Chapter 8: Isotopes
Naminé was slow to wake up the next morning.
The blonde cracked her eyes open, relieved to find her room darkened by her closed blinds. A little light managed to sneak under the vertical covers, but it wasn't enough to distress her. Pushing herself up, Naminé blinked her drowsiness away, confused for a second. The memories from last night finally came back to her and, interestingly, her first reaction was to wonder where Roxas went.
Naminé first looked around her room for her phone. She grabbed it off her nightstand, bringing the time up: 9:20 AM.
Under normal circumstances, Naminé would've immediately thrown herself back into bed to sleep for at least another forty-five minutes. But still, that urge to look for Roxas pressed her. So she threw off the covers and made her way to the door, opening it as quietly as possible. She stepped lightly on the tile, the only sound coming from her feet delicately padding across the hard surface. She peeked into the living room. A curious feeling ran through her when she realized he wasn't there. But surprise quickly filled its place when she recognized Sora sleeping on one of her sofas.
She concluded that he must've stayed the night. Naminé watched him sleep, smiling at how he appeared to have just fallen on the sofa unconscious. An arm and leg hung over the side of the couch as the boy snored softly, his chest rising and falling in a slow rhythm.
Naminé's head whipped to her right when she heard someone outside fiddling with the lock of her front door. Her breath caught in her throat as she watched the lock handle turn into the open position; a wave of fear seized her, freezing her in place.
But that all ended when the door opened. On the other side, Roxas raised his eyes to meet hers, just as surprised to find her there. She visibly relaxed as Roxas stepped inside with a box of doughnuts and a paper bag placed atop it. He quietly closed the door, locking it securely.
The two blondes stared at each other for a while, unable to find the words to say to each other. Naminé didn't understand why, but she remembered that she came out to look for him. She was shocked to see that he seemed cleaned and rested, his clothes far from the formal attire he had donned the previous night.
"I… I brought food," Roxas whispered. He found himself unable to look Naminé in the eye. "Did I wake you up?"
Naminé felt a lump form in her throat. She realized that she had no idea what to do. Should she answer? The whole situation was extremely uncomfortable. "O-Oh," she said dumbly. It was all she could come up with, so she shook her head to answer the subsequent question.
"Do you um... want to eat now?" he asked. Naminé was again left speechless. This was not the same Roxas she had known all her life. Why did he look so fragile in front of her? He was acting so shy.
She nodded out of fear of saying something stupid.
The two sat at the kitchen table, sitting across from each other. Roxas pulled out two Styrofoam cups, each covered in a plastic lid. He slid one over to Naminé.
The aroma of coffee reached her nose. She quickly picked it up, realizing how much she had desired her normal morning drink. She took a cautious sip, her eyes widening. She knew it was going to be piping hot: she did not, however, expect it to taste so good.
"How'd you know what to put?" she blurted out. She then looked him in the eye, her eyes showing that she regretted asking.
But Roxas met her eyes, a pink tint forming across his face. "The day you arrived. It's our favor— it's the same as mine…" he trailed off, breaking eye contact with her again.
He was right. How could she forget? One of the first things they fought over was the very same breakfast. "Oh. Right."
"You can have some doughnuts. There's enough for everyone," he mumbled as he opened the box. Naminé already knew what to expect this time. And of course, taking up a good portion of the box was half a dozen of the same doughnut: chocolate frosting with sprinkles.
Naminé waited until Roxas took one before she did. It was so awkward and silent between them that she felt very self-conscious about her actions. Would he stare at her if she ate? What if she was sipping loudly? Would he get mad if she asked for a napkin? So many things ran through her mind as she tried to adjust to this stranger in front of her.
Roxas, on the other hand, wanted to scratch his head and slam his face on a table. The silence was almost suffocating. He didn't know why, but his heart was beating rapidly, and his fingers shook— hopefully not enough to be noticed— with nervousness. He gulped, finishing the first of his food. "Did you… what time did you wake up? Are you okay?" His voice cracked when he began his question; his face reddened as a reaction.
Naminé kept her gaze averted. "I'm fine since… since I haven't really thought about it. I only woke up a couple minutes before you uh," Naminé wanted to slap herself for talking so strangely, "before you got back."
"Oh."
Another period of silence.
"What time did you get up?"
Roxas looked at Naminé. Had she just asked him a question? "Um, about an hour ago. I went back home to shower and change and to get Sora some clothes. I uh… I stopped by the café to bring breakfast back," he explained. "I have to go to work for a couple hours, so… yeah. I should be out before three though."
"O-Oh. Cool."
Silence.
At that moment, Roxas wanted to do nothing more than bury his face in his hands— or a pillow— and let out a nice, lengthy scream of frustration.
He mentally berated himself for mouthing off. She didn't ask for an explanation! And why the hell did he say when he was getting off? As if she cared! He really wanted to just run out of the house and get away from her gaze. It was almost painful to be in her presence thanks to how… awkward it was between them.
Roxas didn't know whether or not if he made it worse when he said nothing as he threw away his empty coffee cup and grabbed the keys to the car Sora had driven.
"Are you leaving now?" He heard her soft voice again. Would he ever get used to it? The sound of sincerity in her voice? Before it had always been a weapon used against him. Now it was a genuine question she directed his way.
"Yeah." Came his one-word reply.
