Hi, I don't post fanfiction often but here's some Kingdom Hearts fanfiction since the new game is coming out next year. woop~
Synopsis: At some point, you're gonna have to break your own rose-tinted glasses and face the facts: 1) life has no guaranteed happy ending, 2) no one will save you from your problems and 3) maybe that person you made out with during Fear Pong isn't prince charming but hey, he's not a total dick and that's close enough for you.
TW: mentions of past/present child abuse, mentions of rape, mentions of self-harm/suicide, murder, LGBT+ relationships/characters
Main pairings: Axel/Roxas, Riku/Sora
Second Week of July 2018
Unsurprisingly, everything started to change when the first body was found and for lack of a better phrase, it was strange as fuck. Of course, it was 'strange as fuck' though, it's not every day you wake up to your local news channel telling you that a dead body was thoughtlessly discarded on the playground of your old elementary school, 20 feet away from the merry-go-round. The merry-go-round you had your first kiss in, but that's neither he or there. It's also not every day a sixteen-year-old boy on summer vacation is wide awake at 7am, but sometimes you got to go with the flow. Which is what Roxas did when he found himself in his living room, sitting next to his mother, Sybil Ambrose, as she held her hand over her mouth, head shaking in disbelief.
"Awful. Just awful." She repeatedly whispered, her southern accent coming through at such a distressing event. Hollow Bastion Access News replayed the flashy graphics again, signaling that once more coverage on such a 'shocking development' was about to play. Sybil moved her hand to pull her son closer, silently petting the blond hair, her dark skin contrasted against bright hue. Her soprano voice hummed along with the news theme as she grabbed the remote to turn the subtitles on. Roxas fixed his posture, ready to listen to the details a second time around, in case he had missed anything.
"And we're back with Hollow Bastion Access News in the morning." The reporter shuffled his papers, taking on a solemn expression and leaning forward on his elbows. "Unfortunately, we have no new updates on the situation down at Evergreen Elementary Academy. But, for those who missed our earlier coverage, a body has been found on the playground outside of the school building. At this moment, the police have not identified the deceased and the area has been blocked off from the general public. Evergreen Summer Camp has been cancelled for the rest of the summer, and all parents will be given a refund. We will now go to Trisha Lloyd down at the school. Trisha?" The screen cut to raven haired woman of fair skin dressed in a pantsuit obviously too hot for the July heat. She held the microphone close to her mouth as she wiped away a bead of sweat from her forehead.
"Thank you, Junsu. I'm here live at Evergreen Elementary Academy's playground " Like the last reporter, her smile faded after the obligatory salutations. She began walking up to crime scene tape, the image of a police van obscuring the viewers line of sight from any gore.
"It's almost 7:30, and we have yet to gain any information from the police on this concerning manner. All we know is the body was found here, at Evergreen Elementary Academy by a couple of local teenagers earlier this morning, and the HBPD will release a statement later on today. For now, let's check in with the two who found the body." The cameraman moved with Trisha, following her as she made her way over to two teenagers sitting on a curb. Blue eyes widened, as the sixteen-year-old recognized his classmates, Seifer and Hayner.
"Mom turn it up." The blond whispered, shocked to see the two together. Sybil nodded, eyes fixated as she increased the volume. Hayner was Roxas' best friend since pre-school, seeing him on television for such thing concerned her as much as her son, she saw the boy as her own child. Both looked on as Trisha bent down to their level, a look of sympathy on the two boys wrapped in a shock blanket.
"Can you go over the events that led up to you discovering such a horrific sight?" Seifer nodded and moved forward.
"Uh yeah. In short, we went out for a walk this morning because we both couldn't sleep. So, we took the trail that lead back here and Hayner said somethin felt off to 'im so we went over to the swings to sit and chill for a bit."
"Th-That's when we looked over and saw the body." Seifer nodded in agreement. "I thought it was just someone homeless havin a sleep in the park, ya know? But then we got closer and they weren't sleepin, they just…they…they looked off. There was blood an…and I'm sorry. I can't." Hayner trailed off in his sentence, breath hitching as he began sniffling. Trisha put an empathetic hand on his shoulder and left the two, the camera moving along with her.
"As you can see, these two poor souls are both shocked at what they saw. Hopefully, we'll have more on this at a later date. Back to you Junsu."
