Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. it belongs to Square Enix and Disney.
Angel in Disguise
8. Riku: Confusion
Kairi thought that the reason that Sora and I hadn't told Roxas about us was because I was afraid of Roxas. Me? Afraid of Roxas? Not a chance. Now Squall on the other hand, he's the one I was afraid of. He's super protective of both Sora and Roxas and his boyfriend, Cloud, is just as protective of them.
I dreaded the day that we would tell Squall about us. I just knew that I would get pulled aside and threatened by both Squall and Cloud and that if I were to ever hurt Sora in any way, I would be as good as dead. Actually, they'd probably make it so that I would wish I was dead.
For me, I didn't want to tell Roxas was because I didn't know how to. It's not like there's a 'how to' book that tells you how to tell your boyfriend's twin brother that his twin is gay and that you're dating him. And with Roxas, I knew I was likely to get punched in the face if I even so much as suggested such a thing.
Right then I was glad that Roxas had left the house to go hang out with Axel. I didn't particularly like the redhead, but so long as his getting Roxas out of the house gave me uninterrupted alone time with Sora, I was happy.
Telling Roxas wasn't my only problem. I also had to deal with my three older brothers, Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz. If they were to find out about me and Sora, it would be all over Destiny Island in only one hour. But I also knew I had to tell them before they found out on their own, which would have been much worse.
And then there was Kairi. She had been spending less and less time with Sora and I. At the time I just assumed that she didn't want to be a third wheel and wanted to give us alone time. We hadn't really made an effort to invite us, so maybe that's what she needed. But then again, it never stopped her from joining us before. I decided to talk to Sora about it when I went over there that day.
But first, I had to avoid my brothers.
I snuck out my bedroom door and peered up and down the hallway. Down the hall, I saw that each of them had their bedroom doors closed. That didn't mean anything, though. They shut their doors whether they were in the room or not.
For a moment I debated going back in my room to climb out the window so I wouldn't risk running into them. But ever since dad cut down the tree to keep me from sneaking out, I haven't been able to do that. So instead of climbing out the window and killing myself, I shut my door as quietly as I possibly could.
I should not have done that.
Somehow, someway, they heard the sound of me quietly shutting my bedroom door. They came barreling out of their rooms full speed, and tackled me to the ground. I saw stars for a moment and then they cleared and I glared at one of them.
"Where're you going, Riku?" Kadaj asked. "You should know better than to sneak off without telling us."
I hate them so fucking much. "Get off of me." I muttered, trying to push them off.
"Tell us where you're going." Yazoo demanded.
"It's none of your business where I go!" I snapped at them. "Now get the hell off!"
Loz sniffed and his eyes filled with tears, which made me internally groan. Loz may have been the oldest, but he acted like a five-year-old girl sometimes. Sure enough, he started crying a few seconds later and a disgruntled Yazoo and Kadaj got off of me, making sure to elbow me in the stomach first, and comforted Loz.
That was when I made a break for the front door. Before they realized what had happened, I was gone. I was out of the house and free from my crazy older brothers, even if it was just for a little while. In happiness, I whistled a tune from the upcoming school musical the entire way to Sora's house.
I let myself in the front door like I always did, greeted the maid who was cleaning the foyer, and then I crept up the stairs to Sora's room. Roxas passed me on his way down the stairs, but he was still in his early morning daze and didn't notice me.
I got to Sora's bedroom door and had to fight back the urge to hum the Mission Impossible theme song and do a dodge roll into his room as I quietly opened the door and peered in. I found him sleeping away on his bed, clutching a pillow to his chest. His chocolate brown hair was even messier than usual and it spiked at odd angles. I bit back a laugh as I stepped into the room and quietly shut the door. Thankfully, Sora didn't have super hearing like my brothers, so did he didn't so much as stir.
I crept over to the bed and watched him sleep for a few minutes. He looked so peaceful when he was asleep. Then I jumped on him.
He awoke with a surprised yell and nearly slammed his head into mine. Thankfully, I had remembered to pin down his arms so that that wouldn't happen again. When he saw that it was me, his lips curved into the smile that I love so much.
"Riku!" He exclaimed. He took advantage of my loose grip on his arms and broke loose and glomped me, making both of us fall off the bed. My head cracked into his bedside table and my vision went black before I saw stars for the second time that morning.
"Riku! I'm so sorry!"
I was dimly aware of Sora pulling me away from the table and pulling back my hair to check the damage. He breathed a sigh of relief and told me I wasn't bleeding. I didn't have the heart to tell him that just because I wasn't bleeding didn't mean I couldn't have gotten a concussion.
He kissed the spot where I hit my head and then asked, "Better?"
