That didn’t bother him. He’s comfortable in the dark... it’s where he belongs.
But... something was wrong. There was a faint glimmer of light off in the distance. Light. How dare it intrude when it’s something he’ll never be able to possess.
Flooded with irrational anger, he charged towards the light--only to skid to a stop. Sora was there. Sora and Namine... no, that isn’t right. He knows that now.
Kairi. Kairi is the one he and Sora vowed to protect.
“What are you two doing here? It isn’t safe,” he spoke up as he drew closer.
They showed no sign of hearing him.
“Hey!” His own voice rang out behind him, making the brunet and redhead turn around, smiles on their faces. “About time you two showed up!”
He turned around too, slowly, knowing what he would see... and he was right. The actual Riku stood there, grinning, paying no attention to him...
“Riku!” Kairi ran to the original, phasing through the replica as though he weren’t there. Sora followed, and the trio turned away, strolling towards the light.
“Wait!” he tried to cry out, but they kept walking, out of the dark and into the light he’d never know. He reached out a hand to stop them... only to see it fading away before his eyes, melding into the shadows. He could feel himself coming apart, disappearing little by little, and no amount of screaming would stop it.
He sat up in bed, gasping, patting his hands over his body to make sure he was still there. To make sure he still... existed.
His left hand skimmed down his right arm, only to meet with a strange, warm stickiness.
Blood slicked his entire forearm, staining the sheets and oozing down his palm. And as soon as he noticed, his arm began to sting and burn, prompting him to fling off the covers and run to the nearest sink to wash away the blood.
As the water cleaned away the bloodstains and ran red down the drain, his stomach dropped. The scratches carved into his arm weren’t random. They spelled a single word, large and ragged and red.
He needed to cover it up, and fast.