HOME | DD

Description
   The blue eyed brunette scribbled on a piece of paper as he leaned back in his bed, drawing a certain little star he had a dream of last night.
   He couldn't get that dream out of his head. Out of the darkness he was standing in came the shooting stars, but instead of actual stars it was the star-shaped fruit that could be seen all around the islands he lived on. The paopu fruit was said to entwine two souls together forever if shared between the two. And just before he had come awake, he had seen a familiar figure standing in the midst of the lighted fruits shooting through a starless night sky.
   Who was that? And why did it make Sora's heart so warm when he thought of the bizarre dream?
   He looked out the window and sighed contently at the snow falling just on the other side of the glass. He shivered under his covers as he grasped his pencil tight in his hand. It was still early in the morning, and no one was awake yet, but the snow seemed so alive.
   But then he saw someone walking toward his house through the snowfall, his body hunched against the cold. Sora knew exactly who it was, and he put his drawing pad and pencil aside as he got up from his bed. Dressed in a  red long-sleeved shirt and pajama shorts with socks, he immediately felt the coolness hit his skin, but he hurried to the living room anyway.
   He opened the door to an older silver-haired teen standing on his doorstep with his fist lifted up, his aqua eyes were filled with surprise as he stopped his knuckles from knocking on cold air.
   "Riku, what are you doing out in the cold so early?"Sora asked, feeling goosebumps rise all over his body from the freezing air coming into the house.
   "Um, did I wake you, Sora?"Riku asked, his face red, and Sora guessed it was from the snow still falling.
   "No, I've been awake for a while. Come inside."Sora moved to the side to let Riku in, and he noticed his best friend still had his blue pajama pants and shirt on. It seemed like Riku was in a hurry to get here, all he had on was a thick jacket and snow boots over rather thin clothing."What's wrong?"He asked as he closed the door.
   Riku looked at the hallway where all the bedrooms and bathroom were located across the living room."Your parents are still on that business trip, huh?"
   Sora nodded, starting to become worried."Yeah, why? What happened?"
   The sixteen-year-old sighed as he took off his snow-covered boots and set them beside the door on the tiled-floor, and he hung his coat on the coat rack above his shoes. He headed into the living room, and sat on the couch, resting his head back as he closed his eyes.
   Sora followed him, worried about his childhood friend."What's wrong, Riku?"
   Riku looked up at him, then looked down."Paul came home drunk this morning..."
   Sora's heart jumped into his throat. Riku's abusive father was not one to cross paths with, and he wondered what he had done now.
   "Apparently some girl turned him down, so he came home and took it out on me."Riku lifted his shirt, revealing bruises all along his ribs and stomach, even some leading down to his hips under the hem of his pants. Then he pulled his shirt back down as if he was embarrassed."I waited until he fell asleep then I headed over here."His face was red, and his aqua eyes never once looked back at Sora.
   Sora was always there for Riku, but his friend was always too ashamed to tell anyone else about the dealings with his father. He knew he had to do something for his friend, and he thought of only one thing on a snow day."Hold on, I'll be right back."He hurried to the kitchen, and made two cups of hot cocoa, making sure Riku's cup had extra marshmallows. He served Riku his cocoa with a smile."Be careful, it's still hot."
   Riku studied the steaming cocoa with the marshmallows floating on top, and he looked up at his happy friend. He felt a warm smile cross his face, he knew Sora would help ease his pain both on his body and inside his heart. He always did. He took the cocoa and gently blew on the liquid as Sora sat beside him, carefully drinking his cocoa.
   "Riku, why don't you just live with us? My parents wouldn't mind,"He started to stand,"I'll call them up and-"
   The older boy grabbed Sora's arm."No, it's okay. I've been living with him my whole life. Besides, I don't want you there when Paul decides to kill me finally. It's better if it just stays this way."He looked at the cocoa in his hand, thinking Sora's safety was much more important than his own.
   Sora pouted, fighting back tears, he hated how his friend always had to endure the worst pains."No! It can't stay this way, Riku! I'll fight him if I have to!"
   Riku looked at his best friend with surprise.
   "I won't let you keep hurting yourself! Just stay with me, please?"The fifteen-year-old pleaded.
   His face flushed with redness as it always did when he looked into Sora's enchanting blue eyes, and he forced himself to look away, his heart filled with sadness. His father wasn't the only reason he couldn't stay with Sora, his feelings for him became stronger every day, and he couldn't risk their irreplaceable friendship to be demolished. He screwed up everything in his life, Sora's friendship was only thing keeping him alive, he wasn't about to ruin that."I'm sorry, Sora, I can't let you get hurt because of my mistakes."He took the remote control from the coffee table and turned on the TV across the room as he sipped his cocoa. He hoped the news would calm his racing heart down, despite Sora sitting right next to him.