"Oh." Naminé gripped her cup with two hands. "Bye, then."
Roxas gulped again. "Yeah. See ya."
Naminé watched him leave from the corner of her eye. As soon as the front door closed behind him, Naminé heard someone coming from the hallway behind her. It was probably her sister.
The heavy feeling of sleep Kairi was feeling soon disappeared when she saw Naminé sitting alone at the kitchen table. She quickly ran to her younger twin and wrapped her in a hug.
"Naminé! I'm so sorry; I didn't hear what happened until you were gone. Are you okay? I wanted to check last night but you were still asleep!" Kairi said in desperation.
Naminé leaned away from her sister. "Kairi, I'm fine. Roxas brought me home immediately and I fell asleep. I'm fine, and I'd rather not talk about it," Naminé reassured her sister with a smile. Kairi stared at Naminé as if searching her face for any hints of lying. Satisfied, she looked around the room.
"Was Roxas here?"
Naminé nodded. "Yeah. He bought us all breakfast. He just walked out the door as soon as you came out though."
"Wait here," Kairi told her sister before darting out the door. Kairi knew she probably looked like crap. She only managed to wipe off some of her make up before going to bed, and then she found it incredibly hard to fall asleep. She felt partially responsible that her sister had to put up with some dirt bag. But she heard what Roxas did for Naminé, and she wasn't going to let him go silently. "Roxas! Hey!"
Roxas saw Kairi running out to meet him before he could drive off. Leaving the car on, Roxas stepped out as Kairi came around. "Kairi, something wrong?" He found himself surprised yet again— just this morning was chock-full of them— when he was embraced.
The redhead squeezed him tightly. "Thank you, Roxas. I heard about what happened last night and I'm really grateful."
Roxas blushed, half-heartedly returning the hug. "Uh, no problem. I… I would've done it for anyone, really."
Kairi pulled back to smile at him. "I know. And I'm really glad you were there. It really relieves me to know that Naminé has someone who cares watching over her."
Roxas looked away. "I-I have to go to work now." He changed the subject and reached into the passenger's seat. "These are Sora's clothes so he has something to wear. Can you give it to him?"
Kairi nodded slowly. "Of course. Thanks again, Roxas."
"Yeah. I'll see you guys later."
Kairi watched Roxas drive off before returning to the house. Inside, Naminé seemed to be finishing the last of her food, and Sora was still sprawled haphazardly over the sofa, sleeping his life away. Kairi rolled her eyes and placed Sora's clothes on another couch. He could change later.
"Are those for Sora?" Naminé asked quietly. Kairi nodded.
"He'll need them when he wakes up. And Nam, I know you said you're alright, but do you want to talk about it? You know I'm here."
Naminé shook her head. "Kairi, please stop worrying. I'm fine. Whatever I needed to say was cleared up with… Roxas." Naminé allowed the name to come out with her breath. "It's done and over with. Nothing but a bad memory."
"Okay." Kairi relented. She knew that if her twin was lying, she'd feel it. Naminé had apparently but the event behind her and would cope in her own way.
"Did you have a good time last night?" Naminé's eyes drifted to Sora's sleeping form.
"I did until I found out about—"
"Kairi, come on. It's getting to the point where it's starting to be really annoying because you keep asking about it."
"I'm just concerned. But if you are really okay with things, then I'll stop." Kairi agreed to dismiss the subject. "Just… stay close to me next time we go out."
Naminé giggled, shaking her head. "You don't have to babysit me. I can handle things on my own, and it probably won't happen ever again. This was just a freak case." Naminé looked to Sora before returning her gaze to Kairi. "Now can we please talk about someone else? Maybe you, for starters. How was your night?"
Kairi looked over at the sleeping boy on their couch too. "Lots of fun, actually. I really wish you could've—"
"Please, Kairi."
The redhead inhaled deeply, releasing a long breath as she made herself listen to her sister. "Sora kind of dragged me onto the dance floor when no one was dancing."
"I heard the bartender say that everyone was standing around."
Kairi nodded with a laugh. "Yeah, we… nobody really knew if it was socially acceptable to dance on an empty dance floor. But Sora took it upon himself to be the first. I think it's because Riku finally arrived. If Riku was bringing the party, Sora was going to be the one to start it."
"Boys." Naminé rubbed her forehead with her fingers. "And I suppose you never found the chance to leave?"
"That, and I kind of didn't want to." Kairi stared at Sora as she spoke. "Nam, if I said that I thought Sora liked me, would you think I was crazy?"
"No. Definitely not." The younger twin shook her head. "I actually think it's possible. No, I think you're completely right."
Kairi blushed. "I kind of got that vibe when we were dancing. I mean I enjoyed it and all, but… I don't know. I kind of expected something to happen, and it didn't."
Naminé immediately thought the reason nothing happened had something to do with the fact that Kairi found out her sister had left the club due to a harassment case. She didn't want to bring it up again. "Um, why do you say that?"
"Promise you won't judge me?"
Naminé gave her sister a puzzled look, but nodded. "Um, yeah. Why would I?"
"I asked him if he wanted to sleep with me." Kairi shrugged as she grabbed a doughnut. It immediately fell from her hand and back into the box. "Oh my gosh. That does not mean what it sounds like. Feel free to judge me for that."
Naminé covered her gaping mouth. "Please explain what exactly that was supposed to entail."
