Forever Love

Roxas's frown deepened with every word. He closed his eyes as they walked, the image of Owen's hands on Namine's body flashing back. "I should have gotten there faster. I knew something was wrong," he explained. The girls took too long. He knew something wasn't right, and yet he did nothing. "I'm sorry I was late, Namine."

It took Roxas a moment to really believe what she said. He...gave her strength? "Oh..." he muttered, looking away shyly. "It was nothing." She probably saw the fury in his eyes the second he realized her predicament, but...the rest just came naturally. He would always be there for her.

Roxas looked over at Namine. "What for?" he asked lowly, eyebrows furrowing. He didn't understand. He did nothing but make that situation worse. Well, that wasn't entirely true--it was Owen who made it worse, but Roxas fell right into his trap. His blood still boiled at the comments that punk made. Roxas couldn't believe someone could say such things about Namine.

That grin had Kairi smiling too. "Right," she said with a faint nod. She took a step toward their path, pulling gently at the hand she still held so he could walk with her. Once they got to the dorms, she would talk to Namine about Sora staying. Just the fact that he agreed made Kairi giddy.

Kairi sucked in a silent breath when Sora pulled her in again, not that she didn't like it. In fact...she loved it. It felt right. "I know," she murmured. Travis nearly got beaten to a pulp but...he wasn't worth it. He was a lowlife creep who would get his karma soon enough. Sora didn't need to deliver it. She lifted her hand to Sora's cheek, delicately touching his face before she pushed herself onto her toes, placing a gentle kiss of gratitude and comfort to his cheek. She hoped that would help him feel more secure in his decision to hold back and leave with her.

Kairi tilted her head, finding the hurt in Sora's eyes. "I'm okay. I'm here...with you," she told him, glancing down at his chest. She could feel his heart beat under her hand. "And I promise that you were there for me when I needed you. If you hadn't shown up when you did, something really bad could have happened to me tonight. You gave me the opportunity to get away from him, whether you can see it or not." Kairi met his pretty blue eyes again. "Trust me when I say that, okay?" She would never lie to him about this kind of thing. It was too important. "And thank you again for sticking up for me. That means more than you know."

Kairi took a step forward, closer to Sora. Her hand remained in his, but the other went to his chest. "Sora, look at me," she asked of him. She wanted to tell him something, but she needed him to look her in the eye. Riku's eyes couldn't lie, but...neither could hers.

Kairi lifted her other hand to Sora's arm. "You got there in time," she promised him. He and Roxas showed up before anything terrible happened, before any real lines were crossed. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't have had the opportunity to escape. Namine either.

Kairi gripped Sora's hand in return. Namine...right, she kind of forgot about her roommate. "Oh, um..." she said with a wince. "I'll talk to her. Who knows? Maybe she'll want Roxas there too." It didn't matter too much; she trusted both boys with her life. Kairi could handle one night with them.

Kairi shook her head, though she couldn't help but smile a little. Sora had always been a gentleman, and now was no exception. "I trust you," she told him. He wasn't Travis or Owen, that was for sure. She trusted him completely.

Kairi tensed slightly. That response... Did he not want to? "...You don't have to," she replied weakly, fighting embarrassment. Yes, she was sure of it; she did ask him after all. But...if Sora didn't want to, that was okay. She would make it through the night.

That murmur in her hair had Kairi pulling Sora closer to her. It had her heart skipping in her chest. How many times had that happened? How often did Sora do that to her? Quite a bit, but...she never really had time to reflect on it. Kairi clutched the back of his shirt. As much as Namine's presence comforted her, after tonight, she wasn't sure it was going to be enough. "...Can you stay with me tonight?" she asked quietly, shy. "Please?" He had never stayed in her room before--here or on the Islands. But after what nearly happened at the theater, she didn't want to be apart from him. She hoped Sora could understand.

Kairi smiled weakly and nodded, lifting her free hand to wipe under one eye when a tear threatened to escape. "Thank you," she whispered. She was lucky to have him. She stepped toward him and embraced him then, directing the hand she held to her waist before she wrapped that arm around him. The only person she wanted touching her waist...was Sora. The realization made her blush, but she just hid her face in his shoulder so he wouldn't see.

"I know," Kairi murmured. Of course she wasn't alone, and as long as she had Sora as a friend, she never would be. Kairi lowered her hands from her head, gripping Sora's gently. "I know. It's just..." She looked up at him, eyes moist. "I never wanted you to see something like that. The picture was one thing, but this?" It was awful. It was humiliating. And it was real. "I'm so sorry, Sora."

