Remind me the next time I get a chapter idea to write it up immediately before the phase ends so I don't have to suffer all these months dying about it and trying to find my vibe again xD

Oh time. Oh managing time. Woe.

Hi there, Chii here with Smile A Little Will Ya 8. I've had this idea since May, but with all the weirdness and my horrible ability to juggle things I've put off writing this until...

*explodes*

I'm very glad to be working on it now. And because I am a massive staller, I bring you this huge HUGE HUGE filler chapter as payment for my awful procrastinations. SERIOUSLY, A WHOLE SEMESTER, CHII?

Not cool.

But what is cool is that you finally get to read this! (Oh joy. After so long. You deserve a thousand slaps for everyday you've put this off, self.) Thanks so much guys, you're the best readers ever! (And thank you so much anon, you know who you are, I dedicate this to you aiyaa!)

I DON'T DESERVE YOUR AWESOMENESS HUHAA~!

Sora and Roxas are my babies! But I don't own them nor do I with Kingdom Hearts. Head's up — I'm bringing you even more fluff, fail date scenes, Sora dying in his misery (it's mostly his POV) and Roxas being a sweetie. MUHAHAHA.

I hope you guys like this! (rewind rewind rewind)

No way was I going to end without a rhyme! (I almost forgot) Correction: I hope you'll have a great date with Smile A Little Will Ya, Chapter Eight! (Literally. Not even a pun but almost, I guess, oh the little things that amuse me...)

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Smile A Little, Will Ya?

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

~Chapter Eight: Breaking the Ice~

Shutting the door to his bedroom, Sora carelessly flopped over his queen-sized bed with a loud, "OOF!", burying himself under a collection of his beloved plush toys. The cats were tiptoeing around, locating Whisker's bed at the foot of Sora's bedside table before cuddling each other and getting comfortable for the night. The brunette's room was dimmed in orange — he had this powerful multicoloured lamp sitting on his desk which could illuminate the place in either green, blue, yellow, orange or the average cool white.

Sora's room was small. Post-it notes were stuck above his desk on the light-bluish wall, including the one with Roxas' chibi drawing of himself giving the azure-eyed boy a hug. Beside the desk was his wardrobe, and on one of the doors was a full body mirror. The rest of the walls were covered in posters and pictures of himself and his friends. Elongated bedside to the left: half of it decorated with awards and trophies and empty soda bottles and candy wrappers. Lastly, Sora's bed, centered in the cramped space.

Roxas took a seat on the desk chair. "It's around half past nine. I'll get changed and we can turn in?" He stared at his hands. "To be honest with you I don't normally sleep this early. After chapter or two, maybe."

Sora sat up and agreed, albeit inwardly panicky. "O-Okay. M-Maybe we can do something before bed. You know where the bathroom is, yeah?" He watched the blonde pick up his stuff beside his desk, and, shooting him a tiny, tiny smile over his shoulder, Roxas left the room with a soft "click!"

The Leonhart teen toppled back down, sighing.

Aww man, he was being ridiculous.

It seemed only yesterday that he'd been unaware of his supposedly secret feelings for the Twilight Town teen. Technically it was last week, but man, his sense of time was so screwed up right now. Sora didn't know what to do with himself! He hasn't had a lot of time to decide how things are going, and it's even worse because he had nothing concrete to work on as a distraction!

Today was such a weird day too! Hiding from him at lunch? Flinching after Roxas had drawn a mustache on him? Messing up his own words? Mentally MELTING? How did Kairi handle her feelings for Riku (because it's totally obvious they liked each other) when she realized? How did Riku? Were they as bad as him (probably not) at this? Why was he so nervous around Roxas and impulsively acting like a complete idiot? What even were these questions?!

But!

But but but! These feelings were so new to him, so his childish reactions or whatnot were perfectly justified! Right? Of course they were, DON'T BLAME HIM FOR THIS! It wasn't like Sora got a manual when this started!

How does one even act around a person they like? How does one try not to let said feelings for said person get in the way of their friendship? He's started to get apprehensive around Roxas, but then he has to remember that they're friends too so it shouldn't be anything to worry about or the other would be able to TELL and it's just...

Blarglarglargulah!

Sora was never good at masking his feelings. But he couldn't let Roxas know about THIS! What would the guy think of him then? Sora didn't even want to brainstorm possible scenarios...

He found though, that on top of the, "Maybe I like him? I'm so confused" situation, the only other thing that has changed was the way he was seeing Roxas. They were still best friends (hell there was no way he'd want to cross that even for the better), and Roxas was still the same, only in a more illuminated light, if Sora could put it that way. If he tried to ignore the voice in his head telling him about how "cute they would be together" or "how absolutely blue Roxas' eyes were" and "how totally amazing his tiny smile was" or "how sweet he was", okay, he gets it, Sora gets it, please stop, then it was pretty much... still the same between them.

Somewhat.

While he waited for the blonde, Sora occupied himself by moving Froggy McGreen, Piggersbie and the rest of his companions around the edge closest to the bedside. He spared the kittens a glance to the left and found they were already asleep. Just him and Roxas tonight then. His three-layered duvet was already pulled out halfway from this afternoon's nap, but another blanket for Roxas to have on his own was a must. Maybe the light orange one stored at the shelf above his closet he kept specifically for sleepovers would do. Riku hated the pattern and feel of it — orange peels and hamsters in furry polyester, so he usually doesn't bring it out.

...And it smelled like old wardrobe smell and coconuts. Sora hoped his friend wouldn't mind.

He was browsing through his desk drawers when Roxas came back, his outdoor clothes swapped for pajamas with oranges printed on them.

"Oh wow. Orange overload... How coincidental that the blanket I've pulled out for you has oranges on them, ha ha." Sora commented as he made some attempt at tidying the desk before moving for the left side of the bed. Was that a weird thing to say? Roxas usually wore black so he noticed; friends could point out each others' pajama patterns on the off occasion, right? God, what WAS WRONG WITH HIM?

There was still enough space for the two of them, even with his plush toys and triple-layered covers. He'd placed the blanket on his friend's side and moved his laptop on the half-cleared bedside table before patting the space next to him.

"Really now?" Roxas sounded fascinated about this.

"Mhmm. See for yourself. You okay with the right side? I always sleep on the left so..."

Roxas, upon leaving his stuff back next to the brunette's desk, held out the blanket before getting comfortable on the bed. "You're right. Some orange theme, huh? And sure, it's all good. I would bring out Book Seven of the Glass of Ember series to reread but..." He laid back on the pillow and casted a hopeful cerulean gaze at the other, "I'd rather we spent time together."

.

.

.

...Alert alert alert, brain malfunctioning, what, Roxas just said he'd rather hang out with him than read, what was the WORLD coming to—

"Err, ha ha, um, well uuhh." The Leonhart teen had to look around to remind him of what he was supposed to say. Uhh, err... laptop on bedside. They could watch an episode of the Nobody Show together regardless of how much watching they'd been doing, or, uhhh, umm, play games, maybe...

He'd also managed to locate his camping flashlight somewhere in his drawers so they could tell each other spooky stories or start some shadow shows. "Oh, yeah! Err, is it alright if you close the lamp? I'm sort of stuck with all my plushies around me..."

"No prob."

A bit of shuffling and giggling, the sound of their kittens peacefully breathing and several flashlight antics later, the two were in bed, immersed in the dark, starting up a quick round of an online player vs player game where the blonde, who didn't really care much for such, kicked his best friend's butt in a matter of seconds and strategic keyboard pressing.

Sora crinkled his nose, his surprise still evident through the hushed tone. "Whaaa! That's so unfair!"

"Sorry."

"I'll get you next time, Mr Wang Yu." The azure-eyed teen poked a tongue at him.

"No way, Lady Liz. You and your pink leotard won't stop me!"

"Think again!"

.

.

.

.

.

Yeah.

...everything between the two of them was still the same, Sora had to remind himself. Even though he swore his ability to pick up little features about the blonde had spiked up even more, like how he blinked a lot when he's happy, and finding that tiny mole on the edge of Roxas' ear...

Three more PVP rounds and a conversation about high school and the upcoming things they should do while they were on holiday later, they both agreed to give it a rest and do something a little more menial for the coming late hours, like that random shadow show. Sora could easily move and put enough space between himself and the blonde, but he chose not to. Their sides were touching even with their separate covers, and it was warm enough to beat the winter night. Turning on the flashlight in his right hand, Sora found himself mindlessly leaning closer to Roxas.

"Scary story or shadow show? Whatcha want to do, Roxy?" He whispered in the dimness of the room.

"I've never done a shadow show. Hand shapes, right? I think I can..." The boy trailed off as he occupied himself with forming a flying eagle shape with both hands, its shadow reflected on the ceiling.

"Cacaw. I am the Eagle of Luck." The Strife teen crowed quietly. "Seeing me in the sky will bring you eternal happiness within the next few days. How's that?"

"Looks good! My turn now I guess... Uhh... Rawr! I am the Dinosaur of Doom!" Sora joined in with his free left hand. "Oh Dearest Eagle, help me to find happiness! Everyone hates me because I bring doom. I just want to have a friend!"

"Cacaw. It is fortunate that you've asked me this, friend Dinosaur. Alas, within the next few days, you will find a friend. I guarantee you this." Glancing over at Roxas, Sora grinned as he swapped the eagle for a dog.

"Arf. The Eagle of Luck has sent me. I am Dog."

"Just Dog?" The brunette inquired out of character.

"Yeah. You'll see why."

Dog and the Dinosaur of Doom got along well. It turned out that Dog was having trouble finding a personality to fit him, so his name was just Dog. The Dinosaur of Doom tried not to bring too much doom and even offered to carry Dog around on his back (Sora had to swap the flashlight to his left hand to do this). But after much help from the Eagle of Luck, Dog became Dog of Companionship, because he and the Dinosaur got along so well. It was upon the closing acts of their impromptu show that the brunette could feel himself slowly doze off.

"Dinosaur of Doom, I think you ought to have a name change." Roxas as the Eagle of Luck told him. Sora yawned.

"Why is this, great Eagle?"

"You no longer bring doom, but have learned the value of caring, by the way you looked after your friend Dog. I hereby pronounce you the Dinosaur of Caring," the blonde had to use two thumbs as beaks to "present this honour" to Sora's left hand. The latter couldn't help but feel his cheeks warm up at this, and they looked at each other cautiously. Just... having Roxas so close... every little touch...

"...T-Thank you, great Eagle. I will take care of my friend Dog for as long as he stays with me."

The blonde dropped the act upon witnessing Sora yawn for the second time. "Tired? That was some story, huh? I'm pretty sure it's late now."

