Adult-FanFiction.org : Games

Love:: Misunderstanding
By : hachi-miitsu
Category: Kingdom Hearts > AU - Alternate Universe
Views: 1821 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: SEE FULL DISCLAIMER PLEASE
Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
First and Foremost: THIS IS A WORK OF FANFICTION FOR THE FANS BY A FAN. Phew~ Now then as I mentioned previously, musical props will go to the artists at the end of the chapter mk? I don't make any profit off this and Square Enix owns exclusive rights to dangle their creativeness in our faces. Because we only WISH we could be that cool...with hair that defied gravity and big poofy shorts and....okay, I'm done.
Chapter One: Pro meets Con; Guess Which is Which
September 12, 2007 ; a very early 7:45 am
"When destruction is upon them, souls drunk in foolishness retreat to the blissful ether of ignorance. Life. Nature. Civilization. If you live longer than all three, you see them reduced to what they really are—ugly lumps of desire. Humans are weak, therefore I shall rise above them. I will take what I look down upon for myself and capture all in my illusion. The recklessness of a lone person gives birth to struggle which, in turn, is made of many sacrifices."
Irritation pricked at the blonde's soul as he slammed his book shut and got to his feet. Sometimes it wasn't worth it to crawl out of bed. This was one of those mornings. And the passage rubbed him wrong. It was like the universe was trying to tell him something.
You're just tired.
His muscles creaked as he trotted down the white hall, past closed doors and rows of grey lockers. The final bell rang and he hissed a quiet curse as he forced himself to slow down. He was late. On his first day.
Roxas Meguriaukagi sighed heavily as he forced himself to walk towards his new homeroom and what was arguably his impending doom. For any other kid, this might be a blank slate. A fresh start. For Roxas, age seventeen, the fresh starts were getting really stale.
It was another new school. Another new abode. Another new start where the days would be counted down until he'd find himself drifting away from it all, yet again.
He wasn't a sad boy, by any means. He wasn't necessarily a happy one either.
With all of the moving around that his family (mother) had to do to keep them financially afloat (barely above poverty), it couldn't really be helped. The company was their sovereign, the wages their bread—a way to make ends meet. Try as he might, Roxas couldn't blame anyone for this situation. Well, he could but that was another issue. One thing had to be given to keep another. In his case, it was friends for sanity.
He couldn't wallow in self-pity, even if he tried. And he had too. His hardest. But his mother was earnest and she worked herself to the teetering edges of fatigue. No, he didn't have the right to feel sorry for himself. He'd just grit his teeth and grin when the time came again.
Roxas frowned as he reached down to straighten his wabaki. The place they were currently calling home was Tokugawa. It was a far cry from Shinjuku, for which the blonde was ever grateful. Not for the first time, he found himself wondering just how long they'd be here. When would his mom wear that plastic smile again that never completely hid the tired lines of her face as she lugged out the packing tape and sharpies?
It hadn't always been this way. Once upon a time, his mom had been a happy romantic—a woman whose greatest dream comprised of a white picket fence, a hubby, and 2.5 kids. What she'd been landed with was a drunken prick and…him.
The boy grimaced. In entered the monkey wrench that was his wonky name. She was just as much a literalist as she had been a romantic. Roxas was a mistake on his father's part, insert sobs here, and he had probably been for his mother somewhere deep down as well. But the difference was that the little woman actually gave two shits about him.
From birth Roxas heard people describe him as unexpected, random, and out of place. She loved that about her son and she always had. Not the mistake part, the unexpected one.
And thusly, she had dubbed her son with a last name that literally meant Serendipitous Key. As far as the "Roxas" part…?
Well, a boy needed his secrets.
In a mini universe of Japanese people with names like Sagara and Takahiro, poor Roxas shuddered. He'd be doomed for eternity as long as he remained in the land of the rising sun to hear a butchered version of his first name.
"Rokusasu..."
Rok-u-ass-oo.
Rock your ass...ooh~
Fag he was not…yet. Hopefully never. Definitely never.
The blonde groaned and shrugged his shoulder to get a more secure grip on his patched backpack. It wasn't the only thing he needed to keep a strangle hold on. Roxas focused on the shuffle of his steps as they echoed in the empty hallway much like in those really corny horror movies where the black guy always dies first. The ones where the leader of the group gets the moronic notion to split the gang up and look for clues.
Before he knew it, Roxas was standing outside his classroom door: room 121. He closed his eyes and released a particularly heavy sigh, hoping the expulsion would ease some of his tightly wound nerves. It didn't.
The boy fixed a glower on his face before sliding the door back and stepping over the threshold. The teacher was in the middle of a coffee fueled sermon when she stole a glance in his general direction. Roxas's scowl deepened as he stood there sheepishly, orange call-slip in hand.
She glared at him and cleared her throat. "May I help you young man?"
"I'm the new student."
She paused and pushed up her glasses, eyeing him like he might be lying. Then something like recognition sparked in her expression. "Ah yes, we've been expecting you."
Roxas snorted but stepped up when she ushered him to the front of the classroom. He mumbled a rushed introduction and refused to acknowledge the fever crawling across his cheeks. His gaze flicked up from the ground and began to study his surroundings. This was his first mistake.
The twelfth graders he stood before regarded him with a wary eye. It was either blatant disregard or outright hostility that flashed there—only visible to the one it was meant for. Roxas's knuckles tingled and he pondered the complexity of his knees knocking together with all the finesse and glorious symphony of a woodpecker on a tree.
