Dare You to Live

By ElveNDestiNy

- Recovery -

It just felt so right.

Riku lay with her eyes closed and savored the feelings that filled her. She had immediately known where she was and with who when she woke up, so now she held herself still, aware of the rise and fall of her chest with each breath she took.

She had never woken up to find someone sharing her bed that wasn't her twin. When they were young, it had been normal to wake up with Risa beside her, whether they had come together out of habit, convenience, or simply for comfort. Nightmares, thunderstorms, childish fears, and later even broken hearts—Riku had been there for her twin through almost everything. But Risa had outgrown her fears around their tenth birthday and since then, she had never slept with anyone by her side.

He wasn't quite hugging her but all the same, there was an intimacy to the way that their bodies were aligned together and Riku was all too aware of it. Their hips and shoulders were touching and his hand gently clasped her arm as if he were afraid she would leave without his knowledge. He was simply there, a warm and very solid presence all along her side, and Riku had to fight the impulse to snuggle even closer to him.

All that, and she hadn't even looked at him yet. She had become so attuned to him in just these past few days and of course, the result was that she was more aware of herself than she had been in a long time. She was in bed with a supremely attractive man, so it was natural for her to want him. It was really that simple, but Riku still felt caught between guilt and embarrassment.

When she cautiously turned her head to look at him, she found him peacefully sleeping, looking absurdly cute with his relaxed expression and a few strands of his hair messily framing his face. He looked much too seductive even while unconscious and it didn't help that his lips were just slightly parted.

By the amount of light that was illuminating the room even with the curtains drawn, it was probably late afternoon. Riku sat up slowly and sighed, trying to remind herself that Dark most likely thought nothing of sleeping in the same bed as someone else, considering his playboy ways. Then again, the more she knew Dark, the more she thought that his charm and flirting were partly just an act to distract others from realizing that they knew nothing about him at all.

When she really thought about it, it didn't seem like Dark was the type to be unfaithful, either. She had little to back up this belief, but then again, it wasn't like she knew much about Dark's history—and he had 300 years of it, after all. She didn't even know how many girlfriends or lovers he had had since Risa, but that didn't stop her from feeling like the actual number was less than she would have guessed even a few days ago.

Great, now she was defending his honor in her head even while concluding that she had no logical basis for feeling as if she understood him. She shot him a quick glare that he, of course, could not appreciate. "What am I going to do with you?" she whispered.

"Oh, there are so many things I would let you do to me, but for a start, how about thanking me for keeping you warm all last night?"

Riku let out a small shriek and hit Dark's shoulder purely out of reflex as he opened his eyes and propped himself up on his elbow, looking as if he were enjoying his morning way too much if the grin on his face was any indication.

"You were awake!" she accused while he grabbed the hand that had smacked him and brought it to his lips with a flourish.

"And now at your service," he agreed. "Did you like what you spent so much time looking at, Riku?"

"Maybe in your dreams, Dark," she bantered back without even thinking, surprising him and herself, as well as temporarily wiping the smile from his face. His eyes studied her for a moment before it reappeared—not the cocky self-appreciative smirk she would have expected, but a genuine smile.

Riku slid her legs to the edge of the bed and stood up, shoulders tense as she waited for his remark about the return of her old spirit. She became acutely aware that she was still clad only in her rather thin oversized cotton shirt, under which her legs were bare. Her sensitive breasts had peaked in the cold air so she momentarily hesitated, unsure whether she should cover herself. When the teasing she had expected didn't come, she turned to face him, raising an eyebrow in question before she could stop herself.

The way his gaze quickly slide away before returning to meet hers told Riku that she had caught him staring. It shouldn't have pleased her so much but it did because she could suddenly see how he was struggling with himself. He hadn't been a more or less perfect gentleman to her because he wasn't interested. On the contrary, she felt like she might melt beneath the heat in his eyes.

"What plans for today, Riku?" he purred.

"It's about time you left, don't you think?" she asked back, trying not to look at him as he rose and stretched, all while looking at her as if he were hungry for something more than breakfast. "Really, Dark. I don't need a bodyguard. If you stay longer—"

"Afraid of what might happen?" he interrupted. The words were teasing but the expression on his face had turned serious. There was a knowing look in his eyes, but again, it wasn't the kind that she expected. She got the impression that he wasn't so much worried by the sparks of desire between them as the possible emotional entanglement that came with them.

If she was sure of anything, she was sure that Dark wanted nothing to do with those attachments. After all, that was the reason why he had dumped her twin four years ago. Riku didn't want to fall into the same kind of trap.

"If you stay longer," she continued, ignoring his question, "you'll only be making this situation ridiculous. I'm not in any danger."

