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A few days ago, Sora returned home to the Destiny Islands with Riku and Kairi. After their long and arduous adventure of dealing with Xehanort’s schemes, they earned themselves a much needed break.
All of the friends Sora made along his journey came to visit them. They spent a full day on the beach, relaxing and messing around together. For once, they were able to simply run around, carefree. It reminded Sora of what life on the islands used to be like for him, Riku, and Kairi as children.
Taking full advantage of the chance to just be a person again—not a keyboard wielder or a guardian of light—Sora took up Kairi’s offer to make sand castles with her, Olette, and Aqua.
From a distance, he watched as Riku ran around the island with Roxas, Hayner, and Terra, appearing to show them how far out the beach stretches. Ventus was also found playing frisbee with Pence, Lea, and Isa. And, off in their own little world together to the side, Namine searched for pretty seashells together with Xion.
They were all having a wonderful time, free of worries, and it was comforting for Sora to see.
Although it made his chest ache to watch everyone part ways afterwards, Sora was happy they’d all be with their families and friends again, and that they’d finally be able to rest.
Unfortunately for Sora, the latter didn’t seem to apply to him.
Sleep came to him at an ungodly hour of the morning that first night back home. He’s not exactly sure why. Maybe it was shock from the danger of their battle with Xehanort catching up to him, or the fact that he’s grown so used to being on edge over these past few years. His body might find it odd to be in such a state of relaxation now.
Maybe he was belatedly processing everything, and it made him too overwhelmed to relax enough to sleep. Or perhaps, he simply found it hard to sleep in a bed that had grown so unfamiliar to him while he’d been gone. Regardless, the problem continued into the next night, and Sora’s lack of sleep became a nightly routine.
It’s his fifth sleepless night when Sora concludes that he might be going crazy.
Sora has been mulling over recent events when sleep refuses to take him, having little else to do while he lies awake in bed for hours. Which means he’s been doing a lot of thinking—something Riku would probably tell him to stop doing before he hurts himself.
And that’s just the thing. For some reason, whenever he attempts to sleep, he’s been overwhelmed by thoughts of Riku. He feels the sudden urge to check up on him, almost like he can’t stand not being around him anymore.
This “pull” towards Riku isn’t necessarily new. Sora remembers feeling it even when they went on their separate missions; Sora with Donald and Goofy, trying to regain his strength, and Riku with King Mickey. It felt like Sora was missing something then, and when he’d meet up with Riku again, he’d feel more whole. He was drawn to him, as if there was an invisible force trying to pull the two of them together. He’d repressed the thought, thinking he was being dramatic.
Now, after being forced into some sleepless introspection the past few nights, Sora thinks this constant urge to think of Riku and be around him is because of his… attraction towards Riku.
Sora’s admiration for him—the way he always wanted to be strong like Riku, to protect him from the darkness that lingered in his heart, to be there for him when he needed it—doesn’t seem to only be about looking up to him or valuing him as a friend anymore.
He isn’t completely surprised by this, but he also doesn’t know what to do with these feelings. So he’s been keeping them to himself for now. Riku might just find him weird for admitting them. He’s always assumed Sora had an interest in Kairi. Which might have been true at some point, but he hasn’t thought about her like that in years. Kairi is only a good friend.
Normally, Sora would go to her for something like this. He’s never been any good at keeping things to himself, but he can’t be sure that talk of these feelings won’t make it to Riku’s ears.
He deeply cares for Riku, even daring to think the feeling is more so than he’s ever experienced for anyone before. This is uncharted territory for him. Sora cares so deeply for everyone he’s met, always keeping them in his heart. But, Riku is different.
He’s always been close, and he’s always been there for Sora. Sora has a bond with Riku like no other. He doesn’t want to ruin it by making things awkward.
Sora isn’t sure whether it’s this fear of losing his best friend and favorite person or something else that’s been giving him nightmares about Riku. That is, when he does finally manage to fall asleep.
