Chapter Text
"I want to put the pieces together - yours and mine"
[♥]
[ONE YEAR LATER]
With a huff and a dramatic sigh, you shake your head to move your bangs from your eyes. It’s a particularly slow day, with little to no customers. The ding of the bell hanging from the door rings, breaking through the silence as the glass door opens. You glance up, immediately grinning when two familiar faces walk through.
“Nice apron,” Riku notes with a nod and a smirk.
You glance down at the red apron tied around your waist.
“What’s wrong with it?” you ask, crossing your arms over your chest as you narrow your eyes at the silverette.
Riku shrugs slightly, the movement causing his hair to partially block his eye-line. He had cut his hair almost immediately after arriving back at Destiny Islands, and had kept it rather short until recently. He claimed that he got sick of short hair, so he decided to grow it out again… but you’re convinced he just missed the stares and giggles he gets from the ~ladies~ when his hair is longer.
“Ignore him, he’s just grumpy,” the brunet beside him teases with a small laugh.
Your smile only grows as Sora hops over the counter, wrapping an arm around your shoulders in a loose hug. He leans down, pressing his lips to yours in a quick kiss. Ever since moving to the Islands, you and Sora had become inseparable. His parents – who are absolutely lovely and have been completely welcoming to you – even got you a job at their coffee shop.
The Island itself is utterly adorable. The entire town is mainly residential, besides the main square that’s filled with tiny boutiques, shops, and restaurants. The schools and university sit in a neat row along the beach, with your coffee shop nestled in across the street. During the school year, it makes for a busy job. But during the summer, everyone spends their time hanging out at the small surrounding islands or traveling the worlds, which leaves you with a lot of free time.
And Sora… Words can’t even describe how your relationship with him had changed. Without prying eyes and Nobodies trying to kill you, the two of you had settled into a surprisingly comfortable routine. He still lives with his parents as he finishes his GED (since he was dragged away from high school so many years ago), but with you living on their property there’s been more nights than you can count where he’s snuck into your little apartment for… sleepovers.
Life finally made sense.
“Aw. Why’s that?” you ask, somehow managing to tear your eyes from Sora’s bright blue orbs.
You can swear that Riku’s smirk falters and his face falls as Sora leans down to press his lips to the side of your head.
“Uh, nothing,” Riku mutters, leaning an open palm on the counter.
“C’mon Riku, don’t be like that. You know you can tell her,” Sora protests.
Riku just gives his best friend a look that can only be described as ‘you better shut up now before I kill you.’
“Okay, I’ll tell her,” Sora decides, not picking up on Riku’s not-so-subtle hint. “We were watching Toy Story 3 – have you heard of it, [Name]? It’s so good!”
“Yeah,” you agree with a small laugh. “It’s been out for… awhile.”
“We’ve been a little busy,” Riku speaks up, drumming his fingers on the counter. “Can I have a coffee, by the way?”
You roll your eyes as Sora drops his arm and you turn around, filling up a large paper cup with relatively fresh coffee.
“You could say please,” Sora scolds Riku, placing his hands on his hips. “Anyway – where was I? Oh yeah! So we watched Toy Story 3 and Riku CRIED LIKE A BABY.”
Sora bursts out laughing, and you glance over your shoulder to shoot the silverette an amused look. He, on the other hand, looks anything but pleased.
“This isn’t over,” he warns Sora, pointing a finger at him as his free hand accepts the paper cup filled with coffee from you. “Thanks, [Name]. I’m taking this to go.”
“You sure?” you ask, resting a hand on Sora’s back.
That same irritated look crosses over his face as his eyes lock onto your hand, like he just ate a bar of soap.
“… Yeah. See you guys.”
With a slight nod, he turns on his heel and heads out the door. You and Sora watch him leave, waiting for him to turn the corner.
“Finally!” Sora groans, wrapping his arms around you in a tight hug. “Thought he’d never leave.”
You laugh as you place your hands on his shoulders.
“So mean.”
“It’s just awkward! I mean,” Sora sighs, resting his forehead against yours. “I got the girl, you know? He’s not used to losing.”
