Chapter One: The Day After
Axel disappeared around the brick wall. 'Why did it have to be like this? Life sucks. Dangling happiness in my face and snatching it away. It was like that with that bitch and now with the kid. The kid...' Axel thought to himself. He scoffed. 'Of course. "Kid". He was a child. In some ways. But he pleaded with me- he WANTED me to. And the look on his cute little face- what good nanny would say no to that? Of course what he was asking for was something a good nanny never does to their kid... Why had I let myself get the best of me?' Axel stuffed his hands in his pockets. 'Maybe because he was different,' Axel thought, hailing a taxi to take him to the apartment Marluxia and Demyx shared. Mostly because Marluxia thought highly of Demyx, the respectful boy dating Marly's sister, Naminé... Who also happened to be best friends with Axel's little sister, as well. 'Maybe because though young, Roxas held a presence so much more different than anyone else's had held for me.' Axel looked out the window. He watched residential area give way to town, and town give way to apartment complexes. The taxi stopped, and Axel paid fare. He got out and knocked on the door- he had no possessions. Those were all left behind when he was practically chased from Roxas's home and his position as Roxas's personal nanny. The door opened.
"Onee-chan!" Shiki cheered, throwing her arms around Axel's waist. "Why so sad, Onee-chan?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. She looked similar to Axel, yet her hair was a less vibrant red and her eyes were brown. 'Still in her Anime phase, I see,' Axel thought.
"Why do you call me that? I don't even think it's the right word for 'Big Brother' or even 'Brother'," Axel muttered.
"Why? Would you rather me call you Moo-" she started.
"No, no- just call me one-can or whatever," Axel grimaced. He absolutely loathed the nickname his sister had for him since she learned to talk.
"So what do you want?" she asked.
"Why are you even here?" Axel asked, ignoring her question.
"Mar-Mar's sissy and my bestie invited me over for dinner. They said if you wanted to come you could, but you haven't been home for like, a week."
"It's only been about six days. You survived," Axel said. He passed her coldly. He didn't want to deal with pesky little sisters, much less the feeling of being so alone since he was forbidden his secret treat. That night at dinner, Axel asked Marluxia if he could stay the night.
"... I just don't want to go face mom- she doesn't like me hanging around the house since I left Larxene, 'the Perfect Girlfriend'. And I got fired so I can't go back to Roxas's," Axel explained.
"Sure. Stay as long as you want," Marluxia agreed. Axel nodded and excused himself from the table, having barely eaten anything. He went to the guest room and lay down on the bed, missing having Roxas to wrap his arms around, or Scootch to comfort him. He had given his precious pup to Roxas as a reminder, trying to make sure he never forgot the nanny that had given and taken his own and Roxas's heart in an exchange of Axel's unconditional love and care for Roxas's virginity of all things. Axel thought back to the day he spent- no, days- he spent, caring for and taking care of Roxas, though the fors and ofs of the whole ordeal were two completely (well, not completely) different things. Just thinking about it made Axel tempted to rush back to the Ventus's mansion and whisk Yuffie's blonde haired son back with him into oblivion as far as she was concerned. He would've liked to kidnap his probably more than willing victim and fled the country if possible. And even along the way sharing those sweet, forbidden secrets that should never leave lovers' bedrooms with him. But Axel knew if he dared he would be in even more trouble than he was already in. Three years. He had promised Roxas that three years from today he would return and take him away. Axel smiled sadly at the thought as a tear slipped from his closed eyes down his face in a horizontal to his mouth pattern due to the fact he was laying down. Axel wasn't sure how long Roxas would be able to stand it, but Axel certainly knew that he himself would wait for as long as it took. After all, he had been waiting more than twenty years to meet this boy. It wouldn't hurt that much to wait another three. As long as Roxas did the same. Axel sighed. He already missed the beautiful blue eyes that adorned the young man's face, and the silky golden blonde hair that complimented those eyes like the sky so compliments the sun. His door opened.
"What's wrong? You've hardly talked and you barely ate," someone asked from the doorway.
"I... I guess I'm just bummed out about losing my job, Demyx," Axel said after a moment. 'Bummed out doesn't even scrape the ice,' Axel thought.
"Where's Scootch?" Demyx asked.
"Gave him to the kid. The boy needed a pet- he spends a lot of time alone."
"You need a pet or something... You don't like talking to others about your problems and you're alone most of the time since you dumped Larxene. Something else is bugging you," Demyx pointed out.
"I'm just tired. Can you just leave it be?" Axel demanded, snapping at his friend. "I'm sorry, Dem. Just a lot of stuff on my mind. I'd rather not talk about it." 'Of course- if I did, I'd be in even worse trouble,' Axel thought again.
"Okay. Goodnight, Axel... I guess I'll see ya in the morning," Demyx said, closing the door and leaving Axel in the dark once again. The hall light disappeared from his back as the moon hid behind the clouds. Axel closed his eyes. Though when he'd first gotten the tatoos under his eyes and Larxene told him he looked like a depressed clown, Axel would've never thought he would ever be depressed the way he was now. He pulled the covers over his head, covering that and the crazy-spiked bright red hair that extended from it. He closed his eyes and after some time, depressing thoughts gave way to depressing dreams.
