"End of the road?" Riku asked.

Sora nodded as he looked around at the beach. It was relatively small and was dark. There was hardly any light at all. Sora didn't like it one bit. If he was going to be stuck somewhere, he would rather it be anyplace but this. Sora then wondered how he got to the beach. The last thing Sora remembered was fighting Xemnas and finally putting an end to the Organization. But after they had won, Nobodies came and they both fought for their lives. After the battle, Riku collapsed and Sora carried him. Sora didn't know where he was going, but he knew that he had to get out, and fast, before more Nobodies showed up. As they were walking, they were enveloped in a bright, blinding light and suddenly, they ended up on the beach.

"Yeah." Sora finally said with a sigh, "I guess we'll be here for a while."

"Put me down." Riku asked, "I think I can walk."

Sora nods and he releases his grip from Riku. Sora then walked down to the shore and squatted down. He reached into the water and took some water in his hand and watched as it drained back into the ocean. He sighed, "You know…I think the darkness is starting to get to me." Sora turned around and saw that Riku had collapsed on the ground. "RIKU!" Sora exclaimed as he ran over to him. He lifted him up again and helped his towards the shore.

Along the way, Riku said, "You know, this world is perfect for me. If this is what the world really is, just this place, then maybe fading back into darkness isn't such a bad idea."

Suddenly, Sora slapped Riku over the head, "OW!" Riku shouted as he rubbed his head, "What the hell did you do that for."

"Riku, for the last time, your soul doesn't belong to the darkness anymore. It belongs to the light, and I won't take no for an answer."

Riku just chuckled at Sora's stubbornness, "The world is made up of Realm of Light and the Realm of Darkness. I guess that this is the Realm of Darkness."

Sora nodded, "Yeah. The Realm of Light is safe. The King, Goofy, Donald, and Kairi are safe now. We did what we wanted to, right? But then why do I feel as if I didn't do anything. I made a promise to find you and the King. I did that, but I still couldn't get you back to the Realm of Light."

Riku just stared into the water, "Maybe this is my punishment of letting the Darkness take over my heart. This is my Purgatory. My exile."

"What's with you and that emo kick?" Sora asked, "I mean, your hair's super long, you have that weird glove on your hand, and you had your eyes wrapped up. Kinda crazy if you ask me."

Riku shrugged his shoulder and sighed. They just sat in silence for a while. The sound of the waves crashing on the shore was relaxing. "Well, at least the waves sound the same." Riku muttered to himself. More silence followed after. Sora let himself fall back onto the sand and he just stared up at the sky.

"Hey Sora," Riku suddenly asked, "Do you remember the day before we left the Island."

Sora did remember. That was the night where he got the Keyblade. Where he lost both Kairi and Riku. Where he had to face that giant Heartless, and watch as Destiny Island got engulfed in darkness.

"Well, yeah, that happened, but I mean earlier. Remember what I gave you?"

"Do you mean the Paopu fruit?" Sora asked.

Riku nodded, "Yeah, I told you to give it to Kairi. What did you do with it?"

"Why the hell are you talking about this now?" Sora asked.

Riku shrugged, "I don't know. Just curious."

Sora couldn't remember. He probably just threw it away. He did remember that he drew himself giving Kairi the fruit. He decided that he had nothing to lose and he told Riku.

"Hmm…Maybe that was why Kairi's heart was locked up inside of you when we were transported to the other worlds."

Sora shrugged. Kairi. She was his best friend. He liked her. A lot. But how did he feel about her? Was she his friend, best friend, or more? Sora wasn't sure. Kairi was one of the many things that Sora and Riku fought about. Sora also wondered about how Riku felt now. Did he still like her like that? Or did he give up and just think of them as friends? Sora sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He really didn't want to talk about love right now. But, unfortunately, he wasn't that lucky.

"Sora," Riku began, "How do you feel about Kairi?"

Sora silently cursed, "What are you talking about? We're friends."

Riku shook his head, "No, I mean. Do you still have a crush on her?"