"I was just asking him if he wanted to share a bed!" Kairi picked up the same doughnut she had dropped earlier and took a bite out of it. "You know, like when we were kids."
"We're not kids anymore, Kairi. We're teenagers with raging hormones. And nothing against Sora or anything, but he's a teenager too. A teenage boy." Naminé folded her arms across the table. "I assume he declined?"
"Yeah, which is why I'm having doubts that he… you know. Likes me like that." Kairi took another bite out of her doughnut.
"Kairi, I think it has more to do with Sora's moral code and his integrity rather than not liking you like that."
Kairi thought for a long moment, chewing slowly as she looked at the ceiling. "Now that you mention it, he did get kind of flustered when I asked."
"He probably thought you were offering him sex." Naminé shrugged. Kairi coughed violently.
"Naminé!"
"I'm just saying!"
"I like him, but I don't want to sleep with him!"
"Yet." Naminé laughed at Kairi's deadpanned face. "Sorry. Too soon, I guess."
"I know I said not to judge me, but you could at least take me seriously." Kairi crossed her arms with a pout.
"I am, I am!" Naminé reassured. "It's just… it's funny seeing you like this. I've never seen it before."
"Well, it is a pretty big deal. Forgive me if I'm a little weird about it all. I don't want to work up the expectation of Sora asking me out only to be disappointed," Kairi whispered back.
"You know, you could always ask him out. I think he likes you and is just unsure on whether or not you like him back." Naminé craned her neck and checked to make sure Sora was still unconscious. He was.
"How in the world could he be unsure if I just spent a whole night dancing with him? I could practically feel his—" Kairi snapped her mouth shut when her sister's eyes widened. "Hands."
"That is so dirty."
"I thought this was a judgment-free zone!"
"It is." Naminé was at a loss for words. What was she supposed to say? Good for you? Way to go? "I just don't know how to react to that."
"Too much information?"
"You're my sister. Some things are best left unsaid."
The girls ceased their conversation when Sora stretched on the couch. They watched him closely, entertained when he fell onto the floor with a thud. He still seemed to be asleep though.
"How does he do it?" Kairi asked with an adoring smile.
"I feel that's a more dangerous trait than one that deserves adoration," Naminé muttered before she realized what she said. Fortunately, Kairi didn't seem to hear.
"I'm going to take a shower. I probably look like a mess." Kairi got up from the table, quietly tucking the chair under it. "Thanks for talking with me, Nam. I think… I think I know what to do now that I got all of that out of my system."
The blonde smiled. "Anytime, Kairi."
"I think you should wake him up in a couple minutes." Kairi looked at Sora. "He needs to call his parents and let them know he slept over."
"Roxas probably handled that," Naminé thought to herself. She didn't notice she actually said it.
"Oh. Right. Well, he should probably call and let them know he's still alive then. They might still be worried." With that, Kairi returned to her room, leaving Naminé's line of sight.
After staring at him for a couple more seconds, Naminé hauled herself out of place and walked over to Sora. He was rather adorable; the blonde was even hesitant to wake him. But she didn't know whether or not he had something to do today. Maybe he needed to be up. It didn't hurt to check.
"Hey… Sora, wakey wakey." Naminé gently nudged him.
He grabbed a clump of blanket in his sleep. "You already know what I like, Roxas. And Kairi wants the jelly-filled ones. Don't forget those."
Naminé giggled to herself. She had wondered how Roxas knew to get a few jelly doughnuts. Mystery solved. "Sora, it's me. Naminé. Your brother already came back with the food." Sora whined, his eyes still closed as he turned away from the girl standing over him. Naminé gave him a more forceful shake. "Come on, Sora. Kairi said to wake you up."
"Ngh, Kairi?"
"Naminé, actually. But Kairi said to wake you up," she repeated. Naminé watched Sora slowly wake up. His cerulean eyes locked on hers.
"Hmm? Naminé?"
"Hey, Sora. Good morning."
"What time is it?" The brunet buried his face into the covers he managed to drag onto the floor with him. "Is this the floor? How'd I get on the floor?"
"You fell." Naminé shrugged. 'And you also slept right through it."
Sora pushed himself up into a sitting position, tiredly looking around the room. He noticed he was shirtless, but still wearing the dress pants from last night. He quickly looked at Naminé as memories flooded back to him. "Naminé, are you okay? We got back last night and—"
"I'm fine, Sora. Roxas handled things, and Kairi already asked. I'd appreciate it if we never spoke about it though. Can we do that?"
"Yeah, we can do that. I was just worried." Sora stood to his full height and stretched his arms. Naminé looked away from him as his muscles flexed. She didn't remember him looking like that a year ago.
"Your brother brought you a change of clothes from your house. And there's also food on the table." Naminé walked back to the kitchen, taking her trash from the table as she passed.
"Where is everyone? Are they all awake?" Sora hobbled tiredly to the table and let out a long yawn.
"Kairi's in the shower right now. Your brother actually left for work about five, maybe ten minutes ago. He took the car." Naminé briefed Sora with the details.
"Oh. I kinda needed that to get home."
"You can take mine, if you want. "
"Are you sure? You won't need it?"
"Hmm… nope." Naminé shrugged. "I don't really like driving."
"You sure had an eventful night, didn't you?"