Meanwhile, Yuffie checked on her son, Roxas... Mostly to make sure he was asleep. When he'd threatened his life, even brandishing a blade to his own skin, she promised him she wouldn't call the cops on Axel, his nanny-accused-rapist. She picked up the phone and dialed 9-1-1. Her son needed to have that horrible man locked away- she wouldn't stand for a minute to have the man who violated her innocent boy still walk in public. She just hoped the media never found out- if they did her publicity would go up- but not in a good way. Even Roxas would be ridiculed in tabloids, being the son of local movie star Yuffie Ventus (yes, she kept her name after the divorce and yes- there were other children but they were with Ven, her ex-husband, now) she hurriedly spoke into the phone, pulling up Axel's file on her computer to give the address he had as his last residence. Apartment 114 in the downtown area. She gave the woman the address as it was written and a description. Then she hung up. All she had to do was bring the videos to court and Roxas would never know- it was best if he didn't. There's no telling what he'd do if he knew Axel would be locked up. She went to bed shortly after her call, still insanely angry that someone could do such unspeakable things to a child- her child, no less. While she fumed until she slept, 15-year-old Roxas lay in his bed, Axel's former dog, Scootch, at his feet and the only one of Axel's salvaged t-shirts he had clutched in his arms, part of the white fabric buried under his nose, Axel's scent burning sweet dreams in his mind of him being reunited with his red-haired stallion in three years' time.
The next morning while Roxas and Axel were sleeping in beds on two different sides of town, Yuffie downstairs from Roxas, drinking her morning coffee and police cruisers pulling up on the sidewalk downstairs from Axel, both Roxas and Axel had finally found peace with each other in their dreams. Suddenly, Axel's door flew open and three and four cops were on him, pinning and cuffing him before hauling him downstairs, telling him he was under arrest for 'solicitation with a minor' and reading off his rights while Demyx and Marluxia watched in shock as their friend was hauled out of the house, head down depressingly and not even resisting the slightest bit as if he knew this was coming. On the bright side, Axel had fallen asleep in his clothes from the day before, and was only absent of shoes and socks. Roxas awoke with a jolt for no real reason; just a stabbing feeling in his gut that Scootch seemed to have picked up on, too. Roxas, though wide awake couldn't help but yawn. Today was just going to be one less day to wait for Axel, and hence Roxas's countdown begins. He hid Axel's shirt, knowing him mom would freak if another scrap of that man were found in the house. Roxas went downstairs in a state of extreme melancholy, however. He made his morning bowl of cereal in the same cloud of gloom, a dead expression and glassy eyes that seemed to have the immediate ability to overflow if the slightest wrong thing was said. He completely ignored (or moreso didn't notice) the pitiful look his mom gave him. She intensely believed that Roxas's innocence was stolen, but Roxas had tried to tell her that was far from the case- he had tried to explain he LOVED Axel and had even WANTED him to do it. But she didn't believe him. So now Roxas sat there at the table eating the first random cereal he had grabbed from the shelf, not caring what it was but more absorbed in thinking about how alone he felt since Axel left, and how much he missed Axel's company along with Axel's kisses and Axel's fingers and even Axel's smell, which was fading from the shirt Roxas salvaged. Scootch nudged Roxas's leg with a moist nose, causing Roxas to look down at the fat, black little bulldog Axel had left him. Roxas walked over to the massive bag of dog food and scooped a cup out before dumping it into Scootch's bowl.
The little dog ate immediately, causing a faint smile to tease Roxas's lips breifly before his lower lip trembled and his eyes watered. He had no idea this would be so HARD. Even though his time with Axel was short, regardless they had enjoyed so many (naughty) things together, Roxas knew their bond stemmed deeper than just that- it was like some instant connection from fairy tales, though Roxas hated the words 'love at first sight' it held a bit of truth for him. Yes, it may not have been at first sight but when Roxas realized he liked Axel much more than he should, it was like some connection that took years to build was forged in seconds. And it obviously didn't like being pulled apart, and it most certainly wouldn't just break. Roxas sniffled, large beads of saltwater running down his cheeks like it was a race. He brought his arms up to wipe away the tears- crying wasn't manly because men were unbreakable, yet... Why was it he had felt so hollow and torn up inside?
Yuffie was there almost instantly, petting Roxas's bedhead hair with one hand, the other hand on his shoulder and guiding him upstairs while she whispered 'soothing' things like "it's okay, he can't hurt you," or "I'm here, baby, I'm here," and any comment even referring to Axel made him cry even more. Roxas was normally macho (or tried to be), and him crying at his momma made him feel like a baby. While his mom held him, now sitting on his bed beside him where she had made him sit, he knew he wanted a different pair of arms comforting him. He wanted Axel. Little did he know, Axel was now in jail and awaiting trial for his crime.