The dreams make him wake up in a cold sweat in the morning. He can’t seem to relax until he passes by Riku’s house on a walk (that definitely has nothing to do with Sora wanting an excuse to briefly see him) and finds him perfectly safe. Sometimes, in his anxious, sleep-deprived state, Sora even worries that something may happen to Riku while he’s asleep.
Like, Riku being swallowed by the darkness.
What would have happened a couple years ago if Sora hadn’t left his room that night? For one, Sora might not have a keyblade now. But, as for Riku…
Sora shakes his head, staring up at the glow-in-the-dark stars decorating his ceiling. There’s no use in thinking about the past like that. But, there must be some reason that Riku seems to be invading his mind in such a way, right? This is beyond what people act like when they’re… in love. At least if his conversations with the princesses of heart are anything to go by.
He turns over in bed, glancing at the toy ship that’s still hanging in his room. Something else must be causing this lingering fear of losing Riku. He doesn’t feel this deeply about Kairi, or his parents. Or even Roxas or Ventus, who were once a big part of him.
The longer he considers it, the more he believes his worrying must be a result of what happened in the Keyblade Graveyard. He watched as everyone was engulfed by the Demon Tide. But, if he saw all of his friends disappear, then still, why is he so focused on only Riku?
Well… Riku did try to protect him, to lift him up when he felt too weak and ready to give up. Riku purposefully put himself in between him and the enemy to shield him. All while knowing that he was greatly risking his life doing so.
Sora was in complete despair then, and when the Tide threatened to take Riku, it felt like a deep connection between him and Sora was also threatening to break. Similar to that lingering “pull” he’s felt before.
Although all is well, and he managed to bring everyone back, he’s still confused about why Riku would sacrifice himself like that. And why Sora sensed that bond between them in reaction.
What exactly was that connection? Sora wonders.
It felt as if he was beginning to lose an important piece of himself when Riku was being attacked. Interestingly enough, that feeling of connection is somewhat familiar.
He’s felt that before, albeit less in intensity… with his dream eaters.
But, he thinks, what does that have to do with Riku?
Sora tosses and turns in his bed, trying to will his brain to shut off and finally let him sleep for the night. He has officially reached the point where nothing makes any sense to him. This sleep deprivation must actually be making him lose his mind.
He wonders if Riku or Kairi have also been having trouble sleeping. They haven’t been talking much these past few days, aside from a bit of texting, deciding that they wanted to focus on catching up with their families for a little while. They do have quite a bit of lost time to make up for.
He shifts again, still struggling to get comfortable in his bed, and restlessly looks at his bedside clock. Green numbers, marking one in the morning, burn into his tired eyes.
Sora tries to convince himself that he can figure out this weirdness with Riku and his feelings for him later. He might even be able to ask Riku if he remembers feeling anything odd during that moment in the Keyblade Graveyard. That would be much easier to do than Sora pouring out his feelings for him anyway.
So, he forces himself to relax, attempting to give himself a break from all of this overthinking.
… Dream eaters, huh? Maybe he should try counting them to sleep?
One. He imagines a Meow Wow jumping from roof to roof in Traverse Town.
Two. A Tama Sheep.
Three. A Yoggy Ram.
Tension releases in Sora’s body, nearly enough to get him drifting off. But, a flash of imagery behind his eyelids startles him.
Riku standing in front of him.
Heartless from the Tide flashing by in his peripheral vision.
Sora’s eyes shoot open, and he tries focusing on his breathing for a few seconds. Once he thinks he’s settled down enough, he resumes counting.
Four. A Tyranto Rex strolling with him through the districts.
Five. A Woeflower.
Six. A Toximander.
Sleep attempts to take him a second time...
Riku becomes swarmed by the heartless, unable to cut through all of them with his keyblade.
Sora jerks awake again.
Just breathe, he tells himself, it’s only a dream…
He continues.
Seven. Necho Cat.
Eight. Skelterwild.
Nine. Tastu Blaze...
Riku becomes completely engulfed in the tide.
Sora wakes with his heart trying to beat out of his chest, breathing deeply to calm himself.
Ten.
Komory Bat ...