"I could say the same about you, Hayner."
"Never mind that. How did it feel?" Hayner spun around on an office chair, waiting for Roxas to enclose the details of the previous night. The two boys were currently on break from their jobs, and Hayner insisted they spend it in the back room to talk. Hayner was a little too eager to hear about how Roxas decked a certain person he wasn't that fond of.
"It felt pretty good. I made sure to add a little strength to it just for you," Roxas answered. Hayner smiled at him.
"I heard he was knocked unconscious. And what happened to you afterward?"
"I was kicked out."
"What? But that was entirely self-defense!"
"Rules are rules, boys." Olette walked into the room, popping a small container into the microwave. "Are both of you okay, Roxas? How's Naminé doing?"
"Yeah, is she okay after all of that?" Hayner stuffed a handful of potato chips into his mouth.
Roxas kept his gaze focused on the wall. "She seemed… okay. I didn't really talk to her much. But when I did try to bring it up, she seemed to brush it away."
"Aww, that's a shame. I hope she's handling it well." Olette held a napkin in front of Hayner's face. He followed the silent command and wiped his hands. Olette continued, "You did more than break his nose, you know. I get the feeling that nobody at school will take him seriously anymore. He'll be on the receiving end of a lot of jokes. I'm almost sure of that."
"Well look at that." Hayner smiled. "Damaged face, damaged ego, and damaged reputation. That must've been one hell of a punch, Roxas."
"You're lucky he's not pressing charges. I mean, not saying what he did wasn't wrong, but you get the point." Olette dropped into the seat next to Hayner with her warmed food. "Want some?"
Hayner leaned over and kissed Olette on the cheek. "I'm good. Thanks for offering though."
Roxas rolled his eyes. His friends had "secretly" been dating for the past couple months. It didn't really bother him that they dated; rather, it was the fact that they thought nobody noticed. What was the point of hiding a relationship anyway? Roxas brushed the thought aside, thinking about Naminé again. As far as he knew, Seifer was lucky to receive only one punch. Nobody deserved to get away scot-free after doing something like that. Especially to one of his friends.
The thought struck a chord in him. Did he even consider Naminé a friend?
"You seem different today. I thought you'd be a little more chipper." Hayner observed his male companion. "If I knocked Seifer out like you did, I'd be up in the clouds."
"I'm fine, Hayner. I've just got a lot to think about." Roxas shrugged. "I think I'm going to go back to work. Don't really need a break."
"Already?" Olette asked as she wiped her mouth clean of tomato sauce. "We already had a few adoptions. Things have slowed down since this morning."
Roxas shook his head. "That's fine. I just… I need something to do." With that, Roxas silently left the couple alone to eat their snacks.
"So… wanna hit the janitor's closet again?" Hayner asked Olette with a suggestive smile.
"That was a one-time thing, Hayner."
"Yeah, was. We can make a tradition out of it."
"That's so unprofessional."
"Yeah, you said that last time." Hayner snickered when Olette rolled her eyes.
"Hayner?"
"Is that a yes?"
"Stop talking and eat your food."
Sora liked the cars that Kairi's father had bought for his daughters. Though, the fact that he was allowed to drive brand new cars probably had a lot to do with it too.
He arrived at Riku's house close to noon. Riku lived in a more rural area of Destiny Islands, one of the few parts where the residents had larger estates. Being a part of a rather affluent family, Riku was lucky to be one of the few people with a larger house and even more land.
Still, Sora was surprised to find many cars lining Riku's driveway. He assumed it had something to do with the after-party Riku mentioned the previous night. For obvious reasons, he and Kairi chose not to attend.
Like always, Riku's front door was unlocked. Sora quietly stepped inside, smirking at the sight of red cups placed all over the room. There was no sign of anybody, save for a few noises coming from the kitchen. Sora followed the sounds, passing the living room and family room along the way.
Riku was in the kitchen, a towel draped around his shoulders as he searched through his refrigerator. He noticed Sora enter. "Hey," He greeted with a nod.
"Hey, Riku," Sora greeted back and sat at one of the high chairs that lined the island table. "Just get done with your morning swim?"
"Of course. My schedule was thrown off since I woke up about two hours ago, but you gotta stick to the routine." Riku filled a large bowl with cereal. "You eat yet?"
"Yeah, at Kairi's place." Sora looked around the room. "Looks like you had fun last night."
"Yup. A couple people are still asleep upstairs, but I'm kicking everyone out in an hour. It would have been more fun if you and Kairi came, but I understand. How's Naminé doing?"
"She's fine. I didn't get to ask until this morning since she was asleep when we got home. She didn't want to talk about it though. I think it's just her way of coping."
"I see." Riku chewed his cereal, the loud crunches audible in the otherwise silent house. "So you wanted to talk about Kairi, right?"
Sora blinked before nodding, remembering that he had sent a text Riku's way before arriving. "Y-Yeah. It's about last night."
"Something happen between you two?" Riku looked up at him as he peeled a banana.
"Sort of. She asked if I wanted to sleep with her. Like, share a bed. Not… that." Sora scratched the back of his head.
"What did you say?"
"I declined, of course."
"So what's the problem here?"
"How can you not see it?" Sora was flabbergasted. He thought it was obvious. "If Kairi really did like me, like you say she does, then why did she ask me that?"
