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gin and sin
chapter five
when you skip steps on the way up
the gaps have a way of catchin up
and you can't cover that with make-up
fall behind me - the donnas
The boy had half a mind to get up and follow him, but as soon as he moved to stand up, Daisy had a hand on his shoulder. “Wait,” she warned him, her eyes weary. The blonde sat back down, biting his lip and nervous as to what was going on around him.
Demyx was the next to storm out of the café, looking more flustered than Axel had. His face was heated and his eyes read only anger, and Roxas couldn’t restrain himself from bolting upward, snatching his jacket and following the man out the door. Daisy wasn’t even able to get a word in, but she scowled and smacked Jack on the back of the head for good measure.
Trailing closely behind the taller man, Roxas knew that the man really didn’t want a confrontation. But Roxas needed his information, and maybe a little part of him wanted to defend Axel. After all, the red head had looked ready to maim someone or cry when he had left the place.
“Hey, slow down, I wanna talk to you,” demanded Roxas, walking close enough to Demyx to touch the man’s back. With the older boy’s quickened pace, Roxas had to work his body to keep up.
Demyx didn’t respond to Roxas’s request. The younger blonde scowled, pressing himself forward and connecting a hand with the tall man’s back. Demyx stumbled forward, slightly, and whirled around to stare down at the blonde. In reality, Roxas wasn’t ridiculously shorter than Demyx (at 5’8 and maybe a half-inch more, he was probably average), but the musician looked infinitely bigger with gritted teeth and a scowl that could rival that of a Doberman’s.
“What?” snarled Demyx. The younger boy’s entire perception of the man was changed in that very instant. Before, Demyx had seemed like a sort of saint among sinners, the friendly one who could always make a joke. And now Roxas was faced with a frightening visage of an ogre.
Swallowing heavily, Roxas took a moment to respond. “What the hell is going on?” he demanded, though his voice lacked any real firmness. He could practically hear Demyx grinding his teeth, and the younger blonde visibly winced.
“It’s none of your goddamn business,” retorted Demyx. For a moment, he glared at Roxas before finally sighing and crossing his arms, hip-shot as he stood and thought. “…Fuck, I’ve really messed up this time.”
Roxas raised an eyebrow, glowering up at the man. “You must’ve really pissed him off. What the fuck did you do?” inquired the younger, once more. Demyx stared at the younger for a moment, as if trying to find a right answer.
“It’s what I didn’t do. Besides, it’s none of your business. Just go away!” he said, his voice rather agitated. Roxas could understand why the man was upset, simply because of Axel’s sheer arrogance, but he didn’t even know how the two of them knew each other yet. All in all, the entire predicament with Axel was confusing. Though, through Demyx he might be able to learn some more.
“Look,” said Roxas, standing straight and attempting to make himself appear taller. “Axel’s living with me, okay? It is my business.” Demyx cocked an eyebrow, studying the boy for a second before finally sighing.
“Fine. Come on, let’s go find him,” he muttered, shaking his head. Turning on his heel, he stalked off in the direction Axel had gone. Roxas sighed, trailing after the taller blonde man at an easier pace. Really, even though he lived with Axel and had spouted all of that nonsense, he still didn’t feel like it was ‘his business’. He was actually slightly frightened of the idea of finding out what was going on in Axel’s life.
They walked for a few moments, trailing footprints in the newly fallen snow and looking into alleyways and around corners. Demyx’s mood didn’t change at all, and the musician continued to scowl even as their search continued. They didn’t exchange so much as a word, too busy calling out Axel’s name every couple of steps, the older a little bit more desperate to find him.
As Roxas pondered the nature of Demyx’s and Axel’s relationships, he didn’t even realize that the musician had stopped until he crashed into his back. Demyx immediately whirled his head around to cast a murderous glare at the younger boy, only to jerk a thumb over in the ally. Half-hidden behind an over-flowing dumpster was the black-clothed leg of someone they probably knew.
Demyx motioned with a finger to his lips that Roxas had to shut up. The younger blonde nodded in response, falling into step behind the older, as both of them slowly approached Axel. Roxas didn’t know why the hell Demyx was being so cautious, but then again, the man knew Axel better than he did.
Edging his way around the dumpster carefully, Demyx didn’t do anything until he was sure it was Axel. And of course, it was Axel, who looked extremely out-of-it. Demyx raised an eyebrow at the sight of the twitching, muttering Axel curled over in front of him, but he didn’t say anything. Roxas hid behind the musician, wondering exactly what he was looking at.
Demyx didn’t even say anything for what seemed like hours, standing there and staring at Axel. Roxas held his breath, and in the quiet night, he could hear Axel’s quiet incoherencies. The entire picture frightened him a little bit, but possibly more so because Axel still didn’t realize that they were there.
Suddenly, in a split second, Demyx had pounced downward to yank on the collar of Axel’s jacket and ram the boy against the wall, so they were both at eyelevel, Axel’s green staring into Demyx’s ice-blue. Roxas jumped at the sudden noise, and he swore he heard Axel’s back crack against the brick.