I didn't even try to shake my head, knowing it'd only make me really dizzy or hurt worse at that moment. "Not really." I lifted my hand and ran my fingers through his tangled hair. "How is it that you always manage to get me hurt?" I asked him teasingly.
"Maybe you're the clumsy one and not me." Sora teased back.
"Says the one who tripped over a Blitzball."
Sora stuck out his tongue at me and I had to resist the temptation to grab his tongue and yell, "Got your tongue!" Instead of doing that, I smirked and said, "Put that away before I'm tempted to put it to good use."
Part of me was disappointed when his tongue disappeared into his mouth and he grinned at me, as if knowing what I was thinking.
"I think you were already tempted, otherwise you wouldn't have said that." He said, deviously moving closer until I was ready to bed for him to kiss me. Not that I would have let him know that.
I didn't have to beg or ask him to kiss me. He did that on his own; leaning down to kiss me with those soft lips, those fingers running through my hair and across my scalp.
He pulled away all too soon and gave me a devilish grin. He knew exactly what he was doing. He got up from the floor and moved away to begin his usual morning routine, but I would have none of that. I got up, being careful of my head which, miraculously, didn't throb as soon as I began moving around, and I walked up behind Sora and picked him up before I deposited him on his bed. Then, for the second time that morning, I jumped on top of him.
I didn't stop to think that Roxas was just downstairs and that he could walk in on us at any time. All I cared about right then was me and Sora.
Later that day while Roxas was out doing something or other with Naminé, Sora and I sat on his back patio and talked. We talked about the best way to tell our families about us and then I brought up how Kairi had been avoiding us.
"Avoiding us?" Sora repeated, puzzled. "What do you mean? She was just over the other night, remember?"
"But so was everyone else." I pointed out. "The three of us used to hang out all the time. Lately, Kairi leaves or brings someone else along when it's going to be just the three of us. Haven't you noticed that?"
Sora shook his head. "No. Not really. I mean, she has been working more at the bookstore lately and then there's her school project and the comic that she and Naminé are working on."
I nearly sighed in frustration. Sora could be too oblivious at times. "Sora, you know as well as I that Kairi finished her project in the first few days of vacation. And she doesn't work that often at the book store."
"She could still be working on the comic with Naminé." Sora defensively said.
"I was thinking," I said slowly, seeing that trying to convince him that Kairi had been avoiding us wasn't going to work. "That we could invite Kairi over today and just hang out like we used to. We can make snacks and pull out board games or a movie and just goof off for the rest of the day."
Sora brightened and sat up straighter. "Really? That sounds great! I'll go call Kairi!"
Before I could say anything, he was gone. It was amazing how fast he could get around even with a broken leg. I got up and walked inside where I found that Sora was already on the phone with Kairi and was trying to coax her into coming over. I gave him a smile and walked to the kitchen to start fixing snacks and slushies. If there was any one thing that could cheer Kairi up, it was slushies.
I pulled open the freezer and hunted for a frozen juice can within its depths. I knew there had to be at least one in there since Sora's mom liked to have a martini with dinner each night and she preferred using the cans over anything else. I grinned when I found a grape one in there (grape was Kairi's favorite) and I pulled it out and set it on the counter. Then I hunted down the ever-elusive blender and dug out a bowl to put ice in.
Before I could even plug in the blender, Sora walked into the room with a morose expression on his face. I stepped away from the counter. "What's wrong?" I asked, worried. Even if Kairi hadn't been able to come over, Sora wouldn't have normally been that upset. Actually, he looked more angry than upset.
"I asked Kairi to come over." Sora tonelessly said. "At first she agreed. She sounded happier than she has in days."
So he had noticed that Kairi was upset.
"At first?" I asked, almost dreading what was coming next. Have you ever gotten that tightening feeling in your gut and knew that something bad was going to happen? That's what I was feeling right then.
Sora crossed his arms over his chest and glared at me. "Yes, Riku, at first." He practically snapped at me. "Then she asked if it was just going to be the two of us and I told her that you were here too." He looked away from me as his eyes began to fill with tears, and that hurt even worse than him glaring at me. "She got quiet and then made up some excuse about forgetting that she had to do something, so she can't come over."
"Sora…" I softly murmured, walking over to him. I fully intended to comfort him. Unfortunately, he didn't let that happen.
"Don't touch me!" Sore yelled.
I took a step back, startled.
And just my luck, Roxas and Naminé walked through the glass kitchen door just in time to hear Sora yell those words. Roxas immediately glared at me and handed his shopping bags to Naminé before he walked over to me. I had never seen him look so angry before.
"Get out." Roxas said coldly. "I don't want to hear whatever excuse you undoubtedly have. Get. Out. Now."
