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He had asked Kairi if he could kiss her. The girl had blushed, giggled and then puckered up prettily. He had been pleased and nearly excited. His first kiss! And he liked Kairi. Or he had. It didn't matter. He only wanted to label this feeling he had discovered on himself a few months back. This something that flared up whenever he was around his two best friends.
Odd, the feeling hadn't been there when he had asked Kairi. He was completely at ease, that coolness he felt when he trained had settled in. He knew what it was; his mind was completely focused on achieving a goal. Total concentration.
And he had been successful on this task also. When he broke away from the kiss, Kairi had had a slightly dazzled look on her face, which had then been quickly replaced by a smile of contentment. He supposed that was good and she looked pleased, too. In the silence that had followed, he had searched himself thoroughly… the feeling, this something was still there, but it was totally unrelated to Kairi. And he still couldn't find a name for it.
The companionable silence between them had been shattered by the sound of heavy footfalls on the wooden planks of the dock. A cheery voice had called out to them and they had turned around to wave back.
And then that feeling had slammed into him, full force. That something, that jolt that shook his insides every time… ah, every time he -not she- was around.
"Hey, Sora."
Riku had found a word for it.
Crush.
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