…
Riku disappears, and the tide rushes towards Sora.
Sora’s body moves of its own accord.
He jumps out of bed, pulling on his red hoodie and slipping on his shoes. Adrenaline rushes through him. All he can think about is Riku, feeling close to him and ensuring his safety. He has to go see him.
Right now.
Fortunately, Riku lives nearby. It's the very reason they’ve been friends for basically their entire lives. He just has to make down the path in front of his house and it’ll lead to Riku’s. It’s only a ten minute walk.
Sora can make that a five minute run.
In his hurried daze, he somehow has enough sense to scribble a note to his parents and stick it on his door before he leaves. Just in case they happen to wake up in the middle of the night and find him gone. He’d hate to worry them, especially after he just returned home safe. They don’t need the extra heart attack.
Quickly yet quietly, he finds one of the spare keys to the house and flies out the front door. The cold air threatens to bite his skin through his hoodie. This time of year the nights are freezing, but it still can’t beat the cold temperatures of Arendelle.
As he jogs down the sidewalk towards Riku’s house, he’s having second thoughts. He feels kind of… dumb. Riku is most likely just fine, sleeping peacefully in his warm bed. He’s just having weird, irrational thoughts, because he’s so used to the impending danger. Plus, he did spend half of the past couple years trying to find Riku or tending to tasks without him. It’s only natural that he would have that lingering worry for him in the back of his head.
Why is he even bothering to do this?
He’s already halfway to Riku’s house, so he decides to commit, even if he’ll most likely end up returning back to his own house anyway. If Riku does happen to be awake, he’ll probably just do his little routine of laughing at Sora and giving him that cute, small smile that reassures him. Then, Sora will be on his way.
Still, when he gets there, standing in Riku’s yard, he feels even more stupid. He didn’t even consider that Riku’s parents are probably sleeping—actually, they almost certainly are—so he’d only wake them if he knocked or rang the doorbell.
The islands have always been quite safe, inhabited by a tight knit community. When Sora was a kid, he might have been able to just open Riku’s back door, unlocked due to the lack of danger. However, the darkness reaching the islands has since made people more wary. Sora tries the doorknob, only meeting the resistance of its lock.
But, as dumb as it seems, Sora does have another idea.
He walks around the house until he finds what he’s sure is Riku’s bedroom window on the second story. Through a sliver of the curtains, he thinks he sees some light pouring out from his room. Oh, maybe he is awake. Sora looks around, scanning near the flowerbeds, and finds a pebble.
I can’t believe I’m doing this.
He throws it, successfully making contact with the window. It makes a little clink noise, before softly falling into the dirt again. He waits for a sign that Riku heard it, but after a minute, nothing happens.
Finding another one, he tries a second time. Another little clink against the middle of the window. Sora holds his breath.
The curtain moves then. Riku’s face appears, and he raises a brow at Sora. He opens the window, softly calling down to him.
“Sora? What are you doing?”
“Uh, I wanted to see if you were awake.” Sora awkwardly shifts his weight as he stands. “... Can I come up?”
“… Sure.” Riku’s brow furrows. “But—Sora, wait!”
Sora starts to climb the trellis on the side of Riku’s house, covered with climbing vines.
“Please be careful,” Riku sighs.
As soon as he makes it up to the window sill, Riku grabs him and pulls him inside. They both fall onto Riku’s bed, conveniently pressed up next to his window. Sora makes sure to kick his shoes off so as to not dirty his bed.
“Your house is so cold…!” Sora shivers.
“Yeah, sorry. Our heater broke recently.” Riku shuts the window. “Anyway, how about letting me open the front door for you next time?”
Sora sheepishly smiles. “Oops.”
Riku sits under the blankets with a soft smile and a shake of his head. He holds the end closest to Sora, offering for him to get under. He takes the corner and lays the blanket over his lap.
“Um, so.” Sora fiddles with the fuzz pilling on the duvet. “Sorry for barging in. I just…”
Wanted to see you.
“Couldn’t sleep? It’s okay,” Riku says.
