A/N: My first attempt at fanfic in ages, and my first attempt at KH fanfic. This is heavily inspired by my recent family vacation on Hot Rod Magazine's Power Tour. Fair warning, there's a lot of car-related stuff in here, but I intend to temper it, I swear! Rated T for now, warning for future m/m.
Hot Rods and Hearts
Chapter 1: Need for Speed
"Roxaaasss!" Axel's voice rang out across the street, reaching the blond before the redhead himself. Roxas raised an eyebrow as his friend bounded over the crosswalk.
"Axeeeel," Roxas mocked, squinting his blue eyes up at the taller man. "Hey, what's up?"
Axel swung in step with Roxas as the continued down the sidewalk, heading towards Roxas' apartment. "Hot Rod Power Tour. Let's do it."
"What? What are you talking about?" he asked quizzically.
"Hot. Rod. Power. Tour." Axel cut in front of his friend and bent down so their eyes met levelly. "Got it memorized?"
"I heard what you said," Roxas smirked, pushing past. "I meant, what is it and why do you want to do it?"
"It's a road trip plus traveling car show!" Axel enthused. "I read about it last month. You know, in that magazine I get. Hot Rod Magazine, duh. Seven cities in seven days, with tons of sponsors and lots of crazy fun shit to do! Last year they had one stop where you can do a drag race in your own car, another stop with autocross. And they give out lots of free shit, and-"
Roxas sighed. "I'm really not into that kind of stuff like you, man."
Unperturbed, Axel laughed. "So? Wouldn't it be fun to go on a road trip with your old buddy Axel?" He smiled winningly, baring his teeth a little more than was necessary.
"Do you want a serious answer to that?" Roxas asked, although he was laughing, too. "When is it?"
Axel held his hand up in front of them, two fingers up. "Two weeks! Just enough time for you to request off from work, right?"
Roxas groaned. "Sure, but what about all the other details? Like hotels, food, you know, stuff like that you have to plan for in advance."
"All taken care of," Axel waved a hand dismissively.
Roxas stopped and crossed his arms over his chest. "You've been planning this for a while, haven't you." It was a statement, not a question. "Without even talking to me, you just assumed I'd go with you," he accused. "You know that car shit bores me, Axel."
"Maaaaaybe," the redhead drawled, mussing his long spikes with a hand. "But it'll be fun for you too, I promise," he pleaded.
Roxas started walking again, arms still crossed. "It better be," he grumbled. Axel let out an excited whoop, knowing he'd succeeded. Not that he'd expected anything else from his best friend. He might put up a fight, but in the end, Roxas always had fun whenever Axel suggested some new, crazy idea. "How long have you been planning it, anyway?"
Axel only grinned and winked.
o - o - o
"Pack light!" Axel called into Roxas' room, two weeks later. He was leaning against a wall in Roxas' kitchen. "My car is small, and there's gonna be a cooler in the trunk taking up space, plus my stuff. And we need to leave room in case we win anything nice." They were leaving the next day to make the short trek to Madison, WI, where the tour began this year, so they were packing tonight.
Roxas stuck his head into the hall, blond hair spiked haphazardly. "Why do you have to have such a small car, anyway?" he grumbled. Day trips were fine in the little sports car, but the idea of spending hours on end in the cramped space was a little less appealing the closer they got to the actual event.
"Because it's sexy," Axel chirped, feigning offense. Axel's car was a 2014 Dodge Challenger Hellcat, he'd made Roxas memorize it, gunmetal grey with red stripes going down the sides. It was powerful and fast, and definitely not very practical, but he didn't care. Axel had scraped together all his resources to get it, and it was his baby. He loved to show it off and polish it until it gleamed. Roxas was fine with his Toyota. It got him where he needed to go, and that's all he asked from a car. He'd never understood Axel's love of cars, but he couldn't fault the redhead for having a passion. Roxas' own love was rugby, and he always got riled up watching the All Blacks games.