"Maybe she was horny after a night of dirty dancing."
"Riku!" Sora's face reddened, both out of mortification and anger that he'd suggest that about Kairi. "Would you ask a girl you like to share a bed with you?"
"Probably not. I mean I'm confident and all, but I don't want to scare her off." Riku rubbed his chin in thought.
"See? If you wouldn't even do that, then why would Kairi? The obvious answer is that she still thinks I'm a child— don't make that face at me!" Sora scolded his best friend's skeptical glance, "She just sees the guy who's been her best friend."
"So you're mad because she's sees Sora the Best Friend instead of Sora the Sexy Beast?" Riku asked for clarification.
"Not exactly… but something like that, I guess…" Sora hid his face in his arms, his nose touching the cold granite of Riku's tabletop.
"Dating for guys is different than it is for girls, Sora." Riku finished the banana he was eating and began spreading peanut butter on a slice of bread. "Mainly because guys typically do the courting. The girls get to mess with us."
"Your point?"
"My point is that it's different for girls and it's wrong to base your opinions on what we, as guys, would do. I'm not saying that guys and girls are different; I think they're pretty similar in a lot of ways. But I am saying that there's a huge difference between those who woo," Riku picked up another piece of bread and began to spread jelly on it, "and those who are being wooed."
"So you're saying?" Sora allowed the question to linger, waiting for an answer.
Riku slapped his sandwich together before replying, "I'm saying that just because I wouldn't ask a girl to sleep in the same bed as me doesn't mean Kairi would do it for the same reasons."
"So Kairi's question was innocent and I still have a chance?"
"Precisely."
Sora mulled over Riku's sage-like advice. He found that his best friend was the go-to guy when it came to Sora's girl troubles— namely, Sora's Kairi troubles— upon realizing how awesome the opposite sex actually was. Interestingly, Riku had never dated anyone himself. He just happened to know a lot about girls somehow.
"I still find that hard to believe."
Riku rolled his eyes. "Weren't you the one to tell me yesterday that Kairi tore your head off for being such a man whore?"
"I am not!"
"And didn't I tell you that I attended Girls Day?"
"I'm honestly having a lot of trouble interpreting the reason why you were there."
"So tell me." Riku lightly shoved Sora for teasing him. "Why would Kairi get so angry at the fact that you kissed so many girls if she didn't care?"
"Because she was worried?"
"Because she likes you, stupid," Riku finished his sandwich and picked up an apple from a nearby fruit bowl. He turned around to prepare a bowl of oatmeal as well. "Why are you so intent on denying this simple fact? She likes you, Sora. Kairi is romantically interested in you. Does it matter if it's Sora the Sexy Beast? No, because chances are Kairi fell for Sora the Best Friend. All this time you've unknowingly drawn Kairi to you. All you have to do now is… well, I don't know what it's called after you reel a fish in. Net her, I guess?"
"That sounds rape-tastic."
"It does, doesn't it?" Riku agreed with a nod, a disturbed expression on his face. "What I'm trying to say is this: you have very strong evidence that Kairi likes you. You like Kairi. Therefore, you should ask Kairi out."
"But—"
"But nothing, Sora!" Riku put a mug of water in the microwave and set a timer. "Why are you having so much trouble accepting this?"
"Because of you!" Sora squeezed his hands into fists as he said it. He couldn't meet Riku's surprised eyes. "I can't get past the fact that you're Kairi's best friend too. And not only that, but you're better than me at… everything. You always win. You get better grades, you're better at sports; you have everything a girl could possibly want in a guy!" Sora lowered his voice. "Why would Kairi like me over you?"
"Sora…" Riku's expression softened. "If anyone's to be jealous, it's me." Sora looked up, completely bewildered by the claim. "I wish I was more like you sometimes. I think I see what Kairi sees. I guess it's easier for us since we're your friends, but you really need only one thing to set you apart from every other boy in the world. It distinguishes you from our friends, your brother, your teammates… and even your best friend."
"Riku?" Sora sat up as the silver-haired boy walked up to him.
"I think Kairi's wanted it ever since she met you, even if she didn't really know it back then. Funnily enough, I think she's had it the whole time."
"Riku…" Sora turned in his chair to face the older boy. "What's so special about me that Kairi could possibly like?"
Riku laughed. He tapped Sora lightly on the chest, indicating his heart. "This."
Sora looked down, a little confused. "This?"
"Yeah." Riku nodded. "It's actually more obvious than you think."
Sora smiled.
"I think… I think I just threw up a little in my mouth."
Both boys were silent for a while before Riku's shoulders slumped with a groan. With an annoyed expression, Riku turned to the newcomer, obviously ticked. "Really, Xion? Really? We're trying to have a bromantic moment here."
"Is that why you touched his nipple?"
"I tapped his heart, Xion."
"Feeling his boob, perhaps?"
"His heart," Riku asserted. He looked at Sora. "Where were we?"
"I don't remember. Let's reestablish eye contact and see if we can pick it up." The two boys once again fell silent as they stared straight into each other's eyes. Xion merely tapped her fingers against her cheek, her face screaming 'what the hell is going on' as she looked around the room.
"Sora?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think we lost it?"
"…Yeah. I'm not feeling anything."
"Me neither." The two friends broke away with sighs. Riku turned to the culprit. "Thanks. I hope you're happy now. Gotta crush a bromance when you see one, don't you?"
