Hey, I'm baaaack! How was everyone's holidays? I got a new laptop for Christmas, and it's amazing! But windows vista is a little hard to get used to, especially with the microsoft word. But anyway...
Just a forewarning, this chapter is fairly long. Well, I suppose not all THAT long, but compared to chapters in the past, yeah, kind of long. You might want to fish out those holiday left-overs and pour yourself a glass of cold milk (ew, I don't really like milk) before reading.
If you haven't noticed, I was doing a little revamping on this break. This is no longer a part three, but an individual chapter, as is the last two. And please keep in mind that this beginning sequence is what happened in the hospital in Riku's POV, so if things sound familiar or something...you know why.
Reviewers:
Mentally Insane Fangirl: (He's kind of always wanted Sora, but that's all I'm going to say on it. All will be revealed...later.)
Kira Sakura: (Don't hurt my Rocky! Yeah, but the chapter felt necessary, you know? Hope this one is better!)
Random-Laughter: (I couldn't tell you what it was, I can't pin point it myself. I thought about maybe revamping that whole chapter, because I wasn't sure if I liked it, but I decided against it. It had a lot of necessary things in it. But yeah, hope you like this one!)
SuperFriendlySoraFan203: (Yeah, hospitals really are. My mom was in one once for a while, and every time I went in there I got kind of creeped out. )
pichu10176: (This chapter hopefully explains a lot more about it. And no, it's not healthy.)
00-angel: (Namine will be addressed next chapter, so keep reading! But you are on to something there...)
Sorry this little author's note was so damn long! Read on!
Enter Riku:
There is something very, VERY wrong about my kiwi lying on a hospital floor.
To start with, I was already pissed off by the time I got to his room- his room number was 666, what the hell is wrong with these hospitals?- due to the fact that the freaking receptionist had no record of a "Sora Hikaru" even being in the hospital.
"We have a K-L-U-T-Z Hikaru here, sir, but there is no record of a-" Sheila, as her name tag indicated, snapped at us, giving Cloud and I the evil eye. But Leon interrupted her mid snap by slamming down a fist on the counter. We all jumped in surprise. Jeez, Leon was like freaking Thor.
"What kind of hospital uses nicknames to record their patients? I think the DA would love to hear about a hospital who doesn't keep their shit in check." Leon mulled, glaring deep into her eyes. Sheila's, however, flitted across the waiting room in a panicked frenzy. Finally, she shakily typed something in the computer and gave us "Klutz's" room number.
Why would this piss me off? Because had the freaking hospital not had his last name on file, I would have never guessed that his nickname was Klutz. Then we would have gone to another hospital on the island, which, hey, there is none, and Sora would think that I didn't come back for him or something stupid like that, and my plan to win him back would never succeed!
Huh? What's that? You want to know what my plan is?
Well…I don't exactly have one yet, but I'm sure I'll figure it out once I see Sora and really talk to him. Which brings us back to why I was pissed off at the hospital. I need to talk to him!
"Wow, Leon, you're so intimidating." Cloud practically cooed as we walked down the hall to "klutz's" room. I rolled my eyes. Could Cloud get any more obvious?
"Yeah, well…it takes practice." Leon answered with a grunt, causing Cloud to sigh in awe. Alright, that was it. I just could not stand to watch Cloud try to flirt with this man anymore. Cloud was supposed to be my quiet, intense custodian, not some horny school girl!
"Leon, the DA wouldn't bust a hospital, a sanctuary basically, because someone gave them the wrong name." I pointed out with a scoff. Leon was so full of shit sometimes.
"Maybe not, but sometimes a little lie is all it takes to get on top." Leon answered stonily, sparing me an uninterested glance.
"On top of who, Leon? Cloud?" I snorted, earning a scandalized growl from Cloud, and a bemused look from the rock over there to my right. Whatever. The only face I wanted to see at the moment was Sora's. He was all that mattered at this point.
We finally reached the room after passing by some nutty looking people, and I forced myself not to let out a frustrated cry when I noticed that his parents were in the room. Great. Just Great. How the hell was I going to talk to Sora now?
So now, we're back to me, being pissed off, staring at Sora in an odd mix of anger, annoyance, joy and confusion while he stared back up at me from the ground looking like a lost little puppy.
I will say it again: something is very, VERY wrong about my kiwi lying on a hospital floor.
Cloud was the first to speak. "Uh, Sora? Why are you on the hospital floor? Isn't it, I don't know, unsanitary?"
Well, yes, it wasn't sanitary, but the janitors clean the floors after every patient. This was a fact that has passed Cloud by, however, and apparently Sora's mom as well.
"At least someone agrees with me!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. I smiled. Aw…Sora's mom acted just like Sora! You know, I've always liked Felicia, simply because unlike my mother, she is an honest and true person, just like Sora.
I guess that's why I always feel so relaxed and happy when I'm around the Hikaru's. They just have everything that, well, that I don't.
"The janitors clean the floors." Leon and Sora's dad both answered at the same time. I turned to the stoic rock. Did they know each other?