“Hey, Axel,” said Demyx, his voice playful. But still, it held something of underlying malevolence that made a shiver run up Roxas’s back. Demyx still grinned and stared into Axel’s panic-stricken eyes, keeping the boy held up by his shoulders. “We weren’t done talking.”
Axel’s face darkened and the red head lashed out a foot to have it strike Demyx’s thigh. He winced but the musician still didn’t move, instead slamming Axel against the wall and letting his head roll against the brick. “I don’t think you’re listening,” said Demyx, laughing lightly, like it was all a big joke.
Roxas tensed, visibly. What the hell was going on? He didn’t understand anything, and with Demyx’s actions, he really wanted to pry the man off of Axel. After all, the red head looked more than a little bit scared. “We need to talk Axel. Maybe I should ask my questions again? This time, leave the hand-job for later, okay?” laughed the musician, though his intentions were still dark.
The shorter blonde paled a little bit. Axel had felt him up? Was that what happened? His head was spinning with all of the possible probabilities, and he couldn’t surmise what in hell was going on. Though, he knew that if Demyx kept being so aggressive, he’d have to step in. Even if I don’t like Axel, I’m not gonna let him get beaten up.
Holding his ground, Roxas watched as Demyx began to interrogate the blonde boy. “Okay, so let’s ask these questions again,” began Demyx, taking a moment to remember just what his questions were. “Okay. Firstly, expelled? Explain.”
Axel gritted his teeth, still glaring daggers at the musician. He wasn’t about to answer anything. When he stayed silent, Demyx thrusted him against the wall again, and Axel grunted at the impact. “Hey, stop that!” insisted Roxas, stomping a foot down to accentuate his point. Demyx cast him a furious look, which Roxas returned with one of his own.
“You know the a-answer, Demyx,” Axel said, his voice tired. He gave the older man a harsh look—he didn’t want to tell in front of Roxas, obviously. Gritting his teeth, the musician avoided the question, much to the youngest blonde’s dismay.
Keeping Axel in place, Demyx contemplated his second question. “Okay. Why the hell are you so thin? I mean, you’ve always been thin, but not like this,” he murmured, his voice rough. “I mean, yeah, the coke. But haven’t ya been eating?” Axel scowled at this before issuing Demyx a quick strike to the upper thigh, narrowly missing his crotch. Demyx winced. “Ow, that hurt!”
Roxas bared teeth when Demyx’s grip on Axel’s shoulders tightened, but the man didn’t show any more aggression. Raising an eyebrow, Demyx sighed. “And finally, what happened to hi—“
The startling ringtone of Roxas’s cell phone tore everyone from the conversation. Roxas jumped at the sound, but quickly dug his phone out of his pocket to answer the shaking little machine. Pressing the ‘talk’ button, he brought the phone to his ear, uttering a quick ‘hello’.
Demyx spoke in quieter tones to Axel, ones that Roxas couldn’t quite make out over the ecstatic voice of his mother. Evidently, his father was home from the air-port, Roxas judged by the noise of Selphie’s excited squeals in the background. He talked quickly, wanting to get back to the situation at hand before telling Tia he loved her and hanging up.
Bringing his eyes back up to Axel and Demyx, he found they were still arguing. Wrinkling his face in disgust, the blonde boy marched over to Axel and tapped the teen on the shoulder. Glancing downward, Axel fixed Roxas with a look that could’ve scared a hydra. “What?” snarled the red head, hating to be interrupted.
“We need to go,” stated Roxas, his voice firm and controlling. Demyx finally released Axel and back-stepped to get a better view out of the youngest teenager. Roxas flashed a look to Demyx before continuing his words. “My mom called. We have to go back home.”
Demyx grinned. “Or else what? You’ll get grounded?” he asked, his voice teasing. At this, Roxas scowled in discontent. The older man made him feel like such an idiot around Axel. Despite the fact Demyx was making fun of the youngest, the red head edged away from the wall to nudge Roxas in the shoulder.
“But yeah, he’s right,” said the teen, his voice a little softer than usual. Scowling at Demyx, the red head continued; “His dad’s coming home or whatever, so we need to go see him. Tia actually wants me to meet him, right?” Roxas nodded reverently at the question. Kurt always wanted to meet the ‘new kids’. The man himself wasn’t always eager about having new kids to take in, but he never directly protested—and besides that, he always grew to love them.
“So?” asked Demyx, placing his hands in his pockets and shivering a little. “I’ll just tag along. I really need to talk to Axel. Properly.” Still holding that cocky grin, Demyx winked at Axel, who didn’t return the secretive gesture at all.
“Wait, what the hell am I going to say when I bring some twenty-year-old home? ‘Uh, hi, mom, this guy is sleeping with Axel, can he stay for dinner?’” commented Roxas, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Demyx clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth, sauntering over to sling an arm around Axel’s shoulder.