“Y-Yeah. Were you still awake?”
Riku nods. “I couldn’t sleep either...”
Looking a little closer at him, Sora notices little dark circles under Riku’s eyes.
“Oh.” He idly scratches his head. “Maybe I’m not going crazy then. I haven’t been able to sleep that well ever since we came back.”
“We’re probably just restless. After all that’s happened…” Riku watches Sora’s fingers pick the fabric with a sympathetic look. “We’ll adjust, eventually.”
Sora whines, not having wanted to hear that, and he flops onto his back beside Riku, who huffs out a small laugh at him.
A comfortable silence ensues, and Sora no longer feels anxious, like he’s intruding. Lying here, he’s vaguely reminded of the sleepovers they used to have as kids. Although it’s been years since they’ve had one, it feels natural to be in Riku’s bed, lying beside him.
He pulls the blanket up to cover more of himself, stealing a glance up at Riku. In the dim light of the bedside lamp, Sora notices he’s wearing a light blue hoodie—a great contrast from the darker colors he usually wears. It’s weird yet comforting to see him in everyday clothes again. He’s too used to seeing him wear the gear from the fairies. Ever since Riku started opening up more again, he’s been less inclined to wear anything dark. The color looks… nice on him.
Sora realizes that he’s basically staring at him, and his cheeks threaten to start burning. Riku seems too lost in thought to notice, to his relief. Sora watches him run his fingers through his silver strands. He can’t tell whether Riku is just that exhausted or if he’s thinking really intensely about something.
Eventually he speaks up, but avoids looking Sora in the eye.
“Hey, can I… tell you something?”
“Of course,” Sora answers. “Anything.”
“Mm…” Riku hesitates. He waves his hand. “Actually, nevermind. It’s… It’s weird.”
“Hey, I doubt that.” Sora pokes Riku’s arm. “I did say ‘anything,’ right? Try me?”
Riku shoots him an unsure look. He’s silent for a moment, as if debating whether to continue or not.
“Well, it’s…” He starts, trying to find the words. “I don’t know about you, but I haven’t really been sleeping much for the past few days and…”
Sora sits up as Riku pauses, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.
“I think it might be because…” Riku looks at him through his lashes. “I keep worrying about whether you’re okay or not…”
Oh.
Sora’s heart beats faster. “Really?”
“Yeah. Sometimes, I almost convince myself that you’ll disappear, and then my back… burns?” He shakes his head. “This makes even less sense when I say it out loud—forget it.”
So… Sora might really not be going crazy?
Riku might have been experiencing something similar to Sora’s oddly friend-slash-crush-focused insomnia? He’s about to ask more about that until he hears about Riku’s back. Sora moves closer to him.
“First of all, I’m not going anywhere, Riku.” Sora tilts his head at him. “But, are you sure your back is okay? You aren’t still hurt from fighting are you?”
“Possibly? But, I feel fine any other time…” Riku shrugs.
Sora thoughtfully hums. They did a lot of fighting before Sora went off to deal with Xehanort by himself. Riku faced three of said time traveler’s past selves. Maybe one of them shot a blow to his back and left a particularly bad bruise? Sora doesn’t want to entertain the idea that Riku might have received a more severe, internal injury that somehow got overlooked. But then again, Riku would probably be in obvious physical pain now if that were the case.
“This might sound weird.” Sora tries to ignore the frantic beating of his heart. “But, can I check your back out for you?”
Riku looks at him with slightly wide eyes.
“I just wanna make sure you’re okay,” Sora adds quickly.
Though looking a little uncertain, Riku slowly nods. He shifts in the bed, turning his back to Sora, and reaches back to lift up his hoodie. Sora’s face heats up as Riku’s skin is gradually exposed.
He almost gasps at the sight, but not because Riku’s skin is visibly soft. Or because his back is slightly toned. Okay, maybe that’s part of it, but…
There’s a symbol on Riku’s back. Light pink and round, resembling the shape of a heart. He’s seen that symbol before.
It’s the dream eater symbol, Sora recalls.
