet hair.

"Hey, Riku, what are you doing out in the rain?" he asked breezily, as if Riku showing up to his window in the pouring rain was a daily occurrence.

"I—" all Riku managed to get out before his throat dried up, which, he noted with sarcasm, was ironic as the rest of him was completely drenched.

"You what?" Sora prodded and, lifting his leg over his windowsill, he slides down a vine reaching to the ground. Riku gulps as Sora shakes his head playfully. His hair soaks and begins to weigh down.

"Sure is great out here in the rain, what'd you want?" Sora says and does a cartwheel down the beach, not the slightest clue to what Riku has to say. He walked onto the sand and watched Sora run onto the wharf and plop down on the edge of it. He smiled and beckoned Riku to join him. Riku walked up onto the wharf slowly, deliberately taking his time.

"I haven't got all day here Riku," Sora complained, rain dripping from his hair, making its way down his smooth face, and leaving his chin.

"Pipe down porcupine head," Riku retorted as he sat next to Sora on the soaked dock. Sora dropped his shoes on the sand and Riku followed suit, his infamous large shoes dropping next to Sora's.

"Will you tell me what you were going to say now? You've got me all nervous now," Sora said and flashed Riku his signature grin. Riku smiled slightly, a nervousness rising in him again. He stared at Sora. The boy was beautiful. Riku pushed the silver hair out of his face and took a deep breath.

"Sora, I—I-love you."

Sora blinked.

"Huh?" he whispered, as his voice was giving out. Riku's eyes drifted down to the dotted ocean.

"I love you Sora, and I know you probably don't like me—"

"Riku."

"And I'm sorry—"

"Riku, listen-"

"I'm sorry for how I've treated you all these years when really I died inside every time I saw you smile at Kairi and I never wanted to hurt you, S—" Riku was stopped abruptly as Sora's lips brushed his roughly. Sora had quickly pounced on Riku, who had fallen back onto the wharf. Riku's hand reached to gain his balance when he realized there was no dock left and they both fell into the water.

"Ah!" Riku yelled as he helped Sora up from the water "What're you doing? Trying to kill us both?"

"We're not gonna die from falling a few feet Riku!" Sora spit out the water he had nearly swallowed. Everything suddenly went silent and Riku took a step closer to Sora.

"I never liked Kairi, I thought you liked her, that's why I went to rescue her, so you would be happy," Sora babbled and blushed up at Riku. Riku smiled broadly and kissed Sora again.

"I love you Riku," Sora said breathlessly and smiled as Riku's heart melted.

"I love you too Sora," Riku repeated as breathlessly as Sora and they both smiled.

And suddenly the rain stopped.

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