I'm SO sorry for the late update. We got some Internet connection problems, I got to review for the exams, I have a lot of schoolwork to do, and I got sick for four days, so I don't have time to type this chapter or go to the Internet shop. I'm also working on Chapter Three.

Anyway, thanks for the reviews! I really appreciate it. I was really nervous because I thought I'll receive some negative reviews.

In this chapter, you'll finally know why Roxas didn't join the Music Club. Hooray! :)

Well, sorry for the long author's note. I hope you'll enjoy reading this!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, its characters, and the song used in this chapter.


CHAPTER TWO: A MYSTERIOUS VOICE

The two brothers finally arrived at school. A lot of students were at the school grounds. Some were chatting, and some were waiting for their other friends at the school gate.

Roxas really wanted to break the tension between him and Ven. He finally felt relieved when he saw Sora and Riku waiting for him near the guardhouse. "Well," he finally said after the long silence between him and his brother. "Looks like Sora and Riku are waiting for me. I'll see you later!" he waved at his brother as he walked towards his friends.

"Right," Ven said with a tone of disappointment in his voice. "See you." He watched his brother go to his friends.

Ven's friends, Terra and Aqua, were sitting at the waiting shed near the school gate. When they saw Ven, they stood up and walked towards him. Ven continued to watch Roxas.

"Hey, Ven," Terra said, putting a hand on Ven's shoulder. "How's your morning?"

Ven didn't budge or look at his friends.

Aqua saw the disappointment on his face. "Is there something wrong?" she said, concerned. "Do you have a problem?"

"Roxas…" Ven finally said, more to himself than to his friends. "I really wonder why he didn't join the Music Club."

Aqua gave Terra a worried look. Terra returned the same look to his girlfriend. They both looked back to their troubled friend. "Let's talk about it in the classroom," Aqua said, putting a hand on Ven's other shoulder as they started heading towards their classroom.

As Ven, Terra, and Aqua started to head towards their classroom, Roxas and his friends walked to their classroom, too. They were talking about Sora's silent yet smart cousin, Naminé. "Man," Sora said. "You don't know how proud I am to have a cousin like her."

Riku laughed. "Oh, come on, Sora," he told him. "You're just saying that because she's helping you in the subject where you really suck."

"Oh yeah?" Sora exclaimed, annoyed. "I don't remember that I suck in any subject."

"Well, you suck in Math."

"No, I don't!"

While the two friends were arguing, Roxas turned his head to see if Ven was still there. He saw him look back at him with disappointment on his face.

Roxas quickly turned away to avoid Ven's gaze. Riku noticed this. He looked from Ven to Roxas while Sora continued to complain to him. "Did you and your brother have a conflict?" he asked Roxas.

Roxas was not even surprised at what Riku said. He knew his friend's a really good observer. "Actually, yeah," he said, looking forward as they walk.

Sora, who was still complaining to Riku, stopped when he heard this. "Really?" he asked, looking at Roxas. "What was it about?"

"It's about why I didn't join the Music Club."

Sora and Riku were shocked to hear this. "Are you serious?" they both exclaimed.

Roxas nodded. He looked down and sighed. "I can't believe that all this time he's been wondering about it," he said. "All this time, he's pretending that it's nothing to him."

"What reason did you gave him?" Riku asked.

"I told him I like English better than Music. But he knew I was lying."

"Wow," Riku said, amazed. "Your brother really has a strong sense of intuition. My brother told me about him." Like Roxas, Riku's also a musician. His elder brother is Terra.

Roxas nodded in agreement. "You can say that again," he said.

"Why don't you just tell him the real reason?" Sora told Roxas.

"I can't tell my big brother that I didn't join the club because of him," Roxas said as he looked at Sora, a bit annoyed. "I don't want him to ask me more questions"

"Alright, alright," Sora said, waving his hands frantically to calm his friend down. "Don't be mad. Relax."


Meanwhile, inside their classroom, there were still a few students inside. Some were chatting, and some were doing something else (like their homework!).

Naminé sat on one of the seats in the third row, tapping her pen on her open notebook and thinking very hard. Beside her sat Kairi, her best friend.

Naminé began writing, concentrating really hard on what she's doing. After a long silence, Kairi finally spoke up. "Um…Naminé," she said.

"Yes?" Naminé asked, glancing at Kairi as she adjusted her eyeglasses and continued writing.

Kairi looked around to see if someone is listening. When she didn't see anyone, she looked back at Naminé. "Did you ever like someone?" she asked.

Naminé stopped writing and looked up to her red-haired friend. "Excuse me?" she asked, making sure if she heard right. "What did you just said?"

Kairi looked around again. She leaned towards Naminé to whisper something in her ear. "Did you ever like someone?" she repeated her question. She finally straightened, waiting for Naminé's answer.

Naminé looked at her best friend with a mixture of surprise and disbelief on her face. Kairi just gazed at her, expectantly. Naminé finally sighed and continued writing. "You know I don't have time for things like that, Kairi," she said as she stops and looks up at the ceiling, thinking on what she's going to write. "I'm more focused on my studies. It's my very first priority." She shifted her blue eyes to Kairi. "Why? Do you already like someone?"

