Peanut

Light swallowed in nervousness, lifting her gaze only to Riku's lips when she faced him. She should have expected that he wouldn't let her off the hook so easily. He liked this, didn't he? Seeing her less composed and stoic than usual--He seemed to love putting her in positions like this that made her blush and become shy instead of bold and confident.

Light's blush remained as she sank deeper into the beanbag chair. Riku made it seem like he wasn't going to stop, so she would just need to focus on something else to keep herself from melting in embarrassment. She stared ahead at the movie, trying to focus on that instead.

Light's cheeks turned bright red with Riku's newest action. Alright, when she said she missed affection, she didn't mean it quite like this. "You're embarrassing me," she murmured shyly. She wasn't used to being treated like this at all.

Lightning blushed at the kiss on her cheek. It felt so good to be treated like this again..."Then I guess I'll keep you," she muttered, closing her eyes as she took in Riku's close proximity. He...wanted to be in a relationship with her, and she wanted to be in one with him. She didn't think that was a question, but apparently it was.

Lightning perked up when Riku was close and whispering in her ear like earlier. Only this time, the message was different. It took her a moment to actually take in the words. "...I thought I already had you," she muttered, turning her head slightly so that she could see him better.

Lightning gave Riku a look--The look that said he was an idiot. "I invited you on a date. I gave in to your flirting this afternoon. I..." She looked away as a slight blush crept into her cheeks. "...like you a lot. Idiot." Of course she wanted to be his girlfriend. But if he didn't want her, then she'd leave.

"But if you were okay with things being how they were the past few weeks, then...I guess we shouldn't be doing this," Lightning said quietly, referring to the date. He didn't try to win her back over the past few weeks when he thought he lost her. That meant he didn't want to be in a relationship with her... I'm stupid. I should have seen it sooner.

"...I did miss it though," Lightning said quietly, looking down at one of the bags of candy. "I noticed you weren't holding my hand anymore but you were still by my side all the time, so I thought..." She sighed, lifting a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. "I don't know what I thought." They were definitely mixed signals, but she had so many things to cope with then that she couldn't really face the problem.

This time, Lightning was the one who lowered her gaze to her lap. "You were already doing so much for me," she said softly. "How was I supposed to ask for more?" Yes, she noticed that he wasn't holding her hand or giving her kisses, but he still treated her with care. She forced herself to be okay with that and not ask for more. She didn't have a right to ask after all he did for her.

"Since when do I not want you to be my boyfriend? How did I act like that?" Lightning asked with an arched brow. She was genuinely confused...and slightly horrified. How long was Riku thinking like this? He helped her around earlier that week when she couldn't walk. He taught her how to fly in Neverland. He whispered sweet-nothings in her ear earlier that day! And he did all that thinking they weren't a couple?

Lightning wasn't stupid; she caught that Riku stopped himself from calling himself her boyfriend. "...Why won't you call yourself my boyfriend?" she asked with caution. She thought that that day in the hallway, when she initially thought Riku broke up with her, that she made a mistake. She thought she presumed too much and that she was wrong in thinking he dumped her. But if he didn't think of himself as her boyfriend...

Light's natural inclination was to think that Riku was apologizing for taking advantage of her earlier to get the phone, but his tone told her otherwise. It was far too serious for talking about a phone. "...Sorry for what?" she asked, disregarding the movie. What had him so serious and sorry?

Lightning scanned Riku's face, able to see it due to the screen providing enough light. He looked like there was something he wanted to say. "...Out with it," she encouraged, though she didn't say it angrily. Whatever was on his mind, she wanted to hear it.

It was only an hour into the long movie, and for now, things were quiet. It was just talking, not battle. Lightning was able to stay awake thus far because of the action scenes and exposition, but now she was getting a little tired. She wondered how Riku was faring. She turned her head and looked at him, surprised to meet his gaze. How long had he been looking at her?

Lightning's body naturally relaxed underneath Riku's arm. When things were like this, it was hard to doubt that he cared for her. He put her underneath his arm so often, either protectively or just to make her feel loved. She was feeling the latter now, unlike earlier when she felt betrayed.

People don't sit in separate chairs on dates, Lightning reasoned. And she was the one who asked for this and was giving Riku a chance to redeem himself, so she couldn't say no to this either. She walked forward, stepping over a plate of cookies before she turned around and sat in the chair right beside Riku. She hadn't meant to sit this close to him, but the bean bag chair shifted and shoved both of them towards the middle and into each other.

"Oh good," Lightning said smoothly, playing along. "I thought that was all for you." But there was something else she was wondering about: the seating. There were other beanbag chairs in the room, but it looked like Riku tried to sit on the side of his. The reason was obvious; he wanted to sit next to her. Right?

Lightning put the movie in and pressed play, though she soon found the remote to take back to her seat with her. When she turned around and saw Riku in his seat, she couldn't help but smirk faintly. He looked like an absolute pig with all that food surrounding him.

Light nodded, viewing the collection by the front. It was amazing how media transcended worlds; the movies here were many of the ones that were popular on the Islands. After a few minutes of looking through the extensive bunch, she picked out the superhero movie The Avengers. Both of them would like this one for sure.

Lightning shut her mouth, regaining her composure. "It's nice," she said casually, as if it weren't that big of a deal. Of course, there wasn't much point in putting up that mask, considering Riku just witnessed her awe. It was a cool room; she had to admit that at least to herself.

Lightning stopped a step or two in, blinking in awe. They spent so much time at this castle, but there were still so many rooms and places in existence that she had no clue about. The bean-bag chairs were huge; big enough for more than one person for sure. The screen was nice too, and the snack-stand behind them had all kinds of goodies. Finally, she spoke. "...How did you find this place?"

Light tensed slightly when Riku put his hand on her back, but she knew she couldn't push him away. This was a date, and this was what people did on dates. And this was all her idea in the first place. No turning back now. As they walked, she looked down at her feet, realizing that she was growing more comfortable with Riku's hand on her back as they went along.

Lightning blushed, slightly insecure in her choice. "People are supposed to look nice for dates," she said, glancing at Riku's chest naturally. She was just glad that she didn't put on a skirt or anything like that; if she had, it would have been really embarrassing.

Lightning nodded slightly before she turned around and walked away. It took maybe fifteen minutes to reach her room, since the pool was pretty far away from it. She had a magical wardrobe that could make any clothes that she wanted, but since when did she care about what clothes she wore? She wasn't trendy like Serah. But this was a date, and normally you were supposed to look decent on a date, so... Lightning conjured up a pair of jeans and a light blue blouse and white scarf. It would do. When she was set, she walked across the hall and knocked on Riku's shut door.

"No, with Sora," Lightning said sarcastically, rolling her eyes for good measure. Of course she was talking about Riku. "You said you'd make it worth my while if I gave you the phone, so I'm giving you tonight to prove it." He'd better think quick on his feet and come up with something to do, though she supposed she could interject ideas here and there. Tonight though, Riku's job was to prove he was genuine.