Note: I wanted to apologize to everyone. I'm really, really sorry. My updates are taking long and they aren't that long I'll try to update with longer chapters but there's only so much I can write in one day. I'm really sorry to everyone for all the slow updates and short chapters with all the mistakes and everything. I feel really bad about it all. I'm sorry everyone. :(
Note: And sorry for the OOCness on the FF characters again. (And I'm sorry for the mistakes in this chapter. It seem when ever I go to check over it someone wants the computer.)
'For some... odd reason... it seems... like everything has gotten... a lot more... annoying.'
Sora whirled to his side, glaring daggers at Riku's side. "Why...are you sitting here?" Pointing down at the table where he and his friends always sat everyday for lunch.
"Well, it's the lunch room so I can sit where ever I want right?" Riku only got a glare from Sora.
"Come on Sora, it's fine. There's always room for more!" Selphie said in her always cheerful voice sitting down by Kairi, and Tidus taking a seat next to Selphie, instead of his usual spot next to Sora which Riku was occupying.
Sora's frown slowly turned to a pout and he mumbled a small 'fine'. 'Why does everyone else like Riku so much. He always teases me but acts pretty nice to everyone else.' Sora's though were broken, noticing a piece of his food stolen. He slowly turned his head to the left to face a grinning Riku chewing away on his food. "Rikuuuuuu. You jerk!"
- - - -
"Hey, why don't you come over to my house after school today."
Sora's jaw practically dropped. "Oh my god. Why?" He just had a just a plain weird look on his face.
Riku sighed. "To work on our health project, what else?"
'How could I forget?' Sora mental kicked himself. 'I have to do a stupid project ,about how drugs are bad for you, with RIKU.'
"So let's go." Riku said, slightly pulling Sora down one hall.
"Hey, hey, wait! I have to tell my brother first." Sora complained squirming away from Riku.
"Fine, just hurry up."
'Hehe, those two are getting along already.' Kairi though to herself, watching the two boys argue. 'I'm glad to see Sora with making more friends...When he first came he didn't open up to anyone and...still barely does.'
- - - -
Riku lazily threw down a large white board and some markers. They both piled up their notes from school which didn't amount to much. Sora looked around Riku house, it looked so clean and tidy but... no one was there, not any siblings or a mother or father. The was so... empty.
"Where's your mom and dad, Riku?" Sora asked without thinking, his eyes still wandering.
"On a business trip." Riku sighed. "Like always."
"Woah! So you clean and cook and everything by yourself?"
"Cooking, yeah. But I don't really have to clean unless I make a mess. My parents come home every month or so to check on me."
"Oh..." Upon hearing this Sora put head down, staring at his shoes. He though Riku must be pretty lonely...
"Hey, are you gonna help or I am going to get all the credit for this." Riku grinned starting to write a title on the display board.
"What? I'm gonna help to you jerk!" Sora snapped back, there was no way Riku could be nice, without being a jerk afterwards.
The two boys stood and looked at the poster. The pictures were messily cut and pasted but were good enough. Word were scribbled all over the white board made it look more complete.
"Finally we're done." Sora said sitting back down. "And we did a pretty good job, huh?" He turned his head to look up at Riku and his eye caught the clock. 15 minutes until Ansem would get home. 'Oh crap.'
"Huh where you going?" Riku asked Sora once he stood up in a hurry."
"I have to get home, now." Sora said, grabbing his backpack. And rushing to the door. "You bring the project to school 'kay?" And Sora left without saying as much as a good bye.
Riku grinned and he watched Sora run full speed down the road. "'Kay." He whispered to no one particular.
- - - -
"I'm ba-" Sora burst through the front door only to be face to face to Ansem. A disgusted frown spread across him face. Ansem stepped forward.
"Back from where?"
Sora breath was caught in his throat. When did he get home? He didn't see any car, and it's was still five minutes to six. He shouldn't be home yet. And then Sora started to panic. Where was Cloud? Ansem possibly couldn't hurt him with Cloud around. He eye's flickered from side to side seeking out help, but saw no one.
"Where were you?" Ansem's voice was was clearly raised.
"I...I was at a friends house work on a school project." Was all Sora could possibly get out of his mouth.
"Friends? You don't have any friends. And if it's a school project then it should be done at school." His step-dad sneered.
"The teacher...said for us to... take it home." Sora's throat was dry. He tried to calm himself but fear over came him. He didn't want to get hurt again. He couldn't. People would start questioning him again.
"I'm sick of you. You and your excuses."
"I-it's not and excuse! Really I went there to--" Sora was slammed up against a cabinet, a corner digging into the upper part of his right arm. He winced and drew in a sharp breath, pulling his left hand over where he was hit.
"I want you to come home right after school. I'll have you wait for Cloud to get done and drive you home for the next week." And with that Ansem left.
Sora straitened himself up and slowly sighed. He made his way into the kitchen and pulled out the ice pack, which by now has become his best friend. He pulled back when the pack came in contact with his arm. Why did it hurt that bad? Sora looked to his right to see his arm already starting to bruise.
- - - -
Kairi patted Sora on the arm with a, 'Hey Sora!'.
He yet out a little yelp and jumped away from Kairi.
