Yellow
It had been a warm summer's evening, the two of them just sitting on the paopu tree's twisted limbs and enjoying the breeze, when Sora had asked him. 'What's your favorite color?' He had blinked up innocently with those great blue eyes, as only he could. Riku had been a bit surprised by the question, but directed his gaze back to the sunset before them. What was hisfavorite color? It wasn't something he had really thought about before. Sora's was red, always had been. And Kairi's, purple, that was a given. But his own?
If he had to pick just one….Riku was certain it would have to be yellow. It was an odd color by itself, really. Few ever wore it in their clothes and it was, in large proportions, a bit blinding. And yet…
He liked the yellow in the sunsets they watched, when it was fading into soft reds and oranges. The way it caught in the eyes of the boy next to him and made them sparkle, and how it seemed to drench his body in a golden light.
He liked the yellow in the overly-sized shoes Sora insisted on wearing, the ones he had demanded Sora leave at the store, but the brunette had just huffed at him defiantly and got them anyway. Riku had been dreading the next school day; Sora was going to get made fun of for sure. And amazingly, he hadn't. He'd just met Riku at the entrance with that goofy smile on his face and they'd walked home together. And so Riku had found himself growing to tolerate them.
He liked the yellow of the star-shaped fruits that were the legend of the island, how Sora would get all flustered at the mere mention of them. Often times he had wondered what one'd taste like, but the prospect of eating one alone simply didn't please him.
He liked the yellow of the sand that slipped like the essence of time from his fingers, cascading back from whence it came in a grainy waterfall. It held the memories of much younger days, when he and an eight year old Sora would waste the day away making sandcastles and laughing up a storm. And when Sora's sandcastles were demolished by the incoming wave and Sora pouted adorably, Riku would only laugh harder.
He even liked the yellow of the rubber ducky Selphie had given Sora as a birthday gift once, which Sora had been unable to get rid of because he didn't want to hurt the girl's feelings. Riku had had a field day with that one, and the brunette had scowled.
But there were times when Riku was sure he'd seen the offending object when he came over to hang out, sitting on the edge of Sora's bathtub slightly damp and covered in bubbles.
Also, he liked the soft yellow glow of Sora's nightlite, which was always in the outlet just above his head when he slept over. Even after all this time, Sora still didn't like the dark. It would have seemed quite foolish to others, after all, he was almost fifteen now. But Riku understood. And when Sora would murmur in his sleep, curled over on his side, Riku would sling an arm around him, and he would mysteriously quiet.
'Riku?' He turned his head at the soft inquiry, realizing he had gone into a daze. Sora grinned gently at his expression and repeated the question.
'What's your favorite color?'
Looking over the boy in front of him, Riku smiled. 'You are.'
Sora's face had contorted in confusion, and Riku had just laughed, ruffling his hair. The brunette pouted, hands coming up to his spikes.
'When we are older, you'll understand.'