Sora paced his apartment anxiously. Of the things he despised most of all, it was his nerves that gave him the most discomfort. He entered his room, peeked out the window at the cold and empty streets below, then shuffled back into the living room.

Kairi had given him the very barest of briefings, demanding that he be up and ready to depart at noon sharp, for what, he could only begin to guess. All he knew was that his heart was pounding, and she had yet to even knock on his front door.

Roxas was slouched at the kitchen table, quietly sipping at a can of sparkling water. The sound of his suckling rang out against the tension that Sora so keenly perceived.

"Can you stop?" he called to his brother. Roxas turned to him, his expression one devoid of concern and vague curiosity. He raised the can to his lips and took another sip.

Sora sighed and paced some more. He resolved to remain calm and flopped down onto the couch, staring ahead at the empty television stand. He reminded himself to buy a new one.

Three sharp and deliberate knocks sent his heart into another death spiral, but he took a breath and tried to rein in his debilitating case of nerves. It was only Kairi, after all.

He opened the door and was greeted with her sweet smiling face, one that curved into a devilish smirk when his eyes remained on hers for just a moment too long.

"Are you ready?" she asked, clearly amused.

Sora shook himself out of his daze. "U-Uh, yeah, let me just…get my shoes."

Kairi nodded and leaned against the door, she looked over at Roxas.

"Hey Roxas," she said softly. Roxas gave her a small smile (first one Sora had seen him make since the incident) and nodded to her.

"How are you doing?" she asked him.

Roxas shrugged. "I'm fine."

"Naminé wants to see you," Kairi informed.

"Yeah…yeah, I should call her," Roxas said, more to himself than anyone else.

There was an awkward silence and Kairi struggled to find something to say. Sora figured that this was his moment to intervene.

"Let's go," he said, leaving the apartment and pointedly shutting the door. Kairi looked at him oddly.

"What was that?" she questioned as they descended the staircase to the front doors.

"Nothing," Sora shook his head, "he's just…taking everything kinda hard."

"How are you feeling?" Kairi asked him, and Sora made sure to fix his eyes straight ahead, lest he fall into her deep and discerning gaze.

"I'm fine," he answered. His tone was direct and (he hoped) unambiguous. They left the building and stood on the sidewalk, it was certainly cold out.

"So…what are we doing, exactly?" he asked, twisting around dramatically.

"I told you," Kairi said, giving him a look, "we're going shopping."

"Okay…where exactly are we going to do that?"

"You'll see. You brought munny, right?"

"Yeah, of course. But-"

Kairi rested her hand on her hip and raised the other one and waved. Sora watched her in confusion, until something screeched to halt on the street beside them. A black shiny limo. Sora blinked.

"Um…"

"What? Never been in a limo?"

Sora could only shake his head and his cheeks reddened when Kairi took him by the hand and pulled him towards it.

"Well," she said, "now's your chance."

They entered the spacious luxury vehicle and Kairi issued some directives to the driver. They were on their way in a matter of moments. Sora could only study his surroundings in a cloud of awe and for the first time that day, he felt himself relaxing. He heard Kairi giggle and he turned to face her.

"You look like you just woke up on another world," she noted.

"Maybe I did," Sora admitted. He was only half joking.

Sora's amazement continued to grow as they drove up and over the Brooklyn Bridge. The East River sparkled magnificently below and he found he spent a lot of the time with his nose pressed against the window, watching the borough of Brooklyn fade away behind him.

"You've been to the city, right?" Kairi asked. Sora looked at her and shook his head, somewhat shamefully.

She looked at him in disbelief. "Seriously?"

Sora rubbed the back of his neck. "Never really had an excuse to go," he said.

Kairi crinkled her nose and the only thing Sora could think of was how damn cute she looked.

"Well, I'm glad I get to be here for your first time."

"Yeah," he agreed, leaning back into the seat. "So…you never explained why you asked me to this thing in the first place," he pointed out.

"You never explained why you agreed," Kairi shot back, grinning and wiggling a finger in his face.

Sora chuckled. "What? Can't find a date so you decided to settle for me?"

