You're Pretty

by ninemelodies

Axel stared into his coffee, and refused to look up at Demyx. Recounting the whole event weeks later still embarrassed him. "Needless to say, he didn't take it well. Saix shoved me, the whole school saw, and by the next day everybody, even people I used to call friends, were calling me faggot." Axel huffed. "I guess that's how it goes in high school."

The table in front of him creaked as someone slid into the seat. Axel ignored them, hoping they'd take the hint and leave him the hell alone. This month had been killer, and he didn't feel like having someone at the local diner heckling him about how he was too young to look so upset.

In front of him, the table creaked again, and the stranger spoke. "So, what's your story?"

Axel started. He hadn't actually expected anyone to talk to him, let alone ask him why his fucked up self was at the local diner at midnight on a Saturday.

As if reading his mind, the stranger spoke again. "I mean, it is midnight on Saturday, and you're at this dinky ass diner. There has to be a story…" The stranger paused, hoping for an answer. When they didn't get one, they kept talking. "Ah, quiet guy huh? Alright, I'll tell you my story first! My name is Demyx, and my parent's kicked me out of the house last week. Since then I've been lurking around this diner." He paused, and Axel saw the stranger look down at his hands. "Kinda hoping the owner will hire me eventually…" He murmured, expression darkening. The stranger, Demyx, instantly cheered back up, like he had never been sad in the first place. "But that's not important. So, firetruck, you gonna tell me why you're here?"

Axel glanced up, finally looking at the stranger who had so rudely interrupted his silence. He was a little surprised; Demyx's sandy-blonde hair that was spiked into a weird mullhawk thing would definitely give Axel's fire red spikes a run for their money in a weirdest hairstyle competition. Sea glass eyes stared at him, still expecting some kind of response.

"First of all," Axel began, setting his lukewarm cup of coffee on the table. "My name is Axel, not firetruck. Got it memorized?" Demyx rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath. When he was done, Axel continued. "Second of all, why would I spill my guts to a stranger at this 'dinky ass diner'?"

Demyx tilted his head to the side as he weighed Axel's question. "Because you're lonely." He straightened up, and sea glass green eyes bore into acidic green. "Possibly rejected. Maybe shunned. Otherwise you'd be out with friends, right?" It bothered Axel how easy Demyx could read him. Demyx leaned closer, further adding to Axel's discomfort. "I'll let you in on a secret." The blond leaned back, and swept his arm around to indicate the entire diner. "It's the same reason all of us are here." He pointed to a sad looking man in the corner, who was busy stuffing his face with French toast. "That guy over there eating his feelings just got broken up with. The girl over by window who's trying to hide the mascara streaks just got kicked out of her friend group." Demyx paused to let Axel examine the two he'd indicated, along with the other three people in the diner. When Axel again focused on him, he continued. "We're all here for the same reason. We all hope to find company in a shitty cup of off-brand coffee spiked with equally shitty off-brand whiskey."

Axel remained silent as he examined the extremely observant stranger in front of him. "Fine, I'll bite. I'll tell you the wonderful story of how my shitty ass ended up in this equally shitty ass diner." He collected his cup of coffee and took a drink before he began. "It started about a year ago, with my shitty ass friend Saix."

"Ah, junior year! Can't you almost smell the freedom of senior year?" Axel joked, slinging his lanky arm around his equally lanky blue haired friend. Saix gave a sort of half smile, which Axel knew to take as a good sign.

"Almost." Saix ducked out from under Axel's arm and headed to his locker. "Too bad you'll be stuck here another year." Axel scoffed quietly, unamused at Saix's lack of faith in his bullshitting abilities. "I'm serious, Axel, if you flunk math again, you won't be moving on with the rest of us."

Axel scoffed again; though he knew what Saix was saying was true. "Fine, fine, I'll pay more attention, and I won't flunk math again." Axel turned to look back at Saix, who was halfway down the hallway. "Whoa, wait!" Axel chased after his friend. "I really do promise I won't flunk math, but I will need some help."

"And from whom do you want help?"

