Chapter 13: The News

Rated: M

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts!

Joshua POV

After coming back home, Sora's just been the same as he was at the abandoned warehouse. He would be aware of everything one minute then the next he's not even in the world. They screwed him up pretty good. I walked over to him and tapped him. He jumped away from me before I could even say anything.

"Sora it's me, Joshua. I won't hurt you." I reassured and he moved a little closer.

"I-I'm sorry." He wrote on the note pad I gave him and looked down at his lap. I wouldn't blame him for feeling this way.

"Did you eat anything?" He kept his head low and shook it. Did he do anything today? He must have been in the bed ever since I was gone.

"Here, put these on and meet me in the kitchen. I'll fix you something to eat.

"It's okay I'm not hungry." He wrote some more.

"But you have to eat. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Trust me you're going to need it." He finally looked up at me.

"Are you going to tell me?" He flipped a page on his note book and wrote.

"Soon, but right now we need to work on getting your voice back." I walked out of the room and headed towards the kitchen. What would someone like him like to eat? Hmmm. I continued to ponder my thoughts when I heard the keys on the outside of my door rattle. The door opened and I saw my room mate enter.

"Well if it isn't Lea himself in the flesh."

"Whatever, you're never happy to see me anyway." I laughed when I heard something drop in the hallway. I looked over and saw Sora standing there shaking, staring at Lea.

"Sora, are you okay?" I ran over to him and he back away from me.

"Sora, what's wrong?" He kneeled down and held his head.

"Lea, what's going on?" He too was standing there in shock.

"I'm sorry." Lea said as I held onto Sora.

"Lea what's going on? Why is he reacting like this?" I just embraced Sora to try to keep him calm, but he continued to shake and hide his face in my chest.

"I-It happened at the warehouse." He scratched his head.

"I think I already know."

"It was an accident. I didn't know until he passed out and we were finished with him. They said he belonged to Riku and I just bailed out. I thought it was sick. I would never do this to Riku. We're good friends." He explained.

"Sora, I'm sorry if I hurt you. I didn't know, okay? I'm sorry." He tried to reach out to Sora, but he easily slipped out of my grip and backed up into a wall.

"Sora, it's alright he isn't going to hurt you anymore." I reassured him, but he vigorously shook his head.

"Do you want me to leave? I can go out and come back later when he's calm." To be honest I don't think he'll ever be calm after what he's been through.

"That sounds good. Oh, can you pick up a few things?" I asked handing him a list.

"Sure why not." And with that he took off for the door. I forgot to mention something to him.

"Sora I'll be back, will you be okay?" I looked at him and slowly shook his head before running after Lea.

"Lea, wait!" I called out to him down the hallway and he came back.

"Look, is it possible to talk to him tonight?" I asked and he nodded.

"Hey Josh," I faced him again.

"How long has he been like this?" Truthfully, I really didn't want to answer.

"From the time he went missing up to now." He sighed and I walked back into the apartment and shut the door behind me. Sora was still sitting up against the wall but with his head resting on his arms that rested on his knees. This was a really awkward situation that I've gotten in. This is too troublesome, but it took a lot to get him here.

Past

I walked up to the warehouse and checked my surroundings before entering. I made it through the entrance, but then I was stopped by one of Neku's friends.

"Hey Joshua, I thought Neku didn't want to see you again?" I heard the voice behind me before I could open another door.

"What? I can't patch up some old wounds with him?" I made up and ran my hand over his face.

"Are you trying to make a move on me?" He asked holding my wrist. I snatched it away and twisted the door knob.

"No, what we did was a long time ago. I don't think we're going to do that any time soon."

"But you did with everyone else." I stopped before opening the door even more. I thought about it and laughed.

"Is that so?" I turned to him.

"I won't let you go back to him, Joshua." Who actually said I was? I walked into the door closing it behind me and continued on. Everyone was probably scattered within the warehouse which made it much easier for me. Unless they're with Sora then I have a problem. It wasn't too long before I reached the door Sora was behind. I heard yelling on the other side, but whoever it was they didn't give me time to even open the door. I was shocked to see Lea when he bust the door open on me.
"Lea?" I tried to grab a hold of him but he just easily jerked away from me. I looked at the others in the room that gave me an unwelcomed gaze.