"Dun really... want to sleep yet... How about... you...?" He turned the flashlight off and dropped it on the floor somewhere, leaving them in total darkness. Mr Bunnykins was just shy off falling when the brunette hugged the toy to himself.

"I'm a little sleepy." Roxas shivered a little, but drew the covers closer to himself. "Don't keep yourself awake for me, Sor. How about we both go to sleep together...?"

They couldn't exactly see each other, but Sora felt Roxas' fond gaze on him. And the way his hushed voice sounded... it gave the brunette so much fuzziness...

Would it be crossing the line if... he maybe reached out... and held the other's hand through the night? Or if they could sleep back to back, so he could feel Roxas' warmth directly...

No. Sora couldn't... do that... right now. It's enough that they're sharing a bed in the first place.

"Kay. Goodnight Roxy. Umm, uuh, t-thanks. For being here with me."

"Yeah. Goodnight Sora." Facing the other way and getting comfortable in his orange blanket, Roxas sighed.

"Sweet dreams."

~o~

He couldn't breathe.

Under the sheets, buried under an arm and a layer or two.

He. Could. Not. Breathe.

Most of him was still asleep. The other smaller part, only barely awake, was desperate to escape, to move — to find fresh air.

But when Sora tried to breathe in, he couldn't.

And when he tried to breathe out, he couldn't either.

...What was happening to him?

"H-H-E-L-P—"

.

.

.

It was painless, it was in his mind. He tried to say something, but he wasn't doing it in reality. Move, wake up, try to speak, one more time, please help...

Sora couldn't breathe, help, this wasn't good—

.

.

.

"H-Huh... Oh damn it, what's happening, uuuuhhhh." There was a person beside him, previously sleeping at his right, digging him out of the covers and pulling him closer. He'd been woken up by the brunette's tossing and turning, which was rare in itself since Sora always slept soundly.

Sora hadn't been unable to breathe like this since he was...

.

.

.

"Hang in there, almost got you—"

Roxas.

"You've been moving so much unde— oh no, you're not breathing, oh god, this isn't good, crap, crap, CRAP—"

He felt the blonde, or who Sora hoped was the blonde, patting his back firmly and rubbing it. His voice sounded different. The spontaneity and desperation in his tone was too... too uncollected... too unlike the Roxas the brunette knew. What does one do when a person couldn't breathe? CPR? Call an ambulance? "Please wake up, wake up, wake up—"

Mom, Dad, could you hear him, this wasn't happening was it?

.

.

.

...air.

Sora could hear Roxas sigh as they looked at each other briefly, half lidded eyes on wide open ones. His muscles were so heavy and hard to move...

Eventually feeling himself engulfed in a giant bear hug, the brown-haired boy heard himself gasp even harder. "Are you alright? Y-Y-You scared me, p-please don't do that again..."

"S-S-Sor-r—" Trying to apologize was futile... It was somehow so hard to put his thoughts into words. The azure-eyed teen couldn't understand why... WHY... but he was still very much asleep to think too much about it. Roxas was beside him, and he was holding him so close in the middle of the night. What was this? Why now of all times? What would he have done if the Strife teen weren't around? He had pulled him from under the bedsheets and woken him up from a nightmare, a bad situation... but it was all okay now.

"Go back to sleep, I have you with me."

There were tears prickling his eyes... freshly shed from the overwhelming feeling of... this sadness... and this unknown yet familiar feeling of terror and fear that he didn't have long... that he'd leave him someday and... and he couldn't feel his arms wrap around the blonde, but Sora was positive... he was moving them.

"It's alright now, it's okay..."

~o~

When Sora awoke again, it was to the slow muttering sounds he could barely make out from his right.

"...Mother, please. I am fine. Yes, I'm aware. It's near. And no, I am not— I promise, I am in good health. Thank you, that's exactly what I've been saying. Okay, alright. I'll pick up, I assure you. Alright, byebye."

There was a long sigh and Sora could feel the bed shuffle — the guy was getting up. "I already know it's coming... Hn..."

Barely aware of his surroundings, the Leonhart teen noted his position on the bed. Face first on the pillow, a leg half-falling out. Only Piggersbie managed to stay beside him — the rest of his plushies had all tumbled to the ground. Traces of light illuminating the walls from the small window above him indicated it was already morning. Ugh. Not to mention, it was FREEZING, so he withdrew the exposed limb and hooked it behind his warm left leg.

He slept so uncomfortably, for someone sharing the bed with his new best friend/crush for the first time. Maybe it was because of last night's incident.

Ugh.

"Oh. You're awake." Roxas leaned on the blanketed lump that was the brunette just to check. His flaxen hair was all messy, and there were a few pillowcase marks on the right side of the Strife teen's face. Then he smiled. Still not an all-out happy smile, but it was good enough. Sora hid himself underneath the covers before a blush started to form.

Seriously?

"Good morning, blanket lump. How'd you sleep?"

"Terribly." His answer was a bit muffled from under the layers, so Roxas took pleasure in trying to dig him out. It was so cold! The last thing Sora wanted was cold air to enter his fort of pure warmth!

"I couldn't hear you, sorry. Come join me in the cold—"

"NO!" The burrowed Sora began to attack with kicks and punches, to which Roxas withdrew, ruffling his own hair.

"Okay, I won't— I won't dig you out anymore, ow, you definitely just kicked me at the side."

Whoops. "Sorry, are you alright?" Heck it was still so cold, but to his worry, Sora had emerged from the burrow to make sure he hadn't hurt Roxas. Of course, it was exactly what the blonde had wanted as the moment Sora had gotten out, he was immediately pinned back on the bed with a tackle hug.

"Gotcha. You took the bait, Sorbet~ You're so gullible." The whispers in his right ear gave him shivers — and yes, those were definitely not from the temperature of his room.

What was this world coming to, the brunette didn't even know anymore, he was probably still half asleep and tired, but judging from yesterday's mustache situation and what's currently HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, Sora could only conclude that oh, Roxas had a playful side. What does one even do with that information?! The warmth emanating from this amazingly surprising person above him made him all the more flustered, but alright, okay, they were good, he was okay, he needed to compose himself, woo.

It was going to take a while to get use to this change... ha ha...

Sora hugged back and began to wiggle under Roxas' weight. "You are so much heavier than normal. Guess I really have been fattening you up, huh?" He smelled so nice, and there was a hint of mint from the other's breath — he probably just came from the bathroom before that call. What time was it anyway...?

"I guess you have." The Strife teen wasn't getting off of him anytime soon. They laid there for a while, half listening to the rare calls of the morning birds, soaking up each other's warmth. If he'd been looking, Sora would have seen the gradually growing scarlet tint on the blonde's face.

There was something else the brown-haired teen wanted to say, but he'd somewhat forgotten what it was.

"You know, I had this weird dream last night, Sorbet... You were a chocolate ice cream... Like, a cone with legs and arms and even your brown hair... But then when I tried to say hi to you, you melted..."

"Just like that?"

"Yeah." Roxas huffed as Sora giggled at the image. So silly... so even Roxas had weird dreams, huh? "You won't mind me calling you Sorbet from now on, would you?"

"Why Sorbet?" An official nickname for him...? Everyone always called him Sor, and he called Roxas "Roxy" from time to time...

Nicknames meant they were getting closer to each other, right? Was Roxas... slowly letting him in...?

"Sorbet... because you're sweet." Roxas continued, finally sitting up and helping him up in the process. These short moments... where it was just the two of them together... Why have they changed so much for him? The beating of Sora's heart was getting louder in his ears, and he couldn't help but feel like the luckiest person on earth for being the one to see the many sides of Roxas... of his precious, supposedly nonchalant best friend. That thought alone was enough to warm him up and give him the confidence to keep doing what he did best. He would do everything he could to keep a smile on Roxas' face, and if he was doing it for completely different reasons than intended, then so be it.

"Mew."

Oh. The two teens both turned to the left side of Sora's room. Whiskers and Blue had been up for a while, making no noise, just staring at them stare at each other. The ginger kitten was on top of Mr Bunnykins, and Blue was adamantly nipping on Yankee's fluffy wing.

"How long have you guys been awake?" said the cerulean-eyed teen as he manouvered himself out of the bed to pick up his kitten and her new toy friend. He held Whiskers to himself gently and Sora watched as the former lovingly doted on their adorable pets.

"Meow."

"They're probably hungry. Shall we go down and get something to eat?"

"Yeah." Still half-buried in his blankets, Sora attempted to kick them off to join the three.

Roxas was already ahead of him when he finally remembered— last night. He hadn't thanked the Strife teen for helping him out last night. But just as he mentioned it on their way down to the kitchen, Roxas told him he couldn't remember doing such a thing, prompting him to worry that Sora's sickliness was returning instead. Once he established that he was fine, they both came down to a full family breakfast of omelette rice, hot corn soup and crème brulée for dessert. Like yesterday, Tifa and Squall were as accomodating as ever, and they carried on with their superb hosting while they both had the day off from work.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

It was that time of year again, and Roxas was somehow getting back into his... pre-said-time-of-year plans, per se. They weren't really real plans of sort — the blonde habitually did it because... it was the only thing he could do. Fast forwarding a few days from the sleepover and you'd think he couldn't live without Sora anymore, if tossing and turning in bed or constantly reaching for his phone was any more of an indication. He'd even changed Sora's contact name to Sorbet, spending at most, two of his nights tracing the outline of Sora's smile on the mobile screen. He was so brilliant.

It was another Thursday evening, and the second to last at that. Roxas thought of turning the thermostat on in his room, but he didn't really want to leave it overnight to beat the cold. He was saving up for something, hopefully. Blue was chewing on her favourite goose toy (she seemed to love nipping on everything lately) beside him, her little meow meow's keeping his supposedly lonely home a bit livelier. Having her around kept him sane, for lack of a better word.

What was it that he used to do to cope? To keep living for a new day without his twin? Almost around this time last year, the Strife teen had purchased a thousand locks for his room back at Twilight Town and installed them all on the same day. It was an en suite, and there was a refrigerator next to the television (it was Ven's thing, the ridiculously snack-obsessed freak), so he managed to survive the splendid isolation. The year before that, he drew on the walls of the same en suite, charcoaled hands blackened like his heart, rereading over the words — when will you come back, Ventus, please... AGAIN AND AGAIN as they looped over themselves on the beige space. He wasn't able to cover the result of his grief with paint, and his mother cried for him as he continuously destroyed himself in front of her.

This year would be different, he told himself. Roxas knew it would be. Ventus' anniversary may be coming soon, but that wasn't going to... he wasn't going to ruin himself like his mother believed he would do. She'd called again yesterday. And today. It was to his surprise that he'd woken up to more text messages than usual — fifteen of them coming from Hayner, Pence and Olette combined. His mother just HAD to give them his number...