He meant it as a joke, but he took quick note of how sullen she suddenly looked. The relaxed atmosphere quickly turned heavier and Sora cursed himself. It was always the jokes. Perhaps it was time to hang up the self-deprecating humor.

"I'm kidding," he attempted to reassure her.

Kairi shot him a fixed glare. "Do you always have to do that?"

Sora sunk further back into black leather of the limo seat. "Okay, okay," he waved dismissively, "are you gonna share or what?"

Kairi sighed and chewed on the inside of her lip. "I just…"

Sora watched the internal battle that seemed to be raging within her play out on her face. "You just...?"

The limo came to a halt before she could answer and Sora peered out the window. They were in the city. He was in the city. He, the very small, had been granted an audience with it, the very big. Sora felt his shoulders tense up.

"Come on," Kairi said, grabbing his hand again and leading him out of the limo and onto the sidewalk. The luxury vehicle sped away, leaving behind a trail of smoke and a stupefied Sora.

"That's…coming back for us, right?" he questioned.

"Of course," Kairi said, rolling her eyes playfully. "C'mon."

They walked the streets. To Sora, it was an incomprehensible labyrinth of winding concrete pathways, weaving in and out, up and down, sideways and back. Living the low life back home couldn't prepare one for this, he thought to himself. The numbers simply grew, more people, more buildings that rose up against the sky, more cars, more sounds, and absolutely no silence. It was a microcosm of the whole of human achievement and Sora, contrary to what every physical sensation he was feeling told him, felt like he was walking on open air.

They stopped outside of a Macy's. The name emblazoned in the large red sign attached to the building for all the world to see. Kairi moved towards the entrance but Sora remained rooted in place.

She turned back to look at him. "You coming?"

"I...yeah," he rubbed his neck and followed her in. The first thing that hit him was the smell. It was something he may have once had some vague notion of, but the aroma that swelled in his nose brought it to the forefront of his mind. Fresh. Clean.

They stepped onto the escalator and stood next to each other as it ascended. Sora stuck his hands in his pockets, feeling particularly exposed.

"So…you going to answer my question?" he asked her.

"And what question might that be?" she responded.

"You sure do love games, huh?" he noted.

"Whatever could you mean?" she asked innocently, stepping off the escalator.

Sora smirked and trailed behind her. Kairi stopped to ogle a dress, she took it off the hangar and held it out to him.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"It's nice," he shrugged.

Kairi narrowed her eyes. "You don't know a thing about clothes."

"Do I look like someone who does?"

"Well…" she rubbed her chin thoughtfully, "that's why we're here."

Kairi put the dress back on the hangar and they continued on. Passing through rows and rows of dresses, pants, shoes, hats, footwear, anything and everything. If it existed, it was there. Sora could honestly say that he had never seen so many clothes per square foot.

"Do you come here a lot?" he asked, running his hand over some fuzzy sweaters.

"Sometimes," Kairi said, "only for the big parties, really."

"And you go to those often…the big parties?"

"Well…" Kairi stopped walking, "they don't come around very often."

Sora mulled her words as she examined some blouses on a rack. "So…Riku's party, it's big then?"

"Well, yeah," she said, smoothing out a crinkled blouse and then placing it back on the rack. "It's a once a year thing. Haven't you heard of it?"

Sora wished he could say he had, but this was the first year he had noticed the abundance of promotional material and attention people in Brooklyn High afforded it. In all years past, he had never heard of such a thing as Riku's winter ball, but then again he couldn't quite remember if he had paid much attention, which meant he probably didn't.

"No," he said, trying to conceal the odd feeling of shame within him. "Should I have?"

"It's a pretty big deal," Kairi commented, "but I wouldn't let it bother you."

"Yeah, well…why does he have to call it a ball?" Sora asked.

"It sounds nicer," Kairi shrugged, "I don't know."

Together they moved through the seemingly unending valley of clothes and Sora was slightly relieved to find that they were in the somewhat familiar terrain of men's clothing. Kairi contemplated the button-up shirts, hung proudly on display.

"I think you'd look good in these," she nodded, fingering the buttons on one of the shirts.

"I honestly couldn't tell you," Sora said, shaking his head.