"Squall." Sunny Hikaru said stiffly, turning away from him. Apparently they did. This actually interested me immensely. I don't believe in coincidences, but somehow the fact that Leon and Sora's dad knew each other, and then that Cloud knew both, qualified as a big one. But I didn't have time to observe them closer. I heard a quiet rustling from the ground.
The kiwi is on the move, I repeat, the kiwi is on the move! I watched as Sora got up from the ground silently, almost as if he didn't want someone (I wonder who) to know he was moving, and snuggled back into the dingy looking hospital bed with a cute little sigh.
What the-? I know Sora doesn't think he can just fall asleep and not acknowledge my presence. It was time for Agent Kuey to do what he came here to do!
And another thing. Why was he even here? I mean, I know why he's here, but why did he have that little attack now? The week before I left, he, Roxas, and I had gone to his lung therapy session together, because we wanted to check on his progress. As it turned out, he hadn't hyperventilated in three months. It had been decided that Sora's hyperventilation syndrome had not only gone into remission, but had oddly vanished.
We ended up having a party to celebrate. Sure, he still had asthma, and I'm sure he always will. But just the fact that his fighting paid off and one stage of his heart problems were erased had made Roxas and me so happy that we just had to open the chardonnay!
So now, it's the present, and Sora has it again? That was a fact that pissed me off. And I was trying really hard not to take it out on Sora. It's a problem, you see. I have a problem with keeping my emotions in check.
"Kiwi…what the hell happened to 'being cured'?" I asked him slowly, trying with all of my might to keep the bite from my voice. Unfortunately, by the wince Sora just gave me, I don't think its working.
"Well…things change." He snapped. Ouch. Boy was he mad at me! Those were the same words that I told him when I had my grandmother send him that text message. Cruel, I know, but what do you expect?! I was a fourteen year old boy who had just realized he was in love! I was freaking out!
But of course, Sora would never understand that. It's physically impossible to convince Kiwi anything once he gets an idea in his head. I'll just have to prove it. But how?
I let out a short, frustrated breath. This wasn't working. I didn't actually expect Sora to still be ripe and bitter about all of this. I chewed on a thumbnail; I needed a sign.
"Look," I paused, before blurting, "Can we talk?"
Oh, real smooth Riku.
Sora glared at me. I take that as a no. But I was not going to give up so easily! I was going to have a real talk with Sora, dammit, even if it killed me!
"Come on, Sora…what have you got to lose?" I said softly. Sora wrinkled his nose at me before looking down at his hands. I think he was considering it!
"Fine, but not here, not while everyone can see us." Sora finally gave in, looking like he had just lost a war. Honestly, I had forgotten all about the adults. Sora and I both looked up at the same time.
Cloud was quietly gushing to Felicia about Leon, don't think I missed that, but the interesting thing was the exchange of body language between Leon and Sunny, Sora's dad.
I like to observe people. Call it some crazy alternate trait due to my hate for being the center of attention, but I like to watch other people interact. This explains why I was able to understand what Leon and Sunny were saying, whereas Sora just had this blank look on his cute little face.
Sunny: What are you doing here?
Leon: I came with Cloud.
Sunny: Well, stay away from him. He's not like you, he's a guardian.
Leon: It's too late, brother.
Sunny: If you care for him, then-
Sunny and Leon both felt our stares, and turned to us wearily. I think Sunny could feel my confusion, and the sudden race of my heart. Brothers? Guardian?
"Oh…Riku…sorry, I didn't quite see you there. How are you doing, buddy? Still throwing the old pigskin around?" Sora's dad asked cheerfully, acting as if he hadn't just been telepathically talking to Leon about Cloud. But fine. I would play along.
For now.
I chuckled. "No, Mr. H, I'm done with that." Jeez, Sunny, you can do better that. I haven't played football since I was seven. "But I'm doing alright."
I felt a need to clear the air. Sora was still looking quite confused and I didn't want to give away Sunny and Leon's secret while he was in here, and especially not while Cloud was watching. It was just not my style.
"Um…you know Leon, right?"
Sora's dad shuddered slightly. "Yes, I think I know…Leon." His nose, similar to Sora's, scrunched up in distaste. Obviously he didn't like Leon's name.
Cloud, ever the curious, piped in. "Really? How do you know Leon, Nick?"
Nick was the nickname given to Sunny, apparently. His full name is Sunny Nicholas Leonhart, but he took on Felicia's last name when they married. Personally, I'm glad. Sora Leonhart just sounds plain creepy.
Mr. H's eyes locked with Sora's, and I could see him trying to tell Sora that he was sorry, that he never wanted it to happen this way. But really. Come on now. We all know how naïve and innocent that Sora is deep inside. As if Sora would be able to understand all that in one glance.
"Sora, did you say hello to Cloud?" Sunny said abruptly. I couldn't help but whisper, "Smooth."
Fortunately, it worked. I'm pretty sure Sora hadn't even realized that Cloud was with us. That happens a lot, I've noticed. Sometimes Cloud is so reserved and quiet that you don't even notice him. Sora went flying into Cloud's arms, and for a second, I was reminded of when we were ten, at Roxas' birthday party, when Roxas had went flying into Sora's arms.
Life was so simple back then.
