"You should just give up."

"...."

Though I may have been facing certain defeat, there was no way I'd give in. I couldn't. My enemy closed in, and my grip on my weapon tightened. I raised it up.

"Never!"

I was buried under a barrage of blows. I gave a battle cry and tackled the closest person to me to the ground. It was my spikey-haired best friend, Roxas. I smashed my pillow into his stomach, laughing. When we stopped fighting an hour later, we all dropped, exhausted.

"Good game, Inori." Olette gasped.

She gave me a weak high-five.

My name is Inori Altaire. I came to Twilight Town from a world called Kamui. Kamui is - well, was - a snow covered land that had always been plagued by demons. I was a strong fighter trained under the great warrior Oki. He once fought beside a goddess to save our world from two of the worst demons. He was my idol. But even he couldn't ward off the Heartless when they came and took over. I was saved by a man in a black cloak. He shoved me through a portal, and I wound up in Twilight Town. It didn't take me long to find friends.

I walked home from Olette's house the next morning. It was just another lazy, summer day. I was so happy that nothing could get me down. Well...

"Hey, Inori!"

I cringed. Seifer...I turned around as he and his stupid posse walked up to me. I couldn't make my body language any more clear: Get the hell away from me. Seifer had been...lusting after me for quite a while. It was very annoying. He walked up, smirking. I wanted to punch that stupid look off of his face.

"Hey babe. What're you doing?"

"Not being anywhere near you."

"Aw. How come? You should hang out with us."

"I would rather my heart be ripped out."

I turned and started to walk away. Seifer got frustrated and grabbed my wrist. I twisted to get out of his grip, but that wasn't happening. I turned, my eyes burning with hate.

"If you want to keep your arm attached to your body, you will let go of me." I growled.

"No." Seifer snapped.

"I said that I will never screw you or be around you and I meant it. Now LET ME GO!"

The volume of my voice increased until I was yelling.

"I think you should take the girls' threat seriously."

The voice was unknown to Seifer, but not to me. I don't know where I'd heard it, but I knew that voice. I looked and saw someone walking towards us. He wore a black cloak, with a hood covering his face. He pushed Seifer and shifted me behind him in the same motion.

"Or I could make it happen."

Seifer was pissed. His face was red.

"Who the hell are you?"

"The name's Axel, kid. A-X-E-L. Got it memorized?" The man replied.

I thought Seifer was going to explode. But, to my surprise, he just walked away. Oh, but he turned back and winked at me first. I gagged. When he was gone, I looked up at my savior.

"Thanks. He's so damn annoying." I sighed.

The man laughed. He pulled his hood down, turning to me. He had firey red hair, green eyes, and small purple triangles under his eyes. Gotta admit, my breath was taken.

"He's a wimp." Axel teased.

I laughed with him.

"So, Axel, is it? Well, I'm Inori. Thank you for saving me again."

Axel raised an eyebrow. I smiled.

"You saved me in Kamui."

He snapped his fingers, grinning. His eyes danced with excitement.

"Oh, that's right!"

We laughed again. I felt very safe around Axel.

We became friends. He'd visit every now and then, and we'd hang out. Only two weeks after I'd met him, I knew that I was in love. One day, I decided to tell him. He came and I met him, but he seemed sad. I went to comfort him. He stopped me.

"Axel?"

He looked up at me.

"Inori...I was ordered to kill you."

I was stunned. Organization XIII wanted me dead? I took a few steps towards him. Axel closed the space and pulled me tight against him.

"I don't want to. I love you." He said.

I was quiet. Thinking. If I died, I'd become a Nobody. I'd be with him forever. I closed my eyes.

"...Kill me."

Axel pulled away from me like I'd shocked him with a tazer. His eyes were wide.

"W-what?!"

"I love you! I want to be with you!" I blurted out.

The second my sentence was out, he was moving. His hands moved to my face and he pulled me up. Axel kissed me hard, his lips urgent and strained. I kissed him back, locking my hands in his hair. He was hot, his temperature was higher than mine, obviously, but I threw caution to the wind and kept on kissing. He put his hand over my still-beating heart. I sighed and my pulse quivered. Axel smiled. He leaned forward again, his lips brushing mine.

"I love you." He breathed.

"I love you too."

There was no pain. It was all very fast. Heat grew wildly in my body, consuming me, and my heart stopped. My body disappeared. Axel disappeared to his world.

I heard footsteps behind me. I walked down the dark alley without looking back. I stopped short, suddenly. Two arms wound around my waist. I smiled.

"I found you." He murmured.