Kairi bit her lower lip, hesitating. After a few seconds of silence, she finally sighed and nodded.

Naminé couldn't help but gape at her. "Really?" she exclaimed. "Who is he?"

When Kairi was about to tell her, she stopped when Roxas, Sora, and Riku entered. Kairi's blue eyes grew wide. "Oh my gosh!" she whispered. "There he is!"

Naminé stared at her, confused. She finally looked at the three boys who entered as they walk towards their seats. "Gee, Roxas," she heard Sora say as they sat behind Kairi and Naminé. "It really looks like a big problem. You really don't know if you'll tell him about it or not."

Roxas just nodded, still affected about everything that happened that morning.

As Naminé looked back to Kairi, she saw her watching the boys and blushing as Sora talked to his troubled friend. Naminé giggled as she began writing once again. "It's my cousin, isn't it?"

Kairi shook her head and blinked a few times as she recovered from her trance. She looked at Naminé. "What?"

Naminé smiled as she wrote. "The boy you like," she said. "It's Sora, right?"

Kairi sighed and nodded. "Is it obvious?" she asked.

"Not really."

Kairi smiled as she opened the textbook on her armchair. "You really are my best friend." She looked at her friend's notebook. "Hey, are you really sure you don't want me to see what you're writing?"

Naminé nodded. "It's really a secret," she said. "And a surprise."

"Okay," Kairi said. "You know me. I really like surprises coming from you."

While the two girls laughed, Roxas was thinking of a way to change the subject. "Can we just stop talking about what happened to me this morning?" he asked, becoming a bit annoyed. "It's making me feel worse."

"Oh," Riku said. "Sorry about that. We're just thinking how to make you feel better."

Roxas smiled. "Thanks, guys," he told them.

"Sure, don't mention it," Sora said. After a few seconds, he suddenly exclaimed, making his two friends jump in surprise. "Hey, I know! Why don't you just sing a song, Roxas?"

"Yeah, he's right," Riku said. "You always feel better when you sing, right?"

Roxas nodded. Singing made him feel relaxed when he's really stressed out or he's feeling down. Maybe I will feel better when I sing now, he thought.

"But, what will he sing?" Riku asked.

"Hmm…" Sora said, thinking for a while. "How about 'Friend of Mine'?"

Roxas smiled. "Friend of Mine" was one of his favorite songs. Sora really knows how to brighten things up, he told himself.

"That's a great idea, Sora," Riku said as he smirked at Roxas. "Maybe Roxas will feel better if he'll sing his song for his childhood crush."

"Whoa, whoa," Roxas exclaimed, absent-mindedly putting his hand in one of his pockets. "You mean former childhood crush."

"Is it really a former childhood crush?" Riku teased as Roxas pulled something out of his pocket. When Roxas completely had it out, Riku pointed at it. "Then how come you still have the lucky charm she gave you?"

Roxas looked at the star-shaped charm in his hand. It's a gift from his classmate in second grade. He always cherished it, especially when the girl who gave it to him moved to another town. He looked at Riku. "Of course I still have it," he reacted. "This charm had been given to me by one of my friends. I'm still gonna cherish it no matter what happens."

Sora smirked as well. "Is that really all?" he teased.

Roxas rolled his eyes as he returned the lucky charm in his pocket and leaned forward to get his guitar. He stopped when he saw that it wasn't there. "Of course," he said as he straightened when he remembered something. "Bro left it at their classroom." He grew silent once again as he remembered his conflict with Ven that morning.

Riku noticed Roxas' silence. He knew that his friend remembered about the event that morning. "Why don't we just borrow Hayner's?" he suggested. He looked at the other side of the classroom. "Hayner!"

Hayner, who was talking to his friends, Pence and Olette, looked at Riku. "What?" he called back to him.

"Can we borrow your guitar?"

"Sure. It's over there." Hayner pointed at the guitar case on the empty seat beside Kairi.

"I'll get it," Sora volunteered. He stood up and walked past Naminé's and Kairi's seats. Naminé knew that her friend was blushing. She smiled.

As Sora went back to his friends, he waved at the two girls. "Hi, Kairi," he greeted. "Hi, cousin."

Kairi bashfully waved back to him while Naminé smiled at Sora. When Sora's finally out of sight, Kairi held Naminé's right arm and began shaking it. Naminé giggled.

Sora handed the guitar case to Roxas. "Thanks," Roxas said as he took it from him. He took out the guitar from the case and got out a pick from his pocket.

"That's weird," Sora remarked as Roxas got into his playing position. "You don't have a guitar, but you have a pick."

"Boy Scout?" Riku joked as Sora laughed and gave him a high-five.

Roxas laughed at his joke. He placed his fingers on the frets and looked around. He knew that everyone will stop whatever their doing and watch him play and sing. He was, after all, the most talented in music among all his classmates.