"Good to see you too, Sora, but that doesn't change the fact that your father changed the subject." Cloud announced. Go Cloud! You tell him! Silence filled the room, and that's when Cloud began to get fidgety and anxious.
Here's another fact about Cloud: He's impatient.
"God dammit, Sunny, tell me what's going on!" Cloud shouted into the quiet room. And I couldn't help myself, I jumped. As did Sora. And unfortunately, even as we tried to play it off, Sora's mom caught it. Of course…She notices everything about us.
"Alright, all adults outside. Now." She announced as Sora and I both groaned. But I didn't really mind. I still needed to have this talk with Sora.
The second the door closed, Agent Kuey made his move.
I climbed on top of him and slid his body down under me, straddling his hips and pinning his arms above his head. He blushed. That blush made my insides do somersaults, but I played it off with a grin. I had to keep this confident front going, otherwise he would see right through me. I didn't want Sora to see just how head over heels I was for him.
"R-Riku…" He stammered, looking away from me. I couldn't help but run my eyes up and down his body. Damn, Sora had really gotten sexy since I'd left. His muscles were tight and toned, his frame still had that seductive flow to it, and the way his body was trembling still managed to arouse me.
"Just like old times, huh?" I laughed, but as I laughed, I noticed his face distorting. His eyes were watering and all swirly, like he was remembering something and he began to tremble.
"YOU FUCKING JERK!" Sora suddenly screamed, flailing and trashing to try to get out of my grasp. Whoa! What did I say?! I had to calm him down.
"Kiwi-" I began before he bit me! He bit my lower lip so hard it began to bleed! What the FUCK?! My eyes began to water…dammit. I licked my lip and tried to act like that didn't just draw blood, and that that didn't faze me at all. I don't think it worked.
"You listen and you listen good! I gave you the best years of my life, and you destroyed it in one night! Not to mention the other thing I gave to you that night too. And what happens? You chicken out and leave for three years! You said we were in it together, and you leave me to repair all your fucking damage."
Yeah…I think that was when I completely zoned out. All I know is that the only thing running through my mind was that: I made Sora cry. It's always the worst feeling watching Sora cry. Kairi and Roxas can attest to that. It's like watching a puppy being run over, or seeing your favorite teddy bear go up in flames.
It was his last statements, however, that caught my attention.
"I don't know why you came back," he sighed, "but frankly, I don't care." He was so lying. "If you came to get some kind of forgiveness, you came in vain." He is seriously laying on the hurt! "If you want my friendship again, you'll have to earn it."
We both froze. Was that….a challenge?
Sora was challenging me to win him back! YES! Oh boy, was this going to be fun.
"Alright, Sora…I understand. If I were you, I would feel the exact same way. But…" I paused, turning to him with a devilish gleam in my eyes.
"…I will earn your friendship again." I made sure to tell him as I stretched. I made my way to the door, but not before turning around and winking. "And more."
The last thing I saw as I left the room was Sora wearing a horrified expression.
When I left room 666, there was a beautiful nurse standing with all of the adults. She was gorgeous! She had long midnight colored hair, and similar midnight colored eyes that just seemed to sparkle under the bright hospital ceiling lights. Her bangs were side-swept, and she was gazing at the ground, looking ashamed.
Everyone looked up at me as I shut the door.
"R-Riku? Is that…Is that Riku?" The nurse seemed to ask Cloud, staring at me in amazement. I frowned. Did I know her? Granted, she did look pretty familiar, although I couldn't put my finger on exactly who it was she reminded me of.
Cloud quickly stood in front of me, almost protective, and frowned deeply at her. Leon, Sunny and Felicia just looked away.
"Yes, this is my son Riku. Now if you don't mind, I'm sure Sunny and Felicia are anxious to discover just what the problem with Sora is." Cloud snapped, glaring at her. The nurse blinked, shocked into silence, for a couple of minutes before clearing her throat and looking at the clipboard.
I could have slapped Cloud just then. What was wrong with him? I didn't like guys who made pretty girls sad, and Cloud was doing just that! What was his deal?
"Okay, we have the long-term results, but as for the short-term, we had to run a few tests on him. He had a stress attack that developed into the early stages of a heart attack and-"
I stopped listening. Pain does that to you.
The Waiting Room
I was a man on a mission.
As I sat impatiently in one of the stiff, ridiculously uncomfortable green chairs they had in the waiting room, I couldn't help but feel almost as though I had done something wrong. I mean, yes, of course I had, three years go…but now, I felt really, really guilty. Maybe it was because I had just sort of hit on Sora and then vanished without a trace.
Cloud and Leon were at the reception desk, attempting to convince the lady that they had just visited Sora and not some kid named Klutz. Sheila was no longer there, but some other person. Jeez, you'd think Sheila would change the name when we first told her to, but apparently, that was just too much work!
But yes, back to my mission.
Agent: Kuey
Past experience: Has successfully fallen in love twice. Has successfully screwed up his life. Has no idea why he is writing this as he sits impatiently in the stiff, ridiculously uncomfortable green chair in the waiting room.