“Naw, we’ll just say we’re long lost friends,” joked the eldest, still holding onto the very not-amused Axel. “Very, very close friends.” With this comment interjected, Demyx took hold of Axel’s jaw, forcing their faces together in a somewhat awkward kiss—Axel wouldn’t respond or push away, and Demyx was far too eager.
Roxas jumped away, a little shocked to actually see two guys kissing. Of course, he had kissed Hayner, but he’d been drunk off his ass and too stoned to see straight. As for the ‘almost kiss’ he had with Axel, well, he didn’t really count that as a kiss.
But still, seeing two men tongue-fuck each other’s faces was a little odd. Eventually, Axel did semi-respond, hesitantly parting his lips only to have his mouth thoroughly ravaged by Demyx’s enthusiastic tongue. Roxas stared in mild agony as the kissing slowly turned into making out and then into groping, and by the time Axel had Demyx pinned up against the wall, Roxas was thoroughly disturbed.
“Okay, that’s enough!” he announced, forcefully parting them. He heard the wet sound of lips parting, and he damn near winced. Grinning down at him from his position on the wall, Demyx licked his lips.
He swore he heard Demyx say ‘jealous?’
Regardless of the fact, Roxas didn’t make an angry retort or bristle or respond. Axel wiped off his lips with the back of his hand, shoving his icy fingers into the pockets of his borrowed jacket, looking entirely grim in the certain predicament.
“See. I always told you angry sex was awesome,” stated the musician, glancing over to Axel. The red head still looked enraged, despite the fact that he’d just kissed the very guy he’d been angered with. Sticking out his bottom lip, Demyx added; “But make-up sex is always even better.”
“Go fuck yourself.”
Demyx grinned before adding cordially; “Why not you?”
Still, Roxas couldn’t shake the feeling that something was going to go wrong. With Axel so on the edge and Demyx already over it, the blonde knew the shit was eventually going to hit the fan. The tension was so thick he could practically feel it.
“So…” began Demyx, looking around for something to talk about. The streets were darkening fast, and though the sky was clear, those kinds of nights were always cooler. With the snow-slush beneath their feet, they created a sort of muddled walkway down the sidewalk. “Er, Rox…”
“Roxas.”
“Yeah! Roxas. How’s school?” said the musician, idly shaking change in his pocket. The coins sounded a lot louder than they were—the particularly desolate neighborhood street they happened to be walking didn’t make too much noise. “I mean, what subjects do ya like and stuff?”
Roxas snorted. “I hate school,” he said, crossing his arms. Partly, it was to keep himself warm, but mostly he was just angry about the interrogation. Axel hadn’t said so much as a word since they had started walking.
“So did I,” stated Demyx, laughing. “But I managed to finish it. Barely. Most of the time, I was out late with Axel. Never got any work handed in.” Roxas scoffed, but at the same time, he was curious about Axel’s ‘adventures’ with Demyx. The red head hadn’t really told him a lot about what had happened, so he had to look to other sources.
“So you were out with Axel that much?” inquired Roxas, his voice attempting to sound convincing. He looked over to the taller blonde, forcing a look of interest. “I mean, where did you guys go?”
Demyx gave a lazy, one-shouldered shrug as he glanced over to where Axel slouched behind the younger blonde, trying to make himself as distant as possible. It was evident he didn’t want to have anything to do with him. “We partied. Pretty much every night of the week,” stated Demyx, giving a slightly-sleazy grin. Roxas blinked, wondering if he had gotten in over his head. “Did all sorts of shit. Axel was drunk all of the time, he missed more school than I did. We got stoned on everything, and hey—Axel, remember that time you gave that guy head for ten bucks? Aw, man, that was so funny.”
Axel snarled loudly, looking like he wanted to push Demyx into traffic—if there was any. “Don’t bring that kind of shit up,” the red head said violently. Demyx raised a hand in silent apology, before he went back into gibbering about what kind of music he liked.
Roxas sighed. Well, I’m still basically at square one. Staring at the muddy ground, he contemplated what he would do from there. He had no idea how to bring up the question about why exactly Axel got expelled or anything. He felt out of the picture again, and he didn’t like that feeling.
By the time they got back to the house, it was dark. Roxas didn’t realize how long they’d spent out there, and with the fact that night always fell faster in the winter added, it felt like it was a lot later. Roxas steeled his nerves before opening his door, poking his head around the entrance way. Both Demyx and Axel lingered behind him, the former talking excitedly and the latter, ignoring it.
Stepping inside and kicking off wet shoes, Roxas looked around. He could hear talking coming from the living room, so he quickly called out a greeting. Forcing a smile onto his face to appear ‘all right’ to his family, Roxas casually opened the door to let both Demyx and Axel enter. Both did, Axel considerably more silent about it than Demyx.
“Whoa, look at this place. It kind of reminds me of home, ‘cept for the lack of beer bottles everywhere,” laughed the man, alerting the rest of the family to his presence. Turning his gaze, Demyx met the inquiring eyes of both Tia and Sora. The blonde man gave an uncomfortable laugh, scratching the back of his head. “Uh, hi. Demyx Sutherland. I’m an old friend of Axel’s.”
