au. reincarnation. akuroku.
dno.
Mister blue sky, tell us why
you had to hide away for so long
Roxas never did like the rain.
As an infant, the sound of the splattering raindrops that pushed against his home's roof and windows rendered him inconsolable. As a child, the slightest storm would leave him in a simple ball; this soon had to be remedied when he reached school age, leaving him to only glance at the small drops that sometimes haunted the windows with a deep frown.
He wasn't too sure why he disliked the weather so. He figured it was just a little quirk he was born with, like Hayner's squinting smile or Olette's puffing sigh when she was far behind in something. He accepted it with little thought until the morning he turned fifteen, and dawn spent it painting the sky a blueish gray. That was when the dreams started, filled with flashing images of red, pink, fading yellow and bleached white. There was fire, there were blurs, there was warmth and anger and a sense of never ending loneliness.
Then there was the ice cream, tinged blue, salty, but sweet as well. The ice cream was plain but with it was a drumming pang that resonated with memories sleeping soundly and a whispering of laughter with one that should have been two. There was black and blue and green and crimson bleeding red. There were sunsets and shells and stupid jokes and love.
Roxas's fingers threaded themselves through the forever-bed head golden mess hesitantly called hair, his mind unable to make sense of his whirling thoughts. Beside him, a pale window hummed, small droplets making a pat-pat-pat sound, like a mouse trying to knock; trying to get in. The boy let out a small sigh, his head falling back with a thump. His feet and legs pulled themselves close as his toes wiggled and tried to bury themselves in the window seat's scratchy fabric. Outside, the sky stood depressed. Umbrellas began to dull while the town's residents continued to wait.
It seemed like the storm was never going to end.
The pattering continued, the dull scenery sprawling beyond his window becoming static. Suddenly, a small frown pulled on Roxas's face, blue eyes peering closer into the gray abyss as a flash of colour presented itself near the end of his street. The boy's brows furrowed; why would someone dare to go out in this sort of weather?
His clock struck then, a new hour upon them, the golden haired boy swinging his head to catch the time. It chimed again, claiming number thirteen, hidden cleverly by the number one. Ignoring the aged clock, Roxas looked back down the street and towards the stranger standing at its corner. He – Roxas could only assume that it was a male, though, the person's towering height and beanpole stature presumably helped him claim it — looked as though he was waiting for someone, head swiveling as it scanned the houses. The man's head was protected by a tightly pulled hood; it was only due to chance and a snagging gust of wind, that the blond managed to catch a drop of gleaming red.
Pushing himself up, a curious tugging sensation taking hold of his heart, Roxas spared the tall man only a few more seconds of his attention before his feet were being shoved into shoes and his arms were being pushed into sleeves. It only took him a couple minutes to catch up.
Ignoring the icy drops washing the grime of forgotten memories, Roxas called, "Waiting for someone?"
The stranger turned, jaded eyes stabbing through him before a cat-like grin turned up the red head's mouth. "Yeah." The man's eyes lifted. "I promised my best friend we'd meet again." He glanced at Roxas, a bit intrigued. "Why?"
A half-hearted shrug was the response.
"I saw you from my window. I was just wondering why anyone would be standing in the rain." He peered up at the taller man, innocent curiosity splayed on his face. "Is he a really important friend?"
The man gave him a once over, observing him in a way that should have made the blond self-conscious. Instead, he simply stared back.
The whispering laughter sounded again.
"My best." The red head held out his hand, his grin still in place, but his expression had softened considerably. "Name's Axel. Got it memorized?"
A blink, memories spinning, and a smile. "Roxas." A slight furrowing of eyebrows came then, something that happened unconsciously when Roxas was about to ask a question. "What's his name? Your friend?"
Axel chuckled, hand lifting to rub at the back of his head, hood having been removed at some point. "That's the funny part. I haven't a clue."
A lifted brow as the flaxen haired boy stepped forward, Axel mimicking his actions. "Really? So, what, everyone has to remember your name but you can't even remember your best friend's?"
A sly grin now, Axel leaning down to meet the boy's gaze at a level angle. "Well, in my defense, I doubt he remembers my name."
"But isn't he supposed to have it memorized?"
The smile became tinged with an aged sadness. The blue ice cream was forming into a struggle bat; the sunset was being seen through a dark blue glass. Roxas, whose cerulean blues had become clouded, opened his mouth to try again, but the red head cut him off with a short shake of his head. "It wouldn't be the first time he's forgotten it."
This received a pulling frown.
"He didn't mean to."
"I'm sure he didn't."
A pause as the dreaded rain continued to beat around them. The sky above was darkening with the threat of a heavier storm that would keep the moon silent and hidden. Shivering into his coat, Roxas shifted back and forth on his feet, lips being pulled into a small bite as awkwardness, a hint of shyness and an awful lot of regret setting in.
"Have you forgiven him?" He peeked up to catch a hardening in the man's green eyes. An anger. Roxas felt the air slip from his lungs before Axel sighed and closed his eyes in a sign of defeat. Lifting a hand, he cradled the blond's face, blues sliding closed. "No. Because I was never really angry. Because there was nothing really to forgive."
Bright blues opened again and gazes locked before the words "I'm sorry" were whispered, images of forgotten worlds spun through two minds, the memory of evenings spent laughing at nothing, eating ice cream solidified and a hand rose to meet his twin and two lips met for the first time and two heart beats hit the same rhythm.
Maybe – Roxas's hands tangled themselves into the mess of red hair, his lips curling into a smile as he and Axel kissed — maybe he could learn to like the rain.
explanations-
colours:
pink- talking about the hearts that come up when you slay a Heartless.
fading yellow- Kingdom Hearts
black and blue- this is in reference to Xion, though black couple also mean Organization XIII's coats.
phrases:
claiming number thirteen, hidden cleverly by the cool number one- Reference to Roxas being taken and hidden from the world by Xemnas.
in case anyone was confused. xD
this was a piece done for, and beta'd by, one seasaltkisses. she's in my fav authors, go check her out. she likes to say she sucks but she should stuff it in my opinion. :D
concrit is always welcome; flames will be used s'mores
if you fav, please review.
danke