There was a pile of books on top of his green duvet, and the one the blonde has opened was some fantasy story about time travel and a love so strong it could last for many lifetimes. Along with the circle of stray clothes significantly surrounding the foot of his bed, his empty dinner plate was on the floor, and his voice recorder and his brother's lucky charm were an arm's reach beside the novels. Sitting cross-legged on the duvet in... a lion suit he wouldn't be caught dead in, Roxas gritted his teeth at the sight of himself at the drawer mirror in front of him.

If he had Ven's star birthmark, they would have looked exactly alike. Even if his eyelashes were longer, and his hair was a lot tamer than his brother's. But it wasn't Ventus he saw on the mirror, and it could never be. Even if these were His favourite pajamas...

There was no letting go.

Roxas knew his friends back home were worried, because he had never wanted any help and had never asked for it. He had closed off everyone else back then, and any mention of going to a psychologist or psychiatrist made his withdrawal from those who cared about him even more imminent. Please, as if any of them would understand what he'd been through. He hated being told they were sorry for his loss, because if they were sorry, they would have been just like him — a broken mess on the floor with nothing left to live for. But they didn't cry like he did, and they weren't the ones who lost a piece of their souls, so they would never and could never understand.

Roxas wasn't going to do this to himself again... He wasn't going to... he refused to... he wouldn't...

He could carry on... now that he had—

.

.

.

"Meow~!" The grey kitten eventually got bored of her toy and proceeded to entertain herself by pawing on Roxas' leg. "Meow! Meoooow!" Love me! Love meeeeeee, she seemed to be saying. The blonde snapped out of whatever world he was in and rose an eyebrow at his pet.

"You have the shortest attention span ever," he commented offhandedly, gently picking up the kitten and drawing her close to his face. Blinking back inquisitive sapphire eyes, Blue purred and licked the top of his nose. "Mew."

"Pfft... Have you already been picking up my traits, love? You are so much like me. But you're a lot cuter, aren't you, you adorable, easily-bored clingy kit?"

"Ngraow." She wanted down already — a soft paw on his cheek and Roxas knew it would be futile to fight against her wishes. "Meow." She then attempted to climb the pile of books, and eventually—

"Blue, no pouncing on the recorder. Brother Ven won't be able to hear you then." He pouted, pulling her into his lap and coddling her. Heh, pouting. Who knew he could be so animated...? And he was in lion overalls too, complete with the mane hoodie, and there was an equally adorable kitty on his lap. Oh the hilarity.

"Meow~!"

"Shall we go say hi then? And then we'll read a chapter together and maybe talk to Sorbet...?"

The cat knew her owner's... friend by name, because at the mention of the nickname, she immediately looked up at him and held out a paw. It took only three days for her to learn how to give a hi five, and Roxas tilted his head in amusement at the sudden enthusiasm.

"Alright." Roxas sniffed, reaching for the recorder. "What should we tell brother Ven first...?"

.

.

.

—This was his life now, the cerulean-eyed teen reminded himself as he petted Blue's fur while she slept. The kit seemed perfectly happy even when he left her at the brunette's everyday during school, and watching his pet grow without her sister taught him some things. He could do it. It was possible. And he wasn't truly alone.

He had Blue with him now, and then there was also Sora.

.

.

.

.

.

Sora.

Sora, Sora...

God, just thinking about him... his smile and his endearing personality, that ridiculously crazy optimistic side the boy had...

Damn it, right? He couldn't smile ALL OUT like he used to YET, but being able to physically grin about something that made him happy was a big change to his persona compared to the past. And it was all because of this one brunette, who thought he could change a person's life with small token gestures to extravagant, priceless, compassionate actions.

...Roxas could do this. If not for himself, then for the boy who believed in him even without knowing his whole situation. He would always miss Ventus, the blonde knew that. But even though he still believed himself to be the pathetic lost cause he was, he was going to try.

Because someone so bright was adamant enough to break down his many walls and share that light with him. He'd never be able to reciprocate the same gestures, but it was his turn to make Sora smile, even for just a little while.

It wasn't terribly late yet, but squinting at the phone he used to keep in one of his drawers for months on end (because who the heck would he even talk to and why the heck would he need to use something like that when he had a whole shelf full of books), the sixteen year old knew he should sleep soon. It was nice, rereading over his first few conversations with the azure-eyed teen. Hi. Hello. Are you awake? Good morning. I'm coming oveerrr! Lately though, Sor's replies have been just as minimal, like the guy was forever muling over what to say as Roxas watched the, "Sorbet is typing..." bubble, only to receive a quick, "okay" or "that's so cool" back.

Something was bothering Sora.

And it had something to do with himself.

He'd figure it out, maybe. Naminé (she had somewhat wanted his number but he gave it to her anyway) texted him this morning that she and her twin wanted to speak with him in regards to Sora, so he had to be up early the next day to meet them at the library.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

"Look at you, putting books away in their proper places, Mr Industrious." Kairi grinned, leaning against the current aisle's right bookshelf. Naminé was with her, the both of them dressed in different-coloured matching winter coats. There was a trolley cart beside Roxas full of returned items, and being a part-time librarian, he was in charge of shelving them (because apparently, none of the other part-time librarians could do it right... Tch, come on people, read the labels!)

"I'm not actually doing any hard work, to be honest. If anyone else were to do this, hah. They'd be dying." He replied back, picking up another two books and scanning for the P section. The next three books belonged to Q, and that was at the next aisle. "I'm almost done with this. You girls can sit down while you wait."

"No, it's okay. We'll just watch you do your thing." muttered Naminé. She and Kairi shared this knowing look before giggling to themselves.

The afternoon was rolling in and the twins decided to pay the cerulean-eyed teen a visit during library working hours. For some reason, they knew about his part time job (courtesy of Sora), and lately, Roxas had been coming in more often to avoid being idle at home for the holidays and to earn a little bit of pocket money. It wasn't troublesome at all. For twenty dollars an hour (and the blonde worked for four), he had to shelve at least five carts of returned items and sit at reception for the remaining two hours to issue items to patrons or be available for queries. And since rent was a hundred and twenty dollars a week, his weekends during the term were sort of busy, even with his mother sending in some of her allowance every fortnight. Luckily for him, Roxas got paid after the end of every shift.

Overtime was no problem for him this winter holiday. Roxas wanted to keep himself occupied, and on top of that, he was saving up for something. And that something was in fact the very thing he wanted to discuss with Naminé and Kairi. It wasn't anything along the lines of conspiracy, but it was a secret regarding Sora, so it may as well be. Some half an hour of moving along the next few aisles to clear the cart or, in the twins' case, observing the wild Roxas at his line of work, the two found themselves joining the Strife teen for his break.

"I'm taking him out next week." Roxas said simply, unwrapping his sandwich. He had three others so he insisted the girls share his lunch with him so he wasn't the only one eating. "I haven't asked Sora yet, but I will soon. We'll be leaving Destiny Village however, so it's sort of far. And a tiny bit pricey with the travel fares. But it's worth it if I want to make him happy."

...Kairi gasped, her eyes widening at the confession. Naminé too. After a minute of silence, almost choking on their sandwiches and the exchange of communicative sapphire gazes, they bursted out into a fit of giggles and unstoppable "aww"ing. It was a good thing they were at a secluded part of the library because they were so loud... The ever-so-serious Roxas didn't understand what the big deal was.

"That's so sweet, Roxas! Where are you taking him? We were actually gonna tell you today that maybe it's time to make a move on Sora, since, well, he's probably dying of confusion and would be too flustered to do anything, haha. Turns out we don't have to convince you anymore! Nam even has adorable pictures of Sor that she was going to blackmail you with, pfft. Oh, this is so awesome, finally!" The red-haired girl smirked as she wiped a proud tear away. Blackmail material... What were these girls trying to plot?

"He's going to be happy wherever you take him. Just... not to a garbage site or makeshift gladiator fight. Somewhere within reason of course." Naminé added, her smile just as wide as her sister's. The reddening of Roxas' cheeks as he told them this didn't escape her notice, and it was enough for her to one hundred percent believe that both the boys' feelings were mutual for each other. So adorable...

"It's winter, and while I've never seen snow and know that snow doesn't fall here, I was thinking of maybe doing something season-themed. There's a really popular ice skating arena at Traverse Town, and the most efficient way to get there is two hours by bus. I've also already reserved tickets for a nearby circus online so I'll just have to pay when I get there. Do you think he'll like that?"

"Oooooh man, it already sounds like a perfect first date; I'm so excited for the both of you...!" Fanning herself with both hands, Kairi took a deep breath to avoid the "couldn't even" phase again. ""And his prince, who worked long hours at the library to cover every fare, including two bus tickets, ice skating shoe rentals and admission, a romantic lunch and dinner and two circus passes in order to spend time with his one true love, succeeded in writing their happily ever after..." Nam, save me from the feels...!"

"No way, Kai! I'm still trying to grasp the reality of it all myself!"

Roxas, who had eventually finished his lunch and thermos of hot chocolate, was listening to them bicker in front of him. He silently wondered how Sora could deal with them and their peculiar phases and random bouts of emotion... What was it with girls and their feels or whatever? But he wouldn't deny that their calling this a date wasn't amusing. He really did like Sora, but this was hardly a date. It was merely a day out with a friend the blonde was very much fond of to sort of repay him for all the nice things he's done for him. This couldn't even compare to Sora's selfless gestures for him over the months.

He scrunched his nose. "It'd be nice if it were a date, but..."

"But? But WHAT?" That seemed to catch their attention. "You're paying for everything, you like him, he likes you, how is this not a date?!"

"He can't like me..." Turning the other way, the cerulean-eyed teen grasped the neck of his thermos as he focused on a chair somewhere across the room. "Lately he's been a bit distant when I try to talk to him. Probably thinks it's awkward so I'm a little worried he'll even say yes." He didn't deny their accusation of his own feelings for Sora, but still...

"Oh wow, you two are completely hopeless." Back to square one it was. And here Kairi thought she didn't need to explain anything after that date announcement. "You know, there's this thing called denial, and you two are drowning in it." Before he could protest, she shushed him and continued, "Shhh, let me speak. We were going to let nature run its natural course but if we wanted something to happen it would probably be in a million years' time so, forgive us for intruding. If you don't know it yet, then let me tell you that Sora is terrified you might reject him or some sort, and that's why he's a little distant because it's just recently that he found out he has a crush on you and he's confused."

"You think Sora has an actual crush on me?" The blonde boy wanted to clarify.

Naminé sighed. "He'll get mad if he finds out about this, sis."

