Author's Note: Hey guys! It's been just a little while since I was able to write anything, mostly because my muses and inspiration died. Good news! I quit the second job I had, so now I'm back to one job and lot less stress. However, bad news is that school has started back up, and on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursday nights, I will be unable to upload anything. Course, I suppose being able to upload stuff isn't of concern right now, it's actually writing the stuff out first! xD I promise, there will be more to come, I just don't know when.

Disclaimer: Characters belong to Square Enix; title of the story and chapter(s) belong to Avril Lavigne. No, I am not making money off of this (but that would be nice). Since this is the first chapter, and I assume that all readers in the future will start with it, I am not including the disclaimer on all chapters. Consider this entire thing disclaimed now.

When Roxas rolled over in the king-sized bed he shared with his fiancé, the last thing he expected was emptiness. Blearily opening his eyes against the bright sunlight shining in through the balcony door, he tried to see where Axel was. The blond sat up slowly, rubbing his still-sleep-heavy eyes against his arm before stretching. Once he was actually awake, Roxas looked around the room, not seeing the redhead anywhere.

'That's weird… Where could he be?' he thought. He glanced down at the nightstand next to his side of the bed, noticing an envelope that hadn't been there the night before. His name was written on the back of the envelope, in what could only be Axel's handwriting, a half-print, half-cursive scrawl. The blond's stomach suddenly felt heavy as lead as he picked the letter up.

Roxas,

I'm very sorry to have to do this to you, but I've been called to action. Something detrimental to the entire country is happening in the Middle East, and they need all available soldiers to fly out immediately. I have no clue when I'm going to be able to come back home, and unfortunately, we will have to post-pone the wedding until further notice. I didn't want to make leaving any harder than it had to be, so I let you sleep while I packed the essentials and drove to the airport for the first available flight to Afghanistan. I know that you'll probably be mad about that, but I can't stand saying goodbye to you, not knowing if I'll come back alive. So please, forgive me in advance…

You are the most important part of my life, and I want you to know that my leaving was not by choice. I have to go and leave you all alone, but I hope you always know that I love you so much. You're my personal sunshine, and being with you makes me grateful to be alive. While I'm gone, take care of yourself for me. I know that Ven, Sora and Demyx will help you out as much as they can, but remember that they can only do so much. Don't be too sad that I'm gone, because I will come back, and before you know it, we'll be able to get married.

Be safe for me, and try to stay happy.

Goodbye, my love.

Axel

Roxas was barely aware of the silent tears streaming down his face and dripping on to the paper he held in his shaking hands. The blond took a quick look at the alarm clock on the desk opposite the bed; it was just after eight o'clock in the morning. Maybe, if he hurried, Roxas could still catch Axel before his flight left. He sprung up as quickly as he could, finding the nearest pair of pants and a t-shirt to throw on. Slipping on a mismatched pair of socks and some tennis shoes and barely stopping to brush his teeth, Roxas bolted out the front door, not remembering to lock it behind him as he ran to his car, fumbling with the keys. Once it was started, he peeled out of the driveway and quickly pulled a U-turn in the direction of the airport. Roxas was praying to every deity there was that Axel's flight was still there.

Finally reaching the damnable building and the always-overcrowded parking lot, Roxas parked as close to the main entrance as possible, locking his car with the keychain and sprinting to the doors as fast as he could. Glancing at the watch he seldom removed, his pulse sped up again. It was 8:18 and his mind was on a one-way track to convincing him that the flight had already left. Not even stopping to catch his breath, he ran up to the counter, huffing.

"Excuse m-me, miss," he panted, "but can y-you tell me… When does the-the next flight to Af-Afghanistan leave?"

The woman behind the counter typed something in her computer and leveled Roxas with a pitying stare. "I'm sorry sir, but the flight is boarding now. If you hurry to Gate C-" the blond took off.

"Thank you!" Roxas shouted over his shoulder to the woman, left there wondering what just happened.

He weaved in and out of crowds, nearly tripped over the brochure and magazine stands in the middle of the hallway advertising different destinations and tourist attractions, and almost fell down trying to turn the corner of another hallway that led to Gate C. Thankfully this hall wasn't quite as full as the main one and Roxas was able to run full speed until he reached the gate, right as Axel was handing the man his boarding pass.

"AXEL!" he shouted. The redhead jumped, obviously startled, and turned around in what seemed like slow motion. Axel dropped his bag just in time to catch his fiancé and not fall over. He was vaguely aware of the fact that Roxas was crying, but all he could concentrate on was holding the blond tightly and whispering in his ear, "I love you," over and over again.

"Oh God Axel, I'm so glad that I caught you… I know you didn't want to say goodbye like this, but it would have killed me if you were already gone by now and if… If I didn't get to see you one last time before you left…" Roxas felt a lump form in his throat that he couldn't speak around anymore.

"Shh. It's okay Roxas… I know." The redhead just held his love, not ever wanting to let go of him again. "Truthfully, I'm glad you were able to get here, too," Axel wiped a tear away from Roxas' cerulean eyes with the pad of his thumb. He pressed a tender kiss to the blond's lips, trying to communicate his love through his actions. Roxas' instincts took over, and his hands moved automatically to tangle in thick red hair when he remembered, 'Oh yea… It's not there anymore.' His fingers yearned to feel the soft locks once more, but he knew in time that would happen again.

