Author Notes: Here is the second chapter of 'We Don't Fight Fair', you guys have no idea how much trouble I went through trying to get this up to length. Finally, however, it is long enough.

-start rant-

Um, guys, I freaking work my rear off typing this for you! I am neglecting other, reviewing readers so as you lot can be a-reading this. So, FREAKING REVIEW! I'm sorry, but it is fully not cool for me to have like, eleven faves/alerts and three freaking reviews! Review dammit! I don't care if you're not the type to review, if you read this, then you are. Not reviewing when you fave/alert is just showing what a lazy bugger you are.

-end rant-

Dedication: Rapu-kun for being very teh awesome-ness this weekend.

Summary: "Do you know what it feels like to be hated? Cos I do." He's been hated and shunned and taken advantage of by everyone. Until Axel arrives.

Pairings: Teh obviousness lovelies.

Suggested Listening : Once In Every Lifetime - Jem

Here In Your Arms - HelloGoodbye

Disclaimer: If you thought I owned this, you need a brain transplant, seriously.

Hate Me

By; Red Darling

I'm losing you, losing you to the ones who hate me...

As Sora walked into school the next day, he felt just as nervous, just as scared, just as worried as he had the day before. In fact, he probably felt more so now. All it would take for his temporary safety to come crashing down was for Axel to say a word. One word. Once he said that tiny, two-sylabal word, it would all be over. Axel would join the ranks of those who hated him. The worst thing was that it would be even harder seeing the vicious hate coming from Axel's eyes now, after he'd seen such kindness shining through them.

Yesterday had been a double edged sword.

Oh gods.

At the thought, Sora turned to the nearest bush and lost his breakfast. Not that he'd had much. Most of it was probably last night's dinner. He wiped his mouth and continued walking. It was a conscious battle to keep going, all Sora really wanted to do was curl up somewhere and never come out. Unfortunately, that would kind of result in him dying, and for all the crap going on in his life, Sora had never once felt suicidal.

When the school came into view, he actually stopped. Someone walked past and shoved him, almost making him fall. Sora caught himself and gave a generous sigh, hesitating wouldn't make things any easier, nor would it postpone Axel finding out. In fact, hesitating would do nothing but get him knocked about by the people passing.

With a heavy heart and absolutely no hope for the future, Sora walked through the gates.

When lunch time rolled around, Sora slipped outside quietly, searching the area for any sign of Axel. He wasn't there, thank gods.

"Hey."

"Eeeyap!"

On the other hand, he could have been standing, oh, three feet away.

Not looking up, not risking a glimpse of those eyes, Sora ducked down a corridor and started running, he ran and ran and refused to stop. He needed to get away, get far away. He didn't want to be near Axel. Gods, he didn't want to see the two-sided betrayal. He needed to go somewhere, anywhere safe. He only had one hiding place, the concrete slope under the library, almost blocked off by the fences that announced the school's boundary.

Unfortunately, one of his tormentors was waiting there for him. At least it wasn't Riku. Sora cringed, but he couldn't turn around. He'd rather be used and hurt by this person than see Axel.

Apart from the lunch time incident, Sora didn't see Axel, and in most ways, he was glad. In other, stupider ways, he wished he'd caught a glimpse of those green eyes, hate-filled or not, which was idiotic, considering what he'd been through getting away. It was only as Sora left his last class that he really remembered the worst thing about today; Riku. He would not be happy, not happy at all. Sora was so in for it that wasn't funny. He hid in the classroom for as long as he could, then started to creep out of the school, he was almost there, almost free. But then he turned a corner.

"Shit."

Riku was standing there, glaring.

"You are in so much fucking trouble." As he said it, Riku moved forward. His stride was deliberate and terrifying. He kept walking forward, even when Sora was right in front of him, making the shorter boy move back. Riku was so close, so scarily close, and then he stepped back a little, looking down the path Sora had travelled walked through.

Sora followed his tormentor's gaze.

Axel.

Riku backed up a little, he didn't seem to want to be seen by Axel.

"I'll get you." he hissed. "Not now, but I'll get you. It is not going to be fun, believe me. Not fun at all." with that, Riku turned and walked away, leaving Sora breathless with fear. He stood there for a moment, frozen on the spot, taking nothing in.

"Sora? Hello, Sora?"

Sora looked up, Axel was smiling at him. But, that wasn't right. Axel was supposed to hate him. Why was he not glaring?

He must not have said it, he must have kept quiet.

"Sora, you egg. Why did you run away at lunch? And what happened to your lip? Sora?"

Sora, Sora, Sora.

The words echoed through his head. He hadn't said his name, up until now it seemed. But he'd just said it.

And in front of Riku.

Shakily, Sora looked up at Riku, who was frozen. While he watched, Riku turned around and glared with all the force he had.

"Sora." Riku began walking towards them, he no longer seemed to care that Axel was there. "Sora." He was close now, close enough to through a punch if he wanted to.

"I can't believe you would have the audacity to even think that name, let alone use it."

Smack.

Sora's head spun from the impact, but he was with it enough to push Axel back and whisper 'no', the red-head looked fit to knock Riku out.

"I'm sorry Riku."

Thump.

"Do I care? No. No I don't you little bastard. Your 'apology' means nothing to me. Don't even think about daring to say that name again, you hear me?" Riku looked down at 'Sora', who was currently curled up on the ground, whimpering slightly from the strength of the punch that had hit him, then at Axel. He decided it might be time to leave.

