AN: Alright! I'm so glad I was able to get a chapter in before I leave. I have so much stuff to do over the next few days.( I'll be gone for 10 days, meaning I'll be coming back the 25th. But don't worry. I'll try to write out the next chapter or two by hand and when I get back I'll type it and put it up as soon as I can. This chapter talks about Riku approaching Sora again. I hope you guys like it. I'll miss you all!

By the way, did you guys read the review I got by Shadow of Sora?. It made me feel kinda down but I know it isn't true. (they did apologize though so that's good) But please, leave me nice reviews and make me happy!!!! Oh, and Lyphe- how can I do multiple reviews? Tell me your secret!

Also, I just wanted to let you guys know that there will probably be only two or three chapters after this one. Just giving you a heads up!

Disclaimer: I'm getting tired with writing this all the time. I don't own Kingdom Hearts. I do own several other things of lesser value, though. Like my hunk of junk old computer!

Chapter Eight: An Unexpected Turn

The party had been over for a while, and everyone returned to their homes after helping to clean up a bit. I had told Kairi that I would talk with Sora, and she agreed it would be best if she didn't come. She said that Sora might be able to open up to me better if she wasn't there.

Well, I wasn't sure if he'd open up to me at all. As I walked up to his house, I expected the door to be locked. But it wasn't. So I opened it and walked inside, only to be greeted by a rush of hot air. Was Sora aware that it was hotter in here than it was outside? He must have forgotten to turn on the air conditioner or something. By the time I made it up to his room I was sweating a great deal. I thought I'd find a melted puddle of Sora when I went into his room.

But his door was open a crack and I gently pushed it open. "Sora?"

He was sitting on his bed, and he actually looked half melted. His hair was lopsided and hanging down from lack of gel. It didn't look like he had gotten much sleep, because he had bags under his eyes. His face was still pale and he was sweating a great deal much more than I was. His clothes were even the same from yesterday.

It looked like once Kairi and I left yesterday he had gone out of the bathroom, sat on his bed, and hadn't moved at all. When I called his name he didn't even look up. Was he even alive?

"Uh, Sora?" I said once again. "Are you aware that this house is like a fire pit? Don't you want to turn on the air conditioning?" I didn't really care about him that much, but for the most part I was saying that for my sake. I wiped a few beads of sweat that were trickling down the side of my face, waiting for an answer.

Sora shrugged, his eyes still fixed on the floor. I walked a few steps and sat down next to him on the bed. "Uh, whatever." I decided to change the subject. "Anyways, you missed my 'welcome back' party. Everyone was there. Kairi and I shared a paopu fruit, too." Sora shrugged again, though I think he stiffened a bit when I mentioned the paopu.

"Listen. Why don't you come with Kairi and me and we can race again, just like old times, huh? How about it?"

Sora scoffed. "You'll just beat me like you always do," he mumbled.

What? I still won the races? That made me glad. I guess even though Sora and I switched places I was still stronger than him and kept my own attributes. I smiled inwardly.

"Do you want to talk to Kairi instead?" I asked. She'd make him feel worse. Kairi would probably tell him all the reasons she likes him but then say she likes me better and it has to be that way. Well, it was true.

"No. I don't want to talk to anyone." Sora sighed. "No one will understand. Not even you."

I smiled. "Oh, but I do. I know exactly how you are feeling. Or, at least I did know how you felt."

"Huh?" Sora looked up at me for the first time.

Oops. Can't let anything spill. They couldn't know about me going to the past and all to change everything. Though I bet if I told them they wouldn't believe me. But still... "Never mind. What I'm trying to say is..." Then I stopped. What was I trying to say? Sure, I knew I had come here to make Sora miserable, but how else could I do that?

Then I thought up a plan. I'd make Sora suffer for a few days more, then once he gets over it I guess we could still be friends. Just like what I had said before. Sora was still my friend, in a way, but I guess friends do turn against each other. I knew that now Sora resented me and I resented him. But it wouldn't be fun for him to stay like that forever. I mean, I'd still have Kairi and all the while he could still hang around with us a bit.

Yet now it looked to me that he was getting really depressed. I had been truly devastated that Kairi had chosen Sora over me before all of this, and my outward anger, jealousy and sadness were destroying me. But Sora did things differently. He kept it all on the inside, until one day it would finally grow so large that he'd explode.

I sighed. "Well, Sora. There's nothing else none of us can do but wait until things wear down. Then it'll be back to normal."

Sora glared at me. "Yeah, normal as in you get Kairi and I'm stuck here with nothing. Do you even know what she meant to me?"

I was a little taken aback. "Yes," I said, in an equally annoyed tone. "But she means more to me. You don't know what I was willing to do to make her mine."