"Why are you here?" A familiar voice asked me from behind.

"Neku…" I was lost with words, but I had to say something to stall time and get Sora.

"Well?" He folded his arms and leaned against the wall.

"Can we talk alone, please?"

"Why should I?" Neku scoffed and turned his back. He walked out with the other guys laughing. I didn't care if they were laughing but at least they left the room. That left me with Sora. I entered the room and he looked a mess. He was unconscious, but at least they left him unchained. They knew he could barely walk anyway so there was no point for him to escape. I looked at my phone and shut the door behind me before I called for help.

"Lea, are you still here?"

"Yeah, I'm sitting in my car. I'm just so….disturbed. I just can't believe—"

"Look, I need you to keep an eye out and make sure no one is around when I come out." I said putting Sora's arm over my shoulder and hoisted him up.

"What are you up to?" He asked as I began sneaking my way out the building.

"Don't worry about it. Just be on the look out." I continued walking with Sora, hiding in corners so I won't be spotted by a few people. They really were scattered throughout the building today, but why? I was getting close to the exit when I was caught by Sho.

"Joshua, you could get into a lot of trouble for this." He said to me lowly.

"Can't I do something right for the first time?"

"What you're doing is not right and I can sense it. I'll let you slide now, but once I figure out what you're doing I'll get you later." That's if he can. I laughed at his determination. Did he really see through my plans? I doubt it, but I progressed towards the exit and made it outside. I placed Sora into the car which made Lea uneasy.

"Why are you putting him in my car?"

"Is there a problem?" I said and he kept quiet.

"Then let's go before they found out. Hurry!" We sped off to the apartment that we were staying at now and I began cleaning the boy up. I had never seen someone so mangled, but at least he was still breathing.

Present

After I fed Sora, he went back to sleeping the day away. He really wasn't trying to get back on his feet. I know what he's been through was distressful, but there wasn't much that I could do. Lea came back a little later as expected, but it was for the best. We both waited until Sora finally woke up around nightfall and he was just sitting up in the bed when we walked in.

"Sora, can we talk?" I walked in with Lea to make sure he didn't have another panic attack. We turned on the lights and saw that he was calmer than before so we just sat on the bed with him.

"Look, Sora I apologize for the other day. I was shocked to find out who you were and that made me feel guilty." Lea began but Sora didn't look at him.

"You see, me and Riku have been good friends for longer than I can remember." He pulled a picture out and held it out to Sora who finally turned his head to look at the picture. His reaction was actually interesting to watch. He was stunned to see Lea and Riku together in the photo together. Sora slowly took the picture away from Lea and ogled it as Lea continued speaking.

"When the guys told me who you were and what happened to Riku, I got angry and I felt guilty for what I've done to you. Will you forgive me?" So that's why I almost ended up with a broken nose. Lea pleaded and Sora just stared at the small picture. He cracked a small smile that scared us both. He grabbed the notepad and began writing.

"Well, I guess if you're a friend of Riku then, you're a friend of mines." Axel read out loud and returned a smile.

"Well now to get to the important part. Sora, you been stuck at that place for two months going on three. There are a lot of news reports of you being missing and about the accident at the construction site." Sora's expression disappeared and he looked away from me. That topic was still too much for him to handle.

"But I have something to tell you if you're willing to listen." I got his attention and placed my hand on his shoulder.

"They found his body at the site on the same night not too long after we left. A Taxi driver discovered the accident." Sora's eyes were focused on his lap now, but he still listened. I sighed letting his shoulder go, holding both his hands. He looked at his hands and at my face before I spoke.

"Do you want to see him?" His eyes were as wide as ever along with Lea's.

"You do mean his grave, right?" Lea asked.

"No, I meant at the hospital." I replied.

"So he's not dead?" Lea popped another question and I shook my head as a response.

"He was in a coma when I last saw him. I too was surprised myself that he managed to survive the accident when I found him."

"How is he now?"

"We have to go see for ourselves. I feel like Sora's presence will stir him from his sleep." I said and I felt my hands being squeezed tightly. I looked at Sora and he carried his determined look. He was ready to see him. But I'm not sure if he's mentally prepared for anything else afterwards.