“Old, I’ll bet,” said Sora, grinning. “Your hair is awesome.” Demyx chuckled, quickly engaging in a thorough conversation about styling products with the smaller teen. Tia nudged Roxas into the kitchen, a little wary of all that was happening around her.
“Roxas, who is he?” inquired the woman, her voice edgy. Roxas looked up at her, arching a blonde eyebrow as he responded.
“He really is a friend of Axel’s. He came looking for him and I knew Axel so we met and stuff—“
Tia interrupted with a harsh look. “Roxas, he’s still a stranger! Do you have any idea what could’ve happened to you? That man looks a hell of a lot older than you or Axel,” stated the woman. Roxas tensed at her use of a word stronger than ‘heck’, since Tia wasn’t usually one to use harsh words. Sighing, Tia pinched the bridge of her nose. “Well, I suppose he can stick around for a while, if he’s Axel’s friend. Just… be more careful next time.”
Roxas gave a tentative nod, wondering what his mother was talking about. Pacing back into the main hall, he’d found that Sora and Demyx had already bounced ahead into the living room, where they were both chatting it up with Kurt. Axel had hung behind, still glaring moodily at the floor in front of him. Not wanting the boy to make a bad impression on his father, Roxas took hold of the older boy’s hand and forcefully dragged him into the main room.
Plopping down on the couch to the left of Naminé (who was contently curled against her father figure), Roxas pretty much left Axel the center of attention. The red head stood awkwardly in front of the television, not knowing what to say. With all eyes on him, he just sort of sputtered awkwardly until Selphie, who was perched on Kurt’s lap, finally introduced him. “That’s Axel!” stated the little girl, pointing to the red head. “He likes to cuddle wif Naminé and he likes to eat Mommy’s cookies when he thinks no’un’s lookin’, but I’m lookin’ and he doesn’t know I’m lookin’!”
Kurt blinked his wide blue eyes, idly bringing a hand up to scratch at his temple. The man looked like an older version of Sora, really. With dusty, dirty blonde hair and large, aqua eyes encased in wrinkles, but showing something of innocence. He wore a constant smile on his face, much like Sora. He was larger, of course, but his build read class. It was obvious that he kept himself in shape. “He cuddles with Naminé, huh?” asked Kurt, adjusting his glasses on his narrow face.
Selphie nodded, bouncing excitedly in his lap. Axel clenched his jaw, still glaring at Demyx, but he took a seat in the armchair kitty corner to where Naminé was curled against Kurt’s side and Roxas was staring at the television. Tia glanced into the room, smiling. “So that’s where all my cookies have been going?” she inquired, amusement hinting her voice. Roxas analyzed the red head a little bit more. His hands were still shaking.
“So, who’s this one?” asked Kurt, jerking a thumb over to Demyx. The blonde man grinned, already formulating a gigantic, magnificent speech to clarify just how important he was.
Auspiciously, Axel said; “My stalker.”
Demyx sputtered angrily, while Kurt raised an eyebrow. “Stalker, huh?” he asked, tickling Selphie. He completely crushed the air of seriousness he was trying to portray. “Well, perhaps we should consider a restraining order?” Axel rolled his eyes, wanting more than anything to leave the ‘warm family atmosphere’.
It was obvious that Demyx wanted to do that, as well. He was receiving rather scrutinizing stares from Kurt and Tia, who was watching from the kitchen. They seemed a little wary of his presence; well, who wouldn’t be? He was a rather grungy looking twenty year old man, and he was sitting in their living room. Laughing uncomfortably, Demyx attempted to prove his ‘innocence’, and maybe gain some trust. “Er, really,” said the musician, trying to devise his words. “I’ve been looking for Axel for… a while. We were friends when we were younger.”
Selphie beamed. “Like, didja play dollies when you were me?” asked the girl. Sora snorted from where he sat on the floor, and Roxas realized the boy was occupied with watching TV. Demyx’s expression fell into something of confusion before he realized what she meant, and the man laughed.
“No, we were friends when we were about… I ‘unno, Axel how old were you when we met?” asked the older blonde, looking over to Axel. The red head gave him a pointed glare, obviously not in the mood to respond.
Regardless, Axel did, anyway. “I think I was about twelve when I actually started hanging around with you,” stated Axel, looking up at the ceiling as if to look for answers there. Finally, he brought his face back down to stare Demyx in the eye, challenging him. “Remember that summer?”
Demyx grinned. “Of course I do.”
Roxas glanced between the two of them, wondering if he was missing something. He knew he was, but still, at least he didn’t feel quite as alone anymore. Naminé and Kurt were exchanging confused looks, but neither Demyx nor Axel would put an end to their confusedness. Tia, being the lovely kind of person she was, walked into the room with a rather large plate of freshly baked cookies. Well, they weren’t really freshly baked. They were the pre-made kind. Tia didn’t have time to bake often, but Selphie seemed to express quite an adoration for the store-bought cookie dough.