"Just don't fuck the car, or you're on your own," Roxas muttered, returning to his room.
"Too late," Axel shot back. "I stroked it all day long to get it so pretty for tomorrow."
Roxas rolled his eyes as he finished packing. "Weirdo."
"By the way, we're moving out at 7:30 tomorrow morning. I've got a few friends we're meeting so we can drive all our Challengers out together. It'll be a sexy Challenger convoy."
"You have other friends?" Roxas teased.
"Yes, Roxy, I have other friends. Since you won't go with me to the car shows, I gotta find someone to talk to." Axel poked his head in Roxas' fridge. "You want me to pack any of these drinks in my cooler? I've got waters and Gatorade, not much soda, though."
Roxas appeared at his door again, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. "Sure, grab a couple. I think I'm all packed, otherwise." Axel nodded. To save time, Roxas was going to stay the night at Axel's place, so they could head straight out together in the morning. Roxas didn't mind the futon in the living room, the classy loft was practically his second home, so it had been an easy decision.
Axel began pulling bottles from the fridge, and let out a sudden exclamation. "Yes, oh Captain, my Captain!" and brandished the bottle of rum. "And my old buddy Jack!"
"Axel!" Roxas whined, "Those are my reserves!" Axel pushed his lower lip out in a false pout. "We can swing by the liquor store on the way to your place."
"Yeah, but it's not as special as Roxy's Reserves."
Roxas gave him a dubious look. "You're the reason I need to have reserves. You keep drinking my booze." The blond didn't add that Axel could better afford to buy the alcohol. "Anyway, the trip is your idea, so you have to supply the alcohol."
The taller man heaved a sigh. "Fine, fine, fair enough." He placed the bottles back in the fridge with a small wave as he closed the door. "Bye-bye, friends." Roxas rolled his eyes at the melodramatic performance. Axel snapped straight. "Ok, all set?" The blond nodded, got a thumbs up from his friend, who spun on his heel and led the way out of Roxas' small apartment. "Next stop, booze run!"
True to his word, Axel stopped at a liquor store a couple blocks from his loft, Roxas trailing behind as the redhead snagged fresh bottles of rum and whiskey. A two liter of coke joined the purchase, and a six-pack "for the loft," according to Axel. As it turned out, "for the loft" meant they were to drink it that night, and the two friends drank most of the beer over delivery pizza before turning in for the night.
o - o – o
The next morning dawned grey and gloomy, with a light rain. Axel grumbled. "I hope this shit clears up soon. Glad I put that rain-x on the windshield, though."
Roxas grunted noncommittally as he tried to smooth his unruly hair. As per usual, no matter how much he fussed with it, it resisted and stuck up rebelliously in a mess of spikes. Axel's hair was spiked intentionally, Roxas' unwillingly. Go figure. He'd long given up on spending more than ten minutes on the task, and even hair products had proven unsuccessful. He swept his hand down over his head one last time before letting it have its way. He wasn't so particular about it, after all.
Axel on the other hand…his red hair had been dyed a brilliant, fire-engine red, a color he maintained religiously. The spikes managed to stay in shape with only a minor amount of product. They weren't as stiff as they looked, and when Axel ran his hand back through his hair, it was like wind through the grass. Roxas had to admit, watching the taller man pack the rest of their things into his car, that it made quite a sight. His red spikes were nearly identical in color to the red stripes on his car, and he wore a matching shirt, a dark grey affair with a red design, over red jeans. Roxas wore a white shirt with a checkered black accent, and black jeans.
"Those checkers will fit right in," Axel commented, taking in the shorter boy's attire. "They'll think you're into racing."
Roxas plucked at the design. "I hope no one tries to talk to me about it, I don't know a whole lot about race cars."
Axel grinned. "We'll go fast so you can learn a little."
Roxas groaned. "Just don't get us killed, please."
The redhead winked. "If I do, at least we'll go out with style." The younger man ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. "Don't worry, I'll be careful," Axel patronized. "Is that everything?"