… Wait, the dream eater symbol?
He can’t help but reach out, fingers splaying over the lines. Over Riku’s bare skin. Instantly, the mark shines and ripples under his fingertips. Riku shivers, making Sora pull away with his heart skipping a beat. Just as suddenly as it started, the shining stops. The symbol is still there, a part of his skin. It almost looks like it could be a tattoo.
“Riku, do you—”
“That felt odd.” Riku abruptly turns his head. “What did you do?”
“N-Nothing, I just…” Sora suddenly feels speechless, staring at the pink symbol. He tears his eyes away from Riku’s back to glance around the room, spotting the full body mirror on the back of Riku’s bedroom door. “Here, I’ll be right back.”
“What are you—”
Sora dashes into the hall with enough grace to keep quiet. He’s thankful for the chance to collect himself and thinks about where he might find what he’s looking for. Feeling the walls through the dark, he finds his way into the bathroom. He turns on the light to find a handheld mirror sitting in a small bin beside the sink. Bingo. He grabs it and returns to Riku’s room, gently shutting the door.
“What are you doing?” Riku repeats, standing by the doorway.
Sora grabs his arm, leading him in front of the tall mirror. Trying not to think too hard about it, he pushes up Riku’s hoodie again and makes him hold it there. Moving behind him, Sora angles the handheld mirror so Riku can see his back. It’s quite small, but he moves it around for Riku to be able to see how big the symbol is on his skin.
Riku’s jaw drops.
“You didn’t know that was there…” Sora concludes.
Riku shakes his head.
“Do you have any idea of why it might be?”
“I… I might.” Riku drops his hoodie and looks away. He’s quiet for a moment as if collecting his thoughts. “Do you remember… after we had the Mark of Mastery exam, when you told me that I was in your dream?”
Sora nods.
“That’s because… I was.” Riku turns to Sora. “I jumped into your dream. I was there from the very beginning. Yen Sid told me I became a dream eater.”
Sheepishly, Riku meets his eyes. “I suppose, I became... your dream eater…?”
Dumbfounded, Sora stares at him.
As he tries to process this information, he goes to set the small mirror on top of Riku’s nightstand. Maybe this was why he felt the need to be at Riku’s side. The reason he’s felt drawn to him. Somehow, he sensed that they had this connection.
Plus, this might explain Riku’s drive to protect him from the Tide, despite knowing he didn’t stand a chance by himself.
“I didn’t know that it would give me this sigil permanently on my back,” Riku says, in equal surprise.
“Are you sure it’s permanent?” Sora says, moving back to him.
Riku shrugs. “I wouldn’t know how to get rid of it, or if it’s even possible.”
Sora hesitantly lifts his hand in a silent question, and Riku turns back around as if granting permission. Lifting his clothing up again, Sora feels and examines the symbol. There are no ridges on the outlines, only completely smooth, soft skin. He can’t tell if there’s any magic tied to it.
“It just feels like your skin…”
Unconsciously, Sora lets his fingertips linger there, and he looks up to find Riku’s eyes closed in the mirror, like he’s relaxed. That makes him feel a little less weird for touching his best friend’s bare skin (when he also has a crush on him but he’s trying not to think about that right now).
Under Sora’s fingers, Riku’s skin fills with goosebumps as he shivers again. Sora watches as Riku’s head jerks, and his relaxed expression turns into a confused one before he opens his eyes. Sora’s hand drops to his side when he sees Riku’s eyes, looking into his own.
Riku’s usual greenish-blue eyes have turned… pink?
His pupils are also now abnormally shaped, resembling sparkles. Sora is vaguely reminded of the Komory Bat dream eater. His eyes widen at his initial shock from the sudden change, and Riku notices. He lets his hoodie fall back down over his torso as he examines his eyes in the mirror.
“Sometimes… my dream eaters’ eyes would change color like that when I pet them,” Sora says, heat gathering in his face.
Riku blinks. “I noticed that with mine too, but… I don’t remember pink being one of the colors.”