With a plate of cookies and the general clumsiness of the beginnings of conversations gone, awkward silences weren’t as awkward and laughing was a little less nervous. Demyx got along better with the rest of Roxas’s family than Axel himself, in the end. The red head basically sat in silence the entire time, glaring at Demyx as he did so, telling the man just how much he didn’t want him around. In reality, Demyx was lucky that Kurt and Tia were as friendly as they were. Any other set of parents would’ve probably kicked him out.
They talked for quite a while, and Tia even invited Demyx to stay for dinner. The musician said ‘yes’ (of course), even though Axel was practically breathing fire down his back. Despite the red head’s irritation, he didn’t really say anything. Roxas watched him the entire night, hating everything about his fake laughter (also hating the way he made his fork screech across the plate) though Axel mostly stayed silent. The young blonde decided he’d have to confront him later.
It was around Selphie’s bedtime when Demyx’s phone rang rather noisily. The musician jumped before digging into the pocket of his jeans and pulling the noisily ringing (Tia recognized it as some eighties pop tune, though she couldn’t remember the name) cell phone. Demyx promptly excused himself from the room upon the phone call, and took to leaving the house altogether. Evidently the call was extremely private, or else he wouldn’t have gone outside, where it was cold.
Roxas noted this, though nobody else seemed to really care. Axel just continued to stare at the television, obviously not interested in Demyx, instead running shaky fingers through the sleepy Naminé’s hair. The rest of the family just let Demyx do his own thing, not really noticing when Roxas slipped out as well.
With his jacket on and in Sora’s atrociously yellow boots once more, he exited through the front, peering around the corner, where the musician was standing under the overhang of the garage roof. He was talking unenthusiastically into his cell phone, position slightly hunched. He didn’t look nearly as cheerful as before, to say the least.
As Roxas approached the taller blonde, Demyx’s tones immediately quieted. He murmured a few more sentences into the phone, before finally flipping and clicking the device shut. “Hi,” he said, giving a faltering smile. Roxas waved his hand, slightly, sidling up to the musician.
Demyx gave a melancholy laugh. “I really fucked up today,” he stated, right off the bat. Roxas nodded, rolling his eyes. Of course Demyx had ‘fucked up’. He’d basically assaulted the person he was trying to interrogate. “I mean, I didn’t want to be so… mean. It’s just with Axel, violence is the only way to get through to him.”
Roxas nodded again, feeling a bit like a bobble-headed Chihuahua. “I know what you mean. I had to beat him up, too,” stated the blonde, though he knew his original intentions for hitting Axel were a little less justified.
“Ah, he’s already being a pain in the ass to you, too?” inquired the musician, with a tiny bark of laughter. Though the humor soon faded, Demyx was still smiling, ever so slightly. “What did he do to make you mad?”
Roxas scratched the back of his head, averting his eyes to the snowy pavement. “Er, I kind of jumped to conclusions,” stated the younger blonde. Demyx cocked an eyebrow, as if silently telling the boy to elaborate. “Er, I kind of caught him getting a little too close to my little sister, then he said he was gay and I freaked out.” The words seemed to spill out of his mouth all at once, and he ended up sounding like a confused eight year old.
Demyx’s expression went into a full-blown grin. “Wow, you sound just as bad as his mom. How bad didja hurt him?” inquired the musician, leaning over slightly to look Roxas in the eye. Roxas pulled back, arching an eyebrow at the man.
“What do you mean ‘as bad as his mom’?” snarled the younger. He always knew Axel’s mom as an overly nice woman, always wearing a smile and ready to answer to Axel’s every beck and call.
Demyx crossed his arms, tilting his head upward to stare airily at the sky. “Er, I meant, you reacted as bad as her.” Demyx let his head fall into a hand, wearing something of a goofy grin as he did so. “Well, not really. She took it kinda harsh.”
Roxas stared, deadpan. “What the hell are you talking about?” he questioned, feeling stupid for asking. After a moment of rethinking his own question, he realized that Demyx was talking about the fact that Axel’s mother had kicked him out.
Either way, Demyx must’ve read his thoughts. “Yeah, his mom kicked him out around the time she found out.”
“Why?”
Demyx was ecstatic. “She found us fucking in her bed!” Roxas damn near groaned at the statement, wondering what kind of idiots would pull a stunt like that. Roxas knew he’d get in shit if he even thought about sleeping with Olette in his mom’s bed.
The musician bit his lip. “Well, yeah. I know what you’re thinking. Totally stupid move, right?” inquired the older, earning a mechanical nod from Roxas. He gave an awkward laugh, bringing a finger up to scratch at his temple. “Er, yeah. It was pretty stupid. I think she was more pissed off at the fact that he was screwing a guy three years older than him, though.”
Roxas silently realized that Demyx was twenty, probably nearing the age of twenty-one. Well, he was around the age that the younger blonde thought, anyway. Steeling his nerves, Roxas inquired; “So, er, how old was Axel…?”
