Fast Food Madness: The Epic Return V2

Roxas nodded once at the words. "Good," he said. He didn't want her to, because being able to stand on your own and take care of yourself was a big part of life. Of course, Roxas would always be there to protect Namine if need be or watch over her. Surely she knew that.

 

Namine held Roxas's gaze, the girl nodding once softly. She hoped that she really did keep a hold on the courage that she had when facing Smith; that bravery would help her face a lot of things in life.

 

Roxas held Namine's gaze for another moment before tearing his eyes away from hers and watching his fingers as he picked up his motion from before, beginning to play with her hair again. As long as Namine accepted him, Roxas would be her guardian angel forever. She saved him more than a couple tough situations, and he could only act as her guardian to give back what she naturally gave him.

 

Namine shut her eyes, leaning her head against the couch a little bit more as she felt Roxas play with her hair again. The motion was soothing, even if Namine didn't have too many things that needed to be attended to. Strangely, she was alright, and the events of the past few days weren't affecting her too much. Of course, she wasn't going to complain about that.

 

Roxas silently watched his fingers fiddle and twirl Namine's blonde strands, the boy feeling like a heavy weight was lifted off his chest now that Smith was finished. For good now. Perhaps now he and Namine could focus on themselves and their relationship, and hopefully getting back to a peaceful life here in New York. The last year had been anything but, so maybe it would change, and for the better.

 

Namine exhaled a soft breath through her nose, the silence lingering in the air now. It wasn't awkward or heavy silence; it was full of peace for a change. She was glad that she and Roxas were having this moment, because now, they could move on with their lives, and leave Smith where he belonged: in the past.

 

Riku had his arms crossed, sitting in Sora's recliner as the T.V. played in the background. He didn't hear it, though, trying to comprehend what Sora just suggested. He wanted him...to stay? Could he even do that? Not because of the worlds, but because of himself? The older teen stared at the floor beneath his feet, silent for the moment.

 

"I know it'll be hard to get used to it at first," Sora said, following up his suggestion for Riku to stay. "But this place grows on you after a little while." There were plenty of things to do in the city, and all of Riku's friends were here. Surely he would want to stay with them for a while, since the worlds weren't in peril...right?

 

"I don't know, Sora..." Riku said, evident doubt in his voice. He lifted his eyes to look at his friend and moved his arm so he could push his hair out of his eyes. He was so used to constantly moving around and never staying in one place for long. Once a problem was solved, he was on his way; it was no different here.

 

"You can't fight forever," Sora said, figuring that taking care of the Heartless or new enemies would be one of Riku's concerns. What was he planning on doing, fighting his entire life. "That's not a life; that's just...a waste." Yes, fighting was necessary in a lot of cases, but now wasn't one of those times.

 

Sora's words registered quickly to Riku, though he had some doubts still. He had been fighting nonstop for the past few years, and settling down just like that? Would it be a good idea? "Maybe I should talk to the King..." he said, more to himself than to Sora. He wanted nothing more than to be with his friends, but he didn't have a place to call "home" for a very long time. Just the thought was absurd to him, which shouldn't have been the case.

 

Sora crossed his arms, leaning back into his chair as he looked at Riku. "He already said there's no threat that needs to be tended to, so why go to him?" he asked, arching a brow. He didn't wait for an answer, thought. "I know how you think, Riku; you want to go to him as an excuse and then disappear. Right?" Riku would use it as a reason to leave Earth, but then he would never come back. Sora knew how that worked; that was pretty much what Riku did the first time he left.

 

Riku lowered his sight from Sora to the floor, sighing softly. Sora had him there. But he just didn't know if this was a good idea... How would he adjust to this kind of life? The only place he had ever called home was Destiny Islands, but he wasn't sure about Earth. Actually, he wasn't sure about anything now that he didn't have some threat to conquer.

 

"...All that I'm asking is that you try settling down here for a little while," Sora said when Riku didn't respond to him. "If you hate it that much, then none of us will keep you here." He knew that it wouldn't work out that way, though; Riku would start liking to hang out with his friends again, he was sure. He just didn't know yet, just like Sora had been unsure of returning home after four months.

 

Riku didn't say or do anything at Sora's words, instead contemplating them. There really was nothing stopping him from leaving if he wanted, he supposed. Except, maybe his friends. He was so used to being alone, but when Sora joined him on the mission, he had actually appreciated having someone to talk to. Maybe Sora was right... Maybe things wouldn't be so bad here. "...I guess I can give it a shot," Riku finally said, looking up at his best friend.

 

Sora nodded once, feeling his lips turn up in a smile. "Good." He really was glad to hear Riku say that he would try living in NYC for a little while; he had gotten closer to his friend in the past few months, though their friendship had never been bad because of the time apart. "I'm sure Kairi'll like having you around," he added, thinking of how close the two of them were.

 

Riku felt his own smile form at both his friend's expression and the words. "Yeah... I've missed her," he admitted softly, his eyes falling to the carpet again. "Both of you, actually." They were one of the main reasons he took the job of fighting anyway, to keep them from having any trouble with it. Of course, things here obviously weren't so easy. Riku guessed that was another reason why he should stay: to help out if things got too rough.

 

"And we missed you too," Sora said seriously, nodding once. "It feels good, having the three of us together again." Riku, Kairi, and Sora were a solid group of friends, even after being apart for so long. They would always be friends, and being apart for so long proved that to Sora. Nevertheless, it would be nice for the three of them go hang out again.

 

Riku nodded once in agreement, lifting his eyes to Sora again at the words. How long had it been anyway? Since they had all been together? He knew it had been a while, and he blamed himself for that. After all, he was the one who decided to be on the go instead of settling down here.

 

Sora lowered his gaze to the ground, not really having anything else to say. His thoughts were moving on now to another topic: Kairi. She had been asleep for a while now, and he felt like he should check on her. Was she feeling alright? Was she really that exhausted from all the events that had occurred yesterday?