Mission: Agent Kuey must win back the trust and friendship of Agent Kiwi by using any means necessary. He must do it quickly before Agent Kiwi makes a dying pact with Agent Rocky to kick the ass of Agent Kuey
Cue Mission Impossible theme song.
"Riku," Cloud called me from across the room. Everyone in the waiting room who had been resting peacefully lifted their heads to glare at Cloud. "Let's go, because obviously," He turned to Reception Desk Lady and glared, "nurses have never heard of a thing called, 'manners' around here."
I raised an eyebrow at him. Hmm…ever since he had been hanging with Leon, Cloud was becoming more and more expressive. Back when he was with…HimCloud had been more of the quiet, intense type who let his actions do the talking for him.
Now just look at him; Shouting in hospitals and seducing businessmen.
"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave the hospital now, or we'll have to resort to sedatives." The lady said, yawning as if she had seen it all before. Cloud scowled darkly at her, and for a moment I was reminded fleetingly of when Roxas would get really pissed off at something and showed it in his expression. I used to love that big look on that small face.
Yes…It's funny how things don't work out.
We climbed back into the limo, but this time I snuggled up to Cloud. It was something that I used to do as a kid, and I hadn't done it in years, but just being near Cloud always made me feel better when I was feeling my worse.
Cloud almost automatically slung an arm around my shoulders and held me close. I could see Leon staring at us with an unreadable expression on his face, but I shut my eyes to it. I figured if I fell asleep, I could drown out the little voice in the back of my head that was telling me, 'You'll never get Sora back. Give it up.'
I think I fell asleep, but my mind was still racing. I could hear Leon and Cloud talking quietly, so I struggled to listen.
"Is he really your son?" Leon was asking softly.
"No...Riku was my husband's son." Cloud answered. Leon was silent for a little while, and all I could hear was the sound of trees and other cars passing us by. Finally, Leon had a response.
"…Was…?" He seemed to ask. Cloud chuckled slightly and ran a hand through my hair tenderly. He was silent for a moment, and I can only assume he was remembering something…
"You can't make me go back! They hate me!" Riku shouted at Sephiroth, angrily throwing a glass slipper at the wall. It shattered. Cloud quickly went over to comfort Riku, but Sephiroth froze him where he was with a cold glare. He went over to pick up the glass pieces instead. Sephiroth turned his gaze to Riku, narrowing his eyes.
"That slipper belonged to Cinderella, one of my greatest fucks." Sephiroth told him coldly. Cloud recoiled in disgust and dropped the pieces as if they were on fire. Both Riku and Sephiroth gave him apologetic looks before glaring back at each other.
"You are being utterly absurd. Now you will go to that school, and you will go now."
Riku's rage finally got the best of him, and he seethed in silence for a second before finally grabbing his backpack from the floor and storming out of the house, slamming the door behind him.
It was silent in the house. Sephiroth's cruel, cold demeanor finally melted, and he sagged quite ungracefully into a chair. He put his head into his hands. Cloud briefly ignored his own anger for a moment in favor of going to his lover. He wrapped his arms around him, ignoring the way Sephiroth's whole body seemed to tense up.
"He loves you, you know." Cloud said quietly. Sephiroth snorted but otherwise said nothing. "He does!" He insisted, running a hand in his long silver tendrils.
"I'm sure the only thing about me that he loves…is to hate me." Sephiroth muttered darkly. Cloud frowned, but he didn't know what to say to make it better. But that was alright with Sephiroth. He didn't want to deal with this anyway. Emotional dwellings were not his style.
Sephiroth stood up, gently pushing Cloud out of the way, and snatched his coat from the closet. He tossed Cloud a dark smirk before making his way out of the house.
"I'm going out. Don't wait up…otherwise you'll be waiting forever." And with that, Sephiroth was gone, leaving Cloud there to put a hand over his heart, noting the pain that lay deep in its walls.
Cloud sighed wistfully, and within that sigh, I could hear a hint of repressed pain and longing in his voice. "Yes, was. His name was Sephiroth, and he was a man-whore."
The cars and trees whirled on.
6th Period
It didn't take a genius to see that Cloud only told Leon to drop me off at school so he could have more alone time with him. There were only thirty more minutes of school left, but oh no, thirty minutes are like thirty hours to Cloud when he's with that stoic rock.
Whatever. I just had to make sure I was able to get to- I checked my schedule- Miss Yuffie's combat class without getting lost again. I didn't have Axel with me this time, so I would either have to ask for help, or find the damn courtyard on my own.
For future reference, Riku Tarada never asks for help.
"Hi, my name is Riku Tarada and I need some help; I'm a new student here. I was wondering if you could show me to my next class." I said confidently, tapping some guy decked out in all biker clothes. My better judgment told me not to speak to what appeared to be a random adult in this giant school but…he was the only one in the hall. And perhaps I was just judging him too quickly.
He turned around, and my mouth fell open in shock. He had steel colored hair with lavender highlights in them and a style that had part of his hair covering one startling purple eye. He was fragile looking and his expression was one of pure boredom, and his small frame seemed to be slung in an almost expectant way; almost as if he were waiting for someone to come and occupy his time.
Zexion!