Sora looked away, but he nodded. He waited to here Riku say something smart, or challenge him to something. But, to his surprise, Riku remained silent. Sora hesitantly looked back at Riku who was just staring out into the ocean, expressionless.

"What about you?" Sora asked, "Do you like her? I mean, more than a friend."

Riku didn't say anything for a couple of moments, then said, "I won't stand in your way."

Of all the responses Sora was expecting, it wasn't that one. He looked at Riku in disbelief. Riku chuckled, "She doesn't love me like she loves you. Did you see the way she looked when she saw you in The World that Never Was? She never looked at me like that. I guess you win this one, Sora. But don't worry; I still beat you in good looks." He flipped his hair with his hand. "Someone's got to look good"

"Hah! You wish!" Sora joked. But he wasn't concerned about that. He was concerned about what Riku had said. Was he really okay about giving Kairi up? Sora turned back at stared at the ocean, "Thank you, Riku." He whispered, "For doing that for me."

Sora smiled and he laid back on the sand. He decided to rest. He closed his eyes and soon he was asleep. Riku remained awake, just staring at the ocean. As he stared out into the distance, Riku noticed a bottle floating. He waited until it floated to him and he picked it up. He looked in the bottle and noticed that there was a letter in it. He took out the cork and he dumped the contents of the bottle into his hand. He unraveled the letter and he began to read it. As he read, he chuckled and he tapped Sora on the shoulder.

"Hm?" Sora mumbled, but his eyes remained closed.

"It's for you." Riku said simply.

Sora was now awake. He looked at the letter in Riku's hand. How could it be for him? He reached out and grabbed the letter. He looked over it, but there was no indication of who wrote it. As he stared at the handwriting, he suddenly knew the answer. He had grown up knowing the handwriting. He had seen it every day. The letter was written by Kairi.

"Speak of the devil, isn't it?" Riku joked.

Sora chuckled and read the letter out loud, "Thinking of you, wherever you are. We pray for our sorrows to end, and hope that our hearts will blend. Now I will step forward to realize this wish. And who knows: Starting a new journey may not be so hard or maybe it has already begun. There are many worlds, but they share the same sky-one sky, one destiny."

As he finished the last word, a magnificent bright light appeared and blinded both of them. Soon, the light began to die away, but it wasn't completely gone. There, out in the middle of the ocean, was a giant, white door. The same door that Riku and Sora stood on opposite sides of almost a year ago.

"Light…" Riku muttered to himself in amazement.

"That's…the Door to Light." Sora said.

Sora stood up, letter still in hand, and he began to walk towards the door. He turned around to see Riku still sitting. Sora offered his hand to Riku, but Riku shook his head.

"No." Riku announced, "I am going to stay here. It is only right."

Sora shook his head, "Riku, for the last time. There is no more Darkness in your heart. The Light made it all go away. You are coming with me, whether you want to or not. I didn't face an entire Organization of killers just for you not to come back with me."

Sora offered his hand to Riku once more. Riku chuckled, but took his hand. Sora helped Riku to his feet and together, they walked towards the door. As they approached it, the door opened and light enveloped them. They both covered their eyes. Suddenly, they felt the wind hitting their faces. They opened up their eyes and saw that they were both in the sky. And they were falling. Sora looked up, or down and saw an ocean, but it wasn't the dull ocean of the Dark world. No, it was a blue ocean. It was his ocean. The ocean that surrounded Destiny Island. Sora had done it. He was back. He was home. Sora looked at Riku, who had a smile on his face. Riku had not been on Destiny Island's for longer than a year. The last time he saw it, he was on the other side of the Door to Light, fighting off the Heartless with King Mickey.

As the two of them plummeted towards the ocean, they braced for impact as they crashed into the ocean. Sora was discombobulated. He looked around and saw Riku, who was pointing up, or that's what Sora guessed was up. Sora nodded and he swam up and he reached the surface. He let out a breath and he shook his head, to get the hair out of his eyes. Breathing heavily, Sora took in his surrounds. In front of him, the sun was setting. The sky was picturesque. Sora felt as though everything was complete. Well, there was one thing missing. Then, as if by fate, he heard a voice call out to them that made his heart stop."