This, it might be speculated, was his second mistake. Some students in front perked up at this chink in his armor. It was only in small ways, but they leaned forward at the smell of fear. Their eyes dilated and their teeth flashed with hungry leers.
Roxas tried to make himself dull but his appearance wouldn't allow it. No matter what he did when he came to a new place he stood out. A skinny, lithe build and an angular face. A mess of haphazard honey spikes, electric blue eyes. The small tan was the most damning feature. Roxas swallowed and his glower darkened as the closest one disrobed him with her eyes.
His gaze continued to drift until it paused on a boy in the back of the room. He and the person he was talking with appeared to be the only ones not interested in the fresh meat. Roxas swallowed again as the red spikes that made up the boy's hair bounced with his suppressed chuckles. Roxas's breath hitched when the boy paused and glanced up at him, sensing his stare. Green locked with blue in a breathless moment.
It wasn't lustful. It wasn't vicious. The boy's stare was nothing but…curious. Roxas stood, stupefied, until the teacher beckoned him back to reality with a light touch to his shoulder. He shook his head, blinked, and turned back to the professor.
"I'm sorry. What?"
A smattering of giggles broke out and Roxas glanced back at the redhead from the corner of his eye. He was mortified to see an amused smirk gracing the other's features.
"Take the seat at the back for now until we get you worked into the seating chart." She pointed and Roxas followed her finger until it landed on a vacant chair next to the redhead. "If you'd be so kind. I have a lecture to resume Mr. Meguriaukagi."
Roxas nodded dumbly and swallowed the lump that kept pulsing in his throat. His heart lurched, seizing with pain as he dragged his feet into motion. Roxas swallowed again. The boy clenched his hands into trembling fists to hide some of his anxiety. This was easy. It didn't matter. How many times had he made this same transition?
It's going to be different this time.
The blonde almost cursed out loud at that little voice in his head. Nothing was going to be different. He couldn't afford to let it. He just needed to keep his head down. Roxas slogged through the row of desks on the path back to his seat, his expression determined. The people he passed eyeballed him with varying degrees of disdain.
His thoughts began whizzing around like angry hornets inside his head so he placed a palm to his temple. Unfortunately, Roxas was one of those individuals who couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time. And because of his thoughts, he couldn't hear their whispers. Add to the equation, some random leg that sticks itself in his path while he has one eye covered and what follows is…
Something better than a slapstick comedy…in a skinned knee, bruised pride kind of way.
Roxas plummeted to the ground in a flurry of paper, mechanical pencils, and a mess of plastic and metal chairs. He landed hard and pain exploded on his knee and both elbows. Laughter sprinkled around him and he heard the professor grouse dimly in the background. Roxas blinked away the sting behind his eyes as he was hauled to his feet and escorted the short distance to his desk. Roxas didn't bother thanking the person who had helped him. It was the same person who had tripped him.
More soft, malicious laughter floated around him like oily water.
"Okay, class. Class! Settle down now."
The other boy regarded him as Roxas shifted in his seat. He was stoic, denying the green acid of the other boy's stare as it bubbled on first his knee, then his elbows, then his face. To his credit, he only flinched a little when the other boy cocked his head.
Roxas flexed his hands, numb from the impact on the linoleum, and kept his gaze forward. This worked a minute until a nervous trickle of sweat ran down his jaw. The redhead traced the bead with his interested gaze until his friend, a boy with choppy silver locks and aqua eyes, nudged him.
"Rough crowd, eh?"
The redhead hummed with agreement but let his gaze linger, forcing Roxas's face to turn an aesthetic shade of pink (by which it can be inferred he blushed like a burned lobster). A smile curved the other boy's lips and Roxas felt sickness curdle in the pit of his stomach. He drew in a deep breath and was about to tell the other boy off when the latter spoke up.
"The name's Axel, twitchy. Axel Katoku. Got it memorized?"
Roxas closed his eyes and frowned before he blew out the deep breath he'd just taken in. So Axel was going to goad him, eh?
Take into account here, that Roxas isn't a bad guy. At times prissy, at times sullen. Most of the time morose. But not bad. He was mean out of necessity and liked being nettled about as much as the next guy(read: not at all). He was merely a check-in and check-out out kind of guy. But not by choice. Again, by necessity alone. When he replied, he did it in that slow kind of manner that people speak in when they are choosing each word very carefully.
"Well Axel, you've already heard my name. So if you please, kindly fuck off and leave me alone."
See? Mean, but not overtly violent. Roxas hated violence. But he hated the idea of getting close to someone more. Unfortunately, Axel wasn't fazed as he kept his eyes locked on the boy. In fact, he looked far from affronted. More…perversely amused—like a little kid had just cussed at him.
"Oooh. Someone's got a mouth on him. What's got your panties in a bunch?"
Roxas didn't answer. The silver haired boy beside Axel snickered as Roxas's impossibly red face darkened another shade.
He knew their type. The blonde decided the effort of snapping was futile so he put an honest effort into refocusing on the distant drone of the teacher's voice. The moment of tension passed when Axel turned back to face the front as well, shooting occasional whispers to his pal. Roxas felt his scowl relax for a second before it returned full force at the slight chuckle that escaped from the boys beside him, no doubt at his expense.
