First Date
Prompt Given By: Queen Mickey
Set Before the First Kingdom Hearts
Riku nervously stood outside of Hinata's home about to knock on her front door to pick her up for their first date. He made sure to give her time to sleep in and get ready, but he had told her to be ready to spend the entire day together. Everything was planned, meticulously so in such a way that Riku had never done before. He wanted the day to go perfectly. Running his hand through his hair, he gulped and knocked on the front door. His palms began to sweat from nerves every moment he had to wait for the door to open.
Taking a deep breath, he whispered to himself. "Get yourself together. It's just a date."
He couldn't even begin to explain why he was acting so uneasy. He and Hinata were best friends, there was no reason he should be unsure of himself. Confidence began to slowly itch itself back into him as he reassured himself but it immediately vanished when the door slowly opened. His eyes widened when he saw Hinata standing in front of him. Her cheeks were flushed as she reluctantly opened the door and she kept her eyes averted while he looked her over. The usual long red locks of her hair were pinned up into an ornate bun behind her head; clipped up with a blue pearled hair piece. The same color of pearls created a simple necklace with a yellow star charm, resting right above a black shirt that fell off the shoulders but tightened around her forearms. Over the shirt was an incredibly frilly yellow dress-shirt that flowed down to her hips with a light blue ribbon tied around her waist. Under the ensemble were tight white capris and matching shoes.
"Um, hey." He eventually spoke up.
Hinata looked over at him quickly then darted her eyes away, her face flushing darker than it already was. "Hi..." She said after a moment of awkward silence.
"You look, different." He tried to break the tension.
With a groan, she planted her face in her hands, "Oh just say it; I look ridiculous!"
Riku gave a small laugh and rubbed the back of his neck, "No, I was just wondering how Kairi convinced you to wear that."
She put her hands down and looked defeated, "Is it that obvious?"
"Well yeah, you don't wear stuff like this." He pointed out.
Sighing, she admitted, "It was more Selphie than Kairi. Remember when everyone found out we were dating at Kairi's birthday party last week?" Waiting for a nod from Riku she continued, "Well, Selphie got all romantic about it and started going on about how I needed to dress up for you and then Kairi joined in. So they took me shopping and got me this." Looking down and distastefully holding out the edge of the bright yellow top she told him, "Selphie said it would be cute if we matched colors."
Riku looked down at his own outfit then back up at Hinata's, "They got the blue wrong."
Hinata scoffed and then laughed, "I told them that and they said it was close enough."
With a small smile he asked, "So why did you let them dress you up? You don't like this type of stuff."
Looking away she confessed quietly, "Well... I did sort of want this day to be special." Feeling more self-conscious by the second she turned around to walk away, "I'm going to go change."
Before she got more than two steps away, Riku reached out and grabbed her hand, "No wait! Don't, you look fine." He felt his face flush when Hinata stopped and looked back at him with a small smile. Pulling her back towards him he admitted, "I mean you look more than fine... but..." He took a deep breath and tried again, "Look, how about we just forget about this and start our date?"
Hinata smiled as she felt her insecurity melt away and agreed, "I'd like that."
"Good," He replied, waiting for Hinata to close the door before leading them down the front steps.
They walked in silence for the first few minutes as they left the neighborhood. The sky was dreary and shrouded the sun, giving the air a slight chill and breeze. The air had a feeling of dampness to it from the waves in the ocean turbulently crashing against the rocks of the island.
"It looks like there might be a storm today." Hinata noted, breaking the silence.
"I hope not," he replied. "Most of the things we're doing today are outdoors."
"So what are we doing today?" She asked.
Riku smirked, "You'll see."
"Oh fine," She nudged him with her shoulder, "Keep your secrets."
He chuckled softly in response as the butterflies in his stomach fluttered when Hinata brushed up against him. They continued to chat, Hinata occasionally trying to get him to spill details about the day planned. Riku continually glanced up at the sky as it gradually darkened with more clouds. He tried his best to ignore them and continue on with his plans; but couldn't shake the steadily sinking feeling inside that it was going to storm. Soon they reached the same ferry they rode the weekend before.
"We're going to Shima Island?" Hinata asked as they approached the ticket booth.
He simply nodded in response and bought the tickets before leading onto the boat. They stood together at the railing, feeling the rough waves hit the side of the vessel. As the ferry began sailing towards Shima Island, Hinata linked her arm with Riku's and leaned her head against his shoulder.