“Thirteen.”
Even though Roxas had known, hearing it out loud was always a little bit more real. Gritting his teeth, he tried to imagine someone like Naminé fucking someone like Demyx. It just didn’t seem right. “So… you were sixteen then? Ugh, you’re the biggest
--imbecile! what the bloody hell are you doing out here? it’s freezing out here you--
idiot I’ve ever met.”
Demyx gave an uncomfortable laugh. “I know, I know. He was young and all, but he was willing. It wasn’t like I raped him or anything.” Roxas clenched his jaw, knowing that the reason Axel was such a screw up was standing right in front of him.
“I get the impression he was probably high a lot when he was around you. I mean, that’s the only way I can really see him fucking you, ugly,” growled the blonde, his mood rather sour. Demyx frowned at the comment, and it was obvious that he didn’t think he was ugly.
Idly letting his hands glance at his Mohawk, Demyx continued. “Er, yeah. We actually met at a party. He was about twelve at the time,” said the man, staring up at the stars. “I still think he was way too young to be doing that shit when he was. But, he was drunk as hell, and I figured I should’ve helped him or something. He ended up at my house the next morning, and we bonded over a toilet where he was puking his guts out.”
Roxas snorted at Demyx’s over-romanticized version of the story. He really couldn’t believe that Axel was twelve years old when he started getting drunk. Then again, it was probably true. “Either way, we wound up being friends. Kind of. We got stoned together a lot,” said the musician, turning his eyes back to Roxas. “He was whacked out on acid the first time we fucked.”
Roxas wanted to bash his head into a brick wall. He got stoned, hell, he loved getting stoned. On pot. But doing LSD when you were thirteen sounded pretty stupid to him. “You…” he muttered, trailing off. He had no idea how to respond to that type of inanity.
Demyx gave an embarrassed little laugh. “Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. It was… pretty strange. But he just kept asking for me to do it, like some kind of slut,” accused the man, trying to make himself feel less guilty. Roxas scoffed, ready to come back with some sort of retort. Though, he was interrupted.
By Axel.
“How long have you fuckers been talking about me?” snarled the red head, stalking forward. Demyx’s expression fell as he dodged a wild, inaccurate punch from the shorter boy. Immediately, he took hold of the thrown fist, locking his fingers around Axel’s tiny wrist. Axel growled, almost looking like he was ready to bite the man.
“Calm down,” said Demyx, giving a laugh. Roxas wondered how the man could always seem so damn cheerful. He was the polar opposite of Axel, really. Then again, Demyx had proved earlier that he was basically a loaded pistol. “Not long! Really, Axel, we’ve just been talking about how I met you and stuff.”
Releasing Axel’s smaller body, the red head stumbled off-balance, and Roxas had to brace him with one hand. Grunting, Axel edged away from either of them. “You guys are real assholes,” he muttered, glaring daggers. Demyx still grinned.
“I know that I’m an asshole. But Rox here seems pretty cool,” said the dirty blonde, earning a disbelieving cry from the younger. Axel snorted and rolled his eyes.
“Whatever. I’m leaving, I’ll be back later,” affirmed the red head, promptly turning around. After he had taken a few steps, without anyone trying to stop him, he jerked his head to glare at Demyx. “And if you’re still here when I get back, I’ll castrate you.”
Demyx winced at the thought, but he still wouldn’t back down. “I won’t stay for tonight, because knowing you, you’ll stay out ‘til sunrise. But I’ll be back,” stated the musician, tucking his hands in his pockets. He didn’t look nearly as threatening as he sounded. “I promise.”
Axel snorted, continuing his stalk down the street. “Whatever,” he muttered. Roxas and Demyx watched until the red head was out of sight. Nobody followed him. Roxas idly placed a finger to his lips.
“He left earlier than usual,” said the younger blonde. Demyx cocked his head, hearing the satisfying crack of bones as he did so. He felt so damn stiff. Clenching his jaw, Roxas turned his back to the older man and stared at the door. “…Anyway, we should go back inside. He won’t be back.”
Demyx nodded, going on ahead, leaving Roxas to trail.
“I know.”
…Diamond covered rocket launcher?
“Okay, I think it’s time for bed!” announced Tia, shaking her head. Laughing, she scooped Selphie into her arms and disappeared from the living room, most definitely to put the small girl to bed (or secretly play G.I. Joes with her). Kurt chuckled from where he sat on the couch, before edging over a little bit to be able to talk to Roxas properly. Sora was passed out beside him, noisily snoring away, but most conversation obviously didn’t affect him. Naminé had already gone to bed, after she most likely studied for an upcoming math test. Demyx had left a little while ago, around the time Axel had left. It was Daisy who’d phoned him, after all.
“So… where’d Axel disappear to?” inquired the man, raising an eyebrow. Axel was the subject that Roxas had been tactfully avoiding all night. Steeling his nerves, Roxas finally responded.