“Same.” Sora scratches his head. “Maybe it’s something special to you? I wonder what it means.”
Riku’s gaze drops to the floor. “Me too.”
After Riku blinks a few times, his eyes turn back to normal. To Sora, it also looks as if Riku’s ears are turning a slight pink, but he convinces himself that it's just a trick of the poor lighting in the room.
“So, I guess this might explain both of our problems,” Riku says.
Now, Sora’s face is definitely warm. “I-I guess it does?”
Neither of them have been able to sleep because they’ve been too drawn to one another. The thought makes Sora’s chest hurt. Even if it doesn’t really mean anything, it’s nice to know that Riku thinks about him too.
Sora follows as Riku goes back to the bed to sit.
“Are you okay with this?” He asks. “I mean, I’m sure you didn’t expect to be tied to me like this.”
“I didn’t, but… it’s not so bad,” Riku says, voice growing softer than before. “It’s just a symbol on my back that I can hide. And my eyes occasionally changing color. Unless I’m going to sprout wings or something, which would be really weird.”
“That might actually be cool, though,” Sora smiles.
Riku huffs a slight laugh, lightly punching Sora’s shoulder.
“Of course you would think so.”
Sora giggles, but his smile soon falters. The sudden shift must look odd, because Riku catches it, eyeing him with a concerned gaze.
“What’s up?”
Sora thinks for a moment. If he can recall feeling this connection as far back as to their exam, did Riku ever feel it too?
“I’m wondering. Did you ever feel some kind of… “pull” towards me when we were apart? Before coming back home.”
Riku considers. “Now that I think about it… maybe. I probably didn't think much of it at the time, because… there were more important things going on.”
He turns to Sora. “Did you?”
“Yeah…” Sora pauses, thinking about how much time he spent lying awake at night trying to figure this all out.
He hasn’t been able to talk about this with anyone, but since Riku is apparently on the same page of weirdness as him, maybe he finally can.
“I do remember feeling drawn to you before, when we went on our separate missions. But, that feeling would ease up when we met again.” Sora pauses, folding his legs underneath himself. “I ignored it for a while since I thought it was normal. I mean, we’ve been friends for so long, so of course I’m going to worry about you. It kept getting worse though. I haven’t been able to sleep because I keep thinking about when you stepped in front of the Tide for me. And then, I felt confused because I wasn’t sure if the connection was me worrying about you or because I liked you, but then I realized—”
Sora’s hand claps over his mouth, and his eyes widen.
I wasn’t supposed to say that.
He always did have a bad habit of rambling when tired. Plus, he’s been dying to tell someone else about all of this, trying to make sense of it by himself for so long. His filter seemed to forget to leave the feelings part of it out though.
“Sorry, um—”
“W-What?” Riku interrupts, eyes equally as wide as Sora’s.
They stare at each other for a solid five seconds before Sora glances at Riku’s clock in the room and gets up in a slight panic.
“I-It’s, uh, really late. Or, um, early? So I should probably—
Riku catches Sora’s arm before he can make it too far off the bed.
“Wait, wait, wait. That last part—are you actually serious?”
Sora looks back at him like a deer in the headlights, but relaxes when he sees Riku’s soft—maybe, hopefully, impossibly pleading—eyes. He already panicked, so he can’t really play it off anymore. Maybe he should just say it now, and finally rip the bandaid off.
Hopefully, Riku will at least still want to be Sora's friend...
“Y-Yes.” Sora takes a shaky breath. “Like, I like you as in ‘I have a crush on you’? Yeah… is that weird?” He stares at the floor, trying not to cringe at the foreign nervousness that seeps into his words.
Riku says something, but it’s so low and Sora’s heart beat is roaring in his ears, so he can’t make it out.
“H-Huh?”
“It’s not weird.” Riku says, quickly. “It’s… mutual.”
Wait.
Mutual?!
Sora’s face instantly burns, and he can feel his heart trying to pound out of his chest.
“I-I’ve liked you for a long time.” Riku continues, avoiding looking Sora in the eye.
He can hardly believe what he’s hearing.