"Please. Axel and Roxas are enough to deal with. I don't need you guys going soft on me too." Xion rolled her eyes before smiling at Sora. "Good morning! Or afternoon. Whatever."
"Morning, Xion. Did you sleep here too?"
"Yeah. I was doing pretty well until I walked in on the love fest."
Sora and Riku merely looked at each other and laughed. "Bromance!" They cheered with a fist bump.
"Gross." Xion walked over to Riku, placing her hand on his arm. "How long have you been up?"
"A while. I'm in the process of refueling."
"Is that your excuse for eating so much?"
Riku laughed, attempting to tickle Xion's sides as he walked by her. She dodged. "Let's see you swim like I do and then say you're not hungry."
Sora couldn't help but stare at how the two acted; Xion especially. He was quite sure that Roxas had a crush on her. He suddenly found himself torn over something. If his brother liked Xion, then this certainly wouldn't boil over well with him. But did Riku like Xion too? It seemed to be the case. Sora stared at the odd couple with wide eyes: did his loyalties lie with his brother or his best friend?
"Sora? Are you all right?" Xion waved a hand in front of him.
"He's fine. Probably thinking about Kairi, is all." Riku laughed as he dug into his oatmeal.
Sora had to find out the truth. He didn't know how he was going to use it after finding out, but the question had to be asked. "Are you two… an item now or something?"
Xion and Riku paused before erupting in laughter. Sora felt his face grow warm, feeling as if he had embarrassed himself with such a question.
"To answer your question, Sora," Xion said as she gasped, "No. We're not dating."
"Not yet, at least. Xion's being a real hard ass about it." Riku dodged a smack with ease.
"Well what about Roxas?" Sora asked. He'd have to ask what Riku meant later.
"What about him?" Xion asked with a smile. "He's being the typical best friend, acting all jealous for me. I think he's subconsciously filling that stereotype."
"So he's not jealous because he likes you?" Sora asked slowly. The brunet turned his head as he did so.
"Ew. Oh… oh gosh." Xion grimaced. "Oh no. Your brother and I aren't like that, Sora. I thought you knew us better than that! We're best friends!"
"So you and Roxas don't like each other?" Sora was growing more confused by the second.
"Well of course we do! We're best friends. Like you and Kairi."
"What? How? But…"
"Oh. Xion, don't make that comparison. That's not the same."
"Why not?"
"Because Sora likes Kairi and Kairi likes Sora. It's a mess if you compare yourselves."
"I'm so confused!" Sora cradled his head in his hands.
"Oh," Xion drawled. "I get it now! Sora, Roxas and I are platonic best friends. Like you and Riku, but less gay."
"There you go again, ripping on the bromance…"
"Roxas and I aren't like that, Sora." Xion gently grabbed the brunet's shoulder. "We're best friends. That's it. And as hard as it is to believe, I actually don't have romantic feelings for Roxas. And you can ask him yourself: he feels the same way about me."
Sora nodded, finally comprehending his brother's confusing friendship and the love triangle that almost-existed-but-never-really-did. "Okay. Okay, I think I get it now."
"You are awful at explaining things to him," Riku teased. Xion shrugged innocently.
"Should've filled me in on this thing about Kairi." Xion took the seat next to Sora, a familiar glint in her eye. "Mind filling me in now? I've got time."
Sora never got the chance to ask his other question: what was the status of Riku and Xion's relationship?
Roxas pressed his finger to the doorbell of Naminé's house, inexplicably nervous. Having just gotten off work, he returned to the house to pick his brother up. He couldn't help but pray that Kairi would be the one to open the door.
Naminé answered instead.
"H-Hey." Roxas awkwardly waved. He redirected his attention to his shoes.
"Hi." Naminé's actions were similar. "Uh, do you want to come in?"
Roxas stepped into the house. "Is my uh… is Sora here? I came to pick him up."
"He actually left a while ago. I told him he could take my car, so he drove off and promised he'd bring it back by tomorrow morning."
"Oh." Roxas suddenly felt out of place. His whole body seemed to heat up. He tried to look at Naminé's face, but quickly looked away.
"You're welcomed to stay for a while, though. Only if you want to. You can…" Naminé trailed off when Roxas looked up at her.
"I can't. My parents want me and Sora to prepare dinner tonight. I-I've still got to get the groceries."
Naminé quelled the disappointment that mysteriously stung her chest. "O-Oh. That's okay too."
Roxas felt his heart pounding rapidly in his chest. And suddenly it was like he wasn't in control anymore. Don't do it. Don't do it. Don't do—
"But you and Kairi can come to dinner at our place if you'd like. Axel and Xion are going to be there, so…"
Naminé's eyes widened at the invitation. Roxas looked at her in anticipation. "M-Maybe next time. Kairi and I decided it'd be best to stay in for the day. I'd rather not leave the house for now…"
Roxas felt something drop inside him. He smiled weakly. "That's cool. Maybe next time then."
A thick silence enveloped them, almost to the point of suffocation. Neither of them knew what to say to the other. It was so different now. They were… strangers.
"I think—"
"I have—"
Roxas and Naminé spoke up simultaneously. At Roxas's gesture, Naminé went first. "I have your friend's coat. The one from last night. I think you're more likely to see him than I am, so do you mind if I give it to you?"
