Disclaimer: The characters in this story do not belong to me, I am merely borrowing them. Characters belong to Square Enix and all other rightful owners. I make no profit from the publication of this story. The plot and situations do however belong to me, and redistribution without my consent is strictly prohibited.

Warnings: None at the moment, but there will be some in the future, so be prepared. There might be some OOCness and this is AU. That's enough warning for now.

Author's Note: Decided to start you off with two chapters of this, to get things moving. This one is pretty long because the chapters were originally very short, so I've thought to combine them for a longer chapter. Enjoy! Leave reviews! Otherwise I won't know if anyone likes this.

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It was the morning of my seventeenth birthday, but as I woke I realized that nothing had really changed. I was just a year older. I stepped out of my bed, stretching my arms, as I walked over to the mirror to examine myself. My shirt had risen above my navel and I stared at myself. My stomach was completely flat, and although many of my friends had told me that I was 'just right,' looking at myself, I knew that wasn't true. My brother was handsome, rugged, built. He was perfect. And I was average. I'd learned to deal with that, but that didn't mean I was happy about it.

I examined my face. I had slight bags under my eyes. I'd never been one to sleep too well during the night, or rather, to sleep well at any time, and it showed. My eyes looked slightly glazed over with sleepiness. My lips were dry and a piece of hair hung limply over my face. I brushed the stray strand of hair behind my ear, grabbed my clothes for school that morning, and headed to the bathroom.

I had to pee first, so I did, all the while rubbing my eyes and dreading the day ahead of me. I got up, flushed, and went to the sink to brush my teeth. I had this weird obsession with dental hygiene. I brushed until my mouth felt fresh and clean, my teeth looked white enough, and my gums bled. I rinsed, and spat, and then followed my extreme brushing regimen with some mouthwash. I dried my face off with the hand-towel by the sink and went to turn on the shower.

I stripped off my pajamas and stepped into the shower. The water was scalding hot and I was surrounded by puffs of steam, just the way I liked it. A burning hot shower was just what I needed to start off my day. It was a fresh start. It burned away every germ, every remain of the day that had passed, and made me feel like I was starting anew, even if just for a few hours. I scrubbed my skin until it was raw and almost squeaking with cleanliness, and turned off the water, satisfied. I looked like a steamed lobster every time I came out of the shower, and it always made me laugh at myself. I patted my skin dry and wrung out the water in my hair, running a brush through it just a few times before putting on some lotion. I put on my jeans, black, a plain red t-shirt and some socks before padding back to my room.

I dug under the bed, pulling out a pair of Chuck's, and sat on the edge, untying the laces carefully before slipping each shoe on my foot and proceeding to tie the laces again. I was finally ready to start another boring, routine day.

I ran down the stairs, seeing my mom fuss over the toaster and my dad reading yesterday's paper and sipping from his coffee that he always drank black and straight. The idea of how it tasted made me cringe every time. My mother always shouted at me, "Have a good day!" oblivious to how much I hated going to school, and my father always looked up from the sports section long enough to wave goodbye and nod his head.

I always mumbled "See you later," under my breath before walking out the door.

Most people took the bus to Twilight High, and it was about a half hour walk from my home, but I liked to walk, no matter the weather. It was winter, and unsurprisingly, it was cold. It was always freezing on my birthday, December 18. I hugged my arms around myself and walked all the way to school, the same way I always did. Alone.

I already dreaded the classes, the lectures; this continual cycle that never seemed to end. I would sit, alone, and see my only friend, Riku, during our 11:00 o' clock lunch period. Then, I would go home at the end of the day, sit in my room and do homework until dinner, where me and my parents would sit alone and eat, dad talking about work, mom talking about her patients, and both of them occasionally asking about how my day went, me giving the same answer, and us all seemingly uninterested at what the other had to say.

I dreaded that my life would continue on this way forever until I died. This would be another routine day, just like the rest.

Or so I thought.

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"Hey, Sor!" Riku called from the other side of the cafeteria. Riku and I had been friends since our childhood. We had met each other in Kindergarten, when we were line buddies. From then on we had always been close. Riku was my only friend, the only person I really bothered to talk to. Riku was a social butterfly. He had a ton of friends and always knew the latest school gossip. But after all the change our lives had gone through over the years, me being an extroverted little boy turned loner, him into a shy boy turned popular, he had always made time to hang out with me. He had always defended me. He always ran to me when I called.

When we were thirteen, we shared our first kiss. I was too young and not ready for a relationship then, definitely still uncertain about my sexuality, and I told him so. And since then, I always knew deep down that he had never really stopped liking me. But I just hadn't had any romantic feelings for anyone. Ever.

"Happy birthday!" He came over and hugged me, pulling a small wrapped box from his pocket.

"Thanks," I said, slightly embarrassed, and rolled my eyes.

"Are you going to open it?" He smiled at me. He always had the most beautiful smile.

"What is it?" I asked, curious. I had never asked him for anything, but every year he always picked out the perfect gift for me. When his birthday came, finding him a gift was always a struggle. I've bought him probably the worst gifts anyone's ever received in history, but he always 'loved it.' Or so he said.

I unwrapped the box carefully, throwing the wrapping paper aside and lifting the top. Inside of the box sat a beautiful silver chain with a charm of a silver crown. In the points of the crown were diamonds. They were small studs, but they gleamed so beautifully in the light. Sometimes, I wished he didn't try so hard. It made me feel horrible inside for never feeling anything back.

"Wow, Riku. It's a beautiful gift. Thanks!" I said, leaning over and giving him a kiss on the cheek. I saw him turn bright read and sighed inwardly.

"I have another surprise for you!" Riku practically squealed with excitement. I took it as a warning sign.

I groaned. "Why, Riku? You know I loathe surprises."

"Sora," he sighed. "I'm trying to do something nice for your birthday. Okay?"

I sighed, sitting down at our usual table. He sat across from me. "What surprise?"

"I want you to go home and dress in your best party clothes."

"No. No, no Riku. No way."

He reached across the table for my hand. "Come on, Sora, it's no big deal. Just a little party at my place in your honor. It'll be fun. It's worth a shot! And if you don't have a good time, we can send everyone home and watch a movie, you and I."

I sighed for what seemed like the hundredth time during this conversation. I hated crowds of people. I hated parties. Why throw me a party? Any more of a wallflower than me, you couldn't find. I knew it was a nice gesture, him trying to get me acquainted with some new people. He always worried that I spent too much time on my own. But I was happy alone. He was just trying to do a good deed.

"Fine. As long as you promise that I can call it off if I want to."

He nodded emphatically. "Of course."

It was just a party. A good deed. But as they say, no good deed goes unpunished. And I would be the one to find that out first hand.

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Sooo… whatcha think? I know I should be writing the next chapter of 'Home', but it's kicking my ass back and forth and my writers block is so bad. This was written months ago, so writers block was not an issue here. =)

I hope you all love this story as much as I do. I mean, I really love this story and I've never been able to finish it. Your reviews will give me the strength to finally finish this story!