"Zex! What are you doing here?!" I exclaimed as I threw my arms around him. The normally withdrawn boy chuckled and allowed one of his arms to circle my shoulder blades. "I thought you were being initiated!"
Zexion shushed me as he pulled me into a random empty classroom before breaking our embrace. "Why don't you just go public with that shit?" He hissed at me harshly. Whatever. This was Zexion- if he didn't have an attitude it just wouldn't be Zex.
Nonetheless, I grinned. I just wouldn't be Riku if I didn't. "And risk you going to jail?" I made my eyes go wide. "Never!"
Zexion scoffed and rolled his eyes (Or the visible one at least) but a small smile was tugging on the corners of his lips. "Would you like to know why I'm here or do you plan to just act like an idiot all day, Riku Tarada?"
My grin widened. "Actually, I appear to have a prior engagement." Zexion seemed puzzled at the very least, and frowned at me.
"What could you possibly have to do that is more important than you're good old pal Zexion?" He demanded. Now it was my turn to roll my eyes.
"School, Zex. School." I pointed out as if he were stupid. He made a face but exited the room, cocking a finger for me to follow him. I debated following him. When it came to Zexion, you never knew where you would end up. Besides, this was giving me a strange sense of Déjà vu. But in the end, my feet mimicked his as I sped up slightly to catch up with him.
"Since when do you care about school…?" I heard Zexion mutter under his breath, but I choose to ignore it in favor of the comforting quiet.
"So where exactly are you going?" He asked after we walked in silence. I shrugged.
"I don't know, I was looking for the courtyard before I saw you. You were just sexy I had to stop." I replied, my words dripping with sarcasm. Zexion made a grunting sound before pointing to a set of stairs to the right of where we were standing.
"Up the stairs, turn to the left, and climb out the window. Jump down from the balcony and you'll land in some trees. Crawl down the trees and you'll land right where Yuffie's class is." Zexion informed me, his voice expressionless and quiet. I stared at him with wide eyes.
"Dude, how do you know all of that?" I wanted to know. Zexion tilted his head at me and gave me a disbelieving glare.
"Have you forgotten already?"
My mind flashed back…
"…Going to school, my ass." Riku muttered under his breath, storming down the sidewalk. He paused. Where the hell was he going to go? Everywhere worth going, like the mall to scam on chicks, a bar to get drunk, or the movies to go watch a porno required a car so…
A glare from the sun hit his eyes and he winced towards the direction of the garage. Suddenly an idea hit him. Cloud's motorcycle was sitting pretty in there, and he didn't have to be at his "job" until eight at night. He wouldn't even notice it was gone!
"HOLY FUCKING SON OF A BITCH!" Riku shouted. He was currently sitting up in a tree, screwed out of his mind. Cloud's bike, or what was left of it, was sticking out of the great maple tree, burning in anger. Riku closed his eyes and slammed his fist into his head. He was so goddamn stupid!
He could ignore the angry welt on his cheek, or the countless scratches tattered across his chest and his arms, but what he could not ignore was the hurt, disappointed, major pissed off look on Cloud's face when he discovered what happened to his motorcycle.
"For a little fee, I can fix that for you." A quiet voice called out to him. Riku blinked and peered down from the branch he was perched in. A small, slate-haired boy was staring at Cloud's ruined bike with interest, snapping a picture of it with his cell phone from different angles. Riku rubbed his hands together anxiously.
"How much is 'a little fee'?" Riku wanted to know. The slate-haired boy finally looked up at him, and a pair of shockingly purple eyes focused onto his.
"I don't know; depends on the damage." He answered. Riku mulled it over. Well, he had some munny on him, and it wasn't like he was going to school anyway, so…
"Alright, then. Where's your shop?"
"…and then, I got the phone call, high-tailed it out of there, and ended up here." Riku finished, recounting the drama that got him in BastianBay in the first place. The boy, Zexion, Riku learned was his name, was working on the motorcycle, along with a few of his family members inside of the garage of their family restaurant, Quiet Observations.
"Damn…that's rough, kid." Zexion's oldest brother, Xigbar or 'Xiggie' as they all called him, commented from where he was working on the motor. Riku just sighed.
"I know. But I brought it on myself, you have to admit." Riku replied. Zexion, finally finished with the paint and the repairs, stood up, wiping some the back of his hand across his forehead and as a result, smudging some oil and dirt onto it.
"Look, Riku," Zexion began, turning to him with a small smirk, "sometimes in order for a man to be a man, he has to get away from his problems for a while. Cowardly? Yes. Irresponsible? Of course. But needed? Almost indefinitely."
There were many grunts of acknowledgement from the other family members who were sitting around, talking to Riku and listening to his story. Finally, after what seemed like little time, Cloud's motorcycle was fixed and perfect. In fact, it looked better than it did before. Riku hopped up from the couch he was sitting on and walked over to Xiggie and Zexion.
"Hey, wait, did you by any chance go to Lucky High while you were in Destiny Island?" Zexion suddenly asked him. Riku rubbed the back of his arm sheepishly.
"Yeah, how did you know?"