“Er, he went out.”
Kurt’s eyebrows just seemed to go higher, and his expression was rather humorous. “Oh, really? It’s rather late. After all, school day tomorrow,” stated the man. Roxas stared at the floor, breathing heavily and trying to think up his next answer.
“Er, Axel’s not in school anymore,” he said. He figured Tia would’ve probably already told him this stuff about Axel, but obviously the woman had been far too busy to do so. “He got expelled.”
Kurt crossed his ankles, posture a little more erect now. He didn’t look quite comfortable. “For what?”
Roxas shrugged. “He still won’t tell me,” muttered the younger blonde, shrugging one shoulder. He felt awkward having this sort of conversation. “He doesn’t really tell us a whole lot.”
The elder man nodded, looking quizzically at the boy. “Well, I’ll have to find out myself. He looks like trouble,” decided Kurt. He was the type of person who was stubborn enough to think his opinion was always correct, regardless of what everyone else thought. “What about his family?”
“His… mom kicked him out. I’ve met one of his cousins, though,” said Roxas, though he was hesitant to say these things. It wasn’t really his business at all. Even so, he couldn’t help but want to help Axel—for whatever reason.
“Oh, interesting,” said Kurt, his voice unattached. He continued to nod as he said this, looking very much like a therapist as he did so. “And that Demyx person. Who was he?”
Roxas shrugged. “Just like they said. They were friends,” said the blonde, not really wanting to unveil the true nature of their relationship. Or what he knew of it, at least.
Kurt made a soft noise of understanding. “I see. How old is Demyx?” Roxas raised an eyebrow, tempted to ask if it really mattered. Really, in the day and age it was, it did matter.
“Twenty. Why?”
Kurt scowled, re-adjusting his position once more. Sora continued to noisily snore aside them, muttering things in his sleep like he usually did. It was slightly bizarre, but around this time, Sora sounded like he was saying; ‘Badgers stole my vitamins.’
“He seems a little old to be hanging around teenage boys,” said Kurt, and Roxas turned his head to his father figure once again. He shrugged, not really seeing anything wrong with it. He had older friends himself, but at the same time, they weren’t the type of ‘friends’ Axel had.
Roxas blinked. “I guess,” he mumbled, not knowing what else to say. “But… I don’t think they’re really friends anymore, anyway…” Roxas trailed off, and Kurt interrupted once more.
“So, Roxas? Did Axel go to see his girlfriend? Is that why he’s missing?” asked Kurt. His intentions were obviously pure, but at these words, Roxas couldn’t help but cringe a little. He really didn’t need that mental image of Demyx and Axel with their tongues down each other’s throats again.
Shifting nervously, Roxas glanced around. “Er, no. I don’t think he has one,” said the blonde. Kurt nodded, pulling himself to his feet. Bending over to find the clicker, the man flicked off the television screen, engulfing the room in black. Roxas promptly turned on a lamp, illuminating the room somewhat.
“Well, that’s good then. It wouldn’t be too fun to have a teenage boy complaining about how he got a girl pregnant, anyway,” said the man, chuckling slightly. Roxas giggled along, nervously, getting to his feet as well. Kurt turned around, and the blonde could barely make him out in the meager light. “Anyway, kiddo. Get to bed. I’ll carry this idiot,” he pointed to Sora, “to bed. He’s like a log when he sleeps, and I don’t want to wake him up.”
Roxas nodded, glancing to his younger brother who was drooling on the throw pillows and muttering about how he hated short-shorts. Cocking an eyebrow, and deciding not to dwell on it, Roxas headed up the stairs, avoiding the top step as he usually did. He figured he’d attempt to get his homework done. After all, he’d been neglecting science. Then again, science was so damn boring now.
You’re more pessimistic than I am.
When he was fully dressed and his hair was finally drying, Roxas headed downstairs. Bouncing off of the last step, he about crashed into Sora, who was holding a piece of toast between his teeth and trying to tug socks on. Naminé hustled after Sora, dashing upstairs to find a pencil. The house was a complete animal house, to say the least.
After getting pushed past a few times, Roxas finally made his way into the kitchen. “So, where’s your bedroom buddy?” laughed Tia, as she moved to the counter. Roxas froze immediately, staring at her, terrified. “I didn’t hear him come in this morning.”
“Y-you mean—“
Tia scoffed, turning around with her hands planted on her hips. “What, Roxas? You think I’m blind, deaf and dumb? I can hear that window closing from a mile away,” said the woman, clicking her tongue. Roxas immediately blushed, ducking his head and turning to the fridge. “I went to check on you once and Axel was cuddling against you! It was so cute!”
“Mom!” pleaded Roxas, wanting to bang his head against the wall. Tia just laughed, waving around a butter-knife that was covered with mustard. “C’mon… that’s weird! Don’t watch me while I sleep, and argh, he was cuddling with me?”
