Disclaimer: no. i don't.

Just a random distraction fic. i wrote this 2 days ago before i went to bed... i just wanted to post this before i started the next chapters for the 3 other fics i've got going. and i needed something to get me away from obsessing over KH2 (RIKU!)... but yeah.

just Riku and Sora with the stars. Riku does a good bit of thinking... and stuff. Not meant to be shonen-ai but i suppose it depends on how you look at it. i don't mind either way.


The two boys tumbled down the slope, their high, joyous laughter spilling from their lips and echoing in the night, only stopping dying down once they had come to a stop at the base of the small hill. Riku panted, exhausted and out of breath, legs aching from all the running they had done, but content nonetheless. He looked up at the dark sky in wonder. Moments like this between the two friends had become very rare as of late. Never was it just Riku and Sora, nowadays it was Riku, Sora, and Kairi.

Rku didn't mind the girl (well, not too much anyways), she was kind and fun to talk to but, ever since she had come to Destiny Islands, she and Sora gotten rather close and Riku was starting to feel more than a bit jealous. Sometimes he just wanted to smack her and let them know that, yes Riku did indeed still exist. He had always been a perceptive little boy and he could see that Sora, his one and only friend, was starting to drift away.

"Hey, Sora?" Riku said suddenly.

"Yeah?" responded Sora, looking over at his friend.

"If we ever make it to other worlds," Riku started, "you'll always be with me, right?"

Sora blinked at the strange question but turned his eyes back towards the sky and answered with a nod, "Of course. Kairi too."

Riku's lips drew together to form a very flat line. He couldn't stop the slight scowl that crossed his face. And there she was again. "Right."

Sora, who didn't quite catch the expression or the tone in which Riku had uttered his answer, shifted into a more comfortable position and studied the many bright specks overhead. Other worlds. Sora was fascinated by the idea but it was almost an obsession with Riku. Even when they had been younger his friend had always spoken about leaving their home for different, more exciting places. "What if there aren't any other worlds out there?" He asked. "What would you do then, Riku?"

The boy in question sat up and leaned back on his arms for support. "If there aren't any worlds out there, I might as well kill myself now."

"What?"

Riku stared up at the stars and didn't answer as a gentle breeze blew by and brushed his silver hair against his cheeks. He knew it wouldn't come to that because he knew, deep down inside, for all his ten years, he had known that Destiny Islands wasn't all there was. Not everything was ocean and white, sandy beaches. He was also positive that the strange dreams he had been having for years now had an important role in his thinking. Something about the blades and keys, the doors and hearts, light, darkness, and the peculiar little black creature with glowing yellow eyes told him that there were places that had these unusual things, places that weren't the Islands because Riku was sure he had never seen anything of the sort on the boring island chain that was his home. There was that mysterious keyhole and he knew it was all connected somehow because keyholes needed keys and Riku had keys in his dreams but he couldn't understand for the life of him what it could all possibly mean. Sometimes he just wanted to pull his hair in sheer frustration but he couldn't. He was Riku and Riku was calm and collected. Riku also had very nice, shiny, silver hair that wasn't pulled or damaged in any way.

"Riku, wha—" Sora tried but Riku cut him off.

"Sora, you can't seriously believe that this is all there is. There has to be somewhere out there that's more interesting than this place." He lifted a hand and gestured towards the stars, "look at the stars. Don't you ever wonder what's up there? Or out beyond the ocean? How something so beautiful, something so close, can be so unattainable?" His arm stretched out above him and he closed his hand into a fist as if trying to reach the worlds he so longed for only to fail once again.

"No."

"Uh! I give up!" Riku cried out and flopped back down next to his best friend. "Sora, you will never understand pleasure that can be derived from deep thinking."

Sora couldn't help but grin, "I could too, I just prefer to leave the 'deep thinking' to you. I'd rather not turn into a wrinkly old man before I hit puberty."

Riku smiled too but it was a sad, bitter smile. What would he do once Sora was gone? There was no getting around it. He was only friends with the boy because their moms were friends and they had been neighbors since the beginning of time. Being the homeshcooled, generally anti-social kid he was, he didn't really have many friends, much less ones that were as close to him as Sora. At about this time tomorrow, Riku knew that Sora would probably be either with Kairi, going to Kairi, or on his bed thinking of Kairi. One day they'd get married, get a house, have two and a half kids, and live their lives through and Riku would be there in the background, discontented, because once upon a time he had had a dream that had never been attained or fufilled, leaving poor Riku with nothing but a friend that once was and an empty hole in his heart where the stars and his dreams had once had their place.

No.

No. He couldn't let that happen. At least not yet. People had always told him he smart, cute, and had way too much attitude for his own good, but never had they told Riku he was selfish. Glancing over at his friend he took in Sora's carefree smile and bright blue eyes and almost shook his head in wonder at boyish awe his friend always seemed to have for every little thing. He decided right there that even though selfishness wasn't his forte, he would be selfish just this once and keep Sora close to him for as long as he could. Kairi could whine, cry, and interfere all she wanted but she wasn't going to split them up. Not if Riku had anything to say about it.

"We should get going," Riku said starting to get up.

Sora groaned in disappointment, "Aw, come on Riku. It's not that late. We never get to do stuff like this anymore."

Riku smiled a true, genuine smile and settled himself back down again. "Fine, but we're going to have to leave eventually."

"I know, just not right now."

There was hope for them yet.


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