The rest of the period passed without mishap and Roxas breathed a sigh of relief when the bell finally rang. He collected his things and shoved them into his messenger bag before heading out into the rush of bodies thronging the hallway. His hope was to not attract too much attention. Unfortunately, he stuck out like a beacon at sea. The other teens around him parted and branded his retreating back with their white-hot eyes.
The fewer friends I make now, the less it'll hurt when I leave.
This is what he had to keep telling himself anyways. The mantra of the constant transfer student ran deep, but it didn't feel any less empty.
_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_
Axel quirked an eyebrow and smirked at the lonesome piece of paper that lurked innocently by Roxas's now vacant seat. He bent to pick it up and scanned the contents, his smile spreading like a wild fire.
"Woah, check out the new kid. Feisty little fucker ain't he?"
Axel nodded but didn't say anything as he glanced out the door.
"Hey, what you got there?"
His lips twitched as he folded the piece of paper and tucked it in his back pocket. "Oh, you know. Death, destruction. The usual. And you, my dearest Riku, my perfectly coifed compadre, my—?
"Woah, dude. Woah. I ain't your anything, so chill Casanova."
Axel rubbed himself against the shorter boy in a playful manner that still managed to be platonic. They'd known each other too long for it to be anything else. A group paused and ogled the pair with blatant fan-girl giggles through the open door. Axel crooked his finger in a come-hither motion but they shook their heads and giggled louder, continuing on their way.
"What's wrong ladies? There's plenty of me to go around! Sharing is caring!! Mi cuerpo es su—"
"Will you stop?"
Axel grinned as he craned his neck, still staring out the door. A sudden thought occurred to him and the smile vanished. "Weren't you supposed to be meeting Sora?"
The silver haired boy rolled his eyes. "He's still mad at me."
Axel gave him a droll stare.
Riku scowled at him, offended. "Don't you start on me too. I was defending his honor—"
"You chucked a paper weight at his best friend's head."
"—and he had the nerve to get mad at me!"
"Tidus didn't really do anything that bad."
It was Riku's turn to cut Axel a dry stare. "He was stealing a lock of his hair. Sure, he says he's going out with Selphie, but damn. That boy sniffs around asses more than any dog." Somewhere in Riku's room, his pet dog Pluto sneezed.
Axel snorted. "Tidus is about as straight as they come."
Riku punched him. "The only thing straight about Tidus is his fucking hair. And that's still wavy."
Axel rolled his eyes but let the subject drop.
"You still haven't answered my question." Riku glanced at the taller boy, a sly twinkle in his eye.
"What question?"
"My other question."
Axel stared at him. Blinked. And stared some more. "I don't know nothing about no little girl."
"What little girl?"
"The little Chinese girl."
"What little Chi…nese…nope."
"No?"
"Nuh-uh." Riku hefted his bag and just as he was about to make a grand exit, smacked his shin on the corner of a chair. He plummeted to the ground and grabbed at it. "Ooooh, my tibia! Oh, the pain. The blood."
Axel blinked again and sighed before sauntering over to help his friend back to his feet. Riku gripped his shoulder and placed weight gingerly on the abused leg.
"That was a close one. Almost died."
"You're acting like the little Chinese girl."
Riku let go of his shoulder like he'd just been burnt and snatched his belongings off the floor. "Yeah well", he snapped. "At least I don't look like one." The silver haired boy was about to stomp out the door, when his phone gave a light tinkle. Frowning, he plucked it from his pocket, punched a button, and pressed it to his ear. "Baby?"
Axel glared at the plastic device as a muffled squeak issued from the speaker.
"Again", Riku growled. "Did you at least see which hallway you were in? E?? Okay. Stay on the line with me, I'm coming to get you now."
Axel heard a sigh of relief before an earsplitting shriek made him wince. Riku yanked the phone away from his ear, using his other hand to check for blood. "Baby? Are you...oh. Don't touch it. Just shrink to one corner and wait for me."
He shot Axel an apologetic look.
"He get stuffed in another locker?", Axel mouthed.
Riku nodded, his expression a strange mixture of exasperation and relief. Axel's grin widened while he shooed his friend away. Riku's hurt knee was miraculously forgotten as he rushed out the door to play hero. Smile still in place, the redhead reached into his pocket to touch the piece of paper. He was going to be seeing a lot more of another, far more enticing creature sooner than he'd thought.
_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_
Roxas didn't see him. He felt him. The blonde struggled with his locker for a moment then stuck his head inside to grab his books for the next class. Axel was there. Just around the corner…or something. But he was there. And Roxas suddenly fancied himself the rabbit being run to ground. The blonde tucked his chin close to his chest as he lifted the load of books before shoving them into his bag with a grunt.
He cursed, rummaging through his belongings, flipping heatedly through his binder in a vain search for the schedule that wasn't there. It wasn't in the same folder he left it in.
When it came to school materials or living quarters Roxas made sure that everything was always spick and span. So, if something wasn't where he left it, one of two things happened: a huge gaping vortex—the kind that resides in the dryer and feeds on unsuspecting socks—opened up and swallowed his schedule, or….someone took it.
And by the heavy weight of eyes that Roxas felt boring into his back, that someone was Axel. He knew he wouldn't like the guy; he'd been right. He didn't even understand how he knew that the eyes following his every step were Axel's. They just were.
