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gin and sin
chapter four
your body may be gone, i'm gonna carry you in
in my head, in my heart, in my soul
and maybe we'll get lucky and we'll both live again
well i don't know. i don't know. i don't know. don't think so
ocean breathes salty - modest mouse
Though he wasn't really sure quite what it was, something was moving around. The boy shot bolt-upright, breathing heavy, before snapping on his light with nimble fingers. He found himself face-to-face with a certain red head, and he felt absolutely pissed off, once more.
"What the hell!" hissed Roxas, attempting to keep his voice low. The flashing analogue clock told him it was around four-thirty in the morning, so pretty much everyone was sleeping. Though, Axel looked quite awake for a kid who normally looked like he was about to fall over and die.
"Hey, Roxas!" said the red head, gleefully. Roxas cocked an eyebrow, pulling the blankets up a little further to cover his exposed chest. There was no way he wanted fag-boy seeing him half-naked.
But then again, there was something a little bit… off about Axel. He was sporting a rather large grin, eye twitching uncontrollably as he stared at the blonde boy. He couldn't sit still, fingers and arms moving and flailing as he spouted something off about something Roxas couldn't quite understand. "Keep it down, you'll wake everybody up," snarled the boy, feeling utterly exposed. "And get off of my bed."
The red head moved from his straddling-situation on Roxas, but not getting completely off of the bed. Sitting cross-legged, he regarded Roxas with dilated, open pupils and bloodshot eyes, and the blonde found himself quite disturbed.
"Uh… Axel?" he murmured, waving his hand in front of the other boy's face. When he didn't respond immediately, Roxas got a little bit worried. Snapping his fingers, Axel's eyes continued to twitch, but he didn't get any type of voluntary response. A little concerned, Roxas pulled himself out from under the covers, now knees-to-knees with the red head and rather close to his face. The older boy flinched at the contact, but didn't do much else. The blonde noticed that Axel was a hell of a lot warmer than before. "Axel?"
Abruptly, Axel waved an arm, coming rather close to hitting the blonde in the face. Dodging, tactfully, Roxas scowled. "What the fuck?" he mumbled under his breath, malice dripping from his words. He outright prodded Axel in the face, and the red head didn't budge. "What's wrong with you?"
"You told me to 'keep it down'. So that's what I'm doing!" exclaimed Axel, overtly loudly. Roxas immediately clapped his hand against the red head's mouth, trying not to yell in disgust when he felt a warm tongue slide against his palm.
Taking a deep breath, and slowly moving his hand away, Roxas said; "Okay. Talk, but quietly, okay? What's with you?"
Axel blinked. "I'm fuckin' sm-smashed, man," he said, grinning. Roxas rolled his eyes. Well, he knew that of course, but he had no idea how the red head could go out and do this every night. Well, by the way he looked, Roxas had assumed Axel got stoned or high or something daily—though, he wasn't sure if it was the severity of the drugs or the quantity.
The older boy idly wiped at his nose, giving an eerie grin as he did so. Roxas unconsciously backed away, moving to stand. Only then did he realize that Axel smelled like cigarettes and pot, and maybe an odd mixture of something else that he couldn't quite place. Wrinkling his face in mild disgust, Roxas stood, moving to his dresser to find a t-shirt. He didn't want to be around the gay kid half dressed, after all.
His back to Axel, Roxas stared into the dresser, looking for something in the barely-there lamp light to put on. His brain still wasn't fully functioning, and he found himself almost sleep-standing instead of doing the task at hand. He only budged when he felt Axel's arm against his, and he quickly snapped his head towards the boy.
Axel had started folding his clothes.
"…What the fuck are you doing?" deadpanned Roxas, as Axel's hands sifted through his drawers. The red head lifted each article of clothing, folding it surprisingly neat for a teenager who was whacked out on god-knows-what.
Axel gave him a rather airy look. "Foldin'."
Roxas returned it with a weary sigh. "Why?"
The older boy grinned, hands shaking more fiercely than ever before. "I feel productive!" he said, a little too loudly, once more. Rolling his eyes, Roxas grappled a shirt, tugging it over his toned frame. Axel continued to fold clothes, eyes oddly blank as he did so.
Staring, Roxas sat down on the edge of the bed. "So… what did you do? Like, er…"
"I snorted some coke," stated Axel, rather simply. Roxas blinked. Well, he had found out what drugs Axel was on, and that really had been one of his goals. One thing off the mental checklist, four-hundred billion more to go.
Roxas didn't speak, and when the quiet was too unbearable, Axel filled the room with idle chatter. The blonde was a little more than baffled by the boy's odd behavior—the other Axel seemed cool and unpredictable, the proverbial flame for the proverbial moth.
But this Axel that Roxas was witnessing—well, he just seemed… normal. Happy and aloof like a real teenager should be, and productive and lazy all at once, talking to Roxas like he was a real friend. But really, it was just the drugs talking.
The blonde sighed. Seeing Axel like this, a happy kid, was unnerving and good all at once. The fact that he had done something as hard as cocaine, though, was what really scared him. No, what actually terrified him, was thinking about Axel coming down from his high.
"So…" mumbled Roxas, interrupting Axel's sentence. The red head didn't even notice for a moment, and continued folding and talking all at once. A few seconds later, when he actually realized, he faced the blonde with jerky movements. "S-so, how long have you been doing this stuff?"
Axel looked surprised for a moment, and his face went entirely blank. "…I like the rain," he said, finally. Roxas squinted, wondering if Axel was serious. No, he wasn't serious, he was just stoned out of his head. Cocking an eyebrow toward the window, Roxas turned his head.
"So, did you come in through there?" he asked, jerking a finger towards the particular entryway. Axel gave a spastic nod, looking very much like a Chihuahua with too large of a head as he did so. Roxas would have laughed if it wasn't such an odd situation, and instead maneuvered himself over to the window, to make sure it was closed. Oddly enough, the older boy must have remembered to close it, but it wasn't locked.
