Kingdom Hearts is a Square Enix Master piece...so to Square EnixXxXx I say thank you. Thank you veeeery much, and also to any artists whose songs Ima using. The credit for them will be after the chapter as far as lyrcial acknowledgement and stuff. Stephan's original idea, my work (with his permission). This is as you might have already guessed an AU of Axel and Roxas...to which I snicker.
Prologue
March 11, 2012 5:45 pm
Roxas drummed the edge of his laptop. He ignored the ache in his fingers, despite having yet to type a single word. He was aware of the nervous butterflies that escaped from his stomach and turned his blood into a rush of ice. The blond reached forward once. He dropped his hands and tapped out another beat, sucking his bottom lip between his teeth in concentration. A frown marred his lightly tanned brow as he set his fingers into place again.
Blink.
Blink.
Twitch.
Blink.
Finally, with sweat dripping down his jaw line, Roxas typed.
"Being gay is…"
Pause. Cough. Blink. Twitch.
Being gay was…?
Roxas nodded.
"Being gay is hard. Not the funny ha-ha kind of hard. It can be heartbreaking, lonely, and…difficult. When someone is gay, and accepts who they really are, the good and the bad, they do something most people are afraid of doing. They are truthful with themselves, they acknowledge that they are different and they celebrate it, instead of shoving their true nature in the closet and living a wretched lie. They live this way knowing they'll be hated, discriminated against, beaten raw and bloody. It takes strength, and courage. It is something religion crushes under its heel; something logical thinkers scoff at. (No, Greeks don't count in this equation.) But it's not…"
Roxas flexed his fingers and fought the urge to lean back in his chair.
"…it's not a choice. Sexual orientation is different from sexual behavior because it refers to feelings and self-concept. Not actions, but the essence of a human. Forty years ago it was okay to discriminate against Blacks and Hispanics and Jews. But those minorities cracked down even harder on gays. People in the LGBTQIA community are still denied even the most basic human rights by the general populace. If a woman's wife is hospitalized in a state that doesn't recognize gay marriage, she isn't allowed to see her in the ICU. Gay and Lesbian couples must do their taxes separately because the government won't recognize their union. It's even harder to adopt children. Taken a step further; for many public officials and opinion-makers, the expression of homophobic prejudice remains both legitimate and respectable—in a manner that would be unacceptable for any other minority."
Blue eyes darkened and narrowed as flickers of memories hit him in quick succession.
The front door slammed downstairs. Roxas shot to his feet, grateful to be jolted out of his painful reminiscing. Glaring at his laptop, Roxas let out a sigh as he reached his hands up towards the ceiling and stretched until his spine popped.
"Having fun?"
Roxas snapped his eyes open and glanced over his shoulder. Axel smirked and leaned all his weight onto one cocky hip with his brow raised. The first couple of buttons were lundone on the white dress shirt that appeared to have been made just for him. A creamy column of flesh exposed lay exposed, begging to be tasted...
Roxas swallowed but didn't say anything. The two men stood, regarding each other for the longest moment before Axel stirred. He pushed himself from the wall and stalked forward in a methodical way that made the hair on Roxas's nape stand up.
"I was just…" The blond gestured lamely at the laptop behind him.
Axel's other brow arched. "So you were. Here, let me help."
Roxas yelped when Axel scooped him up and lumbered over to the plush leather arm chair. He took a seat and plopped his partner into his lap. Roxas protested in a grand display of 'harumph's, and 'I can do it's for a moment until a perfect row of pearlescent teeth sunk into his shoulder. Axel reached around the struggling man and began to type. Roxas grabbed his wrists but, in the end, realized it was a losing battle.
"But that is neither here nor there. It's said every story has already been told. Every song has already been sung. Oh well. It's surprising how extraordinary a tale as ordinary as love can still be."
"Axel!"
The redhead blinked and looked down at the squirming man in his lap. "Hm?"
"Don't write that!"
Axel didn't reply as a toothy grin spread across his face. His fingers were moving in tandem with the clicking keys again.
"I hear the love of my life come in and set his stuff down. I know what will happen next: he'll come up behind me and wrap his arms around my shoulders. He'll hold me and zone off for a while in silence. And then he'll kiss me. He is my lover. He is my life. And this is our story."
Roxas hid his face in his hands and groaned. After a moment he worked up the courage to peer through his fingers at his shameless...yeah. Lover. His ears burned.
"It's really been six years, hasn't it?" The redhead draped himself over Roxas and tucked the younger man's head under his chin. Roxas blinked and relaxed into him out of habit.
"Yeah", he sighed. "It really has." Roxas felt Axel's chest rumble as he hummed thoughtfully. Indulging himself a little longer than he usually did, Roxas let the cuddlefest stretch on. But when he couldn't stand it any longer, he squirmed. "I gotta get back to work."
"This isn't work. And it'll come. But first…" Axel rose languidly to his feet, knowing it would force Roxas to cling to him like a baby monkey or risk plummeting to the floor…it was a long way down.
"Oh no", Roxas groaned. "Come on, I have work to do."
"Oh yes. Yes, you do."
"Put me down you brute. And…uhm. Leon! Leon said he'd be over in a bit. We can't do this now."
"Honey I'm home—"
"Axel!"
"And I've had a hard day—"
"Nooo!"
Roxas worked up the courage to let go of Axel and fell with a yelp. He scrambled to his feet and ran to the bedroom in hopes of locking it and keeping a certain red-haired beast at bay. A smirk pulled at his lips as the tall man pulled a mangled bobby pin out of his pocket, his lucky lock-picker.
Six years might've been a long time, but there were still things about them that remained the same.
He spared a final look at the laptop—still with many words yet to be written—and whistled a happy tune while he ambled towards their bedroom.
Depressing stories could come later. For now, there were butts to be sexed.
Aaaah? Aaaaah? *nudge, nudge* I am very sneaky sirs and madams~! Got a little Shania Twain in there xP
So I guess the question comes down to, review...or re-view? Ha. Word play. Ha ha...ha. Soooo many levels of lame here.