"No. No!" Roxas said with a little more volume. "Not at all."
After another awkward exchange, Naminé walked to her room and came back with the large jacket. Roxas took it, draping it over his arm.
"Uh, what were you going to say earlier?" Naminé wrapped her arms around her body.
"I think I should head out now." Roxas pointed to the door with his thumb. "Got a lot of stuff to do."
"Yeah, I understand." Naminé followed Roxas to the door, unlocking it and opening it for him. "Thanks for taking the jacket."
Roxas smiled at her. A small stutter in her heart stole Naminé's breath for a moment. "Yeah. No problem. I'll… I'll see you later."
Naminé smiled back. "Yeah. B-Bye."
When Roxas returned home, he noticed Naminé's car— the one Sora had taken— and Xion's car taking up the driveway. He was forced to park the car on the side of the street and had to carry the groceries in from a distance.
There was no sign of anyone downstairs, So Roxas headed up. He heard Axel and Xion laughing over something and walked in on them using his computer.
"What's so funny?" He asked his best friends slowly. Their mischievous smiles betrayed only the fact that they did something stupid.
"Nothing. Just playing around on your computer." Xion smiled innocently. Axel doubled over as he tried to contain his laughter.
"What did you do?" Roxas growled and pushed the two out of the way. His eyes scanned the computer screen in confusion. "What in the world is this?"
Axel and Xion erupted in laughter, no longer able to restrain themselves. Roxas had to sit through at least a minute of nonstop laughter before Axel was able to explain.
"Well we got bored waiting for you to get home, so we went on your computer to mess around. Unfortunately, you had to go and password-lock all your accounts. Hacking was out of the question."
"Yeah, you didn't tell me you changed your password!" Xion tapped Roxas on the shoulder. He shrugged it off.
"I wonder why."
"Anyway," Axel continued, "since we really couldn't do anything on the internet, we got the best idea ever."
"So Axel and I took it upon ourselves to rename all your folders! Thank goodness you're so disgustingly organized. It made our job a lot easier."
Roxas stared at his computer screen in disbelief. How was he supposed to find anything now? He had spent such a long time organizing all of his files— schoolwork, photos, music, the like— and now they were all under strange names.
"Oh don't worry!" Axel patted Roxas on the back. "We wrote you a key. For starters, your schoolwork folder is now love letters to my crush. Your music folder is named various animal mating calls…"
"And my personal favorite," Xion continued with a giggle, "your folder of videos is labeled as horse porn."
"What the hell? Are you guys serious?"
Like the best friends they were, Xion and Axel burst out laughing as Roxas scrolled through his folders in horror.
"We were going to individually name all your albums and documents, but that would have been mean," Axel reasoned.
"And this isn't? You labeled my photo folder penis galore!"
"Ha! The exclamation point was my idea!" Xion fell on top of Axel, collapsing from near-asphyxiation. The blond groaned loudly, shoving his friends away so he could fall on his bed.
"You guys are such assholes." His insult was muffled by the pillow he pressed to his face. He felt his bed shake as another weight dropped on it. The giggles he heard let him know that it was not Axel he who was currently next to him on his bed.
"But we're you're best friends! It's what we do!" She attempted to pull the pillow from his face, but failed. "Oh come on! It's funny! Stop being so dramatic!"
"Look on the bright side, Roxas! At least we didn't write it in all caps," Axel teased, referring to the younger boy's comical and borderline extreme feelings toward writing text completely in capital letters.
Roxas removed the pillow from his face, a smile twitching at his lips as he sat up. "I can't believe you guys. I think I'm going to have to kill you."
"Psh. Says the guy with a file now named 101 reasons why fairies and unicorns actually exist."
For the first time that day, Roxas laughed. It came out like a stutter at first before evolving to the point where his sides ached. The strange and heavy feeling that hung on Roxas all day seemed to be lifted; he felt lighter, happier, free. As the laughter died, he looked at the tall and lanky boy sitting on his computer chair and the obsidian-haired girl, lying on his bed like she owned it, and smiled at them.
"You guys are too much." Roxas shook his head.
"We're certainly more than you can handle." Xion giggled as she sat up. She leaned her head on his shoulder as she spoke, "I had a feeling you were down in the dumps when I asked if you needed a ride from work today."
"I wasn't really down. Just… preoccupied."
"Pensive."
"Yeah, that." Roxas nodded with Axel's suggested word.
"And why was that?" Axel slid the computer chair closer, stopping at the foot of the bed.
"I don't know. I had a really weird morning with Naminé, I guess." Roxas looked down at his laps, repeatedly flipping a pillow as he thought. "I didn't know how to react to her today. It was like I was talking to a stranger. Do you guys ever get that feeling? She's been around for so long, and suddenly I feel like I have no idea who she is. I don't know how to talk to her at all."
"So, Xion, does this mean you're winning?" Axel asked the female of the trio.
She closed her eyes, a substitute for shaking her head. "Not yet, but I think it's getting there. Roxas, maybe you should try talking to her like you used to. It'll be weird for more than just you two if you try to force a change in your… relationship with her."
"Xion, I'm going to be honest here and say that I have no idea what you're trying to say."
"That's fine." She adjusted her head on his shoulder. "You'll get it someday." She suddenly shot away from him like he had the plague. "Oh! I don't mean to steal the attention away from you, Roxas, but Axel, Sora, and I talked earlier. Two things."
