A/N: Oh man, another story. Just a random idea I had. This ones still in the works but I plan to have about six chapters by the end of it, maybe more. Right now school (read as physics) is kicking my butt though, so the updates may be a little bit on the slow side but they'll happen.

Warnings: Akuroku. Language. Angsty Axel and Roxas... um, that's about it. For now...

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned... unless you count my collection of action figures...

And without further ado...

.:Stars Shine On and Birds Still Sing:.

.:Rainbow Laces and Thirteen Paces:.

No connection. No previous meetings. Yet somehow, within the course of one hour, fate brought two people together under unusual circumstances.

~~~X~~~

"Hey there, Blondie. Need some help?"

"No, I am perfectly capable. Thank you." If he wasn't obviously hitting on me, I might have said yes. These stupid boxes of canned tomatoes really are quite heavy, but he doesn't need to know that.

"Aw, come on, don't be like that. I only want to help."

"No, you only want to get in my pants." Okay, so I'm in a bad mood. Can you blame me? It's almost the end of my shift but it's been a long day. My car broke down two days ago, so I have to wait for my father to come pick me up. And now I have this annoying, full of himself, redheaded jackass trying to "woo" me.

Okay, so I admit he is kinda hot. And by kinda, I mean extremely; Bright red hair styled into almost deadly looking spikes, acidic green eyes, tattooed cheeks, at least 6 feet tall and a little on the skinny side. Though, that tight shirt he has on shows some lightly defined abs. I can't help but wonder what he'd look like shirtless… and I'd better stop right there before I start drooling…

"Alright Blondie, maybe I do like ya. But that doesn't mean I just wanna get in your pants. I really just wanted to ask if ya'd like to go get something to eat with me. Once you get off work, that is." I just eye him skeptically, as he smirks. I can't tell if that smirk is frightening or tantalizing.

"Well, maybe if you tell me your name I'll take you up on that offer." Why not? I have nothing better to do and it's Friday night. I'll just have to make sure I call my father to tell him the change of plans.

"Seriously?" A look of pure disbelief crosses his features before that smirk comes back, "Well, in that case, the names Axel. Got it memorized?" A catch phrase? Amusing…

"Well, Axel, how 'bout this? If you help me stack these cans of tomatoes, then I'll let you take me out to dinner, deal?" At this his smirk only grows wider, if that's even possible.

"Alright Blondie, you've got yourself a deal. I think it'll be worth it." Axel says, as he moves to help me with these stupid cans.

"One more thing. The name's Roxas, not Blondie."

Twenty minutes later, me and Roxas are standing up at the front of the grocery store. He's on the phone, presumably talking to his father, if the amount of 'yes dad' is any indication. It sounds like we could be here for a few.

But, I don't mind. It gives me time to admire. And by admire, I mean check him out.

This kid is, for lack of a better word, adorable. His hair is styled perfectly in messy spikes to one side. He's a little on the short side, though I can definitely see some muscle on his arms and stomach, where his shirt is riding up a little to show sun kissed skin. He has these rainbow laces in his tattered black Converses, which is partly why I thought I'd have a chance with him.

Though, what really caught me, were those eyes. The most startling blue I have ever seen. I could stare at him all day. And yes, I do realize that that thought was borderline creeperish, but you wanna know something? I don't care.

And I retract my previous statement. He is not adorable, he is gorgeous.

Yeah, never thought you'd hear me say that, did ya? Well, that's just 'cause everyone thinks I'm some punkass that's gonna steal their lunch money. I have to admit I probably am a lit- okay so I am pretty intimidating. I mean I'm what 6 foot 3, I think. And this bright red hair is like a beacon to stay away. I think it's like an instinctual thing or something, like how animals stay away from bright colored frogs, since their like poisonous and all. Plus, these tattoos under my eyes probably don't help. Oh well, not my problem everyone's a chickenwuss.

Oh man, I gotta stop hanging around Seifer…

"Um, Axel…?" A hesitant voice brought me back from my internal ramblings. Oh, well shit, he probably thinks I was staring. Well, I was but- okay stop. Focus, Axel.

"What? I'm sorry, I kinda zoned out…" I say as I rub the back of my head, embarrassed. Smooth move, idiot.

"Uh yeah, so I just gotta pick up some chips for tomorrow's Blitzball game and then we can go. Where are you taking me, anyways?"

He eyes me skeptically again. I just grin and say, "It's a surpri-" When he looks like he is about to grab a spork and shove it in my eye, I quickly change my response. "I was thinking about going to that little café about two blocks from here and then taking you to get ice cream, but if there's somewhere else you'd rather go- "

"Will I be able to get Sea Salt Ice Cream?" He interrupts my rambling. He has a smirk of his own now and a new spark in those eyes.

"Oh yeah, most definitely. I know the best place."

"Well then, I'll be right back." He says before running off into isle five.

As I wait for Blondie to get back, an argument starts over by the cashier. I hear some dude shout about how his coupon had not expired. Seriously, it's really that important to save twenty cents on toilet paper? I try to dismiss the ruckus as Blondie comes running back, Tortilla chips in hand. I hope those aren't the ones that taste like cardboard…

"Alright, just gotta get these wrung up and we can go get that Sea Salt!" Blondie must have a sweet tooth.

I turn to walk over to the cash register, but stop when I hear a loud gasp. Roxas is a little ways behind me and in front me is gotta-have-my-twenty-cents-off man. And attached to gotta-have-my-twenty-cents-off man… is…a bomb…

Holy Shit!

"That is it! Why do I even keep living this horrible life!" shouts our infuriated costumer. "I'm tired of it all. If I have to suffer, I'm taking you idiots with me!" Wait, what? All this over 20 cents? Not cool, yo. Not cool. This guy had to have been a ticking time bomb –literally – and the coupon had been the final straw or somethin'.

I watch as a woman starts to scream and run for the doors. "Shut up! Shut up! I'll do it!" yells our local suicidal maniac. Unfortunately, this just causes everyone else to start to shout and try to escape.

"I warned you." I watch horrified as the man reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a detonator. I look towards the front doors, contemplating my chances of making it to them in time, and then I turn around and see Roxas frozen in place, clutching his Tortillas like they're gonna sprout wings and save him. One look at his face, terror etched deep into his features and even deeper into his wide cerulean eyes, and I just react.

The next thing I know I'm covering the thirteen steps it takes to get to him. At step twelve, the man hits the switch. The thirteenth? I'm tackling the blonde to the ground and shielding him from the blast.

The last thought that crosses my mind before everything goes dark is that Reno is gonna be so pissed when he finds out I died before I made his dinner…

~~~X~~~

And so came the changes in my life I never saw coming.

All because of those thirteen paces and a boy with rainbow laces…