Yeah, yeah, I know it's short and a bit stupid. But it's technically my first fanfiction I've ever written, so bear with me, okay?
Rated T for some very mild content, and a boy-on-boy relationship.
"Finally! A new neighbor!" Roxas excitedly slid a batch of warm, chocolate-chip cookies from the oven and onto a plate, licking melted chocolate from his fingers. The apartment across the hall had been vacant for years before Roxas had moved in, and remained so for the few weeks afterword. The other tenants, although nice, were all older than thirty and didn't really associate with 18-year-old high-school seniors. So when Roxas found out that a new tenant was moving in close to his own age, he was thrilled.
It was Roxas's final year in high school (his first year at this one, having transferred twice to get away from a certain individual, but he was confident enough that he had escaped for good this time, which added to his elation). Gathering the cookies and opening the door to his apartment, he closed the door behind him and headed across the hall. Ironically, his room was numbered 8, but he ignored the room number like he always did and continued down the hall to the room numbered 13. Another irony, Roxas thought, reaching up to knock on the wooden door. Smiling brightly, Roxas adjusted the plate full of cookies and waited. After a few moments the door opened, and Roxas began his welcome speech.
"Hello! My name is Roxas. I live just down the hall, there, in room-" He stopped short when he realized who it was he was talking to. The man looked down at the blonde, a crooked smile playing around his lips as the said blonde glowered.
"Well, hello there, Roxy," smirked Axel, leaning against the doorframe. "Fancy seeing you here."
"Yeah right, stalker," muttered Roxas. "And don't call me 'Roxy.' It's Roxas."
"Oh! Sorry, I'm being a terrible host. Please, come in." Axel grabbed Roxas's front belt loop and pulled him inside, closing the door as he did so. Roxas tried to resist, shoes scuffing along the floor, but his hands, busy holding the platter of cookies, could do nothing. Axel backed Roxas up against the door, one arm on either side of his head.
"Axel…!"
"How nice. Are those for me?" Axel grinned, sniffing the cookies. Roxas shoved the cookies at the redhead's face, trying to get out from under him. The attempt failed, and Roxas had to contend with leaning as far away from the redhead as possible. Axel chuckled. While keeping both arms out to prevent Roxas from escaping, he bent his head down and grabbed a cookie with his teeth, teasingly holding it in front of Roxas's face as he took a bite.
"Can I leave now?" Roxas snapped, annoyed.
"C'mon, you just got here. Don't you want something to eat? Something to drink? Or somewhere to sleep?" Axel flashed an evil grin.
"Not even in your dreams!" retorted Roxas, flushing.
Axel laughed. "Too late for that, love." He took the platter of cookies from Roxas, pulling the blonde's belt loops again in order to get him to walk down the hall. Roxas, his hands freed, tried to pry Axel's fingers off of his belt, but the pyro had an annoyingly strong grip. The redhead only let go once they had reached his room.
"Why are you here, anyway?" asked Roxas, stopping just before the threshold.
"What do you mean?" replied Axel, finishing off the cookie and starting another.
"I mean, why do you keep following me? I've changed schools twice, moved apartments three times, only to end up like this all over again-four years after we started high school! And here we are again!" Roxas was still glaring at the pyro, bracing himself to run if the annoying redhead decided to make a move.
"I'll tell you the reason why, if you play a game with me," Axel said thoughtfully, biting into his third cookie.
"How 'bout not?" Roxas turned and walked back down the hall. He grew suspicious when the redhead didn't follow him, but ignored the feeling and reached for the door handle.
"And where do you think you are going?" called Axel, sliding down the hall toward the blonde.
"I was going to back to my rook to pack…" Roxas turned, his eyes glittering with fury. "But you seemed to have locked the door…!"
Axel shrugged, grinning unashamedly. "The key's in my back pocket. If you want out, come get it."
Roxas groaned. "Axel, you are such a pervert!" He put his head in his hands, closing his eyes in frustration. Axel felt troubled; he didn't mean for his small captive to take it so personally…besides the door didn't even need a key…
"I'll make a deal with you, then." Axel bent over, lifting the blonde's head to that they could see each other. "You play a game with me, and I'll let you go. I won't ever bother you again."
Roxas frowned up at him, pushing the hand away as he thought.
"Well…okay, I guess…what's the game called?"