Tia nodded, humming Demyx’s cell phone ringtone as she made sandwiches. “Yep! It was so cute. He was using you for a teddy bear,” said the woman, glancing at the wall-clock. “Ooh, I’m going to be late! Anyway, I knew that boy was a sap.”
Roxas heaved a sigh of relief. At least his mother didn’t think he was gay for Axel. That would’ve been a thousand times more embarrassing. Finding a carton of milk, Roxas carefully made his way back to the counter to find a glass, as Sora motored his way through the kitchen, now holding a waffle in his teeth. Where the hell did he get a waffle?
After the general strangeness of the conversation had ended, Roxas found himself staring at the door, wondering where Axel was. Tia, of course, told him not to worry. She had faith in Axel, for some strange reason. Around the time she had to leave, she got a little bit worried though, and just as she was about to walk out the door, Axel showed up.
Scarily enough, he looked like he’d gotten more sleep than usual. Wearing an awkward smile, Axel toed off his shoes and made his way into the house. Ignoring the suspicious look from Roxas, he damn near had to dodge the excited Selphie as she collided into his legs. He bent over to pick the girl up, and immediately was queried about his whereabouts by both the young girl and her mother.
Axel simply told them he’d spent the night with another one of his friends. Tia wasn’t one to question, so she simply gave him a hug goodbye and headed off with Naminé, to bring her to her respective school. Sora had just shrugged on his backpack when Roxas, who had minutes left until he had to leave, questioned Axel.
“So, who was this friend?” asked the blonde, watching as Axel made Selphie squirm. The red head loved tickling her. Her giggles made him feel happier. “I’m guessing it’s not someone I know.”
Axel shrugged. “Not Demyx. Just some guy.”
Roxas nodded, deciding to play along. After all, Selphie and Sora were right there. Leaning in closer, lips nearly to Axel’s ear he questioned softly; “What are you on right now? You’re way too happy.”
Axel snorted, wiggling his fingers along Selphie’s sides. The girl cackled with laughter, rolling around on the living room carpet and pleading for him to stop ‘because it tickles!’
The red head glanced up to Roxas, edging his eyes to Sora before he spoke in hushed tones. “Nothing illegal. He just gave me some of his wife’s uppers, because I was pissed off. They’re wearing off now.”
Roxas nodded wondering just how old this friend of Axel’s was, before he was noisily alerted of the time, courtesy of Sora. He was unable to dwell on the subject, it seemed, so he figured that he’d ask Axel later. Giving a half-wave, and an utterance of a goodbye, he left the house more confused than he had ever been before.
Grinning as Roxas left, the red head flicked his gaze down to Selphie. “So, whaddaya wanna do now that your idiot brother is gone?” he asked, playfully poking the girl’s stomach. Selphie giggled before getting to her feet.
“Well, I’m missin’ this dia-mund covered rocket luncher, ya see,” said the little brunette, poking her own nose as she thought. Axel sat cross-legged in front of her at the girl’s own height.
“Diamond covered rocket launcher?” inquired the older, cocking his head. Slightly damp crimson hair slid across his shoulders, and he was reminded that a shower would be nice.
Selphie gave a grin. “Yeup! I think it’s wif my trains, but I don’t remember,” said the little girl. Axel stood up, stretching out before he picked up Selphie.
“I dunno. It might be in Roxas’s room.”
“Yay! Lessgo move his bed and look fer it!”
“And we can mess up his room, too!”
“An’ I can get some more sockies!”
“Exactly.”
“And can we blow it ta smithereens wif tha rocket luncher?”
Payback is a bitch.
“I phoned the school. Talked to the principal. Looked at old records, you know,” stated the woman. Demyx was barely listening, and over the idle chatter in the coffee shop, he could hear Jack gabbing in the background on Daisy’s end. “Anyway, I figured it out.”
Demyx cracked his neck, adjusting his phone slightly. “So?”
“Three years.”
The musician damn near froze. “He… for three years?”
“Yeah. I can’t believe nobody realized it. I mean, the bite marks on his neck were obvious enough, but damn, when he started walking in the other direction, don’t you think someone would’ve realized?”
Demyx had to stop himself from shaking with pure, unadulterated anger. “So that’s why he always told me ‘no’,” he muttered, letting his head fall into his hands. Feeling the slightly hard substance that was hair glue, he brought his head back up so he wouldn’t mess up his hair.
“I guess. Either way, you need to talk to him.”
Attempting to lighten the mood, Demyx said; “I will. Thanks Duckie.”
He could practically hear the woman scowl. “The next time I see you, your amount of future children will be sufficiently lessened.”
“I’m gay.”
“Ass-children, then. I don’t know. You gay people can make anything possible. Anyway, I’ve got to go.”
Deciding to be that much more of an asshole, Demyx decided to lay the gay on thick. Adjusting his voice, he sounded rather nasally, but it got his desired effect. “Okay, sweetie-pumpkin. I love you lots and we should go shopping! Rainbows and hugs! Bye-bye!”
“…You want to lose both of your testicles?”
Demyx shook his head, laughing, and hung up the phone.
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