"Riku! SORA!" Kairi called out.

Sora and Riku turned around and they saw Kairi standing there. Sora smiled and with all of his might, swam as fast as he could towards Kairi. Riku laughed and he swam, but not as fast as Sora. Sora swam until he felt the sand touch his feet. He stood up and began to run towards Kairi, stumbling along the way. Kairi giggled, a sound that made Sora's heart leap. The distance between the two of them was closing. They were about to be right next to each other when two figures appeared from behind her. Donald and Goofy jump towards Sora. Sora, not expecting them, wasn't able to get a firm position and they all fell. Sora began to laugh and Donald and Goofy gave him a hug. Mickey jumped towards Riku and he caught him and spun his around. Sora looked at Kairi and smiled.

"W-Were here!" He said.

Kairi nodded, "Your home."

Sora smiled. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the lucky charm that Kairi gave him. He held out his hand and she took it. Sora stood up and the two of them looked into each other's eyes. They blushed, but they didn't turn away. Suddenly, tears began to form in Kairi's eyes. He ran to Sora and began to pound on his chest. Sora was shocked, but he slowly put his arms around her.

"Don't you ever to that to me again, Sora." Kairi cried, "We were just reunited, and when the portal closed and you weren't on our side, I thought…I thought…" Kairi couldn't speak anymore and she broke down crying. She stopped pounding his chest. Sora blushed, but he comforted her. He began to rub her back and whisper 'shhhh' in her ear.

Riku, Mickey, Goofy, and Donald left the ocean and began making their way back to the beach. Riku looked at Sora and gave him a reassuring smile and a 'thumbs up' sign. Sora smiled back at him, and then went back to comforting Kairi. Soon, after about 10 minutes, Kairi finally stopped crying, but she was still teary eyed. Sora escorted her to the others. They sat down on some logs and remained in silence. They remained like that for a few minutes. Finally, it was Mickey who broke the silence.

"We have to leave." He said.

"Really?" Sora asked, "But why? Can't you stay?"

Mickey shook his head, "Afraid not. You see, the worlds have are in disarray due to Xemnas using Kingdom Hearts. We have to go the worlds and restore order. Of course, you can come with us if you want."

Sora felt Kairi tense up. Sora gave a weak smile and said, "Thanks, but no thanks. It's been a long journey, and I just need to rest. You guys can handle it without me."

Mickey nodded. Soon, everyone said their goodbyes, knowing that this would probably be the last time that they were going to see each other. When they were done, Mickey summoned the Gummi ship and they boarded it. Sora, Riku, and Kairi waved at them as they flew away. They just stood there, perfectly motionless. Soon, they decided to head back. They boarded the ship and they rowed back to the main land. When they hit land, they walked to the street. As the neared it, Riku began to walk in the other direction.

"My house is over here. God knows how Mom is going to flip when I get home. I'll see you guys tomorrow." And with that Riku ran in the other direction

Sora and Kairi waved and then set out in the other direction. They walked in silence, but Kairi then said, "So…what happened when you were left on the other side?"

Sora then proceeded to tell Kairi about his and Riku's many fights with Xemnas. When he was finished, Kairi was gaping. Sora chuckled and he reached out and closed her mouth. Sora let his finger remain on her skin for a few seconds, and then retracted it. Kairi blushed. Soon, they were home. Sora walked Kairi to her door like the gentleman he was. She stopped by the door and turned around and looked at Sora. She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek and then ran inside. Sora blushed and placed his hand on the spot where she had kissed him. He walked home with a smile on his face. When he got to the door, he paused, and then knocked on the door.

He heard some shuffling and then he heard someone opening the door. There was a woman standing where the door was. She looked at Sora and her eyes widened. It was his mom. Sora gave a small wave and said in a weak voice, "Hey, am I too late for supper?"

Sora's mother jumped out and embraced him. Sora chuckled as he comforted his mom, who was now crying. Sora defiantly had some catching up to do.