“... How long?”
“I can’t pinpoint exactly when…” Riku’s cheeks turn a little pink, and Sora realizes he’s blushing. “But, I think it started while you were in that pod.”
Sora’s breath catches. He remembers waking up in that white room, where Namine kept him asleep to repair his memories. At this point, that seems like it was forever ago.
Riku has been keeping this to himself for all this time?
“Oh, Riku…” Sora breathes out.
Overwhelmed by the urge to touch him, he springs forward and hugs Riku, making him fall backwards on the bed. He wraps his arms around Sora’s middle immediately, burying his face into his messy brown hair. Sora feels butterflies fluttering in his stomach as Riku all but nuzzles him.
Sora breathes him in, smelling salty sea air, and relaxes in Riku’s warm hold—he feels like he could easily lie here forever if it were possible. He hopes Riku can’t feel how hard his heart is beating.
“… I wish you could stay,” Riku breaks the silence.
“Like sleep here...? I could.”
“Your parents will worry.”
“I already left them a note, so they’ll know I’m with you.” Sora pulls away to look at Riku. “Something tells me I might sleep better next to you, anyway.”
Sora doesn’t miss it when the pink tint darkens on Riku’s face. He looks somewhere past him when he speaks.
“I might, too.”
Sora grins at him, unabashed. He rolls off Riku and immediately misses his warmth. But, Riku follows him as he crawls under the blankets. Sora wants to cuddle him, because it’s cold but also… he’s wanted to be in Riku’s arms for a while. He doesn’t want to push it. Riku isn’t quite as clingy as him, so he settles for reaching for his hand under the blanket instead.
Riku leans over to turn the lamp off, leaving only moonlight pouring in from the window. Still, Sora finds his seafoam blue eyes in the darker room.
“What happens now?” Sora whispers.
Riku’s thumb rubs over Sora’s knuckle, eyelids drooping. “What do you want to happen?”
He’d like to be closer to Riku, to be more than friends. And, it seems like Riku would like that too, given how long he’s apparently liked Sora. But, feeling exhaustion creeping up on him, Sora can’t seem to form any of the words he’d like to say.
Shyly, he lets go of Riku’s hand and reaches for his side. Riku moves closer at that and wraps an arm around him too. Sora always thought he was being annoying when he would be really touchy with Riku, but maybe his touch has always been welcome. He presses his face to Riku’s chest and closes his eyes.
For the first time in a week, Sora falls asleep peacefully.
There’s sunlight in his face, softened by curtains that aren’t his, and the chatter of seagulls rings in the distance.
Finally, Sora feels rested, having got almost a full night’s sleep. His face is cold, but his back is very warm. A hand slides up his arm, and he feels another body shifting next to him. He shifts with it, half turning over and meeting sleepy eyes with Riku. They must have woken up at the same time.
Sora has never seen Riku look so… soft. His messy hair, sleepy eyes, and rumpled hoodie—all of it makes Sora’s chest feel warm, seeing how relaxed and vulnerable he is. They used to have sleepovers when they were really young, before Riku closed himself off a little, but they would often have drool, and pen marks—depending on who fell asleep first—all over their faces. That was also back when neither of them knew they had feelings for each other…
He turns over to run his fingers through Riku’s hair, and Riku blinks at him, like he’s still trying to wake up. He leans into Sora’s hand, and the gesture stuns him. His heart does a somersault in his chest, much like last night while they were talking, he remembers.
Sora moves his hand until it’s resting on Riku’s cheek, and he nuzzles against it, eyes closing. And, Sora feels the butterflies again. He focuses on the warmth radiating off of Riku’s skin and takes in his features. There’s something he really likes about the contrast between his soft skin and his hard jawline. His lips in particular look quite soft, and they’re suddenly very distracting to Sora.
He’s not sure why he does it, maybe it’s the sleepiness fogging his brain, but he guides Riku’s face closer until their lips are brushing against each other. Riku doesn’t seem to notice at first, probably because he’s half asleep himself.