"Yeah that's it." Roxas slid into the passenger side, settling a messenger bag on his lap. It contained a beat-up laptop and a few other things he liked to have on hand. There was another smallish bag in the back seat with Axel's stuff, and a smaller cooler on the floor for easy access.
Axel slid into his seat with a practiced ease and turned the engine. He grinned over at Roxas as he revved the engine, pulling away from the curb with a slight squeal of tires. "We'll burn a trail."
Roxas only muttered, "This better be fun," as they headed out.
After a short drive, they pulled into a parking lot, where two cars similar to Axel's were already parked. One was red, another blue. After he parked in the spot next to them, Axel pointed at the red one, "That one's Larxene, and the blue one is Demyx," he said, pointing to the other one. "Zexion is riding with Demyx. I think you might like him, he's kind of like you, not really into cars that much." Roxas nodded, filing the names away. "We should have another five Challengers coming, I think, and there's a smaller group of Mustangs joining us tomorrow." Roxas couldn't see much through the narrow windows of the other cars besides a flash of dun hair for Larxene, and blond and slate for Demyx and Zexion.
"I never saw more than two of these kinds of cars at once before," Roxas mused, as a black one pulled up on their right, this one with a dark grey stripe where Axel's red stripes were.
Axel grinned. "You'll see more than your fill before the week is up! That's Xigbar there." With a closer view, Roxas could see the man had long, greying hair pulled into a ponytail, and a wicked scar down his left cheek. As the man turned to wave, Roxas was startled to see the black eyepatch. He glanced at Axel with a question, who was returning the wave, but before he could ask, Axel said, "He's a vet. Got those in Vietnam or something. Just don't ask about it, you never know if you'll get a damn long story or just piss him off."
The next car to pull up was solid yellow, and Roxas saw a pair of young women in the car as it passed in front of their growing line. He hadn't expected to see so many girls, and was beginning to think that maybe this wasn't such a bad idea, after all.
"Kairi and her cousin, Namine," Axel supplied as they joined the group. A minute later, he added, "Xaldin and Saix," as a purple car started a second line behind the first. Within the next ten minutes, two more had showed up. Roxas was beginning to wish he'd brought a notebook to keep everyone straight, especially since he hadn't actually met anyone yet; the rain was keeping everyone inside their respective vehicles. There was another red, this one with a custom poker design on the back panels, driven by a Luxord, and a fuchsia car with a pink-haired guy, Marluxia.
"I think this is everyone," Axel said to Roxas. He picked up a little walkie-talkie that Roxas hadn't noticed before, in the cup holder. "Hey Shooter, is this everyone?" Roxas could see the scarred man in the car next to them respond on his own radio.
"This is it. If everyone's ready, I'll set the pace." His voice was smooth, not a gruff sound like Roxas had expected.
A girl's voice came over the radio, "Paopu ready."
A gravelly voice followed: "Gambler ready."
A deep woman's voice, "Lightning ready."
Axel spoke over the rain of incoming radio signals, informing Roxas that, "We all use radio handles. Because why the hell not?" He grinned, and Roxas just rolled his eyes, thinking it was a little silly. But who was he to judge?
"Dahlia ready," was the last voice to come in before Xigbar confirmed. There was a dull roar as each vehicle came to life, Axel turning his own engine over with a flourish. Xigbar's black pulled out first, and their group fell into a line of matching models, each a different paint scheme, and, Axel informed, each with personalized plates that reflected their call signs. Axel took his place about midway in the group.
"Autobots, roll out!" Axel called out over the radio, voice serious, despite the huge grin on his face.
Roxas punched him in the shoulder. "You're such a nerd sometimes, you know that?"
Axel laughed, "Yeah, and?"
"Pyro, you're a dumbass," the woman's voice called over the radio.
"We can't all be a ray of sunshine like you, Lightning," Axel replied sarcastically. To Roxas he said, "She's kind of a bitch, Larxene, but Kairi and Namine are friends with her, and those two are so nice we can't say no when they say she comes with. She knows her shit, though."