Things have slowed down for Sora. It was a week since he had returned to Destiny Island and he felt a strange feeling that he hadn't felt in over a year; Normal. He felt absolutely normal. There were no villains after him, no Heartless chasing him, nor Organization XIII breathing down his neck. He was a normal 16 year old guy. Sora rolled out of bed and looked at the time, 10:30. Sora jumped out of bed.

"SHIT!" He exclaimed. "I AM SUPPOSED TO MEET RIKU AND KAIRI AT 11:00! I am going to be sooooooo late."

Sora rushed to get changed and get himself ready. With inhuman speed, he raced out of his house, said goodbye to his parents, and toward the mall. Because of his adventures, he had gained quite a bit of muscle, and had a lot of stamina. But the mall was about 15 minutes away, and Sora only had 10. He decided to pick up the pace, and he ran in an all-out spring. Sweat began to appear on his forehead. His legs were burning. His chest was hurting, his mouth tasted funny. He couldn't, no, wouldn't lose to Riku. Not today. Sora knew that today was his day. This proved true when he saw Tidus and Selphie appear. On bikes. Sora began to smile and he ran at them. They stopped and looked at Sora, who was on the ground, out of breath.

"Sora, what the hell?" Tidus asked.

"Tidus….racing Riku…..need to win…. Kairi…punishment….need bike…." Sora managed to say between gasps.

Tidus immediately got off his bike and helped pick Sora up, "Dude, I understand you. I lost a bet and I went shopping with Selphie the other day and it was hell on earth. Please take my bike and win the race. I want to see the look on Riku's face when you win."

Sora got on the bike and sped off, yelling "THANKS TIDUS, I OWE YOU ONE!"

Selphie turned to Tidus and said, "Tidus, how are you going to get home now. It takes a while to get back to your house."

Tidus hit his head, "Damn! I forgot all about that. Hey, Selphie, how about-"

"No" Selphie said as she began to peddle away.

"Selphie, that's not fare. Hey, come on, please!" Tidus said as he ran after her.

Sora peddled with all of his energy. He felt the rush he felt when he was battling a powerful heartless, or an Organization XIII member. Sora then realized that he now missed Donald and Goofy. Sure, they were annoying and they fainted at crucial points in battles, but they were his friends. Sora shook his head. He couldn't see them because he had no method of traveling between the worlds. All Sora needed to think about now was winning the race. Sora neared the mall and looked at his watch. It was 10:58. He didn't have any time. After peddling with all of his might, he made it to the front of the mall with a minute to spare. He continued to peddle and made it into the mall.

The police noticed Sora come in, "Hey, kid. Bikes aren't allowed in the mall."

"Damn!" Sora cursed as he jumped off his bike and continued to sprint. People just stared at Sora, but he didn't care, he had to win. His legs began to give out, but he continued on. He saw the escalator and with a grin on his face jumped on it and began to walk. He soon realized that he wasn't moving at all. He looked down and saw that he was on the up escalator.

"OF ALL THE…" Sora yelled.

Kairi looked up from her magazine and saw Sora. She called out to him and Sora looked at her. He gave her a smile and she waved at him. With new found strength, he ran down the escalator and made it to Kairi's table, where he proceeded to collapse. Kairi giggled and poked his head. Slowly, Sora lifted his head as glared at Kairi. Suddenly, Riku appeared, holding a smoothie. He chuckled as he saw Sora, who was on the brink of death.

"I...ran...as...fast...as...I...could. What...time is...it?" He managed to ask.

Kairi looked at her phone, "11:01!" She said.

Riku looked at Sora with hate burning in his eyes, "You were a minute late, Sora! UNFORGIVABLE!" He shouted.

"I am sorry...but I over slept." Sora said, trying to give a reason.

"NO EXCUSES, SORA!" Kairi shouted, "You are a disgrace! Now, in order to redeem yourself, you have to pay!

Sora looked frightened, "Please! Not that! Anything but that! I'll eat dirt, I'll run around naked, I'll humiliate myself, but please don't make me pay!"