They moved through the maze of clothes and came to a row of, to Sora's untrained eye, what appeared to be an assortment of fashionable looking party dresses. She eyed the collection and seemed to settle on a scarlet dress, pulling it down and holding it out in front of her. She looked to Sora expectantly.

"Don't look at me," he held up his hands. "I don't know anything, remember?"

"That's why you have to learn," she said, and she grabbed and pulled him into the neighboring dressing room.

It was small and dark. With a single narrow mirror attached to the wall. Kairi closed the door behind them. Sora felt his pulse begin to race and he stared at Kairi with wide eyes.

"What are you doing?"

Kairi leaned against the door. "Teaching you," she said. She gripped the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head. Sora's eyes bulged and he whirled around, facing the mirror and shutting his eyes tight.

He heard Kairi laugh softly. "You don't have to do that," she said.

Sora kept his eyes shut and remained still. In here, the sounds of the world outside died away. It was just the two of them now. Alone.

Kairi took a step forward and took his hand in her own. She leaned into him and he felt her chest pressing up against his back.

"Do you trust me?" she whispered into his ear.

He shivered and nodded, slowly. "Yes."

"I trust you," she murmured. "Turn around."

Sora did so, keeping his gaze trained firmly on her face, blushing deeply. Kairi held his gaze with her violet eyes and placed his hand on the small of her back. He almost gasped in surprise, but his surprise turned to confusion when he felt and traced the bumpy lines that ran up and down her warm skin.

"What-"

"You want to know why I invited you. This is why," she said, her voice lacking clear emotion. Sora wasn't even aware of how close they were, focused entirely on feeling the indentations and raised skin.

"I need to go with you," she let out a shaky breath, "because if I go with anyone else, this will happen again."

"I don't understand," Sora said. "What happened to you?"

"Please," she whispered, and her eyes glimmered in the darkness, "don't ask questions. Just come to the party with me."

"I…I said I would," Sora said, anxiousness creeping into his voice. Too close. They were too close. He removed his hand from her back and stepped back.

Kairi sniffled and put her shirt back on. "Now get out so I can try on this dress," she joked, trying to return to her earlier cheerfulness. Sora nodded, flashing her a quick and awkward smile and left the room. He waited for her to finish, the memory of her lacerated skin stuck to his fingers. He wanted to question, he wanted to question so badly.

Someone had done that to her, and she was inviting him to this party because she was afraid. He thought back, wondering if he had ever seen Kairi truly afraid. Nervous, maybe. But afraid? He didn't think so.

Someone had hurt her. Someone had damaged her. Bruised her. Abused her.

Kairi came out, scarlet dress neatly folded in her hands. She seemed smaller, somehow. She smiled shyly at him and he managed one back. It occurred to them both that they had just shared in some private moment. Something that only they were privy to. A shared memory.

They had made a lot of those.

They walked back towards the men's clothes and Sora moved closer to her, their arms almost touching. Abuse. Abuse. The word blinked on and off in his head.

Kairi took one of the button up shirts from the rack and handed it to him. "Do you want to try one?"

He looked down at the wrinkled shirt in his hand and shook his head. "If it fits, it's fine."

She looked at him oddly and chuckled. "Anyone ever tell you you're funny?" she asked.

"They used to," he said honestly.

Kairi shook her head in faux exasperation. "What are we going to do with you?"

Sora lowered his head sheepishly. Abuse. Abuse. Kairi pulled a pair of jeans from a pile and handed it to him.

"That's your size, right?" she asked.

"I think so," he said, examining the label.

Kairi moved towards the escalator and he followed. They descended and went to the register, paying for their items and each receiving a bag in turn. They exited the store and Sora felt just a bit emptier; felt like he'd just willingly surrendered something important to him. They stood on the edge of the sidewalks, taking in the midday city air.

"So you've never been to the city," she commented, turning her head to look at him.

Sora shook his head. "Never."

"So you've never been to Central Park."

"Can't say that I have."

Kairi grinned mischievously. "Great," she said, grabbing his hand for the umpteenth time that day and pulling him along with her down the street. Sora gave up any pretense of resistance and allowed her to lead him through the city, feeling the wind in his spiky hair and the ground beneath his feet. Feeling the world was at his fingertips, feeling that he was part of the world. At last. At long last.