Zexion smirked and pointed to Riku's backpack. It had the Lucky High Crest stitched into it. It was the required backpack that all the students had to use, probably to further un-individualize them.
"I used to go there myself. I lived in DestinyIsland for eighteen years before I moved here to live with my dad about two years ago." He explained. Riku nodded in understanding. To live somewhere for almost eighteen years could spark the urge to move somewhere else…
"So how much do I owe you?" He asked. Zexion exchanged looks from all of his family members before turning back to Riku. He shook his head.
"It's on the house."
"Really?"
"Only if…you come visit us again, and let me drive you home. It's getting late, school is no doubt over for you, and you can't drive worth shit."
I grinned at Zexion sheepishly. I forgot all about our first meeting until now. Zexion just rolled his eyes and pushed in front of me, beginning to climb up the stairs.
"Just come on. You're already an hour late as it is, and Yuffie isn't going to like that, no matter what the excuse is."
Yuffie's Combat Class: The Courtyard
"…And that's my history!" Yuffie finished, having just recounted her whole life's story. That's when I fell in. Literally. Zexion wasn't kidding when he said that I'd land right in the middle of her class. There were screams and shouts as I hit the ground with a painful oompf! but I could quite clearly hear one snicker that made my blood run cold.
Roxas.
"And who might you be, young ninja warrior?" Yuffie asked me angrily, slinging her hip and resting a hand on it. I stood up with an eye-roll and dusted myself off. Teachers who had attitudes annoyed me immensely.
"Riku Tarada. I'm new." I told her, ignoring the giggles being directed my way and the eyes of some of my classmates. Miss Yuffie noticed, however.
"Do you all have something to say to him? 'Cause if you do, I ask that you get it over with now, so I can go one teaching class." She snapped. Immediately the giggling stopped and the gazes were directed elsewhere. I grinned. Forget what I said about attitude, her attitude was beautiful if she planned to use it in my favor.
"Alright, Riku, you can go ahead and take a seat next to your classmates." Yuffie announced, pointing straight at Roxas. He scowled, but scooted over nonetheless. I took that as a good sign.
"Okay! So I guess since we're running out of time, we'll just have a quick demonstration of what we'll be working on during this portion of P.E. May I have a volunteer?" Yuffie asked brightly. Silence reigned.
"I will, Miss Fie!" A familiar sultry drawl called out. Roxas' whole body seemed to shudder at the voice, and that's when the owner of it revealed himself. I mentally smacked my forehead. I should have known. Axel.
As Axel and Yuffie began to circle each other, and Axel fished out a blue lighter (which you're actually not supposed to have in Lucky High), the students all began to stand up and cheer for Axel. Well, everyone except for Roxas and I. Roxas, probably because he was still angry, and me, just because I was scared that if I moved, Roxas would lose his newfound calm.
"Axel, you just ruined another pair of wonderfully good shorts!" Yuffie complained as she swatted at a flame on her shorts, but still managing to block Axel's follow-up attack. Axel just smirked and flicked the lighter some more.
"BURN, BABY!" He cackled.
"I'm only letting you sit here because of Sora." Roxas commented softly out of the blue. I glanced at him, but otherwise remained silent. I got the feeling that he wasn't finished.
"I wanted to go see him, but the damn school administrators told me I had to wait until after school. " He paused when Yuffie managed to cut Axel a little, but continued upon noting that it didn't really hurt him. "Then I planned to sneak out, it's pretty easy to do so, but I remembered that I'm on probation. If I was caught I could have gotten suspended again so…"
Roxas trailed off and looked back to the battle. "I know you got to see him so…how is his asthma?"
I shook my head a little. It was nice to hear Roxas' voice again, but I just wish it was because he actually wanted to talk to me, rather than because his concern for Sora overrode his hate for me. Nonetheless, I answered the question.
"Well, I went in to see him first," I began, ignoring the memories of Sora's body flush under mine. I'm sure Roxas wouldn't want to hear that. "And then I left his room, where all the adults were. At first they all seemed to be having some kind of argument or something, but then the actual doctor came, and all attention went back to Sora's health.
"The doctor, he seemed to mumble something at first, but when Mrs. Hikaru got angry due to her nerves, he just blurted it out. Sora's asthma, which had been making positive progress, has suddenly started to get worse, and because of that…" I paused and looked away, causing Roxas to make an impatient sound in the back of his throat.
"What? Just tell me!" Roxas all but shouted. I finally turned back to him with a dismayed expression on my face. It hurt to even say it.
"Because of that, Sora has been re-diagnosed with hyperventilation syndrome."
Roxas cursed and turned away from me. "The doctor says that although it had been cured before, it was because it had occurred from the stress attacks he used to get regularly, so when the stress attacks were "cured" and prevented, so was the syndrome. But this time, he says that because the hyperventilation has reoccurred from a direct connection with the asthma…it will be harder to cure this time."
Roxas stood up and glared at me angrily. I stared up at him, confused. What did I do now? I thought we had been making progress! He was talking to me, and we were bonding over our mutual dismay over Sora's health and…
Roxas looked over at Axel with a small smile and pulled his backpack over his shoulder. But when he looked back down at me, the glare was back on his face and his eyes seemed be rooting me to the spot. He looked scary as shit.