Hinata could hear his heart racing as she leaned against him and quietly asked, "Is this alright?"
Clearing his throat, he nodded, "Yeah, you can do whatever you want." His cheeks blushed when Hinata tightened her hands around his arm. He didn't know how she could have such an effect on him from such a simple touch.
They stood in silence for a couple minutes before Riku gained confidence and moved his arm that Hinata was holding, removing it from her grasp. She looked up at him with momentary confusion before he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. Hinata happily obliged and moved one of her arms behind his back.
"So you actually like this outfit on me?" She asked him once they were comfortable with their new position.
"Yeah, it's different but…" He slowly spoke, "You look nice in it."
Hinata looked up at him surprised and smiled when she noticed his flushed cheeks and averted eyes.
"You look nice in everything." He told her, closing his eyes with an inward groan after the words escaped. He was being a lot more open than he expected he would.
"Oh," It was her turn to blush. "Thank you." She looked back out at the ocean in front of them.
Riku glanced over at her beside him and was about to respond, but was stopped short when a water droplet fell on his cheek. With his free hand he wiped away the wetness and looked up at the sky as rain began to drizzle down. "Not today…" He grumbled under his breath. Removing his arm from Hinata, he grabbed the inside of her arm and tugged her away from the railing, "Come on, let's get under the cover, it's starting to rain."
She followed him to the ferry seating under the tarped covering that was over the rows of seats. People sat in the chairs, so they had to resign to standing at the edge of the covering. They watched as the drizzle quickly transformed into downpour; everyone squeezing together to attempt to stay dry.
"Hey…" Riku quietly spoke up as the boat neared port at Shima Island. "Maybe we should just call it a day and head back. This rain doesn't look like it's going to let up any time soon and everything I had planned was supposed to be outside."
Hinata quickly looked up at him with a small frown. She glanced around at the pouring rain while she thought it over and the ferry came to a stop at the wooden dock. Everyone around them quickly sped off the boat towards the strip mall to get to cover from the storm. As she watched them leave, the hint of smirk appeared on her face. Reaching her hand up to the bun behind her head, she began pulling out the pins holding it in place. Riku watched her in silent confusion, as her once styled hair began falling behind her back.
"What are you doing?" He finally asked her.
Pulling out the final pin and undoing the pearl clip, she freed the last bit of her hair letting it flow behind her. "You said I looked nice no matter what, right?" She asked him, her smirk more apparent.
"Y-yeah…" His cheeks warmed and he averted his eyes as he asked, "But what does that got to do with this?"
"Well then come on!" She laughed as she tightly grabbed his hand and immediately ran out into the downpour, dragging him behind her.
Riku let out a surprised yelp as he was pulled out from under the protection but made sure to keep up with Hinata. The raindrops quickly doused them as they sprinted off the ferry towards the strip mall right outside the dock. Hinata ran forward, unsure where they should go but she didn't stop her movements to allow herself the chance to figure it out. She spotted a building she had never entered and appeared mostly devoid of other people. Without thinking she went to it and opened the glass door; quickly pulling Riku inside.
"What was that about?" Riku exclaimed; pulling back his hand once they were out of the rain.
"I didn't want to just go home." She told him, breathless.
Riku was about to respond with a scolding but was too out of breath to say much.
Dripping wet, they both took a moment to regain their stamina before looking where they ended up. Bright colorful lights lined the vast room. Along one wall were various types of stuffed animals and toys hung up. Sunny-yellow signs were underneath them that read different numbers. The other end of the room was a small pizza restaurant fenced off by a short half-wall that looked to have tables facing a half circle stage with large red letters spelling out, 'Freddy Bear'. In between the pizza place and toys stood a large array of arcade games. Different jovial tunes of all the games ringed in the air mixing with the already loud upbeat music coming from the room's speakers.
"The arcade?" Riku eventually spoke up, the slight hint of discontent in his voice.
"Is that what this is?" She asked, still trying to catch her breath. "I just went into the first place I didn't recognize."
"Look, I get what you're trying to do; but let's just go home." He told her, agitation rising in his voice. He looked over at her and was surprised to find her braiding her soaking hair. The previous makeup she had been wearing just moments earlier was completely washed away only leaving faint black lines running from the corners of her eyes down her pale cheeks.
Hinata caught him staring and blushed slightly embarrassed. "I know I look pretty messed up; I'm working on it."