"Didn't want whatserface to get cold," reminded Axel, "Because cold is bad. Bad, bad, bad. So bad! Sick, sick, sick, sick." The red head sneezed and coughed all at once, closing the drawer quietly (like Roxas had told him to), and skittering his way back onto the bed.
Roxas sighed. Really, it appeared the red head was going nowhere tonight. "I guess you're going to have to stay in my bed," he mumbled, not trusting Axel to go back downstairs. He'd most likely wake somebody up, and they'd have problems all over again.
"Yeah, but you'd better not tell mummy that I did this. Or else, you know what, you know," rambled Axel, tugging off his sweatshirt without much conviction. Upon doing so, his t-shirt slid up his side, revealing more and more odd bruises. Roxas kept his eyes glued to the abstract shapes, only to have his scary little peep-show interrupted by Axel's feverish pulling down of his shirt. "You know, you know, I'll tell her stuff. Bad stuff about you."
Roxas's expression quickly went sour. "You don't know shit about me," he damn near snarled, sliding his legs under the covers. Axel just kind of laughed, an odd tinkling sound, melodic almost. But it was probably just because he was stoned.
"Selphie told me stuff. Stuff like… how you fucked your girlfriend and told your buddies about it. Bad form, bad, bad, bad," said Axel, clicking his tongue against the roof of his mouth. He waggled a finger at the blonde, slipping under the covers as well. Roxas tensed at this, not really expected Axel to do that.
But what he couldn't believe was Axel's sheer stupidity to bring a subject like his girlfriend up. "Hey, man. I can do whatever the fuck I want with Olette," he stated, firmly.
"Yeah, but you don't tell your fr-fr-friends. Cause they'll tell other people, and then, and then, they-they'll rape her. Don't tell, don't tell, bad form," stuttered Axel, having trouble forming the words. His high was coming down a little bit, but only because he hadn't done a whole lot of coke that night. Just enough to get himself wired, and to forget a little bit. "I don't tell you about the guys who I've fucked."
Roxas scowled. He did want to know where the boy had been staying or sleeping with, for his mother's sake, but he wasn't too eager to hear all of the disgusting details. "Look… just… don't talk to me. You're way too out of it," mumbled Roxas, reaching over to flick off the light. "Go to sleep."
"M'not t-tired."
Roxas sighed, repeating his command. The green-eyed boy didn't respond. The blonde was as far away as he could get from Axel, one leg nearly hanging off of the bed. After all, he really didn't want Axel groping him in his slumber.
Though, he couldn't help but count Axel's rapid breaths as he attempted to fall asleep.
Just to remind himself who was there.
After picking out some (folded) clothes, Roxas cast a glance back at the boy in his bed. Various little bruises were laced about Axel's visible arms, though they weren't anything really major. Odd circle shapes around his wrists, about the width of his fingers, and little blots of purple on his upper-arms where his shirt-sleeves had ridden up adorned the red head. In his sleep, Roxas supposed, Axel looked a little more innocent, with a blank expression and closed, but dark eyes.
If he was in some kind of gay romance novel, Roxas would have said Axel was the exact opposite of beauty in big, flamboyant words. The kid was far too thin, bony elbows and equally razor-sharp shoulders, collarbones clearly visible through his low-collared, black t-shirt. He didn't have long eyelashes, or anything remotely feminine about him, other than his small waist-line. High cheekbones and a wide smile made him look boyish and playful, but his sunken features marred the image almost artistically. If Roxas observed enough (which he wasn't), he could make out freckles on pale skin, and maybe a hint of another bruise at his neck.
Shaking his head, the blonde sighed. "…This is too weird," he mumbled, turning his way out the door. Most likely Tia would come in to wake Axel up, to take care of Selphie, but Roxas wasn't really sure when.
Aside from early morning, Roxas's day was relatively normal. He spent time helping Olette attempt to study for a quickly approaching test, skipped a block with Hayner to go smoke pot in the cold behind the rather rickety, old, unused store-room, and managed to copy Pence's English homework even in his stoned stupor. Yeah, he'd seen what drugs did to people earlier that very morning, but he just needed to let go for a while.
The next week, actually, passed equally uneventfully. Well, aside from Axel's morning visits. Every couple of days (Roxas was rather glad to learn it wasn't daily), Axel would show up early in the morning, ranting and raving and folding, totally stoned and sporting a few more bruises. Roxas was a little bit timid, though, and didn't really want to ask about the particular marks.
It wasn't until the following Wednesday that Roxas finally got a real wake-up call.
He walked to school, as usual, dragging his feet in the snow and feeling the grotesque sensation of sludge seeping into the weak fabric. Sora, being the smart one, had worn his atrociously yellow boots, and was gibbering obscurely beside his older sibling. Roxas just really wanted to ditch him, but Sora wouldn't leave until he found Riku.
Now, Roxas couldn't stand Riku. The kid was the most pompous, arrogant jerk, Roxas's age, tall and cocky and Roxas utterly loathed him. He made girls swoon, but oddly, didn't ever date anyone. Hayner always called Riku a faggot behind his back, but they'd never let it get across to Riku.
After all, the kid had a black-belt in various martial arts.
Sighing, Roxas shuffled his feet. Axel had been awake when he'd left, more vibrant than usual. Selphie and the red head were actually getting along perfectly, which proved Axel hadn't been lying when he'd said he liked Selphie. Naminé was perfectly fine with Axel, as well, eager to have someone who would actually listen to her when she talked. Axel and Sora didn't exactly see eye-to-eye, though, because Sora was utterly petrified of the boy.
Oddly enough, Roxas had gotten used to having Axel around as well. The boy didn't really hit on him, or bother him in any way, for some reason. Roxas was thankful for that, at least. Though, it did really disturb him when Axel wigged out and was a grinning mass of glee on drugs. Coming down was the worst part, when Axel would randomly start crying or looking for something to hurt himself with, and Roxas would have no idea what to do.