Axel smirked. "It's called 'playing with fire.' I'll go first, shall I?"
Uh-oh, Roxas thought. But before he could duck, the redhead had put his hand back under Roxas's chin, tilting it to a better angle. The other hand slid down to Roxas's back, supporting the younger teen (and to prevent him from escaping). Roxas backed up to the wall, still trying to get away, but he didn't get far before Axel seized his lips in a kiss, pulling the blonde toward him. Roxas pushed at the older man, but the redhead only deepened the kiss, twining his hand in the blonde's messy hair.
After a few moments, Roxas felt himself relaxing. Stupid! he told himself, unable to help it, but angry at himself all the same. He jumped slightly when a warm tongue entered, licking and tasting Roxas's lips before pushing past them. The taste of chocolate-chip cookies filled Roxas's mouth, Axel a burning source of heat for the smaller boy-almost like a fire, thought Roxas distractedly.
During a break for breath, Roxas managed to pull away and leaned against the wall, flushing scarlet and breathing heavily.
"Is it still my turn? Or did you want to go?" Axel smoothly ran his finger along Roxas's spine, making him shiver. "I've got all day." He moved his head next to the blonde's, breathing along his jaw line and up to his ear. Roxas mumbled, trying to get him to stop. Axel, however, only moved his head along Roxas's jawline again, putting his head forward and tenderly kissing those coral lips. Pulling away, he looked down. Roxas opened his eyes, closing his mouth tightly when he realized a part of him wanted to continue.
"Axel…?"
"Yeah?"
"I…never mind…Can-can I leave now?" The redhead focused on the stuttering teen in front of him, who was still pink in the face, his ice-blue eyes averted.
"You sure you want to leave? You just got here, and I haven't seen you for so long…" He teasingly pulled Roxas closer, brushing his ear with his lips. "Besides, we aren't done with our game, are we?"
Roxas looked up, retort poised on his tongue, when he saw Axel grin, a smile that could melt more than one frozen heart.
"I guess…it wouldn't hurt to stay a little longer…" Roxas muttered, hating himself for giving in so easily. Axel beamed, wrapping his arms around the blonde before he could change his mind. He pressed his mouth against the blonde's, kissing him with renewed passion. Roxas, on his part, did his best to keep himself in check, but despite his efforts, began kissing back.
After another few minutes or so, Axel pulled out of the kiss, only to bring his head back to Roxas's ear.
"How do you make a blonde scream my name and beg for more?" he whispered.
Roxas, the innuendo not lost on him, blushed hard and babbled an incoherent answer.
"Just put him on my bed," finished the pyromaniac, picking up the teen and depositing him gently on his medium-sized bed. Roxas, predictably, attempted to roll off, only to have Axel firmly (but gently) push him back on again.
"Axel…" warned the blonde.
"Don't worry, I won't do anything." A Cheshire-cat grin spread across his features as he added, "Much." Roxas, attempting to avoid Axel's gaze, glanced at the closed bedroom door and remembered what he had been trying to say.
"Axel…"
"Hm?" Axel looked at him.
"You said that if I 'played with fire' with you…"
"Yes?" Axel brought his jaw teasingly along the blonde's collar bone.
"W-well, you did say you'd let me…go…"
Axel brushed his lips along the blonde's jugular, then started nipping at his earlobes, causing Roxas to let out an involuntary gasp. He chuckled.
"Yeah, I did say something like that, didn't I?" he murmured, playing with Roxas's shirt.
"So…can I have the key now?"
"Key? Oh! Right…well…" Axel gave the blonde an apologetic grin. "About that…that door's a bit old and has a history of getting stuck. I don't even need a key 'cause of that…"
Roxas stared at him in disbelief. "You mean…I could have just walked out of here at any time?"
"Well…yes, but-"
"Arrgh!" Roxas forced his way out of Axel's arms, rolled off the bed, yanked open the door, and ran down the hall. Axel dashed after him, successfully catching his wrist before the blonde could escape.
"Let me go!" Roxas squirmed, trying to shake off the older man, cursing the pyro's strong grip. "Why do you insist of messing with me like this? I hate it! That's exactly why I've been trying to get away from you these past few years-" Roxas choked, eyes stinging with the angry tears he refused to let fall. Axel pulled the resisting blonde closer, bending down so that he and Roxas were on the same eye level.