He gave her a small smile but didn't reply. He continued to watch as she finished braiding her hair and used the back of her palms to wipe away the drips of eyeliner and mascara that had rained on her cheeks. Reaching down, she grabbed the edge of her soaked dress-shirt that clung to her. With a sigh she peeled it up, pulling it over her head, leaving her in the black undershirt and white capris. Folding the drenched shirt, she placed her pile of pins and pearled clip inside of it, then placed the sopping fabric under her arm before looking back up at Riku with a satisfied smile.
"Now I feel more like myself." She gave a small chuckle.
Riku smiled back at first but then a crash of thunder from outside reminded him of the situation they were in. He glanced out at the ever growing intense storm outside and asked. "Alright, do you want to try going home?"
"You don't even want to consider staying here?" She asked with a huff.
"Do you really want to have our first date at this childish place?" He looked back at her with a frown.
Hinata glanced around at the arcade and replied, "What's so childish about it? It looks kind of fun." She went forward, towards a rectangular box with a large chair situated in front of it. Placing her hand on a small circular wheel in between the chair and the box, she asked, "Like… this thing. Are you supposed to play it?"
"What do you mean?" He asked completely boggled. "It's a racing game." He watched her examine the game for a moment before asking. "Wait… have you never been to an arcade before?"
She shook her head before admitting, "I don't think so. You think I would have remembered going to someplace like this back in my world." Looking away from the game, she asked, "How does this place work?"
Riku rubbed the back of his neck, his damp hair clinging to his skin. "Uh… you get these gold coins and use them to play all these games. Most of the games are for kids though."
"And what about those?" Hinata asked, moving away from the racing game and looking towards the rewards booth.
With a sigh, he walked up behind her and explained, "Some of the games you can win tickets. If you get enough tickets you win one of those prizes."
"Can we play some of the games?" She asked, turning towards him.
"You seriously…" He began to complain; but looking over at her, he noticed her golden eyes bright with excitement. The same excitement she got every time he showed her something new around the island. He tried to ignore the look in her eye and come up with an excuse to leave but the longer she waited the more his resolve chipped away. With an inward groan he resigned, "Alright, sure."
The smile that appeared on her face when she heard his answer made his heart jump with a small flutter. He smirked and looked out at the array of arcade games, trying to figure out which ones he wanted to show her. His thoughts were interrupted when Hinata approached him with a clear cup full of golden coins.
"Where did you get those?" He asked her, looking down at the small cup in her hands.
"I bought them." She told him, "These are the coins we need to play, right?"
"Yeah but…" A small frown appeared on his face, "I'm supposed to be the one paying for this."
"Well I know you don't really want to be here that much…" She admitted, "So I thought I would pay for this." Before Riku could respond, she grabbed his hand and began leading him back to the racing game. "Alright, teach me how to do this."
Riku rolled his eyes but couldn't hide the smile on his face as Hinata excitedly led him to the game. It was one of the fancier racing pieces with a large black seat with speakers beside the headrest. The wheel was made of realistic leather attached to a dashboard that sat in front of the curved screen showing demo runs of different racetracks through over the top scenarios.
He began explaining the basics of the game, having her sit down in the chair before showing her where to put her feet for the gas and brake of the virtual car. Hinata listened intently, asking questions as if there was going to be a pop quiz afterwards. When he felt that she was well enough prepared he got out two of the gold coins.
"Alright you ready?" He asked her, trying to hold back his snicker when she replied with a determined nod.
Once the coins were in the machine a loud fanfare played, startling Hinata. She went through the process of choosing the car and track with Riku's guidance and before she knew what was really happening the game had her at the starting line.
"Well, here goes nothing." She told herself, giving a nervous smile to Riku.
Riku let out a short laugh and reminded her, "You know this is just a game, right?"
"You say that now, but the moment you play this with me you're going to turn it into a high-stakes competition." She quipped back, giving him a smirk before averting her attention back to the game as the countdown to begin the race began.
He scoffed in response and muttered under his breath, "Will not."
The countdown on the screen reached zero and the cars beside Hinata sped off in the distance while her car stuck at the starting point. She flustered as she found the right pedal and finally pressed her foot down on it slowly inching her vehicle forward.
"Put your foot down!" Riku ordered her with a laugh.
Hinata did as she was told and startled when the car immediately roared to life; speeding down the twisting road that went through the jungle and running into every tree in her path. Riku became the backseat driver, occasionally taking the wheel from her to steer her in the right direction while telling her what to do.
"I'm not going to learn if you keep taking the wheel!" Hinata yelled at him, swatting him away as the other cars began lapping her.
