With his hands tucked neatly into his pockets, Mister Marluxia all but glided down the hallway, his steps long, slow and measured. His shoulders were back but relaxed and he walked with his chin up with a casual smile in place. He looked for all the world as if he was strolling along on a warm beach somewhere without a care or worry instead of in a tile floored hallway with harsh fluorescent lights and plain white walls. This carefree manner vanished, however, when he reached the door to Professor Luxord's office.

Marluxia hesitated as he stood there, one hand extended toward the doorknob. He had a bad feeling about this, being summoned to the blond man's office without an explanation, but it wasn't as if he could refuse. The other teacher knew too much for Marluxia to risk upsetting him, so he had to come when he was called, though it wasn't really Luxord that he was worried about. There were more powerful men with knowledge that could ruin him.

But he'd delayed for too long, so he lifted one loosely fisted hand and knocked softly.

"Come in."

The pink-haired teacher opened the door and stepped into the office. "You asked to see me?" he asked politely, hoping to keep this encounter as pleasant as possible.

"Yes. Shut the door, please."

Nodding politely, Marluxia did as he was told then moved to stand in front of the blond's desk, his hands held behind his back in a relaxed posture. "Might I ask what you wished to speak with me about?"

"You know exactly what I want to talk to you about, Marluxia." Luxord's tone was suddenly harsher than before, though the other man didn't show any sign that he'd noticed.

"If you're referring to the offer made to us by Headmaster Xemnas, then I would have you know that I have decided to cease my pursuit of Demyx and so maintain my position as a teacher here."

"Stop acting so damn proper, Marluxia!" the blond teacher snapped, standing and striding around the desk to stand toe-to-toe with him. "There might have been a time when you could get away with anything just by sounding eloquent, but that's not how it works here. It's not that easy. Xemnas will hold this over our heads for the rest of our goddamn lives!" He slammed a hand down onto his desk for emphasis, breathing slightly harder than normal with the force of his emotions.

"Nevertheless, I will not be bothering Demyx any longer. I will be a mentor and friend to him, that is all," Marluxia said quietly, everything about him radiating calm. "There's no need to be concerned for my well-being. The only thing you need to decide, Luxord, is whether you will continue to interact with Kairi on a level the Headmaster disapproves of or not."

Seeming to deflate slightly, Luxord stepped back so that he wasn't so close to the pink-haired teacher and lowered his gaze, all the anger he'd displayed only moments ago leaving him. "I haven't even done anything for the headmaster to be upset about. She's the one who kissed me. If she tries something else, I'll turn her down, and that'll be the end of it."

"Good. Just make sure she doesn't catch you off-guard again."

Luxord nodded, and Marluxia turned to leave. "Have a good evening, Professor Luxord." Then he was gone, the door shutting quietly behind him. He looked just as calm and collected as when he'd arrived as he went back the way he'd come, but he didn't notice the pair of eyes watching him from the opposite end of the hall.

Her breathing uneven both from what she'd heard and her short sprint down the hall, Kairi watched Mister Marluxia walk away towards his own office. Once he was gone, she turned her back to the wall and slid down to the floor, her knees to her chest.

It couldn't be. He hadn't meant it; there was no way he was really going to reject her. She knew he was attracted to her, otherwise she wouldn't have flirted with him! And how dare he put all the blame on her?! He was the one who'd been staring at her during all of her detentions with him, and not to mention the way he'd watched her at the Masquerade! So what if she'd kissed him? He'd wanted her to, and he hadn't stopped her or pushed her away. It was just as much his fault for making her think he was worth the effort as she was for believing him.

Still, she was glad she'd arrived when she had, just in time to see Mister Marluxia going into Professor Luxord's office. Maybe it was wrong of her to eavesdrop on the two teachers, but Kairi thought it was lucky that she'd heard him say it. Otherwise she'd have waltzed into his office unawares just to have her feelings crushed and thrown back in her face.

"This isn't fair," she whispered to the empty hallway, glad that her soft voice wouldn't carry and be heard by someone else. "I help my friends find people and they're happy, but all the guys I meet are stuck up jerks and players."