Not that it mattered concerning the actual class listing itself. Roxas committed it the Fort Knox that was his brain. He made a bit of a game out of it, actually. Like, he wanted to see just how many class schedules he could memorize before his brain exploded.
The real concern was that it might fall into the wrong hands because not only did the irksome piece of paper contain his schedule, it also had his student ID number and locker combination. Roxas was a little more than potentially screwed if Axel got the urge to "fuck with the new kid". Roxas wished he'd been nicer to the redhead. He just hoped that Axel would be a better person than he was.
Yeah.
Right.
He was going to get brained. Tarred and feathered. Stuffed into trash cans for eternity. The God of High School Bullies would wrap his arm around every available shoulder. Then he'd point at Roxas and say, "Go bean him, Fido."
There would be so much beaning.
Roxas sighed in aggravation. Maybe… maybe Axel would be nice enough to seek him out and return the vital information. Yeah… and hamburgers didn't grease. This was high school. High school; a place worse than where troupes of interpretive dancers or man-flesh nomming aborigines gathered.
He was screwed.
The boy's throat burned as a bark of humorless laughter ripped from his lips. What a first day this was turning out to be. He was left with two options: beg or ignore. Never one to just lie down and die, Roxas blew off the little (big, stinking, humongous) shit and tried to breeze through the rest of his day. He actually managed to do just that until he hit lunch.
Since Roxas was the new kid he didn't really have anyone to sit with and as he was walking glumly through the lunch line, he debated on whether or not he should just go sit by himself in a bathroom stall somewhere. With tray in hand, he faced the ominous lunch tables.
Raucous noise from the mini population of teenagers was quite the tribulation to get through. The blonde felt stares from all the occupants of the tables he passed. They were tearing into him with a first look. Judgment was passed swiftly and they would eat him alive if he stepped out of line…yeah. Definitely aborigines. Was that war paint he spied…or school spirit paint…?
Obviously, he did something. He just didn't know what yet. It was as if Roxas had a poster nailed to his back that screamed, "New meat. In need of serious grinding."
Some giggled and pointed. Others stared blankly like one would at animals trapped in cages at the zoo. But the general feeling was the same. New Kid on the Block…Unwelcome. Outcast. Freak.
Miserably, Roxas kept walking. He caught sight of Axel sitting at a table with some of his friends. Or rather sitting on it. In typical rebel fashion, he set himself above the rest, and yet it wasn't in a cocky display. It was natural. Roxas was so transfixed that when Axel burst out laughing at something one of his friends said, he nearly dropped his tray.
As his typical luck, gravitational force, and the rotation of the earth would have it, someone walked into Roxas and he hit the floor for the second time that day. Later he would insist that it was aerodynamically superior to a running leap/nosedive.
_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_
Thunderous laughter and the plastic clatter of a lunch tray made Axel glance up from his conversation. He frowned when he recognized Roxas under the contents of his once full lunch tray. The boy's face was so red it must sting. It was worse than in the classroom, this was different. In the classroom, he had just viewed Axel as a threat. Here, the whole cafeteria was the enemy. Roxas tried to scramble to his feet but slipped in the tomato paste. More jeers.
The blonde closed his eyes and even from this distance Axel could tell the breath rattling in his chest came and went with great effort. Slowly, carefully Roxas got to his feet and stood stiff in front of his peers as Axel bounded off the table.
"Hey, wait up man. Where're you going?" Riku paused in his methodical picking. Sora glanced up as well, glad to have the last sticky remnants of gum expunged from his hair.
"Axel—"
"Dude, what—?"
He ignored his friends as something tugged in his chest, beckoning his body to help the boy. The redhead scuttled over. Roxas scooped the mess off in surprisingly methodical handfuls. Everyone around him was laughing, not even trying to disguise their glee at his expense. Axel's frown darkened.
There's a faceless crowd with no sympathy. You can scream out loud, but there's no one listening.
His feet picked up into a staccato jog until he was standing next to Roxas. He bent down and picked up the tray. Spaghetti stains bloomed like bloodstains on the cuffs of his pants and wabaki.
"Hey", he said, hitching what he hoped to be a cheery grin on his face. "You need help with that?"
Roxas turned to him slowly. In that moment, there was no sound. There was only Axel and Roxas, who was steadily draining of all color. The spaghetti stood out in stark relief against the white of Roxas's once tan skin.
Axel bit his lip. "Are you…okay?"
This question snapped the younger boy back to his senses, he could hear again. He wanted to cover his ears and block out the laughter. The sneering glares. Axel watched helplessly as Roxas's face contorted from a mask of blankness, to mortification…to rage.
A searing, boiling rage that made Axel take a step back.
"You think this is funny too don't you? Go ahead." His voice lowered to a dangerous hiss that—despite Axel's instincts telling him not to—the taller boy leaned closer to hear. "Go ahead. Fucking laugh at me like the rest of them."
Axel recoiled like the small blonde slapped him.
"I wasn't…I just wanted to help."
"Yeah, right. To hell with all of you."
Axel reached forward to try and touch him but Roxas snatched himself back with such force that he almost slipped in the tomato paste again. He righted himself just in time though and leveled another glare at Axel, daring him to make fun of him…to pity him.
The moment passed, and the next thing Axel was aware of was Roxas's retreating back and a bustling lunch lady with a mop that was bigger than she was. The redhead released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.