"Unfortunately, you're the only one smart enough, not to mention patient enough to help me."

Saix sighed, but gave a soft smile anyways. He knew what he was getting himself into when he asked.

Axel paused, taking another drink of his cold coffee. "For the most part, the year went on that way. He helped me and I didn't flunk math. Nothing really went bad until prom, at the end of the year."

Demyx leaned on his elbows, seemingly engaged in Axel's stupid story. "Prom is never a good time. That's another of my secrets that I'll share." Demyx winked and motioned for Axel to continue.

It was the week before prom, and Axel was out of options. Several girls had told him, very plainly, that they wanted to go to prom with him, but they really weren't who he wanted to go with. If Axel had really stopped and thought about who he wanted to go with, and the possible repercussions of a guy going to prom with another guy at one of the least gay schools in the nation, maybe he could've saved himself then. But he hadn't, and so, with the dregs of his confidence, he opened his phone and dialed Saix's number.

"What, Axel?" Saix's annoyed voice rang out at him. Apparently Axel had interrupted something important.

"I was just uh…" Axel paused, chewing his words over. He was never nervous. Axel oozed confidence. So why was this so hard to do? "I was just wondering if you'd like to go to prom, with me…" He paused and realized his mistake. "As a friend of course, I haven't had anyone ask me at all. Maybe if two hot guys show up together we'll attract some ladies." The false bravado in his voice made his heart sink.

"Sure, Axel." Saix sounded distracted, but it was still a yes. "I'll come pick you up at 7, so be ready. I know you take three hours to get that hair of yours under control."

Axel laughed sheepishly. "Yeah, I'll be ready."

Prom night came a lot faster than he had hoped, and 7 came even faster. Axel paced around his living room, his suit rustling in the silence. Saix's car horn made him jump and he quickly fixed his suit before running out the door. The ride to prom was silent, Saix didn't seem to have much to say, and for once, neither did Axel.

For the most part, the night went okay. It really went downhill when someone spiked the dregs of the punch bowl. Axel didn't even notice the alcohol in it until it was already too late. He was giggling as Saix led him out the door and to the car. Too drunk to fully comprehend what he was saying, Axel began talking. "You're really pretty," he slurred. "You remind me of space and stars and stuff." Saix ignored him. "Saaaaaaix," Axel whined, pulling the man's hair slightly. When the man still ignored him, Axel dug his heels in, and with grace a drunken person shouldn't possess, pulled himself around in front of his friend and kissed him.

Axel stared into his coffee, and refused to look up at Demyx. Recounting the whole event weeks later still embarrassed him. "Needless to say, he didn't take it well. Saix shoved me, the whole school saw, and by the next day everybody, even people I used to call friends, were calling me faggot." Axel huffed. "I guess that's how it goes in high school."

Up until now, Demyx had remained mostly silent. He opened his mouth, closed it, and then opened it again.

Before he could say anything, Axel interrupted him. "If you're just going to do the same thing they did, you can fuck off and go talk to mascara girl over there." Much to Axel's surprise, Demyx began laughing.

"Dude," he began, struggling to talk between laughter and tears. "What the fuck do you think I got kicked out of my house for?" He paused to wipe away the tears. "Well, that was the first reason, the second reason was because I got caught making out with some dude in my parent's basement. They definitely didn't take it well." Axel just rolled his eyes and went back to the remainder of his coffee. Demyx tilted his head again. "Listen, I'll tell you another secret."

Axel only sort of glanced up, knowing that this secret probably wasn't going to be anything secret at all.

"Your friend, ex-friend, the douche with the blue hair?" Demyx shrugged, apparently having already forgotten the guy's name. "It's his loss." Demyx reached out and grabbed Axel's palm. "Look, here's my number. Why my parent's keep paying my phone bill I'll never know. But anyways, call me, okay, it gets lonely here and you're pretty." Axel could only stare at the numbers on his hand. "You're definitely pretty. Like fire and embers and stuff." Demyx said, giving out a short, teasing laugh. He slid out of the booth and stretched. "I do mean it." He gave Axel a wink before walking out of the diner.