At that, Dark shifted to sit on the edge of the bed, looking up at her with some alarm. "Riku, Daisuke and I both—"

"You're both basing this on what? I've only received a blank death threat in a blank envelope not even addressed to me," she pointed out. "If anything, the postman probably left it there by accident."

"You weren't imagining things that first night, Riku. You saw something, remember?"

"Like what, Dark? The ghost of my sister's killer? I can't even be sure myself that I saw anything, so what makes you so sure someone's out to get me?"

Dark opened his mouth as if to reply, but said nothing. After a tense moment, he stood up, forcing Riku to tilt her head upwards to maintain eye contact. Despite how close they were standing, he made no move to bridge the gap by touching her as he usually did. There was nothing sleepy or teasing about him now; his face was unreadable. "If you find it so hard to be around me, Riku, you can just say so. I'll go call Daisuke. He'll be here soon."

"Wait—" He started toward the door but Riku reached out and grabbed his arm, bringing him to a halt only because she used all of her weight. "Dark!"

The only sign of his displeasure was the fact that he wouldn't even turn to look at her. Was he annoyed? Angry? She didn't know what to say but knew she had to say something. "I don't like to think about how you're only here with me because you think I have problems," she finally admitted, choosing her words carefully. "It makes it seem… Dark, I don't know what's real and what's not. Did I see the person who killed Risa or am I just imagining things?" She took a breath. "Are you being kind to me because you want to or because you think you must?"

"Is that what you think I feel toward you? Kindness?"

He still wouldn't face her, but he sounded cold. She realized that her fingers must be digging painfully into his arm and released him. "I just don't know what to think. I don't know anything anymore. You made everything change by being here. I've felt more while you've been with me than in all the days since Risa left me."

"I'm not here with you just because I think you have problems," Dark said slowly, when he turned around, enunciating every word.

"I know," she admitted in a small voice. "I'm just afraid. I don't know how to start living again after all this."

At her confession, he reached out to her and she let herself be drawn against him, her head tucked beneath his chin as his arms circled around her again. Her heart gave a little shudder when she heard and felt his soft exhalation. "Don't be. I know you, Riku. You were never afraid."

She wanted the laugh and cry at the same time. "But I always was. I just didn't let it control me."

"It's not just that. I also don't think you have problems, Riku," he said above her, arms tightening around her a fraction. "There's nothing wrong with grief. Whatever anyone else said, it was only because they didn't understand you."

She shook her head in denial. "It's hard to tell sometimes, anyway. Honestly, I just don't fit in. I've forgotten what it's like to be normal."

He laughed at that, the vibrations in his chest passing onto her. "As if you ever were. You've been extraordinary since the first time I ever saw you." Somehow he made it sound sincere.

"So you just decided to kiss me?" she asked, but lightheartedly. She reluctantly moved out of his grasp and sat down again on the bed. After a moment, Dark sat down beside her. He didn't exactly try to touch her, but they were close enough that their shoulders and thighs brushed as they had when they had first woken up. There was a fragile balance between them that both wanted to keep.

Dark looked down uncomfortably at his clasped hands at her words and her smile widened. There was something about that incident that had affected him, but Riku had never noticed, always so focused on her own reaction to it. Instead of answering her question, he asked one of his own. "Did you honestly hate it that much? Your first kiss…"

"—was at least memorable," she finished for him, cutting him off before he did the unthinkable and actually apologized for it, as he seemed almost ready to do. "Better than the guys who practically slobber like puppies. Cute puppies, but… Well, I guess enthusiasm is supposed to make up for it."

"You've—" Dark stared at her, his mouth open.

Thinking over what she'd just said, Riku realized what it had sounded like. She had only had two other boys try to kiss her during her high school years, and she was just about to tell him that, when she bit the words back. It was positively fascinating how irritated Dark looked.

"It was high school," she explained instead. "Risa was the popular one, but she proved hard to impress so some boys decided that her identical twin was pretty enough." She hadn't meant for that last part to sound so cynical, but the truth was, a few had actually tried to date her just to be close to Risa.

"There must have been a lot of guys who wanted you, and just because you're you," Dark said rather unhappily.

His tone brought a smile to her lips; she simply couldn't help it. "It doesn't matter now anyway. We've all graduated. I guess I felt the same way toward them as you did toward Risa."

He raised an inquisitive eyebrow, although he seemed a little perturbed by the fact that Riku was comparing herself with him. "What do you mean?"

"They were good friends, but I just never felt… I don't know how to describe it. In the end, I guess they wanted me more than I wanted them. It was always like that," she said, thinking back and examining her own relationships with an objectivity that could have only been gained with time. "I guess I can't even blame you for breaking Risa's heart."