You smile sadly as you lean forward, rising onto your tiptoes as you place a light kiss on his lips. One of the things that had changed during the past year – Sora’s height. He was no longer your little brownie, you're sad to note.
“Are you closing tonight?” Sora asks as he litters your face with kisses.
“Sadly,” you respond, giggling at the ticklishness of his actions. “I’ll see you when I get back though!”
“Movie night??” Sora asks with an eager grin.
“Isn’t every night movie night?” you tease.
After missing so many years in the “real world,” there wasn’t much Sora loved more than curling up on the couch with you and catching up on movies. Especially since they served as a nice distraction from his schoolwork. Sora chuckles, leaning down to capture your lips in a gentle kiss.
“See ya tonight,” he murmurs, running a finger down your cheek before turning around, hopping over the counter, and sauntering out of the shop. “Love you!”
“Love you, too!” you call out with a wave.
You bite back a smile, covering your mouth with your hand. It was almost dangerous just how much you had fallen for him in the past year.
Unfortunately, you’re so distracted on watching the whistling brunet walk down the street, you miss a man hiding in the shadows watching the two of you with interest.
[♥]
You glance around the shop, a small smile on your face. Though it was boring to have so few customers, it was very nice to barely have to clean up at closing. Since Riku was one of your only customers today (and he didn’t even pay, you eventually realized), the place was absolutely spotless by the time you turn off the lights. You close the door, locking it with the brass key given to you by Sora’s parents.
The snap of a twig behind you causes you to stiffen. Quickly, you snap your head around, glancing over your shoulder. The street is empty, nothing in the distance besides the high school.
“Creepy,” you mutter under your breath as you shove your hands in the pockets of your apron.
You start to walk down the street towards Sora’s house, finding yourself walking faster than usual. For some reason, you just can’t shake the feeling that someone is following you. This isn't the first time this has happened, sadly.
As normal as your life had become, you didn’t escape the Great War unscathed. You've gotten good at faking it, but many nights are spent tossing and turning with nightmares. Killing Luxord, watching Sora as he embedded his Keyblade in Lexaeus' skull... So much death had been witnessed, it's impossible to forget all of the blood and the pain. Sleeping in Sora's arms helps, but the memories remain. Your hip still sports an ugly, key-shaped scar courtesy of Vanitas. Sora claims the scar “has character,” but since he’s such a terrible liar you know that it must look bad.
Vanitas…
As much as you willed them away, his golden eyes still haunt you the most.
“Hey, [Name]!”
You glance up from the concrete sidewalk beneath your feet, sighing into a smile when you spot Sora in his front yard. He has a huge grin on his face as he waves at you. You laugh and wave back, hurrying towards him.
Just as you pass a large shrub another snapping sound rips through the night’s silence. You jump, hopping out into the street as your hands fly free from your apron. A man dressed all in black steps out, a hood covering his face.
“G-Get away from me!” you threaten, cursing yourself for leaving your gun at home.
“Hey, back off!” Sora yells, running towards you.
The man reaches for you, and with a scream you scramble towards Sora. He reaches a hand out to you, but the man suddenly appears between the two of you in a poof of smoke, blocking Sora's hand. The man peers over his shoulder, his hood falling back to reveal jet-black hair. A wave of nausea crashes over you as you take a step back and Sora’s blue eyes widen more than you thought possible.
“Sorry to crash the party,” the man laughs before turning towards you. “But you two aren’t so stupid you thought this was over so easily… Right?”
Golden eyes lock with yours, and your entire body freezes with fear, disgust, and bone-chilling terror.
“You’re not real,” Sora speaks up, summoning his Keyblade for the first time in a year. “You died.”
Vanitas’ eyes stay locked on your figure, his lips rising in a demented smile that causes your blood to run cold.
“You can’t kill something that’s already dead.”
He glances at Sora out of the corner of his eyes with the faintest turn of his head.
“Sorry, but I need her. For good this time.”
Vanitas’ hand roughly grabs your wrist. The last thing you see is Sora’s panicked expression before your world turns black, ripped out of paradise and into the darkness as your name screamed by Sora rings through the air.