kh_drabble | [054 - Choices] The Ugly Baby (Reply)

Challenge: 054 - Choices
Title: The Ugly Baby
Word Count: 314
Note: Riku is one. Sora is… a couple hours or so? Or something. I know nothing of childbirth. Right.

Riku leaned closer, staring at the baby while the adults above him conversed over what to name the thing. It was really ugly and pink and splotchy and Riku had to resist the urge to make a face at it for fear that it would get scared at the sudden movement and eat him like that alien in the movie his Mommy and Daddy had watched. Or something.

Because, surely, human babies could not look so ugly. Riku knew he'd never been that ugly. His mother always said he was such a cute little one year old, so, surely he had been a cute little baby, too. So what happened to this—

The baby opened his eyes and blinked rapidly, regarding Riku with eyes as blue as the sky outside.

Riku’s breath caught. He could feel something bubbling up at the back of his throat - like vomit - but better because it was something... something... a word, his first word, and it was something he couldn’t stop anymore than he could stop time.

"Sora..." He breathed. Sky. Beautiful sky blue Sora eyes.

All conversation stopped.

"Oh my... Riku just said his first word!" His mother said, her voice half-way shocked, half-way hysterical. "Sora. Sora! His first word was Sora. Somebody write this down! Does anybody have a camera? Our baby can talk! WRITE THIS DOWN!"

Sora's mother ignored the hysterics, mouthing the word to herself before speaking. "Sora... Sora. I like it." She decided triumphantly, looking down at the blue-eyed baby. "What do you think about the name, Sora?"

Sora made a spit bubble and wrinkled his nose when Riku snickered and popped it.

"Sora." The silver-haired toddler repeated. "Soh-rah. Sooooora. So-ra."

"Yes." Mizuki repeated gaily. "Sora."

Years later, an indignant brunet would throw his wooden sword at his silver-haired best friend when he tried to regale the boy with the "Tale of the Ugly-ass Baby".