All in all, he'd gotten pretty much used to Axel's strange behavior and gotten used to ignoring his pained cries as he came down. After the incident a little more than a week ago, Axel didn't say anything malevolent to Roxas at all. Either it was an utter change of heart, or the red head was really just being bipolar—Roxas didn't know. But he was glad for a nicer Axel, either way. And he had finally gotten (a little bit) used to letting Axel curl up against his body, too.
"—talking about Primus, and oh my god, did you hear the new Tool CD yet? God, it's simply brilliant! And Primus! Oh my god, Primus!" raved Sora, clutching his arms to his chest. He was either cold or excited, because he only got this way when something was up. "Hey, Roxas? You listenin'?"
Roxas nodded, though his heart wasn't really in it. He kept his eyes glued to the white-ridden pavement, sliding his feet as he walked and enjoying the sound of slush and stone meeting. Sora arched an eyebrow. "Really? Cos I don't think you're listening!" he protested, lower lip sticking out in a pout.
"I… I'm listening," mumbled Roxas, hands in his pockets. His visions were slowly being flooded with images of Olette, to block out the images of Axel. Besides, Olette probably looked a lot better naked than Axel did. At least to Roxas.
Sora scowled. "You're not listening. Either way, Primus is so much cooler than whatever you're thinking about," said the boy, face breaking into a grin. He thrusted his fist up into the air, sliding slightly on some ice. "Primus sucks!"
Roxas rolled his eyes, already getting sick of his younger 'brother'. He hated having to walk to school with him. Sora just gave that irresistible grin of his, wrapping his big hands over the straps of his backpack and walking in stride with Roxas. "So, what are you thinking about?" questioned Sora, his tone slipping into that of total obnoxiousness. "I bet yer thinking about Olette. How much you wanna hug her and kiss her and love her and marry her."
Roxas gave a growl of frustration, batting a hand at Sora, which the slightly shorter boy quickly dodged. Laughing, Sora turned his head towards the nearing school. He caught sight of Riku, who was making idle noise with a few giggling girls. Scowling as he approached, Sora stared up at Riku. Roxas stood beside his brother, sighing at the silver-haired boy's arrogance. "Riku, you have a girlfriend. Quit flirting," Sora said, pointedly. Riku gave that utterly perfect grin that made everybody love him, and Roxas loathe him to no end.
"C'mon, Sora," taunted Riku, jabbing his best friend in the ribs. Sora giggled, as he was utterly ticklish in that particular place. "It's harmless flirting. Besides, Meg won't mind." The brunette's expression slipped back into one of seriousness, and Riku quickly took a cocky stance, shooing away the girls.
With Sora ready to give his best friend a verbal beat down, Roxas took that as a cue to leave. He headed towards the doors of the school, knowing that he was a little earlier than normal, so his friends probably wouldn't be around. Shaking his head, the blonde numbly looked for somebody to talk to, but the school was still rather empty save for the ever-early faculty. He didn't get more than two feet near the door, when he overheard something particularly interesting.
"No, no, Daisy. Goddamnit, I'd of told you if I saw him. I just talked to the principal, and he said Axel got expelled."
"Does he know where Axel went? The man should know! After all, he holds some responsibility for the safety of these kids!"
Ducking his head around the corner, one hand clenched on the strap of his bag, Roxas sidled to the wall and observed the people lingering in Hayner's usual spot. Blinking, Roxas took in the images of the characters who were possibly discussing the drug-addict who'd living in his bedroom for the past week and a half.
Needless to say, the two men and woman hiding around the corner were the most peculiar group Roxas had seen in a long time. The woman was the very definition of 'strong, independent female', with a slicked back helmet of pink, spiked at the back of her head giving her the image of a porcupine. She was short, much shorter than the two men around her, with large, pierced lips and the whitest skin that Roxas had ever seen. Her eyes demanded 'no nonsense', and she looked very much like a mother hen. Keeping the other two idiots in line, to say the least.
The man adjacent to her looked like he had decided to stay in his Halloween costume. His clothing appeared to have all been picked up at a thrift store, covered in various patches and safety pins, including the jacket that was far too long, brown, and forced him into something of a pirate-like appearance. The man was wearing eyeliner, heavy amounts of it, with his long mess of dread-locked, dirt coloured hair tied up in a loose bandana. The man was so obsessed with braids and dreadlocks, his goddamn beard was done into two little braids.
The final person, the one who had spoken to the woman, was possibly the sanest looking one of the group, and that was saying a lot. He was taller than both of them, wearing something of a frown, but with humorous cerulean eyes, he was probably just pouting. His hair was a work of art, possibly, a mountain of dirty blonde Mohawk that almost turned into a mullet, and Roxas was left wondering how in hell the man kept it up like that. He was young, and it was obvious in the way he carried himself, with a slouch and a slight moody swagger (completely different from the dreadlocked man's nearly drunken stumbling).
Blinking, the tallest of the three looked over, scowling at Roxas. The blonde boy ducked his head again, trying to hide his body from the prying eyes. "Hey, what the fuck are you doin' kid?" asked the blue eyed man.
The woman scowled at him, giving him a hard smack between his shoulder blades. Evidently, she was a hell-of-a-lot stronger than she looked, for the tallest man stumbled. The dreadlocked man smiled, revealing slightly yellow teeth, and Roxas was more than a little bit put off. Nevertheless, he took a few cautious steps forward, eyeing the three of them with wary eyes.
"Ello, love," said the dreadlocked man, his voice tainted with a British accent. Dark skinned, he didn't look all that British, or maybe he was just plain dirty. "Come ta spy, 'ave ye?"