It’s not really a kiss because Sora soon comes to his senses and moves, but their lips do linger together for a second.
Their faces are still close when Sora pulls away, since they moved so close to each other in their sleep. His eyes widen. Riku fully wakes then, eyes also widening in realization. Sora can practically see the gears turning in his head.
Feeling panic take over again, Sora quickly pulls his hand away, turns over, and buries his head into the blankets. He closes his eyes, hoping that this is just an embarrassing dream he’ll wake up from. It’s so in his nature to be physically affectionate, but Riku isn’t like that. He can’t be rushing them into it!
“Sora…?”
He curls farther into the blankets.
“S-Sorry… I dunno why I did that.”
“Sora,” Riku says, more insistently.
He tries to move the blankets, but Sora doesn’t let him, gripping onto them for dear life.
Riku leans closer to him, resting his face in the uncovered piece of his neck. “Hey…come out, please?”
He knows he can’t escape, so he moves the blankets only far enough down to peek at Riku. He finds Riku’s eyes flashing from pink back to their usual greenish blue.
Riku notices his stare. “My eyes again?”
“They were pink just for a second. They look normal now.”
“They must change whenever you… do something like that.”
In the bright light of the morning, Sora can definitely see the blush on Riku’s face. Greenish blue eyes shift to the ceiling as he feels his bottom lip that Sora barely brushed with his own. The sight makes Sora’s breath hitch.
With new confidence, he touches Riku’s cheek. He lingers there, letting his fingertips trace over his cheekbone, then his thumb traces under his lip. Riku looks over and takes Sora’s hand, encouraging his touch, and it makes Sora’s heart skip a beat.
As Riku relaxes from the soft touches, his eyes flutter closed, and sure enough, when they open, they’re pink again.
Sora smiles but feels his own face growing warmer. “I think you’re right...”
To think he could affect Riku like this and bring out his gentle side. It makes Sora feel overwhelmed with emotion. He can’t help ruffling Riku’s hair.
“Stop.” Riku swats his hand away, but the softness in his voice and the pink on his face doesn't prove much for annoyance. “Do you think we should… mention this to someone? About our connection?”
Since neither of them knew this was possible, Sora wonders if something like this has never happened between anyone else before. Or maybe Yen Sid didn’t think it would have been relevant to mention it. It’s not like they planned on Sora’s exam getting compromised.
But, if it were a unique connection—something that only exists between them—Sora doesn’t think he’d mind that. He almost wishes it true.
“I don’t think we have to right away. It could be our secret… just for now,” Sora suggests, wanting to keep Riku to himself for now. “I mean, we’re supposed to be on vacation, right?”
“Good point.” Riku studies Sora with a small smile. His soft expression makes Sora want to melt into a puddle. “Speaking of which, do you think we could start hanging out again?”
Sora wonders how many times his heart can skip a beat before it’s a medical concern.
“I’d like that…” He pauses. “Just us…?”
It’s not a clarification, more like a request. Riku seems to understand that as his smile widens. He reaches for Sora’s hand and laces their fingers together.
“Just us,” Riku agrees. He starts playing with Sora’s fingers in his hand, and adds in a hushed voice, “Don’t tell Kairi.”
Sora giggles. They should probably tell her about their discovery (and maybe about them potentially being together). But, he figures she’ll probably find out somehow on her own anyway. She’s always been good at reading them.
“What do you want to do?” Riku asks.
“We should go back to the beach today.”
“I thought you might say that.” Riku smiles, and it’s so bright that it’s contagious. He flings the blanket off and moves closer to Sora with a sly look in his eye. “Okay… it’s a date.”
Sora’s face flushes. “A-A date?”
Riku suddenly presses a kiss to Sora’s forehead. It paralyzes him. Before he can register what’s happening, Riku is jumping out of bed and reaching for his bedroom door.
“I can smell my parents making bacon,” he casually says. “Wanna race downstairs to get breakfast?”
Riku disappears down the hall, making a quick escape, when Sora finally manages to snap out of it.
He gets out of bed and smiles despite himself. “Riku…!”