_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_o_
Axel drummed his fingers on the desk in the empty classroom as he waited for the rest of his fellow students to wander in before the last period of the day began. When (if) Roxas showed up, he'd apologize. For what, he wasn't quite sure. But he'd apologize nonetheless. He felt like the boy needed it.
Even he had awful experiences.
Although, Axel's was forgiven because he was still a freshman at the time. Roxas's little brush with humiliation was far worse since he was a senior. A senior. The ultimate senpais who were supposed to be the big dogs on campus. The untouchables. Things like this just didn't happen to those in the home stretch.
Axel understood. He wryly reflected on his own first day in high school.
Someone had decided that it would be a clever idea to dump the entire contents of a cafeteria trash can into his locker. He had opened it to find an avalanche of fish sliders and a sickening mixture of French fries, potato chips and milk. The mess had been so bad that he had had to transfer lockers. After that he made sure to memorize his schedule as fast as possible, and shred the evidence. It had fallen into the wrong hands. And he had paid the price by walking through the high school's hallowed halls for a week reeking of cafeteria fish.
Everyone has crappy first days in new places. Axel was just glad that Roxas's was relatively tame compared to his freshman horror story. He clutched the piece of paper in his pocket, tempted to light it on fire and be done with the matter. Therein, he needed to apologize. Maybe. But not quite.
His head jerked up as the door slid back and a couple of students wandered in. It was getting close to that time. A time that every teen dreaded; the Mexican standoff (sans a sombrero…in most cases) with the clock before school let out. It was Slutsky's history course and Axel had intuitively deduced that he and Roxas would be taking it together. That, at least was something to make the time drag a little more bearable.
Green eyes scanned each newcomer before discarding them quickly. The trickle of bodies became a flood and then returned to a trickle. Still no Roxas.
Axel was about to give up and resign himself to yet another dull history lecture when the door slid back again. There was the blonde, walking towards him. He blew out a sigh in relief.
There he was again…that kid… what was his name? Axel. Damn, Roxas did have it memorized.
It probably helped that the taller boy attracted attention wherever he ventured. In so doing, he couldn't really keep a low profile with people calling his name at every corner as he trailed Roxas throughout his day.
The blonde in question gave himself a proverbial pat on the head for not breaking out in a full body sweat as he plopped in his seat—a seat that was as far away from Axel as he could manage. The redhead's grin turned feral as he swiveled his head and regarded his prey.
He gathered his own things and waded back to claim the, conveniently enough, vacant desk beside the blonde. (Let the reader infer here that yes, Axel is a bully when he wants something. Following this logic, yes. He did telepathically intimidate someone out of their seat next to Roxas. And yes, it did become conveniently vacant because Axel is one psychotic son of a bitch when he wants to be…it also helped that he was fingering his lighter in a disturbingly nonchalant manner and eyeballing the brat in his way.)
Roxas blinked at the bespectacled boy beside him that scrambled from his chair and rushed out of the classroom clutching his bottom. Axel sighed and scooped the boy's stuff from the desk before taking up residency there.
The blond sighed and propped his face in both hands, torn between amusement, relief, and irked resignation.
"You know, you seem to do that a lot."
True statement. At the time Roxas suspected he had a touch of asthma on top of everything else.
Roxas peered through his fingers and grit his teeth. He didn't want to answer, but he really had no choice. "Do what? Wait. Never mind. Just rot and die please, in that order."
Axel shrugged his shoulders. "At least you said please." He continued to fiddle with the lighter in his hand and his eyebrows rose as he pulled out a folded piece of paper from his pocket. "Well, what do we have here?"
Roxas flinched as the bell rang. They had three minutes now until the professor would make his entrance and start the class. Three long, drawn out minutes. The paper crinkled in the taller boy's hands and he gave a low whistle. Axel chuckled, waiting.
Unable to resist, blue eyes drifted over to the rumpled document. Axel's grin widened as he leaned over and flattened it on Roxas's desk so he could get a better look. The blonde stared blankly at it for a moment before he shot to his feet.
"You! I…you…I knew it was you!"
Axel peered up at him. "Whatever do you mean?"
"You nabbed my schedule!"
Axel frowned. Pyro he may be, but a thief? The redhead tsked and shook his head. "I think you're mistaken. You dropped the damn thing. I'm trying to be kind and return it." The taller boy snatched the paper back and twirled his lighter between three long fingers. "Or would you prefer I didn't?"
Roxas grabbed the paper again and shredded it into tiny bits of rage before stomping to the trash can and shoving the pile in. He whirled around with curses dancing on the tip of his tongue…and came face to face with his professor.
Slutsky rose a delicate eyebrow and coughed into his fist primly. "Is there any particular reason you're denting my trash cans? Or is this the new fad these days?"
Roxas lowered his head and muttered an apology. The professor raked him with a sneer before corralling him back to his seat and making his way towards the podium at the front.
Axel turned an interesting shade of purple from the effort it took to contain his snickering. "Smooth move ex-lax. So much for not wanting to be noticed, eh?"
Roxas's head snapped up and sure enough, most of his fellow peers were positioned in their seats in just such a way where they could steal glances back at him without the teacher noticing. A groan ached to escape from deep in his throat but Roxas swallowed. He was almost through the day. Just a little more.
