'And I would have stayed up with you all night

Had I know how to save a life.'

~They Fray, How the Save a Life

Kairi

She loved Sora. She absolutely loved him, and had loved him for a very long time. And she was enthused that they were together. Though it was scary that he could leave her if her ever lost feeling for her, she trusted in him to stay. She'd been through the wringer with Sora, and now, she had to go through it four more times. Roxas, Xion, Naminé, Riku, all waiting to see her, hound her about why she jumped in front of that car. She was certain she would faint. Kairi missed her friends dearly, however, she still felt uneasy about having to explain what pulled her down to that place of despair that she'd been in. That she'd been recommended a therapist, given medication to help her clear her head.

She and Sora finally got on the road, picked up by Demyx, and were planning out their remaining five days with him leading up to their departure to Sora's company. Kairi'd never worked a 'normal' job. She'd gone to a community college for Communications, what could she possibly do to help one of the biggest companies in the country? The woman clenched her fists, ordering herself to calm down. She had enough to worry about in the coming hours, she didn't need to completely overload her brain.

Leaning her arm on the armrest of the car, she forced herself to think about the good times with her friends. What made them amazing. Roxas, with his obsessing with skateboards and hair gel. How he could go from being so quiet that you'd almost forget that he was in the room to screaming, laughing, ranting. He'd had a real way with words when he'd wanted to. He was smart, too. He'd never admit it, but Kairi knew, he was wiser than some twice his age, and he used that wisdom to help his friends. He'd stood by her on multiple occasions, just being there for her when she was upset.

Xion, with her aversion to the color pink and her insistence that Kairi listen a different band each week. Dark, and often times a bit pessimistic, but that girl knew how to sit there and talk you through a bad night. Xion didn't think like anyone else, which was a gift in and of itself. She didn't care about anyone else or what they thought of her, outside of her group of friends, and when Kairi needed someone to be philosophical with, Xion was the one she went to.

Kairi's best friend, Naminé, quiet, mousy, and one of the most helpful and intelligent girl Kairi had ever met. Though Naminé was often quiet when they would go out, in a small group, the girl was a chatterbox. She knew what she was talking about and when she should say something. Kairi didn't have any siblings, and for the most part Naminé felt like a sister to Kairi-even better than a sister. They shared clothes, jewelry, inside jokes, and secrets. It was Naminé who would always be there to listen to Kairi rant about a teacher, a boy, or a mean girl. She listened to Kairi mope about Sora for years, always pestering her to make a move. Though Kairi did the same to Naminé about Roxas, Naminé knew how to annoy Kairi just right with the fact that Sora wasn't with her.

Then there was Riku. Sweet, unyielding, protective Riku. She known him as long as she'd known Sora, and though She'd always loved Sora, there would forever be a special place of gratitude in her heart for Riku. He'd watched her grow attached to boy after boy, content to watch as she never loved him like he loved her. Though he eventually grew over his feeling for her, he still treated her with respect, and protected her fiercely from anyone who mistreated her. He'd let her yell at him, laugh with him, and cry on him, and his loyalty to his friends had never wavered.

Kairi missed her friends. She knew that at first, things would be hard for the six of them-there were wounds to patch up. But in the end, she felt confident that they would turn out alright. After all, it wasn't necessarily herself that she'd survived for. It was everyone who'd dared to believe in her.

Roxas

When he and Naminé had finally gotten around to getting ready, they'd had less than a half hour to do so.

Not that he'd minded very much. Or at all, really. He'd honestly take this over almost anything else. If his best friends weren't finally coming to visit him, he'd have been content to lay with Naminé for the entire day. But Roxas knew full well that after today, his life would change for the better, and after the past five years, he knew that he couldn't turn down an opportunity like this.

So the pair washed and dressed together, not saying much, letting the nervous energy in the air coat them in an uneasy haze. What would they say to Kairi? How would things be after so long? And after they left with Kairi and Sora, they'd find Riku and Xion. Roxas hadn't seen Xion in five years, and he desperately wanted to believe that one of his closest friends had been doing well. Though based on what he'd gathered from Sora, he wasn't so sure about that. He vowed to apologize to her for not checking up on her once he saw her.

He discussed some of his worries with Naminé, and found that she was much more terrified than he was. She'd always been especially close with Kairi, and he couldn't imagine what she was feeling right now. Soon enough it was noon, and Naminé and Roxas sat in his living room, anxiously waiting for Sora and Kairi to arrive.

"I hope they still like me." Naminé whispered as she squeezed Roxas' hand.

"Don't be ridiculous, of course they'll still like you. How could they not?" He reassured, smiling down at her.

When they finally heard a knock at the door, Roxas felt his heart jump into his throat. If he'd been alone he might have started to shake. But with Naminé here, he simply took a deep breath, and smiled at her.