Kairi shook her head, "No, you must pay for my shopping spree." She said.

Sora fell to his knees and let out a resounding wail of pure anguish

Kairi grabbed Sora's hand and they ran towards the clothing stores. There had to be around 15 clothing stores in the enitre mall, and Kairi went into each store and looked at every piece of clothing. She tried on half of them, and only bought a quarter of them. Sora was miserable. Before Sora and the others were whisked away, they would do this every month they would do this and each month, Riku and Sora fought to see who would pay for the clothes. This month; Sora. After a couple of hours, Kairi was finally done. Sora ended up carrying her bags. They met up with Riku, who was having another smoothie. Riku laughed as he saw Sora carrying the bags. They sat down at one of the table. When Sora sat down, he landed with a plop and he put all the bags down. He let out a large sigh. Kairi and Riku started to laugh.

"Ha ha. Really funny guys. Imagine, the Keyblade Master, the saver of worlds, the Vanquisher of Darkness, forced to pay and carry clothes for a mere mortal."

Kairi giggle, but said "So, guys. How about we go to the Island tomorrow?"

Riku shook his head, "Can't. I have to tidy up my room, which will take all day. I wish I could join you, but if I don't clean it, it will probably become alive. But don't worry about me, you two kids have fun. But not too much fun, keep it PG-13."

Sora, who was blushing, picked up an empty bottle of drink and he hurled it at Riku. Unfortunately, for Riku, it was still full and smoothie landed on his head. He cursed, while people around him laughed. He sprinted towards the restroom. Kairi, who was also blushing, looked at Sora, "What about you, Sora?"

Sora shrugged, "Well... I don't know..."

Kairi pouted, "Pwease Sowa? Won't you go with me?"

Sora caved instantly. He could never resist Kairi when she pouted. Well, he couldn't ever say no to Kairi, but her pouting made him give in instantly. "Alright, Alright, you know I can't resist when you pout."

Kairi cheered, "YAY! Okay, meet me on the Island around noon. And don't be late, Sora!"

"What about Riku?" Sora asked.

"Leave him. It will take a while for him to get the smoothie out of his hair. You should go home and do whatever it is you guys do during your free time."

Sora knew what she was talking about. Every guy did it. Most people do it by themselves, while others do it with other people, usually two or three. Yup, playing video games. Sora nodded and then realized that he still had to carry the bags for Kairi. With a sigh, he stood up, picked up the bags, and walked Kairi home. When Sora got home, he went upstairs and looked for some swimming trunks. He found a red pair with white palm trees on them. The rest of the day went normally, playing Video Games, pigging out, texting whoever. Sora collapsed on his bed and fell asleep, waiting for his day alone with Kairi

Sora was up bright and early. He took a shower and got in his trunks and a white t-shirt. He grabbed a towel and went downstairs. After pestering from his mother, who asked about the rating of the outing, and his father, who asked if he was getting any children any time soon. Sora blushed at his father's question and he left and headed for the island. He got there at 11:30 and he found Kairi waiting for him.

"Kairi? When did you get here?" Sora asked.

Kairi snapped out of her daze, "OH! Sora, I was just thinking of something. I got here at 11. Well, you ready?"

Sora nodded, "Yup! Let's go." He said. They both ran towards the beach. They found a spot and put their towels down. Sora took off his t-shirt and Kairi took off her tank top. It revealed a pink bikini with white hearts and a thin strap. She took of her shorts to reveal a pink bottom. Sora, who was looking over the beach, spotted Kairi and blushed as he saw her half naked, even if it was in a bathing suit. He tried to turn away, but unfortunately, Kairi noticed him staring. She turned red.

"Sora!" She yelled as she covered herself up, "Stop staring, it's rude!"

Sora snapped out of his fantasy and turned an even brighter shade of red. "Sorry." He muttered.

Kairi reached into her bag and pulled out sun screen. She squirted some into her hand and began to rub herself. Sora didn't look at her this time, as much as he wanted to; he just stared into the ocean, making sure that he didn't catch once glimpse of Kairi.