Roxas rolled his eyes, not willing to have his dignity taken away by some idiot. "No. I was just passing by," he told the man, slowly. He wasn't quite ready to tell the three that he knew where Axel was— after all, they might've been talking about a different Axel, or they might've been total creeps.
Giving the dreadlocked man a stern look, the woman placed her short fingers to her chest. "Excuse him," she said, her voice almost motherly. "He's not in his right mind. Either way, my name is Daisy Mellurd. That's Jack Sparrow, and that man is Demyx Sutherland."
Roxas blinked. He recalled the name 'Demyx' from somewhere, but he couldn't quite place it. Idly, he wondered why in hell he was coming across so many people who knew Axel, lately. "Roxas," said the blonde, avoiding giving a last name.
"This is pointless," grumbled Demyx, crossing his arms and hugging his trench coat closer to his body. "I don't wanna talk to some kid who can't keep his ugly mug out of other people's business. We have other stuff to do, Duckie."
Daisy scowled. "Don't fucking call me that or I'll rip off your balls," said the woman, darkly. Jack snickered into his gloved hands, lightly elbowing Demyx in the upper-arm. Roxas scowled, feeling out of the loop, like he had with Aerith, Zack and Cloud the last week.
"Hey," stated Roxas, alerting all three of the people's attention, "if you're looking for Axel Erickson—"
"You know where he is?" said Demyx, almost immediately. Roxas, a little pissed at being interrupted, simply raised an eyebrow at the man, not wanting to reveal too much else. The taller man seemed irritated, an a little over-eager to find out about Axel.
"Yeah," said Roxas, trying to feel calm. Demyx, Demyx, Demyx. Where have I heard that name? "I know where he is." Daisy gave a little gasp at this, flicking her attention up to Jack who just grinned in response.
With a slightly wavering walk, Jack moved over to Roxas and clapped a bronzed hand onto the blonde boy's shoulder. The boy found himself wondering how Jack stayed so tanned during the winter. "Ye really do, love, or are ye jes messin' 'round wif our 'eads?" asked the man, leaning over slightly to twirl a finger around his ear, simulating the 'crazy' gesture.
Roxas scoffed, brushing Jack off and sliding out of his hold. "I'm not joking. But I do know where he is," said the blonde, trying to appear sincere. Hesitating for a moment, he slowly eased out the next question. "…How do you guys know him?" Aside from the fact that Demyx looked around twenty, with both Daisy and Jack obviously past that barely-adult age, Roxas had to be a little bit cautious.
Demyx swallowed thickly, turning his head over to Daisy, wanting the girl to answer for him. She picked up on it, bobbing her head, slightly in response. "Demyx is a childhood friend of Axel's."
It clicked in Roxas's head, all of a sudden. 'And here I thought he was still staying with that idiot, Demyx.' Hadn't Zack mentioned something about this guy, standing right in front of him? Feeling suddenly very stupid, Roxas trusted Demyx a little bit more, now that he knew Zack, Axel's cousin, knew the guy with the Mohawk.
"Uh, yeah, I remember now. I've heard about you," said Roxas, scratching the back of his head to try to stifle the embarrassment he was feeling. Demyx eyed him for a moment, before letting a tentative smile turn his lips upward.
"So… so he talks about me?" questioned Demyx, looking quite earnest. Roxas hesitantly nodded and shook his head all at once. Demyx opened his mouth to question, but Roxas quickly corrected him.
"Zack, his cousin, said that he was staying with you for a while," blurted the blonde, not really knowing if Axel would want him to tell an apparent stranger all about him. Though, with Axel's current predicament, Roxas didn't really think he'd care too much if somebody else knew a little bit more, or Roxas found out a little.
Demyx cocked an eyebrow at the comments. "Er, no. He wasn't staying with me. I haven't seen him for… er, a while. Um, how long…?" Demyx turned on his heel, looking to Daisy and Jack.
The tanned man grinned. "Nine months, twenty four days, eleven hours and eight minutes, love," said the man. Roxas stared, deadpan, at the man, wondering how in hell he knew. With a shrug and a look at his grimy nails, Jack simply said, "M'good wif numbers. An' me sharp memory, well, it dun hurt."
Roxas blinked wide blue eyes, gaze traveling to all of the odd people around him. He really didn't know how in hell this Demyx character knew Axel. 'Childhood friends'? He doubted that; mostly because of the fact that the tall man looked about three or four years older than Axel. But then again, Roxas didn't really know who Axel bonded with, at all. Roxas didn't really know anything.
Demyx cleared his throat, noisily. "So, can you really bring me to him?" asked the blonde man, fixing Roxas with a grin. He looked as if the world was one big joke to him, and Roxas found himself wondering just how serious this guy was.
The blue-eyed boy stared at the snow beneath his feet for a few seconds. "Well… maybe," he mumbled, not knowing exactly how he was going to set this up. He didn't exactly want Demyx and his odd little group of followers coming into his house, but he had no idea where else to go. "Where do you want to meet?"
Daisy cocked an eyebrow, opening her large mouth to speak. "Well, we're currently living in a van," said the woman, slowly. Her voice seemed frantic and measured all at once, a slightly high-pitched whine that Demyx and Jack surely got annoyed of. Roxas was a little confused about her declaration of van-sitting, but he was soon answered with a grin, courtesy of Demyx.
"We're in a band. A not-very-successful—"
"As of yet!" blurted Jack, swinging himself over to latch onto Demyx. He thoroughly shook the tall man, giving him a disgruntled stare. "I told ye! We're gon' get famous soon." When Demyx had effectively brushed the man off, he continued.
"—band. Either way, it's just cheaper to live in a van." He gave a shrug of his shoulders, at Roxas's still confused gaze.
"But… isn't that… weird?" he mumbled, looking over to Daisy. Surely they couldn't be all living together. After all, Daisy was clearly a quite cute woman, despite her large nose and nasally voice.
Jack just rolled his eyes. "I can usually find a lovely lass ta stay wif, thanks. Dais, well, she's a peach, but naw, more like a siblin'."