"He won't. And If he does find out, he'll thank me instead. Now, why do you think he's been hanging out with you for so long? It's because you're special to him, for reasons I can't explain, and sure, call it wanting to tackle a challenge he's never faced before, the competitive weirdo, but it isn't entirely that. You definitely haven't noticed it but he's been smiling more because of you. Just calling him on the phone, the three of us best friends can tell his slightly bubblier voice tone from his usual ecstatic one. And his eyes are a lot brighter too. Heck, if he went around hugging every single person he helps I will thwap his head for being a creeper and sure he's touchy feely but not to the extent where he'd go all in the rain to walk with someone to school and the only reason he's withdrawing right now is to distract himself so he doesn't end up exploding from embarrassment and—"

"Okay, okay, I get it." Roxas gritted his teeth, still staring at that one chair. He secretly considered that maybe Sora felt something for him as well, but it was too farfetched considering... it was him they were talking about. He wasn't worth all that trouble for someone so dear and marvellous and hah. Maybe he was drowning in denial.

"You do like him, don't you? Like, like like? You just admitted you wished it were a date." The blonde girl inquired, eyebrows furrowed in the process.

"I do."

"And he likes you too, so there isn't a problem anymore! Happy couple, happy everything, hurrah, hurrah! Give the boy a prize!" Kairi gestured to her sister to hand over the aforementioned adorable Sora photographs from her polaroid. "Well then, with this upcoming date already established, our business here is done. Don't worry. We won't intrude anymore, so take your time telling him how you feel. He'll come around too once he sees that his feelings for you are mutual."

They both got up and thanked him for the sandwiches and wasted no time fixing up their winter coats before heading for the door. "Don't leave it too long, though! We'll still be watching from the sidelines for the next episode in Sora and Roxas' love story. Episode 53, the long awaited date! You both take care, okay?"

.

.

.

...Girls. Even as he resumed his shift at the reception and relieved one of the older ladies from cataloguing work, Roxas still found it necessary to ask himself why they were so odd. He'd never know.

What he did know for sure was that he was going to try his absolute best to give Sora the most amazing first date ever.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Random plans for Sorbet: a checklist of what to do to make him happy

1) Day out (no, date. Day out. If you say it fast enough it sounds like "date"... Whatever, it's the same thing (￣Д￣)ﾉ) I'm taking him ice skating and to a circus. I never asked him if he'd been to both before, but judging from his never being out of Destiny Village except for the rare sports competitions, he probably hasn't. I don't plan on asking him either because I want it to be a surpise.

2) Then there's picking him up at home to school and dropping him off. Now that I think about it, he's always happy to see me.

3) More lunches. I'm nowhere near as good the ever-so-boastful, current month's Leonhart Master Chef but I'd like to take the time to prepare him food more often.

4) Try to smile more, maybe? Ven's anniversary is in a few days. I can do this. I'll prove that everything Sora's done for me wasn't a waste of time. And Mother will be happy for me instead of constantly worrying. I really do adore him, and I miss her as well.

...I will be okay.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Remember almost a week ago, when Sora thought he wanted to die because of exams?

Currently, he was kind of suffering a similar mind blank, and the brunette couldn't decide which was worse between the two. It kind of reminded him of this picture he saw online — something along the lines of, "Your brain is so amazing, it works nonstop to keep you alive but only stops when you're in an exam or see someone attractive" or whatever. Roxas called him just a while ago, and the boy had to pinch himself three times because he thought he was dreaming. Not that he always dreamed about Roxas, hah, no way, ahahahahahaha, what? Pfft!

Whiskers was tackling the refrigerator — a sign she wanted to eat. His mother was at the laundry room chucking the clothes in the dryer and sorting out the next batch, loud washer noises audible even at the dining room. At least she couldn't see how piteous he was. Oh woe, woe, woeeeee...

Picking the cat up and scavenging the cupboards for her favourite canned food, Sora put her on the table and emptied the can into her food bowl. "Don't tackle things, Whiskers. You'll hurt yourself."

"Mew."

The azure-eyed teen then proceeded to start worrying about his inescapable predicament. A day out with Roxas... with only the two of them (nothing new about that though)... to some surprise place outside town. Bring warm clothes and make sure to wear socks, Roxas said. I'll pick you up at your house on Monday, he said. Sora had no time to think of a proper reply, but he agreed to go anyway, albeit eagerly at that. "Y-Yes of course! Uuhh, that sounds awesome, I'd love to go!" Could he be any more pathetic?

"Great. I promise you'll love it. Don't worry about the expenses — I've got it all covered, mmkay? See ya soon."

.

.

.

Gaaaaaaaaah, what to do what to do what to dooooooooo?! This was ridiculous, he's been out with Roxas before, but never alone! And never OUT OF TOWN EITHER! The blonde seemed confident that they'd get there and back in less than twelve hours, and Sora trusted him. But that wasn't what he was worried about. As Whiskers bathed herself after her meal and the brunette continuously paced around the dining room with his hair in his hands, the thought that this was A DATE couldn't escape his mind. That very thought alone was so foreign and heartstopping that in his shock, his subconscious took over, erased all signs of rationality and repeatedly flashed the words DATE DATE DATE DATE DATE in front of his eyes.

Any more stupid Google articles about crush advice would make the boy's head explode, for God's sake. If you have pointed your shoes at his direction, then this might be a sign you like him. GAAAAAH!

"GAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"Woah, Sora dear. Are you alright?" His mother asked him from the next room.

"Fine, Mom! Sorry, just thinking!" She stuck her head through the door to check that he was in fact, alright, and upon seeing him circling the table in a panic, grinned. "Oh poor baby. If this is about Roxas—"

"Mom!"

"I've known you for sixteen years, Sora, and I've watched that video about a dozen times to know that you do like him. Trust me, love. It'll get better soon." Then she went back to the laundry.

Sora gradually sunk to the ground even after hearing the encouragement. He cared none for what he would wear (warm clothes and socks like the blonde said — there was a really comfortable blue hoodie he liked and his waterproof black pants would do) but worried more about how he was going to handle the day. The ginger kitten had already walked around the perimeter of the table to find the safest way to get down, and, once she leaped on and slid down one of the chairs, she ran to him and frantically climbed his sweats.

"Okay, okay, picking you up. Sorry. Oh Whiskers, what do I do now? I'm aware it's just another day out but I can't help but feel so nervous. Why? WHYYYYY?"

"Meow meow." Blink. Blink. Her tail was still pretty short compared to a full grown cat's tail, but the kitten was curling and uncurling it.

His friends... Talk to your friends.

Kairi.

Naminé.

"Nooo!" He responded firmly. "I can't talk to them about this! They'll laugh at me! And Riku said he wouldn't help me so he's out too! I am so doomed."

"Mreeeeow..." That could have been Whiskers' interpretation of, "it's entirely up to you" in the language of cats, but Sora could only assume that since he couldn't really meow.

"Don't give me that look! You're going to make me consider it, are you?"

"...mreeow."

"Stop."

"Mew."

"No."

"...meow."

.

.

.

...And so after much deliberation and telling himself to suck up his pride, Sora finally consulted his best friends about the... date. He had two days to prepare, and the brunette was unsure if this was good or a bad thing. Good being he had enough time to prepare. Bad being that was too long a time to wait. The girls were more than helpful with reinstructing him to bring comfortable clothes and leaving unnecessary baggage, and instead of laughing at his misery like he believed they would have done, they both told him to keep it cool and be himself. "You guys are best friends, are you not? He won't care if you're acting different. If anything he'll think it's endearing."

"Pretend it's an English speech and imagine him naked. No wait, actually no, don't do that, bad advice Naminé, bad. But you know what I mean. Just take deep breaths and you'll do fine. Bring your Dramamine, kay? Do you have new ones somewhere in the house?"

"I'll ask Mom to buy some. Thanks you two."

After getting off the phone, Sora had immediately rushed upstairs to begin his preparations because, why leave it till last minute? In the process he found his favourite woolly scarf and matching beanie and chucked those on top of his bed. Warm clothes... did that include gloves too? Roxas hadn't told him where they were heading. Maybe they were going to see snow?!

Wherever it was, all that mattered was he was with the blonde. Hnnnnnnn... Monday couldn't come any faster!

~o~

It was night time. Sora was just about to go to bed when he'd remembered the orange blanket Roxas used for their sleepover back inside his closet and decided to sleep with it. Nothing creepy about it, HAH. Said blanket now smelled like coconuts and honey, and, well, it was almost like Roxas was beside him. Okay, maybe that was a little creepy. He was sorry! The brunette couldn't sleep with so much anticipation in his nerves, and pestering Roxas with questions when it was already late would kill the fun in keeping their "date location" a surprise.

~o~

Saturday, three pm. Sora threw himself on the sofa after lunch at Riku's. Whiskers actually got along with Diana, and the cockatoo was more than happy to learn how to meow instead of learning human speech. The silverette and himself had played video games all day, and since the weather outside wasn't too bad, they also hanged out some at Riku's backyard and climbed the trees that stood there like they always did. He looked for the remote and went channel browsing as he waited an hour for the Nobody Show. Suddenly, an hour didn't seem so long anymore.

~o~

Seven pm. His mom was working night shift and his dad made them both a creamy mushroom and beef stroganoff dish for dinner. The ginger cat was already asleep by the time he'd emerged from the bathroom to see how he could fix his hair. Granted, he'd wear his beanie over it, but the azure-eyed teen still wanted to make sure it was okay if it came off. And he may have practiced a few facial expressions to keep himself from acting too weird. Just a few. He learnt there was no stopping a blush unless it was dark or he could turn away as subtly as he could.

~o~

Sunday morning. Sora woke up to a dream of already going on the date. They built a few snowmen and watched the shooting stars and when the Leonhart teen wasn't looking, Roxas kissed him on the cheek. Oh haha, risky territory there. Nope. Nope. If he fell out of bed one more time, he'd hurt himself. Hurting himself equals not being to go tomorrow equals forever sad face good game. Tomorrow! Tomorrow, yay! He probably shouldn't be too excited. Being super excited for something was usually bad news because one's expectations usually exceeded reality. No more hype. No more.

~o~

Sunday afternoon. Roxas called him to check in. The blonde didn't know he was prone to motion sickness because of his background, so he'd told him just in case. It's why Sora usually walked to places. The Strife teen told him he was currently in town so he'll buy him some tablets, and no matter how many times Sora told him his mother would get them instead, Roxas wouldn't agree. "I got it covered, Sorbet. Do you need Paracetamol too?" The thought of Roxas shopping for him made his heart palpitate. He bashed his head against a pillow to counter the feels.

~o~

Night time again. Nope. Nope. Nope. He was going to sleep fine and wake up early and eat breakfast early and brush his teeth early and fix his hair early and change into warm clothes early and grab his bag early and leave his house with Roxas early. Dwelling on it tonight would mean he wouldn't be able to sleep and being tired for tomorrow equals not being to enjoy himself equals... yes, he gets the point.