   Sora sighed, he knew once Riku made up his mind, it was hard to stop him. He suddenly didn't want the cocoa anymore so he set it down on the coffee table, and stood. He wasn't angry, Riku could see that, but he was definitely upset, he wanted to do all he could to help his best friend, and he felt powerless to do so. He went to his room, when he wanted to calm down, he played video games. But he didn't want to leave Riku by himself after what had happened, so he grabbed his Nintendo DS and walked back into the living room.
   Riku set his cocoa on the table, half of it gone, but he felt somewhat guilty that he had upset Sora. He wished he didn't have to hurt from loving him anymore, he wished he could make Sora happy, but how could he when he himself couldn't be truly happy?
   But then Sora put a hand on his shoulder."I just want you to know that no matter what I'll always be here. I care about you, Riku, it's why I want you to be here with me instead of being hurt like this."He smiled.
   Riku's face turned red again and his heart beat faster. He knew Sora was talking about his father, but he couldn't help but feel as if Sora was speaking straight to his heart.
   The younger teen laid next to Riku with his body against the plush throw pillow, resting his thighs in Riku's lap and stretching his legs over the the cushions as he turned on his DS.
   It shouldn't have been a big deal, Sora had been this casual with him countless times before, but his heart was already rapidly beating. Sora's words kept running through his mind, did he dare? He had to, it was the only way he could let Sora know his feelings, and if he didn't take this chance, he would never muster up the courage again. He leaned over Sora, letting his hands gently rest against the smaller boy's arms, and he could feel Sora tense through his sleeves. He had to take the chance, it was too late to go back now.
   Their lips pressed together immediately, and Riku felt his heart shaking his body with every rapid beat. Sora's face turned cherry red as he widened his eyes, but he could feel his own racing heart beating in sync with Riku's. He gave in, carefully putting his DS on the coffee table as he wrapped his arms around the silver-haired teen's torso.
   Riku gasped at Sora's touch, but he didn't dare break the kiss. He positioned himself over him, putting a leg over Sora's waist, and he ran his fingers through the brunette's spiky hair. Neither one of them had had experience with kissing, but they kept going as if it were natural to them. Sora held him close, not knowing what to think but he felt overwhelmingly happy.
   Then they pulled away, their lips nearly touching, and both their faces were red. Despite the audio of the TV, their breathing was all they could hear.
   "R-Riku...?"Sora breathed shakily.
   "Yeah?"Riku's voice was barely a whisper, he didn't want to ruin anything.
   "Why... did you just kiss me...?"
   Riku studied his blue eyes, knowing exactly what to say from years of his heart talking to him."Because... you make me happy, you were always there for me... even when Paul beat me for dumb reasons, you listened and comforted me... I don't care if he kills me, I just want to be with you till the very end. I don't want to hurt anymore, and I hope you want to see me again because I really can't live without you, Sora..."
   But then Sora saw the rest of his dream, and he saw the familiar figure under the shooting star-shaped fruit was Riku. They had shared the paopu fruit in the dream, and Sora finally understood what it meant. He cupped Riku's face in his hands, smiling with a red face."Riku, I love you."
   Riku stared at him with surprise, then he smiled as he breathed out a light chuckle. He couldn't believe it, all his dreams were coming true, and he couldn't stop the tears from rolling down his cheeks. He had cried in front of Sora before, but he didn't want him to see them now. So he closed his eyes and gave him gentle kisses, and Sora's hands moved down Riku's chest and over his ribs. Riku gently laid on Sora, careful not to put too much weight on him, and Sora nibbled on Riku's lip.
   Riku kissed down Sora's neck, letting himself get closer to him, their hips against each other. They could feel each others' bumps through their pajama bottoms, and Sora grunted.
   "I'm sorry, am I hurting you?"
   Sora shook his head, his face red.
   Riku could see the pain in his eyes, so he laid beside him as Sora turned to face him."You don't have to lie to make me feel better. You never did before."He gently stroked the brunette's cheek, studying his handsome and cute features that blended together perfectly.
   Sora smiled, then snuggled against him, their arms around each other. He closed his eyes as he nuzzled Riku's chest, and breathed a sigh of content."I always thought we were always going to be just friends... but now I realize that to be covered with your arms is what I wanted most..."
   Riku gave him a light squeeze, and kissed his forehead."Then I'll stay here with you, because I know I've always wanted to be covered with your love, Sora."That's when he realized he would never be in pain again, not physically nor in his heart. All because he took the chance to kiss the one he loved most, he was never again going to be covered in sadness, but in happiness.