Demyx provided Roxas with a grin. "Well, it's all good. I mean, Duckie here knows I'm not interested." A slightly smarmy grin crossed the crazy haired man's features, and Roxas unconsciously backed away.
'Childhood friend'. Bah, more like a fuck buddy.
Roxas talked for a little while longer, only really leaving when the first bell had noisily sounded that it was time to go to class. Really, talking to the trio of… well, whatever they were, was quite intriguing. Jack would blabber about anything, in his barely distinguishable accent, with Daisy keeping his comments in line every step of the way. Demyx was surprisingly intelligent, with a goofy sort of humor that Roxas could only attribute to Sora.
All in all, aside from the fact that Demyx was most likely gay (probably for Axel, a thought which disgusted him to no end), the three were quite all right. After much discussion and an exchange of cell numbers, they decided that they'd meet in a little coffee shop that they all knew about forty-five minutes after Roxas's school ended. The actual shop itself was around where Roxas lived, but not too close for him to feel uncomfortable. After all, it showed that the blonde boy was overprotective of his family.
Clicking his fingers against his desk, Roxas numbly watched the clock tick away minutes of his valuable time. Seven goddamn minutes and I can get out of here. He didn't even realize he was ignoring his girlfriend. "Roxas…? Roxas, you listening?" asked Olette, her voice rather hushed. After all, the particularly annoying and droning teacher, Yensid, was trying to lecture the class about something or other.
The ocean-eyed boy snapped his gaze up to the brunette. She gave him a tiny smile from where she sat across the row, and he suddenly felt utterly guilty. He hadn't even said 'hello' to her, earlier that morning. "…Hi."
Olette idly twirled a strand of chestnut hair between her fingers. "You seem kind of distant," she said, flicking a look up to Yensid. He wasn't really paying attention, more intent on verbally smacking the class clown, Aladdin, than listening to Olette and Roxas attempt to converse. "You okay?"
Roxas stared at the floor for a moment, finally coming back into reality. He had spent all day wondering how exactly he was going to throw Demyx back into Axel's life, and expect everything to not get fucked up. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just kind of tired," said Roxas, all though he didn't feel it in the least. He was excited and perhaps a little bit anxious to actually find out where Axel lived, though, he wouldn't admit it.
Olette sighed, resting her chin on her hand. "Well, then. I suppose you wouldn't want to go with me and Pence to the mall," she murmured, her tone disappointed. Roxas gave her a sympathetic shrug. He had more important things to do, anyway.
"I have to get home. Mom wanted me back early," stated Roxas, lying through his teeth. If anything, his mother would've liked him to spend more time with his friends. For the last week and a half, all he ever did was go straight home— though, he wouldn't admit it was solely to see Axel. The older boy intrigued him, and he wouldn't deny the fact. There was just something about him.
The brunette sighed again. "Well… I guess," she said, glancing up once at Yensid. He was still talking to Aladdin, earning a frivolous grin from the black haired boy. Every time the teacher turned around, Aladdin would make childish faces, imitating and teasing the man and making an almost religious deal about it. "If Tia wants you home then… Roxas, we miss you."
The blonde boy blinked. "You… miss me?"
Olette nodded, eyes downcast. She looked almost saddened for some reason, and Roxas couldn't figure out for the life of him why. "It's weird not having you around," said Olette, her voice relatively silent. She forced a little bit of a smile. "I mean, even though Hayner won't admit it, he misses you, and Pence has kinda sunken back into a little hole. I mean, with his grandparents still out of commission, he's been pretty depressed."
She folded her hands on her desk, staring at her short-clipped, orange painted fingernails as if searching their colourful tips for an answer. Finally, taking a clipped breath, she continued; "I know it's only been about a week. But you barely talk to us. What's going on, exactly, Roxas?"
The blonde tensed. He wasn't about to tell his girlfriend that he was spending most of his time with a drug-addicted gay kid who stole snuggle-sessions from him in the early mornings. Biting his lip in a nervous fashion, Roxas cast his glance to the floor, unable to look Olette in the face as he spoke. "Naminé's been getting sick a lot—" Oh, great. So I'm lying about her too. "—so, I've been going home earlier to see her."
Olette frowned, a little bit. "Has she?" Her voice was tinged with a little bit of concern. Roxas felt a little bit of guilt sink onto him. He hated having to lie to her like this. The emerald-eyed girl was truly a caring person, and it would probably break her heart to hear that Roxas hadn't been telling the truth. Giving a little bit of a smile, Olette stretched her body across the row to lightly place her hand on Roxas's. "Well, if she is, tell her to get well soon."
Roxas forced a half-smile of his own. "Er, I gue—"
The blonde and the brunette both jumped as a ruler was smacked down on the desk. Both of them received harsh glares from Yensid, Olette giggling nervously in return, and Roxas just scowling at his hands. "You two have ignored everything I've said in the last half hour," said the grey-haired man, his wrinkled eyes thinned. "I think it's best for you, Mister Appledorn," at this, he gave a stern look to Roxas, "and you, Miss Gamble," he passed his gaze to Olette, "to have a mild seating arrangement for the rest of the year."
Roxas frowned, but didn't reply. He could hear other students snickering to the heavily blushing Olette's embarrassment. The blonde scoffed, leaning back in his chair and coming off with a slight 'I-don't-give-a-fuck-what-you-thing' air. Yensid's brows quirked and he gave a smug smile. "It shall fall into effect tomorrow. As for today, it would prove useless," stated the elder man, crossing his arms behind his back. A loud bell sounded, signaling the end of school. "Good day to you all."
Roxas immediately bolted to his feet, snatching his books and barreling out the door. He didn't even catch the little wave and faltering smile that Olette attempted to give him.
