A/N: Hello, everyone! I'm Superkoi, the author of this fic. It might sound a little familiar to you if you've been around the KH fanfiction scene for a while - and that's because this is a revamp/rewrite of one of my older stories. I published the original fic a few years back and never got around to finishing it. And in that time, I felt like I changed a lot as a person and writer. I wanted to finish the story that I'd been planning out since 2006 (yes, I'm serious), but I felt like I needed a fresh start. So... here we are! I hope you enjoy. :)

EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

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Chapter one

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Hayner only gave three warning honks from Roxas' driveway before he leaned out his window and bellowed impatiently, "C'mooooon, slow poke!"

Roxas just finished stuffing a toaster waffle into his mouth before he swung his backpack over one shoulder and headed toward the front door. "See you later, mom."

"Don't wait up, kiddo," Roxas' mother, Holly Eberhardt, chirped happily as she descended the stairs. She seemed to be far too pleased with her appearance, which consisted of a low-cut blouse and a skirt thats length rivaled some of the things that Roxas often saw his female classmates wearing in the halls.

The young boy openly grimaced at the sight. He hated when his mother didn't dress her age because he knew it could only mean one thing: she was seeing someone again.

Roxas stopped short at the front door, but didn't turn around to face her when he muttered, "What's this one's name?"

Holly sighed. She already knew what kind of reaction to expect from her disapproving son. "This one is named Seifer and I really like him. He's an assistant dental hygienist —"

"Wow," Roxas interjected with a heavy dose of unbridled sarcasm.

"—And he's coming over for dinner this Friday so I expect you to be home," she warned, adjusting one of the large hoop earrings that was dangling from her ear.

"An evening of third-wheeling over poorly cooked food and unstimulating conversation? Wouldn't miss it for the world, mom."

"Hey," his mother snapped. "Fix the attitude, mister."

Roxas was still staring at an arbitrary speck on the doorknob, motionless, when his grip tightened considerably on his backpack strap. "Dad wouldn't make me do this," he mumbled.

Holly inhaled sharply, a reprimand poised on her glossy lips, before Hayner unknowingly interrupted their argument with another prolonged honk from outside.

She swiveled around in her heels and stomped back up the stairs. "Don't keep your little friends waiting."

In lieu of a response, Roxas slammed the front door shut on his way out.

All of the countless psychiatrists and doctors that Roxas was forced to visit back when his parents first got divorced told him that the separation would become easier for him as he got older. But now, Roxas knew for a fact what he had always suspected back then — they were all full of shit. Age had done nothing to help him cope with the realization that his parents were moving on without him. His mother was making quite a reputation for herself in the local dating pool while his father had settled down in Twilight Town with a new woman that Roxas had yet to meet.

Which meant that he was left behind to deal with the ugly repercussions of an estranged father and a mother who tended to bring home more men than money to pay the rent.

"About time!" Pence announced when Roxas unceremoniously plopped down beside him in the back of Hayner's junk pile of a Jeep. "For a second there, I thought Hayner was actually going to have a conniption."

The car took off with a screech as soon as the door was closed. Hayner's eyes — which were shielded behind a pair of dark sunglasses — appeared in the corner of the rearview mirror. "Do you clowns even realize how many times I've been written up late to first period because of your guys' shenanigans in the morning?"

Olette was quick to pipe up from the passenger seat. "I think it has less to do with our shenanigans and more to do with your dawdling in the halls," Pence cackled with laughter until Hayner blindly tossed an empty slurpee cup over his seat to smack his friend in the head. Meanwhile, the brunette girl glanced over her shoulder and offered a sweet smile. "Morning, Roxas."

Roxas couldn't help but smile back, despite his foul mood. Hayner, Pence, and Olette had been his best friends for as long as he could remember and, even at their craziest, they had an uncanny knack for lifting his spirits without even trying.

Hayner swerved into his usual parking space — crookedly, which was also per usual — outside Destiny High. He cut the engine and swung himself out of the car, taking a moment to stretch his well-displayed arms over his head of messy brown hair. One semester on the JV lacrosse team had successfully inflated the boy's ego to the point where he found it necessary to showcase his muscles at any given opportunity.