The first thing Roxas noticed when he opened his front door was that Kairi looked thinner than he remembered. The second was that she and Sora were holding hands. He raised his brow at the couple and asked,

"Did you two finally fuck?" Their reactions couldn't have been better if he'd planned them. Kairi's face went white as a sheet and her eyes widened to look like a deer caught in the street. Sora looked like he wanted to punch Roxas in the mouth. The blonde smirked and said, "It's about damn time, get in here you two." and with that he hugged both of them.

"Roxas, you jackass." Sora snickered, punching Roxas' shoulder.

"Hey, you've got to admit, that was a good greeting!" Roxas exclaimed, clasping Sora's shoulder. Sora rolled his eyes and shook his head, fighting a smile.

Roxas turned to Kairi and smiled at the frail looking girl, "Hey, sweetheart, how are you feeling?" He asked, gingerly squeezing his arm around her shoulders. She smiled up at him, and if he thought that he'd felt nervous, she looked about a hundred times worse than he'd felt.

"Better now that I get to see your handsome face again." She teased, and Roxas felt his shoulders ease. There was the old Kairi. She was still there, maybe just a little quieter than before. He beamed down at her and pointed into his apartment,

"I've got a friend in here that wants to see you." He said with a smile. Kairi glanced behind him, and took a few steps into the room.

"Hi, Kairi." Roxas heard Naminé say quietly. Roxas turned to see the two women embracing, Kairi's shoulders shaking.

"I missed you so much." Kairi mumbled, squeezing her friend tight. Sora grabbed Roxas' shoulder and sighed,

"Well, it seems like we don't have to worry about the two of them holding a grudge against each other." Roxas nodded to his friend, and offered him a seat on the couch.

"Alright, let's hear what we're getting into." Roxas announced, sitting on one of his chair adjacent to Sora. Kairi and Naminé broke their hug, both weeping softly. They stayed next to each other, leaned up against the couch. Sora cleared his throat, and slowly began to explain his company, and what he did for a living, and how he'd needed to find managers to be able to expand the company. He spoke about what he'd need from each of them, and how much the pay was. He told them about his trek to track down all five of his friends, and how he'd found Naminé, and then Roxas, and then Kairi. He paused for a moment before explaining where she was and what had happened. She spoke here and there, but kept mostly silent, allowing Sora to speak. After several moments of consoling Kairi, they then focused on what needed to be done from there.

Xion and Riku were in Twilight Town, Though they didn't have many details, Riku had insisted that Sora get there quickly when the two had spoken on the phone during the drive to Roxas' place.

Though Roxas still doubted whether or not he would like the job Sora was offering him-or even if he'd be good at it-he agreed to try it. He knew he had to get out of the rut that he was stuck in now, and that he needed to be with Naminé, and if that meant moving, if it meant trying out a corporate job, then he would do it. He'd do it for his friends, for his lover, and for himself.

So while the two women hugged each other and dried their tears, Roxas looked to Sora and said, "Let's do this."

Xion

When Xion awoke to Riku still lying beside her, it took her a moment to realize that she was awake, that she was alive, and that she was being held by the boy she'd been in love with for years. There had to be some mistake. This couldn't be real. This was him pitying her, or lying to her. She was an absolute trainwreck, not something to be loved and held.

She looked into the sleeping face of the man who'd saved her from death so many times, and hesitantly reached out a hand and brushed her fingers against his cheek. How could she have forgotten how beautiful he was? He was absolutely gorgeous. She touched his jaw, his cheek, his nose, his lips, his hair. She'd have been content to do this all day if he hadn't woken up. His eyes fluttering open and gazing up at her for a moment before blinking and really focusing on her.

"Hi." he murmured. Her stomach fluttered, and she cursed the heart rate monitor they had hooked her up to.

"Hello." She whispered. He reached up and cupped her cheek.

"Are you feeling okay?" He asked, concern etched onto his face as he looked at the monitors and the IV dripping into her arm. She nodded, knowing that her heart was pounding. They sat up, still looking at each other.

"Are you doing this to pity me?" She asked before she could stop herself. He blinked in surprise, taken aback by her question.

"What?" He mumbled.

"Are you just being nice to me because Sora needs me for a job? Because I don't need you to do that. We haven't spoken in five years, so it's okay…" She trailed off, desperately hoping that he'd disagree with her. And she was not disappointed, though shocked when she felt him grab her shoulders, lightly shake them, and exclaim,

"Xion, I love you!"

Obviously, it shocked him, too, because he widened his eyes and leaned back a ways, letting go of her shoulders slowly.

"You can't," She said, shaking her head, "I'm living on the streets, Riku, I've done terrible things, I'm not...I'm not a good person."