Axel folded bits of paper he tore from his notebook, not exactly sure why he was going through the effort. The boy next to him just seemed so…dead. So unresponsive. He watched the kid all day and Roxas had a way of melting in with the crowd that looked like it had taken years to perfect. He was like a wraith that made people recoil, yet their gazes lingered.
The only time Roxas really lit up was when he was being taunted. And Axel now felt it was his singular duty to keep that fire alive inside of this shorty. Feeling was better than numbness. Axel knew this first hand. And the kid intrigued him in a way that no one had been able to for a long time. He might as well have fun with it.
Roxas seethed. Damn. Damn him. While Slutsky was whittling away at some cockamamie introduction, Roxas was being forced to fight for his very sanity. Little triangular folds of paper were collecting in his spiked hair at an alarming rate. Roxas wasn't a violent person. He hated violence. But Axel kinda sorta made him entertain the idea of homicide via rusty spoon. When a piece of paper struck Roxas in the eye he snapped his head in Axel's direction so fast it almost gave him whiplash.
"Will you knock it the fuck off already", he hissed.
The redhead replied with a prickly smile. "I don't wanna. You didn't say please this time."
A muscle pulsed in Roxas's jaw as his fingers spasmed with the urge to strangle the other boy. This punk kid didn't know what he was getting himself into. The only consoling thought about this situation was it would all be over soon. In a week, a month…
Whatever…at least that's what he thought until the history teacher came around and slapped his yardstick on Roxas's desk.
"Mr. Meguriaukagi ?"
"Y-yes sir?"
"Aren't you going to answer my question boy?"
The blonde gulped. Things were getting better and better. Roxas's mouth worked helplessly for a minute before what sounded suspiciously like a squeak escaped him. Face burning, Roxas clapped a hand over his mouth and shook his head.
The teacher pursed his lips and turned his back to pose the question to Axel. The redhead shrugged, not at all concerned about the looming, heaving professor who's eyes threatened blood.
Slutsky straightened his back and swept the yardstick in an arc. Roxas ducked and the bespectacled kid who ran out earlier was thrown into a sympathetic fit. "I'll pose the question again. Listen carefully. Edo. The chonmage. The honorable and most distinguished samurai. What was the purpose of the half. Shaved. Style?"
His last words were punctuated by a sharp slap of the yardstick on Axel's desk. The redhead folded his hands behind his head and reclined back, having the nerve to look like he knew what the professor was talking about.
"Oh, well. You should have said that earlier. That's easy", he drawled.
The professor spluttered as his mustache gave an epileptic twitch. "Then answer, if you please."
"To look more like you...sir"
The teacher flushed as a smattering of giggles broke out in reaction to Axel's brazen remark. So the instructor had a serious lack of hair. And gravity wasn't exactly his friend either, but…
Roxas picked his jaw back up from the middle of his chest. He was too scared of the professor to laugh. This guy was not one to get on the bad side of as the esteemed reader is about to discover.
"Well, since you boys are willing to be such star students you may as well stay after school to further your blossoming academic careers."
…He-said-with-just-a-hint-of-sarcasm…
"But I didn't do anything", Roxas protested weakly.
"I will have no back talking in my classroom Mr. Meguriaukagi, Mr. Katoku", he blustered at each of them in turn, "My classroom, after school. Detention. And that's final!"
Roxas spluttered while Axel's eyes glinted with sadistic delight. The blonde wanted to reach over and smack that satisfied grin right off of his gorgeous… face? Did he just think gorgeous? No. No, certainly not.
Not wanting to get into further trouble, the blonde slumped in his seat and shut his mouth. Great turnout to his first day. His first bad, lame, exhausting, aggravating… Roxas glared at his desktop and realized there was freshly carved script in one corner of the wood laminate.
He reached up and traced the words with his fingers.
'Sora loves Riku.'
The boy rolled his eyes. How lame. How…
Blue eyes drifted towards the probing dope next to him. Axel perked up under his gaze and wiggled his fingers in a friendly salute. His smile was teasing, but it was warm. Genuine. An ache erupted in Roxas's chest as he returned that smile with a glower and looked back up at the board.
As in all lame situations, one needs to find a shade of humor so things don't seem so bad. For Roxas, this shade came in the form of a puce-colored accuser who looked like a pigeon that puffed up to the verge of exploding when he yelled at his students.
Roxas relished this image and almost let a smile perk his lips. Almost. He dismissed the idea when he'd milked it for all it was worth. Tapping his pencil on the empty yellow notepad, Roxas noted the clock. Still a long time before he'd get to go home. Even longer now that…
Roxas shot another gimlet glare at Axel who merely grinned, and wriggled in his seat. When the closing bell sounded the blonde didn't bother to stand and bow for the end of class. He scowled down at his desk and huffed.
He was not pouting. He was musing. He was ruminating and contemplating. It was the same concept as big boys and their toys; totally a myth. They weren't compensating for tiny penises…maybe.
'Hell, it's not the end of the world,' he thought glumly, 'it's not like I have anyone at home waiting up for me anyways. I was kind of hoping to beat the rain though. Oh well, there's always the dryer….'
Roxas could feel his mind slipping like it always did when a gentle rain began to patter down. The sprinkle tapped lightly on the roof like a bunch of children's fingers. Roxas closed his eyes, savoring the momentary silence. The teacher got up and stretched.
"I'll be back. Don't move a muscle you two. Or else."