Normally, I wouldn't have been at all afraid of Roxas when he got angry. Normally I would have laughed and teased him. But I knew better than to mess with Roxas right then. At that moment, he reminded me so much of Squall that I was almost shaking.
I glanced back at Sora, wishing that he would understand that I hadn't done anything to Kairi. And then I left, feeling tired and heavy. I considered going straight home, but I knew that there was something else I had to do first.
I had to talk to Kairi.
Kairi lived just two miles away from Sora's house in an even ritzier neighborhood than the rest of us, except for Naminé who lived just next door to her. I jogged up the front steps to Kairi's house and rang the doorbell. I stood there and patiently waited for someone to answer the door, so I could try and figure out how to fix the mess.
I knew it wasn't Kairi's fault. I could never have blamed her for it all. It was just a big misunderstanding on Sora's part. I also knew that the only way to get things cleared up was to talk to Kairi.
The butler answered the door and, recognizing me, let me in before he hurried off to find Kairi. I waited in the foyer, looking around at the colorful artwork on the walls. Being at her house was a lot like being in an art museum.
I didn't have to wait for long before Kairi came down the stairs in her pink and black jogging outfit and her hair pulled up into a ponytail. She looked surprised to see me.
"Riku, what are you doing here?" She asked, hurrying over to me. "I thought you were hanging out with Sora today!"
"I was, until he called you to ask if you wanted to join us." I told her. "Somehow he got the feeling that I had done something to you."
Kairi frowned. "But that doesn't make any sense. You haven't done a thing to me. What gave him that idea?"
"Probably you agreeing to come over at first and then learning that I was there and changing your mind." I told her. "It almost sounds like you're trying to avoid me."
Kairi looked away from me. "Not you." She quietly said. "You and Sora. When you're together." She looked up at me, distraught. "I'm happy for you guys! I really am! It's just…" She wrapped her arms around herself and looked away from me again. My heart ached seeing how helpless she looked. "I guess I'm a little jealous. I mean, I've always had a crush on you and Sora. So the two of you together and spending even more time together, it's overwhelming."
I had no idea. I hadn't even thought to worry about how Kairi felt about Sora and I dating. We had been too busy worrying about our families and Tidus and Wakka's reactions. For me it felt like Kairi had been supportive since the very beginning. She and Naminé were the first people we told.
"Kairi, I'm so sorry." I said softly. "Sora and I, we didn't even think about how you felt. We should have."
Kairi wiped away a tear and gave me a sad smile.
'She's crying.' I realized with a start. I hadn't seen Kairi cry in years. Sometimes it seemed like she was as strong as me, Sora, and the rest of the guys. In some ways she was really stronger than any of us.
"I'm going on a trip to Twilight Town." Kairi told me. "I just… I need to get away to think. Naminé is coming with me to keep me company. I think we're going to be staying with a friend of my pen pal."
"Pen pal?" I asked. I had no idea that she even had a pen pal.
Kairi nodded. "His name is Pence. Spring break has just started over in Twilight Town and he invited me over for a few days so I accepted." She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and sighed. "I'll… I'll explain everything to Sora if you'd like." She offered. "I didn't mean to make you guys fight."
"It's fine. I'll just wait for Roxas to cool down before I try talking to Sora." I told her. I knew I had to do something to show her that I wasn't angry with her, so I walked over to her and hugged her. "We'll get things sorted out, Kai. And maybe," I pulled away from her and gave her a reassuring smile. "Maybe the next time you hang out with me and Sora, we'll tone down the flirting and public displays of affection."
Kairi giggled and I was relieved to see a smile spreading across her face.
"So, tell me about this pen pal of yours." I said, pulling her over to the couch so we could sit and talk comfortably. "What's his name and how did you meet him?"
Kairi laughed and began to tell me anything she could think of. His name was Pence and he lived in Twilight Town and went to the art high school in Sunset. It turned out that Sunset High and Destiny Islands High writing classed did some kind of letter exchange. Even after the program ended the two of them continued to write to each other.
We continued to sit there and talk until Kairi's mom came home. I hadn't even noticed how late it was. I tried to leave, but Kairi and her mom both insisted that I stay for dinner. So I did.
They tried to keep me after dinner too, but I had to decline. My brothers were going to throw a fit as it was. It was there turn to cook that night, as part of their punishment for staying out late and getting drunk, and they were going to be pissed that I missed it.
They were the very reason I was counting down the days until I'd graduate and get out of the house. That day, for me, wasn't too far away. The only downside to that was that I'd be graduating that year with Wakka, but Sora, Kairi, and the others still had one more year.
But right then, my upcoming graduation was the least of my problems.
End Chapter
Next to Roxas, Riku is another character who I find it easy to write as. Hurray for long chapters! (glomps Riku)