He was right. Everyone in the classroom except Naminé stopped everything their doing and turned their attention to him. He saw Naminé, who was sitting on front of him, stopped writing. He knew that she's going to listen to him as well, even though she's not looking at him. She never talked to anyone, except Kairi and Sora. Roxas really wanted her to become his friend. He really admired her smartness. He always had the feeling that he met her before. Even thought she's not talking to him, it made him happy that she's still listening at his singing.

Roxas looked at Sora and Riku. They both nodded at him. With this signal, he began playing and singing.

I've known you for so long you are a friend of mine

But babe, is this all we'd ever be

I've loved you ever since you were a friend of mine

But babe, is this all we ever could be

He suddenly heard a voice singing with him.

You tell me things I've never known

You showed me love you've never shown

But then again when you cry

I'm always at your side

You tell 'bout the love you've had

I listen very eagerly

But deep inside you'll never see

This feeling of emptiness

It makes me feel sad

But then again

I'm glad

As Roxas continued singing and playing, everyone watched him, even the newly arrived ones. He can still hear the voice singing with him, and he was sure that it's a girl's.

I've known you all my life you are a friend of mine

I know this is how it's gonna be

I've loved you then and I love you still you're a friend of mine

I know that friends are all we ever could be

You tell me things I've never known

You showed me love you've never shown

But then again when you cry

I'm always at your side

You tell 'bout the love you've had

I listen very eagerly

But deep inside you'll never see

This feeling of emptiness

It makes me feel sad

But then again

I'm glad

Roxas listened as he and the mysterious voice sang together. He looked around the classroom, expecting to see the source of the voice, but he didn't found anyone.

You tell me things I've never known

You showed me love you've never shown

But then again when you cry

I'm always at your side

You tell 'bout the love you've had

I listen very eagerly

But deep inside you'll never see

This feeling of emptiness

It makes me feel sad

But then again

But then again

But then again

I'm glad

When Roxas finished singing and playing, everyone clapped their hands, including Naminé, who finally looked behind her with a smile on her face. Roxas thanked her by nodding at her. Kairi looked from Naminé to Roxas. She smiled at Naminé. Roxas continued to look around him, still searching for the owner of the mysterious voice. He finally gave up his search.

When the clapping stopped, Sora and Riku helped Roxas in returning the guitar to its case. Riku placed it on Hayner's seat.

Roxas waited patiently for his friends to tell them about the voice. Sora and Riku sat beside him. Before he could say something, Sora was the first one to speak. "Are you feeling alright now?" he asked.

"Yeah," Roxas said. "Thanks a lot."

They both smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. Roxas took a deep breath before starting. "Guys?" he began. "Did you hear another voice while I'm singing?"

Sora and Riku exchanged confused looks. "No, we didn't," Riku said as they looked back to Roxas. "Why did you ask?"

"Okay," Roxas said. "I know this sounds crazy, but I heard someone singing with me, and I think it's a girl."

He didn't notice that Naminé stopped writing when she heard what he said. Kairi noticed this. She looked up to her friend and saw the surprise look on her face.

"We didn't hear anyone singing with you," Sora said. He stopped for a while and suddenly exclaimed, once again making his friends jump in surprise. "Oh, no! Does that mean our school is haunted?"

Everyone inside the classroom looked at him. He suddenly covered his mouth, realizing his mistake. "Sorry," he said, holding out a peace sign to everyone. "I'm just joking."

Kairi giggled at this. When everyone went back in doing their own business, Sora turned to Roxas. "Seriously, Roxas," he said. "You really heard a voice singing with you?"

When Roxas nodded, Riku spoke up. "Then," he began. "How come we didn't hear anything? You're the only one that we heard. There's no other voice."

"I don't know," Roxas said as he looked outside the window. He glanced at Sora and Riku, and then looked back outside. "But, you know what, guys?"

Sora and Riku watched their blond friend, waiting for him to say more. "When I heard our voices singing together," Roxas said. "I really think our voices blended harmoniously. We can make a great combination in singing."

Naminé, who was secretly listening to the conversation, finally turned her head to look at Roxas. Roxas noticed this and looked at her. She instantly looked away and wrote in her notebook again. Roxas watched her for a long time, thinking about the mysterious voice at the same time.


Song used in this chapter: Friend of Mine

Well, that's the end of Chapter Two. I typed it as fast as I could so I can update quickly. Now you know that Roxas didn't join the Music Club because of Ven. In one of the next chapters, you'll know why it's Ven. I guess you already have an idea who Roxas' childhood friend is and who owns the mysterious voice. I left a lot of clues in this chapter, so I hope you'll discover who it is.

I also had a hard time on the song part. I can't think of a song that's good for male and female voices. My first thought is "You'll Be in My Heart" by Phil Collins, but I think it sounds wrong. I also thought of "How Did You Know", but I think it's too short. So, I had no choice but "Friend of Mine". (I'm not very updated in songs, so these are a bit old.)

Once again, I'm sorry about the long author's note and the grammatical errors. Please review (I'm gonna be nervous, again!). I hope you enjoyed reading this!