"Hey, Sora." Kairi said, "Can you rub lotion on my back?"

Sora looked at Kairi and nodded, with a light blush on his face. He walked over to her and rubbed it to her back. While he was doing this, Kairi closed her eyes and complimented Sora on how nice his hand felt. Sora blushed, but continued. When he was finished, he washed his hands and ran towards the ocean. Kairi scolded him for not putting on any sunscreen, but he was already in the ocean. He swam pretty far. Soon, after he went swam a couple of laps, he called to Kairi.

"KAIRI! Come on in, the water is perfect." He said

"No, I'll go in later." She responded.

Sora sighed, but then he thought of a plan. With a devious smile he swam to shore and snuck behind Kairi. She was laying out, catching some rays to get tan. Sora got behind her and grabbed her. He threw her over his shoulder. Kairi was kicking and screaming, but Sora didn't let go of her. He walked to the dock and threw her into the water. He jumped in after her. When he resurfaced, Kairi splashed him.

"Sora!" She shouted, "That was mean. I didn't want to go in yet!"

Sora laughed and started to do the backstroke, "But the water was sooooooo nice. I mean, you come to the beach and you don't go in the water. It's like going to the mall and not doing any shopping. But then again, I suppose that you not shopping would save my wallet."

Kairi splashed Sora. Sora just laughed, but he splashed her back. They then began a splashing war. Time flew by and pretty soon, it was getting dark. Sora and Kairi noticed this. Then went back to their stuff and began to pack up. Suddenly, it began to rain, hard. They lifted the towels over their heads, which stopped the rain, but soon the towels began to drip. They knew that they had to get out of the rain and fast

"What are we going to do?" Kairi said, "It is raining too hard to go back."

Sora looked around to find some shelter and saw a little whole in the wall. It was the secret spot that he had discovered. "Hey, why don't we go to the secret spot? It should be safe enough until the storm blows over." He suggested.

Kairi nodded and they both ran as fast as they could. When they got there, there was a little rain coming in, but not a lot. Sora and Kairi sat in the cavern. After a while, Sora noticed Kairi shivering. He sat next to her and wrapped both his arms around her. They both blushed as they did this. They sat in silence for a while. Kairi's shivering soon stopped, but the rain refused to let up. Suddenly, lightning struck and Kairi jumped. Sora pulled Kairi even closer to her. He breathed in her sent. She smelled like flowers.

"Sora?" Kairi suddenly said.

"What is it, Kairi?" Sora responded.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" inquired Sora.

"For getting you into this mess."

Sora laughed, "How is this your fault? Unless you controlled the weather, then there is no possible way for this to be your fault."

Kairi moved her legs closer to her body, and wrapped her arms around them. "It's not just this. I'm always getting captured. I'm always getting you hurt. You're risking your life for me, and I don't-"

Sora turned Kairi towards him and gripped both of her shoulders, "Listen here, Kairi. Don't you ever blame yourself for any of what happened. That was all Xehanort's fault, and I risked my life because you're my friend. You mean so much to me, that if I lost you... Well, I already lost you once. I'm never doing it again."

Kairi sat in stunned silence for a while. The only sound heard was the rain and occasional lightning. Kairi moved closer to Sora and wrapped her arms around him.

"Thank you, Sora. That means a lot to me."

They broke the hug, and it filled them both of them with a sense of emptiness. They stared at each other, looking into each other's eyes.

"I love you!" Sora blurted out.

Kairi's eyes widened, "You...what?"

"Damn! I'm sorry Kairi. That came out of no where! It's just...well the mood was kinda...and with everything that happened... I thought-"

Sora was instantly shut up by a face collision from Kairi. It took Sora a moment to register what exactly happened, and he came to the conclusion that Kairi was kissing him. It was a favorable outcome, and he decided to reciprocate. Grabbing her shoulders, he pulled her in, deepening the kiss. After a few seconds, they broke apart, breath heavy.

"I love you too, Sora" Kairi smiled.