Description
   The blue eyed brunette scribbled on a piece of paper as he leaned back in his bed, drawing a certain little star he had a dream of last night.
   He couldn't get that dream out of his head. Out of the darkness he was standing in came the shooting stars, but instead of actual stars it was the star-shaped fruit that could be seen all around the islands he lived on. The paopu fruit was said to entwine two souls together forever if shared between the two. And just before he had come awake, he had seen a familiar figure standing in the midst of the lighted fruits shooting through a starless night sky.
   Who was that? And why did it make Sora's heart so warm when he thought of the bizarre dream?
   He looked out the window and sighed contently at the snow falling just on the other side of the glass. He shivered under his covers as he grasped his pencil tight in his hand. It was still early in the morning, and no one was awake yet, but the snow seemed so alive.
   But then he saw someone walking toward his house through the snowfall, his body hunched against the cold. Sora knew exactly who it was, and he put his drawing pad and pencil aside as he got up from his bed. Dressed in a  red long-sleeved shirt and pajama shorts with socks, he immediately felt the coolness hit his skin, but he hurried to the living room anyway.
   He opened the door to an older silver-haired teen standing on his doorstep with his fist lifted up, his aqua eyes were filled with surprise as he stopped his knuckles from knocking on cold air.
   "Riku, what are you doing out in the cold so early?"Sora asked, feeling goosebumps rise all over his body from the freezing air coming into the house.
   "Um, did I wake you, Sora?"Riku asked, his face red, and Sora guessed it was from the snow still falling.
   "No, I've been awake for a while. Come inside."Sora moved to the side to let Riku in, and he noticed his best friend still had his blue pajama pants and shirt on. It seemed like Riku was in a hurry to get here, all he had on was a thick jacket and snow boots over rather thin clothing."What's wrong?"He asked as he closed the door.
   Riku looked at the hallway where all the bedrooms and bathroom were located across the living room."Your parents are still on that business trip, huh?"
   Sora nodded, starting to become worried."Yeah, why? What happened?"
   The sixteen-year-old sighed as he took off his snow-covered boots and set them beside the door on the tiled-floor, and he hung his coat on the coat rack above his shoes. He headed into the living room, and sat on the couch, resting his head back as he closed his eyes.
   Sora followed him, worried about his childhood friend."What's wrong, Riku?"
   Riku looked up at him, then looked down."Paul came home drunk this morning..."
   Sora's heart jumped into his throat. Riku's abusive father was not one to cross paths with, and he wondered what he had done now.
   "Apparently some girl turned him down, so he came home and took it out on me."Riku lifted his shirt, revealing bruises all along his ribs and stomach, even some leading down to his hips under the hem of his pants. Then he pulled his shirt back down as if he was embarrassed."I waited until he fell asleep then I headed over here."His face was red, and his aqua eyes never once looked back at Sora.
   Sora was always there for Riku, but his friend was always too ashamed to tell anyone else about the dealings with his father. He knew he had to do something for his friend, and he thought of only one thing on a snow day."Hold on, I'll be right back."He hurried to the kitchen, and made two cups of hot cocoa, making sure Riku's cup had extra marshmallows. He served Riku his cocoa with a smile."Be careful, it's still hot."
   Riku studied the steaming cocoa with the marshmallows floating on top, and he looked up at his happy friend. He felt a warm smile cross his face, he knew Sora would help ease his pain both on his body and inside his heart. He always did. He took the cocoa and gently blew on the liquid as Sora sat beside him, carefully drinking his cocoa.
   "Riku, why don't you just live with us? My parents wouldn't mind,"He started to stand,"I'll call them up and-"
   The older boy grabbed Sora's arm."No, it's okay. I've been living with him my whole life. Besides, I don't want you there when Paul decides to kill me finally. It's better if it just stays this way."He looked at the cocoa in his hand, thinking Sora's safety was much more important than his own.
   Sora pouted, fighting back tears, he hated how his friend always had to endure the worst pains."No! It can't stay this way, Riku! I'll fight him if I have to!"
   Riku looked at his best friend with surprise.
   "I won't let you keep hurting yourself! Just stay with me, please?"The fifteen-year-old pleaded.
   His face flushed with redness as it always did when he looked into Sora's enchanting blue eyes, and he forced himself to look away, his heart filled with sadness. His father wasn't the only reason he couldn't stay with Sora, his feelings for him became stronger every day, and he couldn't risk their irreplaceable friendship to be demolished. He screwed up everything in his life, Sora's friendship was only thing keeping him alive, he wasn't about to ruin that."I'm sorry, Sora, I can't let you get hurt because of my mistakes."He took the remote control from the coffee table and turned on the TV across the room as he sipped his cocoa. He hoped the news would calm his racing heart down, despite Sora sitting right next to him.