He grimaced before a pop sounded and his expression lightened with relief. He hobbled over and slid the door back. The professor's heavy, shuffling steps could be heard all the way down the hall. When the teacher was finally out of earshot Axel expelled a relieved breath and reclined back in his seat.
"Sheesh! Can you believe that guy? What a stickler."
Roxas settled his face into a cold expression. "Him, I can believe. The one I can't believe is you."
Axel feigned hurt. He wasn't very good at it. "Why my dear boy, I just wanted us to have some alone time to get to know each other."
"You got us into trouble on purpose?"
Axel stared at the blonde with a "duh" expression that did its job quite effectively—at that moment Roxas truly felt like an idiot—before he began to chuckle.
The other boy balked in disgust. "I just can't figure you out!"
"Your anger is very becoming, but you don't have to try and figure me out. Just sit there and look pretty."
The pass floored him. Roxas sat frozen for a moment, trying not to let the full implications of what Axel just said sink in. He'd just been offered a social suicide ticket on a silver platter.
Roxas shook his head. "No. No, it's not possible."
"What's not", Axel pressed. All humor fled from his face as he gauged Roxas's reaction.
"You really think I'm stupid don't you?" Roxas swiveled his head and raked Axel with a sneer.
Axel blinked and frowned in confusion. "I never said that."
"Then tell me why."
"Why what?"
"You're hitting on me aren't you? Why?"
With a grin that would have given the devil a run for his money, Axel winked. "Because I find you very interesting little Roxy. Is that so bad?"
Roxas shot out of his seat, the chair clattering to the floor. He felt that he was being very brave here, as he resisted the urge to run. Or cry. Or both. Roxas shook his head again. "You can't. I won't let you. And don't call me that."
Axel raised a bemused eyebrow. "Can and can't isn't in the equation here. I do like you. And I want to know more about you. There's nothing you can do about it."
He was right. There wasn't much else Roxas could do so he settled on what he could. He shot the little troll a frigid glower and wished a pox on his head. Roxas crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, refusing to acknowledge the trembling in his limbs.
Axel's smile fixed in a sort of dreamy limbo as his eyes glazed. Roxas faltered. It was… difficult…staying mad at that face. Axel was as infuriating as he was...what?
No. Roxas wouldn't entertain that idea for a minute.
Damn him anyways.
They remained that way for a bit until the sound of rain became tedious. Roxas didn't do tedium well so he pulled out his iPod, taking his seat once again.
Roxas held to the belief that music was an expression of oneself. His musical selection was impressive—a collection ranging in everything from classical Beethoven, to brutal Brain Drill. Throw in dashes of Yoyoma, a pinch of Cowboy Troy's country, a few sprinkles of Melissa Ethridge and Alanis Morisette, a healthy dollop of A Perfect Circle, and there you had it: the beautiful slice of heaven that was his iPod.
Roxas plugged in and hit shuffle. He scooted back and folded his hands on his stomach, propping his feet up on the desk. Axel busied himself with folding up more chunks of paper.
It wouldn't do to press the boy too far but he was developing an idea. That idea was slowly morphing into a plan. Axel smiled.
Roxas was in the middle of bobbing his head lazily to Bullet's, Eye of the Storm, when those damn bits of paper were being chucked at his face once more. At first, like last time, he tried ignoring it. But when they kept coming he batted them away, brows furrowing together. When that didn't work, Roxas pulled out an ear bud and stared at Axel like one would when indulging a child. "Can I help you?"
"I've asked you three times what you were listening to. Damn boy, you keep up the volume on that thing, you're going to go deaf one day."
Before Roxas could contort his face in anything resembling distaste, Axel pressed the issue again.
"So what are you listening to?"
He just wasn't going to give in. Roxas finally caved. The song was over and the one playing now was Hearts Burst Into Fire, another Bullet masterpiece.
When the blonde flicked his eyes up and gave Axel the answer, he scoffed.
"Oh please. That song is so overrated. Eye of the Storm is so much cooler. Or better yet, Tears Don't Fall, from one of their two track cd's."
Picture, if you will, Roxas. Now picture him with his eyes bugged out and his mouth hanging open. He was shocked that the redhead had heard of the group at all. Not to mention, he could give an answer more intelligible than, "oh cool", which is all Roxas usually got when talking about them. Welsh rock music in Japan was on the rise, but it still wasn't on a large scale. Some people hadn't heard of them at all.
Roxas titled his head to the side and regarded the other boy. He was too stunned to answer outright and this made Axel laugh at him again. At least Roxas had enough sense by now to close his mouth.
Music was one of his passions. In his hectic life, it was perhaps the only constant worth noting. So when he got the chance to talk about it with someone, he jumped all over it like stink on a warthog. Another of his passions, and guilty so, was watching Disney movies.
In that one moment, Roxas allowed himself to be swept away on the tide of debate and camaraderie. In that one moment, Roxas forgot all compunctions and previous misgivings. In that one beautiful moment that stretched into a solid hour, Roxas fancied he could let himself be friends with Axel. They spent that time chitchatting about the do's and don'ts in the music industry.
The spell, as it is always wont to do, was broken when the teacher came back and announced that they were free to go.
Roxas raised an eyebrow and looked at the clock, feeling a little ashamed as he blinked a few times just to make sure the time was right. The talk had been too awesome to feel a lot ashamed.
They gathered their things.