"I wouldn't have to keep taking it if you would just stop running into everything" He replied bluntly trying to hold back his laughter.
"Well it's a little hard to concentrate with you ordering me around!" She argued; trying to figure out how to back out her car from the corner she drove herself into.
"Put the car in reverse…" He began telling her, reaching forward towards the stick shift before Hinata smacked his hand.
"I will figure it out," She told him adamantly.
Riku rubbed his hand and shook his head, "Well remind me to never buy you a car."
"Oh shut up," She scoffed with a short laugh. "I bet you weren't very good at this the first time you did it."
"I wasn't this bad," He told her, amused when Hinata gave him a glare.
She was about to respond but was interrupted when the game played a low sad tune and the screen lit up with the words, 'Last Place'. With a sigh, Hinata slumped back in her seat and glanced over at Riku. He was doing his best to keep in a fit of laughter with a large smirk was on his face.
Hinata rolled her eyes, "Alright, just say it."
"I don't think I've ever seen anyone do so horrible at this game!" He finally doubled over laughing.
"I want to try again." She told him, sitting up in her seat confidently.
Riku looked up in surprise, still snickering, "Seriously?"
"I'm going to figure it out," She reached forward and grabbed two more coins.
Wiping the corners of his eyes from his laughing fit, he sighed. "Alright, suit yourself." Reaching into the cup he grabbed himself two coins. "But I'm going to race with you this time and I'm not going to help you out."
"Good," She told him before mumbling, "I might be able to drive this time."
"I heard that." He noted, sitting in the seat beside her. "Alright, make sure to pick the same map as me so we can race together."
"Pick an easier track." She told him. "Preferably one without trees."
Riku nodded and set up the race on a simple circular track in a city. He glanced over at Hinata as the track loaded, smiling to himself when he saw the determined look in her eye over such a silly game.
Hinata noticed his stare and quickly glanced at him. "What?" She asked him, her voice serious as she looked back at the screen.
"Nothing…" He looked away before chuckling. "You're just being really cute."
She wrinkled her nose with a discontented look, "What?" She rolled her eyes and shook her head, "Oh please, stop trying to distract me. You're going to beat me no matter what."
"I'm being serious!" He defended, turning back to get ready to start the race as the countdown began.
His car sped off the moment the countdown reached zero darting side glances to Hinata's screen to see how she was faring. Without the obstacles in her path she was coping much better than her first run and was even able to make her way past a few other racers.
"Hey, you're doing pretty good." He commented to her, as he sped his way to first place. When she didn't respond, he looked over at her to see her eyes glued to the screen completely zoning him out. He momentarily forgot about the race and watched her determinedly learning the game with a small smile on his face.
"Why are you stopped?" Hinata asked, bringing him out of his thoughts.
Riku shook his head and turned back to his own screen, watching as Hinata and several other racers sped past him. "Oh great," He complained under his breath, pressing down on the acceleration to get back into the race.
With a blast of speed he easily regained his ranking, passing Hinata in the process. He quickly finished the race passing the finish line. His screen lit up with bright lights and a chiming fanfare blared through the speakers. He ignored the game's celebration and turned his attention to Hinata as she had momentarily lost her focus from the sudden noise and crashed into a wall. A groan escaped her as she looked around her dashboard for a way to back up.
"The stick shift…" Riku pointed.
Hinata scoffed and swatted her hand towards him. "You said you weren't going to help me!" She reminded him but reached her other hand around the stick, pulling it into reverse. Before she could get herself out of the collision the unfortunate notes once again played, alerting her that she had gotten last place and didn't finish the race. Groaning, she leaned back in her seat and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Maybe racing isn't for me." She admitted.
"You did better that time." Riku assured her, reaching over and placing his hand on her shoulder. "You even passed me once."
"Yeah, but only because your car stopped." She pointed out, glancing over at him. "Why did that happen anyways?"
"I-uh got distracted." He quickly told her, rubbing the back of his neck feeling that his once soaked hair was almost dry. "Did you want to try some of the other games before we leave?"
She perked up, "Yeah, I'd like that."
"We can keep playing this if you want."
"Maybe later," She shrugged, "I want to learn how the other games work."
Riku got up from his seat and glanced towards the glass windows that led outside. The storm had transformed into a full monsoon. At least two inches of water filled the roads and not a single person was seen outside. A frown appeared on his face as he realized that they were going to be stuck there for possibly the whole day. He looked away when Hinata came up beside him and grabbed his arm.