All he said were four words, and those four words made my stomach clench. "I saw you two."
Lockers
I told Zexion to wait for me while I went to my locker. He grudgingly went into the bathroom, leaving me to wrestle with it alone.
In Bastian Bay, we didn't have lockers. We had stalls. We bought our own locks, and we basically had a jumbo sized locker that we could store all of our goodies in. Here, in Lucky High, despite the size of the school itself, we have itty bitty Easy Bake Oven sized lockers. First, they come with their own locks, so you have to sit there and play thumb war with the stupid spinner.
Then, once you manage to open it, it's so vandalized and unsanitary that you debate putting your shit in there at all!
And finally, once you reason that, hey, it's just a locker and prepare to put your belongings in there, nothing fits, because it's like the little shoe cubbies they give you at Chuckie Cheese's!
So because of this, I couldn't say I was surprised when I saw Kairi struggling to pull out the books she had crammed into her locker. Those lockers were accidents waiting to happen. As I made my way over to her, I noticed a group of boys surrounding her, watching her ass as it wiggled up and down. I bristled. No one looked at my childhood friend like that.
"Does she look like a mirror to you, or there any other reason why you're staring?" I asked them loudly and coldly, cracking my knuckles. Kairi looked up at me in surprise, before looking back behind her, zeroing in on her showing black lace panties. With a squeal, she pulled her skirt down, causing the guys who were watching to burst out in laughter.
All it took was a low snarl to get them running.
"Oh, this is so embarrassing! I hoped we would get to meet again on better circumstances!" Kairi cried, throwing her arms around me. I just grinned and returned the hug, taking a deep breath and inhaling the sweet scent of daisies and apples. I don't know if she wore perfume or something, but…Kairi always smelled tasty.
But not in a…weird way…
"Oh, don't worry about it. Although you might want to worry about that," I leaned down and smacked Kairi's small little ass, making her giggle and squeal, "short little skirt of yours!"
"Riku!" She shouted out, laughing as she chased me down the hall and towards the outside area where the school buses were. Little did I see at the time, however, a small brunette was watching us from behind her locker door, licking her lips as we raced down the hall.
The Hollow Connection
"Can you believe how much this place hasn't changed? It's like, when I come in here, we're still the same silly, mischievous ten-year olds that we were before." Kairi marveled, taking a bite of her double cheeseburger. I grinned and opened my mouth wide, letting her see all of my mushy food.
Now, I know most people would be disgusted by that kind of thing, and I can't say I could blame them. But with Kairi…Kairi would never be disgusted. I can just be my true, grinning, playful, sarcastic self with her. In fact, Kairi took one look at me before opening her own mouth, showing her own crunched up food.
An old lady passed by us and wrinkled up her nose in disgust. We both swallowed our food and looked at each other in an ashamed kind of way in silence. Then we both burst out laughing.
"Did you see her face?" I whispered, wiping some tears out of my eyes. Kairi just covered her mouth with her hand to attempt to stop laughing. Finally, we calmed down, and continued eating in a comfortable silence.
"Actually, Riku, there was a reason that I brought you here." Kairi began, wiping her mouth on her napkin. "Normally, I would have gone to visit Sora, but I heard that you did, and I'm sure it's nothing, so…"
I interrupted her with a finger on her lips. "His hyperventilation…it's been re-diagnosed."
Kairi was quiet for a moment, nothing like how Roxas reacted, and took a sip of her Dr. Pepper. I waved a hand in her face.
"Kairi?"
"Let me process, Riku."
I waited impatiently as Kairi began to tug on a loose strand of her mid-length brown hair in thought. Finally, after what seemed like hours, she turned to me with a mischievous look in her eyes.
"Let's have a 'welcome back!' party for you!" She suggested, still deep in thought. I gave her a weird look. Okaaaay…I tell her that Sora has hyperventilation syndrome again and she suggests a party for me?
"Kairi," I asked seriously, "are you high?"
She rolled her eyes and hit me on the shoulder. "No, Riku, I'm serious. I've been doing some thinking, and well, I think that maybe Sora's health is being, I don't know, triggered."
I contemplated laughing, but by the expression on her face, I'd say she was being serious. We were both really playful people- all of our friends were, naturally- but we knew the difference between being humorous, and being solemn. And I think Kairi was actually being solemn.
"What do you mean?" I asked her, raising an eyebrow. She looked around her, checking to see if anyone was looking, before leaning in towards me.
"Well, I was surfing the web a couple of weeks ago, and I happened to come across an interesting story about a girl whose health depended solely on her heart."
I leaned in closer to Kairi, pushing my bangs out of my eyes in interest. "So basically, for this girl, her emotional pain was the same as her physical pain?"
Kairi nodded. "Exactly." She picked up a fry and waved it in my face conspiratorially. "I think Sora may be going through the same thing. I think that somehow, whenever he gets upset, his heart physically takes a beating."
I chewed on my thumbnail a little bit and leaned back in my chair, thinking. If what Kairi thought was true, and what Cloud insisted had meaning... that would explain why Sora's health has suddenly taken a turn for the worse at the same time that I've come back.