"I'm sorry, Rox." Axel, very seriously, wiped a few rebellious tears from Roxas's face, brushing the blonde's bangs from in front of his eyes. "I'm really, really sorry I made you feel that way."
"I hate you, Axel! Why do you do this to me?" Roxas, despite his best efforts, began to cry, tears of frustration and anger welling up behind his ice-blue eyes and spilling across his cheeks.
Axel, a sad expression on his face, slowly got down on one knee, and pulled a ring from his back pocket. Slipping it onto the blonde's fourth finger, he looked at Roxas and said, "Because I love you. Got it memorized?" He kissed the blonde softly one last time, then opened the door and backed away.
"I meant to give that to you a few years ago, but you ran off. It took me a long time to track you down…" Smiling sadly, he went to his room and closed the door.
Roxas stood in shock, staring at the ornate writing spiraling across the silver band: You are my Lucky XIII. He looked up just in time to see the door to Axel's room click shut. He hesitated, and then made his way out of room 13 and back into his apartment.
* * *
Throughout the rest of senior year, Roxas never saw Axel again. He knew that the redhead hadn't moved out yet, but a "For Rent" sign had appeared in the front of the building, and he had a sneaking suspicion that the room in question belonged to a certain pyro. Several times, Roxas stopped by to check in with Axel, but the redhead never answered the door. Sometimes, Roxas thought he heard a noise like a stereo being quickly turned off whenever he went by and knocked on the door. Other times, Roxas would leave notes under the door, but Axel never replied to any of them, making Roxas question if he'd even received them or not.
He still hadn't taken off the ring…
Graduation came and went, passing Roxas like a blur. He had fun celebrating with his friends, Hayner and Pence taking turns posing next to Roxas as Olette took the pictures. Roxas even received a "Happy Graduation!" card from Axel, but the pyromaniac never showed in person, and continued to isolate himself through the remaining vestiges of spring and into the beginning of summer. But it wasn't until June, however, that the "For Rent" sign disappeared completely.
When Roxas first noticed, a taxi had pulled into the front of the building.
Looking around, he saw the sign's absence and began running, feet pounding the cement as he headed toward the apartment building. The taxi honked once, getting impatient, at which point someone walked out, opened the taxi door, and got in. Roxas started panicking, the flyaway red hair all too recognizable.
"No!" Roxas gasped out, sprinting in an effort to catch up to the taxi, now starting to pull away. "Axel!"
But it was too late. The taxi began picking up speed, forcing Roxas to stop as fought for breath, a large stitch in his side. He watched as Axel pulled away from him, collapsing on the pavement with tears falling down soundlessly onto the ground.
"Axel! Please, come back!" Roxas begged, unable to say for sure why he was so upset. "Don't leave me!"
"Why? Where did I go?"
Roxas whirled. Standing in the front door of the apartment building was Axel, cocky grin in place, leaning against the doorframe as if he had been there forever. Walking over slowly to the disbelieving blonde, he wiped away the streaming tears and pulled Roxas into a tight hug.
"B-but…you…I thought you'd left!"
Axel chuckled, running his fingers along Roxas's tear-stained cheek. "That was actually my good friend Reno. I'm not surprised you thought he was me, people often say we look like twins. He decided to come over here when I told him there was a room for rent. He's been looking for a place a little closer to work, and since he's my friend…"
"Why on Earth didn't you say anything before?!" Roxas demanded. "You never answered the door or any of my letters at all!"
"I thought you hated me?" Axel smiled crookedly. Roxas, remembering what he had told Axel, blushed. "I wanted to give you some space after that day, in case…well, I mean, I did promise to leave you alone."
"I…don't hate you." Roxas wrapped his arms around Axel's thin waist. "Don't you ever scare me like that again."
"Why are you so worked up?" Axel laughed, scooping Roxas into his arms and carrying him into the building. "I wouldn't have left without saying goodbye. That's not like me, is it?"
Roxas looked away, feeling foolish, glad that no one had come out to see what all the noise was about. Axel gently set Roxas down outside Room 13, then opened the front door.
"You didn't answer my question." Roxas, selectively ignoring the redhead, followed Axel into the apartment. He closed the door behind him, then turned only to find Axel's burning face inches from his. He took an involuntary step back, bumping into the door as he did so. He mumbled to his shoes, cheeks coloring.