"So what's got sourpuss in a bad mood today, huh?" Hayner swung an arm over Roxas' shoulders once all his friends got out of the car and started moving across the parking lot toward the front doors of the school.

Roxas shrugged. Although unapologetically intrusive, he knew that Hayner meant well — he usually always did. "It's nothing."

Hayner was just about to pry further when Pence spoke up from the back of the group. "You know, he's probably just freaking out about our pop quiz in Bio today. I spent hours last night going over all the different kinds of —"

"Christ, it's only the first week of school and you're already going full-on brainiac on us?" Hayner jumped away from Roxas and snatched Pence's textbook right out of his unsuspecting hands. The other boy huffed and tried to steal it back, but Hayner darted away toward the parking lot. Pence chased after him, calling out fruitless protests while Hayner hooted and hollered in amusement.

Roxas barely even batted a lash at his friends' antics and neither did Olette. She was too busy studying the blond's crestfallen face like a specimen under a microscope. Carefully, she stepped closer to him, shoulder to shoulder as they continued their slow stroll into the school.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" She tried gently.

Olette's advances were much easier to accept than Hayner's. It probably had something to do with the fact that the girl relied on patience and understanding while Hayner's tactic of choice was annoying persistence. With a sigh, Roxas peeled back a thin layer of his defenses. "Maybe later… I'm still kind of digesting it."

"Well, whenever you're ready, you know who to call," Olette bumped their shoulders together with a grin. Roxas returned the gesture just as Hayner jumped in between them, draping his arms over both of their shoulders. He was only slightly out of breath from the chase, but still managed a devilish smile.

"Who's Roxas calling?" He demanded as he nuzzled his nose against Olette's cheek, causing the girl to giggle and push his face away.

Pence suddenly appeared at Roxas' other side. He was huffing and puffing much more intensely than Hayner, but his textbook was safely tucked under his arm. "Roxas is calling someone?"

Olette shot an apologetic glance in Roxas' direction, but the young blond already had his palm pressed against his face.

The foursome made their way through the front doors when a flurry of sweet-smelling blonde hair whipped past them like a ghost. Roxas immediately perked up, his cerulean eyes following the source down the hall until they settled on a petite girl examining the bulletin board outside the art classroom. Hayner didn't miss a second of the brief interaction — for someone so flighty, he was surprisingly perceptive.

"Well, we can already rule out Namine," he didn't bother lowering his naturally booming voice. "Everyone knows that Roxas can't muster up the courage to talk to her even though he's totally in lo—"

"Hayner!" Roxas whispered venomously, giving the boy a shove. "Knock it off!"

The lanky troublemaker whooped with laughter and shoved his friend in return, but the small scuffle managed to catch the attention of Namine on the other end of the hallway. The two boys froze in place when they noticed her staring curiously in their direction. Roxas was too mortified to move, but Hayner smiled brightly and waved.

Namine awkwardly waved back and then silently disappeared into the classroom.

"Dammit," Roxas growled. "Now she probably thinks I'm even more of a freak than ever, thanks a lot."

"This is why you should just talk to her, man," Hayner insisted. "For all you know she could have a secret kink for freaks. It's always the pretty blonde ones…"

"Honestly, you two," Olette chided softly, shaking her head.

The bell rang and suddenly the halls were swimming with students, all scattering in various directions to their first period classes. Hayner jumped to attention and gave his friends a wink.

"I gotta book it. Because apparently I've been accused of dawdling," he tugged on a strand of Olette's hair and the girl swatted him away playfully. "Later!"

Hayner took off down the hall and Roxas didn't fail to notice the way that Pence was glaring after him. Olette took Pence by the wrist and started marching in the opposite direction. They turned back to wave at Roxas. "See you at lunch!"