As their eight-car convoy took a looping ramp onto the highway, Roxas could see them all stretched out ahead and behind, and couldn't help but think that it looked pretty cool, after all. It was like a mobile car show, even in the rain. Maybe he didn't care too much for the car scene, but this was a sight not seen every day.
The first hour or so of the drive was fairly uneventful, with gently rolling fields and sleepy little towns falling steadily behind them, making the drive pleasant. On hills and curves, Axel would get excited and whoop at the sight of the rest of their convoy stretching out before them, and Roxas would roll his eyes, even though he secretly found it amusing. Occasionally another muscle car or two would fall into line with them for a while, before splitting off at a rest stop. Some of the little towns' residents had turned out, parking their cars to face the road and wave as their convoy passed. Axel would wave and honk his horn, nudge Roxas to wave with him. Before long, Roxas was grinning at their welcoming parties as he waved. He almost felt like a celebrity.
It was close to ten when Xigbar's voice came over the radio again, as they entered the city limits of Madison, WI. "We're about fifteen minutes out from our destination. Autocross today, and don't forget to check in to get your cards stamped if you want your Long Haul swag." A few voices confirmed over the radio. It had finally stopped raining, and the sun had come out to dry everything.
Their destination turned out to be the grounds around a baseball field, with a large section of pavement roped off for what looked like a road course. There was a queue to enter, and already cars had filled the parking lot and outlying grounds as far as the eye could see. In one section was a collection of semi trucks and trailers. Axel reached over and shook Roxas' shoulder. "Shit, man, look at all these beautiful cars, Rox!" He pointed at the road course. "That's for the autocross, we're going to do that after we check in and get all our magnets and stuff."
"Magnets?" the blond asked.
"Yeah, we take our credentials to all the sponsors to check in." Axel flicked the lanyards hanging from the rearview mirror. "One of them gives us a series of magnets that will make a picture when we put them together at the end of the tour, another with license plates from each place. Another one gives us collectible cards, one each day, which we show on the last day to get our swag bag. Not to mention signing up for all the drawings!"
Roxas groaned. "Sounds boring."
Axel shook his head. "That part won't take long. The rest will be fun, I swear!" He rolled the windows down as they crept through the venue, people in neon vests directing the flow of traffic until they reached open parking spaces in the grass. Some of their party members were already parked and piling out of their cars as Roxas unfolded himself from his own seat. He trailed after Axel as they joined the growing group, waiting for introductions.
"Axel!" A tall man with dun hair in an unusual style practically tackled the redhead. Roxas eyed him skeptically; the hair was in a weird kind of mullet, slicked back on the sides, top standing straight up, and longish down the back of his neck. And he was hanging off of Roxas' best friend in a way that made him bristle. "Who's your buddy, here?" he asked with a grin. His slate-haired passenger hung a little back, looking as bored as Roxas expected to feel during the trip.
"Roxas!" chirped the redhead. "This is Demyx," he indicated the man hanging off of his shoulder, then gestured at his passenger, "and Zexion; guys, this is my best friend, Roxas." The inhabitants of the rest of their convoy had joined them by now, and the short blond gave everyone a quiet wave, unsure where he'd fit into this group of gearheads.
"Oh, so that's the guy Axel's always talking about," a short, young girl said as she walked up. She looked about eighteen, and Roxas decided she must be Kairi or Namine, glad to have remembered someone's name. "I'm Kairi," she confirmed, tucking her wine-colored hair behind an ear. "This is Namine," she added as the other girl joined them, nearly a mirror image of her, but with lighter coloring. Her pale skin was accompanied by white-blond hair. Both were dressed in cut-off shorts and t-shirts with car graphics, and Roxas watched as they hurriedly slathered on sunscreen while they talked.
"Hi," Namine greeted, "nice to meet you! Axel has nothing but good things to say about you. Well, except that you're not really into cars, but we can't all be!" She smiled pleasantly, and Roxas smiled back easily.