Wrapping her arms around her knees, she rested her forehead on them and sighed quietly as tears threatened to form. There was an all-too-familiar pain in her chest, reminding her that she'd failed again. She hated this, hated feeling like she'd messed up, like she'd been tricked into believing that maybe he genuinely liked her only to find out that he wanted nothing to do with her. All of her friends were finding someone to be with, yet there she was sitting in a hallway trying not to cry, and even worse she could feel herself shaking. It just wasn't fair.

The sound of approaching footsteps startled Kairi to her feet, and she quickly wiped under her eyes to make sure no tears had escaped and smeared her makeup. Now was definitely not the time to have an emotional breakdown, especially not in a hallway where anyone might happen to find her. Straightening her uniform, she rounded the corner of the hall to leave and found herself face-to-face with the last person she wanted to see.

Startled, icy eyes widening, the tall man took a quick step back to put distance between himself and the redheaded student. "Hello, Kairi. What are you doing here so late?"

With her blue eyes glued to the floor so that he wouldn't see the tears that still lingered, Kairi shrugged. "I was practicing in the music rooms. Mister Marluxia gave me a solo for the winter concert, so…"

"A solo? You must be very good, then."

"Mister Marluxia thinks so. I…I should get going. Good bye, Professor Luxord." She didn't wait for a response before turning and quickly walking away, forcing herself not to run like she wanted to.

The feeling of eyes drilling into her back made her want to either run as fast as she could or stop and fall to the floor and cry. But he was watching her, so she maintained her carefully controlled pace until she was outside. Then she bolted, heading straight for the sophomore dorm hall as fast as her legs would carry her, her bag bumping against her thigh with every step. The chilly November air burned her throat and lungs but she didn't care—all she wanted was to curl up in bed with the blankets over her head and pretend she'd never noticed that stupid history teacher's cynical smile.

XXX

Brushing sweat-darkened bangs out of his eyes, Sora kept his focus intent on the boy in front of him. The sound of the basketball hitting the floor over and over again echoed around the otherwise empty gymnasium, accompanied only by panted breaths. A bead of sweat trickled down his bare back, both boys having discarded their T-shirts long ago; the movement of Riku's glistening chest as he breathed in and out was distracting, but Sora forced himself to ignore it.

Now was not the time for that.

As fast as he could, the brunet swatted at the basketball in an attempt to knock it away from his opponent and therefore steal it, but Riku was too quick. He spun, still dribbling, and moved towards the hoop with the intent of shooting a layup, Sora hot on his heels. With perfect form, the older boy took three bounds and jumped, the ball seeming to float from his outstretched hand into the hoop. He let out a whoop of triumph, landing at a jog and circling back around. A grin spread over the silver-haired boy's face as Sora retrieved the ball, and he looked over to where a clock hung by the door.

"Let's call it a tie, Brat," he panted, running a hand through his hair to move his bangs out of his eyes, an action that Sora always found fascinating. "We've been playing for over an hour."

"You just know I'll win if we keep going," Sora responded confidently, the ball held under his arm, "but we can quit. Head for the showers?"

"Naw." A strange light came into Riku's teal eyes as he moved closer to the younger boy. "There's something else I want to do, first."

"U-um." Sora swallowed thickly, suddenly nervous for a reason he wasn't even sure of. "What?"

Reaching out, Riku plucked the ball from under the brunet's arm and rolled it between his hands as he thought. "Sora…"

"Yes?" he tried not to sound too hopeful, though his voice was a little higher than normal.

"Will…" Riku paused, seeming to decide against whatever it was he'd been about to say. "Have you forgiven me yet? For being a jerk, I mean."

Oh. That.

"Almost. Why?" Trying to act casual, Sora went over to where they'd thrown their shirts and picked his up, using it to wipe the sweat from his face and chest. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or disappointed that that was all Riku had wanted to know about. On the inside, he'd forgiven Riku completely and was more than ready to move on with their friendship as if the whole thing had never happened, but he had the feeling that it wasn't quite time yet, so he kept that to himself.