"Say, ah… do you want me to walk you home? I don't really have anything better to do, you know?" Axel bit his lip and rubbed the back of his neck as he shifted from foot to foot. Embarrassment was a first for him it seemed.
Green eyes shifted around as Roxas shouldered his bag with a blank expression. His eyes were dull and his shoulders were slumped. It would have been apparent to anyone that he was trying to fold in on himself again. Axel wanted to curse. But he didn't.
The offer sounded nice. It sounded so nice. But the promise Roxas made to himself was once again thrown brutally in his face. The floating sensation bubbled in his stomach and his skin was flushed. His lungs tingled and giddiness tickled his insides.
He was making a friend.
This needed to stop.
It needed to stop now before it was too late.
"…you know, I really shouldn't…"
Roxas didn't launch into a lengthy explanation about how he had to go get fitted for his (chicken) suit. He didn't need to bother. Axel was dangling his iPod from one of his large hands.
"I'll ask you again. Why don't you let me walk you home? I won't know where to drop off this nifty little thing I just found lying around." He swiveled his hand just so. "There's this kid named Roxas. That's his name at the corner there, you see? And I know you know where he lives. Be a pal won't you? I'm sure he'd appreciate it."
Roxas spluttered and made a violent gesture at the taller boy who scoffed. "He really will, I'm telling you."
"Get bent!" Roxas whirled around and stalked towards the door.
Axel followed and continued his taunts. He didn't want that fire to die yet. "I was talking to that kid earlier, you know? From the look and feel of this iPod, it's something he really treasures. Just show me how to get there or tell me the address. He'll thank you later."
Roxas stopped so fast Axel almost tripped over him. The shorter boy swiveled to glare up at his persistent, benign tormentor. "Why are you doing this", he snarled.
Axel didn't answer. He held the iPod out of reach as the younger boy jumped and attempted to snatch it back. The professor ambled out after them as he locked up the door and donned his jacket.
"Run along now boys."
Roxas harbored the good sense to be respectful as he bid his professor farewell and stormed down the hall towards the exit.
"Come on kid. Just…"
"Just what, Axel?"
"Just…give me a chance, will you?"
They pushed through the doors and out into the school courtyard. The rain had stopped but not before it glazed everything in a thin sheen of moisture. Roxas rested his head in both hands as his breath fogged up. He didn't speak for so long that Axel almost gave the music player back out of guilt.
But then, in a soft voice that somehow managed to carry he said, "A chance for what, exactly?"
Axel was at a loss. He never thought he'd get this far, but now that he was… "I want us to be friends."
Roxas's face was pale, drawn with exhaustion as he dropped his hands and squinted up at the redhead. "Why?"
Axel scowled. "Why ask why? What's making you so skittish about this? Friends are a good thing aren't they?"
The shorter boy bit out a bark of laughter that carried no humor. "What a load of shit. Friends aren't what they claim to be. Ever. They're just people that come and go and don't care who they leave behind."
Roxas's face twisted into something unreadable—was he trying to cry, or…? No. No, that was the expression of people who had resigned themselves to their fates; that hopeless despair. Axel bit his lip, realizing the harsh words weren't being directed at him, but inward. "Roxas…"
"Fine."
Axel jumped like Roxas zapped him with static. "Huh?"
"Follow me."
Roxas started walking while Axel remained frozen to the spot, mouth agape. The smaller boy sensed his immobility because he shot a peeved expression over his shoulder without stopping. "This is what you wanted, isn't it?"
Axel nodded dumbly and shuffled his suddenly numb feet. He looked down and clutched the iPod, not sure whether to whoop for joy or cringe in fear. He opted on the first one as he urged his body into motion. He jogged up to the blonde and ruffled his hair a little roughly.
"You won't regret this kid."
"Yeah" Roxas muttered under his breath. "I just hope the same is true for you."
"Hm?" Axel leaned closer and stuck his face close to Roxas's own. Their breath mingled before Roxas flicked the red spikes out of his face and stepped back.
"Just don't get too attached. I don't know how long I'll be sticking around."
Axel nodded and continued his jovial lope. He could already tell that with this kid, it wouldn't do to fret over the bigger things. Every admission was going to be a small victory that he'd have to fight tooth and nail for. For now, this was enough.
It was a pleasant walk from there—Axel cracked some corny jokes while Roxas tucked his hands in his pockets and listened in what might have looked like content silence. Let the reader infer instead that he's brooding so Roxas can salvage at least one vestige of pride.
They lost themselves in more talk about music and other things in life, when Axel's ears pricked and he stopped. He pushed Roxas behind him as his whole body tensed.
"What's going…on…" Roxas trailed off.
A splash sounded behind them and as they turned to look, shadows melted away from the wall.
The last was a pilot chapter/prologue! This is the first official chapter of the rewrite. :3 I used one lyric from Framing Hanely's song Built for Sin aaaand uhm...wabaki. Wabaki are the white rubber slippers you see high schoolers wear in Japan. for those of you who want smex and want it now... wait a bit, mk? It'll be a bit of a build up but once it's on its fucking ON! Between more than our boys~~ haha.To stave off your hunger there will be minor groping in the next chapter. Thanks for taking the time to read my piece and I hope you enjoyed it :3 Please excuse any typos btw e-e'''
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Love:: Misunderstanding	By : hachi-miitsu Category: Kingdom Hearts > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 1821 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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Love:: Misunderstanding