As Riku left, Axel took a step forward, he really should deck that little bugger.

"Axel?"

Axel glanced down and shook his head. How could he have been thinking about Riku when his friend was like this? He dropped to his knees and put a hand on the blond's shoulder.

"Sora? Are you okay?"

Riku spun around and snapped at him. "His name's not Sora. He's not worthy of that name."

"Then what is his name?"

"Roxas. The bastard's name is Roxas."

"Sure. Whatever."

Axel looked back down at Roxas when Riku turned another corner and left his sight.

"What the hell was that about?"

"Long story." Roxas groaned.

"We have time."

"Painful story?" he tried.

"I have painkillers."

Roxas sighed and sat up, wishing he didn't have to tell Axel this.

"Riku loved my twin brother, Sora."

Axel's eyes widened in disbelief.

"He loved your brother, yet he does this to you?"

"Yeah." Roxas rubbed his forehead wearily.

"Gods, that guy is one sick bitch."

The blond didn't respond.

"Wait," when he remembered the split lip and awkwardness with which Roxas had been holding his wrist, something clicked in Axel's mind. "How often has this happened?"

"With Riku?" Roxas felt vile, sick just saying it. "Too often. With people in general? Most days, sometimes more."

"No." Axel muttered, shaking his head. "No, that's not right. Why didn't you do something?"

"Because." slowly, so he didn't fall over, Roxas stood up.

"Because what?" Axel gazed up desperately. "Wait, where are you going?"

"I'm going after Riku."

"If you want to deal with him, I'll go."

"No, you're staying here."

"What? Are you crazy? He'll beat you to a pulp and molest you again!"

"That's why I'm going."

Axel blinked. "Can we rewind and replay that last scene? I thought you just said you were going because of what he'll do to you when you do."

Roxas raised an eyebrow at Axel's speech, then sighed. "I deserve it."

"Excuse me So- Roxas, but you do not deserve to be hurt like that!"

Roxas turned away so that he didn't have to see Axel's face.

"I do deserve it. I killed my brother Axel, I killed the boy he loved."

Axel watched Roxas walk away. He remained on the ground as Roxas turned the corner. He heard the first yelp of pain, then he blocked it all out. It was too much to take in. He knew, just knew that he should be jumping to his feet and running to Roxas' aid, but he couldn't bring himself to move.

Roxas' words had hit him like a ton of bricks. Spiky bricks with anger management problems. How could he deal with that kind of confession? How could he ignore it? How could he not? How could he sit here and do nothing while Riku...

Cos' the worst thing about all this wasn't that Roxas was apparently a murderer. It wasn't that Roxas was getting hurt. It wasn't that Roxas had been hurt. It was the fact that when Axel finally forced himself to go and help, he would have to look into those brilliantly blue eyes and know that he could have saved him. It was the unbelievably huge amount of guilt, sure to fill him that was the worst part.

He had no idea how long he sat there numbly, but once Riku appeared in the distance, glaring once then leaving, it all fell away. Axel stood up stiffly, his steps hesitant as he walked towards the corner that hid Roxas. The term 'passive bullying' kept going through his head; the people who stood back and watched as someone was bullied were just as bad as the bullies themselves. Did that make him as bad as Riku?

Gods, he hoped not.

It took a huge amount of effort to actually turn the corner, Axel was so afraid of what he'd find that he almost didn't, but; Roxas. Was. Hurt. He needed to help, he needed to stop being so selfish.

"Roxas? Oh gods."

Roxas was curled up into a tiny ball. He didn't look too hurt, but he just looked so broken. His shirt was ripped, and there was blond hair on the ground. Axel gently touched Roxas' shoulder, and was rewarded with a shudder.

"Rox, it's me, Axel."

It was a few moments before Roxas looked up. He snuffled.

"I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"For everything." the blond sobbed a little and tried to shuffle away.

"Rox, calm down, I'm not going to hurt you."

"But you hate me."

"No I don't." Axel had to fight to keep his voice even. "Why would you think that?"

"Everyone hates me."

"I don't."

"You should."

"I don't." Axel repeated.

"Why not?"

"Why should I?"

"I'm... I'm a," hic " murderer." sniff "I'm a pathetic waste of space." sob.

"No, you're not. I have no idea what's actually happened, but..." Axel hesitated for a moment then dove in head-first. "I've decided I don't care."

"How can you just 'not care'? I'm a murderer!"

"Well, if you were dangerous you wouldn't be here now would you? You would be in jail. So I'm not scared of you. And then there's the fact that you're still the same person you were yesterday." Oh, and then there's the fact that you're too bloody cute for your own good. But you know, that totally didn't affect my decision at all.

"So, you don't care what I've done, you're willing to befriend someone you've only just met even though they've done awful things?"

"Yup."

"That's just retarded."

"Do you want me to hate you?"

"No, it's just I-"

"Well," Axel cut in "I'd rather like someone and find out I've made a mistake, then hate them, cause damage and find out that they've done nothing wrong."

Roxas shook his head, this guy was nuts.

"C'mon, let's take you home."

There was a thoughtful silence for a moment, then;

"'Kay."

With a half smile, half shudder, Roxas allowed the red-head to scoop him up. He didn't see the grin that resulted from hiding his face in the taller boy's shoulder.

End Notes: Big Taanku-ness to those who did review, and a please review to those who didn't.