"Go on…"
"The first thing is that we're having our annual paintball match in maybe a week or so. Sora, Riku, and Kairi against you, me, and Axel. You game?"
Roxas looked at his friends excitedly. "Of course I am!"
"Hell yeah! We got this!" Axel draped an arm over Roxas's shoulders, pulling him close and smacking his chest with his other hand. "This year is ours!"
"Guys, let's not." Xion reached across and separated the frowning boys. "And second, we came to the inescapable conclusion that your brother thinks I'm a slut."
"What?"
"It's true." Axel shrugged. "We all had this long talk on how Sora assumed that you liked Xion because Xion was dumb enough to compare yourselves to Sora and Kairi."
Roxas looked at Xion like it was the dumbest thing she had ever done.
"What?" Xion asked defensively. "I meant that in the way that a boy and girl can be best friends without the boy wanting to sharpen his pencil with her!"
"Ugh, Xion!" Roxas clawed his own face as a horrifying visual of his brother and Kairi came to mind. "Why would you say that?"
"I am ninety-nine percent sure I will never be able to use a pencil sharpener ever again, much less look at it the same way." Axel said matter-of-factly. "In fact, I'm pretty sure I've lost all desire to ever have sex. That just sounds painful."
"Oh— why? Why?" Roxas shuddered as another disgusting visual of his best friend and accompanying love interest cropped up as well.
"We're getting off-topic here!" Xion yelled in frustration. "Point is, your brother thought that we were an item and I was whoring it up with Riku on the side."
"Why in the world would he assume that?" Roxas whimpered as his mind finally cleared.
"Well he assumed I was getting it on with Riku because I slept over there last night." Roxas whipped his head up to glare at Xion. "And then there's that: you and your reactions to anything that involves another boy that isn't Axel, Zexion, Demyx, or you."
"You slept over at Riku's?"
"To be fair..." Axel started. He sensed an argument was about to erupt between his two best friends. "I think Sora had some ground. He mentioned earlier that he walked in on you guys having an intimate moment before you guys came to Club Spades. That, and Roxas allows you to interrupt undie time."
"So? Roxas allows you to interrupt undie time too!"
"Uh, neither of you are technically allowed to interrupt undie time. You just do it."
"Well fine." Axel crossed his arms. He knew he had to adopt the role of devil's advocate so Sora's claims didn't seem so farfetched. "But come on, Xion. I can see where he's coming from. He said you help Roxas dress up and everything. Best friends don't normally do that. Sora and Kairi don't."
"That's because Sora and Kairi don't want to help each other dress, but undress. Sorry, Roxas," Xion replied to the look of revulsion on Roxas's face.
"Yeah, but best friends typically aren't as close as you guys. Sure, I'm five years older than both of you, but I'm your best friend too, Xion. I don't see you stopping by my place and picking out things for me to wear or styling my hair." Axel paused. "Wow. Why does everything I say sound so bad?"
"I don't know…" Xion said slowly. "All I got out of that was this vibe that you wanted me to come over your house too and get you ready for parties…"
"I don't like this conversation…" Roxas whined.
"You know what? I blame Sora. Sora's opened up a can of awkwardness in our circle with this whole mess. I'm done defending him." Axel threw his arms up in defeat. As the group finally grew quiet, Roxas's alarm clock went off, loudly ringing an obnoxious noise. Xion quickly turned it off.
"What was that for?" Roxas was sure he didn't set that.
"That's our cue to wake your brother up from his daily nap." Xion hopped off the bed and stretched. "Have you forgotten? You guys have to cook for us tonight!"
"I'll wake him up." Axel volunteered as he got up. "Xion, you should probably follow Roxas. He'll take you back to where you belong: the kitchen!"
"Ooooh!"
"Boom!" Axel and Roxas roared in laughter, high-fiving each other repeatedly.
Xion gave both of them hard shoves, ignoring their celebration, and headed to Sora's room.
"Misogyny. So hilarious," she mumbled under her breath after slamming the door to Roxas's room. "I freaking hate bromances."
Redeeming Endeavor:There was a point where the subcriptions and the favorites matched in number, but alas, it was only an ephemeral existence... still, thank you so much!
To Serena Scarlet, typewrite, Lupus7, ResoluteResolve, Stonekipsta, Allied Forces, .Color, Draco Oblivion, GoldPhantom and z-eion, Ken Giovanni, PEANUT v1.2, sora93kairi, Naivette, Dreamer-Tsuki, chibixbabe, Maskedgirl3, YAYAY317, Ash09, Gear001, Shire Folk, ChocoIsu, 0Wishful-Thoughts0, spadejackspade, roxasXnamine-ftw, Handwritten, Seddie AnD Teen Wolf, Spellbound a.k.a soragirl4ever, TAG, elspoek1, akemithebazookagirl, Alecdot, Claymore Person, Pink Star Art, unpatient person, BruHaeven, and Chibi McFu: thank you so much for your inspiring, helpful, and wonderful words. It really makes me feel good to know that I'm writing something that so many people are enjoying. Thank you.
Chapter Data- Word Count: 8,284. Total Editing Time: 562 minutes.
Thanks again, and I hope you all enjoyed. Take care, readers, and I'll see you around!