Title: 100 Steps To Somewhere

Fandom: Kingdom Hearts

Claim: Cloud/Riku

Theme: 016. Time

Word Count: 2,092

Rating: M

Summary: Riku wished he didn't have to go, and Cloud didn't know how much they were racing the clock, but he hoped they were winning.

Disclaimer: So not only do I not own any of this KH stuff (as I've said so many times before), but I don't know anyone who is affiliated with Square Enix or Disney in any way, either. Not even, like, the guy who cleans the toilets at Universal Studios, or anything. I'm just playing with the boys.

Author's Note: Ever since I discovered what an FST is, I've been thinking about making one for this story. You know, some time in the future, using all the stuff I listen to religiously while writing this. Dunno yet. Thoughts?

Step Sixteen: The Calm Before The Storm

Just as soon as they'd landed in Olympus Coliseum, Cloud and Riku got back on the Gummi ship, headed in the direction of Hollow Bastion. They'd spent three days together, but they were gone now, and it was time for Riku to return.

"It feels like I just got here," said Riku. He hugged his arms around his body and looked out the window. The Gummi lifted and Cloud switched the controls to warp speed.

"I know."

Cloud looked over to Riku and frowned. There were deep lines in his forehead, his eyebrows furrowed. His heart sank.

"I wish I didn't have to go back. I like being here with you."

"I wish you didn't, either."

"But Maleficent . . ."

"Yeah. Before she realizes where you went or who you went with."

"And you said about Sora . . ."

"Yeah. He said he had to stop back in Traverse Town to see about something first. Then he's headed to a new world, and I don't know for sure, but from the coordinates . . ."

"Hollow Bastion."

"Sounds like it."

"Maleficent and Ansem would have me killed if he showed up back there before I did."

"So we've got to get you back."

"I know. I just . . . wish we'd had more time."

Cloud laughed.

"If we'd taken less, we wouldn't be rushing you back to Hollow Bastion as fast as possible. I saw Sora's Gummi take off this morning, which means he ought to get back to Traverse Town sometime this evening, and then into Hollow Bastion tomorrow night, or the day after. Depends if he decides to sleep in Traverse Town."

"I thought he usually leaves the day of the match."

"Guess he slept on the Gummi. He's probably really run down. He looked tired when I talked to him."

Riku nodded and lit up a cigarette. He looked at it for a moment, expression blank, and then took a drag.

"Will you miss me?"

Cloud smiled.

"Of course. I love you."

"I'm going to miss you, too. What are you going to do while I'm gone?"

"I thought I'd head back to Traverse Town. See Leon and the gang. I told you about the Hades Cup, right?"

"Yeah. Fifty seeds, right? Sounds intense."

"Well, it's a challenge that Hades is issuing, and I'm not going to step down from that, you know? Thought I'd see if Leon and Yuffie wanted to fight in it. Then I guess it's back to the Coliseum. What do you think?"

"Sounds like fun. Wish I could be there."

"You'll be facing off with Sora again."

"It seems so. Me, Sora, and the Keyblade. Sounds fun, too, doesn't it?"

Riku rolled his eyes and Cloud extended his hand across their seats to take Riku's free hand in his own.

"You'll be great."

Riku smiled at their hands and glanced over to Cloud. Tight, restricting pain pulled across Cloud's heart as he met Riku's eyes. They weren't as bright as they once were; the color had dulled. His smile failed to extend the full breadth of his lips. Cloud squeezed Riku's hand. Riku looked away.

"I want to stay here with you."

"I want this to all be over."

Riku nodded, closed his eyes, and dropped his head. Cloud watched as Riku's face went from slack and emotionless to twisted and pained. Riku made a choking sound, his chest heaved, and the tears finally came.

Cloud wondered how long he would hold up, but it seemed that time caught up with him.

Fingers still twisted around Riku's, Cloud stood from his seat. He pried his hand away from Riku's for a moment to move it into a more comfortable position, and he kneeled before Riku.