Riku shook his head, frowning deeply at her. "No, Xion, you are a good person, and you might not be able to see it, but I can. Your friends can. Aqua and Ven and Terra can. So many people love you, and I promise you nobody loves you more than I do. I've loved you for years. I've loved you since the 9th grade. I've spent so long loving you, and I can't stop now. I can't let anything happen to you, because I don't know what I'd do with myself if something did. I don't care if it takes the rest of my life but I will make you feel like a good person if it's the last thing I do."

Xion felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes, and she blinked them away. She'd waited so long to hear him tell her that he loved her. And now she was hearing them, and she wasn't dreaming. He was here and he loved her.

She kissed him.

She kissed him until she couldn't breath and then some.

Riku got out of her bed before the nurse came back to check on her. She watch him wait patiently in the chair by her bedside, polite with her nurse, smiling at her and asking her questions. And then they both waited for Sora to show up.

Xion didn't know how well she was cut out for working at a place like the one Sora worked at, but it was worth a shot. She would try it for her friends. She owed them that much.

At about four in the afternoon, her nurse told her she had visitors, and led her friends into the room.

Sora, tall and lean, a hopeful smile on his lips. Kairi on his arm, beautiful, smiling, but also thinner than Xion remembered her. Barely a rail. Naminé, small, quiet, and utter kindness radiating off of her body. And Roxas, his hair an absolute mess, his clothes wrinkled, and his eyes shadowed. He looked so much older. But he still smiled at her like he used to, and it didn't hit her until everyone was in front of her how much she'd missed them. She felt her chest ache, and she waved,

"Hey." she said, and offered a small smile. Nobody said anything for a moment, they just studied one another. But then Sora approached her, and went over to give her a hug,

"I missed you, Xion. We're sorry we didn't get to you sooner." And she knew he meant it, from the bottom of his heart, he meant it. She felt hot tears on her cheeks, She was home. Xion had never really had a true family, but now, looking out at her friends, she knew that this was better than any blood relations she would have.

She hugged everyone, spoke with each of her friends. Finally, Sora waved his hand in the air, a hand that up until now, she hadn't realized that held a stack of documents.

"Alright, gang. We can get back to the hugging later, right now, we need to sign these papers so Sora's bosses don't fire him for being late on his promise." He announced, and for the next house, they sat in relative silence, reading over their individual collection of papers, signing wherever they needed to.

Once they'd finished with their papers and had given them back to Sora, the questions began to roll in. What happened to Xion? What happened to Kairi? What had Roxas been doing all these years? Why was Riku already looking for Xion?

It took them hours, and though everyone knew that it would take work to piece together their friendships, they knew that they could do it, and that they could lean on one another. They'd work to make the future that they wanted for themselves. So Sora, Kairi, Naminé, and Roxas left once visiting hours were over, waiting in a hotel until Xion was released.

Riku stayed back a moment longer, making sure that she would be alright until morning.

"You'll be back tomorrow, right?" Xion asked him, grabbing his wrist before he could turn to walk out the door. He turned to her and nodded,

"I come back for you every morning. I'll be there for you for every morning you'll have me."

"Then you'd better get used to seeing me every morning."

"Trust me, Xion, there's no other way I'd want to wake up."

"Kiss me?"

"Always."

And he kissed her like she was the only thing that mattered in the universe.

Once he left, she rolled over onto her side, wincing at the bandages rubbed her cuts. She was going to make it. She hadn't thought that in a long time. Was she going to have a flawless transition to a normal life? No, absolutely not. But she would do it. She would get better, she would try to stay clean of all the awful things she'd done, because her friends believed in her. They'd saved her life in so many ways, and now she would repay them. They were her home, and though it scared her to pieces to try and act normal again, she would do it. Because she wanted to go home.

Wow, thank you all so much for reading until the end. Writing this has been an emotional journey for me, and I'm so glad that I did it. I can relate to many aspects of all of the characters, and I know that many of my readers can as well. I also know that the ending fits with where many of us are in life right now: waiting for the future. Everything doesn't get wrapped up into a nice ending with a bow on it in real life, and that's okay. It's okay to not know if two people end up together, or if a certain business is successful. We still have a lot of waiting to do and a lot of life to live, and that's why I did not wrap everything up completely.

This has really hit home in the past couple months as I will be moving into a dorm room for college in exactly one week. I know that, just like Sora and his friends, I'll be separated from some people who I previously was very close to, and maybe we'll try to stay in touch, or we could lose contact. I know that I am not the only one about to go through this huge change in my life, and I encourage others in my shoes to keep persevering, and always think ahead to the future that is yours.

I have so enjoyed each and every single review, and I'm so happy that I've created something that people love. Thank you for reading and enjoying my story. I hope you continue to go and enjoy others' stories and encourage them. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for enjoying my writing. It's been a wonderful ride, and I cannot wait to make more memories for myself. I hope you all have amazing lives.

In the infamous words of Roxas, "Only seven days to go, and then my summer vacation's over."