They came to the entrance of what he could only assume was Central Park. Trees with the last of their bushy leaves that plumed outwards obstructed the sun, breaking its monopoly on the city and allowing only for the occasional ray of sunlight to strike the dim grass. Kairi entered the park and Sora followed her. Suddenly the urban jungle transformed into a bucolic preserve. They strolled down the path, basking in the shade and enjoying the comfortable quiet between them.

They stopped by a big pond, taking off their shoes and sitting down in the grass. Sora picked a pebble from the grass and flung it into the water, studying the tiny splash and resultant ripples.

"So, what do you think?" Kairi asked him, breaking the silence.

"It's beautiful," Sora marveled without hesitation. And by God, did he mean it.

"I thought you might like it," Kairi said, trying to wiggle her toes in between blades of grass.

"Yeah…I don't think I've seen something like this since…"

Kairi looked at him curiously. "Since what?"

Sora turned away and stared at the pond. Somewhere a bird called out.

He waffled. "Can I ask you something?"

Kairi was silent for a moment, perhaps fearing the worst. "Okay…"

"You've seen those bruises on Riku, right?"

He heard her take a sharp intake of breath. "What about them?"

"You said it was his…parents?"

Kairi seemed to become more uncomfortable. "I shouldn't have said that."

"Does that happen to him often?" Sora asked.

"I don't know," Kairi sighed. "Do you really want to talk about this?"

"I don't know," Sora conceded, "I'm just curious, I guess."

"Listen," she said, "it's probably not a good idea to go around asking things like that."

"Who's listening?" he joked, turning his head from side to side.

"Nobody. It's just…if it got out…"

"How does he even explain it?"

"Usually he just says he got in fights," Kairi explained. "Nobody questions it."

"Uh huh…" Sora laid back in the grass, resting his head on his arms and staring up at the sky. The breeze was not so cold and the puffy clouds drifted along steadily. It was all so dreamy. So unreal. Like everything that had come before never happened, like he was always in that moment and always would be. Oh, how he wished he could be.

He listened to Kairi shuffle in the grass to his side. "Huh…"

"What?" he looked over at her.

"Didn't know these grew here," she said, picking a pink rose from the ground. She held it above his head. "What do you think?"

"Looks nice," he said, closing his eyes and enjoying the mixture of sunlight and cold air.

"Here," she said, pulling his hand from under his head and placing it in his hand, "it's yours now."

Sora held it to his face, the petals tickling his forehead. "It'll die."

Kairi shook her head. "Just put it in a vase and leave it by your window. The cold air will keep it alive."

Sora studied the rose. Pretty. The perfect flower.

He turned to Kairi. "Thanks," he said.

She smiled at him and they stayed that way, looking at each other, neither daring to break contact before the other. Suddenly Kairi's phone beeped. She pulled it out of her pocket and checked it.

"Oh, we need to get back to the car."

"'The car,'" Sora mimed. Kairi slapped him on the shoulder. "Shut up," she giggled.

They gathered their bags and backtracked to the limo. Amazingly, the streets seemed to become even more crowded. More people. More cars. Rush hour approached.

They entered the limo and were on their way. Crossing through the city towards Brooklyn and Sora felt his eyelids growing heavy. They had done a lot of walking. Maybe more than he had done up to that point. Either way, he was glad to have done it.

They crossed over the Brooklyn Bridge and Sora watched the blazing orange sun lowering itself over the East River. He didn't feel anxious. He felt good.

The limo stopped outside of his apartment and he faced Kairi. Neither of them said anything.

"Thanks…for today," Sora spoke, trying his best to express his appreciation.

Kairi simply smiled and nodded. "It was my pleasure."

"Next time I'll take you out," he offered.

"You'll have your chance," she said. He knew what she meant.

"Right," he said, opening the door and stepping out onto the sidewalk.

"See you," he waved.

"Bye," she gave a little wave back. He shut the door and watched her pull away. The limo rolled down the street and turned a corner. Gone.

Sora hurried into the building and looked down at the rose laid out in his palm. He had to make sure it didn't die.

Now they would live.