"I don't cry much," said Riku, his voice strained, shoulders shaking. "I promise."

"I know," said Cloud. He rubbed Riku's knee. "Sometimes you just got to get out all the bad feelings, though. Wasn't it you who told me that it was okay to cry? At least you aren't past the point of tears anymore."

Riku nodded.

Cloud noticed that Riku, when it came to crying, was much like the way he was about everything else. He didn't sob or wail. There weren't even many tears rolling down his cheeks. The only evidence of actually crying was the restriction to his voice, the bloodshot eyes, the slight wetness around his eyelashes, and a small tremor to his shoulders. In a way, Cloud wished Riku would just bawl his eyes out. Riku tried too hard to stay strong, brush the hurt off, and move on. At least if Riku loosened this one restraint, he might have an easier time facing Sora again, but Riku fought the tears, too. The pain wouldn't ease as much as it should, and Riku would be left feeling more defensive than before.

Cloud had no experience in this kind of thing. Aerith was the one who handled these situations.

Riku shook his head, looked up at Cloud, and blinked a few times. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, and tried to smile. Cloud smiled back.

"Just love me right now, okay? That's all I really need, anyway."

"I always love you," said Cloud, laughing. "You said that like it would be a chore."

"You know what I mean."

Cloud squeezed in the seat beside Riku and put an arm around him. Riku shifted, sat halfway in Cloud's lap, and draped on leg across Cloud's. He dropped his head to Cloud's shoulder.

"Sorry I'm such a pain in the ass."

"You aren't a pain in the ass."

"Okay. Sorry I'm such a downer."

"Stop being sorry all the time. I know things really suck for you right now."

"I just . . . wish there was more time. Everything keeps happening so fast. I can't keep up."

"I know."

"When this is all over and we can just be together, I'll make this up to you."

"You don't have to make anything up to me."

"Yes, I do. We'll spend tons of time together and have fun without another action-packed update on the cell phone about how I'm more screwed up than the last time you talked to me."

Cloud laughed.

"I'd like to spend tons of time together and have fun."

"We can fuck again."

"I'd like that, too."

"Did I suck?"

"What?"

"I've been meaning to ask you, but I never got a chance. Did I suck?"

Cloud laughed again.

"No."

"Could you tell I was a virgin?"

"Yes."

Riku's eyes widened.

"You said I didn't suck!"

"You didn't suck. It just wasn't hard to tell you were a virgin."

"How is that different?"

"Because I liked everything you did. I liked the way you sounded. You felt amazing. You were just so nervous and tentative and obviously inexperienced. That doesn't mean it was bad."

Riku frowned.

"You could have lied to me, you know."

"I would never lie to you unless it was small and solely to spare your feelings. Or protect my own ass."

"This would have spared my feelings!"

"But it isn't small, and it shouldn't be offensive. You were great. Just nervous. Nothing wrong with that. It wasn't a turn-off."

Riku frowned.

"Would you really lie to me to protect your own ass?"

"Who wouldn't?"

"What if it was something big?"

"Like what?"

"Like . . . if you told Sora about us, or you cheated on me, or something."

"I wouldn't lie to you about that kind of stuff. Not that I would ever have to because I would never tell Sora, or cheat on you. Just small stuff. Like if I broke something, I'd say it was the cat."

Riku laughed.

"Since when do we have a cat?"

"I don't know. We can get a dog instead."

"And when are we getting this dog?"

"After this is all over and we can have fun and spend tons of time together. With the dog or the cat."

"Why do we need this dog or cat, again?"

"Cause if I break something and we don't have a dog or a cat, it'd be hard to blame it on them."

"I see. I hope you know now that when you blame broken stuff on the cat, I'm not going to believe you."

"That's good, because it was really the dog. You know how he gets excited."

Riku smiled. Cloud's heart lifted; this one reached his eyes.