Roxas covered his ears. Dear god, Sora was annoying. Especially when he got into that mode where all he wanted to talk about was Primus. Or the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Or Cake—whoever the fuck they were. Riku, who happened to be walking alongside the both of them, just showed utter amusement on his pretty-boy face. Lucky for Roxas, the silver-haired boy had decided to follow Sora home.
Yippee.
"And so, I was listening to Primus and then I just got this inspiration to run upstairs and find some dolls and put them in togas and Selphie was wearing my socks so I gave her a noogie—"
Riku promptly cut Sora off with a well-placed uppercut thrust to the boy's neck. The short brunette choked a little, although it didn't really hurt. Lower lip jutting out in a pout, Sora crossed his arms as he continued to walk. "Hey, Riku. That was mean!"
The tallest of the three just rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say, dumbshit." Even Roxas had to scowl at that particular insult. He truly despised Riku. The boy was so fucking arrogant and yet Sora always followed him like a blind puppy.
After a ridiculously boring bus-ride with Riku talking about just how many girls he had laid, Roxas had been eager to get home. With their street just in sight, the boy released a sigh of relief. Riku just continued to pull that odd-looking slouch of his, casting a sidelong glance at his shorter best friend as they walked. Roxas was a walking lump of ice as he trudged down the slushy sidewalk, ignoring everyone around him, even as Sora began to pick up the pace with his mindless chatter once more.
When they finally reached the house, Sora fumbled with his set of keys, hands pretty much frozen. It was typical that Roxas forgot his own set. Sora had always had the better memory, anyway. When the click of the lock was finally heard, the three teenagers damn near barreled inside, Riku hogging up most of the doorway with his larger frame.
When Roxas finally got his way inside, he was greeted with the familiar hum of the television set; some nice little background noise for the idle conversation Naminé and Axel seemed to be having in the living room. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Riku frown. After all, Riku still hadn't met Axel.
"We're home!" announced Sora, hurriedly toeing off his shoes with the grace of a one-legged centipede, to bound into the next room and scoop the confused Naminé into a hug. Roxas glowered because Sora was so damn affectionate, that a lot of people confused the kid for being on drugs or something.
Riku strolled into the living room after Sora, Roxas following in his wake. In a sitting up posture, thighs pressed against his chest, chin rested on his knees, Axel gave a half-wave but a screwed expression at Riku's existence. Pulling his legs down, the red head murmured; "Who's he?"
"Riku Bregant," said the silver-haired teen, warily. His voice still held something of ignorance, even if he didn't look particularly comfortable around Axel.
"Axel Erickson," voiced the red head, his voice equally uncomfortable. Sora had bounded over to Riku once more, giving a sharp wave to all three people in the room before promptly dragging his friend upstairs. Glad to be rid of him, Roxas quickly addressed Axel.
Cocking an eyebrow, he said, "Hey, Axel. Get some shoes on, we have somewhere to go." Axel and Naminé, who had taken her position back on the couch, exchanged glances.
"What for?" asked the red head. Roxas gave him an irritated glare, stalking into the kitchen to find something to munch on. He really only needed a good twenty minutes to walk to the café, and he had around five to spend at the house. Scrambling to his feet with shaky legs, Axel took cautious steps over to where Roxas had disappeared. "Why?"
Roxas rolled his eyes, staring up at the older teen. "It's a surprise, dumbshit." Oh, great. Now I sound like Riku. Scowling at the thought, Roxas shoved one of Tia's cookies into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. Axel stared in a detached manner, and thankfully, Naminé was the one to break the awkward silence.
"Um, hey, Roxas," said the blonde girl, her nose wrinkling slightly at the fact that some loose cookie crumbs had chosen to stick to Roxas's bottom lip. She didn't say anything, though. "Tia called earlier. She said she'd be home a little late because she had to pick Kurt up at the airport."
Roxas visibly perked up at this, swallowing the slightly mushy remnants of chocolate chip and oatmeal. Axel looked a little bit confused, trying to accumulate who the hell 'Kurt' was. The first thought that came to mind was Courtney Love's husband had been brought back to life, but he quickly erased the ludicrous thought. "Oh, Dad's home?"
Naminé nodded. "Yeah. She took Selphie with her to see him," stated the blonde. "But where are you going?" Roxas stared at her for a moment, abruptly sliding the back of his hand over his lips. He stole a cold glance at Axel, silently beckoning the other boy.
"I need to take him somewhere," said the blue-eyed boy, jerking a thumb at Axel. The boy, in turn, blinked confusedly. "We'll be back… hell, I don't know when we'll be back. Just get Mom to call my cell or something." Naminé nodded, diving back into the living room to retreat with her reruns of Powerpuff Girls.
Axel stayed stationary, not knowing what in hell to expect. Finally, with a sigh of exasperation, Roxas grappled the red head's wrist, leading him to the door. Disoriented, Axel managed to get on his shoes while the blonde found his own. He had left on his jacket, and with a deliberating look at Axel, he handed the redhead one of his own father's coats. A slightly worn thigh-length coat, black and made mostly out of wool or something. The lining was tearing, but it was a well-loved coat bought by Tia, most likely. Axel stared for a moment, silently appreciating the gesture of kindness. It was a rare thing from Roxas, really, but Axel wasn't going to call him on it.
Putting the overly large coat onto his willowy frame, Axel nodded to Roxas. The blonde opened the door and issued a call of 'I'm going' to Naminé. The girl wasn't even able to answer when Roxas and Axel were out the door.
Naminé sighed. Roxas was being quite unusual since the arrival of Axel. He didn't really talk to anybody but Axel, which was odd in itself. Usually Roxas would talk to other people, as he obviously liked his family, but he had kept quiet most of the time as of late. For some reason, Axel had pulled Roxas into whatever little hole his mind lived in.
And for some reason, it really didn't look like Roxas was coming out of that hole for some time soon.