Axel deepened the kiss slightly, tasting his lover for the last time until sometime in the fall. Before he lost control of himself he pulled back, just enough to rest his forehead against Roxas'. Peridot green eyes met lapis lazuli blue in a heartbroken stare. By now, the other passengers – most of whom were other soldiers – had all boarded the plane. The man in charge of getting the passengers checked out cleared his throat to remind Axel that the flight was waiting on him.

A single tear escaped down Axel's cheek as he fought down the urge to sob. Every time he'd said goodbye became more and more painful than the last.

Roxas spoke quietly, "Don't you go getting yourself killed over there. You hear me?"

"Hah!" Axel laughed in a hollow voice, "sure thing, babe. I'd never leave you like that. I love you."

"I love you, too. Go on now… They're waiting."

The couple shared another quick kiss and embraced like they'd never see the other again. And before Roxas could believe it, Axel was picking his bag up off the floor and walking out to the plane from the walkway connected to the building.

A few minutes after Axel had boarded, the walkway was retracting from the plane and the door was closing and suddenly they were taking off. Roxas watched in despair as the plane disappeared into the sky, headed for the Middle East.

The months seemed to drag for Roxas, who kept counting the days since he'd last seen Axel; 278 days had passed. The spring came and went, as did the wedding date in June. Summer crept by at a snail's pace and the season found itself in autumn. The temperatures were starting to cool down; leaves were changing colors and being pulled from trees by the slightest of breezes. It was the kind of weather where Roxas could finally stand to have a few friends over for a barbecue so he wouldn't be alone. He wasn't quite as good on the grill as Axel was, but there wasn't much to be done about that.

Roxas invited his twin Ventus, their cousin Sora, Sora's boyfriend Riku, Kairi, Naminé, his best friend Demyx, and Demyx's roommate Zexion. Ventus went ahead and invited Terra and Aqua, because they'd been friends with the twins' family for a few years. With a full backyard, Roxas didn't quite feel the ache he always felt when Axel was gone. He'd set up to make burgers and hot dogs if others brought side dishes. With the last of the meat finishing on the grill, Sora set the outdoor table, while Demyx started bringing all the sides over to put on it. There was now enough food to feed the small party, consisting of macaroni and cheese, baked beans, potato chips, coleslaw, chicken salad, and corn on the cob.

Everyone grabbed a plate and utensils and sat down to eat. Just as Roxas was finishing getting his food, he heard the doorbell ring.

"I'll be right back guys, I think there's someone at the door," he explained. 'That's weird… I don't remember inviting anyone else.'

The blond tried to see who it was before he got to the door by looking through the narrow windows on either side of the front door. He didn't see anyone, however, and continued his trek across the living room. Upon reaching the door, he checked through the peephole, only to realize someone had put their finger over it so he couldn't see them without opening the door.

Quizzically, Roxas cracked the door for a glimpse at the stranger when he realized the person on his front porch was the furthest from a stranger anyone could be. Blue eyes brightened considerably when they met the malachite eyes of none other than Axel. The door was flung wide open and Roxas immediately jumped into his fiancé's arms, wrapping his legs around the skinny waist of the redhead. Axel's hands supported the blond's legs while his lips got reacquainted with Roxas' in a very sloppy kiss. Teeth and tongues gnashed and wrestled and Roxas forgot that he hadn't seen Axel for nine months; forgot about anything and everything that wasn't Axel because now that's all there was in his world.

They parted when breathing through their noses wasn't quite substantial enough to keep them conscious, and Axel set Roxas down gently and hugged the lithe form against himself.

"Hey stranger," the blond said.

"Roxas. Roxas, Roxas, Roxas. I missed you so much. God, did I miss you," Axel replied.

Sniffling, Roxas choked out, "Yea, I missed you, too, love." They stood like that for a few minutes until Roxas remembered there was food in the back, along with all his friends and family.

"Hey, you wanna join me for dinner? You're just in time. The whole group's here and we're having a barbecue."

"I would love to join you for dinner. Especially after having to put up with crappy airline food for the last thirteen hours. I just wanna put my bag up first," the redhead accepted.

"Oh, God, and here I am just standing here! Let me take your bag to the bedroom, and we can go out there together," said Roxas, smiling. He took the proffered bag in one hand and Axel's hand in his other. Their fingers laced together immediately. The petite blond led them to the bedroom and set Axel's bag on their bed. Axel wrapped his arms around Roxas' waist from behind, resting his head on his shoulder.

"Before we go back out there, I want another kiss."

"Yes sir, Soldier," Roxas complied, spinning around to face the redhead fully. This kiss wasn't as desperate as the previous one was. This one spoke of familiarity, of practiced ease in the perfect melding of two mouths slowly becoming one. This kiss was a promise of things to come later in the week, after the jetlag was gone.

"We should get out there before all the food is gone, you know," the blond whispered against Axel's lips, eyes still blissfully closed.

"I guess you're right," Axel pecked the smaller one's lips again. "Shall we?" he asked, already starting to lead the way to the backyard, Roxas in tow.

When the back door opened to allow the couple to rejoin their friends, all chatter at the table stopped. That is, until, Demyx yelled as loud as he could, "OH MY GOD AXEL'S BACK!" and proceeded to tackle the soldier to the ground. The rest of the evening was filled with renewed excitement and celebrating. But most importantly, now that Axel was back, the wedding was back on and would definitely happen as soon as possible. Sora and Kairi swore to make it happen.

~fin~