"You're so weird."

"Yeah, but I made you laugh."

"I know. One of the reasons why I love you."

"Because I'm funny?"

"You're not funny. You're weird. But I like that you can make me smile even when I feel my lowest."

"I'm glad I can make you smile when you feel bad. Wish I could do it for myself."

"Keep doing it for me, and when our positions are reversed, I'll do it for you."

"I'm going to hold you to that."

----------0----------

Cloud didn't how much they were actually racing the clock, but he hoped they were winning.

Sora, for all he knew, would leave Traverse Town only hours after arriving, and though they headed straight for Hollow Bastion, Sora had left Olympus Coliseum first. They could be only hours ahead of Sora, and the last thing Cloud wanted was to thrust Riku right into their confrontation. He pushed the Gummi as fast as it could go, and glanced back to Riku, who lay sleeping in his seat.

He wished he could make time stand still for only a moment—just long enough to spare Riku some peace. When he was alone in Olympus Coliseum, awaiting Riku's calls, time seemed to drag on forever. On the phone, time flew by, and they spent more time talking than Cloud realized. When they were together, though, it was if time moved as fast as the Gummi on warp speed. One second he picked Riku up in Hollow Bastion, and the next second, he was taking Riku back.

Three days had never passed so fast.

When Cloud woke that morning, he wanted nothing more than to stay in bed with Riku. He trailed his fingers across Riku's exposed back, and in the morning light, had time to examine the beauty of Riku's naked figure. He had his imperfections, of course, but Cloud even loved those. Riku had more scars than he'd imagined—there was one large scar that ran across Riku's collarbone (he'd, apparently, snapped it sometime around the age of eight). He was tanner than Cloud, which Cloud imagined was because Riku had grown up playing on islands while Cloud had grown up in dreary Hollow Bastion. Sun-kissed freckles clustered on Riku's right shoulder, and Cloud brushed his thumb across them.

Then he'd noticed Sora's Gummi take off out the balcony window, and he knew it was time to get up.

Cloud looked at the screen to his left. Hollow Bastion would soon be in sight. He reached over and gently shook Riku.

"Hey. We're almost there."

Riku gazed at him through heavy eyelids and nodded.

"Already?"

"Yeah."

Riku groaned and sat up. He lit a cigarette. Cloud laughed.

"Need that before seeing Maleficent and Ansem again?"

Riku shrugged.

"I don't exactly see Ansem. I just hear him. Thankfully he's been out of my head since they told me about the Keyblade."

Hollow Bastion came into view and Cloud maneuvered to the usual spot, landed the ship, and stood. Riku finished his cigarette and put it out. They walked off the ship together, bag slung over Riku's shoulder.

"Do we have time for a goodbye kiss?" said Riku.

Cloud nodded.

----------0----------

Cloud set the Gummi down in Traverse Town almost two days later. He hadn't heard word from Riku since dropping him off in Hollow Bastion; Cloud checked the Caller ID every five minutes.

He walked to the small house in the Third District, fingering the phone in his pocket.

Cloud opened the door to the house and stepped in. Aerith, Leon, and Yuffie were there, talking, and he smiled to them as he walked in.

"Cloud, are you okay?" said Aerith. Cloud nodded. Leave it to Aerith to notice already. Leon frowned.

"Hey, everyone."

Cloud set his bag on the floor, draped his cape over it, and then his phone rang. He looked at Leon for a second before pulling the phone from his pocket. Riku's name was displayed on the screen.

He didn't bother to say anything as he stepped back of the house and answered.

Thanks for the holiday wishes I got from Chapter Fourteen.

Obviously, Hollow Bastion is the next installment.

Thanks for reading.

Feedback? Yes, please.

Also, I don't know if I mentioned before, but if you are on MySpace, the url to mine is located on my Author Profile. Feel free to catch me over there.

Thanks again.

::December::