   Sora sighed, he knew once Riku made up his mind, it was hard to stop him. He suddenly didn't want the cocoa anymore so he set it down on the coffee table, and stood. He wasn't angry, Riku could see that, but he was definitely upset, he wanted to do all he could to help his best friend, and he felt powerless to do so. He went to his room, when he wanted to calm down, he played video games. But he didn't want to leave Riku by himself after what had happened, so he grabbed his Nintendo DS and walked back into the living room.
   Riku set his cocoa on the table, half of it gone, but he felt somewhat guilty that he had upset Sora. He wished he didn't have to hurt from loving him anymore, he wished he could make Sora happy, but how could he when he himself couldn't be truly happy?
   But then Sora put a hand on his shoulder."I just want you to know that no matter what I'll always be here. I care about you, Riku, it's why I want you to be here with me instead of being hurt like this."He smiled.
   Riku's face turned red again and his heart beat faster. He knew Sora was talking about his father, but he couldn't help but feel as if Sora was speaking straight to his heart.
   The younger teen laid next to Riku with his body against the plush throw pillow, resting his thighs in Riku's lap and stretching his legs over the the cushions as he turned on his DS.
   It shouldn't have been a big deal, Sora had been this casual with him countless times before, but his heart was already rapidly beating. Sora's words kept running through his mind, did he dare? He had to, it was the only way he could let Sora know his feelings, and if he didn't take this chance, he would never muster up the courage again. He leaned over Sora, letting his hands gently rest against the smaller boy's arms, and he could feel Sora tense through his sleeves. He had to take the chance, it was too late to go back now.
   Their lips pressed together immediately, and Riku felt his heart shaking his body with every rapid beat. Sora's face turned cherry red as he widened his eyes, but he could feel his own racing heart beating in sync with Riku's. He gave in, carefully putting his DS on the coffee table as he wrapped his arms around the silver-haired teen's torso.
   Riku gasped at Sora's touch, but he didn't dare break the kiss. He positioned himself over him, putting a leg over Sora's waist, and he ran his fingers through the brunette's spiky hair. Neither one of them had had experience with kissing, but they kept going as if it were natural to them. Sora held him close, not knowing what to think but he felt overwhelmingly happy.
   Then they pulled away, their lips nearly touching, and both their faces were red. Despite the audio of the TV, their breathing was all they could hear.
   "R-Riku...?"Sora breathed shakily.
   "Yeah?"Riku's voice was barely a whisper, he didn't want to ruin anything.
   "Why... did you just kiss me...?"
   Riku studied his blue eyes, knowing exactly what to say from years of his heart talking to him."Because... you make me happy, you were always there for me... even when Paul beat me for dumb reasons, you listened and comforted me... I don't care if he kills me, I just want to be with you till the very end. I don't want to hurt anymore, and I hope you want to see me again because I really can't live without you, Sora..."
   But then Sora saw the rest of his dream, and he saw the familiar figure under the shooting star-shaped fruit was Riku. They had shared the paopu fruit in the dream, and Sora finally understood what it meant. He cupped Riku's face in his hands, smiling with a red face."Riku, I love you."
   Riku stared at him with surprise, then he smiled as he breathed out a light chuckle. He couldn't believe it, all his dreams were coming true, and he couldn't stop the tears from rolling down his cheeks. He had cried in front of Sora before, but he didn't want him to see them now. So he closed his eyes and gave him gentle kisses, and Sora's hands moved down Riku's chest and over his ribs. Riku gently laid on Sora, careful not to put too much weight on him, and Sora nibbled on Riku's lip.
   Riku kissed down Sora's neck, letting himself get closer to him, their hips against each other. They could feel each others' bumps through their pajama bottoms, and Sora grunted.
   "I'm sorry, am I hurting you?"
   Sora shook his head, his face red.
   Riku could see the pain in his eyes, so he laid beside him as Sora turned to face him."You don't have to lie to make me feel better. You never did before."He gently stroked the brunette's cheek, studying his handsome and cute features that blended together perfectly.
   Sora smiled, then snuggled against him, their arms around each other. He closed his eyes as he nuzzled Riku's chest, and breathed a sigh of content."I always thought we were always going to be just friends... but now I realize that to be covered with your arms is what I wanted most..."
   Riku gave him a light squeeze, and kissed his forehead."Then I'll stay here with you, because I know I've always wanted to be covered with your love, Sora."That's when he realized he would never be in pain again, not physically nor in his heart. All because he took the chance to kiss the one he loved most, he was never again going to be covered in sadness, but in happiness.