Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, nor anything mentioned in the story.
Author's Note: Okay woah. This has been in my head for ages, and by ages I mean about a year now. And it's been absolute torture trying to get it out, but somehow I've managed. This is the first chapter, I hope you enjoy it c:
Tape 01. Fly
Demyx hadn't meant to stalk him. He hadn't meant to stumble across that one boy quietly playing piano in the music room, and he hadn't meant to follow him back to his room. In fact, Demyx had tried very hard not to go back the next day, tried hard to convince himself that the slate-haired boy was nowhere near as stunningly attractive as he remembered. Of course, the more he stared at him, the harder it got to talk himself out of liking him.
And then, to his utter delight, Demyx found out they had a class together. Only one; a Chemistry class that Axel had somehow convinced him into taking, but that was more than enough for Demyx to get to know him better. So, without even talking to him, Demyx learned that his name was Zexion, that he moved to Hollow Bastian from Traverse Town three years ago, that he played piano and a drum kit, preferred tea over coffee and books over people.
It was only about a week into term the first time Demyx spoke to him, when he spontaneously decided to take his books one morning and sat himself next to Zexion. He'd grinned, said "Hi, I'm Demyx, nice to meet you," and from that moment on, he refused to sit anywhere else. Zexion had looked at him once, gave a curt nod and went back to reading his books. He didn't seem to mind it all that much (unless his tense silence was his way of telling Demyx to kindly fuck off), and even tolerated Axel joining their table.
From there, Demyx all but intruded himself on Zexion's life. He learned his timetable and matched it against his own, learned to tell when he liked to be alone and when he didn't mind Demyx hanging around. He invited Zexion out to the movies with them, dragged him into town on spontaneous shopping missions, and even made him sit there and help with his homework. He learned that Zexion was actually quite funny, in a dry, sarcastic kind of way and that he was patient and kind with Demyx, but Axel was the kind of person that could make him frustrated very quickly. As a result he often lashed out with harsh words, not that they affected Axel at all.
Much to their surprise, Zexion fit in well with their group. He just found his own little slot and stayed there, free to come and go as he pleased. More often than not he only stayed because of Demyx (him being the reason Zexion was around at all), and Demyx soon learned that whenever he wasn't there, Zexion holed himself up in either the library or the music room. Not only that, but Demyx soon learned that Zexion looked absolutely fucking adorable curled up in one of the giant armchairs, and that he positively glowed whenever he played the piano.
It didn't take Demyx long to realize he was in love.
More accurately, it didn't take long for Axel to notice and start teasing him endlessly about it. Axel would grin whenever Zexion walked in the room, whisper something to Demyx that would make him blush furiously and punch the redhead in the arm. Zexion would laugh whenever this happened, commenting that Axel was a huge git that probably deserved it and sat next to Demyx, most times carrying a book with him. Of course, this would just make Axel snicker more and for Demyx to punch him until he was forced to get up, walking away snickering to himself. Demyx would turn and apologize, but Zexion would just be sitting there, a content smirk on his face.
Zexion's first impression of Demyx was that he was far too friendly for his own good, and it didn't take long for him to realize that he was right. From the day that Demyx decided to sit next to him, Zexion had found himself caught up with the blond, twisted in his life. He was pulled from one place to another, everything moving far too quickly for Zexion to comprehend. Even so, for as loud and obnoxiously eager as Demyx was, Zexion found himself slowly liking the blond boy.
Demyx was outgoing, loud and impulsive, all things that Zexion were not, and he just couldn't figure him out. One moment Zexion would be absolutely sure that Demyx was nothing but eager and happy, shallow and blissfully ignorant, but then Demyx would calm down and close his eyes and just stop for a moment, feeling everything around him. The air, the scent of the wind, the sound of it rustling through the grass, and Zexion would suddenly be acutely aware of just how close they were. All his assumptions were tossed aside, Demyx contradicting everything he thought. Zexion just couldn't figure him out, couldn't map out his mind like everyone else's.
Even six months later, a year later, Demyx still managed to surprise Zexion. He surprised him by buying his favourite kind of tea for his birthday - both because he knew his favourite tea and when his birthday was without asking. He did it by meeting him outside his classes and knowing all the places he would go when he wanted to be alone. For as much as Zexion had tried to be alone, to distance himself from other people, Demyx had forced his way in and made a home there and refused to budge.
As it was, Zexion was sitting in the library when Demyx found him next, appearing silently by his side a few minutes after school. Not that he stayed quiet for long, of course. "Hey, Zexion, a few of us were thinking of going out to a movie, you want to come?"
Zexion raised an eyebrow. "'A few'? How much is a few?"
Demyx grinned sheepishly. "Well… There's Sora, Roxas and Riku, Kairi and Nams, and they're bringing Hayner's gang too. Just a few."
Zexion sighed, setting down the book he'd hardly started reading. "I don't suppose I have a choice, do I?"
Demyx brightened, smiled. "No, not really. I'd have been dragging you along anyway, interacting with people is good for the soul!"
By now Zexion had learned that much of what Demyx said didn't make any sense, nor was it meant to. He just nodded, albeit a little skeptically. "It's not my soul I'm worried about, it's my physical health and mental wellbeing. I see Axel isn't going?"
For some reason that Zexion couldn't fathom, Demyx's cheeks brushed a very light pink and he fidgeted a bit, shuffling his feet on the ground. "Uh, yeah. Axel's busy with, uh, homework. School stuff, you know how behind he is."