Sora smiled back at her. They embraced once more, this time taking each in. They moved apart just far enough for them to kiss each other again. Their first kiss was innocent, as most first kisses are. However, this one was filled with passion, mixed with excitement and a touch of teenage hormones. Their lips were parted and their tongues took the opportunity to explore each other's mouths. Hands were roaming, Kairi's on Sora's chest, noticing how muscular he had actually got on his journey, and Sora's on Kairi's waist, remarking on how "feminine" Kairi had gotten. They would have continued on like this indefinitely, but the human body requires a constant circulation of oxygen to sustain life, and so, the two of them split apart, touching foreheads to continue their intimacy.

Once their breath returned, they continued their "assault". This time, however, Sora and Kairi began to shift, so Sora was soon on top of Kairi. Sora separated his lips from hers, and moved to her neck. Sora noted that her skin had a lovely taste, similar to her scent. It was a favorable taste, and he continued to kiss, suck, and bite her neck, eliciting moans and soft cries from Kairi, who was enjoying Sora's attention. She grabbed his hand and brought it over to her chest. Sora was hesitant, but as Kairi squirmed underneath him, it vanished. He began to move his hand is different direction, judging his performance on Kairi's reactions. Positive ones were a sign to continue on, while negative ones signaled to stop and try something else.

Sora continued on for a few minutes, until he grew frustrated with the fabric that blocked him. He lifted it up and returned with a new vigor. Kairi, meanwhile, was gripping his shoulders, leaving them red and slightly bloody from her nails. She whispered words of encouragement and enjoyment to Sora, who returned them with words of love. Kairi reached up and began to trace his chest, and soon it began to slowly creep down, until it reached the waist of his swimming trunks. Sora noticed this, and his clouded mind cleared up and realized what had just transpired between the two of them. He grabbed her hand.

"Wait!"

Kairi blinked, "What's wrong? Am I doing something..."

Sora shook his head, "No, it's not that. It's just...we shouldn't do this." He sat up, lifting her up with him.

"What do you mean? You said-"

"I-I know that. But, well...This is the wrong place and the wrong time."

Kairi slowly nodded, tucking a strand of wet hair behind her ear, "You're right. That was too fast. Our hormones took the best of us."

Sora took one of her hands and intertwined their fingers together, "I love you, Kairi. I think I've been in love with you my entire life."

Kairi's eyes started to glisten. She stood up and said, "I want to show you something."

She took Sora over to the drawing she had made as kids. When Kairi first arrived at Destiny Islands, Sora had shown Kairi his secret spot, telling her never to tell anyone about it. To commemorate their friendship, they drew pictures of each other. Years later, on the day before Sora inherited the Keyblade, Sora had edited the picture, so it showed Sora giving the Papou fruit to Kairi. When Sora had defeated Ansem, and Kairi was left behind to wait for him, she saw what he had drawn, and she had changed it as well. They were both giving each other Papou fruits. Sora saw this and smiled.

"When did you do this?" he asked.

"When you left. I've always loved you too, Sora. And I never want us to be apart ever again."

Sora smiled, "That's a promise!"

Another bolt of lightning struck and Kairi jumped into Sora, who wrapped his arms around her.

"It's just lightning. We'll be safe inside here, but we just have to wait out the storm."

Kairi nodded, but started to shiver once more, "What do we do about heat?"

Sora smiled, "We'll have to share body heat by snuggling."

Kairi smiled up at him, "You know Sora, if you want to hold me, you just have to ask."

They walked over to the corner, and adjusted themselves for a few minutes to get comfortable. Once they did, they cuddled close to each other, and soon fell asleep.

Sora was woken up by a loud bird that had decided to sing. He tried to move, but his entire right side was asleep. Eyes adjusting to his surroundings, he remembered what had happened yesterday; the beach, the storm, the kiss, and...the "quality time" spent with Kairi. He noticed Kairi curled up in his arms, still sleeping. Sora noticed how beautiful she was as she slept, and he didn't have the heart to wake her.