The introductions came in a flurry, and Roxas was still having trouble remembering all the names. Xigbar he remembered from his wicked scar and eyepatch, and Larxene as the only other female in his group. She didn't seem so bad, yet, but introduced herself offhandedly. Pink-haired Marluxia seemed friendly, as did a blond man with slicked-back hair named Luxord, while dark-haired Xaldin and blue-blond-haired Saix seemed a little more on the distant side, like Larxene. The group chattered as they meandered to the semi-trailers, Roxas hanging back and, as Axel had predicted, Zexion, too. Somewhat surprisingly, Namine tagged near the rear of the group with them.
"Axel said you're not much of a car person, but I'm sure it won't be too bad," Namine started the conversation.
Zexion nodded. "They have a main stage, and the host, Clarence, can be pretty funny. I get a little miserable, but Dem likes to drag me along, anyway." The young man's voice was low and even, nearly monotone, and Roxas almost found it hard to believe that he found anything funny.
Namine touched his shoulder playfully and laughed, "Don't act like you didn't have fun last year." The slate-haired man just shrugged. "Some of us went last year, and for others this is our first year. Me and Kai, and Zex and Dem went together last year. So we kind of know what to expect. Axel heard us talking about it a while back and wanted come with this year."
Roxas scowled. "He said he read about it in the magazine."
Namine laughed lightly. "In a way he did, he saw it in the magazine that featured last year's Power Tour, when we showed it to him. There was a big group picture we were in from the last day, it's pretty cool."
Roxas tilted his head at all the vehicles surrounding them. "So is this a pretty big deal?"
Zexion shrugged as Namine nodded. "Yeah, kind of. I think last year they had an average of about four thousand cars participating each day, and you know a lot of people are traveling with passengers. I expect it'll be bigger this year. And they come from all over the country!"
Roxas' eyes widened. "For such a long trek, that's quite a few people."
Her head bobbed again, and she let out a sudden squeal, "Oh look guys! It's my dream car!" She pointed excitedly at an old white car that Roxas couldn't identify, and shrilled, "Kaaaiii look!"
Kairi's voice floated from in front of them, "Yeah, I saw!"
Namine began spouting excitedly as she approached the car, "A fifty-five Ford Galaxie, oh, look, it's got a manual transmission! It's so pretty…"
Roxas glanced over at Zexion, and the two exchanged a bored look while the light-haired girl fawned. The group had simply continued ambling along, and the blond went with it, moving a little closer to his red-haired friend, hearing but not really paying attention to their car-centric conversation. His eyes passed over the vehicles on every side, and while he could admit to himself that they all looked pretty cool, he couldn't imagine spending the whole day looking at them, and hoped that wasn't what Axel had in mind. He knew the taller man spent many a Sunday doing just that, and had declined to join in the past. The difference this time was the road trip aspect.
"Roxas!" Axel startled the blond out of his reverie, grabbed his arm. "There's the main stage," he pointed to a rig set up with a large screen on one side, "and the sponsors," and waved his hand to indicate the collection of trucks and trailers. "And here are your credentials," he added, dropping a lanyard over Roxas' head. The blond examined the plastic sleeve hanging off the end, containing a card with information about the event.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" he queried.
"I told you, we gotta check in and get our swag! Got it memorized?" Roxas rolled his eyes at his friend's catchphrase as the redhead tugged on his arm, leading him to a tent next to the main stage. There was a line next to a sign that said "Long Haulers" and pointed to the tent; under it was a table where an attendant signed a spot on their credentials card and handed them a little trading card, featuring a weird looking truck.
"Django?" he asked, looking at it.
"Yeah, that truck was on the tour last year," Namine filled in from behind him. When Roxas looked back at her, she pointed across the midway at another tent, where the truck itself was parked.
Roxas let out a small "Oh," and nodded reflexively.