"Woah, what's wrong Sora?"
"Err, nothing really." Kairi's I-don't-believe-you glare made him continue, making up an excuse. "I mean..We were, uhh, moving some things around in the house last night and I strained a muscle kinda bad..."
Kairi's glare turned into a pout as she talked. "That doesn't sound very convincing but I'll believe you for now." She turned away from Sora, linking her arms together behind her bad like she usually did. "But if somethings wrong you can tell me, Sora." She walked away with out getting reply.
Sora sighed. Kairi did seem a bit angry, he really didn't want to have to hide this from her. She was with him since he moved, and helped him feel more comfortable here. She was like a sister to him and he didn't want to lie to her, or Cloud on that matter, but he had to.
Sora closed his locker and made his way down to the gym, got dressed and all the other things they had to do before starting class.
Once in they were in their positions for volleyball everyone started to play. The ball would usually make it back and forth a couple times before hitting the ground. Sora once again had gotten away with his dodge-the-volleyball game. The kids were having fun and enjoying the game until one of the mischievous boy spiked the ball at Sora.
"Owww..."
"Quit whining, you baby."
"It's it hurts! Ouch, ouch. Stop it.!"
Riku sighed and put down the ice pack. "It's never gonna get any better if you don't put an ice pack on it and wrap it up. And how the hell did you get such a bad bruise."
"I told you it got worse once the stupid kid threw the ball at me." Sora mumbled mostly to himself, slumping over.
"There's no way I bruise can get worse after just getting hit."
"Gah, I meant the pain!"
"But how the hell did you get such a bad bruise?" Riku repeated, setting down the icepack, as a sign of giving up the fight with Sora.
"I..." Sora stopped for a moment, rested him cheek on his fist, and spoke again. "I fell out of my bed and landed on book!"
"You keep a book... right by your bed." Riku obviously didn't believe him, leaning on the back of the chair.
"No, it's just... I'm room's messy...and..." Sora realized that he wasn't gonna buy it.
"Lair."
"Jerk."
- - - -
"Sora...I think you have a problem with volleyballs."
"No, I have a problem with people who throw volleyballs at me." Sora let his hands drop to his side. "I was dodging the balls just fine 'til.."
"So you were dodging the balls. That's your problem Sora!" Kairi grinned and patted him on the back, causing him to lean froward. "It's volleyball, not dodge ball."
"Gah, I know Kairi."
"Okay then." Kairi turned around to face Sora, hands linked behind her. " I gotta go now but I'll call you when I get home, okay?"
"Okay." Sora said giving her a small wave good-bye, and stomping past Riku would was obviously waiting for him.
Riku sighed with a look of hurt. "I guess he really is mad with me."
Sora spent the next while outside of a classroom which contained his brother Cloud. He was working on his homework, finding it to be pretty easy and hoped it wouldn't turn out all wrong the next day. After what seemed to be hours of numerous math equations the door opened and older kids flowed out. Sora closed his book and caught up to Cloud who was looking for Sora.
"How many people are in that class?" Sora muttered, looking at all the people who just came out of one class.
A clearing for someone's throat caught the two brothers attention enough to turn around.
Sora jumped at the site of the tall person.
"Oh, uh, hey..Leon." Cloud said, seeming a bit confused that his classmate was talking to him.
"Hey, I hear you were listen to a song on the radio in your car this morning, and I have a copy of a CD that has the song, so if you want it we could drop by my house.."
"Really? That'd be great. Is it okay if I drop my brother at home first?" Cloud said motioning towards Sora.
Leon gave him a nod of approval before jotting down his address on a piece of paper out of his notebook and handing it to Cloud before the two siblings left.
- - - -
Sora took off his shoes, walked up to his room and threw all his school stuff on the floor of his room. He exited his room and went into Cloud's sat down at his desk and picked up the phone to call Kairi.
"Hello?"
"Hey Kairi, it's me."
"Oh! Hey Sora? How are you doing?"
"Heh, the same since I school ended."
"Well that's good. It's sure getting cold, huh?"
"Yeah Kai, it is September." Sora really never did want to talk on the phone but it did make Kairi a lot happier so he really didn't mind.
"Well, guess what? I hear- Oh, never mind, I wanna leave it as a surprise."
"Huh? What is it?"
"No, never mind. Well, I have to go. Bye-bye!"
Sora set down the phone on to the receiver and leaned back in the desk chair. "Where is Cloud? Is said he'd be right back. He was just going to pick up the CD...Oh well." Sora leaned back a bit more in the desk chair and it fell strait back. "God I'm stupid." he said staring at the ceiling.
Sora turned around to face a women, long brown hair, tied back by a single, large rubber band. A wide smile across her face.
"Come here Sora!" She said kneeling down just so her could run into her arms like he did those many years ago.
The force of the child running full speed had little impact on her because of the child's small size.
"You're gettin' big, huh?" She grinned, a goofy grin.
"Yeah! I'm gonna be taller than daddy one day!" The small one said.
A man, a bit older then the women chuckled. "Well, we'll see about that." The three laughed.
Now, the scene faded in, to the same boy a few years older now. He slowly turned around to face his parents.
They were laying there, covered in cold blood.