Sybil wiped tears away and held her son tighter. Roxas sighed, not only was he concerned about his best friend but, he was out of a job now with the summer camp cancelled. His only source of income…besides his parents' allowance. He switched the channel to cartoons, trying to get the thought of a dead body and the loss of his car fund out of his head. Colorful graphics filled his vision as he sat there, still in his t-shirt and boxers, waiting for his mom to finish up breakfast. Now with new free time, he didn't know how he was gonna spend the rest of the summer besides wasting away on the couch. That summer camp gig paid him 230 dollars a week and without that, he can kiss his new car goodbye. He sighed again, an action that's quickly become a habit for him lately. He's not sure when he began sighing non-stop, but lately these days his life has felt off.
Out of place.
Wrong.
As if it's not his life to live.
The reason is always on the tip of his tongue, but he can never grasp it. Never seeming to articulate what's happening and why. He sighed again. And once more for good measure, making sure any essence of anxiety had left his body. It was reaching 9a now. He smelled waffles and egg whites and turned off the television.
After breakfast, he would go see Hayner.
—
Third Week of August 2018
At 3p on a Tuesday, Roxas finally saw his brother. Sora had been away for some swim team summer training camp on Destiny Islands off the coast from Hollow Bastion. He pulled up to the ferry station in his dad's silver Mercedes, honking the horn once he saw a familiar brunet.
"Get in loser, we're going shopping!" The blond exclaimed as he rolled down the window. He popped the trunk as his twin flipped him off and threw his luggage inside. Sora opened the passenger door before pausing.
"Hold on, I gotta do something first." Roxas rolled his eyes but nodded, looking on as Sora ran over to a silver haired swim team member, Riku. Sora smiled and ran up to his best friend, offering him his hands. Riku slapped both, laughing as he enveloped Sora in a hug.
"We chillin tomorrow, or what?" Riku made like he was contemplating the proposal, looking off into the distance and shaking his head.
"I can't think of anything better to do, so I guess I'm stuck with your dumbass." For the second time that day, Sora gave someone the bird. The remaining conversation between the two took place as Sora walked Riku to his car, both of them reminiscing about their swim camp adventures, enjoying the inside jokes they had made with the rest of their friends. Both finalized their plans for the remaining week of their summer vacation, choosing to spend the rest of their summery days with each other. As they reached Riku's car, Sora lingered a bit, not wanting to waste a second with the silver teen. Biting his lip, he watched as his best friend put the key in the ignition, starting his car. Riku rolled down the window, giving a smirk.
"See ya tomorrow, So." Sora internally combusted. His friend was so. Fucking. Cool. He ran back to the car, out breath and overheated from the August sun.
"God. Y'all are so annoying to watch." Roxas berated him for taking too long fanboying over the silver haired teen. "That's not even his real hair, he dyes it silver to look cool!" He commented, as they left the parking lot, making their way down to main street.
"Who cares? It's cool and you know it's cool. Silver looks good on him, you ass." Sora retorted, crossing his arms and looking out the window. His eyebrows furrowed and he sat up again. "Plus, you…you dye your hair too? You're just being a dick." Roxas rolled his eyes, slowing down for a stop sign.
"Blond. I dye my hair blond. It's more natural than silver." The car stopped running as Roxas parked it in their drive way. Getting out of the Mercedes, the third offensive hand gesture was shown today. "Anyway, who cares about Riku?" Sora murmured an 'I do' underneath his breath as Roxas continued. "You aren't going to believe what happened while you were gone the past two months, it's fucking cra-"
"Language." The two boys looked into the garage after hearing a voice that wasn't their own. Their father, Junsu Kim, was sitting at his electric kiln.
"Hey dad" The two said in unison, Junsu looked up and nodded at his two sons.
"Hello, Sora. Your mother missed you very much." Sora gave a look that said 'of course she did, I'm her favorite son'. "Roxas, be delicate when telling Sora the 'crazy stuff' that happened while he was away. It's nothing to make light of". Roxas gave his agreement, walking into the house where he was greeted with smell of his mother's kimchi.
Both stomachs growled.
