"Good morning, Riku," I said. He smiled.

"Good morning, Mikaila," He said back. He sat up and kissed my cheek. He looked like he was thinking about something.

"You know, Mikaila, we can't stay in here forever. Eventually we'll have to go to the outside world. I kow this room is protected by light, but cowering inside it won't do anything but keep us from reality. We have to fight soon enough." I didn't want to admit it, but he was right. We couldn't cower in here while all is lost outside. And, if we did, the darkness would try even harder to reach us, and maybe break the seal of light. I nodded to him.

"Okay. After we eat, we'll go out and fight heartless. Okay?" Riku nodded.

"Sounds great! But, what're we going to eat?"

"How about that restaurant in First District?"

"Isn't the food there really weird. Like an omelet as a drink?"

"What? Well, it's food."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Riku finally agreed. I put his hand in mine and we walked out of the light-protected room. Into the air tainted with darkness. But, strangely, I didn't feel scared at all. Riku was by my side, his hand in mine. That was all I needed to feel safe. His heart intact with mine.

Oh how I wanted to kiss him again like before. I just had to. But how to set the mood for it?

"Riku?" I asked.

"Yeah," He answered, turning ot look at me. I put my other hand in his free hand.

"I love you, Hikari." He laughed softly, gazing into my eyes.

"Is that what you're calling me now?"

"Yeah!" He smiled.

"I love you, too, my Hikari." He felt the vibe I was giving out. He leaned in to me. I leaned into him. Our lips touched. Our arms fell around each other. I felt like I was floating in bliss. The sweet, sweet kiss made my heart more than satified, but longing for more. I kept starting to pull apart, but pulling back in. My lips finally let go of his. The sweet, sweet kiss made my heart sing and dance. I felt nothing else but Riku's strong arms holding me. I sensed only his presence. I saw only his face. My sweet Hikari.

He smiled. He stared into my eyes. I stared back into his. We didn't move for the longest time. Just stared at each other. I felt more love for him even more than before and I knew he loved me back.

I took in his scent. He smelled like home. The islands. The light breeze, the salty ocean-line, the waterfall by the secret place.

The secret place was where I first really talked to Riku, other than the day where he found me lying on the shore of the islands. I had a flashback...

"Wow! This place is cool!" I yelled to the 7-year-old Riku.

"Mikaila! What do you think you're doing just barging in to me and Sora's secret place?" He yelled back at a 7-year-old me.

"I just wanted to see what was here," I told him. He thought about it.

"Okay, just don't tell Sora about this or he'll get really, really mad at me!" Riku pleaded. I smiled a toothy grin.

"I won't, I promise."

Promise is a big word. Now, of course, eventually Sora found out, but I wasn't the one who gave it away. I kept my promise to Riku. Up until this point, I never even realized that Riku saved me from what could have been my death by finding me. He saved me a couple times in my life now that I realized it. That one where he found me on the islands, saved me from drowning, and saved me from Maleficent's wrath quite a few times, but most of all, he saved my heart from collapsing in on itself.

"Mikaila," Riku whispered. I just nodded slightly and leaned my head into his chest. I could have fallen asleep there. I was at peace with everything. I wasn't afraid of anything. Riku would protect me from it all. Everything. He would be by my side through everything.

Then I remembered we were going to eat, but it suddenly didn't matter. I wasn't hungry anyway.