She'd said it without rancor, but Dark looked at her with a thoughtful expression. "Riku…how much did Risa tell you about me? About why I ended it with her?"

"Not much at all." Riku looked away guiltily. "I never wanted to hear it."

He seemed unsurprised. "Do you want to hear it now?"

She hesitated. "I'm not ready, Dark." As soon as Riku said it, she wished she could have taken the words back. They were honest, but they made her feel like a coward, as if she were still shutting Risa out even after her death. Miserable, she tried to explain. "I've been trying to pull myself together. Not to move on or to let go, because I know I can't. I'll always be missing half of myself, but I can't continue like this, right?"

Dark reached over to take her hand in his. "It's all right, Riku. I understand what it's like."

It so closely echoed what countless other people had kept saying to her that Riku almost snapped back, no, you don't! She was trying to reassemble her life together, piece by piece. What did he know about it? But another thought stopped her from making any foolish remarks. What did she really know about him? She turned over their hands, realizing just how much of a mystery he still was.

Now that he was no longer a phantom thief, what exactly did he do? In the past few days, these normal topics of conversation had never come up, always secondary to the intense emotions that they stirred in each other. But now that her world had begun to make sense again, Riku could look outside of herself and wonder. Now that Dark was, for lack of a better word, more or less human, did he miss his old life?

She wanted to find out. In fact, she wanted so much from him. For the first time in so long, Riku wanted something from life. Nothing had happened and yet everything had changed.

"You came back because of Risa," Dark said, making it a question of whether she was here to stay or only visiting for the summer. It went unsaid that the potential between them was dangerous, volatile.

Riku had found an answer to that only recently herself. She had come back for Risa, it was true, and during the first few days, she had wanted to leave. She didn't think she could do it, walk through the town that she had shared with her twin, the absence so much stronger because every place held memories. But in a way, it felt as if Risa was alive here, every moment containing the possibility of running into her. Around the corner, behind a door, Risa's bright smile and sparkling eyes waited for her.

Her parents had encouraged her to come here after her first year of college. She had received excellent grades as usual, but aside from that, Riku had kept to herself the entire year, making very few friends. Her parents, with the suggestion of a counselor, had believed that the summer vacation would help her recover from Risa's death.

Riku had resisted at first, but in the end, her desire to see Daisuke had won out. Over the last few days, she had thought of the anxious questions and worried looks that awaited her if she returned to join her parents. Here, she had a kind of freedom; she could be herself. Here, she could remember the kind of life she had had before it had all turned into tragedy. She wasn't naïve enough to think that she would never see pitying or curious looks directed at her here, not when the story of Risa's death spread.

It was still different, though. This place offered her independence and a chance to remember what it meant to be alive. She had only planned to stay for the summer, but now she was here, she couldn't imagine leaving.

Dark was still waiting patiently for her reply. Once, his nonchalant attitude would have fooled her and convinced her that he didn't care, but she knew better now.

Riku took a deep breath. "I've been thinking the last few days about something, and now I'm sure this is what I want to do."

"What is it?"

She gave him a tentative smile. "If you come with me, you'll see. It shouldn't take long and then we can go eat."

The paperwork had only taken an hour to complete. Riku walked out of the university registrar's office with her new student status, a catalogue of the courses she could start taking in the fall, and the front desk lady's assurances that her student ID card would be waiting for her soon.

They actually had an excellent program here for what she was studying, which had not come as a surprise to Riku but was definitely a bonus. When Dark found out what that was, the expression on his face had been priceless. Since Riku had to complete the paperwork before the lady could leave for her break, they hadn't had time to talk about it, but she could see that Dark was dying to find out more.

Most importantly, for better or worse, she was here to stay. Neither of them needed to say it out loud for both of them to know what it meant. It was the first step to piecing her life back together. Nor was it lost on Dark that he was the one accompanying Riku, rather than Daisuke or anyone else.

It had been noon by the time they were finished, so Riku set off to their next destination by memory. To her relief, her favorite ramen shop still existed and in fact looked exactly as it had four years ago. The old shopkeeper recognized her and greeted her warmly, although he thankfully did not ask about Risa. He greeted Dark, too, with a wink.

"I haven't had a single problem since you helped me out, although I think my daughter is hoping that something will happen again so you'll come back! She'll be sorely disappointed to see that you already have such a beautiful young lady by your side." He grinned broadly at Dark and Riku, clearly thinking that they were on a date. "Tell me what you want and it'll be on the house. I've yet to thank you properly for everything you've done for us."