—
"Wait. What? Are you serious? You're not serious?" Sora's blue eyes widened in shock at Roxas' words. The twins had made their way to Sora's room after a small chat with their mother, and a swipe of some kimchi. Roxas laid on his brothers bed, his head dangling off the end, while Sora unpacked his things. The blond sat up and handed his brother his phone, as if to tell him to google it if he was that much in disbelief. Quickly, Sora typed into the Safari search bar, 'Evergreen Elementary Academy' wanting proof of his twin's words. Sure enough, the latest in news was the truth.
A dead body had been found on the playground of his elementary school.
"Dude that's so fucked up. Do they know who did it yet?" Roxas shook his head. He had heard all of the news during the last month. The only sure thing that was announced from the Hollow Bastion Police Department was that the deceased was a victim of homicide. The rest was being kept under wraps, in the hopes that no panic would come to the town. However, with their father being the popular news reporter of Hollow Bastion Access News, the Kim-Ambrose family was one of the first to gain information about the case.
"The only thing we know is that it was a murder, and it may have happened in the elementary building." Roxas gossiped to his brother and Sora scrolled through his Twitter timeline, catching up on all that he missed; Destiny Islands were notorious for their shoddy Wi-Fi connection.
"Maybe it was a drug deal gone wrong? I know some of Seifer's friends hang out there." Roxas shook his blond head again. "Okay then, maybe it was some homeless guy who just got too overheated and died?"
"No Sor, it couldn't have been."
"Why not?" Sora asked, still mindlessly invested into his social media accounts.
Roxas gulped. "Look, you didn't hear this from me. If dad finds out I eavesdropped on his phone call with the Chief of Police he'll kill me." A feeling of unease settled over him. There it was again. That anxiety that constantly found its way into his body, it made his limbs itch with anticipation. Something was wrong with him. Something was definitely off, and it's not his guilt over snooping. He shrugged the feeling away as he looked at Sora, his twin felt the tension in the air and locked his phone, looking at identical blue eyes. "The body was a minor, Sora. Apparently, the medical examiner reported the kid not being any older than like 10."
"That's…. that's really fucked up? What do I do with this information?" The blond twin shrugged, indicating that he too was at a loss for words. Both sat in silence for a while, enjoying the other's company after being apart for so long. Even though Sora had been a member of Evergreen Academy's swim team since his middle school years, he had never once gone off to their summer camp till his sophomore year of high school, choosing instead to practice at the community pool with his twin in tow. The two were always inseparable, being prone to bouts of anxiety when away from the other. However, Sora had recently been taking steps to individualize himself from the other, trying his best to establish a sense of autonomy and independence from his twin. Roxas on the other hand had manifested his individuality physically, choosing instead to alter his appearance to contrast his brothers; under shaving and dyeing his curls blond, changing his wardrobe's aesthetic. But while on the surface his twin had seemingly become his own person, Sora was concerned whether Roxas was truly becoming independent. The blond had always been the introspective one, shyer, and more cautious around crowds in comparison to his brunet counterpart. In short, he was worried for his twin — scared even — especially with what had happened this past school year. He knew he couldn't be there for him all the time, and these days, Roxas seemed to become more reclusive. Sora looked away from his unpacking, watching as Roxas stared off into the space. Something was wrong with him, he could feel it. Sense it, like telepathy almost (regardless of how cliché such a connection between the two was). Lately, he felt an uneasiness in his stomach, feeling like he needed to vomit but never following through with the action.
It was disgusting.
Sora sighed and got up from his suitcases, flicking his brother on the nose to gain his attention.
"Wanna get high?"
—
Marijuana smoke filled the air as Roxas exhaled. He took in another breath, coughing, trying to clear his lungs from the strong hit he took from the bong. The pungent smell wafted through the room, sticking to fabric and hair follicles as the blond passed the device to his left grabbing the joint being given to him on his right from Hayner. The six of them — Hayner, Riku, Olette, Kairi, and the twins — were seated in Riku's basement, doing what bored high schoolers did best, get high. Due to his parents being both extreme leftists and never home, Riku's house was the optimum space for partaking in illegal activities. Not only that but, his parents grew their own strains, which they were always liberal with and never seemed to notice the missing buds the silver haired teen would take and sell around to kids at school. A bout of laughter broke the silence as the teens watched Olette move her arms in a robotic manner, she smiled and continued the motions leaning back onto the plush carpet. Her mouth moved saying something along the lines of 'food now? food yes?' and Hayner absentmindedly nodded as he lit the bong once more to take another hit.