That would mean then, that because Sora is upset and hurt that I've returned, his hyperventilation problems have returned as well.
"It all makes sense now." I looked down at the tablecloth and continued to bite on my nails. "I'm the reason Sora's health has worsened."
Kairi looked dismayed. "No! That's not what I meant! I just meant that I think Sora is making himself sick in his subconscious." She flipped her hair behind her shoulders, which meant that that was final. I just nodded.
"That's why I think we should have a party. If my assumptions are correct, then that means if he's happy, he'll get better!" Kairi clapped her hands for emphasis. I frowned at her in confusion.
"Okaaaay….?"
"Okaaaaay, so if I can get you two to be friends again, or at least to be civil, he'll be better. And what's one of his favorite things in the world…?"
"Parties…" I was beginning to catch on.
"Right. Now, Sora's always been a really forgiving person, so I have no doubt in my mind that it'll only take a heartfelt chat for you two to be on good terms. Roxas, however, is the type who holds grudges."
I wrinkled my nose. I was confused again. "What does this plan have to do with Roxas?"
Kairi shook her head slowly at me like I was stupid. "It has everything to do with Roxas, you should know that! Sora feels as though he has to be the best friend he can be to Roxas because of how horrible a one he was back then. He won't forgive you until Roxas does, just on principle alone."
"Kairi…it won't be that easy." I said softly. Kairi frowned at me.
"Why not?"
"Roxas saw me, us, that night." I explained. Kairi was silent for a moment.
"He saw both you and Sora?"
"Yes."
Kairi sighed deeply, but otherwise said nothing. Finally, she seemed to decide something. "You two didn't just make a mistake, Riku." Kairi said softly. "You had been in love with him long before that night, and I think Roxas realizes that."
She nodded her head decisively. "You three will be friends again."
What Kairi said was making sense, but I don't know how she planned to do all of that in one party. I figured it would take years for Roxas to ever forgive me, although I have to say, we were making good progress on the talking front earlier.
"But don't worry; I'm almost positive he'll forgive you tomorrow at the party." Kairi reassured me, standing up and throwing down two twenties. She walked outside, motioning for me to follow, before stopping in front of Leon's snazzy limo.
After school had ended, we got a ride from Leon and Cloud (I was totally mooching, I know) to The Hollow Connection, the walk-in diner we used to go to and coincidentally the one Axel works at, to catch up.
Kairi turned to me with a smile and handed me a flyer. It read:
Guess who is shaking things up on DestinyIsland
Welcome home Riku Tarada, male model and former football star back to where he belongs!
What: Welcome Home Party for Riku!
Where: Kairi's house!
When: Tomorrow, starting at six
What to wear: Your hottest outfit- this is a party people, and if you're not hot, you're not allowed inside! Haha, just kidding! (No seriously, no sweats allowed)
"Kairi! I'm not a male model!" I exclaimed, thrusting the flyer back in her face. She shoved me away and clasped her hands behind her back innocently.
"No, but you could be. I'm sure almost everyone is thinking it anyway, so who cares if I over exaggerated a little bit? Besides, I had to make it interesting. Swing by my house a little later, and I'll tell you the plan." She emphasized the word 'plan' by winking. I just rolled my eyes and opened the limo door for her.
Cloud and Leon were looking up at us innocently; A little too innocently, if you ask me. But I suppose I wouldn't want to know what they were actually doing while they were waiting for us.
"Actually, I think I'll walk. I want to swing by Axel's place before I go and then visit Sora back at his house. I have to give him time to go to lung therapy, you know?" Kairi explained, taking a step back and already fishing out her cell phone. I nodded.
"Yeah, I know. I'll see you tomorrow then."
"Bye, Riku. This was nice."
And you know what? It was nice. But do you know something else? It wasn't until we were halfway back to Cloud's place when I realized I definitely left Zexion back at the school.
Lucky High School, the Bathroom Stall
Zexion rolled his eyes upwards and kicked the stall open. That son of a bitch Riku forgot about him. Only one word described what he was feeling right now.
"Fuck."
"Not when we're just meeting again!" Another voice quipped. Zexion whirled around and his eyes widened. This person…this person was…
A ghost.
Yeah, actually hyperventilation syndrome is real. I looked it up and everything, it can actually be "cured", but only in a direct relation with the disease it resulted in. Wikipedia and health sites explain it well. SO...there is still hope for Sora!
Zexion made his appearance as did Yuffie and Tifa! Oh, and don't worry about the guardian thing yet. That will be explained later. So I guess you can take it as foreshadowing to the bigger plot in the story!
Riku was kind of a jerk in this chapter, huh? Lol, well he can't be roses and daisies every chapter. And strangely, I like Kairi when she's with Riku. Of course, I like her character in this story, but I just like her personality when she's hanging with Riku.
Next chapter many of the questions about Namine or other characters (excluding Sora and Riku) will hopefully be answered. And I will update really soon, okay? I won't wait as long as I did for this chapter! Reviews, as we know, make me happy and inspired, and questions or other comments are appreciated as well!
-BB