As Dark ordered, Riku tried hard not to wonder about the shopkeeper's daughter. She couldn't remember him having one before, actually, but it sounded like she was undoubtedly a member of Dark's fan club and probably one of his conquests. When the shopkeeper turned to her, Riku gave the man her most blinding smile and tried hard not to notice that Dark was looking around the shop as if searching for someone.

The shopkeeper looked positively charmed by the time she finished telling him what she wanted, and Riku turned back to Dark just as someone launched themselves at the phantom thief.

"Misa!" the shopkeeper scolded. "Leave Dark-san alone so he can enjoy his lunch with this lady!" The little girl with huge brown eyes just chortled and clambered onto Dark's lap, her hands fisting in his collared black shirt. She was probably around four years old.

The shopkeeper bustled away and Riku stared down at her hands in silent mortification, unable to believe she'd been so easily provoked to jealousy for no reason at all. Dark, oblivious to her shame, was playing with Misa after mysteriously producing some sort of puzzle game from his pocket. The child was adorable but she kept giving Riku strange looks and Riku was glad when the shopkeeper returned with their ramen and collected his daughter.

Supremely grateful that Dark hadn't noticed anything, Riku dug into her food, surprised that for the first time in months, she was actually starving. Dark must have been equally hungry because for the first few minutes, all they did was eat. Then, to Riku's surprise, they were interrupted by an electronic ringtone. Until Dark pulled out the thin, metallic blue object for the first time, she hadn't even realized that he had a cell phone. He looked down at the glowing display and sighed.

"Sorry Riku, I really have to take this." He stood up and made as if to leave, but Riku waved him down. She didn't mind if he stayed and talked in front of her. When Dark was done, they actually started talking, keeping to general subjects even though both wanted to hear about each others' lives. Instead, Dark talked about Daisuke and Riku told him a little more about her past suitors, since he was so interested.

For the first time, Riku's breath didn't hitch when Risa's name came up inevitably. She was too lost in her task of describing her memories to Dark, who listened as she talked about Christmas parties and Halloween costumes, French boys and American friends. Riku didn't exactly chatter, but she told Dark more than she had told anyone else and it was as if he just naturally pulled it out of her.

They had actually been keeping the peace, more or less, and it was shockingly easy. The kite flying by the sea and last night, rather than making things awkward, had given them a degree of familiarity with each other than made it possible for them to act like regular friends.

Well, friends that kissed and hugged each other, Riku amended, as Dark took another phone call and she reflected on exactly what they were doing. And, she couldn't help but add to the description, friends that quite possibly wanted to do more than that with each other. As much as she tried to deny the existence of such thoughts, she had wondered more than once what it would be like with Dark. He would be her first, just as he had been her first kiss. Better him than anyone else, at least.

Some small part of her also thought that even if Dark didn't care about her that way, maybe it could be a good thing too. There would be fewer complications. Maybe even less risk, if she thought about a certain way. Had Risa ever thought that far into the future, back when they were still young and innocent? Riku remembered vaguely that she had expected Daisuke to be her first. But of course, she hadn't expected their relationship to end the way it had, without a fight, or even a word.

She just wondered whether similar thoughts had crossed Dark's mind and what he thought of her as, because "friend" just didn't seem to adequately cover it. The mere fact that she was sitting in a ramen shop having lunch with Dark Mousy and thinking of the future, along with his possible place in it, told her how much she'd changed since she had come back.

"So how did you decide what you wanted to study in college?" Dark asked her when he finished his second phone call, having decided that they were comfortable enough for him to ask the more personal questions that he really wanted to know. "I never would have imagined that you would have chosen architecture. It seems so unique."

Riku smiled, but before she could answer, Dark's cell went off again. He looked at her apologetically but chose to answer. Considering that this was the third phone call, Riku was starting to get slightly annoyed, especially after having had Dark's undivided attention. As she listened to Dark's soothing voice, however, she realized how absurd it was to begrudge him his own life when he had probably put it on hold for her for at least the last few days.

The fragments of conversation that she'd overheard really stirred her curiosity, although Dark hadn't offered any explanations for the last couple of calls. Judging by his exasperation, he was just as frustrated that their conversation kept being interrupted, so the calls were probably important.

"It sounds like you're involved in something dangerous," she said softly when he hung up. For a moment, Dark looked at her in surprise, but then started laughing.

"It's actually the opposite," he said. "Since you enrolled in the university, that makes you a fellow classmate, since both Daisuke and I are college students too. We started a company a year ago though, so we've both been swamped with work."

"A company? What kind of company?"

Dark smirked. "Well, I am the Phantom Thief Dark Mousy. What kind of company do you think?"