Riku joined him after a moment, setting the basketball down and pulling his own shirt on over his head, hiding the defined muscles that had proved to be entirely too distracting to Sora. "I was just wondering. So, have you been to the pool yet?"

"Nope." He put on his shirt and shook out his hair.

"You wanna go?"

"Now? Just the two of us?" The thought of a drenched Riku clad in only a pair of swim trunks made Sora's face grow warm, and he was glad that the flush from their game of one-on-one basketball hadn't faded yet.

"Yes now, and we can invite Roxas and Namine and Kairi. Unless you want me all to yourself, that is," Riku teased, making the younger boy's face turn an even darker shade of red.

"S-shut up!" the brunet stuttered, glaring as a smirk spread over his friend's face. "No wonder Coach Xaldin thought we were flirting—you hit on me all the time!"

It was Riku's turn to blush as his smirk vanished, and he rolled his eyes to try to cover it up. "Don't flatter yourself, Brat. You're not my type."

Putting his hands on his hips, Sora raised an eyebrow. "Then what is your type? Cause I've never seen you flirt with anyone else, and you barely talk to anyone other than me, Kairi, Namine and Roxas."

"My type is nothing you need to know about," Riku replied calmly as he picked up the basketball. "Are we going to the pool or not?"

"Yeah. I just gotta go back to my room and grab my stuff."

"Same. I'll meet you at the pool in fifteen minutes."

"See ya then!" Sora called over his shoulder, already jogging out of the gym and heading for the freshman dorm hall. Only one more month and he and Roxas would get to move into the sophomore dorms where they belonged, and then they'd be in the same building as Namine, Kairi and Riku. He'd be able to visit Riku whenever we wanted, and Sora was more excited about that than he cared to admit.

The door flew open with enough force to bang against the wall as the brunet burst into the room he shared with his twin. "Get up, Rox! We're going to the pool!"

From his place at his desk, the blond looked up with a mildly curious expression. "We are?"

"Yep!" Sora opened the top drawer of their shared dresser and pulled out two matching pairs of swim trunks. "You, me, Riku, Namine and Kairi!"

"You and Riku aren't going to turn it into some big competition, are you?" Roxas asked as he marked his place then set his book down.

"Nope! This is just for fun." Two beach towels were discovered in a tote stored under the bed and hastily shoved into a bag, along with the swim trunks. "Now come on!"

Roxas didn't have a chance to protest before Sora had grabbed his hand proceeded to drag him out of their room, down the hall and stairs and over to the sophomore hall.

"S-Sora, slow down! Where are we going? I thought you wanted to swim!"

"We gotta get Kairi and Namine first!"

Moments later the two boys stood outside the door to the girls' room and Sora pounded on their door with little grace; Roxas rolled his eyes.

"Guys! We're going swimming!" he shouted, his excitement starting to get the better of him.

The door opened to show a messy haired Namine blinking at them—she had obviously just woken from a nap. "Sora, why are you yelling?"

Roxas put a hand over his twin's mouth before the brunet could respond. "He's just excited. Is Kairi in there? Apparently, we're all going swimming."

"Um, yeah. Come on in." The blonde stood back and held the door open for the two boys then looked over to where Kairi was sitting on her bed. "Do you want to go swimming, Kairi?"

"Not really…"

Immediately, a frown creased Sora's forehead and he moved to sit by the redhead. "Is something wrong?"

Kairi shrugged, leaning against the brunet as he wrapped a comforting arm around her. "Nothing worth bringing up."

Even though Sora didn't believe her, he didn't push it. He knew Kairi would tell him in her own time and he didn't want to upset her further by pressing her for information. "Okay. I'm here if you want to talk, kay?"

"Kay."

Silence filled the dorm until Roxas couldn't take it anymore.

"You coming, Namine?" he asked, turning to the still-sleepy blonde as she brushed out her hair.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Just let me get my stuff." Setting down her comb, she went into the closet to get her swimsuit and towel and put them in a bag then slipped on her shoes.