Kairi subconsciously tightened her grasp on Sora's hand at the question. "...Yeah," she answered quietly, the memory making her feel sick. "Travis...he--he got in my face right away, put his hands on my hips and asked me to take measurements..." Kairi had to stop, eyes squeezing shut at the flashback. "He and Owen talked about taking turns." She stopped walking entirely, shaking her head a little in disbelief. That could have turned out so bad. Kairi released Sora and lifted her hands to grip her head, fingers grasping at her red hair. She didn't even want to picture that happening.

Kairi smiled weakly. Sora...she thought, touched. He was one of the best guys she knew. "Um..." she started, lowering her gaze from him to the sidewalk. "...It's still a bit blurry because it all happened so fast, but...they cornered us just outside the bathroom. They made comments during the movie, which was why we left. I just needed a moment to think without them cracking jokes about me and that dumb poster going around campus." Kairi's eyebrows furrowed at the reminder of the infamous picture. It still disgusted her. "We tried ignoring them but they just...threw themselves at us."

Kairi tightened her grasp on Sora's hand. "I don't want to be alone either," she admitted, looking up at him. Yes, she had Namine, but...this was different. Sora was one person she could talk to about anything, but...was he sure about this? The subject matter wasn't exactly light, and he still seemed a bit worked up about it. Ticked off for her sake, even.

Kairi glanced at Sora out of the corner of her eye, but then she looked forward. Roxas and Namine were ahead of them by a bit, probably having their own conversation on this subject. "...I've handled heartless, right?" she tried. "Can't get much worse than that." Then again, heartless didn't...do what Travis nearly did. That was a whole other level of bad.

Kairi didn't know what to say to that right away, her eyes falling to the sidewalk. She had blocked out most of what happened because of the fighting but now that Sora brought it up... "Mm," she hummed. Right, the...assault. It had come close to crossing a line. What those guys did wasn't okay in any sense, but...it could have been really bad. "But...you stood up for me. So thank you." Sora defended her honor, as he always did. She would always be indebted to him for that.

The walk back to the dorms was a quiet one, but they separated themselves from Owen and Travis successfully. Kairi noticed that she and Sora still hadn't released each other's hands, either. Was he...okay? He had been so infuriated before, with good reason of course, but... She hadn't seen that look since Xehanort. They passed the park, things winding down now that the sun was setting on Radiant Garden. Kairi moved her gaze to her handsome friend beside her. "...You okay?" she asked, voice soft. After that experience, she didn't want to break any peace.

Roxas took a deep breath at Namine's touch. Right, home... He looked to her wordlessly and grasped her hand, starting forward. He wasn't leaving her side. Kairi met Sora's eyes before she nodded to the officers. "Thank you," she muttered. She appeciated them letting everyone go. This could have been a lot worse. She reached for Sora's hand as she took a step forward, her eyes darting to his. Time to go.

While a few of the teens looked surprised at the blonde girl's action, the second officer had enough. "Alright, that's it. All of you get out of here now before we start taking names," he ordered. "You four, we'll give you a head start so you don't run into each other on the way. Get going." Roxas still seethed regardless of Namine's interference. Her tore himself from Sora's firm grasp and glanced at the officer. Yeah, they were leaving. Roxas didn't want to be around these creeps anymore. This could only get worse.

Roxas struggled against Sora's hold, the second officer going for Owen alongside his coworker. "Shut up!" he roared at Owen. "She's better than that and you know it!" Kairi looked to Namine. This was about her?! What did Owen even say?!

Roxas's eyes sharpened at the words, however soft they were. He turned his head to glare at Owen, but he knew holding back wasn't a choice. His hands balled into fists, his jaw clenched, and adrenaline flooded his veins. Roxas lunged for Owen, tackling him to the ground. No way was he getting away with that remark! You son of a-- The second officer blinked at the tackle. "Ah damn," he muttered, starting forward instantly to separate the two. What happened?! "Roxas!" Kairi cried in surprise. What was he doing?!

Roxas whacked Owen's finger away from Namine. "Get real!" Namine would never! And neither would Kairi! Kairi didn't know how to react. Seduce?! she thought in outrage. She felt sick at even the possibility. "Enough!" the second guard ordered. He could tell how infuriated the two guys the girls defended were. He seriously doubted they would lie about this. "You two," he said, directing the order to the two guys who looked worse for wear, "this side. You four, on the other." Separating them sounded best for now, until they came to a decision how to handle this.