The blond boy threw them a distracted wave and then looked around at the crowds of students flooding the hall. Without the company of his friends, it was easy to feel lost among the throngs of bustling classmates. It was only their first week of sophomore year and he already felt invisible. With a quiet sigh, Roxas headed toward his classroom, but not before some burly jocks from the football team bumped into his much smaller shoulder, promptly knocking him to the hard floor. His books and papers tumbled out of his bag and fell in disarray around him, quickly getting trampled on by the oblivious students as they passed.

Perfect. It was the cherry on top of what was rapidly turning out to be a brilliant day for Roxas Eberhardt.

The track field behind the school was rarely occupied before the start of class, making it the ideal spot for three friends to meet up in the morning.

Riku jogged around the track, his shaggy silver hair pushed back by the breeze as he gained some speed. Kairi sat on the first row of bleachers, every now and then lifting her gaze to watch her friend or the red sun rising over the sandy hills in the distance, but was otherwise engrossed in her book. She smiled to herself as she read, a sense of calm washing over her at the peacefulness of their daily morning routine. It was quiet. It was serene. It was —

"Boo!"

The tranquility was suddenly interrupted when Sora snuck up behind Kairi and whispered right into her ear. The girl squealed, nearly leaping to her feet, and flung her book into the air in surprise. From across the field, Riku looked over with concern the moment Kairi's scream reached his ears, but the sound of Sora's boisterous laughter that followed was enough to ease his worries. He grinned, making his way around the track, back to his friends.

"Sora!" Kairi's incredulous screech quickly melted into laughter, intertwining with Sora's as he beamed with cheeky pride. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Consider it payback for all those times I fell asleep on the beach and you drew mustaches on my face," the boy said as he leaned over to pick up Kairi's book that had fallen by his feet. "And dicks."

Kairi nearly fell backwards off the bleacher as she threw her head back in another round of hardy laughter, fondly recalling all the hijinks and summer afternoons spent by the shore. "Hey, you have to admit that it was a little bit funny," she insisted. "And in my defense, the dicks were all Riku's doing."

"Not even surprised," Sora snorted.

As if on cue, Riku jogged over to the pair, remarkably not out of breath even after his impressive display of cardio. He stood before the bleachers with his fists planted on his sides. "What are you two giggling about over here?"

Kairi shook her head of auburn hair and answered with a quick, "Nothing", at the same time Sora casually responded with, "Dicks."

The silver-haired athlete quirked an eyebrow. "Not even surprised," he muttered with a glimmer of a smile.

Sora sat down beside Kairi on the metal bench and stretched his legs out in front of him. "So I've been thinking," he began vaguely, eyes traveling up toward the sky.

"That's never a good sign," Riku chimed in, prompting a swift chortle from Kairi, but the messy haired boy carried on without distraction.

"I know that summer vacation is technically over, but we should sneak in one final beach trip before the weather starts getting colder — just like old times! Maybe, like… this weekend?"

Riku immediately shook his head. "Can't. Track practice all day."

A pout worked its way onto Sora's boyish face, even though it was difficult to blame Riku for his disciplined exercise regime when the results were so undeniable. Not only was he the only sophomore to make the varsity track team, he'd also become something of an athletic prodigy amongst the student body. Sora was happy for his friend, but it certainly made get-togethers much trickier to schedule.

"Kairi?" Sora threw a hopeful look at the redhead.

But she just nibbled on her bottom lip with uncertainty. "I'm sorry, Sora. I'd really love to, but… Mom's making me go to another debutante thing, so I have a few appointments and classes..."

The two boys shared a fleeting yet knowing look. The Bennettson family name was one that was uttered often around Destiny Island. Their ancestors once owned the entire seaside town, leaving the immaculate Bennettson Estate to all the generations to come. And Kairi was no exception. Her parents treated their social obligations with the utmost importance and expected nothing less from their only daughter, which meant that most of Kairi's time outside of school consisted of a barrage of etiquette classes, ballet lessons, and country club luncheons — all of the extracurriculars to be expected of an upstanding Bennettson lady.