"Everything alright?" She asked him.
He sighed, "Uh… yeah. We might be stuck here a while."
Hinata looked outside and noticed the downpour. "Wow…" She replied, "I don't think I've ever seen it rain this bad here."
"Yeah," He agreed his frown growing.
"Let's not worry about it." Hinata assured him. "At least we got stuck in a place that can keep us busy. We'll just hang out here until the storm blows over."
He took a deep breath, "This really isn't how I wanted to spend our first date."
"I know," She admitted, "But I don't mind." Tugging on his arm, she said, "Now come on; let's find another game to play."
Reluctantly, Riku turned around and led Hinata to another game. His frustration soon melted away as he taught her different games, smiling when she would get serious and determined. A few of them came easily to Hinata and she even proved to be better at Riku with a couple. Her favorite ended up being a side scrolling fighting game, no surprise to Riku.
Hinata hit the finishing K.O on Riku's character, triumphantly pumping her fist in the air with a cheer. "Now the score is 5 to 0." She reminded him proudly with a sing-song voice.
Riku rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah, I'm just a little rusty." He reached forward to grab another coin but was met with an empty cup.
"Oh… we're out." Hinata realized with disappointment.
"Alright, be right back." He told her, walking away before Hinata could ask where he was going. Within a couple minutes he returned with a large cup full or more coins. A grin appeared on his face when he saw Hinata's eyes light up. Holding up two coins, he asked, "Another round?"
"You're on!" She replied with a laugh.
He reached forward to insert the coins but suddenly the screen zapped to black. "Huh?" He asked, removing his hand from the machine. As he spoke the entire arcade followed suit, instantly powering down to leave them standing in a dark and silent room. Startled gasps and murmurs spread through the area from the workers and other patrons. Hinata reached over and grabbed Riku's hand to make sure he was beside her as only a very dim light from the gloomy storm outside shone through the windows.
"Did the power go out?" Hinata whispered.
"Well this is just great…" Riku grumbled beside her.
"Sorry everyone, just a small power outage; no need to panic" A grown man's voice called through the room, no doubt the arcade's manager. "We're lighting candles as we speak and are working on getting the power back. In the meantime, the pizza in the eating area is available for free; please excuse the inconvenience."
Hinata squeezed Riku's hand, "Well at least we can eat now. I'm starving."
"I'm just thankful you still seem to be having a good time." He admitted with a sigh, blinking his eyes rapidly as they adjusted to the darkness. Seeing enough to make out where the pizza parlor was located he led them towards it.
They entered the checkered eating area where lit candles sat in the center of each booth and table. Along the bar that led into the kitchen was a spread of different types of pizza where a small line of people and small children were already grabbing their own slices.
"Hey look, candlelight dinner." Hinata pointed out with a giggle.
Riku rubbed the bridge of his nose and griped, "This is just embarrassing…"
Hinata didn't reply but tightened her hand around his as they stood at the back of the line. Within a couple minutes they got their plates of food and found a somewhat secluded booth in the corner away from a majority of the other patrons. Riku sat across from Hinata with a scowl seemingly permanently on his face. He poked at his food, obviously upset with their predicament.
Hinata looked up from her food and reached forward for Riku's hand. "Hey…" She started to say.
Riku let out a huffed breath, "This is probably the worst possible first date. Nothing has gone like I planned it."
"That's not your fault though." She pointed out. "Besides, I've been having fun today."
"You're just saying that."
"No, I'm not." She defended. "Honestly I don't care what we do for our first date or any date for that matter." He glanced up at her as she continued. "Our dates don't have to be anything spectacular for either of us to have a good time. All I care about is being able to spend time with you, it doesn't matter what we do." Her cheeks flushed, "I… I really like you Riku and even though we're stuck in a blacked-out arcade eating cold pizza by candles… I'm still having a good time and…" She paused for a moment and let out a nervous laugh, "You can cut in at any time."
Riku chuckled in response and looked down at their clasped hands. "You really feel that way?"
"Of course I do." She admitted running her thumb along his wrist. "I'm not the type of person to hide how I feel. Plus you've seen me try to lie, it's painfully obvious."
"Yeah, it's pretty awful." He agreed, smirking when Hinata gave him a look. Averting his eyes, he told her. "But… thanks. I just really wanted today to be perfect."