Woe.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Commencing Special Phase One: The Unforgettable Day-Out-Date!

"Nine am, Sora! Wakey wakey! Wakey wakey! Oi, self. Get up! GET UP!"

Sora rarely used alarms. He had an automatic body clock, so no matter what time he slept, he'd immediately rise early. He woke up at school time as usual but because it was the holidays, he decided to burrow himself back and sleep in. Whiskers was at the right side of his bed, half covered by the orange polyester blanket.

The rare chance that Sora did rely on alarms, like today, they were usually voice recordings with several others coming up, each alert five minutes apart. Five past nine, ten past nine. Eight fifty-five am. Eight fifty am.

"Wakey wakey! Muuu. You know, if you stay asleep, Mom and Dad will come in and turn me off and then they'll figure out that you've got a date today and fine, argue with me that they already know and that it's not a date because calling it a date is embarrassing but they'll mock you and talk about that weird home video and grandchildren and you're going to die even more of embarrassment so you better ge—"

"I'm up!" Insanity at its worst — the brunette was shouting at a recording he made himself for the very purpose of riling him up in the morning. It was ten times colder in his room, so he wrapped himself up burrito style in the orange blanket to counter the cold temperature, making sure to avoid waking up his pet. Then he wormed his way down the stairs, butt-first. Leon found Burrito-Sora crawling across the lounge and cracked himself up.

Little did the brunette know that Roxas did the exact same thing just over an hour ago, with the exception of being all alone at home. The blonde's house didn't have stairs, so it was easier (not really) to get around to the kitchen. Classic rice crispies and milk tea for breakfast — quick and easy to make. One brisk shower, his twin's favourite cream fleece jacket, some gloves, red waterproof trousers, shoes and a hat later, he was making his way out the door with a satchel containing everything he needed and a sleeping Blue to drop off for pet sitting.

The long-awaited knock didn't come until Sora had finished debating over which socks to wear. Plain white, plain black, grey or multicoloured? He was sitting on his desk chair checking himself out in the mirror when his mother called him from downstairs. "Roxas is here, sweetie! He's brought Blue!"

"Just a second!" The ginger kitten was barely waking up, and after deciding on wearing grey socks, the boy carried her in his arms and thundered down to meet their guests.

Of course, mid-thundering down, Sora figured he should probably slow down so a) he wouldn't fall over with Whiskers and b) he wouldn't seem too excited. Roxas was standing by the door wearing his outdoor satchel and carrying Blue's kitty basket in his right hand. Luckily enough, on her days off, Tifa gladly looked after the kittens (there were already a few home videos in her camera of them pouncing around) whenever the two boys couldn't, as she was really fond of cats.

The blonde spoke first, putting the basket down on the floor. "Um, hi Sorbet." It was amazing what bright-coloured clothes could do to Roxas' form — at least, in the brunette's mind, his crush/friend looked a hundred times, well, brighter. Combining that with the tiny smile Roxas wore immediately after seeing him was a massive blow to his already unstably-beating heart. But whilst all this happened with Sora internally, the boy was simply grinning stupidly in reality. Wooooow.

"You, um, look great, ha ha. Have you eaten breakfast? Dad probably has some leftover apple pie—"

"I have eaten, but thanks. You, err, you look great as well, Sor." He muttered, extending a hand out to flick through Sora's fringe. Tifa who was leaning against the china cabinet in the living room was tempted to clear her throat as she overlooked the boys' interactions. Oh her dearest baby Sora...

After a few moments of simply gazing at one another, Roxas checked for the time. "Oh, well, we better get going. Bus leaves at around ten forty-five. Do you have a few spare warm clothes?"

Sora nodded, but realized his bag was still upstairs by his bed. Excusing himself, the azure-eyed teen left the half awake kitten with his mother and quickly dashed back up to grab it. Once downstairs, he saw the blonde talking to his mother and bowing gracefully as she took Blue's basket.

"I'll have him home by ten pm, Mrs Leonhart. The packet says one pill thirty minutes prior to travelling, is that correct?"

"That's right. Sora knows what to do. You boys have fun now. Take your time and stay safe!"

.

.

.

It was silent for a while between them as they made their way out of Sora's street and continued towards the town route. The local weather was somewhat tame, but as it was winter, the air was still chilly and they unconsciously chose to walk closer to each other. Warm puffs of breath visibly formed in front of them, and their gloved hands, scarfs and bonnets kept them comfortable.

Out of nowhere, Roxas started to shoot the Leonhart teen funny looks from the right, and the brunette kept trying to catch him doing so once he felt the feeling of being stared at. It was completely random, but it felt so normal for them to be together like this. To do really ridiculous things in one another's presence. Once Sora caught Roxas mid-poking his tongue out, they both started snickering at each other.

"Oh my gosh, are you giggling?" The realization that Roxas was in fact, laughing for the first time had dawned on Sora and he definitely couldn't help but notice that.

"N-No, I'm not. Not giggling. I don't giggle."

"Just now, you were! I can't believe this, the super serious Roxas Strife is actually giggling."

"Don't believe it because it didn't happen."

"Liar!"

"You're delusional."

"Why are you trying to deny it, you definitely just giggled." Almost forgetting this was his crush he was talking to, Sora continued to poke fun at the blonde on the way to town. It wasn't far, and they still had plenty of time to spare before the designated bus time.

"Nuh-uh. Did not."

"Did."

"Hn."

The brunette rolled his eyes. "Are you for real, now you're going to hnn at me?"

"Yes I am. That means I win." Roxas said finally, bumping his companion to the side before taking his hand and walking ahead. "Come on, we better walk faster." There was a forming blush on his cheeks that could have been easily mistaken as the effects of the weather on his skin, but he definitely wanted to avoid talking about it should Sora catch a glimpse of it. The latter on the other hand found himself feeling a lot more confident after that incident and he visibly relaxed as they walked in step with each other.

~o~

Upon their arrival to town, the two boys had to manouver themselves through a few passersby, all wearing several layers under business suits or casuals to counter the climate. Who knew it was so busy today? Granted it was a Monday morning, so there were people on phones filtering to and fro the shops to look around or purchase what they needed. There was a parade of buses all lined up in the parking lot of the bus terminal across the local library — all of them heading to different places based on the monitors displayed in every front of each vehicle. They were just about to cross the road to head there when one of the ladies from the library called out to Roxas and gave him her thanks.

"Not on shift today, love? You were coming in everyday since Tuesday."

"Not today, Mrs P. You could say I'm reaping what I sowed." He held Sora's hand up, and with understanding eyes the old woman nodded.

"Ahh. Well that's very nice of you. Take care now. We appreciate having you around, Roxas."

It wasn't until after they had gone through the terminal (thank goodness there were very few lines) and boarded their bus that Sora asked what that was all about. The middle seats were the least occupied of spots, and for the brunette's sake it was much closer to the bus toilet and easier to directly leave through the middle door. It wasn't a two-storey bus like the other three lined up next to it, but it was still travel-worthy, especially to a somewhat far off place like Traverse Town.

"Was that someone you work with, Rox? What did she mean by you coming in everyday?"

"Hmm? You want to know about Mrs P?" Roxas had handed his satchel to Sora to search for the Dramamine chewable packet while he momentarily went to the front to show their paid return tickets to the bus driver. Aside from that familiar star-shaped charm and the neatly-folded (bright-coloured) spare clothes, there was an icepack and a whole packet of vomit bags in the older teen's satchel, along with some headache pills, a travel pillow, drinks, Sora's favourite chocolate and bandages. Roxas was thoroughly prepared for today...

He opened up the medicine box and chucking one pill in his mouth, began to chew when the blonde had returned.

"I seem to recall you like strawberry over lemon. Is it alright?"

"Yeah, thanks. Now tell me about work! I s-should have known you were busy all week..." Well, in actuality, Sora was too conflicted to talk to Roxas all week even when he wanted to. First crush or whatnot, they were still friends, so it shouldn't have been hard but...

It's nothing really." Roxas shrugged, leaning against the back of his seat. "I've just been working extra to pay off this trip. You've been doing so much for me these past few months and, well, I wanted to do something for you too. Even if it's something as little as taking you to a really cool place, because I know it won't compare to having you beside me right now." Cerulean orbs looked everywhere and anywhere but at Sora. "Sorry if it seems I've been hurrying us up too much... I'm... really excited for this."

The blonde didn't know he was pouting, and when the two met each other's gazes, they both quickly looked away.

...

...

...aww.

That was... so sweet...

Now Sora knew how Roxas felt about wanting to repay his favours, because just looking at those items the blonde brought or witnessing his friend's childish, affectionate side made him so grateful that the other boy cared enough for him to bring his favourite chocolate bar or have him humbly talk about working to take him out. Did he really do all this for him? Did Roxas willingly go out of his way to do this for him and him alone? "...because I know it won't compare to having you beside me right now..." Eeep! Hearing that from this unbelievably superb individual he happened to be really fond of made him blush tenfold — God, he'd probably be rivalling the hue of Mars right now.

Darn, how much did everything cost? But just like him buying the Glass of Ember series months ago (Sora's friends were really to thank for that), costs don't matter if you really care about someone, because their happiness is priceless in itself. Ahhhhh! What was this feeling in his chest, or the ever-so-growing collection of butterflies in his stomach in response to having someone care about him so much?

All this time, it'd always been him making other people smile. He was always thinking about other people over himself, and it mattered not that only a select few cared for him as much as he did for others. He loved making people happy. Sure, Sora's had other people do the same for him, but never to the extent of planning every little thing like he did, or sacrificing their own time and happiness for his sake.

Sora didn't care who was looking when he slowly and hesitantly snuggled against the Strife teen, a thousand "thank you"s on his lips. Roxy was so warmhearted, gaww...

"I should be thanking you, Sorbet. I really hope you like where we're going."

At quarter to eleven, give or take a few minutes, their bus took off and headed for the motorway exiting the quaint and quiet Destiny Village. It had been a long while since Sora last saw the several tall trees lining the highway road, their elongated trunks and branches sturdier than the last. A body of water that was more the sea than a separate lake could be seen from either side, and the brunette kept his eyes open for the rare billboards and streetlights.

He didn't feel the nausea kick in until the bus picked up speed. Were buses always this fast, because the turbulence was a little intimidating... All the other passengers were busy doing their own thing, and Roxas was on his phone texting his mother, probably. Being in motion for longer than ten minutes, especially if there were several twists and turns ahead was never a good thing for him. Short rides were alright. Sora took a deep breath to will the terrible imbalance in his stomach away and tried to rest his eyes.