The younger boy kept his steady pace, feet not even dragging in the frozen snow, even though his sneakers were visibly soaked. His cheeks were red, Axel noted, and he found himself wondering how Roxas stayed so damn healthy all of the time.
"C'mon, Roxas," grumbled the red head. "This is pointless! Tell me!" Hanging his head in miserable defeat when the boy, again, didn't answer, Axel glared at his shoes. He hated feeling so left out of the picture all of the time, and thus, was left to be a hovering little bug above Roxas's shoulder.
Roxas snorted, instead staring across the street. They had less than two blocks to go, and Axel still wouldn't stop asking questions. Waiting for the green-light, Roxas idly flicked out his cell phone, staring at the numbers. They were a few minutes late, but he really doubted Demyx would be on time, either. He didn't really seem the punctual type.
As the cars roared by on the left side of the two teens, Roxas eagerly walked onto the road, counting the white lines below him. He could feel Axel's presence behind him, silent anger radiating off of his hunched form. It occurred to Roxas that Axel really did want to know where they were going. Oh well. It'd just be a surprise.
They continued their walk, Axel growing more and more withdrawn as they moved. Trying to lure the red head out of his shell for the meeting with his 'friend', Roxas cleared his throat. "So, I ran into one of your cousins last week," stated the blonde.
Axel's head perked at this, and he caught up to his shorter companion, staring down at him from his right. "…Who?" inquired Axel, one eye squinting slightly, as if he was trying to see into Roxas's soul.
"Zack something-or-other," said the blonde, waving his hand. Axel's expression was immediately fixed into a scowl.
"Lousy, good-for-nothing, prying bastard," hissed the older, his slouch even further. He looked a little bit like a hunchback now, chin jutting out in blatant anger, eyes downcast with eyebrows almost artistically drawn against eyes. If Axel represented anything it was fury, and only then did he really come alive.
Roxas knew he was staring, but he really couldn't help it. He didn't even like Axel, in the slightest, but with the boy brooding like this, it was amusing to watch. "Yeah. He said he was worried about you," voiced the younger, frowning. He didn't know how Axel could seem so… selfish, not caring if someone actually cared for him in return.
"Bullshit," spat Axel, his mood quickly darkening. "Him and the rest of my family. They wanted to throw me into an insane asylum, I swear to god. Worried for my sanity, when all of those fuckers are crazier than I am." Roxas blinked, innocently, wondering why.
But he wouldn't question it. They moved in silence for the rest of the walk, Axel brooding beside a curious Roxas, the red head almost becoming as short as Roxas in his slouching. It was a slightly amusing picture, and Roxas was damn near smiling. He found himself wondering how in the hell he was so damn… giddy around a drug-addict like Axel. Maybe it's just because I'm better off than him and I know it.
When they finally reached the café, Roxas's toes were numb and half of Axel's face had retreated into the lovely shelter provided by the collar of Kurt's jacket. As soon as they entered the glass door, the lovely tinkling sound of a chime was heard, and three sets of eyes traveled toward a certain red head and his blonde follower.
The first sounds heard was a screech of metal against linoleum, an enraged yell and hurried footsteps. In mere seconds, Axel had damn near tackled the guitarist that Roxas had met earlier in the day. "What the fuck are you doing here?" hissed Axel, his voice barely audible where Roxas was standing. The shorter boy had a fist curled around the collar of Demyx's shirt, tugging the man downward to his level. Pure and utter rage was stamped on his face while Demyx stood there, baffled.
Daisy was the one to intervene. "Axel, if you will just calm do—"
"Shut the fuck up," snarled Axel, earning curious glances from the other customers in the shop. Jack winced at the harsh words, patting Daisy on the back where the two sat. Roxas stood, totally oblivious, at the doorway watching as Axel stormed off towards the back, where the washrooms were.
Demyx just forced a grin. "Well, that went better than I expected," he said, dryly. Roxas blinked, once again feeling like an outsider, like he was some casual observer witnessing a tragedy unfold in front of him. Shifting, Demyx glanced at Daisy and Jack. "I… I'll go see if I can talk to him."
With that, Demyx followed Axel into the depths of the coffee shop. Roxas stared at the man's retreating form, eyes glued to Demyx, even as he took a seat beside Daisy. "What was that all about?" Roxas mumbled, finally tearing his gaze away as Demyx disappeared.
Daisy sighed. "It doesn't matter," she said, calmly taking a sip of tea. "It's something they need to work out on their own." Roxas exchanged a glance with Jack, and the man just shrugged.
"I haven' known 'im long 'nuff to know. Sorry luv," said the tanned man, taking a deep gulp of coffee, charged with espresso. With the commotion nearly dead, the rest of the café's noise had lulled to a dull murmur. Roxas couldn't help but wonder what was going on in the rooms, but his pondering was interrupted.
"Hey, before your friends return and start assaulting each other again, can I get you anything?"
Letting his gaze wander upward, Roxas was faced with the largest set of breasts he had ever seen. Blinking, he inwardly blushed as he heard Jack cackling behind him. Flicking his face up to meet the server's, he stammered as he was met with a pair of equally large, brown doe-eyes. She just grinned. "Don't worry. I'm used to that," said the woman, her tone easygoing.
The blonde boy died a little bit inside, right then, as merciless images of Olette with that particular set of breasts flooded his head. His blush only increasing as Olette disappeared entirely, and replaced with the waitress herself. Eyes glued to her nametag, trying to pretend he wasn't staring at her chest, he cleared his throat. "Uh, j-just—"
"He'll have tea," said Daisy, forcing a smile at Roxas's display of 'typical teenage-boy horniness'. "Thanks Tifa." The waitress clicked her tongue, giving a mock salute and wandering her way back to the counter.
Jack just collapsed on the table, laughing.
At least the washroom was clean.
"You little fuck," growled Axel, "How the hell can you just, fuck, I don't know, waltz back into my life and expect me to welcome you with open arms?" While Axel was shorter than Demyx, he was a hell of a lot more intimidating, staring up at him like he was.