"It is perfect." Hinata interrupted getting an unconvinced look from Riku. "We get to spend a whole day of uninterrupted time together. Usually when we try to spend time together Sora or Kairi interrupt it within the first few minutes. So in my mind this is probably the best date we could have gone on."
Riku slightly frowned with an unsure expression, "I get what you mean, but no... The day I had planned would have been better."
Hinata leaned her elbow on the table, "Well alright then, what did you have planned for today?"
He shook his head before telling her, "I'm going to save it until our next date. Then you can tell me which one you liked better."
"Alright fine." She resigned with a sigh, leaning back in her chair. "But I'm expecting it to be spectacular now."
With a chuckle he assured her, "It will be."
They continued to chat with each other while they began eating their pizza. Riku gradually relaxed again enjoying himself despite their circumstances. By the time they finished eating the arcade's power came back to life. Outside the storm was still growing in intensity so they decided to spend the coins Riku bought before the outage. At Hinata's insistence they played games that would allow them to win tickets and she proved to be rather competent at winning large amounts of tickets. By the time their coins were finally used up, their arms were stuffed with long strings of tickets.
A young male worker with tied back blue hair watched the couple as they brought up their mound of tickets to the prize counter. He sighed with relief that he was finally had something to do and stood from the stool he was lounging on. A large smile appeared on his face as they approached but he had to take a couple steps back as they unloaded the pile of tickets in front of him. He stared at the towering things, wondering where he was supposed to start.
"Well…" he started, peeking over the side to see Hinata excitedly waiting for his verdict on the amount. "It's going to take me a while to get all these counted; but you can probably get whatever you want. So go ahead and pick something out."
"See I told you," Riku told her, nudging her with his shoulder. "You'll be able to get what you were wanting."
Hinata nodded and pointed towards the very top of the prizes where a large plush panda bear was hung on the wall. "I would like the panda."
The worker pushed back some hair from his face and looked up at the panda that read the price tag of eight-hundred tickets. He nodded with a grin and told her, "About time someone got enough tickets to get him! Let me get some help with counting the tickets and I'll make sure you have enough."
As he walked away to grab some more workers, Riku commented, "I'm surprised out of all the things up there you want that stuffed animal. Since when are you into those things?"
Hinata shrugged without averting her gaze from the large animal. "Just stuck out to me." She took her eyes away from the bear and looked at Riku with a small smile. "Thank you teaching me how to play all the games."
He smiled back and looked over the games, "Yeah, it was nothing. I can't believe you've never been to an arcade before."
"I still don't quite understand what you find childish about this place." She told him. "I had a lot of fun here."
"That's because you didn't have to sit through a Freddy Bear performance." He replied a sense of distaste in his voice.
"Freddy Bear?" She repeated.
"You don't want to know," He assured her. "Hopefully with the storm and power outage they won't do it today."
As if to prove him wrong a loud playful voice came over the speakers, "All right kids! Gather around because it's time for Freddy Bear!"
Riku groaned in response and sighed, "Sorry about this."
"Oh I'm sure it's not that bad." She chuckled and took a couple steps forward to see the large stage clearer.
A few of the other patrons gathered around the half-circle stage as spotlights scanned the area. A dark red curtain parted ways to reveal an almost unsettling bear animatronic. A small black top hat was on top of the bright blue 'fur' and it looked at the audience with a large grin.
"Oh…" Hinata whispered, crossing her arms at the sight in front of her.
The bottom half of the bear's mouth opened and began speaking in a goofy voice, "Hey kids! Are you having fun?" A weak response of kids answering let him continue, "Well I tell you what, Freddy Bear has a whole lotta fun planned for you!" As the words left his mouth a loud and almost obnoxious song began playing and he sang for the audience.
Seeing enough Hinata slowly turned around and headed back to Riku, who stood with an annoyed scowl on his face. Once she was back at his side, she mumbled, "Never mind… it's bad."
Riku chuckled, "Yeah, I hate that bear."
The blue-haired worker returned with a couple other workers and they began counting through the pile of tickets. The annoying sound of Freddy Bear singing behind them even began wearing away at Hinata's patience and she was soon matching the scowl on Riku's face.
"Don't you get tired of hearing that bear sing?" Hinata asked the blue-haired worker.
"You have no idea…" He replied, but quickly went back to counting.
Within the next few minutes the tickets were counted, coming out to one-thousand. They gave Hinata the large panda bear plushy and Riku used the remaining tickets to get a couple bags of sour candies. Once they received their things and the workers dispersed, they made their way towards the exit of the arcade. The rain was still pouring down but wasn't as rough as it had been a couple hours earlier.