"Dude, I'm just sayin…ducks. Are. Dicks." Sora enunciated each syllable with a hand clap, as if he was making a profound statement. Riku shook his head, annoyed. "You don't understand me. You haven't been through my trauma with the fowl." Blue eyes widened in intensity, he was dead set on making his best friend understand how detrimental ducks were to his existence. "They're ambi…ambient…ambition ….they're ambitious and willing to do anything to harm you."
"You're talking about geese! Oh my god!" Kairi screamed out, her voice lifting as though she had a revelation about their conversation. Sora 'oh'ed, eyes widening in response and started giggling, he grabbed his girlfriend by the waist, kissing her cheek as a thank you. Riku rolled his eyes, taking another drag of the joint that passed over Olette (she was too high to even protest). Roxas moved his head from side to side, feeling the effects of the numerous hits he had taken. He sat up in search of snacks and water from the refrigerator, Hayner followed. The blond side eyed his friend, reaching into fridge to get out bottled water, while Hayner opened the cupboard next to him to get two family sized bags of chips out. Hayner hadn't been the same ever since he found the body, and rightfully so. When Roxas went to check up on him a month ago, the dirty blond was distraught, shaking and jumping at every slight noise. He never did tell Roxas, or the others, why he was out there that night with Seifer, but at this point it didn't matter. Roxas was just worried about his friend.
His best friend.
They had known each other for years, he was the closest to the blond after Sora and Roxas treated him as if he were a blood relative, willing to lay his life on the line for his safety. But, that seemed to become harder now after the event, Hayner having become more recluse and unwilling to open up to his 'brother from another mother'. Today was the first time in weeks he had willingly joined their friend group for a small kickback. Roxas swallowed some water, leaning against the counter in Riku's basement. Houseception he thought, as he realized the lower level was designed to be similar to a small studio apartment, complete with a bathroom, bedroom, and small kitchen area (minus a stove or oven that is).
"Hayner." He didn't mean to call his name but, he felt it the right thing to do. Getting his friend's attention, he used his head to motion for the other teen to come beside him. The two settled themselves in the kitchen area, Hayner seated on the counter, holding the bags of chips in his legs. Cheddar onion tastes like feet though… Roxas mindlessly critiqued his friend's taste buds. "You okay man?" Hayner nodded slowly and unbelievably, his shoulders drooping as he sighed.
"I guess…" He whispered, voice hoarse. "I mean…I don't know, man. There's a lot going on." Roxas nodded, scooting over to jump on the counter next to the boy. "I don't know what to do. I keep…I don't…It just wasn't right Roxas." His voice hitched, he sniffled as he choked on his words. Roxas put his hand on his back, rubbing in a circular motion as if to say, 'I'm here for you, let it out.' He felt the dirty blond's staggered breathing under his palm, only slightly surprised to see Hayner cry. Sure, the teen wasn't known for his sensitivity, but that doesn't mean he was a sociopath. Roxas had seen Hayner cry three times in his life, this being the third. "That kid…he shouldn't have ended up like that….and the police they kept askin me to go over my statement again and again and again. I had to keep relivin it, keep seein that body, Rox. He wasn't any older than 10. He was so bloody." By now, Hayner had broken down, dropped the chips on the ground and covered his face in the nook of Roxas' neck. Hysterical sobs reverberated through the blond's body as he held his friend in his arms. The rest of the group looked on in silence, not wanting to bother the two and breach any boundaries.
There was so much Roxas wanted to ask him. Why was he out there with Seifer, the boy he loathed so much? What were the police doing with the body? Had they identified the boy yet? So much he needed to know and uncover, and with Hayner in such a vulnerable state, with him being high and emotional, it was the perfect opportunity for questions to be answered. Yet, he couldn't bring himself to ask them. Roxas rubbed his friends back again, and moved his hand up to his hair, pushing the strands from his face as Hayner straightened himself out.
"Where'd your legs go?" Roxas asked, a smirk forming on his face. Hayner sniffled, punching the blond in the arm at such a lame ass dig at his camouflage pants.
"Fuck you." Hayner chuckled out, masking his shyness about the previous situation with his brash attitude. Roxas shrugged, hopping down from the counter along with Hayner. The two made their way over to the group, revealing the chips they had originally left for. Olette's demeanor brightened as she reached for the salt and vinegar bag, her munchies finally being sated.