And it was precisely the kind of torture that she hated. It came as no surprise that strong and free-thinking Kairi would like nothing more than to be released of her family's constant pressure. But despite how often she vocalizes the fact, every year, without fail, she finds herself faking a smile at another one of her mother's brunch parties with the rest of Destiny Island's high-society teens. Because the only thing worse than making mindless smalltalk over eggs benedict would be disappointing her parents.

"You still go to those things?" Riku scoffed. "Don't you think it's getting a little…"

"Archaic?" Sora suggested.

Riku nodded. "I thought you were going to tell your mom that you want out, once and for all."

"Well, why don't you try telling that to my mother, Riku?" Kairi challenged, stuffing her book back into her bag. The silver-haired boy grumbled something unintelligible and looked away.

"So…" Sora trailed off, sneaking final glances at his friends. "No beach?"

Riku kicked the toe of his sneakers against the pavement and Kairi just tangled her fingers together restlessly.

"Don't sweat it, guys," Sora dismissed the lingering disappointment in the air with a quick shrug. "We'll have more weekends."

The school bell rang in the distance, pulling the trio back to reality. Riku was the first one to get moving. He reached for his bag, swung it over his shoulder, and saluted his friends with two fingers before starting a light jog all the way back to the main building. "Catch you two later."

"You're not gonna try to race him?" Kairi wondered with raised eyebrows.

"Nah," Sora stood, stretching his arms above his head as he watched Riku's retreating figure grow smaller and smaller in the distance. "It's not like I stand a chance, anyway. It's kinda hard to get revenge on the school's fastest runner, y'know?"

Kairi smirked. "I dunno. I mean, so far I'd say that your revenge attempts have been pretty successful."

The pair shared an amused look before making their way across the field to the main building, side by side. Sora's eyes gleamed with playful mischief just like they always were.

"You're right," he agreed. "Maybe Riku will find a dick on his face when he least expects it."

Kairi's grin stretched wider.

"Wait… That came out wrong."

Roxas considered himself pretty fortunate that his favorite class turned out to be his first period of the day. He figured that it would be a strong incentive to get out of bed, embrace the early morning, before he had to struggle through the less appealing subjects like math and science.

But that was before he found himself enduring such a godawful morning. It seemed like nothing could lift his spirits — not even a hefty dose of creative writing.

The class was small, appearing to hold roughly ten students in total, a majority of whom were unenthusiastic upperclassmen. Roxas might've felt a bit more intimidated had they not all been either blatantly sleeping on their desks or completely entranced by their cell phone screens. The creative writing elective had an unfortunate reputation for attracting the bottom-dwellers of Destiny High's academic standards. Most of the students were probably forced to enroll by their guidance counselor, who assured them that it would be an 'easy A' while simultaneously fulfilling their necessary literature credits before graduation.

And that made Roxas the minority by a long shot. Unlike his lackluster classmates, he had signed up for the course out of genuine interest in the subject. But judging by the way his first week of class had been going, he had pretty much given up all hope that he'd get much writing done.

"Hey, you."

Roxas stopped the journey to his desk. He hadn't expected to be addressed by anyone in the class, least of all by a fellow student. The blond boy perked up and turned around to face the speaker in question, stunned to realize that it was a senior boy he hadn't even noticed in the classroom before.

Which Roxas found very strange because the boy looked like the kind of person who was unforgettable.

The first thing that caught Roxas' eye was the boy's head of outrageously red hair. He had to wonder if it was natural or not, especially considering the way it spiked out behind him like the mane of an angry lion. His skin was pale and flawless, except for the two small triangular tattoos under his emerald green eyes. He had his combat boot-clad feet propped up on his desk and was leaning back so far in his chair that Roxas expected him to fall flat on his back at any moment.

"You do speak english, don't you? Hello? Hola? Bonjour?" The redheaded boy tried again, quirking an equally as red eyebrow in curiosity.

Roxas suddenly realized that he'd been staring like an idiot for quite some time now. He shook his head and willed himself to socialize. "Yeah. Sorry. I do — speak english, I mean."