"What the hell else was I supposed to do?" retorted Demyx, his voice not completely serious. Axel scoffed, pulling his arms away and holding something of an offensive stance. "I mean, should I have snuck back in? Perhaps frolicked."
Axel shook his head, pacing away to rub at his temples. He didn't have the heart to put up with Demyx's sardonic bullshit. "Look, if you're here for a fuck, I'm fine with that." Demyx could only blink. Wasn't Axel angry at him?
Cautiously stepping forward, the dirty blonde-haired man reached out a hand to slide it onto Axel's shoulder. The red head didn't even move, standing there with his back to the older man. In a quick two seconds, Demyx had Axel spun around, slamming the boy roughly against the door of one of the washroom stalls, hearing the metallic sound of the door crashing against it's lock.
"Look," said Demyx, his usually playful voice holding only seriousness. He glared down at Axel, the intensity only matched by the younger's own. "I'm not here for a fuck, right now. I wanna know what the hell you've gotten yourself into while I've been gone. First question: How the flying fuck did you get expelled?"
Axel's face broke into something of a twisted grin. "Don't play dumb, Demyx," said the boy, his voice dripping with malevolence. "You and I both know how I got expelled." The musician's face dropped, and Axel saw his features twitch slightly.
Demyx stared for a moment, still not releasing Axel's wrists from his hold. The boy looked a hell of a lot shorter with his wrists pinned above his cocked head, thin lips curled into something of a smile, body pressed against Demyx's. The man tried to ignore the fact that the boy's knee was slowly sliding between his legs.
"S-second question," managed Demyx, still ignoring the fact that Axel's thin leg was slowly applying pressure to the underside of his cock. The kid still remembered how to get him turned on, and the musician couldn't resist biting his lip in frustration. Axel had a way of making him unable to talk, and he truly hated that. Whenever he did want to talk, Axel would shut him up with the promise of sex. That was probably the whole reason their relationship and even their friendship had ended.
Clearing his throat and trying to adjust to the fact that Axel was slowly shifting his raised leg between his thighs, Demyx continued. "Wh-what happened to him? What's with the kid?"
Axel's entire demeanor immediately darkened, and he squirmed one of his wrists out of Demyx's grasp. He quickly made work of the high-pulled collar, hurriedly undoing the buttons. The coat stayed on his form, as one of his arms was still raised above his head, but his message got across. He didn't want to talk.
"You know, you really didn't seem to care much about him last time," Axel murmured, sliding his other wrist out of Demyx's weakened hold. He slid the coat off of his shoulders, bruised neck and arms coming into view. After all, he'd only been wearing a t-shirt underneath. He really attempted to ignore Demyx's look of disgust at the state of his body. Nevertheless, Axel knew how to handle himself. "Remember, Demyx? How you dragged me to a hotel just to end up fucking me right as we got in the door?"
While the words could've easily made Demyx aroused, the tone was only that of pure malice. Demyx hissed as Axel dug ragged nails into his upper arms, and the taller man lightly pushed the red head against the door again, loving the resounding smack of skull against metal. The red head winced, even though it didn't really hurt that much. "You're the cause of all this," continued Axel, his tone hateful even as he continued to move his thigh between Demyx's legs. The not-so-soft rubbing was creating friction, and Demyx had to use one arm to brace himself against the stall door.
"You're the cause," muttered Axel, eyes still connected with Demyx's as he slid a hand under the man's long-sleeved shirt. His coat had been long ago abandoned to a coat rack, as the café itself was quite warm. Axel's palms slid across toned skin and slightly exposed ribs that the red head used to know so well. While Demyx was always naturally thin and tall, his weight no-where near came close to the amount of mass that Axel was missing. "You're the reason."
Trying to control his breathing, even as he was getting obviously aroused, Demyx continued. "Thr-third question," he murmured, jerking slightly as Axel finally slid his hand down against his clothed front. Cupping his half-hard cock, the red head sighed in sudden remembrance. Letting his head fall with a little breathy noise, Demyx breathed noisily on Axel's shoulder. "W-why did you start snortin' coke again."
He knew the rest of the sentence. 'That was our thing.' Many, many days spent totally stoned with Demyx on his bedroom floor were a constant reminder that snorting coke together was 'their thing'. After all, it was Demyx who'd introduced him to drugs, popped that first tablet of ecstasy in his mouth, slipped that first bit of acid onto his tongue, scratched that irritating credit card across the table to make a perfect little rail of coke for him—Demyx had been behind it all.
You're the cause.
Squeezing the slight bulge in Demyx's pants, Axel couldn't resist a smug grin. "Just like old times again, huh?" he asked, lightly. Still massaging Demyx's hardening erection, Axel treated it like a simple conversation. He could hear the musician's breathing, hot and heavy in his ear, where the man forced himself to restrain groans. He had come here to talk, not to fuck his underage little friend and he was trying his best to prove that little fact.
Well, something like this has never stopped me before.
"Remember Demyx? All of the fun stuff we used to do?" taunted Axel, knowing Demyx was useless in his hold. It was true; they'd done lots of crazy shit together. After all, the musician was literally the first person he'd done everything with. Demyx shivered as the younger casually increased the pressure, hand still moving against him. Letting his other palm slither around Demyx's head, he pulled at his hair bringing him back to connect with his lust-clouded eyes. Axel pulled the man's face in, stopping him right against his lips. He could feel the warm air on his own lips.
Axel's expression turned to one of utter hatred. "Remember how my mother found us fucking in her bed. Payback may be a bitch, but at least you didn't get kicked out of your house because of it," snorted the red head, pushing Demyx away. He dove for his own coat, quickly pulling it on, and storming his way out of the washroom before the sputtering musician could even get a word in.
And Demyx, now visibly hard, was left knowing that he had completely and utterly fucked up.
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