"Seems like it might finally be calming down." Hinata noted.
"Yeah," Riku agreed, glancing around to see what they should do next. "We probably shouldn't chance leaving yet though."
"Let's just sit and talk for a bit." Hinata offered, walking towards a half-wall that fenced off the entrance from the rest of the arcade. She slid down to sit, placing her extra clothes and stuffed bear beside her.
Riku reluctantly walked beside her and sat down, their arms brushing against each other. Leaning his head back against the wall he commented, "Well this has been… something."
Hinata smiled and leaned her head against Riku's shoulder. "I had fun. It will definitely be a good story to tell."
"That's true." He chuckled in response.
They sat in silence for a couple minutes, watching the rain pour outside and trying to ignore the Freddy Bear singing in the background. Eventually Hinata spoke up, "So here's a question, if we ever find a way to get off this island and explore; what type of world would you want to find?"
Riku thought about it for a moment before replying, "I'm not sure; anywhere other than here."
Hinata let out a short laugh as she lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him. "Oh come on, you've been dreaming about it for years. There has to be at least something you want to find."
Leaning one of his arms on his knee, he admitted, "I don't really know what's out there. I think that's what really interests me so much." He watched the rain drops outside splash into puddles on the sidewalk. "This island is just so small… there has to be more. I just don't know what."
She examined his thoughtful expression before moving her hand beside her over to his. As their hands met, Riku looked away from the rain to her and their eyes met. "We'll find out someday." She assured him quietly. "We know a little bit about what my world was like."
He gave her a small sad smile, "Yeah, but even with what you've told me about it I can't really imagine it." With a sigh, he looked back outside and confessed, "It just feels like the longer I'm stuck here the less I believe I'll ever get to leave. This island feels like a prison more than anything. Even you are stuck here and you aren't even from the island."
Hinata's eyes saddened and she glanced down at their clasped hands. "I'm glad I'm here though." She admitted with her voice so soft Riku could barely hear her over the loud sounds coming from the arcade. He looked over at her, watching her as she had her eyes downcast to their hands and her cheeks flushed. "If I hadn't come here I never would have met you."
She raised her gaze and met with Riku's bright turquoise eyes staring back at her, their faces only a few inches apart. Their faces warmed as they looked at each other and Hinata could've sworn she noticed his eyes glance towards her lips. Ever so slowly, Riku leaned towards her causing Hinata's heart to immediately race. Without thinking she began leaning towards him not sure what she was even doing. A loud crash of thunder from outside startled both of them and broke them out of their trance. They pulled apart and averted their gazes from each other. Riku closed his eyes with an inward groan that he had chickened out.
Clearing her throat uncomfortably, Hinata eventually spoke up, "It looks like we could probably head back now."
Riku opened one of his eyes to see that the rain outside was suddenly back in a drizzle. Taking a deep breath, he stood up. "Yeah, we better get going." He held out his hand for Hinata to help her stand and she took it with a small smile.
They remained holding hands as she held the stuffed bear and her extra clothes in her other arm. In silence they left the arcade and entered the wet outdoors. The rain was just in a drizzle but the ground was soaked and made both of their shoes soggy as they walked. They soon reached the ferry that was thankfully still running and took it back to the main island. Not a word was said between them as they got off the boat and headed towards Hinata's neighborhood. As they reached the familiar blue wooden home they noticed silhouettes of Sora and Kairi in the window.
"Looks like they're waiting for us." Hinata commented with a chuckle. "I wonder if Sora's was here the whole storm."
"Hey…" Riku finally spoke up and stopped walking. Hinata looked back at him and he darted his eyes away as his cheeks flushed. "About before… When we were waiting for the rain to stop, I almost, or we almost…" He cleared his throat nervously.
"We shouldn't force it." Hinata interrupted him, her own cheeks flushed when Riku looked over at her. "I-I mean… not that I would have minded if that was our first uh… you know." Taking a deep breath, she continued, "But… I think we should wait on it until we're comfortable with it." She forced herself to make eye contact with him. "Is that alright?"
He rubbed the back of his neck and nodded, "Uh, yeah. I think that's great."
Hinata smiled and then giggled, "I'm really looking forward to us not having to be nervous around each other."
Riku chuckled in response. "You and me both."
The front door to the house opened and caught their attention. Looking over they saw Sora and Kairi running out of the home towards them. Riku abruptly let go of Hinata's hand as they approached and stuck his hands into his pockets.