"Sorry, didn't catch that." Axel cheerfully leaned forward, enjoying teasing the blonde.
"I said…because I'd miss you." Axel raised an eyebrow, inviting Roxas to continue. Roxas blushed, averting his eyes.
"Are you sure that's all?" the pyromaniac hooked his fingers around Roxas's belt loops, leaning in even closer. Roxas's heart pounded.
"No…" Roxas's breathing sped up. Axel laughed quietly at the blonde's reaction, bending down slightly so he could look into Roxas's eyes properly.
"Are you going to tell me why you attempted to chase down a taxi? Don't try to tell me it's just because you'd miss me." Axel smirked, noting that the younger man didn't look like he would be talking any time soon. That's fine, he thought. I'll just drag it out by force.
"Don't make me play 'interrogation' with you," he murmured, his hot breath brushing Roxas's lips. "We never finished our last game. It'd be a bit of a shame to start a new one."
Roxas, his escape prevented by the firm grip on his belt, gained a worried look. He knew it would only be a matter of time before Axel dragged it out of him; the redhead had had lots of time to figure out Roxas's weak points, refused more often that he could keep count of, and had the uncanny ability to guess, more or less correctly, what Roxas was thinking.
"Axel…"
"Humor me," the pyromaniac breathed, before kissing the blonde yet again. He licked those coral lips delightedly, nipping and biting, before delving past them and kissing him passionately. Roxas, as before, tried futilely to resist, but his willpower was crumbling quickly. Axel, in the meantime, had moved his hand down Roxas's spine, stopping just before his shirt ended, pressing the flat of his palm to the small of Roxas's back. His other hand moved across the blonde's neck and jaw line, causing goosebumps to erupt along Roxas's neck. Roxas, resistance disappearing completely, hesitantly wrapped his arms around Axel's neck, winding his fingers through the flame-red hair. Axel began moving his fingers up and down Roxas's back, hand disappearing fully under his shirt. Roxas let out an involuntary moan as he felt those ministrations move lower, but did nothing to stop him.
When Axel was absolutely sure he had Roxas's full attention, he drew back his hands and untangled Roxas's fingers from his hair, pulling away sharply.
"Axel…why'd you…"
"You threw a fit the last time I dragged you off. I thought that this time I'd better quit while I'm ahead."
"But…"
Axel had to raise an eyebrow. "You mean you actually want to continue? After everything that happened last time?"
"I…I was just mad then," retorted Roxas, confused at this sudden turn of events.
"I think we'd better leave it like that." Axel turned to hide his smile. As mean as it was, teasing Roxas like this was actually kind of fun.
"Axel!" the blonde begged. "Don't just walk off like that!"
"Then answer my question." the pyro rounded on Roxas, all trace of amusement gone. "I will get my answer either way, but I'm offering you the choice of telling me before I make you tell me."
Roxas looked away, Axel's sudden brusqueness only adding to the confusion. Axel, taking pity on the small teen, smiled.
"Or I can take you hostage like last time and you can tell me while I'm doing you."
Roxas's eyes widened in shock, blushing a hard crimson as Axel's words took effect on him. Axel laughed, enjoying Roxas's reaction as he pulled on Roxas's belt loops again, dragging him off to his room and closing the door.
"Axel…you s-seriously wouldn't do that, right?" said Roxas as he stumbled into the room, flopping onto the bed as Axel moved across the floor. He crept onto the bed after Roxas, predatorily moving over the blonde as said blonde was forced to lie down. Trapped, Roxas could only lie there, flustered and a bit scared.
"I'm the only one listening, sweetheart," Axel promised, grinning. He moved up, sitting at the foot of the bed, allowing Roxas a bit of space. "You tell me why you were so upset about me leaving, and I'll leave you alone."
He turned as if about to leave, but he stopped when Roxas grabbed his shirt. "I don't want you to leave!" Ice-blue eyes met shining green ones, and a sudden realization passed through Roxas's mind breaking eye contact as he did so. "I…"
"Yes?" Axel's voice was impossibly soft.
Roxas, a burst of confidence filling his voice, looked back at Axel. "I love you."
Axel beamed, pulling the blonde's chin toward his and kissing him with an entirely new enthusiasm. Roxas returned the kiss with a balanced but equal passion. Axel parted lips, bringing his mouth against Roxas's ear, then biting his earlobe.
"I love you too, Rox."