Sora stood up, walking to his window, staring outside. "Yes I do. You were willing to become the Keyblade Master and save everyone and sacrifice yourself for her. But I risked my life so that she could live." He turned to face me, looking almost like a ghost. "Sure, I was on the wrong side. But how was I to know that? I was given fake promises, and I ultimately plunged deeper and deeper into the darkness without realizing it. But don't you see? We both did what we had to do to save Kairi. And I feel like she hasn't even thanked me a bit!" Sora was breathing heavily, his voice slowly rising.

"And she doesn't seem to recognize all that I did for her! I spent two years with her alone. And you know what? She would always be talking about you. 'I wonder where Riku is. I hope he comes home soon.' It was like she was in a trance. She practically ignored all of us on the island, but me the most." His fists clenched, then he loosened them and let them hang loosely by his side. His burning blue eyes were all that seemed to have life, and they penetrated me deep.

"But....but I think I know why she kept her distance from me. She was afraid she might start forgetting about you and start falling for me. Maybe she thought that you might come back any day and she would've betrayed you. Well you know what?! She betrayed me! We were supposed to be friends, and I would've kept it that way if I knew this stupid thing would tear us apart!"

He finally stopped, all of his words suddenly losing their energy. My eyes widened a little too. Did I hear him correctly? He would've been happy just with us being friends? I stood up.

"Sora, I love Kairi too much to only be friends. Sure, it wouldn't be as bad if she wasn't going out with either of us. But to me it would be impossible. I wouldn't be able to keep it in. It would just be too hard to transform my love for Kairi into friendship only," I spoke.

Sora turned around again, his hands gripping the sides of his window. "Well, to tell you the truth, I kind of feel the same way. It's too hard to see you two together. I mean, just look at me. I've fallen apart and it hasn't even been two days. I just...I just wish things were different..." His tone wasn't harsh anymore.

That was too true to what I had been feeling. Those were my thoughts not too long ago. But I hoped that Sora wouldn't get the same chance I did to turn everything around. I began walking towards the door. "Sometimes wishes don't come true. I don't know everything, but something tells me that things aren't going to change around here. So you're just going to have to live with it all. I...I guess I'll see you later."

I left the room, but only pretended to walk away. I still stood against his wall, within hearing range. There was something about the way Sora was acting that was explainable, yet I felt like he had more to say, though he didn't get those words out to me.

There was only silence for a few minutes, then I heard the floorboards creak as Sora took a few steps around. He opened a few drawers, fumbling with some items, then I think he sat down on the bed. Everything was quiet again for a little while until Sora spoke up again, talking to himself.

"So...I'm going to have to live with it all? Well, I...I just can't. I can't live with Kairi not being mine. I guess it's impossible to do so." He sighed. "So I guess there's only one other option I have..." I heard a few faint noises, small little clicks. Then I realized...

"Sora, no!" I jumped into his room. I was right. Sora...he had a gun in his hand. This was totally unexpected. He was going to kill himself?

Sora jumped, and looked like he was about to faint. The gun slid from his hands and clanked onto the floor. "R-Riku!"

Before he could do anything I grabbed the gun, careful to point it downwards. Sora got over his shock and glared at me. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?!"

"I'm not going to let you kill yourself Sora." For some reason I didn't want him to kill himself. Sure, I had wanted him hurt and depressed, but I still had Kairi so I didn't want this to happen. "Come on, Sora. Don't do this."

Sora was still looking at me strangely. "You were spying on me?!"

I sighed. "I just wanted to know what was up with you. I mean, I know why you're angry but still..."

"Please Riku. I have nothing to live for. I just want to kill myself and end it all. What good will happen to me while I'm here. Nothing good has ever happened to me."

My fingers rolled over the sleek metal of the gun, my hands still extremely sweaty from the heat. "Not like this, Sora. Kairi and I are your friends and we need you too. You can't just leave us."

"Yes I can!" Sora yelled and lunged at the weapon. I easily kept it away from him. I pushed Sora back onto the bed.

"You know what? I'm going to get Kairi," I said. "And she'll tell you how much she still cares about you. Granted, you're only her friend. But on the plus side, you're her friend. Just listen to what she and I will say to you. Then you can decide."

Sora pouted for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Fine. But...but I really don't see the point. You two are obviously together happily, so why should I get in the way. I never really mattered anyways."

I sighed. "I'll get her and come back in a few minutes. Just promise me you won't move until then."

"I promise." His deep blue eyes bit into my skin but they told me his words were sincere.

I nodded, then turned, still wondering myself why I was so concerned with saving Sora's life. I mean, yeah, I knew that he was my friend and I still had plenty of good times with him, but half of me wanted him gone. It was true he could still get in the way of Kairi and I, but I knew that Kairi would still be devastated if he committed suicide. And I certainly didn't want Kairi to be hurt.

The strange feeling inside of my continued to grow, and for a moment, I had almost forgotten that it was there. But this incident was causing me to question some of my thoughts. I shook them off for now, concentrating on reaching Kairi as quickly as I could. She would be able to help mediate between Sora's decision of life...or death...