"C'mon, Rox," Axel had reappeared at his side and was tugging his arm again. "I got a need for speed! We gotta get on that autocross asap! So let's hurry up and get the rest of our stamps!" The redhead was practically jumping up and down like a little kid, and Roxas suppressed a laugh.
"Okay, okay!" he chuckled, letting the taller man drag him to the next place, a brilliant purple tent where they received a magnet and a lanyard sporting a "Royal Purple" logo. The redhead hurried them through two more check-in stations, one where they got another magnet, and one where they time-punched their spot for the first day. They had pulled away from the group, Roxas noticed, but he still hadn't formed much of an opinion of anyone to really care, except maybe the friendly Namine. Axel hopped from foot to foot as they filled out little red tickets from Auto Zone, and then started walking briskly back towards the car. Roxas struggled to keep up with his longer stride, and called to him, "Hey, slow down, Beanpole!"
"Can't keep up, Shortie?" he teased back, slowing his step a fraction. "Just wait 'til you see what speed really is!" He grinned, still walking just ahead of the blond, although he waited for Roxas to get to the car before opening the driver's side door. They both slipped into their seats and Axel's fingers drummed impatiently on the steering wheel as they crept through the grounds and into the autocross queue.
"So autocross is a road course, right?"
Axel's green eyes glittered as he looked at his friend. "Yep! It requires speed and skill and its fun," he crowed, emphasizing the last word. "And I intend to convert you into a speed-lover by the end of this trip."
"I already like going fast," Roxas defended.
"Not like this," Axel countered. He flipped on the stereo, fiddled with the radio until he found some rock he liked, and cranked it up. Roxas smiled when Axel started singing to a song he liked, and joined in, the two jamming in the car as they moved up in line. Despite its length, they were near the front before too long, about to enter a staging area. Axel turned the music back down as they came alongside an official, rolled his window down as they had a quick exchange about the car and the course. Roxas listened distantly, fiddling with his phone until Axel flicked him in the leg. "We're next!"
"Cool," he murmured, pocketing his phone. He glanced at his friend, who was already buckled up, and belted himself in, too.
"You might want to hold on," he added, indicating the handle above the passenger-side window. Roxas nodded and looped his hand over it loosely while the redhead maneuvered them towards the start of the course. Roxas wasn't prepared when they received their green flag. Axel brought the car up to speed quickly, shifting through the gears smoothly, the sudden forward momentum pushing them both back in their seats. The first turn flung him against the door and Axel cackled manically in the seat next to him. "I told you!" he shouted as his passenger tightened his hold. The redhead let out a crazed whoop as they took the next turn, and Roxas wondered how he managed to keep track of the clutch and the shift stick on top of steering, brake, and gas at such a speed.
"Shit," Roxas hissed, his knuckles white as he held on. He was certain his face was white, too.
"This is speed," the redhead yelled, teeth bared. It would've been loud in the enclosed space, if not for the roar of engine and exhaust working to move the car at their current neck-break pace. He was clearly enjoying himself, comfortable at the wheel as they swerved and dipped through the course. After the initial shock of their takeoff, Roxas was beginning to like the adrenaline rush, too, and when they finished and finally slowed, he was more than amenable to getting back in line with his friend.
"That was actually pretty fun!" he admitted easily.
"We'll go through again so you can memorize that high," Axel smirked.
They ran the course twice more before the redhead was satisfied, the third time setting his best time for the course. By then, Roxas had joined him in whooping as they barreled around corners, and he was almost disappointed when they returned to park next to their party. Some of the cars had been driven off, although whether they'd run the track too or gone somewhere else, the two couldn't tell.
Axel popped the trunk and retrieved a pair of camp chairs, handing one to the blond. "Now we go to the stage and hope to win some free stuff." Even he was coming down from their speed-induced high, his voice low now. Roxas glanced over, saw the green eyes with dilated pupils. Their gazes met, and Axel smiled at the blond. "I promised it wouldn't be all bad, didn't I?" he said soberly.
Roxas ducked his head and returned the smile. "You did."
The redhead clapped him on the back. "It'll only get better."