The senior's lips seemed to be permanently fixed into a cunning smirk, Roxas noted. He motioned to the empty desk beside him with a flourish of his wiry hand. "Good. So now that we've got that settled, wanna take a seat?"

Roxas blinked, clearly taken aback by the stranger's friendliness. "Um…"

The boy removed his feet from his desk and planted them on the floor with a sigh. "I can tell that these questions are getting a little too complicated for you so I'll make it easy. You sit. We chat. And then we both get through this class in one piece. Got it memorized?"

"Yeah, sure," Roxas slowly sunk into the seat beside the redhead. He busied himself with removing his notebook from his bag and placing it on his desk, continuing to dig around for the pen that he might've forgotten to bring. All the while he could feel the senior boy's astute eyes watching him.

"Sheesh, kid, no need to be so chatty," the redhead removed the pen that was stuck behind his ear — which was covered in more piercings than Roxas could count — and offered it to him. "The name's Axel Thorne. Not to be confused with Guns 'N Roses frontman, Axl Rose. Ironic, I know. I get it all the time. Got it memorized?"

Roxas actually found himself cracking somewhat of a smile as he took the pen from Axel's hand. "Axel. Right. I'm Roxas."

"Roxas," Axel repeated slowly as if he were getting accustomed to the way the unfamiliar name felt as it fell past his lips. "So tell me, Roxas, are you always such a ray of fuckin' sunshine or is that just a today thing?"

The sarcasm in his tone was evident, leading Roxas to believe that he hadn't been as inconspicuous with his sour mood as he had hoped to be. "Oh… It's just been a pretty rough morning."

To his surprise, Axel nodded in understanding. "Tell me 'bout it. Found out I had a flat on my car this morning in the parking lot. Had to spend all my free time changing it before class. Major bummer, right?"

Roxas glanced down at his lap. "My mom's making me sit down to another family dinner this Friday with boyfriend-number-seven, the assistant dental hygienist."

"Huh," Axel offered him a look that was both amused and sympathetic. "You win."

Just then, their uninspired teacher, Mr. Leibowitz, scuttled into the room and placed his things on the front desk. Nobody stirred. The slightly balding man began droning on softly, turning his back to the class to start scrawling on the blackboard. Roxas reached for his notebook, turned to a blank page, and silently began jotting down the notes as Mr. Leibowitz produced them. Again, he could feel Axel staring him down.

"Don't tell me you actually want to pay attention," he berated. Roxas merely shrugged and continued with his note taking. Axel heaved a loud sigh and leaned his elbows on his desktop with exaggerated attentiveness. "Fine. We'll play by your rules today."

The rest of the class period progressed with very little chatter between the two boys. Every now and then Roxas could still feel Axel's gaze lingering on him from the corner of his eye, but he chocked it up to self-consciousness. When the next bell rang, very little had been accomplished, but the students still gathered their belongings and fled the room at top speed. Roxas was still packing up his bag when Axel stood and moved in front of the younger boy's desk.

"You got a phone?" He asked.

Roxas nodded dumbly. "Yeah."

"Number," Axel elaborated with a chuckle. He pulled out a red iPhone from his pocket and looked at Roxas expectantly. The blond raised his eyebrows a little, but still managed to rattle off his phone number while Axel tapped it onto the keypad. "Come sit at my lunch table today."

It sounded more like a command than an invitation. With that, Axel grinned and turned to exit the classroom, leaving Roxas still a bit perplexed. He didn't quite know what to make of it. Either Axel had mysterious ulterior motives or was far too friendly for his own good. Regardless, it seemed that Roxas officially had new plans for lunch time. He idly wondered what his friends would think of him ditching their table to sit with a group of seniors. Hayner would have a few choice words for him, he knew that for certain.

A low grumble from Mr. Leibowitz at the front of the room tore Roxas away from his thoughts. "Get a move on, Mr. Eberhardt. You don't want to be late the first week."

"Yes, sir," Roxas jumped up from his seat, grabbed his backpack, and hurried out the door to get his day over with once and for all.

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to be continued

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