Again, another random story I created that would have gotten nowhere in the actual world of fan fiction (Another crappy high school thing plus an ugly plot that I wasn't about to insult you guys with), so I focused on the one scene I was particularily fond of and made it into a drabble that I am actually happy with.

Dedications? Um... Aki-chan. Her latest fic and its romance scenes have really helped to develop my unfamiliar (Erm...unnatural) taste for slightly romantic dealies. And again, you're graced with another randomly created quote designed during the posting process. Enjoy.

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It's strange... Being friends with someone for so long; knowing each other's secrets as though they weren't really that, talking so openly you forget there is 'actually' supposed to be a 'gender' filter, feeling so amazingly close that you never even consider anything else... So close...that you fail to see the shade of blushes aren't what you thought they were... Nothing's really like before...is it?

Beneath the Moon's Light

"Truth or Dare?" He looks at her with straight confusion; worry shifts into his expression when her lips mimic a smirk he often used.

"Wh-What?" She steps closer, her eyes burning into his.

"Pick one. You owe me, remember?" He blinks uncertainly, though he knows he's trapped. Glancing away, off towards the night-struck horizon, he answers awkwardly,

"Uhhh...truth?" Her smirk deepens as she straightens up, crosses her arms and laughs devilishly.

"Theoretically speaking, which girl on these Islands would you consider sharing a Paopu fruit with?" Her ocean spheres sparkle with amusement, as his face becomes a very visible red shade, even with the masking abilities of the night.

"Never mind...I'll take Dare..." He regrets the words the second they leave his mouth. Why? Because her expression deepens in enjoyment at his statement.

"I was hoping you'd say that..." His heart skips a few beats at her intense expression; her eyes are warm, but again, devilish. The Islander, who claims to be fearless, now faces the worst case he's ever heard of.

"Wh-Why...?" Slowly, she bends down, but not breaking her gaze with him, and picks up a polished obsidian stone. As she rises to her feet, she tosses it at him. His nervousness affects his hand-eye coordination and he nearly ends up dropping it.

"You have until the end of the week to give that stone to the girl you secretly want to share a Paopu with. And don't tell me there's no one because I know you'll be lying." His lips separate in pure shock as his breath becomes slightly erratic. This is, of course, is brought on by the pounding object in his chest as it slams against his ribcage. He doesn't speak, but his embarrassment and the "What?" expression are wrought over his features.

"You don't have to tell her what it's for, but I have to be able to see who it is. And you better not cop out; otherwise, I'll make you suffer." She smirks as she says this, but he knows she's serious. He does owe her a request, no matter how embarrassing, but this? Is it really worth it?

"C-C'mon...Misty...That's not--You can't be serious!" Her right eyebrow quirks with a slight interest, but she bares a focused stare into his aquamarine eyes and spoke with confidence.

"On the contrary...I'm quite serious...Until the end of the week." She turns nonchalantly and begins to head home. However, she barely reaches the small Island's edge and onto the bridge before he calls out her name again. She stops, and turns in a hybrid of emotions. Slightly exasperated, because she isn't going to argue with him about this, but mostly, because his voice sounded...different that time...

"Yeah...What?" Like him previously, the sudden action of the stone compiled with the internal nervousness catches the girl off-guard and she nearly misses catching it. She stares at the small stone for a second, before narrowing her ocean toned eyes upon his solemned visage.

"Hey! You refusing your challenge?" His shining aquamarine spheres shift to meet hers this time, but now they appear different. They seem to catch every sparkle from the moonlight's shadow and radiate the gorgeous light outwards. A slight breeze shifts his silvery strands about his still embarrassed, but now, determined face. Her heart skips a beat; he's never looked like that before. "Well?"

"No...I'm completing it..." It's her turn to have an increase in heartbeat, tingling fuzziness about her cheeks and her viridian vision to widen slightly.

"Wh-What? What did you say?"

He doesn't respond; instead he turns his back to her, re-facing the calm night ocean and indigo horizon. Her eyes fall back into the shimmering stone in her hand as his words writhe their way into her heart, which begins to pound harder. They stand in a nerve-wracking silence before she slowly gains enough nerve to approach him.

"R-Riku--I..." She trails off when he barely reacts to her sudden repositioning. She shifts in front of him, but he turns away as she does so. Her eyes sadden for a second when he does; they've been such close friends for so long, and yet, at a crucial moment, he wouldn't look at her? But it only lasts a second, and in response, she belts him viciously in the side.

Completely winded, he grips his side in anguish, bending over slightly and turns to her with a slight look of anger, but mostly with a gaze of rejection and confusion.

"Wh-What was that for?" He stops short when his eyes find two sparkling paths of fresh emotion sliding over her beautiful cheeks. He whispers her name softly as she bends down to meet his eye level.

"I had to get your attention somehow... Not my fault you're a wimp with your emotions..." Before he can react, she leans forward, gently closes her eyes and passionately places her lips on his. It isn't some fancy kiss, but it is one that expresses her heart and its thousands of surging emotions at that exact moment.

She gently pulls away, and gazes at him longingly. As if connected by chains, they both rise to their vertical positioning and she moves closer, wrapping her arms around him. Her hands rest on his shoulder blades as she lovingly nuzzles his neck.

"You don't realize how long I've wished to hear you say that..."

He pushes her away slightly and gently lifts her chin up with his right index finger. Once their vision catches again, his hand slides affectionately over her cheek, his palm cupping the moonlit skin. A special smirk passes over his longing lips, one that she could only think to be that of a dream. And it was just for her. His aqua eyes shimmer gorgeously as they take her into them, claiming her as theirs and theirs alone. The playful possessiveness makes her pulsating heart quiver with an emotion unknown, the shiver moving silkily through her emotion-bound entity.

"Now who's the one who never indicates her true feelings?" Her lips separate slightly into an amiable smirk of her own, before he captures her this time; his embrace deeper, but just as heart-driven as hers was.

His hand slowly slides over her cheek to rest upon the nape of her neck while his other arm grips her waist and pulls her against him. Their hearts are almost level, both resonating to the other in a passion unknown to description. He'd never experienced such nervousness, fear, anxiety, uncertainness...nor joy, longing, and bliss... He never wanted it to end…