An hour went by until Kairi shifted, signifying that she was starting to wake up

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty." Sora teased.

Kairi, bleary-eyed and disorented, gave him a small shove. Her eyes widened as the previous nights events returned to her, and she smiled at Sora.

"Then you must be the prince who roused me from my slumber."

"Not quite, I still need to give you THIS!"

Sora leaned over and kissed her. They only kissed for a few seconds, then they broke apart. Sora stood up, nearly losing his balance as his body ached and screamed. He helped Kairi up, who had the same problems.

"The storms over, so we should get back." Kairi remarked.

Sora shrugged, "I kinda like it in here. Just the two of us, it feels like we are in our own little world."

Kairi smiled at Sora, "As much as I agree with you, I need to take a shower and get out of this bathing suit."

Sora blinked as thoughts entered his mind, thoughts that involved Kairi and the bathing suit. Kairi noticed the look in his eye of contemplation, and realized exactly what Sora was thinking of.

"SORA!" She exclaimed as she shoved him, "Get your mind out of the gutter!"

Sora blushed, "W-what? Oh, yeah. Sorry!"

Kairi went to go pick her stuff up from the head she had left it in, but hesitated, "Sora, turn around. I don't want you getting any big ideas."

"After what happened last night, I don't think that you bending over is really a problem," He remarked as he picked up his stuff.

Kairi's face fell. She bit her bottom lip, and began twirling her hair. Sora noticed this, and he dropped his stuff.

"What's wrong, Kairi? You alright?"

"What are we?"

Sora cocked an eyebrow, "Come again?"

"I mean, where do we stand? What am I to you? What are we to each other?"

Sora realized Kairi's concerns. He went over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Kairi, will you be my girlfriend?"

Kairi smiled, "On one condition: You be my boyfriend."

Sora gave her his signature grin, "You've got yourself a deal!" And he kissed her.

Riku had learned from his parents that Sora and Kairi hadn't returned, and he told them that they probably took shelter on the island. He went out in the morning to go and see if they were okay. He scoured the island for them, but he couldn't find a trace of them. For a second, he wondered whether they were alive, but he simply shrugged it off. Sora was a Keyblade Master, a storm wouldn't kill him, and he knew that Sora would protect Kairi with his life. Riku was just about to give up when he saw Sora and Kairi crawling out of a small whole in the large rock at the center of the island. He called out to them and waved, and they noticed Riku and waved back. Riku then saw that Sora and Kairi were holding hands. Riku gave a small smile. 'About damn time' he thought to himself.

Sora and Kairi walked over to Riku, who told them of his mission to find and deliever them safely back to their respective houses.

A smile crept up on Riku's face, "So...you two finally did it?"

Sora and Kairi's face turned scarlet, "W-w-what? We didn't...We only..." they sputtered.

Riku start to laugh, "Guys, I mean you two finally confessed to each other." He paused, "Why, what did you think I meant?"

Riku didn't think it was possible, but their faces turned even more red, enough to make a tomato look pale. They both muttered something, and walked a good distance ahead of Riku, who had to clutch his gut from the pain the laughter caused.

As they neared the main land, Riku told them that he remembered he had promised to meet Wakka and play some Blitzball with him, so he left Sora and Kairi on their own. Just as Riku turned to leave, Sora could have sworn he saw Riku wink at him. Nevertheless, Sora walked Kairi back to her house. As they stood on the porch, their hands remained linked, neither one wanting to let go, but eventually, Kairi went inside. Sora wanted to stick around, but his parents would be worried. He jogged home, and when he entered the door, he was met with a bombardment of question from his parents. His mother was crying, worrying that he had vanished again, and it took another half-hour to calm her down.

Once Sora's parents were calmed down, he went to his room, threw on some clean clothes, and proceeded to collapse on his bed. Sora couldn't help but think of how happy he was. It took him longer than a year, but he had rescued Kairi, Riku, and save the world more than once. Now, he had returned to a normal life, and had got himself a wonderful girlfriend. Sora was happy, and his heart felt happy as well.