"Come on, Sora," Roxas said quietly, standing by the door with a now-ready Namine. The brunet nodded and gently pulled away from Kairi even though he thought staying with her was more important than going swimming. Her eyes were clouded and he was afraid she was going to cry as soon as they left, but he also thought she might want to be alone, so he got up and smiled weakly at her.

"We'll be over after we finish swimming, if that's okay."

A nod was the only response he got, so he leaned down and whispered in her ear too quietly for the two blonds in the room to hear. Kairi giggled and nodded, smiling at him gratefully, then pushed him towards the door.

"Go swim. Say hi to Riku for me."

"Aye, aye, Captain!" Sora chirped, flashing one of his infectious grins before Roxas dragged him out of the room.

Chatting amongst themselves, the three friends left the hall and crossed the campus to the part of the gymnasium that housed the pool. Namine's pace slowed as they neared the door, and Sora and Roxas looked back at her curiously when she fell behind.

"Namine? You all right?" Roxas asked, concerned.

"Yes, I'm fine." She offered them a reassuring smile that wasn't completely convincing. "It's just that the last time I was here, Kairi had talked me into helping her and some other kids pull a prank by dumping a bunch of Kool Aid mix in the pool. But Professor Luxord caught us, and we all made a run for it. Kairi was the only one who got caught—that's why she had all those detentions."

"Oh, well, I wouldn't tell Riku about that, if I was you," Sora advised wisely. "He told me he was really upset when the pool was closed for cleaning after that."

Namine nodded. "Okay."

Impatient, Roxas marched past his twin and pulled open the door. "Are we going swimming or not?"

"We're going swimming!" the brunet yelled, running past Roxas and into the pool room. There were a few students he didn't know in the pool, but Riku wasn't there yet, so he turned and went through a door label "Boys' Locker Room" with Roxas just behind him. The sound of running water greeted him, and Sora wasted no time in grabbing his swim trunks from the bag and choosing a shower.

He was still fairly sweaty from playing basketball, so his clothes stuck to him slightly as he stripped. The water was cold when he turned it on, but he didn't have the patience to wait for it to heat up so he took a deep breath and quickly stepped into the spray.

"Oh hell that's cold!" he shrieked, rinsing off as fast as he was able as laughter he recognized as Roxas' echoed through the locker room.

"Should've let it warm up, Brat," a voice called, and Sora, shivering, bit his lip to hold back a whine.

"M-maybe I want y-you to warm me up, R-Riku," he responded, trying to sound flirtatious despite his chattering teeth.

"Is that an invitation?" The words came from just on the other side of the curtain that separated Sora from the rest of the locker room, and someone chuckled as the curtain began to move.

"N-no!" Frantic, Sora yanked his swim trunks on just before the curtain opened to reveal a smirking Riku.

"Funny, you sounded like you wanted some company," the older boy teased, observing the brunet's shivering body. "Dude, your lips are turning blue. Maybe you should turn the water off."

"Y-yeah." Trembling from the cold, Sora hurried to turn off the water then gathered his dirty clothes, throwing them towards where Roxas had left their bag. He kept his eyes down to avoid looking at the silver-haired boy; he knew he'd stare if he let himself notice the water dripping on Riku's body just the way he'd imagined earlier.

You're a total pervert, he scolded himself, his wet feet slapping against the floor as he and Riku walked out of the locker room together. You shouldn't be thinking things like that. He's your best friend.

But as he watched Riku walk around the pool to where the diving board was, he couldn't help it. It was just like the first time he'd seen him, that morning on the track so many weeks ago. Riku had been and was about the closest thing to perfection Sora could imagine, from his tanned skin to his lean muscles, his silvery hair and green-blue eyes, and his smile. A slightly mocking, confident smile that made Sora's stomach feel funny whenever he saw it. Maybe Kairi was right. Maybe he liked Riku as more than a friend.

But maybe wasn't good enough, and as Riku moved to the end of the diving board, he cast one of those intriguing grins toward the brunet before he dove into the water, and Sora knew that maybe would never be enough.