"Ugh..." Two hours wasn't too long... right? It wasn't like his head was hurting that bad. When Roxas took notice, the blonde pulled out the travel pillow from his satchel and hooked it around Sora's scarved neck. Then he guided the azure-eyed teen's head onto his shoulder.

"Take it easy, okay..." The gentle pats on his arm made him feel better, at least. Their day out was barely starting but already, as his friend absentmindedly hummed a tune to help him sleep, the Leonhart teen wished that it wouldn't end so quickly.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Sora was asleep on his shoulder.

Only a select few people knew about Roxas' nurturing side. The brunette did tell him about his biological sickliness a few weeks ago, and for such a strong individual like him, it was almost unbelievable that Sora used to be so frail. He didn't stay frail, that was for sure. Instead of letting such a fate dictate his life, he stayed positive and grew stronger, for his sake and those around him. Then he proceeded to brighten people's lives as a result of his experience. The brunette was no longer bedridden, but motion sickness and the occasional bouts of breathlessness were still present.

Now, as he carefully stroked the few falling strands of his friend's fringe from under his bonnet back into place, Roxas thought there was absolutely no way he'd let anything happen to this angel. The knowledge that Sora maybe probably definitely maybe liked him too was evident through the short flustered moments the other tried so desperatedly to hide, and it was so cute... How was it that he hadn't noticed it before? Sora's budding feelings... and his own... And he was supposed to be the smart guy, heh.

Never... He'd never ever let anything happen to Sora, ever.

Roxas was currently on the lookout for any recognizable buildings similar to the ones he had researched on some days ago. Famous food outlet sign... The power tower next to a few not-so-well-known shops... He was positive they were almost to the main Traverse Town bus terminal, which, according to the maps, was about a two hundred meter walk from the ice skating arena. Traverse Town was city-based, and therefore not as widely affected by the weather as the coastal Destiny Village. Despite this, the locals Roxas could see around were stylishly dressed for the cold.

"Last stop, everybody, last stop!" The bus driver announced through the speakers just in case. There was a massive speed bump along the entrance of the parking lot that woke Sora up suddenly, sending him into a panicked frenzy. "No! I'm not ready to die!" He gripped onto Roxas' arm and tried to hide under it for protection until the bus had come to a complete stop.

"Shh. We're here now, you're safe with me." Roxas told him as he tried not to react to the outburst. The chocolate-haired teen had been clinging to him tightly, only to abruptly let go when he came to his senses. "'Msorry."

Aww, adorable angel...

He quickly packed up his satchel and double checked Sora was alright before they both stood up and began to leave.

.

.

.

"Waaaah! Traverse Town is so lively! It's got a lot of neon signs even in the day, huh?" Sora exclaimed as he glanced over the tall buildings and wacky streetlights. The streets were narrower than Destiny Village's local town, and the excessive use of neon lightings gave it a sort of futuristic look. Roxas took pleasure in seeing how overjoyed his beloved friend was.

"It does." he replied. While Sora skipped ahead and joyfully toured the current lane, Roxas followed close behind, still looking out for right direction. "Want me to lead you to the place with your eyes closed or do you want to see it for yourself?"

"Oooh! T-That sounds cool. I like surprises."

"Alright then." They just had to turn left the next corner and walk across a small field to get to the ice skating arena, hopefully passing by the circus tent in the process. "I'm going to lead the way, you just keep walking, yeah?"

"Got it."

It was too bad Sora wouldn't get to see the rest of the town as the Strife teen closed the gap between them and kept Sora's eyes shut with gloved hands. "Walk twenty paces forward and turn left. I'll tell you when." He whispered next to the other's ear. Then he let go and gently pulled him by the hand through a throng of city people, his eyes never leaving Sora's form.

~o~

The ice skating arena was a lot bigger inside compared to the shots Roxas had seen online. There was a souvenir shop directly to the left upon entering, then in front of them was a hall leading to the three-person reception. Further forward to the left was a room for equipment rentals, the person managing it hopping from one shoe aisle to the other to find the appropriate requested sizes. According to the signage and the direction the commonfolk seemed to be going, the right side of the hall would lead to two ice skating rinks: the popular public skating rink and the further, slightly larger private rink reserved for professional ice skaters and ice hockey practices.

"Wow, it's cold. We're in a building right? I think we are. Is this where we're going to build snowmen?" Sora with his eyes still closed inquired. Well, the boy's guess wasn't far from the actual thing. Roxas approached him and adjusted his friend's beanie and scarf a bit, generally making sure he was warm enough.

"You can open your eyes now, Sorbet."

...And so the latter slowly did. The first thing the brunette saw as he blinked several times wasn't even his surroundings — it was Roxas wearing a face he'd never seen before, a nervous and anticipating one, maybe. Was the blonde actually biting his lip? Sora circled the place and sidestepped around the hall, searching for any clue to where "here" was.

Was it an indoor snow mountain? He'd heard of such places in the past. The rooftop was concave-shaped, almost similar to Destiny's aquarium dome. A LED sign above the reception displayed the room temperature of negative six degrees, and several people crowded the hall, their fat winter coats varying in colours.

Then he saw the ice skating shoe and beginner's rails rental room and gasped.

"Ice skating?" Sora turned to Roxas with a dumbfounded yet eager expression on his face. "Ice skating, we're going ice skating, we're— we're going ice skating. Roxas, I don't know how to ice skate. I've n-never been ice skating, this is so cool, we're— w-we're going to ice skate."

"Y-Yeah, yeah we are. Do you like it? I though it'd be nice to try something new but appropriate for the season. I'm not too bad at it, it's alright if you can't. I'll teach you." Keeping Sora steady was futile — he couldn't contain how shocked he was as he jittered about on the spot. The brunette kept grabbing at Roxas' hands or tugging at his jacket, occasionally even covering his face to cope with the excitement of doing something new with the cerulean-eyed teen.

"I love it! Aww, we h-haven't even started and I'm already excited. This is going to be awesome! Thank you, Roxas. Aww..." God help him, his heart was beating so fast as he suddenly jumped at the blonde and hugged him tight. The other seemed perfectly happy lifting him up and swinging him around, both grinning stupidly in each other's arms.

"I'm so glad you're happy, Sora..."

When the hype slowly died down and the awkward zones were well behind them, the two boys queued behind the shortest reception line, holding each other's hands.

"We've got around four hours until the six pm circus show. That's enough time right? See the tent outside these doors?"

"We're going to a circus TOO?"

"Sure. Action-packed day huh?" Roxas turned to him and gave him the most sincere smile he's ever had. Damn it, these emotions were going to be the death of him. Roxas was too amazing for doing this, Sora didn't even know how to properly react! His heart... he couldn't— was he even allowed to be this happy, to be the one with Roxas like this, his heart, this was all too much—

Breathe in, breathe out. He couldn't have asked for a more perfect place to be.

Fitting their skates and helmets was the next phase after covering the entrance fees. For his petite size, it was a wonder how Sora was a size ten. They were sort of heavy, and the odd buckles and laces were a little confusing so Roxas offered to put them on for him. Although Sora didn't have terrible balance, getting to the rinks on metal blades was a whole new level of talent. A talent which the blonde, who was experienced with the sport, seemed to be a natural at.

"Are you sure you don't need one of the beginner's rails? There's a walrus sled we could rent."

Sora shook his head. "I want you to teach me how to skate. And if I fail, which I hope I won't, then we could rent it." Left foot in, right foot in... He needed Roxas' shoulder for support, and once he got the hang of it, the azure-eyed teen chuckled as he waddled ridiculously towards the public rinks. "Yay! Woohoo! I'm walking on skates!"

Hiding his amusement was now a difficult feat for Roxas when it comes to Sora's antics. The latter couldn't wait to test the ice upon their arrival, and he almost tripped over as the boy attempted to imitate one of the jumping ice skaters on the rubbery floor. Every minute of last week was worth working for if it meant seeing Sora's happy-go-lucky self illuminate the whole room. "Roxy! Oooh! Can we eat there afterwards?" The brunette pointed to the cafeteria within the two barricaded rinks. A wall separated the two, and encircling them both were tiers for onlookers and resting skaters. Whilst the public rink was occupied by people skating to their heart's content, the private rink had an ice hockey practice on schedule, the players armouring up at the sidelines. Under the domed ceiling hung a disco ball, and at the current moment, the public rink's normal lights were turned on.

The blonde agreed as he stored their belongings in one of the secure lockers for hire. "I'll just put this away and we can go. Are you excited?"

"Of course! I love trying new things." Sora wiggled to the jumpy beat of the music playing. He held his hand out for the Strife teen and they both supported each other on the way to the ice. The first step was the most exhilarating, Sora found as he felt his left blade slide against the slippery surface.

"Woah, okay, I'm alright, ahaha! Woo." Good thing there was a wall around the rink! Slowly... slowly, slowly, he placed his other foot on the ice and struggled to keep himself upright even with his grip on the wall. Skating beside him was the cerulean-eyed teen, cautiously guiding him from falling flat on his face.

"How is it?"

Beaming, Sora held a thumb up. "I'll be fine! I just need to—" Slowly... slowly, slowly, let go of the wall, uuh, nope, nope, going to fall, going to slip, whoops... He instinctively grabbed onto Roxas and wrapped his arms around the other's waist.

"...get used to it. I'm sorry, I'm not good at this."

Tilting his head to one side, Roxas blinked at their near proximity, noses almost touching. "There's a first time for everything. There's this thing yeah? Falling on the ice is nothing if you know how to properly do it. It's not that bad. If you feel yourself toppling over, do it on your side. It's safer that way. And you can easily get up from that." Their cloudy puffs of breath were mingling as the duo stared at one another.

"How about skating itself?"

"V-formation. Lift one foot after the other and slide forwards while forming the letter V. You can break in two ways: with your heel, which is the easy way. That or you could swerve your body so the side blade of your shoes scrapes the ice." He pointed at one of the skaters demonstrating it before stepping out of the rink. "Think you can practice that? I'll be closeby."

"Yeah!"

It's easier said than done because once Sora tried to let go, it was only a few seconds until he flailed and grappled for his friend's support and they collided at his panic, sending them both down on the ice.

~o~

Baby steps. Regardless of the intimidating rush of expert ice skaters flying past and busting out their moves, Sora wasn't discouraged from trying as he scaled the perimeter of the rink. He did have some wall-scaling companions and compared to them, he was a lot more agile and confident. The lights had been dimmed so the cold room mimicked the appearance of a dance club. He enjoyed singing along to the songs he did know whilst Roxas skated a little further to give him space.

"Aww, you showoff. You're going to make me feel bad that I can't spin around like you can," yelled the Leonhart teen above the music. Roxas shrugged and slid towards him with that complicated swerve break.

"What if I said I was trying to impress you?" The other joked back. "Would you be mad?"