Zexion raised an eyebrow. He did know how behind Axel was - if anything, it was a constant state of his - but the idea of Axel blowing off a movie to do his homework was unimaginable. Demyx seemed distracted by it, though, so he decided not to bring it up again. He kept it at the back of his mind, something to think about later. "Well then, if you say so. I'm almost looking forward to it, without that crazy pyromaniac going."
Demyx laughed. "Aww, he's not that bad. You just hate him because of that one time he set your hair on fire."
Zexion's face darkened, knowing exactly what Demyx was talking about. Yes, he did hate Axel for setting his hair on fire, and that wasn't the only thing. Tipping out his tea, soaking his notes in paper and dying half his shirts pink was only a few on the growing list of things Zexion hated about Axel. Of course, the red head said that he didn't mean to, that they were all accidents (and he had apologized), but that didn't mean Zexion had to believe him. "Where shall I meet you?"
"I'll pick you up from the dorms at six," Demyx replied. "Anyway, I gotta meet up with Axel and do a few things before we leave, so I'll see you later," he said, not waiting for a reply before he left.
Zexion didn't watch him leave for very long, just returned to his book. He didn't realize until later that it was the first time Demyx had left without him.
Zexion didn't notice the shoe box sitting on his bed until he fell on to it, and even then it took a lot of blinking and confusion for him to realize that something was underneath him. The afternoon had exhausted him: of course it wasn't just a movie, it was karaoke and dinner and Demyx running around in the dark in a blind panic, thinking that zombies were after him. As a result, it was far past midnight by the time Zexion got back, and he was ready to collapse wherever and just fall asleep, Axel be damned.
Speaking of his red haired roommate (which no amount of reasoning, pleading or bribing had managed to get him to move), Zexion realized he was nowhere to be found. It wasn't all too strange; the man stayed in other rooms more often than his own, and if anything it meant that he would get a few more hours of sleep. First, though, he had to deal with the thing digging in to his side.
The box was gray and incredibly light and he'd have thought it was empty, if only it didn't rattle when it moved. His name was scrawled over the lid in bold capital letters, and someone had coloured them in to make sure it stood out. He looked at it for a while, blinking and wondering whose handwriting it could be before opening it.
Inside was a cassette tape with a post-it note stuck to it reading "play me." He took it out, rolling it around on his hands and unsticking the note to see if anything else was scrawled on it. The only other thing on the note was a "IX" written in tiny, pinched pencil on the corner of the note. He stuck the post-it to the top of the shoebox, and that was when he noticed a tiny piece of paper taped to the bottom of the lid.
Zexion,
I think I've fallen in love with you. I hope you don't mind, but I made you a mix tape. (Please listen to it).
-IX
For a moment he was worried, wondering exactly who would have had the guts to just stroll right into his room and leave a box sitting there for him, but then he realized it wouldn't have been hard. He'd been out tonight, and Axel was hardly ever around anyway, so it wouldn't have been hard to find the room empty. Getting in, however, would have been another matter entirely…
He shook his head. That wouldn't have been hard, either; the locks weren't exactly very good, and admittedly he'd broken into his fair share of the rooms. Chances are Axel wouldn't have locked it anyway. A walk in the park.
A tiny smile tugged at the edge of his lip. Here he was, tape in hands from someone who said he loved him. He probably should have been a bit more concerned, but to be honest no one had ever even told him they appreciated him, let alone liked him and now out of the blue he had a "secret admirer."
The words sounded strange on his lips.
He leaned over the side of the bed and pulled out a wooden box he kept underneath. It held a few of his childhood possessions, and one of them was an old walkman that had belonged to him. He put his headphones on, popped the tape in and there was static for a moment, then the music picked up. Whatever he had been expecting (if he were being honest, it was probably some kind of horrible pop music), it wasn't this.
Ludovico Einaudi's Nuvole Bianche met him, and a strong sense of peace washed over him, as well as love and respect and surprise that this person, whoever they were, knew something about his music taste. Of course he knew who Ludovico Einaudi was. He played many of his pieces on the piano in his spare time, and thought it some of the most relaxing music in existence. No one else knew that, though; no one was around when he played, and it didn't exactly pop up in every day conversation all the time. He smiled again, new found respect for his admirer, and lay down on his bed, headphones covering his ears completely.
The music moved from one piece to another, fluidly transitioning without much trouble, all of it Ludovico Einaudi. In the back of his mind he realized that these weren't the original recordings; rather, someone else had recorded themselves playing the piano. He vaguely wondered who it was, and how they had managed to make a tape, and how they knew where he stayed, and whether it was a boy or a girl, and after a while he stopped wondering all together and drifted off to sleep.
And that was how Axel found him hours later, fast asleep on his bed clutching the shoebox, headphones over his ears with the music long since finished and whining gently in the cassette player. He smiled, gently flipping the tape around and playing the other side. Zexion didn't react, still fast asleep as grainy static played through the headphones. After a few minutes of white noise playing, the sound crackled and a voice played through his speakers.
"Hey, Zexion, you don't know who I am, but I think you should know that I…"
I like Ludovico Einaudi; his music really is soothing. Nuvole Bianche sends me to sleep most nights x3
Anyhow, this chapter was really short. After this one, though, they should start picking up a bit and getting a lot longer, you could call this one an introduction of sorts. Also, if I get my way, this will have either nine or ten chapters. c:
Thank you for reading!