"There you are!" Sora exclaimed, running to Riku. "We were starting to get worried with the storm."
"So I take it things didn't go as planned?" Kairi asked, walking beside Hinata and looking her over. "What happened to your outfit?"
"The dress got soaked from the rain so I took it off." Hinata explained. "And my hair got ruined in the bun so I took it out and braided it so it wouldn't tangle too much… But yeah, things didn't exactly go like Riku planned it." She glanced over at Riku as he spoke with Sora. Their eyes met for a moment and he gave her a small smile. Hinata smiled back and told Kairi, "I had a great time though."
Kairi giggled, "You two are really cute together."
Hinata's cheeks flushed and she looked back to Kairi. "Cute? You think so?"
She nodded, "Yeah! It's not every day I get to see Riku acting so nervous." She giggled again, "He was so sweet when he picked you up this morning! I don't think I've ever seen that side of him before."
"Yeah," Hinata agreed thinking it over with a smile. "It's definitely different." She looked down at the bear in her arm and added, "By the way, I got this for you." She held out the panda bear for Kairi. As she took it from her, she added, "You put so much work into getting me ready this morning I wanted to thank you."
Kairi held the bear in her arms with a smile on her face. "Thanks! Where did you find him?"
"At the arcade." She answered.
"You got Riku to go to the arcade?" Kairi asked in near disbelief.
Hinata laughed, "Yeah, it wasn't really his choice. It was pouring by the time we got to Shima Island and he wanted to go home; but I sort of ran off into the strip mall and entered the first building I didn't recognize."
"It ended up being alright though." Riku added, walking up to the girls with Sora. "Could have done without that stupid bear though."
Kairi and Sora laughed in response, knowing exactly what Riku was referring to.
"It's still a little weird that you guys are together now. I didn't even realize you guys liked each other." Sora admitted, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish smile. "Are you going to be off every weekend now?"
Riku and Hinata looked at each other, seemingly asking each other the same question. Eventually Riku spoke up, "Probably not. I have to save up some more money for next time; so maybe just once a month or every couple weeks."
"Well good, I missed hanging out with you today Riku!" Sora exclaimed, placing his hands behind his head. "Oh, and you too Hinata."
Hinata scoffed, "Uh-huh, I'm sure you did."
They laughed together and then Kairi grabbed Sora's arm, pulling him back to the house. "We'll give you guys some privacy. See you inside!"
"What!" Sora objected, half-heartedly trying to pull away from Kairi's grasp. "They just had a whole day together!"
Hinata chuckled and Riku just shook his head as Kairi closed the door behind them. They stood in silence for a moment, feeling the drizzle of rain fall around them.
"Is it weird that we're dating?" Hinata broke the silence and referred to what Sora had said.
"I don't think so." Riku shrugged, "I think Sora is just clueless about it and probably a little jealous that we started dating before him and Kairi."
Hinata laughed, "Well if he would ever just tell her how he feels…"
"Yeah I know," He interrupted with a chuckle.
"I had a great time today." She changed the subject and turned towards him. Reaching forward, she grabbed his hands and momentarily looked down at them before adding. "I never knew being with someone could make me so happy." She glanced up at him saw his surprised expression. With a breathy laugh she noted, "There I go being forward again."
Riku nervously laughed, "No it's fine. I guess I'm just surprised is all." He paused for a moment before quietly confessing, "I… feel the same way. Pretty much everything went wrong today; but I still had a good time. And… I think it's because I was with you." Hinata smiled at him and his cheeks deeply flushed. "Well that and the fact that we got free pizza."
Hinata giggled in response and he smirked.
"So you want to try going on another date in a couple weeks?" He asked her. "I'll make sure to double-check the weather."
She chuckled and replied, "I'd love to."
"Well uh-cool." He smirked. "That wasn't too hard."
"Future reference, there is very slim chance I'll ever say no to spending time with you." She told him pulling on his hand, "Now come on, we better get inside before Sora starts yelling at us."
Riku laughed, "Yeah alright, let's go."
*** Author's Note: I had so much fun writing this. I've had their first date planned for months; but it was nice to finally get it written out.
If you have any prompts or anything you would like to see me write pertaining to my OCS or Kingdom Hearts feel free to let me know!
I'm going to be focusing more on writing my True Friends re-write right now; but when I get back to writing the short story/one-shots we'll be finding out what would have happened if Hinata DID join the Organization. (I'm really excited to write it out!)***