"...I don't know." The tempo of the music seemed to be changing to a slower ballad, and the disco lights were transitioning from a begladdening orange to the sweeter pink and red. What even was this atmosphere, pfft...

Offering him a gloved hand, Roxas beckoned him to move closer. "Come, skate with me." He was smiling at him for the umpteenth time and heck, there was just no way the brunette could refuse those pleading eyes. He took the hand and together, Sora and Roxas glided languidly around the arena, unhurried skidding just right for the sombre soundtrack. It was nice. And Roxas didn't let him fall. Whilst bokehs of light from above reflected on the smoothened surface and swivered from one skater to another, all that mattered was they were with one another, here, in this world of endless chills and melting cold hearts and facades.

It was probably their seventh lap when the blonde spotted an abandoned walrus sled beside one of the rink wall doors and, being the rebel he was, he managed to convince Sora to hoarde it into the ice with him. The ballad was long over and the current song playing was apparently a Traverse favourite as the people around them enthusiastically sang the chorus in unison. Aside from the beginner's rails, the arena also hired out animal-shaped "sleds", allowing inexperienced skaters to enjoy the ice by pushing one another on it.

"Don't we have to pay for these, Roxy?"

"We do. I'll do it later, the reception's too far." He commented, pointing at the back of the walrus for Sora to sit on. Belly first on the floor, the walrus head and tail served as the sled's handles for both passengers. The brown-haired teen encircled the sled's neck with his arms and ushered it forwards with his skates.

"It even has its front teeth, ha ha! Forward, forward, on to the way we go! Ready, set, charge! Hurrah!"

"Aye aye, Captain Sorbet." Roxas saluted to the air.

"Too fast! Ahhh! We're going to bump into someone!" Skate, skate, skate.

"Oh right, sorry. How's this pace?"

"Yeaaaah! Woohoo! Take down all the enemy armadas! Pew pew pew!"

It was those two against the world as they dominated the rink with their flawless sled laps. Who cared about the experts' spectacular stunts when they were having so much fun cruising in their own way? They weren't saying it out loud, but subconsciously the two of them wished this moment, this wordlessly declared first date would last forever. The feel of swerving every turn on metal blades, the gentle acoustic sound playing through the speakers, the scraped ice forming from under their skates; even their melodic laughs and shining smiles... everything... couldn't it last forever?

But there would be several other firsts, right? They could only hope so as they gradually slowed a stop. These raw unsaid feelings looming over the atmosphere — they were definitely there, along with two furtive wishes that their relationship wouldn't fall apart because of it. Maybe, just maybe... they could grow to be something more?

The duo had been skating for almost two hours when Sora admitted he wanted to eat. It was just on time too, because one of the staff members had announced through the speakers that the zamboni would be brought out for its once-every-three-hour rounds to fix the ice. They could use a quick break. Roxas made sure to be there for the brunette as they both stepped out and made their way towards the cafeteria.

It was only unfortunate that said cafeteria had a limited amount of meal choices. Sora opted for a hotdog and a cup of hot chocolate and Roxas went with the burger and some tea. Instead of sitting at the tables, they decided to watch the zamboni do its thing from the tiers. With little sips from his hot chocolate cup, the azure-eyed teen dared to rest his head on his favourite shoulder. The blonde busied himself by snacking on his packet of side fries.

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Roxas would never forget how beautiful Sora looked when he tried skating on his own. He was a fast learner, and it was necessary for the cerulean-eyed teen to stop every now and then to just look. They hadn't dropped their game of funny face pulling, so even though they were meters apart, they still found a way to interact with each other. If only the blonde had his phone on him. The thing was, some moments weren't enough to be captured in a single shot. Even when he really wanted to, Roxas simply couldn't explain how endearing his Sorbet was as he attempted to lift a foot up and clumsily tripped over. The boy was trying so hard.

Then there was Sora being his usual competitive self when he decided to compete against the experts in one of the arena's occasional ice skating activities. Luckily, they only had to dance to the song playing, and whoever busted the best moves would win a random prize. He looked so ridiculous, shaking his hips while pulling the most absurd expressions. Ever the class clown, that boy. Sora's eyes were on him and him alone, and even as Roxas hnn'ed at him from the sidelines, the brunette was still doing what he could to make him laugh.

Clichéd as it was, time flew too fast. Sooner or later, the two of them were returning their borrowed equipment to the rental room ("Don't forget to pay for the sled!" "Of course, Captain Sorbet.") in pursuit of their six pm circus show. Ugh, Sora's legs were so sore! Those skates were heavier than they looked, but he had so much fun so it didn't matter. The field isolating the ice skating arena and circus tent from the rest of the town wasn't big enough since they could still see Traverse's commendable illumination. With all those neon lights up, Traverse Town appealled a lot better during the night.

The Pan Circus tent wasn't anything extravagant. It was colourful, and judging from the size alone, it was only a small show. Sora squinted at the poster next to the door from their queue and nodded at the peculiar human-sized double hamster wheel and chair stacking photographs. Surprisingly enough, not every circus had clowns. It was a good thing too. Ensuring Sora would be entertained, Roxas told him he booked the tickets after much background research on the performers' impressive stunts and simple but hilarious acts.

"Where do you want to sit?" The Strife teen questioned while sidestepping the path along the limited rows of seats with Sora. Above the wide stage hung the currently suspended double hamster wheel, as well as several lights for the show. The long red curtain concealing the performers and whatever props they had in store for the evening also didn't escape the boys' notice. Sora gestured to the front.

"Maybe I'll get picked if they need a volunteer. Maybe. But man, this is so cool! It's sad how people look down on circuses. You've got to hand it to the performers — they've trained exceptionally to put smiles on people's faces. You know?"

Roxas nodded. "I knew you'd appreciate this kind of thing. Would you like a snack?" He handed the boy his favourite bar of chocolate from his satchel. A staff member had approached them a little later with a trolley of glowing items and the brunette pleaded to have a few glowsticks and this toy fan which blended into different colours as it oscillated to wave around.

In the middle of chewing his fifth bite, the stage lights switched on and, thanks to the amazing tech work behind it, began to bounce around the tent suspensefully. Yay! The show was about to start! "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, the Pan Circus performance will begin in less than five minutes. We hope you enjoy our circus show in advance!" boomed the speakers. Looking to and fro, Sora saw several other people filling in the gaps between the back rows and hogging all the popcorn from their families.

After all that's happened today, he didn't cower when he hooked an arm around Roxas' just to have him close. Of course, Naminé and Kairi were right when they mentioned that all the azure-eyed teen had to be was himself. Roxy didn't think he was lame weird for today, did he? He looked up at the latter briefly and they met each other's gazes — the blonde scrunched his nose and grinned at him before pulling him tightly to his body. Ahaha... ha ha... nice to know that... he wasn't the only one who wanted to be near the other...

The cerulean-eyed teen was too kind to him for today, and Sora was ever so grateful for his hardwork in putting this together. Giving the other boy a gentle nuzzle back, the brunette beamed to himself and sat as still as he could while they waited for the opening act.

"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, get ready for the night of your life!" Drumrolls on and loud dancy music were the center of this circus' introductory performance. "Pan Circus presents to you our very own: "Light the World!" acrobatic show!"

Dimming the stage lights allowed the first performers to transition onstage from behind the curtains. Most of them were in fancy leotards, and in perfect synchronicity, they dominated the first few minutes with impressive splits, human pyramids and the juggling of fragile glass bottles whilst standing on someone else's shoulders. The firebreathing individual made Sora jump out of his seat. He and the rest of the audience did not expect the man to trace intricate patterns on the air with his gas-doused baton of sorts, only to blow fire onto them with the other baton end until they materialized into fiery animal shapes.

"Hiyaa!" The next act was dedicated to a special martial arts performance from varying props of different heights. Try sparring someone on a seesaw or a narrow balance pole several meters from the ground. It wasn't easy. Such stunts were famous for their cringe-worthy moments, Sora realized while gasping in fear for the performers' safety. Don't you dare fall, random guy in the blue belt! You too, afro dude! Hah, even Roxas was agitated, judging from the tight squeezes on his hand and that one worried wail Sora happened to hear. Aww. The brunette gave the blonde a hug to comfort him.

~o~

Halfway through the show, Roxas offered to get them both dinner at some fast food place nearby. They'd passed by a Chinese food restaurant this afternoon, the blonde remembered, so he took off for two bowls of chao fan while the performers took a fifteen minute break. On the other hand, Sora used this time to contemplate on how the performers changed their clothes so fast. So far they'd sat through four individual acts, including the chair stacking acrobat who was unbeliavably flexible and had super arm strength that could carry her whole weight during her stunts.

Running all the way before collapsing onto his seat to avoid missing the show, Roxas panted exhaustedly next to Sora. He. Got. Their. Dinner. The pork cutlets and steamy seasoned rice smelled pleasantly aromatic, prompting the brunette to dig in in the middle of the next performance.

"Having fun, Sorbet?" Once again, the blonde took the initiative to rearrange his friend's bonnet and keep him comfortable.

"De-vinite-ry!" whispered Sora with a mouthful of rice. "Man, those umbrella props are crazy." Referring to the current act's stunning cultural dance, the performers in question were dancing in kimonos with illusionary-patterned parasols.

Following that became one of the azure-eyed teen's favourites for the night as it involved a mimed comedy skit between Dumb and Dumber. It couldn't have been that difficult for Dumber to lift an empty briefcase from the ground... right? Alas, it wasn't empty, as within it was a joyous glowing teddy bear! But then the clumsy Dumber just had to throw it to the audience, and when one of the girls at the middle row returned it to the front, Mr Teddy Bear... was no more. The staged funeral made Sora pout until Dumb found that Mr Teddy Bear was still breathing! Hurray! The brunette was too occupied to even notice Roxas planting a kiss on his temple.

All good things come to an end, but not all of them included a spinning double hamster wheel of death! More juggling, more dancing, more acrobatic flips and flexible balancing concluded the final circus act whilst the performers were suspended on an evenly-paced rotating wheeled contraption above the stage. Applauses filled the room after the crescendoing music piece ended and the stars of the show posed for their excited audience. Pictures were taken and grateful announcements were made until the satisfied circus goers filtered out of the tents with something to talk about on their way home.

They were just walking out of the field when Roxas told the Leonhart teen to stay put. "Wait here, okay? I'm just going to get you a souvenir."

"Huh? Oh, uhh, alright!" He was playing with his toy fan and kicking the ground when Roxas disappeared into the tent for who-knows-what. Sweet, sweet, sweet Roxy. The blonde proved himself to be even sweeter because moments later, in Roxas' hands was the circus' beloved glowing Mr Teddy Bear, a one-of-a-kind present for his endearing brown-haired friend. No way!