"You steal?" Riku wasn't sure whether she should be outraged or aghast. "But—"

She stopped abruptly when she saw Dark trying to hold back his laughter. He finally burst out with it and she rolled her eyes, realizing that she had been tricked. She waited for him to call down enough to answer her seriously.

"It's a firm for security consulting," he said with a lingering grin as she muttered under her breath to herself about deceptive bastards. "After all, who better to ask than a thief that can steal anything? Daisuke's grandfather helps out occasionally, too."

"So…you design locks and things like that?" she guessed uncertainly.

"Yeah," Dark confirmed. "We do locks, security clearance technologies, installations, recommendations for security plans, and so on. Plus, we do it for everything from corporate businesses to museums and hospitals. For the last year, we've been expanding too, so it's no longer local."

"Wow," Riku said, unable to think of anything else to say. There was this whole different aspect of Dark's life that she had not even known about, just like he hadn't known about her study of architecture. "So the shopkeeper here, when he said you helped him out…?"

Dark nodded. "I put in some locks for this shop. He had been having some trouble with thieves, even though the majority of his earnings was safely locked away. It was probably some young teenagers breaking into the shop till to get some extra spending money." He smiled rather arrogantly, but it made him frustratingly handsome. "Needless to say, they can't pick any of my locks."

"What do you and Daisuke study in college then?"

"Business, of course," he replied, and then his voice took on the teasing tone that Riku found she had almost gotten used to. "At least, Daisuke does. I go just for the pretty girls."

She smacked him lightly on the arm for that as the shopkeeper personally came to collect their dishes, daughter in tow. Misa glared at Riku, who was somewhat taken aback at the fierce expression on the child's normally sweet face. She reached up in silent demand for Dark and he obligingly picked her up and settled her in her lap. The look on his face above Misa's wide, round eyes told Riku that her expression was amusing to him.

Riku wasn't sure what to be more astonished by, the little girl's nearly scarily possessive attitude or Dark's apparently comfortable interaction with children. There was something really cute about the fact that he was playing with a toddler. After all, even the great phantom thief Dark Mousy couldn't quite maintain his image of coolness when Misa was literally drooling over him.

Riku tried really, really hard not to think about how she drooled over Dark in other ways.

Misa's father finally came to collect her again and the two of them thanked him and stood up to go. As Riku picked up the light windbreaker she had worn in the morning—it had been considerably colder then—Dark took it from her and draped it over his own arm. Before she had time to be surprised about that, she was even more shocked when his other arm lightly touched her back as if to guide her. The shopkeeper nodded approvingly as the two of them left that way.

They walked slowly toward the direction of Riku's home, neither in any particular hurry to get back. Dark was right beside her and their footsteps had fallen in sync with each other's without either of them trying. Contentment settled over Riku like a blanket and she had to resist the urge to lean into Dark's side. His arm had settled around her waist, loose enough that she could shrug it off if she didn't want it, but also just there in a rather thrillingly intentional way.

"So, architecture?" Dark asked, picking up where they had left off.

Riku shrugged. "Believe it or not, I've always been interested. This whole city is full of beautiful architecture and in so many styles. I don't think you can find another town in Japan with so many Gothic buildings. I always wondered why."

"Hmm," he said. "Well, that has to do with the history of this place, and that actually has to do with the Hikari and Niwa families as well."

Riku waited for him to be more forthcoming, but when he wasn't, she sensed that he wasn't willing to talk about it right now. It was odd, though, to think that everything might be related back to the curse, or blessing, that had made Dark's existence part of the Niwa bloodline for three centuries.

"Actually," she mused, "our jobs aren't that different. It's important to take security into account when designing most buildings. For places like museums, which there are also more of in this town than in most places, it's crucial."

"Everyone just wants to be safe in the end," Dark said enigmatically.

Riku was secretly savoring Dark's touch and wondering whether it meant anything or if Dark did this with all the girls he escorted. They were both quiet for a while before Dark turned to her, catching her gaze with his violet eyes. They seemed more serious than usual.

"You're not the only one rebuilding your life, Riku," he said slowly. He seemed finally ready to elaborate on it.

"What did you mean when you said before that we're not as different as I think?" she asked hesitantly. Riku could see that he was still undecided about whether he should talk about it, but she wanted to know more than ever. Dark had so many mysteries and now that she had given up some of hers, she wished he would let her in. It was funny to think that he was actually the guarded one and even more cautious about his personal life than her.

She could see that he decided to trust her enough to tell her some of his secrets.

Unfortunately, it was also the moment that they were attacked.

A/N: I really hope some people are still reading this despite the horrendously long absence of updates, because I think I've started picking it up again. Please review!