"Admit it, you were eyeing Mr Teddy Bear forever. Bet you didn't know this was allowed huh?" He shook the rainbow-coloured bear for effect.

"H-Hoow— you know what, forget it. I'd rather know why you've been uncharacteristically daring today, from the sled snitching and chao fan cross country stunt and now this."

The blonde rose an eyebrow at Sora. "It's because I want to make you happy, silly. Even you'd know I can't do that if I stay my grouchy and pathetic self. Now then, rate my awesomeness from one to five. One being super awful and five being super super."

"Super super?" Sora gladly hugged the now-green bear in his arms.

"Super super. So, am I super super?"

Hah, as if the brunette had to think about it. "You are super super."

"Well that makes you super super super, Super Sorbet."

Sora laughed and held Roxas' hand on the way to the bus terminal. "Too many supers. I'm not worth such praise."

"Lies. But err, I'm just curious, don't take this the wrong way. Your plush toy collection — you've had it since you were a child?" inquired the Strife teen.

"Yeah. Even when I was bedridden. They kept me company when no one else did, so..."

The blonde already understood. No one so bright and wonderful should ever have to be isolated from the world. Especially not his Sorbet. "You're not alone anymore, Sora. I promise."

o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o

Much to Sora's comfort, the bus drove off at around eight pm, taking the shortest route possible to Destiny Village. There were only five other passengers on the ride, allowing the bus driver to take a few detours. Of course, Roxas' shoulder was always available. This warmth in the boy's heart couldn't compare to anything else he's felt before, Sora noted in his gradual descent to slumber. Squeezing his arm before planting another butterfly kiss on Sora's forehead, the Strife teen watched the neon city fade into the midnight from behind them. The star-like streetlights shining on the road and highlighted posts marking every ten meters were all the blonde could focus on, on their silent way back home.

Haha. Sora was right to say he'd been a thousand times more audacious today than all the other days. Liking someone did that to you, right? Suddenly you don't know yourself very well as you spiral into doing stupid, weird things for that one special person. Roxas was just thankful he wasn't too out of it. Along with the forehead pecks and tiny gifts for his beloved friend, he'd really emerged out of his shell for this day, huh. Making Sora smile was a lot more exhilarating than he gave it credit for.

Roxas had to be careful though.

If ever he got carried away with these rapidly deepening feelings, he would never be able to let go. He didn't want to push Sora away should he ever lose control of himself, him, in his ever so volatile emotional state. What was it like to really like someone, he wondered? Ventus... he would have wanted him to be happy like this. It was all... so new. And it was good.

At the sight of the sea encompassing the motorway, Roxas knew they were nearing home. Sorbet was whispering funny phrases in his sleep, and much to his relief, the other seemed comfortable beside him. The brunette also smelled like fresh ice and cocoa. He'd fallen quite a bit on the ice skating rink, but even so he still got up, carried on and smiled at the world. Roxas woke him up once he saw the library and terminal and patted his clothes free of non-existing dust.

"I can't believe today is over." The blonde sighed, his cheeks reddening at the thought of their wondrous sweet first date. Skipping along town and on the path to Sora's neighbourhood, the Leonhart teen agreed solemnly.

"We still have a few more days before school, haha. Semester Three is going to be stressful."

"That's true. But we'll manage. You know for sure I'll help you with schoolwork."

"Y-Y-Yeah..."

What could you say to someone you wanted to keep by your side to ensure they would stay? I like you was too simple. I love you was out of their grasps. Stay with me, I'll miss you, don't go. They would see each other again, but being together like this made them want to skip through several more roads if it would mean prolonging their time with one another.

Should Sora ask... if they could do this again another time? He could easily do so, but...

But...

...Sigh. It didn't matter. Every second of his time with Roxas was inexplicably priceless, no matter how short they stayed together.

.

.

.

Greeting them at the door was Sora's mom and their two playful kittens, Whiskers stowing away in Blue's kitty basket. The mischievous little kitty didn't want to say goodbye to her sister so she thought she could hide from the humans and get Roxas to take her home. Too bad.

Leon was on night shift so only Tifa was at home, endlessly waiting for her baby to get home from what probably was his best day ever in the entire year. She didn't hesitate to give the two hugs for their safe journey back.

"I hope Sora behaved well. How was Traverse Town?" She asked with a grin on her face.

"Traverse was so retro yet futuristic, Mom! Roxas and I went ice skating as well as a circus."

"I see. Kairi and Naminé told me they had a chat to Roxas about it. By the way, thank you for looking after Sora, Roxas." She turned to the blonde afterwards. "Between you and me, Sora's had a hectic weekend preparing. He really likes you, I'm sure you're aware."

"Mom, no! I'm right here! It's not fair talking about me when I'm right here!"

"Meow."

"We had an excellent day out, Mrs Leonhart. Thank you for letting me take him out of town."

"Aww, shucks!" She chuckled. "Just Tifa is fine. Anything to make Sora happy, because that's all that matters, am I right? Now, I've already said byebye to baby Blue here. These kittens are lucky they're sisters! I couldn't believe Whiskers would eat half of Blue's share! Hah!" Picking up said pet from the kitty basket, the woman nuzzled her face on the ginger's nose. "I'll leave you two to say your farewells. Let me take your bag dear, oh, woah, you must have bought some souvenirs. I can't wait to see them, haha. And Roxas, if ever you want to stay over, go ahead! Sora's bound to have some clothes for you. You might have to share the duvet though since Sor is obsessed with that orange blanket."

"Nooo! No! No, Mom no! Did you really have to say that?" GAAAAAAH! Why was his mother embarrassing him? That was private! Aww man, what would Rox think of him now? He shrieked out too late because she'd already disappeared within the house with a laugh on her lips. So meaaan!

Of course, excluding curious Blue, they were alone once more on Sora's front porch, minds stringing together sentences to say to each other before the night ended. Roxas happened to beat the brunette to it while the younger boy suffered another mind blank.

"Sora. Do you want to go on another day out next week? I'll keep my weekend free if you do." Blue was alright in her basket. She didn't seem bored glancing up at her owner and his friend warm each other's hands and stand close enough to have their foreheads touching. She tilted her head at the sight of the chocolate-haired boy shaking and her human using a free hand to lift the other's chin.

"Y-Y-Yeah, s-sure. Anything t-to hang out w-with y-you." Did Sora's feelings really have to weigh him down now of all times? The night sky was breathtakingly clear, but they weren't as admirable as Roxas' blue eyes. God, they had so much emotion in them; more than they ever had in the past few months. And of all things, those eyes were on Sora. Ugh, his heart... DAMN IT.

Nails digging into his gloved palms, deep breaths and lip-biting. It was a lot more difficult to will these feelings away than it was to keep himself from nauseating. Hnng...

Roxas was being exceptionally bold beyond Sora's expectations as he moved to fix his hair and bonnet yet again. There was something about Sora's hair that the other boy couldn't help but obsess with. The Strife teen tucked the free strands behind his right ear.

"Your hair's getting longer, Sorbet. I can't see your eyes properly."

"I-It is?" He instinctively licked his lips and fixed the rest of his fringe. "Well, uhh, my eyes aren't... aren't t-that much of a wonder, ha ha. I can still see."

"Hn." Front porch, night sky, the evening of a first date. It was a perfect recipe for, at least, according to television, the long awaited first kiss between couples. Although, hoping for such... it was... well... Sora hadn't prepared himself yet. But Roxy was edging so close to him, or maybe that was only in his imagination because... as if...

"Hey, a free-spirited blue-eyed brunette once told me there would always be someone who cares. If I could talk to him right now, I would thank him for saving me and let him know how dazzling he is everyday of his life. Do you think he'd like that, Sora?"

Heartbeats pounding in synchronicity as they lost each other in different shades of blue. "I... I think... h-he'd tell you... t-the... the s-same."

Whatever comes, comes as Sora wet his lips again and waited for the inevitable. Roxas proceeded to hold him, arms steady as they touched and embraced one another under the gleam of the twinkling stars. If it was farfetched to channel one's feelings through these acute displays of affection, then they were probably witnesses of a miracle. They didn't need to say anything. There was an undeniable love budding between them, and it was good.

"Goodnight, my Sorbet. Have sweet dreams." Roxas quietly muttered to Sora's lips before leaning in and touching his forehead to his. Even with their noses rubbing and the blonde smiling brightly at him, Sora was gradually dying inside. His face... Roxas' face... unstoppable scarlet tints and the azure-eyed teen had to take a deep breath FAST.

"G-Goodnight... W-Will you be f-fine walking home w-with Blue? Y-You're always f-free to s-stay."

"We've had this conversation before. I'll be fine." Stepping down from the front stairs, Roxas saluted to his love and tucked his kitten under her blanky. "I'll see you when I see you. And I'll call! I'll even come over when I can, so wait for me, yes?"

"Of course I will. T-Take care."

.

.

.

Sora had only sunken to his knees when he was sure Roxas had truly left. Why did he feel like wanting to cry tears of joy? Why did his heart want to burst into smithereens? Roxas... he... he probably felt the same... because why would he do these things if he didn't...

Gaaaah! GAAAAAH! GAAAAAAAH!

Face in his hands, he only noticed the presence of his spy of a mother when she tapped him on his shoulder.

"He didn't kiss you yet? Good. I was going to grab the Chapstick I bought you but whoops, too late. Or should I say, too early?"

"Not helping, Mother. Do you have to rub it in?"

Tifa shook her head in amusement. "Hey, don't be so down. He was probably waiting for the right moment. After all, he hasn't confessed to you yet, right? Neither have you. Although I'm sure he already knows. You make it so obvious."

"Muuu." He pressed his lips together and sulked. But perhaps his mother knew best. It was enough for Sora to know that the possibility of having his feelings returned, even though he wasn't supposed to have them in the first place, existed. Following his mother inside, the blue-eyed teen casted one last wishful glance at the brightest star and prayed.

"Sora, if anything, I should let you know this before you sleep." His mother told him later that night. "It's winter, is it not? From what I've seen outside, Roxas had already kissed you and you probably didn't know it. You know about Eskimo's kisses right? That certainly wasn't your first, I should know. I have video proof. Lucky you."

Someday.

This wish of his would come true. Maybe they could be together. After all, the wind's had it written in the sky from the very beginning.

Watch over the one who means the most to me.

HECK YEAH! In your face 2015! I promised not to leave this year without posting this, and I made it, after seven evil months! Woo! Wooo! WOOOOOO!

I personally don't understand how I've worded this giant chapter, but I pray it was worth it in the end. Muuu!

What awaits SALWY in the future? I've already foreseen the end, but it won't be for a while. Aiyaa! I am trash, phwee! Thanks so much for reading if you made it this far. I hope you have an amazing New Year!